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Published On: October 15, 2017 04:43 PM NPT By: Associated Press
MARQUETTE, Oct, 15: A university in Michigan is offering an unusual degree — in marijuana.
Northern Michigan University in Marquette began its medical plant chemistry program this semester, with about a dozen students in the first class, the Detroit Free Press reported. The program combines chemistry, biology, botany, horticulture, marketing and finance.
It's an unusual program. Other universities offer classes on marijuana policy and law. And places such as Oaksterdam University, Cannabis College, and Humboldt Cannabis College, all in California; and THC University, the Grow School and Clover Leaf University in Denver offer certificates in a variety of disciplines. But Northern Michigan's program is unique because the university is offering a four-year degree addressing the science and business behind growing marijuana.
"When they hear what my major is, there are a lot of people who say, 'Wow, cool dude. You're going to get a degree growing marijuana,'" said Alex Roth, a sophomore in the program. "But it's not an easy degree at all."
Brandon Canfield, an associate chemistry professor at Northern Michigan, said students don't grow marijuana plants in the program, but instead look to other plants that are traditionally recognized with medicinal value but aren't illegal to grow. Students learn how to measure and extract the compounds in the plants that can be used for medicinal purposes, then transfer that knowledge to marijuana, which has been used to treat a variety of illnesses, including chronic pain, nausea, seizures and glaucoma.
Canfield said he got the idea while attending the American Chemical Society's annual meeting in San Diego last year.
"It was my off day and I saw there was a cannabis chemistry group that was putting on a whole series of talks," he said. "I heard all about the need for analytical chemists and all sorts of interesting talks. That was the initial spark."
University officials say the program fills a need because 29 states have legalized medical marijuana, including eight states where marijuana is also legal for recreational use.
"Many of the states are legalizing different substances and they're really looking for quality people to do the chemistry and the science," said university trustee James Haveman. "And it's the university's responsibility to produce those kinds of students for those kinds of jobs."
In Michigan, voters in 2008 approved the use of marijuana to treat certain illnesses, but the law has confused many and has led to significant legal disputes, including over how to obtain and store the drug. The state is developing a new regulatory system aimed at increasing oversight and imposing new taxes on the industry. Applications for licenses will be available on Dec. 15.


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April Newsletter: At What Age Should You Spay or Neuter Your Pet?
- Created in Newsletter Library
At What Age Should You Spay or Neuter Your Pet?
Are you wondering when you should spay or neuter your new pet? Although recommendations for when to spay or neuter your pets varies depending on the type of animal you have, these surgeries are most often performed during a pet's first year of life.
Spaying and Neutering Age Recommendations
Spaying (for females) and neutering (for males) are surgeries that eliminate heat cycles in females and prevent reproduction in both sexes. Your veterinarian neuters your male pet by removing his testicles. Spay surgeries involve removing the uterus, ovaries, and fallopian tubes in female pets.
The surgeries are recommended at these ages:
- Dogs. The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) recommends spaying and neutering small-breed dogs at six months or before the first heat in females. Large breed dogs should be spayed or neutered when the pet has stopped growing, which can occur between 9 to 15 months.
- Cats. The AAHA's "Fix Felines by Five" campaign endorses spaying and neutering cats by 5 months.
- Rabbits. The Best Friends Animal Society notes that young rabbits can be spayed when they're sexually mature, which may happen between 3 to 6 months of age. Dwarf breeds reach sexual maturity earlier than full-size breeds.
- Ferrets. Merck Manual notes that most ferrets are spayed or neutered by the time they're 6 weeks old. If females aren't spayed and start a heat cycle, they will remain in heat until they're bred, according to the Manual.
Your pet's veterinarian can help you decide the perfect time to spay or neuter your pet. Spaying and neutering surgeries aren't just for young animals. Most animals, regardless of age, can be spayed or neutered.
Spaying and Neutering Benefits
Spaying and neutering offers many benefits for your pet's health and well-being, including:
- Lower Cancer Risk. Spaying and neutering eliminates the risk of testicular cancer in males and uterine and ovarian cancer in females. It also decreases your female pet's risk of mammary (breast) cancer. According to the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS), breast tumors occur more often in unspayed female dogs or dogs that were spayed after age 2. The ACVS also notes that cats spayed before 6 months have a seven-time lower risk of developing mammary cancer. Female rabbits are also at increased risk of cancer, particularly uterine cancer when not spayed. Neutering reduces the risk of testicular or prostate cancer in male rabbits.
- No Desire to Roam. Your pet may roam far from home to fulfill its mating instincts if not spayed or neutered. Pets that roam are more likely to be hit by cars or injured in other ways.
- Reduced Spraying. Your pet may not be able to search for love on a dating app, but it has its own way of attracting a potential mate. Spraying small amounts of urine helps unaltered cats, dogs, rabbits, and ferrets announce they're available, in addition to marking their territory. Spaying and neutering may reduce or eliminate this behavior.
- Fewer Reproductive Health Problems. Removing the testicles, ovaries, uterus, and fallopian tubes may also reduce reproductive system health issues in pets. Your male pets may be less likely to develop hernias or prostate disease, while females can avoid pyometra. Pyometra is a potentially deadly uterine infection that tends to affect pets that have been in heat at least several times.
- No Unwanted Litters. Spaying and neutering helps reduce the number of unwanted animals in the U.S. According to the ASPCA, more than 6 million pets enter shelters every year, but only 4 million find new homes. Spaying and neutering ensures that your pet doesn't contribute to the pet overpopulation problem.
Is it time to spay or neuter your pet? Contact our office to make an appointment for an exam and discuss scheduling your pet's surgery.
American Animal Hospital Association: When Should I Spay or Neuter My Pet?
Best Friends Animal Society: Rabbit Spay/Neuter: What to Know
Merck Manual: Breeding and Reproduction of Ferrets, 10/2022
American College of Veterinary Surgeons: Mammary Tumors
Ross University College of Veterinary Medicine: Spay vs Neuter: Benefits of Spaying and Neutering Your Pets, 11/1/2023

subset: commoncrawl


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Santa Coloma de Cervelló used to be a small town dedicated to agriculture located close to Barcelona until its small territorial area, population density and financial solvency were all optimised thanks to the foundation of an industrial estate within its borders. It is the most magnificent and best preserved industrial estate in Catalonia and has been listed as a cultural heritage site.
In 1890, Eusebi Güell i Bacigalupi moved the Vapor Vell textile factory from Sants to a building that his father, Joan Güell i Ferrer, had acquired in Santa Coloma de Cervelló. It was there that he wanted to develop the innovative idea of a Garden City, which was inspired by his contacts with England. A place in which life and work were united in highly satisfactory conditions, in terms of both the quality of life for workers and work production and performance. In exchange for greater personal and work involvement with the estate's owner, workers would have the comfort and well-being that they lacked in the capital, Barcelona.
In order to do this, Güell combined services with aesthetic modernity. The Colònia Güell industrial estate was designed in the form of an L. The buildings that Eusebi Güell gave more relevance to are the highlights of its ordered and geometric design, such as the church and the school, because the pillars of the town had to comprise Christian morality and a healthy civic education. Güell brought together a wonderful group of Barcelona architects with whom he had already worked or knew and these men designed the estate's most outstanding buildings in terms of size as well as aesthetic qualities: Ca l'Espinal, by J. Rubió i Bellver; Escola del Mestre and Casa del Mestre, by F. Berenguer, and Ca Ordal, by the two aforementioned architects working as a team.
These buildings set the stylistic tone for the town, opting for a surprising handling of brick and stone. The houses tend towards a play of shapes and forms, a functionalism of their elements and a hybrid aesthetic that combined the telluric (stone), historicism (neo-Medieval and neo-Arabic) and, most importantly, an attempt to create or invent a new, more striking architecture. This same spirit, although more sober and less ornate, can also be seen in the houses for workers, in which master builders like Andreu Espinal and Agustí Arimany participated.
The Colònia Güell belonged to the field of free experimentation and the blind faith of a promoter who trusted his architects, culminating in the church for the Colònia, popularly known as the "crypt". It was designed by Gaudí, who used it as a testing ground for the Sagrada Família, and his concerns for a new architecture based on structure, spatial experience and the application of handicrafts are all brought together here. It is a terrific work that was far ahead of its time in terms of the styles of the era.


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Imagine buying a product from a store, taking it home, and then discovering there's a problem with it. Disappointing, yes, but not a catastrophe. You can simply take it back for repair or exchange.
But, what if it's moving day, and you discover there's a problem with your new home? Whoa. A house isn't so easily returned!
What are the most common problems encountered on moving day?
A delay in getting the keys.
The seller not having completely moved out.
An item expected to be included with the property is missing. (For example, the window blinds.)
Something needs repair that was not disclosed by the seller, nor did it come up during inspection. (For example, the dishwasher not working.)
Damage to the property caused by the seller. (For example, a heavy item dropped during the move and cracking a floor tile.)
Fortunately, these are rare events. In most cases, you can expect no serious issues when you move into your new home.
But, if something is wrong, you have options. So, call me immediately. In all likelihood, I will be able to quickly resolve the issue.
If it's a serious matter, such as missing items, I may get your real estate lawyer involved to arrange for the return of the item(s) or compensation.
So don't worry. Let the professionals handle it. You can just enjoy your new home!


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This article is more than 1 year old
Intel details twin 'desktrino' platforms
One for the office, one for home
IDF Spring 05 Intel's 'desktrino' Centrino-style desktop platforms will come in two varieties, the chip maker revealed today: one for home PCs, the other for office-oriented machines.
The platforms' go-to-market names have not yet been made public, but the their codenames, respectively 'Anchor Creek' and 'Lyndon', were revealed today.
The former will ship in a range of configurations based on the upcoming dual-core Pentium D and that chip's HyperThreading-equipped alternative, the Pentium Extreme Edition. Both will be coupled with the 945G or the 955X chipset, and Intel's 83573E LAN chip.
Lyndon will comprise the PD and today's P4 processors; the 954G and 955X chipsets; Intel's Pro 1000PM LAN adaptor; and the company's Active Management Technology.
Both platforms will continue into the 65nm era, taking on board the upcoming 'Presler' dual-core chip and its single-core sibling, 'Cedar Mill', when the appear in Q1 2006.
Missing from Intel's revelations today was 'East Fork', which emerged late last year as Intel's putative home PC platform. Of course, East Fork's functionality could be provided by high-end Anchor Creek systems, so East Fork may represent something else altogether, it may have been subsumed into Anchor Creek, or it may simply have never been an Intel codename in the first place.
The 945G and 955X represent the official names of the chipsets Intel codenamed 'Lakeport' and 'Glenwood', a fact Intel confirmed last month. The 945G will be accompanied by the 945P, which lacks its integrated graphics core, as does the 955X.
Intel today re-iterated the 955X's support for dual-channel DDR 2 SDRAM clocked at 667MHz, with support for ECC memory. The chipsets' ICH7 South Bridge is capable of running four Serial ATA drives with Intel Matrix Storage Technology - the chip maker's RAID implementation. The part suppots RAID 10, said Intel Digital Enterprise Group VP Stephen Smith, which provides "RAID 0 performance with RAID 1 reliability".
Next year will see Intel debut 'Broadwater', the successor to the 945/955, which will be a key component of 'Averill', the platform that builds on Lyndon by adding support for a future generation of Intel's Active Management Technology and finally brings in 'LaGrande', Intel's security system. LaGrande won't be released until 'Longhorn', the next major release of Windows ship - possibly in 2006. ®
Related stories
Intel dual-core 'Smithfield' to ship as Pentium D
Intel preps Q2 dual-core P4 Extreme Edition launch
Intel confirms 'desktrino' consumer platform plan
Intel speeds 'multiple OS' desktop CPU schedule
Intel Smithfield chipsets said to support SATA 2
Intel invests in three digital home firms
Intel confirms dual-core desktop 'Smithfield'
Intel readies 'East Fork' digital home PC platform


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Coming Up
A coalition of organisations have today called on Ugandan Members of Parliament to oppose a Government-sponsored Mental Health Bill which will breach the human rights of persons with mental disabilities in the country.
Yesterday, the Czech Constitutional Court ruled in favour of David Vratislav, a 24-year-old young man suing the local authorities for failing to provide him with the social services he needed. The court said that every person, including people with high support needs, has the right to receive adequate social services respecting their dignity.
Judgment in a constitutional challenge to the 1949 Mental Disorders Act found language in the legislation to be "highly offensive, derogatory and discriminatory".
A collective complaint against the Czech Republic calls for an end to the policy of institutionalising children with disabilities and Roma children under three in the country.


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A minister told his congregation, "Next week I plan to preach about the sin of lying.
To help you understand my sermon, I want you all to read Mark 17."
The following Sunday, as he prepared to deliver his sermon, the minister asked for a show of hands.
He wanted to know how many had read Mark 17. Every hand went up.
The minister smiled and said, "Mark has only sixteen chapters.
I will now proceed with my sermon on the sin of lying."


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Jeffries Harmony Bit
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This exciting new range of ergonomically designed bits features a 90% copper mouthpiece to help promote salivation. An angled lozenge centre will facilitate a better contact through a more comfortable mouthpiece.
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Need a quick and efficient man van service in St Pauls - EC4 London? Last Minute Man Van St Pauls is here to help.
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Martin argues that the "framing" of U.S. labor coverage occurs through five means: 1. The consumer is king; 2. The process of production is none of the public's business; 3. The economy is driven by great business leaders and entrepreneurs; 4. The workplace is a meritocracy; and 5. Collection economic action is bad. He also notes that corporate ownership of most media has led to a hostile relationship between unions and media outlets. None of those frames has anything to do with the plight of the worker, he added.Seems spot on. Martin takes a close look at how the three major television networks, USA Today, and the New York Times covered five major labor issues in the 1990s, and concludes in each case that "media coverage predominantly focused on the effects on consumers and ignored the working conditions of employees." But this wasn't just some perverse side-effect of the '90s "New Economy" mania. FAIR issued a report back in 1989 delivering nearly the same indictment. Few major media outlets, the report found, carried a dedicated labor reporter any longer—the labor beat has been replaced by the always-amusing "workplace beat"—while editors have shown scant interest in labor stories, unless something important happens, like, you know, a company unveiling some bold new strike-busting tactic. (There are exceptions: Steven Greenhouse of the Times, for instance, is a fantastic labor reporter, although I notice he didn't get invited to cover the NWA strike.)
"Five years ago, liberal opinion predicted that Afghanistan would be the 'Soviets' Vietnam.' How could that be, without a free press and the freedom of opposition that liberalism also prescribes? … A society that has only Pravda may be less blessed than a society that has the New York Times, but it enjoys a strategic advantage.Except that this was proved exactly wrong. Pravda put on a happy face, but eventually people in Russia did find out the truth about Afghanistan—as wounded veterans slowly returned to the country, wending their way through cities and towns, telling everyone about the horrors that transpired on the battlefield. And eventually the war—and the opposition to it, which was that much more vigorous when it finally burst through the dam of secrecy—helped bring down the Soviet Union. (Well, that and depressed oil prices, of course.) In fact, a freer press might have caught onto the fact that the Soviets were in a losing struggle against a determined population much, much earlier, and caused the country to withdraw rather than stay mired in a quagmire from which it had everything to lose and very little to gain. Not that this settles the broader debate here, but the idea that the Pravda conferred a "strategic advantage" doesn't hold up very well in retrospect.
Nevertheless, we can still conclude from the Iraqi experience that while the development of democracy can be aided from outside, it cannot easily be imposed by force. While it is true that Germany and Japan became democratic after American occupation, it required their total defeat in a devastating war, and a seven-year occupation. Moreover, Germany and Japan were relatively homogeneous societies with some prior experience of democracy. It is hard to see such conditions repeated in today's world.Hard to argue with that, although I would point out that some of the mistakes in Iraq were expressly avoided in the post-WWII occupations. In Japan, the old state structure largely remained untouched—the parallel, I guess, would be keeping most of the Baathists in place in Iraq—and the new Imperial Diet formed under the auspices of the old Meiji Constitution. That Diet approved the new constitution, and while the Americans lurked behind the scenes manipulating the whole thing, they managed to keep that fact concealed. Perhaps that sort of concealment would be impossible to do in today's world, I don't know, but it makes a difference—very few Iraqis were fooled by the fact that Paul Bremer and the CPA were calling the shots while the TAL got cobbled together, and it pissed a lot of people off.
As Kubrick was beginning to film, an Israeli guard in a Jerusalem prison gave a copy of "Lolita" to Adolf Eichmann, who was awaiting trial. An indignant Eichmann returned the book two days later, calling it ''a very unwholesome book." The sulphurous halo of Nabokov's novel was still burning brightly in the popular consciousness of 1960 and it seems that Eichmann's guard gave the book to him as an experiment--a sort of litmus test for radical evil: to see whether the real-life villain, he who impassively organized the transport towards certain death of countless innocents, would coldly, or even gleefully, approve the various and vile machinations of Nabokov's creation.Heh. I'd laugh harder, but this sort of thing persists to this day, depressingly. Yes, it's now "acceptable" for people to enjoy and endorse Lolita without also approving of Humbert Humbert, but that's only because the book has been designated a "classic," and only the most extreme moralists would be unashamed to denounce it. Good for people. But the confusion between the quality of a work of art and its moral character certainly lives on. If film reviews over the past year or so are any indication, apparently no one can enjoy Fahrenheit 9/11 without also endorsing its political views wholesale, and a denunciation of Che Guevara the human being suffices for an appraisal of The Motorcycle Diaries. But that's obviously wrong. Good books can be written about pedophiles. Good movies can be made that contain repugnant views on things. So it goes. Someday we'll get over this, but not, apparently, anytime soon.
Night Draws Near will not resolve the debate over whether the Iraq War was destined to fail. At times, Shadid suggests potential mitigating factors: if only U.S. troops had immediately provided public security, if only a massive aid package had arrived, etc. But, as Iraqis tell him, Arabs are taught from birth that the suffering of the Palestinians is the ultimate responsibility of the United States, Israel's patron, meaning that the United States has had very little margin for the errors that are inevitable in occupations.Would have been nice to know beforehand, eh? But "Arab perceptions of the United States" probably didn't make it into the prewar briefing room—certainly not the ones where the hawks predicted flowers and candy. Ignorance like this is exactly why we never should have gone in. On the other hand, let's not pretend these sort of "misunderstandings" are just a Bush administration problem, limited to people named Feith or Rumsfeld or Wolfowitz. For a fun exercise sometime, read the 1995 Dayton Accords, negotiated in part by Richard Holbrooke and Gen. Wesley Clark. It's hard to decide which administration was more misguided about the region it was dealing with, Clinton's or Bush's. Okay, fine, Bush's by quite a bit, but still. As it happened, the fallout from the mess in the Balkans turned out to be less severe than that in Iraq, but chalking the difference up to competence seems like a dangerous mistake. Assume that all American governments will intervene abroad with breathtaking ignorance in tow.
A murder spree has erupted in Washash, as in countless neighborhoods across Baghdad. Death squads, which tend to move in Opel sedans, are entering what once were tight-knit communities and killing ordinary citizens, apparently to stir up sectarian hatred. The goal: to incite a civil war that each side hopes will give its sect dominance over the other…. [T]he killings in Washash are a grim portent of the kind of chaos that may lie in Iraq's future, whether or not U.S. soldiers stay on in force. "If the U.S. troops leave, we will have a civil war," says a Sunni ex-army officer who prefers not to reveal his name. "It will go on until one sect wipes out the other." ....The whole story gives a more detailed account, so take a look.
Despite the brutality of Saddam Hussein's regime, Sunnis and Shi'ites in Iraq tended to live in relative harmony. Although the sectarian split occurred early in Islamic history and concerns a critical disagreement over who was the rightful successor to the Prophet Muhammad, members of the two groups often trace their roots to the same Arab tribes and frequently intermarry.... Sunnis and Shi'ites played on the same sports teams and shared hubble-bubble pipes over domino games in cafes. "These two words--Sunni and Shi'ite--didn't exist for us," says Walid Ahmad al-Anei, a Sunni. "We were all Muslims."
But these days, as Walid learned to his horror, the division is all too real. ... As more Sunni extremists poured in from abroad to join the insurgency, they tapped into latent anti-Shi'ite feelings among Iraq's Sunnis, prompting some to resort to violence. Abu Mousab al-Zarqawi, the terrorist who heads al-Qaeda's operations in Iraq, fanned the flames, denouncing Shi'ites as worse infidels than the Christian "crusaders," as he refers to the U.S. troops. Shi'ite groups like the Badr Corps, whose militias are apparently armed by Shi'ites in Iran, have responded with equal savagery against the Sunnis. ....
These days Sunni and Shi'ite friends still sometimes sit together in the cafes, but the carefree ways of the past are gone. "Beneath our smiles, our hearts have closed," says a former army officer, a Sunni. "We no longer trust them, nor do they trust us." Residents believe the killers come from outside Washash, but they know there are informers within. Armed Shi'ite vigilantes patrol the streets, questioning strangers.
As long as George W. Bush was in the White House and the Republicans controlled Congress, he assured me, every year would bring a new tax cut and further conservative legislation. "That is how the Democrats built the New Deal and the Great Society," Norquist said. "Every year more spending, every year more programs."Grover on how to form a political coalition in three easy steps:
On the way back to Washington, he talked about how to build a broad coalition. "If you want the votes of people who are good on guns, good on taxes, and good on faith issues, that is a very small intersection of voters," he said. "But if you say, Give me the votes of anybody who agrees with you on any of these issues, that's a much bigger section of the population." To illustrate what he meant, Norquist drew three intersecting circles on a piece of paper. In the first one he wrote "guns," in the second he wrote "taxes," in the third he wrote "faith." There was a small area where the three circles intersected. "With that group, you can take over the country, if you start with the airports and the radio stations," he said. "But with all of the three circles that's sixty per cent of the population, and you can win politically. And if you add more things, like property rights and home-schooling, you can do even better."Grover on how the Gingrich revolution actually succeeded:
The standard history of the subsequent two years [after the Republican takeover in 1994] is that Gingrich over-reached and ended up setting back the conservative cause. Norquist has a different interpretation. Although Gingrich was ultimately forced to resign as Speaker, in 1998, his reforms achieved a great deal, Norquist insists, especially the introduction of six-year term limits for committee chairs in the House. "It was the equivalent of what Louis XVI did to the barons," Norquist said. "It neutered people who used to have power. You can't run a coherent and unified movement with thirteen independent power bases." Once term limits were introduced, right-wing Republicans were able to banish the remaining moderates and take over. "The national power base for a governing conservative coalition in this country is the House," Norquist said. "You can govern from the House."Grover on sending a message to Republicans who get out of line:
Norquist said that the biggest challenge was Virginia, where nineteen Republican legislators who supported a tax increase are up for reelection this fall, and where he is trying to defeat some of them in the Republican primary. "We only need to win one or two races to send a message," he said. "People say we need to win all of them, but that's not right."Grover on running a good right-wing conspiracy:
Norquist paused and lowered his voice. "Mind you," he went on, "in all good conspiracies there is not necessarily any overt communication. A properly run movement operates the way the U.S. Navy communicates with its submarines. It bangs the rock core of the earth. The vibrations go all around, but only the guys in our subs know what they mean."Grover on why Tom DeLay's scandals may not take hold:
"I say to reporters, 'Can you give me the one-sentence description of what DeLay did wrong?' Jim Wright took cash from the Teamsters with phony book sales. Rostenkowski"-the Democratic chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee in the nineteen-eighties and early nineties-"took cash in return for phony stamp sales. These things are wrong. They are clear. What is it that DeLay did? They can stick DeLay and my old friend Jack Abramoff in the same sentence, or the same paragraph, but what is the point? O.K., DeLay goes on a lot of trips. But it is not criminal or dishonest."Grover on keeping the big tent happy:
"When you are the governing coalition, you are going to have conflicts-it's inevitable," he said when I asked him about fissures within the Republican coalition. "These guys don't have to sleep together. They don't have to have dinner together. They don't even have to live in the same neighborhoods. They just have to show up on the same day and vote for the same party."Obviously I don't endorse everything he says, but he certainly knows a fair bit about running Washington...
The disputed questions would probably even strike a veteran Israeli-Palestinian negotiator as complicated and difficult. How will Iraq be divided into regions and provinces? What will the authority of the various units be? Is the union a voluntary matter or one that is incontestable? What will be the role of regional security forces? Will the units have authority to reach agreements with foreign states and other actors, and, if so, in what areas? How will revenue be divided? What will be the relationship between federal and regional law? How will disputes be settled? Will other areas of the country be able to form units that are as autonomous as the Kurdish region?
I'm not a constitutional lawyer, so I can't make heads or tails of exactly how these issues were specifically resolved in the draft constitution (the text of which isn't even a "proper draft," as Washington Post's Ellen Knickmeyer tells us, but someone's scribbled notes), but apparently the Sunnis on the committee, "who had been shut out of the negotiations for much of the past week," don't like the end result. Meanwhile, the Kurds are thrilled. Spencer Ackerman gets at some of the dynamics involved here: If the Sunnis get locked out of the final draft, they may try to shoot the constitution down in referendum this fall, although Juan Cole and others have noted that they probably don't have the numbers to do it. (Maybe they can link up with Muqtada al-Sadr and other assorted rejectionists and disgruntleds.) What seems clear is that, regardless of what Condoleeza Rice is telling her boss, any constitution that truly angers the Sunnis will lead to a lot of bloodshed down the road: in addition to the diehard rejectionists and Sunni Islamists, even moderate Sunnis may now start aiding and abetting the insurgency.
Perhaps the Shiites aren't worried about all this, because they think that either the United States will stick around to defend them, or that their own militias will protect them against a Sunni onslaught. Ezra Klein says the Sunnis would be stupid to take on the Shiites in Iraq; they'd get trounced. Well, maybe. Then again, maybe not. The insurgency's pretty large and pretty sophisticated, it has plenty of officers experienced in war, and with enough money pouring in from Saudi charities, Sunni warlords could probably purchase a few tanks and other goodies on the open market. Or maybe they can hire out the services of those privatized military firms that are so hot these days. Either way, I wouldn't count the Sunnis out. Plus, whether they can survive an all-out butcher-fest or not seem pretty irrelevant; what matters is whether they're crazy enough to try—and in this case, the answer seems like "yes, they are".
So it's all fucked up. Withdrawal advocates have noted before that if the United States threatened to pull-out, say, right this very second, it might terrify the Shiite leadership into softening some of its constitutional demands, so as not to anger too many Sunnis. Up until now, I haven't been convinced that this was necessary—Ayatollah Sistani's men, at least, have always seemed liked they wanted to bargain. Now, it might be time for brinksmanship. As callous as it seems, at this point the U.S. owes the Shiites absolutely nothing. They owe the people of Iraq a stable state, if one can be produced, and if the Shiite leadership is intent on leading Iraq "into the abyss," as Ackerman puts it, then it's time to stop coddling and protecting them.
Meanwhile, on the question of women's rights, yes, the current constitution—at least what we can decipher of it from the early notepad doodlings—fails miserably. (Except, happily, in Kurdistan, where women's rights will be secure.) Echidne unleashes outrage and fury over this state of affairs far more eloquently than I ever could. Honestly, though, I don't know why people are getting so surprised now. Iraqi women were condemned to second-class status the day Sistani's fundamentalist party took power in January. Not to downplay how bad this all is, but I can't envision any scenario in which the Bush administration actually forced the Shiites to accept a non-Islamist constitution. Hopefully 20 years from now, mainstream Shiite jurisprudence will have evolved to the point where women get treated as equals. Or, since the constitution sets aside 25 percent of its seats for women, perhaps future elections will bring in a majority coalition of urban and secular Iraqis, including women, who have 20th century ideas about gender. Until then, we have what we expected: a fundamentalist American government sanctioned a fundamentalist Iraqi constitution. What a surprise.
So what else can be done, besides threatening to withdraw and hope the Shiites try to appease the Sunnis out of fear? Some observers have pointed out that Iraq might be best served if the parliament dissolved itself and held new elections—Juan Cole finds an az-Zaman report noting that Allawi's more urbane list, along with some Kurds, might try to band with the Sunnis to pursue this option. That seems like an awful idea. It would prolong the occupation even further, and whether or not one thinks that a "stay the course" approach could just barely dodge the "manpower meltdown" bullet that's approaching 36 months from now, it seems wholly unlikely that the US could stay through yet another round of parliamentary elections. Also, it might not change anything. The Shiite and Kurdish militias have an increasingly iron grip on their respective regions, while violence in the Sunni provinces has only worsened since January. My guess: hold another election, and thugs from SCIRI, the Mehdi Army, and the peshmerga would, um, "persuade" people to vote their way, insurgents would intimidate Sunnis from voting, and you'd get essentially the same cast of characters back in power. Perhaps not, but that's my guess. All in all, a real mess.
In recent years, scholars have begun pursuing a more nuanced approach to discussing literary hoaxes than the knee-jerk disgruntlement of a reader scorned. Instead, literary scholars like Ohio State University professor Brian McHale and the Australian critic K.K. Ruthven are concentrating on the productive and beautifully unpredictable effects of hoaxing. Are all hoaxes the same? Should they all be judged by the same ethical standards? Do some hoaxes rise above being trifling pranks or bogus facsimiles to become serious acts of cultural criticism? What of an author's intentions?Fair questions! But it seems clear to me that literary hoaxes serve a very wonderful purpose, by offering a reading experience that usually can't be replicated in any other way? If people would enjoy X hypothetical piece of "authentic" literature—thanks, of course, to our irrational preference for authenticity—then it would impoverish the world not to have some hoax artist dream something like X up.
[M]ore often than not, the Sunni clergy, or ulema, have served as an instrument of government power, legitimizing the status quo even in times of despotism, and currying favor with rulers for financial gain or otherwise. Their subservience has diminished their credibility. In contemporary Egypt, from Gamal Abdel Nasser to the present, the Sunni ulema are notorious for their creative ability to bestow blessings on policies dear to the government: peace with Israel, for instance, or the paying of interest on loans, which was thought expressly forbidden by Islam. They did the same in Iraq under Saddam, lionizing a man who never treated religion as more than a vehicle for his own self-enshrinement or as a path to secure elusive legitimacy. That relationship hurt the reputation of the Sunni clerics: at worst, they were regarded by their people as lackeys; at best, they were seen as impotent functionaries in times to dire for weakness.It seems that every two months in Iraq, various members of the clergy offer a plan for entering politics and coming to terms with the rest of the country, and it never seems to go anywhere. I don't expect any different with the latest offer. Shadid's point, if I understand it correctly, explains a lot of this: Clerical groups like the Association of Muslim Scholars may be influential among some older section of the Sunni population, but among many of the younger and more radical Islamists, they may well garner very little respect. And they will likely lose even more of that respect if the olive branch towards the Americans gets extended too far. (Also, as with many other Muslim countries, there is probably the equivalent of a salafiyya movement in Iraq—a group of fundamentalists trying to reform the clergy who nevertheless aren't actually militants.) At times, the oft-chanted mantra that the Sunnis "need to be drawn into the political process" seems almost futile—there may be very few, if any, Sunni leaders, even religious leaders, who can command the allegiance of a somewhat significant part of the population.
Among the most reverent in much of the modern Arab world, this invited a backlash against the Sunni clergy. In response, in recent decades, new generations of devout Sunni Muslims had risen to interpret the Quran for themselves. Although the older clergy was still respected by some, a younger, far more militant, activist contingent was gaining force, with its own reading of religion. And whereas Shiite Islam had a rigid hierarchy and preordained protocol for advancement, Sunni Islam did not; so the new contingent could emerge more assertively and did so brazenly in the 1960s and 1970s. Joining these new militants were laymen—youths who resembled Fahdawi [i.e., an insurgent radicalized by the occupation and killed by American forces] and his colleagues in their ardor—who had taken it upon themselves to define Islam, its message, and its meaning within their own context. They had already made their mark in places like Egypt, where in 1981 Mohammed Abdel-Salam al-Farag, an Egyptian electrician of humble origins, wrote a pamphlet that laid the philosophical justification for the assassination of Anwar Sadat. His argument: Islam, as a religion of revolution, impels its followers to sedition against illegitimate and unfaithful rulers... Now Fahdawi and his men, inspired by the American occupation, were also linking their struggle with the militant aspirations of the larger Arab world.
Like many religious movements in Muslim countries, political Islam was elastic in Iraq, in Khaldiya, and in the homes of Fahdawi and his men. They adopted it to local circumstances, molded it to their own context, but drew from it the symbolism and meaning they desired. For Fahdawi and his colleagues, faith was tailored for resistance against foreign occupation and, through religion, they justified their deaths.
Together, [the intelligent design hucksters] have mounted a politically savvy challenge to evolution as the bedrock of modern biology, propelling a fringe academic movement onto the front pages and putting Darwin's defenders firmly on the defensive.Yes, those creationists must have just magically appeared on the front pages, all by themselves!
Will a U.S. withdrawal guarantee a happy outcome for the people of Iraq? Of course not. In sowing the seeds of chaos through his ill-advised invasion, Bush made any such guarantee impossible. If one or more of the Iraqi factions chooses civil war, they will have it. Should the Kurds opt for independence, then modern Iraq will cease to exist. No outside power can prevent such an outcome from occurring anymore than an outside power could have denied Americans their own civil war in 1861.So Iraq would see a lot of spilled blood that might get spilled no matter what we do, but other than that, no big deal. Is he right? To me, the doomsday scenario looks something like this: Lebanon-style civil war in Iraq, street-fighting and ethnic cleansing in Kirkuk, pipelines and refineries blown up left and right, Iran and maybe Turkey leaping into the mix, chaos spreading to Saudi Arabia, oil prices up to astronomical levels, global recession, and the groundwork for future regional wars to come. Oh, plus a safe haven and Afghanistan-style bases for a new generation of jihadists planning to strike at America who may or may not have Saddam's old nuclear scientists in their clutches.
Dismemberment is by no means to be desired and would surely visit even more suffering on the much-abused people of Iraq. But in the long run, the world would likely find ways to adjust to this seemingly unthinkable prospect just as it learned to accommodate the collapse of the Soviet Union, the division of Czechoslovakia and the disintegration of Yugoslavia.
What will pulling out of Iraq mean for the United States? It will certainly not mean losing access to Iraqi oil, which will inevitably find its way to the market. To be sure, bringing the troops home will preclude the Pentagon from establishing permanent U.S. military bases in Iraq -- but the Bush administration has said all along that we don't covet such bases anyway. In addition, withdrawal will put an end to extravagant expectations of using Iraq as a springboard for democratizing the Islamic world -- but that notion never qualified as more than a pipe dream anyway.
Part of the reason I think it would be good to announce a timetable approximately now is precisely that it could be pegged not to arbitrary dates, but to scheduled elements of the political process, namely a constitution and the election of a permanent government.
This part seems wrong on the merits. True, it's almost a cliché by now, but defeating the Iraqi insurgency requires a political, not a military, solution. Everyone knows that. But let's not delude ourselves: some sort of military solution is also needed. As Anthony Cordesman has outlined in pretty painstaking detail, the insurgency has two components, but they aren't the two components people tend to think—i.e., a bunch of foreign extremists and a homegrown and mostly nationalistic insurgency. No, the homegrown wing has both nationalist and extremist parts, and the extremists continue to multiply, and almost certainly won't stop fighting until they are largely defeated. See Kris Alexander for what "defeated" would mean. This can only be done, I think, by bringing the native Iraqi military and police online, and doing it right, which will take time and patience. (Will Saletan's suggestion that the Iraqi security forces will get motivated real quick if the U.S. starts withdrawing and shoves them into action is, sadly, nonsense, and doesn't merit further discussion.)
In the past—again, up until about the spring of 2004—the training process simply wasn't working, and the Iraqi security forces often ran away from conflicts. All in all, a disaster. But since then, under Maj. Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. actually seems to have restructured its training efforts pretty successfully. Iraqi police have now pacified Haifa Street, and have at least maintained a presence in Mosul—no small feat, either of them. American troops can withdraw, or at least become less visible, as this process continues, but not before then. Rushing the training component, or doing it poorly—for instance, by stocking the Army only with Shiite militiamen and Kurdish peshmerga fighters—would be a serious mistake. Without competent security, at this point in time Sunni extremists could very easily a) stage a coup in the parts of the military and police force that they have infilitrated, b) assassinate Iraq's leaders, including Ayatollah Sistani, and c) foment civil war by bombing Shiite shrines and the like. Easy. That's not the only way civil war could come about, granted, but I think it's the most likely, and a U.S. presence is necessary to avert this most-likely scenario until Iraqis can handle it themselves. If that point comes next year, fantastic. If not, then not. (And bear in mind, the Iraqi military, even as it gets up and running, will need U.S. logistical support for a good long while.)
As for the political process, Matt makes an important point: If Shiites, Sunnis, and Kurds want to fight amongst themselves once the U.S. leaves, nothing in the world can stop them. The U.S. should prepare for this very real possibility. On the other hand, it's not like all sides are so impossibly recalcitrant right now, putting the lie to Yglesias' statement that "[a] s long as we provide them with that safety net, they have no reason to compromise." Some elements of the Shiite coalition, at least, have been willing to make limited concessions to the Sunnis on their own accord. President Jalai Talabani has floated a wide-ranging amnesty for ex-Baathists, and the U.S. should overrule people like anti-amnesty folks like Ahmed Chalabi and encourage Talabani to do so.
As for the constitution: Granted, SCIRI-based Shiites like Abdul-aziz al-Hakim want to break up Iraq and form a Shiite super-province in the south, but in conversation, Andrew Arato has made the case that both Sunni groups and many nationalist and secular Shiites—including, it seems, Ayatollah Sistani—want a unified Iraq. The Kurds, meanwhile, want independence, and it's going to be hard to pressure them to accept anything short of autonomy. All in all, it doesn't look good—some near-intractable problems are at stake here. But unlike Yglesias, I don't entirely see how U.S. troops are "counterproductive to producing a political compromise," which is to say, I don't see all sides somehow becoming more willing to compromise if the U.S. starts drawing down. Again, setting a timetable is different from announcing, repeatedly and forcefully, that we will maintain no long-term presence there—the latter may convince more Sunnis to join the political process. Hopefully. I just don't see how the former will convince Shiites and Kurds to compromise more readily. Deep conflicts don't get resolved simply because the parties involved fear that they might have to go to war. History says otherwise.
More to the point, let's not kid ourselves. If Iraq erupted in full-blown civil war, the U.S. would have to intervene. Our oil addiction demands it. Pretending that we can just leave and wash our hands of the whole mess smacks of naivety. Iraq isn't some insignificant little foothold in the Balkans. I understand that civil war may happen whether the U.S. stays or not. On the other hand, the U.S. will have to micromanage the regional situation whether we start drawing down in 2006 or not. It's a real mess, but it's still real. We don't have much choice. Leaving now, only to be forced to re-invade three or four years down, would be the height of near-sightedness.
So what would I suggest? I'm very much open to persuasion, and much of this involves putting trust in a thoroughly incompetent administration, but my instinct is to go with Cordesman's bevy of small-bore recommendations, including: "Keep reiterating that the US will set no deadlines for withdrawal—or fixed limits on its military effort—and will support Iraq until it is ready to take over the mission and the insurgents are largely defeated." Keep pressure on the government to develop both the proper police forces and governing institutions, which won't likely develop on their own accord. Fix the aid and reconstruction process, which is a nightmare and the one prong of our strategy that continues to founder very badly. Sealing the borders may help, though al-Qaeda seems to be planning to take the fight to Syria next, so sealing the borders up could just accelerate that process. I don't know. Oh, and no more troops will be forthcoming, of course. The U.S. can still "surge" troops for specific needs, by fiddling with the rotation rates or reserves, but a major long-term increase in troops won't happen.
That seems like the rough outline of a realistic "plan," although I obviously can't guarantee it will work, and with this administration, it might be a go-ahead for "more of the same." But, I think, it's more likely to produce stability than pulling out prematurely. Feel free to convince me I'm wrong, because I'd like to be. Though I should also note that, in the event Cordesman's proposal simply can't work, then a withdrawal plus "hoping for the best" actually wouldn't be my second choice; rather, Daniel Byman's bloody-minded "Afghanization" plan for a draw-down seems, horrifically, like the most realistic and "stable" option. Meanwhile, the most important task here at home is to make sure that the crooks and liars who got us into this mess are removed from power as forcefully and quickly as possible. Iraq has been a colossal mistake, the sort the United States must never make again. That part, at least, needs no debate.
UPDATE: For a view along similar lines, see Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey's assessment. Bear in mind, the generals very often get it wrong, but often too, they know what they're talking about, and at the very least, no one can accuse McCaffrey of cheerleadering for this administration.
To begin with, we know very little about the specific adaptive problems faced by our distant forebears. As Buller points out, "We don't even know the number of species in the genus Homo"—our direct ancestors—"let alone details about the lifestyles led by those species." This makes it hard to generate good hypotheses. Some EP-ers have suggested looking to modern-day hunter-gatherers as proxies, studying them for clues about our ancestors. But this doesn't get them far. For instance, in some contemporary African groups, men gather the bulk of the food; in other groups, women do. Which groups are representative of our ancestors? Surely there's a whole lot of guesswork involved when evolutionary psychologists hypothesize about the human brain's supposedly formative years.Very clever! Are they right? No idea. Though I think Schaffer's question about why evolutionary psychology remains so popular among pundits seems a bit naïve. Maybe becuase it offers a splendid little excuse to wave away social problems such as, say, gender inequality in the workplace. Don't bother doing anything about the problem, just note: "But since the dawn of bipedalism, men have always been more competitive!" And then shrug. Now it might be true that men actually evolved to be more competitive and this is some fixed and immutable fact of existence—damned if I know—but it's of course impossible to say how true this really is, and how much it accounts for, say, fewer female executives, and how much owes to real discrimination. Evolutionary appeals in this situation often just amount to a bunch of hand-waving, to avoid having to tackle or think about sexism. But, for reasons that become clear when we consider the behavior of hunter-gatherers on the veldt, humans are naturally prone to hand-waving, and so this technique becomes very popular.
In addition, we are probably not psychological fossils. New research suggests that evolutionary change can occur much faster than was previously believed. Natural selection is thought to effect rapid change especially when a species' environment is in flux—precisely the situation in the last 10,000 years as humans learned to farm, domesticate animals, and live in larger communal groups. Crucially, Buller notes, in order for significant change to have occurred in the human mind in the last 10 millennia, evolution need not have built complex brain structures from scratch but simply modified existing ones.
Finally, the central, underlying assumption of EP—that humans have hundreds or thousands of mental problem-solving organs produced by natural selection—is questionable. Many cognitive scientists believe that such modules exist for processing sensory information and for acquiring language. It does not follow, however, that there are a plethora of other ones specifically designed for tasks like detecting cheaters. In fact, considering how much dramatic change our forebears faced, it makes more sense that their problem-solving faculties would have evolved to be flexible in response to their immediate surroundings. (A well-argued book from philosopher Kim Sterelny fleshes out this claim.) Indeed, our mental flexibility, or cortical plasticity, may be evolution's greatest gift.
[W]hat will happen when the private work in Iraq finally winds down is a more concrete concern. What will happen to these companies, these men, without these thousands of jobs? Some will get contracts protecting U.S. departments and agencies around the world. Some will do the same for other governments. Doug Brooks, whose Washington industry organization, the International Peace Operations Association, represents several of the largest firms, says he believes the United Nations will soon hire the companies to guard refugee camps in war zones.Chaotic indeed. And since the pool of privatized security firms—mercenaries—will only grow and expand as more and more soldiers retire from the military (or shun their relatively meager re-enlistment bonuses in favor of plum contracting jobs), it's worth thinking about the actual geo-political shifts we may start to see as a result. In the future, for instance, many smaller and weaker nations might no longer be quite so dependent on military aid from the United States. Why get on your knees and grovel for a few Pentagon fighter jets, with all the strings that inevitably come attached, when you can just spend a bit and contract out a MIG-29 fighter unit of your very own—precisely what both Ethiopia and Eritrea did towards the end of their 20-year war. Or imagine that you're a friendly neighborhood autocrat, you need a strong military, perhaps to put down pesky insurrections or the like, but you don't want to invite the U.S. or NATO in to train the local army. Just hire some private bodyguards, or a counterinsurgency-training squad (Iraq should breed plenty of those), and you're good to go.
But some of the firms and some of the men will no doubt be offered work by dictators or terrible insurgencies -- or by the kind of oil speculators who reportedly backed a recent mercenary-led coup plot in Equatorial Guinea (a plot involving former members of Executive Outcomes), in an attempt to install a ruler to facilitate their enterprise. And with so many newly created private soldiers unemployed when the market of Iraq finally crashes, aren't some of them likely to accept such jobs -- the work of mercenaries in the chaotic territories of the earth?
The case is nominally about whether New Hampshire must include a health exception to its parental notification law, but it also involves a technical question of procedure: When challenging a newly passed abortion restriction, is it enough for plaintiffs to show that it imposes an undue burden on some class of women, or must plaintiffs show that the language of the law on its face has virtually no constitutional applications? If the latter rule applies, then almost no new abortion regulations can be halted before they take effect; instead, plaintiffs must make a series of individual challenges to specific aspects of the law that affect them personally. These as-applied challenges will take months or even years before they are finally resolved, and the remainder of the new abortion regulations will be enforceable in the interim.Roe would be as good as null and void in those states that wanted to pass further restrictions on abortion. And just to be clear: Any Democrat (or Rhode Island Republican) that votes for Roberts has pretty clearly had a hand in this.
That means that states could pass very stringent restrictions on abortion and as long as they had some constitutional applications, they would remain on the books for years until a series of successful as-applied challenges eventually knocked away their most blatantly unconstitutional features. That is not the same thing as overturning Roe v. Wade in these states, but its practical effect is very similar.
[Conservatives] had never forgiven [Kennedy] for his votes to uphold abortion and gay rights, and doubted both his intelligence and his commitment to the cause. Convinced he'd strayed on abortion under the pernicious influence of a liberal law clerk—a former student of the notoriously liberal Laurence Tribe of Harvard Law School, who was representing Gore in this case—they took steps to prevent any re-occurrences. Applicants for Kennedy clerkships were now screened by a panel of right-wing stalwarts. 'The premise is that he can't think by himself, and that he can be manipulated by someone in his second year of law school," one liberal clerk explains. In 2000, as in most years, that system surrounded Kennedy with true believers, all belonging to the Federalist Society, the farm team of the legal right. "He had four very conservative, Federalist Society white guys, and if you look at the portraits of law clerks on his wall, that's true 9 times out of 10," another liberal law clerk recalls. "They were by far the least diverse group of clerks."So maybe Kennedy's not the great white hope after all, and Roe is effectively finished. (By the way: what the fuck? What "panel of right-wing stalwarts" is "screen[ing]" applicants for Kennedy clerkships? Could this be true? So much for the independent Supreme Court...?) But then again, those white-wingers clerking for Kennedy obviously steered him into his man-on-dog vote in Lawrence vs. Texas two years back, so one can never really tell when the man's going to pop off and lurch leftwards. Or maybe he's just not as dependent on his clerks as people think. Ay, most of this is wishful thinking, no doubt, but worth considering...


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Reynolston, Gower, Swansea


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Visit UFC.com/Fantasy to play...
The UFC will make its long awaited return to Vancouver this weekend as flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson looks to continue his reign of terror over the 125-pound division when he takes on Dagestani fighter Ali Bagautinov in the main event, while hometown favorite Rory MacDonald will try to take another step in his quest to earn a welterweight title shot as he faces Tyron Woodley in the co-main event.
UFC 174 will also showcase the return of former heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski as he fights inside the Octagon for the first time in over six years when he takes on Ultimate Fighter season 10 runner-up Brendan Schaub.
All told, UFC 174 has a stacked main card, and in today's fantasy preview we're going to preview four of the best fights, including the headline bout between Johnson and Bagautinov.
It's hard to pick against flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson given the current run he's on in the division. He's the only person to hold the gold since the weight class was introduced two years ago, and he is only getting better with every performance. He finished John Moraga in the fifth round via submission and then knocked out Joseph Benavidez in just over two minutes of the first round in his last fight.
Johnson has the most takedowns in the UFC since 2011 with 40, while also landing 443 significant strikes, which accounts for the most in the history of the flyweight division. He also just happens to be the fastest fighter that's ever stepped foot in the Octagon in both hand speed and footwork. One of Johnson's most overlooked attributes might actually be his defense because he's not only fast when hitting an opponent, but he's usually out of there before they even have a chance to counter.
If Bagautinov wants to have a chance to win this fight he has to do one of two things - either find a way to slow Johnson down, and that means clinch work and pressing him against the cage, or find a way to get him on the mat and keep him there. Both are extremely hard - just ask every other flyweight that's faced him thus far in the UFC.
Bagautinov does land 3.45 takedowns per 15 minutes, so he's capable of a strong wrestling attack, and coming from the same area that produced Sambo specialists like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Rustam Khabilov, he's also powerful and can throw an opponent like a sack of potatoes if they allow him the time and space.
Still, there's no doubt Bagautinov is climbing uphill in this fight.
Johnson is faster in his exchanges, quicker to get in for a takedown and his defensive footwork is out of this world. That says nothing for the fact that Johnson has gone five rounds before and Bagautinov has never even seen the fourth since coming to the UFC. Johnson is really hitting his stride right now, quietly building a winning streak and title defenses while the rest of the world pounds the desk talking about Jose Aldo and Jon Jones. Johnson's variations on the feet and the ground will give Bagautinov nightmares by the time the third and fourth rounds come into play, and it should give the champion the opening necessary to go up on the scorecards and potentially land the fight-ending strikes to get the TKO victory.
It's as even as even can get in the co-main event when two top 10 welterweights battle it out with the winner taking a decided step forward towards an eventual title shot against champion Johny Hendricks.
Rory MacDonald has been one of the most efficient fighters in the division over the last couple of years as he continues to improve his striking while mixing in an effective ground attack when necessary. Lately, MacDonald has preferred to use his long jab and range to stay on the outside of opponents and continuously pop them in the mush while putting together combinations to do maximum damage. He has the fourth highest striking rate among welterweights, landing just over four significant strikes per minute, and he counters his opponent's offense with great takedown accuracy while also blocking 88.4 percent of the attempts against him.
On the other side of the cage, Woodley is a wrestler turned power puncher with dynamite stored in both hands. What he lacks in technical proficiency on the feet he more than makes up for with the kind of knockouts that can alter reality. As a former college wrestler from Missouri, Woodley won most of his early fights with takedowns and a dominant top game. Since coming to the UFC, Woodley has adjusted to a more boxing-based attack while stuffing 94.1 percent of the takedowns attempted against him. He's also nasty in the clinch, using his broad shoulders to hammer an opponent to the fence like he's got hammers in both arms and then nailing them with punches on the inside.
This fight really comes down to control, and if it stays standing can MacDonald stick to his outside boxing game while keeping away from Woodley's power? That's what we're betting on considering MacDonald's footwork and quickness. He just needs to avoid Woodley's takedowns and clinch game early, and then he can spend the next 15 minutes jabbing the former Strikeforce contender until welts start appearing on his face.
MacDonald has shown conditioning issues in the past, but so has Woodley, so they break even there, but if one of them has improved dramatically since preparing for this fight, that could make all the difference. Still, MacDonald should remain the favorite to eke this out by unanimous decision once he makes it through a dangerous first round.
Another close matchup happens in the light heavyweight division, where former Ultimate Fighter winner Ryan Bader takes on former Strikeforce champion Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante in a game of survival.
Why survival?
Well, Feijao is a really deadly fighter, especially in the early going of his fights. In Feijao's 12 career wins, all of them have come by knockout or TKO and it's usually in the first or second round. Feijao throws heat with every strike he launches at an opponent, but he's not wild with his attacks. He lands with 56.5 percent accuracy, which is a great number for any light heavyweight, and he also throws with volume, landing nearly four significant strikes per minute. Because he fires his offense with such ferocity, Feijao has been known to fade in fights as well and that's where this first round becomes awfully interesting.
Bader isn't a stranger to knockouts either, with three KO finishes in the UFC, not to mention a three round bludgeoning of Anthony Perosh in his last fight. Bader is also a great wrestler while averaging just over three takedowns per 15 minutes, and it would probably serve him well to drag this to the mat early to start zapping Feijao's energy before he can get any kind of momentum going. It also has to be noted that outside of a surprise upset loss to Tito Ortiz at UFC 132, Bader's defeats in the UFC have only come to the best of the best - Jon Jones, Lyoto Machida and Glover Teixeira (and he was very close to winning the last fight).
While the idea of a vicious Feijao knockout always looms large, if Bader plays his cards right and mixes up his wrestling and boxing he should be able to wear out the Brazilian and by the end of the third round he should be up on the scorecards. He has to be careful early, but assuming Bader is smart in his strategy, he'll find a way to get the win by decision.
Now those numbers are deceiving because while Schaub is technically the 'favorite', the odds makers have Arlovski rated as a -105, which means this is another painfully close fight heading into Saturday night.
Arlovski hasn't fought in the UFC in six years and there's no denying he's a different fighter than when he left. His style remains the same - fast hands, counter wrestling and good kicks - but he's also a slight bit slower than he once was and his chin has taken a lot of hits over the years, including a broken jaw suffered in his fight against Anthony Johnson in 2013. Arlovski has won six out of his last eight fights, but the level of competition isn't exactly UFC caliber.
Meanwhile, Brendan Schaub has quietly become a heavyweight on the rise again after suffering back-to-back losses to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Ben Rothwell. The biggest change for Schaub has been his wrestling game honed under former NCAA champion Mark Munoz and his jiu-jitsu under the tutelage of Ryron and Rener Gracie. In his last two fights, Schaub has been a takedown machine, with just under 56 percent accuracy, and he picked up his first submission win over Matt Mitrione via D'arce choke. Now the confidence is brimming in Schaub, which is exactly what happened the last time he faced a legend of the Octagon and that night ended with him slumped over on his knees as Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira celebrated a knockout win.
Schaub has trained with Arlovski in the past so he knows the power, reach and quickness of the Belarus native, but they've obviously been facing much different fighters over the last few years with one in the UFC and one not. The odds are close, but if Schaub is tactical with his attacks and doesn't get into any big exchanges with Arlovski, he should be able to punish the former champion with punches and kicks just like he did Mirko Cro Cop in their 2011 fight. Couple that with his rapidly improving wrestling game and this is Schaub's fight to lose. Knowing how much respect he has for Arlovski, the safe bet is to assume this will go to decision just based on Schaub not over committing to anything out of fear of the counter strike, but overall he should control the pace and best the former champion on the feet and on the ground to get the win.
UFC Store
UFC Unfiltered


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Been in an interesting process. Wld luv yr insights.
I was in a position to blog at HuffPo. After mega-deliberation, I decided that it's not for me, at least not yet. (I'm not anti corporate media: I watch tv and movies, published with HarperCollins, scripted a segment for a major tv network, enjoy YouTube, etc.)
Interestingly enough, after my decision re HuffPo and some other corporate media, I was asked to blog for Dharma Trading Co. And I have absolutely loved working with them! Their audience is nowhere near the size of HuffPo's, but it feels right.
Yesterday, Anne Newkirk Niven, editor of Sagewoman and other pagan rags, asked me to blog for her. I was given a choice between blogging for http://witchesandpagans.com, which has 30,000 Facebook likes, or the soon-to-be blog for Sagewoman (7000 likes) that will become part of the larger witchesandpagans site.
After looking at the site, praying, and meditating, I chose Sagewoman. That might seem the poor promotional choice, because I don't know if it means less readers. You're supposed to get as many readers as possible, right? But numbers aren't everything.
Narrowing my focus sometimes implements one of my life goals: authentic connectivity, which can require a community I get to know.
I am not saying that no one gets to know anyone at witchesandpagans.com. I am not saying I chose Sagewoman in order to narrow my focus. In fact, I am not stating here why I chose Sagewoman. My process of choosing Sagewoman was complex—and partially sheer intuition—and I do not fully understand it yet, so will not try to outline it here. My point is: I made my choice despite the possible numbers, and the choice is in keeping with my life goals. I am not making a pronouncement on what is "right," I am just sharing my process. Speaking of which:
I do not strive to be queen of the witches. I want deep connection so that, whether in print or in oral tradition, we can get spiritual work done. Am i knocking big numbers? No. There are types of spiritual work you can do in big numbers. There are types of authentic connection that can happen in big numbers. (I must say, though, that big numbers too often consist of folks spouting off about how much they know, telling you how superior they are to you, and decrying the pagan they now think is a jerk.) When going for large numbers feels right and honorable, I do it. The rest of the time, I do work that requires smaller groups. I usually limit class enrollment, for just that reason.
What do you think of all this? My process is terribly against-the-grain in some ways, so I wld love your thoughts, whether you post them here or on Facebook.
Want support from a shaman who lives intuitively and successfully meets life's demands? Please make an appointment for a session.


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Tällä tuotteella ei ole vielä arvioita.
Pro-Ject T1 levysoitin
Audiophile Entry Level Turntable
A New Generation of Turntable – Made in Europe
The stylish CNC-machined plinth of the T1 features no plastic parts and is carefully manufactured to ensure there are no hollow spaces inside, therefore avoiding unwanted vibrations within the chassis. Carrying this philosophy through the design, the glass platter is also a heavy, zero-resonance design. Finally, the purpose-chosen turntable feet also do a good job of isolating the T1 from ambient vibrations around your hi-fi system. In the T1 the motor drives a belt-system, attached to a newly designed sub-platter, which is mounted into an ultra-precise 0.001mm main bearing with a hardened steel axle and brass bushing – just like our Essential III turntables. The tonearm new tonearm has an effective length of 8.6". This one-piece aluminium tonearm also features low-friction bearings for absolute accuracy in use. The T1 comes with a pre-adjusted Ortofon OM 5E Moving Magnet cartridge and is ready to use right out of the box. Also super shielded, semi-symmetrical, low-capacitance Pro-Ject phono cables are included.
In the box:
- T1 with Ortofon OM 5E cartridge
- Directly soldered Connect it E Phono Cable
- Felt mat
- Dust cover
- Adapter for 7" singles
- Power supply
- Allen key, stylus pressure gauge


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Security As A Service: "The Cloud" & Why It's a Net Security Win
If you've been paying attention to the rash of security startups entering the market today, you will no doubt notice the theme wherein the majority of them are, from the get-go, organizing around deployment models which operate from "The Cloud."
We can argue that "Security as a service" usually refers to security services provided by a third party using the SaaS (software as a service) model, but there's a compelling set of capabilities that enables companies large and small to be both effective, efficient and cost-manageable as we embrace the "new" world of highly distributed applications, content and communications (cloud and mobility combined.)
As with virtualization, when one discusses "security" and "cloud computing," any of the three perspectives often are conflated (from my post "Security: In the Cloud, For the Cloud & By the Cloud…"):
In the same way that I differentiated "Virtualizing Security, Securing Virtualization and Security via Virtualization" in my Four Horsemen presentation, I ask people to consider these three models when discussing security and Cloud:
- In the Cloud: Security (products, solutions, technology) instantiated as an operational capability deployed within Cloud Computing environments (up/down the stack.) Think virtualized firewalls, IDP, AV, DLP, DoS/DDoS, IAM, etc.
- For the Cloud: Security services that are specifically targeted toward securing OTHER Cloud Computing services, delivered by Cloud Computing providers (see next entry) . Think cloud-based Anti-spam, DDoS, DLP, WAF, etc.
- By the Cloud: Security services delivered by Cloud Computing services which are used by providers in option #2 which often rely on those features described in option #1. Think, well…basically any service these days that brand themselves as Cloud…
What I'm talking about here is really item #3; security "by the cloud," wherein these services utilize any cloud-based platform (SaaS, PaaS or IaaS) to delivery security capabilities on behalf of the provider or ultimate consumer of services.
For the SMB/SME/Branch, one can expect a hybrid model of on-premises physical (multi-function) devices that also incorporate some sort of redirect or offload to these cloud-based services. Frankly, the same model works for the larger enterprise but in many cases regulatory issues of privacy/IP concerns arise. This is where the capability of both "private" (or dedicated) versions of these services are requested (either on-premises or off, but dedicated.)
Service providers see a large opportunity to finally deliver value-added, scaleable and revenue-generating security services atop what they offer today. This is the realized vision of the long-awaited "clean pipes" and "secure hosting" capabilities. See this post from 2007 "Clean Pipes – Less Sewerage or More Potable Water?"
If you haven't noticed your service providers dipping their toes here, you certainly have seen startups (and larger security players) do so. Here are just a few examples:
- Qualys
- Trend Micro
- Symantec
- Cisco (Ironport/ScanSafe)
- Juniper
- CloudFlare
- ZScaler
- Incapsula
- Dome9
- CloudPassage
- Porticor
- …and many more
As many vendors "virtualize" their offers and start to realize that through basic networking, APIs, service chaining, traffic steering and security intelligence/analytics, these solutions become more scaleable, leveragable and interoperable, the services you'll be able to consume will also increase…and they will become more application and information-centric in nature.
Again, this doesn't mean the disappearance of on-premises or host-based security capabilities, but you should expect the cloud (and it's derivative offshoots like Big Data) to deliver some really awesome hybrid security capabilities that make your life easier. Rich Mogull (@rmogull) and I gave about 20 examples of this in our "Grilling Cloudicorns: Mythical CloudSec Tools You Can Use Today" at RSA last month.
Get ready because while security folks often eye "The Cloud" suspiciously, it also offers up a set of emerging solutions that will undoubtedly allow for more efficient, effective and affordable security capabilities that will allow us to focus more on the things that matter.
Related articles by Zemanta
- [Webinar] Cloud Based Security Services: Saving Cloud Computing Users From Evil-Doers (rationalsurvivability.com)
- The Four Horsemen Of the Virtualization (and Cloud) Security Apocalypse… (rationalsurvivability.com)
- DDoS – A Moose On Cloud's Table Or A Pea Under The Mattress? (rationalsurvivability.com)
- Six Year Old Rationalizes the Cloud (rationalsurvivability.com)
- Cloud Computing Security: (Orchestral) Maneuvers In the Dark? (rationalsurvivability.com)
- Cloudifornication: Indiscriminate Information Intercourse Involving Internet Infrastructure (rationalsurvivability.com)
- You Can't Secure The Cloud… (rationalsurvivability.com)
- Security and the Cloud – What Does That Even Mean? (rationalsurvivability.com)
- Building/Bolting Security In/On – A Pox On the Audit Paradox! (rationalsurvivability.com)
- Security As A Service: Virtual Patching for Cloud Environments (canadacloud.biz)
- Security As A Service Is More Than A Virtual Security Gateway (securecloudreview.com)
- The Inevitability of Security-as-a-Service (securecloudreview.com)


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The Problem
As you may have heard from my whining over the past few days, there is some kind of major fail with Twitter's API that is causing massive freezing and hangs in Tweetdeck Desktop for SOME users.
The problem is NOT just affecting Tweetdeck. Hootsuite has different symptoms (slow posts, etc), but it's all related. Many clients are probably affected, but again, it's probably random symptoms on random accounts so it's hard to pin down what is happening to whom. Software is just like that sometimes. It sucks,I know. We just have to deal with it. At least until the next Rapture solves this crap for all of us :)
Why some are punished and others are not is something only Twitter engineers, or your god of choice can explain to you. I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for that answer, but it really doesn't matter.
What does matter is that you can help them fix this problem sooner by sending them "debugging logs" which are stored on your computer. The more of you who do this, the faster the problem may be fixed:
Here's how to help
It's really much easier than it looks. Just read slowly… and breathe.. for the love of dog… breathe :)
Where do I find the log file & How do I enable debug logging in TweetDeck?
From time to time you may be asked to provide a log file when troubleshooting a problem with us here at TweetDeck.
Your log file is named "tweetdeck-app.log" and can be found in the following folder:
- Mac OS X: Places/(your username)/Library/Preferences/TweetDeckFast.FFF[random letter and numbers]/Local Store
- Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\[user]\Application Data\TweetDeckFast.FFF[random letter and numbers]\Local Store
- Windows Vista: C:\users\[user]\AppData\Roaming\TweetDeckFast.FFF[random letter and numbers]\Local Store
- Linux: /home/(your username)/.appdata/TweetDeckFast.FFF[random letter and numbers]/Local Store
Please note that some of the folders may be hidden.
Email it to the address you will have been given and we will be able to have a clearer picture of what is going on.
Debug Logging
If you are asked by TweetDeck Support to enable debug logging, here's what you need to do:
1. Find the file debug.xml in the following location:
Mac OS X: Places > Home Directory (ie your username) > Library/Preferences/TweetDeckFast.FFF[random letter and numbers]/Local Store
Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\[user]\Application Data\TweetDeckFast.FFF[random letter and numbers]\Local Store
Windows Vista & Windows 7: C:\Users\[user]\AppData\Roaming\TweetDeckFast.FFF[random letter and numbers]\Local Store
Linux: ~/.appdata/TweetDeckFast.FFF[random letter and numbers]\Local Store
Please note that some of the folders may be hidden.
2. Edit the file using a basic text editor (eg Notepad, NOT Microsoft Word or suchlike)
3. The file should look like this:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
4. Change the word "false" to "true" so that it looks like this:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
5. Save the file, overwriting the original.
6. Restart your TweetDeck (and run it until the problem has occurred a few times). Now when you send your debug information to TweetDeck Support, we will have much more detail than normal.
Power users: If you want to be really nice, delete or empty the actual log file first before running Tweetdeck. This will give them a nice clean log, but it's not vital to do this.
7. Attach the log file ( tweetdeck-app.log ) to an email and send it to: firstname.lastname@example.com.
Please note, once you have been informed by TweetDeck Support that we no longer need any more logging, you should perform this operation again, but change the "true" back to "false". Detailed debug logging will slow down the operation of your TweetDeck so should not be left in place when not required.
8. Finally, use the Retweet button below to pass this on as far as it can travel. (This is very important.)
That's all there is to it. You're done! And thanks. This will be a huge help to the developers at Tweetdeck and Twitter.


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Thumbnail Filmstrip of Aeroclassics Braniff International Blue B720 N7080 1:200 Scale AC2BNF1215B Images
The Boeing 720 was a narrow-body commercial jetliner produced by the Boeing Company in the 1950s and 60s. It was designed as a shorter, lighter, and more efficient version of the popular 707, with a seating capacity of up to 149 passengers. The 720 featured advanced technologies such as a lighter airframe, improved engines, and a more advanced flight deck. Despite its innovations, the 720 was not as popular as its larger sibling, the 707, and its production was discontinued after just 154 aircraft were built. Despite its limited success, the 720 played an important role in the development of modern air transportation and remains an important part of aviation history. Today, the 720 is remembered as a pioneering effort to improve the efficiency of commercial air travel and continues to be respected for its innovations and contributions to the industry
© Copyright 1999-2024 JetCollector.com


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There are various ways in which a family can protect itself, and because of the large range of products available, there is usually an appropriate policy for most circumstances, and most budgets.
We can help with many ways to protect your family and your standard of living when you need it most. Click on the different protection options on the main menu to learn more about these.


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Pittsburgh-area resident Stephanie Solt captured two prizes at the finish line of last Sunday's Pittsburgh Marathon — a medal for completing the grueling 26.2 mile race and a diamond engagement ring from her boyfriend, JT Mylan.
Mylan went down on one knee and popped the question just seconds after Solt turned in a time of 4 hours, 55 minutes.
With about six miles remaining in the race, Solt had seriously considered calling it quits. She was exhausted and her right knee was throbbing.
But, whatever doubts she harbored at that time were overcome by the encouragement of total strangers. Maybe, instinctively, they all knew that this race would be life changing.
"The people on the sideline kept cheering me on and calling me by the name I had on my bib," the 25-year-old told triblive.com. "[They were] giving me high fives and just pushing me along. It was just amazing."
Overwhelmed by their support, Solt said that she was almost in tears as she powered through the Boulevard of the Allies, the home stretch to the finish line.
As she crossed the finish line, Solt was diverted by a security guard away from the other runners and toward her boyfriend.
"And here's JT at the finish line and I'm like 'What are you doing here?' He puts the medal on me and pulls out the ring and goes down on one knee, and I said 'Oh my goodness!' I was speechless," Solt told triblive.com.
Pittsburgh Public Safety posted a video of the emotional scene on its Facebook page.
Mylan, 32, said that he counted on a bunch of workout buddies to help him through the planning. One friend suggested that he pop the question at the marathon and a second friend, who was set to work security at the marathon, said he could get JT behind the finish line. A third buddy hooked him up with a photographer who would document the momentous event.
"When the universe lobs you an easy one, you might as well take it," Mylan said.
Solt said she is ecstatic that she gets to marry her best friend. The couple is planning a spring 2022 wedding, which coincides with her graduation from physical therapy school. Mylan is a health and physical education teacher.
Credits: Screen captures via Facebook.com/Pittsburgh Public Safety; YouTube.com/WTAE-TV Pittsburgh.


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How to log into the web-based management interface of Powerline ac Extender (new logo)
Here takes TL-WPA9610 as demonstration:
Method 1: Via tpPLC Utility
Follow the steps below:
1. Connect your computer to the powerline extender via an Ethernet cable or wirelessly.
2. Obtain and install the tpPLC Utility from the product's Support page at https://www.tp-link.com.
3. Open the utility, move your mouse over your powerline extender, and click the icon that appears beside it.
4. Enter admin for both username and password.
5. Click Login.
There are two methods to log in to the management interface.
Method 2: Via web browser
Follow the steps below:
1. Connect your device to the powerline extender wirelessly.
2. Launch a web browser and type in http://tplinkplc.net to open the management interface.
3. Enter admin (the default username and password) for both username and password. We recommend you change them immediately after your first login.
4. Click Login.
Get to know more details of each function and configuration please go to Download Center to download the manual of your product.
Is this faq useful?
Your feedback helps improve this site.


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Citiskate London - The Inline Skating Professionals The founder of the FNS presents skating courses for all levels. Next courses in June and July 2011 More on Rollerblading courses in London |
Want to join the FNS? You need to be able to stop at speed and handle hills/bad surfaces. Routes change each week but you can get them sent via email when you join over 5,000 other skaters by becoming a member of the Skate Dispatch We recommend you join the Skate Dispatch, a free weekly update on the skate that features the routes of the FNS and Sunday Rollerstroll as well as news on trips & events. Did the skate? Tell us about your experiences! We are always keen to get skater feedback. email@example.com |
EasyJet boosts FNS numbers
Interested in skating on Saturdays and Sundays ?Try the Easy Peasy Skate in Battersea park or the Hyde park Sunday Rollerstroll. The latter will celebrate it's anniversary in July with a destination Rollerstroll The FNS needs you!


text:
Our Summer Dresses are made with 100% Cotton Interlock fabric.
Soft on baby's skin with a comfortable fit.
Available from Birth to 4 years.
We digitally print our own fabrics which are colour-fast treated, ensuring our baby clothing keeps its brightness wash after wash.
Care Guide:
- Cool machine wash on gentle cycle with Woolite
- Do not dry clean
- Warm tumble dry if necessary, but line dry is preferable
- Warm iron


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The madness of March certainly delivered over the weekend, huh? Plenty of upsets and surprises, which always makes this time of year fun for basketball fans.
Or, so I hear.
After all, this tournament seems to happen yearly, and until the IRS changes the deadline for personal tax returns away from April 15th (the 17th this year), well … I can't say that my staff and I are able to participate much.
We're too busy doing your taxes, after all. And this time of year with less than one month remaining, we're in crunch time.
The corporate deadline is now behind us, and we are talking with Louisville clients every day about their situation.
And these conversations vary — because not only do we consult with our Louisville clients about their specific tax obligations, but we end up becoming a financial counselor as well. This, frankly, is a role that we embrace around here: for some, we are the only people who see the underbelly of their financial life … and who will still instill a dose of hope.
Because if I've learned one thing over the years, it's that no financial situation lasts forever. I've seen too many clients crawl out from under six-figure (and higher!) debt obligations to ever again believe that anyone is ever financially doomed.
But in addition to instilling hope to our clients who are struggling, we also have come up with a pretty good profile, over the years, of what makes for financial security. We've seen some of our Louisville clients work HARD to join the ranks of those who've achieved this, and it's worth applauding.
Perhaps you'd be interested in what we have seen? Then read on…
The Behavior Profile of Our Louisville Clients with the Highest Level of Financial Security
"A photograph is usually looked at, seldom looked into." – Ansel Adams
If you pay attention to the news media, a few things become clear:
1) Chaos is coming
2) Chaos is already here
3) Did we mention anything about the chaos?
It's true (and a very good reason to carefully monitor your media intake). So, becoming a household that will be able to ride through instability and uncertainty is a pretty essential component for life success.
Which is why I'd like to tell you about our Louisville clients who have prepared themselves well. I'm not naming any names here, but I am interested in commonalities. And you'll notice that these are just as significantly about your mindset as you relate to your finances, as about your behaviors.
Here's what we have learned about our most financially-secure clients in Louisville:
1) He always spends less than he earns. In fact, his mantra is that over the long run, you're better off if you strive to be anonymously rich rather than deceptively poor.
2) She knows that patience is truth. The odds are you won't become a millionaire overnight. If you're like her, your security will be accumulated gradually, by diligently saving your money over multiple decades.
3) He pays off his credit cards in full every month. He's smart enough to understand that if he can't afford to pay cash for something, then he can't afford it.
4) She realized early on that money does not buy happiness. If you're looking for financial joy, you need to focus on attaining financial freedom.
5) He understands that money is like a toddler; it is incapable of managing itself. After all, you can't expect your money to grow and mature as it should without some form of credible money management.
6) She's a big believer in paying yourself first. It's an essential tenet of personal finance and a great way to build your savings and instill financial discipline.
7) She also knows that the few millionaires in Louisville that reached that milestone without a plan got there only because of dumb luck. It's not enough to simply "declare" to the universe that you want to be financially free. This is not a "Secret".
8) When it came time to set his savings goals, he wasn't afraid to think big. Financial success demands that you have a vision that is significantly larger than you can currently deliver upon.
9) He realizes that stuff happens, and that's why you're a fool if you don't insure yourself against risk. Remember that the potential for bankruptcy is always just around the corner, and can be triggered from multiple sources: the death of the family's key breadwinner, divorce, or disability that leads to a loss of work.
10) She understands that time is an ally of the young. She was fortunate (and smart) enough to begin saving in her twenties, so she could take maximum advantage of the power of compounding interest on her nest egg.
11) He's not impressed that you drive an over-priced luxury car and live in a McMansion that's two sizes too big for your family of four. Little about external "signals" of wealth actually matter to him.
And a little bonus, if you will: She doesn't pay taxes which could have been avoided with a simple phone call to her Louisville tax professional. She gets the advice, guidance, and expert assistance of a professional, and doesn't waste her time trying to learn the tax code as well as those who have put in thousands of hours of their life to do so.
And here's to you joining these ranks in future years.
Kevin Roberts
(502) 426-0000
Roberts CPA Group