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The petition is posted on the European website
Literally Open Petition the text of the petition: "We, people around the world, are asking NATO member states and Ukraine-friendly countries to close the airspace over Ukraine and deploy peacekeeping troops in Ukraine, provide military assistance to Kyiv and support the Ukrainian people".
The petition was created on February 26. As of the morning of March 1, it's needed to be collected more votes to the our target. Petitions on the European website Open Petition can be signed by citizens from anywhere in the world.
Since the beginning of the war, the skies over Ukraine have been closed to civil aviation. But Russian warplanes continue to attack Ukrainian cities from the air and launch missile and bomb strikes on civilians.
Closing the skies means that the skies are patrolled by military aircraft and protected by air defense systems. When the sky is closed, all military planes that fly into a closed area get lost.
The people who signed the petition are asking NATO to shelter the sky over Ukraine. If NATO closed the skies, it would be its military forces that would patrol the skies and shoot down planes that violate the ban.
Children who have witnessed the war are also appealing to NATO to shelter the sky over Ukraine


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December 10, 2012
Spanish professor publishes book chapter
Salvador Oropesa, professor of Spanish, published a chapter in the collective volume, Global Issues in Contemporary Hispanic Women's Writing. Shaping Gender, the Environment and Politics." Editors were Estrella Cibreiro and Francisca López and it was published by Routled.
The title of the chapter is "Dialogue of Genres: Dystopian Buenos Aires in El niño pez by Lucia Puenzo." This collection explores the contributions of Hipanic women writers to ongoing Western debates on gender, power, ethics and the environment.

subset: commoncrawl


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The Coffee Crisis Lessons: 3 Game Design Choices That Drive Organic Marketing
As the indie scene has grown and as Steam has lowered visibility for indie developers on its platform, discoverability for smaller studios is an incredible challenge. Even when you do all of what the marketing the gurus tell you to do, meaningful traction is hard to come by.
Classic marketing advice usually includes some or all of the following:
- Press releases
- Soliciting reviews from bloggers and streamers
- Social media marketing
- Attending cons and expos
- Building your email list
We go hard on all of these points, with physical and digital boots to the pavement to drum-up exposure for our games, but we still feel like we have to claw and kick our way to every new player with these methods. That doesn't mean they aren't worth doing. It just means that by themselves they aren't providing the number of players we think our games are capable of supporting.
As we work with more publishers and as we become a more mature, experienced development team, we're learning that key game design decisions can drive the organic traction and word-of-mouth marketing surrounding games, which means you need to think about marketing as you make the game, not after it's completed.
Here are three highlights from our process that are helping us find success:
- Look at your game with a rogue-like lens. Even if your game doesn't fall squarely in the rogue-like genre, introducing elements of randomization and variations in play experiences add a great deal of replayability and also make your game more fun to stream. If your game is a single-play kind of game, you will get much less screen time and therefore have fewer people talking about it for any period of time.
- Twitch is a key organic channel, so test your game there as soon as you can. Giving streamers early copies of your game, even if it's still in development, lets you see streamer and viewer reactions to your work before you've finalized all of the mechanics. For streamers, your game test sessions can be used for exclusive, private streams (if they so choose), and you get to learn about the potential traction of your game.
- Stream integration will be a big deal soon. Microsoft's Mixer might not be the Twitch-killer they're hoping for, but the stream integration technology is compelling. As streamers become even more important, expect viewers to be able to influence the gameplay, perhaps by voting on what happens next or donating to spawn bigger, badder enemies to torture the streamer. This is new, but we're already seeing positive results from it.
But how does that look in an actual game? This is what we are doing with Coffee Crisis:
- We looked at our code and found ways to make it modular, reusing, and repurposing things we already made to extend replayability. Simple changes like adding shaders to characters to give them "elite" status all the way through building power-ups and randomized scenarios out of existing variables all come together to make the game more dynamic and to make each play-through feel different.
- We started testing with streamers early on and have continued streamer testing as we make changes and adjust features. Going through a big block of video—sometimes five hours or more of a single stream—can feel tedious, but it's an invaluable window into your game's future.
- We have also been working on Mixer integration, and the results there are also really exciting. Seeing viewers spawn more aliens to harass their favorite streamers (playfully) is always good for laughs, but more importantly, it's good for the streamers, their viewers, and for the gameplay experience.
As we continue to grow, we're leaning into these sorts of approaches to game design more and more. The industry is evolving, of course, and there will be new organic opportunities to explore there, but the evolution of streaming is particularly interesting and has a lot of potential for helping indie studios like ours get a foothold and directly engage gamers. I'd suggest any Indie of any size take advantage of this kind of opportunity to watch people play your games, give feedback, and see what really resonates with them.


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The BBC Micro game Exile, released in 1988, has a realistic claim for the best game ever. I lost months of my youth to this game. I also lost a fair few days recently re-playing the game under emulation in 2014!
What the authors were able to do with just 32KB (for everything, including video RAM) was amazing. The art of coding in this way has simply been lost. The game features:
- An enormous map featuring fairly open-ended exploration.
- A full physics engine (gravity, momentum, conservation of momentum, buoyancy, friction).
- Dozens of fiendish puzzles, characters and objects, with many interactions between entities.
There's even a great disassembly online. I was quite surprised to see that the game really is powered by real 6502 opcodes, and not unicorn tears.
The claim for "best game ever" isn't just about packing so much into such a small resource. Completing the game, even if you know what you're doing, is hours of immersive play that alternates between solving very varied puzzles and arcade-like blowing stuff up. Given how free-form the game is, there are also different solutions and orderings to to the game, so you can put your own personal spin on things.
If you want to see what all the fuss is about, the best emulator is probably B-em (part of a webring, remember those??) and the Exile game image can be readily found. And do feel free to stop reading to avoid the spoilers that now follow.
There seem to be two solutions published on the web. Unfortunately, both have triggered my OCD. Both have solutions for some of the more interesting problems that rely on abusing the limits and corner cases of the game engine, such as:
- Using the built-in viewport scrolling to sneak around with the viewport scrolled to the extreme so that an enemy or obstacle does not "see" the player.
- Abusing the fact that the physics engine "forgets" objects that are offscreen, causing corner-case and clearly unintentional behavior. (Give the poor game a break, it's trying to fit everything into 32KB!)
- Proposing solutions with low reliability.
More significantly, these problems have such beautifully elegant solutions that once you see them, it's clear that you've worked out the authors' original intent. So without further ado, here is a small collection of videos that illustrates some elegant solutions as well as an easter egg:
Getting the alien weapon
The game features a tricky-to-get alien weapon! In fact you can get it from two different places. Generally, you can feed different types of imps different "gifts" and then they might later throw you a gift in return. In this video, these cyan imps will accept a blue mushroom. Later in the game, dark blue imps accept piranhas. I had found this later exchange, but this earlier exchange was a complete surprise to me -- I only noticed it reading the disassembly referenced above.
It's a real boon to get such a powerful weapon earlier in the game. It never runs out of energy and it has good destructive power for some obstacles that are otherwise annoying. Just watch out you don't burn yourself and that you don't blow the weapon up, it's destructible.
Getting the first coronium rocks out of the alcove
There's no need to try and force the rock past the blowing bush. Speedy throwing and viewport scrolling are not necessary. There's a simple, elegant sequence that will rescue it reliably and without dubiousness.
Blowing open the rune door
The first two-thirds or so of the game are building up towards opening a very important door into the bad guy's lair. This door is blown open with a nuclear explosion between two radioactive rocks. Given the importance of the door, it's not surprising that the final puzzles towards opening it have beautiful solutions.
Both published solutions transport radioactive rocks via a route that is clearly not supposed to be an option, and the route only works on account of abusing game engine quirks. Tut tut! Here's a less hacky way of getting the required rocks, in three parts:
There's a lot going on here:
- In part #1, the use of the maggot to "wake up" the nest of green slimes is fun. Note that this doesn't always work! Game design bug? This is a very busy area of the map and the game engine often decides there's too much on-screen to spawn creatures from the nest. I lost a day stepping through 6502 assembler to understand this.
- Then, the green slimes appear attracted to sound. So we made some noise!
- The use of buoyancy to avoid the sucking bush is the first and only significant usage in a puzzle. Wonderful.
- In part #2 and #3, the presence of the big fish prevents the (very dangerous) piranhas from coming out the nest and ruining your day.
- In part #3, the piranha is actually immune to damage from acid drops -- I believe the only creature in the game that has this trait. (You can even check the disassembly :-)
Getting the mushroom immunity pill
Again, this puzzle involves blowing a door open with radioactive rocks. The published solutions suggest all sorts of hacks here, but there's a really neat solution with the "blaster" weapon that has been recently collected at this stage in the game. Previous weapons were projectile based but this one is force based and it can be used variously: at a distance to gently deviate the course of an acid drop, and then at close range to reliably launch a rock past a problem area.
Happy exploring.


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I posted something the other day about Pastor Rick Warren's comparison of homosexual acts to violent assault. Seems like not really an apt comparison. Now comes Antonin Scalia with an even better, I mean, worse, argument (from the Huffington Post):
"I don't think it's necessary, but I think it's effective," Scalia said, adding that legislative bodies can ban what they believe to be immoral.
Scalia has been giving speeches around the country to promote his new book, "Reading Law," and his lecture at Princeton comes just days after the court agreed to take on two cases that challenge the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Some in the audience who had come to hear Scalia speak about his book applauded but more of those who attended the lecture clapped at freshman Duncan Hosie's question.
"It's a form of argument that I thought you would have known, which is called the `reduction to the absurd,'" Scalia told Hosie of San Francisco during the question-and-answer period. "If we cannot have moral feelings against homosexuality, can we have it against murder? Can we have it against other things?"
Scalia said he is not equating sodomy with murder but drawing a parallel between the bans on both.
Then he deadpanned: "I'm surprised you aren't persuaded."
I'm perplexed by the first bolded claim, as Legislative bodies in the US are limited by the Constitution as to what they can ban–they can't ban acts of religion can't they? Anyway, I don't have the full quote or context so whatever.
The other claim, the reduction to the absurd, is rather odd. I imagine no one doubts the possibility of having "moral feelings" against homosexuality. The question, of course, is whether such feelings are (a) morally or rationally justified and (b) legally enforceable. I suppose the latter question is the one that ought to concern Scalia. So there is an equivocation in Scalia's claim over "cannot." You can have all the feelings you want against anything. Some of those might be morally justified, some might be legally enforceable. No law, however, can take away your ability to disapprove of things.
As if this were not bad enough for a big mind such as Scalia's, this equivocation is then used as a lever to push the little cart down the slippery slope: if we cannot ban homosexuality, then we cannot ban murder! That's not reduction to the absurd, it's just absurd.


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One can spoil everybody
A bus full of ugly people had a head on collision with a truck.
When they died, God granted all of them one wish.
The first person said, "I want to be gorgeous." God snapped his fingers and it happened.
The second person said the same thing and God did the same thing.
This want on and on throughout the group.
God noticed the last man in line was laughing hysterically.
By the time God got to the last ten people, the last man was laughing and rolling on the ground.
When the man's turn came, he laughed and said, "I wish they were all ugly again."


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Today I've got to talk about towing. I'm sorry if the mere thought causes your eyes to glaze over. There's just too much dangerous misinformation out on the Internet, even coming from RV salespeople and people who should know better, and it's going to get people killed.
If you don't read Airstream Life, you've missed out on a great series about towing issues that is authored by Andy Thomson of Can-Am RV. Andy is a second-generation Airstream dealer who specializes in setting up trailer hitches for best performance, and he does a lot of testing with his own vehicles to figure out what works. The series he's writing for the magazine has gradually built up a case for optimal hitching, which involves a lot more than just "buy a bigger truck." He's gotten into the details like the overhang and angle of the tow ball, sway control, aerodynamics, engine power, suspension components, steering, and much more. Some of what he says is controversial but I think all of his points are very important to consider.
So if you really want to understand towing at the engineering level (and get past all the ridiculous pseudo-knowledge that you've probably heard), you should gather up as many of the back issues as you can find and read all the articles. (The series started in the Summer 2010 issue.)
I can't begin to reach Andy's expertise level, but I can talk about one simple piece of the towing puzzle today: weight distribution. Weight distribution is the idea that the tongue weight of the trailer should be evenly distributed across both axles of the tow vehicle.
It's horrifying that so many people don't understand this concept, because it's absolutely crucial when towing a trailer with a heavy tongue weight. By "heavy" I mean any trailer with over 500 pounds or so on the tongue. It doesn't matter how big your truck is. It doesn't matter if you "can hardly feel the Airstream," or if you "never had a problem." You need to get this right.
Why? Because one day it will make a difference. That will be the day that you have to do a panic stop, or a sudden avoidance maneuver on the highway, or when the wind is blowing 30 knots off your starboard bow, or when you accidentally let the trailer drop a wheel off the edge of the pavement … and I could go on further with reasons why. One day, you'll have to do ask your rig to do something extraordinary, and you'll want it to behave.
Without proper weight distribution, that rig you thought was so great towing straight down the road might do something really unexpected. Perhaps the rear brakes will lock up prematurely in a hard stop. You might not be able to control a sway, or stay on the road in a turn. You might feel the trailer "wag the dog." Quite likely you'll have an accident and afterward only know that something bad happened and you're not sure why.
The catch is that you can't tell you've got a problem until one of three things happens:
- You weigh the truck and trailer combination, and then the truck separately, to see how weight is being distributed across the axles.
- You take the rig on a closed course and drive it to the limits.
- You crash.
I prefer option #1.
The other day I saw some CAT scale readings from a fellow who was very confident about his truck and Airstream setup. By common knowledge, he was all set: big truck, no problem. But the CAT scale told a different story. When he hitched up his trailer, the rear axle of his truck got 1,900 lbs heavier. The front axle got 760 pounds lighter. That's very bad but not unexpected. It means the weight of the trailer's tongue, pushing down on the tow ball at the back of the truck, was actually lifting the front of the truck.
Imagine a teeter-totter. The Airstream is pushing on one end, the rear axle of the truck is the center (fulcrum) of the teeter-totter, and the front axle is going up. When you lighten the front end that much, the steering geometry is affected. Now you've got understeer. You turn the steering wheel, but the truck doesn't turn like it should. It's like driving on ice. It's insidious because you might not notice until you have to make an emergency maneuver at speed.
A light front axle also affects the braking adversely, giving the front tires less ability to grip the road and slow you down. So bad steering, bad braking—you can see how this is really undesirable.
With weight distribution applied on the same truck and trailer, the problem appears to the casual observer to be corrected. With the weight bars in place, the CAT scale shows that the rear axle is now only 1,000 pounds heavier than the axle was without the trailer (which is well under the manufacturer's axle rating), and the front axle is now lightened by only 100 pounds. Everything meets the manufacturer's specifications.
That will work, but it's far from optimal. The truck started with a nice 49/51% front/rear weight distribution. With the Airstream and weight distribution, the ratio has gone to 44/56%, which is not so great. It will drive OK under un-challenging circumstances, but it's not set up well to deal with a bad day. Imagine a sports car with a huge lump of concrete in the trunk. Go around a sharp corner, and what happens? The sports car spins out. The truck with poor weight distribution may be more prone to the same thing. Unfortunately, as I mentioned above, the driver may not "feel" anything adverse until it's too late.
So how do you fix this? It's actually quite easy to even out the load on the axles. The exact mechanism depends on the hitch system you're using, so it may be a matter of just going down a link on the weight bar chains (on a Reese), or tightening the strut jacks (on a Hensley), or angling the tow ball rearward, or shortening the receiver to get the ball closer to the rear axle, or any combination of these things. The goal is the same: get those axles back to as close to 50/50 weight as you can, with the trailer hitched up.
If you find that you've tried everything and can't get the weight distribution any better, don't give up. Hensleys are not great at weight distribution, but regardless of the type of hitch you use, check with someone who knows hitches. Sometimes the hitch receiver on your truck will flex so much that it acts like a spring, bending rather than distributing the weight stress. Reinforcement or repair may be necessary.
By the way, if you followed the manufacturer's instructions when setting up your hitch, and used the old technique of measuring the corners of the truck to see how much each dropped, you still need to go to a truck scale. That method is really obsolete today, with modern vehicles that have different suspensions front and rear, air bags, or even full air suspensions. At best, it's a rough estimate. For about $10 at a CAT scale you can get the real story.
If you didn't know any of this, don't feel like a noob. I've talked to RV salespeople who send people out the door every day with new rigs, who don't understand the basic principles of weight distribution. I just hope I've impressed upon you that most Airstream owners need to check their weight distribution on a truck scale, because what you don't know can definitely hurt you.


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Introducing PlanetAUX
I wrote a post a couple of years ago surveying the 20 biggest Australian listed companies in terms of how they syndicate the ASX announcements they make when they have news for the market.
All of the companies made their announcements available on their (or an associated) website, but that obviously requires that an interested investor or follower of the company regularly check the announcements page of each company they're interested in - not ideal, timely, or scalable.
"Push" or broadcast approaches are much more useful for this sort of thing, and back then 14 or the 20 did make their announcements available via email - which is useful enough - and 7 of the 20 also published RSS or Atom feeds, which are better still, because they're more lightweight, centralised, and standardised/re-mixable.
On the other hand, 7/20 is a pretty ordinary score, especially considering these are the biggest Australian listed companies. Smaller companies with fewer resources are presumably going to fare even worse.
Two years on the number of ASX20 companies with announcements feeds has now leapt to ... 9. :-/
And so towards the end of last year I decided to scratch this particular itch, and built an announcement aggregator site called PlanetAUX. It aggregates the announcements feeds of the ASX20 companies with them, and generates announcements feeds for those that don't have them.
Of the companies in the ASX20, there was only one whose HTML was so terrible that I couldn't manage to parse it. I figured 19/20 isn't bad for starters.
Plans are to add more companies as time and interest demands, presumably the remainder of the ASX50 initially, and then we'll see how things go.
Happy feeding.


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Strong winds put the Burn on hold for awhile last night, but The Man finally went up in flames around 11 p.m. The harsh conditions earlier in the evening forced the cancellation of the fire conclave beforehand. By the time the big guy burned, though, the dust storms had cleared and the night had turned beautiful.
Lots more pics and a wrapup post in a day or two.
The Man burns in 364 days.


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Armed with his newly self-appointed name, "Spartacus" the orange generic puppette imagines a very appealing future for himself.
The orange generic puppette returns to his comrades with a startling, revolutionary announcement.
Erasmus, leader of the Imagine Nation, is left high and dry during a chat with the orange generic puppette.
Erasmus shares some of the hard facts of (political) life with the orange generic puppette.
The orange generic puppette is pulled aside by Erasmus, leader of all the Imagine Nation, for a private chat.
Generic puppettes stroll through the projects while a mysterious onlooker spies on their progress.


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Stretchable Elastic Sofa Cover(Color No.52)
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- SOFA SLIPCOVERS MATERIAL & DESIGN: Polyester and spandex fabric. All rounds without corners wrapped, not easy to wrinkle; elastic band and strap fastening closure at the bottom, double reinforcement, not easy to displacement.
- FITS MOST FURNITURE: Our slipcovers are one-size-fits-most. Our 4 seater sofa slipcover fits most sofas up to back length 92 to 122 Inch, our 3 seater sofa slipcover fits most sofas up to back length 76 to 90 Inch, our 2 seater loveseat slipcover fits most loveseats up to back length 57 to 72 Inch, our 1 seat chair slipcover fits most armchairs up to back length 35 to 55 Inch. PLEASE MEASURE BEFORE PURCHASING.
- STAYS IN PLACE: If your sofa is L type combined with 2 parts separately, you need to order the 2pcs cover for it. This sofa cover applicable to the sofa which there is a gap between seat with backrest and armrest. The small cloth strip that you use to hold in place, push them down and under as far as you can, will hold in place.
- PROTECT: This basic slipcover shields and protects your furniture from spills, stains, wear and tear to prevent it from getting ruined. It is great for homes with pets, or for anyone seeking an economical solution for furniture protection.
- LIGHWEIGHT AND EASY CARE: Easy to set up and pick up; machine wash cold, do not bleach, tumble dry Low, not ironing, installation steps showed by seeing picture.
- 1 seat : Chair length between 35″ – 55″ (90 -140 cm)
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- Before ordering, we recommend measuring your furniture to determine the right size
- If the distance of the red line is 35-55in, plz choose 1seater
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- If the distance of the red line is 92-122in, plz choose 4seater
Step 1. Extent the sofa cover(Position the slipcover over the sofa with the label at the back.)
Step 2. Cover the sofa in the right direction.
Step 3. Let the sofa hold down the four corners.
Step 4. Put the small cloth strip into the gap in the sofa.
Step 5. Put the sofa down and pull cover tight, pulling any excess fabric to the back.
Step 6. Enjoy your newly covered sofa!


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Safe Drinking Water in an Emergency or Disaster
Nothing makes clearer the importance of water than a large disaster; clean, fresh water becomes more valuable than gold. It's easy to forget that without water, we just can't survive. 60 percent of our bodies are water, in fact for infants, water makes up about 80 percent of their body, so it is even more vital they have access to clean drinking water.
Unfortunately, following large-scale disasters, it's not unusual that water supplies may be cut off temporarily or be rendered unfit for consumption. Everyone should know the following tips about safe drinking water in emergency situations.
Preparedness is Everything: The advice comes over and over, but most people still are not ready when disaster hits. You must maintain a supply of clean drinking water someplace safe in your home. You can survive a week without food, if necessary, but even one or two days without water can be fatal.
In terms of how much water is needed to be stored, you need to drink at least two quarts a day of water. Enough water for all the members of your family for at least a few days is a good idea. You can store water yourself in your own containers; anything glass, and clean, thoroughly washed plastic containers with caps work well. Seal water tightly in their containers and store them in someplace cool and dark in your home. Make sure to change new water regularly; once every six months.
Finding Safe Drinking Water: If you do run out of water during an emergency, or are trapped somewhere without ready access to clean drinking water, you'll need to know what's safe to drink, and what isn't.
After a disaster, possible sources of safe drinking water in your home include the water from your hot water tank, the water from your toilet tank (not the bowl, but the water from your tank, but if it is chemical-free), and water trapped in your water pipes. Melt any ice cubes that you may have stored.
Avoid using water from waterbeds as drinking water, since they are treated with chemicals unsafe for drinking. You can use waterbed water for washing, though. Outside your home try to locate streams, rivers, lakes, or other sources of fresh water. Never drink floodwater; it is usually contaminated with bacteria and chemicals. Do save rainwater that may fall for drinking.
Purifying Water in an Emergency: If you cannot locating safe drinking water during an emergency, then any water you find that does not look clear, or which you believe may be contaminated, should be purified before drinking.
The best and easiest way to purify water is by boiling. Disease-bearing microorganisms cannot survive in high temperatures.
Boil the water for about one minute. For improved taste, pour the water back and forth from one clean container to another.
If you're unable to boil your water, treat it chemically before drinking. Household chlorine bleach can be used to treat your water. Use an eyedropper, to drop eight drops of bleach into each gallon of water to be treated. Make sure the chlorine you use lists hypochlorite as its only active ingredient; any extra chemicals or fragrances will only further contaminate the water. Stir the water and allow it to stand at least 30 minutes. When the water appears clear, it is likely safe to drink. If it is still murky or clouded, put in eight more drops and let stand another 30 minutes.


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For example, POM Wonderful advertisements imply that the juice protects against prostate cancer. Could this be true? POM Wonderful cited a study with some evidence that "PSA doubling time" -- a measure of prostate cancer's progress -- is slowed by drinking POM Wonderful. Yet, truthfulness requires more than selective quotation from a favorable study. In the FTC hearing, the balance of scientific evidence failed to support POM Wonderful's implied prostate cancer claim.
POM Wonderful argued that some of its claims were merely puffery, not intended actually to convince grown-up consumers that the juice protects against cancer. Yet, truthfulness does not permit the kindergarten defense: "Okay, I implied it, but I didn't really say it, so it's not a lie."
The administrative judge is correct to tar the claims as false and misleading.
What is the policy implication? Some reasonable people would say the FTC should crack down on misleading health claims. Other reasonable people would say "buyer beware," while maintaining that regulation will do little good. In either case, let us all acknowledge that the claims are false and misleading. There can be no defense of the claims themselves.
Or, so I thought.
POM Wonderful's response to the ruling this week has a breathtaking audacity. I see today on the NYT website, POM Wonderful advertisements boasting of the FTC judge's ruling. For the prostate issue above, here is the key quote in the POM Wonderful ad today:
How is this possible? Did the judge really endorse the very cancer-protective claim that POM Wonderful had implied? Here is the full passage from page 282 of the judgment, with the sentences not quoted by POM Wonderful underlined."Competent and reliable scientific evidence supports the conclusion that the consumption of pomegranate juice and pomegranate extract supports prostate health, including by prolonging PSA doubling time in men with rising PSA after primary treatment for prostate cancer."– Judge Chappell, Chief Administrative Law Judge, FTCIn the Matter of POM Wonderful LLC, Initial Decision (5/17/2012), page 282
Competent and reliable scientific evidence supports the conclusion that the consumption of pomegranate juice and pomegranate extract supports prostate health, including by prolonging PSA doubling time in men with rising PSA after primary treatment for prostate cancer. However, the greater weight of the persuasive expert testimony shows that the evidence relied upon by Respondents is not adequate to substantiate claims that the POM Products treat, prevent, or reduce the risk of prostate cancer or that they are clinically proven to do so. Indeed, the authors of the Pantuck Study and the Carducci Study each testified that their study did not conclude that POM Juice treats, prevents, or reduces the risk of prostate cancer.Let anybody who was tempted to criticize the FTC or defend POM Wonderful read these two passages and evaluate for themselves the company's standard of honesty.
In my view, POM Wonderful is truly a bold titan of the dubious claims industry.
Update (1:45 pm): I just noticed that Marion Nestle also covered the NYT ads. Soon perhaps POM Wonderful will quote Marion's sentence: "Fruit juices are healthy and especially delicious when fresh." Of course, Marion goes on to say she doubts the cancer claims too.


text: Creating A Healthy Home Posted by Caring Transitions on September 13, 2019 at 6:58 AM The comfort of aging in a house you've made a home with memories and special moments is the way many older adults envision spending the later years of their lives. Although it seems simple to stay where you are, making the decision to age in place should be followed up with careful thought and planning to maintain quality of life, independence, and a healthy environment. September is Healthy Aging Month. We understand the importance of a healthy home for older adults and want to help you create a place you can enjoy being the best version of you. The biggest concerns most older adults face are safety, accessibility, and sustainable independence. We have tips to help you or a loved one create a healthy home to age in place. It is Imperative to Clear the Clutter As a home becomes more "lived in" over the years, an accumulation of physical representations of special moments happens over that time. From gifts from loved ones, keepsakes, photos, furniture and items with fond memories to storing special items for friends or loved ones, treasured items continue to be acquired and admired. Quite often the memories attached to what we have is more powerful than the item itself. To put this accumulation in perspective it's important to know the average American home has over 300,000 items. In an ourparents.com article titled Dealing with the Dangers of Clutter, senior industry expert Chris Seman explains the dangers of clutter. One serious danger for older adults is "the risks for personal injury, such as trips and falls." There are financial risks as well, and homeowners with clutter "frequently pay to replace household items because they are more vulnerable to being crushed, broken, or lost." One other byproduct of clutter is structural damage "due to vents being blocked [and] obstructing airflow, causing moisture, and creating costly damage from mold." Most often, it takes the average family 9 to 18 months to completely clear the home after a major life event. No matter how you begin, remember the great benefits of decluttering for your health. If you are overwhelmed with the thought of decluttering on your own, companies like Caring Transitions can help. Make changes for accessibility and comfort. Remove any slip or trip hazards from the floor. It's important to remove items like worn rugs, excess furniture, exposed cords, or any other objects that will obscure a clear moving path. Keep high use items in a convenient place. All of us take comfort in very specific items. It could be a favorite blanket, a coffee mug, a cozy sweater. Whatever "it" is, the best way for an older adult aging in place to enjoy it is in a convenient way. Placing items strategically encourages use that does not require a constant search to use a treasured item. The best way to accomplish this is choosing clear dedicated spaces for the items loved and used most. The more the placement is suited for ease of use, the better. Be sure to keep the home bright and open. Lighting the home properly has benefits above and beyond sight itself. According to the American Academy of Opthamology, "seniors may have both a higher need for natural light and a harder time getting it than do younger people. A part of the natural light spectrum, called blue light, is important for our ability to maintain healthy bodily rhythms… like circadian rhythms or biorhythms." Some experts even suggest using brighter bulbs, hanging colorful artwork, or opening windows, curtains, and blinds to let more natural light in as well. Consider Services to Make Home Maintenance Simple Maintaining an excellent quality of life is key to enjoying and benefitting from aging in place. Daily chores and upkeep can be overwhelming if you have no desire to or are unable to complete them. From chores like housecleaning, decluttering, yard work, grocery shopping, and laundry to painting and maintenance, there are services available to help. Everyday repair, cleaning and yard work tasks that used to be simple can become increasingly more difficult for older adults. In many cases an extra layer of risk for falls and injuries increases with time. A healthy home requires consistent upkeep, so finding the right resource to help you complete your chore list can be very beneficial. Find a resource that specializes in house care and repair. Senior centric companies like TruBlue House Care, specialize in house care services both interior and exterior. The benefit of a professional resource is often the thorough approach and attention to that goes above and beyond what we can do on our own. Learn more about how TruBlue can help you or a loved one here. Find a resource that specializes in tasks to maintain or increase your property value. Taking care of your home as you age in place is a great way to maintain the value of the home and in some cases improve it. Wear and tear on your home exterior and interior will occur over time. Look for senior friendly companies like Fresh Coat Painters to help you keep your home in good condition with paint services, pressure washing, or other interior and exterior updates. Learn more about how Fresh Coat can help you or a loved one here. Consider services that help with daily tasks. Find services that ease the burdens of everyday tasks that may become a challenge I the future. As a growing number of older adults choose to age in place, a host of services that specialize in helping seniors remain independent become easily available. Some of the services that are most helpful for daily tasks are: Grocery Delivery and Pickup Meal Delivery Services Errand ServicesTransportation ServicesOnline BankingOnline ShoppingVirtual Health Services With so many benefits to clearing your home of clutter, planning for accessibility, and scheduling upkeep, taking time to think through how you'd like to enjoy your home is the best way to put your well-being first. Creating a plan to create a healthy home for aging in place is the smartest way to enjoy your home for many years to come. The benefits can extend your quality of life now and in the long run. Sources http://www.healthinaging.org/resources/resource:home-safety-tips-for-older-adults/https://www.kaercher.com/int/inside-kaercher/company/media-information/media-information/814-healthy-cleaning-in-old-age.htmlhttp://www.aginginplace.org/helping-the-elderly-at-home/https://ageinplace.com/at-home/clean-house-improves-thinking/https://www.medicarefaq.com/blog/how-regular-house-cleaning-keep-seniors-safe-from-infections/https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/aging-place-growing-older-homehttps://www.retirementliving.com/7-services-to-make-aging-in-place-easier


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This year's Download festival kicked off properly yesterday (12 June), with sets from AC/DC, Them Crooked Vultures and Killswitch Engage.
TG's first band of the festival was Year Long Disaster on the Pepsi Max Stage. Despite having no formal guitar training - frontman Daniel Davies later told us he learnt "by ear and a book of chords" - the group had no trouble pulling deceptively simple Page-esque riffs out of the bag and distributing them liberally, like some kind of guitar-ing Milky Bar kid. Davies has the same approach to his solo-writing, crafting emotive lead lines, that don't prove too taxing on the fingers.
Following YLD (and various interviews and photo-shoots), TG managed to venture out of the press enclosure to catch Killswitch Engage tearing up the mainstage. The guys know what they're doing by now and delivered a set worthy of the event. Closing with their cover of Dio's 'Holy Diver', it gave Donnington a chance to say a proper farewell to RJD.
Them Crooked Vultures also made an admirable effort, their combined heritage ensuring an audience of all ages turned out - a canny pre-AC/DC booking on the part of the Download organisers. However, as capable as TCV are of handling festival crowds their set lacked a certain punch and felt to TG like a band going through the motions - the extended jams were particularly laboured.
Touring guitarist/contributor Alain Johannes is worth a mention though, providing some nice colouration with slide guitar licks on a variety of customised instruments, including a Fender Jaguar with P90s and a slide guitar with a built in Kaos pad. Hugh Manson (the man who makes Matt Bellamy's guitars) is also John Paul Jones' bass-tech, so we think we know where that one came from...
The evening was then left in the very capable (and somehow un-arthritic) hands of Angus Young and AC/DC. The group (though probably unaware of it) had a huge weight of expectation on their shoulders. Having been booked for a rumoured £4 million, bringing the band to Donnington meant a smaller amount of bands could play on the Friday and that the organisers had to allow them to erect their own stage - which was the same size as the main one, and more heavily loaded.
Fortunately they didn't disappoint and delivered a set full of classics, including 'Whole Lotta Rosie' (complete with a gigantic inflatable Rosie figure), 'You Shook Me All Night Long', 'Highway To Hell', 'Those About To Rock (We Salute You)' and 'Back In Black', to name a few. Insanely tight and surprisingly energetic, we'd be very surprised if anyone of the audience felt it wasn't worth the sacrifices.
That's it for today, but keep an eye on our Twitter for more frequent updates and pictures of costumed tom-foolery.


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Demands on IT professionals rise as mobile commerce grows
MENLO PARK, Calif. — As mobile commerce grows in popularity, the need for IT professionals is rising, according to a new survey about IT risk factors for 2013 published by global consulting firm Protiviti. The 2013 IT Priorities Survey (www.protiviti.com/ITsurvey), designed to help IT departments classify areas in need of attention in order to better execute the function's strategic mandate, found that IT executives are struggling to manage the wide variety of technology risk, regulatory compliance and performance challenges that now face them.
When asked to assess their competency in key areas of IT technical knowledge on a scale of one to five, with one being the lowest and five being the highest, nearly 200 CIOs, chief technology officers, chief security officers, and IT vice presidents/directors reported a 2.8 average rank for social media security, social media integration, mobile commerce security, mobile commerce integration, and mobile commerce policy.
"The continued rapid global expansion of the smart phone and mobile applications marketplace reflects the strong demand from business leaders and consumers for access to information anytime and anywhere, which presents exciting opportunities for delivering value. However, it also creates greater technology risk potential," said Kurt Underwood, a managing director with Protiviti and leader of the firm's global IT consulting unit. "The result is significant pressure on IT departments and business leaders as they are asked to deliver more mobile technology-enabled services. This pressure forces them to take on considerably more risk than they're prepared for – especially in terms of policy, integration, data management, security and data privacy related to mobile commerce and social media proliferation and innovation."
Among 21 areas of technical knowledge, survey respondents identified social media security and mobile commerce security as the areas needing most improvement. CIOs and their staffs indicated that they intended to strengthen their cyber security capabilities in order to tackle the growing threat of breaches ‑ and potential incident response procedures ‑ as well as ensuring their compliance with the increasing number of state and federal information security requirements.
Executive-level respondents also rated mobile commerce security, policy and integration among their top five priorities in the new survey's technical knowledge section, which contrasts strongly with the 2011 survey in which none of these areas made the top of the list. Interestingly, challenges related to virtualization and cloud computing receded in the rankings compared to 2011, suggesting IT departments have a higher level of confidence in managing these areas.


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text: Weekly Ad: September 7-13, 2022 VIEW THIS WEEK'S DEALS Prices effective 9/7/22 – 9/13/22. Click to scroll through all pages of the full weekly ad. Click to download Two Ways to Order Online Too busy to shop? Family Center IGA is now accepting online orders for delivery and pick-up! Quantities of some items may be limited and subject to availability. Minimum purchase may be required. Not responsible for typographical or pictorial errors and we reserve the right to correct all printed errors.


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TREEHOUSE LIFESTYLE SUPPLIES does not purchase nor sell smoking accessories that will be used or resold for illicit drug use. Smoking products available on this site are sold as and intended to be used solely for the consumption of legal herbal smoking preparations, tobacco or medicinal cannabis for those legally permitted to do so. For more information see our Terms and Conditions page.
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Eyehategod Reveal New Drummer Following Death of Joey LaCaze
New Orleans sludge pioneers Eyehategod have officially recruited a new full-time drummer. Near the end of August, the band and the metal community lost drummer Joey LaCaze. As a founding member of Eyehategod, his influence can never truly be replaced, but drummer Aaron Hill has been elected to keep the band in tact.
A large amount of musicians from bands such as Pantera, Lamb of God, Shadows Fall and Nonpoint look the time to play tribute to LaCaze after learning of his passing. About a week after LaCaze's demise, the official cause of death was revealed to be respiratory failure. It was also noted that the drummer suffered from long term asthma.
Having had time to mourn the loss of LaCaze, Eyehategod have decided to move forward. The NOLA act performed at Phil Anselmo's Housecore Horror Film Fest last weekend with Melvins percussionist Dale Crover, but Aaron Hill of Missing Mountains / Mountain of Wizard has been announced as Eyehategod's newest member.
Aaron Hill makes his Eyehategod debut tonight, which just happens to be Halloween, at the House of Shock in Jefferson, La. For a full list of Eyehategod's remaining 2013 shows, check out the dates below.
Eyehategod 2013 Shows:
10/31 - The House Of Shock – Jefferson, La.
11/01 - Al Rosa Villa – Columbus, Ohio
11/02 - Cobra Lounge – Chicago, Ill.
11/03 - Cobra Lounge – Chicago, Ill.
11/14 - St. Vitus – Brooklyn, N.Y.
11/15 - The Note – West Chester, Pa.
11/17 - Presidents Rock Club – Quincy, Mass.


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Patients with severe carpal tunnel symptoms often become desperate in their search for a cure. Most patients with chronic diseases fall prey to this—looking for the one answer, the one magic pill or magic bullet that will rid them of all their troubles now and forever.
In carpal tunnel care, you may have looked for the magic splint, the best surgeon, the one exercise, or the one vitamin or herb or magnet to find relief for your pain. As carpal tunnel symptoms worsen, affecting not only our daily lives and even our jobs, the urgency to find the one thing becomes greater and greater.
It's no wonder there's no shortage of promises and potions out there to deliver you the magic bullet. Perhaps you could look at this problem in another way? Not the one thing that has thus far eluded you, but rather the many things you've found difficult to face and take care of, the things that may prevent problems but only if you faithfully adhere to them. What I'm getting at is this: there are many pieces to the carpal tunnel puzzle and you can think of hand pain more of as a signal that the final straw that is finally breaking the camel's back.
Yes, it is true that those with vitamin deficiencies get more nerve symptoms and taking B6 can help some people with their symptoms. But B6 is part of the B-complex that we should be getting every day in our diets. Whether you have symptoms or not, you should be eating right, and that means lots of vegetables. Most of us will benefit from correcting our lack of vitamin intake by taking different vitamins in supplement form.
Or maybe we are overweight; it's true of 60% of Americans. We need to maintain an ideal weight whether or not our hands hurt. Or perhaps we have a neck problem that we are not addressing. Sometimes neck problems cause hand pain and sometimes they do not. Whether or not the neck itself is causing your hand to hurt, you should get your neck fixed so that movements are free and symmetrical.
Lastly, exercise and stretching should be party of everyone's daily routine, not just those with hand symptoms.


text: Brian grew up on the east end of Tobacco Road in North Carolina. He watched Michael Jordan of Laney High play basketball, caddied on the PGA Tour and has written about college basketball for two decades. He lives in Wilmington, NC with his two young daughters and lovely wife, who keep him busy and pull for teams based on their colors and mascots. Brian also can be found at a good concert, anyone from Jason Isbell or Bob Dylan to Government Mule and Widespread Panic. He also pursues barbecue cooked on wood, strong coffee and efficient offense. If not lining up a birdie putt, Brian is probably cooking a good meal, reading interesting words or watching a halfcourt set that ends in a layup.


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Do you think Skeletor, the Joker, Megatron and Lex Luthor have the market cornered on evil? Not so fast. The world of manga and anime is just as full of villains as Western comics and cartoons are, and they're no slouches in the murder and depravity departments. Here are 11 anime and manga villain you wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley… or a well-lit one, for that matter.
1) Light, Death Note
Young Light Yagami only wanted to help the world when he found the Death Note, a magical notebook that would kill anyone whose name he wrote in it, in the manner he described it. He used it to kill criminals who escaped justice or were in the middle of their schemes… and then he just started killing all the worst criminals, even if they were already in jail. And then he killed a detective who had stumbled onto his secret — in order, he told himself, to serve the greater good. That was a first step on a slippery slope to eventually killing everyone he decided was a criminal, regardless of what the law said, as well as anyone who tried to stop him. By the time he was eventually caught, he had murdered thousands.
2) Father, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
The antagonist of the original Fullmetal Alchemist manga and the second anime Brotherhood bears a striking resemblance to protagonists Ed and Alphonse Elric's father Van Hohenheim, but he's quite different. Mainly in that he is willing to kill the citizens of whole cities and even entire countries in order to advance his own power, and that he succeeds in both, killing millions. The reason why he does the former is to free himself from the flask he was trapped in, which is kind of understandable, but the country sacrifice was simply to absorb the power of God, which is a feat as arrogant as it is evil, and it's pretty evil. Oh, and he's more than willing to kill his own children, the Homunculi, in order to achieve his ends. However, he's only one of FMA's many horrible fathers, as you'll see….
3) Johan Liebert, Monster
If you're the bad guy in a manga series titled Monster, chances are you're going to be something special. And Johan Liebert is — he's a serial killer that would make Hannibal Lector step back and say "whoa." He killed his adoptive family, he killed the co-workers of the surgeon who saved his life, he even managed to talk all the students and instructors of a secret Germany military training program into killing each other. And then, after the surgery, he really got busy murdering people. He was actually a leader of sorts for Europe's serial killers, who did his bidding even as he occasionally killed them (which, to be fair, kind of goes with the job description). He's actually so evil and murderous that a Neo-Nazi party tried to get him to become the new Adolf Hitler — which wassn't Johan's style so he massacred most of them so they'd leave him alone. When people are asking you to be Hitler 2,0, you know you're a bad dude.
4) Majin Buu, Dragonball Z
Majin Buu isn't one of those villains with a dark soul, or some twisted upbringing, or who has some nefarious plan for his own advancement or revenge. He's just a pink arsehole with a lot of power, such as when he kills everybody on the planet with a single martial arts move. Seriously, he raises his arm, performs the "Human Extinction Attack," and all seven billion of Earth's inhabitants are dead. For no real gain. Just to be a dick.
5) Griffith, Berserk
It can be difficult when a friend leaves, especially when that friend is also a co-worker. Suffice it to say, Griffith did not take it well when Guts left his mercenary group the Band of the Hawk. How bad? Well, later, after Guts had come back to rescue him several times, he sacrificed the rest of his Band in order to become a powerful demon named the God Hand, and the first thing he did was rape Guts' pregnant lover Casca right in front of him, so horrifyingly that the baby ended up deformed. What Griffith's evil lacks in quantity, it more than makes up for in total wretchedness.
6) Diva, Blood+
Speaking of horrible violent sex acts, Diva — the fellow Chiropteran Queen sister of Blood+'s protagonist Saya — came so close to killing her adopted brother Riku that Saya was forced to make him her Chevalier, which is like a nice version of turning him into a Thrall (not the worst fate in the world, but something you wouldn't wish on a family member). But Riku's half-life was destined to be short, as he was soon captured by Diva, raped, and then completely killed. To be fair, while Saya was raised by a loving adoptive family Diva was kept locked in a tower and psychologically tortured, but still, not cool. Anyways, Diva also killed a bunch of more people, many of them Saya's friends, before trying to turn the entire world into her Chiropteran monster pawns through an opera performance (don't ask).
7) Naraku, Inuyasha
Naraku might not be the evilest villain on this list, but he's possibly the most annoying. While other bad guys will just cut right to the killing and destroying, Naraku will bleed you to death with a million super-obnoxious paper cuts, and make sure to constantly be gone before you can catch him. His whole plan in Inuyasha was to collect the pieces of the demon shard, but he did it it the most dickish, least effective ways possible, as if all he really cared about was making Inuyasha and his friends feel shitty. He tricked Inyasha and his lover Kikyo into hating each other, he had Sango's brother Kohaku kill their entire family, he set Inuyasha's brother against him, and he even made multiple clones of himself in order that the Inuyasha gang could fight and defeat him every single episode and be sure to get absolutely nowhere on their obnoxiously long journey. Believe you me, there are plenty of Inuyasha fans who believe Naraku is the biggest arsehole on this list.
8) Medusa, Soul Eater
The Mummy Dearest of the anime world, Medusa turned her child Crona into a research subject. And when I say research subject, I mean, she researched how to drive him completely insane and turn into a deranged killer, and then subjected him to the necessary torture in order to do this. In fact, Medusa is so horrible to her son that after the experiment is completed, Crona murders her… which she manipulated him into doing on purpose so he would have killed everything that he had ever cared for… which is when she gets proud. And here's the worst part — she kind of likes her son. Everyone else, she's not so nice to…
9) Makoto Shishio, Rurouni Kenshin
Makoto seems like your standard villain — a former government assassin who gets double-crossed and set on fire but lives, then spends all his time covered in bandages determined to destroy the government and conquer the nation. You know, that old chestnut. Along the way, he's got plenty of time to try to destroy the cities of Kyoto and Tokyo, or even just send his goons to try to kill Kenshin's friends at the Aoi-Ya dojo. I mean, he's evil, but this is standard villain stuff, right? Well, there are two reasons Shishio makes it to this list, both in regards to his final duel to the death with Kenshin: 1) when his lover Yumi intercedes in the fight to keep Kenshin from landing a devastating blow, Shishio uses the distraction to stab Kenshin… through Yumi's body. 2) When that didn't work, Shishio hated Kenshin so much that he fought until his blood evaporated. This deserves some kind of evil commemoration.
10) The Major, Hellsing
The Major is a Nazi, which is really all needs to be said. Nazis are the worst. However, the Major is evil even among Nazis, mainly because he's really, really prepared. After fleeing Germany at the end of World War II, the Major planned for 50 years to take his revenge on England, amassing an army of vampires, monsters, war-zeppelins, and more. Not only is he good at war, he really, really enjoys it — his plan wasn't just to begin a new 1,00-year Reich, his plan was to so fuck up the world that he could stay at war the entire time, too. He killed three million people, pretty much for kicks, and destroyed Alucard in a trick that involved him sucking up all the blood in the annihilated London. That's… that's pretty impressive. And evil.
11) Shou Tucker, Fullmetal Alchemist
Shou Tucker was an alchemist who didn't kill anybody. Why is he on this list? Because in order to keep his alchemic grant money coming, and because he was tasked with researching chimera, he turned his own adorable daughter Nina and her equally adorable dog into a chimera, merging them into one hideous, pitiable monster whose life was nothing but pain and confusion and betrayal in what is still one of the saddest, most traumatic anime moments of all time. He may not have killed anybody, but he hurt every single person who watched Fullmetal Alchemist.


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Let's face it, reading sucks . . . but movies are fun! In this children's picture book parody for grown-ups, Pixar writer and artist Josh Cooley presents the most hilariously inappropriate—that is, the best—scenes from contemporary classic films in an illustrated, for-early-readers style.
Terrifying, sexy, and awesome scenes from such favorite films as Alien, Rosemary's Baby, Fargo, Basic Instinct, Seven, The Silence of the Lambs, Apocalypse Now, The Shining, and many more are playfully illustrated and captioned to make reading fun and exciting for kids who never grew up. A sly celebration of the things fans love most about these legendary films (and movies in general), this is one book that probably should not be read at bedtime.


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Such market timing is a fool's errand. It sounds possible, and we'd like to believe that it is possible, but it's not possible on the scale various charlatans would have you believe. Furthermore, many of those who boast the loudest about their market-timing ability are worse than average at it.
It's challenging to work with someone on his investments when he has little in the way of background and beliefs. As someone seeking to educate themselves about investing, you may have a better idea of your investment beliefs than other investors do. To help you along in this process, here are some beliefs for you to consider:
Your own personal comfort matters. A wide range of investments are available to you, including stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds, real estate, and small business. Some folks are simply more comfortable with particular investments, so you shouldn't force yourself into a portfolio that's recommended as being best for you. Consider the value of your time and your investing skills and desires. Investing in stocks and other securities via the best mutual funds and ETFs is both time-efficient and profitable. Real estate investing and running a small business are the most time-intensive investments.
Costs matter. The more you pay in commissions and management fees on your investments, the greater the drag on your returns. And don't fall prey to thinking that you get what you pay for. Take advantage of tax-deductible retirement accounts, and understand the effect of your tax bracket when investing outside tax-sheltered retirement accounts. Minimize your trading. The more you trade, the more likely you are to make mistakes. Also, you suffer increased transaction costs and higher taxes for non-retirement-account investments.
Market timing is much harder to predict than folks realize. Don't bail when things look bleak. The hardest time, psychologically, to hold on to your investments is when they're down. Even the best investments go through depressed periods, which is the worst possible time to sell. Don't sell when there's a sale going on; if anything, consider buying more. Ignore soothsayers and prognosticators. Predicting the future is nearly impossible.
There are better times than others to sell. When you're really feeling good about an asset class like stocks, and those assets have had a multiple-year run and are getting widespread accolades, that's a good time to lighten up if you have other good reasons for doing so. By contrast, you can bump up your stock allocation if you're comfortable doing so after a major market decline.
Think long-term. Because ownership investments like stocks, real estate, and small business are more volatile, you must keep your long-term perspective when investing in them. Don't invest money in such investments unless you plan to hold them for a minimum of five years and preferably for a decade or longer.
Diversify. Diversification is a powerful investment concept that helps you reduce the risk of holding more-aggressive investments. Diversifying simply means that you hold a variety of investments that don't move in tandem in different market environments. When investing in stocks, for example, invest worldwide. You can diversify further by investing in real estate.
Emphasize value. Over the long term, value-oriented investments tend to produce higher returns with less volatility than do pure growth-oriented investments.
Ignore the minutiae. Don't feel mystified by or feel the need to follow the short-term gyrations of the financial markets. Ultimately, the prices of stocks, bonds, and other financial instruments are determined by supply and demand, which are influenced by thousands of external issues, including millions of investors' expectations and fears.
You are what you read and listen to. Don't pollute your mind with bad investing strategies and philosophies. The quality of what you read and listen to is far more important than the quantity.


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"Crown" was the term ordinarily used in the colonial period in speaking or writing of the king or queen of England as monarch; it also applied to the authority that position represented. The jeweled crown worn by the monarch on state occasions was the symbol of office, rank, and power; hence the use of the word "Crown" in this impersonal sense. The Lords Proprietors of Carolina constituted the earliest source of authority for the colony in England, and it was to them that leaders in Carolina usually turned for advice and guidance.
Negotiations between the Crown and the Proprietors to make Carolina a royal colony were concluded on or about 11 July 1728. It was only a short time before that date that Crown officials began to demonstrate serious interest in the colony. Even after North Carolina became a royal colony, however, many officials appointed by the Lords Proprietors continued in office for a time.
Additional Resources:
Carolina, 1729. From the North Carolina Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA. http://dc.lib.unc.edu/u?/ncmaps,355. Available from http://dc.lib.unc.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ncmaps/id/355 (accessed November 2, 2012).
1 January 2006 | Powell, William S.


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Here it is…. compliments of the Hutchinson Chamber…the 2013 Music in the Park Summer Concert Series schedule! Weekly live music on Monday nights has filled the Library Square for years. This year the concerts will begin at 6:30pm, so pack a picnic or pick up food from one of the great restaurants in Hutchinson and enjoy your supper while listening to these great bands. Also, treats will be available for purchase from the social host each evening.
Citizens Bank is proud to be a sponsor on July 1st.


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Discover how you can easily convert a potential customer into a long-term asset. This course will help you lay the groundwork for repeat business and your future success with knowledge, planning skills, communication techniques, and the understanding of human nature.
The goal of Effective Selling is not to teach you how to make a sale today, but to help you discover how you can easily convert a potential customer into a long term asset. Effective Selling will help you lay the groundwork for repeat business and your future success.
In sales, there are no quick fixes. However, with the knowledge, planning skills, communication techniques, and the understanding of human nature that you will gain from this course, your sales will grow as if by magic.
This first lesson lays the groundwork for successful sales. You'll review some basic sales terminology and learn about how it relates to your profession. You'll also learn about appropriateness and how it can be a powerful tool for your success. This lesson will start the new salesperson off with the right tools to succeed.
This lesson will talk about itineraries, sales call reports, and the customer database. Nothing is more important in sales than tracking your progress, your customers, and your prospects. Preparation and record keeping will keep you one step ahead of the competition. You'll also learn how to schedule follow-up calls to avoid letting potential sales pass you by.
To be successful in sales, you must learn to sell three things: Yourself, your company, and your product. In this lesson, you'll learn the importance of these things and how to make them work in your favor. And no matter how good you are in sales, you will eventually experience a sales slump. You'll learn the simple steps to work through this slump and come through it in a stronger position.
If you can't communicate, you can¹t sell. That's why communication is the focus of this lesson. You will learn how to effectively communicate with your customers and prospects in order to minimize problems and maximize customer loyalty. Just as important is your communication with your own company. Stop problems before they start, and your sales will increase dramatically.
The previous lessons laid out a strong foundation for your sales efforts. In this lesson, you'll learn how to develop your sales presentation. A good sales presentation can mean the difference between making the sale and going home empty-handed. Learn how to guide the prospect to placing the order by using these proven techniques.
You'll encounter seven different types of personalities during your sales career, and you'll meet them all in this lesson. Who are they? How can you identify them? How can you relate to them? Most important, how can you sell to them? This lesson will talk about how to identify which personality type you're dealing with so you can develop a unique selling strategy for each of them.
Knowing how to create an effective presentation, and how to identify the different personality types is essential knowledge. In this lesson, you'll learn how to apply the knowledge you gained in the previous two lessons. You'll also learn how to modify your presentation to meet the expectations of each of the personality types-a recipe for success!
The ultimate goal of the salesperson is to make or close the sale. There are six basic ways to close a sale, and this lesson will discuss them all. More importantly, you'll learn how to put each method to use for the greatest effect.
When is an unhappy customer a great sales opportunity? All salespeople will have to deal with customer complaints at one time or another, but few know how to turn a complaint into a powerful sales tool. By properly handling these complaints as they arise, you can turn a customer complaint into customer delight.
Can you negotiate a contract that pleases your customer and increases your total sales and profit? Of course! In this lesson, you'll learn the techniques of successful negotiation. There really is a win/win solution, and you'll learn how to find it in this lesson.
It may seem that your competitors are always bigger, faster, cheaper, or smarter than you are. But the fact is, they aren't. This lesson will discuss ways you can find out what your competition is up to and how to use this knowledge to your advantage.
The final lesson will delve into some big questions that salespeople must ask themselves. How do you deal with customers that won't return your calls? How important are ethics in the world of sales? How do you deal with the seemingly constant rejection? All those questions will be answered in this lesson.
There are no prerequisites to take this course.
Hardware Requirements:
Software Requirements:
Instructional Material Requirements:
The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.
Steve Payseur
Steve Payseur began his career in sales in 1979, and his sales have increased an average of 22% a year for more than 20 years. As a Sales Manager, he set up a training program for his sales force, and he has conducted training programs for several Fortune 500 companies. Mr. Payseur is the author of "Selling Effective Techniques for Getting and Keeping Customers," a book based on his years of experience and extensive research. A recognized authority in the field of sales, he has been interviewed on several occasions for national sales magazines. Mr. Payseur has written and published two top-selling books, has two more books in the development stage, and has won several literary competitions. His online courses and classroom seminars have been characterized as open, honest, lively, fun, and informative.
An excellent course, well taught. Lessons were easy to understand and pertinent to today's selling world.
Effective Selling helped me immediately at the retail level of business. I used the techniques and advice and found it to work, my sales increased per individual customer.
Excellent course! I've been in sales for a long time but took a break to raise my family so I wanted a refresher. It was especially useful since I made a drastic change in product fields and found the type of sales I'm in now was much harder for me. Thanks to this course my sales have already improved and my prospects are all much more receptive! Thank you!!!!!
I have been in outside sales for about 10 years. This course offers ideas, reminders or refreshers to all sales people regardless of how long they have been in sales. Thanks.
I have been in sales for a long time now and I have put a lot of what I learned in the class into play and it does work. Thank you.
I would like to say that as a non-salesperson, I learned an incredible amount of information here. I am working on starting my own business which always involves sales and have in the interim interviewed and received a tentative offer of employment by utilizing what I learned here and in the supplemental information lists. You have an easy reading style and engaging way of presenting the material. Thank you so much!
Thank you so much for this course. I believe it has given me a number of new skills and more confidence in my selling abilities. The supplemental resources were an added bonus to the lessons in each chapter.
This course was very helpful. I'm a small business owner and grasping the real facts of this course actually made me a better sales person. I hope that others will take advantage of this course. Thanks to all involved!
This was a very helpful course for my field. I was in the middle of closing some deals when I was working on the negotiating chapter, so I got to use some of the information first hand and it really helped me to be more effective.
Very good information, every sales person should take this course!


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Giving 2021 a color is no easy task — it follows a year like no other, after all. But it's a Pantone tradition to do so, and the company isn't shirking its responsibility. Just as 2020 has been unusual, the Pantone Color Institute has taken a different approach than normal. Instead of naming one color of the year for 2021, they've chosen two: Illuminating, a lemon-like yellow, and Ultimate Gray, which bears a resemblance to wet cement.
Several months ago, the company — led by executive director Leatrice Eiseman — selected Illuminating as the single color of the year. But as the year went on, it just didn't seem appropriate on its own.
"There was a day when [Eiseman] called me," Laurie Pressman, vice president of the Pantone Color Institute, told Fast Company. "And she said, 'You know, we're giving this a rethink.'"
It was at that point that the team included Ultimate Gray. On its own, neither color would be quite right – the gray would be depressing, and the yellow would be too zestful. But as a pair, the intention is to inspire both optimism and groundedness.
The press release describes them as "two independent colors that come together to create an aspirational color pairing, conjoining deeper feelings of thoughtfulness with the optimistic promise of a sunshine-filled day."
Here's Pantone's tweet on the subject:
PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray + PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating, a marriage of color conveying a message of strength and hopefulness that is both enduring and uplifting.
Visit https://t.co/Tskl0gMXYB to discover more.#Pantone #pantone2021 pic.twitter.com/utJ0sceAA9— PANTONE (@pantone) December 9, 2020
Pantone's color of the year choices, designed to reflect trends in art, fashion, film and design and influenced by lifestyles and new technologies, have become emblematic of what's happening in society.
"The Pantone Color of the Year reflects what is taking place in our global culture, expressing what people are looking for that color can hope to answer," Pressman said in a statement. "As society continues to recognize color as a critical form of communication, and a way to symbolize thoughts and ideas, many designers and brands are embracing the language of color to engage and connect."
Compared to 2020's calming Classic Blue and 2019's reassuring Living Coral, though, Ultimate Gray may seem like a tame choice. Gray has been everywhere, for years. But the Pantone team is aware of this, and says it has tried to take a comfortable gray and update it.
"[We're] living in gray sweats! We're not of a mindset, 'That's so yesteryear, throw it away,'" Pressman told Fast Company. "We'd rather engage on how to make that gray more fun … and yellow answers that."
Pantone released a video on Twitter showing ways in which the two combine to create a particular juxtaposition of positive feelings.
Introducing the Pantone Color of the Year 2021…
Produced by @artechouse #Pantone #pantone2021 pic.twitter.com/nU8cky9OhI— PANTONE (@pantone) December 9, 2020
Positive feelings are something we're all certainly hoping for in 2021!
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