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Home > News & Events > Speeches & Testimony
Remarks by Martin J. Gruenberg, Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation at the National Community Reinvestment Coalition 2013 Annual Conference; Washington, D.C.
Good afternoon. Before I begin, I would like to thank you for the invitation to offer remarks and recognize the work of John Taylor and the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. The challenge you are discussinghow to best aid the continuing economic recovery efforts in some of our nation's hardest hit communitiesis a critical one. I hope that you will agree that as part of these efforts, we should work to ensure that consumers have access to basic mainstream financial services.
Participation in mainstream financial markets improves a consumer's ability to build assets and create wealth, protects them from theft and discriminatory or predatory lending practices, and provides a financial safety net against unforeseen circumstances.
Mainstream banking also provides consumers with advantages that are unavailable in the alternative financial services marketplace such as FDIC deposit insurance and explicit protections including those ensuring consumers can reasonably dispute charges to their account.
The FDIC has long been committed to expanding economic inclusion in the financial mainstream by improving households' access to safe, secure and affordable banking services. In doing so, we recognize that financial institutions that affirmatively seek to serve underserved populations can enhance their reputations and deepen their market penetration while delivering important value to consumers and their communities.
Today I would like to share some of what we are learning about opportunities to include the broadest possible set of consumers in the financial mainstream. I will summarize findings from recent research conducted by FDIC staff and comment briefly on the role of community and minority-owned banks in facilitating access to banking services and credit and provide you with an update on the efforts of prudential regulators to review and update Community Reinvestment Act guidance.
Unbanked Surveys
Household Survey
The FDIC released the 2011 household survey in September and the results show that a substantial portion of the population remains unbanked or underbanked. Specifically, 8.2 percent of US households are unbanked. In fact, while 10 percent do not have a checking account, an even greater proportionnearly 30 percent of householdslack access to a savings account.
Just over 20 percent of U.S. households are underbanked, meaning that they have a bank account but have used alternative financial services, such as nonbank check cashing or payday loans, in the past year.
Results for Demographic Groups
For instance, among Black households, more than one in five (21.4 percent) are unbanked and a third (33.9 percent) are underbanked. Similarly, we find that 20 percent of Hispanic households are unbanked and almost 30 percent (28.6 percent) underbanked. For lower income households (i.e., those with annual income below $30,000), unbanked rates are also about 20 percent (19.4 percent), while almost one in four (23.7 percent) are underbanked.
As you can see, for many of these groups unbanked rates are around 20 percent and underbanked rates come close to or even exceed 30 percent. However, even among these groups with high proportions of underserved households, almost half are fully banked, demonstrating that it is not only possible to bank low income households, for example, but that it happens successfully in many cases.
Differences in experiences with and motivation to join the financial mainstream
Among unbanked households, slightly more than half have never had a bank account. This group represents about 4 percent of households, leaving an additional 4 percent that are presently unbanked but have had an account in the past. However, for certain demographic groups, such as Hispanics, the proportion of never-banked households is dramatically higher. The survey shows that almost 15 percent of Hispanic households have never had an account in an insured institution.
The survey also helps identify certain segments that report being significantly more likely to open an account in the future and their motivations for doing so. Previously banked households, younger households and unmarried-female headed families are some of the demographic groups that reported being more likely to be banked in the future.
Potential demand for additional banking services
We find that one in four households has used at least one AFS in the last year, and almost 10 percent have used two or more types of AFS in this time frame. We also have information about recent use of AFS, and learned that about 40 percent of unbanked and underbanked households have used an AFS in the last 30 days.
The survey also asked households why they use AFS instead of banks. Consistent with our first survey, unbanked and underbanked households perceive transaction AFS, such as check cashing and money order, to be more convenient. They also perceive AFS credit to be easier or faster to obtain than bank credit.
First, the unbanked and underbanked populations are not a homogeneous group. As briefly mentioned earlier, these households have diverse experience, interactions, financial needs, and perceptions about the banking system. Understanding differences among different segments could lead to stronger economic inclusions strategies.
Second, having a bank account at the moment does not guarantee long-term or full engagement in the financial mainstream. Almost half of the unbanked households in the US were previously banked. So, effective economic inclusion strategies require not only bringing households into the banking system, but also keeping them in the system. The offering of low-cost deposit products with transparent fee structures could play an important role in this effort.
Third, being more fully engaged in the banking system appears to be associated with positive perceptions of bank accounts: previously banked households are considerably more likely to want to open an account in the future and less likely to say that they are unbanked because they do not need or want an account.'
Fourth and finally, the survey results imply that banks need to more clearly demonstrate to AFS users that there is value and convenience in accessing financial services through a bank. Knowing that convenience is a main reason why AFS users use nonbank transaction services, banks might turn, for example, to mobile banking technologies.
Bank Survey
The bank study finds that, on average, consumers must deposit $100 to open either a basic checking or savings account, with a fairly large proportion of banks not charging monthly maintenance fees on either type of account. Among banks that reported a monthly maintenance fee, the average fee on checking accounts was slightly under $7. Similarly, for banks that had a monthly maintenance fee on savings accounts, the average fee was about $3. Few banks reported offering a lower-cost, card-based or "checkless" checking account as their most basic, entry-level account.
The study further found that it was common for banks to charge the same fee for nonsufficient funds or overdraft coverage, with these fees hovering around $28, with larger banks tending to charge somewhat higher fees.
Encouraging formerly banked consumers to return to mainstream banking contributes to economic inclusion efforts. Unbanked consumers who may not qualify for a conventional account may be offered what is often termed a "second chance" account. The study finds that one-in-five banks (21 percent) offer "second chance" accounts.
These findings suggest that opportunities exist for banks to expand access to mainstream financial services to underserved consumers by further broadening their product offerings to include basic, lower-cost checking and savings accounts. One way this could be done is through offering card-based, all electronic deposit accounts. In doing so, consumers could open deposit accounts that offer safety and consumer protections for their funds.
Small-Dollar Lending
Consumers in the FDIC Household survey who reported obtaining a payday loan most frequently said that they did so because either it was easier to get a payday loan than to qualify for a bank loan or that banks do not make small dollar loans.
The findings from the household survey uncover a market opportunity for financial institutions to more heavily advertise their small dollar loan product to consumers who might otherwise look to other providers such as payday lenders for small dollar credit.
Auxiliary Products
Offering auxiliary products can be a useful tool for bringing the underserved into mainstream banking and in developing long-term, deeper relationships between institutions and consumers. By marketing and advertising auxiliary financial products and services to noncustomers, banks can encourage these potential customers to enter their branches, obtain needed financial services, and learn more about the advantages of having a deposit account.
When asked about specialty savings products, three in four banks said that they offered programs that allowed consumers to set aside savings automatically at no additional charge and over 80 percent of banks said that they offered youth savings accounts. These findings are particularly encouraging in light of the 30 percent of households that currently do not possess a savings account according to the FDIC's household survey. Offering accounts that make saving easier or that encourage a saving habit among consumers at an early age can have an enduring, positive influence on consumers' financial stability.
FDIC Economic Inclusion Activities
Safe accounts pilot
The results of a pilot project aimed to provide insight into the feasibility of these accounts were encouraging, suggesting that financial institutions can offer these kinds of sensible accounts to underserved and LMI consumers. In fact, more than 80 percent of transaction accounts and 95 percent of the savings accounts opened during the one-year pilot remained open at the project's conclusion.
Recently, Key Bank and Citibank made clear their intent to affirm and deploy checkless checking accounts consistent with the Safe Accounts structure. These announcements are encouraging signals that further affirm the potential for insured depository institutions to provide basic banking services to the broadest possible segment of American consumers. In addition, Jose Cisnerosthe Treasurer of San Francisco and a pioneer in the municipal-led Bank On movementhas endorsed the Safe Account model as a useful structure for the local coalitions seeking to expand economic inclusion in cities around the nation.
Small Dollar Loans
Money Smart
A version of Money Smart is now available for small businesses. We often hear from bankers that there is a lack of qualified small businesses seeking credit. Bankers commonly report having to turn away customers that have not carefully thought through the financial aspects of their business.
Money Smart for Small Business, which FDIC has partnered with the US Small Business Administration to develop and market, adds a new tool in the toolkit for providers of this technical assistance. This free resource is directed to help the individuals with no formal business training learn the basic elements important to the development of a successful small business, from record-keeping to credit reporting to banking and taxes.
Alliance for Economic Inclusion
The FDIC provides leadership to coordinate the community partners, identify community needs, and facilitate efforts to reduce the number of unbanked consumers. FDIC staff also support Bank On coalitions. Bank On coalitions are locally led coalitions of financial institutions, community based organizations, and state/local government that provide low-income, un- and underbanked individuals with free or low-cost starter or "second chance" bank accounts and access to financial education.
As we have been involved with the leadership and support of these coalitions, we have learned that strong partnerships are keys for success. Local elected, not-for-profit and financial institution leaders set a good foundation for the effort. It has also proven important to get the support from social service, asset building and community development leaders.
Minority and Community Banking
The FDIC also recognizes the importance of a special type of community bank, one with a special purpose: minority-owned and operated banks that serve minority communities. These banks play a special role in helping to foster economic inclusion. They are an important source of loans and financial services for minority businesses and individuals, to many of you here today.
The numbers are notable. Nationwide, there are 179 minority banks with $180 billion in assets. They are an important source of small business lending too, with more than $1 billion on the books. Minority banks make a big difference to small businesses in this region of the country.
For these reasons, we have worked to preserve and promote minority banks for more than 20 years through the FDIC National Minority Depository Institutions Program. We stay in touch with them through banker roundtables, training conferences and the bank examination process itself.
The FDIC recognizes the challenges and contributions of minority banks; particularly those serving otherwise underserved communities. And, we continue to seek new ways to sustain the work they do. Not long ago, I appointed a permanent, dedicated executive in Washington, D.C., Deputy Director Robert Mooney, to lead these minority and community development banking initiatives.
Community Reinvestment Act
We have provided a 60-day comment period on the proposed changes to the Q&As. We encourage you to provide us with your thoughts and suggestions to ensure that these revisions effectively further the goals of the CRA. Once we have had time to consider those comments and make any appropriate changes, we expect to finalize the guidance. The Agencies also intend to revise their examination procedures to reflect the final guidance and to develop examiner training in order to promote consistent application of the guidance within and among the Agencies. Going forward, we plan to continue to look for opportunities to improve the guidance.
|Last Updated 3/22/2013


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Katt Williams Owes More in Taxes Than You'll Probably Ever Make
In addition to owing his fans apologies for beating and slapping them, the IRS says Katt Williams owes the government $4 million in unpaid taxes.
Which begs the question: Jesus, how much does this dude make?
The comedian was hit with the lien based on $3.2 million owed in 2008 and $830,000 in 2009. And it isn't the first time that Uncle Sam has come a-calling -- in 2010, Williams was dinged with a $284,000 tax tab.
For a guy rolling around in that much coin, you'd think he'd use some of it to hire a few competent accountants to keep him out of trouble.
The huge bill is just the icing on the troubled cake Katt has been eating this year, topped off with multiple arrests and lawsuit sprinkles.
Maybe he'll clean up his act in 2013. Or maybe not -- being such a mess is clearly pretty damned profitable.

subset: commoncrawl


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Anna Cummins
Anna Cummins has over 10 years of experience in environmental non-profit work, education, writing, and campaign development. She has worked in marine conservation, coastal watershed management, sustainability education, and high school ecology instruction. Anna received her undergraduate in History from Stanford University, and her Masters in International Environmental Policy from the Monterey Institute for International Studies. In 2001, Anna received a fellowship from the Sustainable Communities Leadership Program, to work with Santa Cruz based non-profit Save Our Shores, coordinating bilingual outreach education and community relations.
In 2007 Anna joined the Algalita Marine Research Foundation as education adviser, conducting school outreach and giving public presentations on plastic marine pollution. With Algalita, Anna completed a month long, 4,000-mile research expedition studying plastic debris in the North Pacific Gyre, and a 2,000 mile cycling/speaking tour from Vancouver to Mexico, giving talks about plastic pollution. Anna and her husband Marcus Eriksen recently co-founded 5 Gyres, in collaboration with Algalita and Pangaea Explorations, to research and communicate plastic pollution in the worlds oceans. Anna was elected a National Fellow of the Explorers Club in 2010.
This week marks the official start of fall, but longer nights and colder days can make it harder to spend time outdoors. Luckily, there are several inspiring environmental films that can be streamed at home.
1. Kiss the Ground
Streaming On: Netflix

Premiere Date: Sept. 22

Between wildfires devastating the U.S. West Coast and storms battering the Gulf, the impacts of the climate crisis can feel overwhelming right now. Kiss the Ground offers an alternative to all of the bad news by focusing on solutions.

The film, directed by Josh and Rebecca Tickell and narrated by Woody Harrelson, explains how we can heal the Earth through "regenerative agriculture," farming practices that draw carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and into soil as a way to restore soil health, which in turn boosts ecosystems and food supplies.

"Kiss the Ground shows how feasible it is to make these changes at a grassroots level immediately and make a truly substantive impact with low cost and easy to implement solutions," Executive Producer RJ Jain said in an email. "This is why I got involved."

2. Public Trust: The Fight for America's Public Lands
Streaming On: YouTube

Premiere Date: Sept. 25, 2 p.m. EDT

This award-winning documentary tells the stories of Indigenous activists, journalists, whistleblowers and historians working to protect America's public lands. The film focuses on three political struggles: the shrinking of Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, the mining of Boundary Waters Wilderness in Minnesota and the opening of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to fossil fuel exploration.

Public Trust was directed by David Garrett Byars and produced by Jeremy Rubingh. Patagonia Films, Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard and actor Robert Redford are executive producers. It will be released on YouTube in time for National Public Lands Day.

"Our country is fortunate to have millions of acres of public lands, including National Parks, Monuments, Wildlife Refuges and Wilderness set aside for future generations," Redford said. "Sadly, these lands that belong to you and me are under unprecedented threats from the greed of big corporations, eager to weaken restrictions in the pursuit of profits. Many of our current politicians are also to blame. Public Trust tells the story of citizens who are fighting back. It's a much-needed wake-up call for all of us who want to preserve our unique and wild cultural heritage."

3. David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet
Streaming On: Netflix

Premiere Date: Oct. 4

Beloved nature broadcaster David Attenborough has spent his career introducing viewers to the wonders of our planet. In recent years, his footage of albatrosses swallowing plastic in Blue Planet II has been credited with helping to ramp up the global fight against plastic pollution. Now, in this World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-produced documentary, he reflects on the defining moments of his career and the devastating changes he has witnessed.

David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet, which was also produced by Silverback Films and directed by Alastair Fothergill, Jonnie Hughes and Keith Scholey, features an intimate conversation between Attenborough and Sir Michael Palin as the broadcaster reflects on his life and a career that took him to every continent on Earth. In addition to streaming on Netflix, the movie will be available in select theaters starting Sept. 28.

"For decades, David has brought the natural world to the homes of audiences worldwide, but there has never been a more significant moment for him to share his own story and reflections," WWF executive producer Colin Butfield said in a statement. "This film coincides with a monumental year for environmental action as world leaders make critical decisions on nature and climate. It sends a powerful message from the most inspiring and celebrated naturalist of our time."

- Sir David Attenborough Set to Present BBC Documentary on ... ›
- 7 of the Best New Documentaries About Global Warming - EcoWatch ›
- Movies to Watch This Earth Day: EcoWatch Staff Picks - EcoWatch ›
EcoWatch Daily Newsletter
Amazon Launches Climate Label to Help Customers Make Greener Choices
The world's largest online retailer is making it slightly easier for customer to make eco-conscious choices.
- Employees Are Fighting for Climate Change at Work - EcoWatch ›
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- Jeff Bezos Pledges $10 Billion to Fight the Climate Crisis - EcoWatch ›
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Trump's EPA Dismisses Agency's Own Findings That Chlorpyrifos Harms Children's Brains
The Trump administration's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a risk assessment for toxic pesticide chlorpyrifos Tuesday that downplayed its effects on children's brains and may be the first indication of how the administration's "secret science" policy could impact public health.
- Democratic Bill Banning Toxic Pesticides Applauded as 'Much ... ›
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- California, Nation's Top User of Chlorpyrifos, Announces Ban on ... ›
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One Billion People May Become Climate Refugees By 2050
By Maria Trimarchi and Sarah Gleim
If all the glaciers and ice caps on the planet melted, global sea level would rise by about 230 feet. That amount of water would flood nearly every coastal city around the world [source: U.S. Geological Survey]. Rising temperatures, melting arctic ice, drought, desertification and other catastrophic effects of climate change are not examples of future troubles — they are reality today. Climate change isn't just about the environment; its effects touch every part of our lives, from the stability of our governments and economies to our health and where we live.

Why environmental refugees flee their homes is a complicated mixture of environmental degradation and desperate socioeconomic conditions. People leave their homes when their livelihoods and safety are jeopardized. What effects of climate change put them in jeopardy? Climate change triggers, among other problems, desertification and drought, deforestation, land degradation, rising sea levels, floods, more frequent and more extreme storms, earthquakes, volcanoes, food insecurity and famine.

The September 2020 Ecological Threat Register Report, by the Institute for Economics & Peace, predicts the hardest hit populations will be:

Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa

Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Chad, India and Pakistan (which are among the world's least peaceful countries)

Pakistan, Ethiopia and Iran are most at risk for mass displacements

Haiti faces the highest risk of all countries in Central America and the Caribbean

India and China will be among countries experiencing high or extreme water stress

- Think Today's Refugee Crisis is Bad? Climate Change Will Make it a ... ›
- Climate Change Forces 20 Million People to Flee Each Year, Oxfam ... ›
- Meet the World's First Climate Refugees - EcoWatch ›
'My Octopus Teacher' Stuns Audiences, Reinforces Power of Nature
In his latest documentary, My Octopus Teacher, free diver and filmmaker Craig Foster tells a unique story about his friendship and bond with an octopus in a kelp forest in Cape Town, South Africa. It's been labeled "the love story that we need right now" by The Cut.
- You're Not So Different From an Octopus: Rethinking Our ... ›
- 'Eating Animals' Drives Home Where Our Food Really Comes From ... ›


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Small Business News Articles
TAB's small business news articles highlight TAB mentions in the news, as well as informative business-related articles for business owners in Savannah, Hilton Head Island, Beaufort and the surrounding Low Country.
Review online mentions about TAB from various media outlets.
See various business media pickups containing business advice from TAB Facilitators, Members, Executives and Business Surveys.
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War on For‐Profit Colleges Reeks Even Worse
As I've pointed out repeatedly, though the sector is no doubt rife with waste and home to some dirty‐dealers, attacks on for‐profit colleges are almost certainly driven by politics and ideology, not educational concerns. Were it otherwise, all of higher education would be taking a beating for its bankrupting waste and widespread failure.
A recent symptom of anti‐profit witch‐huntery was the misrepresentation of GAO reporting on what "secret shoppers" found while visiting select for‐profit institutions. At the time the findings were released I thought the main problem was that members of the media and Sen. Tom Harkin (D‐Iowa) — who has been leading the crusade against for‐profit schools — were using the results to smear the whole proprietary sector when the GAO was clear about examining a nonrepresentative sample of schools. Unfortunately, it turns out the GAO might actually be in on the demonization.
On November 30 — without making any announcement that I could find on its website — the GAO released a modified version of its report, and according to a comparison between the old report and new one by the Coalition for Educational Success, the new version contains several changes that cast its for‐profit targets in better light than they first appeared.
One vignette, for instance, originally said that a school's admissions representative told an undercover applicant that she "should" take out maximum federal loans even if she didn't need all the money. The change says the representative told the applicant that she "could" take maximum loans — a pretty big difference.
Another section went from only reporting that a representative told an applicant that the school has graduates making $120,000 to $130,000 in a job that, according to the GAO, typically makes less than $70,00 a year, to reporting that the representative also informed the applicant that she "could expect a job with a likely starting salary of $13-$14 per hour or $15 if the applicant was lucky." $15 an hour translates into about $30,000 a year, and completely changes the tenor of the vignette.
According to Stephen Burd of the Center for American Progress, career colleges have been self‐servingly crying – or at least whispering — foul over the GAO report for months now. Burd has been a leading for‐profit basher, but I'd have been inclined to give only limited credence to concerns about dirty pool, too, until this latest revelation trickled out.
Now, though much needs to be determined about why the myriad changes to the report were made, I wouldn't be terribly surprised to learn that people at the GAO have actually been in on the crusade to demonize proprietary colleges. I also, unfortunately, won't be surprised if no one pays attention to any of this, and the shameless, responsibility‐dodging war on for‐profits continues unabated.


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You can count on U.S. corporate media to express alarm about the threat posed by left-wing governments in Latin America. Sometimes it's military hype (think Soviet MiGs in Nicaragua), but more typically it takes the form of a generalized concern about certain governments' commitment to democratic ideals.
But how do you sound the alarm about left-wing threats to democracy when actual elected left-wing leaders are being removed in anti-democratic coups? That's no easy feat, but some reporters are up to the challenge.
In the Washington Post on July 22 (under the headline "Latin America's New Authoritarians"), reporter Juan Forero explains that today's quasi-dictators are clever enough to rule in what are nominally democracies:
More than two decades after Latin America's last right-wing dictatorships dissolved, a new kind of authoritarian leader is rising in several countries: democratically elected presidents who are ruling in increasingly undemocratic ways.
Unlike the iron-fisted juntas of a generation ago, these leaders do not assassinate opposition figures or declare martial law.
But in a handful of countries, charismatic populists are posing the most serious challenge to democratic institutions in Latin America since the 1980s, when rebel wars and dictators were the norm.
Of course, another way of looking at this history might lead one to conclude that the United States posed the greatest threat to democracy in Latin America in the 1980s, either by fueling proxy wars or backing repressive dictatorships that were our political allies.
But that's not something we like to bring up. So Forero just ignores U.S. policy, then? Not quite. Part of the argument here is that the United States is faulted for doing next to nothing. As Forero puts it, "What rights groups and some political leaders call a growing threat to hard-won democratic gains has drawn a tepid response" from the U.S.
Forero notes in passing that U.S.-allied leaders have been criticized, but the real problem are the leftists, as Forero notes with some alarm:
Today, the most prominent and powerful of a handful of democratically elected leaders who enjoy near-total control of the political life of their countries is Chavez. Even as he recovers from cancer, the former lieutenant colonel is running for reelection in October's presidential vote as he seeks to extend a presidency that began in 1999.
Other presidents who have consolidated their hold on power–controlling, among other institutions, the courts, which then give them leverage over opponents–include Ecuador's Correa, Bolivia's Evo Morales and Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega.
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All vocally oppose the Obama administration, favor state intervention in the economy and have moved to strengthen alliances with Washington's adversaries, among them Cuba, Iran and Russia.
Forero adds that in Venezuela, Chavez has "built a vast state media apparatus that heaps scorn on his critics while venerating his policies." That's one way to see it; another view is that the 2002 coup that briefly removed him from power was facilitated by private media owners who used their media holding to help orchestrate the removal of a democratically elected president. But the point of this article–which seems to borrow its premise from a recent book by William Dobson, who is quoted in the piece–is that the real threat comes from these authoritarians who rule just like dictators.
As Keane Bhatt wrote for NACLA (7/30/12), a notable omission in a piece about threats to democracy are the very recent removals of democratically elected presidents in Paraguay and Honduras:
in Forero's account of "creeping authoritarianism" in the region, it's as if two prominent examples of this phenomenon–the Honduran coup and last month's illegitimate ouster of Lugo–never happened.
And far from staying out of the region's affairs, Bhatt notes that the United States sends $50 million to the notoriously brutal Honduran police and military.
It's not just Juan Forero who's writing this story. In Newsweek, Mac Margolis–no stranger to the anti-left beat–writes that "Latin American democracy is in trouble." He explains:
While civil society and the rule of law have matured in Latin America, so has a new generation of autocrats. Forget about corpulent generals in aviator sunglasses: today's authoritarians are urbane, technologically savvy, and skilled at repurposing due process and popular elections in order to concentrate their power.
The prime example is Hugo Chavez, who has–among other things–"used government largesse to buy popular support in lopsided national referendums and elections." That's a fancy way of saying that the country's oil wealth is spread more evenly across society than it had been prior to Chavez's presidency.
Margolis' take is a lot like Forero's, but there are some notable differences. He doesn't ignore the Paraguay coup; instead, he argues that governments in the region that spoke out against the coup really did so in order to bolster Chavez's standing in a regional trade body–essentially backing a dictator's power grab.
So there's a threat to Latin American democracy, but it's not the removal of elected leaders that is the problem. The real problem is when countries speak out against undemocratic coups. Is that confusing? A little. But there's an easier way to understand how the corporate media keep score: If something's good for Chavez or other left-wing leaders in Latin America–it's bad for democracy.


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[Global: Open Letter To U.S. President]
Dear President Obama,
I listened with great interest at your comments in the annual National Prayer Breakfast on 2nd February and I especially thank you for mentioning Uganda, my once beautiful and peaceful country.
Mr President, you said : "Our men and women", referring no doubt to the U.S. armed forces, "have made us safer and more secure and we were eternally grateful to them, but war and hardship still remain in too many corners of the globe." This is so very true. Your armed forces may have made you safer and more secure but what about the ordinary people in Libya who are now more unsafe than ever, who now live in abject poverty, who are now starving like wolves as a result of your, in my opinion, ill-advised decision to attack and destroy Libya just so one man would be killed?
And what about the ordinary man, woman and child in Somalia suffering untold daily violence?
As you know, Uganda too needs a lot of prayers today and going forward. Your remarks are specifically appropriate for Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni who has deliberately failed to bring peace and security to the north-region of Uganda.
You said: "And when I decide to stand up for foreign aid, or prevent atrocities in places like Uganda, or take on issues like human trafficking, it's not just about strengthening alliances, or promoting democratic values, or projecting American leadership around the world, although it does all those things and it will make us safer and more secure. It's also about the biblical call to care for the least of these –- for the poor; for those at the margins of our society."
When you refer to preventing atrocities, I , like many Ugandans hope you are referring to past atrocities, and also today's crimes, which present the most threat to Ugandans and to the East African region. I am of course referring to the Uganda People's Defence Forces armed forces of President Museveni and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) who move in and out of Uganda as though playing a game of cat and mouse.
The two forces have been waging a senseless war for nearly 30 years bringing about death, destruction, separation of families and enslavement in so called "protective camps" where thousands have died from planned neglect--starvation, malnutrition and treatable diseases. Both men and women have been raped and even innocent children defiled where they should supposedly have been protected.
Prior to the February 2011 Presidential elections, political opponents were being intimidated, victimised and arrested on a whim. There were several assassination attempts on the life of Olara Otunnu, the UPC leader and presidential candidate, before the rigged general elections; and on April 18, 2011, he was arrested while participating in the Positive Non Violent Resistance campaign. This campaign is a peaceful demonstration in which thousands walk to work twice a week across the country to protest the high gas and food prices and rising inflation.
Dr. Kizza Besigye, leader for Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) has been a leading figure in the marches against high prices and government corruption since April, when Activists For Change (A4C) was established by a group of activists. He has been arrested many times since then, merely for walking in Kampala's streets.
During the elections of February 2011 African Union election observers said that Uganda's presidential poll suffered from several shortcomings, and other international observers cast doubt in its legitimacy. European Union observers said Museveni used his power as incumbent to such an extent that it compromised the level playing field among candidates.
Dr. Besigye said widespread bribery, ballot-stuffing and harassment rendered the poll "illegitimate." He rejected the outcome and initially called for Egypt-style protests prompting Museveni to issue a stern warning that he would jail anyone who tried to spark Egypt-style unrest.
Yet in 2010/2011, the Museveni regime received about $250 million in direct foreign aid from the US. Why is this Mr. President? When President Museveni's human rights abuses, violation and intimidation of political opponents and ordinary citizens is quite legendary. Museveni's 26-year rule is characterised by not only incompetence but corruption at the highest level. Is Museveni not the embodiment of the ''big man'' you referred to in your Accra Speech when you denounced dictatorships and their debilitative impact on Africa? Is the Uganda government not the epitome of the bad governance you condemned in your Accra Speech?
Yet again, just last week while in Uganda, U.S. deputy Secretary of State William Burns wrongfully said: "Our view is that President Museveni is the democratically-elected President of this country..." By what stretch of the imagination was the basis of that remark? Certainly not on concrete evidence. Of course Museveni provides Ugandan troops to Somalia under U.S. financing. But Mr. President does playing regional policeman for the U.S. trump justice, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law?
Mr. President, you cannot condemn tyranny in one country and condone it in another. When corruption is rampant, how are you assured that the regime puts US foreign aid in Uganda to good use? Health, education and infrastructure continue to suffer because there are no conditions attached to this aid. It is such assistance --with no strings attached-- that has allowed an undemocratic government to maintain power.
Mr. President you mention the responsibility given in proverbs to "speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all those who are destitute." Mr President, I ask you humbly, will you speak out for all Ugandans, in all parts of the country, suffering under Museveni's tyranny? Will you now speak up for the Acholi people in Uganda, who were specifically targeted for retribution by Museveni's regime?
Will you speak up for the orphaned child in the street, who will go
hungry again today and who will sleep outside a shop veranda? Will you also speak up for the woman who suddenly became widowed, for the man with no education and prospects of employment, because of lack of educational facilities or vocational training, as the regime diverts resources to the military or to foreign bank accounts? Even your own ambassador to Uganda deplored the Museveni regime's corruption in a WikiLeaks revealed memo.
I personally placed my trust in you as did countless other Ugandans and people in other countries around the world where the U.S. helps to sustain dictators. We placed our hopes and dreams in you. We prayed that you would be a different type of politician.
Let your heart speak to you now, Mr President. Let Uganda be the pearl of Africa once again. Let Uganda be what it was, the bread basket of Africa. Let the U.S. side with those who yearn for freedom allover the world.
Allimadi writes for The Black Star News from London.
"Speaking Truth To Empower."
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text:
The Lavaman swim starts off with a beautiful 1500 meter (.9 Miles) Pacific Ocean swim that starts at Anaeho'omalu Bay at Waikoloa Beach
- Swim starts in waist deep water and you will encounter depths to 65 ft.
- Be of aware of the marine environment - coral, sea urchins.
- The water visibility is on average 60ft or better.
- Water Temperature - Average is 80F
Wet suits:
Each age group participant shall be permitted to wear a wet suit without penalty in any event sanctioned by USA Triathlon up to and including a water temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit. When the water temperature is greater than 78 degrees, but less than 84 degrees Fahrenheit, age group participants may wear a wetsuit at their own discretion, provided however that participants who wear a wet suit within this temperature range shall not be eligible for prizes or awards. Age group participants shall not wear wet suits in water temperatures equal to or greater than 84 degrees fahrenheit. The following skinsuits and speedsuits are approved by USA Triathlon for use in any water temperature. Click Here.
- Supplied swim cap must be worn
- Swimmers may wear, but shall not be required to wear, swim goggles or face masks.
- Snorkles are legal.
- Illegal Equipment. Any swimmer wearing any artificial propulsion device, including but not limited to fins, gloves, paddles, or floating devices of any kind shall be disqualified.
- Water safety - The entire course will be guarded be kayak, paddle board, surfboards and rescue jets ski.
- Bottom Contact and Resting. A participant may stand on the bottom or rest by holding an inanimate object such as a buoy, boat, rope or floating object. Excluding the bottom, a participant shall not use any inanimate object to gain forward progress. A violation of this section shall result in a variable time penalty, unless the Head Referee in his/her sole discretion determines that (i) the violation was substantial and resulted in an unfair time advantage.
- Emergencies. A swimmer experiencing difficulty and in need of assistance shall raise an arm overhead, and pump it up and down, and call or seek assistance. A swimmer, who has received official assistance, whether voluntary or involuntary, must retire and withdraw from the remainder of the race unless such assistance did not aid the swimmer in making forward progress. No swimmer shall return to the race if the official rendering assistance requests that the participant withdraw from the race or receive medical assistance.


text: Google may focus much of its attention on smartphones, but it knows that featurephone owners deserve a good online experience as well. Accordingly, it just launched a revamped Gmail web app for devices where modern browsers and touchscreens aren't guaranteed. The new client requires fewer button presses to read and write messages; users can reply to email directly from the thread view, for example. While the need for basic webmail is disappearing as smartphones get ever cheaper, those who need (or prefer) a simple cellphone can try the new Gmail page today.


text:
Model # 17077: The newly designed BPA-Free Purely Yours Breast Pump offers mothers more choices, greater
flexibility, and additional style options. It is an ideal pump for mothers returning to full-time work
due to its flexibility and portability. This value packed, portable, piston breast pump creates a
stimulation that feels both natural and comfortable. It also provides numerous variations to mimic
baby's suckling, even as baby matures and grows.
FDA Cleared!
The Ameda Purely Yours ™ breast pump with Carry All: a reliable and professional grade breast
pump complete with designer Carry All bag.
Pump Model#: 17077
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Combo #2
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Pack of 2 ComfortGels, Add
FlexiShield Areola Stimulator, Add
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Ameda 17148 Custom Breast Flanges With Inserts, Add
Milk Storage Bags - 20 ct box, Add
Medela Milk Storage Bags - 50 ct box, Add
Vehicle Lighter Adapter, Add
Spare Parts Kit, Add
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Ameda Purely Yours™ Model#:17070 features the same Ameda Purely Yours™ automatic
breastpump, but without the backpack or carry all bag. This Listing is for the Breast Pump ONLY
Ameda Purely Yours Breast Pump (Pump Only)
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Ameda Dual Hygienikit Milk Collection System #17131 Ameda's exclusive patented Ameda HygieniKit, creates one of the most
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The kit?s unique silicone diaphragm acts as a barrier, separating the user from the suction source. This helps ensure
milk purity by preventing contaminants from coming in contact with collected breast milk and prevents milk back-up so
tubing and pump require little to no maintenance. The HygieniKit offers mothers the choice of single or dual pumping.
It also easily converts to manual pumping with the One-Hand Breast Pump (not included).
The Ameda Dual Hygienkit Milk Collection System is pre-assembled and ready to use. The Ameda Dual Hygienkit
Milk Collection System attaches the same way to all Ameda pumps. The Ameda Dual Hygienkit Milk Collection System
is easy to clean and easier to reassemble. The Ameda Dual Hygienkit Milk Collection System effortlessly converts
to manual pump with the optional adaptor. The Ameda Dual Hygienkit Milk Collection System is made of a clear
plastic that provides visibility and facilitates cleaning. Pump into any standard baby bottle or milk storage
bag with the Ameda Dual Hygienkit Milk Collection System.
Ameda 17155 Dual HygieniKit Collection System - BPA FREE
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Ameda 17066P One Hand Breast Pump with Flexishield: This Ameda pump is so compact it fits into a purse.
The patented, easy-to-use design provides control and flexibility simply by varying the frequency and degree
of the handle squeeze. The handle assembly eliminates the need for electrical outlets or batteries.
The one-hand design allows you to pump one breast while baby nurses on the other, or by using two breast pumps,
you may dual pump to save precious time. Both of these methods stimulate the let-down reflex and enhance milk flow.
Mothers may also pump directly into any standard baby bottle or freezer bag.
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Ameda Replacement parts for the Purely Yours and other Ameda breast pumps in a handy pre-pack.
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A proper fitting breast flange can make all the difference between continuing to breastfeed and early weaning.
The Ameda Custom Flanges with inserts should be used when a standard sized flange is too small for comfortable
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size?larger than our standard HygieniKit Flange, but smaller than the Custom Flange alone!
Ameda Custom Breast Flanges With Inserts
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Soft ComfortGel hydrogel pads provide cool, soothing relief for mothers
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Hydrogel pads provide a moist healing environment and help absorb leakage
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With a low profile and contoured design, the hydrogel pads fit discreetly
under a nursing bra. The pads are washable and may be used for up to six
days, providing significant cost savings when cosmpared to similar products.
ComfortGel Soothing Breastpads
The Ameda Purely Yours Breast Pump Car Adapter (17079) is a 12 volt car adapter which provides
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for use with the Purely Yours and Purely Yours Ultra Breast Pumps.
Ameda Vehicle Lighter Adapter
The Ameda Flexishield Areola Stimulator is a comfortable, flexible insert that fits any Ameda
breast shield and provides increased stimulation to the areola area. It mimics the feel of a baby's
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Ameda FlexiShield Areola Stimulator
We know how much breastfeeding matters to you and your baby. That's why we created the Ameda products.
Ameda's story starts with a passion for breastfeeding. You're beginning a new chapter in your life ? whether
you've just given birth to your first child or your fifth. Breastfeeding a newborn can be a joyous experience.
But it can also be intense. At Ameda, we want breastfeeding to go as smoothly for you as possible. More than
60 years ago, Einar Egnell created new technology to more closely mimic the suckling rhythm of nursing infants.
Ameda used that technology to create a breast pump that gives you simplicity, comfort and efficiency.
More than 60 years ago in Sweden, engineer Einar Egnell was asked by a leading gynecologist to create a better
breast pump. The breast pumps of the time were painful to use and didn't express milk well.
When he heard this, Egnell made it his life's work to help breastfeeding mothers. After years of research and
hundreds of pump trials, his breakthrough came with the invention of the first truly comfortable and effective
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use to judge most breast pumps.
Today's Ameda pumps combine Egnell's innovative technology with the features a 21st century mother expects.
Our mission ? like Egnell's ? is to help breastfeeding mothers.
Everything Ameda offers ? Ameda breast pumps and products, Ameda breastfeeding education, Ameda's support of
lactation professionals ? reflects our passion for breastfeeding. We know how much breastfeeding matters to you
and your baby.
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text:
Kodiak 1700
- Side air damper rod stays cool to the touch.
- Single, easy-to-use draft control to easily regulate fire.
- Twin pilot-injector ports for easy start up.
- Ultra strong air wash to keep glass clean.
- 3 x 1" 304 grade stainless steel secondary air tubes.
- Brick-lined firebox with 6" flute.
- Ceramic top baffle.
- Mobile home approved.
- Heavy-duty construction weighing up to 400 lbs.
- 5/16" thick steel top and ash shelf on flat top models.
- 1/2" diameter door handle and hinge pins.
- Cast iron adjustable door latch.
- Step Top or Flat Top Body Style.
- Pedestal Base with Standard Ash Pan.
- Cast Iron Legs in Painted, Gold or Nickel with Standard Ash Pan.
- Cast Iron Door in Painted, Gold or Nickel Finish and Painted Door with Gold or Nickel Trim.
- 135 CFM Fan Kit with Variable Speed Control.
- "Heat Efficiency Shield" Convection Air Scoop for Flat Top Models.
- Fresh Air Kit for Airtight Homes.
Heating Area
3,000 ft²
Glass Size
177 in²
Convection Fan
EPA Emissions
4.5 gms
Log Size
Burn Time
8-12 hrs
Firebox Size
2.5 ft³
320 lbs
Flat Top Dims
25" W x 28" H x 27" D
Step Top Dims
25" W x 31" H x 27" D


text:
VMI Worldwide announced on Thursday (Nov 1) that it licensed rights on the Sean Bean thriller prior to the market for the US, UK, France, Germany, Australia and Scandinavia.
Brad Turner is scheduled to start shooting the post-apocalyptic tale in February 2013. Scorched Earth takes place after an environmental collapse as a bounty hunter pursues a fearsome criminal.
Kevin Leeson and Jamie Goehring produced and Shawn Williamson and Daniel Zirilli will serve as executive producers.
Andre Relis of VMI Worldwide negotiated the deal with eOne vp of worldwide acquisitions Sejin Croninger.
"We're delighted to collaborate with VMI," said Croninger. "Our team is always looking for impressive films with great talent that audiences around the world want to see so we're thrilled to lock up Scorched Earth for multiple eOne territories."


text:
Language of Dale
The Language of Dale was the tongue spoken by the Men of Dale. It was from this tongue that came the "outer" names of the Dwarves of Durin's Folk, who used to keep their true, original Khuzdul names secret to other races.[1][2]
The writing system used by the Men of Dale was an old and simple form of the Cirth.[3]
It is also told that it was a tradition in some Hobbit families (in particular those with ties to the Fallohide clan) to give first-names resembling the names of the Men of Dale (and other places near the ancient dwelling-places of the Hobbits, like the Mark and the Vales of Anduin).[2]
In Tolkien's stories, the language of Dale was rendered with Old Norse, a language related to Old English and modern English as the tongue of Dale was related to Rohirric and Westron.[2][1]
A suggested name for the language of Dale is Dalian.[4] Another "invented" name commonly used by fans is Dalish.[5][6]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 144, (dated 25 April 1954)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix F, "On Translation"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix E, "Writing"
- ↑ Andreas Moehn, "Etymologies of the Atani Languages" (accessed 26 March 2011)
- ↑ "Breelendish, a Welsh-style Conlang" (message 33106; 12 March, 2006) at Elfling mailing list (accessed 27 March 2011)
- ↑ "Scandinavians in Middle-earth?" (message 1075; 15 July 1999) at Elfling mailing list (accessed 27 March 2011)


text:
Events Calendar
Featured Events & Networking Groups
Tuesday 01/08/2013
InHouston - Katy Business Professional Mixer
Venue: Vida Loca Mexican Bar & Grill
Address: 21810 Kingsland Boulevard, Katy, TX
Hours: 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Cost: FREE to attend!!! (Sponsorships available!)
RSVP: http://theinhouston.com/events/inhouston-katy-premier-business-professional-networking
Drop by when you can or stay as long as you want. Many Business Professionals, owners, realtors, executives, investors, marketing professionals, individuals and many types of businesses come out each month to build new and build on existing business relationships to help others expand their businesses and thus their business expands. Donate a door prize to promote your business. Bring a lot of business cards and be ready to netweave.


text:
About this blog
FLEFF Intern Voices
The Finger Lakes Environmental Film Festival from the interns' point of view
Sunday, March 24, 2019
Blog written by Jade Hazzard, FLEFF Blogging Intern 2019, Camden Maine.
"I don't see the word disruption as negative, I think that disruption can be been seen as simply change, and you decide if change is good or not. "
Dr. Geronymo is a professional piano player who was born in Brazil then moved to America. While in America he received his doctorate...
Sunday, February 17, 2019
Blog posting written by Kylee Roberts, Communications Management and Design Major, '19, FLEFF Blogging Intern, NY, NY.
As a music festival enthusiast, my experience has been shaped by dehydration, head bobbing and muddy shoes. These past few weeks I've learned a great deal about film festivals, and very deeply on what goes into
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Sitting down to watch Shoulder the Lion reaffirmed the statement that certain films need to be witnessed on the "big screen" in a cinema space to create a full experience. The stories that established the core of the documentary follows three artists whose artistic lives navigate their physical...
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Blog posting written by Gabriella LoBue, Cinema and Photography, '18, FLEFF Intern, Hackettstown, New Jersey.
While the film screenings are definitely an important part of FLEFF, one must not overlook the other events that are offered, including musical performances. Fortunately, there are several opportunities to see concerts and silent film compositions at the end of this...
Friday, April 10, 2015
Soft melodies and bluesy vocals saturate the room around me as my anticipation for today's event intensifies with each song. I'm not talking about a Cinemapolis screening, or even FLEFF Lab. I'm talking about having the opportunity to see Jenny Stockdale perform live at Red's Place.
Those who recognize...
Monday, March 30, 2015
Blog posting by Hannah Basciano, Documentary Studies and Production '17, FLEFF Blogger, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Timbre, rhythm, harmony, tone, expression—and darkness.
When I...
Friday, March 28, 2014
Blog posting by Kayla Reopelle, Documentary Studies and Production '14, FLEFF Blogger, Roy, WA
JG: Music is all about this tension...
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Blogging post by Alexis Lanza, Film, Photography, and Visual Arts '15, FLEFF Blogger, Enfield, CT
Our blogging team brainstormed a list of 17 reasons why students should attend FLEFF.
Sunday, February 2, 2014
Blog posting written by Kimberly Capehart, Documentary Studies and Production '16, FLEFF Blogger, Cherry Hill, NJ
On Tuesday, January 28th, the Cloud Chamber Orchestra accompanied the silent ethnographic documentary, Grass: A Nation's Battle for Life (you can read Blaize's
Friday, May 10, 2013
Blog posting written by Shawn Steiner, Film, Photography, and Visual Arts '13, FLEFF Intern, Elkridge, MD
It's been a good three years since I started college and I haven't missed a single Finger Lakes Environmental Film Festival. I was a blogger my freshman year, a willing participant under Dr. Zimmermann's tutelage my sophomore year and yet again a blogger this year, my junior/senior...
Monday, March 25, 2013
Blog posting written by: Kimberly Capehart, Documentary Studies and Production '16, FLEFF Intern, Cherry Hill, NJ
I've never been to a film festival.
This news might be surprising to some, especially since I'm currently interning for a film festival, but I am a complete newbie in the...
Monday, March 18, 2013
Blog posting written by Andrew Ronald, Film, Photography & Visual Arts '15, FLEFF Social Media Manager, Mahopac, New York
You might have heard it while watching the climax to an action-packed movie. You might have heard it in an elegant concert hall. You might have even heard it on The X Factor.
Monday, March 18, 2013
Blog post written by Kristen Tomkowid, Journalism '15, FLEFF Intern, Poughkeepsie, New York
Nicholas DiEugenio is an assistant professor in the IC School of Music with specialties in violin and chamber music. At this year's festival, Carmina Burana will be performed by local musicians. DiEugenio talked about his involvement with this performance.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Blog posting written by Kacey Deamer, Journalism and Environmental Studies '13, FLEFF Intern, Binghamton, NY
I hope you all were able to make it to Hockett Hall last night for the Concert for Microtopias. If not, you should also read intern blogger Meagan McGinnes'
Monday, March 26, 2012
Blog post written by Colleen Ryan, Television-Radio '12, Anthropology Minor, Lansing, NY
This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Chris White, an extremely talented musician, and one of FLEFF's returning performers.
Monday, March 26, 2012
FLEFF Week 2012 has begun! Conversations about the microtopias installation have been bustling all over campus and the artists have made their way into Ithaca. As a matter of fact, I am in the Park auditorium right now at Art Jones' master class about remixing, new media, and the arts of...
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Colleen Ryan
Television-Radio, '12
Anthropology Minor
Lansing, NY
Fellow blogger Meagan McGinnes asked guest Robby Aceto last night at the FLEFF intern meeting how his improvisational music trio, Cloud Chamber Orchestra, forms a cohesive sound, despite having a different take on the film they...
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Blog posting written by Chloe Wilson, Television-Radio '14, FLEFF Intern, Ashland, Massachusetts.
Back for his fourth year, Robby Aceto is at FLEFF once again!
I got the chance to listen to Acteo speak about his work. This year, he'll be performing live music to accompany the
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Blog posting written by Ian Carsia, Cinema & Photography '14, FLEFF Intern, Hamilton, NJ
6:51 p.m. Blogging live with Robby Aceto. Aceto will be performing in a live musical accompaniment of "Nanook of the North" for FLEFF 2012.
6:53 p.m. FLEFF T-SHIRTS ARE IN!
6:57 p.m. This will be the fourth time Robby and...
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Blog posting written by Isabel Galupo, Cinema and Photography '14, FLEFF Intern, Towson, MD
FLEFF Week 2012 is coming up fast, and the list of this year's festival guests is up on our website!
While every FLEFF guest brings something dynamic to the table, here are five guests that I am especially looking forward to...
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Blog posting written by Isabel Galupo, Cinema and Photography '14, FLEFF Intern, Towson, MD
What kinds of people are attracted to a festival like FLEFF?
FLEFF flirts with contradiction, embraces conflict, and accepts disruption. It forces us to take...
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Blog Posting written by Meagan McGinnes, Journalism '14, FLEFF intern, Norwood, MA
The sign of a true artist, whether you are an artist of music, words, paint, film, community or whatever, is the recognition and utilization of
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Blog posting written by Isabel Galupo, Cinema and Photography '14, FLEFF Intern, Towson, MD
I am currently sitting in the Igor room of Ithaca College's Whalen School of Music with about 40 other FLEFF interns. We are listening to Dr. Brad Hougham, Assistant Professor of Performance Studies (Voice), and
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Colleen Ryan
Television-Radio, Scriptwriting '12
Anthropology Minor
FLEFF Intern
Lansing, NY
It's an interesting experiment when you take a bunch of students unfamiliar with the music school, and have them try to find a room hidden in the corner. Although many of us FLEFF interns are out our element tonight...
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Blog posting written by Andrew Ronald, Film, Photography & Visual Arts '15, FLEFF Intern, Mahopac, New York
"There are so many brilliant people on this campus. They are extraordinary musicians, fantastic friends, wonderful colleagues, and what I've learned from them is to have the guts to push the envelope and go artistically and emotionally where you never thought you would...
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Blog posting written by Chloe Wilson, Television-Radio '14, FLEFF Intern, Ashland, Massachusetts.
Hey FLEFFers!
So I'm going to liveblog a FLEFF session that is for the interns, but I figured all you interested FLEFFers will get a kick out of this info too. This session is focused on The Concert for Microtopias and is hosted by two of the musicians performing...
Monday, March 28, 2011
Blog posting written by Peter Keahey, Film, Photography and Visual Arts, '12, FLEFF Intern, Yellow Springs, Ohio
I was able to have a discussion with Ithaca College professor Peter Rothbart. Professor Rothbart teaches Jewish studies, music theory, and history & comparison. He has served as a...


text:
Nana Eyeson a bookings Editor for Essence Magazine, goes home every Christmas to visit her native country Ghana. It's always a joyous occasion when she celebrates with her family--but she always left with an empty feeling. She felt the need to do something more for her people.
This year, along with the help of several Ghanaian doctors based here in New York, she decided to organize a "Gift of Life Health Fair" at the St. Sylvanus Pokuase Roman Catholic School in Accra.
The Health Fair served as a means to prescreen Ghanaians for high blood pressure, diabetes and tooth decay. Some of the volunteers were Dr. Andrew Alexis a dermatologist, Dr. Ama Alexis a pediatrician, Dr. Edward Brown graduate of Harvard University, and Dr. Robert Rapaport who donated several glucose machines. Nana Dabanka, a German translator also contributed as did Mane Annan Brown, a Vice President at J.P Morgan. The Nike company also donated 100 pairs of sneakers and 300 shirts.
Hundreds of people attended the screenings. Some 60% of the people, between the ages of 24 to 38 were diagnosed with high blood pressure and 40% with diabetes. Volunteers also did check ups on children who had early signs of tooth decay and educated them on proper ways of brushing their teeth and flossing.
With the help of one of the local doctors Dr. Cynthia Kwakye, people who were diagnosed with an illness and needed follow up examinations were able to take a form from the fair to obtain further treatment at no additional cost. "The sad thing is that many of these people are not getting regular checkups and are walking around with early stages of high blood pressure and diabetes," Eyeson, one of the organizers, explained. "The average cost to get a regular physical is about 200,000 cedies which is less
then $10 but most people cannot afford this."
The volunteers did not just screen people but also left them with valuable information on how to change their diet by eliminating unhealthy fatty foods. Eyeson who had first hand experience when her father had a heart attack several months ago, had to reeducate her cousins to prepare his food without high salt and fat content. "It is about education, and being a Ghanaian, I know that my people like their food to come out a certain way," she added.
Her father now eats less red meat and more fish. "Even with the fish Ghanaians do not always need to fry it because the oil holds too much salt in the fish," Eyeson continued. One way of reducing the fat content is to prepare the fish with a small amount of vegetable oil rather than palm oil.
Many Ghanaians eat fufu at nighttime and then go to sleep. Fufu is very heavy and can have an effect on the digestive system when eaten too. "Fufu should be eaten in the afternoon, when the body's metabolism is at its highest and can burn off the food faster," Eyeson added. Fufu is a thick paste which is made by boiling pounded starchy root vegetables in water—it can be made of yams.
Africans and African-Americans are genetically the same and high blood pressure and diabetes are leading killers of both peoples. At the health fair in Accra, women were also taught how to do self-breast examinations and what symptoms to look for.
"We see Indians, Asians and other groups of people do for home, but Ghanaians leave and
do not do for home," Eyeson continued. "There are more qualified Ghanaian doctors in the state of New York then there are in the entire country of Ghana."
She would like to see the Ghanaian government introduce programs for free health care for low income and poor families. Many people in the rural areas do not have access to the bigger hospitals such as the ones in Accra.
"All of us felt good about doing this and I hope others besides myself and the volunteers that came on this trip would be willing to go to Ghana to do this as well," she said.
She hopes the health fair is the start of something big—doing for home.
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ALL OUT at the Durham Jail FRIDAY the 13th
From Amplify Voices
Statement by Inside-Outside Alliance, June 2014
"Cause summer's here and the time is right for dancin' in the streets."
‑‑Martha and the Vandallas, 1964
"Cause summer's here and the time is right for fightin' in the streets."
–The Rolling Stones, 1968
We endorse the call out for a demonstration at the Durham jail on Friday June 13th and invite anyone to join us in filling the heavy June evening air with the sounds of drums, shakers, kazoos, pots, pans, whistles and anything that makes noise. It is right to rebel, and it is always right to show solidarity with those who rebel in creative and courageous ways. So, we will stand strong for targeted eco-activists and longterm anarchist prisoners, along with prisoners poised to strike at Polk C.I. (in Butner, NC) and, of course, prisoners in the Durham jail.
Coinciding with international days of action in support of targeted radical environmental activists, we are taking the occasion of this lone Friday the 13th of 2014 to show support for the ongoing struggles of Durham jail prisoners and to register our disgust for the so-called protest rules introduced by Durham's city council this winter.
Freedom Friday to fight repression
What do the cases of Marie Mason, Eric McDavid and other long-term eco-activist prisoners (see june11.org/) have in common with the situation faced by those organizing in the Durham jail against conditions and those on the outside in Durham who have been pulling back the curtain on police misconduct? Repression by state forces. This occurs and can be expected whenever there is a level of success and where official power deems that example must be snuffed out by any means necessary. To honor all prisoners in motion against their oppression, we must also fight what we face on the outside. To relight the flame of popular revolt, we must bring a good mix of Martha & the Vandallas and, if necessary,the Rolling Stones, as always we should.
Although we come in a festive mood to conjure images of a world without prisons and jails, cops, or borders, we also come in a militant mood, because Durham city council attempted this winter to straitjacket dissent and to sow the fear of resistance in the future. What more absurd thing could come from a council which in one breath in late January declares its 'support' of public dissent and in the other delivers its new rules of protest? The only thing more absurd is they are not new rules at all, but were only re-established after police actions and the council's own missteps this winter. (more…)


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Environmentalists move to halt Whittier drilling
Environmentalists have been denied a restraining order to stop an oil company from clearing lands in Whittier, one step of many towards drilling for oil in the area.
In a filing Thursday, Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority sought an immediate temporary restraining order to halt alleged clearing and grading operations by Matrix Oil Corporation and others.
The environmentalists say the move comes after heavy earth moving equipment was brought to the site on Wednesday.
Matrix spokesman Michael McCaskey says the restraining order was denied and it's untrue Matrix wants to do any grading. They do seek to clear 1.8 acres of vegetation for an inspection, which is allowed under Matrix's permit with the city of Whittier.
Environmentalists have long opposed drilling in the Los Angeles suburb's 1,290-acre wilderness preserve.


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Transport Committee says it cannot carry out oversight duties when "Maginot Line" agency is on a "path of non-transparency"
Steve Watson
Nov 30, 2012
House members, gathered at a hearing Thursday to discuss the role of the TSA in airport security screening, directed stern words toward the agency after it followed through on a pledge to boycott the meeting and declare itself outside of the jurisdiction of Congress.
Chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, John Mica, described TSA head John Pistole's decision to ignore an invitation to the hearing as "very sad."
"Sadly the TSA Administrator is stonewalling this committee and refuses to work with us, and that's part of the problem with this agency," Mica said. "He and other agency officials are protecting one the biggest government bureaucracies, which has grown now to more than 66,000 employees."
"Unfortunately, as this mushrooming agency has spun out of control, passengers have not been well served. We've had numerous security meltdowns, including in Honolulu, Los Angeles, Newark, Fort Myers, Charlotte and elsewhere." Mica added.
"When I helped establish this agency, Congress intended it to operate a risk-based system, but the TSA is best known for shaking down little old ladies and others who pose no security risk." urged the Committee chairman, who has railed against the TSA for some time now.
"They don't want to respond to us. The sad thing about it is that the system doesn't make us any safer." Mica said.
Pistole had been invited to speak at the hearing regarding the TSA's impact upon aviation commerce and passenger experience. However, the agency head's statement on the TSA's website made it clear that neither he, nor any TSA official intends to attend such hearings any longer:
Rep. Tom Petri, the Wisconsin Republican who heads up the aviation subcommittee, said the TSA is hell bent on pursuing a "path of non-transparency and arrogance."
"Their actions today show why the public is so frustrated with the TSA," he said. "These officials are public servants, and their attitude should reflect this fact."
"If we want more government stove piping, the TSA's attitude and actions regarding this hearing achieve that end. But if we want better government and more coordination between government activities, Congress must be able to fulfill its oversight responsibilities. In the case of this subcommittee, the TSA's operations and policies clearly impact civil aviation, including commerce, safety, airport operations, airlines, and passengers." Petri added.
The reason why the TSA boycotted the hearing is fairly straightforward. The Committee wants to see the agency's budget and scope slashed. Rep. Mica has even pushed for airports to ditch the agency altogether and replace TSA personnel with private security screeners.
"We need to be closing down TSA as we know it and instituting a safer, more efficient, less bureaucratic system," the Florida Republican said at the meeting.
The aviation subcommittee presented evidence that airline passengers were likely to travel more frequently if the security screening process were made less impersonal and more efficient. Rep. Petri noted that passengers were concerned about the increased use of enhanced pat-downs, radiation firing body scanners, and a lack of information on alternative screening procedures.
Petri noted that many passengers are unsure of their rights regarding such procedures and that the TSA has routinely failed to provide clarity on the matter.
In testimony, director of the Consumer Travel Alliance, Charlie Leocha, added that "To much of the flying public, the TSA is a boogeyman."
"TSA has become the butt of countless jokes. TSA is set up like the Maginot Line, the poster child for generals fighting the last war." Leocha noted, suggesting that screeners should be made to appear "less threatening".
Stephen M. Lord, homeland security director at the Government Accountability Office, also testified, specifically on the level of complaints that the TSA has received and how inefficiently they have been dealt with.
"They need to make the process more effective [and] more selective," Lord said, noting that it had been impossible to tally the volume of complaints because local divisions of the TSA report them in different ways and file them at their own discretion.
Video of the hearing can be viewed on the Committee's website here.
Steve Watson is the London based writer and editor for Alex Jones' Infowars.com, and Prisonplanet.com. He has a Masters Degree in International Relations from the School of Politics at The University of Nottingham in England.
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Invented 'Text To Tommee' during Friday's Open Lines asks Joorch what words he would leave us if this was his last day. 'See ya,' jokes Joorch then turns it to what he would like on his tombstone. After the pair make a failed attempt at the well-known 'Here lies Lester Moore' epitaph - which Joorch of course screwed up ('forty-four slugs, or whatever it is': try 'four slugs from a forty-four', Joorch - he got serious. His chosen memorial?He made a differenceYou certainly did, Joorch. You took a great show called Coast To Coast AM and turned it into a pale shadow of its former glory. Quite the difference. Any offers for Jorch's headstone? I'll offer 'What's next for meeeee?'
Or, George may have an undiagnosed Bee Gees phobia
All doctors do these things, routinely, purposefully, and none of them do anything useful to society?
Last night Norry again was bragging and self-congratulatory about him working on holidays, unlike other show hosts. He also said he invites people without families over for Thanksgiving dinner but then "he is out of there" and "his daughters clean up." It was funny though when he wished some callers 'happy Thanksgiving" and what their plans were. Callers were certainly not seeming happy about the holiday and had limited plans and no excitement.He also did his trademark "Well it sure is with -insert guest name-" Sure is WHAT, Norry?
Good news for Jorch. LMH is on tonight so Jorch can kick-back and not have to work so hard before T-day.
I think it's the deep voice-over guy when they come back from break who says "This is coast to coast am, with George Norry", then Jorch goes "it sure is...". Art bell used to do this often, but i haven't really heard norry do this until i read your post. So i guess add that to the list off things he's ripped off of Art, even if it is seemingly a little thing. THere is nothing original about Norry. Jorch is full of crap.. he takes most friday's off to enjoy himself a nice three day weekend but still contends to the audience that he "never takes a day off". So, please Jorch, don't give me that crap about working on holidays. Plus you're job is a nightjob anyway where you're on the air for 2 and a half hours excluding commercials. Most folk are done with their turkey dinner by 10 pm. And i don't want to hear your bogus "8 hour preparatory work". Are you that slow it takes you 8 hours to come up with a dozen middle-school questions for your guests? Lets not pretend you do research either.. Fat Tommee and your other staff will have that all done for your lazy butt.
Ok, that explains it. When I listen the bumpers and commercials are editted out so the "well it sure is" seems non referential. No surprise he ripped off Art. Norry bragging about how much he works is ridiculous. As is his desire to be praised for working holidays. They way he describes an holiday with his family makes it seem like a chore and something he "has to do" but "he is out of there" as quickly as possible. I think he also doesn't like being taken away from what he thinks is his Hollywood star lifestyle in LA.
This year is moving so fast! It really is, pretty soon it will be Feb!
By the math, considering the lack of any real show prep, it would mean that George's pay when averaged out is about $800 bucks an hour to let someone babble and all he has to do is occasionally interject a index card question. His job in that sense is more far more cush than a well payed attorney or psychiatrist as he doesn't really need to think.
Right. In his mind, doing a radio show in LA and an internet-only tv show makes him some sort of hollywood celebrity. Hmm... given all the sexual harassment claims against Celebrities and newscasters dominating the media now, it would be a good thing for several women (well not good for the women) if they came forward accusing Jorch of sexual harassment. That would finally be a sure way to knock Norry off the air for good. Premiere Network would have no choice but to can his sorry ass. For the women at least, their humiliation and sacrifice would not be in vain.
I think your math is accurate. Jorch is paid $500,000 a year from Premiere. That means: $2000 for 2 and 1/2 hours a night = $10,000 a week; $40,000 per month, which then come to roughly $480,000 a year -- which Premiere then rounds out to an even $500,000 for the year. Spot on Dyna-X.
And head company iHateMedia, Inc is serious in debt, hemorrhaging cash, and selling off assets. Yet they pay Norry so much for, basically, showing up? Crazy and a bit sad considering how many people work far harder jobs for far less and actually do more than simply showing up. Add his salary along with his side-gigs of "big events," whatever multilevel marketing scheme he has going with Critical Health News, and his internet "tv show" it would seem Norry is doing pretty well.
There's always the LMH bumpers. It'll be interesting to see if Jorch and Tommee back-off tonight on their not-so-subtle eye-rollers.
That's some high dollar suckage. Throw in his Gaiam crap, wacko conventions, Doc Wallet kickbacks, and the $11.76 profit from his books and Jorch is riding the gravy train.
Proof norry wears a toupee:
Here's a scary thought. Maybe there's more than one Noory.
That is a scary thought. Maybe the CIA has a dozen Jorch Noory's running around.
Kind of like where there were 20 Saddam Husseins. Come to think of it wasn't their a George Noory who was arrested?
Are you sure that wasn't Dave Noorie?


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The name Anders Celsius will be familiar to readers from his invention of the universally-used temperature scale. But Celsius (1701-1744) was much more than that: he was a professor of astronomy, he went on latitude-measuring expeditions, he gave early warning about the melting of the Arctic ice cap...and he wrote science fiction.
Swedish fan writer Ahrvid Engholm tells the tale at Europa SF. In 1735 Celsius, writing an essay about astronomy, speculated the following, as translated by Engholm:
When astronomy has reached so far that we are sure of the status of the inhabitants of the planets; and physics is so forward that we find ways to travel from Earth to the planets, they none-the-less begin to make war in the air and trade and navigate on the planets, and thus they want to conquer each other. Later Earth will be considered as a united realm in opposing e.g. the Kingdom of Mars. They will then find out how to make alliances with each other, e.g. Mercury, Venus and Tellus, on one side, and on the other side Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. But as Jupiter and Saturn has conquered so many small kingdoms on their satellites; Mercury, Venus and Tellus would then likely oblige the inhabitants of the Sun to be on their side to keep the balance in the Solar system, and instead they now have Europa. By the way, if science would become as advanced that we could trade with other planetary systems, e.g. Sirus, our system would then once again be considered as one Kingdom, and then wars start between different systems, and so on ad infinitum. But since you cannot travel between systems in shorter time than a few hundred years, medicine should be improved so that people could become as old as during the time of the Patriarchs.
Who did originally think you could sail the seas, so you couldn't see see land? Who thought you could begin to do battle on water? Now we have little belief in that people in due time could sail and battle in the air. It could be possible that flesh and skin would become transparent. If one in the future could imagine such people and animals, it would become a possibility for an excellent novel – medicine would then make people long-lived.
Considering that the first work of proto-science fiction in Sweden was only published in 1734 (Olof von Dahlin's "The Story of Erik the Goth"), this would seem to make Celsius a true original — he had none of the French proto-sf stories and novels to go on, and based his speculations purely on his own imagination.
More at Europa SF.


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Interpreting the Earth Change Readings
It's NOT about Earthquakes: Spiritual Transformation Is the Goal
By Kevin J. Todeschi
I originally became infatuated with the Edgar Cayce readings more than 35 years ago because of the earth-changes readings. Like many individuals, my concern about earth changes was predicated upon information that all seemed to indicate a global future fraught with earthquakes, California sliding off into the ocean (potentially as far east as Nebraska), a shifting of the poles, and a calamitous disaster that would connect the Great Lakes with the Gulf of Mexico and essentially divide what remained of the continental United States in two.
By the time I had joined the A.R.E. staff in 1982 and had taken the opportunity to explore some of the Cayce readings for myself, my understanding began to change. Today, I am more convinced than ever that the Edgar Cayce material on earth changes is not really about earthquakes at all but instead about our connectedness as a human species. Just what are some of the misperceptions about this material? And what do the readings really suggest?
The readings on earth changes can be summarized into four categories:
- Readings discussing changes for the 1930s, especially 1936;
- Readings suggesting that earth changes are gradual;
- Readings stating that earth changes are cataclysmic and disastrous; and
- Earth changes that occurred in prehistory (ancient times).
Setting aside category #4 (prehistory), less than 20 of the more than 14,000 readings talk about the potential of future earth changes. Information that essentially explores .14 percent (that is point-one-four percent) of the Cayce material has become the most-publicized topic in the entire archives. In terms of category #1, here is an example of the readings talking about 1936:
(Q) Please forecast the principal events for the next fifty years affecting the welfare of the human race.
(A) This had best be cast after the great catastrophe that's coming to the world in '36 (thirty-six), in the form of the breaking up of many powers that now exist as factors in the world affairs … Then, with the breaking up of in '36 (thirty-six) will be the changes that will make the different maps of the world. (3976-10; 2/8/1932)
With the above in mind, was Edgar Cayce wrong? There was no shifting of the poles, no physical changes that impacted world maps, and no cataclysmic earthquakes. Let me offer an alternative explanation. Much like interpreting a dream, oftentimes a psychic has to "interpret" the symbols and images he or she sees in an effort to explain the changes that are being seen and predicted on a future timeline. Rather than earthquakes or pole shifts, 1936 marked the beginning of civil war in Spain, Hitler's invasion of the Rhineland in violation of the Treaty of Versailles, and ongoing aggression between Japan and China that grew to an all-out war in 1937. Events were set in place causing the outbreak of World War II and the changes Cayce saw expressed themselves in the affairs of humankind. In fact, even by 1935 it appears as though the "different maps of the world" that Cayce had once foreseen as physical earth changes were being revisited and further clarified.
Kevin J. Todeschi is Executive Director and CEO of Edgar Cayce's A.R.E. and Atlantic University. He oversees activities of the Cayce work worldwide. As both student and teacher of the Edgar Cayce material for more than 30 years, he has lectured on five continents in front of thousands of individuals. A prolific writer, he is the author of numerous articles and more than 20 books, including Contemporary Cayce: A Complete Exploration Using Today's Science and Philosophy, Edgar Cayce on the Akashic Records, and The Rest of the Noah Story.
• Read the full article from the July-September issue of Venture Inward magazine. The magazine is available exclusively for A.R.E. members online.


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close the kitchen completely 10 minutes before films.
announce films.
close the curtain and hang a sign which says 'film night, kitchen closed, silence if entering, no laptops, and has the film program' - or something like that.
switch all lights off.
between films, open the kitchen briefly for drinks and cakes/popcorn only.
have a really interesting and innovative program with some strange and amazing short films.
in short, make it a very special event, that people think is amazing.
have the program sorted 6 weeks in advance so that it appears on events posters.
have ur own film posters.
hope the meeting goes well. remeber to discuss mission and regular responsibilities!
ideas to make film night work:
Post Reply
7 posts • Page 1 of 1
ideas to make film night work:
Maybe it could work? But it will be a kaleidoscopic blend of mysterious shadows and rainbow hued-dreams seen through compassionate tears.
let the people have tea. cake. sarnies. popcorn. etc. durring films. but nothing that involves loads of noise.
no. but there are quiet things that the kitchen could provide which would make the films better.
a cup of tea, you know.
nice things that you'd have in your flat if you were hanging out watcjing a film.
a cup of tea, you know.
nice things that you'd have in your flat if you were hanging out watcjing a film.
Post Reply
7 posts • Page 1 of 1


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We're all human. And we all make mistakes.
But one great lesson I learned early on, was that it's much better to learn from other people's mistakes. Before that though, I made some really BIG mistakes that has been very costly.
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- Watch the whole video, and discover the secret 3-word phrase that I reveal at random parts inside the video.
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That's it for now… inside the next video, I will reveal the lucky winner!
Keeping visible…
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Transcript Of Today's Video
Click Here To Read The TranscriptRight click here to download today's video to your computer