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Large U.S. cities that the rest of the world used to look at in envy are now being transformed into gang-infested hellholes with skyrocketing crime rates. Cities such as Chicago, Detroit, Camden, East St. Louis, New Orleans and Oakland were once bustling with economic activity, but as industry has fled those communities poverty has exploded and so has criminal activity.
Meanwhile, financial problems have caused all of those cities to significantly reduce their police forces. Sadly, this same pattern is being repeated in hundreds of communities all over the nation.
The mainstream media loves to focus on mass shooters such as Adam Lanza, but the reality is that gang violence is a far greater problem in the United States than mass shooters ever will be. There are approximately 1.4 million gang members living in America today according to the FBI. That number has shot up by a whopping 40 percent just since 2009.
There are several factors fueling this trend. Unemployment among our young people is at an epidemic level, about one out of every three U.S. children lives in a home without a father, and there are millions of young men who have come into this country illegally and have no way to legally support themselves once they arrive in our cities. Gangs provide a support system, a feeling of "community", and a sense of purpose for many young people.
Unfortunately, most of these gangs use violence and crime to achieve their goals, and they are taking over communities all over America. If your community is not a gang-infested war zone yet, you should consider yourself to be very fortunate.
If nothing is done about this, the violence and the crime that is fueled by these gangs will continue to spread, and eventually nearly every single community in the United States will be affected by it.
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Thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail is on many serious hiker's bucket list, but the AT also has great day hikes and campgrounds for hikers of all levels.
Displaying 3 parks
Good news — you're one step closer to Finding Your Park. Whether you're looking for a specific activity or trying to locate a park near you, use the filters below to narrow your search and begin your next adventure.

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Forever Young
This story appears in the November 2001 issue of Entrepreneurs Start-Ups magazine. Subscribe »
For 13 years, we've hunted for the best and brightest business owners so we could bring your our annual list of young, successful entrepreneurs. What does it take to make the list? Entrepreneurs have to be under 40, own a company that makes more than $1 million in sales and have that something extra that causes them to shine amongst their peers-it might be a groundbreaking idea, an inspiring story or simply the all-out determination to make it big. This year, as in years past, our young millionaires run the gamut, but whether they're selling meat or maternity clothes, offering online marketing or real estate brokering services, their stories will inspire and invigorate your own entrepreneurial spirit.
- Andy Stenzler, Xando Cosi, coffee bar/restaurants
- Eileen Spitalny & David Kravetz, Fairytale Brownies, gourmet brownies
- Liz Lange, Liz Lange Maternity, pregnant women's apparel
- Elizabeth Martin, E.L. Martin & Co., real estate brokerage
- Steve Krein & Daniel Feldman, Promotions.com, Internet marketing and promotions
- Rod Hill & John Calhoun, Integrated Management Services, engineering firm
- Michael Rubin, Global Sports Interactive, e-commerce solutions
- Richard Owen & Todd Wichmann, Redox Brands, cleaning products relauncher
- John Jacobs & Bert Jacobs, Life Is Good, licensed apparel
- Shawn Buchanan, All American Meats, meat products
Andy Stenzler, 32
Xando Cosi
Year Started: 1994
Web site:www.getcosi.com
Based in: New York City
2001 Projections: $100 million
In 1994, Andy Stenzler was your typical Gen X poster boy: hip, educated, with no clue what to do with his life. The then-25-year-old had just graduated from NYU business school when he saw the slacker classic Reality Bites with best friend Nick Marsh. After watching the film's characters skulk around coffee shops by day and pine at home by night, Stenzler and Marsh saw an opportunity. "We figured those people needed a better place to hang out," jokes Stenzler.
In less than a year, Stenzler and Marsh created that place-and, eventually, a chain of places. The two scoured the East Coast and raised $400,000 to open their first day/night coffee bar in Hartford, Connecticut. The concept soon caught on with the same young hipsters that the Reality Bites characters were based on, and within a few years, Xando Coffee Bars became the hot spot for the East Coast in crowd. While Stenzler doesn't like to name drop (ahem . . . ), regular patrons wouldn't be surprised to bump into Ethan Hawke lounging in an overstuffed chair, Uma Thurman perched on a bar stool, Allen Iverson swinging to R&B music or Julia Roberts roasting s'mores. S'mores?
"We serve them to you in a Chinese poo-poo platter with hibachi sticks and a heater," says Stenzler. "You roast the s'mores yourself right at the table. It's a good icebreaker. Nobody can stay straight-laced while they're roasting s'mores.
"I want each location to be a comfortable place that takes on its neighborhood's feel and personality," says Stenzler. "I walked into one location and saw two 70-year-old women drinking Bass ales and roasting s'mores."
Xando Cosi's motto is "From wake-up call to last call," and it's not unusual for the same businesspeople who grab cappuccinos and "squagles" (square bagels) in the morning to come back at lunch for Cosi's signature sandwiches or unwind after work with a Chai Lullaby or Mocha Kiss.
"The concept changes throughout the day," says Stenzler. "We're unique because you order at the counter during the day, but after 5 o'clock, we unveil our liquor bar and have full table service."
In 1999, Xando acquired Cosi Sandwich Co., and the marriage has been a perfect fit. This year, the New York City-based company will open 21 new locations, with sales for all 60 stores approaching $100 million. Plans include West Coast expansion next year. -Peter Kooiman
Eileen Spitalny, 35 & David Kravetz, 35
Fairytale Brownies
Year Started: 1992
Web site:www.brownies.com
Based in: Chandler, Arizona
2001 Projections: $3.75 million
As fairy tales go, Eileen Spitalny and David Kravetz's story has all the ingredients of a classic. Armed with just one secret family recipe and a high school promise, Spitalny and Kravetz founded Chandler, Arizona-based Fairytale Brownies Inc. in 1992.
The two childhood friends grew up savoring the brownies Kravetz's mother made from scratch. Years later, both dissatisfied with their jobs, Kravetz and Spitalny remembered a promise they'd made in high school to start a business together someday and decided those beloved brownies were the ticket.
With no baking, manufacturing or direct-marketing experience, Kravetz and Spitalny moonlighted from a friend's catering kitchen for the first year, selling mostly through catalogs. In 1993, they moved into their own bakery and soon after went online with their Web site, where they receive 25 percent of their orders today.
The summer of '94 taught the two an important lesson about getting the word out about their company. "We got a great write-up in The New York Times that changed that summer season forever," says Spitalny. "And it made us become very proactive in sending brownies with our press releases because of the phenomenal results we saw from [the story]."
Once people receive the company's gift-boxed gourmet brownies (now in 12 flavors), they often come back for their next gift-giving occasion-helping Fairytale Brownies sales reach $3.75 million this year.
So what's Spitalny and Kravetz's recipe for success? "Well, most everybody loves chocolate, so that helps," Kravetz jokes. "But we know that we don't know everything, so we're not afraid to ask for help or advice. You've got to be humble." -P. Kelly Smith
Liz Lange, 35
Liz Lange Maternity
Year Started: 1996
Web site:www.lizlange.com
Based in: New York City
2001 Projections: $3 million
Celebrity moms like Cindy Crawford and Catherine Zeta-Jones know about fashion. And when the stork starts circling the neighborhood, these ultra-chic ladies know to head to the maven of maternity wear-Liz Lange. On her store's shelves, a superstylish expectant mom will find slim pants, cashmere sweaters and fitted slinky dresses-just a few of the treasures offered by Liz Lange Maternity.
"I was almost offended by what was being offered for pregnant women," says Lange. Traditional maternity fashions mostly consist of oversized baby-doll dresses or pants with a hole cut in the front-and a lycra panel to accommodate their growing bellies. "[Nine months] is a fairly long period of time, and women are just too active today, too much a part of life to have to sit out nine months wearing a big tent, not feeling good about themselves."
Lange's passion was ignited while working as a designer's assistant in 1996. At the time, all her pregnant friends were clamoring for sophisticated maternity wear. Lange rose to the challenge and designed a few basic pieces to peddle to retailers-very skeptic retailers. "They told me, 'Pregnant women will not spend money. It's a category that we have no interest in. If you want to go ahead, be prepared to do it on your own because we won't be selling any maternity clothing.' "
Ignoring the naysayers, Lange borrowed $50,000 in seed money from family and friends and opened a small office in New York City where she sold her made-to-order clothes to women by appointment. Word-of-mouth business was booming when, in 1997, The New York Times Style section did an article on Liz Lange's revolutionary look for moms. Lange's business exploded-and she realized how wrong those skeptic retailers had been. Even now, Lange chooses not to wholesale her line to department stores, only to a select few boutiques.
With business bursting at the seams, Lange moved to a larger location in 1998 and still didn't have enough room for all of her customers. She's now running stores on New York's Madison Avenue and in Beverly Hills, California, as well as producing an online catalog.
This mother of two isn't close to finished yet. Plans include possible stores in London and Paris as well as more U.S. shops to increase her $3 million-plus in sales. -Nichole L. Torres
Elizabeth Martin, 38
E.L. Martin Co.
Year Started: 1992
Web site:www.elmartin.com
Based in: New York City
2001 Projections: $6 million
She's brokered prime real estate deals for Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and the Rev. Jesse Jackson. She found a hip new space for Ms. magazine. She's got plans to take her real estate firm national. Still, Elizabeth Martin can well remember the struggling early days of E.L. Martin & Co. Inc.
With a master's degree in real estate investment and development, she was working at a New York City real estate brokerage when she found her entrepreneurial inspiration: Women and minorities were being underserved and underrepresented by real estate professionals. "I could see there was a niche to be filled," she says. So, in 1992, Martin struck out on her own with $25,000 from family and friends-in the middle of a real estate slump. Capital and customers were hard to find, but Martin made it through, focusing on entrepreneurial and nonprofit minority clients.
Those hard days well behind her, Martin has branched out into corporate clientele and expects company sales to hit $6 million this year. She remains passionate about her niche. "All of [my clients] are unique, which is why it's so important to understand their businesses to get a sense of where the best place is for them." -Nichole L. Torres
Steve Krein, 31, & Daniel Feldman, 31
Year Started: 1996
Web site:www.promotions.com
Based in: New York City
2001 Projections: $26.6 million
Fate wanted Promotions.com to happen. Steve Krein and Daniel Feldman were born one week apart, grew up in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and went to the same high school. They met in ninth grade when both were dating the same girl. "We have no idea where the girl is," says Krein, "but we're together."
The Internet promotions and marketing services company had its origins on a high school class trip to Walt Disney World in 1988. The two seniors were at the Space Mountain ride contemplating graduating and going off to different colleges. "We talked about one day we'd have to do something fun together and maybe even start a business," chair and CEO Krein remembers.
After meeting up again while working for a legal Web site, the pair collaborated on a successful sweepstakes-style promotion for their employer. In 1996, they took the idea, a computer and $30,000 from a friend and launched WebStakes.com. "We got to the Internet very early, pre-gold-rush mentality," says president and COO Feldman.
Funding from an angel investor and mentor got the budding company through the next few years, but in 1999, at the height of the Web boom, the pair needed more capital-lots more. "We raised $90 million between June and September," says Krein.
In 2000, the partners renamed their New York City company Promotions.com to reflect their expanding services. They now list Kraft Foods and NBC among their clients and plan to roll out services for small businesses later this year.
The dotcom world has become more lottery than sure bet, but Krein is confident that the integration of online and offline marketing points to a bright future for Promotions.com. "We know we will not only be a survivor, but be a dominant brand and company," says Krein. Sales for the publicly traded business reached $26.6 million in 2000, up from $10.5 million in 1999.
These young millionaires aren't resting on their laurels. "I'd rather be called a young billionaire," says Krein. We'll check back in a couple years. -Amanda C. Kooser
Rod Hill, 30, & John Calhoun, 39
Integrated Management Services
Year Started: 1996
Web site:www.imsengineers.com
Based in: Jackson, Mississippi
2001 Projections: $10 million
Although Rod Hill and John Calhoun met in the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity at Mississippi's Jackson State University in 1990, the two were never your typical frat boys. Instead of going to beer bashes, Hill and Calhoun spent weekends studying engineering design and mathematics.
"Education was my only ticket," says Hill (below, second from left), who in 1995 became the first member of his immediate family to get a college degree. After graduation, he and Calhoun (below, third from left) decided to start their own civil engineering firm. But there was just one problem: Neither of them had much money, and banks wouldn't give them loans. So Hill and Calhoun maxed out their credit cards and founded Integrated Management Services (IMS) in 1996, one of only a handful of minority-owned engineering firms in the country, and the first of its kind in Jackson.
IMS built up an impressive list of clients, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as well as government agencies throughout Mississippi. This year, IMS projects revenue of $10 million and plans to become a regional firm within five years, with hopes of going national in the next decade.
But even with such heady plans, Hill and Calhoun haven't abandoned their inner-city roots. IMS sponsors an outreach program in Jackson for at-risk 10-to-18-year-olds, teaching them how to succeed both in business and in life. "Looking where I'm at today, I wouldn't trade places with anybody," says Hill. "At the end of the day, you see how your hard work benefits the public." -Peter Kooiman
Michael Rubin, 28
Global Sports Interactive
Year Started: 1991
Web site:www.globalsports.com
Based in: New York City
2001 Projections: $42.8 million
Michael Rubin doesn't know the meaning of the word "typical." At age 13, when most budding entrepreneurs are opening lemonade stands, he started a ski repair shop in his parents' basement. The operation had expanded to five retail stores by the time his high school graduation rolled around. And that was just the opening volley.
In 1991, after selling his ski shops, Rubin founded KPR Sports International, an off-price athletic wear company. KPR evolved into a diversified company under the name Global Sports Inc.
In 1999, Rubin hit on a new game plan and a new tag line. "I heard the Internet calling," says Rubin. Global Sports Interactive was started later that year. Based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, Global Sports Interactive creates and runs e-commerce sporting goods sites for companies like The Athlete's Foot and FoxSports.com. Rubin's business handles everything from technology development to order fulfillment.
The B2B approach to B2C is certainly helping Global Sports to thrive on the shaky Web playing field. "The retailers are happy because they're immediately profitable in e-commerce, and unlike other dotcoms, we don't have to spend millions of dollars promoting our online business [to consumers]," Rubin says.
Rubin, an avid sports fan, describes his workdays as "business adventures." "Global Sports is a lifelong passion for me," he says, "and I think it's that passion that keeps everything from getting stale." With $42.8 million in 2000 sales and deals to handle e-commerce fulfillment for Kmart's Bluelight.com and Northeast retailer Modell's Sporting Goods, think of him as the Tiger Woods of the sports e-commerce world. -Amanda C. Kooser
Richard Owen, 32, & Todd Wichmann, 31
Redox Brands
Year Started: 2000
Based in: Cincinnati
2001 Projections: $60 million
When Procter & Gamble gave up on Oxydol detergent last year, it looked like one of the industry's oldest brands was dead. But P&G execs Richard Owen (below, left) and Todd Wichmann saw opportunity where their bosses only saw failure. Last year, the two pals quit their jobs and persuaded P&G to sell Oxydol to their fledgling company, Cincinnati-based Redox Brands.
Initially, Owen and Wichmann thought Oxydol would strike a chord with nostalgic baby boomers, but they soon discovered their target demographic had high brand loyalty to other detergents. Fortunately, research also showed that Gen X women weren't loyal to any particular brand. Owen and Wichmann saw their niche.
"Everyone in the laundry category is focused on the same user: women ages 35 and older with kids," says Wichmann. "Oxydol is speaking to younger women. We realized there's a market for a brand that speaks their language and understands their high-energy, active lifestyle."
Oxydol's marketing campaigns feature mud-stained dirt bikers and tag lines such as "Get Dirty. We Dare You." Its label reads "Don't freak. Help conquer your most extreme dirt, not to mention laundrophobia."
Owen and Wichmann have no plans to ditch their strategy of relaunching brands with heavy name recognition (the company also bought Biz bleach from P&G last year). "We want brands that have lived and thrived with high consumer awareness," says Wichmann, who projects 2001 sales of $60 million. "This allows us to focus on relaunching the brand [without] spending tens of millions of dollars just getting it known in the first place." -Peter Kooiman
John Jacobs, 33, & Bert Jacobs, 36
Life Is Good
Year Started: 1994
Web site:www.lifeisgood.com
Based in: Boston
2001 Projections: $3.1 million
It's not always easy to focus on the positive. For John Jacobs (below, left) and Bert Jacobs, however, positivity is a way of life. In 1989, the brothers began designing and hawking T-shirts on the streets of Boston, eventually quitting their substitute teaching jobs to take a five-year trek through the East Coast college scene to peddle their shirts. Although they slept in their van and only made enough to eat and travel to the next destination, their adventures would make for a perfect philosophy for their company.
Back at home in Boston and searching for a brand they could build a business on, John and Bert took a tip from friends who loved two of the sketches strewn about the designers' apartment-the phrase "Life is good" and a smiley character, Jake. When their new shirts bearing Jake and the phrase sold out at a street fair within two hours, the Jacobs brothers knew they were on to something exceptional.
"Throughout society, so much negativity is shown through the media," says Bert. "[We thought] it would be refreshing to hit people with something positive without being preachy."
Their insight paid off. Expanding rapidly with 2000 sales totaling
$3.1 million, Life Is Good Inc. offers an assortment of T-shirts, sweatshirts and headwear. With a celebrity following including Matthew McConaughey, Drew Carey, Stephen King and Survivor 2's Keith, Jake's become quite a popular guy. "We stumbled into the business," Bert says. "[But] if you have energy, enthusiasm and good people behind it, anything can happen." -April Pennington
Shawn Buchanan, 32
All American Meats
Year Started: 1996
Based in: Omaha, Nebraska
2001 Projections: $35 million
Back in his professional baseball days, Shawn Buchanan earned his pay on the field. But he made his millions in the locker. The meat locker.
After six years on the diamond, Buchanan made a 180-degree turn straight into the meat business. "As far as being an entrepreneur, it's in my blood-my dad had a machine shop," says Buchanan, who, at 28, decided to change careers. "The funny thing is the only thing I knew about meat or beef was that I enjoyed a good steak."
It all started when Buchanan met Bill Hughes, CEO of Nebraska Beef and the father of one of the players Buchanan coached in youth baseball. Intrigued by Hughes' business, Buchanan took a job selling Hughes' product in 1995.
Buchanan took no salary as a management trainee at Nebraska Beef in return for Hughes' teaching him about the business, and continued working for no salary when he started his own company, All American Meats in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1996. The money Buchanan saved up from his baseball career helped him through thin times when his only income was from youth coaching. "I learned how to operate and survive in a lean and mean situation," he says.
Buchanan now takes in about $35 million in annual sales, and his education, on and off the field, is paying off. So, how's the meat business different from baseball?
"It's a lot harder, but even more fulfilling, because it's not just about me and my family," he says of wife Kelli and his two daughters. "I'm accountable for a minimum of 40 families now. That's what gives me the desire to continue and grow." -Mike Besack
Contact Sources
- All American Meats
(402) 734-6901
- E.L. Martin & Co Inc.
(212) 317-1212, www.elmartin.com
- Global Sports Interactive
(610) 491-7012, www.globalsports.com
- Integrated Management Services
(601) 968-9194, www.imsengineers.com
- Life Is Good Inc.
email@example.com, www.lifeisgood.com
- Liz Lange Maternity
(212) 439-9978, ext. 22, www.lizlange.com
- Xando Cosi
(212) 653-1600, www.getcosi.com


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Citi to lose $2.9 billion on Smith Barney saleSeptember 11, 2012: 12:37 PM ET
Citigroup said it expects to book an after-tax loss of $2.9 billion from the sale of its remaining 49% stake in Smith Barney to Morgan Stanley.
The disclosure, made in an SEC filing Tuesday afternoon, came after Morgan Stanley and Citigroup disclosed the value of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, the wealth brokerage unit they had shared since 2009.
At $13.5 billion, the valuation represents a big win for Morgan Stanley, which had valued the business at $9 billion. Citigroup (C) had said it was worth $23 billion. Morgan Stanley (MS) already owned 51% of the joint venture, which will be renamed Morgan Stanley Wealth Management as the firm phases out the Smith Barney brand.
Investment bank Perella Weinberg was called in to mediate and offer its own appraisal, which is what the two firms used to reach a compromise. The valuation paves the way for Morgan Stanley to snap up the remainder of the 17,000 person strong brokerage at favorable pricing.
Morgan Stanley can now move forward with the first phase by buying an additional 14% stake, bringing its total ownership to 65%. The firm plans to acquire the remaining 35% it doesn't own by mid-2015, at the latest.
Citigroup plans to book the $2.9 billion loss ($4.7 billion pre tax), in its third-quarter results, according to the SEC filing.
Related: Morgan Stanley: All grown up
Citigroup tapped Morgan Stanley to buy a stake in Smith Barney in 2009 as it rushed to sell assets to shore up its shaky balance sheet.
Even at a discounted value to what Citi thought the business was worth, the sale of Smith Barney allows CEO Vikram Pandit to rid one item from his "for sale" box. Since the financial crisis, Citigroup has compiled a list of so-called non-core assets that it planned to sell. "Establishing certainty regarding the divestiture of this business is in the best interests of our shareholders," Pandit said in a statement.
Pandit discussed the continuing slim-down of Citigroup, including the Smith Barney sale, during a presentation at a Barclays investor conference Monday. He dubbed the new look of Citigroup: "Simpler, safer, safer and stronger." While the motto doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, the strategy is a clear reversal from Citigroup's pre-crisis ambitions. Smith Barney was one part of what Citigroup's former CEO, Sandy Weill, pieced together to form the largest bank in the world.
Recently, as U.S. government policymakers and bank executives wrestle with defining what constitutes too big to fail, along with a slew of regulatory measures, Weill appeared to change his tune. During a recent CNBC interview, he said large banks should be broken up.
While the acquisition of Smith Barney makes Morgan Stanley look bigger, CEO James Gorman said it also makes it safer and stronger -- a sharp departure from some of the bank's risky lending habits during the pre-financial crisis era. With Smith Barney, Morgan Stanley will gain access to $48 billion of deposits, helping build up its capital ratios to comply with international rules.
Both Citigroup and Morgan Stanley's shares rose more than 2% Tuesday.


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Scourge for slumbering souls
˜Woe to them that are at ease in Zion. Amos 6:1
Suggested Further Reading: Hebrews 3:7- 4:2
I think it was Christmas Evans who used the simile of the blacksmith's dog, which, when his master first set up in trade, was very much frightened with the sparks, but at last he got to be so used to them that he went to sleep under the anvil. ˜And so, said the good preacher, ˜there be many that go to sleep under the gospel, with the sparks of damnation flying about their nostrils. And certainly there are such. I am told that when they are making the great boilers at Bankside, when a man has to go inside for the first time and hold the hammer, the noise is so frightful, that his head aches and his ears seem to have lost all power of hearing for a long time afterwards; but I am also told that after a week or two a person can go to sleep in the midst of these boilers while the workmen are hammering outside, and he would sleep none the less soundly for the noise. So I know there is such a thing as going to sleep under the most thundering ministry. I know that men get used to these things, used to being invited, used to being warned, used to being thundered at. They have been pleaded with until they sleep under it; I doubt not they would sleep even if the world were blazing, if the sun were turned into darkness, and the moon into blood; and I think that even the trumpet of the archangel would not suffice to wake them from their lethargy, if they heard it long enough to be accustomed to it. Shall we give you up as hopeless? I think we almost may. If you have heard so long, and been unblessed, there is no great likelihood that you ever will be blessed; but you will go on as you have been going, till at last you perish.
For meditation: Faithful gospel preachers sometimes get accused of hardening the hearts of their unbelieving hearers. That is the equivalent of blaming Moses for repeating a message from God (Exodus 5:1,3; 6:11; 7:2,16; 8:1,20; 9:1,13; 10:3) which led to Pharaoh hardening his heart (Exodus 8:15,32; 9:34). Beware of apportioning blame like this "those who harden their hearts against the gospel will not be able to hide on the day of judgment (Romans 2:4–5).
Sermon no. 417 3 November (1861)
All rights belong to the collections of Charles Spurgeon(C)


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GENEVA, 9 July 2012 – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to health, Anand Grover, hailed the European Parliament's rejection of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) as a step in the right direction in ensuring continued access to affordable and essential drugs and medication essential for the fulfilment of the right to health.
The European Parliament overwhelmingly voted against an international anti-piracy trade agreement on Wednesday, July 4, after the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) had sparked street protests in various cities across Europe.
According to The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), one of the major concerns with ACTA was that had it not been adopted properly and implemented with some basis in reality, it would "have had unacceptable side effects on fundamental rights of individuals".
Several NGO's like Amnesty International and Oxfam International had long urged EU governments not to join ACTA, branding it a "Pandora's box" of potential human rights violations. They had also expressed concerns over ACTA empowering multinational drug companies by asking customs officers in exporting, transit and importing countries to seize legitimate and safe generic medicines on the false grounds that they are counterfeit goods.
In his 2009 report* on access to medicines and intellectual property rights to the UN General Assembly, Mr Grover had already warned about lack of transparency and secrecy surrounding the negotiations on ACTA.
"ACTA's defeat in Europe is a welcome blow to the flawed agreement that has failed to address numerous concerns related to access to medicines" Mr Grover said.
In July 2011, the UN Human Rights Council requested the Special Rapporteur to study existing challenges with regard to access to medicines, ways to overcome them and good practices. He will present the study to the Council in June 2013.
The Brussels based United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe - UNRIC provides information on UN activities to the countries of the region. It also provides liaison with institutions of the European Union in the field of information. Its outreach activities extend to all segments of society and joint campaigns, projects and events are organized with partners including the EU, governments, the media, NGOs, schools and local authorities.
United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe (UNRIC Brussels)
Residence Palace, Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat 155, Block C2,7th and 8th floor, Brussels 1040, Belgium
Tel.: +32 2 788 8484 / Fax: 32 2 788 8485


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WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats are preparing a catchall government funding bill that denies President Barack Obama money for implementing signature first-term accomplishments like new regulations on Wall Street and his expansion of government health care subsidies but gives Democrats modest additional funding for domestic priorities like health research.
The measure is the product of bipartisan negotiations and is the legislative vehicle to fund the day-to-day operations of government through Sept. 30 — and prevent a government shutdown when current funding runs out March 27.
Passage in the Senate this week would presage an end to a mostly overlooked battle between House Republicans and Obama over the annual spending bills required to fund federal agencies.
The bipartisan measure comes as Washington separately girds for weeks of warfare over the longer-term budget.


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Advice from people living with Alzheimer's disease
Shared experiences is an information booklet intended to help answer some of your questions and address some of your concerns about living with Alzheimer's disease.
The Alzheimer Society met with groups of Canadians across the country who are in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. They agreed to talk to us about what it is like to live with the disease. They shared their experiences, thoughts and feelings and offered practical tips and suggestions for others with the disease. They also told us how family members, friends, the Alzheimer Society and others can help.
While the information is specific to people with Alzheimer's disease, it can also be helpful to people with other dementias.
We are indebted to these individuals who willingly offered their insights and experiences to assist in the creation of this booklet for people living with Alzheimer's disease. We have drawn on their comments to provide real-life examples for the text.
This booklet is also available in audio files. Read the whole booklet or listen to the material in segments at your own pace. Some topics deal with sensitive issues that you may not be comfortable dealing with right now. You can save them for later.
More information and resources
- Download our Memory tips & tricks information sheet for strategies to help you manage your memory problems, based on ideas and suggestions provided by people living with memory loss.


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If there are "best practices," then some must be better than others. Of the "better" best practices, one should be best and — when implemented — must have immediate results.
For those interested in "Best Practices," I have two free resources for you. I have created a Best Practices Resource page for you on my website. I also have archived my blog posts on financial advisor best practices.
After you have read this article, go learn about "The One Worst Practice." There you can take my "Best Practices 2011" survey as well as get additional information on this vital concept.
That one best practice should be enjoyable if not downright fun. Any "best practice" that people hate would not be deployed and therefore could not possibly be best.
And quite obviously, it should not be difficult. Someone, such as me, should be able to point it out to you. You might then pause for a second, think about it, and then reply, "I got it." And then you do it.
And so it is with "the one best practice."
I learned it when I was in college. The story is written up in my first book, Prospecting Your Way to Sales Success (1986) although at the time I did not identify it as a best practice. But looking back, it clearly is.
I learned it during a hot summer between my sophomore and junior years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Carolina for you Tar Heels). I had decided an adventure was in order and some money would be nice, so I signed up with a friend who was recruiting students to sell dictionaries door-to-door for Southwest Publishing.
I was sent to Abilene, Texas, still not my favorite spot because for 28 days in a row it was 100 degrees or more. While a friend of mine had a car, I had a bicycle and shoe leather. Hot. Texas hot.
I had a crew leader. His name was Buzzy Stubbs. Looking back, he knew a lot about sales. But he focused on two principles and pounded these into our heads. Both are clearly "best practices." I'll mention one and then focus on the other, which I believe is the one best practice.
Buzzy really understood that sales is a numbers game. His voice still echoes somewhere in the back of my mind, "Good! What's this I hear about you walking door-to-door? You've got to run. That's the only way to make more calls!"
Once a week or so, as I would be trudging door-to-door, I would hear Buzz' car come growling around the corner. He would jump out, run to wherever I was, and we would run together to the next house.
I really didn't have a choice. He would stand beside me while I made my presentation. As we ran to the next house, he would deliver a critique even hotter than the scorching summer sun.
After one such call, he said, "Good, you sound dead."
"Buzz," I protested, "I'm trying to sound warm and friendly."
"Warm and friendly? Where did that come from? You are supposed to sound enthusiastic."
"Come on, Buzz. I don't feel enthusiastic."
"I don't remember asking how you feel. In fact, I don't care how you feel. All I care about is that you sound enthusiastic. Come on! Let's go! "
He grabbed my arm and we ran to the next house where, by golly, I just cranked up enthusiasm that I most certainly did not feel.
I will not ever forget the lady who answered the door. Hair in curlers. Terry cloth robe. Barely awake.
"Hi!" I said with a great big smile on my face.
She looked at me for a moment. She sort of shook herself awake. And then, with a smile, she said "Hi!"
And she bought a dictionary.
Lesson learned: It doesn't matter how you feel.
No matter what you feel, be enthusiastic. That is the one best practice.
Being enthusiastic creates an immediate change in your sales results. As an added benefit, people's reaction to your enthusiasm makes you feel better. It's clearly win-win.
Fast forward to right now.
You are the foundation in your clients' financial lives. If you sound unstable, morose, scared, imagine the effect on them. So I'll go with my old friend, Buzz:
It does not matter how you feel.
Market gyrations do not matter.
Your personal life is irrelevant.
You are always upbeat, calm, cheerful, professional, and you always smile when you greet anyone, in person or on the phone.
In sales, there is an element of showbiz.
When Carol Channing walked on stage for one of her 1,000 performances of "Hello Dolly," do you think members of the audience knew from one performance to the next how she felt? Did they care?
Not one spec. That's because there is an ethic in showbiz: The show must go on. Stories are legion of performers who went on stage following a personal tragedy, and no one knew until after.
And so it must with the sales professional. Smile. Be enthusiastic. And your show will go on.
Go ahead. Try it. On your next call or appointment, show those pearly whites. Be enthusiastic.
Bill Good is chairman of Bill Good Marketing. His Gorilla CRM® System helps advisors double their production or work half as much; visit www.billgood.com. His seminar program, "No More Pies! ®," helps advisors manage ETF portfolios using technical analysis; see www.nomorepies.net. And his blog, financialadvisorsmarketing.net, has lots of useful information for advisors who need to beef up marketing. To preview Bill as a speaker, see his YouTube channel here: bit.ly/billgoodspeaker.


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Monday, April 25, 2011
Home on the Range
I had a great time working on it and visually it was beautiful thanks to designs by Joe Moshier and David Cutler's art direction.
Above is the final drawing of Grace I did for the model sheet. The design is by Joe Moshier.
Below are some animation and model drawings.
One day, Joe Moshier went to my office looking for me but I was away. I was working on a scene of Pearl talking with the sheriff and had a drawing on my desk. When I got back, this is what I Found:
Posted by Sandro Cleuzo at 5:48 AM 16 comments:
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Enchanted Pencil test to final color
Untitled from sandro lucio on Vimeo.
Untitled from sandro lucio on Vimeo.
Untitled from sandro lucio on Vimeo.
Here are 2 shots I animated for Enchanted and supervised by James Baxter and the final color scenes. It is always a thrill for me to see my scenes with the final color in the movie and with the BGs, camera moves, EFX, etc.
It is still amazing that we start on a blank piece of paper.
Posted by Sandro Cleuzo at 6:36 PM 7 comments:
Monday, April 11, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
Goodbye LA (for now)
It was a lot of hard work but what I have seen so far looks great. Beautiful art direction, animation, cleanup, efx, After Efx, etc.
Big thanks to Ken Duncan for trusting me and to the whole team. I can not wait to see it all done.
Posted by Sandro Cleuzo at 9:28 AM 11 comments:
Friday, April 1, 2011
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Just weeks after Chris Cornell's family released a self-titled, retrospective box set commemorating the late rock star's prolific career, writer Corbin Reiff divulged some more exciting news. On Monday (December 3), the LIGHTERS IN THE SKY author announced that he's working on an extensive biography about the Soundgarden, Audioslave and Temple of the Dog frontman.
"I've spent the last year conducting interviews and doing research and can't even begin to describe how excited I am to kick the tires on this," Reiff tweeted after declaring he had a "Huge Personal Announcement."
He then gives a shout out to Mark Yarm, the author of Everyone Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge. Check out the announcement tweets below.
In the following days, Reiff has given us some more insights into the book. "Had a great chat with Dawn Anderson today, the first person to ever review Soundgarden's music," he tweeted. "Here's her write-up of the DEEP SIX compilation in the Seattle paper The Rocket in 1986."
He also interviewed Jack Endino, who produced Soundgarden's debut album.
Though not many details have been shared about the book so far, we do know that it will be called TOTAL F@&KING GODHEAD: The Biography Of Chris Cornell and is slated for a 2020 release.
Photo: Getty Images


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Difference between revisions of "Optimizing the practice schedule"
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=== Dependent variables ===
=== Dependent variables ===
Long-term performance -- These measures are usually taken in the tutor after at least one day of retention (longer intervals occur in the most recent studies).
Long-term performance -- These measures are usually taken in the tutor after at least one day of retention (longer intervals occur in the most recent studies).
Revision as of 12:55, 19 March 2007
Optimizing the practice schedule project
This project plan extends dissertation work of Pavlik. In this initial work, a model-based algorithm was described to maximize the rate of learning for simple facts using flashcard like practice by determining the best schedule of presentation for a set of facts. The goal of this project plan is to develop this initial work to allow this tutor with optimized scheduling to handle more complex information and different types of learning in more natural settings (like LearnLabs). Specifically, this project plan describes extensions to the theory in two main areas.
- 1. Specification of a theory of refined encoding
- a. Generalization practice (multimodal and bidirectional training)
- b. Discrimination practice (detailed error remediation)
- 2. Specification of a theory of co-training
- a. Effect of declarative memory chunk sequence during learning
- b. Effect of declarative memory chunks on production rule learning
These theoretical directions are intended to enhance the optimization tutor by greatly extending its capabilities.
A secondary goal of the project is to link the optimization algorithm used in this project with the larger CTAT project. In this linkage the optimization algorithm would be integrated onto the current CTAT system as a curriculum management system that could select or generate problems according to the algorithm, but using CTAT interfaces. This integration will make it easier for people to use the optimal learning system and therefore increase its impact and usefulness.
Research question
How can the optimal sequence of learning be computed?
Background and significance
Since the early 60's researchers in learning theory have been describing models of practice which attempt to capture the effect of practice on performance at a later time. These models are applicable to describing many types of learning situations, but are easier to apply where information to be learned can be broken up into small chunks that can be learned independently. For instance, Atkinson (1972) applied a Markov model of learning to schedule drill of German vocabulary.
More recently there has been a renewed emphasis on repeated practice. For instance, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics new report WSJ article emphasizes the importance of this type of learning for simple math skills.
More information and demonstrations of tutors in this project can be found at Lab Website
Dependent variables
Long-term performance -- These measures are usually taken in the tutor after at least one day of retention (longer intervals occur in the most recent studies).
Transfer -- Many of the studies in this project will look at how learning in the tutor transfers to situations where that knowledge can be applied in a different configuration.
Accelerated future learning -- Some studies in this project will investigate the effect of tutor practice on the learning of items that depend upon the tutor practice.
Independent variables
Alternative structures of instructional schedule for knowledge component training based on the predictions of an ACT-R based cognitive model. Further independent variables include how the material is presented for each learning event and the assumptions of the model used to presents schedule the learning. The assumptions of the model include alternative analyses of task demands, the structure of relevant knowledge components, and learner background.
Robust learning occurs more quickly when practice is scheduled efficiently. In this case efficiently means according to a complex model of the gain and cost of possible scheduling decisions.
The algorithm for scheduling practice uses a mathematical model of learning to predict when new practice should occur for recall to be optimal later. This model accounts for:
When prior practice occurred
- How many prior practices occurred
- Spacing between prior practice was
- Whether prior practice occurred as testing or passive study
- Duration of prior practices
- An individuals history of success or failure with tests
- What type of practice occurs (phonological, orthographic, English to Foreign or Foreign to English)
Optimal schedules are mainly controlled by the benefit of wide spacing, which results in better long-term learning and the benefit of short spacing, which results faster learning.
- Understanding paired associate transfer effects based on shared stimulus components (Pavlik, MacWhinney, Bolster, Koedinger)
- Applying optimal scheduling of practice in the Chinese Learnlab (Pavlik, MacWhinney, Sue-mei Wu, Koedinger)
- Understanding the proactive encoding inhibition effect, proactive retrieval inhibition effect and the retroactive destructive interference effect of errors during practice (Pavlik)
- French gender cues (Presson-MacWhinney)
- Providing optimal support for robust learning of syntactic constructions in ESL (Levin, Frishkoff, De Jong, Pavlik)
Annotated bibliography
Atkinson, R. (1972) Optimizing the learning of a second language vocabulary. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 96, 124- 129.
Pavlik Jr., P. I. (2006). Transfer effects in Chinese vocabulary learning. In R. Sun (Ed.), Proceedings of the Twenty-Eighth Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society (pp. 2579). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Pavlik Jr., P. I. (in press-a). Timing is an order: Modeling order effects in the learning of information. In F. E., Ritter, J. Nerb, E. Lehtinen & T. O'Shea (Eds.), In order to learn: How order effects in machine learning illuminate human learning. New York: Oxford University Press.
Pavlik Jr., P. I. (in press-b). Understanding and applying the dynamics of test practice and study practice. Instructional Science.
Pavlik Jr., P. I., & Anderson, J. R. (2005). Practice and Forgetting Effects on Vocabulary Memory: An Activation-Based Model of the Spacing Effect. Cognitive Science, 29, 559-586 (Article).
Pavlik Jr., P. I., & Anderson, J. R. (2004,November). Optimizing Paired-Associate Learning. Poster presented at the 45th Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society, Minneapolis, MN.