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Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) - guide08 December 2010
by eub2 -- last modified 08 December 2010
As part of its work in creating a more transparent and stable financial system, the European Commission has launched a consultation on the review of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). In force since November 2007, MiFID provides a comprehensive framework for investment firms offering services in relation to financial instruments, as well as rules to protect investors. It allows trading venues and investment firms to operate freely across the EU. It has increased competition and integration in EU financial markets, and led to significant improvements in investor protection. However, rapid technological advances, the complexity and changing make-up of financial markets and the lessons of the financial crisis call for an extensive review targeted at addressing all of the areas where shortcomings have been revealed or improvements are needed. The purpose of this consultation is to gather input from all stakeholders in order to inform the legislative proposals due in the spring of 2011. The deadline for replies is 2 February 2011.
1. What is MiFID?
MiFID is the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive – or Directive 2004/39/EC1. It replaces the Investment Services Directive (ISD) which was adopted in 1993. It was agreed unanimously by the Member States and by a strong Parliamentary majority, and is a cornerstone of the EU's regulation of financial markets. It seeks to improve the competitiveness of EU financial markets by creating a genuine single market for investment services and activities, and to ensure a high degree of harmonised protection for investors in financial instruments, such as shares, bonds, derivatives and various structured products. Greater competition across Europe in the provision of services to investors and between trading venues is intended to contribute to deeper, more integrated and liquid financial markets. It also has the potential of driving down costs for issuers, delivering better and cheaper services for investors, and contributing to economic growth and job creation in Europe.
2. Why is MiFID being reviewed only three years after entry into force?
In keeping with its intended objective, MiFID has contributed to a more competitive and integrated EU financial market. However, recent events and market developments have demonstrated weaknesses in some of the underlying principles of MiFID, as well as highlighted areas needing reinforcement or revision. Such measures are necessary in order to bolster investor confidence and achieve all of MiFID's original objectives. Ensuring a more robust framework of regulation will also serve to address the more complex market reality we are now faced with, a reality which is characterised by increasing diversity in financial instruments and methods of trading. Similar discussions are taking place elsewhere in the world.
3. Did MiFID contribute to the crisis?
The financial crisis was caused by multiple factors. The original objectives of MiFID were to improve the resilience of EU financial markets through free competition and high levels of market transparency and investor protection. To some extent these have been achieved. However, the full effects of MiFID are yet to play out. While it is true that the Directive has not entirely delivered on its objectives, it is mistaken to assign all developments, such as the growth of trading in newer trading functionalities (for example high frequency trading) and dark environments (for example all dark pools – see question 6) to MiFID. These have more to do with technological developments.
4. What are the main objectives of the review?
Revising MiFID is an essential part of ongoing structural reforms in the aftermath of the financial crisis. These are aimed at establishing a safer, sounder, more transparent, and more responsible financial system that works for the economy and society as a whole. It has four main objectives.
It seeks to address rapid changes in both market structure and technology that could affect the smooth and efficient functioning of EU financial markets. The emergence of new organised trading facilities within banks and technological innovations, such as automated trading – including high-frequency trading – need to be suitably accounted for in the regulatory framework. Accounting for these requires assessing the risks they may pose for the orderly and efficient functioning of markets, and ensuring a level playing field is maintained between all trading venues and investment firms.
Second, significant extensions to MiFID are required to meet G202 consensus targets of tackling under-regulated and opaque aspects of the financial system. Extensions will seek to improve the organisation, transparency and oversight of these market segments, especially in those instruments traded mostly over the counter (OTC). Amendments to MiFID in these areas would be complementary to the new framework on the infrastructures for derivatives markets included in the legislative proposal on OTC derivatives, central counterparties and trade repositories.
Third, specific measures are foreseen to improve oversight and transparency in commodity derivatives markets. Recent developments have heightened concerns that commodity derivatives markets are not functioning as they should. In line with G20 principles, MiFID will work to ensure these markets function efficiently, particularly for hedging and price discovery purposes.
Fourth, comprehensive rules in MiFID concerning investor protection require targeted improvements in order to strengthen high standards of investor protection throughout the EU. This concerns, for example, requirements for the provision of investment advice to clients or information and protection needs of investors in relation to more complex instruments.
5. How do proposals suggested for MiFID fit with other recent initiatives such as OTC derivatives and short-selling?
MiFID applies to the provision of investment services or activities by banks and investment firms in relation to financial instruments and to the operation of regulated markets. The targeted measures which are suggested in order to address the challenges listed above will improve the existing framework of regulation, not significantly alter its scope. The objective remains to support the development of a more integrated, competitive and efficient EU market in financial instruments with appropriate rules regarding conditions for authorisation as investment firms, organisational requirements to ensure they are managed appropriately, market transparency and investor protection.
The two proposals adopted on 15 September 2010 on OTC derivatives, central counterparties and trade repositories on the one hand, and on short-selling and credit default swaps on the other, have different objectives (see IP/10/1125 and IP/10/1126 respectively). The first aims to minimise counterparty credit risk and operational risk, while the second works to increase harmonisation and transparency, and mitigate risks associated with short selling and the use of credit default swaps.
6. What are the proposals for enhancing equity market transparency, including the issue of "dark pools"?
A "dark pool" is a trading system where the price and volumes of orders or quotes are not displayed before a transaction is executed on the system (i.e. they are dark in the sense that there is no pre-trade transparency). But after the trade is executed, information about the trade is then displayed. Dark pools are subject to most regulatory requirements except concerning pre-trade transparency.
Dark pools fall under two categories:
1) trading venues such as regulated markets and multilateral trading facilities (MTFs) that use waivers from pre-trade transparency not to display orders or quotes (e.g. for large trades)
2) other types of facilities operated by brokers such as crossing systems internally matching orders that are not subject to pre-trade transparency requirements (see next question).
The consultation proposes a number of measures that are relevant to the two types of dark pools. Regarding the first type, the consultation recognises the validity of waivers, but proposes that there be greater clarity and legal certainty as to how and when waivers apply. It proposes that certain waivers be subject to further clarification and in some cases restrictions, and proposes that ESMA play a greater role in monitoring this area and ensuring the consistent use of waivers.
7. How are developments in trading outside of venues categorised in MiFID being dealt with? How are crossing networks and the trading of standardised OTC derivatives being addressed?
The current MiFID framework captures three different types of trading venues – namely regulated markets, multilateral trading facilities and systematic internalisers – and lists requirements for their authorisation, organisation and level of transparency when equities are traded on theses venues. The reality to the implementation of MiFID, however, saw the arrival of new types of platforms conducting trading on an organised basis which were not covered by the existing MiFID categories, largely due to greater automation and the inherent incentives for various market participants to avoid disclosing their trading intentions. In the MiFID Review, the Commission services propose to address these new types of platforms operating in the market, to adequately regulate all kinds of organised trading and to level the playing field in the EU. More specifically, the Commission services suggest introducing a new MiFID category of an organised trading facility subject to certain core requirements for the operation of a trading venue.
So-called crossing networks (systems operated by investment firms which mainly internally match client orders) would be one of the venues captured under this new category which would be subject to the core requirements and to additional rules specifically calibrated to their business model. This would ensure that the facilities are appropriately regulated while recognising that such facilities may be diverse and different in a number of respects compared to traditional markets. Operation of such facilities will be subject to separate and proportionate new requirements to take into account the specific nature of this activity. For example, operating such a facility would require specific authorisation and operators would have to provide increased transparency about how the facility works. Details concerning conditions of access and the trades executed in the facility would also be required.
Trading of standardised derivatives could also occur on an organised trading facility operating under a slightly different business model, provided requirements on pre-trade transparency are upheld (see question 10).
When their business model accords with that of another venue, for example an MTF or a systematic internaliser, they could no longer operate as an organised trading facility. The proposal also states that if they exceed a certain size they will be required to convert to MTFs. As a result of these and other proposed changes, the proportion of trading taking place OTC should become more transparent and be subject to appropriate regulation.
8. What proposals are being suggested to deal with issues raised by algorithmic and high frequency trading? For example, the potential risk that increased use of automated trading could contribute to a crash such as the one that occurred in the US?
The consultation involves a number of proposals aimed at the potential new risks that increased use of automated and high frequency trading could pose to EU markets. Those risks might be caused by rogue algorithms causing undue impacts on prices, algorithms reacting to market events or from the increased pressure on trading systems trying to cope with large numbers of orders. Other issues are related to ensuring the efficiency of markets.
The proposals try to deal with the potential new risks posed by automated trading while recognising that there is a widespread trend towards greater use of automated trading that can benefit markets and investors.
The main proposals in this area would require:
* all entities involved in high frequency trading to be authorised and supervised under MiFID (currently an exemption in the Directive may allow some participants not to be authorised)
* firms involved in all forms of automated trading to put in place robust risk controls to reduce the possibility of potential system errors or rogue algorithms
* firms who allow other automated traders to use their trading systems to gain access to a market (e.g. sponsored access) to put in place proper risk controls and filters to detect errors or attempts to misuse the facilities
* trading venues to strengthen their risk controls and arrangements to reduce the risk of crashes or breakdowns on their trading systems. For example, by requiring trading venues to have in place appropriate "circuit breakers" to halt or pause trading in the event of disorderly trading movements or errors generated by automated trading, and requiring trading venues to stress test their systems to make sure they are resilient and can deal with increased numbers of automated trades.
To deal with more general market efficiency risks the consultation also proposes that:
* trading venues make sure co-location facilities for market participants are offered to users on a fair and equal basis
* if a high frequency trader provides significant liquidity on a market it must continue to do so on an ongoing basis subject to similar conditions as market makers with obligations to provide quotes and liquidity
* orders could be required to rest on the order book for a minimum period before being cancelled or that the ratio of orders to transactions be capped – to reduce excessive volumes of orders.
Further, in many areas the proposal contemplates that the newly created European Securities Market Authority would be given powers to prescribe technical standards relating to algorithmic and high frequency trading.
9. Is the introduction of a mandatory consolidated tape for trade data being considered?
The Commission services believe that the reporting, publication and consolidation of trade data needs to be addressed due to problems with its formatting, cost, quality and reliability. The Commission therefore submits a number of proposals for consultation designed to improve the situation, among them various measures to ensure data quality and consistency as well as measures to reduce the costs of data. The Commission services also consider how the introduction of a mandatory consolidated tape providing a consistent and reliable record of trades could best be brought about and consults on three different options as to how such a tape could be established and organised. These range from a single provider operating under public mandate to one or several operating under harmonised standards set out in MiFID.
10. What suggestions are made for extending pre- and post-trade transparency requirements beyond shares and why?
Currently MiFID imposes harmonised pre-and post-trade transparency requirements only to shares admitted to trading on regulated markets. The absence of harmonised transparency requirements in non-equity markets (e.g. bonds, structured products, derivatives) has been perceived by many, including EU securities regulators, to lead to lower market efficiency and higher risks than would otherwise be the case. Due to the different structure of markets in non-equity instruments compared with those in equities, it is proposed to tailor the exact transparency regime according to the instrument in question. Post-trade requirements, to be specified in further detail in implementing legislation, are suggested for all bonds and structured finance products with a prospectus as well as all derivatives eligible for central clearing and those submitted to trade repositories regardless of where the trades take place. Pre-trade requirements, likewise to be further detailed, are suggested for the same instruments both when traded on organised venues as well as when offered by investment firms in over-the-counter trading, but with slight differences reflecting the current market structure.
11. What steps are being considered for moving trading in standardised OTC derivatives onto organised venues in line with G20 commitments?
The G20 commitment states that "all standardised OTC derivatives contracts should be traded on exchanges or electronic trading platforms, where appropriate, and cleared through central counterparties by end 2012".
In order to appropriately meet this commitment in Europe, it is suggested that all trading of derivatives which are eligible for clearing and sufficiently liquid move to either regulated markets, Multilateral Trading Facilities, which are already existing in the current MiFID framework, or to a new specific sub-regime of organised trading facilities to be defined in the revised text.
Once the main features of this new sub-regime are defined, the proposal is that ESMA could assess and decide when a derivative which is eligible for clearing is sufficiently liquid to be traded exclusively on the various organised venues i.e. regulated markets, MTFs or organised trading facilities. Appropriate criteria for such assessment will need to be taken into consideration by ESMA.
This approach should be pragmatic and progressive enough to factor in the trading specificities of each derivative while meeting the commitment of the G20.
12. What proposals are being considered for trading in commodity derivatives and why?
In light of recent developments and concerns expressed over the functioning of commodity derivatives markets, there is a clear need to reinforce the regulation of commodity derivatives markets beyond the current policy initiatives for other derivatives markets in line with G20 commitments3. Efficient and well functioning physical and derivatives commodity markets are crucial for the EU economy.
The review of MiFID will be a key pillar of a comprehensive and ambitious regulatory overhaul on improving commodity market transparency and oversight.
First, the Commission services propose to increase transparency of trading activity on all organised trading venues by introducing a position reporting obligation by categories of traders. This harmonised and more disaggregated information will help regulators and market participants to better assess the role of speculation in these markets.
Second the Commission services propose to give harmonised and comprehensive powers to financial regulators to monitor and intervene at any stage in trading activity in all commodity derivatives, including in the shape of position limits if there are concerns in terms of market integrity or orderly functioning of markets.
Finally, commodity firms may be exempt from MiFID when they deal on own account in financial instruments or provide investment services in commodity derivatives on an ancillary basis as part of their main business and when they are not subsidiaries of financial groups. These exemptions will be reviewed in the interests of investor protection and greater transparency taking into account the specificities and the risks posed by these players.
13. What purpose does transaction reporting serve and what measures are being proposed?
Investment firms have to report to competent authorities all their trades in all financial instruments that are admitted to trading on a regulated market. This obligation applies regardless of where the trade takes place. This system of transaction reporting enables supervisors to monitor the activities of investment firms, which helps them to ensure compliance with MiFID, and to monitor for abuses under the Market Abuse Directive (MAD). Commission services propose the following changes.
First, because market supervision is the main reason for transaction reporting, the requirements under MiFID need to mirror the scope of the MAD. This is not fully the case at the moment and the ongoing review of the MAD makes further changes necessary. Commission services propose to extend the scope of transaction reporting to all financial instruments that are admitted to trading only on other organised venues, to all financial instruments that are not themselves admitted to trading but that are correlated with financial instruments that are, and to all financial instruments that can be used to influence commodity prices.
Second, reporting requirements today diverge between Member States, which adds costs for firms and limits the use of trade reports for competent authorities. Commission services propose to clarify which transactions should be reported, to harmonise the information that identifies who is trading and for whom a trade is being executed, and to empower ESMA to propose technical standards on a common European transaction reporting format and content.
Finally, for cost and efficiency purposes, double reporting of trades under MiFID and the recently proposed reporting requirements to trade repositories should be avoided. The Commission proposes that a trade already reported to a repository would not need to be reported again under MiFID, provided all the necessary information is thereby available to competent authorities.
14. How do proposals in MiFID interact with those in the consultation on packaged retail investment products (PRIPs) published on 26 November?
PRIPs are common products in the retail investment market, with broadly comparable functions for investors. Although there is no rigid definition of PRIPs, they take a variety of legal forms. While offering benefits for investors, PRIPs are often complicated and opaque. The objective of the Commission is to better address the problems identified in the PRIPs market by creating a robust and coherent framework in two key areas:
1) the rules on the form and content of disclosures about the product, and
2) the rules governing the sales process for PRIPs, such as the conduct of business and the conflicts of interest requirements for intermediaries distributing the products.
This is achieved by adopting a horizontal approach in the two areas, which builds on the most effective and efficient elements of existing Community legislation. In the case of selling practices, the MiFID has been identified as the clear benchmark as it contains comprehensive rules covering these aspects.
The consultation on PRIPs published on 26 November does not deal with selling practices but only with the scope of the PRIPs initiative (that is, defining the covered products) and the content of a possible regime for product disclosure. It also explains the broad legislative approach to be followed.
Concerning the selling practices, the scope of MiFID will be expanded to cover those PRIPs which are not insurance products and that might currently not be covered (e.g. structured bank deposits) and to ensure that MiFID principles concerning selling practices apply to all sales of PRIPs under MiFID, even in the case of entities which are currently exempted under MiFID. In addition, certain MiFID rules may be strengthened (see question 14), also as a result of the work on PRIPs. The consultation document concerning the MiFID review covers these aspects.
As explained in the consultation document on PRIPs published on 26 November, PRIPs which are insurance products will be covered under the Insurance Mediation Directive (IMD). In the context of the review of the IMD, the Commission will propose rules on sales of insurance PRIPs that are consistent with those in MiFID.
15. What other suggestions are made to reinforce investor protection?
MiFID includes a number of measures aimed at protecting investors in the context of the provision of investment services. Those rules take into account the type of services (for instance, investment advice or execution of orders) and the classification of clients, with higher protection granted to retail clients. The MiFID rules include both conduct of business requirements (for instance, collecting sufficient information to ensure that the products provided are suitable or appropriate for the client) and organisational requirements (for instance, requirements to identify and manage any conflicts of interest).
However, modifications and improvements are clearly needed to strengthen the framework for the provision of services. They should cover the following areas:
1) The scope of the directive should be broadened or clarified in order to cover financial products, services and entities which are currently not covered (for instance, structured deposits as mentioned above).
2) Conduct of business requirements should be modified in order to grant additional protection to investors. The rules for investment advice can be improved both when advice is provided and in the long term (specific conditions should apply to the provision of independent advice and investors should expect longer term assistance from firms). The conditions for services where investors receive fewer protections from firms should be narrowed. Further, information to different categories of clients should be enhanced, particularly when complex products are involved. Firms should be liable towards clients when they violate rules aimed at protecting them.
3) Organisational requirements should be strengthened in relation to the provision of services to investors. For instance, the involvement of senior management in the design of distribution policies and the adoption of adequate internal controls should receive a specific focus in legislation.
The European Securities and Market Authority (ESMA) should help ensure an equal and rigorous application of investor protection requirements across Europe.
16. How is the treatment of firms and market operators from outside the EU being considered?
Currently the access of third country firms to the EU markets is not harmonised under the MiFID. Each Member State can introduce its own third country regime, subject to the general principles of the TFEU and provided that national provisions do not result in treatment more favourable than that given to EU firms. In order to overcome the existing fragmentation and to ensure a level playing field in the EU for third country players, the consultation paper suggests the introduction of a harmonised third country equivalence regime in MiFID for the access of third country investment firms and market operators to the EU, at a first stage only for non-retail investors.
17. How are you taking into consideration the need to improve SME access to capital markets?
Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) across Europe significantly contribute to economic growth, employment, innovation and social integration. Two main sources of funding for such companies are private financing by banks or other institutions or raising finance through capital markets (e.g. the issue of shares). SME markets aim at providing smaller, growing companies with a platform to raise capital both through initial offerings and ongoing fund raisings. However, not all these markets have been successful. In order to make SME markets more attractive to small companies and to investors, the consultation paper suggests the development of a separate proportionate regime specifically designed for SME markets. This specialised regime could promote the creation of a network of markets specialised in SMEs.
18. Are you considering the encouragement of ethical and social investments?
Socially responsible investment should be encouraged. One way to do it is by providing potential investors with all the necessary information to help them to invest in sectors such as social housing, social transport, green and ethical consumption, green- and clean-tech, recycling, regeneration, public health, education, etc. In order to raise awareness on ethical and social investments and to allow investors make informed decisions on which products to invest, the consultation paper suggests requiring investment firms to disclose any relevant information concerning ethical or socially oriented investment criteria when providing information about financial instruments.
19. What are the suggestions for the future role of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) in the context of MiFID?
The European Securities and Markets Authority should be empowered to propose in clearly defined cases draft technical standards which will lead to more convergence in the application of MiFID and increase legal certainty for firms and investors. In addition, ESMA will have a role in settling possible disagreements between national competent authorities, for instance when authorities are cooperating in cross border cases. ESMA will also be involved in tasks related to consumer protection. It may for instance analyse potential risks resulting from new financial products or activities and adopt guidelines with a view to promote the safety and soundness of markets and convergence of regulatory practice.
20. When will the Commission adopt formal proposals amending MiFID?
A Commission proposal for amending the Level 1 MiFID directive is scheduled for adoption in mid-May 2011.
Further information
1 : The MiFID regulatory framework consists of a framework Directive (Directive 2004/39/EC), an Implementing Directive (Directive 2006/73/EC) and an Implementing Regulation (Regulation No 1287/2006)
2 : See Leaders' statement of Pittsburgh Summit 24-25 September 2009, http://www.pittsburghsummit.gov/mediacenter/129639.htm
3 : There is agreement within the G20 in favour of improving "the regulation, functioning, and transparency of financial and commodity markets to address excessive commodity price volatility".
Source: European Commission


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Prince Charles Revealed His Biggest Fear For Meghan Markle's Baby
By Emily Lee
November 7, 2018
Prince Charles may be the heir to the British throne, but he's a grandfather at the end of the day, too. Like most grandparents, he worries about his grandkids. The 70-year-old royal already has three to look after, 5-year-old Prince George, 3-year-old Princess Charlotte, and baby Prince Louis, and is preparing to welcome a fourth the growing royal brood. Following the happy news that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are expecting their first child, though, Prince Charles has revealed he has a pretty big fear about his grandkids' future.
During his recent visit to Ghana, Charles admitted he worries about how the next generation will be affected by pollution. "I am about to have another grandchild actually. I suspect quite a few of you may too have grandchildren or will do soon," he said, according to the Telegraph. "It does seem to me insanity if we are going to bequeath this completely polluted, damaged and destroyed world to them."
"All grandchildren deserve a better future," Charles continued. "A good start has been made. The matter of plastic debris in the environment, in particular the ocean, is now on the agenda," he said. "We do, however, need to keep it there as the amount of plastic entering the ocean every year is, unbelievably, set to get worse rather than better. We cannot, indeed must not, allow this situation to continue."
Despite his fears, though, Charles remains optimistic that we can continue to improve the situation. "A solution is achievable and simply has to be done for all our sakes – and, above all, for the long-term viability of all those species in the sea which are already suffering unbearably because of our actions."
Photo: Getty

subset: commoncrawl


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OTTAWA — An auditor general's report to be released this fall on the federal government's vaunted national shipbuilding plan is expected to blow last year's F-35 stealth fighter controversy out of the water.
The Conservative government has held up the $35-billion plan as a glowing success story that will re-energize Canada's Navy and Coast Guard, while simultaneously creating thousands of jobs on both coasts and transforming Canada into a world-class shipbuilding nation.
Auditor General Michael Ferguson's report will put that narrative to the test. It will raise concerns about the way the overall budget was set, and argue the money is not nearly enough to do what the government has promised.
That will again put the Conservative government's reputation for being strong fiscal managers and champions of Canada's military under the gun — though this time with thousands of jobs in Vancouver and Halifax on the line.
Here are some other issues that will emerge on defence and foreign affairs when Parliament resumes on Oct. 16:
Not Quite Planes, Trains and Automobiles
Eyes may glaze over at the words "military procurement," but new tanks, fighter jets and naval ships cost more than just about anything else at any level of government. How much? The Conservative government said in 2008 that it plans to spend $490 billion on defence over the next 20 years.
It's not just the money, though. Having the right equipment at the right time is also essential to protecting the country, successfully carrying out military missions, and keeping Canada's sailors, soldiers and air personnel alive when things get serious.
Yet the government is still struggling with how to get from point A to point B when it comes to buying military equipment.
The Tories were able to buy some time with the F-35 stealth fighter by sending the issue back to senior bureaucrats for further review, but crunch time is approaching. Officials have almost finished their review, and cabinet will be asked to make a decision this winter on what to do next. It may wait to pull the trigger, but every passing day brings greater pressure from allies, increasing the chance the project will become an issue in the next election.
That's not all. New search-and-rescue aircraft are desperately needed, as are ship-borne helicopters to replace the military's ancient Sea Kings. Meanwhile, the army has said it now doesn't want new tanks that are expected to cost $2 billion; it would rather spend the money on training and other areas that have been hit hard by budget cuts.
The government will have to decide whether to build new resupply ships or the Coast Guard's new icebreaker first, because of a scheduling error.
The government is expected to announce a new military procurement system in the throne speech.
Complicating matters is a new Conservative government plan to make sure the Canadian defence sector gets maximum benefit from the billions of taxpayer dollars it plans to invest into the military over the next 15 years.
The hope is that Canada's arms industry can become a global arms dealer, which would create new jobs and bolster the country's flagging manufacturing sector and trade exports. There are fears the new policy will build in a premium that was never accounted for when many of the aforementioned projects had their budgets set.
Wielding the Knife
Then-Canadian Army commander Peter Devlin warned last year that the army was facing a 22-per-cent cut to its training, maintenance and infrastructure budget. Translation? The army was in danger of being hollowed out.
Devlin is gone, as are most of the other senior bureaucrats and commanding officers who were in charge at National Defence over the past few years when the department's budget was increasing from a low of $15.6 billion in 2006 to a high of $21 billion in 2011. There's even a new minister, which makes the change at the top complete.
This new leadership crop has one mission: rein in defence spending. The actual cut is about $2.5 billion, or 12.4 per cent of the core budget.
Yet the Conservative government has also required that the military's strength remain at 68,000 regular force personnel. It has also said it is moving ahead on new equipment purchases.
As a result, the army and all other parts of the military are being forced to cut deeply into training, maintenance and infrastructure. Devlin isn't the only one who has raised concerns this will leave the Canadian Forces as little more than a paper tiger.
In Flanders Fields…
The Conservative government spent $30 million celebrating the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 last year. Good investment or a waste of money? Well, the government was just getting started.
Next year marks the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, and the 75th anniversary of the Second World War. The Conservatives have already said they are planning to go big with both.
The question will be how much money they spend at a time when they are trying to cut the federal deficit, and how they will go about trying to ride associated feelings of national pride and nostalgia for political benefit going into the next federal election.
Caring for Our Veterans
While the Conservative government will be celebrating the exploits of Canada's armed forces nearly a century ago, its actual treatment of veterans has come under fire.
Canada's veterans' ombudsman said this month the so-called New Veterans Charter is in danger of leaving the country's most severely wounded and disabled soldiers without financial support, which echoes concerns raised by the Royal Canadian Legion and others.
The government says it will review the charter, but vets and veterans' advocates say there has been enough review and it is time to correct the problems.
There is also growing anger over the government's decision to close nine Veterans Affairs offices across the country as part of a cost-cutting exercise.
The government says it will be able to provide the same level of service to vets online and by phone, but that has not mollified those who have accused it of insulting their sacrifice by making it more difficult to access benefits.
Where to Next, Chief?
Five months from now, Canada will mark the end of an era as the last of its soldiers in Afghanistan steps aboard a military plane and flies home.
It will be a defining moment not simply because it will close the doors on Canada's most significant military mission since the Korean War, but also because for the first time in more than a decade, the Canadian military won't know where it's going.
The Conservative government came to power touting the benefits of a strong military, and both Afghanistan and Libya showed it wasn't afraid to use it.
But the 2015 election, the federal deficit and war fatigue both in Canada and among allies have combined to make the Tories much less bullish.
After Afghanistan, Canada will still have a naval frigate manned by 250 sailors patrolling for terrorists in the Arabian Sea, and it will still have about 150 troops deployed in small groups on peacekeeping or training missions throughout Africa and Latin America.
Those will continue, but that will remain the extent of Canadian military operations for the foreseeable future.
The Missions — where Canada's military is deployed:
Canada currently has about 1,500 soldiers, sailors and air personnel deployed on 14 operations around the world. (The operation name starts with the same letter as the country or region in which the mission is based.) Here is a rundown:
Operation: Attention
Operation: Hamlet
Operation: Crocodile
Operation: Saturn
Operation: Soprano
Operation: Artemis
Operation: Jade
Operation: Gladius
Operation: Calumet
Operation: Proteus
Operation: Foundation
Operation: Snowgoose
Operation: Kobold
Operation: Caribbe
The Toys — Canada's military procurement projects:
Cutting through the military jargon is bad enough, but understanding what is actually happening with military procurement is another issue altogether. Here's a rundown on the projects giving the government the most trouble:
Maritime Helicopters
Description: Ship-borne helicopter. Used to provide surveillance capabilities to the Navy's frigates, destroyers and other vessels. Can also conduct search and rescue and transport operations.
Background: Military currently using Sea King helicopters acquired in the 1960s. Life expectancy has already been surpassed. Mulroney government ordered new helicopters in 1992, but newly elected Chretien government cancelled contract in 1993, at a cost of $478 million.
Status: Martin government ordered 28 Cyclone helicopters from U.S.-based Sikorsky in 2005 for $5 billion. Delivery date was 2009, but none have been delivered.
Recent Developments: Sikorsky has loaned several "interim" Cyclones for use in the Atlantic, but National Defence says they do not meet full operational requirements. Sikorsky has accumulated fines of nearly $90 million for failure to deliver, but Ottawa has refused to collect. Government considering next steps.
Next Generation Strike Fighter
Description: Jet fighter. Capable of both air-to-air and air-to-ground attacks. "Next generation" refers to requirement for state-of-the-art technology. Essential for control of Canadian airspace.
Background: Military currently using CF-18 fighters acquired in late 1970s and early 1980s. Life expectancy will be exceeded in 2020. Canada joined the U.S. and other allies in helping develop the F-35 stealth fighter in 1997.
Status: Conservative government committed to purchasing 65 F-35s in 2008. Stated cost was $14.7 billion over 20 years. F-35 development since plagued by delays, cost-overruns and technical problems. A report last year by the federal auditor general raised concerns about Defence Department project management. Defence Department report in December pegged full costs for purchase, maintenance and operations at $45 billion through 2052.
Recent Developments: Government ordered senior federal bureaucrats last December to re-assess options for replacing CF-18s. Information was collected through the spring and summer, and is now being analyzed. Cabinet expected to receive information this winter to decide next steps.
Close-Combat Vehicles (CCV)
Description: Heavily armed and armoured vehicle. Similar to a tank, but also capable of carrying troops into combat like the army's light-armoured vehicles (LAVs).
Background: Born out of a need to offer Canadian soldiers better protection from road-side bombs and similar threats in Afghanistan than the military's LAVs could provide.
Status: Plan to purchase 108 CCVs for $2 billion launched in July 2009. First attempt in 2011 failed after all contenders failed to meet requirements. Second attempt launched in September 2012, with evaluations reportedly complete and contract ready to be awarded.
Recent Developments: Army says the end of Afghan mission and LAV upgrade has rendered CCVs redundant. Wants to re-direct $2 billion set aside for CCVs to offset 22 per cent budget cut to training and maintenance. Government has reportedly refused. Fate of project remains up in the air.
Fixed-Wing SAR
Description: Military jargon for search-and-rescue airplane. (Airplanes are referred to as fixed-wing. Helicopters are referred to as rotary-wing.) Essential for search-and-rescue response.
Background: Military currently using Buffalo and Hercules aircraft acquired in the 1960s. Life expectancy has already been surpassed. Maintenance costs are extremely high. Efforts to purchase new search-and-rescue aircraft launched in 2003. Martin government set aside $1.3 billion to purchase 15 planes, with delivery expected to start in 2006. National Defence identifies Italian-made C-27J Spartan as only aircraft able to meet established requirements. DND accused of bid-rigging. Harper government puts project on hold in summer 2006. National Research Council told to review military's requirements in 2010. Auditor general warns of need to replace Buffalo and Hercules in spring 2013 report.
Status: Harper government signed off on project re-launch in January 2012. Project now expected to cost $3 billion. Process still in early phase. First deliveries not expected until at least 2017.
Recent Developments: Industry asked to start sending in proposals at the end of August 2013.
Joint Support Ships (JSS)
Description: Naval resupply vessels. Capabilities include refuelling other ships, transporting equipment and supplies, and providing support to local military operations, including combat and humanitarian missions. Essential for autonomous naval operations.
Background: Military currently has two resupply ships, the auxiliary oiler replenishment ships HMCS Protecteur and HMCS Preserver. Launched in the 1960s, both have exceeded their life expectancies. Maintenance costs are extremely high. Some ports have banned them due to environmental concerns.
Status: Plan to acquire new resupply ships announced in 2004. Initial plan was for three ships, with contract awarded in 2008 and first ship delivered in 2012. Plan scrapped in 2009 after industry reports $2.1-billion budget is insufficient. Project rolled into government's $35-billion National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy in 2010. Budget set at $2.6 billion, with plan to acquire two JSS and an option for a third.
Recent Developments: Parliamentary budget officer report in March warned budget is insufficient for project. Government dismisses report, chooses German company's design for JSS. Schedule conflict at Vancouver Shipyard means government must choose whether JSS or Coast Guard's polar icebreaker will be built first. Decision expected this fall.
Polar-Class Icebreaker
Description: Canadian Coast Guard extra-heavy icebreaker. Essential for Arctic operations.
Background: Coast Guard's flagship heavy icebreaker, CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent, was launched in 1966 and is due to retire in 2017.
Status: Conservative government promised three icebreakers in 2006 federal election campaign. Plan later changed to one polar-class icebreaker and a fleet of smaller armed Arctic patrol ships. Budget 2008 sets icebreaker budget at $720 million. Government christens icebreaker the CCGS John G. Diefenbaker later that year.
Recent Developments: Schedule conflict at Vancouver Shipyard means government must choose whether navy's Joint Support Ship or Coast Guard's polar icebreaker will be built first. Decision expected this fall.


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great work
|Prints / Wins
|Votes Received
|Votes Given
|Shirts Owned
128 Followers
Following 40
Great one share
Hey Daniel
hi daneil
coool work
coool work
Thank you so much! You're awesome! Customer service got back to me and they said if they have enough feedback and people clicking the reprint button, they may just do it. I've sent it on to all of his friends and they all want one. I think it just may work.
@hirschikiss Hi! I'm sorry to hear about your brother. The thing is, DBH owns the right to the design and they need people to ask for a reprint. I can't promise anything but if you contact some of the guys in Customer Service and ask if they have a spare or something like that. I'll ask them anyway and I'll let you know, k? Cheers!
Hi Daniel, I'm not sure if you will see this, but I'm looking for this shirt that you designed, the treegun: http://www.designbyhumans.com/shop/t-shirt/women/guntree-shirt/8468/?&cuid=cfed31e872e850862d79de546151e105&SSAID=389818 My brother used to wear this shirt everyday. He died last week, and we couldn't salvage the shirt very well. Is there any way you could reprint this shirt again? We would buy a bunch. Plus it's a rad shirt.
@luisveloz Hola, lo siento solamente entendí que te gusta mi trabajp. Cual es el problema con Vectorisadas?
Hello D4N13L you have supported my work greatly before, thank you for all that support, I am pleased to introduce my new submission here in DBH, I am very excited and happy, it's my first design with zombies, I hope that you like it as much as for me it has been fun and exciting to make.
This is the url to my sub "WALKING WOUNDED": http://www.designbyhumans.com/vote/detail/223933
hey Daniel…
i got a Badass Owl on my next design
check it out : http://www.designbyhumans.com/vote/detail/219755
Please comment or vote on my designs!
please vote my design bro :)
hello mate
please check out and vote for my first artwork here at DBH
thanks a lot :)
Hello , I invite you to critique my design
@eddierosario , hey thanks for liking the work so much :) You see, this tee has already been sold to DBH, sorry! But, you can go thru my portfolio (link on my info) and maybe you can find something else you like.
Thank you again, rock on!
sorry, forgot to give you my email address so you can respond….....email@example.com
The GUNTREE artwork is super cool. How much for a high resolution file for the artwork?


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Lindenwood University's athletic training program scored a major victory this week with the achievement of national accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs.
Randy Biggerstaff, head athletic trainer and athletic training program director, said news of the five-year accreditation comes after years of hard work to develop athletic training into an intensive academic program.
"It is a major accomplishment," he said. "The big winners are our students because they are assured a certain quality and standard of education when they come here to study athletic training. National accreditation like this is very prestigious. We are the only college in all of St. Louis to get this honor."
Biggerstaff and his staff's accomplishment will be recognized at halftime of Lindenwood's 1:30 p.m. football game against Northwestern College. Lindenwood officials were notified of the accreditation earlier in the week.
Lindenwood's quest for accreditation began in 1997, two years after the national certification board announced that as of 2004 only those who graduated from an accredited program would be eligible to take exams to become certified athletic trainers. Previously, students who accumulated 1,500 hours of internship and minimal coursework were eligible.
"Our athletic training program has been growing and building a tremendous reputation," said Biggerstaff. "We have a premier program and we wanted it to stay that way."
Today, about 100 students are majoring in athletic training at Lindenwood, with many graduates out working in the field with professional teams, colleges and high schools across the country. Devoted to the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of sports injuries, athletic trainers work closely with physicians to give athletes the best possible medical care.
Recently, the university formed a student organization for prospective athletic trainers, LUSATO, the Lindenwood Student Athletic Training Organization. LUSATO is run by assistant athletic trainer Delaine Mizell.
For more information on Lindenwood's athletic training program, contact Biggerstaff at 636-949-4683 or Mizell at 636-949-4684.


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Choosing Your Tattoo Parlor
When you look for the best parlor you should always watch for those who have the best history with keeping their equipment clean. Clean equipment and a clean studio is without a doubt the most important consideration when dealing with tattoos. If the artist isn't licensed or not a professional there will be little to no guarantee that the equipment is clean. Health is a big concern with tattoos for most people, and for good reason. If you are looking to get a tattoo you should always make sure that the artists are licensed, the parlor is clean – and the equipment is sanitized and cleaned after each and every tattoo.
The best tattoo parlors will welcome you in with open arms, anticipating your business. When you meet the tattoo artist, he should be friendly and not intimidate you at all, nor should he at any time attempt to push a design on you. Under no circumstances should the artist try and talk you into getting a more expensive tattoo design if all you want is something small and simple.
Pushy sales and unfriendly salesmen are common pitfalls with most businesses. Tattoo parlors should always be friendly and open to what you want. Although the more experienced tattoo artists will offer their opinions, they shouldn't try to push you around. If a tattoo artist thinks there will be a problem with your design or if he thinks he can do anything to improve it, he will more than likely let you know. If he is able to save you some money, the higher quality tattoo artists won't think twice about doing so.
Before you decide on a tattoo parlor to do your tattoo, you should always compare what's available to you and weigh out your options. The higher quality tattoo parlors will cost quite a bit of money, more than the other parlors. This is to be expected, as the higher quality studios cost more to pay their artists and keep their parlor nice and clean. These parlors are among the best in the world, with sparkling floors and a clean interior. The tattoo artists here ensure that their rooms are clean, with most wiping down their equipment and materials every chance they get.
The ideal way to find tattoo parlors in your area or close by is to use the Internet and search or just open a local phone book. If you look for the keyword tattoos, you'll find several that are relatively close to you. Once you have found some addresses, simply drive out there and take a look around. If you like what you see, you can always come back. You shouldn't rush your decision – but instead look at what each tattoo parlor has to offer you.


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February 27th, 2012
I hope you're a morning person, because lots of people will see this
A necessary evil…organized chaos…both terms fit when it comes to Photo Day.
Each year, player headshots are used all over the country. You'll see them on all your favorite sports websites, in magazines, in media guides, on TV, on scoresheets, in video games and on scoreboards. Unfortunately, there is only one time when all players who can potentially make a Big League team are in the same place at the same time. That time is at Spring Training before a workout.
Hence the creation of the dreaded Photo Day: With workouts starting early each morning, all of the 60 players in Big League camp along with all coaches, bullpen catchers, trainers and clubhouse staff need to get their headshots taken prior to 9:00 AM.
Today, the players had to hit nine photography stations to complete their Photo Day. The stations included (in order): Padres headshot, MLB, Getty headshot, Getty full-body photo, AP, UT San Diego, Padres portrait photographer, Topps and green screen video for the scoreboard.
Here's a look at some of the sights from this morning's Photo Day:


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Genre: - Adventure / Family / Fantasy
Source: - DVD PAL -DVD5 R5-
Format: - XviD
Group: - NOiR
Rating: - 4.7/10 @ 1,147 votes
Name: - Aliens in the Attic
IMDB: - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0775552/
Resolution: - 640 x 352
Video: - 1076 kbps, 25 fps
Audio: - 112 VBR, mp3
Subtitles: - None
Plot: - After the Pearson family arrive at their dream vacation house in Maine, the children discover a friendly alien living in their attic. However, he lives with three other aliens that are attempting to rule the universe. The plot mainly revolves around the children in the Pearson family having to defend their vacation house. Much of the comedy is derived from the aliens being able to occupy the minds of adults, and turn them into "space zombies". The kids, however, are immune. As Ricky has lied about his age, he quickly succumbs to the alien mind control, with predictably funny behaviour and actions. The kids must therefore forget their differences and start working together to defeat the aliens. Tom is anxious to cast off his "geeky" image, so much so he deliberately starts to fail at math, much to his Dad's chagrin. This causes them to clash often. Bethany is besotted with Ricky, who is a no- good womaniser, preying on younger girls. Tom and his cousin Jake could not be more different, but, by the end of the movie, they have both learned something from each other.


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Shallow Side VIP - Clifton, NJ
- Get Tickets
- Details
- Comments
*The Meet and Greet usually occurs before doors open but can be subject to change*A confirmation email will be sent immediately after you purchase with further information*You will be contacted 24 hours prior to the show with the specific meet and greet time
***Neither Shallow Side nor National Acts have any affiliation with the venue the band is performing at. The VIP Packages are done specifically through National Acts on behalf of the band. The venue usually has no details of the VIP packages the band is offering. Therefore, any questions regarding your VIP packages should be directed to National Acts HERE. We work with many different artists so please specify the artist and the event date in your email. Any questions regarding set times, other bands on the bill, age restrictions, directions to the venue, etc need to be directed to the venue.***
***From time to time the items in the VIP Packages sell out. Shallow Side reserves the right to change the contents of the VIP Package at any time based on availability. Not receiving certain items in the listed package does not entitle you to a refund or a discount.


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AAMFT Approved Supervisors ensure a learning environment that is supportive and nurturing while providing therapists and trainees access to the latest innovations in the field.
As part of the application process, Marriage and Family Therapists (MFTs) who are either AAMFT Clinical Fellows or AAMFT Pre-Clinical Fellows must complete a 30-credit Fundamentals of Supervision course in order to receive the AAMFT Approved Supervisor designation. This course is comprised of a 15-credit didactic portion, a 15-credit interactive portion, and a personal philosophy of supervision paper.
The personal philosophy of supervision paper is to be completed after both of the course components are finished and will be evaluated by the didactic course instructor. The complete course, both didactic and interactive portions, must be completed within 9 months of registration and completed within 5 years of application for the Approved Supervisor designation. No extensions will be granted.
Please note that this is a course and not a workshop and requires time (readings, presentations, discussion posts, short assignments, more than 5 hours for each Unit). If you are taking an interactive course, we highly recommend that you register for your didactic course sufficiently in advance to the first session date to ensure that you receive all information needed for the course and have time to prepare (each of 5 Units correspond to the interactive sessions).
This course suffices for those who wish to apply for the AS Designation and wish to update courses that are more than 5 years old.
As of July 1, 2015, the 15-credit didactic course is offered exclusively through AAMFT. If you completed a supervision course prior to that date through another provider, you are welcome to contact email@example.com to make sure we can still accept that course toward your designation. If you have not completed a supervision course through the other provider by that time, you will need to retake the 30-hour course.
For more information on the Approved Supervision Program and its requirements, please refer to the AAMFT Approved Supervision Handbook .
AAMFT offers many different options for course completion that will best fit your particular needs of becoming an AAMFT Approved Supervisor. This will help you compare options and choose which option is right for you.
We ask that you please use a headset, earbuds, or any type of personal
earphone for the interactive portion of this class. Access and use of a webcam
is required for this session, and lack thereof may result in removal from the
session. Please be sure to test using the equipment (i.e. computer, browser,
headset, etc.) that you are planning to use to complete the course. Access to interactive webinars needs to be from a
non-distracting, private place because of confidentiality and security. Please
avoid accessing the interactive webinars from public areas (coffeehouses, restaurants,
etc.). Please e-mail email@example.com for any questions regarding this.
Click here to access your course.
For the best user experience, please use either Google Chrome or Safari when accessing your course.
PLEASE NOTE: Please register for the interactive session that ties to your didactic course. For example, if you register for the Principles and Practices didactic course, you will need to take an interactive session in that same course. AAMFT will try to meet the high demand for these courses by continually adding new dates and times. However, due to limited availability, early registration is strongly recommended.
Didactic Instructors: Georgie Winter, PhD, and Michael Fitzpatrick, MSW
Course Description: This course is taught from a systemic/relational perspective and covers a breadth of generalist ideas. That is, rather than "teach" supervision or supervise therapy from a particular perspective (modernist, postmodernist, constructionist, developmental, clinical), the course covers the basics for a number of perspectives that may fit the course participants' ideas and worldviews. Through presentations, readings, short assignments, and an online, face-to-face, interactive series of 5 sessions, the course allows students a number of perspectives related to the purpose and goals of supervision within AAMFT supervision course guidelines. These include helping training therapists with ensuring client care, mastering competencies (both core and approach-specific), self-of-the-therapist and self-of-the-supervisor, context-sensitive, therapist professional growth, and other purposes as the supervisor and training therapist identify as individual supervisory systems. The course instructors are, themselves, constructionist in perspective, but teach and supervise a variety of perspectives and therapy/supervision approaches.
NOTE: There is a textbook requirement for all options of the Fundamentals of Supervision course. This text is sold separately and NOT included in the price of the course.
In the case of circumstances beyond its control, the AAMFT reserves the right to make necessary changes in presenters and content of all AAMFT Approved Supervision Refresher Courses.
Cancellation Fee: Due to the limited availability of spaces in the online Approved Supervision courses, cancellations and any subsequent request for refund must be made 30 days prior to the start of your scheduled interactive session. Cancellations made within 30 days of the course, will be eligible for a 25% refund.
Transfer Session Fee: Requests to move your registration to another class time is subject to availability of classes and will be subject to a $50 administrative fee.
All cancellation requests must be made in writing, and can be sent to firstname.lastname@example.com.
***Please note all times are in EASTERN TIME ZONE.
Ideal for: Candidates for the Approved Supervisor designation, and like the convenience of completing the course completely online. This course must be completed within 9 months of registration.
Timing: October-December
Continuing Education: 15 CEs will be received after completion of the interactive portion and 15 CEs will be received after completion of the didactic portion. Please keep in mind that this is a course, not a workshop.
Cost: $595 due at registration
Ideal for: Those who plan to complete the 15-hour interactive course through the AAMFT Annual Conference or another pre-approved interactive course. Both portions of the course must be completed within 9 months of registering for the first course.
Timing: Complete online, on-demand within 9 months of registration.
Continuing Education: 15 CEs will be received after full completion of this option. Please keep in mind that this is a course, not a workshop.
Cost: $350 due at registration
Ideal for: Those who have completed or plan to concurrently complete the 15-hour didactic course through AAMFT or another pre-approved instructor, and like the convenience of an online interactive session. Both portions of the course must be completed within 9 months of registering for the first course.
Continuing Education: 15 CEs will be received after full completion of this option. Please keep in mind that in order to receive your AAMFT Approved Supervisor Designation, you will need to register for and complete Option B - or the didactic portion - of the course.
Cost: $375 due at registration
Ideal for: Candidates for the Approved Supervisor designation who would prefer a face-to-face setting for the interactive portion of the course. The didactic portion of the course will be completed online.
Continuing Education: 30 CEs will be received after full completion of this option.
Location: TBA
Ideal for: Those who have completed or plan to concurrently complete the 15-hour didactic course through AAMFT or another pre-approved instructor, and prefer an in-person interactive session. Both portions of the course must be completed within 9 months of registering for the first course.
Cost: $475 due at registration
Technical requirements for the online discussion groups are listed below. It is your responsibility to ensure your computer system meets these needs prior to your discussion groups session.
***Please note all times are in EASTERN TIME ZONE.
To ensure that the course starts smoothly and on-time, please test the system that you are planning to use for the course by clicking on this test link. When you log in to the meeting, please be sure to login as a guest. Though you may want to download the Zoom app, we recommend that you log in to the session through the internet browser. This option is located at the bottom of your screen after signing in. If you are having any technical issues or would like to further test your system, please contact your education coordinator at firstname.lastname@example.com.
AAMFT is more than happy to provide visual and audio accommodations for those interested in taking this course. If you require accommodations to take this course, please contact firstname.lastname@example.com at least three weeks before your interactive session.
If you have questions regarding the Approved Supervision designation, please email firstname.lastname@example.com.
Already an AAMFT Approved Supervisor? Take our 6-hour Refresher Course and renew your designation.
Register now
Understanding the Benefits of Marriage and Family Therapy
If you or someone you know is experiencing distress, therapy with a marriage and family therapist (MFT) can help.
Find an MFT
Continuing education designed specifically for MFTs. Explore the 85 online courses offered and expand your knowledge on a variety of topics. Start your personalized online classroom and earn CE credits at your own pace.
Earn CEs


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March 30, 2012
Real Estate Investors May Be Indicator Of Recovery
Posted in Market News by Matthew Gardner, Chief Economist, Windermere Real Estate
I have often found that following a prolonged decline, residential real estate investors tend to re-enter the housing market ahead of buyers who are looking for a home for their own use. This is because investors are generally less concerned with timing the bottom of a market perfectly and more focused on the longer term financial benefits.
Read More >
March 22, 2012
Major Changes Coming to Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program (HAFA)
Posted in Selling by Richard Eastern
As of June 1, there will be significant changes to the HAFA program. The updates will allow a homeowner to remain current on their mortgage, qualify for HAFA, and go through a short sale with less of an impact on their credit.
Read More >
March 15, 2012
Pricing your home to sell
Posted in Selling by Windermere Guest Author
When it comes time to sell a home, most people want the property to sell quickly for the highest possible return. Setting the correct listing price is the most important step in reaching this goal.
Read More >
March 09, 2012
How to Create a More Beautiful and "Sale" Ready Home
Posted in Selling by Windermere Guest Author
When you love your home but want to make some changes, how do you know where to begin?
Read More >
March 02, 2012
Childproofing: Protect Your Family and Your Home from Potential Hazards
Posted in Living by Shelley Rossi
When you think of your home, it likely conjures up feelings of safety, shelter, and comfort. However, accidental injuries in the home are one of the leading causes of harm to children 14 and younger.
Read More >


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It wasn�t the start Jeff Cobb wanted, but it certainly was the finish the Northside girls� soccer coach sought from the Monarchs.
It wasn�t the start Jeff Cobb wanted, but it certainly was the finish the Northside girls� soccer coach sought from the Monarchs.
After falling behind 1-0 just 1:13 into the match, Northside scored 10 unanswered goals en route to a 10-1 win over South Lenoir on Friday in an East Central 2-A Conference match called with 28:35 left in the game because of the nine-goal mercy rule.
But the victory itself for the Monarchs (8-5-1, 7-2) over the Blue Devils (3-9-1, 0-9) wasn�t the story.
Instead, it was Northside rebounding from its early deficit to take care of business against an inferior opponent and continue its good play that stood out.
�Even though you might have a lapse in judgment and fall behind, good teams come back,� Cobb said. �At this point we should be on autopilot and they should know what to expect.�
And what Cobb expects during his first season as coach is for the Monarchs to continue to play well and hopefully make a name for themselves on the pitch.
Northside, which hasn�t typically been one of the strongest teams in soccer-rich Onslow County, is one of the area�s hottest teams right now. The Monarchs have won seven consecutive games after a 1-5-1 start. They won just three games last year.
�We were losing and we were the team everybody wanted to play,� said junior forward Emani Stewart, who had three goals and an assist against South Lenoir. �Now we are a team that everybody is watching.�
Junior forward Ashleigh Fairow agreed that Northside is starting to get on the map.
�I feel like everyone is watching out for us now,� said Fairow, who had four goals and an assist. �It�s exciting and rewarding.�
The Monarchs now sit in second place in the ECC, a half of a game behind leader Swansboro, which plays host to Northside on Monday.
So why are the Monarchs winning now?
�Hard work I guess,� Stewart said. �We are staying focused.�
That maybe true, but there have been other factors leading up to Northside�s success.
The first is Fairow, a first-team all-area player by The Daily News last year. She entered the game with SLHS with 18 goals and three assists. Fairow is quick with the ball and can take defenders on 1-on-1.
�Her skills are the best we got out here right now,� Cobb said. �She works well and she�s hard to stop 1v1. She�s got it all.�
Yet the Monarchs will tell you that they aren�t one-dimensional.
Stewart and freshman midfielder Kayla Boudreau complement Fairow on the attack. Boudreau added a goal and an assist and now has 11 goals and three assists for the season.
�We have some freshmen, Kayla Boudreau and Sam Provencal, who work real well and having Emani in the middle helps,� Cobb said. �Courtney Almon is probably one of the best goalkeepers around. One person can�t do it all. It helps (having Fairow), but it takes a team effort.�
And this team is quite young. There are no seniors in the starting lineup.
�That is exciting,� Cobb said. �If we can keep these girls playing year-round (the program can progress).�
Cobb certainly has reason to be excited about the future as he continues his first season leading the Monarchs.
Known more for his days as Richlands� head football coach and now as the offensive line coach for Northside�s football team, the 42-year-old Cobb has a history with soccer.
He was head soccer coach at Southwest last decade, helping the Stallions become a competitive program.
�Everybody sees me as a football coach because I�ve been out of soccer for a while, but people don�t realize I grew up playing soccer,� Cobb said. �I love it. Soccer is a great sport.�
It did take some time for Cobb to prove he knew his soccer, he said.
�The girls didn�t know me, but I think now they understand that maybe he�s just not a dumb football coach,� he said with a laugh. �The biggest thing is getting the girls to buy into what you are doing.�
But while Cobb enjoys being back on the pitch, he appreciates his soccer experience now more given he gets to share it with his son Greg, who graduated from Richlands in 2011 before joining his father�s coaching staff.
�To be able to coach with your son, it�s awesome,� Cobb said. �Hopefully I can teach him a couple of things. He wants to be a teacher.�
Until then, however, the older Cobb is looking for his team to continue its solid play. The Monarchs face a daunting task Monday when they visit Swansboro.
�I want to be competitive,� Cobb said. �It�s not a (make or break) game, which is good, but I�d love to compete with them.�
The Monarchs will enter Monday�s game like they always do,� Fairow said.
�I don�t think we go into a game thinking we are going to win,� she said. �We go in as if we are still the underdog.�
South Lenoir 1 0� 1
Northside 9 1�10
GOALS�S: Croom. N: Fairow 4, Stewart 3, Boudreau, Getchel, Clarke. ASSISTS�N: Fairow, Boudreau, Stewart. IN GOAL�S: Weatherington (5 saves). N: Almon (0 saves). SHOTS ON GOAL�S 1, N 15. CORNER KICKS�S 1, N 7. RECORDS�S: 3-9-1, 0-9, hosts Swansboro on Tuesday. N: 8-5-1, 7-2, at Swansboro on Monday.


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See! I Said You Could
Last week I said that whenever you ask us if you can do something with Accordance, we usually answer with a simple and straightforward, "Yes, you can!" Of course, the danger of making such a claim is that I'm practically inviting you to test its validity. So I wasn't at all surprised to get the following "challenge" in the comments on that post:
Not a comment, but a challenge. I want to create a greek analytical lexicon arranged by dictionary form (not alphabetically) with all subsequent forms underneath it with frequencies. How do I do this w/o manually entering every word stem (6060 words)? Any help appreciated!
So can he do it? Yes he can! Better yet, it's incredibly easy to do. In fact, Helen has already spelled out the steps required in the comments on that previous post. I'll recount those steps here to provide a little more detail.
Any time you're wanting a statistical breakdown of all the words in a text (such as the tagged Greek New Testament), you need to begin by searching for every word in that text. You do that by clicking the Words button in your Search window, entering an asterisk wildcard to represent any word, and clicking the Find button. Instantly every word in the GNT-T will be highlighted.
Now that you've found every word in the text, you can analyze every word that was found by clicking the understated Details button. A Details workspace will open, probably showing tabs for the Hits Graph and the Analysis (depending on your settings). If an Analysis tab is present, click the tab to bring it to the front. If there's no such tab open, click the Analysis button to open one.
By default, the Analysis lists every lexical form found by your search, its English meaning, and the number of times it was found. However, you can customize the display of the Analysis to show whatever information you like. To do this, select Set Analysis Display from the Display menu (or use the keyboard shortcut command-T).
A dialog will open with a series of columns representing the different elements of your search. Since we only searched for one thing (the asterisk representing any word) only the first column is relevant. You can see that it currently contains only the LEX item, which is why all the lexical forms are listed. By dragging additional items into this first column, we can break our search results down by other criteria.
The person who issued the challenge wanted a listing of each "dictionary form" (that is, lexical form), with all "subsequent forms" (that is, inflected forms) listed beneath it. To accomplish this, simply drag the INFLECT item underneath the LEX item in the first column. Like this:
Now simply click OK to see the modified Analysis display:
Note how each lexical form is listed along with its number of occurrences. It is then further broken down by inflected form. If I'm understanding the challenge correctly, we've already achieved what was requested. But we can go further still. Let's say we go back to the Set Analysis Display and drag the TAG item between the LEX and INFLECT items. We'll then get an Analysis which looks like this:
Note how each lexical form is now broken down by grammatical form, with inflected forms listed underneath. By adding the grammatical tag, I've reshuffled the inflected forms so that related forms are listed together, rather than all the inflected forms merely being listed in alphabetical order.
See, I told you most of your "Can I?" questions can be answered with a simple and straightforward, "Yes you can!" And in most cases, the method required to accomplish your goal is simple and straightforward as well.
Oh, and while we're on the subject of creating a Greek analytical lexicon, you should know that William Mounce has already done that work for you. His Analytical Lexicon to the Greek New Testament, as well as his grammar and morphology, are all available in one of our Zondervan packages. Can you purchase them? "Yes you can!" ;-)
Archived Comments
Joshua E. Stewart
Here is one for you. Is there a way to switch between two text in a hypertext link in the instant details window? For example: I am using ABD and I put my cursor on an OT passage. I have my primary text set to BHS and the secondary to the NASB. Is it possible to switch the text from BHS to NASB with a shortcut key? I realize the alternate text is for when the hyperlink is not found in the primary text, but can you switch. My Hebrew is not always as good as I wish :) Thanks
John Lee
What I always want is to import a Bible in Chinese...
Where is Mounce's 3rd Edition instead of his fourth? Will it become available anytime time soon?
Helen Brown
Josh: Sorry, Instant Details doesn't offer that option. However, it's easy to switch the texts in a text window. If both texts are in your top 10 texts in the Library window you can use control and the number of the text in your list to switch the search text or the text order text. Although, wouldn't it be easier to open the window with your default text, add a pane with the other preferred text, leave the window open to be recycled and click the reference each time to see both texts.
Mary Hinkle Shore
Thanks, David. This has inspired me to play around a bit with the analysis window and its options.
Is there a way to see words from a particular pericope listed in order of the frequency with which they occur in the whole NT? For instance, could one get a list of the words in Col 1:1-14 from the most rare (in the NT, not in the pericope) to the most frequently occurring? I can't quite figure out how to automate this in Accordance.
Danny Zacharias
I don't think this can be done, but perhaps a teaser for v.9. Find all predicate nominatives in the NT


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Direct Marketing - Domestic
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Encourage the Direct Marketing market in the country and encourage the use of Postal Media by offering a complete solution for the segment.
- Promote, encourage and educate for the use of postal solutions in targeted communication activities of the Direct Marketing segment in Brazil, fomenting it;
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- Increase the establishment of agreements, systems and standards in order to draw closer all entities connected to the segment in order to solve common problems;
- Collaborate with the authorities in promoting the development and improvement of direct marketing including the scope of Brazilian education.
After knowing the theory, it's time to materialize both strategy and thinking. We have prepared a selection of cases relating to successful campaigns for you to check if your action is on the right track.
See how the impeccable planning and execution of campaigns, using Direct Mail as their main strategy, have helped companies in different areas and sectors to achieve their communication objectives.
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text:
So the month has begun. Tuesday the first I was still too tired and sore to bother doing anything. Just laid around wasting time. Put off chores and paying bills or doing anything. Just spent all day in bed with a bit of poking around online.
On Wednesday the second I was up fairly early. Dinorah and I went for a short walk with sparky to my mail box. Talked a bit. She knew I was awake because she saw me post a farmville thing on facebook.
Later in the day I finally got myself over to pay rent. Talked to my landlord Lucy for a little while. She's fun to talk to. I gave her my rent check and she gave me to alvocados off of her tree.
When I went to leave I could not get my car to start. It wouldn't do anything so I went back up to the door and asked Lee to look at it. The battery was the problem. By this time the mechanics had gone home since it was a quarter to five pm but he managed to get my car working by using jumper cables to reconnect my battery. The battery was all corroded really bad and the thing that is supposed to hold the battery to the rest of the car was broken.
I prepared myself to have to face a mechanic first thing thursday morning.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
February 1 and 2
Rambled by Skybluefusion at 2/05/2011 04:10:00 AM
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text:
Sponsored Links
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1 Definition of Cirque
The definition of cirque, the meaning of the word Cirque:
Is cirque a scrabble word? Yes!
- n. - A steep-walled semicircular basin in a mountain; may contain a lake
Cirque is worth 17 points in Scrabble, and 19 points in Words with Friends
There are 6 letters in cirque: C E I Q R U
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text:
Lauren B, a Birmingham Classroom Course Student, scored 3020, Band 3
As I was the only student at my school sitting the UCAT, I felt I had little help and was concerned about how I would score. I feel taking part in the Kaplan course helped me massively as it provided me with skills and tips to allow me to succeed in the exam and get a score high enough to apply to the University of my choice. I can now happily say I start my Medicine degree at this University in just over a week - this may not have been possible without my help from Kaplan.


text:
Floral Love Pattern - contains the following sizes (approx.): 4 x 4 | 5 x 7 | 10 x 10
Zip file contains the following formats: EXP, HUS, PES, DST, SEW, JEF, PCS, VIP, VP3, XXX, PDF, JPG other formats are also available.
A PDF file(s) with the stitch and colors data is attached along with the design files and is available for instant download after purchase.
****** This item is available for INSTANT DOWNLOAD | Mockup Items are not included *****
Please remember that once purchased, there can be no refunds due to the nature of the product.
These designs have been manually digitized by Falcon Embroidery. You are not allowed to resell, share, trade or alter in any way.
** In any case of a problem or issue with my design please contact us as soon as possible so we can work things out until you are 100% satisfied.
Important notice:
You are only paying for my time to create items suitable for your Embroidery Machine. All copyrights and trademarks of the character images used, belong to their respective owners and are not being sold. This item is a licensed product and I do not claim ownership over the characters used in our designs.


text:
I'm guessing that if the Reds are up in the series 2-1 Homer will get the start. If the Reds are trailing then Cueto will start game 4.
In addition, Lecure, Marshall, Brox, and Chapman all pitched last night. Homer will go five tonight and the other guys, Arredondo, Simon, Hoover, whomever, maybe even Leake, will get a little work.


text:
Cole, Suns one-hit Shorebirds
Cole worked five innings and combined with Wilson Eusebio and Dean Weaver on a one-hitter Saturday as the Class A Hagerstown Suns blanked the Delmarva Shorebirds, 2-0.
Staked to a 1-0 lead before he ever threw a pitch, Cole (4-6) retired the first 10 batters before issuing a one-out walk to Brenden Webb in the fourth. Jacob Julius led off the fifth with a single that turned out to be the Shorebirds' only hit.
"One run was all I needed," Cole said. "I would have been happy with more, but if one was all I was going to get, I was going to make it count."
A 2010 fourth-round Draft pick out of high school, Cole had given up 11 earned runs over 12 innings in his previous three outings.
"I was trying to be too fine with my pitches and not going back to the basics of what I know," he said. "Tonight, I let the ball work for me and didn't try to do too much."
Relying on his four-seam fastball and slider, the 19-year-old right-hander tied a career high with nine strikeouts -- he also fanned nine against Delmarva on June 11. He's pitched more than five innings just once in 16 outings, going six on July 17.
"A.J. has an outstanding arm," said Suns pitching coach Chris Michalak, a former big league left-hander. "We've worked with him on staying within himself and keeping his delivery smooth and free and easy. The ball was jumping out of his hand tonight; he was consistently hitting 94-95. His command was outstanding. He was something special to watch."
Eusebio came on in the sixth and retired all nine Shorebirds he faced, striking out three. Weaver fanned one in a perfect ninth to earn his second save.
"The No. 1 thing our guys did tonight was get ahead," Michalak noted. "They pounded the strike zone all night and kept pressure on the defense. That was the key to our success."
Blake Kelso tripled with one out in the first and scored the only run Hagerstown needed on a groundout by Adrian Sanchez. Kevin Keyes doubled home Kelso with an insurance tally in the ninth.
Jarret Martin (5-9) took the tough-luck loss, holding the Suns to a run on three hits and a walk over seven innings. He struck out six and set down the final 15 batters he faced.
David Schoenholtz is a contributor to MLB.com.


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The king of media servers continues to evolve.
Since the company's introduction, the Kaleidescape line of hard-drive-bases media servers have taken the throne as the king of all movie devices. That kind of accolade , from both Kaleidescape owners and professional installers, is due to the system's ease of use and performance, and also to the fact that the company has consistently stood nose-to-nose with the movie industry (which doesn't particularly like what this device does) and not flinched.
Despite ongoing legal battles with Hollywood, the company continues to innovate new products. Wanting to demonstrate how easy its products are to set up and operate, Kaleidescape sent me its KSERVER-1500 1U rack server with 6TBs of storage, as well as its M500 player, modular Disc Vault, some support accessories, and pre-loaded Essential DVD and Best of Blu-ray collections.
The rack server is a RAID-enabled unit capable of providing multiple terabytes (TB) of storage and network integration for metadata retrieval.
The M500 is the brains through its inclusion of components such as a Blu-ray drive, Dolby TrueHD and DTS Master Audio HD decoding, bitstream audio outputs and a user interface that can make Apple envious. The M500 facilitates home CD/DVD library content ripping and management.
The Disc Vault provides a means of storing and managing Blu-ray collections. It holds up to 100 discs, and dealers can utilize multiple Vaults as long as they are connected to the M-Class products.
As for software, Kaleidescape offers a growing selection of media packages that it can pre-load.
I ran an Ethernet cable to the demo unit's router and I connected an HDMI cable from the M500 to a Key Digital video processor. I linked an optical cable to the M500, ran it to my Bryston pre/pro, connected the Vault to the M500 via USB and powered everything except for the Vault.
Per Kaleidescape's instructions, I turned the components on so I could verify the latest version of its operating system. After seeing version 4.0.1, I rebooted it, which activated an automatic update, and with the download installed I plugged in the Vault and began to load Blu-ray discs.
I tried to access the dealer menus by typing in "my-kaleidescape" into my PC's browser. With the link not working, I entered an internal IP address, which successfully brought me to the "installer" menu where I was able to select the proper audio output.
The entire setup took about 60 minutes.
Driven by a user interface that's so good and intuitive, my family and I found the system simple to navigate for content. With choices such as Dora the Explorer, The Backyardigans and Disney/Pixar titles, even my kids were completely engaged.
The system also became a big conversation topic with family and friends visiting during the holidays. Most of their questions dealt with the interface, which wowed everyone, and the impressive storage capabilities.
Content looks every bit as good as the master hard copies, with no added noise or artifacts. DVD material like The Princess Bride, for example, presented with fine quality from a Digital Projection Cine-260 projector. Also, the pure speed was very good, even Blu-ray loading worked instantaneously.
I found system's ability to rip and catalog content, as well as include accurate metadata, worked within a reasonable time line. About the only thing negative I can point to is the propensity of the cover art menu to rearrange the titles before you finish reading the descriptions.
I know there's a lot of engineering, but I'm not going pretend that any server system is a "value" at Kaleidescape's luxury range. That said, no one has ever questioned the reliability and potential of such a "go-to" product line. Kaleidescape has established its products as the benchmark in the category and I found the system lived up to its reputation as the best server line on the market.


text: Is Open Source a Crap Idea? March 23, '06 Comments [12] Posted in DasBlog | Subversion | Bugs Sponsored By The graph at right is from a story in the Economist on Open Source. It illustrates, fairly effectively, that talking and doing are very different and that it's way easier to talk than do - or at least, it must be since so few people do and so many talk. There are a number of choice tidbits in the article. This sure is true: "The contributors are typically motivated less by altruism than by self-interest." When I joined the DasBlog project after the 1.6 release, it was totally because DasBlog wasn't meeting my needs (scale, features, etc) and I thought it'd be easier to contribute than to jump to another engine. Omar has said before that he joined the team to be a better programmer. As I worked on it more, I used DasBlog, selfishly, as a place to try out ideas and techniques that I would eventually put to use at work. "Of the roughly 130,000 open-source projects on SourceForge.net, an online hub for open-source software projects, only a few hundred are active, and fewer still will ever lead to a useful product." Yikes. That's scathing; I wonder if it's true. SF seems a lot more active and vibrant than that to me, but I could be just seeing what I want to see. Only a few hundred active projects? With all projects there's a lot of talk, and a lot of time pressure as everyone has a life. It's a little frustrating when folks submit a bug when they could submit a bug and a patch. CVS and Universal Diffs make this a lot easier, but I'm as guilty as the next guy. If it's not fantastically simple to post a patch and have it heard, who has the time to bother? Stuart has offered a number of patches to Subversion, and really struggled to get them into the final product - or even to be heard. How easy should it be? Is "Right-Click | Make Patch" then "email patch" easy enough? I'm sure there are (sadly) lots of folks who submitted bugs or asked for help but just happened to pick a bad week where Omar, myself, Tom or the rest of the team was busy with life. Aside: I wonder if there are crucial patches to the Linux Kernel that didn't get in because Linus had a bad day when the patch was submitted? It's very difficult to get folks to commit themselves to a project that pays them nothing. The hours are long, the tech support brutal, the users unforgiving and the bugs neverending. If you work on a Open Source Project, why do you do it? When will you stop? « Hanselminutes Podcast 11 | Blog Home | Loving Mush - I mean Monad » About Scott Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author. About Newsletter Sponsored By Hosting By Comments [12] Share on: Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or use the Permalink


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Who was/is Ruth Brown ? - CDs, Vinyl LPs, DVD and more
Ruth Brown
This Little Girl's Gone Rockin'
Ruth Brown
This Little Girl's Gone Rockin'
Ruth Brown acutely felt the changing times at Atlantic Records. She had been there since the label's inauspicious launch, but saw that her champion, Herb Abramson, was sidelined and would soon be bought out. She didn't get along as well with his replacement, Jerry Wexler, and felt that the label's co-founder, Ahmet Ertegun, was becoming remote. One of the artists assigned to Herb Abramson was Bobby Darin, and it took some time for Abramson or anyone at Atlantic to know what to do with him. For Ruth, it was unusual enough just seeing a white performer on the label.
"I often came across him in the studio, trying out little things," she wrote in her autobiography. "'I hear you're a songwriter,' I jived him one day. 'Why don't you write me a song?' He did. It was 'This Little Girl's Gone Rockin',' and it was produced by two other ex-Brillers, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller." Most sources credit Wexler and Ertegun as A&R men on the session, but Ruth clearly remembers it differently.
A straightforward boogie woogie underpinned by Stoller on piano, it was highlighted by Everett Barksdale on guitar and the always distinctive King Curtis on tenor sax. Ruth damns it with faint praise in her autobiography, but it became her last major pop hit and one of her last R&B hits. Darin's co-writer, incidentally, was Emanuel Kurtz aka Mann Curtis, who had begun cranking out songs in the early 1940s, and wrote the English words to Let It Be Me. Ruth's long chart career was winding down, although she performs to this day. Darin's other contribution to Ruth's tenure at Atlantic was to advise her to audit the label for unpaid royalties.
Various - Blowing The Fuse 1958 - Classics That Rocked The Jukebox
Read more at: https://www.bear-family.de/various-blowing-the-fuse-1958-classics-that-rocked-the-jukebox.html
Copyright © Bear Family Records


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Our last half day in Santorini was a little bit rushed, but overall not too bad. As expected, the airport was shithouse, poorly run, no lounge (OMG I know) and just a bad way to leave (or enter) the very wonderful Santorini.
I felt it was appropriate today to show off the jacuzzi suite a little more. Excuse our bags spread everywhere, but it really is a spacious room, kept cool as it's built into the rock. Loved our time spent here.
Our last meal in Fira was at a Chinese restaurant, and the food was nice. We also checked out the Museum of Prehistoric Thira, where we learnt a little more about the excavations we saw on day six. Somehow we even had a stray puppy follow us around as we looked at the exhibits.
Our flight was as expected, pretty much the same food on the way back as over. Though we were late landing due to a 130KM/h headwind! Picked up a nice BMW from Avis and got to Chesterfield, after a brief food stop, at 23:30. Shitty wifi at The Chesterfield Hotel though!