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Last updated on October 17th, 2013 at 02:07 pm
If you dream of becoming a top blogger like me, then I'd like to save you some pain before you get started down the road I am on. I've created this resource page to help you create your dream of having your very own top blog. This is everything I wished I knew when I started blogging years ago … just for you.
Here's how to create a top blog website:
1. Before you start, decide on your passion —
You must decide on a niche and this niche needs to be something you are passionate about so that you won't get tired of posting articles about it. Nothing will scream unprofessional more than a blog that is about everything and nothing.
People use the Internet for information and entertainment. Picking a niche will force you to represent something to your readers and help you stay on topic. Staying on topic is the most important (and the most difficult) rule for blogging. You will not create and audience for your writings if you do not pick a niche and stick with that topic.
• Introduction to Blogging by WordPress.
• Darren Rowse of ProBlogger: How to Blog: How to Choose a Blog Niche (6 Tips)
• Brian Clark of Copyblogger: How to Choose a Popular Niche for Your Blog
Picking your niche will help you with keywords for your posts so that search engines will find you. It will help you with your choice of images and find creative ways to tell your story.
2. Naming your blog —
Naming your blog a highly-searched keyword is one of the smartest moves you can make when starting to blog. You need to decide on several keyword-rich names before searching to register and buy your URL (domain name).
• Darren Rowse of ProBlogger: Choosing the Domain Name for your Blog
• Daniel Scocco of Daily Blog Tips: How to Choose a Blog Name
• SEOMoz: 12 Rules for Choosing the Right Domain Name
3. Buying your blog domain name and hosting companies —
• Dreamhost
• HostGator
• BlueHost
• Media Temple
Some websites with great tips on beginning blogging are: How To Start a Blog and How to Set Up Your First Blog the Right Way the First Time (Problogger).
4. Best blogging software —
• WordPress. Hands down.
• Lorelle on WordPress does a great job at helping readers understand and use WordPress.
Here's a Blog Software Review chart for you to compare blogging software.
5. How your blog should look —
There are rules for being considered a professional blogger (when you want your writing to be be taken seriously) just like there are rules for grammar. Not following the rules of good blogging web design will also kill your following just like poor grammar.
In fact, poor website layout is probably worse than grammar mistakes because a bad layout (long paragraphs, text without breaks, too many ads, too much color, too many font types, not enough white space, too many choices, etc.) stops new visitors in the first four seconds and they leave without reading you.
Your readers need to trust you, and nothing screams trust like a professional look to your website. Forget using anything that moves that isn't a video — especially graphics.
Don't make your site too busy. Everything you put on your blog distracts from your writing. At some point you have to decide if you're doing paper mache or producing a publication. You don't have to pay someone to do this for you when you have WordPress (and install a good theme). You can do this and should know these rules by heart.
First, I'd start by studying Webpages that Suck — read it — memorize it.
• 99 Designs has a free guide to blog design called Blog Design.
• Choosing the Right Colors for Your Web Site
• Ten Good Deeds in Web Design
If you aren't a graphic designer and are stuck for a logo, brand or banner design try 99Designs where thousands of graphic designers compete for people who need logos, websites and branding work done.
WordPress themes that help do all the design work for you –
8 Women Dream uses Canvas by Woo Themes — love it.
I know a lot of professional bloggers love Thesis WordPress theme.
6. How to use images on your blog —
I'm sorry, but now that we have entered the twentieth century you should know how to use some type of photo editing software. If you don't know how to use Photoshop, or any of the other lesser photo editors out there, find yourself a good tutorial. If you need a free photo editor to start, do a search on CNET. To be a professional-looking blogger you need to understand how to place images on the Internet.
• Tentblogger has a great article called, The Complete Guide to Using Images in Your Blog Posts
• Creating Accessible Images
• Darren Rowse of ProBlogger, How to Use Images in Your Blog Posts
The best images are the ones you take of your life over stock images. But if you hate your own photographs try iStock.com and set up an account. You can buy photos there for as little as a dollar. There's Open Stock Photography where you can find free images to use. Always read the website's image-use policy before you download any images from the Internet. Do not use images found in Google image search.
7. How to write on a blog —
I recommend you become a regular reader of Brian Clark's Copyblogger blog for how to write properly on the Internet. Long paragraphs are bad, not having sub-titles is bad, and not getting to the point is bad.
Believe it or not, people will forgive your grammar mistakes if you write like you talk and if you make them laugh, but making them read long, drawn-out paragraphs that sound like corporate-speak — or posts that are all about you with nothing in it for them will drive readers away from your blog faster than a bad check.
• How Little Do Users Read? – Tells you why you need to change from the way you were taught to write in school and understand how to write for the Internet.
• Are You Staying on Topic — or Losing Traffic? – The importance of staying with your blog topic along with what to do when you have that urge to tell everyone about the new person you are dating instead of sticking with your blog subject.
• On laying out your post so people will read it see : 8 Incredibly Simple Ways to Get More People to Read Your Content on Copyblogger.
• 7 Powerful Ways to Get Your Blog Post Noticed by Chris Towland is another must-read.
Set a schedule for blogging and stick to it. You will be excited in the beginning and want to post something every day, but it is better to start off posting once a week or three times a week and allow yourself room to grow, then to start out blogging seven times a week and quitting after a year because it was too much work. Your readers will appreciate it if you tell them when they can expect to see new posts and they will be fine with visiting your blog even if you only post once a week.
8. How to get your blog found on the Internet —
Learn search engine marketing. Don't hire out — learn it. If you want to be considered a professional on the Internet and understand how the Internet works you must learn how to write your blog posts and title your articles so that they are search-engine friendly to attract readers. You do want to be read…right?
• Aaron & Giovanna Wall of SEOBook offer The Blogger's Guide to SEO.
• SEOMoz offers The Beginners Guide to SEO.
Writing compelling, keyword-rich titles is the big secret to gaining readers for your blog. Brian Clark of CopyBlogger hands-down has the best articles on writing great blog titles –
• How to Write Magnetic Headlines
You also need to register your blog with blog list sites like Technorati and Blogged. Top Rank blog has a comprehensive list at Blog Directories for you to submit your blog.
9. Use statistics —
Yes you should use statistics. They tell you what is happening on your blog and what your visitors are doing.
• Google Analytics – We have this installed too. It's great for fixing broken webpages once your blog gets big enough.
About.com has a great little guide to the Top 5 Blog Statistics Trackers.
10. How long it takes to become a top blogger —
Bigger is better on the Internet. You'll want to give this blog of yours 5 years of regular, quality blogging before you get noticed (all best are off if you are rich and famous). The size of a website is determined by the number of pages. Every time you post an article it becomes another page to your blog. Think about how large your competition is if they started 3 years ago.
Understand that for a while they will be found in search before you. Size matters and you need to give your blog time to grow before people find your writings online.
You can help this process by commenting on other blogs and using social media to connect your blog with other people. But don't give up blogging for the first two years. Use the time to perfect your craft to become the famous blogger you are meant to be. The Internet is a very crowded place.
Don't get insulted if no one is reading your blog. Keep reading and learning about blogging and it will happen for you too.
11. Other resources —
21 Tactics to Increase Blog Traffic
For getting started with WordPress –
Blogging tips –
This book is my bible –


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Here are six articles I read this week that I thought were worth sharing. By the way, if you come across something – or have written something – that you'd like to share, Let me know.
- Great article about the roots of sex addiction stemming from childhood trauma. It doesn't touch on abandonment trauma (good things that should have happened, but didn't), only the trauma of abuse (bad things that shouldn't have happened, but did). But it's still very good.
- Worth a quick read for parents: "Six skills children need to develop to keep them out of addiction."
- Is Sex Addiction Real – the tired arguments come up again in this article from the Vancouver Sun … what's interesting is a discussion about the possible inclusion of the "hypersexual disorder" diagnosis as part of the new DSM (psychiatric diagnostic manual for therapists).
- How the New DSM Gets Addiction Right – great article from opinion section of New York Times online. It gives an overview of changing understanding of addiction.
- Great article from Sheila Gregoire written to wives about things they can do to build relational intimacy. She calls it the "21 Day Challenge," and there are great insights for men here too.
- Article on female sex addiction – Whether due to abuse or abandonment, "being known" (aka intimacy) is at the core of female sex addiction

subset: commoncrawl


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On May 13, 2019 we welcomed six new firefighter/paramedics to the O'Fallon Fire Protection District (OFPD). Kyle Chadwell, Kenny Gales, Blake Koppel, Paul McReynolds, Brett Tichenor and Alex Wetteroth are all experienced firefighter/paramedics who will begin serving our community next week. Stay tuned to our Facebook and Instagram feeds in the coming weeks to learn more about our newest crew members.
Their hiring concludes a three-year process of implementing the goals in the Proposition Safety plan that was approved by residents in 2016 to enhance emergency services in our community. Continue reading "Proposition Safety Goals Met"


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What's the Perfect Number of Board Members for an HOA or Condominium Association?
Running a community is no easy task. There's collecting dues, conducting meetings, and overseeing accounting to think about, not to mention fielding the endless stream of complaints and requests from residents. It's a lot of hard work, which is why homeowners associations (HOAs) and condominium associations should have the optimal amount of board members to share the load and run efficiently. However, as a professional from Wise Property Management, Inc., discusses below, finding the perfect number of board members is a challenge onto itself.
What Is Required by Law?
As a St. Petersburg condominium management company, we'd be remiss if we didn't first mention what your obligations under Florida law are. In the State of Florida, three is the magic number. No matter the size of your association, your board must have at least three members, with the number stated in your articles of incorporation or bylaws. Your bylaws should also have provisions regarding the manner in which the board can expand. The average number of board members is between three and five, but certain communities have been known to have as many as nine members.
What's Perfect for Your Community
The number of board members you should have depends on the needs of your residents as well as the level to which the board would like to participate in the community. There is no "perfect number" of board members. What works for one community may not work for another.
If you have a large community with more needs, you'll want to consider a larger board. If you and your fellow board members are truly passionate about your community, expanding could ensure that the board is meeting all of its responsibilities, but be careful. Picking the number of board members can be a balancing act: too few members and you risk being unable to meet the needs of your community; too many members and you risk prolonging the decision making process and being unable to meet your quorum at meetings.
As a St. Petersburg HOA management company, we advise that there should be an odd number of board members to prevent a stalemate in case there is a prickly issue that can't be resolved. Additionally, you should take precautions to ensure that you never have too few board members. In the event that there is a whole-board resignation or fewer than three board members, your HOA or condominium association runs the risk of losing its corporate protection, which can open up you and your fellow board members to liability issues and costly lawsuits.
A Helping Hand
These are just some of the many headaches that board members must contend with while serving their communities, and it's something we're all too familiar with here at Wise Property Management. While we can't replace members on your board, we can take on many of the responsibilities of an HOA, including budgeting, records retention, and performing inspections. If you are part of a condominium association or HOA and would like a helping hand running your community, give us a call at Wise Property Management, a St. Petersburg condominium management company you can rely on.
Are you ready to work with one of the top St. Petersburg HOA management companies that makes life easier for you and your board members and improves the value of your property? If so, submit our proposal request form today!
Our founder, William C. Spivey, is a man who believes in the power of people...LEARN MORE
We are a family-owned and operated company built in the Tampa Bay Area by a working-class Tampa family.LEARN MORE
In today's day and age, technological advancements are occurring at a rapid rate. These developments...LEARN MORE
At WPM, we understand the sensitivity and importance of a management transition. We will proactively work in...LEARN MORE
Couldn't have asked for better service. It's NEVER this easy dealing with property management companies. Great Job! Thanks so much!
Brent I.
Cody Glass from the accounting department was very helpful and professional with a lot of courtesy to help me to understand and set up a new payment process.
Eric F.
I work with Wise on a regular basis, as the nature of our business requires quick turn around times. They are kind and helpful when you need something.
Natasha A.
I have always received great service from Wise. Any time I need help someone always answers the phone and directs me to the right department.
Elaine R.
My name is George Florence, I am the Board President of Villas of Northdale, and I have been a Board member for 5 years now. We have had perfect help from Wise Property Management.
George F.
Wise Property Management is the quintessential image of a professional, organized, comprehensive, deligent and knowledgeable Property Management company.
Kristy D., South Pointe HOA Vice President.
I have been working with Jeanie Hunter of Wise Property for several years now. She has handled all our Tampa Villas South association issues promptly and with great efficiency.
Ken C., Tampa Villas South HOA Vice President.
Very easy to work with and everyone is friendly. We have worked with them for a very long time and love the experience. They take pride in their work and truly enjoy what they do.
Joey V.


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The Veronicas Discuss Fashion
The latest webisode of Beyond The Veronicas on Yahoo! Music features the Brisbane twins talking about fashion, as well as what the fans think about the Brisbane twins' fashion. "As far as my style goes, I'm quite eclectic," Jess said. "I do love ink art. I love tattoos." Lisa added, "I like to team cute little vintage dresses up altered in some way with a cute leather jacket or designer boots."
The webisode, also featuring a portion of their 'Mouth Shut' performance, has since been removed at Yahoo.com.


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Poor, beleaguered Greece hopes to get its next €7.1 billion ($7.5 billion) bailout payment in June, just in time to make roughly €6 billion ($6.5 billion) in payments to creditors in July.
Now, tense negotiations in Valetta, Malta, last month appeared to smooth some stumbling blocks to releasing the latest tranche of the €86 billion ($92 billion) "rescue package," but this deal is not a done deal.
Then again, it's likely Greece will get its next handout... but there's a better than even chance it might be its last.
And that should have investors all over the world, even in booming America, concerned.
You need to know what could happen...
We've Got to Talk Honestly
The "diplomat-ese" coming out of Valetta, spouted for the benefit of mass media consumption, contains all sorts of pleasant, encouraging words, like "breakthrough" and "agreement."
Unfortunately, it's mostly bull. And the public doesn't know it.
There are some serious questions investors need to have answered - and answered frankly - so they can be properly informed.
Questions such as...
Who's really propping up Greece, and why are they doing it?
What happens to the markets if Greece defaults, or, much worse, repudiates its debts?
These are just the biggies. Let me show you what's going on...
How Everyone Got Dragged into This Mess
Since, as always, we're being honest here: Greece lied and cheated its way into the European Union. They had a lot of help from Goldman Sachs.
Under the Maastricht Treaty, the rules that govern the European Union and created the euro, a country that wanted into the Union and the common currency had to have "sound fiscal policies," including debt limited to 60% of GDP and annual deficits not greater than 3% of GDP.
Goldman Sachs created a series of massive currency swaps that essentially masked Greece's true economic condition by burying, temporarily, the extent of Greece's budget deficit.
Whether it was a game that economically strong EU countries knew was being played has never been openly questioned. However, in all likelihood, it was no secret.
The euro was initially a boon to all countries that adopted it, but lately, it's tough to escape the fact that it's serving some countries better than others lately.
Nowhere is that better illustrated than in Greece - the posterchild example of what went right then so terribly wrong, and Germany, where it all went right.
Germany is essentially the backbone of the Union - and the euro. And of course it was a powerhouse even before the EU formally came into being.
But Germany had a growing problem, precisely because it was an economic and export juggernaut with a strong currency, the old deutschmark.
Countries across Europe, especially the so-called "Southern Tier" of Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Greece, who weren't doing as well economically as Germany, had currencies that reflected their tougher economic conditions.
Since their individual escudos, pesetas, lire, and drachmas were weak relative to Germany's deutschemark, Germany's exports were increasingly expensive to buy with their weaker currencies.
A Union with a common currency would eliminate cross-currency differences and make Germany's exports to the rest of the Eurozone appear to be cheaper - or at least not an obstacle in terms of currency differentials.
And since it was easier to borrow in a common currency, interest rates came down and euro loans became readily available in quantity across the continent.
Greece borrowed and spent while Germany exported more and more.
Then of course came the financial crisis of 2008 and the global Great Recession that followed. Southern European countries that had converted to the euro and borrowed heavily were leveraged close to insolvency and had to be bailed out.
The backing for all those bailouts came from none other than the European Central Bank (ECB), the Union's collective central bank.
And we all know how helpful and honest and altruistic central banks are...
In Reality, the ECB Is a Fantasy (and a Scam)
About the Author
Shah Gilani boasts a financial pedigree unlike any other. He ran his first hedge fund in 1982 from his seat on the floor of the Chicago Board of Options Exchange. When options on the Standard & Poor's 100 began trading on March 11, 1983, Shah worked in "the pit" as a market maker.
The work he did laid the foundation for what would later become the VIX - to this day one of the most widely used indicators worldwide. After leaving Chicago to run the futures and options division of the British banking giant Lloyd's TSB, Shah moved up to Roosevelt & Cross Inc., an old-line New York boutique firm. There he originated and ran a packaged fixed-income trading desk, and established that company's "listed" and OTC trading desks.
Shah founded a second hedge fund in 1999, which he ran until 2003.
Shah's vast network of contacts includes the biggest players on Wall Street and in international finance. These contacts give him the real story - when others only get what the investment banks want them to see.
Today, as editor of Hyperdrive Portfolio, Shah presents his legion of subscribers with massive profit opportunities that result from paradigm shifts in the way we work, play, and live.
Shah is a frequent guest on CNBC, Forbes, and MarketWatch, and you can catch him every week on Fox Business's Varney & Co.


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To review the most recent research click here
Research conducted by the Centre for Organisational Excellence Research (COER) has revealed that at least 61 countries have a National Business Excellence Award. This is lower than previous estimates which have been as high as 90 plus. This new research only considered awards that were known to be active. To be considered as active there needed to be up-to-date information published on the award, the award needed to have been awarded in the last two years or clear evidence provided that an award was planned for 2015.
Whilst 61 countries have active awards an additional 16 countries were identified as "may have a business excellence award and/or major initiatives that encourage the use of business excellence frameworks". It was difficult to verify the current situation in these 16 countries from the available information.
COER and BPIR.com encourage readers of this blog to check the list and inform us if our information on your country's award is incorrect or missing.
The following graph shows that the EFQM Excellence Model is the most popular in the world with use throughout Europe and the Middle East. The Baldrige Excellence Framework is used in the United States and many countries in Asia. Most countries use the latest versions of these models whilst others make small design adjustments or use earlier versions to suit their own country's needs.
Judging from this research, business excellence is alive and well. However, some countries are struggling to keep their awards' active in the long-term.
In the Asia-Pacific region the Asian Productivity Organisation (APO) are working hard to help countries introduce and sustain business excellence. Business excellence is recognized as a prime contributor to productivity growth through its holistic approach that links Inputs (such as Leadership, Strategy, Customer Focus, Workforce Focus, Measurement, Analysis and Knowledge Management, Operations) to Outputs (Results). It is perhaps the ultimate productivity framework as it encompasses everything an organization and country should consider to achieve advances in social, political, economic and environmental performance.
At a recent APO Conference on "Expanding Business Excellence" there were attendees from 12 Asian countries with representatives from National Productivity Organisations (NPO) that are responsible for supporting and/or administrating National Business Excellence Awards. This was an opportunity for sharing experiences. One of the challenges in Asia is that business excellence is often perceived as an award framework rather than an approach which can guide organizations towards world-class performance. NPOs are now beginning to address this through developing clear and measurable national business excellence strategies to spread awareness and use of business excellence. This requires NPOs to provide more services that a larger number of organizations can benefit from such as training, mentoring, networking opportunities, best practice visits and self-assessment tools with tailored services for specific sectors and SMEs.
Representatives from businesses and NPO's across Asia at the APO's Enhancing Business Excellence Conference in Islamabad, Pakistan, with Chief Expert Dr Robin Mann, COER, and Resource Experts Harnek Singh, ST Engineering, Singapore and Ku Yuen Wah, OCBC Bank, Singapore, 31 March – 2 April 2015
In Asia, Singapore are acknowledged as leaders in business excellence with their mantra "Business excellence is a journey and not a destination" to highlight that awards are only one component of an integrated national business excellence strategy. Other countries such as Sri-Lanka and Fiji are achieving high levels of engagement particularly in the public sector through mandatory or incentivized programmes that are supported by their respective Prime Ministers. Unfortunately, other countries are struggling to obtain high level support to start or maintain their programmes. One example is Pakistan which has had two failed attempts at introducing business excellence awards in 2006 and 2011. Pakistan are now planning to introduce business excellence for a third time but in a more sustainable manner. Their first-step was to host the "Expanding Business Excellence" conference. Their next step is to engage key stakeholders from the private and public sector to plan a national business excellence strategy.
COER supports organisations and countries in business excellence in a number of ways:
- The BPIR.com contains a wealth of best practice information including the largest collection of Award Winners (over 15,000 potential benchmarking partners) and 1,000's of best practices that are categorized by business excellence frameworks, and over 70 simple self-assessment tools.
- COER is working closely with a number of countries to help them develop national business excellence strategies and services.
- COER is undertaking research that is improving our understanding of National Business Excellence Awards and strategies.
In January 2015, COER launched a research project called "Excellence Without Borders". This project aims to assist the administrators and custodians of business excellence to effectively develop and manage regional and national business excellence strategies and awards. This project is expected to involve over 30 countries and will investigate how business excellence custodians:
- Design their business excellence frameworks;
- Deploy their business excellence frameworks (consisting of "awareness" – how custodians create awareness of the framework; "application" – how custodians are assisting organizations in applying or using the framework; and "recognition" – how custodians recognise and reward those organizations that achieve excellence as assessed against the framework);
- Support the design and deployment of their business excellence; and
- Measure the success of their business excellence frameworks.
For more information on COER's work please contact Dr Robin Mann, email@example.com
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The Police personnel carrying out the arrest and handling the interrogation of the arrestee should bear accurate, visible and clear identification and name tags with their designation.
The Police Officer carrying out the arrest shall prepare a memo of arrest at the time of arrest and such memo shall be attested by at least one witness, who may be either a member of the family of the arrestee or a respectable person of the locality from where the arrest is made. It shall also be counter-signed by the arrestee and shall contain the time and date of arrest.
A Person who has been arrested or detained and is being held in custody in a police station or interrogation centre or other lock-up, shall be entitled to have one friend or relative or other person known to him or having interest in his welfare being informed as soon as practicable that he has been arrested and is being detained at the particular place, unless the attesting witness of the memo of arrest is himself, such a friend or a relative of the arrestee.
The time, place of arrest and venue of custody of arrestee must be notified by the police where the next friend or relative of the arrestee lives outside the district or town through the Legal Aid Organization in the District and the police station of the area concerned telegraphically within a period of 8 to 12 hours after the arrest.
The person arrested must be made aware of his right to have someone informed of his arrest or detention as soon as he is put under arrest or is detained.
An entry must be made in the diary at the place of detention regarding the arrest of the person which shall also disclose the name of the next friend of the person who has been informed of the arrest or detention as soon as he is put under arrest or is detained.
The arrestee should where he so requests, be also examined at the time of his arrest and major and minor injuries, if any present on
his/ her body, must be recorder at that time. The "Inspection Memo" must be signed both by the arrestee and the police officer effecting the arrest and its copy provided to the arrestee.
The arrestee should be subjected to medical examination by a trained doctor every 48 hours during his detention in custody by a doctor on the panel of approved doctors, appointed by Director, Health Service of the concerned State or Union Territory. Director, Health Service, should prepare such a panel for all Tahsils and District as well.
Copies of all the documents including the memo of arrest, referred to above should be sent to the Magistrate for his record.
The arrestee may be permitted to meet his lawyer during interrogation, though not throughout the interrogation.
A Police control room should be provided at all district and State Headquarters, where information regarding the arrest and the place of custody of the arrestee shall be communicated by the officer causing the arrest within 12 hours of effecting the arrest and at the police control room it should be displayed on a conspicuous notice board.
Courtesy: https://mumbaipolice.maharashtra.gov.in/crime_you.asp


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(CNN) – Students in other countries assessing where to study abroad are increasingly scared of coming to the United States because of gun violence, the nation's top diplomat said Monday.
Speaking with CNN foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty in Tokyo, Secretary of State John Kerry said he'd discussed the situation with officials there who said students felt unsafe in the United States.
"We had an interesting discussion about why fewer students are coming to, particularly from Japan, to study in the United States, and one of the responses I got from our officials from conversations with parents here is that they're actually scared. They think they're not safe in the United States and so they don't come," Kerry said.
He noted Japan's restrictive gun laws – which prevent private ownership of nearly all firearms, including handguns – and said the country was safer "where people are not running around with guns."
In 2011, Japan sent 21,290 students to study in the United States, making it the seventh largest country of origin for international scholars. That was down 14% from the previous year, according to numbers from the Institute of International Education.
Figures have shown international study is down markedly among Japanese students to all destinations, including the United States. Experts have attributed the decline to Japan's low birthrate, the expense of foreign study in a poor economy, and a desire among Japanese young people to remain at home rather than venture to other countries.
Unlike the United States, the right to private gun ownership in Japan is not guaranteed in law. Individuals wishing to possess any firearm must obtain a license and demonstrate a reason for owning the gun.
Out of a total 582 homicides in Japan in 2008, 11 were by guns.
CNN's Kevin Liptak contributed to this report.
The article points out that Japanese students trave to other countries is "markedly down" also. And that it is due to the low birth rate. How many foreign exchnage students have been shot here? Hmmm!
This is just another attempt to gain leverage on new gun laws which obviously have been losing steam. Any college campus has a very huge number of foreign students who actively become involved with campus and American culture. I'd like to see th literature that supports Mr. Kerry's claim. I don't recall any recent gang rapes on busses or insurgents shooting at children who advocate for better education over here. Why does everyone migrate here if it's so unsafe? It obviously doesn't make sense to make these claims without an agenda.
What a load of crap. More students were killed in China by knives then in the US by guns. This is alarmist propaganda. Europe has higher crime rates than the US! Here is the real reason and it is from the actual article not by the idiot learch.
Figures have shown international study is down markedly among Japanese students to all destinations, including the United States. Experts have attributed the decline to Japan's low birthrate, the expense of foreign study in a poor economy, and a desire among Japanese young people to remain at home rather than venture to other countries.
PEOPLE! Tell me this. Why does the government want to remove the right of ordinary citizens to own firearms? Is it because we scare the Japanese? Is it because the mentally ill and criminals will now obey these new laws before they commit crimes? HELLO! No, it's because they want to turn people who believe in freedom into criminals. People that own firearms generally are not extremists, but are the portion of society that remind people like President Obama and Mayor Bloomberg that we do not want the government to tell us how to think and behave. You'll see after the 2nd amendment is gone and we will be defenseless to protect the 1st amendment. WAKE UP AMERICA! As a FREE society we have to accept some of it's tragic consequences, otherwise, you will eventually told by the GOVERNMENT that you must wear grey pants on Tuesday.
Background checks DOES NOT weed out idiotic, incompetent gun owners.
Then don't come here.
If you are scared of guns you are most likely also scared of being killed and facing judgement from god for your sins like those committed against the smart and hard working American families by allowing the government to unleash wall street of regulation and off shoring all our good jobs and giving a free ride to certain groups of people who do not deserve to even be in America.
Odd, all the young foreigners I've had the pleasure of hosting including Japanese and Dutch enjoyed shooting my guns. Yes that includes evil handguns and black rifles.
This article is bs. I work as a study abroad coordinator and the few foreigners who have these fears have had them for decades, based on ignorance and American films. They still come! They remark how much safer it is in NYC than in their home countries. On the flip side, Americans have real fears of studying abroad in other countries, where actual turmoil exists. This article is joke and propaganda!
This is whatO:-)O:-)O:-)O:-)
Foreign students mostly study in science and technology. Then they start inventing and making US what it is. If you look at the patents, many inventors are foreign born. If you go to Silicon Valley, you will understand.
Why is this surprising? The Democrats choose to concentrate on making the country more attractive to illegal immigrants while trying to take away rights given to us by the Constitution. The trend never ends.
"Figures have shown international study is down markedly among Japanese students to all destinations, including the United States."
Just another attempt at an angle to separate legal gun owners from their guns. Anyway I think some countries have too many beheadings with swords, so I choose not to study there. You see, instead of whining about a countries culture, I simply don't have to go there.
Weren't the attacks on Va Tech done by some foreign losers???
Kerry: Foreign students 'scared' of guns in U.S.
Then don't come to the USA.
2nd Amendment. Enough said.
The story even says that the students going to any country to study has declined. Way to use skewed info like usual to feed the sheep.
Politicians scare me.
Really. We need no more foreign students in this Country till they pay their fair share. No more Giov assistance till this Gov takes care of it's own. We need to stop ALL foreign Aid. All of it.
So which are they more afraid of John?
Our Second Amendment rights, or their own Government Police Force?
too bad he's actually trying to shift the focus from Education to his boss' anti guns agenda... We need a bigger focus on education and that focus needs to start here at home first.
That is good. Let them stay home.
Wow...foreign students are frightened by gun violence in America? I guess Kerry conducted a scientific pool to come to this conclusion. I'm sure that it's not a concerted effort on the behalf of the current administration, just a coincidence that this should be topically relevant in the context of Kerry's responsibilities.
So my suggestion, to all current and prospective foreign students that are concerned is simple – If you aren't comfortable here go elsewhere. Apparently the educational options available to you aren't equalt those of found in the US so if your concerns are so great please consider educating yourselves elsewhere. On the other hand if your desire is to to be educated in the US, as you enjoy all of the freedoms this country has to offer, perhaps you should realize that while our country is as advanced as many and more than most, we still have our problems, including insance mad dogs who kill others for no good reason. Odds are that you are already familiar with such situations especially if you come hereto study from the Middle East, Africa, the Baltic nations, Mexico, Central or South America. The primary difference being that our citizens aren't killed by their government due to ethnicity, political affiliation or religious beliefs.
I don't carry a weapon on my person or in my vehicle, although I do own several. I don't feel threatened in my own country by people that do. I respect the lawful and constitutional rights of others, and I don't try to force others to forgo their rights based on my own personal belief system, like so many gun control advocates do. In my opinion once you take away the constitutional rights of our citizens we are headed down a slippery slope. Our system has worked well for 237 years without revoking the Bill of Rights in part or in whole and I do not support or endorse any movement or act that reults in forfeit, modification, restriction or elimination of the rights granted to every citizen of this country.
I know rhetoric is strong right now on gun control and this issue relates to that. Regardless of what side you are on in this debate, the CNN is reporting the truth about foreign students concern for their safety here in the U.S. I have recruited hundreds of international students into our country and the primary concerns are safety, academic quality, campus life. I was surprised safety would be their primary concern, but it is. The reason this is important is because about 700,000 foreign students study here in the U.S. which makes it a multi-billion dollar industry. They pay retail (read out of state) tuition at our colleges and universities. The tuition they pay underwrites domestic scholarships, program and campus expansion and administrative fees. Its easy to say who cares what foreign students think about gun control, because they are not citizens, but if they decide one day to choose Canadian, Australian or U.K., universities as safer alternatives, it will affect every domestic college student in this country and cripple our higher education system which is already reeling from state budget cuts.
We host an exchange student and I cringe almost every morning when the top story is "Who got shot today". School shootings, crazy people at the mall, 4 year old who got hold of a rifle and accidently shot and killed his 6 year old friend...I can see why foreign students would have an issue.
Guns dont kill people, people do.... What a joke... so there is a choice lets get rid of people or guns... and NRA says dont get rid of guns... not even track or register them...


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nice fit, not very good quality
I've been on the hunt for a pair of affordable high-waist swim bottoms for some time now. The style has been back for a while, but for whatever reason, most high street brands haven't really been responsive. Naturally, the spokesperson of all things high-waisted, AA, has been one of the first mainstream retailers to provide an incredibly extensive selection of these swim bottoms to the masses.
Having held out on buying these bottoms for so long, I went ahead and picked up two bottoms on my visit: one ribbed, and the other with the navy/white grid pattern. I'm really pleased that it's not a half-hearted high rise, but rather, truly a bottom that hits right above the bellybutton. There is some variation between bottoms though, so I would advise trying these on in store to find one with a rise that you're truly satisfied with. I also recommend the ribbed bottoms over the original tricot ones. They're constructed of a more sturdier material, and the texture adds some subtle pizazz. A bit of an oxymoron, but you know what I mean.
Bottom line: two thumbs up.
I love the way this suit fits! It's rare for me to find a one-piece that fits my petite frame. I definitely recommend these suits for smaller framed girls!
Before I write the pros and cons of this piece, I'd like to start off by saying I absolutely adore it. It's one of my favorite pieces in my wardrobe, that I hardly wear.
As a swim piece, it's a little impractical. American Apparel may be known to show your nips, but with this piece, you could be bearing all on the accidental. Maybe it's because I'm flat chested, but the deep V could fly open from time to time, especially when wearing the hood on. (Also, it's very Brazilian cut, personally this isn't in my comfort zone.) The perk to wearing it as a swim piece is the refreshing cool you get from a wet hood as it falls on your bare back. When it's hot out and the sun is burning down on your back, this could feel like heaven.
As a one piece, this is amazing! The hood is an unconventional cool feature and it allows for a completely backless look. Great with high-waisted bottoms. It's simple, yet edgy.
On more quality aspects, the material has withstood many wears and washes.
They stretch out when i wear them but overall they look uber cuute.
So i got a two piece from aa and it was awful! FIrst of they run very small, second the quality is not very good...i went swimming and it got very loose and uncomfortable. im assuming this is how all thier swimwear is because they're all made of the same material...a very cheap form of nylon. would not recommend buying one.
i've always lover items from american apparel and the swimwear from there is absolutely a must on hot summer days :)
i've always lover items from american apparel and the swimwear from there is absolutely a must on hot summer days :)
i've been wanting a one piece swimsuit that's like a monokimi but at the same time that doesn't look slutty and i found it at american apparel. and it was cheap compared to other prices.


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The Carolina Panthers Proved To The NFL That They're Legitimate Contenders With A 10-9 Win Against The San Francisco 49ers.
|Ron Rivera And The Panthers Made A Statement On Sunday By Grinding It Out Against The 49ers. (via GettyImages)
In a hard-fought matchup against the San Francisco 49ers and the Carolina Panthers, the Panthers made a name for themselves. They justified their play as elite. Even though Cam Newton only threw 169 yard, 0 touchdowns and 1 interception, the Carolina defense was able to limit the 49ers to 0 touchdowns and 151 yards. Steve Smith lead Carolina with 8 catches for 63 yards. DeAngelo Williams was Carolina's leading rusher with 46 yards and a touchdown. The 49ers did win in one category, Frank Gore lead all rushers with 82 yards in 16 carries. However,Colin Kaepernick would probably want to forget his 91 yard,1 interception performance. The Panthers are now 6-3 and are 1 game behind in the NFC South, behind the New Orleans Saints. The Panthers do however currently hold the 2nd NFC Wildcard spot. They will face the New England Patriots On MNF In Week 11. The 49ers will travel to New Orleans face a very dangerous Saints team.
- Sports for the Fans, by the Fans.
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Bizarre 'Jewish Mum' Hits British Reality TV
In the Broadway production of Monty Python's Spamalot, midway through the second act Sir Robin advises King Arthur that "We won't succeed on Broadway / If you don't have any Jews." Starring dancing girls wearing Magen Davids and featuring a Fiddler on the Roof bottle dance parody, the song and the show was wildly successful in New York but not so in London, Sir Robin's tune described by The Guardian as "a Broadway in-joke that has little purchase this side of the Atlantic." When the show eventually went on tour in the United Kingdom, "You Won't Succeed on Broadway" was radically re-written, the focus shifting towards celebrity producers and actors.
That the joke was lost in translation was hardly surprising, given the absence in the U.K. of a strong tradition of either Jews as objects of humour (in a nice way, at least) or the Jewish sensibility as the butt of jokes. The rise of comics like Sacha Baron Cohen and Simon Amstell notwithstanding, the U.K. has never had prominent figures like Woody Allen and Jackie Mason who use Jewishness or stereotypical Jewish traits for comedic effect. Reflecting a desire for homogeneity, British humour has traditionally sought to be universal, compared to the way Jews and other minorities have carved out niches in the multi-ethnic American entertainment scene. That is, until now. A new primetime reality show has, whether they wanted it or not, pushed British Jews into the spotlight, highlighting in particular the old trope of the clingy, bolshy, and neurotic Jewish mother.
The premise of Jewish Mum of the Year (airing now on Channel 4) is a simple one: eight Jewish mothers compete in weekly trials, including organising a successful Bar Mitzvah and making a perfect match, in order to be named Mother of the Year by The Jewish News and become their new agony aunt columnist.
Reaction to the show indicates that the Jewish community very much did not speak this kind of attention. Simon Kelner, former editor of The Independent, called the show "borderline racist", adding "it embodies the very worst of modern British television". Actress Maureen Lipman – who herself played a Jewish mum in a series of adverts for British Telecom in the 1980s – said it is "disgusting", "appalling, "very damaging", and "the next stage in this culture of humiliation on television". Former chairman of the BBC Michael Grade opined, "I don't know what it was supposed to be. They seemed to cram in every cliché in the book."
It certainly doesn't help that Jewish Mum is broadcast by the same channel which made My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, a documentary series which, it was argued, cherry-picked and exaggerated some of the uglier and gaudier aspects of the gypsy and traveller lifestyle. And indeed, the complaints about Jewish Mum are not without grounding. After all, some of the matriarchs appear to come straight out of central casting: Ruth, the Orthodox divorcee; Emma, the lady who lunches; Lesley, who says modern Jewish mums don't need to cook. These polarised personalities are then deliberately paired for the tasks in order to create friction and thus good television. And then there's the judges, one of whom is Dovid Katz, Yiddish scholar and human rights activist who has been selected to play some sort of pantomime Jew: heavy accent; thick beard; random smatterings of Hebrew.
Its defenders have gone to great lengths to argue that Jewish Mum celebrates Jewish motherhood and that the show is entertainment, not documentary. On this, despite my initial weariness and scepticism some parts of the show turned out to be pretty funny. At the Bar Mitzvah, tasked with making the all-important cake, Lesley and Tracy elected to use a 'just add water' batter and premade buttercream and icing rather than make anything from scratch. Meanwhile, Emma ended up standing on a table at the end of the celebration in order to distribute personalised pairs of 'Israeli trousers', screaming as she did so: "NOAH! ELIJAH!" When the time came for the mums to play Yenta, Ruth – who initially seemed irked by the idea that a man might greet a woman with bisous on both cheeks – flirted with and fawned shamelessly over her choice of date for the young lady Nicola, and suffered when it came to the judging as a result.
I am inclined to side with those to question the motives of the show's producers in all this, but in the end, whatever its merits as television and flaws as representation, the problem for the programme's makers might not be the reaction from Jews but the country at-large. Whereas My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding was a big fat hit, the first and second episodes of Jewish Mum both came fourth in their timeslot, bringing in 1.4 million viewers, a 6 percent share of the total audience between 9pm and 10pm. I remain slightly curious, the aforementioned cultural differences, to see what an American audience would make of this bizarre British reality show.


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Static Alice are a four piece rock band from Guernsey and their lineup consists of Dom Ogier on Vocals, Luis Morais on Lead Guitar, Scott Michel on Bass and Backing Vocals and Andre Marsh on Drums. The band are driven by different musical influences and this has resulted in them having a unique sound.
Static Alice have supported up and coming bands such as Evarane, Brother & Bones and Frankie Davies and are looking at touring the UK later this year.
They perform both cover songs and also original material as featured on their debut album - The Ghost Of Common Sense.
Black Cadillac Man serves up killer beats and powerful vocals thanks to Dom and catchy lyrics that will be sure to infect your brain.
King Kong delivers captivating music all across the board from its energetic vocals to the instrumental arrangement, especially the guitars which are not only pure rock but also highly addictive to the ears
Fashion Victim is another catchy melody, which once again impresses all across the musical spectrum.
Save Our Souls has a more mellow feel to it, thanks to beautiful vocals and a subtle instrumental arrangement and talking of instrumentals those guitar riffs are pure electric.
Alive is another corker of a tune with captivating beats, mesmerizing vocals and deep and powerful lyrics.
Rewind is chock full of electric beats, powerful vocals, a smooth guitar arrangement and more emotive lyrics.
Falling Glory is a more stripped back melody in places but it also delivers Static Alice's usual brand of powerful rock music.
Southern Star goes in hard with super powered beats, lyrics full of emotional intensity and a first class vocal performance.
Website - http://www.staticalice.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/StaticAlice
Twitter - https://twitter.com/staticalice
Post By - Boulent Mustafa
Twitter - @OBsMusicUk


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Nonprofit to outfit state police K-9 with protective vest
PENDLETON, Ind. — An Indiana State Police dog will receive protective armor from a Massachusetts-based nonprofit.
Vested Interest in K-9s of East Taunton, Massachusetts, will outfit Tora, a K-9 officer with ISP's Pendleton District, with a best that protects against bullets and sharp objects, according to an ISP news release. Delivery of the vest is expected within 10 weeks.
Tora's vest is being sponsored by an anonymous donor and will be embroidered with "in memory of Mel Nading, Pilot of Helo 1," the release said. Vested Interest in K-9s requires a donation of $950 to supply a vest. Each vest is valued at between $1,744 and $2,283, carries a five-year warranty and weighs about 5 pounds.
►K-9 VESTS: VFW buys vests to protect sheriff's K-9's
►K-9 VESTS: Non-profit donates protective vest for RPD K-9
►K-9 VESTS: Eaton K-9 to receive donated protective vest
Vested Interest in K-9s was established in 2009, and has distributed more than 2,800 protective vests at a cost of more than $2.4 million, according to the release. Certified dogs actively employed with law enforcement or related agencies and are eligible to receive the vests.
Since the beginning of 2017, Vested Interest in K-9s has contributed vests to two other area police dogs. Eaton (Ohio) Police Division's Shadow received a vest early in 2017, and Richmond Police Department's Max also received a vest last year.
The Kirk-Little Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1108 purchased protective vests for Wayne County Sheriff's Office K-9s Ozzy and Agar last year, as well.
For more information about Vested Interest in K-9s or to make a tax-deductible donation, visit the website www.vik9s.org.


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7th Floor, 214 Place, 9909 102 Street
Grande Prairie, AB
Edmonton, AB
Researching debt solutions in Sexsmith? You can count on MNP LTD to be there for you. We appreciate that no two people face the same financial troubles, which is why you can rely on us to work with you and develop a customized debt settlement plan that suits your unique situation.
We have more than 50 years' experience helping Canadians overcome financial challenges. When you require professional debt help to handle hard times, you can rest assured that we'll provide you with the array of options you need to satisfy the needs of your particular finances.
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We know this is a troubling time for you, which is why we're prepared to put you first to help you achieve financial freedom. Our insightful Licensed Insolvency Trustees appreciate the importance of personalized professional advice, so they'll make sure to carefully evaluate your situation before recommending appropriate debt settlement remedies. When it comes to debt help we're here to connect you with the best course of action, whether that's a straightforward consumer proposal or filing for bankruptcy. When it comes to debt solutions in Sexsmith, rest assured that your local MNP LTD Licensed Insolvency Trustee can help you take a step in the right direction.
Unsure if your finances need professional intervention? Reach out to us now for debt help if:
- You spend more than you earn
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A consumer proposal allows you to make arrangements to pay some or all of your unsecured debts through monthly payments over a specified period of time (up to a maximum of 5 years).
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Depending on the total amount of debt you may have, this is an option to speak with your creditors directly and arrange a lower interest rate or a repayment schedule that works for you.
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Debt consolidation gathers your debt into a single monthly repayment so that you can repay multiple creditors through one monthly payment.
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Under this program, the court will combine your loans and pay your unsecured debts on your behalf at a 5% per annum interest rate in three or more years.
Personal Bankruptcy
When it comes to your restoring your credit, there's more than one way to get it done. Together with your MNP LTD Licensed Insolvency Trustee, you can review the advantages and disadvantages of each of your available options.
While you may be aware of some of the debt settlement options available to you, it isn't always easy to determine the best route out of debt. Choosing MNP LTD means you're choosing to receive advice specific to your situation. Together, we can evaluate every solution that applies to your particular needs.
For more information, all you have to do is use the online form – or call 780-833-5385 today to make an appointment for a FREE consultation.


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Giovanni Testi 2 Button Peak Lapel Slim Fit Grey with Burgundy Windowpane Suit GT2P-3687
$179.99 $359.99
Product Details
Giovanni Testi 2 Piece 2 Button Slim Fit suit. Peak Lapel, and Center Vent. Slim Fit Flat front Pants are standard drop 6 (i.e. 40R comes with 34 inch waist).
Color : Grey-Burgundy Windowpane
Please note that these are Slim Fit Suits and most of our customers fit 1 size up from their fashion/Classic Fitting suits.


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We all have to sleep. When I was single, all I needed was a mattress on the floor, a pillow, and a blanket. Sheets and pillowcases not needed. After I got married, my wife required all sorts of stuff. We had to have a skirt on the box springs, which was very weird since I didn't even own a box spring before we met. We also got a headboard and it was a wooden lame thing I bumped my head on constantly.
If you have to have a headboard, you might as well have a cool one I say. Check out Jaroot's DIY TARDIS headboard that is perfect for a Doctor Who themed room. Unfortunately, my wife would nix this idea since it won't match the skirt on the box springs or those weird curtains in the window.
The TARDIS even hides some bookshelves on the inside. This might be the coolest headboard ever made and it doesn't look all that complicated to build.
[via Instructables via Nerd Approved]


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Speaking Japanese will allow you to communicate with the 128 million people that live on the archipelago. You don't even necessarily need to be fluent, speaking just basic Japanese will make you stand out from the crowd.
Maybe you have always been fascinated by Japan, its ancestral traditions, and its language and culture. Or perhaps you are a fan of Japanese manga and would like to be able to read them in their original version. You might even be planning to go to Japan for your next vacation or to live and work there. Whatever your motivation is, you are probably thinking about how to learn Japanese.
There are a number of great ways to learn Japanese, and depending on your learning style, time constraints, and even budget, there is a method out there for you.
A lot of people find that the ability to learn Japanese online fits all three. Most online Japanese language course focus on Nihongo, the form of Japanese learnt by beginners as a second language. Depending on which course your choose, you can develop a conversational level focused around Japanese vocabulary and greetings, or a more advanced level that focuses on grammatical structures in order to prepare you for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT)
The internet can seem an overwhelming place at times. Fortunately, Superprof is on hand to give you all of the information that you need to start your journey to fluently speak Japanese.
Follow this guide and you will know what tools you need in order to learn the art of Japanese conversation!
Learn Japanese for Free
When you start your Japanese learning adventure, you will come across a number of different terms. Generally speaking, these refer to the complex Japanese writing system which is composed of syllabic kana and logographic kanji. Kana has two syllabaries; hiragana and katakana. Japanese kanji are based on borrowed Chinese characters.
Don't worry, any good online course will run through the intricacies of these writing systems as you learn how to read and write in Japanese.
The Ici Japon website offers free Japanese beginner classes. As soon as you enter the site, you will learn to pronounce the different sounds and recognize the four forms of writing:
- Hiragana (ひ ら が な)
- Katakana (カ タ カ ナ)
- Kanji (漢字) = Chinese characters
- Roumaji (romaji)
The courses themselves are composed of:
- vocabulary
- translation of a text (discover the best English-Japanese translation tools)
- grammar
- Japanese reading comprehension
As you progress with the lessons, you will find less and less English, and more and more Japanese, so make sure that you start studying right from the beginning!
Even if at first learning this language seems complicated, after the free lessons, you will already have a solid foundation in the Japanese language.
Japanese-Lesson is another free website.
On the Japanese-Lesson website, you can access online courses written by Japanese teachers.
You will learn how to say "yes" and "no" along with the pronunciation and all other nuances of these words. This seems like easy enough words to us in the West, but for example, in Chinese there is no straight "no."
There are also classes to learn the polite phrases: "hello," "goodbye," "thank you," or "goodnight." Again, depending on the situation, there are many possible variants.
To progress and express yourself easily, be careful to learn Japanese words (verb, proverbs, complements, adjectives...).
With Japanese-Lesson, you can even find a way to learn bad words and insults in Japanese if you really want!
When you learn a language, it is important to also learn a little bit about the culture of the language. On this site you will encounter advice for travelers, life tips, a brief history of Japan, and a bit on customs like the "matsuri"--traditional folk festivals.
The Easyjapanese site offers online courses in PDF format, which can be useful if you are traveling to Japan and want to study on the plane to Tokyo.
The other advantage of this site is its collaborative aspect. The English-Japanese dictionary can be enriched by all users of the site and if you want to share any knowledge about a life experience, you can do it through the forum. An all-around more lively way to learn Japanese!
The site insists on Japanese grammar, which is totally different from ours but obviously essential if you want to one day build a correct sentence and make yourself understood by a native speaker!
The Tofugu site gives you a chance to learn the Japanese alphabet.
You will also find an "art and history" tab to learn more about Japanese culture.
Did you know, for example, that a geisha is a refined lady and that the art of being one is an ancestral art? It is quite far from its role of a prostitute in Western movies!
If you are a fan of gourmet meals, you will also learn all about what makes up Japanese cuisine (sushi, sashimi, yakitori, maki, sake...), as well as the origin of these dishes, how to cook them, and where to eat them!
Paying for your Online Japanese Classes
Do you want to go further in your Japanese language learning? Opt for paid language courses!
Learning Japanese Online Thanks to Superprof
We obviously recommend that you learn Japanese with us by finding a teacher on the Superprof website! You can find Japanese courses London or any other city around the UK.
Our search engine allows you to type in the course you are looking for ("Japanese language online") and enter your address in order to find a teacher near you!
The advantage is that you can choose your tutor, and he or she will come to your home (or give you Japanese lessons via webcam). Using our platform is free and ensures the quality of the tutors!
You can even learn the art of calligraphy if it floats your boat!
Learn Japanese Online to Enrich your Vocabulary
If you have already acquired the basics of the Japanese language (Japanese characters and maybe some Japanese phrases), then it might be time to enrich your vocabulary in order to better engage with Animé or Manga!
There are sites that will allow you to learn vocabulary using the expressions used by manga characters, lexical fields (love, school, samurai. or ninja), and then invite you to test your knowledge via a quiz for each category.
Games are also a good way to permanently have vocabulary enter your mind, and if you are a fan of manga, you will be even more receptive to this form of learning!
To learn more vocabulary, don't bypass purchasing a good English-Japanese dictionary. You can set your goal at learning three words a day and trying to string a sentence together as you begin to know more words by heart. You will see that your progress will be remarkable!
Another way to learn vocabulary is to read in Japanese or watch movies in the original version! Many animation films are Japanese. There are of course Miyazaki's masterpieces! This way of learning vocabulary will mean that you are also learning about Japanese culture.
In the modern day, where technology is everywhere, you can even use your smartphone to download one of a number of great apps for learning Japanese.
I Want to Discover Japanese Civilization
If you are looking to travel to Japan, it is essential to know some key words and phrases, along with the Japanese pronunciation, to help you get by. It may also be wise to learn the habits and customs of the country as well as its geography.
Japan has a very rich history and culture. This means you will almost certainly leave the land of the rising sun with a unique cultural perspective on things. But before visiting Japan, it would be worth finding out the answers to some important questions in order to make the most of your trip:
- What is the most popular religion in Japan?
- When can one see the cherry blossoms?
- What is the name of the current Emperor?
- Which temple and what sanctuary are the best places to visit?
- What is the history of the kimono?
- How did the country recover from the Second World War and the bombs dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima?
- What does the future hold for Japan since the Fukushima nuclear disaster?
And maybe you're interested in something more modern, like Japanese cell phone culture. It is more socially important than in most Western countries.
In Japan cell phones are called keitai denwa (携帯電話), literally "portable telephones," and are often known simply as keitai. As in Western countries the majority of the Japanese population now own a cell phone (keitai).
Japanese is culturally very different to the western world. Luckily, thanks to the internet, you find a number of videos to study Japanese, and the cultural nuances that go with it.
When visiting Japan there are some particular cultural difference you should you look out for. Japanese people have excellent phone manners in public. In Japan, chatting on the phone on the train is considered extremely rude and generally isn't tolerated. On the Shinkansen and some other inter city trains it is acceptable to talk on the phone at the end of the carriage if there are doors between the seats and the end of the carriage.
There are normally signs on the train reminding people to switch their phones to "manner mode", meaning silent. People are also generally careful about when and where they speak on the phone, since causing inconvenience to others and drawing attention to oneself in public is something a lot of Japanese people would rather avoid.
Most Japanese people have a privacy film on the front of their phone screen that blocks the phone from being viewed except for directly in front of the screen. When people are packed tightly on a peak time train they still want some privacy.
The Kanpai site answers some of these questions and invites you to discover the four main islands (Shikoku, Hokkaido, Honshu, Kiushu), the Okinawa archipelago, Mount Fuji, and the use of its famous high speed train, Shinkansen.
In addition to being a tour guide, you can learn Japanese through the conversation guides available on the Kampai website.
If you are passionate about cinema and animated films, we advise you to read the analyses of works such as The Castle in Cielou and Princess Mononoke.
Be aware that there are some good books to study Japanese. Such textbooks can be used to learn to speak Japanese on your own, or as a supplement for your language lessons.
In short:
- If you want to learn the Japanese language, start by knowing the alphabet first. Most people are able to master it in a few weeks, so you should be alright! Once this step is over, things will become a lot easier for you!
- Learning Japanese can be done online if you are rigorous and studious. If not, you should learn with a private tutor.
- When learning a language - especially the Japanese language - it is important to immerse oneself in the culture and history of the country. This will allow you to better understand the country and the use of certain words rather than not have a clue!
- If you are looking for a private Japanese tutor, check out the Superprof website for an online Japanese course.
The platform that connects tutors and students


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Native American State Names
D.P. in Moorpark, California, writes:
How many of our states have names related to Native Americans?
Marilyn responds:
About 50 percent. Actually the number runs from 24 to 26, depending on one's research, so I'll call it 25, or half of our 50 states. The uncontested states are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Arguments have been made that Oregon and New Mexico should also be included. (Yes, New Mexico is named after the country of Mexico, but Mexico itself has a native name.)
(scroll to keep reading)


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Laser class safety info
Lasers are divided into classifications -- from 1 to 4 -- based on their eye and skin hazards. Click for more details about the laser class system.
All lasers should be marked with their Class. Click the links below to find information on the hazards of a specific class:
- Class 2 or II (up to 1 milliwatt - typical laser pointer in most countries)
- Class 3R or IIIa (up to 5 milliwatts - maximum power for a legal laser pointer in the U.S.)
- Class 3B or IIIb (up to 500 milliwatts - moderate to serious eye hazard)
- Class 4 or IV (500 milliwatts or more - eye and skin hazard)
Click for a chart comparing the hazard distances of lasers with various powers, divergences and colors


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Apple Sued Over Logo By Apple Farmer
Apple Computer, having recently won a suit brought by Apple Rrecords, the company founded by the Beatles, was surprised to find itself immediately dragged back into court to face a challenge by an incensed New York apple farmer.
"What do these boys mean," the farmer went on, "claiming they own a picture of an apple with a bite out of it?" Gesturing to his acres of apple blossoms, he continued, "My father started this here apple orchard over a hundred years ago, and we've had a picture of an apple with a bite out of it on the side of our roadside farm stand for nigh onto seventy-five years. As far as I'm concerned, these Silicon Valley slickers have infringed on my copyright and on the rights of apple growers everywhere."
Apple CEO Steve Jobs responded, "I hope we can put this suit behind us, because we've always loved apple farmers. In all honesty, I admit we didn't invent an apple with a bite taken out of it. It's one of our least original ideas. That's why we always have to defend it. If I had it to do over again, I would have picked a more unusual fruit, like a Kiwi or maybe a Start fruit."
The farmer was not pacified, insisting, "When I get done with these cagy fellers, they'll be sorry they ever set eyes on an apple."


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I witnessed three wonder events in our church service today. It was obvious God is working through His people. I wish I could share details of the the joyous things I witnessed, but I will not in favor of not putting people on the spot.
I will say that I have no doubt that the majority of the people present in church today not only gathered for a religious event but came in the spirit of relational outreach that is called for by our Lord. The folks today walked the walk! I am so humbled to be their pastor. No greater love could have been demonstrated today than in the efforts (authentic efforts) made by members to be the presence of our Lord to others.
Today blessed my soul and have believe with all my heart God was smiling as well!


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Tag Archives: bird hide
Upcoming Events
International Coastal Cleanup is on Saturday 17th September. FOL have participated for several years as a result of an article in the newspaper stating that the litter on the beaches of Robben Island came from the Liesbeek. We have usually … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged bird hide, Coastal Clean-up, Observatory Comments Off on Upcoming Events


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Designers Ed Meadham and Ben Kirchhoff have lately found themselves fashion darlings, fêted in publications ranging from Love to the Evening Standard's fashion supplement. Which is ironic, since the pair has made it their business to kick against the industry's pricks in every possible way. Most of today's capacity crowd probably expected another "fuck off" show, like those of recent vintage. Instead, they got a coup de théâtre—a dazzling, candy-colored spectacle that had a few showgoers shedding tears.
There was virtually no end to the mise-en-scène. The runway was decorated with balloon archways, where, to the strains of Meadham's beloved Hole, a gaggle of Courtney Love manqués appeared and applied lipstick en masse. Then they started dancing, and the models came out, taking lickety-split turns down the catwalk in check button-downs, vintage cartoon appliqués, fluffy pastel marabou coats, and little shifts and sculptured dresses with a wedding cake theme executed in couture-worthy broderie anglaise.
For the second act, a bunch of schoolgirl ballerinas emerged, then a curtain dropped behind them, revealing a Busby Berkeley-style tableau of models arrayed on a giant cake. They stepped onto the catwalk one by one, exhibiting peignoir-inspired pieces, showgirl sequined hot pants, and micro dresses that looked like baby-doll versions of the gowns Marie Antoinette used to wear. After the last model disappeared backstage, a lone ballerina climbed on top of the cake and twirled.
What was that about? And why was it all so oddly moving? This Meadham Kirchhoff collection was in many ways a return to the themes the designers addressed in Spring 2011. That show positively spit fury, though—protesting the ways women get hemmed in by expectations to be pretty and frilly, sexy and sweet. This time around, Meadham and Kirchhoff went through the looking glass, thought about what it means to be a girl, and came out the other side full of joy. Meadham said after the show that they'd been preoccupied with what he called "the girl on the cake": starlets, showgirls, beauty pageant winners, models, and princesses. "I wanted to take them off the cake, and put a real girl up there," he explained. A real girl, he went on, not defined by feminine frippery, though she may occasionally indulge in it. Meadham and Kirchhoff certainly do; this collection absolutely luxuriated in ruffles, spangles, and bubble-gum colors. All that sugar and spice was spun into a collection full of theatrical looks, yes, but it also included items you could actually and happily wear. No wonder people were crying. To paraphrase Courtney Love: Who doesn't want to be the girl with the most cake?


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Pure Hidden
When we first reviewed the PC version of Pure Hidden, we were absolutely glowing. "A gem of a game," we called it, and it wasn't hard to see why. Blending outstanding art with a seemingly endless variety of gameplay, it was easily one of the best hidden object games of 2009. Now OUAT Entertainment has brought that experience to the iPhone.
The portable version of Pure Hidden offers up 3 modes of play: traditional, find, and spot the difference. Traditional plays like you're average HOG, as you'll be looking for different items hidden in the scenery. Some will be part of the original image, some will be hiding behind others, and some with be blended in with other objects making them harder to discern.
'Find' gameplay is similar to traditional, only you'll be tasked with finding so many of a certain object. 7 stars, for example. It's a simple twist, but it certainly makes for an interesting shift in focus. 'Spot the difference' should also be familiar to many HOG veterans, as you'll see two scenes side by side and need to find the tiny differences between the two pictures. The picture on the left has a hot dog blended into the couch while the one on the right doesn't – that sort of thing.
As you make your way through each traditional, find, and spot stage, you'll earn stars depending on your performance. Finish a stage to earn one star, finish it quickly to earn another, finish it without hints for another, and so on. Once you've collected five stars (which shouldn't take you more than a few stages) you'll unlock the scoring level. The scoring level plays out like the traditional mode, only you'll be given one item to search for at a time, and rather than being blended into the scenery all of the items will be in a big messy pile in the center of the screen.
The game offers more than 150 stages, and when you combine that with the countless times you'll be trying to beat your best score in the scoring level, there's no question that Pure Hidden is a fairly sizable offering.
Still, the game isn't without its problems. The idea of an iPhone HOG is a challenging one. Hidden objects are meant to be small and hard to find by their very nature, but when you put them on a 3.5″ screen it can be next to impossible. OUAT Entertainment have found a simple way around that, letting you zoom with a simple double tap. The problem? The game penalizes you for using this, as you'll lose a potential star if you need to zoom. Even worse, it's far too easy to zoom by accident when trying to click on an object, forcing you to lose the star when you're trying so hard not to.
Veterans may also be disappointed to see that a good deal of what made the original game so great simply doesn't exist in the portable version. Mini-games didn't make the cut, nor did the items you'd need to earn to open more stages. While still an enjoyable experience, the portable version of Pure Hidden is unquestionably inferior to its PC counterpart, resulting in a game that feels more like a traditional HOG than its whimsical predecessor did.
It wasn't without its flaws, and it doesn't offer the variety that the PC version did, but Pure Hidden still manages to pack an exceptional amount of gameplay into a reasonably priced package while maintaining the charm and appeal of the original. If you enjoy hidden object hunts and you love wildly varying art styles, you'll find Pure Hidden on the iPhone to be both a good time and a great value.


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❝ Hispanic voters were largely credited with President Obama's victory in 2012, but they weren't as crucial as many believed. Mr. Obama didn't even need to win the Hispanic vote to put him over the top, thanks to high black turnout and support among white voters in the North. The turnout among Hispanic voters didn't surge, even though exit polls implied that it had.
This year, Hispanic voters, perhaps motivated by Donald J. Trump's policy proposals (including deportation) and harsh language aimed at undocumented Hispanic immigrants, really might decide this election.
❝ Early voting data unequivocally indicates that Hillary Clinton will benefit from a long awaited surge in Hispanic turnout, vastly exceeding the Hispanic turnout from four years ago.
It's too soon to say whether it will be decisive for her. The geographic distribution of Hispanic voters means that many of her gains will help her in noncompetitive states like Texas and California, not Michigan and Pennsylvania.
But the surge is real, and it's big. It could be enough to overcome Mr. Trump's strength among white-working class voters in the swing states of Florida and Nevada. If it does, it will almost certainly win her the election…
Lots of details for electoral politics wonks. When you live in a state where Hispanic ethnicity wavers forth-and-back over the 50% boundary you accept that issue-specific voting takes place. That's fine. Here in northern New Mexico at least the memory of days when Democrats had the backbone for class warfare still counts at election time.
So does voter turnout. Not so unusual to see 50% turnout in primaries. At least Democrat primaries, here. Presidential elections often turn out 60-70% of registered voters. Better than average US numbers.


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December 1st Is World AIDS Day
This is one awareness day where your coffee habit can make a difference. Starbucks is donating 5¢ to the Global Fund for every Starbucks beverage sold on December 1, 2008 at participating US and Canada locations.
h/t Emergiblog
And Dr. Anonymous has a nice post about World AIDS Day, citing this letter from a survivor:
(This is an excerpt from a letter to the editor from the Cleveland Plain Dealer from November 30, 2008):
I am a 20-year survivor living with AIDS, and another World AIDS Day (Monday) is fast approaching. Food trays once left at hospital room doors of those dying from AIDS are now being served. The preventative measure of "gown ing-up" has come and gone. However, the stigma of AIDS has stayed unchanged. Sadly, there are conflicting AIDS transmission fears and infection rates spiraling out of control.
I am blessed in that I am still here, with thinning hair, bifocals and my AARP card in hand. I am living proof of the incredible medical strides made in managing HIV/AIDS. I am blessed in living to see nieces and nephews come into my world and bring forth great-nieces and great-nephews. I am blessed in that I continue to continue. I still grieve for the many friends I've lost to AIDS.
This year, another 56,000-plus Americans will become needlessly infected with HIV/AIDS. We know how to prevent HIV infection. We need to wage a War on AIDS in America. We know how to win it.
Robert W. Toth — Cleveland, OH


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Madonna of the Trail
Source: NSDAR
The Autograph of a Nation Written Across the Face of a Continent
The idea of marking a highway was begun in Missouri about 1909 by a group of women who formed a committee to locate the Old Santa Fe Trail in Missouri. This committee was influential in securing an appropriation from the State of Missouri to mark the trail with suitable boulders or monuments.
This idea further developed into plans for a highway to be designated as the National Old Trails Road, by Act of Congress, and the work of marking was carried on in conjunction with the National Old Trails Road Association.
In 1911, the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution established a national committee known as the National Old Trails Road Committee whose work was, primarily, to definitely establish the Old Trails Road as a great National Memorial Highway.
In 1912, the National Old Trails Road Association came into being and stated in its bylaws that, "the object of the Association shall be to assist the Daughters of the American Revolution in marking Old Trails and to promote the construction of an Ocean-to-Ocean Highway of modern type worthy of its memorial character." The Association, under the presidency of Harry S. Truman, guaranteed the expense of the erection of the monuments.
In 1924, the plan was changed from a proposed small cast iron marker on the Trails to that of erecting 12 large markers. In 1927, the Daughters of the American Revolution Continental Congress accepted the design -- The Madonna of the Trail.
The Madonna of the Trail is a pioneer woman clasping her baby with her young son clinging to her skirts. The face of the mother, strong in character, beauty, and gentleness, is the face of a mother who realizes her responsibilities and trust in God. It has a feeling of solidarity -- a monument which will stand through the ages.
The figure of the mother is of heroic proportions -- 10 feet high with a weight of 5 tons. The base upon which the figure stands is 6 feet high and weights 12 tons. This, in turn, rests upon a foundation that is placed on the ground, standing 2 feet above the level which makes the monument 18 feet above the ground.
The figure and the base are made of algonite stone (a poured mass) of which the Missouri granite is used as the main aggregate, thus giving the monument a warm, pink shade which is the color of the Missouri native granite. It was thought and expected that this stone had admirable aging qualities and, with time, would improve in color and solidarity.
On the two sides of the base are to be found words of historical data or local commemoration. These inscriptions are of the Revolutionary period or the early history in respective localities. These monuments were erected in each of the 12 states through which the National Old Trails Road passes. The design of the monument was that of sculptor August Leimbach of St. Louis and was offered by Mrs. John Trigg Moss, Chairman of the DAR national committee.
At Bethesda, Maryland, during the week of April 19, 1929, the twelfth of the monuments erected by state societies of the Daughters of the American Revolution were dedicated to mark the Ocean-to-Ocean Highway in honor of the pioneer mothers of covered wagon days. It is located beside the Bethesda Post Office and commemorates the spot where the pioneers spent the first night out of Georgetown on their way to the west. Bethesda is the eastern terminus of the Cumberland Road, the first portion of the National Old Trails Road leading to the Santa Fe Trail. Pioneers from the Tidewater country traveled west in Conestoga Wagons, a type of covered wagon which originated in Conestoga, Pennsylvania about 1725. They were large wagons, drawn by four to six horses and were capable of carrying up to eight tons. The bottom of the wagon curved upward at both ends, and the upper part was usually painted red and the lower part blue. The white canvas roof was high and rounded, while the wheels were made with broad rims to prevent bogging down in mud. The Conestoga was first used by farmers and later carried most of the freight and passengers that went westward over the Alleghenies from the time of the Revolutionary War until about 1850. The Conestoga wagon was sometimes called the "camel of the prairies."
The Madonna in Bethesda was dedicated nine and one-half months after the first one at Springfield, Ohio. There was a week of activities in which the birth of our Nation was celebrated with the 154th anniversary of the battle of Lexington of the Revolutionary War. On April 19, 1929, former Postmaster General Harry S. New accepted the monument for the people of Bethesda. Mrs. Robert A. Welsh, Maryland's State Regent, accepted guardianship of the statue and ground for the Bethesda Chapter, DAR, known as the Colonel Tench Tilghman Chapter. The plot was donated by Mr. Walter R. Tuckerman, first President of the Chamber of Commerce, and his wife Edith. If this land should cease to be used for the purpose of the site of a patriotic memorial to the Pioneer Mothers of the Covered Wagon Days, it is to revert to the granters, Walter R. and Edith Tuckerman.
Mrs. William H. Talbott, who unveiled the monument, was past chairman of the Old Trails Committee and past regent of her chapter. Judge Harry S. Truman made the address and the Honorable William Tyler Page led the "American's Creed."
The statue faces east, with the post office on the north. The inscription on the south:
The inscription on the north:
And, so, we Daughters pay tribute to pioneer mothers as preserved in twelve like monuments in twelve states of our union. One can wish for no greater inspiration than to pause at the monument of a Madonna of the Trail and think of the mothers of the past whose pleasures and hardships, victories and privations we will never know. We may well cherish and perpetuate the many sterling qualities they hand down to us.
In the words of Mrs. Moss, "There's a long, long, trail awinding into the land of dreams" of an only highway from Colonial East through sands of the West, to the Spanish Southwest.
Location and Dedication Dates:
Ohio, Springfield (4 July 1928)
West Virginia, Wheeling (7 July 1928)
Kansas, Council Grove (7 September 1928)
Missouri, Lexington (17 September 1928)
Colorado, Lamar (24 September 1928)
New Mexico, Albuquerque (27 September 1928)
Arizona, Springerville (29 September 1928)
Illinois, Vandalia (26 October 1928)
Indiana, Richmond (28 October 1928)
Pennsylvania, Washington County (8 December 1928)
California, Upland (1 February 1929)
Maryland, Bethesda (week of 19 April 1929)


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On 27th July 2016, the Financial Services Authority (Otoritas Jasa Keuangan or "OJK") issued Regulation No. 27/POJK.03/2016 on Fit and Proper Test ("FPT") for Primary Parties of Financial Services Institutions ("Regulation 27") which took effect on 1st August 2016.
Regulation 27 intends to harmonise all FPT requirements for Financial Services Institutions ("FSI") and therefore is applicable to: (i) banks, (ii) securities companies, (iii) investment advisors, (iv) insurance companies, (v) pension funds, (vi) financing companies, (vii) credit guarantee companies, (viii) venture capital companies and (ix) pawn shops.
Regulation 27 partially revokes Regulation No. 4/POJK.05/2013 on Fit and Proper Test for Primary Parties of Insurance Companies, Pension Funds, Financing Companies and Credit Guarantee Companies ("Regulation 4"). Regulation 27 revokes most of the provisions under Regulation 4, including Chapter III — Scoring Components of FPT and Chapter IV — FPT Procedure, except those that are related to continuous education for Primary Parties and incidental FPT as requested by the OJK.
In light of the above, until the implementing circular letter of Regulation 27 is issued, there is an absence of FPT rules for assessing insurance companies' Primary Parties. The OJK has confirmed that the implementing circular letter is targeted to be issued one month after the issuance of Regulation 27. However, in practice this may take longer.
Due to the absence of the FPT assessment rules for insurance companies, it is unclear how the OJK will treat an insurance company's FPT application during this transition period.
The OJK has suggested that to avoid uncertainty and a prolonged process, insurance companies should wait until the circular letter is issued before filing any FPT application.
Hadiputranto, Hadinoto & Partners, Member of Baker & McKenzie International - 11th August 2016
Capital: Jakarta
Population: 259 million (2016)
Currency: Indonesian Rupiah
Nominal GDP: $936 billion USD (IMF, 2016)
GDP Per Capita: $3,620 USD at Current Prices (IMF, 2016)
GDP Growth: 5.0% (2016)
External Debt: 36.80% of GDP (BI, Q2 2016)
Ease of Doing Business: 91/190 (WB, 2017)
Corruption Index: 90/176 (TI, 2016)
Indonesia's Insurance Sector; A Stable Outlook
Investing in the Insurance Sector in Indonesia
Health Insurance in Indonesia: Public Coverage No Threat to Private Sector
OJK Revokes Stimulus Package for Insurance Companies and Pension Funds


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The Grange Estate is known locally as a `rough estate' and Joe Weeks has just moved in. Joe is laid back but is quite eager to make friends with his neighbours. He meets Carl and Cheryl and before long he is one of them. With their regular parties and weed smoking, Joe fits in a treat.
Eddie Quinn also lives on the estate and is known as the hardest man around town. He is also living from his reputation which is one that you don't wish to cross. When Joe is asked if he wants to work as Eddie's driver he jumps at the opportunity. Joe soon runs into Katya who is a very frightened prostitute who is trapped as a practical slave and wants nothing more than to escape from Eddie. Joe soon gets drawn into a dangerous life surrounded by death, drugs and prostitutes.
Well first off I have to say I was shocked at the small offering that arrived when the book turned up. I am used to receiving a Mandasue Heller book that is a hefty offering as opposed to this slimmed down version. I picked up the book hoping that this one was better than her last book as I wasn't that impressed with it. Initially the first few chapters seemed to be going well. We get introduced to Joe and get to know the goings on of all the people who live on the estate. Joe as a character isn't the strongest Mandasue Heller has ever written but he was a likeable guy.
We also see the bad guy Eddie who again I didn't think was that strong a character. Yes he seemingly had the right ingredients, the build, the attitude and the hard man look about him. Unfortunately that was all he had! Around the halfway mark I was beginning to wonder when the gritty storyline would jump in but sadly it didn't materialise. The book wasn't an awful read by any means it just wasn't particularly strong or memorable.
The last portion of the book saw a rise in tempo slightly but it had an air of `unfinished business' about it. In actual fact this was how I felt about 90% of the book. You felt like you got to know the people involved but beyond that, nothing. I have read all of Martina Cole's books and felt bitterly disappointed that her more recent stuff was nowhere near as good as her original works. Sadly, it seems that Mandasue Heller is suffering the same fate. The storyline felt very lacklustre and had no real oomph in it. In addition to this, nothing that drastic or meaningful happened. I can tell from the writing style that Mandasue Heller still has a great writing style, but sadly the plot and characters are seriously lacking her usual standards.
I was bitterly disappointed with this and was hoping that we would see a return to her previously wonderful writing. Although the writing is there, it seems that nothing else is there with it. If I am being honest I wouldn't recommend this particular book of hers and would say try her earlier works which were brilliant. I can still live in hope that she will return with a vengeance with her next book.