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I'm a 25 year old man with a 24 year old HIV positive life-partner who is a bottom (receiver). His CD-4 count is very high and his Viral load is undetectable and has been for several months. We have had protected sex for a year now.
I am wondering if anyone is in a similar situation. We are looking into the risks of unprotected sex with me as a negative top and he as a positive bottom. Clearly the risk of infection would be greater if the roles were reversed. Can anyone who might be in a similar relationship please let me know their opinions? Much appreciated.
You're wondering if anyone is in a similar situation? Yes, of course there are! Many folks are now involved in magnetic coupling, including yours truly. We have an entire chapter in the archives devoted to magnetic couples. Regarding HIV-transmission risk, there is no doubt that when the positively charged partner uses effective combination antiretroviral therapy that drives his or her HIV plasma viral load to undetectable levels for a considerable period of time, the risk of HIV transmission is significantly decreased. However, it's important to note that despite this, the transmission risk is not completely eliminated. You and your virally enhanced Mr. Right should read through the information in the archives of this forum devoted to magnetic couples, HIV sexual transmission, HIV sexual prevention and related topics. I'll post below a small sample of what can be found in the archives.
My very strong advice is that you continue to protect your negative HIV status by continuing to use condoms for penetrative sex.
Good luck. Stay safe. Stay well.
Dr. Bob
Transmission (TRANSMISSION WITH UNDETECTABLE VIRAL LOAD DEBATE, 2010) Feb 27, 2010
My doctor and I recently had a conversation about an HIV positive man, on medication, who was able to impregnate and HIV negative woman and she and the child were negative. I have several friends who are in magnetic partnerships and relationships and they have unprotected sex, all of them, and none of these couples have infected the negative partner, however all of the infected partners are medicated. I have one friend who has been positive for 5 years, has had three negative lovers, he is a top and had unprotected sex with all of them, none of them were infected. I know one couple who has been together for 13 years, the negative partner is still negative, they use condoms and medication, but even they have admitted to having unprotected sex many times. I myself had a negative lover who, by his own decision, refused condoms, he is still negative, I am on medication and I bottom. My question is then, if my doctor tells me it's still possible to infect someone while I am on medication, and so does thebody.com. How possible is it if your viral load is undetectable? The books tell me it's still very likely, life tells me otherwise. Sincerely confused
Response from Dr. Frascino
Books that indicate HIV transmission is "very likely" between magnetic couples, even when the positively charged person is on effective combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) that has driven his HIV plasma viral load to undetectable levels, are overestimating the risk considerably. Here's what we know. Effective cART that drives the viral load to undetectable levels significantly decreases any chance of HIV transmission; however, it does not eliminate the risk completely. That's the critical point. Decreased risk is not no risk! You can read much more about this in the archives of this forum. I'll post below a small sample of what can be found there.
Dr. Bob
Your position on treatment as prevention is not correct (SWISS REPORT, 2010) Jan 14, 2010
Several times you claim that effective treatment decreases the risk but does not eliminate it. Well I guess it's more an assumption than a certainty. I don't know any study which strictly confirms what you're saying. Instead there's a study ongoing which should give an answer to this question. In the meantime telling that treatment does not eliminate the risk for transmission is wrong since we still don't know it precisely. It would be more correct to say that until the trial is completed and the results confirms that HAART is able in reducing to a negligible level or even eliminate the risk, traditional safe sex methods are still recommended.
Response from Dr. Frascino
Sorry, I disagree. We have documented cases of mother-to-child transmission, despite the mother having an undetectable viral load. There are also case reports of male-to-female transmission via unprotected vaginal sex, despite the male having an undetectable viral load. How often this happens we don't know, but we do know it occurs. Until we know more, the only logical advice is to continue using condoms for all penetrative sex. (See below.) Stay tuned. We'll keep you posted as this story evolves.
Dr. Bob
The real meaning of undetectable (UNDETECTABLE VIRAL LOAD, 2010) Jan 9, 2010
Hi Dr.
Hope you had an excellent 2009 and I pray for you that 2010 will be full of good health. Hope you can answer my question. Does undetectable Viral Load & VL <20cp/ml refers to the same thing? What is the difference? If there is no difference, then why the same lab is reporting the result in two different ways? Thank you so much for your kindness.
Response from Dr. Frascino
Undetectable means the HIV plasma viral load is below the lower limit of detection for the particular test assay that is being used. Early viral load tests could only test down to 10,000 copies. Newer tests were able to test down to 500 copies of the virus per milliliter of plasma. The even newer ultrasensitive viral load assays can test all the way down to 25 or 50 copies/ml. We now have ultra-ultrasensitive assays available in some research laboratories that can test down to a single copy per ml! However, even in HIV-positive patients with HIV plasma viral loads below 1 copy/ml, this does not mean they have zero virus in their body. HIV still exists inside cells in the blood, lymph nodes and other body compartments.
In your case, "undetectable" and VL < 20 cp/ml (viral load less than 20 copies per ml) means you have an "undetectable" HIV plasma viral load and the lower limit of detection for the assay used was 20 copies per milliliter. Your blood has fewer copies than the lowest number detected by this test. So it's less than 20 copies per milliliter. I hope that helps clear up any confusion.
While we are on the topic of "undetectable" viral loads, I should take the opportunity to clear up common misunderstandings about this terminology:
Undetectable does not mean cured! There is no cure for HIV/AIDS (yet).
Undetectable does not mean noninfectious (that you cannot transmit the virus to others)! We have cases documenting HIV transmission from a man with an undetectable viral load to his HIV-negative wife via unprotected vaginal sex. There are also cases of mother-to-child transmission, despite the mother having an undetectable viral load.
Undetectable does not mean the virus cannot be detected anywhere in the body. Despite having an undetectable viral load in the blood (plasma), the virus would still be readily detectable in other tissues and body compartments.
Effective combination antiretroviral therapy does not kill the virus! Rather it merely suppresses viral replication. Consequently, if someone with an undetectable viral load on combination antiretroviral therapy stops taking his drugs, the virus will soon start reproducing again and the viral load will skyrocket to levels near to where the viral load was before treatment was begun.
Be well. Stay well. Happy 2010!
Dr. Bob
Straight & Final Question + Donation Info Jan 5, 2010
Hi Bob,
Thank you for your response to 'STRAIGHT QUESTION (TRANSMISSION VIA ORAL SEX 2010) One last and important question: should the Swiss study consensus that those on HAART are effectively non-infectious be ignored? Further to your mail, it seems so - given the problem other STD's, broken membranes & so on ( I mean you can't really ask a potential sexual partner if they have just eaten a bag of crisps - chips as you say there) Also I've read that even though plasma is 'viral free', seminal fluid still contains the virus to some degree. So maybe the old Swiss should be a bit more mindful about how non-medical people interpret such statements.
How to I donate - you are a star and provide light where there is darkness ( a bit biblical but true)
A 'less confused' London Boy
Response from Dr. Frascino
Hello Less Confused London Boy,
The Swiss Report actually did not state that those on HAART are effectively non-infectious! That's an incorrect interpretation of the data they presented and does not accurately characterize their conclusions. Read through my comments on the Swiss Report in the archives of this forum (I'll repost a sample below) for a better understanding of the report and what it means.
Donation information for The Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation can be found on the foundation's Web site at (www.concertedeffort.org). I'm delighted you have found this forum "enlightening!"
Happy 2010! Be well.
Dr. Bob
PROJECT INFORM: HIV Sexual Transmission Under HAART: Project Inform Comments on the 2008 Swiss Report By Alan McCord and Paul Dalton
August 3, 2008
In January 2008, the Swiss AIDS Commission issued a controversial report on the transmission of HIV in heterosexual mixed status couples. The report stated that HIV is not likely to be passed on when the positive partner fully adhered to a potent HIV regimen, had undetectable viral load for at least six months, and did not have any other sexually transmitted infection (STI) during that time, even despite sex without condoms.
What ensued after its publication has been tumultuous community discourse and opinion pieces worldwide. Some have denounced the Swiss government as being irresponsible. Others responded with "no comment". Few others, like Project Inform, invited this as a way to discuss issues faced by people living with and affected by HIV.
At the 2008 International AIDS Conference in Mexico City, a Sunday afternoon session, HIV Transmission under ART, provided a forum to discuss this report. Seven panelists attempted to clarify the persistent questions that have lingered ever since. Project Inform attended this session of about 300, which expands our earlier coverage of this topic.
The outcry over the Swiss report stems from the perception that they were saying that people who take effective HIV drugs can stop having safer sex or abandon their condom use without infecting their partners. The panelists were clear: this is not their message. Some have criticized other aspects of the report, arguing it failed to address other important issues, such men who have sex with men.
The possible implications for others living with HIV are about as diverse as the outcry has been. Project Inform believes the report and the conversations it has spurred can help inform these discussions for a wide range of people living with HIV. The main issues brought up by the Swiss Report are broadly outlined below.
Provide Accurate Information
The report provides a good deal of applicable data, much buried beneath the vocal backlash. Physicians, community health professionals, and others who interact with HIV-positive people and their partners can and must provide information clearly and accurately. The basic model of fully informed decision-making that has defined Project Inform's approach to HIV treatment decisions is just as applicable to this situation.
Use This as a Tool
We should encourage sophisticated discussions of the issues facing mixed status couples. After nearly three decades of the epidemic, a great deal is known about how HIV is and is not passed. Each partner, along with their doctors, can be encouraged to discuss these issues. These data, when discussed alongside a person's needs for true sexual intimacy, can lead to fuller and more honest discussions between sexual partners.
There's a great degree of disagreement over the effect this report might have on sexual practices and condom use. Lacking any real world data, people are left mostly to conjecture. One of the panelists shared findings from an anonymous survey he helped administer to people with HIV. He stated the report was widely well received by people with HIV, and did not have a marked influence on sexual practices. Interestingly, many did report feeling more able to honestly discuss their sexual practices with their doctors after the report.
Some of the panelists feared the Swiss report would lead to less condom use. One audience member asserted his belief that the report said that condom use was not needed when people were on suppressive HAART. Others felt that the report was likely to increase adherence to both treatment and safer sex practices.
Get Regular Health Care
One undeniable take-home message from the Swiss report is the critical importance of having accurate medical information to make informed decisions. Vast inequalities in access to things like viral load tests and STI screening must be accounted for in settings worldwide.
Some panelists felt that these differences render the report largely meaningless to most people with HIV. Project Inform sees it differently. It is much like the early data on combination therapy: information that might have only applied to small numbers of people at that time can have profound implications for far more people down the line. As seasoned AIDS activist Heidi Nass puts it, 'progress in progress.'
Push This Discussion to Test for HIV
The report underscores the need to reach those who are undiagnosed or untested. These discussions can only work when people know their HIV status. Most estimates in the US find that around 1 in 4 people with HIV do not know they have HIV. Project Inform encourages testing as a way to take control of one's life.
Explore New Ways to Prevent HIV
The report highlights the role that effective treatment plays in preventing new infections. Project Inform recently revised its mission statement to include biomedical prevention methods to help reduce new infections. This includes interventions such as Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), vaginal and rectal microbicides, and male circumcision, among others. These alternate prevention methods should be considered as being additive and synergistic to behavior interventions such as condom use. Therefore, no one method should preclude the others. The more choices one has, the better. The better the data are, the more confidence people can have in their choices.
One of the stories leading in to this meeting was the CDC's announcement that the number of new HIV infections in the US was 40% higher than previously estimated. This disturbing statistic highlights the crucial need for new prevention methods. The Swiss statement has the potential to help, as it underscores the connection between effective treatment and prevention.
Understand the Limitations of the Report
In some parts of the world, it's a privilege to have access to the spectrum of health care that's necessary to fully inform these decisions. For most people, this just isn't possible. Some health care systems are overburdened and cannot accommodate the discussions. For many, viral load or STI tests are just not available. For others, medical infrastructures barely exist. Though the world has reacted to this report, it may very well not apply to most of the planet.
Another obvious weakness of the report is that the authors only had data from studies of heterosexual sex to guide them. In the US, the CDC estimates that just over half of new HIV infections are among men who have sex with men, reinforcing the importance of studying the impact of treatment on prevention among this group.
Adapt the Limitations of the Report
Too often critics of the Swiss report have used its limitations to dismiss the report entirely. This is both scientifically and ethically unsound. No study, or review of studies, is above critique. Science works best when studies and reports are examined honestly, taking into account both their strengths and weaknesses.
Some have said it's premature to talk about these kinds of data until such time that there are more mature and definitive results. One panelist reminded the audience of the experience of male circumcision where 17 years elapsed between the emergence of supportive circumstantial evidence of its role in reducing HIV infection rates, and the definitive results from prospective, randomized studies.
Although the medical resources may not be available to most who face these issues, it is still possible to encourage conversations with couples on issues that they can do something about. This includes encouraging each partner to disclose his/her status, to discuss their fears, or to even start engaging in safer sex, among many others.
Practice Safer Sex
The Swiss report does not suggest individuals abandon using condoms or other safer sex practices. In fact, it spotlights the necessity for a couple's continued diligence in this area. One panelist argued that condom use without treatment provides similar levels of protection as treatment without condoms. It is common and fairly uncontroversial to recommend that people with HIV use condoms regardless of whether they're on treatment. The report argues that the best possible prevention comes from combining treatment and condoms. Accurate information on transmission risk should drive these decisions.
Understand This Report in Its Context
At various points throughout this epidemic, many medical, social and behavioral issues have emerged. We have grappled with the risk of casual transmission and the risk of oral sex -- each without the benefit of definitive research. In these cases, observations and an understanding of the mechanics of HIV transmission helped mold recommendations that have stood the test of time.
What now is taking place is a study called HPTN 052 is currently enrolling and is designed to answer the risks of transmission under HAART. The results likely won't be available until 2016, at which point we may look back and wonder what the commotion was all about. We also might ask ourselves, as many have in light of the male circumcision saga, how many new infections could have been prevented in the meantime?
Raise New Research Questions
Much new data need to be uncovered to more fully answer the concerns raised by the community. How do STIs play a role in transmission and at what level? Do different strains of HIV affect its transmission? Do different classes of HIV drugs affect the levels of HIV in genital tract secretions differently? How do viral load blips affect the likelihood of transmission? How much do we know about HIV transmission through oral, vaginal or anal sex? Pursuing these and other questions are critical to help better inform those faced with these decisions.
The Asymmetry of Risk
One interesting point raised by a panelist was the asymmetry of risk. If you say something is dangerous, and it turns out not to be so, there's usually little consequence. However, if you claim something is not risky and it turns out to cause harm, the repercussions can be catastrophic. This can lead groups to be overly conservative in protecting their own interests. Looked at in this light, the Swiss statement is remarkable.
Also worth pointing out is how little attention has been paid to issues of pleasure, intimacy and stigma facing people with HIV throughout these public debates. While researchers might not place much emphasis on these issues, they're of great importance to people living with HIV. They have profound implications for their day-to-day lives, not to mention their emotional and sexual well being. A full discussion of treatment and prevention must take these issues into account, or risk being of little use to people living with HIV.
Project Inform encourages sophisticated conversations among mixed status couples and others. As we have stated in our March 2008 response to the Swiss Report, we encourage all sexually active individuals to learn their status by regularly testing for HIV; we encourage treating HIV as early as individuals are ready to start and the medical information suggests; we encourage adhering to HIV treatment while practicing safer sex; and we encourage the honest conversations between partners and their providers on the medical and behavioral issues of transmission.
Statement Regarding Findings of the Swiss Government on the Transmissibility of HIV Infection by HIV-Positive People Receiving Antiretroviral Treatment March 12, 2008
In February 2008, the Swiss AIDS Commission reported on the results of studies suggesting that HIV positive individuals receiving effective antiretroviral treatment do not appear to be at significant risk of transmitting the virus to their HIV-negative partners in the absence of condom use during sex. The Swiss report reviewed data from four studies conducted among heterosexual couples. One study involving 393 couples of mixed HIV status concluded that when an HIV-positive individual adhered to treatment with approved HIV antiretrovirals, had an undetectable viral load for at least six months, and did not suffer from any other sexually transmitted infections, the HIV-negative partner did not become infected as a result of unprotected sexual intercourse. However, another study found that 6 out of 43 HIV-negative partners did become infected with HIV as a result of sexual activity; apparently because their HIV-positive partners were not completely adherent to an antiretroviral treatment regimen.
Concern has been raised that the results of the Swiss report will be taken to mean that HIV-positive people receiving antiretroviral therapy can discontinue the practice of safe sex or condom use. Project Inform welcomes the opportunity presented by the report to talk with the community about the interrelatedness of HIV testing, treatment for HIV infection and the prevention of HIV transmission.
The Swiss report supports what have long been considered to be the dual benefits of antiretroviral treatment. First, effective therapy is likely to significantly increase longevity and quality of life for people living with HIV. Second, by reducing the amount of virus present in blood, semen, vaginal secretions and other sexual fluids, antiretroviral therapy helps to reduce the potential for HIV-positive individuals to transmit HIV to their partners during sexual intercourse.
Advertisement Project Inform does not encourage HIV-positive people receiving treatment for their infection to dispense with safe sex or condom use. Drawing on the Swiss report and other data: We encourage all individuals who have been sexually active within the past ten years to learn their HIV status if they have not already done so, and to be tested for HIV at least once a year if they continue to be sexually active. Knowing one's HIV status is the vital first step we must all take to preserve our own health and, if HIV-positive, fulfill our desire to avoid transmitting the virus to others. We encourage all people who know that they are HIV-positive to consult with qualified medical providers and our National HIV/AIDS Treatment Hotline in order to make well-informed decisions about when to enter treatment with HIV antiretrovirals. While current Federal guidelines strongly encourage treatment for HIV-positive people whose CD4 (T cell) counts are at or below 350, substantial evidence suggests that the earlier HIV-positive people enter treatment, the better the outcomes of their treatment may be. And as the Swiss report suggests, being adherent to effective HIV treatment can reduce the transmission of HIV to others.
We encourage HIV-positive people, whether receiving treatment or not, to continue to engage in safe sex and condom use with HIV-negative individuals and individuals of unknown HIV status. Neither HIV treatment or safe sex practices alone have been shown to be 100% effective in preventing the transmission of HIV infection. But in combination with one another, the two strategies provide a strong means of preventing the further spread of HIV in our communities.
Finally, data indicate that it is possible for HIV-positive people to be re-infected with HIV as a result of having sex with one another. Data are inconclusive, however, about the extent to which re-infection actually occurs. Project Inform encourages HIV-positive people to consider the use of condoms during intercourse with other HIV-positive people in order to avoid potential re-infection and, as importantly, to avoid receiving or transmitting sexually transmitted infections other than HIV during sexual intercourse.
(SUPERINFECTION, 2009) (SUPERINFECTION DEBATE 2009) Apr 9, 2009
i can hardly believe how blatantly you spin the facts, Dr. You say a person with undetectable viral load 'conclusively' has been proven to be able to pass that virus onto others. Then you tell the reader to "(read below)". The article below also says "(read below)", and the next and the next, and finally, if the reader has enough diligence to finally find your cite, they find discover the article about the German study of a single case, where the strains aren't even identical, and that they admit they are relying on the patient's word of fidelity, which they admit if iffy at best. And in the same article, is the Swiss study which has a completely different conclusion on the topic. this is your idea of 'conclusivity'? When you take such a hardline approach, it really weakens the credibility. i don't care if you print this or not.. i'm posting it in the forums.
Response from Dr. Frascino
Relax Max and take a hard look at the facts! As you will note in my response to which you took such umbrage, I posted the entire article by Michael Carter related to the findings suggesting HIV can be transmitted from MSM with undetectable viral loads. It included the criticism of the report. That way the readers can draw their own conclusions. I found the phylogenetic analysis compelling. The viral strains "suggested a close relationship between the virus in the patient and his partner." I agree with the authors of this report who suggest that HIV transmission can occur despite an undetectable HIV plasma viral load. Yes, as with many case report studies there are some weaknesses that can be pointed out. However, there are glaring weaknesses within the Swiss report as well. (I've discussed these at length in the archives. Have a look!)
It's important to note that additional studies have now concluded that there can be a detectable HIV viral load in semen even when the HIV plasma viral load is undetectable! This could explain a mechanism for transmission.
All major AIDS agencies and the scientific community have concluded that the Swiss study suggests that in heterosexual partnerships the risk of HIV transmission is low in the presence of effective combination antiretroviral therapy. However, the risk is not zero! (Note the Swiss study did not study MSM! A major "weakness.")
There are a number of potential problems and unseen risks if an individual where to decide his partner's undetectable status was sufficient to prevent HIV infection. Drug resistance could develop causing a spike in viral load without the patient or partner knowing. Nonadherence to the drug regimen could cause a transient increase as well. A concurrent STD in the patient can increase HIV viral load in a patient who was previously undetectable. Conversely an STD in the partner could potentially make him or her substantially more susceptible to contracting the virus.
Adding all these facts together, I feel the evidence is quite convincing that unprotected sex cannot be considered safe even if the partner claims to be "undetectable". The case report merely adds more weight to my assessment. OK?
As a prevention strategy for individuals the use of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) alone cannot be recommended or considered effective. However, as a population strategy effective cART has real synergies with condom use in reducing HIV transmission.
Public health projection models indicate that if individuals relied only on "undetectable viral load" for HIV prevention and this resulted in reduced condom use, there would potentially be a substantial increase in HIV incidence. To sum up, the balance of scientific evidence continues to show that undetectable viral load in the blood does not equal zero risk for HIV transmission.
As always the choice to be safe or sorry remains yours.
Dr. Bob


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The CMS swimming and diving teams opened the 2012-13 SCIAC season with a pair of sweeps. The Stags and Athenas faced Whittier and Caltech at Whittier College on Saturday, December 1, in a double-dual meet. The Athenas beat Caltech 245 to 35 and topped Whittier 215 to 76. The Stags defeated Caltech 253 to 45 and Whittier 245 to 53. CMS won all 32 events contested on the day.
Nine CMS student-athletes earned double individual-event victories on the day. Divers Carmen Lundell and James Stevick won their respective 1-meter and 3-meter springboard competitions. Judge Lee took the 100 and 200 breaststroke races, earning a spot on the CMS top 10 list with his 59.64 in the 100 yard distance. LillyBelle Deer won the 200 and 500 yard freestyle races. Maddie Crawford sprinted to first in the 50 and 100 freestyle swims. Cory Johnson paced himself to victory in the 1000 free then and returned to win the 200 backstroke. Kaela Nurmi earned first in the 100 and 200 backstroke. Matt Valentine won back-to-back races, besting the fields in both the 100 butterfly and 200 individual medley. Conrad Shabb made a strong impression in his Stag swimming debut, winning the 100 backstroke and then even-split his 500 freestyle for a victory in that event.
"We're happy to start the SCIAC season with strong performances," said Coach Charlie Griffiths. "I think we had about 25 swimmers and divers who won events either individually, or part of relays. The day's success was a full team effort and we know that we'll need to continue those efforts to meet our goals next semester."
Nine additional Athenas and Stags won individual races. Sophomore Louisa Dunwiddie posted a CMS top-ten time, clocking in at 10:50.08 in the 1000 yard freestyle. Other Athena winners were Mackenzie Marrs (100 breaststroke), Maya Kale (200 butterfly), Maddy Gebhard (200 breaststroke) and Olivia Graham (200 IM). Stags at the top of the podium were Cameron Whiting (200 freestyle), Patrick Shultz (200 butterfly), Joey Hinton (100 freestyle), and Devin Bowers (50 freestyle).
CMS won each of the day's relay events. Elsa Cheng, Gebhard, Erin MacLean and Deer won the women's 200 medley relay, while Blake Weber, Zach Alleva, Jordan Lieberman and Hinton won the men's medley. MacLean, Rachelle Holmgren, Ali Fisher and Deer won the women's 200 free relay. Hinton, Weber, Martin Sartorius and Shultz capped the day with a win in the men's 200 free relay.
The CMS student-athletes will take a multi-week break from competition to focus on final exams. The next meet will be versus the University of La Verne at CMS's Axelrood Pool on Saturday, January 5, 2013.

subset: commoncrawl


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Over the past couple of days, the list of grocery stores that have said they will stop selling beef with added lean, finely textured beef (LFTB) — also known as "pink slime" — has grown.
Kroger, Stop & Shop, Food Lion, Supervalue and Safeway all announced their intentions to stop selling beef with the filler because of customer concerns. Other stores, including Whole Foods, A&P, and Costco, are coming out to announce that their beef has never had LFTB. My grocery store of choice, Wegmans, made the statement on its website that the company's organic and "Food You Feel Good About" ground beef does contain "lean beef trimmings."
The beef industry is getting worried that the decisions by these stores to sell "pink slime-less" beef could lead to an increase in ground beef prices. The American Meat Institute said in the short term, these stores may see an increased cost for ground beef. The amount of the increase was not specified.
As I was reading about this, I was pleased to see more evidence that the voices of consumers are finally being heard and taken into consideration. Then, I read that the American Meat Institute estimates that an additional 1.5 million head of cattle will be necessary to create the meat that will take the place of "pink slime."
Ugh. One problem solved; another one created. About 1.5 million more cows, many of them raised in CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations). Cattle raised this way are usually kept in inhumane conditions, fed food that they wouldn't naturally eat, and pumped full of antibiotics. CAFOs create many environmental problems, too.
I don't have any solutions to this problem, but I do have some advice. Eat less beef. And, when you do choose to eat beef, try to get it from a local farm where you know the cows have been raised and fed in a humane manner.
Has all the "pink slime" talk lately changed the way you think about and buy beef?
Also on MNN:


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US, other diplomats end meeting on migrant issues
MANAGUA, Nicaragua (AP) — Officials from the U.S., Mexico and Central American nations have wrapped up a two-day meeting in Nicaragua at which they were expected to discuss the possibility of treating Central American migrants fleeing violence in their homelands as refugees.
Migration and interior department representatives who met in Managua declined to discuss the meeting after adjourning Friday.
The agenda focused on updating a 30-year-old declaration regarding the obligations that nations have to aid refugees.
Officials with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees had said earlier that they hoped a regional agreement on designating Central Americans migrants as refugees could be discussed at the meeting. Such a resolution would lack legal weight, but the agency said "the U.S. and Mexico should recognize that this is a refugee situation."
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The Kansas City Chiefs' 2012 season has hit a new low. The team was named as a cause of death.
Relive every game this season online and on-demand with enhanced viewing features, including the "All-22" coaches film. Get NFL Game Rewind.
The following obituary ran in the Kansas City Star on Sunday:
"Loren G. 'Sam' Lickteig passed away on Nov. 14, 2012 of complications from MS and heartbreaking disappointment caused by the Kansas City Chiefs football team."
Mr. Lickteig served in the Air Force and has a large, loving family. And apparently his last dying wish was to give the Chiefs some grief.
It's been that kind of season in Kansas City. Roughly 25,000 fans wore black to Sunday's blowout loss to the Cincinnati Bengals to voice displeasure with the current Chiefs administration. The players noticed.
"You can't help but hear about it, but as a player you can't worry about it," Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson said, via The Star.
The blackout was done as a public show to inspire change in Chiefs leadership, and the movement will continue the rest of the season.
We'd also like to think that all of the fans were mourning Sam Lickteig.
In theory, they were mourning the football organization.
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.


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Publications Tagged: Cerami
- Added February 01, 2001
- U.S. Army War College Guide to Strategy. Edited by Dr. Joseph R. Cerami, Colonel James F. Holcomb, Jr..
- The purpose of this volume is to present the USAWC strategy formulation model to students and practitioners - an approach which we have found to be useful in providing generations of strategists with the conceptual tools to think systematically, strategically, critically, creatively, and big. Balancing ends, ways, and means.


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Sometimes a new baked good just comes crashing into your life--full throttle, no apologies, no turning back.
The Cowboy Cookie was such a treat for us--literally.
You see, not so long ago, a car crashed into the house neighboring the CakeSpy Headquarters. No, really. See?
It crashed right into the kitchen, where said neighbor happened to be at the time of the crash--in the middle of mixing up some cookie batter.
Well, needless to say their oven was not OK, so we found ourselves in the unique position of having inherited a batch of cookie dough, all ready to bake. And so preheat the oven we did, and about half an hour later, we had a fresh batch of cookies. What resulted was a mysterious, yet delicious, cookie. They had oats, but couldn't quite be called an oatmeal cookie; they had chocolate chips, and yet we wouldn't quite call them a chocolate chip cookie. And did we detect a pecan or two?
Turns out, they're called Cowboy Cookies--and with their dramatic entrance, they've certainly lassoed our hearts--and with an extra dab of chocolate frosting in between, they're bound to corral the affections of just about any cookie lover.
There are a number of varieties of the Cowboy Cookie to be found online, and they're certainly an easy one to personalize to taste; but in case you're curious, this recipe that we found on Martha Stewart seemed very close to the ones that we had:
Cowboy Cookies
- Vegetable oil cooking spray
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup light-brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
- 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch chunks (1 cup)
- 3 ounces (3/4 cup) pecan halves
- 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat baking sheets with cooking spray, line with parchment, and spray parchment. Sift flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder into a medium bowl.
Beat butter and sugars with a mixer on medium-high until pale and creamy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.
Reduce speed to low, and slowly add flour mixture, beating until just incorporated. Beat in oats, chocolate, pecans, and coconut until combined. (Dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)
Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop or a small spoon, drop dough onto baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart.
Bake until edges of cookies begin to brown, 11 to 13 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to wire rack, and let cool for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks. Let cool. (Cookies can be stored up to 3 days.)


text:
Sometime around 1955 two devout Hindus visited my guru's guru, an illumined master, Satguru Yogaswami of Sri Lanka. In that encounter they received a potent dose of the sage's teachings about the spiritual path. One of them recorded their experience as follows. "It was a cool and peaceful morning, except for the rattling noises owing to the gentle breeze that swayed the tall and graceful palmyra trees. We walked silently through the narrow and dusty roads. The city was still asleep. Yogaswami lived in a tiny hut that had been specially constructed for him in the garden of a home outside the city of Jaffna. The hut had a thatched roof and was on the whole characterized by the simplicity of a peasant dwelling. Yogaswami appeared exactly as I had imagined him to be. At 83 he looked very old and frail. He was of medium height, and his long grey hair fell over his shoulders. When we first saw him, he was sweeping the garden with a long broom. He slowly walked towards us and opened the gates.
" 'I am doing a coolie's job,' he said. 'Why have you come to see a coolie?' He chuckled with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. I noticed that he spoke good English with an impeccable accent. As there is usually an esoteric meaning to all his statements, I interpreted his words to mean this: 'I am a spiritual cleanser of human beings. Why do you want to be cleansed?'
"He gently beckoned us into his hut. Yogaswami sat cross-legged on a slightly elevated neem-wood platform and we sat on the floor facing him. We had not yet spoken a single word. That morning we hardly spoke; he did all the talking.
"Yogaswami closed his eyes and remained motionless for nearly half an hour. He seemed to live in another dimension of his being during that time. One wondered whether the serenity of his facial expression was attributable to the joy of his inner meditation. Was he sleeping or resting? Was he trying to probe into our minds? My friend indicated with a nervous smile that we were really lucky to have been received by him. Yogaswami suddenly opened his eyes. Those luminous eyes brightened the darkness of the entire hut. His eyes were as mellow as they were luminous--the mellowness of compassion.
"I was beginning to feel hungry and tired, and thereupon Yogaswami asked, 'What will you have for breakfast?' At that moment I would have accepted anything that was offered but I thought of idly (steamed rice cakes) and bananas, which were popular food items in Jaffna. In a flash there appeared a stranger in the hut who respectfully bowed and offered us these items of food from a tray. A little later my friend wished for coffee, and before he could express his request in words the same man reappeared on the scene and served us coffee.
"After breakfast, Yogaswami asked us not to throw away the banana skins, which were for the cow. He called loudly to her and she clumsily walked right into the hut. He fed her the banana skins. She licked his hand gratefully and tried to sit on the floor. Holding out to her the last banana skin, Yogaswami ordered, 'Now leave us alone. Don't disturb us, Valli. I'm having some visitors.' The cow nodded her head in obeisance and faithfully carried out his instructions.
"Yogaswami closed his eyes again, seeming once more to be lost in a world of his own. I was indeed curious to know what exactly he did on these occasions. I wondered whether he was meditating. There came an apropos moment to broach the subject, but before I could ask any questions he suddenly started speaking.
" 'Look at those trees. The trees are meditating. Meditation is silence. If you realize that you really know nothing, then you would be truly meditating. Such truthfulness is the right soil for silence. Silence is meditation.'
"He bent forward eagerly. 'You must be simple. You must be utterly naked in your consciousness. When you have reduced yourself to nothing--when your self has disappeared, when you have become nothing--then you are yourself God. The man who is nothing knows God, for God is nothing. Nothing is everything. Because I am nothing, you see, because I am a beggar, I own everything. So nothing means everything. Understand?' "
" 'Tell us about this state of nothingness,' requested my friend with eager anticipation. 'It means that you genuinely desire nothing. It means that you can honestly say that you know nothing. It also means that you are not interested in doing anything about this state of nothingness.'
"What, I speculated, did he mean by 'know nothing?' The state of 'pure being' in contrast to 'becoming?' He responded to my thought, 'You think you know but, in fact, you are ignorant. When you see that you know nothing about yourself, then you are yourself God.' "
This narrative reveals a vital theme in Yogaswami's teachings: esoteric insights about nothingness and not knowing. In life, the normal emphasis is on acquiring knowledge, or replacing a lack of knowledge on a subject with knowledge. For example, we purchase a new computer. Knowing little about it, we read the manuals, talk to experts and end up acquiring enough information to use the computer. We have replaced a lack of knowledge with knowledge.
Yogaswami's approach, because it deals with spiritual matters, is the opposite. We start with intellectual knowledge about God and strive to rid ourselves of that knowledge. When we succeed, we end up experiencing God. Why is this? Because the intellect cannot experience God. The experience of God in His personal form and His all-pervasive consciousness lies in the superconscious or intuitive mind. And, even more cryptic, the experience of God as Absolute Reality is beyond even the superconscious mind.
Yogaswami once expressed it to a seeker in this stern phrase: "It's not in books, you fool." Acquiring clear intellectual concepts of the nature of God is good, but these concepts must be eventually transcended to actually experience God.
One of the great sayings of Yogaswami's guru, Chellappaswami, emphasizes the same idea. He said, "Naam ariyom, " which translates as, "We do not know." My own guru expressed the same idea in this aphorism: "The intellect strengthened with opinionated knowledge is the only barrier to the superconscious." He went on to explain that "a mystic generally does not talk very much, for his intuition works through reason, but does not use the processes of reason. Any intuitive breakthrough will be quite reasonable, but it does not use the processes of reason. Reason takes time. Superconsciousness acts in the now. All superconscious knowing comes in a flash, out of the nowhere. Intuition is more direct than reason, and far more accurate."
Thus, three gurus of our Kailasa Parampara have each expressed the truth that experience of God is possible only when we transcend the limited faculties of our intellect and the concepts it has about God and dive deeply into our superconscious, intuitive mind and beyond. Said another way, the experience of emptying ourselves of our intellectual concepts about God needs to precede filling ourselves with the experience of God's holy presence within us.
To guide us on the path to this experience, Yogaswami stressed the importance of meditation and formulated a key teaching, or mahavakya, which is: Tannai ari, or "Know thyself." This is a second dominant theme of his teachings. He proclaimed, "You must know the Self by the self. Concentration of mind is required for this. You lack nothing. The only thing you lack is that you do not know who you are. & You must know yourself by yourself. There is nothing else to be known."
Markanduswami, a close devotee of Yogaswami, would later tell me, "Yogaswami didn't give us a hundred odd works to do. Only one. Realize the Self yourself, or know thy Self, or find out who you are." What, exactly, does it mean to know thy Self? Yogaswami explains beautifully in one of his published letters: "You are not the body; you are not the mind, nor the intellect, nor the will. You are the atma. The atma is eternal. This is the conclusion at which great souls have arrived from their experience. Let this truth become well impressed on your mind."
Today we are overwhelmed by information. Books, television and the Internet deluge us with vast seas of information never before available. Though information abounds, how much of it is teaching us about spirituality, that we are a divine soul? Unfortunately, only a miniscule amount. Most information in our modern world teaches us to identify with our external nature. Movies and TV teach us that we are our body and emotions, and in school we are taught that we are our intellect. For today's world, we need to amplify Yogaswami's saying to read "It's not in books, television, movies, the Internet or computer games, you fool." Yogaswami knew most people are trepidatious about meditating deeply, diving into their deepest Self, and gave assurance that inner and outer life are compatible by saying, "Leave your relations downstairs, your will, your intellect, your senses. Leave the fellows and go upstairs by yourself and find out who you are. Then you can go downstairs and be with the fellows."
We all, of course, recognize the high spiritual attainments of Hinduism's great yogis and satgurus. However, it is equally important to understand that their attainments are also our potential, the spiritual destiny of each soul, to be reached at some point in this or a future life. The mission of their lives is truly fulfilled if their example inspires you to devote more time and dedication to your own spiritual practices.
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It bothers me that sick conservatives are using Hillary's hospitalization for petty politics. She may never be greeted as a Nubian Princess with a butt you could bounce quarters off of, as Khadafi used to refer to Condoleeza Rice, but she has visited over 112 countries during her tenure, and probably has had more influence on world events than any other politician, helped deflated some rather hairy incidents that easily have escalated into another world war. She's killing herself for this country, and the response is juvenile sarcasm sprinkled with cynical frosting.he blood clot is still there, and they gave her blood thinners to dissolve it. It may or may not work, so she will be closely monitored for the next 6 months. The problem with drugs like this is you are taking them for the rest of your life. My father had to use blood thinners after his stroke, but they also aggravated a hiatal hernia that he had for years. So, he got to balance the risk of forming a blood clot that could affect the blood flow to his brain versus having some blood and fluids gathering in his lung area... Good luck Hillary, I pray you make good choices, this world still needs you.
"believes that the worst aspect of rape is the defilement of the victim, who will no longer be able to find a man to marry her - and that the solution is to marry the rapist..." Because rape is so prevalent in India, the recent death of a young woman who was raped and beaten so bad that she died from organ failure prompted mass demonstrations by women all over the country.
The number of rapes that result in pregnancy is over 50%, I've read that here in the US it's 80%, but that seems scarily high to me. It's estimated that one in every five women will have been abused during their lifetime, and in places like Pakistan, India, and the Middle East, the incident rate is even higher and more horrific.


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Chapmanville, West Virginia Criminal Lawyers
Robert Kuenzel II
36 Adams Street
Chapmanville, WV 25508
West Virginia University College of Law
Jason Douglas Harwood Esq
Logan, WV 25601-3468
The Ohio Northern University Pettit College of Law
Kelly Codispoti Esq
Logan, WV 25601
Mark Andrew Barney Esq
Hurricane, WV 25526
West Virginia University College of Law
Jack Christopher Dolance
608 Hendricks Street, Chase Bank Bldg.
Wayne, WV 25570
West Virginia University College of Law
John Warren Stapleton Esq
Huntington, WV 25701
West Virginia University College of Law
Joshua Mingo Winters Esq
Beckley, WV 25801
West Virginia University College of Law
Robby Long Esq
Hurricane, WV 25526
West Virginia University College of Law
Robert Carlton Esq
Williamson, WV 25661
Oral Roberts University
19 East Fifth Ave
Williamson, West Virginia 25661
304-235-4305 H 304-235-7777 W Fax 304-235-4663
Cell Phone 304-601-7219
ROBERT H. CARLTON LAW OFFICE 1986 to Present
Licensed In West Virginia, Kentucky And North Carolina
Graduated 8th out an entering class of over 100 national and international students.
I am also considered an alumnus of CBN University Law School at "Regent University" which is the successor school and I have Juris Doctorate diplomas for the same degree ...
Richard M. Riffe Esq
Hamlin, WV 25523
David Schles Esq
Suite 306
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Brenden D. Long
Scott Depot, WV 25560
Duquesne University School of Law
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Ryan Michael Ruth Esq
Suite 202
Charleston, WV 25313
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Claude Smith III
Robert Patterson Dunlap II
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Charles Hamilton Esq
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Matthew Ryan Rawlings Esq
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Noel Mark Olivero Esq
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Christopher Morris Esq
Trent Redman Esq
Charleston, WV 25301
Thomas Patterson Esq
Beckley, WV 25801
George Lancaster Jr
Charleston, WV 25301
Gregory Loy Howard Jr
Barboursville, WV 25504
Amy Marie Cole Esq
Charleston, WV 25311
Timothy DiPiero Esq
Matthew Victor Esq
Charleston, WV 25301
Gerald Clint Hayden Esq
Beckley, WV 25801
Gregory Campbell Esq
Charleston, WV 25301
Kyle Lusk Esq
Beckley, WV 25801
John Laishley Esq
Huntington, WV 25701
Steven Cook Esq
Huntington, WV 25701
Richard Allen Esq
Charleston, WV 25301
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Whether you are under police investigation, have been arrested, or are facing charges, having an advocate familiar with the criminal justice system.
Most jurisdictions classify crimes as felonies or misdemeanors, with felonies being the more serious offenses with the possibility of more severe sentences. Some criminal lawyers focus on a specific area of criminal defense law, such as white-collar crime, drug offenses, theft crimes, or violent crimes. You should consult with a criminal defense lawyer early on in the process to preserve options, such as diversion programs or plea bargains.
When hiring a criminal defense attorney, you should evaluate the experience and fee structure of the attorney. Some offer a free consultation to discuss your case.
Accomplice liability: If a person aids, assists, or encourages another in the commission of a crime, they are criminally liable as an accomplice to the crime.
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text: Colonic Stent Placement About Colonic stents may be used to treat obstructed portions of the large intestine in patients with colon cancer or a bowel blockage. Obstructions in the colon are commonly caused by tumors inside the large intestine or pressure on the outside wall. The stents are flexible, hallow tubes designed to open the blocked section of the colon. Preparing for the procedure Colonic stent placement is performed during a colonoscopy. Similar to preparing for a colonoscopy, your bowel must be emptied either through an enema or prescribed medication from your doctor. Your doctor will discuss the best preparation method for you. During the procedure A colonoscope is inserted into the rectum to view the blockage. Once the blockage is found, a soft wire will be placed over the blockage. Next, the wire is accurately positioned and a thin tube with the stent at the end is placed over the wire. You'll need to arrange for transportation home since sedative medication may cause drowsiness. You may experience bowel bleeding for a couple of days after the procedure. Let your doctor know if the bleeding does not subside after two days.


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A fireworks display is planned for Saturday, July 6, at the Taylorsville Lake.
The display is a result of a joint effort between the Taylorsville Lake State Park, the Taylorsville Lake Marina, Spencer County Tourism and the Friends of the Taylorsville Lake.
Fireworks will be shot off of a barge between the marina and the Possum Ridge Boat Dock.
The display will last at least 12 minutes — possibly longer if additional sponsorships are added.
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What's New
Heathen Font Family by Canada Type
Whatever you like to call this style of doubled-script font, sightings of designs using it have become common within the last few years. Such fonts have become the standard in expressing elegant confusion, old chaos in modern settings, recycled histories, and rebellious ideas.
This style is quite often seen on chic clothing, music packaging, some sports paraphernalia, surfer and skateboarder gear, even book covers.
That said, the Heathen font was made to include an advantageous feature that other distressed scripts do not normally have: More intertwined over-swashing in the majuscules. This over-swashing is quite useful in settings where the stroke and fill colors differ, or complement each other. It is also quite the point of emphasis where the idea is to show elegance gone ancient, old thoughts in a modern wrapper, rust never sleeping, or the very basic limits of the world's nature.
Tags: Casual Script, Distressed, Font, Formal Script, Graffitti, Special Effect, Urban


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Midnight Sun contributor Ellie Kahn saw Skrillex headline Pimlico Race Course on Sunday night. This was her take:
The sky opened up Sunday evening at Pimlico Race Course, and a UFO touched down at the edge of the Infield, one that highly resembled a soundboard, a laptop, bright lights and a stringy-haired nerd with a half-shave: The DJ known as Skrillex, had landed, and docked his mothership for the night.
His stop — part of his larger tour "The Mothership Tour" and featuring artists Milo & Otis, What So Not and Dillon Francis marked his 11th in North America; Baltimore was his first destination after the three-day Governor's Ball Music Festival in New York City and second-to-last warm-up before this weekend's four-day Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tenn. Good thing he travels by spacecraft.
Skrillex, now a seasoned dubstep pro and visionary of the electronica world, drew a dense crowd to the racetrack turning its grounds of dirt and turf into a galactic supernova bright enough to power the rest of Baltimore. After Sunday's concert, Pimlico reaffirmed its success as a music venue.
When its doors opened at 3:30 that afternoon, concertgoers clad in wild prints, arms of beaded bracelets and clothing from the deepest depths of closets started to take over the grass — some sitting, others standing, many lying down, looking up at the sky.
Milo & Otis began their set, and everyone seemed to be relaxed, saving their stamina for what would come later. The Los Angeles duo spun a rendition of Oasis' "Wonderwall" that put everyone in a good mood, and borrowed a playful "Watch Out for This" from reggae-dub kings Major Lazer that felt right for the time of evening.
Aussie DJs Emoh Instead and Flume, who comprise What So Not, followed, with a set that could have been louder and more inspired, at least for a mastermind like Flume. Their track "High You Are" vibed well and got people on their feet, but their remix of Lorde's "Tennis Court" didn't translate as well as it could have, due to its set position.
The venue smartly minimized lag time. Rather than half-hour breaks between artists of mic checks and adjustments and oldies blasted over speakers, each artist nearly interrupted the preceding artist, making for smooth transitions and good concert flow.
Producer Dillon Francis plugged in at around 6:30, causing everyone to move toward the stage in waves. The rave had begun. The moombahton DJ grinned and dropped a rowdy version of Diplo's "Express Yourself" that sent twerkers a-twerking, followed by a perfected "Bootleg Fireworks" and a remix of Kill the Noise's "Talk to Me" that made the usually unlistenable track listenable. Francis doesn't take himself too seriously, although he deserves to because his sound is his own, and it's impressive.
He seemed like a chef making a dish without a recipe, wildly flinging flour everywhere and turning up high flames. "Set Me Free" sent concertgoers up in the air and back down again, and his remix of Daft Punk's "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" followed by a quick sample of Chris Brown's "Show Me," and Lil Jon and DJ Snake's "Turn Down for What" made mainstream cool. Francis closed with his own "Get Low." Its chorus, "Get low when the whistle blow," turned the crowd into a washing machine sending ravers violently in all directions.
No one saw it at first, but Skrillex had hopped on stage. It really appeared as if he had shot, meteor-style, down to the earth from his own distant planet, ready to take the crowd somewhere far-off. He spoke a few words and launched into "Try it Out" off his recent album "Recess," affirming in an instant why his sound is so special. It's electronic dance music that's so clear you could see through it, but still dirty enough to maintain its place in the dubstep world. "All is Fair in Love and Brostep" blasted a radio-automated voice through Pimlico that told the crowd how much power a rocket would need to get a 1,000 miles from earth. "Make it Bun Dem" sounded with a drop so heavy it seemed like everyone would blast off.
The computerized graphics behind Skrillex were just as much a part of his show as his sound. Rainbow unicorns, bobbing ducks, Bollywood dance teams, fast-talking toddlers and a mirror image of the crowd itself all flashed across the screen, giving the concert even more dimension than conceptually possible. Skrillex then launched into his titular track "Recess," followed by a rendition of his track with Wolfgang Gartner "The Devil's Den" that had Skrillex, the 26-year-old born Sonny Moore, dancing and his hair flying (well, half.) "Stranger" was one of greatest tracks of the whole evening causing those near the front to form giant dance circles like supermassive black holes.
Skrillex then shot back through space to reach old tracks like "Summit" featuring Ellie Goulding, "First of the Year (Equinox)," and infamous yes-oh-my-god anthem "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites," all of which still seem innovative. Due to Pimlico's curfew, Skrillex had to wrap up, which he did grandly.
He spun a remix of Diplo's "Revolution" paired with Flux Pavilion's "I Can't Stop," which the crowd knew so well they could move perfectly to the drops, and then delivered "Breakn' a Sweat," featuring The Doors and pounding-chorus track "Wild for the Night" with ASAP Rocky. Skrillex finally ended with a mashup of "Bangarang," Disclosure's "Latch," Nero's "Promises" and "Scary Monsters," at which point he paused the music, pulled Francis back on stage and said, "I want everyone to get low to the ground."
When everyone seemed to be practically in the fetal position, he started up the track again faster and faster, and said, "We're gonna fly to f---in' outer space when this drops." After an excruciating delay, an extraordinary bass dropped as promised, and the crowd flew.
Ellie Kahn is a rising junior at Emory University and a former intern at the Baltimore Sun. She last reviewed Rusko in 2012 for Midnight Sun. Wesley Case edited this review.


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The excitement and hype surrounding Bungie's last act of the Halo trilogy, Halo 3, is certainly palpable. With a multi-million dollar advertising campaign that includes video trailers and commercial endorsements aplenty already well underway, long-time fans are anxiously awaiting the chance to finish the fight and interest is even beginning to peak among other gamers.
This weekend, I was fortunate to have the chance to play through the entire campaign of Halo 3 at an office in downtown Toronto. In a cushy lounge area complete with personal LCD HDTV and some fancy headphones, I blasted my way through Master Chief's latest adventure from start to finish over the course of two long play sessions. I couldn't take any pictures, but my notebook is full of pages and pages of scrawled and painstaking notes. No detail went unnoticed.
While we're not allowed to give out any impressions of the title until Sunday, September 23, you can be sure that we'll have a thorough writeup of the campaign, as well as separate coverage of the game's expansive multiplayer options and the potentially awesome Forge mode very soon. Stay tuned.


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Is it possible for the sun to provide the only source of power for a complete water purification system in a portable bag? Until now we would not give the idea much thought. But why not? We make "sun tea" where you put tea bags in a container of water and place the container outside in the sun to naturally brew the tea. So why not utilize the power of the sun to filter water?
Puralytics, a privately funded technology company located in Beaverton, Oregon is pioneering a new photochemical technology for water purification. They are building solutions to improve filtration for the global water challenges by combining the latest technological innovations with advanced engineering. The invention of the Solar Bag uses an effective and simple process for water purification.
The Puralytic Solar Bag has a backpack with handles that makes it easy to transport water to and from an available water source. Once the bag is filled with any water through the inlet debris filter, the bag is placed in the direct sunlight. It can either lie flat or hung from a tree or post. Once purified, the Solar Bag can be dispensed by a valve into a canteen or pot as required. By harnessing the power of the sun to purify water, the Puralytics Solar Bag will deliver clean drinking water that meets the World Health Organization (WHO) standards in remote areas.
The Solar Bag incorporates a 5 photochemical process that works synergistically to break down or remove harmful contaminants from the water:
Photocatalytic Oxidation: Previously unobtainable, selected wavelengths of UV light generate unprecedented levels of hydroxyl radicals without any chemical additives.
Photocatalytic Reduction: Reduces toxic species such as mercury, silver , arsenic, and chromium to more readily adsorbed materials.
Photolysis: Direct disassociation of contaminants by high intensity UV light, including atrazine, amoxicillin, DEET, and all estrogenic chemicals.
Photoadsorption: The catalyst strongly adsorbs heavy metals including mercury, lead, selenium, and arsenic, permanganate, and other compounds.
Photo Disinfection: Multiple wavelengths and high intensity UV disinfect pathogens more effectively than standard UV germicidal.
In remote areas, it is difficult to build a water well or some type of stationary water filtration system to provide clean drinking water to those who are not fortunate enough to have access to it. If there is not a way to accommodate these areas by constructing a water filtration system, then the Solar Bag is ideal for fulfilling a need with the latest technology. The process is environmentally sustainable and cost effective.


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90 Giles C. Stedman
|HOF Class of '90
Adm. Giles Stedman was the second superintendent of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy; taking over after the retirement of Capt. Tomb. He served as the superintendent from 1944-47 with his reserved but penetrating personality.
In 1944, Adm. Stedman decided to present a trophy to the outstanding male senior athlete at Kings Point. To acknowledge his contribution, the award was named in his honor.


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Amanda Demme is glad to no longer be the life of the party
By Gina Piccalo For Los Angeles Times.
May 4, 2013
She once packed celebrities into raucous parties at the Roosevelt Hotel but now enjoys a quieter identity as a photographer. Her works will be at Obsolete in Venice.
Amanda Demme isn't who she used to be. And that's probably a good thing. Just ask her.
She'll tell you she's been in hiding for six years, casting off the pretensions that came with life as a famous (and infamous) Hollywood impresario.
"It was a great time," Demme said last week of that raucous era at the Roosevelt Hotel, when A-listers clamored to get into her parties. "But it was a time. Lost my mind."
Now 47, Demme lives a quieter existence as a fine art portrait photographer. Her days revolve around her utilitarian Atwater Village studio, a cavernous space filled with antique ephemera. Everyday objects from the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries inspire her to create images so hyper-real, they're often mistaken for oil paintings from some indeterminate past.
"It's the most vulnerable place you can be," Demme said of her life as a visual artist. She was traipsing around her studio as she spoke, draped in a vintage men's jacket, her curly mane covered by a wide-brimmed felt hat she made herself, pausing periodically to dissect one of her images. "I've invested my entire world in this work."
On Saturday, Demme debuts at the Venice gallery Obsolete, showing oversized portraits from her "Work" series. The only sign of her glamorous past are the few celebrity friends who served as subjects, actors Casey Affleck, Ione Skye, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Patricia Arquette among them. She says she doesn't even know who's invited to her private opening. "I don't have anybody's numbers anymore," she said.
Still, Demme's private opening on Wednesday night was so packed it was tough to see the art. It was a mature, but stylish crowd and not lacking in celebrity. Joaquin Phoenix, Maria Bello, Vince Vaughn and Gina Gershon milled around while lesser knowns ate spaghetti off small plates and marveled at the work's realism.
On a cloudy afternoon last week, Demme was scrambling to prepare for the show. One of her long antique worktables was strewn with prints and she studied every one, as if seeing it for the first time. A dozen or more portraits were stacked against a far wall, each image depicting various shades of resignation and even naked despair.
In one, a Fatty Arbuckle type in an old-fashioned pilot's helmet gazes at the darkness below as if preparing to leap. In a black-and-white photo next to it, Spike Jonze crouches in a makeshift phone booth with a fedora over his face, a la Buster Keaton. In another, Skye wears a vintage housekeeper uniform and vacuums with one hand at her brow. When asked if there's a particular era she's trying to telegraph, Demme shook her head.
"It's more about an emotional state," she said. "Each one of the characters is an extension of me. Abandonment. Loneliness. Isolation. Some things I feel every day."
Demme doesn't elaborate because she doesn't really have to; the details of her tragedy have been public for years. Her filmmaker husband, Ted Demme, died in 2002 of a heart attack at age 38 after playing a charity basketball game, leaving Demme to raise her 6-week-old son and a 4-year-old daughter. She was forced to grieve publicly while groping for a new identity, because, as she told The Times in 2004, "I sunk my entire persona into the backbone of that man."
Demme continued her rise as a music supervisor, with films such as "Garden State" and "Mean Girls." Then she branched out to event production and in 2005 was hired by Thompson Hotels to give the nightclubs in the newly renovated Roosevelt some celebrity cred.
It worked — too well. In a matter of weeks, celebrities packed the poolside Tropicana Bar, and anybody else who made it past Demme's velvet rope could consider it a career achievement in itself. In one three-week period, Courtney Love left in an ambulance and Demme herself ended up in police custody for a noise violation.
Then, former Denver Broncos star Terrell Davis sued the hotel for alleged discrimination over a tussle at the Tropicana. (That part of the suit was later dismissed.) Complaints of underage drinking and noise became routine. Hotel management eventually got fed up with the drama and three days after Demme got Prince to play a show in the lobby, surprised her with an email, terminating her contract.
"It ended in a real fury," she says now, "for no fault but my own."
Demme says the grind of nightclubs "threw me into isolation" and she began earning a more discreet living designing rooms in celebrity homes. On a whim, she took up photography in 2010, hiring art students to teach her the basics so she could cultivate her own style. Right away, Demme started photographing friends in her Studio City home with no intention of selling or even exhibiting her work.
A few of those early black-and-white portraits hang in her studio. There's Phoenix getting punched in the face while smoking a cigarette, an image published in Interview magazine late last year. Another shows Sting's daughter, actress Mickey Sumner, a blur in motion. Gradually, Demme started bringing the antique objects into her shoots and the work began to morph into something more emotional and dark, even cinematic.
Obsolete gallery owner Ray Azoulay heard about the portraits through a mutual friend. At first, he was skeptical, but the mystery and timelessness of Demme's portraits intrigued him.
"They're conveying a lot in this very still type of image," he said. "When you see how the work has evolved, it gets more interesting and dynamic."
Demme's evolution from a spirited self-promoter in leather pants with celebrities on speed-dial to a self-conscious Atwater Village artist who hates to have her picture taken and tells a reporter, "I don't care who's hot and who's not," may not be as great a leap as it sounds.
Some mellowing comes with age and Demme is the first to admit the rigors of parenting have shifted her priorities. "I would never ever go back to the nightclub business," she said, particularly now that her daughter is 16 and has "the hustle" that fueled her ambitious parents. Besides, Demme says nightclubs are about selling drinks and she was more invested in the art of the experience.
"Amanda was always an artist," said event producer Bryan Rabin, a longtime friend who's coincidentally part of the team relaunching Teddy's, the club that ended Demme's era at the Roosevelt. Still, he said, her portraits are especially masterful.
As a nightclub entrepreneur, Demme was expert at "building a room," choosing a precise mix of guests, sculpting space with light and shadow, cultivating a mood until the entire experience was something akin to performance. Now, said Rabin, "she's just following her heart and her authentic self."
In her vast work space, Demme is eager to show the corner where she crafts hats, the loft where she paints massive backdrops and builds lights. She explains that her portraits demand 20 pieces of lighting that take two hours to set up, that she often spends an entire day with one subject, occasionally driving them to an emotional breaking point just to get her shot.
"I only want the honesty," she explained. "I want to show people who they really are."


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○ From Cebu City, we boarded the Ceres bus which is bound to Tanaw-an Oslob at 4:05am. This bus left the terminal at 4:17am. Fare is P155.
○ And so I thought the trip would take 3-4 hours, I was wrong. At 6:22am, the driver informed us we were already in Oslob. Yes, almost 2 hours lang pala ang byahe.
○ We registered ourselves and I was greatly annoyed by the fees. Ang dami. Inferness, lahat may resibo, so I think it's an ordinance.
whale watching - P300
snorkeling fee* - P20
camera fee* - P100
life vest - P50
resort/shower area/locker - P50
pakshet lang. nakaka-highblood ng very light. haha
○ Big smile, pikit-mata, and abot ng bayad nalang sa lahat ng fees. We've traveled far enough to see the whale sharks up close so deadma na sa fees.
○ We were given a number then we proceeded to the briefing area. To be fair, the tourism officers are really trying to organize the tour.
○ We changed clothes, gave our number to the boatman, and presented the receipts - and we're all set. We have 20mins of extreme close encounter with the whale sharks.
○ No need for spotters, the whale sharks were just chasing the food thrown by the specific boatman in charge.
○ Although the tourism officials reminded everyone about the proper distance from the whale sharks, the guests and the boatmen can't help but go closer to the gentle giant. oh well, talk about extreme close encounter.
○ It was fulfilling to finally see a whale shark. I heard there were days when not even one whale shark appears. So I guess we got lucky that time.
○ I was down in the water and I felt nervous as the whale shark headed towards me. Iba pa din yung makita siya in my snorkel mask- upclose and personal.
chyng: nakakatakot naman
boatman: natatakot ka, wala namang ngipin yan.
toinks! haha. kelangan pa ba ng ngipin para magkasya ako sa bibig ng dambuhala na yan?
○ And these words made me realize these boatmen are not tour guides at all. They are just fishermen who switched to being guides.
○ Nevertheless, Im happy for this town. It means more job opportunities and income for the locals.
○ I heard they did not intentionally plan to pet these whale sharks. One time they just appeared and started to disturb/eat the fishermen's baits. So to distract the whale shark, some fishermen fed the whale shark in another location- in order to leave their baits alone. The following day is history.
○ 30mins after, we headed back to the shore. We unanimously agreed this was a great experience.
○ For the record, DOT supports Oslob's Whale Shark watching tour.
○ Anyway, for those who wishes to sleep or stay longer, here's a basic and cheap accommodation in Oslob. Contact Ms. Marilyn @ cell number 0906.586.9895 and 0933.509.5736. Room rates are P1,500 for a family room (6-7persons), P800 for a double room, and P350 for a single room.


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The following is the first in a two-part series on Charles Murray's Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010.
For a generation, the main story of working-class America has been the collapse of a living-wage economy due to such forces as globalization, weakened trade unions, and reduced government labor regulation. This trend has been a social catastrophe and, increasingly, a severe embarrassment to free-market ideology.
Enter Charles Murray with a lifeline of alibis. His Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960–2010 has received worshipful treatment from conservative commentators, and for good reason. Faced with the awkward truth of widening inequality, the right usually adopts a strategy of strained denial. Murray offers an alternative. Instead of waltzing around the reality, he deplores the new schisms in America and then executes a deft pivot: Both the elite and the unwashed, he says, are getting what they deserve.
The rich are getting richer because their superior intelligence combines with greater fidelity to what Murray terms the Founding Virtues, namely Industriousness, Honesty, Marriage, and Religion. These same virtues, however, have been eroding at an alarming rate among the dissolute lower class. Murray thus embraces a prime liberal concern, turns the real causality on its head, and in a stroke validates both free-market economics and conservative values. For his fans, this is game, set, match.
His account is such an audacious twist that few other than Charles Murray would dare venture it as social science. What's remarkable about working-class America, in truth, is not dissolution but diligence. All across the land, you can find churchgoing, law-abiding people, who are holding down jobs but are far worse off than their parents—even though the economy's average productivity has doubled since the 1980s. Murray somehow missed the world of America's largest employer, Wal-Mart, with its regimented and underpaid "associates." He missed the two-tier wage systems in factory towns. He missed the hard-working new poor in such service-economy jobs as janitors, hotel maids, security guards, retail clerks, and fast-food workers.
Coming Apart is the latest in a series of Murray books whose signature is good humor, ostensible concern for the underdogs, and torture of what is represented as data. The best known of these, for many readers, is The Bell Curve (1994), in which Murray and co-author Richard J. Herrnstein contended that blacks fare worse in the economy because they have lower IQs—ignoring evidence that the black-white test-score gap had narrowed as discriminatory barriers fell.
Murray's most influential book, though, was the one that marked his arrival as a public intellectual. In Losing Ground (1984), Murray argued that America's overly generous welfare state was destroying both the work ethic and the custom of marriage, especially among African Americans. He proposed the draconian remedy of "scrapping the entire federal welfare and income--support structure for working-aged persons, including AFDC [Aid to Families with Dependent Children], Medicaid, Food Stamps, Unemployment Insurance, Workers' Compensation, subsidized housing, disability insurance, and the rest." Instead of receiving benefits, poor people would be disciplined by the tender mercies of the job market.
Murray's evidence was soon demolished by one scholarly and popular review after another. Critics pointed out that he had artfully picked a state, Pennsylvania, where welfare benefits had grown twice as fast as the national average; in most of the country, work was a far better deal for the poor than welfare. He mistakenly counted food stamps as part of the welfare package; in fact, the working poor qualified for them. He skipped over recent data and deliberately used statistics from two decades earlier, ignoring the 1970s, a period when the value of the welfare package eroded by 30 percent. In that decade, contrary to Murray's hypothesis, more people went on the AFDC rolls—not because of rising welfare benefits but because of rising unemployment. Nor did the data bear out Murray's claim of a correlation between state welfare levels and single motherhood among black women. The better explanation, as sociologist William Julius Wilson would soon document in The Truly Disadvantaged (1987), was the relative scarcity of employed black men.
As it happened, liberals of that era were mindful of the risks of poor people getting stuck on welfare. But unlike Murray, they did not blame AFDC for poverty. They urged a set of income supports that would raise living standards of the poor without deterring work, such as wage subsidies, universal child care, and health care. The only one of these reforms to pass Congress (in 1975) was the Earned Income Tax Credit. In the meantime, Murray's claim of a ruinous welfare state became an article of faith, first for conservatives and later for New Democrats who identified a political need to "take welfare off the table" as a target of conservative attack. In 1996, Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich collaborated on a compromise welfare reform that abolished AFDC in favor of a program with meager work supports. This turned out to improve the living standard of the poor for only as long as full employment lasted.
For Murray, championing the role of market forces, the behavior of the poor was all about incentives. The wrong policy incentives—the welfare package—led people to desert work. But after the turn of the new century, welfare reform ran into rising joblessness and falling wages; incomes of the working poor declined. So Murray, without so much as a by-your-leave, shifted ground. Evidently, the key factor determining whether the poor would rise out of poverty wasn't incentives after all. It was values. Never mind.
In Coming Apart, Murray begins by describing white America on the eve of the Kennedy assassination—a unified society where everyone watched the same three networks, few people had children out of wedlock or got divorced, neighbors didn't need to lock their doors, and most folks felt themselves to be middle class. Murray wields the symbolic power of the rupture that ripped America on November 22, 1963, to suggest a parallel break in our economic lives. He contrasts a notional working-class neighborhood, "Fishtown," with "Belmont," home to the most affluent 5 percent. Since 1963, he reports, our coherent world has given way to cultural and economic fragmentation. America "is coming apart at the seams."
Murray baits his trap with descriptive material that reads like an American Prospect article, quoting Robert Reich's "secession of the successful," Robert Putnam's dismay at the erosion of "social capital," and the class-skewed decline in civic participation documented by Theda Skocpol and others.
Then comes the pivot, inverting cause and effect. The rich got even richer, he claims, because of both their virtuous behavior and "the increasing market value of brains." As the economy becomes more complex, rewards go to those "who can navigate through labyrinths" of new complexity. And with global scale, "the bigger the stakes, the greater the value of marginal increments in skills."
Tomorrow: Coming Apart caps three decades of Murray's faux concern for the poor.