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Marshall's plan: Filling Parkway's $27 million Rx
For someone who describes himself as "just a pill roller and a farmer," retired pharmacist and former Albemarle Board of Supervisors Chairman Forrest Marshall has friends in high places.
That's why when Charlottesville and Albemarle officials needed money for an interchange at the 250 Bypass for the recently approved Meadowcreek Parkway, Marshall was able to arrange a meeting between a delegation of City and County representatives and his bird-hunting buddy, U.S. Senator John Warner.
"I said, 'John, these people are together on this thing, and we'd appreciate it if you could see what you can do,'" Marshall recalls. The pitch was simple, and it paid off.
The recently announced Surface Transportation Re-authorization Bill provides $27 million for the Parkway interchange with McIntire Road. And while Warner and other government officials could claim responsibility for this transportation upgrade, everyone seems to be heaping the credit on Marshall.
"I think his participation helped Senator Warner realize how important this was to the city and the county," says Charlottesville mayor David Brown. "It put it on his radar screen." Albemarle County administrator Bob Tucker agrees: "I don't know that it could have come together without Forrest."
But if Marshall has a knack for pulling strings for his beloved Central Virginia, he's equally unwilling to take the credit. "I really didn't do anything," he says. "I just imposed on my friendship with John."
That friendship began almost 30 years ago after Marshall was working for Republican leader Dick Obenshain in his 1978 bid for the U.S. Senate. After Obenshain– who had just defeated Warner in the GOP primary– died in a plane crash late in the race, Warner found himself thrust back into a tight contest. It was in the fires of that heated and ultimately victorious campaign that the bond between Marshall and Warner first forged.
"It was a lot of fun," Marshall recalls. "As anyone who's played golf with him or gone bird hunting with him can tell you, he's fun to be with."
But on April 7, it was all business between the two friends as Marshall and the local delegation helped make the case to Warner for the Parkway. For Marshall, it was essential that the previously reluctant City government join the County in their desire to see the Parkway built. "The only reason I was going up there was that the City was behind it," he says. "Otherwise, I wasn't going to waste my time or John's time."
Construction on the long-debated project is slated to begin in the fall of 2008.
Having retired from both pharmaceuticals and politics in 2000 to his home at Argyll Farm, Marshall has kept out of public affairs in recent years. What was it about this issue that brought him back into the political realm?
"I love this community, and they asked me to do something," he says. "I was lucky to be born in such a place."
Age: 69
Why here? It's the prettiest place on earth. I'm so lucky to live here, and we've been here for many generations.
What's worst about living here? Only thing I can say is that it's too hot in the summer.
Favorite hangout? The drug store
Most overrated virtue? I really don't know.
People would be surprised to know: Most people are surprised when I tell them how old I am.
What would you change about yourself? I'd like to take better care of my health.
Proudest accomplishment? Well, I'd say getting re-elected to office. If you're once elected and do a good job, they'll re-elect you. If you don't, they won't.
People find most annoying about you: Nobody's really ever told me. Sometimes I have a tendency to talk too much.
Whom do you admire? I admire John Warner very much. But then I also admire George Allen. He's a nice young boy.
Favorite book? Miller's Pictorial History of the Civil War
Subject that causes you to rant? Partisan politics
Biggest 21st-century thrill? I guess all of the electronic gadgets we have
Biggest 21st-century creep-out? Terrorism
What do you drive? A 2002 Jaguar
In your car CD player right now: John England plays beautiful piano, and I have four discs of his in there right now.
Next journey? To Texas and Mexico hunting
Most trouble you've ever gotten in? Being Chairman of the Board of Supervisors
Regret: Not taking better care of myself
Favorite comfort food: Tomatoes
Always in your refrigerator: Milk. I don't drink anything alcoholic.
Must-see TV: Fox News
Favorite cartoon: I'd say Bugs Bunny from when I was a kid. That's the last one I saw.
Describe a perfect day. Hay in a wind row with no rain in the forecast
Walter Mitty fantasy: Hunting in Africa
Who'd play you in the movie? Jim Nabors
Most embarrassing moment? Nothing embarrasses me. I'm a pharmacist, and if you were, you would know what I mean because you see and hear all kinds of people's problems.
Best advice you ever got? "Go to college."
Favorite bumper sticker? "Eat Beef."


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13 December 2016 - STAMFORD, Conn. and LUCCA, Italy
Tagetik Webinar Focuses on 2017 Enterprise Performance Management Trends and Evaluation Best Practices
Guest Speaker, VP and Principal Analyst Paul Hamerman discusses market trends, the EPM Q4 2016 report, and evaluation recommendations
Tagetik, a leader in global performance management software solutions, today announced the availability of a special complimentary webinar recording, "The Latest EPM Trends and Insights from Forrester." The 60-minute presentation features a detailed discussion by Paul Hamerman, Forrester vice president and principal analyst and a recognized enterprise performance management (EPM) expert, on market trends, the latest Forrester Wave results for the EPM market, an explanation of Forrester's research methodology, and evaluation recommendations.
For those interested in learning more about the enterprise performance management market, the webinar presentation is an excellent companion to the complete research report, "The Forrester Wave™: Enterprise Performance Management, Q4 2016," which is available for download, compliments of Tagetik.
Other topics covered in the presentation include:
- EPM deployment trends and common enterprise use cases
- Technologies driving EPM innovation
- The migration of finance to the cloud and SaaS, as well as a ranking of benefits identified in recent Forrester research
- What to look for in four key areas: collaboration, user experience, integration, and analytics
- Detailed evaluation criteria for products, vendor strategy, and vendor viability
- Requirements for EPM selection success
"The goal of EPM is to provide an ongoing, detailed analysis of a company's past, present, and future. Therefore, a comprehensive, unified solution is superior to multiple niche products," said Hamerman. "Additionally, a cloud-based solution offers distinct advantages, such as business agility, speed of implementation and deployment, and lower upfront costs. We predict the market will see a critical mass migration to the cloud within the next two years."
"Forrester does an excellent job with its EPM research and evaluation tools, which detail meaningful evaluation criteria and recommended weightings," said Dave Kasabian, Tagetik chief marketing officer. "We strongly urge anyone considering the implementation of an EPM solution – whether it's new or a replacement – to view this highly informative presentation and to download the complete research report."
To access the recorded webinar, click here. To download a complimentary copy of "The Forrester Wave™ Enterprise Performance Management, Q4 2016," click here.
Request a Demo
Our personalized demo allows you to speak directly with a senior solution specialist and discover the key functionalities of CCH Tagetik.
Would you love to know more about CCH Tagetik?
For more information, please complete the form and a member of our team will reach out to you shortly!

subset: commoncrawl


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Own words:
📍Singapore Fashion, beauty and travel. Paintings over at @willabelleart TikTok: willabelleofficial ✉
It indicates the influencer's ability to swiftly increase their following while keeping the existing audience excited and captivated.
It indicates how talented a star is to keep their audience interested and active. The higher the score, the stronger is the influence on their followers.
How many followers willamazing has gained in the last 14 days. Change Period
We are able to provide audience reports for any influencer. Access to audience reports is limited to pro users.
Progression of willamazing's Engagement in the last 14 days. Change Period
Did you like Popular Chips Insights? Would you like to know more or advertise with Influencers?
At Popular Chips, we commit on scouting Influencers & Talents and create original collaborations between the brand and the ad hoc digital influencer or celebrity.
Get in touch today to see how your brand can benefit from Influencer exposure.
How many followers willamazing needs to get a single like on a post.
The lower the number, the higher the Quality Score.
Change Period
How many followers willamazing needs to get a single comment on a post.
The lower the number, the higher the Quality Score.
Change Period
Progression of willamazing's Quality Score in the last 14 days. Change Period
The Popular Chips Insights are based on a unique algorithm that blends likes, comments, and number of pictures posted. The data collected from @willamazing is public and no personal information was used.
The number of followers is not the only factor to take into account when ranking a Celebrity like Willabelle Ong. Through our unique tool, you will see that sometimes accounts with only a third of other people's followings can reach a higher engagement rate, see the case of Chris Wu vs Kim Kardashian.
Like @willamazing, most Influencers share the desire to engage audiences worldwide. Some of them are newbies and others are very magic skilled like Kylie Jenner.
See other interesting social media influencers and their Influencer insights.


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Linda G Richard on Trollwatch
Or, I see Vinnie everywhere!! Oh nooooooo!
Linda G. Richard is running scared. She of Facebook hitlist fame is now turning on friends at Facebook because she thinks that they are Vinnie from Jawas! She's pretty jumpy, that one!
Oh by all means! Warn them!
LMAO! They are eating their own!
Like the pictures your buds at RevolutionMuslim hotlinked from the Jawa Report? Well tell those fun-loving terrorist buddies of yours to stop hotlinking and then their site won't be filled up with such awful pictures! LOL
Awwww! Is poor little Umm Talhah wasting away whilst her momma's boy is in jail?
Before we waste any sympathy on her, let's remember that she allowed her husband to attempt to leave the country with their child, so that he could go join As-Shabaab in Somalia. What, exactly, was the idiot going to do with the child once he got to the terrorist training camp? Was he planning to just dump the kid in an orphanage somewhere, or worse, take him along on terrorist missions?
That question leaves you with a few possibilities… One is that this was not a well-thought-through plan –which I don't believe, because Zachie has demonstrated an ability to reason (although his conclusions are wrong) in many of his posts on the internet. Or if it was well-planned, it's even more chilling. It means that the mother and father of this innocent child were willing to sacrifice his safety and welfare in order to fulfill their terrorist desires. Talk about moral depravity – this takes the cake!
So no, we won't be feeling sorry for wifey unless there's some mitigating information that comes out — like maybe she turned her moron husband in for trying to take their kid to Somalia! But until some information like that is revealed, fuggedaboutit.
Oh nooooes! "These people" are running "amok!" The sky is falling, the sky is falling! Look Chicken Little, the person who started this targeting was YOU with your stupid "hitlist." And what was posted about "Sister Fatima" was not propaganda – she's a terrorist wannabe who got busted and you can flap your idiot gums all you want to about that, but you can't change the facts. And trust us, we'll keep our eye on you AND your pals and learn everything we can. That way we'll be able to stop the next Colleen La Rose and Zachary Chesser. Stick that in your hooka pipe and smoke it.
LOL You are pathetic. You're all over the internet and you sign this with a fake name? And oh – let's not forget the mandatory disclaimer…
As IF you think this stupid disclaimer would protect you and your pals from consequences for the things that you post? You really need to go back to law school and get some more education if you believe that one!


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Many salespeople can get a prospect to love the equipment but fail to get them to act and make a purchase. It's frustrating when a customer says, "We love that RO, and we want it but we just can't get it now—maybe in three months." Wham! Your esteem and commission down the drain.
There are solutions that work such as justifying the value and showing the customer he'll be dollars ahead. What follows is a list of questions for the customer and then various scenerios that will refer you back to them.
What if it Cost Less Than Zero?
Before your demonstration, create a list of questions that will prove to the customer an RO is affordable. (It's more powerful to write things down and refer to them later.) Then ask the questions for which I have provided some typical answers.
- How many people live in your home?
Typical Answer: 4
- How many commercial beverages per day including coffee, soft drinks, bottled water, Kool Aid, beer, tea, etc., does the average person in your family drink?
Answer: 3
- That means your family drinks how many commercial beverages per day?
Answer: 4 x 3 = 12
- How many commercial beverages is that per 30-day month?
Answer: 12 x 30 = 360
- An average beverage costs how much?
Answer: $0.35
- Then how much do you spend each month on commercial beverages?
Answer: 360 x .35 = $126
- I'm not saying your family will never want a soft drink, but if you had delicious healthy water to drink, what percentage of the time would they reach for water instead of a commercial beverage?
Answer: 30 percent
- Then how much would pure water save you per month on commercial beverages?
Answer: $126 x .30 = $37.80
"Well, that equipment costs only $28 per month," you say. "It is available while still saving $9.80 per month."
After that, every time the family tries to put off the purchase you can rightly state that there is no point in wasting that $9.80 per month. You can then say, "Let's go get that RO installed right away."
Now, look at some scenarios that will refer you back to the questions and answers.
RO Cleans Up Against Carbon Filters
Salespeople may have trouble selling against less expensive carbon filters. Customers say, "No thanks, we like our counter top filter." Here is an analogy.
"Do you put on a clean pair of socks or put fresh socks over yesterday's?" you ask him. The customer usually replies that he puts on clean socks. You go on. "A carbon filter is like covering old socks every day for six or nine months. You see, carbon filters filter things out of water and trap it in the filter. It stays there and tomorrow's water is dragged through the filter and yesterday's trapped effluent, trapping today's removal. By tomorrow, you are dragging water through two days of trash and adding a third. By the end of 60 days, you are dragging your drinking water through 60 days of trash. So you see, it is like putting socks on top of yesterday's socks instead of putting on a fresh pair. The RO uses water to constantly wash the membrane, flush it down the drain and keep the membrane clean and fresh."
Then, refer to their answers about the cost of this product they need.
Now You're Cooking
Always ask if bottled water is used for cooking, because most people will answer that it's too expensive. Answer them with, "Do you want to cook chicken, rice and other foods in water not considered tasty or healthy enough to drink? What if you could get that water for drinking and cooking for less than you spend right now?" Then refer to your list of questions.
Enthusiasm is the Glue That Seals the Sale
Unbridled enthusiasm improves RO sales. Refer to ROs as a miracle and military secret. Get excited while explaining how the technology was developed. Say what a miracle it is that water is pushed through a membrane with holes designed to trap virtually everything but water. Remind them that this miraculous technology is so unbelievably priced that they can still save $9.80 over current expenses (refering back to their prevous answers).
Try these suggestions for a smooth sale.
About the Author
Carl Davidson is president of Sales & Management Solutions, which provides sales and management training designed exclusively for the water equipment industry. For more than 13 years, he has helped more than 1,400 companies in seven countries. For a free demonstration tape and catalog, contact the company at 800-941-0068; www.salesco.net.


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City of CoronaHome Menu
City Calendar
This calendar of events is organized chronologically and provides basic information on events taking place within the City, or sponsored by Corona-based organizations.
Are you viewing this on a Mobile device? Click here to view City Calendar in List Format
Board Games by the Books
- Date: 01/18/2020 12:00 PM - 4:45 PM
- Location: Corona Public Library
650 South Main Street
Corona, California 92882
- Introduction:
Ages 11+
Meets in the High Desert Room


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Following on from the book covers arranged by hue/lightness, I've been playing around with the 1000 Frames of Hitchcock thumbnails.
Here's the result of 15 minutes of coding and 2 hours of rendering using a single frame from the famous shower scene in Psycho…
To see the individual frames, you really need to view the full sized image (9526 x 5475 pixels).
The code works by sampling a pixel and then randomly selecting a frame that has a similar hue and lightness value. As before, a little bit of randomess (position, rotation and size) is thrown in to make it visually more interesting.


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Jon Stewart thought he had it made when he scored a date with Jennifer Aniston, but when the actress showed up with a bunch of pals, it was clear she just wanted to be, well, friends.
Aniston stopped by Stewart's "The Daily Show" Thursday night, and the pair revealed the date, which came during the first season of "Friends," and before either had become A-List superstars. Stewart didn't even think Aniston would remember having dinner at an unarmed Italian restaurant on Manhattan's 10th Street, but she did.
"Of course I remember that," she said.
U.S. & World
"It was lovely," Stewart recalled. "Here's what was nice about it that I remember, and tell me if you remember. You brought so many of your friends. And I remember thinking, 'She's so excited to be on a date with me, she wants me to get to know her posse.' "
"That's really sad," Aniston replied.
"In fact, I remember you just inviting random people from the restaurant to come sit between us," Stewart said.
It would only have been a year or two later that Stewart, 47, met his future wife, Tracey McShane, on a blind date. He famously proposed to her in 2000 through a personalized crossword puzzle and the pair now has two children.
Aniston got married at the same time to Brad Pitt, but they divorced in 2005.
|The Daily Show With Jon Stewart
|Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
|Jennifer Aniston
|Daily Show Full Episodes
|Political Humor
|Tea Party
|Daily Show Full Episodes
|Political Humor
|Tea Party
Selected Reading: The Daily Show, IMDB.


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Is this the place for feedback? The pre-alpha has started for a few days, but I don't see much posts.
This is my first alpha test of this game. I wasn't able to get the game running in previous tests. I should also point out that I'm using Wine (via PlayOnLinux) to play this game. I was surprised how well it is working. Of course, wine runs many 3D games well, so I shouldn't be that surprised.
First, I just like to say that this is a great game. This is the second game I played which had similar game mechanics. The other game has a major flaw in its monetization method, which made it not very enjoyable. There are other issues with it too. I'm not sure if the developers are interested in the list, so that you could avoid those pitfalls. Let me know. I really hope this game gets released soon.
So here are some initial feedback.
1. When you dock at the Mothership in galaxy mode, the "General Info" box has a typo. One of the "Connected" words is misspelled.
2. I accepted a quest and had trouble trying to complete it. So I abandoned it. I later found out how to complete it so I proceeded to try and accept the quest again. Unfortunately, the game doesn't do anything when a click the "Accept Quest" button. The button does the up/down animation, but it doesn't change to "Complete Quest" like before. Am I not allowed to re-accept a quest after abandoning it?
3. A lot of the asteroid fields say it is "Very Rich" of some resource. But when I explore it, there are hardly any. A few actually had no resources in the asteroid field at all.
These are the main issues I found so far. Note; I'm ignoring other problems like crashes and video/audio problems, since that may be with wine and not with the game itself. There are a few suggestions I would like to make at this time.
1. There are shortcut keys for many of the commands in combat, such as the z, x, c, etc. But the buttons at the lower left hand corner for Stop, Move, Rotate, etc., don't have a little box with the key name on it. Many of the buttons on the screen have a box with the key name on it. I haven't memorized all the shortcut keys yet, so having these boxes on the buttons would really help.
2. Is it possible to queue the rotate command with a move command? I know I can queue Move commands with the 'shift' key. Can I use "Shift-R" to have the ship face a certain direction at the end of the queue? The other game I mentioned uses 'right-mouse-click-and-drag' to do this command. Click on the location, then drag in the direction you want the ship to face. If Shift-R already does this, then never mind. :)
3. In the Move command, I want to click on the Mothership or Outpost/Battlestation as the destination. This will command the ship to move within a certain distance to the object. Currently, if I click in the mini-map, the ship just rams the object if I happen to clicked at the center of the object.
4. Add a command to maximize the minimap, so I can give an Attack/Move order without moving my main map viewport. I just want a bigger view of the entire map. No one gets dizzy moving the viewport back and forth so quickly?
5. Allow another method of moving the viewport besides moving the mouse to the edge of the screen. I have a 1920x1080 monitor, and I don't want to move the mouse across the screen just to shift the viewport slightly. Often times, when I try to box-select a bunch of ships and one of those ships is half way off the viewport, I accidentally shift the viewport in the process of selecting it. You don't have to get rid of this edge of viewport method. I just want another method in addition to this one.
6. In Galaxy Mode, can the asteroid information box show the amount of resources instead of just "Very Rich"? I don't see how it is fun to scroll around the solar map just to click on asteroid fields to find one with the resources you need. Especially when the solar system doesn't have the resource you're looking for, yet you wasted 5 minutes looking at each field. Maybe we could copy EVE Online and send out droids to search for the resources we need? Even better if those droids can go to another solar system.
That's it for now. I don't expect all these suggestions to be implemented. But I would really like to see #5 implemented, if I had to choose one. Thanks for reading.


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Think back to the last time you experienced a pleasant smell. Remember how it made you feel? For me the smell of fresh-cut grass puts my mind at ease and instantly relaxes me.
The scent of lavender makes me less anxious and ready to fall asleep. I also love the smell of lemon — which reminds me of my mother's lemon pie and summer.
These are just a few examples of how scents can have a powerful effect on the mind, influence your mood and lower anxiety.
Aromatherapy usually involves the use of essential oils extracted from plants. However, other pleasant smells associated with fond memories can have a positive effect on mood and perspective.
Some studies on aromatherapy have shown these benefits:
- Lower anxiety and stress levels
- Improved mood
- Improved quality of life
You may want to explore using aromatherapy in your daily routine. It may be a helpful form of stress relief that's easy to incorporate.
Essential oils used in aromatherapy may be inhaled directly or indirectly, or applied to the skin through massage, lotions, oils or bath salts.
Aromatherapy works by stimulating smell receptors in the nose, sending messages via the nervous system to the limbic system -- a part of the brain that controls emotions.
Some common aromatherapy scents used for relaxation include: lavender, jasmine, chamomile, bergamot, rose, clary sage, neroli, sandalwood, ylang ylang and vanilla.
Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/aromatherapy-and-cancer/MY02420


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An announcement from Ancestry.com
As promised, we have recently released the first version of the Find A Grave mobile app. First of all, it's free, just like Find A Grave. With the app, you'll be able to bring the most important aspects of Find A Grave with you. You can see cemeteries near you or around the world, search for loved ones by name, take photos for existing memorials, or add new ones right from the app. The app is beautiful and contains rich photos, and all of the memorial details that the website has, but with a modern view of the Find A Grave brand. One aspect of Find A Grave that I've always loved, is the ability to request photos and take photos for others. Not strictly required, I think this aspect of Find A Grave captures some of the best community spirit, and so we made sure to get this in our first release. As a logged in user, you can request photos for memorials, just like on the website, and the network of volunteers can see those requests and fulfill them directly, or claim them, in order to help plan their next cemetery outing.
For a list of features, I'd direct you to our glossy product page, but I did want to point out a few things before I go. First, this release is just the beginning and we have a road map of features for our users which will keep the Find A Grave mobile app improving over time. Second, we're linking the Find A Grave mobile app to Ancestry's peerless support team to make sure our users get the help they need in a timely fashion. Finally, we are planning our Android App as well, and though I don't have a release date Android is certainly not forgotten.
Visit our product page for more information: http://www.findagrave.com/mobileapp
Try the app today and let us know what you think! https://itunes.apple.com/app/id732952190?mt=8&&referrer=click%3D2589a04c-c533-4180-a4a0-dc061d0af633
Find A Grave App Team
Note: I have downloaded the APP and it works as expected. Haven't gone to a cemetery yet, as we still have about a foot of snow on the ground, but I found the navigation was easy and screens clear. Can't wait to get out and take some pictures.


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A revision and expansion of Helvetica. Known also as Helvetica Neue from an effort to make the family easy to find in font menus.
In 1982 Linotype set out to revise and systematize the hodgepodge of fonts Helvetica had become over years. Adopting a numeric naming system from the former competitor typeface, Univers, styles and weights were coordinated and complemented. The height of capitals and lower case were aligned throughout the family. Yet the wish for regularization led to new compromises: condensed and expanded styles required squarer forms, which had to be adopted for the normal width, again sacrificing some of the personality of the rounder original." — Indra Kupferschmid


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Ready, Set, Go!
The Los Angeles Fire Department encourages you to be prepared in the event of a brush fire. For those of you living near the current incidents, be vigilant and keep your TV or radio on. Make certain you have your family critical papers, phone data, pets, and other valuables ready to evacuate if so directed.
- Keep a pair of old shoes and a flashlight handy for a night evacuation.
- Keep the six "P's" ready, in case immediate evacuation is required:
- People and pets
- Papers, phone numbers, and important documents
- Prescriptions, vitamins, and eyeglasses
- Pictures and irreplaceable memorabilia
- Personal computers (information on hard drive and disks)
- "Plastic" (credit cards, ATM cards) and cash
Ready, Set, Go is an important program designed to help you and your family stay safe. Here is the latest on how you can be prepared:
Are you Ready?
The most unpredictable and dangerous fire you're likely to encounter is a wind-driven wildfire. As winds change intensity and direction, a wildfire can either lay down and smolder, or it can turn into a roaring freight train. Knowing how to protect your home, your family, and when to leave in the event of a wildfire will be essential if you are to remain safe when disaster strikes. To help the community better understand the issues related to preparing for a wind-driven wildfire in the city of angels, the Los Angeles City Fire Department is partnering with Cal Fire, the Orange County Fire Authority, Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department, San Bernardino County Fire Department, Riverside County Fire Department, and other agencies to create Ready, Set, Go, LA!
Get Ready:
The first step is to prepare your property, home, and family to be prepared in the event of a wildfire.
Watch the Ready, Set, Go video: Watch video
Learn about a Family Escape Plan and Get a FREE Escape Plan via MySafe:LA
Brush Clearance Information: View Brush Info
Ready! Set! Go!
Using these three words you can prepare your own Wildfire Action Plan and be prepared should a wildfire threaten your home.
You can help protect your property by creating defensible space around your home. That means removing brush for a minimum of 200 feet. Be sure there are no tree limbs hanging over your house and the roof and gutters are free of leaves, pine needles, and other debris. Make sure ornamental shrubbery is set back from the sides of your home and that leaves under them are cleared away. One of the most common dangers in a wildfire is free-falling embers landing in these places and igniting your home.
Replace shake-shingle roofs with tile or other fire-resistant materials. Use fire-safe building materials when constructing or remodeling your home and plant fire-resistant landscaping.
Assemble emergency supplies and prepare a list of the things you want to take with you if you need to evacuate. Remember to think about things like cash, medications, phone chargers, computers and food for your pets. Plan your escape routes; you should know at least two different ways out of your neighborhood.
Get Set:
If a wildfire threatens your neighborhood, act immediately. Back your vehicle into the driveway with the hood (front) facing the street. Next, roll up the windows, and load your vehicle with everything you want to take with you. Make certain your valuables are either in your vehicle or are safely stored in a (fireproof) safe.
Remove flammable materials from around your house. This includes patio furniture, firewood, decorations and anything else that could catch fire. Then monitor the news, your fire department's website, and MySafe:LA for information regarding the fire.
In the past, the LAFD and other city agencies suggested residents await evacuation instructions prior to leaving their homes. The latest information suggests that you should not wait to be told to leave. Go early! If you've followed the suggestions noted here in the MySafe:LA website, as well as those related publications on the subject, you've already done what you can to protect your home and property. Firefighters need room in which to work. By leaving, you give them the best chance to protect your property.
Think Clearly!
Leaving your home when a wildfire is approaching is a difficult and emotional decision. Many people believe that by staying behind, you will have a better chance of saving your home. During the past year, a growing discussion regarding "stay and defend" has been discussed by both city and fire service officials. The recent disasters in Australia, where so many lives were lost, combined with all of the experience gained in past California wildfires makes it clear that the "stay and defend" concept may sound reasonable on paper, but is extremely dangerous in real-life. People decide to stay before the fire front arrives. When it does, many people change their minds (or panic) and decide to leave - and at that time, it's too late. Many fatalities that have occurred in wildfires around the world are the result of people leaving their homes too late.
It's up to you to be prepared in the event of a wildfire. We urge you to learn, adopt, and practice the Ready, Set, Go initiative.
— Find Your Station
— Fire Safety
— Medical Emergencies
— Evacuation Info
— Disaster Readiness
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— Fire Stat LA
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— About LAFD
— Contact LAFD


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With help from the C.I.A., Arab governments and Turkey have sharply increased their military aid to Syria's opposition fighters in recent months, expanding a secret airlift of arms and equipment for the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, according to air traffic data, interviews with officials in several countries and the accounts of rebel commanders.
The airlift, which began on a small scale in early 2012 and continued intermittently through last fall, expanded into a steady and much heavier flow late last year, the data shows. It has grown to include more than 160 military cargo flights by Jordanian, Saudi and Qatari military-style cargo planes landing at Esenboga Airport near Ankara, and, to a lesser degree, at other Turkish and Jordanian airports.
As it evolved, the airlift correlated with shifts in the war within Syria, as rebels drove Syria's army from territory by the middle of last year. And even as the Obama administration has publicly refused to give more than "nonlethal" aid to the rebels, the involvement of the C.I.A. in the arms shipments — albeit mostly in a consultative role, American officials say — has shown that the United States is more willing to help its Arab allies support the lethal side of the civil war.
From offices at secret locations, American intelligence officers have helped the Arab governments shop for weapons, including a large procurement from Croatia, and have vetted rebel commanders and groups to determine who should receive the weapons as they arrive, according to American officials speaking on the condition of anonymity. The C.I.A. declined to comment on the shipments or its role in them.
The shipments also highlight the competition for Syria's future between Sunni Muslim states and Iran, the Shiite theocracy that remains Mr. Assad's main ally. Secretary of State John Kerry pressed Iraq on Sunday to do more to halt Iranian arms shipments through its airspace; he did so even as the most recent military cargo flight from Qatar for the rebels landed at Esenboga early Sunday night.
Syrian opposition figures and some American lawmakers and officials have argued that Russian and Iranian arms shipments to support Mr. Assad's government have made arming the rebels more necessary.
Most of the cargo flights have occurred since November, after the presidential election in the United States and as the Turkish and Arab governments grew more frustrated by the rebels' slow progress against Mr. Assad's well-equipped military. The flights also became more frequent as the humanitarian crisis inside Syria deepened in the winter and cascades of refugees crossed into neighboring countries.
The Turkish government has had oversight over much of the program, down to affixing transponders to trucks ferrying the military goods through Turkey so it might monitor shipments as they move by land into Syria, officials said. The scale of shipments was very large, according to officials familiar with the pipeline and to an arms-trafficking investigator who assembled data on the cargo planes involved.
"A conservative estimate of the payload of these flights would be 3,500 tons of military equipment," said Hugh Griffiths, of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, who monitors illicit arms transfers.
"The intensity and frequency of these flights," he added, are "suggestive of a well-planned and coordinated clandestine military logistics operation."
Although rebel commanders and the data indicate that Qatar and Saudi Arabia had been shipping military materials via Turkey to the opposition since early and late 2012, respectively, a major hurdle was removed late last fall after the Turkish government agreed to allow the pace of air shipments to accelerate, officials said.
Simultaneously, arms and equipment were being purchased by Saudi Arabia in Croatia and flown to Jordan on Jordanian cargo planes for rebels working in southern Syria and for retransfer to Turkey for rebels groups operating from there, several officials said.
These multiple logistics streams throughout the winter formed what one former American official who was briefed on the program called "a cataract of weaponry."
American officials, rebel commanders and a Turkish opposition politician have described the Arab roles as an open secret, but have also said the program is freighted with risk, including the possibility of drawing Turkey or Jordan actively into the war and of provoking military action by Iran.
Still, rebel commanders have criticized the shipments as insufficient, saying the quantities of weapons they receive are too small and the types too light to fight Mr. Assad's military effectively. They also accused those distributing the weapons of being parsimonious or corrupt.
"The outside countries give us weapons and bullets little by little," said Abdel Rahman Ayachi, a commander in Soquor al-Sham, an Islamist fighting group in northern Syria.
He made a gesture as if switching on and off a tap. "They open and they close the way to the bullets like water," he said.
Two other commanders, Hassan Aboud of Soquor al-Sham and Abu Ayman of Ahrar al-Sham, another Islamist group, said that whoever was vetting which groups receive the weapons was doing an inadequate job.
"There are fake Free Syrian Army brigades claiming to be revolutionaries, and when they get the weapons they sell them in trade," Mr. Aboud said.
The former American official noted that the size of the shipments and the degree of distributions are voluminous.
"People hear the amounts flowing in, and it is huge," he said. "But they burn through a million rounds of ammo in two weeks."
A Tentative Start
The airlift to Syrian rebels began slowly. On Jan. 3, 2012, months after the crackdown by the Alawite-led government against antigovernment demonstrators had morphed into a military campaign, a pair of Qatar Emiri Air Force C-130 transport aircraft touched down in Istanbul, according to air traffic data.
They were a vanguard.
Weeks later, the Syrian Army besieged Homs, Syria's third largest city. Artillery and tanks pounded neighborhoods. Ground forces moved in.
Across the country, the army and loyalist militias were trying to stamp out the rebellion with force — further infuriating Syria's Sunni Arab majority, which was severely outgunned. The rebels called for international help, and more weapons.
By late midspring the first stream of cargo flights from an Arab state began, according to air traffic data and information from plane spotters.
On a string of nights from April 26 through May 4, a Qatari Air Force C-17 — a huge American-made cargo plane — made six landings in Turkey, at Esenboga Airport. By Aug. 8 the Qataris had made 14 more cargo flights. All came from Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, a hub for American military logistics in the Middle East.
Qatar has denied providing any arms to the rebels. A Qatari official, who requested anonymity, said Qatar has shipped in only what he called nonlethal aid. He declined to answer further questions. It is not clear whether Qatar has purchased and supplied the arms alone or is also providing air transportation service for other donors. But American and other Western officials, and rebel commanders, have said Qatar has been an active arms supplier — so much so that the United States became concerned about some of the Islamist groups that Qatar has armed.
The Qatari flights aligned with the tide-turning military campaign by rebel forces in the northern province of Idlib, as their campaign of ambushes, roadside bombs and attacks on isolated outposts began driving Mr. Assad's military and supporting militias from parts of the countryside.
As flights continued into the summer, the rebels also opened an offensive in that city — a battle that soon bogged down.
The former American official said David H. Petraeus, the C.I.A. director until November, had been instrumental in helping to get this aviation network moving and had prodded various countries to work together on it. Mr. Petraeus did not return multiple e-mails asking for comment.
The American government became involved, the former American official said, in part because there was a sense that other states would arm the rebels anyhow. The C.I.A. role in facilitating the shipments, he said, gave the United States a degree of influence over the process, including trying to steer weapons away from Islamist groups and persuading donors to withhold portable antiaircraft missiles that might be used in future terrorist attacks on civilian aircraft.
American officials have confirmed that senior White House officials were regularly briefed on the shipments. "These countries were going to do it one way or another," the former official said. "They weren't asking for a 'Mother, may I?' from us. But if we could help them in certain ways, they'd appreciate that."
Through the fall, the Qatari Air Force cargo fleet became even more busy, running flights almost every other day in October. But the rebels were clamoring for even more weapons, continuing to assert that they lacked the firepower to fight a military armed with tanks, artillery, multiple rocket launchers and aircraft.
Many were also complaining, saying they were hearing from arms donors that the Obama administration was limiting their supplies and blocking the distribution of the antiaircraft and anti-armor weapons they most sought. These complaints continue.
"Arming or not arming, lethal or nonlethal — it all depends on what America says," said Mohammed Abu Ahmed, who leads a band of anti-Assad fighters in Idlib Province.
The Breakout
Soon, other players joined the airlift: In November, three Royal Jordanian Air Force C-130s landed in Esenboga, in a hint at what would become a stepped-up Jordanian and Saudi role.
Within three weeks, two other Jordanian cargo planes began making a round-trip run between Amman, the capital of Jordan, and Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, where, officials from several countries said, the aircraft were picking up a large Saudi purchase of infantry arms from a Croatian-controlled stockpile.
The first flight returned to Amman on Dec. 15, according to intercepts of a transponder from one of the aircraft recorded by a plane spotter in Cyprus and air traffic control data from an aviation official in the region.
In all, records show that two Jordanian Ilyushins bearing the logo of the Jordanian International Air Cargo firm but flying under Jordanian military call signs made a combined 36 round-trip flights between Amman and Croatia from December through February. The same two planes made five flights between Amman and Turkey this January.
As the Jordanian flights were under way, the Qatari flights continued and the Royal Saudi Air Force began a busy schedule, too — making at least 30 C-130 flights into Esenboga from mid-February to early March this year, according to flight data provided by a regional air traffic control official.
Several of the Saudi flights were spotted coming and going at Ankara by civilians, who alerted opposition politicians in Turkey.
"The use of Turkish airspace at such a critical time, with the conflict in Syria across our borders, and by foreign planes from countries that are known to be central to the conflict, defines Turkey as a party in the conflict," said Attilla Kart, a member of the Turkish Parliament from the C.H.P. opposition party, who confirmed details about several Saudi shipments. "The government has the responsibility to respond to these claims."
Turkish and Saudi Arabian officials declined to discuss the flights or any arms transfers. The Turkish government has not officially approved military aid to Syrian rebels.
Croatia and Jordan both denied any role in moving arms to the Syrian rebels. Jordanian aviation officials went so far as to insist that no cargo flights occurred.
The director of cargo for Jordanian International Air Cargo, Muhammad Jubour, insisted on March 7 that his firm had no knowledge of any flights to or from Croatia.
"This is all lies," he said. "We never did any such thing."
A regional air traffic official who has been researching the flights confirmed the flight data, and offered an explanation. "Jordanian International Air Cargo," the official said, "is a front company for Jordan's air force."
After being informed of the air-traffic control and transponder data that showed the plane's routes, Mr. Jubour, from the cargo company, claimed that his firm did not own any Ilyushin cargo planes.
Asked why his employer's Web site still displayed images of two Ilyushin-76MFs and text claiming they were part of the company fleet, Mr. Jubour had no immediate reply. That night the company's Web site was taken down.


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Item #4530
No cook should be without these standard herbs!
Basil Dolce Vita Blend Organic (1 gram)
Chives Common Organic (700 mg)
Cilantro/Coriander Long Standing Organic (3 grams)
Dill Bouquet Organic (3 grams)
Fennel Florence Finocchio (1 gram)
Oregano True Greek (100 mg)
Parsley Moss Curled Organic (1.5 grams)
Rosemary (30 Seeds)
Thyme English Organic (350 mg)
*Please note that substitutions may apply
Item #4530
73.41 grams
What is Soil?
Soil is a diverse mix of substances, teeming with life and composed of minerals, decayed plant and animal matter, water, and air. It…More…
Successfully Starting Seeds Indoors
Gardening from seed has several benefits. There are more varieties available to you, you know what's going into…
Indoor gardens bring fresh herbs to your fingertips for everyday recipes-even when the snow is piling high outside. Below are some tips on the best…More…


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I mean, I've been to ocean before. A lot. It's just that my ocean is the Pacific Northwest ocean and that's almost always gray and cold and windy and sans-dolphins.
And even on nice sunny days, it's still fairly cold and windy.
All righty! Back to thinking about trips and packing and tiny plane-ready toiletries. And succulents and citrus and heirloom tomatoes that grow all year long!


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A partnership built on Trust and Integrity
Managing your risk so you can focus on growing your business, safe in the knowledge we are there when you need us
Meet our key contacts
John Saunders
Managing Director
John Fallon
Director – General Insurance
Adam Bird
Director – Workers Compensation & WHS
CHOICE has enjoyed working with Warren Saunders Insurance Brokers for its insurance needs since 2010. John Saunders and his team continue to provide outstanding , proactive service in a highly competitive and sometimes difficult industry. Without failure, WSIB has given CHOICE outstanding service and we are confident in the capacity of Warren Saunders Insurance Brokers to provide and manage our insurance needs and have no hesitation in recommending WSIB.
George Perry
Director, Commercial & Finance
Warren Saunders Insurance Brokers have acted as brokers for St George Leagues Club for over 40 years and during that time the Club has been on fire at least once and flooded on another occasion. The service and advice provided by the Management and Staff of Warren Saunders Insurance Brokers has always been first class.
Danny Robinson
General Manager, St George Leagues Club Limited
We have benefited from working with the Workers Compensation Division at Warren Saunders Insurance Brokers since 2002. Their expertise and outstanding service has proved invaluable during this time, none more so than most recently when they were able to successfully negotiate a very complex issue that delivered a substantial refund of premium to our business. I would have no hesitation in recommending their services to any business within the Retirement Living and Aged Care Industry.
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Chief Executive Officer, Warrigal Care
Wakehurst Golf Club was placed in an extremely vulnerable and precious position resulting from a unique set of circumstances not of its own making. The persistence and professional diligence of Warren Saunders Insurance Brokers was paramount in ensuring that the clubs insurer accepted that it was their responsibility to react to the claims. Without such actions emanating from Warren Saunders Insurance Brokers, Wakehurst Golf Club could have found itself in a very serious financial situation
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General Manager, Wakehurst Golf Club Limited
The Warren Saunders claims team continually provides invaluable assistance to the management of claims. They consistently succeed in bringing contentious and difficult issues to a outcome. Their assistance and claims management is first class. I have personally seen the efforts they go to ensure that a client does the right thing by themselves, and their insurer in:setting up meetings, personally attending, explaining the claims process and ensuring everyone involved, witnesses, employees and management provides the evidence needed to defend the claim, and is supported in that process. That is the service. That is support – in times of need. That's what differentiates Warren Saunders.
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IRT have enjoyed and benefited from a very strong partnership with the workers compensation team at Warren Saunders Insurance Brokers since 2010. It is their unparalleled industry expertise and outstanding personalised services that has resulted in substantial savings, both financial and cultural, to our business. I have no hesitation in recommending them to any business seeking specialist workers compensation and WHS services.
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Head Health, Wellness & Safety
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Welcome to the ANU Quantum Random Numbers Server
This website offers true random numbers to anyone on the internet. The random numbers are generated in real-time in our lab by measuring the quantum fluctuations of the vacuum. The vacuum is described very differently in the quantum mechanical context than in the classical context. Traditionally, a vacuum is considered as a space that is empty of matter or photons. Quantum mechanically, however, that same space resembles a sea of virtual particles appearing and disappearing all the time. This result is due to the fact that the vacuum still possesses a zero-point energy. Consequently, the electromagnetic field of the vacuum exhibits random fluctuations in phase and amplitude at all frequencies. By carefully measuring these fluctuations, we are able to generate ultra-high bandwidth random numbers.
This quantum Random Number Generator is based on the papers: [Appl. Phys. Lett. 98, 231103 (2011), Phys. Rev. Applied 3, 054004 (2015)].
This website allows everybody to see, listen or download our quantum random numbers, assess in real time the quality of the numbers generated and learn more about the physics behind it.
We now support authenticated and secured connections for the live streams and random blocks.


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Smart computer users know about the importance of security software. These are the programs that prevent hackers from stealing your information and protect against viruses corrupting your computer. But did you know that some of the programs advertised as security software are actually fakes that don't protect, and in some cases, actually infect your computer with the very malware they purport to defend against? Rogue security software (also called scareware) is a serious problem threatening computer users today. Here, we take a look at what it is and how to protect yourself.
Continue reading… The Dangers of Rogue Security Software


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Corals and deserts: the magic of the Red Sea.
Rome: White Star, 2002. Quarto, dustwrapper, colour photographs. WAS $80. The Red Sea is a wonderfully fertile marine paradise set in an extraordinary arid landscape. The flora and fauna on the sea bed are rich and varied, the greatest attraction being the coral formations, the brightly coloured tropical fish, and..... More


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"La Sagesse Intérieure center" offers self development courses, workshops and holistic therapies to help people enhance, maintain and restore their health and well-being.
We offer an integrated approach to well-being, through paths such as:
- Colour Therapy,
- Meditation,
- Yoga,
- Integrated Energy Therapy,
- Shiatsu massage,....
and a variety of complementary therapies and events
Situated in the European Instution area, 2 mins from Place Jourdan.
On the bus line 80 and 60 and a short distance from Schumann metro.
This site is under construction so please check back soon
To contact us to find out more, send us an email at email@example.com or call 0485/533 536
"We don't receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take us or spare us."
- Marcel Proust -
We also offer weekend activities. Stay tuned for forthcoming events!


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The Journal of Humanitarian Assistance
Currently viewing the category: "Ritendra Tamang"
Continue Reading →
This paper examines issues concerning forced displacement of people in Colombia and Liberia within the context of 20th-century internal armed conflicts. It explores how displacement is related to group identities such as gender and age, and it examines the displacement crisis in Colombia and Liberia. It argues that a commitment–implementation gap, or the failure of Colombia and Liberia to implement effective strategies to meet their commitment to global norms and principles as stipulated in the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, limits these countries' ability to manage their displacement crisis effectively.
Recent Articles
- Transgression of Human Rights in Humanitarian Emergencies: The Case of Somali Refugees in Kenya and Zimbabwean Asylum-Seekers in South Africa
- Mapping Population Mobility in a Remote Context: Health Service Planning in the Whantoa District, Western Ethiopia
- One step forward, two steps back? Humanitarian Challenges and Dilemmas in Crisis Settings


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Imagine insurmountable rows of slot machines and the only way to win is to hit the jackpot 250 times in a row. The odds are against you. Yet, these are the same odds that would have to be overcome for the simplest life-form to evolve and form each of 250 proteins by random chance. It's seemingly impossible. (From the documentary "Expelled" [2008])
Though the premise above is irrational and illogical, the entire "theory" of evolution depends on the same "logic." Evolutionists call Biblically based creation "religion" and dismiss the text in Genesis as "folk tales." Yet they and other intellectuals, including physicist Stephen Hawking, base their "science" on their belief that creation sprang from nothing in a "big bang"! Who's making up stories now? (See Romans 1:20-22)
The latest intellectual brainstorm
Hawking's latest book, The Grand Design, states plainly: God did not create the universe. It has been called in reviews as "a frontal attack on Christianity." But the very title of his tome infers that creation was and is designed; therefore, it must have a designer. Even the reportedly smartest man of our age cannot contain the contradictions, which blow "black holes" in his science.
Hawking writes, "The question is: is the way the universe began chosen by God for reasons we can't understand, or was it determined by a law of science? I believe the second." Hawking adds, "Because there is a law such as gravity, the Universe can and will create itself from nothing." So, Professor Hawking, who is the Lawgiver in your scheme? Nothingness cannot begat everything. That is illogical and unproven.
Grounds for divorce?
An interesting biographical note about Stephen Hawking is revealed by his first wife, Jane. Even though she married Hawking in 1965, after his diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or known in America as Lou Gehrig's disease), she bravely cared for him until their divorce in 1991. In the book by Tim Adams, A Brief History of a First Wife, it states, "[Jane] took much of her dramatic hope at the time from her faith, and still sees something of the irony in the fact that her Christianity gave her the strength to support her husband, the most profound atheist. 'Stephen, I hope, had belief in me that I could make everything possible for him, but he did not share my religious – or spiritual – faith.'"
Science and religion can be partners
Scientific data proves that heaven and earth were created in the time frame stated in the Bible, in the way that is explained therein. For more information, see GENESIS: Paradise Lost.
More complex than science can prove
Today, we are learning more and more about what it takes for life to form. Beyond the statistical improbabilities of evolution, we've learned that the single cell is not at all like a mud hut, but rather more complex than a galaxy. In fact, for a single wing of a dinosaur to evolve, all five systems in a cell would have to change identically at the same time. Something that Darwin could never have imagined. (From the documentary "Expelled")
The Bible repeatedly refers to God's creation throughout the Old and New Testaments (Example: See Acts 17:24-28). Just as a parent silences the child's constant question of "Why?" because a child's mind would not understand the answer, God also tells us truths without explanation (Romans 1:19-20). Even the sharpest minds of our species cannot grasp the divine intelligence that is God.


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Editor Emeritus
Posts: 805
Joined: December 31, 1969, 08:00:00 PM
I Am Invincible
Herbert Chamberlain
"Chuck, this is Jimmy. Can you show him around?"
"Sure, whatever."
"Your shift starts now. Chuck will fill you in, but DON'T @$#! it up"
The squad leader of branch 27 leaves the two guarding a large steel cage with a thick steel door hinged at the bottom. There is a small opening for depositing food and other items for the prisoner.
"So..." Jimmy says, trying to think of something to chat about.
"Yeah." Chuck responds with a head nod.
"So, what are we guarding?"
"You don't know?"
"No, why?"
"Huh! You really don't know?"
"No." Jimmy opens a can of Campbell's chicken soup, and begins to eat the contents.
"Well, what we are guarding is indestructible, unstoppable, invincible..."
"What? Nothing is invincible." Jimmy continues to drink his cold can of Campbell's.
"Believe what you want to believe. I can tell you that he..." Chuck adamantly points to the steel cage behind Jimmy, "was blown up with C4 charge, a C4 charge that would take down a 10 story building. And guess what?"
"Well, a foul smell permeated in the air, but he came charging in and prevented us from getting away with the goods. So, C4 did nothing, NOTHING!"
"A foul smell, huh? Well, maybe he buried it? That would dampen the charge," Jimmy says condescendingly, slurping his soup.
Chuck gives him a sidewards glare. "Ok, you know Ray? Our best sniper?"
"Yeah! Well, I know OF him."
"Well, he was on a job. Ready to take the kill shot. Just then he..." Chuck again points to the steel cage behind Jimmy, "walked in front of the target and, well, the armor piercing round hit him in the eye and shattered. He just looked around like a fly landed on his head."
"Whatever." Jimmy shakes his head in disbelief.
"Rumor has it, when he was a kid he was run over by an 18 wheeler. You know what happened?"
"What do I care?"
"You should. That 18 wheeler turned into an 8 wheeler, and he..." Chuck points once more to the steel cage, "just got up and ran around like he just scored the winning goal. Oh, and by the way, that 18 wheeler was carrying the biggest cache of illegal drugs we have ever acquired. Well, an 18 wheeler really can't really ride with only 8 wheels. So, the cops showed up, and it was over. He just smiled away. Damn, KIDS."
"Kids, huh! Don't like kids?"
"YEAH! I DON'T like kids anymore." Suddenly a loud bang is heard in the cage behind Jimmy. Then another bang. "Damn, he isn't happy. We have to keep him distracted. We have to keep him in here until the job is finished."
"What is he going to do? He is locked up," Jimmy points out. A loud bang echoes around the room.
"Have you not heard a word I have said, you cumquat? Quick! Find something to distract him with!"
"What... like what? A soup can?" Jimmy condescendingly replies.
"Yeah, good IDEA!"
Chuck grabs the empty can of soup and throws it in the cage opening. The banging ceases. "Whew! Just a few more minutes, that is all we need." Chuck leans against the door of the cage exhausted by the sudden excitement.
"What is this job anyway?" Jimmy inquirers.
"Well, it is brilliant. Well, actually, it isn't all that brilliant. We are assassinating the owner of the largest diamond on earth, and then we are going to take it. Pretty simple really..." The cage door comes crashing forward crushing Chuck under its weight. Jimmy stares straight into the eyes of the individual held captive. He tries to compose himself, and reaches for his gun.
Jimmy reaches his gun and empties his 9 bullet clip at the individual standing in front of him. The individual opens his mouth as the bullets fly towards him. He eats the bullets like M&M's. He then begins licking his lips like he just had a delicious snack.
"You must be Maximilian Black?" Jimmy says with a whimper. A large white goat stands in front of Jimmy with a defiant smile.
Maximilian runs off in the direction of the exit. Jimmy stares in utter disbelief.
The squad leader of branch 27 grabs a cup of coffee from the break room, and turns on the shared company television. A news anchor appears on the screen.
"We interrupt your regularly scheduled program to report that there has been an assassination attempt on the owner of the largest recorded diamond, Aaron Pains. Luckily for him, Maximilian Black was there. Just in time. Maximilian took two bullets to the lower extremities, but will be just fine. Good old Max, he did get a little carried away, and ate the Diamond." The camera cuts to show Aaron Pains watching Max eat the diamond in one gulp. The camera cuts to a close up of Aaron Pains with a single tear forming in his eye. The camera cuts back to the anchor "We can only assume this was Max's way of protecting it from illegal hands." The television shot changes from the anchor to Maximilian licking his lips. Then appearing very pleased with himself, he smiles.
"Well, Mr. Pains will get that diamond back in a couple days. It won't be that painful, Mr. Pains, ha, ha, ha. Max is the one that just ate the largest diamond on earth. I now return you to our regularly scheduled program. This is Kirk Flatamer for WOCQ.
The squad leader finishes watching the news report, and he tries to comprehend what he just saw. The reality hits him like a ton of bricks. He loses control of his coffee, and it hits the ground.
The End


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Nominate Alumni for Stevens Awards
Stevens and the Stevens Alumni Association have a long and proud history of recognizing alumni and non-alumni for outstanding service to the university and for notable professional achievement.
The Stevens Alumni Award, the first such award given to alumni, was instituted in 1937. Since 1945 Stevens and the Alumni Association have bestowed the Stevens Honor Award on notable achievers in science, engineering or humanity. This 65-year tradition is one of the earliest recognitions in science and engineering. Over the years the Harold R. Fee '20 Alumni Achievement Award, the SAA Outstanding Teacher Award and the Charles V. Schaefer, Jr. Entrepreneur Award have been added to recognize those who contribute to Stevens.
A newly formed Joint SAA and Institute Awards Committee has established six new awards to complement the existing awards program to further recognize Stevens' distinguished alumni and friends. We ask you to help us identify worthy candidates for recognition.
Information on the awards process, awards description and criteria, and nomination forms can be found at www.stevens.edu/awards. Please let us know of any alumni and friends of Stevens who you believe are worthy of recognition in an existing or newly created award area.


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MALCOLM DOME sits it out
with Slade's NODDY HOLDER
When St. Noddy the Holder, that renowned Bishop of Bludgeon, fmally elects to trade in his multi-storey, stackheeled pulpit for a slow-burning log fire, bungalow-level carpet slippers and a Barbara Cartland novel (ah. the quiet life!), hell doubtless snuggle under his duvet (complete with Wee Willie Winkle night cap) having first offered praise to his 'Lordy Lordy' for creating Quiet Riot ('And on the eighth day .. .')
Now, cum, on, the reason's obvious! The Los Angeles quartet recently blasted into the US Top Five with their version of that klassic, 'Cum On Feel The Noize' (or in Phil Mogg's case, 'Cum On Feel The Noze'), thereby awakening a whole generation of sibling Yanks to the pleasures of etymological contortion, and at the same time ensuring a steady flow of offshore bucks into the Slade reservoir. Bank managers, stockbrokers and hotel doormen now eagerly rush to call Holder 'sir', as they assiduously pump his flesh (to use a political hustings term) and feel his newly bulging wallet.
If the 'silent' hell raisers from LA are the fast-food 'rocky burger' taste of the moment then Slade have undoubtedly helped light the flame that makes 'em so hot! For not only have QR struck a rich precious Meta1 vein with 'Cum On Feel The Noize', they've done it in a manner so like the Wolverhampton wacky racers - a case of Mike Yarwood and Harold Wilson!
"It's a good version of the song. I don't think Quiet Riot have added anything to the original, but they've updated the sound."
Noddy Holder looks professionally relaxed (everything Slade do has that air of the old pro' about it) as he contemplates higher things (a full can of lager stuck on a very tall shelf) whilst lounging across his publicist's couch.
"The first Slade knew about Quiet Riot was when they approached our publisher for permission to do 'Cum On .. .'. We agreed, never believing something like this would happen. In fact, the record was out for some while in the States before becoming a big hit, wasn't it'? The really nice thing about the whole affair is that it proves how strong our songs are. After all; 'Cum On Feel The Noize' is now ten years old, so it's obviously stood the test of time rather well!
"We've actually been approached in the recent past by people wanting us to update one of our classics. But, not even seeing what a band like Quiet Riot have done so successfully with modern studio technology on an old Slade tune has persuaded us it's worth doing. There was a spontaneity and electricity about the numbers when we first did 'em that could never be recaptured now. There just wouldn't be the same feel so, no matter how much money is offered, we're not into prostituting our own heritage."
Of course, why should Slade bother revisiting past glories, when QR are doing it for them? Rumour (unsubstantiated at present) has it that 'Mama We're All Crazee Now' and/or 'Gudbye T'Jane' might well crop up on the stripe-happy lads' next album. So, there's every possibility that the Slade back catalogue will become legitimate plunder fodder for a host of American hard rock pirates (possessed of a sheep mentality) looking for healthy chart pickings. The irony of it is that Holder's heroes are presently without a US recording deal ("we're hoping to clinch one soon") and have always been regarded as too parochially British to rock 'em dead on the transatlantic route.
But, in Britain during the early Seventies, Slade could boast more hits than any assassination squad. However, being in the pop business is rather like playing the fruit machines. You can get a run of luck when every coin triggers a jackpot, then inexplicably the winnings just dry up. There's no obvious logic to either streak and Slade have been stuck in the latter groove for some years, releasing a torrent of strong stuff that's scarcely dented the charts.
Until now, that is, cos it's 'flame-on' time again as 'My Oh My' has burnt a cinder trail up the Top 20. A ballad in the tradition of 'Everyday' and 'C'est La Vie', this song sways with an almost waltz-style rhythm (a case of 'We'll Bring The Strauss Down'?) yet retains a north-face- of-the-Eiger (i.e. very rocky) foundation - balls to the waltz??
What sets it up as different from anything Slade have ever attempted before is the neotechnological sound gained by producer John Punter.
''Yeah, it is slightly more modem than our previous stuff. But we didn't deliberately set out to get something like that. It was more a case of John Punter getting involved.
"It was RCA's idea to get him in. They asked us to write a couple of songs specifically for singles release. So we recorded demos of two numbers, 'My Oh My' and 'Run Runaway'. When the label heard them, they flipped and thought the songs were great, but ... they insisted we get in an outside producer to do the final versions. To be frank, we thought the demos themselves were good enough to put out, however the success of 'My Oh My' suggests RCA were right.
"Working with an outside producer for the first time in, well, years (all recent Slade vinyl has been self-produced) was certainly interesting. It provided us with a fifth pair of ears and a new outlook in the studio. John was easy to work with in the end cos he was prepared to work with us rather than trying to dictate to us. And it was enlightening to actually do things in a slightly different manner to our norm, We built the sound of each instrument layer by layer with Punter rather than just putting down all the basic tracks in one go and then overdubbing,"
The thought might traverse a few minds that Slade were almost pressurised into using an outside producer by RCA. Indeed, given the fact that there's been a virtual Stalin-style purge recently of the label's comradely heavy rock roster (R.I.P Hawkwind, Alkatrazz, Budgie among others), were Slade in any danger of a concrete handshake?
"No, I don't think that's really fair. We've always got on very well with everyone at RCA. Certainly, they didn't issue us with any ultimatum over John Punter. It was just felt that we needed him to give us a more out-and-out modem style. I admit I was against it at first, but events have proven them right. I don't believe RCA ever doubted we could have hits, cos our track record shows we can write the sort of tunes that have instant pop appeal and, once you've got that ability, it doesn't simply dissipate. Maybe the problem with those other bands like Hawkwind was that they'd no previous experience of having successful and regular chart entries."
Whether or not 'My Oh My' is the birth of something big, we'll be able to judge when 'Run Runaway' ("a heavy jig") comes out in January. And that might well be the final song Punter records with Slade.
"He was only brought in for those two singles. We'd already finished our new album (self produced) by then and, in fact, the LP versions of 'My Oh My' and 'Run Runaway' have been recorded without John. So people will be able to compare the two approaches and hear whether or not an outside producer made that much difference to 'em."
The album is strangely titled 'The Amazing Kamikaze Syndrome'. Now, with some bands, a monicker like that would immediately throw up an explanatory comment like: 'Oh, it was inspired by an obscure Herman Hesse novel/a long-lost episode of 'The Prisoner"/a rare Salvador Dali portrait (delete where applicable). So, which is it, Nod?
"Well, I was reading the sports pages one day and there was an article on motor sport. It talked about the 'kamikaze complex' those guys who compete seem to have in putting their life on the line every time they go on the track. I think Barry Sheene was mentioned as a specific example. Anyway, it struck me that some of our songs fitted in with this idea, so the title seemed a logical choice. And let's face it, everyone has something of that complex in 'em, we all take gambles at some point in our lives."
Could it be that Noddy Holder is a budding Freudian figure in the rock hierarchy? Psychological woargh-fare lives, head for the couch! Still, at least the above explanation will allay lascivious rumours that 'The Amazing Kamikaze Syndrome' is, in fact, a title inspired by a new type of Japanese outdoor super-loo!
As for the music, well, at the time of writing, I've heard not a screech or tweet from the album, so all I can do is refer you back to the Mayhem column in our last issue for track details and leave Holder to deliver just one comment ...
"I'd say 75 per cent of it is really out-and-out rock."
It's in the shops now so check it out for yourself.
And so, to a thorny subject - Girlschool. Since the release of the Holder/Lea produced 'Play Dirty', some rather silly comments have appeared in print concerning my supposed opinions on both the album and the band. So, let me briefly put the record straight. I still admire the gals. Furthermore, I applaud the direction they've attempted to take on 'Play Dirty'. I just think it's not quite come off. However, I'm most certainly not waging any vendetta against 'em and nothing would give me greater pleasure than to be forced into eating a slice of home-grown humble pie as 'PD' becomes an international best-seller, but…
Not surprisingly, Noddy doesn't share my reservations.
"I think it turned out really well, especially after the problems we had. For example, they were so difficult to motivate. When the girls got down to playing, they were great, particularly Kelly who is an amazing guitarist. But for some reason, they couldn't perform at their best unless they really wanted to. It wasn't due to any laziness, just an inability to self-motivate. So, Jim and I had to capture them at just the right moments. On top of this, they were always arriving late and then slinking off to the pub. In the end we were forced to lock 'ern in the studio to ensure the deadline for delivery of the final product was met.
"Originally, we were approached just to do a single. Bronze Records were looking for a hit so we got together with Girlschool and recorded one of our songs, 'High 'N' Dry', plus one of their numbers. Anyway, things turned out so well that we were then asked to do the album. Spencer Proffer was being lined up for the LP and he even came over to meet the band. But in the end, it was decided to stick with Jim and me.
"To be honest, I can't really bear to contemplate what might have happened had they gone off to Los Angeles with Spencer. He seemed like a nice guy who knew what he was doing, but the girls actually went into the studio to record the album with one song fully written ('Breaking All The Rules'), one half-written and a collection of partially thought-out ideas. We had to help 'em get the numbers together so I can imagine what a state they'd have been in without Jim and me to pull things together.
"I was amazed how much time they wasted in the studio just writing. With the year gap between 'Screaming Blue Murder' and 'Play Dirty' I expected 'em to have ten strong songs fully written and arranged. In the event, a lot of expensive recording time was wasted on composing.
"With Slade I'm used to having things totally ready before going into a recording studio and once work begins on an album we simply slog at it until it's ready, rarely taking extensive pub breaks. But I was talking with Ozzy recently and he told me Sabbath used to do things like Girlschool and I've since learnt a lot of other famous bands work that way as well, so maybe we're in the minority.
"But, let me say this. Girlschool are potentially a great band and this album is very good. Certainly, everyone around 'em – management, record company - are convinced it'll sell exceptionally well. I just hope they're right."
I bet he does!


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HBO suspends filming of horses after third death on set of 'Luck'
The incident occurred early Tuesday when one of the horses in the stable for the Dustin Hoffman/Nick Nolte horse racing drama suffered an accident while returning to the stall.
Dr. Gary Beck, a veterinarian from the California Horse Racing Board, was on hand and noted the horse was on her way back to the stall when she "reared, flipped over backwards, and struck her head on the ground."
Tuesday's incident marked the third time a horse has been put down as part of the horse racing drama from David Milch and Michael Mann; two horses were injured and euthanized during production of Season 1.
HBO is working with the American Humane Association and the CHRB to investigate the incident, with a certified safety representative on the premises of the Santa Anita stable in Arcadia, Calif., and noted that all safety precautions were in place.
"We will not be filming horses until AHA completes its inquiry. Production will continue with other scenes," HBO said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter. "Everyone associated with 'Luck' cares deeply about the well-being of the horses who are so much a part of the heart and soul of the production."
HBO noted it works with the AHA and racing industry experts to implement safety protocols that go "above and beyond" typical film TV industry standards and practices, with pre-race exams performed by a CHRB-certified vet with radiographs taken of the legs of all horses being considered for use in simulated racing sequences.
"As with all fatalities within CHRB racing enclosures a necropsy will be conducted, "CHRB Equine Medical Director Dr. Rick Arthur said a statement. "Unfortunately, we see several of these injuries in the stable area every year. They are more common than people realize."
Meanwhile, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals called for production on the series to be shut down and blasted the production for its use of what they claim are unfit or injured horses.
"HBO, David Milch and Michael Mann should be ashamed. Three horses have now died, and all the evidence we have gathered points to sloppy oversight, the use of unfit or injured horses and disregard for the treatment of racehorses," the animal-rights group said in a statement obtained late Tuesday by THR.
"We contacted HBO and producer/star Dustin Hoffman last week regarding reports we'd received stating that oversight on the set was lax, and we urged them to help make things safer for the horses. But we received no response. Yesterday, we went to law enforcement about the deaths of the first two horses, Outlaw Yodeler and Marc's Shadow, because one was drugged and the other was arthritic. We will want answers on HBO's latest casualty. Filming must stop now."
Despite its critical praise, 'Luck' has been a ratings underperformer for the network, averaging about 625,000 total viewers. The series was renewed for a second season immediately after its lackluster premiere in order to fit production into the window between racing at Santa Anita.


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SAN FRANCISCO, March 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --
Adding extended-release (ER) niacin to statins does not reduce the chances of high risk patients having a heart attack or stroke, Oxford University scientists leading the HPS2-THRIVE study have revealed at the ACC conference in San Francisco today.
In addition, the researchers report that the use of ER niacin causes a significant number of different types of serious side effect. Some of these side effects were already known to be caused by niacin, but some of them were unexpected.
Niacin has been used for many years to modify cholesterol levels in people at high risk of heart attacks and strokes. It is particularly widely used in the United States, although there is limited evidence that it reduces the risk of cardiovascular outcomes (e.g. heart attacks and strokes), especially when added to current cholesterol-lowering therapy. Flushing is a common side effect that reduces compliance with niacin therapy. In HPS2-THRIVE, the ER niacin was combined with a new drug called laropiprant (which is a prostaglandin receptor blocker) in order to reduce problems due to flushing.
Over 25,000 patients with pre-existing cardiovascular disease from the UK, Scandinavia and China were recruited into HPS2-THRIVE. They were all given simvastatin (plus, when required, another cholesterol-lowering drug called ezetimibe) as background treatment to reduce their initial cholesterol level. They were then assigned at random to receive either the ER niacin with laropiprant or a dummy (placebo) treatment for about 4 years. HPS2-THRIVE is, by far, the biggest study of niacin ever undertaken. The use of randomised treatment assignment, and the large size and long duration, make the findings very reliable.
The primary aim of the HPS2-THRIVE trial was to find out whether adding niacin to currently standard treatments (including effective statin-based cholesterol-lowering therapy) would produce worthwhile reductions in the risks of heart attacks, strokes or other cardiovascular outcomes. Among those who took the ER niacin combination 13.2% suffered a heart attack, stroke or had an arterial procedure compared with 13.7% in those who took the dummy (placebo) tablets ̶ a small but not clearly significant difference.
Side effects previously found with niacin, which were also seen in HPS2-THRIVE, included skin rashes, gastro-intestinal (stomach) problems, complications with the management of pre-existing diabetes and increased risk of developing diabetes. The newly identified side effects were infections and bleeding (particularly in the gut and brain), neither of which had been clearly demonstrated with niacin previously.
The results in HPS2-THRIVE are consistent with the results from other trials of ER niacin. For example, the AIM-HIGH trial of ER niacin alone (i.e. without the addition of laropiprant) in 3,400 high-risk patients was stopped prematurely after 3 years because no beneficial effects on heart attacks and strokes were seen. The known side effects of ER niacin were also seen in AIM-HIGH. Further analyses of AIM-HIGH should be able to show if there are similar trends on bleeding and infections to those in HPS2-THRIVE.
The HPS2-THRIVE findings have resulted in the suspension by Merck & Co/MSD of the ER-niacin and laropiprant combination therapy from Europe and other countries where it had been approved for use. Although the combination therapy was not licensed in the US, regulatory authorities are now considering the implications of these results for the use of other forms of extended release niacin.
Principal Investigator Professor Jane Armitage , from Oxford University's CTSU, said: "The use of niacin for the prevention of cardiovascular events should now be reconsidered. The HPS2-THRIVE trial shows that niacin causes significant hazards and does not reduce the number of people suffering heart attacks and strokes when added to treatments, such as cholesterol-lowering statin therapy, which are known to be safe and effective. It's only by carrying out very large clinical trials that we can get clear answers on treatments like this."
With regard to the bleeding and infection, it seems likely that earlier studies of niacin were too small to detect these new side effects reliably. "The lack of benefit with niacin in HPS2-THRIVE is consistent with the result in AIM-HIGH. Similarly the risks of the known side-effects of niacin are consistent between HPS2-THRIVE and the other trials. Although it is a possibility that these new side effects are due to laropiprant rather than to niacin, we consider this to be unlikely," Professor Armitage said.
Oxford University's Dr Martin Landray , one of the other lead investigators, said: "We are disappointed that we have not been able to find a drug that helps patients further. However, it is just as important to find out about the hazards of a treatment, particularly for a drug as widely used as niacin."
THRIVE also reported last month in the European Heart Journal that there was an increased risk of myopathy in Chinese participants, which was seen particularly in patients who took niacin as well as simvastatin.
Professor Armitage expressed her gratitude to all of the participants in the study. "Without their help we would not have been able to make this progress towards improving the care of people who have had, or are at risk of having, a heart attack or stroke," she said.
HPS2-THRIVE was funded by a grant to Oxford University from Merck & Co, who also provided the ER niacin/laropiprant and matching placebo tablets, as well as background simvastatin or ezetimibe/simvastatin combination. However, the study was designed, conducted, analysed and interpreted independently by the investigators at Oxford University and the independent members of the study Steering Committee.
|SOURCE CTSU Oxford University
Copyright©2012 PR Newswire.
All rights reserved


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A judge is declining a new trial for a New Jersey man who was found guilty of running a nationwide prostitution ring.
U.S. District Judge James Gritzner ruled Wednesday that the evidence supported Johnelle Bell's conviction on 12 counts of sex trafficking and interstate prostitution, and testimony from a witness who didn't appear at trial likely wouldn't have changed the outcome.
Prosecutors say Bell was a pimp who ran an Arkansas-based traveling prostitution venture. He lured troubled young women to join under false promises of long-lasting relationships and coerced them through physical abuse and threats.
Prosecutors uncovered the ring after an FBI agent posed as a customer in response to prostitution ads on Backpage.com in Omaha. The federal trial took place in Iowa because the venture traveled to Des Moines.


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The Cato Institute, a subsidiary of Koch Industries
Charles and David Koch of Koch Industries are currently using their shareholder ownership of the Cato Institute to take full control of the libertarian think tank. The Cato Institute leadership and staff who are not loyal to the Kochs have pushed back against growing Koch influence and are now engaged in a high-profile public relations battle with Koch Industries after Charles and David Koch filed a lawsuit against Cato. Both Charles Koch and David Koch have released statements on the controversy, as has Cato Institute chairman Bob Levy.
While the Cato Institute's current leadership apparently don't appreciate bowing to the Koch brothers, Cato has historically been an instrumental pawn in the Koch-funded Climate Denial Machine. With the threat of total Koch control over Cato, Cato will have no more intellectual authority than Americans for Prosperity, Koch's flagship front group.


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The Sole Cause of Salvation
I trust it's alright to use excerpts from a recent post on another blog below, with just a few comments of mine interjected. I felt that these thoughts from Steve Camp's blog are interesting and relevant.
Steve posted a quote from an unknown author which speaks of the biblical concept of God's "grace alone" as the cause of our salvation. This also means that Christ is Lord of everything, even the conversion of sinners. I've tried to use quotation marks properly to show which words are not mine. I believe the concepts expressed are important, not too difficult, and well worth the time to read and consider thoughtfully.
"Lordship Salvation emphasizes that a love for Christ springs from our new nature (granted freely by God) which desires to believe the gospel as well as submit to Jesus Christ as Lord over one's life. Both faith and obedience are the result of God's invincible and indelible grace, not the cause of it."
The author speaks of those who "mistakenly ascribe belief in Christ as something within the ability of the old nature… This is where they fall off the horse away from historic Christianity by rejecting the biblical doctrine of salvation by grace alone in Christ alone. By not giving glory to God for their faith they add conditions for their salvation."
The writer sees that this approach is problematic mostly due to the "misapprehension of the work of the Holy Spirit in giving rise to our faith and affection for Christ. For how can an unregenerate man see Christ's beauty, excellence or anything to desire in Him at all? One must have a new heart and the mind of Christ in order to understand and love spiritual things."
Issue is taken with this synergistic viewpoint (God + man accomplishing regeneration) also because of the problem of "making faith itself a contribution to the price of their redemption. i.e. grace + faith."
This is an excellent point, in that there is a danger in viewing "grace + faith" as separate components of salvation, whereas the Scriptures teach that it is "by grace through faith". Perhaps a seemingly subtle, but truly a very important difference. All flows from God's grace; faith is the means through which He bestows the grace of regeneration (new life) upon us. All good things come from above.
"[We] believe faith and obedience are the result, not the cause of the new birth. Unless the Holy Spirit changes the disposition of our hearts from hostility to affection for Christ, no one would exercise saving faith. Any 'faith' which exists apart from the work of the Spirit is spurious and of the flesh (Luke 8:4-15) [the parable of the sower]. God alone does the work of regeneration which infallibly gives rise to a spiritual faith that desires to obey and commit itself to Christ. In this case God gets all the glory."
However, the alternate, "no-Lordship" position "would have us believe that one could produce faith from our unregenerated human nature. The question is, why do some believe and others resist? Are some more wise or humble? Isn't it grace itself which makes us wise and humble? The Scripture says, 'What do we have that we did not receive?'. So, in fact, the 'no-Lordship' position is admirably attempting to protect the doctrine of 'faith alone', but in the process it has cast aside the biblical doctrine of 'grace alone'. 'No-Lordship' may believe in a salvation by grace, but not salvation by grace alone (sola gratia)."
"[To say] that man must somehow cooperate with God to be born again, as they hold, is to say that some men innately have the natural capacity to believe, independent of God's action of grace, while others do not. How is this different than salvation by merit? So in reality the burden of proof to explain belief apart from grace alone is on those who hold to 'no-Lordship'. Different understandings of the work of the Holy Spirit in our regeneration is the key to the debate."
Indeed, a study of the Spirit's role in man's conversion is surely one that appears worthwhile.Explore posts in the same categories: Darrin, Soteriology


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This is a natural product that may exhibit color, taste and density variations from lot to lot.


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get a/(one's) foot in the door(redirected from get (one's) foot in the door)
get a/(one's) foot in the door
To have a chance to do something that could lead to further opportunities. The phrase is often used to refer to employment. An internship might not sound very interesting, but it's a great way to get your foot in the door at this company.
get one's foot in the door
Fig. to complete the first step in a process. (Alludes to people selling things from door-to-door and blocking the door with a foot so it cannot be closed on them.) I think I could get the job if I could only get my foot in the door. It pays to get your foot in the door. Try to get an appointment with the boss.
foot in the door, get one's
Achieve an initial stage; succeed with a first step. For example, I think I could do well in an interview once I get my foot in the door with an appointment. This term alludes to the door-to-door salesperson or canvasser who blocks the door with one foot so it cannot be closed.
get a foot in the dooror
get your foot in the door
COMMON If you get a foot in the door or get your foot in the door, you make a small but successful start at becoming involved with an organization or a business. I really wanted to be a photographer and the only reason I took the job was because I thought it might help me get a foot in the door. Temping is a good way to get your foot in the door. Note: You can also use verbs such as have or want instead of get. The company said it issued the low bid because it wanted a foot in the door of a potentially lucrative market.


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It seems the rumours of e-ink based displays' imminent death at the hands of tablets were greatly exaggerated. Despite a glut of portable colour screen devices now on the market, e-book readers are more popular than ever, and a company called ZBD Solutions now wants to use the e-ink technology as easily updateable store signage.
The company has developed a special low-power, black and white LCD display that holds an image even when no power's applied. So like with typical e-ink technology, it doesn't require a constant source of current to show text and images.
The tiny signs are also all wirelessly networked together, so when an item goes on sale, someone simply needs to update a central database instead of wandering the store with a sticker gun. And because the technology is LCD-based with a fast refresh, there's nothing stopping them from introducing eye-catching animations too. Wait, maybe that's not a good thing. [ZBD Solutions via PSFK]