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Checking In On… the Sun Belt ConferencePosted by dnspewak on December 16th, 2011
Danny Spewak is the RTC correspondent for Sun Belt Conference. You can also find his musings online at Sun Belt Basketball or on Twitter @dspewak.
Reader's Take
The Week That Was
- Middle Tennessee continues to roll. Despite a slip-up at UAB, the Blue Raiders got revenge on Belmont with a narrow three-point victory, offsetting a double-overtime loss earlier in the season to the Bruins. Behind a spirited home crowd at the Murphy Center, MTSU's physicality and strength eventually wore down Belmont, who could not hold its own on the boards. With the victory, the Blue Raiders improved to 10-2, and they picked up what could prove to be the most important win of the season for coach Kermit Davis.
- Speaking of important wins, Florida Atlantic has wasted several opportunities to claim them recently. Mike Jarvis scheduled a difficult slate to test his defending Sun Belt champion squad, but so far, the Owls have fallen flat against the likes of Washington, Kansas, South Florida and Mississippi State. But don't give up hope for an upset just yet: FAU travels to Miami and Harvard during the next week.
- A week after shocking the nation with a road win at Utah State, the Denver Pioneers dropped an overtime heartbreaker to MAAC favorites Iona. There's no shame in losing to a team that has the talent to win 25 games this year, and the Gaels might be an at-large contender if they do not win their conference tournament. Still, in the end, it was Iona's up-tempo style that sped up DU and forced it into 20 turnovers. The Pioneers actually held their own on the boards and shot reasonably well from beyond the arc, and had they held on to the ball, they could have picked up another quality victory in the non-conference.
Power Rankings
- Middle Tennessee (10-2, 0-0): Kermit Davis may finally have the team his fan base has been waiting for all these years. Gone are the days that MTSU finished with a middling .500 record — these Blue Raiders look like NCAA Tournament contenders. With LaRon Dendy (14.4 PPG/6.7 RPG) leading the way, Middle Tennessee has the sort of size you might find in a power conference. Davis's team rebounds with authority and dominates its opponents in the paint. The Blue Raiders are the best defensive team in the conference, and though they won't wow you with perimeter shooting and an explosive offense, this team plays as hard as anybody around. Florida Atlantic has the guards we all love to talk about, but you won't find any team with more intimidating size than MTSU.
- Florida Atlantic (4-6, 0-0): It's not time to panic yet, but we're finding out early in this 2011-12 campaign that FAU is human. The consensus pick to repeat as East champs, the Owls' undersized forwards have struggled against bigger post players. What's more concerning, though, is the way FAU's experienced guards have struggled. In particular, Ray Taylor (8.3 PPG/5.1 APG) hasn't quite found his groove yet, and he's even started coming off the bench. We're talking about one of the league's best players here, people — playing off the bench. He scored 20 points in a loss to Mississippi State, but coach Mike Jarvis even said he can still play better. He has to, or Florida Atlantic won't go anywhere this season. Read the rest of this entry »


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The clapping, the hooting, the whistling: It was all very familiar. As I hurried toward the terminal at Baltimore-Washington Airport, where U.S. troops land after serving overseas, I spotted the cheerful retirees from Operation Welcome Home who applaud each servicemember returning from deployment. These greeters, clad in American flag T-shirts and carrying handmade signs thanking the troops, organize themselves to be present for every incoming military flight, even ones landing at 2 a.m.
I remembered them from exactly one year ago, when I hugged my husband Scott goodbye as he left for a year in Baghdad. Now he was finally coming home. But after 12 months of planning for this moment (I ordered an enormous "Welcome Home" banner for our porch only weeks after his departure), I feared I had missed it.
There had been some confusion when Scott called to relay the date and time of his return from Iraq. His itinerary said noon, but administrative staff in Iraq had mentioned 1 p.m. I decided to arrive early, and it was only 11:45 a.m.when I stepped on to the escalator. But from the sound of the greeters' enthusiastic cheers, I was too late. I ran the rest of the way, feeling my face redden from exercise and anxiety. A few of the greeters, looking sympathetic, approached and assured me that the flight I was waiting for had just startled to trickle in. Scott hadn't walked through the double doors yet. I stationed myself off to the side, and scanned the terminal. Only one other family waited alongside me—a twentysomething woman with long brown hair and her two biracial children, who held hand-crayoned "I [heart] Daddy" signs.
There were so few other families because the terminal at BWI is only the first point of entry into the United States for many returning troops; most then board a series of connecting flights to their local airports, where husbands and wives and moms and dads wait with bouquets and balloons. We live relatively close to BWI, so I could welcome Scott as soon as he arrived. But many of the troops were still many hours away from a real homecoming. That's why the greeters make it their mission to applaud and thank every single returning servicemember.
I knew about Operation Welcome Home from the documentary The Way We Get By, a moving look into the lives of three elderly troop greeters in Bangor, Maine. The last time I saw these eager, vocal volunteers, I wasn't feeling very generous. I admitted as much in my first Deployment Diary, where I confessed that I was unable to be happy for the families I saw embracing their returning servicemember at the terminal where I'd said my heartbroken goodbye to Scott. My own misery prevented me from being gracious, and the whistles and cheers of the greeters shredded what was left of my nerves. I so desperately wanted it to be my turn to have my husband home.
"Come closer," one of the greeters urged, pulling my elbow forward. He had a camera in his hand and his patriotic T-shirt was tucked neatly into his chinos. But I was rattled after convincing myself that I was late, and from absorbing, for the first time, the magnitude of this moment. I started to cry, and I covered my mouth. We survived this, I thought. We did it. The greeter seemed sympathetic, though I hadn't said a word. He returned to his spot, leaving me alone.
Scenes from the past year played unbidden: Last August's departure, as I walked to the airport parking lot alone, numb with misery and uncertainty; my 6-year-old son Ethan waking in the middle of the night a few times a month for the past 12 months, crying out for his father; my 4-year-old daughter Estee climbing into my bed every morning, her lean, warm body wrapping itself around me and readying me for the day ahead; the three of us, homebound during the past winter's snowstorms and power outages.
As I wiped my eyes and watched the greeter return to his spot, I was relieved to have left the kids at camp that morning. Scott's permanent homecoming was still several days away—he would fly to California after a two-hour layover at BWI to complete administrative details before coming home for good, and we didn't want to confuse the children with another goodbye.
We decided to tell them he was coming home just the day before his return from California, when we were more certain of the details, and could assure them he would spend a long summer vacation with them. After that break, he will start a Navy staff job in the D.C. area, driving to work every morning and pulling up to the house every evening. The domestic dullness I've long craved is imminent.
More servicemembers in camouflage stepped through the double doors, blinking in the bright light of the terminal. The greeters cheered and clapped. Soldiers, sailors, and Marines navigated the gauntlet of outstretched hands, some reaching back eagerly, most nodding politely and smiling, a few staring straight ahead, acknowledging no one. They carried little, and they all looked exhausted. "Thank you for your service," the greeters called out over and over. But it never sounded rote; it was impossibly original and real each time. It was as if they had a secret which re-energized them each time they shared it.
I've thought a lot this past year about the idea of service. I have a better understanding of what it entails—not just in the military, but in any field that demands similar sacrifice and devotion. I'm still not sure where the obligation of service ends. I'm not even sure if thinking of service as an obligation negates the authenticity of that service. Clearly, the greeters set out to serve their country each time they met these flights, vowing that no veteran will return to the United States unappreciated. If they consider it an obligation, it is one they fulfill joyfully, which is more than I can say for how I feel about our family's commitment to the military on most days.
My eyes were still on the double doors. Scott walked through, and I heard myself gasp. He looked exactly the same as he does in the photos hanging throughout our house, but this time, he was smiling back at me. I ran to him. I was still crying, still thinking: We made it. We survived this. I heard applause as we embraced. I don't know how long we stood there, but when we pulled apart and made our way toward the exit, dozens of greeters reached toward Scott. He tried to shake every hand and return every hug.
"Thank you for your service," one woman said, but I didn't look up. "Thank you for your service," I heard again, insistently, the same voice. I searched her out in the crowd. She had close-cropped gray hair and was so small that she barely peeked out among the others in the group. When I found her, she was already looking into my eyes. I realized she was actually talking to me, and not to my husband. I appreciated the sentiment, but I didn't know what to say. She disappeared into the throng. I held Scott's hand tightly, and we kept walking.

subset: commoncrawl


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Life Sucking Limericks
There once was a boy who worked in a store.
It was boring and unfun; life was a chore.
Though he was a vampire
And girls did aspire
To make him turn them into what they did adore.
(Who in the above cover do you think is the vampire? That's right, the guy behind the convenience store counter.)


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Biographies of Catholic SaintsSaints are men and women who live their life as followers of Christ in their ordinary life and a source of wisdom for those who would like to be faithful to the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. May their examples inspired us to live the way of life Jesus has taught us
Archive for saint
St. Cyril of Alexandria
Cyril took care to ensure that his theology was firmly situated within the tradition of the Church, by which he sees the guarantee of continuity with the Apostles and with Christ himself.
Venerated as a saint in both the East and the West, in 1882 St. Cyril was proclaimed a doctor of the Church by Pope Leo XIII, who at that time also gave the same title to another important representative of Greek patristics, St. Cyril of Jerusalem. This shows that Pope's attention and love for the Eastern Christian traditions; he would later proclaim St. John Damascene a doctor of the Church, showing how the Eastern and Western traditions express the doctrine of the one Church of Christ.
Information on the life of Cyril before his election to the important See of Alexandria is scarce. A nephew of Theophilus — who, as bishop from 385, upheld the Diocese of Alexandria with resolve and prestige — Cyril was most likely born in that same Egyptian city sometime between 370-380. He soon embraced the ecclesiastical life and received a good education, both in culture and theology. In 403, he was in Constantinople following his powerful uncle and, here, he participated in the so-called Synod of the Oak, which deposed the city's bishop — John, later called Chrysostom. This indicated the triumph of the Alexandrian See over its traditional rival, the See of Constantinople, where the emperor resided.
Upon the death of his uncle Theophilus, though still young, Cyril was elected bishop of the influential Church of Alexandria in 412, which he governed with great energy for 32 years, working tirelessly to affirm its primacy in the East, strengthened by its traditional bonds with Rome.
Two or three years later, in 417 or 418, the bishop of Alexandria showed himself to be a realist and healed the rift in the communion with Constantinople, which had been going on since 406, in the wake of Chrysostom's removal from office.
But the old conflict with the See of Constantinople was rekindled some 10 years later, when Nestorius was elected in 428, a prestigious but severe monk, educated in Antioch. The new bishop of Constantinople quickly brought much opposition because he preferred the title "Mother of Christ" (Christotòkos) for Mary, in place of "Mother of God" (Theotòkos), which was already beloved in popular devotion.
The reason for Bishop Nestorius' choice was his adhesion to the Christology of the Antiochean tradition, which, to safeguard the importance of Christ's humanity, ended up affirming its separation from his divinity. Thus, there was no longer an authentic union between God and the man Christ, and therefore, one could no longer speak of a "Mother of God."
Cyril — the leading exponent of Alexandrian Christology at the time, one who emphatically underlined the unity of Christ's person — reacted almost immediately, using every means possible beginning in 429, even writing letters to Nestorius himself.
In the second letter (PG 77, 44-49) which Cyril sent to him, in February 430, we read a clear affirmation of the pastor's task to preserve the faith of God's people. This was his criterion, which is still valid today: The faith of God's people is an expression of tradition, a guarantee of sound doctrine. He wrote to Nestorius: "It is necessary to explain the teaching and interpretation of the faith to the people in an irreproachable way, and recall that he who scandalizes even one of these little ones who believes in Christ will suffer an intolerable punishment."
In the same letter to Nestorius — which later, in 451, would be approved by the Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon — Cyril describes his Christological faith with clarity: "The natures that have united in a true unity are different, but from both resulted one Christ and Son, not because, due to the unity, the differences of the human and divine natures have been eliminated, but rather because humanity and divinity united in an ineffable way have produced the one Lord, Christ, the Son of God."
And this is important: The true humanity and the true divinity are really united in one person, our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, continues the bishop of Alexandria, "we profess only one Christ and Lord, not in the sense that we adore the man together with the Logos, so as not to insinuate the idea of separation by saying 'together,' but rather in the sense that we adore only one; his body is not something detached from the Logos, who sits at the Father's side. There are not two sons sitting at his side, but one alone united with his own flesh."
Soon the bishop of Alexandria, thanks to shrewd alliances, saw to it that Nestorius was repeatedly condemned: by the Roman See with a series of 12 anathemas Cyril himself composed and, in the end, by the council held in Ephesus in 431, the Third Ecumenical Council.
The assembly, which took place amid tumultuous and alternating incidents, concluded with the great triumph of devotion to Mary and with the exile of the bishop of Constantinople, who refused to recognize Mary under the title of "Mother of God," because of a mistaken Christology, which claimed that Christ was divided in himself.
After prevailing in such a definitive way over his rival and his doctrine, Cyril was able to reach, as soon as 433, a theological formula of compromise and reconciliation with the people of Antioch. And this is also significant: On one hand there is clarity about the doctrine of faith, but on the other, there is the intense search for unity and reconciliation. In the years that followed, he dedicated himself in every way to defend and clarify his theological position until his death on June 27, 444.
Cyril's writings — numerous and widespread in various Latin and Eastern traditions even during his life, which is a testament to their immediate success — are of the utmost importance for the history of Christianity. His commentaries on many of the books of the Old and New Testaments, including the Pentateuch, Isaiah, the Psalms and the Gospels of John and Luke, are important. Many of his doctrinal works are also greatly important, in which he continually defends the Trinitarian faith against the Arian theses and Nestorius.
The basis of Cyril's teaching is the ecclesiastical tradition, and in particular, as I mentioned, the writings of Athanasius, his great predecessor in the Alexandrian See. Among Cyril's other writings, we must recall the books "Against Julian," the last great answer to anti-Christian polemics, dictated by the bishop of Alexandria most likely during the last years of his life as a response to "Against the Galileans," written many years before, in 363, by the emperor who was called an apostate for having abandoned the Christianity in which he had been educated.
The Christian faith is above all a meeting with Jesus, "a person who gives life a new horizon" (encyclical "Deus Caritas Est," No. 1). St. Cyril of Alexandria was an untiring and firm witness of Jesus Christ, the incarnate Word of God, emphasizing his unity above all, as he repeats in his first letter in 433 to Bishop Succens: "One alone is the Son, one alone is the Lord Jesus Christ, before the incarnation and after the incarnation. In fact, it is not a question of a Son, the Logos, born of God the Father, and another, born of the holy Virgin; but we believe that he who is before all time was born according to the flesh of a woman."
This affirmation, beyond its doctrinal significance, shows that faith in Jesus, the "Logos," born of the Father, is also deeply rooted in history because, as St. Cyril says, this same Jesus came in time by being born of Mary, the "Theotòkos," and will be, according to his promise, with us always. And this is important: God is eternal, he was born of a woman and remains with us every day. We live in this trust, in this trust we find the path of our life.
St. Francis of Assisi Video
A film about the life of the 12th Century Saint who challenged his culture, helped rebuild a corrupt and crumbling church, cared for creation and built bridges with militant Islam.


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The Best Coffee I Had in Florence, Italy
A sweet, accessible marriage of modern and Old World charm: Am I describing the coffee in Florence, or the city itself? Both, actually.
Known not only for its staggeringly beautiful art and architecture but also its vibrant cuisine, Florence has got basically everything going for it. You want ancient churches and cobblestones? Sure. High-end shopping districts full of fashion by the hottest Italian designers? No problem. Luscious olive oils and wines made the way now that they have been for generations? Yup.
And how about awesome coffee? Plenty of that, too.
Actually, my hands-down favorite espresso from this Italian adventure was Florentine, pulled for me within steps of the Duomo at Caffe Scudieri, by a man who bore a startling resemblance to Jeff Goldblum. It was everything I'd fantasized Tuscan-style espresso dolce to be: Milk chocolaty sweetness was followed by a bit of toasted nut in the finish, a long aftertaste encouraged by a caramel-smooth texture that coated my tongue like a hug.
The cafe itself is none too shabby, either: Long glass pastry cases are as overstuffed with treats as the cream puffs are with cream, and the marble bar is perpetually lined with locals and tourists happily cohabitating for the few minutes required to down a velvety cappuccino and polish off a custardy fruit tart. Constant and friendly attention from a small army of baristas makes for quick turnover and great people-watching, and before I knew it I had planted myself for fully four shots of espresso—and that was just on my first visit. (I went back three times.)
Caffe Scudieri Firenzi
Piazza San Giovanni 19, Florence, Italy 50129 (map); 011-39-055-210-733
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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A science or study of being: specifically, a branch of metaphysics relating to the nature and relations of being; a particular system according to which problems of the nature of being are investigated; first philosophy.
Description : The Gene Ontology (GO) has become the internationally accepted standard for representing function, process, and location
aspects of gene products. The wealth of GO annotation data provides a valuable source of implicit knowledge of
relationships among these aspects. We describe a new method for association rule mining to discover implicit cooccurrence
relationships across the GO sub-ontologies at multiple levels of abstraction. Prior work on association rul...
Lotze's system of philosophy, pt. 2
Lotze's System of philosophy. Part 2. Metaphysic
Thesis (A.M.)--University of Iowa, 1902 ; Tables of authors cited: p. [202]-208
Political science
Supplemental catalog subcollection information: American Libraries Collection; American University Library Collection; Includes bibliographical references
Personnel management ; Business


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Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter
That Which Always Fails
It had been over three years since Feng Jin Yuan last went to Yao shi's room, yet there was not a single person who invite him in. Yao shi simply sat on a chair in the outer hall and looked at Feng Jin Yuan. She neither welcomed him nor had a warm expression, her face did not even carry a smile.
Feng Jin Yuan heaved a deep sigh. It seemed that in these three years, it was not only that second daughter's heart that had become cold, even his proper wife no longer felt anything for him.
He could not help but think of Jin Zhen and Han shi's warmth, as he began to regret coming to Tong Sheng pavilion. Especially when he was passing by the moon gate in Liu courtyard, the servant guarding it asked him many questions before allowing him through. After that, she followed behind him, as though she were watching a criminal. Yet, he still needed someone to lead the way, otherwise he really would get lost in this manor he had never set foot in.
"You… have you been well recently?" Feng Jin was at a bit of a loss for words. Nobody paid himi any heed, so he sat down then poured himself a cup of tea.
Yao shi nodded, "Many thanks for husband's concern. I am very well." She did not even want to use the two words this concubine.
"Do you normally sleep this early?" He looked outside. Although the sky was dark, the other concubines should be readily waiting for him to go over. Where was there any reasoning that had her sleep this early. Even the relatively quiet An shi was earnestly looking forward to him visiting. Unexpectedly, this once very good official wife was now very cold towards him.
"I have become accustomed to sleeping early." Yao shi replied simply to each question and did not waste any words.
"Then how about sleeping a little later tonight!" Feng Jin Yuan simply made his intentions clear, "You have been back for so many days, yet I have not come to see you. That was negligent on my part. Tonight, I will accompany you here. We have been apart for many years, and thinking about it, you should have plenty of things to say to me."
Yao shi, however, shook her head, "I do not have anything to say to husband. Husband should go back."
"Hm?" Feng Jin Yuan was startled, "Do you not understand what I mean?"
"Does husband also not understand what I am saying?" Yao shi met him face to face. Her gaze did not carry a single shred of feeling for him.
"I do not understand!" Feng Jin Yuan pretended to be a fool. He then stood up and grabbed hold of Yao shi, pulling her towards the room.
How could Yao shi match up to his strength. Being pulled along sideways, she was pulled into the room against her will. She began to feel a little conflicted inside. She had originally decided to completely separate from Feng Jin Yuan on matters such as this, but if the other side forced their request, she was still a wife to the Feng family. How could she avoid it. She could not help but become frustrated and hoped that Feng Yu Heng could quickly come and save her. But when she thought about it again, how could a daughter stop her father from entering their mother's room? Her heart sank.
"Husband." She spoke up for herself on last time, "My body is not feeling well and can not take care of husband."
Feng Jin Yuan completely ignored her. He reached out his hand to remove Yao shi's clothes, but at this moment, the door was pushed open by someone on the outside.
Just as he was about to become angry, he heard a child's voice shout inside: "Father! Is it father that came? Zi Rui really missed father!"
In the blink of an eye, his thigh was wrapped up by Zi Rui. That child had become a little chubbier and his cheeks had a little more meat on them. His face was rather round and very adorable.
Feng Jin Yuan looked at this extremely adorable son and felt that his anger had mostly vanished. Quickly bending at the waist, he picked up Zi Rui and asked him: "How come Zi Rui came running over?"
Feng Zi Rui replied: "The servants said father came to Tong Sheng pavilion. Ever since Zi Rui returned to the manor, Zi Rui has not seen father much and felt a little flustered. I begged big sister to bring Zi Rui over. Father doesn't dislike seeing Zi Rui, right?"
Feng Jin Yuan glanced at Feng Yu Heng who had come in behind him. How could he not understand this matter. But Feng Zi Rui had said it, it was he who pulled Feng Yu Heng over to see him. Thus, he had no way of blaming her. He could only rub Zi Rui's face and falsely say: "How could that be. Father really likes Zi Rui."
"That's great!" Zi Rui smacked a kiss on Feng Jin Yuan's cheek and blinked his big eyes, which caused Feng Jin Yuan to be stunned.
He had this many children. When during childhood, the one he loved most was Feng Yu Heng, but her personality had always been distant and never got close to him. After that, he doted on Chen Yu and Zi Hao, but by that time Chen Yu was already a grown girl, so she would not get too close to him. As for Feng Zi Hao, aside from eating, drinking, playing and courting trouble, it did not seem like he was capable of anything else.
Now that Zi Rui had kissed him like that, he felt some emotions stirring within him. So there was still a child caused people to love them. So he could be more than just a strict father, he began laughing from the relationship this kiss had caused.
For a while, the displeasure was dispersed by the disrupting children.
He simply carried Zi Rui to an outer room. As he coaxed and played with Zi Rui, he asked him about his homework. Zi Rui had questions and answers, as he learned from learned from experiences. This caused Feng Jin Yuan to place the matter with Yao shi to the back of his mind.
Yao shi could finally let out a sigh of relief, as she glanced at Feng Yu Heng and a wave of fear washed over her.
Feng Yu Heng went up and held Yao shi's hand, quietly saying: "Mother, do not be afraid. Father will not be able to stay much longer before he must leave."
Yao shi was puzzled, but very quickly, this matter had an answer "Master." Servant Qing Ling walked in from outside and saluted Feng Jin Yuan, "Concubine Han sent a servant over, saying she had something to say with master."
Feng Jin Yuan frowned, "I will be remaining at Tong Sheng pavilion tonight. How could concubine mother Han not understand the rules?"
Feng Yu Heng quickly said: "Concubine mother Han has been at the manor for many years, so it can't be that she does not know the rules. It would be best if you do not miss a big problem. Father, why not invite that servant in and ask her."
Feng Jin Yuan nodded, and Qing Ling went to bring the servant in.
"Master." That servant came in and immediately knelt on the ground. Her eyes were red and held some tears.
Feng Jin Yuan's eyebrows were immediately drawn together and asked a little irritably: "What are you wailing for?"
The servant quickly said: "I beg master to go see concubine mother Han!"
"What happened to concubine mother Han?" Feng Yu Heng rushed to help her father ask.
"Concubine mother Han stopped eating food since lunch, shouting that she has a headache. Originally, we thought that sleeping for a while would be best, but now that it has reached this time, she still does not seem to have gotten better. Not only has she not improved, it seems that things have gotten worse. Concubine mother is feeling so poorly that she can not leave her bed. In a daze, she called for master. Would master please go take a look at her!"
Feng Yu Heng chuckled on the inside, but her mouth advised: "Father, quickly go take a look! Concubine mother Han has always had a weak body. It would be bad if she had some serious illness."
Feng Jin Yuan had indeed doted on Han shi for many years. Although he had a new person in Jin Zhen, he still held feelings from being with Han shi for many years. Now that he heard that Han shi was ill, he could no longer sit still. Putting Zi Rui back down, he stood up and said to Yao shi: "Then I will go take a look. I will come back at a different date."
Yao shi lowered her head and did not say anything. Feng Jin Yuan felt that he owed her a little. Wanting to go up and tug on Yao shi's hand, the kneeling servant uttered a reminder: "Master, please be quick. This area is quite far away. This servant is truly worried that concubine mother Han will not be able to endure!"
With these words, Feng Jin Yuan moved as though it were a life and death situation. He turned and walked out. The servant hurriedly stood up and followed him.
Only when they walked far away did Yao shi ask Feng Yu Heng: "You already knew that concubine mother Han's side would send someone over?"
Feng Yu Heng told her: "When I was coming over here, Huang Quan told me about it."
Yao shi nodded, "Thinking about it, is also focused on this matter. Like this, I will not need to worry. Surely, the next time your father wants to come over, she will stop him."
Feng Yu Heng did not say anything else. Thinking about this matter, she should communicate with Jin Zhen. Han shi could save them from the disaster once, but not a second time. Having Jin Zhen would definitely leave them more room to act. She as a daughter could not stop her father from staying the night at Tong Sheng pavilion, after all.
Then again, that Han shi, making use of a fake illness to finally attract Feng Jin Yuan into her courtyard. As a woman who had not seen father enter her courtyard for a long time, she truly cried upon seeing Feng Jin Yuan.
She had been born delicate. Now that she was crying pitifully in bed, her tears truly shattered Feng Jin Yuan's heart.
He was about to go forward and pull his beloved concubine into his embrace, but today was really considered an unlucky day. He heard a servant carefully call out: "Master!"
Han shi angrily held on to Feng Jin Yuan's neck and acted spoiled, saying: "You may not leave for any reason. Tonight, husband is mine."
Feng Jin Yuan loved this tone of hers the most. He immediately nodded, "Good! I will not leave for anything." As he said this, he reached his hand towards Han shi's collar.
As a result, the servant called out from the outside again: "Master, the Chen family's third master came. He is currently at Pine courtyard waiting for you."
Feng Jin Yuan finally pushed Han shi away, as he climbed out of bed, helplessly saying: "I will come back to see you another day. That Chen Wan Liang personally coming to the manor. I fear that something might have really happened." After he finished speaking, he turned and left the room.
Han shi was so angry that she nearly shattered her teeth from clenching her jaw. Violently grabbing her pillow, she smashed it on the ground. From the door, she heard Fen Dai's voice: "Father was delivered to your door, yet you could not even keep him! Previously, I thought that you had the ability to entice men, but now it seems that you don't even have that ability anymore, right?"
"You shut your mouth!" Han shi's temper raged, "Feng Fen Dai, I will tell you. If you want be glorious and wealthy, then fight for it yourself! If you want the ninth prince, you go steal him for yourself! You have the ability! If you have the ability, then go defeat Feng Yu Heng and Feng Chen Yu. If you do not have the ability, then do not push me forward!"
"Do you think I do not want to?" Fen Dai rushed inside. Bending over, she picked up the pillow and threw it at Han shi, "I want to be the daughter of the first wife. What do I not have? At the root of it all, is it not your problem? Chen shi could climb to the position of head wife, so why can you not do it? The Chen family can make use of the Feng manor and become the lords of commerce. How is it that your Han family can not even get an insect? With such a low birth, you should not have even aimed for such a high target in the Feng manor. For no apparent reason, you have implicated me to also suffer. What sort of mother are you? It would be better if you just died!"
Feng Fen Dai carelessly and without thinking shouted this out. Moving up and down, she began to hit her, and her arm began to hurt. As soon as this arm began to hurt, she began to cry. As she cried, she continued to curse Han shi: "I was actually hit by the man I like, if you had any standing in the Feng manor at all, even if he was a prince, how could he dare to do such a thing to me? You worthless woman. Being your daughter is truly like eight lifetimes of suffering!"
Han shi felt a burst of fishy sweetness come up from her chest. She desperately wanted to suppress it, but she could not suppress it, no matter what. A violent burst of blood sprayed out. In the next moment, she fell to the ground and fell unconscious.


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Cleo Roberta McMillan
Feb. 8, 1943-July 30, 2013
Age: 70
Residence: Greeley
Cleo Roberta McMillan, 70, of Greeley, died Tuesday, July 30, 2013, at North Colorado Medical Center, Hospice unit. She was born on Feb. 8, 1943, in Fairfield, Calif., to Clayton Gilbert and Yvonne Roberta (Lundvall) Williams.
Cleo and her family moved to Montana, where she grew and attended schools. On Dec. 13, 1975, she married Tom McMillan in Laurel, Mont. She raised 10 children. Cleo loved to win at Bingo, collected owls and enjoyed playing poker.
Cleo is survived by her husband, Thomas A. McMillan; daughter, Stacy Johnson (Jay); nine sons, Dennis (Tammy), Clay (Natalie), Ray, Tommy, Kevin (Teresa), Scott (Deb), T.J. (Anita), Chet (Stefanie) and Chad; 18 grandchildren; and 16 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents; and a son, Raymond.
Celebration of Life will be at 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013, at Stoddard Funeral Home.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Northern Colorado, in care of Stoddard Funeral Home, 3205 W.. 28th St., Greeley, CO, 80634.
Please visit www.stoddardsunset.com to sign online guestbook.
Carole Marie Schneider
Dec. 14, 1949-July 30, 2013
Age: 63
Residence: Greeley
Carole Marie Schneider, of Greeley, passed away on July 30, 2013, in Omaha, Neb., after a long battle with cancer. She was 63. Carole was born Dec. 14, 1949, to William and Colette Schneider in West Bend, Iowa.
Carole was the sixth of seven children and grew up in Algona, Iowa, where she graduated from Garrigan Catholic High School in 1968. From there, she attended Briar Cliff College in Sioux City, Iowa, earning a B.S. in physical education in 1972. She pursued graduate studies in exercise physiology at Iowa State University (M.S., 1982) and the University of Minnesota (Ph.D., 1986). She then began her career in higher education. She was assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, from 1986-1988, and at the University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kan., from 1988-1992.
In 1992, Carole joined the faculty at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, where she was a professor of Sport and Exercise Science and the co-founder and director of the Rocky Mountain Cancer Rehabilitation Institute (RMCRI), which became the focus of her work and is her greatest legacy. Since its inception in 1997, RMCRI has developed into a national model, serving more than 1,000 cancer survivors in their treatment and recovery.
Carole is survived by five of her six siblings, Sandra Schmitt, Russell Schneider, Diane Downs, Marlene Schneider, and Michael Schneider; her sisters-in-law, Patricia Schneider and Marcia Schneider; her brothers-in-law, Richard Schmitt and Douglas Downs; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Her parents, William and Colette Schneider, and her older brother, Richard Schneider, preceded her in death.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, Aug. 5, 2013, at Sacred Heart Church in Omaha, Neb. A Celebration of Life ceremony will be held on the UNC campus at a later date. A UNC endowed scholarship fund in Carole's name has been established to support doctoral students in Exercise Physiology. Memorial contributions may also be made to the RMCRI operating fund. To learn how to contribute, visit the RMCRI website at www.unco.edu/rmcri and click on the tribute to Carole.
Rhonda Jean Arisman
April 10, 1960-July 31, 2013
Age: 53
Residence: Greeley
Rhonda Jean Arisman, 53, of Greeley, died Wednesday, July 31, 2013, at Longmont United Hospital in Longmont. She was born on April 10, 1960, in Aurora, to Joseph Howard and Sharon Darlene (Havey) Linch.
Rhonda was raised in Bailey, Colo., and graduated from Platte Canyon High School. She ultimately moved to Greeley, where she married Bill Walter, and started her family. Rhonda later married and divorced Mike Arisman. Her love for her boys, Chad and Chris, and for her step-daughters, Keri and Karli, has been the highlight of her life. She would be the first to tell you though, that the apple of her eye was her granddaughter, Aidan.
Rhonda was beautiful, intelligent, generous, stubborn and independent. She spent her entire life caring for and giving to other people. She was a self-made banker – working her way up from teller to loan officer. These last few years, working as an independent contractor with the FDIC, afforded her the opportunity to travel and meet some great new friends. The time spent in Puerto Rico was a highlight of her life and a dream come true. If you were to look at how Rhonda lived her life, it would be immediately apparent what she valued: her relationship with Jesus Christ, family and friends. Material goods have never been very important to Rhonda. She poured her life and her resources into all the people she loved.
Rhonda is survived by her sons, Chad Walter of Milliken and Chris Walter of Greeley; step-children, Keri (Tree) Voigt of Greeley and Karli Arisman of Fort Collins; mother, Sharon Linch of Greeley; siblings, Sheri (Shawn) Kirkpatrick of Greeley; Crystal Barnum of Higden, Ark., Sara (Daryl) Leatz of Traverse City, Mich., Mary Lou Henze (Steve Larsen) of Thompson Falls, Mont., Joe (Alice) Linch of North Pole, Alaska, and Penny (Dan) Taylor of Ault; granddaughter, Aidan Paige Walter of Milliken; nieces and nephews, Jessica, Dusten, Julie, Dina, Daniella, Codi, Christina, Rusty, Kyle, Peter, JoAnna, Amanda, Mike, Mark, Tiffany, Joe, Miriam, Marty, Garrett and Sterling; 17 great-nieces and nephews and many aunts, uncles and cousins.
She was preceded in death by her grandparents, father Joe Linch, and a brother, John Linch.
Memorial service will be at 1 p.m. Monday, Aug. 5, 2013 at Stoddard Funeral Home.
Please visit www.stoddardsunset.com to sign online guestbook.
Carmel Gonzales
July 16, 1928-July 29, 2013
Age: 85
Residence: Greeley
Carmel Gonzales, 85, of Greeley, passed away July 29, 2013. She was born July 16, 1928, in Greeley, to Elias and Julie (Martinez) Espinosa.
Carmel married Florencio Vieyra in Greeley in 1946. He died in the early 80s. She married Aurelio Gonzales in Greeley in 1990. He has since passed. Carmel enjoyed cooking, attending church, gardening and spending time with her family. She worked hard at everything she did.
Carmel is survived by her daughters, Mary Ann Griego, Evans, Beverly Vieyra, Greeley, Diana (Charlie) Black, Milliken, Colo., and Margie Trujillo, Greeley; brother, Theodore Espinosa; sisters, Rebecca Ojeda, Delores Gutierrez, and Delphia Herrera; grandchildren, Tonya Flores, Sabrina Damian, Velvet Trujillo, Ernie Griego, Yvonne Gonzales, Steve Gonzales, Jerry Griego, Albert Gonzales, and Sheri Griego; and 21 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Elias Espinosa and Julia Martinez; brothers, Dan, Joe, Joe Elias, Eugene, David and Jacob; and sisters, Leona Galvan, and Linda Espinosa.
Visitation was held from 4-7 p.m. Thursday at the Allnutt Macy Chapel. Services are scheduled for 10 a.m. today, Aug. 2, 2013, at the Allnutt Macy Chapel, and interment at Linn Grove Cemetery.
Jennifer Kay Henderson
Dec. 29, 1974-July 30, 2013
Age: 38
Residence: Greeley
Jennifer Kay Henderson, 38, of Greeley, passed away Tuesday, July 30, 2013, in Greeley. She was born Dec. 29, 1974 in Sterling.
Memorial service at 2:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 5, 2013, at Frist Christian Church in Sterling, with services concluding at the church.
Memorials to the Jennifer Henderson Memorial, in care of Sterling Federal Credit Union, 822 W. Main, Sterling, CO 80751.
Chaney-Reager Funeral Home, Sterling handled arrangements.
Carolyn Ganell Hume
Nov. 3, 1935-July 30, 2013
Age: 77
Residence: Greeley, formerly of Walsh, Colo.
Carolyn Ganell Hume, 77, passed away peacefully at home Tuesday, July 30, 2013. She was born Nov. 3, 1935, in Elkhart, Kan., to Harold and Edith Hume. She graduated from Walsh High School in 1953.
Ganell is survived by her son, Willoughby (Cara) Hume, and granddaughters, Julia and Sara Hume, all of Greeley; sister, Phyllis Smith of Fort Collins; brothers, Harold Lloyd (Rosalie) Hume of Manter, Kan., and Floyd (Hazel) Hume of Walsh, Colo.
She is preceded in death by her parents; daughter, Merideth Hume; son, Cecil Hume; brother, Jack Hume; and sister, Mary Jo Burson.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 4, 2013, at Walsh First Baptist Church.
Constance "Connie" Katzen
Feb. 24, 1931-July 29, 2013
Age: 82
Residence: Greeley
Constance "Connie" Jean Lee Katzen, 82, of Greeley, passed away at her home on July 29, 2013. She was born Feb. 24, 1931 in Des Moines, Iowa, to Elmer and Vivian (Gibson) Lee.
Connie worked as a flight attendant, teacher, homemaker and medical secretary, before retiring. She loved crafting and enjoyed giving to others.
Survivors include her children, Kevin, Kenneth, and Carolyn Katzen; and five grandchildren.
A graveside service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday at Sunset Memorial Gardens. A reception will follow at Connie's condo.
Memorial gifts may be made to the Greeley Senior Center, in care of Allnutt Funeral Service, 702 13th St., Greeley, CO 80631. Friends may view the online obituary and send condolences at www.allnutt.com.
Megan Corrigan Kearns
Nov. 2, 1977-July 2, 2013
Age: 35
Residence: Denver, formerly of Greeley
MEGAN CORRIGAN KEARNS – November 2, 1977 Greeley, Colorado – JULY 2, 2013 her residency, Denver, Colorado
In the end, her immense courage and resilience, her indomitable will to overcome her illnesses was not enough. Megan Corrigan Kearns's life ended unexpectedly (to herself as well as her family) on July 2, 2013. It had been a long struggle, nearly 20 years. Yet she never gave up hope of getting better.
From childhood, she was uncommonly free-spirited, rejecting conformity, seeking to be independent, unafraid to follow her own path, despite the risks. Her exuberance for life was unbounded, as was her willingness to discover new ideas and experiences. Always open-minded, trusting and "exploratory," she was sometimes too much so. A person without prejudice, discrimination or intolerance of others, she embraced all mankind.
To her family and friends she was a source of indescribable joy, amusement, surprises and challenges. Always lively and animated, forever conversing about what interested her at the moment… Life's simplest pleasures delighted her the most, as she never lost her wonderful girlish sense of wonder. Gifted with a flair for style and fashion, she was very creative and artistic. An appreciation of the beauty of nature and love of all animals enriched her life. It was her abiding spiritual faith that gave her strength and resolve. And a courageous spirit few could imagine. In ways, she was a paradox. Though she found traditional classroom learning unchallenging, she possessed a fine mind and had a great interest in words, vocabulary, ideas and a bit of lively debate. Megan treasured her Irish heritage. Her laughter seemed to express an irrepressible inner-happiness that would never be lost in life regardless of the pain and sorrow she had to bear. She loved and admired her brothers, Sean and Tyler. Her mother, father and stepfather were unfailingly her dearest friends in life to whom she always turned for help and comfort.
The journey she ultimately took in life was perilous and painful. To a place from which some do not return. But God knows how she tried! Her heart was so kind, her laugh so joyful, her determination so strong, that she truly seemed destined to one day conquer her illness.
To those who loved Megan, words are inadequate to express her loss. Her small bright flame was extinguished too soon, leaving an interminable void. She will now finally make her journey to Ireland of which she so often wishfully spoke, but was unable to realize in life. And there she will find her lasting peace.
Those left to celebrate Megan's life are her father, Kevin Corrigan Kearns and Cathe Brown of Camden Maine, her mother, Enita Kearns-Hout and Mark Hout of Greeley, her brothers: Sean Kearns and Erica Kearns of Phoenix, Arizona and Tyler Hout of Denver, Colorado, as well as eight aunts and uncles, four nieces and nephews and many cherished friends living from the North West Coast to the East Coast. As well as Andrew Seeman of Denver, her longtime friend. Megan loved all children with two, William and Andrew, being most precious to her.
A Memorial Mass will be held at 1 p.m., on August 10, 2013, at St. Peter's Catholic Church, 915 12th St., Greeley, Colorado. A reception will follow at the church. It would be appreciated that in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made to Catholic Charities, memo: The Megan Memorial Fund and sent in care of Allnutt Funeral Service, 702 13th St., Greeley, CO 80631. As Megan always gave what she had to help others, this fund will continue her generous spirit by helping others with emergency needs. Friends may view the online obituary and send condolences at www.allnutt.com.


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Singer Christina Aguilera reportedly has stopped eating out to reduce weight.
The 32-year-old has recently lost 49 pounds to get back in shape, reports femalefirst.co.uk.
"Once she became serious about losing the weight, she stopped eating out. They've barely gone out at all in the past three months," Life and Style magazine quoted a source as saying.
She is currently seen as a judge on a singing reality show The Voice.


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My great great great grandfather, Lt Col William Charles Shortt, served in the 41st Regiment of Foot in the British Army and died a heroic death at the Battle of Fort Stephenson, Lower Sandusky, Ohio (Fremont, Ohio), on 2nd August 1813.
The Battle of Fort Stephenson
This battle, won decisively by the Americans, was the last western battle in the Second War of Independence (War of 1812) between Britain and America. Fort Stephenson guarded an American supply base on the Sandusky River and became a target for the British, led by Major-General Henry Proctor, after they had failed to capture Fort Meigs at Perrysburg, Ohio.
Fort Stephenson was commanded by Major George Croghan. His superior, Major-General William Harrison, ordered him to destroy the fort and withdraw, believing the British force to be larger than it really was. However, Croghan was confident that he could defend the fort and successfully persuaded Harrison of this.
Croghan's view was decisively endorsed by the outcome of the British assault. The British and their Indian allies had 96 men either killed or wounded, of whom 25 were from Lt Col Shortt's column of men from the 41st Regiment of Foot. Shortt himself died with many of his men in a murderous barrage of American fire as he led them into one of the perimeter ditches of the fort.
A full account of the battle can be found on the website http://www.sandusky-county-scrapbook.net/FtStephenson.htm
Lt Col William Charles Shortt
Lt Col William C. Shortt had a rather colourful life and seems to have passed this trait down the generations that followed. According to information provided in 1909 by his great-nephew Captain Henry D. Shortt to the Hayes Presidential Center, he was the eldest son of Major John Shortt of the Madras Native Infantry. William was born in Trichinopoly (now Tiruchirappalli) in India in 1764 and was apparently educated at Eton College[1]. He joined the Army as an Ensign in the 24th Foot in 1782, became a captain in 1783 and joined the 99th Foot at the same rank in 1801. By the time of the Battle of Fort Stephenson, he was a Brevet Lieutenant Colonel[2].
William C. Shortt had a relationship with (or may in fact have married) a Shawnee Indian called Sally Bluejacket (born 1778) while his regiment was garrisoning the British fort on the Maumee River, Ohio, in 1794 and 1795[3]. They had a son, Thomas Shortt, born in 1796, who was later recorded as living in the Indian reservation at Flat Rock, Mi[4]. Thomas had a son Joseph, born in 1833, and Joseph had two daughters[5]. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the relationship between William and Sally did not last and she later married a trader called Wilson. They may have met again in 1813 just before the Battle of Fort Stephenson, as by then Sally was living on the Detroit River, within the area commanded by William's superior officer, Major General Henry Proctor.
By this time William C. Shortt had married Jean Margaret Stuart (known by her middle name) and they had a son William Tayler[6] Peter Shortt, who had been born in Marylebone, London, in 1800. The name Tayler was no doubt chosen because it was the maiden name of William's mother Jane; her brother Lt Gen William Tayler was an equerry to King George III.
William C. Shortt's wife Jean died in 1805 while giving birth to a daughter, Mary, who survived for just seven weeks. In 1809 William married Jane Crooks, whose sister had married the borther of his commander, Henry Proctor. William and Jane had a son, James Symington Shortt, who was born in 1812 and was my great great grandfather. James' mother died in 1812, probably after giving birth to him.
With the death of their father at the Battle of Fort Stephenson and the earlier deaths of their mothers, William TP Shortt and his half-brother James became orphans at the respective ages of 13 and 1. To support their upbringing and education, the guardians of both boys were granted payments from the Royal Bounty, a fund established to support the families of people who had died in service of the British Crown, for example officers killed in battle.
The Elder Son, William Tayler Peter Shortt
William TP Shortt was educated in Quebec, but eventually returned to England where he gained a Bachelor of Arts degree at Worcester College, Oxford, in 1821 and, true to family tradition, embarked on a career in the British Army. However, before this he engaged in another tradition for wealthy families of that period by going on the so-called 'Grand Tour', a visit to classical cities, art galleries and historical sites of continental Europe. In his case, the tour was through France and Switzerland to Italy and consequently, in an early pointer to his future occupation as an author, he published A Visit to Milan, Florence and Rome, etc in 1821. The visit inspired his lifelong interest in Roman antiquities. In 1824, he co-authored Journal of the Principal Occurrences During the Siege of Quebec.
By 1826, William TP Shortt was a Lieutenant in the 17th Regiment of Foot, joining from the 34th Foot. However, he soon abandoned his military career and moved in 1832 to Heavitree, Exeter, England, where he lived as a gentleman of independent means (on his father's death, he had inherited the freehold rent of Remenham House, near Henley-on-Thames, England). He developed a keen interest in Roman relics and especially coins, many of which were being found during the substantial reconstruction of Exeter that took place from the 1830s to the 1850s. At this time, no great interest was aroused whenever archaeological remains were discovered and building contractors regarded any interference in their work to recover relics as obstruction. However, William TP Shortt was not deterred and, over a period of 23 years from 1832, took it upon himself to retrieve and investigate as many items as he could and to publish the results of his findings.
His persistence led to some incidents on building sites, typical of which is one of July 3rd 1835 when, during his enquiries with labourers about relics found during the re-development of the Upper Market, Shortt was confronted by a prominent Exeter builder, Henry Hooper, ordered off the site and helped on his way by a shovelful of earth! Enraged by this slight on his dignity as an ex-officer and a gentleman, Shortt summoned Hooper for assault. At a court appearance the next day, Hooper admitted the assault but said that Shortt's habit of retrieving artefacts was constantly interrupting work at the market and that he had refused to leave the site when asked. The Mayor of Exeter, conforming with the general indifference to the history of Roman Exeter, found Hooper guilty but levied a token fine of 10 shillings (50 pence) on him. Shortt was rebuked for his 'warmth of temper'. The case was well publicised in the local and national press, which generally supported Shortt, and began a trend of making archaeological excavation and research more fashionable[7].
William TP Shortt published many articles about his findings in the Devonshire Chronicle, the Flying Post and other local journals. He apparently insisted on receiving printers' proofs of his articles, which he then savagely corrected before they were printed! He also wrote two books about his work; the first, with the not very catchy title of Sylva Antiqua Iscana, Numismatica Quinetiam Figulina, or Roman and Other Antiquities of Exeter, was published in 1841 and the following year came Collecteana Curiosa Antiqua Dunmonia; or An Essay on Some Druidical Remains in Devon. The latter book was based on his visits on horseback and in all weathers to every known prehistoric site in Devon. Each book is, it has to be said, hard to read for the modern eye, but each was no doubt very learned and based on Shortt's great historical knowledge and extensive field work. This did not prevent a magisterial put-down by one writer, who said of Shortt's books: 'I could refer to the two works of this author with much more confidence had they been drawn up with the gravity which becomes the subject. They have been compiled in such a careless, rambling and ill-arranged manner, and are so full of haphazard assertions, that I lament extremely that I cannot quote them as authorities'[8]!
Despite this criticism, there is no doubt that William TP Shortt carried out pioneering archaeological work in Exeter that recorded and preserved valuable Roman artefacts. Without his intervention and dedication, they and the valuable historical information that they yielded would certainly have been lost.
William TP Shortt moved to Heidelberg, Germany, in 1855 and died in 1881. He and his wife Margaret had a son and three daughters. His son Stuart followed a military career, and the Army also featured strongly in the lives of his daughter Ann and of the descendants to the present day of his daughter Kathleen. She married Captain John Dent Bird, who was murdered by one of his troopers at Aldershot, England, in 1874. Their son Wilkinson Dent Bird (born 1869) was a decorated soldier, became a Major-General, and lectured and wrote about military history and strategy.
The Younger Son, James Symington Shortt
Orphaned at the age of just one year when his father William died at the Battle of Fort Stephenson, James Symington Shortt probably then lived with his maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Crooks, and his material aunt, Mary. His middle name Symington came from the surname of John Symington of Niagara, who was his maternal grandfather and one of the executors of his father's will (the other was William C Shortt's cousin, Captain William Thomas Tayler).
Family researches have so far thrown up no other information about James Shortt's early life. He is next recorded as living in Ancaster Township, Brent County, Ontario, in 1832. Within a year he was an Ensign in the 48th Foot Regiment of the British Army. In 1835 he transferred to the 4th, or King's Own, Regiment of Foot, became a Lieutenant in 1837 and a Captain in 1844.
In 1839 at Sholden, Kent, James married Mary Harvey, one of the daughters of Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Harvey (1775 – 1841) who, along with many other members of his family, served with great distinction in the Royal Navy. Mary died only two years later and James subsequently took her sister Annie as his partner, but they never married because, at that time in England, it was illegal for a man to marry the sister of his deceased wife.
Over the period of James Shortt's service in the 4th Foot, the regiment was stationed first in Australia then, from January 1838, in India[9]. James and Annie had their first child, a girl, in 1844, but the child did not survive her first day. A son ws born a year later, but is believed to have died in infancy. Their first surviving child, Mary, was born in Kamptee, India, in 1846. James remained in the Army until 1847-48. James' departure from the Army came shortly after he had been found guilty at a court martial of being drunk at the funeral in Kamptee of a fellow officer, Ensign William Thorpe.
The remainder of James' life was punctuated by misfortune and tragedy. During the 1850s, he and Annie had five more chilren. a son and four daughters, but only Jessie (born 1850 in Colaba, India) and Helen (born 1855 in Broadstairs, England) survived. Four of these five children were born in India, but it seems that Annie purposely came back to England to give birth to Helen there and give her a better chance of survival. Helen may well have remained in England in the guardianship of Annie's sister Eliza and may never have returned with her mother to India; certainly Helen was living with Eliza and her husband Admiral William WP Johnson[10] in England in 1866.
James and Annie's youngest child was Edith Annie Shortt, my great grandmother, who was born in 1861 in Ahmedabad, India. Tragically her mother Annie died just 17 days later from diarrhea and exhaustion following her confinement.
James' fortunes with employment were no better. After leaving the Army, he and Annie stayed in India and he is recorded as working in the secretariat of the Judicial Department in Bombay from 1851 to 1853. In 1855 he is listed as a clerk, but then prospects seem to have improved, as he held the post of Deputy Marshal of the Byculla House of Correction (a prison in Bombay) in 1856 and was its Governor from 1857-59. Thereafter his employment appears to have resumed its decline, for by 1862 he was a clerk on the Bombay, Baroda and Central Indian Railway.
In 1864 he brought my great grandmother Edith (and possibly one or more of her older sisters) back to England. Edith was put first into the guardianship of her maternal aunt, Sarah Rainier, and her husband Revd. George Rainier, and then into the guardianship of her maternal uncle, Admiral Henry Harvey.
The final tragedy of James Shortt's life came when he died at sea of dysentery in 1865, probably on his return journey to India, and was buried at sea.
Thus, like her father, Edith Shortt was orphaned at a very young age. She was clearly told of the fate of her parents; a poignant letter, still in the family's possession, from Henry Harvey to his sister Eliza mentions that 'little Edith….says her own Papa "gone, dead, gone into the water. Mama died too."'
Of the four surviving daughters of James Shortt, Mary remained in India and married a civil engineer, Robert Gompertz, but is believed to have died before 1882, when Robert re-married. Jessie (1850 – 1939) never married but went to England, eventually giving birth to a son, Henry. Helen (1855 – 1925) married George Humphreys, a farm labourer. Edith (1861 – 1933) married Thomas Hall, a post office clerk.
Contrasting Fortunes
Thus the two sons of Lt Col William C. Shortt and their descendants experienced contrasting fortunes. William TP Shortt initially followed his father's footsteps by joining the Army, but the academic side of his nature led him away from military life into pioneering archaeological work. He lived to the age of 81, and several of his descendants continued the family tradition of military service right through to the early 21st century. He did not escape sadness, losing his daughter Kathleen when she was only 27 years old and his son-in-law in an act of murder in 1874.
His half-brother James S. Shortt suffered disadvantages that stemmed from being a second son orphaned at the age of just one year. With no university education, he joined the British Army at the age of 21. His first wife died when he was 29. For him, the early prestige of being an Army officer was later significantly tempered by his court martial, and more sadness came with the loss of five of his children in infancy. The final personal tragedy for him and his daughters was his death at sea at the age of 53; almost inevitably perhaps, the guardians of his three younger daughters could not provide sufficient financial resources for them to be able to live the privileged lives of their parents' families.
This story of the lives of Lt Col William Shortt and his descendants is the result of much research by my cousin David Royle and myself. There are still many gaps in our knowledge and we would welcome any further information. This can be passed to us by contacting Nan J. Card, Curator of Manuscripts, Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center, Fremont, Ohio at(email@example.com).
Acknowledgements: My family is grateful for information provided during our research by the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center (Fremont, Ohio), National Archives (Kew, London), the British Library (London), the Families in British India (FIBIS) website, Sue Andrew, G. Carlyle Hinshaw and Margaret McGrath.
This article has been copyrighted by Mike Hedges.
[1] Henry Shortt said that William was educated at Eton College, but my enquiries with the College suggest that this is not correct.
[2] Brevet rank was awarded for distinguished service, but the recipient retained the pay and responsibilities of his previous lower rank. Brevet rank could not be purchased.
[3] Ref. Bluejacket: Warrior of the Shawnees by John Sugden (University of Nebraska Press, 2000).
[4] Article in the Wyandotte Tribune, 3 November 1948.
[5] Information provided in an e-mail to the author.
[6] Correct spelling, but generally recorded as Taylor in later mentions of WTP Shortt
[7] From An Antiquary in Devon (WTP Shortt 1800 – 1881) by R.G. Goodchild, Transactions of the Devonshire Association for the Advancement of Science, Literature and Art, 1947.
[8] From A Dissertation on the Site of Moridunum, The Gentleman's Magazine, January to June 1849.
[9] From The King's Own: The Story of a Royal Regiment Volume 2, 1814-1914, by Colonel L.I. Cowper (Oxford University Press, 1939).
[10] William Ward Percival Johnson (1790 – 1880) served as a young seaman on HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.


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BioWare Defends DLC Business Strategy
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BioWare Defends DLC Business Strategy
Gamers are happy to pay for DLC, online passes, and microtransactions, says BioWare.
If you played Mass Effect 3, you've probably noticed that the game has more DLC than you can shake an Omni-Tool at. Between multiplayer expansions, ending patches, online passes, and item packs, you could end up spending a lot of money on top of the initial $60 investment to see the end of modern gaming's most celebrated sci-fi trilogy. While some of the DLC is free, and the rest maxes out at about $10 a pop, BioWare has been raking in money hand-over-three-fingered-fist with these downloadable extras.
While giving a presentation at GDC Europe, Fernando Melo, director of BioWare's online development, laid out the company's business plan. "Fans do want more content," said Melo. "From the moment the game launches ... So it needs to be there when it's ready." Mass Effect 3 fans will remember From Ashes, the day one DLC pack that added an extra squadmate who could add quite a lot of backstory and combat advantages from a relatively early point in the plot. Even if fans do not want to dish out an additional 1/6 of the game's cost as soon as they get home from the store, Melo argued that there's no rush. "They choose when to pick it up, day one or later."
In addition to touting the virtues of an Online Pass - a one-time content access code that made up 11% of Mass Effect 2's DLC revenue - Melo believed that microtransactions are the best way to ensure a constant revenue stream from a game that has already been released. "If you have five DLC packs at $10 each, you can only ever earn a total of $50," Melo explained. Mass Effect 3, however, offers cheap, randomized multiplayer item packs, which are also purchasable with in-game funds. Offering real-money transactions for convenience or in-game money for time and patience offers the best of both worlds, according to Melo. "Gamers are actually happier, as they are able to spend money when they want."
For those who might scoff at Mass Effect 3's DLC and microtransactions, Melo did offer one interesting point: These sales subsidized the game's plentiful free multiplayer DLC, ensuring that players get a steady stream of varied content, and that developers get to stay on the Mass Effect 3 team. Whether or not gamers are really "happier" with this business strategy is hard to say, but at the very least, they're not too upset to open their wallets for it.
Source: Eurogamer
Let the vitriol spew in 3...2...1...
Not that big of a deal. I figured the lottery multiplayer paid for the free packs, and quite frankly, if people are willing to pay for it, it's their business.
As for their singleplayer DLC, let's see if Leviathan is worth the $10.
Oh yes Mr. Melo I love nothing more then that feeling like I was just shook down for more money. Everyone takes joy in knowing that the first 60 dollars they put down was only the entry fee! Give us more please.
This is why I am seriously happy that I deleted my Origin account, and uninstalled every thing Bioware from my computer.
They just are running around ripping people off, and trying to do the least amount of work.
Bioware is simply dead to me.
I actual enjoy the micro transitions because they keep the dlc free, the operations worth Bioware's time, and it still isn't pay to win.
Because that's all that really matters in this day and age isn't it? The Multiplayer. You'd think all that money would at least earn us another gameplay mode.
As obnoxious as I find the gambling to be, it's still not as spammy or obnoxious as say Saints Row 3 or Dungeon Defenders.
Let the DLC flow. That means more content for when they release the actual version of their games.
I'm still waiting for a Mass Effect 3 Complete Edition to come out for a normal price (<$50). I'll be patient even if it takes another year and another EA stock dip.
Yeah, it's not like they're also working on single player DLC that'll be released this summer.
Oh wait.
I'll just Copy/Paste this rant here, since it seems to fit perfectly:
No, just no, this practice is getting increasingly ridiculous and needs to die.
Developers start either releasing games before they are ready or cutting out entire chapters from their game like in "Assassin's Creed 2″ with Battle of Forli/Bonfire of Vanities.
They start adding features to the game that should have been there all along and had been shown off during development like "free roam" and mini missions in MAFIA II.
They start clearly cutting out entire parts of the story of a game to offer them as "Exclusive Content" to retailers or making you pay for it afterwards like in "L.A. Noire" (5 Missions/Cases were behind a Pay-Wall).
They outright lock out content already complete from the disk to make you pay for "unlocking" it like in Street Fighter IV, Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Street Fighter X Tekken or even more recently Risen 2.
Some publishers like Capcom are even actually selling you an ending to your game like in "Asura's Wrath".
It's getting so bad, that they were all announcing "DLC" and "Exclusive DLC" at the E3 this year with games THAT WERE SET TO COME OUT IN MONTHS.
All this "budget" and "certification" bullshit is just that, an excuse for fleecing their customers, especially when said DLC then even ends up on the finished Retail disc with CD Keys to unlock but only in "certain versions".
Games in general have varying degrees of development times, team sizes , scopes, budgets etc. but that's *their choice*, the exact budget or team size of a game ultimately shouldn't matter to the consumer (and it didn't before they brought it up as a reason to justify DLC). For instance, it usually also doesn't matter or have any impact on the price if a game like Duke Nukem Forever is in development for 15 years, or Diablo III for 8 years, Dragon Age: Origins or Alan Wake for 5, Newest Call of Duty and Mass Effect for 2 or Dragon Age 2 for 1 year. The publisher could at any one point give any of these games either more or less time and budget depending on if they deem it right or feasible and it shouldn't translate to different terms to the consumer as that is a publishing/developer decision. If they really needed character or area X and Y in a game they could just give them another month till it is done and release it then. It wouldn't be unprecedented and the first time ever a game had a delay.
Publishers also spend a lot of money on R&D or months to years of development time on games/game ideas that won't make it in the end (sometimes tax write-offs of a game that doesn't come out are apparently a better choice than a released game that fails on the market), soon they'll come out and try to guilt trip people by saying "Look, it didn't pan out this time, but can you please pay us, so we make back our costs?" or what?
Remember when people used to say that they "hate" that the new consoles have the ability to Patch "like on the PC", because developers don't have to complete and properly test their game before they release it like for instance Nintendo and SEGA etc. did back in the day and they could release them buggy and fix them later?
Well guess what, DLC gives them the opportunity to not even FINISH the game before they release it, not only that but also the opportunity to cut it up in pieces and offer the rest at additional price.
You're not doing anyone any favors by trying to justify and rationalize their ability to gouge people any further...
EXPANSIONS are good, DLC is definitely not so. Microsoft coined "DLC" back in 2002 with their Xbox, the first title to have it was "Mech Assault" (by Microsoft Game Studios) and they were the only ones to charge for it, everyone else was offering it for free, they then proceeded to make it a requirement to pay for it on their Xbox 360 and FORCED every developer to put a price on DLC or any additional big content Patches because they wanted to "create an environment of value" (or at least that's what they call not allowing any kind of "free" content on their platform, so they don't give people the wrong idea) and smelled lots of money:
Microsoft didn't WANT things to be free, how would the big publishers or themselves look when there's games offering free content while they charge 5-10 $/€? They are the reason why "long term support" got replaced by "BUY OUR DLC, BEST DAY ONE!" and there's no reason to support that.
It's a disease initiated by Microsoft on closed-off console platforms that just swapped over to the PC in time.
So since this makes lots of money in the long run, that means they'll be able to afford to sell their games at a cheaper up-front cost, right? I mean, that's why there's a $60 price point, because they need to make back all the money they spent making it. But with these DLC's making a lot of money as well, that means we'll get cheaper games as a result of DLC helping make back the budget, right?
ME3 MP packs are a slippery slope. They work for me as is because its purely a co-op MP so someone who blows hundreds of dollars to max their ultra-rares benefits themselves but also benefits me as they will have some serious firepower even if they lack any real talent if they end up in a game with me. If this game had a competitive mode then I probably would never touch the thing simply because being able to buy power (guns/gear/characters in this case) would give anyone willing to drop real money on it an advantage over those who don't.
Its a system like that that scares me away from products and from what I've read the new Mech Warrior Tactics F2P game will basically do that very thing. Varying packs will contain different rarities of gear/mechs/pilots and they will all be purchasable with real world currency as well as in game currency. Just seems pointless to me to try to compete in a pvp orientated game that can offer such dramatic shortcuts and advantages to those with money to burn versus people who just play the game or buy substantially less shop items. Keep the microtransactions in those situations limited to cosmetic or even just side grades imo or at the very least offer some solid matchmaking that tries to balance opponents based on some sort of metric you've developed.
good luck with that one, they are just about as bad as activision is on pricing, EA will sell it's soul 100x over before it releases a GOTY edition, let alone one that is less then 70 bucks. (seriously, when was the last time they chopped prices on any bioware DLC? anyone? if so, i must not be paying attention at those very rare times.)
Like... I understand that the AAA games cost so much that developers have pretty much worked themselves into a corner in terms of profit... but I really can't help but shake the feeling they are just a bunch of greedy douches...
It truly saddens me to watch the industry spiral out of control. It's nothing new, of course... but it's a terrible thing to watch none the less.
Ok, so a few things with this.
1. Most of the DLC is free (right now), and it makes the multiplayer feel fresh here and there, at no charge.
2. The item packs you can buy, hell, I dont mind, its extremely well implemented. The only time you see them is when you want to buy a pack, points or in game money. They are also available completly free with in game money, and the most expensive can be bought with just 3 successful victories. I dont mind it.
3. Day one DLC.... No. Im pretty sure most people agree. No. It should either be a pre-order bonus, or on the disc. No selling day one DLC. Leviathan? Well, I cant have judgement yet. Still have to see if its going to be worth the MS point. If its like Kasumi or Arrival, it will maybe be worth it.
Yeah. Death to pay-DLC. Life to expansion packs. Feel free to add non-intrusive micro transactions.
Heh heh... look at you... so cute with your hopes and dreams...
Well they wouldn't have had to do that if they had paid attention to the single player storyline in the first place.
I liked how ME approached it's online methods very much.
The microtransaction packs served both those wanted to fork over the money and for me it was a little thing to spend a few leftover points on when I had some on a couple occasions. Those who also want to blow their money to get some high tier stuff instantly can as well. Like they said those who do splurge for convenience pay for those who don't.
The biggest challenge of a model like that is imbalancing multiplayer which is a bigger issue in competitive rather than co-op but you still can buy good high tier packs yourself in a reasonable amount of time to not get frustrated over it.
Online passes don't seem like shady underhanded business tactics to me at all, just a fair way to chip a few bucks out of the used gaming market. Not trying to destroy it like some people fear the next console generation might try and do.
IMO a lot of the people complaining about all this optional stuff it fit right into that category of en... wait for it... titled. Cliche'd but true.
You made a mistake with the headline:
EA Defends DLC Business Strategy
There. Fixed it for you.
Yea.... I have nothing new to add. I've already stated that I am only buying the game used and never touching the DLC to any EA game.
Also, back a million years ago when Microsoft published part 1, it was 400 points for the Bring down the Sky mission that was both awesome and took 2 to 3 hours to plow through it.
And no customer has ever been happy about an online pass... ever.
I'm sorry people. I think a lot of you have legitimate points to make, but when your argument boils down to "I don't want to pay money for things," it becomes physically painful to read. Paid DLC and preorder bonuses aren't going away, for the simple reason that things cost money to make and the profit margin for video games is stretched razor thin. We might as well find a way that we'll be happy with it.
I bought every piece of DLC for every Bioware game I own. I enjoyed them, and it was worth a little money - yes, I have seriously low income, but it's what I'd pay for a lunch out at somewhere fast-food, so I'm not that bloody fussed about it - to get a little more of something I liked. I don't want my games broken and stuff taken out to be held hostage later, but I don't feel like that's happened so far. Extra outfits for my DA2 character? Sure, why the heck not? It's not like the offerings of the industry as so bountifully fabulous that I've had to pay full price for opening day titles all year - haven't had that problem for nearly half a decade now.
Yeah, keep eating Bioware's bullshit. After reading that article about CDProject Red last week, it's hardly surprising that people are complaining about what this Fernando Melo is saying.
Company defends its business strategies and notes that they sell well, gamers get angry and retort that they hate the company. Oh wait, that is the summary of an EA story, or was it a blizzard story... Activision... no wait...
I'm tired of both sides whining like pansies, I want my freaking modular games, dammit. I'm sick of gamers putting a road block to their development because of there short sighted calls of 'money grab' and I'm sick of developers being to pussy-shit to actual come out and do it for fear of losing money on unsold content.
There have been good parts and bad parts to Mass Effect 3's DLC, IMO.
The good is the microtransactions. The beauty of it is that it doesn't give you anything you can't simply get by playing the game more. People who want to get ahead and have the money to pay for it can, while people who don't have the money are not really worse off. It subsidizes the multiplayer content so people who wouldn't normally pay for stuff like map or weapons packs (ie me) can enjoy it at no cost. And due to the way Mass Effect 3 multiplayer works, it's not a "free multiplayer, pay to win" situation -- if someone on your team is packing top tier weapons thanks to paying for them, that's a good thing. Ultimately the microtransaction system that BioWare put into place for ME3 multiplayer is, IMO, genius. Also good was making the Extended Cut for free. There was probably a very tense discussion in the BioWare/EA offices before they decided to make that content free. Likely the only reason they did that was because they knew charging for it would just make more people upset, and the point of the extended cut was a peace offering to appease gamers who felt betrayed. I certainly appreciated the peace offering.
Not so genius was the day 1 DLC. Now, it may be that the "From Ashes" DLC was put into production after ME3's production was locked down, and it was legitimately developed separately from the main game. I get that. The problem lies with comparing it to BioWare's own past DLC. With Mass Effect 2 (and Dragon Age: Origins, for that matter) the first DLC character was free (well, free as long as you bought the game new). Mass Effect 2 had a second DLC character which they charged 560 points ($6.99) for. Then, Dragon Age II had a first day DLC character which they charged 560 points/$6.99 for unless you pre-ordered the "signature edition". Then Mass Effect 3 had a first day DLC character which they charged 800 points ($10.00) for. That's a sixth of the price of the game for much less content. It just seems that BioWare (well not BioWare really, EA executives are responsible for pricing) keeps trying to push the envelope with how much they can price gouge for DLC.
As for DLC in general, the basic problem is that it tends to be overpriced. Also, they don't seem to ever drop prices on DLC -- Mass Effect 2 sells for $20 now but its Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC can only be bought for $10. But I don't think that means it should be free or anything. I enjoyed Mass Effect 2's paid DLC content and didn't resent the fact that I had to pay for it (well, the story DLC, not the weapons packs). As for ME3's upcoming Leviathan DLC, I'll reserve judgement until it's actually released.
Honestly I feel Bioware has handled DLC very well (admittedly the day 1 character shit was shifty), they've given us plenty of free stuff and the multiplayer packs aren't too obnoxious.
Unfortunately, nothing erases THAT ENDING or the insulting, demeaning behavior they put on in the wake of it. So fuck them.
The day a customer is actually happy about an online pass is the day hell freezes over. Nobody has ever been happy with it. Ever. Ever. Ever.
I actually had my roommate time me. I pre-ordered the Collector's Edition of ME3 on 360 and timed how long it would take to open the game, update the game, type in over 5 online passes and day-1 DLC codes, download the DLC, load the game, and start playing. It took nearly 45 minutes.
45 minutes of hassling your customers before they can even play the game proper.
I then decided to play Xenoblade Chronicles. The entire process of jumping into the game took 1 minute, and everything I'd ever need, and WILL ever need, is on the disc. The game is complete and ready to go the second I put it in.
I miss those days.
Oh, this will be a fun thread.
I have no business criticizing the DLC for Mass Effect because I actually like how they handled the multiplayer stuff, and the stuff I should be mad at (single player day one DLC)....well, I bought it. Begrudgingly, I will add, but I bought it all the same. And I ended up enjoying it and feeling like the price was worth it, so...sorry, I guess.
Oh, but I can attack them for the online pass crap. If I hadn't bought the game new, I would have been extremely pissed to have to spend another 10 bucks just to play multiplayer.
It's like I can hear the crickets chirping.
One of the biggest reasons why I no longer buy games on release is because of the environment DLC has created. I'm sick of having money squeezed out of me at every turn, and the only way I can show that dissatisfaction is with my wallet. Articles like this one about Assassin's Creed III are just begging me to wait for a price drop, GOTY edition, or to just skip the game altogether. There's too many good games out there for me to fork out so much on a single title.
I think most of the hate Bioware is getting for this is because people are still upset over ME3 (even though it's been months... yay grudges...). I mean, DLC is not going away. Day One DLC sucks, yes, but DLC in general is here to stay until something else more profitable becomes popular. Bioware has actually dealt with DLC reasonably well over all, the pros of micro transactions and free DLC outweighing the flub up with the Day One DLC in my eyes. I've bought their DLC before and never felt ripped off. Go Bioware!
I have absolutely no problems with any aspect of the Multiplayer DLC, even the gear collection system is decent and not so overbearing that purchasing supply packs is a must.
I do have issues with the fact that making money off of them is EAware's only priority. There are bugs in the f****** game that have been there since launch. The servers are utter garbage, latency is rampant along with losing connection to the servers during peak hours, certain characters have skills that combine with latency cause you to fall through the terrain and become completely useless when dead, two of the DLC maps have bugs, a third one is known to cause a crash to desktop.
Since launch, ME3 has only had one patch, but 3 multiplayer DLC's. Shows their priorities imo.
Gave up on Mass Effect after playing the Mass Effect 2 demo personally, but I will say that I tend to steer clear of DLC as a general rule these days, because I can't guarantee that I won't be ripped off. There are companies that either do it right already or would do it right if they made DLC, like Bethesda used to.
For example, if CDP RED released an expansion DLC for TW2, then I would be all over that because I know they would pack it full of unique and interesting content (given their recent morality).
Stop reading these articles and comments sections then. That's like going to Mcdonalds and saying "I'm sick of all this fatty food, and being surrounded by fat people while I eat".
Actually, since I'm not in a company and not in a position to make a company on my own all I can really do is talk and hope it helps change things. Since It'd be inappropriate to go into a random unrelated thread and try and talk about things like this, this is the appropriate venue.
Three patches actually, two if you don't count the day 1 patch.
The whole "We won't survive without our DLC!" thing is bullshit. We can look at CDProjekt RED as clear proof.
Oh, thanks for telling us what we gamers like, Fernando Melo. It's so refreshing to be treated as a faceless profit margin demographic. Kudos too, on your convenient interpretation of sales data, and the gargantuan leap of false equivalency required to deem such figures as representative of overall customer satisfaction with your exploitative business model.
Ah, the sweet scent of corporate spin. Breathe deep, fellow consumers.
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Two collections have recently been processed and are now fully accessible at the Champaign County Historical Archives of The Urbana Free Library.
The Champaign Urbana Woman's Club
The Champaign Urbana Community Woman's Club was established as a community league in 1956 with the purposes of community service, self-improvement, and social life. The collection contains records from 1956-2012. The records consist of the organization's constitution, general meeting notes and minutes, executive board meeting notes, treasurer reports, and documents related to a financial audit conducted in 1978-79. The collection also contains several yearbooks spanning from 1956-2012.
Urbana Neighborhood Associations
The Collection contains materials pertaining to the West Urbana Neighborhood Association (WUNA) (1971-1975), the Association for Residential Preservation in Urbana (ARPU) (1972-1974), the Southeast Urbana Neighborhood Association (SUNA) (1972-1974), and the Society for the Urban Residential Environment (SURE) (1975-1976). Materials originally collected by Betty Alexander and contributed by Liz Cardman.
The West Urbana Neighborhood Association (WUNA) was established in 1971 in order to "preserve the residential integrity of the neighborhood." The Southeast Urbana Neighborhood Association (SUNA) was also established in 1971 to "promote constructive and intelligent change in the best interests of all citizens of the community." The Society for the Urban Residential Environment (SURE) was established in 1975 "to preserve and improve the essential character of the intact urban and suburban residential areas" of Champaign, Urbana, and the surrounding areas. The Association for Residential Preservation in Urbana (ARPU) was established in 1972 and was comprised of WUNA members. The group was formed to address the Windsor road expansion in Urbana.


text:
So my supervisor and I were having a casual conversation today, when I mentioned that both my brother and my friend had considered getting me a politically-themed birthday card. (My brother did, actually, get me a card with a photo of Obama with the Justin Bieber hairdo.) She mentioned to me that I'm probably the most outspoken person she knows about political beliefs, which was at once surprising and not. I do often talk about my views on the issues, but for some reason, hearing someone say that I'm very open about what I believe made me feel a little vulnerable and insecure for a second.
It is often heard that you don't discuss religion or politics, for there is never an end and the arguments are nothing if not circular. Perhaps that's true, but I continue to do so nonetheless.
I started to think about what might be the reason that I find it important to express myself, other than the obvious desire to be heard (and the First Amendment, no doubt).
This is how I said it to my supervisor:
I spent most of my childhood and teen years studying about the persecution of Jews and others throughout history — from the Biblical times to Ancient Rome, to the Hellenistic period, the Ottoman Empire, The Crusades, The Inquisition, Stalin's reign, and most recently but not least significantly, The Holocaust.
What I took away from these teachings was the resilience and perseverance of the human race. I learned about the power of standing up against intolerance and hatred, and the gravity of the consequence if it goes unchecked.
I can't tell you how many Holocaust survivors I have met over the years. Many of them have remained silent about what they endured, and who can blame them for all of the trauma and horror they witnessed. Many have also become outspoken for the plight of innocent groups of people. They told us stories in such graphic detail that I couldn't imagine how they were still standing. Stories of their parents being gassed, their siblings being murdered, and their unimaginable escape from lock-down concentration camps.
The mantra of "Never Again" has echoed through these eras and stories, and it plays through my head on loop. Never again should we sit idly by while others are being mistreated, persecuted, or denied rights. We know what happens, and old patterns die hard.
(Side note: Check out the famous poem "First they came…" attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller on this very theme.)
(Another Side note: this theme is portrayed very nicely throughout the X-Men movies, as mutants fight for the right to exist. The most recent movie also does a great job highlighting the "Never Again" mantra. I'm not sure where I fall between Professor X and Magneto — probably somewhere in between.)
That is why I stand up, and voice up against what I perceive to be injustice.
In the modern day political situation, I believe we've seen the extremes of both Capitalism and Communism, and a balance must be sought after — one where social causes and rights of citizens are just as secure as our borders and our wallets.
I may not always be right, and yes, some may call me a dreamer, but my intentions are pure, and no, I'm not the only one.


text:
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ESA's Cosmic Vision workshop 2004
ESA's 'Cosmic Vision 2015-2025' workshop, held at UNESCO in Paris on 15-16 September 2004, showed that Europe is richer than ever in ideas for what should be done in space science in the coming years.
Scientists from across Europe brought together their papers outlining what they thought should be the major issues of space exploration a decade from now, on topics such as 'Tracing the origin of the Solar System', 'The evolving violent Universe' and 'Other worlds and life in the Universe'.
This workshop was a major step forward in developing the vision of the future for Europe's space science that will be presented by ESA's Science Directorate next spring. ESA's working groups are also working to identify the technology challenges, with the help of the ESA Advanced Concepts office.
Following endorsement by ESA's Science Programme Committee in February 2005, the 'Cosmic Vision 2015-2025' document will be produced, laying out the targets for European space science for the decade 2015-2025.
Subsequently, once the financial framework is known, the European scientific community will be called upon to produce a plan, including concrete missions and mission scenarios, which will capture as much as possible of the range of scientific themes targeted.
ESA's Director of Science, Prof. David Southwood, said: "Europe's funding for space science has always been substantially less than the US but there can be little doubt from the last two days that Europe can claim intellectual parity and, with the right funding, can push back any frontier."