text:
Carol Blue, the widow of author Christopher Hitchens, answered viewer questions submitted via Twitter, Facebook.
Watch it here (c-spanvideo.org)
Yahoo! News
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Carol Blue answers questionsNovember 18, 2012
Carol Blue, the widow of author Christopher Hitchens, answered viewer questions submitted via Twitter, Facebook.
Posted by Tom at 16:21 7 comments
Labels: 2012, Carol Blue, Christopher Hitchens, Miami Book Fair
Authors on Christopher Hitchens
Martin Amis, Carol Blue, Cary Goldstein, and Robert Weil discussed Christopher Hitchens' book Mortality. This event took place at the 2012 Miami Book Fair International held November 11-18, 2012 on the campus of Miami Dade College in Miami, Florida.
Watch it here (c-spanvideo.org)
Posted by Tom at 15:48 4 comments
Labels: 2012, c-span, Carol Blue, Christopher Hitchens, Martin Amis, Miami Book Fair, Mortality
Piers Morgan interviews Carol BlueNovember 16, 2012
Tom Cook has a thread on reddit where you can remember Hitchens, and what he meant to you.
Posted by Tom at 07:56 0 comments
Labels: 2012, Carol Blue, Christopher Hitchens, cnn, Piers Morgan


text:
Guest Post by Different Frame of Mind
Chicago, the Windy City
As a child growing up in Kansas, I had always heard Chicago, Illinois was an amazing city. Many of my friends were always there since it is about 8 hours from where I was from. As an adult, Chicago was high on my priority list. I finally made my dream come true over Labor Day weekend. I had the trip planned months ahead of time, there is just so much to do in Chicago. It was hard to choose between all the different options of things to do. Below, I will list my top 5 things to do while in Chicago.
1.) Navy Pier
The Navy Pier was always on the top of my list because of all it has to offer. The Navy Pier is just a short walk from downtown Chicago. There is also parking near Navy Pier, but it costs quite a bit for just a parking spot. My husband and I chose to park elsewhere and walk. When we got to the Navy Pier, I was surprised at how many people were there. Come to find out, the Great American Lobster Festival was going on. The Navy Pier had many different places to eat, shop and hangout out. There are also attractions along the pier that you could choose such as a cruise along the lake or river. Most of the attractions were around $40.00 per person and up. The view of the Chicago skyline was beautiful from here.
2.) Sky Deck Chicago
Sky Deck Chicago is located in the Willis tower, also known as the Sears Tower. The Sky Deck is 103 floors up in the building. My husband and I got there at 10 am, but we did not leave there until 1 pm due to everyone in line. If you would prefer to skip the lines, they offer a fast pass that you can pick a specific time to get there and go up. You still need to get there early since you have to go through security. You can also buy your tickets ahead of time and skip the long line to buy tickets in person. Once you buy the tickets they will have you watch a short film on the history of the tower. They then put you in another line to wait to get on the elevator to get to the top. Once you reach the top, you can walk around the top and see all the different views. To go to the sky box, you have to wait in another line but some are shorter than others. I truly enjoyed my time here, even if I had to stand in a few lines. Just make sure to get there earlier in the day.
3.) Baseball game at Guaranteed Field
Chicago has two hometown baseball teams, the White Sox and the Cubs. I decided to surprise my husband with tickets to go to a baseball game. I decided to go with the White Sox because it was all around cheaper to get into the field. We sat about 20 rows behind the dug out for way less money than we would have for the Cubs. The White Sox played the Tampa Bay Rays the night we went. The field and stadium was well taken care of. The lines to go through security were fast and the stadium was easy to navigate.
4.) The Bean
The Bean is one of the most tourist filled attractions in Chicago, it is very well known. This attraction is also known as the Cloud Gate. This attraction is like a mirror because it shows everything in its view such as the sky, people and buildings. My husband and I got up very early to go to the Bean. We walked from a parking garage and got to the Bean around 8 am. Very few people were there, the sun was still setting so I was able to get some really neat shots. When we passed by the Bean later on there was almost five times more people there than when we were there. My biggest advice on the Bean is to get there early, it really is an amazing sight.
5.) Chicago Riverwalk
The Riverwalk runs in between many different buildings in downtown Chicago. This path is pedestrian only path, so no bicycles or mopeds allowed along the path. Along the Riverwalk there are boats that you can get on for a steep price to sail along the river and see the sights of Chicago from there. There were some people, but it was not crowded enough that I could not freely walk. I truly enjoyed the sights along the Riverwalk. The Riverwalk was not hard to get to or access the stairs to walk down to the path along the river.
As you can see, all of these places in Chicago are very fun to visit. Most of them are the typical touristy places, but I enjoyed each one of them. My husband and I parked in one place and walked to all of them, except the game. I walked over 17,000 steps each day I was on vacation. That is way more than I do at home. If you have never been to Chicago, I highly suggest it. Chicago has easily turned into one of my most favorite cities that I have visited so far.
Author Biography:
My name is Ariel and I am the creator of Different Frame of Mind blog. My blog focuses on travels with little funds, medical and psychological disorders. I was born in Kansas, but currently reside in North Carolina. I am married and have two wonderful puppies.
I am a bucket list traveler and have plenty to still check off. I have been on a cruise, traveled to 34 different states, swam with the dolphins and so much more since 2010. Join me on my journey on one of the social media links below.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/differentframeofmindblog
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Creator of Different Frame of Mind blog

subset: commoncrawl


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President of the World Curling Federation (WCF)
Kate Caithness from Scotland was elected President of the World Curling Federation in April 2010. She is the first female president of the WCF and the first female president of an Olympic Winter Sports Federation.
Caithness has been involved with the sport of curling since the 1980s. As a member of Scotland's Royal Caledonian Curling Club (RCCC), she moved on from playing to putting something back into the sport in the late 1990s. After being president of the RCCC Ladies branch from 1997 to 1998, she went on to represent the RCCC at international level with the World Curling Federation.
Since 2000 Caithness has been the driving force behind the WCF's development of wheelchair curling. She was part of the team that created the first World Wheelchair Championships and was responsible for securing wheelchair curling's inclusion into the Paralympic Winter Games programme in Turin in 2006.
From 2005 to 2009 Caithness was elected on to the International Paralympic Committee's five person Sports Council Management Committee and from 2006 -2009 she served on the Paralympic Games Committee.
She was elected Vice-President of the WCF in 2006 and served for two two-year terms under former President Les Harrison.
In March 2011, Caithness was appointed to the Olympic Programme Commission which is responsible for reviewing and analysing the programme of sports, disciplines and events, as well as the number of athletes in each sport, for the Summer and Winter Olympics.
In April 2012, Caithness was re-elected, unopposed, to the position of WCF President for a further two-year term.
Married with two sons, Caithness became a grandmother in 2008. Her free time is spent with family and when she has a chance, curling and playing golf at her home club in Edzell, Angus, where she was the Lady Captain from 2002 to 2004.
Caithness was bestowed the honour of an OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) by Queen Elizabeth II in 2013 for services to curling and international disability sport.


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Most hockey fans know who TJ Oshie and Jonathan Quick are, but today, an entire nation now knows them, as well.
After USA and Russia played a marvelous 65 minutes of hockey, the skills competition commenced and the US bested the Russians, 3-2, after eight rounds of the shootout.
The rules are different in International Hockey so after three shooters, a coach can choose whatever player he wants and can keep repeating that selection. Team USA Coach Dan Bylsma stuck to his guns and kept throwing #74 out there and he delivered 4 of 6 times, three times via the "five hole," to win it for USA. Quick, who won the Stanley Cup with the Kings in 2012, stopped 5 of 8 tries for the victory in net.
Wow, what a hockey game.
This was no "Miracle on Ice" from 1980. It is not even close and let's be clear about that since 1980 was a mismatch on paper, but somehow a bunch of college kids beat one of the greatest teams of all time.
This game was a fairly even matchup. Team USA has an excellent squad but so do the Russians, who also have home ice. The perceived weaknesses on each club are their respective blue lines. Coming into the Olympics, you would have thought the Russian defense was as bad as the 2013 Washington Redskins, based on the pre tourney analysis. But they quickly proved that theory wrong playing excellent defensive hockey and only allowing two USA power play goals (Cam Fowler and James VanRiemsdyk).
Russia had some great chances and their power play, on paper, looks deadly. It features Alex Ovechkin, Ilya Kovalchuk, Pavel Datsyuk (2 goals), and Evgeni Malkin. Talk about some serious fire power there! Somehow the US managed to hold the Russians to one tally on five chances in this one.
One thing both teams coaches will not like were the penalties each squad took. Bylsma can't be happy about Dustin Brown's giveaway and then penalty in the last 10 minutes. That infraction gave the Russians the power play that they tied the game on via Datsyuk's second goal. Conversely, Alexander Radulov took two selfish penalties and the US scored on both. The only thing saving Radulov from a trip to Siberia was his great screen on the tying tally and his assist on Datsyuk's first goal.
On that first goal, Datsyuk broke free from Max Pacioretty in the neutral zone and split Brooks Orpik and John Carlson for the game's opening tally. Bylsma clearly wasn't pleased with Carlson and Pacioretty because they didn't see much ice time after that, but Orpik was just as much to blame as foot speed isn't one of #44's strengths. But Orpik kept getting put on the ice by Bylsma even after the miscue (Note: I wonder what coach he plays for during the regular season? Hmmm….).
After the Russians tied the game on Datsyuk's PP tally, a goal that appeared to make it 3-2 for the home squad was correctly disallowed. Quick had inadvertenly dislodged the net on an earlier save and the referees didn't see it and let play continue. Shortly thereafter, a Russian point shot was deflected and barely went in under the cross bar towards the right post. It was that right post that was off of its peg and pushed back a bit. After a review, which initially many thought was due to a potential high stick, the goal was taken down due to the net issue. It was the right call based on IIHF rules and I assert that there was no way to allow it based on physics, alone. If the net is in its proper position there the puck may have struck the cross bar and never went in to begin with. Bottom line is the right call was made on the ice after review, although it would have been better had the zebras noticed the dislodged cage sooner.
This win was big because it sets up the USA to place first in their group tomorrow with a victory over Slovenia (1-1), a team that is led by the Anze Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings. Winning the group means a bye into the quarterfinals. Conversely, Russia will likely get a bye, as well, if they beat the Slovaks by being the best second place finisher. The other teams that will get a bye are Canada, who will likely be the #1 seed, and Sweden, who are ravaged with injuries. Both Henrik Zetterberg and Henrik Sedin are out hurt but they still managed to carry their group with three wins.
However, with Sweden's injuries, this is shaping up to be a three horse race for the Gold Medal between Canada, Russia, and the United States.
In summary, this was a big win but this was not a "Miracle" type victory. Make no mistake about it, though, this game mattered A LOT, to both squads.
The two countries are nowhere close to allies and their are serious political differences.
The Cold War is over, but a win over the Russians still carries enormous weight in the USA.
The Americans played a strong game and won on the home team's soil to set themselves up for a run at a medal.
TJ Oshie for President!


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Passengers on two trans-Atlantic flights may have been exposed to a man infected with an exceptionally dangerous form of tuberculosis.
Federal and international officials are tracking down passengers and crew members on two trans-Atlantic flights earlier this month who may have been exposed to a man infected with an exceptionally dangerous form of tuberculosis.
The male passenger flew to Paris from his home in Atlanta on May 12 on Air France 385 and arrived in Paris on May 13. He returned to the United States on May 24 after taking Czech Air 104 to Montreal from Prague. The man drove into the United States that day and entered a hospital in New York City on May 25.
The man is now in an Atlanta hospital under federally enforced isolation after he was flown there from New York City on Monday in a plane owned by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Dr. Martin S. Cetron , an agency official, said he reached the man on his cellphone while he was in Italy to inform him that tests performed before he left for Europe showed that he had a form of tuberculosis that was extremely resistant to standard antibiotics. Dr. Cetron said that he advised the man not to take commercial flights home from Europe and that a United States Embassy would provide assistance, including examination by a tuberculosis expert.
While the agency began to explore ways to bring the man home, he flew to Montreal and drove into the United States. Then, after agency officials made contact with him, he followed their instructions to drive safely into New York without risk to the public.
The New York City health department said the man spent 72 hours in a hospital in isolation and did not interact with anyone other than trained medical workers.
The disease control agency said that because it was the first airline contact investigation for extremely drug resistant tuberculosis, it was not sure that current recommendations were adequate to determine the possible range and risk of transmission on infection.
Dr. Julie L. Gerberding, director of the C.D.C., said her agency was advising passengers on the commercial flights to be tested for tuberculosis even though they are believed to have a low risk of infection.
That appraisal was based on tests showing that the number of tuberculosis bacteria in the man's sputum were too low to be detected but still enough to infect others. Dr. Gerberding said her agency was erring on the side of caution because the form of tuberculosis, known as XDR TB, was often fatal and a growing public health threat in many countries.
The advisory applies only to the crew members on the man's flight and to his fellow passengers, particularly those who were seated next to him and in the two rows behind him and the two rows in front of him.
"We're not concerned about a generic threat to travelers," Dr. Gerberding said.
Drug-susceptible, or regular, TB and XDR TB are thought to be spread the same way. The TB bacteria become aerosols when a person coughs, sneezes, speaks or sings. The bacteria can float in the air for several hours, depending on the environment. People who breathe air containing these bacteria can become infected.
The risk of acquiring any type of TB appears to depend on several factors, such as the extent of disease in the person who is the source of the bacteria, the duration of exposure and ventilation.
People who become infected have usually been exposed for several hours or days in poorly ventilated or crowded environments. An important way to prevent the spread and transmission is by limiting an infectious person's contact with other people. People who have a confirmed diagnosis of TB or XDR TB are placed on treatment and kept isolated until they are no longer infectious.
Contact passengers will be advised to undergo a medical evaluation and testing and then have follow-up tests 8 to 10 weeks later.
Dr. Gerberding said doctors had not determined the source of the man's infection. Molecular fingerprints used to distinguish among bacterial strains so far do not match that of any other known case, she said. People who think they may have been exposed to TB or XDR TB can call (800) CDC-INFO for more information.


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The best time to make a big trade in the NHL
is when you don't have to. You're negotiating with leverage. If you have a weakness you're trying to fill, it's either not obvious or not urgent.
And so, it makes sense that the worst time to make a big trade is when you're desperate. Other teams can see how badly you're doing and why, and they will stick you up. Making a trade when you have to make a trade usually requires overpaying for the honor.
The Blackhawks need to make a big move.
The Blackhawks cannot make a big move.
The Hawks need help at center behind Jonathan Toews. Heck, they have needed help at center since Patrick Kane started the season there. They switched out Kane when he started getting abused in road games, and since then, Marcus Kruger had been barely OK before suffering a concussion, and Michael Frolik is useless.
Hawks coach Joel Quenneville always had the option of moving Patrick Sharp back to the middle and then finding wings to give the Hawks six top forwards who could play like top forwards.
But now, that's not an option.
How badly? The Hawks haven't said yet. But after his 20
goal of the season put his team up 2-0, the Hawks never scored again and gagged at home in overtime against the evil Red Wings on Sunday.
The loss was the Hawks' fourth in a row. They plummeted from the top of the Central Division to third and from one of the top spots in the Western Conference to being a road team if the playoffs opened today. That's how tight things are. That's how quickly it can change. That's how much the Hawks need to make a big deal.
And that's why they can't.
I imagine a lot of Hawks fans will scream for general manager Stan Bowman to bring in a top-six forward or a top-four defenseman.
Oh, and Gretzky or Lemieux and Orr or Potvin in their primes would be good, too. Work on that and get back to us, would you? Thanks.
It's not that people calling for such things are wrong. In fact, Bowman would agree with them. Problem is, you can't make those deals when everyone knows you have to make those deals. I mean, if Anaheim GM Bob Murray was of a mind to deal Ryan Getzlaff, he might start his list of hostage demands with Nick Leddy. Click.
Ditto Calgary if you're talking Jarome Iginla and Columbus if you're talking Rick Nash.
Latest Sports
I can't see Bowman finding a sucker for a big deal before Valentine's Day, but there is a way the Hawks could help themselves for a reasonable price now: Deal for a third-liner. If you're smart and your scouting is sharp, you can find a responsible winger with speed and some touch that would make Dave Bolland's line more dangerous, and you could do it cheaply.
That, see, was a big key to the Stanley Cup run: Bolland between Andrew Ladd and Kris Versteeg. The line combined smarts, toughness and speed to check the opponent's top line and still contribute offensively. In fact, that line has to contribute because it's on the ice so much.
Bolland scored Sunday, but it was on the power play. The Hawks need his line to contribute five-on-five. At times, Bolland looks like the old hockey joke that he's on the "helicopter line'' because it has no wings.
The Hawks were going to have to address their depth before the trade deadline anyway, so they might as well make the small move now while everyone is expecting the bigger one.


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text:
The pickings are getting slim
on the waiver wire heading into week 3.
Still, there is some value to be found:
Kyle Okposo (NYI)
Okposo took a long time getting
there, but he has finally emerged as the go-to guy on Tavares' Right Wing. That
has translated nicely into 3 goals and 5 assists, over the last 6 games. His ice time has likewise steadily climbed to
a season high of 23 minutes in his last contest.
David Clarkson (TOR)
Clarkson has nearly finished
his 10 game sentence and is poised to make his Maple Leaf debut later this
week. For leagues that value a mix of
points and PIMs, take a look at adding Clarkson to your lineup before other GMs
take notice.
Jay Bouwmeester (STL)
I personally drafted
Bouwmeester late in most of my drafts with the expectation that he would pick
up where he left off late last season with the Blues. He has managed to contribute 5 assists in the
first 7 games, while clocking some serious ice time for St. Louis. The last few years have been hard on him
fantasy wise, but he has started to reemerge as a serious fantasy option on
Ryan Murphy (CAR)
Rookie defensemen are tough to
trust, but circumstances have given Murphy the opportunity to take the wheel in
Carolina. He has supplied a steady
stream of fantasy value so far in the season.
Ben Bishop (TB)
There's a good chance that
Bishop has already been claimed in your league, but it's worth a look. He has clearly surpassed Lindback as the
goalie of choice in Tampa. Despite a
rough go in his last game against Boston, his streak to start the season is the
best display of goaltending the Lightning have witnessed in recent years.
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text: Lawyer Abderrahman Ayedi was arrested and tortured by police for supporting the protesters [AFP] A Tunisian protester has died of his injuries after police shot him in the town of Menzel Bouzaiene, according to the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH). Chawki Belhoussine El Hadri, a 44-year-old man, was shot during protest on December 24. He died on Thursday, the FIDH said in a statement. Mohamed Ammari, a Tunisian teenager, had been killed by police bullets the same day that El Hadri was injured. Another young man, Houcine Falhi, committed suicide by electrocuting himself in the midst of another demonstration on December 22, after shouting out that he was tired of being unemployed. The protests began in the town of Sidi Bouzid when a young university graduate, Mohamed Bouazizi, attempted to end his life by setting himself on fire. Bouazizi is receiving treatment for his severe burns at a hospital in Tunis. Security forces broke up a demonstration in Monastir peacefully on Thursday, but used violence in Sbikha on Thursday, the FIDH said. The same happened in Chebba, where one protester had to be hospitalised. Protests entered their fifteenth day on Friday. "The FIDH again firmly condemns the use of firearms by the Tunisian security forces, and calls for an independent inquiry to caste light on these events, to hold those responsible accountable and to guarantee the right to peaceful protest," the organisation said. Officials have said that the police's use of firearms against protesters last week in Menzel Bouzaiene was necessary after rioters barricaded a police station during the unrest, and used molotov cocktails to torch the building and some police cars. Lawyers speak out Mokhtar Trifi, president of the Tunisian Human Rights League (LTDH), told Al Jazeera that lawyers across Tunisia have been "savagely beaten" on Friday morning. Lawyers gathered in central Tunis, while others assembled in the capital's suburbs, the town of Monastir and elsewhere in the country, after the national lawyers' order called on them to speak out against the government's repression. "It was to demand the release of lawyers arrested over the past two days, and to express solidarity with the wider protests in Sidi Bouzid," Trifi, who has participated in the gathering outside the courthouse in Tunis, said. "There was a savage attack on the lawyers, who were protesting extremely peacefully," he said. He said many people have been injured, some severely, when police beat the lawyers with clubs and punched and kicked them, arresting some and breaking up the meeting. The repression was the most violent in Tunis, he said. The police also confiscated cell phones to prevent people from filming the incident in the capital. Many lawyers have been arrested for supporting the protesters. Abderrahman Ayedi, pictured above, says he was tortured by police on December 28, after they arrested him. Governor sacked President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali sacked the governor of the region of Sidi Bouzid where the protests had begun. Mourad Ben Jalloul was dismissed on Thursday, as Ben Ali's government struggles to respond to the political crisis the protests have provoked. Three ministers and two governors have now been removed for reasons relating to the popular uprising, including Oussama Romdhani, the communications minister. But Khadija Cherif, the secretary-general of the FIDH, told Al Jazeera that Ben Ali's response to the crisis hasn't taken into account the major reforms the protesters are calling for. Neither has it allowed for the debate to be opened, she said, noting the Tunisian media's failure to report accurately on the events. International 'indifference' Most Western governments have stayed silent over the violent repression of the protests, in a marked contrast to the international outcry over popular protests in Iran in 2009. By keeping silent over what is happening in Tunisia, Cherif said the world is "showing indifference to a population that is rising up in the face of massive repression". "We can clearly see that it's self-interest that counts, not values like democracy or freedom," she said. "This discredits European and Western countries." She condemned the tendency to describe Tunisia as an economic miracle. "Just look at what this 'miracle' has led to," she said, referring to those marginalised by the liberalising economic path the government has taken. France's Socialist Party, the main opposition, condemned the "brutal repression" of the protesters on Thursday, calling for those arrested to be released. "It's unfortunately not the first time that the Tunisian security forces distinguish themselves by sometimes fatal repressive measures," Pouria Amirshahi, the party's national secretary, said in a statement from France. Amirshahi called on the Tunisian authorities "to guarantee the safety of activists, journalists and lawyers, and to protect the right to information and the right to peaceful protest." Simmering resentment Some 80,000 Tunisians graduate from higher education annually, but analysts say the Tunisian economy is incapable of absorbing so many highly skilled workers. The unemployment rate is 14.7 per cent, according to the World Bank. Nouredinne Miladi of the University of Northampton points to unemployment figures from non-governmental sources. In the town of Sidi Bouzid, where the protests started, around 25 per cent of male university graduates are jobless, as are 44 per cent of female graduates. He said the simmering resentments that led to the recent protests are rooted in years of systematic marginalisation of not only the young, but of significant parts of the country. Flourishing coastal cities receive the bulk of the government's attention, he told Al Jazeera, while much of the rest of Tunisia goes overlooked. The World Bank may have recently praised Tunisia's weathering of the global economic crisis, but the economic reality within the country is very different from how it is typically viewed abroad, he explained. "What is promoted around the world is this lovely picture of tourism and so forth," he said. The Tunisian government deserves praise for having made education a higher priority than other countries in the Maghreb like Algeria or Morocco, Lahcen Achy of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace told Al Jazeera. But the problem lies in the type of sectors that have been developed in Tunisia, which offer mostly low-skilled employment. Highly educated young people are blocked from entering public life, whether it be politics, media or commercial spheres. Instead, economic development has focused on sectors such as tourism and textiles, which don't meet the expectations of these graduates. The government has a responsibility to design policy that encourages domestic and foreign investment in sectors that would provide jobs suitable for so many highly educated graduates. "We have much more investment coming from Europe … just looking for cheap labour," Achy said. Little freedom of expression Beyond the employment dilemma, Miladi said there is a need to allow for greater freedom of expression. "There has to be new initiatives with regards to opening up the media in the country," Miladi suggested. Government has controlled television, radio and print media for decades. "Only the internet remains probably the only source of opportunity for young people and others to voice their opinion," he said. International media face many barriers in reporting from Tunisia. The government has banned Al Jazeera completely. The main source of information on the protests is coming from information Tunisians are posting to YouTube and Twitter. Many of those tweeting about the popular uprising are beginning to question what they see as the failure of international media to cover the protests, compared to the outcry over pro-democracy protests in Iran in 2009. SOURCE: Al Jazeera and agencies Africa Algeria Morocco Tunisia


text:
Previous Lecture
Complete and continue
Divine Secrets to Successful Manifestation - Super Boost Your Manifestation in Just 6 Weeks
Week 1: The Science of Manifestation
Intro: No Bullsh!t in Manifestation.
Day 1: Manifestation and Spirituality
Day 2: Why You Can't Seem to Get the Law of Attraction to Work
Day 3: Time & Deadlines
Day 4: Super Boost Your Desires.
Day 5: M=DAS+EF=DT+DE
Week 2: DT: Most Dominant Thoughts
Intro: Mindset
Day 8: Blocking Thoughts
Day 9: Fear & Anxiety
Day 10: Control & Manipulation
Day 11: Forgiveness
Day 12: Put it into the Light
Day 13: Keep Your Mind Positive
Week 3: DE: Most Dominant Emotions
Intro: You Are a Walking, Living, and Talking 'Radio and TV Mast!'
Day 15: Blocking Emotions
Day 16: Pain
Day 17: Natural Defense
Day 18: Come to Peace with Your Past
Day 19: Shift Your Emotions
Day 20: Engaging in High Vibe Activities Every Day
Week 4: EF: Energy Frequency
Intro: Mental Alchemy
Day 22: Personal Transformation
Day 23: Bye 'Living hell'
Day 24: Somewhere in the Middle
Day 25: Freedom & Peace
Day 26: Joy
Day 27: Love & Enlightenment.
Week 5: DAS: Most Dominant Action Steps
Intro: Make It or Delay It.
Day 29: Outcome = Event +Response
Day 30: Happiness
Day 31: Relationships
Day 32: Health & Well-Being
Day 33: Money
Day 34: Work & Career
Week 6: M: Manifestation
Intro: Put It Into the Physical World.
Day 36: Allow It To Happen
Day 37: Self-Sabotage
Day 38: Live Your Dreams Today
Day 39: Share Your Light with the World
Day 40: Instant Manifestation
Day 41: Bring It Back Into the Light.
What's Next: Maintaining the High Vibe Frequency
Day 23: Bye 'Living hell'
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text:
The 2012 Chevrolet Spark is reportedly back on track for the US market. The Korean-built subcompact, sold in a previous incarnation as the Daewoo Matiz, will arrive next year as a 2013 model, riding on GM's Yo Gabba Gabba platform. Ok, no.
It'll be even smaller than the incoming Chevy Sonic, which is replacing the unloved Aveo, and possibly feature a 1.0-liter engine. Looks like GM is taking Steve Martin's advice.


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If you are in the Nashville area and looking for an amazing charity event to attend this season, then you have to check out the Junior League of Nashville's Music City Masquerade. Now it's been quite a while since I attended a black tie gala, so I'm super excited to be supporting this event. If you don't know about the Junior League, its a remarkable group of women who come together to raise money and awareness for worthwhile non profits in the area, as well as committing a significant amount of time to such organizations. Events like the Gala allow the League to continue to grow in their commitments throughout the community. What a fun way to raise money for a good cause! I hope you will consider attending the Music City Masquerade as well as check out the links for more information and tickets. Also, be sure to check back here in the next few days.... I need your help choosing my dress!
Have You Been to a Fun Charity Event Lately?


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Flysurfer News:
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PEAK3 product page: https://www.flysurfer.com/project/peak3/
PEAK3 action video
PEAK3 designer video


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Sheriff: 2 dead in small plane crash in Maine
OWLS HEAD, Maine (AP) � A Maine sheriff says two people have died in small plane crash near the Knox County Regional Airport in Owls Head, Maine.
Emergency workers are on the scene of the crash.
Sheriff Donna Dennison said Friday evening that two people were killed, and that officials are checking the woods to see if there is a third victim.
She said the plane went down in woods on the Dublin Road side of the airport. Further details were not immediately available.


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While there was much activity along the river, life on our boat was at a decidedly slower pace...
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Life on Our Pinasse
Posted by Neil C. Phillips at 19:17
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An inveterate traveler, who has explored all seven continents, Neil centres his freelance writing today on travel.
Published work includes travel writing in The Globe and Mail, The Toronto Star, The Buffalo News, Travel Scoop and The Wonderful World of Budget Travel. Featured destinations include: Toronto, Ontario; Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Qufu, China; Oaxaca, Mexico; Jersey, Channel Islands; Trans-Siberian Express.
Neil's photography focuses on finding images of the worlds he visits that capture the essence of "place". Whether photographing landscapes, archaeological sites or locals, the goal is to make a picture emotive of what brought one there.


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Keystone (Colorado)
Keystone is a ski resort in Colorado.
Get in[edit]
Keystone is located off Interstate 70 and US Highway 6.
The closest international airport is Denver (DEN). Eagle County Airport is also an option for travelers. Numerous car and bus shuttles are available for transport from the airport.
Get around[edit]
The activities and services in the area are spread out around the resort and the adjacent town of Dillon. Keystone Resort provides free transportation by shuttle bus on 15 minute regular schedules to all resort lodging, ski area, and lodge. The Summit Stage, a free bus service, provides service between the resorts in Summit county, and to the towns of Dillon, Frisco, and Breckenridge in addition to Keystone. They also stop at the grocery store, target, and within easy walking distance of anything you might need during your stay.
See[edit][add listing]
When you arrive at Keystone, right down the road is the old mining town of Montezuma, and you can take a scenic Jeep tour up the side of the mountain to Saint John's, another old mining town, with some beautiful scenery.
Do[edit][add listing]
Skiing at Keystone is great from the base area, and from the River Run area. It is a great place to ski in the winter, but has some great events in the summer. One of the most fun events is the Blues Festival. Here, they have music and some really great food. It is usually on the 2nd weekend of July.
Buy[edit][add listing]
Equipment Rental[edit]
There are many places in Keystone where you can rent ski and snowboard equipment for your stay in Beaver Creek.
Here are just a few of the many equipment rental stores found in Keystone
If you arriving in Keystone without a car it is probably easier to rent your gear closer to your hotel or even better the lifts as most offer over night storage, saving you the hassle of lugging your skis back to your accommodation every day. Or to secure special boot size or your preference for equipment rental.
You can also book your ski or snowboard rental online which may save you some money and less time in the rental store. The main companies in Keystone that offer this service are;
Eat[edit][add listing]
Drink[edit][add listing]
Sleep[edit][add listing]
Get out[edit]
Nearby ski resorts include:


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There is SeanGabb's view, of course [H/T Revolution Harry]:
"Something we should leave substantially alone is the welfare state. The main assumption behind which the Enemy Class justifies its looting of the taxpayers is that any cuts in public spending must fall on the welfare budget. Of course, it is a false assumption, but it does not help that libertarians have always made a great noise about the corrupting effects of state welfare, and that libertarian schemes of improvement always give prominence to privatising or abolishing it. This shows a failure of political understanding.
All else aside, it would be madness to give the Enemy Class an issue on which it might claw its way back from oblivion. It may be regrettable, but most people in England like welfare. They like the thought that if they lose their jobs, they will receive some basic support, and that if they fall ill, they will receive treatment free at the point of use. That is what is wanted, and that is what a government of the right must continue providing.
It need not actually be very expensive. Most people would rather work than claim; and in a free economy, there would be no lack of work. As for the National Health Service, the main expenses here come from structures that currently exist only to divert funding to or through the hands of the Enemy Class. Strip these out, and the costs might come substantially down.
I would suggest privatisation of all medical services—though paid for by the State, these do not have also to be provided by it—and radical deregulation of all the medical professions: such regulation does not work, and never was intended to work, in the interests of patients."
The essential point, which Statists don't quite get is that the State has been hijacked, with all sorts of nasties floating about, e.g. Common Purpose – this is a starter on this organization for those still unaware and as they point out:
Common Purpose is also the glue that enables fraud to be committed across these government departments to reward pro European local politicians. Corrupt deals are enabled that put property or cash into their pockets by embezzling public assets.
It has members in the NHS, BBC, the police, the legal profession, the church, many of Britain's 7,000 quangos, local councils, the Civil Service, government ministries, Parliament, and it controls many RDA's (Regional Development Agencies).
There is a self-actualizing tendency among many people to automatically assume that because it is all printed on official looking paper and is bureaucratically administered, then it must be above board and not corrupt. See EU Referendum and Captain Ranty for tales of just how uncorrupt it is.
In the case of CP, there is chapter and verse on the matter – difficult to get hard data because the organization is so secretive. See here and here and here and here [mid post quote] and here, just for starters.
And then there is the dumbing down in which they're involved [admittedly late on the scene].
If you look closely at the words Sean uses, they include "I would suggest" and "in a free economy, there would be". How many blogs have you read things like "this could be" or "if only this were done"? And then there is the line: "This shows a failure of political understanding."
The problem is that there is an entrenched and committed agenda designed to maintain the status quo of the new social engineering and it's not just a case of something being considered and adopted – it's necessary first to blast out the opposition by showing it for what it is and that in itself raises certain problems.
Plus everyone's telling everyone else that they don't politically fully understand and they come at it from their angle – mine is to lump all these nasties, from CP to the IMF and JPM, as Them and maintain, as Sean does, that there really is an Enemy class but it includes bodies such as the CFR and TLC, Force Femmes, the ECB [everyone includes them], Tavistock's successor and so on.
Some even get that far and then stop when it starts getting onto the quasi-religious aspects of Them, especially noticeable in the green movement and the climate guff:
The thinkers behind it who are quoted by the left – well, I shake my head at how melodramatic the baddies really are. If you read Marcuse and Alinsky, for example, even Russell and certainly Huxley, the overwhelming question is why? Why do they wish to destroy society that way? And the next question – why would anyone follow them?
You could answer the latter easily. They use feelgood terms and concepts in such a way that the average left-liberal really believes he/she is supporting good, that the moral high ground is on his/her side and all the rest are narrowminded, selfish people intent on stopping the great movements from eradicating poverty and so on.
The terminology and abuse of this terminology is addressed here.
When someone is totally convinced his/hers is the only way forward, as the ideological underpinnings of our socialist state make you convinced, then no amount of evidence of just how corrupt and unworkable that view is will make the slightest difference – you'll fiercely avoid any literature showing this and concentrate instead on your own literature, whilst accusing people like myself of quoting only my own kind of literature.
There are blogs everywhere [many are quoted here, many at my place] which painstakingly look at the leftist utterings and deconstruct this post or that – it's a time-consuming business. And it's worse when the moves are so subtle that the average person is going to be so engrossed in his/her own daily living that he/she's not going to pick up on these things, unless they're pointed out and that in itself presupposes that these blogs will "fall into their hands" and that, even if they do, the person will read with an open mind.
Take Saul Alinsky and his idea:
… that it is permissible, even noble, to blatantly lie if that lie advances the greater truth and so helps concentrate power to the hands of the enlightened and right-thinking people. In this light, the recent news about that Dutch social psychologist who simply falsified data to produce the desirable results that he wanted really ought not to be that surprising. Now, social psychology is a field that you rarely see mentioned in media otherwise, but something in there now rings a bell… damn, what the heck was it… ah yes, that speech "Post-Partisan Social Psychology" by Jonathan Haidt where he noted that the entire field has become a tribal moral community and a partisan echo chamber that intentionally rejects not just conservative ideas but conservative people, and suppresses in lockstep all problematic questions and data about liberal shibboleths such as race and gender.
I ran posts on the psychiatric community, via a Colin Ross interview, on my old blog and it said precisely what Jonathan Haidt is now intimating.
One area where power has shifted is in the field of medicine and Bruce Charlton is known for bringing this to everyone's attention, having been involved in the field of epidemiology for a long time. Here is a more complete coverage:
Here's his colourful opening:
Zombie science is defined as a science that is dead but will not lie down. Instead, it keeps twitching and lumbering around so that it somewhat resembles Real science. But on closer examination, the Zombie has no life of its own (i.e. Zombie science is not driven by the scientific search for truth [6]); it is animated and moved only by the incessant pumping of funds. Funding is the necessary and sufficient reason for the existence of Zombie science; which is kept moving for so long as it serves the purposes of its funders (and no longer).
So it is a waste of time arguing against Zombie Science because it cannot be stopped by any method except by cutting-off its fund supply. Zombie science cannot be killed because it is already dead.
Now, as it relates to the NHS itself [keeping Sean Gabb in mind at the top]:
There was the foundational assertion that in the past pre-EBM medicine had not been based on evidence but on a blend of prejudice, tradition and subjective whim; this now to be swept aside by the 'systematic' use of 'best evidence'. This was an ignorant and unfounded belief – coming as it did after the (pretty much) epidemiology-unassisted 'golden age' of medical therapeutic discovery peaking somewhere between about 1940 and 1970 [8-11].
With regard to 'best evidence' there was the assertion that 'evidence' meant only focusing on epidemiological data (and not biochemistry, genetics, physiology, pharmacology, engineering or any other of the domains which had generated scientific breakthroughs in the past). It meant ignoring the role of 'tacit knowledge' derived from apprenticeship. And it was clearly untrue [12-15].
Then there was the assertion that the averaged outcomes of epidemiological data, specifically randomized trails and their aggregation by meta-analysis of RCTs were straightforwardly applicable to individual patients. This was a mistake [12, 16-18].
On top of this there was the methodological assertion that among RCTs the 'best' were the biggest – the 'mega-trials' which attempted to maximize recruitment and retention of subjects by simplifying methodologies and thereby reducing the level of control. This was erroneous [12, 16, 19].
In killing-off the bottom-up ideals of Clinical Epidemiology, EBM embraced a top-down and coercive power structure to impose EBM-defined 'best evidence' on clinical practice [20, 21]; this to happen whether clinical scientists or doctors agreed that the evidence was best or not (and because doctors have been foundationally branded as prejudiced, conservative and irrational –EBM advocates were pre-disposed to ignore their views anyway).
Expertise was arbitrarily redefined in epidemiological and biostatistical terms, and virtue redefined as submission to EBM recommendations – so that the job of physician was at a stroke transformed into one based upon absolute obedience to the instructions of EBM-utilizing managers [3].
(Indeed, since too many UK doctors were found to be disobedient to their managers; in the NHS this has led to a progressive long-term strategy of the replacing doctors by more-controllable nurses, who are now first contact for patients in many primary and specialist health service situations.)
Cranking this down for those such as myself who are not up on medical terminology, from what I can see, the issue is this – medical diagnosis relies on a host of signs, symptoms, reference to the records, the history of the various complaints, to the doctor's own expertise in being able to see that there might be complicating factors here.
You can't cut out the doctor's input and force him to only refer to state administrators' love of having everything boxed and corralled and this comes out in my own new field, where I don't have to think whenever someone comes to us – we have databases of "best practice" and I observed an interview yesterday where exactly that happened – the lady stated her situation and the "professional" simply referred to database notes on all the different key points and proposed a solution based on those. The lady was trying to explain other circumstances which impinged on that but they weren't covered by the centralized database and therefore did not exist.
I saw her concerns ignored.
Bruce mentions the replacement of doctors, in the traditional sense, with robot nurses who refer only to charts and database entries.
Example from RL: A lady goes to a doctor because she has heart trouble. The doctor tells her that she doesn't have because she's too young – the database does not allow for that nor for complicated permutations of various conditions.
Everyone knows that in the old GP system, doctors did misdiagnose here and there and that's why there was always a tradition of second opinion – and opinion is the crucial word here – it refers to informed opinion.
This situation no longer exists – there is the One Opinion and that changes with fashion, e.g. the recent salt debate. Now I ask you if that's any way to run a medical service and how much taxpayer-funded bureaucracy does that entail? What sort of "doctor product" is now being produced by the medical colleges? How far is it like in education [next post] and every other field, where only the compliant who are willing to affirm the top-down "truth" are given jobs?
And if that truth is simply not complete, what then? What if you complain, rock the boat? What if you point something out? Are you welcomed?
And in education, the damage to the child shows after a generation. In medicine, the damage results almost immediately.
Sean Gabb did say that medicine should be privatized but what chance if the new dogma is EBM and the funding still comes from the State which delights in such one size fits all solutions?
More soon.
Notes from Bruce Charlton's quote above can be found in the link. H/T Chuckles for much of this material.


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A Further Mediation of Solar Power: Evolving Toward 'Revolution'
Readers have twice recently encountered the estimable Hermann Scheer, who, albeit posthumously, simultaneously represents the social and political capacitation of renewable energy in Germany, at the same time that he has provided guidance to the entire planet for achieving such Gaia-saving development. Today, we will meet a recent collaborator of Herr Scheer's, Carl A. Fechner, who directed the film that they conceived together, "The Fourth Revolution--Energy Autonomy."
Before considering the process of this movie's production, or the nature of its incisive content and crisply photographed and potently edited 'graphical user interface,' THC, as readers no doubt recognize is his wont, will diverge just a bit. A few points will serve to contextualize an examination of this media commodity and the process that created it.
That this movie exists in a marketplace is beyond doubt. A final product as slick and tight as this one undoubtedly involved substantial outlays. And that leaves aside altogether the passionate purpose and loving labor that principles to the film gave but for which they received no compensation. No budget item accounts for such inputs.
Of course, the potential exists, in the world that has empowered Michael Moore, on the basis of his $50,000 transcendent transmogrification of GM's kiss-off into the hundred million dollar mega-hit "Roger and Me," for Herr Fechner and his colleagues and backers to turn a tidy profit. And that would be dandy.
But what are the odds of that? And since only a monumental coup, one that would leave financiers salivating to find the next alternative energy and appropriate technology hit, would begin to remunerate the uncounted blood, sweat, and tears that the movie contains, even the aforesaid 'tidy profit' would represent 'chump change' as such things normally are calculated.
Quite likely, in the event, neither Scheer nor Fechner, nor, quite likely, any of the workmanlike and ingenious producers and technicians on this project, count lucre as their primary motivating criteria. On the other hand, we all have to eat. THC will admit in fact consuming five expensive dates, drowned in Tahini, part of a lovely salad from Whole Foods, and two cups of 'designer coffee' so far today.
And this brings me to ponder, once again, to contemplate the situation of media work on this side of the Atlantic. Do the readers of JustMeans need the likes of a film like "The Fourth Revolution"? Undoubtedly, they do, inasmuch as they promulgate sustainable business and vie for renewable energy to have 'pride of place' in the national energy realm.
The rationale for this inquisitive line of thought is that Americans desperately need new media models. YouTube will not bring us transformative energy, and it is more likely to assist in such an evolution than either Twitter or Facebook, let alone the bloviating outbursts of the likes of THC are likely to 'turn this ship around.'
The one thing that, though my weak German may have caused just such a trope to slip by, this film doesn't address in its own defense, is this matter of the purpose and sources of media in the transformative process. Nothing is more political than mediation, and this pathway requires a fully engaged political consciousness. In some ways, readers and thinkers might consider that a new mythos, along with a new media model--social democratic forms and Peoples Information Networks--may both be essential to allow a 'Fourth Revolution' to unfold with the alacrity of the second and the third.
In all mythological traditions prior to the modern era, the sun plays a central role. Even in Abrahamic text, God's first command is "let there be light." This film uses 'the word' that is the 'beginning' to reach out to people. We are in need of what this films proffers. THC advises that folks read along, and, ASAP find a way to watch and act on this marvelous document.
Every film mimics a military campaign in terms of strategy and logistics. A great film reflects a masterful general's killing thrust. And Fechner's effort has made of this erstwhile simple 'documentary' a great movie.
Several review have the temerity to doubt the project's status as providing documentation. Die Welt characterized the work as tendentious boosterism.
A gentler critical appraisal first damned the film with faint praise. "We love that sort of positive thinking," advising "don't dismiss it entirely--it's an inspiring goal to keep in mind."
And then, in a pattern that has begun to appear--'yes, yes, of course, a renewable future is possible, but it just can't ever happen!'--these interlocutors continue. "(J)ust because alternative energy has exploded in popularity over the past few years doesn't mean that the planet can be 100% powered by renewables in just three decades. It might be technologically feasible--a new report from PricewaterhouseCoopers claims that Europe could get all of its power from renewable sources by 2050 if it pursues a multi-continent "supersmart grid." And as renewable energy gains in popularity, the cost of the technology will drop rapidly. But mustering up the political will to make such sweeping changes over such a short time period will be difficult. Impossible? No, but it's unlikely. So take Fechner's message with a grain of salt."
Such assessments are wrong on several fronts. First is that 'neutrality' is almost always a lie or a cover-up, or both. Propaganda is the purpose of mediation; the only issue is honesty, accuracy, and an attempt to permit all sides to speak. Carl Fechner gives ample opportunity for the likes of Faith Birol, chief economist at the International Energy Agency and an inspired flack for both coal and nuclear to speak and proffer their naysaying POV about sustainability through solar sources.
Even his colleague and supporter, Preen Maegaard, sputters that to imagine the promulgation of solar and other renewable forms of energy as easy is "incredibly naive." Thus, a more pessimistic renewable energy supporter might believe that solar advocacy must involve preparation for difficult but necessary, and socially rewarding, political fights. Fechner allows for all sides to join the fray.
The 'three revolutions' prior to number four implied by the title refer to the agricultural shift of roughly ten thousand years ago or so, the multiple industrial transformations characteristic of the three centuries leading up to the 1950's or so, and the digital morass in which humanity presently finds itself embedded. Clearly, in terms of productive capacity, each of these does describe identifiable innovation from which flowed massive increases in social surplus.
One might quibble about the digital-divide's representing something revolutionary, but that will be grist to grind on another occasion. Undeniably, the vision that Herr Scheer has advanced, and that Carl Fechner shares, that society requires community leadership that effectively eliminates the energy conglomerates near the heart of the current industrial and financial powers-that-be, rates to inspire action at least as revolutionary as a king's loss of a head, or a slave-owning class' loss of its chattel.
And this does reflect back on what the crusty elder of this process, Herr Maegaard admonished. As Frederick Douglass repeated to those who foresaw an easy and peaceful elimination of slavery. 'No ruling class ever has volunteered its own destruction.' Those not prepared for battle of one sort or another will get 'precisely the degree of oppression that they are unwilling to fight about.'
Whatever Fechner's degree of optimism or 'lack of realism,' he prepared nearly two years to do this film. His background has included frequent exploration of energy and environmental questions. Preproduction in this case began in 2008 and revolved, as is mandatory in the industry, around assembling financing.
An innovative financing model, an approximation of 'let's-all-get-on-the-bus-together,' raised roughly 8,000 Euros for each of the 150 donors who signed on to the project. The indefatigable Fechner had primary responsibility for scripting, fundraising, and directing, but his legion of helpers and assistants, as he is the first to point out, made the extraordinary complexity, depth, and richness of detail in "The Fourth Revolution" possible.
The production crew of six spent a total of sixty days visiting eight countries. In addition to the normal logistical headaches of transporting themselves and a ton and a half of equipment around, they faced temperatures that would daunt all but the truly intrepid, in Europe in the twenties (or -5 degrees Celsius), and in China above 100 (or 36 degrees Celsius). But to do this work, and to see taking shape what finally came to be, must have been inspirational.
Certainly, supporters have found the process inspiring. Around the globe, communities have promoted and feted the filmmakers, making each showing into its own unique 'production. "In 100 cities the show will be involved in an event that is designed by local initiatives. And exactly how it looks depends on the ideas and needs of the activists on the ground."
Moreover, because it has broken new ground in so many ways, "this is clearly a film that would also contribute (key ideas) about (how) cinema" operates and what the possible parameters are between production and community. Carl Fechner, while doing business and making movies, is also creating parts of the structure that THC has long advocated for Peoples Information Networks, in which the creation and distribution of media emanate from the needs 'on the ground' rather than from some idea of what 'star' or 'concept' a producer can 'sell' to people.
A key choice that Fechner has made is to avoid any pretense of objectivity. Instead, in line with what THC has repeatedly suggested he opts for an honest advocacy that, having put his life into studying such questions, cheers for what he believes to be necessary. Is his point of view as legitimate as Dr. Arjun Makhijani's or Dr. Ian MacKay's? From the perspective of THC, Fechner's is likely to be, if anything, more legitimate. He approaches matters as an inquisitive citizen, and in case readers have not been paying attention, that is precisely what THC says we need oodles more of just now.
One aspect of what we who want sustainable business are striving to achieve is a world in which communities everywhere have more of what they need to thrive. If one looks at the 'protagonists' of Carl Fechner's merry cinematic legerdemain in favor of the solar option, one sees a cast of characters overflowing with just such a bedrock sustainable business principle.
Hermann Scheer is there at the center of the circle; his bona fides in regard to social democracy and economic justice are well-establshed. Joining Scheer are Bianca Jagger, long time pugilist in favor of environmental and social justice, whose advocacy has ranged from Sandinistas to rain forests; Ibrahim Togola, the community representative of Mali who, after attending a Danish Folk School, returned to his country with a vision of a boot-strap empowerment of an entire people; Muhammad Yunus, whose Nobel Prize winning microeconomics approach has been transforming billions of lives and who sees solar as the only way to go; and Preben Maegaard, referred to as "the founder" for his decades-long commitment to community capacity and power through folk schools.
A second element of every 'sustainability' agenda is a jobs surge, so that, first of all, folks are making a better living, and, second of all, they have a higher quality of work experience, replete with satisfaction, problem-solving, and continued learning. The core social-justice team continues to support this level of engagement by the film, but other protagonists more oriented to the business of business are also on board.
Arguably chief among these, at least in star power, is Elon Musk, the former South African and present-day Californian who founded PayPal to gain his entry fee into world-shifting capital investment and who sees solar technology as not only the necessary foundation for a sustainable commitment to the electric cars he has begun to produce but also as a source of creative work for tens of thousands more people, for every billion invested, than would result from nuclear reactors. Also part of the team is Matthias Willenbacher, a hugely successful entrepreneur whose passion for solar has been so all-consuming that he oversaw the construction of his company HQ, for 700 employees, in under a year, in such a fashion that the building now acts as part of Germany's power supply grid in addition to providing comfortable and elegant work spaces for its occupants; and Maximilian Gege acts as a dual technician and financial expert, in the latter case evaluating the huge gains available from conservation: âThere are 39 billion Euro of buying power, which could be given back to the people.â
And, from New Zealand, a pure technical genius also joins and completes the circle. Maria Skyllas-Kazakos, a professor of chemical engineering and inventor of the Vanadium Redox Battery, assures that the power that 'intermissioning' solar sources--no sun at night, no wind on calm days--produce will be storable in a way that is both feasible for a large grid and congruent with community needs.
A third necessity of any prayer to achieve sustainable business and social relations is an expansion of democracy. As if supporting the environment--a dead-certain given, after all--capacitating communities, and improving local political economic prospects weren't enough, this element of what sustainability must include is central to the film and its supporters.
Juana Awad articulated this contention elegantly.
"(T)he film moves the energy debate beyond CO2 emissions, and calls for the borderless democratization of energy generation. The energy turn is not a technological issue, but an ideological one based on power relations and ownership structures: whoever owns the power, controls the power."
A German Grad-student whose command of English is just outstanding, shamefully better than THC's ability to follow even the simplest exchange 'auf Deutsch,' also masterfully makes clear this critical commentary about democracy and power. "The strength of the movie is exactly that it shows how a change in property-relations in the energy sector and a focus on even very small investments in alternative energy and education especially of rural women can be the means of socio-economic change to the better, 'the lever to move the world,' to apply a saying by Archimedes here."
Totally in tune with the late Hermann Scheer and the still-kicking humble correspondent here, this young fellow continues, "Its revolutionary character is due to it not only being a question of what kind of energy is used, but of socio-economic power-relations and ownership-structure: the difference between huge energy monopolies of centralised energy-production and networks of local decentralized autonomous producers. The possible decentralisation thanks to the use of alternative energy brings with it a 'democratisation' of producers and real local autonomy."
Although this film delivers the evidence to support each of these three 'bullet points' centrally dispositive to the sustainable-business agenda, that is not nearly enough actually to accomplish the stated objective of reaching a renewable energy earth by 2040. Very similar to what the Highlander Center has discerned, what this intellectual demonstration--masterful and comprehensive as it is--needs is a mass movement of people motivated to manifest the political power to take a hopeful situation through the struggles necessary to yield transformation.
And the filmmaker himself recognizes and insists on committing himself to just this end. Daniel Boese, in his article, "The Energy Turning Point Has Never Looked So Good," quotes the director to this transformative end. âIt is a film birthed out of the movement for the movement.â
This is why the film is 'revolutionary.' Its stated goals are inaccessible outside of a context of mass political power in motion. The Plutocrats might do almost anything to stave off such an eventuality. Those who believe in 'business better' can see this movie and make a small contribution to the revolt that must come; they can have a much broader impact if they arrange for a hundred cohorts to see it along with them.
In the long run, however, as both the coterie of protagonists behind "The Fourth Revolution" and the likes of activist-organizers in the vein of THC recognize, the movement itself--people and communities in political high-gear--must rise to make this transformation operative. The only thing stronger than the rule of money and Plutocracy is the unstoppable energy of a capacitated democracy.
The primary upshot of this film's existence is the opportunity for transformative consciousness that it represents, so long as sufficient cousins around the world sit down and watch it. But the viewing itself must constitute merely an initial phase in a process of engagement and action.
Without follow-up, good ideas languish, awaiting the combination of vision and action that can truly potentiate the possible and make it tangible. Alternately, the good idea might vanish, which in the present context would likely yield a 'glowing' aftermath to the present.
In that radiocative diaspora, as fewer and fewer places on our fair orb are free of radiation, cancer-ridden drones--our great grand children, will hear legendary snippets of another time, when a different scenario seemed obtainable. But they will never know; neither they nor whatever befalls their misshapen offspring will ever be able to return to such a path.
Perhaps the easiest and most enjoyable aspect of the Peoples Information Networks that I have frequently mentioned would evolve in tandem with the production expertise of a Carl Fechner. This piece of the PIN puzzle would act as the distribution portal for all the world's grand ideas, which, if these thoughtful exercises do not utterly and slavishly serve the corporate elite's ideology and drive for profit, will end as another 'footnote,' a good idea that languishes or vanishes.
While any number of formula for bringing about such a non-corporate, PIN-distribution-channel are conceivable, for THC and his readers today, perhaps the simplest and most enjoyable approach would best serve our collective interests. Every so often, after all, cousins are wont to throw parties.
The next time--and we all have a season of such fun-and-games ahead, we might consider an alternate celebratory model. Instead of either having a function that serves an explicitly corporate-backed purpose--such as a fundraiser for whatever popular cause suits a specific logo's 'bandwagon,' or hosting a shindig that only seeks purposeless drunken revelry--whether tequila shooters or exotic herbal concoctions are the vehicle for the altered consciousness, readers could provide a space that served the common human cause and sought a raised consciousness of connection and possibility.
THC once had the ill fortune to lose his footing on boulders where he was disporting like a mountain goat, albeit one less sure-footed than are most individuals of that species. Since this slip plopped him into a raging flooded river, he found himself swept along in the current, turning over and over in the roiling rapids, a few dozen meters from a fifty foot waterfall that was just then busy crashing tens of thousands of gallons each second onto jagged rocks.
His children, only five and three, and a friend watched helplessly from the bank. Once, when he surfaced from his topsy turvy river spin-cycle, he saw them--his son and daughter wide-eyed with curiosity, his friend wryly bemused. Whatever transpired, this was a moment meant for YouTube.
Alas, that was not plausible, since for one thing the site did not yet exist. Such experiences, in the recollection of THC, do not generally involve intellectual pondering to much of an extent. One merely acts, and reacts, based both on an awareness that needs no words--doom and dire straits are hard-wired sensibilities--and on what possibilities present themselves, impromptu, in the environment at hand.
In the case under consideration, the deadly piercing points of shale and granite would soon combine with the crushing force of 'mother's' gravitational embrace, unless I either found my footing or grabbed onto something that would hold me. Unfortunately, every attempt to stand or brace myself in the onrushing stream just turned me over and took me closer to what I wasn't naming but which was likely to be fatal.
Fortunately, not from any plan or other effect of meritorious preparation, THC did snag a slender branch, less diameter there than on his frozen index finger, and it held. Its sturdiness, no doubt, resulted from its attachment to a rooted Rock Maple, a noble tree that clings with talons more obdurate than Zeus' most powerful eagle.
As the cascading waves turned me onto my back, before I could begin the process of hauling myself from the frothing brine, as it were, I saw where I had traveled. My right foot and ankle, almost halfway to the knee, were in the plume at the edge of the falls leading into Little River Canyon. My left foot gyrated just at the tip of the foamy, muscular coil that would have likely wrapped up my demise but for a spry green twig that did not snap.
In any event, THC meanders along this diversion because his huge herd of human cousins who are currently disporting among the boulders and freshets that Gaia makes available at our extended picnic here all sense some shift has begun. Collectively, we know that we are churning downstream in a swollen creek that takes us toward a precipitous plunge.
None of us, acting alone, can either perform a solitary miracle to save herself or stumble onto the serendipitous circumstance that rescues himself. On the contrary, only a great rising can salvage humankind, and thereby make possible individual secutiry.
As Benjamin Franklin put the matter, "either we all hang together, or, assuredly, we will all hang, separately."
Thus, once more, I call out to all and sundry: 'Take care! Pay heed! The falls are close at hand.' Even if we manage or chance to survive the topple onto implacable slicing stones, our lives--individually and together, will never again display the same potential for ease and loving kindness that we now still have as an actual option.
Somehow or other, we must mutually grasp something that will offer a place to stand, a space from which we can emerge from the flood of trouble at its peak and select a path toward higher and dryer ground. "The Fourth Revolution" describes solar power as a lever that can move the planet toward a sustainable future.
Whether it is a lever that we might devise and use or a branch extended by fate that we can hold, the sun's energies have the same fierce force of a Rock Maple's grip, the same long-distance motility of Archimedes metaphorical device for displacing the earth from his solid place to stand. THC is shouting, 'grab it!' but he is of the same import to the body of humanity as a hair on the toe is to the body of an athlete tumbling in the rapids.
Only in relationship can we seek a safe space for ourselves in time's tsunami.
That 'place' in the flow of history can only emerge from our own communities. Individuals may, for a time, survive if humanity crashes from the cliff. But only a united effort can prevent the fall from happening in the first place.
This film is kin to the maple leaf that caught my eye as I spun in the torrent. I saw it and grabbed hold of my life. Folks should watch this film with this little tale in mind. We need to haul ourselves up out of the mire of nuclear death and fossil-fuel fog and move toward a brighter tomorrow.
We still, for a time, have that choice. Surviving and thriving are available, though for how much longer, before gravity's inexorable pull takes command, one can only guess. Let's act while we still can.
The root of media is the Latin for middle. 'In medias res' means literally in the middle of things. Truly, that is the human condition, because to be outside, not surrounded by copious 'mediating' substance and circumstance, means that one would explode and suffocate simultaneously from the sucking empty vortex of the vacuum.
The earliest usages of the verb, 'mediate,' in the Oxford English Dictionary(OED) print edition that THC owns, stem from the mid fifteenth century, while the initial listed utilization of the singular noun, 'medium,' are almost a century later. To mediate, of course, is to stand between or to bring together that which is in opposition to some middle ground.
Of course, the use of 'media' to apply to forms of communications dates from the early 1920's when advertisers, fresh off their conquests of hearts and minds during the carnage of the previous decade, applied the term to the many opportunities that they had to ply their wares in different physical and technical positions.
Four times a week for thirteen weeks now, an entire season of the passage of the earth around the sun, THC has used words to mediate a message; he has also relied on the medium that the internet provides, one portal of which is JustMeans. What we are doing here, however, is the stuff of sacred space. THC, four times a week, gathers the words to speak some honest assessment of the world around us, especially in regard to energy, especially renewable energy, or in terms of business, especially sustainable business.
Today's articulation joins with the others. Truly, they are of a piece, contemplating matters of democracy, citizenship, responsibility, empowerment, knowledge, transformation, and more. Stories as bizarre and as holy as the Illiad or Genesis have appeared here, though not so artfully or impactfully as those texts.
The point of my pointing this out is that THC is decidedly not seeking to be pithy, to create some marketable slice of reality that manufactures a moment of pleasurable ideation in the form of the facade of communication. On the contrary, THC digs deep in every single venture.
Those who want the surface will feel nonplussed or even irritated here on many occasions. Like any good 'technician,' they side with Sergeant Friday: "The facts, ma'am, just the facts." Ah well, perhaps Sir Richard Livingston might elucidate something useful for such as those. "A technician is a man who understands everything about his job except its ultimate purpose and its place in the order of the universe."
THC has made a consistent effort to turn the attention of readers to other media, particularly film, but much more than mere movies are on the horizon as well. One of the illustrative quotations in OED for 'medium' sent THC down a fascinating rabbit hole in search of something that Francis Bacon said in his The Advancement of Learning.
"Aristotle saith well, 'Words are the images of cogitations, and letters are the images of words'; but yet it is not of necessity that cogitations be expressed by the medium of words. For whatsoever is capable of sufficient differences, and those perceptible by the sense, is in nature competent to express cogiations." Bacon was saying, 'People don't need words to think.' All they need is enough attention to note a 'least noticeable difference,' an important concept in experimentation.
THC notes many differences; some of those, obviously, attendant on his aging and all that accompanies that unstoppable process. But many are the changes that he sees through the eyes of his children. And many are the changes that come to him through media. And, of course, the matter of cell phones and computers and color TV's and a lot more besides have arisen as if new during his own decades on the planet. so that he can remember in each case 'the first time.'
And he has come to the conclusion, along with such estimable sources as Edward Hermann and Noam Chomsky and Amy Goodman, and many others as well, that in these times of rapid change, when so many least noticeable differences are apparent, THC and other folks likely can use help--mediation, as it were--in coming to terms with what of these alterations might be most important. From this stems a mandate: watching the movie, "The Fourth Revolution."
One of the sources for information about the film, as if serendipity ruled the airwaves, was an organization patterned after the Danish Folk Schools that Don West and Myles Horton returned to America carrying in their hearts and heads, so that they put into practice a potent practitioner of community empowerment on the basis of that transmission. The Nordic Folkecenter for Renewable Energy, which Preban Maegard helped to found and where he still hangs out, writes of four fronts on which it operates.
Number three is apt to consider. "3. Disseminating information on renewable energy in Denmark and elsewhere, to trainees; concerned citizen groups; and political decision makers focusing on decentralized solutions" is centrally important enough to find a place on the master list.
The United States came into existence on the basis of this sort of process--disseminating information. Paul Starr's justifably lauded book, The Creation of the Media: Political Origins of Modern Communications, develops this idea in a compelling way.
As readers today consider one sort of mediated experience, this essay, which extolls and advocates another such eventuality, "The Fourth Revolution," THC asks that folks take further notice of Paul Starr's argument about what is distinctive and important about media as such. A 2004 New York Times Review quotes and summarizes these thoughts.
"(E)very branch of the communications system reflects deliberate political choices made under particular historic circumstances," James Fallows writes in his assessment, quoting Starr to continue, "'It is a particular argument of this book that the United States has followed a distinctive developmental path in communications ever since the American Revolution.'"
The 'path' involved support for all sorts of tendentious speech, wild invective and hyperbolic boosterism combined, as recent essays here have evinced as well. That story, at least to someone like THC, is interesting in its own right. But Starr's and Fallows' larger conclusion is more interesting still.
"(S)ocieties and their governments can affect the path that technologies and markets take, rather than an acceptance of whatever the path turned out to be as inevitable. This concept seems utterly missing from current discussions of the media," says Fallows, with approval, of Starr's argument.
Fallows himself concludes, "Regulators and the public feel there is little they can do to steer the content or quality of the media (with the feeble exception of the F.C.C.'s punishing broadcasters for vulgarities that would barely be noticed on cable). Members of the media feel they have no choice but to give, immediately, what the market demands. ...Paul Starr's original and compelling book shows that (this is) not the only sort of choice available to the public."
In a democracy, the people can lead.
They can insist that media be more widely available and that all sorts of unfunded options, like deep investigation, receive no-strings-attached support so as to keep government, business, and individuals honest and competent.
This fits snugly with the message of Hermann Scheer and "The Fourth Revolution" as well. As one commentator summed up the nub of the movie, "A global restructuring process, shifting the balance of power and distributing capital more fairly, is now within our reach â all we have to do is embark upon it!"
Der Spiegel made this point in less exclamatory terms. Fechner, Erik Kirschbaum said, unequivocally believes that "from a technical standpoint," no doubt of feasibility is possible. "'It is,' he said, 'only an open political and economic question.'"
What that means is that citizens must be open to assuming political responsibility and economic authority. And that necessity highlights many fascinating issues that THC has consistently trumpeted: grassroots power; knowledge and local capacity; an awareness of the past's impact on the present, and more.
Whether JustMeans readers have the willingness to assume command, as citizens, and take responsibility, as communities, for 'business better' and renewable energies remains to be seen. But unless they are not paying attention, they cannot be unaware that such a radical upsurge of people power is possible.
It's the promise of Carl Fechner, at the level of both electricity and politics. And it's the vow of this humble correspondent as well, as the level of consciousness and community. So what's it going to be? Inquiring minds want to know.


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For search trends in the Budapest tourism industry, or Budapest travel in general, Google trends sums up year 2012 with the following top search terms (worldwide searches in Budapest travel)
hotel budapest – 100: by far the biggest search goes for Hotels in Budapest, Hungary with little surprise. In the recession, travel destinations are shifting towards cheap places with great value for money. Well, Budapest is a perfect fit for travelling on a budget. See more about Budapest on a budget.
airport budapest – 40. Now this would have probably been my number 1 tip, considering all the recent changes at Budapest airport.
weather budapest – 25. The weather in Budapest is not only a favoured topic, but many tourists would like to know what is the weather in 5 months' time will be like. e.g. Is Budapest Christmas time about a white Christmas. We do not know about snowfall in advance, although the averages of many past decades on weather sites mean some help.
ryanair budapest – 20 involves the potential threat of Ryanair pulling out its flights from Hungary.
flights to budapest – 15. When Malev went bankrupt Easyjet, Ryanair etc. started to make a lot more profit with their cheap flights to Budapest, changing the tourism scene in the city.
budapest meteo – 15 – this Budapest travel search term goes back to the topic of weather in Budapest at first sight, but it is also probable that Budapest metro was mis-typed. What do you think?
budapest hotels – 10 – pushes up the intentions of seeking good accommodation in Budapest
praga – 10 – now this may seem funny to see Prague in Budapest searches, but we understand that Prgaue and Vienna are often paired up with Budapest as a multilocation trip itinerary. See tips for travelling by train from Budapest to Vienna and Prague. Also: how to buy Hungarian train tickets.
Budapest map – 10. Many visitors start their search for Budapest as where is Budapest. Now, once located, it is still a recurring theme to find things in Budapest, not just Budapest itself. A good Budapest tourist map is useful, but we would say it is not a must. Budapest public transportation is very well laid out (BKV), and simple maps will take you to many central places. But if you are seeking hidden gems in Budapest and doing things off the beaten track, get a good map for your phone or pocket. Budapest is big, there will be lots of walking for sure.
park budapest – 10. Now this search term may mean both car park in Budapest or the green parks of Budapest, like the City Park (Varosliget), or Margaret Island. It is a surprise for me to see this come up in the top ten list. I would have expected something like Budapest attractions, things to do Budapest, or Budapest nightlife or Budapest cards. Well, none of them made it into the top ten Budapest travel search list for 2012 – according to google trends at least.


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We're really excited that you are curious about our products but sadly we're only taking domestic orders at the moment. We are planning to open our shop to other markets during the fall and we'd love to have you back then 🙂
In the meantime please signup for our newsletter for some inbox love and news about when we're opening up in your country.
/ Drop of Mindfulness


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About Us
About Us
ISU's Department of Horticulture is one of the oldest departments on campus but we're anything but old and stodgy.Read More
High school is in the rearview mirror, and now you're thinking about coming to ISU to study horticulture.Read More
Participate in active-learning, hands-on laboratory experiences, and field based landscape construction and management projects.Read More
We offer a degree program leading to a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture, with a choice to specialize in one of six options.Read More
Iowa State's Department of Horticulture is known around the nation as a trusted source for reliable, research-based horticulture information.Read More
Horticulture is the Oldest Profession!
For as long as humans have walked the earth, we've depended on plants for food, shelter, to act as environmental filters, and to simply make life more enjoyable. Without plants, life would cease to exist. And this important and necessary bond between people and plants carries on today…and that fortunate combination of plant science and artistic/practical application, for the expressed purpose of societal benefit is called horticulture.
Horticulturists grow fresh fruits and vegetables, plan and create beautiful landscapes, cultivate and maintain acres of turfgrass for recreation and function, breed new plants for pest resistance and environmental tolerance, and educate young and old alike about the many benefits of horticultural crops. Horticulture is a scientific pursuit…it's a profession…it's a passion…and it's a necessity. Iowa, our nation, and the world needs horticulture and more horticulturists!
But horticulturists don't grow on trees. In fact, becoming a horticulturist requires a unique educational journey that includes both classroom and laboratory training and practical, hand's-on experiences. And the very best place in the world to receive that kind of education is right here in the Department of Horticulture at Iowa State University. Expert and dedicated faculty, state-of-the-art facilities, and a welcoming and supportive educational environment are part of the horticulture experience at Iowa State…and it's all here waiting for you.
I invite you to explore our web site, e-mail our faculty and staff, stop in for a visit, talk with our students, in short, get a feel for what it means to be a Cyclone, a horticulturist, and a member of our elite team.
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This is nebula NGC 2174, located about 6400 light-years away. This amazing photograph makes the nebula look like the peak of a giant dust mountain, with strange pink stars dominating its summit. In fact, the stars are locked in cosmic battle with the gas mountain, and it's only a matter of time before the stars emerge victorious and destroy this ghostly peak.
Here's what NASA has to say about this beautiful image:
The energetic light and winds from massive newly formed stars are evaporating and dispersing the dark stellar nurseries in which they formed. The structures of NGC 2174 are actually much thinner than air and only appear as mountains due to relatively small amounts of opaque interstellar dust. A lesser known sight in the nebula-rich constellation Orion, NGC 2174 can be found with binoculars near the head of the celestial hunter.
About 6,400 light-years distant, the entire glowing cosmic cloud covers an area larger than the full Moon and surrounds loose open clusters of young stars. The above image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows a dense interior region which spans only about three light years while adopting a color map that portrays otherwise red hydrogen emission in green hues and emphasizes sulfur emission in red and oxygen in blue. Within a few million years, the stars will likely win out completely and the entire dust mountain will be dispersed.
Be sure to check out NASA's Astronomy Photo of the Day for an even better look at this amazing image.
Via NASA.