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2. MSNBC: Military "Really Happy" with Hillary, "Effective Night"
3. CNN's
NewsNight Scolds GOP Agenda, Raises "Voter Intimidation"
4. Kondracke Predicts Media Will Tag McCain & Giuliani as Negative
5. CBS and NBC Fret GOP Disguising Its True Conservative Agenda
6. For Media Hostility to Swifties, Mag Cites "Indefatigable" MRC
CNN and ABC Aghast Over Purple Heart
CNN reporters, and George Stephanopoulos on the limited distribution ABC News Now network, acted aghast Monday night over how some delegates wore band-aids displaying a heart shape in the color purple, meant to make light of John Kerry earning purple hearts in Vietnam for superficial wounds. Just before 9pm EDT, CNN's Candy Crowley confronted one woman: "This is a man who went and served his country. Do you feel as though you're making fun of him?" She reminded the delegate of those serving in Iraq and asked: "Is this defaming of them?" A couple of hours later, Dan Lothian identified the culprit who created the band-aids, Virginian Morton Blackwell who, he emphasized, "is not a veteran." In between, Stephanopoulos lectured a veteran about how John McCain has called the attacks on Kerry "'dishonest and dishonorable.' Why do you think it's okay to wear a bandage like that?" Stephanopoulos couldn't believe anyone would doubt Kerry: "Do you really believe he didn't earn his medals or his purple hearts?" Peter Jennings turned to Newt Gingrich: "Did you squirm a little when you saw the guy wearing the purple heart?" Gingrich: "No. I think it's funny."
-- CNN. Back from an ad break at 8:55pm EDT, Wolf Blitzer went right to Candy Crowley on the floor with delegate. As she held up the woman's arm to show the purple heart on a band-aid, Crowley explained: "This is Donna Cain, she's a delegate from Oregon wearing a, as you can see, a band-aid with a purple heart on it which begs the question, we know this is about John Kerry. Any hesitation about putting this on?"
Cain said "none at all," leading Crowley to demand: "And where did you get it?" Cain simply said they were being handed out. Crowley wondered: "Well, what are they symbolic of to you? I mean is this, this is a man who went and served his country. Do you feel as though you're making fun of him." Cain rejected the idea, noting how Kerry made the Vietnam war more important than his own record.
Crowley next asked: "One of the things that the criticism of this is, that there are, you know, kids over in Iraq right now, some of them getting purple hearts. Is this defaming of them?"
Blitzer went to John King, asking: "Is this something you sense is authorized by the Bush-Cheney campaign?" King explained that Bush-Cheney campaign officials deny they had anything to do with it.
Jeff Greenfield soon observed that Republicans will contend the gimmick was just "lighthearted," but Greenfield warned: "I'm wondering whether the Bush campaign would just assume that these things disappear because they raise the specter of are you making fun of somebody who went to Vietnam and at some point was involved in some kind of very serious combat."
Several hours later, during an 11:30pm EDT half hour NewsNight, Dan Lothian checked in: "This is the band-aid, it was put out by Morton Blackwell who is a member of the Virginia delegation. He is not a veteran but he said he distributed some 300 band-aids with a purple heart in the middle to make a point against Senator Kerry. It was very controversial, denounced by the Democratic Party and also Republican officials. Ed Gillespie tonight, we are getting word now, has had a conversation with him, has told him that he should stop distributing these Band-Aids. He's agreed to stop distributing the band-aids and even has removed the one that he was wearing."
-- ABC News Now, the all news service from ABC News available via the Internet or through cable systems which carry the secondary channel from the HDTV frequency assignment for many ABC affiliates.
Around 9:50pm EDT, Peter Jennings set up Stephanopoulos, as taken down by the MRC's Brad Wilmouth: "There's something going on about purple hearts. You want to explain that to people and talk about it a little bit?"
Stephanopoulos sensed a scandal: "Now, we've seen a few of them out on this floor. Where did you get them?" Watkins said he got them from another Virginia delegate, leading Stephanopoulos to seek assurance of no wider distribution: "So it's all in Virginia? It's not being brought in from the central party or anything like that?"
Stephanopoulos kept quizzing Watkins: "So what is it about John Kerry? He's got a lot of his boatmates who support him, but he's obviously angered a lot of other Vietnam veterans. Explain it in your own words." Stephanopoulos wrapped up: "One quick final question: Do you really believe he didn't earn his medals or his Purple Heart?"
Back in the booth, Jennings repeated McCain's admonition and then relayed: "I have to tell you that Terry McAuliffe, the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, has heard about the purple hearts this evening, and both parties are very quick to get out statements. Mr. McAuliffe says in terms of the purple hearts you've just seen, 'It is inexcusable to mock service and sacrifice. Our servicemen and women put their lives on the line every day. If they are wounded in the line of fighting, it is because they are fighting on the front line for freedom.'"
Jennings turned to Newt Gingrich: "Did you squirm a little when you saw the guy wearing the purple heart." Gingrich wasn't so appalled: "No. I think it's funny..."
MSNBC: Military "Really Happy" with Hillary,
During MSNBC's Monday night coverage, Chris Matthews conceded Bush supporters are "right about the New York Times" being against them "and they maybe right about all of us" and he pointed out how the Republicans at least "seem to be avoiding" the "more screeching conservatism." Andrea Mitchell effused that "the rank-and-file military are really happy" with Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. Following Rudy Giuliani's speech, Tom Brokaw reminded viewers that "it's still a dangerous place out there. The war on terrorism has not been successful yet and the war in Iraq is not going well." Nonetheless, Tim Russert concluded that "it was a very powerful and effective political night for the Republicans."
A rundown of highlights from MSNBC's coverage, broadcast from an outside set up in Herald Square, as tracked by the MRC's Geoff Dickens:
-- 8:33pm EDT. Chris Matthews: "But Iraq was a popular cause when he first started it. It wasn't like Churchill speaking against the Nazis."
-- A bit past 9pm EDT, during a discussion about why the GOP is perceived as tougher on national security. Andrea Mitchell: "In fact that's, that's why they thought, thought the Democrats thought this year and it still may prove true that by having a Vietnam veteran who had good credentials on foreign policy as their nominee that they would innoculate against that. Look that's why Hillary Clinton, who has presidential ambitions obviously as a Senator from New York, is the first Senator from New York to seek a position on the Armed Services Committee. She's trying to punch that ticket as well."
-- A bit before 9pm EDT. Matthews: "One of the, one of the mistakes, I guess you could argue that George Bush Senior made was back in the '92 convention when, in order to appease the right wing of the party, the opposite ambition of this convention, they brought in Pat Buchanan to give his 'cross-dressing,' speech. And of course Matalin or Marilyn Quayle gave a very tough speech in defense of women who don't work outside the home, basically. They seem to be avoiding that kind of more screeching conservatism in this convention."
-- Just before 11:3opm EDT, Brokaw and Russert checked in from NBC's booth inside Madison Square Garden. Asked if McCain and Giuliani hit "home runs," Brokaw agreed: "Oh I think that'd you have to say that. They are both very powerful symbols of national security and, and Senator McCain obviously and Rudy Giuliani who's so symbolized this country and those evocative comments about the day of 9/11 that came from the widows and the survivors of the people who lost their lives that day, did conjure up the memories of what an awful time that was. And also how this country came together. But of course that has to be contrasted against the reality that we face now in the world. It's still a dangerous place out there. The war on terrorism has not been successful yet and the war in Iraq is not going well. So the purpose of this convention was to make everyone understand that this President is still committed to that war without going into a great detail about the great challenges that are still ahead. Many of them unexpected, many of them based on what the President called his own miscalculations, Tim."
Russert chimed in: "Tom, exactly right. You know the President talked about taking the offense on the war on terror. Rudy Giuliani and John McCain took the offense on the campaign tonight. What they're doing is putting John Kerry on the defense, trying to say to Mr. Kerry, 'You explain where you stand on global terrorism.' There's no discussion of the difficulties in Iraq, no discussion of Iran or North Korea. None of those kind of specific challenges facing us. This is the generic form. 'We are united in the war on terror, behind our Commander-in-Chief George Bush. Enthusiastic response. Will it play with the country? Absolutely, of course. John Kerry has a very difficult job trying to neutralize or counter that because it's a more complicated argument by saying, you have to do it in a more discrete, or as he would say, 'sensitive way.' I think it was a very powerful and effective political night for the Republicans."
NewsNight Scolds GOP Agenda, Raises
In a shortened NewsNight following Rudy Giuliani's speech, CNN's Aaron Brown scolded the GOP as he contended it can't "go an entire week without mentioning the economy, without mentioning health care, without mentioning the range of social issues." Time's Joe Klein complained that with President Bush having an "uncompromising, stubborn, and in many cases unwise stand in the war on terrorism," Republicans have decided to defend him by being "as strong and as uncompromising as he's been." Klein rued how "you never heard the word Fallujah mentioned tonight." Brown later brought aboard New York Times columnist Bob Herbert who, Brown highlighted, has "been writing a lot about voter intimidation lately in Florida."
Some noteworthy remarks from CNN as observed by MRC analyst Ken Shepherd, all in sequence from a shortened NewsNight aired from just before 11:30pm EDT to midnight:
-- Brown, to WashingtonPost.com reporter Terry Neal: "Terry, I don't think the Republican Party can go an entire week without mentioning the economy, without mentioning health care, without mentioning the range of social issues. But they managed to get through the entire night tonight without talking about any of them."
-- Klein: "The President has taken a very strong, uncompromising, stubborn, and in many cases unwise stand in the war on terrorism and they, the Republicans feel that the only way to defend that stand is to be as strong and as uncompromising as he's been. So I think that they're, they are, there was a major show of strength tonight, but not much nuance and not much detail, and you never heard the word Fallujah mentioned tonight."
-- Brown to Herbert, a former NBC News reporter: "You've been writing a lot about voter intimidation lately in Florida. Do you believe that there is an active plot to suppress the, particularly the black vote in the state of Florida."
Kondracke Predicts Media Will Tag McCain
Did Morton Kondracke's prediction come true? On FNC Monday night, analyst Kondracke anticipated that the Tuesday morning take in the news media would be that Monday night speakers John McCain and Rudy Giuliani went negative: "I'd be willing to bet that the negative is the lead in most news stories...that the Republican convention opened with attacks on John Kerry's foreign policy leadership." Brit Hume summed up: "So you sense there'll be sort of a sniffy disapproving tone to some of this coverage?"
Minutes later, Time's Joe Klein provided an initial confirmation of Kondracke's prediction as he maintained on CNN that "you never heard the kind of directed, passionate attack on George W. Bush at the Democratic Convention as you heard Rudy Giuliani make at this convention. It seems that these guys are playing much tougher, much harder than the Democrats."
The MRC's Brad Wilmouth observed that, at about 11:25pm EDT, Hume wondered: "Let's talk a little bit about the potential impact of a speech like this. It obviously played in prime time on the cable news channels for the benefit of those who regularly watch that and perhaps an enlarged audience because of the importance of this event. It didn't play on the broadcast networks and therefore was not in any sense force-fed to a national audience, so a lot will depend on how this plays in the morning news shows, late night, evening news shows. Can anyone imagine what the soundbite is, what's the main soundbite out of this?"
Kondracke soon added: "I'd be willing to bet that the negative is the lead in most news stories...that the Republican convention opened with attacks on John Kerry's foreign policy leadership."
As if on cue, minutes later on CNN, at about 11:45pm EDT, Aaron Brown asked Time magazine's Joe Klein: "Did anything surprise you about what either Senator McCain or Giuliani had to say tonight?" Klein replied, the MRC's Ken Shepherd observed, replied: "Well, once again, it was another contrast. You never heard the kind of directed, passionate attack on George W. Bush at the Democratic Convention as you heard Rudy Giuliani make at this convention. It seems that these guys are playing much tougher, much harder than the Democrats."
CBS and NBC Fret GOP Disguising Its True
The broadcast networks didn't offer any prime time coverage of the GOP convention, but in their evening newscasts CBS and NBC fretted about how the Republicans were trying to disguise their very conservative views. Dan Rather teased the CBS Evening News by noting how the evening's speakers would "showcase the party's quote, 'moderate side.'" He then asked: "Will voters buy it?" Rather soon hit Rudy Giuliani with the suggestion that Bush and Cheney are "compassionate moderates," but "that's not what the party really is. The party is to the right of that." NBC's David Gregory stressed how the party's "moderate stars," Giuliani, John McCain and Arnold Schwarzenegger, "all sharply disagree with the party's platform on issues like abortion, stem cell research and gay marriage. Democratic critics say the President is using these moderates to pull a fast one on middle-of-the-road voters."
Gregory soon added: "Polls show most of this year's delegates are far more conservative than the moderate face the party is putting on."
From inside Madison Square Garden, Rather teased the August 30 CBS Evening News: "Tonight, inside a post-9/11 security fortress, the Republican Convention opens in New York to re-nominate George W. Bush and showcase the party's, quote, 'moderate side.' Will voters buy it? We'll talk one-on-one with tonight's featured speaker, Rudy Giuliani."
John Roberts previewed the convention, as taken down by the MRC's Brad Wilmouth: "Republicans are performing another balancing act this week, offering their base a conservative platform while at the podium pivoting to the center, rolling out big-name moderates like McCain, Giuliani and Schwarzenegger, with a message aimed at a small but crucial slice of voters."
Rather introduced the next story: "As John mentioned, one of the Republican voices of quote, 'moderation,' being heard from the podium here tonight belongs to Rudy Giuliani. The views of the former Mayor of New York don't always coincide with President Bush's, but Giuliani is campaigning at the President's side here and elsewhere around the country. Riding a wave of popularity that started in the days after 9/11, Rudy Giuliani is front and center now in the presidential campaign. [Giuliani] He's a powerful addition in a close contest, but not one who always sees eye to eye with the candidate."
Rather pressed him on his differences with the GOP platform:
-- "You have, by any reasonable analysis, at least a somewhat different position on gay rights, abortion, gun control, than President Bush. Fair to say?"
-- "There will be plenty of people who say, 'Listen, this is a week in which George Bush and the Bush/Cheney campaign will come across as compassionate moderates -- Rudolph Giuliani, Arnold Schwarzenegger. If that's not what the party really is. The party is to the right of that. To that, you say what?"
Over on the NBC Nightly News, Tom Brokaw opened his broadcast: "Good evening from Madison Square Garden where the first night of the 2004 Republican National Convention gets under way with speeches by New York's former mayor, Rudy Giuliani, and Senator John McCain, two Republicans with more moderate views on many issues than these delegates, but two Republicans with big credentials when it comes to the major theme here this week: leadership in the war in terror. As polls in several key states show an uptick for President Bush this week, he will be portrayed as the man best equipped to lead the country during dangerous times. Will it sell? We begin with today's convention news from NBC's Brian Williams at the convention podium."
Following the story from Williams, Brokaw, from the NBC News sky box, set up a whole piece devoted just two the GOP's ideological obfuscation: "As Brian mentioned, this convention is designed to appeal to swing voters who are much more moderate than most of these delegates here in New York. NBC's David Gregory has more on the men the Republicans are deploying to do just that."
Gregory: "Live from Madison Square Garden tonight, the softer side of George W. Bush's Republican Party. In prime time this week, what one GOP insider calls its moderate stars -- McCain, Giuliani and Schwarzenegger. All have huge public approval ratings, but all sharply disagree with the party's platform on issues like abortion, stem cell research and gay marriage. Democratic critics say the President is using these moderates to pull a fast one on middle-of-the-road voters."
Earlier, on CNN's Inside Politics, the MRC's Ken Shepherd noticed, Judy Woodruff pressed Bush/Cheney campaign manager Ken Mehlman: "Let me ask you about the platform here. A lot of discussion about whether the faces first of all that you're putting on at this convention, the speakers match up with the real philosophy of the delegates and the party. But specifically, today you've got the Log Cabin Republicans, Republicans who believe in gay rights. They are now running ads against your party saying this has become a vicious party. They're going after the language in the platform on gay marriage. They are saying the radical right has hijacked the party. Let me just put the question to you this way -- what is the party's message to a gay individual whether it's the daughter of the vice president or anyone else who wants to have a loving relationship with another gay individual? What is the message of the Republican party to that person?"
For Media Hostility to Swifties, Mag
"The Not-So-Swift Mainstream Media: And how they were forced to cover a story they hated," an article by Jonathan Last in the latest Weekly Standard magazine, documented how the "new media" -- of bloggers, talk radio and the Fox News Channel -- forced the resistant mainstream media into covering the swift boat charges, even if to only concentrate on John McCain's criticism and to push Republicans to condemn the ads. The article cited the "indefatigable Media Research Center" in the midst of passing along a bunch of quotes, documented by the MRC or our TimesWatch.org site, illustrating the media's hostility to the subject.
An excerpt from the piece by Last, the Weekly Standard's Online Editor, in the September 6 hard copy edition of the magazine, starting with quotes from a Boston Globe columnist which Last found without the MRC's help:
During the August 19 edition of PBS's NewsHour, Tom Oliphant unspooled. "The standard of clear and convincing evidence--and it's easy when you leave out the exculpatory stuff -- is what keeps this story in the tabloids," the Boston Globe columnist sputtered, "because it does not meet basic standards." "This story" (shades of "that woman") is the story of the Swift boat veterans who have raised a number of troubling allegations against John Kerry. Sitting across from John O'Neill, coauthor of Unfit for Command and John Kerry's successor as commander of PCF-94 in Vietnam, Oliphant did a fair imitation of Al Gore -- sighing, harumphing, and exhaling loudly -- whenever O'Neill spoke....
Two days later, Adam Nagourney paused in the middle of a news story in the New York Times to worry about how campaigns should deal with attacks "in this era when so much unsubstantiated or even false information can reach the public through so many different forums, be it blogs or talk-show radio." In an article in Editor & Publisher, Alison Mitchell, the deputy national editor at the Times, admitted, "I'm not sure that in an era of no-cable television we would even have looked into [the Swift boat story]."...
There are many reasons why the mainstream media don't like the Swift boat story, but chief among them is that they've been strong-armed into covering it by the "new" media: talk-radio, cable television, and Internet blogs.
The Swift boat story first surfaced on May 4, when an op-ed by John O'Neill ran in the Wall Street Journal, in print and online, and the group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, to which O'Neill belongs, held a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The event received scant notice by traditional media. CBS News mentioned it briefly and tried to tie the group to Bush. The Washington Post and New York Times had short items about it, as did the Boston Globe. The most in-depth coverage came from the Fox News Channel. On the May 4 edition of Special Report, Carl Cameron reported on the press conference, aired some of the Swifties' allegations, and then reported that certain of these veterans -- Grant Hibbard and George Elliott -- had previously supported John Kerry, immediately casting doubt on them....
The next big break for the Swifties came on August 4, with the release of their first TV ad. Fox News covered the ad closely. The next night Hannity & Colmes featured members of the Swift boat group as well as veterans who supported Kerry.
That same day some print media outlets covered the ad buy, but not the substance of the ad's allegations. On television, only one broadcast network mentioned the spot: CBS spent two sentences on the "harsh" ad, in order to air John McCain's denunciation of it.
On August 6, NBC also reported on the "harsh" ad, but only as a way of segueing into a segment on "527 groups," independent political organizations funded with soft money. On MSNBC, Keith Olbermann mentioned O'Neill's forthcoming Unfit for Command. Since it's published by the conservative house Regnery, Olbermann reported, "you now bring in the whole mystical right-wing conspiracy jazz." The night before, Olbermann had repeatedly referred to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth as "Swift Boat Veterans for Bush."
But the big news on August 6 was that Regnery allowed people to download the "Christmas in Cambodia" section of O'Neill's book. While Olbermann and others were worrying about mystical jazz, the new media swung into action. Hugh Hewitt, Glenn Reynolds, Powerline, and other bloggers immediately began investigating the book's allegations. The blog JustOneMinute was the first to find the 1986 "seared -- seared" speech in which Kerry described his memory of being in Cambodia in December 1968. On August 8, Reynolds took his digital camera to the University of Tennessee law library and photographed the section of the Congressional Record with the Kerry speech, further verifying the chapter's central claim. That same weekend, Al Hunt talked about the Swift boat ad on CNN's Capital Gang, calling it "some of the sleaziest lies I've ever seen in politics."
Over the next 11 days, an interesting dynamic took hold: Talk-radio and the blog world covered the Cambodia story obsessively. They reported on border crossings during Vietnam and the differences between Swift boats and PBRs. They also found two other instances of Kerry's talking about his Christmas in Cambodia. Spurred on by the blogs, Fox led the August 9 Special Report with a Carl Cameron story on Kerry's Cambodia discrepancy.
All the while, traditional print and broadcast media tried hard to ignore the story -- even as Kerry officially changed his position on his presence in Cambodia. Then on August 19, Kerry went public with his counter assault against Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, and suddenly the story was news. The numbers are fairly striking: Before August 19, the New York Times and Washington Post had each mentioned Swift Boat Veterans for Truth just 8 times; the Los Angeles Times 7 times; the Boston Globe 4 times. The broadcast networks did far less. According to the indefatigable Media Research Center, before Kerry went public, ABC, CBS, and NBC together had done a total of 9 stories on the Swifties. For comparison, as of August 19 these networks had done 75 stories on the accusation that Bush had been AWOL from the National Guard.
After Kerry, the deluge. On August 24, the Washington Post ran three op-eds and an editorial on the Swifties; other papers expanded their coverage as well. But, curiously, they didn't try to play catch-up with the new media in ascertaining the veracity of the Swifties' claims. Instead, they pursued (or rather, repeated) the charge Kerry made: that Bush was behind Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. It was a touch surreal--as it would have been if Democratic national chairman Terry McAuliffe's criticism of Bush's National Guard record had prompted the media to investigate Terry McAuliffe....
As last week wore on, the coverage continued to ignore the specifics of the allegations against Kerry and began to concentrate on the dangers of the new media. In the New York Times, Alessandra Stanley warned that in the seedy world of cable news, "facts, half-truths and passionately tendentious opinions get tumbled together on screen like laundry in an industrial dryer -- without the softeners of fact-checking or reflection." It is perhaps impolite to note that it took the Times nearly four months to catch up with the reporting Carl Cameron did in the beginning of May.
Still, the baying of the Times and the rest of the old media is a sign of capitulation. Against their will, the best-funded and most prestigious journalists in America have been forced to cover a story they want no part of--or at the very least, they've been compelled to explain why they aren't covering it. How did this happen? Analyzing how the Swift boat veterans had injected their story into the mainstream media, Adam Nagourney blamed summer. The Swift boat ad buys, he wrote, had "become the subject of television news shows...because the advertisements and [Unfit for Command] were released in August, a slow month when news outlets are hungry for any kind of news."
But Nagourney has it exactly backwards: Even though it was August, network television and most cable news shows stayed away from the Swift boat story for as long as they possibly could....
END of Excerpt
For Last's piece in full: www.weeklystandard.com
# New York Times coverage of the Republican convention: Check the MRC's site dedicated to documenting the latest bias in the left-wing newspaper. The MRC's Clay Waters drafted ten articles for the site on Monday and he'll soon assess the Tuesday paper. Go to: www.timeswatch.org
-- Brent Baker, with the overnight team of Geoff Dickens, Brad Wilmouth and Ken Shepherd, plus Mez Djouadi handling the early morning posting duty


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Yesterday, I made eating pink a reality! As you know, I really love pink… all vibrant colors, really, but pink(magenta) will always be "the one" for me.
Most people think of magenta as an artificial color…. but this is false. Just look at all the beautiful shades of pink out there!

subset: commoncrawl


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The grisly task of taking the jury through videos of the scenes where the bodies of the teenage girl and two of the women Cody Alan Legebokoff is alleged to have murdered was carried out on Tuesday.
The images were taken largely as police had found the scenes with the bodies remaining untouched, now-retired RCMP Sgt. Norman Striker told the court before about 45 minutes of footage was presented.
Legebokoff, now 24 years old, is accused of first-degree murder in the deaths of Jill Stacey Stuchenko, Cynthia Frances Maas, Loren Donn Leslie and Natasha Lynn Montgomery.
Stuchenko's body was found at a dormant gravel pit at Otway Road and Foothills Boulevard nearly on Oct. 26, 2009 and Maas' was found nearly a year later, on Oct. 9, 2010, next to a road in L.C. Gunn Park. Both were 35 years old at the times they were found.
The body of Leslie, 15, was found nearly two months after Mass' body was uncovered, on Nov. 27, 2010 near a gravel pit off Highway 27 about halfway between Vanderhoof and Fort St. James, and shortly after an RCMP officer had pulled over Legebokoff for speeding.
Montgomery, 23, went missing in September 2010 following her release from Prince George Regional Correctional Centre. Her body has never been found but Crown prosecution alleges DNA evidence found on Legebokoff links him to her death.
Striker's videos showed both the general locations and particular features of the scenes as well as of the bodies themselves. As the videos were played, Legebokoff, now 24, spent most of the time writing notes and showed no emotion as he has done throughout most of the trial so far.
Striker also went through photos taken of the scene where Stuchenko was found and of the autopsies peformed on her and Maas a few days after their respective discoveries.
Photos from Mass' autopsy also included images of the three layers of clothing she was wearing. Striker said they showed a series of irregular holes and that three holes on the upper right shoulder of her fleece jacket lined up with those on her dress shirt and undershirt.
In an statement given at the trial's start on June 2, Crown prosecutor Joseph Temple submitted that Maas' blood was found on a pickaxe in Legebokoff's Prince George apartment.
Defence lawyer Jim Heller focused on the tire tracks in the snow where Leslie's body was found when his cross examination of Striker began. Striker said powder snow and the -15 C temperature made collecting a cast of the track difficult but one was taken where the vehicle had appeared to stop and then back out of the scene.


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Renoir wasn't always popular. As a man who helped pioneer the age of impressionism, the artist's dabbling in modernism was not quite met with a warm response. A decade later, author Roger Benjamin has a simple solution to those who dismissed the aging painter—look at the paintings through the eyes of Matisse, a friend and champion of Renoir. To see late Renoir through Matisse's eyes is to love late Renoir.
Benjamin's essay, "Why Did Matisse Love Late Renoir?" in the exhibition catalogue breaks down the process nicely.
Step One
"Learn to love the indecisive in form. Away with specification, all sharp lines. Renoir's world is a cottony world."
Step Two
"To love his color you must accept red and pink as the principal colors that translate the world, with green and pale blues as the primary obverse."
Step Three
"To understand his landscape you have to accept that Renoir's was a life confined by illness. In it, you are either inside—a theater of curtains, upholstered chairs, and costume props—or you are outside it, near the house: a world of gravel paths, old stone walls, clumps of foliage…"
Step Four
"To love his women you have to forget the body we know from the media today, and intuit one based on the sensation of proximity, indeed intimacy."
Annie Carone, Jr. Associate, Communications


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Return to IndexStep 1: What is Blood Pressure?Step 2: Take High Blood Pressure SeriouslyStep 3: What Causes High Blood Pressure?Step 4: Who Gets High Blood Pressure?Step 5: High Blood Pressure is "Silent"Step 6: Diagnosing High Blood PressureStep 7: Follow-up Office VisitsStep 8: Treatment OverviewStep 9: Maintain Healthy HabitsStep 10: Drug TherapyStep 11: Monitor Your Blood Pressure at HomeStep 12: You and Your Doctor are a TeamKey PointsGlossary
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Return to IndexStep 1: What is Blood Pressure?Step 2: Take High Blood Pressure SeriouslyStep 3: What Causes High Blood Pressure?Step 4: Who Gets High Blood Pressure?Step 5: High Blood Pressure is "Silent"Step 6: Diagnosing High Blood PressureStep 7: Follow-up Office VisitsStep 8: Treatment OverviewStep 9: Maintain Healthy HabitsStep 10: Drug TherapyStep 11: Monitor Your Blood Pressure at HomeStep 12: You and Your Doctor are a TeamKey PointsGlossary
*Close Menu*
Hal W. is 68 years old and has had high blood pressure for 20 years. He was happy to answer the following questions about how he manages his condition and the impact it has had on his life.
How did you feel when you were first diagnosed?
Well, my mother passed away as a result of complications due to high blood pressure. Back then, in the early 1950s, not as much was known about high blood pressure, and there weren't nearly as many medications as there are today. So when I went for a doctor's visit and was first told that I had high blood pressure, I was very concerned. I didn't really know that much about it. I knew that I didn't want to have a stroke or a heart attack, and I knew these were heavily related to high blood pressure.
However, once I was prescribed my medications and had a talk with my doctors, I felt confident and didn't worry about it anymore.
What medications do you take, and how have they helped you?
I take a beta blocker and a calcium channel blocker. I have had no complications from these medications, and I am happy with the results. They are the original medications that were prescribed for me since my diagnosis, and they continue to work effectively. I have had no trouble with any type of side effects.
What is your blood pressure reading, and how do you monitor your high blood pressure?
My high blood pressure is primarily in the range of 145-160/ 60-70. My wife and I purchased a stethoscope and blood pressure meter, and we periodically check to make sure that I am on track and continuing to do well. I also make sure that I have frequent checkups, and monitor my salt intake.
What kind of support did you receive?
The most challenging thing about having high blood pressure is taking my medications faithfully. My family is all very supportive, and it doesn't cause an impact on how we do things daily. My wife is very good at periodically helping me to monitor my blood pressure, making sure I eat the right things, and taking my medications. I also belong to a program at my local hospital that helps out too. It is a cardio program -- they monitor my pressure, we have an exercise period, and it is very helpful.
What weight loss challenges have you encountered?
Well, I am overweight. I went on a liquid diet at first, where I didn't chew anything for 17 weeks. While I lost 95 lbs, and medications were not necessary, as soon as I started eating regularly again I gained the weight back. Overall, I feel that it was a poor choice. Now I exercise regularly and watch my total consumption of food. I also pay more attention to nutrition labels, sodium content, calories, fatty foods, saturated fats, and use more organic products.
What types of foods do you avoid?
Working with my nutritionist, we plan things that are better for me. I don't use butter at all (when I can, I replace it with jelly). Since cheese is very high in fat, I have found a rice cheese that I substitute and tastes pretty good. I try to avoid fatty meats and watch the amount of meat that I consume. I also focus on the preparation of foods.
When my wife and I go shopping, we pay attention to the nutritional values of things. We make an extra effort to purchase lean meats, and we avoid items that are high in carbohydrates.
What favorite foods did you have to give up, and how have you had to alter what you normally eat?
I just don't eat as much or as frequently. I haven't really had to completely give up anything, but I have had to monitor how often I can indulge in certain favorites. I love nuts -- peanuts and pistachios -- but I don't go without them forever, I just have them every now and then. Monitoring pasta is another food that I have to watch out for. It's hard -- but not impossible. Portions are the main concern for me. If I am careful about how much I eat and how often I eat it, then I don't really have to avoid or give up anything.
How has going out to eat changed for you since you were told that you had high blood pressure?
We basically avoid fast food restaurants. We don't eat out frequently -- maybe two to three times a month. It is kind of a treat. So when we do, I don't monitor what I eat as much. While I won't order a 60-ounce steak, I will order conservative portions of my favorites. Or, take some home for a meal another day.
What types of exercises do you do, and how regularly?
Walking is my favorite exercise. I try and walk 20-25 minutes daily. We bought a treadmill to use at home, and I find that it is easy to use. Sometimes, instead of sitting while watching television, I will walk on the treadmill. This keeps the workout from being monotonous and helps to make it fun.
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Ground segment
The Hylas-1 ground segment is the terrestrial part of the mission, incorporating all the facilities and systems needed back down on Earth to operate the satellite, exploit its capabilities and deliver services to users.
Under the terms of the Hylas-1 public-private partnership, Avanti Communications is responsible for designing, installing, testing and operating the mission's ground segment. To this end, the company has made a series of procurement contracts with various partners.
The Hylas-1 ground segment is composed of three major building blocks:
the Satellite Control Centre (SCC) for control of the satellite and its orbit
the Common Elements, including the gateway stations and antennas used to connect the satellite to the wider Internet and the Network Operations Centre, satellite resources management and back-office tools, among all other infrastructure and software elements shared between the different ground segment building blocks
- the Service Segment, which provides satellite broadband services, including gateway hubs and user terminals.
Satellite Control Centre
The SCC is hosted and operated on Avanti's behalf by Inmarsat, the London-based global telecommunications firm. The satellite is operated using the same I4S system and infrastructure used to control Inmarsat's own fleet of 11 satellites.
Inmarsat ground stations will be used for Hylas-1 tracking, telemetry and control, with their operations coordinated at the Fucino ground station in southern Italy.
Common Elements
Avanti has placed a contract with British Telecom to set up a pair of gateway stations in Cornwall, UK: Goonhilly and Land's End. These two sites are sufficiently geographically separated to maintain the high reliability needed for operating a Ka-band satellite network, even during adverse weather conditions.
Both sites are equipped with a 9-m-diameter Ka-band antenna system, procured from GDSatcom. The primary site, Goonhilly, hosts a state-of-the-art facility that includes the hubs that provide connectivity to the Internet for Hylas-1 users. A dedicated fibre link allows a switchover of gateway services to Land's End if needed, either due to weather-driven 'rain fade' or for routine maintenance.
As well as routing user traffic to the Internet backbone, these gateway stations are also connected to London, where Avanti has set up its Network Operations Centre. As a broadband service provider, the company will manage installation, provide support services and host all the back office billing and accounting services. Avanti will also support resellers of their broadband facilities.
The Network Operations Centre will be responsible for analysing the satellite performance and (re)allocating satellite resources via its flexible payload, as guided by the traffic demand of Hylas-1's various spot beams.
Service Segment
The Service Segment includes the hubs that relay data between the Internet and the customer as well as the user terminals needed to provide broadband services to consumer and business customer.
Avanti has contracted Hughes Network Systems to supply the hubs and the many thousands of terminals that are planned for deployment in each of the eight spot beams that make up Hylas-1's Ka-band coverage.
This multi-beam architecture offers much higher broadband capacity than typical wide beam systems. With Hylas-1, each and every user enjoys a direct two-way link to the satellite through their own dedicated terminal – efficient system design means domestic antennas are extremely compact, with small dishes of around 70 cm in diameter.


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PLANT: 'Cobra' climbing French Bean
Massive crops of mid green, smooth, round, stringless pods about 18cm (7in) long with an exceptional flavour. Produces attractive mauve flowers and has a long cropping season.
I got these seeds free from Wiggly Wigglers as they were giving away free seeds last year. The good thing about this freebie was I got to choose which seeds I wanted from a selection, rather than just getting another packet of basil! I've never grown beans before, so hopefully they won't be too much trouble and they'll be happy growing next to my peas.
|Sow under cover:
|March - July
|1st Mar
|Sow direct:
|April - July
|Germination time:
|14-21 days
|7th Mar
|Plant out:
|May - August
|May - October
|Time from seed to plate:
|Within 2-3 months of sowing.
Useful websites:
March 7th:
I'm pleased that some of the French beans have started to sprout. I think soaking them for 30 minutes before sowing did help.
March 13th:
Well the French beans have gone absolutely crazy and grown to 13cm in a week! I'm supposed to plant them out when they get to 8cm tall, but it's still too cold outside so I just re-potted them. So I've got 5 bean plants that will hopefully bring me lots of lovely beans!
I thought the leaves looked quite interesting as the lower ones are speckled with black. All my seedlings have this, so I'm assuming it's normal!
March 21st:
I started the 'hardening off' process today for the beans as well as the peas because they are so tall now. The leaves are 23cm tall and the tall tendril at the top reaches above 40cm! I've used bamboo sticks as a form of support, but they really need to be outside where I will be able to use canes as support. I'll admit that I did sow my bean seeds much earlier than the packet suggested, but I really couldn't wait until May! Hopefully planting them outside at the end of March won't be too bad for them.
I've moved the peas and beans away from the radiator as it's too hot (left on to encourage the chillies) and I'm trying to acclimatise them to lower temperatures.
Those funny black leaves have dropped off now, so I guess they were the initial seed leaves that the plant no longer needs.
March 25th:
I've tried to harden off my French beans and the peas, but it's been quite windy outside and they've been suffering from wind burn I think. The leaves are getting shrivelled around the edges and look wilted. Even worse, the stem of one of the beans snapped right in half! So I'm left with just 4 seedlings now. So I'm keeping them indoors until the weather improves, as they just don't seem ready to face the great outdoors!
Just like my peas, I've been reluctant to put the beans outdoors for hardening off. The leaves are looking a bit ropey still with white spots and they're very delicate and papery. I suspect it's wind burn as that's what happened to my tomato plants last year when I put them outdoors. They survived and I got lots of fruits, so I'm not too worried.
I would like to get them outdoors as they're taking up too much space indoors and I keep breaking bits off the plants as I'm moving them around the room! I hope to get the planted outdoors this weekend.
I planted the French bean seedlings in the raised bed today. I formed a wigwam from 3 canes (4ft ones bought from Wilkinsons) tied together with a rubber band at the top. I only had 2 seedlings that looked healthy enough to plant, so I planted one seedling next to two of the canes. I will plant a couple of seeds directly into the soil by the third cane later.
The French bean seedlings are both practically dead. I don't know if something has picked off the leaves or they just didn't like the cold. I tried to deter any pests with these green plastic things that were once plant supports for some flowers Steve's Mum bought last year. Plus I covered them with fleece during the night. But they really didn't like the transition to the great outdoors. I know I sowed them too early indoors as the packet says to sow in May. But it's been really warm lately, so I sowed 2 more seeds directly into the soil in the raised bed today. I soaked them first as that seemed to really help.
I also sowed 2 inside this toilet roll tube, which I've stuck inside a small pot of compost. I'll keep these on the windowsill and hopefully I'll have some more seedlings to plant out later.
Unfortunately all the seedlings I planted outdoors are dead as something has eaten all the leaves. None of the seeds I sowed outdoors have germinated either.
Luckily the 2 I sowed in the toilet roll have both sprouted! On April 29th the first one sprouted and the second one sprouted today. I'm still shocked at how fast the first one has grown in less than 3 days – it's already 10cm tall!
Hopefully I will be able to separate these 2 seedlings so they can be planted outdoors. I will make sure I harden them off properly this time and also put netting round them as this has worked for my peas as a deterrent against pesky nibblers.
19th june:
I've been very bad at blogging the progress of my French Beans, but that's mainly because not much has happened. I did manage to successfully plant out one of my seedlings, but it grew very slowly and then today I accidentally snapped it in half. I have to be honest and say that I'm really quite clumsy when it comes to gardening! So I have dedicated the French Bean space to my Mange Tout Peas, which I have to say I much prefer to eat anyway.
I'm not sure if I'll bother with French Beans again. The seeds were quite easy to germinate, but handling the seedlings was a pain as they were so tall and spindly and they broke very easily. But maybe by next year I will feel more confident and I would probably sow directly into the soil to prevent any damages from my fumbling hands!


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Item #6137
Annual. Even cats need their greens! This organic barley, oats, and wheat blend is rich in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. Not only does cat grass help in digestion by moving the hairballs along, but it gives them a shiny coat and freshens breath! Because it's grown indoors, cat grass can be served year-round at its peak of freshness. Grass is ready to eat in as little as two weeks!
Seedling Image
Full sun
Ready in
Days to Emerge:
Seed Depth:
Seed Spacing:
Sowing Instructions: Sow any time indoors in a low container big enough that a cat can't knock it over. Broadcast seed on the media surface with seeds 1/8"-1/4" apart, and cover with sowing mix. Keep moist until seeds have germinated. Place in a bright location. Keep moist until seedlings emerge, then water whenever soil surface dries out.
Successive Sowing: Every 2 weeks for a continuous supply.
Artist: Carolyn Crawford
Item #6137
15.00 grams


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STRANGE BUT TRUE- Tailprints? Whirls and loops enhance friction
Q. What's on the tail of a New World monkey that we humans have as well, and essentially for the same biological reason, though for us their cultural function gets most of the attention? –St. J. Davis
A. Fingerprints, a.k.a. friction ridges or dermatoglyphics (literally, finger writing), which appear on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet of many mammals, says Nina Jablonski in Skin: A Natural History. In humans, these tiny ridges display recognizable designs and patterns, such as whorls, loops, visible openings from the pores of sweat glands, plus end points, branch points, etc. Their unique places and orientations never change throughout life. Statistical analysis of these today virtually eliminates the chance of incorrectly identifying someone.
Zoologists know that the function of "fingerprints" in nature is to enhance friction and to promote a more secure grip. Among primates, dermatoglyphics appear not only on the palms and soles, but also on the undersides of the prehensile tails of New World monkeys, serving as a sort of "fifth hand" for swinging from tree limb to tree limb.
Q. What do speeding race cars do to speeding hearts? –A. Taylor
A. Possibly push them beyond the speed limit, with loud noise, extreme conditions, high G-forces all being factors. When Championship Car driver Simon P. becomes nervous or excited behind the wheel, his racing team knows right away, thanks to an in-race heart monitor being tested by Cleveland Clinic cardiologist Jennifer Cummings, says Jodie Valade in The Cleveland Plain Dealer.
"What just happened, Simon?" a voice crackles over the headset. Turns out he was holding his breath to put all his strength into a difficult turn. "People think drivers aren't good athletes," says Simon, "but there are no other athletes I know of– except maybe cyclists– who maintain a heart rate of 180-200 (beats per minute) for two hours straight. It's tremendously physical."
The experimental monitors are stitched into the fireproof racing shirts, with wireless transmission hookup sensitive enough to accurately record heart activity. If, for example, a driver is holding his breath, breathing classes might be recommended to learn to maintain a steady supply of oxygen to the heart. Simon's heart rate once hit 197, not an everyday level to strive for, says Valade. His off-day workouts consist of the rowing machine and swimming, where he tries to maintain at 130-170 to simulate race conditions– and help put him in front of the pack.
Q. Can you name the frozen dessert with so many spellings that listing them could take longer than eating a bowl of the fruity, milky treat? –T. LaBua
A. Is it sherbet or sherbert? The term entered English in the early 17th century, from an Ottoman Turkish word for "cold fruit drink," says Mark Davidson in Right, Wrong, and Risky: A Dictionary of Today's American English Usage.
Beginning with as many as 14 English spellings, it evolved two that reflected its principal pronunciations. By the 18th century, sherbet had become dominant, though sherbert made a 20th-century comeback and is now accepted as a second choice in some dictionaries. Still, The Columbia Guide to Standard American English cautions that you may encounter purists who will accept only "sherbet." Interestingly, word historians have traced the fruit-flavored ice called "sorbet" to French, which obtained it from Italian, which obtained it from the same Turkish word that gave us "sherbet."
Q. Upon arrival at a reported church fire, what did the startled fire department discover instead of flames and smoke? –W. Walton
A. The dark plume visible over the steeple was in fact a thick swarm of insects, maybe mosquitos or midges, that had gathered above the nearby trees, says Jearl Walker in The Flying Circus of Physics. Many insects gather in flying "leks," or large aggregates of males awaiting a passing mate, says Montana State University entomologist Robert Peterson. They often gather above high points in the terrain, such as trees, hills, houses, even people in flat areas, and can number in the thousands adds Walker. So the vertical, well-defined bug plumes may be mistaken for smoke and even suggest the smoke of a fire.
Send Strange questions to brothers Bill and Rich at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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stand in awe of (someone or something)(redirected from stood in awe of)
stand in awe of (someone or something)
To have a great amount of respect or admiration for someone, sometimes to the point of feeling nervous or fearful around them. Everyone in town stood in awe of the movie star as he came through on his vacation. I've always stood in awe of people who dedicate their lives to something like the military.


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After a hectic few days Mr Monkey is back in the swing of things.
Next Tuesday the people of South Tyneside will know the names of all the councillors that have either been bought off with paid positions and whose silence and obedience has been guaranteed for another year.
Last year the then newly crowned council leader, Iain Malcolm broke with tradition and made a few more enemies within his own ranks by giving paid positions to a handful of opposition councillors all of whom gladly took anything that was on offer as long as it was paid.
Councillor Iain Malcolm's motives were two fold – to prevent the opposition from uniting and to exert his dominance over the Jarrow Labour party by rubbing their faces in it- apparently he's always promised his inner circle that when he grabs power he would put an end to the Jarrow Labour party and shut Jarrow town hall.
Mr Monkey reckons Saturday's Labour group meeting will be a lively affair as many loyal party members are angry that they have either not been offered a paid position or that they have not been given what they want. This chimp has heard that resentment is growing and that if councillor Malcolm gives any paid positions to opposition councillors this will be seen as a slap in the face by some and will re-open many of the old wounds.
Followers of the local political scene will have noticed that Iain Malcolm's leadership style has revived the old A and B team split between Jarrow and South Shields and that the infighting began within days of him taking the leadership last May.
The most recent example of this split is the sudden and dramatic departure of senior councillor and cabinet member Tom Hanson who resigned from his lucarative position in the cabinet less than 2 weeks before the new cabinet was announced. CLICK HERE.
It seems that once the news leaked out, councillor Malcolm was furious and has ordered an investigation into how this sensitive information got into the public domain. He's also tried to silence councillor Hanson by threatening to remove him from the Integrated Transport Authority which is a well paid postion and gives him free travel.
Councillor Hanson now refuses to comment on the matter publicly but privately he's telling everyone that he's been treated very badly and has been "shit on". He's also telling peopel that if councillor Malcolm insists on trying to break up the Jarrow Labour party he will reveal what he knows about councillor Malcolm, his leadership style and what the real agenda in the town hall is.
Mr Monkey can't wait for Saturday and is looking forward to witnessing Iain Malcolm's pigletts fighting over who gets what from his trough and it will be interesting to see how many people levae the meeting with a bloody nose.


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In The Supreme Court
In the Matter of Leroy Jonathan DuBre, Respondent.
Opinion No. 26399
Submitted October 30, 2007 - Filed December 10, 2007
Lesley M. Coggiola, Disciplinary Counsel, and Ericka M. Williams, Senior Assistant Disciplinary Counsel, both of Columbia, for Office of Disciplinary Counsel.
Leroy Jonathan DuBre, of Greenville, pro se.
PER CURIAM: The Office of Disciplinary Counsel (ODC) and respondent have entered into an Agreement for Discipline by Consent pursuant to Rule 21, RLDE, Rule 413, SCACR, in which respondent admits misconduct and agrees to either an admonition or a public reprimand. We accept the agreement and issue a public reprimand. The facts, as set forth in the agreement, are as follows.
Matter I
Brock & Scott, PLLC, is a law firm with its principal place of business in Winston Salem, North Carolina. At one time, Brock & Scott had several other offices in North Carolina and in Greer, South Carolina. Respondent was employed with Brock & Scott as managing attorney of the Greer office from May 2005 to February or March 2006.
In March 2006, Brock & Scott was retained to file a complaint on behalf of Client A who was seeking a deficiency judgment on the foreclosed property of Complainants. In March 2006, respondent signed the Summons and Complaint and Plaintiff's Interrogatories and Request for Production of Documents in the collection action. The Summons and Complaint were served on the Complainants on or about March 31, 2006. On or about April 18, 2006, the Complainants served their answer at the Greer office of Brock & Scott.
On or about June 15, 2006, Brock & Scott moved for a default judgment on behalf of Client A. The motion was granted. Upon notification of the default judgment, Complainants notified Brock & Scott of their prior answer to the complaint. Brock & Scott then notified the court of the error in seeking the default judgment and requested that the default judgment be set aside. The judgment was set aside by order dated August 17, 2006.
Respondent maintains he took no actions on Complainants' case other than signing the Summons and Complaint and the Plaintiff's Interrogatories and Request for Production of Documents. Respondent states that the Summons and Complaint and the Plaintiff's Interrogatories and Request for Production of Documents were prepared in the Winston Salem office and forwarded to the Greer office for his signature. Respondent also states he forwarded the signed Summons and Complaint and the Plaintiff's Interrogatories and Request for Production of Documents to the Winston Salem office and all other matters were handled through the Winston Salem office.
Respondent represents there were no attorneys in the Winston Salem office who were licensed to practice law in South Carolina. Respondent admits that his actions assisted in the unauthorized practice of law.
Matter II
Respondent represents he signed an estimated fifty (50) to one hundred and fifty (150) Summons and Complaints for Brock & Scott but performed no other action on the cases. He represents that in collection proceedings it was the practice of Brock & Scott to handle the entire action from the Winston Salem office and respondent's only function was the signing of documents to be filed with the court.
Further, respondent admits that his responsibilities as managing attorney for the Greer office included the marketing and closing of loans. Respondent states that when he solicited clients, he distributed a package of information which contained contact information for Brock & Scott. Respondent admits the telephone number in the material appeared to be a South Carolina number but was actually a "backdoor" number which directly contacted the Winston Salem office. Respondent states the same was true for the facsimile number provided to potential clients.
Respondent maintains he became very concerned about the procedures employed by Brock & Scott in its collection matters and that he made several attempts to become more involved in the collections procedures. He asserts he resigned from the law office of Brock & Scott when his attempts to become more active were unsuccessful.
ODC agrees respondent has been very cooperative and forthright in ODC's investigation of these matters.
Respondent admits that by his misconduct he has violated the following provisions of the Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 407, SCACR: Rule 5.5 (lawyer shall not assist non-lawyer in the unauthorized practice of law) and Rule 8.4(a) (it is professional misconduct for lawyer to violate the Rules of Professional Conduct). Respondent acknowledges that his misconduct constitutes grounds for discipline under the Rules for Lawyer Disciplinary Enforcement, Rule 413, SCACR, specifically Rule 7(a)(1) (it shall be ground for discipline for lawyer to violate Rules of Professional Conduct).
We find that respondent's misconduct warrants a public reprimand. Accordingly, we accept the Agreement for Discipline by Consent and publicly reprimand respondent for his misconduct.
TOAL, C.J., MOORE, WALLER, PLEICONES and BEATTY, JJ., concur.


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Beijing +20
Since the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action at the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995) and the outcomes of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly (2000), significant progress has been achieved towards gender equality and women's empowerment in the UNECE region. Yet, structural inequalities persist in many countries preventing the full achievement of women's rights and women's empowerment. In line with the resolution of the Economic and Social Council 2013/18 UNECE will review the situation of women from a regional perspective in preparation for the global 20-year review of the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action in March 2015.
The regional review process is based on national reviews. UN Women and the UN regional commissions have developed a common Guidance Note to assist with and facilitate the preparation of these national reviews. UNECE member States are invited to complete their national reviews by 1 May 2014. Based on the national responses a regional synthesis report will be prepared and discussed at the Regional Review Meeting.
Download Guidance Note English, French and Russian
The Beijing+20 Regional Review Meeting will be held on 6 – 7 November 2014 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. The meeting will address key areas of progress and challenges in the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Acton in the UNECE member States with a focus on the Women and Economy area in the context of the current economic situation and demographic trends in the UNECE region. As it will mark the 20-year anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the meeting will be an opportunity for UNECE member States to highlight key achievements and setbacks over the last two decades and discuss how to strengthen gender equality in the post-2015 development agenda.
Meeting information and other documents can be downloaded from our documents page


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Our light moist sponge cake, covered in soft sugarpaste icing and decorated with Smarties.
Please allow 2 full working days for this cake. Working Days are Monday - Friday and exclude Bank Holidays.
Dunn's Vanilla Sponge Cake Contains;
Wheat Flour, Sugar, Butter, Free Range Egg, Milk
Dunn's Chocolate Sponge Cake Contains;
Wheat Flour, Cocoa Powder, Sugar, Butter, Free Range Egg, Milk
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The Fiona Bag
Structured crossbody bag with adjustable strap that can be worn on shoulder when doubled up. Front flap with pushlock closure and back slit pocket. Accordion side panels. Interior: zipper pocket, smartphone pocket.
Shoulder Strap Length: 38.4 ″- 42.1.″ (adjustable)
Shoulder Strap Drop: 18″ - 20″
Color: Ice
Dimensions: 6.69" H x 7.87" W x 3.93" D
Store your handbag with care in a cool dry place away from direct sunlight and humidity. You may clean stains and dirt on handbags with a smooth & dry cloth and lighter fluid (brutane). You should never wash the bags with water. To wipe the surface of the handbag, you may use a lint-free towel. Rub the stained parts very carefully and lightly to avoid harming the bag. The vegan material is intended to replace real calf-skin leather. It is very soft, please treat it with the same care as real leather.
Ultra-microfiber Vegan leather, 100% Recycled Plastic Bottle.
Over 50% of JW PEI's material is made from recycled plastic. Going 100% in 5 years!
JW PEI believes that the future of fashion should be ethical and sustainable. Launched in 2016, they were told to use leather and that nobody cares about animal welfare. They're glad that they didn't listen.
Committed to designing with 100% vegan leather, they are demonstrating how a fashion brand can push the boundaries to make products that are beautiful, sustainable and cruelty-free.
Made in Guangzhou, China
Earn 20% of every product purchase in PV Points, a.k.a. store credit!*
PETIT VOUR was founded on being bold and kind—not just for the environment and animals, but also for you. Our rewards program was designed with this core value in mind.
For a $50 purchase earn $10 back in store credit, 1,000 PV Points. The points will be automatically credited to your customer login.
*Subscription boxes, curated beauty boxes boxes and sale items do not earn PV Points. See product pages for details.
Items unused and in original condition are eligible for return up to 14 days after receipt.* See Returns Page for details. Email email@example.com to receive a return label.
*Subscription and curated boxes, trial/sample/travel-size products, perfumes, intimates, food items, and items marked "Final Sale" are ineligible for return. Final Sale items marked "size/color exchanges are allowed" can be exchanged for the same item if an alternate size or color is still available.


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|Image credit
The keynote lecture, Slave or Free? Tracing Generations through the Diaspora of Saint-Domingue/Haiti, will be delivered by Rebecca Scott and Martha S. Jones of the University of Michigan on Thursday evening, June 9.
Two panels consider feminist legal history across generations: The first is on Thursday, June 9, 3:30-5:15pm, when a roundtable on NEW GENERATIONS OF FEMINIST LEGAL HISTORY features Tracy A. Thomas, University of Akron; Richard Chused, New York Law School; Felice Batlan, Chicago-Kent College of Law; Mae Quinn, Washington University in St. Louis Law School; and Leigh Ann Wheeler, Binghamton University. On Saturday, 10:30-12:25, a roundtable titled FOR LOVE OF JUSTICE: REDEFINING FEMINIST LEGAL HISTORY, chaired by Jane DeHart and Leandra Zarnow of UC Santa Barbara, will include remarks by Reva Siegel, Yale Law School; Elizabeth Katz, Independent Scholar; Constance Backhouse, University of Ottawa Law School; Serena Mayeri, University of Pennsylvania Law School; and Joan Sangster, Trent University.
Many other panels teem with interesting legal history topics, including GENDER IN CORPORATE SPACES, on Friday, June 10, 8:30-10:15am (Katherine Lee Turk, University of Chicago, on From the Experience to the Legally Actionable: Women's Workplace Caucuses and Class Action Lawsuits, 1968-1976 and Betty Luther Hillman, Yale University, on This Opinion Will Certainly Become Known as the Opinion Which Required "Unisex": Workplace Grooming Codes and the Legal Regulation of Gendered Dress in the 1970s).Also on Friday, June 10, 8:30-10:15am: WHO MADE WOMEN MAD? GENDER, RACE, SEX AND INSANITY (1700-2000) features, among others, Cornelia Hughes Dayton, University of Connecticut, When "Not Mad" Was the More Punitive Category for Women. And, at the same time, a roundtable on Generations: What Are Current Transnational Perspectives on Citizenship, Maternalism, and Women's Separatist Activism? This roundtable, chaired by Kathryn Kish Sklar, is one of several events sponsored by the Women and Social Movements (WASM) online archives.
Those interested in the law of marriage can learn from several panels, including MARRIAGE, LIVES, and the LAW IN ENGLAND AND NORTH AMERICA, chaired by Holly Brewer, North Carolina State University, on Friday at 3:30pm; and at the same time, THE GENDERED IMPLICATIONS OF INTERRACIAL SEX AND MARRIAGE IN THE POSTWAR CONTEXTS OF THE UNITED STATES, chaired by Adrienne Davis, Washington University-St. Louis Law School. An intriguing panel on Saturday at 8:30am takes up THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF THE 20TH CENTURY: GENERATIONS OF LABOR AND DEPENDENCE IN WORKING-CLASS FAMILIES IN THE U.S., including Alison Lefkowitz of Miami University on Housewives for ERA: The Illinois Equal Rights Amendment and the Problem of Dependency, 1972-1978.
A number of panels will interest scholars of law and reproduction, among them FAMILY VALUES: THE POLITICS OF SOCIAL WELFARE, REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AND MARRIAGE, on Friday at 1:15, which includes Deborah Dinner of Yale University presenting The Crisis in Legal Feminism: Equality and Social Protection in the Reagan Era; a Saturday morning roundtable on GLOBALIZATION AND WOMEN"S REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS: THE CASE OF ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES; and THE STATE OF REPRODUCTION: THE POLITICS AND POLICY OF REPRODUCTIVE CONTROL IN THE U.S. AND THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, to name just a few.
This year's Berks also features many panels on international and transnational topics, including a panel on WOMEN'S RIGHTS, THE NATION-STATE AND FOREIGN RELATIONS IN THE 20th CENTURY, chaired by Karen Tani, University of Pennsylvania.
And I haven't even begun to do justice to many other panels that will address important topics from the labor activism of women of color; to the feminist anti-pornography movement; to incarcerated women as mothers, workers, and citizens; to intersections in the histories of sexuality and slavery.


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Former "Dancing with the Stars" beauty Laila Ali has welcomed her second child – a daughter — the happy mom confirmed on her Twitter account on Monday.
"I had my baby girl this morning!" Laila Tweeted around 10 AM PST. "Sydney arrived on her due date at 3am! Everyone is happy and healthy."
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Where Are They Now? Access' Top 10 'Dancing With The Stars' Celebs!
U.S. & World
Laila did not reveal where the baby was born or the child's birth weight.
Sydney is Laila's second child with her husband, ex-NFL star Curtis Conway. The couple also has a son, Curtis "C.J." Muhammad Jr. who is 2.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Hollywood's Hottest Moms & Their Loveable Little Ones
In February, Laila opened up about her pregnancy during an appearance on Access Hollywood Live, revealing how she was managing to avoid extra pregnancy weight.
"I have to watch what I eat," she said. "I'm a big girl to begin with so I'm walking around like 205 [pounds] right now. Big girl."
Laila also said her father, boxing legend Muhammad Ali, was a doting grandfather to all of his grandchildren.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Love Connection: Celeb & Athlete Couples!
"My dad has 11 grandkids and this will be his 12th — my daughter," she told Billy Bush and Kit Hoover. "He loves it. My son is the first grandchild that actually looks like him, so he loves it and he has his middle name — little Curtis Muhammad."
Copyright 2011 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Celebrity Baby Bumps
Related Content from AccessHollywood.com:
PLAY IT NOW: Dish Of Salt: Baby Talk With Laila Ali (March 26, 2011)
PLAY IT NOW: Dish Of Salt: Who Will Laila Ali Vote For On 'Dancing With The Stars'?


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Join us at Digitals for an incredible "Create Your Own Kit" event. Each pack is only $1.50. Pick and choose which papers and elements you want! My collection is below. These are on sale at this special price for one week only, so hurry in!
Saturday, February 04, 2012
Create Your Own Kit
Posted by Amanda at 3:10 PM


text: The black 15in1 haircare line—created by tng worldwide president and CEO Larry Gaynor—includes Twice A Week Miracle Hair Shampoo. The product is formulated to be ultra-rich and free of parabens and sulfates. It includes sunflower seed extract and "Cashmere" Keratin and Keravis—a powerful, new-generation vegetable protein that revitalizes hair follicles and scalp. There's also Twice A Week Miracle Hair Conditioner and Miracle Hair Treatment. For more information, click here or call 800.832.4840.


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Texas Education Commissioner Michael Williams told lawmakers Tuesday that he thinks the appropriate number of mandatory end-of-course exams for high schools students is between eight and 10.
Most Texas students now have to pass 15 exams under state law.
Williams, addressing the House Public Education Committee, said that to determine the right number of tests, he thinks officials should consider which courses students need to show mastery to be considered college-ready. Williams suggested the list would include these eight: 11th-grade reading and writing, algebra I and geometry; biology and at least one other science; and U.S. history and world geography or world history.
"I would urge us to remember that we treasure what we measure. You do it in your business," Williams told lawmakers. "And what gets tested does indeed get taught."
Williams said that decisions involving the right number of tests should involve the commissioner of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Raymund Paredes. Reached by phone, Paredes declined to comment Tuesday afternoon on the appropriate number of exams.
Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock, chairman of the House Education Committee, has filed an omnibus bill that reduces the high-stakes end-of-course exams to five.


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Dogs do not care if you are rich or poor, fat or thin, fashionable or wear holy jeans. they like you, wag their tails at you and lick you if you let them.
Dogs just want to have fun, love to play in the moment and have quirky sense of humor. They do not discriminate against anyone.
Canines are adept at taking naps and eating, two of their favorite hobbies. They are part of the CCC, Canines Cuddle Creatively.
If you have a comfy bed or couch, dogs will hog it up and when you ask them to move, they will move their head or give you an eye roll.
A trained dog will come to you when called, sit stay or fetch upon command. others will ignore you and go their own way.
Pooches enjoy chasing cats, rabbits, birds, ducks, squirrels and other small furry creatures. And some even get along with other species.
If a dog does not like another dog, they will let them know with growls, barks and ferocious stares. They do not force their Live and LET LIVE ideology upon others.
Social pack animals, dogs follow the leader and go along with the crowd.
Dogs sniff out dangerous situations, illnesses, and drugs and have been known to save lives heroically. They do not ignore others who are sick or unhappy, they try to help whenever they can.
Canines are loyal creatures who go the extra mile for their best friends.
Dogs freely give love unconditionally.
A dog is happy chewing on a bone, small or large, big or little.
1. Cats are curious about what you do in your bedroom, but they don't try to legislate away your freedom to do it.
2. Cats may take away your cushion, but they'll give it back to you with a gentle push.
3. Cats give you attention and sympathy when you're sick.
4. Females are treated with importance in the cat world.
5. Cats make use of solar power, often all day long.
6. Cats lick their own problems and take care of other cats too.
7. Cats don't blame black and brown cats for their troubles.
8. Cats know how to ration their resources.
9. Fat cats are not at the top of the cat hierarchy, are not cat role models, and have more trouble surviving and thriving, not less.
10. While Republicans blindly follow authority, it is said that getting Democrats to act in unison is like herding cats.
11. Cats don't foul their own nest.
12. Cats are popular and well-liked on the Internet and elsewhere


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A soft skills trainer is the person who enhances communication, personality, language and other social traits of a person. There are thousands and lac's of soft skills trainer but all are not popular and credible. There is a small chunk who is doing wonders and has established credibility. There are trainers who have a long list of degrees but do not know how to teach and conduct training sessions successfully. Mere degrees will not determine success of a trainer in the long run. It is the skills set which matters.
Helpful Nature
© 2010 Rashmi Priya. m


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- 10 Days of fly fishing
- 9 Days of Camping
- 3 States
- 2 showers
- 1 Nasty Cold
- Countless Fish
- Memories that will last a lifetime…
Here's something a lot of people don't know about me. Despite the fact I have a blog & do various projects on the Internet, I'm really uncomfortable with having any kind of spotlight pointed my direction. It's a bit of a personal dilemma and the private side of me wins out the majority of the time…hence the quietness of this blog and my interaction on social media.
Even now I remember the day I verbally committed to being part of this project. The internal fight that commenced inside my mind was pretty loud. The Quiet Private Me was understandably terrified by the idea, but the part of me that just wanted to go fishing for 10 days and share what has helped me along in life so much, stood her ground.
I never got used to the cameras during the process, but I did my best to control the full on deer in headlights syndrome.
I really appreciated that from day 1 the expectation was to "Keep It Real" which meant no staged moments, no re-takes and no do-overs. That also meant I didn't have to 'pretty up' for the cameras with makeup and hair and that was important to me. As the only female along for the journey I didn't want to worry about how I looked or give the impression that before I go out fly fishing I take the time to look good for the fish.
Ok, I'll admit it…a couple of times the girlie side of me protested when the camera was right in my face, and I tried snapping my fingers and called out for "Hair & Makeup" to come to the rescue. But apparently none of the guys possessed those skills because all I heard was laughter (and No Budget for that!) in response. All Natural It Is.
A take on willpower: On the second or third day of the shoot (can't remember) I woke up feeling like I had taken a solid shot to the head by a sledgehammer. A head cold/flu/fever/viral plague decided to join me for the rest of the trip and to this day I'm convinced the guys brought with them a Strain Of Hell from the East that they were immune and I was a convenient Western target.
As much as I wanted to curl up in my sleeping bag and DIE, I opted for 'drown the sick with drugs' and power through.
I went through 9 bottles of Nyquil that week throwing back a shot straight out of the bottle every hour like I was enjoying a flask of Whiskey.
My liver is finally recovered. Priorities ya know..
The Message:
I believe, even in the above 18 minute version, the message we all hoped to convey was achieved and for that I am proud.
The truth is, I feel like when I pull back and look back over the timeline of my life, it looks like more mess than having things under control. But…beyond the blessing that is my daughters and family…Fly Fishing has been my one passion that has remained unchanged and constant for me. It's always been and I predict will always be, a source of genuine peace and comfort.
It's what I wish for everyone, to have that one thing that is individual to them and no matter what life brings, they can count on it.
I know they can't squeeze in 10 days of experience into 18 minutes…or even the full length version that is scheduled out next Spring, which means the majority of those incredible 10 days will forever remain in my memories.
But I have pictures…
And lastly….Matt Smythe.
He and I fished hard whether the cameras were on or off. He's the kind of person I can fish with for hours without saying a word or fish in close proximity and laugh the entire time. I thank him for including me in the A Deliberate Life film and I'm beyond grateful for the friendship we have now.
He's also an excellent travel DJ on the tunes…
Thank You goes out to all the support we've received from the people who had the chance to see it at IF4. The positive feedback has been humbling and inspiring.
Word on the street is the full length version will be available on DVD this Spring. I'll keep you posted.
Picture Credits: Well…Everyone. Some of the photos are mine, some are by Grant Taylor, some are by Matt White, some are by Bryan Forsmann, and I have no idea who took what. Sorry guys…
More Info Link:
Silo Four


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Riding rhythms and rhyme into SD's past
San Diego Rep's ambitious 'Federal Jazz Project' blends structure of theater and improv of jazz
Words bob and weave to the tones of a solitary trumpet — a slow and sultry duet between spoken poetry and spare, classic jazz.
Within moments, though — as Richard Montoya and Gilbert Castellanos navigate the introductory passages of "Federal Jazz Project" at a San Diego Rep rehearsal — the performer-playwright and the musician are blowing the joint wide open.
Castellanos' jazz sextet is locked into an up-tempo groove, while Montoya is bouncing and whooping, a cigarette jitterbugging on his lip.
From his table at the edge of the action, director Sam Woodhouse keeps time with his toes, chiming in with the occasional, improv'd sound cue.
On the level of pure story, the sprawling, impressionistic "Federal Jazz Project" is about a mythologized meeting of cross-national cultures over a span of decades, personified by a pair of sizzling female dancers named San Diego and Tijuana.
But just as important, the world-premiere show's creators say, it's about finding harmony between two distinct forms of art: the meticulously crafted and rehearsed discipline of theater and the generally more freewheeling, improv-driven world of jazz.
"That's what we've been working on since the beginning," Montoya says. "That tricky business of writing text and music so it blends kind of seamlessly.
"In the theater world, we have to be a little bit anal. There's repetition. It's just not the coolest time of your life. There have got to be pages, there's got to be that structure.
"But what inspired this whole thing was the looseness of the late-night speak-easies where I first saw Gil playing with military cats (in the 1990s). It just impressed the hell out of me. It reminded me of my own dad's love of jazz."
When Montoya — a veteran of three decades' worth of daring shows as a co-founder of the Chicano performance trio Culture Clash — calls this new piece "outside the comfort zone," Castellanos nods in recognition.
"I feel the same way," says the longtime local bandleader and jazz eminence. "I'm used to just going onstage, doing my thing, and getting off the stage. To do something on this level is definitely an eye-opening experience for me.
"To be honest, it's kickin' my butt. I didn't know we'd be doing so much work. A couple of weeks ago I was like, 'Oh, we're not going to need any rehearsal time with the band.' And a couple of days ago, I was like — and here, Castellanos affects a pleading voice: " 'Sam, could we get some rehearsal time?' "
View the Video San Diego Repertory Theatre presents "Federal Jazz Project"
Rivers of time
Even Woodhouse, who has been directing and producing new works at the Rep for nearly four decades, calls the "Jazz Project" a drama all its own.
Staging a new, boundary-flouting piece like this "is very unpredictable; it can be unsettling, because you may be trying to say something you can't even articulate," he says. "And the muse needs to be fully fed and embraced.
"Having a jazz band center-stage for the entire piece is dramatically different than everything else (we've done). And (the artists) don't know everything that's going to happen, either."
If the creative team doesn't always know where the show's going, Montoya does have a bead on where its impulses come from.
"It feels like a long, yearning poem for San Diego," he says. "I was telling Sam that what we're endeavoring to do — and it takes people who really love this town, this region, (to do it) — is kind of create a mythic language all our own, that has to do with the region of San Diego and Tijuana."
"Federal Jazz Project"
When: In previews. Opens Friday (April 12). Performances: 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays (no matinee April 7);plus 2 p.m. some Saturdays and 7 p.m. some Sundays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Through May 5.
Where: San Diego Repertory Theatre's Lyceum Stage, 79 Horton Plaza, downtown
Tickets: $31-$52; students $18. Other discounts available.
Phone: (619) 544-1000
Online: sdrep.org
Montoya, who was born at the old Naval Hospital in Balboa Park, returns repeatedly to images of rivers and streams in conversation, noting how those in his adopted home of Los Angeles have been paved over, but the ones in parts of San Diego still run.
He compares those strands of coursing water to the tributaries that connect generations of families, and the San Diego/Tijuana region's past to its present.
For Montoya, they also trace "an emotional connection" between his own past and the community's.
"My mom tells me that literally from the Naval Hospital, she could hear the lions, the animals across the way (at the zoo)," he says. "So that means San Diego was a quieter place back then. And that got me thinking of those midcentury sounds."
"And then my dad did tell me stories about the various trolleys and the older cargo airplanes and the way the shipyards might sound. It just seems there's a musical rhythm with the sounds of San Diego that are very different from the sounds of (other places)."
Woodhouse, recalling such past projects as the San Diego-centric "Culture Clash in Bordertown," points out that Montoya is "an expert in this kind of study of a region — writing plays about a place. There aren't many playwrights you can say that about, who really dive into an area and soak it up."
Jamming and dreaming
The noir-influenced "Jazz Project," which unfolds in an underground (more or less literally) jazz club in downtown San Diego starting in the 1940s, was kick-started a year or so ago when Castellanos received a Creative Catalyst Grant from the San Diego Foundation.
But its roots really stretch back 15 or more years, to when Montoya was frequenting the jam sessions Castellanos led downtown with a vibrant mix of local musicians that included members of the military.
Castellanos was actually name-dropped in "Bordertown," and Montoya recalls noticing early on "what a classic guy and beyond his years Gil was. He's cut from that cloth of a more gentlemanly era."
For his part, Castellanos says that "we consider Richard like the sixth member of the group, really. We obviously have (structure to) the music we're playing, but we're really trying to listen to how he's phrasing his words, especially in that intro. I'm really trying to play off the message he's trying to get across."
He adds that "what I'm trying to capture with the music is the sound of San Diego. I'm trying to represent what jazz sounds like in San Diego, by covering not only straight-ahead (styles) but Latin, Afro-Cuban and the bebop stuff, too."
During some performances, Castellanos and Co. (the band includes his guitarist wife, Lorraine, who also portrays the dancer San Diego) will invite musicians onstage to perform with them — people such as local luminaries Charles McPherson and Daniel Jackson, as well as military jazz aces.
Given the show's wide embrace of styles and subcultures, "I think the officers' wives of Coronado are going to dig this piece as much as the Chicano guys of Barrio Logan," Montoya says.
"It's kind of fun when the room lights up, and Sam jumps up from his director's (chair) — he's like a band guy, too. We all jump in, because you can just feel that moment when it kind of lifts. And music is key there.
"You don't really get up and lift off on someone in mid-monologue. But when the music's cookin', and the text is jammin', and there's choreography, it's just a lot of fun."
'Jazz' hands
The Playwright
Richard Montoya
Hometown: San Diego (although the family moved to Oakland shortly after his birth)
Training: American Conservatory Theatre
Claims to fame: Co-founder of the groundbreaking Chicano performance troupe Culture Clash. Creator of numerous plays, including "Water and Power"; "An American Night: The Ballad of Juan Jose"; and "Culture Clash in AmeriCCa." Soon to make his feature-film debut with the movie adaptation of "Water and Power."
Quoted: "This is going to send us — this is going to bewitch and beguile. I've been saying to these guys today, Gilbert's horn is sending us back. It's the vehicle that allows us to take a moment and go back in time."
The Composer
Gilbert Castellanos
Hometown: Guadalajara, Mexico
Training: Berklee College of Music
Claims to fame: Renowned trumpeter who first came to prominence as a member of the group Black/Note. Moved to San Diego in 1995 and formed his own group, as well as playing in other local jazz ensembles and beginning a run of legendary late-night jam sessions downtown. His compositions for "Federal Jazz Project" will be available as an album.
Quoted: "I personally hand-picked every musician who's working with me on this production. I consider these guys members of my family. I feel really blessed to have them be part of this amazing opportunity."
The Director
Sam Woodhouse
Hometown: Coronado
Training: UC Santa Barbara, CalArts
Claims to fame: Co-founder and artistic director of San Diego Rep, the 37-year-old, nationally renowned regional theater that has been a pioneer in bringing ethnic diversity (and Latino voices in particular) to the mainstream stage. Has directed (and acted in) dozens of productions over the years, including such music-driven works as "Celebration of the Lizard," "The Who's Tommy" and "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" in which he played Elvis Presley.
Quoted: "It's enormously challenging, it's enormously satisfying, and the experiences are unforgettable. When you go to rehearsal working on a new piece of theater, you don't really know everything that's going to happen that day."
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John Carpenter's 1982 version of "The Thing," itself a remake of a 1951 Howard Hawks film, had the misfortune of being released on the same day as "Blade Runner," and during a week in which "ET," "Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan" and "Poltergeist" were all still doing brisk business. It finished eighth that opening weekend and after a month it was gone. But since then it has risen in esteem to be widely considered among the great horror films of all time. Now there's a new "Thing," but it's not a remake—though they easily could've passed it off as one.
All the same, "The Thing" is a good old fashion monster movie the likes of which doesn't get made very often anymore, and proves conclusively that rising star Mary Elizabeth Winstead has serious star power.
The new new Thing (to borrow a phrase from Michael Lewis) begins just days before Carpenter's '82 version, and finds paleontologist Kate Lloyd (Winstead) being recruited to investigate an amazing discovery down in Antarctica. A Norwegian team has stumbled upon a giant spaceship buried deep under the ice, and not far away, is an alien creature frozen solid. They drag it back to camp, past a group of Americans (led by Australian Joel Edgerton) and, well, the next thing you know, The Thing is exploding out of the ice, running out into the cold, and soon begins to kill the researchers one by one. But what makes The Thing so tough to fight is that upon killing you it absorbs you and then turns into an exact replica. The film quickly turns into a game of Ten Little Indians, but you don't know who's been killed until that person kills you. It's is, in essence, a virus.
Winstead shines in her first starring role—in fact, it's the first time she's played a grown-up. The toughness that has served her so well in "Grindhouse," "Live Free or Die Hard" and "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World," is called upon as never before, and she keeps a head as cool as Ripley's in "Alien," to which this "Thing" owes a huge debt. Her Kate is smart and methodical, taking control of a situation in which three parties with competing interests—the Norwegians, the Americans and The Thing—are running amok.
Edgerton feels a bit wasted here, as his Carter is a relatively minor player—this is really Winstead's film all the way through. He's never really given a chance to establish much of a character, which is a shame, 'cuz hes a talented guy.
"The Thing"'s greatest weakness is its Thing, which is so over-the-top and which we see so much of, that you become rather inured to its hideous appearance. Great horror is about the unknown lurking around the corner, and while at some point you have to show your hand, van Heijningen tips his cards too far and too often. Oh, and there's one moment in the film where van Heijningen does everything short of circle something with a telestrator to ensure you notice it—it's always a bummer when a director can't trust his audience.