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|December 18, 2012, 05:45 PM
Join Date: January 27, 2011
Posts: 423
I haven't called to check, nor have I been sent any info regarding the case. They did make a case out of it and investigate, and that was good enough for me. The person that did this was a moron, so I wouldn't be surprised if they tried it again but being as dumb as she is I'm not all that worried people will fall for it.
|December 20, 2012, 02:33 PM
Join Date: December 17, 2012
Posts: 40
You need to report this to a military installation also... First of all a rank of OF3 does NOT exist.... And a Sgt is an E5....So CLEARLY a fake but other than that looks pretty good.
This needs to go to the DOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
|December 29, 2012, 10:25 AM
Join Date: June 19, 2012
Posts: 28
Just contacted a seller out of St. Augistine fla. Had a spikes ar for 1k. Then asked for a money gram. I said I can only do a CC, that way if its a scam I am out nothing. I never got a responce. So if its not a scam oh well. With prices spiking like mad its going to be normal to see this kind of thing. Anyone who pays 2500 for an AR is going to be sick in a year.
|December 31, 2012, 07:41 PM
Join Date: April 18, 2010
Posts: 290
I try to play it safe as possible. I never buy guns off online auctions, nor individuals posting. I might entertain a FTF buy if there were anything I really wanted that I could not find at my LGS or Davidsons or another reputable online gun dealer.
I have sold a few guns here on THR, but I only do local FTF transactions.
If Ebay and Paypal changed their policies, I would be on board.
NRA Life Member
|January 27, 2013, 11:32 PM
Join Date: January 15, 2009
Posts: 28
The telephone number that has been listed is a St.Louis, MO number. 314 is the area code for the city 'proper' of St.Louis. The next set of numbers I'm not sure of. I'm thinking these could be southern extent of the city, but pre-paid phones.....you never can tell. But this is definitely a St. Louis number. I work in St.Louis that how I know.
|February 16, 2013, 02:54 AM
Join Date: February 12, 2013
Posts: 3
Wanted to get this on the web so Googles Search function can find it
I didn't fall for it as it seemed too good to be true.
502-230-1265 / 5022301265 is the phone number. Guy claims to be Chris Miller. Seller name on Texasguntrader is c.miller44 email is email@example.com
Deal was for $1400 for a Beretta 682 e-gold. I always ask for higher resolution pictures and for specific pictures of certain spots on the gun to see if the person even has the firearm. This stuff is running rampent on Texas Gun Trader. This is the add here: http://texasguntrader.com/index.php?a=2&b=312213
I was skeptical because 1. he says he's in mineral wells, but has a Kentucky Phone number, that's ok.. but usually its a major city phone number. 2. he wouldn't send me a text picture of the firearm and then his texts were rather short and not exactly perfect grammar. Well sometimes old timers have trouble typing on phones so I ignored and asked him to provide additional pictures / information. He just sent me some 23 kb stock photos and they had a perfect white background, a white background is not easy to accomplish unless you're ripping images off somewhere else.
Anyways after googling his name / phone number i came across a thread http://www.network54.com/Forum/79537...oing+for+%242k
I decide to just ignore him, then randomly today I get a call from phone number 502-509-5460 / 5025095460 That's Louisville kentucky for those of you that don't know. I don't EVER deal with ANYONE from Kentucky. Not by choice, i just don't have interactions with folks in that neck of the woods. This person left a voicemail, it was in broken chinese or korean (I'll ask a buddy to decipher later)
Debating calling the FBI internet fraud department tomorrow to report.
This guy must have been trying hard if they were trying to call from another number. Not sure what their plan was if I picked up lol.
It would have never been an issue anyways since I absolutely refuse to buy/sell firearms unless it's Face to Face transactions. In that other thread some guy at the end mentions the guy asks to meet but looks for a $500 deposit. DO NOT ever do that. If a deal is too good to be true it probably is.
Now this is funny, this guy is using pictures from gunstar.uk
Other names / alias / contact info:
David Natoya
Victor Natoya
Bradon Anderson (actually his name is Brandon not Bradon)
Chris Lorie Miller
Chris Miller
Reported to the FBI Internet Fraud Department and local law enforcement
|February 16, 2013, 06:07 AM
Join Date: July 9, 2012
Location: East Coast
Posts: 3,361
Looks like the original listing has already been taken down.
The Common Acess Card (CAC) was implimented in the U.S. Military not long before I retired. I'm also quite familiar with how it looks from a civilian DOD employee perspective as well, since I work for a naval shipyard as a civilian DON employee.
Here's some information which points to the ID card being fake, for those who are interested:
The picture is not in the right format. The image is not cropped the same way that CAC images are. It's too wide for it's height.
If you were to look at the person in the image closely, the shoulders don't look like they're correct for someone who is standing at ease in front of a camera being operated by another person. They look typical of someone taking their own picture. (My opinion, here.) I'm not sure what's shown on his right (???) shoulder...I'll leave that for someone else to critique. But ID pictures don't commonly include enough to show any ribbons, medals, or insignia that isn't a collar device.
Pictures on CAC's don't have the U.S. flag in the background. It's a plain background.
"ACTIVE DUTY" is in all caps. The military has long since gotten over the caps lock handicap and this is printed as "Active Duty" on all active duty military CAC.
The name is also in all caps. Again, the military doesn't use all caps for this. It should read "Danielle Gamache" for his first and middle names.
The Pay Grade is not correctly annotated. Enlisted people are annotated by "E" with a number afterwards, indicating the enlisted paygrade. For Sargent, this would be "E5". "OF3" appears to be completely nonsense, since officer's are shown with the letter "O" followed by a number and Warrant Officers are shown with the letter "W" followed by a number.
The "Pay Grade" and "Rank" lettering and the grade and rank shown are of incorrect font sizes, relative to each other.
The Issue Date and Expiration Dates are inconsistent. The Issue Date is the date the ID card is issued to the servicemember, not the date he enlisted. New ID cards are issued whenever there is a change a change in rank, enlisted obligated service dates, or whenever the card is damaged or lost. Enlisted contracts are for a maximum of 6 years. Note that this has nothing to do with the minimum required service time one is obligated for...only that the maximum term for any enlistement period itself is 6 years. The maximum period shown on the CAC can be no longer than the date it was issued to him to the end of his active duty obligated service. Thus the maximum period shown cannot be any longer than 6 years. The time on this ID card shows 9 years from the Issue Date.
The "Issue Date" and "Expiration Date" and the dates shown below them are the incorrect font sizes, relative to each other. See the CAC website to see what I mean.
The vertical bar code shown does not look like the correct barcode format. Visit the Common Access Card website to see what one is supposed to look like.
All CAC's have that wavy background image/lettering on them in green lettering. Mine says "U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE" in all caps. Likely they all have this, since the branch of service is clearly annotated by the branch seal in the upper right corner and the name of the service clearly printed below that. But it's currently 5 am where I'm at and I don't feel like running down to the waterfront to find a Sailor on duty and ask to see his CAC to verify that.
The ICC (Integrated Circuit Chip) contacts are an electronic image, not a real picture of one. The image shown has a "reflection", a bright clash across it. Yet the rest of the shiny plastic card does not have that. The contacts shown aren't what they're currently shaped as on the real thing, either. As shown, a CAC with this ICC contact configuration would not function in a CAC reader, and these readers haven't changed functionally since they were introduced.
And finally, the "picture" of this CAC is not, in fact, a picture of a CAC at all. A real CAC is a credit card sized and shaped ID card, complete with edges and rounded corners. This picture, even if it is a cropped one, doesn't show that. There is absolutely no hint of the wavy background security lettering. As measured, the aspect ratio of the card is incorrect. The card is slightly too short for it's height.
I hope enough heat has been delivered to the proper authorities to have the hammer dropped on this individual. I don't cotton to people impersonating servicemembers, especially for nefarious purposes. And if he's current or prior military, I don't cotton to liars and frauds.
"Good. Bad. I'm the guy with the gun." Ash - Army of Darkness http://youtu.be/0xwzdd-Slo8
I'm the guy with a cannon, too: http://youtu.be/X6xhYELYVDw
Last edited by RetiredUSNChief; February 16, 2013 at 06:20 AM.
|March 6, 2013, 04:22 PM
Join Date: October 18, 2010
Posts: 20
I wouldn't purchase any firearms from any private party over the internet - period.
|March 7, 2013, 06:20 AM
Join Date: October 30, 2012
Posts: 162
I live about 20-25 minutes from Louisville ky lol
http://www.bobsgunshop.net my trusty o' gunsmith.
|April 16, 2013, 01:09 AM
Join Date: April 16, 2013
Location: Franklin, TN
Posts: 36
Nice find!
|April 16, 2013, 09:21 PM
Join Date: September 26, 2007
Posts: 3
Guys, I'm pretty sure this is a Nigerian scammer. I've seen similar scams before. The original email has IP addresses that trace back to Nigeria, but then they get the money shipped to the US. Usually it's a vacant house. I suspect they have a sucker over here getting the money for them unknowingly (work at home scam maybe who cashes the checks and keeps 10%). Reading the first part has all the hallmarks of that type of scam. The ID is a fake, photoshopped ID. Any photos are stolen. I highly suspect if you see something like that, it's a variation of the Nigerian scam.
|April 29, 2013, 02:45 PM
Join Date: April 29, 2013
Posts: 4
I'm going to see if I can track him down.
Google images shows: https://www.okshooters.com/showthrea...-from-Armslist
ID PICTURE SEARCHES: CLICK ME FOR 3 Pages of fake ID's being used.
ORIGINAL AD: http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/s...d.php?t=647405
Gun pictures info:
Device used: Apple iPad 2
Date/Time Picture was taken: March 10, 2013 9:12:41PM
This is what he sent to my buddy:
From: Private Owner <firstname.lastname@example.com>
Date: April 29, 2013, 2:05:36 PM EDT
Subject: Re: ARMSLIST - Message from about KELTEC KSG KEL TEC
Please find the copy of my Geneva ID and pictures of me. i am selling a few of my guns because i am having very serious Money problems right now(problems with the Mortgage, credit card,divorce etc)...my daughter had to stop schooling because of her health conditions so the whole weight is all on me for now, so sir you see i have alot on the line too. i very much understand you sir, please don't get me wrong but i assure you that everything will be just fine. i have sold a few guns to people from other state and it pretty much went well. i will let you know as soon as the fund gets to me and i'll have the gun shipped today. and will provide you all the details sir. The package will be wrapped with tapes and lots of foams to protect it. Pls do keep me Posted.
Routing Number: 111000614
Account Number:203258006
Bank Name: Chase Bank
Bank Phone Number: (903) 561-0894
Holder's Name : Andrade . J. Betty
Holder's Address : 620 SOUTH BOLTON ST APT A ,JACKSONVILLE,TX 75766
Bank Address : 6825 Broadway Tyler Texas 75703.
Last edited by Whyareyoucurious; April 29, 2013 at 03:05 PM.
|April 30, 2013, 08:44 AM
Join Date: April 29, 2013
Posts: 4
Opened 29-Apr-13 at 23:58:29pm (UTC -5:00) - 10hours5mins31secs after sending
Location Lagos, Nigeria (86% likelihood)
Opened on 220.127.116.11.vgccl.net (22.214.171.124:10237)
Language of recipient's PC: en-US (English/United States), en;q=0.8 (English)
Browser used by recipient: Moz/5.0 (WinNT 6.1; WOW64) AppleWebKit/537.11 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/23.0.1271.97 Safari/537.11
Last log No more activity after 29-Apr-13 at 23:59:14pm (UTC -5:00) - Log data indicates email was read for at least 45secs (approx.)
Summary - as at 30-Apr-13 at 07:42:09am (UTC -5:00) - 17hours49mins11secs after sending
|May 1, 2013, 06:15 PM
Join Date: April 29, 2013
Posts: 4
Tessa Debysingh
512 Earls Court
Angleton, Tx 77515
|June 2, 2013, 02:47 PM
Join Date: May 26, 2008
Location: New Mexico
Posts: 1,210
That's the most fake CAC I've ever seen. I think I could do better with MS Paint! LOL. I hope they get this clown.
|June 3, 2013, 12:42 AM
Join Date: August 2, 2009
Location: IL / MI
Posts: 30
Who sends a picture of his military ID with all his info on it then blurs his last name on his uniform in the other pictures he sends. That's a little suspicious to me!
|August 3, 2013, 10:42 PM
Join Date: July 29, 2013
Posts: 10
That is my old division... contact the 511th MP company I bet ya they can find this clown.
I'd like to find him myself and rip that patch off of his ass!
Scammer puke.
Top Quality AR500 Steel Shooting Targets On Sale Now ShootingTargets7.com
|August 4, 2013, 12:50 PM
Join Date: December 1, 2005
Location: Carolina Low Country
Posts: 1,416
Notice the name on the ACU nametapes is blurred out but U.S. Army is plainly visible. The one of the green jacket is not legible and gets worse if you enlarge it, but it does not look to be either "Andrade" or "Betty". I would guess the pics are lifted from somewhere on the net, and aren't associated with the soldier shown.
Maj, USAF (ret)
Member, SCV
Life Member VFW, DAV, TSRA and MOAA
Benefactor Member, NRA
|February 26, 2014, 04:43 PM
Join Date: December 20, 2010
Posts: 232
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subset: commoncrawl


text: Burlington Free Press: Vermont Guard considered for missile-defense battery | September 12, 2013 | 12:00 am Topics: The Pentagon Around the Web Vermont Missile Defense The Pentagon,Around the Web,newsgatherr,Vermont,Missile Defense Ethan Allen Firing Range is one of five sites in the running, military says. Read the rest of this post on the original site » Sign Up for the Politics Today newsletter! Please enter your email address below to begin receiving the Politics Today newsletter. You must enter a valid email address in the field above! Thank you for signing up for the Politics Today newsletter! You should receive your first newsletter very soon. We're sorry, there was an error processing your newsletter signup. Please click here to visit our Newsletter Signup Center to register for this newsletter. Web URL: http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/2535710 Share this article on Facebook or Twitter Print this article View article comments Leave a comment


text:
May 05 2014
Cape Cod shark safety flier sparks concerns – News Local Massachusetts – Boston.com
Cape Cod shark safety flier sparks concerns - News Local Massachusetts - Boston.com.
This cracks me to no end as life imitates art once again. I can just see Chief Brody arguing with the president of the Amity Chamber of Commerce under a billboard with a swimmer being chased by a shark, "But chief, closing the beaches will be bad for business."
It's a matter of time before someone gets attacked by a shark in Cape Cod waters. It's happened recently and it will happen again. Some kayaker, surfer, paddle boarder, or hapless swimmer is going to be mistaken for a seal and get chomped. Not telling the rubes on vacation that the Cape is rapidly becoming a Great White all you can eat buffet is not a way to keep the tourism industry on its feet.


text:
Categories > Books > Harry Potter
The Harry Potter Liberation Front7 Reviews
Hermione is determined to enlist Harry's help in improving the rights of house-elves. She decides that he might understand better if he experienced it firsthand. What's going to happen when a jealo...
Disclaimer: I own nothing. I don't even get paid to write this stuff. Go bother someone who forgot to include one of these in his or her story.
The Harry Potter Liberation Front
Harry Potter sighed and ran his hands through his already-messy hair in frustration. His best friend, Hermione Granger, continued speaking, giving no indication that she noticed her friend's impatience.
"Hermione, shut up," Harry snapped a minute later. He almost relented, seeing her hurt look, but reminded himself that this was for her own good as well as his peace of mind. "I'm sorry, Hermione, but I can't be a part of this anymore. The house-elves don't even want to be free!"
"Of course they do," Hermione said primly. "Why else would they keep taking the hats I'm leaving out?"
Harry sighed again and tried to get his thoughts in order. There were so many ways to utterly destroy her argument, and he wanted to be sure to use every one. Hermione had the irritating habit of never admitting she was wrong unless it was in the face of an overwhelming amount of evidence.
"Do you really think that your hats are setting them free?" Harry asked.
"Why wouldn't they be?" Hermione shot back. "You told me that Malfoy's father freed Dobby by giving him a sock."
"Do the Hogwarts house-elves belong to you?" Harry asked patiently.
"No," Hermione said, biting her lip. He could see that she understood, so he moved on to his next point.
"So you aren't freeing any of them by doing that. Unfortunately, the house-elves are still quite insulted by what you're trying to do."
"How do you know?" Hermione demanded, her anger rising to the surface again.
"Dobby told me," Harry answered easily. "Right before he told me that he cleans the entire Gryffindor Tower himself now every single night because he's the only elf who isn't insulted by the hats."
"But that's horrible!" Hermione sputtered.
"It is," Harry agreed. "Does that mean you'll stop leaving the hats out?"
"Well, they seem to be doing more harm than good," Hermione admitted. "But I have to do something for them!"
"No you don't," Harry said scornfully, dropping all pretenses. "Let me tell you something, Hermione. You don't know what's best for everyone, despite what you may think. Here you are, taking Dobby's example and trying to alter an entire species to fit your own moral compass! Never mind the fact that none of the other house-elves are interested in being free, or the fact that Dobby is as uncomfortable at the thought as the rest of them! He knows that they don't want to be free, and he's terrified that if you somehow free them then they'll blame him! So why don't you make poor Dobby's life easier and leave it alone!" He kept his voice carefully under control during his entire speech, not wanting Madam Pince to kick them out of the library.
Hermione's lip trembled as a solitary tear made its way down her face. "Harry, they're /slaves/!"
"They're doing exactly what they want to do," Harry said confidently.
"What they think they want to do," Hermione countered.
"There you go again!" Harry said furiously. "Who are you to say what they should want? You're doing exactly the same thing that Purebloods do when they call you a mudblood!"
Hermione recoiled as if slapped, and Harry moved in for the kill.
"House-elves are intelligent. Maybe they don't speak quite the same way that we do, but they are plenty smart enough to decide for themselves. Am I getting through to you at all?"
Hermione nodded, throwing herself forward to hug Harry, who pulled her closer as soon as he felt her tears begin to soak through his shirt. He knew that he had effectively blindsided Hermione. She had fully expected Ron to vocally object again, which was why she hadn't even brought it up in his presence this time. Harry, on the other hand, was supposed to be the one who would go along with her ideas and support her unconditionally. She had to realize that it wasn't fair for him to have to do that when she second-guessed his every move before he even made it. He hoped that their friendship would end up stronger for it.
"Are you all right?" Harry asked, pulling back to look her in the eye.
"I will be," she replied, smiling tremulously.
"Want to go back to the common room?" Harry asked.
"You go ahead, I still want to finish the essay for Professor Flitwick."
"Will you be all right?" Harry asked.
"I'll be just fine," Hermione assured him. "Go on without me."
Harry nodded once and gave her hand a quick squeeze before leaving the library. Hermione's shoulders drooped after she was sure he was gone.
Harry's hunch about Hermione's feelings wasn't far off the mark, but the reality was much worse than his imagination. One of the main reasons she craved his unconditional support was because that was what she wanted in a lover, and she had loved Harry from afar for years. His looks and fame aside, Hermione knew that she saw more in him than anyone else possibly could.
If only she could make him see the house-elves as she saw them. Then he would have to help her! But how could Harry possibly understand just how pitiful the house-elves plight really was? It hit her like a ton of bricks.
Harry would have to experience firsthand the awfulness that was a house-elf's existence. Had she been thinking clearly, she would have remembered Harry's upbringing. She would have remembered that Harry had a better idea of what the life of a house-elf was really like than nearly any other person alive. But her feelings were firmly in control at that point and showed no indication of giving up the reins anytime soon.
"Dobby," she whispered, hoping the elf would hear her summons.
He appeared in front of her with a noisy crack a minute later, causing Hermione to wince and look around, expecting Madam Pince to kick her out any second.
"Miss Grangey needs Dobby?" the quirky house-elf inquired. She noticed that he was wearing one of her knitted hats, but refused to allow herself to become sidetracked.
"Yes, I do. I need you to help me help Harry," Hermione said.
"Dobby will do anything to help Harry Potter!" he boasted squeakily. "What does Miss need?"
"Er..." For the first time, Hermione realized that it might be a bit difficult to convince Harry's staunchest supporter to help her enslave him. "Harry has been going through a lot lately, Dobby, and he needs to relieve his stress. I want to help Harry by making some of his decisions a lot easier for him, do you understand so far?"
"Dobby thinks so, Miss," Dobby said. "Miss is wanting Dobby to help make Harry Potter's decisions for him?"
"Not quite," Hermione said delicately. She needed to be very careful with her phrasing. "I need a spell to make Harry do what I say." So much for that.
"Like a house-elf?" Dobby asked skeptically. Hermione could see the gears turning in the little creature's brain.
"Just for a week," Hermione said. "I would undo it in a week, I promise. I just want to make Harry's life easier for him."
Dobby scrutinized her carefully and took a moment to think. Just when Hermione thought he would vanish and tell Harry everything, his face broke out into a toothy grin and he nodded his acquiescence. "Dobby knows the spell. It is the same spell that binds house-elves to their masters."
"Then please, Dobby, tell me everything I need to know about using that spell on Harry."
"Miss only needs to point her wand and say 'Libenter', and the spell will work," Dobby explained.
"Libenter?" Hermione asked, eliciting a confirming nod. "Thank you, Dobby. You don't know how much this means to me. It will help Harry out immensely as well."
"Dobby knows, Miss," the excitable elf said, smiling. "Would Miss like Dobby to get Harry Potter?"
"Please do," Hermione said, eager to put her plan into motion.
Dobby snapped his fingers and vanished with another flinch-inducing crack, but once again Madam Pince seemed not to have heard a thing.
After Dobby left, Hermione found it impossible to concentrate on anything but Harry. He would understand soon, and once he did, he would forgive her for what she had to do. It was for his own good, after all. Though already sorely tempted to use the power she would have over Harry to force him to be with her, she knew that it would have to happen naturally. As long as she kept her orders relatively benign, Harry would have no real cause for complaint. She had to toe the line, making her commands irritating enough for Harry to realize how the house-elves must feel while not giving into her carnal desires and forcing anything physical. Above all else, though, she had to keep it between the two of them.
Nearly forty minutes had passed when Dobby finally returned with Harry. Hermione was nearly at her wit's end, fearing the worst. But now with her best friend before her at last, all of her fears and worries seemed to fade away as his warm green eyes met her own.
"Dobby said you wanted to see me?" Harry asked.
"Yes, thank you Dobby," Hermione said, smiling at the elf while nervously fingering her wand.
"Miss is very welcome," Dobby said with a bow. "Dobby hopes that all goes well."
"All of what?" Harry asked curiously.
"Libenter," Hermione said quickly, pointing her wand at Harry. A bright golden light left her wand and struck Harry's heart like a bullet. She didn't think she would ever forget his expression of shock and betrayal, almost as if he knew the nature of the spell she cast.
"Hermione, what did you do?" Harry asked, inspecting his limbs for damage.
She flushed red, suddenly embarrassed. "I had to do it, really, Harry. You just don't know what it's like for them, so I obviously had to educate you. Harry, I've enslaved you."
"You've /what/?!" Harry asked furiously.
"It was the only way to make you understand," Hermione said sadly. "Now there's no use complaining, so stop it." Harry's mouth snapped shut. "I'll only keep the spell going for a week. You're obviously forbidden from telling anyone about this by any means, or even hinting at it. In public, aside from obeying my commands, you're to act as you normally do."
"I understand," Harry said through gritted teeth.
"I'm glad," Hermione said, realizing that it might not take much for Harry to realize how limited the house-elves were. "I don't have anything for you to do at the moment. For now, let's go upstairs and finish the rest of our homework. No going to bed until it's all complete."
"All of it?" Harry asked incredulously. Professor McGonagall had assigned them a three-foot essay on self-transfiguration reversals in addition to their normal homework that day, and Professor Sprout had given them a great deal as well. None of it was due for at least another week.
"All of it," Hermione said firmly, knowing that she was condemning her friend to a miserable night. "Now just imagine those poor house-elves, stuck cleaning all night."
"They clean whenever they want," Harry said. "They just want to clean all the time."
"They obviously don't know what they want," Hermione snapped, frustrated by Harry's clear lack of empathy. "From now on, you're forbidden from contradicting me about house-elves. Is that clear?"
"Yes," Harry said, glaring at her hatefully.
[Scene Break]
The next day, Hermione found herself sorely disappointed in Harry's lack of progress. The bags under his eyes spoke volumes about how much sleep he had gotten, and her orders about behaving naturally in public still stood, but his glares whenever they alone were enough. She ruthlessly pushed aside the guilt that she felt; convincing herself that there was no turning back now.
"Hey, mate, want a game of chess?" Ron asked, interrupting Hermione's train of thought. She and Harry were working on the fairly easy Charms homework that had been assigned at the end of the previous period.
"No thanks," Harry said. "I need to finish this up." He didn't look at Hermione when he said it, but she knew that her orders were the only reason he had started the assignment at all.
"Blimey, is that Charms? Flitwick just gave it to us!"
"There's no harm in getting it out of the way, Ron," Hermione said.
"There's plenty of harm," Ron said stubbornly. "C'mon, Harry, no one's practicing on the Quidditch Pitch right now. We can go for a fly."
"I need to finish this up," Harry repeated dully.
"Fine," Ron said sullenly, clearly put out by the bizarre change in Harry's behavior. "Guess I'll go ask Ginny."
Hermione didn't react at the mention of her rival. While the two girls put on a perfectly good act for the boys' benefit, they had been at each other's throats since learning that the one thing they had in common was an overabundance of affection for a certain green-eyed wizard. Hermione's time at the Burrow was especially difficult, having to stay in such close quarters with the bint. Still, Ginny hadn't been able to break through the wards she had on her trunk without a wand, making the redhead effectively harmless.
Hermione gave Harry a sidelong look as Ron stomped off to find his sister. Her guilt was almost overwhelming at that point. She wanted to give in and allow Harry to go fly, knowing that it was his favorite activity, but she just couldn't bring herself to let Ron win. No, she'd have to come up with a different way to make Harry happy.
"FINE!" The word was shouted this time, and Hermione looked up to see Ron disappear upstairs to his dormitory leaving a very amused Ginny in his wake. He returned a minute later with his Cleansweep, pausing only to throw Harry and Hermione an angry look before leaving through the portrait hole. Hermione turned to look at Ginny only to find the other girl staring right back at her. As she watched, Ginny's gaze shifted to Harry and her brow furrowed in confusion. Hermione bristled, her jealousy driving away any semblance of control she had over herself.
"Come on, Harry, we can finish the homework later," Hermione said, rising from her seat.
Harry looked up at her and smiled for the first time in a day. It warmed Hermione's heart to see him happy, even if she was the reason for his earlier unhappiness.
"Go on and put your things away upstairs, then come back down here," she instructed him, keeping an eye on Ginny as she spoke. She didn't like the look on the redhead's face.
Hermione pulled her bag over her shoulder and raced upstairs to her own dormitory, hoping to beat Harry back downstairs in an effort to prevent Ginny's interference.
Naturally, when she returned, it was to see Ginny draped over Harry's shoulders, clearly doing her level best to sink her claws into him. Parvati Patil, the common room's only other occupant, seemed equally disgusted with the display.
"Ready to go, Harry?" Hermione asked, curious to see if he would detach himself without a direct order. She was quite pleased when he rose wordlessly; detaching Ginny from himself with such ease that Hermione knew it wasn't the first time that her rival had tried such tactics.
Hermione threw Ginny a smug smile before leading Harry out through the Fat Lady's portrait. Before it shut behind them, Hermione could have sworn she heard Parvati call Ginny a slag. Judging from the slight grin on Harry's face, it wasn't her imagination.
"So where to?" Harry asked, seeming resigned to the fact that he was completely under her control.
"The Room of Requirement," Hermione said, having given no previous thought to what they would actually be doing. "I just want to talk a little, about the spell."
"It was a pretty rotten thing to do," Harry said bluntly.
"I'm sorry, Harry," Hermione said. "But don't you feel a bit sorry for the house-elves now?"
"Only Kreacher," Harry said. "He's the only one besides Dobby I've met who's constantly ordered to do things he wouldn't do anyway. And since he got Sirius killed, my sympathy is a bit muted."
"Will you be able to forgive me?" Hermione asked, changing the subject. He still wasn't ready to see her side of the house-elf issue yet.
"I don't know," Harry said, looking at her for the first time. "I wouldn't use a spell like this on Malfoy, let alone on my best friend." Hermione felt a fresh wave of guilt. "You're just one step away from the Unforgivable Curses. This is like a weaker Imperius, but one that can't really be fought."
"Please don't say anymore," Hermione said, tears streaming down her face. Harry obediently fell silent. Once again, she threw herself into his arms, sobbing uncontrollably. Harry did his best to soothe her, no more comfortable around crying women now than he had ever been. He tried to pull away when Hermione's shoulders stopped shaking, but a quiet "No" halted that action. She kept her arms around him, but pulled back enough to look up at his face. "Please kiss me."
The expression on Harry's face was inscrutable, but he obediently leaned down and placed his lips over hers before quickly pulling back. It was one of the most platonic gestures that Hermione had ever seen him perform (which was saying something), and it turned out to be the last straw for her. "Not like that. Kiss me like you mean it." And then her hands were in his hair, forcing his head down to meet hers. This time he was almost violent, forcing her invading tongue back into her own mouth almost as soon as it had entered his and following it with his own. When he pulled back several seconds later, Hermione saw that his expression hadn't changed at all, but he was breathing hard. Surely that was a sign.
"Come on, let's get to the Room of Requirement and finish what we've started," Hermione said, lust in her eyes.
"Tomorrow," Harry said.
"What?" Hermione asked, surprised at his lack of obedience.
"We shouldn't do everything at once," Harry said. "It doesn't seem right for our first kiss to be on the same night as our first shag, or anything else, for that matter. We'll wait until tomorrow night."
"We will," Hermione agreed, having changed her mind sometime during Harry's brief speech. She didn't want to be a slag like Ginny, after all.
"Then I'm going to bed," Harry said decisively. "You should as well, we both need to be well-rested for tomorrow."
"Yes," Hermione said vaguely, several of her oldest fantasies coming to the forefront of her mind. "You go on, I'll catch up." She thought of going to the Room of Requirement without Harry and relieving herself.
As soon as Harry disappeared around the corner, Hermione jumped nearly a foot into the air when a hand grabbed her shoulder, squeezing painfully hard.
"I knew it," the familiar voice of her hated rival hissed from behind her. "You've done some sort of spell to make Harry do whatever you want. Imagine what Professor Dumbledore will do when I tell him everything."
Hermione's eyes widened in panic and she searched her pockets for her wand, eliciting laughter from her rival, who released her shoulder and stepped around to face her, two wands in hand.
"What do you want?" Hermione asked, panic-stricken.
"That's rather obvious, isn't it?" Ginny asked. "I want to cast the spell as well."
"/What/?!" Hermione asked incredulously.
"Don't be so naive. I want to have him once. I know you're too much of a good girl to keep the spell on him forever, and I also know that you'll make me take mine off first. I don't care. I just want to shag him. Even if it's the only time in my life."
"Why not try it honestly?" Hermione asked.
"Harry doesn't fancy me, and he never will," Ginny lamented. "It turns out he's also resistant to every Love Potion that I've been able to find, and I've found a lot. Your spell is the only thing that seems to work. It's my only chance."
"You'll really be satisfied with that?" Hermione asked, regaining her calm.
"Of course not!" Ginny said. "We're both hoping for the same thing. We each want to give Harry an unforgettable night, one that will make him fall for us. I want my chance to beat you once and for all, to have Harry to myself forever."
Hermione smiled, finally satisfied with the answer. Truth be told, she wanted to beat Ginny almost as badly as she wanted Harry. "All right, that sounds fair. You keep quiet in exchange for a night with Harry. I have a condition, though."
"Of course you do," Ginny muttered, ignoring the glare that Hermione shot her.
"No interfering with tomorrow night. That's my night with him, you're going to have to wait until the day after."
"Fair enough," Ginny said, smirking. "He'll be a bit more experienced, a bit more prepared."
Hermione, who wanted to be Harry's first, ignored the jibe. "So then we're agreed? You can cast the spell after tomorrow night."
"Nice try," Ginny said. "I get to cast the spell tomorrow night before you shag him. I'll leave after that and won't bother you at all, but that's non-negotiable."
"Whatever," Hermione said, having long since lost her desire to go to the Room of Requirement.
"Until then, Granger," Ginny said, offering Hermione a saucy wink before flouncing off.
Hermione gritted her teeth in hatred. There really wasn't a single thing about Ginny that she liked, with the obvious exception of her taste in men. Ginny was conventionally attractive and quite vivacious, just like Cho, who was the last girl Harry had fancied. Still, Ginny had been trying everything she could to get Harry to notice her short of stripping in front of the whole school, and yet he still hadn't shown her the slightest bit of interest, which Hermione found encouraging. His debacle with Cho had clearly taught him to look past the surface, which was where she connected with Harry better than anyone. And Harry had complimented her on her looks several times in the past. Granted, they were friendly compliments, but Harry wouldn't lie about that sort of thing, Hermione knew.
She would beat Ginny Weasley.
[Scene Break]
Hermione had spent nearly three hours getting ready the following afternoon, but emerged looking just the same as ever, aside from changing to more provocative underwear, that is. Hermione knew that Harry didn't like makeup much, so she didn't bother with that either. It would have to be the same Hermione Granger that he knew in their shared bed that night, or it wouldn't work. Harry had to make the connection between his friend and the girl he was shagging, or all was lost. Steeling her resolve, she left her dormitory and made her way to the Room of Requirement, finding Harry and Ginny already waiting for her.
"Ginny tells me that she's going to be using the spell?" Harry asked her, anger in his eyes.
"She blackmailed me into it, Harry, I'm sorry," Hermione said, having the grace to blush.
"Enough complaining, teach me the spell already!" Ginny said, bouncing eagerly on the balls of her feet. She looked like a little girl who couldn't wait to open her Christmas present. A very well developed little girl.
"Get inside first!" Hermione snapped, looking around for any eavesdroppers.
"All right, all right," Ginny said, grabbing Harry's unresisting hand and leading him inside. Hermione followed, her face locked in a grimace.
"The incantation is Libenter," Harry told Ginny when the door had slammed shut behind them. Looking around, Hermione saw that they were in a fairly large bedroom, not unlike hers at home. The bedding was Gryffindor red, but the wallpaper was a soft yellow, and the rest of the furniture was mismatched, putting the emphasis on function over form.
"He's telling the truth," Hermione said when she noticed Ginny looking at her questioningly.
Ginny gave Harry a wink before raising her wand. "Libenter!" The same golden light flashed, though Hermione noted with some satisfaction that Ginny's didn't look nearly as strong as her own.
"Now if you'll just leave," Hermione began, "we can get started."
"Hold on," Ginny protested, an evil smile on her face. "I haven't been able to test it out yet."
Hermione seemed to be fighting an inner struggle for a moment before she responded. "All right, but no physical contact."
Ginny pouted. "Fine, fine. In that case, Harry, I order you to strip."
To Hermione's horror, Harry actually smiled at that. "Ginny, shut the bloody fuck up."
Both girls gasped and looked at Harry like they'd never seen him before. Ginny opened her mouth to protest, but promptly closed it again.
"What did you do?" Hermione asked, torn between amusement and worry. The latter choice won out when Harry replied.
"Hermione, shut up," Harry said, his smile suddenly predatory.
Hermione tried to protest, to ask him why he was violating her orders, only to discover that she couldn't speak!
"You can both come out now," Harry said, smiling and nodding at the door. Hermione's surprise was complete when Harry's invisibility cloak shimmered into view as none other than Parvati Patil threw it off of her. A few feet away, Dobby also appeared, having become through his own magic.
"I can see that you're both very surprised," Harry said, alternating looks between Hermione and Ginny. "You have Dobby to thank for that. He really is the ultimate trump card. Thanks again, Dobby."
"Harry Potter sir is most welcome," Dobby said, throwing Hermione and Ginny a scathing look. "Dobby is only pleased that he was able to help."
"Come on, Harry," Parvati said. "They're clearly desperate for an explanation. She directed his gaze to Hermione, whose mouth remained open.
"Oh all right," Harry said, feigning irritation at the Indian girl. "Dobby, why don't you tell them the first part?"
"Dobby will do his best," the diminutive elf said. "When Miss Grangey lied to Dobby and asked him to help her enslave Harry Potter, Dobby knew the perfect spell. It is the spell that free house-elves use to bind themselves to a new Master or Mistress." He paused for a moment, watching Hermione and Ginny's expressions become, if anything, even more horrified.
"Dobby knew what he must do, so he tricked Miss Grangey into using that spell, and told Harry Potter everything. Miss Parv was there, and she talked Harry Potter into going along with the spell."
"She even told me that I should let you force me to kiss you," Harry said, a look if distaste on his face.
"I can see that you're still confused," Parvati said to the still-silent witches, "so I'll make this as clear as I possibly can. You aren't the only two witches to ever fancy Harry Potter. Ginny, you're not the only one who grew up with stories about him. You're not the only one who feels like you've wanted him your whole life. You're not the only one who feels entitled. But more importantly than that, Hermione, you're not the only one who's bothered to get to know the real Harry. It took me a little while to see him as he really is, but I've worked hard over the last year and a half to become the kind of girl that Harry could fancy."
"And it worked," Harry said, giving Parvati a warm smile. She crossed the room in a heartbeat and stood on her tiptoes to kiss him. Harry's hands immediately went to her back, holding her against him. The kiss didn't last long, but when it broke, the adoration in both of their eyes brought tears of frustration to both Hermione and Ginny's.
As one, the pair turned to face the other girls. "For trying to steal my boyfriend, I was tempted to ask Harry to order you to do something really bad," Parvati admitted, one arm still around Harry's waist.
"I wanted to forbid the two of you from ever having a single orgasm for the rest of your lives," Harry put in, shaking his head. The two girls both looked ready to pass out at that extraordinary proclamation. "But once the anger at your betrayal faded away, we started to think constructively."
Their speech was clearly rehearsed. While Harry was speaking, Parvati reached into her robes and pulled out a scroll of parchment nearly two feet long. By the time he was done, she had unrolled it. "This scroll contains the conditions under which we'll grant you your freedom," she explained. "The gist of it is that you can't ever speak about the spell, or my relationship with Harry. Neither of you can ever do anything to physically, emotionally or even politically harm us, unless it's completely accidental. Arranging to be overheard is specifically included."
"Luckily for you," Harry broke in, "you won't have to worry about anyone breaking into your mind and finding these secrets. That's the beauty of the Unbreakable Vow; it shields the secrets from any unauthorized visitors. Oh, and you can feel free to speak again, if you'd like."
Hermione, it seemed, couldn't handle her sudden verbal freedom. Her eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she passed out. Dobby was able to catch her with his magic before she hit the ground. Ginny had tears in her eyes, but neither Harry nor Parvati could tell what emotion was behind them.
"What if I refuse to take the Vow?" Ginny asked, her voice shaking.
"I'll order you to do the same thing," Harry said simply. "And I might add the orgasm stipulation as well."
"No!" Ginny said quickly. "There's no need for that. I'll make the vow."
"Let's hold off on waking Hermione up until afterwards," Harry suggested, wanting a word with his former best friend once it was just the three of them plus Dobby.
"It couldn't hurt," Parvati agreed, pulling her wand. "Join hands." Harry and Ginny obeyed immediately, a look of trepidation on Ginny's face. Parvati quickly read from the scroll, watching carefully as the redhead mechanically agreed to everything. Ginny's eyes never once left their joined hands until it was over. Once Harry pulled his hand away, her look of longing almost inspired Parvati's pity. Almost.
"Liberationis," Harry said, pointing his wand at Ginny. The spell, rather than emerging from his wand, emerged from his heart. It was the same golden light that Ginny had sent to him, and it returned to her with great speed. Ginny stood a little straighter when it returned, and even managed a small smile.
"Now get out of here," Harry said firmly. Ginny threw him one last look of longing before complying, her long red hair flying behind her.
"Stupid greedy little bint," Parvati growled at her retreating back. "One good thing that's come of this is you won't have to deal with her fawning all over you anymore."
"And you won't have to deal with it either," Harry teased.
"It's just a fringe benefit!" Parvati protested, a smile on her face. It faded slightly when Harry focused on Hermione again. "She betrayed you, Harry."
"I know," he said. "I just really wish she hadn't."
"You ready to face her?" Parvati asked.
"Ennervate," Harry replied, pointing his wand at Hermione.
"Harry?" Hermione asked groggily as Dobby's magic helped her to her feet. The elf stood silently on one side of the room, a serious look on his face. "Please tell me it was all a dream."
"I wish I could, Hermione," Harry said softly.
"H-How did this happen?" Hermione asked, gesturing between them.
"It started before Hogwarts," Parvati said, seeming a little wistful. "I was raised like most Pureblood and Halfblood witches were, with stories of Harry Potter. My crush developed like Ginny's, and I thought I finally had my chance during the Yule Ball. I was wrong, of course. I wasn't mature enough to handle Harry, and he wasn't mature enough to handle anyone."
"No argument there," Harry said when Hermione looked at him incredulously.
"But even though he was a prat that night, I still fancied him. I just didn't know how to get him to fancy me. So I spent the rest of the year watching, learning what I could. Harry was a lot more serious than I thought, and I knew that I couldn't stay the same if I really wanted him. Fortunately, the DA came along in fifth year. I showed him that I wasn't averse to hard work, and that I was as serious about V-Voldemort's return as anyone else." Harry tightened his hold on her when she said the name, offering Parvati a loving smile. Hermione felt her heart break at the sight.
"By the end of fifth year, I was pretty sure that I had become the kind of girl that Harry could fancy. I even wrote to him a couple of times in the summer. I gave him a metaphorical shoulder to cry on over poor Sirius. Then, on September first, I kissed him. I made sure that no one else was around on the train first, and I pulled him into my compartment, sat him down, sat on his lap, and snogged him for about...twenty minutes, was it?"
"Give or take," Harry said.
"We've been meeting in secret ever since," Parvati finished.
"Is that when you're going to practice your spellcasting?" Hermione asked Harry, hurt in her tone.
"We practiced plenty," Harry said firmly. "The two of us could take on any four students in the school. Together, I reckon we could even give Dumbledore a run for his money. The only difference from practicing alone was that I had a moving target."
"Well, that and my unique reward system," Parvati said, a lascivious smile on her face.
Hermione smiled sadly at that, seeing that she had never had a chance from the start. "So shall I take this Vow of yours now, Harry?"
Once again, Parvati read out the questions. Hermione never hesitated with an answer, and she never looked anywhere but at Harry's face. Her expression didn't change when Harry freed her, but she, like Ginny, stood a little bit taller afterwards.
"Is there any chance we can be friends again, like before?" Hermione asked when it was all over.
"It'll take me a while to forgive you, if I ever can," Harry said honestly. "But I'd like it if we could be friends again."
Hermione smiled tearfully, but didn't dare hug Harry. Maybe she would be able to again in the future, but not until she was over him at the very least.
She left a minute later, as did Dobby, who presumably returned to the kitchens.
"You know, Harry," Parvati began once they were alone, "it'd be an awful shame to waste such a nice opportunity."
"Yet another thing I love about you," Harry said. "You're insatiable."
"Better believe it, love," Parvati agreed, pulling Harry toward the bed with one hand, already pushing his robes off of his shoulders with the other.
It was going to be a good night.


text:
Written by:
Thou cleave mine heart with genteel grace,
Whilst hiding chagrin upon thine face.
Teasing me with words so sweet,
Encouraging mine heart to once again beat.
Battered from love's exhausting games,
Endless list of forgotten names.
Thou finding humor to lighten mine heart,
Heavy with abandon promise's false start.
Infusing mine heart once again,
So only thine love would remain.


text:
Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton says the city could be doing a better job of recycling and he's challenging residents and businesses to do their part.
On Wednesday, he announced a new program called Reimagine Phoenix. Its motto is reduce, re-use, recycle, reconsider and imagine.
The Mayor wants to cut back the amount of trash that ends up in landfills.
He's asking the public works department to step up composting efforts and expand a green organics program to include food products.
"When looking at all categories of trash, food consumes one of the largest amounts of space in a landfill. The less food that has to be transported to a landfill, the lower the trucking costs and the longer life our landfill we have," said Stanton.
The Mayor also proposed allowing residents to get smaller trash cans so more items will end up in recycling bins -- and residents would save money on their garbage bills.
Online: phoenix.gov/publicworks/reimaginephoenix
WTTG FOX 5 & myfoxdc5151 Wisconsin Ave. NWWashington, DC 20016Main Number: (202) 244-5151Newsroom: (202) firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
Stay defensive with iconic American brands
With their global growth potential, McDonald's and Starbucks are strong positions for a volatile market.
The markets have been crazy, so we need to stay defensive. In this environment, I want to recommend two iconic brands.
McDonalds (MCD) and Starbucks (SBUX) both offer the broad global footprints that come with geographic diversification.
In the event that Europe does melt down, both companies have opportunities for accelerating growth in China and India. Let's take a quick look at them individually.
McDonalds is the largest fast-food franchise in the world, with more than 33,000 stores and 400,000 employees.
Incredibly, 80% of the properties are still owned and operated by individuals. The company has revenue of more than $24 billion and more than $5 billion in profits, and they are still growing.
August marked the company's 100th consecutive month of positive global comparative sales growth, and the stock pays a dividend of nearly 3%.
I think the pullback gives investors a chance to get in at a reasonable price and enjoy a decent yield with consistent growth and a product mix that is perfect for lean economic times.
At 15.4 times forward earnings, the shares don't look expensive, and given the uncertainties that surround us, peace of mind is worth a great deal. Buy with a target of $98. The shares closed Thursday at $88.29.
The headline story on Starbucks is that since the founder, Howard Schultz, has returned to run the company, the business has improved dramatically.
The other headline is that Schultz recently announced aggressive expansion plans in both China and India, with more than 1,000 new stores in China alone.
Also under way are major expansions in South Korea, where the company plans to open several hundred locations.
Starbucks has also revived its Seattle's Best brand and partnered with Burger King and Subway, which will give it access to 30,000 additional locations.
I have also been impressed by the company's reaction to rising coffee prices. Some competitors tried to cut prices at just the wrong time, whereas Starbucks maintained prices and worked on frequent-buyer reward programs.
At 21.5 times forward earnings, Starbucks may not seem cheap, but the growth that lies in front of it more than justifies the current price. Buy with a target of $46.
People have to eat. Even in tough times, most people will cut back on a lot before they give up their caffeine, and parents will still need an inexpensive place to take their kids.
Both these iconic American brands have become truly international and will continue to thrive over the long haul while offering defensive positions during times of market turbulence.
TheStockAdvisors.com is a free website that highlights stock recommendations and market commentary from leading financial newsletter advisers.
This is almost entertaining, like a commercial. I now want to enjoy a Double Quarter Pounder and my triple grande vanilla non-fat extra hot no foam latte while I E-trade myself out of debt or save my 401k.
No, this is wrong, anyone pushing stock advice in this economy is just guilty of fraud. "Pump and dump" heard of it? It happens all over and is essentially the foundation of our stock market to date. Sure these stocks are "stable" compared to the majority of others. I however am not convinced of this unless I am TheStockAdvisors.com who are just regurgitating the information they get from the same Wall Street criminals that swindled our nation for billions while they made profits and gave bonus' and citizens lost entire life savings. In fact these corporations are essentially the Wal-Marts of the food industry so it makes sense that their net worth is high and stocks are stable. They go out of their way to ensure that shareholders are more taken care of than their own employees.
How do I know this? I worked for starbucks for 7 years and loved every moment up until the end where I was continuously looked for for promotion despite having a proven track record as a performer by candidates that had no proir management experience or even retail/food service experience (Refer to the article today on msn.com about favoritism in the work place). My last manager, chose to harass me out of my job and since psychological torment is not a crime. My complaints to HR who neglected to acknowledge this only gave him more incentive to continue to target me for reasons I could only speculate on mostly due to jealously that I out performed him in every aspect of the job, had actual respect from other employees and customers, this person is borderline psychotic in my eyes. Do research on psychological harassment and find that it is extremely debilitating, I should have claimed workers compensation for the environment he created. Back to my point those at the unemployment office the worker went through my work history and experience and literally exclaimed, "you were under paid, not by a little, a lot." She went on to say with the duties that I was entrusted to complete on even just a per shift basis I should have been compensated with twice what I was earning compared to with companies and other roles in the industry.
The moral of my story, buy local, 70 cent of every dollar spent locally goes back to the community compared to less than 50 cent per when you shop/buy from corporations like these. The market is not stable you are better off putting money in a jar, under the mattress, or just in savings and yes there are plenty of local places to get your coffee and to eat your hamburgers.
Copyright © 2014 Microsoft. All rights reserved.
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Chrysler, Honda and Toyota all count the family shuttles among their top-selling vehicles, while Kia is giving its new model a big push.
Top Stocks provides analysis about the most noteworthy stocks in the market each day, combining some of the best content from around the MSN Money site and the rest of the Web.
Contributors include professional investors and journalists affiliated with MSN Money.
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text:
If you like what you read, please this article so it reaches more deviants
Street Photography: The Origins
Well, ok we left some trivial things to be invented by the Chinese as well.
What you may not know is that Street photography was also invented by the Greeks before Photography itself was even invented.
Seriously now:
Kairos is an ancient Greek word meaning the right or opportune moment or "the supreme moment". The Greeks believed the concept of Kairos is achieved when such a moment is grasped for otherwise the moment is gone and cannot be re-captured. According to ancient Greeks, Kairos was the god of the "fleeting moment."
Interestingly the ancient Greeks had two words for time, chronos and kairos. While chronos is quantitative, kairos has a qualitative nature.
Does the above remind you of the "Decisive moment", the essence of Street Photography?
dA's attempt to define Street Photography
According to dA's Street gallery description Street Photography is: Un-posed, un-staged photography which captures, explores or questions contemporary society and the relationships between individuals and their surroundings. In simpler words: People in candid situations in public places.
A lot of ink and a lot of bites have been used to define Street Photography over time.
Nick Turpin, a famous street photographer gives us his own definition, which is a rather interesting one:
Undefining Street Photography
by Nick Turpin
1- Can you define Street Photography for us?
2- Does Street Photography have a future?
In the past I have tried to explain the place of Street Photography within the documentary tradition, I have talked about Street Photography as an approach, an attitude rather than a place where the pictures are made, I've talked about the minimal equipment required to shoot on the streets and the lack of interaction between the photographer and subject.
To the second question I have talked about society and culture continually changing and therefore the subject matter of Street Photography continually being renewed and refreshed and relevant.
Finally I have arrived at the realisation that I have been coming at these questions from completely the wrong angle, I have been playing the interviewers game, I have been going along with the notion that 'Street Photography' is a ring fenced region of some greater province known as 'Photography' the boundaries of which need to be demarcated with rules about its practice.
Now it is absolutely clear to me that these questions themselves were flawed and the things I had talked about were indeed characteristics of Street Photography but they did not define it.
Now I understand that 'Street Photography' is just 'Photography' in its simplest form, it is the medium itself, it is actually all the other forms of photography that need defining, landscape, fashion, portrait, reportage, art, advertising….these are all complicating additions to the medium of Photography, they are the areas that need to be defined, ring fenced and partitioned out of the medium of 'Street Photography'.
When a child picks up a camera and pushes the button that simple spontaneous image is a Street Photograph, it is, first of all, a raw reaction to the scene in front of it, a person, a car, a color. That primitive urge to react, to make a picture is at the heart of Street Photography beyond any other area of picture making, it comes before any other agenda.
So we are all Street Photographers before we narrow our sights and impose conditions and rules on ourselves to become Portrait photographers, Fashion Photographers, Landscape Photographers, Art Photographers (whatever that really means) etc.
Street Photography is Photography and so the second question is easily answered, the future of Street Photography is intrinsically tied to the future of the medium itself, while there is Photography there will be Street Photography because it is the Prime Mover, the evolutionary inheritance of all Photography.
As Street Photographers we need no longer explain ourselves, we need no longer wrangle over a form of words. It is for the rest of Photography to define itself, to explain what new and meritorious characteristics it has brought to Street Photography that make it different and worthy of note."
When Street Photography Started?
The genre of street photography started between the end of the 1800s. One of the assisting inventions of street photography was the 35-millimetre film. The 35-millimetre films were first introduced towards the late 1800s. Photographers of both Europe and North America spread the popularity of the genre and developed the art behind it. Some well-known street photographers of that time were Henri Cartier Bresson of France and Robert Frank of Switzerland.
Photography first emerged in the first half of the nineteenth century, but it wasn't until roughly the 1880s and 1890s that film speeds became advanced enough for a normal street scene to be captured (without having to use a long shutter speed that would normally result in blurs). Also around this time, the flash was developed, allowing the photographer to venture into areas that were once too dark for exposure.
Street photography stems out from another type of photography called documentary photography. Documentary photography was once known to be the most honest and truest to life picture taking. Street photography reflects society in its untainted natural state. This accounts for many photographs we see on the Internet and magazines that reflect what was happening at the time.
Art Becoming History
As time passes on, street photography goes from being a piece of art to a historical document. What might seem like ordinary street photography today will eventually become a window into the past, and that's what makes it great.
Bystander: A History of Street Photography
" … For the most part, however, the photographers discussed in these pages have tried to work without being noticed by their subjects. They have taken pictures of people who are going about their business unaware of the photographer's presence. They have made candid pictures of everyday life in the street. That, at its core, is what street photography is."
" … The street as it is defined here might be a crowded boulevard or a country lane, a park in the city or a boardwalk at the beach, a lively cafe or a deserted hallway in a tenement, or even a subway car or the lobby of a theater. It is any public place where a photographer could take pictures of subjects who were unknown to him and, whenever possible, unconscious of his presence."
Lewis Hine(1874–1940)
Jacob Riis (1849-1914)
Ralph Steiner (1899–1986)
Robert Doisneau (1912-1994)
Helen Levitt (1913–2009)
Garry Winogrand (1928–1984)
Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908–2004)
Coming tomorrow
Street Photography for dummies - A brief guide to Street Photography beginners.


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Getting involved with dance
Dance is a vibrant and popular part of many people's lives there are classes and groups available whatever your experience, age or abilities. If you would like to find out more about ballet or other dance styles about taking part as a hobby, an enjoyable form of exercise or a profession, or about watching some of the many professional and amateur performances that take place around the UK the following should offer you a starting-point.
Dance styles
There are many different styles of dance that you can participate in, such as Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Street Dance, Ballroom (includes dances such as Waltz, Foxtrot, Quickstep, Tango), Latin American (includes dances such as Jive, Cha Cha Cha, Rumba, Samba and Paso Doble), Line Dancing, Salsa, Break Dancing, Irish Dance, Bhanghra, Contemporary and Belly Dancing.
Choosing the right dance school or class
Choosing a local dance school or class to attend can be a difficult decision, here are some useful tips on what to think about:
When you have chosen a dance class:
There are many local dance schools and classes around the United Kingdom. They offer a range of dance subjects, and many offer dance examinations from one of the organisations mentioned below.
Dance organisations
Dance agencies
Other ways to get involved in dance
Getting involved in dance is not only about participating. There are theatres and arts centres all over the country that offer a variety of performances ranging from ballet and contemporary, to musical theatre. Local libraries and Tourist Information centres, as well as the venues themselves, can usually provide details of what's on.
Council for Dance, Education and Training
The Council for Dance Education and Training sets national standards for the dance industry. They have a register containing details of the teaching societies whose syllabuses have been approved by the Council. The CDET have a service which offers free information on all aspects of dance.
Website: www.cdet.org.uk
Telephone: 0207 240 5703


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In foreign policy circles - the suggestion's been made that talking with the Taliban, rather than killing them, could actually be a way to hasten the end of this long-running and seemingly futile conflict. That said, what do we really know about the bearded, apparently fanatical Islamist enemy who seem impossible to defeat? Well, a Norwegian video journalist, Paul Refsdal, decided to get some answers to that question, and recently took the phenomenal risk of placing himself in the hands of a Taliban commander in eastern
REPORTER: Paul Refsdal
For several weeks I waited in
The Taliban - they are fighting tall white men and I am a tall white man coming with a camera because if the Taliban suspect me of being a spy, they will execute me.
TALIBAN (Translation): He'll shit himself - he's so scared of us. The same way we are scared of that bald-head.
Everyone, nearly everyone was masked and they were behaving like unnatural. They were not relaxed at all.
TALIBAN 1 (Translation): What are you doing?
TALIBAN 2 (Translation): Pretend the camera is not there, act normal.
The second day, they were starting to relax. They took off their masks. They were joking, talking and acting normal. I was like a fly on the wall.
TALIBAN 3 (Translation): They want to show the world that this is the man. When they show my face,
they'll say "What a dumb guy."
DAWRAN, TALIBAN COMMANDER (Translation): Can you hear me? Khyber? When we were attacking on the front line we - almost lost our brains due to all the noise. Remember the shooting that evening? They hit a vehicle and it was totally destroyed.
Dawran is the one who approved my visit. He is a high-ranking Taliban commander in east
DAWRAN (Translation): We fight for freedom, our religion Islam and its principles. We are fighting for the freedom of our land. What are their goals? Why are they fighting us? Are they oppressed? Are they treated unfairly? Living in a dictatorship? Allah the All-Powerful will destroy them as He did many other great powers during the history of Islam and the world. They will face the same destiny.
TALIBAN, PRAYING (Translation): Let us pray. O Allah, we will do everything for You - Grant us freedom and destroy the infidels. Amen. Grant us unity. Amen.
DAWRAN (Translation): We need weapons on both sides. When we fire
with the heavy weaponry, their infantry will be helpless.
OMAR (Translation): If we have one weapon on each side and both fire at once, we'll kill them all. That's a good plan.
DAWRAN (Translation): Can you hear me, Khyber? Can you hear me?
OMAR (Translation): Here they are under attack from all sides. Sometimes one group attacks, sometimes another. They are constantly under attack.
DAWRAN (Translation): Let's go. Tell the children to take cover, and take cover too.
Down in the valley is a tarmac road used by American forces. From their position on high ground the Taliban were ambushing the American convoys all the time.
TALIBAN (Translation): - Are you in position? Okay, look after yourselves. Let the first vehicle pass,
then commence the attack. Paugi? Are you ready? - Strike with the aid of Allah.
DAWRAN (Translation): Tell Nasrat to change their position except those in defence.
you hear? Use the rocket launcher. Rafiq, fire the launcher.
DAWRAN (Translation): Fire from your post. You hit the vehicle, you hit it! May you live long. An American patrol is under attack in Tantil. 80 mujaheddin have taken part in the attack. Groups of ten have taken various positions. The patrol has been stopped - a vehicle destroyed and some troops killed, as you can see. They do this when they are wounded.
DAWRAN (Translation): Every fight, he acts like this. Allah is great!
Do you want to go to Uncle? He can take you for a drive. Okay? Do you want to go? What do you want? Do you want to bring presents? Come here. - Tell him what you did.
CHILD (Translation): I don't want to.
DAWRAN (Translation): Why did you break it? - Why did you break it?
CHILD (Translation): I don't want to say.
TALIBAN, SINGS (Translation): We have agreed to make an uproar. We have tightened the belt of holy war on our waists. We belong to Allah and have no fear of anyone. Every one of us expects a glorious dawn. Mother, give me your blessing and pray for me. My resolution is to bring down the enemy. I'll present my chest to the bullets of the enemy. Each young man will be a mujahed, all the mountains will be our trenches.
DAWRAN (Translation): Omar wants to talk with you.
OMAR (Translation): Yusef?
YUSEF (Translation): How are you, brother?
OMAR (Translation): Fine, thank Allah. What about you?
YUSEF (Translation): Everything is fine here. Fine.
DAWRAN (Translation): It's on channel 95.
The Americans have put a price on the head of Dawran, apparently $400,000 - Once a traitor tried to assassinate him.
DAWRAN (Translation): The traitor was dragged out of the car and hit with a rifle, but I stopped that as we were going to kill him. We took two men out of the back of the car and put him in there, dripping with sweat. When we arrived at the bridge and stopped the car, I told the boys that this was the spot. This place has some high cliffs. Shoot him and throw him off that cliff. When he got out of the car he couldn't walk. He was in very bad shape. I looked at him and half my hatred disappeared when I saw his pitiful state. We walked on. I looked at him again. The third time I looked at him, I felt he'd done me no harm. I put my hand on his shoulder and said "Jan Pacha, in the name of Allah the Almighty in the name of Allah the Almighty who created both you and me, I forgive you in His name. Get lost." He couldn't believe it. We told him to go, but he didn't. I said "I am a Muslim and give my word that you can leave."
DAWRAN (Translation): Can you hear me, Omar? Jawad and Omar, move to position number two. Obey the order! Allah is with us, don't worry. Both Omars, fall back.
The ambush has turned into something like a daily ritual. American convoys drive past the Taliban area. Sometime they hit a vehicle, sometime they don't.
DAWRAN (Translation): Now it is on rapid fire... now on semi-automatic, with just a flick of your finger. Rapid fire. This is a good weapon. A friend from the Korengal valley killed 30 Americans with such a weapon. The Americans even admitted it. When people talked to them, they said 'It's normal to be killed in a war, but not by such a weapon."
TALIBAN, SING (Translation): I bear witness that Mohammad is a messenger of Allah... Hurry to prayer...
Constantly there was
In the middle of the night, I woke up. The gunship was there, it was firing into the area. I just put on my camera and started to record the sound. A few minutes after, Dawran came. He was hammering at the door. He said, "Everyone, just leave your things, just go up into the mountains - we have to hide." I grabbed my camera and I escaped into the mountain and eventually I found a shed to sleep in.
Next morning I returned to the house of Dawran, I could see that something bad had happened. Dawran told me last night US special forces raided the house of his second-in-command, a man called Assad. They killed Assad and more than a dozen family members and Taliban fighters. The following night the house of Dawran will be attacked, he must therefore escape with his family deep into the mountains. I must return to
Returning to the same area, cameraman Paul Refsdal was kidnapped by Omar and held hostage for six days.
No ransom was paid.
A few weeks later
GEORGE NEGUS: And whether we think the Taliban's extreme Islamic tenets are right or wrong, how deeply motivated are they by their religion? And Paul Refsdal will be online from
Additional Camera
Hugin & Munin Films
Kjetil Johnsen
Production Manager
Original Music composed by
22nd August 2010


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$50 an hour on the assembly line?
Manufacturing pay in China has nearly tripled over the past decade. A similar rise in the US would have factory workers cheering, though not without potential consequences.
Americans can complain about China's wage advantage over the U.S. and its impact on manufacturing growth all they'd like. If American workers and employers pushed for the wage increases sought by Chinese workers, factory pay in the U.S. would be more than $50 an hour.
As Bloomberg discovered, pay for workers in China's manufacturing industry has nearly tripled in some cases as its labor pool thins and employees name their price at far-flung facilities. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, average hourly wages for China's manufacturing workers rose from 62 cents an hour in 2003 to $1.36 an hour in 2008.
Even that's a conservative estimate, as a more recent Japanese survey puts average monthly wages between $320 and $350. On the high end, that's roughly $2.20 an hour, or more than triple the average wage in 2003.
Had a similar push occurred in the U.S., the average hourly manufacturing wage of $15.61 quoted by the BLS would have soared to $46.23; in reality, it has struggled even to keep up with inflation, creeping up to $19.28. As China's discovering, however, such a leap comes with steep consequences.
What's driving the boost that, incrementally, is eating away at China's wage advantage over the U.S., Europe and other Asian countries like South Korea? Put simply, a nation of 1.35 billion people has a shortage of young, qualified industrial labor and its workers know it. In September, 2,000 employees rioted at a Foxconn facility in Taiyuan, calling for better working conditions and temporarily shutting down the plant used by the maker of Apple's (AAPL) iPad, Sony's (SNE) PlayStation and Amazon's (AMZN) Kindle products.
In October, pushback from workers at a Foxconn plant in Zhengzhou over a national holiday and vacation time sent ripples through Apple's iPhone 5 supply chain and forced both the tech giant and its supplier to publicly assure the world that all was well and that its precious tech playthings were still on the way.
As Foxconn and other China-based companies are discovering, according to Bloomberg, China's labor force is well aware that it's a rare commodity. Factories built in peanut fields well outside the cities are being forced to pay the workers the same wages as their urban counterparts, doubling workers' take in some cases.
Americans know all too well how this story plays out. While better wages and working conditions in China mean more potential buying power for Chinese workers and a boost to the overall Chinese economy as a result, it also means higher prices worldwide until price- and bottom-line-focused multinational businesses find their next rich pool of cheap and exploitable labor. China's already getting a bit ahead of itself on the "buying power" end of that equation by building vast developments of empty homes its citizens aren't quite ready to buy. But manufacturers are already looking to Vietnam, Bangladesh, Indonesia and the Philippines for their next low-cost labor pools.
China's surging wages won't help U.S. paychecks, but they just might give the global economy a needed boost.
Chinese wages increased $0.84
This guys is saying that equates to $30.62 in the US.
So, which one do you think would raise the price of the goods more.
Obviously, this guy does not know direct costing and how manufacturing costs affect the end costs.
This is two articles today where MSNBC has no clue.
First, find how many CEO's are worth $50 per hour and then complain about working people making that kind of money. At least, if our workers were making that kind of money, they would have spent it here in the United States and creating other jobs.
CEO's make thousands per hour and get paid whether they make the company money or drive it into oblivion. What is wrong about American workers making a living wage? What is right about Chinese workers getting paid peanuts for working in sweatshop conditions with no health care or regard for safety?
Don't kid yourself. I have been to China twice on business and while you still see the rickshaws here and there, you will never see more Lamborginis or Maseratis anywhere else.
And if as many economists predict, the Yuan displaces the dollar, then its over for us. We can only hope they will send us aid.
Is all I have to say is look in the mirror & thank our selves, because we are buying their crap. This so-called WORLD ECONOMY B.S. ain't no world economy. It's a U.S. economy supporting the WORLD! we need to bring our companies back home & take care of one-another (our fellow AMERICANS) FIRST, then we might think about sending MY money somewhere else. By the the way GOOD JOB CORPORATE AMERICA & THE GOVERNMENT FOR SENDING MY HARD EARNED MONEY OVERSEAS! Here is a fact for the nay-sayers trade deficit is roughly 50 BILLION U.S. dollars A MONTH, lets keep our money here & SUPPORT OUR FELLOW AMERICANS. We desrve it, we all work hard for our money.
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[BRIEFING.COM] The stock market finished an upbeat week on a mixed note. The S&P 500 shed less than a point, ending the week higher by 1.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.1%) cemented a 1.7% advance for the week. High-beta names underperformed, which weighed on the Nasdaq Composite (-0.3%) and the Russell 2000 (-1.3%).
Equity indices displayed strength in the early going with the S&P 500 tagging the 2,019 level during the opening 30 minutes of the action. However, ... More
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Latest Articles
Liverpool Aren't Even Exciting This Season
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Liverpool fans are seemingly resigned to slipping back into mediocrity, which in September isn't exactly ideal. Plus better Arsenal, Allardyce praise and an excited Saint...
Be Careful What You Wish For, Gooners
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That's the message from a Man United fan in the mailbox. Plus, thoughts on Paul Lambert's new contract, the Alan Pardew dilemma at Newcastle and lots more...
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A Bit Of Perspective
Although obviously being out of the Champions League will obviously hurt United, they will hardly be unique in the sense of a big club falling out of Europe's top competition or struggling domestically. In the last 10 years;
- Bayern Munich 2006-07 - finished 4th in Bundesliga (without a strong Dortmund, who came 9th) and missed out on Champions League
- Barcelona 2002-03 - finished 6th in La Liga. 6th!!
- Juventus - famously relegated for the match fixing scandal in 2005-06 and lost a number of key players including the likes of Zlatan. Back to the top soon after
- AC Milan - currently fighting in mid table (11th). And we think we've got it bad! But they've still be able to sign players like Balotelli and still linked with top players because the name and history counts for so much
- Inter post 2010 - after Jose came and won the Champions League, the money disappeared and the finances were stretched to breaking point during his time there. No Champions League for the past few seasons but are still able to attract signings. It does help that they now have a new owner willing to invest
- Liverpool - we all know about Liverpool's fight to get back into the Champions League and finally it appears that they will return to the scene of their greatest successes. United have more money to throw at getting back in than Liverpool did
What is key though is they all did return to pre-eminence after either a single or relatively few years of 'failure'. United just need to be patient. What next seasons does is give us a chance to regroup and get rid of some players that just are not good enough (Nani/Young I'm looking at you) while bringing in some new blood. It will help us if we don't qualify for the Europa League - look at Liverpool's run this year without worrying about extra fixtures and travelling across the continent.
United fans - calm down and keep the faith
Tom, Surrey (still long for the days of Beckham, Keane, Scholes, Giggs)
...In the Champions League, in the last 18 months, Bayern have won their group twice, put Arsenal out twice, smashed Juve 4-0 on aggregate and Barcelona 7-0 on aggregate and won the thing. Elsewhere, they've won their league twice, scoring (so far) 180 goals and only losing two games, and won their domestic cup (and are in the semi-finals of this year's cup).
Losing 4-2 on aggregate to them really isn't a shameful thing.
James Syme, London
The Death Of Tiki Taka
Is the Tiki Taka style of football dying out? I think so. Last night I watched Atletico tear Barcelona apart at will and in all honestly it should of been 4-0 inside 20minutes. Atletico played direct, fast paced attacking football. Barcelona had much more of the ball and barely created any decent chances.
A few years ago, Barcelona and also Spain were lauded as some of the best teams in history and to be honest, the Spanish team probably was. This style of football has been sussed out now and its being countered much more often and more effectively than it used to be.
Another thing is how incredibly boring it is to watch. Nobody wants to watch a team just pass the ball around their own half for 90 minutes. At times last night Atletico made it look like art the way they tore the Barcelona defence apart. Fast attacking football is the new 'cool' to watch these days - just look at the way Liverpool are attracting the support of some neutrals.
This season Liverpool have been irresistible to watch at times and they are top of the league - just like Atletico are in Spain. Anyway, my only real point was - it is now possible to play very attractive attacking football and win a hell of lot of games at the same time.
Jamie, LFC
...Following on from the email of Stephen (Can it be Sunday already) this morning, I have to agree that football seems to have evolved from the "tika-taka" heady days of 2007-11.
With Pep at the helm and Barca running riot in Spain and on the continent, a million intricate passes in and around the area often ended with a goal and widespread adulation. However, three years or so on, nobody is impressed by this way of playing anymore. Both Barca and now Bayern still play this way, and for the neutral, it is no fun to watch.
Defences have wised up to this "sterile domination" tactic, and as an Arsenal fan, I should know; we still play this way too. Time and again we go from left to right, and all the way back again along the front of the opposition box, and then, before we know it, they're breaking with four against three in their favour and actually get a shot off. Neither Wenger or Guardiola (or Martino, apparently) seem to have realised that counter-attacking with pace and more direct and quicker passing (not long balls, as such) are key to opening up teams these days. That's why we're so much better with Ramsey and Walcott in the side - they actually move forward at speed. They're not the best footballers in the league, but they're quick enough to be affective.
Liverpool battered us in February by playing quickly, pressing high and passing directly and Everton did exactly the same on Sunday. Atletico then watched with glee last night as Barcelona's passy-passy, one-paced play was soaked up with ease, and in the last ten minutes the only team likely to score looked the home one.
Tika-taka is dead, and I'd fancy Real to beat Bayern in the final if the semis allow it.
Joe, AFC, East Sussex
Oh, Mr Big Shot With The Girlfriend
My Juve supporting girlfriend made a good assessment of the United players under Moyes, their mentality has changed dramatically since the Fergie days.
Watching the game last night, I thought similar. The whole United team switched off (Except Rooney who was out for a run around) every time the ball went out of play. The goal was a direct result of a restart and was one of many times United tuned out and jogged back into position after conceding a throw or free kick etc.. I don't remember that happening collectively many times in the last 20 years.
These are still the same players who topped the charts last year. Their physical abilities haven't waned (In fact they should be better than last year!) but their mental abilities have definitely regressed to a point that this is now a shell of a team without a backbone. I'm sure there are many other examples of the change in mentality but this mail is long enough, others can add if they wish.
I know Johnny Nic thinks man management is an illusion but a good manager gets players to play above themselves, not congratulate decent performances with a 300k+ salary per week, not sending a team out without focus or direction on the biggest might of his career. Man management is a vital key in a successful coach and Moyes to my count has messed up situations with Vida, Rio and Evra, plus Giggs if reports are to be believed whereas he won over Rooney. Man management is crucial, it's another yardstick to beat Moyes with!
Anthony Kane, Milan
Liverpool Fan Says United Will Struggle
Watching the Bayern-United match last night, I really hoped they would get through, win the thing and send arsenal or Everton to the Europa league. Strange as it may seem coming from a Liverpool supporter, I sympathise with their upcoming predicament.
They will hold onto Moyes, at least for another 6 months. But when you look at the playing staff, it's a grim outlook.
Vidic, Evra, Giggs, Ferdinand, Hernandez, Nani, Van Persie, Kagawa, Zaha could all realisticly be gone this summer (ok, not all of them I'm sure but of those 9 I wouldn't be surprised if 6 or 7 of them go). Rooney will go if CL football is not attained for the season after next and what does that leave them with? Not much. De gea is too good to hang around for much longer, Januzaj will be snapped up by PSG/Bayern/Madrid within 3 years, Carrick has maybe 3 years left in him. Welback can't score goals, Mata in the near future will say to himself "what have I done?" (if he hasn't already) they can't replace that level of workforce with like-for-like or improved players straight away (or within a few windows).
Once Liverpool dropped out of CL it was plain to see we could not attract big name players. Costa, Willian, Eriksen, Salah, Mkhitaryan are all players we were linked with in the last two windows who decided not to come to Anfield. I wonder if the same players were available this summer would we have enticed one or two based on a successful season and CL football?
United will be able to get some players in, I'm sure they have the money, but what class of player? a lot of the players left are of average quality (smalling, jones, welbeck, Valencia, young, Fabio, Cleverley) and will need some of those 'top,top' players to come in beside them to raise their game a bit. I don't see a bright future for United.
B. Nolan 'can inverted commas be the new brackets' LFC
The MC Noticed It Too
I can't believe nobody in the morning mailbox picked up on Rooney screaming at Welbeck last night. Welbeck has the audacity to pass to Rooney (our 300k a week, undroppable main striker - thanks Moyes) who was free in a better position just in front of goal and because Rooney couldn't even finish his tea last night never mind a scoring opportunity he decided to scream in anger at Welbz.
Moyes should have subbed Rooney there and then, how dare he get annoyed with someone passing the ball to his feet. Danny Welbeck has been with the club since he was 8 years old, he loves the club and gives 110% every time he plays. He may not be able to finish as well as others but I'd rather have him over our future captain who gets paid almost a third of a million pounds a week to run around a lot, to say he was by far the best paid player on the pitch last night is laughable. Fit or not he is nowhere near people like Robben, Ribery etc who can actually make impacts on big games.
Many changes needed Moyes, I'm just gutted were not starting with the manager's position.
Orts (Moyes out since Aug 2013) MUFC
Reading this morning's mailbox I couldn't help but disagree with some of the sentiments sent in this morning.
I believe that it is overly simplistic to blame Evra wholly for the first 2 goals conceded. Doing this would be to treat the symptoms not the disease. Whilst I agree that he should not have let Mandzukic nip in front of him, the rot started earlier where Jones went AWOL and effectively left Fletcher on his own against 2 men, one who sent in a delightful ball that any striker worth his salt would attack with the zeal that Mandzukic displayed. Similarly, for the second, Valencia allowed Ribery to get to the byline and cross. It's not uncommon for a fullback to defend the farpost when a cross is delivered. It was somewhat fortuitous for Bayern that Ribery's cross was overcooked and found an unmarked Robben who duly crossed for their second goal where Vidic should get the same criticism levelled at Evra for the first goal. Conversely, I do blame Evra for the third where his initial missed tackle put all the other defenders on the backfoot and they struggled to recover against a player who is probably the fastest in the world when it comes to close control football.
I also think we shouldn't pat ourselves on the back too much on essentially not being embarrassed. We set out to defend which in my view is the easier option when playing football. Whilst I admit that the quality of the opposition warranted this approach, we failed to execute that which Chelsea perfected two years when they were in a similar position as we were.
A further corollary to Chelsea 2012 was how ruthless Chelsea were when presented with rare opportunities against Barcelona and Bayern. Welbeck and Rooney wasted 3 relatively straight forward opportunities over 2 legs that in my view were worse than Evra's errors. Welbeck's contribution over the 2 legs means that he should be forgiven, but Rooney was the real villain. I'm sure the narrative will absolve Rooney of blame because of his injury but his indecision the first time and, crucially, his poor finish at a critical juncture of the tie is unacceptable for a player of his experience.
Paul Sibanda


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3 Good Books on Civil Rights
February 13, 2013 Leave a comment
I happen to have read three books that deal with the rights of African-Americans just before Black History Month. Two of them are bestsellers I hadn't read before, but the one I'll mention first is a less-well-known book I've read a couple of times before and suddenly felt inspired to reread.
The Dismissal of Miss Ruth Brown by Louise S. Robbins is the story of a white librarian who was fired in 1950 because of her personal involvement in advocating equality for African-Americans. The official reason she was fired was that she had provided "subversive materials" in the library–books and magazines that were thought by the most paranoid conservatives to be advocating Communism–but that was greatly exaggerated. Really, the people running the town were afraid that her pro-integration activities would embarrass them and/or threaten their status. There was a long and convoluted campaign to get rid of her, complete with a sudden replacement of the library's board of directors, outrageous rumors, secret after-hours sneaking into the library's storage room to photograph books (which, in fact, had been removed from general circulation), and so on. It's a great story! For me, it's especially interesting because I grew up in that town (Bartlesville, Oklahoma) and this story is both a reminder that things were worse before I was born and a spookily familiar tale of "community leaders" who make policies based on their own stupid prejudices and force out everyone who disagrees with them, and of honest citizens afraid to speak up for what's right in a culture where personal choices can have mysterious, gossip-driven effects on people's employment and social lives. Most of the institutions and a few of the people who are major players in the story are familiar to me. But even if you know nothing about Bartlesville, small-town politics, or that part of the country, this is a really interesting story!
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot Read more…