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"Splendor, when applied to government, brought into my mind, instead of the highest perfection, all the faulty finery, brilliant scenes, and expensive trappings of royal government, and impressed my mind with an ideal quite the reverse of republican respectability which I thought consisted in form and prudent councils, frugality, and economy," wrote William Maclay, Senator from Pennsylvania, in his Journal for May 7, 1789. [1]
How, then, when the Senate moved to Philadelphia, could Maclay bring himself to enter a room full of furniture constructed by Philadelphia's most fashionable cabinetmaker, with the sort of carpet heretofore used only by wealthy and highborn English noblemen? How could other Americans, convinced that simplicity best served the people and that luxury led to the downfall of empires, reconcile their elegant chamber hung with aristocratic crimson silk and embellished with court portraits of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, with their frugal republican consciences?
The answer to these questions is complex, and involves American society's attitude towards aristocracy and towards the Senate, and the way the United States approached the questions of art if not luxury in government.
Taking the carpet out of context, one might conclude that the Senate thought of itself as a body of nobles like the House of Lords, which met in a luxuriously furnished chamber in the Palace of Westminster. That this is not altogether true is demonstrated by the caustic comments of William Maclay, and there were others like him. But in many ways, there was an attitude of superiority among the Senators, some of whom, privately at least, thought of themselves as privileged members of an aristocratic class. The seeming contradiction between this attitude and the principles of democracy can be explained by examining what the eighteenth century understood by the word "aristocracy."
In England the "aristocracy" were gentry of noble birth. No one could gain entrance to this feudal hierarchy of nobles except by marrying into it or, rarely, by being knighted. Next to this class was a group composed of lawyers, high civil servants like Prime Minister Robert Walpole, wealthy merchants, and governors of the Bank of England and the great chartered companies. Educated, cultivated, interested in the arts, they did not enjoy the same privileges of name as the aristocracy, but they had the same habits. They lived grandly, their families enjoyed a leisured existence in great mansions, and they spent as much on food and servants as any Peer of the Realm. Below this "beau monde" were tradesmen, country squires, provincial lawyers, and others with less wealth but high social standing. These were the heads of provincial society.
An unquestioned assumption supported this hierarchy: one's position in life was God-given, a mark of one's natural rank, and not to be tampered with. The beau monde was as proud of its position as the nobility; the middle class, while imitating the manners and life style of the gentry, did not aspire to enter the aristocracy in fact.
In America, however, things were quite different; no matter how natural the class system appeared to Americans, no person in America was an "aristocrat" in the English sense. That hierarchy seemed right and that one's position in it seemed God's will was as true in America as in England, but the harsh reality of an America newly won from the forests meant the demise of the feudal nobility as it was known in England. The constant hard work required of every plantation owner and wealthy landowner or merchant meant that there could be no real leisure class devoted to amusement and frivolity, as in England.
Instead, a new aristocracy of landholders and merchants arose, whose members had their beginnings as younger sons or daughters of English gentry or as penniless small farmers who built their lands through shrewd management into large estates. By the late eighteenth century there were a number of wealthy (by American standards; in England their fortunes would have been small indeed) merchants and farmers with large landholdings, numbers of wealthy families from the ranks of the law and the clergy, and officers of the victorious American army, to make the beginnings of an American upper class. In the South there were plantation owners, somewhat analogous to the noble country squires of England, who indeed thought of themselves as aristocrats and adopted what habits of the noble English families their means allowed.
Members of this upper class, however, of necessity devoted long hours to their work and, unlike many of their English counterparts, had been influenced enough by Enlightenment philosophy to devote themselves to the community at large instead of abandoning themselves completely to the extravagancies of easy living. These Americans studied science and literature, participated in local governments, contributed to education and religion, founded benevolent and humanitarian societies, and carried on other charitable works, lending a solid moral tone to their lives.
A new meaning of "aristocracy" emerged, a meaning congruent with the thinking of Thomas Jefferson and other American intellectuals of the Enlightenment. According to Enlightenment theory, when everyone was educated and equal opportunity reigned, talent would rise to the top. Because it would be a natural process, everyone else would respect this morally and intellectually superior "aristocracy" of talent. Society would be well organized; with everyone in his natural place there would be no disorder. Jefferson summarized it this way:
To the founding fathers, and indeed to most Americans in 1787, when the Senate took final form, the people of "genius and virtue" were the members of this new aristocracy, who had risen to the top of American society through the exercise of their natural ability and shrewdness. In this vein it is not surprising that many Senators believed themselves to be, in Jefferson's words, "the aristocracy of virtue and talent, which nature has wisely provided for the direction of the interests of society." [3]
This idea was reflected in debates during the Constitutional Convention of 1787, when the make-up of the Senate was decided upon. From the outset, it was agreed that the Senate should "control the democratic branch," give "stability" to the government, and in James Madison's words, "protect the people against the transient impressions in which they themselves might be led." [4] Others felt that rule solely by a popularly elected House of Representatives might be dangerously close to the tyranny of the mob. The Senate should be designed as a check against this dire possibility. Few disagreed with this position with its implicit understanding that it was possible to find persons of sufficient wisdom and authority to carry the day against popular but perhaps unwise expediencies.
Oliver Ellsworth of Connecticut proposed that "wisdom" be one of the characteristics of the Senate, and Charles Pinckney added that, "the Senate might be supposed to contain the fittest men." Pinckney even hoped it would become a "school of Public Ministers, a nursery of statesmen." [5] Never far from their minds was classical precedent: the Roman Senate, without which, they believed, Rome would never have flourished, was a patrician body composed of men who had in some way made a great contribution to the state.
After wrangling over the question of proportional representation in the Legislature, the Convention decided in "the Great Compromise" of July 16, 1787, that the states would have equal representation in the Senate, and proportional representation in the House. This alone gave the Senate a certain distinction by defining it as a smaller, more manageable body, less subject to diversions and more able to deliberate slowly, independently and in a dignified manner. To ensure that the "fittest" and "wisest" men would enter the Senate, the Convention voted to adopt Madison's proposals to "refine the appointment [of Senators] by successive filtrations." [6] They decided to elevate the Senators above the people by requiring them to be chosen by the state legislatures, removing them from what they regarded as the whim of direct election, a procedure which was not abandoned until 1913. In addition, the Convention prescribed a minimum age for Senators of thirty years, five more than for members of the House of Representatives, and a six year term, thus encouraging the wisdom of age, and the freedom to deliberate occasioned by lack of pressure for re-election.
In this way the form of the Senate emerged, carefully designed as a group not of propertied men, but of men of proven virtue and talent, recognizable to all people because they were chosen by state legislators, who were themselves men of distinction. Again and again the idea that the Senate would be an "aristocracy" crept in on both sides of each question debated in the Convention, but the sting of the word was largely removed by its special American connotation of moral strength, wisdom, and experience.
It is interesting to note that the members of the Constitutional Convention were themselves idolized as a kind of Senate of talent and wisdom. On July 4, 1787, James Campbell gave an oration in the German Lutheran Church on Race Street in which he addressed the members of the Convention as "Illustrious Senate!" [7] From France Thomas Jefferson looked upon its members as "an assembly of demigods." [8] The Pennsylvania Gazette of August 22, 1787 praised it: "Such a body of enlightened and honest men perhaps never before met for political purposes, in any country upon the face of the earth." Some of this feeling was bound to carry over to the Senate of the First Congress, in which one third of the Senators had been members of the Convention.
There was, however, another current at work in American thinking which kept the Senate from bedecking its chamber with tapestries and gilt as in the House of Lords. This was an almost pathological fear of luxury in government, and it is this which, above all, William Maclay expressed in the statement which opened this discussion. More than anything else, profligate luxury stood in American minds for all the failings of monarchy. Do away with the court and the nobility, the two groups most guilty of misusing luxury in England, and society would be the better in all respects. In America, consciously patterning itself on the best examples of history, luxury could be clearly identified as a major cause of the destruction of Troy and Ninevah, the downfall of the Roman Empire, the excesses of Renaissance Popes, the oppressive actions of George III, and now in 1789 the tottering of the monarchy in France. In view of this, Thomas Jefferson insisted, "I am for a government rigorously frugal and simple." [9] Agreed John Adams, praising the American Constitution, "luxury is less dangerous in a mixed government than any other, has less tendency to prevail; and is much more easily restrained to such persons and objects as will be least detrimental to the public good." [10]
If luxury in government was to be feared and expunged, this did not mean that there could be no decoration, no ornament, no ceremony in its conduct. Indeed, there was a reason why "restrained" luxury could be permitted, even encouraged, in the chambers devoted to the business of State. Although never could a republican government allow extravagance and frivolity, the United States needed to set an example of "good taste" before the world. Suddenly, as Jefferson noted in his inaugural speech of 1801, America freed from European domination had become, "A rising nation, spread over a wide and fruitful land, traversing all the seas with the rich productions of her industry, engaged in commerce with nations who feel power and forget right, advancing rapidly to destinies beyond the reach of mortal eyes." [11]
When, as they always did while evaluating their situation, Americans looked back to classical times, they saw evolutionary cycles of development for each nation and empire of the past, first an optimistic rise to a period of glory, then, slowly, decline and fall. In comparison with these ancient empires America was on the rise, at the beginning of a cycle, a truly young nation. Moreover, because the founding fathers had consciously attempted to choose the best from history on which to model their new American society, changing and adapting to fit the American condition, this Republic would be the finest the world had ever seen, "advancing to destinies beyond mortal eyes."
In all things the United States would set an example for the rest of the world. The carefully selected "mixed" form of government would produce the happiest citizenry, which would produce the most plentiful crops in its fields and most useful inventions for its manufactories. The enterprise of its merchants would spread American commerce around the world.
Neither would the United States take second place in the fine arts. Joseph Hopkinson summed up in 1810 an attitude which had prevailed ever since the country had recovered from the devastation of the Revolutionary War: "The sagacity, ardour, and inventive ingenuity of the American character are all calculated to carry us to a high state of perfection in the arts," he said at the inauguration of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Here again, America could take the best of what Europe had to offer, "the honest industry, the cultivated intellect, the refined taste and improved genius which comes to enrich;" and transplant it to American soil to be expanded and improved by American resourcefulness. [12]
Rumors were rife in Europe that the American climate was unsuitable for the development of the fine arts, and that already Americans were barbarians when it came to culture and good taste. To counteract these suspicions, every element in American official conduct needed to show off American good taste and prove that Americans were as capable as anyone else of appreciating the finer points of life.
This is what Jefferson meant when in mid-construction he urged the redesigning of the State Capitol in Virginia, "weighing the loss of what had already been begun" to another design against "the comfort of laying out the public money for something honorable, the satisfaction of seeing an object and proof of national good taste, and the regret and mortification of erecting a monument of our barbarism, which shall be loaded with execrations as long as it shall endure." [13] Jefferson considered himself a man of great good taste in an age when "good taste," like "knowledge," was a universal and eternal truth, a mark of the classical hero which could be approached and grasped by the truly enlightened and cultivated mind. He did not apologize for his enthusiasm for the fine arts, since "its object is to improve the taste of my countrymen, to increase their reputation, to reconcile to them the respect of the world, and procure them its praise." [14]
To procure the praise of the world, then, as well as to please the aristocratic tastes of the Senators, the chamber on the second floor of Congress Hall acquired simple but elegant chairs and desks of the finest construction and design then available, silk damask curtains; and accepted for its walls the gift of portraits of the King and Queen of France who had come so unhesitatingly to the aid of the country during the Revolution. An elegant green and red silk canopy true to parliamentary tradition was designed to hang over and around the Vice-President's chair, to demonstrate to the world the importance and dignity of his position as second officer of this new and soon-to-be glorious nation. A luxurious neoclassical carpet was designed in America to provide yet another demonstration of good taste and right thinking. That the carpet should be neoclassical in design was almost a foregone conclusion, because Americans of the late eighteenth century looked at the world through eyes dazzled by the glory of the ancients.
They identified themselves with classical heroes, had busts of themselves sculptured wearing classical garb, and even referred to each other as "new Romans." The education of a man of taste, wisdom, and virtue began with the study of the classics. Young men learned to score points at debate by quoting classical precedent. Later, they discovered what they hoped would be the road to the perfect republic in the study of the rise and fall of classical empires. From these studies emerged the American hero: working unselfishly for the public good, the best American possessed the Roman virtues of gravity, integrity, courage, simplicity, and a firm respect for law. [15] Patrick Henry spoke like a classical orator; he reminded Thomas Jefferson of Homer. George Washington's chiseled face, dignified bearing, and direct, cool gaze even gave him the look of a Roman hero. Washington was such a perfect embodiment of the virtues of the classical hero he was sometimes referred to as "the new Cincinnatus."
In every debate throughout the Revolutionary period, the classics were called to witness. John Adams, writing a Defense of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America in 1787, spent a whole volume discussing classical forms of government. The debates in the Constitutional Convention of 1787 referred constantly to ancient precedent. The Federalist Papers, written over the pen name "Publius," argued for the adoption of the Constitution by citing examples from Greek and Roman history. Letters opposing The Federalist appeared in contemporary newspapers; their authors signed themselves Cato and Caesar.
Every important controversy called forth appeals to the classical past. In the debates on the formation of the Senate, members of the Convention of 1787 looked to the Senates of Rome, Carthage, Athens, and Sparta. James Wilson argued that liberty had been lost in Carthage and Rome when the mob encroached on the authority of the Senate. James Madison wrote in the Federalist Papers: "There was no long-lived republic that did not have a Senate," and described how the Senates of Sparta, Rome, and Carthage served as "an anchor against popular fluctuations." [16] He proposed that the Senate be small, like the Areopagus of Athens. The word "Senate" itself was a classical allusion.
In the end, the Senate was not patterned directly after the Senates of ancient times. Partly this was because members of the Convention never intended to borrow directly from Rome. Instead, as everyone did in the eighteenth century, they read and quoted classical texts for effect, selecting the ideas that suited them. As Richard M. Gummere observed in The American Colonial Mind and the Classical Tradition, frequently the same classical passage was used as an illustration for both sides of an argument. "Instead of theorizing, they took from the past whatever was relevant to their own concerns and transmitted the material into their own language. ... They were 'amateurs' rather than 'professionals,' and their leaders ... were interested in the spirit rather than the techniques of Greece and Rome." [17]
So it was with art. The neoclassical style suited these men with its clean simplicity and rational proportions. Here again, however, the forms of the past were not copied directly but adapted to fit particular situations. Jefferson based his designs for Monticello not on one specific classical example, but on many, taking versions of the architectural orders from Palladio, James Gibbs, and Robert Morris, books by all of whom he owned. In the interior, he combined various Roman elements taken from Desgodetz Edifices Antiques de Rome.
The neoclassic also appealed to American leaders, because, in the words of Neil Harris, "it made up the stylistic negation of luxury. To build in the classic, to stress the simple, to emphasize realism in portraiture and geometry in architecture meant an eschewal of elaborate ornament and an avoidance of the visual richness which, to Americans like Jefferson, hung over the decayed Continent like an evil breath of tyranny." [18] In 1793 the Commissioners of the City of Washington wrote of their building plans for the Federal City, "We wish to exhibit a grandeur of conception, a Republican simplicity, and that true elegance of proportion which correspond to a tempered freedom excluding Frivolity." [19] In search of workers trained in the neoclassical style, the Commissioners went to France. It is clear that the neoclassic represented "Republican simplicity" to them; their words are an echo of William Maclay, in his search for "republican respectability, frugality, and economy."
With this classical background in mind, and with an understanding of the cultural milieu which produced it, the twentieth century observer can find in the Senate carpet a door to the past, to the mind and feelings of the men who gave this country its first impetus toward confidence and stability. As an object, its neoclassical symbols and luxurious modernity (for its day), were revelatory of men whose world view encompassed both respect for the past and optimism for a future where classical ideas of moderation and self control would produce a serene and just republic. It is not too much to take quite seriously the remark, meant humorously, of the anonymous newspaper writer of 1791, who called it "the most splendid carpet that ever was made."
Last Updated: 30-Nov-2007


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"I'm always searching all over the world for works of beauty to make them mine. And whatever I want, I get. It's my personal policy."From Eroica With Love is, as the title implies, a James Bond spoof. It's one of the longest running manga in Japanese history, having been going strong since 1976. It stands out for never having been animated, despite being quite popular (the creator dislikes animation), and for using Comic Book Time, despite being largely realistic.The series begins in the Cold War Era, with the introduction of the flamboyantly gay art thief (and Robert Plant lookalike) Earl Dorian Red Gloria, also known as Eroica. Together with his hapless assistants (James, Bonham, and several others), he aspires to steal gorgeous art, wear gorgeous clothes and spout gorgeous poetry. Soon, however, he meets his match in the German Major "Iron" Klaus Heinz von dem Eberbach of NATO Intelligence, who swears to catch Eroica with the help of his terrified subordinates.The chemistry between these two characters has kept the series going for over 30 years. Neither Klaus nor Dorian will let go of their target: Klaus, being practically asexual, stubbornly refuses to acknowledge Dorian's obsession with him, and Dorian, who sees Klaus as a "work of beauty" truly worth stealing, refuses to believe that Klaus doesn't want him.Basically, it's Road Runner vs. Coyote set in Europe. And the roadrunner wants to screw the coyote.
— Dorian
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Scott Wells - Making a difference for 3.
Scott Wells - Making a difference for 3.
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Posted :
Tuesday, September 11, 2012 1:23:34 PM(UTC)
Rank: Hall of Famer
Joined: 3/16/2007(UTC)
Location: North Central Wisconsin
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Spending some of that free agent money for a good use. Well done sir.
Center Scott Wells, who played with the Green Bay Packers from 2004 through 2011 and now has a new home with the St. Louis Rams, spent part of his offseason insuring that three Ugandan children had a new home of their own, as well. Wells and wife Julie, who have three biological children, started to really feel the imperative to adopt in recent years, and an interesting set of circumstances took them to Africa to add to their family.
From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
"We've always wanted a large family," Wells said, "And about six years ago we lost twin boys on Thanksgiving Day — they were stillborn. And since that moment, we kind of started talking about adopting.
"We had a lot of friends adopt, and it kind of seemed like it was something God was pushing us towards. The school my (biological) kids attend in Nashville, there's a lot of adoptions at that school. We'd started talking about it, we'd read a couple of books on it, and then we said, 'Well, that's something we'd like to do some day.'
"And then it was almost like everywhere we turned there was somebody who had adopted. I felt like God was really hitting me in the face with it. So once we had our last child, we got serious about it."
The Wells family wanted to adopt children from less fortunate countries, and their research took them to Uganda, in part because some family friends had adopted Ugandan children.
"To us, and talking to people who have done mission work over there and have adopted over there, the need was great," Wells said. "HIV's huge over there, malaria, tuberculosis. The life expectancy's not great; it's very low. The majority of the population's young because people don't live to be old. So we really just felt ... that's where we were being led."
Wells' wife started the process about a year-and-a-half ago, contacting orphanages in the area and explaining her family's desires and overall situation. One orphanage responded with the thought that they had two children who were perfect for them. The Wells family wanted to adopt two kids, both under age 3. But as it turned out, two-year-old R.J. had a sister named Caroline. After some discussion, the Wells family decided to go all in and adopt three instead of two.
"We decided to keep the brother and sister together," Wells said. "I said, 'What's the difference between five and six kids?' "
There were complications when Scott and Julie traveled to Uganda to complete the process. To prevent any possibility of infection, Scott had to wait until the sutures from his recent knwee surgery had closed. Once that was clear, there was the matter of inter-country adoption, which is more complex where they were headed.
"There's a lot of corruption that you're fighting," Wells, who signed a four-year, $24 million contract with the Rams in March, said. "Going into it we were really trying to keep quiet what I did for a living; how much finances we had or whatever. There's a little bit of that you have to disclose for the courts. They want to make sure you're financially responsible, that you can handle the children you're wanting to adopt.
"The key was to go in there as quietly as possible. I had to sign a contract with the orphanage saying I wouldn't discuss it via Twitter, Facebook, the media. Basically, I had to keep everything hush-hush until it was finalized. That's why Coach (Fisher) did an outstanding job of helping me keep it quiet. Because I had to tell (the Rams) so I could get permission to go."
I think when there's enough will and aggression, there's no shortage of talent either.
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Posted :
Tuesday, September 11, 2012 1:27:52 PM(UTC)
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He was recently placed on IR with the option to return. Good to see stories like this though. Christian Bale did another really nice thing recently too. it's a shame they don't get more publicity.
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I hate SouthWest and will not fly with them again. They should accomodate people of all sizes.
I disagree with Not Overweight. I applaud SWA for kicking this fat idiot off the plane. Lose some weight and stop blaiming others for your condition. I'm sure there was a "do you know who I am" exchange.
They do accomodate people of all sizes. They let you buy a 2nd seat, and then refund it after travel is completed!
SW are douche bags. Boycott them.
Kevin Smith – you are making a fool of yourself. You should be embarrassed for pulling this stunt.
For all that support his stance, would you want to be the person having to sit next to him? I sure wouldn't want to be!
SWA policy states that if both arm rests cannot be lowered the passenger may be required to buy a second ticket. Kevin Smith's picture clearly showed that both arm rests COULD be lowered. Which means that met SWA's policy and they still kicked him off.
SW and other airlines need to consider the "embarrassment" factor on both sides. You DON'T take someones money, take and load their bag and then seat them, only to pull them off the plane in front of a loaded plane. The airlines have measuring devices so that you don't bring on too big of a carry-on bag. They should be able to figure out that someone is too big BEFORE they are seated and strapped in. It's very easy to say "Loose the weight", but, since none of you "Doctors" know what you are talking about, think more along a policy change.
From what I've read and heard from Kevin Smith, the SWA "Apology" has been a twitter response and a blog posting. Not quite sincere, obviously not quite effective, and all so worrisome.
And from this article, I am concerned regarding the apparent subjective policy SWA has regarding the allowance of its customers/passengers to be on board.
I've never read the fine print on purchasing an airline ticket, but would actually like to know as a paying customer what instances may I be turned away and what recourse I may a have.
Kevin Smith was able to sit properly per the SWA official guidelines. However because it appears he purchase 2 seats on occasion as a personal preference not necessity and not a person of slight figure, someone from the SWA organization made an erroneous call to have him removed based on his appearance.
SWA needs to explain the specific reason why Kevin Smith was removed from that flight and show that it is a consistent policy on their part. I hope to see the pilot and personal involved in the mater explain their reasoning rather than a quick passive-aggressive twitter blog post
Instead of an apology to Kevin Smith, SWA should either provide a detailed honest defense of their actions or reflective atonement of their policy that led to Kevin's removal from the flight.
SW thought they were kicking an anonymous schlub off of the plane and used the fact that he had bought two tickets (to have some privacy ) on the flight (even though he passed their size test) to throw him off of the plane and give the seat to someone who paid more money for it. I am sure that the seat did not go un-utilized on that flight. Now Southwest is "sorry" that they didn't heed their own guidelines. NO, they are "sorry" that they were caught throwing someone who passed their size/ weight test off of the plane who happened to have a large Twitter following. Southwest – YOU LOSE! Apologize (again) and give the man a free flight voucher!
Can someone explain to me why you would buy a second seat on an airline that doesn't have assigned seating under the guise that you don't want to talk to people? How about all those awkward conversations as people board the plane? "Is that seat taken?" "Yes, by me." "Is that seat taken?" "Yes." "Is that seat taken?" [Etc.]
Sorry, but it doesn't fly.
And I don't like sittiing next to people who touch me during the entire flight, fat or otherwise. It is harassment.
Too many fat people only care about their "rights". Me, when I buy a ticket on a plane I expect to NOT have someone's body mass pushed directly on me for the entire flight. Buy two tickets and don't expect special treatment..ever. I don't.
The lesson here is take the train. Airlines in the US will all treat you like the lowest form of scum, whether you are lean or fat, because they can. You need to decide how long you want to give such people your money.
SW you have been caught again on this subject. Drop this rule before you get into a class action lawsuit for humiliating people–no I am not overweight–easy to track available seats with the way you line up passengers–if one of your too happy face gate people see a problem materializing with insufficient seats then you have technically overbooked–do what every airline does, offer to buy seats—
How about the rights of the rest of us. I have traveled on flights having someone's "body mass" hanging over the armrest taking up a quarter of my space. Don't others have a right to the space they purchased?
On most airlines Kevin Smith flies first class but as that's not an option on Southwest he buys an extra seat. He has enough money to be more comfortable and only used Southwest because he can fly direct from Burbank to San Francisco. There was no problem with him fitting in the seat and the other passengers in his row did not voice a problem with his size. It's also been reported that there were bigger passengers on the same flight. Southwest just made the mistake of picking the wrong fat guy to kick off the plane.
I have logged several million miles over several decades as a very frequent flyer. Only once and recently have I been ambushed by this apparently secret SWA "customer of size" policy. It seems to me that SWA has a legal obligation to publicize its policies and enforce them with objective standards so that we don't get capriciously ambushed by any SWA staff member who's having a bad day.
@13th and K: Do you get on every crowded bus/train or do you sometimes wait for the next one, hoping that it might have fewer people on it? There you go.
@Michael: As Kevin Smith's own picture will show he fit just fine between the arm rests (SWA's test) and wasn't spilling into the seat next to hime.
He passed their fat test and should've stayed on. That's what he's mad about.
To MFK, anonymous schlub and others railing on fat people, you need to learn more compassion. You completely focus on "fat people" like they are second class citizens. Virtually all morbid obesity is directly related to disease factors, such as obsessive complusive disorders, depression, other mental health issues and metabolic disorders. If we use this standard as a measure of fitness to fly, then we need to restrict flying to only healthy people–no alcoholics (recovering or otherwise), no drug addicts (sober or not), no MS patients, no turrets syndrome sufferers, blah, blah blah.
What your prejudice against "people of size" has blinded you to is the fact that Southwest Airlines allowed Mr. Smith to move from a flight with two seats (the real reason is not important) to a flight with only one seat, allowed him to board the flight and then had him removed because he was too large to fit into a single seat. SWA knew Mr. Smith had two seats on the original flight yet they consolidated him to a single seat to make more money.
As a side note, SWA is the only airline which has made a public issue of the POS policies of all airlines, which have been in existance for 20+ years. What SWA (or other airlines) refuse to publicly acknowledge is they have reduced the size of the passenger space by nearly 20% over the last 20 years. As such, the result is the number of passengers qualifying for POS status has increased significantly, the result of decreased passenger space as well as increased passenger size (some are more overweight, but the average human is also larger than 20 years ago).
As a former POS, I can attest to the fact that airlines are not truly concerned about the comfort and safety of passengers over the ability to generate more revenue. When I was morbidly obese and had to travel via airplane, I would always either obtain a first class seat or two seats if first class was not available. I did not want to make anyone else uncomfortable by having to be squeezed for space by me. However, 90% of the time, the flight was overbooked and the airline would take my second seat to sell to someone else. While I would receive a refund of the charge for the second seat, my attempt to "play by the rules" was overruled by the airlines' desire to make more money.
SWA screwed up by its poor treatment of a passenger who has the forum to shine a light on the issue. They do this every day to ordinary people without a forum.
SWA did the right thing and I fully support them. I am 6 feet tall and weight 150 pounds and have inquired to SWA in the past about purchasing a second seat for my comfort they said that they will only sell a second seat to "people of size." They will not sell a second seat for "privacy" or comfort.
So American's in general are bigger than they were 20 years ago. The airline industry makes money on how many bodies they can stuff in a plane.IE: Southwest being called the cattle car. There is a huge difference in seat sizes and seat belt lengths between planes. In general full size jets and Embar are slightly bigger seats where Canadian Regionals are smaller seats and belt length is different.
I am a big guy and always get a aisle seat. I try to be considerate as possible to the people I fly with. My shoulders are to wide for the window seat. I also question when they put a tall person in a seat. If the pilot considers a large person a danger what about a tall person who has his knees crammed into the back of the seat in front of them. He sure can't get out quickly. If he gets stuck then I am still at risk from a safety perspective. I agree with the one poster that when a person is so large that they can't sit even in a aisle seat then there is a issue.
OMG, how embarrassing would it be to be denied a flight because I am too fat? I will NEVER fly this airline! I've flown many times, always sit next to my husband (who doesn't mind my leg touching his) or we ask for and pay for the larger forward seats on some airlines. After all, I don't like to be crowded either. But come on — fat is not so unusual these days, is it? Take a look around. We are not second class citizens, yet we are the last group that it's still considered politically okay to make fun of. Dave Letterman and Jay Leno still find it okay to make fat jokes on TV for god's sake! Don't you think life is hard enough for us, without making us embarrassed and miserable too?
It was a Judgment call. Get over it. Choose another airline. Better yet, eat less and live longer.
I'm big – 6-3 220 pounds and I regularly fly SWA Burbank-Oakland. If Smith is wider than I am it's a personal decision related to his diet. If he wants to fly, he should either eat more responsibly or buy two seats so that someone like me doesn';t have to endure his FAT BODY all over a seat that I paid for. I fully support SWA's decision and hope that other FAT people will choose AA or United.
I was fat my whole life until I decided that I didn't want to be fat anymore. As long as fat people blame things other than their own habits for being fat, they will always be victims and the situation will never change. Take some responsibility and change it. I've lost over 85 lbs. It was tough, it had it's share of setbacks, but I did it. Others can too. In the mean time, quit whining when you don't fit in seats or other small areas and instead put that effort into taking responsibility for yourself and change some habits.
If it's the policy, and you are too fat, than you should not get an apology
Kevin is right, in the sense he passed the Fat test – and the airline should simply apologize as they are in the wrong, not because they have a fat test, but because the applied it in an unfair manner.
But we do need the fat test. Otherwise, I as a not-fat person are subsidizing your weight on the plane. It is not a value judgment of whether you are fat or not. It is a matter of the fact that being "person of size" does not entitle you to 1/3 of my steak at Morton's, being such a person does not entitle you to 1/3 of the seat I paid for on the airplane.
I do agree that they should be more compassionate about how they enforce the policy. You should never get to a point where you are on a crowded plane doing the fat test.
How sad and ugly this world has come to. All the cruel remarks that have been written on this blog, I am sure the ones making these statesments are the ones in school who tormented and made fun of people that are different. It used to be the passengers were treated like customers by the airlines instead of being treated that it is a privilege to fly on their airline. The pilots and flight attendants anymore are rude and disrepectful because they can be, there is no more customer service what so ever with any airline, and it seems that the flight attendants make up the rules to fit their needs. I flew Continental Airlines not long ago and couldn't figure out what seat was mine because the seats were moved so close together that the rows were not lined up with the numbers on the baggage compartment. I travel alot and never when I'm purchasing a ticket does it ask my height and weight. Same on you SWA!!!!! Hope I never have to fly with you!!!! I think I will make it a point I will never fly with SWA.
Does anyone think that it is interesting that Kevin Smith bought two SWA tickets, not because he is fat but because he is anti-social? Since you can choose any seat on SWA, how would he have explained it if someone wanted that seat next to him? It's bad enough that he is too fat; it's even worse how he has to hide behind his excuses.
Kevin Smith is in denial like a lot of fat people are. Otherwise he can just give us the numbers and we'll see if the BMI says he's overweight, obese, morbidly obese. These are clearly defined medical terms. As oppose to jaming the armrest down. Look at his MacWorld pictures and videos, there's no way that he'd be fitting a 17″ wide seat.
I'm sick of fat activists. Losing weight is not rocket science these days. If these policies shame people into dieting, it's probably all better for their health in the long run.
SW doesn't owe Mr.Smith an apology. He should have purchased two seats or waited for his original flight where he already had two. I paid for one seat and I expect to have all of it. Too many times I have had to be cheek to cheek with someone other than my dance partner.
I do have empahy for those who are overweight; I realize the struggle to loste just 20 lbs. Nonetheless, if this policy was not in place, average-sized people would be forced to respectfully suffer in silence. Last February I was in an uncomfortable situation as a morbidly obese person barely fit in the seat next to me. Honestly the fat was sitting on top of the armrest and pushing me into my side for nearly 3 hours. Even now. I can't think of anyway that situation could have been handled differently. Due to a flight cancellation, there was not an extra seat on the plane that I could request to move to.instead. Although, I am saddened at the hurt and the embarrassment that Kevin Smith faced, considering he bought an extra ticket for a reason, he should not have accepted a flight where only one seat was available. Hopefully, this will be the motivation he needs to lighten the load and get on a healthy diet and exercise plan.
I've had to sit next to people like Kevin Smith. It is not fun and can and usually does ruin your comfort.
Why would be buy two seats for the original flight if he thinks he can fit into one?
Good job, SW. I support you. Well, until you apologized. Stand your ground. I pay just as much for my seat as Kevin Smith, and I don't need his girth or shoulders or … in my darn space.
Smith is out for publicity, especially after all this time. It would be most unprofessional of SW to take him up on his challenge.
If the majority of the population is overweight (not obese, just overweight) like Americans, then the airline industry and others should adjust. Perhaps the seats need to be just a little bit wider on airlines. Seriously, you don't have to be but 10-15 pounds overweight to be uncomfortable in airline seats. I do believe that if you are so large that you require two seats, then you should purchase two seats. However, I don't know that Kevin Smith is that large. Being overweight and obese are two very different things.
Kevin rules. I believe him over Southwest because he is one of the most brutally honest people in show busines, and I've never known him to tell a little fib, let alone a flat-out lie. No doubt Southwest is doing its corporate backpedaling now to avoid embarrassment. Kev is chubby for sure (ok, he's fat — but he owns it), but I would bet he fits in the SW seat. Besides, every time I'm on a SW flight I get a screaming baby sitting next to me — how come they don't charge extra for those?
Why doesn't anyone EVER make mention of the fact that the seats in coach on all airlines are cramped – for EVERYONE, except maybe the very young and the very anorexic! They're stuffing those big plans like so much metal sausage! United came up with "economy plus" seating, giving passengers a whopping 5″ more leg room, and I'm telling you, even that makes a huge difference between knees-in-your lap for a 4 hour flight and the possibility of actually stretching them out a tiny bit! I don't think it's too much to ask to have a decent amount of space available to every passenger. (And don't even get me started on the self-absorbed people who slam their seats back to full recline the second the flight takes off!)
It's stated several times Kevin Smith buys two tickets every time for comfort and for privacy. I'm not fat and if I could afford it I would buy myself 2 seats too. For those asking why he buys 2 seats he explains that in his smodcast. He was already seated with the armrests DOWN and they made him get up. The women seated next to him both said they were comfortable and not squished. There was absolutely no reason to humiliate him like that.
What about people with crying children, smelly people, broad shoulders, long legs, people that keep the seats back for the entire flight, people who snore the entire flight, pass gas, fall asleep on your shoulder.. etc etc……
There are many situations where people encroach on our space in planes. The planes are way too cramped. I can see a morbidly obese person who cannot get the armrests down and get the seatbelt on purchasing 2 seats for their own comfort and for the comfort of the person next to them but that person would have to be pretty big. But what about all the other people that are annoying on flights. Gonna charge for that too?
"It's stated several times Kevin Smith buys two tickets every time for comfort and for privacy."
Stated otherwise, he is not so fat that he need the extra space? And therefore, this was just an intentional act to humiliate him? How does that make sense to you?
SW does not have assigned seating. So if he doesn't want to talk to people, how was that work? Have you even flown SW? It is every man/woman/child for themselves. He would have to interact with every single person who wanted to sit next to him. No "shy" person I know would put themselves through that.
Kudos to KS for buying two seats, but if you try to go standby on an earlier plane and they only have one seat, you are sol (by your own admission).
I'll bet your readers don't know that Southwest's Conditions of Carriage do not allow a passenger to buy an extra seat for his own comfort. Like Smith, I'm overweight but can lower both armrests. I also buy an extra seat, and I do not expect nor ask for a refund. Southwest was always glad to take my money — that is, until they overbooked a flight I was on. I'd already checked in and had my 2 boarding passes in hand, but they made me give up one seat saying I'd violated their Conditions of Carriage. Believe me, I know this makes no sense and seems to contract their Passengers of Size policy, but it happened to me! I tried to do the right thing and was punished for it. (For 13th and K, passengers who buy 2 seats under the Customer of Size policy are allowed to preboard so they are assured of having 2 adjacent seats.)
Its time Airlines gave a combined passenger and luggage wieght limit
The prejudice against obese people is so evident by those who post comments like "he is fat so he should stop being in denial, buy two tickets or lose weight." Did none of you read the article? Kevin Smith did purchases two tickets. Southwest did not accomodate his two tickets because they could make more money by selling his unoccupied seat. And for this, he was humiliated in front of a plane full of people.
Prior to losing all my weight, I never flew Southwest because their online reservation system does not allow a POS to purchase two tickets under the same passenger name. One has to call reservations, explain the situation, and request two tickets. Even then, they read some lame statement about overbooking flights and possibly not having the second seat available (even though they gladly take your money for two tickets). What they are really saying with their policies and their action is they do not want fat people on their planes so take your fat ass business elsewhere.
What has this world come to? Clearly this is a Corporate greed situation. And pleeeeease…. all you folks that are in judgement of Kevin Smith should re-examine you conscience. They should have stopped him before boarding and since they did not do that they should have considered the opinions of those folks that shared the row with him. If they had no complaint then why the problem?
No sympathy for Mr. Smith. Just how much does the dude weigh? There's overweight and then there's obese. I once had to endure a flight next to an obese person on a full flight. It was horrible. My "neighbor" was worse than arrogant about it too. So why should I pay full fare and then have half my seat consumed by another's overflow? I'm normal size, not skinny and could probably lose 10 or 20 like many people. But I certainly more than fit in my seat. If you're that fat, you just have to get two seats together. I'd say it's awfully nice of those airlines to refund one of the two seats if the flight's not full.
email@example.com I was harrassed by southwest 6 months ago for being to unsafe to fly on my returning flight..i was paid money and was given three tickets to anywhere i believe southwest stereotypes white middle class men i said this in my letter to southwest they felt horrible..i settled to early because i could not afford to pay 10,000 to retain an attorney but i so wish i would of sued southwest for big money…kevin if your reading this call me 262-308-9041
I Praise Southwest for taking the high road and I believe they did more than what was necessary once Mr Smith was Denied travel on the Full flight. To Bad Kevin Smith thinks Southwest Airlines owes him Something. Move on and Grow up don't make this about revenge you will end up looking more Pathetic and for your childrens sake Be a MAN !
What about the rights of the passenger who had the seat next to Mr. Smith? Why should he/she have to forfeit their comfort to have to sit arm-to-arm with an obese and obnoxious passenger?
Fat passengers should pay for 2 seats, that would include paying for the extra jet fuel used to carry all that extra weight. Most airlines charge for extra baggage… shouldn't a fat passenger be classified as extra baggage?
Mr Jewell Southwest Airlines is a Business that holds Customer service records in their industry. If you had a bad expierence im sure they gave you the free tickets as a gesture. You sound like a man with a chip on his sholder and, that is sad.Just like any business Southwest has the right to refuse service to anyone regardles of race. And im sure they treat all Idiots like yourself equally.!!!!!!
I refuse to sit next to a passenger whose body is so large that they crowd into my space. What is so wrong about it is that if I demand not to sit in a seat next to an obese person it makes me the bad guy. Lets face the facts, if you put a morbidly obese person on the emergency exit row and there is an emergency we are probably all doomed.
To all who are disparaging " large " People,
There are only 17 inches between the arms of the seat, even if you can put the arm down if ANY part of you exceeds that 17 inch space and "ENCROACHES" on someone else you can be removed. Now let's see the average desired hip width for an American female runs around 34 inches wide "which is DOUBLE the width of the seat". I know 34 inches is Around but remember women tend to be wider across their hips and men tend to be wider front to back. the standard they use means that if someone from the airline was to arbitrarily decide that some one with 38 or 42 inch hips is too far beyond the arm, then your LESS THAN OBESE person could be removed. Lets take that one step further, Would a professional football player who may fit between the arms but their shoulders and well pumped biceps "ENCROACH" be held to the same standard? I have known some with 50 to 60 inch shoulders not have to buy extra seating on Southwest or be removed. The standard they use is not universally applied and is therefore unjust and illegal.
Mr. Smith is obese, not fat. If obese people decide to boycott Southwest, then hooray!
Kevin Smith is another arrogant fat ass Hollywood director who feels he's special and better than the rest of us commoners. As someone who is average in weight and height I find it extremely offensive when I have to lean to one side or another when flying because some guy can't keep from stuffing his face with food 24/7. It happens constantly and I am proud of Southwest for calling him out.
another shaking head… wrote:
.What about the rights of the passenger who had the seat next to Mr. Smith? Why should he/she have to forfeit their comfort to have to sit arm-to-arm with an obese and obnoxious passenger?
So all obese people must also be obnoxious? There was never any contention that Mr. Smith was acting obnoxiously or disruptively in any way. If you read the article, you would have learned that the women on either side of Mr. Smith had no objections sitting next to him and neither one complained. A SWA employee (flight attendent or pilot) unilaterially made a decision that Mr. Smith was too large to be on the plane and initiated his ejection from the plane. This is discrimination based solely on Mr. Smith's obestiy.
Of course, if one is perfect like another shaking head, Mr. T, Gordo, John V, Frank, et al then the rest of us are not worthy of living in their world, and definately not flying on the same plane.
To Southwest Airlines: I will never be flying with you from now on. I will avoid you guys like a sickness.
I can understand why the airlines would be concerned for the comfort of a their customers.. I also see that the seats are too small for most normal people anyway.I am overweight and big. I don't like to sit by people who are smokers, because hey stink, or by those with small children. Where are MY rights? My husband and I oncce bought 3 seats for the 2 of us and the airline proceeded to try and eat us separately…Ha!
Sorry, I can't type….
I don't care if somebody is 100 or 300 lbs. I don't want their body in my seat. For those of you who want a bigger seat, fly an airline with first class seats or buy two in coach. Either way it is going to cost you more which the courts have consistently upheld.
I can tell by looking at Kevin that I would never want him sitting next to me in an airplane. I travel 75% of each month and so fly on a lot of airplanes. I applaud Southwest for removing him off the plane. It's not just about his comfort, but (and I'd argue more importantly) it is about the comfort of the passenger next to him. Even if Kevin could SQUEEZE into the seat, I guarantee that his fat would ooze into the seat next to him. I'e had this happen to me many times, and it makes those flights extremely uncomfortable, I almost wish that airlines would make walls, instead of just armrests, then his fat would stay in his airspace and wouldn't rub up against me. I don't care how influential, rich or how much of a star he is, Kevin is absolutely wrong in this matter. Go on a diet! then you can fly without worrying about getting kicked off.
Southwest can suck it. I am overweight but not overly obese. I never had any problems flying with any airlines for the last 10 years andmy family and extended family have always flown Southwest and knowing that they did this to a human being is just wrong. I am boycotting Southwest and will never have my business again.
Douches! I'm sorry, but airlines need to stop capitalizing on space by making seats smaller than the average sized person… I don't know about men, but the current average women's size in America is a 12, and I've been a 12 and been on airplanes, and it is too small.
Then again, really, just brushing against someone chubby guy's leg? It's really that bad, guys? Get over it… It's just some human skin. Fat isn't a disease.
Similazr there is something?
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Hundreds of women visited the Poplarville campus of Pearl River Community College Saturday for an annual health event just for them. The 8th Women's Health Symposium featured health screenings, an art walk, a panel discussion with local physicians and a luncheon.
It was a great opportunity for women to learn more about health-related issues and products and meet face-to-face with healthcare providers.
"We educate about health issues and their concerns, and as a result of that, women go out and take better care of themselves," said Jana Causey, assistant vice-president for the Forrest County Campus of Pearl River Community College. "We have a great lunch, we have great speakers, and just a whole lot to offer at this event," she said.
"This is one of the most important conferences that women need to come to," said Karen Speed, one of the estimated 500 people who attended the event. "Women's health is very important and you do learn a lot about women's health," she said.
"Healthcare is changing so much and they do have different information here as far as dermatology, different women's health issues and mental health as well, so I think it's a good thing to have all of that here," said Jemekia Davis, of the Southeast Mississippi Rural Health Initiative.
Motivational speaker and author Jean Gatz spoke during the luncheon.
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I bought a set of Turtle Beach XP300's, which have a Wifi receiver for audio, and a Bluetooth receiver as well. The idea was to use the headphones' inbuilt system for audio, but have the input to be from the headset. Now I went through a lot of searches, and I was finally able to connect the headset to my computer, and I was able to get PulseAudio to recognize it (I still have to run pactl load-module module-bluetooth-discover).
The problem now is that the computer does not detect any input from it. I am using Blueman to connect, I set up the headset as HSP/HFP (A2DP is not detected for some reason, not sure why).
Information on my setup: Ubuntu 13.10 Toshiba Laptop Bluetooth 4.0 Adapter from Kinivo
Here's a screenshot as to what I mean, in case it's not clear: https://www.dropbox.com/s/1qjzrlf13r91as6/Screenshot%20from%202013-10-30%2018%3A38%3A48.png


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Here it is! The February One-Click Collection! For those that receive the newsletter, you'll be getting individual set pics in your inbox shortly.
For those of you who aren't in the know, each month MFT gathers all of the new sets into a One-Click Collection option on the site, and always offers an *reward* for those who faithfully order the new sets within the first 48 hours of release.
This month, the *reward* is an Annie LaPoint image (our choice) added FREE of charge to your One-Click Collection order, IF placed before midnight Friday night EST.
I don't normally post pics of the new releases on my blog, but have been thinking it might be fun to start! What do you think?


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Healthy Lifestyle May Mean Healthy Pregnancy
Hear This, Musicians: French Horn May Hurt Your Ears
Heart Disease No. 1 Cause of Pregnancy-Related Deaths in California: Study
High Cholesterol May Delay Parenthood, Study Suggests
Home Nurse Visits May Improve Survival of Moms, Babies
Home Visits During Pregnancy and Beyond May Give Poor Kids a Boost
Hospital Policy Spurs New Moms to Get Whooping Cough Shot
Ibuprofen, Aleve Won't Raise Miscarriage Risk: Study
Induced Labor May Lower Risk for C-Section, Study Finds
Iodine Deficiency Common in Pregnancy, Pediatricians Warn
IUD Won't Hurt Future Fertility, Study Contends
Job Satisfaction May Suffer When Role Is Misunderstood
Joblessness an Unwanted Side Effect of Chemo for Breast Cancer
Kidney Transplant Rejection Drugs Tied to Pregnancy Risks in Study
Low Back Pain Leading Cause of Disability Worldwide: Study
Lung Ultrasound Can Spot Risk of Respiratory Failure in Pregnancy: Study
Male Birth Control Shows Promise in Mice
Many Iraq-Afghanistan War Vets Struggle to Find Enough Food: Study
Many New Mothers Skip Important 6-Week Checkup, Study Finds
Many Pregnant Women Not Told to Avoid Environmental Toxins
Many Shift Workers Use Drugs to Sleep, Stay Awake, Study Finds
Many U.S. Women Prescribed Narcotic Pain Meds During Pregnancy
Medicaid Paying for More U.S. Births: Study
Men Have More Trouble Facing Sex Harassment in Military Than Women: Survey
Military Contractors Suffer High Rates of PTSD, Study Finds
Moms With Lupus More Likely to Have Children With Autism, Study Suggests
More Employers Moving to High-Deductible Health Plans
More Evidence Environmental Exposures Contribute to Autism
More Evidence Links Poor Diet to Preterm Birth
More Signs Autism May Originate During Pregnancy
More Women Delaying First Pregnancy: CDC
Mother's Pregnancy Weight Gain May Influence Child's Obesity Risk
Mouse Study Hints at Plastics Chemical's Link to Prostate Cancer Risk
Multiple Egg Donations May Not Affect Women's Future Fertility: Study
Music May Be Especially Stimulating During Pregnancy
Nail-Gun Injuries on the Rise Among Construction Workers
Natural Conception Later in Life Tied to Longer Life for Women
Natural Delivery After a C-Section Often Successful: Study
Natural Lighting Brightens Nurses' Outlook, Study Says
New Infertility Treatment Leads to First Baby, Researchers Report
New Test May Spot Which Embryos Stand Greatest Chance of Survival
Newborns Fed Formula in Hospital Less Likely to Be Breast-Fed Later
Nicotine Patches Don't Help Pregnant Women Quit Smoking: Study
Non-Delivery Hospital Stay May Raise Clot Risk During Pregnancy
Number of Induced Labors Falling in U.S., CDC Says
Nurse Caseloads, Education Tied to Surgery Outcomes
Ob/Gyn Groups Issue Guidelines to Lower C-Section Rates
Obama Administration Offers New Rules for Religious Objections to Health Care Law
Obesity During Pregnancy Linked to Raised Asthma Risk in Kids
Obesity Linked to Increased Odds of Losing Baby, Study Finds
Obesity Might Slow You Down at Work
Obstetric Complication Rates Vary Widely Between Hospitals in U.S.
Offices With Open Floor Plans Tied to More Sick Days
Overconfident Folks May Blind Others to Their Real Abilities
Overweight Moms May Have Dangerously Big Babies
Pilots, Cabin Crews Face Higher Risk of Skin Cancer, Study Says
Placenta Might Have Its Own Helpful Bacteria
'Plays at the Plate' Riskiest for Pro Baseball Players
Police Work Isn't Very Physical, Study Says
Pot Smoking in Pregnancy Tied to Stillbirth Risk
Preemies' Thinking Skills May Catch Up by Adolescence
Pregnancy Ultrasound a Big Bonding Moment for Dads-to-Be
Pregnant or Breast-feeding Women Urged to Eat More Fish
Pregnant Women May Be More Vulnerable to Potentially Dangerous Infection: Study
Premature 'Water Breaking' During Pregnancy Linked to Bacteria
Prenatal Fish Oil Supplements May Not Boost Child's Brain Health, Study Finds
Preterm Birth May Raise Child's Asthma Risk, Study Suggests
Preterm Boys Face Worse Odds Than Girls, Study Says
Probiotics Don't Prevent Childhood Asthma, Study Finds
Professional Musicians Face Greater Risk of Hearing Problems
Recession Linked to More Than 10,000 Suicides in North America, Europe
Researchers Describe 1st 'Functional Cure' of HIV in Baby
Rhymes Reveal Evidence of Learning in the Womb
Rural Cancer Survivors May Retire Sooner, Get Less Paid Disability
Scans Show Even 'Late' Preemies Have Brain Differences
Scientists Spot Clues to Why Males Have Tougher Time in the Womb
Secondhand Smoke Linked to Miscarriage Risk
Short 'Birth Spacing' Linked to Preterm Delivery
Shortage of Doctors Who Treat Diabetes Looming
Single Moms' Job Loss May Have Long Term Impact on Kids
Sleep Woes for Astronauts May Pose Risks in Space: Study
Slightly Higher Risk of Birth Defects Seen in Pregnant Women on HIV Drugs
Smartphone Use for Business at Night May Not Be So Smart
Smoke-Free Policies May Protect the Heart
Smoking in Pregnancy May Be Linked to Baby's Heart Defects
Smoking Plus Asthma in Pregnancy May Make for 'Dangerous Situation'
Smoking While Pregnant Linked to ADHD in Children
Smoking While Pregnant Raises Baby's Risk of Cleft Palate, Cleft Lip
Snoring in Pregnancy Tied to Possible Health Concerns
Snoring, High Blood Pressure in Pregnancy May Raise Apnea Risk
Some Jobs Harder on the Heart Than Others, Report Finds
Spaceflight Might Weaken Astronauts' Immune Systems
Sperm Donor Age May Not Affect Infertility Treatment Success: Study
Spotting Cause of Newborn Brain Injury Could Aid Prevention, Report Says
Standing During Meetings May Get Creative Juices Flowing
Stillbirth Remains an 'Unacknowledged Problem'
Stillbirths Higher After Hurricanes Katrina And Rita: Study
Stress May Diminish a Woman's Fertility, Study Suggests
Stressed by Work-Life Balance? Just Exercise
Study Links Pesticide Exposure During Pregnancy to Autism Risk in Kids
Study Links Shift Work to Risk for Type 2 Diabetes
Study of Male Birth Defect Lets Pesticides Off the Hook -- for Now
Study Sees No Link Between Drinking During Early Pregnancy and Birth Woes
Study Suggests Late-Term Preemies Don't Do as Well in Life
Study Ties Antidepressant Use in Pregnancy to Autism Risk in Boys
Study Ties Weight-Loss Surgery to Higher Risk of Preemie Birth
Study Weighs Safety of Epilepsy Drugs in Pregnancy
Supreme Court: Some Companies Don't Have to Cover Birth Control
Surgery Might Top Drugs as First Therapy for Irregular Heartbeat: Study
Sutures Bested Staples After C-Section in Study
Taking Antidepressants During Pregnancy May Not Raise Autism Risk
Taking Antipsychotic Drugs While Pregnant May Harm Newborns: Study
'Talking' Medical Devices, Apps Continue to Evolve
Teen Birth Rate Has Dropped Dramatically in Last Two Decades: CDC
Teen Pregnancy Rates Much Higher for Girls With Serious Mental Illness: Study
Too Many U.S. Babies Still Delivered Early Without Medical Need
Truck Drivers Top List of Overweight Workers
U.S. Abortion Rate Drops to Lowest Level Since 1973: Report
U.S. Home Births Continued Steady Increase in 2012: CDC
U.S. Panel Urges Diabetes Screening for All Pregnant Women
U.S. Pregnancy Rates Continue to Fall
Use of Low-Dose Steroid Creams During Pregnancy Won't Affect Baby: Study
Use of Tylenol in Pregnancy Tied to Higher ADHD Risk in Child
Veteran Firefighters May Develop Heat Resistance
Want to Stay Slim? Leave the Car at Home
White Women More Likely to Seek Fertility Treatment: Report
Whooping Cough Risk Higher Among Kids Who Miss Vaccinations: Study
Whooping Cough Vaccination During Pregnancy Seems Safe: Study
Women in Labor May Be Fine Taking in Nourishment, Study Finds
Women With Asthma May Take Longer to Get Pregnant: Study
Workers Need More Protection From Silica Dust, Report Finds
Working Moms Spend More Time Parenting Than Dads: Study
Working Through Lunch May Feel OK...
Workplace Ladder Falls a Major Cause of Deaths, Injuries: CDC
Workplace Solvents Linked to Long-Term Memory, Thinking Problems
Workplace Wellness Programs Work
Your Mentally Stimulating Job May Help Keep You Sharp in Retirement


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Episode Thirty-Eight – On Skepticism And Education At Dragon*Con 2010 – Live Panel Show
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (57.0MB) | Embed Direct Link to mp3 of Episode Thirty-Eight of the Token Skeptic podcast. Welcome to a special release for the Token Skeptic podcast! JREF now has a Director of Educational Programs – what else is being done out there and how can skeptics help educate the next generation? This is the audio of the panel recorded at Dragon*Con 2010, featuring moderator DJ Grothe and panelists Barbara... Read More
Episode Nineteen – On Skepticism And Education (Interview With JREF's Michael Blanford)
Thanks to everyone who commented on the last episode, 'On The Placebo Protest – Skepticism Communication Part Three' - particularly the Digital Cuttlefish for writing in verse and Gold from the NZ Skeptics and Greg Laden. This is Episode 19 – On Skepticism and Education – and I'm getting back into the swing of things by working on today to release the final two missing episodes AND the required 'one episode... Read More


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Dr. Sanjay Gupta of CNN got the swine flu while in Afghanistan and was knocked out for a few days. But he's fine now. Here's an excerpt from his blog:
I am not someone who gets sick, really ever. And this was the sickest I have ever been. I would've much preferred my own bed with all the comforts of home – including a wife who would've taken great pity on me and allowed me lots of rest and relaxation. Still, I am here to blog about it, after taking the requisite few days to stay at home and not spread my gift from Afghanistan to all my colleagues at work. In case you are curious, there wasn't much the doctors could really do for me. Some Tylenol and a sinus decongestant (the same my wife would've given me). We also got IV fluids, given our inability to keep anything down. Within a couple days, I felt a lot better, and a few days after that – I was back to normal. It was a lot like… the flu – with a different name. A lot of people will get the exact symptoms I described above, and for most people, it will simply mean a few miserable days, hopefully spent in your home – and not in a war zone.
September 24th, 2009
6:40 pm
Lordy, he is an egotistical SOB. Overexposed too. Glad to hear he is at least human, though I don't wish illness on anyone.
September 24th, 2009
6:59 pm
Sanjay's the nicest guy you'll ever meet.
September 24th, 2009
7:13 pm
he should have pull to get a flu shot before traveling around the world
September 24th, 2009
7:15 pm
AtlantaMo. Didn't your mother ever tell you that if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.
September 24th, 2009
7:39 pm
Enter your comments here
Dr Gupta, I am so very happy that you are ok and home again.
Praise the Lord–He gets all the credit!
Can you & AC/DC just stay put for a while please?
I look forward to your reporting very much always.
Thank you for all of your hard work. And yes, thank you for not
going to DC.
September 24th, 2009
7:54 pm
Sure would be nice if the media would stop calling H1N1 the "Swine flu" since that is a misnomer.
September 24th, 2009
8:14 pm
How do you know it's the H1N1 vs. just the the regular ol' flu?
September 24th, 2009
8:17 pm
Does this guy do anything but think about himself? He's working his H1N1 infection for all it's worth. I guess I'll take his word for it, but I'm not sure. If he really did have it, then I'd call him a cry baby for all the bellyaching he's done about it. Grow up!
September 24th, 2009
8:21 pm
'Sanjay's the nicest guy you'll ever meet'
Then he's handsome, intelligent and nice! Too bad he's already married.
I'm glad you're feeling better, Dr. Gupta!
September 24th, 2009
8:45 pm
Dr Gupta is a very nice guy….and i wish him and his family well. We all fall but only a few of us are willing to get back up.
September 24th, 2009
8:48 pm
Enter your comments here:
I think it was nice of Dr. Gupta to tell everyone that having the H1N1 flu wasn't really a big deal, so that people can stop panicking! If you were alive in 1969 {or there about}, then you know that the Hong Kong flu was worse, by far, according to the death rate.
September 24th, 2009
9:28 pm
What about that was belly aching? He sounded pretty relaxed about it. He basically said it was just like the ordinary flu.
September 24th, 2009
10:24 pm
September 24th, 2009
10:44 pm
LOL Mark!
September 24th, 2009
11:54 pm
Most H1N1 victims have been children and young adults. They did not have a smallpox vaccination. The WHO withdrew smallpox vaccina from all but some military use around 1970. Some people refused to be vaccinated and some vaccinations did not "take." So, did Sanjay have a successful smallpox vaccination?
For what its worth, most H5N1 victims were children and young adults. And, most HIV Positives did not have a smallpox vaccination.
I sure hope someone will post an answer.
September 25th, 2009
12:44 am
Good. That that dumb azz shouldn't have been over there in the first place.
September 25th, 2009
12:45 am
Enter your comments here
Dr. Gupta, we all admire you greatly for so many reasons. We are sorry you contacted the flu but grateful you are better. We will pray for you. Hang in there!!!!
September 25th, 2009
5:34 am
Sanjay is NOT the nicest guy you'll ever meet. He is very self centered and egotistical. If you are not high on the food chain, you are a feeder to him. He is a driven, self-promoting climber. Swine flu… good for him. He is a fake and a phony. Don't fall for his stuff… I've seen him in action!
September 25th, 2009
6:51 am
Dr Gupta did not say he had been "diagnosed" with the Swine Flu he just said he had it. I have a feeling we are going to have a winter where everyone who gets the flu are automatically going to say it was the H1N1 flu. At least that seems to be the case in the past. The individual who mentioned the Hong Kong Flu of late 1969/early 70 was correct. I remember from personal experience. Most of the cases of H1N1 that I have heard about on the media have be relatively mild cases and though can be fatal the rate has be no higher than from the seasonal flu.
September 25th, 2009
7:37 am
I appreciate Dr. Gupta reporting about his personal experience with H1N1. Thanks Sanjay!!!
September 25th, 2009
8:22 am
@Atlantamo: you are disgusting!
September 25th, 2009
10:03 am
Dr. Know….I think Dr. Gupta is the real thing ….sorry you feel that way.
September 25th, 2009
10:23 am
Thanks for sharing Sanjay. All the best!


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Netflix was created as a means of sharing the content of others with a large group of people. They were the librarian. The mail carrier and eventually, the storage facility for streaming files.
Now, Netflix is taking on a new title, that of content creator. As stated in Variety, Netflix has five original shows coming up in 2012. The first show, Lilyhammer rolled out last month and House of Cards is highly anticipated.
But bringing in an audience on a new series is tough enough for TV stations that have been doing it for sixty years. So Netflix is hedging their bet a little by bringing back titles people already love. They've agreed to help foot the bill for a new season of canceled series Arrested Development. There was also talk of them taking on Fox's failed dino-epic Terra Nova.


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Harlem Globetrotters Mascot Dancing His Ass Off (Video)LOL — By Dave on 2011/05/02 4:29 PM
Big G, older brother to the Globetrotters' mascot Globie, showing off his dance skills. Awesome stuff!
Tags: basketball, Big G, Big G dancing, dance, dancing, funny, Globetrotters' mascot, Globie, Harlem Globetrotters Mascot, Harlem Globetrotters Mascot Dancing, moves, skills, video,


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From Proteopedia
|2pk4, resolution 2.25Å ()
|FirstGlance, OCA, RCSB, PDBsum
|save as pdb, mmCIF, xml
The crystallographic structure of the plasminogen kringle 4-epsilon-aminocaproic acid (ACA) complex (K4-ACA) has been solved by molecular replacement rotation-translation methods utilizing the refined apo-K4 structure as a search model (Mulichak et al., 1991), and it has been refined to an R value of 0.148 at 2.25-A resolution. The K4-ACA structure consists of two interkringle residues, the kringle along with the ACA ligand, and 106 water molecules. The lysine-binding site has been confirmed to be a relatively open and shallow depression, lined by aromatic rings of Trp62, Phe64, and Trp72, which provide a highly nonpolar environment between doubly charged anionic and cationic centers formed by Asp55/Asp57 and Lys35/Arg71. A zwitterionic ACA ligand molecule is held by hydrogen-bonded ion pair interactions and van der Waals contacts between the charged centers. The lysine-binding site of apo-K4 and K4-ACA have been compared: the rms differences in main-chain and side-chain positions are 0.25 and 0.69 A, respectively, both practically within error of the determinations. The largest deviations in the binding site are due to different crystal packing interactions. Thus, the lysine-binding site appears to be preformed, and lysine binding does not require conformational changes of the host. The results of NMR studies of lysine binding with K4 are correlated with the structure of K4-ACA and agree well.
The refined structure of the epsilon-aminocaproic acid complex of human plasminogen kringle 4., Wu TP, Padmanabhan K, Tulinsky A, Mulichak AM, Biochemistry. 1991 Oct 29;30(43):10589-94. PMID:1657149
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
[PLMN_HUMAN] Defects in PLG are the cause of plasminogen deficiency (PLGD) [MIM:217090]. PLGD is characterized by decreased serum plasminogen activity. Two forms of the disorder are distinguished: type 1 deficiency is additionally characterized by decreased plasminogen antigen levels and clinical symptoms, whereas type 2 deficiency, also known as dysplasminogenemia, is characterized by normal, or slightly reduced antigen levels, and absence of clinical manifestations. Plasminogen deficiency type 1 results in markedly impaired extracellular fibrinolysis and chronic mucosal pseudomembranous lesions due to subepithelial fibrin deposition and inflammation. The most common clinical manifestation of type 1 deficiency is ligneous conjunctivitis in which pseudomembranes formation on the palpebral surfaces of the eye progresses to white, yellow-white, or red thick masses with a wood-like consistency that replace the normal mucosa.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]
[PLMN_HUMAN] Plasmin dissolves the fibrin of blood clots and acts as a proteolytic factor in a variety of other processes including embryonic development, tissue remodeling, tumor invasion, and inflammation. In ovulation, weakens the walls of the Graafian follicle. It activates the urokinase-type plasminogen activator, collagenases and several complement zymogens, such as C1 and C5. Cleavage of fibronectin and laminin leads to cell detachment and apoptosis. Also cleaves fibrin, thrombospondin and von Willebrand factor. Its role in tissue remodeling and tumor invasion may be modulated by CSPG4. Binds to cells.[9] Angiostatin is an angiogenesis inhibitor that blocks neovascularization and growth of experimental primary and metastatic tumors in vivo.[10]
About this Structure
2pk4 is a 1 chain structure with sequence from Homo sapiens. Full crystallographic information is available from OCA.
See Also
- Wu TP, Padmanabhan K, Tulinsky A, Mulichak AM. The refined structure of the epsilon-aminocaproic acid complex of human plasminogen kringle 4. Biochemistry. 1991 Oct 29;30(43):10589-94. PMID:1657149
- ↑ Ichinose A, Espling ES, Takamatsu J, Saito H, Shinmyozu K, Maruyama I, Petersen TE, Davie EW. Two types of abnormal genes for plasminogen in families with a predisposition for thrombosis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1991 Jan 1;88(1):115-9. PMID:1986355
- ↑ Azuma H, Uno Y, Shigekiyo T, Saito S. Congenital plasminogen deficiency caused by a Ser572 to Pro mutation. Blood. 1993 Jul 15;82(2):475-80. PMID:8392398
- ↑ Miyata T, Iwanaga S, Sakata Y, Aoki N. Plasminogen Tochigi: inactive plasmin resulting from replacement of alanine-600 by threonine in the active site. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1982 Oct;79(20):6132-6. PMID:6216475
- ↑ Miyata T, Iwanaga S, Sakata Y, Aoki N, Takamatsu J, Kamiya T. Plasminogens Tochigi II and Nagoya: two additional molecular defects with Ala-600----Thr replacement found in plasmin light chain variants. J Biochem. 1984 Aug;96(2):277-87. PMID:6238949
- ↑ Kikuchi S, Yamanouchi Y, Li L, Kobayashi K, Ijima H, Miyazaki R, Tsuchiya S, Hamaguchi H. Plasminogen with type-I mutation is polymorphic in the Japanese population. Hum Genet. 1992 Sep-Oct;90(1-2):7-11. PMID:1427790
- ↑ Schuster V, Mingers AM, Seidenspinner S, Nussgens Z, Pukrop T, Kreth HW. Homozygous mutations in the plasminogen gene of two unrelated girls with ligneous conjunctivitis. Blood. 1997 Aug 1;90(3):958-66. PMID:9242524
- ↑ Higuchi Y, Furihata K, Ueno I, Ishikawa S, Okumura N, Tozuka M, Sakurai N. Plasminogen Kanagawa-I, a novel missense mutation, is caused by the amino acid substitution G732R. Br J Haematol. 1998 Dec;103(3):867-70. PMID:9858247
- ↑ Schuster V, Seidenspinner S, Zeitler P, Escher C, Pleyer U, Bernauer W, Stiehm ER, Isenberg S, Seregard S, Olsson T, Mingers AM, Schambeck C, Kreth HW. Compound-heterozygous mutations in the plasminogen gene predispose to the development of ligneous conjunctivitis. Blood. 1999 May 15;93(10):3457-66. PMID:10233898
- ↑ Rossignol P, Ho-Tin-Noe B, Vranckx R, Bouton MC, Meilhac O, Lijnen HR, Guillin MC, Michel JB, Angles-Cano E. Protease nexin-1 inhibits plasminogen activation-induced apoptosis of adherent cells. J Biol Chem. 2004 Mar 12;279(11):10346-56. Epub 2003 Dec 29. PMID:14699093 doi:10.1074/jbc.M310964200
- ↑ Rossignol P, Ho-Tin-Noe B, Vranckx R, Bouton MC, Meilhac O, Lijnen HR, Guillin MC, Michel JB, Angles-Cano E. Protease nexin-1 inhibits plasminogen activation-induced apoptosis of adherent cells. J Biol Chem. 2004 Mar 12;279(11):10346-56. Epub 2003 Dec 29. PMID:14699093 doi:10.1074/jbc.M310964200


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Monthly Archive for February, 2013
Shut up for one tiny second
Not long ago or maybe it was just last week, my friend had an epiphany. She said, in a surprised and exasperated voice, in that tone you normally reserve for discovering you have obscenely bad breath or a third nipple or maybe a clump of shiny black hairs sticking out of your nose and no […] [Read More]
The pope stole my Maker's Mark
Rumor! I just read somewhere and I think it was BuzzFeed squirting out one of its patented, smarts-destroying headlines, such as 27 Hilarious Exploding Puppies or 42 Awesome Star Trek-Themed Suicides or 17 Pictures of Ryan Gosling Looking at Cheese, I just read a rumor that says if you eat six of Taco Bell's new Cool […] [Read More]
You and your terrifying orange juice
Confession! I do not drink much orange juice. I do not ever buy those giant, brightly colored cartoon jugs that look like caricatures of life, those carefully molded plastic things covered in scripty fonts and clip-art trees and pretty, hyper-saturated oranges made to look as if your own exploited Mexican laborer picked them five minutes […] [Read More]
2013: The year women abolish God
Could this be the grand finale? The glorious death knell for the ugliest portions of organized religion and its relentless, impressive beat-down of the stubborn female species for lo these past 2,013 years? Can we at least hope? This much we know: Here in the stumbling, fumbling first world, where minorities have suddenly become the […] [Read More]