text:
Protecting sanctity of human life
February 10, 2013
To the editor: From those who are dedicated to the continuation and expansion of the slaughter of innocents come two new arguments, one misleading and the other simply outrageous....
seperation of church ans state. goes without saying. i can have my beliefs.
1 Agrees | 0 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
One of our youngest and brightest SFL members pointed out at our meeting last Thursday night, "the baby in the womb is an individual with its own DNA and both God and Our Constitution demand that we protect Life.
As he said, "It's a no brainier".
0 Agrees | 1 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
How does expressing an opinion constitute imposing a belief on others, Sven? I guess the First Amendment is only for people with whom you agree.
0 Agrees | 1 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
Lord help us! I am so tired of women saying because they have a uterus it gives them the right to do what they want with the unborn, unwanted child....a fetus is a living being and taking its life is murder, If someone kills a pregnant woman they are charged with two murders!!!
1 Agrees | 1 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
Thank you DogLover!! No one has the right to tell me or any other woman what she should or should not do with her own body. People want to judge and take away rights for abortion, yet women who have absolutely no idea how to be a mother or care for her children get to keep having babies, then neglect and abuse them, and KEEP those children because the State cannot find enough "evidence" to remove them from the home. But let's condemn a woman for making a choice with her own body, that is completely no one else's business but here own.
1 Agrees | 2 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
Why is it always men weighing in on the subject? If you have ever experienced a miscarriage in the first three months of a pregnancy and saw what the "fetus "looked like you would understand that it is not a baby. It is a mass of cells and blood. It could not live outside the woman's body, it is HER body! Once it develops enough to survive outside of the womb then it is a human being. The eggs a woman is born with has a potential to be a baby as well. It is no ones business what a woman does with her body parts but her own, not the church, not the government and certainly not a man.
3 Agrees | 4 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
We owe Sodom & Gomerha an apology!
2 Agrees | 1 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
Right to lifers wouldn't be so hypocritical if they were concerned about life beyond the birth canal. Once that child takes its first life giving breath the concern for his life, liberty and pursuit of happiness become less important. Who steps forward to follow that unwanted child through the world to ensure love, food, clothing, education and shelter. Where are the right to lifers when they send our kids into the desert to fight for oil exploitation. Isn't a bullet through the brain of 19yr old in the desert just as deadly as an abortion.
2 Agrees | 5 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
Well SvenYoder, it all depends on whose Right you are talking about.
The Right Of the Mother or the Right of the Child.
Do you believe in the Declaration of the United States?
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness".
Life may be the important word.
4 Agrees | 2 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
I have no problem with you holding the belief that abortion is wrong, but what bright do you have to impose that belief on other people?
2 Agrees | 5 Disagrees | Report Abuse »
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text:
Reviewer: John J. Wilson, MD
The Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania
Last Modified: August 23, 2002
Authors: Keller SM, Adak S, et al.
Source: New England Journal of Medicine 2000; 343(17): 1217-22.
In patients with surgically resected NSCLC (non-small-cell lung cancer), spread of the tumor to intrathoracic lymph nodes significantly worsens the prognosis for patients. Therefore, many of these patients receive post-operative therapy. The Lung Cancer Study Group found that radiotherapy, combined chemotherapy (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and cisplatin), or both improve local control and disease-free survival, but not overall survival. Radiotherapy is considered to be standard therapy in patients with intrathoracic lymph-node metastases, but many physicians question the efficacy of postoperative chemotherapy. Therefore, the study authors investigated the benefits of postoperative chemotherapy by comparing radiation and chemotherapy compared to radiation alone after surgery in patients with Stage II and IIIa NSCLC.
This study reports on a randomized trial investigating the benefits of adding concurrent chemotherapy onto postoperative radiotherapy for stage II and IIIA N1 or N2 NSCLC. There was no appreciable benefit in survival or recurrence with concurrent treatment, and there were more serious side effects as well. Over the past 20 years, nine phase three trials have been performed looking at adjuvant therapy (chemo, rads, or chemo/rads) in stage II or IIIA NSCLC patients. Six trials showed some benefit in disease free survival, but no benefit in overall survival. The other three trials used cisplatin followed by 6-12 months of a daily oral chemotherapeutic drug, and showed a survival benefit in the treatment group. These findings are of great interest but require validation before they are standard therapy. Also, since there is no clear evidence of a benefit with adjuvant chemotherapy in this group of patients, its use should be restricted to clinical trials. Of note, the median survival of both patient groups (38-39 months) was considerably longer than earlier studies in patients with similar stage cancers. This could be due to more accurate staging and/or better care of patients currently as compared to earlier. Survival seemed to be strongly associated with the type of lymph node dissection patients received, but there were no guidelines or explanations for who received what. Complete dissection was associated with improved survival, which could be due to better removal of metastatic lymph nodes, or it could be a marker for a more experienced/more thorough surgeon.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Phishing is a very serious problem that we face. Popular banks are often the biggest targets. What methods can a bank website use to protect its self from phishing attacks? What security systems should someone use to protect themselves? Why do these methods work?
I am assuming that the bank wants to protect its customers from phishing. (Not its employees; that's a different problem, and if you want to know about that, you should ask that one separately in a different question.)
The bank should take several steps:
This is what i'd do:
With regard to training employees about security, just asking them to read white-papers is not enough. You need to really teach them the basics of how a hacker gains access to a network, and if they don't or are unable to learn it then you should either fire them, or take away their access to anything that needs security.
The solution to phishing is most basic: Use strong mutual authentication. Cleartext passwords over unilaterally authenticated SSL do not provide this. Essentially, phishing detaches the two authentication steps, thus breaking the mutual authentication.
A simple improvement can be secure password-based authentication using PAKE protocols, such as SRP.
Another improvement that also tackles most social engineering-based attacks is to use multi-factor authentication: You can call someone and convince them to give them your secret, but try telling them to also send them their USB token. This is much harder, it does not scale well, and is more risky due to physical interaction with the victim. It is also harder for social engineering since it is not a simple spontaneous action for the victim and it feels very wrong to remove that token from your key chain and send it somewhere.
What is left then is that people try stealing personal data and credit card info. What is needed here are proper identity identicators on the client side ("This website is bank.com"), secure payment systems and most importantly common sense.
So, why is nobody doing that? People say cost and usability is the problem. But most financial institutions noticed by now that multi-factor is needed, although they tend to deploy incompatible and often vulnerable solutions. The Web crowd also finally noticed that passwords don't really scale well, so now we got password managers and federal ID. The first has rather similar restrictions as a proper smartcard-based solutions and the second one is still vulnerable. The problem is, people don't like PKI. It's too complex, too unfamiliar, even though IE and Firefox have pretty good support by now. We need systems like Skype and Jabber, where the PKI is silently bootstrapped in the background and authorization is basically done with key continuity management. And replace X509 with SPKI, to reduce procedural and implementation bugs.
Really, the best defence is awareness training - it has some effect but is by no means foolproof. The two big problems are:
1 - end users forget their teaching and still click on links
2 - some banks still have marketing teams who send out emails with links
The bigger global banks have got very good at phishing site takedowns, so at least this forces the attackers to use a lot more effort to get phish attacks out.
Have a look at this previous question on phishing for some more info.
update Targeted phishing, or spearfishing, is a very successful tactic for attackers, as they personalise the emails to such a level that most individuals believe they are from a trusted source. Currently the effort involved means it is still the higher value targets that are attacked, however attacks such as the recent PSN hack have provided attackers with useful information to carry out this attack on a large scale.
I do not believe that awareness training works.
The best way to combat phishing is to whitelist email addresses and web application content/behavior that can be accessed by users.
There are many ways to stop phishing that uses malware. What kind of phishing attacks are you interested in and maybe I can provide some additional advice?
On top of the suggestions given, I would also suggest getting help from MSS providers. There are few MSS providers out there that provides subscription based service that helps organization detect phishing and brand name abuse online.
An extra eye would definitely be helpful in cases like these.


text:
Shark falls from sky onto Calif. golf course
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A son, Jayse James, to Jimmy Olivero and Jahairalyz Torres of Waterbury, March 12, at Saint Mary's Hospital, Waterbury. Grandparents are Diana Velazquez and Jimmy and Vanessa Olivero of Waterbury.
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Top Definition
when you ejaculate so many times in one day that you get no feeling infact it hurts
I got the zec today cause i had nothin to do
автор: treznor 18 августа 2009
Trending Now
A 12 year old boy who learns of 'adult words' or curse words and uses them in chat rooms after every other word.
Oh my, did you hear what that Zecs said to that old woman. That's worse than a sailor.
автор: Wynn 5 декабря 2004


text:
Westside Boy's Lacrosse Custom Socks
Product Description
Custom Socks for Westside Boy's Lacrosse.
Westside Socks are one size.
This is a CUSTOM item, and NOT available for immediate delivery.
Custom items are made to your specifications. Please make sure you choose exactly what you want, as these items are Non-Returnable, Non-Refundable and Non-Exchangeable.
Additional Information
|Pear Sox


text:
Nope, nothing subtle here, kids. And according to IMDB, there are at least twenty five other titles that feature Geoffrey's talents.
From Blood Sucking Geek to C@K Sucking Geek: Stephen Geoffreys
Nope, nothing subtle here, kids. And according to IMDB, there are at least twenty five other titles that feature Geoffrey's talents.
11 comments:
- Sarah from Scare Sarah said...
Naughty, naughty boy.
I must say, I saw that coming...
- June 3, 2010 at 6:06 AM
- The Divine Ms. Jimmi said...
He reminded me of a young Jack Nicholson in an off beat way. I loved him in Fright Night!!
- June 3, 2010 at 9:42 AM
- Ninja Dixon said...
I don't know where, but I have some memory of reading an article where he said he just wanted to make porn. He felt for it and liked it.
I always thought he was kinda cute, in a freaky way ;)
- June 3, 2010 at 10:26 AM
- Matt-suzaka said...
Yeah, I always thought it was strange that he went from being a bit of a horror icon to doing porn. It's too bad, he had a good little career going for him, and I love 976-EVIL and of course, Fright Night. Maybe he can make a cum back, but he's old and rapey looking now, not the same kid he was in the 80's.
- June 3, 2010 at 10:38 AM
- Sarah from Scare Sarah said...
Ha! Rapey looking.
- June 3, 2010 at 4:38 PM
- satanslilsunbeam said...
I saw a porno back in the 90's and remember thinking that the guy in it reminded me of the dude in Fright Night and a few other 80's movies. Never imagined that it was actually him. LOL
- June 3, 2010 at 8:44 PM
- Prospero said...
I've actually seen him in a one of his "films" and I have to say, he certainly seemed to be enjoying himself. Either that, or he's a REALLY good actor...
- June 3, 2010 at 10:29 PM
- Rob said...
"Scent of A Fetish"?! I wouldn't mind checking out a few of the others...
- June 4, 2010 at 2:02 AM
- Carl (ILHM) said...
My biggest question has always been whether he is proud of the work or ashamed that fans found out about it. Itd be nice is he just came forward to clear the air and open up to fans, I cant see anyone holding it against him either way
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text:
Dairy Queen Customer Appreciation 1/2 Off Offers on Jan 23 and Jan 26
Customer Appreciation Day
1/2 price offers at participating DQ® stores
We're Grateful for Great Customers
Every participating DQ store has their own way of saying thanks. Follow the link and enter your zip or postal code to find out what's happening when and where
Some stores are celebrating on Jan 23 and other stores are celebrating on Jan 26
35 Comments add a comment
Neither of my local DQs are participating, so I guess we are not appreciated. Boooooo.
Just as well, the one closest actually never seems to know what their own specials are anyway. Signs everywhere in the drivethru for b1g1 blizzards? Expect to be told they have no idea what you're talking about. When you show them the sign, be prepared for them to argue with you for 5 minutes if you want them to honor the price. "We forgot to take them down" is not a valid excuse, DQ, when they are every 4 feet all over your tiny corner lot. < /siderant> (I'm just jealous ;()
No customer appreciation love within 50 miles of me, either. :(
Mine is participating....with half off cakes. Gee great.
1/2 off cakes and novelties in the stores near me in Louisville. Too bad it isn't 1/2 off blizzards.
None here in Kyle or Austin, TX either... No Blizzard Love :(
Non within 50 miles of Sioux Falls, SD.
Just tried zips for Houston, Dallas, Austin, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Lubbock, Waco, Tyler and Amarillo. No stores within 50 miles of any. So much for being the "Texas stop sign". Anybody care to give me a location that is participating?
Nothing within 50 miles of Marshall, MN either. How do you appreciate your customers by not doing a thing?
All of the ones close to me aren't participating, but there's one a thirty-five minute drive away with half off everything. I don't think a hour and ten minute round trip is worth a half off Blizzard or two though.
@idontkn1: Not for Canyon Lake, San Marcos, or Wimberley either so I guess they don't appreciate our business. What a pr nightmare.
I WAS excited by this, but the closest participating one to me is nearly 20 miles away and it is "1/2 off select menu items"... thanks for being so specific! This deal just makes me sad now.
having a limited sale is one thing, having half of your businesses not participate in customer appreciation day is downright embarrassing. i am going to call my local store and shame them later today.
We're not appreciated within 50 miles of San Angelo, TX, either. :-(
None for me either. Boooo.
There are a couple in the Wichita, KS area. The one participating today says select items only (whatever that means) and the one participating on the 26th is for everything! I might have to go check that out... anyone want me to bring them anything back?
insert evil laugh here
1/2 off everything at their location on the University of Minnesota campus. None within 50 miles of where I live, though (on closer inspection the only DQ within 50 miles of where I live has closed permanently sometime in the past 12 months).
*not sure how much demand they will have today as the temperature is around zero F and students have to go outside to get there.
Only two participating in the whole COUNTY, one has 1/2 everything one has half select items.... sucks.... >:I
In the Chattanooga area, both our local stores are participating. One on the 23rd with half off "select menu items" and the other on the 26th with "half off everything."
Sorry all. I check several relatives' zip codes from across the country and there were several stores within each zip. If I had known participation was so pitiful in more parts of the country, I probably would not have posted it. Thanks for checking it out.
Half off cakes and novelties at the 24 locations within 25 miles of Lexington, KY. It is funny that customer appreciation is on a Wednesday in January. I don't see them doing it on a weekend in July (when people might be buying ice cream cakes) anytime soon.
@kingjames1979: At my work, the boss always buys DQ ice cream cakes to celebrate every employee's birthday Jan - Dec. Yes, it's 32 degrees outside and the boss buys us ice cream but on the plus side - we get a BBQ to go along with it.
@idontkn1: there are 2 in northern greater houston, one in conroe, other just east of humble. So, while not within 50 miles of center of houston, still viable options for people in northern houston (woodlands, conroe, humble, kingwood, atascacita (sp?)).
@ichigodiafuku: No worries, Charlotte NC area has many stores participating today and one on Saturday. All of them 1/2 off everything! Thanks for the heads up!
Sorry to all the underappreciated customers elsewhere!
@gillegra: Yes please----Love their onion rings---a LARGE order please! And a lime icee drink
@ichigodiafuku: Ice cream is good even if it's 32 below outside! As long as the car will start to go get it, it's a good time for ice cream.
NONE of my nearby stores are "participating" either. I wonder what percentage of participation they have? 15%?
Mine is less than 4.5 miles away and they are participating. Guess I'm dropping in today!
Just another day in most cities.....while others enjoy half off cake. Since that's why I go to DQ.
Let's see... Around $8 in gas to save 50% on a cake IF they aren't gone by the time I get there... Nah.
Wait a minute, what am I thinking? I have room for 5 people in my car, this might be a worthwhile quest after all...
Won't even let me enter a zip code????
Tried where it says Zip Code and also on top right, no joy :(
I agree with lparsons42 though, when it's 0 degrees F Dairy Queen is the last place I want to go and no way in heck I'm going anywhere near the U of M for a ice cream, especially in January....
Nothing beats going for ice cream when it's 20 degrees outside, especially if it is cheap or even better free!
I just went to a store that said it was participating today (not Saturday) with half off everything. When I mentioned it, the girl at the window said that they were only doing that on Saturday and that they would not honor what the web site said. Guess who did not get my money today and guess where I will not be going on Saturday either. I can't stand bait and switch scams like that.
Submitted this link to DQ, we'll see what they have to say.
@jm42: Received this response from DQ:
Thank you for contacting us at American Dairy Queen Corporation (ADQ)
regarding the email you received with the broken links. I am sorry!
The email was sent to announce our Customer Appreciation Day event at
select locations last Saturday, January 26th. Unfortunately, not all
locations participated on the 26th, but I do not want you to be
I will be sending you a $5 gift card through the mail that you can use
toward the purchase of any Blizzard Treat or toward any product offered at
a DQ Restaurant in the United States.
I am grateful that you took the time to contact us so that we could make
this right for you.
Kind Regards,


text:
Joy Harold Helsing
From: The Lyric, Spring 2002
Last Modified: July 16, 2003
The wounds of war have never fully healed.
I live with pain,
and I will never, ever get to be
quite whole again.
The battle took its toll. My strength is gone.
I cannot walk too fast or go too far.
Each day I do whatever must be done
and little more.
This truce is tenuous and may yet fail.
My foe is both implacable and sly.
There may be treachery within my blood or bone.
I may yet die.
And though I camouflage my fear with smiles,
I wonder all the while
what sabotage is being wreaked
within me even as I speak.
We Have Cranky Daysby Bob Riter
July 08, 2016
3 Great Reasons To Have Gratitude On Your Cancer Teamby Marlys Johnson
July 25, 2016


text:
I'm a complete newbie to Ubuntu, but so far, I've had no luck installing a software RAID5 with Ubuntu. I've already installed Ubuntu Server 11.04 about 3 times. I followed the software raid instructions here to the best of my abilities, even though the screens are different. I did not use a RAID 1 for my boot partition on each drive...is that a must?
Anyway, I've had errors in past installations, but I was able to get through the entire install with 3 drives, a small bootable partition on each (sda/b/c1?), a swap partition on each (sda/b/c3), and then a large partition mounted to / for my RAID 5 (sda/b/c2). The final install step looks like everything works correctly because Ubuntu says it is installing GRUB to /dev/sda1 through /dev/sdc1, but then when I try to boot for the first time, it immediately says "error: no such disk GRUB recovery>".
I was able to login using LiveCD and try to get Grub loaded, but I haven't had any luck there as well. If I apt-get grub and run it and issue
find /boot/grub/stage1, it says nothing is found. What am I doing wrong, how do I get to a working Raid5?


text:
The Pratt County 4-H Foundation, in cooperation with the sheriff's office and Kansas Highway Patrol, is sponsoring a texting and driving simulation late Thursday afternoon at the fairgrounds lower arena.
Everyone is welcome to try to drive a golf cart around the hay bales while texting, and receive educational information and a complimentary beverage.
Location, ST | website.com


text:
Men's Jordan Recover Slide Sandals
Buy Online & Pick Up In-Store
The Jordan Recover Men's Slide Sandals are recovery for your feet in a stylish design. After a heated game, slip your foot into the men's slide and relax. An expandable strap provides a snug, personalized fit, and a Phylon outsole offers lightweight cushioning, durability and traction.
- Men's Jordan slide sandals


text:
Enter the name (or, the first few letters) of the fund, the person being honored by the fund, or the person who contacted you about the fund, and then click the Find a Fund button. If the fund you are looking for does not display in the Search Results list, try entering some other biographical information, such as the city in which the fund Champion resides, a nickname, a family surname, and so on.
Note: If you enter a common name such as "Mary," the system will return hundreds of funds. If the honoree's last name is unusual, try entering that first.
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text:
A good pair of pedals can transform your riding, whether you prefer minimalist clip-in race pedals, are prepared to sacrifice weight savings for stability with one of the latest trail pedals, or want to push your limits downhill on flat pedals combined with sticky-soled shoes. Here's our pick of the best mountain bike pedals we've tested since the start of 2011.
We rate the best by three categories: cross-country, trail and flat.
Buy mountain bike pedals now from: Halfords | Cyclestore | Evans Cycles | Wiggle
Best clip-in cross-country pedals
Shimano M520
The M520 has become the benchmark by which all other pedals are judged. If what you're spending doesn't buy you more (like reduced weight, for example) than what's on offer here then really, don't bother. Just buy a pair of these, bung them on your bike and go.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Shimano M520.
Time ATAC XS Carbon
£137 / $200
Riders (often with dodgy knees) in pursuit of more 'float' when riding tend to favour the Time system of lateral bars to clip into. With a relatively wide platform, the ATAC offers good support. Combined with its ability to remain unbothered by sticky conditions, this makes it ideal for day-long epics.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Time ATAC XS Carbon.
Crank Brothers Eggbeater 11 Ti
£340 / $425
This was the pedal that first gave riders a genuinely different and useful alternative to Shimano's SPD. Entry and exit is very light, though well-defined and more consistent than Look – if not quite as positive as Shimano or Time. It's something you learn to feel as well as hear.
Their easy mud shedding and low weight mean performance-orientated riders love them. There are downsides, such as slightly thin service intervals, and the cheaper ones need more care than the 3 and 11. That said, the service is a genuine five-minute job. Durability is otherwise high with breakages almost unheard of.
From: Crank Brothers
Ritchey Pro Paradigm
£94 / $150
Ritchey's design detail and manufacturing quality makes many a heart beat faster and the Pro Paradigm won't disappoint in either respect. SPD compatible, the axle and bearings have been designed to combine strength and durability with smooth running performance.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Ritchey Pro Paradigm.
Xpedo M-Force 4 Ti
With its strength to weight ratio this pedal has been gathering a loyal race following, but we found it fit for all occasions. You will need stiffer shoes to get the best out of the Mountain Force, but we think the practical, mud-beating ability and durable design mean you don't need to save them for best or race days.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Xpedo M-Force 4 Ti.
Best clip-in trail pedals
Shimano XT PD-M980
£120 / $269.99
The XT-level trail pedal fits the silky smooth and reliable SPD mechanism (shared across all of models) into this new alloy body. It's not a massive platform to stand on if not clipped in, but an anti-roll platform, so if you stand on the pedal and don't clip in, it can't roll along the bottom of your shoe.
In this respect the trail pedals are ace. As a pedal to ride on without clipping in, obviously, it's less clever. Nevertheless, they're very popular with riders who don't mind the extra grams and want to know that when they slam their foot nothing bad, at least, will happen.
From: Shimano
Shimano Deore M530
£40 / $67
The M530 is for those who ride technical trails where light weight is less of an issue – the extra alloy in its 'wings' adds 39g per pedal compared to the M520. Weight aside, it's a real rider's pedal. Entry to the cleat mechanism is a lot more reliable thanks to the elimination of roll.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Shimano Deore M530.
Shimano Deore XT M785
With a weight only grams heavier than the superb XTR M985s and a very appealing price, there can be few reasons to look beyond the XT M785s if you're looking for a new set of mid-range trail pedals.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Shimano Deore XT M785.
Shimano XTR M985
£120 / $250
The cage itself doesn't offer much support for your shoes but it does protects the pedal from bashing against rocks. It also offers the huge benefit of stopping the pedal rotating when you're hastily stomping on it to relocate your feet. This design doesn't hamper mud clearance.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Shimano XTR M985.
CrankBrothers Candy II
£70 / $90
Riders who find the Eggbeater just rolls on the underside of their shoes like this platform – it stops that happening – and those who can feel the Eggbeater through their soles like the extra surface area.
It spreads the load and reduces hot spots – happy Eggbeater users tend to be racy types using stiffer soled shoes. They come with a five-year warranty and weigh just 320g.
From: CrankBrothers
CrankBrothers Mallet II
£75 / $140
Grip was so impressive that we wound the pins in most of the way. This gave us the float we've come to love from CrankBrothers pedals yet should you unclip, there's still enough grip and platform to ride out a section before getting clipped back in.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the CrankBrothers Mallet II.
Shimano PD-M545
£69.99 / $120
The M545 has the same positive in/out feel of all Shimano pedals and you can adjust the tension to suit. The platform sits at a slight angle, which makes it easy to engage your foot, then rotates slightly on the axle for support. Being double sided it works no matter which way up it falls.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Shimano M545.
Time X-ROC S
£80/ $125
These pedals combine Time's proven ATAC retention mechanism with a large composite body for better unclipped use, in a package that's quite light, given the size, at 445g. During four months of testing they've functioned exceptionally. However, they've also taken a beating.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Time X ROC S.
Best flat pedals
Superstar Nano Thru Pin
The bodies are concave and nice and thin, so your foot sits well on the pedal. The grip is spectacular too, considering the pins are nothing special.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Superstar Nano Thru Pin.
Nukeproof Electron
£35 / $58
These pedals are made from a reinforced Nylon composite, which we found tough and sturdy. The grip is great and the replaceable pins even use replaceable captive nuts to hold them in. The bearings have taken some serious abuse and are still rolling smoothly. They're great value for money too.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Nukeproof Electron.
DMR Vault
£99 / $147
DMR's Vault is one of our favourites for trail use. The 115x115mm aluminium platform is wide enough for the chunkiest shoes, and the delicate concavity of the ribbed central bar lets your foot sink securely onto the 11 well-placed pins.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the DMR Vault.
Shimano Saint PD-MX80
£59.99 / $89
Shimano's DX pedal set the flat pedal standard for a long time, so the new Saint offering had a lot to live up to. Although the Saint pedals tip the scales at 499g, we think the weight penalty is a small price to pay for the quality on offer for such a reasonable price.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Shimano Saint PD-MX80.
Burgtec Penthouse
Big but clever and beautifully constructed, the Penthouse Flats are a high-performance investment. At 22mm these are fairly thick, and the lack of horizontal cutouts probably accounts for much of their weight (556g) but few pedals are as tough.
If you value performance, strength and striking form and function, these will excite you.
From: Burgtec
Truvativ Holzfeller
£81 / $135
The grip on the Truvativ pedals is second to none, thanks to the super-sharp pins, which all screw through from behind. On the rare occasions when the pins do break off, they tend to snap at the base so removing – and replacing – them is easy. The bearings still feel good after a serious amount of use too.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Truvativ Holzfeller.
Straitline SC
£120 / $160
The grip of the Straitline pedals is awesome. The pins really grab your shoe, and their lip-and-large-thread design prevents them tearing out pretty well. The platform feels huge even if you have wide feet, giving a really secure feeling with no chance of rolling off.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Straitline SC.
Superstar Nano Tech
£43 / $67
Only the DMRs and the Burgtecs perform better, but they're twice and three times the price, respectively. Tellingly, we only noticed the difference when we went from the Nanos to, say, the Vaults. But we never swapped back again and thought they weren't as good. They offer fantastic grip and performance for the money.
Click here to read BikeRadar's full review of the Superstar Nano Tech.
Clip-in XC:
- Bebop BBP-11 (£75 / $100)
- Look Quartz (£70 / $120)
- Wellgo W-01 (£36.99 / $49)
- Xpedo M-Force 8 Ti(£N/A / $259)
Clip-in trail:
- CrankBrothers Mallet 1 (£49.99 / $60)
- Time Z Freeride (£57.99 / $99)
- CrankBrothers Candy 3 (£95 / $120)
Flat pedals:
- Outland CNC Slimline (£55 / $N/A)
- Gusset Nitro (£80 / $99)
- Point One Racing Podium (£150 / $242)
- Shimano MX30 DX (£70 / $85)
- Straitline AMP (£130 / $185)
This article is based on reviews originally published in What Mountain Bike (available on Apple Newsstand and Zinio), Mountain Biking UK (also available on Apple Newsstand and Zinio) and here on BikeRadar.


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My wife and I were going to plan our first family outing with our newborn. The easiest way for us to breastfeed is still with the breastfeeding pillow and a chair. So no hooter hiders quite yet and my wife is modest about whipping 'em out in public. We're trying to figure out online where/what stores might offer breastfeeding facilities. My google-fu is failing me. Is there some place/way to find out (in the US) where we can breastfeed? Is there some common signage or online place where breastfeeding locations can be easily located so you can plan your day around feedings?
I don't know how complete their database is, but this iPhone app provides a database of public locations with comments:
New Medela iPhone App Helps Breastfeeding Moms
This blog seems to provide useful information on lactation rooms across the US
In the UK it is illegal to discriminate against women who wish to breastfeed. So, if your wife was not shy about whipping them out in public she could go into any (open to public) business and feed.
Most places will have some kind of baby-changing room. They sometimes have seats suitable for feeding. As you can imagine, it's not the nicest place to feed a baby.
My wife's cousin just recently gave birth 5 months ago but is now back to work. She says she breastfeeds when out with the infant and pumps when at work. She said she recently found a mobile website through a Facebook moms group called MomsPumpHere (http://www.momspumphere.com/places/list/all) that loads a huge list of places in your specific city or state, where moms can breastfeed or breast pump when moving around.


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Toddler Christmas Dresses (2T-4T)
It's about the Christmas dress and she is old enough to know it! Find beautiful Christmas dresses for toddlers in the season's latest styles and colors at Sophia's Style. Shop Smocked Christmas Dresses for a more traditional look and Girls Christmas Outfits for an informal look. And best of all - our affordable discount prices will leave you feeling merry!
Great customer service and fast, reliable shipping makes shopping for toddler Christmas dresses fun, fast and easy. Our Christmas dresses for toddlers are in stock and ready to ship immediately. Don't forget to add lovely Hair Accessories and a great pair of Girls Shoes to complete her holiday look.


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We are developing a Java web application using Spring, Hibernate and MySQL.
I want our application to automatically backup the MySQL database daily; is there any way to accomplish that with Java code?
This is easy to do.
It is worth while putting some backup file cycling into the script so that you keep, say, every backup from the last week and delete the rest.
Also remember to backup to a physically different disk from the database itself so you have a backup if the disk dies.
You can user Quartz-scheduler to schedule the backup, take a look here on how to schedule an automatic Hibernate backup.


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as I received my adapter yesterday, I was trying to find some parts to attach it to the manfrotto center column with leveling top.
http://www.manfrotto.com/product/837...umn_for_055Pro. The handle at the bottom fixes the top leveling plate by locking-unlocking. So we have to keep this mechanism going and be able to attach the lower adapter part to an 3/8" male screw.
I managed to find some parts which can be used to make it work:
The normal manfrotto handle has a 6mm thread. So you have to change the 1/4" thread inside of the Adapter to a 6mm thread. I just "screwed" it inside softly and everything worked nice with the new 6mm thread. The plate has to rest against the Bottom of the Tripod with a tube between Adapter Plate and tripod.
I found a small tube normally used as curtain accessory which fits nicely. H: 15mm , outer diameter 18mm, inner diameter 12mm = 3mm thick "wall". There is a flat screw inside on top, I opened up the hole with 6mm. This screw centers the tube on the 6mm Tripod Screw. Fixing the tube to the tripod with the Adapter Plate on top, you can easily fix the leveling top.
Workflow to fix the Tripod Adapter: First fix Top Plate with loose level plate of tripod. Then center the lower NN adapter to 3/8" screw of adapter plate, fix the tripod head by using the adapter plate. Move the pole upwards to fix it to the center column.
For the other type of center column without leveling top, you have to get this sort of adapter:
After taking off the rubber cap of the end of the center column, it can be fixed by clicking into one of the two holes in the columns end.


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If the Engine Room is used during Roslin's turn, would either Crisis Card she chooses automatically have a jump icon, or just the first one drawn?
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I submitted this question to Fantasy Flight support. Here's the response:
Just from looking at the rules and cards...
Engine Room specifically refers to the next card drawn, not played.
Thus Roslin choose between two cards, but the first one drawn would now have a jump icon on it.
I can't find an errata/ruling about that particular interaction.


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Consensus Process
From Noisebridge
Noisebridge is run by consensus with all the members. We don't do anything as a group that everyone isn't OK with (not everyone has to be wildly enthusiastic). We've evolved a way of getting to this state, which is not any kind of definitive rule, but has worked reasonably well so far. Here's what to expect in most cases, except when we get to consensus by a different method.
Use Cases
The Short Version
- Dick wants to paint the bike shed pink. He brings it up at a Tuesday meeting as a Discussion Item.
- Jane doesn't want the bike shed painted, Dick and Jane yell at each other for a while. People get annoyed and they ask Dick and Jane to discuss this after the meeting.
- Dick and Jane get together later and talk out their problems, they agree to paint the bike shed blue.
- Dick brings up painting the bike shed blue as a Consensus Item at the next Tuesday meeting.
- Everyone agrees this is a great idea. Consensus has been reached!
The Long Version
- Dick wants to paint the bike shed pink, others at Noisebridge say this is a great idea.
- Dick adds "Paint the bike shed pink" to Discussion Items for next week's Tuesday meeting.
- Dick shows up at the meeting and discusses his plan with everyone attending. Discussion is allowed to continue on for a week to give people time to read and respond to the meeting notes if they weren't at the meeting and want to be involved.
- Jane thinks this is a stupid idea, she doesn't think the bike shed should be painted at all.
- Jane and Dick argue for 5 minutes, everyone gets annoyed and tell them to shut up, Jane says she'll block consensus at the next meeting.
- Jane, being an member who is excellent to others at Noisebridge, talks to Dick after the meeting, Dick offers to be ok with painting the bike shed whatever color, Jane says blue is great, Dick agrees. Story continues.
- In an alternate universe Jane is totally a jerk and doesn't want to be open to anymore discussion about this, she'll block no matter what. Story ends here.
- The note taker of the meeting posts the meeting notes to the wiki and the mailing list.
- Marty sees the item, even though he wasn't around for the meeting he responds back and states that isn't going to support this issue unless eco-bio-organic friendly paint was used. Dick agrees.
- Cathy emails the list and says she doesn't feel that spending Noisebridge funds on paint is a smart thing, but wont block.
- Yojimbo does want to block this item but wont be able to physically make it to the next meeting, since he's never actually been to the space and doesn't actually know anyone there, he's having a hard time convincing someone to act as a proxy for him.
- Dick puts the topic into Consensus items for next week's agenda.
- At the meeting, Dick discusses the item and what his new revised plans are.
- Bobby blocks because he feels Noisebridge shouldn't have a bike shed in the first place. Go to step number 5.
- The meeting moderator asks if anyone disagrees to the bike shed getting painted, everyone's silent, consensus has been reached.
- Dick paints the bike shed.
- The process is decision-centric, and should be able to re-configure itself around the decision that needs to be made.
- Typically a week is given to an item from Discussion to Consensus in the Tuesday meetings to give people who didn't attend the first meeting time to review the meeting notes and start discussion over other mediums if they wish to participate in the consensus process.
- Generally by not coming to a meeting, and in turn not participating in the process, as a member you're stating that you are ok with the direction the rest of the membership participating go with, but might not necessarily agree with the subjects or topics that pass through consensus.
- Members are allowed to not block but state that they're not in support or agree with the subjects or topics that pass through consensus.
- Anyone, members or guests of Noisebridge, can bring up items for consensus.
- Only members are able to participate in the act of coming to consensus, I.E. blocking the process.
- In order to participate in consensus (block the process), a member must be physically in the space during the meeting.
- A member who isn't able to physically make it to a meeting is allowed to have another member act on their behalf as proxy if they can find one who's willing to do so (as in agrees to their point of view on the subject).
- A guest who wants to block the process is allowed to have a member act on their behalf as proxy if they can find one who's willing to do so (as in agrees to their point of view on the subject).
- There is also the notion of a Do-ocracy. If you want something done, do it, but remember to be excellent to each other when doing so.


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The Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) is one of the two major concert, convention and exhibition venues in Hong Kong, along with AsiaWorld-Expo. Across Victoria Harbour from Hotel ICON, it is located in Wan Chai North. The original building was built on reclaimed land off Gloucester Road in 1988, when the glass curtain wall overlooking the harbour on three sides was the world's largest. The second construction phase took place between 1994 and 1997, and features a distinctive bird-like rooftop, which has also been described as a turtle.
The LEGCO Building. Another jewel in the Region's architectural heritage, The Legislative Council Building of Hong Kong was the home of the former Supreme Court until 1985, when it became home to the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. Located in Central along the east side of Statue Square, it was opened in 1912 and is now one of the Region's 92 declared monuments. Neo-classical in style, it was designed by Sir Aston Webb and Ingress Bell, the British architect responsible for London's Buckingham Palace and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Following the government's move to the Tamar site in 2011, the LEGCO building will revert back to its former use as home to the Court of Final Appeal.


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I was listening to Carlos Varela's "Una Palabra" and noticed sometimes he uses "igual" for "like" and sometimes "como". I am knowing that "igual" is used more similarities, but what separates it from "como"?
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"Igual" means "equal", indicating that two things are equal to each other. "Como" means "like", meaning that two things are like each other. "Igual" implies equality, whereas "como" implies similarity. In other words, "igual" is a much stronger word.
You would use 'como' for similes. For example, como pan comido or como un flan. Igual indicates equivalence or sameness. For example, "yo pienso igual" (I think the same) or Ella habla a Ricardo de igual a igual (She speaks to Richard as an equal). Please see the sites I have linked for more examples and information.


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Highways Works Programme
Highways Service Provider Programmes
Amey is the service provider responsible for maintaining and managing Birmingham's highway infrastructure, including 2,500km of road network, nearly 100,000 street lights, 76,000 trees and over 850 highway structures and bridges across the city.
In November 2010 Amey completed the most extensive condition survey ever undertaken on Birmingham's roads. Works in the programmes have been prioritised based on the resulting condition data, the general principle being 'worst first'.
Amey then consulted with the constituency committees and other key stakeholders regarding the draft programmes. Each committee was presented with a draft plan for its specific area. These included the works programmes for services related to roads, footways, street lighting, trees, weed control, highway structures, traffic signals and tunnel refurbishment.
The final draft programme was then approved by Birmingham City Council in May 2011. The programmes include an indicative programme of works for the five years from June 2011 to May 2016.
Please note: The Highways Works Programmes are unavailable, and are currently under review until further notice.
Access to your road during resurfacing works
Vehicles are unable to drive over the hot material, whilst re-surfacing operations are being carried out. The section of road affected will be entirely closed to ALL traffic, most local access can be arranged if you speak to the gateman onsite (who will be located by the barriers at the end of road). If you require special access please contact 0121 303 6644 and select option 2. Pedestrian access will be maintained as well as access for emergency vehicles. The road closures are in place for your safety as well as the safety of our staff, we appreciate your understanding during these works.
Contact Us
For further information please contact Highways Customer service on 0121 303 6644, or write to:
Birmingham Highways Maintenance Partnership
PO Box 37 (3/4)
Birmingham City Council
1 Lancaster Circus Queensway
Change Log
This document contains proposed changes to the programmes, which are currently being considered and may or may not form part of the updated programme.
Please note: The Change Log is currently unavailable until further notice.


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Brodie Brown of Carmi-White County High School was honored as the Duff-Kingston Sportsmanship award winner. Also, the CWCHS Cheerleaders finished second in the tournament.
The 2012 All Tournament Team includes: Tyler Deaton, Eldorado; Nathaniel Lackey, Fairfield; Justin Lukens, Herrin; Jashaud Flemmings, Union Co. Ky; Joshua Jones, Meridian; Dazmeon Nickerson, Massac Co.; Dalton Mitchell, Massac Co.; Patrick Lowe, Gallatin Co.; Andrew Drone, Gallatin Co.; and Caple Henshaw, Harrisburg.
The tournament MVP was Tyler Smithpeters of Harrisburg.
Location, ST | website.com


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Do you know any open source tool to automatically align images, similar to the auto align feature in Photoshop?
Alignment of multiple images taken from the same point
If you are not making a panorama, but just aligning an image stack for focus stacking, exposure fusion or HDR, then
For example, if your have 3 files
which will produce three TIFF images,
If you prefer the graphical interface, or you want to align only partially overlapping images (like in panoramas), then use Hugin itself, it is a very powerful and flexible software.
Alignment of stereo pairs
From your comments I see, that you want to create stereoscopic images. The keyword to search for is anaglyph, not align.
For this purpose I used Stereo Photo Maker, which is not open source, just a free Windows program. It runs well under
SPM can also optimize color anaglyphs to reduce ghosting, a very useful feature.
There are some scripts and tutorials for Gimp (e.g. anaglypher, script-fu-make-anaglyph, this short tutorial). It is relatively easy to build a monochrome anaglyph through layer effects and by moving a layer manually, it is not always working well for color anaglyphs.
Finally, there is
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AutoStitch
"Autostitch uses methods known as SIFT and RANSAC. This program differs from some other image stitching software in that it automatically stitches together even unaligned or zoomed photographs seamlessly without user input, whereas others often require the user to highlight matching areas for the photographs to merge properly. The only requirement is that all photographs be taken from a single point."
Free demo for Windows (which works seamlessly on Linux under Wine) is available, and I never needed another tool for stitching of pics.
As mattdm correctly wrote above (in comment), this is similar question: Recommendations for panorama creation/stitching tools and autostitch is also there one of the answers. I love (and prefer) it for two reasons: - simple installation (one exe file, nothing to install) - simple to use - choose input pics, choose size of output image, and other settings you do not need to set/change if you don't want to
So it's not exactly open source, but it is free (demo), simple and works fine both on Windows and Linux.
Hugin's command-line


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I'm a Wordpress Theme Designer. I want to have functions to make my footer links remain intact. Like some themes that use this method to protect their footer link from the theme downloaders to remove it.
If they alter, change, or deltete parts or all, they will get an error! Any step by step guide or source would really appreciated!
Thanks so much!


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Please enter a maximum of 5 recipients. Use ; to separate more than one email address.
The tightening of fuel specifications in South America and the necessity of processing more-challenging feedstocks are driving hydrogen catalyst demand in the region. Clariant officials say that optimization of high-performance catalysts is a critical tool to increase hydrogen supply in refineries.
Clariant opened a new research and development (R&D)
laboratory in Brazil for catalysts for the chemicals and oil
and gas industries, the company said on Tuesday.
Located in Suzano, Brazil -- the companys
largest manufacturing plant in Latin America -- the
laboratory begins operations with a complete infrastructure,
top equipment and a well-qualified team of researchers
dedicated to develop new generations of catalysts as well as
providing technical support to customers in the region.
The projected growth of the gas industry
in Brazil is very impressive and Clariant will contribute to
that growth, said Stefan Heuser, senior vice
president and head of BU Catalysts.
With this important investment we follow our strategy to
provide strong support to our local business partners," he
added. "Here in Brazil we will jointly develop new and
innovative solutions with our catalysts and adsorbents."
Brazilian gas supplies are poised to soar, and domestic
production will triple from current level of 65 million cubic
meters/day to around 180 million in 2020 with significant
portion from off-shore platforms, according to Clariant
Brazil oil production is about 25% of the global deep water
production in 2011, and pre-salt exploration could
increase this percentage significantly. According to ONIP
(National Petroleum Industry Organization), demand for goods
and services for the oil and gas industries should at least
reach $400 billion through 2020.
Clariants adsorbents can be used to purify natural
gas, which comes out of the well with impurities such as
sulfur, mercury, arsine and other compounds harmful to the environment and the plant equipment.
The ActiSorb GP Series adsorbents remove those
contaminants before feeding the gas into the pipeline to meet
the mandatory specification.
After more than 60 years providing solutions for the removal of
contaminants from natural gas and other hydrocarbon chains, Clariant said
it sees the increase in production from the pre-salt
reserves and large potential of shale gas as a platform for
growth in Latin America and worldwide.
In addition, tightening of fuel specifications in South
America and the necessity of processing more challenging feedstocks are driving hydrogen
catalyst demand.
Clariants catalysts business is one of the market leaders
in hydrogen catalysts, with optimization of high-performance
catalysts representing a critical tool to increase
hydrogen supply in refineries. The catalyst business also
offers a number of sulfur-removal products, including a
gasoline desulfurization catalyst that is being used in more
than a dozen new units worldwide.
We will provide a complete range of solutions for the
catalysts market with the support of our applied research and
technical support infrastructure, said Harald
Dialer, head of syngas catalysts for Clariant.
Fully operational in June, the new R&D laboratory was
established from the acquisition of relevant catalysts assets
of the Brazilian company Oxiteno in mid-2012, which included
patents and research labs.
With the transfer of assets to the Suzano industrial park and
the installation of the new unit, Clariant noted that
it has invested additional resources to improve its
infrastructure and the services offered to its customers, as
well as identify opportunities to develop tailor-made solutions
for the regional market.
The Suzano lab is part of a global network of 11 R&D facilities.
The new research group further strengthens
Clariant´s technology portfolio in gas
purification and syngas-related applications," said Marvin
Estenfelder, head of catalysts R&D for Clariant.
All comments are subject to editorial review.
All fields are compulsory.
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A searchable database of project activity in the global hydrocarbon processing industry
Engineers and designers are highly skilled individuals. Forcing them to enter design changes using tables, forms and spreadsheets is unproductive and uneconomical, and it increases the likelihood of human error—this is the way that most instrumentation software systems currently work. For too long, software vendors have denied engineers and designers the simple practicality of a graphical visual engineering interface with "drag and drop" capability and inbuilt intelligence, ensuring changes are automatically replicated into all the associated data and databases.
Is 2016 the peak for US gasoline demand?
Too soon to tell
July 2016


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Mayor's union deal seems sugarcoated
James D. Robinson, Waterbury This is in response to the Dec. 5 story "City, managers agree on pact," concerning the contract agreement between Waterbury and the city managers' union. The story says the managers will get about $324,000 in raises over the next three years in exchange for about $141,000 in concessions to the city (i.e. taxpayers).


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Here is my setup for table panoramas:
The arca swiss clamp is mounted on a small table tripod.
This way I can easily move the NN3 from the large tripod to this one.
Or the camera can be mounted directly (has a plate attached)
for self timer pictures or long time exposures (candle light)
Viele Gr?º?üe


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My Daddy's Name is Donor
A new survey by the Institute for American Values showing that children conceived by Artificial Insemination-Donor have questions about their paternity . Some seem to wish they'd been born into an intact family.The trouble, of course, is that in most cases there is no intact family for them to be born into. The only alternative was non-existence.I never know what to make about surveys like this--when the alternative is non-existence. And I also wonder what the difference is between a survey of AID- kids, who express regret about coming into existence in this manner, and, say, a (hypothetical) survey of children born with significant disabilities, or in poverty, who express regret about being born in that physical or social condition.Would the Institute for American Values sponsor a survey of my hypothetical kind? And what kind of conclusions do they think should follow from the survey they actually did, as distinct from other possible surveys of this sort--when the alternative is non-existence?And if the response is, "well . . . it's different. . . AID is an immoral means, whereas having a child with a disability isn't or in poverty isn't," then it seems to me that the real argument doesn't actually turn on the self-assessment of the children about their well-being, but upon something else--namely, a conviction that the means involved in AID are illicit.And why not just be upfront about that?UPDATE: One of the authors of the study, has responded to this post. I think she's missed my point. So I'll try to put it in an nutshell. I'm not endorsing or opposing AID here--I'm looking at argument structures.These children may complain about their genetic heritage, but what does that complaint actually mean, since: 1) without AID they would not be themselves; ad 2) without AID they wouldn't exist. The alternative for them isn't an intact family, it's non-existence.
About the Author
Cathleen Kaveny is the Darald and Juliet Libby Professor in the Theology Department and Law School at Boston College.
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I read that survey, too. I can't imagine how anyone could donate/sell sperm/ova and know that a child of theirs was perhaps trapped forever in human form with the genes of a stranger from whom the donor/seller might have recoiled in real life.And why would a childless person pay to create a new baby when there are homeless children already alive? And why would anyone believe the sperm is really that of a tall handsome med student, when it could just as easily be that of the short ugly doctor who owns the fertility clinic? The biological imperative to reproduce led at least one doctor to use his own sperm to produce dozens of offspring in one city.
Speaking of repellent: look at the ads to the right. Does Commonweal get to approve the ads engendered (!) by its blog posts?
"...it seems to me that the real argument doesnt actually turn on the self-assessment of the children about their well-being, but upon something elsenamely, a conviction that the means involved in AID are illicit."But one of the reasons AID is illicit is precisely that the children thereby conceived have had their rights infringed:CCC 2376 Techniques that entail the dissociation of husband and wife, by the intrusion of a person other than the couple (donation of sperm or ovum, surrogate uterus), are gravely immoral. These techniques (heterologous artificial insemination and fertilization) infringe the child's right to be born of a father and mother known to him and bound to each other by marriage. They betray the spouses' "right to become a father and a mother only through each other."
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child:Article 71. The child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and, as far as possible, the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents.----------http://www.cirp.org/library/ethics/UN-convention/
The concern about falling in love with or marrying someone to whom you are unknowingly related was a new one on me. I've never known an adopted child to have this sort of anxiety, but perhaps there are studies that show this as well? If the comparison could be made, and if it shows that the results are not the same, that would be really interesting. In other words, if not knowing who your biological parents are does not produce this anxiety when you are brought up with adoptive parents, but knowing that one of your biological parents was a sperm donor does, then this is a more complex psychological phenomenon than simply "not knowing."
To fall in love with a stranger who has biological connections to you is one thing. To fall in love with a known person with biological connections to you is quite another thing.The first situation, while possibly a bit unsettling at first discovery, should not cause undue concern. For all practical purposes, that stranger is still a stranger. (Is there not a theory that we are all related within 6 degrees of separation?) The second situation brings up all kinds of psychological and social problems that our society is not prepared to deal with. Forget about the church; I'm talking reality here. And, yes, I do NOT consider many of the church's shibboleths to have anything to do with reality; only power and control.
"The concern about falling in love with or marrying someone to whom you are unknowingly related was a new one on me. Ive never known an adopted child to have this sort of anxiety, but perhaps there are studies that show this as well?"------Adopted children are most likely the offspring of a man and woman who had few, if any, other children. Odds are against their meeting a sibling. Children whose biological parents sold ova/sperm may have numerous siblings. They are likely to meet, especially in a small town such as the one where the sperm bank doctor I mentioned above operated. As they grow up, these children naturally are interested in their origins, so they Google, etc., and find that it's highly likely that they have siblings. Men who sell sperm do so repeatedly. Pay their way through med school, etc. http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=hp&q=doctor+at+sperm+bank+fathered+m...
And what kind of conclusions do they think should follow from the survey they actually did...The report has several recommendations (pp. 77-81) worthy of consideration. Heres one of their final ones:Even if all the above recommendations became realities tomorrow, we would still, as a society, be supporting the practice of conceiving children some number of whom will struggle with significant losses. In no other area of medicine does the treatment have such enormous potential implications for persons who themselves never sought out that treatment (that is, the donor offspring). In ethics, one possible guideline is to ask not 'Are more harmed than not?' but rather 'Is anyone harmed at all?' A significant minority, at least, of donor offspring seriously struggle with losses related to the circumstances of their conception and birth. We must confront the question: Does a good society intentionally create children in this way?http://www.familyscholars.org/assets/Donor_FINAL.pdf
Im not sure if this gets to Cathleens point, but it does seem to me that the purpose of the survey is to uncover problems among children by through AID. Take these statements from the exec summary: We learned that, on average, young adults conceived through spermdonation are hurting more, are more confused, and feel more isolated fromtheir families. Hurting how? Are they seeing counselors? On anti-depressants? And feeling more confused and isolated from their families than whom?Nearly two-thirds agree, My sperm donor is half of who I am. How are respondents construing this question? That the sperm donor is half of their genetic material? Unquestionably thats true and not surprising. Or are they saying that half their personality and identity belongs to a complete stranger, which would be more disturbing, of course. But its a poor survey question.Nearly half are disturbed that money was involved in their conception. What does disturbed mean? And how disturbed were respondents? It would be interesting to know how this question was worded. More than half say that when they see someone who resembles them theywonder if they are related. My father was conceived by a bigamist and used to grill people with the same surname to try to find out if they were related. My husband, whose family cut ties with his grandfather, pulled into a car dealership with his grandfather's surname to find out if he was related to the dealers. A friend's adopted daughter, who seems to be the most well-adjusted kid I've ever met, used to wonder if people with red hair were birth relatives. This is a pretty common phenomenon for people who have gaps in their knowledge about their biological origins. Curiosity does not necessarily imply that there's a problem or disturbed state of mind. About half of donor offspring have concerns about or serious objections to donor conception itself, even when parents tell their children the truth. Again, what do concerns or serious objections mean? And how was the question asked?I object to aspects of the fertility industry that feed the notion that there is some God-given right to having a born child by any means science can provide. I think playing fast and loose with reproductive material cheapens notions of human life and, to some extent, feeds the mindset that abortion is a good solution if your baby isnt perfect.The survey attempts to establish that children born of one of these means--AID--are seriously harmed psychologically. I think, at best, what theyve shown is what we already know, that children born outside an intact family or who are not 100 percent biologically connected to their parents will be curious, perhaps sometimes anxious, about their origins. Will this give pause to those who are considering AID or other artificial means of conception? I highly doubt it.
Fascinating issues are raised by philosopher Derek Parfit in his discussion of a "Repugnant Conclusion": For any possible population of at least ten billion people, all with a very high quality of life, there must be some much larger imaginable population whose existence, if other things are equal, would be better even though its members have lives that are barely worth living http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/repugnant-conclusion/
Considerations of the Repugnnt Conclusion" principle struck me at first as silly hair-splitting. Why? Because, first, it assumes that the hypothetical philosopher-king who have control in such a hypothetical population would actually know whatt a good life for each person would be. Second, it assumes that the people would be amenable to following the lead of those theoretically wise men. But then it occurred to me: every time the Congress is faced with a new taxation bill it is deciding how many people will have the benefit of more money and hence have more opportunity to buy the actually good things of life as opposed to the non-rich, i.e., those who will not have such opportunities to buy whatever happiness is buyable. In other words, the Repugnant Conclusion is often operative in our own culture to some extent. So how great is our right to happiness relative to the happiness of others? So when is it right to raise taxes? Or not? Actually, I don't see how these questions are answerable. But I've changed my mind about their being silly.
I should add that the point in the Parfit artical about non-existent individuals not having any rights in the first place is a good one. And it seems to me that the argument above about the non-existent kid having a right to happiness or anything else is sheer nonsense simply because there ain't no such kid..
But one of the reasons AID is illicit is precisely that the children thereby conceived have had their rights infringedP Flanagan,I think I may be repeating what Ann says, but isn't it rather odd to claim that someone's rights are infringed by the very act of bringing him or her into existence? Is it better not to exist than to exist my means of artificial insemination? And better for whom? Should those conceived by artificial insemination claim a right to nonexistence? (I remember saying, as a kid, "I didn't ask to be born!") Does artificial insemination violate the rights of the nonexistent to be made "existent"? And by the way, if every child has a "right to be born of a father and mother known to him and bound to each other by marriage," the rights of 4 out of 10 children conceived naturally and born in the United States are violated in that they are born out of wedlock, and the percentage of out-of-wedlock births continues to grow. I would have to say that it makes more sense to me to argue that it is unfair to bring a child with disabilities into the world than it is to bring a child into the world by means of artificial insemination.
". . . isnt it rather odd to claim that someones rights are infringed by the very act of bringing him or her into existence? "David --Indeed. And it shows, it seems to me, how far away from metaphysical foundations many current ethical systems have gone. A system not founded on and bounded by * what is* and what is capable of being is a system for never-never land. This is why those who are against contraception who talk of the rights of the people-who- would-have-been conceived are talking nonsense. There *are* no people who would have been conceived,, so "they" can't have rights. Put linguistically, "they" has no referent. "Sich words are wind/ that wasten soon in vain". Or something like that.
I had a friend who was one of more than 10 children who used to wish his family were smaller. My own father was mentally ill and I have wondered many times what life would have been like without a parent who carried his own private black rain cloud around with him wherever he went. And imagine, if the "Olmsted" solution had been carried out in Phoenix, four little children would have been left to wonder what their lives would have been like if their mother had lived. But you need to tread especially carefully when the only counterfactual is non-existence -- and I think one problem with studies like this is the failure acknowledge that, indeed, the "what if" is not an "intact" biological family but a social construct that effectively would have prevented your mother from giving birth to you. "I wish I knew my biological father" is a far cry from "I wish I had never been born."
Yes, Barbara. That was the point I was hoping to make. And I assume that this "family values" ganization would be opposed to wrongful life suits--which are based on the same sort of counterfactual. But they're obviously not thinking about structuring arguments in any more than an ad hoc way. But I think this group is more concerned with achieving ad hoc policy objectives than the soundness of its arguments.
The ads at the right have changed.
I have never in my life read more ridiculous analysis! The children born by artificial insemination to anonymous donors are not even considering non-existence! The study was conducted to bring to light a whole set of emotional and physical concerns that these children have. If this "business" continues to be unregulated more children will suffer. Do we care about children? Do we care that the Catholic Church has steadfastly condemned this very practice? Do we care that they were right after all? No, you people only care about existential realities and unrealities that have absolutely nothing to do with childrens' wellbeing. This study is groundbreaking and should be heeded well.
Agree, Liz. It seems like mockery to talk about "non-existence".
???? If the study's recommendations are heeded, these particular children wouldn't exist. They --the particular beings they are-- came into being by the union of a woman's egg with a donor sperm--wouldn't ever have come about. Their suffering would be avoided by avoiding their existence. Whether the procedure should be banned for other reasons is a separate question.
The psychological issues faced/endured by adopted people are often dismissed/discounted in similar fashion. Would they have preferred life in an orphanage? Life on the streets? Would they have preferred being aborted? Etc. Perhaps the anxieties of the children of sellers/donors of sperm/ova could be relieved to some extent by requiring the names of their progenitors to be given to them, along with DNA evidence that the named person is really their biological parent. No secrets. No anonymity. In addition, medical and genealogical histories should be provided. It comes as a relief to some adopted people to examine their family trees on Ancestry.com. Even if their real parents didn't want them or couldn't provide for them, they're still part of a family of real people with real names, occupations, countries of origin, etc., etc.Some find that they're related to their adopted parents.
I agree that those are serious questions and should be addressed.
(Did you ask that the ads for ova sales, etc., be removed?)
I didn't see them--was that what you were talking about? Wow.
Yes. I didn't realize you hadn't seen them. Quite a few. Like the ones that appear in college papers for ova.
It is true that these children wouldn't have existed without these procedures. But isn't still possible to regret circumstances of one's conception, without wishing that one had never been born? For example, maybe children of rapists are grateful for their existence, and happy to be alive, but nevertheless regret the rape and some of the results of that act. I think they can do so without being inconsistent.
Pete, I think you can do that. But I don't think the example you gave is quite apt. Rape is a wrong to the mother, too, whereas the argument here is that the parents have harmed the child. And so we have an independent reason to ban rape.
I would go back to my friend, smack in the middle of 10+ children, who held a lot of anger against his parents for what he viewed as their self-indulgence and indifference to the well-being of their existing children. What would the church tell him? That the circumstances of the birth of all people are fortuitous, if not providential -- it's a miracle any of us are here at all -- we can spend our lives wishing for a more perfect beginning, a better home environment, more congenial parents, and so forth -- or we can make the most of what we have been given. This is true if you are born in poverty, have parents with disabilities, and in nearly any other circumstance where there are good arguments your parents should have thought twice before bringing children into the world. This is what you would tell children conceived with IAD, I submit, if you weren't predisposed to dislike it on theological grounds.
Barbara --I think Nancy raised this basic question sometime before == how can having a child be a good thing yet not good at the same time? As I remember her answer was simply that it can't be true that it's not good.But there is a dilemma there, as your friend who is one of 10 illustrates. The existentialists are right -- life is absurd. But the Church hasn't done a good job teaching us how to deal with absurdities. It doesn't even recognize that there are moral dilemmas. Woe, woe, woe. (Sorry to be so negative these days, folks, but that's what happens when you have to look at the bad stuff.)
BioNews July 19, 2010My Daddys Name is Donor: Read with caution!09 July 2010By Eric Blyth and Wendy KramerEric Blyth is Professor of Social Work at the University of Huddersfield and Visiting Professor in the Department of Applied Social Sciences, Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Wendy Kramer is co-founder of the Donor Sibling Registry (www.donorsiblingregistry.com)Appeared in BioNews 567The My Daddys Name Is Donor report is co-authored by Elizabeth Marquardt, director of the Institute for American Values (IAV)s Center for Marriage and Families, who produced IAVs previous report highly critical of donor conception (1), Norval D. Glenn, of the University of Texas at Austin, and Karen Clark, of FamilyScholars.org, and published by the Commission on Parenthoods Future, a New York-based Christian think tank, in association with the IAV, in May 2010 (2).At the outset we should declare our alignment with the authors desire to acknowledge donor-conceived peoples right to access their ancestral, genetic and biological background.Nevertheless, we have serious misgivings about the report, which is based on an online survey utilising Survey Sampling Internationals SurveySpot web panel drawn from more than one million American households (3). 1610 adults aged 18-45 years took part, of whom 562 were adopted as infants, 563 were raised by their biological parents, and 485 conceived as the result of sperm donation. The authors claim that their sample is representative (p. 5) or very nearly representative (p. 6), although a more accurate claim would be that it is representative of the millionplus American households that had signed up to receive web surveys on, well, anything (p. 20) and who are offered cash and other rewards for their participation, rather than of the US population as a whole.Representativeness apart, the first thing to be said about this report is that it eschews all deference to modesty. In a single sentence, its claim to be the first effort to learn about the identity, kinship, wellbeing, and social justice experiences of young adults who were conceived through sperm donation (p. 5 our emphasis) discounts every previous research study in this field, and may well explain the absence of reference to any existing studies (except for a cursory end-note [pp. 123-124]). It also probably explains why there is no evidence that the specific questions posed in the study are grounded in existing research involving donor-conceived people. What is less easily explained is why ethical review for this study was not obtained an essential pre-requisite for all serious research involving human participants. Dissemination of the report via IAV, rather than through an academically credentialed institution, also suggests a lack of competent peer review at any stage.Somewhat incongruously, the authors intersperse their own findings with comments from other people totally unconnected with the study, but known to be opposed one way or another to donor conception. Whilst we are not claiming that there is a one-size-fits-all approach to reporting research, this unorthodox approach serves to obfuscate rather than illuminate.However, the major concern with the report is the authors extensive misrepresentation of their own data so as to best promote their message that donor conception is bad, even when their own evidence doesnt support it. Space limitations mean that we can provide only illustrative examples here:1) The authors report the following findings: 65 per cent of donor-conceived participants agree that My sperm donor is half of who I am; 45 per cent agree that The circumstances of my conception bother me; 47 per cent report that they think about donor conception at least a few times a week or more often and draw from these the exaggerated claim that donor offspring experience profound struggles with their origins and identities (p. 6 our emphasis). The one statement that might suggest any sort of struggle the circumstances of my conception bother me- generated the following responses from donor-conceived participants: 19 per cent strongly agreed; 26 per cent somewhat agreed; 20 per cent somewhat disagreed; 30 per cent strongly disagreed and five per cent didnt know. In other words, more than half didnt care.2) This strategy is repeated when discussing payment to donors. The authors assert that nearly half [of donor-conceived people] are disturbed that money was involved in their conception (p.6) and with donor conception the growing child struggles with the dawning realization that his or her biological father or mother sold the goods to make the child without even a look back to say goodbye (p. 72). But what do their participants say? Twenty per cent somewhat disagreed and 33 per cent strongly disagreed with the statement it is wrong for people to provide their sperm or eggs for a fee to others who wish to have children. Added to the six per cent who dont know, then 59 per cent of donor-conceived participants had no strong concerns about donor payment (p.84).3) They make a big deal of the fact that donor-conceived people feel that no one really understands me repeating this on no less than three occasions (pp. 7, 39, 45). However, once again, the participants themselves tell a somewhat different story. As many strongly disagreed with the statement I dont feel that anyone really understands me as strongly agreed with it, although overall, slightly more agreed (either somewhat or strongly) as disagreed 53 per cent vs 46 per cent (p. 104). Of course, this statement is pretty vague and doesnt necessarily have anything to do with donor conception. In contrast, when the study focused on very specific issues about donor conception itself, the level of support from donor-conceived participants is high. For example, 56 per cent disagreed with the statement If I had a friend who wanted to use a sperm donor to have a baby, I would encourage her not to do it (p. 82). However, this does not sit easily with the authors agenda. Instead, in order to emphasise their anti-donor conception message, on two occasions (pp. 14 and 65) they focus on the observation that 37 per cent of the donor-conceived participants agreed with the statement.4) The data are again misrepresented when reporting participants agreements with various expert opinions: 44 per cent agreed that Donor conception is fine for children so long as parents tell children the truth about their conception from an early age; 36 per cent agreed that Donor conception can be hard for children, but telling children the truth early on makes it easier for the children (our emphasis), and 11 per cent agreed that Donor conception is hard for children even if their parents tell them the truth (p. 100). These findings are distorted in the summary soundbite: About half of donor offspring have concerns about or serious objections to donor conception itself, even when parents tell their children the truth (p. 57).The report has highlighted issues that warrant further serious study. For example, we were surprised to read that 20 per cent of donor-conceived participants claimed to have acted as gamete/embryo donors or surrogates and that 52 per cent would consider being a donor or surrogate (pp. 35-36) a finding that does not accord with our years of experience of working in this field. Nevertheless, it needs to be investigated in future studies. However, judged on its own merits, this report is seriously flawed and the authors analysis should be treated with extreme caution.SOURCES & REFERENCES1) E. Marquardt (2006) The Revolution in Parenthood: The Emerging Global Clash Between Adult Rights and Childrens NeedsNew York: Institute for American Values |2) E. Marquardt, N. D. Glen and K. Clark (2010) My Daddys Name Is Donor: A New Study of Young Adults Conceived Through Sperm DonationNew York: Institute for American Values |3) Survey Sampling|4) SurveySpothttp://www.surveyspot.com/OW/index.aspx |http://www.bionews.org.uk/page_65970.asp


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Topeka, KAN (WIBW) - The names of the Salina mother and her two children who were killed in an auto accident on Westbound I-70 have been released.
Patrol says that the minivan's driver, 37-year-old Laura Geske was pronounced dead along with her two children, Joshua Geske, 8, and Joy Geske, 3, all of Salina. Laura's husband, Jeffrey Geske, 41, and another son, Jacob Geske, 3, were taken to Stormont-Vail Hospital. The patrol says that their injuries do not appear life threatening.
Jeffrey Geske is pastor of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Salina, KSAL radio reported.
The crash happened around 3:15 p.m. Saturday when an Eastbound
Dodge Challenger red car crossed the interstate's grassy median and collided with the Westbound van.
The driver of the car, 62-year-old Steven Moore of Topeka, was
taken to the same hospital. The patrol says his injuries don't
appear life-threatening.
The Salina family was in a blue 2003 Ford Windstar driven by Laura Geske in the right-hand lane of westbound I-70.
The two vehicles collided head-on.
Both drivers and all passengers were wearing their seatbelts (children in proper booster seats).
Extrication crews were called to the scene. Occupants from both vehicles were extricated. Life Star was also called but later canceled.
As of 7:48 p.m. Saturday night, all lanes of Westbound I-70 west of Topeka are open to all traffic. The traffic accident has been cleared and roadway reopened to normal traffic operations.


text:
How do I add a new TCP/IP printing port in Windows to match the IP address of
the printer?
The following steps
should be performed after verifying the Brother machine has been setup on the
network and is communicating on the network.
1. Open the Printers
folder. Refer to the following solution for instructions, if needed -
do I open the Printers folder in Windows?"
2. Right-click on the
Brother printer driver and left-click Printer Properties.
3. Click the
Ports tab.
4. Click Add
NOTE: If
the Add Port option is grayed out or unavailable, log in with admin
rights and try again.
5. Choose Standard
TCP/IP Port then click NEW PORT. The Standard TCP/IP Printer
Port Wizard will appear.
6. Click
7. In the field
labeled Printer Name or IP Address, type the IP address of your Brother
machine noted earlier and click NEXT.
8. If you receive a
window stating: "Additional Port Information Required", then the computer
is not communicating properly with the Brother machine. Some common causes
of this issue are:
Firewalls and security applications
conflict with another application running on the computer
- An IP
Address conflict with another device on the network
or eliminate as many of these factors as possible. For
Windows Firewall users, click
here if you need instructions for disabling the Windows Firewall. For
a third-party firewall, such as Norton or McAfee, refer to your software's
documentation for instructions on how to disable the
application. Contact
your computer manufacturer or network admin to further troubleshoot network
communication conflicts.
9. If you receive a
window stating: Completing the Add Standard TCP/IP Printer Port Wizard, look for
the section labeled Adapter Type. If the communication is
successful, this section should indicate that the computer is communicating with
a "Brother Print Server" by listing the node name of the Brother Machine
displayed as BRN or BRW followed by a combination of letters and
numbers. Click FINISH.
Click Close on the Printer Ports window.
Click Apply.
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Brother International Corporation Honored by Buyers Laboratory with Summer 2016 Pick ...


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I have an unused, approximately 1.5-year-old, iPad 2 (32Gig with 3G). It has a slight crack in one corner of the screen - it's noticeable but not a complete hindrance to anyone using it.
I've just obtained an iPad 3 and am trying to figure out what I can do with the old iPad 2. I was thinking of selling it (Ebay, Craigslist etc.) - but I was wondering what services Apple might provide to repair the screen beforehand, or provide a trade-up to a newer one at a low cost? What are folks' experiences? Is it worth attempting to do this before I sell it?
In case it's relevant, I'm in the UK.


text:
Display caption
In the mid 1950s, Moore made twelve Upright Motives. These three, though often displayed together, have also been shown independently. A cast of Upright Motive No.2, for example, is sited in the centre of Harlow. Likewise, a cast of Upright Motive No.1: Glenkiln Cross can be found on the Glenkiln estate in Scotland.
August 2004


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I am trying to gather a list of all known symplectic manifolds which don't have Kahler structure. If you know any please add to the list and give references for it.
Please avoid giving repetitive examples.
I am trying to gather a list of all known symplectic manifolds which don't have Kahler structure. If you know any please add to the list and give references for it.
Please avoid giving repetitive examples.
Honestly, this is like asking for a list of all animals that are not dolphins.
Instructions for making your own:
Step 1 - use the symplectic mapping torus for a symplectomorphism of your favorite Kaehler manifold (acting suitably on homology) to produce something whose Betti numbers violate being Kaehler (one odd degree Betti number is odd)
Step 2 - take the manifold from Step 1 and embed it symplectically in projective space, then blow up. That gets rid of the fundamental group, but raises the dimension a lot.
Step 3 - take Donaldson hypersurfaces to get the dimension down again.
There are lots of simply-connected four-dimensional examples in Gompf's symplectic sum paper paper which are shown to be non-Kahler by virtue of violating the Noether inequality (see Theorem 6.2). There are also higher-dimensional examples in the last section of Gompf's paper, including infinitely many simply-connected non-Kahler ones in any even dimension at least 8. Some of these are obtained directly by symplectic sum, and others by taking four-dimensional examples and embedding them in CP^n and blowing up, as suggested by Tim and eigenbunny--in these cases Gompf uses the Hard Lefschetz theorem to prove that the result isn't Kahler.
The standard symplectic surgery operations in four-dimensions (symplectic sum, Luttinger surgery, rational blowdown...) should generally be expected to produce non-Kahler manifolds more often than not, though it's not always feasible to see that the result isn't Kahler--the standard ways of doing so are by the parity of $b_1$ or by the Noether inequality. In particular this paper of Fintushel-Park-Stern gives another large collection of simply connected examples violating the Noether inequality.
One can also show that a symplectic manifold is not Kahler by showing that it is not formal (in the sense of rational homotopy theory). Often nonformal examples also don't satisfy hard Lefschetz (so could instead just be shown to be non-Kahler by that criterion), but there is a nonformal example of Cavalcanti which does satisfy hard Lefschetz.
I would recommend the Tralle-Oprea book, Symplectic manifolds with no Kähler structure.
The original example of a torus bundle over a torus which is symplectic but admits no Kahler structure is due to Thurston.
Edited: Corrected after Eugene Lerman's comment of Sep 22, 2012, which also implies this is not an answer to the question (edits are in italic).
In [Invent. Math. 131 (1998), no. 2, 311–319] Chris Woodward gives examples of multiplicity-free compact Hamiltonian manifolds that are not compatibly Kähler. This proved that Delzant's result that all compact multiplicity-free torus actions are compatibly Kähler [Bul. Soc. math. France 116, 315–339 (1988)] does not extend to the nonabelian case. Woodward uses a result from Susan Tolman's paper "Examples of non Kähler Hamiltonian torus actions" [Invent. Math. 131 (1998), no. 2, 299–310].
So, back-to-back papers with examples of symplectic manifolds with a lot of symmetry that are not compatibly Kähler.