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It isn�t often you have two columnists writing about the same subject on the same day who claim to have roots in South Boston. Both hold Whitey Bulger and the wrongfully incarcerated FBI Agent John Connolly in high disdain. One, Peter Gelzinis of the�Boston Herald,�has the luxury of being able to tell things straight up;�the other, Kevin Cullen is fettered to the�Boston Globe�s�intimate relationship to the matter and�spouts the company line.
What prompted their columns was the decision by Judge F. Dennis Saylor, IV to recuse himself�from handling the criminal trial of the probation officer John O�Brien and his two assistants. You know the background of the case � the�Globe�does a Spotlight Report and the U.S. Attorney in Boston dutifully follows up with an indictment. Once that happens the�Globe�becomes a cheer leader for the U.S. attorneys office.
Judge Saylor�s decision to step down was based on his relation with Judge Timothy Hillman and possibly others who may be called to appear as witnesses for the defense. Defense counsel have listed him and other judges and legislators as witnesses they will call to show that it was a routine practice in Massachusetts (and I suggest everywhere else in the United States) for people to write letters or make calls on behalf of friends, relatives or others who they feel would make good candidates for probation positions.
This was never a crime in the past until AUSA Fred Wyshak decided to make it into one. The strange thing about his actions is none of the judges or legislators who made the recommendations are charged. You�d think that those whose instigated an act, which is deemed criminal, would also be charged. But as we see, that would have wiped out most of the judiciary and legislature so that was not feasible.
Nevertheless, the�Globe�had demanded charges and the U.S. Attorney felt an obligation to please it. Thus it became�only the people who relied upon their recommendations and made the hires based on their judgment that a judge or legislator would not recommend someone who would turn out to be unqualified. There�s a book written by Albert A. Seedman called�Chief.�Seedman was the first Jewish chief of police in New York City. He tells how he got his detective badge through the influence of what he called his �godfather.� He suggested the system of having people speak for you to get a position or a promotion was much better than civil service examinations because no one would recommend someone who might turn out to be a dud nor would a person recommended want to embarrass the �godfather� whose help got him the position.
Wyshak�s novel idea was to charge that O�Brien and his two co-defendants were engaged in a criminal enterprise running the probation system. He said their crime was mail fraud; that is, they sent out letters of rejection to people who were better candidates than those they hired. This made it into a racketeering case where the defendants faced 20 years; he�d then, as is the U.S. Attorney in Boston�s want, increased the penalty with a superseding indictment of new charges with increased penalties when it appeared the defendants would not cave in like it did in the�Aaron Swartz case. He did not allege that the defendants hired or promoted candidates who were not qualified but there were in his judgment better candidates they could have hired.
Gelzinis is straight forward. He labels O�Brien�s trial for what it is:��the patronage trial.� �He tells how Judge Saylor ��ran into a buzz saw of defense lawyers who raised numerous body-blow questions that connected him to the same goo of patronage that allegedly tars their clients.��That, of course, is their job; and, the best way to defend their clients is to show that what they were doing was participating in a system-wide free for all where no one thought twice about making recommendations for jobs. The thrust of their defense is that if judges were participating how then is it criminal.
Cullen on the other hand has to give the�Globe�s�version. He distorts what is happening and wrongfully writes:��O�Brien used a fraudulent system�to ensure unqualified people�got those jobs.�� No one, except Cullen and possibly others in theGlobe,�has accused O�Brien of hiring unqualified people nor did he. Even Wyshak in his attempt to please only asserts he did not hire the most qualified.
Cullen summary of the case is:��Was [O'Brien] actually corrupt in doling out jobs to the politically connected, or does it just appear that way?��Can you figure out what that means? Isn�t the correct equation: �was O�Brien corrupt or was he not?� You see how the Globe can�t let go. It wants people to believe that if O�Brien is acquitted he still must be corrupt since he appears that way.
Cullen points out defense counsel used various tactics attempting to get judge Saylor off the case and points to his statement that��defense could have raised the Hillman issue two years ago.��This parrots the Boston U.S. attorney�who noted her disappointment in the delay �caused by the defense�s untimely recusal motion�.�Cullen said�Judge Saylor felt��bullied��by defense counsel. He mocks the list of defense witnesses saying it is like an �invitation list to a �time� . . . at Pier 4.���
On and on unlike telling it straight like Gelzinis, Cullen presents the negativeGlobe�view of O�Brien and his lawyers. I�d suggest you not look to Cullen for any objective coverage of the matter. He, too, has too eat and that means sticking to the company line.
Of course, Cullen could not just let his animosity toward O�Brien rest there. For some weird reason he took the opportunity to take a shot at Billy Bulger. He notes Fred Wyshak who is prosecuting O�Brien also was involved in Whitey�s trial. Then, totally�out of the blue, he sleazily writes:��Just for the record, let�s stipulate that Whitey Bulger�s brother Billy practiced patronage on a scale that makes O�Brien and everybody else look like amateurs. They don�t call the MBTA Mr. Bulger�s Transit Authority for nothin�.��(Note the dropping of the �g� from the word �nothing�. It is the high brow Cullen and the�Globe�s�way of suggesting that South Boston�s blue collar class are beneath its readership.)
As I�ve long noted it is the�Globe�s�policy to tarnish Billy Bulger at every opportunity. They know he can�t �fight back. So like any bully it takes cheap shots at him. Cullen and the�Globe�know no shame.
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NYUHome Login
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subset: commoncrawl


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The writing may be on the wall for furniture manufacturer Eagle Industries, LLC, locks on the gate and the appearance of no major work being completed.
For, employees of Eagle Industries it came out of nowhere.
"We never saw this coming," said laid off maintenance worker at Eagle Industries Larry Gammons.
Workers were originally told someone else was going to take over the business.
"We were actually being told that, the new investors had already signed a letter of intent to purchase Eagle Industries, and that we were just being laid off temporarily so an audit of financial books and everything else could take place," said Gammons.
"They said it may be a couple of weeks we'd be off because they had some new investors, and as far as I know I think they backed out, that's what I heard Monday, they backed out," said laid off maintenance worker at Eagle Industries Tom Mitchell.
Citizens First Bank filed a civil suit back in mid-March against Eagle Industries for defaulting on a loan.
Next, a restraining order was filed that would keep eagle from transferring or disposing of any personal property.
"Upon March 22nd I had gone up to eagle to retain the rest of my tools that I had at eagle industries, and at that point I was told the bank had taken over and that bank receivers now controlled Eagle Industries," said Gammons.
Finally on March 22nd a receiver was appointed, LS Associates LLC.
According to a court document, they will take possession of Eagle Industries property including inventory, vehicles, furniture, accounts, and more.
Now, former employees aren't certain where they'll be.
"I'm not sure. I applied for unemployment for now to tie me over until I can find something else because I know the economy's bad and it's going to be hard to get a job," said Mitchell.
"I'm mentally preparing myself for a transition back to putting out resume's and trying to obtain a job back within the community," said Gammons.
As of now, they haven't been notified of any possible return.
Eagle Industries did not return any of WBKO's phone calls for comment on the story.


text:
Arrested: Susannah Riley, 55, 3207 Elm St., Weirton, drug possession, Tuesday.
Arrested: Marcus Gibson, 49547 Cherry Valley Drive, Cadiz, failure to appear, obstruction of justice, petit theft, Tuesday.
Jefferson County
Arrested: Frank Walter, 20, 716 N. Fourth St., Toronto, burglary, assault, Tuesday.
Arrested: Christopher Turner, 20, 7912 state Route 164, Bergholz, importuning, menacing, Tuesday.
Arrested: Matthew Broz, 24, 2015 township Road 120, Dillionvale, Tuesday.
Arrested: Nathan Michael Saldana, 23, of Beech Bottom, driving while suspended for driving under the influence and speeding, Jan. 5.
Arrested: Thomas Edward Lance, 37, 235 Main St., Follansbee, malicious wounding, domestic battery and assault, Jan. 7.
Arrested: Robert Andrew Sayer, 55, 1032 Main St., Follansbee, driving under the influence, Jan. 8.
Cross Creek Township
Cited: Jason R. Babel, 40, 3341 Wilson Ave., Steubenville, speeding and driving with suspended license.


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4 Custom Personalized Photo Mugs Walgreens Photo for $3.98 each-shipped
coupon code MUG2THANK at checkout, good for up to 4 mugs! Shipping is $5.99 for the first one, and $1.99 for each additional mug. So to snag the best deal, add 4 to your cart and your final cost will be just $3.98 per mug, shipped right to your door!
3 Comments add a comment
Coupon is not valid yet
I had no issues buying 4 mugs an hour ago
@dpn0121: Just tried again, not working for me. Too bad, nice deal


text:
Document Actions
What is the Block Program?
The majority of new freshmen participate in the Freshman Block Program. As a result, they experience some of the advantages of a small college environment in an urban setting. A Freshman Block is a cluster of introductory level courses that creates an individual community of 22 students within Hunter's greater community of over 20,000 students. Each block section, or course cluster, has a general theme, and each course within the block section satisfies one or more college requirements.
What are the benefits?
Your participation in the Block Program can:
- provide an invaluable foundation in the liberal arts and sciences.
- offer opportunities to explore new academic disciplines, including tentative majors and minors.
- develop the critical thinking and writing skills that contribute to academic success.
- satisfy several General Education Requirements (GER).
- offer contact with prominent faculty and advisors.
- enhance your freshman experience by fostering new friendships.
Additional information about the Freshman Block Program is available at Orientation: Advising and Registration.
Please note that once students have registered for a block, they may not drop any one individual course within the linked cluster of classes. Doing so, will lead to dropping the entire block from their schedule. All changes or concerns should be discussed with a member of the first-year advising team.
Students will receive additional information about the Block Program during the new student orientation process.


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Azalea Town
this wiki
Azalea Town (ヒワダタウン Hiwada Town) is a small, isolated town located on the southern peninsula of the Johto region. The town is best known for being the residence of Kurt, a custom Poké Ball creator who makes rare Poké Balls out of apricorns. He lives in the north-western area on the east edge of Ilex Forest. Azalea Town features other notable locations as well, such as the Slowpoke Well. The Gym Leader of the town is Bugsy, a Bug-type trainer. His Pokémon include Metapod, Kakuna, and Scyther. The player's rival also appears at the gate to Ilex Forest, and a battle with him is required to pass. Azalea Town is also the only place at which Charcoal can be purchased. In the games, this is where the player first encounters Team Rocket.
- Wht Apricorn
- Lure Ball (Dowsing Machine)
- Charcoal (from a house in the southwest part of the town after you capture the Farfetch'd for the boy in Ilex Forest)
- Full Heal
Places of Interest
Kurt's House
Kurt specializes in making Apricorns into Poké Balls.
List of Balls
- Love Ball: (Made by pink apricorns)
- Heavy Ball: (Made by black apricorns)
- Friend Ball: (Made by green apricorns)
- Fast Ball: (Made by white apricorns)
- Lure Ball: (Made by blue apricorns)
- Moon Ball: (Made by yellow apricorns)
- Level Ball: (Made by red apricorns)
Azalea Town Gym
- See Azalea Town Gym
Azalea Town appears to be based on the real-world city of Tsu, Mie, Japan. It is located in roughly the same place, and the azalea is the official flower of Tsu.


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Happy New Year
by Josh Rubin
on 31 December 2004
Seeking Interns
Apply to be Cool Hunting's next graphics, editorial or publishing intern
by Josh Rubin
Do you like what we do and want to be a part of it? Cool Hunting is looking for interns to help with all aspects of publishing the site. The ideal candidates will have a combination of skills ranging from exceptional writing, to graphic production...
Holiday Gift Guide
by Josh Rubin
I'm getting ready to launch a holiday gift guide full of great stuff not already here on Cool Hunting. Want to be the first to know when it's out? Join the mailing list.
Our RSS Feeds
by Josh Rubin
I've just finished tinkering with our RSS feed. Most of you won't notice a difference, but some feed readers may show duplicates of past posts. Don't worry, all posts from this one forward should be fine.
Hurricane Relief
by Josh Rubin
Our contributor Parker's last post to his personal blog is daunting-- he returned home to New Orleans shortly before Katrina hit. We heard from him today and fortunately he and his family are ok. Here's his message: ... please let people know that...
Summer Break
by Josh Rubin
You might notice CH looking a little different starting today and through the coming week. That's because we're taking about as much of a break as we ever take in honor of the upcoming Labor Day holiday. We'll take next Monday 4 September 2006 off...
Redesign Number Four
by Josh Rubin
If you're reading this on the site (as opposed to in your RSS reader or email) you've surely already noticed our redesign. Version four of CH is new from the bottom up: New publishing system, new server, new design. We wanted to clean things up a bit...
RIP Shari Sakahara
by Josh Rubin
In the most tragic of news we just learned that Shari Sakahara (who we wrote about killed yesterday at a bus stop when she was struck by a car. Lantzilla remembers her in this Flickr set.
2005 In Review: Most Popular Posts
by Josh Rubin
Starting today, and running all next week we're going to be looking back at 2005. Each day we will present a different list of past posts. Today is all about popularity. The following were our 15 most viewed items of the year. 1. Toilet Bowl...
2005 in Review: Josh's Favorites
by Josh Rubin
Given the premise of this site, it's hard for me to narrow in on a list of my favorites from the year, but after reviewing all 1200+ posts in 2005 there are a few that stand out. Bitman Video BulbBiojewleryThrift DeluxeSerum VS VenomPenckPuma...
by Josh Rubin
You'll notice at the bottom of each post we've added a list of tags. Led by sites like Flickr and Delicious, tagging is rapidly becoming a replacement for more traditional and general categorization. Considering our categories are 3 years old and...
CH Welcomes Lost at E Minor
by Evan Orensten
CH is pleased to welcome Lost At E Minor as a contributor. Lost At E Minor is a free weekly email newsletter that showcases the hottest new talent across all creative mediums from Australia and beyond. It's put together by two Sydney-based brothers...
Introducing Mike Reger
by Josh Rubin
As you may have noticed, we have a new CH contributor focused on music. Mike Reger is a graphic designer and DJ who is constantly seeking the perfect beat. He even records his own creations from time to time. His full bio and links to his recent...
Loading More...


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I don't know why this is not working.
When a li element is clicked I call a PHP file to get some results back and print them in my page. So far so good.
var item = $(this).html();
$.getJSON('fSearch.php',{sTerm: item}, function(data){
var results='';
$.each(data, function(i, item) {
results += "
"+item.Description+"
";
The first time I click to a li element all works fine, I get results. Now these results is another set of li's and I want them to behave the same, but when I click on the generated li's the function is not executed..
Why is this happening? Why jQuery does not recognize the dynamically inserted li elements?
Thanks in advance!


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Great design is what it's all about. Only if a project designed and planned thoroughly it can be successfully executed. Great design consists of the following components:
1. Layout / space planning
2. Material (products, finishes) selection and specification
3. Budget planning
KOSNAD INC can quickly handle all three for you. Most designers will be able to handle layout/space well, not that well they can handle material selection and specification .Because they don't have a showroom and need to rely on other showrooms. Many designers use KOSNAD INC as their go to showroom. Don't get us wrong, we love to work with designers so if you already have a designer please bring her/ him along and introduce us, we'll explain why below.
The budget planning is usually the most challenging for designers because not only they don't have a showroom but they are also not a contractor. This makes calculating how much your project will cost and developing a realistic budget with you impossible causing the designer to price everything with showrooms and contractors. In most cases it may mean that you would only know how much the project will truly cost after it is already designed. Establishing a budget is important but even if you already know exactly how much you are planning to spend and you told that to your designer, there is no telling if it is possible to complete your project within established range from the initial design stages.
While we are working on the above components (layout, specification, budget planning) we usually like to simultaneously handle the permitting and approval process.
– We obtain local building department permits (plumbing, electrical, general construction and any other type of architectural/ expediting matters such as special applications and variances)
-If you are living in a condo or coop requiring board and/ or management company approval we will handle all of that on your behalf simultaneously with dealing with DOB permits and applications.
So as you can see we have a down packed design process using a full service system allowing the design and specification to move along very fast. No designer can provide the entire process fast enough. That's because designers will have to rely on other suppliers, showrooms and contractors for executing their design.
At KOSNAD INC we don't have any design voice and are not trying to necessarily create a published masterpiece every time. Although we can and have been published many times it is not our goal. Our mission is to make your dreams come true. We will match the right products with your style and budget. Our clients are absolutely involved in whole process since the design is a reflection of the preference and personality. When we design we don't design with our design voice in mind but we listen to what you
envision within your budget. We design for any budget. Because we didn't adapt a specific style and are open to all types of designs from around the world our showroom has an unlimited selection of materials. Only very little of what we can supply for your project is displayed. We carry thousands of products. If they had to be displayed we would need a showroom at least 20 times larger than our current one. The design options are completely unlimited. We can specify and supply every product necessary for any type of the project.
All of the mentioned above is quite beneficial for our clients and a wonderful resource for any designer or architect. We encourage our clients who are already working with a designer or architect to use KOSNAD INC and combine forces. We are home to many designers and architects who constantly work with KOSNAD INC on their projects. They can bring in their design voice with your preferred style in mind and accommodate you in the same manner using our system. Whether you have a designer or not KOSNAD INC design system is the way to go to start your project.


text:
Microsoft confirms next Halo for 2014. Again.Written by: / / 7 Comments
We've had no shortage of assurances that the next entry to the sprawling Halo series would be with us in 2014, but Microsoft has continued to ensure that the gaming public is aware that the team at 343 Industries is hard at work bringing this promise to life.
In late 2013 we were privy to an exciting montage video showcasing some of Xbox One's best and brightest games due for release on the console in the next year, while Microsoft's Phil Spencer went to great lengths to let Xbox fans know that the line-up for the company's latest home console is filled with quality entertainment – the next Halo included.
It was at E3 2013, however, that Microsoft first lifted the lid on the next Halo with a brief video and a promise of a 2014 release date – something that many have come to forget.
More recently, however, senior PR manager for both Halo and Forza, Rob Semsey, once again assured Halo fans that the next game in the franchise would "will begin in 2014," following the release of an official list of Xbox One games that didn't include 343's game. Writing on Twitter, Semsey said:
Rest assured your next Halo journey WILL begin in 2014. #staycalm
— Rob Semsey (@RobSemsey) January 6, 2014
Will this be the last time that Microsoft deems it important to remind us that Halo on Xbox One is assured in 2014? Will we hear more about the game later this year at E3 2014? You can bet on it.
Tags: 343industries, halo, microsoft


text:
In addition to Jamie Cruce, formerly of Bethany, who was previously announced as the new head football coach, Pratt High School athletic director Curtis Nightingle has announced the inkings of three additional new head coaches for next year.
Shelby Nesbit will take over the volleyball program after having served two seasons as the departing Dean Rausch's assistant.
Taking the reins of the girls basketball program will be Emmanuel Adigun, who was a seven-year assistant in the program, serving most recently under Rausch.
The track and field program will also have a new head man following the departure of Forrest Mazey who coached track as well as football. The new head track coach will be Derek Liggett, formerly head track and crosscountry coach at Chanute High School. Liggett will also be an assistant crosscountry coach at PHS.
Location, ST | website.com


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Is it possible to build a computer program that would (eventually) bring a solution to the P vs. NP question?
Nobody knows. I suppose if there is a polynomial-time algorithm for 3-SAT (or some other NP-complete problem) then a computer could find it and prove P = NP. And if there is a proof that P isn't NP, well, I suppose a computer could find that, too. Why - are you looking for something to work on this summer?
The statement $\mathsf{P}\overset{?}{=}\mathsf{NP}$ (there is a polynomial time Turing machine correctly solving SAT on all inputs) is a first order statement with an alternation of quantifiers and first-order logic is not decidable. There is no algorithm that given such a sentence will tell you if the statement is true or false.
Regarding the provability in a certain theory (say ZFC) the theorems of an effective theory are computably enumerable, i.e. you can list all provable theorems in them and if the statement is provable you will eventually find it. However there is no computable upper bound on the space and time needed to find the proof and the proof can be huge (needing more symbols than all particles in the universe).
Using computers for deciding much simpler problems (propositional tautologies) is considered to be inefficient although there is a lot of theoretical and industrial interest in the topic (Google for "SAT solver"). The most advanced SAT-solvers fail to answer in reasonable time on simple tautologies like Pigeon Hole Principle (there is no injection from a set of size n+1 to a set of size n). They would take years to answer on the instance n=100.
Also note that given a first order formula $\varphi$ and a natural number $n$ in unary, deciding whether there is a size $n$ proof in first order logic for $\varphi$ is itself an $\mathsf{NP\text{-}complete}$ problem.
Clarification regarding the relevance of the answer to the question:
Existence of a program to decide a particular instance is not the real question because obviously there always exists such a machine (though we may not know what it is or how to find it). Consider two programs, one always output "Yes", the other always output "No". So one of these two programs is capable of solving the problem correctly. Which one? We don't know!
So we there exists a program that answers a particular instance of a problem. But to write it we need to know the answer to the instance in the first place. That is not what people mean when they say can we write a program to solve a particular instance of a problem. What is mean is not existence. We want to write such a program without knowing the answer to the question. That is not helpful nor what is meant when one is asking for solving a problem using computer programs.
So naturally the problem is writing an algorithm that will find the answer to the problem (here provability) on this instance ($\mathsf{P}$ vs. $\mathsf{NP}$). But what we know about this particular instance that would make it different from any other instance of the problem? Not much. The algorithm needs to work on similar instances also. So the problem naturally generalized to the problem of finding an algorithm that solves this and similar instances.
If someone gives us a graph and asks us to check if it has a $\mathsf{NP\text{-}hard}$ property, we would answer by pointing out that the problem is $\mathsf{NP\text{-}hard}$ in general and is not believed to be solvable efficiently. (Though a generic instance hardness result would be more powerful than the general hardness result.)
Let's consider an example: if I give you an instance of a graph where there is not any clear property which would make it an easy instance it is not unusual to say the problem of checking if the graph has a Hamiltonian circuit is $\mathsf{NP\text{-}hard}$ in general. We don't know anything about the instance. However if the person tells us that the graph is supposed to have some nice properties, e.g. it is planner or it is the Peterson graph then we can say consider algorithms which work on instances that have such properties.
Now let's return to the question. AFAIK there is no evidence that this particular instance (of provability of a first-order arithmetic sentence in ZFC or PA) is easier than any other instance, so the statement about the general difficulty of the problem is relevant. If at some point someone gives us particular useful properties about the instance such that deciding the problem on such instances is easier then one might use computers after that point. In other words, the problem because a different one. But coming up with such properties and a particular algorithm efficiently solving instances with such properties are not done by computers.
(Think about the statement constructively not in the classical sense of existence, we want a computer program to decide these instances, not a non-constructive proof of existence of a program which no one knows what it is. As Bridges writes in his book on computability, in practice no one is going to pay any attention if you give them two algorithms and tell them one of the two algorithms correctly decides the problem they are interested in but no one knows which one.)
See also my answer on CS.SE to Is it NP-hard to decide whether P=NP?
Just an additional note:
There is an existing algorithm that runs in polynomial time, iff (if and only if) $P=NP$. But with an absolutely huge constant. It basically works as follows:
See if this program is a polynomial time algorithm to solve the problem. So, if P=NP, we will eventually hit the algorithm this way, after insanely large number of iterations. Note that the number of iterations is constant; not dependent on the size of the input, notwithstanding the times that we will get programs that just happen to run correctly. Also, note, that we don't know how long to let such a program run; therefore we bound it by a number of steps. See wikipedia/P_versus_NP_problem#Polynomial-time_algorithms for details. Given an NP-complete problem that is polynomial-time verifiable, we will get our solution to the problem. Though we might not know if the program that works for our particular problem works in general for all problems, ie. if it is the algorithm, in truth, this in itself can be considered the algorithm.


text:
Inviting anarchism
Now on the website, our editors on the strategy of the Republican majority in Congress.
Initially, the House Republicans' refusal to pass a continuing-funding resolution to keep the government open was tied to the unreasonable demand that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) be repealed, defunded, or delayed. … Recognizing that the ACA cannot be stopped, Speaker John Boehner has shifted his position and now wants the president and the Democrats to negotiate a budget bill that includes significant spending cuts before he will allow a vote on the continuing resolution. But earlier this year the Democrats already agreed to cut $70 billion from the budget without increasing revenues, only to have the House reject the bill. Understandably, the president and the Democrats are now determined that the government be reopened before they negotiate a final budget. If he were to capitulate to the House's demands, the president argues, every future budget could be held hostage by a radical and unrepresentative minority in Congress, and the constitutional system would grind to a halt. If democracy is to work, a minority cannot nullify the legislative will of the majority.
Even worse, Tea Party Republicans are also refusing to extend the nation's debt ceiling unless the president and the Democrats comply with their demands. This is an invitation to anarchism. If Congress does not raise the debt ceiling by October 17, widespread economic damage is almost certain. Whether they are Democrats, Republicans, or Independents, the vast majority of Americans are shocked and outraged that some in Congress are endangering the economic well-being and security of the nation, if not the world, in pursuit of their narrow ideological agenda….
"Americans," Andrew Bacevich writes [in his book Breach of Trust], have "abandoned collective obligation in favor of personal choice."… It is hard not to see this dynamic at work in the current political crisis. The Tea Party scoffs at the notion that "collective obligation" or "sacred civic responsibilities"—to provide health-care insurance to those who cannot afford it, for instance—might even exist. Rather, the movement upholds as sacred the right to be left alone.
Read the whole thing here.
About the Author
Dominic Preziosi is Commonweal's digital editor.
17 comments
- All
- Editor Featured
I agree with the editorial ... and with Bacevich. But what would you say to a Tea-Partyer who quotes the Pope:
Your Holiness, is there is a single vision of the Good? And who decides what it is?
"Each of us has a vision of good and of evil. We have to encourage people to move towards what they think is Good."
Your Holiness you wrote that in your letter to me. The conscience is autonomous, you said, and everyone must obey his conscience. I think that's one of the most courageous steps taken by a Pope.
"And I repeat it here. Everyone has his own idea of good and evil and must choose to follow the good and fight evil as he conceives them. That would be enough to make the world a better place."
Father Imbelli: "(Man) must not be forced to act contrary to his conscience. Nor must he be prevented from acting according to his conscience." The Catechism §1782, quoting Dignitatis Humanae 3 §2 And "A human being must always obey the certain judgment of his concience." The Catechism §1800
The pope was only saying what the Church has always taught, as some folks are wont to say.
The framers of the Constitution had no faith at all that humans would always get it right. They had faith that the majority would get it right more often than a king or an aristocracy or -- if it had occurred to them, I suppose -- a bunchy of panicky geese wearing tea bags on their hats. The framers, and subsequent generations, also built into the system safeguards to protect minorities.
No one ever intended that the safeguards would allow a minority to act like a pitcher who has given up dozens of runs (with senators, representatives and justices scoring in droves) standing on the mound and refusing to move until he is credited with a shutout.
Stipulate: Ted Cruz is running for president - and he could very well succeed in getting the Republican nomination after this default stunt. He doesn't give a wit about whether the economy crashes because his base - the hopelessly delusional old white folks - is desperate for any messiah who will confirm their blinded mythology of the world.
But, my instincts tell me that any prospective Democratic woman candidate [I would prefer Elizabeth Warren, myself] will easily swat him back to Alberta where he came from.
[Did you see where Justice Ruth Ginsberg is not worried about staying too long at the party - presumably through the 2016 election - and having a Republican name her successor. Ginsberg said that she is confident that the next president will be a Democrat. An interesting insight from a woman with a unique perspective on politics given her perch on SCOTUS. Time will tell ... ]
Rafael "Ted" Cruz - his actual given name; probably not American enough sounding for his Texan kicker constituents - certainly has demonstrated the necessary over-sized ego for imagining himself president. We haven't seen this kind of clinically galloping narcissism since the heyday of Speaker Newt Gingrich [It still hurts to write that!].
Cruz's swarmy evangelical-preacher style - his father is actually one of those creatures - will soon wear very thin with most voters. Especially if he is at the helm of the dead-ender Tea Partiers when they tank the whole world economy.
I think that Obama is going to win this political stare down with the Republicans. In the end, the dead-enders will be swept from office, Nancy Pelosi will again be Madame Speaker, and Hilary will ride to the rescue on a white horse to save Western civilization a la Jeanne d'Arc. [Is that a bad metaphor for Hilary? Perhaps? I hope she doesn't end up "fut brulee."]
Or am I just engaging in wishful thinking???
Mr. Blackburn,
On this feast of John Henry Newman (quoted in the Catechism # 1778) I would not want to leave your quoted #1800 unhinged from what precedes and follows. Thus:
"Faced with a moral choice, conscience can make either a right judgment in accordance with reason and the divine law or, on the contrary, an erroneous judgment that departs from them" (#1799); and
"Conscience can remain in ignorance or make erroneous judgments. Such ignorance and errors sre not always free from guilt" (#1801).
Had Pope Francis alluded to them, then Signore Scalfari would not have had reason to exclaim: "I think that's one of the most courageous steps taken by a Pope."
Congress has a favorable rating of 5 percent. Which makes Obama look terrific at 37 percent. http://bigstory.ap.org/article/poll-gop-gets-blame-shutdown
The problem is that there is a grain of truth to the R's resistance to this. Costs are going to increase - no doubt about it. Looking into my crystal ball, I can see problems galore with this whole Affordable Care Act.. This legislation was poorly thought out. They are wrong, however, because access to health care is, or should be a basic human right.
I just fail to see how the private market can handle the demand without individual people freaking out when they realize the costs of health care and when healthy people see their premiums increase. Before you know it, there is going to be a lot of animosity directed towards people who engage in or have preventable risk factors (weight issues/obesity, lifestyle such as smoking and drinking, etc.). Human nature is human nature.
I just don't understand how it is cost effective to hire a bunch of IRS agents and bureaucrats to chase down people who don't buy insurance, and then to fine them. How will this be enforced??
Apparently the employer mandate was deferred because employers were concerned with being able to cover the increase in cost due to their obligations.
Just defer the whole individual mandate thing and make it voluntary for the first year. See how many people sign up. If they don't and costs start rising, then we will have to think of another model.
I see single payer as the only viable way to ensure equity and fairness. Otherwise you have a two or three tiered system that is fundamentally unfair.
George D,
I am amazed that you give such an appraisal. We really do not know the costs of the new health care. There is noise from all sides and really one does not know what to believe. But whether costs will go up or down is still an unresolved question. http://mediamatters.org/research/2013/10/01/15-myths-the-media-should-ignore-during-obamaca/196181
Well, I didn't expect to get away with proof-texting without being called on the hinges of my texts. Still, if someone doesn 't make the effort to inform his conscience, he or she is in big trouble, but once he or she has informed her conscience, even if it is wrong, she will be in bigger trouble if she doesn't follow it.
But the editorial isn't about conscience; it's about the rules of democracy. Democratic governments can be wrong (Prohibition, Vietnam, ignoring banking idiocies). There are ways to form majorities to correct their mistakes. But one of the ways is not for a minority, even if it is right (fat chance in this case) to force its will on the majority through non-democratic means. Anarchy is the correct word for that.
"I just don't understand how it is cost effective to hire a bunch of IRS agents and bureaucrats to chase down people who don't buy insurance, and then to fine them. How will this be enforced??"
George, in this computer age everyone is easily tracked down. It is not rocket science.
First, how or why Fr. Imbelli decided to drag a not especially subtle criticism of Pope Francis into this thread escapes me. As Tom Blackburn says, this is a political issue.
Second, it has long been recognized by people like Michael Walzer that democratic liberalism has what he called an inbuilt dissociative thrust, puhing to an individualism that can, if not counterweighted, tend to anarchism. As the editors see, the Tea Party and libertarianism show scant regard for the need to counterbalance the emphasis on the individual with a significant emphasis on concern for the common good. Walzer associated this sort of emphasis with the associative thrust of much communitarian thought. In Walzer's view, this dissociative thrust isprevalent and needs regular counterbalancing. From ny standpoint, one of the bis political responsibilities of serious Christians is to promote this counterbalancing.
We all must obey our consciences ... informed or otherwise ... and be prepared to suffer any possible consequences. Or, to quote a pithy aphorism: there is no such thing as a free lunch.
Actually, i believe the correct term would be "fascist." Servant of God Dorothy Day was an anarchist. To mention anarchism in the same breath as this current crop of vandals is deeply offensive to true anarchism, which is perfectly consistent with the Gospel. Benito Mussolini was a fascist, and specified that ""Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power."
The current crisis has been bankrolled by wealthy individuals who are attempting to keep wages depressed and the rabble compliant by squashing a modest attempt (designed by more traditional republicans) to make the lives of workers slightly less dependent on their corporate pay-masters. The minority of republican representatives who are carrying water for these class-warriors are anything but anarchists. They are perfectly content to man the levers of state power, so long as that power is exercised in their own short-term interests and the somewhat longer-term interests of their bosses.
I think a healthy dose of pragmatism is required here. The government is, one way or the other, ultimately going to have to pay for the provision of health care for people. It is just inevitable. The demographics of an aging population, increasing rates of obesity are all going to strain the private system. There is just no reasonable way to get younger, healthier people to share costs except through taxation which already exists and is the most efficient and clean way to handle this.
As I said in another post, when the Affordable Health Care Act was passed it was Democrats who controlled all chambers of governments. Universal, single payer, government paid for insurance was proposed and rejected. That is hugely problematic. I watched with disgust the spectacle of bribery, special favours for some states. Hardly a display of high minded civic virtue predicated on principles of equity and fairness!!
Forget this whole private insurance business!! Far, far better when these costs are more hidden through taxation. Tax liquor, tax cigarettes, tax luxury items, cable ( so called "sin" taxes!) and use those revenues to provide insurance and education and health promotion.
In this discussion of conscience, one question that still needs asking is: do we have a right to have a mistaken conscience? Do we have a right to be wrong? I say: not always. Even the law recognizes that at times we have an obligation to know what is going on. This all implies a duty to take seriously the criticisms of others, to be critical our own thinking, and to admit it when we've been mistaken
We have no absolute right to be wrong.
. And, I think, our duty to think well also implies that we have a duty to think ahead to the possible consequences of our own positions. An unwillingness to engage in foresight is, I think, at the crux of the Obamacare issues -- young people don't genereally look ahead to their own old age when they will cost the system more than they are putting into it. The necessity to pre-pay for services is a very foreign one to many Americans.
I think talking about conscience in this Tea Party scam is absurd and silly. .. let's Talk about poker that you can see on TV. Bluffing is the name of the game and the GOP has more 'tells' that they are holding just a very small pair. If they fold [best bet] they lose all they have put in. If they 'go all in' and default they will lose and be escorted out of the building[Congress] never to return.
side bet on fold..
Jim Jenkins:
"Ted" Cruz
Ted is short for his middle name Edward which means "protector of wealth."
Of couse, Cruz is Spanish for cross. (No comment)
The Tea Partiers couldn't care less what the favorability rating of Congress is. Thanks to gerrymandering, they can afford to care only about their personal ratings in their own districts. That's what is motivating them to stand fast, because yokels tend to elect yokels to represent them.


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6 Insane DIY Surgeries You Won't Believe Actually Worked
The steeply rising cost of health care in this country means that, at times, corners must be cut. Sometimes you'll find yourself with a generic prescription instead of a name brand. Other times, you might even self diagnose on Web MD. That's probably accurate enough, right?
But then you have those few brave souls who looked at all of the above and said, "Also who needs a fancy 'surgeon' or 'hospital' when it's time to go under the knife? Just improvise that shit!"
Crazy? Yes. And almost certain death. Which is why it's all the more amazing that it worked in these cases.
#6. Cordless Drill Brain Surgery
Brain surgery is one of the few things in life that you really, really don't want to use that discount coupon on. But sometimes you just have to make do with what you have. And sometimes what you have hails from Home Depot ... and has been bought with said discount coupon.
"Leaves? No, I'm going to remove my liver!"
Just ask Henry Marsh, a British neurosurgeon who travels to Eastern Europe on a regular basis, and just gravitates naturally towards potential brain surgery the way Batman gravitates towards criminals. One day, he found himself in a familiar, brain surgeony situation -- a woman with a tumor that would kill her if not removed -- only sans the equipment, since at the time, the Ukraine wasn't too hot on state-of-the-art medical gear, and were going through more of a state-of-the-tool-shed phase.
We'd imagine this is the worst case scenario that flashes through a doctor's minds when someone shouts, "is there a doctor in the building?" For Marsh, it just meant he had to improvise with what he had. He drilled through the woman's skull and removed the tumor using only some local anesthetics and a $65 Bosch cordless drill he happened to have with him for some reason. When the battery went flat, he dug in with his hands.
I am forced to use the greatest surgical instrument of all: insanity!
All the while talking soothingly to the patient who, in case you're not familiar with how local anesthesia works, was fully goddamn conscious throughout the operation. Apparently, Ukrainian women are hardcore.
Obviously we wouldn't be telling you this story if the patient then just fell over dead. That wouldn't be brain surgery, that would just be a crazy person committing cranial drillocide. No, Doc Marsh successfully removed the tumor, the patient lived and the operation was a success. Using the same tools you'd use to build a birdhouse.
Some people would ride those kinds of chops throughout their professional career. Henry Marsh, on the other hand, took cordless drill surgery up as a hobby and to this day, travels to Ukraine twice a year for some sweet Bosch-to-brain action, training local surgeons to do the same as he goes. It's still better to do it with the professional-grade medical equipment, but in parts of the world where doctors can't pay 30 grand for a medical-grade bone drill, and patients probably consider biting down on a towel during open heart surgery a sign of weakness, you get by with what you have. And who are we to argue with the results?
#5. MacGyver Dialysis
Paediatrician Malcolm Coulthard of Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary was facing a terrible problem: His patient, a baby named Millie, just a few weeks old, had been born with gastroschisis -- a fun little condition in which the bowels of a person develop outside the body. And that wasn't even the problem -- surgery took care of that.
However, complications from said surgery had caused little Millie's kidneys to fail. Now, normally this wouldn't be a problem for a well-equipped hospital -- dialysis machines (which extract, cleanse and replace the patient's blood) are pretty standard equipment, after all. But here's the kicker: Millie was way too tiny for any of the hospital's machines, even those specifically meant for small children.
In other words, the equipment necessary for saving Millie's life didn't exist. Her life was draining away fast. There were no options left, nothing that could be done. Well, nothing normal men could do, anyway.
Via The Northern Echo
Plan C involved Lego. And it would have worked, too.
Coulthard excused himself and, some time later, returned with a strange looking, lumpy thing that looked like a battered parking meter that someone had equipped with a sticker that said DIALYSIS:
Via Hackaday.com
The smaller sticker below that read "HONESTLY, GUYS" has since been removed.
The mother was understandably nervous about hooking Millie up to the contraption, which she described as looking like a clumsy DiY thing, made of metal, with splotches of dried paint on the side. And a DIY project it was. Coulthard, assisted by kidney head nurse Jean Crosier, had quickly MacGyvered up a mini dialysis machine for Millie ... in his garage. From scratch. Using what parts they happened to have quick access to. In a matter of hours.
And that little machine damn well saved little Millie's life. She recovered completely and is living a normal life thanks to the DiY prowess of Coulthard and Crosier, who have received international praise and awards for this unbelievable achievement.
May the awards never stop coming, Doc.
And the machine, cobbled together from scrap iron and spare parts, held together with chewing gum and hope? Why, it worked so well the hospital is still using it.
#4. Do it Yourself Appendectomy
When we say "Do it Yourself" appendectomy, we mean it -- the patient and the surgeon were the same guy.
Surgeon Leonid Rogozov was a decorated Soviet hero, awarded with the Order of the Red Banner of Labour and all the toppings. But the reason for his status was peculiar: an inflamed peritoneum. Or rather, how he decided to deal with one in 1961.
Not quite. But you're on the right track.
At the time, he was stationed at the asshole of the world that is Novolazarevskaya Station, in the Antarctic. Dr. Rogozov (who also served as the station's driver and meteorologist) developed a nasty peritonitis -- which in layman's terms meant he got a high fever; a crippling, nauseating stomach ache and an acute case of "gonna die real soon if someone doesn't do something pretty freakin' chop chop."
Now, while the most common answer to the age old question "What happens if the team medic goes down?" is "Everyone's screwed, that's what," Rogozov was determined to find a better solution. Namely, one that would let him live. Rogozov knew evacuation was not an option because of the constant snowstorms. He also knew no other member on his team could doctor worth damn. So, as a desperation move, he decided to cut himself open.
"Is everyone ready? Oh right, IT'S JUST ME, YOU WORTHLESS ASSHOLES."
Feverish and nauseous, he proceeded to perform the appendectomy on himself. He could also only have localized anaesthesia, similar to what you might receive at the dentist, in order to be able to operate accurately. Or rather, as accurately as someone with a fever, acute pain and incessant bouts of vomiting can do anything.
Somehow, though, he managed to keep a steady hand and a calm demeanor. Other members of the expedition were present, watching in silent horror as their doctor cut away at his own intestines for two hours, finally managing to remove the appendix, sew himself up and presumably give a long, hard look at everyone present that meant: From now on, you do your own fucking weather reports.
He then drove off towards the horizon and punched the sunset.


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Still learning OpenLayers and I think my problem may be a lack of understanding the terminology, however.
Is it possible to draw polygons in a different colour within one vector layer, or do all polygons get their colour from the colour set within the layer?
I ask because I have a map which draws the borders of several (up to 10) different countries around the world and I'd rather have one layer with different coloured polygons rather than have several different layers.
I have the following code:
var polyCountry = format.read("POLYGON((" + polyString + "))");
Which works perfectly, but can't see any documentation anywhere on how to style the polygon.


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Posted 14 September 2010 - 03:00 PM
Posted 14 September 2010 - 04:54 PM
Posted 14 September 2010 - 05:16 PM
Posted 02 October 2010 - 09:42 AM
Posted 02 October 2010 - 11:05 AM
Posted 03 October 2010 - 10:49 PM
You're right Braz, but still like the auto loaders better. I've heard nothing but good about the XD and while I like the SA 1911, it's heavier and fussier about what you feed it. Unlike the XD which will take about anything you feed it without a failure. Thanks to Bronco, homemade and Jeff for their opinions as well. Gonna have to start looking. Thanks again guys. Ed
Ed, if you want reliablity, a gun that will go back every time, get a revolver. I know, a lot of guys will say, but it only holds 6. Well my every day carry piece only holds 5, but then I don't plan on getting into a shoot out with a bunch of bad guys. Five, with a speed loader, is just fine. All semi's are prone to failuire way, way more often than a revolver. I want my gun to go bang when I pull the trigger, and not have to worry about racking another in. What about a bad primer? I just pull the trigger again, but with a semi you must rack the action. Yea, the bad guy is going to be standing still while you do that.
Posted 04 October 2010 - 10:06 AM
Posted 04 October 2010 - 07:22 PM
Posted 04 October 2010 - 08:19 PM
Posted 04 October 2010 - 10:20 PM
Posted 07 October 2010 - 09:19 PM
Posted 08 October 2010 - 12:52 AM
Posted 02 November 2010 - 10:34 PM
Posted 05 November 2010 - 08:42 PM
if you have to have a semi-auto just get a glock and get over it but everday carry the revolver makes good on reliabilty that's reliable, .357 Magnum or .44 Special, it will finish any confrontation with the first shot
Would like to see what the consensus from the group is on an XD-45. I have an SA 1911-A1, but kinda bulky for a carry gun. What do you guys think of the XD? Thinking more of the reliablity factor than anything else. And please, don't advise "Glock". Thanks for your time. Ed
Posted 06 November 2010 - 08:20 AM
Posted 08 November 2010 - 07:51 AM
Posted 08 November 2010 - 12:12 PM
Posted 27 December 2010 - 01:21 PM
Posted 27 December 2010 - 03:14 PM
Posted 28 December 2010 - 08:03 AM
Posted 28 December 2010 - 12:28 PM
I tried an S&W the same time I shot an XD the first time, and found the trigger as well as the grip on the SA more to my liking. Just like a Chevy vs Ford. To each his own and what he shoots the best with.
Ed---My bro-in-law and nephew both tested the XD and the S&W, M&P side by side at a range. They said that both guns were pretty equal, but they chose the XD due to some of the extra features it has on it. Personally, I'm a S&W guy and also have a 1911 and a M&P. I carry either one at various times depending on what clothing I'm wearing. And sorry, I won't tell anyone to get a Glock! Braz is also right about the revolvers. When I can save up enough $, I hope to add another revolver to my collection. My M&P has been flawless since I bought it last year!!
The only ammo my XD didn't care like was SWC. It shoots HP just fine and that's what I use in it for a house gun. And bulk was another thing I didn't care about with the Glock.
I too have an XD45. Never had a failure. Love it. I use it as a crossdraw for my CCW. Glock was too bulky for me.
I like the Service model, but for carry, I have an XD45c that gets out of the holding cell Friday.Didn't have a problem with the 4" barrel, but the longer grip on the Service printed too much.The Compact will be my carry gun in a Crossbreed Super tuck.I agree with the weight problem with the 1911. Just too heavy. Kinda drug my drawers down on the right side.And to my surprise, I shoot the XD better than I do the 1911. The 1911 is up for sale as a consequence.It's a nice gun, adjustable trigger, beveled mag well, Bomar sights, I just don't shoot it as well as I do the XD.Thanks to all for the comments. I appreciate to feedback.Ed
Hi Ed, what did you decide? I see you orig. posted back in Sept.On your orig. comment on bulk, I don't see any gains by going to a dbl stack config from a single. The service model is just as bulky, just a bit shorter in the barrel. However it will be lighter and that will feel better. I was carrying a Gov't size 1911 as my EDC (that's Every Day Carry for Braz ) for a while but it just got too heavy. My Glock 23, while thicker, feels so much better as it's lighter and a bit smaller. Your holster and belt play a large role in how comfortable it will feel. That said I do have an Service mdl XD-9 but I'd rather carry my 1911.
Posted 28 December 2010 - 02:46 PM
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How could you capture this beautiful moving otter, while that mini waterfall get a cotton effect cause of slow speed... It was such a great capture...!
Main Content
God, look at its eyes. Love 'em^^!
I like how you took the shot when the otter is breathing bubles. good shot.
I like how you got the under water photo and out of the water
I like how the photographer got the shot of the otter. I like the house and the waterfall right next to it.
I like how you got the picture to show the otter in the water and the house in the back round
I really love how the otter is up close to the camera. I also love how the house and waterfall are displayed in the background.
It is a amazing picture. I like how the camera is half way under the water, and half way out.
This photo is stunning not only did he get the otter up close but he also had the picture half in the water and half out of water.
This is a great photo. Its amazing because the otter was up close and not far away.
I love how they got so close to the otter. Also love how there is bubbles coming up from the water showing that the otter is breathing.
I like how you got the shot up close and not far away. I like how you got the waterfall in the photo.
I like how the otters eyes look. I love how they took the picture up close.
Good job on the picture. I like the otters blue eyes. This is one of my favorite pictures.
Nice work. Great composition in every respect, depth of field, light/dark, just enough shadow detail not to be distracting, wide angle view and contrast between above and below water environments. I'm guessing this image required a great deal of patience for a one time shot opportunity. The image clearly captures the human/otter interplay. I am curious about lens type, f/stop, shutter speed, light source.Again nice work.
This is so cool on so many levels. The intensity of the search and hunt. The differences in his neighborhood and his neighbors neighborhood. So noisy above water and so much quieter beneath. I like this one Charlie, good job.
Bel foto.
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Lexmark MarkNet N8352 - Print server - 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n - for Lexmark MX310dn, MX410de, XM1145
Black Box RS-232 Modem Sharing Device Buffered - Concentrator - 4 ports - external
IOGEAR GUB212 - USB peripheral sharing switch - 2 x USB 2.0 - desktop
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Lexmark MarkNet N8350 - Print server - 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n - for Lexmark MS811, MS812, MX711, MX810, MX811, MX812, MX910, XM9155, XM9165; C950; X950
BUFFALO LPV4-U2-300S - Print server - USB 2.0 - 10Mb LAN, 100Mb LAN, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n - 10Base-T, 100Base-TX
Lantronix xPrintServer Office Edition - Print server - 10Mb LAN, 100Mb LAN
Lets you connect and share your multi-function printers, scanners and other USB devices with multiple computers in your network, wired or wirelessly. Saves space and removes clusters from having USB devices (printers, hard drives, etc) at home or office.
It complies with USB 2.0 specifications (backward compatible with USB 1.1 spec.), and provides users with an auto-sensing Ethernet port that works with either 10Base-T or 100Base-T networks.
OKI - Serial adapter - RS-232C - for Microline 320 Turbo, 620, 621, 690, 691
SEH ThinPrint Gateway TPG-25 - Print server - 10Mb LAN, USB, 100Mb LAN, GigE, USB 2.0
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Del Mar Antique Show & Sale - January 2013
- When Multiple dates from Jan 18 - Jan 20, 2013 [days & times]
- Where Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Boulevard, Del Mar, CA Map | Website
- Age limit All ages
- Categories Arts, Books, Exhibits, Painting, Photography, Visual Arts
- Cost $5 - $8
Above: Promotional photo of antiques at the Del Mar Antique Show & Sale
The largest and finest antiques show in California will be held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, January 18 - 20, 2013 at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. Don't miss this opportunity to shop among the nations most renowned exhibitors featuring antiques from around the world. Antiques create rich and elegant interiors and the Del Mar Antiques Show features the finest antique furniture for every room of your home.
For 53 years the Calendar Antique Shows is proud to present thousands of square feet of antiques, vintage collectibles and decorator items (Over 250 premier antique dealers from all over California & the Western United States).
These exhibitors will be selling the finest in antiques & collectibles including all types of glass, pottery, paper ephemera, crystal, jewelry, art, silver, Americana, primitives, American & European furniture and more .
Appraisal Booth @ $5 each
Also, our great repair & restoration people will be there to help you make your damaged treasures as good as new. They are able to repair all types of glass & crystal, pottery & porcelain, furniture, jewelry, art and much more. Please call, 800.943.7501 for more information.
Cost: General admission is still only $8 and children are free.
Don't forget to get the special Internet Discount Coupon, worth 50% off per person at the door. Plus your single admission charge is good for the entire 3-day run of the show, when you get a return pass upon leaving.
Directions: Exit off the 5 freeway at Via de la Valle, turn west and you can come in either the main gate on Jimmy Durante Blvd or the Solana Gate which is straight ahead on the left side of Via de la Valle.
Location: Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Boulevard Del Mar, CA 92014 Google Map


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On my mac (Lion), I know that
curl is bing used by some unknown process to communicate with a server.
Basically I installed little Snitch and find out that "somebody" is using
curl periodically.
How can I find out who (what process) is firing up these
curl calls?
I guess if a process is directly calling
curl I should be able to find who it is (if it is still around by the time I look for it) by checking the process tree (parent to
Are there any best practices or specialized utilities to help with this?


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FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) -- The state has signed contracts with four managed care organizations to provide health services for some 175,000 Medicaid recipients in Louisville and 15 surrounding counties.
The initial contracts with Coventry Cares, Humana, Passport, and Wellcare of Kentucky will be for 18 months and will take effect January 1.
Health and Family Services Secretary Audrey Tayse Haynes announced the new contracts Thursday.
The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services advised the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services earlier this year, it could no longer operate with a single managed care provider. Passport had served the entire region since 1997.
Under the new contracts, the managed care groups also will be responsible for behavioral health services.


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In Hidalgo, director Joe Johnson demanded that it was based on true story. However when I tried to look into the life of Frank Hopkins, I found his life is full of mystries and the whole story of his race in Arabia is very much disputed. Quoting wiki:
A number of his stories have been disputed by historians, for example, that he had won more than 400 races. He also said he had raced in a ceremonial 3,000-mile ride that passed the Gulf of Syria and the inland borders of two other countries, which was supposed to have taken place in Arabia in 1890.
Also the racing in Arabia is based on the autobiographical memoir by him which is really controversial as it is full of self-challenging information.
So from which source did the director claim the whole story to be true? Did they do any research themselves?


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Hello everybody. For a purpose of consolidation of some result I am trying to set down, I need to construct an example to sustain the theory and I am looking for symplectic and Hamiltonian diffeomorphisms. So does someone can help me writing some non-trivial explicit examples of symplectic and Hamiltonian diffeomorphisms on compact surface? (at least examples for $S^2$ and $T^2$ ) NB : By surface I mean 2-dimensional manifold. Thanks a lot
On an orientable 2-manifold (such as $S^2$ or $T^2$), the symplectic 2-form $\omega$ can be given by the signed area. In this case, symplectic diffeomorphisms are just those which preserve area and orientation.
Now, let's set aside the difference between diffeomorphisms and flows of vector fields (which is a complicated enough issue by itself), and just focus on the difference between symplectic and Hamiltonian vector fields.
A vector field $X$ is Hamiltonian if $ i_X \omega = dH $ for some Hamiltonian function $H$ (where $i_X$ is the contraction by $X$ and $d$ is the exterior derivative). On the other hand, $X$ is symplectic if the Lie derivative $L_X \omega$ vanishes. Applying Cartan's "magic formula" $L_X \omega = di_X \omega + i_X d \omega = d i_X \omega$ (since $\omega$ is closed), this means that $X$ is symplectic when $d i_X \omega = 0$. In summary, $X$ is Hamiltonian when $i_X \omega$ is exact, and symplectic when $i_X \omega$ is closed. The difference between these is given by the 1st de Rham cohomology of the manifold in question.
So, as Weiwei said, "symplectic" and "Hamiltonian" are identical on $S^2$, since $S^2$ is simply connected. On the other hand, they're not the same on $T^2$, since the torus has nontrivial 1st cohomology. Putting coordinates $(\theta,\phi)$ on $T^2$, the vector fields $\partial/\partial \theta$ and $\partial/\partial \phi$ are both symplectic but not Hamiltonian.
For $S^2$ all symplectic diffeomorphisms are hamiltonian, and the symplectomorphism group is homotopy equivalent to $SO(3)$. For other surfaces, I find the papers by Andrew Cotton-Clay helpful, for example http://arxiv.org/abs/0807.2488. But of course, if you just want some hands-on non-trivial symplectomorphisms, I think Dehn twists would be interesting enough.
Ari's answer is good because you can see how even flowing along a symplectic vector field is not enough, but you could add a nice touch to the picture. Because a Hamiltonian diffeomorphism is exact, a simple closed curve $\gamma$ on a torus is non-displaceable: i.e., under a Hamiltonian flow $\phi^t$ the image $\phi^t(\gamma)$ will intersect $\gamma$, because together the two curves will bound a region of zero signed area. (If you're curious, the concept for this comes from symplectic quasi-states and quasi-measures, which tell you when subsets can be displaced by Hamiltonian flows. I haven't learned much about them.)
On the other hand, again as mentioned, rotation along one of the two angles of the torus is a perfectly good symplectic action that can never be Hamiltonian because it displaces simple closed curves. (I was saddened to hear that because this action is not Hamiltonian, the torus is not a toric manifold.)


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Step-by-step installation guides covering the installation of your BAVSOUND products are included in every purchase.
Unconditionally guaranteed to exceed all your expectations or your money back. No catches, no restocking fees, no funny stuff: you get 30 days to try our products, and if you're not totally happy, send them back for a refund.
Most BAVSOUND products, like our Stage One Speaker Upgrade and our SoundPlicity Smartphone Integration kits just plug right in to the factory connections.
*Excludes integration products, which include a 1 year warranty.


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Content of the Webinar:
The Prison Rape Elimination Act standards are an historic achievement that have dramatically increased the potential to end the crisis of sexual assault in detention. For victim advocates, the standards will mean more opportunities to expand services through better access to resources and the chance to build new partnerships.
In this webinar, led by a panel of experts, advocates will learn how to use the standards as a tool to develop and expand their work with survivors. The webinar will also feature survivors talking about their experiences behind bars and about their own role as advocates. At the end of the session, participants will have time to ask questions.
Who Should Attend:
Rape crisis community centers and state sexual assault coalitions, victims' services and nonprofit organizations. Other entities that may benefit from this webinar include local and state correctional agencies; social and human services, criminal justice and correctional nongovernmental organizations; and governmental health, social, human services, and criminal justice funding agencies.
© 2016 National Sexual Violence Resource Center – Founded by the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape
This site is supported by Grant/ Cooperative Agreement No. 1UF2CE002359-03 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


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- more
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- South Shore Music Circus
- TD Garden
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Lemon LuLu Cake
Shop by Occasion
Customer Service
It's hard to choose between our Blueberry, Cinnamon Walnut, Lemon Lulu or Chocolate Chip Coffee Cakes. Each one is delicious, and can be shipped anywhere in the continental United States. It's so easy to shop online and have a tasty breakfast treat delivered to your door. We even have a Birthday Coffee Cake for loved ones that want something a little different on that special day. Mail order a cake today and get it delivered to your door overnight!


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Happy Birthday Celeglin!
Who is Celeglin?
A reader, whose birthday is on the 23rd. He wanted an awesome post for his birthday, unfortunately this is the best he will get.
Happy 2nd Blogday Gnomeaggedon!
I wanted an awesome post for my 2nd blogday, unfortunately this is the best I am going to get.
Celeglin inspires me
Nevertheless, an email from Celeglin has inspired this post, so here we go…
Just wondering how you're enjoying the Fire Festival. Would love to hear of any crazy hijinks haha
Fire, ahhh Fire!
As I said to Gaz the other day on Twitter…
Fire is not a Spec, it's a way of life!
Or a lifestyle, or something, who cares about the small details, right?
Yeah so Fire Festival… What do I think?
I think it sucks!
I was looking forward to it, I couldn't wait to get my hands on the little fiery pet that eluded me last year while I dodged wife aggro to log on last year and beg and plead for groups to have a crack at Ahune for his pet.
This year…
Umm, yeah, that makes it a bit difficult.
Ohhh patch!
What do we get…
- Ruby Sanctum… Blah blah blah
- Real Friends ID… Blah blah blah
Real Friends… lol… Real Friends… I guess this one feature will turn virtual friends into real friends… lol.
Ohhh undocumented feature…
I think the Blue Post would read:
We've heard your cries, we know what you want. Not seen since the epic introduction of WoLK (and every patch since), we bring to you…
LAGARAN: Ruby Sanctum edition
Yeah LAAAAAAG.
My usual 60-odd Dalaran fps is now topping out at 0.7fps.
Yes, LESS than one frame per second!
The solution is simple, get out of Dalaran. Which I did. Like Gnomes of the past, I sought refuge in Ironforge, glorious lag-free Ironforge (ha! Would have liked to hear someone say that back in Vanilla!).
I then accepted an invite to ICC.
Hey, what's with making the weekly raid boss an ICC boss? I doubt many people are going to waste a lockout on a single boss, therefore the average Gnome on the street won't be completing that quest.
Anyway, I'm a smart Gnome, so I don't port to Lagaran to head to ICC, instead I hearth to the Argent Tournament Grounds.
I'm flying from the tournament grounds to ICC when I notice a shadow on the horizon at the corner of the screen, I turn to look at it and see…
Ohhhh Nooooooooooooooooo!
Yeah, the power of the Mages and their miraculous Disconnecting device extends across zones, a glimpse of the shadow of Dalaran is enough to strike heroes down.
Not much playtime
So between downtime, Lagaran and work, I haven't had much time for WoW, or anything WoW related.
I did take a minute to read up on the Fire Festival though.
- Individual sacks of loot – excellent
- Chance for sack to contain pet – excellent
- Ahune's Fiery pet replaced with Icy Pet – WTF!
I completed the Fire Festival last year on Gnome, even wrote some guides about getting to the fires using TomTom. The only thing I wanted and was deprived of, was the pet.
Yes, 5 attempts each night for the whole Fire Festival and I didn't even see the pet drop, let alone get my hands on it.
This year, THIS F'N YEAR, we get one crack at the pet per day and they have taken the Fire Pet away!
Dear Blizzard, please catch a plane to Oz so I can smack you black and blue! Yes, all of you, CEOs, Developers, Designers, Publicity, Janitors. The lot of you come here, form an orderly line and wait your turn as I smack you up one by one.
So yeah, Fire Festival… Whatever.
It breaks my heart to use the words Fire and whatever in the same sentence, but… Whatever.
One positive note, the LFD tool for Ahune works…
Like I care…
Happy Birthday Celeglin!
Happy Blogday Armaggedon's Coming!
Gnomer and Out!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.


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ZeroZanzibar wrote:
You know, all these failures -- G+
Google+ is the second-most actively used social network after FB.
FB has like 900M+ unique active users, G+ is now at 350ish million. Twitter is behind it.
I was kinda surprised, so I went back and got myself active again. And I once again forgot how much better I like it than FB. So many people are doing hangouts now, from the athletic department at my alma mater during signing day to my favorite trance/house DJs.
And just about everyone I follow on FB has a G+ account, too. From sports teams to DJs to political figures et al.
I think it's a bit premature to call it a failure. A FB killer it is not, but it's not floundering at all.


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WHEELING - Declining student enrollment in West Virginia's public schools is forcing officials to make difficult decisions to keep districts out of financial ruin.
The most recent report from the West Virginia Department of Education shows 37 out of 55 counties lost students from 2008-2012. Although the report shows some counties breaking out of a decades-long pattern of decreasing student enrollment in the state, most counties continue losing students.
In the Northern Panhandle, the counties of Marshall, Hancock, Tyler, Wetzel and Brooke have lost about 600 students in total since 2008, with Marshall County suffering the biggest loss of 195 students. Only Ohio County has seen an increase in enrollment with a net gain of 206 new students. However, Ohio County's enrollment is down 27 percent from what it was about 30 years ago.
"It's difficult to survive," said Nick Zervos, executive director of Regional Education Service Agency 6. "You see counties in trouble in West Virginia because the services they are required to provide by the state are not fully covered by the income they receive."
Since state funding is based on a county's student population, Zervos said, districts are forced to consider what programs, electives and personnel to cut in order to stay out of the red. Electives such as foreign languages are often the first to go, he said, since they are not in the required curriculum determined by the state.
Hancock County has lost 125 students since 2008, but Superintendent Suzan Smith said the district has been preparing for lower student populations for years because enrollment has been steadily declining for decades.
"Obviously, state funding comes in with students and when you lose students, you lose funding and it hurts everybody," Smith said. "We've had to eliminate electives and try to find alternatives to provide the best for our students. What you try to do is the least amount of interruption to instructional time, so as a result, other programs get cut."
Robin Daquilante, superintendent of Tyler County Schools, said the county has opted to eliminate certain elementary school teacher positions in the past years instead of cutting high school electives to make up for lost students. Tyler County has lost 106 students in the past six years.
"One of our difficult decisions has been to cut staff," Daquilante said. "We did not cut any programs."
More schools districts are considering consolidating smaller schools to cut the number of teachers and service personnel on the payroll, Zervos said. He noted large high schools, such as Wheeling Park, John Marshall and Brooke, are able to offer more electives and programs because costs are contained to a single building.
According to Ron Blankenship, superintendent of Gilmer County Schools in central West Virginia, the decreasing student population and lack of adequate funding in the county has spurred school officials to build Leading Creek Elementary School on the border of Gilmer and Lewis counties. The building will house the students of Troy Elementary in Gilmer County and Alum Bridge Elementary in Lewis County.
Blankenship cited the decreased student populations in both schools as a factor in the decision to consolidate. Troy Elementary only houses about 100 students, he said.
Blankenship said the district is now looking to consolidate its remaining three elementary schools to cut staff and put more money toward electives at the high school level.
According to Zervos, the problem of a declining student population will continue as long as the economy in West Virginia also declines.
"The big deal (with student enrollment) is jobs and the economy - that's what drives it," Zervos said. "When you have a lack of jobs, people move."


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5 Superpowers You Didn't Know Your Body Was Hiding From You
#4. "Seeing" With Your Ears (A.K.A. Echolocation)
This is the superpower that the Daredevil has. He overcomes his blindness with sonar-like sense of hearing that's so sharp it basically replaces his vision.
This is a real thing. In the real world we call this echolocation, and guys like Daniel Kish have it. He is completely blind and has been his whole life. Despite this, one of his favorite pastimes is mountain biking.
And as easy as it is to imagine this guy crashing hilariously through your window clutching a Braille map, he's actually pretty good at it. And he does it all by using sound to mentally paint a picture of the world around him, and doing it so fast he can avoid trees, boulders and bears while speeding down the side of a mountain.
You may remember that we previously wrote about another guy with this ability, Ben Underwood. This is the guy who trained Ben.
Why Can't We Do This All of the Time?
For the same reason people who use calculators suck at math. Most people choose the easy way, in this case relying on your vision to tell you where things are, and lose the ability to do it the much harder and far more awesome way.
But any one of you can pick up echolocation even without losing your eyes in some kind of superhero origin story. Tests have found that blindfolded people can learn to judge distances to objects based on the echoes of their own footsteps. Soon they can even judge the shape and texture of unseen objects by echo alone. Try it; close your eyes and slowly walk toward a wall while talking, listening to the change in your own voice as it echoes back to you.
Your brain recognizes all of those subtleties in echo (you've been hearing them your whole life, after all) and it's just a matter of training yourself to use them.
To fight crime.