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Is this a felony?
Gretchen Morgenson, my favorite Times' business reporter since Joe Nocerra went on leave, has a fascinating story in Sunday's paper suggesting that Goldman Sachs not only reaped the benefits of the financial meltdown but that it may have had a bigger hand in bringing it on than we knew."A.I.G. had long insured complex mortgage securities owned by Goldman and other firms against possible defaults. With the housing crisis deepening, A.I.G., once the worlds biggest insurer, had already paid Goldman $2 billion to cover losses the bank said it might suffer."A.I.G. executives wanted some of its money back, insisting that Goldman like a homeowner overestimating the damages in a storm to get a bigger insurance payment had inflated the potential losses. Goldman countered that it was owed even more, while also resisting consulting with third parties to help estimate a value for the securities."http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/07/business/07goldman.html?hpWould the investment, bond, and/or insurance gurus comment on the ins and outs of the story? I'd like to fully understand what went on here.UPDATE: And on Monday morning, we have another data set about how the regulation business is going. "In a Message to Democrats, Wall St. Sends Cash to G.O.P.""This year Chases political action committee is sending the Democrats a pointed message. While it has contributed to some individual Democrats and state organizations, it [Chase] has rebuffed solicitations from the national Democratic House and Senate campaign committees. Instead, it gave $30,000 to their Republican counterparts.http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/us/politics/08lobby.html?hpUPDATE: NOT ANOTHER FELONY! Andrew Ross Sorkin has this gem today about an investor group paying itself a hefty dividend from a hospital corporation deeply in debt. Should we assume they were hoping for health-care reform and now think it's dead? Or????http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/09/business/09sorkin.html?ref=business
About the Author
Margaret O'Brien Steinfels, a former editor of Commonweal, writes frequently in these pages and blogs at dotCommonweal.
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Do you really think this is a matter of a greedy rogue corporation and not the default mode of our capitalist system? We will be even more stuck if criminal charges are filed since it will then be seen as the fault of certain individuals.
Margaret--It's not often that we agree, but I think in this instance there is much overlap in our thinking. I liked Gretchen Morgenson's work when she was with Forbes magazine, many years ago. The fact that she could thrive there and at the NYT speaks well of her work. Unfortunately, I don't know if we'll ever fully understand what went on here, but something doesn't smell quite right. Saying anything more than that wouldn't be prudent.Hal Holbrook had a memorable line in the movie Wall Street:"Man looks in the abyss, there's nothing staring back at him. At that moment man finds his character. And that is what keeps him out of the abyss."We all stare into the abyss at some point in our lives. I wonder if some people in this situation let the abyss swallow them.
What is intriguing (and perhaps perfectly legitimate in our capitalist system) is that two of the GS traders cited in the story were betting against the derivatives while GS was collecting insurance on the declining value of same. As the story points out these derivatives (or some of them ) have now come back and GS has profited. Just or not, it seems monumentally corrupt.It is probably true that criminal charges would get us nowhere, but then something else has to happen. Regulation? The too-big-to-fails are allowed to fail next time? Not clear to me that when there is a next time (which it sounds like there could be), we are not going to face the same dilemmas.
On the broad picture, see review of Stiglitz's book in the book review.Criminal charges? Will Spitzer work with NY DA White collar crime bureau on this?Would be interesting to know on the inside.
On the inside: Morgenson cites e-mails, conversations, and interviews of people involved; perhaps they've been laid off from GS, or gotten a conscience.
MargaretAs much Goldman's influence within the Wall Street/Federal Govt. nexus has been extremely damaging to the economy, in this particular case they are unlikely to be guilty of any misbehavior.The transactions in question are Credit Default Swaps (CDS). These are contracts in which one party (in this case AIG) promises to pay another party (Goldman) an agreed amount if the bonds or debt instruments specified in the contract default on payment. For example,let us assume that Goldman in 2006 bought $10.0 million of General Motors bonds, but as time passed they became concerned that General Motors might default and not pay the debt, so to protect themselves they would enter into a contract with someone like AIG that called for AIG to pay Goldman what they might lose in the event of GM's default. The contract would have called for Goldman to make sizeable premium payments-say $1.0 million- most of which would have been paid up front. And while the CDS contract issued by AIG (or any other counterparty) might look like an insurance contract, both parties know that it is not an insurance contract, because it is issued outside of the regulated insurance business and therefor without the protections provided by regulation. The most important of these protections is the requirement for reserves to back up the issuers (AIG) obligation to pay. Since both parties know that the contract is inherently without substance, the contracts generally call for the issuer(AIG) to post collateral (usually cash) if one of two events occur. The first event is a decline in the issuers credit rating-an event which calls into question the issuers ability to make good on its promise. The second event is a deline in the subject bond's credit worthiness-making it more likely that a default could occur.In the case of the Goldman/AIG relationship referenced in the NYT article, both events occurred. The credit rating of AIG declined,and credit worthiness of the "insured" mortgage securities fell off the cliff. In this case Goldman was well within its legal and moral rights in demanding substantial cash collateral or payments. The real bad boy in this case is AIG because it committed itself to such an enormous CDS liability that there was there was not the slightest possibility that they could honor even a small percentage of it. That said, in a very real sense, there is a degree of culpability surrounding the entire business of CDS trading that involves not only Goldman, AIG and the banks, but also the Federal Reserve , the Clinton and Bush administrations, and Congress: and that is the failure to regulate this activity when presented the opportunity in the late '90's.
Itis greed. When the government intervenes it is called interference. When it does not it is irresponsible. Goldman may not be let off the hook even tho the government did not do its job. AIG should not have been given a bailout and Goldman should take its losses which too much risk caved in AIG. Sure AIG should not have insured Goldman. But at that point too many insiders are involved.Further, the real issue is human greed. Just as baseball players were essentially greedy in using steroids (to make more money and fame). It is time to stop letting the Banks off the hook by saying they operate on the profit motive. The profit motive is fine. But when you take down so many it is no longer justified.
Years ago, a U.S. attorney explained securities fraud to me for what it is - just another form of cheating. If Goldman Sachs knowingly committed fraud in its claims to AIG, its executives are vulnerable. It would get very interesting if any of those insiders were pressured to open up to federal investigators about whether there was a plot to manipulate the market.
I hate to be defender of Goldman,but in in this instance there was no fraud. The confusion and the dispute between AIG and Goldman had to do with valuations. AIG's position was that the notional value of the underlying securities was higher than what Goldman had calculated. There is a great deal of subjectivity in these calculations because they incorporate predictions of future economic behavior. The test is what actually happened as the future unfolded; and as we now know, Goldman's valuations were actually too optimistic. The valuations should have been much lower and AIG's cash payments should have been much higher. Moreover, any attempt to assign the fall of these valuations to Goldman's market manipulations misses the point, because the default rates and market value of these and all other mortgage securities is, in reality, turned out to be far worse than anyone could have predicted in 2007 or 2008.As for greed, Bill could not be more correct. The fundamental problem is that we have allowed our economy to be captive to a system whereby individuals are free to take extraordinary risks with other people's money in the expectation of huge financial rewards (the "bonuses"), but with no personal risk, no downside and no accountability. This is moral hazard in the extreme, and I am afraid that no amount of regulation will cure it. Probably the only way to stop this trainwreck is to restore highly progressive income tax rates as existed before the 1980's. This would cut off the rewards and put an end to the practice. And contrary to what you may hear, this would not disincentivise small business so long as the top marginal rates do not apply to income under $1.0 million and capital gains rates are left alone.
Thanks for those clarifications. So let me raise some additional question that were not in the Times's story. I have read elsewhere that at the same time that GS was selling its own positions in these derivatives, it was encouraging its clients to buy more of them. Not illegal? And further afield: there has been much brouhaha, but not much clarity, about the fact that the NY Fed (Timothy Geithner, head) made AIG pay full value for the contracts it had with GS and others rather than say n%. Presumably this is not illegal either, but it must have had some impact on the final bail-out that AIG needed. Prudential judgment? Self-interest? Double-dealing?
MargaretTrading in opposition to what you are recommending to your clients certainly is problematic and in some cases can be illegal. Goldman is known to have pretty good internal controls so I would doubt that they crossed the line into illegality-but, of course anything is possible. As for treasury (through the AIG bailout) paying face value for underwater credit default swaps, well that is completely inexplicable. Once again it falls back to a matter of valuations. and as defensible and businesslike as were Goldman's earlier actions vis-a vis AIG , the Treasury's actions were precisely the opposite. Their payments without reference to valuations cannot be defended.I honestly do not understand what in the world they could have been thinking of.
It is notable that Chase has decided to play hardball with the Democratic National leadership. How will the Tea party react to that one? Will the public rally to Obama in his conflict with the big banks? Or will Obama wink to the banks and say he is just kidding. Some serious decisions or changes are possible. Bears watching. One might say that greed is as human as food and sex. A good example is when one calls 911 reporting an illness. The Fire dept., Police dept. along with the mandatory ambulance show up. Clearly there is no need for both the Police and Fire departments. The scene, by the way, ends up as very comical. But both are vying for this job, as it were, since they get funding and are able to hire more personell and buy more supplies. Build the empire sort of thing. Sex and food are more necessary and honorable than Greed. But greed makes ample use of both those essentials to screw up the entire human race.
Bill Mazzella: Speaking of Bears (or a certain kind of bears), did you notice that William Daly, brother of Mayor Daly, was in the forefront of doling out money to the G.O.P?CL: Thanks again for your comments. It is unlikely that criminal indictments will come of this (unless Elliot Spitzers runs again for NYS attorney general), but if we are to avoid another meltdown of this sort, what regulatory mechanisms have to be in place?
No matter whether Republicans or Democrats are in charge, these guys continue to drift between the Treasury and the Fed and Goldman - and back again, and so it seems that what's good for Goldman Sachs is good for America.
I thought I'd put a plug in for Fr. Jim Martin's podcast on the big bonuses over at america blog this week -comes right out and talks about morality/ethics not the same as what was 'legal."


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I just watched the film Minority Report and I didn't understand one thing. Through out the film, the Precogs prevision any murder that is going to be happened in the city. But in the film I saw Anderton's superior Lamar Burgess ( Max von Sydow) shoots the agent Danny Witwer(Colin Farrell). This is absolutely a murder. Then how come the Precogs can't prevision this murder. Am I not understand anything here? Please explain.
It's because, at that point in time, the precogs are offline.
Remember that, after finding out that Agatha was the precog who yielded minority reports, Anderton kidnapped her. Agatha is the strongest, and the other two precogs aren't able to function without her, bringing the system offline. Burgess took the opportunity while the precogs were offline to kill Witwer. His dialogue in the scene, just before he fires, calls attention to this:

subset: commoncrawl


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Monday, Oct. 1, 2012
HAPPY BIRTHDAY for Monday, Oct. 1, 2012:
This year you often will consider your relationships and continually evaluate how much to give. In disagreements, consider that both of you might be right. Sometimes you are very hard on yourself. Release that quality. If you are single, dating will be your favorite game. Do not feel pressure to commit. If you are attached, you will find that you can bring both of you closer together or create more distance between you -- the call is yours. TAURUS is a peaceful soul, like you.
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Kingston SSDNow V+200 120GB SATA III 6Gb/s 2.5" for $74.99 + free shipping
Model: SVP200S3/120G
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SanDisk Extreme SSD 120 GB SATA 6.0 is also around same price $79
Is SanDisk supposed to be a better brand? I see their flash drive and memory card all the time...
People may want to note that most SSD's (including this one) are 2.5" (laptop hard drive size). This means you will need a 2.5" to 3.5" hard drive adapter if you are putting it in most desktops, or 3.5" hard drive slots. Don't worry, the adapters are cheap. You can buy them from a lot of places, such as NewEgg, Amazon, or most places that sell computer hardware. I would be frustrated if I didn't know that and was eager to get my new SSD only to find out that there is no adapter. Some people just screw one side to the case and leave the other side hanging, but that should only be a temporary solution. You want you parts firmly in place and not hanging from one side.
I just bought a Kingston Hyper X SSD last week and it came with a 2.5" to 3.5" adapter, but it also said that is the description with NewEgg, Amazon didn't mention if it did in this description of what I saw.
Also, Kingston is one of the top names in the SSD business. OCZ is cheap, but very unreliable.
actually you can just tape it to the side of your case if you want. just make sure it doesn't come unplugged while the computers on, otherwise you're good.
Like was said before, unless you really need one now, I'd wait for prices to come down more (maybe black Friday deals). They will come down more anyway (barring acts of God).


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Fueling up on coffee to power through a bike ride? Sure. Using your bike to power a coffee shop? Now you're getting interesting. Comprising two bicycles, a fold-up coffee bar, and a hand-cranked grinder, Kickstand Coffee is a mobile shop that aims to provide "the best possible cup of coffee to community events in [New York City] with the smallest environmental impact possible."
two of my favorite things
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7 Reasons Ants Will Inherit the Earth
We've covered ants before, but everyone in the country didn't immediately start smashing every ant they came across, so obviously you didn't listen. And we'll all pay for it. When the empires of man finally fall and the memory of our hubris has faded to dust, ants will still be here, running shit. Like they have been for millions of years. And this is why ...
#7. They Want Victory at All Costs
Make a list of the people in your life for whom you would take a bullet. Would that list include your spouse? Your kids? Definitely. Your brothers and sisters, and your parents? Most likely. Some close friends? Probably. What about some completely random person you've never met? He's not the same age as you, he went to a different school, you listen to different kinds of music, he hates your haircut. The only thing you share is that you're both humans. Would you take a bullet for him? Would he take one for you? What if there was no bullet to take? Would you be willing kill yourself on the off chance that it might protect some stranger? No. Humans simply aren't like that.
Which is why you're reading this while sitting on the corpses of the slain.
But ants? Ants are absolutely like that. They don't give two shits about their lives, and we're not just talking about in wartime here.
Every night, ants of the species Forelius pusillus bury their colony entrance to hide from their enemies, with a few of the ants working from the outside. Unable to reenter, they will be dead by the next morning through starvation or dehydration, or maybe they simply willed themselves to die just so they could kamikaze themselves again in the afterlife in an attempt to kill ghost bees or whatever.
"You guys have a nice night. We'll scream you a lullaby."
According to Science magazine, this is "the first known example in nature of a suicidal defense that is preemptive rather than a response to immediate danger." These ants sacrifice a handful of their own kind just to close the door, and they do it every goddamned night. Put a load of clothes on to wash, tuck the kids in and send a couple family members on a suicide mission to lock the gate.
"I will close the ever loving shit out of that door! HARDCORE!"
Still, they only sacrifice themselves to defend or protect their colony -- they'd never just send wave after wave of suicide-destined ants for an unprovoked attack, right?
Wrong. Lasius neglectus (or "the Asian super ants") are naturally drawn to electricity, with a desire that's actually stronger than their need to eat and drink. Swarms of these ants can and have caused blackouts in Great Britain. Once one ant gets zapped, an alarm pheromone is sent out that calls swarms of their brethren to attack and attack until, eventually, the power goes out. Millions of ants will immolate themselves and, frankly, science has no idea why. And don't think only Britain is doomed. Other ants have been known to attack electricity, like the fire ants in this video:
If you don't know what's scary about ants that aren't afraid to kill themselves to destroy electrical power, then you've never had that nightmare where a nationwide blackout happens and billions of ants use the cover of prolonged night to crawl into our mouths while we're cowering in the darkness.
(Until tonight, that is.)
#6. They Have Advanced Biotechnology
Humans go to college to find out what they want to do in life, and they study or train or practice to be good at whatever it is they choose. Ants, meanwhile, are assigned tasks at birth, and their bodies will physically change to meet those tasks. If some ants are going to be soldier ants, then they will "develop harder shells than their worker sisters, and have round, flat-shaped heads that look like big round plates and that they use to blockade the nest from enemies." They're born the same, but ants from the exact same species will morph, depending on how much or little they're fed, to serve a function for society. That's like a human toddler suddenly developing a natural fireman's helmet at 2 years old.
Better than in the womb.
The only job of the honey pot ant is to get fat (ants have special stomachs that can store liquids, so they can later regurgitate and feed other ants). These "repletes" are fed fluid by other ants until they balloon up to the size of a grape. These sumo bugs can hold fats, water, nectar or even the body fluids of dead bugs, in case, you know, someone wants that (ants don't judge). They also hang from the ceiling all day long, like some kind of spit and bug-juice pinata. If an ant's thirsty, it'll drink from these awful, juicy fountains. If not, they'll top them off by spitting into their mouths, because nothing ants do will ever be cute.
And these fluids never spoil or ferment. Ever. Ants are the only creatures on Earth who have created a living mobile food-storage unit full of life-sustaining grossness that will never go bad. And if one replete dies, some other ant will step right in and turn into a replete.
"I'm a spit pinata now? But I was just the mayor, like, five minutes ago."
Because ants are like Mega Man villains, we also have leafcutter ants, which have developed specialized mandibles made of zinc-enriched biomaterials as sharp as any blade man has ever devised.
They use these natural scissors to cut up leaves to use as fertilizer in their fungus gardens (though we have no reason to suspect they won't also use them to cut through our eyelids when we're sleeping).
"We totally could. Sometimes we even practice."
Their jaws are powerful enough to cut through leather, and did we mention that they vibrate a thousand times per second? Yes, they've got turkey carvers built into their faces.
#5. They Can Dominate Any Environment
The Saharan silver ant is one of the most heat-tolerant land animals in the world. In fact, the only creatures that can survive higher temperatures are worms that live around boiling hydrothermal vents on the bottom of the ocean. This ant's only predator is a type of desert lizard, so to protect themselves they go out during the absolute hottest part of the day in one of the most searing environments on Earth where no organism could possibly survive. Scurrying as fast as their little legs can carry them across scalding sands that can be over 150 degrees Fahrenheit, these critters are fighting against the clock. They can only forage while in the blazing heat and they can only survive for a few moments before they fry, so they have to get out, find the food and get back as soon as possible.
Getting back should be difficult, as there aren't exactly memorable landmarks all over the desert, but they've even made their return trip more efficient. Most ants follow winding trails of pheromones to get back home, but the Saharan silver ants have built-in pedometers. They count their steps so they know exactly how far away from home they are at all times (and whether or not they'll have enough time to get back before the heat fries them), and by using polarized light from the sun, they always know what direction to run.
So even if ants could read, this would still be pretty useless.
But it's not just the fires of hell where ants can survive; another type of ant, Polyrhachis sokolova, is the world's only known aquatic ants, which means they can both swim and build underwater lairs, just like all of your favorite supervillains. Living in the mangroves along the Australian coast, these ants have cleverly designed their hives so that, when the tide comes in and completely covers the hive with water, the ants can survive in little pockets of air stationed throughout the hive. No other air-breathing creature on Earth can build an aquatic home except humans. The only difference is that this isn't just a little four-man aquatic habitat; this is a frigging ant metropolis.
#4. They Are Super Farmers
It's not impressive enough that ants are farmers -- they have to be super farmers. Leafcutter ants have some of the largest colonies of any animal in the world, with up to 10 million workers. They harvest more greenery in South American forests than any other animal. It's estimated that leafcutter ants alone consume almost 20 percent of the area's annual growth. But ants can't digest the cellulose in leaves, so they cut them up and feed it to a special fungus that they grow. They've been doing this for, oh ... about 50 million years or so.
"You get used to the smell after the first 30 million years."
For 50 million years they've been working the land and harvesting this special fungus. The ants are covered in a unique bacteria designed to protect the fungus, and they produce 22 different types of antibiotic from special glands, so, without the ants, this fungus could not survive. Leafcutter ants actively fight off parasites and diseases that might harm their crops with toxins they engineer on their own bodies. They're not just farming, they've made their own natural pesticides.
They're so impressive that biologists are currently studying the leafcutter ant so that we advanced, tool-using, large-brained mammals can better emulate their system.
Expect hipsters waving trees above their heads at the next John Mayer concert.
In the Amazon, you might stumble across a very well-manicured patch of land that is completely clear, save a few trees known as D. hirsute trees (or "lemon ant trees"). Nothing else survives there. Local legend says that these bizarrely maintained clearings are home to an evil dwarf spirit called the Chuyachaqui. They call these patches "devil's gardens."
And they're half right. Dwarfs don't live in devil's gardens, but something evil does: lemon ants.
Friends tell us they actually taste of lemon. We don't speak anymore.
Every devil's garden is owned by lemon ants. The lemon ant trees are allowed to stay because their hollow stems provide good nest sites for the ants. A queen will make a home out of a tree, and eventually more lemon ant trees will grow as the colony expands. All other plant life, however, must go. These ants will inject formic acid into the leaves of any tree or weed they feel is too close to home, and the tree or weed will die. That's how the ants keep the area so well-landscaped: They're killing all of the trees.
Keith Martin
Which is bad, because now you can clearly see what wants to murder you.
This is the only recorded instance of animals using herbicides to kill plants. Researchers found that trees attacked this way would begin to die within the first 24 hours. One colony was found to have 3 million workers, 15,000 queens and a whole grove of trees, and it was estimated to be 800 years old. A single colony has occupied the same real estate for nearly a millennium. That's older than most man-made cities.


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Since No-one else here has made one that I have seen I've decided to make a basic guide, this guide will answer your questions such as "What do I research?"
and "Corvettes or Destroyers" and also to answer questions when a pop-up just doesn't make sense, "It says target can't hold fleet what I do?"
Well lets get you started, the most common question I get is…..
"If I have ______ with ________ and a commander like ________ can I take fort?
What I use is this 400 corvs with adv missile and targetter,a decent tactics commander is recommended.
Now that is a win, no matter what I will win the default SF battles with that set up. But as A minimum I was told that
400 corvettes with adv missile and targ with a 50 tactics commander.
NOTE: After update SF's cost outweighs there benefit, theres no more exp from SF's, only coins.
What should I take?
The best instance to train on is Legendary Capella, I would recommend 350-450 Military Missile corvs and some Range boosting modules.
On the way up however (Easy pirate lairs) you can just use Gunships, or what ever you have.
TEH BOSSES o.O
Pirate Lair bosses have the 'black pearl' equipped, its armour increases with each difficulty level. It is also classed as a supership which means that using corvs will pretty much fail. I use Battle cruisers agaisnt it but many new players won't have that so here's a hint for the first few bosses until you can build Star frigates.
Bosses for new players
3-4 Commanders able to hold 100 or so Transports
- A commander holding 300 ships* Preferably corvs, with 5k+ Missile aircraft
Send one of your transport commander to start they fight they Are not mean to do much damage they are just there to tank the damage also remember that there are no losses on Instances.
After the first round release the aircraft, they should do most of the damage AND take out the enemy aircraft continue sending out your transport commanders. Once/If you run out of transport commanders send in your corvs, they should finish off they black pearl if not send more transport commanders into the Instance.


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CGS Returns Into Action For Two Nights
By Ben Deatherage
(Photo Courtesy of Madman Photography)
Cottage Grove, Oregon- This weekend the Cottage Grove Speedway will be busy once again. On Friday May 31st race three for the Kart program will take place while Saturday June 1st will be Chamber Night At The Races. The American Sprint Car Series-Northwest Region will be on hand Saturday along with the IMCA Modified and Street Stock divisions and the evening will be presented by the Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce.
"This weekend is going to be great," commented Heather Boyce, General Manager of the Cottage Grove Speedway, "we're so glad to have the Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce on board this year and sponsoring this great event. Don't forget Friday we have Karts and general admission is free."
The ASCS-Northwest Region will host their first two races of the season this weekend with the second taking place at CGS. Cars from across the Pacific Northwest will converge on to the historic ¼-mile clay oval for what will be a great night of action.
So far in 2013 IMCA Modified competition there have been four different winners in as many races. Those winners include Troy McElroy, Curtis Towns, Jesse Williamson, and Mark Carrell. Will the trend continue or will we see our first repeat winner? In the Street Stocks Daniel Ray has two wins while Jordan Braaten has recorded one triumph so far this year.
General admission to the Friday Kart event will be FREE of charge. Pit passes are $10.00 and car/driver fees will be $35.00. The pit gates open up around 4:00 PM, the pill draw for drivers will close at 5:45, and the pit meeting is at 6:00 with hot laps and racing to follow.
Tickets for the races on Saturday are $15.00 for Adults, Senior/Military/Junior (13-17) $13.00, Youths (6-12) $5.00, and Children under the age of five are FREE. Pit gates open at 2:00 PM, front gates 4:00, time trials 5:30, and racing stats around 6:45.
The Cottage Grove Speedway has hosted fast and exciting action as far back as 1956. Since then the ¼-mile banked oval has been regarded as a place where fast times are set and plenty of side-by-side racing occurs. Regular classes include 360 Sprints, IMCA Modifieds, NW Extreme Winged Sprint Cars, Late Models, Street Stocks, and Hornets from the months of April into October every Saturday night. For more information be sure and visit the venue's homepage www.cottagegrovespeedway.com or call the brand new Northwest Tracks Hotline at (360)-699-RACE.
Additional Information
Track: Cottage Grove Speedway
Date: Friday May 31st, 2013
Pit Gates- 4:00
Pill Draw Cut Off- 5:45
Pit Meeting (Hot Laps and Racing To Follow)- 6:00
General Admission- FREE
Pit Passes- $10.00
Car and Driver Entry- $35.00
Date: Saturday June 1st, 2013
Pit Gates- 2:00
Front Gates- 4:00
Racing- 6:45
Adults- $15.00
Seniors/Military/Juniors (13-17)- $13.00
Youths (6-12)- $5.00
Youths (5 and Under)- FREE
Family Pass-$35.00
Location: 2150 North Douglas Street, Cottage Grove, Oregon, 97424
Track Contact:
Northwest Tracks Hotline- (360)-699-RACE
Heather Boyce (General Manager)- (541)-729-8666
Ben Deatherage (Publicist)- (541)-598-6643
Website: www.cottagegrovespeedway.com
Sponsors: Knecht's Auto Parts, Welt & Welt Inc, Welt Elements, Jazzie's Deli, Bonanza Drive Up, Pink House Restaurant, Giant Burger, Fuel N' Go Station, Columbia Distributing, Coors Racing, Pepsi, Les Schwab Tires, D&D Automotive, Auto Craft Body & Paint, Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce, Brook's Cut Rate Auto Parts, Adamas Reality, Relay For Life, Co-Energy Propane, Aaron's, Oregon West RV, My Boy's Slate Fired Pizza, Cascade Home Center
Driven by MyRacePassTM
Cottage Grove Speedway | All rights reserved


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I've got a corpse in my fort spreading miasma. I build a casket, placed it, designated it as open to citizens, and almost all dwarfs have the burial skill enabled. It has a description of "This is the resting place of Olon Toraltubul", which is the name on the corpse. Why is the corpse still laying around?
It sometimes takes a while for dwarfs to get around to burying their dead. The corpse eventually got moved to the casket.
Make sure you have dwarves with the burial labor enabled, otherwise none of them will get the job to move the body to the casket. It's advisable to leave this labor on for all non-critical dwarves.
Check your job list in the manager. Burial is pretty low-priority. If your dwarves have many labors enabled, they may be choosing multiple other jobs before burial, since they pick jobs not in first-come first-served order but by looking at all available jobs and picking the highest priority one. Too many high priority jobs and your smaller tasks will get pushed aside.
Also, as of more recent versions, dwarves won't bury their dead in refuse stockpiles. You need to make a corpse stockpile.
I had this same problem, but I had 3 bodies, 5 caskets, 8 idlers, and no names had been applied to any of the graves. My fortress was beginning to have some serious ghost problems, and I was about to create a repeat of this question, but I figured it out so I'll post for other noobs.
May I please emphasis this part of the question: "Designated it as open to citizens."
You have to go to use q to interact with the coffin, and hit b to use it for Burial. You can then use settings for allowing citizens or pets. You can also use the q menu on a coffin to make a room a tomb.


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The USA's all-time leading scorer was left out of the January camp and is a major doubt for the opener of the CONCACAF hexagonal as he continues to mull his playing future.Landon Donovan has yet to make a decision about his playing future. As a result, the USA's all-time leading goalscorer was left out of Jurgen Klinsmann's January training camp and is a major doubt to be included in the squad that faces Honduras when the final round of World Cup qualifying commences on Feb. 6.
"Landon has not been invited, because, obviously, he is taking his break. He is thinking about his future," Klinsmann told Fox Soccer's Goals on Sunday during the release of his January camp roster. "We stayed in touch after the MLS Cup final, and he's not at a point yet where he knows what he wants to do."
For months, Donovan has expressed his uncertainty over his playing future, and after he helped lead the LA Galaxy to their second consecutive MLS Cup championship, he was adamant about the need for time off to contemplate what he wanted to do. With that process still underway, Klinsmann has no option but to omit Donovan and prepare for future games without him.
Of the 25 players called into his January training camp, Klinsmann included five forwards and five midfielders who can play on the wings, the positions where Donovan would play.
"We are as curious as anybody else what his decision will be in the future time, but right now he is not part of the camp," Klinsmann said.


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Grilled Chicken, Pork and Beef Main Dishes for Summer Cookouts (Slide 11)
(Slide 11 of 24) Start at the beginning | View recipes as list
Recipe: Tandoori Tofu
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Beer-Barbecued Chicken
Here's our spin on the roast-a-chicken-on-top-of-a-can-of-beer technique that's popular with barbecu…View slide
Smoked Turkey Breast
This smoked turkey breast is great for entertaining because it feeds a crowd. Plus there's not much …View slide
Jerk Pork Loin
"Jerk" isn't Jamaican for "as hot as you can stand it." Instead, a jerk paste should be a ca…View slide
Middle Eastern Roast Lamb w…
Inspired by Middle Eastern shawarma sandwiches, here we season leg of lamb with a flavorful spice pa…View slide
Peppercorn-Crusted Beef Ten…
This super-simple recipe covers beef tenderloin in a blend of cracked black, white and green pepperc…View slide
Lime-Honey Glazed Chicken
The sweet and tangy lime-honey marinade is simmered on the stovetop and then used as a sauce to bast…View slide
Butterflied Grilled Chicken…
A quick and efficient way to cook a whole bird on the grill is to butterfly it. This method is so po…View slide
Tomato-Herb Marinated Flank…
In this recipe, we make a dual-purpose sauce from garden-fresh tomatoes, shallot, marjoram and rosem…View slide
Jacqui's Jerk Chicken
Sweet, savory and spicy all at once, Jacqui Sinclair's jerk marinade is absolutely addictive. Try …View slide
Grilled Chicken with Cherry…
Chopped cherries combine with cherry preserves and smoky, hot chipotle peppers for an unusual marina…View slide
Tandoori Tofu
A tandoori-inspired spice rub and smokiness from the grill flavor these tofu "steaks." While you…View slide
Shish Kebab with Tahini Sauce
Roasted and grilled meats are ubiquitous throughout the Middle East. This marinade, infused with all…View slide
Grilled Tuna with Olive Relish
A simple relish of parsley and olives jazzes up grilled tuna. Make it a meal: Serve with grilled veg…View slide
Summer Paella
Paella started as an outdoor dish. Grilling seafood, zesty sausage and vegetables before combining t…View slide
Pork Chops with Peach Barbe…
The tangy peach barbecue sauce that glazes these pork chops is incredible on grilled chicken or salm…View slide
Classic Hamburger
Slow-cooked onions add moisture and flavor to these lean beef burgers. A quick blend of mayonnaise, …View slide
Grilled Beef Tenderloin & E…
Lightly grilled escarole combined with tangy tomato vinaigrette makes an irresistible accompaniment …View slide
Chile-Marinated Skirt Steak…
In this Mexican-inspired steak recipe, dried chiles are toasted, soaked and pureed to make a flavorf…View slide
Pesto-Pork Pinwheels with G…
Slicing the pesto-and-breadcrumb-stuffed pork before skewering helps these pinwheels cook quickly an…View slide
Chicken Yakitori with Broccoli
Yakitori—chicken skewers common in Japan—get a thick soy glaze before and after grilling for max…View slide
Peruvian Beef Kebabs with G…
In this healthy kebab recipe, ancho chile powder, made from dried poblano chiles, is used for a slig…View slide
Juniper-Marinated Bison Fla…
Rich, lean bison meat takes to the juniper-infused marinade in this easy flank steak recipe. Look fo…View slide
Grilled Chicken with Bluebe…
One lime does double duty in this healthy chicken recipe. The zest adds a citrus punch to the rub fo…View slide


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4 products for
There's no better way to encourage a healthy, active lifestyle for your son than with fashionable, well-fitting boys activewear. Whether he's hanging at home, hitting the hallways or having fun on the court, JCPenney has affordable and stylish sportswear for any boy and any sport
Long sleeve, short sleeve, and sleeveless graphic tees are the right fit for any sport. Choose from subtle logos to big and bold designs. If your son has hoop dreams, JCPenney has quite the selection of stylish basketball shorts in amazing colors and patterns. Your budding track star may not be faster than a speeding bullet, but he'll definitely outrun and out-style the competition in track pants from Adidas, ASICS, and many other brands. After you finished picking out all his new gear, head to the shoe department to find the best shoes for him and his sport of choice.
It's hard to find clothing more versatile than boys gym clothes—it transitions from school to sports to hanging out with friends, and he'll feel like a champ while he's wearing it. Choose from a variety of sport-inspired shirts, complete with all his favorite athletic slogans that he can wear on the court, the track and the field. Next, pick out a few pairs of matching shorts. Both tops and bottoms come in breathable, soft materials that are comfortable and functional. Don't forget to prepare him for colder weather with the right outerwear—JCPenney has a variety of warm pullovers, from half-zips to hoodies. They're easy to pull on and off quickly, meaning he'll stay just the right temperature, no matter what he's doing. Training pants are perfect for warm up, cool down and staying warm throughout the school day. You'll also want to pick out a few swimsuits. Whether he's swimming laps or doing cannonballs, he's sure to feel like the coolest kid in the pool with one of JCPenney's great prints. Help shade him from the poolside sun with just the right hat, and he'll be ready to rock! With great brands like Nike and Adidas, JCPenney offers the boys activewear he loves—at a price you're just as happy about. With countless patterns, colors, slogans and sizes, you're guaranteed to find something that fits him perfectly.


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5 Reasons You Secretly Want a Zombie Apocalypse
All right, somebody needs to explain the zombie thing. It's not just movies and video games, there is something else going on. There's a Zombie Survival Wiki and a Zombie Preparedness Initiative. Then you've got the Zombie Squad's forum on zombie biology and another one on zombie combat tactics. Here's an index of 80 threads from the "All Things Zombie" forums on various zombie survival tactics.
It's gone beyond good fun. It's not just a mere obsession. These people are actually preparing for a zombie apocalypse. So why is everyone so eager for a world devoid of life, but full of the undead?
We think we have an idea.
#5. Guilt Free Violence (That's Politically Correct)
It's pretty obvious why zombies appeal to the baser instincts of certain individuals. Most zombiephiles are young males and if you want young males to, say, buy a ticket to your movie, it needs to have a hero that kicks somebody in the face at some point. Then hopefully the bad guy falls out of a plate glass window, crashes into a parked taxi below, which then explodes. They like violence is what we're saying.
You don't have to rewind evolution many generations to find a time when stabbing something with a spear was all in a day's work. Today, buried in the reptilian part of the brain is that drive to survive, recalling that time when surviving often meant to kill or be killed. So, we sit in our cubicles all day and release that urge via harmless movies and video games and the sight of nameless bad guys getting mowed down.
But there's a larger reason that zombies are today's most popular target for therapeutic head-splosions. The role of "bad guy" isn't so easy to fill these days. It used to be there was always some ethnic group or nationality Hollywood could populate action movies with; if you grew up in the 80s, it was the Russians (Red Dawn, etc), before that, the Nazis or Japanese, before that, the "Indians."
There were Native American heroes, but somehow that was even worse.
More recently, it's Arab terrorists. But we're running out of villians. You can't fill your video game with Chinese enemies; hell, they may need to sell copies of the game there. The video game industry has had us killing Nazis for a decade, because they couldn't think of anybody else it was politically correct to slaughter in huge numbers.
And that's where zombies come in.
All that morality stuff is set aside. Killing them is OK because they're already dead. They don't even scream in pain, or show any sense of self-preservation. They seem to want to die. You get all the blood and gore and none of the complications.
And maybe more important than that, they're slow. And unarmed. There's no real threat. Sure, the movies always say the zombies have taken over the world, but come on. Every single male in that audience believes that, if they were in that world, they'd survive, no problem.
It's a playground of destruction with no repercussions. A violent video game turned into real life. Lots of targets, no real danger. Hell on Earth, but somehow pure fun.
#4. Free Stuff, Without All That Damned Work
"Of course there's free stuff," some of you are saying. "Free dirt, blood, zombies and broken glass. But when society collapses, nobody is going to produce anything any more! Say goodbye to electricity, plumbing, TV, new music and 90 percent of what you currently do for fun."
The joke's on you, Zombie Apocalypse.
This is exactly what a rational person might think. Au contraire for zombie survivalists. They figure the loss of those inconveniences will be minor in what is sure to be an action-packed world full of zombie beheadings. Besides, the basics would still be there. What zombie movie ever portrays the heroes as starving?
And that gets right to the heart of it. What do you devote your waking life to right now? Curing cancer? Killing terrorists? No, odds are you're devoting all your time and energy to just paying the bills. Those Cheerios don't just appear in the cupboard, we slave away at a hated job to keep our bodies fed and the lights on for the fun parts, with no grand goal beyond that.
But when society collapses under all the zombie dead weight, it's all over. But not over like a nuclear holocaust, where all the warehouses and grocery stores lay in ruins. No, all the stuff is perfectly intact. All manner of stores and malls and mansions will be ripe for the picking. In a world where only a tiny fraction of the population remains, there'd have to be enough food and clothes in the supply chain to feed you and your friends for the rest of your zombie-killing lives.
For free.
Which means you don't have to spend all day grinding away in front of a keyboard just to keep food in the fridge. All that is swept aside. Killing zombies is your job now. And you won't be getting any damned memos about a dress code.
Your purpose in life is perfectly clear. It couldn't be simpler. Which brings us to the next benefit...
#3. Simplicity
We mentioned that we miss the violence of the "killing animals with rocks" stage of our evolution, but there's something else we haven't quite gotten over: Life was simpler back then. As a result, we're still really built for a routine of gathering food, protecting our huts from predators and having outdoor sex with the ladies.
Captain Caveman: A profound symbol of man's innate evolutionary struggles.
There's a reason all this modern multitasking has half of us swallowing anti-depressants or washing away our pain with bottle after bottle of liquor. An apocalypse of zombie proportions would be a throwback to that simpler time... but with one important difference mentioned above: You're not in constant danger of starving.
There's tons of places to barricade, lots of items for creating weapons and plenty of zombies to slaughter. And that's it; those are your tasks for the day. Get sustenance, find shelter and slaughter zombies.
No homework, no term papers, no job search, no internship, no cubicle, no bills to pay. There will no longer be mail of any sort; paper or electronic. Identity theft will only happen if you die and come back as a zombie.
We think of teenagers as living and breathing texts and Facebook and Twitter, but it still buries them under the kind of rapid-fire multitasking humans just aren't built for. Even building up a bunch of shows you can't get around to watching on TiVO creates a kind of stress.
You get overwhelmed by how quickly everything stacks up. Answering 75 texts a day, responding to Facebook pokes, memorizing memes so you don't get shamefully laughed out of 4chan... all that nonsense is gone the moment the undead rise. Nobody can text with their fingers bitten off.


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The 5 Most Half-Assed Attempts to Take Over a Country
#2. The Coup That Got in the Wrong Line
"Mad" Mike Hoare was an Irish mercenary who spent his career doing mercenary-type things in Africa. It takes a certain kind of man to pursue that sort of career, as you can imagine. He was hired to stage a coup against the tiny island country of Seychelles, which was strategically important due to its proximity to a U.S. military base. Hoare put together his mercenary army and named them "Ye Ancient Order of Froth-Blowers." (Why? Because he was crazy.)
And he really loved him some cappuccino.
They hid assault rifles in the bottom of their luggage and filled the rest up with toys, coming up with an elaborate back story that he and his men were a rugby team who were going to Seychelles to distribute the toys to poor children.
Needless to say, that back story is the highlight of what ends up being a Shakespearean farce of a revolution. The trouble started when the "rugby team" hilariously showed up at the airport of the country they were trying to take over. One of the men accidentally got into the "Something to Declare" line at customs, meaning his bag full of guns was going to get searched. And that's when this particular mercenary decided that the airport was as good a place as any to start a revolution.
"We start by liberating that gift shop. Then on to the Sbarro, and glorious victory."
Wrong-Way Froth-Blower assembled his gun and shot the customs guy before he could get away, and the other mercenaries joined the gunfight as well. Then, Mad Mike did what any other insane person in his situation would do -- he hijacked a plane to go home. Once in the air, Hoare tried to make the pilot open the doors so they could dump their guns into the ocean, but the pilot pointed out that this would make the plane depressurize and they would all die. You'd think a colonel would know that, but nope.
Once the plane landed, the conspirators were arrested, obviously. But don't feel bad for Mad Mike. He's gone on to write books, recruit honorary members to his mercenary club and rock a beret harder than any man has a right to.
Via Wikipedia
"I'm going for sort of an A-Team, with just a hint of The Three Stooges."
#1. A Night in the Museum (For Hugo Chavez)
Before Hugo Chavez became the cancer-riddled despot we know today, he was just an angry upstart with a dream of couping the shit out of Venezuelan president Carlos Andres Perez. So, like every other rebel on this list, he put together a terrible plan. Despite knowing that he only had the support of 10 percent of the military of Venezuela and a team of backstabbing cutthroats, Chavez decided there was no better time for a rebellion than February 4, 1992. With five whole army units under his command, Chavez rolled into Caracas with four goals: capture the president, capture senior generals, broadcast their goals from the Historical Museum and wait for the angry masses to join their cause. What could go wrong?
"Sir, permission to shit myself?"
They were greeted with machine gun fire.
By the time Chavez and his team of misfits got to Caracas, someone had already spilled the rebel beans. Chavez convinced the guards at the museum that he and his men were only there to reinforce the troops for the other side, if they could just let them in, please. Wouldn't you know it? The idiots fell for it! Success!
Except the communication equipment that was supposed to broadcast the rebellion never got there. Phones? Also not there. So on the night of February 4, Hugo Chavez found himself locked in a museum with no way of communicating with the outside world. We can only hope the exhibits came to life and terrorized them while they were there, but the historical record is strangely silent about that part.
"This kind of stuff never happens to Castroooo!"
The crazy thing is that the rebels running the show in other cities across Venezuela had totally taken their cities. But Chavez didn't know that -- he didn't have a phone. He was forced to just sit in the museum like a dumbass all night. It wasn't until the next morning when the president used Good Morning, Venezuela to announce that there had been a failed uprising the night before that Chavez even realized he had lost.
Chavez surrendered, but asked to broadcast his surrender on television as well -- just so his fellow conspirators would surrender peacefully. Here's where you have to remember that Chavez did eventually achieve his goal; up until this point, no one had ever heard of Hugo Chavez, the idiot who trapped himself in a museum during his own coup. Within six years he would be the "popularly" elected president of the country.
"So then I flung open the doors like this, and I was all like, 'When I become president, you're so fired!'"
For more insanity out of history, check out The 6 Most Insane Underdog Stories in the History of Battle and The 5 Most Epic Battles of Will That Would Not End.


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The reiteration of expletives to serve the interest of comprehension for the recipient and catharsis for the speaker.
She didn't just cuss me once, she got recursive on my ass.
by Harry Flashman June 28, 2003
Trending Now
1. Adj characterized by the recurrence or repetition of something.
Look at all those other definitions, they are recursive as fuck!
by Theron Valor October 19, 2011
Urban Dictionary definition for urban dictionary.
Check out the spite of 'urban dictionary' entries on www.urbandictionary.com. The definitions are recursive, the act of viewing, reading and the emotions expressed are recursive.
by Jim Carhart January 26, 2007


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I am creating a Red-White commander deck using Gisela as my commander. I noticed that my deck is incredibly weak against a deck with any sort of indestructible creature. I know of the board sweeper Terminus, but I was wondering if red/white has any other tricks up its sleeve to get rid of tricky creatures. I'm looking for both sweepers and target-specific cards.
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There are a variety of general answers for indestructible permanents:
White is probably the strongest color for dealing with indestructible permanents after they've resolved. Some of your options are:
In red:
Colorless cards worth noting:
Apocalypse , Path to Exile, Swords to Plowshares, Crib Swap, Paralla Wave, Archon of Justice, Witch Hunter, Evangelize, Helm of Possession, Preacher, Tariff, Warp World, ...
The most effective answer is to learn to use the Gatherers Advanced Search to search for keywords in the rules sacrifice, exile, gain control, then exclude cards that are not red, white, or colorless*. You will get some false positives, but it is a start.
Like so: Color=NOT(B|U|G) AND Text=Exile+Target+Creature
Like so: Color=NOT(B|U|G) AND Text=Sacrifices+Target+Creature
Like so: Color=NOT(B|U|G) AND Text="Gain Control of Target Creature"
Although toughness reduction is not particularly white or red (which does gets +/- effects, though), you could look at creatures with Wither or Infect. In control-stealing, red has many temporary stealing spells and effects with stuff like Act of Treason, Blind with Anger, Grab the Reins, Mark of Mutiny, Threaten, Tibalt, Traitorous Blood, Zealous Conscripts... White has the non-time limited Preacher, though.


text: Owner - STEVE MORGAN Joined Board August 2007 Steve Morgan took over as Owner and Chairman of Wolves in August, 2007. Steve is Chairman of the Bridgemere Group of Companies and Chairman of Redrow plc, which he founded in 1974 and grew into a highly successful FTSE 250 company.Wolverhampton Wanderers FC (1986) Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of W. W. (1990) Limited.The ultimate parent company of W. W. (1990) Limited is Bridgemere Investments Ltd, a company ultimately controlled by Steve Morgan.Steve was also a Non Executive Director of De Vere Group plc in which Bridgemere was the largest shareholder until the group was sold in 2006 to AHG.At the time of the AHG takeover Steve took the opportunity to buy back Carden Park Hotel, the prestigious four star hotel and golf resort in Cheshire.Born in Liverpool, Steve completed his education at Colwyn Bay High School, and started Flintshire-based Redrow at the age of 21 with the aid of a £5,000 loan from his father.Under Steve's leadership Redrow became one of the UK's most successful homebuilders. In October 2000, after 26 years, Steve stepped down as Chairman, although he remained the largest individual shareholder. In March 2009, Steve returned to Redrow, and was appointed Chairman on June 30th of that yearVia his Bridgemere Group of Companies, Steve is involved in a considerable number of commercial property, housing and land remediation schemes throughout the UK, Europe and the USA.In 1992 Steve was awarded the OBE for his services to the construction industry and in 2000 he became a Fellow of the Institute of Builders.He holds three Honorary Fellowships at John Moores University, Cardiff University and Glyndwr University.In the year 2000 Steve set up The Morgan Foundation, which budgets to donate in excess of £1 million per annum in support of local children's and family charities throughout the North West and North Wales. Ten per cent of that budget is distributed to similar charities within the Wolverhampton area via Wolves Aid, part of Wolves Community Trust which is the club's charity. In 2010, Steve received an honorary degree from the University of Wolverhampton, a Doctorate of Letters recognising his contribution to construction, entrepreneurship and sport and leisure. On September 28th, 2015, Wolves announced that Steve would be stepping down as Chairman and that the Club was now available for sale. Steve would remain as owner until such time as any sale would take place. During Steve's time as Chairman Wolves enjoyed three successive years in the Barclays Premier League, the first time the club had enjoyed three successive top flight seasons in three decades. Chief Executive - JEZ MOXEY Joined Board June 2000 Jez joined Wolves from Stoke City Football Club, where he had held the post of chief executive since January 1995. Born in Hemel Hempstead, he previously worked with Glasgow Rangers and Partick Thistle. He has also run a successful sports marketing business which included representing professional footballers, basketball players and other sportsmen/women.Responsible for implementing the £14.74 million Britannia Stadium project in 1997, Jez also led the negotiations in the multi-million pound deal which resulted in an Icelandic consortium purchasing a controlling interest in Stoke City. He is a former England under 21 international basketball player and was the youngest owner of a British professional basketball franchise.Jez lived in the United States for one year on an educational sponsorship. His interests include modern theatre, fast motorbikes, marketing, stadia design, US sports, broadcasting and karate.Born in April 1963 - Jez is married to American-born Babette, and has four children. Director - JOHN GOUGH Joined Board July 2006 A local businessman, John is chairman of William Gough and Son, a construction company that has been employing people in Wolverhampton for over 100 years. John is also Chairman of Gough Holdings Group Ltd. Director - JOHN BOWATER Joined Board October 2006 A life-long Wolves fan, Black Country-born John is currently Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Financial Officer of Aggregate Industries Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Swiss based Holcim Group. Aggregate Industries is a heavy building materials Group operating predominantly in the UK and US with annual sales in the region of £2.5 billion. Prior to that, John was a Director of Tarmac plc, where he worked for 35 years. He is also on the Board of Governors at Thomas Telford School and the Black Country Consortium.


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Robert Reich At The American Dream Conference
This is a summary of the presentation by Robert Reich, speaking at the Rebuild the Dream conference, sponsored by MoveOn.org and being held in Washington, D.C., 10/3-10/5. For more LIVESTREAMING, go to: http://www.rebuildthedream.com/
"Time to Rally" – Robert Reich at the Take Back the American Dream Conference
The crowd was hyped for Robert Reich yesterday as we kicked off the first American Dream summit here in DC. And he didn't disappoint. Reich – the former Secretary of Labor under President Clinton, public policy professor at UC Berkeley, and acclaimed political economist and commentator – brilliantly weaved together the history of our broken economy with today's progressive movement.
America is divided between two great forces, says Reich. The progressive force stands for tolerance and equal opportunity, and believes firmly in the interconnectedness of humanity. The regressive force believes in the opposite – intolerance, unequal opportunity, and that we all function on our own, independently. But as bleak as things may seem, "progressive forces always win out over the regressive forces."
Reich offered a quick overview of where three decades of regressive politics have gotten us. To name a few:
-One of the worst Supreme Court decisions in American history: Citizens United, ruled that corporations are people.
-Currently, 37% of families with young children are living in poverty, the highest percentage we've seen since records have been kept.
-Corporations are sitting on $2 trillion in cash, and the ratio of coroprate profits to wages hasn't been this high since before the Great Depression.
-The top 1% rakes in 35% of total wealth in the country, the highest rate since the 1920s.
-The conservative right has left Americans feeling demoralized and cynical of our political system.
While the facts may be disheartening, for Reich, they mean the time to instigate change is not only urgent but inevitable.
"Look at the civil rights struggle and the anti-Vietnam struggle, the darkest days of the 1950s with Mccarthyism. Every time this country has really been challenged, every time the regressive forces look like they're going to win, the progressive forces RALLY. That is the history of the United States."
Catch this clip of Reich's speech from MoveOn.


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Time Capsule for Kids
Try this fun activity with kids every year on their birthday, New Year's Eve, or anytime you want to capture memories! Print out this "questionnaire" for your child to fill in. Then find an empty jar or shoebox to use as your "time capsule," decorate it, and fill it with the rolled-up questionnaire, along with other things like your child's self-portrait, recent photos, news clippings... anything you like!.
Grade Levels: 3 years - 12
To view this printable you need Adobe Acrobat Reader. Click to download Acrobat Reader - it's free!


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Growing ...Sharing... Mentoring...
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In a recent conversation a friend indicated that Rav Hai Gaon was a well known kabbalist, while another friend pointed to his teshuva [teshuvas ha'geonim 115] to indicate that he was not [and wikipedia seems to agree]. Is there any source that supports the claim that he was in fact a kabbalist?
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Shirei Musar Haskel - שירי מוסר השכל - page 39 mentions that in a few locations - (see for example) in the Peirush of Rabbi Moshe Butril to Sefer Yetzira he mentions Rav Hai Gaon as the author of Sefer Hakemitza which is on Kabala.
From Shadal's Vikuach:
(The conversation then continues.)
It seems that kabbalists ascribed various kabbalistic writings to Rav Hai Gaon. As such, one should take great care before assuming any late ascription to be correct.
To cite Wikipedia:
In terms of the Sefer HaKemitza, ascribed to Rav Hai Gaon in the accepted answer, see this thread at Bechadrei Chareidim:
My translation:
"In Wikipedia is brought that Rav Hai Gaon composed a kabbalah sefer called Sefer HaKemitza. However, from a Google search, I found a statement in the Sefer HaYovel for R"B Lion in which was written that the quotations brought by Rabbi Moshe Butril in the name of the Sefer HaKemitza are made up."


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Bishops and Knights are both traditionally considered to have a similar value, worth roughly three pawns each. However, I have heard arguments that under certain circumstances they are not so closely comparable. Are there situations where Bishops are more valuable than Knights, or vice versa? What factors should I weigh when considering a trade-off, for example?
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There's a lot that can be said on this topic, but here are some of the factors that enter into my decision making process:
Obviously, these are generalizations that may not always apply. Chess is a complex game and the situation on the board dictates what makes the most sense, but they are reasonable rules-of-thumb and worth keeping in mind. The real answer depends on your strategy, your opponent's strategy, and the current state of the board. That is what really determines the relative value of the pieces at that moment.
Todd wrote up a great answer, and points 2, 3, and 4, of his response are spot on.
My only addition would be to state that my preference for knights is based on the following:
I'm upvoting Todd's post, but just wanted to offer some counterpoint regarding my personal bias towards knights.
One reason for trading a bishop for a knight is to inflict "doubled pawns" on an opponent. (It's possible but less likely the other way around.)
Former World Champion Jose R Capablanca felt that knights were more valuable with queens on the board (because their moves are "different"), and bishops more valuable after queens were exchanged. In one epic game (against Marshall), he had a bishop versus knight, and traded his queen plus a pawn for Marshall's queen, just to reverse the relationship.
As a general rule of thumb, Knights are better in closed positions, and Bishops are better in open ones. Bishops are usually considered slightly better than Knights because they move faster, and you can force mate with 2 Bishops and the lone King vs opponent's lone King; something you cannot force with 2 Knights. It is really situational. With as many times as I have missed Knight forks and Knight moves made by my opponents over the years, I never underestimate Knights. If I am up the exchange, I would rather it be Rook vs. Bishop than Rook vs. Knight. It really is all situational. I think the value of 3 points for Bishop and Knight is correct. Although I have seen various books list the Bishop at 3.25 points; 3.5 points; and even as high as 4 points. Most have Bishop and Knight as 3 points each.
Great answers here, however there are a couple of factors that I have not seen addressed.
The concept of "Good bishop" vs. "Bad bishop" has been mentioned, but it is worth clarifying that having most of your pawns on one color is not sufficient to make that color bishop a "bad bishop". If the bishop is outside of your pawn perimeter, it can still be quite effective, although its avenues of escape may be somewhat limited. A "bad bishop" typically refers to one that is trapped within your pawn perimeter, and therefore cannot threaten any of your opponents pieces, and therefore is forced to remain as a very limited defensive capacity.
Another key difference between knights and bishops is pinning versus forking. As has been mentioned, knights are more effective than bishops at forking. Bishops can fork, but it is far less common than knights forking.
However, knights are completely unable to pin, or skewer, another piece. At higher levels of play, where you can safely expect that your opponent will be able to spot potential knight forks, the pin becomes more valuable.
Finally, the overall long-range capability of the bishop makes is more valuable in many end-games. A knight will take several turns to move from one side of the board to another, whereas a bishop can do this in one or two moves. This puts the knight at a severe disadvantage any time you are trying to put pressure on the king on one side, while trying to cope with an advancing pawn threatening promotion on the other side of board (or pawns on either side of the board, as Steven describes).
Michael mentioned this in passing, but it's worth making explicit: a lot of the bishop's endgame value comes from its range, and specifically in circumstances with pawns on either side of the board. For instance, pawns on b2 and g2 vs. a lone black knight should be a win for the pawns, whereas with a bishop black can straightforwardly capture both pawns.
The Queen is without question the most powerful piece on the board.
I have a much different opinion on the 2nd most valuable piece(s) on the board, at least for all beginning to intermediate levels of skill.
The Knights are extremely dangerous for their ability to threaten 8 widely separated positions at the same time and to immediately move to another positions that threatens a different 8 widely separated positions. The ability of the knight to move 4 positions to put a King in check and at the same time threaten 7 other positions makes the Knight incredibly versatile and extremely dangerous.
Until a player achieves this understanding and is able to visualize the danger zones for both of the opposing knights, they are easily the second most dangerous pieces on the board.
the knight has a special abilities that the other pieces don't have. It can jump over other pieces. Also, unlike the other pieces it does not move in one line but I prefer bishops because knights can only move three squares at a time.
Knight is better than bishop. Better, because
Remember one thing though when you have just pawns left with bishops versus knight, you can put your pawns on opposite square as the bishop. But against the knight no pawn is safe. I saw many endgames where a knight clobbered pawn the bishop. And vice versa. Every endgame is different it all depends on pawn formations king positions etc..
Bishop and knight are equal grandmasters know or even veterans know when one of them is better than the other. Sometimes a bishop is stronger and sometimes it is the knight.


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Women's Weight Concerns and Body Image
In This Article:
To function most effectively as an athlete, and in all roles of life, your body must have enough fuel. Food is fuel. Not having enough interferes with your performance. It also causes overall fatigue, mood changes, weak muscles, and poor health. Restrictive dieting can also lead to eating disorders, which can be lifelong, and, at times, life-threatening.
Risks of Restrictive Dieting
- Temporary weight loss
- Eating disorders
- Rebound weight gain
- Poor athletic performance
- Slower metabolism
- Impaired mental functioning
- Serious health risks
- Mood Changes
Physical Problems of Restrictive Dieting That Interfere with Exercise
- Poor balance
- Light-headedness
- Overheating
- Fatigue
- Poor endurance
- Digestive problems
- Muscle weakness
- Illness
- Headaches
- Injury
Mind and Mood Changes Common to Restrictive Dieting
More on: Children's General Health
From The Active Woman's Health and Fitness Handbook by Nadya Swedan. Copyright © 2003 by Nadya Swedan. Used by arrangement with Perigee, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
To order this book visit Amazon.


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Is there any way to add "Send & Delete" button in GMail like "Send & Archive" which can be enabled in labs. any add-ons, extensions or greasemonkey script will do.
There's nothing in Labs to do this at this time.
Depending on what you're after, you might be able to get close using filters. Create a filter that looks for a particular string in the content ("Contains:"). Make the string something innocuous that no one would ever think to put in a message (something like
When you send a message with that string in it the message will get labelled "Trash" (as if you'd deleted it yourself).
Two possible complications
Depending on what you're trying to accomplish these may or may not be a problem.


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"The first sculpture I made with a piece of string and a little wire was the outline of a rectangular solid . . . lying on the floor. It was a casual act, but it seemed
to open up a lot of possibilities for me," Fred Sandback recalled of a seminal sculpture he executed in 1966. In wanting to create sculpture that did not have an inside, he found the means to "assert a certain place or volume in its full materiality without occupying and obscuring it." For more than three decades, Sandback pursued these formative insights with remarkable consistency and inventiveness, creating a body of work that is informed by a signature style and yet, as a result of the close interdependence of each piece with the architectural site in which it is realized, ever different in its manifestations.
For his presentation at Dia:Beacon, Sandback seamlessly integrated older pieces with newer ones to orient and ground the viewer in a particular place, a specific situation. Rigorously selected from his deliberately circumscribed lexicon, each sculpture was newly parsed for this site: "I don't feel that once a piece is made, then it's done with," he explained. "I continue to work with older schemata and formats, and often begin to get what I want out of them only after many reworkings. Though the same substructure may be used many times, it appears each time in a new light. It is the measure of the relative success of a piece, not necessarily that a new structure emerges, but that a familiar one attains, in its present manifestation, a particular vibrancy or actuality." Thus, not only the specific measurements and proportions but also the tone or hue of the yarn may have been adapted or altered as the artist intuitively adjusted a work to both its neighbors and its new location.
In these sculptures, space is both defined and imbued with an incorporeal palpability, so that often the spectator concentrates less on the edges, on the yarn demarcating the forms, than on the planar or volumetric components contained within. Whether transparent geometries, as in Untitled (1977)— a two-part vertical construction—and Untitled (1996)—two triangles—or simple linear trajectories, as in Untitled (1996)—a six-part vertical construction— Sandback's sculptures unequivocally occupy the same physical site as the viewer. Inhabiting what the artist dubbed "pedestrian space"—the ordinary matter-of-fact space coextensive with that of the spectator and of the site— they reveal themselves over time, from different vantages, and according to different perspectives. Yet his work is never environmental, if such a term implies transforming the context. On the contrary, as he stated, "It incorporates specific parts of the environment, but it's always coexistent with that environment, as opposed to overwhelming or destroying that environment in favor of a different one."
All the works on view are made from acrylic yarn, a material that carried no significant connotations for Sandback. He preferred it over other similar materials, such as wire, because its soft, slightly fuzzy contours conjure a less crisp, less rigid line than that produced by metal, and its matte surface absorbs rather than reflects light. When required, a more strongly accentuated edge can easily be made by doubling or trebling the strings.
In his exploration of physical relationships via the immaterial rather than the concrete—via the interplay of vacancy and volume—Sandback recognized that the illusory and the factual are inextricably intertwined. "Fact and illusion are equivalents," he asserted. "Trying to weed one out in favor of the other is dealing with an incomplete situation." Nevertheless, he stressed that "in no way is my work illusionistic. Illusionistic art refers you away from its factual existence towards something else. My work is full of illusions, but they don't refer to anything."


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SAN ANTONIO (December 18, 2012) – The San Antonio Rampage announced today that Sideliners Grill (15630 Henderson Pass) will host a viewing party for Wednesday's away game against the Texas Stars at 7:30 p.m. The game will air live on FOX Sports Southwest.
Sideliners Grill, an official restaurant partner of the Rampage, will offer exclusive food and drink specials for Rampage fans in attendance.
The Rampage square off against the Texas Stars at Cedar Park Center before traveling to Ontario for a pair of games leading into the holiday break. San Antonio will face Toronto on Friday, Dec. 21 and Hamilton on Saturday, Dec. 22. Puck drop for both games is 6 p.m.
The Silver and Black return to AT&T Center on Saturday, Dec. 29 at 7 p.m. after a road tilt at Oklahoma City on Friday, Dec. 28.
Individual, and season, tickets start at $10 and can be purchased at the AT&T Center Southeast Box Office, by calling a Rampage representative at 210-444-5554 or online at sarampage.com.


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In this picture released by Miraflores Press Office, Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, speaks during his weekly broadcast "Alo Presidente" in Caracas, March 2, 2008. (AP Photo/Miraflores Press Office)
(CNN) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez remains under treatment for "respiratory insufficiency" that arose after he underwent an operation, a government spokesman said Thursday on national television and radio.
But Chavez's treatment for his underlying disease -- cancer -- "continues without presenting significant adverse effects so far," said information minister Ernesto Villegas.
Villegas said Chavez is in Caracas at the Hospital Militar Dr. Carlos Arvelo, where he is alert, communicating with his family, members of government and his medical team.
Venezuelan diplomat: Chavez is in charge Chavez returned to Venezuela on Monday after more than two months in Cuba, where he was treated for an unspecified cancer.
He was not well enough to be sworn into office last month.
READ: Chavez will not be sworn in on inauguration day


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6 Absurd Movie Plots You Won't Believe Are Based on Reality
#3. Underground Sewer Communities
Sewers don't seem to work the same way in the movies as they do in real life. For one thing, if the characters go down there for whatever reason, no matter what kind of movie you're watching, you can just about bet that they're going to run into sewer people. It happened in Demolition Man, Batman Returns and of course dozens of horror movies (what, you forgot about C.H.U.D.?).
Please tell us how.
Whether it's a community of mole people, martial-arts-trained turtles or a penguin-themed supervillain, secret cities often just spring up inside movie sewers as though they're the hottest real estate in town, and nobody from the surface world suspects a thing. Of course, in the real world nobody really wants to live in a poop-filled flood channel. Even a homeless shelter would have to be preferable, or a nice park bench.
But It Has Happened ...
Meet Steven and Kathryn, poster-couple for the Las Vegas Flood Tunnels, a sewer designed to insulate the prostitution capital of the United States from floods, but which is also currently providing shelter for as many as 700 people.
Daily Mail
Something tells us these filthy sewers smell better than any dorm room we've ever been in.
And these aren't just cardboard-box shanties. Sewer dwellers like Steven and Kathryn have their own bed, wardrobe and bookshelves, and even a small kitchen. All things considered, their home looks more comfortable than ours, except for the way they have to keep everything up on crates due to the floor being a river of sewage.
Daily Mail
In the spring there's a rat rowing race.
Many of the Vegas mole people make their money from "credit hustling," trawling casinos for money that drunk people have left behind. But not everyone is unemployed -- in fact, at least one of them has a full-time job on the surface world. He's probably their president.
And it's not just Las Vegas. East Coast sewer people are represented by "The Tunnel" in New York City, where the most permanent resident has lived for more than 20 years. In the documentary Dark Days, you can see them debate whose house is nicer, set up barbershops and cultivate small gardens. No word on how many of them are skin-eating mutants.
"It all depends on whether or not we can get a Wi-Fi signal."
#2. Villains Talking Themselves into Defeat
This trope seems so lazy that we're embarrassed to see it appear in the movies. And yet it does, time and time again, like a turd that just won't flush. For some reason, bad guys in the movies have a lot of trouble keeping their mouths shut, even when they otherwise have no reason to worry about getting caught.
We've seen it in RoboCop, Mission: Impossible II, Minority Report, Monsters, Inc. and hundreds of other movies featuring brilliant crooks whose only real mistake was letting the hero tape their elaborate confession and then publicly broadcast it. We like to think that we would be smarter than that as long as we're smart enough not to eat glue.
"Of course I'm the bad guy. I'm ugly as fuck!"
But It Has Happened ...
Apparently, criminals are foiled all the time when they commit a crime and then forget to not tell everybody. More often than not, it's Facebook or some other social networking site that provides the temptation to confess. Apparently, people still consider the Internet to be some kind of "international waters" style of lawless wasteland, and anything you say or do there doesn't count.
Ask Heather Tucci, who pleaded "not guilty" to vehicular manslaughter and then admitted the crash was her fault in a MySpace post. Then there's Robert Powell, who posted a picture of murder victim Joseph Duprey on his MySpace with the words "Rest in Peace" -- hours before the death was reported to police.
But perhaps the best example is 18-year-old Eric Dykstra, who was involved in a drive-by shooting that injured a young girl. Brilliantly, his first port of call was to brag on Facebook about being "a free man after shooting up a house." It's unlikely that he has a long career of successful supervillainy ahead of him.
"Someone obviously hacked into my Facebook. My password is dr1veby4life."
#1. Impractical Animal-Themed Weaponry
One thing we've learned from comic book heroes is that once you decide to become a caped crusader, you have to pick an animal and run with it. Batman can't just have a bat on his logo; he also needs a boomerang shaped like a bat.
Of course, here in the real world where people are more practical, we judge our weapons based on what works, rather than whether or not they make us look like some fierce animal.
Otherwise we'd all be dressed like honey badgers.
But It Has Happened ...
A lot of comics geeks and cosplayers will be happy to learn that many of our favorite superheroes have precedents. Ninja precedents.
In a bygone era, the ninjas of old used a weapon called tekko-kagi. Or, as you know them, wolverine claws. Typically made from horseshoes, the tekko-kagi were strapped to the wrists to use as defense against sword attacks and, presumably, enemies with a psychic control over magnetism.
The best defense is looking cool.
But that's not all -- what many don't realize is that there were female ninjas, too, known as kunoichi, and they were for all intents and purposes a bunch of Catwomen who used a weapon known as neko-te, the same kind of steel finger-claws that Batman's nemesis uses.
"Kunoichi" translates to "people who track litter on the carpet."
As of yet, we can't find any evidence of batarangs in Japanese feudal history, but if we do, you will be the first to know.
J. F. Sargent blogs and tweets, and is the managing editor of PCulpa.com.
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STEUBENVILLE - Everyone was a winner at Saturday's Special Olympics, where the smiles were as abundant as the sunshine.
Athletes from eight regional Developmental Disabilities agencies participated in various events at Harding Stadium's practice field, including Jefferson, Belmont, Tuscarawas, Muskingum, Holmes, Harrison, Carroll and Guernsey counties.
Winners are able to move on to the state Special Olympics this summer in Columbus.
Article Photos
OPENING CEREMONIES — Ben Brown of Toronto holds the torch high as he leads the Jefferson County team and teams from seven other counties during the opening ceremonies of the Special Olympics on Saturday at the Harding Stadium practice field. -- Mark Law
Dick Sperry has been involved in the local Special Olympics for 37 years. He has been the long standing director.
Sperry remembers a not so successful event 38 years ago and organizers came to Sperry to help put together the games. Sperry did a lot that first year. He bought the T-shirts and was a hugger.
"I've been here ever since. It is very hard to put this together," he said.
Sperry said the crowds have been dwindling over the past years. He said fundraising is getting more difficult.
But there are still more than 100 volunteers that work closely with the athletes, making sure they are at events on time.
Sperry said the Special Olympics is as much about the volunteers as the athletes.
"It is a labor of love. It is something they like to do," he said.
Ben Brown of Toronto, and an athlete on the Jefferson County team, proudly carried the torch as he led the Jefferson County team and other teams that followed in the opening ceremonies.
Members of the American Legion Post 573, Brilliant, and Post 740, Richmond, color guard participated in the playing of the national anthem.
Athletes then recited the Special Olympics creed - "Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt."
Then the organized chaos began. Bocce was already underway. Track events followed.
Trisha Huston of the Muskingum County team was the only runner in the 3,000 meter event. Her last laps were her fastest. She is visually and hearing impaired, using a white cane to walk. But she ran the solo race without the cane. Huston ran track and cross country at John Glenn High School.
Patrick Bornter and Jacob Westlake of the Wintersville United Methodist Church youth group worked as volunteers in the men's softball throw.
"It feels good to help out people. I enjoy doing this," Bornter said.
Westlake said the athletes put a smile on his face.
Athletes climbed the podium as their names were announced over the loud speaker. They gave each other a high five after they were presented with their medals.
They were all winners.