text: X Terms of Use XBOX CONSOLE CHECK TOOL TERMS OF USE Acceptance of Terms PLEASE READ THESE TERMS OF USE CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THE XBOX CONSOLE CHECK TOOL ("THE TOOL"). By using or accessing the Tool, or by agreeing to these Terms of Use ("TOU") where the option is made available to you in the user interface, you agree to abide by the TOU without modification by you. If you do not agree, you may not use the Tool. Microsoft Corporation ("we" or "Microsoft") reserves the right to update the TOU at any time without notice to you. The most current version of the TOU can be reviewed by clicking on the "Terms of Use" hypertext link located on the web page where the Tool is provided. Please note we do not make any representations or provide warranties for the Tool. These TOU also limits Microsoft's liability. These terms are set forth below. We ask that you read them carefully. Microsoft reserves the right to discontinue providing the Tool at any time, without notice, for any reason whatsoever. Please review Xbox Live Privacy Statement [add link], which applies to any information collected by the Tool. Personal and Non-Commercial Use Limitation The Tool is for your personal and non-commercial use only. You may not modify, copy, distribute, transmit, display, perform, reproduce, publish, license, create derivative works from, transfer, or sell any information obtained from your use of the Tool. You may not use any automated data gathering or extraction tools or manual processes to collect, gather or copy any of the information obtained from the Tool in an unauthorized manner. As a condition of your use of the Tool, you will not use the Tool for any purpose that is unlawful or prohibited by these TOU. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY THE TOOL IS PROVIDED "AS-IS," "WITH ALL FAULTS," AND "AS AVAILABLE." YOU BEAR THE RISK OF USING IT. MICROSOFT DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY OR TIMELINESS OF INFORMATION AVAILABLE FROM THE TOOL. MICROSOFT GIVES NO EXPRESS WARRANTIES, GUARANTEES, OR CONDITIONS UNDER OR IN RELATION TO THE TOOL. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE TOOL IS WITH YOU. TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, MICROSOFT EXCLUDES ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS, INCLUDING THOSE OF MERCHANTABILITY, SATISFACTORY QUALITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WORKMANLIKE EFFORT AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY AND EXCLUSION OF DAMAGES You cannot recover any damages whatsoever from Microsoft resulting from your use of the Tool, including direct, consequential, special, indirect, incidental, or punitive damages and lost profits. This limitation applies to anything related to the Tool or information made available through the Tool. It also applies even if this remedy does not fully compensate you for any losses, fails of its essential purpose, or we knew or should have known about the possibility of the damages. X No enforcement action found. Please consider to connect the console to Xbox live to verify that it is in a good state. This could mean: The console has not been banned, tampered, stolen or is defective. The serial number you entered is invalid. Consider checking your entry. The model number and serial number you entered do not match. Consider checking your entry. X Uh oh... that shouldn't have happened. Stay Safe We're here to help you learn about the policies that govern the Xbox Live service so you can avoid behavior that will result in a suspension. Many enforcements are straightforward, such as suspensions issued as a result of harassment or profane content. However, other enforcements and policies may seem a bit more complex. Check out this section for a rundown of enforcement actions and what they mean for you (or your child). Solicitation Solicitation refers to using Xbox Live for commercial purposes, including buying, selling, or trading content or services that violate the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct. Cheating Cheating is using unauthorized hardware, software, or account modifications to gain an advantage or disrupt the competitive landscape of Xbox Live. Cheating violates the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct. Account Tampering Account tampering refers to any attempt to manipulate an Xbox profile in a way that violates the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct. Typically this involves the use of unauthorized software, with which players can attempt to make alterations to various parts of their Xbox profile. Account Theft Account theft is the unauthorized use of somebody else's account. Buying, selling, sharing, borrowing, or transferring Xbox Live accounts is a violation of the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct. The most common way account theft happens is when someone shares their Microsoft Account email and password with somebody else. Phishing Phishing is any attempt to get information from another person (such as an email address or password) by pretending to be trustworthy. There are many techniques used, but the end goal is always the same – theft of an account or personal information. Phishing is a severe violation of the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct. Marketplace Theft Marketplace theft occurs when someone makes a conscious effort to defraud Microsoft by improperly using the Xbox marketplaces, redemption or subscription codes, or Xbox Customer Support, including telephone support, Xbox Ambassador Chat, Xbox Support Chat, and other support avenues. Gamerscore Corrections A Gamerscore correction occurs on a player's Xbox Live account when they gain achievements through the use of external tools and avoiding gameplay. Xbox Live is committed to keeping the service free of this type of behavior as it violates the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct. When abnormal achievement or Gamerscore activity is found, Xbox Live modifies the Gamerscore of players who meet specific criteria Game DVR and Upload The Game DVR and Upload applications on Xbox One and Xbox on Windows allow players to record and share in-game video clips, Kinect content, and screenshots with other players. A suspension of these features can occur when a user creates or shares inappropriate content through these applications in violation of the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct. Gamertag and Real Name Your Gamertag is your identity on Xbox Live. It's how other users see you in games, send you friend and game invites, and send messages. On Xbox One and Xbox on Windows you can also choose to share your Real Name with Friends and friends-of-friends. Your Real Name is the First Name and Last Name on the Microsoft Account linked to your Gamertag. A Gamertag or Real Name enforcement can be issued if inappropriate or offensive content is used for either of these identities. Harassment Harassment refers to any abusive, threatening, or bullying behavior by one person towards another. Though it includes a wide-range of offensive behavior and communication, all forms of harassment have the common purpose of disrupting the gaming experience for other Xbox Live players. Harassment violates the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct, and the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team is strictly opposed to harassment in all forms. Impersonation Impersonation is any attempt by one person to imitate or act like another on the Xbox Live service, usually to give the impression of having authority or other "official" status. Users who impersonate may threaten other gamers, attempt to phish for personal information, or intimidate people through other means while pretending to be an employee of Microsoft or partner companies. Impersonation is in strict violation of the Microsoft Services Agreement and Code of Conduct. Stay Safe Solicitation Cheating Account Tampering Account Theft Phishing Marketplace Theft Gamerscore Corrections Game DVR and Upload Gamertag and Real Name Harassment Impersonation What are some examples of solicitation? Some examples of inappropriate solicitation include, but are not limited to: Offering to violate the Code of Conduct for somebody else in exchange for money (for example, giving someone an Xbox gift card in exchange for a modified Gamerscore) Promoting a business or engaging in other commercial activity on Xbox Live Advertising websites that violate the Microsoft Code of Conduct, including offering unauthorized content Repeatedly asking for entrance into a unauthorized modified game or game type Directing your friends to websites that offer unauthorized modifications ("modding") or that encourage violating the Code of Conduct Buying, selling, or helping others to buy or sell cheats, modified ("modded") content, or access to modded game types Trading or helping others to trade in-game services (such as boosting) for redemption codes, money, or stored value (for example, trading in-game kills for currency) Selling services or status (such as a position on your friends list or game time) Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? First, safety: solicitation lets people profit from malicious and unauthorized activities that pose a danger to our members, such as cheating and account theft. Second, fairness: imagine the frustration someone feels if he or she spends hours working towards a particular achievement or rank, only for someone else to buy or get that rank without actually earning it. What sort of enforcement can I expect for solicitation? If you engage in solicitation, your account could be permanently suspended. Especially bad or repeated violations may lead to additional action, including a device ban. What are some specific examples of cheating? Cheating includes, but isn't limited to: Involvement with modified ("modded") games or gametypes such as modded lobbies, mod menus, mod infections, or other unauthorized modifications Involvement with modified Xbox hardware Intentionally playing with someone who is using unauthorized software or methods Using unauthorized software to make changes to your account or game saves Unlocking achievements, prestige level, in-game ranks, or other content you didn't actually earn Repeatedly using a game glitch or vulnerability to gain an unfair competitive advantage Interfering with or manipulating your device's network traffic Abusing the player reporting (complaint) system by filing or encouraging your friends to file false or redundant complaints or feedback Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? When players cheat, the hard work and dedication of many others is diminished. Developers work extremely hard to publish quality titles, and players play hard to enjoy them. We are dedicated to preserving the integrity of Xbox Live games, and ensuring they're played as intended. What sort of enforcement can I expect for cheating? If you are involved with cheating, your account can be permanently suspended. Especially egregious or repeated violations may lead to a device ban. What are some specific examples of account tampering? Account tampering includes, but isn't limited to the unauthorized modification of: Gamerscore Achievements Avatar colors Xbox Live tenure Saved game data Certain in-game items, perks, bonuses or experience level Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? It's not fair, and it's not safe. For example, when a player unfairly unlocks an achievement using unauthorized software, it's unfair to the player who unlocked the achievement legitimately. It's not safe, because manipulating a profile with unauthorized software and uploading it back onto Xbox Live risks the integrity and security of the service. Once an account has been tampered with, we can't trust it on Xbox Live. Seriously, you ban accounts because the avatar had purple skin? No, not really. We permanently suspend accounts because they were manipulated using software that violates our Code of Conduct and the tampered data was re-uploaded to the Xbox Live service. We hope you understand that we take the tampering of our system and network very seriously. My son or daughter is only a kid and is not skilled enough to do something like this! Unauthorized modification software is widely available on the web. All your child needs to accomplish these serious violations are a few button clicks on their PC or access to someone who already has the required software (a sibling, friend, classmate, etc.). What sort of enforcement can I expect for user account tampering? If you engage in account tampering, your account can be subject to a permanent suspension. Especially egregious or repeated violations may lead to a device ban. What are some examples of account theft? There are a number of situations that are considered to be account theft. Some of these include, but are not limited to: Buying an account Using an account on your console that wasn't created by you or your parent or legal guardian Making purchases with an account that wasn't created by you or your parent or legal guardian Performing a license transfer on an account that wasn't created by you or your parent or legal guardian Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? Account theft leads to financial loss, identity theft, a violation of personal privacy, and other avenues of fraud outside of Xbox Live. We are dedicated to the privacy and safety of every Xbox Live member, and cannot tolerate any attempts to steal accounts or personal information. How can I avoid being accused of account theft? The best way to avoid getting in trouble for account theft is to avoid using accounts that weren't created by you. Ask yourself these questions: Did I create this account? Is the account registered in my name? If the answer to either of these questions is "no", then you may run the risk of enforcement for account theft. So I'm not allowed to play at my friend's house? Xbox Live is a social platform, and we encourage friends to play together. There's nothing wrong with playing your favorite split-screen game with a friend. However, borrowing or transferring the account, using the account without permission, or using the friend's account to make purchases or commit other Code of Conduct violations will result in an enforcement for account theft. What sort of enforcement can I expect for account theft? If you engage in account theft, expect to receive permanent account suspensions and/or device bans. How can I avoid becoming a victim of account theft? Keep your password secret; this is by far the most common cause of account theft Choose a strong password and sign up to get security codes sent to your cell phone or email Make sure your antivirus software is up-to-date and run regular checks on your PC For more information about protecting your Microsoft Account and identifying warning signs of account theft, visit www.xbox.com/security. What are some examples of phishing? Phishing includes, but isn't limited to: Asking for another player's email address and password for any reason Directing people to unauthorized websites or software that requires entry of a Microsoft Account email, password, or other personal information Directing people to download unauthorized software such as code generators, malware, or other malicious code Impersonating Microsoft or their authorized partners in order to obtain personal information Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? Phishing typically leads to financial loss, identity theft, a violation of personal privacy, and other avenues of fraud outside of Xbox Live. A single message directing your friends to a phishing website can lead to many stolen accounts. We are dedicated to the privacy and safety of every Xbox Live member, and cannot tolerate any attempts to steal accounts or personal information. What if I didn't mean any harm? I had no intention of stealing accounts! It's never appropriate to ask for another player's login information, regardless of the reasoning behind it. It is also never ok to send other players to a phishing website. Phishing is an extremely serious violation and we must hold the offending account responsible. What sort of enforcement can I expect for phishing? If you are involved in requesting account details, or directing users to those involved in such activities, expect to receive permanent account suspensions and/or device bans. What are some specific examples of marketplace theft? Marketplace theft includes, but isn't limited to: Getting, asking for, or using redemption codes illegitimately Transferring licenses to your console from an account that you didn't create Using a system glitch or loophole for financial gain Using any sort of "shared" account to avoid having to pay for games or content Successfully redeeming or giving away a code and contacting customer support claiming the code didn't work Attempting to defraud Microsoft or authorized agents Fraudulently transferring content licenses Sharing account credentials Asking to be added to someone's third party subscription (such as Netflix, Hulu, etc.), in order to avoid restrictions or payment Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? People make games, videos, and other content you want—and we want to offer it to you on Xbox. To do that, we need to protect those developers and creators by making sure that you get the content and use it in the way they intended. We're committed to ensuring our entire marketplace and customer support system is used in the way it is intended. What sort of enforcement can I expect for marketplace theft? If you involve yourself with marketplace theft, your account can be permanently suspended. Especially egregious or repeated violations may lead to a device ban. What are Gamerscore corrections? Gamerscore and achievement corrections occur on a player's Xbox Live account when they gain achievements or other awards through the manipulation of an Xbox profile using external or unauthorized tools and/or hardware. When a Gamerscore correction occurs the player's Gamerscore is reset and previously-earned achievements remain unobtainable. How do you identify Gamerscore and achievement tampering? We look for abnormal Gamerscore and achievement activity using criteria that identifies accounts that have used external means to unlock achievements and other awards. Players who play games legitimately to earn Gamerscore and achievements are unaffected by this. Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? Once an account has been tampered with, we can't trust it on Xbox Live. If a profile has been modified with unauthorized tools or hardware, we have to treat it as a risk to the Xbox Live service. It is also unfair to players who have unlocked achievements through legitimate gameplay. What sort of enforcement can I expect for Gamerscore tampering? Gamerscore cheating will result in a reset of the account's Gamerscore, and depending on the circumstances and severity of the violation may be accompanied by a temporary or permanent account suspension. Under certain circumstances, a Gamerscore correction may be limited to achievements earned on a particular platform. Egregious or repeated Gamerscore violations may lead to a device ban. What are some examples of inappropriate content? Inappropriate Game DVR content includes, but is not limited to Use of profanity or other offensive terms or gestures Attempts to harass, abuse, or bully other individuals Nudity or other sexual content, including in-game sexual content Harm or violence against people or animals, or promotion of self-harm Cheating, or promoting the use of unauthorized game modifications Use of illegal drugs or controlled substances Other illegal activities Non-video game-focused content Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? Xbox Live is designed to be fun and safe for everyone; when people upload harmful or offensive content, it disrupts the Xbox Live experience for other gamers. We remove this offensive content to preserve the quality of our service, and to create a safe and welcoming environment for all. But my video was from a Mature-rated title, why was it taken down? Remember, Xbox Live is designed for users of all ages and your clips and screenshots may be viewable by anyone! You're welcome to create content from a Mature-rated title, but Kinect content (including audio, video, and text) must be appropriate for an audience of all ages. Gameplay clips or screenshots that are likely to be perceived as provocative, including those featuring egregious violent or lewd content without adequate context, may also be considered inappropriate. But my friend did something in the background of my clip, why ban me? While you personally may not have created the inappropriate content, your account was still used to create it. You are ultimately responsible for the content uploaded by your account. When an enforcement is issued, it's not necessarily because you committed a violation, but because the account was used to commit a violation. What sort of enforcement can I expect for uploading or streaming inappropriate content? If you create or share inappropriate Game DVR or Upload content, the offending clip or screenshot will be removed and your ability to use these applications may be revoked for seven, 30, or 90 days. Especially egregious violations may result in an account suspension and/or device ban, without any prior warning. What about other broadcast and streaming apps, such as Twitch? Use of the Twitch™ application on Xbox One is subject to the Microsoft Code of Conduct and Twitch™ Terms of Service. If you stream inappropriate content via the Twitch™ application, the offending stream will be terminated and your Twitch™ account may be suspended. Especially egregious violations may result in an account suspension and/or device ban. What are some examples of inappropriate content? Inappropriate Gamertag and Real Name content includes, but is not limited to: Profane words or phrases Topics or content of a sexual nature Hate speech Controversial religious topics Notorious people or organizations Sensitive current or historical events Any "sound-alike" or "lookalike" words, phrases, or puns that reference these topics Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? Xbox Live is designed to be fun and safe for everyone; when people choose harmful or offensive content for their identity it disrupts the Xbox Live experience for other gamers. We remove this offensive content to preserve the quality of our service, and to create a safe and welcoming environment for all. What sort of enforcement can I expect for creating an offensive Gamertag or Real Name? If you create an offensive or inappropriate Gamertag, it will be replaced with a new automatically-generated Gamertag. If your Real Name content is deemed offensive it will not be changed, but the ability to share it with others on Xbox Live will be disabled. But that really is my real name! Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement is proud of the diversity of Xbox Live players, and Real Name enforcements are not intended to pass judgment on anyone's name or identity. Instead, Real Name enforcements are issued in order to remove harmful and highly offensive content from the Xbox Live service. We do not target specific names or types of names, and each enforcement is issued only after a thorough investigation that determined the content could be seen as offensive by the Xbox Live community. What are some examples of harassment? Harassment encompasses a number of situations, including, but not limited to: Threats of death, harm, property damage, or any other acts of violence or vandalism Verbal abuse, profanity, stalking, or griefing directed at other players Extortion or coercion Trolling Network interference, disruption, or manipulation Libel, defamation, or slander Display or transmission of another user's personally-identifiable information Abuse of the Xbox Live chat or messaging systems Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? Xbox Live is designed to be enjoyed by everyone, and no one should ever have to feel unsafe or threatened on the service. Harassing and threatening others goes entirely against the spirit of friendly online gaming, and one of Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement's primary responsibilities is ensuring that all users have the opportunity to have a fun and safe gaming experience on Xbox Live. What sort of enforcement can I expect for harassment? If you engage in harassment towards other users, you could receive communications suspensions or temporary account suspensions. Especially bad or repeated violations may lead to additional action, including permanent account suspensions or device bans. What's so bad about a little smack talk? Many multiplayer games are highly competitive, and friendly banter and smack talk is completely understandable. However, when that language is used in an attempt to abuse, threaten, or otherwise cause genuine offense it's no longer smack talk, but harassment. There's a big difference between enjoying a competitive game and trying to offend others. What's wrong with trolling? It's funny! Trolling includes any attempt to intentionally provoke or manipulate other players, usually to disrupt their gaming experience or cause an emotional response. Regardless of the reason behind the trolling, it is always considered harassment. Even if the intent is to provide entertainment or get people to laugh, it's still at the expense of other Xbox Live players, and that is not acceptable. What are some examples of impersonation? Impersonation encompasses a number of situations, including, but not limited to: Engaging in communications that claim or imply that you are Xbox staff Having a Gamertag or profile content that claims or implies you are Xbox staff or have the authority of a staff member Falsely posing as a Microsoft employee, moderator, game developer, partner, or other official support staff Claiming to be staff or otherwise exercising authority in an attempt to obtain other users' personal information or for other purposes Why does the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team care? Xbox Live is designed to be fun and safe for everyone; harassment, coercion, and phishing as a result of impersonation can lead to compromised accounts and can result in people feeling unsafe. Impersonation can also contribute to false perceptions about Microsoft or enforcement policies and can reduce trust in actual employees or other officials. What sort of enforcement can I expect for impersonating? If you engage in impersonation or related harassment, you could receive temporary or permanent account suspensions. Especially bad or repeated violations may lead to additional action, including a device ban. I was just trying to stop someone from breaking the rules! Xbox Live has a number of features at your disposal for dealing with troublesome users. You can prevent users from communicating with you by using the Mute and Block features, and if necessary you can file a complaint that will be reviewed by Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement. However, impersonation and threats should never be used in an attempt to stop someone else from breaking the Code of Conduct. But I'm a member of Enforcement United! We appreciate your participation in Enforcement United! However, please keep in mind that Enforcement United is a volunteer community program, and taking part in the program does not make you an enforcement agent or member of Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement Team. The Enforcement United Terms of Use notes that participants should not represent themselves as Microsoft employees, vendors, or agents, and attempts to falsely use Enforcement United participation as a source of authority may result in a suspension due to impersonation.


text:
Holy shit. It's been almost a month since I posted anything about Kelly Brook. What's wrong with me? Clearly I'm slipping somehow. Anyway, let me rectify that with this assortment of pics of Ms. Brook doing her thing. It starts out with our girl doing that most Kelly of things, namely leaving her house looking hot. Digging the leather, Kelly. If only she'd been hopping on the back of a Harley rather than getting into BMW. Then this would have been perfect. Kelly also appears to have been the centerpiece of some ridiculous douche party, as well as their official cake cutter. Good thing she made it out of there that night alive.
I know Kelly is a spokesperson for Axe and thus probably acclimated to their shit sprays. Still, the overpowering stench of several different scents of Axe body spray wafting from the unbuttoned shirts of half-a-dozen douches and merging together into a noxious cloud of poison, must have been an overpowering experience even for her. Hopefully she got out of there before London's Hazardous Response Team showed up a cordoned off the area. Though that means we missed getting a shot of her stripped of clothing and put through the detoxification shower in the parking lot by the guys in Outbreak suits. Too bad. Maybe next time.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
To avoid the sequestration, which would automatically kick in if a congressional supercommittee charged with identifying federal savings fails to agree on action, Panetta said he is focusing his efforts on protecting against potentially detrimental reductions in defense spending.
"There will be tough decisions and tough trade-offs. This will force us to take on greater risk," Panetta said, adding that his goal is to ensure inevitable risks are acceptable by maintaining the all-volunteer force and securing core national interests. "We still face a devastating [sequestration] that will make us unable to protect against a range of threats."
He also warned that the impact of sequestration-enacted cuts would hurt more than just defense and national security, stressing that drastic reductions and the cancellation of major weapons programs also would cripple the industrial base.
Panetta recently said that the sequestration cuts could add 1 percent to the national unemployment rate from job losses in government, military and private sector jobs within the defense industrial base. Citing a new Pentagon analysis, DOD spokesman George Little said the defense industrial base provides 3.8 million private sector jobs, per the Associated Press.
In what was likely his last press conference as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mullen echoed Panetta's comments and pressed for aggressive action in identifying savings within DOD.
"These must be strategy-driven decisions ... that start with a clear-eyed assessment. We should end missions and capabilities that don't comport with our strategy," Mullen said.
Both officials stressed the need to see the budget pressure as a chance to trim the excess in DOD budgets.
"We should use this as an opportunity to shape the very best defense we can for this country ... so we can take on the threats we face over the next 10 years," Panetta said. "We have an opportunity to set priority here."
Posted by Amber Corrin on Sep 20, 2011 at 12:14 PM
E-Mail this page
Printable Format
Advanced Search
In the latest issue: grid security, agile development, BYOD and more!
Get the full issue
The latest version of the Defense Department-wide Enterprise Service Management Framework places more emphasis on managing IT risk.
Despite GSA's efforts to accelerate the FedRAMP approval process, the lack of agency reciprocity puts the program's central goals at risk.
Got some early-career colleagues who are doing great things in federal IT? Nominate them for FCW's 2016 Rising Star awards.
The agency software inventories required under the draft category management policy will be treasure maps that lead to efficient, effective, streamlined buying and unprecedented savings.
As experts warned of the "dire" threats posed by outdated federal technology, lawmakers grilled top feds, debated workforce issues and inched closer to backing a $3.1 billion fix-it fund.
The agency is making strides in developing and deploying border technologies but still has some weaknesses.
Agencies have spent almost $23 billion on legacy IT over the past three years, according to reports to Congress. Is a revolving fund the answer?
The United Kingdom will go live with its governmentwide digital identity platform, GOV.UK Verify, in the coming days. The U.S. government will need a little more time.
What contracting officer representatives really think is needed to fix contract management.
They should start by analyzing the GS civilian workforce and cut the fat there.
Lets start by shutting down all the unecessary bases in Europe and Asia. Then get Halliburton off the govt. dol.
Dave K - your assessment is naive as well. There's a reason why there is a 10 year analysis of a current year budget. The bottom line is this. We should have PAID OFF the national debt by October of 2008 and had a little left over in Jan 2009, based on the 10 year CBO analysis in Jan 2001. But instead we had over 11 T in debt. This is not a minor over sight or something that is fixed with "current year" budgeting. It's something that takes years, sometimes up to a decade to "unscrew". But the bottom line is this ... no one wants to pay taxes. But even the most ardent so-called conservatives are "closet socialists". Until that stops, our politicians, both Democrat and Republican will be kicking that fiscal budget can down the road (even Clinton and Gingrich did it with SS IOU's!!).
Olde Sarge, you can hold the previous administration responsible for its deficits, but you must hold the current administration responsible for the last two year's deficits, as well! Whether you like it or not, a deficit is a current year problem, it doesn't carry over… that's what the debt is!
Ms. Renicker, lay off the yelling, it doesn't help the message at all. Second, don't blame this President for the former administrations deficit spending tht is precipitating the budget crisis. Yes, it will be better for DoD to strategically plan its budget cutting, but cut it must! Lest you forget, it is Congress who appropriates, not the Whitehouse. The President and the federal agencies must work within the funding provided by Congress. The problem lately has been Congress appropriating (spending) beyond what the government is taking in. Do you think the misguided tax cuts might be a factor here?
Show All Comments
8609 Westwood Center Drive, Suite 500Vienna, VA 22182-2215 703-876-5100
© 1996-2013 1105 Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only.To order presentation-ready copies for distribution to colleagues, clients or customers, visit: www.1105Reprints.com


text:
Maritime Today
The Maritime Industry's original and most viewed E-News Service
In recent years, Australia has been a major growth area for offshore gas production and a key driver of offshore CAPEX, says Clarksons Research.
However, the
Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HMD) has signed a contract to build a 50,000 dwt bulk carrier with ILSHIN LOGISTICS. The project is a collaboration between POSCO and ILSHIN
As the calendar now indicates we have passed the half year mark on 2016, VesselValue.com offers insight on the number and value of all the 2016 built vessels that
The Fishing Company of Alaska, based in Renton, owns the 238-foot Alaska Juris that started sinking in the Bering Sea shortly before noon on Tuesday, says a report in Seattle Times.
A barge sank east of the Galveston Causeway railroad bridge Tuesday, causing the U.S. Coast Guard to issue a safety zone and temporarily restrict traffic on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
BMT Designers & Planners, a subsidiary of BMT Group, an international maritime design, engineering and risk management consultancy, is leading the effort to repower the historic U.


text:
Hello I'm looking how to display the name of my sidebar on top of it.
Lets say that I have a sidebar named news and I want to show NEWS on the top before the widgets, as a title.
I'm not a php expert so if anyone have an idea, I will be very grateful...
thanks for your help.


text:
ODT Online
ODT /directory
A suicide car bomber has killed four people in a Hezbollah
stronghold on Lebanon's northern border in the latest sign
that Syria's civil war was spilling over into its small
Mediterranean neighbour.
Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA) reported the blast
occurred beside a petrol station in the town of Hermel at the
northern end of the Bekaa Valley, an area populated mainly by
Shi'ite Muslims among whom Hezbollah draws its support.
A photograph posted on the NNA's website showed a fire raging
beside a severely damaged petrol station.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility but Saturday's
blast fit a pattern of attacks by rival sectarian groups on
each other's strongholds that has been amplified by Syria's
civil war. Another suicide car bomb killed three people in
Hermel last month.
A security source told Reuters that 14 other people were
wounded in Saturday's blast, which was located near a
building housing a charity connected to the late Shi'ite
Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah.
Fadlallah was not a member of Hezbollah, which has been the
target of increasingly frequent bomb attacks in recent
The military and political movement has sent fighters and
advisers to aid President Bashar al-Assad, a member of
Syria's Alawite minority, in his battle with mainly Sunni
A name, residential address, and (preferably residential) telephone number is required from readers who comment on ODT Online. These details will not be visible to site visitors.
Login or Register
to add your business to the ODT/directory. Quick link to
Submit your news & photos - Login or
Opinion? Have your say - Login or Register
Submit your
event or notice
Add a photo
Bookmark ODT
Make ODT my
Otago Daily Times print and digital edition, The
Star - Dunedin, The News - Central Otago, The
Ensign - Gore, Southland Express -
Invercargill, Southern Rural Life - Otago and
Southland, The Courier - Timaru, Courier Country - Canterbury and
West Coast, Queenstown Times - Queenstown, Mountain Scene -
Queenstown, The Oamaru Mail - Oamaru, The
Greymouth Star - Greymouth, Hokitika Guardian - Hokitika,
West Coast Messenger - West Coast, The Ashburton Courier -
Ashburton, The News - North Canterbury, Extra! schools
publication, Property
Times South Canterbury


text:
In This Section
Journal Forum
A Meta-Analysis of High Resolution Audio Perceptual Evaluation - June 2016
2 comments
Synthetic Reverberator - January 1960
3 comments
Sound Board: High-Resolution Audio - October 2015
4 comments
AES E-Library
Approaches to Audio Editing in a Mixed Disk- and Tape-Based Environment
Audio editing systems are increasingly disk-based, whereas origination, mastering or transmission formats are often tape-based. The operational problems of working in mixed format environments are examined and a number of solutions are suggested in a proposal for a more streamlined and unified approach towards audio editing. Particular reference is made to the editing of DAT recordings in broadcast environments.
Click to purchase paper as a non-member or login as an AES member. If your company or school subscribes to the E-Library then switch to the institutional version. If you are not an AES member and would like to subscribe to the E-Library then Join the AES!
This paper costs $33 for non-members and is temporarily free for AES members.
Learn more about the AES E-Library
Start a discussion about this paper!


text:
Crazy Substitute Teachers
Enjoy, NG4.03 / 5.00 2,686 Views
Vacuum Salesman
This dude and his Megazord vacuum cleaner4.01 / 5.00 2,935 Views
Markiplier Animated | Mark Of The Survey Corps
This took far too long to make...3.95 / 5.00 7,716 Views
Well made.
This was an entertaining music video. The whole concept of this flash is funny, people need to pay more attention to Canada. The animation style you use was decent, but it fit the mood of the flash perfectly. The animation at te end was also entertaining, it had nice music as well. I like the Arrogant Worms, and it is always nice to see another fan of them. Keep up the great work!
oh canada
i love being canadian. i had never heard this song before, but immediately i knew it was the arrogant worms, it was just their style.
Australian dood sez...
THANKYOU FOR T3#MAPLE SYRUPS!!!! although Australia still is pretty big
Genius. Simply genius. However, looking at some earlier posts about America being fat and stupid *pssh* didn't this show Canadians as fat as well? Just wondering. Really good. My sides were splitting from laughter. That didn't go to well though... Good thing I always have my trusty bucket! *Catchy bucket-themed theme song* WOOHOO! GO AMERICA!!! WE GOT BIG GUNS!!!! BLAM BLAM POW POW PAKOOSH BOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!
hell ya
80% canadian


text:
La Hacienda Panama Cast Iron & Steel Mix Chimenea
La Hacienda Panama Cast Iron & Steel Mix Chimenea
- Home Delivery Order by 7pm (2pm Sunday) for next day delivery.
- Click & Collect Order by 7pm (4pm Saturday & Sunday) for next day Click & Collect - Select store
- Stocked in store Check stock in store
- 45 day returns policy. Read our returns policy
- Brand
Product notices
[This is a block of tabs..]
Product Details
Product Information
Bring a touch of warmth and light to your garden this summer with this gorgeous Chimenea. Perfect for keeping warm after the sun goes down or just creating a cosy, inviting atmosphere.
- Fuel type - Wood
- Comes with - Rain lid, tool, mesh door, log grate, decorative side handles and air vent
- Guarantee - 1 year
Features and benefits
- Sturdy steel body and flue
- Metal tool and rain lid included
- Suitable for smaller outdoor areas and patios
Technical specifications
|La Hacienda
|Colour description
|Cast iron and steel mix
|Fuel type
|Surface finish
|Not waterproof
Alternative product
B&Q Cuba Cast Iron & Stainless Steel Chimenea
Help & Advice
Buying guides
Buyer's guide to garden heating
Don't let cooler weather keep you indoors – enjoy your outdoor space into the evening and after summer has ended with our garden heating range.
Soaking up the atmosphere of a real fire is a pleasure to be enjoyed whether entertaining friends and family or relaxing and unwinding alone in the garden. Offering both warmth and light, you can just sit back and watch the fire or roast marshmallow in the flames. We even offer options that come with grills if you want to use your garden heater for more adventurous outdoor cooking.
Let's take a look at your options.
Product reassurances
Choose a convenient delivery date on 1000's of products
45 day returns policy
Customer support team - 0333 014 3357
Free delivery on orders over £50
Home delivery orders placed on diy.com.
Excludes Next Day Bulk delivery goods
This Adventure Playhouse is great for inspiring hours of inventive role play and encouraging active outdoor play. Shiplap cladding Single Product supplied unpainted Comes with Front porch with picket fence, wooden ladder and heavy-duty wave slide Guarantee - 1 year Manufacturers anti-rot and insect damage ...
This Plum Gibbon wooden swing set is perfect for providing your children with hours of fun outdoor play and exercise. Comes with - Double swings, soft feel climbing rope, cargo rope ladder and heavy duty blow moulded seats Guarantee - 10 years with Manufacturers guarantee against rot and insect damage, ...
This Plum Premium wooden play centre comes with a wooden tower featuring a ladder, a heavy-duty 10ft wave slide and a sandpit. L3.64 x W1.06 x H2.42m Guarantee - 1 year with Manufacturers warranty against rot and insect damage applicable if care instructions have been followed
This Plum Giant Baboon wooden swing set is perfect for providing your children with hours of fun outdoor play and exercise. Comes with - Soft feel climbing rope, 2 swings, 4ft high play deck and 8ft wave slide Guarantee - 10 years with Manufacturers guarantee against rot and insect damage, ...


text:
Change Location
ACE Fit Share
Use a combination of these core back exercises to strengthen your lower, upper or middle back areas. Whether you're interested in barbell deadlifts or reverse extensions, we have back strengthening exercises for every level. These exercises are also featured in convenient workout routines that include proper warm-up and cool-down techniques, which greatly reduces the risk of injury.
Fit Life Articles
"You need a sports drink after you work out to help your body recover." Sound familiar? The world of exercise is cluttered with myths and misperceptions. Many of these myths persist because of the way fitness is portrayed in the media; other myths withstand the test of time...
Summer is just around the corner, which means now is the time to start getting in shape for it. Whether you want to tone your body or simply be fit enough to enjoy fun summer activities like biking, swimming and hiking, weight training is one of the best ways to accomplish...
Maintaining a healthy weight can be challenging and, for some people, even more difficult than losing weight. The good news is that achieving lasting weight maintenance is possible. Use these 13 tips to help you succeed at maintaining your weight-loss goals.


text:
A vocal concert in Versailles this weekend will help an organization that provides religious-based after school activities in local public schools.
Local News
A Capella Group's Concert Will Help Spread The Good News
Purdue Researcher: Not All Hospitals Equipped To Treat Ebola
Ebola has become a top health concern in the U.S. with the diagnosis of a second health care worker in Texas.
School Grades Not Yet Official; Tabled By Ind. Board of Education
The Indiana Department of Education is delaying the release of 2013-2014 A-F school accountability grades because of a data error.
PHOTOS: Undead Bring Life To Downtown Lawrenceburg
Check out photos from the Lawrenceburg Zombie Walk held on Saturday, October 11.
Ohio Co. Husband, Wife Accused Of Drug Dealing
After a year long investigation by Indiana State Police Drug Enforcement Section, an Ohio County couple is in jail accused of drug dealing.
Stolen Truck Found Abandoned; Police Seeking Suspects
A stolen truck is the focus of a joint investigation by the Ripley County Sheriff's Office and Indiana State Police.
Indiana's Small Farmers Can Benefit from Changes in Federal Loan Program
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is improving farm loans by expanding eligibility and lending limits to more beginning farmers.
Southeastern Indiana REMC Announces New General Manager
Mr. Bryan Keith Mathews has been chosen to fill the position of General Manager at the Southeastern Indiana Rural Electric Membership Corporation.
Six Inductees Welcomed to The Southeastern Indiana Music Hall of Fame
The Southern Indiana Musicians Hall of Fame inducted six individuals earlier this month.
BMV Refunds are on the Way for 180,000 Hoosiers
The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) have started issuing claim forms to the 180,000 Hoosiers who are entitled to excise tax refunds dating back over ten years ago.


text:
BOFA graduation - halfway[ Edited ]
10-05-2012 10:45 PM - edited 10-05-2012 11:01 PM
For those that have been playing with secured card graduation limits with BOFA, while I graduated today they wouldn't approve me at the full limit I had, even though I'd run more through the card than that and was only carrying a balance of $100.
Card Opened: $2000
Card Max Limit: $5000 (increased back in July)
Card Grad Limit: $2500
Card Max Balance: $3600
I know this is going to look wierd, and something akin to AA, but I simply decided that an unsecured $2500 line along with the extra 5K to help negotiate with the IRS would be beneficial. They did bring up my albatross of a tax lien as one of the factors for the reduced limit. They also mentioned a pair of collections which had been paid, though apparently one may not have been updated on TU. Going to pull the annual report and dispute it if it hasn't updated.
In theory if everything had been resolved on my tax lien perhaps I might've graduated at the full amount, or possibly there's an upper bound on graduation limit though I doubt that's the case. In any event what's done is done, though I thought about simply declining the unsecuring for now (since other than a mortgage I'm not apping for anything and FICO doesn't care nor will a mortgage lender) and trying to get it at $5K later as apparently one can customer-initiate the card to be unsecured, but whatever. I expect by mid-2014 I'll have either an Amex revolver, a USAA or DCU card, or this BOFA one back above 5K so long-term it won't be an issue though the high balance looks strange, it should be easily explainable.
Current Score: EQ 04 693, EQ 8 714, TU 8 710, EX 8 724 (05/27/16)
Goal Score: 700 on EQ 04 (01/01/17)
Take the myFICO Fitness Challenge


text:
Comme des Garçons
Mixed-Stripe Long-Sleeve T-shirt
Product Actions
Comme des Garçons navy and white stripe-pattern cotton jersey long-sleeve T-shirt.
Style # 503610350
- Rib jersey crewneck
- Available in Navy/White
- Cotton
- Machine wash
- Made in Japan
Our model is 5'10"/178cm and is wearing a size Small.
Style # 503610350
In 1969, designer Rei Kawakubo started a side business as a freelance fashion stylist in Tokyo that turned into the well-known fashion brand that is Comme des Garçons. The designer enjoys a fiercely loyal following worldwide of fans who are captivated with her avant-garde, offbeat and always influential designs.
Need Help? Have Questions? Contact Us.
Please call 1.888.222.7639 to speak with a Customer Service Representative.
We're here to help you:
Monday - Friday, 9 AM - 9 PM (ET)
Saturday - Sunday, 10:30 AM - 7 PM (ET)
If you prefer email, we can be reached anytime at email@example.com.
Free Shipping & Returns on all U.S. Orders. See Details.


text:
, Volume 48, Issue 8, pp 725-735
First online:
A paleontological perspective of vertebrate origin
- Degan ShuAffiliated withEarly Life Institute & Department of Geology, Northwest UniversitySchool of Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences Email author
Rent the article at a discountRent now
* Final gross prices may vary according to local VAT.Get Access
The Early CambrianHaikouichthys and Haikouella have been claimed to be related to contribute in an important way to our understanding of vertebrate origin, but there have been heated debates about how exactly they are to be interpreted. New discoveries of numerous specimens ofHaikouichthys not only confirm the identity of previously described structures such as the dorsal and the ventral fins, and chevron-shaped myomeres, but also reveal many new important characteristics, including sensory organs of the head (e.g. large eyes), and a prominent notochord with differentiated vertebral elements. This "first fish" appears, however, to retain primitive reproductive features of acraniates, suggesting that it is a stem-group craniates. A. new order (Myllokunmingiida) and a new family (Myllokunmingiidae) are erected, and a new species,Zhongjianichthys rostratus (gen. et sp. nov.), is described herein. Over 1400 newlydiscovered specimens ofHaikouella provide a wealth of anatomical information on this organism. It differs from chordates in many organs and organ systems, including the skin, muscles, respiratory, circulatory and nervous systems. In contrast, its body-design resembles that of vetulicolians, and the presence of a "transitional" nervous system with both dorsal and ventral nerve cords suggests an affinity with living hemichordates. On the basis of these and other recent findings of fossil deuterostomes, a five-step hypothesis for vertebrate origin is proposed, intended to bridge the longstanding gap between protostomes and vertebrates. Four of the five steps accord with established ideas current in modern evolutionary zoology. Evidence for the first step is obtainable only from fossils, and specifically from fossils found from South China, hence the crucial importance of S. China sites for our understanding of early vertebrate origins and evolution. Accordingly, South China is suggested as the oldest-known birthplace of the whole vertebrates.
Keywordsprimitive vertebrateHaikouichthys non-chordateHaikouella Early Cambrian Chengjiang Lagerstatte origin of vertebrates deuterostome evolution
Reference tools
- Title
- A paleontological perspective of vertebrate origin
- Journal
Chinese Science Bulletin
Volume 48, Issue 8 , pp 725-735
- Cover Date
- 2003-04
- Print ISSN
- 1001-6538
- Online ISSN
- 1861-9541
- Publisher
- Science in China Press
- Additional Links
- Topics
- Keywords
- primitive vertebrateHaikouichthys
- non-chordateHaikouella
- Early Cambrian
- Chengjiang Lagerstatte
- origin of vertebrates
- deuterostome evolution
- Industry Sectors
- Authors
- Degan Shu (1) (2)
- Author Affiliations
- 1. Early Life Institute & Department of Geology, Northwest University, 710069, Xi'an, China
- 2. School of Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences, 100083, Beijing, China


text:
- View Library Newsletter »
- Subscribe to Library eNewsletter »
- Subscribe to Nextreads eNewsletters Featuring "Great Reads" »
Quick Links:
Upcoming Events/Programs
What's Happening?
Summer Reading Program for Adults, Teens & Youth
Read for the Win! June 1 – July 31
The Summer Reading Program begins June 1 at the Warrenville Public Library. Participants of all ages are eligible for great prizes. Pick up your reading log at the Information Desk or print one here for adults, teens or youth (English) / youth (Spanish). To be eligible for prizes, completed logs must be turned in at the Information Desk by July 31.
Concerts on the Commons
Free outdoor concerts return to the Library on Wednesday evenings at 7 p.m. in June, July and August. Picnics are welcome, but alcohol is not permitted. Sponsored in part by the City of Warrenville Hotel Motel Tax Fund.
Summer Travel Convenience Kits
The Library offers on-the-go convenience! Charging cable kits ensure you always have the right cable and charger for your e-Reader, tablet or phone. Families can replenish up to five devices at once with a USB wall charger. No outlet? No problem! Charge two devices simultaneously with our USB battery packs. Warrenville cardholders may check out a travel kit for two weeks, and renew it up to three times if no one is waiting. Click here for a complete list of circulating devices.
Hoopla Digital
Warrenville card holders can now download the free Hoopla Digital mobile app on their Android or IOS device or visit hoopladigital.com to begin enjoying thousands of titles from major Hollywood studios, record companies and publishers. The collection includes videos, music, eBooks, eAudiobooks and eComics. Titles are available to borrow 24/7, for instant streaming or temporary downloading to smartphones, tablets and computers. Each patron may check out up to five items per month. Questions? Check out our Getting Started guide, ask at the Reference Desk, or call the Library at 630-393-1171 x100. One-hour one-on-one Book a Librarian sessions are available.


text:
Awesome Hot Fudge Sauce
Total Time
Prep 2 mins
Cook 2 mins
Created for my DD's slumber party, this is a decadent thick fudge sauce, that is not overly sweet.
Ingredients Nutrition
- 1 (14 ounce) can condensed milk
- 2 unsweetened chocolate squares, chopped
- 1 tablespoon cocoa
- In a 1 quart glass dish, stir the ingredients together.
- On medium heat, microwave for 1 min, stir, then cook for another minute.
- Fudge sauce should be just warm (not hot) served over vanilla icecream.
Most Helpful
Danger, danger, Will Robinson! We should NEVER have found out about this super easy, super good recipe! DH is in the kitchen, trying to find more foods to drown with this wonderful sauce!! Thanks Chef!!
This was awesome!! I didn't realize until after I made it that I had semi-sweet chocolate not unsweetened so mine was more sweet than rich, but was still wonderful and so very yummy! This was super easy to make and I love that I know exactly what ingredients are in it!! Thanks for posting my new go-to treat recipe!


text:
- {{matchup.date.fullday}}{{matchup.date.month + ' ' + matchup.date.day}}
SE Missouri State Defeats New Orleans 94-71 - Recap
SE Missouri State cruised to victory on Wednesday, running New Orleans out of the gym and running up a 94-71 score at Show Me Center.
SE Missouri State got 18 points from Corey Wilford and another 16 points from Nino Johnson. Lucas Nutt contributed 10 assists, while Nino Johnson cleaned the glass with 9 rebounds.
New Orleans got a 13-point performance from Corey Blake, who was supported by 12 points from Cory Dixon. Rarlensee Nelson had 4 assists in a losing cause for New Orleans, while Rarlensee Nelson grabbed 6 rebounds.
First-half bettors who backed SE Missouri State were victorious, as the score was 42-39 at the break.


text:
After activating the plugin in a 3.0.x WP installation, there is no "save changes" button in the settings page in wp-admin.
A look at the error log reveals this:
PHP Fatal error: Call to undefined function submit_button()
According to this: http://codex.wordpress.org/Function_Reference/submit_button it looks like that 3.1 is a prerequisite, not 3.0 as stated in the plugin page.
I'd appreciate some help in circumventing the submit_button() issue in the 3.0.x installation.
Thanks and congratulations for a great plugin


text:
mGeoTotal: 1
mSummaryPageListingCount: 1
In all Lake atitlan we offer effective private Spanish classes that can be taught anywhere. You also have the ability to choose your language focus, from basic to advanced Spanish, all connected with grammar, exercises, and a lot of fun practice.
Browse thousands of listings for Guatemala.


text:
Search and Seizure in Virginia: Navigating the Thicket
42nd Annual Recent Developments in the Law 2016: News from the Courts and General Assembly
2015–2016 U.S. Supreme Court Labor and Employment Law Cases: A Timely Analysis of the Labor and Employment Law Cases Decided During the Supreme Court's 2015–2016 Term
Dog Gone? (it) — Why Didn't My Human Set Up a Pet Trust for Me?
Trends in Malpractice
Asserting and Defending Claims of Fraud in Real Estate Transactions
Opportunities in Planning and Saving for Higher Education and Disability Expenses
Recent Developments in Civil Litigation 2016
Attorney Fee Awards and Sanctions


text: at the beginning I thought it works, but later somehow my avatar changed to other user's avatar (sic!). the plugin failed to replace it to my previous one. i think it has something in common with the new media upload system in WP 3.5. i just switched to WP User Avatar plugin.


text:
Amanita Design launches in-browser Botanicula demo
Machinarium and Samorost developer, Amanita Design has released an in-browser demo for its charming point and click adventure, Botanicula. The demo is available through the game's official website, alongside the full DRM-free version of the game that features a soundtrack MP3 and e-artbook for $10. Head through the break for a teaser trailer.
Thanks, CVG.
Sometimes we include links to online retail stores. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. For more information, go here.


text:
ODT Online
ODT /directory
A Dunedin heritage building owner could be about to breathe
new life into the dilapidated Gresham Hotel, which overlooks
Queens Gardens.
Stephen McKnight yesterday confirmed he was in
''negotiations'' with the former hotel's owner, Peter Laing,
and had begun ''tidying up'' the building's interior.
Mr McKnight was reluctant to comment on details of any sale
negotiations or his plans for the building until they were
That was expected to happen ''in the next week or two'', he
Redevelopment of the old hotel would be another sign of
progress towards revitalising the city's warehouse heritage
Mr McKnight's heritage property interests include Consultancy
House, Queens Gardens Court - home of the Duke of Wellington
bar - and the Bing Harris, NMA and Donald Reid buildings.
A name, residential address, and (preferably residential) telephone number is required from readers who comment on ODT Online. These details will not be visible to site visitors.
Login or Register
to add your business to the ODT/directory. Quick link to
Submit your news & photos - Login or
Opinion? Have your say - Login or Register
Submit your
event or notice
Add a photo
Bookmark ODT
Make ODT my
Otago Daily Times print and digital edition, The
Star - Dunedin, The News - Central Otago, The
Ensign - Gore, Southland Express -
Invercargill, Southern Rural Life - Otago and
Southland, The Courier - Timaru, Courier Country - Canterbury and
West Coast, Queenstown Times - Queenstown, Mountain Scene -
Queenstown, The Oamaru Mail - Oamaru, The
Greymouth Star - Greymouth, Hokitika Guardian - Hokitika,
West Coast Messenger - West Coast, The Ashburton Courier -
Ashburton, The News - North Canterbury, Extra! schools
publication, Property
Times South Canterbury


text:
I just changed my theme to fusion and now get this error: HTTP 406 Not Acceptable: This error (HTTP 406 Not Acceptable) means that Internet Explorer was able to receive information from the website you visited, but the information was not in a format that Internet Explorer can display.
For more information about HTTP errors, see Help.
I cannot access the site from my home desktop. I can access via by android phone and another laptop. But the log in is missing.
Please, help.
Detailed steps (assume I know nothing) are needed to resolve.
I cannot access or log into the site.


text:
Apply Now for New Drawn Hunt Opportunities
This year there are more affordable drawn hunt opportunities than ever before! There are 51 hunt categories with hunts throughout Texas. New this year, you'll find hunts on National Wildlife Refuges, exclusive Private Lands Dove Hunts, and many more E-Postcard Hunt categories.Apply online
State Parks
Download the Official App for Texas State Parks!
Now find your perfect state park escape using the Texas State Parks Official Guide for Apple and Android devices. The free app locates campgrounds, cabins, trails and places to hike, bike, swim, fish or kayak. And it'll give you all the details on 95 state parks in Texas. Learn more about the app
State Parks
Parks with Swimming Holes
Rivers, creeks, lakes and ponds are at the heart of any outdoor summer fun in Texas. This month, Texas Parks & Wildlife magazine celebrates the 75th anniversary of Garner State Park, home to one of the greatest swimming experiences in the state, and recommends 10 other parks where you can beat the heat. Read More
10 more parks with swimming holes
Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine This Month
In this Issue:
Summer Paradise
Subscribe$10 for one year (Print or App)
to Texas Parks & Wildlife magazine Order »


text:
Over the top. HDR pushed way to far on tonight's sunset from the front porch. (Ooo nice halo. ;>) Ok give me a break. There was lots of color and it was difficult to capture.
The same sunset captured by a single frame.
Looking at the neighborhood
Here's a panorama of that same sunset.
More clouds from the opposite direction...Looking North
Just interesting clouds so far. In fact I think we are going to miss all the storms today. Looking South


text:
All-Stars features the comedic encounters occurring in the office softball team at the Nifty brand rubber bands company. The Nifty Rubberband company has been on a softball losing streak for a while and are the worst company in the softball league, but all that may change when a new employee, Brody (Brody Stevens), arrives. Brody inspires the team and everyone at the office feels excited at the chance to finally win, even if it is only one game. While Brody wants the team to eventually win the championship, everyone on the team, however, may not be the perfect person to play physical sports. While all have something to bring to the team, it may not all be softball related. Brody tries his hardest to inspire and coach the team, Owen (Owen Benjamin) drinks at almost any occasion, and Chris (Chris Wyle) cries almost as much as Owen drinks. While dysfunctional, the team members learn to work together and compete for their goal of winning the office softball league.moreless
Season 1 : Episode 12
|S 1 : Ep 12
|Take a Knee
|S 1 : Ep 11
|I'll Be There
|S 1 : Ep 10
|Operation Disperse Crackheads
|S 1 : Ep 9
|I'm Done
|S 1 : Ep 8
|Same Glove
|Aired 8/5/09
User Score: 7
User Score: 3
cultural phenomenon, dry humor, for sports nuts, frat guy humor, pop culture references


text:
Bitter Greens And Asparagus With Poppy Seed Dressing
|Asparagus spears
|Belgian endive heads
|1 3⁄4 Pound, sliced into 1 inch pieces (6 Small Pieces)
|4 Cup (64 tbs), trimmed
|Loosely packed arugula leaves
|3 Cup (48 tbs)
|Sliced fresh mushrooms
|2 Cup (32 tbs)
|Unsweetened apple juice
|1⁄2 Cup (8 tbs)
|Minced onions
|1⁄4 Cup (4 tbs) (Red Colored)
|1⁄4 Cup (4 tbs)
|Cider vinegar
|1⁄4 Cup (4 tbs)
|Dijon mustard
|4 Teaspoon
|Poppy seeds
|2 Teaspoon
In a large skillet, bring 2" of water to a boil.
Add the asparagus and return to a boil.
Boil about 1 minute or just until the asparagus turns bright green.
Immediately drain and rinse with cold water to stop further cooking.
Chill in the refrigerator.
In a large bowl, combine the endive, watercress, arugula and mushrooms.
In a small bowl, stir together the juice, onions, water, vinegar, mustard and poppy seeds.
Rate It
Nutrition Rank
Nutrition Facts
Serving size: Complete recipe
Calories 820 Calories from Fat 114
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 13 g20.7%
Saturated Fat 1.7 g8.5%
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 1584.6 mg66%
Total Carbohydrates 133 g44.3%
Dietary Fiber 44.5 g177.8%
Sugars 41.7 g
Protein 47 g93.9%
Vitamin A 839.1% Vitamin C 393.9%
Calcium 219.3% Iron 154.5%
*Based on a 2000 Calorie diet


text:
Why Europe's Economy Matters For The U.S., In 1 Graph
Why does Europe's endless debt crisis matter for the U.S.? Here's one reason.
In the '90s, the economies of Europe and the U.S. were largely independent of one another. But in the past decade, as the graph below shows, they've risen and fallen together.
So if Europe's debt crisis drags on, and the continent's economy keeps getting worse, there's a good chance the U.S. economy will go down, too.
The graph, from a Citigroup analyst report called "Bad News in a Highly Correlated World," compares economic growth in the U.S. with economic growth in Germany, France and Italy, the three biggest economies in continental Europe.
You must be signed in to leave a comment. Sign In / Register
Please keep your community civil. All comments must follow the NPR.org Community rules and terms of use, and will be moderated prior to posting. NPR reserves the right to use the comments we receive, in whole or in part, and to use the commenter's name and location, in any medium. See also the Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and Community FAQ.


text:
NCF Nation
Print without images
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Proving ground: Eastern Division
By Chris Low
What players have the most to prove in the SEC this coming season?
With the month of June just around the corner, let's take a look. We'll break it up into divisions.
I'll take the East, and Edward will take the West later today.
Here's my top five in the East:
Stephen Garcia has been suspended five times during his career with the Gamecocks.
1. South Carolina quarterback
Stephen Garcia
Steve Spurrier says it seems like Garcia has changed. After five suspensions, you'd certainly hope so. A fifth-year senior who's never really been much of a leader, Garcia is an easy choice to top this list. He was very good at times last season before slumping at the end. He still has to be officially reinstated, although that seems like a mere formality. And then he has to regain his starting job from
Connor Shaw
, which won't be easy.
2. Florida quarterback
John Brantley
After a nightmarish debut season as the Gators' starter, Brantley gets a fresh start with a new head coach, a new offensive coordinator and a new pro-style offense that should fit what he does best. Brantley never looked comfortable a year ago in the spread offense and even looked skittish at times. But what he does best is stand back there and throw the football. He'll get a chance to show just what kind of passer he is in 2011.
3. Georgia running back
Caleb King
It truly is now or never for King, who's entering his senior season and in real danger of being labeled a bust. He came to Georgia with a ton of hype, but has found as much trouble off the field as he has success on the field. His best season came in 2009 when he rushed for 594 yards. Prized freshman Isaiah Crowell is the one the Georgia fans can't wait to see tote the football this fall. But if King is made of the right stuff, he'll step up and have his best season yet. No matter how talented Crowell is, he's going to need some help.
4. Florida defensive end Ronald Powell:
He arrived in Gainesville last year as the No. 1 player in the country, one of those can't-miss prospects who did manage to miss as a freshman. He's not the first and won't be the last. The important thing is that he's seemed to overcome some of the immaturity issues that plagued him last season and heads into the 2011 season No. 1 on the depth chart at buck end. Powell has the ability to be one of the most feared pass-rushers in this league. We'll see if he takes a big step in that direction as a sophomore.
5. Tennessee quarterback
Tyler Bray
There's no doubt that Bray added a spark for the Vols when he took over as the starter in those last five games a year ago. He's got a big arm and is willing to stand in the pocket until that last second and find open receivers. For all of his success last season, though, he piled up his numbers against bad defenses and still needs to prove that he can beat the teams on Tennessee's schedule that count. Coach Derek Dooley also wants to see Bray be more of a leader, which will probably come more naturally to him as a sophomore.


text:
Hmmm hair everywhere could pretend to be a irl wookie..
I'll go for bald (touch wood it doesn't happen)
Would you rather give up TSR or facebook?
Would you rather...?
|Posted on
|Last chance to win! Our 1984 city-break competition closes on Monday. Post now to enter.
Facebook, obviously!
Would you rather eat a mouldy apple core or drink a half cup of mouldy coffee?
Well, since I like apples and despise coffee, I suppose I'd go for the mouldy apple core.
Would you rather be trusted by everyone in every single matter (serious responsibility), or not be trusted by anyone at all?
Trusted by everyone
Would you rather travel to the past or the future?
the future, past's already happened once
health, wealth or happiness?
Happiness. Health and wealth are as nothing without happiness.
Would you rather know exactly what someone is thinking just by looking at them, or not?
good logic
it'd come in handy sometimes but probably better not.
few good friends or many aquaintances?
Since I'm already happy enough in the latter situation, I'll go with many acquaintances. I'm generally not a particularly sociable person anyway.
Would you rather be able to go without sleep for as long as you liked (without any side-effects), or be able to send people (yourself included) to sleep at will?
send others to sleep at will be really handy for when people get annoying
big city or rural village?
Rural village, definitely.
Would you rather be able to turn invisible, or be able to fly?
fly definitely would be sooo much quicker than the bus
which would you rather?
Probably fly as well. Maybe I'd even be able to get over my fear of heights that way.
Would you rather remember absolutely everything, or be able to forget things at will?
Forget things at will, then I could remember what I wanted to
Would you rather be able to function without any sleep at all (as in your body didn't need it) or not?
Although I sometimes have some very amusing dreams, sleep is often more of an inconvenience than anything else; it's something I'd be happy to be able to go without.
Would you rather be deaf or blind?
deaf, i'd hate to not be able to see anything
would you rather have a job you hated or be unemployed?
Would you rather be a passive but abused slave or a brutal enslaver?
i'm pretty passive as it is, so i guess brutal enslaver it'd make a change
would you rather eat chocolate or icecream?
OfflineReputationRep:(Original post by Peli-Pelican)
i'm pretty passive as it is, so i guess brutal enslaver it'd make a change
would you rather eat chocolate or icecream?
To be honest I'd rather eat Ice-cream, I have completley gone off choccie! D; I don't know whats wrong with meee! xD I actually dont like it now.
Bahh >;[
Would you rather Lick cheesy toes, or eat dog ****. Pahah
Grewsome >:P
Wait what??
Lick cheesy toes
Would you rather date me or hate me
date you
Spoiler:Showjust because i know that's going to freak you out
love or normality?
Submit reply
RegisterThanks for posting! You just need to create an account in order to submit the post Already a member? Sign in
Oops, something wasn't right
please check the following:


text:
- Text Size:
- ASmall Text
- AMedium Text
- ALarge Text
A man was arrested in Santa Fe in the driveway of well-known author Forrest Fenn.
Fenn wrote a book about buried treasure that's thought to be in the Santa Fe mountains.
Authorities said Fenn called police to report that Kevin Fulgham was trespassing. Fulgham told authorities he just wanted an autograph, but police said he refused orders and grabbed at an officer's uniform.
Fulgham was arrested and charged with aggravated assault on a peace officer.
The views expressed are not those of this site, this station or its affiliated companies. By posting your comments you agree to accept our terms of use.blog comments powered by Disqus


text:
Politics The Path to 9/11
More and more Americans blame Bush today than ever before. Gee, wait until Walt Disney hears about this. From CNN:
Poll: More Americans blame Bush for 9/11
The percentage of Americans who blame the Bush administration for the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington has risen from almost a third to almost half over the past four years, a CNN poll released Monday found.
Asked whether they blame the Bush administration for the attacks, 45 percent said either a "great deal" or a "moderate amount," up from 32 percent in a June 2002 CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll.


text:
, Volume 13, Issue 3, pp 475-482
First online:
Vegetarian diet for patients with rheumatoid arthritis — Status: Two years after introduction of the diet
- J. Kjeldsen-KraghAffiliated withDepartment of General Practice, University of OsloInstitute of Immunology and Rheumatology, National Hospital
- , M. HaugenAffiliated withOslo Sanitetsforening Rheumatism Hospital
- , C. F. BorchgrevinkAffiliated withDepartment of General Practice, University of Oslo
- , Ø. FørreAffiliated withOslo Sanitetsforening Rheumatism Hospital
Rent the article at a discountRent now
* Final gross prices may vary according to local VAT.Get Access
We have previously reported that a significant improvement can be obtained in rheumatoid arthritis patients by fasting followed by an individually adjusted vegetarian diet for one year. The patients who changed their diet could be divided into diet responders and diet nonresponders. After the clinical trial the patients were free to change diet or medication and after approximately one year they were asked to attend a new clinical examination. We compared the change from baseline (i.e. at the time of study entry) to the time of the follow-up examination for diet responders, diet nonresponders and controls who ate an omnivorous diet. The following variables favoured diet responders: pain score, duration of morning stiffness, Stanford Health Assessment Questionnaire index, number of tender joints, Ritchie's articular index, number of swollen joints, ESR, platelet count and white blood cell count. The difference between the three groups were significant for all the clinical variables, except for grip strength. There was no significant difference between the groups with regard to laboratory or anthropometric variables. At the time of the follow-up examination all diet responders but only half of the diet nonresponders still followed a diet. Our findings indicate that a group of patients with rheumatoid arthritis benefit from dietary manipulations and that the improvement can be sustained through a two-year period.
Key wordsRheumatoid Arthritis Diet Diet Therapy Clinical Trial Follow-up Study
Reference tools
- Title
- Vegetarian diet for patients with rheumatoid arthritis — Status: Two years after introduction of the diet
- Journal
Clinical Rheumatology
Volume 13, Issue 3 , pp 475-482
- Cover Date
- 1994-09
- Print ISSN
- 0770-3198
- Online ISSN
- 1434-9949
- Publisher
- Springer-Verlag
- Additional Links
- Topics
- Keywords
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Diet
- Diet Therapy
- Clinical Trial
- Follow-up Study
- Industry Sectors
- Authors
- J. Kjeldsen-Kragh (1) (2)
- M. Haugen (3)
- C. F. Borchgrevink (1)
- Ø. Førre (3)
- Author Affiliations
- 1. Department of General Practice, University of Oslo, Norway
- 2. Institute of Immunology and Rheumatology, National Hospital, Oslo
- 3. Oslo Sanitetsforening Rheumatism Hospital, Oslo, Norway


text:
Luxury yacht commandeered by James Bond in Fethiye
Skyfall - 04-05-12Part of the shoot on the Turkish coast involved James Bond and S�verine onboard a luxury super yacht.
The sequence was shot last week and Barbara Boccolli, as well as the cast and "Skyfall" director Sam Mendes were snapped by the media as they worked.
The sequence corresponds with the clapperboard photo that @007 released on twitter, revealing sequences on the boat to happen in and around scene 79. Despite the distinctive Turkish flag appearing in the twitter pic, there is some speculation that this sequence coincides with Bond's activities in Macau and Japan.
Bond23.net has posted some snaps of the cast and crew onboard the boat.
Discuss this news here...


text:
The New York Times
Toughest Show on Earth: My Rise and Reign at the Metropolitan Operaby Joseph Volpe, Charles Michener
View All Available Formats & Editions
Joseph Volpe gives us an anecdote-filled tour of more than four decades at the Met, an institution full of vast egos and complicated/i>
The Toughest Show on Earth is the ultimate behind-the-scenes chronicle of the divas and the dramas of New York's Metropolitan Opera House, by the remarkable man who rose from apprentice carpenter to general manager.
Joseph Volpe gives us an anecdote-filled tour of more than four decades at the Met, an institution full of vast egos and complicated politics. With stunning candor, he writes about the general managers he worked under, his embattled rise to the top, the maneuverings of the blue-chip board, and his masterful approach to making a family of such artist-stars as Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, Teresa Stratas, and Renee Fleming, and such visionary directors as Franco Zeffirelli, Robert Wilson, and Julie Taymor. Intimate and frank, The Toughest Show on Earth is not only essential for music lovers, but for anyone who wants to understand the inner workings of the culture business.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Editorial Reviews
The New York Times
—The New York Times
"This engaging volume will delight readers for whom opera is not only an art but also an endless fount of good gossip. . . . A rarity–one of those much-ballyhooed 'insider books' that actually delivers the goods." —The Washington Post Book World
"Fascinating. . . . [Volpe's story] has the golden glow of the American dream."
—The New York Sun
"A gripping journey of personal and professional discovery."
—Opera News
Product Details
- 9780307498373
- Publisher:
- Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
- Publication date:
- 02/19/2009
- Sold by:
- Random House
- Format:
- NOOK Book
- Pages:
- 320
- Sales rank:
- 867,206
- File size:
Read an Excerpt
My maternal grandmother, Marianna Cavallaro, spoke no English, and whenever she came to babysit for me and my sisters while our parents were out, she'd go over to a shelf in the living room, take down a record album, and say to me in Italian, "Joey, put this on."
I was only five or six, and carrying the bulky volume of 78s over to the Victrola wasn't easy. But I liked climbing up on a stool, removing a shiny black disc from its sleeve, hearing it plop into place, and then positioning the needle in the groove. My grandmother always sat in the same place—an armchair with a straight back that made it impossible to slouch. She wanted me to sit nearby on the sofa, perfectly still. But I hated sitting still. Once the music started and my grandmother closed her eyes, I slid down to the floor, leaned against the sofa, and imagined myself somewhere else.
The music was always the same—Mascagni's one-act opera Cavalleria Rusticana, which is set in a Sicilian village like the one from which my grandmother had come to America, not long after the opera was written, at the turn of the century. Nobody told me that this was "opera." Even if anyone had, I wouldn't have paid attention. This music belonged to my grandmother. It made her happy. She always insisted on listening to the whole album—there were perhaps eight or ten discs—and she never fell asleep. I guess she picked that particular chair so she wouldn't miss a note.
I couldn't fall asleep either. Before I knew it, the needle had reached the center of the disc, the loud, scratchy voices had stopped, and my grandmother was saying quietly in Italian, "Change the record, Joey."
Looking back, I find it interesting that my grandmother never asked my older sister, Joan, to participate in those musical séances—this was a job only for me. Was she sending me a message? Was this how it all began?
The thought that I could one day run The Metropolitan Opera first crossed my mind when Rudolf Bing retired as general manager in 1972. At the time, I was still only master carpenter, in charge of the seventy or eighty men who set up and dismantled The Met's stage for every performance. I'd wrestled with budgets. I'd demonstrated a knack for learning quickly on the job. I was good at solving problems and handling emergencies. I felt I knew better than anyone how The Met worked, mechanically and logistically.
The Met is the biggest performing arts institution in the world. Every year it presents some 240 performances of thirty or so different operas, each with an international cast and elaborate sets. It employs more than two thousand people and has annual operating expenses of more than $220 million. To keep it going requires not just the muscle and the know-how of carpenters, stagehands, painters, designers, electricians, and prop men, but also the skills of musicians, singers, vocal coaches, dancers, ballet masters, stage directors, conductors, artistic administrators, marketing and publicity people, and the efforts of The Met's board of directors, which raises the funds to pay for what the box office doesn't. In 1972, I didn't really understand how many of those jobs were done. Nor did I have the slightest idea how Rudolf Bing had managed to coordinate everyone during the two decades he'd been in charge.
Still, I thought that the top job at The Met—which means the top job in the opera world—was not out of reach. I felt that in some mysterious sense I'd been chosen by Rudolf Bing himself. Not that he ever hinted as much. He was too much the aristocrat, out of a Viennese operetta. But on more than one occasion, he'd taken me aside to offer advice in a way that suggested he had bigger things in mind for me.
One of our earliest encounters took place at the end of my first season as master carpenter. In those days, The Met went on an eight-week tour every spring. Boston, Cleveland, Atlanta, Memphis, Dallas, Minneapolis, Detroit—for years the company had been playing to packed houses beyond the Hudson River. That year, we opened with La Gioconda in Atlanta. The stars were the soprano Renata Tebaldi and the tenor Franco Corelli. After the performance, Mr. Bing came backstage and said, "Mr. Volpe, I'd like to see you in the morning."
The next morning, he led me into one of the principals' dressing rooms and closed the door. "Mr. Volpe," he said, "I think you're doing a wonderful job. I'm going to give you a raise of fifty dollars a week." That came as a huge relief, but then he said, "So how did Mr. Corelli do last night?"
"Excuse me?" I said.
"How was his behavior backstage?"
Before a performance, Franco Corelli was always a wreck, complaining that his girdle was too tight or fighting with his wife, Loretta, who never left his side until he was able to summon the courage to make his entrance. "You didn't notice?" Mr. Bing went on. "Franco Corelli, one of the most important tenors in the world, and you didn't notice?"
"I guess I was too busy with the scenery."
"Well," Mr. Bing said, "the next time I ask you about Mr. Corelli's behavior, you will have noticed!"
Rudolf Bing had his finger on the pulse of The Met. His retirement, after the 1971–1972 season, gave way to twenty years of turbulence. First came the death of his successor, Goeran Gentele, in a car crash in Sardinia. This was followed by a brief, rudderless period under Gentele's assistant, Schuyler Chapin. Next came the stormy triumvirate of John Dexter, the brilliant head of production; James Levine, the boy-wonder music director; and Anthony Bliss, a patrician estate lawyer who ran The Met out of a sense of family duty. Those years were marred by backstage intrigue, financial instability, and bitter fights with The Met's seventeen unions, culminating in the cancellation of the 1980 fall season—a labor lockout ordered by The Met's imperious board. The brief reign of Levine as artistic director and of Bruce Crawford, a smooth, opera-loving advertising executive, as general manager, began in 1985. Bruce became something of a godfather to me. I admired his velvet manner, but it wasn't a style I would emulate.
Along the way, I'd been promoted from master carpenter to technical director to operations director (responsible for backstage budgets and labor negotiations) to assistant manager (in charge of everything except artistic matters and fund-raising). None of these advancements came without an objection from someone higher up; in each case, I had to swallow my pride. But I had been at the center of everything—watching, learning, and not keeping my mouth shut. In 1988, Crawford decided to return to Madison Avenue. I felt that I was his logical successor. Instead, The Met's board chose an arts bureaucrat named Hugh Southern whose only qualifications for running the company seemed to be that he'd never seen the front office of a great opera house—but he sported an English accent, courtesy of Cambridge University. Those qualifications turned out to be not quite enough. Southern was dismissed after seven months.
In the summer of 1990, Crawford, who was now the chairman of The Met's executive committee, came into my office to tell me that I was being promoted to "general director." For a moment I was speechless. Then I snapped, "Why not 'general manager'?"
Bruce explained that the board had decided to reinstate the triumvirate model of management. I would run the house internally. Jimmy Levine would remain artistic director. Marilyn Shapiro, who had been in charge of marketing and development, was now executive director for external affairs. We would all report to the president of the board, Louise Humphrey, a Cleveland heiress who had a plantation in Florida, a horse farm in Kentucky, and a summer compound in Maine. Hugh Southern had gone quail shooting at Louise's Florida spread. I'd never shot a quail in my life.
"Maybe I shouldn't accept it," I said.
"Joe," Bruce said, "it will all come to you in the end."
"Who gets the room at the end of the hall?" I asked, referring to the office from where Rudolf Bing had reigned.
Bruce said, "You'll stay where you are. The general manager's office will become a conference room."
"That's ridiculous," I said. "It works perfectly well as a conference room right now—with a real general manager behind the desk. It's like being asked to run The Met with one hand tied behind my back!"
"Trust me, Joe," Bruce said. "It will all work out. Be patient."
I knew that my blunt manner had ruffled a few feathers on The Met's board. After one board meeting, Bruce had taken me aside and said, "Joe, what you have to say is right. But it's the way you say it . . ."
During the search that coughed up Southern, I'd also heard that various board members were raising other objections about me. Would Volpe, the ex-carpenter, be able to talk to the singers? Would Volpe be able to "represent" The Met at gala fund-raising functions? Did Volpe have the right stuff . . . socially? Although my grandparents had come to America from the country where opera was born, I had never studied music. I didn't have a degree in arts management. I'd barely graduated from high school.
Everything I knew about running an opera house I had figured out for myself, starting by using my hands. I'd stayed at The Met for twenty-five years because I'd come to love opera. The Met had been my undergraduate education, my graduate school, my Ph.D. program. I considered The Met "family." Now I was supposed to take Bruce's advice: "Be patient."
For someone like me, that wasn't going to be easy.
In the den of my apartment in New York is a photograph of my parents' wedding reception. The date is September 8, 1935. The setting is Trommer's banquet hall at 1632 Bushwick Avenue, in Brooklyn. There are several hundred people in the high-ceilinged main dining room—the women with corsages, the men with slicked-down hair and dressed in double-breasted suits. At the head table are twenty-two people—the bride and groom and their immediate families. My parents—my mother in white satin, my father in white tie and tails—look happy and proud. There isn't a blonde in sight.
And there isn't an empty place. A thousand people were invited, and when some of them didn't show up, my grandfather went outside and brought in strangers off the street. He wanted a full house. I would have done the same thing.
Basilio Cavallaro was born in 1881 in the mountain village of Cesarò, in Sicily. At the age of twenty-six he came to America, arriving at Ellis Island on March 17, 1907. Soon, he met and married my grandmother, Marianna Cerami, who had arrived the previous year from a similar Sicilian village, Petralia Soprana. They settled in Lower Manhattan, where my grandfather started a little storefront business that made men's clothing. Another family photograph shows the shop as it was in 1914. B. CAVALLARO TAILORING CO. the letters read, and in front of the store is my mother astride a pony—one with a Sicilian pedigree, no doubt. My grandfather worked hard, enlarged his business, and in 1925 founded the Italian Coat Contractors Association, which eventually became the Greater Clothing Contractors Association, representing the interests of all the men's clothing manufacturers in New York.
My grandfather had highly placed friends among the police and politicians, especially Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, who was a frequent guest at the family's three-story brick house in Jamaica, Queens. The only memento I have of my grandfather is his Colt revolver. I grew up with stories about how it had come in handy when mobsters tried to muscle in on the men's clothing business.
My grandfather's house had a big front porch, two stone lions on guard, a dark walnut stairway, and a dining room that seemed to stretch for miles. At Sunday dinners, my grandfather stood at the head of the table and surveyed his family, which included more aunts than I could count. Among his eleven children was my mother, who was born on July 16, 1911. She was baptized Fortunata Angela Carmela Cavallaro. There were always at least twenty people seated around big bowls of pasta under stuffed pheasants mounted above the sideboard. My grandfather was an avid hunter, and his favorite hunting companion was his Irish setter, Red. When Red was accidentally shot and killed by another hunter, the wailing around that table went on for hours.
As a little girl, my mother—like her mother—spoke no English. When she started going to school she was made to sit in the corner and wear a dunce cap. She eventually went to Hunter College, where she earned a master's degree that enabled her to become a first-grade schoolteacher. Later, she taught in a predominantly black school in Glen Cove, Long Island, where she was known as a stickler for proper English. After my older sister was born, Mom wanted only English spoken in the house. No one could stop my father from speaking Italian. But Dad made it clear that none of his three children would learn Italian. After all, we were American.
My father's parents were immigrants from Avellino, a town outside Naples. I was named after my paternal grandfather, Joseph Michael Volpe, who was as quiet and reserved as my grandfather Basilio was outgoing and gregarious. For most of his life he had a tailor's shop in Red Bank, New Jersey. I remember very little about him or about my grandmother Nunziata, except that she was a great one for complaining about her health.
My father—his given names were Michael Joseph—was the oldest of five children. At a young age, he started Associated Clothing, which made men's suits and overcoats. Before long, he had a small factory at 142–144 West Fourteenth Street, which had several hundred employees. (The building is now occupied by the Pratt Institute.) A few years later, he opened another factory in Atlantic City. My father did so well that he was able to pay the law school tuition of his favorite younger brother.
My uncle Joe went on to become an important Washington lawyer. He was the general counsel of the Tennessee Valley Authority and, later, the general counsel for the Atomic Energy Commission. In the latter job, he became a close adviser to J. Robert Oppenheimer, who led the team that built the first atomic bomb at Los Alamos. After the war, Uncle Joe was counsel to "Oppie" during the House Un-American Activities Committee hearings, at which the physicist was questioned about his prewar associations with the Communist Party. When Oppenheimer, who had a quick tongue, said something during a congressional hearing on atomic energy that made one of the commissioners, Lewis Strauss, look foolish, my uncle—a very judicious man—cautioned him to watch his mouth. When I grew older, Uncle Joe would have given me the same advice. Like Oppie, I probably wouldn't have taken it.
From the Hardcover edition.
Meet the Author
Joseph Volpe was born in Brooklyn. He joined the Metropolitan Opera in 1964 and was its general manager for sixteen years. He lives in New York City with his wife, the former ballet dancer Jean Anderson Volpe, and their daughter.
Charles Michener was senior editor for cultural affairs at Newsweek and senior editor at The New Yorker and has written widely on music for many publications. He collaborated with Robert Evans on The Kid Stays in the Picture and was coauthor with Peter Duchin of Ghost of a Chance. He lives in New York.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Customer Reviews
Average Review:
and post it to your social network
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
See all customer reviews >
As a musician who sat on the other side of the negotiating table from Volpe, I can attest to the accuracy of many of the stories of conductors, singers and other notables detailed in these pages. Volpe writes like he speaks, bluntly and to the point. What I found especially notable is that, whether he's writing about Kathleen Battle or Jonathan Miller, he respectfully presents positives as well as negatives. Volpe's account of his climb through the ranks from assistant carpenter to chef makes fascinating reading. If you want to know what the Met is like from the inside, you'll learn about it here!
A brash, honest writer. I cheered for him throughout the book. He essentially broke the WASP-Park Avenue system in its Citadel, The Met. He makes it sound alive, with good nights, bad nights, GREAT singers, good directors, bad directors, good shows, poor shows. Honest, heartwarming, informative about the backstage antics of everyone¿a fun, pleasurable read. I especially liked that fact that Volpe thought so highly of Theresa Stratas, my favorite, especially in 'Macbeth'.
Very interesting read concerning the Met during Mr Volpe's years-
I came upon this as part of research on a writing project. It's not as great as Johanna Fiedler's MOLTO AGITATO or W. Murray's FORTISSIMO, who both are also very entertaining reads. What I mostly don't Like about Joseph Volpe's biography is the self congratulatory satisfaction with which he narrates his account - for example when he describes a backstage walk he has been taking and everybody in the company just happens to love him so much. Too smug not just here, but a few places as well. And a tad dry elsewhere. I also don't like how much in love he is with the rich patrons of the house. That must be because he has come from less privileged backgrounds and views himself as a success. But there are gems and highlights in here - especially when he describes his dealings with stars and agents or how particular problems were solved. If you want to know what goes on inside the head of an impresario, it's a good place to start.