text:
WESTFIELD — As the U.S. Senate debates a bill extending long-term unemployment benefits, a Union County-based grass roots group called upon New Jersey's congressional delegation to approve the measure when it reaches the House.
"Republicans are at it again," said Milly Silva, former Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor and the executive vice president of Service Employees International Union 1199, a healthcare workers union. "They're hijacking much-needed aid to the families who need it most."
Silva, with representatives from Organizing for Action, had planned to make their call for action outside the Westfield office of U.S. Rep. Leonard Lance (R-7th Dist.), but the today's severe cold temperatures forced them to hold a conference call instead.
"We're urging (House) Speaker (John) Boehner to put the extension up for a vote and we're urging all of the New Jersey congressmen to be leaders for the residents of New Jersey and our country," Silva said.
The Emergency Unemployment Compensation program ended Dec. 28 for some 1.3 million Americans - including 261,000 New Jerseyans - and the benefits are expected to end for another 1.9 million Americans in the next six months.
President Obama today called on Senate Republicans to extend the emergency unemployment benefits for three months, but opponents say they can't support that bill without finding a way to pay for the extension.
Lance was in Washington today, but his spokesman, John Byers, said the lawmaker's support depends on a clear funding stream.
"Congressman Leonard Lance has voted to extend unemployment insurance in the past and would be inclined to do so again as long as it is done in a fiscally responsible manner and coupled with policies that will lower unemployment, create jobs and grow our economy," Byers said.
Pamela Williams of Clinton, who has not been able to find a stable job for seven years, said failing to approve an extension will only throw people out onto the streets and prevent them from conducting meaningful job searches.
"Without the extended benefit, I would not be able to do my networking, apply for jobs (and) go on interviewing," she said. She said she uses the extended benefits to help her pay her mortgage, health insurance and transportation.
Bonita Stevens, the Union County chapter leader for Organizing for Action, said her daughter, a single mother of three, relied on those emergency benefits while she was unemployed for more than a year.
"It assisted her in looking for employment and keeping her household afloat," said Stevens, who lives in Scotch Plains. "Now she is employed and is able to give back into the economy by using her income to pay her rent.".


text:
By sheer reputation alone, Williams are not just a big team, they're massive. Boasting no fewer than 114 race victories, nine constructors' titles and seven world drivers' titles, they're one of the most successful teams in the history of the sport.
But that was the past and they haven't been serious title contenders since Jacques Villeneuve bagged the last of these titles back in 1997.
Pastor Maldonado's win at last year's Spanish Grand Prix briefly hinted at a return to the good old days, but it was just one of those days when everything came together and circumstances conspired to provide a false positive.
So can Williams return to those glory days of the '70s, '80s and '90s?

subset: commoncrawl


text: Help us celebrate our 5th anniversary and 20th event. Festivities kick off at 6:00 p.m. with musician Enrique Infante and presentations begin at 6:30. Presenters include Oron Benary with SOLE/Brothers Drake, architectural photographer Brad Feinknopf, OSU medical student Danny Ash, Dwight Heckelman of Groove U, Jess Mathews from Consider Biking, Steve Shapiro with The Educational Council, Mark Farmer from Team 614, and Scott Vayo of BPM Productions. Each speaker will follow the international Pecha Kucha format of showing 20 images and speaking about each image for 20 seconds. Presenters are subject to change. Guests will have access to CMA's galleries throughout the evening. Musical act Coal Fired Bicycle will perform during intermission. Local food trucks and indoor food vendors will sell refreshments, as organized by The Food Fort at ECDI (Economic Community & Development Institute). A cash bar will be available. Genre Creative will provide a free photo booth, and Scott Vayo will deejay the event. The suggested donation is $2 per person. Free parking is available in the museum parking lot and the State Auto lot just east of the museum. There are new bicycle racks on the west side of the building. Photos http://tinyurl.com/PK16CMA. Photo credit: Jill Moorhead. Video http://tinyurl.com/PKvideoCMA Contact: Alexandra Kelley Fox: firstname.lastname@example.com Facebook.com/pkcolumbus Twitter.com/PechaKuchaCMH


text:
Great Decor in a Flash Without a Lot of Cash
Bonus: Get our newsletter & special offers for free. We will not share or sell your email address. View our Privacy Policy
Colorful Wall Art
By: Styrofoam Brand Foam
We are adding the craft to your Craft Projects.
The project was added to your Craft Projects.
Click here to view your Craft Projects.
Create a vibrant piece of wall art. This colorful bistro looks amazing hung on your wall. In only four quick and easy steps you can turn scrapbook paper, ribbon and brand foam sheets into wall art that looks like you bought it.
- STYROFOAM™ Brand Foam:
- Three 1" x 12" x 36" sheets
- Ribbon, 1" x 8-1/8 yds.
- Scrapbook paper: 12" x 12", nine sheets (heavier weight)
- Thick, white craft glue
- Putty knife
- Straight pins (optional)
- Sawtooth picture hangers, three, or poster putty
- Arrange scrapbook papers on foam sheet; try different arrangements till satisfied with design. Spread white craft glue on 1/3 of foam sheet; center 12" x 12" paper over glue and adhere. Repeat until all foam sheets are covered. If necessary, pin corners till glue dries. (Hint: Papers might appear wavy at first, and will smooth out as the glue dries.)
- Cut ribbon into three equal lengths. Pin or glue ribbon around edges of foam sheet, overlapping ends. (Hint: STYROFOAM™ brand foam is very forgiving. If the paper square does not exactly meet the edges of the foam sheet, run the edge of the foam square along a tabletop, compressing the foam.)
- Use level and poster adhesive to secure squares to wall as shown. Or, glue sawtooth picture hanger to back. For additional hold, insert and glue two straight pins through holes in sawtooth picture hanger.
- Let dry before handling.
®™ Trademark of The Dow Chemical Company ("Dow") or an affiliated company of Dow. For more project ideas, please see styrofoamstyle.com.
Tags / Related Topics
Your Recently Viewed Projects
Images from other crafters
Love these projects? Get MORE delivered to your Inbox – FREE Click Here!
Report Inappropriate Comment
Are you sure you would like to report this comment? It will be flagged for our moderators to take action.
Thank you for taking the time to improve the content on our site.
Something worth saving?
- SAVE all your favorite crafts
- ADD personal notes
- QUICKLY reference your crafts
Free eBooks
- 11 Crochet Shawl Patterns: Crochet Poncho Patterns, Free Easy Crochet Patterns and More
- 12 Knitted Scarf Patterns: Fabulous Free Knitting Patterns for Beginners
- 16 Free Crochet Hat Patterns, Scarves, and Gloves
- 31 Halloween Craft Projects
- 7 Adult Coloring Pages
- Homemade Halloween Decorations
- Recycled Craft Ideas: Easy Crafts to Make with Recycled Material
- 11 DIY Christmas Decorations and Gift Ideas
- 11 Teacher-Approved Crafts for School
- 12 Easter Egg Ideas & Easter Crafts for Adults
Our Newest Projects & Articles
- DIY Faux Fur Crossbody Bag
- Rustic Wedding in a Barn
- DIY Burlap Aisle Runner
- Shell N Picots Slouch Hat
- Recycled Pallet and Scrap Booking Shelf
- Stamped Matilda Inspired Hoodie
- Candy Corn Fabric Wreath
- Fall Burlap Wreath
- Big Knit Easy Blanket Sweater
- Pick Your State Printable Art


text:
Forgot Password? | Not a User? Sign up
Your browser does not support iframes.
I have watched both presidential debates, listened each
day to CNN, Fox News and MSNBC.
As a pastor who was created by God to be African-American, I have become utterly disgusted as well as enlightened by this presidential election process. It has shown the ignorance, brokenness, hypocrisy and unresolved issues of race relations in our country and unfortunately in my city. It has shown the power of media to "spin" facts and confuse voters.
Copyright © 2016
The Lancaster News is your source for local news, sports, events, and information in Lancaster County and Lancaster, South Carolina, and the surrounding area..


text:
Alleged shooter still in Texas
The 26-year-old man facing a murder charge in connection with an early Saturday morning shooting that left a local man dead was still being held at the Harris County Jail in Texas without bond on Thursday.
Tashawn Walker, 26, of Baytown, Texas, was scheduled to appear in criminal court Thursday morning in Houston. Information about the results of that proceeding was not available from court officials there.
Meanwhile, court documents show that Warren city police asked for a hold to be placed on Walker in Texas until his extradition papers were issued. Local officials also were waiting to be notified of when Walker could be released in Texas and moved to Warren.
According to Warren Municipal Court records, city police issued an arrest warrant for Walker on Saturday shortly after Richard Rollison IV, 24, was fatally wounded at the Sunoco Service Station on West Market Street. Walker was arrested by U.S. Marshals at a home in Texas on Monday.
Walker is the brother of Taemarr Walker, 24, who was fatally shot in a confrontation with Warren police Oct. 19 near the intersection of Palmyra and Risher Road S.W.
Dashboard camera recordings from one of the Warren police cruisers at the scene of the gas station shooting revealed that Richard C. Rollison IV identified Tashawn "Boo" Walker as the man who shot him in the parking lot of the Sunoco gas station just before 1 a.m.
The video, released by city police to the Tribune Chronicle Tuesday after a public records request, reveals the aftermath of the shooting, including conversations between a dying Rollison and police.
Shortly before that shooting, Tashawn Walker and Thomas Walker are alleged to have gone to J&L Lounge in Warren Township to confront one or more persons attending a private party they believed made comments about Taemarr's death. A fight in the lounge moved outside and shots were fired at the building.
Warren and the surrounding area were on "heightened alert" last week after Taemarr Walker's death. Officials at the Ohio State Highway Patrol's Warren Post in Southington confirmed that Warren police had asked OSHP to help saturate the area with police presence as a precaution.
State Bureau of Criminal Investigation agents are investigating the police-involved shooting that killed Taemarr Walker after the car he was in went off the road. Police can be heard on dash camera video, while at the scene of Taemarr Walker's death, discussing a report that he had been on his way to shoot up a local bar when the car went off the road.


text:
- Age / Gender:
- n/a, Male
- Location:
- Location not disclosed
- Joined:
- 4/1/09
- All Stats >
User Statshot
- Community Stats
Level 7 Blank Slate
Normal Whistle
Ranked as Scout
Contact Info / Websites
Recent Game Medals
Failure to Communicate 5 Points Continue to play for 30 seconds after the movie ends. Medal Stats.
SECRET MEDAL 25 Points Unlock this medal to see it's details. Medal Stats.
SECRET MEDAL 10 Points Unlock this medal to see it's details. Medal Stats.
Disco Disaster 25 Points Make it past Stage 3. Medal Stats.
Falling Blocks 25 Points Make it past Stage 2. Medal Stats.
Run and Jump 25 Points Make it past Stage 1. Medal Stats.
Total Medals Earned: 6 (From 3 different games.)
Latest Audio Submissions
|Wobbles R'Us
|House Song
|Sky High
|Hip Hop - Modern Song
|Haunted Rap Beat
|Hip Hop - Modern Song
|Moombah type beat
|Hip Hop - Modern Song
Latest Games
Favorite Movies
Awesome Cracks Down Rated 4.4227 Stars Crackdown is awesome and so is this movie. Comedy - Parody Suck My Balls The Movie Rated 2.8215 Stars Very intensive thriller and film noir with crime and metropolitan locations. Comedy - Original Patchman:Simple Pleasures Rated 4.3192 Stars Because who doesn't want salt on their toast? Comedy - Original
Favorite Games
The House (Part 1) Rated 3.3634 Stars A fairly short room escape set in an abandoned house. The Super Duper Tutorial Rated 4.3409 Stars The Super Duper Tutorial Tutorial Pirate G Rated 2.2857 Stars Creative Pirate Interface Gadgets - Other Industrial Rebellion V0.5 Rated 2.1825 Stars A challenging momentum based platformer.


text:
MIM brings rock symphony back with Music of Queen
June 28, 2013
Music in the Mountains will move its SummerFest outside tonight for another memorable twist on its classic music series — a rock 'n' roll concert backed up by its orchestra and a choir.
The nonprofit arts organization will present the "Music of Queen, A Rock and Symphonic Spectacular," under the stars and towering pines of the Nevada County Fairgrounds, beginning at 7:30 p.m.
Gates open at 6.
Featuring the lead vocals of Michael Shotton, organizers say this is a concert not to be missed.
Shotton practically channels Freddie Mercury, according to Music in the Mountains.
Backed by a seven-piece band, with the music of MIM's Festival Orchestra and chorus members from throughout Nevada County, this will be a musical experience.
"I hate to say it, but we are definitely going to rock you," laughed Cristine Kelly, MIM executive director. "This is a production company that specializes in reviving the rock symphony genre. It is going to be out of this world."
Tickets for tonight's concert are $50 for premium seating, $30 for general admission in advance or $35 at the gate. Youth are $5 or you can purchase a family pass for $60 in advance for two adults and two children, general admission, or for $70 at the gate.
To purchase tickets, go online to http://www.musicinthemountains.org in advance, or get them at the gate. There is a $5 parking fee.
Patrons are asked to bring their own seating or blankets for the lawn.
Picnics are encouraged, or people can buy food from a vendor at the event.
No outside alcohol is allowed, but beer and wine will be available for purchase.
For more information, go to http://musicinthemountains.org/event/music-of-queen/.


text:
Latest Newsletter – July/August 2016
1st September 2016
The July/August edition of the newsletter is now available. You can download a pdf here – enjoy!
Latest Newsletter – May 2016
18th May 2016
The May edition of the newsletter is now available. You can download a pdf here – enjoy!
2015 Accounts
17th May 2016
Please find attached our accounts for 2015 in pdf format below:
RSPCA Pet Retreat Scheme
13th May 2016
PetRetreat is a fostering scheme the RSPCA run, where we take in and foster pets of those who are fleeing abusive relationships and moving into a refuge. We foster their pets for up to 12 months until the get back on their feet and are in a position to take their beloved pet back, knowing they are both no longer in danger.
We are in desperate need of some more fosters across the Southern Region of the country, to take in cats and dogs of all sizes and breeds. We get a lot of different dogs through the scheme, so you will need to be happy with any breed or character that comes your way! All dogs are subject to a two week assessment with our trained staff, all animals are neutered, vaccinated and chipped before going into foster care – all they need from you is a loving temporary home!
Fosters are subject to two references and a homecheck, where we will make sure your fencing is at least 6 foot high to ensure no dogs can escape. You will need to be comfortable with dogs being kept on a lead at all times, and cats staying in the house at all times.
If you think this is the role for you, please contact Sophie at email@example.com.
Invitation to Annual General Meeting 2016
11th May 2016
All Branch Members are invited to our AGM at 7pm on Thursday 2 June 2016 at Little Valley Animal Shelter. Further details can be found in the attachment below, please click on it to open.
Latest Newsletter – February 2016
25th February 2016
The February edition of the newsletter is now available. You can download a pdf here – enjoy!
Help Judy Jump For Joy!
18th December 2015
Judy is a 3 year old Whippet cross who came into the Shelter with an old injury. She had probably been living in great discomfort for some time. On further investigation, we found she had a damaged cruciate ligament that would need an operation to correct. Without this, Judy would continue to live in discomfort and pain. The operation will cost us approximately £500, but at least she will no longer be in pain and should hopefully be able to use her leg properly again. Yet again, we are asking you to help if you can. Please read Judy's story below and follow the link below to donate:
Help Judy Jump For Joy! – Just Giving Campaign
Latest Newsletter – October 2015
26th October 2015
Please find below a link to a free pdf of our latest newsletter. This edition includes all the round up from our successful Big Walkies event on 27 September 2015 – enjoy!
Bob's Big Op
13th October 2015
Poor Bob the Sharpei has been with us since May and in all that time he has had a recurring ear problem. We've tried to treat it but the vets say the only way to sort it now is for him to have an operation, which will cost £500! It's a big ask, but we're appealing for your help again for Bob. To read Bob's story, to see pictures of him and to donate, follow the link below:
Bob's Big Op – Just Giving Campaign
Pat Pollock – Trustee
4th September 2015
It is with great sadness that we have to report the death on 27 August of a great supporter of Little Valley, Pat Pollock, who was also a Trustee and the Budleigh Shop Manager.
The Funeral Service will be held in St Peter's Chapel, Exeter Crematorium, on Thursday 10 September 2015 at 2.45pm. Family flowers only please.
Donations in Pat's memory should be made to RSPCA Little Valley Animal Shelter and/or Hospiscare Exmouth by retiring collection or to Richard W Gegg & Sons, Funeral Directors,47 Rolle Street, Exmouth EX8 2RS.
Save Biscuit's Eyesight
26th August 2015
We have set up an appeal on Just Giving to help save Biscuit's eyesight. Biscuit is a beautiful 9 month old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel who needs an operation to save his eyesight. It's a big operation and will cost £650. We are a self-funding branch of the RSPCA so we are appealing to our supporters to help us if they can – any amount, no matter how small, makes a difference. To read Biscuit's story, to see pictures of him and to donate, follow the link below:
Save Biscuit's Eyesight – Just Giving Campaign
Daphne Absalom – Honorary Branch President
18th August 2015
It is with great sadness that we have to announce that Daphne Absalom, Honorary Branch President, passed away on 12 August 2015.
Daphne was instrumental in finding the site that Little Valley currently occupies and will be greatly missed by all at the Shelter.
There will be a Memorial Service at Dunchideock Church (following a private family committal at the Crematorium) on Friday 28 August at 3pm. This will be followed by light refreshments at the Lord Haldon Hotel.
Daphne's sister, Thelma, extends an invitation to all Daphne's friends and those who knew her over the years.
Latest Newsletter – August 2015
1st August 2015
Please find below a link to a free pdf of our latest newsletter. This edition includes all the round up from our incredibly successful Shelter Day on 28 June 2015 – enjoy!
Latest Newsletter – May 2015
21st May 2015
The May edition of the newsletter is now available. You can download a pdf here – enjoy!
2014 Accounts
7th May 2015
Please find attached our accounts for 2014 in pdf format below:
Thank You to Tug-E-Nuff
23rd April 2015
Those great folks at Tug-E-Nuff have kindly donated us some of their brilliant bungee toys for the dogs in our care. It's not easy being a dog in kennels, it can get pretty boring at times waiting for your new family to come along and choose you, so any toys that are tough enough to take too much doggy love are perfect to keep our canines occupied. Thank you!
Thank You to RS Groundworks Ltd
22nd April 2015
We have had another huge donation for our dog sensory garden project, this time lots of compost, bark chippings, sand and fixings from the wonderful RS Groundworks Ltd, who recently adopted Toby the dog from us. Thank you! All these donations means we will be starting work on the dog sensory garden in the next few weeks – we are very excited!
Thank You to Buildbase Exeter
12th April 2015
Buildbase Exeter have been extremely generous to us and donated some much-needed items for our dog sensory garden, which we will be building in one of our dog compounds. Thank you Buildbase, we can now make a start on this project! We will keep you updated with progress and photos.
Thank You to Hot Rock Design & Print
10th April 2015
Hot Rock Design & Print Solutions very kindly designed and printed our Shelter Day posters for FREE! We are overwhelmed – and they look fantastic. Look out for them in our shops, at the Shelter and around the area. Thank you again Hot Rock!
New Skydiving Guinness World Record Attempt!
5th March 2015
Adam Harris, one of our Animal Care Assistants, did a world record breaking skydive last year to raise funds for Little Valley. The record was for the most skydivers in a 24 hour period. Well Adam is at it again and wants to attempt to break that record again this year on 20 June 2015. So he needs your support again. He has a Just Giving page here if you wish to donate. Please see his poster below.
Thank You to Thomson Reuters Digita
11th February 2015
Thomson Reuters Digita of Exmouth have once again donated some wonderful computers to us here at the Shelter. It wasn't that long ago that we only had ONE computer! Now we have quite a number, allowing us to move swiftly into the computer age! Thank you for your kind generosity.
Latest Newsletter – January 2015
11th February 2015
Our latest newsletter is out now. For those of you not a member of our Friends, you can now see the latest newsletter on the link below. Great news – our cover star, the beautiful Japanese Akita Kimiko, is now reserved! We hope she will be going to her new home very soon. We hope you enjoy this latest edition.
If you have any stories about any Little Valley animals for future editions, please contact us.
Latest Newsletter – October 2014
7th November 2014
Our latest newsletter is out now. For those of you not a member of our Friends, you can now see the latest newsletter on the link below. Enjoy.
If you have any stories about any Little Valley animals for future editions, please contact us.
Thank you to DartExe Ltd
7th November 2014
We would like to say a huge thank you to DartExe Ltd for kindly donating a new colour photocopier when our old one died. We just called them to see if they could fix our old one (they couldn't – it has gone to the photocopier graveyard) but when Clive Barnett, a Director of DartExe, found out who we were he instantly said he could help with a donation of a replacement. Thank you Clive and all at DartExe Ltd. Top people!
Latest Newsletter – August 2014
8th September 2014
Our latest newsletter is out now. For those of you not a member of our Friends, you can now see the latest newsletter on the link below. Enjoy.
If you have any stories about any Little Valley animals for future editions, please contact us.
World Record Sky Dive!
1st August 2014
Adam Harris, one of our Animal Care Assistants, took part in a Guinness World Record Skydive on 21 June for Little Valley. The world record for tandem skydives in 24 hours was previously held in Germany and stood at 251. They smashed the record with 279 jumpers making the leap from 15,000 feet! Well done Adam for being so brave and managing to raise over £400 for Little Valley!
Latest Newsletter – May 2014
7th June 2014
Our new newsletter is now out. For those of you not a member of our Friends, you can now see the latest newsletter on the link below. Enjoy.
If you have any stories about any Little Valley animals for future editions, please contact us.
2013 Accounts
7th May 2014
Please find attached our accounts for 2013 in pdf format below:
Adam is Flying High
29th April 2014
Adam Harris, an Animal Care Assistant at the Shelter, is going to be leaping from a plane at 15,000 feet in a charity sky diving attempt to break a World Record currently held in Germany in which 251 people successfully completed a tandem skydive in a 24 hour period. He will be attempting to beat this record with 260 jumps at Dunkeswell Airfield in Devon on 21 June 2014! If you can help Adam achieve his target, please sponsor him via his Just Giving page.
Thank You to Thomson Reuters Digita
11th April 2014
Little Valley would like to say a huge thank you to Thomson Reuters Digita of Exmouth for the donation of some computers and a colour photocopier. These will be a huge help to us.
Latest Newsletter – February 2014
10th March 2014
Our new newsletter is now out. For those of you not a member of our Friends, you can now see the latest newsletter on the link below. Enjoy.
If you have any stories about any Little Valley animals for future editions, please contact us.
10th March 2014
We have teamed up with Giveacar to raise more money!
Do you own a vehicle that you want to sell or get rid of? Then please think about donating it to us through Giveacar! Giveacar raises money for UK charities by scrapping and selling old cars. They provide a nationwide FREE service which:
- Arranges the collection of the vehicle from your home
- Depending on its age and condition, recycles it at an authorised facility or sends it to auction
Scrap donations raise about £100 for the charity (depending on the price of metal) while auction cars can raise much more.
To arrange donation of a car, visit www.giveacar.co.uk or call 020 7736 4242, quoting RSPCA Little Valley Animal Shelter as your preferred charity.
Amazon Wishlists
22nd May 2013
If you fancy donating to us but don't want to send money, how about buying something for the animals at Little Valley from our Amazon wishlist? We have set up 3 wishlists — one for dogs, one for cats and the other for small animals. They list lots of items that our animals really like, such as treats and toys.
Dogs: http://www.amazon.co.uk/registry/wishlist/1ES5SP68IW3DM
Cats: http://www.amazon.co.uk/registry/wishlist/3FB49CF8HP26I
Small Animals: http://www.amazon.co.uk/registry/wishlist/IBC9M0TD9NVA
Either use the links above or log into your Amazon account and type into the search box "RSPCA Little Valley Wishlist" and our 3 wishlists will come up! It's a great way to help us out and we know all the animals in our care will be very grateful! And don't forget to claim for your purchases using Easyfundraising, as we can raise even more money that way!
Pets At Home VIP Club
21st May 2013
Do you shop at Pets at Home? If you do then join their VIP (Very Important Pet) club to save money and support Little Valley.
As a member of VIP, you'll get great benefits for you and your pets. You'll receive exclusive discounts on everything from food to health products, as well as helpful hints and tips so you can ensure that you get the best for your pets.
VIP benefits don't stop there though! Simply swipe your card at the till to collect VIP Lifelines, which will help you and your fellow VIP members to send much needed support to the animal charity of your choice.
You'll even receive a voucher for 10% off your next in-store shop in your welcome pack just to say thanks for signing up.
All you need to do is register your details online on this link: http://vip.petsathome.com
If you select your Home Store as Exeter, Exmouth, Torquay or Newton Abbot, you can opt for Little Valley as your chosen charity.
2012 Accounts
13th May 2013
Below are the Branch's Accounts for 2012:
Online Shopping with Easyfundraising
19th February 2013
If you are a regular online shopper, why not shop through Easyfundraising and support Little Valley Animal Shelter at the same time? It takes just 2 minutes to sign up. Easyfundraising helps charities, schools, sports clubs, community groups, and other good causes to raise money when their supporters shop online. It works in a similar way to many other loyalty shopping sites, but instead of earning points when you shop ,you raise a donation for your cause instead. It's as simple as that! You can shop with over 2,000 well known stores and each will donate up to 15% of what you spend. For example, John Lewis will donate 1%, Amazon 2.5%, The Body Shop 6%, some insurance retailers will even donate up to £30 simply for taking out a policy with them!


text:
Weekend plans with your kids?
Im up early as usual...My daughter is running a 5K race at school called Run Against Drugs. She's been in this since the beginning! We need to be at the school by 7:45 and then there's an awards ceremony and pizza afterwards. Then the two of us are going to my neice in laws baby shower later in the day.
Tonight she wants her best friend to spend the night so I'll have 2 very mouthy 15 year olds in the house. Please pray for me , girls!LOL!
What are your plans?
I am pretty sure that the one running a 5k will be too exhausted to run her mouth. :P
Aw sounds like a busy, fun day! My kiddos are 2.5 and 1 so we're just going to play outside if it's not raining.
Quoting Wish2Be:
I am pretty sure that the one running a 5k will be too exhausted to run her mouth. :P
LOL! You'd think so ,right????
DD got 2nd place in the women's division and then felt sick to her stomach for the rest of morning. She's mad losing first because the trophy was ginormous and hers is a midget one...lol! But Im so proud of her! She runs this every year and always comes home with a first or second place in either that or the mile.
Her and her BFF are upstairs sleeping and stayed up FOREVER....Lord, Lord....they want to go to the mall today but neither has any money....very interesting.
We had a nice time at the shower despite the fect that I really hate my MIL...no , really. To make it worse we're having dinner together with SIL and her family who are down from NY. She didnt ask me what to make, she TOLD me. Makes me want to put poison in her meatballs...haha! But Im glad I only need to bring a side dish and a dessert and dont have to worry about cooking!
Quoting TheJerseyGirl:
Quoting momkaribg:
We will probably go to Dollywood.
Im completely jealous!
My oldest (she's 8) had a friend over for a sleepover last night. Also, as usual, we've been busy running from place to place for the girls' sports and activities! We are going to spend today at Six Flags (we'll be heading off soon!)
I wanted to go to them sooooo bad yesterday because there were a ton of them here. I just had no time at all to go and it still makes me sick to think someone else put MY stuff in their house...lol!!!!
Quoting amy7243:
Lol good luck!!! I took my 15 year old dd with me garage saleing....ugh.
sounds like a busy day! Yesterday we took the kids bowling and then had some friends over. Today is church day =)


text:
If you go
When: 8 p.m. Oct. 19-20, 26-27; 2 p.m. Oct. 21, 28.
Where: Three Rivers Community Players Theatre, 15526 Millard Road, Three Rivers
Cost: $12-$15.
Contact: 269-279-6251, trcplayers.vpweb.com
THREE RIVERS, MI -- The trap in "Deathtrap" may be a trap for the audience.
"I saw it at the Barn years ago, and I remember at one particular point the entire audience moved back as a whole, taking a deep breath," Jacki Stahr, director of the Three Rivers Community Players' production of the thriller, said.
A Telegraph review of a 2010 London production pointed out that playwright Ira Levin "is almost overgenerous with the twists in his serpentine plot, and that there were two startling moments that made the woman sitting next to me scream out loud."
"I want to do that. I want to make the audience jump," Stahr said.
The thriller was a Broadway hit in 1979 and ran for four years.
Though there are no ghosts, vampires, or paranormal phenomenon -- except for the powers of busybody psychic Helga (Maryann Grile) -- "Deathtrap" is perfect for the Halloween season, Stahr said.
Somebody, or some bodies, are going to hit the floor. There's a rule in theatre that if a gun is shown in the first act, it should eventually be used. At the start of "Deathtrap" we see that writer Sidney Bruhl (Tim Kilmartin) has a whole wall of knives, maces, handcuffs and other such implements.
Bruhl used to have a string of hit thrillers on Broadway, but he's in a dry spell and facing poverty. New writer Clifford (Gary Nofsinger) shows him his script for a show about the perfect crime. Bruhl sees that it's a script worth killing for, Bruhl's excitable wife Myra can tell.
He strangles Cliff -- but that's only the beginning of the story.
"There a lot of twists and turns that people wouldn't be expecting.... lots of surprises," Stahr said.
Levin also wrote the novels "Rosemary's Baby," "The Stepford Wives" and "The Boys from Brazil," so expect a somewhat dark, and adult, humor. In "Deathtrap," Levin has deconstructed the form of the stage thriller, in a plot where the perfect crime and the perfect thriller script have become entwined.
"He's got a great grasp of language," Stahr said. "It's a unique and smart show."
The cast -- which also includes Max Bales -- has been working on getting a few moments, those that make the audience jump, just right. "Timing is everything, in the art of surprise," Stahr said.
What should help to to put the audience into the "Deathtrap" is their theatre -- "We have a very small space, that puts people right in the middle of the show."


text:
Thu, 2011-07-28 15:58
We have not been sending out paper bills for quite some time. We have custody solely to deduct management fees from our client accounts. Under the new custody guidelines, are we now required to send them out? Custodian lists fees on the statements, but not the calculation or any other information.


text:
FLINT, MI – Kettering University's research labs have received some praise from a national clean energy program.
Phyllis Cuttino, director of clean energy for The Pew Charitable Trusts, which operates the Pew Clean Energy Program, toured two Kettering labs Wednesday while she was visiting the school for a roundtable discussion.
To put her reaction simply, Cuttino was impressed.
"I think their contributions are critical," Cuttino said during her first visit to Kettering. "This is one of the reasons we came to Michigan. It's the center of innovation."
Cuttino toured Kettering's Advanced Power Electronics Lab and Fuel Cell Lab, which showed her how students, faculty and researchers were creating new ideas for clean and renewable energy. That was right up her alley.
The Pew Clean Energy Program is working to accelerate the clean energy economy for its national security, economic and environmental benefits. The Program promotes the adoption of key changes to U.S. energy policy in four sectors: industry, utilities, transportation and research.
Pew is building support for increasing fuel economy and encouraging the adoption of electric vehicles, ensuring that the U.S. electric and industrial sectors are cleaner and more efficient and fostering U.S. innovation through expanded energy research and development.
The Advanced Power Electronics Lab, run by Kettering Associate Professor Keven Bai, has been around for more than two years. In that time, several projects have been completed.
The lab has five graduate students, three research engineers and one research scientist. Completed projects include a fast-charging battery charger for an electric vehicle for Magna E-Car, a wireless charge for electric vehicles and an electric-powered scooter, which is scheduled to go into production in January.
All the projects are original ideas, starting from the ground up. The lab partners with companies such as Chrysler and those in India and China.
"(Those working in the lab) seem to outperform what's available," said Jim McDonald, head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
The tour of the labs was one small part of the day. Cuttino moderated a roundtable discussion about how clean energy can affect the economy and policies that need to be in place to make that happen.
Cuttino mentioned how Kettering is an example of some good things that are happening in the state.
"It's quite remarkable what is going on in the lab," she said.


text:
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- The other day I overheard talk in the newsroom of people waiting in line 90 minutes to order from the Rollin Lobstah food truck, during one of Downtown Huntsville Inc.'s Street Food events, which continue to draw arena-sized crowds. An hour-and-a-half. Just to order.
Thanks to overcast skies and a few thunderclaps, we only waited about three minutes to order from Rollin Lobstah when we visited the food truck at around 6 p.m. on a recent Monday. The truck was parked at Big Spring International Park for the free outdoor music series Concerts in the Park, where Rollin Lobstah can be found Mondays 5 – 9 p.m. through Aug. 4. (Visit rollinlobstah.com's events page for additional locations, dates and times, which vary).
They had our food out to us less than five minutes later. Yeah, there was only one order ahead of ours, but I've waited almost 20 minutes for Huntsville food-truck food in a similar not-busy situation. Rollin Lobstah gets bonus applause for having a smartphone credit card reader that actually worked with one swipe. Issues with running credit/debit cards are another issue I've encountered in more than one food truck review. And the Rollin Lobstah trailer is easy to spot as it's basically lobster-colored, and adorned with a spatula-wielding and sunglasses-wearing lobster logo.
Rollin Lobstah wisely limits their menu to four primary items. We tried them all. The Mac & Cheese Bacon Lobstah Bites ($7 for four) appetizer benefitted from dichotomous textures - comfort-food melty-soft inside and golden-brown crunchiness on the outside – and a sweet-chili type sauce, which was a really good counterpoint to the Bites' richness.
There wasn't a whole lot of bacon or lobster in the Bites, but the other main items we ordered boasted sizable portions of Rollin Lobstah's namesake ingredient. The Connecticut Lobstah Roll ($11) was particularly excellent. Warm fresh lobster chunks on a toasted lightly buttered bun (with a favorable lobster-to-bun ratio), and this is one of those dishes where the ingredients meld into one. In a fantastic way. The seemingly house-made chips served with all Rollin Lobstah rolls and sliders were super-crisp and not greasy. The aforementioned sweet-chili sauce from the Bites app also doubled effectively as a dip for the chips.
We also tried the Maine Lobstah Roll ($11). Another legit pile of fresh lobster chunks – this time served cool – served with your choice of lemon mayo or chili infused mayo (we picked the latter), on another toasted buttery bun. The chili mayo added some nice zing, similar to the Hot Damn Sauce at Po-Boy Factory.
Both the rolls were on-the-level values considering the marquee ingredient. And none of the lobster we consumed from here tasted fishy or washed-out.
The Lobstah BLT Slidahs ($7 for two) feature lobster tossed with lemon mayo on a roll with celery, bacon, green lettuce and red-ripe tomato slices. The bacon was super-crisp, teetering on being too much so, but the combination of textures and flavors was still quite happening.
Rollin Lobstah's main item presentation was solid for a food truck. The lovely pink-orange and white lobster surrounded by other quality ingredients and plated over parchment paper in a basket. Would be nice if they invested in some plastic knives though, as Rollin Lobstah's food is the sort of outside- the-mainstream fare that's ripe for sharing. As it was, we had to cut the rolls with a plastic fork to share.
Rolling Lobstah also offers a couple of combos: Roll and two Bites with chips for $14; and two Slidahs and two Bites with chips for $10. Drinks – Coke products and bottled water – are a buck.
The lady who took our order from inside the Rollin Lobstah truck's window was super friendly. And she read back the order to me before turning it in, always a reassuring move. We asked this cashier to recommend one of the several varieties of local Honeypie Bakery-made brownies Rollin Lobstah offers, and she gave the Cheesecake Brownie ($5) a ringing endorsement. And man, was she right. Super moist, with cheesecake layers offers a compelling foil to the deep chocolate flavors, and served in a circular, mini-cake-sized portion that was more than enough for three dudes to share post-meal. We also tried Rollin Lobstah's Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies ($3 for two). These were OK. But they paled compared to the brownie.
So is Rollin Lobstah's food worth waiting 90 minutes to order at? It's pretty awesome, but come on. Very few things are legitimately worth that sort of wait – being gifted a Ferrari 458 Italia or master tapes of the unreleased music Miles Davis recorded with Prince, for example. Rollin Lobstah serves compelling, delicious and refreshingly different fare, but I'm not sure any food-truck, or any restaurant for that matter, is quite in that stratosphere.Rollin Lobstah
Recommendations: Connecticut Lobstah Roll, Maine Lobstah Roll, Mac & Cheese Bacon Lobstah Bites.
Suggestions: Combos let you bundle a roll and Bites.
Alcohol: No.
Ambience: Food truck.
Service: Fast, friendly, efficient.
Vegetarian-friendly: Nope.
Price range: Most items $7-$11.


text:
L&G Dinner
Hosted by Laurie Stevens
Saturday, May 31, 2014 from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Event Details
Please be sure to register no later than April 1st!
Please join us as we celebrate Larry & Gwen's Ruby Anniversary! They have been happily married for 40 years and and it's time to celebrate that accomplishment as well as wish them many more years of marital bliss!!
PLEASE No children or adult children.
We respectfully ask that our guests refrain from wearing red as this color will only be worn by the couple of honor and immediate family. We thank you, in advance, for your cooperation.
Should you have any questions, please contact Laurie Stevens via email at firstname.lastname@example.com or Leah Stevens via email at firstname.lastname@example.com.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Lodging Information
We have been able to arrange for a block of hotel suites for those who require lodging at a group rate at Comfort Suites Forest Park. Please place your reservations by phone and reference our group name "Stevens Anniversary" to receive the group rate. The cut off date for these rooms is May 9th, 2014. Details are as follows:
Hotel Information
- Comfort Suites - 1234 Omniplex Drive Forest Park, Ohio 45240
- Telephone - (513) 551-5028 - Please call and reference our group name "Stevens Anniversary" in order to receive the group rate
- Hotel website - www.comfortsuitesforestpark.com
Room Information
- 2-night Stay Arrival Date: 5/30 Departure Date: 6/1
- King Bed Suite - $89.95 + Tax
- 2 Queen Bed Suite - $89.95 + Tax
- 1-night Stay Arrival Date: 5/31 Departure Date: 6/1
- King Bed Suite - $95.95 + Tax
- 2 Queen Bed Suite - $95.95 + Tax
When & Where
Fairfield Community Arts Center
411 Wessel Drive
Saturday, May 31, 2014 from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Add to my calendar


text:
It's clear that this move is one of the alternatives Yahoo! is looking at in response to Microsoft's unsolicited takeover bid. As you may recall Microsoft pretty much threw down the gauntlet, giving Yahoo! three weeks before Microsoft will start what sounds like a hostile takeover attempt.
According to Yahoo!'s press release,
The test will apply only to traffic from yahoo.com in the U.S. and will not include Yahoo!'s extended network of affiliate or premium publisher partners. The test is expected to last up to two weeks and will be limited to no more than 3% of Yahoo! search queries.To say Microsoft was not pleased is an understatement. In fact, they shot off their own press release, with Brad Smith, Microsoft's General Counsel saying:
As previously announced, Yahoo!'s board of directors is exploring strategic alternatives to maximize stockholder value, including exploration of potential commercial business arrangements. The Company noted that the testing does not necessarily mean that Yahoo! will join the AdSense for Search program or that any further commercial relationship with Google will result. The Company further stated that it would not comment on the nature or timing of any potential relationship.
"Any definitive agreement between Yahoo! and Google would consolidate over 90% of the search advertising market in Google's hands. This would make the market far less competitive, in sharp contrast to our own proposal to acquire Yahoo! We will assess closely all of our options. Our proposal remains the only alternative put forward that offers Yahoo! shareholders full and fair value for their shares, gives every shareholder a vote on the future of the company, and enhances choice for content creators, advertisers, and consumers."Waitasec, that's exactly what Yahoo! said the other day when it replied to Microsoft's three week ultimatum - only in reference to a Yahoo! / Microsoft tie-up. Hmmm.
If anyone thought the drama was decreasing over Microsoft - Yahoo!, it sure ain't.


text:
Food & Retail Industry Solution
Recent food safety incidents, such as the recent 9 deaths from the salmonella-tainted peanut products in the USA, have resulted in unprecedented levels of scrutiny in food safety regulations and legislation, requiring organizations to be even more vigilant in the management of food safety.
With legislation being enacted and brand reputation at stake, the primary focus has always been meeting regulatory obligations. However the CMO COMPLIANCE Food Safety Solution allows organizations to capitalise on these improvement opportunities and extract value from compliance.
Global Leaders benefit from the CMO COMPLIANCE Food Safety Solution to improve the reporting and management of their food safety compliance, reduce risks, reduce costs and streamline business processes thereby presenting opportunities to continually improve the organization.
Impressed with the breadth of issues and implementation the CMO COMPLIANCE Governance, Risk & Compliance platform has addressed.Michael Rasmussen, Corporate Integrity LLC
We can provide a variety of different services based on the requirements of your GRC & HSEQ project. These are detailed below:
Impressed with the breadth of issues and implementation the CMO COMPLIANCE Governance, Risk & Compliance platform has addressed.
Michael Rasmussen
Corporate Integrity LLC


text:
[Previous] | [Session 6] | [Next]
B.-Q. For, E.M. Green (Steward Observatory, University of Arizona), D. O'Donoghue (South African Astronomical Observatory), L. Kiss, T.R. Bedding (School of Physics, University of Sydney), E.A. Hyde (Steward Observatory, University of Arizona), S.J. O'Toole (School of Physics, University of Sydney)
During March--July 2003, we obtained 1.8A resolution time-series spectra of the subdwarf B star variable PG1627+017, as part of a multiple site spectroscopic campaign. This target was selected because it is the brightest and has the highest amplitude variations among the recently discovered long period subdwarf B pulsators. It is also the coolest known example of this new class of pulsators, which, as a group, are cooler than the previously discovered short period subdwarf B star pulsators (i.e. the EC14026 stars). We present preliminary radial velocity (RV) mode detections and wavelength dependent amplitude variations of PG1627+017. At least two modes have been detected in the RV power spectrum. This is the first spectroscopic detection of pulsational modes in a long period subdwarf B star.
[Previous] | [Session 6] | [Next]
Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 36 #2
© YEAR. The American Astronomical Soceity.


text:
Lake Pontchartrain Causeway commuters experienced delays of up to 12 minutes Monday morning, as drivers were limited to two lanes on Causeway Boulevard at the foot of the bridge in Metairie, officials said.
The delay was only slightly longer than expected, and it was because of a car wreck, according to authorities.
The Army Corps of Engineers on Thursday shut down one lane of Causeway Boulevard to accommodate Boh Bros. Construction Co. crews, who are relocating utility lines as part of the storm protection project underway around the foot of the Causeway.
All lanes should be open again for use no later than Monday next week, but Boh Bros. believes it may be able to wrap up its work this Friday afternoon, said Carlton Dufrechou, the bridge's general manager.
"We're stuck with this, unfortunately, for the rest of this week," Dufrechou said Monday after the morning rush hour on the bridge died down. "We're doing as much as we can to hold (Boh Bros.') toes to the fire because we want people to get to where they are going as soon as they can."
In the days before the corps closed the lane, Dufrechou estimated that motorists would get jammed up about 1,000 feet onto the foot of the bridge, which would result in a delay as long as 10 minutes. On Monday, several bridge police officers and Motorist Assistance Patrol workers timed themselves exiting the southbound Causeway.
The worst delay they reported clocked in at about a dozen minutes at 7:56 a.m., when two cars crashed about 3.5 miles from south shore, Dufrechou said.
Officers snarled traffic because they had to close one lane on the bridge to move the vehicles to a parking area at the corner of North Causeway Boulevard and 6th Street.
Boh Bros. crews have been at the foot of the Causeway since December, working on a project to build a 15-foot floodwall along the shore of Lake Pontchartrain, where the bridge now meets Causeway Boulevard. The $43.8-million project is expected to take about 18 months and will require traffic to first be transferred to temporary roadways in the median of the Causeway Boulevard before being moved onto new, elevated ramps.
The construction at first did not cause any major tie-ups on the bridge. However, officials had largely credited the smooth flow of traffic to the availability of the three lanes on the south shore.
Without those, they warned, traffic will back up at a traffic light at 6th Street, causing significant delays. Jefferson Parish officials have been allowing that light to stay green longer than usual to minimize jams.
Dufrechou said commuters can expect to endure the worst delays at peak times - between 7 and 8:45 a.m.
Ramon Antonio Vargas can be reached at email@example.com or 985.898.4827.


text:
'Brit Bill Gates' defends his honour in open letter to HP board
Hewlett-Packard has slapped down former Autonomy boss Mike Lynch after he called for details of accounting charges made against him and for an explanation of what HP executives really knew. In an open letter to PC giant's board, Lynch effectively accused HP of smearing him by releasing selected information to the media and he …
Occam's Razor Says...
...Autonomy was a decent business that was probably worth a small fraction of what HP paid for it. HP overpaid because of highly 'ambitious' accounting by Autonomy that they were too stupid to see through, even though bloggers have noted Autonomy's dodginess for years. The accounting shenanigans probably doesn't amount to fraud, and HP are just looking for an 'out' to cover for their stupidity.
Re: Occam's Razor Says...
Quite amusing that HP think the SFO will sort it out for them. UK based Torex went down through much more rampant accounting "irregularities" in 2006/2007, were reported in February of that year to the SFO, and the Serious Farce Office now hope to have the main perpetrators in court this coming March.
On this basis, HP can expect their day in court sometime in 2018.
Re: Occam's Razor Says...
Autonomy was never a "decent business" the whole thing consisted of smoke and mirrors and trying to calm down whichever disgruntled customer was shouting the loudest at the time. I am surprised it took this long for HP to realise though...
Re: Occam's Razor Says...
"the whole thing consisted of smoke and mirrors"
What, like most B2B software houses? Never.
Lynch is no Gary McKinnon..
Nope... This one has teeth to bite back! (Or rather several billion pounds worth of metaphorical teeth!).
Re: Lynch is no Gary McKinnon..
He also doesn't have his mummy to fight for him.
The stakes are high?
Are the stakes high in this case then?
Just wondered as you restated this twice....
Re: The stakes are high?
I do think the stages are high.
Did I tell you of the high stakes, here?
I like the idea that it's entirely Autonomy to blame and that in no way does HP's due diligence process (whether in-house or farmed out to a consultancy) have any blame to carry. Of course they'll claim that for legal purposes, but it's going to be interesting to see how they defend it.
obviously, it's not HP's fault
after all, they haven't paid massively over the odds for other companies, then have to write down the value very quickly is it..
Apart from EDS. Or Palm...
Due diligence completed?
Caveat Emptor.
That is all.
Re: Due diligence completed?
You've not really got your head round the whole "fraud" thing, have you?
Re: Due diligence completed?
I think he has got his head round it.
The whole point of due diligence is to check everything important - every major contract, the validity of prior years results, the assumptions underlying the financials, the quality of the receivables, and the deal pipeline. In a friendly takeover situation you have access to the information to check this.
When you're spending (eleven) giga bucks on something, would you really treat the purchase with the sort of rigour as an Ebay transaction, and take the word of a seller that all is ship shape and Bristol fashion? I don't believe even the clowns of HP are that daft; What they are miffed at is that their own willingness to over-pay has made them a laughing stock.
Re: Due diligence completed?
HP did their due diligence, which hardly reflects well on their valuation and risk management processes. As a previous commentard mentioned, they also wrote down their purchases of EDS and 3Com. Still, we don't know enough to say that HP isn't out of line, so let the courts figure that out.
Re: Due diligence completed?
Well HP says they DID do their due diligence. They relied on audited accounts by Deloitte and then got KPMG to audit Deloitte and neither found anything untoward.
So...either Deloitte and KPMG didn't find something obvious that they should have done or the problems were so well hidden they didn't find them on auditing. If it's the former the accountants are in the sticky stuff. If it's the latter then it's HP's fault for not digging deeper; I guess Meg reckons it's the former.
Unimaginable corruption
If you stop and think about this, in order for HP's claim of fraud to hold weight, the corruption would have encompassed thousands of vendors, customers and partners, or the auditors themselves.
I find it extraordinary unlikely this team could have managed such a feat given all I know about them. It's far more likely HP's management team has a broken decision making process ( shock! horror! ), and are simply trying to save their jobs and, more importantly, their egos, by portioning blame elsewhere for their screw up.
Re: Unimaginable corruption
"in order for HP's claim of fraud to hold weight, the corruption would have encompassed thousands of vendors, customers and partners, or the auditors themselves"
With all due respect the first half of that is incorrect. And I should know, because I worked at a company where a major accounting fraud was perpetrated, causing it to collapse. A small number of people, probably around five to eight, can easily conduct an accounting based fraud, simply by mis-stating the revenues. Sometimes that's blatant, as in declaring a sale when you've not got one (although the perpetrators usually do so against a prospect that they hope to come good soon after). With software revenues particularly involving either income streams over time, or work streams over time against an up front payment you have to make a call when the revenues become a sale, and this in particular creates an opportunity for a more sophisticated fraud, by claiming revenues today for work that you will only do in the future, or claiming a future revenue stream as though it were earned when the contract were signed. Customers can't see any of this, and there's no reason for them to be involved. Suppliers wouldn't know enough (and software businesses usually don't have many suppliers compared to a manufacturing or retail business). The only people who should see enough to know are the auditors, and that that's why they are required by law. It helps if the company structure is complex, and if the finance team is under-manned and with high staff turnover (this means nobody outside the core "fraud team" stays long enough to see that the numbers are made up).
Problem is that in my experience at a couple of different companies, the auditors will sign off all manner of dodgy things, rather than rock the boat with a major client. Enron, Worldcom, and other big bankruptices were mostly due to a fraud involving the over-statement of results - but both had no problem getting their accounts signed off until the fraud had escalated to the point that the entire company went under (hence Arthur Andersen's demise). And so it was for the company I worked at - accounts signed off by the auditors in May, and by December the wheels had come off. It wouldn't take much for the auditors to properly check the sales ledger against contracts in place (and verify with major customers), nor for them to validate booking of revenues where there's a timing element. I don't think that the major auditors are ever complicit in fraud deliberately - unfortunately they tend to be persuaded to overlook the signposts to fraud in order to protect their relationship. And even if the company does go belly up, the auditor will charge even more for helping the administrators and creditors, so the downside of a client bankruptcy is usually limited.
Re: Unimaginable corruption
Then they are a part of their con, albeit unwittingly. Which doesn't absolve them of guilt. Indeed, that it was implicit fraud based on their own incompetence should make it worse, in my opinion.
My point was, however, that Autonomy can hardly be blamed if they got a clean bill of health prior to being sold. If the purchase was based on crap financials ( which I have no problems believing is the case here ), the only culpable party is the company making the purchase.
I would *love* to see HP sue itself, but I suspect that wouldn't be good for the bottom line.
Re: Unimaginable corruption
"in order for HP's claim of fraud to hold weight, the corruption would have encompassed thousands of vendors, customers and partners, or the auditors themselves"
No, it doesn't. All it takes is for one or two people to record a regular sale while also having a side agreement with the customer that you will let them do a return or refund, or will buy an equivalent amount of the customer's product, etc. Repeat this enough times to make the number for the quarter, and you're there.
This has happened enough times (3COM, Sunbeam, etc. etc.), especially when you have a domineering, aggressive CEO with a big ego who is willing to do anything to be seen as "the next Bill Gates" and maintain his or her ego.
Sure, HP grossly over-valued Autonomy too, but that doesn't mean their charges of fraud are automatically wrong. Both things can be true at once.
Re: Unimaginable corruption
They absolutely can be blamed if they deliberately mis-stated their financial position. Even if the auditors missed it.
All this talk of due diligence (or the lack thereof)
If there really *was* a failure in due diligence, and it sure as hell sounds like there was, then surely HP should be taking aim at KPMG and Toilette and Douche ...
All that said, HP do have a fair amount of previous in the 'monumentally expensive fuckup' stakes (EDS and Palm, to name but two)
Purchase and destroy
I worked for a US Nasdaq-listed company that's still around (just!) and they serially overpaid on a string of acquisitions. In each case my employer's inward-looking and insular management culture would then get to work destroying the new acquisition and rendering it close to worthless. I don't know if that's what happened with HP and Autonomy, but it's one explanation.
Popcorn anyone?
I cannot make my mind up which party I dislike more, so am sitting on the fence and watching this one out.
Unfortunately it will be the lawyers who are the real winners here.
Ex-HP employee, and I have solid reasons for disliking Lynch.
Re: Popcorn anyone?
Both are really somewhat unpleasant given events, editorials and comments. As some have said, this legal process will take some years to unravel and will cost a bloody fortune. As for Mr Lynch demanding information, my knowledge of legal process tells me he and his lawyers will see any plaintiff documents or evidence provided by HP in any claim made against him. To be honest, neither party will come out of this smelling other than like a sewage treatment plant. Let battle commence..!
I don't understand...
HP paid $11b
They say the value was overstated by $5b
HP are writing down $8.8b
If that's how good they are at sums is it any wonder they got it wrong?
I think we need a maths teacher icon, so whacko will will do for now.
Re: I don't understand...
HP's maths isn't wrong; the $3bn-ish between the value overstatement and the total writedown is due to the sizeable reduction in the HP share price since the Autonomy acquisition. Presumably at least some of the cost of the acquisition was paid in the form of HP shares.
Re: I don't understand...
I think they wrote down $5bn on Autonomy and another $3+bn on unrelated items in the same announcement.
HP - Unreal
HP, what a sham of a company. They have the worst board on the planet. HP has become synonymous as a den of uneducated crooks, and thieves. We are out of the hardware business, and into the software business. Oops! Wrong. We are in the hardware business trying to build up the software business, but just bought the Palm phone business. Rats, we trashed Palm, the phone business, and bought a software business. Nuts, the software business is nothing but code on paper not worth much really. Hmmm, Did I say we still make crap hardware? I would love to run the company for one week. I can guarantee a roller coaster ride with excellent results.
Master Rod
'Brit Bill Gates'
That's probably a bit unfair.
As I recall, Bill made his billions from building a hugely successful company and not by chucking a startup together, cooking the books and then flogging it sharpish to a gullible third party.
This isn't plain old success, this is Success 2.0.
Re: 'Brit Bill Gates'
HP...."Due Diligence""....Mmmmm....Carly Fiorina....
Worst purchase since TW bought AOL.
"HP announced last week it would take an $8.8bn writedown on the 2011 $11bn cash purchase it made for Autonomy..."
This is like buying a £200,000 house and finding out its only worth £40,000. This must be some sort of scam to avoid paying profits out to shareholders. Or the entire HP senior management board are completely incompetent.
Frank Jennings
Trevor Pott
Kat Hall
Iain Thomson
Popular Stories
- Microsoft: We're hiking UK cloud prices 22%. Stop whining – it's the Brexit
- And so we enter day seven of King's College London major IT outage
- Thanks, IoT vendors: your slack attitude will get regulators moving
- Vodafone rapped with RECORD £4.6m fine for failing customers
- EU ruling restricts rights to resell back-up copies of software where originals are damaged, destroyed or lost


text:
- News
- Calendar
- Blogs
- Sports
- Entertainment
- Business
- Lifestyles
- Community
- Opinion
- About Us
- Classifieds
- Coupons
- Local Savings
- Green Editions
- Legal Notices
- Weekly Ads
- Connect2Classes
Connect with Us
MUSIC TO THE EARS: Seventy-five of the finest handbell musicians from around the country will gather for Distinctly Bronze West, the American Guild of English Handbell Ringers' flagship performance; Sun., Feb. 15, 4 p.m.; Kitsap Conference Center at Bremerton Harborside, 100 Washington Ave.; $5 at the door. Info: www.agehr.org.
OPERA EARS: Seattle Opera Preview to feature a member of the Seattle Opera Education Department who will discuss the Seattle Opera production of "Bluebeard's Castle" and "Erwartung;" Sun., Feb. 15, 2:15 p.m.; Kitsap Regional Library, Sylvan Way, Bremerton.
DRIVE SAFE: Country Meadows is sponsoring an AARP driver safety program to serve as a refresher course for drivers older than 50; most insurance companies offer a discount to those who complete the course; Tues., Feb. 17 and Wed., Feb. 18, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. each day; 12169 Country Meadow Lane, Silverdale; $12 for AARP members, $14 for nonmembers; open to the public. Registration or info: (360) 692-4480.
CHECKMATE: Open games with chess players from the Kitsap County Chess Club; Wednesdays, Feb. 18 and 25, 6-8 p.m.; Downtown Bremerton Library, 612 Fifth St. Info: (360) 377-3955.
TRILLIUM SCHOOL: "Loving School: Educational Models That Bring Kids to Life" to feature information on local Montessori, Sudbury and Waldorf schools; Thurs., Feb. 19, 6:30 p.m.; Poulsbo Library. Info: email@example.com.
KNIGHT OF HONOR: Bremerton High School's Knight of Achievement to honor students' successes; Thurs., Feb. 19, 6 p.m.; BHS Performing Arts Center. Info: (360) 473-0800.
FAMILY MUSIC: Patrick and Sophia Stoyanovich — a father and daughter piano violin recital; Fri., Feb. 20, 7-9 p.m.; Collective Visions Gallery, 331 Pacific Ave., Bremerton; $15 advanced sales, $17 at the door. Info or tickets: (360) 377-8327 during business hours.
MONEY SMARTS: Super Saturday Financial Information Fair featuring free tax preparation services, free credit reports, credit counseling and housing counseling, low-income public housing and self-help programs and more; Sat., Feb. 21, noon-4:30 p.m.; West Park Community Center, 76 Russell Road, Bremerton. Info: (360) 479-8108.
FAMILY TREE: Puget Sound Genealogical Society to feature "Genealogy 101" workshop; Sat. Feb. 21, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; 2501 SE Mile Hill Drive, Suite A 102, Port Orchard; free. Info: (360) 874-8813 or visit www.pusogensoc.org.
BREAK BREAD: Salad Bowl 2009 — a potluck gathering of people coming together to worship and break bread with one another; Sun., Feb. 22, 4 p.m.; Crossroads Neighborhood Church, 7555 NE Old Military Road, Bremerton. Info: (360) 479-3674 or email@example.com.
PET POPULATION CONTROL: Kitsap Spay Day to feature 14 Kitsap County veterinarians who will offer discounted rates to help cut down on pet overpopulation; Tues., Feb. 24; CK vets include All Creatures Animal Hospital, Bremerton Animal Hospital, Wheaton Way Vet Clinic and the Kitsap Humane Society. To schedule an appointment for surgery, call (360) 479-6775.
KAPO DINNER: Kitsap Alliance of Property Owners (KAPO) to feature Bob Williams, founder and senior fellow of the Evergreen Freedom Foundation; Thurs., Feb. 26, 6 p.m. social hour, 6:45 p.m. dinner; Silverdale Beach Hotel; $40 per person, open to the public. Reservations and payment required by Sat., Feb. 21. Info: Gerry Taylor at (360) 692-8109 or firstname.lastname@example.com.
MEMORY CARE: Ashley Gardens at Bremerton to feature an Alzheimer's and dementia support group; Wed., Feb. 18, 7 p.m.; The Willows, 3201 Pine Road; free and open to the public. Info: (360) 478-7277 or www.cascadeliving.com.
WOMEN UNITE: GFWC Kitsap Peninsula Women's Club to feature launching of new fundraiser "Grounds for Change" — selling of fair trade coffee and tea; Thurs., Feb. 19, 6 p.m. dinner, 7 p.m. meeting; Subway, Kitsap Way; guests welcome. Info: http://www.orgsites.com/wa/gfwckitsap, firstname.lastname@example.com or (360) 698-0087.
FUTURE OF OPERA: Kitsap Opera's annual meeting to feature discussion on future plans, refreshments included; Fri., Feb. 20, 7-9 p.m.; Aurora Valentinetti Puppet Museum, 257 Fourth St., Bremerton. Info: (360) 377-7774.
TECHNOLOGICAL LOOK BACK: The Bainbridge Island Genealogical Society to discuss "Computer Programs for the Genealogist;" Fri., Feb. 20, 10 a.m.; Bainbridge Island Public Library meeting room; $5 suggested donation for nonmembers; annual dues are $35. Info: www.bigenealogy.org or (206) 842-6059.
SPEAK PROUDLY: Toastmasters International is a nonprofit organization that provides a supportive and positive learning environment to help people excel in speaking, listening and leadership skills; Wednesdays, 7-8 p.m.; Subway party room, 3850 Kitsap Way, Bremerton. Call or e-mail for a free reservation: Dave Harris at (360) 478-7089 or email@example.com.
The American Red Cross has a number of upcoming classes offered at the West Sound Service Center, 811 Pacific Ave., in Bremerton. To register, call (360) 377-3761 or visit the Web site at www.westsoundredcross.org.
Adult CPR — Thurs., Feb. 19; and Tues, Feb. 24; 5:30 p.m.– 9:30 p.m.; $36.
First Aid — Thurs., Feb. 26, 5:30-9:30 p.m.; $36.
Adult CPR with First Aid — Wed., Feb. 18, 1-8 p.m.; $55.
CPR and First Aid Review — Fri., Feb. 20, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.; $38.
Adult, Infant and Child CPR and First Aid — Sun., Feb. 22, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.; $70.
Seven-Hour HIV/AIDS Prevention — Fri., Feb. 27, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; $65.
Family Caregiver Workshop — Sat., Feb. 21, 9 a.m.-noon; Abiding Home Care, Silverdale; $10.
Cat and Dog First Aid — Sat., Feb. 21, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; $38.
Latest news, top stories, and community events,
delivered to your inbox.
Trending Stories Oct 21 - Oct 28
Read the Oct 28
Green Edition
Browse the print edition page by page, including stories and ads.
Browse the archives.


text:
The Cruise collection presentation will be held on Saturday, May 28th in an exclusive setting: the Niterói Contemporary Art Museum (MAC). A landmark building in Brazil, designed by celebrated Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer.
The iconic building, shaped like a flying saucer that looks like it has landed on the side of a hill overlooking Guanabara Bay, facing Rio, was built in 1991 and inaugurated in 1996. The white modernist structure is reflected in a pool that surrounds its cylindrical base, "like a flower", as the famed architect described it. The Louis Vuitton Cruise presentation marks the first time the museum has ever hosted a fashion show and also serves as an occasion to celebrate the museum's 20th anniversary and its reopening to the public following a major renovation project.
"Following the Bob and Dolores Hope estate designed by John Lautner in Palm Springs, California, we continue the architectural journey that is so particular to the Maison Louis Vuitton" explains Nicolas Ghesquière, Artistic Director of Women's Collections at Louis Vuitton.
The Louis Vuitton Cruise show will be broadcast live on May 28th on www.louisvuitton.com. #LVCRUISE


text:
No minimum purchase. First time buyers only. Click here to activate.
Traditional Chinese Medicine states that bladder discomfort is caused by a build-up of heat and dampness in the bladder area. This can happen when a pet is fed a diet high in fat. This kind of diet strains the spleen, and impedes its function of turning food into energy while excreting the waste. The waste builds up to create dampness. Heat enters the picture when the liver becomes stagnant. Liver stagnation is often aggravated by frustration. Pets can become frustrated when they are left alone, don't play enough or there is stress in the household. Our Bladder blend is formulated to clear heat and dampness, support the process of dissolving crystals, help open channels that balance dysfunction, help with discomfort, help calm conditions leading to urgency and leaking.
Only Natural Pet Chinese Herbal Blends are made with the highest quality sulfur-free and GMP-certified Chinese herbs. They are liquid extracts to ensure rapid absorption. We use organic alcohol and pure vegetable glycerin as a base for both optimum potency and taste.
About Only Natural Pet Herbal Remedies
Our Only Natural Pet Herbal Remedies have evolved from the work of holistic veterinarians and experienced herbalists to bring you a wide selection of natural health care products for your animal companion. Herbal formulas are easy to administer and easy for your pet to assimilate, making these treatments both simple and effective. Herbs are also great natural sources of vitamins, antioxidants, minerals, enzymes, and many other nourishing substances.
Only the finest herbs are used in our formulas, and the careful selection and blending of these herbs helps them interact synergistically for stronger, more beneficial effects. Nothing is more natural than harnessing the healing powers of the herbs and flowers around us. When ill or injured, animals in the wild have an uncanny ability to seek out and eat plants with properties that will help them heal.
Natural therapies like our herbal formulas do not just attack the symptoms of a disorder. Instead they rebuild your companion's total health and facilitate their body's innate ability to heal itself. When natural remedies are used in conjunction with a nutritious diet, your pet can enjoy a healthier life.
The effectiveness of Bladder Chinese Herbal Blend, as with ANY herbal or natural remedy, varies with the health of the animal. An animal being fed a high quality diet with adequate vitamins and enzymes will respond better than an animal on a poor quality diet. Each animal's system needs support in healing from within. Please see our article, "What You Need to Know About Your Pet's Food," for information about feeding the best quality diet.
Available in 2 oz (60 ml) liquid. Each 2 oz bottle contains approximately 1,050 drops.
Still have a question about this product? Click here to send us your product questions or comments by email.
Review Rating: 5
Country of Origin: USA
Manufacturer: Only Natural Pet
Shipping Weight: 0.29
Ingredients - Hua Shi, Che Qian Zi, Jin Qian Cao, Sheng Di, Bian Xu, Qu Mai, Huang Bai, Wang Bu Liu Xing, Dong Kui Zi, Bei Xie, Niu Xi, Bai Mao Gen, Hu Po, and Gan Cao in a base of pure vegetable glycerin, water, and organic alcohol (total alcohol content less than 4%)
Suggested Use
The reviews below are presented for informational purposes only and are not intended as an endorsement of any product. The information is not intended to be a substitute for visits to your local veterinarian. Instead, these testimonials offer the reader information and opinions written by pet owners and/or veterinarians concerning animal health and products that they have used.
(based on 23 reviews)
Ratings Distribution
5 Stars
4 Stars
3 Stars
2 Stars
1 Stars
of respondents would recommend this to a friend.
Best Uses
Reviewed by 23 customers
Displaying reviews 1-10
Back to top
Previous | Next »
bladder chinese herba;
By Elizabeth
from ny
About Me Long-time Pet Owner
Comments about Only Natural Pet Chinese Herbal Blends Bladder:
I use it to strengthen the bladder of my senior and keep it healthy. It works Praise the Lord
Bottom Line Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
Was this review helpful? Yes / No
- You may also flag this review
Comment on this review
He loves it!
By Pet lover
from Minnetonka MN
The herbs have a fairly strong odor, and I was sure my cat would not injest them. To my surprise, he will lick it directly out of the bowl even if I haven't put it on his food! His bladder issues seem to be at bay after staring this supplement also!Great product, and I will definitely purchase it again before running out!
(2 of 2 customers found this review helpful)
Sparky's mom
By Sparky's Mom
from New Jersey
My Shih Tzu, Sparky was dx'd with bladder stones and had reoccurring bladder infections with a lot of blood in his urine. I had been making his food for years, which seemed to help control the infections, but it got to a point where the homemade food was no longer helping. The vet had him on and off antibiotics, but the infection never completely went away. The vet told me it would cost $4,000-$5,000 for surgery to remove the stones, but the likelihood of new ones growing was very high. I tried this formula after reading the reviews. It has been ONE year and Sparky has not had any symptoms of stones or infections (knock on wood). Thank you!
(5 of 5 customers found this review helpful)
Try it. It worked for our cat
By Tootsie's Mom
from Detroit Area, MI
I tried ON Chinese Bladder Herbal Blend in desperation, after nearly two years of chronic recurring UTIs in our little cat Tootsie. After numerous vet visits and tests, including specialists, multiple urinalyses, x-rays, cultures, ultrasounds, a bladder dye test, several rounds each of 3 different antibiotics, and two trips to the veterinary teaching hospital at our state veterinary college, no one could diagnose the cause. She always tested negative for crystals, stones, or any kind of abnormality. The cultures were always positive for e coli bacteria. After every round of antibiotics her infection would return in 5 to 10 weeks, and she was in obvious discomfort, dribbling a few drops in the litter box, then hunching up in her cat bed, dribbling bloody urine, just miserable, poor thing. I was beside myself to find some relief for her. I tried the Tract Ease first, and it didn't seem to help her. So I didn't have much confidence that any herbal/holistic remedy would help. But with nothing to lose, I tried the Chinese Bladder herbs. I am thrilled to say Tootsie went a year and a half before she had a recurrence, and I think that was a side effect of a bad hairball/GI issue. She doesn't seem to object to the taste. I put about an inch in the dropper and drip it into her mouth twice a day, and she's good with that. Her pal Ilsa even wants a couple drops of Tootsie's "treat". I've been giving it to her for almost 2 years now, I'm afraid to discontinue. This product saved our sanity. For anyone who is going through the nightmare of recurring UTIs with a pet, I encourage you to try it.
(4 of 4 customers found this review helpful)
Excellent product for female toy poodle
By Poodle Lover
from Port Jefferson, NY
I have used this product every day for the past three years, since my vet cautioned me about my female toy poodle's tendency toward forming crystals. She was having difficulty urinating and episodes of incontinence. This product resolved these problems and has prevented any recurrance. Highly recommend!
Making it through the night
By Patti Poodle Person
This product is very effective in helping my toy poodle make it through the night without needing to use her wee wee pad.
(6 of 6 customers found this review helpful)
Seems like a miracle
By Happy in the Hills
from Hill City, So. Dak.
I learned about the effectiveness of Chinese herbswhen I lived in Hawaii, and that is what prompted me to try this product. I am so very glad that I did because my nuetered male cat has been easily prone to UTI issues. The vet bills have been unaffordable and not a permanent solution. Now I watch for symptoms and catch it early. After this last problem I started with the drops on dry food twice daily and saw results immediately! I have decided to use it daily now as a maintenance tool. I am so grateful for this product, and have a happy cat as well.
Merchant response: A moister food diet would also be helpful.
This is a MIRACLE!!!! :)
By love my fur-kids
from ft. myers, FL
We have a 5 year old Flame Point Siamese that's prone to UTI's. I was using a different homeopathic medication & thought it did the trick but found blood in the litter box!!!! I immediately ordered this along with the Tract-Ease & started putting both of them in his wet food. I'm happy to report he's back to normal with healthy "pee puddles," bright eyes & a pink, wet nose again :) I'm going to give this to him on a daily basis from now on & keep him on wet food only. Thank you soooo much for such an excellent product line! And being able to keep him out of the vet's office! :)
(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)
Works So Far
By Suzi
from Gold Beach, OR
I have a middle age cat about 6 yrs. and he is prone to urinary tract infections too frequently. The antibiotics from the vet just made him sick as a dog, so I tried this herbal. So far so good. It is a bit early still but he seems to be feeling better, more energy and just overall good health. The real test will be in about 6 months, if he is still infection free, wow. Just a few drops in his food and away he goes.
Early signs OK
By Judee
from Eagle, ID
In 2006, we adopted our 9.5 year old Silkie Terrier, "King Louis The First" ... a fabulous, beautiful, loving, playful boy! We do not know his history, former owners basically saying, "We know nothing". After MANY dollars spent with veterinarians it was discovered he has serious food allergies now controlled by no grains or chicken anything and feeding him only a freeze dried dog food and a canned meat along with an herbal supplement for allergies. Louie has teken to wetting more often on the carpet. Stress wetting? Had his blood checked and other than low thyroid and high triglycerides he is good to go so on thyroid med. now. Bought Natural Pet Store's Chinese herbal concoction for Bladder ... it is early to tell yet Louie seems to be doing a lot better. The drops are SO easy to use ... we just put them in his food. We feel this may do the trick!
© 2016 Only Natural Pet LLC - All Rights Reserved


text:
There are 239 results - Show results on a map Print this page
Showing 1 - 10 of 239
Lynbar is a welcoming, personally-run guest house with a prime central location just 300 metres from the promenade; an ideal position for the Tower, Winter Gardens and Grand Theatre. There are very co...More about Lynbar Guesthouse
Premier Inn Chorley South, in the heart of Lancashire, is just minutes away from the town centre and the beauty of the Lancashire countryside. Visit the Botany Bay shopping centre, have a day out at t...More about Premier Inn Chorley South
The Craven Heifer is located close to the town of Skipton and boasts themed rooms based on Yorkshire celebrities (e.g. Dame Judi Dench, David Hockney and Henry Moore). The bar is a traditional 'Dalesw...More about Craven Heifer
On the banks of the River Ribble, this hotel is conveniently located for the motorway, making it a popular venue for both business and leisure guests. Smartly appointed bedrooms are all tastefully de...More about Macdonald Tickled Trout
The Birley Arms is a smartly appointed inn situated in the charming village of Warton, between Lytham St Annes and Preston. The bedrooms are smartly decorated and equipped with modern facilities. Open...More about The Birley Arms
This 1920s house is situated close to the southern tip of Lake Windermere. Accommodation consists of three comfortable, tastefully decorated bedrooms, each with en suite shower room. Hearty breakfasts...More about Lyndhurst Country House
This delightful Edwardian villa stands in a leafy dell on the western side of Windermere. Public areas have many original features, including open fires in the cosy lounge and dining room. The attract...More about The Knoll Country House
Linthwaite House is set in 14 acres of hilltop grounds and enjoys stunning views over Lake Windermere. Inviting public rooms include an attractive conservatory and adjoining lounge, and an elegant res...More about Linthwaite House Hotel & Restaurant
The cotton mills may have been replaced by shopping malls but Oldham still retains its Victorian charm, so staying at Premier Inn Oldham Central puts you at the heart of it. Nearby are markets, a thea...More about Premier Inn Oldham Central
Close to the market town of Kirkby Lonsdale, Hipping Hall offers spacious bedrooms, designed using soft shades with sumptuous textures and fabrics; the bathrooms use natural stone, slate and limestone...More about Hipping Hall


text:
|Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute
Violence permeates our lives. Wars, racial and ethnic violence and male-female violence are perpetual aspects of human existence. Adolescent violence, and the ubiquitous possibility of its eruption, is the background for many of the problems of teaching in and running our schools.
Much has been written about violence, much of it nonsense. One of the teachers in this seminar brought in a poster, circulated to schools, that states that the 'roots of violence' are "Poor Coping and Communication Skills, Poor Value System and Poor Self-Esteem." There is not the slightest indication from the source of the poster what the evidence is upon which the claims are based. The teachers immediately recognized that Hitler, Mao, Stalin, Mohammed Ali (Cassius Clay) and many of the most violent characters in History, as well as today's gang leaders, were very capable individuals who excelled at just those factors. Other examples of the baseless theories fed to teachers abound.
Recently, Biologists studying animal behavior have started to make sense out of the confused field of violence. The key observation is that our closest animal relatives, the Chimpanzees, exhibit the same kinds of violence that humans do. Chimpanzee communities slaughter each other in what might be called wars, males compete physically with each other for dominance, males batter females and adolescence marks the onset of violent behavior.
Archaeologists and anthropologists find that these types of violence are almost universal in all human cultures and as far back in history as we can trace. Our seminar discussed the biological and cultural roots of violence through history and across cultures, reading material from as diverse regions as India, New Guinea and China as well as the US.
The various units written in the course of the seminar explore and apply this information in ways that are appropriate for different school settings.
Kimberly Workinger's unit, "Basic Animal Behavior in Domesticated Animals," takes animals for its topic. This unit explains the interplay of instincts and learning in the behavior of small animals usually kept as pets. The audience is agricultural track students at the 'Sound School,' but, since almost everyone has or knows pets, the unit should be widely applicable to most any school setting.
Carolyn Kinder's unit, "The Roots of Violence in Society," applies the same biology-culture analysis to human violence. Anyone who has ever observed the uncontrollable rage and fear at play in an adolescent fight knows that a lot of biology is involved. Behavior which follows the same pattern from Chimps to primitive humans to modern humans is likely to have a large instinctual component. By explicitly comparing violent behavior in humans with violent behavior in the two species of Chimp (common Chimps and Bonobos) the similarities and differences are made clear.
Jessica Zelenski's unit, "Motherhood: Biological Asset or Social Liability?" uses the "biological aspects and social constructions of motherhood" to discuss the terrible choices and situations which downtrodden women face. The approach is cross cultural; the students will read three novels centering on Chinese women, an Indian (South Asian) woman and an American slave woman. All three discuss women fleeing an intolerable life to a new culture. The slave woman is forced into committing infanticide, the Indian woman survives an attempted infanticide on herself and the Chinese women find themselves involved in symbolic infanticide/matricide in which mothers and daughters reject each other's cultural identities.
Diana Otto's unit, "Sexual Oppression and Religious Extremism in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale," deals with a literary exploration of violence. One cannot help but notice how many of the wars and ethnic conflicts in the world are religion-based. Similarly it is obvious that many of the worst examples of the oppression of women around the world have a religious justification. The Handmaid's Tale envisions a future America that is engulfed in a religious war where the fundamentalists in control have instituted an extreme form of sexual oppression. Starting from the Biblical tale of Jacob's wives offering their servants to be impregnated by Jacob, Atwood describes a society where women are forced to bear children for powerful military men. This unit should generate lots of discussion and controversy in any literature class.
The seminar stimulated a series of fascinating conversations, dissecting the all-too-common phenomena of violence from very unusual perspectives. We hope that these units will help you and your students recreate some of our excitement.
Robert Wyman


text:
A thriller by Jonathan Javitt
Jonathan C. Javitt, M.D., M.P.H.
is a physician, epidemiologist, and health economist who has served as a senior health advisor and Presidential appointee in the last three Presidential administrations. Most recently, he was appointed by President Bush to Chair the Health Subcommittee of the President's Information Technology Advisory Committee and to serve as a Presidential Delegate to the White House Conference on Aging. Dr. Javitt is a Senior Fellow of the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies and an Adjunct Professor of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He has served as an expert consultant to the World Bank, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the health ministries of numerous foreign countries. He is a graduate of Harvard, Cornell, and Princeton Universities. While he has authored more than 200 scientific publications, Capitol Reflections is his first novel.
Capt. Gwen Maulder, a hardworking FDA medical officer is traumatically thrust onto the trail of a small, but mysterious epidemic of fatal seizures, all among young professionals. The culprit seemingly kills without a trace, no matter how deeply she probes. As Gwen attempts to probe the mystery, the opposition to her investigation rises, far out of proportion to its scope. At the heart of story is a chilling scheme to manipulate the lives of millions through genetic modification, conceived and executed by those in the highest possible positions of public trust. As Gwen and her allies attempt to overcome dangerous adversity the reader is left to wonder whether anything today can be truly safe to eat or drink or breathe. Gwen's story is as real as tomorrow's headlines.
By Diana Furchtgott-Roth, The New York Post
If you can read only one book this year, it should be Capitol Reflections, the new thriller by Dr. Jonathan Javitt. Not only is this gripping novel almost impossible to put down, but it illustrates potentially vital problems with the safety of America's food supply.
In 1826 Anthelme Brillat-Savarin wrote, "Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are." Almost 200 years later, it's becoming impossible to tell what we eat because of invisible genetic modifications in our food, which are completely unregulated by our many government agencies.
Javitt, a physician who has long worked in the public health arena and who has published over 200 scientific works, has incomparable experience in the area of food safety. He chaired President Bush's Health Subcommittee of the President's Information Technology Advisory Committee and served as a member of the White House Health Reform Task Force.
The book's plot centers on Dr. Gwen Maulder, a captain in the U.S. Public Health Service, who follows the trail of a mysterious outbreak of deaths across the country in the face of escalating bureaucratic attempts to stop her. Dr. Maulder, a 21st century heroine, is ready to take on evil on her own terms, especially when it kills her best friend, New York lawyer Marci Newman.
When the secret is finally revealed, the reader is horrified by the ease with which the public could be placed at enormous risk with little chance of detection. What is most troubling is that the food supply manipulation that causes the deaths in Capitol Reflections turns out to be legal – unlike the murder and mayhem committed by its villains in attempting to cover their misdeeds.
Capitol Reflections shows how easily the nation's food supply could be manipulated to the economic ends of a nefarious few and how difficult such manipulation would be to uncover.
The issues exposed in Capitol Reflections suggest an increased government focus on the role of genetic manipulation in our nation's food supply and for finding a reasonable balance between continual drive for improvement and the safety of the public. These issues could not possibly be more timely.
In recent months we have learned that the American rice supply might be contaminated with genetically-modified rice that is not approved for human consumption, that animal food and possibly other products entering the human food chain are contaminated with melamine, and that toothpaste from Chinese sources has antifreeze as an additive.
We spend billions of dollars on making sure pharmaceuticals are safe for sick Americans, we're proposing to spend billions on dangers from global warming, but we spend little on making sure that the genetic modifications in food we eat every day don't make healthy Americans sick.
Any company can sell genetically-modified foods, and there are nearly no safeguards in place to recognize them on supermarket shelves or make sure they don't cause allergic reactions.
We should be profoundly grateful to Javitt for waking us up to the risks we face from dangers in food safety—and for writing a brilliant thriller rather than an academic journal article.
Read what others are saying about the book:
Javitt has melded his professional and political expertise to craft a
Javitt has written a grab you by the throat thriller that could easily be tomorrow's lead news story. Under the guise of a compelling read lurks a keep-you-guessing plot that should cause any intelligent reader to worry about the safety of us all. An intrepid female physician, a town full of bad guys, and the safety of the American people at stake. Seems like a surefire recipe for success.
Janet Rehnquist, former Inspector General, US Department of Health and Human Services.
Few people know both medicine and Washington like Jonathan Javitt . As a White House insider, consummate physician, and active participant in public health policy he knows what he is writing about and it shows in Capitol Reflections. On a topic which may someday involve the lives of millions this is a novel that is both compelling and informative."
Newt Gingrich. Best selling author of Pearl Harbor and Gettysburgh


text:
By Chris Lee
Mobile apps have fascinated marketers over the last few years, with many creating their own for download onto smart phones. Apps have one single clear advantage over a website for the mobile user in that, so long as it's well made, it can provide a far better user experience. But with so many developed solely for the iPhone (6.75 per cent of the US mobile market), Android-based systems (7.75 per cent) and BlackBerry (8.53 per cent), it could be argued that less than a quarter of the mobile market is being served.
According to Andy Budd, managing director of user experience and web design agency Clearleft, this has led to an "application gold rush", with companies rushing to stake their claim. While some early app pioneers struck metaphorical gold, many prospectors in this gold rush arrived to find a very different market to the one they had expected.
Changing landscape
For Budd, those companies lured into app development have found competition tough, especially as consumers appear to have lost some of their appetite for mobile applications, falling back instead on the few must-have staples.
"Recent studies have shown that we tend to limit our usage to a few core applications and the bulk of apps never even get opened. Furthermore, smart-phone usage is still fairly low in the UK, making it difficult to gain scale" he warned.
So, despite newspapers and magazines hailing the iPad as the saviour of the publishing industry, and blue chip companies rushing to create trophy apps, does Budd believe it really makes business sense to jump on the application bandwagon?
"For a lot of companies I believe the answer is no," he said. "Good app design takes a level of time and investment that is hard to justify commercially. Only the international brands have the mindshare and level of traffic they need to guarantee scale. Even then, most of them rush out poorly designed and undifferentiated applications with no real user need. I mean, who loves <insert generic high street brand> enough to download its dedicated store finder when you can get the same information from Google, usually a lot quicker?"
Common errors
Budd said that one common trend is for organisations to create near carbon copies of their website, in app form. These apps are often paid-for, in an attempt to claw back some revenue for content that up to now has been given away for free. However, this is rarely a successful strategy as consumers are savvy and mobile usage patterns are quite specific.
"If you are thinking of creating an application that is almost identical to your Web experience, why create a dedicated app at all? Mobile browsers have come a long way and recent advances in HTML and CSS mean you can create a mobile optimised version of your site for a fraction of the price," Budd said.
Even dedicated mobile sites are relatively easy to produce and are likely to reach more people than your device-specific mobile app, Budd said.
"I'm not suggesting that companies shouldn't commission mobile applications. We just need to be careful about what we build and why," he concluded. "There is still 'gold in them there hills,' but it's going to be a lot more difficult to find and a lot more expensive to extract. The days of the gold rush are now over and we need to view applications as a business rather than a faddish get-rich-quick scheme. So where's your mobile strategy?"