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THE BIG CHILL: We're thankful we don't have winter in Long Beach. Sure, we might get the odd cold wave coming through, but that's what our hot tub and central heating are for.
What's galling to us are relocated Easterners who, having replaced the memories of soul-crushing blizzards with Thomas Kinkade-splattered nostalgia, complain about the absence of winter in our coastal communities.
Look, you want winter, fork over 25 bucks and we'll give you all the winter you can handle at Chill, the newest attraction at the Queen Mary, opening Saturday.
Ice-ologists have transformed the country-sized Queen Mary Dome, adjacent to the ship, into what they're calling the world's largest igloo and have packed the place with giant ice carvings crafted by Chinese artists in the manner of the sculptures seen annually in Harbin, China's winter festival.
The artists have been working for weeks, working with more than 2 million pounds of ice, building works as tall as 30 feet - and including an icy replica of the Queen Mary (which one hopes doesn't hit a shipberg and sink) - and kept fresh and frozen under arctic conditions during the 51 days of Chill's stay in town.
Additionally, nearby the igloo is a 100-foot-long Ice Tube ride on which visitors will speed down an ice hill at "sleigh-ride speeds." We've never been on a sleigh ride; no idea if that's fast or leisurely. You'll also find an ice cave, a Santa's Toyland, a walk-through Fairytale Castle, a Nativity scene along with an interfaith Ice Grotto, and ice skating on a 6,500-square-foot rink.
Want more? There's a Holiday Village, with live entertainment, portraits with Santa Claus, gingerbread house-decorating, a Candy Lane maze and holiday shopping.
You're looking, we'd guess, at about a $600 value. But admission is just $24.95 for adults; $19.95 for kids 5-12; kids under 5 free. The ice slide is $12.95 for five runs and ice skating is $12.95.
Parkas are handed out at the site, but you are advised to dress warmly, anyway, because, you know, ice.
For more info and to purchase tickets go to www.queenmary.com/chill.
THE JUDGE OF PIE: We're thankful that our baking skills have paid off to the point where, for the second year, we've been invited to serve as judge for Justin Rudd's Community Action Team's Long Beach Bake-Off, on Sunday, again professionally eating baked goods with our friend and L.A. Times food editor Russ Parsons.
We are further thankful that this year the Bake-Off has added a pies category to the already filling slate of cookies, cupcakes, brownies and various bars and squares.
The Bake-Off will be at Bay Shore Church, 5100 The Toledo, in Belmont Shore.
Contestants will deliver their baked goods to the hall from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.; private judging goes from 5:30 to 7 p.m. A tasting reception goes from 7 to 8 p.m. with $5 admission at the door; and awards will be announced at 7:10 p.m.
If you'd still like to enter, fees are $5 in advance and $10 at the door. There are plenty of rules, so check them out at www.justinrudd.com/bakeoff.
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT: We're thankful that St. Patrick's Day is still a safe four months distant, but just to keep your mutton chops sharp, you can swing by the always-Gaelic Shenanigans Irish Pub & Grille in Shoreline Village Saturday for St. Practice Day, a full-dress rehearsal for the main March 17 event, with Irish drink specials (no mention of Car Bombs, but, come on!), Irish food, Irish music by the band Dublin Public, and more. We fear a piper will show up.
FRIDAY PLAYLIST: We're thankful because, by tradition, we're supposed to be thankful this time of year. We're hoping it's a quiet week, because as soon as we wrap up some leftover turkey and stuffing at our mother-in-law's house (thankful, too, that she lives in town) we'll step out into a world in fully-fueled yuletidiness. To ensure that you don't jump the gun, we suggest listening to these pre-Christmas carols of thanks.
1. "Thanksgiving," Poi Dog Pondering
2. "That's the Way God Planned It," Billy Preston
3. "What a Wonderful World," Louis Armstrong
4. "The Thanksgiving Song," Adam Sandler
5. "Alice's Restaurant," Arlo Guthrie
6. "Thank You," Led Zeppelin
7. "Give Thanks and Praises," Bob Marley
8. "Life," Avett Brothers
9. "Thanksgiving Song," Mary Chapin Carpenter
10. "Thank You," Dido.
email@example.com, 562-499-1256 or twitter.com/grobaty


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Browse through our archive of press release or get in touch with us via our media relations department.
Enter your details below and our Customer Service representative will assist you with group bookings. Please fill in all fields.
Subang, 17 October 2013: It began with just one "Like", and now Malaysia Airlines has one million amazing journeys on its Facebook page! Reaching the coveted one million mark has enabled Malaysia Airlines to extend its strong presence on the social media sphere with a focus on sharing compelling stories of fans and the airline alike. The following is infectious and there is no stopping Malaysia Airlines.
With the introduction of localised content for its Facebook site in 17 key countries from April 2013, coupled with the unveiling of singer/songwriter Yuna as its Social Media ambassador, Malaysia Airlines' journey on social media has experienced exceptional growth.
Its Facebook site saw a substantial increase in fan acquisition over the months April to October 2013 with over 600,000 new global fans.
Indonesia leads the way with a fourfold increase in growth, far outpacing the growth of the brand's home base.
To commemorate this important milestone, Yuna together with Malaysia Airlines' world renowned cabin crew were featured in a special video thanking fans in line with the Journeys Are Made By The People You With brand campaign.
The video will be shared across all social media assets, and features Yuna's latest song 'I Wanna Go' from her US latest release which embodies the spirit of amazing journeys. The video is also earmarked for use across all other Malaysia Airlines social media campaigns.
"We have positioned social media at the forefront of our marketing mix. Growing our engagement with fans globally has contributed significantly to our business turnaround successes," said Khairul Syahar Khalid, Malaysia Airlines' Head of Advertising & Promotions. "Social Media is a new frontier for marketing, and as many brands have discovered, going on social media certainly pays."
He added, "We will be pushing the boundaries even further with our next marketing plans, all of which will see the social media platforms at the forefront. We want to continue to engage with our fans globally at a much deeper level whilst growing our footprint further."
As 2013 draws to a close, the Malaysia Airlines Social Media Team together with its Social Media Agency Rally, a member of IPG Mediabrands, are busy at work planning the next milestone. With more activities in store including further collaboration with Yuna, the year 2013 and by extension 2014 will be a banner year for Malaysia Airlines with social media.
To view the video with Yuna, visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVKaeZ0BhiA

subset: commoncrawl


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Taylor Swift named 'Biggest Pop Star in the World'
Listen to Taylor Swift on iHeartRadio
Taylor Swift is the "biggest pop star in the world," declares New York magazine in its new issue.
In the accompanying interview, the singer opens up about unapologetically mining her personal life for lyrical content, where she sees herself in the future, and the deep connection she shares with her fan base.
"I think that allowing yourself to feel raw, real emotions in public is something I am never going to be afraid to do. Hopefully that's the case, if I can remain a real human," Swift tells the magazine.
She continues "I'm fine with being honest with my fans about the fact that it's okay that everything isn't okay all the time. I love my life, I love my career, I love my friends — but things are not okay all the time. So I don't sing about things being okay all the time."
Nothing that she only writes "songs about crazy love," Swift explains that "if I go on two dates with a guy and we don't click, I'm not writing a song about that. It didn't matter in the emotional grand scheme of things. There's a lot that goes on in daily life that isn't really worth turning into a verse and a chorus."
"I mean, [critics] can say that all they want. Those are real feelings that every single person goes through," Swift says of writing about love and heartbreak.
She goes on, "I think that it's okay to be mad at someone who hurt you. This isn't about, like, the pageantry of trying to seem like nothing affects you. I'm a songwriter. Everything affects me."
Of course, the gossip media tends to embellish a bit (cough).
"There's a spin on every single celebrity out there," says Swift. "I know that one of my spins is: 'Oh, Taylor's heartbroken. Oh, Taylor fell in love and the guy broke her heart. She's sad all the time, and lonely.'"
The songstress' latest album has drawn particular scrutiny, and she admits she's "heard from the guy that most of Red is about."
"He was like, 'I just listened to the album, and that was a really bittersweet experience for me. It was like going through a photo album.' That was nice. Nicer than, like, the ranting, crazy e-mails I got from this one dude," she says.
She explains, "It's a lot more mature way of looking at a love that was wonderful until it was terrible, and both people got hurt from it — but one of those people happened to be a songwriter. So what are you going to do? Did you not Wikipedia me before you called me up [for a date]?"


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The WorkKeys® tests for Career Readiness Certification (CRC) will be offered five times in January.
The Wayne Occupational Readiness Keys for Success (WORKS) program will provide testing sessions 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on Jan. 7 and 28; 12:30-4:30 p.m. on Jan. 23, , and 4:30-9:00 p.m. on Jan. 15. All of these sessions will be held in Room 136 in the Walnut Building on Wayne Community College's main campus in Goldsboro. Pre-registration by calling (919) 739-7004 is required.
Cost to take the set of three skill assessments (applied mathematics, locating information, and reading for information) is $30 but assistance to cover that cost may be available.
The Airman and Family Readiness Center on Seymour Johnson Air Force Base offers free testing to military personnel and their dependents. The next session will be held 1:00-4:30 p.m. on Jan. 21 at the Watkins Das Education Center computer lab. Pre-register by calling (919) 772-1123.
Those wishing to prepare for the CRC may take advantage of the self-directed instruction and skills upgrade training offered in the WORKS Lab, which also is located in Room 136 of the
Walnut Building.
Individuals may earn bronze, silver, gold, or platinum certificates based on their performance on the tests. The CRC is recognized by employers across the state as a proven measurement of job skills.
WORKS is a collaborative effort of the Wayne County Chamber of Commerce, Wayne Community College, Wayne County Public Schools, County of Wayne, JobLink/ESC, City of Goldsboro, and the Eastern Carolina Workforce Development Board. It is housed on the Wayne Community College campus.


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The Study of California Class Action Litigation was undertaken in collaboration with the University of California Hastings College of the Law to provide previously unavailable data about class action litigation in the state, as well as to promote more informed policy and practice discussions about this often controversial litigation tool.
Contact: Leah Rose-Goodwin, Office of Court Research, firstname.lastname@example.com
In December 2005, the Office of Court Research was awarded a research grant from the National Institute of Justice to study batterer intervention programs (BIPs) in California. The study encompasses five California counties, 53 BIPs that provided client data, and over 1,000 men enrolled in BIPs. The study found that the strongest predictors of success in treating offenders convicted of a criminal domestic violence offense were the individual characteristics of the offenders, not the features of batterer intervention programs of the attributes of the court jurisdiction.
News Release: Domestic Violence Study Finds Which Batterers Are Least Likely to Be Re-arrested
Research Study of Batterer Intervention Systems Fact Sheet
Batterer Intervention Systems in California - An Evaluation
Contact: Leah Rose-Goodwin, Office of Court Research, email@example.com
A multi-phase study designed to assess and evaluate litigants' perceptions of procedural justice, effective case presentation practices, and the role of self-help centers and other forms of prior legal consultation in small claims cases. Further, the study will examine the relationships these factors may have to case outcomes and litigants' ratings of court performance.
Fact Sheet: Research Study of Procedural Justice and Effective Court Practices in Small Claims Cases
Contact: David A. Smith, Office of Court Research, firstname.lastname@example.com
The Collaborative Justice Program undertakes research on the collaborative courts of California. Click here to learn more.
Exploring the Work of the California Trial Courts: A 20-Year Retrospective.


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Fast thinking teachers prevent school bus accident in Charleston County
From our News Partners at WCBD-TV:
CHARLESTON, SC - Some fast thinking teachers jumped into action after their school bus, packed with kids, ran a stop sign and the driver was tossed from behind the wheel.
On December 4 a long awaited field trip for 4th Graders at Pinckney Elementary was coming to and end and teacher Amy Ryan said it exceeded expectations. "The field trip was beautiful we went to Bulls Island we had a great day it was warm, the kids hiked, we had a great field trip."
It was the end of a perfect field trip and then there was trouble at the intersection of See Wee and Bulls Island Road. "I don't remember who said it first but somebody said stop, stop sign, stop and you could tell the bus driver was just going too fast to stop. The bus driver overturned and it felt like we were going to tip a little bit."
As the bus weaved and kids the screamed Ryan looked ahead and found that somebody else had taken the wheel. "I look up and Mr. Morris is at the wheel and the bus driver is next to the seat."
As the bus driver lie on the floor Language Interpreter, Lee Morris said he really didn't think at that point he just reacted. "Because of the turn of the wheels we came back out of the ditch but that's when I was able to jump up and grab the wheel and keep it going down the road straight. I was trying to work with the driver but he couldn't reach the breaks from where he was."
Amy Ryan reacted to bring the bus to a stop, "I asked Mr. Morris if he could reach the break and he said no and so I jumped in stopped the bus."
Both educators say they did what anyone else would have done, Ryan says she's a little uncomfortable now that word is out about their heroics. "It's not one those things that you really want credit for and honestly I wish it didn't happen it was very scary- it's nice it's really very nice but it feels a little strange."
Photo Credit: Turbo83 Shutterstock


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Web Manager University Kicks Off New Semester with Workshop
September 19, 2006
Contact: Andrew Gibbons (202) 501-1231
Washington D.C. – Web managers from throughout the government are learning an assortment of skills this week at the Government Web Managers Workshop, co-sponsored by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). The workshop kicks off the fall 2006 semester for Web Manager University. Managers are being taught the practical tools they need to make government websites easier to read and navigate, to improve the way government websites are managed and measured, and to respond in the face of emergencies.
"This is just another example of how GSA is improving service to citizens across the government," said GSA Administrator Lurita Doan. "Citizens are using the internet for information more than ever, and this demonstrates the government's efforts to ensure the websites provide useful information to citizens on their terms."
Web Manager University is a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary training program for government web managers, which will discuss how to improve government websites and strengthen the way the public accesses government information and services, particularly in times of crisis.
Last semester, the training program attracted over 500 web managers, who received low-cost instruction from some of the nation's top web experts. The program offers two hour seminars and one and two-day courses on such topics as: web content and information architecture, web governance, web analytics, usability and design, search engines, and web marketing.
The kickoff workshop included web managers and content specialists from across the country, representing over 50 federal agencies and several state and local government agencies. Keynote speakers included John Lewis Needham of Google, Inc., and well-known usability expert Jared Spool.
The event is taking place at Catholic University in Washington, D.C. The workshop is part of a larger effort by GSA to provide a leadership role in improving services to citizens government-wide -- in whichever way they want to communicate with their government -- whether via the web, email, phone, or in-person.
Read more about Web Manager University at: http://www.firstgov.gov/webcontent/resources/training/university.shtml
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GSA is a centralized, federal procurement, property management, policy development and information provision agency, created by Congress to improve government efficiency and help federal agencies better serve the public. In this role, GSA acquires products and services on behalf of federal agencies; plays a key role in developing and implementing government-wide policies; provides services and solutions for the office operations of more than one million federal workers; and encourages a citizen-centric relationship with government by providing a single "point of entry" to the information and services citizens need in a timeframe they can appreciate. This allows citizens to receive accurate, timely and consistent answers and information, and helps federal agencies better respond to citizen inquiries.


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Sure, there are lots of sports shows around the radio these day, but this is the one that started it all! SportsTalk™ has launched careers…created characters that led to new careers…and has even been used as the model for entire radio formats. Oh, they've tried to imitate SportsTalk™ over the years, but none have been able to duplicate the spontaneous hilarity, off-beat observations, and the antics that Joe Soucheray and Patrick Reusse bring to the show.
Most recently a show heard exclusively on Saturday mornings, SportsTalk™ is now on-air from 2-4pm every weekday afternoon, as well as 10a-12n every Saturday morning. Tune in for the events of the day, with the unique commentary from two of the Twin Cities most popular media personalities, Joe and Pat.


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Celebrity Moms Mother's Day Photos
Celebrity Moms Share Their Mother's Day Photos
Start Slideshow
Celebrity Moms Share Their Mother's Day Photos
It doesn't take much to make most moms happy on Mother's Day — just some heartfelt words and some time with their little loves. That appeared to be the case throughout Hollywood, as celebrity mamas took the day to celebrate with their kids. Lucky for us, many decided to capture their sweet moments and share the pictures via Twitter and Instagram. Click through to see which celeb moms spent the day on the beach with their tots, which ventured to restaurants, and which were able to snag a few hugs.


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Power's Glasnow changes his tune
Pirates prospect fans seven, pitches career-high six innings
By Robert Emrich / MiLB.com | July 9, 2013 7:18 PM ET
Tyler Glasnow had the kind of first-half success that has him poised to move up prospect lists everywhere. And he owes it all to his willingness to make a change to his change.
The Pirates' No. 17 prospect struck out seven and allowed three hits over a career-high six scoreless innings Tuesday night, pitching Class A West Virginia to a 3-1 victory over Kannapolis.
After allowing a two-out triple to Tim Anderson in the third inning, Glasnow (5-2) retired eight straight batters before walking Anderson with one out in the sixth. Glasnow got the next batter, Jason Coats, to hit into a double play to end the inning and his night.
"I felt good in my bullpen before [the game]," Glasnow said. "I was trying to slow my tempo down. I feel like the first inning of a lot of my games have just been kind of fast-paced, just trying to get through it. Today, everything felt good and slow. I felt like I could work with my off-speed [stuff] more."
The 19-year-old right-hander has been thriving in his first full Minor League season, leading the South Atlantic League with 110 strikeouts while ranking sixth with a 1.09 WHIP and seventh with a 2.48 ERA.
Glasnow credits a renewed focus on his changeup, which entering the season was considered behind his fastball and curve in terms of development.
"It's like night and day from the beginning of the season or from last year," he said "These past seven or eight starts, I've been working with our pitching coach, Jeff Johnson, and he's changed my whole my mind-set on changeups.
"I never really wanted to throw 'em because I felt like, in high school, there wasn't a need to, so I wasn't a believer in them. I feel just as confident, if not more confident, in my changeup than my fastball some games."
Selected by the Pirates in the fifth round of the 2011 Draft, Glasnow had not pitched past the fifth inning in his first 27 Minor League starts.
"I'm really happy. In the first half, I had an inning limit and now we're later in the season and [manager Michael Ryan] said, 'If you have a low pitch count, I'm going to let you go six,'" he said.
"Today I had a low pitch count heading into the sixth and he was like, 'Just go out for another one.' And I was pretty excited to hear him say that."
While some players set statistical goals or look toward milestones like being promoted, Glasnow said he just wants to replicate what he's done on the hill over his first 3 1/2 months with the Power.
"Staying with my approach and not getting away from what I've been doing," he said. "Me saying I don't want to walk people is not a huge thing. I feel like if I just keep doing what I'm doing and stay focused on a routine, everything will fall into place. Being able to throw my off-speed for strikes and being composed and have a good tempo on the mound is what I'm trying to work on."
Ryan Hafner took over for Glasnow and gave up a run on one hit over the final three innings to record his second save.
Walker Gourley was 2-for-4 with an RBI and Pirates No. 8 prospect Barrett Barnes plated a run for the Power, who snapped a five-game losing streak.
Robert Emrich is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @RobertEmrich This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.View More


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I have come to realize that 72% of the time when I think I'm craving sushi, I'm in fact craving straight up wasabi.
It's not that I don't looove sushi in its many glorious forms but it's the wasabi that really brings the whole thing together for me. I love the stuff. It's a completely different type of spicy that I totally dig.
I even love that eye-watering moment when you've gotten a little too much and your sinuses are magically the clearest they've felt in months. Oh yeah. That's the good stuff.
I know not everyone shares my crazylove for Japanese horseradish (I mean, clearly I'm some sort of spice sadist. Whatevs.) But if you do like the flavor, you have to try this salad with wasabi dressing. The dressing isn't at eye-watering level (I'm not a monster!) but it's undoubtedly wasabi-flavored.
The combination of traditional sushi roll vegetables like carrots and avocado topped with sesame seeds and a wasabi and soy dressing completely satisfy my sushi/wasabi cravings from the comfort of my own home.
It's a salad that holds up well if you want to take it as a work week lunch or on a picnic – and it's best at room temperature.
This version of the salad is vegan-friendly, but I'm dreaming about a gorgeous medium-rare piece of grilled salmon on top of this situation sometime soon.
Edamame Sushi Bowl (serves 2)
inspired by Sushi Roll Edamame Salad from Appetite for Reduction
– 1 cup cooked brown rice
– 1 medium carrot, shredded
– 1 cup shredded kale
– 1/2 cup shelled edamame (defrosted)
– 1/2 avocado, cut into bite-sized chunks
– 1-2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Place rice, carrot, kale and edamame in a bowl and toss well with 1-2 tablespoons of the wasabi dressing (below) top with avocado and toasted sesame seeds and serve with additional dressing (if desired.)
Wasabi Salad Dressing (warning: packs a punch!)
– 1 teaspoon wasabi paste
– 1 teaspoon soy sauce
– 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
– 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
Place all ingredients in a small jar or bowl and mix well until everything is blended together.


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Mines hosts 3rd Annual Biodiesel Collective Conference
The conference will feature talks, discussions and demonstrations by some of the most engaged individuals in the grassroots biodiesel movement. The conference has a focus on community-scale biodiesel and brings together biodiesel co-op members from around the world. In addition, innovative farmers will present new non-food crops to provide oil for biodiesel while others will provide information on emerging sustainable feedstock technologies – including algae.
Jonathan Meuser, associate director of the conference and Mines Ph.D. candidate, said the event serves as means for innovators to share and improve ideas.
"The conference is a test-bed of new technology and innovation in community scale biodiesel," he said. "For example, do-it-yourself innovators have been sharing and improving their ways to recover residual methanol from the co-products of biodiesel production since the first year of the conference. When this is done the methanol can be recycled and used again, making the entire process cheaper and more environmentally-friendly."
For more information, including a conference agenda, see the Biodiesel Collective Conference Web site.
Founded in 1874, Colorado School of Mines was established to serve the needs of the local mining industry. Today, the School has an international reputation for excellence in both engineering education and the applied sciences with special expertise in the development and stewardship of the Earth's resources. For more information about Colorado School of Mines, visit www.mines.edu.
303-273-3541 / firstname.lastname@example.com
Marsha Williams, Director of Integrated Marketing Communications
303-273-3326 / email@example.com


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Export-Import Bank of the United States
News about Export-Import Bank of the United States, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.
Chronology of Coverage
Jun. 28, 2016
Export-Import Bank has gone nearly full year without approving any deals over $10 million, largely due to intransigence of Alabama Sen Richard Shelby; freeze at 82-year-old institution has stymied more than $20 billion in pending international deals, and prompted corporations like General Electric and Boeing to move projects, and jobs, overseas; Shelby's actions reflect rise of conservative populism that despises large institutions. MORE
Feb. 24, 2016
Sen Richard C Shelby of Alabama, Republican chairman of Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, has stalled committee's work via increasingly familiar Republican strategy of failing to approve any of Pres Obama's nominees in order to avoid agitating voters in upcoming primaries; critics point out Shelby's use of tactic has hampered work of Export-Import Bank and Federal Reserve. MORE
Dec. 8, 2015
Export-Import Bank, which helps finance many American exports, reopens, ending five-month hiatus; obstacles remain, however, including three empty board seats and provision blocking approval of deals over $10 million. MORE
Dec. 2, 2015
Bipartisan talks produce agreement on five-year, $300 billion transportation bill that will aid country's run-down highways and other infrastructure while reopening Export-Import Bank. MORE
Oct. 28, 2015
House of Representatives, in bipartisan 313 to 118 vote, overwhelmingly approves bill that will reopen Export-Import Bank; passage of bill is seen as reversal of triumph by free-market conservative Republicans who had previously blocked reauthorization of agency. MORE
Oct. 26, 2015
General Electric's Waukesha, Wis, engine factory, which was recently closed, is victim of government's shuttering of 81-year-old Export-Import Bank; bipartisan group is seeking to reopen agency, which provides financing and insurance for American companies that export products. MORE
Oct. 11, 2015
Joe Nocera Op-Ed column observes that Koch Industries is one of biggest investors in Arkansas steel mill Big River Steel, which received kind of corporate welfare that billionaires Charles and David Koch have worked to end in United States; suggests Koch brothers are acting hypocritically, and that their involvement in steel mill offers illustration of how conservatives' battle against Export-Import Bank of the United States is misguided. MORE
Oct. 10, 2015
Bipartisan group of House members enacts petition forcing vote on renewing charter of Export-Import Bank, which had expired in June. MORE
Sep. 19, 2015
Joe Nocera Op-Ed column notes that chief executives at some of America's largest companies have expressed disbelief at House Republicans' refusal to allow vote on reauthorization of Export-Import Bank; observes negative impact has already become evident, with executives warning of layoffs and shifting of jobs overseas. MORE
Sep. 16, 2015
General Electric is outsourcing 500 jobs and Boeing loses second contract in several weeks, with both blaming Congress for not keeping Export-Import Bank open to fund new deals; developments will stoke Republican infighting over future of credit agency. MORE
Aug. 1, 2015
Joe Nocera Op-Ed column excoriates Republican extremists for their efforts to keep Export-Import Bank of the United States from being reauthorized; argues bank supports tens of thousands of American jobs, helps small businesses and generated $675 million in revenue in past fiscal year; says effort to shut bank down represents line in sand drawn by extreme right and urges more reasonable minds to do the same. MORE
Jul. 30, 2015
Editorial calls for stand-alone bill to reauthorize Export-Import Bank of the United States, saying it has been imperiled by political minority of Tea Party lawmakers who erroneously argue that shutting down bank will curb corporate welfare; argues that bank plays essential role in aiding American exporters at time of tough international competition, and that Tea Party has made it scapegoat at expense of American economy. MORE
Jul. 30, 2015
Congress is getting ready to recess until September, without reauthorizing Export-Import Bank; its future remains unclear. MORE
Jul. 27, 2015
Senate votes 67 to 26 to include measure reauthorizing Export-Import Bank as part of infrastructure bill; filibuster-breaking vote marks major defeat for conservative wing of Republican Party, which had attacked bank as an unnecessary bastion of crony capitalism. MORE
Jul. 25, 2015
Sen Ted Cruz, Republican of Texas, takes Senate floor to accuse Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of lying to him about bringing matter of Export-Import Bank to vote; unusual public outburst may be breach of Congressional rules; while Cruz frequently tangles with Democrats, he has not often attacked Republican colleagues. MORE
Jul. 23, 2015
Pres Obama meets with small exporters, trying to sell rapid congressional reauthorization of Export-Import Bank. MORE
Jul. 1, 2015
Export-Import Bank remains open despite expiration of charter, with Congressional advocates from both parties saying they will restore its full powers by late July; no employees will be furloughed. MORE
Jun. 26, 2015
Rep Jeb Hensarling of Texas has achieved at least temporary triumph in his battle against the Export-Import bank as Congress retires for summer recess without renewing bank's charter; issue has angered Democrats and Republicans alike and alienated businesses that make up backbone of conservative party; Hensarling, who is chairman of Financial Services Committee, has led several failed sallies against federal government before. MORE
Jun. 18, 2015
Ex-Im Bank, whose charter expires June 30 unless reauthorized, is seeing unprecedented opposition, especially from Republicans; most Democrats back bank as supporting jobs, while Republicans have split with influx of Tea Party conservatives; Congress is seen as eventually reauthorizing lender for American exporters. MORE
May. 23, 2015
Joe Nocera Op-Ed column refutes Republican arguments against reauthorizing Export-Import Bank of the United States; notes bank will die unless reauthorized by Congress by June 30, an event that appears likely to occur; warns elimination of bank will harm both large and small American companies and American workers. MORE
May. 21, 2015
Imperiled Export-Import Bank's authorization expires on June 30, and with it all projects frozen over previous 35-day review period; one project threatened is $668 million drinking water project for Cameroon; influential Republicans are focused on allowing the federal export credit agency to die. MORE
Apr. 25, 2015
Joe Nocera Op-Ed column opposes Republican effort to shut down Export-Import Bank of the United States, export credit agency that backs loans to foreign entities making deals with American exporters; contends that bank's activities accurately reflect American market and ultimately provide American jobs; notes that American Action Forum has broken rank with other conservative think tanks by asserting value of bank based on data. MORE
Apr. 7, 2015
Future of Export-Import Bank may lie in outcome of battle between Delta Air Lines and Boeing, which have both spent millions of dollars to lobby for and against agency, respectively; Boeing's stake in battle is clear as it avers that the export credit agency helps it compete against Airbus, while Delta's is murkier, although Delta argues that agency's policies have led to competitors lowering prices on airfares. MORE
Mar. 23, 2015
Op-Ed article by Morning Star Co founder Chris Rufer calls for end to the Export-Import Bank, arguing that it represents little more than source of corporate welfare; questions claim that bank will net $14 billion in additional tax revenue over next decade, saying it fails to account for market risk of bank's loans; holds bank essentially benefits participating corporations at taxpayer expense. MORE
Mar. 10, 2015
Export-Import Bank, which guarantees loans to foreign customers of thousands of American companies, will cease to exist after June 30 without congressional action, victim of Tea Party movement; conservatives oppose bank, saying its demise will usher in new era of free-market governance. MORE
Aug. 26, 2014
Export-Import Bank of the United States, which provides loans and loan guarantees to foreign buyers of American products, is becoming unlikely flashpoint in midterm election cycle where no single issues are rallying voters; fight to reauthorize bank is creating divide within Republican Party and giving Democrats way to showcase support for American companies. MORE
Jul. 29, 2014
Op-Ed article by former Sen William E Brock III opposes Congressional effort to close the Export-Import Bank; holds it is vital for companies involved in the global economy, who are forced to compete with entities supported by similar institutions abroad; contends conservative critics would do well to remember that Pres Ronald Reagan supported expansion of the bank, as part of the exceptional economic expansion that occurred during his presidency. MORE
Jul. 15, 2014
Joe Nocera Op-Ed column warns conservative push to remove financing for the Export-Import Bank threatens viability of Boeing, America's single largest exporter, and other large companies that employ hundreds of thousands of people; derides conservative voices like those at the Wall Street Journal who fail to see economic necessity of the bank, which has counterparts around world. MORE
Jul. 14, 2014
Boeing's commercial aircraft chief executive Raymond L Conner says he remains optimistic that Congress will reauthorize funding to the Export-Import Bank, which guarantees billions of dollars in loans to foreign buyers of its airplanes; notes that failure to keep bank running would risk American jobs and put Boeing at an unbeatable disadvantage to Airbus, which receives similar support from European governments. MORE
Jul. 8, 2014
Coalition of business groups and labor unions are pushing lawmakers to approve federal infrastructure spending before transportation projects begin to dry up in August 2014; nation's Highway Trust Fund will be slashed 28 percent on Aug 1, at the height of summer construction, and the Export-Import Bank, which guarantees loans to foreign purchasers of American exports, will have to close its doors by the end of September if Congress does not take action. MORE
Jun. 28, 2014
Debate over government loan guarantees to foreign airlines wanting to buy American-built planes grows more complicated as foreign carriers expand to fly to the United States; Delta claims Export-Import Bank of the US financing is subsidizing foreign competition at the expense of American companies; supporters of loans point to large number of American jobs, particularly at Boeing, created by overseas orders for planes. MORE
Jun. 25, 2014
Editorial criticizes Tea Party Republicans for their odd quest to shut down the Export-Import Bank of the United States; contends agency helps American businesses sell their goods abroad, and shutting it down would cause American companies to lose billions of dollars in overseas orders. MORE
Jun. 24, 2014
Joe Nocera Op-Ed column continues his defense of the Export-Import Bank, warning that new House majority leader Kevin McCarthy seems to have taken up attack against it in order to gain Tea Party support; notes that business groups, policy experts and small businessmen remain united in their support of bank, and have promised a full-court press in the fight against ultraconservatives for its re-authorization. MORE
Jun. 23, 2014
Rep Kevin McCarthy, next House majority leader, says he will allow Export-Import Bank of the United States to expire when its authority is up for reauthorization; says he had decided in previous vote that bank, responsible for supporting American exports, should be phased out. MORE
Jun. 19, 2014
The Upshot; debate over Export-Import Bank of United States, finance provider for American exports, offers look into how modern economies really work, and the ways big business and big government are inevitably intertwined in ways that fans of free markets may not like--but may not be able to avoid. MORE
Jun. 10, 2014
Joe Nocera Op-Ed column criticizes Tea Party campaign to eliminate the Export-Import Bank; argues there is no reason to oppose an agency that promotes exports and American jobs while contributing to revenue; holds push, led by Rep Jeb Hensarling, points up the ideological absurdity of the far-right and could endanger one of the most useful government agencies. MORE
Jul. 11, 2013
Editorial fears Fred Hochberg, Pres Obama's nominee for chairman of Export-Import Bank, could become latest casualty of right-wing effort to derail agencies by refusing to confirm appointees to run them; condemns the holding up of Hochberg's nomination to make it impossible for bank to function. MORE
May. 31, 2012
Pres Obama signs bill that extends the life of the Export-Import Bank through 2014, ending an unexpectedly fierce political fight over an institution dedicated to financing American exports abroad. MORE
May. 16, 2012
Senate approves legislation, 78-20, to extend the life of the Export-Import Bank by three years; conservative opposition, and efforts to kill off the agency, failed to attract much support. MORE
May. 10, 2012
House votes 330-93 to extend the life of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, siding with business groups over conservative activists who wanted Republicans to let the bank's charter lapse on May 31; vote is expected to propel the bill to final passage in the Senate. MORE
Mar. 15, 2012
Amendment for the Export-Import Bank, which facilitates the sale of American goods overseas, has been holding up the jobs bill to aid small businesses while Congress decides whether to grant it more funding; stand-off is dividing Congress and Republicans, many of whom support the bank's reauthorization. MORE
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He Wanted to Close the Export-Import Bank. Now He May Run It.
Scott Garrett, one of the bank's most ardent conservative Republican critics, is seen as a curious choice whose Senate confirmation is not a lock....
May 8, 2017, Monday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: United States Politics and Government , International Trade and World Market , Export-Import Bank of US , Garrett, E Scott , Republican Party , Trump, Donald J
In Reversal, Trump Names Pick to Reshape Export-Import Bank, Not End It
Donald Trump called the federal agency "excess baggage" during his campaign, but has nominated a supporter of the bank to its board, and a fierce critic to lead it....
April 14, 2017, Friday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: Banking and Financial Institutions , Export-Import Bank of US , House Freedom Caucus , Trump, Donald J , Garrett, E Scott , Bachus, Spencer , Appointments and Executive Changes , United States Politics and Government
An Easy Trade Win for Trump
The president should announce his full support for the Export-Import Bank....
February 2, 2017, Thursday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: International Trade and World Market , Export-Import Bank of US , Trump, Donald J
White House Pushes for Export-Import Bank Deal as Apple Readies iPhone Update
As the administration seeks a way to get an Obama nominee confirmed to the Export-Import Bank's board, Apple plans to unveil new versions of the Apple Watch and the iPhone....
September 5, 2016, Monday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: Labor and Jobs , iPhone , Apple Inc , European Central Bank , Export-Import Bank of US , Sony Corporation , EMC Corporation , Dell Inc
The Export-Import Bank, Held Hostage
A former Republican appointee to the bank chastises Senator Richard Shelby for his inaction on allowing the bank to fully function....
July 7, 2016, Thursday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: Labor and Jobs , Export-Import Bank of US
Morning Agenda: Market Panic Subsides as Britain Faces Economic Fears
Volkswagen to Settle Diesel Claims in U.S. | Lyft is Said to Hire Qatalyst...
June 28, 2016, Tuesday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: Quattrone, Frank P , Wilders, Geert , Great Britain , Airbnb , General Motors , HSBC Holdings PLC. , Lyft Inc , Medtronic Inc , Qatalyst Partners , Soros Fund Management , Supreme Court (US) , Takata Corp , Uber Technologies Inc , Volkswagen AG , Apax Partners LLP , Williams Companies Inc , Y Combinator , YUM! BRANDS INC , ZTE Corp , AstraZeneca PLC , China Resources Holdings , Deutsche Bank AG , Emigrant Savings Bank , Energy Transfer Equity LP , Environmental Protection Agency , European Union , Export-Import Bank of US , Automobile Safety Features and Defects , Great Britain Withdrawal from EU (Brexit) , Hedge Funds , Immigration and Emigration , Initial Public Offerings , Medical Devices , Mergers, Acquisitions and Divestitures , Private Equity , Regulation and Deregulation of Industry , Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller Home Price Index , Start-ups , Banking and Financial Institutions , Suits and Litigation (Civil) , US Dollar (Currency) , Venture Capital , Yen (Currency) , Credit Ratings and Credit Rating Agencies , Crestor (Drug) , Currency , Debt Collection , Deflation (Economics) , Embargoes and Sanctions , Euro (Currency) , Fuel Emissions (Transportation)
A Single Senator Stymies the Export-Import Bank
Senator Richard Shelby has held up the nomination of a board member of the bank, blocking $20 billion for American exports....
June 28, 2016, Tuesday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: Export-Import Bank of US , Shelby, Richard C , United States Politics and Government , Banking and Financial Institutions , International Trade and World Market , Boeing Company , General Electric Company , Alabama
Anxious for Re-Election, Senator Richard Shelby Refuses to Act on Banking Nominations
A quest for a sixth term has stalled the work of the Senate banking committee, which has not approved any of President Obama's 16 nominees....
February 24, 2016, Wednesday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: Shelby, Richard C , Treasury Department , United States , Alabama , Export-Import Bank of US , Federal Reserve System , Primaries and Caucuses , Banking and Financial Institutions , Obama, Barack , Senate Committee on Banking , United States Politics and Government
In 2016 Race, Local Matters Give Way to National Tone
The regional business issues and parochial peeves that once shaped early primary contests are rapidly losing clout in this election season....
January 18, 2016, Monday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: Presidential Election of 2016 , Social Conditions and Trends , News and News Media , Cruz, Ted , Ethanol , Export-Import Bank of US , Debates (Political) , Republican Party , United States
Ex-Im Bank Is Reopened, but Big Loans Are Stalled
The Export-Import Bank, which helps finance overseas trade, was reauthorized by Congress for another four years, ending a five-month impasse. But obstacles to funding larger transactions remain....
December 8, 2015, Tuesday
MORE ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S. AND: Export-Import Bank of US , International Trade and World Market , United States Politics and Government , Banking and Financial Institutions , Hochberg, Fred P , Shelby, Richard C , Kirk, Mark Steven
Ruling in Delta Air Lines v. the Export-Import Bank
Judge Rudolph Contreras, a federal district court judge in Washington, rejected Delta Air Lines' claim that the bank unfairly helped international competitors.
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M6X40 Bright Zinc Plated BZP Roofing Bolts with a Philips Head are manufactured from a durable hardened steel and feature a flat seating surface under the bolt's head.
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Milwaukee Event Calendar
Grete Marks: When Modern Was Degenerate
Nov. 27, 2012 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Grete Marks: When Modern Was Degenerate presents a narrative of the artist Margarete Heymann-Löbenstein-Marks (German, 1899–1990) through approximately forty artworks. The event was developed by the Milwaukee Art Museum with the cooperation of her daughter, Dr. Frances Marks. This is the first American exhibition to explore Grete Marks's story, an emotionally tragic tale of a forward-looking artist who was crushed by the brutal circumstances of her political time. The Modern ceramics created within Grete's Haël Werkstätten factory (Marwitz, 1923–33), with their machine precision, loose brushwork, and attention to vernacular German traditions, show the Bauhaus teaching's thorough influence on the artist. In 1934 the German Nazi government forcibly purchased the Haël factory, and Grete's artwork was publically derided as "degenerate." Grete's later ceramics made in England, arguably lacking the artistic vision of the earlier work, suggest that the magic and the promise of the bold young German artist was destroyed, like so much else, in World War II. Admission: $15 Adults, $12 Students, seniors and military members. Children 12 and under recieve free admission. The first Thursday of each month is Target Free First Thursday, and all individuals receive free admission.
Milwaukee, WI 53202


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Gary Allan named 'Country's Sexiest Man'
Listen to Gary Allan on iHeartRadio
Gary Allan is getting a nod for his looks.
The singer is earning the title of "Country's Sexiest Man" in "Country Weekly" magazine's 2013 poll. Chris Young is landing in second place on the list, with Toby Keith coming in third. Scotty McCreery and Luke Bryan round out the top five.
All of country's guys - married or not - were up for the title. The "Country Weekly" ballot included 49 handsome hunks, while there was also a write-in option.
Allan is following singer-actor Christian Kane, who got the nod last year.
"Country Weekly" says a record number of votes were cast in this year's survey. The full rundown is featured in the current issue of "Country Weekly."
Photo Credit Getty Images


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Wall Street Journal Joins Fox's "Swift Boat" Campaign Against John Kerry
Blog ››› ››› ZACHARY PLEAT
A Wall Street Journal op-ed pushed discredit smears to claim that Senator John Kerry is anti-military and not fit for a possible cabinet post.
President Obama is reportedly considering Kerry to be Secretary of State or Defense. In response, former Journal editorial board member Seth Lipsky asked in his op-ed "why in the world" the president would consider Kerry for either position. Lipsky claimed nobody did more than Kerry to "besmirch the name of the GIs who fought in Vietnam." As evidence, Lipsky cited 1971 testimony by Kerry that members of the military had committed war crimes in Vietnam. Lipsky suggested this claim was unfounded aside from the massacre at My Lai. But as FactCheck.org stated in 2004, "ample evidence of other atrocities has come to light" since Kerry's 1971 testimony.
Lipsky wrote:
In 1971 Mr. Kerry related to the Senate accusations that he said had been made by veterans testifying before an antiwar group called the Winter Soldier Investigation.
The conviction of Lt. William Calley for his role in the massacre at My Lai is a reminder that our side did commit some war crimes in Vietnam. But they were, as Mr. Obama suggested, the misdeeds of a few. According to the website wintersoldier.com, which is sympathetic to Mr. O'Neill and the Swift Vets, the allegations raised by the Winter Soldier investigation were examined by the Defense Department and either did not hold up or could not be proved and no one was ever prosecuted for the allegations made by Mr. Kerry's group. Allies of Vietnam Veterans Against the War, sponsor of the antiwar hearings at which veterans testified, dispute critics of the investigation.
But Factcheck.org debunked the claim that Kerry was making unfounded charges, pointing out that Kerry was relating stories he had heard from fellow members of the armed forces and that stories of wartime atrocities by U.S. troops have been documented in a book by Marine Corps veteran Gary D. Solis, a Pulitzer Prize winning series by the Toledo Blade, and by a Columbia University doctoral student who said she found evidence of hundreds of atrocities in government archives.
Lipsky also relied on quotes from Swift Boat Veterans for Truth founder John O'Neill to smear Kerry's possible nomination. Lipsky quoted O'Neill as saying Kerry "is well qualified to be the Secretary of Defense ... of Cuba or Venezuela":
For all the controversy over Ambassador Susan Rice -- National Journal reports that the president is "genuinely conflicted" over the choice between Ms. Rice and Mr. Kerry -- the prospect that Mr. Kerry might head state or defense is more shocking. Mr. Kerry "is well qualified to be the Secretary of Defense . . . of Cuba or Venezuela" is how the leader of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, John O'Neill, reacted in an email last week. "He [is] certainly an expert on surrender and can run up a white flag with the best of them."
Mr. O'Neill and fellow officers who served on Swift Boats in the war in Vietnam's Mekong Delta torpedoed Mr. Kerry's campaign for president in 2004. The Swift Vets exposed his libels against American GIs and debunked his claims to heroism in the Mekong Delta. They recalled how, when the war in Vietnam was still being fought, Mr. Kerry met in Paris with Madame Binh of the Viet Cong and later endorsed the Viet Cong's peace proposal.
But O'Neill and the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth have no credibility. Their anti-Kerry campaign was so full of dishonest political smears that the term "swift-boating" has become synonymous with such unfair attacks. The Swift Boaters claims were "contradicted by Kerry's former crewman, and by Navy records," according to FactCheck.org. A Washington Post investigation into the group's allegations concluded that "they have failed to come up with sufficient evidence to prove him a liar." A 2008 New York Times article stated that "[e]xtensive news media accounts undermined the Swift boat charges in 2004." Allegations made by members of the Swift Boat organization were inconsistent and had factual errors. The organization and its leader, O'Neill, also had significant ties to the GOP and major GOP donors.
Lipsky's piece comes weeks after Fox News, which is owned by the same corporate parent as the Journal, also used the Swift Boat campaign's smears to attack Kerry's possible nomination to a Cabinet post.
On November 14, reacting to initial reporting of a possible Kerry nomination as defense secretary, Fox anchor Megyn Kelly cited the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth's challenge to "Senator Kerry's record as a war hero." On November 15, Fox's Sean Hannity hosted O'Neill and praised his organization's 2004 ads as "very effective" and "powerful."
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At the heart of downtown, there's nothing cookie cutter about State Street. It's the unique place to go for browsing chic boutiques and upscale chain stores, eating at local bistros and enjoying lively bars and pubs. Historic Arlington Theater and Granada Theatre are also located on the historic street, providing a full calendar of live performances.
Santa Barbara's wine region is one of California's gems, and it stretches all along the Central Coast. Just northwest of Santa Barbara is the prolific Santa Ynez Valley wine region, offering more than 120 wineries producing varietals like Chardonnay, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir.
Santa Barbara is blessed with a temperate coastal climate and nearly 300 days of sunshine a year. Summers see average highs in the 70s, and daytime winter temperatures stay comfortably in the mid- to high-60s. May and June often bring in the May Gray and June Gloom marine layer, but temperatures usually remain in the 60s and 70s. To experience the city at its sunniest and least crowded, the best time to visit is in the spring and autumn.
State Route 101/Highway 1 runs directly through Santa Barbara, so it's easy to get here via private car or rental car. If you're driving up from Southern California, the most scenic route involves a drive north along the Pacific Coast Highway until it merges with 101. If you're coming from San Francisco, it's a straight shot down 101. If you want to enjoy the ocean views without the responsibility of driving, Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner runs along the coast and drops you in downtown Santa Barbara. If flying is more your speed, Santa Barbara is home to an easily navigated and convenient airport.


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Return to article: Provost's Distinguished Lecturer Series continues March 4
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Start with a single leaf on the edge of your treat; overlap the start of the next leaf over the first and continue around the border of your treat. Tuck the end of the last leaf under the first.
Whether a drop flower, a flower you pipe the individual leaves or even a flower icing decoration, leaves tucked under and around the flower make it much more lifelike.
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Elongated piped leaves serve as flower petals, starting in the center and working out. In the center, add an icing dot, star or swirl in complementary colors. Or, add a jumbo confetti sprinkle flower center!


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You've implemented a QMS and shop-floor system …….Now what? – Part 2
In the previous blog post, we starting the review of how to manage costs by inter-operating between SMT Monitoring systems and Material Management systems.
Manufacturers deploy various manufacturing systems that provide necessary controls, enable data collection, support cost-saving initiatives, provide a means for compliance, and help decrease time to market. Yet most remain as islands of information, and provide the value intrinsic within their own confined systems.
In this post, we review how we can Manage Rework and Quality costs.
After implementing the Material Manager interoperability with the SMT Monitoring system, the material handling, inventory and changeover efficiency issues are handled. But are those are not the only places where costs are hidden. Another place where the burden is felt is quality returns and rework. Rejected boards from In-Circuit Testers, Flying Probe Testers, Functional Test Units or even manual inspection stations, all need further troubleshooting and fixing. More source of WIP. As boards wait to be tested, they risk the possibility of hitting a customer due date for that order. If an unexpected rework has been identified, and the volume increases, it puts stress on the whole eco-system. Do we have enough replacement components to rework those boards? Have we the certified man-power to perform that rework? Will we hit the due date for that customer order?
QMS should have the ability to alert management as Acceptable Quality Levels (AQLs) are not met. However, this needs to be done real-time. It is too late if AQL breaches are found in post-mortem analysis. Alerts should be setup as escalation of notifications for many of the following:
- Number of repair loop met (e.g. 3 test and repair loops maximum per board)
- Acceptable Quality Level (AQL)
- First Pass yield %
- Consecutive failure of the same type (defect)
If QMS and Material Manager are interoperating, then you can enable an added value of evaluating the inventory of the required components and pulling the required material to the rework stations as needed. In addition, in post-mortem analysis, if the QMS identifies a high failure or defect count on a specific component location on an assembly, that can be tied into the material manager to find the specific vendor, vendor part number, and vendor lot for additional supply chain quality analysis. A score card for your component vendors, for a change!
Using the QMS and Material Manager to identify quality problems during production is the most efficient way of managing costs, before the costs occur.
A full article can be referenced at: http://pcdandf.com/cms/component/content/article/171-current-issue/7381-benefits-of-factory-software-interoperability
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Posted November 16th, 2010, by Jay Gorajia
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Assembly, Assembly Manufacturing, Circuits Assembly, Electronics Assembly, Electronics Manufacturing, MES, MSS, SMT, Valor
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#1: Too expensive product recs on my curl genie..Any cheaper alternatives?
I just got my Curl Genie profile and it said I have medium to coarse texture with normal porosity and normal elasticity.The products recs CJ daily fix,JSC cleansing cream,CJ assurance smoothing conditioner,KCCC,CJ curl rehab moisturizing DT.As I would love to try these products they are however to expensive for me, I can't afford to purchase these products and to try out and have them not working for my hair.Are there any cheaper alternatives to these products like drugstore or sally's price? Maybe my hair twins can give me a few tips on products and hair care routine that works for you..Maybe it might work for me as well


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Uncertain and all of 19, tall and striking Marion "Mimi" Beardsley rode the train from Trenton, N.J..
The last time Beardsley saw the president was in mid-November 1963.
At the end of the summer, Beardsley had to return to school.
Beardsley stepped onto the corridor slidewalk, coasted to the escalator and rode it down.
Truth to Beardsley was pleasant and his face was radiant when he left us.
While Gramps mouthed the thermometer, Dr. Beardsley applied a stethoscope to his chest, then to his back.
Beardsley was fond of talk, always had something to say, was always eager to say it.
First of the races was that with the first eight of Beardsley; and the crew of Ardmore won.
The races with Hampton and Beardsley will be on our own lake.
Beardsley cocked his head and listened, his mien almost beatific.


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Hello Everyone ..
I am working over a log eraser python script.
Which will help erasing the specific entries in logs after the exploitation is done.
I am primary focusing on Linux targets now... Once it is done i will add windows works in that. Or may be will write a whole new script for windows.
So I am here to ask you what features do you expect in a log eraser program ?
What logs are most important ?
I am sure if more brains work on it .... It will result in good script.
So come up with your expectations and ideas so that i can serve in best possible way.
Regards ;
Godwin Austin


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Product Reference: 40282
Slim and stylish construction for your Xperia Z Ultra
Made from high-quality leather style material, this Stick N' Stand Case includes a special sticky polymer which attaches to the back of your Xperia Z Ultra. This means that because the case does not need to affix around the side of Ultra Z it stays ultra-thin and keeps the phone's slim profile.
Built-in viewing stand function
Not only is the Stick N' Stand incredibly slender but the back cover is designed to allow the Xperia Z Ultra to fold onto itself horizontally. This creates the perfect viewing stand for watching movies, listening to music or even web browsing.
Full access to all functions and features
Despite a premier finish the case still embodies a functionality for you to utilise the full potential of your device. The case even has special cutouts for the camera so you never have to miss an opportunity to take memorable pictures.
Officially licensed and made specifically for the Xperia Z Ultra
Designed specifically for the Xperia Z, this case offers a perfect fit for your device. It also features cut-outs for the camera, side buttons and speaker, so you can access the full functionality of your device without having to remove it from the case.


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Hi guys, sorry this is probably something simple but I'm at a loss!
I'm following the awesome instructions here to modify my BT2.iso file so that my new alfa will work better.
bt2.iso boots fine before I change it but once I use poweriso and drop the 3 files in the modules dir, I get this error.
"ISOLINUX 3.36 2007-02-10 isolinux: Image checksum error, sorry...
Boot failed press a key to retry..."
What am I doing wrong?


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Roger Ebert dies at age 70
(Chicago, IL) - Famed film critic Roger Ebert is dead. He died Thursday, just days after he had announced plans to cut back on his workload due to a recurrence of cancer. Ebert was 70 years old.
The Chicago Sun Times made the announcement on Twitter:
There is a hole that can't be filled. One of the greats has left us. Roger Ebert has passed away at the age of 70. suntm.es/Z4EIOF— Suntimes (@Suntimes) April 4, 2013
As one of the most noted critics in film history, Roger Ebert was above all a believer in the magic of movies. He was best known for his long-standing film review column in the "Chicago Sun-Times," which he wrote since 1967, as well as for his television programs with fellow critic Gene Siskel. Ebert lost his ability to speak after surgical complications for his thyroid cancer in 2006, but remained an active and powerful force in the industry through his blog reviews.
Siskel and Ebert's often conflicting opinions on the movies of the day became the basis of 24 years of television, until Siskel's death in 1999. The pair appeared together in the programs "Sneak Previews," "At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert" and "Siskel and Ebert and The Movies." They started as rivals at competing papers who didn't see eye-to-eye, and eventually became close friends and creative colleagues who constantly challenged each other. Together, Siskel and Ebert even coined their trademark phrase "two thumbs up" - one from each of them, for only the best of the best.
Until the end of his life, Ebert remained a loyal native of Urbana, Illinois - the town where he was born in 1942 and later attended college. He attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, earning an undergraduate degree in 1964. It was there where he discovered his passion for film and journalism. In fact, one of the first movie reviews Ebert ever wrote, for the Italian comedy "La Dolce Vita," was published in the University's still-printing "Daily Illini" in 1961. Following Siskel's death in 1999, Ebert partnered with his alma mater to host an annual film festival in the campus town that became known as "Ebertfest." He was present at Ebertfest every April to give a few comments at the festival's home at the Virginia Theatre in Champaign.
Roger Ebert was the first film critic in history to be given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and also the first film critic ever to win a Pultizer Prize for Criticism.
Here's a 2010 CBS video featuring Esquire writer Chris Jones talks about film critic Roger Ebert's public battle with cancer.


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|Product Description
Use Harken cam swivel bases when leads must rotate to face the trimmer.
Ball bearing swivel bases feature dual rows of Delrin® ball bearings that swivel freely even under high loads. Bases include stand-up springs and a U-adaptor to accept a variety of appropriate blocks.
The 402 is fitted with a double cam for use in two-speed mainsheet systems.
Use for:
Mainsheets, Jib sheets and Control lines.
Part Number: 402


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Awesome new sub-forum
Awesome new sub-forum
block kicks in training
If size mattered, the elephant would be the king of the jungle, The mind is like a parachute -- it works best when it is open." - Rickson Gracie
Kick hard bags and pads with bare shins, start off lighter and gradually progress.
Light blocking and countering drills - bare shins
only one will come back and that will be me!
I can feel my shins getting tougher as they're slowly not hurting or stinging as much when kicking.
I posted a question before on here and the advice was basically whats already been said on here. When doing padwork don't wear shin guards and kick them so its uncomfortable but not painful, and do the same on bags.
I've been doing it and it feels a lot better, I can kick the bag and pads a lot harder now without it hurting. Your shins will start to hurt the next day, but its nothing a nice warm bath can't handle.
Also possibly invest in some of this mate http://www.ckamartialartssupplies.co...roducts_id=976
Or tiger balm http://www.ckamartialartssupplies.co...roducts_id=959
^^Use sparingly, you will only make that mistake once with tiger balm lol.
C.K.A Martial arts is doing free shipping at the minute as well, and theres a discount of 10% when you enter "cage warriors" code in at the checkout. However I believe its going up to 20% next week while he is away. C.K.A can you confirm?
How you expect to run with the wolves come night when you spend all day sparring with the puppies
I use a conditioning stick!
Valley of Kings - Coming Soon
The way I did it was repeatedly kicking a heavy bag. I'm talking about kicking it A LOT; I'd go into Master Skens and kick that damn bag 100+ times each leg, every day.
At first, I was getting large lumps of fluid building up from when I'd hit with the wrong part of my shin, but repeated kicking gives you 2 benefits;
1) It conditions your shin
2) It teaches you good form and technique, as you'll realise how much it jurts when you kick with the wrong part of your leg, you'll make sure to find the right spot on your shinbone after that.
One thing you should NOT do is the old trick of rolling a rolling pin up and down your shin; that doesn't work and it damages your skin.
One thing you'll notice as a side effect of repeated kicking is you'll stop growing leg hair along the shinbone, so your legs (if hairy) will look like they have a combover!
also thinner pads when theyve conditioned a bit as they will condition your partners forearms aswell, many a time ive partnered with a pro and can feel his shins right through the pads..
First off..."wiggle de palm tree" second. BOWT FU**ING TIME WE HAD THIS FORUM, after 7th year of asking.
"Awww, so you lost darling - but it's the taking part that counts" My Mum... thanks for nothing Mum.
I just kick a heavy back repeatedly until I feel like crying and then bring the good old bottle and rolling pin out and give them a good rolling which generally does leave me crying. Fearny who trains with us who used to train under master sken (hardest kick ever) got over his task of breaking in his shins by sken making him kick the fucking ring post!!!
Is ready to die for that inch.


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MSI has launched its latest 16-inch entertainment notebook, the GE600 under its G series. The new model adopts the Intel Core i5 processor, ATI Radeon HD 5730 discrete graphics card with 1GB DDR3 VRAM and SRS Premium Sound audio technology.
The notebook is also equipped with a webcam that can support 720P (HD) quality.
The notebook features MSI's ECO engine power saving technology to extend battery usage and GPU Boost technology to boost GPU performance when needed.
- Wireless broadband developments in Southeast Asia markets
As of 2013, the 10 ASEAN nations had a total of over 700 million mobile subscriptions, with the CAGR from 2003-2013 reaching 24%. This Digitimes Research Special Report analyzes the various mobile broadband markets in ASEAN and looks at the respective trends in 4G LTE development for those markets.
- 2015 global tablet demand forecast
This Digitimes Research Special Report provides a 2015 forecast for the global tablet market and analyzes the strategies of key market players such as Google, Apple, Intel, and Microsoft.
- 2015 China smartphone panel trend forecast
This Digitimes Research Special Report analyzes the strategies of key China-based major panel makers BOE, Tianma and IVO for attacking the different market segments through technology and pricing, and their relationship to local vendors Huawei, Lenovo, ZTE, Xiaomi and Coolpad.


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How it's done
I haven't tried SolusOS yet — it's on my list of things to do and, without casting aspersions on its list-ranking because I really have a lot to do on a daily basis, it's somewhere in the 40s on my list of things to do and I'm still on, oh, Number 11 at the moment.
However, people I trust about these things — Ken Starks at Reglue, in particular — loves this distro and his word is as good as gold. So if he says that SolusOS is a good distro, you can bank on it being so.
Ikey Doherty, the lead developer for SolusOS, posted a brief blog item today saying that they're going back "to the old ways" from releasing planned ISOs. Instead they're going to put out frequent releases for testing in order to restore the sense of everyone working together as a community.
Transparency: That's how it's done here in the FOSS paradigm. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to try making a dent in this list in order to get to trying out SolusOS.
This blog, and all other blogs by Larry the Free Software Guy, Larry the CrunchBang Guy and Larry Cafiero, are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs CC BY-NC-ND license. In short, this license allows others to download this work and share it with others as long as they credit me as the author, but others can't change it in any way or use it commercially.
(Larry Cafiero is one of the founders of the Lindependence Project and develops business software at Redwood Digital Research, a consultancy that provides FOSS solutions in the small business and home office environment.)


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Pixel Twist
£Free Google Play
Pixel Twist is a puzzle game that tasks you with rotating a cloud of pixels until they line up and match a reference image. It might sound simple, but with two game modes and over 100 puzzles to crack against the clock, it's trickier than you might expect – not to mention seriously addictive.
Angry Commuters
£Free Google Play
Commuters love nothing more than complaining about transport cock-ups, and this is one app that positively encourages it. Developed by Imperial College London as part of a research programme, the app enables Londoners to report their journeys, giving details of how it went – good or bad. This research aims to improve the London transport experience – you'll even receive your own personalized report at the end of it all.
Glorious Flavour Map
£Free Google Play
Getting good grub is always top of the list when you're visiting somewhere new, and the Glorious Flavour Map helps you sort the delicious from the dreadful. With the aim of becoming the "TripAdvisor for food," it offers user reviews, recipes and dish recommendations from eateries in your area, as well as giving you the opportunity to add your own as well.
Nun Attack
62p Google Play
We're not sure why, but there's something a little bit badass about nuns packing guns, and that's exactly what Nun Attack gives you. In a four-woman crusade against the evil forces that have taken over the world, the nuns are armed with a choice of over 80 different guns to take on more than 150 battles.
Army of Darkness: Defense
£Free Google Play
Based on the classic Evil Dead movie, you play as time-travelling, Deadite-bashing Ash, battling the undead in the time of Lord Arthur with your trusty boomstick. When it all gets a bit much, you can call on allies to give you a hand along the way, while you search for the unholy book that'll take you back to your own time. Fans of the movie will also enjoy quotes from the original film, dotted throughout the game.
JBL launches Lightning Connector docks for iPhone 5 and iPad Mini
New video! HTC 8X goes head-to-head with Nokia Lumia 920
Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini hands on review


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Relief is on the way for users of the open source Apache Hadoop distributed computing platform who have wrestled with the complexity of the technology.
A planned upgrade to Hadoop distributed computing platform, which has become popular for analyzing large volumes of data, is intended to make the platform more user-friendly, said Eric Baldeschwieler, CEO of HortonWorks, which was unveiled as a Yahoo spinoff last month with the intent of building a support and training business around Hadoop. The upgrade also will feature improvements for high availability, installation, and data management. Due in beta releases later this year with a general availability release eyed for the second quarter of 2012, the release is probably going to be called Hadoop 0.23.
[ Explore the current trends and solutions in BI with InfoWorld's interactive Business Intelligence iGuide. | Discover what's new in business applications with InfoWorld's Technology: Applications newsletter. | Follow Paul Krill on Twitter. ]
"A big focus for us is going to be adding tools for monitoring and distributing and management, [with the goal of making it] much easier for organizations to use Hadoop. The problem now is it takes a pretty sophisticated operations staff to install and use it," Baldeschwieler said during an interview at HortonWorks's Silicon Valley offices this week. He formerly was vice president of Hadoop engineering at Yahoo, which has been instrumental in Hadoop development.
Version 0.23 also is set for improvements in availability, performance, and scalability. "That's a big one for very large customers," such as Yahoo and Facebook, Baldeschwieler said. Tending to single points of failure in Hadoop's master nodes will be a goal.
Also, the new HCatalog data management software layer planned for Hadoop 0.23 will let users store data in a more traditional table style, enabling users to transparently move data between tools. It also yields benefits for the MapReduce programming model used with Hadoop. Currently, users can work with two higher-level languages on top of Hadoop -- Pig and Hive -- said Baldeschwieler. Pig and Hive have their own specialty data stores. "What HCatalog's going to allow is for Pig and Hive and MapReduce itself to operate on one set of tables," he said.
An Apache representative concurred that goals for Hadoop include improvements for high availability, data management, and user friendliness, but Apache would not confirm what will be in the next release or what the version number will be. Because of Hadoop's culture of continuous beta releases, there has yet to be a formal 1.0 release, Baldeschwieler said. "There will come a point where we will want to call it 1.0 or 2.0."
This article, "Apache Hadoop to get more user friendly," was originally published at InfoWorld.com. Follow the latest developments in business technology news and get a digest of the key stories each day in the InfoWorld Daily newsletter. For the latest developments in business technology news, follow InfoWorld.com on Twitter.


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In May of last year I created a Christian Readers survey. This was an attempt to answer some questions I had been asking myself about where we buy our books and why we buy them there. I started with the question, "Why do people shop at one e-commerce store and not another" and went from there. The results, based on over 2200 responses, were very interesting, not just to me, but to you (judging by the comments I received) and to Christian booksellers and publishers. (You can see last year's results right here).
Now that a year has elapsed, I thought the time was right to do another survey. This one is the same, but different. I improved upon last year's questions while swapping a few others in and out. And now I'd be grateful if you'd take just a few moments to fill it out. There are just 20 questions and I can't imagine that it would take you more than 5 minutes to complete. Thanks in advance for your participation!
I promise to share the results with you when all is said and done…
Click Here to Complete the Survey


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Mark Simon, Caltrain's executive officer for public affairs, said his agency entered into a partnership with the California High-Speed Rail Authority in order to help Caltrain achieve the goal of electrifying its system, which is necessary to ensure the long-term viability of the popular but cash-strapped commuter service.
But Caltrain has been "rethinking our relationship with high-speed rail" since the rail authority approved the plan to start construction of the line in the Central Valley — a plan that's prompted many legislators, watchdogs and concerned citizens to wonder whether the Peninsula segment will ever get built.
The arrangement between the state authority and the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, which governs Caltrain, seemed ideal in 2004, four years before California voters approved a $9 billion bond for the new rail line. The authority needed Caltrain's right-of-way to make the system work, and Caltrain needed help with electrification. But with high-speed rail facing financial challenges, as well as increasing skepticism from Peninsula residents, Caltrain is giving this partnership a second thought.
Santa Clara County Supervisor Liz Kniss, who sits on Caltrain's governing board, hosted the meeting in Palo Alto City Hall to update the community about Caltrain's ongoing financial struggles and its efforts to electrify the financially troubled train system.
Several audience members, however, questioned Caltrain's partnership with the rail authority and encouraged the Joint Powers Board to take a more assertive stance. Palo Alto resident Hinda Sack said Caltrain should have a greater say.
Kniss, a former Palo Alto mayor, said the relationship between the agencies has always been tentative and subject to changes.
"It's like many arrangements," Kniss said. "I'd call it, maybe they were in the engagement phase.
"Caltrain got the ring but never got a wedding band."
Some on the Peninsula still hope the authority and Caltrain can work together. Last month, state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, and state Assemblyman Rich Gordon, D-Menlo Park, proposed a plan in which high-speed rail would use the electrified Caltrain system on the Peninsula.
The plan met a cool reception at the most recent meeting of the rail authority's board of directors. Several members, including board Chair Curt Pringle, suggested that the proposal could be little more than an attempt by Peninsula legislators to take money from the high-speed rail and use it for Caltrain's needs.
For Caltrain, the uncertainty over the Peninsula segment means it has to look for other ways to raise the roughly $1.5 billion needed to electrify the system. The three partnering agencies that largely fund Caltrain — the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, the San Mateo County Transit District and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority — have already set aside $269 million for the project and expect to receive about $350 million more in grants. Even so, Caltrain is still looking for about $640 million to make electrification possible, said Marian Lee, Caltrain's executive officer for planning and development.
The capital project is one of two major funding challenges the agency is wrestling with. Caltrain, which has no permanent, dedicated funding sources, is facing a structural budget gap of about $30 million. The shortfall can be attributed largely to decreases in voluntary contributions from the three partner agencies that support the commuter service.
Simon and Kniss said Tuesday that switching Caltrain from diesel to electricity would reduce emissions by 90 percent as well as cut down noise. The agency also hopes to install "positive train controls" — a GPS-based signal system that will allow Caltrain to run more trains and further boost its ridership.
Caltrain has already completed a draft Environmental Impact Report for the electrification project and hopes to certify the state-mandated document this summer.


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Doctors Call For Later School Start For Teens
Listen to School Spirit Radio on iHeartRadio
Doctors say middle school and high school classes should not start before 8:30 in the morning. The American Academy of Pediatrics says delaying the start of the school day until 8:30 a.m. or later would effectively counteract what the doctors call an epidemic of insufficient and erratic sleep patterns among teenagers.
The nation's biggest pediatric organization says pushing back school start times would help teens get the 8.5 to 9.5 nightly hours of sleep they need. The study is published online in the journal "Pediatrics."
PHOTO: Shutterstock


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Note: This message is displayed if (1) your browser is not standards-compliant or (2) you have you disabled CSS. Read our Policies for more information.
Indiana has committed to promote environmentally sound and economically feasible water conservation measures such as:
Indiana Statewide Goals for Water Conservation & Efficiency - As stated in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement
Basin-wide goals and objectives developed by the Great Lakes Council and adopted by the State of Indiana as Indiana Code 14-25-15, the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact. Included in the adopted Statute are the objectives based on the following goals:
Guide programs toward long-term sustainable water use.
Adopt and implement supply and demand management to promote efficient use and conservation of water resources.
Improve monitoring and standardize data reporting.
Develop science, technology and research.
Develop education programs and information sharing for all water users.
Water Use Program
Indiana has in place a registration and reporting program for Significant Water Withdrawal Facilities (SWWF) that collects information with regard to the location, type of use, and quantity of water use.
With the enactment of Indiana Code 14-25-7 (Water Resource Management Act) by the 1983 Indiana General Assembly, the Natural Resources Commission is required to "take and maintain an inventory of significant uses of water withdrawn from the surface or ground". Section 15 of the act requires that every person who owns a significant water withdrawal facility (SWWF) shall register it on forms provided by the commission within three (3) months after the facility is completed. A "significant water withdrawal facility" is defined in the act to mean "the water withdrawal facilities of a person that, in the aggregate from all sources and by all methods, has the capability of withdrawing more than one hundred thousand (100,000) gallons of ground water, surface water, or ground and surface water combined in one (1) day". The owner of a SWWF must also report annual water use within three (3) months after the end of each calendar year.
Water Shortage Task Force - Indiana's Water Shortage Plan
In 2006 the Indiana General Assembly enacted Senate Bill 369, codified as Indiana Code 14-25-14 which required the Director of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to appoint a Water Shortage Task Force (WSTF). The ten-member WSTF was charged with developing and implementing an updated water shortage plan and to address other surface water and ground water issues.
The purpose of the Indiana Water Shortage Plan is to provide the State of Indiana with an effective and systematic plan to assess and manage the State's water resources during a water shortage or potential water shortage and to respond, to the maximum extent practicable, to the needs of its water users while protecting its environment. It is intended to serve as a tool for the State of Indiana to guide the use and management of the State's water resource as the availability of that resource diminishes during events such as drought. While portions of the plan may be utilized to address localized water shortages caused by isolated events (i.e. loss of a primary well or wells or a reservoir dropping to critical levels) it is presumed that the document will be most useful in addressing regional water shortages which typically result from drought events.
Conservation Elements Included in Indiana's Water Shortage Plan
Indiana Water Conservation Plan- The Indiana Water Conservation Plan recognizes that Indiana's abundant water resources are a public good for all citizens of the State, and promotes the efficient use of this water by encouraging environmentally sound and economically feasible conservation measures to ensure availability for future generations.
Suggested Model Ordinance- The Model Ordinance describes a variety of water conservation measures including good management practices, potential price increases for water during times of shortage, and enforced rationing during periods of extreme water shortage. While some of the conservation measures in the ordinance may not apply to all situations or locations, their purpose is to encourage wise use of the resource and to minimize the impacts of seasonal or short-term water shortages.
Voluntary Conservation & Efficiency Outreach & Education Efforts Targeting Significant Water Withdrawal Facilities through Existing Annual Water Use Reporting Program
Examples of suggested Best Management Practices include:
Note: Raw Data Sets may be available by request to email@example.com
Water Management Planning Frameworks
Water Management Planning Frameworks were developed toassist water users with their conservation planning efforts, especially those registered as SWWFs. The frameworks are guidance documents that are individualized for each water use category (Industrial, Irrigation, Public Water Supply, and Rural & All Others) and are directed at facilities with no current conservation program. The frameworks encourage facilities to more readily develop & implement conservation and efficiency programs on a voluntary basis, and assists with ongoing program evaluation.
Administrative Rule Development and Adoption for IC 14-25-15:
News of Ongoing Local Conservation Efforts