text:
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text:
I'm currently in my pajamas flying 35,000 feet above sea level.
Below me, all I can see are glacial sheets of white ice floating in the Arctic Ocean. I practically shiver just looking out the window. However, here in my fully-reclining airplane seat, it's quite cozy. I'm drinking Bordeaux, flipping through magazines, and watching "The Departed" on my own private video screen. As I write this, a stewardess is asking me whether I want hot fudge or pineapple sauce on my Haagen Daaz Dulce de Leche ice cream sundae (FYI, the correct answer to this question is always "Yes!")
Unfortunately, this is as good as it's going to get.
Over the next 11 days, I'll be traveling solo all over Asia for work. I'll visit 7 cities, log more than 40 hours in the air, and spend most of my time worrying about the safety of the 25-year old death traps I'll be flying in (I swear some of these planes used to be operated by People's Express back in the 80's.)
Along the way, I'll fight sweltering crowds, try to navigate arbitrary flight schedules, argue with corrupt customs officials, berate cab drivers for ripping me off, and try to avoid having my luggage stolen by gangs of teenagers on mopeds. Glamorous, isn't it?
When I was younger, I loved traveling solo like this to far-off distant places. I loved landing in a foreign country where I didn't know a single person and didn't speak the local language. The farther off the beaten path, the more I enjoyed it. Spending my vacation on a beach chair? Going on a cruise? Visiting museums in Europe? Fuck that! For the same price, I'd rather spend the week riding elephants in Sri Lanka, climbing Mt. Fuji, or exploring Outer Mongolia. The world is a big place and I want to see as much of it as possible before I die.
It's funny though. Back then, the biggest concerns I had about taking a long solo trip like this one were (1) who was going to tape "Dawson's Creek" for me, (2) how would I get the scores of Mets games, and (3) were my plants going to die.
Now, that I'm married and have a child? Holy shit, I worry about everything!
In my mind (which is highly influenced by television and pop culture,) I can't help but think about all the possible things that could happen to me. I worry about my plane getting hijacked by terrorists dressed up in Elvis masks. I worry that the plane will crash in Siberia and I'll have to eat my fellow passengers in order to survive.
Shit, I even worry about snakes on the motherfucking plane!
And after watching "24" two nights ago, I can now also add to my list of worries the fear that I'll be tortured and held hostage by the Chinese government for two years!
(Speaking of "24," isn't it amazing how this show continues to appeal to both conservative Republicans AND liberal Democrats? Over the past year, I've heard both Dick Cheney and Barbara Streisand reference the show during speeches! This show has more cross-over appeal than the illegitimate love child of Barack Obama and John McCain.
By the way, could it be possible that Jack Bauer is a bigger bad-ass than ever? BossLady and I had Thai food delivered last night to coincide with the season premiere. The first 15 minutes were so gory that by the time Jack ate that dude's neck, I was already choking on my pad thai.
One more thing…Does anyone besides me think that Kal "Kumar" Penn playing a Middle-Eastern character is the worst casting since David Carradine played Kwai Chang Caine in "Kung Fu?" Although it is fun to yell, "No matter what, dude, we are NOT ending this night without White Castle in our stomachs!" every time Kal Penn shows up onscreen trying to speak Farsi, there's something about casting an Indian dude in the role that ruffles my race feathers the wrong way.)
Shit. What was I talking about again? Oh yeah, my fears and worries about traveling and being away from my beautiful wife and lovely daughter. Actually, upon further consideration, I'm not that worried. I think maybe the malaria medication is having a weird reaction with all the scotch.
To tell you the truth, my only semi-real fear is that the Peanut isn't going to remember me when I get back. The kid's memory seems to reset itself every two weeks. If you're not around her constantly, she either forgets all about you or, even worse, she just pretends not to know you. Man, if after all this traveling, I returned home only to discover that the Peanut not only didn't miss me but also had forgotten all about me, that would just fucking kill me.
Unless of course the Chinese or those motherfucking snakes don't get to me first!

subset: commoncrawl


text: I saw some discussion of this but hoped for more info. If you leave the side tieouts unstaked on the BB, will the Speer peapod work on it? pros/cons? I lay pretty much on full diagonal in my BB and my feet are in the corner of the box and my head right next to the side with only inches to spare. Wondering about the PP vs the larger polar pod for size and loft and diagonal lay, but don't want too big of a pod that would be hard to keep snug underneath. I'm 6'2", 235 lbs.


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by Clarissa West-White, Editor, SLATE UpdateMarch 2009
Over the next several installments of the SLATE Update, Clarissa West-White will chronicle the start-up of Florida's Day on the Hill in hopes that fellow NCTE members will consider chartering similar days in their states. See the Florida Advocacy Day Ning for more.
It took only one trip to NCTE's Day on the Hill to be bitten by the political bug. After visiting legislative aides to Florida senators and congressional representatives, and being repeatedly told that many of our concerns within the state needed to be addressed at the local level, it was clear that a state advocacy day would be essential to influence policy. And thus it began.
Initially, there were more questions than answers and this once deemed necessity was quickly turning into a wistful fantasy. Along with fellow board member Susan Houser, talks about how to initiate a Florida state advocacy day for teachers, specifically English teachers, began. We discussed NCTE's format and found that it was conducive to our goals. We corresponded often via email and proposed a session at the 2008 Florida Council of Teachers of English Professional Development Institute in order to gauge interest for a state advocacy day, and to drum up participants for NCTE's national advocacy day. The session was well received. Five respondents showed and committed to assist in planning the state advocacy day and attending D.C. in 2009. During the session I presented a moviemaker presentation pieced from photographs taken in April along with narrative regarding what to expect when journeying to D.C., and Susan discussed the role and purpose of advocacy and how to schedule appointments with their representatives, and shared personal experiences from her encounters with aides, Congressional representatives, and Senators.
At the January 2009 winter board meeting, the SLATE/Legislative committee presented a motion requesting that $1 of each membership be allocated for advocacy and that this money (and other designated funds) fund four FCTE members to attend NCTE's Day on the Hill in D.C. this April. The motion carried!
However, we are still at work on making Florida's Day on the Hill a reality. A quick search of the state's website led to the discovery of an email exclusively for soliciting information. This inquiry was forwarded and within a day, procedures for declaring a state day, procuring space, determining whether we needed to file as lobbyists, and other loose ends were received. Actually, the steps are quite simple in Florida; there are no forms to complete, or a lengthy list of people to contact. However, over the course of the last few weeks, we have determined that it may be best to witness the organizing of the event up close. Thus, we tentatively plan to accompany other associations during this legislative session and then meet over the summer to coordinate Florida's Advocacy Day for Teachers for 2010.
To be continued… Websites of interest
Congress.Org: News, information and resources on Congress including votes, bills, assignments and information about individual members.
United States House of Representatives, 111th Congress, 1st Session: Information on the lower body of the federal legislature: about the legislative process, this week's House calendar, committee schedules, roll call vote, and more:
Congressional Committee Materials Online via GPO Access: A service of the U.S. Government Printing Office. Last updated: May 11, 2007.
Contacting the Congress: Contacting the Congress is a very up-to-date database of congressional contact information for the 111th Congress. As of February 6, 2009, there are 536.
Florida Advocacy Day NING Network
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text: I tried using GSAK and F'ed up a bunch of caches that were already loaded. It ended up doubling all my waypoints, creating some odd other waypoints, etc. Needless to say I dont really like GSAK at this point. I enter them all by hand and even change the GC# to the name of the cache. GotGPS thinks I'm nuts!


text:
POE::Component::SmokeBox::Backend::Test::Idle - a backend to test idle kills.
POE::Component::SmokeBox::Backend::Test::Idle is a POE::Component::SmokeBox::Backend plugin used during the POE::Component::SmokeBox tests.
It contains no moving parts.
BinGOs Williams
(c) Chris Williams.
This module may be used, modified, and distributed under the same terms as Perl itself. Please see the license that came with your Perl distribution for details.


text:
I'm a cosplayer since 2009... pretty new to this world! xD
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Click like here!! ;) Thanks https://www.facebook.com/littlesisterscosplayphotography?ref=hl
I'm a just a girl like every other girl in the world... but I have a great passion: Cosplaying! My hobby started in the early 2003 when I went to Lucca Comics & Games and I saw some people dressed as videogames characters. In 2004 I decided to go back to Lucca with the Cosplay of Rinoa Heartilly from Final Fantasy VIII: I realized a dream! http://www.aurarinoa.it http://www.twitter.com/aurarinoa http://www.facebook.com/aurarinoanews
cosplayer since 2007 I'm not good with presentation...I like to transform myself cosplaying, both female and male! I both do cosplay and crossplay as well. Just that I like the character and they reflect me for something. I'm in love with Nitro+ characters and Overwatch heroes! Hope you like my cosplays, follow me here and in the other socials 💖 FB https://www.facebook.com/nitroshiro Instagram https://www.instagram.com/nitroshiro/ deviantART http://deathwrathangel.deviantart.com/
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Hiya visitor, Welcome to the Belgian cosplay page of MysteriousMaemi. Active in this passionate, interesting world since 2006 with handmade costumes. Thanks for liking my work. *^_^* Belgian EC finalist 2013 and 2016. Find me on: FB: https://www.facebook.com/mysteriousmaemi DA, twitter, cosplay-it, animexx: MysteriousMaemi Cosplay.com: 58195 Cure: 297497
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text:
The fight seems to be getting tougher with every passing minute.
Today Fletcher, Beshear and their running mates have been setting the campaign trail ablaze, stopping off in as much of Kentucky as they can.
Kentucky's race for governor ends tomorrow, when voters decide if Governor Ernie Fletcher or Democrat Steve Beshear will guide Kentucky during the next four years.
Both Beshear and Fletcher were on fly-arounds today, rallying supporters at stops across the state.
Governor Fletcher started his day in Lexington, before flying to Ashland, Louisville, London, and Paducah, among other cities.
Meanwhile, Steve Beshear began in Paducah, before going to Hazard, Ashland, Northern Kentucky, and Louisville.
He'll end his tour in Lexington, tonight.
AP Story
Steve Beshear and Governor Ernie Fletcher will be crisscrossing the state today in the final hours before tomorrow's election.
Beshear received a warm welcome last night at his hometown in
Dawson Springs, where supporters gathered to rally for the
Democratic nominee for governor. Earlier in the day Beshear told a group of senior citizens in Owensboro that if elected he will try to help seniors make their prescription drug payments.
Governor Fletcher spent yesterday in Louisville and northern
Kentucky urging supporters to keep working and beating the bushes
until Election Day. Fletcher told a crowd in Louisville he won't stop working until he captures re-election. Supporters say they're not worried about polls that show the governor trailing Beshear by double digits.
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)


text:
Natural gas service could soon be available in downtown Townsend. Maybe. Possibly.
Natural gas service could soon be available in downtown Townsend. Maybe. Possibly.
Chesapeake Utilities recently began polling residents along Main Street to gauge their interest in converting to natural gas.
"It's basically a fact-finding mission," said Vincent Fiorelli, a sales representative for the Dover-based utility. "We want to know whether there is an interest there among the residents to determine whether it's worth it to work up a cost estimate for extending our lines into downtown."
Currently, Chesapeake Utilities serves homes and businesses immediately west of the railroad tracks, as well as Townsend Village II to the north.
Fiorelli said the heart of Townsend has not previously received natural gas service due, in part, to the cost of extending service lines in well-developed, densely populated areas.
"It's more expensive and little more complex to install service lines under existing roads in areas that are already built up," he said, adding that downtown Middletown also does not have natural gas service. "It's a lot easier to reach new developments because you don't have to tear up existing streets."
Fiorelli said the company became interested in exploring a project in downtown Townsend after the Townsend Fire Company and the Appoquinimink School District expressed interest in heating their buildings with natural gas.
"Our current heating system uses fuel oil and it's costing us about $4,000 a month, so we're looking for a more economical way of doing business," said Raymond Clark, a member of the board of directors for the fire company headquartered at 107 Main St.
Bob Hershey, the school district's supervisor of buildings and maintenance, said Townsend Elementary School at 126 Main St. is the only school building in the district heated with fuel oil.
"Natural gas is more economical and burns more efficiently," he said. "And since we're in the midst of a renovation project at the school, we might be able to use some of the funds for that project on converting our boilers to natural gas."
Natural gas is significantly less expense than both propane and fuel oil, which most downtown residents currently use to heat their homes, Fiorelli said.
According to a heating fuel calculator provided by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the cost to produce a million BTUs with natural gas is $14.39, compared $37.08 for fuel oil or $34.05 for propane and $35.28 for electricity.
However, homeowner Mike Ruhman noted that rates would not be the only cost that downtown residents would need to consider.
"We'll also have the cost of converting our home heating systems from oil to natural gas and I don't know how many homeowners are in a position to drop $5,000 to $6,000 on doing that," he noted at the April 3 meeting.
Fiorelli said the Delaware Public Service Commission also requires regulated utility companies to recoup the cost of serve extension projects from the customers who would be served by the new lines.
With a large enough customer base in downtown Townsend, Chesapeake Utilities could recoup those costs through customer and deliver charges, while a small customer base would likely mean new customers would be required to pay an upfront fee.
"It's still far too early in the process to know how that would work or what the cost might be," he said this week. "First, we need to know where the interest is, and only then would we be able to determine the size of the project and estimate a construction cost."
Fiorelli said Townsend residents would not be bound to convert to natural gas by expressing interest in the service via survey forms currently being distributed to homes and businesses along Main Street.
"Right now, we just want to know where our potential customers might be," he said. "Of course, we'd expect those people to convert if the service became available, but no one will be bound by anything at this point."


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Results 1 to 1 of 1
#1 Regretting My Abortion: I Wish I Didnt Have the Right to Choose
- Join Date
- Apr 2012
- Posts
- 636
Kathy and I go way back. In fact, she was my best friend in elementary school. We had no idea while singing karaoke and staying up late at slumber parties the pain we would go through as adults. But we also had no idea how God would use our brokenness for His glory. Ive been amazed at Kathys heart for Jesus, passion for her family, and vigor for empowering other women.
Recently, she sent me this message. As I sat weeping at my computer over her pain and loss, her sweet baby, and the goodness of a savior who will make all things new, I knew it needed to be shared. And Kathy, in her immense courage, is allowing me to share her story publicly for the first time in her own words
I feel God pulling at my heart stings to tell the truth about abortion. I want to reach those who feel they have no other choice than their right to choose.
You are one of a few people that I have shared this story with. God is calling me to share it with more but I am nervous and scared. The truth is I have been carrying around a deep dark secret. Carrying it on my back, and dealing with it all alone because of what the consequences are if people were to hear the truth. The truth is I no longer care what others think. The truth is I know there are others out there like me, suffering alone when they dont have to. The truth is God is calling me to speak out.
The truth is when I was 19 years old I got pregnant. Upon telling my parents; they decided that I would get married. We began to plan a very quick wedding. The boy I was dating at the time turned out to be abusive. He was from an abusive home and had his father had brutally beaten his first wife in front of her two sons. The first time this boy threw me to the ground while I was pregnant I knew there was NO WAY I was going to allow this cycle to repeat. I broke off the engagement and began looking into adoption. I was only 19 and I knew I wasnt ready to be a mom. When I told him I wanted to make an adoption plan, that I knew that was the best choice for us and the baby, he became very angry. Threatening, yelling, and screaming, he told me no one would EVER take the mother of his child or his child away from him. He wouldnt allow it that we WOULD be together. I became scared. Fear set in like I cant even begin to explain. I realized that I could be a victim of abuse or I could save myself and my unborn child and choose to make this all disappear. I told him I had a miscarriage (which is what I told everyone else too).
Walking into Planned Parenthood the smell of depression and hopelessness lay thick in the room. Yes, I could actually smell it. None of the women looked thankful that they had the choice to be there. They all looked empty. Broken. I felt it too. I had always said I would NEVER have an abortion. I was wrong. In my mind I believed it was the only choice I had at the time to protect myself and my unborn child from a life of fear and abuse. My name was called and I headed in the back. I was scared and alone.
I hear people talking about the right to choose. I wish like HELL I didnt have the right to choose that day.I wish there had been counseling. I wish there had been adoption agencies out there trying to reach the youth. I wish THOSE things were easy access; NOT Planned Parenthood. I wish more than anything, ANYTHING, I could have taken away MY right to choose and allow my baby to have their right to choose life. I wish there was support out there for girls like me. And maybe there was but Planned Parenthood was easy to find. Abortion is easy. Walk in, walk out. Done. Pregnant. Not Pregnant. Simple. Except its NOT that simple. They forget to tell you about the rest of the story.
The truth is they dont tell you about the memory you live with for the rest of your life. For awhile I was able to forget. I had to suppress the memory in order to survive MY right to live. But slowly the memory began to resurface. Back to the room back to the smells back to the empty eyes of broken women. Back to the face of the man that literally sucked life out of my body.
Abortion is not about choice. Its about selfishness. Its about desperation. And I can say that because I have had one. I have walked a mile in those shoes and its a mile that never ends.
Recently a friend asked me if I had ever named my baby. Immediately I thought, No, because that would make it real! Then the fetus would become human. Become a baby. But I knew in that moment I needed to acknowledge that my baby is real. I needed to mourn the loss of my child. I realized how deep the pain still ran from my right to choose. I began to pray that God would give me a name. A few weeks ago while driving in the car I heard God speak to me: Her name is Joy. Tears streamed down my face. It was a girl! I had had a daughter.
Before that precious moment in the car, I randomly heard an audible whisper of mom. I will wake up in the middle of the night to mom and there is no one in the room. Washing my face I hear mom and look up no one there. It has happened a number of times where I hear mom and there is no one around. Shortly after hearing Her name is Joy, I was washing my face in the bathroom and I heard the whisper again; mom. Then it hit me: its her! Its Joy. This incredible RUSH came over me and I knew in that moment she was telling me Its okay. I forgive you. I am here with Jesus waiting for you. I love you. And its okay. Since that realization I havent heard the voice again. But God has placed on my heart to share this story because I know I am not alone. I KNOW I am not the only woman sitting at Church or in Bible Study carrying this same burden. Its the ONE thing that Christians dont talk about other than to point a finger at someone and telling them its murder. I am not sure what Gods plan is for me with sharing this story. But I know that SOMEONE needs to hear it. So I am sharing it.
If you have gone through the agony of abortion, you are not alone. And its OKAY to talk about it. We cant heal unless we help each other carry our burdens. I have finally carried that baggage to the foot of the cross and left it there. I have been forgiven. Not only has God forgiven me but he has blessed me far beyond measure with four more beautiful children. And hes placed it in my heart to help fight for moms and babies. For anyone out there that has suffered in silence, that has carried this burden on their back ashamed of the choice they made, please know you are NOT alone.
|« Previous Thread | Next Thread »


text:
Photos: Drive for a Cure fund-raiser
Photos: Drive for a Cure fund-raiser
From left: Beth Negri of West Roxbury, Deb Quillen of Shrewsbury, Don Haggerty of Jamaica Plain, and Carol Austin of Quincy.
Lois Lange (left) of Brookline and Loren Feingold of Weston.
Jack Shaughnessy of Milton and Sister Maryadele Robinson of South Boston.
From left: Ed Camuso of Essex, Lori Colleti of Essex, and Joe Kerwin of Medfield.
From left: Chris Warner of Acton, James Connolly of Medfield, Joe Kerwin of Medfield, Bobby Kelly and his brother Tommy of Dedham.
Bob and Maureen Kelly of Dedham.


text: Thank you both for the replies! The main and pretty much only reason we were thinking the NCT side is the possibility of the low side being swamped out. I will be the only hanger and it will be my first true hang. I know we are getting some good snow now, but do you guys think it will be too mucky the end of April? Thanks again so much! This is exactly the good info I was looking for!


text:
Color me shocked when Canelo Alvarez decided to meet Erislandy Lara on July 12 in Las Vegas. Lara, long regarded as one of the most fierce and trickiest southpaws in the junior middleweight division, isnt the kind of fighter a soon-to-be 24-year-old who has struggled against elite-level boxers would normally want to face.
But to his credit, Alvarez picked Lara for his next gig. Either Alvarez thinks hes improved enough since eeking out a win over Austin Trout and getting his ears boxed off versus Floyd Mayweather, or he doesnt believe Lara is as competent a boxer as most are led to believe.
Regardless, on paper the Canelo-Lara promotion is the best matched fight of the year, so I polled the smartest folks in the business to see who would win.
TSS Crew Likes Canelo 6-1
I'm picking Canelo to beat Lara by decision. He's a pressure fighter who knows Alfredo Angulo gave Lara a lot of trouble and the blueprint to defeat the Cuban dandy. It won't be easy, but Canelo is stronger than Angulo and will use that strength to wear down Lara. -- David Avila, The Sweet Science
Lara is certainly the most exciting fighter in this bout, but his performances are inconsistent. Alvarez is steadier and will control this bout. Alvarez by decision. -- Aaron Tallent, The Sweet Science
Lara is super inconsistent and you don't know what you're getting. He's looked average at times and special at others... I'm not willing to bet on a temperamental performer. I'll go with the speed and power of Canelo to catch an overly aggressive Lara for a late knockdown to give him the edge on the cards (or possibly KO him). Genuine toss-up, though. -- Blake Hochberger, The Sweet Science
This is a tough one to call. I can see Alvarez landing the heavier punches which should be enough to impress the judges and get a close decision. Lara will likely make things very tricky and bring some frustration for Canelo, but I don't see him landing enough hurtful blows. Could be similar to Alvarez versus Trout. -- Ronan Keenan, The Sweet Science
Lara and his team have wanted this fight for over two years. They finally got it. While Alvarez has improved drastically over that stretch of time, there is nothing in his performances against Austin Trout and Floyd Mayweather that tell me he knows how to fight a stylist like Lara. Im picking Lara by majority decision. -- Kelsey McCarson, The Sweet Science
Eeshh, the guy who drew with Vanes Martirosyan thinks he has a chance to beat young gun Canelo Alvarez Wait, the guy who fought Martirosyan in a stink-bomb bout then came out and looked like a pugilist-specialist against a top grade technician, in Austin Trout, in his last bout? I'm frazzled....OK, I gotta say first and foremost, I love pick em bouts. This is a coin flip special for me but I'm going with the Mexican here, with the belief that physicality, strength and accuracy, will win out over the Cuban style of Lara, who could well spend more time being evasive than in launching and landing enough shots to convince the judges he's done more. Canelo wins by a three point margin. -- Michael Woods, The Sweet Science
I haven't seen either guy fight live so I can't make a confident prediction, but there is enough positive buzz around Lara that he is definitely a very live underdog. I think his draw with Martirosyan probably means a lot more than credited. Still, if I had to make a bet, considering risk reward margins and the ol' Vegas breeze, I would lean toward a big win (mid-rounds TKO) for Alvarez. -- Phil Woolever, The Sweet Science
Other Experts Pick Canelo 8-1
I think Canelo's activity and punching volume will be enough to carry the fight. Lara's best chance to win will be by knockout or a series of knockdowns, but Alvarez's chin has looked pretty good at 154 to this point. Saul Alvarez wins by competitive unanimous decision. -- Adam Abramowitz, Saturday Night Boxing
Saul Alvarez is not nearly as fast as he thinks he is. Erislandy Lara is not nearly the boxer his supporters think he is. Alvarez tends to fade in fights' second halves because he commits fully to nearly every punch. Lara tends to waste significant stores of energy by taking way too many steps. Lara will take Alvarez into the late rounds and exhaust him, yes, but he'll not know what to do with an exhausted Alvarez when he gets him there. I'll take Alvarez, UD-12.-- Bart Barry, 15Rounds.com
As much as Lara is the more skilled fighter of the two, the jury is still out as to whether or not he can rise to the occasion in a huge fight and put forth a performance as bold in the ring as he was outside of it to secure the fight. While Canelo's overall craft remains underrated, he'll need to find the perfect balance between counter punching and attacking in order to get the win. In the end, Canelo's well-timed bursts of activity each round and hard punches should be enough to sway the judges in a close fight. Lara will certainly have his moments, but his passive stretches of inactivity throughout the fight will hurt him in the end. Give me Canelo by split decision in close fight. -- Brian Campbell, ESPN
Unlike a lot of other folks whose opinions I've seen this week, I like Canelo here. Mayweather made him look awful, but Lara is no Mayweather. I think he can be gradually beaten up as he was in the Angulo fight, meaning Canelo either does enough to get the late stoppage "El Perro" might have gotten with clear eyesight, or wins enough rounds outright to take a close decision. -- Lyle Fitzsimmons, CBSSports.com
I'm picking Canelo by a knockout between 6-8 rounds. He is too strong for Lara and quick enough to cut off the ring. -- Gordon Marino, Boxing.com
This fight has a bit of a late-money feel and I expect the poll to be close...that said, I reckon Canelo is slightly the better man for all that Lara enjoys the bones of a style advantage. Alvarez, for me, is coming to grips with the problem he's had at the highest level, namely the third punch he throws in combinations and I expect him to start finding Lara in the middle rounds with good shots. His work will be more pleasing to the eye and that will get him over the line in a mildly controversial fight that stirs without really hitting the afterburners. -- Matt McGrain, Boxing.com
Had this fight taken place a year ago, the temptation to join the herd and say Erislandy Lara would prove Canelo Alvarez's kryptonite would have been too much to resist. But Canelo has grown and matured since then. He's taken the experience of fighting a couple of cagey boxersAustin Trout and Floyd Mayweatherand used it to refine his game and become a more well-rounded fighter. This is a statement fight for himremember, he didn't need to take this fight, he wanted toand his aggression, combined with an early knockdown, will make up the margin of a split-decision victory. -- Kevin McRae, Bleacher Report
The Lara fight was perhaps Richard Schaefer's finest piece of maneuvering during his on-going war with former business partner Oscar De La Hoya. It's an incredibly dangerous bout for Canelo, De La Hoya's last remaining PPV chess piece, one most promoters would run from at a full sprint. Much respect to Canelo for taking it. That took cajones. Too bad he's going to lose. (Lara, Decision). -- Jonathan Snowden, Bleacher Report
It's going to be a war, but Canelo is out to prove something and his heart will lead him to a victory by decision. Two tough boxer-punchers, it will guarantee be an action-packed fight. This is a tough one, but I see Canelo winning. -- Kaliesha West, World Champion Boxer


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Tossing out junk at the county's highway facility will soon no longer be free.
By a 5-2 vote, the Anderson County Fiscal Court approved last Tuesday charging 5 cents per pound ($100 a ton) for items thrown into its compactor. That includes throwing away yard debris as well as regular household trash.
Disposal of recyclables will remain free.
The decision includes purchasing a set of scales for around $55,000, along with hiring a full-time employee at an estimated $30,000 a year to collect fees.
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Former state Rep. Bill Huizenga, now a U.S. Congressman, is viewed by some as the "godfather" of a state government economic development program known as the "21st Century Jobs Fund."
Former Gov. Jennifer Granholm conceived the 2005 program, which among other things has seen the state buying ownership interest in private businesses, breaking a 154-year practice of steering clear of state equity investments that are not pension-related.
Stay Engaged
The GOP House majority at the time was skeptical about Gov. Granholm's proposal to borrow $2 billion for this adventure, but Huizenga, a Republican from Zeeland, managed to convince his colleagues to support a scaled-down version. This became one of the corporate welfare initiatives that Gov. Granholm promised would blow you away over the following five years. In the end, the bill that passed authorized borrowing $400 million up-front, and spending an additional $75 million annually for the next eight years.
A few weeks before the bill passed in the fall of 2005, Rep. Huizenga appeared in an impromptu debate on WJR radio's popular Frank Beckmann Show with a long-time critic of government economic central planning programs — me.
Naturally, Rep. Huizenga argued that this latest version would provide new job creation for the state (although he did not use the words "blown away"). I responded that since 1947 Michigan politicians had been making the same claim about new corporate welfare initiatives that seemed to grow over the decades in both size and scope. The 21st Century Jobs program was perhaps the high water mark of this trend (the subsequent open-ended film producer giveaways enacted in 2008 might be considered its reductio ad absurdum).
So who won that 2005 radio debate? There was no panel of judges in the studio then, but you can listen and offer your own verdict today:
The program Rep. Huizenga helped become law had many moving parts, but history has already given its verdict on the "direct investment" portion that featured prominently in that radio debate: After spending $109 million, a 2011 report from the Michigan Economic Development Corp. credits it with just 267 jobs created or just "retained." Some of its failures have been highly embarrassing to the state, such as the one reported in a Michigan Capitol Confidential article titled, " 'Green' Company Awarded Up to $120 Million Promised 70 Jobs—Creates Just Three Jobs in Three Years."
The Detroit Free Press looked at the 21st Century Jobs Fund program in 2010 and, citing the MEDC itself through September 2009, reported that in two major areas of spending, job claims posted by the MEDC amounted to one-third of what was originally anticipated. Some articles describing other specific examples of the programs shortcomings are listed below.
MEDC Programs Consistently Fall Short of Initial Claims
The State as Venture Capitalist: Michigan Fund Loaned $7.7 Million, Creates Only 20 Percent of Promises Jobs
Michigan Government Program Gives $30 million to Seven Universities, Creates Less than Half of Projected Jobs
'Green' Company Awarded Up to $120 Million Promised 70 Jobs—Creates Just Three Jobs in Three Years
(Editor's note: A call to the MEDC seeking comment was not returned.)
Related Articles:
An Evaluation of Michigan's 21st Century Jobs Fund
Time to End the 21st Century Jobs Fund
Study Recommends Ending Michigan's 21st Century Jobs Fund
State's '21st Century Jobs Fund' Spent $100 Million For Just 1,052 Jobs
Blown Away By Flawed Research on Jobs Program


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Script: Peter Harris
Art: Ron Turner
Letters: Peter Knight
Plot: Tex and Mitch land on a earth-like planet after four years using an experimental warp drive. Unsure of their precise location they are shocked to find branded cattle just as they would in Texas. After an initial confrontation with two lizard-like 'cowboys' the four settled down to enjoy beans by the camp-fire before Tex and Mitch leave to continue their space voyage.
Shock : As the astronauts depart the two lizard cowboys debate whether they should have told the two humans that they had come 'full circle' back to an earth 50 years in the future and that mankind was 'reduced to zombies' by germ warfare.
Thoughts: A classic 50's Sci-Fi feel pervades this excellent strip, down in no small measure to Ron Turner's excellent traditional art. Peter Harris, the neglected author of the 'first' Dredd story in Prog 2, turns out a bobbins tale that doesn't make a lot of sense (experimental warp drives given four-year missions, navigation units being accepted as unreliable) and a description of the human condition 'reduced to zombies' which doesn't match the images (the lizard cowboys ride off on hairy human-faced 'horses') but still it works because yes those are bonkers aliens in Roy Rodgers gear and yes that final human-horse-wildebeest image is just so weird and wrong and magnificent. And also because, lets face it, this is 'The Last Rumble of the Platinum Horde' rendered as Charlton Silver-Age Sci-Fi five years ahead of Mr Moore's more famous piece.
Shock'd? Most certainly. The story has its own separate tension, mainly the initial confrontation with earth's new cowboys which seems sure to end badly for Mitch and Tex, and the Shock is totally bonkers and unexplained (who are these lizards?, why are they so happy to let our heroes go when they ride human-slave animals? , why are they dressed like RKO serial extras? and what's the whole zombie thing about?) but still all is forgiven for that last panel of the pained human-horse-Sasquatches looking so miserable.


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Wednesday, November 23, 2005
The biggest disappointment is that this probably ended any chance that Mike Sherman had at returning as coach next season. Sherman isn't a perfect coach, but he knows how to coordinate a successful offense and he built the team that won the division three seasons in a row. His biggest sin is that he isn't GM Ted Thompson's chosen coach, but the Packers inability to win at home the last two seasons and two home playoff losses in three seasons is probably unforgiveable. Losing to division rival Minnesota in a cold, non-dome situation is probably the worst possible home loss.
First Half: The Packers came out with a lot of energy and Minnesota looked flat. Minnesota didn't have any success running or throwing the football. The Packers offense had some life, but the lift that RB Samkon Gado brought to the running game vs. Atlanta vanished. The defense abused QB Brad Johnson badly in the quarter, especially DE Aaron Kampman. Kampman dominated the two right tackles that played against him. The player that really shined in the half was rookie FS Nick Collins. Collins had his first career interception and was much more involved in the game. The Packers are starting to see the rewards for letting Collins learn how to play in the NFL on the field in his rookie season. QB Brett Favre's two great TD passes to WR Donald Driver in the half were great, but his interception returned for a touchdown by a player forced into the lineup due to the injury to starting CB Fred Smoot was awful. In the Packers last two losses, Favre committed a turnover that was returned for a touchdown and it was the difference in each game. Packers 14, Minnesota 7.
Second Half: Minnesota came out of the locker room with a spark and now the Packers looked flat, as the two teams repeated the same game played in Minnesota last month. The Packers offense plays worse the longer the game goes on. In the first half, the opposing team gives some respect to the Packers running game, just in case someone like Gado comes off the bench and has a great game. In the second half, the opponent has first hand knowledge that the run offense is no threat and it gets much harder to throw the ball. It doesn't help Favre that his #2 WR could not get open as he is probably playing with an injury (Robert Ferguson), his #3 WR is short (Antonio Chatman), and his #4 WR is bad (Andrae Thurman). The offense had a spark in the 4th quarter when TE Donald Lee lined up as the slot receiver and Favre threw four completions to him.
The big story in this half was that Minnesota ran up and down the field against the Packers' defense. Minnesota's offense had been slumbering for at least the last game and a half, but they turned it around. They started exploiting that the Packers are awful at covering tight ends. TE Jermaine Wiggins had two big catches on Minnesota's first touchdown drive. S Mark Roman had a illegal use of hands penalty that kept the drive alive and was as much of a difference in the game as any other play. Then Minnesota discovered the benefits of rushing right at DE KGB. Gbaja-Biamela wasn't at fault for getting blocked on the run plays right at him, only once was he blocked cleanly out of the play. But the defensive tackle to that side was usually blocked by the center, the left guard was able to move downfield to block the linebacker, if one was actually present on that side, and RB Mewelde Moore was able to run untouched for at least seven yards. It didn't help either that the defensive line all appeared to tire as they spent the entire second half on the field and Minnesota started to get a solid push from their entire offensive line on running plays. The run defense that looked solid in the first half was tired and shoved around in the fourth quarter.
The big play that sealed the game was the long pass to a wide open WR Koren Robinson. After CB Joey Thomas was released after the Cincinnati game because he committed a big penalty late in the 4th quarter that sealed the loss. Enter new 3rd cornerback CB Jason Horton. With a minute left in the game, the Packers blitz, Horton thinks he is playing a cover 2 short zone, lets Robinson run right by him, but only Collins is deep in coverage for the entire field. Horton was obviously playing the wrong defense. A typical play in a season filled with big mistakes and few big plays. Packers 17, Minnesota 20.
2 comments:
- The Armchair Quarterback said...
They have got to get this defense figured out for next year. I'm just mystified by the demise of the Packers this season. I'm convinced they should have passed on Rodgers and gone after a defender in the draft last spring.
- Brandon said...
The defense has some obvious weaknesses, but it's not their fault the team is 2-9. Football Outsiders currently ranks the defense 18th compared to 29th last season. The offense is down from 9th in 2004 to 23rd this season. The special teams was 13th last season, but has completely collapsed and is 32nd, the worst in the NFL. But the Packers did pass on three defensive players, DT Luis Castillo, LB Lofa Tatupu, and LB Odell Thurman, to draft Rodgers, and all three of those players could be helping the Packers right now while Rodgers is just holding the clipboard.


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The Kansas City Chiefs made sure that wide receiver Dwayne Bowe wasn't going anywhere. And they didn't have to use the franchise tag.
Albert Breer of NFL.com reports that Bowe and the Chiefs reached a new five-year contract on Monday. ESPN first reported the news. The regime change in Kansas City ultimately helped keep Bowe in town. Signing Bowe long-term also allowed the Chiefs to use the franchise tag on Branden Albert. The Chiefs also reached a long-term agreement with punter Dustin Colquitt, according to ESPN.
New coach Andy Reid and GM John Dorsey made it clear they were fans of Bowe, and did not want to lose him. Kansas City boasts a solid group of skill position talent with Bowe, wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin, running back Jamaal Charles, and Tony Moeaki to pair with incoming quarterback Alex Smith.
Financial terms are still unclear, but it's safe to say Bowe will be one of the highest paid wide receivers in the league. Keeping Bowe is another sign that Reid doesn't see this Chiefs job as some great rebuilding project. They look like a team that wants to compete in 2013. To do so, they keep one of the best free agents off the market.
Now Reid will find out the answer to a question that former Chiefs GM Scott Pioli always seemed to wonder about: How will Bowe react to big money?


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4-plex concession stand may be expanded
More room to maneuver?
That is likely to please volunteers who work the concession stand at the city softball and baseball four-plex.
City councilman Jeff Whiting, who is also president of the Gothenburg Angels Softball Association, has asked the Goth
enburg City Council to look into renovating the concession stand.
At the council's Oct. 30, city administrator Bruce Clymer showed a sketch of ideas that include an addition, storage space and covered patio areas to deflect the hot summer sun.
Cressy Daharsh, who is in charge of Angel softball concessions, told the council that a larger stand is needed.
Only about two people can fit in the concession-serving area which becomes quite hot during the summer, she said.
The renovation would include a larger serving area and two storage areas for equipment that belongs to the city and school.
Currently, officials said equipment is stored in the bathroom areas of the concession stand.
This year, $25,000 has been budgeted for four-plex renovations. Clymer said those funds have also been discussed for the rehabilitation of Lake Helen.
Whiting asked and was told that $42,000 in KENO funds could also be used for concession stand project.
When asked if the Angels organization could help with funds, Whiting said what they earn by selling concessions helps buy uniforms for four different age groups of players.
Although the Angels operate concessions, Clymer noted that other organizations that use the four-plex might ask to operate the concession stand.
"I'd hate to see the Angels put money into it and then bid it (concessions out)," he said.
The council discussed hiring an architect to draw up plans which Clymer said could cost $2,000 to $3,000.
He offered to discuss a preliminary plan with the city's engineer—Miller & Associates Consulting Engineers of Kearney—which the council accepted.
In other business, the council:
decided to request bids for a new bucket truck with the trade-in of an old bucket truck and without trade in of the truck.
Clymer said the city crew wants to keep the old truck for trimming trees.
approved a change order of $533 to Paulsen Inc. of Cozad for Fourth Street improvements and a final pay request of $36,765. Members also accepted a certificate of substantial completion for the project.
okayed the blocking off of half of Lake Avenue, between Ninth and 10th Streets for the annual Holiday Magic event by the Gothenburg Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, Dec. 6.
tabled a municipal electric interests group agreement and resolution.
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The group gathered at the Mark Twain Museum Saturday, Dec. 8, to hear about how the Sam Clemens family celebrated Christmas and to hear a letter Clemens wrote as Santa Claus was rewarded with an entertaining yet educational glimpse of the family.
The group gathered at the Mark Twain Museum Saturday, Dec. 8, to hear about how the Sam Clemens family celebrated Christmas and to hear a letter Clemens wrote as Santa Claus was rewarded with an entertaining yet educational glimpse of the family.
Museum Curator Henry Sweets began the program with a discussion of some Hannibal Gazette articles about Christmas in Hannibal in 1846 when young Sam Clemens was age 10.
Sweets also shared Clemens' account of an 1867 cruise to the Holy Land. It was during this cruise that he "fell in love" with a portrait of Livy Langdon - his future wife - while traveling with her brother. And Clemens described how he felt at night standing on a hill overlooking Bethlehem.
Sweets said this 1867 trip was near the same time the Rev. Phillips Brooks visited the same spot and was inspired to write "O Little Town of Bethlehem."
Continuing his portion of the program Sweets read from Clara Clemens' biography of her father, sharing how the family celebrated Christmas in Hartford, Conn., when she was young. Clara said her mother gave presents to many people in need, in addition to the family and their servants. ... Her father did not approve of the amount of time Livy spent writing Christmas lists, sorting gifts and preparing them, because he was concerned about her health.
Clara also shared her memories of Christmas Eve and the difficulty the girls experienced in trying to sleep. This was after their mother had read "The Night Before Christmas" and their dad was dressed as Santa Claus. Before the Christmas Eve ended, the girls "squealed 'Thank you, thank you, Santa Claus, for the things we hope to like.'"
Then early on Christmas morning the girls found their presents in the school room next to the nursery. One year there was a "big object in the center of the room" that was a "lovely upright piano. I was only 6 years old."
Master Storyteller Gladys Coggswell also participated in the museum's Christmas program, reading a letter Sam Clemens - as Santa - wrote to his youngest daughter, Suzy. Coggswell explained the girls wrote lists of what they wanted for Christmas. Santa's letter explained that he had run out of some things.
He wrote that the doll furniture she wanted was delivered to a girl named Snowflake, who needed it much more. Santa wrote that he needed to know more about the chest she requested. He said he would come to kitchen door and she could talk to him through the speaking tube and tell him what color trunk she wanted and what she wanted in it.
He signed the letter, "Santa Claus, whom some people call the man in the moon."
As the audience was visiting with the performers after the program Coggswell was asked when she would resume her storytelling at the museum. She said "I will be back in April."


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Sports Network's Saints preview
New Orleans Saints 2003 Season Preview
By Bryan McGovern, NFL Editor
(Sports Network) - The New Orleans Saints have a bad habit that must be broken if the club is going to take that next step. For the second consecutive year, Jim Haslett's team finished a season in a nosedive. The Saints lost their last three games of the 2002 season to blow a potential playoff berth.
New Orleans, the highest-scoring team in the NFC last year, has plenty of offense. It was tweaked in the offseason with the addition of offensive tackle Wayne Gandy, who replaces firecracker left tackle Kyle Turley. The team's main focus since its late-season collapse was improving the defense. The Saints traded up in April's draft to get defensive tackle Johnathan Sullivan and bolstered the secondary with the additions of Tebucky Jones and Ashley Ambrose. Derrick Rodgers, who comes over from Miami, should help the linebacking corps.
Haslett has compiled a winning record in his first three years with New Orleans, but time could be running out for the fiery head coach. Team management and the loyal fans must see results. Anything less than a playoff appearance would be considered a disappointment in the Bayou.
The good news is that Aaron Brooks seems to have recovered from last season's shoulder injury. The ultra-athletic quarterback had surgery in January to repair his throwing arm and appears ready to enjoy another big campaign. Despite playing the last five games of the 2002 season with a bum shoulder, Brooks passed for a career-best 27 touchdowns. His plus-12 TD-to-INT ratio was the best of his young career. There's not much the 6-foot-4, 205-pound Brooks can't do on the football field. He possesses great athleticism, quick feet and a cannon for an arm. Brooks has also improved his ability to read defenses.
Of course, the best aspect of Brooks' game is his running ability. He has made a better effort to stay in the pocket recently, which enables the receivers to get open downfield. But when plays break down, Brooks is a magician with his feet. He can turn a dead play into something big thanks to his halfback-like running skills.
The Saints replaced backup QB Jake Delhomme (Carolina) with ex-Viking Todd Bouman. The coaching staff loves Bouman's athletic ability and strong passing arm. He's only thrown 95 passes over the past two seasons, but his presence has the team feeling better about its overall depth at a key position.
New Orleans felt it could trade Ricky Williams last year because of the presence of Deuce McAllister. It turned out to be a wise move. McAllister went on to lead the NFC in rushing with 1,388 yards in his first full season as a starter.
Scouts questioned McAllister's durability and receiving ability coming out of Mississippi in 2001, but he put those fears to rest by carrying the ball 325 times last year. He also went on to catch 47 passes for 352 yards and three touchdowns.
McAllister should remain as one of the NFC's elite backs for many years to come. The team's biggest concern, however, is its depth at the position. Curtis Keaton and James Fenderson are the top reserves. The 5-foot-10, 222- pound Keaton has some good moves; putting it all together on a consistent basis has been his problem. Fenderson, who averaged 5.0 yards per carry in limited time, runs tough between the tackles. Ki-Jana Carter was signed to help this group, but he's hit or miss.
FB Terrelle Smith, a 2000 fourth-round pick out of Arizona State, has been a solid battering ram in the team's offense. He really uses his bulk and lower- body strength to his advantage as a lead blocker. Smith lacks speed and doesn't carry the ball much, but he can help out in a limited receiving role.
The Saints have a terrific pair of starting wide receivers. Joe Horn has turned into a Pro Bowl receiver since his arrival in New Orleans in 2000. Over the past three seasons, Horn has averaged 88 receptions for 1,306 yards. The former junior college player has 24 TD catches over that span. He's a legitimate No. 1 wideout with big-play ability. Donte' Stallworth, the 13th overall pick in last year's draft, has emerged as one of the best young receivers in the league. Hamstring problems might always plague this speed demon, but Stallworth has the game-breaking ability to post huge numbers in the Saints' offense. Eight of his 42 receptions went for touchdowns last season.
Jerome Pathon isn't much more than an average No. 3 receiver. It will be interesting to see if return man Michael Lewis can further develop his receiving skills. Kareem Kelly and Talman Gardner are intriguing rookies.
The tight end position was bolstered by the addition of ex-Ram Ernie Conwell. The eight-year veteran has a ton of experience to go along with a Super Bowl ring. He's an extremely physical blocker and can be a decent red-zone target. David Sloan (6-6/260) is a better downfield option. He has decent speed for a big tight end and does a nice job of finding soft spots in the defense.
The Saints have a decent offensive line. The unit doesn't have to dominate in the passing or running games because Brooks is an escape artist and McAllister can run over tacklers. Gandy takes over Turley's old LT spot. The ex-Steeler is an extremely sound tackle. He will provide excellent protection for Brooks' blind side. The RT position comes down to Spencer Folau and Victor Riley. Folau has the edge as a pass blocker, though Riley is an excellent run blocker. Conwell's strong blocking ability could allow the Saints to go with the better pass-blocking right tackle -- Folau.
Jerry Fontenot is expected to start at center, though RG LeCharles Bentley and LG Kendyl Jacox can also play the middle. The 36-year-old Fontenot is a crafty pivot with good intensity. The club will probably get another decent season out of him. The 6-foot-2, 300-pound Bentley, a second-round pick last year, will improve with experience. He has very good upper-body strength and generates a solid drive with his powerful legs. His mobility was limited by an ankle injury last year, but Bentley has a good upside. Jacox, a very versatile lineman, excels as a run blocker. Jon Stinchcomb, a second-rounder out of Georgia, could overtake Jacox in time. He also has the ability to play left tackle.
How bad was the Saints' defense last season? New Orleans allowed 20 or more points in each of its first 15 games last season. That dubious feat was a mark previously held by the 1980 Saints, who went 1-15 en route to surrendering at least 20 points in every game.
The improvements began with the defensive line. LDT Sullivan (6-3/315) was the sixth overall pick in April's draft. The mammoth Georgia product has good quickness and should help fill the gaps. He needs to prove he's a consistent performer, but Sullivan has a great upside and could be the best DT to come out of the 2003 draft. Kenny Smith and Grady Jackson will fill the RDT spot. Smith is another active tackle with solid quickness and lateral movement. He can also slide out to end and help against the run. Jackson's conditioning is always a question mark. He's an excellent run stuffer and does a nice job of occupying blockers, but his lack of stamina could relegate him to first and second downs. Martin Chase was traded to Washington for a conditional draft pick.
New Orleans has a pair of terrific defensive ends in the form of Charles Grant and Darren Howard. Grant, a first-round pick in 2002, burst onto the scene with seven sacks as a rookie. He's a very disruptive force and chases down plays from the back side. There's no telling how good he can be with more experience. Howard has registered 25.0 sacks over his first three NFL seasons. While he's not a great sun stopper, Howard has proved to be a durable player. Veteran Willie Whitehead is a valuable backup because he's strong against the run and can also play tackle.
The club has a decent set of linebackers. The ex-Dolphin Rodgers should provide stability on the weak side. He has good speed and could make a big impact this season. SLB Sedrick Hodge is one of the fastest players on the team. His speed and agility allows him to drop into coverage or rush the passer. Hodge is better as a freelancer rather than having to stand in and take on the run. Darrin Smith and ex-Charger Orlando Ruff supply good depth in the middle. Smith is more of a playmaker, but he's lost a step or two at age 33. James Allen, a third-round pick in 2002, is a solid backup on the outside. He has good speed and athleticism. Cie Grant, a third-round pick from Ohio State, should make an immediate impact on special teams.
The Saints have decided to go with speed rather than power in their secondary. Sammy Knight, a former Pro Bowler, was let go in order to get Mel Mitchell into the lineup. A trade with New England brought in free safety Tebucky Jones, who won a Super Bowl ring with the Pats in 2001. SS Mitchell, who impressed the coaching staff with his size, speed and overall ability last year, must prove that he can start on a full-time basis. Playing next to a solid veteran like Jones will help him make the transition. Jones will get to show his wares in New Orleans after a successful run with the Patriots. He's a center fielder-type free safety with a penchant for making big plays with his great athleticism. Jay Bellamy, who is entering his 10th season, provides excellent depth at both safety spots.
Dale Carter is slated to start at left cornerback over Keyuo Craver. Carter isn't quite the player he was but can still contribute in man coverage. His speed has dipped a bit and he's never been an overly physical CB. Fred Thomas and Ashley Ambrose are both solid on the right side. Thomas is a more physical player and better tackler than Ambrose at this stage. Ambrose might be better suited as the team's No. 3 CB. He can still make big plays at age 33.
Michael Lewis is an All-Pro kick returner. The former beer truck driver has put together a phenomenal NFL career. He's a threat to score every time he touches the ball. Lewis averaged nearly 26 yards per kickoff return and 14.2 yards on punts with three touchdowns. Kicker John Carney connected on 31-of-35 FG attempts en route to a team-record 130 points last season. He really benefits from kicking at home in the dome. Veteran punter Toby Gowin was replaced by Mitch Berger.
Haslett seems to have all the tools to be a top head coach for years to come. But he might not get that opportunity in New Orleans unless he turns things around in December. The Saints are 0-7 in games after December 9 in the last two seasons. The offense is in great hands with Mike McCarthy, who could be in line for a head-coaching job in the near future. Defensive coordinator Rick Venturi has some new players on his side that should help improve the lackluster unit.
The Saints are anything but consistent. The last thing the team needs is the reputation as a bad late-season ball club, but that's exactly what it has earned over the past two years. It doesn't help much that New Orleans plays in the NFC South, one of the toughest divisions in the league. That means six dates with Tampa Bay, Atlanta and Carolina. The Saints don't play Atlanta until Week 7, so they won't be able to take advantage of Michael Vick's early- season absence. The month of December begins with home games against Tampa Bay and the New York Giants followed by a road date with Jacksonville before ending the season at home versus Dallas. The Bucs won the Super Bowl last year and the Giants made the playoffs. The Jags and Cowboys should be improved, making the final month of the season another crapshoot. New Orleans has too much offensive talent to win less than seven games, but a 10-win season will be tough to accomplish unless the December woes go away.
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What: The 2014 Cyclocross National Championships
When: Wednesday through Sunday. Registration begins at 8 a.m. daily. Races occur throughout the day, with the last event typically beginning between 2:30 and 3:15 p.m. before the course closes at 5 p.m.
Where: Boulder's Valmont Bike Park, located northeast of the intersection of Valmont and Airport Roads.
Cost: Free to attend
Elite races on Sunday The male junior 17-18 race will begin at 11 a.m. The female elite race gets underway at 1:30 p.m. and male elite race at 2:45 p.m. Awards will follow at 4 p.m.
Fore more information, including detailed scheduling visit usacycling.org/2014/cyclo-cross-nationals or bouldercolorado.gov/pages/cyclocross-national-championships.
Boulder is no stranger to hosting high-profile cycling events--see: 2012 USA Pro Cycling Challenge, Stage 6 -- but this week it will be accommodating a unique, and increasingly popular breed of 2-wheeled competition.
After being awarded the event way back in February of 2012, Boulder's Valmont Bike Park from Wednesday to Sunday will at last welcome the 2014 Cyclocross National Championships.
The championships could include as many as 1,600 racers -- ranging in age from eight to 80-- over the five-day event, and thousands of spectators, according to organizers, demonstrating the burgeoning popularity of cyclocross -- a cycling sport unlike any other.
"It's kind of like steeplechase on bicycles," Micah Rice, vice president of national events for USA Cycling, explained. "It's a combination of what you can ride with a road bike, what you can ride with a mountain bike and some running elements."
Rice said USA Cycling chose Boulder to out of three finalist cities that bid to host the 2014 championships for a variety of reasons, including local bike culture and quality of Valmont Bike Park.
"Boulder is just such a great cycling town. It's known nationally and even internationally by people who ride bikes," Rice said. "We also look at the quality of the course. And we picked a venue that we think is going to work for the National Championships."
A vision finally coming full circle
The Valmont Bike Park won't be three years old until June, but hosting this week's event brings to fruition goals set by some members of the local cycling community long before the park opened to the public.
Mountain Bike Hall of Fame member Pete Webber moved to Boulder from his home state of Maine in 1993 to pursue a career in professional mountain biking, but later became deeply involved with advocacy while working with the International Mountain Bicycling Association.
He said he and many others from various corners of the Boulder cycling universe worked to make the bike park a reality for 10 years before ground was even broken.
Webber was deeply involved in the design of the park and has worked to design the enhanced course for the national championships.
"It's incredibly gratifying to realize; just to see our vision come full circle," Webber said. "Just the day-to-day recreational use of Valmont has been a huge success, but to also now see it host a national level championship is the icing on the cake."
Michael Eubank, Boulder's Valmont Bike Park project manager, echoed Webber's sentiments about the daily popularity and success that the young, $1.2 million facility has enjoyed, noting the city's bike culture is a major driver of that.
"There is niche that is not unique to the Valmont bike park but probably unique to Boulder itself where we have the capacity and cycling in our blood that really encourages us to utilize the park," he said.
Webber, 44, is the reigning national champion in the Male Master 40-44 division and will seek to defend his title on his home course at 9 a.m. on Saturday.
He said he has been working with many volunteers and city staff to make the course as exciting and challenging as possible and thinks it will be ideal for casual fans watching from the sidelines.
"Cyclocross provides the best spectator experience because racers do multiple laps on a short course and come by the same point time after time," he said, before turning his attention to where onlookers might find the best views at Valmont during the championships.
"What we call the 'Side of the Mesa' will be a party all week," he said, referring to an area on the north end of the park. "The primary attraction will be the 5280 Run-Up, which is a double flight of stairs that the racers must shoulder their bikes and run up and that is positioned at 5,280 feet of elevation. Also in that area are two steep downhill sections."
Considering that Boulder received record snowfall on Saturday, conditions could be challenging on the course come Wednesday.
Webber said that's all part of the fun for cyclocross, a sport designed for the wet, cold, muddy months in the fall and winter.
"I'd like it to be warm and sunny with about a foot of snow on the ground," he said of the ideal conditions for his race Saturday.
Ride your bike to the bike race
Webber isn't the only racer hoping for nasty conditions, according to USA Cycling's Rice.
"The participants are all begging for rain and snow," he said. "Some would call it an equalizer. If it's slick for one person, it's slick for everyone."
To enhance the experience for spectators throughout the week who may be less enthused when it comes to bad weather, there will be an associated cycling expo in Valmont City Park featuring numerous vendors from the Boulder area and elsewhere, Rice said.
Food trucks and vendors will be on hand and several beer gardens will be set up, he added.
"It's going to be so much fun," he said.
On Sunday, the day when high-caliber riders -- some on their way to the cyclocross world championships in Holland next month -- will take part in the male junior 17-18 race, and male and female elite races, large screens will be set up in the park to show the action, Rice said. Those three races also will be available via webcast.
One issue with the Valmont Park area is a dearth of public parking.
With that in mind, Eubank said he encourages people to use the city's many trails in the area to ride their bikes to the event if at all possible.
"Please do not get in a car to come celebrate this event with us," he said.
'It's an excuse to get muddy'
Among those who will be racing against Webber in the male 40-44 category Saturday are his friends, Boulder Cycle Sport teammates and fellow champions of the sport in Boulder, Greg Keller and Brandon Dwight.
Dwight, a 3-time cyclocross national champion himself, is co-owner of Boulder Cycle Sport and said that since opening in 2005 the shop has catered to cyclocross riders, and has provided free clinics to try and build the sport's popularity.
He said he expects the shop to see some increased business around the event, but most racers are likely already prepared. He is more focused on Boulder hosting such a high-profile event.
"Boulder has always been one of the hotspots for cyclocross across the U.S. and we've just never really had the venue to host such a big event," he said. "I know when this park was designed it was designed for the community first and foremost, but we always wanted to host a big-time cyclocross race. We deserve it."
Keller said he has been extremely pleased to see the sport he loves take root in Boulder and grow. He is a co-coach of Boulder Junior Cycling and said in the last four to five years the number of kids who take part in the group's cyclocross program has ballooned from about a dozen to more than 50.
"I'm super passionate about building this what used to be a fringe sport into what I refer to now--especially for juniors--as the new little league," Keller said. "The sport is extremely accessible. From the racers' perspective and the kids' perspective the sport is just downright fun. It's an excuse to get muddy."
Keller said he had kids on youth teams from other states join in some Boulder Junior Cycling practices last week in the lead-up to the championships, with the goal of strengthening relationships and the sport itself.
His sons -- Aiden, 11, and Sheamus, 9, -- will be racing this week as well, and he hopes the next generation of "cyclocross nerds" will continue to cultivate the sport locally so that the Valmont Bike Park may one day host even higher profile international competitions.
"This could quite literally be the single best cyclocross course on earth," he said "And we are so proud to make these (national championships) the best event that people have ever experienced."
Contact Camera Staff Writer Joe Rubino at 303-473-1328, email@example.com or twitter.com/RubinoJC.


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Coordinate Vectors Span Tangent Spaces
Given a point in an -dimensional manifold , we have the vector space of tangent vectors at . Given a coordinate patch around , we've constructed coordinate vectors at , and shown that they're linearly independent in . I say that they also span the space, and thus constitute a basis.
To see this, we'll need a couple lemmas. First off, if is constant in a neighborhood of , then for any tangent vector . Indeed, since all that matters is the germ of , we may as well assume that is the constant function with value . By linearity we know that . But now since we use the derivation property to find
and so we conclude that .
In a slightly more technical vein, let be a "star-shaped" neighborhood of . That is, not only does contain itself, but for every point it contains the whole segment of points for . An open ball, for example, is star-shaped, so you can just think of that to be a little simpler.
Anyway, given such a and a differentiable function on it we can find functions with , and such that we can write
where is the th component function.
If we pick a point we can parameterize the segment , and set to get a function on the unit interval . This function is clearly differentiable, and we can calculate
using the multivariable chain rule. We find
We can thus find the desired functions by setting
Now if we have a differentiable function defined on a neighborhood of a point , we can find a coordinate patch — possibly by shrinking — with and star-shaped. Then we can apply the previous lemma to to get
with . Moving the coordinate map to the other side we find
Now we can hit this with a tangent vector
where we have used linearity, the derivation property, and the first lemma above. Thus we can write
and the coordinate vectors span the space of tangent vectors at .
As a consequence, we conclude that always has dimension — exactly the same dimension as the manifold itself. And this is exactly what we should expect; if is -dimensional, then in some sense there are independent directions to move in near any point , and these "directions to move" are the core of our geometric notion of a tangent vector. Ironically, if we start from a more geometric definition of tangent vectors, it's actually somewhat harder to establish this fact, which is partly why we're starting with the more algebraic definition.
8 Comments »
[…] problem, then, is to calculate the th component — the one corresponding to — of . But we know that this coefficient comes from sticking into this vector and seeing what pops […]
Pingback by Derivatives in Coordinates « The Unapologetic Mathematician | April 6, 2011 |
[…] basis on , and thus get components of in those coordinates. As usual, we calculate the th component […]
Pingback by Curves « The Unapologetic Mathematician | April 8, 2011 |
[…] if has dimension , then we know is an -manifold, and thus we know that is an -dimensional vector space for every point . Now, of course all -dimensional vector […]
Pingback by The Tangent Bundle of a Euclidean Space « The Unapologetic Mathematician | April 11, 2011 |
[…] we know at each point that the coordinate vectors span the tangent space. So let's take a vector field and break up the vector . We can […]
Pingback by Coordinate Vector Fields « The Unapologetic Mathematician | May 24, 2011 |
[…] is basically just like a lemma we proved for functions on star-shaped neighborhoods. Indeed, it suffices to […]
Pingback by Calculating the Lie Derivative « The Unapologetic Mathematician | June 16, 2011 |
Just after "multivariable chain rule", f(p) – f(0) should be f(x) – f(0).
p lives in the manifold rather than R^n.
Comment by Rory Molinari | July 6, 2011 |
Hi, I'm learning differential geometry and run into this blog, I must say you did a great job. But I have a question: "What does \circ means?"
Comment by guo wei | October 16, 2012 |


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Lee Vining High goes to state for mock trial competition
Lee Vining High School's Mock Trial team defeated Coleville's team of high school attorneys in a hard fought competition at Bridgeport's historic courthouse last week.
The two teams squared off in a fictional murder trial where the prosecution tried to convict a college student accused of murdering a classmate to cover up a cheating scandal.
The defense worked to show that several people could have committed the murder that evening. Each side called witnesses to help support their cause and offered arguments, objections and motions to see that justice was carried out. Judge Mark Magit presided over the trial, hearing all the testimony and delivering a verdict of guilty in both trials and before lunch, Lee Vining's prosecution team sent Coleville's Matthew Clark to jail for murder and possessing a concealed weapon without a permit.
After a break, Coleville's team convinced Judge Magit to find Lee Vining's Alek McKee guilty of murder, but Lee Vining's Cory Forbes got the gun charge dismissed in a pretrial hearing.
Scoring each team's attorneys and witnesses was a panel of local lawyers. Stacy Simon and Marshal Rudolph of the County Counsel's Office and assistant District Attorney, Todd Graham, graded each student's performance over the course of the trial and when the scores were all added up, Lee Vining edged out Coleville in both trials. With the victory, Lee Vining earned the right to represent Mono County in the state competition for the second year in a row.
The Mock Trial competitions got their start as a way to encourage high school students to increase research, critical thinking, and public speaking skills.
Each year the Constitutional Rights Foundation creates a new casebook for teams all over California. More than 8,000 students study the witness testimonies, analyze evidence and learn the legal precedents needed to bring their argument to life. Competitions are then held at the county level with the winners traveling to the state competition in Sacramento.
This was the second annual competition held by the Mono County Office of Education and was organized by Tammy Nguyen and Debie Schnadt.
A teacher with Mammoth High School said Mammoth High also was invited to participate in the event, but a lack of volunteers to coach students has so far prevented the high school from being a participant.


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WASHINGTON — For the first time, hedge funds will be allowed to advertise to the general public. The Securities and Exchange Commission voted 4 to 1 Wednesday to lift a ban on hedge funds, private equity firms, and other private investment managers marketing products to a wide audience.
Unchanged is that hedge funds can sell securities only to investors with a net worth of at least $1 million, excluding primary residence, or annual income of more than $200,000 (or $300,000 with a spouse) in each of the two most recent years. About 7.4 percent of US households have a net worth of $1 million or more.
Investor advocates worry that allowing hedge funds to advertise could lead to more fraud. It ''will make fraud easier by allowing fraudsters to cast a wider net for victims,'' said Commissioner Luis Aguilar, the only commissioner to dissent.
The SEC proposed to monitor the ads and collect data on how they affect the market.
Lifting the ban will weaken investor protections, said Senator Carl Levin, Democrat of Michigan. The SEC rule ''puts essentially no effective limitations on the types or forms of advertising that can be used to promote high-risk investments,'' he said.
An association representing state regulators said it was disappointed the SEC acted before installing investor safeguards.
Barry Silbert, the CEO of SecondMarket, a private stock exchange, called the SEC's action ''an important step forward in bringing today's regulations into the 21st century.''
''After today, a much deeper, broader group of investors will have the opportunity to hear about — and potentially invest in — private companies and funds,'' he said.


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Last of the Methadrol Extreme Sale!!!
We have just got word that Metha-drol extreme is no longer going to be made and we bought the last of the stock. We are offering this extreme PH for a discount price of 39.99 while supplies last. Dont miss out and get your bottle here!!
Sale price $39.99
Orbit Nutrition - Buy Black Stone labs METHA-DROL EXTREME


text: May be able to get some people to a friends and family event on Tuesday the 7th from 12-1 and again from 6-7pm. Still working out details. Nothing high end, just burgers (but dang good ones). Opening smashburger, the first in NY. Location is in Brooklyn just a little past the Brooklyn bridge. If there is an interest let me know and I will see what I can work out with the owner.


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|Monroe, WA
|High School:
|Previous College:
Personal best: 8K – 25:07 (UCR '10)
2011: Second Team All-SCIAC (11th)...All-Region (19th)...Finished 6th for the Stags at NCAA Championships
2010: First Team All-SCIAC (2nd)...All Region (3rd)...Finished 1st for the Stags at NCAA Championships
2009: First Team All-SCIAC (9th) … All-Region (14th)… Finished 3rd for the Stags at NCAA Championships
Brian Sutter is a senior at CMC from Monroe, WA and attended Monroe High School. He has been running cross country since eighth grade, was captain of his team for two years and the number one varsity runner for all four years in high school. He placed 38th at the 2008 Washington State Cross Country Meet and top ten in the prestigious Sunfair meet two years in a row. His PR's are 16:17 in the 5K, 9:36 in the 3200 and 4:27 in the 1600. He was voted Most Inspirational three times for both his high school cross country and track teams. He was also voted First Team All-County for the 2008 cross country season. Brian plans to pursue the Environment, Economics and Politics major. He wants to make the top seven and beat Oxy and Pomona-Pitzer. His parents are Glen and Meg King. He admits that he does dumb stuff a lot including dancing.


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Sports teams in Atlanta, Cleveland, Kansas City and Washington, D.C., among other cities, have faced criticism that their mascots are offensive to Native Americans.
Now Venice, a small town that takes big pride in its sports teams, is facing similar scrutiny over the team moniker "The Indians."
A local Native American advocacy leader has asked Venice High and Elementary Schools to change their mascot, saying the names and logos are discriminatory and violate School Board policy.
Sal Serbin, a 50-year-old Sarasota resident with Sioux lineage, made his case recently to the Sarasota County School Board. He said that the Venice schools' "cartoonish" mascots, Indian and Little Indians, respectively, offend and exploit Native American culture.
"There is no reason the 'Little Indians and Indian' mascots should not be changed," he wrote in a follow-up email to board members. "The schools get no extra benefit from having these mascots except to insult, mock and disgrace Native Americans."
His request came as a surprise to local attorney Jeff Boone, who played on Venice High's football, baseball and basketball teams before graduating in 1976.
"I can never ever think of a time that the name of the team caused people to belittle people of Native American descent," he said.
Boone, 56, a lifelong resident of Venice, said if the board began working to change the high school's mascot, it would draw a large amount of attention from the community. Those who have grown up locally take pride in their mascot.
"I can understand how a name like Redskins would be offensive to people of Native American descent, but I think this is just the opposite," Boone said. "It was a reference to the very brave and prestigious Calusa Indians who inhabited the area."
Serbin said the feathered war bonnets worn by the Venice schools' mascots don't accurately reflect the garb and regalia worn by Native Americans indigenous to Southwest Florida. Rather, the headdresses were historically worn by American Indians in the Great Plains region.
Venice residents say they can't remember anyone taking offense to the mascot.
Not that Venice has many Native Americans. According to the census, Native Americans represent less than one-tenth of a percent of the city's population.
Serbin said that he was met with silence from the School Board after he spoke at the June 22 meeting, but that chairwoman Jane Goodwin called him a few days later about the issue.
"She mentioned that she could relate and that she was supportive," Serbin said. "I don't know if she's going to bring it to the School Board agenda."
When contacted by a reporter, Goodwin said it was too early to say if Serbin's request would be added to an agenda.
Serbin said he'd like the mascots changed to something other than a Native American. But he realizes it could take a few years and a good amount of money to rebrand the schools.
"I know it's nothing they can do tomorrow," he said. "Something else needs to be selected. I'd like the students to have some input in it."
But some longtime fans of the Venice Indians may never be ready to change the mascot, said Pete Dombroski, athletics director at Venice High School.
Dombroski said changing the mascot has never been proposed or discussed in the time since he became athletic director in 2010. But he added that he didn't believe "anyone at Venice High School or the School Board wants to offend anybody."
Still, "as a society it's hard for people to accept change," he said. "One hundred percent of the people will never be satisfied. Traditionalists will still want to support Venice Indians."
Indeed, it's a long-running tradition. Michelle Harm, a curator with Venice Museum and Archives, said yearbooks show the Indian mascot was used by Venice-Nokomis High as early as 1948.
But, Serbin contended, "that's a tradition of racism and it's something that should not be allowed to continue."
Dombroski said it will be the board's decision.
Serbin's request follows an intense national debate about whether the Washington Redskins should change that name in an effort to help end bigotry and racism in professional sports.
Serbin said he has protested the Venice Indians and the Sarasota Ringling Redskins Youth Football team before.
In 2012, he also protested against Ed Winddancer, a 55-year-old Englewood flute player who performed in front of the Venice Community Center for money while wearing American Indian regalia. Winddancer claimed Nanticoke and Cherokee descent and marketed his show, "Flight of the Red Hawk," as a Native American music and dance performance.
Serbin, who is the executive director of the American Indian Movement nationwide advocacy group, said the School Board is obligated to change the mascots based on the antidiscrimination guidelines of the Sarasota County School Board Policy Manual. The document states that slurs reflecting on an individual's race, ethnicity or national origin are harassment.
And such harassment, the manual goes on to state, "is a violation of state and federal laws and a breach of the School Board's Code of Student Conduct."
Venice's 'Indians' on front lines of clash over mascot monikers
Sports teams in Atlanta, Cleveland, Kansas City and Washington, D.C., among other cities, have faced criticism that their mascots are offensive to Native Americans.


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Student Events Spring 2005
February 22
Ilya Prizel
University of Pittsburgh
"Europe-The Vulnerable Giant"
February 28
Lilia Shevtsova
Carnegie Endowment
"Is Russia Returning to Dictatorship?"
April 8 Conference -- The Changing Face of Europe: European Institutions in the 21st Century
Bauer Center- Founders Room
February 15
Freeman Foundation Visiting Professors
Anson Chan, former Head of the Civil Service in Hong Kong and Deputy Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Region
"China and Hong Kong-One Country, Two Systems"
March 23
Hung-mao Tien, Former Foreign Minister of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and Ambassador to the United Kingdom
"The Cross-Strait Relations: Recent Developments and Future Prospects"
April 6
Ambassador Takakazu Kuriyama, former Japanese Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Ambassador to the U.S.
"Japan-U.S. Relations-Strong or Fragile?"
April 13
Ambassador Hong-Koo Lee, Former South Korean Prime Minister, Minister of National Unification, and Ambassador to the U.S.
"Korea, Asia and the United States"


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Edward Wayne Wester died Tuesday, May 8, 2012.
He was preceded in death by his mother, Alyadean Wester Gable; and his stepfather, Willie Gable.
Survivors include a daughter, Cecily D. Wester, Knoxville; and a son, Carey D. Wester, Rockwood.
Funeral service was at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, May 12, in Evans Mortuary chapel, Rockwood, with Pastor Beatrice Thomas officiating. Burial was at Roane Memorial Gardens, Rockwood, with full military honors by the Roane County Military Memorial Honor Guard.
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It has come to my attention that the Butler Township Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the location of a natural gas well pad and several unconventional gas wells on a 32-acre property on Schaffner Road that is currently zoned R-1 (single family residential) on April 21. The pad and property, north of the AK Steel plant, is being called AK Steel Pad A.
It troubles me that this decision was not advertised or covered by the media, and there were no residents present at the meeting that spoke regarding it.
I have determined the current Butler Township zoning laws do not prohibit this type of activity in a residential area. I have been informed the township zoning laws were rewritten in 2012 to be in compliance with Act 13, which prohibited municipalities from zoning for the natural gas industry. However, Act 13 was overturned last fall, and was deemed unconstitutional. By that logic, zoning laws written to be in compliance with Act 13 must therefore also be unconstitutional. Prior to the zoning change in 2012, oil and gas drilling were permitted only in areas zoned for manufacturing or agriculture, which the township's five current well pads are. I would suggest to the township, now that the ability to zone the gas industry has returned to individual municipalities, that the pre-2012 zoning laws be reinstated, and your approval of XTO Energy's proposed pad on Schaffner Road be revoked.
The proposed well pad is less than 0.3 miles from Butler Township's Preston park, which the township leased to XTO in March, also with no public comment and little fanfare. One cannot help but wonder if XTO would have the desire to drill these wells had the township not leased XTO almost 200 acres. The very close proximity to these parks raises my concerns about air pollution and emissions once the fracking and flaring processes begin.
In January, my father and I experienced a very foul chemical odor similar to burning plastic that burned my nose, throat and lungs while we were shoveling snow. We immediately went inside and waited for the air to clear. I knew several wells were being drilled on AK Steel property, and the wind was blowing from that direction. I was later informed by an air quality expert with the Southwest Pennsylvania Environmental Health Project that we had inhaled BTEX compounds (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene) that are released during the fracking process and are very hazardous to human health. My house is 2.3 miles from the site, and we were severely affected.
By contrast, Butler Intermediate High School and Meridian Elementary School are 1.2 and 1.4 miles from the proposed site, respectively.
The recent fire at condensate holding tanks at a Rex Energy site on Meridian Road must also be raised. Residents in that area are very lucky that MarkWest workers constructing a pipeline saw the fire and called emergency crews. The condensate in the tanks was highly flammable, and had the material actually caught fire, likely the tanks would have exploded. We are very fortunate that an incident similar to the one in Greene County this February did not occur here, and that this was only a minor fire. One cannot help but wonder if this might happen again.
I plan to speak at the Butler Township Commissioners meeting at 6:30 p.m. June 16 in the township building. Any concerned residents who want to stand up for their rights to health, safety and happiness in a residential neighborhood need to attend at let the township know how they feel.