text:
Amsterdam, 12 June 2009 – New World Resources N.V. (NWR) is pleased to announce that OKD, its subsidiary company, has won the Corporate Responsibility and Philanthropy award at the national Czech Public Relations Awards. The award recognises OKD's efforts in providing regeneration and other initiatives of benefit to its local communities over the last year. Petra Mašínová, NWR's Corporate Communication Director, accepted the award on behalf of the Company at the Prague Marriott hotel on Tuesday evening, along with its advisors, Bison Rose, who took part in the development of the communication strategy.
"We are very pleased with this award given the long-standing emphasis at OKD, as well as the entire NWR group, on responsible treatment of our environment. This award recognises the efforts of all our employees who participated in the preparation and operation of the OKD Foundation, in rehabilitation of the landscape, sponsorship activities, and new projects aimed at OKD employees over the past year," Mašínová commented.
In 2008, OKD significantly changed the focus of its CSR activities. In addition to sponsoring culture and sports, it established a corporate foundation, which distributed more than 62 million Czech Crowns through 403 projects supporting health care, social areas, education, leisure, national minorities' interests, and restoration of parks and school premises. These activities were supported by an extensive informational campaign featuring prominent figures from the region including representatives of the public, academic and commercial sectors, who evaluated the contribution of the mining company to the development of science, sports, culture and the environment.
- Ends -
Notes for editors:
New World Resources N. V.
New World Resources N.V. is the sole owner of OKD, a.s., the Czech Republic's largest hard coal mining company and one of the largest producers in Central Europe by revenue and volume. Serving customers in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Poland, Hungary and Germany, the Company produced 12.7 mt of coal in 2008, 7.4 mt of which was coking coal.
Czech Public Relations Award
The Association of Public Relation Agencies (APRA) has been giving out the Czech Public Relations Award every year since 2006. PR projects are recognised based on the business strategy of the company, the creative solution, compliance with the ethical rules of the industry and the extent of their favourable impact on the business and reputation of the company.
For further information please contact:
New World Resources N. V.
Petra Mašínová
Head of Corporate Communication
Tel: +420 225 282 163
E¬ mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Bison & Rose
Vladimír Bystrov
Tel.: +420 777 130 788
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Website: www.newworldresources.eu
OKD wins PR award for its Corporate Responsibility programme (English Version) (121 Kb PDF)
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text:
Wasalamalaikum. Aaminah at Writeous Sister Speak did an interesting interview of Islamic Artist Ruh, you can read it here.
Monthly Archives: July 2007
Islamic Artist Interview
Filed under Contemporary Islamic Art, Visual Arts
La Romance des Mondes (the painting)
Wasalamalaikum. Al hamdulillah I just completed the new painting I had been working on for a little while: "La Romance des Mondes" it translates to "Romance of the Worlds"… Its imagery came from a poem of the same title I wrote in French. I'm going to translate it tomorrow inshAllah for my English speaking people … It was really soothing to work on this piece, a celebration of the Alignment our soul constantly invites us to; it is this Alignment that all the worlds visible and invisible reflect out of surrender to The Divine … read more…
"The seven heavens and the earth, and all beings therein, declare His glory: there is not a thing but celebrates His praise; And yet ye understand not how they declare His glory! Verily He is Oft-Forbear, Most Forgiving!" (~Qur'an 17: 44)
Neptune Zikr
Carpets of scented Water,
my many feet suspended
in no where's incandescence;
some pregnant obscurity
clothes this milky station!
Hands loose to wander
sacred Strings of Blueness,
O, Rapture upon Rapture!
I do not know what to do,
I do not know where to look
for my self, it has gone!
copyrights 2007 Aida Toure
Filed under Contemporary Islamic Art, Islam, Spiritual Art, Sufi Poetry, Sufism, Tasawwuf
I painted my next Piece to Yohosame's Music
Wasalamalaikum, I have been exploring oil paint and I immensely enjoy it because color goes a long way, it sort of allowed me to uncover new layers of depth to the canvas… Oil takes longer to dry so I'm spending even more time on my pieces now! InshAllah soon, I'm going to post the pictures of the painting I have been working on entitled "La Romance des Mondes"… It was inspired from a Sufi poem I composed in French. I painted it while listening to the music of a gifted Muslim musician named Yohosame. Those who feel deeply spiritual music should check him out on myspace, his sense of musicality is out of this world and it will move you like some Sound you heard in the farthest place, a dim memory from Way before … personally, its fluidity reminds me of prayer, contemplation, not-being… al hamdulillah! When music's true purpose is honored, it can be one of the most beautiful experience to discover it as it enhances our grace!
Filed under Music, Spiritual Art, Sufi Poetry, Sufism, Tasawwuf, World Music
Backwardness of Ego-Based Systems
Wasalamalaikum. The greatest obstacle to evolution is the greedy ego. When society's institutions are based upon ego standards, it is the whole community of men that is molded to abide by false standards of living. Currently, advancement is generally observed in external, material terms. We spend much time on polishing our looks, our appearance, our homes yet if we dedicated only half of that time to polishing ourselves inwardly as well, our world would be much more balanced and harmonious.
This culture of pride is encouraged, we mask our shortcomings and insecurities by colossal external means instead of working at alleviating them by going at the root of our distress which is the ego's domination. As long as the ego dominates, we are always seduced by the suggestion of "solutions" that actually create even more difficulty for us. All these misleading schemes we keep coming up with only reflect the ego's domination, the greatest impediment to our Freedom as souls.
We are conditioned at a young age to nurture ego's thriving, education system plays a major role in this as well. In school, we diligently learn to:
– see our fellow creatures as threats and thus fiercely compete with them in order to "advance" whereas we all are unique with a divinely defined purpose for each of us as we are,
– repress individuality and relinquish independent thinking and this behavior is rewarded by our teachers too!
– discourage or oppress talents that will not be assets to the established oppressive system's expansion,
– abide by man-made rules even as they oppose the Divine Rule,
– attack in order to quench the ego's violent delusions,
– suppress peacefulness, intuition, harmonious feelings and emotions. For instance, a child who acts from love because s/he is sensitive with a deep feeling nature is often viewed as "weak", immature or inept to function socially; the educative institutions nourish this falsehood and therefore change who children are by fragmenting their innate disposition, they basically expect those children to adapt to structures that violate their nature… do you see how backward that is?
How about allowing the heart to be more part of our systemic daily lives? How about being more humane and less like robots in our bureaucracies? How about allowing room for more of the kindness we are made of? This is the natural way, just look at how gentle, peaceful we all were when we were born! Our world's structures resist the soul's qualities so strongly, it is jarring, unnatural, even abnormal. How can we tolerate diversity in humanity and have any compassion for our fellow creatures if our lives are based upon illusory standards that take away from our innate potential? The nourishing of pride is the root cause of all our world troubles.
"Do they not look at Allah's creation, (even) among (inanimate) things,- How their (very) shadows turn round, from the right and the left, prostrating themselves to Allah, and that in the humblest manner?
And to Allah doth obeisance all that is in the heavens and on earth, whether moving (living) creatures or the angels: for none are arrogant (before their Lord)."
~ 16:48-49 Holy Qur'an
copyrights 2007 Aida Toure
Filed under Holy Qur'an, Inner Reality, Islam, Spiritual Art, Sufi Prose, Sufism, Tasawwuf
Atoms of Praise
Lights out… wo! Light gets in…
The lover's head always bows
when Mercy's particles near,
he rejoices at their familiarity,
and his inner eye opens
to the latitude within,
worlds step out of
his chest to dance with
the atoms of praise.
The Pen inscribes the Shahada
upon his prostrating soul,
and Mary (as) nearby
cuddles his fears until
they vanish in beauty…
Love is the quiet kiss laid
upon the corner of his lips
while he recites the Qur'an,
angels wings flutter over him
to gently pull him toward
the tenderness he is made of,
he is loved in ways
he has yet to fathom.
He stands there in ripples
arising from his own center,
swirling he mumbles all he hears:
"Allahu Akbar!
Sit by this feeling
in your heart, it is the Truth."
copyrights 2007 Aida Toure
Filed under Inner Reality, Islam, Spiritual Art, Sufi Poetry, Sufism, Tasawwuf, the prophets (as)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Art Walk 2013
I recently spent some time with my brother-in-law, fine art photographer and print maker, Reathel Geary, perusing a variety of art galleries in Calgary's core. Such a treat, this is… especially for me. I have been enamoured with art for a very long time; literature, music, photography, paint on canvas, whatever really. I'm not picky. Most of the time I'm not even sure what I'm looking at! All the same, I love how a particular piece of art makes me feel, that something tangible inspires an emotional experience…one with enough weight to make a lasting impression. Read more


text:
A federal appeals court will soon consider a challenge to an Oklahoma measure prohibiting the use of Sharia, or Islamic law, in the state's courts. The constitutional amendment is part of a national trend in which politicians — including Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich — argue that it is vital to prevent Sharia from insinuating itself into the administration of justice in U.S. courts. Never mind that there is scant evidence that American judges are resolving cases on the basis of Sharia.
Like the belief that President Obama wasn't born in the United States, the fear that Islamic law will become a touchstone of American justice is delusional. What is depressing is how widespread it is. The American Civil Liberties Union, which is representing a Muslim man challenging Oklahoma's law, says 24 states have adopted or considered measures forbidding the use of Islamic law. In the paranoid anti-communism of the 1950s, it was said that Americans feared a Red under every bed. Now the dark fantasy is an imam on the bench.
Are American judges applying Islamic law? Rarely, if ever. In New Jersey last year, a judge declined to issue a restraining order against a Muslim man accused of forcing himself on his wife; the judge said his behavior was "consistent with his [religious] practices." An appeals court overturned the decision, rejecting the idea that courts should take religious law into account.


text:
This week, we're pleased to welcome author Alison Morton with the second in her Roma Nova series, PERFIDITAS. Join us again on Sunday for an author interview, with more details about the story behind the story. One lucky visitor will get a free copy of Perfiditas. Be sure to leave your email address in the comments of today's post or Sunday's author interview for a chance to win. Winner(s) are contacted privately by email. Here's the blurb.
Captain Carina Mitela of the Praetorian Guard Special Forces is in trouble – one colleague has tried to kill her and another has set a trap to incriminate her in a conspiracy to topple the government of Roma Nova. Founded sixteen hundred years ago by Roman dissidents and ruled by women, Roma Nova barely survived a devastating coup d'état thirty years ago. Carina swears to prevent a repeat and not merely for love of country.
Seeking help from a not quite legal old friend could wreck her marriage to the enigmatic Conrad. Once she's proscribed and operating illegally, she risks being terminated by both security services and conspirators. As she struggles to overcome the desperate odds and save her beloved Roma Nova and her own life, she faces the ultimate betrayal…
"Sassy, intriguing, page-turning… Roma Nova is a fascinating world" - Simon Scarrow
**An Excerpt from PERFIDITAS**
'Captain Carina Mitela?'
'Yes,' I said. 'Who is this?'
'Custodes XI Station. An emergency token with your code has been handed in. We're holding the presenter.'
I dropped everything and headed for the tunnel connecting our headquarters to the police station. The duty sergeant, with a typical cop's bland expression but trying to conceal a speculative gleam in her eyes, handed me the token without a word.
As we walked to the interview rooms, I stared at the thirty-nine millimetre diameter disc, made to imitate a casino chip, indigo blue polycarbonate shielding the tiny microprocessor. The last one I'd had in was from an informant handling incoming diplomatic baggage at the airport; her sharp eyes had spotted a very undiplomatic cargo of compact assault rifles. Sure, Roma Nova was a small country, hidden away between New Austria and Italy, but we weren't stupid or sloppy. Working with the Intelligence section, I'd traced the weapons back to their Balkan Republic origins and led a covert service unit to destroy their warehouse.
The figure I saw today through the smartplex observation window of the public interview room was slumped over, elbows on the table, hands braced her under her chin, her long black hair looking like it hadn't seen a brush for days. Mossia Antonia. She owned and ran one of the toughest, and most exclusive, training gyms in the country. Right now, she looked like a street vagrant.
I shucked off my uniform of beige shirt and pants and black tee, and pulled on the casuals the custodes duty sergeant had found in lost property for me, ignoring the smell of stale food and cooking fat clinging to them.
Mossia jerked her head up as I entered the room.
'Salve, Mossia. What's the problem?' I plunked myself down on the other chair, crossed my arms and waited.
'Bruna?' She blinked and shook her head like she didn't believe what she saw.
I opened my hand in a gesture inviting her to talk.
'Aidan has disappeared,' she said, looking down and rubbing the table with her index finger. Inlaid with coffee rings from careless mugs, the plastic surface reflected the impacts of hard-tipped pens and handcuff scrapes.
'Are you sure?'
She nodded.
'How do you know? Aidan has other clients apart from yours. Maybe he's gone on vacation, or been called away.'
Her head came up at that. 'His first duty is to me – I pay him a good retainer to look after my clients.'
'So what makes you think he's not coming back?'
She pulled out a folded piece of paper with black, sloping writing. I read it, laid it down on the table, and leaned back in my chair. Then I picked it up and read it again. I couldn't believe it. He wrote he couldn't bear it any longer; he'd had enough of her unfair working practices. He resigned with immediate effect and would make sure her clients knew exactly why he'd done it. I pinched the bridge of my nose to make sure I was awake.
'He took nearly a thousand solidi from the cash drawer and my gold pen.' Mossia jabbed the air with her finger. 'Whatever. What really bugs me are those lies.' Her face was rigid and her eyes blazing. 'I could kill him for that.' Her chair crashed backwards to the ground with the force of her jumping up. She started pacing around the room like a lion in the arena.
I wasn't surprised at her anger. She worked her people hard, but looked after them. I knew her employment packages were first-class; as an anonymous shareholder, I'd seen her accounts.
'You've reported him to the custodes as a missing person?'
'I'm reporting it to you.'
'Why? I'm not the custodes.'
'Well, you're something like that.' Ninety-eight per cent of my colleagues in the Praetorian Guard Special Forces would take offence at that, but I let it pass.
She came to rest by the table and looked down at me.
'What?' I said.
'It's personal.'
'Were you sleeping with him?'
Her shoulders slumped and she crossed her arms across her chest.
'Silly sod.'
She pulled a small moue.
I stretched over and touched her forearm in sympathy. I shot a side glance at the watch on my outstretched wrist. Hades!
'I'll have the custodes log it,' I said and stood up. 'You go home now or, better, back to the gym. The custodes will let you know of any developments.'
She took a full stride toward me, so near that she was all but touching me. 'What do you mean? Aren't you going to do anything about it?'
'Okay, it's bloody annoying, it's hurtful, whatever, but it's hardly a case for an emergency token. Leave it with the custodes.'
I stepped away and pushed my chair under the edge of the table.
'Come on, Mossia, time to go. Think of the money you're not making while you're wasting time here.'
She shot me a vicious look. The anger was rolling off her. She took a deep breath and gazed unseeing at the dirty beige walls for a minute or so.
Had I been too harsh? A stab of guilt prodded me. I'd known Mossia for years, but my schedule was crushing and I was behind already.
I knocked on the door which opened inward revealing a blue-uniformed custos.
'We're finished here,' I told him.
I looked at Mossia's taut, silent figure. 'The custos will see you out. I'll stop by the gym if I hear anything.'
'Well, screw you!' She turned her back to me and stalked out without another word.
View the trailer: http://alison-morton.com/blog/perfiditas-book-trailer/
PERFIDITAS is available through your local bookshop (paperback), Amazon (myBook.to/PERFIDITAS) and other online retailers here http://alison-morton.com/perfiditas/where-to-buy-perfiditas/.
PERFIDITAS will be at a special price of $1.99/£1.29 from 17 September through to 25 September.
About the Author
Alison Morton writes Roman-themed alternate history thrillers with strong heroines. She holds a bachelor's degree in French, German, and Economics, a masters' in history and lives in France with her husband.
A 'Roman nut' since age 11, she has visited sites throughout Europe including the alma mater, Rome. But it was the mosaics at Ampurias (Spain) that started her wondering what a modern Roman society would be like if run by women…
INCEPTIO, the first in the Roma Nova series, which was shortlisted for the 2013 International Rubery Book Award, and PERFIDITAS, the second in series, have been honoured with the B.R.A.G. Medallion®, an award for independent fiction that rejects 90% of its applicants. INCEPTIO and PERFIDITAS were shortlisted for Writing Magazine's 2014 Self-Publishing Book of the Year Award. Alison's third book SUCCESSIO came out in June 2014 and was selected in August 2014 by the Historical Novel Society as indie Editor's Choice.
Connect with Alison on her blog http://alison-morton.com/blog/
Facebook author page https://www.facebook.com/AlisonMortonAuthor
Twitter https://twitter.com/alison_morton @alison-morton
Amazon UK author page: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alison-Morton/e/B007JZ1XRS/
Amazon US author page: http://www.amazon.com/Alison-Morton/e/B007JZ1XRS/
Buying links (multiple retailers/formats):SUCCESSIO: http://alison-morton.com/successio/where-to-buy-successio/


text:
Florida St chasing 1st ACC regular season title
All the tickets are sold and little remains except the wait for
Florida State's game against fifth-ranked Duke on Thursday in what
has shaped up as one of the most important games in Florida State
basketball history.
The 15th-ranked Seminoles (19-7, 10-2 ACC) have already defeated
the Blue Devils (23-4, 10-2), North Carolina State, Wake Forest and
No. 7 North Carolina this season. Florida State needs a second win
over Duke to complete a sweep of its rivals from the state of North
Carolina and keep its hopes alive for the school's first ACC
regular season championship.
The high stakes have made Duke's visit one of the most highly
anticipated games for Florida State in decades.
One might have to go all the way back to Jan. 27, 1970 at tiny
Tully Gym where the Seminoles handed Jacksonville University its
only regular season loss that year with an 89-83 win that the
Dolphins avenged 85-81 three weeks later. It was a JU team led by
7-2 Artis Gilmore that finished second to UCLA while Florida State
finished its season 23-3 and then two years later also lost to UCLA
in the NCAA title game. Both games that winter are remembered as
Former coach Dean Smith's North Carolina Tar Heels completed a
sweep of the Seminoles in the 1992-93 season to lock up the regular
season ACC title with an 86-76 victory on Feb. 27, 1993. The
Seminoles advanced to the final eight that season before losing to
Duke, on the other hand, lives off of big games days and hostile
"They generate that kind of hype regardless of where they go,"
Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said Tuesday. "They've been
in these type of games over and over and over again."
Hamilton said Duke has improved since Florida State's
last-second 76-73 win last month in Durham, N.C. on Michael Snaer's
3-pointer as time expired.
"They have gotten themselves into a rhythm they seem to be
comfortable with," Hamilton said. "We're playing at a high level
and they are too."
The emergence of sophomore guard Ian Miller as a difference
maker along with Hamilton's decision to move 6-8 Okaro White back
to power forward has paid big dividends in Florida State's stretch
drive. Miller, who missed the first 11 games while academically
ineligible, is second in scoring at 10.5 points a game while
averaging a bit over 23 minutes playing time. Snaer is the leading
scorer at 13.5 points a game.
"This team is really deep," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said
during the weekly ACC coaches' conference call on Monday. "They
come at you with nine or ten guys so they are fresh."
The Seminoles have won 10 of their last 11 games and are no
longer able to ambush anyone, establishing themselves over the past
four seasons with the third best record in ACC play. Since the
start of the 2008-2009 season, Florida State is 41-19 in ACC
regular season play, trailing only Duke and North Carolina.
Not only is first place at stake Thursday night with the regular
season winding down, so are a couple of smaller streaks of lesser
The Seminoles are 6-0 at home in the ACC while Duke is 6-0 on
the road in conference games. Florida State is after its third
straight win in the series.
"It's the next step for an ACC championship," Miller said.
"We can't be complacent. We have to turn it up a notch."


text:
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Executive Q&A: Michael Yung, CEO of TK Group
Kent Miller | PLASTICS NEWS CHINA
Published: Friday, July 22, 2016 2:11 AM Beijing Time
Michael Yung. Image by Kent Miller.
Shenzhen, China -- Michael Yung studied industrial engineering at the University of Hong Kong and worked in procurement for National Semiconductor Hong Kong Ltd. and AST Research (Far East Ltd.) before a fateful meeting with TK Group founder Alan Li led him to join the growing company's new injection molding business.
At that time, the young company had fewer than 100 workers. Yung oversaw its explosive growth. Today, TK Group (Holdings) Ltd. is a leading mold maker and injection molder with 2015 sales of HK$1.6 billion (US$201 million). The company has more than 3,000 workers in the Pearl River Delta and Germany. Customers include top Silicon Valley brands.
Yung's unusual resume also includes a master's degree in Buddhist studies from the University of Hong Kong.
Q: How did you get your start in the plastics business?
Yung: I was an engineer before in a computer company, responsible for procurement and sourcing. I met the chairman of TK, Alan Li, and we got to know each other. In 1989, he decided to expand into injection molding. That's when he invited me to join TK, as general manager of plastics. The title was big, but we had only a few machines (laughs). These machines were 15, 20 years old. This was a very good experience, because old machines often break down. So I had to learn how to operate them. Sometimes I had to repair them myself. In a small company, you have to learn to do a lot of things. I helped to fill orders, shipping and warehousing goods. I installed the first personal computer in the company.
Q: What advice would you give to anyone entering the plastics or mold-making business now?
Yung: You need to have the passion and the interest in mold making or injection molding. Injection molding is quite an interesting industry in the way that you need to control quite a lot of different parameters -- speed, pressure, temperature, and how you drive the material, the automation involved.
Then you need a good tool, a good mold. There are many things to consider when designing a mold -- machining tolerance, how you design it, the method of injection. I remember when I first joined this industry, when we built a new mold and went to look at the mold test, if something had failed, we needed to make adjustments. We would spend many, many hours, staying late, until midnight, to get it right. In this sense, it's a tough industry. It's getting better now. Mold making is becoming more scientific. But still, there are a lot of minor adjustments that require experience. It was more of an art before, but still, your experience is important.
Yes. The mold is an art piece. We say to be a mold-maker, you need to have the mind of a scientist but possess the craftsmanship of an artist.
Q: You have been in the plastics industry for many years. How do you stay on top of the rapid changes in industry and technology?
Yung: We have a lot of competition, right here in the Pearl River Delta, where there are many mold makers. We always try to position ourselves at the top of the pyramid, by always acquiring new technology and making ourselves stand out.
There are always new challenges, new applications. For example, when mobile phones were new on the market, [in the late 1980s,] the casings were massive. You look at a mobile phone today -- it's lightweight, with a much better finish. There have also been the advances in polymers, metals, machining technologies like CNC [computer numerically controlled machining].
We also try to keep progressing in the way we manage the company, [adopting] CAD/CAM software, SAP, MAS (manufacture executing system) -- software that keeps track of the progress of every workpiece.
Q: What is your management philosophy?
Yung: I have a master's degree in Buddhist studies. Buddhism tells of the doctrine of dependent origination. It means that cause and condition are both sides of the same coin. [So] I always pay more attention to the causes and conditions than to the results. Look at an apple tree. Some people focus on the fruit. "When will it come?" they keep asking. And then maybe they think, "It's not coming, I'll add more fertilizer." But if you have enough sunlight, enough water, good soil, you cannot ask the tree not to grow the apple. It will come out naturally. The result will be there. The result will not come out because of what you want, but because of what you have done, to create the right conditions.
Q: Your sales of wearables, medical/health care devices and smart-home devices all climbed sharply last year. What are the keys to success in these areas? Do you plan to enter new product areas?
Yung: I think we've grown so fast because we have very good mold making technology.
[These customers] pay attention to the aesthetic, the finish of a product. They pay a lot of attention to the details. To deliver that quality, we need to be very good at process control. Also, for these customers, time to market is very short. They always need a supplier to guarantee the supply and the delivery of products. For one customer, we need to deliver 400,000 pieces a month. To do this, we have a lot of machines running in parallel, some with eight cavities, some with 16.
We are installing a production line for making mold components. In this we have to improve our production efficiency by reducing the setup time and idle time and to allow for flexibility of change. Our FMS (flexible manufacturing system) helps with this.
Q: In recent years, you have acquired Nypro Tool (Shenzhen) Co., and Selig & Böttcher GmbH & Co., KG. What benefits do you gain from these companies?
Yung: We acquired Nypro to increase our market share in packaging, especially in high-performance molds of packaging.
Selig -- that was to help with our sales. We see Germany as one of the very important potential markets.
Q: Overcapacity is a continuing problem in the Chinese plastics industry. How do you stay competitive with so much competition?
Yung: Most of our customers are very cost-conscious. For them, we try to have good processes. We try to reduce scrap and improve cycle times. We also offer more cavities. If you have a mold with eight cavities, when we make your mold, we'll double it to sixteen cavities.
We also try to develop customers who are very demanding in quality, on workmanship, on production tolerance. Cost is not so important to these companies.
You need to be either the best or the second best. That was the management philosophy of GE's Jack Welch.
Q: Are you planning to expand production in China or elsewhere?
Yung: Unlike industries such as garments and toys, the mold industry is more capital- and knowledge- intensive. You need a lot of talent -- technicians, engineers. So there's a difficulty in transferring this industry to Vietnam and Cambodia.
It also depends on the supply chain. The industrial infrastructure in Southeast Asian countries is still not that well developed. India is an option, but not in the coming one to two years.
Here in China, over the past 20 years, we have developed a lot of talent, not only in TK but in the whole industry. There are still a lot of ways to improve our overall manufacturing efficiency. And all of this requires talent and know-how. There is still further room to develop.
Q: Do you plan to open or expand sales offices, service centers and application centers in China or internationally?
Yung: We have quite a good setup In Europe. We have a factory in Germany. It was a mold making company [the former Selig & Böttcher] that we transformed into a sales and project-management company with after-sales support. We have a sales office in Barcelona, Spain.
In America, we are planning to expand our sales network. We are considering opening a sales and service center in the Midwest or Canada.
Q: Many manufacturers tell me that hiring and retaining workers is increasingly a challenge in China, especially the Pearl River Delta. Do you agree? What is TK Group doing to confront this challenge?
Yung: Frankly speaking, it's becoming more difficult. Like I think everywhere else in the world, [many] engineering graduates don't want to work in manufacturing but want to become a salesperson or an app programmer.
At TK we always have an internal training program. To train university graduates to become managers and engineers. We have one-and-a-half year of off-the-job training and another six months of on-the-job training. We do not have a binding contract with them, but we provide an opportunity to learn and grow.
It's the company culture. We try to create a very good working environment. We trust and respect our workers. We try to provide opportunities for people. We train them, if they perform well, they get promoted. Some have become part of our core management team. We have a lot of activities. We have leagues for soccer, basketball, badminton, etc. Even I play basketball.
Q: What is your big challenge ahead?
Yung: The worldwide economy. Comparatively, though, we are in good shape.
In the past 10 years, Chinese companies and overseas companies set up in China have enjoyed very good growth. And this expansion has become almost like a law. When this economy suddenly flattened-out and overcapacity emerged as a problem, some players have tried a price-cutting strategy. It will take some time for companies to trim their excess capacity and for some small players to get out of this business.
Q: Are you planning to trim capacity?
Yung: Not us. We are quite fortunate.
At Taipei Plas, guarded reactions to China-US trade war
China's thermoformers join forces on environment, training
Industry worried about 'unintended consequences' of trade war
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on the trends and events impacting the Chinese plastics industry
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I have an InfoPath web-enabled form in MOSS 2007, that is integrated with a K2 blackpoint process for an approval workflow.
Once the form (a Purchase Order request form) has been approved in the K2 workflow process, I switch the form view to a "print-friendly" view for the requestor to view from the browser. However, now I need to go one step further with this scenario:
1) I need to somehow insert/embed an image with the scanned-in signature of the approver (likely stored in a SP doc library) at the signature line section of my form. Also, what are the security requirements for storing such images, but not granting
all users access to these (e.g. only services accounts that need to access this for embedding into the form, etc.)?
2) Then I need to convert this final "print-friendly" view of the form (with the signature image) to a PDF document so that I can store it in SharePoint (and email it to the requestor using K2's email event capabilities).
Can anyone help me with a solution to both of these requirement, or point me to some resources for this (even 3rd party components are open-game).
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Guys, i am using SharePoint 2010. i created a form using InfoPath, created hi using the Blank form Template, all i want to do is save this to an existing SharePoint 2010 List using writing code. I also tried creating a DataSource connection but when
i select the optoin for "Submiting Data" it does not show me an optoin to save data to a sharepoint list. Cand i do this using SharePoint webservices, if yes then how is it possible.
thanks in Advance
Hi, I have a Document Library mapped to a drive letter. I am able to browse the drive through Windows Explorer. However when I try to save a document to the drive Word returns, 'Unable to connect to the Web server.' . I have been unable to find any
information regarding this error message. If I try to create a document in the Document Library through Windows Explorer and the mapped drive, I get a different error message: 'Unable to create the file 'New Microsoft Office Word Document.docx' There
is no user session key for the specified logon session.' After I click OKand refresh the directory, a 0 KB New Microsoft Word Document.docx file has been created. When that file is opened, it is in Read-Only mode.
Windows Server 2003 R2
Webclient service started
Signed into the Microsoft Online Services Sign in Application
IE configured through the sign in application
site added to the trusted sites in IE
Thank you again for your input.
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Distance from Antes Fort, PA to Seymour, IA
Driving distance between Antes Fort, PA and Seymour, IA is 957.78 miles (or 1,541.40 kilometers). If you drove an average car (using about 3.6 gallons of gas per mile), the gas would cost you around $, since you would need about gallons of fuel.
Leaving from Antes Fort, PA you would reach Seymour, IA in about 15 hours 32 mins if you keep an average speed of miles per hour, assuming you don't make any breaks or get stuck in traffic.


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Skin Scanners: Not Created Equal
There is no doubt that skin scanner or "Woods Lamp" UV skin diagnostic devices are a valuable asset in the skin treatment professionals skin assessment toolkit. There are many brands to choose from and prices can vary by as much as 30-40%.
The question is of course, do the lower priced units work any better than devices with a higher price tag?
The basics
Most skin scanner devices feature the same basic fundamental design, and this is a housing containing a UVA (Black light) light source with a viewing port on one side and a large aperture for a person to position their head. There is an adjustable curtain on the larger opening that helps control ambient light bleed.
Physical design differences are usually limited to the aesthetic appearance of the housing, with the molded of sheet metal, and while perhaps not looking as pleasant as the rounded housing, are strong and functional.
Some devices feature fans to circulate air and increase the patients comfort while in use, and this will generally incur a cost premium.
The construction and comfort features aside, there is one single parameter that either makes the skin scanner a valuable tool or a frustrating ordeal for the user. This is the quality of the UV light source. Most devices use fluorescent "black light" tubes as their light source, and it is the type and quality of these tubes that make or break the functionality of the device.
There are essentially two types of black light tubes available and unfortunately it appears some manufactures of skin scanners don't seem to know the difference. They are:
These tubes emit UV rays of highest intesity of around 360nm and attract insects into insect traps, are used in mineralogy, military, criminology, medical and pharmacy industries, to monitor photochemical reactions, examine jewellery and the verification historical relics etc. The spectral output of these tubes however, is relatively wide, with secondary peaks around the 520 and 540nm regions.
Blacklight Blue:
These tubes are made with Wood's glass and also emit UV rays of 360nm at high intesity and are commonly used to detect counterfeit currency, special stage effects, dermatology and other applications similar to blacklight Lamps.
The difference is that spectral ourput of these tubes is much more "focussed" around the 360Nm region, with virtually no unwanted seconday spikes.
As you can see by the two spectral charts, plain Blacklight has energy spikes in other parts of the spectrum that really spoils the ability to accurately display the skin emitting light energy of specific frequencies when exposed to UV radiation.
The different colours emitted (and viewed by the therapist) correspond to a variety of biological ecosystems, and consequently skin conditions.
Because the wide band UV from the Blacklight tubes has frequencies we don't want, the detail that shows what is occuring in and on the skin is "washed out" with the additional unwanted light. Everything looks "too blue", without the subtle colour differeintation.
The images to left are examples of the extremes of tube quality.
You will note the cheaper tubes are almost useless as a diagnostic device due to the "bleed" of unwanted blue light from the upper spectrum.
The higher quality tube provides more difinition with a subtle "sharpness".
With the higher quality tube, the oil flow on the upper cheek is visible, as there is the correct part of the UV spectrum at the right intensity.
The correct bandwidth of light also shows the underlying pigmentation that is washed out by the cheaper tubes.
Tube quality:
High grade tubes are made from special blue glass that filters out most of the visible light, letting only the UVA ultra violet light pass through. Cheaper, less efficient (spectral bandwidth and energy output) tubes are internally coated with a dye that makes the tube glow blue.
The latter has a much wider spectral output, but little usable energy in the important 360nm range, providing generally poor results as a diagnostic tool.
These types of tubes are mainly used for display and theatrical purposes. Unfortunately, some lower cost skin scanners come from the factory with these tubes fitted. The good news is that they are easily replaced with better quality tubes. An example of what to look for on the labels of the tubes is below.
The black light skin scanner can be a useful diagnostic tool if fitted with quality Black light blue tubes. The higher the quality the tube, the "tighter" the bandwidth of the light source.
More recent technologies that use precision narrow-band LED's as their light source are quickly making the fluorescent black light tube skin scanners obsolete however. Check out this amazing technology here....
About the Author
Ralph Hill is technology writer, illustrator and editor for Virtual Beauty Corp. He has a background in science, electronics and electro-mechanical devices, but enjoys researching and writing for a myriad of skin care related topics including cosmetic chemistry and anatomy & physiology.


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Analyst relations is so important in tech marketing because technology customers continue to use industry analysts as sources for independent advice on buying decisions, whether it's the big analyst houses or specialist niche players. And today analysts are widely quoted in the media, as well as promoting their views via their own or industry blogs, forums and social networks.
We work with you to build an analyst relations target list, taking responsibility for generating briefing opportunities and ensuring analysts are kept updated on your business.
- Analyst relations tours
- Regular briefings
- Briefing materials and research
- Fielding incoming queries
- Road-testing messaging and analyst relations presentations


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LANSING, Mich. — Sen. John Proos has announced the schools that have advanced to the Elite 8 of the 2017 Southwest Michigan Spirit Tournament.
"We continue to see an outstanding response from people throughout Southwest Michigan to this school spirit tournament," said Proos, R-St. Joseph. "In the spirit of March Madness, this is about giving our community a chance to show their school pride in a manner that inspires creativity and competition. I am proud to see school spirit captured many different ways, such as students in choir, band and sports and the families of students cheering them on."
The tournament began with 31 area high schools competing in four brackets named for features that characterize Southwest Michigan. Each week, the schools with the most points move on.
"We are down to the Elite 8," Proos said. "The Sweet 16 round will be hard to top. We saw fans of area schools submitting more than 1,000 photos on social media, hundreds of votes in Twitter polls and more than 54,000 Facebook likes.
"Congratulations to the Marcellus Wildcats for earning the most points in the Sweet 16. They will now face the Coloma Comets, who scored the most points in the first round. It should be great matchup!"
The matchups in the Elite 8 are Bridgman vs. Michigan Lutheran; Watervliet vs. Brandywine; Centreville vs. Three Rivers; and Marcellus vs. Coloma.
Residents are reminded that there are several ways to earn points for their favorite school, including voting in online polls or submitting unique photos about their school.
Visitors who like the John Proos Supporters Page on Facebook can also upload and earn bonus points when others "like" the photo. Another way to earn points is to follow Senator John Proos on Twitter and send a tweet to @JohnMProos that includes the school name and the hashtag #SWMISpirit.
For complete rules and information, visit the Spirit Tournament page on Proos' Senate website at www.SenatorJohnProos.com.
The Elite 8 round will go through noon on Friday, April 7. The entire competition will end on Friday, April 21. The champion will receive a special tribute from the governor and area legislators commending their school and will house an engraved trophy until the following year.


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Before a two-hour White House meeting this month with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Barack Obama again held out the possibility of using military force against Iran to prevent it from developing nuclear weapons.
"I reserve all options and my policy here is not going to be one of containment; my policy is prevention of Iran obtaining nuclear weapons and ... when I say all options are on the table, I mean it," Obama said. Standing at his side, Netanyahu thanked the president for his "strong speech." He underscored the closeness of the United States and Israel, and said if Iran considered America "the Great Satan," "we're the little Satan." "We are you and you are us. We're together."
Though Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said March 5 that his organization "continues to have serious concerns regarding possible military dimensions."
To his credit, President Obama warns that "loose talk of war" with Iran risks benefitting only big oil companies and Iran itself because of spiraling gas prices, and emphasizes that the United States prefers a course of diplomacy and economic sanctions. The election year atmosphere, however, has heightened American bravado, with most of Obama's Republican challengers deriding as excessively weak his handling of Iran (though it is unclear how different some of their approaches would be).
The irony is that any eventual peaceful resolution of the West's standoff with Iran may owe much less to chest-thumping and bellicose rhetoric on this side of the Atlantic than to the quiet exertions of what may be the world's most experienced and unassuming diplomatic service — the Vatican's.
Thanks to the Wikileaks diplomatic cables scandal, we now know that the Vatican played a key role in the 2007 release of 15 British sailors who had been captured by the Iranian navy in disputed waters. The clincher reportedly was a private letter by Pope Benedict XVI to Iran's leadership asking for the release as a "goodwill gesture before Easter." The Vatican also intervened behind the scenes in the case of an Iranian woman who in 2006 was condemned to death by stoning, but whose sentence was suspended last year.
Unlike the United States, the Holy See has diplomatic relations with Iran, for nearly six decades. Iran appears to take the relationship very seriously, in part because it sees Pope Benedict and the Vatican as uniquely placed to mediate should tensions with the West escalate. In fact, Iran has the highest number of diplomats accredited to the Holy See of any country, with the exception of the Dominican Republic.
In 2008, Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called the Vatican a "positive force for justice and peace" in the world. Two years later, he wrote to the pope to support closer interreligious cooperation against "secularism, Western extremist humanism and man's growing tendency toward material life." In reply, Pope Benedict underscored the importance of making promotion of human dignity the primary inspiration of political and social life.
As tensions over Iran increase today, and the United States works with its allies to prevent conflict, Catholics and all believers also would do well to recall the pope's words:
"Peace is, above all, a gift from God, which is sought in prayer," he wrote, "but it is also the result of the efforts of people of good will. In this perspective, believers of every religion have a special responsibility and can play a decisive role."
Editorial Board: Greg Erlandson, publisher; Msgr. Owen F. Campion, associate publisher; Beth McNamara, editorial director; John Norton, editor; Sarah Hayes, presentation editor.
Copyright © 1996-2018 Our Sunday Visitor, Inc.


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After a little R&R We are fit enough to bring you up to speed
After a long drive back home (and after a LONG all-night session in the Hilton, writing up the magazine article that we shot live in front of delegates over the four days of the show!), we're finally back in the office after the chaos of The Photography Show.
I wanted to extend my personal thanks to each and every person who took the time to come and see me, whether it was for the "Over The Shoulder" sessions in the Hilton (where we shot the aforementioned article, and the money for which has made for a sizeable donation to Marie Curie), the "An Audience With" sessions on the Olympus stand, or even those of you kind/crazy enough to come and shake my hand, take a picture with me or even get to sign me your new camera(!!!).
I'm eternally grateful and humbled at just how many want to see me shoot, hear me speak and pick up a tip or two. I'm immensely privileged to hold he position I do and to help you, my friends, the photo public make decisions about your passion, your photography. It was lovely to be asked my personal opinion on what kit you should invest in and even more that you should come back with your purchases and ask for a picture. I'm just a photographer like you so this particularly humbles me. Here are a few personal smiles ;0)
As I always say, without YOU supporting what we do, there is no us. So please accept my sincerest thanks for choosing to spend your time with me and my crew!
Of course, this year Olympus did things a little bit differently than in years past, so I spent most of my time doing closed-door sessions rather than my usual public demonstrations on the main stage. I understand that many people were upset that they couldn't get to see us, and likewise we're very sorry that we didn't get to interact with more of the photo public. So, as a bit of a make good gesture, if you'd like to come along to one of my own personal courses then please message me and I'll send you a code for 10% off.
For those that couldn't be with us for The shoot here area few of my favourite images we created and the live streamed "behind the scenes" video shot by one of the magazines… Enjoy!
We've got a load of exciting workshops already available for booking, and some really creative new ones just about to be announced. So, especially for those of you who were able to make it along to my sessions, you might well be interested in things like Lighting 101 https://www.damianmcgillicuddy.com/product/lighting-101-studio-lighting-workshopand our advanced level Off Camera Flash With Artistry https://www.damianmcgillicuddy.com/product/advanced-off-camera-flash-workshop.
Keep your eyes peeled on the blog and on social media for the new slate of workshops, seminars and BIG Shoots that are just around the corner. We're about to kick things up a few notches and I promise it will be something you WON'T want to miss!
Till next time,


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Cuisinart CSG-700 Wireless Grill Thermometer
- 6 meat type presets
- LED flashlight
- Wireless handheld unit
- Reviews
- Description
- Specifications
- Benefits
Cuisinart CSG-700 Wireless Grill Thermometer
Get the perfect grilled foods every time with the Cuisinart CSG-700 Wireless Grill Thermometer. A wireless thermometer gives you the flexibility to entertain guests without having to stand by the grill all day. Several different presets give you all the information you need right in the palm of your hand.
6 meat type presets
No matter what type of meat you're cooking, you'll be able to get tailored settings exactly for it. Six presets include beef, veal, lamb, pork, chicken, and turkey. All your guests will be amazed at meats cooked to perfection.
Wireless handheld unit
Normally when grilling you have to be sure to be by the grill at all times to monitor your food. With this wireless handheld unit, you simply place the probe in the meat and you can read the temperature from anywhere. It lets you spend a little more attention on your guests even while you're cooking.
- 100 foot range
- 6 meat type presets
- LED flashlight
- Built-in timer
LED flashlight
Sometimes you end up having to cook even when the lighting is not the best. This thermometer knows what you need and includes a built-in LED light that gives you good vision of your food.
Built-in timer
In case you need a gentle reminder, this thermometer has what you need. A built-in timer lets you ensure that you don't accidentally overcook your meal. It really frees you up and provides a great deal of convenience.
- Model: CSG-700
- Product Type: Wireless Grill Thermometer
- Product Dimensions: L: 3.50" x W: 5.00" x H: 3.80"
- Product Weight: 1.00 lbs.
- Application: Measures temperature of cooking meats
- Components: Wireless handheld thermometer
- Lets you interact with guests while cooking
- Long range
- Presets for different meat types
- Takes guesswork out of grilling
- Wireless operation


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If you are a fan of Trailer Park Boys, you have to admit that Bubbles is one of the greatest characters in TV history. He is Sunnyvale's most awkward and peculiar resident, but also perhaps the most heartwarming. You cannot help but get the feels for this shed dwelling, feline fanatic, mumble-mouth in thick Coke bottle glasses. Bubbles is also the perfect foil to Ricky and Julian's endless parade of dumb schemes and shenanigans.
But life does not imitate art in, well, real life for Mike Smith, the actor who has portrayed Bubbles since the debut of Trailer Park Boys in 2001. Between his role on the show and his true persona, Smith is a bit of an expert at living a double life, seamlessly shifting between total nerd and cool guy.
Cool guy as in rock star cool.
Smith's adventures in rock n' roll predate Bubbles, Jim Lahey, and the rest of the gang at Sunnyvale Trailer Park. Hailing from New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Smith began playing pretty early on. Around age 20, he formed a cover band called Sandbox Legacy in 1992. The band soon morphed into an alternative rock unit, writing and performing original songs.
In short order, the band dropped "legacy" from the title and became Sandbox, releasing the independent EP Maskman in 1993. It was a brilliant capture of the 90s rock sound, balancing ethereal acoustic numbers with crunchy, aggressive guitar driven songs.
With a lineup of Smith and Jason Archibald on guitars, Scott MacFarlane on bass, drummer Troy Shanks, and lead vocalist Paul Murray — a relative of iconic singer Anne Murray — Sandbox attracted major label attention early on. The band eventually signed with EMI in Canada and Nettwerk in the USA and dropped Bionic, their first full-length album in 1995.
The riff heavy, shimmery single "Curious" achieved regular airplay on a number of outlets including MuchMusic, propelling the song to #8 on the Canada Alternative chart. The album subsequently yielded the singles "Collide" and "Here and There" to positive critical and audience receptions, netting the band a nomination for Best New Group at the 1996 Juno Awards.
Sandbox followed up the success with the release of A Murder at the Glee Club in 1997, an ambitious concept album about a killer grappling with his actions. The band members decided to part ways in the years after A Murder at the Glee Club to pursue divergent interests, clearing the way for Smith to focus on his acting and join the Trailer Park Boys cast. The rest, as they say, is history.
But Smith has continued to keep one foot in music during his decade-and-a-half as Bubbles, often appearing as the beloved character. Case in point is the comedy rock group Bubbles & the Sh*t Rockers, which features Smith and none other than all-time guitar hero Alex Lifeson of Rush. Their music can be heard in the film Trailer Park Boys: The Movie.
Smith, once again as Bubbles, even shared the stage with Guns N' Roses at tour stops in 2010 and 2011. It seems the proprietor of The Kittyland Love Center has a way of rubbing shoulders with rock royalty. The moral of the story, as demonstrated by Smith's multiple talents, is to never pigeonhole the strange, cat-obsessed guy in the trailer park. Despite his nerdy appearance, he just might be a musical genius.
Main image: Wikimedia.
Latest posts by Corien (see all)
- Can learning superstitions teach you a country's culture? - June 6, 2018
- Poker Nights, Dating, and Striking: The Lowdown On the Most Close-knit Comedy Casts - August 20, 2017
- Bubbles is a Rock Star: Mike Smith's Life in Music - August 3, 2017


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The memory and connectivity of the iPAQ Pocket PC can be expanded. Optional expansion cards can enable the iPAQ Pocket PC to connect to the internet or a network through a cable or wireless connection, add functionality such as a digital camera, expand the memory of the iPAQ Pocket PC, and view the content of memory cards.
note:Expansion cards must be purchased separately and are not included with the iPAQ Pocket PC.


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History Timeline
Dr. Oliver Lowry
Dr. Lowry was a remarkable researcher and methodologist. He developed an approach to microchemistry that enabled researchers to measure a variety of chemicals in single cells. Dr. Lowry was the Head of the Department of Pharmacology for 29 years and the Dean of the Medical School from 1955 to 1958.


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Phone number: 0421 63....
Email: Click to view
URL: http://volva.com.au
Year Established: 2011
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Business Info
Volva provides the highest quality hair removal and beauty services include male and female waxing and Elos Laser Hair Removal.
For more information, please visit our website.
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Friend's Email:
Subject: I have found a DVD that I think you would enjoy
Actors: Val Kilmer, Lisa Kudrow, Kate Bosworth, Christina Applegate, Josh Lucas
Director: James Cox
Genres: Drama, Mystery & Suspense
R 2004 1hr 44min
The dark underside of Boogie Nights is tracked in Wonderland, a sleaze-filled look at the notorious "Wonderland Murders" of 1981. The movie attempts to explain how the legendarily endowed porn actor John C. Holmes was invo... more »
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Movie Reviews
Johnny Wadd
Eric James Cooper | Highlands Ranch, CO USA | 02/12/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This film gives you two points of view of the Wonderland murders. One from Dylan McDermott and one from Val Kilmer (as John Holmes). I think the sheer brutality of these murders are enough to captivate, but the film basically goes nowhere. You don't learn anything about Holmes other than the fact that's he's a major drug addict. The film has nothing to do with porn or sex. It's a true crime movie that just never really gets off the ground. The second disc is a documentary on Holmes himself. That is the better disc. It gives you an in-depth look at the life of a guy with a practical-joke sized piece of anatomy. This documentary is far more interesting than the film Wonderland.There is a 25 minute crime scene police video included as well. It is as graphic as graphic gets. The bodies are still there as the police carefully document the bloody scene. I assume it's there for shock value. Don't let your kids anywhere near this."
Val Kilmer is back to doing what he does best...acting!
C. Law | USA | 10/26/2003
(4 out of 5 stars)
"In the film, WONDERLAND, Val Kilmer comes back to doing what he does best...acting! Yes, after several flops and what the hell were you thinking roles (AT FIRST SIGHT, RED PLANET, HARD CASH a.k.a RUN FOR THE MONEY), Kilmer returns as infamous porn star John Holmes.WONDERLAND chronicles Holmes after his `fame' in the porn industry and his `supposed' involvement in the murder of four drug dealers (including Josh Lucas, Natasha Gregson Wagner, Tim Blake Nelson, and Janeane Garofolo) who were brutally murdered in a house on Wonderland Ave. in Los Angeles in the summer of 1981.Much like BASIC did earlier in the year, WONDERLAND tells its story in a RASHOMON like fashion, showing two different interpretations of the same events. One story is that of John Holmes, while the other is that of career criminal David Lind's(Dylan McDermont), leaving the audience wondering who they should believe. You see, neither one is a reliable source. Actually, both characters are very unlikable. For that matter, there isn't a likeable character in WONDERLAND, which will make some people find the experience uncomfortable and others, like me, fascinated by the sheer stupidity of the characters and the way in which the director and the screenwriter have pieced together their `tattle tale' stories. That's one of my favorite aspects of the film. The stories. I loved the fact that the film tells the story from several different points of view. It actually made me feel like a detective as I watched the film. Who's lying? Who's telling the truth? Who's guilty? Who's innocent? Is anyone innocent? These are all question's that police detectives are more than likely faced with every day and it was fun to see how these stories come about What did happen out in WONDERLAND? Did porn king John Holmes actually participate in the murders? AS the film sort of does (even though I think it's clear where the film itself stands), I'll let you make your own decisions.One thing I will say is that Val Kilmer, Lisa Kudrow, and Dylan McDermont, yes Dylan McDermont (he's almost unrecognizable), are absolutely wonderful in this film! Their performances are worth the price of admission alone. The bottom line is that after WONDERLAND is over, you may feel the need to take a shower to wash off all of the slime its grimy characters have just drug you through, but, while you're watching the film, it's a hell of a journey through the human psyche and the violence of mankind.B"
Indispensable package for Wonderland aficionados
John | Southern California | 07/05/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I felt that this movie was unfairly bashed by newspaper critics. I got the impression that none dared venture anything positive once a consensus had been established.
I was so curious about this affair after reading the Rolling Stone article years ago that I saw this movie when it was first released in theaters; I wanted to see if it corroborated the article. So did it? That's the movie: two different versions of the heist are presented --John Holmes' and David Lind's. It's one thing to hear a story, but something else to see it enacted. John Holmes' version was amusing to see enacted because it made his lies obvious; some things could not have happened as he told them (ridiculous) and the audience laughed on those. Toward the end is a chilling Roman holiday of a murder scene that I believe, all things considered, is as close to the truth as we will come. For example, I believe it was Deverell who answered the door, and I am convinced that Holmes was there and probably coerced into participating in order to implicate him and thus prevent him from turning against Eddie again by testifying.
This two-disc set also includes omitted scenes, a Crime TV segment, and telling interviews with Sharon Holmes, Dawn Schiller, and people who knew Holmes from "the industry." There are photos taken of the victims when they were alive which I found very interesting, just to see what they looked like. The LAPD crime scene video was not as hard to take as I had expected, mostly due to the then-poor quality of video tape (it has come a long way since 1981 and this will jog your memory); three of the four just look like they're sleeping except that their hair is caked with blood. There are also interviews with some of the actors. I didn't know who Josh Lucas was before seeing this; his performance was outstanding.
Make sure you get the 2-disc set!!!!
Timothy P. Molthan | 02/03/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"There are two different releases of this out there. One is the movie (with, I think, a few extras) on one disc; the other is a two-disc set which includes the documentary "Wadd: The Life & Times of John C. Holmes". Watch the documentary FIRST, as "Wonderland" will make a lot more sense and be ten times more enjoyable if you do. That said, "Wonderland" is a fantastic, gritty film that I can count as one of my all-time favorites! Val Kilmer is so good as porn star John Holmes, you won't believe it. Lisa Kudrow, Kate Bosworth, Dylan McDermott, and EVERYONE in the cast is outstanding! Watch for a cameo by Paris Hilton as well. Everyone chews the scenery in this realistic film that went unnoticed in theatres but is becoming a cult classic thanks to the magic of DVD! I can't recommend it any more highly!"


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Mort Weiss identified himself in a comment here as "the world's greatest out-of-work Jewish bebop clarinet player." That may be, but he found work one night not long ago at Steamers jazz club in the Los Angeles area. Weiss led a band with Sam Most, tenor sax and flute; Ron Eschete, guitar; Luther Hughes, bass; and Roy McCurdy, drums. The tune is Jerome Kern's "I'm Old Fashioned" at a lovely, relaxed tempo. Most's two tenor choruses channeling Lester Young are as enjoyable as watching him dig Eschete.
Don't even drink martinis, but this weighs in as Desmond caliber 'dry martini music' with "that lovely, relaxed tempo"! Fine tune, made a hectic day a lot calmer.
Ron Eschete. Wonderful.
Giora Feidman was not always so sweet and relaxed.


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The freshly painted room has just enough space for a single bed, dresser, small refrigerator, chair and night stand. The blue-striped top sheet and the brown-print bottom sheet clash. The only view is an overgrown, walled-in garden and the backs of houses on South Paca Street.
It looks good to Robert Millner. It looks much better to him than a 1979 Thunderbird or the Mercy Hospital emergency room, just two of the places where Millner spent the night last winter.
Millner, 48, is a resident of Holden Hall, Maryland's first single-room occupancy project for homeless men.
Twenty years ago, skid row motels and boarding houses provided similarly inexpensive accommodations, but most of those have shut down, forced out by development, gentrification and soaring real estate values.


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4-6 June 2018, Cascais, Portugal
"Uniting the Globe to Protect Health through Technology, Innovation and Public/Private Partnerships"
Following the success of the two previous editions, CEPA and NPMA are organising a new Global Summit of Pest Management Services for Public Health and Food Safety from 4 through 6 June 2019.
This year the event will once more take place in Europe. We've selected the coastal resort of Cascais, a mere 25 minutes from Lisbon, the Portuguese capital, where we are all set to welcome visitors from across the Globe in the Cascais Miragem Hotel.
Our roster of high level speakers representing the Pest Management Industry, Clients and Government Officials from all 5 continents will include:
- Robert Madelin, Chairman, FIPRA Consultancy (former Director General of the EU Directorate General for Public Health and Food Safety)
- Bizhan Pourkomailian, Global Restaurant & DC Food Safety, McDonald's Restaurants
- Daniel Baldwin, Senior Food Safety Scientist, Pest Prevention, Yum Brands
- Justyna Kostarczyk, Metro AG
- Michelle Whelan, Ireland Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Pesticide Registration and Control Division
- Roy Kirby, Mondelez International for GFSI, the Global Food Safety Initiative
- Graça Freitas, Director Health Directorate, Portuguese Ministry of Health
- Divino Valero Martins, Brazilian Ministry of Health
- Rubén Bueno, Chairman of EMCA (European Mosquito Control Association)
- Rajpal Yadav, World Health Organization
… and many more !
Presentations will focus on how our industry protects Public Health and contributes to Food Safety with the help of innovative technologies, the introduction of new service standards, rigorous training requirements and Public/Private partnerships.
The Summit will also coincide with World Pest Day on 6 June 2018, providing the perfect occasion to showcase our industry's role in responsibly protecting citizens around the Globe against public health risks.
We're still working on fine-tuning the programme but a more detailed outline can already be consulted by visiting our microsite at http://gs18.npmapestworld.org/. The two and a half day conference package is available for € 250/pp. Groups of 10 or more will be entitled to a 10% rebate.
To book a room at Cascais Miragem (single rooms start at € 190) please click here.
Looking forward to seeing you in Cascais at the Welcome Reception on 4 June 2018 !
Dominique Stumpf (CEO NPMA) and Henry Mott (Chairman CEPA)


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How the West was Won (AGAIN!) Reclaiming rights and freedoms in police state Patrick Hennings..
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Please tour our extensive catalogue of Alternative View material from some amazing speakers. The information contained in them will truely help you with your own awakening.
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Thursday, January 30, 2014
Film review: The Haunting in Connecticut 2
I used to be a lot better about staying up to date on new movies, but the fact of the matter is, it's a hell of a lot of work and I sort of gave up the past few months. I have a feeling I'm missing out on a lot by being passive, and waiting for this information to work its way to me via the few channels I still use on a semi-regular basis. So it wasn't until recently that I realized a) The Haunting in Connecticut 2 was out and b) on DVD and c) on Netflix. Yep.
I really liked the first film, I've watched it maybe three or four times now. It's got some of my favorite story themes: spiritualism, haunted house, horror of physical disease, historical content, a mystery demanding to be solved. I find it creepy as hell, and appreciate the hopeful ending. So I gave the sequel a shot, hoping beyond hope.
Here's the upside: Set in the South, still has the historical backstory, creepy faces in windows and hovering ghosts while you sleep. They still go for the kind-of-upbeat ending.
Unfortunately, the story and characters made it much like watching a talented dancer try to pull off the same moves they've done before, get tangled up in their feet, then fall down a flight of stairs.
I don't say that to be unnecessarily mean (sorry filmmakers) it's just the best way I can describe my experience.
I like the story they tried to tell, but I was absolutely flummoxed by the characters, and I think they goofed it up more than anything. Certain parts of the story were drawn out much longer than they should have, in part because the characters were so slow to pick up on important details. Other parts were over in a snap, and I didn't buy how ready they were to gloss over what would normally be a tough sell.
You have a woman who is so in denial about her ability to see spirits that she's popping pills all the time and lounging around in a brooding, melodramatic daze. (And this by the way, might be the reason her daughter keeps running off and getting into danger, because no one is WATCHING HER.) But all of a sudden, the mother flips 180 degrees to have a watered down exorcism done on her child, then continues to ignore and deny that there are spirits trying to talk to her, her sister, and her daughter. The mind boggles.
My point is, there was a lot that was just... off. Reactions that didn't ring true, obvious red flags that everyone seems blissfully unaware of.
In my opinion, this is not essential viewing for those who enjoyed the first film. If you're stuck some night for a film to watch and are in the mood for supernatural, you could do worse. A high tolerance for confusing character behavior will go a long way in this case, though.
Posted by Rachel Storm at 10:00 AM
Wrote about: Film, Film review, Ghosts, Haunted Houses, Haunting, Horror, Sequels
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I feel like I have seasonal depression. Except, where normal people love the sunshine and get sadder in the winter months when it's all about indoor activities, I am the opposite. I could feel myself in the last few weeks getting happier, more motivated to do things. It could be the fact that I now own a car, but it's been a pattern the last few years.
Don't misunderstand. I live in Florida so the winters aren't terribly cold and when it is "winter" it doesn't last very long. I've always believed that fall was my favorite season even though I don't get the changing leaves or an abundance of crisp breezes accompanying my afternoon walks. But I do get moderately colder weather for longer. I enjoy being outside with my mix of green and brown trees in my fashionable sweaters and cheap, adorable boots. And I don't mind shutting off the A/C, opening the windows, and cuddling with my baby all afternoon and reading.
I recently purchased a previously loved Kindle from Courtney at Optimistic Mommy. I've been considering buying one, but my love for books isn't that deep (I know) and I was on the bandwagon with the New Book Smell enthusiasts. Kindles were just another way to unnecessarily gloat about technology. But I went out on a limb…
…and I love it.
I download all the books now. I am still a slow reader, but now I find that enjoying those peaceful moments is actually stimulating and exciting! I have like 40 books on my Kindle right now. I really like that the whole thing is lightweight and the pages are easy to flip. I can adjust fonts to my liking, and easy store, reference and read whatever I want without having to get out of bed or make a visit to the bookshelf.
What books do you like to read?
I prefer either chick lit, murder mysteries, or sci-fi/fantasy. One of the first books I read was A Feather on the Breath of Ellulianaen by Robert Denethon. This is the first in a series of books part of the Gryphon Dragon Histories. Honestly it started off rather slow and I almost put it down due to all the run-on sentences. It got exciting rather quickly though, and once it picked up I could not put it down!
If you read A Feather on the Breath of Ellulianaen make sure to check the appendix in the back dealing with name pronunciations. They are a mouthful and I tried ignoring them at first. About half-way through I realized I was getting them all mixed up and I had to slow down and figure it out before I could go on. Then of course I found the appendix at the end… HA!
I recommend this book to any fantasy lover who enjoys epic battles and dense story lines. Like I said, once you get started you'll have to keep going!
Disclaimer: I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. This post also contain affiliate links. I shall not tell lies!


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COMICS SHOULD SMELL GOOD!! ep. #62!/
It's the most stressful time of the year (for some people) but here at Zanadu, its always groovin and movin' with another week of fantastically shiny NEW COMICS!! Escape the crazy holiday reindeer slay of consumption with the CSSG team as they bring you everything from evil science weed to club hopping mech pilots to the Avengers party at the end of world! More bubblegum for the brain and soul courtesy of the mighty Z!!!


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India's per capita healthcare spending has increased at a compound annual growth rate of 10.3 percent 2008 through 2011, and is expected to reach Rs 5488.98 (USD88.7) by 2015, according to a 2014 report by KPMG. With the healthcare expenditure rising, there has been a significant increase in the number of people buying medical insurance in India. In order to capitalize on this favourable market, many healthcare insurance companies are offering competitive premiums. In general, an insurance company determines your premium after considering a number of factors, such as, your age, medical history, and lifestyle.
Physical and Medical Risk Factors
Here are 8 most important factors that your insurer may assess when determining your healthinsurance premium.
1. Body Mass Index: In general, BMI is directly proportional to premium rates, meaning that people with a higher BMI will need to pay a higher premium, because they are susceptible to diseases, such as, diabetes, sleep apnea, and heart and joint problems.
2. Tobacco Use: Insurance companies penalize applicants who use cigarettes or use tobacco rampantly by charging them higher premiums, as they are obviously more prone to cancer and lungs related ailments. They will also have a weaker immune system.
3. Gender: Women tend to pay higher medical premiums than men as they are at higher risk of suffering from chronic diseases, undergoing surgeries, and getting into pregnancy related complications.
4. Age: Premiums are usually lower for younger individuals. Young people will usually have fewer diagnosed and undiagnosed health conditions than older people will have.
5. Pre-existing Medical Conditions: If you are already suffering from a disease that may worsen your health conditions with time, you could be charged a higher healthcare insurance premium.
6. Family History: For applicants who have a family history of certain medical conditions or ailments, the premiums may be higher. For instance, if some of your immediate family members had cancer, you may be charged a higher amount.
7. Profession: If you work in an area exposed to hazardous chemicals or radiation, or have a job profile that involves high injury risks, you may need to shell out much higher insurance premiums.
8. Marital Status: It is said that married couples live longer and are generally healthier than single people. Thus, married people, especially men, enjoy a better premium along with marital bliss.
Make sure you live a healthy lifestyle and include exercising and physical activities in your daily routine to improve your health conditions, as well as to get a better deal from your health insurance company.


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Spike Lee's 'Oldboy' Remake To Be "Different and Darker"?!
Last week while Bloody Disgusting was on the Los Angeles set of Takashi Shimizu's new film, 7500, we had a chance to speak with Roy Lee about that film as well as a few upcoming projects. While I can't say too much about 7500 right now, Mr. Lee was able to clue us in on a progress report in regard to Spike Lee's Oldboy remake.
Things are gearing up fast, "We are planning to shoot 'Oldboy' in March, and we should start preproduction in late January".
On if they had retained anything from the draft by Better Luck Tomorrow writers Ernesto Foronda, Fabian Marquez and Justin Lin, "No. This is completely separate. A brand new script by Mark Protosevich."
As far as the new approach? "It is very similar but we've added new elements. Mark Protosevich has come up with new elements that will throw off the audience that have seen the original movie. There are new characters and new situations that present themselves in a way that change the story but then eventually get it going in the same direction… The ending will be something that fans of the original will e very happy with, in fact some may consider it to be a bit darker."
On that famous hallway scene, "There's a different interpretation of that scene that will hopefully be Spike's signature moment in the movie. He wants to show it in a way that he's never seen an action movie do it before."
7500 lands in theaters on August 31, 2012. Expect more updates, and our full set report, as that date approaches.


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The Wall
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The Host
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The Wendell Baker Story
The Ex
All Ray Angelic films
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