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Last year, Arizona went 3-2 against the Pac's newest members. Those two losses both came at the hooves of the Colorado Buffaloes who – per my man, James – have picked the Wildcats as their team to beat, the Red Letter Game he calls it. And oh do I dig that. I love competition. You, I'm going to play and beat YOU. That's the sorta stuff that gets me to turn any game on. Why else do we revere Joe Namath's guarantee, Ruth's called shot, and Duke losing? Bravado and rivalry drives sport and I'm happy to welcome the Buffs into the realm of teams I want my 'Cats to wallop.
But I'm also really enjoying watching their program evolve. Tad's done tremendous work in short order and this is indeed a program being built to contend. And contend they will.
Leading up to Thursday's showdown in Tucson, I asked some of my favorite and most trusted and wise CU pals their thoughts on…well, lots.
James (JL), is an admin at AllBuffs and the first ever devout Basket Buff I'd ever met. He's a loyal gchatter and man of great knowledge.
Jason (JG) is another AllBuffs contributor to whom I owe lots. He's the man who convinced me into the world of KenPom and we have great discussions concerning the balance of advanced stats and the romanticized story of sport. I look forward to discussing Nate Silver's The Signal and the Noise with him. Join us? He also crunches numbers – namely win shares – that have encouraged me to be a more holistic observer of the game.
And Ben (BB). This dude runs a dedicated blog to CU athletics – The Rumblings of a Deranged Buffalo at Rumblin Buff – and I really like his work. He's the sort of fan that keeps enough perspective to know that a 1-11 football season calls for game previews surrounding new beers. My man.
Converse with these men in basketball dialogue as it will be worth your while. And…without further ado: QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS!
You gentlemen know your Buffs inside and out, something sparked that interest in sports: What's your greatest athletic achievement?
JL: Probably getting two different players thrown out of a game for throwing punches at me in an AAU game. Apparently my opponents weren't fans of my tactics (because when you lack talent, you have to find little things to make up the difference).
JG: I used to be able to play a little golf, when I was 15 I set the course record on a 9 hole course. I shot 29 (par 36); I was 8 under through 7 holes and limped in with a bogey, par finish. While I was never as good at basketball as golf, I can't get enough hoops.
BB: I was co-captain on my high school's scholastic bowl team. We won the conference title my senior year, does that count? No? You're probably right. My life is generally light on athletic "achievement." I usually played the "Ben Mills" role on teams growing up, leading me to expand my talents in other areas, i.e. playing the tuba. More recently, I've become more than decent at beer-league softball, and my solid play at first base helped my team to 11-straight championship game appearances. So I've got that going for me, which is nice.
Greatest sporting event ever witnessed?
JL: In person it'd probably be the Nugs home playoff game in Melo's rookie season. The team had been out of the playoffs for almost a decade and the fans were delirious. We curb-stomped the #1 seed Timberwolves that game in what was probably the loudest sporting event I've ever been at in my life.
JG: This is a good question, one I waffled on and my answer may be an odd one. I have lots of memorable sports watching moments (Tyson ear bite fight, Jordan crossover/push-off on Byron Russell, the OJ car chase but one stands above the rest. Under a month after September 11th I was in Vegas on Fall break when Bonds hit his 71st home run. I was in the sports book at the Mirage (a month away from my 21st birthday) when he hit it. I have never been a Bonds fan, but the shear pandemonium in the sports book at that time in US History I will never forget. Steroids be damned, that was a good moment.
BB: All-time would probably be the 2007 National League play-in game between the Rockies and the Padres. Incredible atmosphere, incredible game, and a night I'll never forget (even though the Rox aren't my #1 team). If you want something CU-ish, the 2003 upset of KU in Boulder is up there. Somewhere Kirk Hinrich is still missing layups. Another fun one is the Big XII tournament win over K-State from that same year. It was one of the more bizarre finishes in the history of college basketball, with CU wining on a buzzer-beater to essentially send us into the Tournament. (*cough* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFItSuuy3dU *cough*). That win got those of us in the band another free night in Dallas, and $115 cash in per diem. K-BOOSH!
Whether you have a commute or cube, I know you've got headphones droning something out: Favorite song of the moment?
JL: I hate admitting this, but I begrudgingly like the Lumineer's "Ho Hey". I'm a sucker for songs that have random yelling of "hey" in it. This is why Cake might be the greatest band of all time. (PacHoops endorsed!)
JG: I am a sucker for the Lumineers "Ho Hey" song that is incessantly on the radio right now. I can't get enough of those 2 minutes and 42 seconds. (PacHoops endorsed!)
BB: Childish Gambino, "You See Me." (NSFW) (PacHoops endorsed!)
Onto the hoops. Ten-and-two. That's where your Buffs stand. So, in a word, are you: happy, disappointed, ecstatic, sorrowful, [insert your own word]? Why?
JL: Underwhelmed. Had you asked me pre-season, I would have said 8-4/9-3 would be a successful non-conference schedule. However, for some reason, the 10-2 record has left a little to be desired. I'm probably nit-picking because we're light years ahead of last year, but I question whether the team can peak like they did last year. That said, I never rule out Tad.
JG: Can I be happy and disappointed? It's impossible not to be happy with the overall record but I am certainly disappointed about the way those two losses came. The Kansas loss was just a poor effort from the tip and the Buffs never really seemed to get into it in Laramie. There is a lot to be happy and disappointed about in individual players as well. Obviously I am happy with Dinwidddie, Dre and Scott but disappointed in SHT's lack of pretty much everything and XJ's inability to get anything going this year.
BB: They've beaten my preseason expectations, so I'll go with "impressed." Despite six freshmen and only one senior, and saddled with the sixth toughest non-conference schedule in the nation, they emerge with only two understandable road losses? I'll take that.
My Wildcats are sans loss and deep like Lake Tahoe, what, if anything, scares you about them?
JL: Their size. There's a lot to terrify there, but I like how our guards & forwards match up. The question is, can the Buffs keep Zeus/Ashley/Jerrett off of the boards and out of the low post? Scott & Roberson are good, but can Simba step up?
JG: You said it, but it isn't just their deepness it is the overall talent that resides in that deepness. They have a handful of guys that can beat you on any given night. CU doesn't have enough horses to bounce back if things go south early.
BB: Senior leadership. The additions of Tarczewski and Ashley are nice, and Nick Johnson is obviously a stud, but the inside-outside combo of Solomon Hill and Mark Lyons will win you the games in March. My Buffs just don't have that experienced foundation to lean on in crunch time.
Does Spencer Dinwiddie's mustache make him better?
JL: Damn right. Just wait until next year when Chris Jenkins is out there rocking the stache too.
JG: It has too right? Anybody that rocks the stache has to have some swagger; I think Dinwiddie feeds off that. You can't be some chump on the court rocking it; you have to have some skill to not look like an idiot with it.
BB: Of course. Based on absolutely nothing, I figure it's worth an extra 2.3 points per game.
Can the Buffs win this game in Tucson? If so, how or what gives them their best shot?
JL: Can? Yes. Will they? No. Best chance is if they play the D that won the Charleston Classic and kicked CSU around in the first half of that game. If the Buffs can play that type of lock-down D, they're dangerous.
JG: Can they win? Sure they can, but a lot has to go right. Dinwiddie has to come out in first half CSU beast mode fashion, Booker has to take good shots within the offense, Dre has to grab boards like he can, Scott is going to have to battle on both ends of the court and the bench has to show up. So it can theoretically happen, but I have to agree with my friend Ken Pomeroy in giving CU a about a 1 in 5 chance to win. Too much has to go right to win a road conference game and that just doesn't happen in college basketball very often.
BB: No. Road games are still an issue. As awesome and praise-worthy as he is, the Tad Boyle era has been peculiarly devoid of solid wins in true road games (9-18 on the road since his start in 2010). After shocking K-State in Manhattan in 2011, our best true road victory is probably the win over Fresno St from this year. Even that took a 17/20 night from 'Dre to secure. Nothing is easy when the Buffs go on the road. Is this going to be a disaster on the level of Kansas? God I hope not, but if you guys want to move this to a neutral site (12-6 in the Boyle era), we'd be more than happy to oblige.
I'm allotting you 140 characters (a Tweet in modern vernacular) to glow about Josh Scott and/or Andre Roberson…GO!
JL: Josh Scott is already good, but will be All-Pac-12 next year and possible All-American. Get in the weight room!
JG: I don't need 140 characters: Every possession Josh Scott doesn't touch the ball in the post is a wasted possession.
BB: 'Dre recently learned how to pull off the Euro-step. Your move, Rodman. Josh Scott? The Big Fundamental v 2.0. Duncan is Jealous.
Who is your favorite Wildcat, present, past, or future?
JL: The one that Tad kills with his bare hands a la the Bear from last year.
JG: This is an easy one, Damon Stoudamire. I always stayed up late as a kid and subsequently I became a West Coast basketball fan and Arizona was my team. I owned not only a #20 Arizona jersey but also his Toronto Raptors jersey as well.
BB: As a Bulls fan, Steve Kerr is an obvious #1. As for someone I actually think of as a Wildcat, Miles Simon, and the "Simon says: Championship" run in 1997, happened at the right time in my youth. His play in the title game still rattles around in my head.
The prediction question, not brought to your by Nate Silver. Tell me what happens Thursday night?
JL: I think Arizona has too many weapons, and it'll be a little too much for the freshman to deal with, as Zona wins this one and CU starts planning to get their revenge in the Valentine's Day Massacre.
JG: I expect Arizona to come out tough, go up early before giving a few back before the half and up end by 5. Stretch the lead to 10 in the first 5 minutes of the second half and the score to stay right about there for the rest of the game. At home and having a battle tested pre-conference schedule Arizona is going to be too much for CU to handle.
BB: An Arizona win. CU keeps their heads afloat for the first 25 minutes, mostly because Dinwiddie has a big game. As Carlon Brown revealed last year, Spencer grew up an Arizona fan, and he lights it up to spite them. 'Dre drops a 'Dre-esque 13/12, but is limited in the 2nd half with foul trouble. Hill and Johnson blow it open between the 16-min and 12-min timeouts, and CU struggles to get back into the game the rest of the way. 'Zona 72 – CU 65
So there you have it, insight from the faithful. I appreciate their time and their program and their efforts for the greater good of Pac-12 hoops. Additionally, I'm really hoping to make it out to Boulder on Valentine's Day for Arizona's visit but time will tell. Who's got airline miles?


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Best Of
Read on for UFC Fight Night main card results...
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida made a seamless move to the middleweight division Saturday night, knocking out friend and former training partner Mark Munoz in the first round of their UFC Fight Night main event at the Phones 4U Arena in Manchester.
"It's very hard for me because Mark is a good friend to me, but as a professional I can't think about that," said Machida. "I have to do my job."
There was little action in the opening two minutes, with Brazil's Machida doing the only scoring with a kick to the body. A second body shot midway through the round landed even harder, and moments later, "The Dragon" went upstairs with his kick, with a left to the head dropping Munoz hard. Machida moved in for the finish, but seeing Munoz already dazed, he held up as referee Leon Roberts intervened at the 3:10 mark.
With the win, Machida ups his record to 20-4; Munoz falls to 13-4.
Watch Machida's post-fight interview
GUILLARD vs. PEARSON
The controversial hand on the canvas marking a downed fighter rule reared its ugly head in the co-main event between lightweights Melvin Guillard and Ross Pearson, with a no contest verdict being rendered in the first round of what was shaping up to be an entertaining scrap.
Guillard was confident in his striking attack as the bout opened, yet while Pearson took his share of shots, he also ducked plenty, showing excellent defense. It was then the two scrambled to the mat that things got interesting though, as Guillard landed with two knees to the head as the fighters rose. The first was clearly legal, the second was borderline illegal at best due to Pearson's hand touching the canvas, marking him as a downed fighter. Regardless, Pearson emerged with a nasty cut on his forehead, prompting referee Marc Goddard to halt the fight at the 1:57 mark and rule a no contest.
Guillard moves to 48-13-3 with 2 NCs; Pearson's record now sits at 17-6 with 1 NC.
Joe Rogan interviews both men after the decision
MANUWA vs. JIMMO
It was another frustrating, yet victorious, outing for London light heavyweight Jimi Manuwa, as he saw his second consecutive fight end via TKO due to injury, as Ryan Jimmo was halted in round two after hurting his left leg.
The unbeaten Manuwa, now 14-0, had an identical result in his February victory over Cyrille Diabate.
Edmonton's Jimmo (18-3) came out blasting, hoping to repeat his seven second debut win over Anthony Perosh, but that didn't happen, with a lock-up against the fence resulting instead. After a stalemate, referee Neal Hall separated the two, only for the fighters to end up back in the clinch. The two traded knees before another re-start, and it was largely a kick fest for the rest of the round until Manuwa landed some punches upstairs late.
A lock-up and re-start opened the second round, and from long range, Manuwa was able to score with kicks and control the pace of the fight. And though Jimmo had his moments, his continued clinching was only producing stalemates. After one such stalemate, the two broke and Jimmo fell to the mat after apparently injuring his left leg. Hall immediately stepped in, stopping the fight at the 4:41 mark.
PARKE vs. TUCK
Lightweight prospect Norman Parke handed Jon Tuck his first pro defeat, showing off an impressive standup game en route to a three round unanimous decision win.
Scores were 29-28 and 30-27.
There was plenty of good action in the opening round, with Tuck (7-1) the slightly busier of the two. It was Northern Ireland's Parke (20-2) who was the more effective fighter though, as he repeatedly tagged Tuck with counter lefts and ended the stanza with a nice takedown.
Parke's striking volume and steady pressure put Tuck on the defensive in round two, and the tide of the fight was visibly changing by the second as the former TUF Smashes winner repeatedly tagged his tiring foe.
Tuck made it more competitive in the last frame, but Parke remained a step ahead throughout, striking his way through the final five minutes to cap off his tenth consecutive victory.
MUSOKE vs. SAKARA
A wild middleweight bout between veteran Alessio Sakara and late replacement Nico Musoke ended just as wildly as it started, with the debutant Musoke winning via first round submission.
Sakara rocked the newcomer with the first right hand he threw, and he followed up with a thudding takedown before letting his foe up. Musoke took advantage of his good fortune by rocking Sakara standing, kicking off a heated exchange of punches before the Swede scored his own takedown. Sakara stayed busy from the bottom as Musoke looked to change position, and though the Italian escaped and got into the top spot, Musoke adjusted impressively, locking in an armbar that ended the bout 3:07 in.
The win ups Musoke's record to 11-2 with 1 NC; Italy's Sakara falls to 19-11 with 1 NC.
Check out Nico Musoke's post-fight interview
LINEKER vs. HARRIS
Brazil's John Lineker may have been fined for not making weight for the third time as a UFC fighter, but at least he'll be picking up a win check as well, as he knocked out Phil Harris in the first round of their flyweight bout.
Harris' striking piled up some points early, but Lineker's bombs were hurting the Brit every time they landed, and after Harris got hurt and rocked several times with head shots, it was a left hook to the body that finally dropped the Portsmouth native and prompted a stoppage from referee Neal Hall at 2:51 of the first stanza.
The knockout win, Lineker's third straight, improves his record to 23-6; Harris falls to 22-11 with 1 NC.

subset: commoncrawl


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Social Media Clout Means Big Business for Some Users
As the advertising world increasingly teams up with social media, what was once just a fun way of keeping in touch with friends for many is becoming a full-time job -- and paving the way for a new emerging line of businesses looking to connect those influencers with big money brands.
Few people are more familiar with both sides of that business model than Jonathan Nafarrete, recently named one of Business Insider's "Top Instagram Users that Advertisers are Dying to Work With" and "Most Creative People in Social Media Marketing." For Nafarrete, social media has led not only to major perks but a whole new career, all since discovering Twitter when he was working as a freelance photographer in 2008.
"At the time I viewed Twitter as a conversational tool and had no idea my following would have grown so quickly. I was soon followed by almost 40,000 people," he told the FOX Business Network.
Thanks to that continuously growing social profile (last we checked he had nearly 89 thousand followers on Twitter alone), Nafarrete has since been able to enjoy perks like free cars, world travel, starring commercial roles and paid photography jobs from brands like Ford, Audi, Nike, and RadioShack -- all in exchange for sharing those experiences on his now various social media accounts. "Instagram users are getting paid in ranges from $50 to $1,000 a photo oftentimes from brands," he says.
But Nafarrete has also seized on another social media-inspired opportunity: the market demand for someone to connect the right influencers with the right brands, which he now does at the award-winning agency BLITZ.
Nafarrete says his favorite part about creating influencer programs for brands like Sony Playstation, Naked Juice, Honda, and Dole, is getting to share the amazing experience he's had as a social influencer with the influencers and brands he now works with. He adds the move has also "stabilized me financially."
And Nafarrete's hardly alone. This type of social media advertising has become so popular anyone can now test and take advantage of their social media influence through sites like Klout which syncs to all of your social accounts, then gives you a score based on how many people are following and engaging with your content. A high enough score gets you into the Klout Perks program, where brands essentially give you free stuff because you're "influential."
Some social media marketing firms even focus on just one specific type of influencer. Mom Central Consulting for example connects brands with influential Mothers, while HelloSociety focuses exclusively on the social media site Pinterest.
"We represent hundreds of the top Pinterest users -- our network of influential pinners averages about 1.8M followers each -- and match them up with our portfolio of more than 500 brands like Madewell, Saks Fifth Avenue, Buick, Progressive, and Net-A-Porter to name a few," HelloSociety founder and CEO Kyla Brennan said.
Of course the risk for brands in all of this is that recruiting an influencer to write about your product doesn't guarantee they'll have positive things to say, and a large following doesn't guarantee a large influence.
But so far the business model seems to be working. According to Moxie Communications Group, which represents HelloSociety, less than a year after its launch the agency now has 16 employees and has doubled the number of brands it works with to more than 500.
Though the simple fact that the companies representing the influencers are now doing well enough to also have companies representing them might be an even better indicator of how rapidly this industry is growing.


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CHICAGO -- Leave it to Tom Thibodeau's vaunted defense to crash the Knicks' 3-point party.
Marco Belinelli and Luol Deng scored 22 points apiece as the Chicago Bulls beat the Knicks 93-85 on Saturday night, snapping New York's five-game winning streak.
Belinelli matched a career high by playing 45 minutes and sparked the Bulls at the outset with 15 points in the first quarter. Deng led the way at the end, getting 10 points in the fourth.
"I played a lot of minutes," Belinelli said. "We played great on offense and defense. ... That's the way we've got to play."
Deng played 46:34 in the game, helping the Bulls (11-8) to their first three-game winning streak of the season.
"You just keep focusing in on getting a win," Deng said. "While the game is going on, you do not feel fatigue."
Raymond Felton led the Knicks with 27 points, matching his season high on Thursday in a victory at Miami. However, Felton was just 9 of 30 from the field, exceeding his career high for field-goal attempts by six shots.
"They took the 3s away, took my 3s away off the screen and roll, then they attacked the big (men)," Felton said. "That's why I took so many shots today. I normally don't take that many shots.
"Probably haven't taken 30 since high school."
Tyson Chandler had 14 points and 18 rebounds for the Knicks, who shot a season-low 32.1 percent from the floor and matched a season high with 15 turnovers. It was also a season-low point total for New York (14-5).
"You have to give them credit, they played great defense coming down the stretch run," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said. "I thought they made the hustle plays that they needed to make in order to win the game, and we didn't."
New York, which averaged 13 makes and 33 attempts on 3s during its win streak, was held to 8 of 21 against Chicago, which has allowed the fewest 3-pointers in the league.
"Ain't nothing they did that was so special, they just took away the 3s," Felton said. "I got inside the paint like I wanted to, but at the same time, they took away the 3s and didn't let us get good shots."
Carlos Boozer had 12 points and 10 rebounds for Chicago. One night after putting up career highs of 30 points and 23 rebounds in a win at Detroit, Noah just missed an odd triple-double, getting 10 points and 11 rebounds and committing a career-worst nine turnovers.
The Knicks again played without leading scorer Carmelo Anthony, who missed his second straight game because of stitches in the middle finger of his left hand. Anthony, who is third in the NBA with 26.4 points per game, was hurt in a win over Charlotte on Wednesday.
Former Knicks guard Nate Robinson had 14 points, six rebounds and eight assists off the bench for Chicago, which has won five of its last six and 18 of its last 21 at home against New York.
"It was a hard battle out there," Noah said. "I was really tired out there. I was tired, but it's all worth it right now."
Chandler's free throws pulled New York within three with 1:56 left, but Belinelli hit a side jumper just inside the 3-point line. Then Belinelli fed Noah for a layup with 56 seconds left, putting Chicago up 89-82.
"I was ready to find (Noah) and other guys," Belinelli said. "I don't want to be just a 3-point shooter. I want to be a complete player."
Belinelli hit a 43-footer at the first-quarter buzzer sounded, putting Chicago up by three and giving him a 15-point quarter. The Bulls, who entered the game last in 3-pointers made and attempted, were 4 for 5 from behind the arc in the opening period and made a season-high seven 3s in the game.
Belinelli and Kirk Hinrich hit 3s during a 10-0 Chicago run after New York scored the first six points of the game. In a ragged start to the second quarter, the Knicks didn't convert a field goal during the first 5:39 before J.R. Smith's 3-pointer drew New York within 30-27.
After the Bulls pushed the lead to seven points, reserve Taj Gibson was ejected by official Derrick Stafford, drawing two quick technical fouls after being called for this third personal foul, a loose ball foul on the Knicks' end.
"It's an emotional game, but we have to do better with that," Bulls coach Thibodeau said. "When you get one, you have to let it go."
Steve Novak converted both technical free throws, sparking a nine-point run to give New York the lead. The Bulls battled back and held a 43-41 edge at the break and maintained their two-point advantage through the third period.
Game notes
Anthony warmed up on the court before the game, then declared himself unable to play due to the difficulty he was having catching passes because of the bandage covering his injured finger. He said he hopes to return to action when the Knicks host Denver on Sunday. ... Hinrich began the second half on the bench because of an injured left elbow and didn't return. He's listed as day-to-day.


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Robert E. "Jack" Young
Belleville/Dayton/Wiota, WI-Robert E. "Jack" Young, age 80, passed away on Thursday, March 07, 2013 at Pleasant View Nursing Home in Monroe. He was born on January 10, 1933 at Richland County, WI to his parents Howard and Mary Pletzer Young. Jack graduated from Belleville High School. He worked for many years as a custodian and supervisor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. On October 13, 2001 Jack was united in marriage to Joyce Berget Sweeney at the Wiota Lutheran Church.
Jack is survived by his wife Joyce of Wiota, WI, step-children Tim Berget of Wiota, WI and Lisa Nethery of Mineral Point, WI, four step-grandchildren Tina (Rick) Andrews, Josh (Ashley) Nethery, and Chris and Skylar Weigel, seven step-great-grandchildren David, Samantha, Madie, Holly, Logan, Emily, and Mya.
He was preceded in death by his parents and a step-grandson Jordan.
Relatives and friends may call from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 10, 2013 at the Becker-Beal Funeral Home, 109 Greenway Cross, Belleville, WI.
Private family inurnment services will be held at a later date.
An online memorial with guestbook is available at www.bealfuneralhomes.com


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- 100% Plug & Play (1 wire tapped if you want parking lights indication/illumination during remote start)
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- 2019 Toyota Avalon
- Push Button Start Ignition
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- To Start: Press the lock button 3 times on factory key FOB
- To Stop: Press the lock button 3 more times while engine is on
- Parking Lights will illuminate
- Run Time is 15 minutes
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Special Notes
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N2 Designs 2019 Toyota Avalon Plug & Play Remote Start Kit (Push to Start)
$289.00 Regular Price
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We offer a 30-day return policy from the date of purchase. Eligible returns received within the policy period can be fully refunded if the refund meets the criteria: Returns must be complete, unopened and unused, in the condition you received them, and in the original packaging. Buyer pays return shipping and refunds are given upon a complete product condition inspection. Returns received outside of the policy period can be exchanged for another product of equal value or applied as store credit. Original shipping charges are non-refundable. All returns are subject to a 25% restocking fee.


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2454-2652 (Online)
2347-8632 (Print)
Author(s): Shakuntala S. Muragod
Open Access
Cite: Shakuntala S. Muragod. A Study to assess Effectiveness of assertiveness training Programme Regarding assertive Behaviour and self-esteem among adolescents studying in selected high schools at Bagalkot Karnataka. Int. J. Adv. Nur. Management. 2017; 5(3): 241-245. doi: 10.5958/2454-2652.2017.00052.X
International Journal of Advances in Nursing Management (IJANM) is an international, peer-reviewed journal devoted to nursing sciences. IJANM's aim is to promote.....
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Sampling in Mixed Methods Research
Role of a Nurse in the Management of Childhood Behavioral Disorders
A Study to Assess the Effectiveness of Self Instructional Module on Knowledge Regarding Protein Energy Malnutrition among the Mothers of under Five-Year Children in Selected Anganwadi at Nandasan, Gujarat
Extended and Expanded Role of Nurse in Community Settings
Role of Nurse in Obstetric Emergencies
Job Satisfaction among Community Health Nurses
A Descriptive Study was conducted to assess knowledge regarding prevalence and risk factors of Urinary Tract Infection among the Nursing Students at S.G.R.D Nursing Hostel, Vallah, Amritsar, Punjab.
Nursing Empowerment for Quality Improvement
A study to assess the knowledge regarding kangaroo mother care among postnatal mothers at JSS Hospital, Mysuru
A Descriptive Study on Effectiveness of Mid-Day Meal Programme in Selected Government Primary School of Bhubaneswar, Odisha
Assess the Knowledge and Practice Regarding Resuscitation of Newborn Among the Staff Nurses Working in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Knowledge and Practice among Staff Nurses regarding Body Mechanics
A Study to assess the Effectiveness of Structured Teaching Program on Menstrual Hygiene for Adolescent Girls
Nursing Theories: A Review
Knowledge assessment on use of Body mechanics and Safety measures among ward attendants in selected hospital of Dehradun, Uttarakhand


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Recognition of individual achievement and participation with a Royal Honor Cord is an integral part of every student graduation. Select a second color combo for a Double Honor Cord from our array of colorful choices. Whether you are participating in a commencement ceremony as a member of an honors society, fraternity, sorority, department recognition, or even as summa cum laude, magna cum laude, or cum laude, use a Royal Honor Cord to serve to recognize your Achievement. Each Royal Honor Cord is made from a rayon exterior, wrapped around an unseen cotton core. Each individual cord measures about 60 inches (5' feet or so), and that includes two end tassels that are roughly 4inches long each. Generally, a knot reduces the length by about 4" end to end.
Customer Reviews
I am not satisfied with this product but I have spoken with Ms Jada and she has re-ordered the right size but I am yet to receive the re-orderded gown and cap which is supposed to be the right size the previous order was too small .


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Critical Mass
Riding the Westside with Venice Critical Mass
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I have listed a new property at 795 Vesuvius Bay RD.
Waterfront restaurant in busy area of Salt Spring Island. Property includes restaurant, two residential suites, foreshore lease with ramp and dock, on site parking. 41 seats inside, 39 seats on sunny deck, take out window serviced by full kitchen. Full liquor licences. Sea Side Restaurant is rated as one of the best on the gulf islands with constant growth over the 17 years of the current owners. Most patrons are residents so two strong seasons. This is a turnkey opportunity, owners will provide training and consulting services after purchase. Long term staff can also remain. This lucrative operation will show very good return on the investment and the business will have short pay back.


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Ghetto Goblin
Watch Ghetto Goblin Online Free
Synopsis Ghetto Goblin:
Strange attacks plague the township's women, leaving the town leaders at a loss to defend them. At the same time Mthnuzi, a shrewd businessman, is becoming wealthier and more popular with the ladies - something is amiss. The local reverend, Simon Nkosi, learns that Mthunzi is controlling a Tokoloshe to fulfill his greedy desires. In his greed he breaks a golden rule of maintaining control over the beast and it goes on a rampage. Now its thirst for blood is strong and comes after Mthunzi's women, saving the one he loves for last. Together with Reverend Simon they must take on a mythical beast that has never been defeated, to try and save.


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Packers draft 2 new targets for QB Aaron Rodgers
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Now that Davante Adams has been drafted by the Packers, the prolific receiver will have to settle for quality over quantity.
Having Aaron Rodgers throwing passes his way will be a nice consolation prize, though.
With the top tight ends snapped up, Green Bay went with the Fresno State standout in the second round Friday night with the 53rd overall pick to fortify a receiving corps that lost James Jones to free agency.
Then general manager Ted Thompson drafted another guy named Rodgers in the third round — from California, no less, just like the famous quarterback.
Tight end Richard Rodgers is going to love playing in Green Bay.
They were drafted nine years apart, the quarterback in 2005 in the first round. Fellow former Golden Bear Richard Rodgers went to Green Bay with the team's second pick in the third round on Friday night, the 98th overall.
The 6-foot Rodgers had 39 catches for 608 yards and a touchdown in 11 games in 2013. At Cal, he was often used in motion and also saw time in the slot.
Adams had 131 catches for 1,718 yards and 24 touchdowns last year in Fresno State's high-octane offense run by quarterback Derek Carr, himself selected in the second round by the Raiders.
Now, Adams will be learning from the 2011 NL MVP.
"I couldn't imagine being in a better place," Adams said.
He joins a Packers receiving corps led by Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb. Jarrett Boykin also emerged last year as a target after Cobb got hurt.
Say goodbye for now to 100-catch seasons. Still, Adams' confidence remained high on the most momentous day yet of his young career.
"I feel like I'm one of the best playmakers in the draft, being able to catch the ball deep, or being able to catch on short routes," he said. "I feel like I'm one of the best red-zone threats in the draft."
The Packers might feel good given their recent success in the second with receivers, including Nelson (2008), Cobb (2011) and former wideout Greg Jennings.
Tight end may have been a more pressing need for Green Bay, but there was a run on that position earlier in the second round. Washington's Austin Seferian-Jenkins went early in the round to the Buccaneers. Texas Tech's Jace Amaro went to the Jets and the Cardinals took Troy Niklas a pick before the Packers went.
Thompson seemed happy with Richard Rodgers, the son of Carolina Panthers special teams coordinator Richard Rodgers, Sr. He called Rodgers a good athlete with "good genetics, we think he's going to be a good addition to this group of tight ends."
Thompson said the drafting of Rodgers isn't necessarily linked to the future of free agent tight end Jermichael Finley, who suffered a season-ending spinal cord injury last season. The Packers did re-sign Andrew Quarless and have three other tight ends on the roster who played last season.
The Packers had two third-round picks, and selected Khyri Thortnon, a three-year starter at Southern Mississippi, with the 85th overall pick. The team likes his versatility and competitiveness on a team that didn't win much.
The 6-foot-3, 304-pound Thornton had 39 tackles in 11 games in 2013. The senior finished his career with 116 tackles and 5.5 sacks. An NFL.com analysis said Thornton plays with a motor, and can play inside but also along the line of scrimmage.
The Packers in the offseason re-signed veteran B.J. Raji and signed ex-Vikings tackle Letroy Guion in free agency. Coach Mike McCarthy hoped to add impact players to the defense.
Green Bay drafted Alabama safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in the first round Thursday.
They're hoping the 6-foot Adams can make a similar impact on the other side of the ball. Adams averaged 116 yards receiving per game, eighth-best in NCAA history. The third-year sophomore doesn't turn 22 until December.
In just two years at Fresno State, Adams had 233 catches for 3,030 yards and 38 scores. An NFL.com scouting report listed Adams as having the top vertical jump for receivers at the scouting combine at 39.5 inches.
"You love how he's a competitor," Packers receivers coach Edgar Bennett said. "Catching ability, good hands, makes the tough catch and goes up and catches the football. Extremely productive."


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Executive Functions Records in the Hadassah Archives
This record group includes documents created and maintained by the Office of the President, the Office of the Executive Director and the Chair of the Division Coordinators/Directors Committee. Prominent is the Henrietta Szold series, containing correspondence by and to Szold as well as printed materials written by and about her. The files in this record group were created by a national president or executive director, or for their use, or maintained in their office during their years in office. Included are correspondence, minutes, memos, publications, reports and subject files on topics with which these individuals were involved.
Young Judaea Records in the Hadassah Archives
Young Judaea is the oldest Zionist youth organization in the United States, established as a national organization in 1909 by the Federation of American Zionists. It was supported by Hadassah, including direct financial sponsorship from 1967-2011. The major aims of Young Judaea throughout its history have been to advance the cause of Zionism, to further the mental, moral, and physical development of Jewish youth, and to promote Jewish culture and ideals in accordance with Jewish traditions. Young Judaea has remained non-partisan and non-denominational, embracing and recruiting Jewish youth from all backgrounds.
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Israeli Cable TV Provider Wants to Pull Plug on Christian Network
Israeli cable television is planning to pull the plug on a major Christian TV network, citing as explanation complaints against the network's missionary ads which targets Jews.
HOT cable TV's decision to stop broadcasting the Christian programs is still awaiting the authorization of the Israeli Council for Cable TV and Satellite Broadcasting, according to The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.
However, representatives of U.S.-based Daystar TV network have threatened to take legal action to retain its freedom to broadcast its programs if the decision is finalized.
"You cannot close down this station just because it is a Christian station," said Daystar's attorney Amir Witkon, according to the Israeli newspaper.
The HOT spokeswoman explained in a statement that the company's decision was derived from "editorial and content considerations," combined with complaints the company received for broadcasting the network.
Daystar, which has been on air in Israel since last year, has responded that removing it from the air is a violation of its freedom of expression.
The Christian network is also broadcasted on Israeli satellite TV, which has not requested to drop the station.
It is said that anti-missionary activists in Israel are partly responsible for the complaints against the Christian network. These activists reject connections with Christians, including Christian Zionists in Israel.
"The State of Israel must safeguard its Jewish existence which means preventing any non-Jewish authority that plans to wipe out the Jewish Nation spiritually from operating in the Jewish state," said prominent anti-missionary activist and Jerusalem city councilwoman Mina Fenton, according to The Jerusalem Post.
The current struggle over Christian media "proselytism" highlights the ongoing issue of Christian Zionists supporting Israel while Israel bans Christian evangelism in the state.
Some Christians have said that though it supports Israel's struggle to maintain its borders as an important Biblical-land, it is critical of its policies against Christians.
Recently, an award-winning Christian talk show host with a history of strong support for Israel expressed criticism of the state.
Janet Parshall – who has been profiled as one of the top 100 talkers in the talk industry – criticized Israel's parliament for condemning groups that share the Gospel. The Knesset Christian Allies Caucus – a group in the Israeli parliament that seeks to build cooperation between the parliament and Christian leader – does not associate with groups that share the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In addition, an Israeli political party had introduced a legislation in the Knesset which would punish someone for sharing the Gospel in Israel for up to a one-year prison sentence.
"I thought, wait a minute, we can't just blindly support Israel," Parshall said, according to OneNewsNow.com.
Christian Zionists are often characterized by "a kind of blind support that says no matter what Israel does, Israel can do no wrong," the talk show host noted.
"I don't believe that of our government and I certainly don't believe that of the Israeli government. And friends tell friends, in love, when they see things that they think are wrong," she added.
Christians are arguably Israel's strongest and most vocal supporters in the world with American evangelicals making up 1/3 of American tourists that visit Israel – second only to American Jews.
According to The Jerusalem Post, Yoram Mokady, the chairman of the Council for Cable TV and Satellite Broadcasting, says there are regulations for religious programming such as misinformation, frightening programming and programs directed at minors, but there is no guidelines for missionary activity.
Daystar broadcasts a variety of biblical teachings from the New Testament, but also includes short 15-minute infomercials from the "Jewish Voice Ministries International" that targets a Jewish audience with the message of Jesus.
The Israeli Council for Cable TV and Satellite Broadcasting is tentatively set to meet next month, when it scheduled to consider the issue.
Daystar has some 128 million viewers in the United States and is available in more than 200 countries worldwide.


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Last night, Dart and Greenhorn teamed up to organize a #flashparty to try to get all the young entrepreneurs out for a night of socializing. About 20 young entrepreneurs and friends came by Clery's to share a few drinks and catch up.
A few random thoughts:
1) Strengthening connections:
I had the chance to catch up with quite a few friends I hadn't seen in a while, which was great. It was also really fun to spend a few minutes talking to friends in the community and not have it be entrepreneur related. Things like Wingman's straws puzzle, talking about sports and beers was a welcome break from the daily entrepreneur game.
2) Making new connections:
I met Matt Lauzon from what was Paragon Lake, but is now Gemvara. It was really interesting to talk to him about some of the things they're doing with their designer community and the Highland Capital program he went through. Quite a few of the others that came out met people they didn't know very well.
3) Can't help but be productive:
I walked away with a number of solid entrepreneur-related business items that are going to be very helpful in the next few weeks. As Laura Fitton said at her birthday party and Jennie White reported on at BostInnovation, Boston needs to have more parties. As relaxing and fun as last night was, everybody was still talking about business at times and making some valuable, actionable connections.
4) Lessons Learned:
- Being the broke, bootstrapping entrepreneurs we are, we got some pitchers thinking it would save us some money. Of course, when the end of the night came, sorting out who drank what and a few people had left was a bit of a pain to coordinate. Definitely going to have everyone get and pay for drinks individually next time.
- Much like the general community, except for a couple girlfriends and wives, it was a very male-dominated gathering. Future iterations will work harder to address this.
- Most people didn't come out until 9pm…we thought we'd start hanging out earlier with GreenhornTV, but that didn't really come together.
5) There will be a next time…
There were definitely plenty of good results from the event last night and so we'll definitely try to continue to do these likely about once a month. If you have any ideas or feedback on how to make the next one better, let us know. Until then…stay tuned to dartboston.com, @greenhornboston and @dartboston for announcements of future events like this.


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Originally published on RenewEconomy.
New analysis by the Australian Energy Market Operator has confirmed that the large amount of rooftop solar in South Australia helped shift the peak in demand during the recent heatwaves that affected the southern states.
The analysis by AEMO compares how the electricity grid coped during the heat wave in 2014 with a similar one in 2009. All things are pretty much equal, except that in 2014 there are more people, more air conditioners and a lot more solar than five years ago. Wind capacity has also increased.
The biggest change identified by AEMO was how rooftop solar has shifted the peak in South Australia. That shouldn't be surprising, given there is 450MW of rooftop solar PV in a part of the grid that gets maximum demand of just over 3,000MW. Not only are there more rooftop systems in SA, there is also more sun.
Consider this graph below, because it is just the beginning of the remarkable transition we are about to see in Australia.
It shows comparisons with the 2009 and 2014 heatwaves. The blue line is 2009, when there was practically no rooftop solar PV. The yellow is 2014 demand, including solar, and red is demand from the grid not including solar. (Red and yellow merge into orange as the sun goes down).
Note the big difference between the yellow and red lines. That is a chunk of demand that has been taken away by solar. On January 14, even at the very peak operational demand, it was contributing 6 per cent of total demand.
As AEMO says: "The contribution of solar is a noticeable percentage of the total demand in South Australia. The data indicates the solar could be contributing to shifting the time of the peak demand in South Australia during the high demand days." Indeed, two of the peaks occurred at 6.30pm, when they had occurred much earlier in previous years.
It doesn't take a lot of imagination to think what might happen if just one hour, or even a few hours of battery storage – or any other storage for that matter – were added to the local grid to support solar capacity.
The red line would be virtually decapitated. It must be an extremely interesting proposition for the network operators, looking at where the value of storage on the grid might be. On the other hand, it's just an awful proposition for the generators, who rely on peak pricing to add the cream to their profits – or in some cases, enough revenue to meet their debt repayments.
The graph in Victoria is not so spectacular for solar. That is understandable because while it has 520MW of rooftop solar, its section of the grid has peak demand loads in excess of 10,000MW, and Victorians would be shattered to learn their solar resource is less good.
The graph below shows this.
The impact of solar was less pronounced, although it did reduce demand during the afternoon. AEMO noted it barely shifted the peak. But, once again, imagine what an hour of two of storage would do – another decapitation, this time of revenue bonuses for brown coal generators, most of which rely on such events because they are hocked to the eyeballs in debt.
AEMO says solar does not appear to be shifting the time of the peak demand in Victoria during the high demand days at this stage, but it may be doing so on lower demand days, when there is high solar output. It says it is investigating this.
What about the remaining generators? The other big change in the electricity profile was the existence of more wind generation, and that the dams were full, which meant a lot more hydro was available in Victoria.
This graph above of South Australia shows Northern and Playford power stations chugging away at the bottom, and gas filling in the gaps of demand – as it has done for the last few decades. It's just that with more wind and solar, the gaps are not so big any more. Either gas – or mostly coal imports from Victoria, would normally be needed to reach the top of the yellow space, which is now filled by rooftop solar. The chart shows that wind (SA has the most amount of wind in the country, too) was contributing between 11 and 18 per cent at the moment of operational peak demand on three of the days, and just 2-3 per cent on the other two.
Here is the graph for Victoria (below). It shows little has changed. Brown coal generators dominate, gas fills in the gaps, although hydro this time was very active – including the hydro imported from Tasmania (that accounts for most of the orange bit).
Wind contributed little in gross during the whole week. In effect, little has changed since 2009 – although AEMO noted that it only would have taken the sudden failure of one of the big fossil fuel generators or the interconnectors to force several pot lines of aluminium smelters out of production.
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A groundbreaking new study revealed today that happiness may be a cause for depression.
Studies show that there is a darker side to feeling good and that the pursuit of happiness can sometimes make you . . . depressed. Too much happiness will make you gullible, selfish, less successful and, in some cases, suicidal.
Happiness does have benefits. It can protect us from stroke and the common cold, makes us more resistant to pain and even prolongs our lives. Yet, June Gruber, a professor of psychology at Yale University who has studied happiness, warns that it's important to experience positive moods in moderation.
She compares happiness to food: Although necessary and beneficial, too much food can cause problems; likewise, happiness can lead to bad outcomes. "Research indicates that very high levels of positive feelings predict risk-taking behaviors, excess alcohol and drug consumption, binge eating, and may lead us to neglect threats," she says.
"You don't want to eat too much cake or broccoli or meat. Too much is bad. Less is more. And that goes for happiness, too."
How else can excessive joy, or having lots of positive emotions and a relative absence of negative ones, hurt you?
First, it may hamper your career prospects. Psychologist Edward Diener, renowned for his happiness research, and his colleagues analyzed a variety of studies, including data from more than 16,000 people around the world, and discovered that those who early in their lives reported the highest life satisfaction (for example, judging it at 5 on a 5-point scale) years later reported lower-income than those who felt slightly less merry when young. What's more, they dropped out of school earlier.
Psychologists point out that emotions are adaptive: They make us change behavior to help us survive. Anger prepares us to fight; fear helps us flee. But what about sadness? Studies show that when we are sad, we think in a more systematic manner. Sad people are attentive to details and externally oriented, while happy people tend to make snap judgments that may reflect racial or sex stereotyping.
In a 2005 study in the Journal of Personality and Happiness, University of Chicago psychologist Gwen Bolden asked 94 student to "get happy"… "really happy." The students did everything they could possible do to make themselves happy – including sex, drugs and rock n' roll – but soon after, the students were "depressed."
"See happiness needs to be controlled. Too much will make you depressed and cause you to stay in bed and watch reality TV all day. Better to be a little happy or even a little sad. Too much happiness is no good."


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They say that childhood crushes and friendships will never last beyond high school, and most of the time I would be compelled to agree, but here I am, still just as attached to my best friend as I was 12 years ago when we met. I was but 8 years old, working through the 2nd grade, and she, well… She was just a newborn.
Although the years have aged us both in strange and unpredictable ways, she's still pretty much the same- Acting like a rambunctious puppy, destroying any fun things (from toothbrushes to razor blades) that might have been carelessly left in her reach, or begging relentlessly for scraps at the dinner table. There are few people (or animals) that I have spent more time with, and it brings me great joy to celebrate yet another birthday with her. Better yet, it gives me the opportunity to make her something special, and even better than past years' attempts.
At its core, this plated dessert is simply my Canine Cake from My Sweet Vegan dressed up. Using finely diced green apples instead of carrots, and tahini in place of peanut butter, it as spread out thin and baked in a loaf pan. Once cooled, rounds were cut out from the rectangle and then layered with vegan "sour cream." Topping off the stack is a tower of apple rings, which were simply overlapped on a silpat and baked in a slow oven until crispy. Finally, a smear of tahini at the bottom of the plate leads to a tiny scoop of vanilla ice cream. All perfectly suited to a puppy's palate, I could only hope that Isis would appreciate my efforts…
Of course, I needn't have worried, as the whole dessert disappeared in 5 seconds flat.
Happy 12th birthday Isis, and here's to many, many more!


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Audacity has had its current logo for a very long time (I found it myself about 8 years ago). I think it's overdue for an update, especially considering the current trend of flat, minimalistic UI.
With the help of this guy I made a new logo based on the current one. It's very Mac-oriented though, so I'll also be working on a new one in the meantime. While this one uses the awesome template provided here http://appicontemplate.com/osx, version 2.0 will be a completely original design so stay tuned!
Version 1.0 preview, retina compatible:
How it looks on the dock:


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If you're living in a shiny happy world where everything is provided to you, and your white pajamas never ever get stained, then chances are you're in a false utopia. Someone's going to be coming and harvesting your organs, or culling you at age 30, or drugging you into obedience. The fake paradise built on a foundation of shit seems to flourish most during times when technology seems to be solving all our problems (like during the dotcom boom.) Click through for a list of false utopias.
You could argue that most dystoipan movies are really false utopias, because the rulers of a dark, bleak dystopia (like, say, Brazil) still try to pretend that everything is perfect and wonderful. The difference is, most dystopias start out bleak and dark, and just get more horrid until the protagonist is forced to confront the darkness around him/her. But in the "false utopia" subcategory of dystopias, everything is bright and wonderful, and the main character is either getting some great drugs, or having lots of fun sex, or both in the case of Brave New World.
The "false utopia" genre, says Transparency Now,
shows humanity lost in false paradises of technology and simulation. In one subcategory, we see enclosed high-tech cities or habitations with apparently well-ordered societies full of people who are trapped by their dependence on automation and computers. They may also live decadent lifestyles that serve to distract them from the truth of their circumstances.
Here's a brief and cheerful history of fake utopias:
1909. "The Machine Stops" by E.M. Forster. Forster's reaction to some of H.G. Wells' more optimistic fiction. In the distant future, humans live underground, each in a separate "cell," with all of his or her needs provided for by the all-powerful Machine. Human culture stagnates, and people wrongly believe they can't survive on the surface of the Earth without protection. Over time, people start to worship the Machine like a god, forgetting they made it. And then eventually the Machine starts to break down.
1932. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. It's 2540, and everybody's drugged up to the gills on Soma, a sort of anti-depressant/psychotropic, and people can learn in their sleep. There's lots and lots of casual sex and orgies, and people chanting "orgy porgy" while having orgies. It's awesome. Oh, and people are incubated artificially instead of being born "naturally." The lower classes are engineered to be less intelligent and curious than the upper classes.
1956. The City And The Stars by Arthur C. Clarke. It's a billion years in the future, and humans have mostly abandoned Earth to go off and create super-ultra-awesome minds in space. In the domed city of Diaspar, people lead perfect lives, governed by the Central Computer. When they die, the Computer stores their memories and grows new bodies for them, making them nearly immortal. But then it turns out humans have been lied to about why they have to stay on Earth.
1971. The Futurological Congress by Stanislaw Lem. Ijon Tichy goes to sleep (or does he?) and wakes up in the trippy year of 2039, an utopian era without money or want. Everybody's mood is kept carefully controlled using drugs. Many people have pointed out the similarities of this drug-induced utopia to The Matrix: At one point, Tichy's girlfriend offers him a choice between two pills: The black pill will make him forget their relationship, the white pill will make him commit more deeply.
1976. Logan's Run, the movie based on the 1969 novel by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson. Everything is perfect in the domed city, with all the casual sex and meaningless hedonism you could ever want. Machines provide for all of your needs, but there's one drawback — when you turn 30, you have to die.
1994. The Giver by Lois Lowry. In this award-winning young-adult novel, it's a perfect world: bad feelings and conflict have been eliminated, thanks to perfect communication and drugs. (It's always drugs.) People get around by bicycle, and there are very few cars or airplanes. Romantic love and sexual desire (called "stirrings") are illegal, and are suppressed via medication. Instead, couples are matched up based on compatibility and can adopt up to two children from "birth mothers": one boy and one girl. Here's a Christian review warning against this book based on a misconception that it's actually utopian.
1998. The Truman Show. Truman lives in a lovely small town, surrounded by nice people, with possibly the only job in the insurance industry that doesn't totally suck. The only problem is, he can never leave town, and he's kept scared of the ocean by a fake story about his father drowning. He doesn't realize that everything in his world is a lie, and he's really one of the Pussycat Dolls.
2002. Equilibrium. I hesitated to include this movie, because it's not much of a utopia. It's sort of bleak and nasty, and Christian Bale will do gun-aerobics in your face. But it does have many of the hallmarks, including people being drugged into flat affect-hood.
2005. The Island. Ewan McGregor lives in a utopian community where everything is perfect, and all of his choices are made for him. As usual in these types of stories, everybody's told that the rest of the world is uninhabitable due to some kind of toxic disaster. Everybody yearns to win the "Lottery" and go to "The Island," a tropical paradise — but it turns out The Island is made of people. Sort of.


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text:
Series: Recordings From John – Listen to Elizabeth Mitchell read the Gospel of John, chapter by chapter.
Series Part: 9 of 21
Scriptures Referenced:
John 9
See Scripture References
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Fort Hood Massacre Liveblogging
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* I'm going to update this semi-regularly for the next couple of hours. At the moment, information is
surprisingly not-so-surprisingly sketchy. Often times, you get conflicting information about what happened in the immediate aftermath of an event like this.
So far, I've heard, there are two key pieces of data that I'm hearing conflicting data on:
* Was there one shooter or three shooters?
* Some sources are saying the one confirmed shooter, Malik Nadal Hasan, was a newly converted Muslim, while there are denials that is the case from other quarters. It wouldn't exactly be shocking if we had a Muslim associated with terroristic violence after the other 500 gazillion incidents his co-religionists have been involved with, but we probably shouldn't jump to any conclusions. After all, crazy people going on shooting sprees are not exactly unheard of either.
Incidentally, if he is a Muslim and engaged in this attack for religious religions, do you really believe the military and the DOJ would admit it or would they sweep it under the rug in the name of political correctness? I'm betting on the latter, but we'll see how it plays out.
The suspect's name is apparently "Nidal Malik Hasan."
This is an interesting detail, but it seems to be third hand, so take it with a grain of salt:
Hunt said his son told him he loaded up many of the wounded and drove them to the hospital. The wounded relayed what they saw inside when the shooting happened.
"They were telling him that one guy was shouting something in Arabic while he was shooting," Tom Hunt said. "He couldn't say much more than that.
From The Corner, another bit of info that fits in with the Muslim going on a terroristic rampage theory:
Major Nadal Malik Hasan, a 39-year-old Muslim convert, was born and educated in Virginia. He is a psychiatrist who worked at Walter Reed for six years (and got a poor performance evaluation there). Hasan was transferred to Ft. Hood and worked at the psych ward there. He complained about deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Fox has interviewed someone who worked with him at Ft. Hood (Terry Lee) who says he was a harsh critic of U.S. foreign policy who said Muslims had a right to stand up and fight against the aggressor in Iraq and Afghanistan – i.e., us.
* I am hearing unconfirmed reports that the shooter has always been a Muslim — and is not a convert.
* From "Media will tiptoe around Ft. Hood shooter's religion, but God help us if his car radio was on a talk radio station this morning." — Erick Erickson
From Mary Katharine Ham: "Kay Bailey Hutchison says on Fox Hasan was very unhappy about deployment and she has been told Hasan was targeting the people he shot."
Also from Mary Katharine Ham
"I've heard twice now that the two other suspects have been released, on radio from TX Congressman & on Fox."
From The Corner:
"Fox has interviewed the shooter's cousin, Nader Hasan, who says Nidal Malik Hasan was raised a Muslim – he is not a convert."
There's a huge double standard with the way cases like this are covered. The most tenuous evidence of any sort of connection to any conservative group by a shooter is used as evidence as some sort of Right Wing extremism run amok.
Meanwhile, we have stories about Muslims killing people, specifically in the name of their religion, coming out every day of the week and the press bends over backwards to turn a blind eye to it. Most Muslims ARE NOT violent jihadists. But, there are a significant number of them who are, it's a serious problem, and it needs to be addressed head-on instead of pretending it's a non-issue.
Is it possible Hasan is just some nut who would have snapped whether he was a Christian, Jew, or Muslim? Sure. Is it also possible, and in fact more likely, that his religion had a lot to do with his actions? Yes, it is and we need to face up to it. Most Muslims are good and decent people, but they — and we — need to stop turning a blind eye to the Muslim death cultists who are murdering people in the name of Muhammad.
The verdict's in, folks: Muslim Jihadi.
The military psychiatrist accused of gunning down 12 people in Texas lived most of his life in the D.C. area where he was considered a caring Muslim by friends — but he had recently made disturbing statements about suicide attacks.
…He was described as a caring person by a local Muslim leader, but those who got to know him after he was transferred to Fort Hood in July recalled hearing disturbing statements that foreshadowed Monday's violence.
Six months ago Hasan came to the attention of the FBI because of Internet postings that discussed suicide bombings.
After lauding a Muslim U.S. Army soldier who killed comrades in Kuwait in 2003, Hasan wrote in an online posting, "If one suicide bomber can kill 100 enemy soldiers … that would be considered a strategic victory."
…At Fort Hood, Hasan exhibited a troubled state of mind. Retired Col. Terry Lee, who worked with Hasan at the psych ward at Fort Hood, told Fox News that about six months ago he heard Hasan say, "Maybe the Muslims should rise up and fight against the aggressor," in Iraq and Afghanistan — referring to the U.S. Army.
Was Hasan left in place even though he was dangerous? Was it because of political correctness? We definitely need an investigation to find out.
"Hasan said of Little Rock soldier slaying that a Muslim had stood up to US Military. Comment reported to command, 'fell on deaf ears.'" — Steve Schippert
Hasan a "devout Muslim."
Hasan attended the Muslim Community Center in Silver Spring and was "very devout," according to Faizul Khan, a former imam at the center. Khan said Hasan attended prayers at least once a day, seven days a week, often in his Army fatigues.
Khan also said Hasan applied to an annual matrimonial seminar that matches Muslims looking for spouses. "I don't think he ever had a match, because he had too many conditions," Khan said.
"We never got into details of worldly affairs or politics," the former imam said of his conversations with Hasan. "Mostly religious questions. But there was nothing extremist in his questions. He never showed any frustration. . . . He never showed any . . . wish for vengeance on anybody."
However, a fellow Army officer who worked with Hasan told Fox News Channel that the psychiatrist had expressed strong opposition to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"He would make comments to other individuals about how we should not be in the war in the first place," Col. Terry Lee told the network. "He made those comments, and he stuck strongly to his faith, but as soldiers we have a duty to follow orders from our commander in chief, and our political views are set aside."
At least six months ago, Hasan came to the attention of law enforcement officials because of Internet postings about suicide bombings and other threats, including posts that equated suicide bombers to soldiers who throw themselves on a grenade to save the lives of their comrades.
They had not determined for certain whether Hasan is the author of the posting, and a formal investigation had not been opened before the shooting, said law enforcement officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the case.
One of the officials said late Thursday that federal search warrants were being drawn up to authorize the seizure of Hasan's computer.
Via NPR:
A source tells NPR's Joseph Shapiro that Hasan was put on probation early in his postgraduate work at the Uniformed Service University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md. He was disciplined for proselytizing about his Muslim faith with patients and colleagues, according to the source, who worked with him at the time.
The more I keep hearing that Hasan wasn't a "radical" Muslim, the more disturbing I find it given some of his attitudes and activities:
A co-worker at Walter Reed said Hasan would not allow his photo to be taken with female co-workers, which became an issue during Christmas season when employees often took group photos. Co-workers would find a solo photo of Hasan and post it on the bulletin board without his permission.
Not getting photographed with women. Sure, that's normal…not!
Hasan's alleged comment (Via Patterico's Pontifications)
There was a grenade thrown amongs a group of American soldiers. One of the soldiers, feeling that it was to late for everyone to flee jumped on the grave with the intention of saving his comrades. Indeed he saved them. He inentionally took his life (suicide) for a noble cause i.e. saving the lives of his soldier. To say that this soldier committed suicide is inappropriate. Its more appropriate to say he is a brave hero that sacrificed his life for a more noble cause. Scholars have paralled this to suicide bombers whose intention, by sacrificing their lives, is to help save Muslims by killing enemy soldiers. If one suicide bomber can kill 100 enemy soldiers because they were caught off guard that would be considered a strategic victory. Their intention is not to die because of some despair. The same can be said for the Kamikazees in Japan. They died (via crashing their planes into ships) to kill the enemies for the homeland. You can call them crazy i you want but their act was not one of suicide that is despised by Islam. So the scholars main point is that "IT SEEMS AS THOUGH YOUR INTENTION IS THE MAIN ISSUE" and Allah (SWT) knows best.
This guy definitely planned out what he intended to do:
News Channel 25's Henry Rosoff has learned the Hasan, was giving all of his furniture along with copies of the Qu' ran to neighbors Thursday morning.
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Gotham Gazette
Instead of Non-Partisan Elections, Consider Some Real
ReformsBy Mark Green June 16, 2003
Key Quote "But if the Bloomberg
charter commission is serious about expanding democracy rather than
merely rubber-stamping this mayor, here are several pro-democracy
reforms they should also consider:...Enact "instant run-offs," as
San Francisco has, where voters on primary day vote their top three
choices, allowing for a conclusive result between the final two
without the need for a costly run-off election eating into an
already abbreviated Fall General Election."
Mayor Bloomberg's attempt to put "non-partisan"
elections on the Fall ballot is the wrong answer to a non-problem:
What's the Problem?
Did any citizen come up to the two major party
nominees in the Fall, 2001 mayoral election and complain about the
nominating process for City Hall? Based on my relevant experience,
the expressed concern over unleashed dogs was far greater than over
"party bosses" controlling nominations, to cite the phrase charter
commission chair Frank J. Macchiarola used three times in his Gotham
Gazette essay of a few weeks ago. And last week on NY1 the mayor
seven times in about 15 minutes attacked the evil of the Democratic
political "machine" to argue for the end of democratic primaries.
But exactly what "machine" and which "party bosses"
chose Spitzer, Schumer, Clinton, McCall, Hevesi, Thompson, Gotbaum
or me to be our party's standard-bearer in our respective elections?
I believe fair-minded observers would agree that none of these
aspirants were hand-picked by anyone and all worked hard to win
competitive primaries (with the unique exception of a world famous
former First Lady, who was the near-unanimous choice of
rank-and-file Democrats as well as party leaders). While there are
no doubt some local baronies, rhetorical attacks against bosses and
the machine are largely 20 years out-of-date. Indeed,
Messrs. Bloomberg and Macchiarola should be careful about
criticizing "party bosses" anointing nominees because two who did so
chose Mr. Bloomberg. Governor Pataki, who must be considered the
Republican party boss, decisively helped the former Democrat win the
GOP mayoral nod; also, the occasionally anti-Semitic Lenora Fulani
gave Bloomberg her Independence Party line in 2001 when he supported
her key platform plank of non-partisan elections (and the votes on
this line exceeded Bloomberg's 36,000 vote margin).
It is wrong for a mayor to repay a "party boss" by
convening the fifth charter commission in six years after the city
previously had only five over the prior 100 years -- and those
earlier ones were due to real governmental necessities, such as the
Supreme Court decision in 1989 declaring the Board of Estimate
Elections or Auctions?
Allowing party primaries means that candidates can run
in the General Election with a D or R after a nominee's name. A
party affiliation should not be sufficient information in an
election. (Thomas Jefferson once said, "Don't ask if [a candidate]
is a Federalist or a Whig. Ask, is he honest and does he believe in
the Constitution?") But a person's party still tells a lot about a
person's values, surely more than poll-driven, consultant-written 30
second TV spots. If we eliminate party identification in elections,
it means that voters will have even less useful information and that
wealthy candidates will be more likely to win with commercials. GOTV
would then mean go-on-television rather than get-out-the-vote.
Minority Representation?
This is an important point, one that will be more
fully debated before a November vote. But isn't it more likely for a
credible minority candidate to enter a general election by getting
40 percent (primary) or 50 percent (run-off) of a Democratic primary
electorate that's half "minority" than it would be for him/her to do
comparably well in an initial non-partisan "primary" with an
electorate (including Republicans and Independents) that's under 40
percent minority?
Encourage Voter Participation?
On NY1 and in Gotham Gazette, Chairman Macchiarola
repeatedly said that the essential reason for creating this charter
commission was to encourage "greater participation" in our
democracy. That's fine and laudable — and already occurring.
Because our city has an excellent campaign finance law and term
limits, there were some 250 candidates for the 51 city council seats
and an obviously competitive Democratic primary for mayor in 2001, a
year that saw an increase in voting over the 1997 city-elections.
But if the Bloomberg charter commission is serious about expanding
democracy rather than merely rubber-stamping this mayor, here are
several pro-democracy reforms they should also consider:
* Fund the struggling Voter Assistance Commission at
some fixed percentage of the mayor's own office (as the Independent
Budget Office is funded by a fixed ratio of the Office of Management
and the Budget in the Charter) so the city itself registers more
voters based on the "agency-based registration" strategy of the
National Voter Registration Act. * Enact "instant run-offs," as
San Francisco has, where voters on primary day vote their top three
choices, allowing for a conclusive result between the final two
without the need for a costly run-off election eating into an
already abbreviated Fall General Election. * Implement
balloting-by-mail, as Oregon has done, which increased turnout there
by a very considerable 10 percentage points. * Fix the campaign
finance system as board chair Fritz Schwarz has suggested to
encourage self-financed candidates to limit their spending like
everyone else. And if a wealthy candidate refuses to play by
Campaign Finance Board rules, then instead of one "extra match" in
the general election (which amounted to $700,000 in 2001, or one
percent of $74 million), the complying candidate would get a
one-time grant of half the disparity in spending, up to a maximum of
$5 million. Too expensive? If one's concern is participation in
competitive elections, it's far less expensive than a City Hall for
Buying a Charter Change?
Some cities have "non-partisan elections" L.A.,
Chicago, Houston and some have "democratic elections:" Boston,
Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. But that really says nothing about
whether we should reverse a century of precedent in Gotham. Frankly,
the arguments for a charter referendum are so weak and so personal
to Michael Bloomberg" a Republican who stands to politically benefit
from the elimination of party labels in a Democratic city — that
it would not be taken seriously except for the fact that he has
threatened, again, to spend his own wealth to accomplish an
electoral result. Indeed, when a reporter recently asked if he'd
refuse to spend his own funds, the Mayor snapped, "Why should I do
that? I don't ask you what you're going to do with your money. And I
don't think it's any of your business what I'm going to do with
I'm in no position to objectively argue whether a
billionaire should be constitutionally allowed to spend
significantly more in one city to win the mayoralty than LBJ spent
(in current dollars) in 50 states to win the presidency. But surely
it is the public's "business" if someone spends $74 million in
private funds to win elected office, then uses his public authority
to repay a special interest by putting a self-serving plank on the
ballot and then, in effect, buys the law in question. This would be
an abuse of power literally unprecedented in American history.
Space does not permit a discussion of whether it would
be constitutional to limit an office-holder — not a citizen but
someone with governmental power — from spending his private sector
wealth to obtain public sector law. But even First Amendment purists
should appreciate the irony that a two century old rule intended to
stop one King George-type from monopolizing debate by guaranteeing
speech for all would be used now to justify one person combining
unique governmental and economic power to stifle the public
conversation. How does that encourage the "robust debate" that's the
foundation of the First Amendment? Nor is it any answer to trot out
the boilerplate phrase that "the answer to bad speech is more
speech." For when one side in a referendum spends, say, $10 million
on TV and mail and the other peanuts, where's the "more speech"
If a Nelson Rockefeller could be forced to file a
financial disclosure and prohibited from spending his own vast
wealth to overpay staff because he was governor, I believe it would
be both desirable and constitutional, as council members Bill
Perkins and David Yassky have proposed, to prohibit Michael
Bloomberg from similarly using his assets because he is mayor. But
even if it turns out that he has the "right" to do this, the real
question is whether it's right for him to do so.
It's an excuse, not a justification, when the 29th
wealthiest American complains about being called a billionaire mayor
yet then hints he may spend like one by hiding behind an amendment
that's historically allowed despised, powerless dissidents to have
some voice in their democracy. His self-serving arguments remind me
of a favorite aphorism of ex-Senator Warren Magnuson: "All anybody
wants in life is an unfair advantage."
Which leads me to respectfully ask three simple
questions of the mayor who chose this unnecessary fight and who can
alone resolve some of these apparent conflicts:
* Will you commit not to spend your own money to, in
effect, buy a charter change? * Would you agree that such a
significant change only be considered prospectively, after the 2005
elections, so that it not appear to benefit the politician behind
its enactment? (By law, any congressional pay increase must apply to
the next congress after the next election so there is no appearance
of a self-enriching vote. And when Congress in the late 1940s was
considering Presidential term limits, even anti-Truman Republicans
never thought to apply it to the sitting president since it would be
wrong to institute a new standard within a term of office.) *
Since you ordered the charter commission to put your idea on the
ballot because you wanted to encourage more democracy, will you also
urge them to consider other pro-democracy ideas of the kind
suggested above?
Mark Green, the former public advocate of New York
City (from 1994 to 2002) and the Democratic nominee for mayor in
2001, is president of the New Democracy Project, a public policy
The Center for Voting and Democracy
6930 Carroll Ave, Suite 610, Takoma Park, MD 20912
(301) 270-4616
[email protected]
The Center for Voting and Democracy
6930 Carroll Ave, Suite 610, Takoma Park, MD 20912
(301) 270-4616
[email protected]


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West Village Lobby Mural
For this residential lobby mural I was asked to work with the pre-existing yellow walls and create a Mediterranean vine motif around a main wall and two archways. My goal was to create a mural that complemented the architecture of the lobby, and that elevated the look of the lobby without being overwhelming to the space. To help achieve this goal I used a limited sepia palette and delicate brushwork. To make some of the vine motif appear aged, small sections were wiped away or lightened to give a faded look.Read More


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Mars Rover Curiosity Completes First Full Drill
Curiosity completed its first drill for Martian rock samples on Friday.
For the first time in history, humans have drilled a hole into rock on Mars and are collecting the powdered results for analysis, NASA announced Saturday.
After weeks of intensive planning, the Mars rover Curiosity undertook its first full drill on Friday, with NASA receiving images on Saturday showing that the procedure was a success.
Curiosity drilled a hole that is a modest 2.5 inches (6.35 centimeters) deep and .6 inches (1.52 centimeters) wide but that holds the promise of potentially great discoveries. (Watch video of the Mars rover Curiosity.)
"The most advanced planetary robot ever designed now is a fully operating analytical laboratory on Mars," John Grunsfeld, NASA associate administrator for the agency's Science Mission Directorate, said in a statement on Saturday.
"This is the biggest milestone accomplishment for the Curiosity team since the sky-crane landing last August."
Read: Asteroid to Make Closest Flyby in History
The site of the much-anticipated penetration is a flat section of Mars rock that shows signs of having been underwater in its past.
Called Yellowknife Bay, it's the kind of environment where organic materials—the building block of life—might have been deposited and preserved long ago, at a time when Mars was far wetter and warmer than it is today.
The contents of the drilling are now being transferred into the rover's internal collection system, where the samples will be sieved down to size and scoured to minimize the presence of contamination from Earth. (Watch video of Curiosity's "Seven Minutes of Terror.")
Then the sample will be distributed to the two instruments most capable of determining what the rocks contain.
The first is the Sample Analysis on Mars (SAM), which has two ovens that can heat the powdered rock to almost 2000°F (1093°C) and release the rock's elements and compounds in a gaseous form.
The gases will then be analyzed by instruments that can identify precisely what they are, and when they might have been deposited. Scientists are looking for carbon-based organics believed to be essential for any potentially past life on Mars.
Powder will also go to the Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instrument for a related analysis that looks especially at the presence of minerals—especially those that can only be formed in the presence of water.
Louise Jandura, chief engineer for Curiosity's sample system at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said that designing and testing a drill that can grab hold of Martian rock and commence first a percussive shallow drilling and then dig a deeper hole was difficult.
The drill, which is at the end of a 7-foot arm, is capable of about 100 discrete maneuvers.
"To get to the point of making this hole in a rock on Mars, we made eight drills and bored more than 1,200 holes in 20 types of rock on Earth," Jandura said in a statement.
Results from the SAM and CheMin analyses are not expected for several days to weeks.