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The following images represent some of the organisms recorded in a 500mL water sample colleceted on March 25 from the littoral water and leaf litter of Pond #1. It also includes organisms photographed during the survey but not collected.
The pictures are organized Taxonomically:
Hydrozoa: Hydra spp. – 3 to 12mm long
Gastropods – Finger-nail clams (Spheriidae) – 2 to 7mm long
Molluscs: Water snail – 20mm long
Arthropods are represented in this pond by the Crustaceans Orders: Cyclopoda, Ostracoda, and Amphipoda, as well as, the Hexapod Orders: Adephaga, Mixophaga and Polyphaga Coleoptera, Hemiptera, and Ephemeroptera.
Crustaceans- Cyclopoda – Cyclops spp. – 0.1 to 0.5 mm
Amphipoda – Scud – Hyallela azteca complex – 5 – 7mm
Ostracoda – Podocopidae – 0.2mm long
Several egg masses were found attached to the leaf litter in the pond. These egg masses varied in appearance and texture as well as, in the size of the eggs it contained. The eggs in the water sample were observed from the day they were collected on March 25 until April 27. The water sample was kept at 13C to 16C and exposed to daylight through a window located two meters away from the sample.
1) Two translucent ochre single layered plastic cartouches with egg chambers about 1mm in diameter were found attached only to oak leaves. These eggs were the first ones to develop into recognizable morulae by April 4. Species unknown.
cartouche illuminated from the top (25.iii.2012)
Morulae after 20 days (04.iv.2012)
recognizable snail embryos two days later (16.iv.2012)
well-developed snail before hatching (21,iv,2012). By April 24 all snails had hatched.


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By Ruth G. Elliott, with grateful acknowledgments to Government Services, Inc. for source material from their publication, "The Village of Five Lives" (Lucile K. Boyden) and photographs of Fontana Dam and The Log Cabin, and to The Tennessee Valley Authority, Fontana Operation, for source material from their publication "The Fontana Project" and photographs of the dam during construction.
In 1872 the State of North Carolina decided that two hundred and ninety-five square miles of land adjacent to the Tennessee border, the most rugged, isolated, and inaccessible land in all of Eastern America, should be separated from the County then known as Cherokee, and a separate unit established. This new unit was given the name of Graham County, in honor of Dr. W. A. Graham, one-time governor of North Carolina, Confederate senator, and Secretary of the Navy. The main theme of this story concerns a section of roughly two-and-one-half square miles of this mountain area, known as Fontana.
The first known use of the word Fontana in this area came with the lumber barons. Among the first was the Montvale Lumber Company in 1890. The lumbermen of this company, after scouting the forest for the finest timber, pitched a few tents on the Swain County side of the Little Tennessee River, and set to work with a will. Among these first industrial pioneers was the late Mrs. George Leidy Wood, of New York, wife of the executive Vice-President of the Montvale Lumber Company. She spent a great deal of time in this lumber camp and fell in love with the beauty of the area. She and her husband felt the camp should have a name, and it was she who suggested the name "Fontana." So it was named. The first Fontana was a tent town.
The second village by this name was constructed by the Montvale Company, and was located further up on Eagle Creek. It was built in 1907 and was situated near the then productive copper mines. This was no tent town, but a complete and charming community. This Fontana could boast a modern school building, a medical service center, a community church, even a Fontana Hotel. With the extension of the standard gauge railroad from Bushnell, fifteen miles away, by the Southern Railroad, the rapid schedule of industry had really come to the Great Smokies. Now a small building proudly wore the sign: U.S. POST OFFICE - FONTANA, N.C.
But in time the United States Government took a long look at the lumber companies operating and multiplying throughout the Smokies, and decided their vast extent had begun to take on the look of "exploitation and mutilation" of our forests. Through an Act of Congress, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established. One large, permanently organized lumber company, the Bemis Hardwood Lumber Company, Inc., was allowed to continue its operation, with headquarters in Robbinsville.
When the lumbering business was cut drastically by the formation of the National Park, Fontana began its third life - that of a mining town. The copper mines on Eagle Creek were employing at that time more than 100 experienced miners, working three shifts, day and night. Copper ore was abundant and the Southern Railroad hauled great carloads of ore to the smelters at Copper Town, Tennessee.
A strange destiny awaited this third Fontana. December 7, 1941, that "Day of Infamy," stunned the nation. The Federal Government ordered that mining interests on Eagle Creek in western North Carolina be terminated immediately. With that order came a notice that the Tennessee Valley Authority was on its way to Graham County. Already a legislative Act had authorized the construction of a gigantic hydro-electric power dam on the Little Tennessee River, in the Great Smoky Mountains. The location of this project, one of the largest engineering feats in history, was to be on land already acquired from the Aluminum Company of America. The purchase agreement stipulated that the new dam was to be named "Fontana."
In January 1942 more than 6,000 officials and workmen had converged on this mountain region, almost before the miners on Eagle Creek could realize the sudden turn of events, settle their rights and liabilities, and vacate their homes. In only a few days the work schedule was established, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and the 480-foot-high concrete dam, designed to harness the floodwaters of the Little Tennessee into a 30-mile, deep-water lake was begun. The forces of the river were converted into the production of atomic energy, and into multiple uses for the good of the nation. Even as the last of the miners moved away the lake was already deepening against the cleared mountainsides, and the third Fontana was slowly drowning.
Excavation for the Fontana Dam abutment
Fontana Dam under construction
But already the fourth Fontana had sprung up across the river in a historic and picturesque spot, rimmed with mountains, called Welch Cove. This was a completely new and modern town hastily planned and equipped, to house the builders of Fontana Dam. 6,000 people, officials, supervisors, engineers, and workmen moved into the sprawling construction camp equipped with large community and recreation buildings, modern dwellings, cafeterias, a large hospital, a large school, a sizeable theater, and churches. This fourth Fontana Village was a thriving metropolis, drawing the attention of the world.
By January of 1945 the first power-producing unit was in operation, though all construction work in connection with the dam, powerhouse, observation buildings, etc. was not yet completed. As the dam reached completion the camp reached a level of inactivity, lack of employment, and a gloomy emptiness. Finally only a few inhabitants remained to operate the dam. Now the TVA officials in Washington were faced with another emergency - what to do with the tremendous layout of community services that had been constructed for the benefit of those thousands employed in the construction of the dam. For by 1945 this, the world's fourth largest hydro-electric power dam, stood two miles to the east of a large road sign warning, "No Beyond." A nine-mile paved spur connected the area with U.S. Hwy 129 to the west and already, a million visitors a year were coming to see this great wonder of the times.
The fifth Fontana has grown increasingly popular over the years as a family resort, with over 300 cottages and a lodge for housing the thousands of vacationers who come every season to share the beauties of our lakes and mountains. There are all types of recreation available under competent personnel. Fontana Village operates its own water plant, sewage treatment plant, and all other community facilities, including a large cafeteria, laundry, and store buildings, as well as many others.
It was with much foresight that the builders of the construction camp for the Dam decided that the Log Cabin in the fourth Fontana was to be preserved, for here, indeed, is a rare and beautiful structure. It was in 1875 that Jesse Gunter decided he would leave home in Stecoah and come to Welch Cove to visit his brother Cyrene. It wasn't far "as the crow flies," but by foot or ox-team, it could as well have been across the continent. There were still a few old Indian trails left to follow, but nothing in the way of a road.
Like many others since, Jesse Gunter lost his heart to Welch Cove, and decided then and there that here was where he would bring up his family. So back he went to Stecoah, loaded his wife, Catherine, and their children onto an ox-sled, along with their meager belongings, his axe and his rifle, and set out to cut his way back to this new and promising land. In time he constructed his story-and-a-half log house in Welch Cove, two rooms with a full-size loft above, acres for a yard, a rail fence rambling all around. Jesse took great pride in that house, and built it carefully. He had to select and cut his trees, scale and cut them carefully, rive and notch them, smooth them - a great deal of work, indeed!
He would like his house today, too, for it is now used as a gift shop, selling only mountain handcrafts, and keeping much of the original charm it had when Jesse lived there himself.
Gunter log cabin built 1875
Gunter log cabin today
It was in 1884 that tragedy struck Jesse and Catherine Gunter. Two of their children died in February of that year. Jesse buried them on the little round hill across the valley from the front of their house, a spot he and Catherine loved, and where he had often said was "the prettiest, most peaceful spot on earth where a body could be laid to rest." In November of 1888, Jesse's beloved Catherine died and was buried close beside her children. Their gravestones still stand in the little cemetery on the little round hill. The site is included in one of the self-guided Nature Walks in Fontana Village.
In July of 1971, several of the descendants of Jesse Gunter gathered at Fontana Village, coming from the States of Washington, Oregon, and California. They were delighted with the old family home-place, and visited the family burial plot also. They also went to Stecoah, where they met for the first time their great aunt, Mrs. Thomas Henry, daughter of Jesse Gunter.
Some of the statistics regarding the construction of the dam are most interesting. The dam reaches an elevation of 1,727 feet, and is 480 feet high, 376 feet wide at its base. A 22-foot road crosses the top of the dam, and lake waters can be released through tunnel spillways. The reservoir extends 30 miles into the mountains, covering 7,276 cleared acres, 10,530 acres at full pool. The shoreline measures 240 miles. The first generator was placed in operation in January 1945 and puts out 67,000 kilowatts. A second came into production in March of that same year and a third in February 1954. The rated continuous output is now 202,500 kilowatts.
Engineers admire the completed Fontana Dam
Fontana Dam after completion
There was a total of 2,171,100 cubic yards of excavation; 760,000 cubic yards of fill; 2,813,000 cubic yards of concrete; 5,000 tons of reinforcing steel; 700 tons of structural steel; 4,679,900 square feet of forms; 97,500 cubic feet of grout; and 274,700 linear feet of cooling pipe used in the construction of the dam. Construction started January 1, 1942, and dam closure (beginning of reservoir filling) was November 7, 1944.
In view of this great accomplishment each of us can feel very proud when we read the inscription over the turbines, "Built by the TVA for the People of the United States."
A rare water release from Fontana Lake, through tunnels once used as diversions for the Little Tennessee river while the dam was under construction.
Fontana dam is so high that gates on top of the dam are impossible, as the falling water could undermine the dam's foundation.

subset: commoncrawl


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When people decide to purchase a new mattress, they often undervalue the importance of their decision and end up with a product that not only leaves them dissatisfied, but potentially in pain for several years. When you consider that most people spend more time on their mattress than they do at work, it makes sense that the mattress buying process should take time, even a lot of time.
This short piece outlines the ten mistakes to avoid when buying a mattress. Simply knowing about these mistakes can help when scouting your next mattress purchase, whether it ends up being one of the models here at Natural Mattress, or a cookie-cutter innerspring mattress on sale at one of the national chains. Pay attention to these mistakes when shopping for your next mattress and chances are good that you will not only make a better-informed buying decision, but your overall satisfaction level will be higher than someone who ignores these common mistakes altogether.
1. Not Knowing Your Sleep Type – We all sleep differently, and the odds are good that you sleep differently from your partner as well. This means you must speak your piece and not settle with the all-too-common "I'm happy with whatever you like, honey," response. By letting your salesperson know what your individual sleep style is, he can better recommend a product that will keep both you and your partner happy. The most important part is that weight difference usually requires different mattress firmness to feel comfortable. The Dorsal mattress and Dynamic Slats systems recognize just how individualized your sleep style can be, and they can help provide different mattress core within a mattress for people who share their mattress with a partner.
2. Not Testing the Mattress… Properly – Too often in the retail world, we see people lean on the mattress with their hand, then lay down… on their back! Statistically, most people sleep on their side, so it is amazing to see so many people testing mattresses on their back. Regardless, you will not be one these sudden-back-sleepers in the showroom after reading this. Make sure to take the few minutes to test the mattress in the position you sleep in while on your mattress at home. (Need a pillow? Ask for one, even a semi-qualified salesperson will gladly offer one to help make your testing experience more realistic).
3. Not Learning More About The Mattress (detailed mattress materials, reviews, ratings, complaints, warranty) – Buying a mattress "blindly" is the leading cause of dissatisfaction among mattress owners. But too often consumers allow themselves to get "bullied" into the product of the day without getting a second opinion from others. Checking detailed mattress materials, reviews, ratings and complaints is a good idea before shelling out your money – you would be surprised at what you will learn. Also, ask for written details as some salespeople will tell you everything good you like to hear; some people may claim 100% natural latex mattress while it actually has synthetic latex in it. It's best to know about this fickle piece of documentation before finding out the hard way that it is not what you thought it was.
4. Making Assumptions About Price and Comfort – Although the more you pay for a mattress, the higher the likelihood that you are getting better quality materials, it does not necessarily mean it will be a more-comfortable mattress for you. Some of the most expensive mattresses come with the highest dissatisfaction ratings among owners – memory foam and innerspring products alike. In many cases, price works along the same lines as expectations. That is to say, many consumers feel that if they pay more money for a mattress, they should get more comfort from a mattress. But spending a lot has nothing to do with whether that product is right for you. Don't mistake price for comfort and take the time to get to know what the mattress is all about before you spend your money.
5. Believing that the Foundation Plays a Secondary Role To the Mattress. -A full mattress set consists of the mattress itself as well as the foundation (also known as box spring). While most consumers focus on what goes into the mattress, it is worth looking at the foundation as the invaluable second part of a full mattress set. No matter how comfortable a mattress may seem, if you do not use an appropriate, high quality foundation, the comfort characteristics could be lost on a poor foundation. In many ways, the foundation itself actually contributes more to the sleep experience.
6. Failure To Consider Alternatives – Many shoppers have a price point or product type in mind and refuse to consider alternative recommendations by the salesperson. If the salesperson fully understands your needs and preferences, chances are quite good that he or she can offer a couple of alternatives to let you see what other brands can offer. In some cases, they will cost a little more, but refusing to consider those alternatives could make for a big mistake down the road. Ask many questions, keeping your options open to suggestions and alternatives may result in improved sleep quality, so don't rule out products or brands you never considered before.
7. Making Impulsive Decisions – It is easy to fall in love with a mattress based on price or how it feels in the showroom. Unless your mattress has burnt down and you have nowhere to sleep that night (or if a sale ends that specific day), there is no 寵物床墊 need to make a rushed decision about a mattress. Taking notes about what you liked about the mattress in question and going home to "sleep on it" before making the purchase is a good thing. You may realize the next morning that there are other deals or options you have not considered yet or that the mattress in question might not accommodate your sleep style the way your existing mattress does. Try to never buy a new mattress on the same day that you start your search.
8. Not Knowing Who You Are Buying From – The proliferation of mattress retailers has resulted in healthy competition in the industry. However, some retailers are not quite as reputable as others. Buying a bad mattress is one thing; buying it from a bad retailer is another. Before spending your money at a retailer you know little about, try researching the outfit to make sure they stand by their service promise and have been in business long enough to truly understand the industry. No matter how good a mattress might be dealing with a terrible retailer can ruin your entire mattress buying experience.


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"If all that Americans want is security, they can go to prison. They'll have enough to eat, a bed and a roof over their heads. But if an American wants to preserve his dignity and his equality as a human being, he must not bow his neck to any dictatorial government." -- President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Always lost in the contentious modern debate over the ideal tax levels is the forgotten fact that the U.S. Constitution -- a document which all politicians solemnly pledge to uphold and defend -- does not even permit a tax on labor. As hard as it may be for contemporary Americans to even imagine, it was little more than a single very long lifetime ago that no American, rich, poor, or in-between, paid any income tax, at all! And even as recently as the eve of World War II, it was mainly the top 10% who paid any income tax. Imagine that! A fast-growing, industrialized, dynamic, innovative, economic powerhouse nation of 100,000,000+ people -- with a massive and booming middle class; and millions of European immigrants clamoring to get in, get to work, and climb up from the bottom of the ladder -- with the Edison-Tesla electrical revolution already operational, and the Ford automotive revolution just getting started -- and no limit to the potential of the vast United States of America of 1913. And just think, the great nation achieved it all without the "blessing" of an income tax or a debt-money central bank -- a pair of related evil institutions -- both established in 1913 -- which today's "smart people" assure us are indispensable for the proper functioning of a modern state. How was it possible for America to have become so great without a central bank / income tax system, you ask? Why was the insidious form of debt-money printing and its attendant labor taxation scheme ever instituted in the first place when the country was doing just fine without them? Well, to the architects of the New World Order, both the counterfeit money from the "Fed" and the stolen "revenue" from the people were absolutely "needed" to fund the coming, pre-planned "Great War" (World War I) and the eventual welfare-control system which they already had in mind.
"For God's sake. Stop giving your ""Democratically-Elected"" Governments the benefit of the doubt"
University professors who are critical of the establishment have witnessed their space steadily shrink in Iran over the past two years.
In recent weeks, however, authorities have dismissed dozens of independents from their posts in a project that has been called a "second cultural revolution" to purge higher education of professors whose views do not align with the Islamic Republic.
The administration of principlist President Ebrahim Raisi began sacking university professors, such as philosophy professor Bijan Abdul Karimi and sociologist Mohammad Fazeli, and philosophy researcher Arash Abazari, during the early months of his presidency in 2021.
But the rate of dismissals seems to have accelerated over the past few months, causing alarm across the academic and intellectual communities that the move would have a long-lasting effect on Iranian society.
In August, the reformist Etemad newspaper released a list of 58 professors who have been fired by the government since the purge began.
The United States has quietly acknowledged that Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard successfully put an imaging satellite into orbit this week in a launch that resembled others previously criticized by Washington as helping Tehran's ballistic missile program.
The U.S. military has not responded to repeated requests for comment from The Associated Press since Iran announced the launch of the Noor-3 satellite on Wednesday, the latest successful launch by the Revolutionary Guard after Iran's civilian space program faced a series of failed launches in recent years.
Early Friday, however, data published by the website space-track.org listed a launch Wednesday by Iran that put the Noor-3 satellite into orbit. Information for the website is supplied by the 18th Space Defense Squadron of the U.S. Space Force, the newest arm of the American military.
It put the satellite at over 450 kilometers (280 miles) above the Earth's surface, which corresponds to Iranian state media reports regarding the launch. It also identified the rocket carrying the satellite as a Qased, a three-stage rocket fueled by both liquid and solid fuels first launched by the Guard in 2020 when it unveiled its up-to-then-secret space program.
For the 13th time, a War Thunder player has shared sensitive military information on one of the video game's forums.
Developed by Gaijin Entertainment, War Thunder is a multiplayer video game that provides players with realistic simulations using U.S. and foreign military equipment. The gamers' stickler for accuracy has prompted several users to attempt to win arguments on the game's forums by sharing sensitive information about a variety of weaponry – including F-117 Nighthawks.
Niche Gamer, a news and reviews website about video games, was first to report that a War Thunder player recently shared the technical manual for the AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter. The Apache is the Army's attack helicopter, which first entered service in the 1980s. Production on the AH-64D began in 1997, and the AH-64E is the latest version of the helicopter.
The technical manual is restricted to service members, Defense Department civilians, and military contractors, and that means posting it violated War Thunder's rules, a forum moderator noted. Those rules explain that even declassified information can be "restricted" if it includes technical data for military technologies that cannot be exported.
In 1967, the CIA's covert use of the National Student Association to spread countermessages to communism was revealed by a college dropout named Michael Wood.2 The revelation sent shockwaves through the U.S., and as journalists started to pull at the strings, the the CIA's covert propaganda operations unraveled.
Journalists discovered that the CIA had set up nonprofit foundations to funnel taxpayer money into philanthropic foundations that then sent the CIA's "donations" to organizations that had joined the CIA's payroll to promote government-sponsored propaganda
These included youth organizations and student groups, church groups, public radio and news organizations. Sen. Wayne Morse, D-Ore., slammed the CIA's covert propaganda activities, arguing the agency had created a "credibility chasm" within public opinion — a gap that could not and would not be bridged unless the government made clear that it would "fill the chasm with the truth"
The CIA was never reined in and is more involved in propaganda activities today than ever before
While many still have not realized it, we are at war, and the aggressors are government intelligence and security agencies that have turned their weapon of choice — information — against their own citizens
The FDA was forced by a judge to release clinical data on the COVID vaccines back in January and so 55,000 pages of documents were just released.
The FDA had originally wanted to hide the data for 75 years and release it in 2096 because, of course, the FDA is basically engaged in a criminal conspiracy. The COVID vaccines should never have been approved. This was obvious from the very beginning when animal trials were skipped in the Trump Administration's ill-fated "Operation Warp Speed." And now it's undeniably true. We have the clinical data, and it's horrific.
Hiding out in one appendix is the clinical data for Pfizer's vaccine — which lists 1,291 adverse side effects in alphabetical order.
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to a pair of scientists who developed the technology that led to the mRNA Covid vaccines.
Professors Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman will share the prize.
The technology was experimental before the pandemic, but has now been given to millions of people around the world to protect them against serious Covid-19.
The same mRNA technology is now being researched for other diseases, including cancer.
The Nobel Prize committee said: "The laureates contributed to the unprecedented rate of vaccine development during one of the greatest threats to human health in modern times."
The White House is prohibiting senior administration officials from traveling for international energy engagements that promote carbon-intensive fuels, including oil, natural gas and coal, Fox News Digital has learned.
The guidance — which originated from the White House National Security Council (NSC) — was revealed in a Department of Energy (DOE) memo issued internally to agency staff on Sept. 15 and obtained by Fox News Digital. The memo was authored by Deputy Secretary of Energy David Turk who outlined travel restrictions and stated officials are required to obtain approval from the NSC before attending any global energy engagement.
"This guidance sets out a presumption that agencies and departments will pursue international energy engagement that advances clean energy projects," Turk wrote in the memo. "It also outlines a process for seeking limited exceptions to pursue carbon-intensive engagements on a justified geostrategic imperative or energy-for-development/energy access basis."
Windows operating systems are the target of new malware dubbed ZenRAT by U.S.-based cybersecurity company Proofpoint. The attackers built a website that impersonates the popular Bitwarden password manager; if accessed via Windows, the fake site delivers the ZenRAT malware disguised as Bitwarden software. It's currently unknown if the malware is used by threat actors for cyberespionage or for financial fraud.
We'll delve into the technical details and share more information from Proofpoint researchers, as well as provide tips on mitigating this ZenRAT malware threat.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak put a political leash on his attack dog Defense Minister Grant Shapps, who made headlines this week saying British ground troops would enter Ukraine to train the Ukrainian Army. Shapps statement caused a clear response from Russia saying such troops would be targets for the Russian Army.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Sunday that any Brit soldiers training soldiers inside Ukraine would be legitimate targets for Russian forces and "ruthlessly destroyed."
He directed his fury at Shapps who told The Sunday Telegraph that he wants to "eventually" deploy military instructors to Ukraine in addition to training Ukrainian troops in Britain.
In a post on Telegram, Medvedev fumed: "The number of leading idiots in Nato countries is growing."
"One newly minted cretin - the British Minister of Defence - decided to transfer English training courses for Ukrainian soldiers to the territory of Ukraine itself."
"These idiots are actively pushing us towards a Third World War."
The Bundestag in Germany said that Ukraine will have the right to attack the territory of occupied Crimea with German-Supplied, Taurus missiles. This was stated by the Chairman of the Defense Committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann.
Germany has not yet officially announced the transfer of Taurus missiles because the Russians have openly warned about this.
The Taurus KEPD 350 is a Swedish-German air-launched cruise missile, manufactured by Taurus Systems and used by Germany, Spain, and South Korea.
The missile incorporates stealth technology and has an official range in excess of 500 km (300 mi).[10] It is powered by a turbofan engine at Mach 0.95 and can be carried by Panavia Tornado, Eurofighter Typhoon, Saab JAS 39 Gripen, McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet, and McDonnell Douglas F-15K Slam Eagle aircraft.
The dual stage 480-kilogram (1,100 lb) warhead, called MEPHISTO (multi-effect penetrator highly sophisticated and target optimized), features a pre-charge and initial penetrating charge to clear soil or enter "hard and deeply buried targets" (HDBT) such as hardened underground bunkers, then a variable delay fuse to control detonation of the main warhead.
Not content with conspiring with the British Parliament in throttling Russell Brand's voice, NATO has set the entire British legal establishment against him.
Victoria Prentis KC, Britain's attorney general, has warned the nation's editors that any pertinent coverage about either Russell Brand or any criminal case that may be taken against him "may amount to contempt", even though no arrests have yet taken place or cautions to Brand issued and no warrants have yet been issued against him. Legally, even in NATO's corrupt British heartland, Brand should be free as a bird to go about his business, as should we be to make reasonable comments about him.
That is not now the case. Having been traduced at the behest of the 77th Brigade by the British media, Prentis has now decreed that any salient comments on Brand's as yet non-existing case is in contempt of court, despite the fact that Brand has not yet got his day in court and no jury of his peers has yet been appointed to adjudicate on the case which, to repeat, as of yet does not exist.
There's been a lot of debate lately over the US strategy of surrounding nations like Russia and China with war machinery in order to deter them from aggressive actions. Some argue that since powerful nations tend to respond aggressively to the amassing of military threats on their borders, this policy actually provokes the very aggressions its proponents claim it prevents.
And to these people I say: hogwash. Only peaceful and harmonious responses can possibly be expected from policies of military encirclement.
That's why I propose that the People's Liberation Army should begin militarily encircling the continental United States with Chinese war machinery as quickly as possible, in order to deter future US aggression around the world.
On this episode of The Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with Swiss whistleblower Rudolf Elmer. While working in the Cayman Islands as an employee of Julius Baer, he exposed financial crimes. In blowing the whistle, Elmer believes he was acting in the public interest. Since then, he has been pursued for breaking the draconian Swiss banking secrecy laws. His family has been severely harassed. Under investigation since 2005, he has already served 220 days in prison, and is still being pursued by judges of the high court in Zurich.
The Heat Initiative, a nonprofit child safety advocacy group, was formed earlier this year to campaign against some of the strong privacy protections Apple provides customers. The group says these protections help enable child exploitation, objecting to the fact that pedophiles can encrypt their personal data just like everyone else.
When Apple launched its new iPhone this September, the Heat Initiative seized on the occasion, taking out a full-page New York Times ad, using digital billboard trucks, and even hiring a plane to fly over Apple headquarters with a banner message. The message on the banner appeared simple: "Dear Apple, Detect Child Sexual Abuse in iCloud" — Apple's cloud storage system, which today employs a range of powerful encryption technologies aimed at preventing hackers, spies, and Tim Cook from knowing anything about your private files.
Something the Heat Initiative has not placed on giant airborne banners is who's behind it: a controversial billionaire philanthropy network whose influence and tactics have drawn unfavorable comparisons to the right-wing Koch network. Though it does not publicize this fact, the Heat Initiative is a project of the Hopewell Fund, an organization that helps privately and often secretly direct the largesse — and political will — of billionaires. Hopewell is part of a giant, tightly connected web of largely anonymous, Democratic Party-aligned dark-money groups, in an ironic turn, campaigning to undermine the privacy of ordinary people.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., appeared at a General Motors plant in Wentzville, Missouri, earlier this week to join members of the United Auto Workers on the picket line against the Big Three automakers. There, he called himself "pro-worker," challenged the companies to give workers a pay raise and more time off, and said he's with the workers "100 percent."
While he is rallying against the Big Three now, he has previously received campaign contributions from the automakers. During his first run for Senate in 2018 and through 2020, Hawley's PAC received $8,500 from GM's PAC, according to records filed with the Federal Election Commission. His Senate campaign received $3,500 from Ford's PAC and another $1,000 from a GM executive during that same time period. His PAC and campaign received an additional $13,000 from PACs associated with Toyota, a Japanese company notorious for running non-union shops in the United States.
Asked about the donations, a spokesperson for Hawley pointed to the senator's 2021 promise to no longer accept money from corporate PACs.
As one of only seven commercial facilities currently operating in the United States, Braven Environmental is at the vanguard of the growing chemical recycling boom. An Intercept investigation, however, found numerous issues at its Zebulon facility.
A review of meeting minutes, permit applications, and compliance documents reveals that Braven misled the public about the risks of its pyrolysis operation and has potentially endangered human health and the environment through "significant noncompliance" with hazardous waste management regulations. While the ACC has touted Braven as a sustainable success story, documents also show that much of the company's pyrolysis oil was not converted into useful plastic or fuel — it was disposed of as highly toxic waste.
"Chemical recycling is really a greenwashing technique for burning up a bunch of petrochemicals in a new way, and it's releasing tons of air pollutants into the environment," said Alexis Luckey, executive director of Toxic Free NC, in an interview. "What we're talking about is incinerating carcinogens and neurotoxicants in a community."
A ministry statement said some 20 targets of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, were "destroyed" in the aerial operation, including caves, shelters and depots.
Earlier, suicide bomber detonated an explosive device near an entrance of the Ministry of Interior Affairs, injuring two police officers. A second assailant was killed in a shootout with police Sunday, the interior minister said.
An news agency close to the PKK said he group has claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing.
Archaeologists discovered the world's oldest wooden structure, said to be almost half a million years old.
A team of archaeologists unearthed a simple wood structure along a riverbank in Africa. At the dig site, researchers found two bush willow tree logs that appeared to have been manipulated by ancient humans approximately 476,000 years ago. The archaeology discovery makes it older than homo sapiens – believed to have emerged around 300,000 years ago.
Scientists believe that the high water levels from the nearby Kalambo Falls and fine sediment encased the structure to help preserve the wood.
The study of the oldest wooden structure was published in the journal Nature, and declared that archaeologists had discovered "the earliest evidence for structural use of wood in the archaeological record."
According to CNN, "The wood pieces were too old to be directly dated using radiocarbon techniques. Instead, the team used a technique called luminescence dating, which involved measuring the natural radioactivity in minerals in the fine sediment that encased the wood to figure out when it was last exposed to sunlight."
On Monday 16th of March 2020, when Boris Johnson first proclaimed, "You must stay home," I very meekly said "OK!" And the chances are that you did too.
Polling from the time shows that self-reported compliance with the stay-at-home orders was high – a finding broadly corroborated by mobility data, which has the marked advantage of not depending on respondents' honesty about following the law (Ganslmeier et al. 2022; Jackson and Bradford 2021).
In itself, however, this data alone does not tell us why an unprecedented suspension of our civil liberties enjoyed such high levels of compliance.
There are, however, surveys that do provide some insight (see, for example, Jackson and Bradford 2021; Foad et al. 2021; and Halliday et al. 2022) and amongst their more surprising findings is that instrumental considerations – that is, personal fear of the virus or of coercion by the State – may have been relatively unimportant in driving compliance with the lockdown rules. Instead, they found that, in general, people followed the rules because (1) they were the law and (2) because they provided us with a shared understanding of what was good and right to do, which many of us seem to have internalised (Jackson and Bradford 2021).
The first of these is not particularly surprising. The law enjoys a 'reservoir of loyalty' amongst Brits who are therefore already predisposed to respect its edicts just because they have been made law (Halliday et al. 2022, p.400).
This, however, does not explain the second driver of compliance. That is, it does not explain why we bought into lockdown laws and willingly accepted them as the basis of our public morality – to the point that we even often justified our non-compliant behaviours as nonetheless remaining within the 'spirit of the law' (Meers et al. 2021). It does not explain why we looked upon the sanitised, terrorised redrawing of society and saw that it was good. It is worth briefly revisiting, with the benefit of cooled heads and hindsight, what exactly this looked like.
When western nations rolled out a grand plan to throttle Russian oil imports and impose sanctions on Kremlin energy exports, we - and many others - laughed: after all, we have repeatedly seen how toothless western sanctions are when seeking to contain "rogue regime" oil profits, from Iran (which is pretty much selling oil to China at max capacity) to Venezuela and onward. One year later, our laughter has been well justified, because as the FT reports, "Russia has succeeded in avoiding G7 sanctions on most of its oil exports", a shift in trade flows that will boost the Kremlin's revenues as crude rises towards $100 a barrel, and as Russian Urals prices hit $80, the highest level in over a year.
It's estimated that there are nearly 1.4 million kilometers (0.9 million miles) of submarine cables in service globally. They ensure emails, content, and calls find their way, linking colossal data centers and facilitating worldwide communication.
Currently, there are 552 active and planned submarine cables:
Submarine cables harness fiber-optic technology, transmitting information via rapid light pulses through glass fibers. These fibers, thinner than human hair, are protected by plastic or even steel wire layers.
Cables usually have the diameter of a garden hose, but often with added armor near the shore. Coastal cables are buried under the seabed, hidden from view on the beach, while deep-sea ones rest on the ocean floor.
Length varies widely, from the 131-kilometer CeltixConnect cable, connecting Dublin, Ireland, and Holyhead, UK, to the sprawling 20,000-kilometer Asia America Gateway cable, connecting San Luis Obispo, California, to Hawaii and Southeast Asia:
Outraged parents have condemned the local mayor's decision to accommodate up to 80 asylum seekers in containers on the grounds of a primary school in the German town of Monheim am Rhein.
Dozens of local residents attended a recent question time of the local council to voice their displeasure over the controversial move proposed by Mayor Daniel Zimmerman's administration and expressed their concerns for child safety, calling the plans both inappropriate and unacceptable.
Starting next spring, a cohort of migrants will reside in containers located on the school grounds, which are no longer used for educational purposes.
In response to the protestations of locals, the council cited economic factors as a primary reason for the move, insisting that the estimated €150,000 it would cost to convert the containers into housing was substantially lower than the cost of renting private accommodations, where around 80 percent of the migrants recently received by the municipality currently reside.
"We simply can't keep up with renting anymore," a city press spokesperson told parents at the meeting.
Beware, the crisis at the southern border may be much worse than it appears...
Free Apple watches, bus and plane tickets all across the continental United States, and sophisticated lawyers standing by to counsel migrants on how to best navigate border officials' scrutiny of asylum on the occasions when they are actually required to defend their asylum claims. These benefits being offered to illegal border crossers have left the public shocked, angry, and in many cases, feeling the issue closer to home than ever before. Many cities and states have also been overwhelmed as the consequences of the crisis have migrated well beyond the southern border states. Recently, New York City Mayor Eric Adams made news when he emphatically declared that the now-regular stream of migrants into the Big Apple "will ruin the City!"
It's not just local budgets and social services that are being squeezed to the breaking point, although those are nothing to sneeze at and will have to be addressed. The increase in crime may be the biggest concern. Violent crime rates are up, and violent incidents are prominent on the nightly news. Less visible are the other criminal enterprises causing ripple effects. Human trafficking has gained more attention as its shocking reality is (very) slowly exposed. The recently released independent film, "The Sound of Freedom," struck a chord for this very reason – human trafficking is striking too close to home for most Americans' peace of mind.
Then there are the drugs. The opioid epidemic has gotten substantially worse in the last few years, with annual overdose deaths, after a slight decline from 2017 through 2019, increasing dramatically in the last several years. As if this isn't bad enough, the opportunities for smuggling in other illegal contraband have increased as well.
The transportation of those wishing to leave Nagorno-Karabakh for Armenia is coming to its "logical conclusion," Armenian government spokeswoman Nazeli Baghdasaryan said on Sunday, adding that all those who wanted to leave the breakaway region after the recent escalation had already done it.
"The intensity [of the flow] has significantly decreased. We can say that the last people wishing to move to Armenia have done so and the process is coming to its logical conclusion," Baghdasaryan said.
Despite this fact, Yerevan will keep providing transportation for those wishing to leave the region.
As many as 100,514 people from Nagorno-Karabakh have arrived in Armenia since the recent escalation last week, Baghdasaryan said, adding that temporary housing had been provided for 48,649 people.
Billionaire Ray Dalio is warning the average American that the ruling class has put them in a "risky" financial situation. The debt crisis is getting worse by the second and a total collapse of the financial system is looming.
"We're going to have a debt crisis in this country," Dalio told CNBC according to a report by RT in an interview that aired Thursday. "How fast it transpires, I think, is going to be a function of that supply-demand issue, so I'm watching that very closely."
Climate crisis activists have dreamed up a campaign that they bombastically call a "treaty" to ban advertising of high-carbon products – in other words, anything they, or their sponsors, don't like. These groups are not working alone; they are politically funded and politically motivated.
They are making moves to ban advertisements of motor vehicles and air travel, and the latest "fossil fuel" adverts being targeted is meat. You read that right, meat is being treated the same as a "fossil fuel" according to the Council of the Dutch City of Haarlem which has included meat on their list of "banned fossil fuel endorsements."
All over the United States, major cities are descending into a state of chaos. Every day, more migrants that came pouring through our wide open borders arrive in our inner cities, and many of them end up joining gangs or selling drugs. Meanwhile, more of our young people get hooked on drugs with each passing day. In the worst areas, you can see hordes of them literally staggering around like zombies because they have been drugged out of their minds. All of this addiction is fueling an unprecedented homelessness crisis. In fact, the Wall Street Journal is reporting that homelessness in the United States is growing faster this year than ever before. In this sort of an environment, it should be no surprise that violent crime is absolutely exploding all over the nation. If you choose to wander the streets of America's hellish inner cities, you are literally taking your life into your hands, because a violent predator could literally be around the next corner. Unfortunately, we are still only in the very early stages of this crisis. It will inevitably get even worse in the months ahead as economic conditions deteriorate even more.


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Nov 9, 2017
Coty profit beats on demand for brands aimed at younger consumers
Nov 9, 2017
Beauty products maker Coty Inc posted a quarterly profit on Thursday that beat Wall Street estimates, selling more products geared toward millennials and making progress folding in newly-acquired brands in an expanded global portfolio.
Coty has been trying to keep pace with rivals Estee Lauder and LVMH's Sephora, and has paid billions to acquire brands and take minority stakes in firms that appeal to younger consumers, most notably skincare brand Younique and ghd, which makes popular hair straighteners.
The shopping spree, which included 40-plus brands after paying $12 billion for Procter & Gamble's beauty business, is paying off. It is now the third-largest beauty products maker in the world.
The company's shares rose as much as 21 percent, marking their best one-day gain since February, 2016. They were up 16 percent at $17.12 in late morning trade.
Chief Executive Camillo Pane on Thursday said integrating these businesses was on track and that Coty would deliver the $780 million in savings it had promised investors.
"Today's results should give some needed confidence to investors that the turnaround is progressing in a positive direction, despite a difficult macro-environment," Wells Fargo analyst Joe Lachky wrote in a client note.
Pane also touted the impact Younique and ghd had on sales in its first quarter, saying they helped drive a 5 percent rise in combined company net revenue growth.
But some older brands like Clairol face waning demand from retailers, which are cutting back on inventories in favor of more niche brands.
Pane said the move would lead to uneven sales quarter-over-quarter and that sales in the second half of the year would be similar to the same period a year earlier.
Coty said it expected to regain some shelf space this year following the successful launch of Clairol's Color Crave brand in the United States.
Excluding items, Coty earned 10 cents per share, compared to analysts' estimates of a profit of 7 cents. Net sales more than doubled to $2.24 billion, but was in line with analysts' estimates, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Estee Lauder reported better-than-expected sales and profit last week and lifted its expectations for the holiday-quarter, banking on its newly-acquired Too Faced and Becca brands, which are popular with millennials.
© Thomson Reuters 2023 All rights reserved.


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It was the watches I wanted, those radium dials
Glowing like bomb sights
When I cupped my palm.
Of radioactivity—the hour hand;
Nether-wisp—the second.
For weeks my mother worked the counter at Kresge's—
Her faded pink smock
As tight as a nurse's—
As she laid out the bands in their false
Reptilian shines—
The cowboy tans, the avocado greens. This
Was Radium City
And my mother, Marie
Curie, scientist of jewels and hams,
The chunks of meat slapped
Like memory into the knife
And the iridescence sliced to pieces as thin
As winter sky, shaved uranium.
I had to stack them high to tongue the plugs
Of fats, the permeating salts.
The roll breaking in my hands like a ball of
Glass. And the stench of drugstore
Popcorn, its second perfume
Mingling with what my mother wore
As she shoveled out
The bags like spent carnival fortunes.
More money was one we wasted on ourselves.
Or new drapes.
One last snap of the Tupperware over the nightly concoctions
No one ever wanted to eat.
I'd go away and ponder mono/stereo
For the extra buck
In the lp bins, or keep an eye walking
Home for Tarzan—
Weissmuller in a shiny Olds or Cadillac.
And then wait out the summer hours pitching
A 9-inning game
In a chalk box the side of the house.
Ferguson Jenkins for 7 or so,
Then Abernathy for the submarine.
Next door a neighbor would peg out his pet
Skunk and I'd listen as it roiled
With thirst
Or hunkered under diving blue jays,
Their cobalts dipped
In the mouth of the sun
And set out like hour hands
To the shadowed yard.
The Cubs would lose.
Weissmuller never show.
The Mexican kids from Dempster would threaten
To beat my ass into the street
And leave me there
Dented and ringing as a hubcap,
Another rat-faced kid
Waiting for his mother to come home.
Pink smock.
Ham in a pocket.
Singing beyond the genius of the meats,
The radium dials, the gems,
The gold fish
And guppies in their clouds of hopelessness.
The kiss, the mother's kiss, put like a cure to the child's face.


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Each year we look back at the smartphones of 2015 and decipher which stood out from the bunch. The truth is that we expect a lot out of the smartphones we use. It needs to perform great, have an amazing camera, a beautiful display, and the perfect software. It's a lot when you think about it—but for good reason: there's not a single computer you will use more in your life. Your smartphone is always with you and it's the one you need to have be reliable throughout the thick and the thin.
Fortunately, there are a huge number of smartphones that came out in 2015 that match many of these qualities. Not only do we now have a huge variety of flagship smartphones to choose from that are excellent, a good amount of them sell for well under $500. You can't go wrong with any of the phones on this list—they all come highly recommended from us.
10. HTC One M9
The HTC One M9 might not be the standout device it was when it came out at the beginning of the year, but we'd regret not mentioning the line of phones that has had a large influence on the direction of Android smartphones (and even iPhones, arguably). The One M7 had a beautiful unibody design that was made of aluminum materials and put together like no other Android device in 2013.
The M9 certainly doesn't stand out as much as the line used to—and is still held back by its less-than-great camera—but it was still one of the best smartphones released in 2015. We'll have to wait to see what HTC does in 2016, but for now, the M9 is the best phone HTC has ever made.—Luke Larsen
9. OnePlus X
After shaking the market with two budget-conscious but decidedly premium phones, last year's OnePlus One and its successor the OnePlus 2, the Chinese phone maker has once again defied odds with the X. It's latest is smaller and cheaper with an even more premium build than its pricier brothers. The glass and metal build feels phenomenal and its diminutive size (by today's gargantuan standards) make it easy to use with one hand. At the $249 pricepoint, it's got virtually no competition—and that's an accomplishment all on its own.—Eric Walters
For a long time, LG's devices were hidden in the shadow of Samsung's successes, despite being quite similar in specs, design, and features. But last year, LG changed that with its LG G3, an overall great smartphone with a cutting-edge design, top-of-the-line specs, and even a trimmed down software update.
This year's G4 doesn't change much of what made the G3 great, which is actually a good thing. Perhaps most impressively, the G4 has a fantastic camera that rivals those from Samsung and Apple. While the G4 is getting a little old at this point due to the fact that it came out early in the year, you'll be hard-pressed to find G4 users today complaining about the experience.—LL
7. Nexus 5X
Nexus phones have always been for hardcore Android fans, but this year Google wanted to change that by bringing a budget-friendly phone ($379) to the market that just about anyone would want to pick up and use.
It's made out of plastic and has a pretty basic design, but it's really light in the hand and has a nice textured feel. Furthermore, it has just a 5.2-inch display, so it's quite a bit smaller than most other Android smartphones out there. Most importantly though, Google (in partnership with LG) has made one of the best budget phone out there and pretty much erases the notion of ever buying a "midrange" smartphone ever again. It's not the absolute best value (see the OnePlus phones for that), but if the stock Android 6.0 experience for cheap is what you want, get the Nexus 5X.—LL
6. Moto X Pure Edition
Motorola was one of the first companies to pioneer the cheap, flagship unlocked smartphone and they really did do it right. Nowadays, it takes a bit more to stand out from the crowd though.
The new Moto X hits all the right marks—great display, performance, and near-stock Android. The design isn't my favorite—and the camera still struggles at points—but the Moto X Pure Edition is still one of the best smartphones of 2015. The ability to customize it through MotoMaker will always be one of the best features of Motorola phones and that's no different here.—LL
5. Galaxy S6 / S6 Edge
Although we prefer the cleaner software on devices like the Moto X Pure Edition, it's hard to deny all the things that Galaxy S6 has in the hardware department. It still has an excellent display and the best camera on an Android device you can find. The stunning design of the S6 Edge in particular really makes it feel like the display is completely edge-to-edge, resulting in a device unlike anything we've ever held.
Now that we've seen the Note 5, though, we think it is easily the best Galaxy device from this year. If the bigger screen and stylus aren't your cup of tea though, the S6 is still one of the best.—LL
4. Galaxy Note 5 / Edge+
There's a lot of reasons why longtime Samsung fans have ditched the Note 5, most notably because of its lack of a removable battery, waterproof casing, and expandable storage. However, if none of those things matter to you, the Note 5 is clearly the best smartphone Samsung has ever made. The design and build quality is spot on, the stylus is more useful than ever, and the camera is the best you'll find on an Android device. If it wasn't for the clunky Samsung software, this phone would have shot to the top of this list, but even as is, it's still a great option.—LL
3. OnePlus 2
A premium phone in every way imaginable for just $329? That's always been OnePlus' motto as the "flagship killer," and it still holds true with the OnePlus 2. It's not a perfect device, but it hits almost every benchmark with flying colors—whether that is its beautiful display and impressive performance to its clean customizable software and excellent build quality. The OnePlus 2 also has amazing battery life, outdoing every other phone on this list on benchmarks. The best part? It's become available again after being sold out, just in time for the holidays. —LL
2. iPhone 6s / iPhone 6s Plus
People who buy iPhones will probably always buy iPhones—it's plain and simple (that is, until they realize that they are paying at least twice as much for one than some smartphones that are every bit as good). The iPhone 6s Plus in particular is certainly the best iPhone ever made, bringing in some great new features like 3D Touch and Live Photos, as well as updating the camera. Speaking of the camera, the iPhone still takes the cake with its incomparable image processing that turns photos into Instagram gold. We'll have to wait until the iPhone 7 for an interesting new design, but for now, the 6s and 6s Plus are Apple at the top of its game.—LL
1. Nexus 6P
Last year's entry in the Nexus line, the Nexus 6 by Motorola, was essentially a disaster. In a world of big phones, it was the biggest. Bulky and pricey, it went against the core tenets the Nexus program were founded on. Google learned from Shamu, and it delivered in 2015. Both Nexus phones are solid Android devices, but the Huawei-built Nexus 6P is an Android lover's dream. The metal construction is exquisite and its one knock, the glass bar housing necessary sensors and the camera module, really grew on me over time. The screen is immaculate, only a touch lower than Samsung's efforts this year, and the camera is vastly improved.
As with any Nexus phone, though, the 6P's best asset is the stock Android experience, 6.0 Marshmallow here. It's the best Android phone money can buy, and at $499 it comes in much lower than other phones in the same weight class.—EW


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The Lead
'I want to let the evidence do the talking,' Pa. Sen. Bob Casey says as Trump impeachment rolls into third day
Sen. Bob Casey. (Senate Democrats/Flickr)
The impeachment drama unfolding on Capitol Hill this week is all about "national security" and the "credibility of our country," U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., said Thursday.
Speaking to home state reporters, the Scranton lawmaker said that he and his colleagues were listening attentively as House impeachment managers made arguments that stretched over eight hours on Wednesday.
"It's our obligation to sit and to listen," Casey said.
Casey said that he's been "impressed by how engaged people are" – including his own colleagues.
He noted that, like himself, most of his colleagues have been quietly taking notes throughout the process but said the few instances where other senators walked out were "troubling."
Casey said he hasn't discussed any of the impeachment proceedings with Pennsylvania's other senator, Republican Pat Toomey.
On its first day, Trump impeachment trial gets personal in the Senate
Casey said there will be time for GOP and Democratic senators to interact in the deliberation, toward the end of the impeachment process when they will make their arguments to their colleagues.
Pointing to Acting Ukrainian Ambassador Bill Taylor's extensive notes, Casey said, "I want the Republicans to continually be challenged by the evidence and I think they have been."
He added that he was "amazed" at how often there was a document that impeachment managers could connect to the basic charges in the case, calling the House Judiciary Committee's notes "very compelling."
"This isn't a blank record that's being filled in by the day – we know a lot about this president," Casey said. This wasn't a change in policy in one phone call, this is a long pattern that you can only get if you have the chronology."
The most helpful thing during the process so-far, Casey said, has been the repetition of key points by House impeachment managers.
"The GOP complained that there's a lot of repetition," Casey said. "But It was helpful for me when Chairman Schiff went through it month by month."
Casey said he will continue to review his notes and pick out what is most relevant during the trial.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics.


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(KTLA) — Owning a private jet is one of those far-fetched luxuries the average person can only dream about during a five-hour domestic flight cramped up in economy class.
For the uber-wealthy, a private jet is not just a luxury, but it can also be a pretty lucrative business. Celebrities can enjoy traveling anywhere on a moment's notice, and when they themselves aren't in the air, they can rent the jet out for others to use.
But while owning a personal getaway plane might sound like a dream, for the environment, it can be a nightmare.
Earlier this month, Kylie Jenner came under fire for a 17-minute private jet flight from Camarillo to Van Nuys, California. The flight shaved off only about 30 minutes of travel time, according to Google maps.
Experts estimate that an hour of flight time aboard a private jet introduces about two tonnes of CO2 into the air, meaning Jenner's flight could've produced about a tonne of CO2 during its brief flight. The average person, meanwhile, produces around 8 tonnes of CO2 — per year.
A 2021 report by TransportEnvironment.org found that private jets pollute 5 to 14 times more than commercial planes per passenger, and 50 times more than trains. And of all the carbon dioxide pollution produced by planes, just 1% of people account for 50% of all emissions.
So who are the worst offenders? Well, we may not know for sure, but thanks to the Twitter account @CelebJets, the same account that tracked Jenner's flight, we have a good idea which celebrity-owned planes are the culprits.
The marketing and data analysis company Yard used data from CelebJets to rank the highest polluting planes that are owned by celebrities. And despite the headlines regarding Kylie's flying habits, she didn't even crack the top 10.
These are the celebrities whose private jets produce the most CO2 pollution:
1. Taylor Swift
The pop star's PJ is the top CO2 emitting plane that CelebJets and Yard tracked.
"Racking up a total of 170 flights on her private jet since January, Taylor has amassed a vast 22,923 minutes in the air – 15.9 days. Quite a large amount considering that she is not currently touring," Yard wrote in their analysis.
Reps for Swift have since criticized the ranking, attributing much of the flight time to other people who have rented her plane.
The star's reps released a statement to Rolling Stone that reads: "Taylor's jet is loaned out regularly to other individuals … To attribute most or all of these trips to her is blatantly incorrect."
Still, the plane itself tops the list among celebrities.
2. Floyd Mayweather
The retired boxer came in second for the first time in his career. His shortest flight of 2022 was a 10-minute flight that landed in Las Vegas.
3. Jay-Z
The rapper, producer and husband of Beyonce has 136 flights in his private jet which have emitted 6,981.3 tonnes of CO2, according to Yard. Jay-Z, like Swift, is not currently on tour.
The rapper, however, has a little bit of leeway. The jet was purchased by Puma, the shoe company of which Jay-Z is creative director. The jet is treated as a perk for athletes signed to the Puma brand, according to Rolling Stone.
4. Alex Rodriguez
Baseball legend-turned-business mogul A-Rod has taken more than 100 flights so far this year. The average flight time is about 80 minutes. His flights this year have introduced more than 700 times as much CO2 as the average person will produce all year.
5. Blake Shelton
Country superstar and "the Voice" judge Blake Shelton is one of the more surprising offenders on the list. His jet has spent more than eight days in the air since January, including a couple short flights between Oklahoma and Texas. It's unclear how many of those flights also included Gwen Stefani as passenger.
6. Steven Spielberg
Hollywood director Steven Spielberg has traveled across the globe to tell unique stories and give a glimpse into how other parts of the world live. He's apparently been doing his research in person, having taken 61 flights aboard his private plane in 2022. The shortest: a 48-mile Netherlands flight from Amsterdam to Rotterdam.
7. Kim Kardashian
Kylie's older sister is the top Kardashian in ranking. Her flights (or at least, her plane's flights) have emitted 4268.5 tonnes of carbon emissions over 57 flights this year. That's 609.8 times more than the average person emits in a year, according to the study.
8. Mark Wahlberg
Marky Mark's plane is the biggest polluter in the acting community. His plane has made 101 trips this year. The shortest was a quick trip from Van Nuys to Palm Springs, which took about 30 minutes.
9. Oprah Winfrey
Flying in a private jet is apparently one of Oprah's favorite things. "Winfrey's $75 million private jet travels for an average of 81.13 minutes at a time with an average journey length of 101.26 miles," according to Yard.
One of her shortest flights was from Van Nuys to Santa Barbara, where she owns a home in Montecito. That flight was a little more than 15 minutes and produced the equivalent of one tonne of CO2.
10. Travis Scott
The "SICKO MODE" rapper is the partner of Kylie Jenner and the father of her two children. It's unclear how many times the couple have flown together, but earlier this month Jenner was criticized for sharing a photo of the couple standing on the tarmac outside their private jets with the caption: "you wanna take mine or yours?"
Scott is guilty of averaging the shortest flights of everyone on the top 10 list. His flights in 2022 average fewer than eight miles per trip. You read that correctly, eight.
Again, it's important to state that just because the celebrity owns the plane, doesn't necessarily mean they were on the flight. Renting or borrowing private jets from others is very common in the jet-setting community. And the list only accounts for celebrity planes tracked by @CelebJets, not those owned by millionaires and billionaires who are likely responsible for a lot of the emissions.
To read more about the list and the criteria used to determine the ranking, visit the report of Yard's website.


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Panoramic and Breathtaking Views of Manhattan
1 Grand Army Plaza Apt. 7D Brooklyn, NY 11238
Offered at $3,575,000
Residence 7D at 1 Grand Army Plaza is an architectural masterpiece which is situated on a prominent corner in the heart of Prospect Heights. This sun-drenched apartment is complete with floor-to-ceiling windows with panoramic and breathtaking views of Manhattan. Seamlessly laid out, this 2 bedroom (convertible 3br) home features 3 full baths, a Bosch washer/dryer, multi-zoned central A/C, and approx. 2,470 interior sq. ft. and a gorgeous north and east facing private terrace.
The large galley kitchen features generous custom cabinetry, a Sub-Zero refrigerator and wine cooler, Gaggenau cook top and oven, and a Miele dishwasher. A sliding pocket door closes off the kitchen from the entry of the home for a luxurious entrance into this oversized living room with sweeping views and natural light.
The large master-suite is fitted with an enormous walk-in closet and dressing area, eastern exposure with an entrance to the private terrace, and a meticulously designed en-suite bath equipped with a Hoesch deep-soaking tub, heated flooring, separate rain head shower, double sinks, and ample storage space. The second bedroom features large closet space and an en-suite bath. The study/or third bedroom has access to the terrace as well as is laid out to be a comfortable family room or potential third bedroom. The Richard Meier On Prospect Park is a 15 story condominium that stands in the heart of Prospect Heights and includes all the full service amenities, such as a 30,000 sq.ft. health club with a pool, a remarkable landscaped roof deck with grills, full-time doorman and concierge, on-site management, attended parking, children's playroom and media room.
At a Glance:
- Approximately 2,470 square feet of living space
- Three bedrooms
- Three full bathrooms


text: Hey sexy people! It's Monday which means it's my Friday and I want to start this weekend with a BANG if you know what I mean ;) It's another super hot day today and i'm sitting here in a pair of daisy dukes and my red bikini top. Come help me out of it and give me something to put in my mouth other than this cherry popsicle. ;)


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HTC just entered the dual-SIM android phone arena as they announced the HTC Desire V. From the first look, we can simply conclude that this will be a "better" HTC Desire C designed for the mid-high range market. Aside from the dual-SIM functionality, the device will also feature the latest Ice Cream Sandwich platform and the HTC Sense v4.0 as two of its main features.[important]UPDATE as of June 29, 2012: HTC Desire V is now available in the Philippines with a price of Php16,990. Check out the in the flesh photos and details here.[/important]
The HTC Desire V will be powered by 1GHz Cortex A5 processor and a Qualcomm MSM7227A chip. In addition to that, a 512MB RAM and Adreno 200 GPU will be mixed in for better performance. It will also flaunt a 4-inch screen display with 480×800 pixels, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v4.0 and a 5MP camera. Just like any other HTC android phone, it will be shipped with Beats Audio packed in inside the device. On top of that, it will also be given a free 25GB two-year subscription from Dropbox!
HTC Desire V Specifications and Features:
- Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich with HTC Sense v4.0
- Dual-SIM / Dual-Standby
- 4-inch Touch Screen Display with 480×800 pixels
- 1 GHz Qualcomm MSM 7227A processor
- Adreno 200 GPU
- 4GB Internal Storage ( expandable via microSD )
- Audio chip with a DSP-Beats Audio codecs
- Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Hotspot
- 3G/HSDPA 7.2Mbps
- Bluetooth v4.0
- 5 Megapixel rear camera with autofocus and LED backlight
- GPS / AGPS Support
- FM-radio
- micro-USB support
- Battery TBA
No information yet on when will the HTC Desire V be available in the Philippines but it will start to go on sale to other countries as early as July 2012. Its price is about $475 so it will be approximately Php21,000 when it hit our shores.


text: The LB series Full 2×2 High Power fiber optic switch is a polarization-maintaining fiber switch, which connects optical channels by directing or blocking an incoming optical signal into the output fiber. This is achieved using a patent pending optomechanical configuration and achieved via an electrical control signal. A latching version preserves the selected optical path after the drive signal has been removed, while the non-latching version defaults to either the open or close state when power is removed. The switch has integrated electrical position sensors. The new material-based advanced design significantly reduces moving part position sensitivity, offering unprecedented high stability as well as an unmatched low cost. An electronic driver is available for this series of switches. The switch is bidirectional


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Repairer's battle to leave Mitchell contract shows importance of documentation, fine printBy on
Business Practices | Legal | Technology
Contracts with the major estimating service providers are necessary for repair work, but it's important to be aware of the terms — particularly as the deals can span years.
The topic drew attention in April after the Society of Collision Repair Specialists reported contacting AudaExplore, CCC and Mitchell about the lack of notification before a body shop is auto-renewed.
Now, the potential end of a Washington state collision repairer's battle with Mitchell highlights why repairers should document any interactions with a counterparty and note what the shop has agreed to do in case of a dispute.
The deal
Jeff Butler, president of Haury's Lake City Collision, said he had signed up for a five-year RepairCenter contract in 2010 after being told that it would be replacing Mitchell's ABS system.
At the time, he was using CCC Pathways to generate estimates, importing them into Mitchell's business management ABS 8.1 platform and then outputting the data as invoices and estimates, according to Butler and an affidavit from his IT head at the time, Jacob Cook
At the time, Mitchell promised Butler and Cook that RepairCenter would work as ABS had done and add some new features.
But upon installation, RepairCenter didn't match ABS on one major feature, according to Cook.
I became aware of the fact that RepairCenter was missing a crucial component: the ability to print estimates without having to convert them to repair orders (invoices) beforehand. This is something every repair shop needs to do at some point, so it was puzzling to us why RepairCenter did not include this feature. Especially because (a Mitchell salesman) had promised us beforehand very clearly that it would be able to do this. We were told by the specialist as well as (the salesman) that the feature was indeed missing but that it would be delivered in an update, at most "a few months from now". (Note that many shops use their estimation software … to print initial estimates, but due to our shop's specific requirements and workflow we needed the ability to print via the management software. This was well understood by Mitchell …)
Mitchell told Haury's Collision to temporarily continue using ABS for that feature while a fix could be delivered, thereby switching what had been a two-program job into three pieces of software, according to Butler and Cook. They agreed and sought a complimentary ABS support extension because of this, but Mitchell declined, according to Cook.
As months turned into years of wrestling with this new, nonsensical "temporary" configuration, and repeated promises of updates to alleviate our ongoing problems resulted in nothing, we were very upset that Mr. Ross had misrepresented the product he was selling, and that no additional recourse could be found from the half-dozen other Mitchell employees we dealt with over that period of time. We had interacted with regional Mitchell employees as well as managers and executives at Mitchell's head office, but none were willing to address our concerns in a substantive manner.
Butler said the shop had grown accustomed to the work-around, adding more workstations and increasing the user license, but "I'm not happy."
About three years into the five-year contract, he asked to be let out on the grounds of "I was told it did X, and it doesn't."
And that's where he says the battle began.
"Bad on me for not just ending this sooner," he said.
Mitchell spokeswoman Adrianne Buchta of Lewis PR said Wednesday a search of the company's records don't show the kind of grievances Haury's alleged.
"There's no major technical issues that were identified," she said. She pointed to Butler's request to increase the number of users from seven to nine.
"Clearly, things were going well," she said.
However, she didn't know if complaints to Mitchell parties other than customer service (for example, a salesman) would have been recorded in the system. Butler said he went "up the food chain" and provided Repairer Driven News with what he said was correspondence with Mitchell.
"My assumption there would be some sort of paper trail," she said.
After three years with apparently no issues indicated on Mitchell's records, Haury's tried to exit the contract, Buchta said.
"Mitchell had worked with them to reach a resolution," she said. Ultimately, the file shows the two companies have "resolved the dispute."
The battle
Mitchell's limited records provide a much milder version of the argument, according to Butler.
Though "the vendors'll usually let you out" of an unworkable contract, Mitchell wouldn't budge.
"They just said no, and then I started filing complaints," he said.
Mitchell ultimately sent him to a collection attorney who issued a "pay this or we're going to sue you" ultimatum followed by an offer to make a settlement offer, according to Butler.
Butler said that he was then given the option to make a settlement offer and told that should he desire legal action over the contract dispute, "Are you aware that you have to sue us in California?"
After calculating attorney's fees, Butler said he offered to pay $2,500 to settle the matter. Mitchell wanted about $11,000, he said.
Mitchell counteroffered $5,500, which Butler rejected.
"At this point, it's just principle," he said.
On May 20, the day after we first talked to Butler and called Mitchell for comment, they agreed to the $2,500 but wanted Butler to sign a confidentiality agreement. That might explain the resolution shown from Mitchell's records.
Butler on Wednesday said he was considering accepting the $2,500. Initially, he wasn't sure about the confidentiality component, though he grew more adamant later in the interview (which he observed wouldn't have been covered by a subsequent deal anyway).
"I have no intention of signing a confidentiality agreement," he said. "… I want people to know. I want people to know what happened."
On Thursday, Mitchell confirmed the dispute had been settled.
Advice for repairers
Butler advised any repairers to check with the Better Business Bureau and attorney general's office for complaints against a potential vendor. In this case, there were no attorney general complaints about Mitchell, but "some of this sounds familiar" on the BBB website, he said.
He urged auto body shop owners to "read the contract." And in a situation like Mitchell requiring legal action in its home state of California, "either negotiate better terms" or don't do business with a party who makes it difficult for you to seek redress.
"They set it up against you," he said.
Butler gave the example of a CCC product which didn't perform as expected, and CCC's response was: "We're prepared to let you out of the contract if that's what you need."
"That was a real partnership," he said. "… (Mitchell) handled themselves like an insurance company."


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About Vibes
Vibes represents a fresh approach to everyday jewelry, offering handcrafted stylish and eye-catching designs that inspire you to feel empowered, beautiful and confident.
Created, designed and operated by our founder Alexandra Reed, Vibes presents a jewelry line celebrating what brings the best in you, inspiring you to enjoy life, your own inner beauty, and to surround yourself with beautiful things. Because you deserve it!
Featured Collection


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Watching The Ashes with Dad
I didn't cry very much when my dad died. There was just too much to do, too many other people to support. I was devastated, but it was the type of tragedy that required resilience and pragmatism, not reflection and melancholy.
I've certainly always missed him over the past almost twenty years and I've tried to live up to his rigid sense of fair play. If I've ever shirked a responsibility or taken the easier (but wrong) path it is always to him that I apologise. And that acknowledgement has always made me think and act differently next time a similar situation arises.
Today, however, while watching the morning session of the Headingley Test match I made up for my lack of tears by imagining what it would have been like had I been able to share the experience with my dad.
The story of the match has led to an exciting conclusion today and my better half is at work all day. I might have rung him up last night and invited him down to watch England snatch an improbable victory from the Aussies.
And so, there we would have sat watching the action in a definition that dad could have hardly dreamed about. He would have loved the recent technologies, Hawkeye, Edge Detection, HotSpot, Ball Spin and all the statistics that come with them. He would have despaired at the Decision Review System which leads to a seeming fallibility of modern umpires. Cricket, like my dad, has always been a solid mix of the traditional and the innovative.
There wouldn't have been any long conversations, just the occasional observation or recounting of an old story. The most repeated phrases would have been familiar two words, "Good shot", "Well left", or in extreme circumstances, "What a shot, ball, catch…" We might have argued about who the best players were, but this would have come down to their work ethic and determination rather than talent.
We would have shared every laugh and cheer though. And this is what has made the day so poignant. At the time of writing Jofra Archer has been caught in the deep so England now require 73 with only two wickets remaining, so a famous victory is unlikely.
Now, perhaps, we would have talked about more personal things. He'd ask about work, about the kids, about everything. I hope he would have been proud of me. I'd like to think he can rest peacefully.


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We present our "SEASON 2" collection through live visuals. This runway production offers a pleasing aesthetic that captures the essence of GREAT and in addition to the fashion show the production includes an all original music score done by Justin Great himself.
SEASON 2 Available: http://shop.justingreat.com
Directed/Music/Edit by: Justin Great
Stream Score Here: http://bit.ly/2DJe0a4


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AMC has posted ten screenshots from the upcoming season 3 premiere of The Walking Dead which you can see below.
In an uncertain world, Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his band of survivors must not only fight the dead, but also face a whole new fear: the living. A 16 episode season, the series will air in two parts with the first eight hours kicking off on October 14 and returning February 2013 with the final eight episodes.
Based on the comic book series written by Robert Kirkman and published by Image Comics, The Walking Dead stars Lincoln, Sarah Wayne Callies, Laurie Holden, Steven Yeun, Norman Reedus, Chandler Riggs, Lauren Cohan, Scott Wilson, IronE Singleton, Melissa McBride, David Morrissey and Danai Gurira. The series is executive produced by Glen Mazzara, Kirkman, Gale Anne Hurd and David Alpert with Greg Nicotero as co-executive producer.


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What happens in a society when violent killings escalate to the point of becoming commonplace?
Reports of killings that defy understanding occupy an alarmingly prominent place almost daily in the news. "Every corner of our land is in the grip of terror fueled by anger, hatred and mental illness, and made possible by plentiful, powerful weapons," Chicago's Archbishop Blase J. Cupich remarked in July.
Well-known recent killings in the U.S. took the lives both of law enforcement officers and African-American citizens, and sparked racial unrest. The killings signaled that all is not well in society.
The same is true of the violence perpetrated by those claiming to act in Islam's name, which at times paves the way to anger directed at other, entirely nonviolent Muslims.
These are among signs of the need to devote attention to the common good and what living together in the public square requires.
"The common good is about how to live well together. It is the whole network of social conditions which enable human individuals and groups to flourish and live a full, genuinely human life," the British Catholic bishops have explained.
Countless issues in the public square challenge citizens in this regard. People are divided by convictions related to care for the elderly, the unborn, immigrants, capital punishment, the poor, just wages or health care.
Notably, each of those issues commands attention among Christians as a moral matter.
But that brief list includes only a few of the issues that prompt citizens to wonder whether it genuinely is possible to live interdependently and respectfully alongside others with whom they may disagree on important matters.
The difficulty of living well together leads some to participate minimally in society. Fear and anger partly explain why they do not fully engage life in the public square.
A sense of futility is felt by others — the sense that their voices go unheard in the public square and, perhaps, that even their vote doesn't really count.
But "we are not created for futility," said the British bishops. "At the heart of the common good," they insisted, "solidarity acknowledges that all are responsible for all, not only as individuals but collectively at every level."
When clear signs indicate that people are not living all that well together in a society, an alarm begins to sound repeatedly. Leaders of communities that fulfill essential roles in people's lives speak out. Pay close attention to the state of society, they urge.
The time has arrived, Archbishop Cupich suggested, "to learn what unites us and put aside what divides us." It is necessary, he said, that hearts and minds change.
In light of recent killings and current racial tensions, he encouraged citizens to assemble and "keep assembling until our leaders have the courage to take the actions that will make these tragedies less likely."
Some would characterize the archbishop's words as a call to faithful citizenship — a call to participate actively and effectively in the public square.
The role they should fulfill in the public square has challenged and perplexed Christians since the time of the church's birth. They always asked how it is possible both to serve God faithfully and look forward to a life to come, while committing themselves to make the world here and now a better place.
But if Christians are citizens of a world to come, they are citizens of this world too — citizens whose faith certainly can help to influence and shape society's well-being.
Thus, many Catholic leaders today are proposing a question to people of faith that goes something like this: What does it mean at this difficult moment in time to serve society as followers of a Lord known for his love and recognized clearly as a healer?
One risk for Christians is that they, like many others, will become desensitized by frequent reports of violence and, in effect, begin to ignore them.
Atlanta Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory expressed this concern in August, mentioning recent "brutal killings of persons of color, of police and first responders, of innocent bystanders, or members of the LGBTQ community in clubs, young students in schools, shoppers in malls and folks just watching a movie at a cinema."
Catholic faith and love of country "compel us to resolve to address the issues that lie beneath these acts," he wrote. But "a disservice" is done if we are not seriously resolved "to address the roots of violence."
Church leaders stress that resolving these kinds of issues demands commitment to the common good, which, in turn, demands respect for every person's human dignity.
Pope Francis mentioned the common good five times when he addressed the U.S. Congress in September 2015.
With the common good in mind, he exhorted legislators to "treat others with the same passion and compassion with which we want to be treated," to "seek for others the same possibilities we seek for ourselves" and to "help others to grow as we would like to be helped ourselves."
(Gibson served on Catholic News Service's editorial staff for 37 years.)
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Hey Y'all!
First of all, let me say thank you for all the love on my last video and post. If you missed, I chatted about my Weight Loss Journey and how much weight I've lost in one year. Definitely check it out.
Well, I'm back because the response was so amazing that I wanted to start sharing more of my workouts routines with you. If you follow me on Instagram on my fitness page then you see a lot of my morning workouts, but just in case you don't follow me over there , although you should I wanted to make sure you get the same love too!
I enjoy working out early morning but the bad part about that is, I live on the second floor in my apartment building and I'm sure the neighbors would hate me if I start jumping around at 5am. So, most of my workouts are low impact, no jumping and burns 500 calories or more.
This Resistance Band Glute Workout is everything!!! You will feel it burn and get your heart rate up while burning a lot calories. The resistance bands that use are from Amazon and they are durable. They do roll down a little while working out but I've had some in the past that way worse, so I'm happy.
So let's get into this workout. I've listed the routine below or you can CLICK HERE to go directly to the video!
- Banded Lateral Side Walk – 20 x 2
- Banded Cha Cha's 20 x 2
- Banded Hip Abductions 20 x 2
- Banded Pulse Squats 15 x 2
- Banded Side Leg Lifts 20 each side x 2
- Banded Clamshells 15 each side x 2
- Banded Glute ISO Hold 30 seconds
- Banded Donkey Kicks 20 each leg x 2
- Banded Fire Hydrants 20 each leg x 2
Give this routine a try and drop me comment or tag me in your video using #ThisCurvyGirlsFitness!


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Safe and Healthy Crowded Places
Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience. (2018). Safe and Healthy Crowded Places.
This handbook can be used by major event planners to ensure staff and attendee site safety and public health. Chapter 8 focuses on emergency medical services, and Chapter 9 discusses planning and responding to hostile acts.
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History repeated is relatively new and it is THE BEST book of pieced quilts that I have ever seen. Quite a few projects in there that I will make. If you haven't got it, trust me , you need it.
What have I been doing? Well working on block 2 of Imperial Blooms
A wall of little quilts - I'm sure Kathie would have swooned!
A real beauty made by our Meghan.


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4 must-haves to help your rebranding resonate
Decided it's time to change up your look?
The decision to rebrand is often a complicated one. Does your company need a logo facelift? Brand identity tweaks to reach a new market? Or a reputation overhaul complete with a brand new identity?
Companies small and large rebrand for many reasons, but often it's a shift in management or direction. Your company may have evolved beyond your current brand. Perhaps your vision has grown or changed over time or you need to leave mistakes in your past.
One thing's for sure: when you rebrand, it entails a great deal of time, effort and strategy. It's not a choice to take lightly.
Using outdated printed materials, hanging on to old designs, and sticking to signs that don't capture your brand's new image and personality? That's a recipe for a rebrand fail. Rebranding entails more than simply updating your website or designing a new logo. In fact, your entire team should be embracing your new brand identity so it really resonates with your customers, too.
Be sure these four rebranding must-haves are part of your rebranding checklist to ensure your new brand resonates.
- Business Cards
Even if your address hasn't changed, updating your business cards to reflect your new brand is vitally important. For every 2000 business cards handed out, businesses see a 2.5% increase in sales. Clients hold on to color business cards 10 times longer than standard white business cards, while 78% of customers deem color business cards more memorable. So, investing in a quality updated set of printed business cards should become a top priority when you rebrand.
- Letterhead & Envelopes
In the days of email and digital correspondence, you may wonder if letterhead is still a necessary investment. Turns out, direct mail is still king when it comes to reaching your customers and getting a response. Many consumers — 41% –report they look forward to checking their physical mail each day. Letterhead is a necessary part of the process and using eye-catching letterhead will really help your brand resonate with your target audience.
- Brochures & Printed Literature
If your business uses collateral brochures, sell-sheets and pocket folders to showcase your products or services, don't forget to include these printed materials in the rebrand. Don't simply stick a new logo sticker over your old materials. Use your rebrand as an opportunity to really examine and update your message. Rebranding is about so much more than using new logos and colors: it's about crafting a new voice. It's vital your marketing materials reflect who you are.
So many important components go into your printed materials. They should be well-designed, showcase your unique advantage to your customers, convey your quality, credibility and the values of your company. If you need assistance crafting a new message, our creative design team will work closely with you to produce quality brochures, sell-sheets, pocket folders and other materials that connect.
- Team Mindset
One of the biggest roadblocks to getting your rebranding to work? The mindset of your team. It's tough to change old habits, but from day one of your rebrand, your team should be using the new company name, logo and identity. You must walk the walk of your new brand—and that requires a cultural shift within your entire team.
Get your team excited about the "new you" by explaining the meaning and larger vision behind your rebranding. Give them extra materials emblazoned with your new logo to make the rollout an exciting chance to rally and foster team pride. A lackluster attitude about your new brand can thwart the change, so keep your team enthused by including them every step of the way as you embark on the exciting new horizon for your company.
Rebranding is a big process. If you're ready to do it right, we're here to help. We'll assist you with crafting the perfect new message and creating stand-out printed materials to showcase your new identity. Boost your rebranding's staying power with Heritage Printing in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.