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—PacWest to pay $8.00 per share for FCAL common stock or approximately $231 million in aggregate to FCAL stockholders —
— Acquisition of First California to add nearly $2.0 billion in assets to PacWest —
— Two valuable franchises combine to create the eighth largest publicly-owned bank headquartered in California —
LOS ANGELES and WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., Nov. 6, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PacWest Bancorp (Nasdaq:PACW) and First California Financial Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:FCAL) today announced the signing of a definitive agreement and plan of merger whereby PacWest will acquire First California for $8.00 per First California common share, or approximately $231 million in aggregate consideration, payable in PacWest common stock.
First California, headquartered in Westlake Village, California, is the parent of First California Bank and had approximately $2.0 billion in assets and 15 branches across Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo and Ventura Counties at September 30, 2012. In connection with the acquisition, First California Bank will be merged into Pacific Western Bank, the Los Angeles-based wholly-owned subsidiary of PacWest Bancorp.
Directors of PacWest and of First California unanimously approved the transaction. Two independent directors from the board of directors of First California will join PacWest's board of directors upon completion of the acquisition.
The transaction, currently expected to close late in the first quarter of 2013, is subject to customary conditions, including the approval of bank regulatory authorities and the stockholders of both companies. Stockholders of First California, including all current directors and certain other stockholders, owning or controlling approximately 22% in the aggregate of the currently outstanding shares of First California, have agreed to vote in favor of the transaction.
As of September 30, 2012, on a pro forma consolidated basis with First California, PacWest would have had approximately $7.5 billion in assets with 81 branches throughout California. The combined institution would be the eighth largest publicly-owned bank headquartered in California, and the 12th largest commercial bank headquartered in California (out of more than 240 financial institutions).
Pursuant to the terms of the definitive agreement, First California shareholders will receive PacWest common stock for their shares of First California common stock in a tax-free transaction. First California in-the-money option holders will receive cash, net of applicable taxes withheld, for the value of their unexercised stock options.
The number of shares of PacWest common stock deliverable for each share of First California common stock will be determined based on an average price of PacWest common stock over a measuring period prior to the receipt of regulatory approval, and will fluctuate if such average price is between $20.00 and $27.00 and will be fixed if such average price is below $20.00 or above $27.00. Based on PacWest's closing stock price of $22.27 on Monday, November 5, 2012, First California stockholders would have received 0.3592 of a share of PacWest common stock for each share of First California common stock, which would provide First California stockholders with aggregate ownership, on a pro forma basis, of approximately 22.4% of the common stock of the combined company.
The holders of 100% of the outstanding shares of First California Series A preferred stock have agreed to convert their shares into common stock, per the terms of the series of preferred stock, and have the resulting common stock exchanged in the transaction. PacWest and First California expect to redeem First California's outstanding Series C preferred stock for cash in accordance with its terms immediately prior to the closing of the transaction.
Matt Wagner, Chief Executive Officer of PacWest Bancorp and Chairman and CEO of Pacific Western Bank, commented, "We are very pleased to have reached this agreement with First California. The merger of these two organizations will create a valuable franchise for the stockholders of both companies, and meaningfully enhance the presence of the combined organization throughout California."
C. G. Kum, First California's President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "First California is proud of what it has built since its inception in 1979. As a result of this transaction, two premier organizations will come together to create one of the leading commercial banks headquartered in Los Angeles, with more than $7.5 billion in assets. The combined bank will continue to offer the same dedication and high quality service both institutions are known for, while providing customers with an even greater array of products and higher lending limits. We also believe this transaction provides opportunity for future shareholder value."
Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc. acted as financial advisor to First California in the transaction and delivered a fairness opinion to the Board of Directors of First California. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, LLP served as legal counsel to First California. Castle Creek Financial acted as financial advisor to PacWest, and Sandler O'Neill + Partners, L.P. delivered a fairness opinion to the Board of PacWest. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz served as legal counsel to PacWest.
PacWest Bancorp ("PacWest") is a bank holding company with $5.5 billion in assets as of September 30, 2012, with one wholly-owned banking subsidiary, Pacific Western Bank ("Pacific Western"). Through 66 full-service community banking branches, Pacific Western provides commercial banking services, including real estate, construction and commercial loans, to small and medium-sized businesses. Pacific Western's branches are located throughout California in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, San Diego, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo and Ventura Counties. Through its subsidiaries, BFI Business Finance and Celtic Capital Corporation, and its divisions, First Community Financial and Pacific Western Equipment Finance, Pacific Western also provides working capital financing and equipment leasing to growing companies located throughout the United States, with a focus on the Southwestern U.S., primarily in Arizona, California, Utah and Texas. Additional information regarding PacWest Bancorp is available on the Internet at www.pacwestbancorp.com. Information regarding Pacific Western Bank is also available on the Internet at www.pacificwesternbank.com.
First California Financial Group, Inc. is the holding company of First California Bank. Founded in 1979 and with nearly $2 billion in assets, First California serves the comprehensive financial needs of small- and middle-sized businesses and high net worth individuals throughout Southern California. Led by an experienced team of bankers, First California is committed to providing the best client service available in its markets, offering a full line of quality commercial banking products through 15 full-service branch offices in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo and Ventura counties. The holding company's website can be accessed at www.fcalgroup.com. For additional information on First California Bank's products and services, visit www.fcbank.com.
This press release contains certain forward-looking information about PacWest Bancorp, First California Financial Group, and the combined company after the close of the transaction that is intended to be covered by the safe harbor for "forward-looking statements" provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Such statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and are generally beyond the control of PacWest, First California and the combined company. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and we assume no duty to update such statements. We caution readers that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, such forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties for each institution and the combined institution include, but are not limited to: lower than expected revenues; credit quality deterioration or a reduction in real estate values could cause an increase in the allowance for credit losses and a reduction in net earnings; increased competitive pressure among depository institutions; the ability to complete the proposed acquisition, including obtaining regulatory approvals and approval by the stockholders of PacWest and First California, or any future acquisition, successfully integrate such acquired entities, or achieve expected beneficial synergies and/or operating efficiencies, in each case within expected time-frames or at all; regulatory approvals may not be received on expected timeframes or at all; settlements with the FDIC related to loss-sharing arrangements; the possibility that personnel changes will not proceed as planned; the cost of additional capital is more than expected; a change in the interest rate environment reduces net interest margins; asset/liability re-pricing risks and liquidity risks; pending legal matters may take longer or cost more to resolve or may be resolved adversely; general economic conditions, either nationally or in the market areas in which the entities operate or anticipate doing business, are less favorable than expected; and environmental conditions, including natural disasters, may disrupt business, impede operations, or negatively impact the values of collateral securing loans.
Investors and security holders are urged to carefully review and consider each of PacWest Bancorp's and First California Financial Group's public filings with the SEC, including but not limited to their Annual Reports on Form 10-K, their proxy statements, and their Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The documents filed by PacWest with the SEC may be obtained free of charge at PacWest's website at www.pacwestbancorp.com or at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. These documents may also be obtained free of charge from PacWest by requesting them in writing to PacWest Bancorp, c/o Pacific Western Bank, 275 North Brea Boulevard, Brea, CA 92821; Attention: Investor Relations, or by telephone at (714) 671-6800.
The documents filed by First California with the SEC may be obtained free of charge at First California's website at www.fcalgroup.com or at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. These documents may also be obtained free of charge from First California by requesting them in writing to First California Financial Group Inc., 3027 Townsgate Road, Suite 300, Westlake Village, California 91361, Attention: Investor Relations, or by telephone at Phone: (805) 322-9655.
This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or a solicitation of any vote or approval. PacWest Bancorp and First California intend to file a registration statement including a joint proxy statement/prospectus and other documents regarding the proposed acquisition with the SEC. Before making any voting or investment decision, investors and security holders of either First California or PacWest Bancorp are urged to carefully read the entire registration statement and joint proxy statement/prospectus, when they become available, as well as any amendments or supplements to these documents, because they will contain important information about the proposed acquisition. A definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus will be sent to the stockholders of each institution seeking any required stockholder approvals. Investors and security holders will be able to obtain the registration statement and the joint proxy statement/prospectus free of charge from PacWest or First California by writing to the addresses provided for each company set forth in the paragraphs above.
PacWest, its directors, executive officers and certain other persons may be soliciting proxies from PacWest Bancorp stockholders in favor of the approval of the acquisition. Information about the directors and executive officers of PacWest and their ownership of PacWest common stock is set forth in the proxy statement for PacWest's 2012 annual meeting of stockholders, as previously filed with the SEC. Stockholders may obtain additional information regarding the interests of such participants by reading the registration statement and the joint proxy statement/prospectus when they become available.
First California, its directors, executive officers and certain other persons may be soliciting proxies from First California Financial Group stockholders in favor of the approval of the acquisition. Information about the directors and executive officers of First California and their ownership of First California common stock is set forth in the proxy statement for First California's 2012 annual meeting of stockholders, as previously filed with the SEC. Stockholders may obtain additional information regarding the interests of such participants by reading the registration statement and the joint proxy statement/prospectus when they become available.
Contacts: PacWest Bancorp 10250 Constellation Blvd., Suite 1640 Los Angeles, CA 90067 Contacts: Matthew P. Wagner Chief Executive Officer (310) 728-1020 Victor R. Santoro Executive Vice President and CFO (310) 728-1021 First California Financial Group, Inc. 3027 Townsgate Road, Suite 300 Westlake Village, CA 91361 Contacts: C. G. Kum President and Chief Executive Officer (805) 322-9308 Romolo C. Santarosa Sr. Executive Vice President and COO/CFO (805) 322-9333Source:PacWest Bancorp


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T.I. On First Take: Talks Kobe Praising LA Clippers!
"Rapper T.I. visits First Take and debates Skip on Kobe's comments about the Clippers" - ESPN
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Epic Glass Shattered Intro
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The Town Meeting held here on March 13 was the 244th such meeting of Madbury residents and the 148th held in the present Town Hall, according to Town Moderator Richard Houghton. The $1,187,398 budget for general municipal operations was accepted unanimously.
Nine articles adding to or creating and funding Capital Reserve Funds were approved, with only two garnering any "nay" votes. Those were for adding to the existing "Purchase of Property and/or Easements" and for adding to the library building fund.
Two representatives from the Oyster River Youth Association explained that group's need for playing fields and their plan to double the playing area at Tibbetts Field. Mike Rogers is Madbury's rep on the ORYA board; Nic Scuderi oversees the group's operations. Their presentation elicited but few questions and the meeting, when the moderator called for "a sense of the meeting" was unanimous in its acceptance of the proposed project.
Under Article 16, Chuck Goss, president of the historical society, invited all to the April 10 meeting of the society, when Jeff Bolster will speak about "When Shipping Was King: the Piscataqua Region in Colonial America."
Nancy Pape invited those interested to a Madbury Day planning meeting at the library at 10 a.m. on March 20.
Eric Fiegenbaum reported that water testing for VOCs is being planned for this summer.
Noreen Gaetjens reminded everyone that it's time to clean up the roadsides.
Town Clerk Kitty Cornwell called the volunteer spirit in town "remarkable" and urged others to join in, by calling her or the town office to volunteer. "There are all kinds of jobs that need doing!"
The moderator assured the meeting that the photos in the Town Report of town line markers are correct as presented in the report — they appear to be mirror-imaged.
There were no contests for town offices, so there was no anxiety about the ballot-counting results. Many people stayed after the meeting ended, enjoying visiting with a cookie and cider in hand.
At their Marcn 9 meeting, the selectmen decided which gravel pit owners will be invited in to discuss their plans this spring. It was reported that the culvert near the Route 155 railroad bridge was to be cleared again and that the beaver problem in that area is being monitored. Conservation Commission chairman Eric Fiegenbaum was in to discuss a prospective land conservation project. A.J.Hartford was in to discuss extensive work which he was directed to do at the ballfield. The selectmen will not meet on Friday, March 23.
March 26: a representative from Senator Kelly Ayotte's office will be at the Town Hall from 11:30 to 12:30 to hear from constituents.
April 4: The Planning Board will consider the application of William and C.Jeanne Shaheen for a lot line adjustment to their property at 73 Perkins Road, at 7 p.m. in the Town Hall.
General municipal operations budget accepted by Madbury Town Meeting
The Town Meeting held here on March 13 was the 244th such meeting of Madbury residents and the 148th held in the present Town Hall, according to Town Moderator Richard Houghton. The $1,187,398 budget for general municipal operations was accepted unanimously.


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DNA match confirmed
DNA from remains found in Caldwell County match Zahra Baker's personal items.
Hickory Police received results from the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation lab stating DNA evidence from bones found near the creek area on Dudley Shoals Road matched a DNA sample taken from the home on 21st Avenue Northwest. The sample from the home was taken from personal items believed to be Zahra's.
HPD is still waiting on a DNA profile for Zahra that will be created from cheek swabs collected from her biological mother and father.
Hickory Police said in a press release the case is still considered an active investigation.
Continue to check The O-N-E as news develops in the Zahra Baker case.


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waterproofing San Antonio
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All prices are in All prices are in USD
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A roll of 10 inch x 10 yds of Lavender/Turquoise/Pink Wide Stripe Deco Mesh. Use to add an additional color to wreaths or garland, wrap gifts, and make bows!
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nothing like a little shopping therapy to soothe a girl's soul. …
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Find out how much additional yield per installed kWp you can achieve with the Sunmodule Bisun protect. CALCULATE NOW!
Our quality standards for our modules go far beyond the defined standards, ensuring that your solar power system delivers high yields for decades. Read more here.
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High-performance modules with top quality "Made in Germany": that is the aim of SolarWorld. Find out more about our company.


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6:00 pm
Assassination: Idaho's Trial of the Century A dream team of famous attorneys converge on an Idaho courtroom in 1907. Idaho's best lawyers - James Hawley and William Borah - matched wits with Chicago's Clarence Darrow and Denver's Edmund Richardson. Re-enactment actors and extras, researchers, crew and others bring more than 200 Idahoans into this project to chronicle the trial of "Big Bill" Haywood, accused of masterminding former Gov. Frank Steunenburg's assassination.G
7:00 pm
Outdoor Idaho "Adventure Racing" The Funtastics Adventure Racing Team of Coeur d'Alene joins fellow adrenaline-seekers who take part in Adventure Sports Week at Farragut State Park. The two-day competition offers 63 miles of biking, 22 miles of running, 19 miles of kayaking, and a swim across a bay on Lake Pend Oreille.G
7:30 pm
Oregon Field Guide "Diving for Science" Science divers brave hostile waters & see a world of life and beauty off the Oregon coast. Each spring, Portlanders are treated to a spectacular display of Yoshino cherry blossoms.G
8:00 pm
Live From Lincoln Center "Kristin Chenoweth: The Dames of Broadway? All of 'em!" Part of Lincoln Center's 2013 American Songbook series, the Emmy- and Tony Award-winning actress and singer salutes the great roles for leading ladies and sidekick scene stealers. She sings songs from an array of Broadway composers and lyricists.G
9:00 pm
Masterpiece Contemporary "The Song of Lunch" A failed writer and poet (Alan Rickman) meets the woman who is his former lover (Emma Thompson) now happily married to a successful novelist. They meet at a restaurant, an old haunt in Soho, 15 years after their relationship ended. This quiet drama is framed by a poem (The Song of Lunch by Christopher Reid) as the complexities of their former relationship emerge during drinks, food and talk.G
10:00 pm
POV "Girl Model" This character-driven story about Ashley Arbaugh, a model-turned-scout, follows Arbaugh to Siberia and a model audition. But when Nadya Vall, a 13-year-old Siberian girl, is chosen to go to Japan to become a model, she finds a reality that is shorn of glamor.G
11:30 pm
Finding Kalman A Holocaust survivor inspires her family to connect to relatives they never met. Focusing on her brother, Kalman, Anna recounts tales of a mischievous boy who tried to escape the Warsaw ghetto with her. Her daughter, an artist, devours the stories and paints his portrait over and over again.G


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T-Mobile today has officially unveiled the Samsung Galaxy Light. This announcement arrives as a welcome addition into the already immesureable Samsung Galaxy series.
Previously we had seen rumors that hinted the arrival of this device; popular source evleaks had also revealed this handset via Twitter dubbed as the "Garda". The device shows up as an entry level Android Smartphone which runs on Android 4.2.2. Based on the technical specs, the device possesses the same specs as the Galaxy S3 Mini. It is powered by 1.4GHz quad-core processor, which is regarded to be a Snapdragon 200/400 chip for facilitating LTE support. Continue reading


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Choosing the Right Law School / Chemistry Majors Chances« on: February 07, 2004, 02:28:08 PM »
Well its like this my cumulative GPA is not so hot ~2.8. Im wondering how much if any the difficulty of my degree will be taken into account. I graduated from U of A, which is ranked liked 4th in the nation for chemistry. My LSAT score being a 160, what are my chances for some tier 2 schools? I hoping that since my score represents the mid 80 %ile it will take precedence over my gpa. If anyone is wondering why someone with a chem. major is applying to law school, its because Im interested in patent law.


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The Lodge Cast Iron Cookbook
The new Lodge Cast Iron Cookbook is a treat for anyone who owns a cast iron skillet — it will make you look at your classic old skillet with new appreciation, pondering all the delicious things you can do with it.
The Lodge Cast Iron Cookbook is focused mostly on simple American-inspired recipes like pancakes, roast chicken, and cobbler, with some fresh twists inspired by other cuisines. As such, it's a great place for new cooks and new cast iron pan-owners to get inspiration and help for using their fabulous new pan.
Quick Facts
• Who wrote it: Compiled and edited by Pam Hoenig.
• Who published it: Oxmoor House
• Number of recipes: About 200, with 200 photographs.
• Recipes for right now: Seasonal Breakfast Frittatas, Chicken with Artichoke Hearts, Olives, and Capers; Blushing Drop Biscuits.
• Other highlights: So many photographs! This cookbook is warmly photographed, with lavish amounts of photos, and a helpful look at the recipes and the cast iron that inspired them.
• Who would enjoy this book? Anyone who just bought a cast iron skillet and wants a little help caring for and using it.
Find the book at your local library, independent bookstore, or Amazon: The Lodge Cast Iron Cookbook: A Treasury of Timeless, Delicious Recipes
Related: How To Clean a Cast Iron Skillet
(Images: Faith Durand)


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About a year ago, I wrote about Delhi High Court's exemplary verdict that disposed off the charges against M F Husain; I cherished each and every word of Justice Kaul's verdict that emphasized the importance of tolerance in a free and democratic society.
M F Husain, who was once called the Picasso of India by Forbes magazine, has now given up on India and embraced Qatar. Thanks to the game of competitive intolerance in India, he has now become the Picasso of Qatar.
Many newspaper articles and blogs are written about this – some endorsing, some condemning – but the best article that I came across is from Salil Tripathi (link). Here's an excerpt:
And this is how it ends. This is how India loses one of its own.
Maqbool Fida Husain, born in Pandharpur, Maharashtra, before there was an independent India, is no longer ours. After a decade in which he faced arrest warrants and was threatened, his canvases defaced, his family harassed, his property attached, his personality ridiculed, art galleries showing his art attacked, and his art deliberately and disingenuously mischaracterized, he has decided that it is enough.
For those who argue that Qatar is not a democracy and Husain has become a laughingstock for choosing a country that's light-years behind India in terms of human rights protection, here's what Tripathi says: "Qatar's record on free speech is not relevant; India's is. And it is for Indians to reflect on why India's most widely known painter feels safer in Doha than in Mumbai."
I couldn't agree more!
Husain felt unsafe: He spent his summers in London, winters in Dubai. He apologized; he explained; he clarified. But nothing was enough for his detractors. Indian ambassadors abroad praised him, while police officers at home prepared arrest warrants. Courts threw the cases out and defended art, but the state dragged its feet. Some officials said the state would protect him, but Husain did not feel safe—to think, imagine and create, in peace.
And so he left.
And the saddest part of all is that this is no longer about Husain. Just look around and you'll see many examples of people taking offense and often retorting violently (Taslima Nasreen, Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad, Sachin Tendulkar, Shah Rukh Khan are some of the recent victims of competitive intolerance), and such events are gaining momentum and earning a wider ideological support.
The end-note on Salil Tripathi's article reads:
Maqbool Fida Husain was Indian. India made him a foreigner.
I deeply regret this loss, and being an Indian I want to apologize to this great painter and expatriate who still talks proudly about his Indian-ness, expresses regrets if he had offended anyone, and blames the politicians – not Indians in general – for his exile.
And while on the subject of 'taking offense', here's today's comic strip from Jesus and Mo:


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David Hamid becomes new GAME exec chairman
The former joint COO of Dixons, David Hamid, will become GAME's new executive chairman, MCV understands.
Hamid's former employers include MFI (chairman), Halfords (CEO), Nationwide Auto Centres (chairman) and Russian retailer Mvideo (deputy chairman).
He is also an operating partner of OpCapita's.
OpCapita's Henry Jackson will also be involved in the new team.
MCV has also been told that the hunt is on for a new CEO to replace the now departed Ian Shepherd.
Interestingly, OpCapita's initial bid would have seen Shepherd remain at the company, but as GAME's status changed so did the parameters of OpCapita's bid.
It now intends to put a new management team in place to facilitate the programme of operational change that is needed... [for] the challenge of restoring GAME's fortunes in partnership with its employees and suppliers".


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20 U.S. Code § 1070a–17 - Staff development activities
prev | next
(a) Secretary's authority
For the purpose of improving the operation of the programs and projects authorized by this division, the Secretary is authorized to make grants to institutions of higher education and other public and private nonprofit institutions and organizations to provide training for staff and leadership personnel employed in, participating in, or preparing for employment in, such programs and projects.
(b) Contents of training programs
Such training shall include conferences, internships, seminars, workshops, and the publication of manuals designed to improve the operation of such programs and projects and shall be carried out in the various regions of the Nation in order to ensure that the training opportunities are appropriate to meet the needs in the local areas being served by such programs and projects. Such training shall be offered annually for new directors of projects funded under this division as well as annually on the following topics and other topics chosen by the Secretary:
(1) Legislative and regulatory requirements for the operation of programs funded under this division.
(2) Assisting students in receiving adequate financial aid from programs assisted under this subchapter and part C of subchapter I of chapter 34 of title 42 and other programs.
(4) The use of appropriate educational technology in the operation of projects assisted under this division.
(5) Strategies for recruiting and serving hard to reach populations, including students who are limited English proficient, students from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, students with disabilities, students who are homeless children and youths (as such term is defined in section 11434a of title 42), students who are in foster care or are aging out of the foster care system, or other disconnected students.
Source(Pub. L. 89–329, title IV, § 402G, as added Pub. L. 102–325, title IV, § 402(a)(4),July 23, 1992, 106 Stat. 491; amended Pub. L. 105–244, title IV, § 402(f),Oct. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1655; Pub. L. 110–315, title IV, § 403(g),Aug. 14, 2008, 122 Stat. 3204.)
2008—Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 110–315added par. (5).
1998—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 105–244, § 402(f)(1), inserted "participating in," after "leadership personnel employed in,".
Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 105–244, § 402(f)(2), added par. (4).
Effective Date of 1998 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 105–244effective Oct. 1, 1998, except as otherwise provided in Pub. L. 105–244, see section 3 ofPub. L. 105–244, set out as a note under section 1001 of this title.
LII has no control over and does not endorse any external Internet site that contains links to or references LII.


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hello everyone,
i have created a registration form in php,which after registration sends an email to the users mail-id.
but the thing is i dont know what all server settings are needed for doing this,i have my outlook configured to send n recieve mails.
what should i do to send mail.


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Chaderotti wrote:How much Placebo did you have in the morning Scuba?
Biggest difference I found is that my bum wasn't vibrated numb
today was interval day and the group I ride with early have a good hit out for a few km's along Kirra beach (Near coolangatta) we hit the pace pretty hard, the difference between the old aluminium frame and the new carbon was huge, more responsive and the bike hit speed quicker and easier than the aluminium. Many many hours and miles have been put in on the old aluminium frame this year so it is easy to notice the difference... Wondering how titanium would feel to ride... havent got a spare $10k floating around though.


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Mosier educating Moldova through Peace Corps
Cassandra Mosier, Kersey native, enlisted as a volunteer in the U.S. Peace Corps and currently lives and teaches in Edinet, Moldova. Moldova is located between Ukraine and Romania."Even on the toughest days, I'm glad I'm here. I'm glad I'm working hard to help with situations few have had the nerve to address," Mosier said.The 24-year-old Mosier left the U.S. on June 6, 2011, to embark on a 27-month adventure. She said her passion lies in teaching, which she has taken to new horizons, quite literally."I could be a well-trained, capable, enthusiastic teacher in America, definitely. When I return, I fully intend to. First, though, I thought it would be great to be that same teacher, but in a place where people with the qualifications I have to offer aren't as plentiful," Mosier said. "I have different views than many of the people I meet here, and I think it's always valuable to see things in a way you haven't before.Now living 4,800 miles from her hometown, Mosier teaches English to Moldovan students in a language she only recently learned. The Romanian she speaks on a daily basis was picked up during an intense 10-week training session. She attended classes and meetings six days a week, nine to 10 hours a day."We are doing exhausting and strenuous work to help improve the quality of life for those in our communities, beginning with and working through the immense challenge that is integration into a way of life we never knew we could be so unfamiliar with," Mosier said.Mosier graduated from St. Marys Area High School in 2006, from Clarion University in 2009 with a bachelor of science degree in Elementary Education, and again from Clarion University in 2011 with a master's degree in Education. Mosier may have two college degrees, but it doesn't cause her to shy away from the physical labor Moldovans must do every day to survive. Mosier wrote in her blog, "Cutting down cornstalks [using only sickles] last weekend was great, but this weekend was grape-picking, and it was even better." With life so different than what she is used to, a decision to move 4,800 miles away for a commitment of more than two years was not as difficult for Mosier as people might believe. "It was an idea that presented itself on a couple of fronts, just as I was deciding what I ought to do with myself when I finished up my graduate degree, and so I started looking into it. I filled out the first application thinking, 'Maybe, I'll see what happens,'" Mosier said. "The best explanation I can come up with probably wouldn't satisfy a lot of people, but I can't help thinking it was where God wanted me, so He'd planted the idea and paved the path to get me here. I'm still not sure what He's doing with me here, but I'm eager to figure it out."Mosier said she went to Moldova with one goal in mind, to make some sort of difference in a country needing just that. Upon entering the schools of Moldova, she soon realized they were very different from the ones she was accustomed to in America. "Because funding to schools is so minimal here, teachers are very poorly paid and have to devote some of their time and energy to other jobs, as well as to the many demands that are part of keeping a household in order here, taking care of a family, and often tending to family farms or livestock," Mosier said.Mosier teaches grades two through seven and says she has had success bonding with her students."I think a lot of the kids view me as someone just a bit less occupied and intimidating than the teachers they typically interact with, and that makes me a very approachable adult. They appreciate that I need to ask them for help at times, they are thrilled that I laugh at their jokes, and we have developed a mutual respect for each other and a bond that I'd readily call my greatest success so far," Mosier said. "I'm at the advantage, and maybe even luxury, of having only myself to care for and only the students I work with to worry myself about. I have the time to stand in the halls with them between classes, inquiring about how they spent the winter break, checking out the new toy they have peeking from a backpack, or maybe just offering a big hug, a compliment, or a listening ear to someone who is proud to have learned their new vocabulary for homework. "Getting to know the students is the most valuable way an education volunteer can begin to become part of the lives of the host country nationals. Integration is key."While Mosier is making a difference in the lives of her students, Moldova is making a difference in her."I think I'm finding myself being more lenient. I've always set high standards for others and even higher ones for myself, but I'm finding, here, more and more often than any improvement, any success or positive change, that even the tiniest victory is worth celebrating," Mosier said. "It's important in a place where it's so easy to recognize things that aren't working out according to plan to take note of the things that are still moving forward."Mosier said she feels Peace Corps volunteers can make a difference that resonates over time. "Today's Peace Corps is functioning in a world where fewer places are in need of having wells dug or hospitals built," Mosier said. "The work that exists doesn't always result in a tangible, measurable, brick-and-mortar product. It's something that has more to do with planting seeds of thoughts and ideas. Some of them may grow while we're here, but the greatest result of them will probably come way down the line.""Viata in Moldova," meaning "Life in Moldova," is the blog Mosier is maintaining during her stay. It is located at viatainmoldova.blogspot.com. Mosier said the blog provides an honest account of the difficulties and breakthroughs she experiences while living and working in Moldova.As Mosier continues her service, she said she would love for everyone back home to know where all of her courage and commitment comes from."Getting to Moldova and learning to live and work in a drastically different cultural environment and adjusting to a whole new way of life has been the most tremendous challenge I've ever undertaken. There are lots of days I struggle with it, and I am grateful beyond measure to my loved ones, my mother and sister, above all, not just for instilling the confidence and courage in my heart that it took to set this adventure into motion, but for the constant reassurance they offer at every opportunity that has allowed me to be successful in all my undertakings as a volunteer," Mosier said. "I know I could never do this on my own, but I'm lucky to know I will never have to. I have the most fantastic support system backing me up."


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Back to Section Homepage
What the world believes
World Religions
What the world believes
Trinity vs Tawhid
A A and Andy Bannister
- The author is a missionary and evangelist with a ministry to Muslims. View all resources by A A
- Andy Bannister has lectured in apologetics at London School of Theology, and regularly teaches in Christian and Islamic issues for various churches and organisations. View all resources by Andy Bannister
A A and Andy Bannister compare the Christian doctrine of Trinity with the Islamic doctrine of Tawhid (the onennes of God).


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Southam, Andrew D and Payne, Tristan G and Cooper, Helen J. and Arvanitis, Theodoros N and Viant, Mark R (2007) Dynamic range and mass accuracy of wide-scan direct infusion nanoelectrospray fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry-based metabolomics increased by the spectral stitching method. Analytical Chemistry (including News & Features), 79 (12). ISSN 0003-2700


text: Drug Policy The possession and/or use of narcotics or drugs, other than those medically prescribed, properly used, and in the original container, is prohibited. Providing a space for the consumption of narcotics or drugs is prohibited. The distribution and/or sale of narcotics or drugs is prohibited. Off-campus possession, use, distribution, or sale of narcotics or drugs is inconsistent with the University's policies and goals, and is therefore prohibited. The University reserves the right to invoke the University Code of Student Conduct process to the extent that off-campus drug use leads to behavior that in the University's sole judgment is destructive, abusive, or detrimental to the University's interests. Any and all types of drug paraphernalia including, but not limited to, bongs, pipes, water pipes, or any items modified or adapted so that they can be used to consume or use drugs, are not permitted on University property. Drugs and drug paraphernalia will be confiscated when found on University property. Sanction Guidelines for Violating the Drug Policy The University considers the sanctions listed below to be guidelines, and a starting point, when adjudicating drug policy violations. Each incident is reviewed on an individual basis. Depending on the specifics of the incident, more or less severe sanctions may be imposed. The primary response for use or possession of drugs will be separation from the University. First Violation: $100.00 fine ($1,000.00 fine and educational sanction for recognized student organizations), disciplinary probation. Suspension/deferred suspension, loss of housing/deferred loss of housing, ban from University housing, counseling evaluation, disciplinary probation (upon return), and parental notification; possibility of expulsion. Subsequent Violations*: Counseling referral, $200.00 fine ($1,500.00 fine and educational sanction for recognized student organizations), deferred loss of housing and/or deferred suspension, parental notification, and extension of probation. Suspension/deferred suspension, loss of housing/deferred loss of housing, ban from University housing, counseling evaluation, fine, disciplinary probation (upon return), and parental notification; possibility of expulsion. *within a five-year period University Employees Except as specifically authorized, the consumption or distribution of alcohol by employees while on University property or on University business is prohibited, as is being under the influence of alcohol during work. This policy is intended to be consistent with applicable employment policies and the Drug-Free Workplace Policy. Such policies may contain additional rules concerning alcohol and drug use. Criminal Sanctions As part of its educational function, Drexel University wants students, staff, and faculty to be informed about the possible consequences of their actions and the risks they run under state and federal law regarding alcohol and drug abuse. The unlawful possession, use, or distribution of illicit drugs and alcohol is punished by harsh sanctions under the laws of the United States and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.


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Boards & Commissions
Historic Preservation Commission Agenda
The City of Lincoln Historic Preservation Commission will hold a public meeting on Thursday, January 17, 2013. The meeting will convene at 1:30 p.m. in Room 214 in Development Services Center, 2nd floor, County-City Building, 555 S. 10th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska, to consider the following agenda. For more information, contact the Planning Department at (402) 441-7491.
January 17, 2013
- Approval of HPC meeting record of December 20, 2012.
- Opportunity for persons with limited time or with an item not appearing on the agenda to address the Commission.
- Application by Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity for designation of 635 N. 16th Street as a Landmark, in accord with LMC 27.57.120.
- Application by Speedway Properties for a Certificate of Appropriateness for work at 6038 Havelock Avenue in the Havelock Avenue Landmark District.
- Application by Scott Sullivan on behalf of Speedway Properties for work at 800 Q Street, the "Tool House" building in Haymarket Landmark District.
- Application by Sinclair Hille on behalf of Lead Belly for work at 301 N. 8th Street, the Seaton & Lea Building, in the Haymarket Landmark District.
- Misc.
- Staff Report.


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South Africa TravelThings To Do in South Africa
South Africa's immensely varied terrain supports a rich diversity of animals, birds, and plant-life and offers an incomparable range of experiences and Things to Do in South Africa. Whether you're in South Africa on safari or to enjoy the beaches, breathtaking drives, or unspoiled wilderness, SA-Venues.com strives to help you experience the very best that South Africa has to offer.
Browse our directory of thing to do which ranges from adventurous activities, hiking and 4x4 trails, sight seeing excursions, sports and leisure to more sedate activities including shopping and museums, art galleries, coffee shops and eateries, whale watching, wine tours and tasting and a varied collection of cultural experiences. You'll find them all here. And if you know of a great Thing to Do we've missed, let us know here so we can share your experiences and recommendations with other visitors to our wonderful country.


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For anyone who needs an attentive attorney but can't afford big bills, a growing breed of newly minted lawyers is offering a solution: Hire a solo practitioner.
Faced with a tough job market, lawyers fresh out of law school are increasingly hanging out shingles and soliciting clients. From the class of 2010, 6 percent went into solo practice, double the share of law school graduates in 2006, according to the National Association for Law Placement in Washington, which tracks employment patterns.
The trend means that those who need legal services have some intriguing new options. Example: In Evanston, Ill., landlords, motorists, and others hire Lara Trujillo Webb at rates 50 percent lower than those charged by larger local firms. A 2009 law school graduate, Ms. Webb brings experience as a former attorney for the city of Evanston. Working from a home office means she keeps overhead expenses low – and fees low, too.
"My clients care about the service that I offer and whether they can get me when they dial my number," Webb says. "They're not so worried about whether you're with a big firm or if you're [highly ranked] in the city. That kind of stuff doesn't seem to really matter."
Technology has made the solo practitioner route a viable career path for young, tech-savvy lawyers. Software and Web-based applications facilitate everything from organizing documents to billing. Although solos can't walk down a hall to seek guidance from a senior partner, they can turn to online communities to help them stay connected to mentors and lawyers with specialized knowledge.
Even so, prospective clients need to know what they're getting into when they enlist a solo lawyer with little track record in the field, says Suzanne Blonder, an attorney for HALT, a Washington-based consumer advocacy group focused on legal services. "You get what you pay for."
On the upside, Ms. Blonder affirms that new solos have a lot to offer, especially in situations where the legal needs are cut and dried. She notes that solos can negotiate fees efficiently since they don't have to seek approval from a group of partners. They also tend to be accessible to clients.
Tasha Buzzell, a solo practitioner in North Attleboro, Mass., since 2008, handles mostly divorce cases and makes a point to be available on nights and weekends, when clients can speak with her privately from their homes. Matt Fitzsimmons, a 2009 graduate with a solo practice in Boston, answers his own phone and gives out his cellphone number.
Some new solos add further convenience by enabling clients to take advantage of technology. Rachel Rodgers, for instance, has created secure online portals where her New York and New Jersey clients can submit documents at any hour to her "virtual law firm." When clients need a consultation, she pops up on their screens via Skype. She says her clients don't mind that she works from a home office that's 2,500 miles away in Phoenix. They're mostly young entrepreneurs who'd rather hold down costs than have meetings in fancy law offices.
On the downside, Blonder notes that new solos are by definition inexperienced and lack robust institutional support. Prospective clients who require specialized advice need to assess whether it makes sense to pay a solo to get up to speed on a topic.
"The chief risk is related to expertise in certain areas of law," Blonder says. "If a new practitioner ... says he is available to draft your will for you even though he doesn't have any experience in the practical world with that [type of work], that's certainly a 'buyer beware' type of situation."
Though solos routinely turn down cases that fall outside their areas of focus, some say clients get top-notch service even when a lawyer is learning as he goes. The logic: They take nothing for granted.
"One thing I've noticed about young lawyers is they don't want to screw up," Ms. Rodgers says. "So they work really hard: They do a lot of research and are extremely diligent.... I've also seen examples of [more experienced] lawyers who were not diligent and did not represent their clients well. And part of it was because they were accustomed to it."
Whatever the legal situation might be, Blonder suggests asking a few questions so clients enter the relationship well informed about the risks. For instance, ask if the lawyer carries malpractice insurance. Solos are less likely than larger firms to have coverage, Blonder says, since no state except Oregon requires lawyers to carry it. Other questions to ask:
•How many cases of this type have you handled? How were they resolved?
•Do you have mentors or others whom you'll consult in this case?
•If you collaborate with lawyers in other firms, how do I know who is representing me?
•Can I help contain costs by doing some of the legwork that doesn't require legal expertise, such as tracking down documents or making copies?
With pressure on companies to hold down legal costs, even large corporations are using small law firms, says Laura Farber, chair of the solo and small firm law division of the American Bar Association. "For a time, the 'big firm' or 'big law' – whatever you want to call it – was the predominant practice for corporate America, but that's changed," Ms. Farber says. "And I firmly believe it's not ever going back to the way things were."


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A recent trip to a small Central Texas town got me to thinking (which is not always a good thing). This latest mental disturbance apparently caused neither physical nor personal damage, however, so I'll pass along the fruits of my thought processes, meager though they be.
In my 25 some odd years (some odder than others) of traversing through Rural America, mostly Southern Rural America, I've visited only two towns named for directions. The first was North, South Carolina. The other, and the most recent and the reason for this surge in mental activity, was West, Texas.
I informed my intern (I have an intern this summer trying to pilfer as much knowledge as she can from my rapidly dwindling storehouse of useful information. Good luck on that. Some of you who understand my work habits may wonder how I ever found an intern who could cut bait and run a trolling motor. Simple. Intense research. But I digress.) that we were leaving the next day for West, Texas, and that it would be about a two-hour trip from Denton. She e-mailed back that West Texas was a sight farther away than two hours, so I patiently explained that we were gong to West, Texas, not West Texas and also took advantage of the opportunity to point out the value of the comma, which I apparently had misplaced.
While we were in West (comma) Texas, I should have inquired, possibly at the Wild West Café where we had lunch, as to who named the town and why they named it West. I did not. Some minds are not as inquiring as others. I also never learned who named North (comma) South Carolina, or why they did.
I've visited a passel of towns of peculiar nomenclature over the past two-plus decades and, regrettably, failed to stop and find out why the towns were so named. I picked up a book of Texas town names in an airport bookstore one time and was intrigued for a bit at the process some town founders took to select the perfect moniker for their particular hamlet. My curiosity stopped somewhere short of the $29.95 they were asking for the tome, however, so I just thumbed through it like I was at a lending library and absorbed as much free knowledge as possible. Which wasn't much.
I learned that quite a few Texas towns were named after folks, Austin for instance; some for saints (Angelo and Antonio). Some had Indian names and cities such as Big Spring and Sweet Water apparently indicate good places to get a refreshing drink. Mineral Wells most likely has water that tastes nasty but will cure what ails you.
I assume Apache, Okla., is named after the Native American tribe vilified in cowboy movies. Elk City, Okla., could be the former range for large, antlered omnivores or just the annual meeting place for a fraternal organization.
I never found out why Booger Bottom, Miss., is so named but do recall that a restaurant that once co-existed with the Post Office there offered the best fried chicken this side of my grandmother's wood stove.
A South Carolina town, Pocotaligo, a linguistics professor in college told me, comes from the Gullah dialect and describes what happens when you prod a turtle in the behind.
I have it on good authority, a native Alabaman and my devoted spouse, that Slap Out, Ala., was named because the burg's small general store rarely had what prospective customers wanted and when asked for such items the proprietor would say: "Sorry, we're slap out."
I used to live close to Between, Ga., and never discovered between what. And why they named a town in South Georgia Enigma continues to puzzle me.
I haven't had time yet to study an atlas and anyone who has ever taken a road trip with me will understand that I rarely ever consult one to find my way anywhere, which is probably why I wind up in weirdly-named towns, but I suspect that somewhere in this great nation one can find towns named South (comma) state name, and East (ditto). I assume also that someone will inform me if they have passed through either East or South. Y'all are good that way.
e-mail: [email protected]


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Global Youth Conference 2012: Addressing Youth Unemployment in South Asia
I've just concluded a discussion on addressing youth unemployment around the world with experts at the Global Youth Conference currently happening and wanted to hear your thought as well as share some of my own on South Asia. Indeed, South Asia has grown rapidly and has created more and mostly better jobs. The region created 800,000 new jobs per month in the last ten years boosting economic growth and reducing poverty. Arrive in any South Asian metropolis and you're often hit by the richness of activity throughout its busy streets.
The region's coming demographic transition of more young people entering the work force is expected to contribute nearly 40 percent of the growth in the world's working age (15—64) population over the next several decades. However, youth in South Asia still face many challenges during their transition to adulthood including malnutrition, gender inequality and lack of access to quality education. More working age people with less children and elderly dependants to support will either become an asset for the region to continue growing or a curse depending on the enabling environment for the creation of productive jobs.
- Tags:
- Sri Lanka
- Pakistan
- Nepal
- Maldives
- India
- Bhutan
- Bangladesh
- Afghanistan
- South Asia
- Public Sector and Governance
- Private Sector Development
- Macroeconomics and Economic Growth
- Trade
- Information and Communication Technologies
- Industry
- Gender
- Financial Sector
- Education
- Agriculture and Rural Development
- unemployment
- Kalpana Kochhar
- jobs
- Job
- chief economist


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Lusio Solid State Lighting
For more information, visit www.LusioLighting.com.
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Information by Country
Zimbabwe: Newsline
UK invests £12 million in girls education in Zimbabwe via Camfed
The investment from the UKs Department for International Development (DFID) represents a major achievement for Camfed, which began in Zimbabwe in 1993 by supporting just 32 girls in two districts. The latest investment allows Camfed to provide four times as many secondary school bursaries as it currently offers and will increase its reach to 28 districts.
We are so excited by this investment from DFID, it allows us to realise our potential, Executive Director and former Camfed bursary recipient Angeline Murimirwa said in an address to guests at Chifamba High School in Guruve District.
It allows us to utilise the huge capacity and commitment existent in the national, district and community partners with whom we work. It gives us the chance to transform the opportunities for a generation of girls today and not ask them to wait for another year, decade or century.
Minister of Education, Sport, Arts & Culture, Senator David Coltart, told the audience: It is recognised universally that educating the girl child is one of the most important requirements for promoting sustainable development and economic progress.
He added: The Government of Zimbabwe has limited resources and because of this our education programmes to ensure equality and excellence in education are restricted. It is in this context that the work Camfed does is so critical and we are delighted that DFID has provided the generous support it has to guarantee that the good work Camfed has done in the past will continue.
Since its launch in Zimbabwe in 1993, Camfed has helped to secure a better quality education for almost 2 million children in five countries. Girls supported through Camfed bursaries have gone on to become lawyers, teachers, doctors and businesswomen.
To read some of the Camfed speeches made at the launch, click here: ZimBursarySpeechAM ZimBursarySpeechBM
The DFID investment complements its recent $38m contribution to the second phase of Zimbabwes Education Transition Fund, which supplies books and other materials to schools. For further details on DFIDs work in Zimbabwe see http://www.dfid.gov.uk/Where-we-work/Africa-EasternSouthern/Zimbabwe/


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Lobelia Cardinalis-9 cm potsPrint Page
Lobelia Cardinalis-9 cm potsPrice: £3.90
Product Information
Suitable For
|Creeping / Groundcover Plants
|Floating Leaves and Surface Cover
|Frost Hardy
|Full Sun
|Koi Carp and Duck proof plants
|Medicinal and Edible plants
|Nitrate Removing Plant
|Partial Shade
|Plants to attract Amphibians
|Plants to attract Bees
|Plants to attract Birds and Mammals
|Plants to attract Butterflies
|Suitable for Natural Clay or Silt Planting
|Suitable for patio water-gardening
|Suitable for Streams & Ditches
|Suitable for Swimming Ponds
Height: 75 cm
Water Depth: 0-6 cm
A very popular marginal plant with attractive scarlet flowers and dark purple-red leaves, a must for every water-garden. Suitable for the edge of ponds, streams, bog-gardens and moist borders in full sun. Height 75 cm. Flowering Time July-August. Water Depth 0-6 cm over the crown.
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Water Depth: 30-60 cm
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Oddest Copyright Lawsuit Ever: Oprah Sued For... Um... You Have To Read It Yourself
from the pro-se-copyright-suits dept
Members of the Jackson family, particularly Katherine Jackson, Michael Jackson's mother will help bring this case to a resolution. No person, except someone in high rank, with enough clout and position could have possibly convinced all of these great artists to use my lyrics to help make me a star. I want to meet every one of them. Some of them I have already had the opportunity to meet.And I still have no idea what any of this has to do with Oprah. Or Michael Jackson's death, but that's in there too...
But in the end the business and the law are clear: as co-author of these songs I am entitled to reap the benefits of my work (copyright statute 17). And in fact I have the right of first use on my side. These being huge hits that they have become I am grateful and look forward to negotiating fair and equitable settlement for my work. The lyrics used in these hit songs were direct copies from my journal that was found in Sandra's home. (See the attached lyrics and proof of similarity in submission B pgs 1-25).


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to make my master happy. I am your slave and the things we can do are limitless. Don't be shy,
just ask and you will receive. Your wish is my command.


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Monday, May 14, 2012
Raven Hair and Violet Eyes by Linda S. Glaz
Well, yes. I do think deeper POV has brought our characters' internal dialogues to life, but at what expense? Let's take Jane Austen, for example. You knew her characters inside AND out. In genre fiction, all the characters I read look alike in my mind. They are simply in different situations. Now, I'll grant you, on occasion we get a good description of a character, but I'm finding it less often than ever before.
Instead, he will have (and I'm guilty of this, too, so don't think I'm not including myself) a jagged scar through his brow, corded muscles along his neck and shoulders. She will have a perfect bow-shaped mouth. They might both have piercing eyes, lines that fan from their eyes. Well, you get my point.
I think it's time for us to spend a bit more time our characters' externals to equal the time we spend on them internally. I want a character to leap off the pages so well that I could pick them out of a crowd.
But that's just my take...
4 comments:
- Heather Day Gilbert said...
I totally agree. I love having some bits left to my own imagination. Then again, my pet peeve is not knowing the characters' hair color. It makes a huge difference in my mind if the main character is a redhead vs a brunette.
I love the way the classics delve into the character instead of the visuals. We know that Bathsheba is gypsy-ish in coloration, yet she has an air of innocence (in Far from the Madding Crowd). Or we know that Scarlett O'Hara was NOT beautiful, but she was vivid in coloration and personality.
- May 14, 2012 at 10:50 AM
- Davalyn Spencer said...
I have been so tempted to write about a less-than-perfect heroine and a balding hero. I mean really - did anybody get a good look at Robert Duvall (without his hat) on Lonesome Dove? I'd pick him out of a crowd any time.
- May 14, 2012 at 11:22 AM
- Timothy Fish said...
I was thinking the other day about how little attention I pay to the description of a character unless that appearance plays an important part in the plot. Spending a paragraph describing appearance does no good, whether the character is looking in the mirror, another character is seeing the character, or if the author just tells us what the character looks like. We soon forget. But if it is important to the plot and the author spends significant time with the appearance of a character, we never forget.
- May 14, 2012 at 2:21 PM
- Lynn Donovan said...
I agree too. While i do not want a paragraph of clinical descriptions, i do want my character's description revealed naturally through his/her actions. Everybody touches their face or moves their hair or touches their scalp. I want to know what that looked like. Eyes, nose, scars, hair color, length, lack of... it makes the character real and the reader see and feel him or her.
- May 15, 2012 at 7:38 AM


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Grand Theft Auto IV Walkthrough
|I'll Take Her...
Gerry's been locked up, and you'll eventually receive a phone call from him inviting you to come see him at the city's penitentiary in Alderney. The prison is located off of Toggle Avenue and Grenadier Street at the far southern end of the borough. When you arrive, you'll speak with Gerry in a classic prison scenario. The guards are carefully watching and monitoring the conversation, so in a roundabout way, Gerry tells Niko he needs him to do something, and once outside to call his brother. So, when you leave the penitentiary, Niko and Packie will speak on the phone, and the kidnapping ploy the brothers have planned will come to light.
Packie will tell you that the girl that needs to be kidnapped is selling a car, and that her car is the key to the kidnapping. By pretending to be interested in the vehicle, you can go on a test drive and speed off with her while she's in the car. To get this going, however, you have to first head to an internet café and find the ad on a website called autoeroticar.com. The closest internet café from the penitentiary is northward, on Vitullo Avneue. So, put a marker there on your map and head there as soon as you can.
Once inside the internet café, log on to a computer (as the game instructs you). Once you're logged on, on your homepage, you should find an advertisement for the car website. Head there and look for the pink convertible. Once you've seen it, the phone number of the seller (the girl we are to kidnap) will be added automatically to your phone. Head outside of the internet café thereafter and call the girl (as long as it's between 8am and 11pm in-game). She'll be suspicious of why you want to look at a pink convertible, but she invites you over anyway. Conveniently, she's located near the internet café on Vitullo Avenue, and once in a car, the GPS on your HUD will bring you to her location on Hardtack Avenue.
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Setting myself up to succeed
A funny thing happened on the way to the kitchen yesterday...
I'd made myself a sandwich for lunch, eaten it, and headed back to the kitchen for a little something more. My first stop was the pretzel canister - but it was empty. My next thought was the fruit drawer in the refrigerator - but I found nothing. I then checked the pantry for some teddy grahams, graham crackers, or the like, and the only thing I found were crumbs.
So you know what I resorted to? The homemade chocolate chip cookies I'd made that morning. I had no intention of eating any (at least not as part of my lunch), but the plate I'd made up for my babysitter, Leticia was just sitting there. And since there wasn't anything else to accompany my sandwich, I had to supplement with a cookie.
Now don't get me wrong - I'm not berating myself for eating one measley cookie (or for the 2nd and 3rd I had later that day.) But what interests me is that I ended up chomping down on the sweet stuff simply because I hadn't stocked the kitchen with the good stuff. Guess it's time to order groceries again. Here I come, Peapod!


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- Global news
Mourinho could face FIFA action over voting claim
FIFA has released a copy of Goran Pandev's voting paper for the 2012 Coach of the Year award, which appears to disprove the Macedonia captain's backing of Jose Mourinho's claim of "irregularities" in the vote that saw Vicente Del Bosque win the prize.
Pandev had said his vote for Mourinho was mysteriously changed to favour another candidate, after Mourinho himself told Portuguese TV that a number of voters had told him their ballots had been tampered with.
FIFA said on Thursday the official vote submitted by the Macedonian FA did not tally with Pandev's claims, and on Friday morning released a copy of the document - published on the AS website - which appears to back its case.
The official Macedonia vote is apparently signed by Pandev, who played under Mourinho at Inter Milan, and shows that he chose Spain coach Del Bosque, Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini and Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp respectively.
FIFA is now also considering taking action over Mourinho's comments. Guatemalan FA president Bryan Jimenez, a member of FIFA's Committee for Fair Play and Social Responsibility, told Spanish radio station Onda Cero that measures could be taken to protect FIFA's image.
"This person is talking about votes being changed," Jimenez said. "That seems an irresponsible act to me. We will evaluate his words, and determine if Mourinho really did make these declarations, how he expressed them. We will see what action we can take to protect FIFA's image."
Mourinho sparked the controversy by telling Portuguese TV station RTP that he had stayed away from January's awards ceremony in Zurich as he was upset at "irregularities" in the voting process.
"One, two or three people called me to tell me they had voted for me, but another person's name had appeared in their votes," Mourinho said. "[So] I decided not to go. I accuse FIFA of irregularities in the choice of the best coach in the world. There was a lack of transparency. FIFA knows about these irregularities, it knows they existed, and it did not avoid them."
Pandev then told Spanish TV station La Sexta on Wednesday that his vote had been changed, and he had spoken to Mourinho about it.
"I voted for Mourinho," Pandev said. "Always Mourinho. I do not know what happened. There were some very strange things. I told him I had voted for him, but I do not know what happened then. He was a bit sad. Strange things happened, but neither Mou nor I could do anything to change it. Who would I talk to in FIFA?"
The official FIFA vote shows Del Bosque won the 2012 award with 34.51% of the 505 cast by international coaches, captains and journalists, ahead of 20.49% for Mourinho, and 12.91% for former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola.
These votes were made public after the winner was announced - a timeframe that also calls into question Mourinho's claim of having been told in advance that votes had been changed.


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Are angel's fictitious? Do they protect us, or is it just wishful thinking? Although we can't see these protectors, it doesn't mean they're a fairy-tale.
Anthony DeStefano uses a biblical scope that we are not alone, and the common misconceptions people have of these powerful beings that work on behalf of heaven. There's a spiritual dimension, protection even in the wake of disaster and heartache. You too can find peace in the midst of the battle.
What are the misconceptions that we have of angels?
I think there are two big misconceptions out there. One is that angels are make-believe; that they're like fairies or other mythical creatures. That couldn't be further from the truth. Angels are real. They're as real as human beings. They don't have bodies—they're totally spiritual creatures—but they do exist; they do have lives. As you're reading these words, an angel is probably somewhere close by to you. Angels are fascinating and powerful, but they most certainly are NOT the stuff of fairytales.
The second big misconception some people have is that after they die, they think they're going to "turn into" angels. Again, that's not what any of the major religions teach. People are people, and angels are angels. God created us to be different, and we'll always be different, even into eternity. Angels are pure spirits, while human beings are both spirit and matter. One day, after we die and experience what Christians call the "Resurrection," we're going to have bodies in Heaven—maybe not same kind we have now, but something similar. That's an important point, because it means that if your mother has died, for instance, someday after the Resurrection, you're going to be able to see her in the flesh. She's not going to be a ghost. You're going to be able to run up to her and kiss her and hug her and feel the warmth of her skin, and hear her voice again. That's a very consoling thought. Angels can't do any of that because they're pure spirits. So while I'm certainly fascinated by angels, I would never want to be one!
2. What has your experience been with angels?
I'm one of those millions of people who haven't had a whole lot of dramatic, supernatural experiences in their life. I know many believers who have wonderful angel stories—but I'm not one of them. While I've always been aware of the presence of angels around me, I can't point to any one specific instance and say with certitude that "an angel helped me." Yes there have been times when I have experienced what I consider the "miraculous"—times when I knew God was helping me. And I'm sure angels have been involved in that at different points because of what my Faith tells me and what I know about the mission of angels from Scripture. But I can't say for sure which experiences they were. And to tell you the truth, that's one of the reasons why I think my books have been so well received. I know it's considered more "sensational" when someone makes the claim that they have personally "visited" Heaven or that an angel of the Lord appeared to them in a blaze of light, but I think that, because those things have NOT happened to me, my writing and my arguments and my stories resonate with people more. They just sound more down-to-earth and believable and people relate to that. I really do try to stick to what's been revealed in Scripture and what traditional Christianity has taught over the course of 2000 years. And the incredible thing is that the traditional teaching about angels is every bit as exciting and interesting as all the subjective stories you read or see on TV. The fascinating thing about angels is that they DO play a big roll in our lives—even when we don't realize it. One of their "jobs" is to help human beings. And it's this proximity to us; the fact that they are right here even when we can't see or feel them, that is so attractive to us.
3. The Bible talks about the war in heaven between Satan and the angels. Are we fighting an invisible war here on earth?
Yes I think we are. People sometimes have a hard time understanding Satan and why he hates human beings so much. And yet, we see the same kind of hatred of God in some human beings, too. When we read the newspaper or watch TV, we see all around us the evidence of people making evil choices—choices against God. Just look at some of the horrible things that go on—the sex crimes perpetrated against children, the senseless and gratuitous killings that take place every day. Evil is real. It's not imaginary. And human beings indulge in it. Well, if that's so obviously true for us, then why should it be so hard to understand that certain angels made the same choice to rebel against God? The same choice in favor of evil? The ones who did that are the so-called "fallen angels" or demons. And their leader was Satan.


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Getting to Ryan Field for Northwestern game
I believe this topic might have been touched before but I thought I saw some erroneous information regarding taking the L to Evanston.
Here is the link to Northwestern's football website and what they say about parking:
Here is the link to the CTA and taking the Purple Line up to Evanston. It appears that there will be plenty of options to leave Ryan Field and make it back to downtown (or any stop in between) after the game:
EDIT: At the time the game will probably end the Purple line only runs down to Howard where you will have to change trains to get to another location (in my case the Loop).


text:
posted by Thom Holwerda on Tue 26th Oct 2010 15:20 UTC, submitted by diegocg
Recently a project called 'Qt Modularization' was initiated. This is a project that aims to modularize Qt at every level. As you may know already, Qt is currently modularized on the DLL level; each module has its own DLL. However, the project as a whole is still monolithic; all the code is hosted in a single repository, you cannot build a leaf module without building the modules on which it depends. This project aims to change that, so that the modules are hosted in different repositories, with separate maintainers, and modules may have different release schedules.


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Dec 09 |08:00
A BlankTV Premiere Presentation:
"Crazy Glue" by Fishbone
From the shifting fault lines of Hollywood fantasies and the economic and racial tensions of Reagan's America, Fishbone rose to become one of the most original bands of the last twenty-five years.
With a blistering combination of punk and funk, they demolished genre walls and challenged the racial stereotypes and political order of the music industry and the nation.
On October 11th, on the eve of the band's 25th year anniversary, Fishbone released 'Crazy Glue', their first new studio album in nearly five years, and have now supported that record with a brand new video of the album's title track.
We hope you enjoy the madness!
|< Prev


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Event: Bollywood stars Shahrukh Khan, Chitrangada Singh, Soha Ali Khan, Kunal Khemu, Sameera Reddy, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Sonu Sood, Ekta Kapoor and others were snapped at Mushtaq Sheikh's birthday bash.
Guest List: Shahrukh Khan, Chitrangada Singh, Soha Ali Khan, Kunal Khemu, Sameera Reddy, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Sonu Sood, Ekta Kapoor, Ganesh Hegde, Sunayna Shetty, Nikhil Dwivedi, Gowri Pandit, Arjan Bajwa, Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi, Vivek Oberoi, Priyanka Oberoi, Jitendra, Tusshar Kapoor, Dia Mirza, Sahil Sangha, Puja Gupta, Ritesh Deshmukh, Chunky Pandey, Sophia Choudhry, Sushma Reddy, Jackky Bhagnani, Zoa Morani
Date: 30-Apr-2012
Bollywood celeb Aamir Khan along with wife Kiran Rao were spotted at PVR.
Bollywood producers-directors Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Krishan Kumar, Ravi Bahl, Divya Khosla Kumar, Sajid Nadiadwala, Wardha Nadiadwala celebrate diwali with Bhushan Kumar
Bollywood celebs Kareena Kapoor Khan, Malaika Arora, Sonali Bendre, Nimrat Kaur among others were snapped by paparazzi.Bebo looked super cool in a casual look. She wore a white t-shirt with yoga pants...
Bollywood actress Shama Sikander celebrated Diwali festival at her residence.
Bollywood celebs Aamir Khan, Zaira Wasim, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Sanya Malhotra, Anil Kapoor, Nitesh Tiwari, Aparshakti Khurrana, Bhushan Kumar, Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi, Sachin Tendulkar, Rajkumar Hir...


text:
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Here's the cloud. The event had an uncomfortable undercurrent. At the end of the evening it was disclosed that Melanie Young will not be its fearless leader next year. After 16 years of excellent and very devoted service to the James Beard Foundation it seems as if the new administration behind the organization put the project out to bid and she was undercut. This was disclosed in a heartfelt testimonial to her. Melanie, proving herself to be the total trouper we all know her to be gave an extremely dignified "farewell speech."
The Beard awards were a big client for her. But more than the monetary loss, she is a passionate champion for them. She believes in them. And, she really saved their ass when the Beard Scandal went down last year. Not only that, but when I asked her if I could BYOW to the award dinner because I feared they would be pouring plonk (which they did in deed), she told me 'no!" Even knowing she was on her way out, she wouldn't have the Awards embarrassed, even if it was a snobby wine writer who wanted something to drink during dinner.
(FYI. Another surprise was in store for Melanie at the Big Awards, as the man she loves, David, proposed to her on stage. True to form, as she gained back some composure, she leaned into the mike and said, "Will someone please resuscitate my mother?"
On another note, which has nothing to do with clouds, David Leite won the James Beard award for his website and a hearty congratulations.
On another note: when wine writing shares the podium with spirit writing, wine rarely gets awards. Are spirits writers better than wine writers? Are spirit editors better editors than wine editors? Or is it a comment on the terrible state of wine writing in America? Or is the spirit category just sexier? Pete Wells (an excellent writer who is also a great guy, so much deserved) won for a cocktail piece. The book award went to Michael Jackson's Whiskey over Elin McCoys Parker book and Juhlin's Champagne book.


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THIS is a footnote in the interest of justice more than
anything else. The general scheme of this book is that it is to be an outline,
for each of its major chapters is devoted to a subject about which a book
ought to be written-but not by me. In such an outline there is no specified
allotment of space, and I have written most on the lively arts in which
I myself take the liveliest pleasure. Burlesque is not of these-and I confess
to enjoying it most in the person of those artists who come out of it into
revue, or vaudeville, or any other framework with which I am familiar and
which I admire. I can understand an enthusiast feeling the same way about
them as I feel about revue and vaudeville players who try to enter the
legitimate stage that they are corrupted by a desire to be refined. The
great virtues of burlesque as I (insufficiently) know it are its complete
lack of sentimentality in the treatment of emotion and its treatment of
appearance. The harsh ugliness of the usual burlesque make-up is interesting-
I have seen sinister, even macabre, figures upon its stage-and the dancing,
which has no social refinement, occasionally develops angular positions
and lines of exciting effect. I find the better part of burlesque elsewhere,
notably in clowns. And instead of trying to be fair to a medium I do not
know well, nor care too much about, I have put in a picture which I greatly
admire and which probably is more to the point than anything
I could write. I shall try to find a picture for the circus, too. Because
the circus is a mixed matter and some of it is superb. The jeux icariens
I have never seen except in France: they are really exquisite. They are
usually performed by a whole family. The training is exceedingly arduous,
must be begun in childhood, and the art is dying out. In this act the essential
thing is the use of human bodies as maniable material. The small boy I
saw rolled himself into a tight round ball and was caught on the upturned
feet of his father, flat on his back, and tossed to another grownup in
the same position, the little rolled-up body spinning like a ball through
the air. The beauty of the movements, the accuracy and the finesse of the
exploitation of energy, delighted. Trained elephants, however, haven't
exactly this quality; and trained seals, agreeable to watch because they
are graceful and supple of body, lack something. I have seen a diabolo
player who was beautiful to follow, and a juggler who placed two billiard
cues end to end on his forehead, threw a ball and caught it at the top
of the cues, then dislodged the ball and put it into play with three others.
This extraordinary mixture of good and dull things, this lack of character,
makes the circus easy to like and useless to think about. The special atmosphere
of the circus, the sounds and sights, and smells, are, of course, another
Two of its actual features justify speculation: acrobats
and clowns. The American vaudeville player can say nothing worse of an
audience than "they like the acrobats. "When they hang by their teeth I
cannot respect them; the development of any part of the human body is interesting,
no doubt, and I do not wish to insist that there must be an aesthetic interest
in every act. But I feel about them as the Chinese philosopher felt about
horse-racing: that it is a well-established fact that one horse can beat
another, and the proof is superfluous. But there are trapeze workers whose
technique is a joy to see and who exploit all the possible turns, leaps,
somersaults in air, so that one is pleased and dazzled. I do not wonder
that painters in every age have found them lovely subject. But a lady balanced
on one leg of trapeze bar, smoking a cigarette, fanning herself, not holding
on to anything-means exactly nothing to me unless it is accomplished with
some other quality than nerve. I am sure she will never fall and do not
care to be present when she does.
Clowns are different. Even those poor nameless ones who
dash in between major acts and with noise and toy balloons divert little
children, have some quality. They partake of our tradition about masks,
they can't help having background. Everything exaggerated and ugly in burlesque
is here put to the uses of laughter; even the dullest has some gaiety in
make-up, in a mechanical contrivance, ingait or ges-
ture. Marceline helping the attendants with Powers' Elephants
at the Hippodrome, so busy, so in the way, so unconscious of hindering,
always created a little world around himself. Grock is incredible in the
faultlessness of his method; as musical-eccentric he surpasses all other
clowns, and his simple attitude before chairs and pianos and the other
complications of life is a study in creativeness. I have written elsewhere
of Fortunello and Cirillino, also great clowns; and they complete this
sketchy footnote, since for the greatest clowns I have ever seen, nothing
short of a separate title will suffice.' I A footnote to a footnote is
preposterous. Perhaps the very excess of its obscurity will give it prominence
and render faint justice to the old NewYork Hippodrome. It is a fine example
of handling of material, and of adjustment, spoiled occasionally by too
much very loud singing and a bit of art. It is part of New York's small-townness;
but it is so vast in its proportions that it can never acquire the personal
following of a small one-ring circus like the Medrano in Paris. I adore
the Hippodrome when it is a succession of acts: the trained crow and Ferry
who plays music on a fence and the amazing mechanical and electrical effects.
Joe Jackson, one of the greatest of clowns, played there, too, and had
ample scope. I like also the complete annihilation of personality in the
chorus. When you see three hundred girls doing the same thing it becomes
a problem in mass-I recall one instance when it was a mass of white backs
with black lines indicating the probable existence of clothes-the whole
thing was quite unhuman. And one great scene in which, I believe, the whole
of the personnel participated: there were, it seemed, hundreds of tumblers
and scores of clowns, and a whole toyshop in excited action. Oddly enough,
one finds that the weakness the Hipis in its humour; there is plenty of
it, but it is not concentrated, and there is no specific Hippodrome "style."
What it will become under the new Keith rigime remains to be seen.