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(1) It is hard for the disciple - struggling with glamour and illusion - to realise that the higher initiations are free from all concern and from any emotional or self-centred reactions to the work which lies ahead, or to the [Page 253] form side of manifestation; it is well-nigh impossible for the neophyte to vision a time when he will be free from all reactions engendered by life on the dense cosmic physical planes, and from all the limitations of life in the three worlds. Today, aspiration provides a constant source of anxious questioning, of painful deliberations and of high voltage spiritual ambition, with their consequent limitations, and moments of sensed failure and lack of achievement. The Master has left all this behind, knowing that even this so-called "spiritual responsiveness" is a form of self-centred attitude. Eventually - and disciples should take courage and hope from this statement - all this agonising reaction to the spiritual urge, will be left behind . . .
There are many groups and types of Masters, and most of Them are quite unknown to occult students, either from Their own work or from rumour, or from knowledge of the many evolutionary processes of which the human is only one. Not all the Masters work in the three worlds; not all the Masters need or possess physical bodies; not all the Masters "have Their faces turned towards the realm of dark light, but many face for aeons towards the clear cold light of spiritual existence"; not all the Masters make or are required to make the sacrifices, which work for the fourth kingdom in nature, entails . . . Forget not that there are many Hierarchies, and the Human Hierarchy is but one. (18 - 439/40).
(2) From the esoteric angle, evolution means a steadily increasing sensitivity to light and illumination. A Master may not possess all knowledge possible from the exoteric angle; this He does not need, because (after evolution, along the line of knowledge decided for Him by His ray type), He is on the "way of light", and the light which is in Him, and in which He lives and moves and functions, serves a dual purpose:
1. It can be used to ascertain whatever is needed in the realm of knowledge by the revelation of where the needed information can be found . . .
2. It can be used also to reveal to the Master that which lies ahead of Him, and those further reaches of awareness to which He knows He must eventually attain. (18 - 642/3).
(3) The Master can build a body through which He can approach His incoming disciples and those who have not taken the higher initiations; He will normally build this body in semblance of the human form, doing so instantaneously, and by an act of the will, when required. The majority of the Masters Who are definitely working with humanity, preserve the old body in which They took the fifth initiation. (18 - 705).
(4) It is in the New Group of World Servers that the training of the needed disciples for the Ashrams of the Masters takes place at this time [Page 254] in world history. This is a new hierarchical venture. In this group also accepted disciples learn to work in the same manner as does the Hierarchy. The Hierarchy works within the field of the world of human living; the New Group provides a similar field for the new disciple. It is towards that group also that initiates in the various Ashrams converge at times, in order to study the calibre and quality of the disciples who are engaged in world salvage, for it is through these disciples that the Hierarchy carries out its plans. Initiates do their main work upon mental levels and from behind the scenes, and because of this their potency is great; this is particularly so with those who have taken the third initiation. A certain percentage of them are, however, active out in the world of daily living.
You need ever to remember that at this time the main technique of the Hierarchy is that of conveying inspiration. The Masters are not openly lecturing or teaching in the great cities of the world; They work entirely through Their disciples and initiates. It will, however, be possible for Them to appear increasingly among men, and evoke recognition, as the influence of Aquarius is more firmly established. The Masters, in the meantime, must continue to work "within the silence of the universal Ashram", as it has been called, and from there They inspire Their workers, and these latter in their time and way, inspire the New Group of World Servers. (18 - 230).
(5) The Masters are also subject to limitation. The general idea of all aspirants is that They represent Those Who have achieved freedom, have been liberated, and are therefore held by no limiting circumstances whatsoever. This is not true, though - speaking relatively, or so far as humanity is concerned - it is a fact that the limitations by which They were held as human beings, are no longer present. But one achieved freedom only opens the door to another and wider freedom ahead, and the ring-pass-not of our planetary Life itself constitutes a powerful limitation. Speaking symbolically, somewhere in that great dividing wall of our planetary circumference, the Master must find an exit, and discover a door which will permit him to enter the Way of the Higher Evolution in its more cosmic stages. (18 - 389).
(6) A Master has no personality at all. His divine nature is all that He has. The form through which He works (if He is working through, and living in a physical vehicle), is a created image, the product of a focussed will and the creative imagination; it is not the product of desire, as in the case of a human being. This is an important distinction, and one which warrants careful thinking. (18 - 101).
(7) Many Masters and Chohans, after serving upon the planet in various [Page 255] capacities, working with the Law of Evolution, pass out of our planetary life altogether. (18 - 142).
(8) A Master can at any time find out anything on any possible subject without the slightest difficulty. (1 - 66).
(9) Every expenditure of force on the part of a Master or Teacher is subjected to wise foresight and discrimination. Just as we do not put university professors to teach beginners, so the Masters Themselves work not individually with men until they have attained a certain stage of evolution, and are ready to profit by their instruction. (1 - 67).
(10) Who our Teacher is depends on our grading. Similarity of vibration holds the secret. We are frequently told that when the demand is forceful enough, the Teacher will appear. When we build in the right vibrations and attune ourselves to the right key, nothing can prevent our finding the Master. (1 - 68).
(11) Six of the Masters, as yet quite unknown to the average occult student by name, have already sought physical incarnation - one in India, another in England, two in Northern America, and one in central Europe, whilst another has made a great sacrifice, and taken a Russian body in the desire to act as a peace centre in that distracted land. (3 - 758).
(12) One lesson all aspirants need to learn and to learn early, and that is, that concentration upon the personality of the Teacher, hoping for personal contact with Him, and constant visioning of that condition called "accepted chelaship" serves to postpone that contact and delay the acceptance. (4 - 129).
(13) In all great movements you have some thought, or aggregation of thoughts cast into the minds of the so-called idealists by the Great White Brotherhood. (4 - 131).
(14) It should be realised that though good character, high ethics, sound morality and spiritual aspiration are basic and unalterable requirements, yet more is needed if the right to enter the Master's Ashram is to be granted.
To be admitted to the privilege of being an outpost of His consciousness requires an unselfishness and a self-surrender for which few are prepared; to be drawn within His aura so that the disciple's aura forms an integral part of the group aura, presupposes a purity which few can cultivate; to have the ear of the Master and to earn the right of contact with Him at will, necessitates a sensitiveness and a fine discrimination which few would care to purchase at the price. Yet a door stands wide open to all who care to come, and no earnest, sincere soul, who meets the requirements, ever receives a rebuff.
[Page 256]
There is no question at this time that those who are in any way advanced in evolution are having that evolution hastened as never before in the history of the world. The crisis is so grave and the need of the world so great, that those who can contact the inner side of life, who can even in a small way sense the vibrations of the senior disciples and the Elder Brothers of the race, and who can bring down the ideals, as known on the higher planes, are being very carefully, forcefully, yet strenuously trained. It is necessary that they should be enabled to act accurately as transmitters and interpreters. (4 - 174)
(15) Platitudinously, the aspirant is told that "when the pupil is ready, the Master will appear". He then settles comfortably back and waits, or focusses his attention upon an attempt to attract the attention of some Master, having apparently settled in his mind that he is ready, or good enough. He naturally gives himself a spiritual prod at intervals, and attends spasmodically to the work of discipline and of purification. But steady and prolonged, undeviating effort on the part of aspirants, is rare indeed.
It is indeed true that at the right moment the Master will appear, but the right moment is contingent upon certain self-induced conditions. When the process of purification has become a life-long habit, when the aspirant can at will concentrate his consciousness in the head, when the light in the head shines forth, and the centres are active, then the Master will take the man in hand. In the meantime he may have a vision of the Master, or he may see a thought-form of the Master, and may get much real good and inspiration from the contact with the reflected reality, but it is not the Master, and does not indicate the stage of accepted discipleship. Through the medium of the light of the soul, the soul can be known. Therefore seek the light of your own soul, and know that soul as your director. When soul contact is established, your own soul will, if I may so express it, introduce you to your Master. With all due reverence, again may I add, that the Master waits not with eagerness to make your acquaintance. In the world of souls, your soul and His soul are allied, and know essential unity. But in the world of human affairs and in the process of the great work, it should be remembered that when a Master takes an aspirant into His group of disciples, that aspirant is, for a long time, a liability, and oft a hindrance. Students over-estimate themselves quite often, even when repudiating such an idea; subjectively they have a real liking for themselves, and are frequently puzzled as to why the Great Ones give them no sign, nor indicate Their watching care. They will not and They need not until such time as the aspirant has used to the full the knowledge which he has gained from [Page 257] lesser teachers, and from books and printed scriptures of the world. Students must attend to the immediate duty, and prepare their mechanisms for service in the world, and should desist from wasting time and looking for a Master; they should achieve mastery where now they are defeated, and in the life of service and of struggle, they may then reach the point of such complete self-forgetfulness that the Master may find no hindrance in His approach to them. (4 - 594/5).
(16) A Master of the Wisdom is One Who has undergone the fifth initiation. That really means that His consciousness has undergone such an expansion, that it now includes the fifth or spiritual kingdom. He has worked His way through the four lower kingdoms: the mineral, the vegetable, the animal and the human - and has, through meditation and service, expanded his centre of consciousness till it now includes the plane of the spirit. (2 - 259).
(17) The Masters are entirely free from disease, because they have entirely overcome the karma of the three worlds, and are liberated. (17 - 382).
(18) As regards the Hierarchy itself, speaking esoterically and technically, its Members (many of Them) are "being abstracted from the middle point of holiness, and absorbed into the Council of the Lord". In other words, they are passing onward into higher work, and are becoming custodians of the energy of the divine will, and not simply the custodians of the energy of love. They will work henceforth as power-units, and not just as units of light. Their work becomes dynamic, instead of being attractive and magnetic, and is concerned with the life aspect, and not just with the soul or consciousness aspect. Their places are being taken - under the Law of Ascension - by Their senior disciples, the initiates in Their Ashrams, and (under the same great process) the place of these initiates, who are thus being "raised" to more important work, is being taken by disciples and probationers. (18 - 15/6).
(19) The Master's influence, as He seeks to aid His disciple, always produces transitory turmoil - transitory from the angle of the soul, but frequently appalling from the angle of the personality . . . This the aspirant and the inexperienced disciple resent, and blame the evoking sources for their discomfort, instead of learning the needed lesson of receiving and handling force. (18 - 32).
See also: "The Fifth Kingdom", and "The Hierarchy".
[Page 258]
(1) The Master Djwhal Khul, or the Master D.K. as He is frequently called, is another adept on the second Ray of Love-Wisdom. He is the latest of the adepts taking initiation, having taken the fifth initiation in 1875, and is therefore occupying the same body in which He took the initiation, most of the other Masters having taken the fifth initiation whilst occupying earlier vehicles. His body is not a young one, and He is a Tibetan. He is very devoted to the Master K.H. and occupies a little house not far distant from the larger one of the Master, and from His willingness to serve, and to do anything that has to be done, He has been called "the Messenger of the Masters". He is profoundly learned, and knows more about the rays and planetary Hierarchies of the solar system than anyone else in the ranks of the Masters. He works with those who heal, and cooperates unknown and unseen with the seekers after truth in the world's great laboratories, with all who definitely aim at the healing and solacing of the world, and with the great philanthropic world movements, such as the Red Cross. He occupies himself with various pupils of different Masters who can profit by His instruction, and within the last ten years has relieved both the Master M. and the Master K.H. of a good deal of Their teaching work, taking over from Them for certain stated times some of Their pupils and disciples. He works largely, too, with certain groups of the devas of the ethers, who are the healing devas, and who thus collaborate with Him in the work of healing some of the physical ills of humanity. He it was who dictated a large part of that momentous book, The Secret Doctrine, and Who showed to H.P. Blavatsky many of the pictures, and gave her much of the data that is to be found in her book. (1 - 57/8).
(2) He Who is known as D.K. is planning to restore - via His students -some of the old and occult methods of healing and to demonstrate:
a. The place of the etheric body.
b. The effect of pranic force.
c. The opening up of etheric vision. (3 - 759).
(3) My province in relation to the group is to give needed assistance to those who seek to fit themselves for active work as disciples . . . Suffice it that I am an Oriental, ... I am on the Teaching Ray, and closely associated with the Master K.H., . . . part of my work is the steady search for aspirants of strong heart, fervent devotion and trained minds. (4 - 128/9).
[Page 259]
(4) He Whom you call the Master D.K. works much with those who heal with pure altruism; He occupies Himself with those who are active in the laboratories of the world . . . Many of the healing angels, such as those referred to in the Bible, co-operate with Him. (13 - 506/7).
(5) The daily physical life of the Masters, of the Christ, and of those Members of the Hierarchy (initiates and accepted disciples) Who function in physical bodies, has had its orientation upon the subjective levels of life; the majority of Them, and particularly the senior Members of the Hierarchy, do not as a rule intermingle largely with the public, or walk the streets of our great cities. They work as I do from my retreat in the Himalayas, and from where I have influenced and helped far more people than I could possibly have reached, had I walked daily in the midst of the noise and chaos of human affairs. I lead a normal and, I believe useful life as the senior executive in a large lamasery, but my main work has lain elsewhere - widespread in the world of men; I reach this vast number of human beings through the medium of the books which I have written, through the groups which I have started and impulsed, such as Men of Goodwill and the Triangles, and through my disciples who talk and spread the truth as I have tried to present it. (13 - 682).
(6) On November 19th, 1919, I made my first contact with A.A.B. (much to her distress and dismay), and I have worked steadily with her ever since. The books which I then planned have been well-nigh finished; the various phases of the work which were a part of the preparation for the reappearance of the Christ, have taken form and should go forward with gathering momentum during the next twenty years.
The two major ideas which it was my task to bring to the attention of humanity everywhere throughout the world, have been securely anchored (if I may be permitted to use such a term), and these constitute by far the most important aspect of the work which I have done. These formulated ideas are:
1. The announcement of the existence (hitherto unrecognised) of the New Group of World Servers. This is an effective group of workers, intermediate between Humanity and the Spiritual Hierarchy of the planet.
2. The Statement, sent out lately, in connection with the Reappearance of the Christ, and for the immediate consolidation of the work of preparation.
All else that I have done in the service of the Hierarchy, is of secondary importance to these two statements of spiritual fact. . . Other work awaits me under the reorganisation of all the hierarchical efforts incident to the [Page 260] reappearance of the Christ, and the closer relationship which will then be established between humanity and the Hierarchy. (13 - 631/2).
(7) The production of the outer form on earth, through the medium of books, of esoteric schools, and the educating of the public opinion, has been committed to a group of us, who form a part of the inner world government - disciples and initiates - and to this group, I play the part of secretary and of organising contact man - if I may use words which will mean something to your ears . . . This group to which I refer, is composed of two oriental initiates (of which I am one) and of five occidental initiates. (5 - 33)
(8) I am an Oriental of the fourth root race, and although I have had two European incarnations, I still at times fail to grasp or understand the Occidental reaction. (6 - 473).
(9) I receive my instructions from a "joint committee" of the spiritual leaders behind the world scene; They are the senior members of the Hierarchy, working under the Christ. They arrive at Their decisions after due consultation with senior workers, such as myself - Masters and initiates above the third initiation. (6 - 501).
Maya is oft regarded as being of the same nature as the concept promulgated by the Christian Scientist, that there is no such thing as matter. We are asked to regard the entire world phenomena as maya, and to believe that its existence is simply an error of mortal mind, and a form of auto-suggestion or self-hypnotism. Through this induced belief, we force ourselves into a state of mind which recognises that the tangible and the objective, are only figments of man's imaginative mind. This, in its turn, is likewise a travesty of reality. (10 - 20), (15 - 471). See also: "Illusion" and "Glamour".
(1) In spite of mistakes, faulty diagnosis and much error, humanity cannot do without its doctors, its surgeons, and its hospitals. They are urgently needed, and will be for centuries to come . . .
Modern medicine must become far more open-minded, more ready to endorse (after due professional proof) that which is new, which is in the [Page 261] nature of innovation and which is unusual. The barriers erected by specialised medicine must come down, and the new schools must be sought, instructed and investigated, and finally be included in the orthodox ranks. The new schools, the dieticians who claim to cure all diseases through right foods, and the rather eccentric naturopaths, plus many other cults and schools, must not be so arrogantly sure that they have the whole story, that their approach is the only one, or that they have a universal cure-all, which is unique and definitely sure. These groups, particularly the chiropractors, have definitely damaged their cause, and crippled their effort, by their loudly shouted surety (in a field which is yet experimental), and by their constant attack upon orthodox medicine. The latter, in its turn, has limited itself by its failure to recognise what is good and right in the newer schools; it has been antagonised by their clamour for recognition, and by their lack of scientific methods. The desire of orthodox medicine is to protect the general public. This they need must do in order to avoid the disasters which fanatics and untried methods would bring about, but they have gone too far in this respect. (17 - 481/2).
(2) The centre of attention of medical and scientific students will be focussed on the etheric body, and the dependence of the physical body upon the etheric body will be recognised. This will change the attitude of the medical profession, and magnetic healing and vibratory stimulation will supersede the present methods of surgery and drug assimilation. Man's vision being then normally etheric, will have the effect of forcing him to recognise that which is now called the "unseen world". (3 - 474).
(3) Realisation (of the nature of man) will bring about . . . a readjustment of the medical knowledge of man, resulting in a truer understanding of the physical body, of its treatment, and of its protection, and thus producing a juster apprehension of the laws of health. The aim of the physician will then be to find out what it is in a man's life which is preventing egoic energy from flooding every part of his being; to find out what lines of thought are being indulged in which are causing that inertia of the will aspect which is so conducive to wrong-doing; to ascertain what it is in the emotional body which is affecting the nervous system, and thus obstructing the flow of energy from the love petals of the egoic lotus (via the astral permanent atom) to the astral body, and from thence to the nervous system; to discover what is the hindrance in the etheric body which is preventing the right flow of prana, or of solar vitality to every part of the body.
It is essential that in days to come medical men should realise that disease in the physical body is incidental to wrong internal conditions. This is [Page 262] already being somewhat considered, but the whole question will remain but a beautiful theory (even though an incontrovertible one in view of the achievements of mental scientists and of the various faith healers) until the true nature of the ego, its constitution, its powers, and its field of influence are duly apprehended.
This revelation will come when medical men accept this teaching as a working hypothesis, and then begin to note, for instance, the powers of endurance shown by the great souls of the earth, and their capacity to work at high pressure, and to remain practically immune from disease until (at the close of a long life of usefulness) the Ego deliberately chooses to "die-out" of physical existence. It will come when the medical profession concentrates upon preventative action, substituting sunshine, a vegetable diet, and the application of the laws of magnetic vibration and vitality for the present regime of drugs and surgical operations. Then will come the time when finer and better human beings will manifest on earth. When also physicians will learn the nature of the etheric body, and the work of the spleen as a focal point for pranic emanations, then sound principles and methods will be introduced which will do away with such diseases as tuberculosis, debility, malnutrition and the diseases of the blood and of the kidneys. When doctors comprehend the effect of the emotions upon the nervous system, they will turn their attention to the amelioration of environal conditions, and will study the effects of the emotional currents upon the fluids of the body, and primarily upon the great nerve centres, and the spinal column. When the connection between the dense physical and the subtler bodies is a fact established in medical circles, then will the right treatment of lunacy, of obsessions, and of wrong mental conditions be better comprehended, and results more successful; finally when the nature of egoic force, or of energy is studied, and the function of the physical brain as the transmitter of egoic intent is better comprehended, then the co-ordination of man's entire being will be studied, and illness, debility and disease, will be treated through the cause and not just through the effect. (3 - 811/2).
(4) Medical science today strains every effort to retain life in forms diseased and inadequate; these Nature, if left to herself, would long ago have discarded. They thereby imprison the life, and force back the life essence again and again into the sheath at the moment of liberation. In course of time and with more knowledge, true medical science will become purely preventative . . . and when the course of nature has been run, when the wheel of life has run down, when the hour for liberation has struck, [Page 263] when the time has come for the return of the essence to its centre, then the work will be recognised as completed, and the form discarded. . . . Men will then function on into old age, or until the Ego, realising the particular work to be accomplished in any one life has been duly worked out, calls in the lower spark of life, and withdraws the central points of fire. (3 - 1068/9).
(5) Once the etheric body becomes an established scientific fact, and the centres - major and minor - are recognised as the foci of all energy, as it expresses itself through the human body upon the physical plane, we shall see a great revolution take place in medicine, in diet and in handling of daily life activity. (9 - 134).
(6) The ameliorative and palliative and curative work of medicine and surgery, are proved beyond all controversial discussion. The methods employed, such as the vivisection of animals, may rightly cause distress. In spite of all this, the indebtedness of mankind to the medical profession is great, and the service rendered to humanity by the profession, does largely offset the evil. That they know not everything is true; that there is a small percentage of physicians and surgeons (less than in any other profession) who are self-seeking and no credit to their craft, is equally true; that they already know enough to be willing to admit how very much more there is to be known, is also correct. But that it is a great and good and self-sacrificing group within the human family, is equally true. Forget this not. (17 - 28).
(7) Medicine, in the next century, will be built around certain major premises:
1. Preventive medicine will be the goal, producing the attempt to keep the body in proper balanced order.
2. Sound sanitation and the providing of healthy conditions, will be regarded as essential.
3. The supply of the right chemical properties to the physical body will be studied - a science of chemistry which is yet in its infancy, though it is becoming a flourishing infant.
4. An understanding of the laws of vitality will be regarded as of prime importance, and of this the emphasis today on vitamins, and the influence of the sun, are wholesome indications.
5. The use of the mind will be regarded, above everything else, as a factor of major importance; the mind will be seen as the prime influence as regards the centres, for people will be taught to work on their centres through mental power, and thus produce a right reaction from the endocrine system. This will necessarily involve the right directing of thought to a [Page 264] centre, or the withdrawal of attention from a centre, with consequent effect upon the glandular system. This will all be based upon the occult law that "Energy follows thought". (17 - 219).
(8) The perfect healing combination is that of the medical man and the spiritual healer, each working in his own field, and both having faith in each other; this is not now the case. There is no need to call in divine aid to set bones, which the surgeon is well equipped to do, or to clear up infection which the physician knows well how to handle. The healer can help and can hasten the healing process, but the orthodox physician can also hasten the work of the healer. Both groups need each other.
I realise that what I have said here will please neither the spiritual healer nor the orthodox medical man. It is time, however, that they learn to appreciate each other and to work in co-operation. In the last analysis, the spiritual healer and the new modes of mental healing, have relatively little to contribute in comparison with the work and the knowledge of the member of the orthodox profession. The debt of the world to its doctors and surgeons is very great. The debt to healers is decidedly not so great; they oft also poison the channel, by bitterness and constant criticism of the physician and of orthodox medicine. Surety of knowledge and experience prevents a similar attitude in the orthodox group, plus the realisation that even the spiritual healer will call the doctor in times of emergency. (17 - 632/3).
(1) One of the great errors into which the human family has fallen has been the endeavour to administer mineral drugs to man for medicinal purposes. It has resulted in a combination of deva substances which was never intended. The relation of man to the lower kingdoms, and particularly to the animal and mineral, has brought about a peculiar condition in the deva world, and has tended to complicate deva evolution. (3 - 645).
(2) You ask me whether I am endorsing the use of ether and chloroform in operations, and of sedative drugs. Not basically, but most certainly temporarily. When man's contact with his soul is firmly established, and when he has developed the faculty of passing in and out of the physical body at will, these helps will no longer be needed. They may be regarded in the meantime as emergency measures, necessitated by world karma and the point of evolution of the race. I am not of course referring to the use of [Page 265] narcotics and of drugs by hysterical and unbalanced people, but to the judicious use of ameliorants of pain under the wise guidance of the physician. (4 - 305).


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By Mitt Romney's measure, my grandmother was a moocher.
By Mitt Romney's measure, my grandmother was a moocher.
You've probably heard about the Republican standard-bearer's remarks videotaped at a private fundraiser in May and released this week. Romney characterized the 47 percent of people who pay no income tax as irresponsible with entitlement issues.
Romney has said his comments were "not elegantly stated." But I've found that people say what they mean when they think they are speaking privately. Romney's language was all-inclusive. He didn't say some of the 47 percent (although it's really 46 percent) feel like victims or look for handouts. He said all the people who pay less income tax than the wealthy crowd he was appealing to "believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name it."
Well, the wealthy and corporations benefit from many types of government entitlements, especially in the form of tax breaks. Are they irresponsible? Are they moochers? Nonetheless, if we can put politics aside, let's look at this candid moment by a presidential candidate as a window into how so many people feel about the poor, the unemployed or in general the folks who benefit from government assistance.
Well-off individuals frequently talk about the less fortunate with unbelievable disdain and without the self-realization that they, too, are often just a job loss away from needing help.
Lose your job, and you often lose your health insurance. Get sick without health insurance, and you're likely to understand what it is like to be impoverished.
Romney was talking about nearly half of Americans who work and worry about earning enough to support their families, pay rent or the mortgage, save what they can to send their children to college or invest for their retirement. He was not just talking about the poor but also about middle-income Americans. He was talking about seniors who rely on Social Security. He was talking about the disabled who can't work and need help. And yes, he was talking about some folks who could do more for themselves but haven't.
The Post's Ezra Klein said the majority of Americans who paid no federal income taxes "have jobs and, when you account for both sides of the payroll tax, they paid 15.3 percent of their income in taxes, which is higher than the 13.9 percent that Romney paid. Another 22 percent were elderly."
Big Mama, my grandmother, worked hard and made a decent living as a nursing assistant, which allowed her to buy and pay off her home before she retired. She paid all her bills on time. She received medical assistance from the state that covered the bills for my juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, a sister with asthma and a brother who had epilepsy.
My grandmother never saw herself as a victim. She did not have an entitlement mentality. She was one of the most financially responsible people I've ever known. Mr. Romney, Big Mama was not a moocher.
Contact Michelle Singletary, a personal finance columnist at The Washington Post, at email@example.com.


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The God of War movie is to be rewritten, with screenwriting duo Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan brought in to do the job, according to Hollywood Reporter.
Melton and Dunstan found fame by penning four instalments of the Saw movie series, before writing a spec for Monstropolis - something which caught the eye of Guillermo del Toro, who brought the pair on board to help develop upcoming blockbuster Pacific Rim.
Pacific Rim revolves around humans fighting off an alien attack by piloting giant robots.
That sounds like a decent background for a team set to write a film about fighting mythological beasts and titans.
While the Saw movies aren't exactly known for their amazing scripts, Pacific Rim is generating a decent amount of buzz. Hopefully the God of War movie won't end up being another video game to film dud.


text:
Withdrawal Policy
The symbol "W" indicates that the student was permitted to drop
a course after the second week of instruction with the approval
of the instructor and appropriate campus official. It carries no
connotation of quality of student performance and is not used in
calculating grade point average.
Students are held responsible for completion of every course in
which they register OR FOR WITHDRAWING DURING THE FIRST TWO WEEKS
OF CLASSES FROM COURSES WHICH THEY DO NOT INTEND TO COMPLETE. Application
for withdrawal from the University or from a class must be officially
filed by the student at the Admissions and Records Office whether
the student has ever attended the class or not; otherwise, the student
will receive a grade of "U" (unauthorized incomplete) in the course.
Application for withdrawal is made at the Admissions and Records
Regulations governing the refund of student fees in the California
State University system are prescribed by the CSU Board of Trustees;
see California Code of Regulations, Title 5, Education, Section
1. Withdrawal during the first two weeks of instruction:
Students may withdraw during this period and the course will not
appear on their permanent records. To do this a student must file
a Complete Withdrawal Application to drop all classes or a Change
of Program Form for a specific class or classes.
2. Withdrawal after the second week of instruction and prior to
the final three weeks of instruction:
Withdrawal during this period are permissible only for serious
and compelling reasons. The procedure for withdrawal during this
period are the same as in item 1, except that the approval signatures
of the instructor and department chairperson are required. The request
and approvals shall state the reasons for the withdrawal. Students
should be aware that the definition of "serious and compelling reasons"
as applied by faculty and administrators may become narrower as
the semester progresses. Copies of such approvals are kept on file
in the Admissions and Records Office.
3. Withdrawal during the final three weeks of instruction:
Withdrawal during the final three weeks of instruction are not
permitted except in cases such as accident or serious illness where
the circumstances causing the withdrawal are clearly beyond the
student's control and the assignment of an Incomplete is not practical.
Ordinarily, withdrawal in this category will involve total withdrawal
from the campus except that a Credit/No Credit grade or an Incomplete
may be assigned for courses in which sufficient work has been completed
to permit an evaluation to be made. Request for permission to withdraw
under these circumstances must be made in writing on forms available
in the Office of Admissions and Records. The requests and approvals
shall state the reasons for the withdrawal. These requests must
be approved by the instructor, department chairperson and dean of
the school. Copies of such approvals are kept on file in the Office
of Admissions and Records.
4. Medical Withdrawal:
Complete Medical Withdrawal:
The University
may allow a student to withdraw without academic penalty from all
classes if the following criteria are met:
B. The student presents evidence to demonstrate that a severe medical
or debilitating psychological condition prevented the student from
attending and/or doing the required work of the courses to the extent
that it was impossible to complete the courses.
Repeat Complete Medical Withdrawal:
If the student has received a complete medical withdrawal in the
immediately preceding term, then additional complete medical withdrawal
requests must consider the question of whether or not the student
can complete appropriate educational objectives, and must be reviewed
on a case-by-case basis. After a repeat medical withdrawal is granted,
the student may be required to obtain a clearance from an appropriate
medical or psychological professional that states the student is
well enough to return to classes with the full expectation that
the student will be able to complete the semester and intended educational
Partial Medical Withdrawal:
Students seeking withdrawal from part of their enrollment for any
reason, including medical or psychological reasons, are subject
to the normal withdrawal policy and process.
5. Instructor Withdrawal:
An instructor may withdraw a student who has never attended a class
by completing an "Instructor Drop Card" and submitting it to the
Office of Admissions and Records along with the Enrollment Verification
List at the end of the third week of classes. Students, however,
should not rely on the instructor to do this and should officially
withdraw from classes themselves to avoid
assignment of a "U" in the course.
An instructor may also withdraw a student who has enrolled in a
course requiring "permission of the instructor" or completion of
prerequisites if the student has not properly secured this permission
or satisfactorily completed the prerequisites before enrolling.


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Dr. Spaceman wrote:BayAreaHoopz wrote:GSW Hoops Fan wrote:Ellis is the best player on our team by far. Remove him from the team we would have been fighting the Wolves for #1 draft spot. .
And that just might be the problem. Since Ellis has become this team's best player, they've won 29, 26 and 36 games. Sure, he missed that 29 win season, at least the majority of it, but he was still getting paid right? As a business, you have to take that into consideration unless you like throwing away $11M. Interesting that they won 29 games without him and then 26 with him. Doesn't that confuse you just a little?
He has missed 19 games in the last two season. The Warriors have 8 wins and 11 losses in those 19 games. Not great, but not exactly Minnesota bad considering he did it with guys like Reggie Williams, Anthony Tolliver, Corey Maggette and Ronnie Turiaf. You take the games that Ellis did play, which is 145 games in the last two seasons...57 wins and 88 losses.
Don't just take those facts as a way to scapegoat Monta. In that season they won 29 games the team had Stephen Jackson and Jamal Crawford, both of which although no always efficiently, have shown that they have the talent to get a team around 29 wins. That team also actually had a bench that could score too, and it's best option for such wasn't Reggie Williams. Also if I'm not mistaken the Lakers had a pretty damn good record with Kobe out of the lineup last year. Does that mean they were a better team without one of the greatest SGs of all time? HELL NO!
Last year with our most injuries in franchise history and his second best player by far being a rookie we only lost 3 more games than the year before. If you do the math correctly, it wasn't the addition of Monta that made the team lose 3 more games. Monta and Curry prevented the team from being worse than the Nets.
This year we won 10 more games, and with him as the leader and showed more toughness than we have in years during certain stretches (Nothing great, but we had a few streaks of holding quality opponents to less than 100 points. And won more than a few games where we scored less than 100 points. Something we never would have done in the past few years. Now I can't credit this all to Monta, since offseason additions and a coaching change helped in that regard, but those are the signs of growth you want from a young team.
Last time I checked he was not getting posted up every game, so his height and weight shouldn't be considered a huge factor. Add this to the fact that our backcourt constantly outperformed other teams backcourts throughout the year. What we need to improve upon is our defensive rotations down low, as we constantly get outshot at the foul line and send our best bigs to the bench for undisciplined (partly due to our reputation) forcing us to play undersized a majority of the time. Combine that with the fact that putting others on the line and slowing it down takes away a huge advantage we try to gain over other teams by forcing the tempo. This is why we need a legitimate defensive coach, who runs a defensive system that has proven to work in the NBA. Oh yeah drafting a legit SF so we can bring in Wright off the bench, along with improving the bench should help a lot too.
Who are the Warriors going to get to be a defense force in the key? Their money mostly in David lee, Monta, and AB and none of them are defensive presence. If they want a defensive center or PF they need to pay at least 11 mill per year to get that one player in FA market. They are not going to draft a big man to play defensive center, because it takes a long time to develop one to play in the NBA. Unless they find a gem in draft who can play defense in Center spot right away, but those are very rare. Lacob wants to win now so he going to the FA to get the big man, but with the new CBA will Lacob have enough money to get the Big center against other team who will be wanting the Centers service? Monta been on this team for awhile now and as his role increase the team hasn't been winning. He is not a great player because his skill set does not offset the team weakness to produce more wins for this team. Look get 10 wins is not a big deal coming from 26-36 not to me, because we have seen it before for awhile now. I will be impress if the team goes to near mid 40s and above in the West in the coming season. You can get a coach to preach defense philosophy, but in the end it the players who actually playing defense and I don't know if any player on this roster who can play that tough and smart defense.


text: Review : Acer Liquid E updated 05:35 am EDT, Sun June 20, 2010 by MacNN Staff Acer produces both a fast and inexpensive Android phone. MacNN Rating: Product Manufacturer: Acer Price: $50 (3 years, Rogers) The Good Great price for the features. Excellent voice quality. Fast; reference Android 2.1 with multi-touch. Welcome and thankfully small custom widgets. Camera with good color reproduction. The Bad Possible long-term build quality concerns. Only 2GB of included storage. - Camera sometimes has "smeared stills;" VGA video. Design, build quality and the display From a cursory look, the Liquid E wouldn't do much to command attention; it's a minimalist candybar with an all-black surface when the display is powered off. It's not much different than the original Liquid A1, but that amounts to a slim, no-nonsense design. The touch-sensitive controls are easy to reach and well-placed. Our main concern about the design, and indeed the phone, is just construction quality. Acer's phone feels solid, but the shell is made out of fairly cheap-feeling, glossy plastic. Aside from drawing fingerprints, it doesn't fare as well against either the soft-touch plastic or metal of its competitors. More importantly, there were were signs it might not hold up to significant abuse: the display cover had a handful of air pockets at the edges where it had been partly detached, and the larger back panel wasn't completely flush. These may be functions of our review unit, but we're suspicious that rough handling could see the Liquid E fall apart sooner than its rivals; thankfully, Acer does bundle in a carrying pouch. That aside, the phone is comfortable to hold and to use, and shows some signs of intelligent design. We most liked the light-up notifiers on the top of the phone that tell you new e-mail has come in without having to remove it from the pouch or a pocket. The sleep/wake button is potentially too close to your index finger or thumb, depending on how you hold it, but we wouldn't consider it a significant setback. We'd like more than 2GB of bundled storage, though. The display hasn't really changed from the A1, but in this price class that isn't a bad thing. It's a 3.5-inch, 800x480 display that comes across as sharp and surprisingly colorful. It's not quite as accurate as an iPhone's, but it's certainly capable, and it supports multi-touch Android commands. Android 2.1, Acer customizations and speed The Liquid E is proof that, even with similar versions, not all Android builds are created equal. Out of the box, Acer's phone comes with Android 2.1 already preinstalled, but it's considerably more faithful to the reference Google version even than on a "halo" phone like the Motorola Droid (Milestone outside of the US). It's virtually identical to the install on the Nexus One and has all the 3D effects and modified controls where the Droid is much more like an older model. That's not necessarily a bad thing. Apart from image quality in the photo gallery, Android 2.1 on the Liquid E gives it a polish that has been somewhat rare in the past. We can only hope that Acer keeps up to date in a relatively timely fashion. Aging OS builds have been Android phones' Achilles' heel, and pushing Android 2.2 or later would go a long way towards convincing buyers that Acer is committed to the long haul where Samsung, Sony Ericsson and others have been relatively slow to move. A quick upgrade may be realistic, as Acer has thankfully had only a light touch on the user interface. The most conspicuous changes are a pair of carousel widgets on the home screen: one provides a quick preview or access to media like music and photos, and the other provides top-level shortcuts to favorite websites. There's also a handful of utilities like Acer Sync, though we simply didn't need them much of the time; their main edge is for those who want to post media online but don't want to use a service like Picasa or YouTube. Acer Sync is also Windows-only on the computer side, so it's of limited utility if you don't exist in a Microsoft universe. Some controversy has stirred up over the choice of processor; Acer is still underclocking the Snapdragon chip to 768MHz from its usual 1GHz. Truth be told, though, it was hard to notice the difference between this and the full-speed chip. No doubt it would be noticeable in some games, and the multi-touch still lags in areas where the iPhone wouldn't, but there aren't any practical bottlenecks in day-to-day use -- certainly it's faster than the 1GHz Sony Ericsson Xperia X10. It's just as well, as the phone gets warm after intensive use. It doesn't need to get hotter. Camera quality As much as the phone can polarize opinions, image quality from the five-megapixel camera clouds things with decidedly mixed performance. Still images have surprisingly rich color and even produce a pleasing shallow depth of field in the right circumstances, but we've also noticed that the plastic lens surface creates the smeared effect common to some phone cameras. It doesn't handle high-contrast shadows very elegantly, either, and without a flash, photos in the dark or in low light just aren't realistic. The camera app is fairly quick to load, though, which can't be said even for many Android devices with fast processors. Video output is middling, too. We were fairly happy with the actual quality, but Acer is still using VGA (640x480) recording; that was good enough in 2009, but it's sub-par in 2010 when the Motorola Droid snaps widescreen 480p and several more phones now ship with recording in 720p, including the iPhone 4. That may be fine for now, but even for YouTube it will be underwhelming before long. Call quality and battery life What may surprise the most about the Liquid E is its voice calling. Simply put, it's outstanding. On our end, calls were loud, and were clear without being shrill. The recipient agreed and said it was the best cellphone quality they'd heard, even with some mild-to-moderate background noise. A iPhone 4 or Nexus One owner could rightly point to their active noise cancellation providing an edge, but for straight-ahead audio quality, Acer is surprisingly out in front. Battery life isn't quite so beyond expectations and is very much in line with Android phones. It should last for several hours of moderate use, and it tends to drain 10 to 20 percent of battery life if left overnight with a handful of background notifications active (Gmail and Twitter, for example). As competent as that is, we're concerned it might not be the best before long. Apple's iPhone 4 is about to get a bigger battery and better power management, so what seems adequate today may not be as great later on. Even so, you shouldn't be worried about longevity, especially as there's still a replaceable battery. Wrapping up In many ways, the Liquid E design fits Acer's PC philosophy to a tee. It's all about providing the most possible performance on the inside relative to a low price. As always, there are certain tradeoffs to be made for this to happen. Here, you get a quick, modern Android phone that excels at voice calls -- a rarity in an era where the Droid X and Evo 4G treat phoning as almost incidental -- but, like an entry-level Aspire notebook, the construction isn't reassuring. You may well miss HD video recording or the more advanced optics once you're one or two years into your contract. All the same, it was hard not to keep returning back to a single, undeniable advantage: $50 Canadian ($49 US) on a contract. Even at its contract-free $425 ($416 US) price, there are few smartphones that both have fast, reasonably modern hardware and an OS to match. The last time a carrier like Rogers offered a $50 Android phone was the LG Eve, and it was frankly disappointing with an unwieldy, resistive touchscreen, a fair amount of bulk and UI customizations that mostly made things worse. With the Liquid E, Acer smartly realized that seemingly plain hardware and software design could actually be an advantage. It's improbable that Acer will rock the smartphone industry to its foundations and give Apple, HTC or Motorola panic attacks, but it doesn't have to just yet. As long as you get an example without build quirks, the Liquid E is a very viable smartphone, especially when stacked against other phones with similar pricing.


text:
The Center for Business and Economic Research as written several studies on the economic impact of various natural diseasters both domestic and international. These studies provide a broad scope of the damage and economic recovery of areas affected by these disasters.
Preliminary Damage Estimates for Pakistani Flood Events, 2010This study examines preliminary damage estimates incurred in Pakistan as a result of the 2010 flood. Written by Michael J. Hicks, Ball State University, and Mark L. Burton, University of Tennessee.
Preliminary Flood Damage Estimates for the Memphis, Tennessee, MSAThis brief study examines preliminary damage estimates incurred in the MSA of Memphis, Tenn., as a result of the Spring 2011 flooding.
A Preliminary Discussion of Storm DamagesWith the current ice and snow storms occuring throughout Indiana, there is the potential for widespread economic distruption and damages to infrastructure. This statement addresses these economic issues.
Preliminary Flood Damage Assessments This report is designed to provide a very preliminary assessment of flood damages that occurred from June 6, 2008, along the White and Wabash rivers, and their tributaries in Indiana. Preliminary Flood Damage Estimates for IowaA preliminary estimate of probable damages, based on an econometric model developed after the 1993 floods and verified through experience with Hurricane Katrina.
Hurricane Katrina: Preliminary Estimates of Commercial and Public Sector Damages, September 2005 This paper provides initial estimates of damages in a number of infrastructure categories and residential and commercial structures, content and equipment. Written by Michael J. Hicks (Ball State University) and Mark L. Burton (University of Tennessee), with Marshall University.
Preliminary Information on Rebuilding Efforts in the Gulf Coast
Expected Flood Damages to Transportation Infrastructures as a Proportion of Total Event Costs: a Methodological Exploration, 2003 This study include estimation techniques for a wide-ranging set of residential and commercial damage groupings as a result of the 2003 floods of the Tennessee Valley. Writeen by Michael J. Hicks (Ball State Univeristy) and Mark L. Burton (Univeristy of Tennessee), with Marshall University.


text:
NACCHO Awards
In the Spotlight
NACCHO recognizes the work of local health departments. Award winners are honored at the Grand Award Ceremony during NACCHO Annual. We encourage all members to apply for these awards throughout the year and we invite all conference attendees to recognize their achievements in local public health at the Grand Award Ceremony. More »
Model Practices
NACCHO's Model Practices Program nationally honors and recognizes outstanding local public health practice and shares the outstanding practices through the Model Practices Database. By submitting a practice, LHDs contribute to the overall improvement of public health through evidence-based best practice methods.
LHD of the Year Award
The LHD of the Year Award values that local health departments are the local stewards of public health- known for helping to ensure the safety of the water we drink, the food we eat, and the air we breathe. This award recognizes and honors outstanding accomplishment of Local Health Departments across the country for their innovation, creativity, and impact on communities.
The Maurice "Mo" Mullet Lifetime of Service Award
The Maurice "Mo" Mullet Lifetime of Service Award honors current or former local health officials for noteworthy service to NACCHO that has reflected the commitment, vigor and leadership exemplified by Mo's distinguished career.


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The Claremont Laemmle 5 this week has "The Class," an Oscar-nominated French film about a good teacher in a difficult classroom. I saw this at the ArcLight a few weeks back, assuming Claremont wouldn't get it. Highly recommended.
I saw it with a friend who's an LAUSD teacher and she said, despite it taking place in another country, the film felt very real to her. Educators in particular will like this film.
The Laemmle also is featuring "Che Part One" and "Che Part Two," Steven Soderbergh's extremely long Che Guevara biopic. And "Two Lovers," the Joaquin Phoenix/Gwyneth Paltrow drama, is in its second week.
As if all this weren't enough to keep cineastes busy, Claremont's Tournees Film Festival concludes tonight.
The series ends with a screening of "Persepolis" at 6:30 p.m. at Pomona College. This 2008 animated film from France about a young woman growing up in Iran during the Revolution was likewise nominated for an Oscar. I can also recommend it. (The creator, graphic novelist Marjane Satrapi, appeared at the Claremont Athenaeum a couple of years ago.)
See it at the Rose Hills Theater in the Smith Campus Center, 170 E. 6th St.


text:
Going into Friday night, Stephen King novels had more suspense than the Bears' depth chart.
In lieu of position battles, precision was the focus.
That precision still must be in Bourbonnais, at Halas Hall or back at O'Hare. It certainly didn't get packed in the Bears' luggage, except maybe Brian Griese's.
With the injured Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson keeping the running back battle on the sideline for now, the Bears dived into their 2006 exhibition schedule with a 28-14 loss to San Francisco on Friday night at Monster Park.
Looking ragged on offense and surprisingly soft on defense, the Bears made the 49ers look like world-beaters. Is it time to mention the 49ers finished last in both yards gained and yards allowed last season?
Rex Grossman, so poised and accurate in training camp, looked anything but. He hurried throws, experienced miscommunication with receivers and finished 3-for-11 for 47 yards.
On 16 snaps from scrimmage, the Grossman-led offense managed only one first down. His 44.9 passer rating wasn't reminiscent of Chad Hutchinson, but it wasn't pretty.
"I have to get better," Grossman said. "I know that's not what I'm about. That's not the way I play. I wasn't really able to calm down and feel in control. But I know what I can do. And that's not my best performance."
Griese replaced Grossman with the Bears trailing 17-0 and 4 minutes 23 seconds left in the first half. He directed two touchdown drives in his two possessions, completing 6 of 7 passes for 134 yards and a pair of TD passes.
Working against a second-team defense, he spread the ball efficiently, hitting four receivers on the first scoring drive. A 24-yard gain to P.J. Pope, a 31-yard gain to Rashied Davis and a 12-yard touchdown pass to Gabe Reid highlighted the eight-play, 75-yard drive to make it 17-7 at the half.
Griese then connected on a second touchdown pass, a 41-yard play to Davis, a little more than five minutes into the second half. That drive covered 83 yards in five plays.
The Bears have doused all talk of quarterback controversies. But this is Chicago. Fans may be clamoring for one after this night.
"I know how those things work," said Griese, who has experience with them. "I'm not even thinking about that. I'm thinking about trying to get better, learning this offense and proving myself to the guys on the team. That's what I'm focused on."
Added coach Lovie Smith: "Rex is our starting quarterback. This is one game."
Meanwhile, the Bears' defense made Alex Smith look like Joe Montana. Smith finished 16-for-21 for 137 yards and directed two scoring drives, one against the second-team defense.
Smith nevertheless praised the first-team defense, blaming field position off a Mark Bradley fumble for San Francisco's first score, a 33-yard Joe Nedney field goal.
Perhaps noticing 107 first-quarter yards, defensive end Alex Brown saw it differently.
"I don't think we played very well," Brown said. "Our first team needs to come out and set the tone, and we didn't do that.
"We didn't let up any real big plays, but we let them sustain drives. We didn't have any three-and-outs, and that's what we have to do. It definitely wasn't an impressive first game by any means."
It didn't start well.
On the first snap, Grossman air-mailed a pass intended for Adrian Peterson halfway to Alcatraz, then fired wild to Bernard Berrian on the next play.
On third down, Grossman completed a 17-yard pass to Bradley, who promptly fumbled when hit by cornerback Sammy Davis. Former Bear Walt Harris recovered, setting up the 49ers at the Bears' 43.
Smith and Antonio Bryant worked Charles Tillman for back-to-back 11-yard gains. Nathan Vasher then took a Kevan Barlow knee to the head and stayed on the field for several minutes before walking off under his own power.
Vasher returned briefly after Nedney's field goal for a 3-0 lead but later left with a strained back.
On the Bears' next offensive series, Grossman hit Muhsin Muhammad for a 22-yard gain. Three plays later, however, Brad Maynard trotted out to punt after Grossman had missed badly on throws to Reid and Davis.
On both plays, it appeared Grossman and the receivers miscommunicated on routes.
On the third play of the Bears' next series, Grossman fumbled the snap from Lennie Friedman, subbing for a sick Olin Kreutz. After initially recovering the fumble and needing only 2 yards for a third-down conversion, Grossman lunged forward, fumbling again.
Linebacker Jeff Ulbrich scooped up the ball and ran 32 yards untouched for a touchdown and 10-0 San Francisco lead.
The Bears went three-and-out on their next possession, with Grossman underthrowing Bradley on second and third downs under pressure. At least Maynard's tender groin stayed loose.
For good measure, Grossman threw high to Muhammad and overthrew Davis on his final three-and-out series.
That brought in the Bears' second-team defense, and Smith was ready. He promptly marched San Francisco 68 yards in 13 plays, including a fourth-down conversion. Frank Gore capped the drive, which chewed up 7 minutes 16 seconds, with a 1-yard scoring run.
Nedney kicked a 23-yard third-quarter field goal after Griese exited. And Shaun Hill scored on a 3-yard rollout in the fourth to cap the scoring.


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The new Xbox One and PlayStation 4 fueled a 50% spike in video game console sales in December, compared with a year earlier, as enthusiasts rushed to buy the latest systems.
Micrososoft's Xbox One was the top-selling console in December, but Sony's rival PS4 sold more units since the November launch of the new systems, according to newly released figures from the NPD Group.
"The newest consoles from Microsoft and Sony are off to a tremendous start," said NPD Group analyst Liam Callahan.
Overall hardware sales, including the top-selling Nintendo 3DS handheld game system, reached $1.37 billion in December. That's an increase of 28% from the same time a year ago. December sales of accessories rose by 4% to $631 million.
GRAPHIC: Faces to watch 2014 | Entertainment
Gains in hardware and accessories sales offset a 17% drop in consumer spending on packaged video games, driving a 2% increase in total spending on physical game products in December to $3.28 billion, according to the NPD data.
Digital revenue now accounts for about half of all consumer spending on games. Video game rentals and spending on mobile apps, subscriptions, Facebook apps and small transactions that improves a game experience, amounted to more than $1 billion in December, NPD estimates.
Taken together, overrall spending on games — both on disc and digital — amounted to nearly $2.4 billion, NPD reports.
Take Two Interactive's "Grand Theft Auto V," set in a fictional sun-soaked city similar to Los Angeles, ranked as the top-selling game of 2013 and is close to surpassing sales of "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" to make it the bestselling game in the franchise, Callahan said.
Activision Blizzard's warfare-game "Call of Duty: Ghosts" was the top-selling title in December.
The best-selling packaged games of 2013:
- "Grand Theft Auto V" (Take Two Interactive)
- "Call of Duty: Ghosts" (Activision Blizzard)
- "Madden NFL 25" (Electronic Arts)
- "Battlefield 4" (Electronic Arts)
- "Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag" (Ubisoft)
- "NBA 2K14" (Take 2 Interactive)
- "Call of Duty: Black Ops II" (Activision Blizzard)
- "Just Dance 2014" (Ubisoft)
- "Minecraft" (Microsoft)
- "Disney Infinity" (Disney Interactive Studios)
Ratings for 'Duck Dynasty' premiere down from last year
Oscars 2014: Sony and Warner tie for most nominations
Management changes continue at Nickelodeon: Paula Kaplan leaving
ON LOCATION: People and places behind what's onscreen PHOTOS: Biggest box office flops of 2013 PHOTOS: Celebrity production companies
ON LOCATION: People and places behind what's onscreen
PHOTOS: Biggest box office flops of 2013
PHOTOS: Celebrity production companies


text:
Support PDF,DOC,DOCX,TXT,XLS,WPD,HTM,HTML fils up to 5MB
Job Details
Company name
Organization TypeIn-House
Job Type
Practice Area
Date Last Verified
Posted on
ISU CP&A - Management Consulting Associate - Fall 2018 The candidate should have a Bachelor's degree in accounting, actuarial science, business administration, computer science, data analytics, economics, engineering, finance, financial engineering, information systems/information technology, Law, liberal arts, math or supply chain management. Should preferably have 3.3 cumulative GPA. Must have an interest in all aspects of management and risk consulting, as well as a desire to pursue a career in consulting. Should demonstrate flexibility and desire to travel, as client assignments require.
Additional info
Req ID: 100948BR
Company infoHiring Coordinator


text:
Analyze incoming traffic, study user behavior, launch and optimize marketing campaigns to achieve your business goals faster with Finteza. Connect the service to maximize ad revenue through hyper targeted marketing campaigns and efficient ad spending!
Finteza provides an easy way to control your complex marketing practices. How many of targeted users have become your customers? Is your marketing spending effective? With Finteza you can access the most realistic and reliable information in a matter of minutes.
Why Finteza?
- Multi-step analysis of incoming users and user profiling
- Evaluation of traffic source efficiency and links between sources
- Analysis of sales and conversions funnels
- Create and target marketing campaigns on your resources
- Marketing campaign efficiency and ROI measurement
Finteza is a revolutionary service in the market of web analytics and traffic management systems. There is no longer a need to use multiple solutions. Finteza has everything you will ever need!


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Adam Brody & Jessica Szohr: Dinner Date!
Former O.C. star Adam Brody and Gossip Girl actress Jessica Szohr go on a dinner date together at Cafeteria in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City on Monday night (August 3).
Jessica, 24, and Adam, 29, were at dinner with two other people. No word on whether they were on a double date with each other, a double date with other people, or dining altogether as just friends!
FYI: The O.C. and Gossip Girl are both shows created by Josh Schwartz. Jessica is toting around the Rebecca Minkoff Stud Mab Bag.
Other pictures include Chace Crawford, Hilary Duff, Blake Lively and Penn Badgley shooting new scenes for Gossip Girl earlier today. 10+ pics inside…


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Empire Magazine to Feature "Deathly Hallows" Preview in February Issue
Jan 03, 2010
DH Film
The recently released cover of the February 2010 issue of Empire Magazine indicates that their upcoming 'On-Set Access' feature will include a preview of the "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" film. The cover, available to view on the Empire website, includes the seventh Potter film along with such other high profile 2010 releases as "Toy Story 3," "Alice in Wonderland," and "Tron Legacy." While we have yet to receive word on the contents of this "on-set access" preview, we will update you as soon as this issue arrives on newsstands.
If you spot this issue on newsstands, please do send scans into [email protected]
Thanks to ScarPotter for mailing.


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Idiot Pilot
Top SongsSee All
AlbumsSee All
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Singles & EPsSee All
About Idiot Pilot
Bellingham, WA's Idiot Pilot comprises Michael Harris (vocals) and Daniel Anderson (guitars, keys, programming). Strange We Should Meet Here, the duo's debut, originally appeared in February 2004 through their own Clickpop imprint. But word of mouth was strong for the band's plucky blend of moody electronics and screeching post-hardcore noise, and Idiot Pilot was soon getting spins on Seattle modern rock radio and scoring gigs at Experience Music Project. They signed with Reprise in May of that year, gigged up and down the West Coast, and by the following autumn were preparing for the re-release of their (now remastered) album. Reprise issued the record in May 2005 (after pushing the date back a few months), and Idiot Pilot hit the road in support. Their second album, Wolves, was released in digital form in August 2007, with a proper retail release following in early 2008. ~ Johnny Loftus
- Bellingham, WA
- Alternative
- 2003
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Apple, once a market darling, has slumped in recent trading as it combats slowing top line growth rates and contracting gross margins as competitors fight for market share in categories Apple invented. This has contributed to the, so far, rapid 25% decline in share price from peak at $705 in late September.
Also contributing to the downward momentum is the notion that AAPL's "Innovation momentum" is in secular decline because, after all how many new product categories can AAPL create and dominate? Mostly though, AAPL is a "Fiscal Cliff" stock.
Billions in pregnant capital gains in this name will be crystalized before colander year end because cap gain rates in the U.S. are going up next year no matter what happens with the fiscal cliff negotiations…. So I'll pay less tax today rather than more tomorrow: "So sell my shares this year, thank you very much."
OK, the short term drivers in this down trend are currently prevailing, but with a 12x trailing P/E, high top line and EPS growth rates, a 2% yield, and 20+% of the current $515 billion market cap covered with cash, we think that value buyers are taking notice and will soon start re-owning this name.
Apple (AAPL : NASDAQ : US$542.90), Net Change: 0.07, % Change: 0.01%, Volume: 18,715,328


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This 2-story home featuring 4 bedrooms 3 full baths and amazing curb appeal offers an updated and elegant kitchen that's perfect for entertaining: accentuated with a gorgeous center island, beautiful stainless steel appliances, tons of cabinet space, granite counter tops, tile floors, and a breakfast room off the kitchen with a sliding door leading to the patio. The spacious living room with beautiful wooden floors upon entry, a family room featuring a wood-burning fireplace. The master bedroom suite has an updated bathroom with double sinks, custom tile walk-in shower w/ rainfall shower head & a walk-in closet with custom built-ins. The updated hall bathroom features a new vanity, custom tile work and a transom window above the shower allowing for plenty of natural light. There is also a finished lower level adding bonus living space. Updates: newer windows, zoned HVAC - 2014, Electrical panel updated in 2010 and a main floor laundry. Sellers will consider all reasonable offers.
Listings displaying the MARIS logo are courtesy of the participants of Mid America Regional Information Systems Internet Data Exchange. IDX information is provided exclusively for consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing.
Copyright © 2018 Mid America Regional Information Systems.


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Feedback welcome:
----IP Addresses, MAC Addresses, and ARP----
By Niels | email@example.com | www.binaryuniverse.no-ip.com
This tutorial may be redistributed and hosted on other servers as long as full credit is given to me, Niels, and it is left completely intact.
This tutorial covers IP addresses, MAC addresses, and ARP. You will learn more about each of these in their respective sections of this paper, but before you assume that IP addresses, MAC addresses, and ARP have nothing to do with each other, a brief introduction is necessary. IP addresses are addresses assigned to hosts over the internet, MAC addresses are addresses that are used to identify hardware over a network, and ARP is a protocol that converts IP addresses to MAC addresses, so you can now see that all three subjects addressed in this paper do relate to each other. As always, feedback is appreciated, so feel free to contact me via email, or any other way for that matter. Now, let us begin.
IP addresses are addresses to identify host uniquely over the internet. Think about it, if you are communicating with a web server, or any other kind of computer via a network or the internet, that machine needs to know how to reply to you, just as if you are writing a letter to a person, that person needs an address to send a reply to. IP addresses in IPv4, which is currently the most version of Internet Protocol, consist of 32-bit numbers, such as:
11010011 01110100 11101001 00101110
However, this form of writing IP addresses is hardly easily read. To make IP addresses more readable by humans, they are usually written in what is referred to as dotted decimal notation. To translate this to dotted decimal notation, each octet (byte/8 bits) is converted to a decimal number and each octet is seperated by a dot, hence the name dotted decimal notation. Thus, the previous example is the following in dotted decimal notation:
IP addresses are divided into 5 classes, Class A, Class B, Class C, Class D, and Class E. Classes D and E are reserved for special use, while classes A, B, and C are used by the public, so to speak. Class A addresses always begin with a 0 when in binary form, and can start with any octet from 1 to 126. In a class A address, the first octet represents which network the IP belongs to, while the last three octets are used to represent the host on the network. This leaves a possibility for a large number of different hosts, and thus class A addresses are reserved for large organizations.
Class B addresses will always begin with 10 in binary notation, meaning the first octet in dotted decimal notation will be a number from 128 to 191. In class A addresses, we saw that the first octet identified the network, and the last three the host. In class B addresses, the frist two octets identify the network of the IP, and the last two identify the host. If you're wondering what happenned to an IP starting with 127.x.x.x, the answer is that it is reserved for local loopback, meaning that 127.x.x.x is always the machine you are on, so if you ping 127.0.0.1, you are actually pinging your own computer.
Class C addresses always begin with 110 in binary form, which also means that the first octet as a decimal will be a number in the range from 192 to 223. We saw earlier that the first octet of class A networks represents the network, the first two octets for class B, and to stick with the pattern, the first three octets of a class C represent the network portion of the address, and the last octet represents the host portion of the address. You'll notice that this leaves room for many class C networks, but not so many hosts per network, wheras class A is exactly the opposite.
Now that we've discussed the basics of IP addresses, we can move on to level two: MAC addresses. A MAC (Media Access Control) address is a unique 12-bit hex number used to identify a network adapter, and are used for identifying hosts on a LAN (Local Area Network). They are displayed in the following form:
The first half, in this case AA:AA:AA is used to identify the manufacturer of the networking hardware, and the second half, in this case BB:BB:BB is used to identify the serial number of the network adapter. If everyone left their networking hardware as it was, no two adapters would have the same MAC address, but many users, for many different reasons, will spoof a different MAC address, or even outright change it on occasion.
As you've seen, IP addresses are used to identify a host via the internet, and MAC addresses to identify a host via a network. However, something's missing. Suppose you are communicating with a web server. You send the data to the server via a gateway, and the server sends the data back to the gateway, which routes it back to you. However, the server sends the data with the IP address of the intended recipient, and hosts are identified over a network via MAC address, thus the IP needs to be associated with the appropriate MAC address. To do this, IP addresses and their corresponding MAC addresses are stored in the ARP cache. The gateway receives the message from the server to be routed, and looks for the destination IP in the ARP cache. If the IP is found in the ARP cache, the message is then routed to the appropriate MAC address. If the IP address is not in the ARP cache, then the gateway broadcasts an ARP request for the IP address it is routing the message to. The machine with the appropriate IP responds, and the gateway sends the message to that host and adds the IP address and MAC address to it's ARP cache for later use.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how ARP ties MAC addresses and IP addresses together. I hope you learned something from this, or at least found it mildly entertaining. El fin.


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Are courses needed, or can one just study and take (one?) exam?
What are the approx costs for the exam?
Approx costs for courses?
Im a recent college graduate with an IT degree. Im working at an entry level IT job right now, and im looking to pick up some certs so in about 2 years ill be able to have a little more on my resume when i start looking for real jobs. Im in the NY area.
Thanks in advance to anyone who could drop me some info!


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Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On Gallery
SUCH STUFF As Dreams Are Made On is one of two major exhibitions that will inaugurate Sydney L. Moss' new galleries in Queen Street. Coinciding with the 11th Asian Art in London (October 30 to November 8), it will run from Thursday, October 30 to Friday, November 28, 2008.
Some 80 wonderful netsuke from the well-known Willi G. Bosshard Collection will be on view and for sale. This Swiss collection has hitherto been largely unpublished and this exhibition will mark the publication of Sydney L. Moss's catalogue which features a selected 99 of the finest pieces and has taken two years to prepare.
Roll your mouse over the left and right-hand sides of the image and then click to view more pictures.


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If you're thinking to yourself, "I don't like Ginger", or "I don't like to can my own jam (or that you have a fear of canning)", please give this post a chance-- keep on reading. I'll show you how to easily peel a lot of peaches, in a very short time. Maybe, I'll give you the confidence to learn how to can your own jam. It's much easier than you think, and you will never buy store-bought jam again
Peach Chutney. They make the most delicious pies or fruit crisps. We recently discovered that peaches are delicious as a sweet and savory Caprese salad. As a beverage, a White Peach Sangria is a perfect summer party drink.
A few days ago, I bought some organic California grown peaches, and I allowed them to ripen for a couple more days. After a very busy day at work, I came with a personal mission to make peach jam-- exhausted as I was. Call me crazy, but I didn't want the peaches to over-ripen. I made six pints of this peach jam in an hour and a half! Seriously! So, you see, canning doesn't have to be an all day project. Here we go!
Pomona Pectin. I'm going to make it my personal mission to find this product, so that I can develop some jam recipes with a lot less sugar. For now, this recipe is going to be the traditional way-- but feel free to adapt it to suit your own needs. I added some lemon zest and fresh juice-- now, let's talk about ginger and spices.
If you don't like ginger, you can skip adding it to this recipe. I have no doubt you will still be pleased with the results. I found this recipe on Food.com, and I made a few minor tweaks, that I will share on the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
here, if you are
canning kit, a few years ago. It has all the tools that I need-- a funnel, tongs, and canning pot and rack. This makes the process of homemade jam making more efficient. From start to finish, I timed this recipe as 1-1/2 hours to make. This made 6 and 1/2 pints of jam. Not bad!
TASTING NOTES: Texture: The jam set very well, though at room temperature it can be a little thinner than most of my jams. I might increase the pectin a bit more. Flavor: The jam has a beautiful brownish-orange color, because of the spices. You can taste the ginger, which is not overpowering but complimentary to the peaches. The spices definitely compete with the flavor of the peaches-- so I will definitely leave out the cloves next time-- not that I don't like clove! I'd just like to let the fruit be the top-heading star of this jam. I wish I had thought to add some vanilla or vanilla bean seeds-- and I will, next time! Rating: What I like about this jam is that it isn't a straight-forward peach jam. Peach jam isn't my #1 favorite, on toast; Apricot-Pineapple still holds that spot. Peaches with ginger is quickly moving up my favorite scale. I think this jam will be delicious in a pan sauce, over vanilla ice cream, or as a base for a tart. Winner!
If you have a fear of making jam, I encourage you to try it. The days of having to melt wax are long gone. Today, you can by self-sealing jars for reasonable prices. Homemade jam makes fantastic hostess or Christmas gifts. Who wouldn't love to be handed a jar of homemade jam? I'm hooked, and I have more flavors up my sleeve.
Preserving summer is what it's all about. Enjoy what's left of summer-- Fall is fast approaching, but fortunately we don't feel the weather changes until closer to October. I love my hometown of California!


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The main activity of FM Capital Consulting is registration and sale of Estonian companies. This has developed thanks to Estonian most favorable tax regimes in the European Union including 0% income tax rate on profits, e- government, fast and reasonably priced registration of companies.
Tax issues, management and presentation of the company is our job!
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If you want to sell your business or find a new partner, properly assess the value of your company and its outlook for development, FM Capital Consulting is the company you shall turn to. We can find the right justification to profitable sale of ready-made company, evaluate it or give recommendations that will help to increase enterprise value.
Since the world has left few countries, where registered companies do not require accounting and auditing, we are able to provide bookkeeping and accounting services based on «outsourcing» principle. To handle bookkeeping of English or Cypriot company, prepare reports for Estonian companies, our customers do not need to go to these countries anymore. All what is needed is to send all required documents for a particular company to our accountants.
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We provide our clients with high quality and professional services. In 2013 and 2014 our achievements were rewarded. We received award as one of the fastest growing accounting firms in Estonia – «Eesti Gasellettevõte» and "AA" rating.


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ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish police have detained 11 people suspected of links to al-Qaida and seized 25 kilograms (55 pounds) of plastic explosives as well as alleged diagrams of the U.S. Consulate and other possible targets in Istanbul, a news agency reported Thursday.
The suspects were rounded up in simultaneous raids in Istanbul and the northeastern province of Tekirdag, the private Dogan news agency reported. It did not cite a source for the report. Interior Ministry officials and police in Istanbul and Tekirdag refused comment on the report which came on the eve of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's visit to the Turkish capital, Ankara.
Police raided nine houses in Tekirdag and two others in Istanbul and found diagrams and photographs of the U.S. Consulate, a synagogue and a church in Istanbul, according to the Dogan report.
Homegrown militants tied to al-Qaida carried out suicide attacks on the British Consulate, a British bank and two synagogues in Istanbul in 2003, killing 58 people.
In 2008, an attack blamed on al-Qaida-affiliated militants outside the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul left three assailants and three policemen dead.
The U.S. Embassy in Ankara was the target of a suicide attack earlier this month. A Turkish security guard was killed in the attack, which was claimed by a domestic militant leftist group opposed to U.S. policies in the Middle East.


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By Michael Roddy
LONDON (Reuters) - The reviews are in for the scandal-tinged staging of Richard Wagner's "Ring" for his 200th birthday at Bayreuth, and while Serbian set designer Aleksandar Denic doesn't confirm he and German director Frank Castorf intended to provoke, he doesn't deny it either.
The French expression "epater les bourgeois" - which, in Bayreuth terms, might be translated as "provoke the BMW and Audi owners" - seems apt for a production in which a crocodile gobbled down the gaudily clad young singer playing the Forest Bird in one gulp while the lovers Brunnhilde and Siegfried carried on singing nearby as if nothing were happening.
That sort of thing was replicated over and over.
"I'm very happy if there are emotions," the thin, wiry 49-year-old Denic told Reuters in an interview at the opera house's press office on Wednesday, a few hours before he, Castorf and the production team took their now infamous curtain call in which the booing went on for some 10 minutes.
"If somebody's happy, sad, angry or I don't know what, for me it's a compliment. I hate when there's no response," Denic said.
While the audience let its reactions be known in Twitter time, some of the critics cogitated for a day and, in so many words, said the same thing.
"Castorf's production should be binned," critic Martin Kettle wrote in the Guardian.
"Mr. Castorf's deeper fault, it seems, was cynically to undercut the musical drama during some of the most romantic, poignant and heroic scenes," New York Times music critic Anthony Tommasini wrote.
And of the riotous curtain call, he said: "The entitlement and hostility that Mr. Castorf conveyed while staring down the booing Bayreuth audience seemed revealing: this was a director who wanted to get a reaction. He got it."
Yet few of the reviews in the German, U.S. and other international press universally panned every aspect of the production, with one of the consistent themes being the awe expressed at Denic's towering and eye-popping set designs.
From the hyper-realistic Texas motel and petrol station in "Rheingold" to the facade of the New York Stock Exchange in the "Gotterdammerung" ("Twilight of the Gods"), with stops along the way at an oil well in Azerbaijan and a face of Mount Rushmore with communist figureheads replacing those of U.S. presidents, Denic's sets were spectacles that stick in the mind.
While at first glance the sets seemed realistic down to the last detail, including an upside down "7" used to replace the letter "L" in a display sign advertising the availability of color television at the "Rheingold" motel, Denic said none of the constructions was what they appeared to be.
"When you are looking at those sets, parts of them are hyper-realistic but altogether they are impossible constructions and this was fun for me, this is the magical part," Denic said.
"This is a good hook for people because it looks familiar but altogether it is hugely imaginary - these huge structures are completely out of any system."
He also had a response for critics who complained they'd been led down the garden path.
Advance word had it that Wagner's vision of lust for gold as a peg to show the competition among economic systems would be updated to show nations and ideologies vying to secure oil, but it was not much about that either.
Claiming the oil theme was only "an initiative idea", Denic said the audience had gotten something more thought provoking and complex - like, as he put it, having a bit extra of a fine French red wine poured into your glass.
The booing audience on Wednesday probably would have settled for a lot less of what Castorf, Denic and company dished out. But if the traditionalists were horrified, perhaps that was part of the message.
"I like old people, and young people, but the Bayreuth festival needs a future," Denic said.
(Editing by Paul Casciato)