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Allen Lessels' College Hockey: UNH, Dartmouth skaters eye NCAAsBy ALLEN LESSELS
New Hampshire Union Leader
February 09. 2013 9:50PM
DURHAM - The University of New Hampshire hockey team, like Dartmouth College and numerous other teams across the country, is waging its battles these days with a couple of missions in mind.
The more immediate goal, and thus the one the Wildcats are more interested in talking about, is to fend off various challengers in Hockey East and finish as one of the top four teams in the league standings and secure a home ice advantage for the first round of the playoffs.
Accomplishing that task would go a long way toward the next goal: Being one of the 16 teams that qualifies for the NCAA Division I tournament. If it makes its way into the NCAA tournament, UNH gets to play at the Verizon Wireless Arena on the last weekend in March in the Northeast Regional.
"We're focusing on home ice right now," said UNH coach Dick Umile. "That's going to be so important."
The chase for home ice continues this afternoon when the Wildcats take on Providence College at the Whittemore Center at 4 p.m. UNH and the Friars meet again on Wednesday in Providence in a game that was postponed on Friday by the snowstorm.
UNH is 16-7-2 and ranked No. 4 in the country in one poll and No, 5 in another. The Wildcats are in second place in the league, two points behind Boston College, one ahead of Merrimack two ahead of Boston University and three in front of Providence
Providence is 10-10-5 overall and at 8-6-4 sits fifth in the league. The Friars knocked off the Wildcats, 6-5, three weeks ago in Durham.
The Hockey East quarterfinals are a best-of-three series with the top four teams hosting the next four teams in the standings.
After finishing in the top four and hosting a quarterfinal series for years, UNH had to go to Boston University for the quarterfinals last year and was knocked out of the league tournament, two games to one.
Dartmouth, too, is trying to position itself for the ECAC tournament and beyond.
The Big Green were tied for third place with Union in the ECAC going into Saturday night's games.
Dartmouth, 11-8-3 overall and 7-6-2 in the league, plays at Harvard, 5-15-1 and 3-12-0, today at 4 in its only game of the weekend. The game was postponed from Saturday night because of the storm.
Winning the league tournament guarantees a spot in the NCAAs.
The rest of the teams receive at-large bids to the event.
If tournament teams were selected last week, both UNH and Dartmouth would have been invited.
In the Pairwise rankings that calculate strength of schedule and other factors and mimic the system used by the NCAA to select at-large teams, UNH was rated fifth last week and Dartmouth was tied for 15th.
The Wildcats have slipped a bit from where they were slotted at the holiday break and Dartmouth has dropped even more.
Still both are projected to be in the field at the moment.
In fact, in the bracketology feature on United States College Hockey Online that predicts possible pairings and the tournament field, Dartmouth has placed been in Manchester with UNH the last couple of weeks.
The most recent bracketology had Dartmouth playing Boston College while Minnesota State plays UNH in the first round in Manchester.
The week before, bracketology's pairings were Dartmouth vs. UNH and Alaska vs. Boston College in the first round.
NCAA rankings and tournament pairings are considerations for down the road, said UNH senior forward Austin Block.
"I don't personally look at that kind of stuff," he said. "We don't talk about that in the locker room. As far as I'm concerned we need to win every game and the rankings will take care of themselves. Obviously it's nice and we want to be as highly ranked as we can, but I don't think it really helps the mindset if you focus on stuff like that."
Focusing on getting home ice for the league playoffs is the way to go, he figures
"It's huge," Block said. "There's nothing better than playing here, especially playoff hockey, we can put a streak together and get home ice and I think that will give us the best chance to make a long run down the stretch and into the national tournament."
Into the tournament and back to Manchester and the Verizon.
The NCAA has brought the Regionals to Manchester four times starting in 2004 and UNH has qualified each time they have been in town.
They'll try to make it five-for-five over the next several weeks.


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Dave White Profile
Dave White
Your Movies.com Man at the Multiplex
Dave White's first movie review was of the animated feature Snoopy Come Home. He was seven years old...Read full profile
Your Movies.com Man at the Multiplex
Dave White's first movie review was of the animated feature Snoopy Come Home. He was seven years old...Read full profile
Grandpa knows best. Even when he clearly doesn't. Read full review
Critics scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.
out of 100
Metascore®Generally unfavorable reviewsbased on a weighted average of allcritic review scores.
The movie spends too much time wedging the couple into a May-December moment, where Crystal cracks nostalgic about the good old days. It's sweet, but it grows old.
Read Full Review
In the occasionally funny but mostly facile '80s-style culture-clash comedy Parental Guidance, Billy Crystal, who now resembles a very cute puffer fish, plays Artie Decker.
The pathos: considerable. The sight gags, involving Crystal puking chili dog on a kid's face, or the grandson with an imaginary friend peeing and causing an X Games skateboarder to wipe out: artless. The results: tolerably amusing.
Billy Crystal and Bette Midler hustle to peddle the threadbare material that makes Andy Fickman's comedy a perfectly tolerable, if uninspired, moviegoing experience.
See all Parental Guidance reviews at Metacritic.com
OK for kids 9+
Predictable family comedy isn't deserving of its stars.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Parental Guidance is a mostly kid-friendly family comedy about the tension between grandparents' old-style parenting and their daughter and son-in-law's Type-A helicopter parenting. There's some rude and scatological humor -- e.g. "poopy head," "fartie Artie," a grandfather being hit in the testicles with a baseball bat, and a man vomiting on a child. A grandfather's suggestion to stick up for yourself leads to his grandson punching his bully and then getting hit in the eye in response. Several brands are mentioned, particularly ESPN, but the product placements aren't generally overwhelming. There's a little drinking by adults, some mild suggestiveness (including references to a couple's romantic role playing), and some kissing.
Messages: The movie's main message is the importance of staying close to your parents, especially when you're an adult with children of your own. The importance and benefits of inter-generational families are stressed.
Role models: Diane is trying to be a more attentive mother and grandmother, and she does her best to reconcile with her estranged adult child and get to know her grandkids.
Violence: A grandfather is struck in the testicles with a baseball bat and then vomits on a kid. A boy hits his bully in the eye and is then struck in response. A famous skateboarder falls on the halfpipe after a boy pees on it.
Sex: Mild suggestiveness and a couple of slow dances and kisses between Alice and Phil. There's a running joke that a married couple occasionally role plays being an English punk lover and his girlfriend. Artie and Diane hug.
Language: Insults like "stupid," "poopyhead," "fartie," and other silly names. A fair bit of scatological humor, such as a boy peeing on a halfpipe and an adult getting hit in the testicles and then vomiting on a boy.
Consumerism: ESPN, the X Games, Tony Hawk, Apple products (including MacBooks and iPods), and the San Francisco Giants are all featured in the movie.
Drinking, drugs and smoking: Adults drink on vacation.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology.
© Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.
Movies.com, the ultimate source for everything movies, is your destination for new movie trailers, reviews, photos, times, tickets + more! Stay in the know with the latest movie news and cast interviews at Movies.com.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Monday, July 25, 2011
Tax Tips for Writers, Part 1 of 2 Parts
Dorothy Parker once said, "The two most beautiful words in the English language are 'check enclosed.'" The witty Mrs. Parker also published a book called Death and Taxes. I'll let you connect the dots.
Then again, you may find that connecting those dots isn't so easy. Let's face it—we're writers, not accountants. To that end, I took the opportunity to ask for a few tax tips from Carol Topp, a certified public accountant and a writer. Carol is the author of an upcoming book, Business Tips and Taxes for Writers (Media Angels), which will provide nuts-and-bolts advice on topics such as income tax, sales tax, self-employment tax, tax deductions, financial planning, bookkeeping and — last but not least — mistakes that authors and publishers make. Here's the Q&A with the C.P.A.
Q: What's the best business (or tax) tip that, in your experience, most writers don't seem to know?
A: Only one? Here's one tip: Calling your writing a hobby — when you have been paid — can be detrimental to your pocketbook. In other words, you may be paying too much in income tax because, unlike a business, many expenses for hobbyists are not tax-deductible.
It's fairly easy to convert a hobby into a business. You simply have a profit motive and conduct your writing as a business — meaning you keep records, consult a professional when needed, and improve your knowledge in the area of writing, as a business owner would do.
Q: What's the bottom line on the home office deduction? Is it an automatic red flag, or is there something in a tax filing that makes it become a red flag?
A: The I.R.S. does not reveal its algorithm for choosing tax returns to audit, but C.P.A.s know from experience that the home office deduction is frequently audited. So here's a warning: excessive home office expenses without corresponding income can look very suspicious.
Q: You make a distinction between a writer who's a "hobbyist" and one who's a "professional" (in a business sense). Let's say the self-publishing hobbyist makes a nice $500 in one year and the professional makes a very nice $50,000 in a year from writing. Are these amounts fundamentally taxed differently, or is each writer taxed comparably for their income?
A: The income is not taxed differently, but the expenses are treated differently for a hobby than for a business.
A business can deduct necessary and ordinary expenses and reduce taxable income. A hobby must report all its income, but may be unable to deduct the related expenses due to limitations in the tax code. Hobby expenses are deducted on Schedule A itemized deductions under miscellaneous deductions, subject to a 2% of adjusted gross income threshold. This threshold means that a taxpayer can deduct miscellaneous deductions that are greater than 2% of their adjusted gross income.
For example, Mary has income of writing of $250. Mary's only expenses related to this income are paper, ink, and postage of $50. Mary's expenses can be deducted on her itemized deductions under miscellaneous deductions, subject to 2% of her adjusted gross income. As is common with many taxpayers, Mary's expenses of $50 were too small to overcome the 2% threshold to be deductible. She received no tax deduction for her writing expenses, yet pays tax on all the income.
Additionally, the I.R.S. does not allow hobby expenses to exceed hobby income. In other words, losses from a hobby are not permitted on a tax return. A business can have a loss and it can be deducted on a tax return, but not a hobby loss. If John, a hobby writer, had income from writing of $400 and attends a writers' conference that costs $900, he could deduct his expenses (as miscellaneous deductions) up to $400 (his hobby income), but no more. The extra expenses of $500 are considered personal expenses that John incurred for the love of writing.
To be continued...
J.J. Murphy is the author of the Algonquin Round Table Mysteries (Obsidian), featuring Dorothy Parker as the wisecracking sleuth. The second book in the series, You Might as Well Die, comes out in December, 2011. For more information, visit www.roundtablemysteries.com.
7 comments:
- Loni Emmert said...
Fabulous post, thank you for the vital information. Last year was the first year I was published and actually earned income from writing! How exciting and now I continue to learn all that I can about the business, as well as the craft, of writing.
- July 25, 2011 at 3:32 PM
- Carol Topp, CPA said...
Thanks for a great interview., J.J.
I'm happy to answer writers questions on business, taxes, etc at my website http://TaxesForWriters.com.
Carol Topp, CPA
http://Taxes for Writers.com
- July 25, 2011 at 3:42 PM
JJ, I CANNOT WAIT to read your series. Great idea!
- July 25, 2011 at 9:37 PM
- J.J. Murphy said...
Thanks, NancyM! I cannot wait for you to read it!
- July 29, 2011 at 2:33 PM
- Varun Nithya said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- September 16, 2017 at 1:56 AM
- Varun Nithya said...
Decent to see blog like this...got a more valuable informations..spent a pleasant time with this blog.keep more updates this way..
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- September 26, 2017 at 2:22 AM
- Nina Athena said...
Thank you for sharing such valuable information and tips. This can give insights and inspirations for us; very helpful and informative! Would love to see more updates from you in the future.
Tax Advisor
- March 13, 2018 at 2:01 AM


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April 15. 2013 5:37PM
Another View: NH needs more sensible drug laws, not a new prison
Instead of celebrating the likely funding for a new women's prison in New Hampshire, state leaders should look at the remarkable reduction in prison population achieved by New York State.
Until 2009, New York had among the strictest drug laws in the nation. These so-called Rockefeller laws provided mandatory minimum 15-year prison sentences for various drug possession convictions. In 2009 the governor and legislature repealed most of these laws. The state began sentencing addicts who commit crimes to treatment instead of to prison. And what happened? The state has so far reduced its prison population by 20 percent! New York now has vacant prisons for sale.
Before we spend $38 million for a new prison, we should consider what potentially greater dividends we will reap by investing more money into community corrections. I speak of halfway houses, sober houses, substance abuse treatment centers, day reporting centers, restorative justice centers and other programs, plus the case managers and probation officers needed to supervise additional offenders in the community.
The words rehabilitation and prison are mutually exclusive. If they were not, New Hampshire's recidivism rate would not be above 45 percent. Prison is the last place to try and rehabilitate someone. Prison should be the punishment of last resort, reserved for offenders who present the greatest danger to society. All others should be sanctioned in the community.
If properly funded and staffed, community corrections programs can be very effective. Just think about it: offenders under community supervision must succeed in society, not inside the artificial environment of a prison.
The time has come for New Hampshire's political and criminal justice leadership to admit that our current system clearly is not working. The achievement of New York State provides a verifiable blueprint for a bold new direction in the Granite State. It is time that our leaders display the courage to take our state in a new direction.
John F. Eckert of Strafford is the former executive assistant to the New Hampshire Adult Parole Board.


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October 16. 2013 10:55PM
Tom Herzig's Trackside: Ford Fall Brawl has plenty of big names
The second annual North Country Ford Fall Brawl, a $10,000-to-win Late Model 200, goes Saturday at Riverside Speedway in Groveton.
The field will include last year's winner
Derrick O'Donnell
of North Haverhill. O'Donnell went on to become the 2013 Thunder Road Late Model champion and the Rookie of the Year. He will be joined by 2013 Riverside track champion
Bryan Mason
, 2013 ACT champion
Wayne Helliwell Jr.
, 2013 Thunder Road Milk Bowl winner
Nick Sweet
Joey Polewarczyk Jr.
Randy Potter
Corey Mason
Quinny Welch
— you get the idea.
The Fall Brawl card includes a Limited Late Model/Tiger Open, a Street Stock Open, Pure Stocks and the Northeast Mini Stock Tour finale.
Emerson Cayer
of Contoocook enters Saturday's event with a 40-point lead in the NMST standings over
Toby Wells
of Dublin.
It's World Series weekend at Thompson Speedway where 15 divisions including the Valenti Modifieds, ISMA Supermodifieds, NEMA Midgets and the Granite State Pro Stock Series will gather for the final short track racing event before construction of Thompson's road racing course begins.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will crown its 2013 champion at day's end and it will most likely be
Ryan Preece
. The 22-year-old from Berlin, Conn. leads defending champion
Doug Coby
of Milford, Conn. by 26 points. Preece clinches with a 22nd-or-better finish.
Coby won his first championship at the World Series last year.
Mike O'Sullivan
is the Granite State Pro Stock Series point leader. He's six points up on
Jeremy Davis
of Tamworth. O'Sullivan is a past Thompson champion. He finished second in the Series opener there in April. Lee USA had a good turnout at the front gate for its Haffner's Oktoberfest event, which drew well over 300 race teams.
Rowan Pennink
of Huntingdon, Pa., locked up the Valenti Modified Series championship with a ninth-place finish.
Tommy Barrett Jr.
won the Laticrete 100 after swapping right side tires midway through the race during the first caution.
Matt Mead
drew out to a long early lead before
Steve Masse
reeled him in and then took over on the restart with
Richard Savary
Jeff Rocco
and Pennink soon to follow. Meanwhile, a little further back, Barrett was on the move. With
Les Hinckley
in tow, he rose to third on a lap-76 restart. He shot under Masse for the lead on lap 91.
Jon McKennedy
came on late for second.
Pennink praised his car owners
Kim Casella
and called his win at Oxford Plains on 250 Weekend a highlight. "I'd never done well there before," he said. "That was a big one."
Casella, who hails from Saugus, Mass., was a driver during the Modified Series' inaugural season. He began some Pro-4 Modified racing after going out to Colorado, working at a Goodyear plant and being taken to Colorado International Speedway. "I had no idea that sort of thing was going on," he said.
Casella agreed to a Pennink tryout after some lobbying from his friend.
Brian Crowley
, who had worked on some Whelen Modified crews and had spotted for Pennink's Whelen Tour team.
Star Speedway Modified champion
Jacob Dore
qualified through the consi, started 21st and got up to sixth before pitting on lap 75. Dore, 24, began racing karts in 1998.
"I blew up the first week at Star and fell behind right off, so to win the heat, the feature and the championship (his second) at the last Star race was special," he said. Dore has plans to compete weekly at Beech Ridge next year in a Super Late Model. "It will be my first time with fenders," he said.
Tommy Tombarello
carried the Small Block Supermodified checkers at Oktoberfest.
Randy Cabral
won the Northeastern Midget Association 25-lap feature. It's down to Cabral and
John Zych Jr.
for the NEMA title at Thompson Sunday.
The last race ever on the dirt at Canaan Fairgrounds, the Octoberfast event featuring the Sprint Cars of New England, is set for Saturday.
Championships in several divisions are on the line at Hudson's "Pumpkinfest" Sunday.
Tom Herzig's column appears weekly in the New Hampshire Union Leader. Email him at email@example.com.


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March 27, 2017
Remembering Chuck Berry
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Saving you £90.00 (60%)
The 8.0EP exercise bike from B-ammoth features an 8kgflywheel for a superior smooth, uniform motion.In common with other good quality exercise bikes, this machineuses magnetism to vary the resistance applied to the flywheel
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British weather, then an exercise bike could be a goodinvestment.An advanced computer readout offers 6 functions including:elapsed time, current speed, trip distance, calories burnt,heart rate and scan (cycles through all functions).
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Wednesday 26 September!
Please reserve your B-ammoth Exercise Bike 8.0 EP bike now.
Please use the yellow "Pre-Order NOW" button to reserve your bike.
We will email you as soon as your bike is despatched.


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Arctic coastal barriers: a long-term record of rapid environmental changes
OCCI Funded Project: 2007Abstract
Low-lying Arctic coasts have experienced numerous episodes of erosion and retreat in their geologic history. Recent rise in temperature, reduction in sea-ice cover, and melting of coastal permafrost are predicted to make coastal regions more vulnerable to erosion in the future. Along sandy coasts, extreme events often leave diagnostic morphological and sedimentological signatures in ancient beach and dune deposits. The combination of high-resolution subsurface imaging with optical dating of individual event horizons can be used to reconstruct regional histories of extreme events in the Arctic. The proposed investigation focuses on coastal sites in Kotzebue Sound, Alaska where both Pacific and Arctic storms are recognized as important agents of coastal change.This research will extend the instrumental records of large-magnitude erosional episodes, while refining the existing chronology of storminess and climatic change as far back as 5,000 years.Integrating field research with theoretical numerical modeling, the proposed project will not only shed light on the local record of climactic change, but will aid in developing our understanding of how beach ridge orientation responds to changes in wave climate. This research is part of a larger initiative aimed at reconstructing the return periods of major climatic and oceanographic events and to assessing their future impact on Arctic coasts.


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Next Play
SETTING: A farm.
(Dog sneaks up behind Man eating his lunch. Man puts down his sandwich to take a sip of his drink and Dog steals the sandwich.)
Man:Hey gimme back my sandwich! Stop! Come back here!
(Man starts chasing Dog. He comes to a fork in the road and Farmer raking his garden.)
Man:Did a dog with a sandwich run by here a little bit ago?
Farmer:Why yes he did!
Man:Which way did he go?
Man:Left? He went left?
Man:Wait, he went right?
Farmer:No, he went left.
Man:O.K. So he went left?
Man:(Very confused and impatient.)
What? You just said he went left! Did he go right!!!!!!????
Farmer:Wrong, he went left!
Man:OK! So he went left?!
Man:AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! NEVER MIND! Jeeesh, you think ya know a guy!
(Man storms off. Farmer smiles and goes back to work. Dog comes on stage, eating the sandwich, smiling and barking.)
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MISTER Makes Inclusion a Focus of Cyber-Dating
September/October 2012
"MISTER is the new mobile app and online community for men who value strength, authenticity, and maturity. If you like the idea of a dating app with less attitude, then download MISTER and join hundreds of thousands of adult men today." That's what you read on the homepage.
Though there seem to be countless websites and various apps through which gay men can "shop" for sex partners as easily as women shop for shoes (not that the ladies can't shop for sex to go with their stilettos too), Carl Sandler, founder of MISTER and its now eight-year-old predecessor Daddyhunt.com, spoke to Positively Aware about his intentions in creating an app and website that are about more than "hooking up." In creating MISTER he was careful to consider issues of aging, health, and even comfort with technology, understanding that not everyone is savvy about social media or online dating. He set out to create a "safe space that had a different quality than members might find on other sites." As he put it, "Just because you might be different ages or have different health issues, you still need love and affirmation and sex. We wanted to create a supportive online community that was validating to many different types of men of all ages."
Taking the lessons learned in that creation, Sandler says there are both opportunities and challenges involved in taking it into a global mobile market with MISTER. "There are challenges with issues related to the people coming out on the app -- for many, their first exposure to the 'gay world' is online or through these apps. You don't know if they haven't been getting the traditional safer sex messages, if they haven't yet identified as gay, if they don't really understand the risks. So we're still trying to figure out what we can do to help keep this population well informed and to consider the issues that come out of engaging on the app and/or meeting up with someone in the real world."
There is also a section encouraging people to "add anything you'd like to tell your partner about your safer sex practices -- what you will do with whom and when." The questions are designed intentionally to give people the chance to expand beyond just "positive" or "negative" or, as Sandler put it, "There's so much more to safer sex than HIV status and we wanted to give people an opportunity to share, educate and discuss openly."
The number of HIV-positive men on MISTER mirrors that of the general population, Sandler estimates. "There's so much difference within the positive community about what kind of sex they want to have and how they are living fulfilling sex lives. We want to encourage people to talk about what they want to do online before they meet in the real world," he says, claiming that goal as both the company's and his own. "Fantasy, alcohol, the heat of the moment ... I want people to have conversations about risk before they meet , to go into a real world encounter with as much awareness, consideration and knowledge as possible."
MISTER has an advantage over other apps that limit the number of characters you have to describe yourself and what you're looking for. Whereas other apps limit you to 120-140 characters, MISTER allows 3,000. MISTER also allows up to 10 free photos whereas other apps only allow one profile shot or require payment for more. Sandler mentioned that his goal is to encourage conversation beyond status, he is glad that they feel able to disclose, unlike on other apps where "they don't want people to think about it -- they want it just to be about the fun. Yet we are all painfully aware of the real emotional and physical risks that exist."
Just as with online dating, phone apps come with their dark side. Neither Daddyhunt nor MISTER allow profiles that include any intent to harm, such as HIV-positive men seeking to have bareback sex with negative ones -- according to Sandler, such a profile would be banned. People who post discriminatory profiles are asked to change them and are banned if they don't.
He also acknowledged that there is some emotional risk. "There's a lot of manipulation that happens with sex, whether it's straight or gay," he commented. "If you're paying attention, you need to check in with your partner, ask how it's feeling, if it's OK, if there are boundaries you're pushing. We want to encourage our members to consider the emotional and physical well being of both themselves and their partners at all times."
So are the men on Daddyhunt and MISTER just looking for sex, or is it about more? Sandler said that some members of both Daddyhunt and MISTER are looking for a hook-up but a vast majorty are looking for "friends", friends with benefits or relationships. "You'd be surprised how many people genuinely want to date and find a man of substance." And on MISTER, he says, "We're really trying to target people who aren't into games and we're trying to make MISTER the place for good guys, for guys who are really interested in connecting on other levels than just the pure physical. I'm sure they're horny too, but we're basically saying, 'You're an adult -- use MISTER however you want, but because we're giving you multiple photos, 3,000 characters in your profile, because we're trying to create a group of people who actually care about each other and treat each other better, we're trying to create a positive environment that makes it possible for whatever connections arise that you want to pursue.'"
Throughout the interview, it was clear that Carl Sandler is not a head-in-the-sand, all-about-the-money kind of guy. His knowledge about HIV and the risks associated with it, his obvious concern for the health and happiness of his "customers," and his quoting of the slogan "HIV stops with me" as his stand on the responsibility of all participants in a sexual liaison to protect themselves and each other was encouraging. If all those involved in the business of human connection, sexual and otherwise, had the same consciousness, we'd all be better off and perhaps the HIV epidemic in the U.S. would be at least decreased in the gay community.
For those of you who have spent too much time looking for love in all the wrong places, give MISTER a try -- you might just finally find Mr. Right.
More From This Resource Center
Undetectable Viral Load and HIV Prevention: What Do Gay and Bi Men Need to Know?
Do HIV-Negative Gay Men Need Condoms if They're on PrEP? Here's What I Tell My Patients


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The U.S. Department of Labor has promulgated new rules regarding the fiduciary status of individuals and firms who advise plan sponsors and participants regarding 401(k) and other retirement plan investments, and who sell investments to retirement plans. For advisors, the new rules pose significant risks and impose costs, both in terms of potential lost revenue and costs of compliance with complex new requirements. This webinar will give you a thorough grounding in the requirements of the new rules and the emerging best practices to compete in the new regulatory environment.AgendaWhat It Means to Be an ERISA Fiduciary
Webcasts, audio conferences, and podcasts are presentations that you
attend via the Internet, phone, or mobile device at a specified date and time for "live" versions, or at your convenience for "recorded" and "On-Demand" versions.
The live
versions are interactive, meaning that participants can ask questions in real time, plus are a very cost-effective form of training because 1) you receive fast, convenient learning without
any out-of-office time; 2) you can invite as many colleagues as you'd like to listen in on a single phone line; 3) you incur no travel expenses; and 4) you and your colleagues are back
at work immediately after the session ends!
And though with recorded versions you do lose the ability to ask questions, you gain the ability to hear the presentation numerous
times and to share it with others in your office.
Handout materials and the phone number for live presentations are made available to you prior to the event via email from the
presenter and from the "MyAccount" link on the menu bar. Copies of the presentations are included with recorded versions.
Marketing &Advertising Compliance
Reg E Compliance – Five Best Practices for Handling Disputes
Loan Denials &Other Adverse Action Notices
A Business Development Officer′s Guide To Selling Non-Traditional Financial Products
Legal Liabilities When Check Fraud Occurs
ACH &Wire Transfer Training Courses
Internal Investigations Certificate Program
What To Do When Applicants Or Employees Have A Criminal History
Certified Regulatory Vendor Program Manager
Vendor Management Essentials
Deposit Compliance Training
Cyber Security Training Courses
Securities License
Qualified Financial Advisor (QFA)
Insurance License
CFP Certification


text:
We often see our images and stories pop up in different places. Obviously we see Earth Observatory content showing up on other web-based science and news media or on television. But you might see our images in other places, too.
This past week a new iPhone/iPad app called Xweather was launched in the iTunes store. This app takes advantage of our Natural Hazards RSS feed to highlight event imagery around the Earth.
And a few weeks back, my wife and I were browsing through a fabric store when a particular pattern caught our eye: the Blue Marble (2000) on a quilt! This pattern is by Emily Cier of Carolina Patchworks.
Where have you seen images and stories from the Earth Observatory? Other apps? Posters? Uses in books? Hot air balloons? The Blue Marble gets quite a bit of use in advertising and other places (a quick search of Flickr provides several examples). Let us know what else you find…or what else you do with it yourselves.
Tags: apps, Blue Marble


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Fleeing the Scene
How Jamie Foxx forced the macho Mann to change the ending of Miami Vice.
If it weren't for the talent of Michael Mann, a movie version of Miami Vice would almost certainly be as awful as it sounds. And even with the talent of Mann, Universal is fighting negative early buzz about the film. What's clear is that the movie is dark, R-rated, and hardly a nostalgia-fest for fans of the television show.
If Miami Vice doesn't work—artistically, at least—that would be a shame for those who toiled to get it made. If there were an Academy Award for on-set trauma, this movie could be a lock. Mann, a perfectionist, is known as one of the most difficult directors in the business. And on this film, according to a number of those who were present, he lived down to his reputation, berating crew members (and even the talent) and creating a sense of chaos as he went through his "process." The movie wound up going over schedule and dramatically over budget, with the final tally rumored to be more than $150 million. The studio says the number is actually $135 million.
Mann is gifted enough that actors entrust themselves to him. Clearly Jamie Foxx did, returning to work with Mann after making Collateral and getting a supporting-actor nomination out of it. But on Miami Vice things went so wrong that Foxx ended up leaving in the middle of production, after a shooting (and we don't mean the kind with a camera) took place during filming in the Dominican Republic. Foxx refused to return for any more work outside the United States, meaning that Mann had to rewrite the ending, eliminating a version that was to have been shot in Paraguay.
"The whole of making this movie was filled with adversity," Mann says. But he adds that whatever the crew might have endured, it was all in the service of making a great film. "Sometimes folks are going to join this unit and they may have a tough time," he says. "Guess what? They're on the wrong movie."
Sources on the set say things got off to a rough start with Foxx. For one thing, after signing for the film, Foxx won the Oscar for his performance in Ray. He was a bigger star than before, and according to members of the production team, he showed up with an entourage and something of an attitude. Foxx balked at flying commercial to Miami (Universal finally gave him the jet). And there was an early problem because Foxx was getting paid less than Farrell even though he was now an Academy Award winner. Foxx got a big raise while Farrell took a bit of a cut.
Despite that and his hard-partying reputation, Farrell was very well-behaved, according to crew members. "Yes, Colin comes to play around, but he always showed up on time and prepared," one says. "Jamie is more of a diva in the sense that he was afraid of boats, afraid of planes—there were a lot of things where he was afraid for himself. Colin will do anything."
Mann is a macho guy, so perhaps it's not surprising that sparks flew between him and the balky Foxx. Mann won't comment on the situation with Foxx other than to talk about his admiration of the actor's talent. "I'm not going to dish dirt about Jamie," he says. "He has a unique process of acting, and most people don't understand it. He and I are real close. … That allows us to disagree about stuff."
Certainly, clashing with Mann was not for Foxx alone. "Michael dressed down everybody and humiliated everybody," says a crew member. "He's an equal-opportunity guy."
Mann has his defenders. Maria Chavez, a location manager who's worked with Mann all the way back to the days of the Miami Vice television show, says her boss was "very intense" but not unfair. "It's about stretching when you work with him," she says. "His expectations might be high because he's so creative. It's just a standard he sets."
Crew members say the situation was complicated in part because Mann went through dozens of script changes. "It was being written essentially by Michael on the fly," a crew member says. He changed his mind constantly about locations (and, to the bitter end, was toying with multiple edits). "He was almost like a kid in a candy shop," this individual says. "That kind of indecision becomes a systemic thing. It's hard, at the last minute, to make deals with vendors, rent a plane, to close down a freeway."
But Mann is unapologetic. "You try to get the best out of a scene," he says. "You try to get the best experience for an audience. And you don't settle. It's really tempting to settle. And it's really embarrassing to not settle."
Universal Chairman Marc Shmuger only assumed his job in time to work with Mann on postproduction. But he says he's become an enthusiastic backer of the director's methods. Rather than finding Mann indecisive, Shmuger says, "I actually marvel at his ability to keep all of his creative options open. He's fearless. He is willing to try everything. That's a process that does involve wear and tear on everybody."
Mann poured his many instructions into a small recorder. "The next day, you get that all typed out verbatim, even the uhs and ahhs," says a crew member. The instructions were sometimes unclear, sometimes contradictory, and sometimes inaccurate. But if there was an error, few dared to speak up. "No one says, 'Punta del Este is not in the Dominican Republic. Didn't you mean Uruguay?' " he says.
Maria Chavez says she found those transcripts helpful, though she can see where some might find them overwhelming. "He might say, 'I like it blue. No, I like it yellow,' " she says. "You have to really focus on [the transcription]. … For me, it was a very important reference." If not many dared to challenge Mann, Chavez says, it's because people are scared. But she says Mann is open to discussion. Competence is the key. "You're not going to bullshit Michael Mann," she says.
Another crew member agrees that it is possible to win an argument. "If you go at him and you know you're right, he'll accept it," he says. "If he detects the slightest weakness and lack of clarity, you're dead. … You just have to submit to the fact that he's king of everything. Everyone was pushed to the edge of whatever their emotional makeup is. … It unhinged my boss."
Again, Mann is unrepentant. "The degree of difficulty was tough," he says. "It's hard on everybody. … Everybody has their moments and they get cranky."
Throughout the arduous shoot, Mann says, safety was of paramount concern to him. But some on the crew say they thought the director took scary risks. For example, the production was filming during hurricane season in Miami, and some crew members thought work continued even when conditions were unsafe. During one squall associated with Tropical Storm Dennis, Farrell and Foxx drove along the street in a Ferrari with the convertible top down. As they made their way along the block, the windows were blown out of a tall building and glass rained down, damaging the car and just missing the stars. "The wind was blowing so hard we could hardly get our gear back on the truck," a crew member says.
"You bet it was dangerous," says Mann, who was some distance away when the incident occurred. "As soon as we heard there were winds that high, we immediately wrapped."
Then there were the issues that arose while shooting was under way in the Dominican Republic. There was a private security force comprised of individuals from a variety of countries. Its members were armed and aggressive but, for a time, worked in plainclothes so they were not that easy to identify. Their presence made the situation seem extremely volatile to several crew members. Sources also say Mann shot in a square in Santo Domingo that even the police avoid, drafting gang members to work as security.
Mann says security was planned with great care, though perhaps not everyone on the crew knew that. "They don't have the big picture or they'd be making the movie," he says. "We had meetings and communicated what we were doing. [But] it's really tough for the average person on that crew to understand all the things we have in place."
The irony, in Mann's view, was that when the production moved to a relatively upscale area, a local man—a police officer—approached the set, got into a quarrel with a guard (one supplied by the Dominican military), and allegedly pulled a gun. The man was shot and wounded. "It was very scary," Mann acknowledges. "What if this guy has six brothers? What if they blamed us? … All these questions rush into your head." He says care was taken to ensure that the cast and crew could leave the set safely that day.
But immediately after that incident, Foxx and his entourage packed up and left for good. "Jamie basically changed the whole movie in one stroke," a crew member says—and not, in his opinion, for the better. The ending that was supposed to be shot in Paraguay would have been "much more dramatic."
Asked about Foxx's departure, Mann doesn't speak for a moment and then says, "You hear the sound of silence."
Even before going to the Dominican Republic, Mann had written an ending set in Miami but then decided to go to Paraguay, then to remain in Miami, and then again to film in Paraguay. Now he went back to the Miami ending. "It was like turning an oil tanker around on a dime," he says. "But the Miami ending worked out to be the better ending. It brought all the conflicting characters together in one arena."
A few days before cast and crew were to start filming the final conflict, Hurricane Wilma struck Miami, heavily damaging the production office. At that point, Mann says, the power was out and "the city was dark." A high-level studio insider says this is where Mann's personality actually paid off: "Were it not for his insanity, his dedication, his knowledge as a producer, we would have been shut down," this executive says. "Michael was able to regroup in a week and restage the entire finale. … Any other director would just have to sit and figure it out. But for Michael's indomitable bullheadedness, it would have been much worse."
While the executive concedes that Mann's methods cost the studio time and money, Universal held on to the hope that the film, once put together, would be good enough to make the investment worthwhile. Mann's track record in terms of box office isn't that strong, but studio Chairman Shmuger says it's not all about lines at movie houses.
"The key on looking at the profitability of Michael's movies is that they've got a very long tail, well after the theatrical run," Shmuger maintains. "Everybody's seen Heat. Everybody's seen Last of the Mohicans. … [The films] do fantastically well in video, on all television outlets, overseas."
Universal knew going in that making an R-rated Miami Vice would chip away at the potential grosses, he adds. But the studio was committed to Mann's vision, "an extremely dark journey into the world of undercover." As a testament to the studio's belief in Mann, Shmuger says, Universal is making another film with the director called The Kingdom, about an FBI investigation of a bombing in Saudi Arabia. This time Mann is producing, not directing. The star is Jamie Foxx.


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A Community Board 5 (CB5) committee last week decided to support the proposal, which would convert the area between Cypress and Irving Avenues and west of the NY Connecting Railroad Bay Ridge Freight Line into an IBZ.
An IBZ would protect the manufacturing businesses in the region through a series of incentives.
"The committee is going to report back to the board that they are in favor of the IBZ," said Vinny Arcuri, chair of CB5.
If approved by the IBZ Commission, businesses moving into the IBZ would receive a $1,000 tax credit for every employee on staff and the support of an IBZ board for a number of financial assistance matters.
"The IBZ would have a knowledgeable staff available to assist businesses in obtaining loans, financing grants if available and help with navigating the regulations related to city government," said CB5 district manager Gary Giordano. "There would be, in most cases, somebody to have technical guidance and advice."
The board was wary of previous consequences of IBZs in Brooklyn communities like Williamsburg and Greenpoint, according to Giordano, which brought an influx of bars and nightclubs. Therefore, CB5 is treading lightly as it moves forward with the proposal.
"It certainly was raised in the committee that in portions of Williamsburg and Greenpoint that too much of the businesses became bars and nightclubs," he said. "I would certainly be concerned about that possibility."
The committees will present their recommendations at the next board meeting scheduled for Wednesday, July 10, at Christ the King High School in Middle Village.


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'Survivor' all-star Rupert Boneham considers run for Indiana governor as Libertarian
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ' "Survivor" all-star contestant Rupert Boneham is considering a run for governor of Indiana.
Boneham has formed an exploratory committee to possibly seek the Libertarian Party's nomination for governor.
He said on his campaign website that the current field of candidates doesn't understand the problems average Hoosiers face. He cited his extensive charity work on behalf of troubled teenagers as his chief qualities.
The bushy-bearded Boneham, known for wearing tie-dyed shirts, competed in 2003 on "Survivor: Pearl Island" and has been on multiple "Survivor" follow-ups since then.
If he runs, Boneham will join a field dominated by Republican Congressman Mike Pence and former Democratic Indiana House Speaker John Gregg.
Gov. Mitch Daniels can't run for re-election next year because of term limits.


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Clinical data indicates PICO™ NPWT System reduces surgical site complications in Caesarean section patients
Jan 16, 2013, 07:00 EST
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Jan. 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Smith & Nephew (LSE :SN ,NYSE :SNN ), the global medical technology business, today announces data from two independent clinical evaluations that indicate favorable results in preventing surgical site infections when using the PICO Negative Pressure Wound Therapy System ("PICO") post-operatively following a Caesarean section.
Jeanette Harris, Infection Preventionist, and Evelyn Hickson, Perinatal Clinical Nurse Specialist from MultiCare Health System in the Tacoma, WA area, conducted a study on outcomes from a new post-operative strategy to manage C-sections introduced in January 2012. Analysis of outcomes using the new strategy showed an 83% reduction in surgical site infections ("SSI"), arriving at a rate of 0.5 percent or six surgical site infections out of a total of 1,200. The average re-admission stay due to post-operative SSI is seven patient days at a cost of roughly $50,000. [1]
Under MultiCare's protocol, patients were separated into high-risk and low-risk categories through a decision tree. Patients with a body mass index of 35 or greater, or had two or more risk factors, for example diabetes, steroid therapy within 48 hours of surgery, autoimmune diseases, hematological disorders, immune suppression, or others were identified as high-risk. High-risk patients were treated with PICO, while OPSITE™ Post-Op Visible was used as a low-risk dressing. ACTICOAT™ antimicrobial barrier dressings were used in both risk groups. Before this, standard practice included the use of conventional post-operative dressings on low–risk patients, and conventional negative pressure wound therapy for high-risk patients.
"We are committed to innovation that helps reduce the human and economic cost of wounds," said Tom Dugan, President, North America, Advanced Wound Management division, Smith & Nephew. "PICO, OPSITE and ACTICOAT are examples of Smith & Nephew's unique ability to provide a spectrum of wound care options that together give clinicians the flexibility to exercise their best judgment and to develop better ways to serve patients."
A second study presented by Lindsey Bullough and Diane Wilkinson of the Royal Albert Edward Infirmary in Wigan followed a group of 50 patients who were deemed to be at higher risk of contracting an infection post-C-section due to being clinically obese and had their closed surgical incisions treated with a protocol including the PICO Negative Pressure Wound Therapy System. The results showed that there were no infections and zero re-admissions.
"Infections impact not only the mother and her family but also the health service costs in relation to antibiotic use, general practitioner time and additional care," said Diane Wilkinson, Infection Control, Junior Matron at Royal Albert Edward Infirmary.
"I had an emergency C-section and was a bit nervous about my recovery since I had had an infection with my first C-section," said Michelle Mann, a mother of three and a patient who was part of the Wigan evaluation. "For me, PICO was as easy as wearing a belt. It didn't restrict my movements at all and it was easy to remove for showering. I didn't have an infection after this surgery and overall my recovery was much better the second time around."
For more information about the PICO Negative Pressure Wound Therapy System, please visit www.mypico.com or www.possiblewithpico.com or follow the @woundcare Twitter handle for the latest news from the Advanced Wound Management division of Smith & Nephew.
For more information about OPSITE™ Post-Op Visible please visit www.opsitepostop.com.
For more information about Smith & Nephew, please visit www.smith-nephew.com.
[1] Jeanette Harris MS, MSM, BS, T/CLS(ASCP), CIC MHS Infection Prevention. "Using a Multi-Faceted Active Change Process and Infection Prevention to Reduce Post Op C-Section Infections." Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology 39th Annual Educational Conference & International Meeting. San Antonio, TX. June 4, 2012. Oral presentation.
About Smith & Nephew
Smith & Nephew is a global medical technology business dedicated to helping improve people's lives. With leadership positions in Orthopaedic Reconstruction, Advanced Wound Management, Sports Medicine, Trauma and Clinical Therapies, Smith & Nephew has almost 11,000 employees and a presence in more than 90 countries. Annual sales in 2011 were nearly $4.3 billion. Smith & Nephew is a member of the FTSE100 (LSE :SN ,NYSE :SNN ).
Forward-looking Statements
This document may contain forward-looking statements that may or may not prove accurate. For example, statements regarding expected revenue growth and trading margins, market trends and our product pipeline are forward-looking statements. Phrases such as "aim", "plan", "intend", "anticipate", "well-placed", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target", "consider" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from what is expressed or implied by the statements. For Smith & Nephew, these factors include: economic and financial conditions in the markets we serve, especially those affecting health care providers, payors and customers; price levels for established and innovative medical devices; developments in medical technology; regulatory approvals, reimbursement decisions or other government actions; product defects or recalls; litigation relating to patent or other claims; legal compliance risks and related investigative, remedial or enforcement actions; strategic actions, including acquisitions and dispositions, our success in integrating acquired businesses, and disruption that may result from changes we make in our business plans or organisation to adapt to market developments; and numerous other matters that affect us or our markets, including those of a political, economic, business or competitive nature. Please refer to the documents that Smith & Nephew has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including Smith & Nephew's most recent annual report on Form 20-F, for a discussion of certain of these factors.
Any forward-looking statement is based on information available to Smith & Nephew as of the date of the statement. All written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to Smith & Nephew are qualified by this caution. Smith & Nephew does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in circumstances or in Smith & Nephew's expectations.
™ Trademark of Smith & Nephew. Certain marks registered US Patent and Trademark Office.
SOURCE Smith & Nephew


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9:00 pm
My Vietnam Your Iraq The film tells stories from eight Vietnam War veterans who have children that have served in Iraq, including an Idaho man whose son was killed in action while serving in Iraq. The program showcases the pride, fear and myriad of emotions and challenges that parents and their children face during deployment.G
10:00 pm
Voces On PBS "Escaramuza: Riding from the Heart" A team of first-generation Mexican American girls construct their identities through a romanticized equestrian tradition, while facing challenges at home, and escalating violence in Mexico. D
11:00 pm
Cuban Missile Crisis: Three Men Go to War In October 1962, the world teetered on the brink of nuclear holocaust. The film brings to life the three central characters - Kennedy, Castro and Krushchev - and explores how these powerful men fell into an abyss of their own making and outlines the courage and luck it took to climb out again.G


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Western Kentucky University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability, age, religion, veteran status, or marital status in admission to career and technical education programs and/or activities, or employment practices in accordance with Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Revised 1992, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990.
Procedural Guidelines for Selection of Concerts
The President is authorized to delegate to the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs., under the general supervision of the Vice President for Student Affairs, full authority to make final institutional decisions as to whether or not to book or contract a particular entertainment performance recommended by the Campus Activities Board upon making one or more of the following determinations:
1. That campus facilities suitable and adequate for the purpose are not available on the desired date;
2. That previously made commitments for personnel in the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs., the WKU Police Department, and the Department of the Physical Plant and Facilities Management on the desired date, or during the period immediately preceding or immediately following that date, are such that staffing required for the proper supervision, traffic control and safety, incident to the recommended event, would impose an undue burden on available personnel;
3. That the estimated cost-benefit prospects of a particular recommended event create a business risk that funds allocated to the Board by the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs. for the purpose of providing a year-long schedule of such programs would be depleted in an amount that would impair the ability of the University to offer the student body a full program schedule;
4. That the performer(s) recommended have a previous history of nonperformance or cancellation of similar contracts (not showing) after ticket sales have commenced;
5. That the contract terms demand that the University provide at its expense, extraordinary equipment, accommodations, or personal services for the performers;
6. The performance, under the terms and conditions proposed and other surrounding circumstances, would tend to create a clear and unreasonable risk of danger or hazardous conditions to the audience, either from enticement of the audience or a part of it to uncontrollable action or conduct, or from the staging arrangements of sound or lighting or other special effects equipment.
In the event the Office of the VPSA declines to book a concert and if it does so for the reasons set forth in either paragraphs 1, 2, 3, or 5, as above stated, then the Office of the VPSA in refusing to book the concert shall simply state that the concert is declined for the reasons set forth in either paragraph 1, 2, 3, or 5, as applicable. In the event the Office of the VPSA declines to book a concert for any of the reasons set forth in paragraphs 4 or 6, then the reason stated by the Office of the VPSA declining the concert shall be that the concert is not appropriate or in the best interest of the University community. In the event of appeal for a denial based on paragraphs 4 or 6, the Office of the VPSA should disclose to the reviewing committee the facts on which the denial is based.
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Mitt Romney's former private equity firm used a half-dozen companies and partnerships in the tax havens of Luxembourg, Ireland and the Grand Caymans four years ago to channel $689 million in loans to a U.S. company that it co-owned.
To the average American, the deal might seem bizarre.
But some tax experts say that the circuitous paper chain likely was structured to avoid certain taxes for passive investors, including blind trusts for the Republican presidential candidate and his wife.
It's just one of a maze of transactions involving the Romney family portfolio that were engineered in tax-neutral nations. The gradual emergence of outlines of these deals in recent weeks is prompting some experts to challenge Romney's pronouncement that his scores of offshore investments haven't lowered his federal taxes by so much as a dollar.
"It appears likely that offshore entities helped his investments avoid taxes or adverse tax consequences," David Miller, a prominent New York tax attorney, told McClatchy.
The New York Times reported Tuesday that it obtained documents showing that an offshore fund in which Romney's investment retirement account held an interest probably used a "blocker" – an intermediary company that legally insulated the White House hopeful from paying 35 percent in taxes.
The release of documents from entities set up by Bain Capital Inc., the firm that Romney ran from 1984 to 1999, also are lifting a shroud from the dizzying world of private equity, an industry that has racked up huge profits with help from a small army of tax attorneys. Critics say these firms have found ways to exploit gaps between U.S. and other countries' laws to deprive the U.S. treasury of billions, if not tens of billions, of dollars.
The offshore deals are generally considered legal, typically structured to shield pension funds, foundations and other tax-exempt organizations from U.S. taxes, and foreign investors from U.S. taxes or taxes in their own countries. The California State Teachers' Retirement System, for example, has since 2006 invested more than $500 million in three of the funds in which Ann Romney's trust holds a stake.
Bain said in a statement that it must navigate complicated international tax treaties and tax codes for its clients.
"So, like virtually all global asset managers, we use widely accepted, fully legal and recognized structures so that investors may receive predictable tax treatment on investment gains for their constituents," the statement said.
Even indirectly, Romney benefited. Whenever Bain's strategies reduced taxes for a fund, he reaped returns because his 10-year retirement package gave him a slice of the management fees and profits from Bain Capital deals. The lower the taxes, the bigger the returns for each partner.
Because of the secrecy surrounding tax filings, no hard proof has surfaced that the Romneys actually realized any tax breaks from their offshore dealings.
Such opaque rules leave tax experts making educated guesses.
Romney, whose tenure as Bain Capital's chief executive helped him amass a fortune worth up to $250 million, has refused to release enough financial data to definitively settle the touchy question of whether he got offshore tax reductions.
The issue of how much he's paid in taxes while piling up all of that money and his refusal to release more than two years of his personal tax returns have dogged him for months and could come up Wednesday night when Romney meets President Barack Obama in the first of three presidential campaign debates.
Miller, the tax lawyer, has reviewed Romney's 2011 tax return and evaluated what's public about some of the offshore deals. He's found several instances in which evidence suggests Romney got tax breaks, including for his individual retirement account.
Miller's assessment is at odds with Romney's campaign. Michele Davis, a spokeswoman, said in a statement that "investments by the blind trusts in funds established outside the U.S. are taxed in the very same way they would be if the shares were held in the U.S."
"No taxes are evaded or reduced," Davis said. "These funds are all registered with the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) and report all income to investors and the IRS, just like domestic funds."
By definition, private equity funds have few public reporting requirements, so obtaining financial statements from some of the offshore companies doesn't definitively reveal what taxes might have been avoided.
Details of the Romneys' offshore investments are evidenced in the couple's recently released 2011 tax returns, the GOP presidential nominee's financial disclosure statements, a trove of internal Bain documents posted by the Internet site Gawker.com, and filings in Luxembourg and Ireland obtained by McClatchy.
As of Dec. 31, 2011, Romney and his family had as much as $50 million or more invested abroad, according to his disclosures. His extensive offshore investments have drawn scrutiny for multiple reasons:
– Romney pioneered Bain Capital's offshore strategies, forming partnerships and companies in the late 1990s in Bermuda, the Grand Caymans and Luxembourg that helped spawn a system now criticized for minimizing tax revenue.
– By refusing to release more than two years of his tax returns, fewer than most party nominees in recent presidential elections, Romney has fueled suspicions that he has something to hide, perhaps related to his offshore investments.
– Documents released to date have enabled Democrats to paint the former Massachusetts governor as an aristocrat who's capitalized on tax loopholes that are out of reach for average Americans.
"We've never had a candidate like this before, that's for sure, who had all this stuff, the foreign companies and bank accounts," said Daniel Shaviro, a law professor specializing in tax policy at New York University. "I admit I'm in many ways not sympathetic to his candidacy, but it does really raise questions about his thinking and about his values."
Jack Levin, a Chicago attorney who has worked for dozens of private equity funds and teaches tax law at Harvard University and the University of Chicago, takes strong issue with such criticism.
"I'm just shocked that people say, 'Just because you've had a fair amount of success, Mr. Romney, and then you want to run for office, you should be lambasted for having complied with the law over the 30 years (in which) you've had a fair amount of success," he said. "That just drives every successful person out of running for office. . . . I think it's unfair to criticize them for doing what's permissible."
Levin, a tax policy adviser to Barack Obama's 2008 campaign but undecided about his presidential vote this year, said he has performed legal work for Bain Capital, but not in the last dozen years. He said he doesn't know details of the deals in question. However, his firm, Kirkland & Ellis, still works for Bain, and its members are among leading donors to Romney's campaign, having given at least $393,667, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.
Among the transactions that are piquing interest are those flowing from Bain's purchase of ownership interests in two U.S. chains, the arts and crafts retailer Michaels Stores and HD Supply Inc., Home Depot's former home improvement supply arm, whose sales were being hurt by a sharp downturn in the housing market when it was acquired in 2007.
In each case, Bain Capital and its co-owners later bought back debt at a fat discount as those companies struggled for survival. Michaels Stores' outstanding debt fell by $164 million to $28 million. At HD Supply, Bain bought $953 million in debt for $689 million, a drop of $264 million.
The Internal Revenue Code normally imposes a 35 percent tax on the sum of canceled debt if it was purchased by the underlying company or a related party. By lending through Luxembourg, and in HD Supply's case through a string of companies in Luxembourg, Ireland and the Caymans, Bain created separation from those businesses, tax lawyers said.
Further, under a tax treaty between Luxembourg and the United States, Luxembourg does not impose its usual 30 percent withholding tax on interest payments, meaning that the companies could take tax deductions for the interest they paid, but their owners could avoid tax on interest paid on the debt.
Based on the limited disclosures, it appears that HD Supply "got to basically recapitalize their company without paying this cancelation of indebtedness tax," said Adam Rosenzweig, who teaches tax law at Washington University in St. Louis. He said that Bain also effectively got to convert interest income that's taxed at 35 percent into capital gains that are taxed at 15 percent. "It's a pretty clever structure."
However, he asked, "Is the goal of complying with the system to comply with the literal letter of the law or to comply with the intent of the law?" he said. "I don't think anyone can say the intent of Congress in enacting the statutes is (to create) this structure."
Members of Congress, he joked, "weren't smart enough to think of this."


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Update: dealing death and drugs
Three Vidor residents have pleaded guilty to racketeering charges related to their association with a "white's only" criminal enter- prise that engaged in metham-phetamine distribution and murder in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales on Thursday, Sept 19.
Juanette Marie Cunning-ham, aka Netty, 46; Michael Taylor Word, 45; and Erica Nicole Parrott, 27, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distrib- ute methamphetamine Sep. 18. The three are the last of 12 named in a seven-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury Aug. 7 to plea. Five other defendants, Craig Pipps, aka Lone Wolf, 40, of Vidor; Mikell Allen Cunningham, aka Mikey, 28, of Vidor; Ricky Allen Nichols, 54, of Vidor; Cassi Diane Hetzel, 37, of Silsbee; and Mack Langston Warner, 33, of Silsbee, pleaded guilty to the same charge ear- lier the same week. The eight were indicted along with four others.
According to the indictment, Pipps; Kenny Don Stanley, 25, of Vidor; Tanner Lynn Bourque, aka Two Shoes, aka Hitman, 33, of Vidor; Kristopher Leigh Guidry, aka Holly- wood, 28, of Vidor; and Vicki Stark- Fitts, 49, of Hull, Texas, participated in the operation and management of the "SWS" gang. The SWS is a race-based organization operating inside and outside of jails and prisons in Texas and else- where, the indictment explained. SWS is also known as "Solid Wood Soldiers" and "Separate White State." SWS mem-bers, prospects, and associates refer to the gang as the "wolf pack," "pack" or "family." Although the founders of SWS claim to have established the organization for protection of white inmates and advancement of white supremacy and white separatism, SWS expanded its objectives to include ille- gal activities for profit, including traf- ficking methamphetamine and fire-arms. SWS protects its power, territory, and profits through intimidation and violence, including assaults, robbery and murder, according to prosecutors.
In August 2010, Pipps and Guidry agreed that Guidry, Bourque and other SWS members would raise money for Pipps and SWS through criminal activ- ities, including the sale of metham- phetamine. The stated goal of the con- spiracy was to raise $30,000 so that Pipps and SWS could purchase real property for a "separatist community." Under the agreement, Pipps was to receive control of the funds upon his impending release from fed-eral prison. Prosecutors alleged that from September 2010 to Janu-ary 2011, Bourque, Guidry and other SWS members allegedly manufactured "shake and bake" methamphetamine for distribution in the Orange County area. In February 2011, SWS members became close- ly associated with Stark-Fitts, who supplied them with crys- tal methamphetamine and firearms.
Crystal metham-phetamine is a purer form of methamphetamine that is imported from Mexico.
According to information presented in court, on March 14, 2011, while SWS member James Lee Sedtal, aka "Lil Bit," was delivering methamphet-amine in Orange County, Sedtal used one of Stark-Fitts' guns to shoot and wound an ABT associate. ABT is a criminal gang operating in the Orange County area and elsewhere that report- edly wielded supremacy over SWS in Orange County. During the early morn- ing hours of March 14, 2011, Stanley shot and killed Sedtal at Stark-Fitts' residence in Liberty County. Bourque had ordered Stanley to kill Sedtal to prevent ABT from retaliating against SWS for Sedtal's shooting of the ABT associate. Later that morning, Bourque, Stark-Fitts, Guidry and Stanley drove to a deserted logging trail in Hardin County where they disposed of Sed-tal's body. Sedtal's body was recovered on March 23, 2011, after a man phoned 911 to report his discovery of human remains inside a burned car.
The eight defendants plead- ing guilty this week face up to 40 years in federal prison. The four other defendants named in the indictment pleaded guilty earlier this summer. Bourque, Guidry and Stanley each plead-ed guilty to violating 18 U.S.C. 1959(a)(1), murder in aid of racketeer- ing. In connection with their pleas, Bourque, Guidry and Stanley admitted that they sought to maintain and increase


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TOP CAT: Hussein Chalayan is expected to be named creative director of sportswear giant Puma. Sources in Paris said the London-based designer, who held a runway show for his fashion line Wednesday, has been tapped by Puma to up the lifestyle brand's style quotient. It is understood that Puma, controlled by retail and luxury giant PPR, also will invest in Chalayan's business. Jochen Zeitz, Puma's chief executive officer, sat beside PPR ceo François-Henri Pinault at the Chalayan show, but both declined all comment. Puma has been a player in the fashion-meets-sporting goods arena in the past, collaborating with designers including Alexander McQueen, Jil Sander and Philippe Starck. Last year it launched Urban Mobility, a premium accessories range. It also tapped Lydia Hearst to design a handbag collection and fitness line. Puma and Chalayan are to host a press conference and luncheon today in Paris.
THE BLUES: Joana Preiss, Fiona Scarry, Lou Doillon and Beatrice Dalle were among front-row faces at Givenchy Wednesday night. Doillon said she had the jitters about presenting her Lee Cooper line Sunday while midtour for her "Love Letters" lectures. "I'm going to have to travel back from the middle of France at dawn Sunday morning," said the actress, who also disclosed that she's about to start shooting an indie flick with a young American director. "It's a big project, but I can't go official yet," she said, adding that the entire movie will be shot in a house on the edge of Paris. Scarry, meanwhile, said she's put her artwork on hold to design a line of interior couture fabrics for the New York-based silk specialist MacOndo Silks.
This story first appeared in the February 28, 2008 issue of WWD. Subscribe Today.
TO THE NINES: It looks like Eve has a habit of leaving things to the last minute. The R&B queen was escorted to her seat seconds before the Emanuel Ungaro show got under way Wednesday. "We were a little behind schedule," said the songstress of her new album, "Here I Am." "I've been in the studio nonstop."
Meanwhile, "Heroes" actress Ali Larter and her fiancé, Hayes MacArthur, are taking things at a more leisurely pace. "We've been at the Plaza Athénée for three days and haven't been out to see anything yet," she cooed.
Designer Esteban Cortazar's mom, jazz singer Dominique Vaughan, flew in from Sri Lanka for the show, dressed in a vibrant sari and snapping photos like crazy. "We'll be going shopping for things for his new apartment," she said. Legendary embroiderer François Lesage, who had come to sniff out the new designer, said his house is so knee-deep in orders that it's looking to expand its atelier. "Whereas in my day, there were two rounds of collections per year, today there are nine," he said.


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Creative Television Development Executive
- Recruiter
- Location
- UK Based
- Salary
- Competitive
- Posted
- 16 Jan 2013
- Closes
- 20 Feb 2013
- Sector
- Film Industry, Production
- Job Type
- Permanent
Creative Television Development Executive for Branded Property at UK-based Television Production Company specializing in episodic content.
Solid experience with UK broadcast executives in developing and pitching series and film projects.
Responsible for overseeing the shepherding and development of a branded television series, as well as additional series and longform projects.
To start immediately at a competitive salary. Inquire at email@example.com. Inquires will be kept in the strictest confidence.


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RT-PCR should be performed in the absence as well as presence of the reverse transcriptase, to assess DNA contamination in the template RNA. In addition, "no-template" negative control reactions should always be performed.
Viral RNA was isolated from enzymatically homogenized shellfish tissues using the Wizard® DNA Clean-Up System. Virus-specific products were amplified using the Access RT-PCR System and visualized by electrophoresis and dot blot hybridization.
O. Legeay, Y. Caudrelier, C. Cordevant, L. Rigottier-Gois and M. Lange
Epidemiological evidence linking the transmission of enteric viral (RNA viruses) disease to shellfish has been known for a long time. Scientists have described many methods for the detection of viral contaminants in shellfish using RT-PCR. However, these methods generally include numerous, often fastidious and time-consuming steps for virus release and RNA isolation from shellfish tissues. A simplified procedure based on enzymatic liquefaction of shellfish digestive tissues with no mechanical homogenization step was developed. Viral RNA was isolated directly from the shellfish tissue by a guanidine thiocyanate silica extraction method adapted for the use of a vacuum manifold system. RT-PCR assays were performed for the specific detection of genomic sequences of the predominant viral pathogens hepatitis A virus (HAV), Astrovirus and Norwalk-Like Viruses (from genogroups I or II). The specificity of the amplified products was then confirmed by hybridization with DIG-labeled specific probes (dot blot hybridization). The overall procedure applied to shellfish samples spiked with HAV particles allowed a detection of 20pfu of HAV per gram of hepato-pancreas tissue. In addition, up to 20 samples were tested within 24 hours.
Shellfish tissue was processed by incubation in an industrial protease, followed by dichloromethane solvent extraction as described in reference 1(1)
The RNA extraction procedure was based on the method reported by Boom et al.(2)
: i) lysis of cell membranes and viral capsids in a lysis solution (5M guanidine thiocyanate, 0.02M EDTA and Triton® X-100 [1.3% w/v], in 0.1M Tris-HCl buffer [pH 6.4]) and binding of nucleic acids on a silica-based resin, ii) washing of the RNA-silica complex by centrifugation-resuspension steps with a guanidine thiocyanate-based solution (5M GTC in 0.1M Tris-HCl buffer [pH 6.4]), 70% ethanol and 80% acetone; iii) final elution in RNase-free water. This method was modified in order to allow the use of a vacuum system instead of the centrifugation-resuspension technique for washing steps. The Vac-Man® Laboratory Vacuum Manifold (Cat.# A7231), allowing 20 simultaneous RNA extractions was used.
The single-tube Access RT-PCR System (Cat.# A1250) was used for reverse transcriptase RT-PCR. For each virus-specific RT-PCR detection assay, 5µl of RNA sample was added to a 20µl reaction mix containing 1X AMV/Tfl buffer, 200µM each dNTP, 400nM each specific primer, 2.5 units each of AMV Reverse Transcriptase and Tfl DNA Polymerase. In addition, the concentration of MgSO4 was optimized at 1mM for HAV and NLV II, 1.5mM for NLV I and 2.5mM for Astrovirus-specific detection assays. RT-PCR assays were performed using a GeneAmp® PCR system 2400 (Perkin Elmer), following uninterrupted thermal cycling programs consisting of 45 minutes at 48°C, 3 minutes at 94°C, 40 cycles of 30 seconds at 94°C and 30 seconds at 55°C (for HAV and NLV II RT-PCR assays) or 50°C (for Astrovirus and NLV I RT-PCR assays), and a final elongation step of 20 minutes at 68°C. The RT-PCR products, of 247bp, HAV; 289bp, Astrovirus; 450bp, NLV I and 574bp, NLV II , were separated by electrophoresis on a 2% agarose gel followed by ethidium bromide staining or detected with virus-specific probes using a dot blot hybridization assay. Positive (100 copies of virus-specific transcripts) and negative (water) controls were used with each RT-PCR assay.
In place of centrifugation and resuspension of RNA-silica complex for washing steps, we favored a convenient system using microcolumns fitted on a vacuum manifold system. Methods tested included several silica and silica-based resins, such as silica or diatomaceous earth (Sigma), prepared as described by Boom et al.(2)
, as well as ready-to-use resins, such as Wizard® DNA Clean-Up System (Cat.# A7280), SV Total RNA Isolation System (Cat.# Z3100), RNaid® system (Bio 101, Inc.) or RNeasy® total RNA system (Qiagen, S.A.). Best results in regard to the compatibility with the microcolumn-vacuum system and RNA yield recovery were obtained with the Wizard® DNA Clean-Up Resin. In addition, acetone, which was used initially as a washing solution, appeared to be too corrosive for microcolumns and so was replaced efficiently by isopropanol. Finally, optimal conditions were obtained by pipetting 500µl of shellfish extract into a reaction tube containing 500µl of resin (Wizard® DNA Clean-Up Resin from Wizard® DNA Clean-Up System) and 1ml of lysis solution. The tube was vortexed and then placed on a rotating incubator for 20 minutes at room temperature. The mixture was transferred into a Wizard® Minicolumn (Cat.# A7211) fitted on the Vac-Man® Laboratory Vacuum Manifold (Cat.# A7231), where resin-bound RNA could be washed successively with 1ml of guanidine thiocyanate washing solution, 2ml of 70% ethanol and 1ml of 80% isopropanol. Residual isopropanol was removed from the column by centrifugation (12,000 x g, 2 minutes). RNA was then eluted in an RNase-free microcentrifuge tube by addition of 100µl of prewarmed RNase-free water and incubation at 80°C for 10 minutes with a final spin at 12,000 x g for 2 minutes. Optimized conditions led to the efficient elimination of RT-PCR inhibitors (Figure 1). A detection threshold of 102 to 103 copies present in 100µl was obtained (data not shown) and thus, the addition of 104 copies (in 100µl) of RNA transcript in lysis solution was chosen as a positive control for monitoring potential interference on RT-PCR assays due to sample-specific inhibitors or to extraction procedure failure.
Four 5g mussel hepato-pancreas samples were digested with a protease. Dichloromethane extraction and RNA isolation procedures were then either applied or omitted before RT-PCR. Electrophoresis in 2% agarose of HAV-specific RT-PCR products obtained with 0, 10 and 1,000 (103) copies of HAV transcript in the presence of water (W), shellfish extract with no solvent extraction and no RNA isolation applied (I), shellfish extract with solvent extraction but no RNA isolation applied (II), shellfish extract with no solvent extraction but RNA isolation applied (III), shellfish extract with solvent extraction and RNA isolation applied (IV). Lane M, 100bp DNA Ladder (Cat.# G2101).
Four commercial one-tube RT-PCR systems were tested. The Access RT-PCR System (Cat.# A1250) appeared to give the best results with regard to sensitivity in the presence of shellfish extracts (data not shown). Primers used for the detection of HAV and Astrovirus were derived from validated studies(3)
. Primers specific for NLV I and NLV II groups were designed as the result of multiple alignment of all sequences of NLV I and II coding for RNA polymerase from public data banks. Conditions were optimized for each virus-specific RT-PCR assay, allowing the detection of as little as 1–10 copies of transcript per microliter of aqueous solution on a 2% agarose gel (Figure 2) and the equivalent of 100pfu of HAV per 5g of hepatopancreas by dot blot hybridization (Figure 3).
Identical Serial dilutions of HAV, Astrovirus, NLV I and NLV II transcripts were amplified using optimized virus-specific RT-PCR conditions. Five microliters of each RT-PCR product were then resolved on a 2% agarose gel. Panel A: HAV. Panel B: Astrovirus. Panel C: NLV I. Panel D NLV II. Lanes 0, RT-PCR negative controls. Lanes M, 100bp DNA Ladder (Cat.# G2101).
Five grams of mussel hepato-pancreas samples were either spiked with serial dilutions, from 105 to 10pfu, of HAV or non-contaminated (negative control) samples and processed. Results obtained from samples contaminated with 105 to 101pfu of HAV are shown in the top row. Controls, including non-contaminated shellfish sample (0pfu), RNA isolation negative control (TE), RT-PCR assay negative control (RT-), RNA isolation positive controls (TE+), negative control (-) and positive control (+50ng and +5ng) of hybridization, are shown in the bottom row.
The objective of this study was to develop a simple and rapid method for the molecular detection of viral pathogens in shellfish by RT-PCR. Many methods have already been described regarding shellfish tissue processing and isolation of viral RNA suitable for amplification(5)
. An industrial protease was used to liquefy the shellfish tissue, and a double extraction using dichloromethane appeared to be sufficient for clarification of the shellfish lysate. Removal of RT-PCR inhibitors was mainly achieved with the RNA isolation procedure (Figure 2).
The use of a vacuum manifold system, allowing rapid and simultaneous extraction of 20 samples, was particularly suitable for routine analysis perspectives. Similarly, the single-tube RT-PCR assay (Access RT-PCR System) is suitable for diagnostic purposes because of simplified manipulations and low risk of cross-contamination. Concerning sensitivity, as little as 1 copy of virus-specific transcript per microliter of aqueous solution (Figure 2) and the equivalent of 102pfu of HAV per 5g of hepato-pancreas could be detected with this RT-PCR system (Figure 3). Furthermore, given that i) 5g of hepatopancreas corresponds to 100-140g of whole animal and ii) viral contaminants are concentrated in the hepatopancreas(12)
, sensitivity of the procedure can be approximated at 0.8-1pfu of HAV per gram of whole animal. Such sensitivity is equivalent to that seen in studies using semi-nested RT-PCR or RT-PCR combined with hybridization(8)
. The main benefit of the dot blot hybridization assay, using DIG-labeled virus-specific probes and detection by a colorimetric reaction, was the confirmation of the specificity of RT-PCR products. Improvement in sensitivity was also observed compared with the gel electrophoresis technique. However, dot blot hybridization is time-consuming and the duration of the overall procedure can be shortened using only gel electrophoresis (24 hours for RT-PCR + dot blot [20 samples], 12 hours for RT-PCR + electrophoresis [20 samples]).
In conclusion, a simple procedure was developed for the detection of viral pathogens in shellfish that is suitable for routine diagnostic use. This procedure can be used for epidemiological studies for evaluation of the frequency of virus-specific nucleic acids in marketable shellfish or to determine viral pathogen circulation in shellfish collected either from producing areas or from natural environments. Specific detection of the predominant enteric viruses, epidemiologically linked to shellfish-associated viral diseases, i.e. HAV, Astrovirus and genogroups I and II of Norwalk-like viruses, were performed. Moreover, this procedure can easily be applied to the molecular detection of any other virus, such as emergent viruses or viral indicators, as well as other microbial pathogens, using appropriate PCR or RT-PCR conditions.
Scientific Style and Format, 7th edition, 2006
Legeay. O., Caudrelier, Y., Cordevant, C., Rigottier-Gois, L. and Lange, M.
Detection of Enteric Pathogenic Viruses in Shellfish by RT-PCR.
[Internet] 2000. [cited: year, month, date]. Available from:
American Medical Association, Manual of Style, 10th edition, 2007
Legeay. O., Caudrelier, Y., Cordevant, C., Rigottier-Gois, L. and Lange, M.
Detection of Enteric Pathogenic Viruses in Shellfish by RT-PCR.
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I'm setting up a 2 box hobbyist test enviroment, I am planning on installing some bogus tools that are advertised in pop ups and whatever else I feel like.
So far, here is my planned process:
1. Install Windows and update.
3. Launch filemon, regmon, procexpnt, tcpview from a cd | Launch sniffer
4. Install and use target software
5. Save logs to usb drive and shutdown.
For steps 2 and 6, I'm looking for a bootable tool that will MD5 hash all the files on the drive. So for step 2, I'll hash, step 6, I'll verify. Then step six will tell me which file have been modified.
I'm looking for some kind of boot disc that will allow me to save to a USB key with those results, because my bootable networking luck hasn't been too hot.
Step 3, I am looking for possibly better (and free) options to monitor activity.
Any other ideas / suggestions will be awesome too.


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Netflix Is Talking About Doing Another Season of Arrested Development
Start getting excited.
Back in May, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, who had previously called the fourth season of Arrested Development a non-repeatable "one-off," said his company would be "willing" to air further seasons if the famously difficult-to-herd cast members would make themselves available for filming. Now, according to producer Imagine Entertainment's co-chairman (and season four character) Brian Grazer, it seems that Netflix is officially "interested" in the idea of additional Arrested episodes. "We are in conversations with them to do another [season]," said Grazer during a Thursday interview with Bloomberg Television. "They are interested in doing that."
While Variety sources "emphasized that there are no active negotiations at present between Netflix and studio 20th Century Fox TV," both sides are said to "expect a renewal to come together eventually" thanks to the apparently healthy appetite of the series's binge-watching audience (the exact size of which has still not been revealed). The logistical challenge of getting the busy Bluth family together means that new episodes are probably a couple years away (Jason Bateman, Michael Cera, Portia de Rossi, Will Arnett, and Tony Hale are all currently signed up for other TV jobs), but Arrested fans should feel free to congratulate themselves on a job well done: Whether you loved or hated season four, that straight fourteen hours you spent staring at your computer in May really paid off.