text:
China: 'Where The Bribes Are'
From Corruption Currents:
By now, it's well known that the energy sector has been hit hardest by FCPA prosecutions in the 34 years since the law was passed. But how hard, exactly, is that?
About $2 billion in penalties, turns out.
China poses a high corruption risk. No secret there. But did you know it also poses the broadest risk of any country?
The investigative firm James Mintz Group has a new database of every FCPA case that it says allows users to access such information in short order by clicking on an interactive map.
Corruption Current's favorite feature is the filtering by sector. Pick your sector on the bar on the left, and you can see which countries apparently have been the most treacherous for a particular industry — energy, manufacturing, defense, etc. Consulting comes in second, with a total of about $847 million in penalties.
Patrick Kelkar, a partner at the firm who handles FCPA investigations, pointed out that China was the only country in the database — called "Where the Bribes Are" — that cut across every sector that has ever been targeted.
In total penalties, Nigeria tops the list. If you're an FCPA wonk, you probably knew that. Novices can figure it out in two clicks. But which countries have proved most costly to the manufacturing industry? Easy. China and Russia. One click.
Jim Mintz, founder and president of Mintz Group, said the goal was to create a "stark way of showing the risks of bribery."
– Joe Palazzolo


text:
District Judge Don Bourne set bail at $10,000 for Andrew Helton, 31, on Friday during felony bond hearings at the Pope County Detention Center. Helton is being held for alleged illegal possession of a firearm. He is required to appear in Pope County Circuit Court on Aug. 5.
Court documents stated someone called police Thursday after they heard shots being fired near Laure Ridge Road at about 11:45 p.m.
A Pope County Sheriff's (PCSO) deputy responded and found Helton passed out on the ground.
Police saw he had a hand gun in a holster which was strapped around his waist. As the deputy proceeded to remove the .357 Taurus pistol, Helton began to regain consciousness.
Helton fought briefly with police as they tried to put handcuffs on him. Officers were able to control the situation and took Helton into custody.
Police found drug paraphernalia during a search of his person. Helton had a roach clip, spoon and syringe, plus several knives, 69 live rounds and 6 spent rounds, according to the PCSO report.
Police put Helton in the back seat of a squad car where he thrashed around and then attempted to puncture his own throat in an attempt to commit suicide.
Helton told police "Just let me take my own life," and later threatened to kill a police officer.
He was transported to the detention center where jail officials called Counseling Associates and requested an evaluation.
Bond Hearings
The following person appeared during felony bond hearings on Friday at the Pope County Detention Center. His name, age, anticipated charge and bond amount is listed. If charged, he will appear on Aug. 5 in Pope County Circuit Court.
• Rasean Smith, 43, forgery — $30,000.
Smith allegedly endorsed two checks over to a local bail bond company totaling more than $5,000. An agent with the bail bond business later discovered the checks were forged, according to court documents. When the checks were presented to the bank, it would not cash them.
Fifth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney David Gibbons filed an arrest warrant petition on Monday, charging Smith with forgery. Circuit Judge William Pearson issued a bench warrant for Smith's arrest that day.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
The Achinese Acehnese were ruled by Indian princes prior to AD 500, and in the 13th century they became the first people in the archipelago to adopt IslāmIslam. After expelling the Portuguese in the 17th century, the sultanate of Acheh (now Aceh) was dominant in northern Sumatra until 1904, when the sultanate was conquered by the Dutch. The AchineseAcehnese, however, were never fully subdued. Although they are now part of the Indonesian republic, they remain restive and are administered within a special district.
Western influence is evident in the Achinese's Acehnese's public buildings and in the homes of the well-to-do. Otherwise the native type of dwelling prevails, consisting of a three-room structure of wood raised high above the ground on pilings.
Descent is traced through both the maternal and paternal lines. A married couple goes to live with the bride's family. The position of women is high, and they do not wear veils. Their dress consists of a skirt over trousers, a jacket and scarf, and many ornaments. The man wears a jacket or shoulder cloth and trousers of great width.


text:
I decided to visit Texas for two reasons: my friend Lori now lived there and my cousins lived there. Lori lived in Temple about a half hour north of Austin while my cousins Brian and Judy lived in San Marcos about a half an hour south. With one flight I could kill two birds with one stone.
Temple is a very small town with not much going for it except the government agency where Lori was working. She was a career government employee and accepted a transfer there six months ago. The move gave her a pay raise and a decrease in her cost of living. Additionally she liked her new boss and the people she was working with so she was very happy with her change.
My cousin Brian and his wife Judy had lived in San Marcos for thirty years. He is an art professor at Texas Southwest University and would be retiring at the end of this year. Judy was already retired. Both of them were consummate artists. They were also art collectors and their house was like a museum.
Lori met me at the airport. While I waited for her to pull her car around, I could feel the humidity in the air. It was definitely muggy in May. Not since my days in Florida had I felt this kind of weather. Thankfully Lori had her car air-conditioning running full blast. Soon I was chilly so I reached for my sweater. Welcome to Texas.
We headed to Temple and I watched the land become increasingly flat and more barren. Lori had relocated from Auburn, CA and it was in there that we became friends. She had moved to Auburn from Hawaii and rented my house sight unseen from a Craigslist ad. Unfortunately the job in Auburn didn't work out so she now she was at a new position in Texas.
Lori purchased a delightful three-bedroom, two-bath house. After a few days of house hunting she saw it late one day and bought it in fifteen minutes as she tells it. She was now settling in and I was one of her first guests.
On my first full day I was there the sky turned dark grey and there was lightening and thunder storms. It was also very windy. Many of the trees in the neighborhood lost branches. It was a tornado but thankfully not a bad one. Welcome to Texas!
The next day was perfectly lovely and we drove to Waco to visit a commune that demonstrates crafts and sells its products. We also scouted around Temple and found the local indoor swimming pool. It was composed of four lanes and had just as many people in it. The two historic places I wanted to tour in Temple weren't open while I was there so we spent the rest of my time playing Scrabble and reading.
On the day I left, Lori took me to Austin where we visited the Lyndon Johnson Library and the State Capitol. I particularly enjoyed the Capitol tour from a very articulate guide who was a former teacher. Austin had grown a lot with many high-risers dotting the skyline. Lori and I strolled along the river a short distance from the Capitol and watched the kayaks and canoes floating peacefully downstream. It was a beautiful area and a delightful day.
We continued on to my cousins' house. Their property is on six acres in western San Marcos known as "hill country", some of the prettiest land Texas has to offer. The house sets on a knoll that overlooks a valley. It rarely snows here nor does it get very cold. It is feels less humid than Temple because there is a breeze most of the time. To find the house you wind down a dirt road.
I was warmly welcomed and Brian, Judy and I spent the next few days catching up on family history. It was really fun to reminisce. It was also nice to visit with their son Andrew, his wife Lisa and their girls, Taylor and Chloe who lived nearby. I was equally entertained by the five cats and the three dozen doves housed in a separate building as well as all the wild birds, squirrels and raccoons. "Hill country" has its critters. I heard about snakes, possum, coyotes, and bob cats but didn't see any. Welcome to Texas!
One day we drove around a nearby lake created by a dam that was built by the army corps of engineers. Our weather was sunny and pleasant but not swimming weather. There were just a few people out on the lake but I could imagine it in the heart of the summer. It was huge and would be a magnet for vacationers. We also visited the nearest town Wimberley which has lots of quaint stores and good restaurants. Western San Marcos is much more appealing than Temple.
Brian and Judy chose well when they picked this spot thirty years ago. Remarkably not much has changed in all that time. There is still peace and quiet and wide open spaces and everywhere you go everyone calls you ma'am.
Welcome to Texas!


text:
Couple missing for 2 weeks found in California wilderness
A couple missing for two weeks were found Sunday in a remote part of California with the elderly husband dead.
Sponsored by:
A couple missing for two weeks were found Sunday in a remote part of California with the elderly husband dead.
In 2013, just under one-third of U.S. maternity wards offered the formula giveaways, compared to 75 percent in 2007.
Lead author Dr. David Katz, a University of Colorado heart specialist, emphasized that SIDS deaths are rare.
A fire broke out on the east side Saturday night. There were no injuries reported.
Firefighters used ladders to rescue the riders, and the amusement park closed early due to the outage.
Mayor Frank Jackson thanked the protesters who remained peaceful and respectful as they expressed their frustration with Saturday's verdict.
Monsanto issued a statement saying it realizes people have different points of view about food.
The Arctic Challenger is part of a fleet Royal Dutch Shell expects to use to conduct exploratory drilling in the Chukchi Sea.
A coroner ruled the cause of death as blunt force trauma.
Comedic actress Anne Meara died Saturday, according to a statement from Jerry and Ben Stiller.
A Niles man pays tribute to soldiers who have given their all to the United States.
According to the CDC, drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury death for children.
Home Depot comes through and donates a flag so that it could be put up where one had been stolen.
A catholic church celebrates the birthday of the church.
The sheriff's department is investigating the SUV crash, but Bobb says speed does not appear to be a factor.
Twenty-seven-year-old Christina Leach is charged in Cumberland County with aggravated assault, arson and theft.
Anti-blight programs have sprung up around Appalachia, but West Virginia's approaches are innovative.
Heather Hironimus, 31, posted bond and was released Saturday after agreeing to her son's circumcision.
The 99th running of the Indianapolis 500 packed IMS with hundreds of thousands of fans.
Stars walk the red carpet before the 99th Running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 24, 2015.
Police said a white sedan is believed to have fired several shots at the first car before fleeing across the Liberty bridge.
Wounded Warriors Project is a charity and veterans service organization that offers a variety of programs, services and events for wounded v…
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text:
Extension:Semantic Result Formats
|Semantic Result Formats
|Provides additional formats for semantic queries
|Image collection
|Further Information
|follow this link
|James Hong Kong, Jeroen De Dauw
|First released:
|August 2008
|Release status:
|Development status:
|Area of usage:
|Displaying data
| Associated with:
SMW = Semantic MediaWiki, SB = Semantic Bundle, SMW+ = Semantic MediaWiki Plus, MW = MediaWiki
This is the shortcut to mark the beginning of the subject line when writing a support request to the mailing list or to the extension's author directly. See also this help page.
| Project page •
Commit history •
Git [Help]
|Table of Contents
Semantic Result Formats is an extension to Semantic MediaWiki (SMW) that adds a large number of further Result formats, including formats for calendars, timelines, charts, graphs and mathematical functions. The result formats can be used in Inline queries and other semantic searches.
Result formats provided
- Array format (Comma-separated list, with additional outputs shown in parentheses and extra formatting options)
- Filtered format (Displays query results as switchable views, offers filtering)
- Hash format (Comma-separated list, with additional outputs shown in parentheses and extra formatting options)
- Incoming format (Displays incoming properties to a page or property/value pair)
- Listwidget format (Navigation widget for lists)
- Oltree format (Displays query results as a tree (nested HTML ordered lists))
- Outline format (Lists pages in a hierarchical outline, based on property values)
- Pagewidget format (Widget for embedded page content)
- Tagcloud format (Displays queried data in a tagcloud)
- Tree format (Displays query results as a tree (nested HTML bulleted lists))
- Valuerank format (Lists values based on their occurrence)
- Average format (Displays the average of all queried numerical data)
- Max format (Displays the maximum of all queried numerical data)
- Median format (Displays the median of all queried numerical data)
- Min format (Displays the minimum of all queried numerical data)
- Product format (Displays the product of all queried numerical data)
- Sum format (Displays the sum of all queried numerical data)
- Calendar format (Displays time-associated pages on a calendar)
- Earliest format (Displays the earliest of all queried date/time data)
- Eventcalendar format (An event calendar with different views of displaying days and events)
- Eventline format (Displays query results in interactive eventlines)
- Latest format (Displays the latest of all queried date/time data)
- Timeline format (Displays query results in interactive timelines)
- D3 chart format (Various charts using the d3.js as visualization library)
- Dygraphs format (high performance series charting using the dygraphs Javascript library)
- Google bar format (Produces a bar chart using the Google Charts API)
- Google pie format (Produces a pie chart using the Google Charts API)
- Sparkline format (generates small inline charts (also known as sparklines))
- Timeseries format (aggregated values assigned to a date (property type date) are plotted as a line/bar chart)
- Jqplotchart format (Displays aggregated numerical data as a bar, line, pie, or donut chart)
- Datatables format (A progressive table result printer that integrates the DataTables JavaScript library)
- Excel format (Outputs the result in Microsoft Office Excel file format (xls).)
- ICalendar format (Exports data in iCalendar format.)
- VCard format (Exports data in vCard format.)
- Gallery format (Display images as a gallery)
- Media format (HTML5 Audio / Video media result printer)
- Slideshow format (Displays query results as a slideshow)
- Graph format (Displays the relation between pages)
- Process format (Displays process graphs)
Semantic Result Formats requires Semantic MediaWiki to run, at least at the same second-level version number as Semantic Result Formats, i.e. SRF 1.6.2 requires SMW 1.6.x. For a full list of changes in the different versions of Semantic Result Formats, see the release notes.
- Compatibility
The Compatibility of Semantic Result Formats with MediaWiki, Semantic MediaWiki, PHP, etc, is outlined on this page.
Since SRF ≥ 1.9.0 Composer needs to be installed on your machine for this to work. To install Composer please follow the instuctions provided on the help page on installing "Composer". In case of MediaWiki 1.19.x and 1.21.x you will additionally need to install the Extension Installer extension as described on the help page on installing "Extension Installer".
- MediaWiki 1.22+
- Run the installation script from the base directory[1] of your MediaWiki installation:[2]
php composer.phar require mediawiki/semantic-result-formats "1.9.*"
- Note: The version stated in the line above is provided as an example. See the Releases page on GitHub for newer releases. If there is e.g. a release called "SRF 2.1.2 / 2015-02-26" you will have to replace
"2.*"etc. Also note that the corresponding branch of SMW needs to be installed on you wiki, e.g. SRF 1.9.* corresponds to SMW 1.9.* or SRF 2.* corresponds to SMW 2.* etc.
- Add optional settings to the end of the "LocalSettings.php" file after the settings included for Semantic MediaWiki as described in the section on enabling additional formats.
- Navigate to "Special:Version" on your wiki to verify that the extension is successfully installed.
- Done!
- MediaWiki 1.19.x to 1.21.x
- Add the following line to the "require" section of the
composer.jsonfile in the
"mediawiki/semantic-result-formats": "1.9.*"
- Note: The version stated in the line above is provided as an example. See the Releases page on GitHub for newer releases. If there is e.g. a release called "SRF 2.1.2 / 2015-02-26" you will have to replace
"2.*"etc. Also note that the corresponding branch of SMW needs to be installed on you wiki, e.g. SRF 1.9.* corresponds to SMW 1.9.* or SRF 2.* corresponds to SMW 2.* etc.
- Run the installation script from the
php composer.phar install
- Add optional settings to the end of the "LocalSettings.php" file after the settings included for Semantic MediaWiki as described in the section on enabling additional formats.
- Navigate to "Special:Version" on your wiki to verify that the extension is successfully installed.
- Done!
Enabling additional formats
If nothing else is added, all but the following formats are enabled: 'exhibit', 'filtered', 'googlebar', 'googlepie' and 'excel'. In order to additionally add one of these formats, you can add lines like:
$srfgFormats[] = 'googlebar';
$srfgFormats[] = 'googlepie';
...or alternatively
$srfgFormats = array_merge( $srfgFormats, array( 'googlebar', 'googlepie' ) );
...or you can override the set of formats entirely, with a call like:
$srfgFormats = array( 'calendar', 'timeline', 'exhibit' );
... using one or more of the following values: average, bibtex, calendar, eventline, exhibit, googlebar, googlepie, graph, icalendar, jqplotbar, jqplotpie, max, min, outline, sum, timeline, vcard.
There are some formats that you may not want to include because they may not follow certain policies within your wiki; the formats 'googlebar' and 'googlepie', for instance, send data to external web services for rendering, which may be considered a data leak.
In the event you want to use features that are taking advantage of Google Maps (such as the map view created by the Exhibit result printer), please assign a valid Google Maps key to the $wgGoogleMapsKey variable in LocalSettings.php. Otherwise, these features will not be available. If you don't yet have a Google Maps key for your wiki, you can get one at http://code.google.com/intl/en-en/apis/maps/signup.html.
- I see a spinning wheel but no output.
If you just see a spinning wheel, chances are high that the ResourceLoader could not locate a JavaScript resource or had a problem in executing. In either case, you will need to fix the problem before the result format can display. Using
&debug=true together with a tool like Firebug or Gooogle Chrome's "inspect element" will most likely help to find the delinquent JavaScript resource. Also, see the warning and hacks above concerning the new jQuery version in MW 1.24.
- Some data seems to be ignored in the results.
By default, Inline queries return 50 pages. Even if you're aggregating the results, using
distribution=yes, that limit still applies. You probably need to increase the limit, by setting the
|limit= parameter within the query, and (if you need to query more than 500 pages) by setting Help:Configuration parameter "$smwgQMaxInlineLimit" in LocalSettings.php as well.
Mailing list
You should use the Semantic MediaWiki mailing list, semediawiki-user, for any questions, suggestions or bug reports about Semantic Result Formats. If possible, please add "[SRF]" at the beginning of the subject line, to clarify the subject matter.
Contributing to the project
Bugs and feature requests
You can submit bug reports and requests for new features at the GitHub issue tracker.
The current list of known bugs and requested features for Semantic Result Formats can be found at GitHub as well.
Contributing patches
If you found some bug and fixed it, or if you wrote code for a new feature, please create a patch by opening a pull request at GitHub.
If, for any reason, you don't wish to use GitHub, feel free to simply send this patch, with a description, to the semediawiki-devel mailing list.
See also
- Links
- Result formats overview
- Writing result printers development guideline
- ↑ This is the directory which contains the "LocalSettings.php" file.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 In case you installed Composer "globally" on your server, you will have to drop the
.pharparticles from the command.
- ↑ See also the example "composer.json" file which already contains the line to be added here.
Semantic Result Formats en 1.9.0


text:
A mastectomy is surgery to remove the entire breast, including the skin, nipple, and areola. It is usually done to treat breast cancer.
Breast removal surgery; Subcutaneous mastectomy; Total mastectomy; Simple mastectomy; Modified radical mastectomy
You will be given general anesthesia (you will be asleep and pain-free). There are different types of mastectomy procedures. Which one your surgeon uses depends on the type of breast problem you have.
The surgeon will make a cut in your breast:
One or two small plastic drains or tubes are usually left in your chest to remove extra fluid from where the breast tissue used to be.
If all the cancer tissue is removed, a plastic surgeon may be able to reconstruct the breast (with artificial implants or tissue from your own body) during the same operation. You may also choose to have reconstruction later.
See also:
Mastectomy usually takes 2 - 3 hours.
The most common reason for a mastectomy is breast cancer.
If you are diagnosed with breast cancer, talk to your doctor about your choices:
You and your doctor should consider:
The choice of what is best for you can be difficult. Sometimes, it is hard to know whether lumpectomy or mastectomy is best. You and the health care providers who are treating your breast cancer will decide together what is best.
Women who have a very high risk of developing breast cancer may choose to have either a subcutaneous or total mastectomy to reduce your risk of breast cancer. This is called prophylactic mastectomy.
You may have a higher risk of getting breast cancer if one or more close family relatives has had breast cancer, especially at an early age. Genetic tests (such as BRCA1 or BRCA2) may also show that you have a high risk. This surgery should be done only after very careful thought and discussion with your doctor, a genetic counselor, your family, and others.
Mastectomy greatly reduces, but does not eliminate, the risk of breast cancer.
Risks for any surgery are:
Scabbing, blistering, or skin loss along the edge of the surgical cut may occur.
Risks when more invasive surgery, such as a radical mastectomy, is done are:
You may have many blood and imaging tests (such as CT scans, bone scans, and chest x-ray) after your doctor finds breast cancer. Your surgeon will want to know whether your cancer has spread to the lymph nodes, liver, lungs, bones, or somewhere else.
Always tell your doctor or nurse if:
During the week before the surgery:
On the day of the surgery:
Your doctor or nurse will tell you when to arrive at the hospital.
You may stay in the hospital for 1 - 3 days, depending on the type of surgery you had. If you have a simple mastectomy, you may go home on the same day. Most women go home after 1 - 2 days. You may stay longer if you have breast reconstruction.
Many women go home with drains still in their chest. The doctor will remove them later during an office visit. A nurse will teach you how to look after the drain, or you can have a home care nurse help you.
You may have pain around the site of your cut after surgery. The pain is moderate after the first day and then quickly goes away. You will receive pain medicines before you are released from the hospital.
Fluid may collect in the area of your mastectomy after all the drains are removed. This is called a seroma. It usually goes away on its own, but it may need to be drained using a needle (aspiration).
Most women recover well after mastectomy.
In addition to surgery, you may need other treatments for breast cancer. These treatments may include hormonal therapy, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. All have their own side effects. Talk to your doctor.
Carlson RW, Allred DC, Anderson BO, Burstein HJ, Carter WB, Edge SB, et al. Breast cancer. National Comprehensive Cancer Network Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology. v2. 2010.
Iglehart JD, Smith BL. Diseases of the breast. In: Townsend CM, Beauchamp RD, Evers BM, Mattox KL, eds. Sabiston Textbook of Surgery. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2008:chap 34.
Cuzick J, DeCensi A, Arun B, Brown PH, Catiglione M, Dunn B, et al. Preventive therapy for breast cancer: a consensus statement. Lancet Oncol. 2011;12:496-503.
Giuliano AE, Hunt KK, Ballman KV, Beitsch PD, Whitworth PW, Blumencranz PW, et al. Axillary dissection vs no axillary dissection in women with invasive breast cancer and sentinel node metastasis: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA. 2011;305:569-575.
1000 Johnson Ferry Road NE
Atlanta, GA 30342
(404) 851-8000
450 Northside Cherokee Blvd.
Canton, GA 30115
(770) 224-1000
1200 Northside Forsyth Drive
Cumming, GA 30041
(770) 844-3200


text:
Keith Urban is celebrating his 15th No. 1 single with "Little Bit of Everything" this week, as the song went to No. 1 on both Billboard's Country Airplay chart and the Mediabase chart. Urban thanked his fans for his 15th No. 1 hit in a video message from Red Rocks, Colorado.
"I just want to say a quick thank you to everybody. This week we celebrated our 15th No. 1 for 'Little Bit of Everything.' Awesome! Thank you very much to everybody that called the radio stations and requested this song and supported it the way you did. It's an amazing start to the album coming out in a couple of weeks."
THANK YOU for helping to make 'Little Bit of Everything' our 15th #1 song!!!! smarturl.it/UrbanChat69 #UrbanChat—
Keith Urban (@KeithUrban) August 31, 2013
In an interview with Radio.com, Urban explained why he decided to make the song–written by Kevin Rudolf, Brett Warren and Brad Warren and co-produced by Urban and Nathan Chapman–the lead single off his upcoming album Fuse.
"I just got the feel of it. Everybody that had heard the song loved it. Sometimes it's just as simple as that," he said. "It just feels good. It sounded good and everybody felt like that was a good song to go with."
He added: "For me, because I'm working on the whole album, it's almost like, 'You guys pick whatever song you want.' I'm so happy with this whole record let's just pick a song that makes sense and get it out and let's get touring."
Read more about Keith Urban and see the "Little Bit of Everything" video on Radio.com


text:
Phillip Dixon, 32, was arrested April 16 and is charged with selling in excess of 40 grams of methamphetamine within the last six months to a confidential informant working with the Arkansas State Police (ASP) and the Fifth Judicial Drug Task Force, according to testimony by ASP Narcotics Investigator Tony Haley at Dixon's April 18 bond hearing. Dixon and Krystal Journigan — a 26-year-old woman who was a federal fugitive for failing to meet probationary requirements — were arrested after the vehicle they were both riding in was pulled over by police in Pope County.
"We believe the ($250,000) bond is excessive when you look at the rules of criminal procedure," said Hugh R. Laws, a Russellville-based attorney representing Dixon. "Obviously the court considers the seriousness of the charge ... but he is a first offender and he has no prior felony convictions."
Laws requested to District Judge Don Bourne that he lower the bond to $25,000, saying Dixon is not a flight risk and his parents will maintain authority over him. Laws said bond is not meant to be used as a pre-trial punishment, and more serious crimes have received less bonds.
"I think it's to the point of being so excessive that it's punishing in pre-trial, and that's not the point of the bond," he said.
Per conditions associated with the lowered bond, Dixon is required to live with his parents, who own Dixon Poultry in Russellville; abide by a 10 p.m. curfew; stay in Arkansas and out of Pulaski County, where many of his alleged drug deals are believed to have taken place; maintain a recorded employment with his parents; and is required to admit himself into Decision Point Inc., a nonprofit alcohol and drug recovery center with locations in Northwest Arkansas.
Dixon is required to stay in rehab for 28 days, as well as follow all recommendations made by the rehab facility. If Dixon fails to abide by any of the stipulations, his parents will have the authority to revoke his bond.
Dixon will also be subject to drug testing, the location and times of which are still to be determined by Laws and prosecutors.
Prosecutor Liza Brown, who requested Dixon's bond be set at $500,000 at his original hearing, argued with Laws' defense, saying Haley's testimony that Dixon is believed to be part of a 50-pound drug ring in the state is sufficient reason for a high bond.
"Dixon is charged with selling over 40 grams of methamphetamine. That is not a small amount, and by his own admission, he's selling over a pound of meth a month. Those are things you have to consider, as well as whether or not he's going to show up to [his May 21 court date]," Brown said.
Brown added the conditions of the lowered bond — such as being required to stay in Arkansas and be subject to drug testing — may have little effect on Dixon as most of his alleged deals take place in Arkansas and he's charged with dealing drugs, not using them.
"He's not a small dealer. He's probably one of the largest drug dealers this town has seen," she said. "A drug dealer is not synonymous with a drug user."
According to Haley's testimony, Dixon has been under federal investigation for more than 10 years and is believed to have sold in excess of 50 or 60 pounds of methamphetamine in a multi-county area. He is believed to have been selling more than a pound of methamphetamine each month, Haley said.
Dixon faces charges of delivery and possession of methamphetamine, as well as possession of drug paraphernalia after officers found a loaded syringe in Dixon's vehicle during a traffic stop.
If convicted, the felonies could carry sentences of 10-40 years, or life in prison.
Dixon's arraignment is scheduled for May 21. If he is in rehab and unable to attend the arraignment, Laws said he will appear to represent him.


text:
Mt. Shasta from the Bolam Trailhead
|[ Sizes: Orig | Large | Med | Small | Thumb ]
The manzanita had almost totally overgrown several parts of this "trail". Whitney Falls is on this route but I have never seen water in it. A small lenticular cloud is forming at the top. 30 minutes later it looked like this. Here is another shot in better focus but lacking some of the alpenglow color.
Rate This Image
Current Score: 84.82%
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Mount Shasta (Mountain/Rock)
Bubba Suess's Image Gallery
California Cascades (Area/Range)
Whitney Falls Trail (Route)
The Great Cascade Range (Album)
Mount Shasta (Album)
Mount Shasta: 2007-2008 (Album)
Image Data
Image ID: 291310
Hits: 7002
Lat/Lon: 41.40940°N / 122.1939°W
Object Title: Mt. Shasta from the Bolam Trailhead


text:
I get an EPSON STYLUS COLOR 440. I have a sytems based on a M748LMRT ver. 1.3A mother board.
I have problems with the Status Monitor 2. It does not show the ink monitor because the Status Monitor 2 does no detect any printer on the system. Why? Because of the mother board, because of the LPT type setting or because I dont no how make it work ok. (I dond think so, but is a possibility.)


text:
MHz Update: Top mobility issues affecting LE, March 2009
The PoliceOne MHz Update provides a quick look into what's current in mobile communications and computing for LE.
The technology that supports critical public safety communications—everything from the radio calls cops answer thousands of times a day to the one-in-a-million transmission of a single word or phrase that alerts police to a possible terror threat—is evolving at an ever-increasing rate.
While every decade in the past century has seen dramatic advances in technology that facilities the free-flow of information to cops on the streets, the final year of this decade promises to be one of the busiest in history. From cellular broadband to municipal WiFi, from the 700MHz re-auction to 800MHz re-banding, from advances in devices and software to an economy that challenges agencies to pay for them... These are but a few of the critical issues facing public safety decision-makers and police officers across the country.
The PoliceOne MHz Update provides a quick look into what's current in mobile communications and computing for law enforcement. Today we examine some of the latest news in mobile data networks as well as a handful of issues that have come to the fore lately, but what follows is far from a complete list. What do you think are the most important problems (or solutions) for mobility in Law Enforcement?
Add your comments below or send us an E-mail.
D-Block Re-Auction—the debacle at the FCC 700MHz auction last year is far from over
Little more than a week ago, a panel of experts convened in Las Vegas for the International Wireless Communications Exposition (IWCE) Conference, and in one session sought to continue the discussion about the creation of a nationwide mobile broadband data system built in a 10MHz swath of the 700 MHz spectrum. When the FCC's wireless spectrum auction came to a close this time last year, the plan to establish a public/private partnership through which a robust, multi-purpose, national, interoperable, wireless broadband public safety network would be built fell short of becoming a reality. At the FCC auction last year the so-called "D-Block" garnered just one bid ($472 million) in the opening round of the auction, and after that, the airwaves both literally and figuratively went dead.
The D-Block has since been left in a seemingly perpetual state of uncertainty. At a general session meeting of the IWCE, Harlin McEwen (chairman of the Public Safety Spectrum Trust) reportedly said that a failure to take advantage of the current climate regarding the development of a national interoperability network would mean the loss of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The FCC has reportedly devised a D-Block re-auction proposal that links the D-Block commercial spectrum with the existing public safety spectrum. Similar in some respects to the plan that was summarily ignored by investors last time around, this solution would be paid for by commercial carriers in a public-private partnership. The re-auction is allegedly set to take place in August 2009, but so much of the detail around what will ultimately be done here is likely to change before then. Stay tuned...
Mobile Data—adding new avenues to get the word out to the street officer
As departments increasingly push data (pictures, files, etc) to the police officer's mobile display terminal in the squad car, administrators and city councils are faced with in ever-growing number of choices to get the data from point A to point B. Some agencies deliver mobile data to the car via UHF, but most have the MDT connected through an "Aircard" provided by a wireless carrier (read: Sprint, ATT, Verizon, etc). The "Aircard" itself is not expensive, but the fees to use them can pile up. The typical plan runs about $60 per month—this fact becomes important in a paragraph or two—so for example, an agency outfitting ten squad cars can figure the annual cost for the wireless Web to be around $7,200. That's an excellent deal for always-on access to critical data.
A small number of Federal agencies, whose agents frequently travel from one location dominated by one carrier network to another area with "coverage" provided by another carrier, have opted to use laptop computers enabled with the "Gobi" chip from Qualcomm. This technology lets the user seamlessly switch from one carrier network to another, as long as the agency subscribes to that particular wireless carrier network. Each user is then subscribed to pay more than one carrier a monthly fee for wireless broadband—in fact they'd have to subscribe to a host of carriers for the system to reach its full potential. Taking the abovementioned $60 per month average carrier cost, a department can quickly triple or quadruple that number for every Gobi-enabled device.
As interesting as the Gobi technology is—and it is very interesting to the mobile data users who travel coast-to-coast—its relatively limited applications and its comparatively high cost have kept Gobi from becoming pervasive in law enforcement.
While most mobile computers used by police are connected through cellular broadband, a lot of agencies are now connecting their officers to the network with other solutions. Some rural communities are experimenting with satellite Internet service, the prevalence of citywide "Muni WiFi" networks is increasing, and so-called "Mobile Mesh" networks are popping up in places. Satellite service can be costly, and the transceivers that make mobile mesh networks possible are typically more expensive than other data communications equipment that runs on the 802.11 standard, but the upside potential for information sharing for both technologies is interesting.
An intriguing new solution in the wireless data networking arena is something akin to Gobi, except it's meant for local use and it can connect with more than just the carrier networks. A company called In Motion Technology recently announced that the Tempe Arizona Police Department has begun to use its technology to "put reliable, secure, real-time information at the fingertips of its officers in the field, enhance the Department's ability to manage assets in the field, and strengthen law enforcement efforts."
The company's "mobile gateway" creates a wireless mobile hotspot in and around each vehicle in which the device is installed. Similar to the way the Gobi chip switches back and forth between connects to any GSM and CDMA wireless network, the In Motion box can seamlessly switch back-and-forth between commercial cellular, 700 MHz, and a variety of WiFi networks to create a continuous, high-bandwidth pipeline of information to and from the vehicle.
The In Motion gateway is designed to let departments add the network connections and new software to what they call the "vehicle area network." For example, as they become available, departments can deploy new mobile surveillance video technology, electronic ticketing, automated license plate recognition, and a host of other devices to enhance officer safety and effectiveness. Speaking of devices...
Advances in Devices—small and sturdy is the new "sexy"
The emergence of new devices manufacturers are calling the ultra-mobile PC (UMPC) has begun to supplement (and in some cases supplant) PDAs as the handheld computing choice for law enforcement. While Blackberry PDAs and Palm Pilots are commonplace, they lack the ability to perform complex, custom-made applications designed for police work. These vital applications include but are not limited to "e-ticketing" and fingerprint scanning.
In response to the increasing demand for full-function handheld PCs for the police officer, Panasonic (maker of the Toughbook PC found mounted in thousands of squads across the country) has introduced a handheld called the "U1." According to Panasonic, this is the first ultra-mobile PC (UMPC) to integrate the low-power "Intel Atom" processor in a rugged handheld computer, providing higher computing power at lower power, thus extending the battery life to as much as nine hours. Not bad for a computer you can drop four feet to the asphalt, pick up, and continue your work as if nothing ever happened. Because the Toughbook U1 touts a solid state drive with a gigabyte of memory and can run on the Windows Vista operating system (Windows XP is an available option), this sturdy little PC can perform lots of the features previously only available on a full size PC.
Presently being tested by the Deputies with the Oklahoma County (Okla.) Sheriff's Office, the U1 features integrated WiFi and can connect with all major cellular wireless broadband networks.
While the U1 is new and has not yet had time to be widely deployed, some of the most interesting rugged solutions to ever be placed in the hands of law enforcement is the Motorola Mobile AFIS on the MC70 and MC75 rugged enterprise digital assistants (EDAs), which have been in use for several years across the country, and have been credited with helping to enable several high-profile arrests.
The Mobile AFIS on the MC70 and MC75 utilizes advanced wireless networks such as HSPDA (3G) and CDMA/EVDO Rev. A. This, in combination with Mobile AFIS support for NIST compliant packages, delivers rapid transmission of fingerprint images or templates, and facial images resulting in immediate identity verification in field operations.
The biometric attachment provides a rugged, mobile capability to capture fingerprints and high images within a variety of lighting conditions.
With optional ISO-compliant contact and "contactless card readers," the Motorola Mobile AFIS can be used for identity verification against secure credentials such as ePassports, TWIC documents, PIV ID cards, and smart-card enabled employee ID badges. The MC70/75 EDAs data connectivity also make an excellent platform for applications such as eCitation, asset management, GPS location, and streaming video.
800MHz Re-Banding—the saga for Sprint and public safety entities goes on (and on)
In July 2004, the FCC sought to address the problem of "harmful interference to 800 MHz public safety communication systems caused by high-density commercial wireless systems" and began plans to develop a plan to reconfigure the 800MHz band. This process is ongoing, and for some communities has been a costly and complicated endeavor. This cost however, is not necessarily falling on the localities alone. When the FCC ruled Nextel Communications (which has now become Sprint Nextel) to vacate the 800MHz band to fix the interference problem for public safety communications, it demanded that the company foot the $2.8 billion bill. The FCC wisely did not place a cap on the cost the company could be responsible for, and earlier this month, Urgent Communications reported that "Sprint Nextel's costs associated with 800 MHz re-banding almost certainly will exceed the $2.8 billion figure the carrier is required to pay for reconfiguration and that the amount could increase considerably."
In a November 2008 press release the FCC said that "the 800 MHz Report and Order requires Sprint to vacate its channel holdings in the Interleaved Band as part of 800 MHz band reconfiguration. The Commission subsequently modified this requirement to permit Sprint to release the spectrum it must vacate in stages as band reconfiguration progresses in each NPSPAC Public Safety Region. As an initial step, Sprint has relinquished its channel holdings in the 809-809.5/854-854.5 MHz band segment in all non-border regions. As provided in the 800 MHz Report and Order, these channels will then be made available for licensing exclusively to public safety entities for a three year period, and exclusively to public safety and CII entities for an additional two years."
The fact is that the process is taking a lot longer than originally intended, and the costs associated continue to rise.
Once again, stay tuned...


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This is reminiscent of the old days when kids got out and played!
I love this chipboard especially the jacks, hopscotch and swirls!
Great used on anything and not just with this collection!
Used in this layout: Having Fun #11
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Iceland announces cod and haddock sustainability assessment
Reykjavik, Iceland: Icelandic Group, one of the world's ten largest seafood companies, has submitted its cod and haddock fisheries for independent assessment for Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification - the most rigorous global seafood sustainability standard.
WWF has welcomed the announcement, noting that if the certification bid is successful it will considerably extend sustainable fish choices for consumers on a global scale.
Icelandic Group purchases and markets 35% of the total fish quota caught in the seas of Iceland, in value terms the world's 11th largest exporter of seafood.
The certification assessment will cover all of the cod and haddock fisheries supplying the group and a diversity of harvesting methods including Demersal otter trawls, Danish seine, long lines, hand lines and gill nets.
Successful assessment could add up to 160,000 tonnes of Cod and 50,000 tonnes of Haddock annually to stocks of MSC certified seafoods.
Article continues: http://wwf.panda.org/?uNewsID=196831


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A History of Philippine-American Relations
Patricio N. Abinales
An enduring resilience characterizes Philippine–American relationship for several reasons. For one, there is an unusual colonial relationship wherein the United States took control of the Philippines from the Spanish and then shared power with an emergent Filipino elite, introduced suffrage, implemented public education, and promised eventual national independence. A shared experience fighting the Japanese in World War II and defeating a postwar communist rebellion further cemented the "special relationship" between the two countries. The United States took advantage of this partnership to compel the Philippines to sign an economic and military treaty that favored American businesses and the military, respectively. Filipino leaders not only accepted the realities of this strategic game and exploited every opening to assert national interests but also benefitted from American largesse. Under the dictatorship of President Ferdinand Marcos, this mutual cadging was at its most brazen. As a result, the military alliance suffered when the Philippines terminated the agreement, and the United States considerably reduced its support to the country. But the estrangement did not last long, and both countries rekindled the "special relationship" in response to the U.S. "Global War on Terror" and, of late, Chinese military aggression in the West Philippine Sea.
American Indian Activism after 1945
Bradley Shreve
American Indian activism after 1945 was as much a part of the larger, global decolonization movement rooted in centuries of imperialism as it was a direct response to the ethos of civic nationalism and integration that had gained momentum in the United States following World War II. This ethos manifested itself in the disastrous federal policies of termination and relocation, which sought to end federal services to recognized Indian tribes and encourage Native people to leave reservations for cities. In response, tribal leaders from throughout Indian Country formed the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) in 1944 to litigate and lobby for the collective well-being of Native peoples. The NCAI was the first intertribal organization to embrace the concepts of sovereignty, treaty rights, and cultural preservation—principles that continue to guide Native activists today. As American Indian activism grew increasingly militant in the late 1960s and 1970s, civil disobedience, demonstrations, and takeovers became the preferred tactics of "Red Power" organizations such as the National Indian Youth Council (NIYC), the Indians of All Tribes, and the American Indian Movement (AIM). At the same time, others established more focused efforts that employed less confrontational methods. For example, the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) served as a legal apparatus that represented Native nations, using the courts to protect treaty rights and expand sovereignty; the Council of Energy Resource Tribes (CERT) sought to secure greater returns on the mineral wealth found on tribal lands; and the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) brought Native educators together to work for greater self-determination and culturally rooted curricula in Indian schools. While the more militant of these organizations and efforts have withered, those that have exploited established channels have grown and flourished. Such efforts will no doubt continue into the unforeseeable future so long as the state of Native nations remains uncertain.
The Asian American Movement
Daryl Joji Maeda
The Asian American Movement was a social movement for racial justice, most active during the late 1960s through the mid-1970s, which brought together people of various Asian ancestries in the United States who protested against racism and U.S. neo-imperialism, demanded changes in institutions such as colleges and universities, organized workers, and sought to provide social services such as housing, food, and healthcare to poor people. As one of its signal achievements, the Movement created the category "Asian American," (coined by historian and activist Yuji Ichioka), which encompasses the multiple Asian ethnic groups who have migrated to the United States. Its founding principle of coalitional politics emphasizes solidarity among Asians of all ethnicities, multiracial solidarity among Asian Americans as well as with African, Latino, and Native Americans in the United States, and transnational solidarity with peoples around the globe impacted by U.S. militarism.
The movement participated in solidarity work with other Third World peoples in the United States, including the Third World Liberation Front strikes at San Francisco State College and University of California, Berkeley. The Movement fought for housing rights for poor people in the urban cores of San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York City, Seattle, and Philadelphia; it created arts collectives, published newspapers and magazines, and protested vigorously against the Vietnam War. It also extended to Honolulu, where activists sought to preserve land rights in rural Hawai'i. It contributed to the larger radical movement for power and justice that critiqued capitalism and neo-imperialism, which flourished during the 1960s and 1970s.
Asian Americans and the Cold War
Madeline Y. Hsu
The global political divides of the Cold War propelled the dismantling of Asian exclusion in ways that provided greater, if conditional, integration for Asian Americans, in a central aspect of the reworking of racial inequality in the United States after World War II. The forging of strategic alliances with Asian nations and peoples in that conflict mandated at least token gestures of greater acceptance and equity, in the form of changes to immigration and citizenship laws that had previously barred Asians as "aliens ineligible to citizenship."1 During the Cold War, shared politics and economic considerations continued to trump racial difference as the United States sought leadership of the "free" capitalist world and competed with Soviet-led communism for the affiliation and cooperation of emerging, postcolonial Third World nations. U.S. courtship of once-scorned peoples required the end of Jim Crow systems of segregation through the repeal of discriminatory laws, although actual practices and institutions proved far more resistant to change. Politically and ideologically, culture and values came to dominate explanations for categories and inequalities once attributed to differences in biological race. Mainstream media and cultural productions celebrated America's newfound embrace of its ethnic populations, even as the liberatory aspirations inflamed by World War II set in motion the civil rights movement and increasingly confrontational mobilizations for greater access and equality.
These contestations transformed the character of America as a multiracial democracy, with Asian Americans advancing more than any other racial group to become widely perceived as a "model minority" by the 1980s with the popularization of a racial trope first articulated during the 1960s. Asian American gains were attained in part through the diminishing of barriers in immigration, employment, residence, education, and miscegenation, but also because their successes affirmed U.S. claims regarding its multiracial democracy and because reforms of immigration law admitted growing numbers of Asians who had been screened for family connections, refugee status, and especially their capacity to contribute economically. The 1965 Immigration Act cemented these preferences for educated and skilled Asian workers, with employers assuming great powers as routes to immigration and permanent status. The United States became the chief beneficiary of "brain drain" from Asian countries. Geometric rates of Asian American population growth since 1965, disproportionately screened through this economic preference system, have sharply reduced the ranks of Asian Americans linked to the exclusion era and set them apart from Latino, black, and Native Americans who remain much more entrenched in the systems of inequality rooted in the era of sanctioned racial segregation.
Dockworkers in America
Peter Cole
The history of dockworkers in America is as fascinating and important as it is unfamiliar. Those who worked along the shore loading and unloading ships played an invaluable role in an industry central to both the U.S. and global economies as well as the making of the nation. For centuries, their work remained largely the same, involving brute manual labor in gangs; starting in the 1960s, however, their work was entirely remade due to technological transformation. Dockworkers possess a long history of militancy, resulting in dramatic improvements in their economic and workplace conditions. Today, nearly all are unionists, but dockworkers in ports along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts belong to the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA), while the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) represents them in Pacific Coast ports as well as in Hawaii and Alaska (along with British Columbia and Panama). In the mid-1930s, the ILA and ILWU became bitter rivals and remain so. This feud, which has cooled slightly since its outset, can be explained by differences in leadership, ideology, and tactics, with the ILA more craft-based, "patriotic," and mainstream and the ILWU quite left wing, especially during its first few decades, and committed to fighting for racial equality. The existence of two unions complicates this story; in most countries, dockworkers belong to a single union. Similarly, America's massive economy and physical size means that there are literally dozens of ports (again, unlike many other countries), making generalizations harder. Unfortunately, popular culture depictions of dockworkers inculcate unfair and incorrect notions that all dockworkers are involved with organized crime. Nevertheless, due to decades of militancy, strikes, and unionism, dockworkers in 21st-century America are—while far fewer in number—very well paid and still do important work, literally making world trade possible in an era when 90 percent of goods move by ship for at least part of their journey to market.
Federal Indian Law
N. Bruce Duthu
United States law recognizes American Indian tribes as distinct political bodies with powers of self-government. Their status as sovereign entities predates the formation of the United States and they are enumerated in the U.S. Constitution as among the subjects (along with foreign nations and the several states) with whom Congress may engage in formal relations. And yet, despite this long-standing recognition, federal Indian law remains curiously ambivalent, even conflicted, about the legal and political status of Indian tribes within the U.S. constitutional structure. On the one hand, tribes are recognized as sovereign bodies with powers of self-government within their lands. On the other, long-standing precedents of the Supreme Court maintain that Congress possesses plenary power over Indian tribes, with authority to modify or even eliminate their powers of self-government. These two propositions are in tension with one another and are at the root of the challenges faced by political leaders and academics alike in trying to understand and accommodate the tribal rights to self-government. The body of laws that make up the field of federal Indian law include select provisions of the U.S. Constitution (notably the so-called Indian Commerce Clause), treaties between the United States and various Indian tribes, congressional statutes, executive orders, regulations, and a complex and rich body of court decisions dating back to the nation's formative years. The noted legal scholar Felix Cohen brought much-needed coherence and order to this legal landscape in the 1940s when he led a team of scholars within the Office of the Solicitor in the Department of the Interior to produce a handbook on federal Indian law. The revised edition of Cohen's Handbook of Federal Indian Law is still regarded as the seminal treatise in the field. Critically, however, this rich body of law only hints at the real story in federal Indian law. The laws themselves serve as historical and moral markers in the ongoing clash between indigenous and nonindigenous societies and cultures still seeking to establish systems of peaceful coexistence in shared territories. It is a story about the limits of legal pluralism and the willingness of a dominant society and nation to acknowledge and honor its promises to the first inhabitants and first sovereigns.
Alison L. LaCroix
Federalism refers to the constitutional and political structure of the United States of America, according to which political power is divided among multiple levels of government: the national level of government (also referred to as the "federal" or "general" government) and that of the states. It is a multilayered system of government that reserves some powers to component entities while also establishing an overarching level of government with a specified domain of authority. The structures of federalism are set forth in the Constitution of the United States, although some related ideas and practices predated the founding period and others have developed since. The balance between federal and state power has shifted throughout U.S. history, with assertions of broad national power meeting challenges from supporters of states' rights and state sovereignty. Federalism is a fundamental value of the American political system, and it has been a controversial political and legal question since the founding period.
Human Rights and U.S. Foreign Policy
Sarah B. Snyder
In its formulation of foreign policy, the United States takes account of many priorities and factors, including national security concerns, economic interests, and alliance relationships. An additional factor with significance that has risen and fallen over time is human rights, or more specifically violations of human rights. The extent to which the United States should consider such abuses or seek to moderate them has been and continues to be the subject of considerable debate.
Immigration to the United States after 1945
Xiaojian Zhao
Post-1945 immigration to the United States differed fairly dramatically from America's earlier 20th- and 19th-century immigration patterns, most notably in the dramatic rise in numbers of immigrants from Asia. Beginning in the late 19th century, the U.S. government took steps to bar immigration from Asia. The establishment of the national origins quota system in the 1924 Immigration Act narrowed the entryway for eastern and central Europeans, making western Europe the dominant source of immigrants. These policies shaped the racial and ethnic profile of the American population before 1945. Signs of change began to occur during and after World War II. The recruitment of temporary agricultural workers from Mexico led to an influx of Mexicans, and the repeal of Asian exclusion laws opened the door for Asian immigrants. Responding to complex international politics during the Cold War, the United States also formulated a series of refugee policies, admitting refugees from Europe, the western hemisphere, and later Southeast Asia. The movement of people to the United States increased drastically after 1965, when immigration reform ended the national origins quota system. The intricate and intriguing history of U.S. immigration after 1945 thus demonstrates how the United States related to a fast-changing world, its less restrictive immigration policies increasing the fluidity of the American population, with a substantial impact on American identity and domestic policy.
Latinas/os in the Southern United States
Perla M. Guerrero
Latinas/os were present in the American South long before the founding of the United States of America, yet knowledge about their southern communities in different places and time periods is deeply uneven. In fact, regional themes important throughout the South clarify the dynamics that shaped Latinas/os' lives, especially race, ethnicity, and the colorline; work and labor; and migration and immigration. Ideas about racial difference, in particular, reflected specifics of place, and intersections of local, regional, and international endeavors and movements of people and resources. Accordingly, Latinas/os' position and treatment varied across the South. They first worked in agricultural fields picking cotton, oranges, and harvesting tobacco, then in a variety of industries, especially poultry and swine processing and packing. The late 20th century saw the rapid growth of Latinas/os in southern states due to changing migration and immigration patterns that moved from traditional states of reception to new destinations in rural, suburban, and urban locales with limited histories with Latinas/os or with substantial numbers of immigrants in general.
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Under a law that takes effect Friday, motorists must exercise caution around vehicles with blue, red, yellow, white or green lights.
State Highway and Transportation Department director Scott Bennett said his agency initially wanted to extend protection to only highway workers but said electric utilities and tow truck drivers asked that they also be covered.
"There was obviously a need, and we were happy to include them," Bennett said Thursday.
Drivers will have to move into the farthest possible lane when approaching police and service vehicles whose lights illuminated and flashing. If changing lanes isn't possible, drivers must slow down.
"The safety of workers along our highways has always been a top priority at the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. This new law will help ensure their well being," Bennett said.
Violators can be fined up to $500 or sent to jail for 90 days. Community service or license suspensions can also be ordered.
The bill was introduced by Rep. Jonathan Barnett, R-Siloam Springs, a former member of the state Highway Commission.


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So, i've just moved house. It's all gone well, but I have been getting withdrawal symptoms from limited access to the internet. The reason for that is simple. Good old BT love completly disconnecting telephone lines from empty houses, resulting in a lenghty (I've been waiting 3 weeks, 1 day) and costly (£140 + Vat) re-connection of the phone line. It's not actually connected until the 30th October - Hopefully they mean this year.
Being the efficient Gerbil that I am, and not being one for having untidy cables everywhere, I was going to make a start on ethernetting the whole place up in every room like my last and having it all converge on the router. And then it hit me...
...the position of the telephone socket is a pain in the backside. Just look:
On the left hand side of the wall is my access to Internet goodness. Not so far away opposite is some sockets. I think you can see where i'm going with this. I don't want to do the obvious and run a short cable in a straight line, it's messy and a trip hazard. I also doont want to run a stupidly long internal telephone line extension right round to where my lil' router is as that can cause all sorts of interference and speed issues on ADSL here.
There's no power on the side the phone socket is, so the router can't live near it at the moment. Anyone got any suggestions on how I can do what I want, but make it look neat and not cause problems?


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Infrared LEDs for camera systems
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Whether number plate recognition at the gate of a companys car park, video cameras in banks, wide-range surveillance of parking lots, industrial sites or airports Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) keeps a close watch. Many solutions add infrared light to enhance the quality of images recorded in the dark. It was the development of powerful infrared LED (IRED) which made many of these applications economical. Meanwhile, manufacturers can choose from a wide range of IRED for illumination applications. The product line ranges from devices of medium power to multi-chip modules supplying several Watt in continuous wave operation.
IRED in the medium power range
Typical examples of the medium power range are Power Topled with highly efficient emitter chips in thin-film technology. For more narrow emission angles of +/-15° and +/-25° are compact SMT devices with integrated lenses available. In continuous wave operation a current of 100 mA is admissible. Also in pulsed operation, Power Topled facilitate compact and powerful illumination units. They are particularly well suited for applications with a lower duty-cycle, e.g. Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) at gates, where only a few pictures per second are taken. Pulsed operation also facilitates synchronizing illumination and exposure time, thus reducing power consumption. Combined with the Nanostack technology for 850nm emitters another recent development by Osram Opto Semiconductors, which realizes two light-generating pn-junctions per chip Power Topled yield a record-breaking power. A Power Topled with Nanostack supplies almost double the amount of light and yields an optical power output of 560 mW at 0.7 A in pulsed operation. Thus not only the number of IRED per illumination unit drops, but designers can also increase the brightness of existing Power Topled systems without difficulty by using identical IRED devices with Nanostack.
Powerful IRED
For developing high-power IRED, OSRAM Opto Semiconductors could benefit from its LED illumination technologies. The result is a large variety of devices featuring an optical power in the 1-Watt range. The IRED are based on chips with a size of 1mm² in modern Surface Mount Technology (SMT) packages. Devices with one Nanostack-chip only supply an optical power of almost 1 Watt. Since chips in thin-film technology emit almost all their light on the top-surface, multi-chip devices like the OSTAR Lighting yield a power of several Watt.
The infrared Platinum Dragon more and more replaces the conventional cascades of radial IRED. With its extremely low thermal resistance the device is particularly well suited for continuous operation in which the 850nm version supplies more than half a Watt optical power at 1 A. A range of several 10 meters can be reached using the classical Dragon design without lens. For longer distances, a large variety of lenses is available [4]. Dragon IRED are also available in Nanostack technology, supplying almost double the power. It allows designers to easily upgrade existing systems or to reduce the number of components. In case the size of the system is crucial, the infrared Oslon is a suitable alternative. At present it is the smallest IRED in the category of more than 1W optical power. This device produces a +/-45° beam, therefore coupling more light into external optics. Oslon is also a suitable alternative to Power Topled designs with external optics. For long-distance systems, the 6-Chip-IRED OSTAR Lighting is a compact and elegant solution, supplying 3.5 W light at 1 A in continuous wave operation.
Picture 3: IRED with one or more Watt power: Platinum Dragon, OSTAR Lighting and Oslon


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The Celtic Away Shirt 2016-17 - Long Sleeve - Kids sees the famous Hoops of Parkhead head back to black - a change colour first introduced for the 1992-93 campaign and one to be worn by Brendan Rodgers' men on their travels around Scotland this season.
With the jersey's internal hem message celebrating 'A Club Like No Other', advanced NB Dry technology functions to remove moisture effectively. The result is a cool and comfortable experience for fans and players alike, as the Celts continue their defence of the Scottish Premiership crown.
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I am moving to a new PC including the transfer of Zone Alarm. After my existing licence number was rejected, I checked my account on line. My account name (email address) was not recognised so I recreated with the same email address. I checked for previous purchases, but it was blank, showing no purchase history.
I am currently running 'Zone Alarm Internet Security Suite' on my old PC and the 'Product Info' clearly gives the same email address I was using above and shows a purchase date of 25/08/2010 with 381 days remaining.
I have assumed that Check Point knows me from my email address, but maybe that is wrong and they have a different identifier.
As Zone Alarm is running without problems on my old PC, including regular updates, I can only assume that I have missed something obvious. Can anyone help and point out my error?


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Thursday, April 27
Why is a woman flying from Los Angeles to Miami in April
wearing fur? This is just one of the questions
going through my mind as I board a cross-country
flight that will take me to the eighth annual Miami
Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, which I'm attending as
both a correspondent for The Advocate and as a
participant. Last year I wrote a goofy little tome for
Advocate Books called 101 Must-See Movies for Gay
Men, and with the encouragement of Miami filmfest
codirectors Carol Coombes and Jaie LaPlante—and the
technical expertise of my friend Dave Kittredge, a
supremely talented editor and filmmaker—I now
have a discussion and clip show that I'll be
premiering in Miami.
But all that lies
ahead of me. Right now I'm boarding a plane behind a
fur-clad woman. Other questions going through my mind
include, Is it some kind of awful travel karma that
ensures that a crying baby is guaranteed to be
sitting within three seats of me? and Is it
George W. Bush's fault that the back-punishing
seats in American Airlines' coach class now
violate the Geneva Convention?
By the time I
reach Miami—where L.A.–based
publicist-around-town Jim Dobson, who handles P.R. for
the Miami fest, is waiting to take me to my
hotel—I want nothing more than to take a hot bath and
collapse. Lucky for me, the festival is putting me up
in South Beach's historic Park Central Hotel,
and my room comes complete with a bathtub spacious enough
for my bodacious ampleness. I take a hot soak, I put
on a bathrobe, and I'm ready for bed. Until I
look through my toiletry kit and realize I forgot to
pack Tylenol PM, earplugs, and other sleepy-time
necessities. Cursing myself, I get dressed, trudge
downstairs, and ask the front desk guy where the
closest 24-hour drugstore is. "Two blocks over, and
five blocks down," he tells me, in a voice that
suggests that I'm just spitting distance away.
Not quite. For
one thing, even though it's round midnight on a
Thursday, it's very popular around here to rev
one's apparently muffler-free motorcycle while
zipping around Ocean Drive. (Did I mention that my
cross-country flight left me with a pounding headache on top
of my back-and-shoulder misery?) Also, even though
it's late, it's hot in Miami.
Like damp, sticky, moist, muggy hot. Mind you, I grew up in
Georgia, went to college in Tennessee, and spent most of the
'90s in Texas, so I'm no stranger to
humidity. Living in California for seven years,
however, has stripped me of my capacity to deal with it, so
I feel like Shelley Winters in The Poseidon
Adventure, slogging through a solid wall of water
in a baggy ball gown. And then there's the homeless
guy who decided to let me pass him so he could walk behind
me for several blocks, but I just look at that as an
incentive to practice some power walking. I get to the
store and buy what I need. I take a cab back to the
hotel, but any convenience is outweighed by the
driver's insistence on blasting reggaeton at
full volume. A broken man, I make my way upstairs and
finally get to sleep.
Friday, April 28
I wake up
refreshed, all homicidal thoughts towards motorcyclists and
dancing cabbies banished from my mind. After a quick visit
to the press check-in, Dobson and I grab lunch at News
Café, one of South Beach's many sidewalk
cafés. We're very near Eighth and Ocean, an
address that I later discover resonates with viewers
of an MTV reality show I've never seen. Fashion
Week has just ended in Miami, and among the people who walk
past as we eat is Nick "Heck, yeah, I'm
gonna win this thing" Verreos from Project
Runway. (In case you didn't watch the
show—he didn't.) Also walking past are
the beautiful people of South Beach, and I realize an
odd paradigm about Miami: All the men look gay here. At
first I think it's just because I'm in
town for the gay film festival or because I work for
The Advocate or whatever, but no, the men
here—at least some of whom are actually
straight—have all adopted the West Hollywood/Palm
Springs universal gay resort look. Tank tops, long shorts,
sandals, overinflated chests and arms (with skinny
legs), and orangey tans are all the norm here. Do the
straight dudes who have adopted this look realize how
queer they look? Or is it just that the standards of Miami
Beach read as faggy to out-of-towners?
It's a
mystery. And one I don't plan on solving today
because it's still crazy humid. I should be
sightseeing or swimming or something, but I am
humidity's bitch, and I spend the afternoon in my
air-conditioned hotel room.
That night, after
a festival-sponsored cocktail party—just a quick walk
from the Versace mansion—I head to the fest's
host theater to check out François Ozon's
powerful new film, Time to Leave, about a gay
photographer who finds out he has very little time left to
live. Part of my work this weekend will be to
interview the film's star, Melvil Poupaud, so I
need to check out the goods. I'll be writing more
about it later for the magazine, but suffice it to say
that the film continues Ozon's tradition of
being one of the most powerful and unpredictable
filmmakers, queer or otherwise, working today.
I run into my
favorite festival fun folks—critic B. Ruby Rich and
Strand Releasing copresident Marcus Hu—and we
all decide to grab dinner afterwards. Melvil joins us,
as Strand is the U.S. distributor for the Ozon film,
as well as Kennedy (a fest volunteer who's driving
the Frenchman around during his Miami visit) and
Dobson. Dobson—as always, a man with
connections—has snagged us a table at Wish, the
restaurant in The Hotel, which boasts design by Todd
You know those
dinners that stretch on for hours? Not that you're
eating the whole time, but you're having a
conversation that never dies down, so you wind up
being at the table much longer than usual? The Spanish call
this sobremesa, and it's one of my favorite
things about getting together with my family. This is
one of those dinners. We talk a lot about movies,
obviously—Melvil, who seems indifferent to a lot of
contemporary filmmakers, shocks us all by telling us that he
and many people in France think that one of
today's most important and thought-provoking
filmmakers is Mr. Twist Ending himself, M. Night
Shyamalan—but also about a variety of other topics.
The food is all extraordinary, but the talk even more
so. Finally, at around 1 a.m. or so, we realize that
we're one of the last groups in the restaurant and
hesitantly call it a night.
Saturday, April 29
After another
great night's sleep, I meet up with Marcus and Melvil
for breakfast at Puerto Saguas, which Dobson has
highly recommended. The restaurant serves a delicious
and reasonably priced breakfast, including
"Cuban toast" (a lengthy section of baked
bread split lengthwise and packed with butter) and a
reverse of the American way of serving
coffee—the cups come filled most of the way with warm
milk, and we get little pitchers of hot coffee to pour
in. When we enter, we see Ruby already there, chatting
with documentary filmmaker Lesli Klainberg, who's
at the festival with Fabulous! The Story of Queer
Cinema. (Full disclosure: I'm interviewed
in it. So are Ruby and Marcus, for that matter.)
After eating,
Marcus and Melvil and I walk through Miami Beach to the
theater, where I'll be doing a tech run-through for
my 101 Must-See Movies program later in the
day. The humidity, thankfully, has cleared up, so even
though it's a lengthy walk, it's not a death
march. While Miami Beach is undeniably touristy,
there's a unique local flavor here, thanks
greatly to the huge Cuban population. Even with the
occasional beach-towel-and-flip-flops souvenir store, Miami
Beach doesn't look like any other seaside area
I've ever visited.
The tech
run-through goes smoothly. There's a moment of panic
when it becomes apparent that the festival's
somewhat vintage-y DVD players won't
freeze-frame when paused, but the tech guys get new players
in no time at all, and everything is set to roll.
While waiting for
the DVD player issue to be resolved, I duck into a
"Meet the Festival Programmers" panel
discussion. Having been a programmer myself—at
Dallas's USA Film Festival—I enjoy hearing the
Miami folks give answers to the questions I often wish
someone had bothered to ask me. Carol Coombes talks
about how each individual film requires lengthy
negotiations and has a unique set of
complications—Will the movie be done on time?
Has the distributor decided not to do any more
festivals? Are they locked into a premiere at another
festival at the same time? People tend to think that
festival directors have every movie in the world
sitting in front of them, and it's just a matter of
saying, "I want that one and that one, but not
that one." Trust me, it's lots more
complicated than that.
Before my
presentation, there's a screening of Fabulous!
I've watched the film on TV, but I'm
morbidly curious to see what my absurdly large head
looks like on the big screen. (And I'm not just being
self-conscious, mind you—I've literally had to
order headgear from a Web site called
BigHatStore.com.) The audience loves the film, and I guess
the cinematographer took pity on me, since I don't
wind up looking like one-fourth of Mt. Rushmore during
my interviews.
Then I do my
101 Must-See Movies for Gay Men show, and
frankly, it's all a blur to me. But people are
effusive afterward, so I hope that means that it went
well. Melvil tells me, after seeing the clip of Ryan
Dunn putting a condom-covered toy car up his nether regions
in Jackass: The Movie, that he understands why
I included the film in my book. And a quick shout-out
to Miami's Books and Books for handling my
postscreening book signing.
And then
it's off to another festival dinner, this time at
Tamara, on the back patio of the National Hotel. Ruby
observes that the lush foliage of the hotel's
back courtyard is very reminiscent of Cuba, and since
she's one of the few people I know who's
actually been there, I take her word for it.
Tonight's dinner takes place at a huge table, so I
can't begin to ID everyone, but in addition to
the previous night's folks, we're joined
by the gregarious Jaie LaPlante, Another Gay Movie
costar and executive producer Jonah Blechman, and by a
cadre from the film Boy Culture, including
actor Darryl Stephens of Noah's Arc fame,
producer Steven Israel, and writer-director (and
Advocate columnist) Q. Allan Brocka. Once
again, great food, great conversation. Part of me
always feels like an interloper at the grown-ups'
table at events like these, but we all have a blast.
Afterwards, the streets of Miami Beach are jammed with
tourists and taxis, so Darryl and I decide to forgo
grabbing a taxi and to walk back to our hotel. We've
never met prior to this evening, but the chat flows
freely, and before we know it, we're back at
the Park Central.
Sunday, April 30
I head out with
the intention of snagging breakfast at Puerto Saguas
again, but just after I exit the hotel, I hear someone
calling my name. I look up, and sitting at the Park
Central's outdoor Casablanca restaurant is
Malcolm Ingram, his mom, and his boyfriend. Readers of my
Sundance diary for this site may recall that Malcolm
directed the wonderful documentary Small Town Gay
Bar and that he and his boyfriend, Chris, and I
quickly hit it off in Park City. I knew
Malcolm's film was screening in the Miami fest, but
since he had to fly up to Birmingham to show the movie
at that city's gay and lesbian festival, I
wasn't sure when our paths would cross. It's a
treat to see the boys again and to meet
Malcolm's mom, to whom he came out just a few
months ago, when his movie made it into Sundance.
She's a character and clearly very comfortable
with her son and his fella.
After breakfast
with the three of them, I make my way to the theater to
participate in the "Beyond Brokeback Mountain"
panel, in which I'm supposed to come up with
something substantial to say about the future of queer
cinema. Thankfully, the panel also includes Ruby, Lesli,
Marcus, and Another Gay Movie writer-director
Todd Stephens (his previous flicks include Gypsy
83 and Edge of Seventeen), so I hope I come
off at least pithy by association.
Then it's
back to The Hotel to interview Melvil. There's any
number of places we could have sat and done it, but I
suggest his room because I want to see what Todd
Oldham did with the interiors. It's all very
groovy, of course, but dang, do those French guys like to
smoke. I always feel a little odd doing an interview
with someone with whom I've been talking for
several days—you never know when they've
already given you their best stuff over a
drink—but he's got lots more to talk about.
Look for the interview in The Advocate this
I return to the
hotel to grab a late lunch–early dinner with Malcolm
and company—as well as a friendly, if overly
earnest, writer from A Bear's Life magazine
who grills Malcolm and me about our thoughts regarding
being queer, bearded, and chubby—before we all
head to downtown Miami for the closing-night screening of
Another Gay Movie. The screening is held in the
Gusman Center for the Performing Arts, a gorgeous old
theater—I like to think that every major
American city managed to save at least one of them.
Before the movie
starts, the fest announces the winner of the jury
prizes. When they start talking about the documentary award,
it occurs to me for the first time that Malcolm could
win this thing. And he does! He goes onstage and is
charmingly flummoxed and at a loss for words. He
brings his mom onstage.The crowd loves it.
And then we watch
Another Gay Movie. It's a incredibly
naughty and ribald gay spoof of American Pie,
Porky's, and any number of other hetero
gross-out T&A comedies. Only this one's really,
really dirty. Hilarious, yes, but filthy. Not that
there's anything wrong with that—except
that Malcolm's mom is sitting just a few seats away
from me. Malcolm keeps turning to me during the
screening and saying, "My mom is here! My mom
is watching this movie!" He predicts a few of the
more shocking punch lines and warns her to avert her
eyes, but for the most part, she winds up getting
something of a queer baptism by fire.
We put
Malcolm's mom in a cab afterward—whether
she's traumatized by the movie or just tired
isn't exactly clear. At the wonderful closing-night
party across the street—in a bank, complete with
bartenders in the teller cage and an open (and
presumably empty) vault—one gay Miami film patron
after another walks up to talk to Malcolm. And they all say
the same thing: (1) Congratulations on winning! I
loved your movie/acceptance speech! and (2) All during
that movie tonight, all I could think was,
Malcolm's mother is watching this!
P.S. On my way
back to L.A., I stopped by the USA Film Festival in Dallas
to introduce some screenings of gay films (including
Sundance winner Quinceañera, the Parton-fanatic
documentary For the Love of Dolly, and
Malcolm's Small Town Gay Bar) and to do a
Q&A with Fabulous! As always, I had a
blast, but there were two significant new venues I got to
experience. One was NorthPark Center's new AMC
Theaters, and let's just say that to call this
multiplex huh-yooge would be an understatement. The other
was the Hotel Belmont in Oak Cliff, a mid-century
motel that has been lovingly refurbished. It's
the perfect balance of retro charm and modern
conveniences, for those of us who like to fantasize about
1950s-style auto travel but don't want to
forfeit having wireless Internet service or
Kiehl's products in the bathroom.


text:
The facility, located in the heart of the Williston Basin, handles crude oil "sourced primarily from the Bakken formation that underlies parts of Montana, North Dakota, and Saskatchewan," the companies said. "The Pioneer Project provides a double loop track that will accommodate up to 120 tank car unit trains and will increase the throughput capacity from 30,000 barrels per day to up to 80,000 barrels per day. "
The partnership will deploy 180,000 barrels of storage to start, with the expansion to 270,000 barrels built into the initial design. The addition of storage tanks will improve the reliability and efficiency of the crude reception by truck and opens the door for crude oil deliveries from gathering systems, or short range pipelines.
Dakota Plains Chairman and CEO Craig McKenzie said, "2013 is proving to be another rewarding year for Dakota Plains shareholders as we set out to highly increase the scale of our operations. The Pioneer Project is safe, efficient and economically attractive. It also opens the door to new logistics businesses where DAKP can be an even greater service provider to upstream operators in the basin."
World Fuel Services Senior Vice President, Supply and Trading. Carlos Cuervo said,"The Pioneer Project will further expand our Bakken crude oil marketing capabilities. We are excited to be playing a major role in expediting this project."
The crude oil will be transported on Canadian Pacific's rail network, continuing a partnership between CP and Dakota Plains Holdings and World Fuel Services." World Fuel is the parent company of Petroleum Transport Solutions.
Canadian Pacific Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, Jane O'Hagan, said,"Canadian Pacific is pleased to be the rail partner for Dakota Plains and World Fuels as they expand the New Town facility. Through CP's North American network and rail connections, we offer direct service from the Bakken to key refining markets across North America. We look forward to leveraging this expansion and our network to increase the volume of crude moving efficiently into the marketplace and to provide a cost effective way for inbound commodities to reach Bakken production areas."
Completion of the Pioneer project is expected in December 2013; total cost is estimated to be $50 million and will be funded equally by Dakota Plains and World Fuel Services.


text:
The producer of the Kardashians may have missed out, because this is starting to sound like an reality TV DoD version of Dynasty or something. Chris Matthews had a useful graphic to keep up with the convoluted story last night, if anyone can find the clip. Of course it might not even be current by this afternoon. Meanwhile, wingnuts may have finally found something to semi-legitimately hit Obama with:
The Guardian— Both Barack Obama and the Pentagon insisted on Tuesday that they were standing by the top US commander in Afghanistan, John Allen, after he became the latest general to find himself entangled in the widening Petraeus emails scandal.
Allen is under investigation by the defence department over his communications with Jill Kelley, the Tampa woman who sparked the FBI investigation that stumbled across David Petraeus' affair after she complained about "harassing" emails that were traced to his mistress Paula Broadwell.
The Pentagon's inspector general was examining 20,000 to 30,000 pages of documents, including many emails between Allen and Kelley, who has been described as an unpaid social liaison for senior officers at MacDill air force base in Tampa, home of US central command.
Some outlets at first reported 20,000 to 30,000 emails, which is surely not correct. The investigators probably printed them off and duped a lot of it by printing full threads in chronological order, i.e., pages. That's just me guessing; it can't be 30,000 emails over a few months, that would add up to dozens or hundreds of emails every day.
OK, why is the FBI pawing through that many personal emails again? I understand the morbid curiosity angle here, media celebs look happier than kittens playing in cream, but it seems overkill to say the least from a national security perspective.
I've even now heard a dem conspiracy tale wherein Petraeus faked the whole thing in a botched attempt to way lay Obama in the election. I don't think we need any farfetched conspiracies, the gritty truth so far is sordid enough. Now would be a great time for anyone with photo shop skills to knock out a cool pseudo-poster or fake youTube preview of scenes from the next exciting installment. Don't touch that dial!
If I could give Obama a piece of advice, it would be not to back anyone until it becomes clear who did what to whom and who is the most to blame or did the stupidest thing. Not an easy task the way this dealio is trending. It sounds like there is plenty of stupidity to go around. Not the least of which, even the FBI people involved are starting to look really, creepily nosy, and maybe even a bit unhinged. So far he's been lucky in the sense that the people involved are falling mostly on the more conservative side of the political ledger. But if the web of intrigue widens, it's just a matter of time before a democratic booster or congressperson comes to the fore, and the long imaginary knives will spring into action as the rightwing wurlitzer adds a rousing score to the unfolding drama.


text:
Child Murderer-in-Chief Announces Hateful Cuts, Issues Veiled Warning Threat to First Graders
Child Murderer-in-Chief Announces Hateful Cuts, Issues Veiled Warning Threat to First Graders — by NormanB ("Deviations from the Norm")
Today it's not just me: Glenn Greenwald and George Monbiot both called President Obama a Child Murderer. Obama has killed 9 times as many children with Drones as the Sandy Hook shooter did, and has shown NO remorse. In fact, he laughs and jokes about killing children with Coward Drones.
With his ha-ha funny Coward Drones, President Obama has Murdered at least 178 children. We must as a country find some way to turn him over the the International Criminal Court in the Hague for prosecution. If we don't, we are helping him Murder more children. http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/dec/19/newtown-drones-children-deaths
Today President Obama announced Hateful slashes to benefits slated for the very poorest and most vulnerable people in our country: This is so that the richer half of the country won't have to pay the automatic tax increase that he himself signed into law, but now calls "The Fiscal Cliff." Make no mistake about it: These cuts do constitute a monumental Hate Crime, and they are sure to kill lots of children. President Obama seems to be letting his apparent Hatred of children get in the way of his governing. http://my.shadowproof.wpengine.com/normanb/2012/12/14/obamas-forces-launch-chemical-weapon-attack-killing-baby-with-poison-gas-the-presidents-hateful-policies-against-children/
In Hateful anti-child Propaganda [reminiscent of 1984's newspeak], President Obama calls the richer half of the country "the Middle Class." He calls the emergency life support system that's keeping poor children alive "entitlements," with its negative connotation, calculated to make the listener feel that those lazy poor kids are not entitled to anything. Let 'em wither!
When people are in such dire straits that they need Government assistance just to stay alive, those who are turning off the feeding tubes know they're killing some of their victims. President Obama knows that further squeezing the poorest of the poor at this critical juncture will kill children. So, I guess he'll get another big laugh.
If he has studied history and economics, he knows that cutting aid to the very poor is likely to cripple our faltering economy, and to ramp up our current Recession into a devastating decades-long Depression.
Let me mention the obvious: Money and influence from the National Rifle Association (NRA) and other corporate interests control our politicians to a large extent. I think of it as Bribery.
Obama had his spokesperson Jake "the Snake" Carney say that the President supports Oil billionaire Dianne Feinstein's fake Assault Weapons ban, with 900 exceptions in it. Of course, if Obama and Feinstein were actually serious about limiting gun violence, they would be trying to prosecute Attorney General Eric Holder for supplying weapons to Drug Cartels in Mexico that were then used to Murder cops in this country. Instead they're Covering Up Operation Fast and Furious. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Holder#Operation_Fast_and_Furious
And in a most troubling development, the President (and other politicians hoping to sweep this shooting under the rug) are pointing at mental health and autism, as if to say: "We don't have insufficient Gun Control laws in this country, we have insufficient Autism Control laws!" This veiled threat means that he won't speak out forcefully for banning handguns and Assault Weapons.
It means that school children in this country may soon be as traumatized as President Obama's victims in Pakistan and Yemen and Somalia, wondering if they'll be next, if their classroom will win this month's "Lottery." I say Obama should not let Congress break for holidays until our children are safe and Assault Weapons and handguns are banned.
Watch this whole fascinating report. Jake the Snake delivers Obama's veiled threat beginning at about the 6-minute mark of the video. http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/insidestoryamericas/2012/12/2012121972717242949.html
Handguns and Assault Weapons are made for Murdering people. They have no legitimate purpose. It is possible that a person buying a gun will use it to protect himself, but it is 100 times more likely that he will Murder with it. The gun seller knows that, and he knows that the buyer is 300 times more likely to kill himself with the gun than to protect himself with it, no matter what he says is the purpose of his purchase.
So, the Obama Administration is not trying to limit gun violence against children. Here's how you can tell. Australia had a school massacre problem. They ended it by confiscating the offending guns. That's all it took. Immediately the massacres stopped completely. There hasn't been another one since then; and that's 16 years. Australia had lots of gun nuts too, just like we do. But they handled it. With a little less Hatred of children, we could get this done right away. http://www.democracynow.org/2012/12/18/new_town_to_newtown_how_96


text:
Country superstars Tim McGraw and Faith Hill have more than enough hit songs between them to last a lifetime. So when they combine forces, it's a spectacle to behold.
That, at least, is the opinion of fans and reviewers after the pair debuted their Soul2Soul show in Las Vegas this past weekend.
"Hill and McGraw delivered a high-energy but often intimate show that prompted multiple standing ovations," writes Jennifer Justus in the Nashville Tennessean.
"High energy" in the sense that they busted through a long list of their hit songs, including "Breathe," "Live Like You Were Dying," "The Cowboy in Me," "One of Those Nights," "Like We Never Loved At All," "Piece of My Heart," and "It's Your Love."
The "intimate" portion began early on, with the couple entering through the audience; it then continued later, when they sat down for an on-stage interview. They each spoke about their musical influences during this time (Tammy Wynette, Mavis Staples, Elvis Presley, and Aretha Franklin for Faith; Ted Nugent, Merle Haggard, Charlie Rich, George Jones, The Eagles, and Bruce Springsteen for Tim). But the chat wasn't all business, as at one point Faith ribbed Tim about not wearing any socks.
After the 'influences' chat, Faith sang some Aretha, while Tim launched into the Eagles. "I love doing other people's music, better than my own," he said at one point.
The show's final moment also was of the "intimate" variety, with Tim and Faith sitting in chairs, facing each other, and sharing a single mic during a duet on "I Need You." As the Las Vegas Sun's Robin Leach describes it, "they are seconds from a full-throttle makeout session. I hope everybody's married life is this smokin'."
Soul2Soul continues through April of 2013 at the Venetian Theatre in Las Vegas.
Remaining performance dates:
December 14-15
January 18-19, 25-26
February 1-2, 15-16 & 22-23
March 1-2
April 12-13, 26-27
– Kurt Wolff, CBS Local