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Thursday, 17 June 2010 posted by justin
The Finale
We were able to bring together great creative minds from around the world to tackle a complex and important challenge. We've been absolutely floored by both the process and the winning submissions.
There were 430 submissions and these were updated on average of at least 3 times in response to more than 5,000 ratings and 13,000 comments. We believed that good ideas might come from anywhere, but now we also believe the same is true of great feedback that helps make ideas better.
We'd like to thank our partners, our jurors, the participants and everyone who contributed their time and energy to writing about the project, creating submissions, and rating and commenting on ideas. We're looking forward to helping these ideas into action.
Jury Winners:
Karma Cup (Mira Holley, Nick Partridge, Gillian Langor, Mira Lynn, Zarla Ludin, Ruth Prentice)
Special Mentions:
The Betacup & The Betacup Campaign (Jesko Stoetzer)
Champion Cup (Raph D'Amico) –
Band of Honor (Scott Moorhead) –
Community Rating Winners:
1. The Betacup & The Betacup Campaign (Jesko Stoetzer) Berlin
2. Cuptokeep (Katarina Mattsson & Angelica Lindgren) Stockholm
3. The NextCup (Wouter Middendorf) Rotterdam
4. The Neutral Resource Coffee Cup (Aaronn Levine) Solomon Islands
5. Networked Loyalty (joshbg2k) Brooklyn
Posted in: Uncategorized | Tagged: | 16 Comments
16 Comments to "The Finale"
Making a better coffee cup. From social incentives to Edible Coffee Balls. Congrats to The Betcup winners http://bit.ly/ddNTbT @thebetacup
This comment was originally posted on TwitterMore from author
[…] Betacup challenge is now over, and Champion Cup ended up as one of three runners up to receive an honorable mention […]More from author
Clever problem solving: RT @thebetacup The Finale | BetaCup http://bit.ly/ddNTbT
This comment was originally posted on TwitterMore from author
[…] out the other winners and finalists at Betacup. posted by bwj on 06.18.2010, under Design, Misc., Products { no comment } 😐 { Tags: betacup, […]More from author
The Finale | BetaCup http://j.mp/cGvDIl
This comment was originally posted on TwitterMore from author
I think it would be great to see a longer list of honorable mentions, since there were many solutions that had tremendous merit. I can't believe these ideas didn't even cross the table for discussion. We submitted the Radial Fin cup, which offers a partial solution (the the disposable aspect). We thought our idea had merit, but besides that there were many ideas we thought were pretty strong and we admired quite a bit. How about hearing more in depth on any behind-the-scenes ideas that the jury or Starbucks themselves took note of?More from author
Check out the finale of @thebetacup competition http://bit.ly/bNBH81 Great stuff!
This comment was originally posted on TwitterMore from author
[…] However as we discussed above, the hardest tasks turned out to be the feedback and selection tasks. In particular, we were curious about the differences between the jury and the community selection since we had both – there was some overlap between the shortlisted ideas and the community top ranked ideas. […]More from author
BETA CUP – drink sustainably http://bit.ly/adALu4
This comment was originally posted on TwitterMore from author
This comment was originally posted on TwitterMore from author
the winner of the beta cup contest http://bit.ly/dBSnX1 the idea scored over the product… 😉
This comment was originally posted on TwitterMore from author
[…] Cup is named the Jury Winner in the Starbucks' sponsored BETACUP […]More from author
The Betacup competition was a great idea. With the staggering amount of disposable cups used per year, even a small improvement over the many millions of cups per year used would be a huge help.
Is there a new competition planned anytime in the near future?More from author
[…] a little late to this party; somehow I never heard about the challenges from Betacup or Carbonrally, but at least I'm on board now. Too bad there's no way that even I can drink […]More from author
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subset: commoncrawl


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By Ben Golliver
The NBA officially warned Rockets forward Patrick Patterson for violating its anti-flopping policy on Monday.
Patterson's flop occurred during the third quarter of a Friday win over the Knicks at the Toyota Center. Knicks center Tyson Chandler attempted a runner in the paint, and Patterson attempted to take a charge by simulating contact, even though Chandler did not make significant contact with his body during the play. Patterson fell quickly to the ground to exaggerate the non-existent impact, but no foul was called on the play.
This type of flop was specifically called out in the NBA's official video introducing its flopping policy. In the video, Clippers guard Chris Paul was called out for trying to sell a charge.
"As the highlighted defensive player, No. 3 in the red uniform, defends the driving offensive player, he feels slight contact and then launches himself back to the floor," the video's narrator explained. "This reaction by the defensive player is an overembellishment of marginal contact and is intended to draw an unearned offensive foul on his opponent."
Patterson becomes the fifth player warned under the new system, joining Nets forward Reggie Evans, Thunder guard Kevin Martin, Timberwolves guard J.J. Barea and Cavaliers guard Donald Sloan. Evans was fined for a second violation last week.
Patterson will now be subject to fines if they are deemed to have violated the policy again. The sliding fine scale looks like this.
Violation 2: $5,000 fine
Violation 3: $10,000 fine
Violation 4: $15,000 fine
Violation 5: $30,000 fine
For a sixth (or any subsequent) violation of the rule, the player will be subject to such discipline as the League determines is reasonable under the circumstances, including an increased fine and/or suspension.
Patterson, 23, is averaging 12.5 points and 5.2 rebounds for the Rockets. A 2010 first-round pick out of Kentucky, Patterson is on the books for $1.8 million this season.Video via YouTube user MsJonaVideo


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"A trenchant study of modern marriages and female roles, loaded with fantasy sequences. Fabulous cast drawn by actress-turned-director Zetterling from Ingmar Bergman's repertory company."Leonard Maltin
"Zetterling's militantly sardonic humor, simultaneously leery of women's acceptance of their oppression and hopeful of their potential for change
both lightens and sharpens her critique."Slant


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Begun on July 1, the nine-week project includes track and drainage improvements, tie replacement, fencing repairs, and general cleanup of the area, scheduled to be completed by Labor Day, the railroad said.
"The extensive program of work is being undertaken one track at a time and will require that the track being fixed is taken out of service continuously in order to accomplish the improvements as quickly and efficiently as possible," Metro-North said.
Metro-North noted the program already has: Excavated and removed 300 cubic yards of mud (resulting in poor drainage along the tracks); removed 467 concrete ties; installed 560 new wood ties; installed 290 tons of new stone ballast; trenched 3,250 feet of the right-of-way shoulder to improve drainage; welded rail joints and installed new insulated joints; removed a significant amount of debris, garbage, and graffiti on railroad property; and procured fencing for installation.
"The combination of track outages, trains stopping at opposite platforms and the use of bridge plates (temporary platforms that span the out-of-service track) at select stations are resulting in scattered delays of 5 to 10 minutes due to our significantly reduced operating flexibility in the Bronx," Metro-North said.
In addition, "Under a two-year, approximately $11 million drainage improvement project work will include installation of underground drains that will connect to New York City sewer lines that cross below the tracks at 12 different locations. This project is a continuation of drainage improvements successfully completed in 2011 at the Mott Haven Yard to alleviate flooding," the railroad said.


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March 19, 2013 - submitted by Nate, United States of America
Q. Hello Oracle, I was wondering how Jonny gets that great sound on his guitar? It sound incredible! And where can I get a book or tabs for how Jonny plays songs and riffs exactly the way he plays them? Thanks see ya!
The Oracle replies:
Many great guitarists have a distinctive sound: Clapton, Prince, Hendrix & our very own Buckland.


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ByKaty Stech
A trading firm that accidentally sold millions of dollars worth of fake biofuel credits has filed for bankruptcy, fueling pressure on environmental regulators to fix the fraud that's infected that market.
OceanConnect LLC of White Plains, N.Y., filed for Chapter 7 protection—the kind that allows a court-appointed official to dismantle a company's operations—on Friday, facing a handful of lawsuits from top gasoline refiners who have demanded to be reimbursed after purchasing the fake credits through OceanConnect's brokerage operations.
In court papers, OceanConnect said it ended last year with a $1.7 million loss. In its bankruptcy petition, the company said it still had about $350,000 worth of biofuel credits in hand.
Tesoro, one of the country's largest oil refiners, and Phillips 66 have both filed lawsuits against OceanConnect, which sold more than $6.7 million worth of biofuel creditors from Clean Green Fuel LLC starting in 2009, according to bankruptcy court papers and a federal lawsuit that OceanConnect officials filed last spring against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The Clean Air Act calls for major oil refiners to produce a certain amount of renewable fuel to mix with their diesel or gasoline.
But big refiners can buy the credits to fulfill their legal requirements from a biofuel company that makes fuel from alternative sources like corn, cooking oil or soybeans. As those companies churn out biodiesel, the producers simultaneously create a tradable credit, which is assigned a 38-digit number so that it can be tracked on the secondary trading market.
OceanConnect, founded in 2008, brokers the deals between refiners who need to buy credits and biodiesel producers, according to its lawsuit.
Federal investigators began to uncover fraud within the credit-trading program several years after it began.
In 2011, the owner of Clean Green Fuel—the firm that sold credits to OceanConnect—was indicted for making up credits that he sold from a fake factory in Maryland, according to the lawsuit. Clean Green Fuel owner Rodney Hailey was convicted last June 25 of fraudulently selling about $9 million of phony credits and is awaiting sentencing, though his attorney recently told Dow Jones that his client isn't guilty.
In the wake of the scandal, major oil refiners that were forced to purchase additional credits to make up for the fake ones they purchased turned to OceanConnect, which looked to federal regulators for help.
Last year, OceanConnect filed a lawsuit against the agency, asking a federal judge for measures that would stop penalizing participants in the credit-buying market "for relying on invalid Clean Green" credits," the lawsuit said.
"EPA's refusal to grant credit for [the credits] purchased in good faith injures OceanConnect and all other downstream purchasers of [credits] to the tune of tens of millions of dollars," OceanConnect attorneys wrote in the lawsuit. The agency's lack of action "also injects unreasonable uncertainty and confusion into a program that many entities throughout the natione have relied on."
OceanConnect also said that the confusion has hurt smaller biofuel producers as credit-buyers turn to "large, established renewable fuel producers to meet" their needs, the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit was dropped in July without explanation.
OceanConnect didn't say how many workers it employed in court papers. The company's bankruptcy attorney and President Eric Rubury did not return phone messages left Friday afternoon.
-Ryan Tracy in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.
Write to Katy Stech at email@example.com.


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" Type: Nursery Accessories "
* Prices may differ from that shown
When my eldest daughter was a few months old she always liked to fall asleep on a bean bag at our house and at a friends house, when we started doing her room out we decided on a Winnie the Pooh theme and as we knew she liked bean bags we had a look for a Winnie the Pooh bean bag for her, we came across this bean bag chair and thought it might be more suitable for her.
We bought this from a little shop in Thirsk where my husband works and it cost us about £15 at the time, I have looked it up and found that Amazon sell the same one although it now costs £19.99.
The chair is made out of mainly blue fabric but that was fine for my daughters room as we had painted the walls a neutral cream colour, there are little pictures printed all over the bag which are a bright yellow sun, flowers, trees, Piglet with a flower and Winnie the Pooh. The bean bag is reallyu bright and colourful which is great and my daughter loved it the first time she saw it.
The chair was pretty hard for a bean bag when we first got it but then the more you sit on it the looser the and flatter and the beans inside become and the chair becomes softer and more comfortable to sit on. The chair is 50 x 40 x 40cms so isn't too big and fits a childs bum in it perfectly, the chair is also available in a mainly pink fabric but the shop we bought it from didn't have the pink version.
The cover of the chair is made from 100% cottom and is supposed to be filled with none flattening beads but I can tell you the beads certainly do flatten over time but like i said this makes the chair more comfortable so I am glad they do flatten otherwise it would be a pretty hard seat.
I would recommend this chair it is comfy and my daughter loves sitting on it even now at nearly 5 year old she still sits and watches TV on it, the bean bag is bold and brightens up the bedroom although it doesn't go so well now her bedroom is painted pink. I would say the chair is average value for money when you look at the prices of bean bags and it has lasted about 4 years so far and is still pretty clean and has plenty of life left in it.
I bought this for my 18 month old son a few weeks ago and he really loves it.
The best thing about it is the price. I only paid £12 for it which is very cheap compared to most other bean bags and bean bag chairs.
The one I have is blue and has Winnie the Pooh characters on it. It looks very cute and is a good colour for a boy but it does also come in pink and also yellow so there are other options for girls. I was very surprised by the size of the chair. It is actually quite a decent size and makes an extra seat for when we have lots of visitors because even adults can sit comfortably on it.
The beans are inside a mesh bag and the cover of the chair comes off and is machine washable so it is very easy to clean and keep in good condition. Also because the beans are in a separate bag it makes it easy to remove them without them spilling everywhere.
I really like the chair shape of it because my son looks more confortable on it and can sit on it easily. The only problem I have found with it though is that it does lose its chair shape quite easily so I do have to pat it back down again into shape but my son has learned how to do this himself now which is good.
I would recommend this bean bag chair for kids. It is great value for money and is just the right size with a lovely design.
When my daughter was around a year old, we thought ti would be nice for her to have a little chair that she could sit on and be comfy on when she was watching her cartoons with her breakfast in the mornings. I was still hanging on to the Winnie The Pooh theme and was thrilled when I came across the Winnie The Pooh Bean Bag chair on eBay for £8.99.
The Winnie The Pooh chair was available in a few different colours which were pink, yellow, green, blue and red. I chose pink for our daughter to be a little bit girly. The design was little Winnie The Poohs all over the fabric, wearing his trademark red top and then there were little jars of honey and bees scattered all over.
The bean bag chair came with the cover and the beans for inside the chair which I thought was really good, especially for the price as most of the time you can only purchase the cover and then you have to pay out for the beans to go inside on top of that. The bean bag chair was made of a strong and thick cotton material which was also washable. There was a zip at the bottom which you simply undo and take the beans out (the beans are in a mesh type of bag so that they don't go everywhere) and then you can just stick the chair in the wash.
I was pleased to see that the bean bag chair was very well made and the stitching was more like invisible stitching as it was hardly visible. It is pretty much the same stitching as a normal bea bag would have.
When the beans are inside the chair, the chair looks like a proper little arm chair with arm rests and a back to it. It looks comfy and even with the beans in it, it is still very lightweight and easy to move about.
The only issue I did have with the chair was that there just were not quite enough beans in the chair. It looked a little saggy so I had to purchase some more beans to fill it out a bit more for my daughter. Once I had it was alot more defined and not saggy at all.
My daughter really loved her chair and said it was comfy. It was so comfy she would sometimes fall asleep sitting in it! She would look really sweet, especially with a little blanket over her.
Highly recommended product though I will knock off a star for the lack of enough beans inside.
On Saturday I had a blitz in my bungalow; I really was ruthless and had a huge listing spree on Freecycle of items I no longer needed, used or wanted. The first room I tackled was the bedroom where my youngest granddaughter sleeps when she comes to stay, with a rather large extended family she acquires new toys and 'bits' at a very fast pace - resulting in both mine and my daughter's homes resembling a nursery at times.
While dismantling a mountain of soft toys I uncovered Hollie's Winnie the Pooh Bean Bag Chair, an item I have owned since she was six months old (which is too young to use it) and which hasn't been seen since the mountain began its formation some three months ago.
There are numerous Winne the Pooh bean bags and bean bag chairs available, this is the official Disney version which is a deep blue colour and covered with small pictures of Winnie and Piglet. There are also honey pots, bright yellow suns and trees to break up the Pooh Bear theme, all of which blend in beautifully together creating a delightful representation of 100-Acre Wood.
The outer cover is 100% cotton, making it a comfortable and cool seat for my granddaughter. This part is easily removed as there is a long and fairly wide zipper running along one of the bottom seams, cleverly Disney have attached a cloth tab at either end of the zipper so you can tuck the zip-pull into it and thereby avoid your little one opening the chair cover themselves. I believe there are two different closures available, indeed my niece owns the same bean bag chair for her son and hers features a strong Velcro opening instead of a zipper. Do check the underside of the cover should you require a specific closure as this information isn't readily available either online or on the product packaging.
The polystyrene beads are housed in a white mesh cover, this makes it very simple to remove the outer cover for washing and this inner cover has not failed me in almost three years of use. We haven't lost a single bead in all this time and an inspection on Saturday revealed no loose stitching or seams which look to be stretched beyond their limits.
When new the beads inside the chair were extremely densely packed, admittedly this meant the chair kept its shape well but it also meant that sitting on the seat of the chair did not look particularly comfortable. As time has gone on, however, the chair has become more squashy and now my granddaughter lounges on it in a similar fashion to a standard round bean bag. The shape remains very much 'chair like' but nowadays I've noticed that when my granddaughter sits on it she is able to slump in whatever position is most comfortable for her, rather than being forced to sit on it like a chair as was the case when it was new.
This is really a toddlers chair; children above, say, five years old will quite simply be too long (and dare I say too bulky) to comfortably sit in it. As I mentioned, my granddaughter has owned the bean bag chair from six months old, although she didn't begin using it with any regularity until she was perhaps one year old. At that time the beads were still tightly packed so it provided her with the support she needed, and luckily the beads have loosened as she grew so as she gradually needed less support the chair has grown with her.
The blue outer cover is machine washable, as this chair resides at my house I have washed it numerous times and it still looks as good as new with no fading. I have never tried to tumble dry it despite it being recommended on the label, I feel this would perhaps stretch the shape out of the fabric too much as you do really need to cover to be as tight a fit as possible in order to give the bean bag its distinctive chair appearance. Anyway, popping the cover over the line is a very easy process and an hour of dry weather and wind will dry it just as well as putting it in the tumble drier.
I completely recommend this bean bag chair. Despite being blue it is bright and sunny enough to be perfect whether you have a little boy or a little girl, most children adore Pooh Bear so I'm certain that should you purchase this for your home then your little one will love it - and Winnie the Pooh as a character is likely to delight your child for longer than fleeting favourite characters such as Dora and IgglePiggle.
I got Hannah and Jess winnie the pooh beanbag chairs last christmas as i had seen them on ebay and looked fantastic they only cost £9.99 each.
The beanbag winnie the pooh chairs come in pink, yellow, blue. I choose the pink for Hannah and yellow for Jess, each beanbag is shaped like an arm chair. The fabric is cotton and has small winnie the poohs, bees and jars of honey scattered around it.
There is a zip on the bottom of the beanbag where the cover can be removed for washing, the beans are inside a mesh bag. The covers can be put in the washing machine and even tumble dried, the covers are a little fiddly to put back on myself so my partner held it open while i put the mesh bag of beans in. Hannah and jess love the beanbags, they sit on them and have there dinner on there lap trays , they also use them for watching tv on. These are ideal if you don't have a lot of room like us, they can be tucked away in a corner until needed. The beanbags are not really big ideal for toddlers.
My only problem with the bean bags is they started to sag only after a few months but i bought a huge bag of beans from ebay and re stuffed them they are solid now and better than they were when new.
I still recommend the winnie the pooh beanbag arm chairs , they are very cheap, very comfy, Hannah and Jess use theirs everyday and love them.
When my 2 year old sister was a baby she hated lying in her moses basket so my mum would get her comfy on our leather beanbag, this means my sister has grown up with a mad love of beanbags and now owns 5 of them that are dotted round the house.
This Winnie The Pooh one is my fave because it's shaped like a little arm chair instead of a standard round beanbag. It's a shame Dooyoo haven't got a picture up because this chair looks wicked, the background is the 100 Acre Wood and that is all on the seat and the bottom part of the chair and the back is blue so that it looks like the sky.
There are pictures of Winnie The Pooh, piglet, Tigger and Kanga on the chair but I wish Eeyore was on there as well because I love his gloomy looks! lol
When my sister sits in it you can see the chair mould itself so that she can sit comfortable, the beans in it make it a lot softer than other kids chairs you can get. The only problem is that if it's on the laminate floor the chair can slip a bit sometimes and if my sister's climbing on it then you have to watch in case it slides across the floor.
The cover is very strong and I've looked at all the seams and they're still in brand new condition even though the chair is probably about 18 months old now and has been dragged and shoved along the floor. The cover doesn't come off so when it gets grubby my dad has to take it outside and give it a good clean instead of just being able to chuck the cover in the washing machine like the rest of the beanbags we've got.
I think it holds it's shape good considering how beanbags usually shrink down over time, the arms and back of the chair are still quite firm and even though they're a bit squishy now there's still plenty of support for my sister when she sits in the chair.
I just asked my mum and she thinks she paid about £15.00 for the chair but she reckons she's seen them for a tenner now, the design has changed from this one now though and the last one she saw was a pale blue gingham print with pictures of Winnie The Pooh and Tigger all over it.
I know this is not the right section but other than that i didn't know what to do so i do apologise! Anyway what i would like to comment on is a winnie-the pooh bean bag chair (what a mouthfull!) that i purchased for my daughter who is now 9 months old. I found that now my little girl is too big for her rocker chair and too small to sit comfortably on a chair without that worry of her falling off or constantly watching her. This product is ideal as it is shaped just like a little chair but as it is bean-filled it moulds straight to your childs shape of body, thus ensuring a snug fit. It is good for feeding, to watch television in or any other past-time they enjoy. the only thing that is annoying is obviousley you can't rock them in it which i would find truley valuable as my daughter still needs rocking to sleep. This product was avaliable in Woolworths but i do believe they ran out of stock and weren't getting more. I bought mine from Tesco Direct at the price of £19.99 which although dear for a little chair will over-ride this in use! I would say the age group would be 6 months- 3 years.


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Plus the last (and IIRC only) time we went North they couldn't handle the extra work. I recall one breakfast spot that closed for the rest of the week after the first day.
Plus the last (and IIRC only) time we went North they couldn't handle the extra work. I recall one breakfast spot that closed for the rest of the week after the first day.
Rob, I understand that many people go to the rally to see new products, however would it kill us to have one in ten rallies in another country such as Mexico or Canada?
Regards, Rod.
Work is the curse of the riding class
I think the board would be wise to consider a return to an urban site like Charleston. I believe Charleston had a ton of unrealized potential. It was poor planning that prevented it from being a home run.
My last comment is with all due respect Trenton wasn't much of a site and the town wasn't ready, able or ultimately willing to handle the crowd. The whole thing came off like it was done to "check the Canada box."
Is there anywhere in Canada that's a reasonable distance that has a facility like Bend, Lima or Vermont?
Hi Rob, yes there were issues with Trenton, however I personally had a great time. It's all part of the learning process.
I'm sure there are suitable places, it would be worth investing the time to do the research if the MOA could provide a commitment to have another Canadian rally.
Regards, Rod.
Work is the curse of the riding class
Security measures since 911 have made holding a rally outside the US very difficult, for both memebers and vendors. Unless those issues could be addressed it's not likely we will see an MOA rally outside the continental 48 very soon.
Paul Mulhern
The biggest mistake people make... is thinking they have time.
'You can say what you want about the South, but I almost never hear of anyone wanting to retire to the North.
With all due respect your response is isolationist. Before, after and for the foreseeable future Canada is the largest trading partner with the US. In a group such as the MOA I find it difficult to believe viable solutions could not be found.
Pass the mustard and UP THE REVOLUTION!
- Massive logistical problems with tax forms and inventory reporting for US-based vendors to get into and out of Canada.
- Nearly impossible for BMW NA to get bikes into and out of Canada (the Mobile Tradition was there that year and it was a huge CF)
- Nearly impossible fir the MOA to get prize bikes from US into Canada and then back out.
- Massive logistics to bring in Country Store merchandise and to return to US with unsold merchandise.
- The requirement for US citizens to have passports to get back into the USA.
- If you had a drunk driving conviction in the US, you couldn't go to the rally.
- If you travel with a sidearm, fuggeddabouddit!
- Paperwork requirements involved with rallygoers purchasing items at the rally in Canada.avoid taxes when leaving Canada
This is everything I can think of... obviously most had to do with Canadian government requirements for taxes and import/export, not 9/11 issues.
Sure wish there were a way around this, as I would *love* to go to an MOA National Rally in Canada again.
NAFTA changed some of this.
Passports, guns, felonies, and DUI convictions still about the same.
Paul Glaves - "Big Bend", Texas U.S.A
"The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution." - Bertrand Russell
Thank you Ian.
Logistics, logistics, logistics. A problem that was bigger than anticipated for that rally but is not totally impossible to deal with.
Passports. This as a concern floors me. It is an incredibly handy thing to have in so many non travel business, banking and other things requiring a second photo id. The cost of acquisition for those on a fixed income can be planned for. First time fee and paying a rip off passport photo your cost is roughly $110.00 for a 10 year pass port. Annualized this is $11.00 per year. The restaurant association put the check average in the US for all types of meals at $10.00 per person for a single meal. At this moment the national gas average for a gallon of regular is $3.80 and $3.50 for a gallon milk. There are ways to offset pass port expense if you really see a value in it.
Full blown pass port to costly try a passport card. $55.00 for the first time applicant.
It can not be used for air travel but we are talking about riding to a rally right?
DUI issue is a tough one for those that have one. Any idea what percentage of rally attendees suffer from this? My point here is this a knock out issue or not.
I prefer long rifles and shotguns to hand guns. Can't talk about either on the forum. Never have been clear about rally rules on guns, seem to be more don't ask don't tell personal choice. Frankly I am fine with all of that yet find it curious that guns would hold the decision on a rally location hostage. Is the rally going membership that can legally carry concealed side arms across state lines that large?
I am curious why BMW NA was asked to go to Canada instead of working with BMW CA to represent BMW at the rally? On a second issue raised contacting BMW CA or working with a local dealer to provide exemplar prize bikes would have cut down the related logistics pointed out.
With the exception of the DUI and gun issues the rest present issues that can dealt with. The biggest help in dealing with this is lead time. A Canadian rally would seem to require a site selection further out than the normal rally allowing for planning for back off the house logistic issues and helping membership prepare.
I have troubles remembering a year of my life that did not include a trip to Canada for one reason or another. A Canadian rally would get people like me fired up to attend much more than any US site I can think of. I hope a group can be put together to explore this further.
Pass the mustard and UP THE REVOLUTION!
I can certainly understand a small business (which I guess represent the bulk of vendors at a rally) would be discouraged from attending if there were increased logistical burdens that would most likely not result in increased sales. For my wife and I one of the major attractions of a rally is the chance to actually see and touch products for our bike a relative rarity outside of cities.
Paul Glaves - "Big Bend", Texas U.S.A
"The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution." - Bertrand Russell
A perspective from north of the border:
The passport requirement is American, not Canadian. Non-residents may enter Canada at a land border crossing with proof of citizenship, i.e. a birth certificate.
There are municipalities in the US where you may not carry. Canada just happens to be bigger.
Those convicted of "crimes of moral turpitude" (e.g. passing a bad cheque) or with minor pot possession charges are barred from entering the US, so criminality issues aren't one to blame on Canada. Some Canadians can't enter the US either. Canada recently amended the laws preventing entry if convicted of DUI, so that is far less of an issue now. If criminality is a problem, is far simpler and cheaper to apply for a special permit to enter Canada than to get one to enter the US. This issue will keep some Canadians from ever attending an MOA national.
Where I work there are dozens of small mom and pop businesses that undertake commercial cross-border transactions daily. It's not hard. Every commercial issue outlined here can be solved by a customs broker. It happens tens of thousands of times every day. Many businesses have a provincial attitude to cross-border commerce. As a Canadian, I can't count the times one comes across vendors that won't export from the US, even if you are willing to pay the necessary shipping. All for the sake of the sender taking 60 seconds to stick a customs declaration form on the package.
Canada is a country with 10% of the population of the US, so there will be fewer venues that meet the MOA's requirements. On the other hand, beating the heat that so many have complained about for the past couple of years should be easier than in most of the US.
A shame to write off a piece of geography larger than the US when it is an easy ride to get there.
'06 Triumph Scrambler (Trans-Labrador veteran)


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The city unveiled a $2.7 million budget Monday that cuts deeply into city services, axes several positions and eliminates at least one service — mosquito control — altogether.
DUNNELLON — The city has managed to create a budget for the next fiscal year, but not without some pain.
Dunnellon leaders unveiled a $2.7 million budget Monday that cuts deeply into city services, axes several positions and eliminates at least one service — mosquito control — altogether.
While the proposed budget is smaller than this year's $3.66 million spending plan, the City Council proposes a higher tax rate to offset significant losses in revenue. The city is expected to lose tens of thousands of dollars in gas tax money this year, hundreds of thousands in revenue from its Greenlight Communications system, and hundreds of thousands of dollars more in fines from red light traffic cameras, which were discontinued several months ago.
The proposed tax rate is 7.1408 mills, compared with 6.8013 this year. If the budget and tax rate are approved later this month, a city resident with a $150,000 home and a $50,000 homestead exemption would pay an additional $33.95 in property taxes.
Under the budget, the police department would lose two part-time officers and will have to let go of two full-time officers midway through the budget year if the city's financial picture doesn't improve. One of those officers had been paid through a grant, but the grant has expired and the city does not have the money to fund the position beyond the end of January.
Police Chief Joanne Black said she and her lieutenant will spend more time on patrol to make up for the losses.
"We're going to weather this storm and pull together and try to make it through this year, and hopefully things will be better next year," she said Tuesday. "But we do not want to jeopardize public safety or officer safety."
The city is also considering limiting the hours of its planning and permitting department to half days to save money.
The main culprit for the cuts is Greenlight Communications, the city's telecommunications system that has been hemorrhaging money since its inception two years ago.
A financial review of the system by an outside accountant revealed two months ago that Greenlight was losing about $250,000 a month and that city administrators had been improperly covering the losses out of money that had been borrowed for water and sewer work.
Interim City Manager Eddie Esch stopped that practice, which started under former City Manager Lisa Algiere, and said he made enough cuts in Greenlight to reduce the monthly losses to a more manageable $125,000.
Still, Dunnellon officials said the city can't handle Greenlight's losses much longer and have been negotiating with private telecommunications provider Wideband Networks to take over the struggling system before it bankrupts the city.
Even if the deal goes through in the coming weeks, the city will remain saddled with a substantial amount of the $8 million in debt it incurred to start up Greenlight. Wideband has offered just $3.9 million for the system. That would leave the city with about $4.1 million still to be repaid to Region's Bank, which loaned Dunnellon the money for the venture.
But Greenlight isn't the only drain on the city's budget.
The City Council decided at the beginning of the summer to discontinue the use of its red light traffic cameras, which were generating more than $300,000 in fines annually for the city. The decision was hailed by residents, but it also left the city with a hole in its budget.
Further complicating Dunnellon's financial situation, the County Commission has decided to move toward keeping all local gas tax revenues for itself. Traditionally, gas tax revenues have been divided among the county and area municipalities, but the commission is planning to phase the cities out of their share over the next three years.
Those dollars were to be used for road work and maintenance.
As they work through their budget cuts, city officials are simultaneously eyeing new "revenue streams" to help keep the city in the black.
That likely means new fees. Mayor Nathan Whitt has tossed around a number of ideas, including new a new recreation fee.
On Monday, he said he was also considering installing parking meters along the street where tubers and other visitors park when they come to enjoy the Rainbow River for the day.
And he's considering asking Marion County government officials to impose a surcharge on the tubers who launch from county-owned KP Hole park. That fee would go to the city of Dunnellon, Whitt said, to help defray the cost of using city police and firefighters to rescue tubers and others who end up requiring help.
City fire and police officials say they respond to an average of about 35 distress calls a year on the river.


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China Recovery? Don't Uncork the Champagne in Beijing Just Yet
China reported on Friday that its economy rebounded in the fourth quarter after seven straight quarters of declining growth. Market analysts are touting a recovery.
But economists Barry Eichengreen of the University of California at Berkeley, Donghyun Park of the Asian Development Bank and Kwanho Shin of Korea University warn that Beijing shouldn't start celebrating yet. China's economy has already downshifted from more than 10% growth in 2010 to about 8% growth now – and another sharp deceleration is likely to occur in a couple of years, they say.
"Our results point to the possibility, but not the certainty, that there will be another step deceleration (in growth) in a few years," Mr. Eichengreen says.
The three economists made a splash with a 2011 analysis that said fast-growing countries tend to slow down by at least two percentage points once they hit a median GDP per capita of around $15,000 in 2005 dollars – the so-called "middle-income trap" — using purchasing power parity adjustments. (PPP tries to account for different prices of products in different countries.) China would hit that mark in a few years, the economist said.
In a new paper published this month, the three economists refined their estimates and found that growth usually slows in two steps. The first is when a country reaches GDP per capita of around $11,000 in 2005 dollars, roughly where China is now, and at $15,000, roughly where China is likely to be in a couple of years.
If China follows the pattern, it would experience another decline in growth of 2 percentage points or so, which would last for years.
The economists don't say specifically what could trip up China, though many things could, including a financial crisis, a loss of manufacturing competitiveness or a political crisis. "At some point, high growth in middle-income countries will come to an end," the three economists write. "The low-hanging fruit will have been picked and high-return investments will have been completed."
Slowdowns aren't inevitable. Mr. Eichengreen says they are less likely in countries that have a relatively educated public and whose exports include a relatively high share of high-tech goods. China scores reasonably well on both counts.
But, Mr. Eichengreen warns: "Some people will argue that the (China's) numbers (on education and high-tech) are deceptive: The education is not delivering the skills that enterprises need, and high-tech exports are heavily processing trade," where the high-tech parts of the products are made elsewhere.
– Bob Davis
For GDP, trade, manufacturing, property and other historical Chinese economic dating back as far as 1978, visit CRT's interactive China Econtracker.


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front page
List of Americans Abroad
Behind Friedel, Villa shuts out Newcastle, creates distance on relegation zone.
Friedel now appears to be staying at Aston Villa for multiple years.
Fulham's Dempsey first American to reach 10 goals in EPL season.
Holden suffers serious knee wound, could miss six months.
Holden helps Bolton edge Birmingham, advance to FA Cup semifinals.
Adu thrives in new home, scores winner for Rizespor of Turkey.
Jones goes the distance for Blackburn, which drops Fulham 3-2.
Edu scores key goal, Glasgow Rangers advance in Europa League.
Dempsey fails on penalty kick, Fulham can only tie Chelsea 0-0.
Edu helps Rangers draw with Celtic, forcing Scottish Cup replay.
Dempsey beats Friedel, allowing Fulham to draw 2-2 with Villa.
Findley, Clark go down for weeks with injuries during training.
Bradley joins Aston Villa from Germany after transfer odyssey.
Onyewu strains back muscle, Twente awaits test results.
Edu tally helps Rangers to easy 4-0 victory over Hamilton.
Spector scores again, helps West Ham blank Barnsley 2-0 in FA Cup.
Onyewu appears headed to Dutch champ FC Twente from AC Milan.
Strange own goal undoes Howard, Everton in 1-1 draw with West Ham.
Clark, Cooper return to action for their clubs in Germany.
Holden drills home winner, lifting Bolton to 2-1 decision over Rovers.
Friedel's future is unclear as Villa searches for replacement.
Howard concedes bad PK, goal; Everton still draws 1-1 with Chelsea.
Friedel considers return to Columbus Crew as player-coach.
Spector's first two goals in six years lead West Ham to shocking rout of Man. U.
Dempsey assumes Fulham lead in goals, provides draw with Birmingham.
Riding the bench in Greece, Adu tries to find home in Denmark.
Holden's scores first EPL goal, adds assist in Bolton triumph.
Edu's goal before early exit gives Rangers 1-1 draw with Inverness.
With Edu in midfield, Rangers down Celtic to stay atop Premier League.
Neck injury to disable Bocanegra for at least three weeks.
Dempsey strike helps Fulham to another draw, 1-1 with West Ham.
Americans Abroad
(Wednesday, April 20, 2011) -- United States midfielder Benny Feilhaber has left Denmark's second-division AGF Aarhus and is returning to the United States to play for the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer.
When Aarhus was relegated at the end of last season, Feilhaber attempted to find another club somewhere in Europe, but he was not successful and reportedly has not been happy.
According to reports, MLS has paid Aarhus a small transfer fee and agreed to pay Feilhaber in the $325,000 range in the single-entity operation in which the league holds all player contracts.
American goalkeeper Brad Friedel was sharp, making four saves for Aston Villa, which continued its late ascent in the English Premier League standings with a 2-1 road victory over West Ham United at Upton Park.
The margin of victory was a goal in stoppage time by Gabriel Agbonlahor.
Villa, which recently was challenged to stay out of the relegation zone, won its second straight and is undefeated in its last three outings, to climb into a ninth-place tie with Newcastle United. Both teams are tied at 10-13-10 with 40 points, but Newcastle owns the tiebreaker with a goal differential 13 better than Villa.
West Ham (7-15-11, 32 points), on the other hand, dug itself deeper into the drop zone, tied on points with Wolverhampton Wanderers (9-18-5) for 19th place and the basement. West Ham's goal differential is one better, but Wolverhampton owns a game in hand. Both teams are only two points away from escaping the relegation zone
Fellow American keeper Brad Guzan, whose three-month emergency loan to Hull City of the second-tier League Championship ended, returned to Villa, but did not dress for the West Ham match. Andy Marshall, the 36-year-old veteran who is signed through next season, was on the bench as the backup. Guzan, whose contract is up after this season, appears not to have a future with Villa.
U.S. midfielder Michael Bradley also did not dress for Villa, while he and Guzan also sat out the most recent reserve match against West Ham.
U.S defender did not dress for West Ham's "A" game against Villa..
U.S. keeper Tim Howard posted an easy clean sheet with only a single save Saturday for Everton, which blanked Backburn Rovers 2-0.
German-American midfielder Jermaine Jones went the distance for Rovers.
U.S. midfielder Clint Dempsey and Fulham were idle last weekend, as were American keeper Marcus Hahnemann and Wolverhampton.
U.S. midfielder Stuart Holden is recovering from knee surgery and unavailable for Bolton Wanderers, who lost 5-0 to Stoke City Sunday in the FA Cup semifinals.
In the second-division League Championship, American defender Eric Lichaj went 90 minutes for Leeds United in its 2-2 draw Saturday with Watford. American striker Mike Grella did not dress for Leeds.
American forward Eddie Johnson played the first 72 minutes for Preston North End in a 3-1 win over Sheffield United on Saturday.
American defender Zak Whitbread went the distance for Norwich City in its 2-1 decision Friday over Nottingham Forest.
Teenaged American striker Conor Doyle dressed, but remained on the bench for Derby County, which played a 0-0 draw Monday with Queens Park Rangers.
U.S. striker Robbie Findley is still out with a thigh strain and unavailable to Nottingham Forest, a 2-1 loss loser to Norwich City on Friday.
In the third-tier League One, American defender Frank Simek played 90 minutes for Carlisle United in its 4-1 win Saturday over Colchester United.
American midfielder Anton Peterlin received a start and played 87 minutes for Plymouth Argyle, which fell 2-1 Saturday to Peterborough United.
In Scotland's Premier League, American Maurice Edu went 90 minutes in the midfield for Glasgow Rangers, who defeated St. Mirren 2-1 Saturday. The victory kept Rangers a point ahead of arch-rival Glasgow Celtic atop the league standings.
In the German Bundesliga, U.S. defender Steve Cherundolo went the distance and played solid defense for Hannover 96 in a 0-0 draw Saturday with Hamburg SV. U.S. midfielder DaMarcus Beasley, as usual, did not dress for Hannover.
American Timmy Chandler, usually a defender, went 90 minutes and contributed an assist as a midfielder for 1. FC Nürnberg in its 2-0 triumph Saturday over Kaiserslautern.
In the 34th minute, Chandler put a cross from the right side directly on the head of Christian Eigler for a header and a 1-0 lead. A stoppage-time tally insured the victory and left Nürnberg (13-10-7, 46) in sixth place and only two points below fifth and a spot in European competition next season.
U.S. midfielder Ricardo Clark dressed, but did not play for Eintracht Frankfurt' in its 1-0 loss Saturday to TSG Hoffenheim.
American defender Daniel Williams stayed on the bench for SC Freiburg in its 3-0 loss Sunday to Borussia Dortmund.
In the second-division 2. Bundesliga, American keeper David Yelldell made only a single save for MSV Duisburg in a 3-1 loss to Energie Cottbus on Saturday.
American keeper Luis Robles conceded one goal, but Karlsruhe could not generate much on offense and lost to FC Augsburg 1-0 on Monday.
American striker Edson Buddle was on the bench for FC Ingolstadt 04 in its 3-0 decision Friday over VfL Bochum. American defender Amaechi Igwe, who is recovering from a knee injury, was not available for Ingolstadt.
American forward Bobby Wood did not dress for TSV 1860 Munich in a 2-1 loss Friday to FSV Frankfurt.
American midfielder Alfredo Morales did not dress for Hertha Berlin, a 4-0 winner over Osnabruck on Saturday.
In Belgium, U.S. midfielder Sacha Kljestan received his first start in a while and assisted on RSC Anderlecht's second goal in a 2-0 victory over Genk in the Belgian's complicated playoff scheme. Anderlecht is now in first place in the playoff standings.
In the Netherlands, somewhat surprisingly, U.S. defender Oguchi Onyewu stayed on the bench for Twente Enschede in a 1-1 draw Sunday with De Graafschap. With four matches left in the Dutch Eredivisie season, Twente could have used the full three points as it remains in a first-place tie with PSV Eindhoven, both one point ahead of Ajax.
In the Dutch second division, Charles Kazlauskas a defender from Milwaukee, received his first start in several months for injury-ridden Helmond Sport, which clinched a playoff spot with a 1-0 victory over MVV Maastricht.
Kazlauskas went the distance at right back.
In France, U.S. defender Carlos Bocanegra went 90 minutes for St. Etienne, which managed a much-needed 2-1 triumph over AS Nancy Lorraine on Saturday.
In Turkey, U.S. striker Jozy Altidore played the final 24 minutes of Bursaspor's 1-0 loss Sunday to Trabzonspor.
In the second division, U.S. midfielder Freddy Adu dressed, but remained on the bench for Caykur Rizespor in a 0-0 draw Saturday with Boluspor.
In the Danish Superliga, U.S. defender Clarence Goodson has mostly recovered from a broken toe and came off the bench to play 59 minutes for Brondby IF in a 2-1 loss Sunday to Aalborg BK.
American striker Chris Rolfe dressed, but did not play for Aalborg. American attacker Marcus Tracy is still recovering from a knee injury and was not available to Aalborg.
American defender Michael Parkhurst did not dress for FC Nordsjaelland in its 3-1 loss to FC Copenhagen on Sunday.
In Sweden, American defender Gale Agbossoumonde, perhaps benefiting from his stint with the U.S. under-20s, was given his first start of the season and played the full 90 minutes for Djurgardens IF in its 1-0 loss Friday to Malmo FF. Djurgardens played a man down for the second half and surrendered a late goal.
American midfielder Alejandro Bedoya played the first 74 minutes and scored a goal for Orebro SK, a 3-2 loser Monday to Gefle. Bedoya scored in the 74th minute to give Orebro a 2-1 lead and was immediately removed in favor of an additional defender, a strategy that failed when his side gave up a pair of late goals.
American midfielder\defender Ryan Miller dressed, but did not play for Halmstads BK in a 2-0 loss Saturday to GAIS.
In Norway, Norwegian-American midfielder Mikkel Diskerud went 90 minutes for Stabaek IF in a 3-2 loss Sunday to Molde FK.
American attacker Josh Gatt, 19, came off the bench to play the final 18 minutes for Molde. Eighteen-year-old American defender Sean Cunningham has been promoted to the first team and dressed for Molde, but did not play.
Do you have a comment on this story or something to say about soccer in general? Send us a letter.


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Authorities confirmed Friday that human bones found in Scurry County, Texas, last month were those of missing 13-year-old cheerleader Hailey Dunn, according to the family's attorney.
John Young, attorney for the Dunn family, told HLN that authorities recovered the bones on March 16 off a State highway.
Law enforcement officials told HLN last month the remains were discovered near Lake J.B. Thomas, which is about 12 miles from Snyder, Texas. The lake is about 30 miles from Colorado City, where Hailey was last seen alive at her mother's home on Dec. 27, 2010.
Hailey's mother, Billie Dunn, was notified of the identification by Texas Rangers on Friday. She is currently attempting to make travel arrangements to head back to Colorado City to mourn the loss of her daughter, Young told HLN.
Officials tell HLN affiliate KTXS the investigation into Dunn's death is still ongoing. They said they haven't ruled out or identified the case as a homicide.


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I learned about Yokoo when her chunky crochet chain necklaces were featured on Design Milk. Having now checked out her Etsy shops, video work and more I've kind of fallen in love with what she does.
About Yokoo Gibran
Usually this is where I write a bunch of stuff about the artist but in this case I think that a video by Yokoo herself is the best introduction:
This video was featured on the Etsy blog where I learned that the Atlanta-based artist crochets about fifteen hours everyday, running a solopreneur business from home and that she truly loves the entire process of start to finish crochet. Some of the beautiful things she says in the video above that I love include:
- "It's important for people to create their own worlds."
- "When the idea hits you that you are in control of your life it's almost like opening a window in a stuffy room."
- "I handmade 1582 hats and scarves with my own two hands. That's such a beautiful thing."
- "There's not a better feeling in the world than being able to be good at what you do."
- "I love being hardcore."
- "You are put here to create."
Yokoo Crochet Chain Scarves
Yokoo makes these cool chain link scarves. I love the big chunky ones that got Design Milk's attention but I also like the small jewelry pieces:
Other Yokoo Crochet Scarves
In addition to her crochet chain scarves, some of the other crochet scarves and cowls she makes include:
Yokoo Crochet Headwear
Yokoo also sells crochet hats and headbands in her Etsy store. My faves include:
Other Yokoo Art
Yokoo sells her crochet work in the main Yokoo Etsy store. She also has another Etsy store called xMOTHERx for her hand-sewn items that range from collars to jumpers. I love the sense of style here and also love the few non-crochet items included n the main Yokoo Etsy store like this wooden necklace which Yokoo wore when she was featured in Bust Magazine:
Yokoo also shares various artwork on Flickr.
Other Similar Crochet Artists
Yokoo's crochet chain work immediately reminded me of Abinocoe
I was also reminded of several of the oversized crochet scarves I featured in my roundup of 100 Unique Crochet Scarves, including this one from Fibrehood
And I'm reminded of the oversized crochet shawls by Marc Jacobs


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Michael Steele and the GOP – Are you kidding me? Republicans continue 'census mailings' despite lawTuesday, April 27th, 2010
Michael Steele and the national GOP are a bunch of ignorant individuals who are completely out of touch with their party's mainstream. Even after Congress showed strong bipartisan support for a measure to ban deceptive census mailings (now a law signed by President Obama), these idiots continue to act illegally — and they are openly defending their actions. They should be prosecuted. Eric Holder and the Justice Department, I hope you're reading this. H/t to Ed O'Keefe for the following…and I hope that Jon Stewart creates a segment mocking this BS on The Daily Show in the near future:
The Republican National Committee believes that a new round of mailings which use the word "Census" does not violate a new law banning such deliveries.
Democrats and news organizations in Nebraska, Utah and Washington state have called out the new Republican mailings as illegal and detrimental to 2010 Census efforts.
The mailings appear to violate a law signed by President Obama on April 7 that passed with bipartisan support in both chambers. The law requires mailings with an envelope marked "Census" to state clearly the sender's return address and provide a disclaimer that the mailing is not from the federal government.
But the RNC will keep sending such mailings regardless of the new law, according to committee spokesman Doug Heye.
"In reviewing the new law, our legal department determined such mailings are not covered. Therefore, they will continue," Heye said in an e-mail. He would not elaborate on the legal determination.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), who authored the bill, sounded incensed.
"What is with these guys?" she said in a statement. "Congress passes a law in record time, with unanimous bipartisan support in both houses, to reduce confusion about the real Census. But there they go again, trying to make a partisan buck on the Census!"
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service has been asked by Nebraska Democrats to weigh in on the matter. Under the old law, postal inspectors deemed such mailings legal.


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I guess I'm bored so here goes for nothing.
Atlanta Hawks: 1-3 VS Raps
The Hawks are on a steadily decline, even without Joe Johnson, the Hawks have Josh Smith, this is his contract year, so I would assume he would be putting a monster season and a chance to play in the allstar game. Al Horford when healthy is gonna crash the boards for the Hawks, with the new addition of rookie John Jenkins and FA in Louis Williams, the Hawks may not woe for the loss of Joe Johnson. The Raps will be able to beat this team fairly easy this year.
Prediction: 7th in the East
Boston Celtics: 2-2 VS Raps
The Celtics with the loss of Ray Allen and the aging Garnett and Pierce, they will not make that much noise in the playoff but still consider as a contender, they will slowly move up the spot in the Eastern Conferences. With the new addition of FA in Jason Terry, a journeyman of a scorer, the Raps will need to play tough defense and find one or two players to contain Paul Pierce.
Prediction: 4th in the East
Brooklyn Nets: 2-2 VS Raps
The Nets are getting so much better this year, with a healthy lineup of D.Will, Joe Johnson, Wallace, and Lopez, they will make to the playoff and make some noise in the season. This team will give Raps a lot of trouble and we will see whether the Raps can handle them at their best or somehow sneak them by injure one of their players when season comes along.
Prediction: 5th in the East
Charlotte Bobcats: 1-3 VS Raps
I guess i give the Bobcats too much credits where we could sweep the season with them but I look at the emerging rookie in Michael Kidd Gilchirist, I see them giving the Raps some heat when the season tags along. Kemba Walker is a terrific scorer and will match well with Kyle Lowry while Bargs will be able to handle Byombo from the arc.
Prediction: 12th in the East
Chicago Bulls: 3-1 VS Raps
The Bulls without Rose, is not a playoff team, the Raps could outplay them for one game but when Rose is healthy, I see them pushing back for the No1 or 2 spot in the Eastern Conference.
Prediction: 3rd in the East
Cleveland Cavs: 2-2 VS Raps
The Cavs are improving this upcoming season with the newer addition of rookie in Dion Waiters and Tyler Zeller, I see them making a playoff push. The Raps will have to watch out for the Cavs, now they have Waiters, Irving will have a big year, will we be able to contain both scorer off the dribble, we will see, at least our front court is million miles ahead of their Tristan Thompsons and Anderson Varejao.
Prediction: 10th in the East
Indiana Pacers: 3-1 VS Raps
The Pacers give the Heat a run in the playoff and will only get better this season with their players returning back from FA. Paul George will have a big career this upcoming season, I see him posting up at least 15ppg and 5rpb. Granger will torch us as always while Jonas will have a handful season versus Hibbert.
Prediction: 2nd in the East
Miami Heat: 3-1 VS Raps
God forbid the Heat sweep the season versus the Raps. The Heat will have a lot to prove and defend his title as in last season was short and their championship could be a fluke but with a whole 82 season, the Heat will pack some fire and many teams will play with a chip on their shoulder against this team. When April comes along, look out as in the Heat might lose its fire engine and get beatened by one of the dark horses of a team. The Raps will be lucky to win at least one game versus them.
Prediction: 1st in the East
Milwaukee Bucks: 2-2 VS Raps
The Bucks have a lot to prove this upcoming season, with the emerging star in Ersan Ilyasova and their back court are solidified with Jennings and Ellis, they will make some noise in the season and will give Raps tons of trouble. Larry Sanders is a decent center while adding rookie in John Henson will only make this team better.
Prediction: 8th in the East
New York Knicks: 2-2 VS Raps
The Knicks will regret not signing Nash or Lin. Felton is an all washed up PG and he will not look to distribute play to either of Anthony or Stoudamire. The Knicks will be back to lottery but will give Raps a headache when season roams along.
Prediction: 9th in the East
Orlando Magic: 0-4 VS Raps
The Magic will possibly win the lottery and get the No1 or No2 draft pick so they can get one of Cody Zeller, Nerlens Noel or Shabazz Muhammad. This team gonna suck this year so the Raps should have no problem of defeating or sweep the series.
Prediction: 14th in the East
Philidelphia 76ers: 2-2 VS Raps
They get Bynum but so what, Bynum can't single handlely make this team better, they will woe the loss of Igoudala and Elton Brand while they will have to look for some other scorer to make this team better in the offseason and they will have to find ways to resign Bynum and Holiday. The Raps should be able to beat or square with the team but we will see.
Prediction: 11th in the East
Washington Wizards: 1-3 VS Raps
The Wizards instantly got better with Bradley Beals but their front court is awful now with Andrej Blatche out of the way, are they gonna play both Okafor and Nene at the same time. Wall will make some noise and possibly get a notch in the allstar game but I don't see them getting any better and possibly worse and back to the lottery. The Raps should have no problem of either sweeping them or lose one game.
Prediction: 13th in the East
So this puts Raps the 6th spot in the East and looks like we will be facing the Bulls, if Rose is healthy, we will not be able the series with them but if Rose is not at his 100%, we just might be last year's 76ers and upset this team and move to the 2nd round. It will be a good matchup
Lowry > 50% Rose
DeRozan > Hamilton
Fields < Deng
Bargs > Boozer
Jonas = Noah
Calderon = Hinrich
Ross > Brewer
Kleiza > Whoever is their backup SF
Davis = Taj Gibson
Amir > Whoever is their backup C


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Read the full story here Web Link posted Tuesday, January 8, 2013, 9:51 AM
Town Square
Palo Alto looks to change affordable-housing law
Original post made on Jan 8, 2013
Read the full story here Web Link posted Tuesday, January 8, 2013, 9:51 AM
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Jan 8, 2013 at 10:58 am
The city council is in the back pocket of the developers. The fox is guarding the hen house. Palo Alto needs to wake up.
a resident of Midtown
on Jan 8, 2013 at 11:09 am
That certainly has been they pattern thus far it seems to me.
One thing I'm wondering... I recall a historical law(?)/provision statewide that allows the affordable units to become standard rental units once the complex was paid for. Is this still the case?
If so, we end up with affordable units that are only with us for some period of time, but with concessions that are forever.
Disturbing, but I don't know if I'm up to speed on what's permitted and what isn't.
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Jan 8, 2013 at 11:22 am
[Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
a resident of Old Palo Alto
on Jan 8, 2013 at 11:27 am
[Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
a resident of Gunn High School
on Jan 8, 2013 at 11:39 am
Yuan, what do you consider "poor"? In my neighborhood, that means under 300K/year.
Stanford Hospital's Finance Dept considers 100K/ year to be poor. But the IRS considers neither of those figures "poor".
a resident of another community
on Jan 8, 2013 at 12:29 pm
Silicon Valley is booming, the house prices have gone up, got news for you they have been going and will keep going up. The whole area has added jobs, more jobs, new jobs, not to mention new tech firms. See Mountain View, Sunnyvale and Santa Clara, more floors, more space for workers. Sounds good.
What about the housing, we don't seem to add enough and if we do it gets snapped up, rented out to the highest bidder. Yes Free Market, nothing wrong it, but the free market is telling us to build more housing for the non tech, non finance or IPO set.
a resident of East Palo Alto
on Jan 8, 2013 at 12:41 pm
Yuan Gwen Fao would be the FIRST in line for Affordable Housing if she/he were in need.
I am disgusted by people that have no compassion for other people.
Where were you raised?
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Jan 8, 2013 at 12:52 pm
> I am disgusted by people that have no compassion for other people.
And I am tired of people who continue to champion wealth redistribution, and "compassion" for people who do not want to work for themselves--expecting a handout from government instead.
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Jan 8, 2013 at 12:56 pm
Can someone please explain in plain English what the density bonus is, and how it measures with the concessions?
15%, 20%, 25%, before, after BMR, more/less concession, setback, encroachment - before the law, after the law, own Palo Alto law.
Does this change make it easier for developers to get concessions, or harder?
Does this change promote BMR or limit it?
Does this facilitate concessions, and eliminate Palo Alto process, or increase process?
a resident of Old Palo Alto
on Jan 8, 2013 at 2:12 pm
There's tons of affordable housing around, it's called Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, San Jose. Just because you want to live in an area and can't afford it, doesn't give you the right to do so. This is purely benefiting developers who do not live in Palo Alto. The PAUSD will suffer in the coming years due to our city's stupidity on this issue and many others.
a resident of Midtown
on Jan 8, 2013 at 2:32 pm
Raymond - half my income is going to taxes for the less fortunate, exactly when is enough enough?
Exactly why do those "in need" get to live in the most expensive place in the country?
when do the handouts stop?
a resident of Barron Park
on Jan 8, 2013 at 2:33 pm
[Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Jan 8, 2013 at 2:44 pm
Let's be clear about who qualifies for Affordable housing.
Affordable housing is set aside for households who have income that is below the median household income for the county where the housing is located. Simply put via example, if the median income of a county is $120,000, those who can qualify for affordable housing will usually have incomes that are between 30 to 80 percent of the $120,000 figure. True, some people who need affordable housing are seniors and disabled folks on fixed income like Social Security, SSI, cash assistance and small pensions. In many cases however, those who qualify for affordable housing are working people who simply earn significantly below the median income level in the county where they reside. Using the $120,000 figure as an example, the annual income for those who qualify for affordable housing can range from $36,000 to $96,000.
Secondly, affordable housing comes in many "flavors" depending upon its guiding contractural regulatory agreement. Affordable housing can exist as an entire section 8 apartment complex; an entire tax credit project; HCD project; below market rate units; individuals can have section 8 vouchers to use towards their rent in either affordable housing projects, below market rate apartments, or market rate apartments if the landlord/owner will accept the voucher.
Your neighbor might have a Section 8 voucher and reside in a market rate apartment, and you would never know, unless of course the person wanted to publicize the fact.
Just like any entitlement assistance, the affordable housing one exists for when one might need such help in life. You might own a home today, and years in the future, you might not be able to live in that home as you age, and as your income becomes fixed - and you just might need an affordable apartment complex to reside in - one where your social security is able to pay the rent, worry free, so to speak.
In the words of George Washington Carver " How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these."
Just a reminder for those who think more affordable housing equates to more poor people moving in.
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Jan 8, 2013 at 2:59 pm
Thank you Chris for the explanation and wonderful Carver quotation.
a resident of another community
on Jan 8, 2013 at 6:22 pm
[Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
a resident of another community
on Jan 9, 2013 at 9:56 am
I'm disgusted to read the comments whenever the subject of BMR comes up. I suppose some of you think living in Palo Alto should only be a privilege for the wealthy? That you somehow believe a person who doesn't make as much money as you just doesn't work as hard. This certainly isn't the Palo Alto I grew up in 30-40 years ago.
When a person is offered a BMR unit, they still have to qualify for and pay a mortgage, property taxes and everything else that goes with home ownership. It is by no means a "handout" and I don't see how this affects you "Citizen".
a resident of another community
on Jan 9, 2013 at 10:10 am
Sunnyvale, Santa Clara and San Jose have their own set or problems in the housing market upswing. Each city has jobs, jobs for high tech workers and jobs for others, we have only so many housing units for workers and their families.
Yes the prices are affordable in San Jose, Sunnyvale and Santa Clara, each city has pros and cons of living there. Don't know the mind of a home buyer or what they are willing to spend.
What about all the low income workers, the workers that don't have high paying jobs, but jobs that require training or a college degree.
Just because they work in Palo Alto, doesn't mean that can afford Mountain View or Santa Clara.
a resident of East Palo Alto
on Jan 9, 2013 at 10:12 am
kmr - you know that a lot of the anti-affordable housing sentiment is disguised racism, right? It's dressed up in that flimsy excuse of the Protestant work ethic that doesn't translate well in the 21st century. People like to pretend that they've "made it" on merit alone, when the truth is that much of it's timing & luck. Since the majority of the adults on the peninsula, for example, work hard, what I've noticed among those who're wealthy vs. not as wealthy is luck & timing. In my view, one's profession falls under luck, as in you're lucky or not that what you're good at & trained for pays a lot or not. I see it in my own family, as well as that other smaller factor - inherited wealth, inherited position in society.
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Jan 9, 2013 at 11:52 am
[Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
a resident of East Palo Alto
on Jan 9, 2013 at 2:21 pm
[Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
a resident of Barron Park
on Jan 9, 2013 at 4:39 pm
Douglas Moran is a registered user.
[Portion removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
Most of the BMR units in Palo Alto are not "low income" but "lower income". Many are people with college degrees who are in lower-paying jobs. Some are parents, or equivalent to the parents, of people living in the market-rate housing. Yes, some of the people in BMRs made unfortunate and regrettable decisions in their youth -- such a getting a PhD in French Literature -- but they have since managed to turn their lives around and become productive members of society, and "regular" Palo Altans don't hold this against them. :-)
Notice that the opposition to BMRs is not the BMRs themselves, but rather that what they are being used as excuses to enable (overdevelopment). The BMR issue is not about welfare/giveaways to the poor, but welfare/giveaways to the very rich.
a resident of Barron Park
on Jan 9, 2013 at 7:50 pm
Douglas Moran is a registered user.
Replacing and expanding some of what the portion of the previous posting because it was in response to "Hmmm" deleted post.
One of the goals of the Palo Alto BMR program is to make the fact that a unit is BMR largely invisible to other residents of the complex -- the units are supposed to be scattered throughout the complex and be roughly equivalent to the other units. This appears to be largely successful. The people who run the program report that not only is there no significant complaints related to BMR units, but most residents of the complexes are unaware of which units are BMR, and even that some are.
If people were resistant to living in a complex that included BMRs, you would expect the developers to resist such units or to isolate them. I am unaware of that happening. The closest is in Alma Plaza where the developer chose to locate the BMR rental units to form a sound wall for the for-sale units. In this the developer was supported by the BMR advocates and opposed by residents (who supported the policy of having the BMRs not be lesser and less-desirable units).
The long history of PA BMRs give lie to the claim that opposition is racially motivated.
And the nonsense of claim that Palo Altans seek to exclude "non-whites" (eg by "Hmmm") can be seen on any street.
Furthermore, look at the articles on the Buena Vista Mobile Home Park -- predominantly low-income Hispanics -- and one will see broad community support for find a way to keep those residents in Palo Alto.
a resident of East Palo Alto
on Jan 10, 2013 at 12:17 pm
Hmmm is a registered user.
Sorry, I should've been more specific...Palo Alto's issues w/people of color seem to be targeted toward African-Americans & Hispanics. There's a history of this, specifically w/the former & of course that's part of BMR housing. Institutionalized racism is exactly that, no matter what Doug says. I'm sure he's not racist, so it's not his reality, but to pretend its not an issue in his town that affects all aspects of life is naive.
a resident of Downtown North
on Jan 10, 2013 at 3:13 pm
PA native is a registered user.
Dear Old Palo Alto & Citizen
I grew up in Palo Alto, went to college and came back and opened a business here. I pay
a good chunk of taxes including the property taxes on the commercial property that I rent.
We have a hard time affording living here. I guess the people that move here and make it
rich w stock options should have it all. The rest of us have no business trying to make
Palo Alto our home. Be careful what you wish for, it does come w some downsides for the fortunate.
Sincerely, Palo Alto Native
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Jan 11, 2013 at 4:32 pm
trainspotting is a registered user.
Does anyone know if there's a reference of the last 5 decades showing the ratio of parks, schools and other amenities vs. population? Because city council should also use this as a starting point to measure city growth and the quality of life for its residents.
I'm not a big fan of "let's keep building" since it puts a strain on our infrastructure, e.g. school system, traffic congestion, etc. I'd rather have city planners focus on improvements before trying to tackle an expansion plan to meet SB1818.
City council and the city's Planning and Transportation Commission should spend its time to improve planning ideas and its aesthetics to the city instead of catering to developers, e.g. the new Alma Plaza and its next-to-sidewalk experience.


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'Homeland,' Season 2, Episode 10, 'Broken Hearts': TV Recap
Well, this is an insane episode, isn't it?
As we begin, we still don't know what, exactly, went down while Brody was back at Abu Nazir Camp. It's also unclear whether he's being entirely forthcoming with Carrie & Co. It appears Brody did lead the team to a bomb plot, which they managed to divert, but Abu Nazir remains at large, and in America.
Brody also remains alive, since Estes stopped Quinn in time from killing him.
Saul meets Dar Adul as he's eating breakfast to ask about Peter Quinn. (A moment of praise for the great stage actor, F. Murray Abraham.) Dar Adul says Peter's one of his people. Why would Estes put him in charge of the operation? "Maybe to keep his eye on you," Dar Adul says. Maybe he doesn't trust you, Saul.


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If problems are identified that may be contributing to sleep apnea, and if the continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment fails, it may be beneficial to have surgery. The types of surgeries include:
- Tonsillectomy for enlarged tonsils
- Removal of nasal polyps
- Surgery to straighten a deviated septum
- Correction of facial or jaw deformities
- Removal of tissue in the throat
The following surgeries are specialized procedures used to treat problems that may be contributing to sleep apnea. Each procedure has variable success rates and the potential for surgical complications.
Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP)
This procedure involves the removal of extra tissue from the back of the throat, including the tonsils, the uvula, and part of the soft palate.
Laser-assisted Uvulopalatoplasty (LAUP)
Although this procedure seems to help improve snoring, it's not clear whether it also has an effect on sleep apnea. This procedure uses laser techniques to remove tissue from the back of the throat.
Radiofrequency Ablation
An electrode that releases radio waves is used to destroy tissue at the base of the tongue. Most people have noticed decreased snoring and decreased daytime sleepiness after ten 20-minute treatments. This is more effective for snoring, but has not been shown to be effective in the treatment of sleep apnea.
This procedure is rarely performed and reserved for extremely severe cases of sleep apnea. It involves creating a hole called a stoma at the base of the neck and into the windpipe. A tube in the stoma can be plugged during the day so that you can breathe and talk normally. At night, the tube is unplugged, and you breathe through the stoma.
Nasal Surgery
Nasal surgery to remove an obstruction is another way to relieve sleep apnea.
Phrenic Nerve Stimulation
This treament may be used for central sleep apnea. An implanted device stimulates the phrenic nerve to contract the diaphragm, a sheet of muscle under the lungs. When the diaphragm contracts, air is drawn into the lungs.
Revision Information
- Reviewer: Marcie L. Sidman, MD
- Review Date: 12/2016 -
- Update Date: 10/05/2016 -


text:
…you get your weekend schedules confused, and think you're co-hosting the show the weekend after you're actually slated to do it. Derp.
Anyway, consider this the open thread for episode #777. And hey, it just meant Josh got another chance to be on the show! He's good people.
Speaking of co-hosting drama: You might also be a dumbass if your obsessive hate-on for a certain female personality in the atheist/skeptical community becomes so irrational and overwrought that it prompts you actually to create an online petition in an attempt to get her ousted from her co-host slot on a podcast, utterly oblivious to the deep and hilarious irony in whining about "divisiveness" and "the free exchange of ideas" while doing so (and this on top of being a clueless n00b who fails to realize that such a stupid petition would bring the trollocopters flying in like that scene from Apocalypse Now).
I'm glad I'm only the first kind of dumbass.


text:
I'm sure Woody pushed for the trade at least partially for marketing purposes. But Tebow can still help the team on Sundays, hopefully enough to justify the distractions that come with him. We'll just have to wait and see, too early to say whether he was a good or bad pickup.
David Lee is with Buffalo now so I'm really interested in seeing how prepared Buffalo's defense is for the WC, or whatever it is we're going to use Tebow for.
I do think that the best marketing for a team is to win and Favre gave the Jets a better chance of winning so they went for it.
Yankees sign high priced, big named players all the time. The same people who rip the Favre signing think the Yanks, doing the same thing as the Jets do it to win. Not to fill their greedy pockets. Just the Jets. Amazing.
Last edited by Raider9175; 08-30-2012 at 03:32 PM.
BB left the jets for 2 reasons, Parcell's not retiring but moving to a GM Role and the team being for sale. If Hess would have been still around he would have stood. There was no way he wanted to take over a team, have parcells control the personnel and for an owner who might turn out to be hands on.
Favre: Already drafted a QB (Clemens) in the second round waiting to step in to see what he could do. Wasted pick when Favre arrived.
Plex: Would have rather developed Kerly along with Sanchez. Got them used to eachother. Kerley development was slowed tremendously last season because Plax was in front of him.
Tebow: When the silver spooned owner, who doesnt know jack about football, wants more Tebow you know it will be at the expense of Sanchez.
2. If not Kerley than any other Wr with potential that the JETS had (Turner?) or could have signed/picked up after cuts. I would have given an undrafted rookie/practice squad Wr a chance to develop before Plaxico Burress. We had no chance of our own "Victor Cruz" diamond in the rough because Plax was taking up a starting spot. Just a foolish signing.
Last edited by copernicus; 08-30-2012 at 04:15 PM.
More telling is whining over and over about silver spooned owner. As if there are poor owners. And owners who are football experts.
But somehow, this medling, silver spooned owner has won more than most have during his years as owner. Hasn't won the big one, true, but more non losing seasons and playoff appearances than most.
And doubled the value of his team at the same time.
Yup, he owns a winning team, has billions, keeps making more money, you're on the internet complaining and he knows jack.
Got to laugh.
This is freaking ridiculous. They got Favre for the same reason that Denver signed Manning. Both are 1st ballot HoF'ers who still have/had gas in the tank.
I guess if Aaron Rodgers suddenly decided that he wanted out of GB and was on the market, if Woody wanted to go after him, you'd say that it was all about publicity and whine about someone else getting mistreated.
That control over the defense and personnel and Raiders lost a chance on alot of candidates that were up for the job. He had to settle at the headcoach position and when you keep changing coaches that frequently your not going to be successful.
That point about the defense will never be more apparent than this year. Raiders defense scheme is a lot better now and puts guys in position to be successful. This raiders defense will be light years better than the one they put out there the last ten years.


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It's the website The Blaze calls "shocking" and their commenters beg, "God help us"…it's a new initiative from the American Humanists, Kids Without God.
I should warn you that it is full of horrific statements, telling kids to "be nice" and "take care of planet earth", and it includes videos from Bill Nye and makes recommendations for science books. Horrifying.
Be sure to tell your kids to never ever visit that sinful site!


text:
Do you guys hate me? I know I've been a bad blogger. And I feel shame. SO MUCH SHAME. Does this adorable picture of a sad and shameful corgi help? Because that's how I feel.
Adorable and shameful.
But seriously, let's talk about this. I'm sorry I've been bad at keeping up. I've been meaning to write you. It's all I think about when I go to bed at night. Okay, not ALL I think about. Sometimes I think about brilliantly clever things I could have/should have said at one point or another during the day and then brainstorm ways to insert them into future conversations. Sometimes I think about super-stylish outfit options for the coming week, even though you and I both know that I'm lucky if I make time to shower, much less iron a flouncy blouse. Sometimes I think about how hungry I always am and consider leaving bed for a string cheese snack. Sometimes. But other times, I think of you, Peoplethatoccassionallyreadmyblog. So take comfort in knowing that. K?
In other news, I have been BUSY! And this is where I shamelessly plug my very first marquee feature EVER for Blurt Magazine Online. I was super lucky to be able to interview Alec Ounsworth from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, who just released a new album (Hysterical) after a lengthy hiatus. If you like me, or if you like music, Alec Ounsworth and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, you should read it (please and thank you):
The indie sensation garners applause with the release of its 3rd studio album. But Alec Ounsworth doesn't care what we think anyways.


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The waiting for that elusive first victory ended Thursday night for Russellville Junior High's East football team.
Brandon Keaton and Braden Vaughn combined to take care of the scoring as the Whirlwinds snapped a seven-game losing skid with a 16-7 victory over Greenbrier in Central Arkansas Junior High Conference play at Cyclone Stadium.
"It was a great job by our team tonight," East coach Jeff Terry said. "It was a great team effort. Brandon Keaton and Braden Vaughn ran the ball extremely well, and our defense did what they needed to do by shutting Greenbrier down in the second half. A lot of credit needs to go the offensive and defensive linemen for the job they did."
It didn't appear that way in the first quarter as the Whirlwinds (1-7, 1-3) had their first two drives end with a fumble and a bad snap on what appeared to be a fake punt attempt. The last miscue gave Greenbrier the ball at midfield, then a personal foul call on the East made the scoring opportunity more likely.
The penalty moved the ball to the Whirlwind 23, and the Panthers needed eight plays to cover the distance. David Piechocki punched it in from a yard out, and Garrett Nelson's PAT kick gave Greenbrier a 7-0 lead with 4:03 left before halftime.
Russellville East, however, wouldn't be denied as Josh Robinson' 22-yard kickoff return put the ball at the Whirlwind 47. Eight plays later, Vaughn found a lot more than he needed on a fourth-and-1 play, bolting around right end for 15 yards and the touchdown, then Keaton went around left end on a bootleg for the two-point conversion, giving Russellville East an 8-7 cushion with 1:17 left in the first half.
"It could have been easy for our team to just shut things down at that point," Terry said. "But we fought back and were able to get things in control. We were able to overcome some adversity, such as penalties and fumbles, that we hadn't been doing earlier in the season. That's a sign that we're taking a step in the right direction."
Greenbrier opened the second half in total disaster, losing yardage on two of its three offensive plays. The Panthers were forced to punt, but a bad snap led to Cody Moody's kick being blocked, and the Whirlwinds took over on the Greenbrier 15.
Two plays later, it was Keaton who found paydirt and made a Panther defender pay the price in the process. Keaton was keeping on a bootleg play around left end again when he knocked the Greenbrier defender off his feet with a stiff-arm before running 13 yards for the touchdown. Vaughn added the two-point conversion, giving Russellville East its 16-7 lead with 4:55 left in the third quarter.
Greenbrier became its worst enemy after that, with an unsportsmanlike penalty turning a first-and-10 at the East 32 into a first-and-25 at the Whirlwind 47. The Panthers then tried a fake punt on fourth down, only to be dropped for a yard loss.
Greenbrier then had one last possession, only to see it end with a 5-yard pass on a fourth-and-10 play. The Whirlwinds then took over with 4:39 remaining and proceeded to run out the clock.


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1. Pull them early. That means early in their life rather than early in the day. Of course if you pull them early in the day you can get on with your iced tea, swimming and baseball without guilt.
2. Get the roots out if at all possible. By far, pulling and digging are the sure way to eliminate weeds. If you get the top and the roots you have a good chance of the weed not returning, unless you are pulling oxalis (looks like clover), which has nutlets that break off underground and start multiple new oxalis plants.
3. If the task seems too big, it is. Divide and conquer. Choose an achievable goal of weed picking for the day, say 4 square feet (2-feet by 2-feet) and delineate it with a piece of string or hose or an old picture frame. Pick every weed within that area and call it a day. The next time you weed, choose another area and do the same.
4. Knee pads are the most valuable tool you can have. If you think of how much it costs in pain and anguish and hesitation and complaining to your wife that your knees hurt, you would buy multiple pairs of knee pads and have a pair in every room of the house (sort of like reading glasses for those of us over 50). Besides that, knee surgery costs 5,000 times more than a set of knee pads. I wear Carhartt double-front pants with built-in slots for knee pads. They are the gardener's best friend.
5. It is not a bad idea to know your weeds. The Sunset garden book has a pretty comprehensive guide to the common weeds in the area. If you can identify your weeds and know their Latin name, you can look them up online (by Latin name) and get even more information on them. This may lead to some very interesting study.
6. There are some weeds that are important to eliminate from the area. French broom, pampas grass and poison oak are really noxious. Look them up online for positive identification. Get them out or hire somebody to get them out. Put them in plastic bags so they don't infest the landfill and put them out with the garbage. Be especially careful with poison oak (Leaves have three lobes and vines have sap-like blotches) and wear disposable gloves. The sap is to be avoided at all costs.
7. Good tools make work light. Weeding tools include hoes, trowels, shovels, weeders (a longish fork-tipped tool for getting down to the tap root), Hula Hoe (a long-handled loop of steel blade that cuts weeds near the surface); bulldozers and dynamite all work well. Be careful with the dynamite and keep it away from the kids.
8. Weeding job security is fairly easy to accomplish. The technique is like this. Wait until your weeds are finished blooming (about September) and have gone to seed. Water the area well so that the roots pull out easily and also the seeds will sprout readily. Pull out the weeds by hand and shake the soil off of the roots vigorously. This will also shake the seeds off of the top of the weeds and spread them around the moist soil you prepared for them. By weeding this way, you will have plenty of job security when the seeds sprout and the new weeds come up. Of course it is not a good idea to tell your wife you are doing this because she will have you in for a mental health evaluation but it will certainly keep you busy whenever she wants you to wash windows or do the dishes.
9. There is a lot of artificial turf going in lately. I think somebody should invent artificial weeds for those who hate turf and really appreciate a low-maintenance garden substitute. Of course the initial investment will be a bit expensive but the look will be just as satisfying.
10. Of course there are those who want to be different (the opposite of competing with the Joneses) and cultivate weeds on purpose. More power to them. I think having plant labels, an irrigation system and a fertilization program will help in this case. There is no need for mowing, blowing and going. Let everything fall where it wants. It becomes mulch. And God help any invasive plant like corn or sunflowers that gets in this garden. In this case one need only go back up to tip No. 1.
Good Gardening.
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text:
Weekend Open Forum: How fast is your home connection?By Matthew DeCarlo 102 comments
Based on Akamai's Q4 2009 data, the US placed 22nd globally with an average connection speed of 3.79Mb/s and a meager 57% broadband adoption. The FCC's estimates suggest similarly, indicating about a third of American households don't have broadband access at home.
Akamai claims South Korea has the fastest connection, averaging about 11.7Mb/s. Hong Kong follows at 8.6Mb/s, Japan at 7.6Mb/s, Romania at 7.2Mb/s, Latvia at 6.2Mb/s, while Sweden, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Switzerland and others are above 5Mb/s on average.
It's not just speeds that vary mind you, prices fluctuate greatly depending on the region. For instance, at my Pennsylvania apartment I'm paying around $55 a month for an unbundled 25Mb/5Mb, while our Ecuadorian staff is stuck paying $130 month for a measly 3Mb/512Kb.
How lucky – or unlucky for that matter – do you have it? Discuss.


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Explore Hotel
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Take it easy in our outdoor pool and courtyard
It's easy to relax at Radisson at Cross Keys, Baltimore, featuring a quiet location, beautiful landscaping and a seasonal outdoor pool. Step outside our doors to shop at more than 20 upscale stores at the Village of Cross Keys, and then enjoy a pizza at Scoozi or a drink at the lounge beside the scenic courtyard. Keep active in our on-site fitness center, or challenge friends to a tennis match on our outdoor courts. Traveling with a four-legged family member? Our hotel also features pet-friendly rooms.
Services and amenities at the Radisson include the following:
- 147 hotel rooms and suites
- Scoozi Ristorante and courtyard-side lounge
- 9,000 square feet of meeting space
- Fitness center
- Seasonal outdoor swimming pool
- Outdoor surface tennis courts*
- Business center
- Complimentary parking
- More than 20 boutique shops and specialty stores within walking distance
- Complimentary shuttle to the National Aquarium
- Room service
- Valet laundry and dry cleaning*
- Non-smoking facilities
- Pet-friendly accommodations*
- Complimentary high-speed, wireless Internet access
- In-room microwaves and refrigerators (upon request and based on availability)
*Indicates items that are available at an additional cost.