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Reaching the Next Level—Sound Design is beautifully narrated by Laura Moses. The Moseses share some of their award-winning video clips with "before" and "after" enhanced elements of sound design. The enhancements are subtle, yet they make a huge difference in the finished production. This DVD includes recent footage from their 2007 CEA gold short-form production winner.
This DVD has 11 chapters on audio enhancements, with a chapter on sound bites being only one of them. Not only do they show you how to achieve each of these enhancements, but they explain why they're important. Laura makes a point of saying that these audio enhancements do take extra time and that she and Steve use them only in Vantage Point's premium packages.
The DVD even includes an audio-enhanced video clip from Steve's 50th birthday concept video (a takeoff on the movie Cast Away). It's hilarious, and I hope they will include the complete video as a bonus feature in the next edition. Until then, you can view it here.
In Reaching the Next Level—Marketing and Artistry, another recent instructional DVD from this prolific couple, the Moseses don't just show you their videos, they tell you how they made them. Never before have I seen award-winning videographers share so much about how they create their videos. Again, Laura does a beautiful job with the narration. If their video business ever slows down, she could have a second career as voice talent.
The DVD features several stylized segments including Introduction/Collage, Opening, Trailer, Pre-ceremony, Ceremony, Filters, and The Boys (a special segment dedicated to the groom). For each segment they tell how they structure their shots; then they show you how each dramatic shot can flow seamlessly into another sequence.
They tell you what music they used and what filters they used, and explain the thought process behind their choices. Their videos are stunning; they have a knack for storytelling and capturing emotions as few videographers can. In all of the clips included on the disc, the Moseses did a great job of capturing the couple's personalities. Where do they find so many happy, fun-loving couples?
Having just watched Vantage Point's Sound Design DVD prior to this one, I was able to pick up on the audio nuances in these clips as well. These two DVDs go hand-in-hand (you can buy them separately for $89 each or as part of a 3-disc set—along with a third Reaching the Next Level title, Stylized Productions, for $200) and I'd recommend watching Sound Design first. It's great how they share their marketing tips right alongside their artistry techniques. It makes perfect sense, since it doesn't matter how good you are if you can't sell your videos—and they're as qualified as anyone to teach that lesson. The Moseses have run a thriving business for more than 20 years in the very competitive Southern California area. They remind you that if you do a great job by turning out a high-quality product and market it properly, then you don't have to worry about competition. You just have to worry about self-improvement, which is something these discs offer in abundance.
Kris Malandruccolo (kris at elegantvideosbykris.com), an EventDV 25 honoree and 2007 WEVA Hall of Fame inductee, is the owner of Chicago-based Elegant Videos by Kris and Elegant Storybooks by Kris. She is a certified Master Wedding Vendor through the Association of Bridal Consultants, WEVA Public Relations Chair, an international speaker, and past-president of the Illinois Videographers Association.

subset: commoncrawl


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Thousands of people rallied Wednesday in San Francisco's historic Castro district, where Harvey Milk opened Castro Camera — the store that would become the headquarters for the modern LGBT rights movement — nearly 40 years ago. The euphoric group of thousands had come together with friends, family, and allies to celebrate the landmark Supreme Court rulings that struck down California's Proposition 8 and a key portion of the Defense of Marriage Act.
"We've come full circle," said Kurt Oaklee, regarding his feelings toward the ruling on Prop 8. Oaklee and his husband Shaun were two of the thousands of people who gathered in the same place to protest the proposition's passing in 2008. "It's such a great feeling to know that our love is finally seen as equal in the eyes of the law."
Spouses Rich and Cougar Andrebou, owners of Castro's Whatever Comics, were one of the few couples who were able to legally marry in the short time same-sex marriage had previously become legal in the state. "When Prop. 8 was passed it created three classes of people, those who were straight and had full marriage rights, a few gay couples who married and were only recognized by the state, and then another class of gays and lesbians who couldn't marry," said Rich Andrebou. "We're so happy we've finally arrived at a moment when we're all one class of people."
Dubbed "Rainbow Wednesday" by many in the crowd, the celebration was filled with people, some dressed in colorful costumes, who danced and sang in the streets – overjoyed by the events of the day.
"We've been waiting more than a decade for this day to happen," said Brian Andersen, who has been in a relationship with his partner Preston Nesbit for more than 12 years. The couple is currently expecting twins via a surrogate and announced their official engagement moments after the SCOTUS rulings were made public. "We're ecstatic that our children will be able to grow up knowing they will have two legally recognized dads. Tomorrow, we will continue to fight for marriage equality in all 50 states, but today we're celebrating a huge leap forward in civil rights."
See more photos from the San Francisco rally in the Castro district on the following pages.


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Wow! If that pizza is a failure, Then I don't know what a success looks like!
Wow! If that pizza is a failure, Then I don't know what a success looks like! What exactly did you not like about it? How long did it bake?
I would put the steel plate at a slant. Rest the front on the bottom grate and the back (opening) on two screws about an inch below the hearth grate. At an angle, the opening will increase, so you shouldn't have to trim any off the length, but you will have to reshape the sides
3. To hit Neapolitan bake times on the top, you're going to need to rework the ceiling. An aluminum pizza pan isn't going to give you much thermal mass and the 1" or so gaps on each side isn't going to direct much air over the top of the pizza and out the vent
Lastly, here's 2 safety issues to be aware of1. With a 185K btu burner, it's highly likely that you can reach sufficient temps to vaporize zinc. As Gene warned me in another thread, this is something you do NOT want to breathe in. I would choose a day with a little bit of a wind, crank the heat, stand upwind and let it burn a bit of the zinc away, monitoring it carefully.2. With a 185K btu burner, it's highly likely that you can reach sufficient temps to melt aluminum. If you're careful, you could probably avoid it, but, as you amp the heat for Neapolitan pies, you really don't want to be worry about molten aluminum.
Galvanized steel is steel that's been coated with zinc. So the potential danger is the fumes from the vaporization of the galvanized coating. As I said before, crank the burner, stand upwind and let it burn away some of the zinc on the steel plate. If, say, you're relatively certain that you're going to stick to 2 minute or less pies, then crank the burner for 3 minutes.


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Rocky Mountain National Park > Pagoda Mountain > Climber's Log
Pagoda Mountain Climber's Log
[ Sign the Climber's Log ]
Date Climbed: Aug 30, 2015
|Rocky Mountain National Park is always great place to climb, nice hike to Pagoda Mountain 13 miles. 5500 vertical ft, great day.
|Posted Aug 30, 2015 10:14 pm
|Crescent Ridge
Date Climbed: Jul 25, 2015
|with Natalie. Great trail approach, nasty bushwhack from there, great rock climbing up the initial buttress and scrambling after that, tedious and long descent.
|Posted Jul 27, 2015 12:16 am
|Didn't quite make it
Date Climbed: Jul 19, 2013
|I was pretty close but it was getting late and I didn't want to be too high too late. Next time.
|Posted Jul 10, 2013 2:40 pm
|Such and impressive mountain
|Posted Dec 25, 2012 1:46 pm
|North Buttress
Date Climbed: Jul 1, 2012
|Via the North Buttress. What a fun climb.
|Posted Jul 27, 2012 8:06 pm
|North Buttress
Date Climbed: Jul 1, 2012
|Very fun route. Descent sucked.
|Posted Jul 3, 2012 8:53 am
|Keyboard - Pagoda Col
Date Climbed: Aug 14, 2011
|climbed up the Keyboard - Pagoda Col by staying on the right side on the solid rock to avoid all the scree. On the way down we found a trail that came down through the scree, wasn't too bad and sort of "skied" down parts of it. Don't think I would have liked going up that way. Not as hard a climb as I thought it was going to be. Saw some people on Longs, but no one on Pagoda - got to love doing other peaks besides 14ers.
|Posted Aug 15, 2011 11:13 am
|North Buttress
Date Climbed: Sep 4, 2010
|North Buttress with shanahan96, fun route - especially the upper pitch. The only drawback is the north facing route stays in the shade late and can be a little chilly, bring gloves!
|Posted Sep 5, 2010 10:44 pm
|north buttress
Date Climbed: Sep 4, 2010
|w/mike, great day on an awesome line. chiefs head drew my attention more and more the higher up we got.
|Posted Sep 5, 2010 9:18 pm
|NE Ridge
Date Climbed: Aug 6, 2010
|From Sandbeach Lake TH. Continued on to Longs and descended Keplinger's Couloir. Long day! See TR.
|Posted Aug 11, 2010 12:32 am
|Brian Kalet
|Northeast Face & Northeast Ridge
Date Climbed: Jul 24, 2010
|Posted Jul 25, 2010 11:44 pm
|North Buttress
Date Climbed: Aug 23, 2009
|Great climb, great views from the top.
|Posted Aug 23, 2009 10:58 pm
|North Buttress & Crescent Ridge & West Ridge
Date Climbed: Aug 8, 2009
|8/8/09 - Climbed the very cool North Buttress - steep rock with juggy holds. Very nice line and lots of fun. Great summit views to top it off.
7/4/15 - Approached via Sandbeach Lake and climbed Crescent Ridge. Led the 5.6 crux, soloed the rest. Descended from Longs/ Pagoda saddle on snow.
9/12/15 - Climbed the West Ridge as part of the Glacier Gorge Traverse: Arrowhead -> McHenrys -> Chiefs Head -> Pagoda -> Longs -> Storm. Roped up for short 5.7 slab crux pitch and soloed the rest.
|Posted Aug 9, 2009 10:14 pm
|Via Glacier Gorge
|Was a fun hike in. A lot of scree though going up the mountain and ended up being one of the harder ones I have ever done.
|Posted Feb 16, 2009 11:57 pm
|Via Glacier Gorge with Tim P.
Date Climbed: Oct 24, 2008
|Powdery snow and some wind combined to make this trip up Pagoda a bit of a toil, but fun none-the-less!
|Posted Oct 27, 2008 2:46 pm
|From Glacier Gorge
Date Climbed: Aug 20, 1989
|Ditto what everyone says about the beauty of the approach. I enjoyed seeing Long's peak and the other side of the keyhole route from lower down.
|Posted Jul 22, 2008 10:09 am
|Via Glacier Gorge
Date Climbed: Nov 10, 2007
|Beautiful day on this solo climb of Pagoda via Glacier Gorge. Some snow and ice in the basin above Black Lake and the gully to the saddle was awful - extremely loose and difficult going. Views from top were amazing.
|Posted Nov 12, 2007 5:56 pm
|Boriss Andean
|Route Climbed: Northeast ridge.
Date Climbed: Oct 29, 2004
|Pagoda Mountain 4,113 m (13,497 ft). Did the climb with Colorado Mountain Club members. The approaching to the mountain and the climb itself was great, despite the windchill at the top. The views of Longspeak were amazing!.
|Posted Sep 26, 2007 2:11 am
|Radical Slam
Date Climbed: Sep 9, 2007
|Traversed over from the base of the Homestretch. Dropped down through the cliff band and ascended straight up. We dropped down the final gulley below the cliff band and traversed back to the keyhole, definitely the best route.
|Posted Sep 9, 2007 9:52 pm
|Foxy Long Bottoms
|North Buttress
Date Climbed: Aug 27, 2007
|Climbed in a day with Tim Stich.
|Posted Aug 27, 2007 12:20 pm


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Summer in the city means sun (we hope), cycling, and art.
Art Day in Cedar, south of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, involved painting, collage, and recycled materials, with each of us given the same images and objects with which to being our creations.
(For extra points, can you spot the common element(s) in these works?) It is always interesting to see how different the final products are when people begin at the same starting point.
The trip over and back on BC Ferries (now that I don't have to commute on them any more – yippee!) was beautiful on a brilliant sunny day.
The opening of Collaborative Drawings by Kitty Blandy, Geoff Carter, and Michael Bjornson was great. I love the concept and the work – here are a few glimpses.
During an interlude of clouds, Barb and I rode out to UBC along the seawall and through Kits Point, where we stopped to read the scribbles of locals protesting the Harper Government's short-sighted decision to close the Kits Coast Guard Station.
Most writers were not very complimentary about Harper, his government, or the conservatives in general.
Cycling around Vancouver is always a joy, but even more so when the weather is great.
Yesterday I was surprised to see that Soul Food, the downtown eastside community food garden, has expanded to the formerly empty parking lot near BC Place.
A huge garden of produce to feed local residents, grown and managed by locals and sold at farmers markets around town, has sprung up over the last six months – great idea!
Science World has a show on until the end of August focusing on the "genius of Leonardo", mostly containing modern recreations of the machines and ideas recorded in his notebooks. There's also a big section devoted to Leonardo's most famous work, the Mona Lisa; however, none of the items on display are actually by Leonardo. All are photographic reproductions. Since I had already seen most of these before, more interesting to me was a small display of jewel-like insect art by a Singaporean man whose name escapes me.
See more here.
On our ride around Strathcona looking at murals and street art Barb and I also stopped at the original Soul Food Garden on Hastings next to the Astoria Hotel to see how it was growing.
After riding through the downtown eastside, we took the Main Street Viaduct down to Crab Park
and then under Canada Place, up to the convention centre,
along Coal Harbour and through the Park, over the Burrard Bridge to Go Fish on the waterfront at Granville Island.
Gotta love this city when the sun's out. See more pics here.


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Hi Guy,
I currently own a DLR Canon 350D with Kit lenses include , but due to it size and weight i seldom carry it outside except for oversea trip.
When my friend approach me for this GF1 , i then started to look into Micro Four Third (MFT) camera . And it look like it is a good device with better picture and video as well.
I search through forum just now and it look like there are a lot of people is using GF1 and i believe the new model will also going to be out soon..
WIth price GF1 (RM2.7k) E-PL1 (RM2.1k) , whether which shall i go with ?
Of cause when buying camera we also think of the cost of those item when we plan to upgrade or maintenance it .
Can someone give me a light over here so that i wouldn't make a wrong choice at all.


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The new study indicates that a significant percent
of Americans would not want to upgrade from broadband even if was offered
for the same price as their dialup connection.
According to the survey 14 percent of Americans who don't have broadband say
that they would purchase it, but that it's not available where they live.
Another 35 percent say that the price is too high for broadband. And 39
percent gave "Other" as their reasoning.
However, the real surprise was that 19 percent said that "nothing"
could persuade them to upgrade their slower connection -- not prices, not
John Horrigan, the study's author commented, "That suggests that solving
the supply problem where there are availability gaps is only going to go so
far. It's going to have to be a process of getting people more engaged
with information technology and demonstrating to people it's worth it for them
to make the investment of time and money."
The survey does illustrate a concern that some Americans want broadband but
can't get it, denying them opportunities to work online or take classes
online. Of the rural Americans on dialup, 24 percent said they would
upgrade if it was available in their area, whereas only 11 percent of suburban
users in areas of non-availability and 3 percent of urban users would upgrade.
Vint Cerf, one of the internet's key inventors have been actively advocating
greater government promotion of expansion of the internet. He says that
many don't realize what they're missing with dialup. Further he says that
in many areas one company has a monopoly on the high speed business, driving up
Mr. Cerf added, "Some residential users may not see a need for higher
speeds because they don't know about or don't have ability to use high
speeds. My enthusiasm for video conferencing improved dramatically when
all family members had MacBook Pros with built-in video cameras, for
Pew found that 55 percent of Americans had broadband
internet, up from 47 percent a year earlier, and 42 percent in March
2007. Only 10 percent have dialup. Other studies have shown that
over 80
percent of Americans regularly use the internet -- some only use internet
at work or school, though.
While broadband growth has been large, among minorities and lower income groups
it has shown little traction. Twenty percent of Americans without
internet said they had it, but dropped it for financial reasons.
Thirty percent of those who didn't have internet said they don't want it.
Poor and elderly were mostly likely not to have internet.
The survey was connected between April 8 and May 11. It surveyed 2,251
U.S. adults, including 1,553 internet users. The main survey had a 2
percent margin of error, while subgroup analysis, had a 7 percent error margin.


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what college did you go to clumsy?
so does A-Rod make it into Cooperstown is the question?
what college did you go to clumsy?
so does A-Rod make it into Cooperstown is the question?
image courtesy amareisreal
yes, and there still needs to be more evidence for it to be legit. last year they were saying he never tested positive for steroids and now they're saying he did in 03, i dont believe it, just wanna see some more evidence
DaTPRiNCE...That EGYPTiAN Fella, #MeloMafia
Bonds, Clemens, and ARod all deserve to be there and should be. So does McGuire and Sosa.
All these idiotic sport pundits talking about not voting for someone cause they did the roids, its just dumb. The Hall of Fame is about the HISTORY of the game, not about what guy you like interviewing, or what guy was an *******. Its about the history of the game.
A'Rod being denied out of the Hall of Fame is the most rediculous thing I ever heard in my life.
4,000 hits got him no where. Thats whats ridiculous.
AROD deserves to be in the hall of fame, this guy has taken so much shyt from everybody when he does one thing wrong. I hope he gets out of this steroid thing or I hope it passes over and he gets on with his life.
"The Knicks are back" - Amare
A-Rod, Bonds, Clemens are all hall of famers. There are a lot of garbage players that used steroids too, like Jason Giambi's brother.
They have elite hand eye coordination...which i don't think roids help. A-Rod is dumb nice on offense and defense...how can anyone doubt his HOF status.
Quiqqle i went to RPI, engineering school...it's top 15 for that or used to be at least. It was not uncommon for the dumber kids (like myself), or people like A-Rod, who strive to be the best to be in the library all night, hopped up on time release aderols for either exams or projects. Why, cuz i wasn't smart enough to do that well studying without it. In a college where the difference between a 2.8 and a 3.0 means getting a job wtih a 20k salary difference people will take that sacrifice. It is the same thing with sports except the monetary difference is much bigger.
Also i will say that in my eyes Using Roids, is different than Corking your bat or scuffing the crap outta the ball.
Because people who do steroids still have to work hard in the gym. In fact it probably allows them to even work harder. I can't blame a person for wanting to be the best they can be, or to get that fat contract.
Well what they say is the ARod has better than 20/20 vision which explains his ability to hit better, and Bonds was the same way. They used to say he could see the spin on the ball and be able to tell what type of pitch it was...
Doesn't matter how hard you can hit the ball if you don't have the hand eye coordination to hit it.
As much as I hate Alex Rodriguez, primarily for being a Yankee and the whole Madonna thing, I still have tons of respect for him for his baseball talent.
<object width="440" height="361"><param name="movie" value="http://espn.go.com/broadband/player.swf?mediaId=3894963"/><param name="wmode" value="transparent"/><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"/><embed src="http://espn.go.com/broadband/player.swf?mediaId=3894963" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="440" height="361" allowScriptAccess="always"></embed></object>
Damn player-centric usernames straight to hell.
it makes you appreciate the legend of Ken Griiffey Jr. even more.
image courtesy amareisreal
wow....now this makes me wonder who DIDNT take steriods? only clean player is Griffey for that he the best player of our generation point-blank.
DaTPRiNCE...That EGYPTiAN Fella, #MeloMafia
No offense but Griffey had to do roids. Always hurt...would you do steroids if you had Griffey's ability and you were always hurt, and you knew that there was no way to get punished? A-Rod is just one of the guys who got caught. So I can't really blame him for being a cheater. I would really happy if A-Rod broke Hank Aaron's record...(i know its really Bonds but what ever) by 192 HRs (the HRs he hit in between 2001-2003).
Put them all in the Hall and then institue stricter and more comprehensive steriod rules.
well if Griffey did, then at least the last great clean home run hitter of our generation - the Big Hurt!
image courtesy amareisreal


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She slept on a mattress in an unheated basement. From dawn to dusk, she ironed, cleaned bathrooms and cooked. And when the whim struck her employer, he groped and raped her, federal authorities say.
A criminal complaint unsealed Monday portrays a traumatic existence for a young Indonesian woman who authorities say was virtually imprisoned for four years in the Aurora home of a Saudi Arabian family.
Homaidan Al-Turki and his wife, Sarah Khonaizan, are accused of taking the woman's passport and paying her what amounted to $1.91 a day.
Attorneys for Al-Turki and Khonaizan could not be reached for comment Monday.
On Monday, the Colorado Muslim Council released a statement saying its members were shocked by the allegations against the couple, but would reserve immediate judgment.
"We trust in the fairness of the justice system," said the statement from the group, which promotes unity among the state's Muslims. "Our prayers go out for all parties concerned."
The criminal complaint detailed the woman's story of a seven-day workweek interspersed with frequents attacks by Al-Turki, accused of exposing himself to her and raping her about once a week during her last year with the family.
The complaint says that one of Al-Turki's male relatives also exposed himself to the woman and tried to kiss and fondle her. He has not been charged.
The woman, whose name is being withheld because of the nature of the alleged crimes, told authorities her association with the family began in 1999.
At age 17, she applied with an Indonesian employment agency to become a domestic worker. Al-Turki and Khonaizan hired her, and she was flown to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to meet the family.
She was to be paid the U.S. equivalent of $160 a month but didn't get nearly that – prosecutors say she was paid approximately $3,300 for four years of work.
In 2000, she came to the U.S. with the family. Her day typically began at 6 a.m. when she made breakfast for them. She was forced to wait in the basement while the family ate, the complaint says. Then she began cleaning. She did laundry twice a week and washed the family cars.
Shortly after arriving in the U.S., Al-Turki began making improper advances toward her, including watching her shower and touching her, she said. Gradually, his sexual overtures escalated until he was raping her, she told authorities.
Meanwhile, federal authorities were investigating a tip that Al-Turki and Khonaizan were harboring an illegal alien – the woman.
In November, they served a search warrant on the family home and detained the woman, who then told authorities her story of forced labor and abuse.
Al-Turki and Khonaizan face federal charges of forced labor that could result in life imprisonment. Additionally, Al-Turki was charged in state court with multiple counts of sexual assault. Both are in custody.
Staff writer Alicia Caldwell can be reached at 303-820-1930 or firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Browsing by Subject "Walked all over town"
Now showing items 1-1 of 1
Foster, Jane M.G. - Clip 01 (Cornell Law School, 1989-10)From the video archives of the Cornell Law School Heritage Project. The interviewer/videographer is Thomas R. Bruce. This video covers recollections of Jane Foster by her friend, Mac McKinley, owner of the K&M Restaurant ...


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How do i change setting for my os firewall, all file writing is being blocked
Operating System:Windows XP Home Edition
Software Version:8.0
Product Name:ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite
How do i change setting for my os firewall, all file writing is being blocked
Operating System:Windows XP Home Edition
Software Version:8.0
Product Name:ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite
Click here > http://forums.zonealarm.org/zonelabs...d=54712#M54712
< you can also read the other posts by Oldsod
Any particulars you wish to report?
How do i change this setting?Description
Indexing Service filter daemon was prevented from changing the behavior of ZoneAlarm Security Suite by modifying the file: WINSYSDIR\**bleep**.dat
Date / Time
2009-01-14 07:53:06-5:00
File Write
Action Taken
Blocked (once)
Personal Policy
Indexing Service filter daemon was prevented from changing the behavior of ZoneAlarm Security Suite by modifying the file: WINDIR\Internet Logs\ZALog.txt
Date / Time
2009-01-14 08:05:48-5:00
File Write
WINDIR\Internet Logs\ZALog.txt
Action Taken
Blocked (once)
Personal Policy
Indexing Service filter daemon\cidaemon.exe
Under SmartDefense -Auto: will have three green bars, and the rest ' red X'
What you can do - right click the program > Options...> click "Allow Application Interaction" check marked> Apply > OK.
In addition you may wish to adjust ZA's Program control on to "medium/ learning mode" for a while. Program Control > Main > slider down from 'High' to Medium/Learning Mode

If you wish you may contact ZA tech support > click here >
- you may post back your findings
Have there been any other developments on this theme.
I have the same situation where ZA Security Suite blocks Indexing Service Filter Daemon from writing to log files every time.
I cannot find a way of changing ZA to allow it to write to file.
I have given cidaemon.exe the highest trust level and have allowed program interaction.
ZA has been on learning mode for months.
There is nothing in the help files at all about allowing FileWrite and the 'More Info' links are as good as useless.
ZA Security Suite 8.0.298.000; Windows XP Professional.
And by the way, I do not like the colour scheme of the later versions of ZASS because you cannot tell which line in a list box you have selected.
If you have ZASS running for a month and still in learning mode..You and manually Turn off Learning mode..Here is the setting I recomend..1.) ZA Firewall, Main Section, Internet Security on High, Trusted Security on medium..2.) Program Control , Main Section Program Control = Max, SmartDefense = Auto..--------------------------------------------------------
ZoneAlarm Security Suite version:8.0.298.000
TrueVector version:8.0.298.000
Driver version:8.0.298.000
Anti-virus engine version:126.96.36.1998
Anti-virus signature DAT file version:980184522
Anti-spyware engine version:188.8.131.52
Anti-spyware signature DAT file version:01.200903.5515
AntiSpam version:22.214.171.1249
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Sometimes there's a reason why Zone Alarm doesn't allow
one program access to a file and why the OS Firewall isn't such a bad thing.
Never one to be outdone by any program or computer - I got the content indexing filter daemon service to write to the file it was trying to write to - IAMDB.RDB (it took a bit of maneuvering due to associated files and programs).
Guess what?
I could no longer open up the Alerts & Logs module!
When I tried accessing that menu, Zone Alarm Security Suite shutdown completely.
Luckily, I had backed up my security settings prior to doing any of this so I just restored them.
To decrease the number of alerts and/or the size of your log file, deselect the check(s) for OS Firewall under Alerts & Logs, Main, Advanced, Alert Events.
By the way, the content indexing filter daemon is a program that works with the Windows Search, which indexes all of your files, emails, etc on a constant basis.
That's why there are so many alerts.
I'm curious by nature so I needed to find out what was going on and if it should be writing to the file at all.
Now I know = some things are better left alone.
The RDB files should be left alone at all costs.
Hope this helps someone else out!
(Win XP
8.0 ZA Internet Security Suite)Suz
We seem to have lost direction in this thread; I have a similar issue with ZA.
The log files appear to be bloated with entries reporting that the 'cidaemon.exe' file (The Indexing daemon) is trying to to write to ZA's Log files.
I would like to undetand why it is attempting this action?
... oldsmurph
I don't find it useful to have the indexing service index the contents of the ZA files, so I have excluded the C:\WINDOWS\Internet Logs folder from the catalog (you can do that easily, the following is for XP (don't have Vista or Win 7, but it should be similar):
1. Right click My computer, click manage
2. In the computer management window that opens, click on the + next to Services and applications
3. right click on Indexing service and click stop. then click on the + next to indexing service.
4. You will probably just have the one catalog called system: click on the + next to that (or if you have set up other catalogs select the one that is indexing C:\Windows).
5. Click on directories.
6. In the right pane right click, click new, click on Directory. Browse to point to the pathy of the Internet log folder. Under Include in Index, select No, click OK
7. Right click on indexing service click start.
You might also want to do a manual rescan of the catalog to remove previous inexing of the \Internet logs folder. To do that, click again on the Directories folder click on C:\Windows, or if that is not listed, click on C:\, then in Action menu, click on all tasks, rescan (full)
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text:
Michael S. Rozeff
The LRC Blog
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Never before has the FED (or any central bank with the possible exception of Japan's) announced that it would hold the short-term overnight rate to near ZERO percent for another 1.5 years. It's already been at close to 0% since late 2008. By 2014, the FED's target date, this will make 6 years of such a low Fed Funds rate and all other related short-term rates, with concomitant depressing effects on long-term rates. This is absolutely extraordinary.
David Ranson points out that the countries whose central banks have not done a ZIRP (Canada and Germany) have recovered faster than the countries whose central banks have done the zero interest rate policy (Japan and the U.S.). Why does a zero interest rate policy (ZIRP) hurt the economy? There are several strong reasons.
In the first place, ZIRP is a bank bailout policy. It supplies banks liberally with reserves. This keeps alive zombie banks and other financial institutions that should fail. It allows banks to continue policies that should be abandoned. This is a drag on wealth creation.
Second, ZIRP causes the government sector to enlarge. The federal government is more likely than the private sector to take advantage of low short-term rates in order to borrow and finance itself, as the private sector typically uses longer-term sources. Under ZIRP, Japan's government built out uneconomic roads and transport systems. This spending didn't stimulate economic growth, since scarce capital went to uneconomic projects. The U.S. fights uneconomic wars and wastes its capital that way, for example. It continues to subsidize the housing sector. All such activity is a drag on wealth creation.
In all cases of government borrowing and spending, there is another offset which is that business firms and taxpayers both adjust their investment and spending downwards because they know that the future burden of taxes will rise in order to pay off debt. Higher taxes discourage wealth creation.
ZIRP reduces nominal interest rates while monetary inflation keeps on going or rises. This produces negative real rates of return. Savers are stuck between a rock and a hard place. Their real income from saving goes down. When they look at stocks and bonds, they find that the prospective returns are low, because their prices have been bid up due to interest rates having been kept low. This discourages saving and thus investment in risky enterprises. It encourages both consumption and investment in goods whose storage keeps up with inflation and preserves wealth. These do not produce economic growth. The latter depends on WEALTH CREATION, which means the discovery of and investment in profitable forms of activity.
ZIRP means that a centrally-planned and centrally-administered interest rate has replaced or substantially influenced or displaced the free market. The market for loanable funds is distorted. In the short to medium term, people expect the low interest rates to persist, but in the long term they figure that the policy will eventually end and interest rates rebound to normal levels. This has got to affect what they invest in and how they finance those investments. Many investors will be expecting stocks and bonds eventually to decline. Others will be selling them over time against that eventuality. But yet others will be buying because interest rates are so low. The resulting confusion means that asset prices provide very noisy and uncertain signals of long-term value. This is going to distort the investment decisions made by company managers. Overall, it will discourage private sector investment and wealth creation. This is another reason why ZIRP tends to enlarge government borrowing and spending relative to private sector borrowing and investment.
All central banking control over monetary policy is central planning. All of it is a dagger in the heart of a capitalistic or free market economy. ZIRP is a larger and exaggerated case of this disease because it involves such a huge expansion in the central bank's balance sheet; but ZIRP has peculiar negative effects of its own.
For ZIRP to go on for 6 years is unbelievable in a country that supposedly stands for free markets. ZIRP is making evident that the FED has a hugecredibility gap.
This article was posted: Thursday, June 21, 2012 at 9:12 am


text:
Bucs would tab Liriano, A.J. to lead playoff rotation
By Tom Singer / MLB.com
SAN FRANCISCO -- Afforded by the four-day All-Star Game break to align his starting rotation any way he wished, Clint Hurdle came out of the hiatus with A.J. Burnett following Francisco Liriano. Subsequent off-days have adjusted other tiers of that rotation, but the Liriano-Burnett sequence has remained.
No sense looking too far ahead but, yes, that's the way Hurdle wants them lined up for a possible postseason run.
The Pirates manager subtly indicated a few days ago how good he would feel about those two leading the way into the playoffs. After Liriano and Burnett went seven strong innings each for back-to-back wins in San Diego, Hurdle offered this:
"When they are on their game, they can be a force. And they can beat a good team."
They will come across plenty of good teams even before October. Their next mutual challenge will be the Cardinals, whom they will face Friday and Saturday nights at PNC Park.
"I just like the way we're going about our business, throwing our best two guys back to back," Hurdle said. "We're trying to get something done."
In the final two games of the series here, Liriano and Burnett are following each other for the ninth time. With Liriano having lost Saturday, Burnett was out to prevent their third set of twin losses. Four previous times both won, and two other times they split the games.
Rookie Sanchez learning as Liriano's personal catcher
SAN FRANCISCO -- The May-December "marriage" of left-hander Francisco Liriano and catcher Tony Sanchez qualifies as one of the Pirates' more fascinating pennant-race developments.
Sanchez, a rookie with 15 total games of Major League experience, has been anointed the personal catcher for Liriano, a veteran in his eighth big league season. Liriano's rank as the current ace of the Pittsburgh staff makes the arrangement even more noteworthy.
Pirates manager Clint Hurdle had double motives for the pairing: a way of scheduling regular games off for primary catcher Russell Martin, and to accelerate the baseball education of Sanchez, rated the Pirates' No. 12 prospect by MLB.com.
"Frankie is a veteran pitcher who knows what he wants to throw and can teach the young man," Hurdle said. "Also, Tony's strength is his ball-blocking ability, and Frankie can be a tough one on chase pitches in the dirt. So it's a good learning curve for Tony to work with a veteran pitcher."
It has also been a success. In Liriano's first three starts with Sanchez, he allowed one run and 10 hits in 23 innings that also featured 25 strikeouts.
When Saturday night's start against the Giants did not go as well -- Liriano labored through four innings, allowing four runs and nine hits -- his catcher took it hard.
"We've developed this theory that I'm Liriano's personal catcher, but I don't think I've earned that yet," Sanchez said. "You've got to have the right outings to earn that title, and if the guy doesn't have an outing like he's supposed to, I take that personally. He and I have taken 10 steps forward, but [Saturday night] I feel like we took a step back.
"We'll just get back to the grind and take care of business, so next time we'll be back on the same page."
"Next time" will be Friday night at PNC Park vs. the St. Louis Cardinals.
First number, last word
23-to-8: Pirates' edge in homers hit vs. homers allowed across the 29 games prior to Sunday's series finale in AT&T Park. The Pittsburgh staff went into the game having giving up an MLB-low 86 homers for the season.
"He reminded me of a hockey goalie. He spent the night in the dirt all over." -- Hurdle, on Sanchez's adventures behind the plate Saturday night, most of which he spent diving for breaking balls thrown in the dirt by his batterymates.
Worth noting
• Of Pedro Alvarez's first 31 home runs, eight came on the first pitch -- and an equal number came with two strikes.
• Liriano (14-6) is the first Pittsburgh pitcher to earn a decision in each of his first 20 starts of the season since Nick Strincevich opened 1946 with a 21-decision streak.
• Sanchez had a little fun with Tim Lincecum before and after hitting his first career homer off the former two-time Cy Young Award winner in the fifth inning of Saturday night's game.
Sanchez's college coach -- Boston College's Steve Englert -- also coached Lincecum in the Cape Cod League. So after striking out in the second, Sanchez called out, "Hey, Coach E says, 'What's up?'"
"Lincecum started laughing," Sanchez related. "So next at-bat I hit the home run and when Lincecum comes up to bat, he's just staring at me, and I go, 'Yeah, I'm going to text Coach E!'"
Tom Singer is a reporter for MLB.com and writes an MLBlog Change for a Nickel. He can also be found on Twitter @Tom_Singer. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
Allen tangles with many threads in 'To Rome With Love'
This week we begin in the Eternal City: To Rome With Love (***) Rated R, 112 minutes. Available Tuesday on DVD and Blu-ray.
Woody Allen continues his European tour with this slight, breezy but ultimately enjoyable romantic-comedy romp centering mostly on four people or couples whose lives intertwine while in Rome.
An American architect replays his youth, an average Roman man suddenly becomes famous, a young couple from rural Italy visits the big city and finds surprises, and an opera singer is discovered in an unlikely place. But wait, there's more.
Allen always assembles excellent casts while also showcasing young talent. To Rome boasts Alec Baldwin, Judy Davis, Greta Gerwig, Alison Pill, Roberto Begnini, Carol Alt, Flavio Parenti, and Allen himself as the father of Pill's young American student.
The DVD, in all formats and varieties, includes the nine-minute "making of" featurette, "Con Amore: A Passion for Rome."
Frankenweenie (***1/2) Tim Burton co-wrote and directed this imaginative stop-motion animated treat that centers on a boy, Victor Frankenstein (voice of Charlie Tahan), who grieves so much when his dog Sparky dies that he follows in the tradition of his Frankenstein ancestors and uses his scientific skills to bring the pooch back to life.
Unfortunately, his schoolmates pressure him into showing them how he did it, leading them to perform the same procedures on their own dead pets. As a result, creepy monsters in various forms prowl the town, a prolonged sequence that could be frightening for the youngest audiences.
Avid film fans will appreciate how Burton slides in winking homages to many horror classics.
Rated PG, 87 minutes. The DVD comes in all formats and in various combo packs. Supplements — which vary according to the version, so check labels — include a brief original short, "Captain Sparky vs. The Flying Saucers," a five-minute featurette on the Frankenweenie touring exhibit, a 23-minute "making of" featurette, a music video, and the 30-minute original live-action short from 1984 that was Burton's progenitor for the full-length movie.
The Possession (***) This slowly unfolding tale of devilry takes its cues from the archetype of the possession genre, The Exorcist. But one of the unexpected twists in the frequently chilling horror flick from Danish director Ole Bornedal (Nightwatch) is that when the time comes to drive a demon from the body of young Emily Brenek (Natasha Calis), it's done by an Orthodox rabbi.
The possession itself comes when Emily buys a mysterious box at an estate sale. When she opens it, a dibbuk, a "dislocated spirit," enters her body. Eventually, her strange, erratic and often violent behavior alerts her divorced parents Clyde (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and Stephanie (Kyra Sedgwick), who finally decide to bring in the rabbi.
Rated PG-13, 92 minutes. The disc also contains a 13-minute featurette focusing on the lore behind the dibbuk's box.
Love Me (**1/2) Teen angst and a potentially creepy killer combine in this routine rendering of the new boy (Jamie Johnston) entering school and falling for the hot girl (Lindsey Shaw), who is then warned off by her friends — seems like the new boy might have been involved in the disappearance of another girl. Suspicion mounts. Or not.
Rated PG-13, 97 minutes. The DVD includes a seven-minute "behind-the-scenes" featurette, and a six-minute featurette with cast interviews from the set.
And now for some stand-up comedy:
Joan Rivers: Don't Start With Me (**1/2) Joan Rivers and Don Rickles are perhaps the only two performers in the world with audiences who want to be insulted. And Rivers certainly hits all the targets in this filmed performance that also offers a few glimpses of her personal life — that is, if one actually exists for the constantly performing Rivers.
Nearing 80, the animated Rivers prowls the stage, feigning sex acts, mimicking corpses and spouting out epithets to everyone. Not rated, 69 minutes.
Harland Williams: A Force of Nature (**1/2) Manic comedian Harland Williams is too much for a simple auditorium to hold him and his stand-up act. So for this recorded performance, director Tom Stern captures Williams as he ventures into the Mojave Desert to deliver his zaniness, seemingly alone and looking straight into the camera as he screams, yells, jumps around and fills the desert with his bellowing sounds.
Not rated, 54 minutes. The DVD includes a brief "nature interview" with more of Williams talking straight to the camera.
And now, something for the smallest among us:
Thomas and Friends: Muddy Matters In these five episodes and a bonus segment, Thomas the Tank and his friends land in the dirt when they try to be helpful.
Not rated, 58 minutes. The disc also holds a music video, puzzles and a game.
And, finally, from this week's TV offerings:
The Hour 2 This excellent period drama from the BBC originally looked like it was going to last for only one six-part miniseries. Surely, we had thought, it would be too hard to reassemble the fine, well-known ensemble cast. But back they all are to tell the story of the broadcasting team of a British news show called The Hour. It's 1957, and now they must deal with the intricate plottings of police corruption bleeding over into affairs of national security.
Bel (Romola Garai) proves to be a ferocious producer despite rampant sexism, Freddie (Ben Whishaw) returns from America, and Hector (Dominic West) looks to jump at a lucrative competitor's offer before being derailed by a possible sex scandal. And Peter Capaldi (In the Loop) joins the cast as the head of news. Abi Morgan (The Iron Lady) created and wrote the well-executed drama.
Not rated, 160 minutes. The two discs hold six episodes along with a 12-minute "behind-the-scenes" featurette with ample cast and crew interviews.
Also available Tuesday on DVD: The Man Who Knew Too Much (Criterion Collection), Taken 2, Won't Back Down.


text:
OROVILLE — A jury has convicted a Butte Valley woman of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter for the July 2011 death of a jogger on Clark Road.
The Butte County Superior Court panel of eight women and four men deliberated for about two hours Friday before reaching a verdict against Martha Yolanda Ramos for the July 5, 2011, incident near Steamboat Rock Road that killed Cathryn Zampa.
Ramos faces up to a year in county jail when she is sentenced April 23.
Outside of court, deputy district attorney Erika Romo said the victim's husband and family attended the hearing.
"It's nice to bring closure to the Zampa family," she said.
During closing arguments, Romo told the jury that Ramos had illegally driven off the road with her 1985 Ford Mustang and struck Zampa, who was outside the road's southbound lane. She referred to police officers' testimony that there was a 44-foot-long tire track on the gravel shoulder.
The prosecutor said Ramos' action was ordinary negligence and the prosecution didn't need to show intent to prove the crime.
Defense attorney Jesse Santana challenged the tire track evidence because officers didn't take a photo of it. If it did exist, he argued it came from another vehicle on the busy road, possibly from the responding emergency vehicles.
The defense attorney maintained Ramos and Zampa had seen a coyote or a fox dart in the roadway. Zampa ran into the roadway and Ramos didn't have enough time to react before striking her.
Ramos then pulled off the road to call for help.
"This was nothing short than a tragic accident," Santana said.
He said Ramos' action was neither negligent nor illegal because it was a sudden, unexpected emergency situation and she acted with the same level of caution as a reasonable person.
Santana said encountering wildlife was part of life in Butte Valley. Several witnesses testified about seeing foxes, coyotes and mountain lions at different times in the area.
However, no one — other than the defendant — testified about seeing the fox or coyote during the incident.
Romo questioned Ramos' story about seeing an animal. She said the driver first mentioned it in an interview 13 days after the incident and had time to develop a story.
The prosecutor also questioned if it was reasonable to think Zampa would risk encountering a heavy vehicle versus a smaller animal. Likewise, she asked if it was reasonable to think Ramos would steer toward a person to avoid the creature.
The defendant remains out of custody.
Staff writer Ryan Olson can be reached at 896-7763 or email@example.com.


text:
Hall chats about All-Star festivities
By / MLB.com
Hall: Welcome D-back fans. We are really excited with the All-Star festivities officially beginning tomorrow and with the performance of the team. Tough four-game series starting tonight at St. Louis.
punksroo: Do you think more D-backs deserved to be on the All-Star roster?
Hall: I definitely feel that more D-backs were deserving. I think players having solid seasons from the host city should be given more consideration, assuming the team is in contention. We qualify in all categories. These are always difficult decisions for the managers, but I would have liked to have seen more than one with the way our team has played all year. Our fans deserve to see more representation. I am keeping my fingers crossed that Ian Kennedy will still be named.
PrplQueen: Is the ASG ribbon cutting ceremony that is being held tomorrow open to the public? We are very excited to participate in all the events!
Hall: The ribbon cutting for FanFest is tomorrow morning at 8:30 at the entrance, with the doors opening for the public at 9:00. The ribbon cutting is a ceremonial event for the media, but I am sure fans in line will have it in their view.
7895: Do you think D-backs fans will have a chance to see Paul Goldschmidt anytime soon?
Hall: He sure is giving us reasons to talk about him. When the time is right for Paul to be promoted, we want to be sure he can play every day. The worst thing for his development would be to bring him up and make him sit. Hopefully our fans know that he will play in the Future's Game this Sunday at Chase Field as part of the All-Star festivities.
PrplQueen: Are you still hoping to have the panels open for the last round of the Home Run Derby?
Hall: I was hoping to have both the door panels and the roof open for the final round. Would have been perfect, especially after hearing the forecast that is calling for temps in the 90's. However, ESPN tested it and it would be too difficult to televise with the extreme changes in lighting. Looks like they will remain closed.
punksroo: I can't wait to see the All-Star Game in my hometown! How are the final preparations coming along?
Hall: Me too! The preparations have gone smoothly and everything looks great. We just completed a media tour at the Convention Center for FanFest and the media seemed blown away. All of the finishing touches are nearly complete.
punksroo: Do you think small market teams can compete in the Final Vote?
Hall: It seems like an uphill battle every year. I applaud our fans for the push on Ian Kennedy and the creative websites and social media sites. All of his teammates have urged fans to vote to. Regardless of the outcome, we should be proud of our efforts and do all we can in the short amount of time.
7895: Will the D-backs be buyers at the trade deadline?
Hall: We plan on making a move or two to improve this team, if the right deals are available. We need to be careful not to jeopardize our future now that the farm system is re-stocked. It is a fine balance, but Kevin Towers has feelers out everywhere and we will see what comes to fruition. Our team is competitive and cohesive, so they would tell you that we do not need much.
dbacks_Nation: Good afternoon Derrick! I will be driving down from Las Vegas on to see the All-Star Game. What are you most excited for this upcoming weekend?
Hall: I am excited for all of it, but mostly to see Justin Upton play in the game Tuesday in front of his home crowd. I was able to see him in St. Louis two years ago and was so proud when he hit the field. Now all of our fans can share the same feeling in-person. I am also excited about showing the world our ballpark and city. Thanks for making the drive.
unclejohnh: What are your thoughts on Josh Collmenter? Does he look like a starter for the rest of the season?
Hall: He sure looked great yesterday after six shutout innings. Looked like he did when he first came up, and against a very strong offensive team. He has had success both as a starter and a reliever for us, but our greater need right now for him is as a starter.
xJOEYxCHESTNUTx: Kirk Gibson manager of the year?
Hall: If the season were to end today, I cannot think of a better choice. With where the team is compared to last year's finish, he would have my vote for sure. I am really proud of Gibby and his entire staff. They are a close group and relate to the players well.
xJOEYxCHESTNUTx: Biggest surprise of the season in your eyes? Sean Burroughs, Gerardo Parra, Wily Mo Pena, Ryan Roberts?
Hall: All of those are great choices, but I would have to say the entire group collectively. The simple fact that they never seem out of a game and come back so often has been fun to watch. I expected a turnaround, but not so quickly. This team has been exciting each and every game.
punksroo: What do you think about the Final Vote competition?
Hall: I think it is great that a group of players get a second chance. I just think we need to figure out how to make it fairer when it comes to comparing market sizes.
rox08: Are you excited to have everyone come to Phoenix for the All-Star Game? What are you most looking forward to?
Hall: Extremely excited. The city looks great (after cleaning up from the dust storm) and our infrastructure is now in place -- light rail, downtown hotels, the new convention center, retail, residential, etc. This is a good time to show it off. And the ballpark looks as good as new.
rox08: Do you think the National League will win the All-Star Game again this year?
Hall: This is a good question to end with. I can simply answer -- I hope so! It was nice to break the streak last year after losing 14-straight, and I would love for homefield advantage to be captured right here at Chase Field. I like our pitching, that's for sure.
Hall: Thanks to everyone for participating. I look forward to seeing you at the All-Star festivities and at the 10-game home stand immediately following the break. Go D-backs!
This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
A year ago, unemployment was 14% around the Inland Empire in California, much higher than the national average.
The $674.5 million Altura Credit Union felt the enduring sting as its members, like most across the nation, struggled with job losses, rising debts and foreclosures.
Fast forward to 2012, the Riverside, Calif.-based credit union is much more optimistic after its third-quarter financials revealed that a recovery, while still slow, is making its way through the Inland Empire, a region about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.
"Although conditions are still rough, our members have done a great job digging out from under the area's challenges," said Mark Hawkins, CEO of Altura. "They've reduced debt levels and restrained new acquisitions. The market is slowly improving, but the hunker-down mentality lingers."
For the quarter ending Sept. 30, Altura reported an increase in its net worth ratio to 9.42%, the highest in its history, according to the credit union. This is above the 6.89% reported for third- quarter 2011, and above the 8.69% reported in second-quarter 2012, Altura said.
The record net worth ratio is the result of a lot hard work by a lot of people, Hawkins pointed out. The key contributors were much the same as Altura has seen over the past six quarters: reduced operating costs and strong noninterest income coupled with declining loan delinquency and charge-offs, he added.
Hawkins acknowledged there hasn't been any kind of magic bullet to Altura's recovery, saying it's been about paying attention to each of these key factors that have contributed to the grudgingly slow recovery that's taking shape.
"I attribute our recovery to the efforts of those people and to the tough decisions we had to make to get through the toughest economy in 80 years. In short, I would attribute our success to hard work and good fortune," Hawkins said.
Year to date, Altura said it is ahead of the same period last year, reporting net income of $13.2 million for 2012 compared to $4.9 million for 2011.
Despite a positive turn in its financials, Altura took a hit to its net income due to a $1.8 million impairment charge related to an investment in Business Partners LLC, a business lending CUSO founded by Telesis Community Credit Union.
Net income dropped to $2.1 million for the quarter ending Sept. 30, according to the credit union. This was down from the $3.4 million Altura reported last year at this time on total assets of $679.4 million.
The Chatsworth, Calif.-based Telesis was conserved by the NCUA in March and was subsequently acquired by the $1.3 billion Premier America Credit Union, also located in Chatsworth.
Founded in the 1995 by Telesis, Business Partners said it is owned by 17 financial institutions and has more than $1.1 billion in business loans under management.
"It's really just a sad story," Hawkins said. "I think it's fair to describe the Business Partners venture as a great idea that was poorly executed. Such a script just doesn't end well."
Hawkins said at Altura, it became evident the credit union's investment was impaired, and as 2012 advanced, the cooperative concluded it was time to act.
"We wanted to put the impairment behind us and the timing seemed appropriate. We could absorb the hit in the third quarter, and we really wanted to get this particular saga behind us," Hawkins explained.
Still, Altura continues to believe that member business lending needs to be an important component of any credit union's future lending strategies and it certainly is for Altura, Hawkins noted.
"We remain a 5% owner of BP–our 5% is just worth less. We look forward to resuming our member business lending, and we look forward to a renewed, reconfigured Business Partners."
Meanwhile, the Inland Empire still has a way to go in terms of its recovery from the Great Recession.
"People in our area are very anxious about the upcoming elections, both at the national and state levels. Educators and city and county workers comprise much of our field of membership. Each of these key groups remains under the gun so to speak of local government budgets, which are full of uncertainty," Hawkins said. "It remains a troubling time, but our members and Altura are each making great progress."
Indeed, the region continues to be hampered by high unemployment, currently at 12% as of September. This is a noticeable improvement compared to 2011's 14%. Compare that to 2006 when the rate was 4.5%, according to Hawkins.
The double digit unemployment figures demonstrates not only the depth of the hole that Altura is still climbing from, but also how hard this region was hit by the recession, Hawkins said.
"We're coming back and that we're not alone. There are many credit unions here in the Inland Empire and up through the central valley of our state that have really been hit hard," Hawkins said. "We're all getting better, just at different speeds. It may take some of us a little bit longer but we're going to get there. You can count on it."


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State Sen. Ellen Roberts, R-Durango, wrote in her weekly column (Herald, Feb. 20) that her preference would be for the Legislature to drop the four gun-control bills passed by the House on Monday and instead refer the question of how to improve public safety to the bipartisan Colorado Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice.
That is legislator-speak meaning: Lets kick this can down the road rather than deal with it.
Calling for further study is an old trick for not addressing a difficult issue. It is used at all levels of government and by members of both parties. It is not in itself disreputable, and at times can even be the best response. But it should be seen for what it is a dodge.
The Colorado Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice is pretty much what its name suggests. Its mission, according to the states website, is to ensure justice, and to ensure protection of the rights of victims and to focus on evidence-based recidivism reduction initiatives and the cost-effective expenditure of limited criminal justice funds.
The commission does employ researchers and no doubt has considerable expertise with statistics and analysis. But its focus is the justice system, not law enforcement or public health.
And it is in that last regard that research into gun violence has been conducted and now is resuming. For about a decade, the Center for Disease Control did research into gun violence. The best-known of those efforts was a 1993 study supported by grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and published in the New England Journal of Medicine. It found that, Rather than confer protection, guns kept in the home are associated with an increase in the risk of homicide by a family member or intimate acquaintance and the link between guns and homicide in the home was present among women as well as men, blacks as well as whites, and younger as well as older people.
Not surprisingly that study offended the gun lobby, and in 1996, Congress forbade the use of federal money to advocate or promote gun control. That deterred the CDC from gun-related research.
Last month, however, President Barack Obama directed the CDC to research the causes and prevention of gun violence.
This countrys approximate 30,000 gun-related deaths per year has to qualify as a public-health problem. And studying things that affect public health is what the CDC is all about. There is no reason for Colorado to try to duplicate that effort.
The bills the House passed are a reaction to the horrifying problem of mass shootings. But they are also in recognition of those who were killed in Colorado and elsewhere. As the president rightly put it, they deserve a vote.


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9 of America's strangest conventions show there's a club for everyone
National Hobo Convention is this week in Iowa
People who are tired of being snickered at for dressing up like Elvis, a steampunk or a cartoon pony don't need to feel alone anymore. Those groups are each celebrated at annual conventions across America.
The 2014 National Hobo Convention will take over the small town of Britt, Iowa for the next five days, celebrating the mythology and history of American transients. The town, with a population of just more than 2,000, is home to the Hobo Museum. Britt's website indicates the annual gathering, which includes music and a parade, has been hosted in the town since 1900.
Proving there's a club for everyone, here are some of America's other offbeat annual conventions:
Site: Baltimore, Maryland
Size: Over 8,000 attendees
(Photo: Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
This annual convention for fans of the cartoon series "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic" started as a fringe event with about 100 attendees and has grown into a phenomenon that lasts an entire weekend. In 2012, a documentary about the TV show's surprising number of diehard adult fans was made, showing that the so-called "Brony" movement isn't going anywhere.
Elvis Fest
Site: Las Vegas, Nevada
It should come as no surprise that an annual festival dedicated to the King emanates from Sin City. This four-day convention is sponsored by the company that operates Graceland. It sees plenty of Elvis impersonators performing his greatest hits to an audience of dedicated fans. There are similar festivals held in Georgia, New York, Tennessee and other states.
Twins Day Festival
Site: Twinsburg, Ohio
Size: About 4,000 attendees
(Photo: Rick Gershon/Getty Images)
Dubbed the world's largest gathering of twins and multiples, the Twins Day Festival happens every summer. The northeast Ohio city of Twinsburg appropriately serves as the festival's site. All multiples are welcome including identical and fraternal twins, triplets and more, according to the event's website. The 2014 Twins Day Festival last weekend saw 1,887 sets of multiples, according to the official Facebook page.
Xena: Warrior Princess Convention
Site: Burbank, California
Although the final episode of "Xena: Warrior Princess" aired more than a decade ago, the show's loyal fans gather every year in California to celebrate its legacy. Awards are handed out for the best Xena costumes and the show's star Lucy Lawless has been known to make appearances. The Xena: Warrior Princess Convention is organized by Creation Entertainment, the same company that hosts similar conventions for fans of "Twilight" and "Star Trek."
Site: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Size: 5,861 attendees in 2014
(Photo: dmuth/Creative Commons)
Similar to BronyCon, Anthrocon's attendees are often dressed as cartoon animals. The convention's website claims their 2014 show broke all previous attendance records and included participants from 26 countries. The show, a must-go for any self-respecting furry since 1997, raised more than $32,000 for a selected charity this year.
International UFO Congress
Site: Scottsdale, Arizona
Likely Fox Mulder's favorite convention, the International UFO Congress invites renowned speakers and filmmakers to Arizona to speak before a captivated audience of believers. The event's site bills itself as the largest annual UFO conference in America. 2014's guests included George Noory, host of the nationally-syndicated supernatural radio show "Coast to Coast AM." Next year's event will be in February.
Lebowski Fest
Site: Various
(Photo: LebowskiFest.com)
Another annual gathering dedicated to fans of a cult classic, Lebowski Fest is conducted at least once a year in various cities across the U.S. and even in London. The show invites devotees to the 1998 film "The Big Lebowski" to dress as their favorite characters. Directed and written by Joel and Ethan Coen, the comedy was a moderate box office success but has become a sensation with hardcore fans. A documentary about the convention called "The Achievers" was made in 2013.
The Steampunk World's Fair
Site: Piscataway, New Jersey
The steampunk movement, a sub-genre of science fiction that celebrates steam-powered technology and stylized Victorian-era clothing, is celebrated every summer at this event in New Jersey. Tickets for the 2015 edition are on sale now at the Steampunk World's Fair website.
Follow this writer on Twitter @MrClintDavis.


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Valley Hill Fire & Rescue has launched a new campaign, "u TXT u DRV u Die," to alert drivers to the dangers of distracted driving.
"Using a cellphone while driving, whether it's handheld or hands-free, delays a driver's reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent," said Valley Hill Chief Tim Garren, who announced the initiative in a news release Monday evening.
Garren said teens make up the greatest proportion of distracted drivers. His department plans to reach out to every young adult driver in the Henderson County school system through the campaign.
Brochures and posters with statistics will be distributed to all Henderson County high schools this week, according to the release. The department has also deployed roadside banners at each of the department's four fire and rescue stations urging drivers to avoid the deadly distraction of texting while driving.
"Don't let us be the response to your text," the banners warn.
According to distraction.gov, text messaging requires visual, manual and cognitive attention from the driver, making it "the most alarming distraction." Statistics on the U.S. Department of Transportation-run site say that 11 percent of all drivers under the age of 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted at the time of the crash. For drivers 15-19 years old involved in fatal crashes, 21 percent of the drivers were distracted by the use of cellphones.
For more information on the "u TXT u DRV u Die" campaign, visit the department's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/valleyhillfire.
Valley Hill Fire & Rescue launches anti-texting campaign
Valley Hill Fire & Rescue has launched a new campaign, "u TXT u DRV u Die," to alert drivers to the dangers of distracted driving.


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The new My London Sticker Collection for 6-to-12 year olds is a great way to help kids enjoy London even more this summer.
The My London Sticker Collection offers children a fun way to discover more about London's landmarks, as well as creating a great "personalised" guide book with colourful pictures of the city.
Children can collect stickers of everything London; from famous sporting venues like Wembley Stadium and Lord's Cricket Ground to notable Londoners such as Charles Dickens and Winston Churchill.
The book, which costs just £1 from newsagents and shops like WH Smith, also contains "money-off vouchers" and exclusive deals and discounts for a variety of family activities including West End shows, the London Dungeon and the Houses of Parliament.


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10. MUSIC: Dawn Oberg: Rye
San Francisco-based singer-songwriter Dawn Oberg describes herself as "a 46-year-old, high-maintenance hussy." Oberg's R&B-influenced jazz has received accolades from Chicago to Nashville, but she's attached to the City by the Bay, which she sings about in her song "Civic High": "You're the place where it's OK/To be transgender bi or gay." Oberg's latest album, Rye, is out Tuesday (ChicagoPride.com calls it one of the best albums of the year) and she has two upcoming shows in Los Angeles.
9. BOOKS: Rapture Practice by Aaron Hartzler
Aaron Hartzler was the oldest of five children in a God-fearing home in Kansas City, Missouri. Rapture Practice is his entertaining memoir of teenage rebellion, reconciling with religion, and learning to love. At Amazon.
8. DVD: Sexy Evil Genius
Queer girls and gay geeks have crushed on Katee Sackhoff since she played Starbuck on Battlestar Gallactica. Since we have until June to catch the butchy babe on TV (as Vic, a deputy on A&E's Longmire), it's the perfect time to catch her latest films on Blu-ray or DVD. In Sexy Evil Genius, a group of men and one woman are curiously gathered by their shared ex-girlfriend, a madly unpredictable, wildly fascinating, possibly psychotic woman named Nikki (played by Sackhoff). As the exes—among them are Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Michelle Trachtenberg, Family Guy's Seth Green, and Zero Dark Thirty's Harold Perrineau — discuss Nikki and ponder why they've been gathered, Nikki shows up with her new squeeze and the real dramedy begins. It's dark, funny, and sexy. (And if that's not enough Sackhoff, she also stars in The Haunting of Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia, which will be out on Blu-ray/DVD Tuesday April 16, and is a worthy thriller throwback).
7. ART: "Paul Thek and His Circle in the 1950s"
Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art exhibits the groundbreaking early work of Paul Thek, a gay painter, sculptor, and installation artist who became famous in the 1960s for his "meat pieces," slabs of realistic-looking flesh encased in plastic. The earlier efforts showcased at Leslie-Lohman, however, are both sensitive and frankly sexual. The show also includes the work of friends and lovers who influenced and were influenced by Thek. There's an opening reception tonight at the New York City museum, and the exhibit continues through July 7.
6. EVENTS: Power of Pleasure at L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center
Lost that loving feeling? Lesbians over 50 can get it back again at the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center's "The Power of Pleasure" event with prominent love and sex therapist Dr. Ava Cadell of the Bravo show, L.A. Shrinks, Larry Flynt's daughter and sex toy expert Theresa Flynt, and health professor Dr. Karen Herold of California State University, Los Angeles. April 13 at 2 p.m. The Village at Ed Gould Plaza Davidson/Valentini Theatre.
5. TV: MTV Movie Awards
The 2013 MTV Movie Awards promise to be an irreverent celebration of the films, stars, and music that draw us to the theater year after year. And with the hilarious Rebel Wilson set to host the awards show live on Sunday at 9 p.m. ET/PT, we'll definitely be tuning in. In case Wilson alone weren't enough reason to watch (and she totally is), we're also waiting with bated breath for the first live reunion of the Pitch Perfect cast, slated to perform an epic musical mash-up. And then there's the first-ever three-way "Celebrity Catfish," where Joe Manganiello, Mark Whalberg, and Anna Kendrick are all vying for Rebel Wilson's love. Get an early taste of the catfish below:
4. THEATER: Re-Designing Women
The Golden Girls and Sex and the City have gotten the drag parody treatment, and now another beloved female ensemble sitcom, Designing Women, gets its turn. In Jamie Morris's script, directed by Andi Allen, Suzanne tries to save the financially strapped Sugarbaker and Associates design firm by allowing Bravo to film its daily activities for a reality TV series. Now playing at the Rose Room at S4 nightclub in Dallas, with performances weekends through May 19.
3. MUSIC: Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Mosquito
The big media story on the Yeah Yeah Yeahs is that the group recently ordered concertgoers to not hold up their phones and record a recent show in New York, seeing that it blocks views of other attendees. We applaud them for trying to put a dent in this annoying 21st-century practice, but many will still ignore the edict when the New York-based trio performs Friday night (and the follow week) at the Coachella music festival near Palm Springs, Calif. The group has a new album, Mosquito, out tomorrow, and if it's half as good as their previous efforts, it will still be amazing — lead singer/style icon Karen O describes Mosquito as the Yeah Yeah Yeah's "soul record." The video for the soulful lead single, "Sacrilege," even has a peek of lesbian action.
2. TV: Spartacus
Featuring an army of scantily clad, gorgeous gladiators, Spartacus easily caught the attention of LGBT fans from the first episode to the series finale tonight. We're not delving into spoilers by noting that the episode's title, "Victory," might be just the tiniest bit ironic. Spartacus (Liam McIntyre) and his band of rebels — including gay warriors Agron (Dan Feuerriegel) and Nasir (Pana Hema Taylor — know they face all-but-certain death as they square off against the massive legions of Roman soldiers. But that won't keep us from watching the nearly bare bloodbath, which airs tonight on Starz at 9 p.m.
1. EVENTS: Coachella, Weekend One, April 12-14, Indio, Calif.
Pack your Toms and fire up the ol' Instagram — it's another year of Coachella. Hipsters and music lovers are heading to the desert this year for Tegan & Sara, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Grinderman, Purity Ring, the Postal Service, Phoenix, the XX, Sigur Rós, Janelle Monae, La Roux, Vampire Weekend, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Wu-Tang Clan, and dozens of other bands. Advocate editors Neal Broverman and Michelle Garcia will be on the scene to keep you posted on Facebook and Twitter all weekend long. More info here.


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Topic: Disclaimer not working in control panel
==== Provide required information ====
- iRedMail version and backend (LDAP/MySQL/PGSQL):
- Linux/BSD distribution name and version:
- Any related log? Log is helpful for troubleshooting.
Hi zhang,
I have followed the below link to enable disclaimer message.
http://www.iredmail.org/forum/topic210- … mails.html
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Neonatal Isoerythrolysis in Foals
- Feb 1, 2012
- Topics:
Photo: Anne M. Eberhardt/The Horse
Neonatal isoerythrolysis (NI): This mouthful of a term literally means the destruction of a newborn foal's red blood cells. The debilitating condition, in which a mare's antibodies attack her foal's red blood cells, can be lethal for a foal due to the resulting liver damage and other problems. The pregnancy might appear completely normal, without complication: a happy mare swelling larger with foal each day. But the foal's blood type could be incompatible with his dam's antibodies when they mix during the foal's first meal (colostrum).
The dam's antibodies do not affect the fetus in utero because they are too large to slip through the placental barrier. However, for the final three weeks of gestation, the mare concentrates antibodies she's developed via natural exposure to diseases, from vaccination, or by other means, in her colostrum. Consuming this antibody-rich meal generally would provide a foal with good protection against any disease he might encounter, but with NI it can be deadly.
Since the foal's ability to absorb antibodies into his bloodstream and lymphatic system is greatest during the first few hours of life--then gradually diminishes as the intestinal lining closes--he is most at risk of developing NI the first day. After his intestine can no longer absorb antibodies, and after the mare's regular milk comes in, it's safe for him to drink her milk.
Possible Causes
If a foal inherits a blood type or components from his sire that don't match the mare's, and if these reach her bloodstream, her immune system considers the foal's red blood cells "foreign." In such a case she creates antibodies against them. Or, if there's abnormal blood transfer between dam and fetus (such as placental hemorrhage during pregnancy), the mare is exposed to the foal's red blood cell antigens, triggering her immune system to attack and destroy them and priming her system to release targeted antibodies in the colostrum.
Other ways a mare might become exposed to a blood type different than her own is if she were treated with blood or blood-based products, according to Kristina Lu, VMD, Dipl. ACT, theriogenologist at Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, in Lexington, Ky. "If the mare received a blood transfusion at some point, she could become exposed," she explains. "If you purchased the mare you may not know her medical history."
Yet another circumstance in which the mare might become exposed to a foal's blood type is during foaling--if blood from the foal/placenta accesses her bloodstream (for example, birthing trauma). This would not affect that particular foal, but the mare could develop antibodies that might affect her next foal.
Nathan Slovis, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, an internist at Hagyard, says NI foals can occur in any breed but Thoroughbreds, along with Standardbreds, Paints, Quarter Horses, and donkeys, seem to be more affected than other breeds. "Mule foals have higher incidence due to what we call 'donkey factor' (a difference in blood types between horses and donkeys)," he says.
It's important to have a veterinarian examine each foal within 12-24 hours after birth. "Not only do we take a blood sample and measure antibody levels (to see if the foal received adequate disease protection from the dam via passive transfer), but we can do a red blood cell count," says Slovis. "This gives a clue if the foal has a problem with NI, and you can catch it early."
Testing the Mare
Veterinarians can draw blood from the mare during the last two to four weeks of gestation to help determine whether she is at risk for delivering an NI-affected foal. They test it for antibodies that indicate to what blood types she's been exposed.
"We generally don't know the stallion's blood type, but the blood types commonly involved (against which the mare would develop antibodies) are Aa and Qa." says Lu.
Slovis says there are more than 10 blood types, and the screening test only checks for antibodies against the four most common. "So if you get a negative test this doesn't mean your foal is safe; it just means there's low risk," he explains.
When presented with a high-risk foal, "We manage that foal (often with a nylon muzzle) to make sure he does not nurse the mare," says Lu. "We provide colostrum from mares that don't have dangerous antibodies. At Hagyard we have a colostrum bank. People donate colostrum from mares that are NI negative (after testing). Or you can give a colostrum substitute, but mare colostrum is best for the foal."
After milking the mare frequently for 12-24 hours, the veterinarian performs another test to ensure there are no more harmful antibodies present in the mare's colostrum and that it is safe for the foal to begin nursing. The testing should be repeated if antibodies are still present at high levels.
Testing the Foal
Another test to help determine whether precautionary management is needed, or if it's safe to let the foal nurse, is a jaundiced foal agglutination (JFA) test. This involves mixing a sample of the foal's blood with a sample of the mare's colostrum. "If there are many antibodies against the foal's red cells, this mix will clot at a certain ratio, creating clumps," Lu says. "If clotting ratio is 1 to 16 or higher, this is considered positive, and the foal should not ingest that colostrum."
If the foal is a few days old, however, this test is ineffective, as the mare no longer is producing colostrum. "At that point you could do a Coombs test (an antiglobulin test to detect antibodies bound to the surface of red blood cells)," Slovis suggests. "It's not specific for NI but can tell you whether there are antibodies in the foal's blood against his red blood cells."
Todd Bettin, DVM, of Breda Lake View Veterinary Services, in Lake View, Iowa, says veterinarians or foaling personnel can also perform a simple test right in the stall, immediately after the foal is born, to get a rough idea whether the mare's colostrum is safe. This test, however, should only aid in detecting very severe cases if the other tests are not an option.
"Collect a drop of blood as the foal's umbilical cord breaks and mix it with a drop of colostrum from the mare, on any clean surface or a glass slide," he says. "If the mixture clumps (clotting of the foal's red blood cells, as with the JFA test) this means there's an incompatibility. If the mixture remains creamy pink, it's probably safe for the foal to nurse the colostrum."
Clinical Signs
Neonatal isoerythrolysis can occur in varying degrees of severity. "You may see signs as early as 12 hours of age or four or five days later," Slovis explains. "It depends on the type of antibody and how much the foal ingested. He may just seem lethargic, but some foals suddenly collapse when they're only 12 hours old if they're short on oxygen. They may have kidney failure or liver disease because there's not enough oxygen getting to these vital organs."
"If the mare has only a few antibodies in her colostrum it might take longer for the foal to show signs, and they may be mild," says Lu. "It is important to have an accurate diagnosis. Other conditions that cause weakness and lethargy include sepsis from bacterial infection (of the bloodstream) and depression associated with dummy foal syndrome (perinatal asphyxia syndrome, from inadequate oxygen supply at/around the time of birth)."
Red blood cell breakdown can trigger a fever response, which, according to Peggy Marsh, DVM, a practitioner in Lexington, Ky., can confuse a diagnosis. Hence, it's important to consult with a veterinarian right away if your foal develops a fever.
Another sign is jaundice, which is why the condition is often dubbed foal jaundice. When red blood cells are destroyed they produce bilirubin. This pigment is carried around the body by the blood, causing gums, whites of the eyes, and other mucous membranes to appear yellow. "It can also make the brain yellow and disrupt normal nerve conduction if neurons die," Slovis explains. "The foal may go into seizures and die if the brain is not functioning properly."
Foals with NI should be hospitalized for treatment as soon as possible because, as mentioned, red blood cell breakdown products can affect their kidneys and brain. In severe cases foals become very anemic, as there are no longer enough healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen around the body. "Normally a foal might have a packed cell volume (hematocrit) of 30% or higher," says Marsh. "Some of these anemic foals have a value of less than 10%. That's when we become very concerned, and a blood transfusion may be needed."
Often the best donor for a blood transfusion is a gelding with no history of transfusions or treatment with blood-based products. Some equine hospitals keep geldings on hand as universal blood donors. "It's simple and fast," says Bettin. "We put the donor in the stocks, fill a collection bag with blood, and hang it on the foal."
Another option is to use the mare's blood to obtain red blood cells, but these must be separated from the plasma that contains antibodies. "It takes more time and labor than a transfusion," says Lu. "Other aspects of treatment are supportive, such as treating anemia, turning off the foal's immune system (with steroids) because it's fighting the antibodies, and possibly using antibiotics because he is vulnerable to sepsis from other sources. If the foal becomes sick he also needs fluids."
Prognosis for an NI foal depends on the severity of his condition and the speed of diagnosis and treatment. According to Slovis, retrospective studies show that about 75% of sick NI foals that come to a hospital survive. "Those are the severe cases, however, so overall survival rates are better," he adds.
Many NI foals just need time and medication to help control their fever and prevent infection. "Most will recover, with time and careful transfusions. But some don't do well," Marsh says. "We don't know whether the antibody is different and more deadly, or more long-lasting. Even if we give these foals transfusions, and no matter how carefully we cross-match blood, the antibodies tend to destroy those red blood cells, too. After a while the liver can't keep up with processing and excreting broken-down red cells, and is overwhelmed--and the foal gets liver damage. Some foals we can't save despite intensive care."
Take-Home Message
Prevention is the key to avoiding NI in foals, as owners and veterinarians can screen for disease potential prior to foaling. Another (less common) option is to blood type breeding horses to avoid breeding a mare to a stallion with a blood type that might lead to NI. If your mare has risk factors for producing a foal with NI, consult your veterinarian and take appropriate precautions to ensure arrival of a healthy foal.
About the Author
Heather Smith Thomas
Heather Smith Thomas ranches with her husband near Salmon, Idaho, raising cattle and a few horses. She has a B.A. in English and history from University of Puget Sound (1966). She has raised and trained horses for 50 years, and has been writing freelance articles and books nearly that long, publishing 20 books and more than 9,000 articles for horse and livestock publications. Some of her books include Understanding Equine Hoof Care, The Horse Conformation Handbook, Care and Management of Horses, Storey's Guide to Raising Horses and Storey's Guide to Training Horses. Besides having her own blog, www.heathersmiththomas.blogspot.com, she writes a biweekly blog at http://insidestorey.blogspot.com that comes out on Tuesdays.
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