text:
(NNPA)—Let me make a "pitch" (pun intended) for Black sports agents. Watching the NBA playoffs and finals was more than an exercise in pulling for my favorite teams; it was also a very frustrating experience for me because I tend to look at most things from an economic perspective.
While Black athletes dominate football and basketball, and have a major presence in baseball, relatively few of them hire Black attorneys, accountants, and agents, thereby, putting as much as 5 percent of their contract amount into someone else's economy.
For years now, we have seen this intriguing phenomenon. In 1995, Black Enterprise magazine ran an article titled "MVPs," that shed light on this subject R. David Ware, noted for negotiating the largest non-quarterback (Barry Sanders) contract in the NFL, voiced his frustration about the situation this way: "It is so disheartening that so few African-Americans are given the opportunity to represent African-American players… they wear Kente cloth and talk about pride in their heritage, but when it comes to business affairs, they don't use African-American lawyers, agents, or accountants."
You would think African-American college graduates would know better. But, in my opinion, they lack a consciousness that would have them act otherwise, and many have virtually no knowledge, or interest for that matter, in Black business history and the role they play in this nation's economic system. They are noted more for their shoe, soft drink, and fast food commercials, rather than their commitments to conscious capitalism. They have become fashion icons instead of paragons of Black empowerment. My suggestion to one of my students who played basketball at the University of Cincinnati was to develop a relationship with a fellow student who was majoring in finance, law, or business, and hire that person as an agent when he turned professional.
Let me pause here and say, I am not using a broad brush to paint all Black athletes (and entertainers). I know many of them are doing very positive things when it comes to supporting African-American business persons and causes. In addition, far be it from me to dictate to anyone how to spend their money. So, please, as you read this, just take it as a recommendation for economic empowerment for Black people.


text:
For all the doomful foreboding, the oddly named sequester cuts scheduled to take effect Friday would take weeks, at least, before really hitting Orange County and the rest of the nation. Some of the cuts would not materialize for months, giving Congress and President Barack Obama plenty of time to strike a deal after the March 1 deadline and limit what some say could be substantial fallout.
Jitters on Wall Street and international markets – and a lapse in employers' hiring confidence – could be felt before the government cuts themselves, although opinions vary on how much the sequestration would impinge on the economy.
Government moves more slowly than traders and employers, and that bureaucratic principle applies to the $85 billion in automatic sequester cuts.
If no deal is reached to sidestep the hatchet's fall by Friday, the Treasury Department is scheduled to immediately trim subsidies for local infrastructure, school construction and clean energy, among other projects. But the first pain to be felt directly by individuals is not expected until late March, when those who've been out of work form more than six months could begin receiving unemployment checks 11 percent smaller than they've grown accustomed to.
As for furloughs to the civilian work force of the Defense Department and to airport-related employees, officials would begin on Friday to hand out 30-day notices. At the beginning of April, furloughed workers would begin taking a maximum of two days off per pay period. Cuts to education funding would not affect teachers until after the spring session.
– Martin Wisckol
Here are some of the more critical areas of cuts and what their effect would be in Orange County.
Airline travelers likely would experience even more delays than usual both in security screening and in the air if sequestration takes effect, but the problem probably wouldn't be felt until April 1, after furlough notices go out, U.S. transportation and homeland security officials said.
The Department of Transportation would have to cut nearly $1 billion from its budget, with $600 million coming from the Federal Aviation Administration and the air traffic control system, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told reporters at a briefing this week.
He said nearly 47,000 FAA employees would be furloughed one day per pay period and, in some cases, two days. John Wayne Airport's tower would not be closed, but staffing could be reduced.
"Flights to major cities like New York, Chicago and San Francisco and others could experience delays of up to 90 minutes during peak hours because we have fewer controllers on staff," LaHood said. "Delays in these major airports will ripple across the country."
Airport travelers can also expect longer lines for security screening. International passengers may have even longer waits to clear customs.
"At the major international airports, we will be limited in accepting new international flights and average wait times to clear customs will increase by as much as 50 percent," said Janet Napolitano, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. "And at our busiest airports like Newark and JFK, LAX and O'Hare, peak wait times, which can reach over two hours, could easily grow to four hours or more."
Since John Wayne Airport pays a fee for customs service, passengers on the airport's Mexican flights should not be delayed clearing customs, said Jenny Wedge, airport spokeswoman.
– Mary Ann Milbourn
Unemployment and job training
Sequestration would cut $3.3 million in job-search assistance and training affecting an estimated 129,770 people statewide, according to the White House.
Still unclear is the impact on extended unemployment benefits. The long-term unemployed in California are currently eligible for up to 73 weeks of aid, 47 weeks of which are so-called extended benefits funded by the federal government.
The standard first 26 weeks of unemployment paid for by the state would remain in effect, said Loree Levy, a spokeswoman for the state Employment Development Department. The White House said federal benefits, however, could be cut by as much as 11 percent.
Levy said an estimated 460,000 of the 850,000 Californians currently collecting unemployment could be affected by a cut in extended federal benefits.
California, however, has yet to be notified what if any cuts would take place and how they would be implemented, so Levy said the immediate effect on those collecting unemployment is not known.
The state unemployment rate was 9.8 percent in December, the most recent data available. That was third highest in the country after Nevada and Rhode Island at 10.2 percent. Orange County's unemployment rate was 6.8 percent.
– Mary Ann Milbourn
ICE detainees
An undisclosed number of immigration detainees are being released from federal detention centers across the country in advance of possible budget cuts, but local officials said immigrants housed at Orange County facilities are considered serious criminal offenders and will not be discharged.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has contracts to house long-term immigration detainees at four locations in the greater Los Angeles area, including the Theo Lacy, James A. Musick and Santa Ana jails.
Virginia Kice, an ICE spokeswoman, said the agency is not providing "localized statistics for releases."
ICE officials said priority for detention remains on serious criminal offenders and others who pose a significant threat to public safety. Kice said detainees who are being released will remain subject to ongoing supervision whether through electronic monitoring or telephone reporting.
As of Wednesday, there were 373 immigration detainees at Theo Lacy in Orange, and 317 at the James A. Musick facility near Irvine, said Orange County Sheriff's Department spokesman Jim Amormino.
The Sheriff's Department has leased out beds for immigration detainees since 2009, helping the department stave off cuts to personnel and resources. On average, the department has received about $25 million per year from the federal agency for housing the detainees.
– Alejandra Molina
Though cuts to Orange County schools likely would not take place until July, school districts must give layoff notices to certified employees by March 15, officials said. Most of the cuts are marked for special education and Title 1 programs, which provide help to failing students and students from impoverished families.
"Districts are making contingency plans," said Orange County Superintendent of Schools Al Mijares. "Children or students who are probably the most needy will be affected the greatest."
The Orange County Department of Education is preparing for cuts ranging from 5.1 percent to 8.2 percent of the county education budget – $13.1 million to $21.1 million.
Santa Ana Unified School District, the largest in the county, stands to lose the most at up to $3.9 million if cuts reach 8.2 percent, Mijares said. The federal Department of Education estimated a 5 percent reduction to Title 1 funds, putting Santa Ana Unified's loss at $1.6 million.
District budgets already are devastated from cuts over the last several years, Mijares said.
"They've had to gut many important programs and services for students. The margins the districts have are razor thin. There's no way to absorb a cut like this other than to feel the full effect of the cut," he said.
In addition, Head Start and Early Head Start programs would be eliminated, affecting about 8,200 children in California, the White House stated.
– Elysse James
Orange County receives about $175 million a year in federal transportation funds – money that pays for highway projects, transit service, even bus parts. The Orange County Transportation Authority, which administers those programs, expects the sequestration cuts to have no impact at all.
That's because its federal funding comes from the national Highway Trust Fund, spokeswoman Laura Scheper said.
The fund once paid to build the interstate highway system and now finances highway projects, maintenance and mass transit. It gets its money from an 18.4-cent tax on every gallon of gasoline; at last count, it had a balance of more than $11.5 billion.
And, through a twist of law, that money appears to be exempt from the sequestration cuts, according to a 2012 analysis by Senate Republicans on the Committee on the Budget. Previous budget bills specifically removed the Highway Trust Fund from such cuts, and the sequester falls back on those earlier bills, carrying forward those exemptions.
White House budget officers also did not include the Highway Trust Fund in their estimate of where sequester money would come from. But they and others have said that some other transportation programs that don't fall under the trust fund would face immediate cuts.
For Orange County, that means Amtrak. Its Pacific Surfliner trains make a dozen round trips through the county every day. The sequester could eliminate $131 million in its operations, capital and safety budgets, according to estimates from the White House Office of Management and Budget. It's not clear how those cuts would affect service in Orange County.
It also wasn't immediately clear whether the cuts would affect Metrolink, the commuter rail agency whose trains also run through Orange County. An agency spokesman said Metrolink was looking into any possible impact.
– Doug Irving
Forest Service
"We don't really have any idea yet what the impact of sequestration would be for the Forest Service," said District Ranger Keith Fletcher, who oversees the local section of the Cleveland National Forest.
There's been talk of potential furloughs, with employees forced to take one day off every week or every two starting in April or May, he said. That could mean less staff to help keep recreation areas clean or less fire protection coverage on some days.
If the cuts are deep enough, there's a chance campgrounds, trailheads and picnic areas in the area could be temporarily shut down, according to Fletcher. However, he said it's tough to even speculate and they'll know more sometime after Friday.
– Brooke Edwards Staggs
Health Care
Medicare payments to medical providers would be reduced by 2 percent under the sequester, adding to the worries of Orange County doctors and hospital administrators who already are facing looming cuts in reimbursement for their services under the Affordable Care Act. However, they have some breathing room thanks to a provision in the sequester law that delays Medicare cuts for a month.
"We have until April 1, and we all are hoping that Congress will come to its senses and put together a package that makes sense. So I don't think anyone is overly concerned about it right now," said Bart Asner, CEO of Monarch HealthCare, an Irvine-based medical group with about 190,000 patients under its care. His sentiments were echoed by officials at some of Orange County's biggest hospitals.
Federal funds for MediCal, the state's health program for the poor, would be spared any cuts under the sequester, as would the Children's Health Insurance Program, which is intended for families who have incomes too high for MediCal but can't afford private coverage.
However, more immediate cuts in other health-related spending could have an impact on the county. A $1.1 million cut in funding for vaccinations could leave 15,810 children in California without the immunizations they should have. A $2 million cut in AIDS funding statewide is expected to result in 49,000 fewer HIV tests, according to the Obama administration.
The White House warned that California also would lose $2.6 million in federal funding to respond to public health threats, including infectious diseases, biological or chemical attacks and nuclear events. It said other cuts could end treatment for nearly 400,000 mentally ill Californians, jeopardize care at drug abuse clinics, and hit up to 12,000 medical researchers working on treatments for a variety of illnesses.
– Bernard J. Wolfson
County government
Frank Kim, Orange County's budget director, said he's not sure exactly how sequestration could affect county government programs, but added, "I'm nervous in any areas that receive any federal money."
Among vulnerable programs are low-income housing and the county's Social Services Agency, which has estimated it could lose $279,000 for various children's programs.
Kim also is worried about $3 million from a federal program, the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program, that reimburses the county for incarcerating undocumented criminal immigrants.
– Andrew Galvin
Capt. Barry Edwards at Camp Pendleton said that possibly as many as 4,677 civilian personnel working at Camp Pendleton, Twentynine Palms, MCAS Miramar and Marine Corps Air Station San Diego could face cuts.
"As for the effects of sequestration, it would be speculation to comment on what would take place as it has not been implemented," he said. "In addition, it would be at least a month after sequestration took place in order to better gauge how it affects Marine Corps Installations West."
The White House predicts as many as 65,000 civilian Defense Department workers would be put on furlough in California, potentially affecting dozens of programs and searches.
– Erika I. Ritchie and Mary Ann Milbourn
The New York Times contributed to this report.

subset: commoncrawl


text: Hi Mikhail, I'd say they're ok for black box 32 bits calculations that can do with a GB or 2 RAM, other than that they're just luxurious electric heating. Vincent p.s. if you ask me, honestely, 250 watt or so for latest gpu is really too much. IMHO cpu's as well as gpu's should budget themselves more to a few tens of watts at most. Say 50 watt for the high end models. On Aug 23, 2008, at 10:31 PM, Mikhail Kuzminsky wrote: > BTW, why GPGPUs are considered as vector systems ? > Taking into account that GPGPUs contain many (equal) execution units, > I think it might be not SIMD, but SPMD model. Or it depends from > the software tools used (CUDA etc) ? > > Mikhail Kuzminsky > Computer Assistance to Chemical Research Center > Zelinsky Institute of Organic Chemistry > Moscow > _______________________________________________ > Beowulf mailing list, Beowulf at beowulf.org > To change your subscription (digest mode or unsubscribe) visit > http://www.beowulf.org/mailman/listinfo/beowulf >


text:
How to use USB device networking
The Linux USB gadget sub-system supports USB device functionality, including USB networking.
- 1 Configure hardware for USB OTG or USB device support
- 2 Build USB Ethernet network gadget driver
- 3 Load USB Ethernet network gadget driver
- 4 Connect device to host PC
- 5 Assigning IP addresses
- 6 Verifying network connectivity
- 7 Bridging host PC to allow device to reach the Internet
- 8 Configuring a DNS name server
- 9 Mounting NFS file system
- 10 Debugging and resolving common errors
Configure hardware for USB OTG or USB device support
Depending on your hardware, you can use either USB OTG or USB device to enable support for USB networking.
Build USB Ethernet network gadget driver
The USB Ethernet network gadget driver caused the device to appear to be a USB network dongle when connected to a host computer. Generally it is best to build USB gadget drivers as modules instead of building them into the kernel so you can unload one and load another.
Symbol: USB_ETH [=m] Prompt: Ethernet Gadget (with CDC Ethernet support) Defined at drivers/usb/gadget/Kconfig:628 Depends on: <choice> && NET Location: -> Kernel configuration -> Device Drivers -> USB support (USB_SUPPORT [=y]) -> USB Gadget Support (USB_GADGET [=y]) -> USB Gadget Drivers (<choice> [=m])
If you want the target to mount a host PC directory using NFS, then also enable NFS mount support in busybox:
Symbol: FEATURE_MOUNT_NFS [=n] Prompt: Support mounting NFS file systems Defined at util-linux/Config.in:549 Depends on: FS_APPS_BUSYBOX && MOUNT Location: -> File System Configuration -> Select target's file system software -> busybox-1.18.2 (FS_APPS_BUSYBOX [=y]) -> Busybox configuration -> Linux System Utilities -> mount (MOUNT [=y]) Selects: FEATURE_HAVE_RPC && FEATURE_SYSLOG
Build the SDK and install the new images to the target hardware.
Load USB Ethernet network gadget driver
After booting the target hardware to a shell prompt, run:
modprobe g_ether
and you should see output similar to:
g_ether gadget: using random self ethernet address g_ether gadget: using random host ethernet address usb0: MAC be:b5:85:ef:48:33 usb0: HOST MAC 1a:b2:c3:43:8a:6e g_ether gadget: Ethernet Gadget, version: Memorial Day 2008 g_ether gadget: g_ether ready
You can then verify the usb0 network interface exists:
ifconfig usb0
with output similar to:
usb0 Link encap:Ethernet HWaddr BE:B5:85:EF:48:33 BROADCAST MULTICAST MTU:1500 Metric:1 RX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0 TX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0 collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000 RX bytes:0 (0.0 B) TX bytes:0 (0.0 B)
Connect device to host PC
Before connecting the target device to the host PC, watch the syslog, by running the following command on the host PC:
sudo tail -f /var/log/messages
Connect the USB cable between the target device and the host PC. The messages file on the host PC should indicate the new USB device was detected.
Jun 6 10:15:29 contra-lx kernel: [1638241.377831] usb 1-4.4.2: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 47 Jun 6 10:15:29 contra-lx kernel: [1638241.510787] cdc_subset: probe of 1-4.4.2:1.0 failed with error -22 Jun 6 10:15:29 contra-lx kernel: [1638241.513437] cdc_subset 1-4.4.2:1.1: usb0: register 'cdc_subset' at usb-0000:00:02.1-4.4.2, Linux Device, 82:13:56:20:b4:cb Jun 6 10:15:29 contra-lx kernel: [1638241.513490] usbcore: registered new interface driver cdc_subset Jun 6 10:15:29 contra-lx kernel: [1638241.533442] cdc_ether: probe of 1-4.4.2:1.0 failed with error -16 Jun 6 10:15:29 contra-lx kernel: [1638241.533619] usbcore: registered new interface driver cdc_ether
On the host you can verify the new usb0 interface exists by running:
ifconfig usb0
with the output being similar to:
usb0 Link encap:Ethernet HWaddr 82:13:56:20:b4:cb inet6 addr: fe80::8013:56ff:fe20:b4cb/64 Scope:Link UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST MTU:1500 Metric:1 RX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0 TX packets:1 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0 collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000 RX bytes:0 (0.0 B) TX bytes:78 (78.0 B)
When you connect the cable, in the target device console, you should see:
g_ether gadget: high speed config #1: CDC Ethernet (ECM)
Assigning IP addresses
For this simple example, fixed IP addresses are assigned to the both the host PC USB network interface and the target device USB network interface.
On the host
HOST_USB_IP=10.0.1.1 sudo ifconfig usb0 $HOST_USB_IP netmask 255.255.255.0 route
with an entry from the route output that looks like
Kernel IP routing table Destination Gateway Genmask Flags Metric Ref Use Iface 10.0.1.0 * 255.255.255.0 U 0 0 0 usb0 ... link-local * 255.255.0.0 U 1000 0 0 eth0 default gw 0.0.0.0 UG 100 0 0 eth0
On the target device
HOST_USB_IP=10.0.1.1 TARGET_USB_IP=10.0.1.2 ifconfig usb0 $TARGET_USB_IP netmask 255.255.255.0 route add default gw $HOST_USB_IP route
with the route showing the default gateway is using usb0
Kernel IP routing table Destination Gateway Genmask Flags Metric Ref Use Iface 10.0.1.0 * 255.255.255.0 U 0 0 0 usb0 default 10.0.1.1 0.0.0.0 UG 0 0 0 usb0
Verifying network connectivity
On the target device, ping the host PC:
ping -c 5 10.0.1.1
On the host PC, verify the number of packet sent and received is not zero
ifconfig usb0
Look at the values of RX packets: and TX packets:.
Bridging host PC to allow device to reach the Internet
If your host PC is connected to the Internet (through WiFi or Ethernet), then you can allow the target device to share the host PC's Internet connection. The following shows how to enable, test, and disable. It only works if your host PC doesn't have a firewall enable. There is a lot of information on how the Internet giving more detailed explanation.
On the host PC:
echo 1 | sudo tee /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_forward > /dev/null sudo iptables -P FORWARD ACCEPT sudo iptables -A POSTROUTING -t nat -j MASQUERADE -s 10.0.1.0/24
And then for reasons I don't fully undestand, I had to configure usb0 on the host again:
HOST_USB_IP=10.0.1.1 sudo ifconfig usb0 $HOST_USB_IP netmask 255.255.255.0 route
On the target device:
ping -c 5 22.214.171.124 # This is Google's domain name server
To disable forwarding network packets on your host PC:
echo 0 | sudo tee /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_forward > /dev/null sudo iptables -t nat -F POSTROUTING
Configuring a DNS name server
If you need to resolve DNS names, you can configure your target hardware to use Google's DNS server via:
echo "nameserver 220.127.116.11" >> /etc/resolv.conf
and you can test that names get resolved by pinging some computer on the Internet:
ping -c 5 google.com
Mounting NFS file system
If you have already enabled NFS share of your development directory target file system, $DEVDIR/fs/fs, then you can easily mount the file system on the target. This is different than a root NFS mount. With a root NFS mount, networking has to be available when the kernel is booting. With a normal (non root file system) NFS mount, you are simply mounting a shared directory somewhere in the target device's file system.
First verify you build the target file system kernel with NFS enabled:
fgrep nfs /proc/filesystems
with expected output
nodev nfs
Mount host file system on target:
HOST_USB_IP=10.0.1.1 HOST_NFS_SHARE_DIR=/local/home/tfischer/work/sdk/fs/fs mkdir /tmp/nfs mount -t nfs -n -o nolock,rsize=1024,wsize=1024 $HOST_USB_IP:$HOST_NFS_SHARE_DIR /tmp/nfs
Debugging and resolving common errors
Wireshark is your friend. Run wireshark on your host PC monitoring the usb0 interface and you don't need any packet filters. If something isn't working, you will see the last packet that was sent and not responded to. That will give you a big hint as to where to start looking for the problem.
sudo apt-get install wireshark sudo wireshark -k -i usb0 &
NFS mount failed reason given by server: Permission denied
If you see a message like
mount: 10.0.1.1:/local/home/tfischer/work/sdk/fs/fs failed, reason given by server: Permission denied mount: mounting 10.0.1.1:/local/home/tfischer/work/sdk/fs/fs on /tmp/nfs failed: Bad file descriptor
and you know you have root NFS working, the cause is due to a different sub-LAN address being used. On your host PC, you need to make sure the 10.0.1.* sub-LAN is exported. Run the following commands to export you home directory to all computers on this sub-LAN:
echo "$HOME 10.0.1.0/24 (rw,no_root_squash,no_subtree_check)" | sudo tee -a /etc/exports > /dev/null sudo exportfs -a


text:
Leather Lotion 6oz.
- Color: Select Color
- Size: Select Size
Rockport® Leather Lotion is specially formulated to gently moisturize your fine leather shoes. This creamy lotion adds extra moisture to help prevent drying, cracking and scuffing. The most harmful thing for leather is dryness. With regular application, you can prevent this problem and prolong the life of the leather shoe. Leather Lotion is safe to use on smooth and patent leather. Do not use on suede, nubuck or oiled leather. On heavily soiled leather, first clean with Rockport® Cleaner & Conditioner. After applying Rockport® Leather Lotion, protect the leather with Rockport® Rain & Stain Repellent.


text:
Nearly 2,000 years ago, back when the Romans were still walking around in bathrobes and sandals, conquering and plundering and doing their best to spread the gospel of bathrobes and sandals to the rest of the known world, the emperor Marcus Aurelius paused in his relentless empire-ing long enough to observe: "I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself more than all the rest of men, but yet sets less value on his own opinion of himself than on the opinion of others."
They may not have had Twitter or Internet forums back then (instead they settled for actual physical forums), but if the good emperor were alive today, I have to think he'd find humanity much the same as he left it. We're still very concerned with what others think, still pretending that we aren't, and still powerless to do much about it.
This seems especially true for pro fighters, who – almost as a condition of their employment – have to concern themselves with what people think of them, even if what those people think is often far out of their control.
Fighters are just like the rest of us in that they can decide what to say, how to act, and which version of themselves to present to the world, but they don't get to decide how that person is perceived. None of us do. It's just that, when you do your job inside a cage and on TV, there's a lot more perceiving going on. It's easy to take Aurelius's advice when "the opinion of others" represents a limited group consisting only of a dozen coworkers and the jerks on your flag-football team. When it's an audience of millions, and when there are serious financial consequences, it gets a lot tougher.
This is the case not just for the fighters who make themselves into profitable villains, but also for guys like Brian Stann, who look around one day and find themselves stuck in a certain mold that they can't get out of. For Stann, it's the military stuff that keeps coming up in every interview. People want to hear about his time in the Marines. They want to hear the war stories. They've already heard them, of course, which is why they're asking in the first place, but now they want their own version that they can trade for page views or ratings.
For a long time, Stann went along with it. As a WEC fighter who didn't think he'd even get to hang around as a pro fighter for very long, he didn't feel like he had much choice, as he told me in a phone interview this week.
"Because I first came to the attention of the media in a growing organization on a new channel that they were trying to drive viewers to, they were going to exploit my story, and they were going to throw it in people's faces quite often, even though I had a limited skill set," Stann told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "I think that pigeonholed me for quite some time."
Stann found himself limited in terms of not only what people wanted to talk to him about – and just see how many times you can be asked to relive painful, horrifying memories before you get a little sick of it – but also in how they saw him. It became a struggle to be seen as anything other than "a robotic Marine," he said.
Any story about him on any website seemed guarantee to spark a virulent debate over American foreign policy in the comments section. Even when he banned himself from even glancing at reader comments, he still had friends and family who somehow thought it was a good idea to alert him when he was being blamed for everything from the invasion of Iraq to civilian deaths in Afghanistan. It wasn't that he wanted to have his whole life and fighting career viewed through the prism of his military experience, but "all we can do is answer the questions that the media asks us," he said. "In my situation, it just seems like a lot of the same stuff kept coming up."
And that's the problem for any fighter once the public-opinion snowball starts rolling downhill. The perception fuels the interview questions and the stories, and the interviews and stories then add to the perception. With Stann's impending middleweight bout against Michael Bisping at UFC 152, he knows he has weeks of questions about his military service still ahead of him, just like Bisping knows he'll hear the same questions about what it feels like to get booed by American audiences every time he shows up at a UFC event. ("He's earned that," Stann said of Bisping's reputation as an MMA villain. "He knows what he's doing")
But even those who are knowingly playing to the perceptions didn't all start out that way. I remember, before his title fight with Georges St-Pierre at UFC 124, Josh Koscheck told me that he was shocked the first time he went to a UFC event after his stint on the first season of "The Ultimate Fighter." As soon as they showed his face on the arena's big screen, the place erupted in boos.
"Dana came over and said, 'Congratulations, they're booing you,'" Koscheck said. "I said, 'That's something to be congratulated for?' And he goes, 'If they were silent as a church mouse, then we'd have a problem.' I thought, good point, Dana. So I went with it, and here I am five or six years later, and I'm still in the UFC and about to fight for a title, so I must be doing something right."
In that sense, being pigeonholed, or at least learning to live with it, is in the fighter's job description. They offer themselves up in the court of public opinion, and they have to take whatever comes their way. Sometimes, as in Stann's case, it's not exactly what they hoped for.
"It does happen. It's part of the job, and we can't change that," Stann said. There have been plenty of times when he's seen it happen to other fighters too, sometimes even teammates, and sometimes when he knows that the public perception of them is entirely inaccurate, "but I won't say that's unfair," he added.
"I might say it's unwarranted or unjustified, but that's the price we pay," Stann said. "We're very fortunate. … If you don't want to be scrutinized under a microscope, don't be a professional athlete. Don't be an actor. Don't be anything in the entertainment industry. But we are, so I wouldn't say it's unfair because that comes with the territory."
Then again, it's still relatively easy for Stann to say. Being asked over and over again what it's like to be a war hero probably isn't the worst fate a pro fighter could suffer. When fans simply decide they hate you, even if they can't articulate a reason why, it's a different story. Sometimes fight fans will base a decision on a guy on one performance, one throwaway line in an interview, one criticism from one former training partner. Sometimes they just don't like the look on a guy's face.
That's not so different from what anybody goes through. None of us can control what other people think of us, even if we keep trying, in ways both big and small. It's hard enough for your average person to reconcile if one stranger decides to hate him. Multiply that by millions, and it has the potential to drive you crazy, if you let it.
But then, as Stann pointed out, "Opinions change so quickly. People will be down on this guy one minute, then something happens, and they view him differently. Look at Chael Sonnen."
Better look fast, before the winds shift again. Those in the public eye may not get to choose which way the breezes blow, but they do get to decide whether they lean with them or against them. The latter seems more likely to prove futile in the end while the former might take you somewhere you never wanted to go.
Maybe the best thing you can do is follow the emperor's example and learn to listen to the one voice within while ignoring all the ones without. It's easier said than done, though. Because really, the problem with other people isn't just that you have no control over what they think of you. It's also that, no matter how wrong you tell yourself they are, there are always so many more of them than there are of you.
(Pictured: Brian Stann)


text:
adidas Big Logo Zip-Up Hooded SweatshirtThe Big Logo sweatshirt is designed with a zip-up closure, two hand pockets, and a drawstring hood. It is made out of 70% cotton and 30% polyester and has a custom adidas stitched patch logo on the left wrist.
Sorry, this product is currently not in stock. Below are colors we've previously had. Email email@example.com with any questions.


text:
Tigers Down Middle Tennessee 7-1, Drops Game to Troy
STATESBORO, Ga. – A tale of two games describes the day for Tennessee State softball on day two of the Eagle Classic. The Tigers were no-hit in a 7-0 loss to Troy to open Saturday's play, but bounced back to grab a 7-1 win over Middle Tennessee. The Trojans improved to 8-8-2, the Blue Raiders fell to 5-14 and the Tigers are now 5-13.
Middle Tennessee tried to add to TSU's misery by jumping out to a quick 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Shea Morris walked leadoff hitter LaRi Mitchell to start the game. Mitchell stole second and scored on a single off the bat of Kayla Toney. Two batters later, Morris issued another walk to give MTSU two runners on and one out. The junior hurler settled in by striking out the next batter she would face.
The punch out by Morris moved her into the top spot of the TSU career strikeout list. Morris passed Amanda Vaught, who completed her Tiger career in 2008.
The Lawrenceburg, Tenn., native would retire the next 14 Blue Raiders allowing the offense a chance to take control of the game. The streak was erased by Toney who ripped a double into right center with one out in the sixth. Morris retired the next two to end any threat.
Morris' twin sister, Kate Morris, would be the first Tiger to scratch a hit on the day with a single into center to leadoff the second inning. Two batters later, with Kate on third, Kiarra Freeman hit a hard grounder to short for an RBI single, evening the score at 1-1. Tayler Shimizu followed with a ground ball up the middle; Freeman did not break stride rounding second and forced the play at third. Freeman slid in safely as the ball would get away, allowing the speedy sophomore a chance to charge home giving the Tigers a 2-1 lead.
TSU would not look back as they added two runs in each, the third and fourth innings. With one out in the third, the Tigers would string three hits together to take a 4-1 lead. Kate Morris delivered a two-run single to center to plate Courtney Gearlds and Lindsey Burgess.
In the fourth, TSU loaded the base on a single by Freeman, a hit-by-pitch of Shimizu and a sacrifice bunt, fielder's choice by Liz Stansberry. Jayna Hanawahine wasted no time as she ripped the first pitch she saw up the middle to chase home Freeman and Shimizu, making the score 6-1.
The Tigers added a single run in the fifth to provide the margin. Shea Morris and Freeman sandwiched hits around Rebekka Gross getting plunked to load the bases. Stansberry followed two batters later with a walk to force home Gross.
Freeman finished the game 3-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI, while Kate Morris was 2-for-4 with a run and two RBI.
Hanawahine, Gearlds and Burgess all ended the game 1-for-4. Shimizu went 1-for-2 with a run scored and Shea Morris was 1-for-3 at the plate. Morris earned the win and improved to 4-6 allowing three hits, while fanning four.
In the first game of the day, the Tigers could only manage two runners on base against pitcher Jaycee Affeldt. Shimizu was the first to reach base with a walk to open the third inning, while Burgess reached on an error two innings later. Affeldt (3-5) finished the game with eight strikeouts.
Olivia Gamache (1-6) took the loss as she surrendered five runs, four earned, on three hits and four walks. Gamache finished with two strikeouts and made way for Hannah St. Clair who pitched the final two innings. St. Clair allowed two runs on two hits and fanned one.
The Eagle Classic wraps up on Sunday with the Tigers playing in the final two games. TSU will take on Middle Tennessee at 12:00pm ET and Georgia Southern at 2:00pm ET. Both games can be heard on tsutigers.com.


text:
CARSON, Calif. –Bruce Arena confirmed that all four LA Galaxy veterans, who missed out on last Saturday's clash against Real Salt Lake are healthy enough to play this week against the Houston Dynamo, but their status is still in question.
Carlo Cudicini, Landon Donovan, Todd Dunivant and Robbie all missed out in last week's 2-0 win over RSL, but latter two were not present at training during media availability on Friday. Cudicini and Donovan were present, however, as both addressed the media and expressed optimism over their status.
When asked if the players will be healthy for Sunday's match, Arena provided a succinct response.
"All players we believe will be available for selection on Sunday," Arena told reporters.
Expect to see all four players on Sunday?
Share your thoughts below.


text:
Official Statement from The Goldwater Institute
Goldwater Institute CEO Darcy Olsen's Statement on Rumored Glendale Lawsuit
Saturday afternoon I learned from a reporter that the City of Glendale intends to file a lawsuit against the Goldwater Institute. We have not yet been served, but if the City files a lawsuit against the Institute, it will be frivolous and unsuccessful. The Goldwater Institute's efforts to obtain public records and to determine the constitutionality of the Coyotes deal advance the public interest and are fully protected by the First Amendment.
Let me be clear: the Goldwater Institute will not stop this investigation.
The Goldwater Institute files lawsuits when public officials abuse the law and all other options are exhausted. We also file only when we have all the relevant facts to properly assess a situation. Because Glendale continues withholding public documents, in spite of a court order to release this information to the public, our analysis of the deal remains incomplete.
The City of Glendale has been under a court order to provide the Institute with all records and documents pertaining to the Coyotes sale since July 2009. On Thursday March 3 during a press conference, Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs said "Glendale has provided the Goldwater Institute with everything they have asked for." The statement was clearly misleading. During the following 36 hours, the City proceeded to release an additional 750 pages of documents to the Goldwater Institute.
Glendale has been deliberately recalcitrant in providing public records. In one email City Attorney Craig Tindall specifically directed his deputy attorney to "play with" or "ignore" the Goldwater Institute's request seeking to view public records subject to the court order.
The Institute has continued meeting with City staff and attorneys to discuss our concerns about the sale. In the last three months, Goldwater Institute attorneys and staff have met with and had phone conferences with Glendale and buyer Matthew Hulsizer at least a dozen times. In addition, the Goldwater Institute has extended an invitation to Mayor Scruggs, Mr. Hulsizer, and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman to gather for a meeting that would be open to journalists.
Because so much of this deal has been conducted behind closed doors and out of public view, we believe any future meetings or phone conferences should be conducted openly and transparently. We believe the media should be able to report first hand on the interactions between interested parties.
We recognize that Glendale has dug itself into a financial hole by building the taxpayer-funded Jobing.com arena for a team that has proven financially unsustainable. However, the City must find a way to improve its financial situation within the boundaries or the law. Likewise, we hope the city can find a way to attract great sports teams like the Coyotes without the unconstitutional use of taxpayer funds.
The Gift Clause of the Arizona Constitution prohibits gifts by subsidy, loan or otherwise to private individuals or corporations. Under the current structure of this deal, Glendale will send $100 million to Mr. Hulsizer to assist him in buying the team and will pay him another $97 million to manage the arena for the next five-and-a-half years. Giving public funds to the buyer of a sports franchise raises red flags under the Gift Clause.
In Turken v. Gordon, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that a city may provide financial support to a private enterprise only if it receives a tangible benefit of roughly proportionate value. That does not include indirect benefits, such as jobs or tax revenues, but only direct benefits that make the transaction a valuable contract rather than an illegal subsidy.
The $100 million payment to Mr. Hulsizer is primarily in return for the sale of parking lot revenues by the team to the city. However, the City may already own a significant portion of those rights. If so, the city essentially is "selling" parking revenue rights to itself, which would be an obvious sham and a clear violation of the Gift Clause.
The city insists the team owns the parking rights. Unfortunately, it has not yet been able to demonstrate that it does. It has identified numerous documents in support of its assertion, but they tend to show the opposite. Notably, the current agreement recites that "to the best of [the team's] knowledge, it was the intent of the City and Grantor's predecessors in interest in connection with the Arena Facility for Grantor's predecessors in interest to have the right to use and, to some extent, in other ways exploit 5,500 vehicular parking spaces on or in the immediate vicinity of the Arena Land." That is hardly the certainty required to demonstrate that at some point over the past ten years, the city transferred parking rights that are now contended to be worth as much as $100 million.
Even if the team owns some or all of the parking rights, the value must be roughly proportionate to the compensation paid. The city has given the public the impression that it would use only parking revenues to repay the $100 million in bonds used to finance the payment to Mr. Hulsizer. However, when the draft bond statement was released, it was revealed that the city is pledging excise and sales tax revenues if necessary to repay the bonds. That is extremely significant, because it means that if the team fails again—at any point over the next 30 years—or if parking revenues are insufficient to repay the bonds, Glendale taxpayers will be on the hook to repay the bonds through their tax dollars. The financial consequences could be catastrophic.
The city initially used two studies for the contention that parking revenues would be sufficient to repay the bonds, one by TLHocking & Associates and another by Walker Parking Consultants. We hired a national consulting firm to review those reports. Our consultant found that the city's reports relied on untenable assumptions and, even then, the projected revenues would be insufficient to repay the bonds, leaving the shortfall to the taxpayers.
The Institute expended $7,000 for this evaluation, only to discover the city withheld another study by Walker Parking Consultants purporting to justify the payment to Mr. Hulsizer. We have not yet evaluated the new study as it was only recently provided to us, but the fact that the city found it necessary to pledge sales and excise tax revenues corroborates the view that parking revenues will be insufficient to repay the bonds.
There is an easy solution to this problem. If Glendale and Mr. Hulsizer believe that parking revenues will be sufficient to repay the bonds, then it is Mr. Hulsizer, not the city, who should guarantee any revenue shortfall. That would prevent serious harm to the taxpayers and place the financial responsibility where it should be: with the owner of the team, rather than on taxpayers' shoulders. Taxpayers should not be asked to take a risk that the prospective owner is unwilling to take with his own money.
Glendale asserts that because the Goldwater Institute has expressed concerns about the deal, it has caused the bonds' interest rates to rise. On January 25, 2011, Goldwater Institute attorney Carrie Ann Sitren sent a letter to various bond-rating entities (attached) stating that "the Goldwater Institute is currently investigating a potential legal challenge to the constitutionality of the lease" of the arena. The letter noted, "If the Institute were to initiate litigation on this basis and prevail, holders of bonds arising from the financing of the transaction could face the risk that the transaction would be held unconstitutional and void." Prospective bond purchasers must not be kept in the dark about potential legal risks, which would be akin to the seller of a home failing to disclose serious construction defects.
We are not anxious to sue over this deal or any deal; to the contrary. But we are anxious for government bodies to follow the law. If this behavior can be subject to a retaliatory lawsuit by a legion of government attorneys, then journalists, bloggers, and regular citizens across the state are all at risk.
The Goldwater Institute is doing what the City of Glendale should be doing on its own: working to protect taxpayers. There should be no need for an independent organization to take the city to court to ensure public documents are made public; the city should make public records public. There should be no need for the Goldwater Institute to file a lawsuit to block this deal because the city should not craft deals that violate the Constitution. Until the city does its job, the Goldwater Institute will be there, asking questions, exposing the truth, and filing lawsuits if and when such action becomes necessary.


text:
Who: Ouachita Baptist Lady Tigers at Arkansas Tech Golden Suns
When: Today, 6 p.m.
Where: Tucker Coliseum, Russellville
Records: Arkansas Tech (18-8, 10-3 GSC), Ouachita Baptist (13-13, 4-9 GSC)
Coaches: Todd Schaefer, Arkansas Tech, 33-12 (2nd season), 93-96 (7 years); Gary Crowder, Ouachita Baptist, 194-132 (12th season/overall)
Radio: KWKK 100.9 F.M.
Series: Tech leads 44-14
Last meeting: Ouachita Baptist defeated Tech 57-50 on Jan. 27, 2007.
Key Players: ATU: Amanda Grappe, 11.6 ppg, Krishna Baker, 10.8 ppg; Ashley Grappe, 8.5 ppg; Nikki Earles 5.1 ppg; and Lauren Dennis, 5.3 ppg. OBU: Lindsey Dooley, 13.0 ppg; Haley Griffin, 12.3 ppg; Kim Beverly, 9.3 ppg; Liz Webb, 4.5 ppg; and Candise Hurdle, 4.0 ppg.
Game notes: Tonight is "Senior Night" at Tucker Coliseum. Seniors Christy Mahan and Katie McCormick will be honored following the women's game.
n Christy Mahan ia a one-year letterman and a native of Heber Springs. In her two years as a Golden Sun, she has hit 115 three-pointers to put her sixth all-time in school history. She is averaging 43 percent this season from beyond the arc.
n Katie McCormick is a three-year letterman and a native of Dardanelle. McCormick is 132 points shy of joining Tech's prestigious 1,000-Point Club. Earlier this year she was named an ESPN the Magazine Second-Team Academic All-District player. McCormick maintains a 4.0 GPA.
Information provided by Tech Sports Information


text:
Mets' picks reflect pitching-rich draft
Team selected 27 pitchers, 24 of them right-handers
By Marty Noble / MLB.com
Denied a place in the first round because of their signing of Type A free agent Billy Wagner in the fall, the Mets selected 49 players in two days in the 50 rounds that concluded early Wednesday evening. More than half of their selections were pitchers, the vast majority of those right-handed with college experience.
Those who say pitching is 90 percent of the game may be right, in terms of impact. For the Mets, it was 55 percent of their draft. And 24 of the 27 pitchers they chose throw from the right.
The Mets didn't purposefully emphasize right-handed pitching, of course -- they took from what the draft field provided. But as they have done in recent years, they focused more on pitchers with more experience, implementing a philosophy quite different from what former general manager Joe McIlvaine advocated.
It was McIlvaine's influence -- and the Mets' advantageous position in the drafts of the early 80s -- that fueled the Mets' successful teams and trades of that period. And McIlvaine, now scouting for the Twins, preferred high school talent -- for example, Dwight Gooden and Jason Isringhausen.
Of the 27 pitchers the Mets selected this year, 18 have pitched in college or junior college, including Villanova's Kevin Mulvey, the 21-year-old right-handed pitcher they took with their first pick, the 62nd overall.
"We wanted the best talent out there," Rudy Terrasas, the Mets' director of amateur scouting said Wednesday. "It just happened to be that way that we took more pitchers from college programs. We did take high school pitchers in the later rounds."
Six of the nine high school pitchers the Mets selected were among their final 10 choices.
The experience breakdown of position players wasn't so lopsided -- four college outfielders to two from high school; six college catchers to one from high school; six college infielders to three from high school.
The only other aspect of the Mets' draft that suggested a theme was that they chose players with size, as the Dodgers used to do and the Reds have done more recently. The Mets chose 13 pitchers who are 6-foot-3 or taller, including 6-foot-10 Nathan Hedrick of Barton County Community College in Missouri, 6-foot-8 John Holdzkom of Salt Lake Community College in California and 6-foot-6 Tyler Binkley of St. Mary's College High School of Ontario. No pitcher they chose was shorter than 6-foot-1.
And this is the organization team that gave us Tug McGraw, John Franco and Tom Seaver, and whose tallest pitcher -- 6-foot-11 Eric Hillman -- was never confused with Randy Johnson.
The only players shorter than 6 feet that the Mets selected were three second baseman and two catchers. Size apparently matters.
"I do like a pitcher with size and who has leverage," Terrasas said. "My daddy said, 'Bigger is better,' But it wasn't by design. The best player available at the time we picked happened to be a tall pitcher."
That said, Holdzkom was the draftee who most intrigued Terrasas "because he has such an upside." The right-handed 18-year old had control issues at Salt Lake. He struck out 44 and allowed merely 15 hits in 31 2/3 innings, but he walked 40.
Other than the two name players they selected -- Jeremy Barfield and Steve Puhl, the sons of former big league players Jesse Barfield and Terry Puhl -- the most intriguing selection came relatively late Wednesday. The made Justin Woodall, a 19-year-old high school pitcher from Mississippi, the 574th selection, aware that Woodall is more likely to play football for Alabama than sign a baseball contract. But you never know.
"We'd still like to talk to him and see if we can persuade him," Terrasas said, acknowledging that Woodall probably would have been drafted earlier if clubs had believed he would forsake football. "We'll try to get to him right away now that he's back from his senior trip. We'll start talking to some of our picks [Wednesday] and get into it all the way tomorrow."
Marty Noble is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
Funeral Service will be at 10 a.m., Saturday, Dec. 8, 2012 at Lemley Funeral Chapel.
A graveside committal service will follow at approximately noon at the Churchill Cemetery.
A reception will be held after the committal service at the home of Kim and Sue Virden to celebrate the lives and homegoing of J. D. and Maxine Virden.
Visitation will be 6-8 p.m. on Friday.
Memorials may be made to Choices Pregnancy Resource Center, P.O. Box 394, Russellville, Arkansas 72811.
A complete obituary will run in a future edition of The Courier.


text: The local Abenaki Indian tribe was the Piscataqua. Strafford, one of New Hampshire's original counties, was created in 1769 and named for Thomas Wentworth, 1st earl of Strafford. The county seat is the industrial city of Dover, home to Quakers and Puritans in the 17th century. Its early industries of shipbuilding and fishing gave way to cotton milling in the early 19th century. Rochester became industrialized in the mid-1800s. Other cities are Somersworth and Durham, the seat of the University of New Hampshire (founded 1866). Plastics, shoes, and measuring instruments now are principal manufactures. Strafford is the smallest in area of the New Hampshire counties. Area 369 square miles (955 square km). Pop. (19902000) 104112,233; (1996 2007 est.) 107121,344581.


text:
CTA emphasized it still was committed to use of Ventra, being supplied by San Diego-based Cubic Transportation Systems. CTA President Forrest Claypool said Cubic has added customer service staff to aid riders in the transition, which he stressed was advancing successfully.
"We want our customers to have the full access to all transit fare payment options during a period in which we can get the customer support apparatus to be able to support the inquiries that are coming in — which have been unprecedented," Claypool told local media.
Claypool said magnetic stripe card users, or 75% of CTA ridership, have had no problems transitioning to the Ventra card. But CTA acknowledged that registered Chicago Card and Chicago Card Plus holders were promised Ventra cards in the mail with easy access instructions, which "has not been executed effectively."
CTA still plans to stop accepting the Chicago Card and Chicago Card Plus on Nov. 15. Reloading money onto existing magnetic stripe cards in circulation also will no longer be possible. All magnetic stripe card users must switch over to Ventra by Dec. 15, CTA said.


text:
In Brief: The Smithsonian Needs to Update and Implement Vehicle-Related Policies and Procedures, No.A-13-06, Issued March 27, 2014
Why We Did This Audit
The Smithsonian operates a vehicle fleet program to benefit the mission and functions of the Institution.
Our audit objectives were to evaluate the controls management has established to minimize the costs of motor vehicle operations, including maintenance, petroleum use, purchasing, and disposal. Additionally, we assessed whether the Smithsonian is achieving the sustainability goals outlined in Executive Order (EO) 13514, Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance.
The vehicle fleet program was established to ensure: (1) the availability of safe and reliable vehicles, (2) timely maintenance and repair of vehicles, and (3) the monitoring of the fleet size and utilization of vehicles.
During our review, the fleet consisted of 487 vehicles made up of sedans, buses, trucks, vans, and sport utility vehicles.
What We Found
We found that Smithsonian management: (1) developed policies based on best practices for fleet management; (2) invested resources in a fleet management information system (FleetWave); and (3) appeared to adhere to Executive Order 13514. However, there were internal control weaknesses in the implementation of these policies and procedures.
Management did not implement main components of its policy such as enforcing the: Vehicle Coordinator Program (VC); use of vehicle trip logs; and use of Form SI-3805, Justification For Acquisition of a Motor Vehicle or Off-Highway Equipment. We also determined that the policy addressing driver licenses is outdated.
In addition, we identified data discrepancies between the systems that report on the Smithsonian's fleet. We identified 37 vehicles, with a total purchase price of approximately $797,703, that were recorded in FleetWave but were not included on the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Financials vehicle asset list. Further, we identified 20 vehicles, with a total purchase price of $253,095, that were on the ERP vehicle asset list but were not recorded in FleetWave.
We also found that there were no policies and procedures to ensure that fuel cards were assigned in FleetWave. Fourteen active cards (or 29 percent of cards sampled) were not assigned to a specific vehicle in FleetWave.
What We Recommended
To strengthen fleet management internal controls, we recommended that management: update and fully implement policies and procedures to include the VC program, trip logs, and SI-3805; develop procedures to periodically reconcile vehicle information between FleetWave and ERP; and develop and implement policies and procedures to ensure the proper control of fleet cards.
Management concurred with our findings and recommendations and has planned corrective actions to address the recommendations. We will continue to monitor management's progress towards completion of these recommendations.
Click to view the full report.
Download Adobe Reader for PDF files at get.adobe.com/reader.


text:
You have no items in your shopping cart.
Items 1 to 24 of 75 total
Regular Price:
Special Price
16 Drayton Crescent, Crewe, Cheshire, CW1 5YH
(+44) 844 884 9912 Message Service
Mon - Fri / 9:00AM - 5:00PM
Get all the latest information on Events,Sales and Offers. Sign up for newsletter today.
Enter your e-mail Address


text:
Wales 30-21 Barbarians, Millennium Stadium
Biggar suffers as Howley wields the axe
ESPN Staff
June 2, 2012
Playmaker Dan Biggar knew before today's clash with the Barbarians that he would not be making the trip to Australia © Getty Images
In-form fly-half Dan Biggar was the biggest casualty as Wales trimmed five players from their squad ahead of this month's three-Test series with Australia.
Speaking following his side 's 30-21 victory over the Barbarians in a warm-up match in Cardiff, caretaker coach Rob Howley admitted wielding the axe was tough with Biggar, who helped steer the Ospreys to the RaboDirect PRO12 title
A total of four players who were on the winning side against the Barbarians - Martyn Williams, Will Harries, Adam Warren and Biggar, along with Ryan Bevington - are those cut from the squad.
"For those four who played in this game, they showed outstanding character and professionalism and were an integral part of the win," said Howley. "They were told earlier in the week - each player at a different time - so they could focus on the preparation and I have huge respect for these guys.
"It was entirely my decision, I didn't discuss it with Warren [Gatland], and it was the hardest thing I have had to do as a coach, in particular for Dan Biggar. It is not a reflection on Dan's form and over the last four months he has played particularly well for the Ospreys. We have spoken to him about his game management but sometimes it is a numbers game and it is about flexibility when it comes to selecting a squad to go to Australia."
Following a shoulder injury to Biggar, James Hook moved from inside centre to fly-half and steered Wales to victory with a 20-point haul to underline his versatility. As a result he is set to serve as back-up to first choice fly-half Rhys Priestland. "James is adept at playing at 12 and 10 and is a hugely talented player," said Howley. "His kicking was exceptional and his composure was fantastic under pressure today."
Howley was pleased some of the younger members of his squad were granted exposure to a strong Barbarians side. "Players like Harry Robinson, Justin Tipuric and Rhodri Jones had a good amount of top-level rugby today and that will be invaluable in terms of their development," he explained.
"Harry has pace and the ability to beat his man, he ran hard and every time he had the ball in his hands the crowd really reacted. He will learn and be better for this experience. What has been created since the World Cup is competition for places and we are delighted to have come through a highly competitive game without any major injuries - that is huge for us."
Wales squad:
Forwards: Luke Charteris (Newport Gwent Dragons), Ian Evans (Ospreys), Bradley Davies (Cardiff Blues), Toby Faletau (Newport Gwent Dragons), Rhys Gill (Saracens), Richard Hibbard (Ospreys), Paul James (Ospreys), Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues), Adam Jones (Ospreys), Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys), Rhodri Jones (Scarlets), Ryan Jones (Ospreys), Dan Lydiate (Newport Gwent Dragons), Ken Owens (Scarlets), Matthew Rees (Scarlets), Aaron Shingler (Scarlets), Justin Tipuric (Ospreys), Josh Turnbull (Scarlets), Sam Warburton (Cardiff Blues)
Backs: Ashley Beck (Ospreys), Andrew Bishop (Ospreys), Aled Brew (Biarritz), Alex Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues), Jonathan Davies (Scarlets), Leigh Halfpenny (Cardiff Blues), James Hook (Ospreys), George North (Scarlets), Mike Phillips (Bayonne), Rhys Priestland (Scarlets), Harry Robinson (Cardiff Blues), Rhys Webb (Ospreys), Lloyd Williams (Cardiff Blues), Scott Williams (Scarlets), Liam Williams (Scarlets).
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Communication error please reload the page.


text:
Thickness: 6.8mm
Weight: 1.1kg/m2
Texture: Durable & Hardwearing
Backing: Gel / Latex (Anti Slip)
Material: 100% Polypropylene (Stain Resistant)
Wear Rating: Heavy Domestic
Width: 66cm, 80cm wide
Length: Available any length up to 25m (82ft)
This hall carpet runner is made using needle punch technique. A needle punched carpet is manufacturing process that involves lots of short staple fibres being stuck together whilst punched with a barbed needle, hence he name needle punched. Typically, this type of carpet is used in offices, schools, airports etc. It has very little that can go wrong with it, they do not pull or snag, nor do they tread down or flatten.
The pile of this carpet runner is extremely durable and will not flatten down as there is no pile to do so. Due to the cleverly woven construction of this pile, this is great for pets as the runner is pretty much indestructible. It has been classified as a heavy domestic product, this means that it is suitable in high traffic areas in all domestic locations, especially the staircase.
This floor runner has a latex, gel backing. This means that the carpet runner is non slip and will not move on hard flooring such as Wood, Vinyl or Ceramic tiles. It is also anti slip on carpet but the effectiveness depends on the thickness of the carpet it is sat on. The thicker the carpet, the less effective it will be. Whilst being non slip, the backing is also 100% waterproof and rot proof. This ensures that the carpet will not shrink or wrinkle once it dries out from being wet. This floor carpet runner is ideal for hallways, kitchens and caravans.
The texture of this carpet is fairly coarse, it has a firm feel and offers little comfort. This product is not made to be luxurious, it is made to be very durable and practical. The carpet is made using a fibre called Polypropylene. Polypropylene is a man made fibre that has fantastic properties and advantages. This carpet 100% bleach proof and stain resistant. It is also resistant to fading from the UV sunlight. It is anti-static and moth proof. The product has a low radius of ignition and has been hot nut tested to comply with (BS 4790).
This is the most indestructible man made gel back carpet runner that we sell at Carpet Runners UK. If you want a low maintenance product that will look great and will last for many years then this is the product for you.
Worried about ordering the wrong product? Don't worry, we have a 'No Quibble' 30 day returns / exchange policy that covers you should you not be happy for whatever reason.
Carpet Runners UK recommends.... If you are putting this carpet runner on top of carpet then you may want to consider purchasing our anti slip underlay to 100% stop it from moving or 'walking'. Also, why not purchase one of cleaning sprays so that you can spot clean your carpet runner and remove any stains immediately.
Don't forget.....! We can supply this carpet runner in literally any length that you want. So if you can't see the size that you want on our website then please call our sales team on 0800 0778896 and we will be happy to take your customised order on the phone.
* Delivery fees for orders UNDER £100 *
STANDARD DELIVERY - 2-4 working days - £4
NAMED / NEXT DAY DELIVERY - Express Service - £6
SATURDAY DELIVERY - Guaranteed before 1pm - £18
* Delivery fees for orders OVER £100 *
STANDARD DELIVERY - 2-4 working days - FREE
NAMED / NEXT DAY DELIVERY - Express Service - £2.50
SATURDAY DELIVERY - Guaranteed before 1pm - £18
** Free delivery and returns only applies to addresses in UK Mainland (Excluding Highlands, Islands & Northern Ireland)
* Delivery fees for Samples *
Click here for our Delivery & Returns policy
Making a Purchase
To purchase the items in your basket and proceed with your order using our secure online purchasing facility, click on the "Checkout" button on the shopping basket screen. You will then be given the option to enter your email address and password if you are an existing user of the site, or you can choose to pay directly. You will then be transferred to our secure server provider Sagepay or PayPal to complete your order.
You will be asked to provide certain information we need to enable us to process your order such as your preferred delivery address and payment details. It is your responsibility to provide us with sufficient information to process you order.
We will acknowledge receipt of your order by email. This is not our acceptance of your order, but confirmation that it has been received.


text:
For years, the funds used to fight wildfires have come from the budgets of the Forest Service and Department of the Interior even when costs greatly exceed allocated funds. Last year, this meant reallocating $600 million from non-fire programs.
President Barack Obama hopes to change this with a proposal in his budget, which he previewed at a meeting with Western governors at the White House on Monday. His proposal, based on a Senate bill, would allow the largest fires in the country, about 1 percent, to receive funds from a special disaster account, like hurricanes and other relief efforts.
Firefighting budgets are based on the average cost of fighting fires for the past 10 years. However, these budgets have been underestimated for 8 out of the past 10 years. Federal fire-suppression costs reached nearly $2 billion in 2012, with the majority paid by the Forest Service.
This age of megafires has left the Forest Service struggling to pay for recreation, logging, science and everything else beside firefighting.
"This ends up costing us more in the long run," Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., said in a statement on Monday. "It's a classic case of penny-wise and pound foolish. Today's announcement addresses this issue by promoting a smarter, more sensible approach to dealing with wildfires that will save us money in the future."
It is estimated that removing megafires from the regular budget, as proposed by Obama, could free up to $412 million for land management agencies to fund fire prevention.
Last year, the West Fork Complex of fires in southwest Colorado charred nearly 110,000 acres, ranking it as one of the largest fires in state history. On the Front Range, four fires since 2009 have set state records for destruction of homes.
Western lawmakers have been pushing for the change for a long time.
Udall, Wyden and other Western senators have been sharply critical of the White House, under both Obama and former President George Bush, for shifting money into fire fighting at the expense of forest health programs that could prevent wildfires.
In June 2013, Udall and three other senators complained about fire budgeting in a letter to the White House Office of Management and Budget.
"Just 10 years ago, fighting fires accounted for 13 percent of the Forest Service budget; last year, it was just over 40 percent," the letter stated.
Obama's proposal is based off of the Wildfire Disaster Funding Act of 2013, which was introduced in December and is co-sponsored by nine senators, including Udall and Bennet.
"I am proud the president listened to Colorado and supports adopting my wildfire-funding approach," Udall said in a statement. "This strategy will ensure we fight today's fires without undermining efforts to get ahead of tomorrow's blazes, and I will continue to fight in Congress to enact this common-sense plan into law."
Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez, is supportive of states being able to access natural disaster resources for wildfires, but did not take a position on the specific proposal, according to Josh Green, his communications director. However, he stressed the importance of proactive forest management to "truly reduce the occurrence and severity of these fires" instead of reactive measures such as supression.
Obama is due to present his budget to Congress on March 4.
email@example.com. Katie Fiegenbaum is a student at American University in Washington, D.C., and an intern for The Durango Herald. Herald Denver correspondent Joe Hanel contributed to this report.


text:
Shock Wave Therapy
Fact Sheet
Benefits of Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy in Horses
Learn the newest information about shock wave therapy for helping horses heal.
Managing Your Horse's Back Pain
Two veterinarians share how they diagnose, treat, and rehab back-sore horses.
Photo by Kevin Thompson/The Horse
Tips for Rehabbing Soft Tissue Injuries in Horses
Successful treatment depends on an accurate diagnosis and good knowledge of the therapeutic options available.
Photo by Courtesy Dr. Andris J. Kaneps
Managing Your Horse's Back Pain
August 15, 2017
Two veterinarians share how they diagnose, treat, and rehab back-sore horses.... Read More
Tips for Rehabbing Soft Tissue Injuries in Horses
January 20, 2017
Successful treatment depends on an accurate diagnosis and good knowledge of the therapeutic options available.... Read More
Treating PSD in Sport Horses: Surgery, Shock Wave, or Both?
February 10, 2016
Recent study results suggest that shock wave can help horses return to function faster than surgery or rest alone. ... Read More
Equine Pain Management: History and New Advances
February 07, 2016
For years veterinarians' options were limited, but new products are helping them control horses' pain better than ever.... Read More
Advances in Managing Chronic Foot Pain
December 02, 2015
Improved diagnostics and more promising treatments are putting many foot-sore horses back to work.... Read More
NYRA Announces Additional Safety Protocols
January 19, 2015
The additional protocols come in the wake of a recent rash of catastrophic breakdowns at Aqueduct Racetrack.... Read More
USEF Issues Joint Injection, Shock Wave Withdrawal Times
November 26, 2014
Joint injections have a four-day withdrawal time and shock wave has a three-day withdrawal time from competition.... Read More
Developing the Sport Horse: Common Injuries
October 29, 2014
Learn about three common sport horse injuries and how to prevent and treat them.... Read More
Equine Rehabilitation Similar to Sports Therapy for People
October 07, 2014
Vets use rehabilitation to restore normal function following injury, reduce clinical signs, and restore range of motion.... Read More
Rehabilitating Horses with Back Problems
August 13, 2014
Learn about methods, from stretches to massage, that can help horses suffering from back issues recover.... Read More
Dealing with Navicular Disease
March 11, 2014
Navicular disease can seem devastating when diagnosed, but many horses return to work with treatment.... Read More
UK Seminar Series Kicks Off Jan. 30
January 24, 2014
On Jan. 30, two speakers will discuss inflammatory airway disease.... Read More
Shock Wave Therapy for Lower Leg Wounds on Horses
May 01, 2013
Extracorporeal shock wave therapy could be a promising tool for treating equine lower limb wounds. ... Read More
LSU SVM Receives Grant for Integrative Medicine Program
March 10, 2013
Louisiana State University received the $60,000 grant to support their integrative medicine programs.... Read More
Shock Wave Therapy Table Topic (AAEP 2012)
December 08, 2012
Attendees discussed a variety of topics surrounding shock wave therapy, one moderator said.... Read More
N.Y. Racing Regulators to Adopt Shock Wave Standards
November 29, 2012
Regulators could ban horses from racing or breezing for at least 10 days after shock wave therapy treatments.... Read More
RCI Considers 'One Strike' for Egregious Drug Violations
July 29, 2012
The rule would affect found responsible for putting substances in racehorses that might endanger the animals.... Read More
RCI Tightens Model Rule on Shock Wave Therapy
July 25, 2012
The new rule states horses receiving ESWT will be ineligible to train or race for 10 days following treatment.... Read More
Kentucky Derby Hopeful Receives Shock Wave Therapy
April 25, 2012
I'll Have Another, a hopeful for the 2012 Kentucky Derby, recently underwent shock wave therapy on his back.... Read More
The Latest Insights into Managing Joint Disease in Horses
January 17, 2012
Topical anti-inflammatories, hyaluronic acid, and shock wave therapy are among the popular treatment options.... Read More
Ask the Vet LIVE on Complementary Therapies Now Archived
November 19, 2011
TheHorse.com's Ask the Vet LIVE Q&A event on Complementary Therapies was held on Oct. 26.... Read More
Emerging Osteoarthritis Therapies
August 01, 2011
Supplements, polysulfated glycosaminoglycans, and regenerative medicines are some approaches for treating OA.... Read More
Shock Wave Therapy and PSGAGs: Effects on Arthritis
July 24, 2011
Researchers recently investigated how certain arthritic joint tissues respond to treatments such as shock wave... Read More
Tackling Tendon and Ligament Injuries
June 03, 2011
The latest therapies for injured tendons and ligaments focus on rebuilding tissue to its original strength.... Read More
Oregon Authorities Investigate Horse Shooting
May 04, 2011
Law enforcement authorities in Marion County, Ore., are seeking whoever is responsible for fatally shooting a 23-year-old Arabian mare while she grazed in her pasture near Silverton earlier this week. Marion County Sheriff's Department Public ... Read More


text:
I hope everyone has resolved the issues on their PC with the MSFT (KB951748)and ZA updates.
I installed the new version of ZA (ZA Anti-spyware/Firewall). Verified all settings (inc. HIGH (stealth) for Firewall). Restarted PC. All looks good.
Installed the MSFT update, restarted PC, verified ZA settings again, tested IE and Mozilla FF browsers. All works. Including e-mail access to Mozilla Thunderbird. Tested e-mail from a Yahoo account to a T-Bird account and all good.
Windows XP Service Pk 2 - now with all current updates.
(I have the MSFT auto-updates turned OFF. Always check and perform manually and twice per week).
Zone Alarm AntiSpyware/Firewall (current)
**bleep** Antivirus (current)
I have not yet installed MSFT Service Pack 3 - waiting a few more days to ensure all is completely good.
Anyone already installed SPk3 along with the ZA fix and your results are perfect? Look forward to your reply.
thanks, pcsafety_larry
running on empty.........
Operating System:Windows XP Home Edition
Software Version:
Product Name:ZoneAlarm Anti-Spyware


text:
I'll bet you anything that Milliana jumped infront of that slash. If I predict this right I'm giving myself a pat on the back. If I'm wrong I'll post a heart after every post I make for a week.
Edit: You win this round Hiro, but you haven't won the war


text:
Discussion in 'Gaming' started by Canadave, Feb 29, 2012.
Look up 5 posts.
Given EA's track record, a healthy dose of pessimism is pretty well justified.
That way, on the miniscule chance that it's good, we'll be pleasantly surprised.
Research that matter a little bit and you'll see why. What it mostly boils down to is, when you need to be connected to the internet to play you are now completely at the companies mercy.
That, and also not everyone has high-speed internet all the time. I spend most of my summer free time at a cabin in the woods (really!) where I have only a slow and patchy 3G connection - but I still bring my laptop to do some writing and photo editing and occasionally gaming. I won't buy a game I can only play when I'm in the city.
These DRM services don't require much bandwidth. Just enough to validate the license and record achievements.
My internet was down all morning, I only just got online. Thankfully, Minecraft allows me to play offline.
I like games that don't require me to be online. That's not to say that I don't have a good Internet connection or that I don't enjoy any online gaming. But sometimes I don't have internet or I just want to be somewhere away from the internet.
I saw your post, but I still remain unconvinced. It's the same as a keycode or a CD check (which they're doing away with, but used to be standard practice).
While I agree it's stupid to require and that, if you don't have a stable internet connection and likely would experience long periods of time where you can't play the game, you should factor that in, but I still think it's a tempest in a teapot if you otherwise think it will be a game you want to play.
And that tidbit is, for me, an absolute show-stopper.
You got a problem with that?
I don't like those things either, but neither of them allow the corporations to monitor my activity. If we allow them to control when we can play our games then they can take that ability away from us whenever they want and for whatever reasons they want. In what sort of universe is it okay for EA to ban people from playing singleplayer games that they legally purchased because they added a singleplayer mod? This isn't some conspiracy theory about what they might do in the future, they are already doing this.
I'm curious, would you be okay if your DVD player had to connect to the internet every time you tried to watch a movie? What about every time your MP3 player tried to play music? When you try to read a book on an e-reader? Where's the line for you?
The most obvious example being EA releases an expansion, maybe one thinks its lame or they don't want it, BZZT! EA decides to no longer validate the non updated game.
I still play SC4, if it had online validation does anyone think they would keep validating that when 5 comes out?
I think there's a slight difference. MP3 player isn't quite accurate. It's more like, would I buy an album that I need to connect to the internet? The difference I'm not entirely tethered to the internet.
I think it far more likely that they'd continue validating it than not.
This is good to see, SC4 with Rush Hour and some Mods is damn near perfect and awesome. God, I hope this comes out good.
I'm confused about what you're trying to say here. Are you saying that it's not comparable because MP3 players are portable? So are laptops. But okay, for the sake of argument, replace the portable MP3 player in your mind with a stereo system. Would it be acceptable for your stereo to require online verification for every CD that you own before you can play them?
Ugh, the bad thing is this is going to force me to buy a new computer.
No, my point is the requirement I go online is the exception not the rule and I can independently evaluate whether it's worth it for that specific exception depending on how much I value the product.
If all my music required an internet connection, that would suck because I do listen to music on the road. However, I don't need to listen to every song while on the road. If my MP3 player came with an internet connection that would work on the road, I'd also consider that a plus.
The problem is that EA wants to make an always-on connection the rule for most of their games, that's why I refuse to purchase any such games. As a consumer, that's the best way I can make my displeasure at this kind of DRM known to them.
What will you do if EA bans mods from working with the game by preventing access to the game for anyone that has a mod installed? This practice is common for multiplayer games and EA have apparently prevented singleplayer mods in ME3, so it's not a far-fetched scenario. Since the supposed reason for the always-on connection is to track your stats for other players to see, they could easily decide that mods are verboten as they'd mess with your stats. Would you be okay with that?
My plan is to deal with each stage of the slippery slope on a case-by-case basis not just assume doing one thing will mean I have to accept everything.
I don't care about slopes or stuff like that. The game isn't an MMO, I don't want someone looking over my shoulder whenever they want to see if I'm doing what they want me to do.
I wouldn't buy cookie dough if Duncan Hines required me to update them on how I was using it.
Separate names with a comma.


text:
Aikido World ©
Web Journal
| Advertise | Archives
| Contact | Feedback
| Link to Us | Copyrights
| Subscribe
Looking for a Dojo?
Aikido Books & Videos
Aikido Events
Aikido Highlights
Aikido Insights
Aikido in the News
Aikido Photos
Aikido Technical Tips
Aikido Terminology
Book & Video Reviews
Bushido & Budo Talk
Calendar of Events
Dojo Equipment
Dojo Directory
Information Page - FYI
Friends of Aikido World
Health and Body
Japanese Language
Letters to the Editor
Sponsored Aikido Dojos
Cheryl Matrasko
James Loeser
Matthew O'Connor
Cheryl Matrasko
James Loeser
Matthew O'Connor
and Training
Martial Arts or Formal Education?
by Cheryl Matrasko
About a month
ago, someone sent me what appeared to be a desperate letter questioning the legitimacy of
some instructor that apparently opened his doors and claimed to be affluent in many
martial arts. He also questioned whether it is healthy for his 20 year old son to be
living with this instructor, a person he describes: " . . . argues his point ALL
the time, and insists that ONLY his way is the right way?" He states his son is
strong willed and very independent - and respects this instructor. His dojo allegedly has
a uchi-deshi (live-in and learn) program.
Let me state: I have never studied uchi-deshi
style. There was no program in existence in the 1960's, 70's, or most of the 80's, in this
continent. Japanese yudansha I studied from (such as Koichi Tohei, Isao Takahashi, etc.)
have lectured most of us on this mode of study. As a matter of fact, this mode of study in
Japan was not offered to women because of sexual gender.
I don't know the dojo that that this young person is
studying from and it really doesn't matter at this point.
I have known many Aikidoka in my life, that have been deshi in
Japan, however I have no idea what the majority of dojos in America mean when they refer
to their dojos as "uchi-deshi". This is unregulated from what many Aikido
associates tell me, and from what I have dug up. I would sincerely hope some of them are
honorable, but as we all know from experience--- the "buyer beware". You never
know what you'll get.
In the matter of the "expert at all martial arts instructor", it
is difficult to ascertain whether one can be proficient enough to be called an expert at
one martial art, let alone a whole handful of assorted martial arts. It is also takes a
very long time to acquire the expertise. As one of my Kung-fu instructors told me (Ming Li
- Seven Stars Praying Mantis and Hong Kong champion of 1965), that you may study many
different forms, but you pick one form to be your own and you study it primarily.
You cannot be an expert at everything -- no one is that good
(maturity, common sense, and experience tells you that . . .), but you can concentrate and
focus to be the owner and proficient at one or two things. It's like trying to hold many
tools in your hands. You can only hold onto so many at one time. They soon become too
heavy and awkward to hold onto. We sometimes want to believe that we are good at
everything, that our martial art is invincible, and that we can be a master of all. It is
amazing what illusions we want to paint, and what we allow ourselves to sheepishly surrender to.
Often times we allow them to cloud our judgement.
In Asian thought, you have to do something over 1000 times to be
able to have adequate skill. It takes 10,000 times to become near the level of expert.
Training takes time, maturity, patience, and a lot of practice. Knowledge and training
cannot be rushed or compiled like pointless - cheap trophies on a shelf (this is not an
insult to anyone collecting trophies, but my son has a ton of these cheap things
from scouts and all they do is take up a lot shelf space). My point: It takes years to
become proficient at one thing - how good can you really be --- if you have studied a lot
of things? The old adage: "Jack of many trades -- Master of None", comes
to mind.
From what this man told me, his son is 20 years old. I firmly
believe that a person his age should be utilizing his youth and energies towards a formal
education before applying himself/herself towards a vocation. If you become better exposed
to the formal martial arts world, you'll find that the most refined and well respected
martial artists are polished, mannerly, and speak well of themselves. They are cultured
enough to be able to handle their own in a conversation on Taoism, Jean-Paul Sartre or
Friedrich Nietzsche. These individuals can respectfully support themselves in both the
business world and the serious martial arts world.
Formal education can broaden a young person's perspectives and
expose him to other cultures, philosophies, sciences, --- the things he will need to
develop and mature for himself. Most of all - he or she will be respected. And this is
practical education to last a lifetime and to build upon. After formal education, martial
arts can be better sought after.
I question: How much will this young person be allowed to learn or
learn for himself in a dojo that has no formal education to offer? How much will he / she
learn from an instructor that may have no formal education? How much can be learned when
the instructor's martial arts' training and education is questionable, as well?
Many Japan trained deshi such as: Koichi Tohei 10th Dan and Michio
Hikitsuchi, 10th Dan (to name only a few) are very well educated. Their education spans
over many subjects, beyond the regular martial arts studies (of Judo, Kendo, Karate,
etc.), and is enhanced by the areas of philosophy (Zen Buddhism,
Confucianism, etc.), tea
ceremony, horsemanship, archery, flower arranging, painting, art, etc. Formal education is
a respected characteristic among martial artists. Some of the most famous Samurai were
well educated.
In regards to this man's son and his relationship with this dojo ---
it sounds as if he has serious concerns about the instructor his son is studying from.
In a response - I asked this man: But if your gut feeling is
that this person is not a good influence on your son --- I ask you:
What does your common sense tell you? What does your parental
feelings tell you?
The instructor or "sensei", is a very serious role and
not for those that want to be "sensei" for the illusion of power. It is for
those honorable persons that can instruct with discipline --- yet with gentle firmness,
give knowledge and train the student. This role is not to be dishonored, by those
individuals that seek to wield the "sensei-role" with abusive intent.
I received a warm response back from this man. But in this note, he
stated that he had to stop his son's training at this place because his son sustained a
shoulder injury due to repeated hard throwing. He took the trouble to tell me that his son
is 5' 7" and about 130lbs and the instructor is 6' and 200lbs.
I would hope a more experienced instructor would be able to
recognize an injury to one of his/her students and have the common sense to deal with it,
instead of allowing the injury to worsen.
In my traditional training, if you or your partner became injured
during workout it has always been customary to stop and investigate. We were trained in
Shiatsu to treat minor injuries. We were warned that no one was allowed to be promoted to
shodan without first learning the basics Shiatsu. If you could not help repair the injury,
you were not learning the martial arts.
Formal education can open many doors, sharpen the rough edges on a
young person's mannerisms, and even elicit respect from those around you. It can change
personality from a barbaric brawler to a gentlemanly samurai warrior.
Cheryl Matrasko is a Network Analyst for the
department of Networking and Communications at a prominent Chicago hospital. Formerly the
LAN Administrator for
Northwestern University Medical School - Department of OB/GYN, and assistant LAN
Administrator to the previous MIS of the School of Law. Cheryl started Aikido in 1965,
studying under Isao Takahashi as her first instructor. She enjoyed working out under many
well known Aikido instructors during her tenure with Takahashi Sensei and thereafter
following his death in 1971. Cheryl has dedicated time with instructors in Northern
Long-Fist, Seven Stars Praying Mantis, and Daito-Ryu Aikijujitsu. Currently, she is
instructing Aikido at Northwestern University's Chicago Campus and founded Aikido World
Literary materials, film clips, and
pictures are
copyrighted by their respected authors and owners.
Permission in writing must be made for any
duplication, display, or reprint.
Aikido Technical Tips
Martial Arts Books and Videos
Michio Hikitsuchi 10th Dan 1978
(C. Matrasko as uke)
© 1978 C. Matrasko
Submitted photos from all over the world.
Please note that the owners of photographs
here have their own respected copyrights.
home | advertise
archives | contact | feedback | link to us | copyrights
No matter the federation affiliation articles
and event submissions can be submitted by legitimate dojos,
federations, and individuals. These should be sent via e-mail to:
© 2009, Aikido World, Inc. All rights reserved
A Not for Profit Corporation
Aikido World Journal (AWJ)
Aikido World Web Journal
Aikido World, Inc.
P.O. Box 56040
Chicago, IL. 60656-0040
submit | subscribe


text:
Hello! Welcome to my fab author's page!
About me: I'm 18. I like to write, play the guitar, read, watch movies, sleep, explore the outdoors, and hang out with friends.
Favorite Authors/Poets: J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien, Sarah Dessen, Stephenie Meyer, F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Shakespeare... and that's only a few. :o)
Favorite Bands: My Chemical Romance, The Academy Is..., Fall Out Boy, Panic! At the Disco, Underoath, Hellogoodbye, Paramore, Motion City Soundtrack, and so many more...
Fave movies: Harry Potter (duh), The Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, Pride and Prejudice, all of the Marx Brothers movies, The Nightmare Before Christmas, School of Rock, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Roman Holiday, All the President's Men, 10 things i hate about you... there's more I'm sure, just can't remember them all at the moment. :o)
Fan fic status:
So, it's been awhile. sorry about that. One Weird World is on hiatus at the moment, but for awhile I've been working on this Snape/OC romance fic. I may be submitting that sometime soon. I hope, at any rate. :o)
luv, Juliette