text:
At the highest level, Moon in Scorpio gives you the ability to transform your own and others lives. You can act as an agent for change, becoming a catalyst for greater growth and awareness. You can help others shift their psychological values. The potential power contained here is enormous.
We call here for a special posse to ride through the gates of hell on special mission to recover the soul of America. These bodies were never meant to live forever. Many Warriors have lost precious life to expose monsters and a central evil controlling and destroying our world. Tears falling for such men and women cannot fall in vain. There is no amount of pretense the mainstream media and their puppet masters can conjure to unring the bell. A galloping future rides for masters of the status-quo and it cannot be stopped.
Reality seems lost upon the selfie-selfish generation. Are such children ill-prepared for a tomorrow that does not match television and movies? They should not bare all blame for being snowflakes and trolls suffering through spiritually impotent lives. After all, government had a big hand in stealing their souls on both sides of the political spectrum.
You are likely to have a highly developed ability to sense the emotional undercurrents around you, and prefer dealing with the raw truth at any cost. You have a knack of pinpointing what you, and others, really want or need in a situation - which may be confronting - but always brings the truth to light.
--www.starslikeyou.com.auPresident Donald Trump assumes command of America blessed by mythic planets in our solar system aligned to bestow cosmic power under a superlative Scorpio Moon. While this does not make our president perfect, he is not a career parasite pandering in a gutter of human misery and corruption. Instead of falling to their knees proclaiming, "we're not worthy", Democrats cling to corruption inciting pity where they do not incite violence.
Great article. Libs justifying murder of cons "@AnnCoulter: Left Has 1 More Argument: Kill Them!" https://t.co/CMSIe9gfzT via @BreitbartNews— Stubbornly Me. (@lybr3) June 22, 2017
More monsters expose themselves every other day it seems and they appear not so strangely connected more often then not to Liberal Democrats. While conservative Republicans look better every day, government remains the central problem to all significant world problems. Therefore, the answer to saving humanity is a drastic change in government. An unpaved road to extinction solution and prescribed Matriarch Society accomplishing the job shall not be paved by women, but by men.
You are intrigued by what lies beneath the surface, and your desire to understand the inner most workings of people, governments, and the universe can result in an interest in psychology, espionage or the occult. Your keen perception, insight, and intuition make you appear to be psychic___and perhaps you are.
--Planets in Signs, by Sky AlexanderWe must look to the ancient past to move into a new future. In that ancient past, one does not suppose that the women got together and directed men to the notion of a Mother Goddess. Then and now men must take out the garbage creating a safe clean space where Matriarchs can rule. Reason-guided courage is needed now to inspire courage throughout the nation. Weeding out pretense today grows incredible freedom tomorrow. Where freedom begins, love never ends. Only love gets to touch other worlds living on higher intelligence. Osho doves and tree huggers only have a single piece of the puzzle. Science and government seem to carry disdain for universal laws.
NASA Scientists seem to love the planet, Jupiter. Boys and girls from the space agency have sent two different space probes over the years to study the largest planet in our solar system. Juno, deep space probe recently discovered a new Jupiter Moon giving the great planet 67 named and unnamed satellites. Scientists get bored easily and so now give newly discovered moons and planets numbers instead of names. Astrologers were not contacted for the tedious job of naming cosmic bodies though without Astrologers setting the table, Astronomers would be set back thousands of years.
The "Greater Benefic", Jupiter rules Sagittarius in the astrological world where Zodiacs turn like the days of our lives. This Roman God of Thunder is known as Zeus in Greek Mythology. Jupiter is also known as The Law Giver. It seems only fitting that the Great Benefic should rule stardust powering this once reluctant Poet chosen to shed light on the road to Utopian Society.
Evolutionary changes in humanity can come quickly or slowly. Whether those changes come via information or driven by an event, all evolutionary change is cataclysmic. One supposes we should not be shocked at behavior of Liberals since this past presidential election knowing their world crumbles all around them.
Spiritual Warriors and all people taking the spiritual journey of eternity know our world and realities are shifting. Look to power in the stars joining a winning team on sacred journey to a new and better humanity. It only seems awkward at first. Try not to be bothered by growing pains.
The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.
--Sagittarius with Scorpio Moon, Albert Einstein
StarsLikeYou.com-Scorpio Moon
StarsLikeYou.com-Scorpio Moon
Astro Shaman
Explore Jupiter, the Planets and, more
The Black Moon of Scorpio 2016
Spiritual Notes; Mission Log from the Edge of Time
Explore Jupiter, the Planets and, more
The Black Moon of Scorpio 2016
Spiritual Notes; Mission Log from the Edge of Time
Comey said he briefed Gang-of-8 Trump was NOT under investigation. Yet Schiff, Pelosi, Warner & Schumer CONTINUED Investigation.. pic.twitter.com/iyKWnIjyrt— Kevin W. (@kwilli1046) June 9, 2017


text:
Tag Archives: responsive
Design Responsive HTML Emails With Ink, New From ZURB
ZURB the creators of Foundation, one of the most advanced and responsive, front end frameworks, have finally released their newest product, a framework for designing responsive emails: Ink
Ink joins the Foundation Yeti as another of ZURB's mythical creatures. She's a giant sea squid that uses her tentacles to help you manage all the different email clients you need to deal with. Continue reading »
Responsive HTML5 & CSS3 Frameworks
We know there are a wide range of frameworks out there. So many, we decided to make our own personal list, which we will update often. We created an overview of frameworks that are: state-of-the-art, updated regularly, use the latest techniques (HTML5, jQuery, CSS3), are flexible, responsive, mobile, cross- platform/browser usable and offer a good head start to your projects. Continue reading »

subset: commoncrawl


text:
I'm going to try to buckle down to share with you some of the happenings on my India trip, not least because I would love to have a record of this once-in-a-lifetime trip for myself!
While in India, I posted once very early in the trip. That posting was done to Hope's blog; you can read it here. I've since decided that this record really belongs on my own blog, so henceforth any entries made with be made herein, but not heretofore. Ahem.


text:
National Smith Day - This is a day for anyone with the name Smith. Whether it's your actual name or it's part of your profession such as blacksmiths or goldsmiths. It will even work for those of you with a Smith-like name such as Schmidt or Smyth. They say that Smith is one of the most common names there is, but that doesn't mean that you are common. You are just as unique as anyone else. Celebrate that fact today!
World Day for War Orphans - Created by the French organization SOS Enfants en Detresses, this is a day to recognize the particular problems that orphans have in this world. With no parents to care for them and love them either because they have died or because they have abandoned their children, orphans have a very difficult beginning to their lives. In Afghanistan alone, there are over 2 million orphaned children. In africa, because of AIDS, other epidemics, and various wars, there are over 34 million orphaned children. When parents cannot fulfill their responsibilities, governments must step in and help these children who cannot help themselves.
National Shortbread Day – Traditionally a Scottish dish based on biscuit bread...feel free to try this one.
Three Kings Day or Epiphany or Twelfth Night – The twelve days of Christmas begin on Christmas day and end today with the Feast of Epiphany which is also called "The Adoration of the Magi." Magi is a fancy name for Wise Men (or kings) of which there were three who went to visit baby Jesus, hence the Three Kings Day. So although they seem like they should be separate celebrations, they are really all the same.
Apple Tree Day – This is a day to focus on the health benefits of apples. You have heard the expression, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." I don't know where that came from but there is some truth to it as apples are very healthy for you.
National Bean Day – There are beans in all different shapes, sizes and colors. You can cook with them or craft with them or even make musical instruments with them. I see where your mind went just now, and that's just stinky and not at all what I meant.
Cuddle Up Day – This is a day to find someone to cozy up with. If you can't find a willing person, try an animal (tame and domesticated preferably). If you can't find a willing live animal, try a stuffed one. If all else fails, you can borrow my dog, he'll cuddle with anyone.
National Take Down The Christmas Tree Day - This is the day to take down that Christmas tree if you haven't already. Pack it up people, it's time. You might consider taking your outside lights down too, so I don't have to listen to my children complaining about all the lights up still. When I was a kid we would leave the tree up until February sometimes, but I suppose that many people would consider that to be very bad.


text:
Monday, 17 August 2009
Blast from the Past
I won't bore you with the history of Mackeson Stout except to say that the beer was originally brewed in Hythe, Kent by Mackeson's Brewery in 1907 and was taken over by Whitbread in the 1920's, many moons ago. The brand is presumably owned by InBev now, though I don't know who brews it, but until the demise of the Ram Brewery, it was made by Youngs. Maybe it is now made by Wells and Youngs. I simply don't know, but maybe someone out there can tell me?
Anyway the landlady has been unwell recently and being the impressionable type, thought a milk stout would pick her up a bit. A phone call to Lees revealed that they stock Mackeson and a crate of this beer, once available in nearly every pub was duly ordered. She has managed to persuade a few of the regulars to try it too, usually mixed with the bitter. I had a swig of it yesterday and it isn't bad at all. A stout like roastiness and a creamy sweetness defining it. I must say it's interesting that this has taken off in the pub, though I suspect it may be a passing fad.
It contrasted greatly with the other stout I was given in the pub. The long awaited Brew Dog Tokyo. 18.2% or 3%? We'll see.
The photo shows the bottle and a pint of the Mackeson/Bitter mix.
11 comments:
- Wurst/Whorst- Brewing Arts Instructor, CEO APRK said...
Milk Stout? It's brewed in Ohio here, why I dunno. Never liked sweet stouts. I think she'd be better off with a hot toddy.
- 17 August 2009 at 15:25
- Woolpack Dave said...
Tandleman has tried Tokyo*? It's going to be interesting to read about this showdown. Stay tuned folks!
- 17 August 2009 at 17:35
- RedNev said...
I associate Mackeson, or "Mackies" as it was usually called in Liverpool, with my grandmother who liked to have the occasional bottle or two.
Another beer survival from a previous era is Mann's Brown Ale, which cheapskates used to drink mixed with bitter, as bar staff often gave a generous half of bitter when pulling it into a pint glass. It was called "brown bitter" & seemed to lose popularity in the 1980s.
- 17 August 2009 at 18:16
- Wurst/Whorst- Brewing Arts Instructor, CEO APRK said...
"A bottle of Manns with a half of Bitter goes together like Flo and 'er curlers."
- 17 August 2009 at 18:27
- John Clarke said...
Hydes now brew Mackeson!
- 17 August 2009 at 20:18
- Barm said...
I love these old relics of brewing history. Pity you can only get cans of Mackeson in the off-trade. It destroys all the retro charm the beer might otherwise have in bottles.
- 17 August 2009 at 21:34
- Tandleman said...
Dave - I have a bottle, but haven't tried it yet.
Thanks for the info.
- 18 August 2009 at 08:23
- Paul Bailey said...
Tried Bristol Beer Factory's Milk Stout at GBBF. Wasn't at all bad from what I remember!
I'm just too young to remember Mackeson's Brewery in Hythe. It was closed by Whitbread in 1968. We lived about 15 miles or so away at the time, and I do recall seeing Whitbread drays operating out of what must have been the brewery. As I was only 13 at the time I was not really that interested in beer!
Our village local, the Honest Miller at Brook, had an old woodem stillage behind the bar, with the legend "Mackeson" branded into the woodwork. It was originally a Mackeson pub.
- 18 August 2009 at 23:07
- Leigh said...
...Family lore has it that my mother had 'mackies' as a craving when pregnant with me - and only me - and this explains my love of beer. my brothers don't really drink, so i think this theory is well supported!!
- 19 August 2009 at 14:36
On a brewery trip to Camerons in Hartlepool sometime in the not to distant past, we passed several pallets of sacks of Lactose, on enquiering what it was used for, the answer was the contract brewing of Mackeson. Camerons now seem to do contract brewing for everyone, which makes for some interesting yeasts whan obtained for home brewing. The other interesting thing we were told, despite having their own well with excellent water for brewing, they neutralise the water by "reverse osmosis" and then add whatever the recipe demands for whatever they are brewing, for example John Smaiths at that time.
- 20 August 2009 at 14:58
- John Clarke said...
Well, Hydes are certainly brewing it as I was told this by Chris Hopkins, the chief exec.
- 20 August 2009 at 21:01


text:
Stock gives body, texture to soup
Stocks are the foundation of all cuisine. These rich brews develop from slow cooking meats, bones and vegetables in liquid in order to extract nutrients and flavor and to draw out other natural materials that add desirable body and texture to the soup. I can remember my grandmothers making soup, and it seemed like they always had a pot making stock and then soup.
Stocks lend themselves to a multitude of dishes, particularly soups and sauces. The stock provides a base of flavor for which your soup recipes can be built. In real soup, making stock is the starting point. Beef stock has the deepest, richest flavor and color, followed by chicken stock, with fish stock being the lightest.
You might have poultry meat and bones, a beef roast or a ham bone from holiday cooking. Any and all of these can be heated in a large pot on the stove or cut up and placed in the slow cooker to simmer for stock.
Take what you have and add water to it, bring it to a boil and then turn the heat down and let it simmer for several hours. Or, place the meat or bones in a slow cooker with cold water and heat the mixture first for an hour on high and then turn it to low and cook for several hours.
Either way, start with cold water, as it will pull more of the flavor out of the bones. Keep in mind that you want to cook the bones until the meat falls off them.
Strain the broth in a strainer and remove any gristle from the meat. Now you have the makings for flavorful vegetable soup.
You may use commercial canned broth or bouillon cubes or powder with water to make the broth if you don't have the time to make it yourself. Many of these are high in sodium, but you can also find low-sodium bouillon. Condensed broth is also available and can be diluted as the label directs with water or other liquids in the recipe.
As I wrote last week, soups are a great way to reduce calories, stretch your food dollars and make the most of your time. Here are some more tips for making your own soup.
- When you have leftover vegetables, pasta or meat, put them in a freezer bag or container to use later in a soup instead of tossing them.
- There are many ways to thicken soup. A tasty way is with cream, but then you have the extra calories. You can save calories by using fresh milk or non-fat powdered milk instead. Soup can also be thickened using mashed potatoes, flour, cornstarch, potato flakes or leftover stuffing.
- You can put more fiber in your healthy eating plan through soups by adding whole grains such as lentils, wheat bulgur, brown rice, whole wheat pasta or barley.
- When you are cooking vegetables for soup, you sauté them in broth instead of fat or oil, so you are saving calories there. You can also save time if you are using frozen or canned vegetables.
- Another time saver is using canned tomato or a vegetable blend soup as a base. Just remember that many of these products are high in salt, so it won't need to be added.
- The longer your simmer the soup, the more the flavor will be improved. Be mindful to simmer, not boil.
- To complete the meal, think about adding a great green salad, some whole grain bread and maybe some tasty cheese spread for the bread.
For more recipes and kitchen tips from Mary Ann Lienhart-Cross, sign up for the Food & Nutrition email newsletter.


text:
Florida's Republicans are gullible, selfish, incompetent or all three simultaneously. Florida is home to Rush Limbaugh, whose trademark has been rather worthless, as it turns out. Florida's Republican Governor and Lieutenant Governor have received nothing but bad press from day one and all the negativity is richly deserved. Even some Republicans will admit that Rick Scott is the worst Governor that Florida has had since Claude Kirk.
It's important to note that under Rick Scott's leadership, Florida changed the way it selects an Education Commissioner from being an elected position to being an appointed one. Then, seven months ago, when Scott chose Tony Bennett for the position, the Tampa Bay Times wrote:
"He is a former teacher, principal and local school superintendent, and he sounds passionate about public education. But he will have to be a better communicator in Florida than he was in Indiana."
One of these ways that politicians become "a better communicator" is via Email. In Bennett's case, he has failed in this regard because he apparently left a trail of digital breadcrumbs leading right up to a huge scandal regarding a charter school that he fostered in Indiana.
Indiana Republicans are old fashioned and as such, they are not very web savvy. They don't understand the digital age and they certainly don't understand the basic principle that "the internet never forgets". You would think the party that chose an elephant as its mascot would find that to be a point worth remembering. But just recently Indiana's new Governor, Mike Pence, came under fire for deleting facebook comments that were not wholly supportive of his office and their politics.
In Bennett's case, the evidence shows that he altered scores for privatized charter schools to make them appear better than their traditional public school counterparts. Indiana has more religious-based private schools that receive public funding than any other state in the Midwest. In fact, there is only one state in America that has more religious public schools than Indiana and that's... Florida! That unto itself is scandalous enough without the added lying, manipulation and propaganda.
According to the Tampa Bay Times yesterday:
The Associated Press first reported this week that as head of Indiana schools last fall Bennett insisted that a charter school founded by a powerful Republican donor receive an A grade instead of a C. Bennett's emails left no doubt about his intentions for Christel House Academy even as his staff questioned whether it would be legal to change the letter grade.
So, what is the Christel House Academy and why is it so important to Bennett that he would lie for it? It's a privatized charter school that operates with public funds in Indiana. This is the Republican ideal for education. It's a way to steal public education funds and use them against the system as it was designed. By funding charter schools instead of real public schools, they can avoid all the regulations inherent in a public school system. They can teach religion as scientific fact, they can serve gallons of high fructose corny syrup for lunch and they can hire loosely trained, armed security guards to stand over students with assault rifles if they want to.
The values statement on Christel House Academy's website states that they strive to teach students about "Integrity" above all else... That's a damn shame.


text:
Playoff Primer April 17: B's can clinch; Hawks No. 1?by John Kreiser / NHL.com
The 2012-13 season is racing toward the finish line. In fact, the regular season ends Sunday, April 28. Although the finish line is clearly in sight, the Stanley Cup Playoffs qualification picture is far less clear. To help make sense of the numerous permutations that exist for the playoffs, NHL.com's Playoff Push Primer looks at some of the biggest movers and shakers among the postseason hopefuls.
- For a complete look at the current playoff matchups and breakdown of remaining games, click here.
- Join the Twitter conversation: #StanleyCup
Teams that clinched Tuesday: None
Teams that can clinch Wednesday: The Boston Bruins can clinch a Stanley Cup Playoff spot if they gain at least one point against the Buffalo Sabres. The Chicago Blackhawks, who have already clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, can claim the Western Conference's top seed if Columbus defeats Anaheim in any fashion on Wednesday night.
Playoff positions to be claimed: 12
Days remaining in regular-season: 11
Total games remaining in regular season: 83
Wednesday's schedule:
Montreal at Pittsburgh: The Montreal Canadiens have been outscored 12-3 in dropping their past two games, and a trip to Consol Energy Center isn't the ideal place to snap out of a funk. The Pittsburgh Penguins have won four in a row and 19 of 21 to close in on wrapping up first place in the Eastern Conference. Pittsburgh has won both meetings against the Canadiens this season in two wildly different ways -- 7-6 in overtime at Montreal and 1-0 at Consol Energy Center.
Buffalo at Boston: The Boston Bruins got an unwanted night off Monday when their game against the Ottawa Senators was postponed following the tragedy at the Boston Marathon. They'll have had three days off when the Buffalo Sabres come to TD Garden for the Wednesday Night Rivalry game (7:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN). The Bruins trail Montreal by one point in the race for the Northeast Conference lead but now have a game in hand. Also, Boston would clinch a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs by taking at least one point from this game. The Sabres are still clinging to faint playoff hopes after sweeping Philadelphia and Tampa Bay last weekend.
Detroit at Calgary: The Detroit Red Wings are hanging on to the final playoff berth in the Western Conference as they prepare for the third of a four-game trip with a stop at Scotiabank Saddledome. They are 1-0-1 so far after beating the Nashville Predators 3-0 on Sunday night. The Calgary Flames are going nowhere but home when their season ends next Friday, but they've won two of their past three games and will be going for a season sweep of the Red Wings.
Columbus at Anaheim: The Columbus Blue Jackets won't go away. They've won four in a row, including the first two games of a six-game road trip, and enter the night even in points with the eighth-place Detroit Red Wings after a 4-3 overtime victory against the Colorado Avalanche on Monday. The Blue Jackets may be catching the Anaheim Ducks at the right time -- the Ducks' offense has been in a funk for the past couple of weeks; Anaheim has scored just one goal in each of its past two games, both losses. With a four-game road trip coming up after this one, the Ducks could really use a victory.
Teams on the rise:
Minnesota Wild: In a span of a little more than 24 hours, the Minnesota Wild went from a team in a scoring slump that threatened its return to the playoffs to a solid sixth-place team more concerned about catching the teams ahead in the standings. Kyle Brodziak had a pair of goals against his former team as the Wild beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-3 on Tuesday, one night after winning 4-3 in Calgary. They play at San Jose on Thursday before returning home for three games.
Washington Capitals: Times are good for fans in the nation's capital because their hockey team is on a roll. The Washington Capitals made it eight consecutive victories by steamrolling the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-1 on Tuesday night. League leader Alex Ovechkin was one of five Capitals to score a goal as Washington remained four points ahead of the Winnipeg Jets in the race for first place in the Southeast Division.
Winnipeg Jets: After beating the Florida Panthers last Thursday, the Jets had to spend four days sitting and watching all the other playoff contenders in the Eastern Conference pile up points. They finally got back on the ice Tuesday night and made it 4-for-4 on their current homestand by beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-3 in a shootout. Goals by Mike Santorelli and Andrew Ladd in the tiebreaker gave the Jets the extra point after they blew a 3-1 lead in the third period. Their 46 points are the same as the New York Rangers, who have a game in hand.
Teams on the decline:
New York Rangers: The New York Rangers picked a bad night to see their dominance of the Philadelphia Flyers end. The Rangers had won 10 of 11 against the Flyers, but despite out-shooting Philadelphia 40-22, they left Wells Fargo Center with a damaging 4-2 loss. Failing to get two points against a team virtually out of the playoff race was bad enough, but the three teams they're battling for an Eastern Conference playoff berth all won. The Rangers are still eighth, but now are even in points with the Winnipeg Jets, who've played one more game.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Maybe it was just fatigue (second half of a back-to-back; third game in four nights), but the Toronto Maple Leafs went down without a lot of resistance in a 5-1 loss to the Washington Capitals. The loss, combined with the Ottawa Senators' 3-2 victory against Carolina, reduced the Maple Leafs' lead on the Senators to three points in the race for fifth place. The teams meet Saturday night.
Vancouver Canucks: The visiting Vancouver Canucks were less than 10 minutes away from winning 1-0 against the St. Louis Blues, but allowed a goal by Jay Bouwmeester and wound up having to settle for one points in a 2-1 shootout loss. The Canucks still have the inside track to first place in the Northeast Division, but their lead on the second-place Minnesota Wild was reduced to four points with five games remaining.


text:
I was pointed to Gold Nugget Shawl by a friend, having avoided looking at new patterns because of the many projects on needles. But that combined with seeing Shui's second version on Ravelry (I'm fiberlyone there, too, btw), I just couldn't resist. I started it to take on a trip to Hawai'i last week.
Here's the cast on from before the trip.
And progress from the trip.
The pattern isn't too hard, but it took a couple of days to get the pattern in my head. Now it's progressing pretty well. But there are other projects on the needles for the upcoming holidays, so finishing may not be as quick as I'd like.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Monday, October 15, 2007
Another Voyager done
I finished a second VOYAGER. It is for International Scarf Exchange 5. Its the Cash Tweed Oak that Tom overdyed with blue raspberry koolaid. The pattern is wonderful. I don't think I will ever get tired of it!!!
Posted by Grace at 7:59 AM 2 comments:
Sunday, October 7, 2007
It's DONE!
It has taken me a really long time but I FINALLY finished my Pacific Waves Shawl in Sonata - Rose Garden colorway. I'm very happy with the way it turned out except that it is really quite long. I think a little wider and a little shorter would be more to my taste but I still love it and can't wait to find someplace to wear it. Now the hard part is figuring out which Elann shawl to make next - there are so many gorgeous shawls!
Posted by Allison at 11:15 PM 5 comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)


text:
About Us
Types of tax
Legal Counsel
Contact Us
Tax Rates
Contact Centre
0800 00 7277
Businesses and Employers
Tax Practitioners
Customs and Excise
Do I need to pay tax?
How do I register for tax?
How do I send SARS my return?
How do I pay?
What if I do not agree?
Tax during all life stages and events
I need help with my tax
Manage your Tax Compliance Status
Small Businesses and tax
Large Business
My Business and Tax
Tax Exempt Organisations
Third Party Data Submission Platform
Venture Capital Companies
How do I query my debt?
Business Rescue/s155 Compromise
Make an appointment
Register as a TP
Confirm TP registration
Controlling Bodies
Merging eFiling profiles
Shared access
Service offerings per channel
Top publications and forms for TP
eFiling App and Mobisite
About Customs
Customs Offices
Registration, Licensing and Accreditation
Clearance Declaration
Rules of Origin
Prohibited and Restricted Goods
State Warehouse
Refunds and Drawbacks
Offences, Penalties and Disputes
Sending and receiving goods in the post
Trade Statistics
New Customs Legislation update
Duties and Taxes
Import, Export and Transit
International Oil Pollution Levy
Legislative Framework
Rates of Exchange
Report a Customs Crime
Sugary Beverages Levy
SARS Home
About Us
Client Segments
Contact Us
Legal Counsel
Tax Can Be Fun
Types of Tax
Targeting Tax Crime
Tax Rates
Page Content
All Publications
Invoice Declarations
Preferential Rules of Origin
Clearance Declaration
SADC Sugar Quotas
All Forms
DA 59 - Declaration of Origin - External (Form)
DA 49A 01 - Suppliers declaration - External (Form)
DA 46A1 01a - AGOA Application for a Visa - External (Form)
DA 46A1 01 - AGOA Textile Certificate of Origin - External (Form)
DA 46A 04 - Declaration by producer - External (Form)
DA 46A 03 - Application for Certificate of Origin (Form)
ALL FAQs
AGOA - What proof of origin must be submitted by an importer in the USA for goods exported from South Africa under the AGOA arrangement? Would a Form A be issued for such exports?
Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Customs in South Africa only issue visas for clothing and textiles.For this purpose Customs will include the visa stamp on the invoice which is then presented to the US Customs
read more
Origin - Are there any user guides available on rules of origin?
The following documents pertaining to matters of preferential origin is available on the SARS website www.sars.gov.za:i) Guide to understanding preferential origin.
read more
Origin - Do all products have an origin?
It is a requirement of Section 39 that importers and exporters must submit a Customs declarations for goods imported or exported in the prescribed form and providing the particulars as indicated thereon.
read more
Origin - How does Preferential Duty work?
Preferential duties are in essence a means between parties to promote trade with each other in products originating in their respective countries.
read more
Origin - How would an importer go about to claim a preferential rate of Customs duty on goods imported under a trade agreement?
On importation of goods importers will declare goods in compliance with origin criteria at the preferential rate of Customs duty provided in Schedule 1 instead of the general rate which is applied to non-preferential trade.
read more
Origin - How would an importer go about to determining the origin of goods in the absence of any indication on imports documents or if it is suspect?
Any person entering any goods imported for Customs purposes must declare the origin thereof on the Customs declaration. Should the documents provided
read more
Origin - May fabric imported from a third country be used in the manufacture of garments for export to a party country within a trade agreement.
In questions of this nature the client would have to be more specific. This would depend to which trade agreement is referred to, the tariff applicable to the manufactured garments and the origin criteria in the rule.
read more
Origin - What are the requirements for a product to qualify for the benefits of preferential treatment under a trade agreement?
Trade agreements are reciprocal in nature and provide for imports in the respective markets of the parties to benefit from the arrangement.
read more
Origin - What general information is available with regards to rules of origin and where can this be obtained?
All trade agreements to which South Africa is a party are published in Schedule 10 of the Customs and Excise Tariff. The rules of origin for such agreements are published in the notes to Schedule 1.
read more
Origin - What if a country is eligible for more than one (1) arrangement? What is a Preferential Rate of Duty?
The only countries to which more than one (1) arrangement applies are Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. In addition to bilateral agreements in place between these countries
read more
Origin - What is the procedure for requesting blank certificates of origin?
Exporters of goods under trade arrangements must apply to their nearest Customs office for the issue of blank certificates of origin for completion and submission for certification when goods are exported.
read more
Origin - Where can an exporter obtaining a certificate of origin or proof of origin for purposes of preferential trade?
Application can be made to the nearest Customs Office for the issue of proof of origin for the various trade arrangements to which South Africa is a party.
read more
Origin - Would declarations of origin provided by Chambers of Commerce with an electronic signature and forwarded to an importer electronically suffice as proof of origin for Customs purposes?
The requirements for the submission of a DA 59 for non-preferential purposes is in terms of Rule 46.04 that the form must be completed by the supplier, certified by the responsible authority and submitted with the Customs declaration by the importer.
read more
SADC - Do goods manufactured in Madagascar and sold to a company in Mauritius qualify for preferences when imported into South Africa?
The company in Mauritius sells the goods to a company in South Africa and issues a certificate of origin stating the goods to be of Madagascar origin.
read more
SADC - What alphabetical letter must be reflected in Box 8 (SADC certificate) for goods that are wholly produced or sufficiently processed or further worked?
Note (iv) of the instructions for completing the SADC certificate of origin on the back of the SADC certificate of origin requires that exporters must indicate in Box 8 thereof:
read more
SADC - Would a product manufactured in Lesotho from South African and Lesotho inputs be considered to be originating in South Africa when sold to an impporter in another SADC member state. May a certificate of origin be issued in such circumstances?
The basis for dealing with trade through other member states are covered in the TDCA and in the SACU-EFTA FTA in the Articles on Direct transport and the Issue of certificates of origin on the basis of a proof of origin issued or made out previously.
read more
TDCA - What are the requirements for claiming the preferential rate of duty for imported cheese under the provisions of the TDCA?
Reference is made to the Agreement on Trade, Development and Cooperation between the European Community and the Republic of South Africa (TDCA), Article 15
read more
TDCA - What's included under the Ex-Works price?
Reference is made to the definition of ex-works price in Protocol 1 to the TDCA and in Annex V to the SACU-EFTA FTA. The ex-work price of a product must include the value of all materials used,
read more
TDCA - Would goods originating in an EU member country qualify for preferential treatment if the invoice therefore were issued in a third country?
The response to this question lies in Article 15 of Protocol 1 which provides for the procedure for the issue of an EUR.1 movement certificate.
read more
TDCA - Would goods originating in an EU member state which are sold to a third country and thereafter packed with goods originating in another third country qualify for preferential treatment when sold and imported into South Africa?
The trade agreement has not been changed as far as the Direct Transport rule of Article 12 is concerned. However, it is required in terms of Article 12 of Protocol 1 to the TDCA
read more
TDCA/EFTA - May certificates of origin be issued without the processing of an export declaration?
Articles 15 of the of Protocol 1 to the TDCA and Article 15 of Annex V to the SCU-EFTA FTA provides that the EUR.1 certificate of origin shall be issued and made available to the exporter as soon as the actual exportation has been effected or secured.
read more
TDCA/EFTA - What is a non-manipulation certificate and may Customs issue such certificates for goods in transit?
The non-manipulation of goods pertains to the transport thereof through territories which are not part of a specific trade arrangement.
read more
TDCA/EFTA - When may a certificate of origin be issued retrospectively?
Reference is made to Article 16 of Protocol 1 to the TDCA and Article 16 of Annex V to the SACU-EFTA FTA which allows for the issue of certificates of origin retrospectively.
read more
TDCA/EFTA - Where can I find the format for the invoice declaration?
The format of the invoice declaration and the notes thereto are provided in Annex IV of Protocol 1 to the TDCA and in Article 14(1) of Annex V to the SACU-EFTA FTA.
read more
TDCA/EFTA - Who can make an invoice declaration with respect to the TDCA and EFTA trade agreements?
An approved exporter within the meaning of Article 20 (Approved Exporter) of Protocol 1 and Article 22 of Annex V and any exporter for any consignment consisting of one (1) or more packages containing originating products whose total value does not exceed
read more
TDCA/EFTA - Who can register for Approved Exporter status?
Manufacturers of products which are in compliance with the rules of origin pertaining to a particular agreement and which are exported on a regular basis may apply with their nearest Customs Office for approved exporter status.
read more
Origin - What are rules of origin?
Rules of origin are the criteria which are applied to determine the origin of a product for a particular purpose. Rules are applied to products traded on a preferential or non-preferential basis.
read more
Origin - What form is used to prove the origin of goods?
The form used for origin of goods is a DA59 (Country of Origin) and this form must be completed by the Customs Authorities where the goods originated from.
read more
SADC - Would lubricants, manufactured from base oils derived from the processing of imported crude oils at a South African refinery be considered as being of South African origin for purposes of preferential trade under the SADC agreement?
The process involves the import of crude oil, the processing of crude oil to base oil and the making of lubricants by the adding of imported additives to the base oil.
read more
Origin - What is the procedure to be followed where parcels cleared via the Post Office qualify for Trade Agreements?
If parcels are imported / exported by mail, in terms of any trade agreement the specific procedures set out in the Rules for that agreement must be followed.
read more
Invoice Declaration - Which trade agreements can an invoice declaration be made for?
Trade, Development and Co-operation between the European Community and its Member States and South Africa (TDCA); and The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the European
read more
Last Updated: 23/10/2015 1:45 PM
Site Map
Tax Can Be Fun
National Treasury
Davis Tax Committee
Office of the Tax Ombud


text:
This was an outcome of an interesting argument in the State Assembly yesterday 30.04.2013 . Some MLA s have quoted the Maximum Age Limit to write GROUP 1Exam in Kerala State is 45 . They demanded that the government to raise the Age Limit in Tamilnadu also. After hearing all those arguments , Minister replied that the issue will be under the consideration of Honourable Chief Minister.
All the Best ! All TNPSC Aspirants !


text:
About Sleep Diary Pro v3.1 Apk App This is a short guide explaining how you can install an app you found here on your phone. I'm also going to show you a way that's a lot easier then the standard method everyone uses.Please make sure your phone has "Sleep Diary Pro v3.1 Apk App apk" enabled in it's settings! To check this go to Settings -> Applications -> Unknown Sources and check the box. You have two options, either put the Download Sleep Diary Pro v3.1 Apk App apk file onto your phone's SD card or download and install it directly from your phone. Sorry We Dont Have Sleep Diary Pro v3.1 Apk App Cheat Android.Another thing is to simply install a file manager app like Astro File Manager, browse the APK and install it. Remember This applications Only For Smartphone Sleep Diary Pro v3.1 Apk App Android
Requirements: Android 2.2 and up
Overview: Get a better start to the day using your Android device to wake up feeling refreshed and relaxed.
Grumpy Mornings Are History With Sleep Diary!
Get a better start to the day using your Android device to wake up feeling refreshed and relaxed.
Sleep Diary is an all-in-one sleep cycle alarm clock that analyzes your sleep patterns to help you get a better rhythm improving your wellness and fitness. In conjunction with the Smart Alarm, that wakes you in the light sleep phase, Sleep Diary can help to improve your overall heath and feel fit for the day.
Use the statistics report and your own personal diary entries to understand your sleep cycle and get a better rhythm for a good nights sleep.
Simple to use. Place on your bed and just press "Start".
* Sleep Cycle monitors you movement during sleep using the phone accelerometer.
* Advanced statistics and charts to help you visualize and understand your sleep cycle.
* Record your entry sleep in the diary.
* Smart Alarm that awakes you in the light sleep phase so that you feel fit and fresh.
* Using our Soft Alarm the gradually increases in volume is more relaxing then most alarms.
* Resume Tracking feature allows you stop and restart the tracking within 10 minutes.
* Configurable Alarms including sound & music selection, snooze time and activities.
* Auto backup option to keep your data safe along with export options (export data as CSV and charts) so you can further analyze your personal statistics.
* Works great as an alarm & diary without tracking, if so required.
* Optimized to minimize battery drain.
* English & German Languages Supported.
The Sleep Diary should by placed in your bed in order to monitor movement.
What's in this version:
New: add own sleep entry (pro version only)
Improvements to the calculation of the deep sleep line
Italian language support


text:
Last Christmas was a peaceful holiday—thoughts of work put aside as our daughters were always first priority—and we looked upon 2008 with high hopes. However, if we were ever to imagine how this year would end, we wouldn't have believed it.
It was approximately 5:00 a.m. the day after Christmas when our phones began to ring: our house phone, and both of our cell phones—repeatedly, which is never a good sign in a household with two police officers. Rich and I were awakened and alerted to the fact that something was wrong—very wrong.
Unable to reach the various numbers that showed on our phones, I began to become extremely concerned about my father. A Mansfield Police Lieutenant, my father supervised Rich on the night shift. Since Rich usually takes Christmas off to spend with the family I was racking my brain trying to remember if my father was on his days off or not. Although it had seemed like several minutes, only seconds had passed when Rich opened his cell phone and read out loud a text that had just come in: MANSFIELD POLICE OFFICER BRIAN EVANS WAS JUST SHOT AND KILLED BY HIS BROTHER. (Evans pictured above.)
Standing in our kitchen in shock, Rich continued to read that Brian's wife, Trina, had also been shot. I immediately fell apart. I had known the couple for a long time; their 10-year-old daughter Tess was a friend of my daughter's, and the text didn't reveal whether Trina was alive or not. The thought of this little girl losing both her parents was too much to handle at that moment. Rich, who had worked side by side with Brian nightly, was also overcome with grief. Regardless, the incessant phone ringing began again, and we began to learn the horrific events that had occurred leaving two innocent people dead, and two shot.
Late Christmas night, Brian, a few friends, and his brother, Larry—a corrections officer at a nearby prison—decided to take in a movie. For reasons that can only be defined as premeditated, Larry excused himself from the theatre and walked out, leaving the rest of the men scratching their heads. Brian and Larry had a good relationship so no one could figure out why he did this. Unknowingly, Larry had taken Brian's truck from the movie theatre and drove it home. Becoming concerned, Brian called Larry's wife, Carol, and asked her to pick him up and drive him to their home to find Larry. Brian also called Trina, who was with his sister, Kimberly, and told them to start looking for Larry—something was wrong.
As Brian and Carol drove to Larry's home, they were unaware that he had already ambushed, and shot his neighbor, 44-year-old Robert Houseman, in the head—killing him instantly.
After spending an enjoyable Christmas with his parents and two young daughters, the well-liked and quiet Houseman was definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time. As he put his keys in his front door to enter, Larry Evans approached Houseman from the darkness, leaving his body to lie on the front porch of the duplex they shared (pictured above). What followed was a stand-off between Larry Evans and my fellow officers at the Richland County Sheriff's Department and Mansfield Police. Over thirty rounds from various weapons were fired at officers, weapons that—according to Carol Evans, who never reported the incident—were being stockpiled over the course of several days. Carol Evans, who now supports her husband, also has her sister, Debbie Spurlock on her side. There is a growing, and all-too-realistic fear that Larry Evans may be out on our streets one day soon. While incarcerated, Larry has sworn to finish the job he started—a job that includes killing Trina and Kimberly.
Brian spotted the body immediately upon pulling into Larry's driveway. Clearly sensing the danger, Brian ordered Carol to leave the area for her own safety. Brian, a highly trained SWAT member, was also certified in the area of crisis intervention. Emerging from the darkness carrying a high-powered assault rifle, Larry Evans gunned down his own brother in cold blood, before shooting at his own wife who was fleeing for her life.
Mansfield Police Chief Phil Messer summarized Brian's courage well:
"The fact that this was his brother makes the events even more tragic; however, it cannot be disputed his act to intervene instead of leaving in the vehicle with Carol Evans clearly saved her life and demonstrated his commitment to our oath. Yes, there may be a few among us who would have confronted such a situation in the same manner as Brian—the everyday heroes we read about from time to time—but there are those we expect to respond; our police officers and firefighters, what we call our hometown heroes."
Brian's body lay several feet from Houseman's as Trina and Kimberly made their way to the home. Lying in wait, Larry opened fire on Trina and Kimberly as they pulled in, striking Trina in the right shoulder and Kimberly in the chest. Reacting instantly, Trina threw her car in reverse and sped away for safety. As she called for help, her main priority was getting a message to Brian—to warn him not to come to the house. Unfortunately, she was unaware that Brian had arrived first.
"Larry's a good, good person. Everyone needs to know that," Spurlock stressed about the barbaric monster that brutally killed two people and shot two others.
In no less than a cowardly fashion, Larry (pictured left) stripped his clothes off and surrendered to authorities, naked with his hands held high, knowing he wouldn't be shot. In the aftermath of the brutal slayings, Evans was indicted on 19 counts of murder and attempted murder of Brian Evans, Robert Houseman, Trina Evans, Kimberly Evans, and countless law enforcement officers. His bond was set at one million dollars. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
The trial of Larry Evans began—and ended—this week. Trina Evans courageously filed a motion to continue the trial, contending the findings of the psychiatrists were grossly inaccurate; the motion was denied.
This is only part one of an incredibly tragic story that has taken an astonishing turn of events. With the insanity plea thrown into the mix, the trial has already sparked outrage within the community, and numerous protests have already begun in downtown Mansfield. Was Larry Evans completely under the reign of a psychotic breakdown, or were the killings calculated by an intelligent, cold-blooded killer who knows the inner workings of the criminal justice system?
On Tuesday, September 2, a three-judge panel (two, actually, since the third fell asleep) deliberated for only ten minutes after listening only to the testimony of one witness, a psychiatrist for the defense. The judges returned an appalling, and shocking, verdict of not-guilty by reason of insanity. A potential mass murderer may be on our streets in less than two years, as Larry Evans attempted to shoot and kill upwards of 15 people that night. At the announcement of the verdict, the courtroom erupted, stunning the victims, including Trina Evans (pictured above).
The second part of this story will focus on what went wrong during the trial, and how a historic lack of injustice could possibly be rectified. To hear Trina Evans' own thoughts on the verdict, listen here. WCI's Susan Murphy-Milano wrote her own blog on the tragedy when it occurred in December.
What followed was a stand-off between Larry Evans and my fellow officers at the Richland County Sheriff's Department and Mansfield Police. Over thirty rounds from various weapons were fired at officers, weapons that—according to Carol Evans, who never reported the incident—were being stockpiled over the course of several days. Carol Evans, who now supports her husband, also has her sister, Debbie Spurlock on her side.
There is a growing, and all-too-realistic fear that Larry Evans may be out on our streets one day soon. While incarcerated, Larry has sworn to finish the job he started—a job that includes killing Trina and Kimberly.
As for Trina and Tess Evans (pictured left with Brian), they are slowly picking up the pieces and holding their breaths. Note: I will be discussing the case again on War On Crime radio with host, Levi Page, Sunday, Sept. 7th, at 10pm EDT: www.thewaroncrime.blogspot.com


text:
Her entry begins:
Between You & Me by Mary NorrisAbout The Last Boy and Girl in the World, from the publisher:
Oh gosh, how I adore this book. And though this is primarily a book about grammar, it is anything but dry. I fell in love with Mary's voice from the very first page, as she traces her path as a girl in Cleveland, OH to the offices of The New Yorker, where she has worked as a copyeditor for over 30 years. She is laugh out loud funny, not to mention...[read on]
From the critically acclaimed author of The List comes a stunning new novel about a girl who must say goodbye to everything she knows after a storm wreaks havoc on her hometown.Visit Siobhan Vivian's website.
What if your town was sliding underwater and everyone was ordered to pack up and leave? How would you and your friends spend your last days together?
While the adults plan for the future, box up their possessions, and find new places to live, Keeley Hewitt and her friends decide to go out with a bang. There are parties in abandoned houses. Canoe races down Main Street. The goal is to make the most of every minute they still have together.
And for Keeley, that means taking one last shot at the boy she's loved forever.
There's a weird sort of bravery that comes from knowing there's nothing left to lose. You might do things you normally wouldn't. Or say things you shouldn't. The reward almost always outweighs the risk.
It's the end of Aberdeen, but the beginning of Keeley's first love story. It just might not turn out the way she thought. Because it's not always clear what's worth fighting for and what you should let become a memory.
The Page 69 Test: The Last Boy and Girl in the World.
Writers Read: Siobhan Vivian.
--Marshal Zeringue


text:
Status: Closed
Know more about this business than we do? Cool! Please submit any corrections or missing details you may have.Help us make it right
Red the Salon Facebook page is a collection of both our stories and our clients showing how people from the local area have come together and made Red the Salon what it is today.
Be the first MLive.com user to add photos or videos of Red The Salon
I have this thing with hair. I used to be a hair model - from LA to NYC and a few places in between. Basically, I was a glorified monkey who let people cut, dye, style, blow out and updo my hair -...
Best Stylist in the area!!
Red the Salon can be found at N Old Woodward Ave 470. The following is offered: Salons. The entry is present with us since Sep 8, 2010 and was last updated on Nov 14, 2013. In Birmingham there are 47 other Salons. An overview can be found here.


text:
I have a few cards to show you today, which are birthday cards I have made recently for family and friends.
This first one as you can see, is for my brother, who loves his garden, so I thought this image suited him rather well. It is from digistampboutique, which is a site I am using more and more recently. I really love their images and still have lots to use.
This card is for a friend, who actually picked the papers she wanted for her card, cos she loved the colours so much! This is using the gorgeous 'Madelyn' stamp from The Greeting Farm. I had a lot of trouble sticking that bow on I can tell you!
This card was made using another Greeting Farm stamp called 'Princess Anya' and was made for a friends daughter.


text:
Oct 10,17,24- Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre - 10/24/2017
Event Category: Entertainment, Food, St.Croix, and Movies/Film/Theater/Performance
Join us for a fun night out! While you enjoy an awesome 3 course meal try to solve the "who-dun-it?" interactive play. Last Will is set at a memorial dinner of the late Jonas Carmody, who left a $30 million estate to someone. A surprise reading of his will turns one of the dinner guests into a murderer. Can you figure out who it is??
Tickets will be available September 1. Call 778-CHOP(2467) for details. Only 3 shows: 10/10; 10/17; 10/24
Category: Entertainment, Food, St.Croix, and Movies/Film/Theater/PerformancePhone: 778-CHOP(2467)
Leave a Review


text:
Yeah, I know what I said. And I'll be back on point come the first. No foolin'. But in the meantime, one of my heroes actually engaged in
* - EDIT: Goddammit, I kicked myself over this all day. On the way to work this morning, I realized that this wasn't actually man-splaining. Man-splaining is when a man "explains" something to a woman (who often already knows what's being explained) in a condescending way. That's not what this was. The pointing out of man-splanation will often result in backpedaling, digging oneself deeper, getting defensive, and so on... some of which I saw, and then I went and affirmed the damned consequent because it looked kinda the same coming out the back-end. So yeah. Yoy my bad. Sorry, Adam!
So, Austin, I think this (expecting to be able to communicate on your wavelength) is why your reflex is to say, "you seem to be misunderstanding something," when we're not communicating on the same wavelength. As if it's my fucking job to immediately synch up to your wavelength. Now, OK, I know that sounds harsh when I say it like that, but stop and feel that harshness - really, truly, feel it - and now hold on to that in one hand, and in the other hand, take a step back. With the harshness in one hand, and a coolly reflective displacement in the other, realize that when you say something like, "Whoah, slow down there, you seem to be misunderstanding something here," it really feels like you're telling me that it is my job to immediately synch up to your wavelength. Like your wavelength's normal, like your wavelength's the default, and like it's not an assertion of privilege to expect me to grasp that without even thinking about it. This is the extreme hostility that McEwan is talking about: but it feels like it's coming from you, even though it's hard for you to see it until I put the implication right back at you. It's not what you meant - I don't doubt that, and in fact, "me not receiving what you mean to send" is why you feel the need to say it in the first place - but it's how it's received, nevertheless.
To clear things up with a brief list:
1. It is not my job to interpret what you say in the best possible light (or to immediately synch up to your wavelength).
2. It is not your job to magically know the best way to phrase things to me (or to immediately synch up to my wavelength).
3. But! If you want me to receive what you have to say in a positive way, then that desire of yours puts obligations on you in order to achieve it. I don't have to want to receive you in a positive way (because #1).
Now, with friends, family, and even long-time acquaintances (i.e. "most of the people you talk to most of the time"), you're already on the same wavelength, so none of this matters. But when you (for example) start talking to me (for example), I don't know you from Adam. You're just some guy. If you say something that sounds dumb, well, whatever - most people are dumb. No surprise, there. But if you then tell me that I'm making a mistake for not thinking you just said something awesome, then you're digging yourself deeper. But! If you instead act like you stepped on my toes and say, "Whoah, I'm sorry, I must have said something wrong," that tells me you at least recognize that A) we're not on the same wavelength, and B) I don't have to want to be on yours.
Note that B is more important for you to acknowledge. Also note that I'm still not obligated to give a shit. Remember: you're still just some guy. That sounds harsh, I know, and I don't even have a reversal here; it's just a fact that I don't need to always have an open slot on my list of People I Give a Shit About Today. (To be perfectly clear, you are on that list today. Congratulations? But that's why you're getting all this: because this is how things are, and if you're just now waking up to it... boy howdy, do you have some waking up to do!)
(...to take a dose of my own medicine... if that sounded harsh, then I probably said something wrong. Sorry. What I'm trying to communicate to you here is that, it looks like you're fixating on getting other people to understand what you mean. You're trying to get people on your wavelength. But it's way more effective, and way more impressive, if you can bring yourself over to someone else's wavelength - it's also way harder, so if you're just now seeing the scope of how hard it is, what I'm saying is that "You ain't seen nothin' yet!" I hope that sounds better and more encouraging than what I said before.)
So, OK, you're having some confusion on "what is and is not reasonable criticism of feminists as a male feminist." That, right there, indicates to me that you're taking the "Hold on, I have something to say" approach. I mean, I bet you do. But you're just some guy. I'd say "try listening to them first," but you're probably doing that already. I'd say "try synching up to their wavelength," but I just said that and you're also probably doing that already. Y'know, I think we're friends, and... uhh... wow. That six-pack went by real quick. OK. We're friends, right? Here's some stuff from Feminism Class I think you'd be able to handle.
Marilyn Frye writes about a mindset called "look, listen, check, and question." Looking, sure, we can take that for granted. Listening is sort of a whole-body thing, it's distinct from merely "hearing," and if you grasp that distinction then we can probably take that for granted, too. But "check and question" are where things go straight to Hard Mode: you then have to double-back, see where you just were and where you've been coming from, and really honestly think about where things are going from there. When you're talking about being a "male feminist," you're halfway there (at least! I'm saying that merely identifying as a male feminist brings you halfway there, because you're like, "OK, yeah, I wanna be on-board with this"). But the checking and questioning needs to be directed at yourself. Yes, there will be some checking of others, some questioning of others, but all that happens more or less automatically. When you check yourself, and question yourself, you start making progress. But here's the thing: you never get to the point where you're like, [Bill Hicks' God voice]: "There it is, I have checked myself. Check. And questioned myself. Check. That's done. Time to go about solving problems once and for all!" That never happens. These are continuous processes.
Mariana Ortega writes about "loving, knowing ignorance." This is what happens when you look and listen, but don't check and question. (The "loving" means that it ultimately does come from a place of love, and the "knowing" is meant semi-sarcastically in the way that "a little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing," as made [hopefully] obvious by the "ignorance" bit.) You get a little into feminism, you start to get comfortable, but really you're only over that first hill where you ought to be seeing the whole mountain range, and sure, maybe you do... but then you think you've got it all down. Oops! That's the mistake right there, it's so easy to make, I've made it at every job I've ever held where I thought I stopped being a noob and then started making noob mistakes all the fuck over again. Loving, knowing ignorance. There's levels and levels to this stuff, because once again, it's a continuous process. You don't check it off and move on, you have to keep doing it, because there will always be things outside your experience and people not on your wavelength.
All right, so that was a ridiculous Cliff's Notes summary of some serious Feminism Class stuff, but we're friends and I think you can handle it, so let's try it together. I'm actually pretty lit right now, and this is getting way long. But you listed some concerns: "I've been really confused over what is and is not reasonable criticism of feminists," "I'm just trying to evaluate whether or not their interpretation of events is correct," and everything in between. Take another look at that, let's have a conversation here, and we'll see if we can't raise some consciousness and build some bridges and stuff. Sound good? I hope so. :)
And yeah, in case anyone doesn't know the ground rules: this is not a Safe Space. This is a Danger Zone. Comments are not moderated or edited for any reason - I refuse to do that, and nobody else has the power to do so. So... it's a dirty free-for-all. But that also means it's a great practice space - I myself have said things I've later regretted, and I don't edit or retract them. (EDIT: I usually don't edit or retract them.) I rub my nose in it and live with the mistake. And I just kinda hope that everyone else is willing to go with the same sort of example, unrealistic as it is, because dammit this is my soapbox. :)


text:
Prepare to feel the Force!
This thrilling new addition to LEGO Star Wars Clocks is here! The clock is a giant mini-figure of the renowned Boba Fett in exacting detail which will be noticed and beloved by Star Wars fans.
The clock is fully adjustable - also the Digital clock is displayed on an LCD screen with a backlight so you can easily see it at night.
- LEGO Star Wars Boba Fett Clock
- Digital clock with alarm and snooze button
- Activate snooze by pushing head down
- Clock is fully adjustable
- Clock face illuminates when head is pressed down
- Officially licensed LEGO Star Wars clock
- 2x AAA batteries (included)
- Dimensions: 16 x 13 x 23.5cm
- Weight: 522g


text:
Healing the Scars of Abuse 3-Day Marathon
May 31st – June 5th – June 7th – REGISTER FREE Today!Mental, physical or childhood abuse can cause serious problems. They include fear, self-hatred, depression, guilt and a deepening lack of trust in others.
Join Catherine & Michele on this 3-Day Marathon including 3 hour discussions with Angela Gower-Johnson – Infinite Possibilities Expert, Blossom Benedict – Voice Coach & Access Consciousness Facilitator and Glenyce Hughes – Medium, providing you with TOOLS, TECHNIQUES, PROCESSES, GUIDANCE and CLEARNINGS to help you move out of the control of the scars from past abuse.
May 31st – June 5th – June 7thJoin Catherine & Michele as they speak with renowned Teachers & Coaches as they share their wisdom, expertise and powerful clearing tools and help you step into the truly magnificent being you are.
Exclusive Early Bird Package ONLY AVAILABLE May 21 – 30, 2012CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS
Infinite Possibilites Expert
Thursday, May 31st
4pm to 7pm EDT
- What is on the other side of abuse?
- What if there is more than you ever imagined possible?
- Are you willing to find out?
Join Catherine & Michele as Angela reveals her story of abuse which began at an early age and carried into her adulthood, and how she moved away from it. Angela will share the tools she used to set herself free which have allowed her to be the joyful person she is today.
On the call/webcast, Angela will facilitate 3 people with what has happened to them. She will also share the mindset as well as the tools that allowed her to let go of the pain, shame and suffering. Are you ready to find out what comes after abuse? What are the infinite possibilities here?
About Angela:Angela Bear Gower-Johnson is an Infinite Possibilities Process Expert Coach helping people in business to expand and grow their business using simple energy and awareness tools. She provides new information that facilitates her clients seeing and embracing the infinite possibilities available to them in every moment.
Angela spent 20 years as a student and user of a myriad of different personal growth and personal development methods including NLP, Access Consciousness, and the Silva Method. She only works with people who desire nothing less than phenomenal results in their business and in their lives. She offers a wide range of programs and services for people in business – from private consultations, to group teleconferences and monthly group coaching programs facilitating people with relationships challenges, financial challenges, low confidence and self-esteem and those who really want to take their business to a higher level through her website, http://www.ultimatedreamproject.com.
Angela specializes in coaching business people to skyrocket their results and to exceed their desired results while she continues to train and study in new ways to support people. After a successful career in empowering ordinary people to live extraordinary lives, Angela Gower-Johnson now coaches business people to achieve phenomenal success with less effort.
Visit Angela's Website
Angela's I WILL SURVIVE Limited Time Offer
Voice Coach & Access Consciousness Facilitator
Tuesday, June 5th
6pm to 9pm EDT
- Are you ready to honor and care for you?
- What would your life be like if you did not allow anyone to invalidate you ever again?
- What is beyond all the lies you have been telling yourself?
Invalidation: Any time you see yourself as less than an infinite being.
Most of us see abuse with very definite parameters in place. It's very clear when you endure sexual or physical abuse. But what about financial abuse? What about when you tell yourself constantly that you are not good enough? What about when you look in the mirror and begin judging everything you see?
What abuse have you heaped onto your body and being that if you could let it go would change your money, body, and entire reality? What would it be like if you were willing to have honor, trust, vulnerability, allowance and gratitude for you? What would it be like if you invited people into your life who were kind and caring and willing to see the greatness in you as well?
What walls have you erected to keep yourself safe that are actually not required and are keeping you separate from everyone and everything that could contribute to you?
Join Michele & Catherine as they talk with Blossom about the very special set of Access Consciousness™ tools she uses to begin unravelling all the insane points of view that are running many people's lives and keeping them in the cycle of choosing to invalidate themselves or receive invalidation over and over again.
About Blossom:Blossom Benedict is an international speaker, facilitator and coach who has facilitated workshops in 12 different countries and touched thousands of lives with her gentle, joyful and dynamic presentation of the life changing tools of Access Consciousness™. Blossom works closely with Access founder Gary Douglas, Dr Dain Heer and the 700+ facilitators who spread these powerful tools, questions and processes in the world. These tools have transformed Blossom's life in miraculous ways. It is with great joy that she works to empower other to know what they know and create the same shifts from survival to thrival.
"If I could just stand on a mountain top and shout out to the world 'it doesn't have to be that way' I would! Life can be so much easier. Most of us were never taught that change was a choice. We were never given the tools required to create that change. How did I get so lucky to share a piece of this possibility with the world?"
Visit Blossom's Website
Blossom's I WILL SURVIVE Limited Time Offer
Glenyce Hughes
Medium & So Much More
Thursday, June 7th
6pm to 9pm EDT
Join Catherine & Michele as Glenyce helps you release the trauma of abuse and step into your true power and potential. Glenyce will work in partnerships with Creator, Angels, Achangels, and Ascended Masters as they facilitate clearings, healings, and energy shifts to release trauma of the past and clear the way for your amazing future.
About Glenyce:
Glenyce chose to step onto a Spiritual Path once she was attuned to Reiki in 2002. At the time she really didn't know what she was getting herself into… but years later wouldn't have changed any of it for the world. For Glenyce, walking a Spiritual Path means being conscious… paying attention to your thoughts, words, and actions to be the best person you can be. Choosing to release limiting beliefs, release the past, forgiving and fully stepping into your personal power are things which Glenyce works on daily.
By doing this she opened up to all sorts of wonderful and amazing gifts she never knew she had. Glenyce gained the connection to her "team" of Angels, Guides and loved ones in Spirit, which enabled her to help others connect to their own "teams". Glenyce re-awakened her psychic ability to assist others to be their best selves and live the lives of their dreams.
Glenyce opened to the healing channel within the Universe that honors her by utilizing her body as a vessel to heal herself & others, mind, emotions, body & spirit. This healing channel enables her to tap into the Universal healing energy and bring it to people, places, things, animals, events, and whatever needs love & light!
Glenyce believes that every part of her journey has been, and will continue to be, to assist her to remember Who She Really IS… pure Love & Light, connected to Creator, to everyone. She is here to experience constant joy, continuous creation, total abundance, never ending expansion and total fulfillment at every moment.
A leader in her field, Glenyce has inspired thousands around the world through her writing, workshops, home study online courses, teleclasses, and individual sessions.
Visit Glenyce's Website
Glenyce's I WILL SURVIVE Limited Time OfferCopyright me&myPassions 2011; 2012 meandmyPassion TeleSummit
Purchase PassionTeleSummits recordings
brought to you by Michele & Catherine
Anchoring Prosperity TeleSummitDiscover the processes that helped thousands step into accepting prosperity and joy in their lives. Break through to new levels of abundance, joy and ease to blow the lid off what's possible for you!
BEING Series TeleSummitHave you spent most of your life trying to be better, trying to be something else or fitting someone else's definition of what you should be?
What is it people are asking that they don't even know that they know, that with just a couple of the right questions they could figure it out?
Are you ready to explore what makes up the pieces of you? PURCHASE the BEING Series Recordings!
Catherine & Michele are here to share the expertise of Access Consciousness™ Facilitators with the intention to help you remember who you are. This telesummit series includes conversations on Being, Relationships, Business, Facilitating the Earth and more! We want to awaken the dreamers and shift into full possibilities.
What else is possible?


text:
Just having a website is no longer adequate.
What kind of business do you operate? Whether you have a retail, services, or an e-commerce business, getting found and sought out is a common goal by all business owners whether your market is local, regional, or national.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a serious business. Every internet marketer and online business owner is doing whatever it takes to be on the top spot for their chosen niche. They all have one goal in mind, to get top listed. Though the objective is clear, finding a company that can help you accomplish getting top ranked is almost as difficult as understanding clearly what needs to be done to optimize getting qualified traffic directed to your business. Marketing In Color can help you sort through all of the technical jargon and put together an understandable and affordable SEO plan to optimize your website, online and offline marketing initiatives, get you listed on hundreds of local sites and directories and move you towards a higher search ranking.


text: The tasting stations at Saturday night's 40th annual Beastly Ball included every restaurant from Yamashiro to Maison Akira. But leave it to good old Pink's to get it right when it advertised the Betty White Naked Dog as "a hot dog in a bun with absolutely nothing on it."Hollywood's favorite 88-year-old thesp was being honored by the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Griffith Park, and as the town's most ardent animal lover said, "Elephants love to have their tongues slapped. It doesn't work as well on fellas." White said she found the honor something of an inside job since she's been a member of the zoo family for so long. "That's incest!" she told the powers-that-be, who reportedly replied, "What's wrong with incest?"


text:
First and foremost, I want to make it crystal clear that I IN NO WAY CONDONE THIS BEHAVIOR. If, in fact, this incident is just a cut and dry, unprovoked beatdown— then these kids and their parents should be ashamed of themselves. These kids are old enough to know how to keep their hands to themselves and use words to resolve conflicts. Basically, these kids suffer from NHTS—No Home Training Syndrome.
Mmkay... So, angry white Republicans are so desperate and angry that they now have to resort to blaming every crime committed by a black person on President Obama? Okey dokey then! A few things jump out at me here:
- The video shown on Lou Dobb's show was zoomed in and edited
- The original video showed many more kids screaming and cheering, several of them were white
- If in fact this really were a racially motivated crime, wouldn't the assailants have beaten the other white kids, including the one who got between the assailant and the victim?
The entire incident appalls me—the kids who attacked, those who cheered, the driver who did not stop the bus, and the fact that there did not seem to be an aide on the bus to handle situations that arise since the driver's attention is understandably focused elsewhere.
The other thing that sets me off regarding this is Rush Limbaugh making it out to be President Obama's fault. Yeah, sure, every crime committed by every African American is done so on direct order from President Obama or as a direct result of his election. Yep, the secret is out!
While he was campaigning, Obama held secret Negro meetings where he explained that once he was elected, he expected each and every black person so to do their Negro duty and beat down white kids on school buses. He felt that would help make up for the hundreds of years of slavery, Jim Crow and racism. And boy oh boy was he right! Knowing that white kid got a bloody nose makes me feel so much better about the dilapidated conditions of inner-city schools, the unemployment rate in the black community, the educational gap between black and white students and the white woman who clutches her purse whenever my man and I walk past her.
Yes, those last two paragraphs were sarcasm and ridiculousness, but so is Limbaugh's assertion that somehow President Obama condones the aforementioned behavior and will come to the aid of the assailants. Obviously, this is not the first incident of school bus violence in America, or there would not be cameras on the buses. Also, do we know what actually happened there? Did the kids on the bus say that it was a racially motivated incident? Some published reports stated that the victim is not well liked by most of the kids and is a couple of years older than they are and known to have bullied kids himself. Could it be possible that the kids simply do not like one another and it has nothing to do with race? Believe it or not, there are a few people with whom I prefer not to associate and it has nothing to do with race and everything to do with their personalities.
This situation sheds light on one of the oldest forms of institutionalized racism: The One Drop Rule. Basically, it was enacted during the 1800's to deem anyone with any black blood in them black. That meant that any children born of interracial relations were, in the eyes of the law, black and hence, subject to the terms of slavery.
The One Drop Rule applies to this incident regarding the way it is perceived. According to Limbaugh and the rest of the Peanut Gallery, since these two black kids got violent on the bus, all black kids get violent on the bus. If one black man is threatening, all black men are threatening. If one black woman has nine children by eight different men, all black women do. You see the logic?
And it does not apply to white people. In 1999, two white teens shot 33 people and killed 12 at Columbine High School in Colorado. No pundits deemed all white teens dangerous; no media personalities blamed Bill Clinton for their actions. No one blamed George H.W. Bush for the death of Brandon Teena, who was killed by two white men for being a transgendered person, and the media did not tell people that all white men from Lincoln, Nebraska were evil and violent.
What Limbaugh, Dobbs and others like them do is unconscionable rabble-rousing. They take isolated incidents and spin them into lore for the uneducated and misinformed people who truly believe what they are told. They say that all black people are violent, unintelligent, hateful, un-Christian, etc. Sadly, the black characters they see on t.v. and in movies and music videos then reinforce their misdirected beliefs and hence, the stereotype continues and racism abounds.
A parting thought; Hundreds of black men, women and children were beaten and killed for no reason other than the color of their skin, in the times that led up to and included the civil rights movement. No one blamed any of the current or former presidents for those crimes. Ironically, President Lyndon B. Johnson's presidency saw record low unemployment, the advent of Medicaid and Medicare and increased educational funding, among other great contributions. LBJ signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which improved things for African Americans. The American people did blame him for that. Go figure.


text:
I spent yesterday beating myself up because I'd lost my camera. I knew I had it in my pocket Sunday afternoon while I was getting the kids ready to go to the park. I knew I'd decided to take it out of my pocket before it fell out. And I knew it left my pocket before we left the house.
What I didn't know was if it had fallen out somewhere, or if I'd taken it out and set it in a safe place. There was also the chance that one my little guys had picked it up and made off with it.
So I sulked for a while. I needed to have that camera tomorrow, and if I couldn't find it, there wasn't any point in finishing the rest of the things I needed for tomorrow.
As soon as I stopped pouting and actually got to work, I found the camera in the box of fabric it had dropped into. If I'd just worked on my project to begin with, I would've found it before lunch and saved myself a lot of worry.
Now that I've got my act together, my plans for tomorrow have been cancelled anyway. I can't blog about why, but trust me, it's a hell of a story.
Far more exciting than what we did here this afternoon, which was opening up the hive to refill their feeder with sugar water. Ten thousand bees are much more intimidating when they're flying around.
I may want my own bee suit for mother's day.


text:
Amanda Whittaker-Brown is a programme manager in the LGA productivity team
Are staff skilled enough to cope with change? I believe that some authorities are finding the current skills and capabilities of the workforce are not fit for purpose and will need to implement a more radical culture change programme.
Redesigning services could help the troubled families agenda: Local authorities and partners have been focusing on and spending significant amounts of money on complex families for years, so the emphasis is now about doing it in a much more co-ordinated, efficient and effective way. Several councils are taking quite a radical new look at the way services are designed - I think there is great potential to share that learning.
Steve Skelton is head of policy and partnerships at Stockport and Greater Manchester combined authority (GMCA)
Funding is a big problem: A strong return on investment case still needs investment, and there's scant around at present. Self-funding in reality is additional funding now and reduced funding later. Where's the additional funding at scale currently? The challenge is to re-profile existing spend – from reactive to preventative services – but that requires either decommissioning reactive services before the benefit of earlier intervention is felt, or double running and double funding both reactive and preventative services.
Rhian Beynon is head of policy and campaigns for Family Action
We need to prevent the troubled families of the future too: This programme doesn't obviate the need for the multi-systemic approach, we actually need it more, as well as a more nuanced approach to the meaning of early intervention. Arguably the earliest time for intervening for children and tackling mental health during and after pregnancy is neglected. Family nurse partnership and extension of the health visitor programme will not cover all the bases.
We need to be working with, not just for families: The challenge for councils and their partners is to translate looked for outcomes into monitoring and evaluation systems that will be easily understood and get buy-in from a wide range of partners: the political members, the practitioners working with families and of course the families themselves. The systems also need to support performance management to some extent. Family Action are working with Family Star, a model for monitoring families' progress which was developed in partnership with Triangle, local authorities, practitioners and families themselves. Families get some say in the reporting of their progress, which is important to bringing them onside with the outcomes.
Gary Rawlins is public sector sales manager of Q Associates Ltd
Local government has a tendency towards over complication: And yet, the challenge is not in managing the families already categorised as troubled, it's looking for those with three or four of the risk factors and ensuing they do not develop further challenges. This potentially increases the scale massively and I'm not certain that the current detection methods are adequate.
Leora Cruddas is Harrow council's divisional director for quality assurance, commissioning and schools
Having one key worker is often the best option: We have a consent-based model in Harrow and multi-agency approaches are powerful, but we have found that families do respond well to having a dedicated worker. Our view is that it is important to de-clutter the (often confusing) range of professionals working with a family and to enable the family to build a relationship with a key worker, who then pulls in support from the wider network as and when necessary.
Mark Harris is leading the SAS UK initiative in local government
Councils are right to invest to save, but... If you don't invest, you never make any savings and the budget will be broken. Suppliers need to be able to be flexible around how they deliver the solution, this will remove up front cost and allow savings to achieved and budgets used where they deliver outcomes.
It can be done in stages: Firstly, the data management to bring matched quality data sets together. This allows for you to use the troubled families criteria to risk score families or individuals, identify existing families and also those that are "amber" flagged as close to being in the category. You can then plan interventions around them to ensure you engage early to drive costs down, deliver the right outcomes for all and target budgets appropriately.
Kirsty Elderton is the programme manager for Patchwork at FutureGov
We have co-designed an application with practitioners called Patchwork: It is a social network tool that allows many practitioners from different agencies to connect around a case or client. The focus is sharing relationships and connections between agencies rather than information about a client. By having a strong and visualised network, agencies can work better together and glean the many benefits that come from this, including early intervention. It's also just the right thing to do – to work better together.
John Curtis is the project manager for the improving information sharing and management (IISaM) national exemplar
Information sharing is essential to making troubled families work: We have set up a site about information sharing which might be useful for councils. The toolkit is structured into six stages of the 'information sharing journey' and provides practical guidance. The site includes a number of case studies (such as developing a better privacy notice), video about one of our pilot sites (Leicestershire county council), templates and guidance and top questions.
You can catch up with the discussion in full here
This content is brought to you by Guardian Professional. Join the local government network for more comment, analysis and best practice direct to you


text:
J. Edgar Who For What For?
So far we have seen the heralded Free Agent class of 2010 fail to create any real excitement outside of the talk about whether they will stay put or go elsewhere. There has been a whole lot of underachieving, disappointment, and failure. At this point the only guys with any measure of success would be Amare Stoudemire and Ray Allen, and Amare has looked awful in his current matchup, while Ray Ray's mother has probably garnered more looks than he has.
And I don't blame the players. Not as individuals anyways. It's the league. And I suppose since it's a player's league, then you can blame the players as a group. What happened to the ability to assemble a core of truly great players who go on to allow a certain mastery of the game to be distilled right down to the role players at the end of the bench? Forget about matching up two or three All-Stars (something which in itself happens infrequently). How about allowing us to see two or three future Hall of Famers on the court together? In their prime? And then stick some more All-Stars alongside them for good measure.
OK – so maybe I was spoiled by the Celtics and Lakers and Sixers of old. But I can look at teams that followed in the wake of those golden years, and still see a good deal of depth, in terms of aspiring to that greatness that came before them, that simply isn't matched today. Expansion and the CBA have made building a great team less likely than seeing a team hindered by bad contracts. Too much money comes to too many players before they have truly earned it. That alone changes the dynamics of how a player develops, and how a GM makes decisions. Of course the NBA is about the business as well as the game. But the way things stand, the business of basketball undermines the game itself, to the point where I think it might actually become unprofitable.
And I'm not sure that is where the attention will be focused if a lockout happens. This is a league that has become too obsessed with talented individuals, and not enough with greatness. There is a big difference. There is no lack of talent in this league. There is not enough of the intangibles, of the will to fight through difficulties, of accepting blame and growing from it. That stuff can be supplied by players that do not fit the Michael Jordan mold of "superstar" player. Just look at Rajon Rondo. The more that this guy plays in big games and faces bigger tests, the more greatness we see from a kid that never had any kind of star tag applied to him for the longest time. Now he's a guy that mirrored a lot of what Lebron was able to do in the last series. He's a guy that illustrates such a smart awareness of how to impact the game every second he is on the floor, whether it's knowing where the heads of the refs are at, which teammates need to get some confidence built up, or exactly what needs to be done defensively. He personifies getting the most out of himself and his team. That's greatness. And I suspect a lot of it came from some of the greatness that surrounds him. The Big Three's greatest achievement might be the creation of a truly great player in Rondo.
Greatness begets greatness in ways that talent can never beget talent. The prior incarnation of the Detroit Pistons is always referred to as a team lacking a single superstar. Why are they not seen as a collection of players that overcame a certain lack of supreme talent through the greatness that they instilled in each other? If that is not the model that this league looks to, then it does so at its own peril. Finding singularly great talent has been a means of selling out arenas over the last decade or so. But greatness has not been extracted from that business formula. The game needs colliding waves of greatness, and instead relies on showcasing islands of talent while seas of mediocrity roll along those shores.
The inability of all the current free agent stars to grow greatness in this game, is more an indictment of the state of the league, than of those individual players. They've all been asked to be Jack Bauer, but the casts around them has more closely resembled Agent Cooper's. And now they are supposedly looking to hook up like various Scully and Mulders. Have they had talent around them? Yes – without a doubt. But the talent has not been well-tested, entirely proven in its mettle, nor shown to be capable of rising to the greatness that could further the greatness that lies within the Lebrons and Dirks and Wades and Boshes. It's something that needs to spread across whole teams to some extent. Maybe the pairing up that could go on with this class of free agents will allow that to happen more than it has recently. I just wonder if there will be the correct point of emphasis – to make sure some of the greatness works its way down to the eighth or ninth man of the rotation.
I suspect much will get made of who is Scully and who is Mulder in the matching that might occur – that the emphasis will be entirely misplaced on stuff that does not matter to the game as a competitive engagement. I fear that the trend of mental weakness, non-accountability, and whole teams shrinking in the face of adversity will grow more than any trend toward expanding greatness. In other words, fewer competitive games when we need to see them the most. How long are fans going to settle for the empty myth of a Jack Bauer getting the job done in an instant, before realizing that there must be a demand for a league-wide culture, requiring a real longview that aspires to games that are larger than life, far above and beyond the call of superstars to fill highlight reels? This fan is pleading for the game to be put ahead of the business side of the league. The business end of the NBA will take care of itself as long as the game is tended to: the reverse is not true, unless talent that need not prove its greatness, or even have that opportunity, is enough for us all to identify ourselves as fans of the game, instead of just fans of a bunch of various personalities that are not asked to aspire to much more than just being personalities. If a bespectacled Dwight Howard playing his own goofy version of Clark Kent while interviewing himself about his "Superman" persona is enough to make up for the heartless asses that showed up on the court wearing Magic jerseys, then I will be proven wrong.