text:
"There's been a lot of talk about media in the wake of the horrific shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., as the world struggles to understand something that may be beyond rational thought," media critic Eric Deggans wrote Monday in the Tampa Bay (Fla.) Times.
"Big picture-wise, I think America is experiencing the brutal intersection of many thorny issues: a runaway gun culture we have indulged for too long; a culture of violence which too-often glorifies those who end problems with a fist or gun; a chronically underfunded mental health system woefully unable to help average people struggling with mental illness; and a media culture which can make outsize villains of those who commit the most horrific acts.
"It would be nice if the tragedy of 20 children killed in their own elementary school was a big enough shock to prompt some movement at least on the curbing of assault weapons ownership and boosting of mental health resources in America. But at a time when politicians can't even agree on a plan to avoid raising every voter's taxes by the start of 2013, I'm not holding my breath. . . . "
Peter Applebome and Brian Stelter, New York Times: Media Spotlight Seen as a Blessing, or a Curse, in a Grieving Town
Lauren Ashburn, Daily Beast: There's No Crying in Journalism — Even After the Horrifying Connecticut School Shootings
Wayne Bennett, Field Negro: A culture of madness
Curtis Brainard, Columbia Journalism Review: Lanza, autism, and violence
KJ Dell'Antonia, New York Times: How Not to Talk With Children About the Newtown Shooting
Tammerlin Drummond, Oakland Tribune: Gun control must also address ongoing urban mayhem
Toni Fitzgerald, Media Life Magazine: Newsmagazines soar over shooting coverage
Leonard Greene, New York Post: Our culture of killing
Emil Guillermo blog, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund: Newtown: A marker for how far we haven't come in the gun control debate
Peter Hart, Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting: Does the Public Really Oppose Gun Restrictions?
Bob Herbert, Demos: War At Home
Blair Hickman, Suevon Lee and Cora Currier, ProPublica: The Best Reporting on Guns in America
Richard Horgan, FishbowlLA: Mass Shooting Takes Sports Out of 710 ESPN Talk Radio Equation
Harry A. Jessell, TVNewsCheck: TV Should Lead Push To Reduce Violence
Timothy Johnson, Media Matters for America: Fox News Sunday And Meet The Press Push Media Myth On Gun Lobby's Electoral Dominance
Albert Kleine, Media Matters for America: Media Rely On Inflammatory Rhetoric In Absence Of Real Economic Debate
Suevon Lee, ProPublica: Seven of the Most Striking Ways States Have Loosened Gun Laws
Matt K. Lewis, Daily Caller: The media should be ashamed of its Connecticut coverage
Liza Long, Blue Review: I am Adam Lanza's Mother: It's time to talk about mental illness and Hanna Rosin, Slate: Don't Compare Your Son to Adam Lanza
Wesley Lowery and Christopher Goffard, Los Angeles Times: School shooting: How do you tell a child his protectors are dead?
Melody T. McCloud, M.D., Psychology Today: Mental Health Experts, After Sandy Hook, If Not Now, When?
Steve Mertl, Daily Brew: Reporters covering school massacre slammed for interviewing children
Mary Mitchell, Chicago Sun-Times: Connecticut shooting 'reminds us that evil knows no boundaries'
Tim Molloy, the Wrap: Newtown School Shootings: Why Are Networks Interviewing Kids?
Frazier Moore, Associated Press: Media Struggle With Shooting Story Facts
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press: Public Divided over What Newtown Signifies
Janita Poe, al.com : Tell me, Alabama: Gun control or "right to bear arms?"
James Poniewozik, Time: Kids at Tragedies: Turn Off the Cameras
Radio Ink: What if You Are a Music Station?
Rochelle Riley, Detroit Free Press: Perhaps gun control now possible in honor of 20 dead children
Betsy Rothstein, FishbowlDC: Journos Take Verbal Beatings During Weekend Coverage of Sandy Hook Killing Spree
Walter Sabo, Radio Ink: How Should Your News Station Cover The Tragedy?
Mary Sanchez, Kansas City Star: Remember the children, and address what ails our nation
Yan Searcy, Ebony: AFTER SANDY HOOK: Can We Stop the Violence?
Gabriel Sherman, New York magazine: Rupert Murdoch Wants Stricter Gun Laws After Newtown, But Fox News Doesn't Get the Memo
Tavis Smiley, HuffPost BlackVoices: Blood on Our Hands
Brittney M. Walker, EURWeb.com: Among the Sandy Hook School Victims, a 6-Yr-Old Black Girl: Ana Greene
Dr. Boyce Watkins, Your Black World: Adam Lanza's Mother Taught Her Son How to Shoot…Then He Killed Her First
Alex Weprin, TVNewser: The Media's Attention Turns To Guns
David Zurawik, Baltimore Sun: Early Sandy Hook coverage once again reveals a confused, failed media
Story on "Cease-and-Desist" Demand Circulates
Media personality Tavis Smiley, a harsh Obama critic whose "poverty tour" champions the cause of people in poverty, is having his chain pulled by a Los Angeles radio talk-show host who formerly worked for Smiley.
In escalating language between the two men, Morris W. O'Kelly, whose on-air name is Mo'Kelly, has called Smiley's campaign "more about ego and constant pushing of his name."
A story in the Los Angeles Wave newspapers last week asserted that Smiley sent O'Kelly "a 'cease and desist' letter demanding that he stop talking and writing bad about him!" It made the Obama critic seem as though he could not take criticism when he was the object.
Smiley publicly remained silent, but the story by Betty Pleasant gained steam as its message was repeated on at least two black-oriented websites, the black entertainment outlet EUR Web and radio host Tom Joyner's Black America Web.
Then, on Sunday, EUR Web published an "open letter" to Smiley from Najee Ali, director of Los Angeles-based Project Islamic HOPE (Helping Oppressed People Everywhere), siding with O'Kelly.
Ali said of Smiley, ". . . It's time that you cease and desist with this foolishness! "Tavis the White establishment has been propping you up for years. . . ."
Moreover, O'Kelly appeared Tuesday to discuss the dispute on a national platform: Roland Martin's segment on radio's syndicated "Tom Joyner Morning Show," on which Smiley was once was a regular.
On the Tuesday program, Martin referred to the dispute as the "Tavis-Mo'Kelly throwdown." O'Kelly said he was all for eradicating poverty, "but I am not going to support foolishness." The poverty tour "is not substantive change," he said.
The drama is part of a narrative that began in the 2008 presidential campaign after Obama did not appear at Smiley's annual "State of the Black Union" symposium. Smiley became increasingly critical of the future president and was later joined by Princeton professor Cornel West. West recently called Obama "a Rockefeller Republican in blackface."
In the process, Smiley left Joyner, who is ardently pro-Obama. Joyner told listeners in April 2008, "He can't take the hate he's taking over this whole Barack Obama thing," a charge Smiley denied.
The Oct. 30 "cease and desist" letter cited by the Wave newspapers does not in fact demand that O'Kelly "stop talking and writing bad about him!"
Sent by the law firm of Browning & Browning, the letter cites the "Confidentiality and Non[-]-Disclosure Agreement" that O'Kelly signed when he left Smiley's company. "While we acknowledge your First Amendment rights to comment on Smiley's views and opinions, we will not tolerate blatant violations of the Agreement, statements that constitute defamation against Smiley and the Smiley Enterprises, or statements that are intentionally tortious in nature," it says.
Verboten are "the use, dissemination, or publication of any Confidential Information" and "disseminating or publishing any false, misleading, or otherwise defamatory statements pertaining to Smiley and/ or Smiley Enterprises."
At issue is whether the observations O'Kelly has told his listeners about Smiley's actions while O'Kelly worked for him violate the confidentiality agreement. O'Kelly says no; Smiley says yes.
Asked by Journal-isms Monday for an on-the-record statement, Smiley said through his spokeswoman Leshelle Sargent, "The document from Ken Browning's office speaks for itself. As the letter indicates, Mr. O'Kelly was fired but has every right to speak on Mr. Smiley's political views — which he had done repeatedly over radio and social media without interference from our company. He cannot, however, speak on Mr. Smiley's confidential and privileged business affairs. You must know that this is common practice in our business. Mr. O'Kelly surely did which is why he signed the confidentiality agreement.
"To go on the radio airwaves suggesting anything other than what is clearly stated in the letter is pure gossip. And we don't deal in gossip. To THEN spread lies in a newspaper article is ridiculously beyond the pale. . . . "
O'Kelly denies he was fired. "I was given an end date to my employment of Jan. 1 2011, due to 'funding' I decided to leave early," he told Journal-isms.
Journal-isms asked O'Kelly Monday whether the disagreement is simply a case of a former disgruntled employee striking back. O'Kelly messaged:
"When Tom Joyner said that Dr. West was his 'sidepiece'…I said nothing publicly. When Steve Harvey called him and Dr. West 'Uncle Toms' I had no public comment. When Najee Ali picketed and protested Smiley's building (both times) I had no public comment, either time. Even more recently (yesterday) when MSNBC's Melissa Harris Perry likened him to the Black nurse during the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, I neither commented nor highlighted it.
"All of the aforementioned were low-hanging fruit. I said nothing. I could have easily [piggybacked] on any or all of those if the goal were to simply snipe at him. I have never engaged in any name-calling and I've never wavered from the issues. This is far from personal on my part. But I am absolutely clear that his litigation threats have been reserved for me and me only. So if there is animosity, it's not from me.
"Let the record be clear on these inarguable truths.
"He's released a number of books on poverty, and his story about 'Failing Up' I've said nothing. I haven't engaged in tearing down anything and all things 'Tavis.' There is no such history.
"In the time between me leaving The Smiley Group (11.24.2010) and now, I have only made three public commentaries in relation to him.
"In June of 2011, I published a commentary on EURWEB.com regarding the coming release of R. Kelly's memoir and how Smiley was publishing it. Given Smiley's public statements and stances regarding the mistreatment of women in this country, it was highly odd and an obvious contradiction that someone supposedly so in support of women and touting a "youth foundation" would also be trumpeting publishing R. Kelly's memoir. I highlighted the glaring contradiction. . . . "
"Blog version of story below: "http://mrmokelly.com/2011/06/the-lies-of-r-kelly-and-his-truth-for-25-95/
" To which, Tavis called Lee Bailey and demanded that my story be removed. . . . He is the disgruntled employer, let's be clear. . . ." [Updated Dec. 18]
Mo'Kelly with the Rev. Dion Evans: "Mo'Kelly in the Morning," KTLK-AM Los Angeles, Nov. 16: "The Unmitigated Gall" (mp3)
Mo'Kelly: "Mo'Kelly in the Morning," KTLK-AM Los Angeles, Nov. 29: "U Mad Bro?" (mp3)
Unity Groups Choose "Diversity," Not "of Color"
Members of the four journalism associations that make up the Unity Journalists coalition each voted for "UNITY: Journalists for Diversity" as the new name to succeed "Unity: Journalists of Color," the groups announced on Monday.
"Unity: Journalists for Diversity" won out over "UNITY: Journalists of Color" and "UNITY: Journalists of Color and Diversity."
The full Unity board is to discuss the results of the membership vote on Friday, with each board member save the president, who votes only when there is a tie, weighing in on the new name. "UNITY board members are expected to vote how their organizations voted and respect the wishes of their members," a Unity announcement said on Dec. 4.
Voting among the associations was light. The National Association of Hispanic Journalists tally was UNITY: Journalists for Diversity, 116 votes, or 66 percent; UNITY: Journalists of Color & Diversity, 34 votes, 19 percent; UNITY: Journalists of Color, 25 votes, 14 percent. NAHJ has nearly 2,000 members, President Hugo Balta said.
The Asian American Journalists Association vote was UNITY: Journalists for Diversity, 217 votes, or 70.7 percent; UNITY: Journalists of Color & Diversity, 58 votes, or 18.9 percent; UNITY: Journalists of Color, 32 votes, or 10.4 percent. AAJA has more than 1,700 members, Doris Truong, national president, said.
The Native American Journalists Association vote was UNITY: Journalists for Diversity, 49, or 67 percent; UNITY: Journalists of Color and Diversity, 14, or 19 percent; UNITY: Journalists of Color, 10, or 13.7 percent. NAJA has 232 members, Rhonda LeValdo, president, said.
The National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association vote was UNITY: Journalists for Diversity, 132 votes, or 81.4 percent; UNITY: Journalists of Color and Diversity, 29, or 17.9 percent; and UNITY: Journalists of Color, 1, 0.6 percent. NLGJA has 584 members, Michael Triplett, NLGJA president, said.
Although the National Association of Black Journalists withdrew from Unity last year, 82 members voted in an unofficial poll, according to Benet Wilson, an NABJ representative to the Unity Name Task Force. NABJ has more than 3,000 members.
UNITY: Journalists of Color & Diversity Inc. received 35 NABJ votes, or 50 percent; UNITY: Journalists of Color Inc., 28, or 40 percent; and UNITY: Journalists of Color & for Diversity Inc., 9 votes, or 12.9 percent. The "UNITY: Journalists of Color & for Diversity Inc." option was later changed to "Unity: Journalists for Diversity." There were 12 write-ins.
The Unity coalition renamed itself "Unity Journalists" in April after it admitted NLGJA, which warned that its members might boycott Unity's summer convention if the words "Journalists of Color" were not dropped from the coalition's name.
The name change prompted a backlash from many who said Unity was veering from its history and purpose. Among them were NABJ members, who left the coalition last year over governance and financial issues, and who Unity is trying to woo back.
The ballot sent to members of the associations in the coalition explained, "The UNITY Board created the UNITY Name Task Force to address our members' concerns about how our previous name, 'UNITY: Journalists of Color Inc.' was changed to 'UNITY: Journalists Inc.' without their input at our April Board meeting. The Board unanimously agreed to find a name that better reflected our expanded coalition."
Cathy Hughes, Tarantino Say They Like Movie Killings
With perhaps unfortunate timing, a weekend airing of "Django Unchained: The TV One Special," showed TV One founder Cathy Hughes and director Quentin Tarantino talking about how much they liked Westerns because people are allowed to kill each other so much.
In the one-hour "profound and revealing look at the making of Quentin Tarantino's blockbuster film Django Unchained," Tarantino added that he likes "extreme violence."
The interview was filmed before Friday's horrific violence in Connecticut, in which a gunman killed 20 first-graders, his mother, six school employees and himself. In the wake of the shooting, the Weinstein Co. is canceling the Hollywood premiere, Amy Kaufman reported Monday for the Los Angeles Times.
In an interview Saturday, Jamie Foxx, a star of the film, told the Associated Press that actors can't ignore the fact that movie violence can influence people.
Foxx told the AP's Nicole Evatt Saturday, "We cannot turn our back and say that violence in films or anything that we do doesn't have a sort of influence. It does."
Evatt wrote, "In true Tarantino form, buckets of blood explode from characters as they are shot or shredded to pieces by rabid dogs," describing the film as "Quentin Tarantino's upcoming ultra-violent spaghetti Western-style film about slavery.
"Tarantino, whose credits include 'Pulp Fiction' and the 'Kill Bill' volumes, said he was tired of defending his films each time the nation is shocked by gun violence," Evatt continued. "He said 'tragedies happen' and blame should fall on those guilty of the crimes."
Journal-isms asked a TVOne spokeswoman if she wished to clarify her remarks. ". . . Ms. Hughes has no comment at this time," Monica Neal replied by email.
Richard Horgan, FishbowlLA: Thanks to Drudge N-Word Headline, THR Wednesday Web Traffic Was Off the Chain
Blacks' Weaker Job Networks a Factor in Joblessness
The African American jobless rate is about twice that of whites, a disparity that has barely budged since the government began tracking the data in 1972, Michael A. Fletcher noted Saturday in the Washington Post.
Discrimination has long been seen as the primary reason for this disparity, which is evident among workers from engineers to laborers. "But fresh research has led scholars to conclude that African Americans also suffer in the labor market from having weaker social networks than other groups," Fletcher continued.
"Having friends and relatives who can introduce you to bosses or tell you about ripe opportunities has proved to be one of the most critical factors in getting work. Such connections can also help people hold onto their jobs, researchers say.
" 'It is surprising to many people how important job networks are to finding work,' said Deirdre A. Royster, a New York University sociologist. 'The information they provide help people make a good first impression, get through screening and get hired.' "
Gregory H. Lee Jr., president of the National Association of Black Journalists and a former chairman of its Sports Task Force, told Journal-isms that the observation holds true in journalism.
"Networking is key to our industry, the problem is in sports journalism not many of the decision makers know any of our members nor other minorities," Lee said by email. "Journalism is still about who you know, especially in sports journalism. There [has] been some progress, but not enough has been made to make a larger impact."
Writers Call ESPN's "First Take" Part of the Problem
ESPN is being criticized for creating an environment in which ESPN commentator Rob Parker would question on the air whether Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III was a "real" black man. Parker was suspended on Friday, a day after he made the comments on ESPN's "First Take."
"ESPN should not be congratulated for suspending Parker, though that's undoubtedly the desired reaction in Bristol," Doug Farrar of Yahoo Sports wrote Saturday.
"Instead, those within the network who have decided to abdicate any sense of journalistic responsibility in favor of a craven desire for ratings and 'buzz' should probably take a few minutes and consider that they created and nourished an environment by which Rob Parker, who had made multiple professional missteps before, could thrive by saying stupid stuff and getting away with it."
In announcing Parker's suspension on Friday, ESPN said a "further review" of the Parker situation would take place.
That review ". . . should include not just Parker, but also everything about the show on which Parker made his comments on Thursday morning, ESPN First Take," Michael David Smith wrote Friday for NBC Sports.
"It's telling that when ESPN aired Best of First Take on Thursday afternoon, it included Parker's comments. That's because First Take thrives on provoking controversies with its panelists making outrageous claims, and it wasn't until Parker's comments were the subject of widespread criticism later in the day that ESPN felt the need to acknowledge the comments were inappropriate," Smith wrote.
Two months ago, viewers watching "First Take" accused Stephen A. Smith of saying "N**** please" to another commentator while the two debated a topic. Smith denied using the word.
Asked to comment on the criticism, ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz said by email, "Our thoughts are with our neighbors in connecticut and we will come back to this issue in due time."
Deron Snyder of the Washington Times wrote that he spoke with Parker just before he went on the fateful show. Snyder told Journal-isms by email, "my regret is that i didn't caution rob about his angle or attempt to flat-out dissuade him from pursuing it." He wrote in his column, ". . . I imagine this is what it feels when you're the last person to speak to someone before he or she harms themself."
Michael Cottman, Black America Web: Rob Parker's Rhetoric Becoming a Pattern
Ricardo A. Hazell, EURWeb: Rob Parker's Remarks Prove Ivy League Degree Not Indicative of Intelligence
Shane Paul Neil, HuffPost BlackVoices: An Open Letter to Rob Parker
Bob Raissman, Daily News, New York: The FALL guy: If ESPN cans Rob Parker for his absurd comments on Washington Redskins QB Robert Griffin III, he shouldn't be only one
Jason Reid, Washington Post: Robert Griffin III shouldn't have to 'prove his blackness'
Michael David Smith, NBC Sports: Rob Parker's RG3 comments prove a thorny issue at ESPN
George M. Thomas, Akron Beacon Journal: ESPN suspends Rob Parker and reality
Rhonda Gillespie Named M.E. of Chicago Defender
Rhonda Gillespie, who was laid off a year ago as news editor of the Chicago Defender, has returned to the black-press publication as managing editor, Michael House, the Defender president, told Journal-isms on Monday. "She had done a good job for us before . . . ," House said.
The previous managing editor, K.P. Chaney, said she became executive producer of the "Perri Small Show" on WVON-AM in October.
Gillespie had been at the Citizen News Group, according to her LinkedIn profile.
House said he wants more local news coverage and is looking to hire an executive editor and "a couple good reporters." Four people remain on the editorial staff, he said.
Lawyer Says Meteorologist Has Weak Case on Firing
Meteorologist Rhonda Lee, fired from KTBS-TV in Shreveport, La., after responding to a Facebook posting criticizing her short Afro, may be "the New Poster-Lady for Black Women," as EURWeb dubbed her, but she would not have a strong legal case to challenge her termination, according to John F. Garziglia, a Washington communications law attorney.
Garziglia wrote Monday for Radio Ink that "social media policies are a whole new field of employment law." Lee was wrong to respond to the viewer, he said, given that "The broadcast station had a policy that management, not the air personality, responds to viewer complaints."
Reminded that Lee maintained she viewed the criticism as a comment, not a complaint, Garziglia elaborated for Journal-isms.
". . . If I was representing the terminated employee, I would probably attempt to argue that it was a 'viewer comment' and not 'viewer complaint' but I would also have to wonder how far that argument would take me," Garziglia wrote in an email. "What I would need to know in assessing whether this is a valid point is whether Lee and other TV station personalities at her station routinely posted replies responding to [viewers'] comments on the station's Facebook page. If the air personalities at this station routinely posted reply comments in response to viewer comments, and such postings were encouraged by management, then that significantly changes the story.
"There is no indication from anything I read on this story, however, that such postings of reply comments by the station's air personalities on Facebook were either routine or encouraged by station management. Rather, it appears to me that Lee's reply postings at issue were a lark or an exception, and something that management specifically warned against in its August 30th email.
"Indeed, if the August 30th email was as Lee apparently would like to interpret it, one would have expected management to include a statement encouraging employees to continue their posting of social media reply comments but warning that if a viewer comment could be regarded as a complaint, then it should be referred to management. That is not what the email said. After management explained why in general terms it was best for air personalities not to respond to viewer complaints at all, the email went on to specifically state:
" 'If you choose to respond to these complaints, there is only one proper response: Provide them with (redacted) contact information, and tell them that he would be glad to speak with them about their concerns. Once again, this is the only proper response.
" 'And don't forget, if you have a social media question of any sort, please contact me and I will be glad to help you in deciding the best plan of action.'
"There is no suggestion in this admonition that employees should continue reply comments. Further, there is the specific direction that if there are any questions, management should be consulted. It is specific and definitive.
"Finally, it is Lee's own words that perhaps most pointedly contradict her defense that she believed that the viewer posting was a 'comment' and not a 'complaint'. She begins her reply comment with the statement 'I am sorry you don't like my ethnic hair'. A person stating that he or she does not like something is the classic definition of a person making a 'complaint' (a statement expressing discontent or unhappiness about a situation). Lee thus acknowledges that the viewer posting was a complaint. . . ."
"I will also add as an aside that I do think that management here in this incident may have been woefully tone-deaf to the journalism, diversity and social issues surrounding criticisms of an air personality's physical appearance. But that is an observation that goes to the wisdom of firing an air personality under the circumstances, rather than to the law applicable to doing so when there is not any claim that the air personality's physical appearance itself had any bearing on management's decision."
Jason Samenow noted in the Washington Post last week, "African Americans have historically been an minority in meteorology. A 2008 American Meteorological Society survey revealed less than 2 percent of its members were black (that breakdown is for the entire meteorology industry; statistics regarding race/ethnicity in the broadcast industry were not provided in that survey)."
Jamil Smith, Melissa Harris-Perry site: Comments on her 'ethnic' hair should've been a teachable moment
Black Critics Pick "Zero Dark Thirty" as Top Picture
" 'Zero Dark Thirty' was named the top picture of the year by the African American Film Critics Assn., which gave 'Middle of Nowhere' honors for lead actress Emayatzy Corinealdi and to Ava DuVernay for her screenplay," Jon Weisman reported Sunday for Variety.
"Ben Affleck of 'Argo' was best director, while Denzel Washington ('Flight') won lead actor honors. Nate Parker ['Arbitrage'] . . . and Sally Field ('Lincoln') earned supporting acting kudos.
" 'The Intouchables' won for top foreign-language film, while 'The House I Live In' and 'Versailles '73: American Runway Revolution' tied in documentary. 'Rise of the Guardians' won for top animated feature.
"The org's top 10 in film this year: 'Zero Dark Thirty,' 'Argo,' 'Lincoln,' 'Middle of Nowhere,' 'Life of Pi,' 'Les Miserables,' 'Django Unchained,' 'Beasts of the Southern Wild,' 'Moonrise Kingdom,' 'Think Like a Man.' "
"Congo has become a never-ending nightmare, one of the bloodiest conflicts since World War II, with more than five million dead," Jeffrey Gettleman, East Africa bureau chief for the New York Times, wrote Sunday in a first-person piece about covering the Democratic Republic of Congo. "It seems incomprehensible that the biggest country in sub-Saharan Africa and on paper one of the richest, teeming with copper, diamonds and gold, vast farmlands of spectacular fertility and enough hydropower to light up the continent, is now one of the poorest, most hopeless nations on earth. Unfortunately, there are no promising solutions within grasp, or even within sight. . . . "
". . . Quietly, and mostly on shoestring budgets, Haitian media in greater Miami are covering news of Haiti beyond its catastrophes," Tsitsi D. Wakhisi reported Monday for Editor & Publisher. "Catering to America's largest concentration of Haitian immigrants and their offspring, emergent ethnic media are reaching out to a South Florida audience longing to connect to their homeland — and the new land. The Haitian media's efforts are documented in a University of Miami study released earlier this year. The study looks at the uses and practices of Haitian media in Greater Miami — from newspapers and radio to TV shows and websites. . . . "
As part of a "Can't Stop Giving" effort, former Washington Post columnist Donna Britt has asked readers to send holiday cards to Sybrina Fulton, mother of slain Florida teenager Trayvon Martin, "during what surely will be a painful first Christmas without her son."
Reporter Nefertiti Jáquez of KPRC-TV in Houston is heading back to Philadelphia's WCAU-TV, Mike McGuff reported on his Houston blog on television news. Anzio Williams, who joined WCAU as VP of news in July, and has been shaking up the staff, announced another departure at the station in an email to the staff Friday night: that of Dawn Timmeney, who has been an anchor and reporter over her 12 years there. Philadelphia Daily News columnist Dan Gross reported the news via Twitter. In other developments this month, Williams announced that meteorologist Brittney Shipp is joining WCAU from KTVK in Phoenix and that Tim Lake would anchor his final broadcast after 20 years at the station. Last month, reporter Daralene Jones was hired from WFTV in Orlando.
". . . Mort Zuckerman, widely known for his work as a publisher, editor, real estate investor and philanthropist, has pledged $200 million to endow the Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute at Columbia University," Lee C. Bollinger, president of Columbia, said in a message to alumni Monday. Reviewing the year, Bollinger also said, "We reaffirmed Columbia's commitment to diversity by dedicating $30 million to the recruitment and support of outstanding female and under-represented minority faculty members."
"In a coda to the often contentious relationship between Mitt Romney's staff and the press, news outlets are preparing to file a formal complaint to the Romney campaign contesting some of the seemingly inflated charges that were billed to them from the campaign trail," McKay Coppins reported Friday for BuzzFeed.
"The International Press Institute (IPI) today welcomed news that Bolivian journalist Fernando Vidal was released from an Argentine hospital where he had been treated for third-degree burns suffered during an arson attack in October," Scott Griffen reported Friday for the institute. " . . . Vidal had been conducting a live radio broadcast when four masked men stormed his station and set the journalist on fire using gasoline canisters they had brought with them. . . ."
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Journal-isms is published on the site of the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education (www.mije.org). Reprinted on The Root by permission.


text:
If further proof is needed of Oscar Wilde's contention that "When the gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers," one need look no further than the life of author J.D. Salinger.
As delineated in Shane Salerno's energetic, informative and at times over-dramatized documentary, "Salinger," the celebrated writer spent the first part of his life lusting after literary success and the rest of it recoiling in horror at the consequences of his passion, refusing to publish anything and retreating to self-imposed, semi-reclusive exile in out-of-the-way Cornish, N.H.
But because he was J.D. Salinger, the author of "The Catcher in the Rye," which has sold some 60 million copies and been called "the great subversive anti-establishment book of all time," no one would leave him alone. Complete strangers would stalk him until, as one recounts in the film, Salinger would end up snapping, "I am not a teacher or a seer. I'm a fiction writer."
Though he never camped out in front of the great man's door, filmmaker Salerno is one of those obsessive fans. Best known for writing decidedly non-literary movies such as "Savages" and "Armageddon," Salerno has spent nine years and an estimated $2 million of his own money investigating Salinger's life.
The photographs and information Salerno unearthed over all that time are impressive and, despite a disingenuous publicity-seeking plea by the Weinstein Co. to keep things secret, it has all been made public by journalists who had access to the information well before the film was screened for critics.
Among Salerno's finds are a snapshot of Salinger working on "Catcher in the Rye" during a mesmerizing moment of World War II downtime, as well as brief home movie footage of him interacting with French civilians after the country's liberation.
We also learn about his brief postwar marriage to a German who may have worked for the Gestapo, and, in what is big news in literary circles, about the five books that Salinger, who died in 2010 at the age of 91, had written and arranged to be published starting in 2015.
It does zero harm to reveal these secrets because the lure of "Salinger" in no way depends on keeping them quiet. What compels us is the energetic — at times too energetic — pulse of Salerno's investigations, the sheer amount of work he's done and the almost 80 people he's convinced to open up on camera about their relationship to the man friends called Jerry.
Though neither of Salinger's children nor his widow sat for interviews (daughter Margaret is shown in old "Today" show clips), we do hear from people who were important in the writer's life. They help us understand how Salinger, in ways both sensible and strange, dealt with the enormous celebrity that came his way when "Catcher" was published in 1951.
The young writer had his first short story in print in 1940 when he was 21 but his great dream of being published by the New Yorker was derailed by World War II. He took part in the D-Day invasion, saw almost a year of fierce combat and was one of the first soldiers to enter a sub camp of Dachau, experiences that led to a post traumatic stress disorder breakdown and continued to have a powerful impact on him. "You never really get the smell of burning flesh out of your nostrils," he once said. "No matter how long you live."
A perfectionist about his writing who could get melancholy about a misplaced comma, Salinger had yearned for success without realizing that it would mean intrusions into his personal life as well as ungovernable demands on time when he wanted to be writing. Seen in that light, the writer's move to New Hampshire and his decision to keep working but stop publishing make a certain kind of sense.
That's especially true when you realize that Salinger was never as much of a hermit as the media made him out to be. "He's not a recluse," Gore Vidal huffs. "He appears when he wants to." And that is exactly the case. Salinger also found time for the companionship, platonic and otherwise, of very young women.
The film has tracked down Jean Miller, whom Salinger first met on a Florida beach when she was 14 and inspired one of his most famous stories, and talks extensively with writer Joyce Maynard, who famously moved in with Salinger when she was 18 and he was 53.
All of this is compelling. But Salerno, as if he's unsure of what he's got, goes to great lengths to heighten the drama with crisp editing, a strong score, frequent sound effects and snappy visuals.
Less successful are the film's frequent dramatic re-creations of events in Salinger's life and, even worse, what it assumes is going on in his mind. Using the inside of downtown Los Angeles' Bradbury Building — one of the most instantly recognizable interior spaces in America — to substitute for a Manhattan publishing house is especially egregious, and one suspects that Salinger, an avowed enemy of phoniness, would hate the whole business.
More than that, as a compulsive protector of his own privacy, the man would of course be horrified by the tell-all nature of "Salinger." While it's impossible not to be drawn into the drama of the story, on a deeper level our fascination with the painful details of his life is disturbing. J.D. Salinger sacrificed a great deal for his privacy, and there's something inescapably sad about seeing it stripped away.

subset: commoncrawl


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On behalf of all of the interested Disney Infinity Fans we asked some questions.
What is your real name? Country?
Daniel David Sanchez Lopez, Daniel Sanchez for short (yes, we get both of our parent's last names in South America)
Age: 15
Country: (Born and living in) USA, lived in Colombia.
What is the origin story of your Toy Box submission username?
My father's name is Freddy. I included his initial F because of the strong bond I share with him. At the time I made the account I was so excited to play that I just put whatever came up first...
the ix is just there because it's cool! (Or so I thought when I was 7 years old...)
What made you decide to buy Disney Infinity?
I tried getting into Skylanders, but it didn't work out... I heard of Disney Infinity (1.0) 3 months after it was announced. At first I was skeptical about Disney Infinity, but after watching the trailer for the playsets, and the fact that it was Disney, I was sold.
What is your favorite play set and why?
For 1.0, it would be a tie between The Lone Ranger and Monsters University. Both playsets had unique characteristics. I just loved how fun the Lone Ranger was! Chasing bad guys, chasing the train, the combat, it was all great. Monsters University was the first playset I played. It gave a true feeling of having fun with unique gameplay and various activities that truly showed the potential of the game. After playing the 2.0 playsets, I have to say that I like them equally and that the Disney Infinity team should re-visit Monsters U for an example of the diversity of tasks playsets should have. Although I love the combat, it isn't everything we need in a playset.
Who is your favorite Disney Infinity 2.0 character and why?
My favorite Character is Hiro! His combat is truly unique and his super jump has a cool animation. Plus he can ride Baymax!
Which character would you like to see included that hasn't already been and why?
From Disney, I would love to see Hercules and Pegasus!
For Marvel, I would like to have Silver Surfer, Daredevil, Dr.Strange, and Ant man!
For Star Wars, the whole crew from Star Wars Rebels.
What is your favorite power disc and why?What is your favorite new toy from 2.0?
I love Mabel's Kittens For Fists! It captures the whole idea of Disney Infinity: Play with no rules.
You wanna have kittens for fists, and shoot em' so they can bite an enemy? Sure, it doesn't matter if it doesn't make sense!
Hairy babies for fists! Bad-la-la
What is your favorite new toy from 2.0?
The text creator and target cameras really made the toybox a better place, but what really stands out to me is the Locator. Just think about it! Without the locator, we would still have a bunch of creativi-toys lying around the toybox.
What made you want to build toy boxes for challenges?
I've been around since 1.0, but the toy box wasn't as engaging as it is now. After seeing how much fun the artists had at the Toy Box Summit, I decided to give it a try. Heck, I got featured on my first try!
When you hear of a new challenge, what steps do you take to make your idea for a Toy Box a reality?
Generally, I do not have any complications when coming up with an Idea. Whenever I find out about a challenge, it literally takes less than a minute to come up with what I want to create in the toybox. It all takes place in my mind. The next thing is to build the terrain and the path that the player will go to. After that is done, I start with the logic connections. I like to get done with all the logic I'm going to use in the toybox by the end of this phase. Now I add most of the nice little details and decorations. Now what I do is testing, fixing the problem, testing again, and so on. Finally I finish with the decorations and try to make it as pretty as it can be.
What do you consider to be your specialty when building Toy Boxes?
I wouldn't say I have a specialty, but I always try to innovate whenever I see a chance. My Stitch Vacation is an example of that. However, there is something that I do frequently in my toyboxes. I have 3 fun challenges per box, I try to make at least 3 main activities and a final event in most of my toyboxes. Some of my toyboxes that follow this format are Baymax's Tests, Three Wishes, and H.Y.D.R.A.
What is your favorite Toy Box that someone else has built?
Sure, Disneyland Paris and The Lion King By Timon And Pumbaa are great toyboxes, but another toybox that deserves recognition is Gravity Falls Adventures 1.0 by xshadow246. It is innovative and fun. A roller coaster ride like that must have been very difficult to create. The intro was another part that stands out, it truly gave the feeling of being in the game.
What are some of your classic Toy Boxes that have not been a featured top 5 Toy Box?
The first one that comes to mind is GLOBNAR. It is the toybox I have spent the most time building and editing in. It's inspired by the show Gravity Falls. It contains many fun activities to play in multiplayer and a few for single player. These include paintball, racing, combat, obstacle courses, and more. Another recent toybox I made is Three Wishes. It uses a poem to recreate the three wishes of Aladdin. It contains platforming, Combat, and exploration. Finally, If you like races you should definitely check out my Race of Warriors, a race that is full of obstacles in an Asgardian setting.
What is your dream Toy Box challenge?
I would like to have a team-up challenge. This challenge is an anything goes but you have to work together with another Toy Box Artist! This will most likely not happen, so I came up with...
John Vignocchi challenge! Create a toybox inspired by JV. I would do this:
JV and Allison got sucked into the game! Help them escape or they will be late to film Toy Box TV! A second power disc challenge would also be nice.
Share a story of adversity from when you were building one of your Toy Boxes that you had to overcome.
I had some trouble with my S.H.I.E.L.D. toybox. I had finished creating the first 2 levels: the intro and the investigation. It was the last few hours before the deadline and I rushed to create the last level. After I submitted I found out that the townspeople did not stay put and you spawned in the city without any instructions on the second level, (this was because of the glitch that ignores any default checkpoints if a different one was activated) so I had to come up with a solution and submit it in even lesser time! I was stressed out... There were supposed to be shield agents cheering for you before the free fall and hydra agents in front of the question marks, but these did not make it into the final version. I was surprised that it got featured. I feel like I could have done better...
Share a funny story from when you were building one of your Toy Boxes.
One day I was starting to build a toy box with a friend and somehow we started talking about dogs. The game was loading and I asked: What is your favorite kind of dogs? With perfect timing, the game loaded and Mickey said: Hot Dog!...
Not funny? What did a shoe say to the other? Nothing, because shoes don't talk
Do you have any advice for aspiring Toy Box Artists?
I think this goes without saying, but don't be afraid to deviate from your initial idea. Trust me, it will turn out better. Another advice: Do what you like! Do what YOU think is fun. Do you like combat like me? Create a combat-centered toybox. I know that many people will appreciate your style!
Your Baymax's Tests toy box was selected as a featured toy box in the Big Hero 6 Challenge. Please give us some Inside the Toy Box details on your Baymax's Tests toy box.
I was so hyped for the movie and the characters that I decided that this would be the challenge to get me into Toy Box TV. I actually started this box as a character adventure for Baymax, but as I built it, I kept getting more ideas and it only got bigger and better... After watching the movie, inspiration struck me and I based it on testing Baymax's new abilities. I had already built the racing part about a month before the challenge, which saved me a lot of time. Also, this was the first toy box I made that used toybox doors that actually worked... I avoided them before because I had previously failed on successfully connecting them.
Your The Hero toy box was selected as a featured toy box in the Pick a Power Disc Challenge. Please give us some Inside the Toy Box details on your The Hero toy box.
For this challenge I simply did what I thought was fun. I actually submitted 2 toy boxes for this challenge, one being GLOBNAR (Which did not really qualify in the end) and The Hero. I wanted to make a combination of Disney and Marvel. I decided to mix Hero's Duty and Groot (Planet X is Groot's home planet). I chose to inspire the toy box from Calhoun's Blaster power disc because I wanted an excuse to use it more often! I had a lot of fun with this one and, with over 25,000 downloads, it is my most downloaded toy box so far! During the making of this toy box, I decided I would do a sequel but I'm still not sure about it. Maybe for 3.0?
Your Stitch Vacation toy box was selected as a featured toy box in the Stitch Challenge. Please give us some Inside the Toy Box details on your Stitch Vacation toy box.
I think this is the most unique toy box I've done. When I was playing Gravity Falls Adventures 1.0 by xshadow246, I glitched the car out and I was stuck with the car on a fence. I got curious and this led me to experiment with anti-gravity on vehicles. After a few hours I had successfully made a wall with anti-gravity properties. At this point I was "done" experimenting and ready to start building, but I said: Let's see if I can go all the way, so I continued with upside down anti gravity ceiling. I wanted to submit this toy box for a challenge, so I decided to make a stunt park and theme it to Stitch in space! I also added a nice bowling-like game for Stitch, which you can access after you are done with the stunt park. Finally, I added a few references in the bowling level- can you spot them all?
Your H.Y.D.R.A toy box was selected as a featured toy box in the Marvel Villains Challenge. Please give us some Inside the Toy Box details on your H.Y.D.R.A toy box.
Since everyone created toy boxes for the villains characters, I wanted to use different villains. When I saw that SHIELD was also a challenge, I decided to create a toy box that would tie in with SHIELD- HYDRA. I knew that if I got featured I would make a sequel for this toy box. I created what I would have for the SHIELD challenge, which was the training a new agent idea. I changed it for the villains's side and I would continue the story in the shield toy box. This is the toy box that has taken me the less time to create. This toy box follows my 3 activities format: the shooting range, the combat simulator, the puzzle, and the final event. I tried doing some block art. It wasn't amazing, but it works.
Your S.H.I.E.L.D toy box was selected as a featured toy box in the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D Challenge. Please give us some Inside the Toy Box details on your S.H.I.E.L.D toy box.
I continued the story from HYDRA but I switched over to SHIELD's perspective. Since HYDRA introduced a new agent, I made SHIELD bring one back. I created the intro to let players who haven't played HYDRA get what's going on. Also, the intro level has a "Laboratory" where I hid the creativi-toys. I had made the training room just so it would make sense. I was very busy that week and had very little time to finish the toy box, I had some trouble editing and creating the second and third levels, but it was all ok in the end. This toy box is mostly combat with fancy effects to make the combat seem slightly different.
Your Spidey's Park toy box was selected as a featured toy box in the Stunt Course Challenge. Please give us some Inside the Toy Box details on your Spidey's Park toy box.
Spidey's Park was a lot of fun to create. I came up with the Anti-Gravity Stunt Parks on Stitch Vacation for the Stitch challenge, which not many people played. I decided to bring Anti-Grav back in a more fitting theme. Spider-man can Wall-Crawl, and the car can do it as well! First I designed the track and walls. It took me some time to figure out how I wanted the park to be. I created the rectangular center, attached the walls and started from there. I wanted it to be indoors but still have a fair amount of light, so after the ceiling was done I cropped out a rectangular section to let some light in. I didn't want to do the exact same thing from my Stitch Vacation toybox, so I created the big jump in the gap and added the Track on the gap too. Now the orbs... ah, the orbs. Initially, I had put too many orbs, to the point that if I decided to "move" something, it would delete or wouldn't fit. So I deleted each orb one by one, which was a slow process because of a glitch that makes orbs have two separate object boxes. I had to try to delete a single orb multiple times because of that. I planned to make each color of orb have a different value, but the toy box couldn't support any more logic. After I had done the layout and basic logic, I started thinking about the little details to make it more special. After watching a couple episodes of the Ultimate Spider-man show, I remembered that Spider-man is known for telling cheesy jokes. I came up with some jokes Spider-man would tell and I think it worked out pretty well. I used 3 randomizers to make random jokes appears after 2 minutes (5 possible ones), another one after 5 minutes (3 possible ones), and a randomly selected ending sentence with a pun (4 possible ones). After all that work, I submitted! But... that wasn't the end of it. After a few hours I started wondering why it hadn't popped up in community toy boxes. The next morning (a few hours before deadline) I thought it might not have been approved because of the jokes, so I took them off and resubmitted. Later that day, inside sources tell me it wasn't approved because it wouldn't load for them! (Dang orbs!) Thankfully, they were able to fix it and apparently they preferred the version with the jokes (By the way, you're supposed to read them in Spidey's voice). To my surprise, a whole lot of fellow toybox artists praised this toybox. I am extremely happy that you guys liked it! To conclude, a huge shout out to fellow forum member Fritzy for helping me with the Spider-man textures!
You can check out my toyboxes here:
http://www.disneyinfinityfans.com/viewt ... evZgk.dpbs


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NM Tech President Lopez Receives Spirit of Achievement Award, May 4, 2005
by George Zamora
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., May 4, 2005 – New Mexico Tech President Daniel H. López was honored at a recent fund-raising dinner and awards ceremony in Albuquerque by being named one of the recipients of this year's prestigious New Mexico Spirit of Achievement Award.
U.S. Congresswoman Heather Wilson was the other recipient of the annual award, which is bestowed on selected individuals by the National Jewish Medical and Research Center, based in Denver, Colo.
More than 300 people attended the fundraiser at the Sheraton Old Town, with about $81,000 in proceeds being raised for National Jewish.
In accepting the award, President López reiterated the importance of stepping up efforts in public service and philanthropic support of nonprofit organizations such as National Jewish.
Founded in 1899, National Jewish Medical and Research Center is known worldwide for treatment of patients with respiratory, immune, and allergic disorders, and for groundbreaking medical research.


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Course Details
ATR326 Therapeutic Modalities Lab
This course must be taken concurrently with ATR 325 Therapeutic Modalities. The concepts taught in the course will be demonstrated and practiced. Students will be required to wear appropriate laboratory attire. Students will be evaluated on their knowledge and their ability to apply clinical techniques.
Credit Hours: 0


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Groundskeeper Christofferson always in giving spirit
SEATTLE -- Mariners fans know Bob Christofferson as the guy who keeps the grass green at Safeco Field. And, yeah, as the amiable gentleman who always anchors the left side of the Dancing Groundskeepers, a Safeco tradition for the past 12 years.
But around the Mariners offices, Christofferson has another reputation. For the last decade, the team's head groundskeeper has helped grow the club's annual United Way campaign with friendly persistence and positive reinforcement.
SEATTLE -- Mariners fans know Bob Christofferson as the guy who keeps the grass green at Safeco Field. And, yeah, as the amiable gentleman who always anchors the left side of the Dancing Groundskeepers, a Safeco tradition for the past 12 years.
But around the Mariners offices, Christofferson has another reputation. For the last decade, the team's head groundskeeper has helped grow the club's annual United Way campaign with friendly persistence and positive reinforcement.
Along with co-chair Norma Cantu, the club's director of procurement, Christofferson has pushed and prodded so well that the Mariners just completed their fourth consecutive year of having 100-percent employee participation in the United Way fundraising drive, no small feat with an office staff of more than 100 workers.
Christofferson, the head groundskeeper at Safeco Field since 2000, takes great pride in the all-in attitude among his co-workers. Not only has the participation rate gone from 74 percent to perfect scores since 2009, but the dollars pledged has increased more than 70 percent over that period as well to $104,238 in the just-completed campaign.
"Getting everybody involved was a goal we had four years ago and we've just kept it going," Christofferson said. "It's kind of snowballed now. We made a button that everybody wears when they turn their pledge in and the Mariners promised that if we got 100 percent, they'd give everybody a floating day off during the year.
"It just shows the support management has with United Way. It's a good charity and they match all our employee contributions. It's just a good thing all around."
Over the years, Mariners CEO Howard Lincoln, minority owners John Stanton and Jeff Raikes, and former catcher Dan Wilson and his wife, Annie, have all chaired the United Way of King County's annual giving campaign at various times.
Wilson just concluded his year leading the program, during which he introduced a United Way All-Star Softball Classic at Safeco Field that raised $1.2 million for homeless youth services in the Seattle area.
Christofferson lent a big hand -- as well as a lot of rakes and his groundskeeping crew -- to that softball fundraiser.
"We're involved quite a bit with Dan," he said. "The All-Star [Softball Classic] was a lot of work because we had to turn Safeco into a softball field, put a fence up and create the right environment. But that was a real good event and we're going to have a second annual this year and hopefully raise a lot more money for the homeless. I like those type of community efforts."
Indeed, Christofferson is the kind of guy who jumps at any chance to help. And he doesn't mind asking others to chip in, particularly his 15-member grounds crew, a fun-loving group that has done everything from singing Christmas carols to conducting coat drives for different charities.
The club has even offered "Groundskeeper for a Day" opportunities that are auctioned or raffled off by organizations to raise money since 2004. Winning bidders get to suit up and spend the day helping Christofferson and his crew with their usual pregame, in-game and postgame field preparations. Since 2004, those opportunities have netted $537,000 for various charitable organizations around the Northwest.
Christofferson's coat drive to aid Battered Women's Shelters is in its third year, with people asked to drop off new or slightly used coats at the Safeco Field office through Dec. 14.
"We've always done different things," he said. "We used to do stuff for the Northwest Harvest food bank. We started singing Christmas carols and sold raffles. One year we did a golf tournament. It's just a way to do things and thank people. I have a pretty tight-knit crew, so it's fun for us to do different things that are family oriented."
Christofferson also served as head groundskeeper at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma for 19 years before joining the Mariners.
"I don't consider this a job," he said. "It's just what I've done all my life."
The Dancing Groundskeepers were added in 2002 and Christofferson acknowledges with some chagrin that he's known more now for his funky footwork attempts than his true profession.
"I'd like to think people know me because the field looks clean, but I get more comments on the dancing," he said. "It's not my favorite thing to do, but the crowd likes it and I think the players do, too. I have two left feet and our rehearsals are pretty funny. But we put a lot of time and effort into it. I don't just look like a dummy on my own. I have to work at it."
Staying light on their feet and putting grow lights on the field keep Christofferson and his crew busy year-round. Things are obviously craziest during the baseball months, so he gears most of his charitable efforts toward the holidays and offseason.
Having an outdoor stadium in Seattle means letting Mother Nature do some of the winter work. There's not a lot of need to water the grass when the roof is open in November and December in the Pacific Northwest. But Christofferson and his group find ways to keep on giving.
"The grounds crew goes indoors and does coat drives and sings Christmas carols and other stuff," he said. "We just keep going."
Greg Johns is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregJohnsMLB as well as his Mariners Musings blog.


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|Camp ground
Birds and squirrels are all over this campground at Harper's Ferry, very pleasant....with big trees and few people. I spent the morning doing more organizing of my stuff so I know where everything is. The sunscreens I bought for the windows worked very well last night to keep any prying eyes from peeking through the windshield or front windows. The other side and back windows have installed blinds.
I drove (way over) to the restroom (like 100 ft) in the van, in the morning and plugged in a little pot for hot water. It worked very well to make coffee back at the van.
I went into the WalMart at Charles Town looking for a cigarette lighter adapter to charge my GPS. Not finding that, ate a quick hamburger there, then I bought 4 lithium batteries at a nearby Radio Shack store for the GPS. Still a lot to learn about the GPS. Finally I re-entered the Harper's Ferry National Historic Site and did more walking around the streets. It was raining on and off. A train passed over the bridge on the Potomac River nearby. Canadian geese were shepherding their babies around on the grassy areas. Little flowers grew up the walls of the spring houses and root cellars and it was so pretty. Very few people were in the town and there was so much to see. Finally I caught the shuttle bus back to the Ranger's Visitor Center and took my van back to the Campground.


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MODEL_BEHAVIOR's Blogs
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I have used BodyMedia Fit in the past, and my old armband stopped working after a few years. I had bought it on eBay, so I couldn't really return it or anything. It... Read more
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the gift of being bored
Monday, September 03, 2012 1 comments
I chose to stay home this holiday weekend and work on things at the house. I've been walking around angrily for months, and haven't dedicated any time to fix the things that are bothering me. (These are notably small things that all seem to add ... Read more
The last calories of the night.
Thursday, August 23, 2012 5 comments
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Good food will make or break (fast) me!
Thursday, August 23, 2012 2 comments
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Doctors Visits Update
Thursday, August 16, 2012 0 comments
Well, I have yet to make the ortho appointment because I was trying to figure out what is covered by my insurance. I've been helping my sister who dislocated her shoulder and I'm totally out of my routine since I'm not at home. On top of that I ... Read more
Doctors Visits last week.
Monday, July 23, 2012 2 comments
Well, I finally sucked it up and went to the doctor last week. I went to ask for advice about losing weight. Here's why I went: Generally speaking, I feel like I work pretty hard, eat pretty healthy, and seem to have a very hard... Read more
Notes on healthy eating.
Sunday, July 15, 2012 3 comments
I'm reading about how best to eat to support reproductive health. Here are some of my notes from one book I read. FOODS TO INCORPORATE Vegetables (5x, lettuce, cruciferous) Eggs (yolks choline) Salmon (Omega-3 DHA, EPA) Nuts and S... Read more
muscle knots and tight calves
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My siblings and I all have a pretty athletic build in general, and that includes big calf muscles. Lately my calves have been seizing up after a hard workout. I get these knots in my muscles that are sore and they throb, while remaining tight fo... Read more
Learnings from Bootcamp
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Friday, October 22, 2010 5 comments
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taking criticism
Tuesday, October 19, 2010 4 comments
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two day recovery
Thursday, October 14, 2010 2 comments
After two days of eating completely amazing(ly), I feel so good. Writing this down to remember it. Its not pain, its glory! I have energy and I have some joy thrown in there randomly. So much more enjoyable than laying around and medicating ... Read more
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Wednesday, October 13, 2010 2 comments
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Do you have a new diabetes diagnosis? Need a survival plan? Our step by step guide to basic diabetes education tells you what to do next!
Do you feel like diabetes is your fault? ...you have to lose a ton of weight? ...your diagnosis means the end of your life as you know it? None of this is true. Diabetes can happen to you. If diabetes has left you feeling confused or angry, then it's time to get help and guidance. Your First Year with Diabetes will help you manage and deal with your diabetes. Over the course of one year, you'll learn about medications, exercise, meal planning, and how to handle lifestyle and emotional issues at a pace that suits you. Your First Year with Diabetes is an essential tool for learning how to manage your diabetes without feeling overwhelmed. ©2013 Softcover, 6 x 9, 360 pages
A very great read. Calmed my anxiety about being newly diagnosed. Covers everything diabetes related. I took this book out from the library and the 3 days later I purchased it!
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For full disclosure I went to school with Theresa from grade 3 to 8th grade in Monterey, CA.. I was really lucky to find her again after all these years, right as I turned 50 and my readings were coming up pre-diabetic. I was really angry about his because I eat fairly well and exercise.
I am African/Caribbean and have a history of diabetes in my family. Theresa's book addresses all of the feelings one gets when getting the diagnosis: Anger, frustration, embarassment that this is somehow completely your fault...she was right on point with those emotions. However changing a few small things helped turn my numbers around and I now have a normal glucose level and am at a 5.6! I know it will take time to master all the skills I've learned from her book, but at least I know what I'm doing now and what I need to do to feel better.
This is one disease we can manage with lifestyle change.
Thank you Theresa for creating such an amazing resource for people suffering from and trying to repel this horrible disease.
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text: Now THIS is how to sell mobile services. This Norwegian commercial for One Call has all the makings of an epic spy movie — helicopter, skydiving, swooping and a snowmobile busting a backflip — crammed in to a 60 second spot (this is the extended version). Thanks to Magnus at 4 1/2 Film for sharing this footage.


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Steel Shelters
Fiberglass Shelters
Safe Rooms
Survival Shelters
Your Tornado Risk
Current Prices
Installation Information
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Authorized Dealers
From Our President
About Your Privacy
Online Brochures
Look Inside a Shelter
News Coverage
Portable Sanitation
Buy Books and Videos
Questions & Answers
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Click on city name to link to pages of photos
Anna, TX
-- 8' x 16' x 7' tall shelter at a 441 acre Arabian Horse Ranch. The shelters has two 36 inch wide entrances and an interior divider bulkhead wall with a locking door.
Ardmore, Oklahoma
-- This 5' x 6' x 6' shelter was installed in the front yard of a home which backs to a creek. The homeowner supplied these photos of the installation process.
Garland, Texas
-- 6' x 8' x 6 shelter was installed in a tight space next to the back patio. It took about 4 1/2 hours to complete the installation in easily excavated soil. The home owners are delighted.
Fort Worth, Texas
-- Narrow access to North Fort Worth home required a small track hoe to do the excavation. This 5' x 6' shelter weighs about 1,600 pounds and accommodates six people. Per the homeowner, "The shelter is the hit of the neighborhood!"
Rockwall, Texas
-- NBC Channel 5 (Dallas/Fort Worth) Anchor Gretchen Carlson did a live broadcast on the 10:00 PM news from a customer's home during "Get Out Alive Week." We are grateful to our customers for allowing Channel 5 to visit with them and to Channel 5 for informing people about tornado preparedness.
Searcy, Arkansas
-- SteelClad Safe Room for installation in a new custom home built by Hunter Construction Company. This 8' x 10' x 7'-6" SteelClad Safe Room is accessible as part of the master closet.
New York City???
-- As seen on Good Morning America and the Today Show. Yes, even folks in the Big Apple need protecting. Take a peek at our highly customized "bunkers" provided to MTV (Music Television) for their end of the millennium Webcast and TV broadcast events.
Web site: www.shelters-of-texas.com


text:
Not yet, unfortunately. I still can't find the code source to change it through sqlite. But I'm still updating it.
#26 2016-08-23 09:01:44
#27 2016-10-24 01:58:06
So is this just basically a lost cause? Or is it still being worked on?
#28 2016-10-24 04:01:13
it still being worked on, I believe
#29 2016-10-24 04:57:19
If you mean my mod, yeah I'm improving it from time to time, but not yet ready to release until it has enough feature to satisfy you guys, +until that hard way of setting it up is fixed. It makes me sad everytime when I know someone uses my pack and joins, and doesn't feel satisfied with it, even more when I get a feedback saying it's hard to set up and the mud is confusing. I'm trying my best to help you guys.
#30 2016-10-24 21:36:42
Maybe we can help? What are you trying to do that is hard?
#31 2016-10-25 01:53:23
If you know how to edit a sqlite file, sure. What I need is to default the script, world and plugins and everything to the general mushclient folder, like in uoss pack.
#32 2016-11-09 16:17:22
So a little off topic here, but I have working internet after not having it for a year, Anyways my question is, can I use one of my characters on their stil, or do I need to create a new one? Not sure what has changed if anything as far as that goes.
#33 2016-11-09 23:50:50
characters are permanant on clok. as long as you remember the name and password, or can retrieve new password if you forget, you're set.
#34 2016-12-01 02:45:56
After what seems like forever, I finally got my lazy ass up and upload this version. If you have sounds from the previous pack customized, don't forget to back up before you install and set up this new update. A bunch of sounds are changed.
*more ambiance and steps added for the following types of terrain: planes (not to confuse with grass sounds), hills and mountains, and mud.
*Druids rejoice: you can now type root someone to try to root the person down. You don't have to type cast 702 anymore.
*A bunch of battlecries and grunt sounds are added, player and enemy sounds are separated. All attack sounds are deleted and changed to fit this new change.
*Sounds for the following moves and actions are added: hamstring, disarm, grapple, gaia warning (not guaranteed).
*a bunch of old codes are rewritten, stealth penalty on plane sight should have some whooshing sound as a warning. I have to gag the output for some weapon sounds to work, since the line itself is merged with the combat text. You may occasionally hear the whoosh when you hide, indicating penalty.
Enjoy! Feel free to report, as usual.
#35 2016-12-01 10:19:27
woo let's check it out!
#36 2016-12-31 21:59:25
Very good news below!
I finally found a way to direct script path, so in the next update, it's possible that you people don't have to go through the pain of copying and adding anything anymore. And in fact, again, it's not sqlite as I thought it was. It was just simple direct code I didn't think of.
The update's gonna be out shortly, with cool stuff added of course!
Happy new year!
#37 2017-01-02 08:35:10
Nicely done, I'll wait for the new link. Sadly the game is dying, as people seem to be moving to somnium, or other rpi muds.
#38 2017-01-02 10:05:32
The game is not dying. I saw 12 people on today and it made me feel overjoyed.
#39 2017-01-03 11:28:52
Wow, every time I look, their's maybe 2 people on not including Jirato.
#40 2017-01-03 14:56:57
It's the matter of time really. People tend to be around either during the day or evening american time (which is night and morning my time lol).
Upcoming changes, might be more or less depends on how many insects I find in my pack:
- gag some useless strings.
- web sounds are finally fixed.
- Much easier to set up, new read me file included in the pack. The bundled version is removed, but those who want mushclient or mush-z to go with clok can ask in this topic.
- more blacksmithing, knapping, fletching and leatherworking sounds added.
- more movement and action sounds and possibly some socials too if I have enough time to work on it.
- Recode nethre sounds, including power and when a ghost faids. Possibly adding alcchemical damage soon too if I can work around the wildcard glitch.
- Riln sounds, guild point and task notification sounds (for some tasks only).
- some sounds are changed, including channeling and stealth. Some functions are changed and recoded to fit the changes as well.
- possibly some flavor ambiance sounds to go with strings, if I have time to gather all for every areas. Some might be added though, if not all.
- some foraging sounds are changed and more are added.
- fatigue strings are recoded and make based on note instead of panning, in case people with hearing impaire want to play clok.
- unconscious and poison sounds to go with everything. Those who fight spiders will sure feel more at ease.
And if I get more specific strings for specific guild related stuffs, or specific abilities, more will be added. I can't promise I'll be able to add all of what's said above in this very near update though. May be some.
#41 2017-01-04 01:03:22
I actually went back on the game and tried it again today to see if they finally after all this time fixed the horrendous lag, and the answer is a resounding no. I just don't see how anyone, I do mean anyone could play the game with the amount of lag I'm experiencing, which, in my nearly 3 years of MUDding, I have never seen on another system as I have seen on this. This lag is so out past anything I have experienced on another MUD, it's just crazy. I know I have complained along this score before, but its honestly disappointing to me because I like what I see, but I just can't deal with a 300ms to 2s lag on every single command I type, whether its looking in a bag, reading a sign or whatever. And no, I don't consider the commands that give you roundtime to be lag because its a design feature, just to be clear, I have no problem with that. I don't know if its a bad network, bad code, or both, maybe the codebase is taking up too much memory on the machine and disk swapping is occurring. I never hear people talk about this so I'm curious, how do you get used to this lag. I not only can't, I won't. If you want people to play on your game then you need to do everything in your power to make the thing run smoothly and efficiently. MUDding is a dying art and everything is in competition, so fix your code. I think also if they know they have network issues, to be straight with the playerbase and maybe they can kick in to help get Clok running on a better server. It sounds to me like they got a sloppy coder or two on there not caring or not skilled enough to write clean, tight, efficient code. Man its so disappointing, I want to play, but I can't be dealing with that kind of lag on every single stinking thing I type, its like being on dial-up again. I don't expect anything to be done at this point, I'm just grumbling.
is preferable to
I felt the passing of your wind
#42 2017-01-04 03:06:07 (edited by mata 2017-01-04 03:07:59)
I don't feel a thing. Or may be I'm just use to it. Clok is always not a fast paste mud for me, and I like when it's slow that way. The only time I feel a thing is when my own crappy internet lags me to death during a battle.
If anyone think this is a serious problem to report, please bbs it. I'm more than willing to thumb you up for more new clokfaces will be happier to be part of us.
#43 2017-01-04 06:35:33
to mutch plujans maybe could cost a lag, I am not sure though, I was encounter a huuuge lag too, but when I remove some of the plujans the lag is slitely gone somehow, or maybe that just my connection rofl
anyways, waiting for the new version!, gogo!
#44 2017-01-04 08:42:35
What plugins did you remove?
#45 2017-01-04 11:07:59
chat, current output window, Omit_Blank_Lines, copy_output, gag, etc , sounds not make any sence though
#46 2017-01-04 16:26:47
I'm talking about a fresh world with no plugins, I don't even like to use sound packs, the only plugins running are mushreader and channel history, I hate outputfunctions plugin, I don't like a lot of the other ones either, except the luaaudio, but since I don't use soundpacks.
Yes, it is a serious problem, I'm talking about a 300ms to 2 second lag on anything I type, and I really don't expect them to do anything about it. Idk man but I just can't wrap my head around how people deal with this much lag. Most MUDs you type and hit enter and instantly the response is there, not Clok, its variable lag but it is constant in that there is always lag there
is preferable to
I felt the passing of your wind
#47 2017-01-04 16:33:40
I admit clok is one mud with slow command activation. But it's never been a problem to mee since I started playing until now, almost a year. Then again, you won't get any fix or respond here. Jirato doesn't come to check that often. The best way is to bbs or have someone bbs it so everyone can see the problem. I'm willing to support you guys. Talking about it around here doesn't lead you anywhere.
#48 2017-01-04 19:20:55
I'd ask Jirato to come around here and answer Ironcross's question, that way we have a definite answer.
#49 2017-01-04 20:26:46
Jirato has an account here. He probably forgot or something. gms are rather busy these days.
#50 2017-01-04 21:47:45
We'll see if that happens or not, I'm frankly a bit skeptical. Either way My problem is with the latency which I find is pretty bad. I just can't get into getting into it if that makes any sense. There are a lot of cool features there, but if you are inhibited by 300ms to 2 sec lag, and no I'm literally not exaggerating, then I just cant be bothered. anyway, I don't want to rehash old points.
is preferable to
I felt the passing of your wind


text:
Sidekick Andrew: As we may have mentioned in passing briefly (here, here, here, and here for example) it was CHIKARA's annual King of Trios tournament this past weekend. Now, being based on the slightly more civilised side of the Atlantic, it wasn't possible for us to attend personally; but we did manage to secure the services of a special reporter for the weekend. Matt Jones (follow him on twitter, like him on Facebook and buy his t-shirt… something like that.) Enjoy the article: feel free to comment and be nice, or there'll be trouble. Oh, and don't forget to click the link at the bottom of the article and buy the DVDs – I've a feeling you won't regret it
PS. Images are Matt's own, unless otherwise stated
Riding in a cab through dingy South Philadelphia, it looks like somewhere to go if you had a deep-seeded desire to get mugged. For someone who hasn't been to a major city in a while it looks like something out of a Batman comic.
But in this odd location a throng of very friendly strangers line up outside the reformatted bingo hall that was the ECW arena (now called the Asylum Arena). Walking in, the place is almost unrecognizable if you've only seen the dingy 1990's videos of Tommy Dreamer or the Dudley Boys throwing each other off balconies, or of Chris Benoit breaking Sabu's neck. Actually, given the claustrophobic camera work usually employed, the Arena is bigger than I expected.
Nonetheless, once the passionate fans of a promotion like Chikara file in, the atmosphere becomes absolutely electric. And make no mistake, Chikara's fans are extremely passionate, and this is their biggest event of the year. To fudge a Hunter S. Thompson quote – In some circles, King of Trios is a far better thing than the Superbowl, the Kentucky Derby, and the lower Oakland roller derby finals all rolled into one.
The show opens with the lights going low and Chikara's roster coming out around the ring- a tribute to the recently deceased "Sweet n Sour" Larry Sweeney. Some wrestlers like Mike Quackenbush and Eddie Kingston weep openly as the bell tolls ten times. Then the lights go out and a Sweeney video package plays on the big screen. When the lights come back on, a pair of Sweeney's trademark sunglasses are in the ring, and the fans chant his name. A bittersweet beginning, to be sure, but absolutely necessary. Sweeney touched the hearts of fans and wrestlers alike in his time.
The mood picks up immediately as we're thrust into the bizarre world of Chikara, where anthropomorphic ants have kickass wrestling matches with old timey baseball players and marching band leaders.
The contest between Team Osaka Pro (Atsushi Kotoge, Daisuke Harada and Ultimate Spider Jr.) and The Throwbacks (Dasher Hatfield, Sugar Dunkerton and Matt Classic) is almost strictly comedy. Kotoge and Dunkerton have a race which ends with the referee ordering free throws for Osaka Pro on an improvised hoop made of Dunkerton's arms (Kotoge sinks his first, but misses the second). Classic, a send-up of old school wrestlers, admonishes his teammates for their comedy, insists they join him in Hindu squats and spends much of the match performing the Harvard step test à la Bob Backlund. Not to be outdone, Ultimate Spider Jr. gets into the act, using invisible spider webs to perform Irish whips on Dunkerton and Hatfield. Maybe not the most coherent wrestling match ever, but certainly one of the most entertaining spectacles I've ever seen.
On the other hand, the match featuring Mike Quackenbush, Jigsaw and Manami Toyota taking on The Maximos and TNA's Amazing Red is almost all action. It's a little odd seeing a female wrestler like Toyota battling men if you're not used to it, but she fits right in and performs as well as, or better than, any of her male counterparts. After ten minutes of fast paced wrestling, Jigsaw scores an emotional win for his team with Larry Sweeney's "12 Large" elbow drop.
The main event of the evening brings it all together in match featuring, unquestionably, the most mainstream performers of the weekend. Team Michinoku Pro is comprised of legends in the industry, particularly in their native Japan- The Great Sasuke, Jinsei Shinzaki and Dick Togo. Their opponents are Team Minnesota- Chikara regulars "The Anarchist" Arik Cannon, North Star Express member Darin Corbin and, in some ways the oddest name in the event, Sean Waltman, better known as X-Pac and performing for the first time since 1996 as the 1-2-3 Kid.
The knowledgeable Chikara fans give every participant a great deal of respect (which visibly moves Kid, who is seen wiping away tears). The match features not only exciting high-flying wrestling and solid mat action, but also some great comedy. In what stands as one of the most surreal moments ever, The Great Sasuke and Corbin engage in perhaps the first ever bout of slow-motion hardcore wrestling.
Corbin is well known for breaking out slow-motion in his matches, but seeing a legend like The Great Sasuke partake defies description. The effects are not limited to Corbin and Sasuke, either. Referee Bryce Remsberg and all the wrestlers on the ring apron get in on the act (Togo's exaggerated, slow-motion cheering is a highlight), as well as the fans who chant veeeeeeeeerrrrrrryyyyy sloooooooooooooowwwwwwlllllyyy. Soon, Sasuke sets up Corbin on a chair and ascends to the top rope. Upping the ante on the comedy, Corbin's teammate Cannon suddenly shakes off the slow-motion and screams "Darin, stop screwing around!" to huge laughs from the crowd. Corbin complies, and Sasuke crashes through an empty chair.
In the end, Togo performs a beautiful flying senton on Corbin and scores the win for his team. The fans give a standing ovation to the participants, chanting all of their names at various times. An amazing match to end a top-notch night of wrestling, but the weekend is just getting started.
Saturday afternoon sees the Fan Conclave, Chikara's equivalent of WWE's fan festival Axxess. It's here where it becomes clear what King of Trios really is- the Woodstock of independent wrestling. Legends rub elbows with relative rookies in the industry and all are available to the fans for pictures and autographs. They are unfailingly friendly, and happily chat with fans in an incredibly positive atmosphere (the exception being F.I.S.T.'s Icarus, the most hated wrestler in Chikara, who wanders through the crowd insulting everyone he sees).
There are numerous heart warming scenes. As my girlfriend takes video of the Ant Colony roaming through the fans, Ophidian of the Osirian Portal limbos in front of her and drops to the ground. He begins reading a note written on nice stationary that I notice begins "Dear Ophidian." He sits and reads for a few minutes before dropping all of his serpentine movements and wrapping a nearby girl, presumably the author of the note, in a big hug.
And even aside from the chance to meet your favourite ants, snakes and (Ultra)mantises, there's a lot going on. There's a chance to commentate on matches, a contest where fans and wrestlers attempt to bodyslam Tursas (and the Colony's Green Ant begins his transformation into Lex Luger), a dance contest hosted by the Osirian Portal, and a concert by Stan Bush. Nobody enjoys it more than "Rock and Roll Ring Announcer" Gavin Loudspeaker, who dances and thrashes around when Bush plays "The Touch."
A few hours later, the second night of action begins, which sees surprises, thrilling victories and bitter defeats.
One of the most engaging contests of the entire weekend is the first qualifier for the Rey De Voladores, which features El Generico, Zach Sabre Jr, Marshe Rockett of Da Soul Touchaz and the BDK's Pinkie Sanchez (who sports both some of the funniest facial expressions I've ever seen and some incredibly gnarly back acne). The referee for the match is BDK's Derek Sabato who's biased officiating allows Sanchez to eliminate Sabre and Rockett. Sanchez has the victory in hand when Chikara's Director of Fun, Wink Vavasseur enters the arena. Wink forces Sabato to wear a standard Chikara referee shirt, symbolically stating that the BDK will no longer have their own referee. The crowd bursts into the biggest cheers of the weekend, so far, when Generico then drills Sanchez with his BRAINBUSTAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!! (picture a top rope brainbuster, driving the opponent head-first into the top turnbuckle). Sabato begrudgingly counts a slow three, but he could count to 100 – Sanchez is out cold.
The BDK's night doesn't get any better as their team of Tim Donst, Jakob Hammermeir and Delirious, accompanied by Tursas, face off against the Colony. In a thrilling, come from behind victory, Green Ant completes his transformation into Lex Luger as he finally succeeds in bodyslamming Tursas (causing Gavin Loudspeaker to literally leap into the air with excitement) and forces Hammermeir to submit to a torture rack backbreaker.
Other notable contests include a heart-wrenching and hard hitting tribute bout to Sweeney by Eddie Kingston and Arik Cannon, a sensational main event where Team Michinoku Pro defeat Quackenbush, Toyota and Jigsaw, and the 1-2-3 Kid winning the other Rey de Voladores qualifier, setting up a match with Generico for the final day.
The crowd seems a little thicker on the final day, with more little kids. Or perhaps it's simply that a new vendor is here selling a wide variety of wrestling masks, making them much more visible. In addition to the handful of youngsters with Fire Ant, Jigsaw and Osirian Portal masks from the first two days, there's now a cadre of kiddies running around in brightly coloured Rey Mysterio masks. The cutest, though, is a father and son both in El Generico masks.
No time is wasted as the semi-final matches are held immediately. The match between fan favourites The Colony and The Osirian Portal conflicts the crowd. When the standard duelling chants of "LET'S GO PORTAL!/CO-LO-NY" begin, many fans are chanting both names. The Colony picks up the victory (via a spectacular top-rope neckbreaker) and advance to the finals.
The crowd is remarkably respectful and sympathetic. Handshakes before and after matches, clean breaks and stalemates are all met with cheers. The fans get into the show and cheer their favourites after losses as would little kids- they want to let them know its okay and that they still support them. Chikara is also likely the only place you'll ever hear wrestling fans chant "SAY YOU'RE SORRY!" as they do during the Colt Cabana vs. Archibald Peck match. Hell, the fans even chant "Holy Poop!" instead of "Holy Shit!" because of the kids present.
The Colony's opponents in the finals will be F.I.S.T., the 2009 winners, who manage to eke out a victory over Team Michinoku Pro. Chuck Taylor blinds Sasuke with baby powder and rolls him up for a pin (which one imagines was a real "mark-out" moment for Taylor). Icarus hate is at an all time high. One spirited fan in particular screams at Icarus to tap out every time he's in a submission move, as well as when he's performing a submission, or is just standing at ringside. He also earns several chants of "PLEASE RETIRE!"
The Rey De Voladores final is a hard hitting and exciting affair that has fans on their feet as Kid and Generico exchange deadly manoeuvres and nearfalls. After kicking out of a top rope version of Kid's X-Factor, Generico hits the BRAINBUSTAAAAAAAHH!!!!! for the win, and the roof nearly blows off the arena. Kid is completely overwhelmed as fans chant his name. He takes to the microphone and pays tribute to Generico, Chikara itself and the fans. He notes some of the questionable things he's done in his career, and the fans chant "WE FORGIVE YOU!" He announces that this will likely be his last year in wrestling, and that this may have even been his last match. If it was, he says, he couldn't think of a better opponent or better fans to go out on. He's given a long and loud standing ovation from the crowd, and then another from the wrestlers in the back that can be heard all through the arena.
For Sean Waltman, King of Trios meant redemption. After all, he doesn't exactly have a great reputation among fans. It wasn't long ago that he was so hated in wrestling that a term was invented to describe it ("X-Pac Heat" – when fans hate the performer, as opposed to the character, and don't want to see him anymore; some fans say Icarus has the same sort of heat). He's been seen as a talented performer who pissed it away with drugs and other poor decisions. He was that guy from the sex tape with Chyna, who politicked his way to the top of the industry with his Kliq buddies and never gave anything back- a selfish failure. Some fans were speculating, based on past behaviour, that he wouldn't even show up for the event.
But at King of Trios a strange thing happened: the man became the Kid, and the kid became a man. Waltman busted his ass in three great matches. He put over his opponent in the ring and on the microphone. He paid tearful tribute to the fans and the company. And if that was Sean Waltman's last wrestling match, he certainly went out with a lot of class.
That's a hell of an accomplishment for someone who's name has so often been used in the same sentence as "Chyna's gigantic clitoris." Well done, Kid.
Speaking of redemption, that's what the King of Trios final is all about. After losing in the finals of the tournament last year, and then losing Green Ant to an arm injury, 2010 was a dismal year for the Colony. The crowd (other than a handful of 3rd row, die-hard F.I.S.T. loyalists) desperately want the Ants to win this one.
After all the comedy and Lex Luger parodies of the weekend, the main event is old school wrestling booking at its finest. F.I.S.T. ground the Ants early on, with Chuck Taylor bashing Green Ant's arm with a chair during a fracas. That arm becomes the target and F.I.S.T. pound on it mercilessly. The Ants rally, however, and take advantage after Taylor's baby powder to the face backfires and hit his teammate Johnny Gargano. The match goes back and forth many times, manipulating the crowd with multiple false finishes, bringing their excitement to a fever pitch. Finally, after twenty minutes of tremendous action, the Ants unleash unheard-of offense – a top rope version of their Antapault move. They launch Green Ant ludicrously high into the air for a splash on Icarus that wins them the match and the tournament.
The crowd explodes into cheers: justice has been done. But it's about more than that. The fans have been feeling the wrestlers' pain all weekend. As mentioned, they've offered sympathy to favourites like Team Quackenbush, The Spectral Envoy or Team Michinoku Pro after their in-ring losses. Moreover, they've offered their sympathy for real life losses, as in Kingston and Cannon's tribute match. After all that, it's not just the Colony (and Generico, for that matter) who deserve this victory- the fans do too.
After the show is over, there's one thought that sticks out in my head- Monday Night Raw is going to suck in comparison to this. I've been to a show that was family friendly, yet engaging for fans of all ages. A show that saw long suffering heroes finally vindicated as they faced impossible odds. I saw one of wrestling's pariahs redeem himself, and several legends put over the next generation as they wind down to retirement.
For fans like me, watching the WWE can be an angsty experience. We fret and we fuss over who deserves better, who's holding the young generation down, who could help the whole company out if they would just be booked to show more weakness, etc etc. These concerns are miniscule, if they exist at all in Chikara. It's a whole different animal. It's ridiculous and fun and over the top, but very old school as well (not just Matt Classic either).
Wrestling fans, you owe it to yourselves to check out Chikara. There's no better wrestling product for kids, but between the humour and the action they can appeal to anyone. Give them a chance. Maybe we'll see you at King of Trios next year.
Sidekick Andrew: All three nights of King of Trios 2011 are available at www.smartmarkvideo.com – in just another example of awesomeness, the DVDs were released within 24 hours of Sunday's final! We've ordered our here in the Bunker, we suggest you do the same.


text: Darin Shuler just got one of the final Xeric Grants, and with it he is publishing Castle and Wood, his ongoing comic involving some grotesque, yet cute, anthropomorphic individuals. He has a lovely command over black and white. He's got a great website, he tumbles, he flicks, and sells his comics.


text:
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