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LAST SEASON: 41-31-10, 92 points. Lost to New York Rangers 4-3 in first round
COACH: Paul MacLean, 2nd season with Senators and NHL, 41-31-10.
ADDED: RW Guillaume Latendresse, D Marc Methot, D Mike Lundin.
LOST: LW Nick Foligno, C Zenon Konopka, LW Nikita Filatov, D Matt Carkner, D Filip Kuba.
PLAYER TO WATCH: D Erik Karlsson's continued emergence as the NHL's top play-making defenseman. The 22-year-old Swede won his first Norris Trophy in only his second NHL season after leading all blue-liners with 78 points (19 goals, 59 assists).
OUTLOOK: A surprising run to the playoffs led to captain Daniel Alfredsson's decision to put off retirement for at least one more season. The Senators have the capacity to build on last year under the firm direction of MacLean, the longtime Red Wings' assistant, who had an impressive debut as a first-time head coach.
LAST SEASON: 35-37-10, 80 points. Missed playoffs by finishing 13th in Eastern Conference.
COACH: Randy Carlyle, 2nd season with Leafs, 6-9-3; 8th overall, 279-191-64 in NHL.
ADDED: LW James van Riemsdyk, C Jay McClement.
LOST: RW Colby Armstrong, D Luke Schenn, G Jonas Gustavsson.
PLAYER TO WATCH: The focus in Toronto continues to be on the turnstile in goal, a position that's been unsettled since Curtis Joseph led the Leafs to their last playoff berth in 2004 (yes, two NHL lockouts ago). Unless the Maple Leafs do go ahead and make a push to trade for Vancouver's Roberto Luongo, they'll settle on the tandem of James Reimer and Ben Scrivens.
OUTLOOK: Unsettled as usual. The Maple Leafs couldn't even get out of the lockout without making headlines by firing GM Brian Burke last week. Toronto has more than enough offensive punch, particularly with the addition of van Riemsdyk. The question always remains whether they have enough defense and goaltending to end what's now a seven-season playoff drought.


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OLPC 8.2.0 Features
From OLPC
This page is monitored by the OLPC team.
The purpose of providing software for connected laptops is to make affordances for desirable human behaviors like
- reading, writing, computing, sharing
- reflecting, creating images and sounds,
- speaking, broadcasting, publishing
- searching, listing, following,
- configuring, modifying, and debugging
Some affordances provided by the OLPC 8.1.1 operating system and most collections of activities include:
- associate with 802.11 b/g access points with or without WEP and WPA1 encryption.
- associate with other XO or Active-Antenna 802.11s meshes.
- keymaps are correct or are very close to correct for US/International, Amharic, Spanish, Portuguese, and Kreyól keyboards.
- translations of system strings need help!
Recording Audio and Video
- Pippy, Record, and TamTam will be able to play and record sounds.
- Pippy and Record will be able to take photographs.
- Record will be able to record short videos.
- Measure will be able to measure signals with or without DC voltage bias.
- volume keys on the keyboard will adjust the speaker volume while Sugar is running.
- control audio volume with the volume keys in sugar
Multi-media Composition
- pictures can be composed with text in a system editor such as Write. (We actually expect Write to do a lot of other things.)
- fancier multimedia like video, audio, and programs can be manipulated in an environment like Etoys.
- copy-and-paste media clips between activities
- download media clips into the Journal
Interpreters for Standard Data Formats
- be able to display and edit DOC, ODT, JPEG, PNG, GIF, WAV, OGG, HTML, JS, some SWF, and several other less-well known formats.
- We expect NOT to be able to display restricted formats including MP3, MPEG, most AVI, RM, FLV, etc.
Extensibility and Malleability of Software
- w/ internet or preparation: install new activities and library content on a raw OS via the internet or via USB keys.
- w/ internet: install new software via 'yum install' or 'rpm -U' on a raw OS via the internet. Data in /home should be PRESERVED.
- w/ internet: olpc-update to new versions of the operating system via the internet. Data in /home should be PRESERVED.
- w/ preparation: olpc-update to new versions of the operating system via USB. Data in /home should be PRESERVED.
- w/ preparation: reflash appropriately signed builds via USB. NO DATA should be preserved.
- access the root account via the virtual terminals or via the Terminal activity (if present.)
- Some downstream partners such as Uruguay intend to disable user access to the root account as part of their theft-deterrence plan.
- access to the firmware "ok" prompt w/ developer key, requestable through Browse and installable through the Terminal.
Real-time Synchronous (RS) Collaboration
- Reliability of current RS collaboration is conditioned in complicated ways on available network bandwidth, packet loss rates, connectivity scenario, and exact software protocol/implementation. See the Collaboration network testbed for details.
- Installing or removing activities should never change the ability of the system to run.
- In practice, bad things may happen if you run out of disk space or if you remove/modify the Journal or Terminal.
- Alternately, malicious code could circumvent the isolation framework separating activities from system software and user data.
Power Control & Conservation
- when the lid is closed or when the power button is pressed while Sugar is running, suspend in order to conserve power.
- resume from suspend in response to lid opening or power-button presses
- cut power by holding the power button for several seconds
- power off or reset the machine via the Central XO-person's Palette
- control screen brightness and suspend state from the root command-line
- control screen brightness with the brightness keys in Sugar
- reliably store user data to and retrieve user data from FAT16/VFAT formatted USB Mass Storage devices.
- reliably store user data to and retrieve user data from FAT16/VFAT formatted SD/SDHC devices.
- USB ethernet adapters, keyboards, and mice should function similarly to their normal function on other operating systems.
- login via serial consoles.
- We do not have strong expectations about the behavior of other peripherals.
Simplified Multi-Tasking
- interact with one activity or "location" at a time
- switch between the current activity and other locations with the view keys or the frame
- switch between activities with Alt-Tab or the activity ring
- start new activities and stop running ones with the frame, ring, or activity toolbar.
- list, search, and filter records of actions on the system by time
- filter records of actions by title
Theft Deterrence
- laptops should travel through the delivery chain unactivated.
- laptops should not boot until they are activated.
- can be activated wirelessly (with a school server) (not recently tested)
- can be activated via USB.
- developer keys should grant access to OFW.
- should be able to flash any build from OFW.
- should be able to rewrite manufacturing data (e.g. language, write-protect tags) from OFW
- should respond to gamepad Cheat codes

subset: commoncrawl


text: Coloring pages are free for download. These free coloring pages are with full size and printable, select images, right click on the mouse, and save to your computer or PC. I hope this free coloring page can give your kids ideas and inspirations to make a coloring book according to what they like. Magic color book website is big coloring book for you. We have coloring pages under the categories; Cartoon, Only boys, Only girls, Disney, Animals, Super Heroes, Batman, Spiderman, X-man, Star wars, Scooby Doo, Donald Dock, Cars, Christmas, Worksheet, Halloween, Holiday and Seasons. In the under categories you will also find: New year, Easter, Valentine's day, Thanksgiving, Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. x-men 2, x-men origins, x-men first class, x-men 3, x-men fictional world, x-men days for future past, x-men the last stand, x-men film, x-men coloring pages, magic coloring book, x-men professor x, cyclops x-men, iceman x-men, angel archangel x-men, beast x-men, mimic x-men, changeling x-men, Polaris x-men, petra x-men, havok


text:
starting saturday sept 4th we'll do a 2 or 3 day loop or point to point run in the north cascades mountains. the route still hasn't been determined but you can be sure it'll go through some of the most amazing areas the northwest has to offer.
all the details will be worked out very soon. stay tuned to the blog and email me to let me know you're interested. firstname.lastname@example.com


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Watching your child get a shot isn't easy. It's even harder if you have fears or concerns about the safety or necessity of the vaccine.
Millions of parents immunize their kids each year without concern. Yet some parents have heard rumors that vaccines can cause serious health problems.
So, who can parents turn to for the facts about vaccine safety? Your child's doctor is your first resource for reliable information. Health care providers are bound by law to provide you with written information on both the benefits and risks of each immunization suggested for your child. Reading this material can help you make a well-informed decision.
Another resource for in-depth information on vaccine safety is the CDC.
Yes. All vaccines are fully tested before being approved for use by the FDA. Vaccines contain weakened toxins, or a dead or weakened form of the disease-causing virus or bacteria, which causes the body to produce antibodies that protect the child from that disease.
Many of these diseases still thrive in other parts of the world. Travelers can and do bring these viruses back to the United States. Without the protection of vaccines, these diseases could easily spread here again.
Some children have minor side effects from being vaccinated, such as a slight fever or swelling at the injection site. The risk for death or serious side effects is so small that it is difficult to document. Claims that vaccines cause autism or other diseases have been carefully researched and disproved. Rumors still persist that an increase in autism in children is caused by thimerosal, a preservative added to vaccines. Thimerosal, however, was removed from all vaccines in Sweden in 1995, and the incidence of autism has continued to increase there. It has also been nearly eliminated in the United States, where autism rates also continue to increase, as they have throughout the world. After a thorough review, in 2004 the Institute of Medicine rejected the idea that vaccines had any relationship with autism.
Many studies have been done to assess the safety of multiple vaccinations. None has shown that multiple vaccinations cause a problem. Children are exposed to many foreign substances every day with no harmful effects. Scientists say that the tiny amount of virus or bacteria in vaccines is not enough to harm a child. What can be harmful, however, is delaying a child's vaccines unnecessarily.
According to the recommendations developed by the American Academy of Pediatrics to help reduce the risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and other sleep-related deaths in infants up to 12 months old, making sure that your child is fully immunized can help reduce the risk for SIDS by 50 percent.
Most of your child's vaccinations are completed between birth and 6 years. Many vaccines are given more than once, at different ages, and in combinations. This means that you'll need to keep a careful record of your child's shots. Although your doctor's office will also keep track, people change doctors, records get lost, and the person ultimately responsible for keeping track of your child's immunizations is you.
Ask your child's doctor for an immunization record form. Think about your child's record as you would a birth certificate and keep it with your other essential documents. You can also download an easy-to-read immunization schedule and record form at the CDC website.
Even though most parents and doctors do a good job of keeping up with immunizations, studies show that about one-fourth of preschool children are missing at least one routine vaccination. Most states will not let your child start school without a complete immunization record. Sometimes a vaccination is missed when a child is sick. No matter what the reason, it's important to make up missed immunizations.
If your child has missed an immunization, you don't have to go back and start over for most vaccines. The previous immunizations are still good. Your doctor will just resume the immunization schedule. If, for any reason, your child receives additional doses of a vaccine, this is also not a concern, although your child will still need any future doses according to the recommended schedule.
Keep this information in mind to help your child's immunizations go more smoothly:
Common side effects of immunizations include swelling at the site of the injection, soreness, and fever. Discuss these side effects with your doctor and ask what symptoms deserve an office call.
Ask your doctor's office if it participates in an immunization registry. This is a source you can go to if your immunization records get lost.
Ask your doctor's office if it has an immunization reminder or recall system. This type of system will call to remind you when immunizations are due and will warn you if an immunization has been missed.
Always bring your immunizations record with you to all of your child's office visits and make sure the doctor signs and dates every immunization.
Vaccines are some of the safest and most effective medicines we have, and they have made many dangerous childhood diseases rare today.


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Microsoft recently announced two important updates to the Windows platform: Windows Phone 8.1 and Windows 8.1 Update.
With the current generation of Windows, Microsoft made a pretty big bet on touch and mobility. Along with building on top of the strong foundation in Windows 7, it also introduced a brand-new approach to the Windows user experience that brought touch to the forefront. Since the original introduction of Windows 8 in 2012, it has been continuously refining the experience, and making steady progress.
Last fall, less than a year after it shipped Windows 8, it released Windows 8.1 – bringing a large set of customer-driven improvements including the return of the Start button, tutorials, more personalization options, the ability to boot to desktop, improvements to multi-tasking and more.
The Windows 8.1 Update delivers a collection of refinements designed to give people a more familiar and convenient experience across touch, keyboard and mouse inputs. It also brings improvements for business customers, really accelerates opportunity for developers, and enables device makers to offer lower-cost devices.
Related Topics : Acer, Laptops, Peripheral Hardware, Sony, Windows
Are remote data-management concerns stalling your business initiatives? Here are five ways VDI can simplify IT management. ... More >>
Microsoft will release a Windows 10 Anniversary Update later this year. Check out some of the new innovative features that will be included. ... More >>
Get a taste of what experts are thinking about in the realm of enterprise virtual reality and enterprise augmented reality. ... More >>


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|This image includes the bottom of the first page of the original 1781 tax assessment return for Bethel Township, within Bedford County, showing the names of Residents "Carney" through "Fitzpatrick".
|Note: This image was scanned from a photocopy of the original 1781 tax assessment for Bethel Township, within Bedford County. The originals of the tax assessment returns were stored, for many years, in Vault #1 in the basement of the Bedford County Court House. The webmaster of this site was given permission by the officials of the Bedford County Court system to photocopy the original returns in the 1980s. A year or two after the original returns were photocopied, a pipe burst in the vault in which the returns were stored, causing water damage to many records, and the original tax assessment returns were subsequently transferred to the Pioneer Historical Society of Bedford County for storage.
The following is a transcription of the names of the Residents which appear on the 1781 Bethel Township, Bedford County tax assessment return, as shown in the image above. It is as accurate as possible. The 1781 tax assessment returns were not included in the published Pennsylvania Archives (1897 Edition, Third Series, Volume XXII ).
|Carney, William
Clevenger, Abram
Crossin, Samuel
Crossin, Thomas
Coul, Isaac
Coombes, Edward
Cares, Widow
Cowgim, Joseph
Dart, John
Deshawn, Morris
Dennis, Adam
Eddy, Govan
Emmuel, John
Fisher, John
Ford, Barnett
Fitzpatrick, John


text:
Your shopping cart is empty!
+44 (0) 1473 836225 | firstname.lastname@example.com
A C4 green matt-finish foil metallic mailer with peel & seal closure. Finished with a subtle and durable matt metallic exterior these are perfect for sending out cosmetics, gifts and promotional items, books, product samples, invitations, fashion accessories and jewellery.


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Reese Witherspoon's style is always classic and feminine, but she's really been impressing us every time she hits the red carpet on her Water for Elephants tour. Her hair, makeup and dress choices are all flawless...so how do you choose a favorite?
Click here to see Reese's hottest recent moments—and then vote on which one you love the most!
Do you think one (or all) of these looks are Reese's signature style?
More Hair & Beauty articles you'll love:
The 100 Beauty Products Celebs Can't Live Without


text: « Return to Search Ear, Nose, Throat Surgeon Dr. Ayesha N. Khalid Joins Mass. Eye and Ear, Concord, Mass. March 18, 2011 Contact: Public Affairs Ph.: 617-573-3340 Boston — (March 18, 2011) – Mass. Eye and Ear welcomes Dr. Ayesha N. Khalid, an otolaryngology-head and neck surgeon and a resident of Concord, Mass., to its new Mass. Eye and Ear, Concord, location. Dr. Khalid joins Mass. Eye and Ear otolaryngology-head and neck surgeon Dr. Stephen A. Smith. Dr. Khalid is a member of the Emerson Hospital medical staff and is treating patients full-time in Concord. Dr. Khalid's focus includes adult and pediatric general otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat) with a special interest in sinus and allergic disorders of the nose. Dr. Khalid is trained as a sinus specialist and has a particular interest in quality of life following endoscopic sinus surgery. Her clinical interests include chronic sinus and nasal disorders, sinonasal polyps, allergies, cerebrospinal fluid leaks and sinus tumors and skull base tumors. Her research interests include quality of life in chronic rhinosinusitis and otolaryngic allergies. After completing medical school and then her residency at the Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Dr. Khalid completed a fellowship in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Oregon Health and Science University. Dr. Khalid is an instructor of Otolaryngology at the Harvard Medical School. She is a Board Certified otolaryngology-head and neck surgeon. Mass. Eye and Ear, Concord physicians provide treatment of pediatric and adult conditions of the ears, nose and throat. They are affiliated with Emerson Hospital in Concord, where they receive full privileges. Mass. Eye and Ear, Concord is located at 290 Baker Avenue, Suite N-101 in Concord, Mass. Founded in 1824, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary is an independent specialty hospital providing patient care for disorders of the eye, ear, nose, throat, head and neck. Mass. Eye and Ear is an international leader in Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology research and a teaching partner of Harvard Medical School. For more information, call 617-523-7900 or visit http://www.masseyeandear.org/. ##


text:
You Can Smell Like Britney Spears for Under $40 with Her Latest Perfume, Cosmic Radiance
When you're a young, multi-platinum pop star, how many fragrances do you need?
For Britney Spears, the answer is "at least 10″ — she's releasing her 10th perfume, named Cosmic Radiance, via Elizabeth Arden. "It's all about having the power and confidence to be yourself," explained Spears. "When I wear my new scent, Cosmic Radiance, I feel beautiful, empowered and sexy."
According to the company's description of the perfume, Cosmic Radiance is "inspired by a star which twinkles brighter than all other stars, a star of a distant galaxy, far away from this world."
And what does all that twinkling smell like? "Strong and optimistic citruses, and a refreshing glittery red bouquet opening its fragrant petals in the very heart of the composition. Base notes twinkle and warm with notes of amber, soft vanilla and creamy sandalwood."
Cosmic Radiance will be available at Kohl's and other select stores for $39.50 a bottle.


text: Get exceptional reliability and easy, brilliant color printing with the HP CE260X Black Toner Cartridge. Save time and money with trouble-free printing. Get a wider range of colors—22% more than with our previous-generation cartridges. Get glossier photos: ColorSphere toners supply up to 40% more gloss for sharper blacks and colors that pop. Get it right the first time and every time with the HP CE260X Black Toner Cartridge.


text:
It's been quite some time since the last edition of Crotch Watch and judging by some of the emails I've been getting, it's long overdue. Also, lovely Abby is getting married on Saturday and I'm giving her a final chance to be a non-married pervert. Married perverts are the WORST! :p
CM Punk's trunks have been jumping all over the the place lately, and not just because he's got a new lady friend. Amy 'Lita' Dumas got the note he passed to her in gym class that said "Alls I need to know is if you're gonna be my girlfriend!" and she replied favourably. We've gone from the beautiful canary yellow of Summerslam, back to the white, the black n green, to the royal blue, back to the sunshiney yellow…… you get the idea but I think we need some pictures just to be sure. My photoshop is trying to make me cry so you'll have to make do with a brief oselection of what I could pull together.
You're welcome, ladies. You're welcome. Does anyone else think the white ones seems to have taken on a tanga shape? Not a complaint, just an observation.
In the last Crotch Watch I bared my soul and revealed my CM Punk naked laundry dream. Since then I have had one other Punky dream, but not nearly as entertaining. Although, he was wearing the white trunks again and the world title belt, and it involved limousine. That's all you're getting. I do have SOME dignity, you know.
So huge has Crotch Watch become, that even heterosexual men are now contributing to it. Mr. A.P Southern of somewhere near Blackpool way alerted me to this picture this week. It raises an important question……
Whaddaya say, people? It's a tough call. It could be that Punk's trunks are exactly the same colour as his heavily bronzed thighs. Or it could be that he wanted to just let it all hang out that day. Never let it be said (again) that I don't provide content that encourages lively and intellectual debate.
Now that Mr. Punk has been inappropriately objectified, let's move on to see what's been going on with the fashionz in other areas of the company. Since The Miz made his way back to Raw under the initial guise of The Calgary Kid, he's been making miraculous strides in his pursuit of the the US Title. Who would have thought that switching to trunks would have made him, well, good? Maybe it's like when fertility doctors recommend that men get a little air to their crown jewels so that their swimmers don't overheat. The Miz is obviously enjoying the breeze.
Oh and what was I saying about hetero men contributing to this site? I recently found this stuck to my facebook, courtesy of a Wrestlegasm footsoldier.
Ok, it was courtesy of my good friend, Matt, who took his niece to a house show in Flint, MI. But footsoldier sounds cool. Thank you, Mr. F. I'm surprised The Miz is allowing that sign to share the same airspace as him, but if someone from Flint told me I was a bedwetter, I think I'd probably give them the benefit of the doubt and walk away slowly too.
In other news, Randy Orton delighted me beyond belief at the Breaking Point PPV last Sunday. No, nothing to do with possibly the most homo-erotic match ever to grace our TV screens (I'll come back to that in a day or so. *sigh*) It was actually his interview with Josh Matthews. As you know, I love a good Josh Matthews interview, and while Randy sat in the lockeroom contemplating his match with John Cena and being a total prick to Josh, I noticed this……
You see, Randy Orton doesn't just reach in to his laundry and pull out the first pair of clean trunks that jump in to his hand. Oh no. When you're packing that much in, you need to consider which are the most suitable for the show and your mood. Alright, so Randy only really has one mood. But different occasions require alternate groin-wear. I like to imagine Randy gets Ted and Cody to unpack his kitbag and line all the trunks up while he paces back and forth, picking them up, stretching them out, holding them up against himself in the mirror, before finally settling on a pair.
As for my favourite girly fashion moment, it's been quite a while so there's a lot to choose from.
My favourite in-ring offering was the fierce new outfit they've given to Natalya. Cuteness. And I hope some new clobber means they'll be giving her a little push from here on in. The girls are dropping like flies at the moment.
The stars came out to play at Summerslam this year and who doesn't love seeing wrestle people in normal party clothes? It's such a novelty. It's mundane and yet you cannot stop yourself from looking. To quote one of my favourite trashy chick flicks "I love seeing teachers outside of school. It's like watching a dog walk on its hind legs."
I like to see a little bravery when it comes to fashion. I like to see a little thought behind a special outfit. So the award for best dressed went to Alicia Fox.
If anyone knows where this dress if from, please email me. I want it. And to all the fools who questioned the headband, open a fashion magazine or a music magazine, FFS. That whole outfit is about as on-trend as it could be.
Also, Maria. Everyone pointed and laughed at her sequined butterfly hair accessory. Why? At least she TRIED. Unlike some of the others who grabbed at the first thing the wardrobe lady handed out.
Final fashion award goes to Melina. Check out Mr. and Mrs. LA being all….LA!
Would I wear that dress? Nuh! Never. But she rocks it. So I give you a big fashion-squeeze, Melina.
That's all for now. There will another Crotch Watch when I get round to….. errrr…. watching some more crotches, I guess. And I suppose, now that he's moving up the ranks and all, I'll finally have to address the Zack Ryder issue. Now, go back to that picture of nudey CM Punk and inspect it even closer. I know you want to.


text: Marketing communication and the coordination of separate promotion strategies used to create the desired image and provide consistency and maximum communication impact are explored. The course approaches integrated marketing communication from a managerial focus on the full range of promotional tools available in today's business environment. Prerequisite: BUSN330 or consent of instructor.


text:
National Taco Day
(CNN) — Taco 'bout a great day – October 4 is National Taco Day!
Flour or corn tortilla, meat or no meat, with guacamole or without – tacos provide an endless list of flavor combinations. This popular street food has made its way from Mexico to homes and restaurants the world over.
According to Jeffrey Pilcher, history professor and author of Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food, the word "taco" likely originated from silver mines in 18th century Mexico. Miners would use little charges, or explosives, to break up the ore they were mining. They'd wrap pieces of paper around gunpowder for the job. Because of the wrap's resemblance, the taco took the name. (Gives new meaning to hot sauce!)
Tacos have had a bit of an international facelift since their humble beginnings. The hard taco shell is actually an American invention, as is the taco bowl. Gourmet taquerias are also popping up here, there and everywhere, with lobster and Wagyu beef tacos appearing as regular menu items. Korean barbecue tacos are wildly popular on the West Coast, and instead of pico de gallo, you might find be offered kimchi.
With all the possibilities for delicious tacos, what's your favorite?
By Emily Smith- CNN
™ & © 2012 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.


text:
I have a viewport that has a header that is populated by an external source. I create an empty 'div' in the north region of my viewport. This all works fine.
The header includes a menu dropdown. This dropdown is hidden behind my viewport. Is there any way to bring this to the front?
The same external source uses JQuery to pop up any alerts and they DO appear over the viewport. That leads me to believe it's possible, but I don't know how to do it with ExtJS.
Please help!


text:
For Immediate Release | May 25, 2018
Avon, CO – The Avon Town Council held a regular meeting on May 22nd. Highlights of the meeting include the following:
All Town Council meetings can be streamed live or viewed online in the days following the meeting at www.highfivemedia.org/series/avon-town-council. The Town Council's next meeting is June 12th at 5:00 p.m. Agendas and packet materials can be found at www.avon.org. For more information on the May 22nd meeting or future meetings, please contact Preston Neill, Deputy Town Manager at (970) 748-4404 or firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Welcome aboard!
I have held a bunch of jobs over the years but only got one in the conventional way (want ads, resume, interview). Even that job (my 22 year job at Canisius College) has had unconventional twists. Here are the jobs I can remember:
Tying grapevines (Age 12-13ish) soon you will see the irony – my girlfriend's father owned the farm
Receptionist, title clerk, bookkeeper – my father's car dealership
College Bookstore accounting clerk – first job I ever got while drinking alcohol
Yachting Supply Store accounting clerk – second job I got while drinking alcohol
Music Teacher – third job I got while drinking alcohol and the position I was least qualified to hold (job saved my life, though…blog to follow sometime…)
College Administrator – this job most fully matched my skill set and my education (perhaps it is no coincidence I have held it for over 22 years!). While alcohol was not part of me getting the job it certainly has helped while holding the job! Kidding! Sort of…
Athletic Business Consultant – no alcohol…during a coffee break during a meeting
And now: (and I don't think of this as a job since I have a 50 hour + one which keeps me pretty busy)
Food & Wine Columnist! – www.BelowtheFalls.com And, guess what?
Alcohol WILL be involved! I am going to get to write about the bounty "Below the Falls" and share my experiences, recipes and years of culinary experimentation.
Stay tuned…
Life is good!
Twitter: MidMajorMom
Twitter: JudeCaserta


text:
Awards have been presented to Hope College tennis players by the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA).
The Flying Dutch, coached by Karen Page, finished third in the women's seasonal standings while the Flying Dutchmen, coached by Steve Gorno, placed fourth in the men's seasonal standings.
Senior Stephen Malvitz of Ada, Mich. (East Grand Rapids HS) was named the recipient of the league's Stowe Sportsmanship Award which is given by the league's coaches for contributions to team, leadership qualities and exemplification of Christian virtues and sportsmanship. The award has been presented annually since 1958. Malvitz is the 18th Hope player to receive it and the seventh in the last eight years. In 15 seasons under coach Gorno, the Stowe Sportsmanship Award has gone to a Hope player 10 times.
Malvitz was also named to the All-MIAA first team while freshman John Gardner of Granville, Ohio (Granville HS) received All-MIAA second team recognition.
Sophomore Samantha Stille of Holland, Mich. (Holland HS) received All-MIAA first team honors for the second consecutive year while freshman Ashley Austin of Spring Lake (Grand Haven HS) was presented All-MIAA second team honors.


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Students Embrace Sharing Researchby Public Affairs Staff • January 29, 2010 Share:
The Celebration of Student Research, Scholarship and Creative Work gives the Wabash community a chance to come together each year and celebrate student achievement.
Colton Craigin '13 presented his research, Wabash Writing, from his freshman composition class. "As a freshman here at Wabash, I was interested in the topic because I felt that writing was a real issue for many students. As I researched, I started to understand why freshmen feel so overwhelmed."
Diaz suggested "a Wabash approach" to the question, and he described how two years ago he founded the Visual Artists group, whose 30-plus members meet every two weeks to discuss this very question while exploring the diversity of art forms.
"For many people, art is painting and sculpture, and that's it," he said. "But members of the Visual Artists group say, 'Yes, but we can go farther. There is more.'"
"Chartres Cathedral in France may be the best example of what art is," Diaz said, displaying an image of Our Lady of Chartres Cathedral in central France. "It is full of art, from the sculpture in the architecture to the windows of stained glass. It is a metaphor for art."
Showing examples fitting his definition of art from the Pyramids of Giza to modern public installations and an amorphous sculpture made of shiny metal that vividly reflects everything surrounding or approaching it, Diaz said that the visual arts had expanded "beyond just how something looks, but to its function, purpose and significance."
When Nigerian master woodcarver Lamidi Fakeye died in December at age 84, the documentary about him that Joe Reese '13 and Aaron Cantu '11 were filming suddenly took on new significance. Working with Professor of Art History Elizabeth Morton, Reese is editing the final version to be presented at the Africa Network Conference at Denison University in April. For his presentation Lamidi Fakeye: Master Carver on Friday, he previewed some clips from that work.
"We were very fortunate to have him here, and making the film has been a fun and exciting process," said Reese a theater/history double major with a minor in Spanish and an area of concentration in film.
The preview opened with the camera panning close-up over some of the Yoruba carver's most beautiful work, then cut to Western Michigan Professor Bruce Haight describing Lamidi's extraordinary contribution to art and culture.
"He bridged religious worlds as well as artistic worlds," Haight says in the film, noting that Fakeye was a devout Muslim who nonetheless carved in the Yoruba tradition, including Christian religious figures.
The film's music is provided by Wamidan, the College's world music ensemble directed by Professor of Music James Makubuya.
Among the highlights of the project for Reese was getting to know the carver himself. "He was so congenial; he would call us 'friends,'" Reese said. "We caught a lot of interpersonal moments with him when we were filming—I hope to include some of those interactions in the final cut."
Clips of the film will be available in the next few weeks at www.wabash.edu/lamidithefilm
During his presentation Humor, Theatricality, and Violence, rhetoric major Cody Johnson '10 explored Stanley Kubrick's dark science fiction satire A Clockwork Orange. Johnson delved into the methods the filmmaker used to desensitize the audience to violence and to dehumanize victims in the film.
"When I first saw this film, I didn't like it, and I didn't think I'd ever see it again," Johnson began his impassioned and well-crafted talk. "Then I started to read more about it."
Kubrick's approach, Johnson said, used theatricality—wide-body movements, song, dance, and props—to distance the audience from impact of real violence. He showed a clip of the lead character Alex assaulting people in their home as accomplices hold the victims and Alex parodies Gene Kelly's famous "Singing in the Rain" scene.
During an interesting question and answer session, Professor of Theater Jim Cherry posited that Kubrick's approach actually made the violence even more horrifying. But that discussion itself lended credence to Johnson's reason for examining such works.
"So why do we study films so closely?" Johnson said. "Why not dismiss it ? You could ask the same question about why we study kids playing violent video games, or violent lyrics in songs."
"We can't simply let the violence wash over us. We need to understand how it is perceived, how it works in these films, how we are desensitized, so that we can apply that knowledge to understanding society as a whole."


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Welcome to our weekly edition of what's hot in social media news. To help you stay up-to-date with social media, here are some of the news items that caught our attention.
What's New This Week?
Facebook Helps Businesses: Facebook announced a business resource center that makes it easier for marketers and advertisers to find the information they need to use Facebook. This information used to be scattered across different locations and is now centralized through this page.
Continue Reading about Social Media for Business: This Week in Social Media →


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You can monitor physical destinations by enabling dead message logging for a broker. You can log dead messages whether or not you are using a dead message queue.
If you enable dead message logging, the broker logs the following types of events:
A physical destination exceeded its maximum size.
The broker removed a message from a physical destination, for a reason such as the following:
The destination size limit has been reached.
The message time to live expired.
The message is too large.
An error occurred when the broker attempted to process the message.
If a dead message queue is in use, logging also includes the following types of events:
The broker moved a message to the dead message queue.
The broker removed a message from the dead message queue and discarded it.
The following is an example of the log format for dead messages:
[29/Mar/2006:15:35:39 PST] [B1147]: Message 8-188.8.131.52(e7:6b:dd:5d:98:aa)- 35251-1143675279400 from destination Q:q0 has been placed on the DMQ because [B0053]: Message on destination Q:q0 Expired: expiration time 1143675279402, arrival time 1143675279401, JMSTimestamp 1143675279400
Dead message logging is disabled by default. To enable it, set the broker attribute imq.destination.logDeadMsgs.


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Author: Elie Wiesel
Translator: Catherine Temerson
Narrator: Mark Bramhall
Run Time: 6 hrs 51 minutes
Publisher: Random House Audio
It's 1975, and Shaltiel Feigenberg—professional storyteller, writer and beloved husband—has been taken hostage: abducted from his home in Brooklyn, blindfolded and tied to a chair in a dark basement. His captors, an Arab and an Italian, don't explain why the innocent Shaltiel has been chosen, just that his life will be bartered for the freedom of three Palestinian prisoners. As his days of waiting commence, Shaltiel resorts to what he does best, telling stories—to himself and to the men who hold his fate in their hands.
It has been years since I'd read/listened to anything by Elie Wiesel – I remember reading Night in school – but didn't realize that it was the first book in a trilogy. I also knew that he had written other stuff, but for some reason never actually read any of it – I'm not sure why. So when a reading challenge task arose to read a book about a renaissance author (in this instance, defined as one who is know for their writing as well as something else), I decided to finally read something else by him. Hostage is his newest book and I found that I really enjoyed it.
It had the same writing style that I vaguely remember from Night, that just sucks you in. Since I was listening, I couldn't see for sure, but the appearance was that there were no chapters to disrupt the flow of the story. Although, this lack of chapters occasionally made it hard for me to figure out where I could safely stop when I finished my commute (I even sat in the car for a few minutes waiting one day), but at the same time, it was also easy to pick the narration back up at the end of the day/the next morning.
When I read the description and saw stories – I was expecting made up stories with morals, kind of what you would expect from a storyteller – but I was pleasantly surprised to find that the "stories" were actually reflections on his life. I also thought that Elie did a good job of walking the line between preaching about the establishment of Israel as a recognized country and the plight of the Palestinians – he was even able to work real-life events into the book (the killing of the Israeli athletes at the Olympics etc).
Mark Bramhall is another new to me narrator (I seem to have been doing a good job on exploring the wonderful world of them this year) and i think that he was perfect for the voice. It was how I would imagine a guy being held hostage, in fear for his life would talk – not too powerful, but at the same time, not too timid. Since the only other 2 people to really talk in the book were the hostage takers (aka, the Italian and the Palestinian), he didn't have to exhibit a wide range of voices. But I would definitely be interested in checking out some more of his narrations in the future.
This was a hard book for me to rate, because it was so thought-provoking about the role of nations and nation-building; but at the same time, the struggles of the individuals who aren't always considered or remembered. But I'd give it 4 stars overall.


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PLUS Florence
Plus Florence is a funky new hostel located at the centre of Florence.
We have affordable private and dormitory accommodation, including female-only dormitories which are equipped with large bathrooms, hairdryers and complimentary cosmetic sets. All rooms have en-suite bathrooms and flat-screen televisions, and dormitory beds have individual storage lockers and reading lights.
We have a wide range of facilities, including a swimming pool, a gym, a sauna, a café and restaurant, a travel desk, a panoramic terrace bar with DJs and free wireless internet access.
We are situated just a short walk from the central train station, with all the historical sights of Florence within easy reach.
Availability & RatesTo view availability and prices please select dates and click 'Update Dates'
Hostel Facilities & Policies
- 24 Hour Reception
- 24 Hour Security
- Air Conditioning
- Bar
- Bicycle parking
- Breakfast Not Included
- Cable TV
- Café
- Common Room
- Cots available
- Credit Cards Accepted
- Elevator
- Free City Maps
- Free Internet Access
- Free WiFi
- Fitness Centre
- Hair Dryers For Hire
- Hot Showers
- Internet Access
- Key Card Access
- Laundry Facilities
- Linen Included
- Luggage Storage
- No Curfew
- Outdoor Swimming Pool
- Outdoor Terrace
- Pool Table
- Reading Light
- Restaurant
- Tours/Travel Desk
- Towels For Hire
- Vending Machines
- Washing Machine
- Wheelchair Friendly
- Wi-Fi
Cancellation PolicyThis property has a 1 day cancellation policy. Failure to cancel within this time will result in a cancellation charge equal to the first night of your stay.
Must-Read Hostel InfoThis property has specific Terms & Conditions.
We accept all major credit card payments at reception. You do not have to use the same credit card you booked with when paying the remaining balance at reception. We also have an ATM on site.
Please note that Italian law requires us to see valid ID upon check-in.
We inform that to check-in, EU citizens must show valid ID or passport and extra EU citizens must show only a valid passport (no copies/pictures)
Check-in: from 2pm. If you arrive earlier you're welcome to use our luggage storage for €2 per person. Reception is open 24hrs so feel free to check in any time after 2:30pm. Check-out: 10am.
For bookings of two people or more we can't guarantee that you'll be placed in the same dorm room. Please note that during your stay you may need to change rooms.
As we opened the new outdoor pool the indoor pool, sauna and Turkish bath will be closed from May to October.
From 1 July 2011 the City of Florence by resolution of the City Council No. 230/33 of 06.20.2011, integrated by resolution No. 21/2012, has established a tourist tax.
The tax is applied to non-residents overnight stays in the city of Florence and for a maximum of seven consecutive nights.
The tax rate for this tourist structure is €2.00 per person per night.
This property may pre-authorise your card before arrival.
There are the following exemptions:
a) children up to twelve years old ;
b) people who care for patients admitted to local hospitals, including outpatient care, for a maximum of two assistants per patient;
c) patients who make hospital care in outpatient care;
d) students of the University of Florence
There is also a 50% reduction of the tourist tax in the following cases:
a) groups of lower and upper secondary schools in Florence in teaching visit;
b) athletes under the age of 16 years, members of groups participating in sporting events and tournaments organized in collaboration with the Municipal Administration.
DirectionsShow MapHide Map
From Santa Maria Novella Train Station:
As you exit Santa Maria Novella through the exit next to the pharmacy and exchange bureau, cross at the traffic lights and turn right. Walk towards the McDonalds; turn left at that street with McDonald's on the corner, Largo Fratelli Alinari. Continue up Via Nazionale, straight on up Piazza Indipendenza onto Via di Santa Caterina d'Alessandria; we're numbers 13-17 on the left-hand side. The hostel is 900m from Firenze SMN station.
From the bus station:
Exit the bus station onto the main road that passes in front of the train station, into Piazza della Stazione. Walk up towards the McDonald's, cross the two sets of traffic lights towards the McDonalds; take the first street on your left, Largo Fratelli Alinari. Continue up Via Nazionale, straight on up Piazza Indipendenza onto Via di Santa Caterina d'Alessandria; we're numbers 13-17 on the left-hand side.
Located Near
Florence main train station Firenze Santa Maria Novella


text: Appliance Repair Technician (Greater Portland Area)We are a locally owned appliance repair company looking for an appliance repair technician to join our team. This position interacts extensively with the public and therefore requires a positive attitude, as well as persuasive social skills. Must be self disciplined with a strong work ethic. Integrity is everything in this industry and we require all employees to uphold the same high standards we ourselves adhere to.Qualifications/Requirements: Minimum one year appliance repair experience Electrical and mechanical aptitude Proficient with volt ohm meter, basic hand tools and have knowledge of wiring diagrams Attention to detail and thorough diagnostic abilities Use safe practices to avoid injury and home damage Respect the customer, their time and their premises Good communication; both written and verbal Clean driving record Clean background and drug check Punctual and ready to work Physically able to bend, twist, lift and maneuver 50 lbs Organization of paperwork and parts orders Clean cut grooming and appearanceThis position is currently Monday through Friday, but we would be open to a Tuesday through Saturday schedule should it better meet your needs. We offer a benefits package that grows as you advance within the company and includes paid holidays and sick time.You will be required to pass a general technicians test and your work experience will be verified. Compensation is dependent on experience and is market competitive, with easily 60k potential for a well trained tech.Please submit your resume if you are interested in joining a company that cares about the success of their employees and strives to maintain a family friendly environment.


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Founded 30 years ago, Point Five® custom designs and fabricates products for ultra-luxury homes and commercial projects. Since its founding, Point Five has focused on high-performance, historically-accurate and highly-customized window and door products. In 1991, Point Five became the first, and only company in the nation to offer custom copper-clad windows and doors as a standard. With this product offering, Point Five expanded into the luxury estate market throughout the United States.
Today, Point Five primarily works with architects and builders of exceptional custom homes around the country, many of which are more than 25,000 square feet. These prestigious residences typically are located in resort and vacation destinations from Malibu to Aspen to Kiawah Island and the Bahamas.
Also featured in Gray, the design magazine for the Pacific Northwest


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We've implemented Nagios for services on our network and it is working great. The notifications are nice and the wide range of configuration options are very handy. Up to this point, we've done all of the configuring by hand by modifying the files directly.
As we start to open this up a little to some of the other administrators, I'd like to implement a GUI that will reduce the likelihood of errors. I've checked out a few different GUI projects and so far it seems like NagiosQL and NConf are the top contenders so far.
Are there any recommendations between these two, or perhaps others that should be considered? How about stories of installation and use, "gotchas" and tips that may be useful in deciding?


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24/7 Support
US Based Technical Support
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INSIGHT TECHNOLOGY LLC, one of the few companies to provide individual care with the essence of a small-medium companies with the best practices & higher customer satisfaction levels. Our mission is to provide a versatile & dependable one-end online hosting and marketing shop for the small-medium business entrepreneur, and eliminate the need for you to deal with a host of different online vendors.
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Spotted This Morning: A bombshell for Bennet (updated)
UPDATE 7:26 a.m., Aug. 7 | In an editorial titled "Jury still out on risky DPS loan," we note that The Post's editorial board supported Bennet's loan package, though we acknowledged it was risky. We also call claims by some Bennet opponents that he structured the deal to curry favor with Wall Street executives who know support his campaign "a baseless smear."
UPDATE 1:19 a.m., Aug. 7 | The Denver Post has published a follow-up piece with additional details to Friday morning's New York Times article.
With only five days left for Democrats to wrap up voting in their Senate primary race, The New York Times' Gretchen Morgenson just dropped a bomb on the former frontrunner, embattled Sen. Michael Bennet.
Placed on its front page, and above the fold, the story, headlined "Exotic Deals Put Denver Schools Deeper in Debt," will answer the question for many Colorado observers of whether a massive loan Bennet championed while superintendent at DPS was such a good idea.
For a politician down in the polls and already playing pushback against Andrew Romanoff's vicious "Greed" ad, The Times' before-the-jump summations of the DPS debt issuance must feel like body blows.
The Denver schools essentially made the same choice some homeowners make: opting for a variable-rate mortgage that offered lower monthly payments, with the risk that they could rise, instead of a conventional, fixed-rate mortgage that offered larger, but unchanging, monthly payments.
The Denver school board unanimously approved the JPMorgan deal and it closed in April 2008, just weeks after a major investment bank, Bear Stearns, failed. In short order, the transaction went awry because of stress in the credit markets, problems with the bond insurer and plummeting interest rates.
Since it struck the deal, the school system has paid $115 million in interest and other fees, at least $25 million more than it originally anticipated.
To avoid mounting expenses, the Denver schools are looking to renegotiate the deal. But to unwind it all, the schools would have to pay the banks $81 million in termination fees, or about 19 percent of its $420 million payroll.
John MacPherson, a former interim executive director of the Denver Public Schools Retirement System, predicts that the 2008 deal will generate big costs to the school system down the road. "There is no happy ending to this," Mr. MacPherson said. "Hindsight being 20-20, the pension certificates issuance is something that should never have happened."
Progressive writer and talk show personality extraordinaire David Sirota has seized the story and was already sending out e-mail alerts last night that connected the dots in ways Team Bennet is not going to appreciate.


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Jessica Biel was named Esquire's "Sexiest Woman Alive" in 2005, and by the looks of it, she's hoping to reclaim her title in 2012.
The Total Recall actress, 30, revealed her toned beach body in Puerto Rico June 22 while taking a dip in the Atlantic Ocean. Though Biel covered up with an O'Neill wetsuit, she showed off her long legs — and perky booty! — in string bikini bottoms. (The star's fiance, Justin Timberlake, 31, is in town shooting his new movie, Runner, Runner.)
How does Biel keep her body in tip-top shape? "For me, getting enough sleep, drinking lots of water, having a healthy diet, and staying away from alcohol are musts," she told ELLE in June 2011. "It's so boring, I know, but doing those things really helps."
Biel is also a fan of boxing, martial arts and yoga. "Yoga is a constant for me because it keeps my muscles long and flexible," she explained. "But now that summer's coming around, I'm planning on spending more time outdoors playing volleyball and jogging with my dog, Tina."
The actress also maintains a healthy, balanced diet, frequenting places like Real Food Daily, which specializes in organic vegan cuisine. "M Cafe is also great — it has a lot of macrobiotic options," she told ELLE. "But you can find healthy food pretty much anywhere. I do a lot of cooking at home using grains and vegetables."
Timberlake proposed to Biel several months ago with an estimated $130,000 diamond ring. Together on-and-off for five years, the stars are in the midst of planning their summer nuptials, sources recently told Us Weekly. "It will be a big wedding. They have lots of people they want to invite."
Sign up now for the Us Weekly newsletter to get breaking celebrity news, hot pics and more delivered straight to your inbox!
Want stories like these delivered straight to your phone? Download the Us Weekly iPhone app now!


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Sony Alpha cameras
- Brand: Sony
- Subject: Digital Cameras
- Category: SLR Cameras
- E-mail to a friend
- Print article
- Bookmark this page
Photokina report
News report Photokina - Sony showcases the unique and creative possibilities of its full digital imaging line-up at the Photokina 2010 show in Germany. Highlights on the Sony stand include latest additions to the Sony Alpha cameras, Sony Cyber-shot compact cameras, Sony Handycam HD camcorders, Sony Bloggie Mobile HD snap digital cameras and Sony S-Frame photo frames.
Sony Alpha camera prototype
Shown for the first time in Europe, Sony exhibits a new advanced segment camera (prototype) that uses Translucent Mirror Technology. Aimed at photo enthusiasts and step-up amateurs, the new Sony Alpha A-mount camera model builds on the powerful creative possibilities of the first translucent mirror cameras from Sony, the Alpha 55 and Alpha 33, also on display.
Sony Alpha camera accessories
Unlike conventional DSLR cameras, this innovative design enables super-fast shooting responses with continuous Auto Focus during stills and HD video shooting in a compact body. Also presented, new Sony A-mount system accessories currently in development include a flash and Vertical Grip, plus standard zoom and telephoto lenses.


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We believe in a culture that inspiresoutperformance
press enter to expand or collapse and subsequently tab to navigate the options, followed by enter to select the option. Selected option is
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ANZ Amerika Samoa Bank™ is a registered name of ANZ Guam, Inc.
© Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ) 2015 ABN 11 005 357 522.
The provision of products and services is subject to the laws and regulations of American Samoa and United States of America and ANZ Guam, Inc.'s banking license in American Samoa.
This site is under construction. For product & services information please dial +1 684 6331151 for assistance.


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Guest lineups for the Sunday news shows
WASHINGTON (AP) — Guest lineups for the Sunday TV news shows:
ABC's "This Week" — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel; Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.; Rep. Adam Kinzinger.
NBC's "Meet the Press" — Pre-empted by coverage of Premier League soccer.
CBS' "Face the Nation" — Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich.; Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.; former Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
CNN's "State of the Union" — Reps. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla.; former Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa.
"Fox News Sunday" — Reps. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., and Xavier Becerra, D-Calif.
Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.


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The superstorm that's ravaging the East Coast is enormous, even when seen from space.
The commander of the International Space Station, Sunita Williams, said Tuesday that she and her crew were able to make out the big swirl at the center of Sandy as it neared land Monday. She says the cloud cover stretched from the Atlantic almost all the way to Chicago. Her family lives in New England, and she's keeping a special watch over what's happening on the Eastern Seaboard.
As for the other big news — the U.S. presidential election — Williams and the one other American on board, Kevin Ford, already have cast their votes. The two filed absentee ballots before rocketing into orbit from Kazakhstan. Ford arrived at the space station just last week.


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For Persons with Disabilities
Accessing library buildings:
- All ULS libraries are wheel-chair accessible. Hillman Library, for example, has an automatic exterior entrance on the far left door, facing the building, and another on the interior entrance, on the far left side
Photocopying and book retrieval:
- Assistance with retrieving books is available at all ULS libraries. Ask at the reference desk
- The Hillman Library Requests From Other Libraries Office (648-7891), Ground Floor Hillman Library, will photocopy materials for those who require assistance
- Requests can be left at the Requests From Other Libraries Office, and you will be will be contacted when requests are ready.
For additional information concerning University services for patrons with disabilities, please contact the Office of Disability Resources and Services (140 WPU) at 648-7890.


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2012 Reedy International Off-Road Race of Champions Entries Close October 20, 2011
Lake Forest, CA - For just over 6 weeks, entries for the 18th running of the Reedy International Off-Road Race of Champions have been open. In that time, over 230 entries have poured in for the Open classes and over 30 for the Invitational class.
With a cap of 200 entries for the open classes, a lottery drawing for guaranteed entry is assured.
Even though the cap has been reached, racers are still able to put their name in the hat for the lottery drawing, but they must hurry. Entries close on October 20, 2011 at 1200 PST. The drawing for lottery entries will be done that day with the list of lucky entrants announced October 21. Those racers not drawn in the lottery will be placed on a ranked waiting list that will be contacted after the payment deadline of November 20, 2011, while non-paid lottery drawn entrants will be re-sorted to the bottom of the waiting list.
Invitational drivers must also get signed up by the October 20 deadline. This will allow the organizer ample time to plan the unique event and maximize the experience for all racers involved. All entries must be submitted via RCSignup.com at the links below:
- Open -
- Invitational Entries -
- Invitational Drivers - http://reedyrace.com/qualifed.html
Think you have what it takes to be the next Open class winner? Want to earn a spot in the prestigious Invitational class for 2012? Then be sure to get your entry in and stay tuned to www.reedyrace.com for more information and event updates. All inquiries regarding the event should be directed to firstname.lastname@example.com.
Come be a part of the Reedy Race heritage and watch the best racers in the world compete for the coveted Invitational title and a place in history on the Reedy International Off Road Race of Champions Heritage Trophy.


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LOS ANGELES (AP) Kenjon Barner rushed for a school-record 321 yards and five touchdowns, Marcus Mariota threw four TD passes, and No. 2 Oregon produced another landmark offensive performance in a 62-51 victory over No. 18 Southern California on Saturday night.
Josh Huff caught two touchdowns, and De'Anthony Thomas and Daryl Hawkins also caught scoring passes for the Ducks (9-0, 6-0 Pac-12), who outlasted USC in a back-and-forth second half to extend their winning streak to 12 games since the Trojans (6-3, 4-3) won in Eugene last season.
Oregon's 730 yards and 62 points were the most ever allowed by USC, which began playing football in 1888.
Barner set a rushing record for a USC opponent by the third quarter, topping Curtis Enis' 241 yards for Penn State in 1996, and smashed the school record shortly afterward as the Ducks gradually pulled away in their closest game of the year.
Matt Barkley passed for 484 yards and four touchdowns while hitting Marqise Lee with 12 passes for 157 yards and two touchdowns for the Trojans, who have lost two straight after a 6-1 start.
The preseason No. 1 team hit a defensive nadir not even matched during Pete Carroll's final season in 2009, when several opponents destroyed the Trojans' defense.
Barner has already roared past Barkley in the Heisman Trophy race, and the product of Riverside, Calif., thoroughly entertained his friends and family members at the Coliseum with another dominant ground performance, capped by enthusiastic celebrations of every touchdown.
Mariota also carved up the Trojans for 304 yards passing, going 20 for 23 without an interception and rushing for another 96 yards.
USC's defense harassed Darron Thomas into a sub-par performance in this matchup last season, but the freshman who has replaced him showed absolutely no nerves in the historic stadium while playing against the team expected to be Oregon's biggest obstacle in Pac-12 play.
Oregon, which is likely to move up in the BCS standings after this win and Notre Dame's narrow victory, had won every game this season by at least 17 points. USC's offense did its part, scoring more points and gaining more yards (615) than Oregon had allowed all year.
The Trojans' defense simply couldn't keep up with Oregon's relentless pace and precision. Oregon took a 21-3 lead 12 seconds into the second quarter, but Barkley threw TD passes of 75 yards to Lee and 76 yards to Nelson Agholor in the second quarter.
Robert Woods also caught a scoring pass. The Trojans twice pulled within three points in the second half, but Barner was viciously effective on almost every drive.
Randall Telfer caught a short TD pass with 5:27 to play, and USC narrowly missed recovering an onside kick. Barkley had one more chance to drive, but turned it over on downs with 3 minutes left. Agholor had six catches for 162 yards, and Silas Redd rushed for 92 yards and two TDs.
The Trojans' 38-35 win in Eugene last November was arguably the highlight of Barkley's four-year career, snapping the Ducks' 21-game home winning streak and 19-game conference streak while knocking Oregon out of the national championship race. But USC got off to a fast start at Autzen Stadium in that shocker, and the Ducks were much quicker in the rematch at the Coliseum.
In fact, the Ducks needed just 65 seconds to take the lead, with Thomas' 16-yard TD reception capping a five-play drive while the late-arriving part of the sellout crowd filed into the Coliseum.
Oregon's second 75-yard TD drive of the first quarter required 3:11, but Huff finished it with a 21-yard TD catch.
The Trojans were reeling after Mariota orchestrated an 80-yard drive ending in Barner's 27-yard TD run on the second snap of the second quarter, but Barkley uncorked a 75-yard throw to Lee in stride for a score on the next snap from scrimmage.
Barkley also hit Woods and Agholor for scores in the final minutes before halftime to keep the lead down to 34-24.
The Ducks gained 460 yards in the first half, yet weren't in control. Redd's first TD trimmed the Ducks' lead to three points, but Oregon converted two fourth downs on their next drive, ending in Barner's third TD.
Lee returned the ensuing kickoff 82 yards, setting up Redd's second TD run.


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Physical Sciences
Research Highlights
October 2010
Radiation Tolerance? It's All in the Chemistry!
Materials studies could lead to tailored materials for immobilizing nuclear waste
Results: In the quest for safe methods of storing nuclear waste, scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Curtin University, Australia are investigating radiation effects on candidate materials for immobilizing plutonium and other actinides. They used molecular dynamics simulations to compare radiation damage accumulation in two ceramics and determined three requirements for the ideal radiation-tolerant ceramic:
- It must have mechanisms to dissipate the energy of radiation without changing the ordered arrangement of ions so that there is minimal increase in volume.
- There must be empty spaces in this arrangement, so that some of the ions knocked out by radiation can find a place to get back in line.
- Some of the ions must be able to move fast to clean up any residual radiation damage.
Their results explained why gadolinium zirconate is much more radiation tolerant than gadolinium titanate.
Why It Matters: To meet the world's increasing energy needs and provide reliable "around the clock" electricity, nuclear energy is a strong contender, but reactor safety, nuclear non-proliferation, and radioactive waste management are important concerns. Ceramics that can survive in the extreme environment of radiation, elevated temperature, and stress without losing their crystal structure hold the promise of acting as a reliable first line of defense by locking up such toxic elements.
To evaluate ceramic waste form performance over the time scales needed to store nuclear waste, around 100,000 years, scientists need a thorough understanding of the fundamental physics at the atomic level. In this study, the scientists showed that subtle differences between the two ceramics they investigated led to drastically different structural and mechanical response as radiation damage accumulates.
"One of the neat things about this ceramic family is that you can manipulate its chemistry," says Dr. Ram Devanathan, a PNNL materials scientist and lead author of the paper. "You can create a material with a wide range of properties by changing the positively charged ions, creating maybe 100 different possibilities with different properties. The question is what ceramic is optimal for safely storing radioactive waste, and how does chemistry influence your decision?"
Methods: Two ceramics were studied with identical arrangements of ions. These were gadolinium titanate (Gd2Ti2O7) and gadolinium zirconate (Gd2Zr2O7), both pyrochlore ceramics. When the ions were repeatedly knocked out of position to simulate radiation damage, the zirconate pyrochlore "healed" itself. The zirconate pyrochlore has a mechanism to shuffle the positive ions in a way that does not increase energy. Devanathan likens it to bowling.
"Imagine that the bowling ball shuffled the pins around on impact instead of knocking them down. That's what we see at the atomic scale: the ions are rearranged in almost the same ordered rows as before, so there must be some mechanisms that accommodate disorder that way without raising the energy."
The oxygen ions in the zirconate can move around fast enough in their clean-up job to keep up with the rate of damage.
When the chemistry is changed by substituting titanium for zirconium, the rearrangement of ions raises the energy and makes the material swell. The ordered arrangement collapses into a glass-like disordered state that is less effective in locking up radioactive elements.
The scientists used atomic-level computer simulations to study the change in structure and properties of pyrochlore in response to different mechanisms of damage buildup.
"In lab experiments, all mechanisms occur together, and we can't tell which is the most critical for changing the properties of the ceramic," Devanathan noted. "With computer simulations we can separate mechanisms, study them in isolation, and zero in on the most effective."
One thing the team learned was that there was a highly effective damage mechanism that involved knocking the positively charged ions out of position. This process was so energetic it could also spontaneously knock a few negatively charged ions out of position and shuffle other positively charged ions nearby. In the zirconate, this spontaneous generation of secondary defects in response to the primary defect is part of the self-healing process by which the radiation energy is dissipated and volume expansion is avoided.
What's Next: The scientists are looking at other ceramics that share the same characteristics as gadolinium zirconate to further test their hypothesis about radiation tolerance.
Acknowledgments: This research was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Materials Sciences and Engineering Division. Part of the research used the Molecular Science Computing Facility in EMSL (Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory), a national scientific user facility.
Reference: R Devanathan, WJ Weber, and JD Gale. 2010. "Radiation Tolerance of Ceramics - Insights from Atomistic Simulation of Damage Accumulation in Pyrochlores." Energy and Environment Science 3(10):1551-1559.


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|Dungeons & Dragons
|Tuesday, 22 May 2001
Mages and thieves taking center stage here (warriors are present but secondary and clerics don't register). The main characters are human, but elves, dwarves and (per the title) dragons figure significantly in the action. The plot follows the efforts of a ragtag band led by young burglar Ridley (Justin Whalin) to obtain a wand that controls an entire breed of dragons, before evil magician Profion (Jeremy Irons) can get his hands on the device and enslave the whole kingdom.
Idiosyncratic individualists like Neil Jordan and Peter Jackson have made some incredibly, dreamlike fantasies outside the studio system (although both now happily toil within it – Jackson is currently laboring on uber-project "Lord of the Rings" for New Line, the company releasing "Dungeons"). However, when epic-scope fairytales that call for the creation of whole new worlds are made by first-timers on a limited budget, the results can often be scary. Credit first-time director Courtney Solomon with having fully thought out the look of sets and effects. Technically, his film is commendably accomplished. Many of his establishing shots look uncannily like handsome book illustrations, full of color and imaginative life. The structures (many of them actual buildings in Prague) are impressive, and the mazes that the characters must navigate are truly clever. When Ridley has to make his way through a perilous labyrinth in Chapter 8, the sequence evokes the opening of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" as shrewd, lively homage rather than pallid rip-off.
Furthermore, the dragons look fantastic. The script by Topper Lilien & Carroll Cartwright builds to an inevitable aerial dogfight between two different tribes of dragons in Chapters 17 and 18, and the CGI is just about all it could be. The story is decently laid out, introducing a lot of information in easy-to-follow installments while ensuring that action of one form or another is either occurring or just around the next bend.
Characterizations are something else again. If the dialogue and performances measured up to the effects and production design, "Dungeons & Dragons" would qualify as compelling. However, the humor fluctuates between being reasonably amusing and falling utterly flat, while genuine emotion is out of reach. Part of this is due to a curious decision to describe rather than show several key plot points. At least one of these can be partially explained by watching the director's commentary on the alternate ending (found in the deleted scenes menu), but the finale still plays as bizarre even when it's clear that it's the result of a post-production choice.
Whalin is acceptable as the earnest young hero and Richard O'Brien (writer and Riff-Raff of "Rocky Horror Picture Show") contributes a sly turn as the head of the thieves' guild. Bruce Payne is enjoyably evil as the secondary baddie in charge of capturing the rebels. Unfortunately, some of the other performers border on being wooden. On the other side of the equation, there's Iron's, who doesn't let little things like a screenful of howling CGI dragons upstage him. It's one thing to be broad and campy, but Irons is too much for even the large space provided by the "Dungeons & Dragons" canvas.
The DVD sound is slightly disappointing compared to the theatrical release version, although this may be the fault of either this reviewer's equipment or the room configuration. In the theatre, the Chapter 1 stomping and bellowing of a massive dragon shook theatre seats with mighty footfalls, drawing us right into the world of the story. Either the bass on the DVD is not calibrated correctly or else the home sound system isn't strong enough to handle it, because the impact bottoms out with far too much vibration. Other sound effects are much better, with dimensional puffs of flame extending into the room in Chapter 8, wonderful directional arrow impacts and the clatter of falling objects in the rears in Chapter 9 and splendid moving-air noises as dragons flap and swoosh through the air in Chapters 17 and 18. The center channel mostly presents the dialogue with clarity, although there are one or two places (notably in Chapter 9) where there's a detectable dip in the level.
The DVD comes with two different filmmaker audio commentary tracks and a pair of featurettes. One is a making-of, enlivened by enthusiastic discussion of effects and stunts – one appreciates Whalin's performance more after hearing about his real adventures while filming the maze sequence. However, the one that will endear itself to viewers sympathetic to D&D is the "Let the Games Begin" history of the role-playing leisure pursuit. D&D co-creator Gary Gygax, filmmaker Solomon, star Whalin and New Line executive Mark Ordesky all rapturously chronicle their own personal experiences with and love of D&D, fearless about sounding totally fannish. It's a loopy and adorable footnote to the main feature.
"Dungeons & Dragons" isn't resonant enough to work its way deeply into many hearts, but as an effects extravaganza with a plot that's true to its gaming roots, it's definitely a good time.


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Nick At Nite's 'Hollywood Heights' Will Become Your Summer Guilty Pleasure
Nick at Nite heats up the summer with stardom, romance and deceit with the premiere of the nightly primetime drama, Hollywood Heights, and if that doesn't already intrigue you then did we mention James Franco is also coming along for the ride!
The brand-new hour-long series which stars Cody Longo, Brittany Underwood and Carlos Ponce and none other than James Franco, who will star in a multi-episode storyline on the show is going to heat up your weeknights starting June 18 at 9 p.m. (ET/PT)
Adapted for a U.S. audience from the wildly popular Mexican telenovela Alcanzar una Estrella, 'Hollywood Heights' follows the journey of a teenage girl whose life changes drastically when she becomes a star and wins the love of her rock and roll idol, and both are tested by setbacks, heartbreak and deception. The first season of the 80-episode series, co-produced with Televisa in association with Sony Pictures Television, will again air weeknights at 9p.m. through October 2012.
"Hollywood Heights, in the great tradition of telenovelas, serves up relatable characters and compelling storylines that hook you and keep you coming back to see what happens next." said Marjorie Cohn, Nickelodeon's President, Development and Original Programming. "The stories are about love, family and following your dreams and summertime offers a great window for this kind of viewing commitment."
'Hollywood Heights' centers on Loren Tate (Brittany Underwood, One Life to Live), a shy teen whose musical aspirations inch closer to reality when she wins a songwriting contest sponsored by Eddie Duran (Cody Longo, Fame), a rock star at the top of his game. Although Loren and Eddie's budding partnership – on-stage and off – faces obstacles, their strong family bonds inspire them to keep going.
Loren finds the support system she needs in her single mom, Nora (Jama Williamson, Parks and Recreation), as Nora returns to the dating scene for the first time in years. Meanwhile Eddie's unbreakable bond with his father, Max (Carlos Ponce, Couples Retreat, telenovela actor/singer) – strengthened by family tragedy – is challenged by Eddie's budding romance with a beautiful, but manipulative model and aspiring actress, Chloe Carter (Melissa Ordway, 17 Again). As Loren begins a meteoric rise on the music scene and Eddie's star begins to fade, together they learn that the road to love and stardom often carries a heavy price tag. Justin Wilczynski (Kaya) also stars as Eddie's bitter former friend, Tyler Rorke.
Actor James Franco will also join the fun and star in a multi-episode arc as Osborne "Oz" Silver, an eccentric movie mogul who lives life to the fullest, often outrageously. Offbeat, seductive and ruthless when he has to be, Oz adores making movies and does whatever it takes to make the films he wants.
On May 30, NickatNite.com will launch its Hollywood Heights show site, which will include a 'Character Connection' section for viewers to get to know the new series' characters. After the series launch, the site will feature 'Hollywood Heights' highlights with teasers for upcoming episodes, and recaps of the show's best moments. Beginning June 1, the first episode of 'Hollywood Heights' will be available for streaming on NickatNite.com, Facebook (facebook.com/HollywoodHeightsTV), and Nick@Nite On Demand.
The first episode will be available for free on iTunes beginning June 4. Additionally, the first five episodes of 'Hollywood Heights' will be available for free download on iTunes, and streaming on Nick@Nite On Demand prior to its June 18 premiere.
So HollywoodLifers, Are you ready for 'Hollywood Heights'? Its going to incredible and a must watch every night this summer! Set your DVR's


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Since its founding in 1881, the American School of Classical Studies at Athens has amassed a huge collection of both published and unpublished information. This includes books, journals, photographs, excavation notebooks, personal papers, maps, and scientific data sets. One of the major initiatives of the School in recent years has been to digitize these resources into an ASCSA Digital Library, which is actually a collection of several databases either administered directly by the School or in conjunction with other institutions. This section provides a central point of access to these major digital resources and is organized both thematically and by department.
The ASCSA is also participating in The Big Digs Go Digital project with the Deutsches Archäologisches Institut (DAI) to explore shared opportunities and challenges for large-scale German and American excavations in the Mediterranean in the digital age. Details on the "Big Digs"collaboration can be found on their website.
Read the report.
The School would like to thank the Packard Foundation and Packard Humanities Institute, Samuel H. Kress Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Office of Regional Development of the European Union, Greek Ministry of Culture, Third Information Society of the European Union, European Economic Area (EEA), and the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, all of whom have supplied funding to help the ASCSA become a leader in digital resources in the humanities.


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Cook the Books: "Morocco" by Jeff Koehler
I swear the five-pound bag of organic carrots seemed like a good idea at the time. But day after dreary day of shredding them to top pedestrian salads, mainly to use up the rest of the fading greens in my yard, has left me wanting. Fortunately, the library recently scored a copy of Jeff Koehler's new book "Morocco," and I suddenly have a new favorite recipe.… Read More »


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Cranberry Blood
(Book 1 in The Blood Series)
by Elizabeth Morgan
(Book 1 in The Blood Series)
by Elizabeth Morgan
Cranberry Blood is the first book in The Blood Series and the sequel to last year's release, She-Wolf (The Blood Series Prequel.)
Now, for those of you who are new to the series, it doesn't matter if you have read She-Wolf, you can read Cranberry Blood first. Yeah, I mean it, the events in She-Wolf are linked to Cranberry Blood, but book one isn't dependant on its prequel.
The order in which you read these two books is completely your choice, either way, welcome to the world of The Blood Series.
~ * ~
Killing Vampires? Easy. Tracking someone? Simple. Helping, and protecting a Vampire slayer... Bloody hard work!
Thirteen years ago, Brendan Daniels made a deal with a psychic. In exchange for information on the whereabouts of a Rogue Werewolf, he promised to help and protect Sofia's granddaughter. Unfortunately, he had no idea what he was getting himself, or his Pack, into.
Nothing about Heather is simple, from her weird dietary needs to her life's mission. The girl can handle herself, but the promise to protect her soon becomes a need, and one that he can't fully understand.
Vampire Slayer. Born Infected. Blood addict... but not by choice.
Heather Ryan is the most recent slayer in a long family line. Like all before her, she has spent her life searching for her ancestor, Marko Pavel, the Vampire her family has sworn to kill. If that isn't complicated enough, Heather is also a born "Infected", and to keep her from becoming insane or giving in to her darker side, she is on a very strict diet.
Grandmother Sofia has passed, so now it is up to Heather to take the family legacy into her own hands, all alone: or at least, it would have been, if her Grandmother hadn't sent a Werewolf to help her.
What is the irritating Brendan supposed to help Heather with? Sofia never told either one of them. But it doesn't take long for Heather and Brendan to find out that the Vampires have big plans, and that the fiends have waited a long time for them both.
Buy Link: https://www.nobleromance.com/
~ * ~
(Taken from Chapter One)
The sudden sound of rustling paper snapped me from my thoughts. I tensed, the awareness crackling sharply beneath the surface of my skin.
Someone is in my house.
I walked through the open living room door. A new scent invaded my nostrils. Tangy, manufactured, smelled like expensive cologne. An unfamiliar, black, travel bag sat tucked away between the red leather sofa and TV stand. The papers rustled again. I stepped lightly toward the archway that lead into the dining room, my sword still gripped comfortably in my right hand.
"Your breakfast is getting cold, Heather. I suggest you stop trying to sneak in here and just come in so that we can get this over and done with," said the deep male voice in my kitchen.
What the hell is going on? Who is he? Why is he in my house? How does he know my name? And why the hell has he cooked me breakfast?
I took a deep breath, then exhaled. I slowly walked through the archway into the empty dining room and turned my head to the left to see a strange man seated at my kitchen breakfast bar. He sat casually, in jeans and a forest green T-shirt that clung to his broad, sculptured back and defined biceps. The sun flooded into the kitchen through the side window and glinted off his copper-blond hair, which brushed his shoulders.
"Are you going to come in to the room or stand there drooling all day?" He turned a page of his newspaper.
I inhaled again; nothing new amongst the scent of dog, pine, bacon, and coffee, which meant he wasn't a Vampire. I knew because leeches smelled like mouldy, wet earth; not an overpowering smell, but hidden underneath the products they wore. A huge part of me felt relieved he wasn't a Vamp. A Vampire couldn't get in here, anyway. They could only come in with a personal invite, and since they all wanted me dead . . . . No matter what state I'd been in last night, I wouldn't have invited one in. So, who the hell is this guy?
I walked toward him, my sword glinting in the sunlight as I gripped the hilt firmly in both hands.
"Who the hell are you, and what are you doing in my house?" I stopped three feet behind him.
"I'm not going to hurt you."
"Wrong answer." I pressed the tip of my sword into the firm space between his shoulder blades. "I said who the hell are you and what—"
"Killing me isn't going to help." He turned another page of his paper.
"I disagree. I think killing the stranger who broke into my house is a very good idea."
"I did not break in," he replied calmly. "My name is Brendan and I'm actually here to help you."
I snorted. "Like I believe that."
"It's the truth. Besides, if I really wanted to hurt you, I would have. I also wouldn't have left your weapons with you."
"Well, you're obviously an eejit."
He laughed. "You have serious trust issues."
"Trust issues? Says the complete stranger who broke into my house and—"
"I used your house keys. They were in your jacket pocket," he said. "And yes, trust issues, says the stranger. The stranger who promises he isn't here to hurt you."
"Just because you say you're not here to hurt me doesn't mean it's the truth."
"True. But why go to the trouble of killing you when I could have left you lying in the car park the other night and let the seven greedy leeches looking for you find you and bleed you dry."
~ * ~
Elizabeth started life wanting to be an actress because she loved entertaining people. She enjoyed nothing more than being able to make people laugh and to help distract them from reality for a few hours.
She studied Musical Theatre in college, but during her second year, her mind started to overflow with story ideas, so she began writing plays. Slowly, over the following three years, she was writing more and more, channeling every ounce of her imagination into the written word.
Now here she is, years later, hiding away like a hermit in her little cottage in Cheshire, England, writing like crazy and loving every minute of it.
~ * ~
Elizabeth Online:Blog: www.xxxxmyworldxxxx.blogspot.com
Joint Blog: www.notjustastiffupperlip.blogspot.co.uk
Facebook: Elizabeth Morgan
The Blood Series Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/TheBloodSeries
Twitter: @EMorgan2010
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/ElizabethMorgan
Amazon Page: http://www.amazon.com/Elizabeth-Morgan/e/B006WR1WLQ/ref=sr_tc_2_rm?qid=1339876094&sr=1-2-ent


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The budget package crafted by Democratic Sen. Patty Murray and Republican Rep. Paul Ryan — heads of the Senate and House Budget Committees — recalls political scientist Charles E. Lindblom's famous 1959 essay, "The Science of 'Muddling Through.'" Wrote Lindblom: "Democracies change their policies almost entirely through incremental adjustments. Policy does not move in leaps and bounds." People stick with what they know. Transformational ("non-incremental") changes are usually "politically impossible" and, when they're not, are "unpredictable in their consequences."
More than a half-century later, Lindblom's insights endure. Just look around. Obamacare demonstrates the perils of transformational policies — heir unpredictability. And the Murray-Ryan accord is a triumph of incrementalism, a.k.a. "muddling through." Okay, let's acknowledge their accomplishment. The agreement beats the alternative, which might be another senseless government "shutdown" (actually, only a partial shutdown). But the price of peace is doing almost nothing about our long-term budget problems.
Recall: The central issue is the mismatch between government's spending promises and its willingness to tax. Although the Great Recession hurt, it's not the crux of the matter. From 1973 to 2012, the budget was in surplus only four years. During this period, spending averaged 21 percent of the economy (gross domestic product) and taxes averaged 18 percent. Retiring baby boomers are now raising Social Security and Medicare spending and — if nothing is done — deficits.
But do what? Democrats won't cut retiree benefits; Republicans reject tax increases. The rest of the budget (the 36 percent that includes defense and "discretionary" programs such as the FBI, school lunches and environmental regulation) has borne most cuts. In 2011, the Budget Control Act reduced this spending by imposing annual caps. When Congress couldn't agree on further changes, it triggered "sequestration": automatic cuts to the same spending.
Now Congress can't stomach sequestration. Republicans worry that the military is being savaged. Training has been cut, weapons purchases delayed, force sizes reduced. By 2021, American fighting forces may shrink by about 25 percent from 2012 levels, estimates the Bipartisan Policy Center. Democrats fear that domestic programs are being gutted. A report from the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank, lists some concerns: fewer meat inspectors and forest firefighters; less spending on Head Start and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Murray-Ryan plan aims to relieve this sequestration misery. It does this by increasing authorized spending by $45 billion in 2014 and $18 billion in 2015, split between defense and non- defense programs. To pay for the increases, the plan would, among other things: lower pension benefits for federal workers and military retirees; raise fees for airport security and premiums for federal pension guarantees; and reduce payments to states from mineral leasing.
There's no pretense of dealing with the underlying mismatch between taxes and spending. In 2014 and 2015, budget deficits increase slightly (a good thing, say some economists). The claim that the package would provide a small amount of deficit reduction over a decade is dubious; most of the reduction occurs in 2022 and 2023 and reflects assumptions that can be instantly reversed. The broader message is that annual deficits would continue indefinitely; "the current [upward] trajectory of the debt" would not change, says the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
All this is in the best tradition of muddling. Hardly anyone wants to confront truly difficult questions. How big a government do we want? What groups or causes deserve help? Which don't? How high can taxes go without harming the economy? For decades, Congress and presidents have dodged these and other hard issues through chronic and expedient deficits. Rhetoric aside, they're staying with what they know, as Lindblom foretold.
But there's a problem. Lindblom's common-sense insight has a giant exception: crises. Change, forced by outside events, then happens by "leaps and bounds." The recent financial crisis caused Congress and two presidents to embrace measures (the rescue of big banks, General Motors and Chrysler) that were unthinkable a few months earlier. In the 1960s, civil rights demonstrations pushed Congress to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that, in outlawing most public racial discrimination, wasn't "incremental." History offers other examples, including the Civil War, the New Deal and both World Wars. Small changes won't suffice when big changes are required.
On the budget, muddling through comes with a crucial assumption. It is that continuous deficits won't provoke a crisis that compels political leaders to take harsh steps that they would otherwise not take. This optimism may be justified. For decades, "experts" have warned of the dire consequences of unchecked deficits. Yet no great crisis has occurred. But this conviction also could be complacency. Government debt is in territory that, except for wartime debt, is unprecedented. We don't know the consequences. Someday, we may no longer have the luxury of muddling through.
Read more from Robert Samuelson's archive.


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When I try to send private messages the message stays in the Outbox.
Some left after a 30 min-1 hour, but now I have one stuck there for 6 hours.
Do I need to do something specific for the message to leave? I have hit the submit button originally, bu8t in Outbox there is no other send or submit button.


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Facts & Figures
Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)
Governor-General: Sir Colville Young (1993)
Prime Minister: Dean Barrow (2008)
Land area: 8,803 sq mi (22,800 sq km); total area: 8,867 sq mi (22,966 sq km)
Population (2014 est.): 340,844 (growth rate: 1.9%); birth rate: 25.14/1000; infant mortality rate: 20.31/1000; life expectancy: 68.49
Capital (2011 est.): Belmopan, 14,000
Largest city: Belize City, 52,600
Monetary unit: Belize dollar
- Belize Main Page
- New Prime Minister Elected Amid Unrest
- Controversial Telecom Battle Comes to a Head
Belize is situated on the Caribbean Sea, south of Mexico and east and north of Guatemala in Central America. In area, it is about the size of New Hampshire. Most of the country is heavily forested with various hardwoods. Mangrove swamps and cays along the coast give way to hills and mountains in the interior. The highest point is Victoria Peak, 3,681 ft (1,122 m).
Parliamentary democracy within the British Commonwealth.
The Mayan civilization spread into the area of Belize between 1500 B.C. and A.D. 300 and flourished until about 1200. Several major archaeological sites—notably Caracol, Lamanai, Lubaantun, Altun Ha, and Xunantunich—reflect the advanced civilization and much denser population of that period. European contact began in 1502 when Columbus sailed along the coast. The first recorded European settlement was begun by shipwrecked English seamen in 1638. Over the next 150 years, more English settlements were established. This period was also marked by piracy, indiscriminate logging, and sporadic attacks by Indians and neighboring Spanish settlements. Both Spain and Britain lay claim to the land until Britain defeated the Spanish in the battle of St. George's Cay (1798). It became a colony of Great Britain in 1840, known as British Honduras, and a Crown colony in 1862. Full internal self-government was granted in Jan. 1964. In 1973, the country changed its name to Belize.
Belize became independent on Sept. 21, 1981. But Guatemala, which had made claims on the territory since the 1800s, refused to recognize it. British troops remained in the country to defend it. Although the dispute between Guatemala and Great Britain remained unresolved, Guatemala recognized Belize's sovereignty in Sept. 1991. Guatemala, however, still claims more than half of Belize's territory.
Prime Minister Said Musa was reelected to a second term in 2003. Musa promised to improve conditions to the largely underdeveloped, southern part of Belize.
New Prime Minister Elected Amid Unrest
Tax increases in 2005 led to unrest and anger with the People's United Party government. This led to a shift in the next election. In the 2008 parliamentary elections, the United Democratic Party won 57% of the vote (25 of 31 seats) and the People's United Party 41% (6 seats). Turnout was 74.5%. Dean Barrow was sworn in as prime minister on February 8. On February 11 he announced his cabinet, which included himself as finance minister, Wilfred Elrington as foreign minister, and Carlos Perdomo as minister of national security.
Controversial Telecom Battle Comes to a Head
Shortly after assuming office, Dean Barrow exposed his predecessor's government, saying that former Prime Minister Musa had a secret agreement with Belize Telecommunications, which later became Telemedia. That agreement included limiting competitors and making up for any company losses. Once in office, Barrow tried to rework the tax clauses with Telemedia. When Telemedia refused to compromise, Barrow got the courts to order the company to make tax payments. Telemedia responded by getting parliament to nationalized the in 2009. On June 24, 2011, Belize's Court of Appeal ruled that the Telemedia nationalization was unconstitutional, which ended the company's telecommunicating dominance in the country.
See also Encyclopedia: Belize .
U.S. State Dept. Country Notes: Belize
Central Statistical Office www.cso.gov.bz/welcome.html


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Bike-riding burglar nabbed in Port Arthur
A 53-year-old Port Arthur man who goes by the name "Boo Boo" made the mistake of being seen by police after stealing a flat screen television from a Third Street home Sept. 22.
Sunday evening around 5:30 p.m., police spotted a man on a bicycle carrying a small flat screen television in the 3600 block of Procter Street in Port Arthur.
The Port Arthur Police Department officer stopped 53-year-old Robert Casmire Jr., also known as "Boo Boo," and after further investigation, it was revealed that Casmire, of Port Arthur, was in possession of stolen property from a burglary that had just been committed, according to a Port Arthur Police Department Offense Report obtained by The Examiner.
The homeowner told police that she did not give anyone permission to enter her garage and remove the $300 Polaroid flat screen TV, the report states. Casmire also stole digital photos and a digital video recording.
Casmire was placed under arrest and transported to the Jefferson County Correctional Facility where he was booked for burglary of a building. His bond was set at $10,000, and he remains in jail, PAPD Sgt. Scott Gaspard said. The stolen property was recovered and released back to the owner.