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Warren Bruhl, DC, DICCP, has a vision of health and healing that transcends his pediatric / family chiropractic practice in Chicago.He is also a founding director of Dreamweaver International, a nonprofit charity providing education, medical and humanitarian services to Kenya and other impoverished nations. In addition, he has developed a charitable arm called Gear for Goals, which brings new and used sports equipment to impoverished children globally. Both of these endeavors are active, to say the least, in Kenya, which brings us to Dr. Bruhl's chiropractic story. Last year, Dr. Bruhl spent two weeks in east Africa, providing chiropractic care to the native Maasai. In doing so, he became the first known DC to lay healing hands on the Maasai. Hear in his own words the challenges and rewards of that trip, along with his plans to develop a regular chiropractic mission rotation and a multidisciplinary hospital in Kenya.
In quiet peace, my hands gently supporting Richard's head, the pain in his body was released. I gazed in the direction of the mountains, visible in all directions, and felt stillness, blessing and thanks. The opportunity to provide chiropractic care on this health care mission to the remote Mount Kilimanjaro valley in Kenya, east Africa, opened enormous possibility. Living in one of the harshest, yet most beautiful scenic wonders in the world, the native Maasai know immense hardship, pain and need.
The common is uncommon to Richard and others whom I was fortunate to treat with chiropractic. Water, adequate food, proper shelter, clothing, sanitation, electricity, refrigeration, and transportation are among the common, which are uncommon to the Maasai living in the Mount Kilimanjaro valley. As a result, the physical strain I felt in their bodies was formidable and surprisingly uncared for in any way adequate to make significant change without ongoing education and care by chiropractors. Until my trip, no chiropractor had ever come to this region and laid hands on the Maasai to heal them. Perhaps even more surprising, no one among them had practiced or learned a method to alleviate the sufferings in their own bodies. Need often leads to innovation; it seemed logical that there would have been some personal attempt by the people to have laid hands on the body and gently ease the pain of another. However, I could find no evidence of any hands on-healing care in the two weeks I spent with the Maasai.
My opportunity for this health care mission trip began earlier in 2012 with my first visit to the remote region known as the Kimana Rift Valley, near Mount Kilimanjaro. I was fortunate to have close family who have made this area home over the past 20 years and have developed a network of relationships with medical specialties, schools and community leaders. Gaining the trust of the Maasai is a difficult and often insurmountable task to many outsiders. They are a careful and guarded culture that holds tightly to its traditions.
Traveling to Kenya is daunting and requires endurance, patience and preparation. From Chicago, where I live, the journey takes more than 20 hours and two long flights with layover. Customs and the long entry process into Kenya can be overwhelming, and there seems to be little or no organization to the entry visa process. I waited over two hours in a line to pay my $50 entry visa fee on my arrival. Carrying large bags, including my adjusting table, drew attention and led to opportunistic customs officials seeking money from me to bring my own donated table into their country. Some of the confusion is created by a corrupt order in the government; officials are often paid money in secret.
On my trip this time, I was successful in bringing in all the sports equipment for donation to children and the chiropractic table without any duty charges. However, I realized that saying less and playing down the value of the items, while being sure to explain that everything was used and of little value, was an effective strategy.
Setting Up Camp
|Maasai origin in Kenya is believed to date back to the mid-15th century, when they migrated from northern Africa along the Nile Valley. Nomadic herdsman, the Maasai traveled with the rains and grass so their cattle herds could grow and provide necessary food and clothing for their families.
Living arrangements for Maasai are fashioned around community and portable mud and cow dung structures called enkajis. The community often consists of four to six families and series of enkajis constructed next to one another in a circular arrangement. The central space serves as an empty field set aside for holding the livestock safely in the evening when the families sleep. The villages are called bomas and are the hub of all activity within the community.
The Maasai measure their wealth by nontraditional standards foreign to Western belief. A Maasai man is considered wealthy based on the number of cows he owns and the number of children he is bore. Therefore, a common tradition in the Maasai tribes is polygamy. Not uncommon, a man may take between two and five wives over several decades and have 20 or more children. When taking a wife, men are required to have the necessary cattle and resources to provide for additional children's needs, or the marriage will be judged negatively by other tribe members.
Clinic setup was an orchestration of teamwork, as each volunteer participated in unpacking and setting up tents, equipment, tables and chairs in preparation for patient care. Anxious patients waited at most locations for our arrival, with some having traveled medium to long distances to be seen. Typical travel for some mothers with sick children could be up to 20 kilometers (12.5 miles).
Our presence and care was valued and appreciated. For the Maasai, the care of doctors from the United States is regarded highly and our culture is viewed as iconic and revered. Many young and somewhat educated Maasai and Kenyans aspire to visit America and seek education in our institutions, but cannot attain this dream.
In providing chiropractic services, my preference was simplicity in delivery and setup. I brought a portable table donated by Technique Tables in Canada; it served as a lightweight, durable and easy-to-set-up table for this trip. My preferable location, if available, was by the shade of an Acacia tree, out of the intense equatorial sun, which radiates in the midday heat of east Africa. There is something romantic in providing healing to people with just the hands, the heart and the knowledge of the doctor using a table under a single shade tree with a vast desert as the backdrop.
Introducing Chiropractic
As I began to provide care, I utilized local interpreters to aid my explanations to the patients on instruction of movements and relaxation on the adjusting table. The Maasai speak a local language known as Maa, and some speak Swahili. As I worked through the week, I found it helpful to write down some of the common directions, such as"Lie on your stomach or back," "Turn on your side," "Breathe," etc., for patients. However, since some spoke only Swahili and others spoke only Maa, I had to know both languages and the nuances of pronunciation, which proved challenging. The patients seemed to enjoy my desire to speak to them in their native tongue, and onlookers would often laugh at my feeble attempts to speak their language with a Western tongue.
Other challenges requiring flexibility during care included navigating through the vast array of jewelry the women and some of the men wear. Women commonly have five to 10 neck ornaments draped about the neck and two or more large pairs of earrings. When it came to the men, it was a new experience telling a man he had to remove his 2-foot bladed knife from its holster before I could position him on his side and do a proper side-posture adjustment.
That brings up another challenge I worked around during my trip: helping the men and women feel comfortable with the side-lying position of side-posture adjustments while maintaining coverage of their private parts. Since most of the men and women wear no undergarments, they would constantly need to adjust the colorful, robe-like garments they wear (called shukas) to make sure they were covered.
The dirt and flies on their bodies was often considerable, and keeping my hands clean was impossible even with copious amounts of hand sanitizer. At times, I wore plastic gloves if I had to work on women's feet with plantar fascia problems or suspected heel spurs.
Despite these challenges, the response and the gravity of the effect the care had on this population was immense. A local male nurse, who is a Maasai himself and has worked on this patient population for over 20 years, said he had never seen such favorable response to the pain his patients normally endure. He was ecstatic and secured several adjustments himself. He was impressed with the simplicity of the care and the immediate result most patients experienced. Moreover, he expressed a strong desire to learn the methods so he could help patients in my absence and keep forwarding their healing progress.
Long-Term Goals in Kenya
As a long-range vision, I am planning to install chiropractic as a regular therapy available to the Maasai in outreach clinic rotations several times a year. Furthermore, I have been asked by Dr. Smith to develop a chiropractic component in the Mount Kilimanjaro Hospital, which is scheduled to be built in 2013-14.
Providing chiropractic care to this patient population in this manner will require strong leadership and attendance by regular visiting teams of chiropractors who desire to serve a patient population in desperate need. Moreover, there may be an opportunity for doctors to seek a rotation in the hospital annually, and local medical personnel may engage in some training to aid their population's need.
We will be returning to Kenya to begin building the hospital in the Rift Valley near Mt. Kilimanjaro later this year. Once completed, it will serve as the most modern and comprehensive hospital for the Maasai of the area. The hospital will feature a multidisciplinary approach to healing focused on natural and holistic wellness, along with traditional medical care. Featured services include chiropractic, osteopathy, emergency medicine, dental, fitness, nutrition, and lifestyle management.
This is a project of Dreamweaver International, a 501(c)(3) charity with offices in Chicago and Kenya. Other projects include establishing an ongoing rotation of doctors who serve the patients of the area from industrialized medical regions. Moreover, we presently operate an accredited college, called the Kimana School of Leadership. It is the only accredited college in the area within 250 miles. This is also a project of Dreamweaver International.
Another plan and execution of resources we are focused on is creating opportunities through sport with our humanitarian program called Gear for Goals. We introduced the game of baseball to Maasai children and plan to develop baseball in Kenya, working toward developing a Little League Baseball program in the region and helping facilitate the spread of baseball through the continent of Africa. Sponsors thus far include the Chicago Cubs and the Schaumburg Boomers baseball programs.
Life-Changing Rewards
My impression after serving with the Maasai has been life changing, and I have felt honored to sit in a place no one has sat before me. Few would desire to care for people who are stricken with disease as the Maasai. In some bomas, 85 percent of the populace has become HIV positive. There is rampant tuberculosis, fungal infections over segments of the body, and bacterial proliferations, and unsightly lesions and dirt often present. But the love, appreciation and simple nature of this people give the ultimate blessing to the healer who is willing to be a blessing to them.
There are often far more rewards and gifts a giver receives in the exchange than the giver provides to their subject(s). The rewards are often felt in the heart and stored as warm and sensitive remembrances. I find myself reflecting on my experience often, and I have gained wisdom, perspective, and desire to be a better man, a more loving humanitarian, and a stronger leader so I can be a force of positive change to improve the lives of the Maasai.
The challenges that lie ahead for the Maasai are strong and the delicate balance of life or death are weighted toward death over life. However, I believe installing chiropractic as a viable health care choice in their system of health management will lead them away from a model that has promoted pill-taking over trust in the innate power of the body to heal. The natural system of balance in nature would favor a more thoughtful approach parallel with a chiropractic model of health care. The opportunity exists now that this door has been opened, and with time, the Maasai too will come to know what many have known throughout the world: chiropractic changes lives.
Dr. Bruhl has practiced pediatric and family chiropractic care for 26 years and holds a diplomate in chiropractic pediatrics. He is the author of The Chiropractor's Exercise Manual and has been featured on ABC News and Parenting Life. Contact him via e-mail at or ; visit Dreamweaver International on the web at www.dreamweaver911.org.


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Story highlights
- Train crash killed dozens in Quebec
- Directive is focused on hazardous material transport
- "Safety is our top priority," official says
- The directive is "mandatory," U.S. rail agency says
Last month's deadly rail accident in Canada spurred the top U.S. rail agency to toughen safety standards, specifically for the transport of hazardous materials.
The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration issued an emergency order preventing trains on "mainline tracks or siding from moving unintentionally."
The agency made the move after an unmanned, runaway 73-car train slammed into the center of the Quebec town of Lac-Megantic in the early morning of July 6. Tank cars full of oil exploded and burned in the heart of the commercial district. The remains of 42 people were recovered, and five people are reported missing.
The train had been parked in the neighboring Quebec town of Nantes, but it suddenly rolled into motion after the engineer went to a hotel. The incident is under investigation by Canadian authorities.
Last month, Canada's Transportation Safety Board determined "the braking force applied was insufficient to hold" the runaway train.
"Safety is our top priority," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. "While we wait for the full investigation to conclude, the department is taking steps today to help prevent a similar incident from occurring in the United States."
The directive is "mandatory" and the failure of railroads to comply "will result in enforcement actions."
"No train or vehicles transporting specified hazardous materials can be left unattended on a mainline track or side track outside a yard or terminal, unless specifically authorized," the order said.
If a railroad wants authorization to leave a train unattended, it "must develop and submit to FRA a process for securing unattended trains transporting hazardous materials, including locking the locomotive or otherwise disabling it, and reporting among employees to ensure the correct number of hand brakes are applied."
Employees who are responsible for securing trains and vehicles transporting such specified hazardous material must tell dispatchers specific information: "the number of hand brakes applied, the tonnage and length of the train or vehicle, the grade and terrain features of the track, any relevant weather conditions, and the type of equipment being secured."
Train dispatchers must record the information they get and "railroads must implement rules ensuring that any employee involved in securing a train participate in daily job briefings prior to the work being performed."
Also, procedures must be developed "to ensure a qualified railroad employee inspects all equipment that an emergency responder has been on, under or between before the train can be left unattended." And, railroads must pass along the order to "all affected employees."
The rail agency and the Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration also issued a safety advisory listing recommendations railroads are expected to follow.
"When PHMSA talks about the transportation of hazardous materials, safety is a prerequisite to movement," said PHMSA Administrator Cynthia Quarterman. "We are taking this action today and we will be looking hard at the current rail operating practices for hazardous materials to ensure the public's safety."

subset: commoncrawl


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In Ethiopia's toxic political climate, Zenawi's government sweeps up journalists and shuts down newspapers.
Posted April 28, 2006
|ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia
A scarf tied around her head and her five-month pregnancy just showing under a robe, Serkalem Fassil appeared shy and scared as she talked about life in Kality Prison. Her English is not good, she explained, but yes, the baby is OK. And yes, she added softly, it's very hard in Kality. Fassil, 26, who worked on three Amharic-language weeklies, is among at least 14 journalists held in this crowded, sweltering prison alongside dozens of political opposition leaders. They are being tried jointly for genocide and treason, charges that could bring life imprisonment or the death penalty.
The journalists are the most notable example of a government crackdown on the press that began in November when post-election street protests drew a show of official force, violence flared, and more than 40 died. The government issued "wanted lists" of opposition party leaders, editors and writers; journalists who weren't arrested went into hiding. Direct government orders and indirect pressure were blamed for the closing of more than half of the newspapers that once published in the capital. Self-censorship is rife among those still publishing.
The government alleges that the editors and reporters were part of an opposition conspiracy to overthrow the "constitutional order." The genocide charges rest on assertions that the journalists' work harmed members of the ruling coalition, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, and the Tigrayans who form its dominant ethnic group.
Many of the shuttered publications did advance the views of the opposition, featuring numerous interviews with party leaders and editorials critical of the government's handling of the May 2005 parliamentary election, according to interviews and a review of published material. But the government has disclosed no evidence linking published material to acts of violence, nor has it offered any substantiation that the journalists were motivated by anything other than what they saw as their work responsibilities, the Committee to Protect Journalists has found. No evidence has been presented that treason or genocide were planned or occurred, CPJ found.
The charges have enormous emotional resonance in Ethiopia, which fought a bitter war with neighboring Eritrea, and where ethnicity is part of the political landscape. The defendants were not allowed to post bail because of the severity of the charges, enabling the government to effectively silence these critics during their court case. By most accounts, the trial, which began in February, could last many months or even years.
The imprisoned journalists--several of whom were interviewed by CPJ with the government's permission--said they were doing their jobs in criticizing the administration of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. "We're not against this government," Fassil Yenealem, the jailed publisher of Addis Zena, told CPJ. "It is through this government that we began to write. But when the government sees people starting to demand more democracy, freedom of expression, and development, they think it's the fault of the press."
Government officials stress that there was no private press until the current administration toppled Mengistu Haile Mariam's notorious Derg regime in 1991. In an interview with CPJ, Zenawi said his government has tried to build democratic institutions, including a free press, even though much of the private media "is in effect a party organ of the opposition."
Until recently, Western donors regarded Zenawi as a reform-minded leader who had put his troubled country on a path that could be emulated by others in Africa. With a population of more than 70 million, Ethiopia is one of Africa's most populous nations. It is also the seat of the African Union and of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. The United States regards Zenawi as an important partner in its fight against terrorism, and British Prime Minister Tony Blair gave Zenawi a seat on his advisory Commission for Africa.
But if Zenawi's democratic credentials compared favorably to those of his predecessors, his government has never had a good press freedom record. Ethiopia was Africa's leading jailer of journalists throughout much of the 1990s, and it drove scores of reporters and editors into exile. The government has a long record of arresting journalists under a restrictive press law, which imposes criminal sanctions for defamation and the publication of news that authorities deem "false." Editors routinely have multiple press law charges pending against them.
Until recently, the number of journalists imprisoned had dropped as the government backed away under international pressure from its traditionally confrontational stance toward the press. In the run-up to the May election, there was even a new scent of freedom as opposition parties were allowed unprecedented access to state media, including the state monopoly broadcast sector. The number of private, Amharic-language weeklies--most of them highly critical of the government--mushroomed and their sales soared.
Voting was largely peaceful, but unrest began to build after the opposition cited irregularities, including vote rigging allegations and the government's delay in announcing results.
The first wave of protests in June brought a government show of force, with clashes leading to the deaths of at least 40 people. Unrest boiled again in early November after the leading opposition group, the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), frustrated by its inability to challenge the vote, refused to take part in the new parliament. Stonethrowing crowds were met with gun-firing security forces, and another 40 or more people, mostly civilians, were killed. The government then launched a full-scale crackdown, detaining thousands of people, including opposition leaders and journalists.
Along with issuing its "wanted lists," the government raided newsrooms, blocked newspapers from publishing, and expelled two foreign reporters, including a long-serving Associated Press correspondent. About a dozen exiled Ethiopian journalists were charged in absentia with treason. The U.S. government-funded Voice of America and Germany's Deutsche Welle, which broadcast radio programs into Ethiopia in local languages, were targeted by smear campaigns in state media, endangering their local correspondents.
"This is the worst under Zenawi," said journalist Befekadu Moreda, who has plenty of perspective, having been jailed nine times over 12 years. "They are going on the path of China--without the economic prosperity." With at least two journalists imprisoned on press law violations and 14 held for treason, Ethiopia is now the third-leading jailer of journalists in the world after China and Cuba.
Moreda survived the November crackdown but his paper, the Amharic-language weekly Tomar, did not. Printers refused to publish it, Moreda said. On this day in March, he also described frequent government harassment and intimidation. "For the last four months I cannot move freely, the security forces follow me," he recounted. "The first harassment is smooth; they ask you politely to work with them. Then they accuse you of being a member of the opposition, and they use force."
Shortly after meeting with CPJ, Moreda fled the country. It was just in time to escape a jail sentence suddenly imposed under the press law for an opinion piece he published five years ago.
Fewer than 10 private newspapers, most of them weekly, are now publishing in Addis Ababa, compared with more than 20 before the November crackdown. Eight newspapers were shut as a result of criminal indictments and the jailing of their top journalists. Several others have been blocked from publishing because the government pressured their printers, local journalists told CPJ. The government denies applying such pressure.
A CPJ delegation--including the Johannesburg-based journalist and CPJ board member Charlayne Hunter- Gault, and Charles Onyango-Obbo of Kenya's Nation Media Group--heard about ongoing harassment in a series of March interviews with journalists, lawyers, and diplomats. Fear and suspicion were evident. Local journalists were reluctant to meet the CPJ delegation in public places; several spoke only on condition that their names be withheld; telephone interviews were avoided because fear of wiretapping was widespread. Political tension was heightened by a series of small explosions in the capital. Although the government blamed the blasts on the opposition and on neighboring Eritrea, no one claimed responsibility for them.
Local journalists said they were especially chilled by the government's unprecedented decision to charge their colleagues under the criminal code with crimes carrying possible death sentences. As repressive as the press law is, local journalists said, it carries a maximum jail sentence of three years and defendants are permitted to post bail.
The government appeared to open yet another offensive in February, when police detained hundreds of people in what they called an antiterrorism sweep. Among those arrested was media lawyer Berhanu Mogese, who had offered pro bono services to imprisoned journalists. A colleague, Teshome Gabre-Mariam Bokan, told CPJ that Mogese was arrested the day after he met with visiting European Union envoy Louis Michel.
Authorities appeared to step up enforcement of the press law as well, imposing prison terms and fines in cases that date back several years or stem from technical infractions. Journalists Leykun Engeda and Abraham Gebrekidan are serving sentences of 15 months and one year respectively for publishing "false news" in articles from 1999 and 2002, according to CPJ sources. Iyob Demeke, former editor- in-chief of the defunct Amharic-language weekly Tarik, was fined in February for failing to print the name of the newspaper's deputy editor on its masthead in one edition. He spent six days in jail before enough money was raised to pay the fine.
Zenawi acknowledged that relations between the government and private press have long been confrontational, but he said the treason allegations were different. "They went beyond their normal bias and went for the jugular," he told CPJ. "They became part and parcel of the day-to-day preparation for the insurrection after the elections."
The defendants in the treason trial are charged with "outrage against the constitution and the constitutional order." The indictment, or "charge sheet," accuses the journalists of working with the opposition CUD, declaring the elections fraudulent, calling for violence, and "disseminating false accusations to create public distrust of officials and transmitting messages that cause conflict among peoples." The journalists also face the charges of "impairment of the defensive power of the state" by sowing divisions in the armed forces.
Genocide is the final charge against the journalists. Home to dozens of ethnic groups, notably Amharas, Tigrayans, Oromos, and Somalis, Ethiopia has indeed seen ethnic tensions flare into violence. Tigrayans form the base of the ruling EPRDF, while the opposition CUD draws substantial support from the Amharas. The CUD platform called for constitutional reforms to effectively abolish Ethiopia's "ethnic federalism," under which state boundaries are drawn along ethnic lines.
The government's genocide charges, however, are vague and unsubstantiated. The prosecution cites the beating of one Tigrayan individual, an arson attack against another, "acts causing fear and harm to the mental health of members of the ethnic group," and "indirect and direct acts causing harm to members and supporters of the EPRDF by excluding them from social interactions."
The charge sheet cites no evidence linking journalists to these incidents, which do not themselves appear to constitute genocide. The United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide defines genocide as "acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial, or religious group."
As evidence against the journalists, the government has cited more than 20 editorials and more than a dozen press interviews with CUD leaders. At CPJ's request, Chief Prosecutor Shemelis Kemal provided a sampling of 12 of the pieces in the original Amharic. CPJ analyzed English translations of the pieces. While the editorials are antigovernment, some harshly so, none calls for violence and none makes reference to ethnic aggression. CPJ found no evidence to support the prosecution's contention that the pieces were intended to provoke acts of violence or genocide.
Amare Aregawi, editor of The Reporter, one of the few private newspapers that have published without interruption, said much of the post-election newspaper coverage was shoddy and exploited public tensions. But, he said, "There is no evidence that I would call treason myself." Aregawi said government authorities typically refuse to speak to the private press. When Zenawi spoke with invited domestic reporters this year, the prime minister noted that it was the first such meeting in 14 years.
That breakdown is symptomatic of the deeper political divide. "The press is a reflection of politics," Aregawi said. "There's no tolerance. It's 'you are either with us or against us,' and that is reflected in the media." Zenawi, who acknowledged a "poison" in his government's relationship with the press, said much the same. "We are aware that the poison is not merely between the press and the ruling party," the prime minister said. "It's a reflection of the overall tension between some in the opposition and the ruling party."
Most of the jailed journalists said that they would not offer a defense because they believe the charges are baseless and the proceedings politicized. Sitting in Kality Prison, the jailed publisher Fassil Yenealem was asked if he had a message for the prime minister. "The journalists should be released," he said. "Banning the press means banning democracy. The prime minister has done some very good things in the last 14 years. The media are not against the government but against injustice."
Fighting Words?
Here are English translations of excerpts from two editorials cited by the Ethiopian government as evidence against journalists being tried for treason:
Ethiop, August 17, 2005: "The constitution clearly states that a human being cannot lose his or her life except in one way. Article 15 reads: 'Every person has the right to life. No one shall lose his life except under penalty for a capital offense.' Was a legal provision ever invoked before those 40 innocent young kids were massacred in public? If the rulers violate their own constitution, and if the opposition then violates the constitution in order to save the country from a crime, who should be the one responsible for a crime? ...
"There cannot be free elections until the electoral board, which is a stooge of the EPRDF (ruling party), is dismantled. Justice cannot be found in the courts that are governed by EPRDF cadres and are filled with those who have enriched themselves with embezzlement. Getting rid of these elements through a national coalition government would indeed bring about lasting peace and stability."
Addis Zena, Sept. 19, 2005: "The people of Ethiopia have clearly been robbed of their voices. A party or a government that conspired to rob the voice of its own people should never be given legitimacy. Even if it wants to stay in power, the people would only chant 'Thief! Thief!' and would not let it happen. And because the electoral board has been the main organizer and accomplice of such robbery, it should be denounced and should lose its credibility. ...
"Opposition parties must provide wise leadership in recovering the voice of the people from the party that has stolen it in order to stay in power."
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Recommendations to the Ethiopian government
• CPJ calls on the government to ensure that all journalists jailed for their work are released immediately and unconditionally. At minimum, it should ensure that any journalist detained is guaranteed basic standards of due process, including the right to be informed promptly of the reasons for arrest and of any charges against them; the right to trial within a reasonable time; and an enforceable right to compensation for unlawful arrest or detention.
• The government should immediately introduce a moratorium on all criminal prosecutions under the 1992 Press Proclamation.
• We urge the government to introduce legal reforms in line with international standards by removing all criminal sanctions for press offenses such as defamation, insulting the government, and publishing false information. Such reforms should be introduced before the end of this year.
• CPJ calls on Prime Minister Meles Zenawi to ensure an immediate halt to the harassment of journalists by government officials and security forces, along with an end to any intimidation of printers and media distributors.
• Government employees should refrain from making public statements, including ones in the state media, that paint independent or foreign media as enemies of Ethiopia and that could endanger their journalists. We call on the prime minister to publicly rebuke any such statements.
• Government officials should routinely provide information to all media on issues of public concern, notably by holding regular, open press conferences and making themselves available for interview by members of the private media.
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LAGAAN and IQBAL are landmark films on cricket. The response to LAGAAN specifically was so electrifying [and emotional] that theatres turned into stadiums during the penultimate cricket match in the film.
VICTORY traverses a different route altogether: This one revolves around a cricketer, talks of the highs and lows in his life, how greed, arrogance and lust almost ruin his career, but how he regains his lost form and becomes a hero all over again.
The difference also lies in the fact that the sportsmen in the film aren't actors, pretending to be cricketers, but real-life cricketers. And that makes the goings-on identifiable.
VICTORY may not be a true-life account of any one person, but you can't help but draw parallels with people who led a wild life off the field. Also, any sports-based film works if it arouses the right emotions and VICTORY does so towards the final moments. But there's a hitch. The film could've done with a shorter running time [instead of approx. 2.35 hours] and a tight script. More on that later!
Final words? A few interesting moments don't really help. This one tries to hit a boundary, but ends up taking a single.
VICTORY tells the story of Vijay Shekhawat [Hurman S. Baweja], who hails from Jaisalmer. Soon, he becomes India's latest world-class batting sensation and is catapulted to superstardom.
However, the glam and glitter makes the young, vulnerable Vijay stray from his true vocation of cricket. Unfortunately, this leads to a loss of focus and to a miserable drop in his performance. But by the time Vijay realizes his mistake, he finds himself thrown out of the Indian cricket team. Suddenly, the hero becomes a villain in everyone's eyes. His father [Anupam Kher] suffers a paralytic stroke.
This tragedy awakens Vijay's conscience. He wants to redeem himself in the eyes of his father and every Indian. Against great odds, he once again makes it back to the Indian team and gets to play in the finals of the Champion's Trophy against Australia, where he plays a stellar role in enabling India to win the Trophy.
Ajitpal Mangat chooses a difficult subject for his directorial debut. Placing immense trust on a newcomer [Hurman] and casting real-life characters could be tough and demanding, besides being expensive [cricketers' fees and paying for the various stadiums]. But Ajitpal achieves the required results.
The initial moments are very mediocre, but the pace picks up when Hurman goes astray, when he can't digest success, when he falls into wrong hands [Gulshan Grover]. The graph is erratic; sometime interesting, at times boring. However, what rescues the film from failing are the penultimate moments, especially the one when Hurman faces the final ball.
On the flip side, the writing isn't convincing at several points. The first 30 minutes of the enterprise makes you break into a yawn, frankly. Also, the film is stretched in the second hour for no reason and could've done with some tight editing. The songs in this hour are a big deterrent.
Ajitpal Mangat makes a confident debut as a director, but VICTORY would've made a stronger impact if the writing [screenplay: Ajitpal Mangat, Kannan Iyer] would've been watertight. Anu Malik's music is listless. Barring 'Balla Utha' and 'Money Money', the remaining songs are of the fast-forward type. Cinematography is excellent.
Hurman S. Baweja displays the required confidence. He gets the body language right, looks dapper when required and conveys the required emotions well. Only thing, he needs to control his expressions at times. Amrita Rao does very well, although this isn't her film actually. Anupam Kher gets it right yet again, especially towards the second hour when he suffers a paralytic stroke. Gulshan Grover is very effective.
On the whole, VICTORY is a strictly average fare. Barring a few moments in the second hour, there's not much that you carry home.


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A couple of weeks ago, Dance Central and Rock Band studio Harmonix was being advised—by someone from the company that sold it off—to make "the world's first immersive shoot-'em-up," using Kinect. Today, the firm reported it is doing juuuuust fine by sticking to the rhythm genre.
Florian Hunziker, Harmonix's chief operating officer, expects $100 million in revenue, reports Bloomberg, and expects this will be Harmonix's most profitable year ever. Dance Central has sold 2.5 million copies in a year (Dance Central 2 released Oct. 25) and both it and the Rock Band franchise have done a brisk business in downloadable content.
But they aren't sitting on Dance Central, Hunziker said. He told Bloomberg that Harmonix "is developing multiple new music games that won't resemble Rock Band or Dance Central." Should they pan out, he expects even bigger profits down the line.
Harmonix Rebounds With Dance Central, Bets on Music Downloads [Bloomberg]
You can contact Owen Good, the author of this post, at firstname.lastname@example.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.


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Release Notes for ARCHICAD 17 Hotfix Build 5019
This Hotfix makes the trial functions of EcoDesigner STAR available in countries where the product is available (United Kingdom, Ireland, USA, Canada, Australia and Sweden). This Hotfix includes important fixes for bugs discovered since the original release of ARCHICAD 17 (Build 3002). This Hotfix can be applied to any builds of ARCHICAD 17 (Build 3002 and above).
The hotfix applies to ARCHICAD, BIM Server and all other components: BIM Server Manager, BIMx, MEP Modeler and all GRAPHISOFT-distributed Add-Ons and Goodies. It applies to all (Commercial, Educational and Trial) license types.
Table of Contents
About the installer
Important Note for Teamwork users
Installation steps
Deployed Installation of the Hotfix
List of bugs fixed in this Hotfix
Previous Hotfixes for ARCHICAD 17
About the installer
The Hotfix process will automatically search your computer for instances of three applications (in this order):
ARCHICAD 17 (including MEP Modeler, Energy Evaluation and all GRAPHISOFT Add-Ons)
GRAPHISOFT BIM Server (including the BIM Server Manager, automatically installed along with the BIM Server)
Standalone BIM Server Manager (This refers to the standalone BIM Server Manager, a separate application which can be optionally installed from the ARCHICAD 17 DVD)
If ARCHICAD 17 and/or the standalone BIM Server Manager are found to be installed on your machine, you can choose to either update it or not. If the BIM Server is found to be installed on your machine, it will be automatically updated if it is not up-to-date. If ARCHICAD 17 is already up-to-date, but one of the ARCHICAD components (e.g. MEP Modeler) is not, the installer will indicate this and you can choose to update it.
Important Note for Teamwork users
Working in Teamwork requires that client ARCHICADs, the BIM Server Manager and the BIM Server all have the identical version number (or "build number").
If you are running a client ARCHICAD whose version number is different than that of the BIM Server, you cannot continue working in Teamwork until the same hotfix is installed for the BIM Server. (The same is true for all the other client ARCHICADs working from the same BIM Server.)
Therefore, if you decide to update either a client ARCHICAD or a BIM Server, be aware that you must update all clients and the BIM Server so that they share the identical version number.
Installation steps
If the BIM Server is running on a computer that has Windows Server 2008 R2 as its operating system you have to manually stop all BIM Server services prior to applying the patch.
We strongly recommend that you disable any virus checker for the time of the BIM Server installation.
Make sure you have administrator rights on the computer. Start the full installation process using an administrator account. For Mac users make sure to mount the installation dmg while being signed in with the administrator account that you always use to install or patch GRAPHISOFT products. Make sure none of the ARCHICAD components are modified (e.g. renamed). If you are updating a BIM Server, also make sure that you are logged in as the user who installed it originally.
When you run the hotfix package, the process will automatically search your computer for instances of the three applications listed above. For each of these applications found on your machine, you will be informed of its hotfix status (either "is up to date" or "can be updated").
For ARCHICAD or Standalone BIM Server Manager:
If you have multiple copies ofeither ARCHICAD or the standalone BIM Server Manager on your machine, then the installer will automatically find one copy. If you want to update a different instance, you can use the "Browse" button tolocate it. You will need to run the installer multiple times to update each copy of ARCHICAD / BIM Server Manager.
If the installed ARCHICAD or standalone BIM Server Manager is found to be not up-to-date, you also have the option not to update it: click "Don't update [program] now."
The update of GRAPHISOFT BIM Server works a bit differently:
If a BIM Server is found to be installed on your machine and is out of date, it will be updated; you have no option to skip the update, unless you cancel the entire Hotfix process.
Only one BIM Server can be installed on a machine, so there is no option to browse to a different program location than the one identified by the program.
Just before the hotfix is launched, the Summary Panel displays information on which programs, in which locations, will be updated.
The BIM Server will be stopped automatically, during the time of hotfixing the BIM Server application, projects will be suspended. Clients must be patched before they can teamwork with the newly hotfixed BIM Server.
If you want the BIM Server to start automatically with the operating system, check again the "Start BIM Server with Operating System" checkbox in the BIM Server Preferences dialog.
If the BIM Server does not start immediately after installation, please restart the computer.
Deployed Installation of the Hotfix
For details on deployed installation go here.
List of bugs fixed in this Hotfix
Changes fixed since the release of Hotfix 5 (Build 5015)
- Trial functions of EcoDesigner STAR are now available in selected markets.
Bugs fixed since the release of Hotfix 4 (Build 5005)
- 167510 CRASH: In Section/Elevation changing Renovation Status of elements or using Edit Selection Set tool crashed ARCHICAD. You can read more about the issue here: Help Center
- 167673 CRASH: Opening particular files saved with previous hotfixes of ARCHICAD 17 and turning on trace could crash ARCHICAD.
- 167760 CRASH: Opening schedules where in the criteria list parentheses were erroneously used caused crash.
Bugs fixed since the release of Hotfix 3 (Build 4008)
- 162393 DOCUMENT: Full layouts and sections of particular projects could become rotated. You can read more about the issue here: Help Center
- 164080 DOCUMENT: If in the Work Environment the User Preference Schemes -> More Options -> Do not launch new instance of ARCHICAD when placing a view onto Layout setting was checked, drawings could not be placed, only an empty frame appeared.
- 165550 DOCUMENT: Interactive Schedule didn't show the Integer value list properly.
- 160250 DOCUMENT: mulitplane roof pitch was not listed properly.
- 143997 DOCUMENT: Particular symbol fill could cause large PDF file.
- 158237 DOCUMENT: PDF saved on Windows and opened in Preview on a MAC (or placed into ARCHICAD) rendered unreadable text with faulty tracking. Read more about the issue here: Help Center
- 166656 DOCUMENT: Rendered image could be black in Lightworks, if 3D Cutaway blocked Sun and Sky objects.
- 159404 DOCUMENT: Reviewer did notwork with newer Java applets.
- 159411 DOCUMENT: Some Master Layouts hid Elements with New Renovation Status.
- 148152 DOCUMENT: When listing objects in Interactive Schedule there was no criteria referring the Zone that they were placed in.
- 158118 DOCUMENT: Zones which were overridden by renovation and MVO lost their renovation override style in the saved and printed pdf.
- 163334 EDIT: Align Texture was working erroneously with curved and slanted beams.
- 163331 EDIT: Aling Texture's Set Origin worked erroneously on curved walls.
- 158581 EDIT: Changed IFC properties weren't kept when saving a Favorite from the Element.
- 161572 EDIT: After copy-pasting Story-linked elements to the upmost story, they loose their linked status.
- 161862 EDIT: Crash could occur when adjusting Editing plane.
- 165558 EDIT: Editing a mesh could cause crash.
- 165270 EDIT: First floor could not be selected as scheduling criteria in the following language versions: CZE, CHI, JPN, NOR, RUS, USA
- 164347 EDIT: Force Guide Line command didn't work with the Door, Window tools.
- 161123, 162933 EDIT: If a parameter of an object was changed in section or elevation view, when switched to another section/elevation view the object would not be updated.
- 160818 EDIT: If Resize command was used repeatedly to modify an element, Resize ratio values once set were not retained in the element's pop-up window.
- 164149 EDIT: If you mirror a fill with the Area text display on then after editing the mirrored fill the area text got dispositioned.
- 163894 EDIT: In section selecting and changing grouped elements did not have an effect on the invisible elements.
- 165052 EDIT: Placing Doors and Windows Using Special Snap Constraint went wrong when guide line was active.
- 162129 EDIT: Position of a traced detail on another detail view could be inconsistent.
- 157406 EDIT: Status of zones with geometry method changed from "Manual" to "Inner Edge" were incorrect and they couldn't be updated.
- 160927 EDIT: Surface renovation override did not work for Morph.
- 163783 EDIT: Updating zones could cause crash in certain situations.
- 160814 EDIT: When heights of hotspots of mesh were edited one after the other the last used command were not retained by Pet Palette.
- 160310, 163982 EDIT: Windows with Custom Corner and Corner Windows were not placed where the first feedback showed.
- 163889 EDIT: Could not paste rich text or figure into ARCHICAD.
- 159768 ENERGY EVALUATION: Central Boiler Unmet Load Hours was erroneously calculated under certain circumstances.
- 161508 ENERGY EVALUATION: Cooling's and Ventilation's auxiliary system data were missing from Report.xls.
- 160025 ENERGY EVALUATION: Default system characteristics of a new cooling machine were wrong.
- 165033 ENERGY EVALUATION: Discrepancy could appear in solar radiation percentage of openings.
- 165218 ENERGY EVALUATION: Energy Evaluation calculation didn't finish and an error message appeared.
- 160923 ENERGY EVALUATION: In particular files sewage calculation was wrong if Local Heat Pump was used for Service Hot Water Generation.
- 162053 ENERGY EVALUATION: Service Hot Water Heating and Sewage didn't appear on the Energy Balance in certain circumstances.
- 159888 ENERGY EVALUATION: Setting BoilerSystem -> Heat Loss value could cause erroneous efects on the simulation result.
- 165258 ENERGY EVALUATION: Solar absorptance unit was missing in case of Tree View
- 166044 ENERGY EVALUATION: Switching between radio buttons on the Climate Data dialog could crash ARCHICAD.
- 161037 ENERGY EVALUATION: The Cooling quantity in the report didn't match with the quantity in the xls.
- 161507 ENERGY EVALUATION: The Target of the Renewable Energy Source was missing from the 2nd and 3rd bar charts of the Report.PDF's Energy Consumption by Sources chapter, if Heat Pump or Solar collector is used for heating.
- 163880 ENERGY EVALUATION: Warning message could appear in Energy evaluation because some polygons weren't segmented.
- 161509 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Auxiliary Electricity appears on Report.pdf if District Cooling was used.
- 160058 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Central Cooling Machine was unable to meet cooling demand, even with maximum capacity.
- 161589 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Cooling Energy Quantity was wrong in the Energy Consumption chapters of the Report.pdf.
- 160922 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Energy Consumption calculation of Heat Pumps used for Service Hot Water Heating was wrong.
- 161454 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Energy source and target quantities were wrong on Report.pdf if cooling machine was used.
- 161465 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Peak Cooling data was wrong on Report.pdf if cooling machine was used.
- 161489 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Primary Energy calculation of heat pump for heating was wrong.
- 160944 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Sewage calculation was wrong if Central Heat Pump was used for Service Hot Water Generation.
- 162001 ENERGY EVALUATION: With particular file Solar Collector Type setting had no effect on calculation.
- 163905 FILE/DWG/EXPORT/ÖNORM: Only attributes with values were exported to DWG.
- 163928 FILE/DWG/EXPORT/ÖNORM: Text settings of zones' text blocks were lost.
- 163191 FILE/DWG/EXPORT: A specific combination of template and translator settings caused DWG export to resulte in a 0kb faulty DWG file.
- 165560 FILE/DWG/IMPORT: Relinking, opening DWG could cause crash.
- 159637 FILE/EXPORT/PDF: Trace Reference wasn't exported to PDF if Rotated Orientation was set and there were Elements far from Origin.
- 164938 FILE/EXPORT/SKETCHUP: Usage of national characters in the add-ons directory resulted in the export of a 0 kb sketchup file.
- 164496 FILE/IFC: Improved export and import of large models.
- 159569 FILE/IFC/EXPORT: Element quantities can be exported into custom properties. Read more about this here: Help Center
- 162596 FILE/IFC/EXPORT: IFC Quantities 'GrossFloorArea' and 'NetFloorArea' were switched upon IFC export.
- 143209 FILE/IFC/EXPORT: Openings with slanted reveal might look incorrect in IFC.
- 161549 FILE/IFC/EXPORT: Warning message that "Some elements could not be exported due to missing geometry" appeared after exporting empty openings.
- 163271 FILE/IFC/IMPORT: After importing a particular IFC file 2D symbol of doors were missing and viewing their settings brought up error message.
- 165612 FILE/IFC/IMPORT: If the column settings in the default template had a veneer, IFC imported columns would inherit this veneer.
- 147046 FILE/IFC/IMPORT: Wall niche became an opening when imported into ARCHICAD.
- 161699 FILE/MIGRATION: After migrating a file containing elements very far from the origin the coordinates of elements could double.
- 165203 FREEZE: A mouse clicked in certain regions close to a spline could make ARCHICAD unresponsive.
- 163057 FREEZE: Non-responsive behaviour occurred when background processing of 3d elements refused to allow user interaction.
- 160731 FREEZE: On Mac ARCHICAD seemed to be freezing due to the fact that the publishing window came back behind the main ARCHICAD window after switching between applications.
- 163391 GDL: CALL function couldn't be rebuild, when it was used for macro name.
- 163963 HOTLINK: Hotlink update did not work with particular file.
- 161479 HOTLINK: In the Host file Hotlinked Zones weren't scheduled properly. Several Zone parameters appeared to be 0 instead of the real value.
- 161045 HOTLINK/LIBRARY HANDLING: Deleted or broken Hotlink's Embedded library couldn't be removed from the Host file.
- 163791 INSTALL: Hotfix or additional installations could only be made by the same user who had installed ARCHICAD because limted permission of the newly created folders.
- 163409 MODEL: After deleting a wall and then undoing the operation the original intersection geometry with a roof was not restored.
- 157576 MODEL: Align 3D command didn't work on polygonal Walls.
- 161498 MODEL: Align 3D Texture commands had no effect on Beams.
- 162032 MODEL: Checking and correcting code was added to better handle 3D junction data.
- 161832 MODEL: Curved beams didn't cut walls.
- 163209 MODEL: Sun and sky objects did not work with marquee.
- 165856 MODEL: textures with alpha channel appeared incorrectly with black patches on OS X 10.9 Mavericks.
- 165619 MODEL: When a Wall-end was placed with a height parameter lower then the floor cut plane, window related error message erroneously appeared.
- 156754 SPEED: Slowdown or freeze could happen while having multiple ARCHICAD instances running side by side.
- 164880 TEAMWORK: Changing Elevation Dimension' level wasn't send to the server, thus different teammates could see different Dimensions.
- 165880 TEAMWORK: In special cases level dimensions could be sources of Teamwork join errors
- 159171 TEAMWORK: Project backups created with previous versions could not be imported in BIM Server Manager
- 161576 TEAMWORK: There were GDL elements that could make a file sharable, but not joinable.
- 162760 TEAMWORK/EDIT: Composites could be edited while not reserved in TW.
- 160546 TEAMWORK/FREEZE: If many people were active in a teamwork project, one viewer of an Interactive Schedules could experience erratic scrolling and/or non-responsive behavior.
- 156759 USER INTERFACE: Navigating in 2D using 3Dconnexion Space Navigator worked in wrong direction.
- 165663 USER INTERFACE: When using ARCHICAD on two displays palettes with left side title bar could get inaccessible on MAC OS X 10.9 after dragging them to the border area between two displays.
Download this Hotfix
|Mac OSX
|Last modified
|ARCHICAD 17 Hotfix 6 (Build 5019)
|March 31, 2014


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Do You Watch TLC's BBQ Pitmasters Show?
Author's note: I love moving images of food, people eating food, and people talking about food. But I hate commercials. Netflix Watch Instantly has a wealth of food-related shows, movies, and documentaries. Every week I'll share my currently streaming favorites in my TV/film column, "Watch (Food) Instantly" —Sam.
I've always been a barbecue fan, but being from central Connecticut, I didn't have my first encounter with smoked beef, pork, and chicken until my tween years. Before my first visit to Little Mark's Big BBQ, my idea of ribs was the fast casual abomination that is a rack of Chili's babybacks. Yet my first bites of some legit pulled pork and St. Louis-style ribs sucked me into a vortex of BBQ fixation that has continued to this day.
It was far from the best barbecue I've ever had, but it was my introduction to the cuisine. So when I saw BBQ Pitmasters on Netflix, my barbecue bone started tingling and I decided to test drive the pilot episode (if you're interested in the second one, Robbie Richter's got you covered).
As a TLC occupational reality show, the series will look very familiar to Discovery/History/TLC fans. These programs follow a handful of individuals as they make their living through a relatively interesting means—Deadliest Catch and Ice Road Truckers are two examples. Pitmasters has the fortunate advantage of following competition BBQ-ers, who travel to different events every week, which lends itself to self-contained episodes quite well.
So what's the show like? In a word: fun. Populated by a colorful cast of six teams, the show offers a nice mix of big personalities and serious cooking that is quite a joy to watch...at least in small doses.
The barbecue itself doesn't lend all that much tension, but the food and people are fine entertainment, and it's comical to see teams scramble to hand in their styrofoam containers as if it's life or death.
Although several BBQ-ers get profiled, the standout pitmasters are Myron Mixon and Paul Petersen, the winningest and most defeated, respectively. Mixon, with his team Jack's Old South, looks like Kenny Rogers and cooks like a pro, having been named World Champion three times—and he won't let you forget it. Despite the hubris, Mixon prepping his barbecue, from butchering to injections to rubs, is a sight to behold and one of the show's highlights. If there's one thing to take away from Pitmasters, it's that barbecue is significantly more intricate than most know.
On the flipside of Mixon's prowess and success, there's Paul Petersen, a Texas chef/rookie BBQ-er who may be even cockier than his award-winning counterpart. Petersen works in restaurant kitchens, but decided to try his hand at the competition circuit. He talks plenty of crap, but his barbecue is as weak as his talk is aggressive.
The pilot episode follows a pretty standard formula: introduce the players, follow their preparation and see the results, all while introducing the viewer to the world of competition barbecue. Although the format works well, I found myself wishing the program were a bit tighter. I'm not sure if 22 minutes would be enough, but I thought the episode lagged about ten minutes too long. Additionally, I question the show's potential for extended watching.
While the seasons are short (6 episodes), how different can barbecue competitions ultimately be? After enjoying the first episode quite a bit, I broke into the second one out of curiosity. I found a handful of competitors from the first show again smoking ribs, pork, brisket chicken (with the addition of a whole hog). Sure, it was slightly different from the first episode, but it felt a bit too familiar.
Still, BBQ Pitmasters is a totally enjoyable show. I may not start watching religiously, but I can see myself throwing on an episode when I'm feeling the barbecue bug...or when I want to hear Myron Mixon speak. That dude is a riot.
BBQ Pitmasters Seasons 1 and 2 are currently streaming on Netflix Instant Watch.
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor GOTY Edition Steam CD Key
The GOTY Edition of Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and the previously available Premium Edition are the same product.
Includes 31 items: base game, The Lord of the Hunt Story Pack, The Bright Lord Story Pack, Test of Power Challenge Mode, Test of Speed Challenge Mode, Test of Wisdom Challenge Mode, Test of the Wild Challenge Mode, Test of the Ring Challenge Mode, Endless Challenge Mode, Test of Defiance, The Dark Ranger Skin, Captain of the Watch Skin, Lord of the Hunt Skin, The Bright Lord Skin, Power of Shadow Skin, Lithariel Skin, Hidden Blade Rune, Deadly Archer Rune, Flame of Anor Rune, Rising Storm Rune, Orc Slayer Rune, Defiant to the End Rune, Elven Grace Rune, Ascendant Rune, One with Nature Rune, Guardians of the Flaming Eye Warband Mission, The Berserks Warband Mission -The Skull Crushers Warband Mission, The Bloodhunters Mission, The Flesh Burners Mission and Photo Mode.
In Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, gamers take on the role of Talion, a valiant ranger whose family is slain in front of him the night Sauron and his army return to Mordor, moments before his own life is taken. Resurrected by a Spirit of vengeance and empowered with Wraith abilities, Talion ventures into Mordor and vows to destroy those who have wronged him. Through the course of his personal vendetta, Talion uncovers the truth of the Spirit that compels him, learns the origins of the Rings of Power and ultimately confronts his true nemesis.
Every enemy that players face is a unique individual, differentiated by their personality, strengths and weaknesses. Through the Nemesis System, enemy relationships and characteristics are shaped by player actions and decisions to create personal archenemies that remember and adapt to the player and are distinct to every gameplay session. Gamers are able to craft their own battles, enemies and rewards within the dynamic world that remembers and adapts to their choices, delivering a unique experience to every player.
- OS: 64-bit: Vista SP2, Win 7 SP1, Win 8.1
- Processor: Intel Core i5-750, 2.67 GHz | AMD Phenom II X4 965, 3.4 GHz
- Memory: 3 GB RAM
- Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 | AMD Radeon HD 5850
- DirectX: Version 11
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 44 GB available space
- OS: Mac OS X 10.10.3
- Processor: 2.4 GHz Intel
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: 1GB Nvidia 650M or later, AMD 7xxx series or later and Intel Iris Pro.
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 67 GB available space
- Additional Notes: Requires Keyboard & Multi-button Mouse
- OS: Ubuntu 14.04.2 64-bit / SteamOS
- Processor: Intel Core i5-750, 2.67 GHz | AMD Phenom II X4 965, 3.4 GHz
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: 1GB NVIDIA 640 or better with driver version 352.21 or later
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 47 GB available space
- Additional Notes: AMD and Intel cards are NOT supported. If you wish to play the game using an AMD graphics card, you should update your graphics driver to version Catalyst 15.7 or higher. You should be able to run the game without experiencing stability issues or graphical glitches, but you may still experience poor performance.
Go to: http://store.steampowered.com/ and download STEAM client
Click "Install Steam" (from the upper right corner)
Install and start application, login with your Account name and Password (create one if you don't have).
Please follow these instructions to activate a new retail purchase on Steam:
- Launch Steam and log into your Steam account.
- Click the Games Menu.
- Choose Activate a Product on Steam...
- Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the process.
After successful code verification go to the "MY GAMES" tab and start downloading.
If you have any problems regarding activation, please contact us:


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We are a cross-disciplinary visual design and video production company. Working across a range of media, we create communication tools that combine beautiful design and smart functionality that achieves results. We provide the whole package, working with our clients from start to finish.
Video Production
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Freshwater Creative Corp
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Howell-Marries earns
top Sun Belt honor
SAN MARCOS, Texas After helping the UL Ragin' Cajuns to one of their best season in school history, a trio of Cajuns were honored at the Sun Belt Conference Banquet, on the eve of the 2013 Sun Belt Conference Championships.
Junior Grace Howell-Harries picked up the teams biggest honor, earning the SBC Defensive Player of the Year award.
Howell-Harries was joined by freshman Yazmin Montoya on the SBC All-Conference First Team, and freshman Annika Schmidt was named SBC All-Conference Second Team.
It was the first time in school history that a Ragin' Cajuns soccer player was named either the offensive or defensive player of the year. The Cajuns also placed the most players on the team in school history, only seeing four others named in school history.
White baseball team
grabs 2-0 victory
A combined shutout pitching effort from Nick Zaunbrecher and Matt Plitt and solo homers from Ryan Leonards and Seth Harrison were enough for the White team to take a 2-0 win over the Red team Tuesday afternoon in game two of UL baseball's Fall World Series at M. L. "Tigue" Moore Field.
The White team, which took an 8-3 win in Monday's fall series opener, has an insurmountable 2-0 lead in the three-game series which concludes with a final game at 3 p.m. today. The game was moved up from an original 6 p.m. start time because of the threat of weather tonight.
Zaunbrecher allowed only two hits through three and one-third innings before giving way to Plitt, who checked the Red team on one hit the rest of the way in the seven-inning game.
Leonards had a one-out solo homer in the top of the first inning off Red team starter Ryan Wilson to put the White team up 1-0. Harrison added his solo shot in the fifth for the only other run in the pitching-dominated game, with the two teams combining for only seven hits.


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Welcome to *** Being a voyeur is such an exciting thing! Especially when you are allowed to be a part of the hot action! And on our website, Papy is lucky to be invited in the wildest drilling episodes! No matter where the great fucking takes places, Papy steals at glance at the babe and feeling his cock hard he can't wait to be invited! Enjoy weekly exclusive Movie updates!
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Before editing, be sure to read the wiki's policies. Please sign your name on Talk and vote pages using four tildes (~~~~) to automatically produce your name and the current date. Be sure to verify your e-mail address in your preferences. Before attempting any major article rewrites please read the layout guide. If you have any questions, check out the policy and help pages (see here for editing help), add a question to the Community portal, view the forum or ask me on my talk page. Again, welcome!
—-- Freakatone Talk 00:27, 22 October 2008 (UTC)
Tom Riddle's main image
Hey Adv193. Were currently holding a vote to decide Tom Riddle's main image. Please vote for your favourite, cheers. Jayce Carver Talk 15:56, 2 May 2009 (UTC)
You're welcome. And thank you for reverting the vandalism on the other pages. I will warn the user and if he remains vandalising, he will be blocked. -- Seth Cooper (Owl Post) 00:18, 9 June 2009 (UTC)
House Points Game, 2nd term
Hello! Just to let you know, we're starting a new round of the Harry Potter Wiki House Points Game on September 15th, and we need some new members! By helping to improve the Wiki, you can earn points toward winning the House Cup. Just add your name under your favorite House on this page to join. We hope to see you soon! - Nick O'Demus 09:57, 31 August 2009 (UTC)
Re:User problem
Thanks for letting me know about the recurring vandalism. I've blocked the IP from editing for a year. -- Seth Cooper owl post! 01:25, October 14, 2009 (UTC)
Yea, this is a bit over the top, I added another warning, not that it'll do any good. --BachLynn(Accio!) 00:57, February 14, 2011 (UTC)
The thing is, the edits aren't malicious, on the other hand they aren't entirely fanon, just unnecessary as most of what they added there are already pages for. I'm thinking it could be a young user, who hasn't taken the time to read the policy page and doesn't understand this is a fairly strict wikia where you can't just add whatever you want, no matter how trivial. --BachLynn(Accio!) 01:02, February 14, 2011 (UTC)
Yea, I don't understand why some people ruin pages for no reason, it's so inconsiderate. Eventually I'd like to become an admin on this site, but I'm not sure if they need another one yet, I think they have a certain number of active admin's. I did post the fanon warning on Chris's talk page, not because what they have done is specifically fanon, but so that they know about the other wikia that is more lenient with creating whatever pages you want to. --BachLynn(Accio!) 01:14, February 14, 2011 (UTC)
RE: Chris Su
All of the nonsense articles have been deleted or redirected, and they've been warned on their talk page about unhelpful editing. If they do it again, they'll be blocked. - Nick O'Demus 01:41, February 14, 2011 (UTC)
RE:Move or Delete
I deleted it; the page was unnecessary. Thanks for pointing it out! -- Seth Cooper owl post! 22:40, July 19, 2011 (UTC)
RE:Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 2
No problem. Thank you for bringing it to my attention! -- Seth Cooper owl post! 21:43, July 21, 2011 (UTC)
About the Books Articles
Hi, we've been doing a good work in the book articles, what do you think of nominating any of the articles to be a featured one? Best Wishes Arayam Rosa 16:52, August 5, 2011 (UTC)
- You're right there is still a lot of work to do... I was thinking about the Philosopher's Stone... but that can wait... hehe. Do you think that is a good idea split the final books into chapters now? Or is better wait the "engorgio" of the others?
- Ok, lets continue the work then. =) Arayam Rosa (owl me!) 17:10, August 5, 2011 (UTC)
- Thanks, I forgot to preview... and did some links mistakes... I will be more careful =) Arayam Rosa (owl me!) 19:11, August 5, 2011 (UTC)
- I looked and didn't upload the ones that already existed. Arayam Rosa (owl me!) 22:13, August 5, 2011 (UTC)
RE:Need a hand with something
Done -- Seth Cooper owl post! 02:28, December 10, 2011 (UTC)
Re: Awareness Alert
Thanks, but I'm not an admin here. You might want to leave a message on an admin's talk page if you want to get an admin's attention about it. ProfessorTofty (talk) 15:45, October 3, 2012 (UTC)
Prisoner of Azakaban
Sorry about that. It was the only way I could see at that point to restore the page. Feel free to go ahead and add about in the changes you were trying to make. ProfessorTofty (talk) 19:53, March 19, 2013 (UTC)
- I felt bad about messing up your changes, so I went ahead and manually restored them. You may wish to do a double-check though to make sure I didn't mess anything up. ProfessorTofty (talk) 20:09, March 19, 2013 (UTC)
Order of Merlin
|Order of Merlin (Third Class)
|The Order of Merlin is awarded to you by Nick O'Demus for having over one-thousand edits on the Harry Potter Wiki.
Re: Blocking
Nick O'Demus took care of it, but thanks for the heads-up. ProfessorTofty (talk) 05:45, May 15, 2013 (UTC)
Re: Problem User
Don't worry, he's been evident enough that he'll be blocked by the first admin logging in. MinorStoop 19:43, November 22, 2013 (UTC)
- Thanks for the concern, but allow _me_ to deal with vandals on my talk page - it's a fairly common cross-wiki policy. MinorStoop 19:47, November 22, 2013 (UTC)
We can forget his watchlist. I don't think he'll be left in activity for long. MinorStoop 07:28, July 16, 2014 (UTC)
- What did I tell ya? He's now on an indefinitely long vacation. MinorStoop 13:57, July 16, 2014 (UTC)
- Minor-league vandal. Never went pro. MinorStoop 14:20, July 16, 2014 (UTC)
RE: Fred Weasley
Fixed. The problem comes from Quote and/or Dialogue templates in a certain section being misplaced. - Nick O'Demus 22:44, March 30, 2015 (UTC)
re: Redirects
Already sorted that when I noticed the redlinks. There are probably plenty of missing "shorthand" redirects on the wiki, but I don't catch most of them until the redlink appears on the page. Instead of simply "correcting" the link, it may have been more prudent to simply make the redirect anyway. --Sajuuk 16:04, May 18, 2016 (UTC)


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Ford has unveiled a new Class 5 F-600 Super Duty chassis cab with a gross vehicle weight rating of 22,000 lb., rounding out a completely revamped commercial vehicle lineup.
Mitsubishi Fuso Truck of America is building on its commitment to gasoline engines with the first gasoline-powered Class 5 cabover in the marketplace — the Fuso FE 180 Gas.
Spartan Fleet Vehicles and Services' Utilimaster brand has introduced three new vehicle platforms – a pair of electric designs, and a body specifically developed for increasingly popular last-mile grocery deliveries.
Volvo VNL 760 and 740 tractors, along with the VNX 740, can now be equipped with a workstation that transforms from a sitting area and table into a base for seating cushions that unfold into a bed.
Western Star is enhancing its 4700 model, introducing a series of changes in the name of productivity, safety, upfitting time, and weights.
by Rolf Lockwood
« Previous Page - Next Page »


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Very well said Kate!Well . . . here's my takeaway.
First, I share the sense of bait and switch. I own that I've been (believe me, not on purpose) part of how that gets done. On this year's blog I included the links to everything I've reported from 2007 on. Seven years and counting. Some of it makes me cringe.
As my understanding of what we're up against has grown, so have the possible approaches. At first it was just good to know that ANYBODY was doing ANYTHING that held promise. Hans Keirstead, Stephen Davies, Os Steward, Mark Tuszynski, Wise, on and on . . . I've been trying to just keep showing up and reporting back on what they're saying. Paolo would say, I think, that we as a community are nowhere near harsh enough -- that we don't ask the tough questions.
The whole thing with the new book kind of came from that sort of place. The new book is me trying to say, "People, we don't really understand this landscape well enough to even know what to demand. We're vulnerable to getting snowed -- specifically I have been vulnerable to getting snowed -- and I am DEAD FREAKING SICK OF IT." That is the problem I'm trying to solve.
You can't ask tough questions if you don't have basic grasp, okay? At least, I can't. I think we need to understand a lot more about the way money gets passed out. And about why things take so damn long. And about what motivates your average post-doc in your average sci research center. And about what we are therefore able to do to push things forward. There are pressure points, I think, and if we can hit them all hard we have a shot.
On the science, I would say this:
Regeneration (meaning figuring out how to get axons to grow and form the proper connections) is a bloody tough puzzle. it's the end game, and it's still far off. I believe that they'll get there eventually but it won't be soon. Regeneration is "the cure."
In the meantime, we have SO MUCH reason to support this new stuff from the Harkema lab. I met with Rob Summers because he lives a couple of hours from me and because he was the brave guy who said, "Go ahead. Please. Stick that thing into my back and let's see what happens." If someone had told me a year ago that we were going to hear about a therapy that was in the Model T phase that had helped four out of four chronic guys recover at least some stuff, I'd have said, "Right." And rolled my eyes.
But that's what happened, and they're still guessing about why. I am DYING to see data from 36 more people. I am NOT expecting a miracle, right? I AM expecting that the scientists who are running this will themselves be surprised by how it unfolds. But we won't know unless they do it. The Big Idea really is a big idea. It's a private foundation that has been in this world for a long time getting behind scientists who are saying that they are prepared to throw down on behalf of people with chronic spinal cord injuries.
Not to pick on Paolo, but he does seem to be playing the Cassandra role here -- calling out this research as anecdotal. In a way, he's right. It's only these four guys. We haven't seen hard data on their before/after pain, bladder, bowel, sexual function, etc. To which I would say, geez, that's because nobody thought to measure in the rigorous scientific method way because nobody dreamed that the epistim thing would do what it has done.
Hence, the need for 36 more.
Being perfectly honest, I want to see something happen while the sci person I care most about can still benefit. He turned 59 a month ago. I think the odds are in his favor.


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One thing that has been huge for me is realizing you can donate gifts. I am no longer weary of accepting items from family and friends because I know they can always be given to the Salvation Army if they don't make sense in my home.
Old Stuff: How to Kindly Receive and Reuse
Taking in free items can be a savvy, frugal move. But be on guard so that you won't be the not-so-proud owner of useless stuff.
Those who have recently moved out on their own or had a first baby can be easy targets for others who are looking to unload their things. You may not be able to anticipate what you'll need in the future but will know that there's a great need to save money. When someone offers to give you something free, you're more likely to take things that you might use. At the same time, your friends, family, and even acquaintances will feel like they are helping you by giving you their castoffs. They may even try to pull the frugal card by telling you that you would be wise to accept their old stuff rather than buying new items.
Stay on the offensive to kindly receive the things you need, save money, and stay clutter-free.
Know what you need
You probably have a running list of items that you're planning on buying soon, would like to have if you had extra money, or could always use. Think about these things when you learn that someone else's old stuff is now available so that you can quickly accept or firmly decline.
Know what you don't want old or used
I'm not being a snob here but there are certain items — especially for babies and children — that might require investigation before you can confidently accept and use. Large items subject to recall, such as cribs, strollers, and swings, come to mind. You may be perfectly fine with a used crib but not with one that has been disassembled and is missing some hardware, or a car seat that looks fine but has been in a wreck.
Getting these big ticket items for free might seem like a good idea, but if you aren't able to put them to good use, then they'll just add clutter.
Understand expectations
Most people have some expectations that you will use and appreciate the items that you've received. They never dream that their stuff can cause a burden.
Ideally, you'll get things with no strings attached (emotional or otherwise). In this case, you won't be under any obligation to keep it forever, showcase in your home, or pass along to your children.
But at some point, you will probably encounter some of these stipulations, either expressed or implied:
- When you're done using the items (when your kids outgrow clothes, for example), give them to someone else who can use them at no charge, just the way you received them. Don't sell them on eBay, Craigslist, or the local consignment shop.
- Return these items after you've finished using them. A close friend or relative might allow you to use baby things for now but wants them back in about nine months. This arrangement is more of a loan. If you are getting loads of freebies in a short span of time, it's helpful to clarify what's yours to keep and what you need to give back.
- Hold the items (indefinitely) until the giver is ready to take them back. Watch out for large items that may be extremely useful to have for a while but burdensome to store.
- Give back stuff that you find you won't use.
- Donate items to charity, yard sale, etc. after you've finished using them.
Sort immediately
You might be able to sort through items and choose what you need, rather than accepting mixed-up lots of useful and not-so-useful things. Or, you might take bags of old stuff with the understanding that you'll take what you want and pass the rest along to someone else. Either way, sort and organize as soon as you get old stuff so that it doesn't clog up your household.
Take these actions:
- Put items that you can use right now in their proper places.
- Assign a storage place for things that you plan to use in the future but don't need at the moment; commit this place to memory so you'll be able to pull from this inventory later. Clothing that is a couple of sizes too big now but should fit your children at some point falls into this category. Similarly, classic but age-inappropriate books and toys might be stored temporarily.
- Decide whether you can fix items that need to be repaired or altered. If yes, set these things aside momentarily and pick a date for painting, restoring, or whatever needs to be done. If no, get rid of these items as quickly as you can.
- Reject items that aren't functional or repairable. If you happen to take home some unusable or damaged items, get rid of them immediately.
Though I've been the happy recipient of great used items, I've also had too many things clogging up my basement. However, I have found myself in the position of wanting to get rid of items that range from perfectly wonderful to possibly useful for parts only. Making an announcement to your social network is a simple way to find a nice home for the best items without putting anyone on the spot. Generally, I opt to donate items to a yard sale benefiting organizations that I support; my friends (and other folks) can snag a great deal if they'd like, but not be burdened with my old stuff.
Disclaimer: The links and mentions on this site may be affiliate links. But they do not affect the actual opinions and recommendations of the authors.
Wise Bread is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
I like to donate certain items also. Sadly, some of my old stuff is too worthless for Goodwill (even though they kindly take my bags without asking too many questions) so instead of burdening them, I let the yard sale people pick through items and find what is useful to them (which may involve making repairs or ignoring stains). But for items in good condition, many charities will gladly accept and resell.


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Tragedy and Triumph: Cambodia's Genocide Through the Faces and Stories of the Survivors (Digital Download)
This book by BFT volunteer Chad Williams tells the story of Cambodia's genocide through the faces and stories of its survivors, including Center founder Sedtha Long and his brother Vudthy. All proceeds go to Build Your Future Today Center of Siem Reap, Cambodia to help rebuild what the Khmer Rouge destroyed.
Give the deserted mothers pope and their children an education. Help break the cycle of poverty. Find out how you can make a change these people's lives. Give to Help
Cambodia's children are its future, but too many have poor health and miss out on opportunities for education. Help to break the poverty cycle and give them a real future. Help build their future – today. Give to Help
Many babies and children suffer from poor health which greatly affects their life opportunities. Help BFT in its work on improving nutrition, hygiene and sanitation, and community health. Give to Help
Domestic abuse and desertion are common and many women lack the education and skills to support their children. Help break the cycle of damage. Give to Help
Lack of education is the biggest hurdle for children and families Help BFT develop schools and community as a whole., through inclusive education, adult literacy and life skills training. Give to Help
Many families have no ability to earn needed money. Help BFT provide life and business skills training along with microfinance to set up and develop individual family businesses. Give to Help
From a deserted mother with no skills - to helping thousands of children to stay in school. Read More
From a teenage Tuk Tuk driver to a leader of the future. Read More
From a deserted woman who had lost her children - to a reunited family and now giving back to her community Read More
From abandoned child at the age of 9 - to joining Team Cambodia at the 2015 Homeless World Cup. Read More
With their mother unable to sustain them, these twins faced a tragic outcome – until BFT came to help. Read More
Abandoned by his mother at only 8 years old, BFT were able to re-unite the family and enable them to become self-sufficient. Read More