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People of Japan, what are you waiting for?
Seeing pointless abuse, injustice and absurdity, do not rush to explain it with stupidity; first try to to explain it with vile shrewdness.
Japan is officially in recession after seeing its economy shrink for the second consecutive quarter. This comes as no surprise at all when you check what the economy is based on, how it develops and what the infamous Abe did to it. I, for one, am happy to see it work this way, seeing the Japanese economy react in obviously bad ways to the dirty manipulations of its government. It would have been much worse if the so-called "growth" continued yet for a longer while and then would come crashing hard. People suffer first, so this gentle decline is much better than a hard landing for the Japanese economy. But, again, what is happening?
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, BBC's guy in Tokyo reports:
In the spring of 2013, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe launched an ambitious growth strategy that rapidly became known as Abenomics. Its aim was to drag Japan's economy out of 20 years of deflation and put it back on the road to growth. Billions of dollars were pumped into the economy through stimulus spending. The Bank of
Read the full article ->

subset: commoncrawl


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The Pharmacist Sign!
Vintage wooden plank sign with sculpted relief. These are made of furniture grade wood planks and professionally printed using proprietary Poly-Arch Lithography.
Each sign art piece is individually made upon order. From cutting and preparing the plank, to painting, screening, hand lettering, and distressing, each is a unique piece of art. The sculpted relief is made entirely in-house by staff artisans.
This sign can be purchased with or without the personalized nameplate. The Nameplate is an additional $19.95.
Upon checkout enter your name and title in the comment box.
Hanging hardware is included for mounting.
Dimensions of Sign: 23.75"x3.5"x19.95"
Item #H0066
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The Family Project
Why do families work? Because God Himself designed them! Thriving families will lead to thriving communities, and thriving communities will transform the world. People will find purpose, joy and redemption; and generation after generation will create a positive legacy.
The Family Project is a 12 session DVD experience for couples or small groups that explores the theological, philosophical, and cultural underpinnings of the traditional family, and combines that information with inspiring stories and practical tools to help 21st-century families thrive.
The Family Project also offers a hope-filled, optimistic antidote to the current landscape of familial breakdown, sending a clear message that a return to the time-tested, historical model of the family is where so many of our culture's wounds begin to heal. It's designed to develop a new appreciation for why family matters…based on a bigger understanding of who God is in His character and why He created humanity the way He did. Equipped with this information, viewers will also be exposed to a wealth of hands-on tools and resources to help them embrace those values within their own families and pass them along to future generations.
Start leading your small group today with our Family Project Resources!
$99.99Buy Now Learn More
Participant's Guide
$12.99Buy Now Learn More
Devotional eBook
Family Project eBook


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NEW YORK – There's speculation that George Soros placed heavy bets against the U.S. causing the market crash.
Rumors are swirling that George Soros, 80, reportedly made a bet of almost $1billion at odds of 100/1 last month that the U.S. would lose its AAA credit rating.
It appears that Soros, famously known as 'the man who broke the Bank of England', may now have decided to try to break the U.S. stock market.
Questions are being asked of whether Soros had inside information before placing the $850million bet in the futures market.
There have been persistent rumors for the last two decades that Soros has manipulated currencies to increase his staggering wealth.
He made more than $1billion on currency speculation when the British pound left the Exchange Rate Mechanism on Black Wednesday in 1992.
He stands to make a profit of $100 billion on the downgrade.
Sources close to people who know Soros say he plans to donate at least $1 billion of it to the re-election campaign of Barack Obama. And $1 billion will be spent on attempting to buy Fox News. And if he can't buy Fox News, he intends to spend $5 billion pursuing legal actions against Fox News.
There are also rumors that Soros may buy a few of the United States (by bailing them out). Soros has his eyes on Rhode Island first, then Illinois and he hopes he can buy the State of California (which already has bids from the Chinese) by the end of the year.
Soros is also looking at buying… Great Britain.
At 80, he still dreams big.


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10. Office Chair Makeover
Our dumpster chair got a makeover and looks so chic and is comfortable. This project turned out so beautiful but gets the number 10 spot since the paint never did adhere very well to the plastic. I learned though and I'll be smarter next time.
9. Bouncy Chair Re-Cover
8. Quilled Monograms
I did three of these this year and I loved them all. If frames weren't expensive and heavy to mail I'd do giveaway after giveaway so I had a reason to keep making them.
7. Craft Shelf
Ana White makes us all feel like furniture building pro's, thanks to her plans my husband and I built this shelf to organize all of my craft supplies, 8 months later I'm even more thrilled with it.
6. Quiet Book
I finished this book so long ago and when Catie was little that I almost forgot to pull it out now that she can finally do a few of the activities. So far she loves to pull the apples off the tree and that's about it. I've made this a Sunday church activity only so we don't play with it during the week but if I forget to put it away Catie will find it and carry it over to me so we can play with the apples. It makes me feel like all that time was worth it.
5. Door to Headboard
This super simple project had problem after problem but the end result was beautiful.
4. Stroller Re-Cover
I felt like this project was my finest work until this point. I was really proud of the sewing and the quality of my work and the before and after is still surprising to me.
3. Art Bucket Tutorial
So many project I do are just ideas I found from another blog but I felt like this idea was fairly original and turned out just how I'd imagined it in my head.
These chairs speak for themselves, the stencil added just the right touch.
Every time I get in the car I see this and I'm still so pleased with it. I think the fabric choice was a great one and like the stroller the sewing was quality and it ended up looking very professional.


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Judicial races can be the hardest part of the ballot to tackle for voters. In fact, you may not even know who's running for the open seat on the Illinois Supreme Court. So, we've assembled the four Democratic candidates battling for the open seat on Illinois' high court.
The issues that the justices rule on are varied, yet they impact us all. Just last summer, the Court upheld the constitutionality of a major infrastructure plan funded by a number of new taxes and video gambling. The justices are currently considering Cook County's assault weapons ban and parental notification for abortions.
Judicial candidates are not allowed to publicly say how they'd rule on any issue. But there's plenty more to talk about. Joining us on Chicago Tonight at 7:00 pm are Supreme Court Justice Mary Jane Theis, who holds a temporary appointment to the seat; Appellate Judge Aurelia Pucinski, who was the former Cook County Circuit Court Clerk; Appellate Judge Joy Cunningham; and attorney Thomas Flannigan.
There is also a Republican vying for this open seat, Judge James Riley, but he is unopposed in the Republican primary.
Click here to learn more about the candidates. Curious to know what happened behind the scenes at the forum and want to hear more from the Supreme Court candidates? Click here for our web-exclusive video forum, blog and photo gallery.


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Rolls-Royce Motor Cars will celebrate a seminal moment in British automotive history on May 4, 2014. Charles Rolls and Henry Royce met for the first time on this date exactly 110 years ago and agreed to form the company that would become synonymous with the very best. Celebrations will take place at the Goodwood Motor Circuit in West Sussex and at The Midland Hotel, Manchester. The Honourable Charles Stewart Rolls was raised in aristocratic privilege, and was an enthusiastic and accomplished motorist – a pioneer in a time when many people thought that motoring was just a fad that would soon pass. He was a shrewd businessman and talented engineer – a true visionary at a time of massive technical advancement. Rolls raced bicycles, motorcycles and motor cars and was an early advocate of aviation, firstly with balloons and then aeroplanes. He funded his sporting activity by running a London-based car sales and service depot, C.S. Rolls and Co. The cars he sold were virtually all imported and Rolls was frustrated by, and often voiced criticism at, the lack of British initiative in this field.
Sir Henry Royce originated from more humble beginnings. One of five children, he helped support his family selling newspapers for W.H. Smith, and then became a telegraph boy for the Post Office, delivering telegrams around London. His luck changed when an aunt offered to pay for an apprenticeship at the Great Northern Railway Works at Peterborough, the cradle of many great British engineers. His apprenticeship, combined with self-taught knowledge, resulted in a job with the Electric Light and Power Company in London and he subsequently set up his own successful engineering business in Manchester. In the early 1900's Royce was also frustrated by the standard of construction and workmanship of motor vehicles of the day and set out to design and build his own car, the 10hp 'Royce'. The car made its first journey from his factory in Manchester to his home in Knutsford, some 15 miles away, on April 1,1904, without issue. Following a suggestion from Claude Johnson, partner at C.S. Rolls and Co., and Henry Edmunds, Director of Royce Ltd, Rolls travelled to Manchester on 4 May 1904 to meet Henry Royce at the Midland Hotel. The meeting went well considering their totally dissimilar backgrounds and a drive in the 10hp car showed Royce that Rolls was well and truly impressed. So much so that Rolls agreed to sell all the cars that Royce could build and came away from the meeting saying, "I have met the greatest engineer in the World." It was also agreed that the cars would be known as Rolls-Royce motor cars.
The famous radiator shape was devised and shortly afterwards the badge of entwined first letters from each man's surname. Royce realised that in Rolls he had found a man who not only understood motor cars but also had the skills of a consummate salesman. On the train journey to Manchester for the meeting, Rolls told Edmunds that he wanted to produce a car connected with his name that would become as much of a household word as Broadwood was among pianofortes, or Chubb among safes. It was a prophetic conversation and little did the two men know that 110 years later Rolls-Royce would still be a household name across the world and be a symbol synonymous with the very best. "The company created by Charles Rolls and Henry Royce had a simple philosophy – the pursuit of excellence – and one that the whole team at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars strives for every day." said Torsten M?ller-?tv?s, Chief Executive, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. "I have no doubt that the company's forefathers would be proud to see the exceptional cars made at the Home of Rolls-Royce at Goodwood, still bearing the linked RR letters."
The 110 Year celebrations will take place at two key locations on May 4, 2014. Three very special contemporary Rolls-Royce motor cars – Wraith, Phantom Coup? and Ghost – will be displayed at the 'Supercar Sunday' Breakfast Club meeting at the Goodwood Motor Circuit, a short distance from the company's Head Office and Manufacturing Plant. A 2014 Rolls-Royce Phantom will join several early heritage Rolls-Royces on display outside the Midland Hotel. The event will be hosted by the Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts' Club.


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Earlier this week I was moved to tears by a letter from Rabbi Arik Ascherman. He is the executive director of Rabbis For Human Rights in Israel. His letter described his organization's solidarity visits to Bir Hadaj – a Bedouin village where Israeli police had fired tear gas into the elementary school – and then to Kibbutz Revavim which has been targeted by Palestinian arsonists and cattle thieves causing great economic loss.
Arik and his colleagues have been working for years to bring about nonviolent, peacemaking conversations between Israelis and Palestinians. He has been the target of criticism, physical abuse and occasional arrest for his efforts in behalf of nonviolent understanding and peaceful solutions between Israelis and Palestinians.
As I read his letter in the light of the escalating intensity between Israel and Gaza this week, my heart ached with the question "How much can one man do?"
On the same morning, I finished reading "CLOUD ATLAS" by David Mitchell.
The book ends with one of the main character's reflections in his journal:
In an individual, selfishness uglifies the human soul; for the human species, selfishness is extinction.
Is this the doom written in our nature?
If we believe that humanity may transcend tooth and claw, if we believe divers races and creeds can share this world as peaceably as the orphans share their candlenut tree, if we believe leaders must be just, violence muzzled, power accountable and the riches of the earth and the oceans shared equitably, such a world will come to pass. It is the hardest of worlds to make real. Torturous advances won over generations can be lost by the single stroke of a myopic president's pen or a vainglorious general's sword.
A life spent shaping a world I want Jackson to inherit, not one I fear Jackson will inherit, this strikes me as a life worth living. Upon my return to San Francisco, I shall pledge myself to the abolitionist cause….I hear my father-in-law's response:
"Oho, fine, Whiggish sentiments, Adam. But don't tell me about justice! Ride to Tennessee on an ass and convince the rednecks they are merely white-washed negroes and their negroes are black-washed whites! Sail to the Old World, tell 'em their imperial slaves' rights are as inalienable as the Queen of Belgium's! Oh, you'll grow hoarse, poor and gray in caucuses! You'll be spat upon, shot at, lynched, pacified with medals, spurned by backwoodsmen! Crucified! Naïve, dreaming Adam. He who would do battle with the many headed hydra of human nature must pay a world of pain and his family must pay it along with him! And only as you gasp your dying breath shall you understand your life amounted to no more than one drop in a limitless ocean!"
Yet what is any ocean but a multitude of drops?
Across the days since I began writing this, the tensions in Israel and Gaza have escalated. Time and again, my heart turns with gratitude to Arik and all the people like him who work to create a world they want for the next generation to inherit not a world they fear the next generation will inherit. Arik and his friends have no time to ask "what can one person do?" They just go out and do it. The little poem I learned as a child keeps echoing quiet notes of hope:
Little drops of water,
Little grains of sand
Make the mighty ocean
And the pleasant land.
As we celebrate the American day of Thanksgiving, my soul gives thanks for all who embrace their drop-like work in behalf of a better world.
Vicky Hanjian


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So men have started to wear pantyhose now.They're called Mantyhose, and there's even a whole website, e-mancipate, dedicated to them. There might be people who find this odd, but when you come to think of it, there's nothing particularly feminine about pantyhose, is there? They're just tights made of a diaphanous material. And men have been wearing them for centuries too, especially in Europe, like medieval court jesters, Henry VII and even Robin Hood.
While several men in the UK and other parts of Europe have already started wearing the garment, the trend is now catching up in the US. Most men prefer to wear them as an extra layer under pants, but the more courageous tend to pair them up with shorts too. Who can deny the benefits of sporting tights? After all they do provide that smooth look to the legs, hiding any bumps and scars. They're pretty comfortable too. Chan Kramer, the founder of e-mancipate, writes, "We believe that pantyhose for men can be an everyday clothing item, and that it can be fashionable as well." And Francesco Cavallini, the vice-president of luxe hosiery company Emilio Cavallini, agrees, "The mantyhose are extremely elastic and stretchable and can fit men comfortably at the top. If it's fine for Italian guys, it's fine for the world."
Pantyhose for men are being sold by other companies too, under different names. Spanx, the company that sells body-shaping undergarment solutions, have a line for men called Manx that helps hide those layers of belly fat from being seen through a shirt. According to e-mancipate, men have great legs too, and they can look fine if covered in mantyhose made of the right colors and material. They also go on to claim that these garments can have health benefits, saying that men who wear them can enjoy higher energy levels, refreshed muscles and greater athletic performance. The website provides a list of companies that make and sell mantyhose to choose from. So girls, now you know exactly what to get your man for his next birthday…
Photos by e-manicipate
via Laughing Squid


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Washington University's Olin Business School is a place where you'll discover and develop your talents. Learn through challenging academics and real-world experiences. Collaborate closely and push yourself to achieve more.
Compare the options that best fit your needs.
Location: Danforth Campus, Knight Hall, 3rd Floor Hours: Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Phone: 314-935-7301 or US toll-free 888-622-5115Fax: 314-935-4464Admissions email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Mailing AddressOlin Business SchoolMBA Admissions, Box 1156Washington University1 Brookings DriveSaint Louis, MO 63130


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Doctors and nutritionists have long associated the Mediterranean diet with human health benefits, including a lower risk of Alzheimer's disease. A recent study of 1,880 elderly people living in New York City, for example, showed that those who strongly adhered to a Mediterranean diet over the study's 14-year span had a 32 to 40 percent lower incidence of Alzheimer's compared with those who did not.
Extra virgin olive oil seems to be one of the main factors behind this risk reduction. People adhering to a Mediterranean diet consume up to 50 milliliters (around one fifth of a cup) of the fragrant green liquid a day. Previously, researchers assumed this benefit came from extra virgin olive oil's high concentration of monounsaturated fatty acids. But in 2005 scientists discovered that oleocanthal—the naturally occurring compound that elicits a peppery, burning sensation in the back of the throat—seemed to produce effects strikingly similar to those of ibuprofen, which tamps down inflammation. Since then, investigators have turned their attention to the potential benefits of this particular compound.
Some studies have shown that oleocanthal interferes with the formation of characteristic neurofibrillary tangles and beta-amyloid plaques, both of which play principal roles in Alzheimer's neurological devastation. Research published online in ACS Chemical Neuroscience in February offers new details on how the compound works. The study authors applied different concentrations of oleocanthal over three days to mouse brain cell cultures. They also administered oleocanthal to live mice—the first time such an experiment has been done—every day for two weeks. In both trials, levels of two proteins that play major roles in transporting beta-amyloid out of the brain as well as enzymes that degrade beta-amyloid increased significantly after administering oleocanthal.
The researchers also introduced beta-amyloid to the live mice brains. Compared with control groups, the mice that were given oleocanthal showed significantly enhanced clearance and degradation of the beta-amyloid peptides. "We're trying to further understand oleocanthal's mechanism and maybe eventually try to find compounds that can work in the same way for drug development," says Amal K. Kaddoumi, an assistant professor of pharmaceutics at the University of Louisiana at Monroe and one of the paper's authors. The findings, she notes, most likely have more application for Alzheimer's prevention than treatment. She also thinks that other factors, besides high olive oil consumption, account for the so-called Mediterranean miracle, such as exercise and the large helpings of fresh vegetables that people in that region regularly consume.
Oleocanthal is one of several compounds that scientists have been working with to clear beta-amyloid from the brain. Others include an older skin cancer drug that last year helped alleviate Alzheimer's symptoms in mice and antibodies that bind directly to beta-amyloid and remove it. "This paper is beginning to close in on what the specific components are in these more nutraceutical remedies that are actually helping us," says Kenneth S. Kosik of the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Kosik points out, however, that until clinical trials in humans take place, people must be cautious in interpreting the results. Kaddoumi's group is working to secure funding for just such clinical trials.


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Sign on letter - Require Accuracy for NCIC
Require Accuracy for Nation's Largest Criminal Justice Database
- A broad coalition of organizations across the United States has endorsed a letter urging the reestablishment of accuracy requirements for the FBI's National Crime Information Center (NCIC), the nation's largest criminal justice database.
- More than 3,000 individuals from 47 states and the District of Columbia have signed an online petition to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) also supporting the Privacy Act accuracy requirements.
- The petition drive will continue until the OMB acts on the request. Individuals may sign petition online at: http://www.petitiononline.com/ncic/petition.html
[1] Summary - Require Accuracy for NCIC
[2] Joint Letter for Organizations
[3] Online Petition for Individuals
[4] References - DOJ Information on NCIC
The Justice Department has administratively discharged the FBI of its statutory duty to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the over 39 million criminal records it maintains in its National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database. This action poses significant risks to privacy and effective law enforcement.
The NCIC system provides over 80,000 law enforcement agencies with access to data on wanted persons, missing persons, gang members, as well as information about stolen cars, boats, and other information. The Privacy Act of 1974 requires the FBI to make reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the records in the NCIC system. Now, the Justice Department has exempted the system from the accuracy requirements of this important law.
We believe it is particularly important to ensure that Privacy Act obligations are applied to government record systems as the government considers dramatic expansion of record-keeping systems and the incorporation of private sector databases that are frequently inaccurate and unreliable.
The Privacy Act should continue to govern the maintenance and use of this important law enforcement database.
ORGANIZATIONS: Please send email to email@example.com with
- Name
- Title
- Affiliation
- Email and phone numbers
The deadline for signing on is Monday, April 7, 2003 by 6:00 p.m.
INDIVIDUALS: To sign on, go to http://www.petitiononline.com/ncic/petition.html.
Thank you for your support.
Marc Rotenberg, EPIC Executive Director
Kerry Smith, EPIC IPIOP Fellow
Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr.
Director, Office of Management and Budget
725 17th Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20503
Dear Mr. Daniels:
We are writing to request that the OMB exercise its oversight responsibilities under 5 U.S.C. §552 by reviewing and revising the FBI's recent rule exempting the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) system from the accuracy requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974. [1]
The NCIC database provides over 80,000 law enforcement agencies with access to a computerized network of more than 39 million records regarding criminal activity. For the past thirty years, the FBI has operated the NCIC database with the Privacy Act accuracy requirement in place. The relevant provision requires that any agency that maintains a system of records, "maintain all records which are used by the agency in making any determination about any individual with such accuracy, relevance, timeliness, and completeness as is reasonably necessary to assure fairness to the individuals in the determination." [2] Circumventing that statutory obligation poses significant risks not only for individuals whose record files may be part of this data system, but also for communities that rely on law enforcement to employ effective, reliable tools for ensuring public safety. Accordingly, the OMB should request that the FBI continue to follow the obligations of the Privacy Act.
The NCIC database was first established by the FBI, under the direction of J. Edgar Hoover, in 1967. The purpose for maintaining the system is to facilitate the quick exchange of information about crimes and criminal activities between various law enforcement agencies. The FBI recently spent $182 million to modernize the data system. It now provides law enforcement agencies with instant access to fingerprinting and mugshot images. It also continues to include information on stolen vehicles and other articles; persons with outstanding felony and misdemeanor warrants; missing persons; suspected gang members; suspected terrorists; and individuals' arrest records.
NCIC is used by a broad range of criminal justice agencies, from top federal law enforcement officials to municipal police. During its first year of implementation, approximately 2 million inquiries were processed. Since then, its use has grown significantly. In March 2002, the FBI set a new record for inquiries processed in one day, responding to 3,295,587 requests. On average, there are 2.8 million transaction processed each day, with an average response time of 0.16 seconds. As a result, any error in the NCIC database can spread across the country in less than a second. [3]
Several well publicized incidents demonstrate the consequences of inaccurate and incomplete information in the NCIC. In one case, a Los Angeles man was arrested five times, three at gun point, due to an error in the NCIC. [4] In another, a Phoenix resident, who was pulled over for driving the wrong way down a one-way street, was arrested after an NCIC inquiry erroneously revealed an outstanding misdemeanor arrest warrant that had been quashed weeks earlier. [5] These incidents, and others like it, reveal the potential harms that individuals may face if the records in the NCIC database are not accurate. These incidents demonstrate that the FBI should work to improve the accuracy of this system of records, rather than administratively exempt itself of this important duty.
Indeed, one of the major purposes behind the enactment of the Privacy Act was to guard against these harms by establishing standards for the quality of data the government collects about individuals. In passing the Act, Congress found that "the opportunities for an individual to secure employment, insurance, and credit, and his rights to due process, and other legal protections are endangered by the misuse of certain information systems," and therefore "it is necessary and proper for the Congress to regulate the collection, maintenance, use and dissemination of information by such agencies." [6] To that end, Congress passed the Act to ensure, among other things, that any information held by the government would be "current and accurate for its intended use." [7]
Since the passage of the Privacy Act thirty years ago, there has been general agreement that the FBI would go forward with the NCIC database, provided that it comply with the Act's obligations. Now, the FBI effectively seeks to sever that agreement, suddenly asserting that "it is impossible to determine in advance what information is accurate, relevant, timely and complete." [8] This is a sharp, historical departure. The Privacy Act should continue to operate for this important set of records.
The obligations of the Privacy Act are important not only for the individuals who may have records in the NCIC database, but also for the effectiveness of the data system itself as a law enforcement tool. In Arizona v. Evans, the Supreme Court held that the Fourth Amendment's exclusionary rule did not require the suppression of evidence obtained during an arrest that was based upon false information in the NCIC database. Justice O'Connor, writing in concurrence, asserted that it would be unreasonable, however, for a police department to depend upon a record keeping system that has no accuracy safeguards and routinely leads to false arrests. [9] She said that if the police blindly relied on a data system without adequate mechanisms to ensure its accuracy, then courts could prohibit the use of any evidence obtained in an arrest resulting from erroneous information in the database. In the case before the Court, O'Connor believed that the police department's reliance on NCIC was reasonable. Nevertheless, she indicated that if procedures were not in place to help ensure the accuracy of the data, evidence collected during those arrests could be suppressed. Her concurrence underscores how the Privacy Act's data quality requirements serve as an important mechanism for ensuring the legitimate, effective use of the NCIC database for law enforcement activities. The FBI's unilateral decision to exempt this data system from the accuracy obligations of the Privacy Act puts criminal justice agencies at risk of unreasonably relying on inaccurate, incomplete information.
Given the risks inaccurate NCIC data poses to both individuals and law enforcement agencies, the F.B.I. should continue to comply with the obligations of the Privacy Act. We ask that the OMB evaluate the effect of the FBI's rule on the rights of individuals, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. §552a(r), and request that the FBI rescind its decision to exempt the NCIC database from the obligations of the Privacy Act.
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
American Association of Law Libraries
American Civil Liberties Union
American Library Association
Annabelle Foundation
Arab American Institute
Arizona Breakfast Club
Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
Association of Research Libraries
The Bronx Defenders
Center for Cognitive Liberty & Ethics
Center for Constitutional Rights
Center for Democracy and Technology
Center for National Security Studies
Coastal Women's Shelter
Collective Heritage Institute
Colorado Coalition Against Domestic Violence
Competitive Enterprise Institute
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility
Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence
Connecticut Sexual Assault Crisis Services
Consumer Action
Consumers Against Privacy Invasion and Numbering
Consumer Task Force for Automotive Issues
Council on American-Islamic Relations
CryptoRights Foundation
Denver Domestic Violence Task Force
Domain Name Rights Coalition
Domestic Violence and Mental Health Policy Initiative
Domestic Violence Center of Santa Clarita Valley
Domestic Violence Coordinating Council of California
Drug Policy Alliance
Electronic Frontier Foundation
Electronic Privacy Information Center
Fairfax County Privacy Council
Family Relations Program
Financial Resources for Women and Children
Gang Reduction, Awareness, Prevention and Education
Greater Chattanooga Coalition Against Domestic & Community Violence
Green Party of Clark County, Washington
Gun Owners of America
Human Options
Human Rights Watch
Identity Theft Resource Center
The Institute for Publishing Arts
Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence
Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence
League of Women Voters of Collier County, Florida
Maine Educators Against Fingerprinting
Marjaree Mason Center
Maryland Coalition Against Sexual Assault
Mint Green Ribbon for the Awareness of Abuse
The Multiracial Activist
National Alliance to End Sexual Violence
National Coalition Against Domestic Violence
National Consumers League
National H.I.R.E. Network, Helping Individuals with criminal records Reenter through Employment
National Immigration Law Center
National Network to End Domestic Violence
Nevada Public Health Foundation
New Mexico Chapter, National Organization for Women
New York Office of the Appellate Defender
New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence
New York State Coalition Against Sexual Assault Options
People For the American Way
Privacy Journal
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
Privacy Rights Now Coalition
Rape Recovery Center of Utah
Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force
Statewide California Coalition for Battered Women
Sojourn Services for Battered Women and Their Children
South Carolina Hispanic Outreach
Sure Helpline Rape Crisis Center
Texas Association Against Sexual Assault
Texas Chapter, National Association of Social Workers
Unified Solutions Coaching & Consulting Group
Union of American Hebrew Congregations
U.S. Association for Computing Machinery, Public Policy Committee
Utne Magazine
Vermont Network Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
Virginians Aligned Against Sexual Assault
Virginia Citizens Defense League
Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault
The Honorable Susan M. Collins, Chair,
Senate Governmental Affairs Committee
The Honorable Joseph I. Lieberman, Ranking Member,
Senate Governmental Affairs Committee
The Honorable Thomas M. Davis, Chair,
House Government Reform Committee
The Honorable Henry A. Waxman, Ranking Member,
House Government Reform Committee
[1] This final rule also exempts the Central Records System and National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime systems from accuracy requirements of the Privacy Act. Privacy Act of 1974; Implementation, 68 Fed. Reg. 14140 (Mar. 24, 2003) (to be codified as 28 C.F.R. pt. 16).
[2] 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(5).
[3] See Arizona v. Evans, 514 U.S. 1, 28 (1995) (Ginsburg, J., dissenting).
[4] See Rogan v. Los Angeles, 668 F. Supp. 1384 (C.D. Cal. 1987).
[5] See Arizona v. Evans, 514 U.S. 1 (1995).
[6] Congressional Findings and Statement of Purpose, Pub. L. No. 93-579, §2(a)(3) & (5) (1974)
[7] Id. at §2(b)(4).
[8] 68 Fed. Reg. at 14140.
[9] See Evans, 514 U.S. at 16-17.
Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr.
Director, Office of Management and Budget
725 17th Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20503
Dear Mr. Daniels:
We strongly oppose the Justice Department's recent decision to lift the Privacy Act requirement that the FBI ensure the accuracy and completeness of the over 39 million criminal records it maintains in its National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database. This action poses significant risks to both privacy and effective law enforcement.
Over 80,000 law enforcement agencies have access to the NCIC system. The database includes records on wanted persons, missing persons, gang members, citizen arrest records, as well as information about stolen cars, boats, and other information. The Privacy Act of 1974 requires the FBI to make reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the records in the NCIC system. Now, the Justice Department has exempted the system from the accuracy requirements of this important law.
There have been several well publicized cases of innocent persons being subject to false arrest due to inaccurate information in the NCIC system. The Supreme Court has also expressed concern about reliance on inaccurate records in the NCIC.
We believe it is particularly important to ensure that Privacy Act obligations are applied to government record systems as the government considers dramatic expansion of record-keeping systems and the incorporation of private sector databases that are frequently inaccurate and unreliable.
The FBI should work to improve the accuracy and completeness of the NCIC, rather than exempt itself from its well established legal obligations. We urge the OMB to exercise its oversight responsibility and require the Justice Department to comply with the Privacy Act obligations for the NCIC. The Privacy Act should continue to govern the maintenance and use of this important law enforcement database.
DOJ Information on NCIC:
The FBI National Crime Information Center (NCIC) 2000
FBI Announces the Implementation of NCIC 2000, July 15, 1999
NCIC and the Freedom of Information Act
U.S. Department of Justice, NCIC 2000 Newsletters
The Investigator, National Crime Information Center: 30 Years on the Beat, Dec. 1996-1997 Issue, available at the FBI Library
U.S. Department of Justice, Use and Management of Criminal History Record Information: A Comprehensive Report, 1993.
Additional Information on NCIC:
Federation of American Scientists, NCIC Information
The Associated Press, Justice Department Lifts FBI Database Limits
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text:
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--American International Group, Inc. (NYSE: AIG) today made the following announcement regarding the demand served on the AIG Board of Directors related to lawsuits filed by Starr International Company, Inc. (Starr) contesting certain terms of the U.S. Government's rescue of AIG in September 2008.
In accordance with Delaware law and the proceedings before Judges Thomas C. Wheeler and Paul A. Engelmayer in the lawsuits that Starr has initiated, the AIG Board has considered Starr's demand that AIG pursue the shareholder derivative claims belonging to AIG that Starr has alleged against the United States of America and the Federal Reserve Board of New York.
The AIG Board has determined to refuse Starr's demand in its entirety, and will neither pursue these claims itself nor permit Starr to pursue them in AIG's name.
AIG expects to file with the courts a formal statement detailing the Board's determination and the reasons underlying it in the coming weeks.
"In considering and ultimately refusing the demand before us, the Board of Directors properly and fully executed our fiduciary and legal obligations to AIG and its shareholders," said Robert S. "Steve" Miller, Chairman of the AIG Board of Directors. "America invested in 62,000 AIG employees, and we kept our promise to rebuild this great company, repay every dollar America invested in us, and deliver a profit to those who put their trust in us. To date, AIG has returned $205 billion to America, including a profit of $22.7 billion. We continue to thank America for its support."
American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is a leading international insurance organization serving customers in more than 130 countries and jurisdictions. AIG companies serve commercial, institutional, and individual customers through one of the most extensive worldwide property-casualty networks of any insurer. In addition, AIG companies are leading providers of life insurance and retirement services in the United States. AIG common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Additional information about AIG can be found at www.aig.com | YouTube: www.youtube.com/aig |Twitter: @AIG_LatestNews| LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/aig |


text: LAS VEGAS - Criminals running an ATM card-skimming scam made a big mistake this week: They tried to hit the Defcon hacker conference in Las Vegas.As the conference was kicking off a few days ago, attendees noticed that at ATM placed in the Riviera Hotel, which plays host to the annual event, didn't quite look right, according to a senior conference organizer who identified himself only as Priest. "They looked at the screen where there would normally be a camera," he said. "It was a little bit too dark, so someone shined a flashlight in there and there was a PC."The ATM looked like a working system, but when people would put their cards in the machine, it would scan their card information and record the PIN numbers they entered. He didn't know how long the ATM had been at the Riviera.Conference organizers notified local law enforcement who hauled away the machine on "Thursday or Friday," said Priest, who said he works as a "civil servant" in his day job.Credit card skimmers -- small devices installed on top of card readers to steal information -- and fake ATM machines are a common problem. Once the criminal records the card information and PIN number, he can use that to create a fake ATM card and then empty the victim's account.Previously unsophisticated criminal gangs are increasingly using these devices, Priest said. "They're realizing that this is a great way to make money without getting caught."The criminals probably didn't realize that they were installing their ATM in a hotel that was soon going to be flooded with more than 8,000 security professionals, he added.They were smart enough to place the machine in one of the few spots in the hotel where there was no security camera to catch them, Priest said. "It was literally right next to the hotel security entrance."


text:
Sitting in the back of a stretch limousine cruising through Paris, an actor named Oscar prepares for one of the many roles he will play that day: a beggar woman, a gangster, a concerned father, a wistful lover, an old man on his deathbed and the anarchic Monsieur Merde, a beast who kidnaps Eva Mendes from a glamour shoot in Père Lachaise Cemetery for an interlude in his underground lair. Writer-director Leos Carax's surreal cinema trip runs mad, hysterical and naked through Hollywood and Continental film tropes, but first and foremost, it's a glorious show reel for its star, Denis Lavant. Carax's favorite actor and alter ego, Lavant uses the limo as his makeup room, applying extravagant disguises to slip into his 10 or more characters. Watch him perform martial-arts stunts in the motion-capture scene and wander to the roof of an abandoned department store with Kylie Minogue. Like the limo and the movie, Lavant is never less than transporting.
Arts & Entertainment
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6. Denis Lavant as the Actor in Holy Motors
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- 3. Game of Thrones, "Blackwater"
- 2. Community, "Digital Estate Planning"
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text:
For Immediate Release Contact email@example.com
November 26, 2012
Combines Industry Leading Technology and Education to Help Manage Dose
CHICAGO, Nov. 26, 2012 – To ensure the lowest possible CT radiation dose without compromising image quality, Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc. launches PROTECT. PROTECT is a three-year, comprehensive CT radiation dose management program to help customers achieve ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable) imaging with Toshiba's AquilionTM CT product line.
PROTECT combines Toshiba's technology solutions with its renowned education and support. Through in-person collaboration, Toshiba experts will review the system's hardware and software and consider implementation of additional dose reduction technologies. These technologies include AIDR 3D, VeloCT console and leveraging Toshiba's partnerships with Radimetrics and Phoenix Technology Corporation. Toshiba's education and training will allow healthcare facilities to maximize their technology throughout its lifetime.
"Toshiba's PROTECT program benefits both radiologists and patients," said John Mycek, director, Imaging Services, Kaleida Health Care System. "The program provides us the technology, education and training to maintain diagnostic image quality while limiting the risk of dose to patients."
"As the company offering a simplified dose reduction solution for all patients across all platforms and backing it with robust training and education, PROTECT is our commitment to making CT imaging safer for all patients," said Satrajit Misra, senior director, CT Business Unit, Toshiba. "With customizable options, PROTECT is tailored to meet the specific needs of our customers."
Toshiba unveiled the PROTECT Program at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) annual meeting in Chicago, Nov. 25 – 30, 2012 (Booth #3438, South Hall).
About Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc.
With headquarters in Tustin, Calif., Toshiba America Medical Systems (TAMS) markets, sells, distributes and services radiology and cardiovascular systems, including CT, MR, ultrasound, X-ray and cardiovascular equipment, and coordinates clinical diagnostic imaging research for all modalities in the United States. For more information, visit the TAMS website at www.medical.toshiba.com.
About Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation
Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation is a leading worldwide provider of medical diagnostic imaging systems and comprehensive medical solutions, such as CT, X-ray and vascular, ultrasound, nuclear medicine and MRI systems, as well as information systems for medical institutions. Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation has been providing medical products for over 80 years. Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of Toshiba.
About Toshiba
Toshiba is a world-leading diversified manufacturer, solutions provider and marketer of advanced electronic and electrical products and systems. Toshiba Group brings innovation and imagination to a wide range of businesses: digital products, including LCD TVs, notebook PCs, retail solutions and MFPs; electronic devices, including semiconductors, storage products and materials; industrial and social infrastructure systems, including power generation systems, smart community solutions, medical systems and escalators & elevators; and home appliances.
Toshiba was founded in 1875, and today operates a global network of more than 550 consolidated companies, with 202,000 employees worldwide and annual sales surpassing 6.1 trillion yen (US$74 billion). Visit Toshiba's website at www.toshiba.co.jp/index.htm.


text:
Developer and publisher Valve has confirmed the rumours of a brand new game in the Counter Strike series.
Called Counter Strike: Global Offensive, it's due out not only on PC and Mac but also as a downloadable game on both Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network in early 2012.
It includes brand new maps, game modes, characters and weapons but is very much being sold as an updated version of the existing game.
"Counter-Strike took the gaming industry by surprise when the unlikely MOD became the most played online PC action game in the world almost immediately after its release in August 1999," Valve marketing chief Doug Lombardi stated.
"For the past 12 years, it has continued to be one of the most played games in the world, headline competitive gaming tournaments and selling over 25 million units worldwide across the franchise.
"CS: GO promises to expand on the CS' award-winning gameplay and deliver it to gamers on the PC as well as the next gen consoles and the Mac."


text:
Château d'Yquem
|Château d'Yquem
|Wine region
|Sauternes, Gironde
|Known for
|Château d'Yquem (prestige)
Ygrec (dry white, since 1959)
|Sémillon, Sauvignon blanc
Château d'Yquem (French: [ʃɑto dikɛm]) is a Premier Cru Supérieur (Fr: "Superior First Growth") wine from the Sauternes, Gironde region in the southern part of the Bordeaux vineyards known as Graves. In the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855, Château d'Yquem was the only Sauternes given this rating, indicating its perceived superiority and higher prices over all other wines of its type. Yquem's success stems largely from the site's susceptibility to attack by "noble rot" (a particular kind of infestation by Botrytis cinerea).
Wines from Château d'Yquem are characterised by their complexity, concentration and sweetness, which is balanced by relatively high acidity. With proper care, a bottle will keep for a century or more,[1] and the fruity overtones will gradually fade and integrate with more complex secondary and tertiary flavours.[2]
Since 1959, Château d'Yquem has also produced a dry white wine called Ygrec (Fr: the letter "Y"), made predominantly from Sauvignon blanc and a few lots of Sémillon. It was originally produced only in select years; since 2004 it has been produced every year.[1][3]
Chateau d'Yquem was acquired by Jacques de Sauvage in December 1593. De Sauvage acquired the property from the French monarchy by exchanging other lands that he owned for what was then referred to as the 'House of Yquem'. The site has been home to a vineyard since at least 1711 when the estate became fully owned by Léon de Sauvage d'Yquem. In 1785 it passed to the Lur-Saluces family when Françoise-Joséphine de Sauvage d'Yquem married Count Louis-Amédée de Lur-Saluces, a godson of Louis XV and Lady Victoire de France. Monsieur Lur-Saluces died three years later, and his wife subsequently focused her energy on sustaining[4] and improving the estate.[2]
While Minister Plenipotentiary to France, Thomas Jefferson visited the château and later wrote, "Sauterne.[sic] This is the best white wine of France and the best of it is made by Monsieur de Lur-Saluces."[2] Jefferson ordered 250 bottles of the 1784 vintage for himself, and additional bottles for George Washington. However, at that time the technique of allowing noble rot to infect grapes had not yet been discovered, so the wine Jefferson was drinking was a different and less sweet wine .[citation needed]
The 1811 Château d'Yquem, a comet vintage, has exhibited what wine experts like Robert Parker have described as exceptional longevity with Parker scoring the wine a perfect 100 points when tasted in 1996.[5]
Since 1968[edit]
After the 1968 death of the Marquis Bernard de Lur-Saluces, the château was run by Comte Alexandre de Lur-Saluces, a minority (7%) owner.[6] The Comte inherited a typical annual production of 66,000 bottles a year.[6] After the 1973 oil crisis, demand fell and prices plummeted. The price of a bottle of d'Yquem dropped to 35 francs; prices began to rise only in the 1980s.[6]
Under the Comte's leadership, "tractors replaced horses, collapsing cellars were renovated, and unused acreage was planted", with production in good years reaching 100,000 bottles and sales about $10 million.[6]
Following a bitter family feud and the decision of Eugene de Lur-Saluces (Alexandre's other brother) to sell part of his 47% share of the business, on 28 November 1996, to the French luxury goods giant LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton bought 55% of Château d'Yquem from the family of the Comte Alexandre de Lur-Saluces for about $100 million.[6] The Comte, after first challenging the sale in court for over two years,[6] was kept as the manager of the estate.
On 17 May 2004, the Comte retired and was replaced by the current managing director of Château Cheval Blanc, Pierre Lurton. The Comte had been known for being particularly dedicated towards maintaining quality, going so far as to reject an entire batch of the wine if he did not like the results of a randomised testing.
In 2006, a 135-year vertical (containing every vintage from 1860 to 2003) was sold by The Antique Wine Company in London for $1.5 million, one of the highest prices ever paid for a single lot of wine.[7] Also that year, Dior and Château d'Yquem together created a skin care product made from the sap of the Yquem vines.[8]
In July 2011, an 1811 bottle of Château d'Yquem sold for £75,000 ($117,000) at The Ritz Hotel, London to a private collector, Christian Vannequé, to become the most expensive bottle of white wine ever sold.[9][10]
The vineyard has 126 hectares (310 acres) in the Sauternes appellation, though only 100 hectares (250 acres) are in production at any time. Each year, vines from two to three hectares are grubbed up and left fallow for a year. Since grapes from newly planted vines are not worthy of the chateau name for five to seven years, about 20 hectares are held in reserve each year. The vines consist of 80% Sémillon and 20% Sauvignon blanc, though the latter's vigour implies the proportions are more nearly equal in the final wine.
Harvesting is carefully timed, and on average six tries through the vineyard are undertaken each year to ensure that only the botrytized grapes are selected. The yield averages nine hectolitres per hectare (2.5 acres), compared to the usual twelve to twenty hectolitres per hectare in Sauternes. The grapes are pressed three times and transferred to oak barrels for maturation over a period of about three years.
On average, 65,000 bottles are produced each year. In a poor vintage, the entire crop is deemed unworthy of bearing the Château's name and sold anonymously; this happened nine times in the 20th century: 1910, 1915, 1930, 1951, 1952, 1964, 1972, 1974, and 1992 and in the 21st century one time: 2012.[11][12]
|Great vintages
|Years without vintages
See also[edit]
- Echikson, William (2004). Noble rot: A Bordeaux Wine Revolution. New York: W.W. Norton. Chapters 7, 11.
- Amon, Michael. Yquem oder Schlafende Konten, eDITION vortschritt, Wien 2011, Roman/Novel (german Language), überarbeitete Neuauflage. Michael Amon
- Footnotes
- ^ a b Coates, Clive (1995). Grands Vins: The Finest Châteaux of Bordeaux and Their Wines. University of California Press. pp. 525–531. ISBN 978-0-520-20220-7.
- ^ a b c Lichine, Alexis (1967). Alexis Lichine's Encyclopedia of Wines and Spirits. London: Cassell & Company Ltd. pp. 562–563.
- ^ "Château d'Yquem". Château d'Yquem. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
- ^ "Chateau d'Yquem". Retrieved 7 November 2010.
- ^ Harding, Graham (2005). A Wine Miscellany. New York: Clarkson Potter Publishing. pp. 45–47. ISBN 0-307-34635-8
- ^ a b c d e f "A Vineyard's Bitter Fruit". Bloomberg BusinessWeek. 13 November 2000. Archived from the original on 17 December 2000. Retrieved 24 April 2010.
- ^ vinfolio.com, The Wine Collector, 1860–2003 vertical of Yquem sells for $1.5 million Archived 17 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ sybarites.org Dior and Château d'Yquem Create L'Or de Vie Anti Aging Cream Together
- ^ "Bottle bank: world's most expensive white wine sold for £75,000". The Guardian. London. 26 July 2011.
- ^ Chow, Jason (26 July 2011). "Bottle of White Sells for Record $117,000". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ Chateau d'Yquem (Information booklet from the chateau, 30 June 2010). Sauternes: LVMH. May 2010. p. 10.
- ^ "Chateau d'Yquem will not make 2012 vintage". Decanter.com. 18 December 2012. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
- ^ Yquem Grand Cru Archived 21 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 15 October 2012
- ^ Coates, Clive (2004). The Wines of Bordeaux. University of California Press. pp. 248-249. ISBN 0-520-23573-8
External links[edit]
- Château d'Yquem official site (in French and English)


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The Centre for Food & Health Studies' New Nutrition Business has released its annual report of predicted food, nutrition and health trends for the upcoming year. "10 Key Trends in Food, Nutrition & Health 2009" gathers research data over the course of the year and an estimated 350 interviews with industry executives. (Full report available here.)
The 10 trends identified in the report are:
- Digestive health
- Feel the benefit
- Weight management
- Energy
- Naturally healthy
- Fruit: the future of functional foods
- Kids' nutrition
- Snacking
- Target the loyal niches
- Packaging and premiumization
This year's report also added five "Micro-Trends," that are referenced as "secondary opportunities and challenges which are not essential but useful to understand." These are:
- Movement
- Omega-3
- Skin and beauty
- Mood food
- Antioxidants
According to the report, the unpredictable economy re-emphasizes the importance of coupling science with the ingredient and flavor industry as well as effective marketing and education techniques. In fact, New Nutrition Business cites the current economic downturn as a major factor in the future of food, nutrition and health, believing that it could provide a sort "cleansing" process for the industry by "reinforcing" core nutrition trends and principles while likely abolishing "fads." This notion supports the report's constant emphasis on combining proven science with quality ingredients and effective marketing.
In order for companies to survive, particularly ingredient suppliers/distributors, the report advises stakeholders to focus on the consumer and create concepts that make sense to the mass market. Swedish brand strategist Peter Wennström offers "four factors of success" for companies to consider in today's market. They are:
- The product must be in a format that matches the consumer's lifestyle.
- The product should offer a benefit that is relevant to them.
- Ingredients should be acceptable to the mass market.
- Any brand must be one consumers can trust.
Digestive Health
According to the report, digestive health holds the number one trend spot due to the fact that it is the "single largest area of functional foods markets in Europe, Japan and South America", and may soon dominate the US market as well. The reasons digestive health is such a dominant trend vary, and are heavily interwoven. The "most important" issue is difficult to identify, as they all point back to the theme of balance between science, ingredients and flavor, and marketing and education. However, the primary success of the digestive health factor listed in the report are:
- It is considered a "wellness issue" instead of a "death and disease" issue.
- It is important to everyone, not just a particular segment of the market.
- The products provide results that the consumer is able to feel quickly and easily.
Take for example, Dannon's Activia yogurt. A market report in 2004 identified the United States as "uninterested" in digestive health products and deemed the category as "difficult to market." Activia launched in the United States in January 2006, and earned an estimated $130 million in the first year alone with the "Activia two-week challenge" marketing campaign. Dannon was an already trusted brand that utilized marketing tools to promote the science behind the product.
Ingredient formulators will need to watch: probiotics, prebiotics and fiber.
Feel the Benefit
Products able to offer tangible results in a short amount of time are perceived as having more value than other products, a key element of success in the current market. The report cites the dual importance of keeping product "promises" simple and standing behind the product by offering a guarantee or free trial period.
Weight Management
The third trend emphasizes a "fresh opportunity in a mature industry." Weight management offers the opportunity for mass appeal by focusing on living a healthy lifestyle instead of dieting and weight loss. The products may offer the fringe benefit of weight loss, but the key to success is to focus on lifestyle. The report notes that the trend towards weight loss and dieting in Europe and America is fading, replaced by more consumer- and health-friendly weight management. Weight management covers consumers who prefer to maintain their current weight or those who may only need to lose a small amount of weight. The key to success in this category, according to the report, is for the product to provide satiety. Satiety provides the instant benefits necessary to create loyal consumers.
Protein, whey protein and dairy are listed as the ingredients with the most potential for growth in the weight management category. Waters, juices and nutrition bars that provide satiety are among the key applications.
The report notes energy as a trend with "new market segments awaiting discovery." Similar to the concept of weight management being more of a lifestyle change than a quick fix, the report references feeling energetic as "one of the most basic self-descriptions of wellness in health psychology." Consumers associate energy with health, providing the opportunity to expand a category currently dominated by heavily caffeinated, high-sugar beverages.
According to the report, the potential for growth in this category is unlimited, even with an uneven economic climate. The majority of energy drinks are currently marketed primarily towards younger men, thus leaving the door open for an energy drink focusing again on lifestyle instead of a quick fix.
Ingredients for formulators to keep an eye on: guarana, ginseng, green tea, B vitamins, juice, fruits and dairy.
Though the ingredients of a product may seem the most important element of this trend, marketing, packaging and consumer education are vital for success, particularly if the product utilizes a new or "unusual" ingredient.
Wheat, gluten, soy, diary, lactose, additives, preservatives, colors, fruit and probiotics are ingredients formulators will have to keep an eye on with this phenomenon.
Fruit: the Future of Functional Food
Fruit and fruit drinks are listed in this report as "the key driver of the future of functional foods." The heart of this trend is the ability of the market to communicate the benefits of fruit and to capitalize on it as a beneficial ingredient instead of just a flavor.
Ingredients for formulators to watch: fruits that provide benefits such as energy, inflammation reduction, glucose uptake, sports recovery, digestive health and immunity.
Making Parent's Lives Easier is Key to the Kids Market
New Nutrition Business lists three identified elements for this trend:
- Something the child will want to eat.
- Free from "bad" ingredients.
- Focused and effective communication.
The potential for mass success of this trend is unlimited, based on the fact that parents worldwide have many of the same concerns regarding their children's health and nutrition. If ingredients and health benefits are communicated to parents in a clear and concise manner and are cost effective, the market potential is extensive.
Ingredients for formulators to watch: all-natural, free-from, vitamins, immunity boosters.
Healthy Snacking for the "Me Generation"
Ninety percent of US consumers snack, notes the report, while only 75% eat breakfast. The potential for the "fourth meal" is clear. Snacking drives new product development, and as with all other categories, healthy snacking must be convenient. In addition, consumers will pay more for products that limit fat and calories. Meanwhile, the public has fractious health strategies, so niche approaches will become increasingly popular. The report concludes: "It is better to be a successful niche brand earning superior profit margins in many markets than to try to be a price-fighting, low-margin mass-market brand in one market."
Packaging and Premiumization
The report concludes by underscoring a strategy of healthy product launches that can build loyalty and repeat purchases. As stated above, niche is the key. "Brands targeted at the most health-conscious niches have thrived even in very price-sensitive markets," the report notes, "even at premium prices, and benefit from loyal buyers. For any brand to achieve a premium price point it must both score very highly on convenience and connect to other key trends."


text: Johanna Bernardina Midderigh-Bokhorst illustrated children's books like 'Het Boek van St. Nicolaas' during the 1920s and 1930s. She also illustrated several books in the collection 'Voor School en Huis', with rhymes by Anna Sutorius, and books in the collection 'Voor 't Kleine Volkje' with texts by S. Gruys Kruseman. She was an illustrator for the children's magazine Zonneschijn. She was one of the teachers of illustrator Mies Deinum.


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- 50+ 5-Star Reviews
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Pembroke Pines Water Damage Restoration & RepairUnited Restoration provides water damage restoration & repair to homeowners and businesses throughout Pembroke Pines. United Restoration water damage restoration specialists service the greater Pembroke Pines area. We are available 24/7.
A Commitment to Pembroke Pines Businesses & HomesUnited Restoration was founded on a commitment to provide Pembroke Pines businesses and homes the most immediate water damage restoration & repair. United Restoration water damage restoration specialists are trained in FEMA & IICRC best practices. Our water damage repair equipment is state-of-the-art.
Unlike other water damage cleanup companies, United Restoration DOES NOT use Assignment of Benefit contracts.
United Restoration Customers Include:
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2006Over 14 years of operational experience as an independent, family-owned disaster restoration company
1025More than a thousand hours of combined water damage restoration training and certification
150Over 150 satisfied customers serviced for water damage emergencies throughout Florida every year
Flood Damage Repair & Cleanup in Pembroke PinesPembroke Pines is an at-risk city for flood damage to homes and businesses. Pembroke Pines residents experience tropical storms and hurricanes on a yearly basis. Since 2006, United Restoration has repaired Pembroke Pines residences, offices, schools, and government buildings for flooding. For flood damage repair in Pembroke Pines, call United Restoration certified technicians for 24/7 repair & restoration.
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2Do you work with my insurance company?
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3How long will the restoration process take?
The time to extract water, identify sources of water damage, repair structures such as dry wall, and test and remediate for mold is dependent on the extent of the damage. Rest assured United Restoration is available 24/7 to begin repairing your water damage immediately.
4Does United Restoration test for mold?
Yes. United Restoration's IICRC Certified Mold Remediation Team specializes in employing the most advanced mold remediation techniques, coupled with state of the art equipment.
United Restoration outsources every mold sampling to independent mold testing companies.
United Restoration outsources every mold sampling to independent mold testing companies.


text:
Check out HD video preview
Wordpress Plugin Available Here
Nova Gallery is a HTML5 multimedia gallery enabling you to showcase your photos/audio/video in a beautiful and sleek interface. You have the option of presenting your items in two different modes, which are a Thumbnail Grid and Full-width view, and you also have the option of switching between the two modes. You can have multiple sets/albums of items and can filter the gallery items based on file type or based on custom categories. The gallery allows you to showcase your Youtube/Vimeo videos and Flickr/Picasa photos from groups/sets/albums/collections. The gallery features a fluid responsive design and can fit in any screen size ranging from mobile phones to desktop browsers. The gallery also features touch-screen support and uses hardware accelerated CSS based animations wherever possible which results in smooth animations, that is especially noticeable in mobile devices.
Try the gallery demos and resize your browser to see the responsive design of the gallery in action. Also check out the demos in your mobile devices such as iPad/iPhone or Android devices.
The key features are:
- Display photos, audio and video
- All gallery data is passed in a simple XML file.
- Two display modes – Thumbnail Grid & Full-width. You can also switch between the two modes.
- The Thumbnail Grid mode features a Masonry layout and you can control the spacing between items by applying margins through css,
- The Full-width mode allows you to show the photos/videos stretched across the entire container or to shrink the item so that it can be viewed entirely without any cropping.
- You can also have a slideshow of the items in the Full-width mode. This slideshow stops whenever the browser tab in which the gallery is displayed, goes out of focus (this feature only works in browsers that supports the HTML5 Page Visibility Api and you have the option to disable this feature).
- Plays audio and video natively in modern HTML5 browsers and switches over to Flash/Silverlight for older browsers by using Mediaelement.js.
- Filter items, by file type or custom categories.
- Supports multiple gallery sets or albums.
- True HTML5 Fullscreen option in supported browsers.
- Can embed Youtube and Vimeo Videos.
- Show photos from Flickr and Picasa. Multiple options are provided to pull photos from Flickr/Picasa along with the option to cache the API data. No XML file is required when showing photos from Flickr/Picasa.
- The gallery features a fluid responsive design to account for various screens sizes ranging from mobile phones to desktop browsers and can also be placed in a container of any width.
- The gallery is mobile device friendly with touch screen support.
- Hardware accelerated CSS animations have been used wherever possible resulting in smooth animations, which is most noticeable in mobile devices.
- Handy keyboard shortcuts have been provided for easier navigation of the gallery.
- The gallery items can also act as links to external pages
- Two colour schemes – Dark & Light.
Configurable options are:
- If you show Youtube/Vimeo videos then you can choose to use the thumbnails provided by Youtube/Vimeo.
- You can pull photos from Flickr by searching for a text string or tags. You can even pull photos from a specific user or a group, or a set or a collection of sets. You also have the option of choosing how many photos will be shown, how they will be ordered and also the sizes of the images that are pulled from Flickr.
- You can pull photos from Picasa by searching for a text string. You can even pull photos from a specific user or an album, or a collection of albums. You also have the option of choosing how many photos will be shown, how they will be ordered and also the sizes of the images that are puled from Picasa.
- Option to enable caching of Flickr/Picasa API response data to prevent crossing the limit set by these services. You can even set for how long the data will be cached.
- Can mention a custom thumbnail image for the gallery sets. By default the thumbnail for the first item in the set is used to represent the set.
- Autoplay audio and video when Lightbox opens in Thumbnail Grid mode.
- Play audio and video files in a loop.
- Store the volume level when player is closed, which is restored when player opens again.
- Set the mode, i.e Thumbnail Grid or Full-width, which will be shown when the gallery first loads. Can also work with a single mode.
- Option to show a particular category of items when the gallery first loads.
- Shrink images in Full-width mode to fit the container when the gallery first loads.
- Choose to show the thumbnails in Full-width mode when the gallery first loads.
- Choose the animated effect for the items in Thumbnail Grid mode when it first shows. Available effects are fade, slide, fadeSeq, slidSeq and flipSeq.
- Choose the animated effect for showing item captions/descriptions in Thumbnail Grid mode. Available effects are flip and fade.
- Choose to make the item titles in Thumbnail Grid mode always visible.
- Choose the animated effect for transition between items in Full-width mode. Available effects are fade, slide and flip.
- Choose to continue the slideshow in Fullwidth mode even when the page loses focus.
- Choose the animated effect for showing/hiding the Gallery Sets screen (home screen). Available effects are scale, fade and slide.
- Show the gallery either spanning the entire width of the browser or the width of its parent container.
- The gallery items can also act as links to external pages. You can choose to open the links in a new tab/window.
- You have the option to shuffle or randomly order the gallery items each time the page is refreshed.
- The gallery supports preloading of images in Full-width mode for smoother viewing. You can choose how many items at a time will load in the background.
- You can start the slideshow in Full-width mode when the gallery first loads.
- The time interval for which a particular item is visible during slideshow can be set.
- Option to set the path for the gallery configuration XML file.
- Option to detect mobile devices and serve them a separate XML file.
Special Notes
- Suitable jQuery based fallbacks have been provided for all CSS based animated effects for older browsers.
- Also some of the modern HTML5 features such as Fullscreen and Page Visibility will only work in modern browsers.
- The gallery script has been tested and is fully compatible with jQuery 1.9+. and also jquery 2.0+. and 3.0+
Version 1.4.3 (7 February, 2022)
• Fixed an issue with parsing the response from the Vimeo API
Version 1.4.2 (3 March, 2016)
• Fixed an issue where closing the overlay for audio/video made the gallery exit from fullscreen state.
Version 1.4.1 (9 July, 2015)
• Fixed a bug with image resizing in Fullwidth mode.
Version 1.4 (31 July, 2014)
• Added the option of choosing the number of albums to show in a Flickr/Picasa collection. • As per Flickr's new API requirements the gallery now uses "https" in all API request url's. • Fixed item display issues, including the issue of small images, inside the modal box in thumbnails grid mode for phone sized screens. • Fixed video player's fullscreen button issue in iPad. • A few small styling tweaks to the gallery.
Version 1.3 (15 January, 2014)
• Fixed a IE bug where the thumbnail links were not clickable. • Fixed a small bug where the overlay button appeared over thumbnails with link enabled. • Fixed the max-height setting and the positioning of the Fullwidth mode caption overlay. • Added the option of making the item titles in Thumbnail Grid mode always visible. • Added the option of making the Fullwidth mode slideshow continue even when the page loses focus.
Version 1.2 (15 August, 2013)
• Fixed a bug in the thumbnail grid layout when margins were set on the items. • Fixed the resizing of images in the overlay when the browser was in landscape mode. • Fixed a bug in iOS where after scrolling the clicks/taps on the thumbnails became unresponsive. • Improved the closing/opening of the gallery menu in touch-screen devices. • Fixed a bug where the inclusion of images in the item captions interfered with the thumbnail grid layout. • Modified the code to account for escaping of characters in the cached xml file (when pulling images from Flickr/Picasa) if magic quotes in the server were turned on.
Version 1.1 (8 June, 2013)
• Fixed problem with positioning of the gallery overlay/lightbox when there were other content in the page along with the gallery. • The filter dropdown menu opens much quicker now in touch-screen devices and also closes when tapping elsewhere on the screen. • Updated the jquery masonry plugin so that it is compatible with jquery v1.9+. The gallery now is fully compatible with jquery 1.9+ including jquery 2.0. • Other small bug fixes.


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GASB Issues Statement No. 52, Land and Other Real Estate Held as Investments by Endowments
Norwalk, CT, November 21, 2007The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) today issued GASB Statement No. 52, Land and Other Real Estate Held as Investments by Endowments. The statement improves the quality of financial reporting by requiring endowments to report their land and other real estate investments at fair value, creating consistency in reporting among similar entities that exist to invest resources for the purpose of generating income.
Prior to the issuance of Statement 52, state and local government endowments were required to report land and other real estate held as investments at historical cost, which provides information on investment results only in the year the investments are sold. However, entities that perform investment functions similar to endowments-including pension plans, other post employment benefit (OPEB) plans, external investment pools, and Internal Revenue Code Section 457 deferred compensation plans-have been required to report their land and real estate investments at fair value. Reporting those investments at fair value provides more decision-useful information about their composition, current value, and recent changes in value.
In order to help users of financial statements better evaluate an endowment's investment decisions and performance, Statement 52 requires governments to report the changes in fair value as investment income. It also requires them to disclose the methods and significant assumptions employed to determine fair value, and to provide other information that they currently present for other investments reported at fair value.
GASB Statement No. 52 is effective for financial statements for periods beginning after June 15, 2008. Governments that wish to implement earlier than that date are encouraged to do so.
About the Governmental Accounting Standards Board
The GASB is the independent, not-for-profit organization formed in 1984 that establishes and improves financial accounting and reporting standards for state and local governments. Its seven members are drawn from the Board's diverse constituency, including preparers and auditors of government financial statements, users of those statements, and members of the academic community. More information about the GASB can be found at its website.


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Somewhere, Kevin Federline is laughing.
An out-of-shape, out-of-touch Britney Spears delivered what was destined to be the most talked about performance of the MTV Video Music Awards — but for all the wrong reasons. Kicking off the show Sunday night with her new single, "Gimme More," Spears looked bleary and unprepared — much like her recent tabloid exploits on the streets of Los Angeles.
She lazily walked through her dance moves with little enthusiasm. It appeared she had forgotten the entire art of lip-synching; and, perhaps most unforgivable given her once taut frame, she looked embarrassingly out of shape.
Even the celebrity-studded audience seemed bewildered. 50 Cent looked at Spears with a confused expression; Diddy, her new best friend, was expressionless.
Some comeback. Breathlessly hyped by MTV as the evening's most anticipated performance, it became the most shockingly bad of the night. Jive Records might want to push back that Nov. 13 album release date.
The VMAs had better luck with their own reinvention on Sunday. After suffering poor reviews and a decline in ratings over the last few years, MTV moved the show to Las Vegas' Palms Casino, shortened the show from three hours to two, and changed the show's setup to focus more on performances than awards.
To that end, Justin Timberlake and Timbaland, Kanye West, Fall Out Boy and the Foo Fighters were each hosting four separate suite parties, where much of the show's performances would be held.
Thankfully, after Spears' dismal start and a lukewarm intro by comedian Sarah Silverman, the show rebounded with several exciting performances. (There was even more drama in the audience: an off-camera fight broke out between Pamela Anderson exes Kid Rock and Tommy Lee, leading Diddy to remark: "It's not just the hip-hop artists that sometimes have a problem.")
Timberlake's suite was packed with revelers, alcohol and eight lingerie-clad stripper types on raised platforms. Before he accepted the Quadruple Threat of the Year award at his suite, the DJ summoned the partygoers to watch the monitor and go crazy if Timberlake won.
He did, they did, and Timberlake said: "I want to challenge MTV to play more videos!" Then he was whisked away by bodyguards and disappeared. He later won male artist of the year, and hit home on that point: "We don't want to see the Simpsons on reality television" — apparently he's not a fan of either Jessica or Ashlee's MTV shows.
Meanwhile, Rihanna won Monster Single of the Year for her ubiquitous hit "Umbrella," and Beyonce and Shakira won Most Earthshattering Collaboration for "Beautiful Liar." Beyonce's shimmering gold dress barely contained her top; immediately after she picked up her trophy, she asked an assistant backstage to help fix her dress, apparently to prevent a wardrobe malfunction.
Chris Brown gave one of the evening's most extravagant performances — a dance-centric, eye-popping spectacle that channeled Michael Jackson, right down to a brief "Billie Jean" imitation.
Alicia Keys had the evening's most rousing performance, debuting her new song "No One" and then an inspired, choir-backed cover of George Michael's "Freedom."
While performances like Keys and Spears were delivered on the main stage, others were delivered in snippets: Akon crooned a bit of his "Smack That" before an award was announced, while the cameras zoomed in on performances from Fall Out Boy and the Foo Fighters mid-performance in their suites, giving viewers the sense that they had happened upon an intimate concert. Cee-Lo delivered a rocking version of Prince's naughty classic "Darling Nikki" in the smoky Foo Fighters suite (where a beer bong was in operation as Dave Grohl danced, sang Cure songs, played air drums and posed for snapshots); Soulja Boy was showing Kanye West his "Crank That" dance in West's suite.
Though the suites appeared to be chaotic parties, the MTV-cast revelers were carefully organized and strategically placed for the cameras. In another suite, the MC encouraged everyone to drink and keep the energy up.
Choreographed or not, Timberlake and Timbaland's joint suite looked like the most exciting — T.I., buffeted by pole dancers, delivered a rousing version of "Big Things Poppin"' while 50 Cent stopped by to perform "Ayo Technology" with Timberlake and Timbaland.
Not to be outdone, T-Pain and West danced high atop Las Vegas in one of the Palms' balcony suites as celebrated "The Good Life." And Lil Wayne, doing double duty in the Fall Out Boy suite, was particularly animated during their joint performance.
But the TV audience never got full views of those performances, though the network promised viewers more via its Web site and other "remixed" versions of the show. That might have been the purpose — to whet the audiences appetite for repeat viewings by promising glimpses of what they missed during the traditional broadcast. And unlike in recent years, there was plenty reason to come back for more.