text:
Learn About the Law
Get help with your legal needs
FindLaw's Learn About the Law features thousands of informational articles to help you understand your options. And if you're ready to hire an attorney, find one in your area who can help.
[293 U.S. 465, 466] Mr. Hugh Satterlee, of Washington, D.C., for petitioner.
The Attorney General and Mr. J. Crawford Biggs, Sol. Gen., of Washington, D.C., for respondent. [293 U.S. 465, 467]
Mr. Justice SUTHERLAND delivered the opinion of the Court.
Petitioner in 1928 was the owner of all the stock of United Mortgage Corporation. That corporation held among its assets 1,000 shares of the Monitor Securities Corporation. For the sole purpose of procuring a transfer of these shares to herself in order to sell them for her individual profit, and, at the same time, diminish the amount of income tax which would result from a direct transfer by way of dividend, she sought to bring about a 'reorganization' under section 112(g) of the Revenue Act of 1928, c. 852, 45 Stat. 791, 816, 818, 26 USCA 2112(g), set forth later in this opinion. To that end, she caused the Averill Corporation to be organized under the laws of Delaware on September 18, 1928. Three days later, the United Mortgage Corporation transferred to the Averill Corporation the 1,000 shares of Monitor stock, for which all the shares of the Averill Corporation were issued to the petitioner. On September 24, the Averill Corporation was dissolved, and liquidated by distributing all its assets, namely, the Monitor shares, to the petitioner. No other business was ever transacted, or intended to be transacted, by that company. Petitioner immediately sold the Monitor shares for $133,333. 33. She returned for taxation, as capital net gain, the sum of $76,007.88, based upon an apportioned cost of $57,325.45. Further details are unnecessary. It is not disputed that if the interposition of the so-called reorganization was ineffective, petitioner became liable for a much larger tax as a result of the transaction.
The Commissioner of Internal Revenue, being of opinion that the reorganization attempted was without substance and must be disregarded, held that petitioner was liable for a tax as though the United corporation had paid her a dividend consisting of the amount realized from the sale of the Monitor shares. In a proceeding before the [293 U.S. 465, 468] Board of Tax Appeals, that body rejected the commissioner's view and upheld that of petitioner. 27 B.T.A. 223. Upon a review of the latter decision, the Circuit Court of Appeals sustained the commissioner and reversed the board, holding that there had been no 'reorganization' within the meaning of the statute. 69 F.(2d) 809. Petitioner applied to this court for a writ of certiorari, which the government, considering the question one of importance, did not oppose. We granted the writ. 293 U.S. 538 , 55 S.Ct. 82, 79 L.Ed. --.
Section 112 of the Revenue Act of 1928 (26 USCA 2112) deals with the subject of gain or loss resulting from the sale or exchange of property. Such gain or loss is to be recognized in computing the tax, except as provided in that section. The provisions of the section, so far as they are pertinent to the question here presented, follow:
It is earnestly contended on behalf of the taxpayer that since every element required by the foregoing subdivision (B) is to be found in what was done, a statutory reorganization was effected; and that the motive of the taxpayer thereby to escape payment of a tax will not alter the result [293 U.S. 465, 469] or make unlawful what the statute allows. It is quite true that if a reorganization in reality was effected within the meaning of subdivision ( B), the ulterior purpose mentioned will be disregarded. The legal right of a taxpayer to decrease the amount of what otherwise would be his taxes, or altogether avoid them, by means which the law permits, cannot be doubted. United States v. Isham, 17 Wall. 496, 506; Superior Oil Co. v. Mississippi, 280 U.S. 390, 395 , 396 S., 50 S.Ct. 169; Jones v. Helvering, 63 App.D.C. 204, 71 F.(2d) 214, 217. But the question for determination is whether what was done, apart from the tax motive, was the thing which the statute intended. The reasoning of the court below in justification of a negative answer leaves little to be said.
When subdivision (B) speaks of a transfer of assets by one corporation to another, it means a transfer made 'in pursuance of a plan of reorganization' (section 112(g) of corporate business; and not a transfer of assets by one corporation to another in pursuance of a plan having no relation to the business of either, as plainly is the case here. Putting aside, then, the question of motive in respect of taxation altogether, and fixing the character of the proceeding by what actually occurred, what do we find? Simply an operation having no business or corporate purpose-a mere device which put on the form of a corporate reorganization as a disguise for concealing its real character, and the sole object and accomplishment of which was the consummation of a preconceived plan, not to reorganize a business or any part of a business, but to transfer a parcel of corporate shares to the petitioner. No doubt, a new and valid corporation was created. But that corporation was nothing more than a contrivance to the end last described. It was brought into existence for no other purpose; it performed, as it was intended from the beginning it should perform, no other function. [293 U.S. 465, 470] When that limited function had been exercised, it immediately was put to death.
In these circumstances, the facts speak for themselves and are susceptible of but one interpretation. The whole undertaking, though conducted according to the terms of subdivision (B), was in fact an elaborate and devious form of conveyance masquerading as a corporate reorganization, and nothing else. The rule which excludes from consideration the motive of tax avoidance is not pertinent to the situation, because the transaction upon its face lies outside the plain intent of the statute. To hold otherwise would be to exalt artifice above reality and to deprive the statutory provision in question of all serious purpose.
Judgment affirmed.
Was this helpful?
Get help with your legal needs
FindLaw's Learn About the Law features thousands of informational articles to help you understand your options. And if you're ready to hire an attorney, find one in your area who can help.
Search our directory by legal issue
Enter information in one or both fields (Required)


text:
Social Media Misinformation on Election Day
It's that time again: when friends war over theory, college campuses erupt with disheveled culture warriors, and maybe spouses exercise their ingrained tolerance for one another. It's election time! Social Media Misinformation on Election Day! Social media has been huge during this election cycle. The pundits give real-time commentary during debates, political ads permeate social network…Read More →

subset: commoncrawl


text:
We've seen the Statue of Liberty kick the bucket in a litany of ways, but never like this. Just for kicks, Vincent Ullmann has created this short animation of the Statue disintegrating like it was made of moldy yogurt. The French never told us about the skeleton underneath, we suppose.
Vizio's Latest TVs Go All Quantum
[Via Sam Spratt]


text:
By RAGHIDA BAHNAM *
It was once the symbol of resistance for many in the Middle East. Not anymore.
Hezbollah's reputation as an honest defender of the weak is being destroyed, ironically not by Israel but by the party itself.
It is not just Hezbollah's attitude towards the Syrian revolution and its unrelenting support to the murderous regime that is damaging the party's reputation, but the whiff of corruption that keeps hanging about them.
The latest accusation of graft surrounds the Hezbollah minister of State for Administrative Reform Muhammad Fneish. His brother is accused of forging the signature of the Health Minister Ali Hassan Khalil to allow for the hugely profitable import of untested pharmaceuticals into Lebanon.
The scandal doesn't stop here. As some media outlets are reporting links between Hezbollah and the companies involved in importing the drugs.
In most countries stories like this could cause the fall of a government. But not so in Lebanon, where scandals this size have become so common people just shrug.
What is causing outrage this time though is Hezbollah's involvement.
It all started in June last year when the party decided to take power after withdrawing from the national unity government.
It is the first time a Lebanese government is dominated by Hezbollah.
Before that the party leaders could sit in the opposition ranks and assign blame of corruption on March 14th, the western backed alliance led by former PM Saad Hariri.
But then they came to power.
They couldn't anymore blame March 14 for the lack of electricity supply, which got much worse under their government.
They had to stay quiet over the growing security concerns, and the rise of theft and kidnapping crimes.
So many Lebanese started to slowly discover that Hezbollah in power doesn't equal openness and transparency, but instead the same old corruption stories.
A central plank of their appeal is now gone.
What is most worrying for Hezbollah is that it is losing ground within its traditional supporters.
Reports emerged few months ago of Iran investigating fraud allegations within Hezbollah. It was related to large cash donations alleged to have been embezzled by a Hezbollah member.
Many high-ranking members in the party have long lost their sense of modesty, which has given them legitimacy in the eyes of their supporters.
The sight of party big wigs showing off fancy cars in poor Shia neighborhoods isn't going down well with fighters' families. Many do genuinely believe that their sons have joined the "resistance" to free the country from Israel and fight for the Palestinians' rights.
But they are finding themselves now receiving the bodies of their sons in boxes, at a time of no war with Israel, but an ongoing war in Syria where reports of Hezbollah fighters dying next to the regime soldiers keep emerging.
And many families can't help but wonder, even in whispers, if this is the "resistance" they signed up for.
*Raghida Bahnam is a Lebanese reporter at Al Arabiya in Dubai. She has covered international affairs, including Lebanon, from both Beirut and London and now Dubai.
Al Arabiya


text:
Hacks make headlines. But usually, the focus is on who did it -- notorious cyber criminals, hacktivists, or state-sponsored actors. Readers want to know who they are, where they're from, what they did, and why they did it. How they did it gets glossed over.
In fact, the "how" is the most important part -- and application vulnerabilities are common culprits. Subtle programming errors allow hackers to subvert security controls, steal user credentials, or run malicious instructions on a remote system. Programmers, like everyone else, screw up sometimes.
Screw up how, you ask? Here's a list of some of the most common (and egregious) security mistakes that coders make.
1. You trust third-party code that can't be trusted
If you program for a living, you rarely -- if ever -- build an app from scratch. It's much more likely that you're developing an application from a pastiche of proprietary code that you or your colleagues created, partnered with open source or commercial, third-party software or services that you rely on to perform critical functions. These functions could range from licensed presentation and graphical interface elements to user authentication and encryption (think OpenSSL).
Often, third-party components are poorly managed and rife with exploitable vulnerabilities that may have gone unnoticed. Yet most development organizations can't even say for sure what third-party components they're using, let alone whether they were audited for security holes.
What's a developer to do? Writing from scratch isn't an option, but neither is crossing your fingers and hoping for the best. At the least, review recent guidance on ensuring the reliability of third-party software. For example, check out the U.K.'s Trustworthy Software Initiative and the Financial Services ISAC's Appropriate Software Security Control Types for Third Party Service and Product Providers.
2. You hard-code passwords and backdoor accounts
We know, we know. You put it in there for testing and forgot to take it out. Or maybe that backdoor administrative account was (quietly) suggested by folks higher up. After all, who's going to find out about the account, anyway? The short answer: maybe nobody -- or maybe the wrong people. As with extramarital affairs, in the case of backdoor accounts, you could argue that only fools get caught and everybody gets caught, yet be right both times.
Earlier this year, Cisco Systems acknowledged the existence of undocumented backdoors in several of its routers that could give a remote attacker "root" access to an affected device. In 2012, Project Basecamp, a volunteer effort to audit software used in the industrial control sector, found that login credentials for administrative accounts were frequently written into the actual firmware running ICS devices like programmable logic controllers. Rather than rush to fix the problem, many vendors argued that the accounts were "features" designed to make their products easier to manage. Nice try -- the truth is you don't know who or what will take an interest in your application or its security features.
3. You don't check inputs
SQL injection and remote file inclusion are two of the most common and most dangerous security vulnerabilities around. SQL injection in particular is the common thread that ties together almost every major breach in the last 10 years, from Sony Pictures to MySQL to LinkedIn to the security firm Bit9. The cause: Application developers trust data input from an external source like a Web-based form or even a database. By manipulating the SQL query submitted, a malicious actor can cause the database to perform an action that the programmer did not intend, such as dropping database tables containing user logins and passwords, credit card numbers, and so on.


text: If your wireless bill spiked by more than $18,000 one month, would you think that was a "trivial" issue? Of course, not. But the big telcos and their conservative allies are trying to stop the FCC from putting rules in place that will make wireless bill shock a much less common occurrence. \n\nRather than take a simple, step to protect their customers, the wireless companies (with an assist from Wall Street and various lobbyists) are claiming that implementing safeguards against wildly spiking bills would cost consumers money, promote expensive litigation and, in general, be too burdensome. \n\nAll this because the FCC is proposing a few simple rules that would use technology which is already in place to warn a customer that he or is about to exceed the limits of voice, data or text messages. When that occurs, consumers can be hit with heart-stopping overcharges. Surprise: You Owe $18,000 in Data ChargesThat's exactly what happened to Robert St. Germain, a 66-year-old retired marketing professional in Dover, Mass., after his free data downloads expired without warning. When St. Germain renewed his family's mobile service contract, he says the agent did not tell him that the free data downloads were expiring. Under the terms of the new contract, he and his family were charged for each kilobyte of data. The bill was a shocking $18,000 bill. (Because the matter is being investigated by the FCC, the name of the provider is being withheld.) [For more information on protecting yourself, see CIO.com's How to Avoid Mobile Phone Bill Shock: 5 Fixes. ]St. Germain's case is an extreme example, of course, but according to a recent survey by the FCC 30 million Americans\u2014one in six mobile users\u2014have experienced bill shock. More than half those consumers saw an increase of $50 or more, but few were alerted by their provider\u2014before or after the bill arrived. \n\nUnlike wireless issues such as dropped calls or slow data speeds, bill shock would be easy to fix: Providers would just have to send a text message to subscribers when they were about to use up their allotted minutes or downloads. It appears that there's no technical obstacle. \n\n U.S. Cellular, the no. 5 carrier, already does it, and AT&T, which just ended its unlimited data plans for new customers, will be sending notifications to customers approaching the limit. But on the voice side, AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile, don't deign to do so while Sprint offers a rather confusing series of options, with one set of rules for new customers and another for old, as well as this: "Existing customers will be notified by email if they incur $20 or more in voice, text or data overages in two of the last six months." I have no idea what that means. Wouldn't be much simpler to just send a notice to all customers as their usage starts to redline? \n\nOvercharges represent an easy revenue opportunity that carriers are reluctant to give up. According to Consumer Reports, consumers pay 35 cents to 45 cents a minute for minutes over their allotment, compared to an average base charge of six cents a minute, an increase of up to 650 percent. What FCC Proposal Means to YouLast week the FCC proposed three rules that would go a long way towards eliminating bill shock. \n\n1. The FCC's proposed rules would require customer notification, such as voice or text alerts, when approaching and having reached monthly limits that will result in overage charges. \n\n2.\tMobile providers would have to notify customers when they are about to incur international or other roaming charges that are not covered by their monthly plans, and if they will be charged at higher-than-normal rates. \n\n3.\tClear disclosure of any tools offered by mobile providers to set usage limits or review usage balances. The FCC is also asking whether all carriers should be required to offer the option of capping usage based on limits set by the consumer. \n\nNone of that seems very radical. But the carriers and their allies are gearing up to fight the proposed regulations. Ryan Radia, associate director of the conservative Competitive Enterprise Institute called the issue "trivial," and said: "Educating mobile subscribers about where to locate their up-to-date usage information\u2014which all major wireless providers make available\u2014is a far better solution to 'bill shock' than prescriptive federal regulation." \n\nAnd Sprint was quick to issue a press release touting the options I mentioned above. The other carriers have generally been silent, but when queried say that few of their customers run up unexpected charges. \n\nConsumer advocates, though, welcomed the proposal. "The FCC's proposal is a good start, but it needs to follow through by enacting rules that protect consumers from deceptive billing practices and that promote transparency and disclosure by mobile providers," said Joel Kelsey of Free Press, a non-partisan advocacy group. \n\nState regulators, who still have some say over wireline issues, have little authority when it comes to wireless communications. Thus any regulatory steps would have to be taken by the FCC. \n\nThe carriers argue that because there is competition among them, there is little need for more governmental oversight. Helen Mickiewicz, a managing attorney for the California Public Utilities Commission, agrees that the market is competitive. "But in many cases, all or most of the carriers have adopted exactly the same practices. Nothing could be more basic then letting people know they are about to encounter a large overcharge," she says. "This is a good example of why regulation is needed." \n\nMickiewicz adds that the FCC takes public comments into account when it decides on new regulations, especially when the volume is high. If you believe that consumers deserve a better deal, write or email the FCC. You can file a comment or complaint about bad service by going to the FCC's Consumer Help Center Web site. Use the "File a Comment With the FCC" and let them know what you think. \n\nSan Francisco journalist Bill Snyder writes frequently about business and technology. He welcomes your comments and suggestions. Reach him at firstname.lastname@example.com.\nFollow Bill Snyder on Twitter @BSnyderSF. Follow everything from CIO.com on Twitter @CIOonline.


text:
Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to Study Airway Bypass Treatment For Emphysema
Los Angeles - May 31, 2007 – Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center announced today the start of the EASE (Exhale Airway Stents for Emphysema) Trial, an international, multi-center clinical trial to explore an investigational treatment that may offer a new, minimally-invasive option for those suffering with advanced widespread emphysema. The study focuses on an experimental procedure called airway bypass designed to create pathways in the lung for trapped air to escape with the goal of relieving shortness of breath and other emphysema symptoms.
Emphysema is a chronic, progressive, and irreversible lung disease characterized by the destruction of lung tissue. The loss of the lungs' natural elasticity and the collapse of airways in the lung combine to make exhalation ineffective, leaving the emphysema sufferer with hyperinflation because they can't get air out of their lungs. With hyperinflation, breathing becomes inefficient and the patient is always short of breath. Even the most nominal physical activities become difficult for emphysema patients and many become dependent on oxygen therapy.
"We are excited to be part of this study because currently there are limited treatment options for the emphysema patients," said Zab Mosenifar, M.D., Medical Director of and principal investigator of the study at Cedars-Sinai. "Patients are often in poor physical condition, struggling with each breath. By creating new pathways for airflow with the airway bypass procedure, we hope to reduce hyperinflation and improve lung function. If patients can breathe easier it is likely to improve their quality of life."
During airway bypass, physicians will use a flexible bronchoscope to go through the mouth into the airways. There the physician will create new small pathways and place an Exhale® Drug-Eluting Stent – manufactured by Broncus Technologies, Inc. - to allow the trapped air in the lung to escape.
"The airway bypass procedure could be a good option for those who would possibly spend years on a lung transplant list or not be suitable candidates for lung transplant surgery, which is one of the only other treatment options available for patients with this type of emphysema," said Mosenifar.
Physicians commonly use bronchoscopes to examine the airways within the lungs. During the airway bypass procedure physicians will first use a Doppler probe inserted through the bronchoscope to identify a site in the airway that is away from blood vessels. A special needle is then used to make a small opening and an Exhale® Drug-Eluting Stent is placed in the passageway to keep it open. The procedure involves placing up to six drug-eluting stents. The total time of the procedure is approximately one to two hours.
This procedure is still under clinical investigation, but early data suggest it may be beneficial to patients with emphysema.
Emphysema affects an estimated 60 million people worldwide with more than 3 million sufferers in the United States. There is no cure for emphysema. Cedars-Sinai is currently recruiting patients for the EASE Trial. Involvement in the study will last from approximately 15 months up to 5 years (depending on if the patient is randomized to the control or the treatment group) and include 8 to 16 physician appointments. All study-related medical procedures will be carried out at no charge to the patient and patients will be closely monitored throughout the trial. Participants will also receive at least 14 weeks of pulmonary rehabilitation therapy. If you or someone you know over the age of 35 have been diagnosed with advanced widespread emphysema and no longer smoke (or would be willing to stop smoking two months prior to the study), you may qualify to participate in this study. For more information please call 866-431-3273 or visit www.EASEtrialUS.com.
About Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
The first in Southern California and one of only 10 hospitals in the state whose nurses have been honored with the prestigious Magnet designation, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is one of the largest nonprofit academic medical centers in the Western United States. For 19 consecutive years, it has been named Los Angeles' most preferred hospital for all health needs in an independent survey of area residents. Cedars-Sinai is internationally renowned for its diagnostic and treatment capabilities and its broad spectrum of programs and services, as well as breakthroughs in biomedical research and superlative medical education. It ranks among the top 10 non-university hospitals in the nation for its research activities and is fully accredited by the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs, Inc. (AAHRPP). Additional information is available at www.cedars-sinai.edu.
About Broncus Technologies, Inc.
Broncus Technologies, Inc. is helping people breathe easier by developing bronchoscopic interventions for the treatment of chronic lung diseases. Founded in 1997, Broncus Technologies has developed the Exhale® Drug-Eluting Stent for use in the airway bypass procedure, a minimally-invasive procedure to treat emphysema. Airway bypass creates new pathways in the lung for air to escape and may potentially improve the breathing abilities of patients with emphysema. Broncus Technologies is currently conducting the pivotal EASE Trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of airway bypass in the treatment of advanced widespread emphysema. For more information visit www.broncus.com.
Editors Notes
For media information on the EASE Trial at Cedars-Sinai or to schedule an interview with Dr. Mosenifar, please contact Sandy Van, 1-800-880-2397 or via e-mail at firstname.lastname@example.com.
For general information on the EASE Trial, airway bypass, or Broncus Technologies, please contact Meghan Oreste at 617-823-1441 or email@example.com. For questions about enrolling in the trial call 866-431-3273 or visit www.EASEtrialUS.com Dr. Mosenifar has no personal direct financial affiliation with Broncus Technologies, Inc.
The study is sponsored by Broncus Technologies, Inc. Broncus and Exhale are trademarks of Broncus Technologies, Inc.
# # #


text:
Partnership With Diamond Aircraft Industries Includes Coordination with Students, Faculty and Facility at University's Research and Technology Park.
On the 18th of June 2013 at the 50th Annual International Paris Air Show, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University president Dr. John P. Johnson and Diamond Aircraft Industries CEO and owner Christian Dries signed a partnership agreement to establish the global manufacturer's presence at the university's Daytona Beach Campus.
As part of the agreement, Diamond will expand its current international Research & Development program and other initiatives working with Embry-Riddle students, staff and faculty from the university's engineering and aviation colleges as well as its Eagle Flight Research Center.
Diamond is slated to start on-site operations by October 2013, with a later expansion into the 90-acre Embry-Riddle Research and Technology Park adjacent to the Daytona Beach Campus on Clyde Morris Boulevard.
"We are excited to grow our existing relationship with Diamond and to provide the opportunity for our students and faculty to get hands-on experience with such an innovative company," said Johnson. "Diamond shares our core commitment to not only being the best, but being the best when it comes to safety."
The partnership of the world's largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace with the world's third-largest general aviation aircraft manufacturer is expected to be an economic boost for Volusia County where the university is headquartered as well as the state of Florida.
"Florida is proud to have Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University helping our state lead the way in aerospace innovation, and I was honored to present Dr. John Johnson with a Governor's Business Ambassador Medal at the Florida Pavilion Grand Opening yesterday," Florida Governor Rick Scott said. "Private and public partnerships, such as Embry-Riddle and Diamond Aircraft, are critical to job creation, and this agreement demonstrates that our business development missions are working by providing job opportunities for Florida families."
Diamond, with operations across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, has a long list of accomplishments that include synthetic vision technology, twin diesel power plants, serial hybrid electric aircraft and pure algae-based biofuel.
Embry-Riddle currently has the largest single fleet of Diamond's DA42 aircraft in the United States at its two residential campuses. The Daytona Beach Campus in Florida has 10 Diamond DA42L aircraft, and the Prescott, Ariz., Campus has four DA42NG.
"We expect a prosperous future in international cooperation and teamwork with Embry-Riddle, because we know the strong capabilities of the university in terms of research and development," Dries said. "Our target is to be quick on the market, and together with Embry-Riddle we believe that outstanding new technologies can be realized."
About Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world's largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, is a nonprofit, independent institution offering more than 40 baccalaureate, master's and Ph.D. degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business and Engineering. Embry-Riddle educates students at residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Prescott, Ariz., and through the Worldwide Campus with more than 150 locations in the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The university is a major research center, seeking solutions to real-world problems in partnership with the aerospace industry, other universities and government agencies.
For more information, visit <link http: www.embryriddle.edu>www.embryriddle.edu, follow us on Twitter (@EmbryRiddle) and <link http: www.facebook.com embryriddleuniversity>www.facebook.com/EmbryRiddleUniversity, and find expert videos at YouTube.com/EmbryRiddleUniv.
About Diamond Aircraft Industries
Diamond Aircraft Industries, based in Austria, is a worldwide operating composite aircraft manufacturer with offices in major centres across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. The company is dedicated to supplying the General Aviation market with the ultimate flying machines – safe, economical, inspiring aircraft. Diamond builds the safest, most efficient aircraft flying today, from single and twin-engine propeller aircraft to all-in-one remote sensing platforms.
For more information, visit <link http: www.diamondaircraft.com>www.diamondaircraft.com.


text:
As a psychiatrist, I find that one of the hardest parts of my job is telling parents and their children that they are not to blame for their illness.
Children with emotional and behavioral problems continue to suffer considerable stigma. Many in the medical community refer to them as "diagnostic and therapeutic orphans". Unfortunately, for many, access to high-quality mental health care remains elusive.
An accurate diagnosis is the best way to tell whether or not someone will respond well to treatment, though that can be far more complicated than it sounds.
I have written three textbooks about using medication in children and adolescents with emotional and behavioural problems. I know that this is never a decision to take lightly.
But there's reason for hope. While not medically able to diagnose any psychiatric condition, dramatic advances in brain imaging, genetics and other technologies are helping us objectively identify mental illness.
Knowing the signs of sadness
All of us experience occasional sadness and anxiety, but persistent problems may be a sign of a deeper issue. Ongoing issues with sleeping, eating, weight, school and pathologic self-doubt may be signs of depression, anxiety or obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Separating out normal behaviour from problematic behaviour can be challenging. Emotional and behaviour problems can also vary with age.
For example, depression in pre-adolescent children occurs equally in boys and girls. During adolescence, however, depression rates increase much more dramatically in girls than in boys.
It can be very hard for people to accept that they – or their family member – are not to blame for their mental illness. That's partly because there are no current objective markers of psychiatric illness, making it difficult to pin down.
Imagine diagnosing and treating cancer based on history alone. Inconceivable! But that is exactly what mental health professionals do every day.
This can make it harder for parents and their children to accept that they don't have control over the situation.
Fortunately, there are now excellent online tools that can help parents and their children screen for common mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, panic disorder and more.
Most important of all is making sure your child is assessed by a licensed mental health professional experienced in diagnosing and treating children.
This is particularly important when medications that affect the child's brain are being considered.
Seeing the problem
Thanks to recent developments in genetics, neuroimaging and the science of mental health, it's becoming easier to characterise patients. New technologies may also make it easier to predict who is more likely to respond to a particular treatment or experience side effects from medication.
Our laboratory has used brain MRI studies to help unlock the underlying anatomy, chemistry and physiology underlying OCD.
This repetitive, ritualistic illness – while sometimes used among laypeople to describe someone who is uptight – is actually a serious and often devastating behavioral illness that can paralyse children and their families.
Through sophisticated, high-field brain imaging techniques – such as fMRI and magnetic resonance spectroscopy – that have become available recently, we can actually measure the child brain to see malfunctioning areas.
We have found, for example, that children 8 to 19 years old with OCD never get the "all clear signal" from a part of the brain called the anterior cingulate cortex. This signal is essential to feeling safe and secure.
That's why, for example, people with OCD may continue checking that the door is locked or repeatedly wash their hands. They have striking brain abnormalities that appear to normalise with effective treatment.
We have also begun a pilot study with a pair of identical twins. One has OCD and the other does not. We found brain abnormalities in the affected twin, but not in the unaffected twin.
Further study is clearly warranted, but the results fit the pattern we have found in larger studies of children with OCD before and after treatment as compared to children without OCD.
Exciting brain MRI and genetic findings are also being reported in childhood depression, non-OCD anxiety, bipolar disorder, ADHD and schizophrenia, among others.
Meanwhile, the field of psychiatry continues to grow. For example, new techniques may soon be able to identify children at increased genetic risk for psychiatric illnesses such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
New, more sophisticated brain imaging and genetics technology actually allows doctors and scientists to see what is going on in a child's brain and genes.
For example, by using MRI, our laboratory discovered that the brain chemical glutamate, which serves as the brain's "light switch," plays a critical role in childhood OCD.
What a scan means
When I show families their child's MRI brain scans, they often tell me they are relieved and reassured to "be able to see it".
Children with mental illness continue to face enormous stigma. Often when they are hospitalised, families are frightened that others may find out. They may hesitate to let schools, employers or coaches know about a child's mental illness.
They often fear that other parents will not want to let their children spend too much time with a child who has been labeled mentally ill. Terms like "psycho" or "going mental" remain part of our everyday language.
The example I like to give is epilepsy. Epilepsy once had all the stigma that mental illness today has. In the Middle Ages, one was considered to be possessed by the devil.
Then, more advanced thinking said that people with epilepsy were crazy. Who else would shake all over their body or urinate and defecate on themselves but a crazy person? Many patients with epilepsy were locked in lunatic asylums.
Then in 1924, psychiatrist Hans Berger discovered something called the electroencephalogram (EEG). This showed that epilepsy was caused by electrical abnormalities in the brain. The specific location of these abnormalities dictated not only the diagnosis but the appropriate treatment.
That is the goal of modern biological psychiatry: to unlock the mysteries of the brain's chemistry, physiology and structure.
This can help better diagnose and precisely treat childhood onset mental illness. Knowledge heals, informs and defeats ignorance and stigma every time.
David Rosenberg, Professor, Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Wayne State University.
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.


text:
- Search
- Home
- Subscribe
- Support Centre
- Puzzles
- Contests
- Cannabis
- Submit News Tip
- News
- Sports
- Travel
- Trending Now
- Newsletters
- Autos
- Classifieds
- Jobs
- Business
- Entertainment
- Photo Galleries
- Life
- Community
- Opinion
- Video
- Weather
- Obituaries
- Special Sections
- Marketplace
- Contact Us
- Site Map
Wildlife activists slam B.C. business, clubs for 'wolf-whacking' contests
Chilcotin Guns, Creston Valley Rod and Gun Club and West Kootenay Outdoorsmen Club under fire
VIDEO: NHL goaltender Carey Price comforts young fan who lost mom to cancer
She died before she could make son's dream come true to meet Price
Stranded B.C. trucker writes final wishes before being rescued 3 days later
'I was just praying someone would come along'
Off-road vehicles caught in sensitive B.C. wildlife habitats to net $575 fine
Areas include all BC Parks and southern mountain caribou habitats
Trudeau exonerates hanged war chiefs of 1864 on B.C. Tsilhqot'in title lands
Prime minister rides horseback with Chief Joe Alphonse, TNG Chairman, to Xeni Gwet'in meeting place
Justin Trudeau to visit B.C., exonerate First Nations war chiefs who were hanged
The Prime Minister is expected to personally exonerate the chiefs in a visit near Williams Lake
Workers at BC Interior mill strike as negotiations resume in Kelowna
Picket lines went up at 4 a.m Tuesday, Oct. 16 at Tolko Lakeview Division in Williams Lake
VIDEO: Injured B.C. bear cub rescued Thanksgiving weekend
Conservation officer and bear expert urge residents to better manage attractants
Father, 9-year-old son killed in crash along B.C. highway
RCMP say family of five was hit head-on by a pickup truck north of Williams Lake
VIDEO: B.C.-born firefighter remembered by MP in emotional speech
Family asks first responders to look after one another in wake of suicide, growing concerns of PTSD
VIDEO: Emergency crews respond to lightning-caused fires in Cariboo
Video shows lightning storm that swept over Williams Lake Monday evening
Smoke from as far away as Siberia affecting B.C. skies
South Thompson, Central and South Okanagan, East Columbia and all of the north included in smoky skies bulletin
B.C. mining company, involved in 2014 spill, ordered to pay lost wages
Mount Polley Mining Company must pay wages to 26 employees who were laid off without proper notice
B.C. rancher concerned after 2 of his cows shot near logging roads
Warning: story contains disturbing content
B.C. man drives to hospital following grizzly attack
The Bella Coola man surprised a sow grizzly bear that had been feeding on a cherry tree
Six months later, rescued Cariboo cougar cub doing "fantastic"
Rocket finds a friend, Rosie, at the Greater Vancouver Zoo
BC conservation officers release badger from wolf trap
Badger recovering after being caught in trap near Williams Lake
A dandy feast for an uncommon B.C. family
A mother black bear and her four cubs feed on some fresh food in the Cariboo
Hours-long police pursuit ends in arrests of two suspects in B.C. Interior
Suspects lead police on chase through Cariboo with RCMP helicopter in hot pursuit
RCMP offer to airlift people trapped by flooding in Cariboo
Local state of emergency declared for Nazko Valley


text:
Redhead Muscle Hunk Connor Chesney Barebacking Milo Fisher
Dallas Reeves released a hot new bareback sex video tonight featuring the redheaded muscle hunk Connor Chesney and sexy muscle twink Milo Fisher. Connor and Milo have been roommates for a few months now, having met from some mutual friends in the gay porn industry. The two have never had sex before, but when Connor wakes up with a raging boner that just won't go down he heads over to Milo's room bare naked. He wakes up Milo with his big cock and tells him to give him some morning head. Milo is still asleep and tells him no at first, but Milo can't resist that big ginger muscle hunk standing in front of him. Milo wraps his lips around Connor's thick cock and starts sucking away. Connor grabs the muscle twinks head and begins skull fucking him. Connor gets in the bed and pulls Milo's legs apart and starts sucking on the muscle twinks cock while he jerks himself off. Both of the guys have throbbing boners and both want to fuck. Milo rolls over and Connor spreads Milo's ass cheeks and admires that muscle twink ass before shoving his cock all the way in — bareback and raw. Connor gives Milo a very hard fucking while the twink moans in pleasure like a fucking dog. He loves the feeling of Connor's thick cock gliding in and out of his ass bareback. With each moan out of Milo, Connor starts fucking harder until he is literally slamming the twinks ass as hard as he can. Milo's moans turn to screams as the twink gets slam fucked. After the slam fucking, Milo flips Connor over and throws his legs over his shoulder and starts fucking him hard in this position so that Milo can jerk his cock while getting fucked. Connor can't hold back any longer, so he pulls his bare cock out of the twink muscle ass and shoots a load all over his raw hole. Feeling the cum dripping down his ass puts Milo over the edge and he blasts a big load of cum all over his chest. You guys are going to love this bareback breeding.
Click here to download this full length roommate's bareback gay sex video and hundreds more amateur gay porn breeding videos at Dallas Reeves.


text:
Activision has officially received shareholder approval for its merger with Vivendi. The company said over 92 percent of its shareholders greenlighted the merger, and the transaction is expected to officially close tomorrow.
The merger was first announced in December of 2007, but has just now been finalized. Through it, Blizzard and Sierra parent Vivendi becomes a wholly-owned subsidiary of Activision, scoring 295.3 new shares of Activision stock. It'll also buy 62.9 million new shares for a total of $1.7 billion - the result is that Vivendi owns a stake of about 52 percent in its new parent company.
Santa Monica-based Activision's new name will officially be Activision Blizzard, a moniker change also approved by the shareholders today, but it'll continue to trade on the NASDAQ under its same symbol, ATVI.
Full details after the jump.
Activision Stockholders Approve Combination with Vivendi Games
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jul 08, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) today announced that, at a special meeting of stockholders held earlier today, it received the stockholder approval necessary to consummate the company's agreement with Vivendi, S.A. to combine Vivendi Games, Vivendi's interactive entertainment business, with Activision's businesses. All of the proposals required to effect the transaction received more than 92 percent of the shares voted. The transaction is expected to close on or around July 9, 2008.
Activision and Vivendi Games will combine their businesses through the merger of a newly formed, wholly-owned subsidiary of Activision with and into Vivendi Games. As a result of the merger, Vivendi Games, the parent company of Blizzard Entertainment and Sierra, will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Activision. Vivendi will receive approximately 295.3 million newly issued shares of Activision common stock. Concurrently with the merger, Vivendi will purchase approximately 62.9 million newly issued shares of Activision common stock at a price of $27.50 per share for a total of approximately $1.7 billion in cash, resulting in a total Vivendi ownership stake in Activision Blizzard of approximately 52% on a fully diluted basis and approximately 54% of shares outstanding. As of the closing of the transaction, Activision will be renamed Activision Blizzard and will continue to operate as a public company traded on NASDAQ under the ticker ATVI.
Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Blizzard, Inc. is a worldwide pure-play online and console game publisher with leading market positions across all categories of the rapidly growing interactive entertainment software industry.
Activision Blizzard maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Romania, Australia, Chile, India, Japan China, the region of Taiwan and South Korea. More information about Activision Blizzard and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activisionblizzard.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Blizzard's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. In this release, they are identified by references to dates after the date of this release and words such as "outlook", "will," "remains," "to be," "plans," "believes", "may", "expects," "intends," and similar expressions. Factors that could cause Activision Blizzard's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, but are not limited to, sales of Activision Blizzard's titles in its fiscal year 2009, shifts in consumer spending trends, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the interactive game market, Activision Blizzard's ability to predict consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms (including next-generation hardware), declines in software pricing, product returns and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Activision Blizzard's products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware and related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, customers, vendors and third-party developers, domestic and international economic, financial and political conditions, foreign exchange rates, integration of recent acquisitions and the identification of suitable future acquisition opportunities, , the Activision Blizzard's success in integrating the operations of Activision and Vivendi Games in a timely manner, or at all, and the combined company's ability to realize the anticipated benefits and synergies of the transaction to the extent, or in the timeframe, anticipated. Other such factors include the further implementation, acceptance and effectiveness of the remedial measures recommended or adopted by the special sub-committee of independent directors established in July 2006 to review historical stock option granting practices by Activision Blizzard and its board of directors, the finalization of the tentative settlement of the SEC's formal investigation and final court approval of the proposed settlement of the derivative litigation filed in July 2006 against certain current and former directors and officers of Activision Blizzard relating to Activision Blizzard's stock option granting practices, and the possibility that additional claims and proceedings will be commenced, including additional action by the SEC and/or other regulatory agencies, and other litigation unrelated to stock option granting practices and any additional risk factors identified in Activision Blizzard's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and the definitive proxy statement filed on June 6, 2008 in connection with the proposed transaction with Vivendi. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and Activision Blizzard assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.


text:
From my man, Kevin Baker, whose latest novel, The Big Crowd, will be published next month.
With apologies to "The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table" by Oliver Wendell Holmes.
The Wonderful One-Pitch Mo
Have you heard of the Mar-i-ano,
Who such a wonderful pitch did throw
He ran up six hundred saves and then some,
And then of a sudden it — ah, but come,
I'll tell you what happened without delay,
Tearing the Yankees into bits,
Frightening their fans out of their wits, –
Have you ever heard of that, I say?
Nineteen hundred and ninety-five.
Georgius Steinbrenner was still alive, –
Snuffy old drone from the German hive.
That was the year when Seattle-town
Saved its team by beating us down,
And Black Jack McDowell was done so brown,
Left without his scalp to his crown.
It was during that terrible playoff round
That Mariano first came to town.
Now when it comes to closers, I tell you what,
There is always, always a weakest spot, –
They throw too hard or they throw too weak,
They throw too wild or they give up the gophers,
Fall asleep in the pen, those indolent loafers
Find their fault somewhere you must and will, –
In their arm or their head, or within or without, –
And that's the reason, beyond a doubt,
That a closer breaks down, but doesn't wear out.
But Steinbrenner swore (as Steinbrenners do,
With an "I dew vum," or an "I tell yeou")
He would find one closer to top the Sox
And the Orioles, too, and even the Jays;
And the Indians, and the Oakland A's:
"Fer," said Old George, "'t's mighty plain
Thut the weakes' pitch mus' stan' the strain;
'n' the way t' fix it,' he said with a hitch,
"Is to find a closer who throws just one pitch."
So George he inquired down Panama way
Where he could find the toughest hombre,
That couldn't be spooked nor rattled nor beaten,
Slim as a wraith with a boyish grin;
Who didn't go for pills or gin;
A monkish halo upon his crown,
And one pitch that could put the toughest side down,
And make even Manny and Ortiz frown.
The pitch he had, well they called it a cutter,
It slipped out of his hand as easy as butter
And swerved and swooped around each batter,
It looked like a fastball, it bent like a curve,
And each one thrown with such vim and nerve,
That hitters were done before they got up,
Frazzled and razzled from helmet to cup.
Their bats were shattered and their confidence shaken,
They couldn't believe they'd been so taken
And oh, how they would carry on so
To see the wonderful one-pitch Mo
"There!" said George S., "naow we'll win!"
Win! I tell you, I rather guess
The lad was a wonder, and nothing less!
Colts grew horses, beards turned gray,
Steinbrenner and Steinbrenneress dropped away,
Children and grandchildren — where were they?
But there stood the stout old one-pitch Rivera
As handsome and fabled as Ernesto Guevara.
Ninety-six! — they beat the Braves
Mo pitched two innings, always to raves.
Ninety-eight, and they set some marks;
Mo was the closer now, they filled all the parks.
Ninety-nine they won, and you can bet your testes,
In the year Two Thousand they hammered the Metsies.
Sure, there was a blip here or there,
Thanks to broken-bat singles and the occasional err'r.
That night in Boston, Joe went to sleep on the bench,
And the one in Phoenix when the grass was drenched.
An Alomar here who was all too Sandy,
And a juiced-up Mueller who was mighty handy.
But try as they might they still couldn't maim him,
He believed in God and who could blame him?
With a pitch like that he sure looked blessed,
And all the hitters he undressed
They just shook their heads and even laughed,
When his cutter ran in and they looked daft.
Running in from the bullpen each night to Metallica,
Rousing the Bronx into high hysterica.
He didn't take steroids, HGH, or any P-E-Ds
Though the men who he pitched to went through them like Wheaties.
That was all they could do to try to even the score,
As he went rolling on through Ought-Three and Ought-Four
The last 42, he'd become just sublime,
A tribute to Jackie, but all in Mo's time.
On he went to three hundred
Saves, and then four,
Got his first RBI in the game he hit five,
Did the deed out in Queens where he always did thrive.
Another title that year though his side was killing him,
Finished off Philly in the brand-new Sta-di-um.
On to six hundred he soon did sail,
Passed Lee Smith and Hoffman, and that's no tale.
Beat the Angels of Anaheim and of Los Angeles,
The Royals in Missoura and the Rangers in Texas.
Topped the Indians, Tigers, the Rays of some kind,
Baffled the Sox, both Pale and Carmine.
It seemed as if he'd go on forever,
His cutter slower but never cleverer
Punching them out and running up flags,
Surpassing the Goose, Sparky, and Rags.
Yet little of of all that we value here
Takes to the field in its forty-deuce year
Without both feeling and looking queer.
In fact, there's nothing that keeps its youth,
So far as I know, but Mo and the truth.
(This is a moral that runs at large;
Take it. — You're welcome. — No extra charge.)
Third of May dawned with barely a care,
There are traces of age in our closer's gray hair
A general flavor of mild decay,
But nothing so bad, as one may say.
He'd outlasted Rodriguezes, Felix and Frankie,
And save for Jeter, each fellow Yankee.
Watched the Wagner who tried to steal his music,
Meet his own Gotterdammerung (boy, were the Mets sick!).
Saw Papelbon off to the seniors' circuit,
And Gagne, that flash—well, just fergeddit!
He had one pitch, that's all he needed,
And all our fears he scarcely heeded.
He was a man of faith and a man of God,
And even if his ears were odd,
He threw one pitch and he threw it better,
Than anyone else, lesser or gre'ter.
With a whip-like motion and a flick of the wrist
It just came to him one day as a gift,
And stayed with him through that night in KC
When he ran out there to entertain the hayseeds.
Run his laps and joke with the guys,
His same routine just shagging flies.
Third of May, Two Thousand and Twelve!
Into this fabled disaster we delve.
Nix on the Nix who stroked that ball,
Out past the grass and to the wall
And here comes the wonderful, one-pitch Mo,
He couldn't back off, he couldn't go slow.
Unable to shake his outfielder's blood—
When down he went with an awful thud.
He lay on the ground, in pain but still grinning,
Just as he always did, losing or winning.
It wasn't the pitch that had failed him at last,
He hadn't lost faith, gone weak, or got vast.
He hadn't been done in by ball or by bat
A ligament frayed, it snapped just like that.
Despite a heart that was ne'er less stout,
Mighty Mo hadn't broken, he'd only worn out.
Have we come to the end of our incredible story?
Or is there waiting some last wondrous glory?
Either way we'll sing his praises fore'er,
And go see him in Cooperstown, the unrivaled River'
He threw one pitch, and that was all—
It just happened to be the greatest of all.


text:
Aerial View Posters
The world from the ground is not the same as the world that you can see when you are on a plane or any flying object. This is what a parachute person would tell you when you ask him or her about the world from above. Well, you also have the chance to enjoy the beauty from aerial view of landscapes, cities and unique features on the ground etc. This is made possible through high quality posters that have got aerial views of such spectacular scenes on them.
Impression from aerial view posters
Hanging a poster showing your favorite city from the birds-eye-view, will give you a good feeling each time you wake up and look at it. This impression is boosted if you design a poster that has got either canvas print or framed art pieces. The appealing nature of such a poster would not only decorate your room but it will also create a good environment that you can relax in and enjoy the surrounding beauty. A good example of an aerial view poster that would not go unnoticed is a poster that has got wildlife on it, e.g. from Africa. This poster would have everyone in awe, in fact you should keep watch that it might not end up getting stolen due to its tempting nature.
Art print - another way of presenting posters
Art prints are another way of presenting posters to ensure that they are able to be enjoyed by the public also. You should make a point of owning some of the aerial view posters.


text:
LOS ANGELES – Consumer and environmental advocates pressured California regulators Thursday to open a probe into soaring costs tied to the damaged San Onofre nuclear power plant.
At issue is who is going to pay a bill that has reached $165 million so far for repairs, inspections and replacement power. The twin-domed plant, located between San Diego and Los Angeles, hasn't produced electricity since January.
The state Public Utilities Commission postponed for the second time Thursday voting on an order requiring owners Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric to disclose the potential economic hit for ratepayers from the long-running shutdown.
The state Division of Ratepayer Advocates sent a letter Wednesday urging the agency to open the probe. It was endorsed by executives from the Utility Reform Network, the Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility, Friends of the Earth and the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies.
The letter said only the state utilities commission "can investigate whether SCE acted reasonably, how the cost responsibility should be resolved, and whether future investments to repair or replace the steam generators are justified."
The trouble began to unfold in January, when the Unit 3 reactor was shut down as a precaution after a tube break. Traces of radiation escaped at the time, but officials said there was no danger to workers or neighbors. Unit 2 had been taken offline earlier that month for maintenance, but investigators later found unexpected wear on scores of tubes that carry radioactive water inside both units.
A three-month federal probe blamed a botched computer analysis for generator design flaws that ultimately resulted in heavy wear to the alloy tubing. Edison has been trying to determine how to correct the problem, while environmental activists have depicted the plant as a disaster in the making.


text:
The Secret Beyond Matter
Hilal TV, January 24-2009
Adnan Oktar: Allah tells Muslims to be united. That is an obligation. Allah tells us not to be divided. And if Muslims are divided, then that is a sin... What needs to be done is very clear and evident. Muslims must love one another and avoid conflict with each other, regard sectarian differences as a blessing and treat one another with love and affection. And they must open the border crossings as soon as possible, as in the EU. When the EU unites, they say that this union is perfectly normal. Yet we share the same religion, the same language and the same everything, so how can you not be united? People ask if they would permit it. Why are you alive at all if you are so frightened? What meaning does life hold for you in that case? If you are too frightened even to suggest union, if you are as desolate as that, the there is in any case point to your being alive. It means you are prepared to permit your honor, character and good name to be trampled under foot.
ArabNews, November 9-2008
Adnan Oktar: … THE MOST PERFECT SOLUTION IS CLEARLY AN ISLAMIC UNION, AN ISLAMIC UNION UNDER TURKISH LEADERSHIP. I am not thinking of any highly complicated and detailed solution. The simple and straightforward solution is to be completely united, to resolve the border and customs issues, and to lift the passport requirement, for brothers to embrace one another, and for a climate of love and friendship to prevail. I do not think we can get anywhere with complex solutions.


text:
Let's say I was an alien, or new here or something — er, not entirely impossible, if you consider that I woke up yesterday with small feet fidgeting way further up my rib cage than I thought anatomically possible, leading me to wonder what I actually know about anatomy, leading to an inadvisable, rash amount of Google Image searching, leading to my eyes popping out of my head and whoa, I've digressed mightily — and I asked you to explain to me what is this "graham cracker" flavor that you speak of, could you do it?
Because I've spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to figure out what it was, and seeing the wide range of graham cracker — they're something like digestive biscuits, for those of you across the pond — recipes out there, it's not just me. There was the one I tried a couple years ago with rye flour, which I can assure you, was not the answer. Graham flour — a coarsely, exactingly ground whole wheat flour — would be the obvious answer, since they originate with one Rev. Sylvester Graham himself, but that doesn't go far to explain the curious flavor of the cookie-like crackers. Cinnamon is another thing most recipes agree on, but when I tried a version with a lot of cinnamon in it (rather than on it, in a cinnamon-sugar coating), it tasted wrong. Ditto with another that contained an excess of molasses.
Anyway, I stopped searching the first time I made Nancy Silverton's graham crackers. She's figured it out so everyone else can stop trying. Her combination of dark brown sugar (which I know is molasses-heavy but somehow less aggressive than straight molasses-sweetened versions), honey and a large amount of vanilla makes perfect, better-than-store-bought graham crackers. Well, better than better-than-store-bought, namely because graham crackers as we've come to known them are rather bland and forgettable, and these are too good for a cheesecake crust. I'd say possibly too good to share with your kid, too, but seeing as I am currently at the mercy of one's aforementioned limbs and wish in no way to draw their ire, I will promise to share. For now.
One year ago: Haricot Vert with Shallots
Two years ago: Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble
Graham Crackers
Adapted from Nancy Silverton's Pastries from the La Brea Bakery, and 101 Cookbooks, because for some absurd reason that will be immediately rectified, this book is not yet in my collection.
If you're new to graham crackers, do know that the word "cracker" is misleading. They're moderately sweet, like a cookie or biscuit, but they do have the snap of a cracker. I can't say that I'd serve them with cheese, but if you've never schmeared them with cream cheese frosting, you're missing out.
The topping amount will make a heavy coating, like the store-bought ones. Make only half if you just want a light-to-moderate sprinkling.
Makes 10 4 x 4.5-inch graham crackers or 48 2-inch squares
2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (375 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour (a swap of 1/2 cup with whole wheat flour or 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour works well here, too)
1 cup (176 grams) dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon (6 grams) baking soda
3/4 teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt (4 grams)
7 tablespoons (3 1/2 ounces or 100 grams) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen
1/3 cup (114 grams) mild-flavored honey, such as clover
5 tablespoons (77 grams) milk, full-fat is best
2 tablespoons (27 grams) pure vanilla extract
Topping (optional)
3 tablespoons (43 grams) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon (5 grams) ground cinnamon
Make the dough: Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade or in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Pulse or mix on low to incorporate. Add the butter and pulse on and off on and off, or mix on low, until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal.
[Alternately, if you don't have a food processor or electric mixer, you can cut the ingredients together with a pastry blender. Just make sure they're very well incorporated.]
In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, milk, and vanilla extract. Add to the flour mixture and pulse on and off a few times or mix on low until the dough barely comes together. It will be very soft and sticky. Lay out a large piece of plastic wrap and dust it lightly with flour, then turn the dough out onto it and pat it into a rectangle about 1-inch thick. Wrap it, then chill it until firm, about 2 hours or overnight. Meanwhile, prepare the topping, if using, by combining the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and setting aside.
Roll out the crackers: Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator. Sift an even layer of flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle about 1/8 inch thick. The dough will be sticky, so flour as necessary. Trim the edges of the rectangle to 4 inches wide. Working with the shorter side of the rectangle parallel to the work surface, cut the strip every 4 1/2 inches to make 4 crackers. [This makes a traditional graham cracker shape. I rebelled and made mine into 2-inch fluted squares with one of these.]
Place the crackers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets and sprinkle with the topping. Chill until firm, about 30 to 45 minutes in the fridge or 15 to 20 minutes in the freezer. Repeat with the second batch of dough. Finally, gather any scraps together into a ball, chill until firm, and re-roll.
Adjust the oven rack to the upper and lower positions and preheat the oven to 350°F.
Decorate the crackers: Mark a vertical line down the middle of each cracker, being careful not to cut through the dough (again, this is for the traditional cracker shape). Using a toothpick or skewer (I like to use the blunt end of a wooden skewer for more dramatic dots), prick the dough to form two dotted rows about 1/2 inch for each side of the dividing line.
Bake for 15 to 25 minutes, until browned and slightly firm to the touch, rotating the sheets halfway through to ensure even baking. [The baking time range is long because the original recipe calls for 25 minutes but my new oven — which I suspect runs crazy hot but have yet to confirm with the actual purchase of an oven thermometer — had them done in way less. Be safe, check them sooner. Nobody likes a burnt cracker!]


text: Back Protein Electrophoresis (Blood) Does this test have other names? Serum protein electrophoresis, SPE What is this test? Protein electrophoresis is a test that measures specific proteins in the blood. The test separates proteins in the blood based on their electrical charge. The protein electrophoresis test is often used to find abnormal substances called M proteins. Protein electrophoresis also tests for other proteins and immunoglobulins. The presence of M proteins can be a sign of a type of cancer called myeloma, or multiple myeloma. Myeloma affects white blood cells called plasma cells in the bone marrow. The protein electrophoresis test is also used to diagnose other conditions affecting the plasma cells. These include Waldenström macroglobulinemia; monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance, or MGUS; and primary amyloidosis. Protein electrophoresis can also be used to help diagnose: Thyroid problems Diabetes Anemia Liver diseases Poor nutrition or inability to absorb nutrients Certain autoimmune diseases Why do I need this test? Your doctor may recommend this test if he or she suspects that you have a condition affecting your plasma cells. These conditions may cause the following symptoms: Unexplained weight loss Bone pain Fatigue Weakness Nausea Constipation Unusual thirst Frequent urination Frequent illness or fevers Bones that fracture easily Back pain High levels of calcium in the blood What other tests might I have along with this test? Your doctor may also order: Urine protein electrophoresis Bone marrow biopsy Immunotyping (to determine what type of M proteins are present) Complete blood count Blood calcium test Creatinine test X-rays What do my test results mean? Many things may affect your lab test results. These include the method each lab uses to do the test. Even if your test results are different from the normal value, you may not have a problem. To learn what the results mean for you, talk with your health care provider. Serum proteins can be albumin or globulins. Globulins are divided into alpha-1, alpha-2, beta, and gamma globulins. Normal levels are: Albumin 60 to 75 percent or 3.6 to 5.2 grams per deciliter (g/dL) (36-52 grams per liter -g/L) Alpha-1 (α-1) 1.7 to 5 percent or 0.1 to 0.4 g/dL (1 to 4 g/L) Alpha-2 (α-2) 6.7 to 12.5 percent or 0.4 to 1 g/dL (4 to 10 g/L) Beta (β) 8.3 to 16.3 percent or 0.5 to 1.2 g/dL (5 to 12 g/L) Gamma (γ) 10.7 to 20 percent or 0.6 to 1.6 g/dL (6 to 16 g/L) How is this test done? The test requires a blood sample, which is drawn through a needle from a vein in your arm. Does this test pose any risks? The risks are very minor. The needle may feel uncomfortable or painful. You may experience bruising, soreness, or pain in your arm at the puncture spot. These symptoms usually go away soon after the test is over. What might affect my test results? Your diet or lifestyle habits are not likely to affect the results of this test. Be sure to tell your doctor about any medications you are taking, including over-the-counter and prescription medications. Also mention any vitamins, herbs, or supplements that you take. How do I get ready for this test? You probably don't need to take special precautions before having this test. Your doctor will tell you if you need to stop eating or drinking for a period of time before the test. Your doctor will also tell you if you need to skip any of your regular medications on the day of the test.


text:
Welcome to Wise Bread's Best Money Tips Roundup! Today we found some awesome articles on ways to save money at work, how to build passive income streams, and ideas to trim your vacation costs.
7 Ways to Save Money during the Work Day — Save money while you are at work by making the most of your tax deductions. [Quizzle Wire]
Building Passive Income Streams — When building passive income streams, consider options that involve investing your time, for example writing a book. [The Simple Dollar]
Ideas to Trim (or Slash) Vacation Costs — Save money on vacation costs by traveling in the off-season. [Frugal Dad]
5 Tips to Avoid Student Credit Card Debt — If you are a student, stay out of credit card debt by not using your credit card to pay for entertainment expenses. [The Financial Times]
10 tips to avoid money worries — Avoid money worries by overwithholding on taxes. [Brip Blap]
7 Ways to Naturally Clean Your Home — Clean your home the natural way by using vinegar. [Parenting Squad]
3 Ways to Earn More Cash Back — Get more cash back from your credit card by paying off your balance in full every month. [Living Richly on a Budget]
10 Tips for Refinancing Your Home Loan — Are you thinking about refinancing your home loan? If so, consider working with a home loan specialist. [Money Hacker]
Financial Freedom as a Couple — Work with your significant other to achieve financial freedom by making sure you have an emergency fund in place. [Couple Money]
10 Things You Need To Do If You Were Just Fired — If you recently got fired, brainstorm different industries to work in or other locations for you to live in. [Lifehacker]
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.


text:
First, the US delegation decides to stick around for one of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's speeches at the UN, and then the highest-ranking US diplomat at Turtle Bay takes a powder when Israel's Prime Minister gets up to speak. Instead, UN Ambassador Susan Rice chose to attend a luncheon in which she wasn't even the highest-ranking American diplomat. If I didn't know any better, I'd say there's a message being sent by the Obama administration, and both Greta Van Susteren and John Bolton agree:
Katie Pavlich puts this in perspective:
At a time when Iran is closer than ever to a nuclear weapon, it seems our U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. doesn't really care about the only true democracy in the Middle East, Israel. Just like this administration doesn't seem to care about using the word terrorism to describe the war we are in. This move by Rice came just days after President Obama blew Netanyahu off so he could go party with Jay-Z, Beyonce, the ladies from The View and David Letterman.
I must say that if I'd been told three years ago that the Obama administration's UN delegation would attend an Ahmadinejad speech and snub Benjamin Netanyahu, I'd have scoffed at the notion. Not even this administration could be that tone-deaf and arrogant, I'd have said. And I'd have been wrong.
Update: There seems to be some confusion in the comments. There were two speeches by Ahmadinejad at the UN — we attended the first and skipped the second, which is why I wrote "one of Ahmadinejad's speeches."


text:
Main Page
MIDAS is a modern data acquisition system developed at PSI and TRIUMF. Supported hardware includes VME, Fastbus, CAMAC, RS232, GPIB, USB, ethernet, fiber optic and MSCB attached data acquisition devices. MIDAS is written in C/C++ and runs on Linux, MacOS and MS Windows. It is licensed under the GPL. Read more...
- https://bitbucket.org/tmidas/midas - MIDAS GIT Repository
- http://midas.psi.ch/ - MIDAS pages at PSI
- https://midas.triumf.ca/forum - MIDAS discussion forum
- http://daq.triumf.ca - TRIUMF DAQ Wiki
- http://ladd00.triumf.ca/~daqweb/doc/midas/doc/html - MIDAS Doxygen documentation
All MIDAS programs are under the GNU Public License
The GIT tree is available via a web interface. Using this interface, the most recent file versions can be obtained.
Alternatively, the files can be directly obtained via GIT by entering:
git clone https://bitbucket.org/tmidas/midas git clone https://bitbucket.org/tmidas/mxml cd midas make cd doc make
Supported operating systems are:
- primary: MacOS, RHEL/SL/SLC Linux
- secondary: MS Windows, Ubuntu Linux, FreeBSD, VxWorks, others (see Makefile)
The bitbucket repository is mirrored nightly to TRIUMF at http://ladd00.triumf.ca/~daqweb/git. Please use this mirror to install stable releases of MIDAS. To follow the latest development version, please clone from bitbucket.
News about bug fixes and new releases of Midas can be obtained from the Midas news group located at TRIUMF which uses the ELOG system. Users can register in this system to be notified automatically via E-mail when new entries are submitted.
Related packages
- ELOG - Electronics Logbook from PSI
- ROOT - data analysis package from CERN
- ROOTANA - ROOT-based analyzer for MIDAS
- ROODY - viewer for online histograms
- http://midas.psi.ch/rome/ - MEG/PSI data analysis package
- Documentation at TRIUMF
- Historical files collection (PSI)
- Historical files collection (TRIUMF)
- New Wiki Documentation (in construction)
- MIDAS installation instructions for TRIUMF experiments
- Common problems & Debugging recipes
- Format of MIDAS history files
- Note on the alarm system
- Note on the ODB hotlink function (db_open_record())
- Note on race condition and deadlock between ODB lock and SYSMSG lock in cm_msg()
- Note on prevent start due to alarm or required programs
- List of various minor modification to be put into the right place of the documentation
Consult the User's Guide for information on using the wiki software.


text:
Aurora, Colo. – Derek R. Anderson took the lead for top najjace during Monday's Gvoš na travi preliminary tryouts during which Ivan Ignoarabitch pulled a hamstring doing the Gvoš na dance, as is customary when playing the goalie position at any field outside the nation of Latvia. The practice of dancing during away matches is intended to shame the home team, but really looks quite silly, as Anderson demonstrates throughout the footage below.
Friday night's match-up between Encyclopedia Dramatica and Oh! Internet is sure to be dead in the water, as no one is likely to attend either website, ditching them in favor of the legendary chronicle.su, who is a pretty cool guy, and doesn't afraid of anything.
We win at pretty much everything, even Gvoš na travi, which we don't play because that sport is for faggots.
Also this:


text:
A publication of the Archaeological Institute of America
From the Trenches
By ERIC A. POWELL
Monday, April 06, 2015
The Golden Horde, a group of Mongols who conquered much of Eastern Europe in the thirteenth century, was famously tolerant of foreign religions. Recently, however, archaeologist Zvezdana Dode of the Southern Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences completed a study of rare textiles that suggests the Mongol attitude to Christianity was sometimes more complex than simple indifference. She examined pieces of fabrics found in Mongol burials that represent Christian subjects but had been repurposed as clothing, such as a hat that depicts an upside-down Jesus flanked by two archangels. She suggests that these fabrics, likely seized from Russian churches, were not merely the spoils of war. "The Mongols were able to observe employment of icons and banners with Christian symbols by the Russian military," says Dode. "It's possible they interpreted these symbols as devices for supernatural warfare." By wearing an inverted Christian motif into battle, a Mongol warrior may have thought he was neutralizing that threat.
By SAMIR S. PATEL
Friday, April 03, 2015
One of the most spectacular shipwreck projects in Chinese underwater archaeology was the 2007 raising—intact, with the surrounding sediment—of Nanhai Number One, the wreck of a Song Dynasty merchant vessel (see the September/October 2011 feature "Pirates of the Marine Silk Road"). A 3,000-ton steel cage brought the wreck to a custom saltwater tank in a newly built museum on Hailing Island in Guangdong. The museum was completed in 2009, and full-scale excavations began in late 2013. Recently archaeologists have reached the interior of the ship, and have so far found more than 600 pieces of porcelain, 100 gold artifacts, and 5,000 bronze coins, among other items—with countless more to come. Nanhai Number One dates to between A.D. 1127 and 1279, a time when China's ocean-based trade and exploration flourished, before the fleet was dismantled a few centuries later.
By DANIEL WEISS
Monday, April 06, 2015
A salvage excavation occasioned by the construction of a rail project crossing the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey, turned up a bonanza of shipwrecks from the Byzantine era: In all, 37 have been found since 2004. Now a team of researchers has scrutinized each timber in eight of the wrecks, dating from the seventh to tenth centuries A.D., and has gained new insight into the markedly different materials used to build merchant ships and warships of the time.
The team studied six merchant round ships, powered primarily by sail, and two galley warships, powered by oar. "The merchant ships were massive and would have bludgeoned through the waves," says Cemal Pulak of the Institute of Nautical Archaeology in College Station, Texas, "whereas the galleys are long and flexible and their timber is quite light—and they selected different types of material for that."
Analysis of the ships' timbers found a number of indications that the warships were built at greater expense. For example, the galleys' planking consisted of European black pine, which would have been imported from afar, while readily available Turkey oak was used in the round ships. It is unclear whether merchant galleys of the time were built with the same high-quality materials as galley warships, as no merchant galleys from the Byzantine era have yet been found.
By KATE RAVILIOUS
Friday, April 03, 2015
At a site soon to be a multistory parking garage in the English city of Norwich, recent excavations have uncovered an upmarket thirteenth-century tannery. In December 2014, trial trenches at this low-lying city-center location revealed temporary platforms and freshwater pits, typical of a tannery. Archaeologists also found vast numbers of goat horn-cores—the inner part of the horn—suggesting that it was mostly goatskin being processed there. "Goatskin was used to make very high-quality leather and it is possible they were making vellum, the parchment used for scrolls and books," says lead archaeologist David Adams. The site's location, between two monasteries, and the period it was in operation, from the 1200s to the 1500s, fit with this idea. Meanwhile, a handful of worked cat bones show that cat fur was also being produced there, perhaps for trim on hats or gloves—a common use for it in medieval Britain.
By DANIEL WEISS
Monday, April 06, 2015
It's hardly surprising that an Iron Age settlement in which livestock lived alongside people and open pits served as latrines would be overrun with intestinal parasites. As expected, researchers studying sediments from some of these pits at a settlement in present-day Basel, Switzerland, dating to around 100 B.C., found roundworm, whipworm, and liver fluke eggs.
What makes their findings notable is the method they used. Archaeologists typically detect parasite eggs through "wet sieving," in which soil is moistened and then strained, which allows a large volume of fill to be searched, but provides no information on where the eggs were originally located. Instead, at Basel, scientists have produced very thin slices of sediment that can be studied under a microscope, which preserves the location of the parasite eggs in their original setting. "You would expect the parasite eggs to be close to where the feces were," says Sandra Pichler of the University of Basel, "but we found that the eggs get washed out by water and spread around. Even sediments without any fecal indicators still had parasite eggs."
Badgers for dinner in Neolithic Spain, the search for Doctor Syntax, a rare coffin emerges in Egypt, Ukraine's prehistoric McMansions, and fishing for Homo erectus


text:
I recently had the pleasure of attending a dinner for startup VPs of Marketing. I had a great time chatting with peers and laughing about the unrealistic demands we all face. "Get me in the Journal and fill the pipeline–but don't spend any money."
The most interesting and worrisome aspect of the evening was the amount of time we spent talking about social media marketing. Almost every VP I talked with wanted advice on how to do social media marketing. (By the way, if you get a chance to invest in HubSpot, do it. It was the one tool everyone agreed you should buy. Dharmesh is going to make a mint.)
Why did they want to do social media marketing? True, curiosity was definitely a factor, but the consensus was simple: "Because of my board."
In boardrooms throughout the Valley (and presumably the world) board members are reading magazines and thinking, "Social media is the hot new thing. And best of all, it's free. Forget the as buys, we're going to Twitter our way to profitability!"
The problem with this picture of course, is that social media isn't free. It consumes the most valuable resource of any startup–the time of its staff. And by asking marketing leaders to focus on social media, boards and investors are undermining the very people they are trying to "help".
This is not to say that traditional marketing is a paragon of efficiency. As a startup tightwad, nothing drives me crazier than free-spending VPs of Marketing. But few real businesses can be built on social media alone.
Social media is a great tool that, in the hands of a talented practitioner, can multiply the effect of your marketing. (There's a reason I like companies like Conversely and VoteJet) But social media is an amplifier. It isn't the story. Marketers still need to tell great stories. And the current craze for social media marketing threatens to confuse the story with the means of telling it. With all due respect to Marshall McLuhan, the medium is not the message.


text:
Warren wins 2020 backing of influential group of black women
A group of more than 100 black female activists is endorsing Elizabeth Warren for president, saying her stances on a range of issues speak directly to black voters.
In a letter released on Thursday, the group Black Womxn For says its endorsement is an extension of activism that has helped shape a progressive agenda in the 2020 Democratic primary. The group calls Warren a "leader" and "partner" with a proven track record and understanding of structural racism and inequality who is willing to be held accountable.
The group's director, Angela Peoples, says she hopes the letter will encourage other black women to support the Massachusetts senator publicly.
Warren is scheduled to visit the historically black college North Carolina A&T State University later Thursday.


text:
In terms of anticipation, the FX option market is pricing the highest overnight volatility (see chart below) since the depths of the EMU-crisis in May. And for good reason. We are unsure exactly what market expectations are, although it seems something in the region of $500-600 Gigadollars over six months is the consensus, at least from the surveys we have seen from economists and traders. But even if we knew the outcome of today's meeting, we have no idea how markets will react, with contradicting anecdotes about positioning and reactions leading them to conclude that sitting on the sidelines seems like the best strategy.
As readers know, we don't do predictions . We do "non predictions". So in line with tradition, TMM predict that the Fed will NOT announce more than $700bn and will NOT announce less than $400bn over a six month period (or equivalent). Now this is something of a cop out, but not for good reason. Experience suggests that the Fed will try their damnedest to avoid surprising the market in a bad way, and the recent leaks and furore about the Primary Dealer questionnaire illustrate that they have a pretty good handle on things. That suggests the downside floor is pretty high. On the upside, we are sure that the FOMC will be utterly delighted by the increase in inflation expectations since Jackson Hole, with 5y5y TIPS Breakevens (see chart below, white line) surging 1.17% to 3.09%, essentially equaling the highs back in April. Now this would suggest that the Fed would be cautious in terms of driving breakevens even higher for fear of deanchoring inflation expectations. The truth, as always, is somewhat more nuanced, as the Fed's own model for deriving inflation expectations from TIPS (attempting to strip out the usual caveats: funding, inflation risk premia and valuation of the deflation floor) has not risen quite as much, by 68bps (see chart below, orange line). Unsurprisingly, a good portion of this is inflation risk premia: QE2 is essentially the last roll of the Dice - there is nothing left after this. A more careful look at the chart shows that while 5y5y Breakevens did not reach March 2009 lows, the Fed's measure *did*, and was within a whisper of the levels reached in late-2008. Anyway, the point here is that the 5y5y breakeven is more followed by market participants and thus the Fed is left with a difficult balancing act between that, which argues caution, and their own model, which suggests there is more scope. In TMM's book, that argues that the upside surprise is also capped.
That being said, if you want the upside on the EM bubble and QE look no further than Hong Kong as the team a large US ex-investment bank have pointed out. Hong Kong is an odd market because thanks to the USD peg it is basically a China fundamentals story powered by USD liquidity dynamics. Whereas the Shanghai Composite tends to move in line with mainland fundamentals and liquidity conditions HK tends to be driven by what is going on in the markets more broadly. The best way to demonstrate this is looking at the premium/discount between companies with both a Shanghai and Hong Kong listing. As can be seen here, Chalco, one of our least favorite companies traded at a truly bizarre premium onshore in China in 2007 as liquidity was flush onshore, rates were high in the USD market and there was something of a property investment crackdown underway. That collapsed into mid-08 as aggressive China monetary tightening came through and loosening went on in the US. The difference this time of course is that now liquidity is flush everywhere and if anything China is cracking down on property again and talking about tighter loan quotas. For those not brave enough to play the "limit long HK, damn the torpedoes" game buying the H share premium does look fairly sensible as EM countries including China have to brace for impact from the QE Tsunami.
The other side effect of the QE announcement is to lift the veil on everything else that has been ticking on in the background for the past 3 weeks. European news as been completely shrouded and as the market has been holding its collective breath. Actually the analogy we would prefer is it has been gagging with its hand over its mouth on a bad Irish/Greek prawn waiting for the speeches to be over before it legs it to the toilets and chucks its Euro guts up. Six months ago Irish spreads going to where they are now together with bombs going off in Athens' Embassies as someone tries to incite revolution may just have seen EUR/CHF FALL. Not Rally. We are are pretty close to reloading EUR/CHF shorts just in case (we also like the soothsayer signals in it). We cant be that far off SNB relief exit levels either. It also ties in with our view on Euro rates.
Ooooooo.. is it Christmas yet? Pleeeaaase can it be. We are just SO excited, can we open it now please? Or just peak inside the paper ???


text:
CLEVELAND — Orioles designated hitter Jim Thome hasn't decided how much longer he wants to play, but he has a legitimate chance to catch an old teammate and friend on one of the most noteworthy lists in baseball history if he sticks around a little.
On Friday, the 41-year-old Thome hit his 610th career homer, putting him in seventh place all-time. He followed with No. 611 on Saturday and almost had another Sunday.
"When you start playing you don't think of [milestones]. You just keep playing," said Thome, who was traded to the Orioles on June 30. "It is very humbling. … But ultimately it is about winning right now. The home runs are nice, no doubt."
After sitting much of the first half of the season in the National League with the Philadelphia Phillies, Thome is playing regularly for Buck Showalter and the Orioles, so another half-dozen or so 2012 homers seems realistic.
To get to the top 5 in home runs seems like a real stretch for Thome. New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez is fifth with 643 and counting. Willie Mays' 660 homers are fourth and the top three — Barry Bonds (762), Hank Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714) — are all more than 100 away.
But the sixth spot is held by Ken Griffey Jr. with 630. Another full season and Thome, just 19 behind, could move up a notch in history.
"I don't think of that. To be honest, I don't know how much more I am going to play," said Thome, who passed former Oriole Sammy Sosa with Friday's homer. "The number is not a thing I've been focusing on. Getting an opportunity to come over here and be on a team that has a legitimate chance in a pennant race is. I've enjoyed Buck; I've enjoyed the coaches and the players."
After checking to see how close Griffey was, Showalter said he thinks Thome could catch him if Thome wants to keep playing beyond this year. Regardless, Showalter believes Thome belongs in a special class of baseball people.
"Jimmy does a lot of things other than swing a bat and hit a ball where they can't catch it," Showalter said. "He just impacts a team in so many ways. He walks through the door every day with a smile on his face … He's just a lot of fun to have around, but he is also a competitive guy."
Thome admits he thought about passing Sosa simply "because it gets mentioned. But once it is over, you move on."
Moving up to sixth doesn't mean anything more to Thome, but passing Griffey, a contemporary for most of his career and a teammate with the Chicago White Sox in 2008, would carry some significance, he said.
"If that would happen, absolutely," Thome said. "For me, Griffey was very special because we were teammates and getting an opportunity to play with him and watching his career, [that] was pretty special for sure."
Flaherty starts again
Rookie Ryan Flaherty made his third straight start at second base Sunday, even with newly acquired Omar Quintanilla now in the fold.
Quintanilla, who had last played July 8 with the New York Mets, entered Saturday and Sunday as a defensive replacement for Flaherty. Quintanilla hasn't started a game since June 23.
Showalter said he wanted to ease Quintanilla back. The manager said Quintanilla, who was acquired Friday, will start Monday against the Cleveland Indians. Shortstop J.J. Hardy is expected to get the day off, but Showalter wouldn't reveal whether the 30-yar-old Quintanilla will start at second or shortstop, his natural position.
Flaherty's presence in the lineup the past three games had a lot to do with Flaherty, who homered Friday and Saturday and went 1-for-3 with a run scored Sunday. Showalter wants to give the Rule 5 rookie more consistent at-bats whenever possible.
"I talked to him a few days ago about not getting timid, about letting it rip and getting after it. We talked about some of the tendencies [other teams] have shown and they are using on him, just to be aware of it," Showalter said. "I'm trying to give Q a couple days to kind of get grounded."
Baltimore Orioles Insider
Trembley honored in minors
Former Orioles manager Dave Trembley will be one of 13 inductees into the Florida State League Hall of Fame in November. Trembley, who managed the Orioles from 2007 to 2010, managed for two decades in the minors, including four years with the Daytona Cubs in the FSL. His 1995 Cubs won the league championship.
The 60-year-old Trembley, who still lives in Daytona Beach Shores, is the first Daytona Cub to make the league's Hall. He is currently the minor league field coordinator for the Atlanta Braves.
Around the horn
After two hits Sunday, Nick Markakis is batting .364 (16 for 44) in 10 games as the club's leadoff hitter. He had never batted leadoff before in his career. … Twelve of the Orioles' last 17 games have been decided by three runs or fewer. They are 8-4 in those games. … Orioles first base coach Wayne Kirby and Indians bench coach Sandy Alomar Jr. exchanged lineup cards before the game Sunday. They were teammates with the Indians.


text:
In light of the Kentucky Open Records Act of 1992, the University of Kentucky is unable to assure that the written judgments of persons consulted in connection with appointments, promotions, and/or tenure decisions can be maintained in confidence. Thus, writers of such judgments should not be given assurances of confidentiality. The college asks chairs, in their conversation and correspondence with all writers of judgments, to state explicitly the following information:
Letters such as yours written on behalf of a candidate for appointment, promotion, or tenure are only available to persons participating in the formal review process except that they are also available upon request by the candidate (and only the candidate) under the terms of the Kentucky Open Records Act of 1992.
The University, in compliance with the Open Records Act, has established a procedure by which an employee may request access to his or her file. Faculty wishing to see their official file, which in the College of Arts & Sciences is maintained by the Dean's Office, should contact the Associate Dean of Faculty.
Department personnel files are not open to inspection except by those individuals with an official need to review or maintain a department personnel file or dossier, that is to say senior faculty and administrative staff within the academic department. Chairs must make vigilant efforts to maintain the confidentiality of personnel files and dossiers housed within department offices, while in no way attempting to obstruct an employee's right to request access to his or her record in the manner outlined above.