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This document is an excerpt from the EUR-Lex website
Links between legal and illegal immigration
Links between legal and illegal immigration
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Links between legal and illegal immigration
The institutions and the Member States are reviewing their immigration policies in response to demographic decline and ageing of the population in the European Union (EU). One of the solutions proposed at European level to meet the needs of the labour market is to expand economic migration. In this study, the Commission takes stock of existing measures on legal immigration. It then analyses their effects on illegal immigration and puts forward a series of proposals for managing both legal and illegal immigration flows efficiently.
Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions of 4 June 2004 - Study on the links between legal and illegal migration [COM(2004) 412 final - Not published in the Official Journal]
This Commission study analyses the effect of a legal migration policy on illegal migration flows and on cooperation with third countries in the fight against illegal immigration. The study first describes the existing measures for managing legal immigration, and then analyses the relationship between legal and illegal migration flows. Lastly, it presents the Commission proposals on managing immigration.
Current management of legal immigration
The admission of third country nationals for the purposes of employment varies from one Member State to another, as it is governed by their domestic legislation designed to respond to different migratory trends. Current procedures and policies are designed to satisfy labour market requirements whilst also protecting the interests of the national workforce. Third-country nationals wishing to work in the EU must satisfy certain criteria. For example, they need a job offer, adequate financial resources and sickness insurance to be eligible for a temporary residence permit. In some Member States, fast-track or preferential procedures can attract highly skilled workers to specific sectors such as healthcare, but this applies to unskilled workers as well.
The study carried out by the Commission shows that it is difficult to assess legal migration flows on the one hand, and to estimate labour market needs on the other. Even if the quality of Community statistics has improved, the sources, definitions, data collection and practices still vary from one Member State to another. The report nevertheless estimates that migration for the purpose of employment currently accounts for less than 15% of persons admitted to Member States. Most third country nationals legally admitted to the EU enter by way of family reunification or humanitarian protection. The overall predictions regarding employment reveal labour shortages in the EU after 2010. In its Communication on immigration, integration and employment, the Commission acknowledges that immigration will become increasingly necessary over the next few years to satisfy the requirements of the European labour market. It adds, however, that immigration will not resolve the problems caused by an ageing population, which will require structural reform.
In order to allow third country nationals into their countries, several Member States have concluded bilateral employment agreements. Their purpose is to meet labour shortages. They may also be concluded, however, in order to improve relations with third countries, reinforce historical and cultural links, improve the management of migration flows or combat illegal immigration. Bilateral agreements signed in recent years have generally concerned the admission of seasonal or temporary workers employed in agriculture, construction, tourism and catering. Spain, for instance, signed agreements with six third countries (Bulgaria, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Morocco and Romania) which are traditional sources of illegal immigration. The agreements have helped to improve cooperation and combat illegal immigration.
Another method of regulating legal immigration involves a system of quotas. Here it is the governments that determine annual quotas after consulting businesses, employers' organisations, trade unions and employment agencies. The Member States set their quotas by sector of activity, geographic region or country of origin. The Commission study shows that many Member States criticise the lack of flexibility of this system and fear that they are limiting their ability to respond to labour market needs. In the Commission's opinion, preferential quotas can facilitate cooperation with some third countries in the short term but are also liable to hamper cooperation with other third countries in the long term as they have a discriminatory effect.
Some Member States also apply regularisation measures. The frequency of these operations has increased since the mid-1990s, although their use varies according to the Member State. There are temporary regularisations and definitive regularisations. In the former, regularised persons are issued with a renewable residence permit for a limited duration. In the latter, they are given permanent resident status. The study found that some Member States consider that it is necessary to regularise certain migrants who do not fulfil the normal criteria for a residence permit. There are also countries that carry out regularisations on "humanitarian" or "protection" grounds for persons who are unable to claim international protection but who cannot be returned to their country of origin. Lastly, there are Member States that carry out "fait accompli" regularisations, where they regularise illegal migrants who are often already in unlawful employment. The Commission study looked at the effectiveness of regularisation programmes not only for the migrants concerned but also for the state. Whilst such programmes allow better population management, tackle the problem of illegal working and thus increase public revenue, the Commission concludes that such regularisations nonetheless offer a form of encouragement to illegal migration.
Relationship between legal and illegal immigration
There are many forms of illegal migration. Migrants enter a Member State by land, air or sea. Some use false or forged documents or organised criminal networks. Others enter legally and then "overstay". The study points out that it is very difficult to establish a clear picture of the scale of illegal immigration in the EU Member States. The number of illegal immigrants is estimated on the basis of the number of refused entries and removals, border arrests, rejected applications for asylum or national protection or applications for national regularisation procedures. To these numbers must be added those who do not apply for any form of international protection. On the basis of these estimates, the Commission considers that illegal migration is significant and that the reduction of illegal migration flows is a political priority at both national and EU level.
The study then examines the impact of bilateral agreements, visa policy and cooperation with third countries on illegal immigration flows. As regards agreements, the study concludes that in most Member States there is no direct link between the introduction of bilateral schemes and a reduction in illegal migration flows. Signing bilateral agreements seems nevertheless to have helped develop cooperation with third countries on migration issues in general.
Another way in which migrant flows have traditionally been regulated is through changes in visa policy. Since the Treaty of Amsterdam (1999), the EU has had powers over visa policy in the Member States (with the exception of the United Kingdom and Ireland). It agrees a list of third countries whose nationals are subject to or exempt from visa requirements in order to cross the external borders of Member States. The Commission points out that it is difficult for the time being to prove a link between the lifting of visa requirements and a subsequent increase in illegal migration. It seems, however, that the introduction of visa policies in neighbouring third countries limits entry into the EU via those countries. In Bosnia-Herzegovina, this measure led to a marked drop in the number of Iranian and Turkish migrants arriving illegally in the EU.
On the one hand the Commission considers that cooperation with third countries is vital in reducing illegal immigration flows. Police and border surveillance cooperation agreements or readmission agreements, for example, have proved effective. On the other hand, the Commission is endeavouring to link immigration policies more closely to development policies. The impact of these measures has been analysed each year since 2004 in an annual report on EU cooperation with third countries.
The way forward
The study has revealed a clear lack of reliable and comparable data at EU level. The Commission therefore plans in future to strengthen consultation and information exchanges within the EU. In particular, it is considering the possibility of setting up a permanent structure with an appropriate legal basis in order to monitor and analyse the phenomenon of migration and asylum in its different dimensions (political, legal, demographic, economic and social). In addition, the Centre for Information, Discussion and Exchange on the Crossing of Frontiers and Immigration (Cirefi) has set up an early warning system to exchange information on clandestine immigration and the routes used by smugglers of human beings. The system will be updated and accessible on the Internet by the national services dealing with migration flows. The network of National Contact Points for Integration recently set up a work programme of exchange of information and best practices in three fields:
The Commission also plans to develop new immigration policy initiatives. It considers, with regard to legal immigration, that it is necessary to decide whether the admission of economic migrants should be regulated at EU level and whether the principle of Community preference for the domestic labour market should be maintained. The degree of harmonisation and the scope of legal immigration should also be analysed. The Commission considers that two basic principles should apply:
To answer these questions, the Commission launched consultations at the beginning of 2005 by presenting its Green Paper on a Community approach to the management of economic migration.
As regards the measures to be taken to manage legal immigration, the Commission considers that the study on the relationship between legal and illegal immigration shows that regularisations should not be regarded as a way of managing migration flows. It would therefore recommend that wide-scale regularisation measures be avoided or confined to very exceptional situations. It also considers that strengthening the integration of third country nationals legally residing in the Member States is an essential objective for the EU. The European Employment Strategy provides a framework for improving integration in the labour market in order to cut the unemployment rate among immigrant populations. The Commission also stresses that it is desirable to make further progress in facilitating the mobility of third-country nationals and the recognition of their professional qualifications within the EU.
The study shows that some level of illegal migration is likely to persist in the EU. The Commission therefore stresses that the fight against illegal immigration must remain an essential part of migration management. This would start with preventive measures and the removal of the main incentives such as undeclared work. The Commission would also like to develop a Community return policy aimed at the durable reintegration of illegal immigrants in their country of origin or of residence.
The Commission intends, lastly, to strengthen cooperation with countries of origin and transit countries in order to reduce the flows of illegal immigration. It proposes establishing partnerships that take account of the interests and expectations of the two parties and to pool all the information available on legal migration channels available to third country nationals. It also proposes developing training programmes in the countries of origin to enable third country nationals to acquire skills which are needed by the EU.
The Communication sets out the results of a study requested by the Thessaloniki European Council of June 2003 on the relationship between legal and illegal immigration. The European Council had concluded that the EU needed to explore "legal means for third country nationals to migrate to the Union, taking into account the reception capacity of the Member States, within the framework of an enhanced cooperation with the countries of origin". The Commission followed up the study by launching a public consultation on 11 January 2005 with the publication of a Green Paper on an EU approach to managing economic migration.
Commission Green Paper of 11 January 2005 on an EU approach to managing economic migration [COM(2004) 811 final - Not published in the Official Journal]
The Green Paper is designed to initiate debate between the European institutions, the Member States and civil society in order to establish a Community legislative framework for the admission of economic migrants.
Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions of 3 June 2003 on immigration, integration and employment [COM(2003) 336 final - Official Journal C 76 of 25.3.2004]
The Communication details the guidelines and priority actions proposed by the Commission in order to facilitate the integration of immigrants. It focuses on their integration in the labour market in order to resolve the problem of an ageing population and contribute to the objectives of the Lisbon strategy.
Proposal for a comprehensive plan to combat illegal immigration and trafficking of human beings in the European Union [Official Journal C 142 of 14.6.2002]
Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on a common policy on illegal immigration [COM(2001) 672 final - Not published in the Official Journal]
Last updated: 03.12.2007


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The overly anxious have spent much of this year dreading December 21. That's the day the ancient Mayan calendar ends , and many people have mistakenly concluded that it means the world will end on that day too.
The apocalypse has been prophesied many times before. It was forecast for 1999 by both Nostradamus and The Amazing Criswell. Christian radio programmer Harold Camping said it would occur twice in the 1990s, then in May 2011, only to see it postponed until that October.
Despite the fact that these predictions, along with all the others, came to nothing, there are still people who believe Friday will be Judgment Day. So for them, now is a good time to look into products that might come in handy on Saturday.
CNBC.com presents 10 products currently on the market that those fearing doomsday should keep in their bug-out bags.
By Daniel Bukszpan
Posted 20 Dec. 2012

subset: commoncrawl


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Scarred India strive for motivation
Match facts
December 20, 2012
Start time 1900 (1330 GMT)
Big Picture
Only three days ago, the two teams were part of a draining battle in the Test series in which things went from bad to worse for India while England rose in confidence and three days later, they are ready to take on each other for a couple of Twenty20s. Of the two, India need a win, any win.
For India, it is a strange situation. First, they fell in their own trap in the Tests and now they need to find the motivation to come out of the slump and play positive cricket. It doesn't help that the nucleus of their T20 squad is still the same as the Test side. MS Dhoni, whose leadership has been under fire, needs to arrest the slide and switch gears for a format, which appears, suited to the Indian team - hard-hitting batsmen, restrictive bowlers and a wait-and-watch style of captaincy. The reality, though, is that India haven't really dominated on the international level even in T20s.
Unlike India, England's T20 side bears a completely different look. The architects of the series win are already back in England for Christmas, but they have left a scarred Indian team for their T20 generation to feast upon. Most in the side, captained by Eoin Morgan, have been in India for some time now and would have spent time getting used to the spinning conditions. So on paper, England have again been methodical in their preparations. That doesn't directly translate to success - if pitches take spin, the young side could again appear like rabbit in headlights. But it points to one clear difference between the two sides - one fighting their demons, the other ignoring theirs.
Form guide(Most recent first)
India WWLWW
England LWLLW
In the spotlightYuvraj Singh may have flopped in the Tests, but he remains a dangerous limited-overs player. His inclusion in the T20 squad three months back appeared driven by emotions, but since then, Yuvraj has spent a considerable amount of time in the middle. He has scored a couple of hundreds at the first-class level and although he appeared inept in the Tests, he would prefer England's new-look bowling attack to stamp his authority.
Eoin Morgan has been a regular in England's limited-overs sides and in Stuart Broad's absence, he has been awarded with the captaincy. Morgan, one of England's best players against spin, will not only be the lynchpin in the middle order, he will have the responsibility of mentoring the inexperienced players. His IPL experience will come in handy for England to draw up plans against the Indian players.
Team news
Ten of the 15 players in India's squad also took part in the Test series. Ambati Rayudu, who replaced the injured Manoj Tiwary, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar are the two new additions apart from the regulars but could find it hard to make it to the XI. Parwinder Awana could make his international debut after L Balaji and Vinay Kumar were withdrawn from the squad due to injuries.
India: (likely) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Ajinkya Rahane, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Rohit Sharma, 5 Yuvraj Singh, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 MS Dhoni (capt), 8 R Ashwin, 9 Piyush Chawla, 10 Ashok Dinda, 11 Parwinder Awana
England lost Stuart Broad to a heel injury and was replaced by the Middlesex seamer James Harris. However, he is unlikely to make it to the XI with Tim Bresnan, Jade Dernbach and Stuart Meaker ahead of him. Joe Root, who was not part of the original T20 squad, could find a place after his impressive showing in the Nagpur Test.
England (likely) 1 Alex Hales, 2 Michael Lumb/Joe Root, 3 Luke Wright, 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Jos Buttler, 6 Jonny Bairstow (wk), 7 Samit Patel, 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 James Tredwell, 10 Jade Dernbach, 11 Stuart Meaker
Stats and trivia
- This will be the first international match at the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium in Pune.
- England have played 53 T20Is to India's 41. Their win-loss record is 27-23, which is similar to India's 22-17.
- The two teams have met each other only five times, with England winning three. MS Dhoni is the only player to have played in all five matches.
- Of the players in the two teams, Jade Dernbach has the most wickets in T20Is - 18.
"It's a completely different format. I don't think there is anything carrying forward from the Test series."
MS Dhoni
Devashish Fuloria is a sub-editor with ESPNcricinfo


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I'm interested in how design consultancies manage multiple projects and resources efficiently. We have typically used Excel sheets in the past, but it can be sluggish and inefficient. MS Project doesn't seem much easier to use.
What I'm looking for is an effective method of managing top level multi-project schedules and team resourcing, but also managing specific tasks within a particular project (i.e. the stage gates of a typical NPD process). As a designer first, and project leader second, I want a project management tool to be intuitive and easy to use. I've noticed a lot of web based project management tools available - has anyone got experience of these?
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Big Fun Correspondent Thad Angelloz recently had the chance to chat with NFL analyst Mike Detillier from Raceland about this weekend's Super Bowl in New Orleans.
Now that we know Ray Lewis is hanging it up for good following this season, where would you rank him all-time at the linebacker position?
It's difficult to compare generations, but in the last 15 years Ray Lewis is the best middle linebacker in the game. He certainly will go down with Dick Butkus, Jack Lambert, Mike Singletary and Chuck Bednarik as one of the top five middle linebackers ever to play this game. His passion, his work ethic to get the very best out of his ability, his leadership and his skill set to play middle linebacker has been unmatched in this era of pro football.
I know you got to chat with Lardarius Webb, a former Nicholls State University standout, prior to this season about what he thought about this year's Ravens team. Have you ever come across a player who was any more dead-on in his predictions for the team he was playing for?
I covered his camp and had just finished interviewing him. As we were walking off the field at Guidry Stadium he told me how disappointed the team was in losing in the AFC Championship Game that January and that they would be back and this time win it. Lardarius told me that the focus was on nothing more than that and that he really felt this was their year and they had all the pieces in place. He was spot-on correct. The tough part about it for him is that he won't play because of suffering the knee injury in October, but he nailed it on the Ravens getting there.
I know you talk to a lot of coaches and players in the league on a regular basis, have you ever had the chance to speak with or have any sort of in-depth discussions with either one of the Harbaugh brothers since becoming involved with your draft guide?
I have spoke to John Harbaugh, but I really can't say I know him well, but I know Jim better as a player and a coach. Jim is a tough-minded coach, but open to new ideas and he listens well. Jim has no phony traits in him. You get what you see. The crazy thing is that I know the dad, Jack, better. He was a terrific coach at Western Kentucky for so many years, and so I know Jack pretty well. Both of the sons share his passion for the game and his dedication to putting so much time and effort into football, and yet still have a successful personal and family life.
A lot of people forget, but Colin Kaepernick actually got some of his first college snaps against Nicholls in 2007. Is he one of those guys whose play at the quarterback position has surprised you?
No question. I did two television games while Colin was at Nevada and his game has not changed. He is so poised, very accurate in the pocket and the moments have not been too big for him. I give Jim Harbaugh full credit for making the right move and taking Alex Smith out of the starting lineup and giving the reins to Kaepernick. That could have turned bad on him, but he knew it was the right thing to do and the right time. Colin brings another element to defend in how he runs the "read option" plays, and he drives you crazy as a team trying to defend him because he is so effective as a passer and also his running dimension. I will say this also, I am 100 percent sold on that over the past two seasons, Jim Harbaugh has been the best coach in the NFL. What he has done in getting his team to the NFC Championship Game last year and this year the Super Bowl has been superb. Best coach in the game the past two seasons.
What is a key matchup people at home should keep tabs on when watching this year's Super Bowl?
Can the Ravens run the football is the key. If you become one dimensional against that 49ers defense you will lose. Joe Flacco has turned into the AFC version of Eli Manning and played great in the playoffs, but halfback Ray Rice and the Ravens play upfront along the offensive line is key against the best front seven in the game. If they rush for more than 130 yards, the Ravens win. The Ravens have to be patient and run the ball to win.
Is there any single player in Sunday's game that might not necessarily be on people's radars, but could be a difference maker when everything is all said and done?
For the Ravens, it is tightend Dennis Pitta. You can see Joe Flacco looks for him in certain down and distance situations, and he caught 61 passes this season — but most people aren't real familiar with him. He has real sure hands, and Pitta knows how to find the open creases downfield and can stretch the middle of the field real well. On the 49ers, it would be outside linebacker Ahmad Brooks. Aldon Smith, Patrick Willis and NaVarro Bowman get most of the ink, but Brooks is a terrific football player. He has great speed off the edge as a pass rusher, and he is tough in run defense along with being a really good pass cover linebacker — ask Drew Brees about that.
Finally, what is your prediction for a final score?
I really believe this will be a slugfest and low scoring. I like the Baltimore Ravens to win it 23-20. I really think this is their (Ravens) time.
Of all your memories of watching past Super Bowls, what is your favorite one besides of course seeing the Saints win it all in 2010?
Well, for me it would be Super Bowl III. The New York Jets upsetting the Baltimore Colts sticks in my mind. My dad never really liked the AFL and felt it was the "B" league for players, and he didn't like the individualism of players with really long hair and the beards and such that was part of the late 1960s. And, in particular, he didn't care for Joe Namath. To him, Namath was the leader of that generation. I was a huge Joe Namath fan and all week he was telling me how this great Baltimore Colts defense would get after Namath and finally put him in his place. Then Namath guarantees a Jets win, which stoked the fire even more. The first half, all the Colts did was turn the ball over time and time again, and Namath and the Jets were magnificent. I don't think he said a word to my brother and I in the second half. He was in disbelief that what he thought was a ragtag New York Jets team could upset one of the best teams ever in pro football. It certainly goes down as one of the biggest upsets in pro football history, but for me it was a moment that is embedded in my memory because his thoughts on Namath and the then-AFL changed after that. And even some of his thoughts on what he thought was the counter-culture of the world. Every time I see that game replayed I think about it. It was certainly a game-changing event for the NFL, but he listened much more closely afterward to things I said about the "other" league after that game.
Did you ever expect your yearly draft guide to become as popular an item as it is? Futhermore, do you still find yourself amazed that so many people seek out your opinions on a regular basis in regards to football?
I would be kidding you if I said, 'Yes, I thought it would be this popular and I would have this kind of success with it.' I am very thankful for those who helped along the way, and it is amazing sometimes to look at the log I keep daily and see all the shows and personalities and people in the league that will call for opinions and sometimes just to bounce comments off of you. It's been a remarkable ride for me. I am not surprised at the popularity of the NFL draft. In my mind it was always a big event, and now with what ESPN has done with it on television and the coverage newspaper, television and radio wise, it is the second-most-covered event in football behind the Super Bowl. You win on those draft days with picking the right players and you get to the Super Bowl.
Policies in regards to what is expected of someone in a press box is pretty universal. Tell me what happened to you personally during the NFC Championship game and Super Bowl the year the Saints won it? Did you find it difficult maintaining your professional decorum during those games?
Yes, and remember who I sit next to also (Bobby Hebert). The NFC Championship game was much more emotional to me than the Super Bowl. All of us had a great time before the game and it was like a junior Mardi Gras to be honest, and the game became a heavyweight title fight between two really good teams. It was a moment I won't forget. Everyone who has covered this team was emotional and excited for the success. You can't hide that. I have lived here all my life and seen a lot of bad teams, and now here the Saints are going to the Super Bowl. But the moment that really set me off was right after the game my friend Marco Garcia, who does the Spanish broadcasts of the game, got me on to say a few words and his son, who was a huge Saints fans had recently died of leukemia. It was an emotional moment for him, and after I finished I got Bobby (Hebert) to say a few words and he broke down and cried for quite some time. It was the feeling of the area that you really thought about those who couldn't be there, and the tears were of joy of finally getting to the big game. The football earth shook when Tracy Porter intercepted the pass that sealed the Super Bowl win, but the moments after that NFC title game will always stay with me, and your objectivity left you for that moment in time. You are human and this team represents our area and finally they get win pro football's biggest game. I got called by Jason Smith from ESPN radio immediately, and I kind of repeated the Al Michaels line from the 1980 Olympics game upset of the U.S. hockey team over Russia. "Do you believe in Miracles, Yes, the Saints have won the Super Bowl."
Q and A: Mike Detillier
Big Fun Correspondent Thad Angelloz recently had the chance to chat with NFL analyst Mike Detillier from Raceland about this weekend's Super Bowl in New Orleans.


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I have a small, probably poorly coded telnet server. You connect, it shows some ansci art and then you just type to chat and it displays your ip address following your message. The problem I'm having is implementing a backspace. When you use backspace in command prompt it simply just moves the cursor back without deleting the character.
I'm using network stream streamreader and streamwriter for the streams. Is there something better than that I should be aware of?
I've pulled some code from a visual basic 6 telnet application and its for a backspace key. My vb is poor now having swapped over to c#.net a long time ago so I don't understand it. Maybe someone just translating it might help me:
DataVal = Asc(DataChar)
DataValSet = ""
For t% = 1 To Len(DataChar)
DataValSet = DataValSet + Str$(Asc(Mid$(DataChar, t%, 1)))
Next t%
If (DataVal = 8 Or DataVal = 127) Then
If Len(LineBuffer(ConnID)) > 0 Then
'echo it back
If UserData(ConnID, 7) <> "1" Then SocketPlayerEcho ConnID, DataChar
LineBuffer(ConnID) = Left$(LineBuffer(ConnID), Len(LineBuffer(ConnID)) - 1)
If UserData(ConnID, 7) <> "1" Then SocketPlayerEcho ConnID, " "
If UserData(ConnID, 7) <> "1" Then SocketPlayerEcho ConnID, DataChar
End If
I no the Dataval = 8 is refering to the backspace key but thats it. Can someone please help me ouT!


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February 6, 2013
Washington, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Dina Titus of Nevada's First District joined her colleagues in sending a letter to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta urging him to take action that will address the unequal status and treatment of same-sex military families.
"In the 111th Congress, I proudly voted to end the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy and the institutionalized discrimination that cost our nation thousands of qualified servicemen and women who were ready and willing to bravely serve their country," Congresswoman Titus said. "It has been almost two years since the repeal of that draconian policy, yet gay and bisexual service members continue to be treated unequally."
According to a 2010 report issued by the Department of Defense's Comprehensive Review Working Group which examined issues associated with the repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, the DOD has the regulatory authority to revise its policies and extend eligibility for many of the military benefits provided to military families to same-sex couples and their children.
Seventeen months after the policy was finally repealed, however, same-sex families have yet to receive equal benefits afforded to their heterosexual colleagues. These benefits include: military hospital visitation rights, joint duty assignments, housing privileges, access to the commissary and exchanges, and family support and counseling services.
"It is time that our military does what is right and takes the steps necessary to extend these benefits to all American service members," Titus said. "Gay and lesbian service members make the same sacrifice as their straight counterparts when they put on our nation's uniform and march into battle. Why should they not receive the same rights and benefits for their service?"
In an effort to address these issues, Congresswoman Titus and 37 of her House colleagues sent a letter to Secretary Panetta urging immediate action to extend benefits and privileges to all service members. The full text of the letter can be found here:
Dear Secretary Panetta,
As you prepare to leave the Defense Department, please accept our gratitude for your years of service to the Nation, including your many years as a member of the House of Representatives.
During your tenure, the American military has taken the historic step of stopping discrimination against gay, lesbian and bisexual service members by ending the policy of Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT), which allowed these individuals to serve in the military, provided they did not reveal their sexual orientation. This change has not only made our military a truer reflection of the country it protects, but it has also occurred without any of the disruption that critics had predicted. Much of that is due to your leadership and the senior leadership of the Armed Services.
However, as a recent article in the New York Times illustrates, the end of DADT has not meant the end of unequal treatment of same sex spouses of U.S. service members, who are denied a wide range of services and benefits – from health insurance to pre-deployment counseling, to access to base commissaries. As long as they remain in place, these restrictions have the effect of perpetuating discrimination against same sex spouses and their families.
We understand that most of the benefits available to veterans, service members and their families are granted directly by Congress. Well over a hundred of these statutory benefits are contingent on marital status. These benefits will remain unavailable to legally married same-sex couples unless the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is repealed or declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court this year or individual statutes are modified by Congress. In the meantime, there are several executive actions that you can take to ease the burden and increase the inclusiveness of all of our service members and their families.
We strongly urge you to issue same sex spouses military identification cards and registration in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS). This is the easiest and simplest step to include same sex partners as part of the Department of Defense family.
We urge you to allow same sex partners access to Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) programs. Current regulations leave open to Installation Commanders the possibility of opening up limited access to certain MWR programs to guests and the general public. These exceptions would be applied regardless of sexual orientation or individual situations; in other words, a same-sex spouse could receive guest privileges, just as the girlfriend or boyfriend of a straight service member receives at present, and would likely be treated as any non-dependent member of the public.
We also urge you to allow same sex partners access to family programs. DoD uses a flexible definition of "family" for the purpose of implementing Family Centers and programming, but leaves it up to the individual Service Secretaries to determine eligibility. Thus, each branch of the service (and each installation commander) determines the extent to which same-sex spouses and partners have access to these programs, which include deployment support, marriage and family counseling, relocation assistance and financial management.
Department of Defense current policy is treating same sex service members, their spouses and families as second class citizens. As President Obama stated during his inaugural speech, "Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law, for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal, as well."
We strongly urge you take immediate action to rectify the inequality of benefits available to families of gay or lesbian service members.
Members of Congress


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It's stickied now. Don't mind me and my silly questions.
I logged in just to ask this.
Neth - if you are still reading this, what are your guys' current plans for RP-PvP servers?
Will we get merged with only other RP-PvP servers? Just PvP? Just RP? Or will we have to worry about people from PvE servers running around ruining others RP?
I'm asking because since you guys started i've been eagerly waiting to see what you were going to do with us and I feel like were getting ignored.
EDIT - I know your not intenionally ignoring us.. its just.. it's so lonely over here being by ourselves...
Blog post / Completed Connections:
Anvilmar and Undermine connection was delayed, didn't happen.
Dalvengyr and Dark Iron listed twice.
01/16/2014 06:46 AMPosted by CrowlightIs this still supposed to be going on today? It was scheduled to start already, but no login message for it and no realms shown as down for it. Realm selection screen still shows them as up and available.
Neth posted on twitter that it's being pushed back. Blog post updated: http://us.battle.net/wow/en/blog/11393305/
I've updated this thread as well to reflect the change.
One more lonely night...
01/23/2014 12:46 PMPosted by BubblykissSoooooo Khadgar..................not merged yet, eh?
02/13/2014 07:13 AMPosted by KillingjokeWas the Thunderlord and Azgalor/Azshara/Destromath cancelled again today?
Quit playing games with my heart.


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Happy New Year! Hope you all had a relaxing holiday break.
Our Spring reference hours at the reference desk in the East Asia Reading Room starts TODAY. The hours are 2-5 pm from Tuesday to Thursday, with the exception of a few University holidays. Please feel free to stop by and ask us any questions you may have on your study and research.
Also if you need assistance outside these hours, you are welcome to contact our librarians (Tang Li for general inquiries and China-related, email@example.com; Haruko Nakamura for Japan-related, firstname.lastname@example.com; and Youngaie Kim for Korea-related, firstname.lastname@example.com), or come to our main office (SML 213) on workdays.


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Arpaio: GOP candidates 'hiding' from eligibility
'I've talked to every one of them; I don't see anybody talking about this'
Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio told a radio host today he's met with Republicans – including every one of the GOP presidential candidates – and has come to the conclusion they're as guilty as Democrats of "hiding" questions about Barack Obama's eligibility to be president.
As WND reported, Arpaio and his Cold Case Posse conducted an extensive examination of documents released by the White House last April purported to be Obama's original, long-form birth certificate and Selective Service registration card, only to conclude there is probable cause the documents are actually forgeries.
Yet despite his findings, Arpaio told "Aaron Klein Investigative Radio" on New York's WABC Radio that media and politicians alike are afraid to touch the issue.
"Why didn't someone investigate this? I mean, where is everybody?" Arpaio asked Klein. "How come the federal agencies aren't investigating? We're dealing with federal issues here. So everybody's hiding, and they're still hiding."
Join the billboard campaign that seeks the answer to "Where's the Real Birth Certificate?"
Klein told the sheriff he had hired his own forensic experts to analyze Obama's purported birth certificate, but Arpaio insisted his posse's examination went even further.
"This takes it to a different level, because we are a law enforcement agency," said Arpaio, "it gives it a little different type of credibility."
The sheriff also preempted charges of politics affecting his investigation, explaining he had told lead investigator Mike Zullo to debunk the "birther" claims about Obama's documents.
"My instructions were this: 'I want you to clear the president. I want to get to the bottom of this and get it off the table forever,'" Arpaio told Klein. "Didn't happen that way."
Instead, Zullo and the Cold Case Posse only confirmed lingering questions about Obama's documents.
Klein asked Arpaio if he'd heard from Republicans since the announcement of the investigation's findings.
"I haven't heard from any," Arpaio said, "especially the congressional delegation from Arizona."
But that doesn't mean he hasn't tried to get Republicans to recognize the issue.
"I've had presidential candidates visit me in my office. I've talked to every one of them," Arpaio said. "I don't see anybody talking about this. I don't see any senators talking about it. … How come everybody's hiding this?"
Listen to the full interview below:
"Maybe with your help and other media outlets," Arpaio told Klein, "maybe the public will start becoming angry at this and insist that there be a congressional inquiry and that something be done about it and not just a little ol' sheriff of Maricopa County."
Read the preliminary findings of Sheriff Arpaio's Cold Case Posse investigation after six months investigating Obama's constitutional eligibility to serve as president in "A Question of Eligibility," co-authored by Jerome Corsi and Mike Zullo.
Follow all the future developments in this story – sign up for WND's email news alerts right now!
If you'd like to sound off on this issue, please take part in the WND Poll.
Previous stories:
High court justice: Obama birth certificate fishy
Russian media expose Obama birth 'forgery'
Media blackout on Obama eligibility near-total
Mailman discouraged from telling Obama story
U.S. military purging 'birthers'?
Immigration records missing for week of Obama's birth
Sheriff Joe: 'Tons' more shocking info on Obama
O'Reilly: My probe better than Sheriff Joe's
Donald Trump: Say it is so, Sheriff Joe
Sheriff Joe to Eric Holder: 'Prove it!'
Arpaio: 'Probable cause' Obama certificate a fraud
What does law say about Obama's eligibility?
Alinsky-style leftist ramps up effort to oust Sheriff Joe
100,000 line up to back Sheriff Joe
Obama backer arrested for death threats against Sheriff Joe
Justice Department blinks in battle against Sheriff Joe
Anti-Arpaio protesters ousted from meeting
Another protest against Sheriff Joe fails
Obama's harassment of Sheriff Joe
'Resign now' protest against Sheriff Joe fizzles
Sheriff Joe targeted for ouster
Sheriff Joe 'suspicious' of motive behind Obama attacks
Sheriff Joe to Obama: I'll keep doing my job
Arpaio gets death threats over Obama investigation
Sheriff Joe on Obama eligibility probe: 'Where there's smoke … '


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Precisely, this is what led me to sayNangwa wrote:This would be fine if the teachings and relationship with the teacher was something static. But it is not.TMingyur wrote:
Or to put it differently:
Dear teacher, nobody before you has provided me with so much benefit. All teachers I have encountered before actually did not deliver anything meaningful. You are the opposite of all these learned and verbose teachers. I know from the depth of my heart that there cannot be anything in addition you can provide because your teaching actually already covered everything. Therefore I will not expect anything further, I will let go of all expectations and hopes as to the future, I will let go of you, teacher, i.e. having encountered you and received your teaching I will leave you again since you cannot teach me anything further. Any expectation to receive anything further actually would destroy all the benefit I have already received and would contradict the fact that what you have taught has already covered everything. If I would ever become a follower of you I would denigrate the precious teaching you delivered.
Kind regards
Tantra means continuity, the transmission of the teachings in the Vajrayana setting is not complete when a teacher stops giving the oral instructions (which doesnt really happen anyways). The idea of working with a teacher and his/her transmission is based upon movement, energy, and continuity and the fluid connection of samaya. Not on the idea of going to a teaching and then going home. The connection is much deeper, ongoing, and directly related to the implementation of the instructions.
To take sutra teachings and move on is one thing but that is simply not how it works in the Vajrayana/Mahamudra/Dzogchen setting.
Tmingyur may say once again:To say you rely on experience, following the Kalama sutta in regards to vajrayana, but at the same time admit you have not sought out even the most basic exposure to or experiences of vajrayana, is highly contradictory.
, claiming he understands vajrayana, however what is the purpose of commenting on a vajrayana topic while knowingly contradicting it's tenets, within a vajrayana subforum? This is the type of thing that appears to be troll-like behavior on his part. It comes across rather like a type of intentional baiting, regardless of the claims of pure motivation.Therefore I wrote "which of course does not comply with vajrayana tenets"


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May 16, 2011
Win handmade goodies from chiuie.s!
The dismal weather this weekend/today ruined my makeup monday (I need natural light for this look), so it will have to run later in the week. But I have a fun giveaway for you, instead! Today's giveaway is courtesy of chiuie.s, who is offering one of my lucky readers an adorable, handmade notebook and envelope set.
How to win (up to 3 entries):
- Entry 1: Follow chiuie.s on tumblr and comment below.
- Entry 2: Visit chiuie.s on Etsy and comment below with your favorite item in the shop.
- Entry 3: Follow them on twitter and comment below.
Entries will be accepted until 9pm EST Monday, May 23rd. A winner will be chosen at random and announced in this post. Good luck!
The winner is Heather Anne.


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Second Chance
"What exactly is she planning right now?"--Bella Swan, Chapter 21 banner by me :) What if Edward never returned when he first left Bella? Bella now has a second chance at love and life, but how exactly would her life be if Edward never returned? How would her life change when Edward comes back?
1. "The" Talk
Rating 4/5 Word Count 1257 Review this Chapter
Chapter Notes:
Inspired by my own boredom at home and just thinking how it would have been if Bells would have been left without Edward for good. I never pictured her ending up with Jake after the whole "werewolf imprint" thing, so I came up with a boyfriend for her...
Now before I begin there are two disclaimers to this:
It took me more than a year to write this because, I had to finish writting "Revealing Secrets" before I posted the second chapter of this and I could not take in another chaptered story to write upon RS. So as soon as I finished "Revealing Secrets" I started to write the second chapter of this story.
DISCLAIMER #2: Edward won't show up….for a good chunk of the story. When he does there will be a twist. This isn't the typical "edward left bella never returned until 5 years later" blah. Just wait and…read ^_^
Now onto the story, hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy writting it.
Chapter 1: "The" talk
By: Eternitys_Charm
He laughed out loud when I told him about my little secret. I punched his arm, though, that only made him laugh harder.
"You promised you wouldn't laugh!" I fumed at him and began to stalk away into the rainy street and into my truck.
But of course, he caught up to me. He laughed his last chuckle, "I'm sorry Bells. I'll contain myself, but that's awfully adorable. I couldn't help but laugh a little."
"It wasn't funny, and it is not adorable. That subject is no where near adorable!" I said trying to push past him, but I couldn't even budge him. I sighed, "I shouldn't have told you, now you're going to make fun of me."
"It's cute when you said it with that face, Bella." He smiled, "okay, I'm sorry, forgive me?" He waited for me to answer, but when I didn't he continued, "I'll behave from now on. But that was kind of unexpected, no wonder you didn't want to go on that road trip with him."
"Yes, Jacob, that is the reason."
"Well it's not like the guy is going to pressure you into anything you don't want to do Bella." Jake looked at me with his "concern eyes". "You've been dating him for three years and he hasn't dared touch you in any wrong place. He respects you, and if you don't want to have sex with him you don't have to. I just thought you had done it before, since you are 24 and have been dating him for three years." He rambled on.
"I guess you're right. But just because I'm 24 and have been dating someone for three years does not give me the reason that I'm suppose to 'open up my legs'-- as Zack so rudely said yesterday at work about his girlfriend." I said beginning to get angry again. "I'll be ready when I'm happily married."
Jacob looked at me with a smirk, "okay little miss saint --err, ignore that. But you seriously don't have to worry Bella, when you're ready you let him know."
"Thank you Jacob." I said to him. Then I shot him a question he might not have liked, "so Jake, since you said I'm a little saint, does that mean....?"
His eyes widened, I knew he didn't want to have this talk with anyone, especially with his best friend who happened to be a girl. He coughed once, "um, w-what?"
"You know what." I said with a giggle, "have you and Jasmine done it?"
"Bella!" A voice called from down the street.
"Oh, thank God." I heard Jacob whisper, I smiled with delight that I had caused him such agitation.
I turned my head and saw my boyfriend walk down the rainy, muddy street.
"I thought you'd be here, sweetie." He came up to me and gave me a peck.
"Thanks." Jacob said with a bright smile, glad to avoid his sex talk.
"For what?" Connor asked.
Jacob shrugged, gave me a bright smile, and walked into his house.
"We're not done with this, Jake!" I called before he closed the door.
He threw me a wave and shut the door in his house.
"What was that all about?" Connor asked looking confused.
"I just need to have a little talk with Jacob. Come on let's go inside, Billy and Charlie will be glad to see you." I said grabbing hold of Connor's hand and tugging him along side of me.
"Hey, kids." Charlie said. "I was wondering when you were going to get here, Connor." Charlie said flinging Connor a beer.
"No thanks," Connor rejected the beer, as usual. I had never seen him drink before; I didn't even think he liked drinking. I smiled and took the beer from Charlie's hand.
"Thanks, dad." I said taking the beer from Charlie's hand, they all stared at me bewildered. To toy with them some more I took a giant gulp. I immediately coughed and everyone laughed.
"Yeah didn't think you could take it, Bella." Jacob said taking a long swig of his beer.
I coughed, choking on the beer, "heh, that's the last time I'm drinking beer." I said blushing, of course.
"Connor, hello, I didn't hear you come in. Welcome. Do you want some pasta?" Billy asked coming into the living room, Jasmine, Jacob's imprintee and girlfriend, was pushing him through the door.
"Why, yes, thank you Billy. Hello Jasmine." Connor said passing by Jasmine and Billy into the kitchen to help himself with the pasta Billy had made.
"Hello Connor," Jasmine said over her shoulder. She pushed Billy to the front of the TV, where Charlie had planted himself watching a game.
Jasmine then walked over to Jacob and sat down on his lap. She nudged his cheek with her nose and he laughed.
Jacob threw a glance over to me, I winked, and his eyes widened, he knew what I was talking about. There was no way I was going to let that subject slip so easily.
Connor entered the room with a big plate of Billy's pasta. "Sorry, Billy, but I think I served myself too much, there's no more pasta." He said. I knew how much Connor loved Billy's pasta.
"No worries, there's another one hidden in the kitchen, I knew you would eat everything." Billy laughed.
"So Bella, are you going with Conner to Phoenix?" Charlie asked, finally taking his eyes off the television screen.
I could feel my face getting hot when Jacob shot me a grin.
"Um, yes I am." I shot Jacob a dirty look, he chuckled.
Conner's face lit up when he heard the news, his light blue eyes glistened with happiness. He even let go of his plate and wrapped his arm around me. "Thank you for coming with me," he whispered.
"When are you leaving?" Charlie asked.
"Monday, sir. I want to get there as soon as possible, Phoenix sounds like a great place." Connor said. He had been wanting to go to Phoenix since I told him I had once lived there, he was so curious of how the life was there.
He had always lived in Portland, Oregon, so he hardly ever had any sun as much as I did in Phoenix. But with his busy schedule he could never go, but now since he has a break from Medical School and his job, he decided it was a great time to visit Phoenix.
End Notes: Tell me what you think of the start!
- Author
- Eternitys_charm
- Rating
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- Reviews
- 363
- Words
- 43328
- Views
- 1
- Published
- 21 Jul 08
- Updated
- 09 Jul 12
- Status
- In Progress


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When I ordered this album I started instantly thinking of theme ideas. When I received the album and held it in my hands my mind started thinking of other possibilities.......some of my favorite projects are home decor items. I knew right away the album cover and the back page would make excellent wall decor cuties and they already have the metal grommets to attach a ribbon hangers too! I decided to use a few of the pages for wall decor projects too and there's enough pages left over that of course I will make an album too. When viewing the album this way, it's well worth the expense!!
some pages were really thick and some were really thin. This may how chipboard albums are (this is the first one that I have bought) but the perfectionist in my was kinda bugged. Still a super cute album.
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text: I am running in to a DNS error. Multi-server setup. Server Set-Up Server A: Main ISPConfig Server with everything. DNS, Mail, etc. Server B: Secondary server, has everything less the ISPConfig Interface. The website created "example.com" is on server B My DNS Settings in ISPConfig: Code: A example.com. 10.198.199.130 0 86400 A mail 10.198.199.130 0 86400 A www 10.198.199.130 0 86400 MX example.com. mail.example.com. 10 86400 NS example.com. servera.domain.com. 0 86400 NS example.com. serverb.domain.com. 0 86400 When I DIG "dig example.com" Code: ;; ANSWER SECTION: example.com. 86400 IN A 10.198.199.130 When I DIG for NS "dig example.com NS" Code: ;; ANSWER SECTION: example.com. 86400 IN NS servera.domain.com. example.com. 86400 IN NS serverb.domain.com. So you can see that it has the correct name servers listed BUT when you try going to that website it pulls up the default (new site welcome index.html) for the server and not the actual website. I have already FTP into the example.com site and deleted the index.html and it now has index.php with the old wordpress installation from my last server I am moving it from. I hope thats enough information. I need some major coffee/help. Thanks Guys! I forgot to say that intoDNS gives me this error: Code: DNS servers responded ERROR: One or more of your nameservers did not respond: The ones that did not respond are: 10.198.199.129 Also even If I use godaddy's DNS service it pulls up another site hosted on that server, but NOT the one I'm looking for.


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The mission of the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum is to collect, preserve, research, and interpret the history and culture of the Pikes Peak Region. Because of our mission, artifacts and archival materials need to help document the history of Colorado Springs and the surrounding area. Objects and archival materials should have been made or used in the area and have some clear and specific aspect of the Pikes Peak Region History.
Please do not bring the object(s) to the Museum without an appointment with the appropriate staff member. Front desk staff cannot accept donations.


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The collective team of engineers and designers at Bentley have created a wide range of Bentayga Accessories & styling enhancements to suit your lifestyle and future endeavours and are now available to order from our dedicated Aftersales team at Bentley Manchester. For outdoor pursuits and touring in all seasons; lateral Cross Bars, the Ski and Snowboard Carrier and the dedicated Roof Box have been specifically designed for the Bentayga. Cyclists are also catered for with the new Tow-bar-Mounted Cycle Carrier. For practicality, the Multi-function Boot Stowage feature is the flexible solution for safe storage of boot items. The Boot Overmat helps preserve the surface of your rear cabin whilst the Bumper Protector guards against scratches and scrapes during loading and unloading. The Spare Wheel Bag and Seat Covers offer durable protection for your interior and the range of tailored Car & Window Covers provide optimum exterior protection against the elements. The Styling Specification can be added to any Bentayga and incorporates carbon fibre features that complements the aerodynamic performance and aesthetics of your luxury SUV. A Front Splitter, Rear Diffuser, Front Airblades, Side Sills and Tailgate Spoiler are included, with the option to include Carbon Fibre Door Mirror cowls. In addition to this, the new Deployable Sill Steps can be installed for easy exit and entry to the car. For more in depth information, please visit Accessories.BentleyMotors.com For price, availability and fitment information for any of the accessories noted, please complete our contact form and a member of our Aftersales team will be glad to assist with your enquiry.
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Zachary Oravec @ on
How extensively have nanoparticles been tested in the field of solar cells?
I have seen research that has included silver nanoparticles placed in the wafers of Si. I've also seen GaN and GaAs mentioned in nanoparticle study, but havn't seen the acual papers.
I was wondering if anyone knew particular research about including nanoparticles with these semiconductors or what other semiconductors that havn't been researched with nanoparticle enhancements?
Thanks, Zach


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LITTLE ROCK — Correction officials say electronic monitoring could play a bigger role not only in reducing prison overcrowding but also in improved supervision of those on parole.
Dina Tyler, spokeswoman for the state Department of Community Corrections, said a recently signed contract with an electronic monitoring firm should save the state money, nearly eliminate the department's monitoring responsibilities and result in more parolees being released with electronic ankle bracelets.
"Before, those parole officers who had parolees on electronic monitoring had to keep up with them on the monitor and so they might be a little reluctant to put them on that because they couldn't keep up with them," she said, adding the new contract with 3M Electronic Monitoring reduces the monthly cost of using an electronic bracelet by about 36 percent from $6.25 to $4.02.
"I think you will see a more liberal use of it," Tyler said, adding that currently 137 parolees with electronic monitoring bracelets are under DCC supervision across the state.
Prison officials also said last week they could release more nonviolent offenders, those serving 120 days or less for Class C and Class D felony convictions, if the Legislature amended the state law.
"There are so many hurdles attached to this (law)," said John Felts, chairman of the state Parole Board, adding that the law is too narrow and that relatively few inmates qualify.
Felts and Tyler told lawmakers attending a joint meeting of four legislative committees last week at the Southeastern Arkansas Community Correction Center in Pine Bluff that the current law concerning electronic monitoring of nonviolent inmates — part of Act 570 of 2011, the state's sentencing reforms — limits who can be released with an electronic bracelet.
"It was really designed for people sentenced to the Department of Arkansas Correction that were not supposed to have been to prison anyway," Felts said, adding that they've found fewer than eight inmates who actually fit the criteria since Act 570 took effect two years ago.
Act 570 was enacted in response to a 2010 study by the Pew Center's Public Safety Performance project, which found that the state's prison population had doubled in the past 20 years to more than 16,000 and that housing ever more inmates could cost the state $1.1 billion over the next decade.
Reforming sentencing guidelines could save about $875 million over the next decade, the Pew study said.
Act 570 provided for lesser sentences for some nonviolent offenders and mostly drug-related crimes. The law also made some nonviolent offenders eligible for parole earlier, with electronic monitoring as a condition of early release in some cases.
The sentencing guidelines and the way DCC handles parolees gained statewide attention in May with the arrest of Darrell Dennis, a parolee accused of committing murder while free after multiple arrests.
Gov. Mike Beebe ordered an internal DCC investigation, and the Arkansas State Police is conducting an administrative investigation into what happened and how another breakdown might be avoided. Last month the Department of Correction released findings from its investigation, which concluded that a number of factors contributed to the breakdown of procedures in Dennis' case, including jail overcrowding, but found no wrongdoing by employees.
In an effort to address some of the issues within DCC, the state Board of Corrections in July approved a series of new mandates to improve the disciplining and monitoring of parolees accused of new crimes and waiting for a hearing. One of the new mandates prohibits parole officers from letting jailed parolees back on the street if a mental health evaluation is pending.
One of the drawbacks of the new policies, however, has been a rise in the jail population.
Sheila Sharp, director of DCC, said recently that more than 800 parolees and probationers have been jailed since the new policies took effect, which has caused a backup in county jails across the state. Of the nearly 1,500 state inmates being held in county jails last week, about 400 were parolees or probationers waiting hearings.
State Prison Director Ray Hobbs also said the department is seeing a slight increase in the number of people being convicted and sentenced to state prison.
"For 14 to 16 months we had less than 300 inmates backed up in the county jails," Hobbs told lawmakers last week.
Hobbs also said the department has about 350 beds in several facilities across the state that are ready to open, but it doesn't have enough money to cover the operational costs, estimated at about $8 million.
He also said prison officials are considering a proposal to refurbish the old Pine Bluff Diagnostic Unit to house about 400 inmates and some parolees waiting for hearings.
Some lawmakers expressed frustration with the rising prison population, noting that when Act 570 was being debated they were told it would help reduce the prison population.
Sen. Eddie Joe Williams, R-Cabot, and Rep. Denny Altes, R-Fort Smith, both said they were led to believe that increased use of electronic monitoring would help alleviate the inmate population and asked why it wasn't being used.
"I voted for (Act 570) because of a set of facts that was presented to us … and I don't see those being accurate based on us having this conversation about future growth and the trouble we're in, not enough money to maintain the facilities or the staffing," Williams said.
Both Williams and Altes asked prison officials if there was anything the Legislature could do to Act 570 that would possibly help reduce the inmate population.
"My question is, looking back … are there some things in 570 that didn't work exactly like you thought?" Williams asked.
Hobbs and Sharp, along with other state correction officials, said they would develop some recommendations and submit them to lawmakers.
"This doesn't mean that we're going to completely throw out Act 570," Williams said. "Implement, review and adjust and that is exactly the phase we're in. We're reviewing and then we'll make some adjustment."


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The Healthy Kids Running Series was created by Jeff Long, Founder and President of Pattison Sports Group, to provide kids with a positive, educational, and fun experience in the world of running. To combat the increasing rates of child obesity in America, Jeff designed a running program that would motivate kids to be healthy and active and provide a fun environment to improve their self-esteem. Jeff believed the program would encourage kids to adopt a "Get Up and Go" attitude.
Join us as we encourage kids to adopt a healthy and active lifestyle, help increase their self-esteem, and make new friends!


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By JOVANA GEC, Associated Press Writer Sat May 5, 12:01 PM ET
BELGRADE, Serbia - Hundreds of burly former militiamen from the Balkan wars regrouped outside a church in central Serbia on Saturday, promising to fight together as a paramilitary unit once more if Kosovo breaks away from the government in Belgrade.
Twenty-seven people were detained, all wearing T-shirts with symbols of the disbanded Unit for Special Operations, whose former commander and several members are on trial for the 2003 assassination of Serbia's reformist Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic.
"We will never give up Kosovo, we are ready to fight," said one of the organizers, Andrej Milic. Milic added their unit will be available to the government if Serbia goes to war, and called for a "new Serb uprising and a new battle for Kosovo."
The event illustrated the mounting nationalism here over the Western-backed plan to allow Kosovo to split from Serbia as demanded by its ethnic Albanian majority.
Many of those in Krusevac on Saturday wore military uniforms with nationalist symbols typical of the notorious units accused of atrocities during the wars in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo in the 1990s. Some wore T-shirts with images of the U.N. war crimes fugitive Ratko Mladic.
Kosovo is formally part of Serbia, but is dominated by ethnic Albanians who are seeking independence. The region has been run by the United Nations since a 1998-99 Serb-Albanian war.
Talks on the formation of a new pro-Western government in Serbia, meanwhile, remain deadlocked, triggering a political crisis that could pave the way for the return to power of the nationalists loyal to ex-leader Slobodan Milosevic
The United States and its allies favor internationally supervised independence for the province, as proposed in the U.N. plan, but Russia opposes it, signaling a possible showdown at the U.N. Security Council which will have the final say on the matter.
Most Serbs consider Kosovo the heartland of their history and culture. The government in Belgrade has rejected the plan.
There was no immediate reaction from the Serbian government to the veterans' gathering in Krusevac, although creation of paramilitary units in Serbia is illegal.
The volunteer units were first founded in the early 1990s, during the rule of the late Milosevic, who took Serbia to four wars during his decade-long rule.
Dragoljub Vasiljevic, one of the volunteers who came to Krusevac on Saturday denied the brutality allegations, telling the Beta news agency that they were "honorable and brave" fighters.
The organizers said that their unit will be named after a medieval Serb leader, Czar Lazar, who reportedly led the Serb army in a crucial battle against the Ottoman Turks in Kosovo in 1389. The Serbs lost the battle but cherish the event as one of the most important in their history


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From Pomegranate Yogurt to Lime Pie: A Few Favorite Popsicle Recipes
What would Ice Cream Week be without a shout-out to its fun-loving cousin? With both healthy (yogurt, fruit) and boozy (Campari, beer) options, the popsicle—that ode to a summer's day—is now as fully grown-up as you are. Here are a few favorite popsicle recipes from our archives:
• 1 Grown-Up Popsicles: Pomegranate Yogurt Pops
• 2 Recipe: Coconut and Mango Rice Pudding Pops
• 3 Fany Gerson's Lime Pie Ice Pops
• 4 How To Make Beer Popsicles at Home
• 5 Grownup Popsicle Recipe: Boozy Campari Citrus Pops
• 6 Strawberry Yogurt Popsicles
• 7 Watermelon Popsicles
• 8 Recipe: Maple & Squash Pumpkin Pie Popsicles
• 9 Recipe Review: Cucumber Ice Pops With Lime & Chile
Related: Summer Fun: Molds for Making Homemade Push Pops!
(Images: see linked posts for full image credits)


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Color, layout, scene planning, camerawork, special effects and music - and more important than any of those individual elements is the hierarchical coordination of them all.
the cutesy character stuff kind of gets in the way of the atmosphere, but I guess you gotta put something in there for the Moms and pantywaists in the audience.
My favorite parts of classic Disney movies are the sequences that evoke haunting moods and atmosphere: The witches defeat in Snow White, Maleficent's appearance through the wall in Sleeping Beauty, April Showers in Bambi - the fire
Again, if you say out loud (or write) what's actually happening you can see how pedestrian the ideas are: "The reeds break in half and whistle like a chorus of angels". It makes me wonder why they even needed a story staff.
I think Disney's real magic - what separated him from everyone else in animation - was in his ability to build elaborate solid structures. Huge monolithic structures that could support the most fragile core ideas. - Like building a huge decorative skyscraper to support a colony of flatworms.


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Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 12th Feb 2013 23:26 UTC, submitted by cloud
"Several changes, some bugfixes and a major testing effort bring me to release a new version of the SCHED_DEADLINE patchset (v7). In addition, given the fact that the project has been around for quite some time with always a positive feedback from the community and since we have reached a stable and tested set of functionalities, I think it is time to remove the RFC tag."
Thread beginning with comment 552280
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And SCHED_DEADLINE is...
by Nth_Man on Tue 12th Feb 2013 23:58 UTC
A little more information about SCHED_DEADLINE:
"SCHED_DEADLINE is a new deadline-based real-time task scheduling policy for the Linux kernel with bandwidth isolation (aka "resource reservation") capabilities. It supports global/clustered multiprocessor scheduling through dynamic task migrations.
The scheduling class implements the real-time scheduling algorithm called Earliest Deadline First (EDF), one of the most common real-time scheduling algorithms."
Edited 2013-02-13 00:07 UTC


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With the X-Games behind him, superpipe dominance proven, slopestyle not, and 14 year old snowboarder Hirano situated to take the lead in the future, Shaun White is moving on to kiteboarding. Anyone who followed Shaun on Facebook over the past year has seen a continued commitment to surfing and desire to explore new things. With kiteboarding's inability to make it into the 2016 Rio Olympics, Slingshot saw that a big name was needed to take the sport to the next level.
Shaun will continue snowboarding under his Burton sponsorship but when he looked out for the "Burton of Kiteboarding" Slingshot was there. Slingshot has let loose several big names over the past few years such as Ben Wilson, Youri Zoon and recently Ruben Lenten and that sponsorship budget is going into the wallet of Mr. White. When reached for comment, Shaun said that none of this is true, but it would certainly be rad and goes well with his GoPro sponsorship. He has his eye on the surf and snow segments of kiteboarding, but is not going to ignore the wakestyle dominated slider parks. The only thing for certain is that you won't find Shaun mowing the lawn.
Shaun looking like a natural, trying out the sport on a North setup;


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The nation's capital is home to some of the best restaurants, bars, wineries and food producers. During Canberra's Good Food Month, the region throws its doors open with great meal deals, a host of markets, cellar door events, cooking demonstrations and workshops as well as number of showcase dinners with leading chefs and food identities.
- Canberra
- Art and Culture
- Australian Capital Territory
- Food and Wine


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Check out our brand new
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Gray Bathroom Ideas
Looking to decorate your Bathroom? This will inspire you about how to set up and decor the room to make it look better. This picture is one of a collection of photographs that will inspire you to design your places.
Gray Bathroom Ideas
This one of few beautiful photo and related with Bathroom gallery. If you are searching some of pictures, there's no doubt for this image, and you could check another image from our blog.
Farnichar design bed,


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Message Boards
Created on : Friday, May 23, 2008, 07:50:23 am
Dr. Phil delves into a topic so terrifying, so uncomfortable and daunting that some parents absolutely refuse to do it … It's the sex talk! With the help of Dr. John Chirban and his book, What's Love Got to Do with It: Talking with Your Kids about Sex, Dr. Phil takes on some petrified parents who are long overdue for this discussion. Jackie is a mother of two daughters, 11 and 13. She's so terrified to have the talk, she's never even brought up the topic! Just the thought of the S word sends Jackie into a tailspin. Dr. Chirban coaches Jackie through what she calls the most difficult conversation in her life. How do Jackie's daughters think she did? Then, Pam is a mother who thought she had everything right when it came to talking to her 14-year-old daughter, Ashley, about sex. So why does she now think her daughter might be pregnant? Pam and Ashley visited the doctor and are ready to hear the results of the pregnancy test. Plus, meet a mother and father who are terrified that their 10-year-old son will be scarred for life from what he recently saw on the Internet. Then, Dr. Chirban sits down with a group of kids to find out what they know about sex, while the parents secretly watch. Share your thoughts, join the discussion.
Find out what happened on the show.
How do you talk to your teens about sex? Share your story.
Find out what happened on the show.
How do you talk to your teens about sex? Share your story.
As of January, 2009, this message board will become "Read Only" and will be closed to further posting. Please join the NEW Dr. Phil Community to continue your discussions, personalize your message board experience, start a blog and meet new friends.


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Choosing between conventional & FHA financing isn't always clear, there are many factors that need to be taken into consideration. Below I will go over a few points.
Conventional comes in two forms: conforming & non-conforming. Conforming means it meets Fannie Mae's & Freddie Mac's guidelines, non-conforming does not meet those two quasi-government company's guidelines. The most distinct difference is when you are financing a mortgage amount that exceeds the conforming loan limits. Conforming loan limits are $417,000 and can be higher in high cost markets (NYC, LA, SF, Boston, etc.), anything over the conforming loan limit is considered a non-conforming loan amount and thus needs non-conforming financing. Conforming financing is offered by pretty much any mortgage lender, non-conforming financing is tougher to find and by today's offerings the rates can be approximately 1-2% higher. These days conforming financing is split up between two categories as well, "regular conforming" and "conforming jumbo". The regular conforming loan programs are for loan amount of $417,000 and under, and the conforming jumbo programs are for those high cost areas which have higher conforming loan limits. Conforming jumbo guidelines are more restrictive in terms of credit score, down payment requirements and debt to income ratio. The difference between those two conforming sub-category rates is often between .25% to .50%.
FHA financing also has a maximum mortgage limit, in all areas it's at least $271,050, and then in higher cost areas it increases from there.
To check the conforming & FHA loan limits the official website is https://entp.hud.gov/idapp/html/hicostlook.cfm. On the "Limit Type" drop down menu is where you select "Fannie/Freddie" or "FHA Forward".
FHA loans have monthly mortgage insurance unless the term is 15 years or less and the loan-to-value is 90% or less. For terms longer than 15 years the amount of the mortgage insurance is .55% (.5% if the loan-to-value is 95% or less) of the base loan amount per year, for terms 15 years or less and loan-to-value over 90% it's .25% of the base loan amount per year, both are paid in monthly installments as a portion of the mortgage payment. The monthly mortgage insurance needs to be paid for at least 5 years and also until the loan amount reaches 78% of the home's value at the time the loan was made (not current value). Will you have mortgage insurance on the proposed conventional loan? If so, what is the rate of the mortgage insurance for the conventional loan?
FHA loans also have an upfront mortgage insurance premium (UFMIP) equal to 2.25% of the base loan amount, which can be paid out of pocket or financed into the loan amount (most people choose to finance it). So you should consider if you paid 2.25% in origination/discount points on a conventional loan - what would your interest rate be?
Usually if the loan-to-value is 80% or below, conventional financing wins out pretty much every time. There are exceptions, such as the situation with a lower FICO score (below 660) and loan-to-values between 70-80% where interest rates for conventional loans can become significantly higher than their FHA counterpart. But when considering the UFMIP that FHA charges conventional still has a slight advantage.
When loan-to-value is between 80-95%, and with strong (720+) FICO scores, conventional often is the better bet due to the competitive mortgage insurance rates vs. FHA, plus there is no UFMIP fee like there is with FHA. Loan-to-value between 80-95% with 660-719 scores, conventional starts to lose it's competitive edge since the mortgage insurance rates increase vs. FHA's. Above 95% loan-to-value FHA becomes the better choice due to the inability to obtain mortgage insurance with conventional financing.
FHA is also more lenient on imperfect credit, allowing collections/charge-offs to remain open/unpaid (this is up to lender discretion however), late payments on consumer debt (auto, credit cards, etc.), and even a mortgage late payment or two, whereas conventional financing may not approve spotty credit. This is particularly true when the loan-to-value is over 80% when conventional financing requires mortgage insurance, as the mortgage insurance provider also underwrites the loan in addition to the lender, and mortgage insurance underwriting guidelines are pretty strict (even more so than lender underwriting).
Lastly, FHA permits higher debt to income ratios than conventional financing does. So overall FHA is more lenient, but there are situations where a borrower does not need the leniency to get approved for a mortgage, and that is where conventional gains the edge.
When evaluating conventional vs. FHA it's good to get a payment breakdown along with a fee estimate, so you can see how the overall loan is affected.
Information that is needed to determine if you qualify for a mortgage
Thanks for the information Shane. I bookmarked it otherwise I woudn't remember any of it by tomorrow.
Also wanted to point out that VA & USDA, when available, are almost always a better option as there isn't any monthly mortgage insurance on either.
VA has a funding fee (similar to the upfront mortgage insurance premium that FHA has), first time use and less than 5% down is 2.15%, 5-9.99% down is a 1.5% funding fee, and 10% or more down is just a 1.25% funding fee. Subsequent use, no matter the LTV, is 3.3%. For a VA IRRRL (Interest Rate Reduction Rollover Loan) it's .5%, this is similar to an FHA streamline where it's easier qualifying in theory, however we are seeing some lenders add overlay guidelines. Reservists pay .25% more in funding fee's except for subsequent use & IRRRL's. Veteran's who had a service connected disability and also have a certain amount of disability rating can be exempt from having to pay any funding fees, and are often eligible for discounts/exemptions on property taxes as well.
VA is a good option when available and when putting less than 15% down. With 15% down or more, and FICO scores of 660 or higher, conventional starts gaining an advantage over VA since the mortgage insurance won't be much on conventional vs. the VA funding fee, and at 20% down conventional is almost always the better bet.
USDA Rural Development (RD) has two versions, a "Direct" program which is available to people who fall within the "low income" eligibility limits and the mortgage application is made directly to USDA, and the "Guaranteed" version which is available to people who fall within the "moderate income" eligibility limits. The properties also have to be in an eligible area. With the Guaranteed version, USDA charges a 3.5% guarantee fee (similar to FHA's upfront mortgage insurance & VA's funding fee) on purchases and 2.25% on refinances of existing USDA mortgages, currently these 3.5%/2.25% figures are what USDA is currently using even though they technically aren't official yet (this is what HR 4899 will put in place). Both the income limits & eligible areas can be found at http://eligibility.sc.egov.usda.gov/eligibility/welcomeAction.do.
The USDA RD mortgage is a "loan of last resort", meaning if you can't qualify for FHA or conventional they then want you to try USDA. The reason they say this may be for many reasons, but the primary reason I believe is that USDA's funds are limited so if everyone used USDA vs. FHA or conventional then the people who truly need USDA or couldn't buy a home wouldn't have the option unless the fiscal year starts over. They don't require you furnish an FHA or conventional loan denial in order to obtain USDA RD financing, but from what I've seen it just really means if you have 20% to put down then they are going to question why the use of USDA and most likely will decline. USDA RD's advantages/disadvantages vs. conventional & FHA financing are the same as VA's.
Information that is needed to determine if you qualify for a mortgage
Great Information, and thanks again for all of your contributions. They really help make these boards an invaluable resource for learning about credit and finances.
"VA is a good option when available and when putting less than 15% down. With 15% down or more, and FICO scores of 660 or higher, conventional starts gaining an advantage over VA since the mortgage insurance won't be much on conventional vs. the VA funding fee, and at 20% down conventional is almost always the better bet."
Not sure that I agree with this...all VA bias aside.
Nearly every lender's VA rates are lower than conventional, usually by .25%. If a borrower puts 20% down on a Conventional and 20% down on a VA, even with the funding fee, the lower interest rate on the VA loan still results in a lower monthly payment. This can be increased even moreso if on the VA loan some of that 20% down payment is used instead to buy down the interest rate. For the same amount invested in the deal, VA wins.
Also, in this buyers market we are in, the flexibility VA offers in allowing sellers to pay any and all the buyers closing costs gives VA another clear advantage.
Heya Steve, didn't know you posted here too. You make a good point, and thanks for adding that. It does get really close when comparing 15-20% down on VA vs. conventional. The FICO score would pretty much be the determining factor on what terms would be available for conventional. Given the difference in VA rates vs. conventional, and when 10% down or more (using VA funding fee of 1.25% for this comparison), it actually appears a 720 score would give borrowers approximately the same rate with conventional financing and paying the 1.25% towards buying the rate down, as they could obtain with VA.
Information that is needed to determine if you qualify for a mortgage
is it possible to qualify for fha without any active credit tradlines?
have an old collection that's showing in the year 2003 on a car that was repo and sold for market value.
neve went into debt after this. everything we bought was saved and paid in cash.
currently my score is 620 and spouse is 640. my income 1300 / hers 2100
thanks any advice will help..
You will most likey be required to provide alternate tradelines...utilities, rent verification, etc.
drtjohns wrote:
is it possible to qualify for fha without any active credit tradlines?
have an old collection that's showing in the year 2003 on a car that was repo and sold for market value.
neve went into debt after this. everything we bought was saved and paid in cash.
currently my score is 620 and spouse is 640. my income 1300 / hers 2100
thanks any advice will help..
If there is only negative trade lines on the credit report, without any positive trade lines, then typically lenders will not allow non-traditional credit such as the utilities, rent, cell phone, etc. to count towards the trade line requirements. In a situation like that underwriters want to see positive traditional trade line history after the negatives.
Information that is needed to determine if you qualify for a mortgage
If someone has a credit score in the low 800's, total debt to income ratio of ~20% (with current mortgage or ~33% with potiential new mortgage) , around 21% down payment and another 14 months worth of mortgage in the savings; which would be the best deal for a 30 year mortgage? Would a conventional loan work best? Becasue it sounds like it might be...


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Hello all, I am introducing myself to the forum. My background is in Cabinetmaking and Sailing. I have owned a few bikes over the years, Goldwing, XS650 Cbs 550, 360, 350/4 etc
My bike is an '85 K100RS Alaskan Blue with 13,000 miles. I just picked it up and it is being checked over as I am writing this. I am also a member of the K100 forum and I am looking forward to meeting other local riders to tag along with, from time to time. My wife and I do alot of sailboat racing on weekends (Kenosha Yacht Club) during the summer but we also want to get some rides in. Looking forward to hearing from some fellow brick owners and/or any local folks.
UJ (Uncle Jim, my sailing students gave me that knickname)flying brick.jpg


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Train them - Epstein wants pool of call centre workers
Epstein chides Gov't for lack of training programmes
MONTEGO BAY, St James — CHAIRMAN of the Business Process Industry Association of Jamaica (BPIAJ) Yoni Epstein has chided Government for its failure to establish a comprehensive vocational training programme for the booming call centre industry, in a similar vein as the tourism curriculum offered by the HEART Trust/NTA.
" For this sector to grow — and the ministers (of government) are talking 40,000 jobs in the sector and growing the sector by about 2,500 jobs a year — you need a pool of people to pull from in order to be able to hire and provide trainable staff for the companies that are coming into Jamaica," he argued.
"When these (call centre) companies come in they don't hire five or 20 people right off the bat, they hire 200 people. So in many cases it is like a new hotel coming into Jamaica. And HEART Trust does an exceptional job of having trained personnel and providing a pool for the hotel sector".
Over 90,000 persons are directly employed in the tourism sector, while the IT sector currently provides employment for roughly 14,000. But, according to a projection by technology minister Phillip Paulwell, the number of persons employed in the IT sector is likely to reach 40,000 by 2016.
Junior Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining (STEM), Julian Robinson is in agreement with Epstein.
He argued however, that while HEART Trust does have some programmes geared for the information technology industry, "clearly more can be done".
He pointed out that Government is willing to enter into dialogue with stakeholders in an effort to address the matter.
" We are willing as an administration to sit down with the Business Process Industry Association and discuss how we can achieve these things because it is important. It (IT) is a sector that we have targeted for growth. We believe we have competitive advantages in it and the major differentiator is the quality of the labour. So to the extent that we can ensure that our labour is best prepared through training it is something we would support and encourage," Robinson told the Observer West.
Contending that the level of IT training offered by some institutions now is below the standard which is desired for persons to commence working in call centres, Epstein stressed that valuable production time is lost when companies have to train new workers.
" The employees are hired and given general customer service and sales training and computer training and then they are given a client specific training. So depending on what the client's prerequisites are, it could be two, three, five weeks of training. Now if you had that general customer service and sales training, that could cut it down by a third," the BPIAJ head explained.
According to Epstein, in 2005 the Dominican Republic was "neck and neck" with Jamaica in terms of the number of persons employed in the sector. However, the Spanish speaking Caribbean country currently employs close to 30,000 persons in the sector "because they have developed a world class training facility that provides people who are trained and ready to work".
"If we don't do that, we will be up a creek without a paddle" Epstein declared.
He argued that the lack of adequately trained labour force has resulted in the poaching of employees from companies.
" When companies come in they want trained personnel so you have to go to other companies in the Free Zone and it causes a bit of rattle on the industry. Whereas, if you had vocational schools, the high schools playing a part, and the universities playing a part in truly training persons for this sector in basic call centre skills, and not only the line level, but the middle management and the management levels, you can have one hub. And most likely that hub should be HEART Trust where they are just pumping people into the industry".
There are about 26 call centres in the Montego Bay Freezone.
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