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New Hope Notes
Rich Toward God
Defining Moments
Pastor Wayne Cordeiro
Today we're going to be talk about how to be rich in God but in order to talk about that, we must first define what that means. What does it mean to be rich in or toward God? If we don't define that correctly, we may miss the message.
I know a woman who seems very rich. She lives in a nice house and drives a $264K Ferrari. She dresses well and her behavior is very prim and proper. Unfortunately, her attitude towards others is not very nice; she is condescending and appears not to care about those around her. On the other hand, I was in the
It's interesting how we (or the world) defines riches and how different that can be from God's definition. We need to be sure to define things correctly in order so we don't end up chasing after the wrong things. In Luke 12, Jesus tells a parable of a man who spent his life amassing money and in the end, he died poor.
"… 'The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, "What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops." Then he said, "This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods." And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." But God said to him, "You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?" This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.'"
We need to position our lives to define what it means to be rich toward God. We need to have a life that is balanced. But how do you balance your life? And what will the results be?
How do you spend your time so you receive God's best? For me, I don't see my time as hours but as pockets of energy. Your greatest asset is not time but energy. How to spend your time will determine the richness of your life.
You know that if you don't have energy, it doesn't matter how much time you have, it won't be worth anything. Energy is your greatest asset so you need to be sure to…
"So teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom" (Ps. 90:12). What should you invest it in? In order to know what to invest in, you need to:
So how do you determine eternal versus temporal? Things that are eternal are things that will be there in heaven when we get there versus temporal things are temporary and will fade away with this world. I have a friend who thinks heaven will be like one big pizza that you can eat and each and eat. Then I have another surfer friend who says that heaven will be like riding on a giant wave that goes on forever and ever. I don't know which, if either, of them is correct but what I do know is that Jesus and other people will be in heaven. So, if we know that Jesus and people will be in heaven, if I want to invest in things eternal, I know that I should be investing in them!
So this is the way I do it. Over the years I have come to realize that I have about six pockets of energy a day – some people may have more or less pockets of energy but that's what I have – so I commit to using my pockets of energy as follows:
I invest my first pocket of energy in God. I get up everyday and spend time with Him each morning in devotions and prayer. I don't allow myself to be distracted at that time or get diverted to other things. I prioritize my time with Him and am sure to invest in that relationship. Then I always reserve a pocket of time for my spouse and/or family. Even though that time may come at the end the day, I make sure a reserve enough energy to invest in them. So if it gets really busy at work and it requires me to put in extra time, or if there's an evening function that will keep me away from home late at night, sometimes I just have to take let them know that I can't stay or I need to leave early because I need to save some of my energy for my wife/family.
We also need to reserve some time/energy for ourselves. If we're burnt out and don't have enough energy for ourselves, how are we going to be of any use to others? Then when I've carved out time with God and reserved time for my spouse/family and myself, I have about three pockets worth of energy that I can spend on work and other things.
When things get busy, the first pocket that I seem to pull from (or violate) is Self. I don't take care of myself and exercise as I should. I don't take those walks or spend time in solitude anymore. But then I start to deplete myself and my soul starts to shrink. If I deplete myself, I have nothing to give. If I short-change my spouse and family, my relationships get shallow.
We have a tendency to trade or convert pockets 1, 5, and 6 to work and we become very one-dimensional and unbalanced. Your heart starts to stray because you're not investing in these. You may gain more financially but…
You're designed to be in relationship.
"…They did not wait for His counsel…and tested God in the desert…He gave them their request but sent leanness into their soul." (Ps. 106:13-15)
There's a sense of emptiness there. Most of us think, "There's no harm in asking" but there is because sometimes you might get what you asked for!
"Woe to those who add house to house and join field to field, until there is not more room, so that you have to live alone in the midst of the land!" (Is. 5:8)
Living alone. Aloneness. Loneliness. God, family, and self…these things are eternal. Somethings may bounce back if you neglect them for a while but other things don't.
Today we have a professional juggler, Greg, here with us to illustrate this point. When you juggle things, you want to know what bounces and what doesn't. Because if you're juggling things and you don't know what will bounce or not, you may drop something and it may break – you may not be able to recover and have that again.
When you're out of balance, how do you get it back? How do you ensure you won't break one of those fragile items like 1 (relationship with God), 5 (spouse/family), or 6 (self)? Don't juggle them! Juggling those things and putting them at risk may result in you dropping and losing them. The result would be emptiness. On the other hand…
"…the humble will inherit the land and will delight themselves in abundant prosperity." (Ps. 37:11)
It may not be just accumulating more wealth; it may be something else.
"Let them say continually, 'The Lord be magnified who delights in the prosperity of His servant.'" (Ps. 35:27)
God delights in you being prosperous.
"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.'" (Jer. 29:11)
The Hebrew word for all three of these instances is exactly the same: shalom. And what does shalom mean? Basically peace…but also includes a bit more. What it actually means is this…
In Hebrew, shalom is not just peace – the absence of war – it is also a wish for the following:
· True Friends – friends that you don't have to compete with and with whom you don't have to pretend
· Security – knowing who you are, good self-esteem
· Completeness – a sense of wholeness, not craving the attention of others
· Quiet Strength
· Close Friendship – not just having friends and a family but having close friends and a close family
· Freedom from Fear
We all hope to have rich and prosperous lives but we must properly define what that means in order to have a hope of achieving it. Richness is not based on the temporal things of this world (e.g., money, material things) but rather the eternal. Your greatest asset is not necessarily time, but your energy. Invest it wisely in things that are eternal (e.g., Jesus, people) and you will be rich toward God. Success without healthy relationships only brings emptiness while a balanced life results in prosperity. God's richest gift is "shalom" or peace – not the narrow definition of peace meaning absence of war but the comprehensive sense of peace including true friends, security, completeness, quiet strength, close friendships, and freedom from fear.
Discussion Suggestions
1. How do you assess someone's richness of life?
2. What defines the richness of your life?
3. Where are you spending your energy? What temporal and eternal things occupy your time?
4. Do you agree that "Success without healthy relationships only brings emptiness"? Why or why not?
5. Do you agree that "A balanced life results in prosperity"? Why or why not?
6. How has God granted you His richest gift of shalom? Share examples.


text: Am Freitag, 31. Dezember 2004 01:31 schrieb Narve Saetre: > There seem to be an invalid URL (another web page gone dead) on the XBEL > > page: > >Joris Graaumans (joris at cs.uu.nl) has developed a couple of XSLT > > stylesheets for XBEL <http://www.cs.uu.nl/%7Ejoris/stuff.html>. Yes, this URL is no longer valid, but Joris sent me his XSLT stylesheets a month ago. If you like, I can upload them to 'secure' webspace. I'm able to provide webspace for other stylesheets, too. So if you're interested, we can collect good styles and offer them under a unique url? > In my hunt for a better XBEL stylesheet I discovered a superior one > (nice, recursive, graphic, icons, fast, cross-browser): > > http://cgi29.plala.or.jp/mozzarel/xbel/ > > so I suggest the web master changes the URL to this one (and hope that > one stays for a while). Thanks for the link. It's a really good stylesheet! > [..] Regards, Christian

subset: commoncrawl


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« Cheers | Main | Globe West memories »
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Hungry? This guy can help you out
Starving? Just ask for the B.O.G. at Oliva's in Milford.
That stands for Babe Oliva Grinder. It weighs a pound and, by all accounts, it's tasty.
Correspondent Alison O'Leary Murray reports in today's Globe West on the little market run by the Oliva family that has grown into a big catering business and even caters to the Red Sox and visiting teams at Fenway.
Posted by the Boston Globe City & Region Desk at 03:39 PM


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By: Ashley Curtis
10 August 2011
A "huge influx" of visitors descending on the capital for the 2012 Olympic Games has given Transport for London a logistical headache.
Event Magazine reports that a number of traffic lanes, parking bays, loading bays and other roads will be closed, partially open or only open to athletes during the Games, those in driving jobs will be interested to learn.
In addition, an Olympic Route Network (ORN) will run through key areas of central London in order to help athletes get between their accommodation, training and competition venues.
However, the institution hasn't quite figured out how to solve the problem of overcrowding on the tube network, as the underground will become very familiar to the hundreds of thousands of Olympics' fans that will descend on the capital.
Peter Hendy, London's Transport Commissioner, elaborates on the changes: "Central London's transformation into a major sporting venue does mean that some changes need to be made to roads and footways, and the maps and other information we've published today are the result of the work TfL and Westminster City Council have done to find the safest and most effective way to manage the area during the Games."
Security plans could also cause a headache for drivers as widespread rioting continues to raise the question of the competency of London's police but Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson told The Telegraph that rioters were not a "new, emerging security threat" the Olympics should deal with.


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|You are here: Rediff Home » India » Get Ahead » Leisure » Columns » Sidin Sunny Vadukut
It was the summer of 2004. I was sitting in the common room of a college hostel in South Mumbai with a handful of complete strangers. The TV was on and everyone was watching with their mouths wide open.
Wait. It's not what you think. Well at least not then. Maybe a little later that night. When the warden was away and the DVDs came out.
But just then honest, candid film-making was the last thing on people's minds. Most people had expected the BJP-led NDA to come back to power comfortably on the back of sound economic development. So much so that the NDA even launched that infamous "India Shining" campaign to highlight how economic development had touched so many Indians that they would, out of sheer joy and gratitude, shortly vote the NDA back into power.
Every single person in the room looked shaken as the UPA, along with some help from the dynamic and enthusiastic team players in the Left parties, grabbed the majority needed to form government. Instead of India Shining the UPA would soon launch a rule for the betterment of the aam aadmi (mango person).
In the days to come Sonia Gandhi [Images] would take oath, via a certain Manmohan Singh [Images], as Prime Minister of India and a whole new era of government would start.
What struck me odd at the time was the sheer number of people who were shocked that the UPA had come to power. They were calling it an upset win. "After all, the exit polls said that the NDA would come to power or there would be a hung parliament!" shell-shocked people were telling each other. The exit polls had given them false hope, alas!
Without doubt one of the most widely discredited jobs in India right now is that of the Exit Poll Professional. I have no first-hand experience of how this works. But that does not mean that I should not make an educated guess using Google.
I am guessing that exit pollsters lurk around outside voting booths and then ask people difficult questions when they emerge after casting their franchise:
Pollster: "Ma'am, have you voted?"
Woman: "Yes, I have."
Pollster: "Who did you vote for?"
Man from local political party carrying large axe-like implement over one shoulder: "Yes, yes. Who did you vote for?"
Woman: "I protest this invasion of my privacy but I have no hesitation in saying that I voted for precisely this gentleman's party. Have done so for many, many years."
Pollster: "Thank you for your candid opinion."
The pollster is normally a part-time jobber who is doing this to make a little extra pocket money on the side. And he may be getting paid for every voter response he gets. This means waiting all day outside the booth and talking to several hundred voters, all the while trying not to get in the way of man with axe and the irresistible charm that comes with it.
After many hours of hard work the pollster then retires to an air-conditioned internet cafe nearby with over three dozen filled forms. He then notices that he is a little behind his quote and fills up another 400 himself.
At the end of which he realises that he got the order of check boxes wrong and, therefore, Mr KK Velayudhan of the Thrissur District Revolutionary Freedom Bar Owner's Party for People's Development and Liberation is all set to win by a landslide to the Lok Sabha.
But by then time is running out and the pollster has to file his report. So he asks the guy sitting in the next booth who he voted for, marks it and then photocopies the form 400 times. (He bills for 600 of course.) He sends the final report to the head office, certain in the knowledge that due to the law of averages his fraud will get adjusted away.
Unfortunately, exit polling is now a keenly fought business and his company does not have the budget to station pollsters in all areas. Or all states. The clerk at the head office picks up our pollster's data and, with a click, extrapolates it across all of Kerala [Images].
Mr Velayudhan is quickly on his way to stardom. He has no idea, of course. Even Velayudhan didn't vote for himself.
All the while several other pollsters are plying their trade for other employers and media brands alike. Reports begin to flow back into the newspapers and TV channels from pollsters all over the country.
TV anchor: "This exit poll looks great! You think Velayudhan would make a good PM?"
Poll researcher: "What? Who? Of course. Our data comes from highly reliable researchers all over the country."
TV anchor: "However there is only one problem. These predictions are exactly the same as NDTV's."
Poll researcher: "Don't worry about that. I will add a few seats here and there, flip a few constituencies, make this graph red, that one blue--"
TV anchor: "Without compromising accuracy of course."
Poll researcher: "Of course! What sort of ragtag outfit do you think we are."
As usual, when the exit polls come out there is surprise all round. But, because no one wants to back the wrong horse entirely, all the polls begin to indicate a wave of support rising for Velayudhan.
Velayudhan is suddenly a star. Broadcast vans park outside his house all day waiting for a comment or a single photograph. India TV has a special report and interviews people who are close to the Velayudhan election machine: milkman, LIC [Get Quote] agent, postman, classmate, third cousin on the neighbour's side and the man Velayudhan overtook last week while driving home -- on the WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD!
"Naya Rajneetik Jadugaar Ya Underworld Don!" ("New political magician or underworld don?") is the headline of their expose. The Times of India is not far behind with the famous headline: "Velayudhan-dhana-dhan Goal!"
He becomes the first person to appear on both the India Today and Vogue India cover simultaneously. He is significantly better looking on the latter.
One morning, Velayudhan gets calls from both the Congress and the BJP. They intend to form a coalition with his party at the centre. He is bewildered and refuses to commit to either. Sonia Gandhi threatens him by saying that if he did not side with the Congress she will call him "a saudagar (merchant) of something or the other like maut (death)."
Unfortunately, three days later the Election Machine comes out with the actual result and Velayudhan just misses out winning by a number equal to the winner's total tally. He does not even get a single vote.
Poll researcher: "This is almost exactly as we had predicted!"
TV anchor: "But you guys said he would win and become a kingmaker with the potential to rock the national political scene and hold the stability of the next government in the balance!"
Poll researcher: "We said maybe, okay!"
Earlier columns:
More adventures of the Vadukuts, mister and missus, can be found at Domain Maximus.
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"LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Lawsuits and alleged safety violations are mounting against Exxon Mobil Corp. following the rupture eight months ago of a pipeline that spilled thousands of barrels of oil in central Arkansas."
"Since Exxon's Pegasus pipeline ruptured March 29 and spilled the oil in the Mayflower community about 30 miles northwest of Little Rock, there have been at least 17 lawsuits against Exxon or its subsidiaries in state or federal courts.
And on Nov. 6 the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration alleged nine 'probable' violations of safety regulations related to the spill and proposed more than $2.6 million in civil penalties."
The Associated Press had the story November 30, 2013.
"A Neighborhood Shattered: Families Emptying Out of Oil-Hit Arkansas Town" (InsideClimate News)
"This Is What Happens When a Pipeline Bursts in Your Town" (New Republic)


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There once was a sheikh who dreamed big. His realm, on the shores of the Persian Gulf, was a sleepy, sun-scorched village occupied by pearl divers, fishermen, and traders who docked their ramshackle dhows and fishing boats along a narrow creek that snaked through town. But where others saw only a brackish creek, this sheikh, Rashid bin Saeed al Maktoum, saw a highway to the world.
One day in 1959, he borrowed many millions of dollars from his oil-rich neighbor, Kuwait, to dredge the creek until it was wide and deep enough for ships. He built wharves and warehouses and planned for roads and schools and homes. Some thought he was mad, others just mistaken, but Sheikh Rashid believed in the power of new beginnings. Sometimes at dawn, with his young son, Mohammed, by his side, he'd walk the empty waterfront and paint his dream in the air with words and gestures. And it was, in the end, as he said. He built it, and they came.
His son, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, now rules Dubai, and around that creek has built towering dreams of his own, transforming the sunrise vision of his father into a floodlit, air-conditioned, skyscrapered fantasy world of a million people. With its Manhattan-style skyline, world-class port, and colossal, duty-free shopping malls, little Dubai now attracts more tourists than the whole of India, more shipping vessels than Singapore, and more foreign capital than many European countries. The people of 150 nations have moved here to live and work. Dubai has even built man-made islands—some in the shape of palm trees—to accommodate the wealthiest of them. Its economic growth rate, 16 percent, is nearly double that of China. Construction cranes punctuate the skyline like exclamation points.
Dubai is also a rare success story in the Middle East, a region with a history of failure and stagnation. Whether Dubai represents a glitzy anomaly or a model to be copied by other Arab nations is a question worth asking these days, as the Islamic world struggles to cope with modernization. Abdulrahman al Rashid, a Saudi journalist and director of the Al Arabiya news channel, put it this way: "Dubai is putting pressure on the rest of the Arab and Muslim world. People are beginning to ask their governments: If Dubai can do it, why can't we?"
Dubai, it must be said, is like no other place on Earth. This is the world capital of living large; the air practically crackles with a volatile mix of excess and opportunity. It's the kind of place where tennis stars Andre Agassi and Roger Federer play an exhibition match on the rooftop helipad of the opulent Burj al Arab megahotel; where diamond-encrusted cell phones do a brisk business at $10,000 apiece; where millions of people a year fly in just to go shopping.
Over the past decade, I've traveled to Dubai often and grown to appreciate the quirky multiculturalism of a city where one can eat in an Italian restaurant run by an Egyptian, with an Indian head chef and Filipino waiters who break into operettas every half hour. Or watch, in the wee hours, a mob of English expatriates weaving home from a pub as the Muslim call to morning prayer echoes through the streets.
Many Americans first heard of Dubai, one of seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), when a state-owned company, Dubai Ports World, purchased a British firm that managed six U.S. ports. Some members of Congress reacted with alarm, charging, correctly, that the 9/11 conspirators used Dubai as a key financial transit point. Others supported the deal, noting that the U.A.E. had proved a staunch ally in the war on terror, and that U.A.E. ports host more U.S. Navy ships than any port outside the United States. In the end Dubai decided to pass on managing the U.S. ports. "We're too busy for politics," Sultan bin Sulayem, the head of Dubai Ports World, told me. "The Americans didn't want us on that deal. Fine. We move on. There's lots of business to be done."
Indeed. Dubai has created one of the most dynamic business environments in the world. "It's not just the buildings and the islands and the hotels," says Ali al Shihabi, the Princeton-educated director of a leading investment bank. "It's the soft stuff: the laws, the regulations, the liberal social environment." With no corporate or income taxes, a top-notch banking system, and a legal code that favors property and ownership, Dubai embodies old Sheikh Rashid's motto: "What's good for the merchants is good for Dubai."
And then there's his son, Sheikh Mohammed, the 57-year-old ruler of Dubai, whom Edmund O'Sullivan, editor of the Middle East Economic Digest, calls a "radical modernizer" and the "most significant figure in Arabia since King Abdulaziz"—the founder of modern Saudi Arabia who leveraged his country's oil reserves to become a major world player.
Unlike a traditional Middle Eastern autocrat, Sheikh Mohammed (known to many as Sheikh Mo) manages Dubai like a good CEO. Besides keeping a full schedule of public appearances, he's often seen driving himself around the backlots of Dubai, surveying his construction sites, as his father did, at the crack of dawn. He'll sometimes show up unannounced in the workplace to ask tough questions, fire poor managers on the spot, and reward the hardest workers. From these he handpicks Dubai's next generation of executives, including many women. "Hire the best women you can find," he told Anita Mehra Homayoun, the head of marketing for Dubai's airport, when he tapped her for the job in 1996. Mehra Homayoun herself rose through the ranks of the airport's duty-free shopping operation and caught Sheikh Mo's attention by organizing car raffles and celebrity golf and tennis tournaments, and by attracting top retailers to the airport's duty-free empire. "Sheikh Mohammed makes you believe you can do anything," she said. "His vision is contagious."
Another of the chosen, Mohammad Alabbar, grew up, like many Dubaians, in a tent made of palm fronds. His father supported a wife and 12 children with his fishing net. Then, in 1966, Dubai struck oil, and Alabbar went to college in the United States on a government scholarship paid for by oil revenues. (Though a windfall early on, Dubai's modest oil reserves now account for only 6 percent of GDP.) After graduation, he impressed Sheikh Mo during a six-year stint in Singapore, where he turned stagnant retail enterprises into thriving businesses. That led to a posting as Dubai's director of economic development, a role that showcased his ability to boost commerce by cutting red tape. As a reward, the government granted him land at little or no cost, and he started building.
Today he travels the world in a private jet and oversees Emaar, one of the richest real estate development companies in the world. "We have come a long way," Alabbar told me at the project site of the Burj Dubai, a towering, torpedo-like structure that will be the tallest building on the planet when it's finished in 2008. "But we must always remember where we came from. Our kids must know that we worked very, very hard to get to where we are now, and there's a lot more work to do."
Who actually does that work is a touchy subject. Dubai is not, demographically, an Arab city-state: Fewer than one in eight residents are citizens of the U.A.E., and South Asian guest workers make up more than 60 percent of the population. Many educated Indians live a comfortable life in Dubai, and a few have become rich. ("Dubai is the best city in India," quip the fortunate.) For others, however, Dubai is a dead end.
The local press had been reporting labor unrest the evening I visited one of the squalid neighborhoods where tens of thousands of guest workers live. The laborers' barracks stood among many battered, squat buildings along a dirt and gravel road littered with garbage. Hundreds of men with sun-soaked brown faces scuttled past in tank tops, baggy slacks, and torn flip-flops. Some of these workers joined in recent strikes, fed up with being treated as "less than human," in the words of Human Rights Watch. The average laborer makes about five dollars a day, working 12-hour shifts in scorching heat. (Human Rights Watch reported nearly 900 construction deaths in 2004, including deaths from heatstroke.)
Listen to their stories, and you learn that many workers are trapped here, mired in debt to unscrupulous agents back home who charged them exorbitant fees for their work visas. "If I didn't have to pay back my fee, I'd go home today," one man told me. "We have nothing," said Kutty, a short, sunken-cheeked 25-year-old from the Indian state of Kerala. "We are living a nightmare here, and nobody cares."
Reacting to such abuses—and the bad publicity they generate—the government recently announced it would allow workers to unionize, and ordered all contractors to halt work for four hours a day during the heat of July and August.
Dubai's troubles don't end there. Creating man-made islands offshore, for example, may have been a brilliant, if outrageous, business decision—waterfront properties sell for 7 million to 30 million dollars—but in the process, environmentalists say, Dubai has killed coral, destroyed turtle nesting sites, and upset the marine ecology of the western Persian Gulf. And behind the glittering skyscrapers lies a late-night world of fleabag hotels and prostitutes, Indian and Russian mobsters, money launderers, and smugglers of everything from guns and diamonds to human beings.
The night I stopped by the Cyclone Club, the prostitutes on hand hailed from Moldova, Russia, China, eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and various countries in East Africa. Their clients were Arabs, Europeans, Asians, and Americans. Music throbbed, drinks flowed, and soon the couples headed for the exits. I met a Chinese woman who goes by the name Muri. "I only go Cyclone two times a week," she said in halting English. During the day she works as a chef at a Chinese restaurant. Her clients, she said, tend to be Europeans or Americans on leave from the war in Iraq. "The Arabs like the European girls and Russians." I asked if she knew of trafficking rings that deal in Chinese girls. "Yes, of course," she said, wrinkling her eyebrows. "Very bad. Some girls very young."
A few days later I asked a top aide to Sheikh Mohammed whether Muri was right about the influx of Chinese prostitutes and traffickers. "It's not easy to stop the ones who come to Dubai by choice," he told me, "but we have no tolerance for traffickers." The U.S. State Department, however, reports that Dubai's efforts to curtail the trade fall short of even "minimum standards," and estimates that some 10,000 women in the U.A.E. may be victims of sex traffickers.
Dubai's relaxed approach to these and other problems does prompt criticism, though carefully muted. "We need to slow down, things are going too far," one prominent writer told me, referring to unrestrained development running roughshod over local culture. He asked that I not use his name. Said another native, "I know that some of my Arab friends only visit us because we have foreign prostitutes here. This is shameful."
Dubai's tolerance can also be a good thing. Alongside its bars and nightclubs, there are mosques and churches and Hindu temples, and, for a city with so many competing religions and nationalities, it is remarkably free of ethnic conflict. "I don't know who's a Sunni and who's a Shia, and I don't care," Sheikh Mohammed told me during a brief meeting. "If you work hard, if you don't bother your neighbor, then there is a place for you in Dubai." Even Israelis can do business (quietly) with Dubai.
While the Dubai model—built on freewheeling capitalism, entrepreneurship, and religious moderation—might be a blueprint for other developing nations, Dubai is uniquely positioned for the 21st century largely due to the vision and ambition of one man. Other Arab leaders might emulate Sheikh Mo or his methods, but in the end—and some would say thank goodness—there's only one Dubai.
Before I left the emirate, I decided to do what millions of visitors have done over the past decade: Go to a shopping mall. Dubai reportedly has more shopping malls per consumer than any other city in the world, and day or night they are packed with the kind of crowd one typically finds in Dubai: veiled Saudi women browsing Victoria's Secret; teenage Emirati boys in ghetto gear flirting with eastern European girls in black leather miniskirts; Senegalese and Egyptian and Iranian and Kazakh and Korean families, strolling amid the fountains and stores as Western pop music, globalization's soundtrack, plays over the loudspeakers. At one mall, the Hamarain Center, the theme song to Titanic, by Céline Dion, was played so often that local retailers complained.
I chose the Mall of the Emirates, one of Dubai's newest megamalls, a 2.4-million-square-foot behemoth that features an indoor ski slope. Entering is like crossing the threshold into an alternative reality: a lavish, artificial world of high-end clothing boutiques, edgy music stores, cafés, and restaurants that culminates at a massive, plate-glass window with ski lifts in the distance. I joined the crowd at the window to watch skiers descending a snow-covered "mountain," children throwing snowballs at each other, and instructors guiding beginners through their first runs.
I spotted what looked to be a group of Dubaians on a family outing. A middle-aged Arab man in a rented overcoat walked gingerly through the snow in street shoes. Nearby, a woman in a black abaya, also wearing a rented coat, nervously held the arm of an Asian woman, perhaps her Filipina housekeeper. A teenage boy with a wispy mustache approached them, skis strapped to his feet. He chatted for a moment, then labored off toward the lift for another run. The woman let go of the Filipina and took a few steps. Then she smiled, squatted down, and picked up some snow, a small white miracle in the desert of Arabia. She seemed to be enjoying herself. The temperature of the real world outside was 110 degrees, but in the dream world of Dubai it was just about perfect.


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I am trying to implement a very simple application that parses an external css and places the values into a DB Found the article http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/www-style/2002Nov/0006.html that showed an example or how to use sac and flute. I got that working, but for the life of me cannot figure out how to get the names of the selectors The reason I ask if this list is dead is someone asked this question in like 2003 and never posted an answer. I can print out all the properties with their names and values fine. For example , I can figure out how to get all the attributes (not sure if that is the correct term) like width and margin with their values. I can 't figure how to get the name container, unless it is a Selector of type ElementSelector #container{ width: 100%; margin: 5px auto; background-color: #fff; color: #333; border: 1px solid gray; } This is how I am trying to do it public void startSelector(SelectorList patterns) throws CSSException { if (!inMedia) { for (int x=0 ; x < patterns.getLength(); x++ ){ Selector selector = patterns.item(x); if (selector instanceof ElementSelector ){ System.out.println( "name-->" + ((ElementSelector)selector).getLocalName() ); }else if (selector instanceof ConditionalSelector ){ //not sure what to do here.......... } int c=0; } inStyleRule = true; propertyCounter = 0; } } Thanks for any help at all RandyReceived on Thursday, 24 April 2008 18:23:38 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.1 : Monday, 2 May 2016 14:27:36 UTC


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Almond Macaroon Ice Cream Cake
Ice cream cake is a sure crowd-pleaser, especially when it sits on top of a coconut macaroon crust. Chocolate and vanilla Swiss almond ice creams fill the middle, while a chocolate shell topping brings all the flavors together.
Total Time:
Level: Moderate
Serves: 12
- 2 pt. chocolate ice cream
- 1 package soft coconut macaroons (such as Archway)
- 2 pt. vanilla Swiss almond ice cream (we used Häagen-Dazs)
- ½ c. chocolate shell ice cream topping
- 1 c. sliced almonds
- Remove chocolate ice cream from freezer; let stand 15 minutes until slightly softened.
- Meanwhile lightly coat an 8 x 3-in. springform pan with nonstick spray. Pull apart half the macaroons to make coarse crumbs. Press lightly over bottom and 1⁄2 in. up sides of pan. Spread chocolate ice cream evenly over crust.
- Break remaining macaroons into coarse crumbs. Sprinkle evenly over chocolate ice cream. Freeze 45 minutes or until almost firm.
- Soften vanilla Swiss almond ice cream as above. Spread evenly over top of cake and freeze at least 4 hours or until firm.
- Pour chocolate topping on middle of cake; tilt pan to cover top completely. Let topping harden 5 minutes.
- Wrap pan with a warm, damp kitchen towel 1 minute to loosen sides. Remove pan sides; pat almonds onto sides of cake. (If ice cream is too hard for almonds to stick, leave cake at room temperature 5 to 10 minutes.)
Tips & Techniques
More recipes like this
From: Woman's Day
More From Food & Recipes


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Watford boss Gianfranco Zola is convinced former club Napoli have what is needed to be crowned as Italian champions.
The former No 10 was speaking to the Corriere dello Sport ahead of tonight's big clash between leaders Roma and the second-placed Azzurri.
"They are the two clubs who should cause Juventus the most issues," Zola stated. "Roma have impressed me with the results achieved so far and in the way they have collected them.
"But Napoli have a great Coach and they really are not missing anything in order to target the Scudetto this season.
"I'm sure it will be a beautiful game tonight."
Roma have a 100 per cent record in Serie A this season, but Napoli and Juventus are only two points adrift of the capital giants.
See the latest Serie A predictions and betting tips with Eurotips.co.uk [12]


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It is nonsensical to expect equal outcomes in education
- Published in Letters
To The Daily Sun,
The late French author-philosopher-anarchist, Albert Camus, had it right when he said, "For the people has always been the alibi of tyrants. And is has the further advantage of giving them a good conscience."
I find it interesting that some people on the left politically, often try to relabel the more distasteful political organizations as "right-wing," even though those organizations were founded on socialist, or left-wing ideals. For example, Nazi Germany and Communist Russia were founded as socialists who were going to bring equality to all but, somehow, it didn't work out that way. Many of today's liberals cannot acknowledge those foundations and therefore set about re-labeling them as "right-wing."
As the old adage goes, if you repeat a lie often enough, people will believe it to be the truth. Seems like Mr. Vazzana has been sold on the idea that if the "left" fails, that's okay, just re-name it the "right."
In his letter to The Daily Sun on Saturday, Mr. Vazzana cites a professor who lived in Germany in the 1930s, who posited that those who believed in absolute equality as desirable, would naturally be further left on the ideological spectrum, and those who considered inequality unavoidable or even desirable, would be on the right. I think that's a fairly accurate statement . . . not that it's right, just accurate.
We are all born with a different set of genes. Some are smarter than others. Others may be more athletic. Some may be gifted in certain academic areas. A number will be diligent in their work habits while others are satisfied with sloth. Comparisons that show how "unequal" we are to one another abound. Expecting equal outcomes is nonsense. In school, papers are graded on a curve. College admissions are largely based on test scores. Businesses rate and rank managers based on a performance bell curve. Athletes earn based on their performance, and so on. In my view, we will all be measured based on what we did with the gifts we were given, the ultimate bell curve, if you will.
None of us can accept responsibility for another choosing sloth over effort. Only the person who makes that choice is responsible. Take a look at what we spend on education, and what the results are. If Washington D.C. spends over $14,000 per student per year, but has a drop-out rate in the 50 percent range, who is responsible? If Chicago pays many of its teacher in excess of $100,000 per year and test scores are abysmal, who is responsible? If our country struggles to reach a high school graduation rate of 70 percent, who is responsible? And if colleges need remedial classes to teach incoming freshmen how to read, who is responsible?
The family and the individual. Pay attention to what Camus said.
Bob Meade


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Boise State Football: Winners and Losers from the Week 11 Game vs. HawaiiNovember 12, 2012
Boise State Football: Winners and Losers from the Week 11 Game vs. Hawaii
Boise State made the long trip to Honolulu, Hawaii in Week 11 of the college football season to take on the Warriors. The Broncos (8-2, 5-1 MWC) were trying to rebound from a painful loss to San Diego State in Week 10.
Hawaii was 1-7 overall going into the contest and 0-5 in the Mountain West Conference. It was the perfect game in the perfect place to get something right for Chris Petersen and his team.
The Broncos did get many things figured out, but they still had some struggles in very familiar areas.
Let's take a look at the good and the not-so-good for Boise State from Saturday in Aloha Stadium.
Winner: Offensive Coordinator Robert Prince
The Broncos offense wasn't perfect, but the play-calling was very good.
Give credit to first-year offensive coordinator Robert Prince. His play-calling was creative and he utilized his talent.
On the day, Boise State put up 411 yards of total offense, but if you watched the game you know it could have been much more if needed.
Prince utilized several players during the game. Nine total players caught at least one pass, and seven players had at least one carry.
It was nice to see Prince stretch the field with the long ball as well. That is something that has been missing from the Boise State arsenal, and it makes them much better going forward.
Loser: Third-Down Execution
Boise State has struggled this season on third-down execution. Many times it seems a decent play is called, but for whatever reason, it just doesn't get executed.
When you look at the tape, it isn't just one thing. It isn't just one player. It might be a single mindset, but nothing tangible seems to be obvious.
For the game, Boise State converted just four of 16 third-down attempts. They did, however, convert four of five fourth downs. But those shouldn't have had to happen if third down is done right.
It is a mystery, and one that needs to be solved before Nevada and before a bowl game.
Winner: Darren Koontz
"Did you just see that?"
Those were the words many fans probably said or heard on the second play of the game. Hawaii tried some kind of reverse, but Darren Koontz sniffed it out. Not only did he disrupt the play, but he clotheslined the Warrior player and announced his presence in Aloha Stadium.
The play resulted in an 11-yard loss for Hawaii, and made the first possession for them impossible to convert a first down.
Koontz had three tackles in the game, but he made his presence felt early and made quite an impression.
Winner: Chis Potter
Chris Potter had a good day overall.
First, he did a good job blocking, including one block in the first quarter that got Matt Miller some extra yardage.
Potter also had a catch on the day, but his main contribution was in punt returns. The first touchdown of the game was set up by an excellent return by Potter.
On the day, Potter had four returns for a total of 62 yards.
Loser: Hawaii's Quarterback, Sean Schroeder
Sean Schroeder had been sacked 25 times going into the game with Boise State. When he was benched by Hawaii head coach Norm Chow, he had four more to add to his total.
He was chased, harassed, hurried and sacked the entire time he was in the game. It was probably a bit of relief when Jeremy Higgins took over for him.
However, Higgins would end up getting sacked twice himself.
On the day, Schroeder threw 19 times for 10 completions and 100 yards. He didn't have a touchdown, but he had one interception.
Winner: The Sack Attack
Boise State had a field day on defense against the Warriors. On the day the Broncos sacked Hawaii quarterbacks six times and chased them all over the field most of the game.
Demarcus Lawrence had a sack, as did Jonathan Brown. However, Tyler Horn and Sam Ukwuachu had two sacks each.
It was a very dominant performance by the defense and by the Boise State sack attack.
Loser: Hawaii's Will Gregory
Will Gregory could have played safety for Boise State, but instead he chose to attend Hawaii and play running back.
He didn't have much of a chance to showcase his talent Saturday in an effort to prove that the Broncos coaching staff was wrong.
Early in the game, Gregory threw a punch and was ejected from the game.
Winner: Trevor Harman
When is a punter not a punter? When he decides to be a running back.
Some hate the "rugby style" kick that the Broncos do from time to time on punts. However, it is a very effective tool when utilized correctly.
Saturday against Hawaii, Boise State punter Trevor Harman got to showcase another element of the "rugby style" format. If the defense is napping, you take off.
With a 4th-and-3 at the Boise State 31-yard line, Boise State decided to punt. Hawaii decided to set up a return. However, in doing so the defenders turned their backs way too early, and Harman made them pay.
It was a 21-yard run to the Hawaii 48 before Harman simply strolled out of bounds. It is certainly something future defenses will keep an eye on.
Winner: The Long Ball
Late in the first quarter on a 2nd-and-3 at the Hawaii 46, Joe Southwick threw it downfield.
On the other end was wide receiver Aaron Burks, and he did what he is supposed to do—he caught it.
A 46-yard touchdown pass from Southwick to Burks made the game 13-7, and set the tone for the rest of the game.
Southwick would then go on to hit Kirby Moore for a 25-yard pass and Holden Huff for 24 yards later in the game. There were also a few passes deep that rolled off the finger tips of Boise State receivers, but it had to be nice for Boise State fans to see footballs flying down the field.
Winner: Boise State Scoreboard
The 49 points the Broncos scored against Hawaii were the most they have put on the scoreboard all season. Yes, it was against Hawaii, but it had to feel good for a team that has struggled at times putting up points.
Winner: Donte Deayon
The true freshman Donte Deayon is no longer going to redshirt. He had to be put on the field because of a thinning defensive secondary for Boise State.
However, it looks like he intends to make the most of it.
Against Hawaii, Donte got his first career interception. He is an exceptional player, and you can be sure it is a sign of more to come.
Winners: Aaron Burks and Holden Huff
A game of firsts.
Junior wide receiver Aaron Burks and freshman tight end Holden Huff both got their first touchdown receptions in their career at Boise State.
Burks also caught five passes for 107 yards with an average of 21.4 yards per catch.
Winner: Turnovers, Turnovers, Turnovers
Boise State continued its amazing turnover tirade. On the day the Broncos forced five Hawaii turnovers which included three fumbles and two interceptions.
Demarcus Lawrence turned one of those fumbles into a 25-yard touchdown for the Broncos defense. Jerrell Gavins got into the action as well with an interception.
Boise State is now plus-16 in turnover margin.
Loser: Kickoff Coverage
For the second week in a row the Boise State special teams allowed a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
Against San Diego State you can argue it cost them the game. However, against Hawaii it only cost them some embarrassment.
With injuries and suspensions it seems that kickoff coverage is hurting. Boise State can't do that against Colorado State, and they can't afford to do that against Nevada.
Zee the tee dog might need to get involved.


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What upsets me the most is when the vegan mother told ZZ that he would die when he was 40. I know that he didn't have good eating habits, but who says that to a child?
I didn't really like the accents of the Southern family, but they grew on me.
Oh...and if vegan mom is so worried about the alligators, how about she just open the pond door and tell those gators how she feels.. :rolleyes
I thought it was funny how vegan mom thought ZZ didn't drink soda for a whole day, and he had drunk some behind her back. Or when she gave Diego a smoothie and she thought he liked that too, and he just left it in the driveway!! And then when she went outside to put out some stuff to recycle and ZZ shut the door!!


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There's no need to travel to a foreign location during the holidays. Check out these local events and shows that will keep you and your out-of-town guests busy.
Through Dec. 21: The Twin Cities' most dazzling holiday parade will make its final run down Nicollet Mall after 21 years as a downtown Minneapolis staple. This year's parade encourages spectators to "Come see the night in a whole new light" and will feature illuminated floats, music, celebrity grand marshals and Santa Claus.
6:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Dec. 6-21; Nicollet Mall, Mpls; free; holidazzle.com.
Macy's Santaland
Through Dec. 22: The elves are busy on the eighth floor of Macy's in Minneapolis. Wander past animated vignettes of Santa's helpers getting ready for Christmas at the North Pole. Then catch the puppet show "Moose Crossing," featuring Santa and forest creatures brought to life by local puppeteers Kurt Hunter, Wayne Krefting and others to a soundtrack featuring Julie Andrews and Walter Cronkite. Santaland offers photo sessions with Santa and treats in Santa's Toy Shop.
Santaland is generally open during store hours, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and "Moose Crossing" runs every hour starting at 10:30 a.m. (except 12:30 p.m.) with a last show at 4:30 p.m. Thursday-Sunday, Dec. 5-22. Tickets available a half-hour before the show for $4; Macy's, 700 Nicollet Mall, Mpls.; 612-375-2200 or macys.com.
James J. Hill House Holiday Events
Through Dec. 23: Step inside the former railroad tycoon's historic St. Paul home and experience a Gilded Age Christmas with costumed actors portraying Hill family workers getting ready for the holidays. Tour the elegant first-floor spaces and the basement servant work areas at the Hill House Holidays (1 p.m. Dec. 7, 8, 14, 15, 21 and 22; $12-$8). Also on house's holiday calendar is a piano concert by Don Irwin (7:30 p.m. Dec. 12-13; $27); Victorian Christmas Stories (6 p.m. Dec. 15; $12-$8); Victorian Christmas Carols (7 and 8:30 p.m. Dec. 20, 6 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 21-22; $12) and Holiday Story Time (10:30 a.m. Dec. 23; $6).
240 Summit Ave., St. Paul; reservations recommended; $12 adults, $10 seniors and students, $8 children ages 6-17; reservations recommended for all events; 651-297-2555 or mnhs.org/hillhouse.
IBEW Holiday Lights in the Park
Through Jan. 1: Phalen Park in St. Paul will get an electrifying makeover when the switch is flipped on IBEW's annual Holiday Lights in the Park. Cars and buses can travel through the park and take in the sights of more than 50 lighted sculptures and holiday displays including Noah's Wild Ark, which features a boatload of animals showing off their holiday spirit. Continue the holiday fun outside the park with the "Holiday Lights Vol. 5" CD, featuring 15 holiday songs by Minnesota artists, including Dez, the New Standards and Mick Sterling. "Holiday Lights Vol. 5" is available locally at Kowalski's Markets and will be featured at the Holiday Lights Live concert at the Pantages Theater at 6 p.m. Dec. 8.
5:30 p.m.-10 p.m. nightly, including holidays. Phalen Park, 1615 Phalen Drive, St. Paul; $10 per vehicle on Friday-Saturday, $8 on Sunday-Thursday (discount not available on holidays), $15-$30 for buses and limos; lightsinthepark.org.
Victorian Christmas at the Ramsey House
Through Jan. 1: The Alexander Ramsey House decks itself out for an 1875 Christmas, showcasing the season as it looked when the Minnesota Territory's governor lived there with his wife and family. Costumed guides lead tours of the house, tell tales of Victorian Christmas traditions, serve cookies from the wood-burning stove, show off the new-fangled tradition of a Christmas tree and play 19th-century holiday piano music.
Tours offered 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; noon- 3:30 p.m. Sunday (closed Christmas Day); Alexander Ramsey House, 265 S. Exchange St., St. Paul; $11-$7; reservations required; 651-296-8760 or mnhs.org.
American Swedish Institute
Through Jan. 5: The American Swedish Institute's "Jul to the World: A Nordic Christmas" features rooms in the Turnblad Mansion decorated with ornamented trees, table settings and decorations showing off the holiday traditions of Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland and Denmark. A sixth room has been added this year for Mexico, in celebration of the diverse community of Minneapolis' Phillips West neighborhood, where the ASI is located. The ASI's Christmas Market on Dec. 7-8 ($10-$5) features an outdoor Handcraft Fair with items from local artisans, musical performances, cartoons and family activities, including a visit from Tomte, the Swedish Christmas elf. Other highlights include a Family Gingerbread Celebration (Dec. 1), holiday handcrafts (Dec. 1, 15 and 22), "Lucia Celebration" (Dec. 14), Hide and Seek with Tomte (Dec. 17 and 21) and winter break activities (Dec. 26-31).
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday, noon to 8 p.m. Wednesday; American Swedish Institute, 2600 Park Ave., Mpls.; $9- $5; 612-871-4907 or asimn.org.
Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
Through Jan. 5: The Arboretum will be making spirits bright with holiday activities, including live musical performances, visits from Santa, a 20-foot poinsettia tree, holiday tea times and free decorating demos.
8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m Sunday (closed Christmas Day). Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, 3765 Arboretum Drive, Chanhassen; $12 for adults, kids ages 13 and younger are free; 952-443-1400 or arboretum.umn.edu.
Wells Fargo WinterSkate
Through Feb. 2: Whether you want to take a few spins around the rink during your lunch break or skate with your sweetie in the moonlight, WinterSkate is the place to be. With affordable skate rental, lovely Landmark Center as a backdrop and nearby decorated Rice Park, a stop by this urban rink is a must if you're looking for some outdoor fun.
11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday (closed at 4 p.m. Dec. 24 and all day Dec. 25 and Jan. 1). Landmark Plaza, West Fifth and Market streets, St. Paul; $2 skate rental (rental free with Wells Fargo check card or credit card); 651-228-1664 or wellsfargowinterskate.com.
Night Trains at the Twin Cities Model Railroad Museum
Saturdays through Feb. 22: The Twin Cities Model Railroad Museum turns down the lights and amps up the holiday magic with its Night Trains exhibit, featuring models of vintage passenger trains whizzing through specially-lit nighttime sets, such as a miniature town decked out in Christmas decorations. Santa will visit every Saturday before Christmas to hand out goodies and take pictures. Ring in 2014 with a special evening event Dec. 31. 6 to 9 p.m. Dec. 7, 14, 21; Twin Cities Model Railroad Museum, 1021 Bandana Blvd., St. Paul; $10 per person, $25 for immediate families, $30 for extended families (up to 10 people), children 4 and younger free; 651-647-9628 or tcmrm.org.
Folkways of the Holidays
Saturdays-Sundays through Dec. 22: Discover the traditions of 19th-century Minnesotans as you roam from house to decorated house, where costumed interpreters explain the crafts, cooking and holiday customs of immigrant groups in the Minnesota River Valley. Take a trolley pulled by Percheron horses and enjoy live entertainment every weekend, including Czech Dancers, early American shape note singing and a Christmas pageant with Santa and live reindeer on Dec. 21.
10 a.m. to p.m. Dec. 7, 14 and 21; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Dec. 8, 15, 22; The Landing, 2187 Highway 101 E., Shakopee; $5 adults, $3 children and seniors; 763-694-7784 or threerivers parks.org/parks/the-landing.aspx.
Santa's Train Shop at Jackson Street Roundhouse
Saturdays-Sundays through Dec. 22: When Santa isn't soaring through the night sky in his magical sleigh, his preferred mode of transportation is a luxury train. And when that train pulls into the Twin Cities, it stops at Santa's Train Shop at the historic Jackson Street Roundhouse. Santa and Mrs. Claus will be on hand to take pictures and listen to Christmas wishes from kids (and those who are still kids at heart). Santa's Train Shop also will house interactive model train layouts, and offer train rides, music, snacks and crafts for kids.
10 a.m. to to 4 p.m. Dec. 7-8, 14-15, 21-22; Jackson Street Roundhouse, 193 Pennsylvania Ave., St. Paul.; $10 for adults, $8 for children 5-15 and seniors, $5 for toddlers 4 and younger. Family passes (2 adults and up to 4 children) $35. 651-228,-0263 or mtmuseum.org.
Holiday Flower Show
Dec. 7-Jan. 5: For nearly 90 years, the Holiday Flower Show has been one of the most popular attractions at the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory in St. Paul. This year's event features hundreds of poinsettias, including a new variety — Christmas Beauty Nostalgia with pink and green bracts. The Sunken Garden also will be filled with cinnamon-colored poinsettias to complement the traditional red ones.
10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily; 1225 Estabrook Drive, St. Paul; free; 651-487-8200 or comozooconservatory.org.
Disney on Ice Passport to Adventure
Dec. 12-15: The annual Disney on Ice production features characters skating in song and dance scenes inspired by Disney blockbusters, including Peter Pan, Lilo & Stitch, the Little Mermaid and the Lion King. The national touring cast includes a few Minnesotans, including Steven Grant of Oakdale, who attended St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Arts and skates several roles.
7 p.m. Dec. 12, 13, 14; 10 a.m. Dec. 13; 11 a.m. Dec. 14; 3 p.m. Dec. 14; 1 p.m. Dec. 15; 5 p.m. Dec. 15; Xcel Energy Center, 199 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul; $71-$18; information only, 651-726-8240; tickets 800-745-3000 or ticketmaster.com.
Holiday theater for the family
Compiled by Maja Beckstrom
The Magic Dreidels
Dec. 5-8: Minnesota Jewish Theatre Company reprises its Hanukkah production "The Magic Dreidels." Originally commissioned in 2000, the family show was adapted by local playwright Jenna Zark from the book by Eric A. Kimmel. A young boy named Jakob accidentally drops his dreidel in a well. A goblin at the bottom of the well replaces the small toy with a new magical dreidel, launching a series of adventures for Jakob and his lonely neighbor.
Hillcrest Center Theater, 1978 Ford Parkway, St. Paul; 651-647-4315 or mnjewishtheatre.org/ magic-dreidels.
Junie B Jones in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells
Dec. 6-22: For those feeling both naughty and nice this holiday season, Youth Performance Company presents that sassy, big-hearted first-grader in "Junie B Jones in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells." What will Junie B do when she pulls the class tattletale as her Secret Santa?
Howard Conn Fine Arts Center, 1900 Nicollet Ave. Mpls.; $12-$10; 612-623-9080 or youthperformanceco.org.
Through Jan. 5: This "Cinderella" is both poignant and slapstick. The newest Children's Theatre Company member, Traci Allen, plays a magical Cinderella and company members Dean Holt and Sigmund Reed play her outrageous stepsisters in drag, alongside a mean-but-flirty stepmom played by Autumn Ness. Actors toss candy to the audience and carolers sing holiday songs and tap dance during scene changes. This is a reprise of the 2009 production, but all the topical references are new, including hilarious injections of popular songs.
Children's Theatre Company, 2400 Third Ave. S., Mpls.; $63-$10; 612-874-0400 or childrenstheatre.org.
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
Dec. 6-23: Just like Christmas, this play returns year after year. And for a good reason. Chaos and hilarity break out when the rough-edged Herdman kids shove their way into the church pageant. Will they ruin it? Or will their antics teach the congregation a thing or two about the meaning of the holiday? Based on Barbara Parks' best-selling book.
SteppingStone Theatre, 55 Victoria St. N., St. Paul; $15-$12; 651-225-9265 or steppingstonetheatre.org.
Llama Llama Holiday Drama
Through Dec. 29: Impatient little llama cannot wait for the shopping, cookie baking, present wrapping and bustle of the holiday season to be over. Stages Theatre premieres a musical adaptation of Anna Dewdney's popular picture book with script and lyrics by Jennifer Kirkeby.
Stages Theatre, 1111 Mainstreet, Hopkins; $15-$12; 952-979-1111 or stagestheatre.org.


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Controversy of GlaxoSmithKline's Paxil Study Author Retires From Brown University
Published: Sep 06, 2012
In the midst of an ongoing campaign to have a medical journal retract a controversial study of the Paxil antidepressant, the lead author, Martin Keller, quietly retired from his academic position at Brown University. Keller officially retired on June 30 and the next day was named an emeritus professor of psychiatry and human behavior, according to a university spokesman. The spokesman, however, declined to provide any further information on the reasons for retirement and Keller did not respond to messages for comment. Consequently it is unclear if the move is linked to the hubbub surrounding the Paxil study, which has shone an uncomfortable spotlight on Brown University and figured in the recent $3 billion settlement paid by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to resolve civil and criminal charges in connection with off-label promotion of several drugs, failing to report safety data and reporting false prices. The deal was announced last month, after the retirement.


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IHG's Priority Club(R) Rewards Offers Simple Tips for Safeguarding Cash During the Gift-Giving Season
Nov 24, 2009, 10:41 ET from IHG (Intercontinental Hotels Group)
ATLANTA, Nov. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Priority Club® Rewards, the loyalty program from IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), is offering simple solutions for getting through the upcoming holiday travel and shopping season. At a time when consumers are demanding more from the loyalty marketplace, IHG gets into the spirit of giving with money-saving ideas that show consumers how to get the most value out of Priority Club points, and how to conserve cash.
In 2009, in the face of contracted consumer spending, IHG will reward its Priority Club members with nearly two million free hotel nights. And, as the gift-giving season approaches, almost one third of all Priority Club point redemptions will go toward retail gift cards, brand merchandise and other non-hotel stay options in the months of November and December alone. In the first two weeks of November, Priority Club Rewards members redeemed for retail gift cards worth more than $1 million.
"We witnessed a 20 percent increase in reward redemptions for brand merchandise during last year's holiday, gift-giving season, and we anticipate the same trend to continue this year," said Don Berg, vice president, Loyalty Programs, IHG. "We've expanded our redemption options, as well as developed new options for consumers to earn points faster so that our members are able to safeguard their finances and use their points for what is of value to them."
Based on year-over-year trending, IHG continues to see positive consumer attitudes toward reward points programs in this economy. In fact, consumers are diligently mining the loyalty landscape and becoming more active in programs like Priority Club Rewards, redeeming reward points faster than they ever have before.
According to the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis report from third quarter 2009, economic indicators may be pointing up, but many Americans are still feeling the pinch. Consumers can head into the holidays with extra confidence by taking stock of Priority Club points in their personal budget.
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Enrollment in Priority Club Rewards is free, and guests can sign up at www.priorityclub.com or by calling 1-888-211-9874.
About Priority Club Rewards
With 47 million members globally, IHG's Priority Club Rewards is the first, largest and fastest-growing guest loyalty program in the hotel industry. Named Best Hotel Rewards Program in the World four years running by Global Traveler magazine, Priority Club Rewards offers more sought-after benefits and the greatest ease of use of any hotel loyalty program. In addition to flexible features like No Points Expiration, No Blackout Dates, Points & Cash and Flights Anywhere(TM), Priority Club Rewards members have more options for point redemption than any other hotel loyalty program, including redemption at more than 500,000 lodging establishments worldwide - even at rivals' hotels - through the industry-leading Any Hotel, Anywhere reward. Members can redeem points not only for hotel nights, but also for airline miles on more than 40 partner airlines, for auto rentals, for gift certificates and for hundreds of products available in the Rewards Catalog. And Priority Club Rewards is the only hotel loyalty program to offer members a Personal Shopper program that allows members to exchange points for items not found in the Rewards Catalog.
Notes to Editors:
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) [LON:IHG, NYSE: IHG (ADRs)] is the world's largest hotel group by number of rooms. IHG owns, manages, leases or franchises, through various subsidiaries, nearly 4,400 hotels and over 640,000 guest rooms in 100 countries and territories around the world. The Group owns a portfolio of well recognized and respected hotel brands including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express®, Staybridge Suites® and Candlewood Suites® and also manages the world's largest hotel loyalty program, Priority Club® Rewards with 47 million members worldwide.
IHG has 1,500 hotels in its development pipeline, which will create 140,000 jobs worldwide over the next few years.
InterContinental Hotels Group PLC is the Group's holding company and is incorporated in Great Britain and registered in England and Wales.
IHG offers information and online reservations for all its hotel brands at www.ihg.com and information for the Priority Club Rewards program at www.priorityclub.com. For the latest news from IHG, visit our online Press Office at www.ihg.com/media.
SOURCE IHG (Intercontinental Hotels Group)


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The Axiom is a Body Piercing Studio that is now located inside the Skin Kitchen(http://skinkitchen.com). The Axiom is a completely separate and complete business and has complete autonomy from the Skin Kitchen. Basically the Skin Kitchen is my Landlord.
The story behind the name is that originally the studio was going to be call Pagan's but I felt it might give the wrong expression because of the many misconceptions of the word Pagan. So, the woman I was seeing at the time Anna, looked up the definition in the Dictionary and it said, "To believe something is Axiomatic." After looking up the definition of Axiom, I knew I had the right name.
The Oxford Companion to the English Language, © Tom McArthur 1992 defines Axiom as, "[15c: from Latin axioma, Greek axioma something worthy or appropriate]. (1) A generally accepted principle or rule, especially when framed as a brief statement; a self-evident truth considered to require no proof: What goes up must come down. Compare Truism. (2) In logic, mathematics, and sometimes linguistics, a proposition assumed without the provision of proof, for the sake of studying the consequences that follow from it. In the linguistic theory of Noam Chomsky, it is axiomatic that a language consists of an indefinite number of grammatically well-formed sentences. Compare Premiss/Premise. See Logic, Saying. [Language]."
The business name was first come up with when I was piercing at Creative Images but I didn't really use it until The Axiom opened it's doors on March 28, 1995. This was at the old location of 412 1/2 E. 5th in Des Moines. In case you are wondering The first piercing was a nostril about 20 minutes after we opened. I moved the Axiom and began sub-leasing for the Skin Kitchen in October of 1999. The Axiom is a separate business from the Skin Kitchen. We only share address and sometimes office supplies. for more information on the Axiom go to ?The Axiom History Page. To avoid confusion The Axiom uses the Est. 1994 which is when I first started sub-contracting as a piercer at Creative Images.
Not during The Axiom's normal business hours which are Tuesday Through Saturday from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. If those hours conflict with your schedule you can set up an appointment by contacting DaVo using the contact form at the bottom of the page.
The normal Business hours are located at the bottom of the page. Tuesday Through Saturday from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The Axiom Body Piercing Studio is located inside of Skin Kitchen Tattoo. SKT and the Axiom are located at 2607 Douglas Ave. / Ste C. / Des Moines, Iowa 50310 on the South East corner of the Plaza Lanes building. Our entrance faces Douglas Ave and the lower parking lot.
The piercing station is walled off with partitions in the tattooing and piercing area which has limited access. If you are concerned, you can schedule an appointment before or after hours by contacting DaVo with the form at the bottom of the page. Just mention that Privacy and discretion are important to you.
Yes, you are welcome to stop by and visit in advance of getting your piercing. If you would like a consultation on the piercing just ask for DaVo and as soon as I'm free I'll be happy to provide you with as much information as I can.
Yes, by all means but only if you feel that you are satisfied with the piercing. The piercing fee is what I'm paid to do the piercing, if you feel that I did a really good job then feel free to express that with a tip.
I feel that our prices are not only fair but affordable. I have noticed that there is an increasing number of studios in the area that are charging a great deal more. Often they will justify this by stating high quality jewelry or they are a member of a professional piercing association. So, higher prices do not always mean better piercings.
Also always ask if the price you are being quote includes jewelry. Many studios will use "Bait and Switch". Quoting a price on the phone or through e-mail and then once you get there it's a huge additional cost for jewelry. Plus Aftercare products you don't need. I had a recent client that was quoted $60 for a piercing recently and when it was all done and said it was $240.
Now there is a value to the art and if you are wondering why all my piercings aren't $25, this is because of my experience, the quality of the jewelry I stock and all the additional overhead involved in insuring that your piercing is preformed well and with the most limited amount of risk. This is also cause I'm good at what I do and you get what you pay for.
Remember this is your body and you only get one of them. If your health and well being are important to you, price shouldn't be as much of a consideration as the experience of the piercer and the quality of the jewelry they stock.
When it comes to getting a piercing you should always consider the experience of the person doing the piercing and not the price.
No, I will change your jewelry free of charge regardless of where you purchased the jewelry. The only exception is if I have to use a taper pin to insert the jewelry and that would be $5.00 per. I will also Autoclave jewelry if you request.
No with only one exception, Dermal Implants or Micro Dermals. Since often removal requires more time and added experiences, I charge $20,00 for each removal.


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Two goals from Red Devils team-mate Chicharito secured victory for El Tri, despite Shinji Okazaki pulling a goal back late on, as the Samurai Blue recorded a third defeat in a row at the tournament.
|Man Utd are 21/10 with Bet365 to win the Premier League
"We played fuzzily; even when we attacked, [Okazaki] was the only one giving his all and it feels like ... what on earth did we come here to do?" he told reporters. "It was a miserable performance.
"We didn't have anything left and lost in a very Japanese fashion. We tried hard but we lost."
The United man also lamented his side's ability to be more clinical in front of goal, which he feels is something on which Japan must improve.
"We had some good chances in our build-up and it felt like both teams were drifting a bit so, if we'd been able to score first ... we weren't able to score in those situations in all three matches, so it's a problem we have to consider," he added.
"At minimum, to beat a team like Brazil we have to improve individually and as a team, and today we saw again that if we don't fight as a team we can't win; in the second half it felt like Mexico wanted to win more."


text:
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large red cranes next to water


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Second Thoughts Game #20: Royals 3, Indians 2
Kazmir bounces back as Tribe bats stay cold in Kansas City
Player of the Game: Ervin Santana (7 Inn. 6 hits 0 ER 0 BB / 5 SO)
The Leadoff
They say pitching is the key to winning in baseball. But there also is another key saying that should go along with that: you can't win if you can't score. This was exactly the case again for the Cleveland Indians on Saturday night as they fell to the first place Kansas City Royals, 3-2.
Tribe starter Scott Kazmir looked much better in his second start in an Indians uniform, giving up just two runs on five hits in five innings, but could not get picked up by his offense all night as the team would fail to score until the ninth inning.
The Bottom 9
- Where's the offense? Say what you will about the Indians starting pitching (or lack thereof), Cleveland had no offense again on Saturday, scoring just two unearned runs in the ninth inning. This has started to become a trend throughout most of April as Tribe bats remained cold yet again against the Royals. Since exploding for 19 runs against the Houston Astros one week ago, the Indians have scored just 12 runs in their last four games.
- Three runs or less…AGAIN. For the 13th time in their first 20 games, Cleveland has scored three runs or less. Think about that for a second…just seven times in 2013 has the Tribe scored more than three runs in a ballgame. We knew coming into the season there would be problems with the starting rotation, but I had no idea how bad this offense would end up being through most of April. Without the likes of centerfielder Michael Bourn in the lineup, and continued inconsistent play by Asdrubal Cabrera and Jason Kipnis, this has been without question a rough start to the 2013 campaign.
- Ervin works his magic. Royals starter Ervin Santana was dominant through his seven shutout innings of work, staying out of trouble yielding just six hits on the night. He looked somewhat like the former Los Angeles Angels pitcher who no-hit the Tribe back in 2011. Picking up his third win of the year on Saturday, Santana has now pitched at least six innings in each of his first five outings.
- Swisher's double play. With one out and the bases loaded in the top of the fourth inning, right fielder Nick Swisher had a chance to put the Indians on the board with a clutch base-hit. Swisher would ultimately fail to do so in that spot, grounding into an inning ending double play. The Tribe brought the Ohio State graduate to Cleveland for these types of situations, but he could not cash in on the team's biggest scoring opportunity of the game on this night.
- Kipnis. Yes, he had two of the Tribe's nine hits in the ballgame, but second baseman Jason Kipnis still looks lost at the plate. With a hat trick on Satuday striking out three times, Kipnis now is hitting .190 with no homers and three RBI on the year. To not even try and run after whiffing to end the game was surprising to me as well, knowing the second baseman is a true dirt dog always hustling and getting dirty. I just hope his offensive slump is not going to his head too much this early in the season.
- Bullpen mafia? The Indians bullpen ended their 20 inning scoreless streak when left-hander Rich Hill walked home a huge insurance run in the bottom of the seventh. It was the longest scoreless streak by the Tribe bullpen since 2000. Dominating? Yes. But a fact has to be made that if Hill doesn't walk a run home late in the game, we could be talking extra innings instead of a tough one-run loss.
- Rainouts. I know country music superstar Luke Bryan says "Rain is a Good Thing," but he couldn't be more wrong about rain in terms of what the Indians have dealt with as far as rainouts are concerned. Already four games have been postponed due to rain and it's not even May yet. For a team that has yet to find its true identity on the field, the Indians have certainly been hurt by the wet stuff.
- Errors. An error by Cabrera in the third inning has now put Cleveland in a tie for third place in the American League for most errors in 2013 having committed 14 as a team.
- Hitting Giambi fifth. Why on Earth is designated hitter Jason Giambi hitting fifth in the Tribe lineup? Don't get me wrong, I really like Giambi's bat and presence in the lineup, but it isn't 2002 anymore. He should be hitting seventh in the order behind one of the American League leaders Mark Reynolds with seven home runs and 19 RBI.
The Top 3
- Kazmir. It was a nice bounce back start for Kazmir, as the lefty threw a solid five innings making just one mistake on Saturday by serving up a two-run homer by Salvador Perez in the second inning. With the Indians battling the injury bug of late, they need Kazmir to keep them in ballgames and give the team a chance to win every five days he takes the ball.
- Allen dominates. After starting the year giving up three runs through his first three innings, Tribe reliever Cody Allen has now thrown 7 1/3 innings of shutout ball over his last five appearances, walking two and striking out 11. Allen pitched 1 1/3 innings on Saturday striking out Royals Jeff Francoeur and Elliot Johnson on high heat fastballs topping out at 96 MPH.
- Dr. Smooth. His average may not show it, but outfielder Michael Brantley was the only hitter in the Cleveland lineup that was productive in the first game against the Royals. With a double and two-run triple on Saturday, Brantley has now hit in five straight games bumping his average up to .274 on the year.
Closing Time
With the loss against Kansas City, Cleveland moves back four games in back of first place in the American League Central Division with a record of 8-12 on the season.
Up next for the Indians: A classic day-night doubleheader against the Royals on Sunday. Tribe ace Justin Masterson (4-1, 1.85 ERA) takes the hill versus Jeremy Guthrie (2-0, 3.86 ERA) in game one at 2:10 pm., and Corey Kluber (1-0, 1.80 ERA) will take on lefty Will Smith in the night cap at 8:10 pm.
Follow Jim on Twitter @JBirdman27 or he can be reached via email at firstname.lastname@example.com.
User Comments
Kaz was hitting 93 mph and getting a lot of swings and misses on fastballs in the zone.
The Indians desparately need someone to step up and replace Myers, so the solid performances by Kazmir and Kluber this weekend give me some hope.
The Indians are in last place but only 4.0 games out of first. The other two last place A.L. teams are 9.0 and 9.5 games out. The Central is extremely mediocre from top to bottom so far, so if the Indians can get Bourn back and get Droobs, Chiz, and Kipnis to start hitting, they could stay in the hunt. Especially if Kaz and Kluber settle in as decent starters.
Kipnis is the guy that worries me. He has problems with both elbows and hasn't done anything with the bat since last June.


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Hi Richard, I must say that your reaction comes as a surprise: * WAI-ARIA editor James Craig suggested that I send formal suggestions for WAI-ARIA to this list - see: http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/wai-xtech/2010Sep/0032.html * As for "more than past the last call date to ARIA spec", the the W3 issued a Last Call working draft yesterday, see: http://www.w3.org/News/2010#entry-8898 * One of the question asked in the TR document, is "Does the algorithm to calculate accessible name work for user agents and for authors?" http://www.w3.org/TR/2010/WD-wai-aria-20100916/#sotd And my message is a documented "It does not work" answer to that question. I am sorry to have linked to the PF document instead of the TR document. Please treat the comment as if it pointed to the TR document - I have studied both, and AFAIC the relevants points have not changed. The letter also contains a link to letter sent to wai-xtech@. Thus if Janina finds my points interesting, then she has every opportunity to give an answer in _that_ forum. I certainly hope that she as well as the former and present ARIA editors are intersted in dicssuing the issues I take up. I have never expected debate to take place on this list. If you feel that my letter is formulated in a debative style or lacks documentation etc, then please say so, so I have the chance to add what you think is lacking. Leif Halvard Silli Richard Schwerdtfeger, Fri, 17 Sep 2010 11:41:41 -0500: > Hi Leif, > > We are more than past the last call date to ARIA spec. you are > referring to. This list is for public comments for TR working drafts > and not editorial drafts. This is also not a discussion forum. > > There must be a communication issue somewhere on this. Perhaps Janina > can help as to the appropriate vehicle to communicate your concerns. > > > Rich > > > Rich Schwerdtfeger > CTO Accessibility Software Group > > Leif Halvard Silli ---09/15/2010 07:33:06 PM---These are some > comments to the status of @alt inside ARIA 1.0 as per 31 of Agust > 2010's working dra > > From: Leif Halvard Silli <firstname.lastname@example.com> > To: firstname.lastname@example.com > Date: 09/15/2010 07:33 PM > Subject: Give @alt is not given due consideration in ARIA > Sent by: firstname.lastname@example.com > > > > > These are some comments to the status of @alt inside ARIA 1.0 as per 31 > of Agust 2010's working draft, > http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria/complete > > Please *do* read my message to wai-xtech as well: > http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/wai-xtech/2010Sep/0018 > I will not repeat all that is said there, here. > > I will however rephrase the summary of that letter, as follows (mostly > identical). Please note that my main focus is on how @aria-label, > @aria-labelledby and @alt works on the  element. Howeer, as I > wrote al this, I also tested role="img" on other elements, so it is not > without relevance for other elements than . > > 1) GENERAL. @alt is under-mentioned and under-specced in ARIA. The > underspecification of @alt has lead to differing implementations. Bad > for authors and users! Examples if the lack of attention to @alt: > > #namecalculation > Section 5.2.7 on the accessible name calculation algorithm mentions > many attributes as example of "author" values - amongst them it > mentions HTML @title, @aria-label and @aria-labelledby. But it does > *not* mention @alt, which is the most important author provided content > of HTML4 ... > #aria-label > Likewise, when it comes to the definition of @aria-label, then @title > is mentioned as its HTML parallel. Does that mean that @aria-label is > not need in HTML, since it has @title? Isn't @alt a more natural > parallel? > #textalternativecomputation > Going back to the section 5.2.7, then @title is only mentioned at step > 2D, after the text node content has been considered. How can > @aria-label, with it high priority, be considered similar to the low > priority @title attribute? Please rather compare aria-label with @alt. > #textalternativecomputation > @alt is mentioned under the last list item of step 2A, and the text > says that aria-labelledby if present should have highest priority, then > comes aria-label if present and finally @alt if present. In practise, > for , then ARIA supporting ATs first considers the role of > element. > In most AT, the default role of  is affected not only by the > presence of @role but also of whether @alt is empty or none empty. > * Thus, in practise, many AT consider if @alt is empty or non-empty > first, > * if non-empty then they prioritize aria-label - if present, else they > prioritize @alt's content. > * If @alt was emtpy, then they may not consider whether @aria-label > nor @aria-labelledby (AT differ on this) > * but if @role="img" is present and alt is empty, *then* and only do > they look at @aria-labelledby > Thus, it is all very convoluted. > > 2) What is supposed to happen if aria-labelledby points to an element > whose only content is located inside @alt, @title or @aria-label? > AT differ in what they do: OSX10.5's VoiceOver and Jaws11+Firefox > consider @alt as the content, Jaws12+Firefox consider aria-label as the > content, NVDA consider both. I don't see where in the spec this > explained. (I think most authors will expect that aria-label points to > an element whose text node contetn will be used.) It is clear that > author provided values, such as aria-labelledby, has priority over the > element's own content text node. The question is what if > @aria-labelledby points to an element whose content author content > only, or a mix of author content and text node content? > > 3) ATs generally give @alt higher priority than ARIA says, and most of > them ignore @labelledby if @alt is non-empty. > > 4) For , then ATs in practise links a double meaning to the empty > @alt: aria-labelledby generally only work as expected when the @alt is > the empty string. At the same time HTML5 says that empty @alt means > role="presentation". > > 5) A consequence of the fact that aria-labelledby is ignored when @alt > is non-empty (see 3) and 4) above) is that it is impossible to get an > aria-labbelledby which points to  itself ( aria-labelledby="A B">) to work, despite that ARIA says it should work. > (This might work better for
 tha for  - > please check.) > > 6) The algorithm doesn't say what role it plays that the @alt is or > isn't the empty string. Which is just an example of how ARIA doesn't > incorporate the semantics @alt. But while ARIA doesn't take it in, it > is clear that AT in various degrees take it in. E.g consider the > convoluted way AT prioritize between @alt, @aria-label and > @aria-labelledby. (I don't claim that AT do it correct and tha ARIA do > it wrong - proably both AT and ARIA need fixing ...) > > A really important point to me is that AT should see the @alt as the > content of . Perhaps ARIA should consider @alt more like text node > content than author content? Or, when I think about it: perhaps, that > is what you do - and perhaps that's the problem! Because, for other > elements, it doesn't matter for the element's semantics whether it is > empty or non-empty. Whereas for , the  and  alt="non-empty"> are considered different beasts. > > Sorry, a convoluted response to a convoluted problem. > -- > leif halvard silli > >Received on Friday, 17 September 2010 17:37:38 UTC
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