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UPDATE: Officer down
UPDATE: According to a statement released by Jefferson County Spokesman, Rod Carrol, The officer that was shot is in stable condition.
"A deputy has been wounded...shot in the upper chest," reported Jefferson County Sheriff Mitch Woods from the front of the Minnie Rogers Juvenile Correctional Facility at 11a.m. Thursday, Jan. 26. "I do not know his condition at this time" Woods' announcement came after JCSO was alerted to the facility about 10 a.m. in relation to a shooting involving a 16-year-old inmate and an Orange County Sheriff's Deputy. According to Woods, the juvenile was being transported back to Minnie Rogers from an Orange County court appearance earlier in the morning. A struggle occurred between the deputy and the teen at the facility at which time the 16-year-old got control of the deputy's weapon and fired multiple shots. Woods said the teen is still in custody at Minnie Rogers and will now face charges in addition to his original holding cause. At this time, Woods said, attempted capital murder charges are anticipated if the officer survives. Woods couldn't be sure the deputy wasn't fatally wounded. "Right now our thoughts and prayers go out to this deputy and his family," he said.


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Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Gunboat Diplomacy
Monday, March 26, 2007
This Fisking Lark Is A Piece Of Piss
"Bible-based criticism of evolution, once limited to Protestant fundamentalists in the United States, has become an issue in France now that Pope Benedict and some leading Catholic theologians have criticized the neo-Darwinist view of creation.
An Islamist publisher in Turkey mass-mailed a lavishly illustrated Muslim creationist book to schools across France recently, prompting the Education Ministry to proscribe the volume and question the way the story of life is taught here."
All we need now is for the religious nutjobs to join forces with the reflexologists, and a new age of barbarism will consume mankind.
None of this is new, of course. Scientific method has been under assault since at least 1978, when a Ph.D student of astronomy attempted to disprove the theory that the Earth rotates because of residual momentum/kinetic energy from the formation of the Earth and Solar System.
A young Brian May of the popular music combo Queen astounded the scientific establishment with his assertion that it was in fact Fat Bottomed Girls that made the world go round.
On closer inspection, however, this theory is blatantly false. Since 1978, the average body mass in developed nations has increased markedly, while the Earth's rotation is actually slowing.
This is unsurprising, as Mr. May is obviously given to flights of fancy. It seems inconceivable that any responsible parent would leave a mere skinny lad alone with a childminder bearing the moniker of "Big Fat Fanny", as he later claims.
Looking at this, I've begun to consider the possibility that Brian May hasn't actually done any research, and made it all up as he was going along.
I have a good mind to report him to the Royal Astronomical Society for his duplicity.
Be'elzebub has a devil put aside for such charlatans.
P.S. This is before we consider the noted climatologist and fraudster Carly Simon, whose controversial thesis on the formation of cirro-stratus in coffee cups were thoroughly debunked in 1972.
Any high school science student knows that the micro-climate of a coffee cup causes heat to dissipate far too rapidly for the formation of clouds.
And let us not discuss Professor Pop's pretensions of cheetah-hood, nor his claims regarding napalm.
Sunday, March 25, 2007
How Culture War Works
"Perhaps the most disturbing scene of the afternoon, however, involved the man who pulled down his pants in front of women and children and defecated on a burning U.S. flag."
Now, let us pause to reflect upon that sentence. Would it have been any more acceptable had no children been present? Are women more sensitive than men about such things? And finally, what kind of rock-hard bastard could take a dump on a naked flame?
Anyone willing to scorch their testicles to make a political point is double hard in my book, and should be in the marines rather than the anti-war movement.
The reason I've heard so much recently about the heresy of the hippies is simple - the war in Iraq is over, and we lost. It's now time to open the big book of backstabbing to explain away our ignominious defeat.
After all, it took thirty hard years pimping heavily fictionalised tales of hippie sedition to erase the memory of the Vietnam war.
For the modern propagandist, the lessons of that war aren't the ones that any military strategist would draw - that intervening in somebody else's war is a bad idea, that firepower is not the final guarantor of victory, that no amount of men and materiel can compensate for a fundamentally flawed plan.
No, the only lesson to be learned is this - dirty hippies done stabbed us in the back!
Obviously, we're past the point of no return in Iraq, so this isn't about shoring up support for our doomed adventure - this is myth-making in action, rehearsing the excuses that will enable our future wars of choice, laying the foundations for all tomorrow's idiotic backlash movements.
Welcome to the lunacy of the culture war - America's curse, and Britain's future.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Golden Moments In Scottish Football History
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Memes Should Be Culled, Before They Overwhelm Us All And Set Up Their Own Republic Of Annoyance
Well, as you might know, I hate thinking and try to avoid it whenever possible. If blogs cause me any thought, it's usually "Why don't these bastards pepper their posts with more gags for me to steal, so I don't have to come up with my own?".
In that vein, I'll have to link to those from whom I regularly steal -
Roy at Alicublog, America's most entertaining blogger, who I've been reading since 2003;
Larry Teabag, who inspires hilarity and horror in equal measure;
Fellow Scot and all-round good egg Clairwil;
The stupendous Ha Ha Ha at Bogol and the inimitable Harry Hutton.
Honourable mentions should also go to Emerald Bile, The Japing Ape, Jon Swift and non-blogger Maddox.
And in my role as meme-slayer, I hereby declare this meme deceased.
Not A Matter Of Life And Death...
Essentially, they're revisiting Tory dinosaur Norman Tebbit's immigrant-baiting "Cricket Test" - as might be expected, the ever-liberal Grauniad concludes that it's fine to support another nation's football team.
But it'll be a different story when I'm cheering on the Israelis on Saturday - I'll be condemned as an anti-English bigot, and if I tried it south of the border I'd be lucky to escape with my life.
It's yet another example of discrimination against mouthy Scottish wankers, and I, for one, won't stand for it.
But it's not the only example of modern double standards, as a contributor to this month's Viz notes...
"I was appalled to see a report on Newsnight about the King Fahad School teaching its pupils that all non-Muslims would burn in the fires of Hell after their deaths. What a terrible thing to present as fact to impressionable minds.
And anyway, I was always taught at my CofE school that it was non-Christians who would burn for all eternity in the Lake of Fire."
I quite agree - I believe that the infidels should be alerted to the hideous tortures that await them, should they spurn the infinite love of the Lord.
Speaking as a devout Trustafarian, I also believe that I shall inherit the Earth.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
National Boo-Hoo-Hoo Day 2007
"This government doesn't care about single men/hard-working families/small businesses/smokers/transvestite cab-drivers!" we lament in unison, cursing the perfidy of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Wee Gordon Broon.
The Chancellor's a slippery little toad and no mistake, but he could've given us each a hot air balloon full of high-class prostitutes and we'd still have called him a cad and an fuckfaced oaf. Complaining is the national pastime, and on such days the average Briton spends an average of six hours whining like a fork scraped across a plate.
When I consider the financial persecution that I personally suffer, I start shaking and swearing incoherently at my hamster, although it doesn't seem to mind - if anything, it seems more interested in its nuts than added tax on a pint of Guinness. I suppose it's got the right idea.
Sitting about feeling sorry for myself isn't going to put food on the table, after all. Hard work and prudence is the key.
So I've been quietly tipping off the FBI as to the whereabouts of Osama Bin Laden, in the hope of claiming the $25 million bounty*.
Armed only with a copy of the Waziristan telephone directory, I've got as far as the Bijirani's. I reckon I've grassed up 143,000 Pakistanis for sheltering OBL so far - at this rate, I'll stumble across the right address before 2031.
That's what made Britain great - a bit of enterprise and risk-taking, not self-pity and grovelling for hand-outs.
*That's about fourteen hundred pounds in proper money.
How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The PM
Jolly well done, sir. Truly, this man could sell tits to Hugh Hefner.
It's just a little disappointing that we're too polite to ever actually use it. I can't really imagine any of our recent Prime Ministers ordering a massive thermonuclear strike on Moscow - they'd think it was terribly rude.
Actually, I tell a lie - I could envision Lady Thatcher ordering a strike on Moscow. Now that I come to think of it, I can easily imagine Mrs. T nuking French Guyana, just to annoy Jacques Chirac. At least now, with our shiny new missile system, we could theoretically do so.
That's assuming the damn thing works, of course. Picture the scene - as the Iranian missiles shriek towards London, placid senior civil servants calmly explain to a panicked Prime Minister that our nuclear arsenal doesn't work in desert conditions.
Still, nukes seem to be the weapon of choice as far as bloggers are concerned. Every time some crank in the Middle East burns a flag, I wind up reading feverish demands that we turn the entire region into a sheet of radioactive glass.
I can see why that might appeal to certain figures in the Bush administration. After all, it'd make prospecting for oil a lot easier - you'd just have to walk about looking down.
I'd think better of New Labour come polling day, I can tell you.
In coming to this conclusion, I've had to consider what would happen to the concept of deterrence. The arms race would brutal, as countries competed to build ever larger and sharper sticks. I suppose that the worst case scenario is the Iranians developing a stick so big and pointy that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad could lean out of his Tehran window and poke us all in the eyes.
I've considered that eventuality, and we'll need to keep a secret weapon of near infinite destructive capabilities in reserve - Britain's enemies will have no response to the shock and awe of the sock and 8-Ball.
We should take great care to use this awesome power wisely.
*You can tell this is the British government we're talking about - the Americans spell the word "defence" differently, and imbue it with a wildly different meaning.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Bidding Starts At £100,000
Saturday, March 17, 2007
The Old Ones Are The Best
I was at a fantastic German/Chinese restaurant this week, and the food was excellent.
Typical though, you stuff your face and twenty minutes later you're hungry for power again.
Friday, March 16, 2007
The Art Of Running The Circus From The Monkey Cage
After lengthy consideration, I've decided to cast my vote for Judy
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
One For The Road
What nonsense. This survey is nothing less than a national affront, and a slur upon bibulous Scots. As soon as I unhook myself from this dialysis machine, there'll be hell to pay.
I still feel terrible tonight after drinking a bottle of whisky yesterday, and it's no wonder - I checked the label today and it turns out it was eight years old.
The Irish? Two-can hand grenades, the lot of them. I was out drinking with that Richard Harris about five years ago - nine pints and a nip, and the bugger was face down, dead to the world.
Never heard from him since, the big jessie. Some folk just can't hack the pace, you see.
Dignity In The Face Of Adversity
"That's another of the things that's wrong with him: he's afraid to try new things."
I think that's unfair to the Prime Minister. After all, I've never heard tales of Bonar Law or Lord Palmerston undergoing primal scream rebirthing therapy or wallowing in a Mexican mud-bath...
"The spiritual leader of the ceremony encouraged them "to feel at one with Mother Earth," the Times reported, and to "experience inner feelings and visions."
"The Blairs then moved around the outside of the pyramid, one façade at a time, praying first to the Mayan symbols of the sun and baby lizards, signifying spring and childhood. They then prayed to another wall, on which a bird was painted, representing adolescence, summer and freedom. One a third was a crab for maturity and autumn, and finally a serpent for winter and transformation..."
"...Before emerging from the pyramid, the Blairs were instructed to give voice to their hopes and fears (they said a prayer for world peace), and then undergo a "rebirth."
"This involved smearing one another with papaya and watermelon, then with mud from the Mayan jungle outside, the Times explained. "
"Finally, while exiting the womb-door of the pyramid, "the Blairs were told to scream out loud to signify the pain" of birth. They then walked hand-in-hand to the beach for a dip in the Caribbean..."
Credit where credit's due, I say. Churchill never had the guts to daub himself with his own feces and run naked through the streets of Cairo, shrieking obscene oaths while offering up supplication to Horus, son of Isis.
I wouldn't blink an eye if Jacques Chirac tried that, mind.
Bravo that man.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Humour In Uniform
"I believe homosexual acts between two individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts," the General declared with a straight face, defending the policy which has seen the dismissal of over 10,000 troops, including more than fifty Arabic speakers.
Well, that seems a bit harsh. After all, the gay community isn't a monolith - there are always a few bad apples who make the others look bad.
I can see the need for discretion, however. If you started letting just anybody into the army, why, before you knew it you'd be knee-deep in sexual jiggery-pokery and human pyramids.
I can also understand the fears of red-blooded US soldiers. If I was busy shooting people, I'd want to be sure that the man behind me was protecting my ass, rather than splattering it with thick wads of filthy yoghurt.
You'd be surprised by how common accidental discharges can be. If I may, however, I have a suggestion.
If it's morality that they're concerned about, the US military should surely follow the openness of the British Army, which now actively recruits from the gay community.
Since this policy was instituted, the incidence of Iraqi prisoners beating themselves to death and recruits committing suicide by shooting themselves twice in the head have dropped dramatically.
Who knows what wonders such a broadminded policy could do for the Marines?
Monday, March 12, 2007
Yet More Conspiracy Theories
Reports say he was able to identify himself to police only after a rubber ball had been removed from his mouth...
The very notion that a story this entertaining could pass the censorious pen of the professional propagandist beggars belief.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
The News Story Of The Century
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Beating Children Is Hilarious, And Fun!
A 42-year-old German man was so enraged by a foul during a boys' soccer match that he invaded the pitch and felled the 8-year-old culprit with a karate kick, then jumped on him, police said on Wednesday.
I have to say that I'm very impressed. My Kung-Fu is eminently defeatable, so I too only exercise it upon children, the elderly and the disabled.
It's very unwise to ever attack anyone who could conceivably retaliate - well done, that man.
On a completely unrelated note, a friend of mine has just shipped out to Basra for a six month tour. It seems like a stupid place to go for a holiday, but they are paying him to do it - it just makes me wonder.
I was watching Question Time this evening, and one of the panelists demanded that the Government bring "our boys and girls" back from Iraq.
I'm all in favour of treating the Iraqis fairly, but it's clear to see why we've been having so much trouble over there. If they'd sent heavily armed and well-trained men and women to fight rather than boys and girls, this nonsense would've been over years ago.
My pal will sort it out in five minutes, he's thirty-six and has a big fuck-off machine gun.
It fires real bullets and everything.
The Snobbery Of The Poor
Presumably, Mr. Duff means people like Tory leader David Cameron, who has today sacked an MP for making dodgy remarks.
"I have the feeling that you find them acceptable," he opines - the Commissars, that is, rather than the remarks.
Being an actual person, rather than a cardboard cut-out of Viz stalwart Millie Tant, my views are less predictable - I actually think that bigots, racists, Nazis and wanky students waving pro-Jihadi placards should be encouraged to speak their minds, without fear of criminal sanction.
Nasty opinions about foreigners and homosexuals? By all means, speak your mind. Just be aware in doing so you've effectively switched on a blinking neon sign on your forehead, and that everyone you're speaking to is reading the words "I am a resentful, insecure, ignorant prick with shit for brains."
Racist statements are essentially like farts, with the added bonus that anyone who smells it knows instantly who dealt it. Plus, both emanate from arseholes.
As for the Islam hatin' keyboard warriors of the internet, I find it amusing to imagine how strangers would react if one of them were to suddenly launch into a bitter diatribe on the threat of European Dhimmification.
I imagine the reaction they'd get from ordinary people would be much like your reaction to this.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Sanctimonious Non-Smokers - Save Breath By Shutting The Fuck Up
They just seem to gravitate towards me, radiant with satisfaction at the momentous news they're about to impart, booming "Those are bad for you!" in tones of great authority.
If I walked into Burger King, marched up to the most extravagantly obese heifer in the place and hollered "Ho, fatass, don't you think you've had enough?", would I expect thanks? Would I imagine that the half-cooked lump of cow's arse would drop from the woman's hands as she leapt up crying "Hallelujah, the truth shall set us free!".
No, I'd expect to be beaten to the floor and sat upon until my head burst messily across the floor. I imagine that the last sight I'd see would be Johnny No-Stars mopping up my exploded brains.
So, I'm buying a pack of cigarettes this morning, and all of a sudden a woman in the queue pipes up, "Do you stand about outside smoking those?"
Being British, it took me some time to absorb the fact that a total stranger was addressing me unsolicited, but once I'd regained my composure I replied "There's not really anywhere else I can smoke them, is there?"
"Well," she said, "If you're only buying ten, why not just give up?"
As you can imagine, it's not often that I'm speechless. I just laughed and took my change, when I should really have punched her in the tit and pissed in her handbag.
Is this really what it's come to?
This is how it starts, you know. One minute they're castigating your lifestyle choices, and before you know it they're burning your shop down and revoking your citizenship.
Friday, March 02, 2007
BBC News, 1st March 2007
The city council of New York has voted to ban the use of the word "wigger".
The resolution to ban the so-called "W-word" is largely symbolic as it carries no weight in law and those who use the word would face no punishment.
But it reflects a growing unease that the racial slur is now part of everyday conversation and that the taboo against its usage has been swept away.
The word is in common usage among sections of the younger generation in the United States to describe the increasingly commonplace incidence of white, middle-class Americans indulging in overblown hip-hop stylings.
Many Anglo-American community leaders, with the backing of fellow lawmakers, say it is offensive in every context and is a word which should never be said.
For them the word is loaded with offensiveness.
They regard it as degrading and a throwback to the early nineties, when cringe-worthy, faux-gangsta wannabes were regarded as sub-human, and whose weak-ass threads and hybrid jargon were frequently subject to overt playa-hatin'.
The New York City resolution was sponsored by Councilman Mix-a-Lot, who says the "W-word" was derived solely out of mockery and disrespect and that its meaning cannot be changed.
"Yo, the time has come for respectin'/
Because I'm detectin'/
Echoes of discrimination/
'Gainst the white boys of this nation/
"This City Council don't want none unless ya got love, son," he added.
But for America's so-called hip-hop generation using the word among themselves is about self-empowerment, and to stop it is likely to take a change in their attitudes rather than an edict from elected officials.
"I hope this dope measure will encourage respect towards me 'n' my homies," said New Yorker Brad "B-Jay" Banksworth, a jingling, laughable sack of daddy-bought bling and bullshit, "But maybe what gots to change is what's in people's hearts, y'all know what I'm sayin'?"
"Peace, out."
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Trouble In Paradise
Mrs. Rodent believes that the colossal fame of Paris Hilton is a fascinating sociological phenomenon, exposing how celebrity culture has effectively become a self-perpetuating kakistocracy; an endless cycle of self-abasement and glorification, in which the acquisition of wealth for its own sake is held up as the apex of personal and spiritual worth.
I, however, contend that Paris Hilton is a drivel-brained sack of shitty porridge, held together by extortionate oils and unguents, drunk on the gunk of her harem of witless, trustafarian himbos, cavorting for the gratification of a hooting pack of malicious, masturbating ogres.
Mrs. Rodent argues that my conclusions prove that I'm appallingly sexiest, and that I need to get my nose out of the fucking dictionary because nobody likes a smart-arse.
Personally, I think that both arguments have merit.

subset: commoncrawl


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Manufacturers and suppliers of a wide range of:
Aluminium Doors
Retractable gates
Burglar bars
Side and top Hung windows
Sliding patio doors
Single and double glass doors
with single or double glass panels
Cottage pane windows and doors
Folding / stacking aluminum doors
shop fronts
Folding stacking doors are becoming increasingly popular among households and restaurants as it allows for the combination of the indoor dining area and the outdoor dining area creating a larger entertainment area. These doors provide the best of both worlds. When open, these doors serve to combine both the indoors and the outdoors with an opening of up to 9mm (very little of the opening is lost when the door stacks to one side or both sides). When closed the folding stacking doors serve to separate and seal the indoors from the outdoors making it more effective on sunny or rainy days.
Sadly, many companies in the aluminium window and door industries have started to use the cheaper and weaker imported profiles which will not last and will be more costly for the consumer in the long term. Aluminium Doors Durban are proud to say we only purchase from a recognised supplier with superior products and guarantees.
We have also have a wide range of retractable security gates and burglar bars to suit any and all opening for windows and doors.
We have many satisfied clients as we provide a very good service. We do not use subcontractors but our own in house fitters who are constantly supervised.


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Ray J (Feat. Truth & Shorty Mack) - Sexy Ladies
The official music video for "Sexy Ladies" featuring Truth and Shorty Mack, the first single from the For The Love Of Ray J reality TV show soundtrack available now on iTunes.
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


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I went to Parliament Hill to file by Jack Layton's coffin that Thursday, and it was the makeshift memorial full of cans of Orange Crush, letters of thanks and encouraging messages for the future that left me choked up and wiping tears off my cheeks. The idea of an Elmaks street art memorial piece crossed my mind and didn't leave. It had to be done. Like most of my ideas, its birth came about in the form of two images. Layton's mustache and NDP orange. I went looking for material and knew things were looking up when I stumbled upon a half-sheet of 1/2″ plywood behind the local trip mall. This would have to go from idea to finished product in 36 hours- my version of a no-huddle offense.
The most frustrating part of this was laying down Krylon indoor-outdoor gloss finish on top of Montana Black. The latter's a proper artists' paint and has a powdery finish, while the former's gotten worse in terms of its consistency in recent years and sports a 'tamper proof' unremovable nozzle that sprays a blotchy wedge pattern which requires at least 2-3 coats even if you're painting wicker furniture (Even though its cans are useless to proper street artists, Krylon's cheap and that makes it a good friend of taggers). I laid down 3 coats of orange (10 minute drying time my ass…I spent 1 1/2 hours waiting for each coat to dry) before it hit me that Weld Bond glue could be used as an improvised primer.
Jack Layton wasn't just a politician, he was an activist and an advocate. He was a tireless fighter for the rights of GLBT citizens, the homeless, immigrants, wounded soldiers and just about anyone else whose voice wasn't being heard. He was an honest politician who sought to bring civility to Parliament. As his state funeral showed, he was a man who touched many lives.
He was also a powerful rallying figure for those who know that this country of ours is being steered in the wrong direction and want to turn the wheel sharply away from its present course. The enthusiasm of many who've vowed to carry on his tasks of activism and advocacy hasn't quite hit me. It's been patchy. But I've been also thrown into a bit of a worry-and-frustration-induced depression. Reality-induced funk, I guess.
It's not just the slashing of Environment Canada jobs, the lack of whistleblower protection, the justification of $1 billion in expenses for the Toronto G8 summit and excusing of horrible police violence and unconstitutional mass arrests, the elimination of the Canadian Long Form Census, the blatant lie that crime rates are increasing being used to justify the construction of US-style megaprisons, the exorbitant expenditure on overpriced and untested single-engine fighter jets (I'll say that what this country really needs in terms of home military equipment spending is a modernized Navy and Coast Guard), the "it's the economy, stupid" claims of economic success in a petrostate with booming oil-prices (Canada's economy has become a resource-extraction-based one), the refusal to answer media questions, "But That's Simply Not True…", the massive expansion of the tar sands and invite to foreign oil companies to make a mess they won't ever have to clean up, the abyssmal conditions of Native reserves, the slashing of social spending, the falsifying of documents by a senior minister, or the Canadian Taliban-esque social conservatism that occasionally bursts through the background noise like a demented SETI signal broadcasting "Screw you all! We're not only content with wrecking the environment but we'll wreck all of your sinning, criminal lives to boot because that's the way things were intended"
No, it's not just that. It's also the media's cowardice in failing to press Harper even when he restricted them to five questions per day. It's the chilling political climate this country's taking on. It's the rise of right-wing politicians who gut city and provincial treasuries like human locusts by slashing their tax base and handing out unscrutinized contracts to their friends.
It's also the anger these politicans turn into a carefully directed hate and rise to power on, and it's the fact that many among their electorate are cheering them on the entire time.
The other side never takes a day off from steering the reins in their direction. The struggle continues. We've got our work cut out for us. Thank you Jack. We lost a great fighter, rallier, inspiration and human being. Vires in Numeris. Let's roll.


text:
Update: Overall the guesses in the poll were too optimistic. In preliminary ratings The Killing drew 1.8 million viewers and a 0.4 adults 18-49 rating vs. 1.8 million and a 0.5 adults 18-49 rating in its season 2 premiere.
Tonight, season three of The Killing premieres on AMC. The show was cancelled after season two, then AMC reconsidered. While the show received a fair amount of critical acclaim, the ratings were never strong. But this season the show is jumping on the serial killer bandwagon instead of just focusing on Rosie Larsen's murder, which may add some excitement. It will certainly up the body count. The season two finale in June 2012 earned a 0.5 adults 18-49 rating. How do you think the premiere will fare tonight? Make your predictions.


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Egret With Lunch
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Hunger Report 2012
Rebalancing Act: Updating U.S. Food and Farm Policies
The 2012 Hunger Report analyzes the effectiveness of U.S. food and farm policies in reducing hunger and malnutrition in the United States and in countries that receive U.S. food aid and development assistance.
Eliminating hunger is well understood as a main objective of U.S. food and farm policies, but current policies have not ensured that people in poverty have access to the kinds of foods they need for good health and a lifetime of productivity. Poor nutrition and poor health contribute to the cycle of poverty.
Normally, change in food and farm policies occurs incrementally. The 2012 Hunger Report calls for bolder, more determined thinking about how U.S. food and farm policies can meet the global and domestic challenges of the 21st century, especially as Congress considers the next Farm Bill.


text:
Mount Rinjani Ultra (MRU) creator, Hendra Wijaya, is taking the race to new level,
and has announced the all new Rinjani Ultra.
Stay tuned at rinjani100.com
NORTH LOMBOK, WEST NUSA TENGGARA - INDONESIA – This race starts from Senaru (600 masl) through dense forest vegetation with ground track along the 8.5 km and next 2 km will cross rocky hill with views of the savanna in along the way to Plawangan Senaru.
At sunrise, when you reaching Plawangan Senaru (2600 masl) you will enjoy the stunning panorama of Lake segara anak and Summit of Rinjani in the distance.
The following route is down the hills into steeply rock boulders whit ground track ground interspersed pine vegetation along the 3 km to Lake Segara Anak.
From Lake Segara Anak (2000 masl) towards Plawangan Sembalun (2600 masl) you will enjoy running at the edge of the Lake with a track stones and you will be presented with a beautiful view of the light reflection along the 3 km hills while crossing the weed and grass with a land track. Boulder rock and incline steep is along the way 1 km ahead of Plawangan Sembalun.
Reaching Plawangan Sembalun, you will see a wonderful landscapes facing lakes, Mount Rinjani peak and Sembalun village's surrounded hills.
The real challenge and the heaviest part of this race are 5 km away to the top of Rinjani (3726 masl), starting with solid sand track with the tilt angle of gentle incline ramps, then passes through a thick and depth smooth sand track, changed to solid sand track and gravel. The last 2 km towards the Summit, around above elevation 3400masl you will be challenged to climb the Summit of Rinjani with mixed between sand and gravel track that is quite deep to submerge your step (approx. 15 cm). This part of the racetrack will be tougher especially if the wind was blustery and foggy.
At the nice and clear weather when reaching and standing at the dense sandy rock plate about 4 x 12 square meters at the top of Rinjani you can see magnificent and beautiful panorama of Rinjani region, you will be able to see clearly the views of Lake Segara Anak and the incline black yellow and red path you are recently going through. And you will be able to see Bali's highest mountain Gunung Agung (3142 masl).
The route will bring you down from the Summit back to Plawangan Sembalun regions, and you will be faced with a challenge as well as the sensation of running on the decline sand in steep slope and the other side you will enjoy sliding like sledding above the snow but on the other hand it is endanger ourselves. Dangerous because the tracks that you are going through very narrow between 1.5 m to 4 m and on the left and right side is deep ravine.
Upon Plawangan Sembalun regions you heading to Pos 2 (1500 masl) you down the hill with moderate dense of pine vegetation and you will be treated to panoramic views of the hills of the beautiful savannas colored golden yellowish.
From The Pos2 then you have to go back to the previous route to return to Senaru.


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Other Names: None
Location: Beaufort County
Campaign: Longstreet's Tidewater Operations (February-May 1863)
Date(s): March 30-April 20, 1863
Principal Commanders: Brig. Gen. John G. Foster [US]; Maj. Gen. D.H. Hill [CS]
Forces Engaged: 6 regiments and artillery units [US]; Hill's Division [CS]
Estimated Casualties: 100 total
Description: While Longstreet operated against Suffolk, D.H. Hill's column moved against the Federal garrison of Washington, North Carolina. By March 30, the town was ringed with fortifications, but the Confederates were unable to shut off supplies and reinforcements arriving by ship. After a week of confusion and mismanagement, Hill was maneuvered out of his siegeworks and withdrew on April 15.
Result(s): Inconclusive (Confederates withdrew.)
CWSAC Reference #: NC011
Preservation Priority: IV.2 (Class D)
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text:
Greenday is an american (punk)rock band that consists of 3 persons and exists since 1987. The inital formation stayed almost the same; Billie Joe Armstrong (guitar and vocals), Mike Dirnt (bass and vocals) and John Kiffmeyer (drums). Only John Kiffmeyer was replaced through Tré Cool.
History and Evolution
The Beginnings (1987-1988)
Greenday was founded in 1987 when the two friends Billie Joe Armstrong and Mike Dirnt (both 14) decided to make a band named "Sweet Children". They had their first gig on the 17th of October 1987 at Rod's Hickory Pit in Vallejo (California/USA). They had the possibilty to "perform" there, because Armstrongs mother worked in this pub. In 1988 they took John Kiffmeyer into the band who was playing the drums and organised their gigs and everything else. Besides that, he already had band-experiences (Isocrazy).
First Record Deal and Tours (1988-1993)
After some shows, they were discovered by Larry Livermore, who owned the company "Lookout! Records!". As a result their first EP called "1,000 Hours" was produced in 1989. Before it appeard in public the bandname was changed; this was the idea of Larry Livermore, because there was an other local band called "Sweet Baby" and he doesn't wanted to risk a mixing-up. So the bandname became "Greenday" as it's said they took drugs, and marijuana mostly.
So the first real "Greenday" production appeard in the spring of 1990 called "39/Smooth". Some times later two other EP's were produced in the same year called "Slappy" and "Sweet Children" (as a tribute to their old bandname – interesting: the same did [Linkin Park] with their album Hybrid theory). After their first (big) tour, through the whole country in 1991 a "best of" out of this 3 EP's was published, the name was "1,039/smoothed Out Slappy Hours".
As Kiffmeyer went to College and it became obvious that he did not want / could re-join the band he was replaced through Tré Cool. He was at first only thought as a temporary drummer, but as he played the drums well and they liked him he "got the job". Having now again a complete lineup they went touring the most part of 1992/93 and played also their first gigs in Europe. In between touring a new album called "Kerplunk" appeared, that sold very well (50.000+ copies in the USA). If you take in consideration, that Greenday was only playing for a little indie-lable this was a great success.
Breakthrough (1994-1996)
As the album Kerplunk sold very good, Greenday became interesting for the major lables. After (short) conferences they left Lookout! And signed a contract with "Reprise Records". This made a lot the their fans quite angry: it's the same story as it's today: if a small band gets success, and changes to a major lable, the first thing (nearly) all the old fans do is accusing them, that they would sell out and commercializise theirselves. So it happend to Greenday.
But Greenday seemed not to care and worked on creating their first "mainstream" album with the name "Dookie".
After a 3 week periode of working, the album was released in the february of 1994. It became an incredible (commercial) success as it was played up and down by MTV. Exspecially "Basket Case", "When I Come Around" and "Longview" reached great attention; all these 3 made it to position 1 of the "Modern Rock Tracks" charts.
As it turned out that the album would be this successful, Greenday started a big tour with Pansy Divison as supporting act. As (sad) highlight could be mentioned their performance on the Woodstock Festival '94; a security man, thought that Greenday bassist Mike Dirnt would be a fan that ran on stage and beat him up; Dirnt lost some theeths therefore. As this was transmitted live on TV, this enlarged the population of Greenday immense. 1995 Dookie was honored with a Grammy for "Best Alternative Album" besides that Greenday got 9 nominations for the MTV Video Music Awards. Unfortunatally they didn't win at least one.
In the same year, their new single "J.A.R" appeared and made it from zero to one on the Billboard charts. In autumn 1995 the 2nd major lable album appeared called "Insomniac". It was a lot of "heavier" or "punky" than the "mainstream" and melodic Dookie album. The album reached good critizisms and it made up the old fans again with Greenday. It didn't became as successfull as Dookie, but still sold more than 2,000,000 times in USA. In the following a planned Europe tournee was cancelled very sudden.
Break and two new albums (1997-2002)
Nothing happend until 1997 when they started to produce a new album. The album was wanted to have a very different sound than all earlier ones and was called "Nimrod". It containd a lot of different styles like surf rock ska and also some ballads where you see Armstrong hear strumming his accoustic guitar (you can see that "really" at the music video to "Time of Your Life" that won a MTV Video Award for "Best Alternative Video"). The album started in the charts on position 10.
Three other years later in 2000 the 4th album called "Warning" appeared that followed the style of "Nimrod". But it wasn't believed to be authentic; the "punk-heads" did not want to hear one of the commercial most successful bands to play in "their" style again. So it was no big success and the band lost a lot of importance and popularity. This can be read also on the number of albums sold; all previous albums of Greenday achieved at least 2x platin, "Warning" made it only to gold-status one time.
Still in 2001 Green Day won 8 California Music Awards. The section were "Outstanding Album" (Warning), "Outstandig Group", "Outstanding Male Vocalist", "Outstanding Bassist", "Outstanding Drummer", "Outstanding Songwriter", "Outstanding Artist" and las but not least "Outstanding Punk Rock/Ska Album" (Warning, too).
After a best-of album ("Internation Superhits!") and some singles they toured together with Blink 182. But Blink 182 earned a lot more success and population by the fans than Greenday. Though the tour was produced on the "Riding in Vans with Boys" DVD.
American Idiot (2003- ? )
In Summer 2003 Greenday went back to the studios to create a new album that was planned to be named "Cigarettes and Valentines". It was almost finished (20 tracks recorded) the master tapes were stolen. The band reacted very angryly. They were very frustrated and decided not to record it all again, but come up with a new, even better, album.
After the frustration with the album, internal troubles came up and they had to go to kind of a "therapy" in which they tried to talk about their differences and disagreements and solve them.
The other reason for the "therapy" was, that Dirnt and Cool said – in public – that Armstrong would be "the bands Nazi". The following year, the album "American Idiot" appeared and – went straight to the top of the Billboard charts. The first single "American Idiot" als became a great success. The album was again in a softer Punk-Rock style, that was suitable for radios and mainstream listeners. As a result "American Idiot" won the "best Rock Album" grammy. But they did not stop by winning only a Grammy; in the this-year MTV Music Awards, Greenday rushed trough with winning 7 awards.
Through the year 2005 the band toured – to support the album – playing more than 150 concerts. The tour went throgh the whole world going through Australia, South America, UK etc.
During the tour a liveDVD / CD was made, called "Bullet in a Bible" on the 15th of november in 2005.
The tour ended in Melbourne (Australia) at decemer 17.
In 2005 they bought their rights back from Lookout! To be able to publish it again. The year after Greenday won again a Grammy, this time for "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" as the "Record of the Year". ( It was 16 weeks position 1 of the Billboard Modern Rock Track charts). This is the 2nd longest place ever together with RHCPs hit "Scar Tissue" and Stainds "It's been awhile". (Position one goes for Foo Fighters hit "The Pretender" that stayed #1 for 18 weeks).
A new – till now unnamed – studio album is announced roughly for 2008. Armstrong said in 2007 that he has also 45 songs written with his piano.
Greendays sound is similar to the old punk bands like The Jam, Ramones and Sex Pistoles, as they are very rare longer than 4 minutes and they use a comparable instrumentalisation: distorted guitars, simple bass lines and very rapid drums. But there are exceptions like Wake Me Up When September Ends (accoustic guitar) and Jesus of Suburbia (longer than 9minutes!). Armstrong said once, that his personal biggest influences would be "The Replacements" and "Hüsker Dü" (Greenday covered one of their songs called "Don'T Want to Know If You Are Lonely"). The topics the lyrics are quite simple and down to earth: women, doing drugs and personal feelings like alientation.
As punk is – like nearly all sub-cultures – seen as a way of livestyle and not only music; Greenday was accused after their great (commerical) successes with Dookie and American Idiot not to have the punk way of life, and having sold our theirselves. Besides that, a lot of punks do not like, if they see that Greenday is described by their label as "Punk". They say, Punk is something different for them. They were also accused to provocate "calcuated anti-americanism" (Brandon Flowers/the Killers) for commercial success. He also was angry, seeing on the Live DVD (that was recorded in England) thousands of people singing "American Idiot". Noel Gallagher (Oasis) accused them lately to have "stolen" the song Boulevard of Broken Dreamss by his song "Wonderwall". An accusation that has no truth in it in my opinion, because if you listen to the songs, you won't hear any similarities.
This was the first Greenday album that was published through Lookout! Records. The painting on the cover is made by Jesse Ivy. This is the first and only album with the drummer Kiffmeyer.
1.At the Library – 2:28
2.Don't Leave Me – 2:39
3.I Was There – 3:36
4.Disappearing Boy – 2:52
5.Green Day – 3:29
6.Going to Pasalacqua – 3:30
7.16 – 3:24
8.Road to Acceptance – 3:35
9.Rest – 3:05
10.The Judge's Daughter – 2:34
This is the 2nd album of Greenday and the last one that was published trough Lookout! Records. It appeared on the 17th of January in 1992. It was the debut-album with the new drummer Tré Cool. As this album sold quite good, (actually it was one of the best selling albums ever published through a indie-label) Greenday became interesting for the major labels. The album consists of 12 regualry tracks and the CD + Casette versions offers 4 additional bonus tracks, which were originally from the Sweet Children EP. Up to the end of 2006 the album sold ~700.000 copies in the USA and all in all 4 million copies.
2000 Light Years Away – 2:24
One for the Razorbacks – 2:30
Welcome to Paradise – 3:30
Christie Road – 3:33
Private Ale – 2:26
Dominated Love Slave (written by Tré Cool) – 1:42
One of My Lies – 2:19
80 – 3:39
Android – 3:00
No One Knows – 3:39
Who Wrote Holden Caulfield? – 2:44
Words I Might Have Ate – 2:32
This is the first major label album of Greenday and the label name is Reprise Records. The producer was Rob Cavallo. It appeard the 1st of february 1994. It became a worldwide commercial success and gave Greenday popularity in the mainstream. Though many punk-rockers said, that Greenday had "sold out" theirselves. Dookie is up to today the best selling album of Greenday (even better than American Idiot) and the only album of them that made it to diamond status (10million copies sold).
Burnout" – 2:07
Having a Blast – 2:44
Chump – 2:54
Longview – 3:59
Welcome to Paradise – 3:44
Pulling Teeth – 2:30
Basket Case – 3:03
She – 2:14
Sassafras Roots – 2:37
When I Come Around – 2:58
Coming Clean – 1:34
Emenius Sleepus (Mike Dirnt, Green Day) – 1:43
In the End – 1:46
The 4th studio album of Greenday, it appeard on the October 10, 1995. It reached double platin and was #2 in the charts, it can't be called very successful, for Greendays affairs. This can be explained with it'much darker and more punk style tracks on it, that made the album less suitable for the mainstream.
Armatage Shanks – 2:17
Brat – 1:43
Stuck with Me – 2:16
Geek Stink Breath – 2:15
No Pride – 2:20
Bab's Uvula Who? – 2:07
86 – 2:48
Panic Song (Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt) – 3:35
Stuart and the Ave. – 2:04
Brain Stew – 3:13
Jaded – 1:30
Westbound Sign – 2:13
Tight Wad Hill – 2:01
Walking Contradiction – 2:31
After taking a break, the 5th studio album Nimrod appeared on the October 14, 1997. Nimrod sold as good as Insomniac and got very good critics. Besides that it's a example of the falling popularity of Greenday; this and the Insomniac album both were not able to get even close to the success of Dookie. Still it containted one hit, called "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" that is – Greenday untypically – an accoustic ballade.
Nice Guys Finish Last – 2:49
Hitchin' a Ride – 2:51
The Grouch – 2:12
Redundant – 3:17
Scattered – 3:02
All the Time – 2:10
Worry Rock – 2:27
Platypus (I Hate You) – 2:21
Uptight – 3:04
Last Ride In – 3:47
Jinx – 2:12
Haushinka – 3:25
Walking Alone – 2:45
Reject – 2:05
Take Back – 1:09
King for a Day – 3:13
Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) – 2:34
Prosthetic Head – 3:38
The album appeard in 2000 and was a warning. But not the way Greenday wanted it to – it was a warning for Greenday, because they're popularity was on free fall and they stopped somehow to be interesting for most people. You can see this quite well on the sellings: it became #4 in the charts and was honored with "gold" status, but it was the worst selling album since their big success with Dookie. On this album you can find a lot of accoustic songs. Up to august 2006 it sold 5 millions copies worldwide. Besides that, this is the first album since Kerplunk! That wasn't produced with Rob Cavallo.
Warning – 3:42
Blood, Sex and Booze – 3:33
Church on Sunday – 3:18
Fashion Victim – 2:48
Castaway – 3:52
Misery – 5:05
Deadbeat Holiday – 3:35
Hold On – 2:56
Jackass – 2:43
Waiting – 3:13
Minority – 2:49
Macy's Day Parade – 3:34
American Idiot
The 7th and actually last studio album of Greenday appeard on September 21, 2004. This one was again produced by Rob Cavallo and it's the only album of Greenday that reached #1 in US and UK charts. With this album, the band changed their style completely and it was kind of a concept album. It wasn't sure whether the band would be able to get back to great success. This (great) album only exisits, because the master tapes of their former album "cigarettes and valentines" were stolen and Greenday decided to come up with a comepletely new album. Worldwide more than 14,500,000 copies were sold, 500,00 of them in the USA. It was the big success Greenday needed after more than 10 years of waiting after Dookie.
American Idiot– 2:54
Jesus of Suburbia– 9:08
Holiday– 3:52
Boulevard of Broken Dreams– 4:20
Are We the Waiting– 2:43
St. Jimmy– 2:55
Give Me Novacaine– 3:25
She's a Rebel– 2:00
Extraordinary Girl– 3:33
Letterbomb– 4:06
Wake Me Up When September Ends– 4:45
Homecoming– 9:18
Whatsername– 4:15
studio albums
American Idiot
Studio Eps
1,000 Hours
Sweet Children
Live Albums
Live at Gilman Street
Live Tracks
Bowling Bowling Bowling Parking Parking
Foot in Mouth
Tune in, Tokyo
Bullet in a Bible
Welcome to Paradise
Basket Case
When I Come Around
Geek Stink Breath
Stuck with Me
Brain Stew/Jaded
Walking Contradiction
Hitchin' a Ride
Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)
Nice Guys Finish Last
Macy's Day Parade
Poprocks & Coke
I Fought the Law
American Idiot
Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Wake Me Up When September Ends
Jesus of Suburbia
The Saints Are Coming
Working Class Hero
The Simpsons Theme
1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours
International Superhits!
International Supervideos!
Riding in Vans with Boys
Bullet in a Bible


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Microsoft has released an update for Office for Mac 2011 14.2.3 that resolves a security vulnerability with the program.
The patch fixes part of Microsoft's SkyDrive service, which the company is pitching as an alternative to Apple's iCloud.
The vulnerability sets folders permissions incorrencty in certain Microsoft Office for Mac installations.
Microsoft's website notes:
Improvements that are included in the update
The Office for Mac 2011 14.2.3 Update also includes the following improvements:
This update fixes an issue where some SkyDrive folders in Micorosft Document Connection are displayed as zero-byte files instead of folders. This update provides critical updates for connection reliability with SkyDrive.
It also provides detailed updates for Excel, Outlook and Word.
Microsoft Office users can access the update by opening Microsoft AutoUpdate and clicking Check For Updates. Or by opening any office program and choosing Help > Check For Updates.


text:
Minimum Wage Boost Would Cut Food Stamp Tab by $4.6 Billion
Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour would cut federal government outlays on food stamps by $4.6 billion per year, according to a study released Wednesday.
The estimate published by the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning think tank, is among the first to assess the effect of increasing the minimum wage on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (better known as food stamps). The study backs supporters who say the policy change would benefit not just low-wage workers, but also taxpayers by reducing government expenditures.
The group's analysis found that increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 from the current $7.25 rate would lower total food-stamp aid by $4.6 billion, or 6% of the program's budget.
"Our results show that a minimum-wage increase to $10.10 would reduce the need for 3.5 million people to support themselves on food stamps," said Michael Reich, one of the study's authors and an economist at the University of California, Berkeley.
The reduced food-stamp aid tied to the higher minimum wage offsets the possibility that some low-wage workers could lose their jobs and qualify for additional assistance, the authors say.
A separate report last month from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office found an increase to $10.10 per hour would reduce employment by 500,000 but lift 900,000 Americans out of poverty.
The study released Wednesday underscores why many policymakers find an increase in the minimum wage so attractive. Unlike boosting welfare programs, raising the minimum wage doesn't increase government spending, and in fact may reduce it.
"It's not just low-income families that will be benefit from this, but the economy as a whole," Sen. Sherrod Brown (D., Ohio) told reporters Wednesday.
The savings found in the study--$46 billion over 10 years—is much larger than the $8 billion reduction to the food stamp program over a decade that was included in the recently passed farm bill. Still, the total savings are extremely small compared to the government's nearly $4 trillion annual budget.
Other economists say minimum-wage increases are a poor poverty-fighting tool. The CBO study found that most of the increased earnings resulting from a minimum wage boost would flow to families earning more than the federal poverty line.
"The minimum wage fails to reduce net poverty because of its adverse effects on employment and poor ability to target workers living in households below the poverty threshold," Joseph Sabia, a right-leaning economist at San Diego State University, wrote in a paper this week. (Mr. Sabia previously has argued that minimum-wage increases hurt low-skilled workers particularly hard in times of high unemployment.)


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I had the Geissele trigger group installed in my SCAR 17 and .... it is *amazing* how huge an improvement it is over the stock trigger that FN puts in the SCAR 17. Geissele makes triggers for a number of platforms. If you are going to do a mod on your rifle, first thing to consider is a better trigger and, in my respectful opinion, Geissele is the way to go.
Geissele Automatics make what are, beyond question, the finest after-market replacement trigger groups for a variety of firearms. Once you try one, you will understand why they are held in such high esteem by all types of shooters: civilian, law enforcement and military.
Be sure to visit their website to learn more about their products:
Geissele Automatics - Quality Triggers for the Warfighter and Competitor
From the Geissele web site:
Geissele Automatics was established in 2004 as a manufacturer of trigger mechanisms for the AR15 rifle. Our first trigger, the Hi-Speed National Match, was designed by our Founder, Bill Geissele, for CMP and NRA Hi-Power Rifle competition. Although designed for target shooting, the Geissele Hi-Speed trigger was found by the U.S. Military to have applications in semi-automatic sniper weapons. In 2005 Geissele Automatics received a request from the Department of Defense: "Can you build us a select-fire trigger that is as good as your Hi-Speed?" In response, Bill designed the Geissele Super Select-Fire trigger (SSF). After rigorous testing the SSF was adopted by entities in the U.S. Special Operations community and has become their trigger of choice for M4 carbine based weapons. A derivative of the SSF trigger was developed to meet the needs of law enforcement and civilians who do not need select-fire capability. This trigger, the Super Semi-Automatic (SSA,) combines stellar performance with the safety, reliability and forgiveness for which 2 stage triggers are known.
The Geissele Mission Statement:
To prove, every day, that the Golden Rule works: "Do to others as you would have them do to you" Luke 6:31.
Here is the video:
Geissele Trigger Demonstration - A Must Have Upgrade! - YouTube
My YouTube gun and shooting channel: VDMA VIDEOS.
Member of: NRA (Life/Endowment); GOA (Life); SAF (Life); NSSF (Media); NAGR; CCRTKBA


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Deuterium, also called heavy hydrogen, is a stable isotope of hydrogen with a natural abundance in the oceans of Earth of approximately one atom in 6500 of hydrogen (~154 PPM). Deuterium thus accounts for approximately 0.015% (on a weight basis, 0.030%) of all naturally occurring hydrogen in the oceans on Earth (see VSMOW; the abundance changes slightly from one kind of natural water to another). Deuterium abundance on Jupiter is about 2.25·10-5 (about 22 atoms in 1,000,000 or 15% of the terrestrial deuterium-to-hydrogen ratio)[1]; these ratios presumably reflect the early solar nebula ratios, and those after the Big Bang. However, other sources suggest a much higher abundance of e.g. 6·10-4 (6 atoms in 10,000 or 0.06% atom basis)[2]. There is little deuterium in the interior of the Sun, since thermonuclear reactions destroy it. However, it continues to persist in the outer solar atmosphere at roughly the same concentration as in Jupiter.
The nucleus of deuterium, called a deuteron, contains one proton and one neutron, whereas the far more common hydrogen nucleus contains no neutrons. The isotope name is formed from the Greek deuteros meaning "second", to denote the two particles composing the nucleus.[3]
Differences between deuterium and common hydrogen (protium)Edit
Chemical symbol Edit
Deuterium is frequently represented by the chemical symbol D. Since it is an isotope of hydrogen with mass number 2, it is also represented by ²H. IUPAC allows both D and ²H, although ²H is preferred.[4] The reason deuterium has a distinct chemical symbol may be its large mass difference with protium (¹H); deuterium has a mass of 2.014102 u, compared to the mean hydrogen atomic weight of 1.007947 u, and protium's mass of 1.007825 u. The isotope weight ratios within other chemical elements are largely insignificant in this regard, explaining the lack of unique isotope symbols elsewhere.
- See also: Error: Template must be given at least one article name
Natural abundance Edit
Deuterium occurs in trace amounts naturally as deuterium gas, written ²H2 or D2, but most natural occurrence in the universe is bonded with a typical ¹H atom, a gas called hydrogen deuteride (HD or ¹H²H).[5]
The existence of deuterium on Earth, elsewhere in the solar system (as confirmed by planetary probes), and in the spectra of stars, is an important datum in cosmology. Stellar fusion destroys deuterium, and there are no known natural processes (for example, see the rare cluster decay), other than the Big Bang nucleosynthesis, which might have produced deuterium at anything close to the observed natural abundance of deuterium. This abundance seems to be a very similar fraction of hydrogen, wherever hydrogen is found. Thus, the existence of deuterium is one of the arguments in favor of the Big Bang theory over the steady state theory of the universe. It is estimated that the abundances of deuterium have not evolved significantly since their production about 13.7 billion years ago.[6]
The world's leading "producer" of deuterium (technically, merely enricher or concentrator of deuterium) was Canada, until 1997 when the last plant was shut down (see more in the heavy water article). Canada uses heavy water as a neutron moderator for the operation of the CANDU reactor design. India is now probably the world's largest concentrator of heavy water, also used in nuclear power reactors.
Physical properties Edit
The physical properties of deuterium compounds can be different from the hydrogen analogs; for example, D2O is more viscous than H2O.[7]. Deuterium behaves chemically similarly to ordinary hydrogen, but there are differences in bond energy and length for compounds of heavy hydrogen isotopes which are larger than the isotopic differences in any other element. Bonds involving deuterium and tritium are somewhat stronger than the corresponding bonds in light hydrogen, and these differences are enough to make significant changes in biological reactions (see heavy water).
Deuterium can replace the normal hydrogen in water molecules to form heavy water (D2O), which is about 10.6% denser than normal water (enough that ice made from it sinks in ordinary water). Heavy water is slightly toxic in eukaryotic animals, with 25% substitution of the body water causing cell division problems and sterility, and 50% substitution causing death by cytotoxic syndrome (bone marrow failure and gastrointestinal lining failure). Prokaryotic organisms, however, can survive and grow in pure heavy water (though they grow more slowly).[8] Consumption of heavy water would not pose a health threat to humans unless very large quantities (in excess of 10 liters) were consumed over many days.
- See also: Error: Template must be given at least one article name Small doses of heavy water (a few grams in humans, containing an amount of deuterium comparable to that normally present in the body) are routinely used as harmless metabolic tracers in humans and animals.
Quantum properties Edit
The deuteron has spin +1 and is thus a boson. The NMR frequency of deuterium is significantly different from common light hydrogen. Infrared spectroscopy also easily differentiates many deuterated compounds, due to the large difference in IR absorption frequency seen in the vibration of a chemical bond containing deuterium, versus light hydrogen. The two stable isotopes of hydrogen can also be distinguished by using mass spectrometry.
Nuclear properties Edit
Deuterium is one of only four stable nuclides with an odd number of protons and odd number of neutrons. (2H, 6Li, 10B, 14N; also, the long-lived radioactive nuclides 40K, 50V, 138La, 180mTa occur naturally.) Most odd-odd nuclei are unstable with respect to beta decay, because the decay products are even-even, and are therefore more strongly bound, due to nuclear pairing effects. Deuterium, however, benefits from having its proton and neutron coupled to a spin-1 state, which gives a stronger nuclear attraction; the corresponding spin-1 state does not exist in the two-neutron or two-proton system, due to the Pauli exclusion principle which would require one or the other identical particle with the same spin to have some other different quantum number, such as orbital angular momentum. But orbital angular momentum of either particle gives a lower binding energy for the system, primarily due to increasing distance of the particles in the steep gradient of the nuclear force. In both cases, this causes the di-proton and di-neutron nucleus to be unstable.
Deuterium as an isospin singletEdit
Due to the similarity in mass and nuclear properties between the proton and neutron, they are sometimes considered as two symmetric types of the same object, a nucleon. While only the proton has an electric charge, this is often negligible due of the weakness of the electromagnetic interaction relative to the strong nuclear interaction. The symmetry relating the proton and neutron is known as isospin and denoted $ \tau $.
Isospin is an SU(2) symmetry, like ordinary spin, so is completely analogous to it. The proton and neutron form an isospin doublet, with a "down" state $ \downarrow $ being a neutron, and an "up" state $ \uparrow $ being a proton.
A pair of nucleons can either be in an antisymmetric state of isospin called singlet, or in a symmetric state called triplet. In terms of the "down" state and "up" state, the singlet is
- $ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}\Big( |\uparrow \downarrow \rangle - |\downarrow \uparrow \rangle\Big). $
This is a nucleus with one proton and one neutron, i.e. a deuterium nucleus.
The triplet is $ \left( \begin{array}{ll} \uparrow\uparrow\\ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}(\uparrow\downarrow + \downarrow\uparrow)\\ \downarrow\downarrow \end{array} \right) $ And thus consists of three types of nuclei, which are supposed to be symmetric - a deuterium nucleus (actually a highly excited state of it), a nucleus with two protons, and a nucleus with two neutrons. The latter two nuclei are not stable or nearly stable, and therefore so is this type of deuterium (meaning that it is indeed a highly excited state of deuterium).
Approximated wavefunction of the deuteronEdit
The total wavefunction of both the proton and neutron must be antisymmetric, because they are both fermions. Apart from their isospin, the two nucleons also have spin and spatial distributions of their wavefunction. The latter is symmetric if the deuteron is symmetric under parity (i.e. have an "even" or "positive" parity) , and antisymmetric if the deuteron is antisymmetric under parity (i.e. have an "odd" or "negative" parity). The parity is fully determined by the total orbital angular momentum of the two nucleons: if it is even then the parity is even (positive), and if it is odd then the parity is odd (negative).
The deuteron, being an isospin singlet, is antisymmetric under nucleons exchange due to isospin, and therefore must be symmetric under the double exchange of their spin and location. Therefore it can be in either of the following two different states:
- Symmetric spin and symmetric under parity. In this case, the exchange of the two nucleons will multiply the deuterium wavefunction by (-1) from isospin exchange, (+1) from spin exchange and (+1) from parity (location exchange), for a total of (-1) as needed for antisymmetry.
- Antisymmetric spin and antisymmetric under parity. In this case, the exchange of the two nucleons will multiply the deuterium wavefunction by (-1) from isospin exchange, (-1) from spin exchange and (-1) from parity (location exchange), again for a total of (-1) as needed for antisymmetry.
In the first case the deuteron has is a Spin triplet, so that its total spin s is 1. It also has an even parity and therefore even orbital angular momentum l ; The lower its orbital angular momentum, the lower its energy. Therefore the lowest possible energy state has s =1, l =0.
In the second case the deuteron has is a spin singlet, so that its total spin s is 0. It also has an odd parity and therefore odd orbital angular momentum l . Therefore the lowest possible energy state has s =0, l =1.
Since s =1 gives a stronger nuclear attraction, the deuterium ground state is in the s =1, l =0 state.
The same considerations lead to the possible states of an isospin triplet having s =0, l =even or s =1, l =odd. Thus the state of lowest energy has s =1, l =1, higher than that of the isospin singlet.
The analysis just given is in fact only approximate, both because isospin is not an exact symmetry, and more importantly because the strong nuclear interaction between the two nucleons is related to angular momentum in a way that mixes different s and l states. That is, s and l are not constant in time (they do not commute with the Hamiltonian), and over time a state such as s =1, l =0 may become a state of s =1, l =2. Parity is still constant in time so these do not mix with odd l states (such as s =0, l =1). Therefore the quantum state of the deuterium is a superposition (a linear combination) of the s =1, l =0 state and the s =1, l =2 state, even though the first component is much bigger. Since the total angular momentum j is also a good quantum number (it is a constant in time), both components must have the same j, and therefore j =1. This is the total spin of the deuterium nucleus.
To summarize, the deuterium nucleus is antisymmetric in terms of isospin, and has spin 1 and even (+1) parity. The relative angular momentum of its nucleons l is not well defined, and the deuterium is a superposition of mostly l =0 with some l =2.
Magnetic and electric multipolesEdit
In order to find theoretically the deuterium magnetic dipole moment $ \mu $, one uses the formula for a nuclear magnetic moment
- $ \mu = {1\over (j+1)}\langle(l,s),j,m_j=j|\overrightarrow{\mu}\cdot \overrightarrow{j}|(l,s),j,m_j=j\rangle $
- $ \overrightarrow{\mu} = g^{(l)}\overrightarrow{l} + g^{(s)}\overrightarrow{s} $
g(l) and g(s) are g-factors of the nucleons.
Since the proton and neutron have different values for g(l) and g(s), one must separate their contributions. Each gets half of the deuterium orbital angular momentum $ \overrightarrow{l} $ and spin $ \overrightarrow{s} $. One arrives at
- $ \mu = {1\over (j+1)}\langle(l,s),j,m_j=j|\left({1\over 2}\overrightarrow{l} {g^{(l)}}_p + {1\over 2}\overrightarrow{s} ({g^{(s)}}_p + {g^{(s)}}_n)\right)\cdot \overrightarrow{j}|(l,s),j,m_j=j\rangle $
where subscripts p and n stand for the proton and neutron, and g(l)n = 0.
By using the same identities as here and using the value g(l)p = 1 in nuclear magneton units, we arrive at the following result, in nuclear magneton units
- $ \mu = {1\over 4 (j+1)}\left[({g^{(s)}}_p + {g^{(s)}}_n)\big(j(j+1) - l(l+1) + s(s+1)\big) + \big(j(j+1) + l(l+1) - s(s+1)\big)\right] $
For the s =1, l =0 state j =1 and we get, in nuclear magneton units
- $ \mu = {1\over 2}({g^{(s)}}_p + {g^{(s)}}_n) = 0.879 $
For the s =1, l =2 state with j =1 we get, in nuclear magneton units
- $ \mu = -{1\over 4}({g^{(s)}}_p + {g^{(s)}}_n) + {3\over 4} = 0.310 $
The measured value of the deuterium magnetic dipole moment, in nuclear magneton units, is 0.857. This suggests that the state of the deuterium is indeed only approximately s =1, l =0 state, and is actually a linear combination of (mostly) this state with s =1, l =2 state.
The electric dipole is zero as usual.
The measured electric quadropole of the deuterium is 0.2859 e fm², where e is the proton electric charge and fm is fermi. While the order of magnitude is reasonable, since the deuterium radius is of order of 1 fermi (see below) and its electric charge is e, the above model does not suffice for its computation. More specifically, the electric quadropole does not get a contribution from the l =0 state (which is the dominant one) and does get a contribution from a term mixing the l =0 and the l =2 states, because the electric quadrupole operator does not commute with angular momentum. The latter contribution is dominant in the absence of a pure l =0 contribution, but cannot be calculated without knowing the exact spatial form of the nucleons wavefunction inside the deuterium.
Higher magnetic and electric multipole moments cannot be calculated by the above model, for similar reasons.
Deuterium radiusEdit
- Further information: Nuclear size
The square root of the average squared radius of the deuterium, measured experimentally, is $ \sqrt{\langle r^2 \rangle} = 0.96 $ fermi (= 0.96 fm).
Deuterium is useful in nuclear fusion reactions, especially in combination with tritium, because of the large reaction rate (or nuclear cross section) and high energy yield of the D-T reaction. There is an even higher-yield D-He3 fusion reaction, though the breakeven point of D-He3 is higher than that of most other fusion reactions; together with the scarcity of He3, this makes it implausible as a practical power source until at least D-T and D-D fusion reactions have been performed on a commercial scale. Unlike protium, deuterium undergoes fusion purely via the strong interaction, making its use for commercial power plausible.
In chemistry and biochemistry, deuterium is used as a non-radioactive isotopic tracer in molecules to study chemical reactions and metabolic pathways, because chemically it behaves similarly to ordinary hydrogen, but it can be distinguished from ordinary hydrogen by its mass, using mass spectrometry or infrared spectrometry.
Neutron scattering techniques particularly profit from availability of deuterated samples: The H and D cross sections are very distinct and different in sign, which allows contrast variation in such experiments. Further, a nuisance problem of ordinary hydrogen is its large incoherent neutron cross section, which is nil for D and delivers much clearer signals in deuterated samples. Hydrogen occurs in all materials of organic chemistry and life science, but cannot be seen by X-ray diffraction methods. Hydrogen can be seen by neutron diffraction and scattering, which makes neutron scattering, together with a modern deuteration facility, indispensable for many studies of macromolecules in biology and many other areas.
Deuterium is useful in hydrogen nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (proton NMR). NMR ordinarily requires compounds of interest to be analyzed as dissolved in solution. Because of deuterium's nuclear spin properties which differ from the light hydrogen usually present in organic molecules, NMR spectra of hydrogen/protium are highly differentiable from that of deuterium, and in practice deuterium is not "seen" by an NMR instrument tuned to light-hydrogen. Deuterated solvents (including heavy water, but also compounds like deuterated chloroform, CDCl3) are therefore routinely used in NMR spectroscopy, in order to allow only the light-hydrogen spectra of the compound of interest to be measured, without solvent-signal interference.
Deuterium can also be used for femtosecond infrared spectroscopy, since the mass difference drastically affects the frequency of molecular vibrations; deuterium-carbon bond vibrations are found in locations free of other signals.
Measurements of small variations in the natural abundances of deuterium, along with those of the stable heavy oxygen isotopes 17O and 18O, are of importance in hydrology, to trace the geographic origin of Earth's waters. The heavy isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen in rainwater (so-called meteoric water) are enriched as a function of the environmental temperature of the region in which the precipitation falls (and thus enrichment is related to mean latitude). The relative enrichment of the heavy isotopes in rainwater (as referenced to mean ocean water), when plotted against temperature falls predictably along a line called the global meteoric water line (GMWL). This plot allows samples of precipitation-originated water to be identified along with general information about the climate in which it originated. Evaporative and other processes in bodies of water, and also ground water processes, also differentially alter the ratios of heavy hydrogen and oxygen isotopes in fresh and salt waters, in characteristic and often regionally-distinctive ways.[9]
The proton and neutron making up deuterium can be dissociated through neutral current interactions with neutrinos. The cross section for this interaction is comparatively large, and deuterium was successfully used as a neutrino target in the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory experiment.
Lighter element isotopes suspectedEdit
The existence of nonradioactive isotopes of lighter elements had been suspected in studies of neon as early as 1913, and proven by mass spectroscopy of light elements in 1920. The prevailing theory at the time, however, was that the isotopes were due to the existence of differing numbers of "nuclear electrons" in different atoms of an element. It was expected that hydrogen, with a measured average atomic mass very close to 1 u, and a nucleus thought to be composed of a single proton (a known particle), could not contain nuclear electrons, and thus could have no heavy isotopes.
Deuterium predicted and finally detectedEdit
Deuterium was predicted in 1926 by Walter Russell, using his "spiral" periodic table. It was first detected spectroscopically in late 1931 by Harold Urey, a chemist at Columbia University. Urey's collaborator, Ferdinand Brickwedde, distilled five liters of cryogenically-produced liquid hydrogen to 1 mL of liquid, using the low-temperature physics laboratory that had recently been established at the National Bureau of Standards in Washington, D.C. (now the National Institute of Standards and Technology). This concentrated the fraction of the mass-2 isotope of hydrogen to a degree that made its spectroscopic identification unambiguous; Urey called the isotope "deuterium" from the Greek and Latin words for "two". The amount inferred for normal abundance of this heavy isotope was so small (only about 1 atom in 6400 hydrogen atoms in ocean water) that it had not noticeably affected previous measurements of (average) hydrogen atomic mass. Urey was also able to concentrate water to show partial enrichment of deuterium. Gilbert Newton Lewis prepared the first samples of pure heavy water in 1933. The discovery of deuterium, coming before the discovery of the neutron in 1932, was an experimental shock to theory, and after the neutron was reported, deuterium won Urey the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1934.
"Heavy water" experiments in World War IIEdit
- Main article: Heavy water
Shortly before the war, Hans von Halban and Lew Kowarski moved their research on neutron moderation from France to England, smuggling the entire global supply of heavy water (which had been made in Norway) across in twenty-six steel drums.[10][11]
During World War II, Nazi Germany was known to be conducting experiments using heavy water as moderator for a nuclear reactor design. (Heavy water is water in which the hydrogen is deuterium.) Such experiments were a source of concern because they might allow them to produce plutonium for an atomic bomb. Ultimately it led to the Allied operation called the "Norwegian heavy water sabotage," the purpose of which was to destroy the Vemork deuterium production/enrichment facility in Norway. At the time this was considered important to the potential progress of the war.
After World War II ended, the Allies discovered that Germany was not putting as much serious effort into the program as had been previously thought. The Germans had completed only a small, partly-built experimental reactor (which had been hidden away). By the end of the war, the Germans did not even have a fifth of the amount of heavy water needed to run the reactor, partially due to the Norwegian heavy water sabotage operation. However, even had the Germans succeeded in getting a reactor operational (as the U.S. did with a graphite reactor in late 1942), they would still have been at least several years away from development of an atomic bomb with maximal effort. The engineering process, even with maximal effort and funding, required about two and a half years (from first critical reactor to bomb) in both the U.S. and U.S.S.R, for example.
Data Edit
- Density: 0.180 kg/m³ at STP (0 °C, 101.325 kPa).
- Atomic weight: 2.01355321270.
- Mean abundance in ocean water (see VSMOW) about 0.0156 % of H atoms = 1/6400 H atoms.
Data at approximately 18 K for D2 (triple point):
- Density:
- Liquid: 162.4 kg/m3
- Gas: 0.452 kg/m3
- Solid: 2950 J/(kg·K)
- Gas: 5200 J/(kg·K)
An antideuteron is the antiparticle of the nucleus of deuterium, consisting of an antiproton and an antineutron. The antideuteron was first produced in 1965 at the Proton Synchrotron at CERN[12] and the Alternating Gradient Synchrotron at Brookhaven National Laboratory[13]. A complete atom, with a positron orbiting the nucleus, would be called antideuterium, but as of 2005 antideuterium has not yet been created. The proposed symbol for antideuterium is D, that is, D with an overbar.
Deuterium atoms can be absorbed into a palladium (Pd) lattice. They are effectively solidified as an ultrahigh density deuterium lump (Pycnodeuterium) inside each octahedral space within the unit cell of the palladium host lattice. Some believe this can be used as a nuclear fuel in cold fusion.[14] Although this mechanism does result in high concentrations of deuterium in volumes, the reality of actual cold fusion by this mechanism has not been generally accepted within the scientific community.[15]
See alsoEdit
| Look up Deuterium in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
- ↑ Lellouch, E., et al. (2001). "The deuterium abundance in Jupiter and Saturn from ISO-SWS observations". Astronomy & Astrophysics 670: 610–622. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20010259Astronomy.
- ↑ "Hubble measures deuterium on Jupiter", Science News – Find Articles (5 October 1996). Retrieved on 10 September 2007.
- ↑ Deuteros at studylight.org
- ↑ § IR-3.3.2, Provisional Recommendations, Nomenclature of Inorganic Chemistry, Chemical Nomenclature and Structure Representation Division, IUPAC. Accessed on line October 3, 2007.
- ↑ IUPAC Commission on Nomenclature of Inorganic Chemistry (2001). "Names for Muonium and Hydrogen Atoms and their Ions" (PDF). Pure and Applied Chemistry 73: 377–380. doi:10.1351/pac200173020377, http://www.iupac.org/publications/pac/2001/pdf/7302x0377.pdf.
- ↑ The End of Cosmology?: Scientific American
- ↑ David R. Lide., (2005). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, Internet Version 2005.
- ↑ D. J. Kushner, Alison Baker, and T. G. Dunstall (1999). "Pharmacological uses and perspectives of heavy water and deuterated compounds". Can. J. Physiol. Pharmacol. 77 (2): 79–88. doi:10.1139/cjpp-77-2-79. PMID 10535697.
- ↑ "Oxygen – Isotopes and Hydrology". SAHRA. Retrieved on 2007-09-10.
- ↑ Sherriff, Lucy (2007-06-01). "Royal Society unearths top secret nuclear research". The Register. Situation Publishing Ltd.. Retrieved on 2007-06-03.
- ↑ "The Battle for Heavy Water Three physicists' heroic exploits". CERN Bulletin. European Organization for Nuclear Research (2002-04-01). Retrieved on 2007-06-03.
- ↑ Massam, T., et al. (1965). "Experimental observation of antideuteron production". Il Nuovo Cimento 39: 10–14. doi:10.1007/BF02814251.
- ↑ Dorfan, D. E., et al. (June 1965). "Observation of Antideuterons". Phys. Rev. Lett. 14 (24): 1003–1006. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.14.1003, http://prola.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v14/i24/p1003_1.
- ↑ Arata Y, Zhang Y-C, Fujita H, Inoue A; Koon Gakkaishi 29(2) (2003). "Discovery of solid deuterium nuclear fusion of pycnodeuterium-lumps solidified locally within nano-Pd particles".Formation of condensed metallic deuterium lattice and nuclear fusion (2006/10/17).
- ↑ Feder, Toni (2005), "Cold Fusion Gets Chilly Encore", Physics Today 58 (January): 31, doi:10.1063/1.1881896, http://scitation.aip.org/journals/doc/PHTOAD-ft/vol_58/iss_1/31_1.shtml, retrieved on 28 May 2008
General referencesEdit
- Nuclear Data Evaluation Lab
- Mullins, Justin (27 April 2005). "Desktop nuclear fusion demonstrated with deuterium gas". New Scientist, http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7315. Retrieved on 10 September 2007.
- Annotated bibliography for Deuterium from the Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues
- Missing Gas Found in Milky Way. Space.com


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Akhilesh brings back suspended IAS officer Nagpal
The Uttar Pradesh government had suspended and served a chargesheet to Nagpal for allegedly not following due process of law while demolishing a wall of a mosque in village Kadalpur in Gautam Buddha Nagar. TIMELINE | UP residents hail decision revoking Durga Nagpal's suspensionindia Updated: Sep 23, 2013 10:42 IST
The Uttar Pradesh government on Sunday revoked the suspension of Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Durga Shakti Nagpal, a day after she met chief minister Akhilesh Yadav along with her husband and fellow IAS officer Abhishek Singh.
"As of now she is attached with the board of revenue. The government is likely to give her fresh appointment in next two days," Rajiv Kumar, principal secretary (appointment), said.
The 2010-batch IAS officer was suspended on July 27, for ostensibly not following due process of law while demolishing the wall of an under-construction mosque at Kadalpur village in Gautam Budh Nagar district. Nagpal was then posted as sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) in Greater Noida's Sadar area.
The CM and the ruling Samajwadi Party came in for widespread criticism over her suspension amid suspicion that she was punished for her crackdown on the sand mafia operating along the Hindon and Yamuna rivers in the area.
The CM had appointed principal secretary (home) RM Srivastava as the inquiry officer in the case on August 29 and sought a report within 15 days.
"I have not completed my probe as yet," Srivastava said, declining to share any more information.
The CM had said Nagpal's suspension was an administrative decision because her actions could have disturbed communal harmony.
The suspension triggered a massive controversy as different versions of the case surfaced and the Akhilesh Yadav government was accused of playing communal politics and supporting the sand mafia.
Soon, a video of SP leader Narinder Bhati claiming to have got Nagpal suspended in "41 minutes" emerged.
Nagpal could not be reached for comment. On Saturday, Nagpal and her husband had met the CM for nearly 15 minutes, leading to speculation that revocation of her suspension was on the cards.
Though no official information about the meeting was given, sources claimed the CM gave her a patient hearing.
First Published: Sep 22, 2013 18:57 IST


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Jay Rock, Jim Jones, Baby Bash & Freekey Zekey At A Celebrity Basketball Game! (Jim Does A No Look Behind The Head Pass)
Dav reports: Jay Rock, Jim Jones, Baby Bash, Freaky Zeeky, at a celberty basketball game in az for allstar weekend.
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Meteor sightings reported from Florida to Massachusetts
WUSA9 Photojournalist got video of a meteor that lit up the skies on the East Coast.
A possible meteor has been spotted streaking through the sky over the East Coast, The American Meteor Society and Twitter users are reporting.
"It basically looked like a super bright shooting star," said Robert Lunsford, fireball coordinator for the society, based on the reports coming in to the organization's website. "I saw some people mentioning fragments and naturally every color of the rainbow."
The society, based in Geneseo, N.Y., was researching about 400 reports received as of about 10 p.m. ET Friday from nine East Coast States and Canada of sightings that took place somewhere shortly before 8 p.m. ET through shortly after 8 p.m. ET, Lunsford said. The number of reports marked a possible record over the number of reports the group received about a fireball that streaked over Baltimore on Halloween several years ago, Lunsford said.
Late Friday, Bill Cooke of NASA's Meteoroid Environmental Office said the flash appears to be "a single meteor event." He said it "looks to be a fireball that moved roughly toward the southeast, going on visual reports."
"Judging from the brightness, we're dealing with something as bright as the full moon," Cooke said. "The thing is probably a yard across. We basically have (had) a boulder enter the atmosphere over the northeast."
Twitter exploded Friday evening with reports of meteor sightings from the South to New England.
Some Twitter users also reported that the meteor crashed somewhere near the Delaware-Maryland border, but the society had no information on that, Lunsford said.
AccuWeather.com (@breakingweather) tweeted that there have been several unconfirmed reports of a large meteor being spotted from Florida to Massachusetts between 7:55 p.m. and 8:03 p.m. ET.
Reports of a fireball that streaked over the Albany, N.Y., area shortly before 8 p.m. headed south or southeast was reported by Examiner.com.
The fireball was green and had a "fairly long tail," the Examiner reported, adding that it lasted for a few seconds.
Lunsford of the American Meteor Society said it is more common for meteors to cross the sky in the evening this time of year because a certain area of the sky known as a radiant is at its highest point above the horizon during February, March and April.
"We have reports going back to 2005, and the months of February, March and April have a lot of evening fireballs," he said.
Contributing: Associated Press
A security camera above a car yard in Seaford, Delaware, captured footage of what appeared to be a meteor travelling across the skyline late on Friday. (March 23) AP


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Your cause, your Foundation
The Scripps Howard Foundation is interested in the causes that interest Scripps employees. Through the Bob Scripps Community Fund of the Scripps Howard Foundation, we offer programs that support nonprofits where employees give their time and money.
Scripps employees can apply for up to $1,250 twice annually to support organizations where they give their time and money. You decide how to allocate your gifts – all to volunteer gifts, all to matching gifts, or a portion of your match to each.
Application deadlines are May 31 and Nov. 30 annually.
Whether they work in Baltimore, Tampa, Milwaukee, Bakersfield or any town in between, one common thread unites Scripps employees: they do well by doing good. This certainly holds true in their work life – and the work they do in communities.
The Scripps Howard Foundation is proud to showcase examples of how Scripps employees who give of their time and money to organizations they care about.
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Megan Parry with 10News in San Diego volunteers for the San Diego Humane Society and she requested $1,250 to help support the group's Behavior Center that works with animals to retrain them so they can be adopted into a loving home.
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Brian Page, director of digital products in Cincinnati, is a big supporter of his local YMCA. He received a grant to support the Y's programs for kids. Why the Y? Brian tells you in this video.
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"I'm writing to thank you and the Scripps Howard Foundation for awarding our grant request for help with our Regional Bowling Tournament. As I stated in the request, Special Olympics is increasingly focused on not only providing competition and sports training, but also helping our athletes become healthier.
"We do this at many of our events by providing health screening and information. The more events we have, and the more athletes we can bring in for each, the greater our opportunity to impact them in this way. This grant will help us do that."
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By Kelli B. Grant
Chasing rewards can lead consumers to carry an unwieldy assortment of credit cards: Earning miles with an alternate airline or store, after all, often requires applying for yet another card.
Dynamics Inc., in contrast, offers a single card that lets users select from among a variety of rewards. With a battery and a card-programmable magnetic strip, its ePlate card allows users to shift which rewards they earn — purchase-by-purchase, if desired. The card itself has two buttons that a consumer can push to activate one of two preselected reward choices; an associated phone app lets them change out the reward associated with each button for dozens of others. Current rewards include exclusive comics from Dark Horse Comics, donations to Amnesty International and monthly shipments in a Salsa of the Month club.
Also unlike with other cards, those rewards are delivered instantly, instead of at the end of the statement period. Issuers usually hold off to avoid rewarding customers for purchases they end up returning. Dynamics chief executive Jeff Mullen says if a user ends up returning a product, they don't earn new rewards until purchases eclipse the value of the returned item.
The card terms are similar to those attached to rewards cards from bigger banks. There's a variable APR — currently 13.99% to 17.99%, depending on the applicant's credit rating. (Bankrate.com puts the rewards card average at 15.73%.) But there's an annual fee of $99, which — as with other cards — means consumers should assess the reward value before signing up, says Odysseas Papadimitriou, founder of comparison site CardHub.com. "This may be too complex for some consumers," he says. Mullen says the varying rewards prompt partner companies to compete, which means many offer perks that exceed the typical 1% back consumers might get with other co-branded rewards cards.
Dennis Moroney, a director of research for Tower Group says the Dynamics card is novel, but isn't likely to get many imitators. "It doesn't excite me that much," he says. "Clearly the movement is toward embedding this stuff, Google Wallet and so forth, into the phone." Consumers are likely to see more dynamic rewards on their phone in that fashion, he says. But as Mullen points out, even Google Wallet recently added a physical card. "Cards are here to stay," he says.
Senior consumer reporter and "Deal of Day" columnist Kelli B. Grant travels to Las Vegas to find the best, the worst, and the most hyped gadgets at this year's Consumer Electronics Show. Join her as she roams the exhibit floor for three days, with dispatches here and on Twitter @kelligrant.


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Greysonb needed a new wordpress theme design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 23 designs submitted by 8 freelance designers.
Giggles N Hugs
Giggles N Hugs is a restaurant that parents can take their children to enjoy a great, healthy, organic meal. There is a large play area including a sailing ship and castle playground. Parents will be able to let their kids play with this fully supervised area so they can relax and enjoy themselves. We also have free wifi. Our current website is http://gigglesnhugs.com. You can take a look at this to get a feel for the restaurant as well as any information needed. The entire site needs to be overhauled.
Parents in the LA area. They want to be where the movie stars are at. They want the healthiest food for their kids as well as a great time for them.
They also want some time to unwind and let their kids play on their own.
Most of the images are included in the PDF contained in this project.
This site will have elements of html 5. some character animation (use the characters from the licensed images included). Maybe swirling candy canes, moving unicorns, etc
revolving picture banners
social media buttons for twitter, facebook, and youtube.
opt in right side bar
I like the look and feel of these sites...
sweethartsweets.com. Lots of similar colors (pastels, lavender, lime green, like the restaurant)
Very open to ideas.


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Keith Washington is the Director, Departmental Office of Human Resource Management, U.S. Department of Transportation. In this key role, he is responsible for leading and evaluating Departmental human resource management policies for a large Cabinet level agency in the following areas: recruitment and staffing, position classification, pay, labor and employee relations, learning and development, workforce planning, executive resources, work and family life, employee benefits, automation, performance management, and accountability.
Keith previously served as the Interim Associate Administrator for Administration, Maritime Administration (MARAD). In this role, he was MARAD's principle administrative and management official and led the following areas: acquisition, human resources, information technology, facilities, and administrative services. He also provided oversight of the mission-support functions for the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, one of 5 United States service academies.
Mr. Washington has held other key positions at the U.S. Department of Transportation including the Deputy Director, Departmental Office of Human Resource Management, the Associate Director for Human Resources Policy and Oversight as well as the Manager, Air Traffic Executive Staff at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). He is the recipient of numerous awards including the Secretary's Award for Meritorious Achievement for his distinguished leadership in supporting the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.
Keith's hobbies include travel and he has visited all 7 continents. He is a native Washingtonian and DC public school graduate. He successfully completed the Key Executive Program at the American University. He has a Master's of Public Administration from the American University and a B.A. in Political Science (cum laude) from American University.