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Local craft makers feel the pressure as holiday nears
A steady flow of shoppers strolled through the Harvard Square Holiday Crafts Fair on a recent weekend, eyeing the bounty of cozy knit hats, ceramic paperweights, and handpainted greeting cards.
But for all the winking lights and good cheer, holiday fairs like this one, held at the First Parish Unitarian Church, can be make or break for local crafters. Behind the whimsy is the pressure to sell — now — before the window for ironic onesies and personalized cat toys closes for the season.
"Sleep, illness, family strife — none of it matters,'' said Liz Stewart, a jewelry maker and owner of Boston-based
Lush Beads. "The time to make and sell is now, and you have to take advantage of what is in front of you.''
The craft scene is burgeoning as the DIY, or do-it-yourself, trend continues and shoppers become more interested in buying local. According to the nonprofit Craft & Hobby Association, crafting cleared $28.6 billion in sales in 2010, and last year was projected to top $30 billion. A large portion of those sales is squeezed into the monthlong holiday season, which means crafters often must have their goods completed and ready to go, said Andrej Suskavcevic, the association's executive director. If something doesn't sell, the crafters are out the cost.
"If a big retailer does not sell everything during the holiday season, that's not going to hurt the pocket of the sales people'' who aren't working on commission, said Suskavcevic.
"The store will discount the items or send them back to the manufacturer on a consignment agreement. Crafters can't do that. They are the manufacturer.''
Boston Handmade, a collective of artists and crafters whose members sometimes attend fairs and shows as a group, says 2012 has been a good season so far, but they admit the tension can be fierce.
Jessica Burko, the executive director of Boston Handmade, who specializes in paper quilts, photographic mixed-media, and encaustic collage, says of all the things that worry artisans this time of year, it's that they've put all their eggs in the holiday basket.
"For some, this is when they make most of their annual income,'' said Burko, who noted that because she's both an artist — who exhibits and sells through her studio — and a crafter, she's less reliant on holiday sales earnings. "Many artists build their holiday inventory throughout the year, stockpiling their 'best sellers' to roll out specifically at holiday shows and in their online shops in December.''
Crafters in the Northeast have it better than those in other parts of the country. After the Upper Midwest, this region has the most crafters, craft fairs, and craft buyers in the country, according to the craft association. Here, 55 percent of the population makes, sells, or purchases crafts with some regularity, compared to 59 percent in the Upper Midwest. General crafts are the most popular in the Northeast, according to the association, followed by needle and sewing crafts, painting, finishing, and floral crafts.
Of course, every artist faces a different set of challenges. Karen Mahoney, owner of City by the Sea Ceramics, has sold her pottery alongside Burko's artwork and Stewart's jewelry at the Bazaar Bizarre Boston, the Jamaica Plain Holiday Craft's Fair, and the collective's pop-up gallery in Canton this season. But she feels additional pressure, because of the long lead time her work requires.
"Once my holiday season begins in November there is little time left for the cycle of making, drying, and firing,'' Mahoney said. "If something sells very well early on and I didn't predict it, I may be out of luck on having any left closer to the holidays, costing me income that could have been there.
"I can't rush home and make more to have the next day, or even the next weekend, like most of my crafty friends can with their work.''
Kathy Koveleski, who makes wool hats and scarves from her base in Ocean Park, Maine, has sold her wares at the Harvard Square fair for more than a decade. The final two weeks of the year, she says she feels the tension in the pit of her stomach.
"You can't help but have it weigh on your mind that if you don't sell what you have, there's no other way to dispose of it until you make it to another craft fair, or unless you're one of the lucky ones who has a store where you can sell your things somewhere else,'' she said.
Leftover inventory means sellers go through a familiar cycle: Pack up the goods, load the car, drive it home, unload the car, and line up the crates or tubs or racks of handmade table runners or felted flower pins or exotic skin wallets. Then, go through the whole process in reverse after the holidays, when the crowds will almost certainly be smaller and less eager to buy.
For now, though, the shoppers keep rolling in, looking for gifts. (The Harvard Square craft fair continued through Sunday.)
"We come here every year,'' said Karen Chio, an Arlington resident at the Harvard Square fair. "Mainly, the crafts are beautiful. But it's really neat that they're handmade. They're personal, and you get that feeling when you browse them, since the people who made the crafts are the ones selling them to you.
"It's just different than something mass-produced from a large retailer,'' she said. "And it never hurts to buy local.''
If there's a final piece to the craft fair puzzle, it's a commitment to the local economy and the distinctive goods shoppers discover.
"Take my cards and prints,'' said Connie Barbour, a co-organizer of the Harvard Square fair who draws and paints greeting cards and other works in her Jamaica Plain studio. "Local. And if you look around here, you have a vendor whose intricately carved candle holders are made completely out of recycled cans. And there's a potter whose work is all original . . . It's not that you won't find crafts like these anywhere — that's a cliche. What fuels our success is that you won't find this stuff everywhere.''


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Surf Sweets Rolls Out Gummy Bear Multi-Packs
Wheeling, Ill.-based Surf Sweets, part of TruSweets LLC, adds Gummy Bears and Sour Berry Bears Snack Packs multi-packs to its growing line of candy products. Made with organic and natural ingredients, free of corn syrup, synthetic dyes, artificial flavors and GMOs, Surf Sweets are gluten free; dairy and casein free; contain none of the most common food allergens (wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish, shellfish); are Feingold approved, and produced and packaged in a dedicated nut-free facility.
Each multi-pack (made in the U.S.) consists of five 0.9-oz Gummy Bears or Sour Berry Bears snack-size packs (six multi-packs per case), and each pack contains only 90 calories. Flavors include Cherry, Grapefruit, Grape, Lemon, Strawberry and Orange.
"We think moms will agree that Surf Sweets all natural, snack packs multi-packs are a convenient and wholesome alternative to traditional gummy candies and fruit snacks," says Bert Cohen, president and founder of TruSweets LLC, a socially responsible company dedicated to building delicious, sweet snack brands like Surf Sweets that are better for our families and our planet. "They not only taste great, but they're made with real organic fruit juice, are fortified with antioxidant vitamin C, and they're free of the ingredients that concern moms -- corn syrup, synthetic dyes and artificial flavors."
Suggested retail price for a multi-pack is $4.49.

subset: commoncrawl


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Swizzle sticks are interesting devices. I don't mean the plastic straw-like things that we know today as swizzle sticks. I mean true wooden swizzle sticks.
Originally made from slender tree branches, they're meant as stirring tools for a type of cocktail called a "swizzle." The swizzle is a tall drink, made of rum, lime juice, crushed ice, and sugar. In a way, it's similar to a mint julep. The stick is a long-handled device with four or five "spokes" radiating out from the end in a star-like pattern.
Plunge the swizzler into the glass, all the way to the bottom. Take the stick between your palms and spin it. The spokes will spin around in the bottom of the glass and get the ice moving. Then you move the stick up and down in the drink, you'll see the glass frost over.
The problem of the swizzle stick is not an easy one to solve.
Swizzle sticks are unique in cocktail ephemera, and they're very hard to find; you normally have to import them from the West Indies, or have a friend bring some back. They're natural products, so they vary a lot from stick to stick. Further, for working bartenders, true swizzle sticks can be a pain. They're delicate and break easily, which means they need to be replaced often. And then you're stuck, again, trying to ship some in from Martinique.
Two guys in the Boston area think they have a solution. One of these guys is Adam Lantheaume, friend to A Dash of Bitters and proprietor of The Boston Shaker, the awesome barware store in Somerville, Mass. He's teamed up with a product designer, Brian Johnson, to develop and test a plastic swizzle stick, one that looks and works just like the wooden model but lacks its drawbacks.
The only thing is, the plastic model is a complex piece of product design, and it requires a special steel mold — one that's expensive to produce. So Adam and Brian have turned to Kickstarter to fund the production of the mold. Further, to launch a product like this, they need to meet minimum order quantities, and the Kickstarter campaign will fund those, too.
So check it out. Like all things Kickstarter, there are fun premiums if the project is fully funded.
Incidentally, what Adam and Brian are doing here is surprisingly normal in the cocktail world. If a bartender needs a tool or ingredient that she can't find, there's nothing stopping her from just making it for herself or adapting another item to the task. Bartenders used to make their own liqueurs and tools all the time, so this DIY approach is right on target.


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Will.i.am on Taylor Swift: 'She's Dope'
Black Eyed Peas singer Will.i.am works with all of the biggest names in music -- Britney Spears, Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus are just a few of his co-conspirators. There is one superstar missing from his collaboration resume and it's Taylor Swift. The pop star wants to work with Swift because he thinks she's "dope."
Swift, no stranger to collaborations herself, having worked with Ed Sheeran, Tim McGraw and more in recent months, is firmly on will's radar. While they both have distinctly different styles, they could make musical magic. Will told E!, "Taylor Swift is dope. I'd like to work with Taylor Swift. I like the girl. We could do something really fantasy-like. That would be cool."
Who doesn't think Taylor Swift is dope? She has millions of diehard fans and the respect of much of the music community, including a forward-thinking, progressive pop music iconoclast like will.i.am.
Swift loves to duet – remember when she was inviting locals to the stage on her Speak Now Tour? It's about time she's done another high-profile collaboration. And if it had fantasy elements, it would be a bit of a change for her.
We say bring it on. Taylor and Will would be a terrific pairing of creative minds which'd yield unexpected and unpredictable results.
While Swift has been criticized for 'Red' being "too pop" and "not country enough," there's nothing wrong with further experimentation.


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Information is at the heart of all activity in financial markets. Students must learn to use information and complex analytical tools to manage assets and add value for clients.
To meet this need, the Capital Markets Laboratory (CML) is the central financial resource at UNC for the creation and distribution of financial information. The CML also provides leading-edge research for financial industry managers and scholars with access to financial tools used on Wall Street today. The Bloomberg Professional is the backbone of the CML with Factset providing broad firm-level data.
The CML provides a real-world setting for students to manage equity and fixed-income portfolios. The CML enhances the Applied Investment Management (AIM) student funds program as well.


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Reviewed by Jaime L. (age 6)
I like this book because the pictures are very beautiful, and I also want to work hard to be special like Dorothy, just like the way I completed my ice skate class this summer. Daddy also likes this book.
I want to recommend this book to all my friends. I hope you like it too.


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Frozen, All Natural Potato and Vegetable Side Dishes Easy to Prepare
ConAgra Foods, Omaha, Neb., launches Alexia Select Sides, a frozen line of all-natural, easy-to-prepare roasted potato and vegetable side dishes for skillet preparation. They go from freezer to plate in 10 to 12 minutes and contain all the ingredients needed to prepare a nutritious, multiple-serving side dish.
Cholesterol-free and zero trans fat per serving, Alexia Select Sides are available in four varieties: Roasted Red Potatoes & Baby Portabella Mushrooms; Roasted Red Potatoes & Italian Inspired Vegetables; Roasted Red Potatoes & Harvest Vegetables; and Chipotle Roasted Sweet Potatoes. Each package has three servings and includes a separate pouch containing a blend of premium oils, herbs and spices, such as thyme and sage, to complement the flavors of the other ingredients.
"Our consumer research showed that people crave more variety, yet often treat side dishes as an afterthought," says Michael Smith, the brand's director at ConAgra Foods. "With Alexia Select Sides, we're able to deliver premium, all-natural side dishes packed with the flavor of our herb-infused cooking oil and easily prepared in a skillet. Sautéing the vegetable blend creates a tempting aroma and gives the dish more flavor when compared with other frozen vegetables."
Suggested retail price is $3.69.


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ALCOM to open manufacturing facility in Bonner
November 14, 2012 — Missoula, Mont. — One of America's fastest-growing and most respected brands of aluminum trailers will soon be made in Missoula County. On Wednesday, November 14, Maine-based ALCOM LLC announced it signed a lease to establish a new, 70,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Bonner.
The company expects to initially employ approximately 60 workers and begin production of its hand-built aluminum trailers at the former Stimson Lumber mill site in early 2013. The company anticipates expanding to 200 employees at the facility within its first two years of operation.
Wages and benefits at ALCOM's Bonner facility are expected to begin in the upper-$30,000 range, plus additional daily production bonuses. Notably, the company intends to do much of its own training, thus providing entry-level manufacturing workers with an opportunity to build skills on the job.
"Manufacturing is alive and well in Missoula County," declared Missoula County Commissioner Jean Curtiss. "ALCOM will bring excellent jobs and benefits to local workers and help revitalize the Bonner community as a whole."
"ALCOM's decision to locate its first expansion plant in Missoula County is a testament to the high quality of our local workforce and infrastructure," added Missoula Mayor John Engen. "This community is ripe with potential for manufacturers, and I salute the visionary leadership at ALCOM for recognizing and seizing that opportunity."
Founded in 2006 in Waterville, Maine, ALCOM quickly rose to nationwide prominence in the recreational trailer marketplace. During its first year of operations, the company surpassed $2 million in sales. Since then, the company's growth has continued unabated. In 2008 and 2009 — during the worst years of the recent economic recession — ALCOM's year-over-year revenues increased 65 and 25 percent, respectively. Company revenues topped $25 million in 2011.
Today, ALCOM employs just shy of 200 workers at its 70,000-square-foot facility in Winslow, Maine. ALCOM's hand-built trailers range in size and function from mini-trailers that attach to all-terrain vehicles to large, enclosed car trailers. In 2010, ALCOM founders Tom Sturtevant and Trapper Clark were named the Maine Small Business Persons of the Year.
Despite the company's location in the far northeastern corner of the continental United States, ALCOM has developed a nationwide dealer network. The Bonner operation will allow ALCOM to reduce costs associated with shipping its trailers to dealerships in the western United States and Canada.
"We are excited to begin our next stage of growth in Big Sky Country," said Clark, president of ALCOM. "We considered several communities before choosing to locate in Bonner. Thanks to the professional assistance of Missoula Economic Partnership and the can-do attitude of local officials throughout Missoula County, our decision was ultimately made easy."
James Grunke, president and CEO of Missoula Economic Partnership, said that ALCOM's decision to open a facility in Missoula County is an early and welcome success for his organization, which was founded in June 2011 with investment from more than 80 Missoula-area businesses.
"Companies considering relocation or expansion into new communities often take more than a year to make their final decisions," Grunke said. "ALCOM saw a window of opportunity and moved quickly to make it happen here."
Grunke noted that significant space still remains available at the former Stimson Mill site, which is owned by Bonner Property Development LLC. Several other companies are actively considering the site for their operations. Two tenants, Northwest Paint Inc. and wood chipping company Willis Enterprises, are already operating at the site.
"I am confident that we will see other smart companies choosing our community in the coming months and years," Grunke said. "Even with the arrival of ALCOM, we have the existing skilled workforce to support 900-plus additional jobs in our manufacturing sector. Because those jobs produce exports, they are critical to Missoula's overall economic balance and health, creating a positive ripple effect that will be felt throughout the community."
ALCOM LLC (Aluminum Company of Maine) is a premiere manufacturer of aluminum trailers for a variety of recreational and utility uses. ALCOM founded Mission Trailers — a complete product line ranging from small utility trailers to large enclosed goosenecks. The company also produces trailers under the High Country, E-Z Hauler and SnoPro brands. Visit the company online at www.AlcomLLC.com.
The Missoula Economic Partnership works to increase the prosperity of our community by nurturing sustainable business growth and quality job creation. The Partnership's professional staff serves a central role in a broad, collaborative effort involving 80 business, individual and government investors as well as more than 30 strategic partners, all of whom share the vision of a vibrant, growing and diversified regional economy.


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In this age of multi-core processors and 3-D desktops, some people still get work done on old resource-strapped single-core machines, thanks to programs like the AbiWord word processor. The latest stable AbiWord 2.6.0 release was unveiled last month, two years after the software's last stable release. Feature-wise, the little cross-platform word processor has closed the gap with heavyweight OpenOffice.org Writer, but it suffers from the oldest Linux ill of all -- it's a pain to install.
If you are used to compiling apps from source that might not sound like a big deal. I've been compiling AbiWord since I started using the editor's 0.7.x branch in early 2000. But this is 2008, and it doesn't seem fair to not release any precompiled binaries. AbiWord isn't the easiest of apps to compile, especially now, since most of its exciting new features are packaged as plugins that have to be compiled as well. The lack of documentation on the software's Web site doesn't help either.
AbiWord developers leave it to individual distributions to package and add the word processor in their respective repositories. Most distros add it to their testing or development branch. If you install AbiWord from these repos, you'll be installing a lot more than the word processor, since the process also upgrades a lot of key libraries as well. By contrast, Windows users only need to double-click two executables -- one to install AbiWord and another to handle the plugins.
But once you get AbiWord 2.6 running, it's be worth the effort.
What's new
Lightweight and peppy yet loaded to the core, AbiWord 2.6 is as good as they come. With the latest release, you get a few templates to create documents from, and the program spell-checks text as you type. AbiWord is multilingual and lets you input text in various languages, including English, French, German, Finnish, and several Indian languages. You can configure the editor to autosave documents after specific time intervals and maintain document history. You can also compare two documents currently open in AbiWord and find similarities in content, format, and styles.
As in previous versions, AbiWord responds to Emacs or vi key bindings. For lazy Web editors like me, it's a way to generate simple HTML as well. The latest version can create a valid XML page and embed formatting in the document itself or as external CSS stylesheets.
The new version can track document revisions from multiple sources as well as show a document before and after applying the suggested revisions. There's also a find feature to move to the next or previous revision, which can either be accepted, rejected, or purged. AbiWord allows you to add a comment for a particular revision, but I couldn't figure out how to read that comment afterward.
AbiWord 2.6, like previous releases, has a lot of plugins with varying degrees of usability and compatibility. Some of the plugins I tried included the Wikipedia and Google lookup plugins, using which you can look up selected words in AbiWord documents on those sites. If you dabble in images, you'll also like the GIMP plugin, with which you can edit any inserted image in the document with the GIMP image editor. Speaking of images, AbiWord 2.6 has a limited but diverse clipart gallery. You can also drag and drop images into AbiWord documents, or drag images from AbiWord documents and drop them on your hard disk.
I couldn't get the Open Document Format (ODF) and the experimental Office Open XML (OOXML) plugins to work on the Linux installation. All I got was a simple "could not activate/load plugin" error, which didn't help resolve the issue. The plugins worked on the Windows installation though. With the ODF plugin you can both import and export a simple ODF file. The experimental OOXML plugin only lets you open a file in the newly standardized document specification. In addition to these two formats, AbiWord can natively open and save documents in a variety of formats, including plain vanilla text, rich text format, and Microsoft Word. You can also save documents as PDF files.
AbiWord handles documents of all formats well. Apart from a little loss in formatting in .doc documents (especially ones with comments), there wasn't any loss in formatting, or more importantly text, in any type of document.
The new AbiWord supposedly offers real-time document collaboration developed for the OLPC project and implemented by means of an experimental plugin. As per the AbiWord-2.6 release notes, there are three implementations of the plugin, one for the OLPC, and two (an XMPP-based one and a pure TCP/IP one) for Linux. The Linux plugins compiled without any issues, but AbiWord couldn't activate them. The plugin isn't currently available for Windows.
Versus OpenOffice.org Writer 2.4
It's probably a little unfair to compare AbiWord with the more full-featured OpenOffice.org Writer, but AbiWord is the only real word processor that fills the void between vanilla text editors and OOo Writer. OpenOffice.org 2.4 was also released in the last week of March and has lots of new features. We recently reviewed OpenOffice.org in its run-up to OpenOffice.org 3.0.
Thanks to having a more limited set of features than OpenOffice.org, AbiWord scores over its full-featured rival in the areas of speed and easy-to-navigate interface. Irrespective of the computer I run it on, AbiWord pops open with a blank document in a second or two. OpenOffice.org Writer 2.4 takes about 15 seconds on a dual-core box with 1GB RAM, which is a step up from earlier lethargic OpenOffice.org launch times. It's also much easier to locate a particular option or setting in AbiWord, thanks to limited feature set.
But there are a couple of things that AbiWord can learn from OpenOffice.org. If AbiWord would allow adding comments in a document, it would be more useful on an editor's desk. And it would be great if users could embed audio and video objects in their documents and not just images.
Some people criticize AbiWord because it lacks the ability to create charts, but if you run AbiWord on GNOME, you'll benefit from the GNOME-Office integration and will be able to create and import Gnumeric charts into AbiWord documents. The GNOME-Office package works well on lightweight desktops like Xfce.
AbiWord is a great word processor and totally rocks on lower-end machines. AbiWord 2.6 has further bridged the gap to full-featured apps like OpenOffice.org Writer, and the new release has enough features to satisfy a fair proportion of the word processing population. Some tools, such as the collaboration plugin and the OOXML/ODF file import/export plugin, need some work before they can fully interoperate with other word processors that produce documents in these formats. The project's participation in Google's Summer of Code program should help to this end. New Linux users wouldn't mind an easy-to-use installer as well, like the one their Windows cousins get, and some updated online documentation would help too.
But make no mistake about it, AbiWord 2.6 is a hallmark AbiWord release -- cholesterol-free, fast, and with a couple of jaw-dropping features that you won't find in any other word processor.


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The Dream On Jay-Z Making Fun Of His Hat!
The Dream checks in with MTV News after the Grammys
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I am constantly adding to my To Be Read list. Every Mailbox Monday I find books I'm envious of, and every review I read helps me decide whether to add another book to my TBR list. I use Amazon's Shelfari (If you haven't tried it, it's great). Here are some of the recent books I've added to my ever-growing list.
Plague Town by Dana Fredsti
"Ashley was just trying to get through a tough day when the world turned upside down.
A terrifying virus appears, quickly becoming a pandemic that leaves its victims, not dead, but far worse. Attacked by zombies, Ashley discovers that she is a 'Wild-Card' — immune to the virus — and she is recruited to fight back and try to control the outbreak.
It's Buffy meets the Walking Dead in a rapid-fire zombie adventure." (GoodReads)
Picture This by Jacqueline Sheehan
"Peaks Island, Maine vibrates with its own special magic, a unique flow to life that knits together the small community that calls it home. The people, the animals, and even the houses have a charm and personality all their own. Just ask Rocky Pelligrino. Devastated by her husband Bob's sudden death, she found hope thanks to a relentlessly loyal black Lab namedCooper. Warm friends and a new job—as the island's Animal Control Warden—have helped Rocky chart a course toward a promising future. She's even ready to try at love again with Hill, the gentle and patient archery instructor. And there is an old house haunted by lost love and forgotten secrets that speaks to her soul.
But a phone call from a troubled young woman looking for her biological father shakes Rocky's newfound joy. Could this young girl hold a tendril of the man who was the love of her life? Or could the girl's appearance throw Rocky's world into chaos . . . and shatter her heart again?"
The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
"Who is Jenna Fox? Seventeen-year-old Jenna has been told that is her name. She has just awoken from a coma, they tell her, and she is still recovering from a terrible accident in which she was involved a year ago. But what happened before that? Jenna doesn't remember her life. Or does she? And are the memories really hers?
This fascinating novel represents a stunning new direction for acclaimed author Mary Pearson. Set in a near future America, it takes readers on an unforgettable journey through questions of bio-medical ethics and the nature of humanity. Mary Pearson's vividly drawn characters and masterful writing soar to a new level of sophistication."
Odd Apocalypse by Dean Koontz
"The stallion reared over me, silently slashing the air with the hooves of its forelegs, a creature of such immense power that I stumbled backward even though I knew that it was as immaterial as a dream. . . .
The woman astride the ghostly mount reaches out desperately, the latest spirit to enlist the aid of Odd Thomas, the unassuming young fry cook whose gift—or curse—it is to see the shades of the restless dead, and to help them when he can. This mission of mercy will lead Odd through realms of darkness he has never before encountered, as he probes the long-held secrets of a sinister estate and those who inhabit it."
Gifted: A Donovan Circus Novel by Liz Long
"Even in a world of freaks, being a Firestarter is considered a dangerous Gift.
Lucy was born with the ability to create and control fire. She longs to leave the human world for one filled with Earthshakers, Transporters, and Chameleons, to name a few. When she rejoins the circus, it's everything she hoped it could be—new friends, a potential love interest or two, and a place where she can be herself.
When troupe members begin turning up dead, however, Lucy is suspected of foul play. She must not only prove her innocence but also realize the full extent of her power. To find the real murderer, she must uncover the truth behind her father's fiery legacy while figuring out whom to trust within her new circle. Little does she know the history of the Donovan Circus and its enemies might actually destroy the entire gifted world."
Aftertime by Sophie Littlefield
"Set in a dystopian world and featuring zombies, "Aftertime" is the first novel in a new series. Cass Dollar had been taken by zombies and turned into one of them. But she got better somehow. Now all she wants to do is find her daughter."
Blood Oath by Christopher Farnsworth
"Zach Barrows is an ambitious young White House staffer whose career takes an unexpected turn when he's partnered with Nathaniel Cade, a secret agent sworn to protect the President. But Cade is no ordinary civil servant. Bound by a special blood oath, he is a vampire. Cade battles nightmares before they can break into the daylight world of the American dream, enemies far stranger-and far more dangerous-than civilians have ever imagined."
Before You Go by James Preller
"The summer before his senior year, Jude (yes, he's named after the Beatles song) gets his first job, falls in love for the first time, and starts to break away from his parents. Jude's house is kept dark, and no one talks much—it's been that way since his little sister drowned in a swimming pool seven years ago when Jude was supposed to be watching her.
Now, Jude is finally, finally starting to live. Really live. And then, life spins out of control. Again."
I hope you've found some books to add to your "To Be Read" list! Happy Thursday!


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Mac Miller & Vintage Frames Company Appointment [User Submitted]
"Take a peak behind the scenes as The Vintage Frames Company
heads out to meet their homies Mac Miller and Wiz Khalifa on their
2012 Under The Influence Of Music Tour. Get behind the scenes
access with Corey Shapiro of The Vintage Frames Company as he
conducts a private Vintage Sunglasses and Vintage Chains
appointment for Mac Miller. For more behind the scenes access
head over to www.VintageFramesShop.com to view all the Vintage
Sunglasses and Vintage Chains featured in the video." -
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Kyle Schwarber's two home run game in Cincinnati on Tuesday night could have a domino effect on the Cubs as they head into the final days before the trading deadline, and leads to many new questions about the short-term and long-term future of the team:
-- If Schwarber is the one big bat the Cubs were lacking, do they really have to find a power-hitting outfielder for the stretch run, or can they now make due with the two Chrises -- Coghlan and Denorfia -- and perhaps acquire a veteran utility player like Ben Zobrist?
-- Does Miguel Montero get his starting job back when he returns from his thumb injury, or is he now Schwarber's back-up?
-- If Montero returns to his...


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While those with physical jobs are easily excused from work due to low back pain, those who spend most of the time at a desk are not. Pain is usually an indication of bigger problems. Which relate to the spine, but what most people neglect is the importance of your feet! You walk, run, sit, stand, etc. Chiropractic adjustments in Bellair, Florida remove nerve interference allowing your nervous system to do what it was made to do, feel great! Many chiropractic patients also report improvements.
- Heightened energy and mood
- Improved immune system
- Increased range of motion
- Relief from back and neck pain
What Does A Bellair, Florida Local Chiropractor Services Help You With?
Most of us go through each day with some kind of ache or pain that we are essentially ignoring. Neck pain after a car accident, a.k.a, whiplash: If you"re in a car that is hit fro behind, the neck tends to snap forward and backward rapidly. Continuous chiropractic care will help ensure that the muscles and joints in your neck and back can work optimally and keep you comfortable and enjoying your life. Most patients experience immediate pain relief after their first chiropractic adjustment. Chiropractic keep your nervous system functioning at its best so that you can enjoy a pain-free workout. This is the most common form, affecting an estimated 29 million Americans.
What can a chiropractor in Bellair do for lower back pain?
Build a healthy lifestyle that includes exercise, a diet consisting mainly of raw vegetables and organic meats and fish, and most importantly, reducing the intake of processed sugar, dairy and grains. If you are over 45 years old, you should consider getting tested for diabetes and if you"re under 45, but overweight and have an additional risk factor, you should also think about getting tested. Often misunderstood, sciatica is not the cause of the irritation at the nerve root, rather it is a set of symptoms. Chiropractic care in Clay County, Florida and adjustments are a viable option for treating the pain and symptoms associated with sciatic nerve issues.The spine is a combination of stacked bones, called vertebrae, flexible tendons and ligaments. Unfortunately between 80 to 90 percent of the population has back or spinal pain at some point in their lives. Back pain is one of the most common reasons for healthcare and chiropractic visits but it doesn"t have to be part of your daily life.
What is chiropractic treatment near Bellair, Florida 32073?
One of the most common conditions Bellair chiropractors see and treat is neck pain. There are four different types of curvatures in the cervical spine—all of which can be determined through an X-ray. The curvatures in the spine act as shock absorbers for various body parts. The best way to determine if you have a healthy curve in your neck is to be evaluated by your chiropractor. In addition to back pain and headaches, musculoskeletal and arthritis pain top the list. Typical treatment often includes medications such as painkillers or steroids.
Forceful impacts, repetitive motions and overuse often lead to sports injuries at any age. Chiropractors are the only healthcare providers trained to diagnose and treat subluxations. Whether your child is in a contact sport like football or hockey or a non-contact sport like gymnastics or swimming, regular exams, adjustments and therapies are essential. Once you"ve decided on a chiropractor, consider your first appointment to be like a job interview, to make sure the partnership will be a good fit. Neither technique is necessarily better, but you may be more comfortable with one or the other.
Types of Chiropractic Treatments
How long will my treatment last? Be wary of Florida chiropractors who put you on a strict treatment plan including an exact time line of how long they think your treatment will take. It can be difficult to decide whether or not the costs are competitive, but at least you will know what you can expect to pay. Many people who visit our site have already been to see a chiropractor. Go to the Chiropractic Licensing Boards website to look up a chiropractor by name. What is the policy at the clinic for payment of services that are denied by the insurer?
Offices Near Bellair –
- Bellair-Meadowbrook Terrace
- Meadowbrook Terrace
- North Meadowbrook Terrace
- Argyle Forest
- Camp Echockotee
- Continental Village Mobile Home Park
- Orange Park
- Orange Park North Mobile Home Community
- Three Seasons Mobile Home Village
- Laurel Grove
Potential Red Flags about Chiropractic Treatment Programs
What kind of discounts does the chiropractor offer? How long is the average wait time in the waiting room? Free spinal exams – such as ones offered through a coupon program or at a shopping mall or health fair – are a common marketing tactic. No promises should be made, particularly without a thorough clinical examination. Finally, patients should beware of any practitioner who asks for a lump sum payment up front for "extended" or "lifetime" chiropractic care, as this is not in the patient"s best interest.


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Badaga Community
Welcome to Badaga community forum
Help for Ramya
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Frequent poster
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 108
Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:20 am
Hi all,
In my Workplace we have an outreach team to help needy people.We used to visit most of the place like orphanage,schools,old homes during
weekends and help those people.
Recently we came to know about a girl named ramya.
She has finished her BE in Aeronautical Engineering in PSN college at Palayamkottai (Tamilnadu). She is a 2010 Passed out.
She has joined her college through Anna university counseling. Her fees was around 4,00,000 for her entire course, out of which they have got a loan of 42,000 per year and they have paid 1, 68 ,000. Her father is a daily wage worker who is not permanently employed and has a very poor financial status. They dont have proper home. Infact the house doesnt even have doors, instead of which they have hung some sacks. One of our volunteer have personally went to her native and did the due diligence.
Since they are not able to pay the entire course fees, the college have retained the girls certificates and the girl is not able to apply for any job. They need to pay Rs 2,00,000 to the college to retain her certificates.
Ramya have also scored 76% during her engineering course. Just because of her financial situation the college have retained her certificate and she is not able to get a job even after scoring good marks in engineering. The girls family is in very poor financial situation, it is must for Ramya to go to a job and earn some money for her family. Only if she can earn some money, she will be able to repay the loan amount Rs 1,68,000 which she got for her studies.
we would like to take this as a special and unique request and help this girl to overcome her problems. Your little contribution can make a big difference to Ramya and family.Please comment and drop a mail
if you like to contribute
Last date for contribution is Oct-10, 2010.
Frequent poster
Joined: 31 Dec 1998
Posts: 131
Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2010 8:20 am
I am of the opinion, it is wise we take up this issue thro the affiliating Anna university. In the mean time, I am suggesting take the support in different direction by calling up couple of self financing academic institutions to offer her a possible job.
Devarajan Mathan-
Frequent poster
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 108
Posted: Thu Sep 16, 2010 9:21 am
Ur suggestion is welcome.I think there is no point in taking this issue to anna university.Since anna univ have nothing to deal with self financing institution's fee.
Also we cant blame the college, since no college will permit the students to write exam without paying fees. But in this case,we should appreciate the college as it has permitted her to write the exam.
Regarding job, stepping into next level is impossible without certificate.
Though she is from poor family, her determination to do BE is appreciable.But without job her life will sure become miserable.
Frequent poster
Joined: 31 Dec 1998
Posts: 131
Posted: Fri Sep 17, 2010 9:29 am
I am sure there will atleast be one good soul in the form of Self Financing College Owners who will be willing to support her on temporary employment basis which can give her a sustenance which she cam use later to pay her dues and become regular employee. Do ask her to forward her resume, if she is interested. \\
Devarajan Mathan-
Frequent poster
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 108
Posted: Fri Sep 17, 2010 11:08 pm
I have forwarded mail to your email id. Since im held up with work, I din find time to contact her in person. Will do that soon and will update you.
Frequent poster
Joined: 31 Dec 1998
Posts: 131
Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2010 12:22 am
An immediate temporary employment opportunity is created for Ramya in an Engineering college with accommodation in College Ladies hostel. Ramya shall make use of this opportunity WITHOUT CERTIFICATES to earn for herself and pay her fee to collect Certificates over a period of time. When Certificate is available, she would have gained some experience and go further.
Devarajan Mathan-
Frequent poster
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 108
Posted: Thu Sep 30, 2010 2:26 am
I talked with ramya in person and I forwarded ramya's resume to deva. He came up with an option as he mentioned above and intimated me.Again I had conversation with ramya, she is fine with this option.But she asked time till 10th of oct as outreach team in my organization has involved in fund collection.Last date is 10th oct.. If this works out she can get her certificates and try for better options. If not she can go with this option.
Frequent poster
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 108
Posted: Thu Oct 07, 2010 5:17 am
Our outreach team has raised Rs.2lakhs in 23 days time.A group of volunteers from outreach team will meet Ramya soon and pay the fees in her college directly to recover her course certificates.Ramya will start her career journey from now on
@ Deva:Thanks for your effort and support......
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Osama bin Laden's Declaration of War
Praise be to Allah, we seek His help and ask for His pardon. We take refuge in Allah from our wrongs and bad deeds. Whom ever Allah has guided will not be misled, and who ever has been misled, will never be guided. I bear witness that there is no God but Allah, no associate with Him and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.
{O ye who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and die not except in a state of Islam},
{O mankind! Reverence your Guardian-Lord, Who created you from a single Person, created of like nature, His mate, and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women-fear Allah, through Whom ye demand your mutual (rights), and (reverence) the wombs (that bore you): for Allah ever watches over you}. {O ye who your conduct whole and sound and forgive you your sins: He who obeys Allah and His messenger has already attained the highest achievement}.
Praise be to Allah Who said: {I only desire (your) betterment to the best of my power; and my success (in my task)}. [Hud:88].
Praise be to Allah Who said: {Ye are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoying what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah}. [Al'Imran: 110].
Peace and Prayers be upon His servant and messenger who said: "The people are close to an all encompassing punishment from Allah if they see the oppressor and fail to restrain him".
[Prophetic tradition said by Abu Dawud, al-Tarmathy and al-Nisa'i].
Here thereafter:
It is not concealed from you that the people of Islam had suffered from aggression, iniquity and injustice imposed on them by the Jewish-Christian alliance and their collaborators to the extent that the Muslims' blood became the cheapest and their wealth and assets looted by the hands of the enemies. Their blood was spilled in Palestine and Iraq. The horrifying pictures of the massacre of Qana, in Lebanon are still fresh in our memory. Massacres took place in Tajikistan, Burma, Kashmir, Assam, Philippine, Fattani, Ugadin, Somalia, Eritrea, Chechnya and in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Massacring Muslims that sent shivers in the body and shook the conscience. All of that happened and the world watched and heard, and not only did not respond to these atrocities, but also with a clear conspiracy between America and its allies prevented the weaklings from acquiring arms to defend themselves by using the United Nations as a cover. Muslims became aware that they were the main targets of the Jewish-Crusader alliance of aggression. The false propaganda regarding human rights have vanished under the tribulations and massacres that were committed against Muslims everywhere.
This last aggression was the worst catastrophe that was inflicted upon the Moslems since the death of the Prophet. That is, the occupation of the land of the two holiest sites, Islam's own grounds, the cradle of Islam, source of the Prophet's mission, site of the Ka'bah was launched by the Christian army of the Americans and their allies.
There is no power and no strength save in God.
In light of these facts and the reality we live in, in light of this blessed and overwhelming awakening that swept the world, the Islamic world in particular, I meet with you today after a long absence imposed by the unjust Crusade under the leadership of America against the Islam scholars, fearing stirring up the Islamic Nation against its enemies as was guided by ancestoral scholars, like Ibn Tamimah and al-Iz Bin Abd-al-Salam, may Allah bless their souls. We do not justify anyone above God. They [alliance] murdered the Mujahid Sheikh/Abdallah Azzam and arrested the Mujahid Sheikh/Ahmad Yasin. In the path of the prophet; praise and prayers be upon him, and Mujahid Sheikh/ Omar Abd-al-Rahman in America as well as many scholars, preachers and youth that were arrested in the land of the two Holiest sites upon the instructions of America. Most prominent were Sheikh/Salman al-Udah and Sheikh Safar al-Hawali. There is no power and no strength save by God. We were affected by some of that injustice by barring us from speaking with the Muslims, while being hunted in Pakistan, Sudan and Afghanistan; which caused our long absence. But by the grace of God there was a safe haven in Khurasan, under the protection of Hindukush Mountains. These mountains where e the World's most powerful military and apostates were crushed, and where the legend of the great forces dissipated in front the cries of the Mujahideen.
God is Most Great. Today, from the same shelters in Afghanistan, we are working to lift off the injustice that was inflicted upon the nation by the Jewish-Crusaders alliance, especially after their occupation of the Prophet's land, praise and peace be upon him, and their desecration of land of the two holiest sites. We ask Allah to grant us victory. He is the defender and the almighty.
Today we start talking, working and remembering to search for ways to reform whatever happened to the Islamic world in general, land of the two holiest sites in particular. We want to study all possible ways that can be established to restore the situation back to its origin and the rights to their owners, after what happened to the people from great misfortune and serious harm concerning their religion and worldly existence. People from all walks of life were stricken: civilians, military and security personnel, officials, merchants, young and old, school and university students, thousands of unemployed university graduates, who make up great number in society.
It also struck Industrial and agriculture groups, urbanites, nomads and desert inhabitants.
Everyone is complaining about everything. The situation in the land of the two holy places became like a gigantic volcano ready to erupt, so it can annihilate the infidelity and corruption no matter where the source comes from. Riyadh and Khubar explosions were only a warning to this roaring flood, which was caused by suffering, bitter suppression, subjugation, excessive injustice, degrading oppression and poverty.
People are fully concerned about their every day livelihood, every one talks about the deterioration of the economy, inflation, high cost of living, ever-increasing debts, and prisons full of inmates. These employees are with limited income, talk about their debts of ten thousands and hundred thousands of Riyals. They complain that the value of the Riyal is greatly and continuously deteriorating against other major currencies. Even leading merchants and contractors talk about hundreds and thousands of million Riyals owed to them by the government.
More than three hundred forty billions Riyals are owed by the government to the people, in addition to the daily-accumulated interest, let alone the foreign debt. People ask and wonder whether we are really the largest oil exporting country! They even feel and believe that this situation is punishment and curse put on them by Allah for their silence against the injustice, oppressive and illegitimate behavior and measures of the ruling regime. Most conspicuous is ignoring the divine Shari'ah law depriving people from their legitimate rights and allowing the Americans to occupy the land of the two holiest sites, and the unjust imprisonment of the devoted scholars and the successors of the prophet. Scholars, preachers, merchants, economists and dignitaries became aware of this great misfortune; every group did what they could and oved fast to correct the situation. All agreed that the country is heading toward a great catastrophe, the extent of which is not known except by Allah. One senior merchant said [the king is leading the country to a disaster]. There is no power and no strength save in God.
Numerous princes share with the public their feelings, privately expressing their concerns and objecting to the corruption, repression and intimidation taking place in the country.
Rivalry among the influential princes over personal interest and gains had destroyed the country.
Through its course of actions, the regime has ripped apart its legitimacy the most important being:
- Suspension of Islamic laws, and replacing it with statuary laws and embarking upon bloody confrontation with devoted scholars and righteous youths. We do not justify anyone above God.
- Failure of the regime to protect the country, and allowing the enemy of Crusaders-American forces to occupy the land years present the main reason for our disaster in every aspect, especially economically. Because of the wasteful government spending, the imposed economic policies such as limiting the production of oil and controlling its selling price, and the high cost of arm deals, the people started wondering why does this regime exist?
Every group did its utmost to move swiftly to avert this deteriorating situation. They advised the government both privately and openly, in prose and in poetry, jointly and separately, they send letters and poems, reports after reports, reminders after reminders; they explored every way and enlist every influential person in their movement of reform and correction. They wrote with style of passion, diplomacy and wisdom asking for corrective measures and repentance from great wrongdoings and corruption that had engulfed even the basic principles of the religion and the legitimate rights of the people. But unfortunately and to our deepest regret the regime refused to listen to the people accusing them of being ridiculous and silly. The matter got worse as previous wrongdoings were followed by mischiefs of greater magnitudes. All of this took place in land of the two holiest sites!! Silence was no longer permissible nor connivance became unacceptable.
When the transgression reached this magnitude; and exceeded the limits of atrocity to contradict the solemn Islam, a group of scholars and preachers became fed up with the deafening sounds of deception and blinded their eyes from viewing bribery and blocked their noses from smelling corruption. Rejection vows were revived and demands for preventing the situation from deteriorating became loud. Dozens of educated dignitaries, merchants, and former officials joined in. They dispatched letters and memos to the king calling for reform. In 1411H, and during the Gulf war, a letter with over 400 signatures was sent to the king demanding reform, lifting oppression and the implementation of corrective measures. The king humiliated the people and ignored the letters. The bad situation of the country became even worse. The counselors resubmitted letters and memos once again. One particular report was handed over to the king in Muharram 1413H, which tackled the problem, pointed out the ailments and prescribed the remedy in an original, righteous and scientific style. It described the gaps and drawbacks in the philosophy of the regime and suggested the required course of action and remedy. The report described the intimidation and harassment suffered by the leaders of the society, the scholars, chiefs of tribes, merchants, academic teachers and other eminent individuals.
It also spelled out the situation of the law in the country and the arbitrary declaration of what is lawful and unlawful regardless of the Shari'ah as instituted by Allah.
The report mentioned the state of the media and the presse that became tools for hiding the truth and spreading misinformation.. The media carried out the plan of the enemy of idolizing cult of certain people and spreading atrocity among the believers to repel the people away from their faith and religion. Almighty Allah said: {Those who love (to see) scandal published broadcast among believers, will have a grievous Penalty in this life and in the Hereafter: Allah knows, and ye know it} [Al Nur, verse 19].
The report also covered the Abuse and confiscation of human rights, as well as, the administrative situation that is ruled by incapable individuals and the widespread of corruption.
The report went on to cover the financial and economical situation of the country and the frightening future in view of the enormous amount of debts and interest owed by the government, while imposing more custom duties, taxes and usury on the nation. (It was said that: if a woman committed adultery and repented: And have been punished: Her repentance and forgiveness would be granted to such a toll holder if he repented as well) [Said by Ahmad]. That shows how grave the sin of those who deal with usury is. Some people still preach from the pulpits for the toll holder and usury, which is blasphemy. There is no power and no strength save by God.
The report also discussed the miserable situation of the social services and infrastructure, especially the water service and supply, the basic requirement of life.
It also pointed out the state of the ill trained, ill-prepared army and the impotence of its commander in chief, despite the incredible amount of money that was spent on the army.
As for the judiciary, the Shari'ah law was suspended and statuary laws were used instead.
As far as the foreign policy is concerned; the report exposed not only how this policy had disregarded the Islamic issues and ignored the Muslims, but also how help and support were provided to the enemy against the Muslims –cases like Gaza and Jericho- and the communists in South Yemen are still fresh in the memory, plus others.
According to scholars, it is known to every one that applying statuary laws and supporting the unbelievers against Muslims are considered contradictory to the teachings of Islam. God said: {If any do fail to judge by [the light of] what Allah Hath revealed, they are [no better than] unbelievers}. [Al Ma'idah: 44]. Almighty Allah also said {But no, by the Lord, they can have no (real) Faith, until they make thee judge in all disputes between them, and find in their souls no resistance against they decisions, but accept them with the fullest conviction}. [Al Nisa': 65].
Although the memorandum presented all that with leniency and friendliness, reminiscing of God, preaching for kindness, in a courteous and truthful style, and despite the importance of consultation in Islam and its necessity for those who rule people to apply it, and despite the number and stature of the signatories of this memorandum, all of that did not intercede with the plea. The contents were met with rejection and discouragement. The signatories and sympathizers were met with punishment and imprisonment.
It became clear that the preachers' and reformers' desire and eagerness was to pursue peaceful means for the sake of the country's unity and to prevent bloodshed of the people. So why does the regime block all means of peaceful reform and force people towards armed action? It became the only solution that wes left for people to lift the oppression and institute justice and truth. In whose interest do [Prince Sultan and Prince Nayif] involve the country and its people in a internal war that would destroy us all? They ask for help and advise from people who started the domestic riots in their country. Mobilized the police to abort the reform movement. Segregate and plot against the people, with the help of these traitors. The main enemy of the region – the Jewish-American coalition - remained safe and secure while the people's wealth was depleted.
People could not tolerate the Minister of Interior's [Prince Naif] adviser, because of his unjust and oppressive tactics, so he was discharged from his position, but [Prince Naif] welcomed him back to assist him with his offenses and aggression. He filled the prisons with the elite members of the nation, mothers cried for the false accusations, vilification and imprisonment of their children. Does the regime want to stir people against each other, civilians and military, like what happened in some neighboring countries? There is no doubt that this is the policy of the Jewish-American alliance- as they are the beneficiaries of that. But by the grace of God the majority of the civilian and military population are aware of this vicious scheme. They would aspire to use this as a tool to instigate internal strife in order to implement the main enemy's American-Jewish alliance policy through its authorized agent in Saudi Arabia.
Therefore everyone agreed that [The shadow can not become straight if the rod is crooked]. Thereupon it is inevitable to concentrate on hitting the main enemy that led the country to spinning and maze modes for decades, after dividing it to many and petty states. Whenever a reform movement emerged in the Islamic countries, the –Jewish Crusade alliance– would push their agents rulers in the region to deplete and abort this reform movement by using many means with what they see fit. Some times they abort their efforts by armed encounter, by specifying the time and place of battle, where they nip it in the bud. Sometimes men from Ministry of Interior who have graduated from religious academies would derange and disperse the reformative demonstrations. Sometimes they would ask some righteous people to engage in verbal warfare with scholars and symbols of the reformative movement, so they can exhaust everyone's energy and keep the infidels in control the country. The discussions would continue, while monotheism of God in worshipping and obeying His Islamic law are absent from reality. In light of these discussions and arguments the truth becomes ambiguous and confusing. Many times discussions end up in personal feud; people would take sides, which causes more division among them and increases their weakness. Priorities in the Islamic work have disappeared; therefore caution must be taken towards these devilish tricks, which are carried out by Ministry of Interior. The right thing to do in this prevailing situation is what the scholars decided, like what sheikh [Ibn Tamimah] may Allah bless his soul; said: "all Muslims should join forces to drive back the infidelity, which controls the Islamic world". Putting up with minimum harm for the sake of driving back the biggest harm, which is the great infidelity. Driving back the American occupier enemy is the most essential duty after faith. There is nothing more important than that, as the scholars have determined, and what sheikh [Ibn Tamimah] have mentioned: if there is more than one duty to be carried out, then the most important one should receive priority. Clearly after Belief there is no more important duty than pushing the American enemy out of the Holy land...If it is not possible to push back the enemy except by a collective movement of the Muslim people, then there it is a duty of the Muslims to ignore the minor differences among themselves. The ill effect of ignoring these differences, at a given period of time, is much less than the ill effect of the occupation of the Muslims' land by the main infidels.
If it is not possible to fight except with the help of non righteous military personnel and commanders, then there are two possibilities: either fighting will be ignored and the others, who pose a great danger to this life and religion, will take control of the two dangers and implementing most, though not all, of the Islamic laws, or put foreword man-made laws that have been forbidden by Allah, such as usury and other matters. Banks dealing in usury are competing for lands, with the two Holiest places; and declaring war against Allah by disobeying His orders: (But Allah permitted trade and forbade usury) [Al Baqarah: 275]. Be careful of your duty to Allah and relinquish what remains from usury. Almighty Allah said: (O ye who believe!
Fear Allah, and give up what remains of your demand for usury, if ye are indeed believers. If ye do it not, take notice of war from Allah and His Messenger: But if you turn back, ye shall have your capital sums; deal not unjustly, and ye shall not be dealt with unjustly)[Al Baqarah 278-279]. This is for the Muslim, who deals in usury, what is it then to the person who makes himself a partner and equal to Allah, legalizing usury and other sins, what has been forbidden by Allah.
Under such circumstances, to push the enemy the greatest infidel out of the country is a prime duty. No other duty after Belief is more important than the duty of Jihad. Utmost efforts should be made to prepare and instigate the nation against the enemy, the American-Israeli alliance occupying the country of the two holiest sites, and the root of the Messenger [Allah's Blessings and Salutations may be upon him]. Also to remind the Muslims not to engage in an internal war among themselves, as that will have grieve consequences, namely:
- Attrition of Muslims human resources as most casualties and fatalities will be among the Muslims.
- Attrition of economic and financial resources.
- Destruction of the country's infrastructure.
- Disintegrating the society.
- Destruction of the oil industries because of the presence of the American-Crusader military forces in the Islamic Gulf States thus threatening the largest oil reserves in the world. The economies of the Gulf States and the land of the two holiest sites will be damaged and even a greater damage will be caused to the world economy. I would like to alert my brothers, the Mujahideen, the sons of the nation, to protect this wealth and not to include it in the battle, as it is a great Islamic wealth, and a large economic power essential for the; by Allah's blessings and grace. We also warn the aggressors, the USA, against burning this Islamic wealth at the end of the war, to prevent it from falling in the hands of its legitimate owners, and to cause economic damage to the competitors in Europe and the Far east, especially Japan, which is the major consumer of region's oil.
- Division of the land of the two holiest sites, and annexing of the northern part of it by Israel. Dividing the land of the two holiest sites is essential to the Jewish-Crusader alliance. The existence of such a large country with its huge resources under the leadership of the forthcoming Islamic State, by Allah's Grace, represents a serious threat to the very existence of the Jewish state in Palestine. Due to the fact that the land of the two holiest sites represents a symbol of unity of the Islamic world because the existence of the Ka'bah. Likewise land of the two holiest sites represents essential economic power in the Islamic world because it has the worlds largest oil reserve. People of the land of the two holiest sites have ties with their ancestors' way of life, which they consider idealistic and forms the bases for restoring the glory of the nation, and continuing to spread the word of God. Moreover, there is a wealth of fighting Mujahideen available in Yemen ready to fight for God's cause.
- An internal war is a great mistake, no matter what the reasons are. The presence of the American occupation forces will control the outcome of the battle for the benefit of the International atheists.
I address now my brothers of the security and military forces and the national guards may Allah preserve you an asset for Islam and the Muslims:
O you protectors of unity and guardians of faith, O you descendants of the ancestors who carried the light of guidance and spread it all over the world. O you grandsons of S'ad Bin Abi Waqqas, al-Muthanna Bin Harithah al-Shibani, al-Qa'qa' Bin Amr al-Tamimi and everyone who waged jihad with the Companions of the Prophet. You competed to join the army and the national guard forces with the intention to carry out Jihad for the sake of Allah "raising His exalted word" and to defend the faith of Islam and the land of the two holiest sites against the invaders and the occupying forces. But the regime overturned the balance, inverted the concepts, subdued the people, and disobeyed the religion. The nation did not recapture the first of the two kiblahs [Jerusalem], the route of the Prophet, [Peace and Prayers be upon him], even after the promises that the rulers affirmed half a century ago to recapture it. That generation has gone, new generation came, promises have changed, (AlAqsa Mosque) was handed over to the Jews. The nation's wounds still bleed there since that time. Despite all this, and all of a sudden, the Saudi regime afflicted more pain on the people by allowing women of the Christian armies to defend them and allowed the crusaders to occupy the country.
The crusaders were permitted to be in the land of the two holiest sites. – Not surprisingly though, the King himself wore the cross-. The country was widely opened for the crusaders. The land was filled with American and allied military bases. The regime became unable to keep control without the help of these bases. You know more than anyone else about the size, intention and the danger of their presence in the area. The regime betrayed the country, and joined the infidels by assisting and helping them against the Muslims. It is not concealed from you that it was violation of Islam.
The King has violated the prophet's command by allowing the crusaders to be in the Arab Peninsula. The Prophet said on his deathbed: (Expel the infidels from the Arabian Peninsula). He also said (If it should please God Almighty that I live, I will expel the Jews and the Christians from the Arabian Peninsula). It is out of date and no longer acceptable to claim that the presence of the crusaders is a necessity and only a temporary measure to protect the land of the two holiest sites, especially when the civil and military infrastructures of Iraq were savagely destroyed showing the depth of the Jewish-Crusaders' hatred of the Muslims and their children, and the rejection of the idea of replacing the crusaders forces by an Islamic force composed of the sons of other Muslim countries. Moreover the bases for their claim of defending the country were wiped out by the numerous speeches given by the leaders of the infidels in America. William Perry, the Defense Secretary, gave the latest of these speeches to the American Army, after the explosion in Al-Khobar; saying that: "The presence of the American troops there was to protect the interests of America". Sheikh Safar al-Hawali - may Allah hasten his release- wrote a book of seventy pages; where he presented evidence and proof that the American presence in the Arabian Peninsula is a preplanned military occupation.
This claim is another ploy; the regime wants to deceive the Muslims the same way the Palestinian Mujahideen were deceived causing the loss of Al-Aqsa Mosque. That is when the Muslims in Palestine started their greatest jihad against the British occupation in 1354H, corresponding to 1936. Britain could not resist nor withstand their Jihad.
The British then realized that the only way to stop the armed Jihad in Palestine is through King Abd-al-Aziz, who could easily deceive the Mujahideen. King Abd-al-Aziz carried out his mission by sending his two sons who met with the Mujahideen leadership in Palestine, and conveyed the King's guarantees of the British government's promises that they will leave if they stopped the Jihad and that they will also comply with their demands. So the King was the cause of losing Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. He backed up the Christians against the Muslims, and instead of adopting the Al-Aqsa cause and supporting the Mujahideen to liberate it, he betrayed them. Today his son King Fahd tries to deceive the Muslims as well, so they can lose what is left of the sacred places. He lied to the scholars, who gave [Fatwa] to allow the Americans to be there, as well as great number of scholars and Islamic world leaders in al-Rabitah convention in Mecca. After the Islamic world condemned the presence of the Crusaders in the land of the two holiest sites, The King said that: "the issue is simple, the American and their allied forces will leave in few months".
Today it has been seven years since their arrival, and the regime is unable expel them out of the country. The regime did not confess its inability to do so and kept on lying to the people claiming that the Americans will leave, but no one believed it because a believer will not be bitten twice by the same snake, and a fortunate person is the one who takes heeds to other peoples' warnings.
To make things worse, and instead of having the army, the national guards and the security forces confront the occupiers the regime forced them to be their protectors. There is no power and no strength save in God. We mention these few men from the army, police and security forces that are being humiliated and mistreated by the regime who pressure them to infringe upon the Muslim's rights. (Prophetic traditions were quoted): [Anyone who follows and believes in me, have the right and blessings to participate in war] other quotes also mentioned.
Today your brothers and sons from the two holiest sites started the jihad for the sake of God to expel the occupying enemy from the land of the two holiest sites. There is no doubt that you wish to carry on this task; to restore the glory for the country and to liberate its occupied sacred places. Nevertheless, it must be obvious to you that, due to the imbalance of power between our armed forces and the enemy forces a suitable means of fighting must be adopted, such as using fast moving forces operating in total secrecy. In other words to initiate guerilla warfare, were the sons of the nation, and not the military forces, take part in it. As you know, it is wise at this stage to exclude the armed forces from a traditional warfare with the Crusader enemy forces, except for daring and intensive operations, which can be executed by some members of the armed forces, meaning, without the interference of regular forces with its traditional formation.
The Mujahideen, your brothers and sons, request that you support them in every possible way by supplying them with the necessary information, material and arms. Security forces are especially asked to cover up for the Mujahideen and to assist them as much as possible against the occupying enemy and to spread rumors, fear and discouragement among members of the enemy forces. We warn you that the regime might plot against members of the armed forces, national guard and security men, and try to frame the Mujahideen by spreading lies and create dissention among them.
The regime is fully responsible for what has been happening to this country. However the occupying American enemy is the principal cause of this situation. Therefore efforts should be concentrated on destroying, fighting and killing the enemy until, by the Grace of Allah, it is completely defeated. This will happen, -by the Grace of Allah-, when you do your part and put an end to the occupation so that the word of God becomes superior and the word of the infidels becomes inferior. You will hit with an iron fist against the aggressors; you will reestablish the normal course, and give the people their rights and carry out your truly Islamic duty. We will have a separate talk regarding these issues.
To my Muslim brothers every where and specifically in the Arabian Peninsula: The money you pay to buy American goods are transformed into bullets and used against our brothers in Palestine, and tomorrow; against our sons in the land of the two Holiest sites. By buying these goods we are strengthening their economy while our disposition and poverty increase.
My Muslim brothers of the land of the two holiest sites: Does it make sense that our country is the largest buyer of arms from America and the area's biggest commercial partner of America, [who are occupying the land of the two holiest sites], and are assisting their Jewish brothers in occupying Palestine, and in evicting and killing the Muslims there, by providing them with financial aid, arms and men. To deny these occupiers from the enormous revenues of their trading with our country will help our Jihad war against them. It is an important moral expression to show our anger and hatred towards them. By doing that we would have contributed towards purging our sacred places from the Jews and Christians, and forcing them to leave our lands conquered and defeated, [Allah willing].
We expect the women in the land of the two holiest sites and other places to do their part by boycotting American goods. The combination of the economic sanctions and the Mujahideen military attacks will help defeating the enemy, [Allah willing]. The reverse is correct... If the Muslims did not cooperate with their Mujahideen brothers and support them by boycotting trade with the American enemy, they would be helping and supporting them with their money, which is essential in any war, and which could prolong the war and make it harder on the Muslims.
All the security and intelligence services in the world cannot force any citizen to buy goods from the enemy. Economic boycott of the American enemy goods is a very effective weapon that would weaken and harm it, and it is not a weapon that will be exposed to repression, Before I close, I have a very important message to the Muslim youths, men of the bright future of Muhammad's nation, [Allah's Blessings and Prayers be upon him]. My conversation with the youth is about their duty during this critical period of our nation's history; only the young [may Allah keep them] came forward to carry out their duty during this period. Some were hesitant to defend and protect Islam, and to save themselves and their wealth from the injustice, oppression, repression and terrorism that is carried out by the regime who used the media to mislead the people and conceal the truth. The youth [may Allah keep them] came to carry the banner of jihad high against the American-Jewish alliance that occupied the Islamic holy places, - some came out of fear from the tyranny of the regime, or stumbled as a result of greediness in an evanescent world.
They proceeded to cast the legitimacy on this high treason and great misfortune of the occupation of the land of the two Holiest sites; there is no power and no strength save by God-.
No wonder Muhammad's companions were all young, and these young people are the best successors for the best ancestors.
{Many Prophetic traditions are quoted here}
Few days ago the news agencies had reported that the Defense Secretary of the Crusading Americans saying, "the explosion in Riyadh and Al-Khobar had taught him one lesson, and that is not to withdraw when attacked by cowardly terrorist". We say to the Defense Secretary that his talk can induce a grieving mother to laughter, and shows the fears that had enshrined you all. Where was this false courage of yours when the explosions in Beirut took place in (1403H), 1983. You were turned into scattered bits and pieces and in all directions. [At that time 241 soldiers, mainly marines were killed]. And where was this false courage of yours when two explosions made you leave Aden in less than 24 hours? But your most disgraceful case was in Somalia, where after vigorous propaganda that lasted few months, regarding the power of America and its post cold war leadership of the new world order; you moved tens of thousands of international force, including twenty eight thousand American soldiers into Somalia. However, when dozens of your troops were killed in minor battles, and one American pilot was dragged in the streets of Mogadishu, you left the area defeated, carrying your dead in disappointment and humiliation.
Clinton appeared in front of the whole world threatening and promising revenge. But these threats were merely a preparation for withdrawal. God has dishonored you when you withdrew, and it clearly showed your weaknesses and powerlessness. It was a pleasure for the heart of every Muslim and a remedy to the chests of faithful nations to see your defeat in these three Islamic cities of [Beirut, Aden and Mogadishu].
I say: the sons of the land of the two holiest sites had come out to fight against the Russians in Afghanistan, the Serbs in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and today they are fighting in Chechnya. Allah granted them victory and He came to their aid. They have been made victorious over your allies, the Russians. By the Grace of God they are also fighting in Tajikistan... I say, " If sons of the two holiest sites are aware of and have faith in the necessity of jihad against the infidels every where, then they are stronger, more zealous and more enthusiastic to defend their country where they were born, and defend its greatest shrine, the Ka'bah. They also know that Muslims around the world will come to their aid and help them in their cause. The duty and cause of all Muslims is liberating their sacred places".
[Addressing Defense Secretary William]
"The youths you called cowards are competing among themselves for fighting and killing you. They love death as much as you like life; they inherited honor, generosity, truthfulness, courage, and sacrifice from generation to generation. They inherited these characteristics from their ancestors in the pre-Islamic times and were acknowledged and confirmed in Islam. The Prophet said: " I was sent to complete and carry out these righteous morals."
{Prophetic traditions, Koranic verses and poems are quoted}
These youths strongly believe in paradise after death.
Almighty Allah said: {Nor can a soul die except by Allah's leave, the term being fixed as by writing} [Al'Imran: 145]. {But those who are slain in the way of Allah – He will never let their deeds be lost. Soon will He guide them and improve their condition, and admit them to the Garden which He has promissed for them} [Muhammad: 4-6]. {And say not of those who are slain in the way of Allah:" They are dead." Nay, they are living, though ye perceive (it) not} [Al Baqarah: 154]. {Fight them, and Allah will punish them by your hands, cover them with shame, help you (to victory) over them, heal the breasts of Believers} [Al Tawbah: 14]. {Therefore when ye meet the Unbelievers (in fight) smite at their necks} Muhammad: 4] {More Prophetic traditions and poems}
For more than a decade, they carried arms on their shoulders in Afghanistan and made vows to Allah; that as long as they are alive, they will continue to carry arms against you, until you are expelled, defeated and humiliated –Allah willing-. They will carry on as long as they live. So to abuse the grandsons of the Companions of the Prophet, by calling them cowards and challenging them by refusing to leave the land of the two Holiest site shows the imbalance and insanity you are suffering from. "I am willing to sacrifice self and wealth for knights who never disappointed me. Knights who are never fed up or deterred by death, even if the mill of war turns." "In the heat of battle they do not care, and cure the insanity of the enemy by their insane courage."
Terrorizing you, while you are carrying arms on our land, is legitimate, reasonable and morally demanded duty. It is also a rightful act well known to all humans and all creatures. Your example and our example are like a snake that entered into a house of a man and got killed by him. The coward is the one who lets you roam freely and safely while carrying arms in his country. Those youths are different from your soldiers; your problem is how to convince your soldiers to be daring and fight. While our problem will be how to restrain our youths from waiting for their turn to fight.
These young men deserve all the praise and commendation. Wherein they have stood to aid the faith, at a time when the regime misled the prominent people, and issued religiously baseless Fatwas and turned over Al-Aqsa Mosque to the Jews and allowed the Christian army to enter the land of the two Holiest sits.
{More poems and Prophetic traditions}
The youth hold you responsible for all the killings, evictions, and displacements of the Muslims and the violation of their sacred places which were carried out by your Jewish brothers in Palestine using moneys and arms you supplied them with. More than six thousand Iraqi children have died due to lack of food and medicine as a result of your unjustifiable and aggressive sanctions imposed on Iraq. and its nation.
Iraqi children are our children. You (America), together with the Saudi regime are responsible for the shedding of the blood of these innocent children. All of that makes every treaty we have with you null and void.
The Prophet, Peace and Prayers be upon him, considered [al-Hudaybah] treaty null and void, when Quraysh aided Bani Bakr against the prophet's allies. He fought Quraysh and conquered Makkah. He also considered the treaty with Bani Quinqa' null and void, when a Jewish man harmed a Muslim woman. Let alone killing hundreds of thousands of Muslims, and desecrating their sacred sites. Therefore blood of the American enemy troops occupying the Muslim lands is lawful. It's the duty of every tribe in the Arabian Peninsula to fight for the sake of Allah, and purge its land from those occupiers.
Almighty Allah said: {But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war)} [Al Tawbah: 5].
The youth know that the disgrace and shame that afflicted the Muslims, by occupying their sacred places, would not be removed except by Jihad and explosives.
{More poems regarding Jihad and infidels}
I tell the Islamic youth of the world who fought in Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina with their money, lives, tongues and pens that the battle has not yet ended. Remind them of the conversation between Gabriel and the prophet, after al-Ahzab campaign. (When the Messenger of Allah has left for Madinah, he put down his weapon, Gabriel then said: Did you put down the weapon? The angels have not put theirs down yet; get up with your people to Bani Quraythah, I will walk in front of you to shake down their stronghold, and spread fear in their hearts.
These young people know, that he who is not killed for the cause of God will be considered as dead. The most honorable death is to die for the sake of God; like those four heroes who set off the explosives that killed the Americans in Riyadh. Those men disgraced the American occupiers by their courageous acts.
[More hearty poems and Prophetic traditions]
As for our mothers, sisters, women and daughters, they follow in the steps of their ancestors' - Companions of the Prophet-. They adopted their courage and self-sacrifice, encouraged their sons, brothers and husbands to fight for God and go for jihad in such places like Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Chechnya and others...
We ask God to grant them their wishes and dispel their worries, comfort their sons, fathers, husbands and brothers, increase their faith, strengthen and secure their path, the path of sacrifice, so the word of God would be exalted. Our women only eulegize men who fight for the sake of God.
[More poetry]
My Muslim Brothers of the world: Your brothers in land of the two holiest sites and Palestine are calling upon you for help and asking you to take part in fighting against the enemy, your enemy; the Israelis and Americans. They are asking you to do whatever you can within one's own means and ability, to expel the humiliate and defeat the enemy out of the sanctities of Islam. Almighty Allah said: {But if they seek your aid in religion, it is your duty to help them} [Al Anfal: 72].
You should know that your gathering and cooperation to liberate the sanctities of Islam is the right step to join forces under the banner of unity. We cannot but raise our hands in prayers, asking God to grant us wisdom and success in this matter.
O God, the faithful Islamic scholars, and the nation's righteous youths have been taken in captivity.
O God, dispel their worries, give them comfort and strength.
O God, people of the cross [Christians] came with their men and arms and desecrated the land of the two holiest sites. The Jews are spreading and causing havoc in Al-Aqsa Mosque, [route of the Prophet].
O God, dispel them, divide them, shake the ground under their feet.
O God, place them under your immolation, and protect and deliver us from their evil.
O God, punish them and show them your great power.
O God, defeat them and grant us victory.
O God, you are our refuge and strength, you are our helper, and with you we fight. Sufficient unto us is God, how good a trustee.
O God, those young men came to defend your faith and raise your banner high, O God, help and support them.
O God, give the Muslim youths strength and guide them.
O God, make peace between them and unite them, give us steadfastness and patience, strength and aid us to conquer the unbelievers.
O God, do not burden us with heavy laden that we cannot bear, like you gave our ancestors.
Forgive and have mercy on us, you are our God, aid us to conquer the unbelievers.
O God, guide us so that we can be strong and degrade the unbelievers, bestow kindness upon usand put an end to the forbidden.
O God, pray for your servant and Messenger Muhammad, his family and followers.
Finally, Praise be to Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds.
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text:
By Ed Harris
A St. Dominic School fourth grader was recently awarded a $1,000 scholarship for growing a 10 pound cabbage as part of a national program.
Last year, Vincent Rappoccio's third grade class participated in the National Bonnie Plants Cabbage Program. The school's entire third grade class participated in the program, which was overseen by teacher Amy Ronkese.
The program is a nation wide contest, with winners selected from each state.
"I was very surprised and excited when I found out I was the winner for Connecticut," Vincent said. "I never thought I would. I actually forgot about the contest because I am now in the fourth grade and we submitted my entery in September 2013."
The National Bonnie Plants Cabbage Program was launched in 2002 and awards a $1,000 scholarship to one student in each participating state. A teacher from each partaking class selects a student that they think has the best cabbage and submits a digital photo. The student is then entered into a statewide drawing. The state winners are randomly selected by the state's Commission of Agriculture.
According to a press release on the program, more than 1.5 million third graders in 48 states participated in the program this year.
Bonnie Plants donates the cabbage plants, known as O.S. Cross, or "oversized," to the program. If nurtured correctly, the cabbages tip the scales at over 40 pounds.
"The Bonnie Plants Cabbage Program is a wonderful way to engage children's interest in agriculture, while teaching them not only the basics of gardening, but the importance of our food systems and growing our own," said Stan Cope, president of Bonnie Plants, in a release. "This unique, innovative program exposes children to agriculture and demonstrates, through hands-on experience, where food comes from. The program also affords our youth with some valuable life lessons in nurture, nature, responsibility, self-confidence and accomplishment."
Vincent's cabbage came in at 10.7 pounds and 27 inches in diameter.
Vincent said he started growing the cabbage from a seed at school. Once the cabbage started to grow, it was brought home and eventually planted outside once it hearty enough to put in the ground.
"Since we do not have a garden at our house, we planted the cabbage at my grandfather's house," Vincent said.
Once it was ripe, the cabbage found itself on the Rappoccio family dinner table. The family used the cabbage to make stuffed cabbage rolls, cole slaw and cabbage salad.
Since growing the cabbage, Vincent has been bitten by the gardening bug.
"Since I had good luck growing the cabbage, I would like to try and grow something else," he said. "It was very exciting to see such a small see turn into such a large head of cabbage."
Youth grows giant cabbage and wins scholarship
By Ed Harris