text:
The $100,00 Buy-In
If you spend very much time reporting on the world of high-stakes Texas Hold'em, it is inevitable that you will be kicked out of a poker room or two. I am no exception. I've been eighty-sixed from Bobby's Room in the Bellagio, a high-stakes home game at Trump Tower, and an underground poker club that once dominated a busy corner on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
The evictions don't stem from my having done anything terribly wrong; in each instance, I was simply there, invited by a player in regard to a story I was working on, sometimes scribbling notes and other times merely observing (once with a take-out salad in hand, expecting to be there for the night and anticipating that I'd need to be fortified—needless to say, I wound up eating the salad at home). The problem with watching these elite poker battles is that reporters, kibitzers, "sweaters" and the general public are usually unwelcome. This is completely different, of course, from poker tournaments held in casinos, where reporters are accredited, bleachers are rolled out for fans, and television cameras are often present.
Obviously, the private cash games, in which players can blow through $100,000 or more over the course of a single session, sometimes a single hand, are more intriguing, stressful, dramatic and competitive than tournaments with $10,000 buy-ins. But observing big cash games—in which top-of-the-line pros are in their natural habitat—has long been difficult for guys such as myself and impossible for most everyone else. Too bad, because, judging from the little bit of action I've been privy to, I can tell you that the money at risk, the personalities, the strategies, the clashes and the rivalries are fascinating.
Apparently, I am not the only one who thinks this. Last year, I received a telephone call from a publicist with the Game Show Network. He told me about a Vegas-based television program that was being developed in which big-name pros would be playing a cash game of no-limit Texas Hold'em. At the time, this publicist wasn't sure who would participate, but he seemed confident that the game and show, called "High Stakes Poker," would succeed. I heard the guy out, told him that I couldn't see it happening. I didn't understand why the Doyle Brunsons and Johnny Chans of the world would be willing to risk six-figure buy-ins to create a show for GSN. After all, they could play for similar money, with more control, in the Bellagio. We chatted for a few minutes, he accepted my skepticism, and that was it. Or so I thought.
Fast-forward to this past February when I happen to be chatting with Daniel Negreanu, one of poker's top players. "Have you seen 'High Stakes Poker?'" he asks me. I tell him that I haven't and that I'm pretty burned out on televised poker. Seeming surprised, he says, "Considering what you write about, I thought you'd be watching it. It's really great. You ought to check it out." I discover that Negreanu dropped a six-figure sum on the program and that he likes it so much that he'll be anteing up for a second season. Right there is a vote of confidence that I don't ignore. So, one Monday night soon after, I tune in, and he was right, the publicist was right and I was wrong.
The show is excellent, the action is heavy and the table talk is at turns funny, enlightening and colorful. After cash-game specialist Eli Elezra orders a soft drink and innocently says to a cocktail waitress, "Lay it down there, baby," a big-money regular, noticing that Elezra is up, fires back, "Lay it down there, baby? You only say that because you're ahead. If you were losing, it'd be, like, 'Gimme my drink, bitch.'" Try that at the World Series of Poker and you might find yourself suspended from play for 10 minutes.
Big name pros—including Chan, Brunson and Negreanu—sit at the table with bricks of cash and giant stacks of Golden Nugget chips (the first season was shot at the Nugget). Blinds are $300/$600 with antes of $100 and the buy-in is a minimum of $100,000, but Negreanu pulls up with a $1 million arsenal. "I wanted to start with the dominant chip stack," he says with a shrug. Maybe so, but that doesn't explain why the pros have signed up for this show. Creator Henry Orenstein, a fairly legendary TV producer, highly adept seven-card stud player and inventor of the in-table camera, (which allows viewers to see players' hole cards) says it's simple: "The pros play in cash games anyway, and their desire to be on TV is bigger than their worrying about giving away secrets." One major allure here is the pros are not just playing against each other. Sprinkled in among the Vegas card sharks are well-off amateurs, including Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss, Chicago-based restaurateur and backgammon specialist Freddie Chamanara, and Vegas physician Amir Nasseri, along with a smattering of poker pros who are best known as tournament players. "Doing well in tournaments is about beating up on weak players; so a lot of [the top tournament players'] games are geared toward dinky value bets and telegraphing hand strengths in certain situations," says Barry Greenstein, who's made so much money playing cash games that he donates all his substantial tournament proceeds to charity. "In this game they can't give away their hand strengths or people will take them off of their hands. I will do that. I like playing against tournament players, even though they get recognized as being the best players in the world"—generally because they log more TV time than their better heeled, better playing, cash-game counterparts. "To me, tournament players are predictable."
When nine-time World Series of Poker winner Phil Hellmuth sat down to play on the "High Stakes Poker" set last season, Negreanu literally licked his chops and uttered "Yum" as if he was getting ready to eat a big slice of birthday cake. "I think Daniel's reaction was a combination of doing it for TV and doing it to put Phil off," says Gabe Kaplan, the former "Welcome Back, Kotter" star who is a top player in his own right and the commentator for "High Stakes" (he manages to be knowledgeable and hilarious). "Phil's not quite as good as the people who play the big cash games, but I think he is better than they give him credit for being. And he tried to make some star plays because of the pressure he was under—everybody acts a little different on TV." Hellmuth went through six figures' worth of his money before departing.
His quick spanking illustrates that for the heartiest of big-time cash players, the advantage is substantial. Jennifer Harman, the skinny, blond-haired poker pro who's competing in the second season of "High Stakes" (held at the Palms and slated to premiere June 9), explains the difference between playing for cash and playing tournaments. "Cash games are more about getting extra value for your hands," she says prior to a taping on a set that is designed to resemble the living room of a hotel suite (complete with girlfriends and hangers-on lounging upon sofas and milling about). "If you think you are a slight favorite in a cash game, you raise. In a tournament, because chips are so valuable [i.e., once you lose them, they can't be replaced], you would just call the bet." Harman, who often wears a black leather jacket at the table and, notably, is the only female who antes up in the famously high-stakes Big Game at the Bellagio, is quick to point out that cash-game players tend to be more resilient than the tournament specialists. "You need a lot of heart to play cash," she says. "To lose and go broke is a lot more devastating than busting out of a $10,000 tournament." She explains that cash players take bigger risks with their money, realize richer rewards and generally operate in a more competitive environment. That said, she points out that one edge all the big-money cash-game players bring to the table is the ability to handle losing extremely large sums.
For example, during the first season, after Antonio "The Magician" Esfandiari dropped $100,000 in a single hand, he looked stunned and immediately acknowledged that it was the most he had ever lost in the turn of seven cards. "One of my advantages is that I can stomach losses," says Harman, whose normal poker milieu is games with stakes that start at $2,000/$4,000 and go up to $4,000/$8,000 or even higher. "Right now, my pain threshold is about $400,000 in one night. I can lose $350,000 and go home and feel OK as long as I played well and made the right decisions. If you're a tournament player and you lose that kind of money, your stomach is going to hurt." Indeed, during the first day of play at the Palms, Mike "The Mouth" Matusow, who won $1 million at the 2006 World Series of Poker and is best known as a tournament player (though he plays cash online and got his start competing in Vegas ring games), appears to be a favorite whipping boy. But he gives as good as he gets; at one point he seriously insists that he is the most famous player in poker, and that he's very quick to single out perceived faults in his opponents. Then he throws everyone completely for a loop when, after half a day of action, he announces that he will be leaving.
The other players, who view chemically off-kilter Matusow as vulnerable, eye his $100,000 stack and beg him to stick around. "Only if you each give me $1,000," Matusow crows back. Four of his opponents cough up a grand apiece. That appears to satisfy Matusow, who resumes gambling, wins a big hand and promptly becomes intolerable, telling his tablemates that they're donkeys for paying him to take their money. A short time later, however, as everyone in the game has been predicting, volatile Matusow flames and burns out. With his $100,000 stake eviscerated, Matusow gets up, turns to his poker pals and kiddingly announces, "I'm going to Hoover Dam and bungeeing without a cord." Some smaller stakes players, however, seem to thrive in this high altitude. Big-winning Big Game titan Barry Greenstein explains that he normally considers Esfandiari to be too loose of a tournament player, but "playing in this game, Antonio did pretty well. It leaves you thinking that getting Antonio out of his comfort zone tightens him up enough to make him a better player." The same might be said about Phil "Unabomber" Laak, the hoodie-wearing poker pro who's best known for hiding his head (and any tells) inside his sweatshirt and doing push-ups while waiting for critical cards to be dealt. Though Laak is a frequent cash-game player at L.A.'s Commerce Casino, he's not used to competing for mega-high stakes against the poker's greatest wizards.
But during the taping at the Palms, Laak ratchets up his game and rises to the occasion. He sits down and immediately creates a distinct table image when he declares that, after the first nine-hand round, he won't join the others in spending the rest of the game straddling (that is, starting off with a blind bet in front of them and, as a result, raising the stakes dramatically). Laak later acknowledges that the gambling was already high enough for him and that the $300,000 playing bank he brought in a shopping bag was based on there being no straddle.
He also points out that the eyebrow-raising pronouncement helped him inadvertently to establish a conservative table image. In poker parlance, refusing to straddle made him seem like a nit, a squeezer who plays by the book and lacks a whole lot of gamble. "The best thing is for them to think I'm a nit; that gives me a license to steal pots," explains Laak after his session has finished taping. "It's also great when they think you're insane or you have no clue or you're lucky." He acknowledges, on the other hand, that such impressions might not be beneficial for his public image and may negatively impact the likelihood of his being invited back on the show. He grimaces at those revelations and adds, "If I could have rethought it, I might have chosen to straddle [throughout]."
At any rate, he can't have many complaints about the outcome of his "High Stakes" session. Laak plays well and puts a truly impressive move on Daniel Negreanu. It happens after Laak catches a third six on the flop, keeps himself from showing strength, and plays as if he is on a draw. By the river, when Laak makes an oddball bet of $44,400, Negreanu is completely stymied, verbally acknowledging that he can't put Laak on a hand. Ultimately Negreanu feels compelled to call the big bet and mucks his cards after the Unabomber shows a set of 6s. That pot contributes mightily to Laak's two-day win of more than $280,000. But before you start feeling very bad for Negreanu, keep in mind that, this season, his first round of "High Stakes" action, took him from being stuck $175,000 to being ahead by $200,000.
While the players are clearly having a good time, enjoying the TV exposure, and earning $1,200 per hour from GSN (a pittance when you consider the capital they're putting at risk and the many hours of programming that GSN is getting), the advantages of playing on air seem minimal for some. So much so that Doyle Brunson and Greenstein initially expressed ambivalence about participating in the second season (although both ultimately did). Henry Orenstein's opinion notwithstanding, Greenstein, who's already as famous as he wants to be, believes that playing cards on TV can hurt his earning power: "Seeing the hands I play and the hands I discard probably helps people who play against me." And for someone who regularly competes in the world's biggest cash games, "High Stakes Poker" is almost not high stakes enough. "If I can get to winning six figures in a game, that is when it starts to seem worth my time," Greenstein explains, sounding very matter of fact. "And if I can get to seven figures, then it is really big-deal stuff. I think I have a reasonable chance of winning $100,000 today. But I need to adjust down. In this game the stakes are about one-third of what I normally play."
For example, Greenstein recalls a $75,000 all-in bet that came from Brunson during the first season of the show. Holding queens at the time, Greenstein was thinking in terms of the stakes they routinely play at, and he acknowledges that he would not normally fold his queens over a $75,000 call. "But I probably should have given it more thought and related to the stakes properly. At my normal stakes a $225,000 bet from Doyle would have made me think for a long time about calling, and I probably would have laid it down." Greenstein sighs, then adds, "I didn't play that badly, but I need to get into people's heads and think about what the bets mean to them."
On the upside, unlike with tournament poker, when this TV taping ends, the game continues—in one form or another. People who play in tournaments compete within a very finite time frame. But for cash game players, the action is ongoing. As one big-money specialist has told me, "When you go to sleep at night, you're just taking a break; the game never really ends. It goes on and on and on…" And that, no doubt, makes it easier to deal with the inevitable bad beats. While nobody wants to be bluffed or outplayed on television (or spend six figures just to see an opponent's decisively winning cards), there is the reality that you're never knocked out of action, unless you go broke. Even then, more money is always available somewhere and there is no such thing as the killer hand that puts you on life support.
Lucky for Daniel Negreanu, who thinks he has it made at the Palms when the board pairs 5s on the turn and gives him a full house of 6s over 5s (the flop is 5-6-9). He is head-to-head with Gus Hansen, who's been betting from the flop onward. Negreanu must be concerned that Hansen has a bigger full house, but he calls the Danish player's moderate raises and bets (Hansen pushes in $24,000 after the 5 comes on the turn). Then, when Hansen checks on the river, Negreanu makes a healthy bet of $65,000 only to see Hansen fire back and go all in.
"This can be ugly," Negreanu says, mostly to himself but partly to the camera and partly to the poker-faced Hansen, contemplating what to do next. "He might've been setting the trap."
Negreanu counts chips, goes through hand possibilities, considers what he might be up against, then decides to call, pushing in enough money to make a pot of $547,000. He jokes, "If I lose this hand, there's a cooler in the game," referring to the possibility of a fixed deck.
Hansen turns over a pair of 5s, giving him an improbable four of a kind—which slaughters his opponent's full house. It is a big and disappointing loss for Negreanu. Although Hansen's play initially seems odd, it makes sense after he explains it. "I didn't think Daniel had a full house and figured he'd be likelier to make a bet than to call my bet," he says.
But that's cold comfort for Negreanu. He still looks quite stunned as the next hand is dealt, new victors emerge, the cameras continue to roll and fresh opportunities arise. With no time for the savoring of victory or the mourning of defeat, poker's never-ending game of high stakes Hold'em speeds along on its infinite path to heaven for some and oblivion for others.
Michael Kaplan is a Cigar Aficionado contributing editor.


text:
QPR swoop for Milan defender
Mark Hughes is closing in on his first signing as QPR boss, with AC Milan defender Taye Taiwo said to be 'very close' to agreeing a deal to join the west London club.
Taiwo has been linked with a move to the Premier League in the past, with Arsenal rumoured to be particularly interested in landing the Nigerian.
But it appears the Rs have won the race for his signature, after the club's official phone-in, London Call-In, said that the deal is 'very close' to being completed before adding they are "waiting for everything to be put into place before we make an official announcement".
Sky Sports report that the completion of the six month loan deal is subject to a work permit being granted for the 26-year-old.
Taiwo joined the Rossoneri from Marseille over the summer, but has struggled to make an impact, making just eight appearances in all competitions so far this season.
Rs midfielder Joey Barton revealed on Twitter yesterday that a deal with Taiwo was imminent, writing: "Taye Taiwo from AC Milan signing for the Rs.
"Was very good when I [have] seen him for Marseille. Good news. First of many, fingers cross."
A picture of Hughes with Taiwo surfaced on the social network site on Thursday, with the move expected to be confirmed today.
Hughes has been linked with moves for numerous defensive transfer targets in recent weeks as he attempts to guide his side clear of the relegation zone, with Chelsea's Alex, Manchester City's Nedum Onuoha and Aston Villa's James Collins all linked with a move to Loftus Road.News Now - Sport News

subset: commoncrawl


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Easter Enigmas
You guys, I am so glad Easter is this Sunday. If it weren't, I'd be tempted to think a few of our local bakers had finally cracked.
"Then stick a bendy straw in the side of the happy little mountain and lots of cool lightning fissures in the sky and the ground and LET'S ALL WEAR ICING BIKINIS AND GO SWIMMING IN THE LOBSTER TANK. Woooeeeoohhh!!!"
Seriously, look at this cake and tell me you don't see a total basket case:
Or, ok, maybe a muppet with roses for eyes and a nose.
(I guess HE won't need rose-colored glasses, eh? EH? Or have to stop and smell the roses? [nudge nudge] Amirite? AMIRITE?)
(Ok, Ok. I'll leaf you alone now.)
You know how long it took you just then to realize that basket cake was upside down? Well, take that time and double it, and that's at least how long I stared at this next one, completely mystified:
"I don't know about legs, but it definitely had arms because it reached out for me."
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Thanks to this baker, we finally have an answer:
It was the chicken sperm.
Now, I would ask what chicken sperm has to do with Easter, but then I'd probably just get a lecture from someone about how Easter is just a pagan fertility holiday appropriated by the Christians for the blah-de-blah-degibbity-blah, and then my face would get stuck like this:
This is my "No, really, I'm fascinated - please keep talking" face.
So I guess it's a good thing I don't leave the house much.
Speaking of which, if you are religiously inclined...
...pray no one crosses you with one of these.
And now, for today's grand finale, allow me to present A Chick With A Unibrow Doing Her Best Duckface:
[drumroll, please]
Thanks to Nicole J., Vicky, Marianne F., Jess S., Jessica R., & Emily O. for today's fowl humor.


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It's Monday morning in America. That means we're about to endure another week of pointless debate over the precise methods by which our federal government will impose more needless misery on the hapless population, instead of addressing its eminently fixable economic problems.
Readers of our nation's newspapers might be forgiven for believing that the citizens of our nation have been condemned to some sort of quotidian hell as punishment for our collective crimes, where we must suffer the pangs of deprivation while listening to endless debates about how best to compound our misery.
Which reminds me: Is it time for Meet the Press yet?
The "sequester" debate is the latest stage of an ongoing hostage crisis that's forcing austerity economics on an unwilling population – cloaking it in a false debate about how to do it, not about why we shouldn't do it at all.
"The president says he has to have tax increases to head off the sequester," says Alabama Republican Rep. Martha Roby. "Well, he already got his tax increase."
Rep. Roby is referring to the last "crisis negotiation" over the national budget, which occurred way back in … let's see when was that? … Oh, yeah: Seven weeks ago. Time flies – except when it doesn't.
Obama's proposing two dollars in spending cuts for every dollar in revenue, which is a pretty right-wing way of going about it.
The "tax increases" that President Obama "already got" were less than the ones which would've taken effect automatically if there had been no deal at all.
Well played, sir.
Meanwhile, austerity continues to devastate the economies of Europe, sapping the wealth and well-being of the majorities and increasing (rather than lowering) those deified deficits. Austerity's beginning to weave its dark magic here, too. So surely we're finally having the debate we should've been having all along, right?
The president is once again boasting of past spending cuts, even as their harmful effects ripple throughout our economy. He's giving immediate deficit reduction a higher priority than much-needed investment. And he's proposing two dollars in spending cuts for every dollar in revenue, which is a pretty right-wing way of going about it.
A White House web page lays out the president's "pre-conservativized" negotiating position, thereby ensuring the final result will be even worse. And the web page's heading speaks of a "Last Offer to Speaker Boehner," a phrasing which linguistically places the nation's chief executive in the position of supplicant to the leader of the lower chamber of the legislature.
Well played, sir.
The president is insisting on $100 billion in cuts to Social Security payments for the elderly and disabled – an offer that Republicans have shrugged off but which he has placed back on the table again and again. Those offered cuts are accompanied by other proposed cuts to Medicare, which seem to include limits in choosing medical providers. (We'll be looking for clarification in the next few days.)
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The president is also proposing further cuts to the postal service, which will mean more lost jobs. And some of his "nondiscretionary savings" – e.g., "reform TSA security fees" and "strengthen solvency of UI (unemployment) trust fund" – look a lot like regressive taxation that's been run through Mr. Orwell's Newspeak machine.
For context, the president is making these offers in an economy that lost more than ten trillion dollars to the predations of Wall Street.
And as he does so, the Crazy Train is now arriving on Track "R." Republicans, who continue to chant the Reagan mantra that "government is the problem," are still pursuing its wholesale elimination. In that context, the president's counterproposal reads like a request for a more orderly dismantling of the state than the one the Visigoths envision.
Nobody's discussing the vital role that government has played in creating a better future – after the Great Depression, during the postwar years – and can play again. The president did it, and very effectively, in the State of the Union. But that was a speech. This is governance.
And as this stupid game goes on – how much do we cut, and where? – Washington's past flings with austerity madness are already carving chunks out of our economy. The GDP, which grew 3.2 percent in the third quarter of 2012, shrank by 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter as their cuts began to take effect.
The official unemployment rate ticked up to 7.9 percent last month. (That's nearly double the 4 percent rate that was once considered an appropriate national goal.) The economy added 157,000 jobs, which is roughly half the number needed to address the unemployment crisis in any meaningful fashion. The Bureau of Labor Statistic's "U-6″ – the best measure of real unemployment, adding people working part-time who really want full-time work as well as less intensive job-seekers – stood at 14.4 percent. (That figure was 7.9 percent at the end of 2006, the year before the crisis erupted.)
Consumer confidence is plunging – and why wouldn't it? Nobody's offering to help the average consumer. And if consumers don't feel confident enough to spend, the jobs economy (as opposed to the financial/speculative economy) will continue to wither.
Meanwhile, the wealthy have taken all the spoils of the post-crisis recovery, and then some, leaving middle class and impoverished Americans with less of our national income than they had before.
Meanwhile, the wealthy have taken all the spoils of the post-crisis recovery, and then some, leaving middle class and impoverished Americans with less of our national income than they had before. That translates into tens of millions of disrupted lives – lives that aren't even being discussed in the "sequester" debate.
One of the meanings of the word "sequester," according to Merriam-Webster, is "to requisition and confiscate." Another is "to remove or set apart," which is a surprisingly accurate description of Washington's relationship to the rest of the nation as it indulges in this meaningless – and, by implication, confiscatory – exercise.
As Paul Krugman keeps saying, "This isn't rocket science. We know how to do this." There is a clear formula for short-term government investment that can create jobs, stimulate growth, increase prosperity and create new opportunities to advance economically. And since we know how to do this, that leads to only one conclusion as we watch the debate in Washington:
They don't want to.
It's a game – a stupid and destructive game whose cheerleaders are vapid and flippant thugs like Alan Simpson or pampered and self-satisfied hedge-funders like Erskine Bowles. The president could demand an end to the game. He could say that the sequester must be shelved permanently, right now, and then make the case for investment to heal our economy.
Instead he's playing this stupid game with the rest of them. If he won't put an end to this shallow and destructive game, this foolish substitute for a real economic debate, then the public will have to demand it.


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Mormonism, is a new religious movement founded by Joseph Smith in the early 1800's. The official name of the church today is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sometimes shortened to LDS to refer to both the church or its members. Mormonism is one of the few young religions, based on Christianity, along with Jehovah's Witnesses and Scientology, to have survived with any significant membership. Their primary holy texts are their denomination specific translation of the Christian Bible, the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. [1]
The church was founded or "organized" on April 6th, 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr. and several of his followers in Palmyra, New York. Joseph proclaimed himself as a prophet, claimed he receiving visions and other revelations from God, angels, biblical figures and even claimed to encounter the Devil. Furthermore, Joseph Smith proclaimed that God and Jesus (although this version of the revelation would be changed many times) told him that he had been chosen by God to restore God's "true church" on this earth. This first revelation is usually set in the Spring of 1820, though the initial versions were not written down until 1828 at the earliest.
The Church headquarters are currently located in Salt Lake City, Utah. In that region, the church is popular and influential in the politics.
- 1 Prophets
- 2 Holy Books
- 3 Other official Mormon publications
- 4 Freemasonary
- 5 Practices
- 6 Church Doctrine
- 6.1 Great apostasy
- 6.2 Authority of the priesthood
- 6.3 Pre-mortal existence and salvation
- 6.4 God the Father and the Godhead
- 6.5 Godhood
- 6.6 Baptism for the dead
- 6.7 Adam-God doctrine
- 6.8 Kolob
- 6.9 Eternal families
- 6.10 Obedience brings blessings
- 6.11 Seer stones
- 6.12 Curse of dark skin
- 6.13 Celestial Kingdom, terrestrial kingdom, and telestial kingdom
- 6.14 Opposition to homosexuality
- 7 See also
- 8 References
- 9 External Links
The church believes they are maintaining the early structure of the Christian church. The leader of the church, currently Thomas S. Monson, is called the church president and is considered to be a prophet. He is assisted by counsellors and apostles. [2] The church leadership is said to be chosen by God.
Because of their living prophets, Mormons' doctrine has changed over time, including temple ceremonies and the church's policy of denying the priesthood to racial minorities. Most Mormons are unaware of these significant changes.
Joseph Smith[edit]
Joseph Smith Jr. was born in Sharon, Vermont, to Lucy Mack and Joseph Smith, on December 23, 1805. Smith grew up on a series of tenant farms in Vermont, New Hampshire, and New York. Smith's education consisted of a very limited exposure to the reading, writing, and arithmetic. It is known however that his Father Joseph Sr. was a school teacher. Joseph Smith Jr. claimed to be able to divine for buried treasure and in 1827 appeared in court accused of being an imposter i.e. a fraud.
Smith claimed that he received a vision in 1820 of two shining personages, Jesus and God the Father, who told him that all existing churches were false; this incident is referred to as the "first vision". In 1823, Smith said he was visited by an angel named Moroni, who told him of an ancient record containing God's dealings with the former inhabitants of the American continent. These writings served as the foundation of the Mormon religion, with Joseph Smith as the first prophet.
Brigham Young[edit]
Brigham Young became the second prophet, or president, of the Mormon church after Joseph Smith was killed in 1844. He led the great migration from Illinois to the Salt Lake Valley.
Many of those who rejected Brigham Young's leadership joined their own denomination that is today known as the Community of Christ. [3]
Holy Books[edit]
Mormons do not rely solely upon the Bible as a basis for their beliefs. According to Mormonism's Articles of Faith, Mormons "believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly" [4]. In fact, Joseph Smith did hazard a retranslation of the Bible. Because Mormons believe in a living prophet and continuing revelation, other official church publications are considered to be part of church doctrine.
Book of Mormon[edit]
- Main Article: Book of Mormon
Initially printed in 1830, the Book of Mormon is the primary holy book of Mormonism, though much of the church's structure and rituals are derived from the Doctrine and Covenants, which were written later. The book is similar in style and content to the Bible, but describes God's dealings with the inhabitants of the Americas, the ancestors of Native Americans. It includes the description of Christ's visit to these people after his death and resurrection, as well as the source of the "dark skin" which they received as a curse.
Moroni 10:4 and a foreword to the Book of Mormon contains the promise that readers may pray to God for a confirmation of it's authenticity. This promise is used extensively by Mormons (especially missionaries) in proselytizing.
- "You can know that Mormonism is true [by] praying with a sincere heart and with real intent. [5]"
Doctrine and Covenants[edit]
The Doctrine and Covenants is a collection of "revelations" that Joseph received from Jesus Christ. It contains amoung other things instructions for how the church should be run. It was originally called the "Book of Commandments"
A key section is D&C 132 which gives the requirements for Polygamy. Specifically verses 61-65.
Pearl of Great Price[edit]
The Pearl of Great Price is a collection of books, including the Articles of Faith, supposed translations from Egyptian papyri and the official Joseph Smith History. These books include some of the most exotic Mormon doctrines, including the plurality of gods, the potential for humans to become gods and a different portrayal of the creation story from the Old Testament book of Genesis.
Smith claimed to have translated an ancient Egyptian scroll to reveal the Book of Abraham. The original scrolls were original papyri of ancient Egypt, purchased at a travelling show and believed to have been lost for decades after Smith's death. However, the church reacquired them in 1967 and are known now as the Joseph Smith Papyri. What is interesting about the papyri is modern translations do not match Joseph Smith's translation at all, and are in fact a common funerary text and nothing to do with Mormonism.
Because Mormons have many more writings, there exist more opportunities to find contradictions. Also, their world-view provides much less wiggle room for Mormon apologists. The nature of God and the way the universe works, as described in Mormon scripture, is so much more detailed that Mormons have a much harder time dealing with arguments like the problem of evil, or retreating into an ill-defined deism, without violating their own doctrines.
Other official Mormon publications[edit]
Journal of Discourses[edit]
The Journal of Discourses (often abbreviated J.D.) is a 26-volume collection of public sermons by early leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The first editions of the Journal were published in England by George D. Watt, the stenographer of Brigham Young. Publication began in 1854, with the endorsement of the church's First Presidency, and ended in 1886. The Journal is one of the richest sources of early Mormon theology and thinking. It includes 1,438 sermons given by 55 church leaders, including most numerously Brigham Young, John Taylor, Orson Pratt, Heber C. Kimball, and George Q. Cannon.
While the J.D. is not considered scripture by the modern church it is still important to it's history.
Holy Bible: Joseph Smith Translation[edit]
Joseph Smith also performed a "re-translation" of the King James version of the Bible. Mormon's include these translations as footnotes in their versions of the Bible. In his translation, Smith attempts to clarify contradictory passages to fit more precisely with the Book of Mormon and his other writings.
Joseph Smith was involved in Freemasonry, along with many other early church leaders. Many ritualistic elements of the Freemasons were imported into Mormonism, such as the oaths used in temple, the grips (secret handshakes), the five points of fellowship and the square and compass emblem. [6] Some of these practices have been phased out in the Mormon church.
Male priesthood[edit]
|Melchizedek priesthood
|high priest
|Aaronic priesthood
- "The priesthood is the authority to act in God's name. [7]"
Mormonism differs from most other Christian denominations in that all male adherents older than 12 years are within the priesthood. The priesthood is constituted by various offices and privileges, called keys, that form the Mormon leadership hierarchy. The Melchizedek Priesthood is considered to be greater than the Aaronic Priesthood. The Melchizedek Priesthood, which may be gained at 18 years of age, has leadership responsibilities and may conduct certain rites or "ordnances". The Aaronic Priesthood may administer some lesser rites. [8] The priesthood is passed, by the laying on of hands, from one priesthood holder higher up on the hierarchy. All the rituals of the Mormon church are conducted by authorized priesthood holders, including baptisms, temple weddings (known as sealings), and general-purpose blessings.
- "Without the priesthood and the saving ordinances thereof, 'the whole earth would be utterly wasted' [9]"
- "Some ordinances are essential to our exaltation. [10]"
Proselytising by missionaries[edit]
The most visible aspect of Mormonism is doorstep proselytising by missionaries; the church has perhaps the most active missionary program of any contemporary religion. Missionaries are often young adults who work pairs, each wearing a dark suit. Many missionaries participate in an unpaid, self funded, full-time mission tour of 18 months to 2 years, often in a different country. When proselytising, they will often encourage non-Mormons to pray and to seek for God. Missionaries are motivated by religious fervour or social pressure. While missionary work is voluntary, there can be family or community pressure on Mormons to participate.
- "Looking back, I see a lot of missionaries just go because it is expected of them, it's what everyone else is doing, and maybe there is a lot of social pressure on the young men to do so. [11]"
Their favorite apologetics include:
- Praying can authenticate the Book of Mormon: pray to God and "he will manifest the truth of it unto you by the power of the Holy Spirit" (Moroni 10:4-5). The feeling that it is true during prayer is said to be a "burning in the bosom [chest]". This feeling is more likely to be produced by the power of suggestion because the missionary stated this would happen. Research has shown that suggesting someone will experience a sensation can actually trigger the sensation without the normal stimulus. [12] It is also a poor way to authenticate a holy book because many believers of other religions also have spiritual experiences, making it a broken compass argument.
- Belief will make you happy
- Appeal to emotion - missionaries sometimes show a video and ask what emotions the viewer is feeling.
Women's roles[edit]
Mormon society, perhaps even more than most other Christian denominations, is a patriarchy. Women are subordinate to men in the organization of the church and family structures. Women are prohibited from holding either of the church's two priesthoods, and thus are prohibited from holding priesthood based callings or leadership positions within the church. [13] [14]
- "Mormonism has created an ingenious system of oppression, in which opposition towards men is tantamount to arguing with God. [15]"
Church leaders repeatedly recommend that women, when possible, should stay at home and rear children rather than pursue professional careers. [16] Women do hold leadership positions in the church's women's organizations, such as the Relief Society. During the Mormon church's bi-annual broadcasts, known as general conference, the majority of the speakers are the male leaders of the church. As children, girls and boys are separated by gender into separate Sunday school classes. They also share co-ed classes and meetings as part of the regular three hour block of Sunday meetings. Some liberal believers have transferred to the Community of Christ denomination which is similar to Mormonism but is more progressive in terms of women's roles. [3]
Behaviour and clothing[edit]
Adult mormons are expected to wear sacred "template garments" once they have participated in their endowment ceremony. [17]
- "When properly worn, it provides protection against temptation and evil. Wearing the garment is also an outward expression of an inward commitment to follow the Savior. Endowed members should wear the temple garment both day and night. They should not remove it, either entirely or partially, to work in the yard or for other activities that can reasonably be done with the garment worn properly beneath the clothing.[18]"
In the section known as the "Word of Wisdom", the Doctrine and Covenants forbids consumption of wine, strong drinks, tobacco, and hot drinks (i.e. tea and coffee). [19] Believers are expected to tithe 10% of their income to the church. [20]
Meetinghouse and temples[edit]
A meetinghouse is a place of worship for a local ward or branch of believers, and allow visitors. Temples are distinct from meetinghouses and are restricted to devout Mormons. The Mormon church has around 144 temples worldwide. [21] Only Mormons, who have been screened by local priesthood leaders for a "temple recommend," may enter the temple to perform ceremonies. Mormon temples are the setting for many of the church's secretive rituals, including marriages, sealings and the mysterious Endownment ceremonies.
Former policies against blacks[edit]
Blacks were prohibited participation in temple endowment, sealing ordinances or priesthood from 1852 until 1978. [22] Earlier teachings consider blacks to be limited to being "servant of servants". Since blacks have been within the church since its beginnings, this belief has a danger of causing self-hatred among believers. [23]
Historic polygamy[edit]
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the largest church devoted to the Latter-Day Saint movement, openly endorsed and encouraged polygamous relationships for nearly the first century of its existence. Early church leaders such as Brigham Young and Joseph Smith, Jr. had as many as 50 wives, and preached that it was the only way to enter heaven. As the Utah Territory, settled by Mormon pioneers, fought the government of the United States for recognition as a state, the Church came under criticism for its practice of polygamy. In 1890, Church president Wilford Woodruff issued a manifesto that renounced the practice, as a condition of Utah's statehood.
Today, practice of polygamy can lead to disfellowship (excommunication) from the LDS church, and the church claims it works with the government to stop those who practice polygamy. Nevertheless, many Latter-Day Saint sects, collectively known as fundamentalist Mormons, continue the practice of polygamy. The largest of these groups is the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS Church), which is based in Texas and has approximately 10,000 members across North America. FLDS Cult leader Warren Jeffs was convicted of two counts of child sexual assault in 2011.[24]
Church Doctrine[edit]
Study of Mormon doctrine is complicated by statements of church leaders, even though they are considered living prophets, are not necessarily held to be church doctrine. [25] The church has a rarely used procedure for new doctrine to be officially accepted. [26] This section describes generally held doctrine rather than strictly official church doctrine.
While Mormons agree with other Christians on doctrines like the resurrection and divinity of Jesus, atonement, speaking in tongues and the fall of man, they have many distinctive beliefs. Mormons reject the concept of original sin and salvation by faith alone.
Great apostasy[edit]
Mormons consider other Christian denominations have deviated from the true faith and are therefore apostates. They consider Mormonism to be a revival of original Christianity. [27] Mormons believe that without living prophets, mankind tends towards apostasy. Mormons believe that God has promised the current line of prophets will not be broken until the return of Jesus.
Authority of the priesthood[edit]
The two priesthoods that the Mormons claim are the Aaronic priesthood and the Melchizedek priesthood, referred to collectively as simply the Priesthood. They are considered to be the only authentic priesthoods on Earth. Mormons believe that Peter, one of Jesus's original apostles, was given the priesthood keys. Mormons believe that the chain of priesthood was broken and all other contemporary Christian denominations are bereft of any priesthood authority. God supposedly restored these priesthoods to the earth through Joseph Smith. The priesthood is currently maintained by a series of living prophets that lead the Mormon church, rather like the doctrine of apostolic succession.
Regarding, "The priesthood is the authority to act in God's name." Can't regular believers act in God's name? What about that random dude casting out devils but without being in Jesus's club? Luke 9:49-50 Jesus told his apostles not to stop him.
Pre-mortal existence and salvation[edit]
Mormons believe that human souls are eternal; they always have existed and will continue to exist. [14] Souls start in a "pre-existent" state as spirit children before they are born. [28][29] Human souls, like God, are self-existent:
- "We say that God Himself is a self-existing being...Man does exist upon the same principles [30]"
- "both [matter and spirit] are self-existent, they never began to exist, and they never can be annihilated [31]"
The Mormon view of salvation calls for both faith and works:
- "If you are to return to live with God eternally, you must keep His commandments, accept Jesus Christ's Atonement, and follow His example while you are on Earth. [32]"
- "We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.... [the] ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost [33]"
They reject the concept of salvation by faith alone.
If human souls always existed, it is impossible for them to be "offspring" or for a heavenly father (and mother) to conceive them. In what sense is God a father in Mormonism?
God the Father and the Godhead[edit]
Mormons believe that God the Father, known as Elohim or Ahman, is distinct from Jesus and the Holy Ghost. Mormons reject the concept of the Trinity but have a somewhat analogous doctrine of the Godhead which has the Father, Jesus and Holy Ghost united in will or purpose. God the Father has a physical body within space and time, and has omnipotence, omniscience and perfect love. [34]
Joseph Smith taught that God the Father had a father himself, implying an infinite ancestry of Gods and God the Father was one a man. This was repeated by other leaders of the church [14] but it is of uncertain status in official doctrine.
Christ, the Holy Ghost and all human souls are considered the literal "spiritual offspring" of God the Father.
If God the Father achieved godhood without any help, then presumably anyone can do with - this makes the Mormon church redundant. If God required help to attain godhood from another deity, perhaps Mormons should be worshipping that entity instead. Or perhaps given an infinite number of Gods, God the Father is a valid choice among many possibilities and they are content with that.
Mormons are monolatrist in that they recognize may Gods exist but worship only the God the Father. Mormons believe that any spirit children can attain Godhood, just as Jesus did. They also reject deism and consider Gods to have physical bodies. [34]
Mormons also believe in a Heavenly Mother. [29]
Belief in multiple divine beings is even more polythiestic than regular Christianity. Since Mormons reject deism, claims made by Mormons are therefore subject to scientific inquiry and falsification.
- Jesus was God's first born son but one of many children of God.
- Jesus was not originally a God but achieved this state during his pre-existence (before his Earthly mission) "through consistent effort and continuous obedience". [36] In his pre-existent state, Jesus is referred to as Jehovah.
- All humans and Lucifer are the spirit brothers of Jesus. "But both the scriptures and the prophets affirm that Jesus Christ and Lucifer are indeed offspring of our Heavenly Father and, therefore, spirit brothers." [37]
- Formerly, some church leaders taught Jesus was a married or a polygamist. [36] The modern church is neutral on the issue. [38]
- A personal relationship with Jesus, as in evangelical Christianity, is rejected as "improper and perilous". [36] "some may be offended at the counsel that they should not strive for a special and personal relationship with Christ" [39] Prayers are directed rather to God (but in the name of Jesus).
- The source of Jesus's divinity is God the Father [34]
- After his resurrection, Jesus visited what was later known as North America. [40] The incident is described in 3 Nephi in the Book of Mormon. He supposedly founded a just society which lasted for a few generations.
Humans by the process of exultation[edit]
According to Mormons, we are like Jesus and Lucifer in that we are spirit children of God. All spirit children have the potential, through eternal progression, to become gods in their own right by process of exaltation, provided they follow God's plan. [41] The purpose of Earthly life is as a training ground for new gods by gaining experiences that could not be gained by other means. After death, everyone is bodily resurrected into a perfected body, which is part of becoming like God the Father and Jesus Christ, who also have bodies of "flesh and bones" [42]
Baptism for the dead[edit]
Mormons also perform ceremonies, by proxy, for their ancestors who died before Mormonism came into being. [14] Baptism for the dead is a practice of initiating a deceased person into a religion. The church claims that ceremonies for the dead are limited to people for whom Mormons have discovered as ancestors through the church's extensive genealogy program. The Mormon genealogy data is a useful resource for genealogy researchers outside the church. However, the church has been criticized in the past for posthumously baptizing people without their consent, as well as those outside of their members' family trees, including many of the Founding Fathers and Jews who perished in the Holocaust.
Adam-God doctrine[edit]
Brigham Young (who was the 2nd prophet of the LDS church) taught that Adam and God where in fact the same being. He taught that God came with one of his many wives to the Garden of Eden, and he was Adam. [43]
This contradicts the perfection of God because Mormons also believe that Adam transgressed, leading to the fall of man.
Mormons also believe that there are other habitable planets (such as Kolob) in the universe, also inhabited by God's children, though Christ lived, died and was resurrected only on this planet. Thus, Mormons believe that Jesus died for the sins of all human mortals, on all planets in the universe. Presumably, there would be other gods' children in the universe, all with their own saviours, going through the same cycle of eternal progression.
Eternal families[edit]
Mormons believe that marital and familial bonds can continue beyond death if those family members are sealed in a Mormon temple by a priesthood holder designated as a sealer. [14] Sealed families will remain families in the afterlife, and will be together if they all go to the same kingdom. Deceased family members may also be sealed, provide they have been baptised posthumously, by proxy.
The doctrine of eternal families is problematic, as the Mormon church does grant petitions to divorced couples to have their sealings annulled. Also, only those who have been baptised into the Mormon church and are vetted through an interview process may enter a temple to perform temple rituals. So Mormons, who's spouses are not baptized, may not be sealed to their children.
Obedience brings blessings[edit]
Apologists claim that following God's law will lead to happiness. This is a version of the prosperity gospel which says God makes believers prosperous and/or happy.
"There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated—and when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated"
Seer stones[edit]
Early Mormons used seer stones for scrying (a form of divination) to receive revelations from God or to translate documents. Although fundamental to the narrative of the religion, seer stones are not openly used by the church today. The most significant in Mormonism were the Urim and Thummim.
In 2015, the church released photographs of a stone in its possession that was used in the production of the Book of Mormon. [45] If they want to provide evidence of their validity, they would demonstrate they still work (under scientifically controlled conditions). The James Randi Educational Foundation would be happy to help them organize a suitable demonstration and pay a large prize of they are successful. However, the church will not do this since divination is a fraud.
Curse of dark skin[edit]
The Book of Mormon claims that the Lamanites (the Native Americans) were cursed by God with dark skin because of their wickedness and so they would "not be enticing" to the Nephites (2 Nephi 5:21). Lamanites who obeyed God miraculously became white skinned. Of course, this is rather a racist thing to believe. The modern church now disavows the idea that black skin is a curse or sign of disfavor from God. [22] In order to reconcile this change with the Book of Mormon, apologists claim this was more a spiritual curse rather than a change of appearance. [46]
Celestial Kingdom, terrestrial kingdom, and telestial kingdom[edit]
Mormons believe that after death, people are resurrected, judged by God and sent to one of three kingdoms or Perdition. The kindoms are the celestial kingdom, the terrestrial kingdom, and the telestial kingdom. Perdition is to be cast into the "outer darkness", which may be a permanent state for some people.
Opposition to homosexuality[edit]
The church opposes homosexual behaviours:
- "[Homosexual] attraction itself is not a sin, but acting on it is. [47]"
Changes to church rules in November 2015 stated that people in same sex marriages should be disciplined. This could lead to their excommunication. [48]
- "adults who choose to enter into a same-gender marriage or similar relationship commit sin that warrants a Church disciplinary council. [49]"
Also, they ruled that children living with same sex parents could not be baptised, saying it was in the best interest of the child. [49] This lead to a wave of resignations with people disgusted with the church's stance. [50]
See also[edit]
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ [2]
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 [3]
- ↑ Articles of Faith, 8
- ↑ Comment by Courtney on How can I know Mormonism is true?
- ↑ [4]
- ↑ [5]
- ↑ [6]
- ↑ [7]
- ↑ [8]
- ↑ Jared comment on Why do Mormons go on missions?
- ↑ [9]
- ↑ [10]
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 Rulon T. Burton, We Believe: Doctrines and Principles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 2004
- ↑ [11]
- ↑ [12]
- ↑ [13]
- ↑ [14]
- ↑ [15]
- ↑ [16]
- ↑ [17]
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 [18]
- ↑ [19]
- ↑ The woman who escaped a polygamous cult – and turned its HQ into a refuge
- ↑ [20]
- ↑ [21]
- ↑ [22]
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 [23]
- ↑ 29.0 29.1 [24]
- ↑ Joseph Smith, History of the Church 6:308-309
- ↑ Joseph Smith, History of the Church 4:55
- ↑ [25]
- ↑ [26]
- ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 [27]
- ↑ [28]
- ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 [29]
- ↑ [30]
- ↑ [31]
- ↑ [32]
- ↑ Is it true that Jesus appeared in North America after his crucifixion and resurrection according to the Book of Mormon?, mormon.org
- ↑ Journal of Discourses, vol. 1, p. 50
- ↑ [33]
- ↑ Revealed: the stone that 'translated' the Book of Mormon
- ↑ [34]
- ↑ [35]
- ↑ Caught between apostasy and heartbreak: a Mormon lesbian love story
- ↑ 49.0 49.1 [36]
- ↑ [37]
External Links[edit]
- Mormonism at a glance on BBC Religion & Ethics
- Official website of the Latter-Day Saints (Mormon) Church
- Mormon.org- A website that explores Mormon beliefs
- Transgender and Mormon: keeping the faith while asking the church to change
- How the Internet is Destroying Mormonism, The Young Turks, 26 Jul 2013


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D. C. October 30, 1952 ACCOUNTING SERIES RELEASE NO. 73 Findings and Opinion of the Commission In the Matter of Haskins & Sells and Andrew Stewart, file No. 4-66, (Rules of Practice— Rule 1 1 ( e ) ). PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE Disqualification of Accountant from Practice Before Commission Where repsondents, a firm of certified public accountants and a partner therein, certified financial statements in a registration statement found by the Commission to be materially inadequate and misleading in that, among other findings, the financial statements grossly overstated intangible assets as a result of the arbitrary use of the par and stated value of shares of stock issued to acquire the assets, including shares expected to be reacquired from promoters as a donation, and attributed to apparently potentially productive items material amounts which should have been shown as promotion services, held respondents have engaged in improper professional conduct making it appropriate to deny temporarily their privilege of appearing or practicing before the Commission. APPEARANCES : Manuel F. Cohen, for the Office of the Chief Accountant of the Commission. Robert P. Patterson, Boyle, Feller, Stone & McGivern, and Saul Levy, for respondents. These private proceedings were instituted under Rule I I (e) of our Rules of Practice to determine whether the privilege of appearing or practicing before us should be denied, temporarily or permanently, to Haskins & Sells, a firm of certified public accountants, and Andrew Stewart, a member of that firm.1 Hearings were held, and after a recommended decision by the hearing examiner was dispensed with upon respondents' motion, counsel for the Office of the Chief Accountant of the Commission and counsel for the respondents filed briefs and presented oral argument. On the basis of our examination of the record we make the following findings. 1 Rule II (e) reads as follows : "The Commission may disqualify, and deny, temporarily or permanently, the privilege of appearing or practicing before it in any way to any person who is found by the Commission after hearing in the matter "(1) not to possess the requisite qualifications to represent others ; or "(2) to be lacking in character or integrity or to have engaged in unethical or improper professional conduct." 229196—52 1


text: Every department in the College of Engineering offers Ph.D. and master's degrees. As a graduate student in theCollege of Engineering, you are expected to contribute to the mission of your home department, which may involve conducting laboratories, grading homework/exams, developing new learning activities in concert with a faculty member. You are also expected to participate in the high-level research activities within the college, as well as prepare and present a dissertation. This is all outlined in the Graduate School Bulletin of Information. Most important, graduate programs in engineering — and the opportunities available here — are geared for your success. Working with your faculty adviser, you will be able to structure your academic program and research opportunities so that they meet formal University requirements as well as your own career goals.


text:
The Police have, after intensive lobbying, achieved a law change that could end up putting more guns in the hands of criminals
The Arms (Military Style Semi-automatic Firearms and Import Controls) Amendment Bill was passed by Parliament last week. This new law, when it comes into force, will allow the definition of a "military style semi-automatic" (MSSA) rifle to be specified by regulation, rather than directly in the Arms Act as was previously the case.
This means that the Police, by providing advice to their Minister, can introduce regulations reclassifying whole classes of firearms as MSSAs. And they intend to do so, affecting thousands of firearms.
Why is this important? It's certainly not because of any inherent differences between the two types of rifle (there really isn't any, except that MSSAs tend to look a bit "nastier"). There are only two important distinctions:
- The law allows higher-capacity magazines to be fitted to MSSAs, meaning that more shots can be fired before reloading (normal rifles can only be used with low-capacity 7 round magazines); and
- The Police are allowed to keep a register of MSSAs, which they're not allowed to do for regular rifles.
The Police have recently become really keen on registering firearms, and seem to believe classifying more firearms as MSSAs is a way to achieve this. But the evidence from around the world is that registering firearms is pointless. Canada, for example, has just abolished its register, having looked long and hard and concluded that the whole thing was a monstrously expensive waste of effort. The Police here were once of the same view; back when our current Arms Act was being drafted in the early 1980s, the Police successfully lobbied to abolish firearms registration.
But now the Police seem hell-bent on forcing as many firearms as possible into the MSSA category, just so that they can keep a register of them.
And they're doing this in spite of the fact that firearms crime is a miniscule problem in New Zealand. Fewer than 1% of the 200-odd serious violent crimes committed in New Zealand every week involve the use of firearms. And that percentage has been declining since 2002. Looked at another way, around 1,400 people suffer an untimely death from criminal or accidental causes each year. Firearms typically contribute to around 6 of those. That's fewer than the number who die through falling off their chair.
And there is no evidence – none, zip, nada – that registering firearms does anything to reduce that number. Yet the Police currently spend around $3.5m a year registering firearms, and they're determined to spend much more. That's money not being spent on, for example, road safety – where it could really save lives.
So what happens when Joe Public finds that his rifle has suddenly been reclassified as an MSSA? He has a few choices:
- He can apply for an MSSA endorsement to his licence. It will cost him $200 in fees to hand in the paperwork, and he will need to spend $1,000 or more upgrading his gun safe – just to continue to own what he previously owned quite legally.
- He can sell the firearm to someone with an MSSA endorsement already on their firearms licence. But it will be a buyer's market, with hundreds of other owners trying to offload their newly illegal-to-own firearms at the same time. A great time to buy an MSSA if you've got the right licence, but a really bad time to be selling one if you don't.
- Or he can take it down the pub, and sell it to someone who's prepared to pay a nice premium for a decent shooter, no questions asked.
It won't have escaped anyone's attention that only option 3 offers our previously law-abiding firearms owner any chance to avoid being out of pocket. Sadly, many will find the temptation to avoid a financial loss irresistible.
It's happened before. When the MSSA concept was first introduced into New Zealand law in 1992, hundreds of previously legally held firearms simply disappeared into the criminal underworld.
And it will happen again, each and every time the Police add a new regulation reclassifying more firearms as MSSAs.
Safer Communities Together? I think not.


text:
What's the deal with Tierra? Is she good at playing the game? Crazy? Or just crazy about our Sean?
This week started with an immediate Date Card, a one-on-one date for Selma. The card read "Let's turn up the heat!" Where would he take her and what would they do?
A limo ride to a private jet, with a very sensual private flight. Lots of interlocking finger hand holding, with snuggles and hugs. These tow are super comfortable together and you could feel the heat being turned up on the plane. But not as much heat as Selma would feel on the dessert where their one-on-one date would take place. Rock climbing.
Selma faired well and surprised Sean, making it to the top of the climb in what looked like very little effort. Score for Selma, showing Sean that she was more than just a pretty face and could hold her own with the heat turned up.
Dinner for two, on a blinged out country-glam RV and a perfect ending to a perfect day.
More alone time, head on chest, embraced and eye-gazing but no kiss? No kiss, because Selma revealed to Sean lots of information regarding her very strict Muslim upbringing and her mom's dislike of Selma's participation in the show. There will be no kissing until Selma is declared "the one" for Sean.
Sean respects Selma's culture and upbringing and claims that he'll stick around. We'll see, with none of the other ladies holding back, Selma may just have a tough road ahead of her – I think we'll see a kiss. It was definitely in her eyes tonight. No kiss, but Selma snagged the first rose of the night, securing her place in the house.
Tonight's crazy … Tierra. She makes her first of many looney appearances of the night, tired of group dates and wanted her own alone time with Sean. "I want a one-on-one date without a chaperone!"
Date Card: Group Date. Lyndsay, Robin, Jackie, Catherine, Amanda, Ashley, Sarah and Tierra, the card reads " Looking for a woman that can roll with the punches." Hmmmmm.
It was clear from the revealing of the Roller Derby group date that Amanda and Tierra would be the aggressors.
Amanda told the other ladies that she was actually an avid roller derby chick, placing fear in the hearts and minds of all of the other ladies that struggled desperately to stay on their feet in the roller skates.
Lots of falls and falls and more falls, it wasn't a very pretty scene for any of the ladies who all shared the grace of baby giraffes!
Sarah, our one armed beauty who wants to be treated "normal" had a most difficult time. Balance really requires tow arms, which made this date and Sarah's experience quite disheartening to watch. It felt kind of cruel to me to watch her struggle and cry all while battling with herself over should she stay and appear a good sport that can handle it or quit because it was just too hard for her to stay up on the skates. Just as she's about to throw in the towel, Sean comes and gives her the "good sport, you're a trooper speech" and Sarah, the apparent good sport put her gear back on to continue. Hats off to you Sarah – I would have quit!
Amanda falls and almost breaks her jaw, only then does Sean decide maybe a group date of novice roller skaters, one of which only has one arm may not have been the best date to plan and calls for a free skate – making it disco night in the rink instead. Someone would have probably killed themselves tonight.
Amanda leaves in an ambulance and the ladies go off to continue the group date with Sean, relieved to not have to continue with the whole roller derby thing. Whew!
Sarah, gets the first one-on-one time on the group date and this time a sympathy rose for sure. Sean still appears to like Sarah and kept her around for another week. But time will tell.
Amanda returns in one piece, no broken jaw but she too milks the slightly bruised chin for what she had hoped would get her a rose but instead got her a kiss on the chin, not even a lip lock, good try Amanda, but no rose right now, maybe later. Keep your chin up!
Date Card. One-on-One Date, with Leslie H. Card ironically reads "could this be forever?" The date card is accompanied by a pair of diamond earrings!
Having a " Pretty Woman" moment, Leslie our "tan" Julia Roberts of the evening sets out for a date made for the movies. Picked up in a convertible sports car, taken on a shopping spree on Rodeo Drive, given a 120-carat necklace to top the beautiful gown, shoes and handbag purchased. Back in the convertible and off to a romantic dinner, the conversation felt so strained for me.
Tell me about your family. What are you looking for? Tell me about your past relationships. What do you like? Felt like an really bad job interview and just as I began to question this union, Sean calls off the date! What? The date is over? Why? Sean wasn't feeling any romantic chemistry and decided right there at dinner on the spot that this relationship was over and Ummmm, could you leave the diamond necklace, please? Whoa. Next thing we see is an arm reaching in to retrieve Leslie's bags from the house, she couldn't even return to say goodbye and we missed an opportunity to hear Ben Taylor sing, aww man, that would have been an awesome way to end a date, serenaded by Ben Taylor! See ya later Leslie H. Sorry there was no love here for you. Sheesh Sean sure know how to get rid of a chick!
Ashley gets a little one-on-one time on the stairs with Sean and a kiss. Sean like Ashley.
Robyn tells a corny chocolate joke, but gets the kiss. Go Robyn!
Tierra apologizes to the girls for being a certified nut case, but they ain't buying it, this one is a loose cannon and will do anything to get the man.
Sean's off alone with Catherine. Kiss. Confirmations that he likes her. Catherine asks if Sean has his trunks for some time in the hot tub, forgetting that they are actually still on a group date but Tierra reminds them just as Sean opens the door to head to the hot tub with Catherine, there's a crazy little Tierra sitting sobbing in the dark on the floor waiting for Sean, after throwing a tantrum and threatening to leave because she just can't take all of the phony women in the house vying for Sean's love and attention when they aren't really there for love and blah, blah, crazy lady blah. But it works!
Tierra, steals Sean away from Catherine and gets him. Gets him in such a way, that Sean actually returns to the group of ladies waiting for him to retrieve a rose to give to Tierra, this is TIERRA-BLE! Or is it? Sean is convinced the Tierra is the real deal, but the ladies and myself can't figure out if she's just not a master manipulator that's just really good at playing the game? Only time will tell – looks like next week may tell us a little more.
Catherine, Des, Lindsay, Leslie, Robin, Ashley, Sarah, Jackie and the chick in the green dress
Next week two full days, a two-episode bachelor event! Two nights of double the romance and double the drama. Can't wait.


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Forensic Genealogy – Colleen Fitzpatrick PhD at AFHS May 8, 2010
February 28, 2010 by © Joan Miller - Luxegen Genealogy.
Filed under genealogy
The sleuthing, the detective work, the aha moments! That's what brought me to a career in science and that's what keeps me interested in genealogy. Combine the science and genealogy and as far as I'm concerned you have the best of both worlds! We will have an opportunity to hear a master in the field, [...]


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Obama Rekindles State Debates on Dropout Age
But experts warn it will take more than new laws to put a real dent in dropout rates
President Barack Obama's call for every state to require school attendance until age 18 may spark a flurry of action in some statehouses, but changing attendance laws will do little by itself to drive down the nation's dropout rates, experts on the issue say.
In his State of the Union address last month, President Obama said states should require that "all students stay in high school until they graduate or turn 18," and said that when students aren't allowed to drop out, "they do better."
Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia already require students to remain enrolled until they are 18 years old, while 11 others require attendance until age 17, according to the Denver-based Education Commission of the States. The other 18 states still use the traditional age of 16 as their attendance requirement, though lawmakers in several of those states have tried unsuccessfully in recent years to raise it.
While bumping up the compulsory-attendance age in state laws sends a strong message to students and parents about the obligation to remain in school, experts and educators alike say that states and districts won't make much of a dent in their dropout problem without comprehensive strategies for making school engaging and relevant and for spotting and addressing early signs of dropping out.
"The president is saying that we shouldn't give up on kids as soon as they turn 16, and that we should all see it as our responsibility that they graduate," said Hedy Chang, the director of the San Francisco-based Attendance Works, a national effort to combat chronic absenteeism. "But it's not enough to just say, 'Do as I say.' Schools have to answer the question of why it matters for these students to be there."
Since the president's Jan. 24 speech, at least four states—Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New Jersey—have begun debating raising their attendance-age requirements, while Kentucky Gov. Steven L. Beshear, for the third straight year, is calling on lawmakers in that state to raise the attendance age from 16 to 18.
National Picture
Nationwide, roughly 3 million young people between the ages of 16 and 24 are dropouts because they do not have high school diplomas or General Educational Development credentials, nor are they enrolled in school, according to federal data released in October. That number represents 8.1 percent of the people in that age range.
In spite of billions of dollars in government and private spending aimed at well-intentioned and ambitious efforts to stem the tide of dropouts, the national graduation rate is worse now than it was 40 years ago, despite some recent progress, said Russell W. Rumberger, an education professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the director of the California Dropout Research Project.
Raising the required attendance age can help "on the margins," Mr. Rumberger said, but it places the focus on extrinsic motivation, rather than intrinsic motivation.
"You can legally force these kids to be in school a couple of years longer, but many of them face the same barriers to earning credits and passing an exit exam to actually graduate," he said. "So what ends up happening is that you prevent them from leaving at 16, but they still may never graduate."
Daria Hall, the director of K-12 policy at the Education Trust, a Washington-based advocacy group for the educational needs of poor children, said compulsory-attendance laws put all the responsibility on students.
"We do need to hold our young people accountable for not dropping out," she said, "but we have to also hold schools accountable for ensuring that students have the supports, the engagement, and the rigor that we know matters for keeping kids in school and succeeding."
In some states with a compulsory-attendance age of 17, such as Tennessee and West Virginia, lawmakers have tried to up the incentive for staying in school by requiring students to attend until age 18 to retain their driving privileges, according to 2010 data from the Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins University.
The National Conference of State Legislatures, a Denver-based nonpartisan research and policy organization, issued a report in early 2011 with lengthy recommendations on how state lawmakers could most effectively address the dropout problem. Among them was raising the attendance age to 18 and making that requirement more meaningful by tying it to driving privileges and work permits. The report also suggested that states require that students who withdraw from school before graduating receive information on the economic consequences of dropping out and how they can still complete a diploma if they do leave school.
A Case Study
In New Hampshire, lawmakers and state education officials began tackling the state's dropout problem in 2005.
Working with Robert Balfanz, the director of the Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins and one of the nation's leading experts on dropouts, state education leaders identified the schools and communities with the largest problem, said Paul Leather, the deputy education commissioner in New Hampshire.
Teachers and administrators were then trained on how to spot warning signs that students might be headed for dropping out—chronic absences, for example—and to intervene with those students right away. That early-warning system is now used by schools statewide, Mr. Leather said.
It wasn't until four years later, in July 2009, that the state's mandatory attendance age rose from 16 to 18.
"We framed it as a moral imperative for everyone: the community, parents, kids and educators," Mr. Leather said. "The attitude before had been that if a student makes it through to graduation, then great, and if they don't, it's their personal decision."
But raising the attendance age by itself would have been mostly useless, Mr. Leather said. The most significant factors in driving down the dropout rate have been the creation of multiple pathways to graduation, making the state's programs in career and technical education and adult education more accessible and setting up "personalized" learning plans that allow students to earn credits for what Mr. Leather calls "anytime, everywhere learning," or extended learning opportunities.
"We had a young man in one of our rural high schools who wanted to join the military, but he couldn't pass his senior social studies class," Mr. Leather said. "So his teachers created an extended-learning opportunity for him in which he worked with a military recruiter and wrote an analysis of who joins the military and presented it as a report.
"That earned him the credit he needed," he said, "and it was a meaningful learning experience for him."
To support students who are participating in extended-learning opportunities, most of New Hampshire's high schools now have a dedicated coordinator, whose sole job is to develop and oversee such plans for students.
For the 2010-11 school year, the cohort rate for New Hampshire students who had dropped out of school and did not earn a GED was 3.3 percent, down from 4.4 percent the previous school year. A 2010 report by Mr. Balfanz's center notes that, of the six states that raised the compulsory-attendance age between 2002 and 2008, two—Illinois and South Dakota—saw an increase in their high school graduation rates. Only Nevada experienced a graduation-rate decrease.
Opposition Remains
Whether President Obama's exhortation to states will gain any traction remains to be seen. Setting school attendance requirements has traditionally been the purview of states and local districts, and many efforts have run into fierce opposition to budging from an attendance age of 16. A major reason is cost and issues around local control of schools. As with many state mandates on public education, school districts become responsible for carrying out the endeavor without additional resources to do so, said Jennifer Dounay Zinth, a senior policy analyst at the ECS. That's also been the case with mandatory attendance laws.
After two failed attempts in Kentucky to move the mandatory attendance age from 16 to 18 statewide, lawmakers there are now attempting to increase the age requirement by passing legislation that would allow local school districts to set the age requirement. When New Hampshire lawmakers first attempted to raise the attendance age, the effort failed because "people realized that just raising the age alone wasn't going to bring us much success," Mr. Leather said.
Still, since 2000, nine states have raised the compulsory-attendance age to 18, said Ms. Dounay Zinth.
But all of them have also adopted other strategies to stem dropouts, which makes the change to the age requirement "very hard to isolate as a sole driving factor" in any decreases in their dropout rates, Ms. Dounay Zinth said. Rhode Island became the most recent adopter of the requirement last year, raising its legal minimum dropout age from 16 to 18.
As states have wrestled with the issue over the years, the most prevalent argument against raising the age to 18 has been fiscal, Ms. Dounay Zinth said.
"That argument that it costs more money to keep students in schools makes me cringe," she said, "especially when you look at the level of spending that states direct to prisons and social services for people who do not finish high school."
Vol. 31, Issue 20, Pages 1, 18Published in Print: February 8, 2012, as States Mull Obama's Call to Raise Compulsory-Attendance Age
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Ballarat Regional Bowls Associationpin_dropAddress & Details
phone (03) 5331 3268
1201 Havelock Street
Ballarat 3350, VIC
phone (03) 5331 3268
|96,097(June 2010 SD) (19th)
|1220/km (3,159.8/sq mi)
|435 m (1,427 ft) AHD
|740 km (285.7 sq mi)
|Time zone:
Summer (DST)
|Local Government Area:
|City of Ballarat
|State District:
|Ballarat East, Ballarat West
|Federal Division:
Ballarat is a city in the state of Victoria, Australia, approximately 105 kilometres west-north-west of the state capital Melbourne situated on the lower plains of the Great Dividing Range and the Yarrowee River catchment. It is the largest inland centre and third most populous city in the state and the fifth most populated inland city in Australia. The estimated urban area population is 96,000. It is the administrative centre for the City of Ballarat, which encompasses both the urban area and outlying towns spanning an area of 740 square kilometres. Inhabitants of Ballarat are known as Ballaratians.
It was named by Scottish settler Archibald Yuille who established the sheep run called Ballaarat in 1837 with the name derived from local Wathaurong Aboriginal words for the area, balla arat, thought to mean "resting place". The present spelling was officially adopted in 1996.
Ballarat is one of the most significant Victorian era boomtowns in Australia. Gold was discovered at Poverty Point on 18 August 1851, and the district was found to be a rich alluvial field where gold could easily be extracted. News of the finds intensified the Victorian gold rush bringing over 10,000 migrants to the city from around the world within a year and transforming it from a station to a major settlement in the newly proclaimed Colony of Victoria. Australia's first gold stamp mill was established at Ballarat in 1854.
It was the site of the Eureka Rebellion, the only armed civil uprising in Australian history, which took place on 3 December 1854 at the Eureka Mining Lead, and the event is controversially identified with the birth of democracy in Australia. Many significant Australian cultural icons are also a legacy of Ballarat's gold rush boom. The rebellion's symbol, the Eureka Flag has become a national symbol and is held at the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, Australia's oldest and largest regional gallery. Other nationally significant heritage structures include the Ballarat Botanical Gardens, established 1857, the best example of a regional botanic gardens in Australia with the greatest concentration of public statuary including the official Prime Ministers Avenue; the longest running lyric theatre building, Her Majesty's, established 1875; the first municipal observatory, established 1886; and the earliest and longest memorial avenue, the Avenue of Honour, established between 1917 and 1919.
Proclaimed a city in 1871, its prosperity continued until late in the 19th century, after which its importance relative to both Melbourne and Geelong rapidly faded with the slowing of gold extraction. It has endured as a major regional centre hosting the rowing and kayaking events from the 1956 Summer Olympics. It is the commercial capital of the Central Highlands and the largest city in the Goldfields region of Victoria ? a significant tourist destination. Ballarat is known for its history, culture and its well preserved Victorian era heritage.
filter_dramaEntertainment & Nightlife


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Browsing Working Papers (DBP) by Author "Hobson, John"
Now showing items 1-1 of 1
Seabrooke, Leonard; Hobson, John (, 2006)[More information][Less information]
Abstract: Our everyday actions have important consequences for the constitution and transformation of the local, national, regional and global contexts. How, what, and with whom we spend, save, invest, buy and produce in our ordinary lives shapes markets and how states choose to intervene in them. The political, economic, and social networks with which we associate ourselves provide us not only with meaning about how we think economic policy is made, but also constitute vehicles for how economic policy, both at home and abroad, should be made. And while elite actors in politics and economics obviously have more direct influence, this should not obscure the point that peripheral actors can challenge the legitimacy of how power is exercised. Nor should it obscure the point that such actors have a good deal more agency in terms of determining their own life experiences as well as those of others through their everyday actions than is commonly recognised. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/7912
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College of Law to present the 2012 Carhart Program on Legal Ethics
Ohio Northern University's Pettit College of Law will present the 2012 Carhart Program on Legal Ethics on Friday, March 2, at 11 a.m. in the Celebrezze Moot Court Room. The program will feature professor Charles Dunlap's presentation, "Ethical Issues in the Practice of National Security Law: A Perspective" and professor David Luban's "The Government Lawyer as Advisor: Some Hard Lessons of the Last 10 Years."
Dunlap is a visiting professor of the practice of law and the executive director of the Center on Law, Ethics and National Security at Duke University School of Law. Prior to joining the law faculty at Duke, he served in the U.S. Air Force from 1972-2010, attaining the rank of major general. In his final assignment as deputy judge advocate general of the Air Force, Dunlap assisted the judge advocate general of the Air Force in the supervision of more than 2,200 judge advocates, 350 civilian lawyers, 1,400 enlisted paralegals, and 500 civilians around the world and advised Air Staff commanders at all levels.
Luban is the Bacon-Kilkenny Distinguished Visiting Professor of Law at Fordham University School of Law. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of Chicago and Ph.D. in philosophy from Yale University. Throughout his career, he has been visiting professor and Distinguished Senior Fellow in Legal Ethics at Yale Law School and Leah Kaplan Visiting Professor of Human Rights at Stanford Law School. Luban also has held visiting appointments at Dartmouth College, the University of Melbourne and Harvard Law School. Luban has held a Guggenheim Fellowship and Woodrow Wilson Fellowship and won awards for his legal ethics scholarship from the New York State Bar and the American Bar Foundation.
The Fred L. Carhart Memorial Program in Legal Ethics was established at ONU's College of Law in 2007 through an endowment from the estate of alumnus Dwight L. Carhart in memory of his father, Fred L. Carhart, a lifelong attorney in Marion, Ohio, until his death in 1948. The program brings eminent scholars, jurists and lawyers to Ohio Northern to actively engage in lectures, seminars and panel discussions for the benefit of students, the college and University communities, the public, and the bench and bar. The Carhart Program funds lectures and symposia in alternating years.


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Judges at the Lockerbie trial in the Netherlands have announced several measures in response to the defense complaints about translation facilities, reported the BBC.online Tuesday.
Proceedings since the trial began on May 3rd are to be translated into Arabic and copies given to the two Libyan men accused of the bombing in 1988.
The presiding judge, Lord Sutherland, also said lawyers and witnesses should remember to speak slowly and interpreters had been told to signal if they could not keep up, added the BBC.
A system is to be installed allowing translators to indicate with lights if they are falling behind.
Proceedings are also to be tape-recorded, with the tapes checked against the court transcript to ensure accuracy.
Last week, the judges ordered an urgent inquiry into the Arabic interpretation the two Libyan defendants were receiving after defense counsel said it was too poor for the accused to understand proceedings fully, the BBC said.
Lord Sutherland told the court: "The translation for the benefit of the accused must be as far as possible consistent with the result of a verbatim translation.
"Should any matters arise of which the accused were for some reason unaware and on which they want to give instructions to counsel about further cross-examination, a motion for the recall of a particular witness or witnesses may be made."
Defense lawyer William Taylor said he was "comforted" by the ruling.
Legal analysts had said last week's defense motion might lead to dismissal of the case or, if the defendants were found guilty, to an eventual appeal, according to the BBC - Albawaba.com
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)


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DOVER -- Approximately 25 members of the Dover Democratic Committee met on Saturday, February 16 to elect city Democratic officers for 2013-14, and party delegates to the New Hampshire Democratic Party's 2013 Midterm and 2014 State Convention. The officers and at-large delegates elected have a vote at the annual conventions to approve the party platform and other actions.
Officers elected at the caucus were Wendy Alley, chair; Kristine Baber, vice chair; Bill Dudley, secretary; and Carole Appel, treasurer. Also elected were eight at-large delegates: Debbie Bodell, Len DiSesa, Caroline French, Midge Kelley, Freddye Ross, Tom Southworth, Debbie Thibodeaux, and Susan Wright.
The Committee approved revisions to the current by-laws, and discussed how to keep the momentum going in the wake of the results of the 2012 elections, where responsible leaders were returned to office at all levels of New Hampshire government.
The Dover Democratic Committee sponsors and participates in the "End 68 Hours of Hunger" program which helps underprivileged children in the Dover schools. On January 19th, committee members participated in two events to support President Obama's National Day of Service: working with Families in Transition in Dover to paint that organization's new facility; and participating in a door-to-door food drive for the Strafford County Community Action Program Food Pantry.
During the caucus Saturday, the Committee members agreed to invite guest speakers to address relevant issues affecting the Dover community. This will help ensure that the Dover Democratic Committee uses the political process to help improve the lives of the people who live in Dover. Upcoming programs may include NH State Representatives, Young Democrats, Dover City Council members, Dover social agencies, and members of Congress.
The next major event on the calendar will be the Saturday, March 23 sixth annual FDR home-cooked spaghetti dinner at 6 p.m. at the Niles Park Community Center, Union Street off Court, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the inauguration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Tickets are $15 per adult, and $5 per child. RSVP is requested at (603)749-3899 or by e-mail to firstname.lastname@example.com.
The public is further invited to check out the committee's website at www.dovernhdemocrats.com for information and updates on upcoming meetings and other events of particular importance and interest to Dover residents.


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Lansdowne (India)
Lansdowne is a small hill-station in Pauri-Garhwal District of the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand.
Described by some as the gates to the heavenly abode that is the Himalayas, Lansdowne is also one of the most unusual hill stations in India.
Far from the crowded, overdeveloped and noisy places that most of the popular hill stations of the north have become, Lansdowne has retained its quiet and serenity thanks to the presence of the local Army Cantonment Board which manages and regulates the development in the town.
The town is named after Lord Lansdowne the then Viceroy of India who visited the place in 1884. The town has two churches made in the pre independence era although only one St. James is functional. The town also has a major Hindu Temple.
The town is located at an average altitude of 1700 metres above the sea level and has cold winters, cool summers and wet and foggy rainy season. It experiences snowfall during winter months.
From the snow view point on a clear day one can view great Himalayan peaks like Chaukhamba etc. The town has several Pre Independence era bunglows, some of them in good shape. The connectivity is good as the roads maintained by the army. The hill station itself is administered by the cantonment board of the Indian army therefore is cleaner, much less commercialized and in good shape although your mobile phones/wireless net may not work unless BSNL.
Best time to visit is throughout the year although May/June may be a bit crowded and rooms difficult to find.
What others say about Lansdowne:-
Outlook Traveller magazine – "Glorious as heaven itself must be, I have always thought the gates of heaven must be its crowning glory. That at least is true of Lansdowne, as you reach Kotdwar and find the sky measured out in grey and blue."
Business Standard Motoring magazine – "Lansdowne is one of the quietest hill stations in India, quiet and so well hidden that you only realize you're there when you turn past the gates of the elegant Gadhwal Rifles Cantonment."
HolidayIQ.com – "You won't find much of popular tourism here and it is as if the town intends to preserve its local charm and sanctity."
Get in[edit]
Lansdowne is around 240 Kms from Delhi and is the nearest hill station from Delhi (in any direction). National Highway 58 runs from Delhi to Meerut and then National Highway 119 takes all the way to Lansdowne and will take you from Delhi to Lansdowne in about 6 hours.
Kotdwar is the nearest railway station and is 40 kms drive uphill. Buses and taxis are available from the Kotdwar railway station directly upto the Lansdowne market, a shared taxi charges INR 70. Having your own vehicle will enable you to easily visit nearby towns and temples.
Delhi - 60 km - Merrut - 75km - Bijnore - 40km - Najibabad - 25km - Kotdawar - 45km - Lansdowne
Get around[edit]
Most of Lansdowne is within walkable distance from the town center. Once you have seen places within Lansdowne, drive out to nearby towns such as Jai Hari Khal, Satpuli, Pauri and Srinagar. A short distance off the main road from jai Hari Khal is a temple of Bhairon Dev on the top of a hill. The trek to the temple is not very long or tiring but offers a spectacular view of the valley below.
See[edit][add listing]
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Travel to...
Buy[edit][add listing]
Though it is a nice place, however there is nothing much to buy as a souvenir. You can spend some time in the Lansdowne market or at the Alaknanda market. While in Alaknanda market do pay a visit to the shoe store and leather bags store - may double as souvenir ! Don't forget to try out mithais (sweets/desserts) called 'Chocolate' (not the usual chocolates that you buy in general stores!)) and "Baal Mithai" that are popular to this region and available at local sweet shops.
Eat[edit][add listing]
Various small restaurants offer decent selection of snacks, lunch and dinner and most of them are located around Gandhi Chowk (Town centre)
Drink[edit][add listing]
All the restaurants serve your regular tea and coffee but do not expect to splurge in lavish cocktails or high end spirits!
Sleep[edit][add listing]
Stay safe[edit]
Get out[edit]