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A settlement reached in July 2007 by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles of more than 500 cases of sexual abuse illustrates the danger. The total of $660 million, or about $1.3 million per plaintiff, is the largest compensation paid to victims of sexual abuse by clergy of the Catholic Church in the United States to date. Earlier in the year the archdiocese, its insurers and various religious orders had paid $114 million to settle the claims of 86 victims alleging abusive incidents that dated back to 1930, recorded in 75 years of files.
In September a settlement announced by plaintiffs and the dioceses of San Diego and San Bernardino, after defendants withdrew from their earlier bankruptcy filing, provided $198.1 million to 144 plaintiffs, or about $1.4 million apiece, to be apportioned by the court. This proposal, still pending, was executed by the dioceses to avoid 42 scheduled jury trials. It doubled their initial offer in settlement negotiations, covering allegations of sexual abuse by priests between 1938 and 1993, with most in the 1960s and 70s.
These settlements, like earlier agreements, called for release to the public of confidential chancery files. These were essential, plaintiffs urged, because they could reveal what leaders of the archdiocese knew about the cases, when they knew it, and whether they had been, in effect, involved in a course of deception and secrecy concerning the sexual abuse of minors by their institutional employees. Many of the priests involved in these cases had been moved from parish to parish when accusations arose or returned to parish service after therapy. Money alone, the argument went, could not assuage the victims lifelong trauma from childhood sexual abuse; transparency, not only apology, was needed for future assurances once trust had been betrayed.
Patterns of Settlements
The California settlements follow a pattern: staggering sums of money for compensatory and sometimes punitive damages, plus fees and costs of litigation (nearly 40 percent of the total, or $264 million, went to lawyers and forensic accountants). And the settlements were accompanied by court orders for disclosure of confidential personnel files to assure the complete vindication of the victims. Examples of other diocesan settlements include Boston (2003), $85 million for 552 claims; Louisville (2003), $25.7 million for 243 claims; Orange (2004), $100 million for 90 claims; Oakland (2005), $56 million for 56 claims; and Covington (2006), $84 million for 350 claims. All required disclosure of files containing credible or substantial complaints of sexual abuse of children.
Where dioceses have declared bankruptcy, a similar settlement pattern includes: Tucson (2005), $22 million for 50 claims; Portland (2007), $75 million for 175 claims, with $20 million set aside; Spokane (2007), $48 million for 150 plaintiffs. Portland was ordered to file 50,000 pages in bankruptcy proceedings, which are now available to researchers. Davenport, Iowa, is pending. There are no secrets in bankruptcy. Not even previously executed confidential settlements are immune from bankruptcy statutes voiding preferences and fraudulent debtor payouts.
This is unprecedented in American legal history. In addition to the loss of resources, the cost to the church has been compounded by the lowering of the First Amendment shield protecting the confidentiality of religious records. A firestorm of opprobrium has turned against church leaders, who are presumed to have been able to prevent such horrendous crimes.
The faithful are paying an enormous price. The crime of sexual abuse of children is so abhorrent, and so outrageous when perpetrated by members of the clergy or other trusted adults, that only political naïveté could suggest a relaxation of the laws of evidence. The rush to transparency, however, may be counterproductive.
Types of Chancery Records
Religious organizations keep financial and administrative records according to legal requirements. No one disputes the right of the public to this information or the authority of the courts to demand discovery of these files when appropriate. Here there is a welcome, growing transparency in church management standards.
Churches also keep records of spiritual communications between pastors and faithful, counselors and clients, concerning matters of conscience. The special archives of chanceries and religious orders store such records under an assurance in canon law that they will not be divulged to the public without consent. Cases heard in marriage tribunals, documents recording the administration of sacraments, personal seminary and novitiate reports, ordinations and missionings, dispensations and admonitions, disciplinary matters affecting status and good standing in the churchthese are all matters of religious faith.
No civil judge is empowered, in our system of government, to interpret the properly spiritual records of a church, let alone equate them with employment contracts or financial transactions for purposes of discovery. No state, however, provides an evidentiary shield by statute for such institutional records, even though they are by nature highly personal and confidential. Federal rules mirror those of the states of trial.
Accusation of sexual impropriety strips the accused of privacy; it casts a pall of suspicion upon colleagues. An accused priest must be suspended until the cloud is dispersed. That is a public act that mandates notification of Roman authorities, according to the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People (2002) and the Essential Norms for Diocesan/Eparchial Policies Dealing With Allegations of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Priests or Deacons, construing Canons 1720 and 1721, even as amended in 2006 to include a presumption of innocence. The accuser must also come forward. At present the church cannot prevent this kind of personal notoriety from discovery orders of civil courts. Releasing confidential church records to the media further destroys any pretense to confidentiality.
Losing Religious Confidentiality
Unlimited civil discovery, in effect, undermines the protections for victims and accused as provided by the charter and review boards, because such discovery threatens the assurance of privacy that is often necessary to discover the truth. Who will be completely candid with religious counselors once they realize the danger of personal and family exposure in the press?
On matters of confidentiality, canon law is clear-cut and extremely strict; in some cases violating confidentiality is a formal crime against church law. Yet church leaders should no longer be under the delusion that the civil courts will respect canon law as a matter of free exercise. The role of government under the Constitution is secular, not subsidiary to religion. It must make decisions based on secular criteria that do not favor religious institutions or appeal to religious faith. Demands of victims for compensation and punishment that, in effect, deprive church personnel files of any claim to privacy will continue in both criminal and tort litigation for years to come.
In the past decade more than a dozen state courts reported litigation challenging limitations upon discovery of church personnel files, whether for the use of grand juries, prosecutors, civil plaintiffs or the press. Similar litigation involved testimonial privileges, such as those protecting priest and penitent, attorney and client, and psychotherapist and patient. Several well-known canon lawyers have appeared as expert witnesses on both sides of the issues, and new studies have been produced. All of this appeared against a din of negative publicity and op-ed pieces accusing religious leaders of stonewalling, conspiracy and cover-up, running up punitive judgments, not just against perpetrators, as should be the case, but against the dioceses.
Perhaps the nadir was reached in 2002 when Superior Court Judge Constance Sweeney ordered the Archdiocese of Boston not only to turn over to plaintiffs but to release to the public 11,000 documents and files (nearly 40,000 pages). Shortly thereafter the Diocese of Manchester was ordered to produce 9,000 pages under similar conditions.
More recently, Judge Peter Lichtman of the Los Angeles Superior Court ordered the Archdiocese of Milwaukee to make public 3,000 pages of insurance records and hundreds of pages from the files of a pedophile clergyman transferred to California in 1981. Last year the Archdiocese of Milwaukee agreed to pay eight California victims of this one predatory priest $13.3 million, in addition to nearly $15 million the victims had received in 2004 from the Diocese of Orange. Under the earlier settlement, the priests personnel files from California were made public. The perpetrator died in 2003 after leaping from a hotel balcony in Mexico.
Smaller-scale examples are cases in Altoona-Johnstown, Bridgeport, Chicago, Cincinnati, Louisville, Los Angeles and Phoenix. Elsewhere, the records appear by reference in public reports of trials and appeals, settlements and bankruptcies. Very few reported cases restrict scrutiny of church files to in-camera review by plaintiffs attorneys.
The Most Recent Discovery Litigation
Consider the most recent discovery litigation. On notice of an accusation of clerical sexual misconduct, the initial procedural step to be taken by a bishop under the Essential Norms is an immediate investigation. In the words of the vicar for the clergy of Los Angeles, Msgr. Craig Cox, The involved priest is encouraged to discuss whatever problems he is experiencing regarding chastity...encouraged to communicate his deepest psychological and sexual issues, to undergo psychiatric evaluation and treatment, and to share the results of this therapy with the bishop or his vicar. These records are to be kept separate from the priests normal personnel file and protected under the most stringent canonical obligation of confidentiality.
In July 2002, the Los Angeles grand jury issued subpoenas duces tecum (a summons to appear bringing tangible evidence for use at a hearing or trial) with regard to 285 documents in the possession of the archbishop. The custodian of the chancery archives produced these in sealed cartons to be safeguarded by the district attorney, pending appeal. Among the documents were transcripts and reports of accused priests induced to seek assistance by the promise of confidentiality.
The church and two of the accused priests petitioned for a writ of mandate, seeking to prevent disclosure of the documents. They urged constitutional protection under the First Amendment, the state constitution and evidentiary privileges. A court-appointed referee cherry-picked the documents and discarded 53, but substantially rejected motions to quash the rest. Presiding Judge Joan Klein of the Court of Appeal wrote to affirm the states right of discovery of all but one, and that on relevancy bases. There was no dissent. Rehearing was denied by the state supreme court and the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case.
On April 17, 2006, the cartons were unsealed, retained counsel informed of the availability of the files, law clerks called in to dissect the evidence of culpability, and Los Angeles Times reporters alerted to give it publicity. Lawyers representing alleged victims suing the archdiocese later filed successful motions for further discovery to litigate the claims and certify additional plaintiffs.
Supported by the Supreme Court
Guiding the state courts interpretation of the religion clauses of the Constitution was the Supreme Courts rule, crafted by Justice Antonin Scalia in the Native American peyote case of 1990 (the full title is Employment Division, Dept. of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith): The right of free exercise does not relieve an individual of the obligation to comply with a valid and neutral law of general applicability on the ground that the law proscribes (or prescribes) conduct that his religion prescribes (or proscribes). The Supreme Court added in 1993 that a law that is neutral and of general applicability need not be justified by a compelling governmental interest even if the law has the incidental effect of burdening a particular religious practice. State laws of evidence, the appellate court found, are neutral and of general applicability. They target neither a church nor religion in general; thus their burdening effect is incidental, not direct.
In the Los Angeles case, Judge Klein wrote, The Archdiocese simultaneously had been engaged in the kind of routine investigation any employer would undertake upon learning a trusted employee had been accused of child molestation. She held, in effect, that the church was no different than a business and that a bishops relationships with his clergy is legally the same as a corporations employment policies. The states interest in compelling production of all material evidence trumped that of the church in protecting its confidential religious records. Discovery orders were weighed by formalities of good cause, relevancy, execution and breadthnothing more. The state had a rational basis for forcing production of evidence, the court ruled.
No Legislative Protection
Only the state legislature could relieve the target of subpoena of the civic duty to disclose. This it had not done. Citing parallel cases in Illinois, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, the court held that the churchs practice of maintaining a secret archive for files relating to internal church discipline (Canon 489) was no deterrent to the states compelling interest in discovery.
There is no constitutional limit on the information the state may require of a religious organization under sanction of contempt. Except as otherwise provided by statuteno person has a privilege to refuse to disclose any matter or to refuse to produce any writing, object, or other thing (Cal. Evid. Code §911). The sweeping authority of government in other jurisdictions is the same.
In personal injury cases plaintiffs seek proof of causation from the prospective source of substantial compensationthat is, the deep pocket. Discovery orders, therefore, are both specific in respect to the perpetrator of the injury and general in respect to the responsibility of the church itself to protect the victim. Personal injury litigation concerning religious organizations may involve much more extensive, even blanket, discovery of relevant documentation over a period of time to ascertain patterns of negligence, such as knowingly reassigning abusive clergy to parishes or positions where it may be foreseen they may strike at victims again. Blanket production of this extensive documentation involves information about dozens and dozens of people, lay and clergy, produced at great expense.
As a result the church cannot avoid the discovery of relevant information in court by putting it in a place designated by canon law as a secret archive. The legal norm is relevancy. The exception is privilege. That is a matter of legislation.
A New Pastoral Protocol
I am not advancing an argument for church immunity, a new exemption from the rules of evidence or for extending the priest/penitent privilege. Instead, I suggest that we need a new protocol for dealing with the possibility of public disclosure of the churchs most confidential records. We must discard the illusion that the church can command some special favor of the courts not available to other social institutions.
Outside the narrow confines of the priest-penitent, attorney-client and physician-patient privileges, no agency of the church can assure any person of complete confidentiality. Confidentiality may be promised of communications within the church, but it cannot be guaranteed against outside claims upon evidence. All persons should know that their letters, testimony, depositions and communications with church authorities may be subject to public disclosure in future litigation. No one can be guaranteed protection of their innermost secrets except in the context of sacramental confession.
Archival materials of all kinds must be professionally managed. Employees of religious organizations should have access to their personnel files, so that they may rebut false accusations. Periodic review of files should clean out rumors, hearsay, anonymous notes and unsubstantiated claims that can be misinterpreted in civil litigation. This is good stewardship of records, not the destruction of evidence.
Finally, when serious allegations of crime are leveled by authorities against anyone (priest, religious or lay employee), that person is entitled to representation by a civil lawyer and, ideally, a canon lawyer to meet his or her need of professional, unbiased counsel and advice. Canonical processes of sanction, such as suspension or dismissal from office, without providing the accused the right to adequate counsel, are void from their inception.


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Can Pita Sharples afford not to be the co-leader of the Maori Party?
In light of Pita Sharples' reluctance to step aside as leader of the Maori Party and stated desire to retain his Ministerial position even if replaced in that role, I draw the reader's attention to this gem from an interview he gave to Claire Trevett back in February, 2010:
"Actually, I got so used to the increase in salary I told the Prime Minister you'd better be good because if the other guys get in, I'll go sell myself over there to keep my ministerial salary. I just got a new house, man - I can't afford it on a backbencher salary so I'm up for grabs."
That's a somewhat ... unfortunate quote to have floating around in the interweb.


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HOUSTON, April 13 (UPI) -- Marc Gasol gave Memphis the lead with 1:18 to go Friday and the Grizzlies held Houston scoreless over the final 93 seconds for an 82-78 victory.
Memphis won its third in a row, having moved 29 games above the .500 mark for the first time in franchise history. The Grizzlies jumped into a tie with Denver for the third seed in the Western Conference.
Jeremy Lin hit a 3-pointer with 1:33 remaining to tie the contest, but Houston did not score again.
After Gasol put Memphis in front with a free throw, Mike Conley hit another foul shot for the Grizzlies and Tayshaun Prince made two more.
Gasol scored 15 points and had 12 rebounds to lead the Grizzlies. Zach Randolph also scored 15 points Jerryd Bayless produced 13.
Houston, standing seventh in the Western Conference playoff picture, was led by 30 points from James Harden.


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RU Sirius - Interview
A shorter version of this will be appearing soon in a London periodical - it should interest fellow burners
Chimp x
Media agitator R.U Sirius has had a significant foothold in counterculture for the last thirty years. A veteran of the far left 'Yippie' movement of the seventies he founded the seminal cyberpunk quarterly Mondo 2000 in the eighties and ran for the American Presidency in 2000 with The Revolution Party. His recently published 'Counterculture Through The Ages: From Abraham to Acid House', is an acclaimed guide to countercultural practice throughout history and sees the completion of one of Timothy Leary's final projects. The Maybe Logic Academy with whom he is involved is an online countercultural educational facility that approaches information from multiple perspectives, exploring methodologies that exist outside of the mainstream. Courses are designed to broaden people's perceptions through tutorials with some of America's most well known freethinking radicals including Robert Anton Wilson, Douglas Rushkoff and the LSD dabbling ex - presidential candidate Ken Goffman a.k.a. R U Sirius.
What are the aims of the Maybe Logic Academy?
Spreading what I think is a really good ideal of Counterculture, Robert Anton Wilson's idea that the universe contains a 'maybe'. An anti-authoritarian idea on a philosophical level that is all about uncertainty, always allowing for some doubt, debate and discourse.
What can someone expect to achieve through taking a Maybe Logic course?
'I want my courses to be really participatory and I want people to not just discuss ideas but to create ideas, to create their own descriptions of what counterculture is after looking at my description. At the end of the class I'm thinking that some people will decide to create an anti-authoritarian coalition and that we will have activism resulting from the course.'
Tell me something about the last US election and the current mood of the alternative left.
'It's been a painful thing to watch the people of the United States supposedly reinstate George Bush. There are some questions about the voting machines and so on but I think it takes a long time to go into theories like that and try to decipher how valid they are. What can I say? More people voted for John Kerry in this election than have voted for any democrat in history and there is something heartening about that. The fact that people would get together and vote for someone who is a veteran and that they wouldn't be deterred by the very effective Republican propaganda machine is a positive thing. Still, the message to the world is George Bush, four more years.'
Do you fear that the voices of radicals in America will become systematically more marginalised in the current climate?
'No. I mean people badmouthed Ralph Nader for making the Leninist analysis that if Bush came in again and made things worse it would just bring progressive people together but I think that's true. I can get an audience amongst middle class people now that I never had four or five years ago, people are really thinking about how best to resist religious rule.'
Do you believe that having religious fundamentalists in The White House is anathema to the notion of a free country?
'In the sense that they act on their beliefs sure it's an anathema to a free country. Theocracy is the overwhelming fact of authority through most human history, its always a theocratic overlord or overarching philosophy that binds people into a very narrow set of rules for living and ways of thinking and it is always counter culture that in some form breaks that homeostasis. In terms of having them in The White House, yeah sure their ongoing attacks on gay rights and the extent to which they are going to try to impose theocratic rule are certainly a threat.'
Of course the irony of the Christian right taking power is that they preside over a country on the brink of huge scientific advancements . What are your gut feelings about the genetics industry and so on? Do you see the cloning of an individual as an evolutionary step?
'Cloning a human being right now would be an act of cruelty. Six hundred sheep suffered terribly before Dolly was an even partial success. I think that the medical possibilities of engineering genes pre - birth to produce certain tendencies in human beings that might increase intelligence can be used for good or bad. Patenting of genes I could have done without, I'm suspicious of the biotech industry on the whole but I separate that from the technology.'
I think the problem lies in the question of Nietszche's Ubermensch, the creation of the perfect human specimen. As the Dead Kennedy's sang its all rather 'California Uber Alles.'
'Right well that's the great battle of the future, there is no turning back from it. The expansion of the biological lifespan is something that companies are working on and planning to market in the next decade or two. You could have an enormous class rift with a virtually immortal race and a mortal race. However the other aspect of it is that when they manufacture these drugs they aren't just looking to give them to twenty billionaires they are looking to have a mass market for it. But of course half of the world is living on less than two dollars a day and they are just out of the picture of what we are talking about unless we change social systems or create such massive abundance that there actually is a trickle down.'
What do you think about the current US administration' s drive to put weapons in space? Is that about isolationism?
'What it is more than anything is corporate welfare. It's companies that contribute to the political parties, mostly the republicans, who are getting the grants to do the research and to do the work on these laser weapons in space. As defensive weapons they aren't going to work and anybody who is a hacker knows that a big clumsy system like that sitting in outer space is going to be easy to hack. Also a nuclear bomb is going to be coming inside a suitcase or flying beneath a radar so it's really a joke unless their main goal is offensive weapons and that's pretty scary.'
Broadly speaking how do you picture the world in the near future?
'Global climate change hangs over the future like the Sword of Damocles although I think that self-replicating technologies could help create a post scarcity environment in which human needs are met. But all of that is complexified by various anti - civilization tendencies, some of them counter cultural and some of them authoritarian.'
Speaking of authouritarian anti – civilization tendencies, do you have something you'd like to say about Clear Channel Communications?
'Well Clear Channel are a big corporation that gave lots of money to Bush and in the South they sponsor pro war demos. They actually have a huge billboard as you enter Orlando Florida with almost malicious iconography, a big picture of Bush that says 'Thanks to Our Leader or something like that. That's really very weird. But on the other hand they just want to make money, I mean I was just on one their news channels talking about my book and its one of those things, the people who were working there were fine. They have their agenda though and the people who run these companies run the country.'
Do you believe it is really possible to anything about these enormous corporations, to turn the tide of consumerism?
'There are progressive kinds of mountains that one can leap towards in moving on from one level of being constrained by propaganda, consumerism and so forth onto the next level but you keep finding yourself at the same time enmeshed in a society where people buy and sell. You choose not to be a consumer 'ist', a believer that this is the meaning in life as opposed to actual experience but you will always be a consumer. Even if everything is free you will still consume, so I would warn against too much purism in that area. I like the whole open source culture on the net, which is about people doing stuff and making stuff and making things happen out of pure enthusiasm. I think that happened in Hippie culture to a great extent and it definitely happened at the deepest level of rave culture. I think you can see the dim outline of a new society there, and that's what I would look towards.'
Could you ever picture America returning to a state of civil war?
'That thought actually did occur to me as the election was approaching, I mean there was a lot of militancy being expressed about the possibility of Bush being re-elected among counterculture people on the left. But at the same time I thought if Bush got defeated that there are a lot of pretty hardcore people who would have been very upset and I started to imagine that they could take some of their grievances to different levels in the sense that Timothy McVey did. I think on the whole though that people are too comfortable for that and again that they are more likely to pursue the consumer dream.'
What do you think of the constant reference by the US administration to insurgents in Iraq as terrorists?
'Well they can employ that term anyway they like. The point is that those people are defending their country and some of the tactics they employ are pretty terrifying but some of the US tactics are pretty terrifying as well. I'd be happy to call it all terrorism on some level. But, you know its political manipulation obviously.'
Yes, the employment of doublespeak in our era is nothing short Orwellian. Changing tack entirely, do you think the politically sanctioned use of psychedelics could radically affect change in society?
'I think it could, I think that large numbers of people turning onto psychedelics in an advanced world of nanotechnology and biotechnology and so forth might have the tools to be able to cope with the rapids of technological social change while maintaining some sense of individual power. It may hook up at some advanced level in a way that is useful and meaningful in maintaining freedom. It also can be Soma in the Brave New World of course, you can have your own personal revelations and your own communities and so forth and sort of allow the other stuff to run wild. So there is that danger that this may be something that they can give us.'
So would you say that hallucinogens advance your intelligence?
'In general yeah, psychedelics certainly create more rapid firing of information across neurons that allows for a broader picture of reality that we generally try to suppress on a day to day basis. I think psychedelics open up a certain kind of intelligence although it may not be a kind of intelligence that is useful all the time.'
Hunter S.Thompson described the desperate assumption that somebody or something is tending the light at the end of the tunnel as the mystic fallacy of the acid culture. What would be your response to that statement?
'Well in England you had the Zippies movement in the nineties, Frasier Clark advanced the idea that the world was conspiring to push evolution and actually on a scientific level there is evidence for that. If you look at the evolution of life from the big bang it does seem that something intrinsic conspires to make evolution possible, but you know I agree with Hunter that to try to apply that to political and cultural circumstances is a dangerous thing.'
There is a massive interest at the moment in DMT, is the hype justified?
'Yes, it's like having all the information in the universe mainlined into your cerebral cortex in a microsecond and there are dimensions in there that don't seem to be possible. It's a marvelous experience and I recommend it for anyone over the age of sixteen.'
It has been postulated that there is a weird synchronicity between the splitting of the atom which led to the detonation of the first atomic device and Hoffman's accidental discovery of LSD. Do you believe it is possible LSD made itself available on earth in order to save humanity by means of consciousness expansion?
'Well a lot of people suggest that, I don't believe it but I don't disbelieve it either, I'm with the Maybe Logic Academy, the universe contains a maybe. Maybe there are these benevolent forces, as the Zippies would claim, that are moving us toward some Omega point. I am open to that possibility and yet at the same time I would suggest maintaining a little critical distance from it or 2012 is going to come round and the rent is still going to be due.'
Its interesting that you mention 2012, as that is a date that ties in with that whole apocalypse theory that so heavily permeates psychedelic culture doesn't it?
'Well I never rode that particular trip to nirvana, but I did attain a certain kind of nirvana just listening to Terence McKenna and the way he brought together his visions and sophisticated thoughts on postmodernism and weaved them into this idea that we are going to be various ebbs and flows of novelty reaching an Omega point in 2012 that happens to coincide with the Mayan calendar. It's a fantastic story and I hope it comes true I think.'
Are you counting down to apocalypse or do you have hope for the future? Or do you perhaps believe apocalypse is the hope for the future
'I'm more or less honestly adrift in the present and trying to cope with what's going non now and put out my perceptions about counter culture. Whatever is happening in the political climate right now is what I am responding to, you know we counted on apocalypse in the seventies, I knew people who believed the world was going to end tin the mid seventies and things turn out to be awfully dreary by comparison. So I would warn people things may turn out to be a lot more dreary and banal ten years from now than what they hope for but they should all try to not make that so in the best of all possible ways, in the most creative of all possible ways.'
RU Sirius - Interview
Our 2005 theme explores psychology: self-expression, self-reflection and the unconscious power of dreams. Discuss.
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- regynalonglank
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great read. cool interview. 2012 burning man fits nicely in to the mayan schedule, i look forward to it.
Ive always like RU Sirius. Isnt that a Robert Anton Wilson inspired pen name?
I checked out the Maybe Logic Academy site. Looks like they got some
good stuff going on in there.
My friend has that Maybe Logic DVD. Great Film.
Ive always like RU Sirius. Isnt that a Robert Anton Wilson inspired pen name?
I checked out the Maybe Logic Academy site. Looks like they got some
good stuff going on in there.
My friend has that Maybe Logic DVD. Great Film.
Post Reply
3 posts • Page 1 of 1


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This article first appeared in AWIN First.
President Barack Obama is asking Congress to provide $526.6 billion in defense spending for fiscal 2014, a figure that does not include war-funding details or the continuing effects of across-the-board budget cuts that start in fiscal 2013.
Instead, the president is proposing deficit reductions which, if adopted by Congress, could repeal the Budget Control Act of 2011 that set in motion nearly $1 trillion in across-the-board budget cuts over the next decade. With no guarantee of Congress actually taking up Obama's proposal or reaching a compromise on deficit reduction, uncertainty will continue to surround Pentagon spending levels.
"Unfortunately, [fiscal] 2014 programs will be significantly and adversely affected by sequester budget cuts in [fiscal] 2013," says a Pentagon press statement.
The fiscal 2014 base budget seeks $99.3 billion for procurement accounts and $67.5 billion for research and development efforts — amounts that fall between last year's request and enacted funding levels.
In the coming years, the Pentagon is proposing to control costs by revising missile defense programs, closing bases, reforming the military healthcare system, restructuring the cost of the contractor and civilian workforce and controlling healthcare costs.
Every one of those requests will meet resistance on Capitol Hill.
As Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter told the Center for Strategic and International Studies earlier this week, the budget protects the Pentagon's strategy to "pivot" to the Asia-Pacific region.
With that in mind, the budget will continue to support the development of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, providing $8.4 billion. It will provide $379 million to develop a long-range bomber, add $10.1 billion for space assets and invest $4.7 billion in cyberspace operations.
Meanwhile, the administration "hopes" to submit a request for war spending to Congress within the next month, according to Robert Hale, the Pentagon's top budget official.
The overall budget request includes an $88 billion placeholder for Overseas Contingency Operations, but that includes no further detail. That amount is up to $10 billion higher than the military had anticipated, Hale says, because of a higher operational tempo and logistical difficulties.
For continuing, through-the-day coverage of the U.S. budget rollout, Aviation Week Intelligence Network subscribers should click here to visit our Fiscal 2014 budget digest page often, where the Aviation Week editorial team will post expert coverage and analysis.


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4 Americans killed as Iraq takes over its own security
BAGHDAD — On a historic day for Americans and Iraqis alike — a rare if not unprecedented handoff of military sovereignty in an active war zone — the violence that's marred six years of U.S.-led occupation struck again.
Four American service members were killed Monday in a still-sketchy incident, and 28 Iraqis died Tuesday in a bombing in the northern city of Kirkuk, which has become the epicenter of recent insurgent bomb attacks.
The U.S. military command refused to provide any details of how the American troops died. Security officials in Kirkuk said that many women and children were among the casualties there, who included at least 93 wounded. The carnage was caused by a bomb concealed in a Mercedes sedan that exploded at 5:30 p.m. in a market. Two weeks ago, a truck bomb killed 72 people and wounded 135 in Kirkuk.
The violence cast a shadow over the ceremonies and celebrations Tuesday on a national holiday that marked the transfer of security responsibility to Iraq from the U.S. The passing of the military baton proceeded, but only after both sides avoided a 24-hour miscalculation over the timetable.
The American and Iraqi militaries had different notions of when the withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from major cities would start. The Americans thought that "after June 30," as written in the status of forces agreement, meant 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, July 1. The Iraqis — whose timeline ultimately prevailed — interpreted the dawn of their new authority as when the clock ticked past midnight to Tuesday, June 30. That's one reason that so many Iraqis celebrated the handoff of authority Monday night with singing, dancing and parties in their streets and parks.
In the end, once both sides realized the communications breakdown, the Americans simply told their forces to start abiding by the new rules 23 hours and 59 minutes earlier than they'd planned. No major incidents were attributed to the near-fumble of the handover.
"The Americans showed trepidation as it neared midnight," said U.S. Maj. Scott Nauman, standing in one of the new joint operations centers in Baghdad, "and then excitement. It was: 'It's yours. Good luck. Call us if you need us.' "
Iraq formally took control in a ceremony led by Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki with minimal American participation. Maliki and senior Iraqi military officials and members of parliament attended a military parade in the morning at a park in Baghdad's well-guarded International Zone. Some U.S. officers also sat under a tent and watched Iraqi military units stream past the khaki-colored memorial to Iraq's Unknown Soldier, built by Saddam Hussein.
Maliki said the withdrawal of American combat forces from "cities and towns confirms the correctness of our vision and our firm position since the start of the negotiations process: that Iraqi sovereignty is a red line that cannot be passed over in any way."
No Americans spoke at the ceremony.
The celebration was muted in Baghdad's Karrada neighborhood, with light traffic and children playing soccer on side streets. Iraqi security vehicles set up hundreds of checkpoints throughout the city decorated like Christmas trees. Police SUVs were festooned with ribbons, streamers and artificial flowers.
"Sure, we are happy not to see them (American forces) anymore, but we want to get rid of them forever," said Yousof Othman, a 45-year-old calligrapher, in Sadr City, a crowded slum in eastern Baghdad.
In the Karkh district of northwest Baghdad, Ahmed Hasen, 40, who works in a mobile phone shop, said that since the 2003 invasion "we have gained nothing but a larger number of beggars on the streets. So what if they left the cities or if they didn't? They are still there! Who is the government kidding?"
Other Iraqis were more upbeat, especially army and national police officers. At a meeting Monday of Iraqi and U.S. Army operations officers in northwest Baghdad, Maj. Mu'aid l-Sudaani reviewed the new rules with five Iraqi army and two national police officers from the 22nd Brigade of the 6th Iraqi Division. "It's a sensitive period of time, so let's put more effort into it," he said. "We just have to get by it."
Nauman, the operations officer of the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry, in the 1st Infantry Division, took the men on a tour of the new joint operations center, where information will be shared between the nations' militaries as never before. "Any help you need is only a radio call away," he said. Added Lt. Col. John Vermeesch, "We are still standing by to assist you."
One of the first new joint patrols walked through an open-air market Tuesday morning in Shulla, in northwest Baghdad. Ten Bravo Company soldiers from the 1st Battalion linked up with two Iraqi enlisted men.
Capt. Steve Neves, who's from Boston, asked Hamza Allul Cafak, a schoolteacher, what he thought of the handover.
"It's a very happy day for Iraqis," he said, standing outside his father's cloth shop. "Now we hope coalition forces can start building the country."
Iraqi army Sgt. Ahmded Raiael Base was walking with the Americans. He said that their departure — even if only to a few miles away — "gives us more responsibility. I'm ready."
One of the main provisions of the status of forces agreement is that the Americans will help Iraq's military whenever it asks. As the U.S. company was returning to its forward operating base in southeast Baghdad, the Iraqis put in a request.
At an army checkpoint, the Humvees and mine-resistant vehicles stopped along a highway. An Iraqi officer told Neves that there was a suspicious box in the road. Several soldiers left their vehicles and approached the box. A staff sergeant crept up to it, and gently pulled open a yellow plastic bag in the box.
Inside was a woman's purse. He stomped the box flat on the median, and gave the purse to the Iraqi officer. The convoy moved on back to its base.
Tharp reports for the Merced (Calif.) Sun-Star. McClatchy special correspondents Laith Hammoudi, Jenan Hussein and Sahar Issa contributed to this article.)
Iraqi exercise craze pumps up home fitness business
Commentary: Iraqis welcome a distracted Iran
At least 60 dead in Baghdad blast as U.S. withdrawal nears
Iraqi's sweet sorrow: Bomb sniffers detect his perfume
Read what Iraqis think at McClatchy's Inside Iraq.


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Today we saw Ben Wojdyla almost get his face turned into mincemeat by a rogue spring, shooting out of a car with no warning. What's the closest call you've had with a car in a garage?
Our readers haven't had any terribly close calls with springs, always remembering to use spring compressors (though reader Maxzillian was sketched out even when he had a compressor).
Ricorich196 pointed out one historical instance when springs got the better of their human users.
In one of my psych lectures on parts of the brain we had to read a story about a man who was doing work on a truck and had one a spring shoot up under his jaw and right into a part of his brain, the man survived but the injury to his brain made it impossible for him to speak.
Crazy stuff and now I stay away from all springs, even a slinky can make me uneasy.
So what's been your closest call with a car in a garage?
Photo Credit: Car and Driver


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Simply return the item in its original condition with a completed returns form (you'll get one of these with your package or can download one here) to us at the below address and we'll arrange an exchange or refund as you wish. In the event that the item is not returned in the original or resell-able condition (including packaging), the item will be returned and/or a re-stocking fee will be charged. You will be contacted before any actions are taken.
We'll process your request the day we receive it, but please allow 2 working days just in case we are extra busy or the postman is delayed! You can do this for refunds anytime within 14 days from the date you received the item, or anytime within 60 days if you would simply like to exchange for another size/colour or similar product.
We completely understand that having the right fit and/or style is crucial to your comfort and performance, that's why we always recommend that you come in and try before you buy; however if this isn't possible and you find that what you have bought from us isn't quite right, then send it back and try again!
You can do this as many times as you like until you get it just right, some places will charge a re-stocking fee, we just want you to be happy, so we won't charge you a penny; just pop it in the post with a completed returns form to the below address and we'll send your replacement ASAP.
Many of our customers buy two pairs of the same shoe a half size apart and then send back the one that doesn't fit; if you want to do this just let us know when you order and we'll even send you a pre-addressed mailbag to return the unwanted pair, all you'll need to do is pay the postage; easy!
Please note, all returns must be received in the original state they were received in, should the item(s) be deemed unfit for resale and/or damaged in anyway charges may apply to your refund/credit. Should this happen all our customers will be notified via email first.
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Photographer's Note
The new Sidney Lanier Bridge was opened in 2003, replacing the original bridge, which was built in 1956. The bridge is 7,779 feet long and is the longest bridge of its type in the state of Georgia.
Nobody has marked this note useful
Critiques | Translate
sabermonajati (11533) 2013-08-11 23:04
great view from bridge you aptured.clouds exist nice background.
HimalAnda (10671) 2013-08-11 23:14
Hello Gregory,
Nice bridge, nice composition and a beautiful dark sky!
Ciol (216) 2013-08-11 23:52
Bonjour Grégory,
superbe photo, j'adore toutes ces nuances de teintes grisâtre, mis en valeur par un bon cadrage.
npecanhuk (79319) 2013-08-12 19:51
Hi Gregory!
I love bridges!
That modern one looks beautiful and so does your picture of it!
Sharpness, exposure, colors, vertical format, pp, chosen pov and composition really pleased me!
TFS - congrats,
Photo Information
- Copyright: Gregory Wagner (fotoguy22) (4795)
- Genre: Places
- Medium: Color
- Date Taken: 2013-08-01
- Categories: Daily Life, Transportation, Architecture
- Camera: Canon 1D MKII N, Canon 70-200mm/2.8, Compact Flash 4 GB
- Exposure: f/10.0, 1/125 seconds
- More Photo Info: view
- Photo Version: Original Version
- Date Submitted: 2013-08-11 11:00


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New 2020 HyundaiElantra SEL Sedan
- Stock: 38605
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Detailed Specifications
Dealer Notes
30/40 City/Highway MPG Not all customers qualify for all rebates. See dealer for details. Price includes: $1,500 - Retail Bonus Cash. Exp. 10/31/2019, $500 - Regional Event Cash - MA. Exp. 10/31/2019
* MSRP is the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of the vehicle. Unless specifically indicated in the advertisement, MSRP does not include taxes, fees or other charges. Actual dealer pricing may vary. Consult your dealer for more information and complete details.
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All vehicle specifications, prices and equipment are subject to change without notice. See above for information on purchase financing and lease program expiration dates. Prices and payments (including the amount down payment) do not include tax, titles, tags, documentation charges, emissions testing charges, or other fees required by law or lending organizations. The estimated payments may not include upfront finance charges that must be paid to be eligible for the purchase financing program used to estimate the APR and payments. Listed Annual Percentage Rates are provided for the selected purchase financing or lease programs available on the current date. Program expiration dates reflect currently announced program end dates, but these programs are subject to change at any time.
Lessees will be financially responsible for mileage beyond the elected quantity and for vehicle maintenance and repairs and excessive vehicle wear. Option to purchase at lease end for an amount may be determined at lease signing. Payments may be higher in some states. You may not be able to combine other incentives with the purchase financing or leasing programs presented above. Residency restrictions may apply. See dealer for details.
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Now that the fire has passed
An overview on the state of Tassajara two days after the 2008 Basin Complex Fire,
by David Zimmerman, Director
For more photos from the fire, please visit Mako Voelkel's photo album
Saturday, 7/12, 1:00pm
It's been exactly 48 hours since the five of us who returned to Tassajara Zen Mountain Center to defend the monastery first met the primary waves of fire that arrived on July 10 at 1:00 p.m. It still amazes us—Abbot Steve Stücky, Mako Voelkel, Graham Ross, Colin Gipson, and myself—to recall the speed in which the fire descended and converged on Tassajara simultaneously from four sides: from Flag rock to the northeast, with 30- to 40-foot flames; from Hawk mountain to the northwest, rushing down right above the hill cabins with 10- to 15-foot flames; over the Hogback and Suzuki Roshi Memorial trail to the west, and from the south via the Overlook ridge, its progress cloaked by the canopy of trees above us. It was difficult to determine which head of fire would reach us first, so we split up to protect the hill cabins/satellite dish, the creek side of the Stone Office (our designated safety zone), where the wooden porch and arbor could have caught flame, and the Shop, where our propane and gasoline are stored. We fought the fire nonstop for six and a half hours using hoses connected to the standpipe system and Mark III pumps, along with hand shovels and a few fire extinguishers. We were stretched very thin trying to engage each new encroachment of the fire into Tassajara, at times with only one person per location struggling to arrest the fire's progress, unassisted for up to an hour at a time. At 7:30 p.m. we finally felt that the fire was contained enough for us to stop to eat and regroup.
We've spent a majority of the hours since then taking turns being on patrol, continuing to put out spot fires with hoses and shovels, surveying the damage, making calls to loved ones, and trying to get some rest. The fire is still a presence, lurking in places seen and unseen. Throughout these last two days piles of leaves, trees, roots and ruins still burn, keeping the night patrols busy. Even yesterday, 24-hours after the fire, we were thrown off-guard when—just as we were finishing lunch—the woodshed across from the Shop burst into flames, and within minutes was raging so hot the trees above it and the hill across the road from it caught fire. Just minutes ago large, ominous plumes rose to the south and southeast of us, behind the Overlook trail ridge. We quickly deployed to turn on the building sprinklers, (aka "Dharma Rain").
I'll save for another time a detailed chronological account of our battle with the fire, which will be written up once the five of us have had a chance to more thoroughly review and recount the events. We'll also send pictures of the fire and the aftermath as soon as we can.
How does Tassajara look now?
The central area of Tassajara is an island of green, gratefully untouched by the fire and looking almost ready for the return of residents and summer guests.
But when surveying the firescape around Tassajara, this is what one sees: lesions of blackened earth, burnt leaves and ash reach into Tassajara from the charred mountains around us in every direction. The mountains look bare and vulnerable, pricked with the skeletal remains of trees and a few hardy bushes and yucca. The trees that appear less affected, usually large oaks at the lower elevations, suffer scorched leaves and bark. One can clearly see how truly steep and rugged the mountains are that enclose this valley now that their covering of foliage is gone. I'm pained to think of the tremendous erosion, landslides, rockfall and flooding that will occur with the winter rains.
On either side of the road coming into Tassajara is scarred earth. None of us has yet to venture up the road beyond the spring box and water treatment plant. While the PVC pipes leading from the spring box are somewhat damaged by the fire, limiting the quantity of water entering the tanks, there's still plenty of water given our current use. The water and filtration tanks remain thankfully untouched due to the fire line that had been cleared around them. Rock rubble and small boulders litter the upper parking lot, where the lumber truck sits with a broken windshield, having been parked too close to the mountain side. The right wing of the front gate is burnt where it meets the mountain wall. The metal frame of what was once a garden cart rests near the ruins of the lower parking lot wood shed. The birdhouse ruins still smolder, but its guardian oak tree, while scarred, seems to stand strong. Although the birdhouse had been wrapped on three sides with the protective heat reflective material provided by the Forest Service, the fire found its way below the deck and burned up from underneath. Black fingers reach into the work circle, also littered with rocks and ember remains. A small island of dry grass below the hill steps and west to the fire break that was cut down to the old bathhouse toilets remains miraculously untouched by the fire, as does most of the central part of Tassajara. Behind the hill cabins, the silver wrapping meant to protect the satellite phone dish lies trampled by fallen rock.
As one heads to the west end of Tassajara, burnt ground rises from the right side of road up to the peak of Hawk mountain and beyond. While the terrain on either side of the road beyond the bathhouse is blackened and bare, the tent yurt and massage gazebo are largely untouched due to our firefighting efforts. The fence on the women's side of the bath house is partially damaged. Burnt fire hoses and nozzles lie where they had been abandoned the day before when the 15 people in the valley evacuated in the late afternoon. At the flats, the cabin and casa were spared due to the fire lines and wrapping. The weights gazebo too was spared. The woodshed and compost shed were not so lucky, both heavily damaged. The suspension bridge at the far end of Tassajara only suffers a scarred footing. It's fortunate that the Fenner Canyon inmate crew cleared a 10-foot wide swatch of earth around it, for it probably would have otherwise burnt. Across the creek, where the children's playground once was located, the swing set stands untouched amidst the devastated landscape around it. A young buck lies fallen in its tracks, fur singed and budding antlers dusted with ash. The path to the Suzuki Roshi Memorial is passable despite a number of small landslides. The memorial site itself is fairly untouched, being all rock and earth. (Days earlier we had removed Suzuki Roshi's memorial pole and stored it in the Kaisando.) Katagiri Roshi's memorial post is seared on the lower half, but the calligraphy is still legible. Trudy Dixon's post is untouched. The vista behind the hogback is a wasteland.
To the east end of Tassajara, descending from Flag Rock mountain, charred ground and rock rubble borders the central area, running from behind the Kaisando and Cabins 9 through 13 to the lower garden. Little remains of north fence of the garden, where the fire entered and damaged the upper terrace as far in as the large walnut tree. Further south the Yurt cabins remain untouched, saved by another fire line cut by students and widened by the Fenner Canyon crew. Just feet away from Yurt 2, however, are the ruins of the pool toilet, remnants of silver wrapping visible amidst the charred remains. The wheelchair accessible ramp leading up to it and built this past spring is also damaged. Large rocks lay strewn about the pool area, one having punched a square-foot hole into the redwood deck. Several pieces of pool furniture lay broken and melted by hot rocks that tumbled from the mountain. The pool water is brackish and depleted by our firefighting efforts. On the mountain side north of student housing more fingers of the fire's reach can be seen, once again mostly stopped by the fire breaks cut by the inmates. The path past the suburbs is blocked by fallen trees and a major rockslide that was still smoldering this morning. Downstream, on either side of the creek is a five to ten foot-wide corridor of greenery and untouched earth, but beyond, more barren and blackened landscape. Roots and trunks of trees have been gashed by falling rocks. No one yet knows how the Narrows fared.
To the south, the meadow and the way leading to the Overlook trail is blocked by half of a fallen tree. Its other half remains standing, but both halves still harbor a fire in each of their cores. The Overlook ridge and trail suffered less damage at the bottom end, although a number of trees and fallen logs continued to burn throughout the night and day until, finally spent, their cremated remains tumbled into the creek below. The canopy of the trees on the Overlook, although severely singed, is still fairly intact for the first 200 feet or so up the hillside. Strangely, the embers on this hillside have burnt the longest, still glowing and even aflame 48 hours after the fire. The fire has yet to fully make its way through Willow Creek valley and to the confluence with Tassajara Creek at its eastern end, which is why we continue to see pluming to the south and southeast.
We're not alone on this green island. We've seen canyon wrens, humming birds and robins, and have heard an owl on the east end. The stellar jays are quiet but present. Squirrels still scamper about on the green grass in front of the Stone Office. (Colin estimated he had seen 30 squirrels in the ruins of the compost shed, feasting on the now exposed treasure.) Deer nibbling on the still lush greenery of the valley are seen throughout by the patrols.
Hose lines lay in various states of unfurl throughout Tassajara. Shovels, MacLeods and fire extinguishers are also scattered about. The Stone Office looks like a bomb shelter. The doors and windows are sealed with silver radiant heat protection. Empty bottles of Gatorade (the official drink of the Tassajara 2008 Fire) and cans of soda clutter the counters, having yet to make it to recycling. In one corner is a pile of MREs (meals ready to eat) and several cases of bottled water left behind by the fire crews. Fire fighting equipment, helmets, walkie-talkies, fire maps and towels lie about, ready to be used as needed. We're simply too tired to try to tidy up. We have plenty of food and water, and the electricity is running despite the solar array not fully functioning. One phone line amazingly still works, providing us connection to the outside world.
The scent of charred wood and leaves seems to have seeped into our every pore. While there's a haze lingering throughout the valley, it's thankfully not very dense. It's hard to tell if the grey before our eyes when looking at the mountains is a veil of smoke or the actual color of the landscape. Numerous rock slides are heard and seen throughout the day and night. The Tassajara creek flows mostly clear and unobstructed.
What saved Tassajara this time?
The I-Ching symbols for "water over fire" on the hexagonal water tank one sees on the left just before arriving at Tassajara proclaim the reason for our survival. Of course, the very setting of Tassajara in a riparian corridor did much to spare us. There's also no doubting that "Dharma Rain"—the sprinkler systems rigged onto many of the buildings by Greg Fain, Steph Wenderski, Johan Ostlund, Simon Moyes, and Graham Ross—was largely responsible for keeping the fire from entering Tassajara more deeply. Great gratitude for their wonderful work. Our Wisconsin and Mark III pumps as well as our extensive standpipe system got water where we needed it and with significant pressure most of the time. The five of us who returned to Tassajara—as well as those who remained after the second evacuation—also benefited greatly from the training and experience of Stuart Carlson and the advice of the other fire captains and personnel who supported us in the weeks leading up to July 10. The fire breaks that were cut, the endless raking and clearing of brush, the wrapping of particularly vulnerable buildings, and the numerous other preparations we made also greatly contributed to limiting the fire's reach into the heart of Tassajara. Finally, the five of us in Tassajara at the time of the fire can say without hesitation that, despite these preparations, without people here to turn on the sprinkler systems and refill the pumps, and to directly engage the fire with water as it entered Tassajara, little would have remained.
What's next?
We expect at least a week of waiting for the road to be safe enough to be cleared by bulldozers of rock and other debris so people can enter and help us to begin restoring Tassajara. Jamesburg is still threatened by the fire at the north end and may be evacuated at any moment. In the meantime Steve, Mako, Graham, Colin and I will continue our fire watch patrols, work on cataloging the damage and the repairs needed, flesh out the events of July 10, and try to get some rest.
Gratitude courses through this valley and our veins, for we and our community are well and safe, supported in a thousand ways known and unknown by the generosity and efforts of so many beings, so many bodhisattvas, so many buddhas. And finally, deep bows to the fire, whose undeniable dharma teaching of impermanence has earned our awed respect and attention.


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Obama mum on civil rights challenge
Even a Supreme Court decision knocking out a central element of a landmark civil rights law couldn't push President Barack Obama to abandon his muted approach to racial issues.
The court's 5-4 ruling Tuesday torpedoing a core provision of the Voting Rights Act led the the first black president to issue a tepid, two-paragraph written statement referencing "discrimination" and declaring that he was "deeply disappointed," but never invoking the vivid and searing dogs-and-firehoses imagery that spurred the passage of the law in 1965. He made no mention of African Americans or Latinos, the groups viewed as the act's main beneficiaries, but simply called for making voting "fair" and ensuring it was open to all.
Story Continued Below
"I am calling on Congress to pass legislation to ensure every American has equal access to the polls," the president said, without elaborating.
( Also on POLITICO: SCOTUS strikes down key voting rights provision)
Other members of Obama's administration were notably more explicit and more emotional about the racial issues at stake in the court's decision.
Vice President Joe Biden opened an unrelated speech Tuesday by declaring that the case implicated rights at "the foundation of our democracy"and by noting that the battle over the Voting Rights Act drew him into politics four decades ago. He also said bluntly that the part of the law the court struck down had helped block a South Carolina voter ID measure that would have led to "60,000 black voters in the state [being] denied the right to vote."
( Also on POLITICO: Minority lawmakers: Ruling a setback)
Attorney General Eric Holder's anger was evident when he summoned reporters to Justice Department headquarters Tuesday to express his dismay about the blow the Supreme Court delivered to "an essential part of the Voting Rights Act — a cornerstone of American civil rights law."
In a downcast statement, Holder blasted the decision as "a serious and unnecessary setback" that jeopardized the process used to protect Latino voters in Texas and black voters in South Carolina against practices the courts found to be discriminatory.
( Also on POLITICO: Holder: DOJ will protect voters)
"These problems have not been consigned to history — they continue to exist," an indignant Holder declared. "Their effects are real, they are of today — not yesterday — and they corrode the foundations of our democracy."
Some close observers of Obama's comments saw his restrained reaction to the court's ruling as in keeping with his well-established pattern of stepping very gingerly on issues with any connection to race.
The paradox means America's first black president sometimes seems more comfortable and forceful speaking out on campaign finance issues than on those that go directly to who is able to vote.


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text: Close to Everything. The Four Points by Sheraton Puntacana Village is conveniently located in front of Punta Cana International Airport (PUJ). Situated in the heart of a busy commercial area, the hotel provides direct access to the broad range of shopping and dining options of Galeras Punta Cana. Its an easy drive to the pristine Playa Blanca, to world-class golf courses, or to Santo Domingo along the nearby Coral Highway.Plenty to Do. Make a splash at our fun-filled water-sports center or swimming pool, and treat your body right at our renowned spa or fitness center. We have several outstanding restaurants and bars, plus spacious meeting and events facilities.Home away from Home. Our four floors house 124 guest rooms, filled with Simple Pleasures(SM) like the plush Four Points by Sheraton Four Comfort Bed. Whether youre here for business or leisure, we have the perfect place just for youplus free wireless High Speed Internet Access and bottled water.


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May the Tiles Be with You: Cleveland's Love Affair with Mah Jongg, the original documentary short by area filmmakers Amy Wasserstrom Cummings and John Cummings, is now available online. The film delves into the game and the connection Clevelanders have with it: weekly games, long-standing traditions, multi-generational stories. Interview subjects are male and female, Jewish and non-Jewish – their commonbond is love of the game.
Click here to watch! Use the password Mj
Amy Wasserstrom Cummings is an award-winning broadcast television producer, with two decades of experience in network television production, including 12 years as a senior producer at NBC's Today. Shehas covered wars, national elections, inaugurations, several Olympic games and twenty years worth ofbreaking news and feature stories. She's won two National Emmy Awards and numerous other nationalbroadcast awards.
John Cummings has 30 years of professional experience as a video journalist. He runs his own productioncompany, Cameralogic, Inc. Current clients include HGTV, Food Network, PBS NewsHour, CNBC, NBC, Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Weather Channel, History Channel, and many others. He recentlyfinished shooting a documentary, Catholicism, that covered 12 countries and aired nationally on PBS last fall. His awards include 5 Regional Emmys, the prestigious Peabody Award, and many other regional andnational awards. This project for the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage is his first foray into the world of mah jongg.
StoryView LLC produces digital media content for business, broadcast, and non-profits. They producecreative stories that are at the heart of every presentation. They want to engage audiences in emotional andmeaningful ways that support effective communication.


text:
Osmo Coding, game introducing coding to your child, Tangible Play, Inc., Palo Alto, California, USA
1st February 2018, 09:49
Edinburgh Centre for Robotics, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
26th March 2016, 22:45
Massive open online courses (MOOCs), Udacity, Mountain View, California, USA
4th February 2017, 07:18
"Artificial Intelligence", Prof. Patrick Henry Winston, MIT Course Number 6.034, Fall 2010
12th July 2015, 15:46
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7 Night SOUTHERN CARIBBEAN - SAN JUAN
7 Night SOUTHERN CARIBBEAN - SAN JUAN
Cruise Line: Norwegian Cruises
Cruise Ship: Norwegian Epic
Departs: Sun, Feb 16, 2020 San Juan, Puerto Rico
Arrives: Sun, Feb 23, 2020 San Juan, Puerto Rico
Dates & Prices
Special Offers
Up to $75 onboard credit (spending cash) per cabin on this sailingMention Promo Code: PC-AT100
$50 Per Person Deposits!Mention Promo Code: PC-8264
$50 Per Person Deposits!
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Haven, Suite & Concierge categories are not applicable for this offer. Offer is only applicable for mini-suites and below. Offer is for new individual FIT reservations and new group delegates booked outside of finalization. Qualifying new individual reservations can be moved into existing group and count towards tour conductor credits. Offer is not applicable to NETTOUR groups. Promotion cannot be held as group block. For an upgrade into a Concierge, Suite or Haven, full deposit is due immediately. Concierge categories on Joy are treated like a Suite and are also excluded from our reduced deposit offers. Reservation must be assigned with names. Guests who cancel and rebook must accept this promotion's terms and conditions. For reduced deposit reservations cancelled during deposit fee period, fee amount will be assessed in line with terms of booked promotion Singles paying 200% qualify. Government taxes, port expenses & fees, general excise tax (GET), and discretionary on board service charges and/or gratuities are additional. Not applicable to chartered dates and group types: CMI OP EVENT, CMI OP LG EVENT, INCREG & INCLARGE Offer and combinability with other promotional offers is subject to change at any time per Norwegian Cruise Line's discretion. Other restrictions may apply. Applicable to NCL MIAMI, NCL INTL, NCL ASIA, and AUSTRALIA. Not applicable to NCL BRAZIL, CE and UK offices. This is a higher level promotion. IMPORTANT NOTICE: Norwegian Cruise Line reserves the right to charge a fuel supplement without prior notice should the closing price of West Texas Intermediate Fuel increase above $65.00 USD per barrel on the NYMEX (New York Mercantile Exchange Index). In the event a fuel supplement is charged, Norwegian Cruise Line will have sole discretion to apply the supplementary charge to both existing and new bookings, regardless of whether such bookings have been paid in full. Such supplementary charges are not included in the cruise fare. The fuel supplement charge will not exceed $10.00 USD per passenger per day. Offers are based on availability, are capacity controlled, apply to selected sailings and combinability with other offers is subject to change or cancellation at any time per Norwegian Cruise Line's discretion. Other restrictions may apply. Norwegian Cruise Line is not responsible for typographical errors or omissions. Ships' registry: BAHAMAS and UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. ©2018 NCL Corporation Ltd.
|Feb 16, 2020
|San Juan, PR
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|Feb 23, 2020
|San Juan, PR
|5:30 a.m.


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Directly from the Owner. The unit has 2 spacious bedrooms with built-in cupboards and is fitted with carpets, 1 full bathroom (shower, bath, basin & toilet). Nice kitchen with a pantry. Open plan lounge with dining room area. 1 undercover parking area, separate space for washing machine and a neat garden. Security in Complex.
Property very neat. Close to schools and shops. Perfect for investment.
This area is located on the Northern slopes of the Magaliesberg and includes the following suburbs: Doornpoort, Montana, Kenley, Wonderboom, Annlin, Sinoville, Magalieskruin, Montana Park and Zambezi Country Estate.
The Onderstepoort Research Station set in the magnificent grounds of the Bon Accord Dam. Madunsa Campus is also close by. The suburb is within easy reach of the Military Base and the Airport at Wonderboom.
The area has 3 golf courses, Akasia Golf Club as well as Hillside Golf Club & Pebble Rock.
Netcare Akasia Hospital and Netcare Montana Hospital is located in these suburbs.
There are various shopping malls: Wonderpark mall, Kolonnade Shopping Centre & Kolonnade Retail Shopping Centre, Northpark mall and Wonderboom Junction
Within a few minutes from the following national roads, N1, N4 and R80. It houses the following train stations, Wonderboom, Pretoria North, Wolmerton, Winternest, Rosslyn, Lynross, Akasiaboom, Hornsnek and Onderstepoort. In addition to the trains the public transport includes bus services and taxi ranks and the newly built A RE YENG BRT System
Schools include: Primary Schools: Laerskool Wonderboom, Northridge Primary School & Laerskool Stephanus Roos. High Schools: Hoerskool Montana & Hoerskool Overkruin.
Find even more on Junk Mail by browsing through the similar ads below.


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text: Lawn Mowers, in Corning, are the automated machines provided with a motor that runs on either gas or battery, with sharp blades at the base and a long handle with base wheels. These instruments are used to even the grass and hedges in a particular field or garden. Some lawn mowers for large scale usages are also attached to the base of a car and driven by people to make the job easier. Lawn mowers are used to make a particular design on a piece of land. Lawn mowers come in a range of shapes, sizes & prices. In Corning, there are various brands & makers who provide a variety of specifications & features in the machines to enhance their market value.


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Getting more kids into racing will cement the future of our sport
Ask anybody in the sport of oval track racing about the future and most will say that there won't be a future unless we get more kids involved in motorsports. But how to get kids involved in the sport and at what age to get them involved can become a political hot potato. We have touched on the subject in a variety of articles over the past five or so years. We know of kids as young as 12 climbing behind the wheel of full-blown Dirt Late Models. We've witnessed, firsthand, a 13-year-old wreck an Asphalt Late Model and get injured. Ultimately, there's a right way and a wrong way to go about getting a youngster involved in motorsports. We've talked in the past about the wrong ways, such as parents forcing the child to pursue "their" dream (Ed note: Who's dream is it really?). But this time around we thought we'd take a look at the right way to groom a future racing star.
Pundits on television might question whether or not a child of 5 years old (or in some cases, younger) could really make a conscious decision that he or she would want to engage in any type of activity with the fervor of an Olympic athlete. After all, these Pre-K tykes are largely only concerned with eating, playing, and watching Barney on TV, right? So isn't it the parents who define and/or push them into a particular sport?
Obviously, it's our job as parents to direct our children to try new things and experience a wide variety of activities so that they can form their own opinions about what they would like to do over the course of their lives, be it bird-watching, banking, or motorsports. That's our stance here at Circle Track, expose them to everything and let them decide. After all, it's their lives.
A couple of issues ago, Circle Track highlighted the Ambassador Racing School in Florida and its summer camp. The concept behind the Quarter Midget summer camp is an excellent way to introduce your children to motorsports, it gives them a taste of the competition to see if they truly like it. There are other ways as well.
Take the case of 8-year-old Famous Rhodes who started racing at the age of 6. Not surprisingly, he comes from a racing family. His grandfather was Paul Rhodes a "famous" dirt track racer from Western Pennsylvania who notched more than 100 feature wins and had multiple track championships including three titles in 1983 for the same class at three different tracks (Sharon, Lernerville, and Mercer Speedways). Grandpa used to watch videos of Sprint Car racing with Little Famous. That, coupled with the family's passion for watching NASCAR on Sundays lit a fire in the kid's belly.
"I like cars," says Famous. "I told my dad I liked race cars, then he asked me if I wanted to do it and I said yes."
Simple enough right?
At the time, the Rhodes lived in Texas and as Famous's father tells the story the only racing option nearby to them was go-karts. "I wasn't too keen on karts," says Famous Rhodes (who shares his name with his son). "But when we moved to California for a job relocation we found Quarter Midget racing."
Ironically, Famous Sr. never raced cars. "I grew up at the racetrack. My fondest memories as a child are at circle tracks all over the country. But my dad didn't want us to get into racing, he was very adamant about it. He wanted us to go to school. He was a mechanic his whole life; and that's not an easy life. He really wanted us to get away from racing, even though on the weekends all we did was go to the racetrack."
That begs the question, other than racing, what else does Little Famous do? Well he does a lot. Famous plays soccer, rugby, and football. Coupled with a 33-race schedule this season, that's one busy 8-year-old. But there's a method to Rhodes's madness, "We feel that the best thing to do for our children is to give them not only the racing but a physical component as well. They need another avenue to compete in like team sports, because racing is very individual. Once you're in the cockpit, it's just you."
You might think that keeping such a packed schedule would be challenging for any parent to maintain sanity, right? Again, Rhodes uses it almost as what we will call a distraction. "It really takes a lot of time, but what I love about it is I can come home from work and spend a couple hours in the garage working on the cars, Little Famous and I get to talk through what we are going to do with the cars that we get, so it's a real learning experience of not just about cars but setup variances and tracks and it gives us time to spend together."
That huge time commitment is a good thing. "It's not drop your kid off for soccer for a 2-hour game and go, its qualifications in the mornings and heats, then it's features at night. It's a 12-hour commitment on a given Saturday or Sunday but that's what I love about it. I mean you get 12 hours to bond with your son at a track with him and his friends and other parents. It's a real community experience that you don't get with any other sport because other sports are just so quick, to be started and done with."
But this isn't just Dad and son, the Rhodes make racing a family affair.
"I love it," says mom, Sherri. "I still get a little nervous as any mom would, but I love it. I think especially when he does another sport, you go out on the weekend for an hour and it's done. The racing is a big family. You get to know everybody, you're together all day. The kids get a lot of interaction with their elders and they learn respect. I think it's a great environment."
Parental involvement reflects very positively on the Rhodes's little racer. When asked if he has fun when his whole family goes to the track? He responded by saying, "Yeah, it gives me more chances of winning."
Why QMA?
"Quarter Midgets are by far the safest sports you can have your child be involved with. You know when looking at statistics over the past 20 years there have been less incidents in that sport in those vehicles than like football, basketball, baseball. And to be honest with you, we have had more injuries in football and soccer than we have ever had in Quarter Midgets," explains Rhodes.
Rhodes says that Little Famous has flipped his Quarter Midget once and has had some good hits, but he wears a HANS device and has the car built to strict standards, all in an effort to keep him as safe as possible.
Add in the fact that a full main field in the Junior Class (under age 9) consists of eight racers—and in fact, eight is the maximum number of cars allowed on the track at any given time. The smaller number of cars means that there is less chance for a major incident. In fact, the maximum number of cars on the track in any class is 10, so QMA provides for an excellent training ground for young racers.
Career Track?
While Famous is still just 7 years old, the concept of making a career out of racing is very real. Kids latch onto something they love and want to continue it forever, but there is a harsh reality in racing. "You know, it's something my wife and I struggle with. Making a career out of racing is so difficult," says Rhodes. "Look at all the major sports, every year the NFL drafts 400 candidates out of college. Baseball drafts something like 720 kids a year, to potentially make it into the minors. Racing NASCAR, Indy, and others, there are just a couple of drivers that make it up. We are talking a handful. So we have tried to instill in Famous a real understanding that this is a tough road.
"He wants to make a run out of it, so we want to give him every opportunity to show his skills beforehand. I would love to see him make it up to dirt track racing to where he can have something to enjoy on the weekends and call his own. And have a professional career outside of racing. But he is dead set on this is what he wants to do."
The Best Approach
Since Famous runs both USAC .25 and QMA, Rhodes Sr. had the opportunity to strike up a relationship with Kevin Miller at USAC who introduced him to Ken Rice, who coached, among others, some guy named Jeff Gordon. "I met the guy and it was like a done deal," says Rhodes. "It was a relationship made in heaven. He could put the cars together, could help train Famous, and provide him a way to explore his passion. It's been no looking back since."
Getting on Rice's program was a no-brainer for Rhodes. "I think it takes away when you're the dad trying to coach your son. It really hurts you at times because it's a different bond when you start playing that game with your kid of this is how you should do that. Meanwhile, the kid is feeling something totally different. Having Rice has really allowed me to enjoy more of the sport and just be the mechanic as opposed to being everything for Famous."
Rhodes says not only is the training aspect of bringing up a young racer important, but it's critical. "We are very committed to not just the cars and equipment for Famous to be successful, but we invest in training for him. So many times I see parents neglect the coaching components and the kids don't get the fundamentals. It's a natural step to want to do, but so few people do it. We have been lucky to have Team Rice and Ken Rice help us with those elements so we can build the fundamentals for Famous which has led us to some success in the short term."
Coach Rice
Ken Rice is a legend in Quarter Midget racing, having done just about everything there is to do in the club including being President. He loves kids and wants to see them do the best they can, but he is a no-nonsense type of guy. "This is the way it is, if you want me to help you then that's it," he says. There is no discussion.
But there is a reason for his approach. "You can only teach a child as long as they are having fun and enjoying it. You can't force them to learn. The old saying is 'you can pull a rope but you can't push it.' As long as the child wants to learn and is having fun, they are going to learn like little sponges and they are going to learn faster than you can teach them. They're all different and there is no set formula. It's got to come from them. I ask them what they like about racing and if it's winning then we are OK if it's going out and watching the birds fly by, then we got a problem."
Rice teaches something he calls reactionary, explaining that he wants his students to react to the situation; he doesn't want them to think at all. "I don't want the parents to sit down and tell them how to drive because it's not gonna work. You have to teach them how to be a robot, and they are not robots. They are individuals; they have to react to something. If you and I are sitting here talking and somebody puts a cigarette in the ash tray, we are engrossed in the conversation, you reach over and set your hand on that cigarette you can't have to say, 'Boy, that's hot. I better move my hand, I don't want to burn myself,' you yank your hand away. That's the reaction I'm looking for. I'm not looking for someone to think about it."
Rice says that kids racing QMA have just thousandths of a second to make a decision and they have to make several of those per lap. You can't slow them down by asking them, "What were you thinking?" And parents have a habit of doing that.
"I was watching a thing on Jeff Gordon a year ago, he moved from the inside of the track to the outside passed a car, then bounced back to the bottom," says Rice. "After the race one of the announcers said how did you do that? And he said, 'I don't know.'"
He didn't know he just did it, that's what Rice teaches and he does it through trust. "In order to maintain that trust, you can't fib with them or joke with them (students)," says Rice. "You gotta tell it to them straight once and then get rid of it, you're done with it. If they don't believe it, it's not gonna work."
"Each child is different. I teach each one a little different but one of the important things is to listen to them. Little Famous is right on. He looks at me with those big eyes, what I tell him goes right in and then he goes out does it."
The Results
Over some 54 years of teaching, Rice's methods and philosophies have helped dozens upon dozens of racers up their game, many to the level of Jeff Gordon. Now Rice's son and grandson help continue the legacy that he created and Little Famous Rhodes is one of his shining students.
At 8 years old, Rhodes already has four National Championships, something many 9 year olds only dream about. The kid has also won more than 30 features and heats since starting racing in 2009, including the 2010 and 2011 Western Grands, as well as two wins at Gasoline Alley at the Little Brickyard in both Junior Animal and Junior Stock [USAC .25], all major races in Quarter Midget competition.
The Future
When it comes to the future for Famous Rhodes, his father has a very defined, very conservative plan that we here at Circle Track think can help out many parents of young racers. "I really want him to continuing honing the skills in Quarter Midgets for the next two years. He needs to continue developing the basics fundamentals in the sport.
"By the time he's 10 I'd like to see him in the fastest versions of Quarter Midgets that they allow. From there, I would love to get him into 5/8 Sprints here locally (California). Then try to move into USAC Midgets on asphalt, to build that skill set, and then eventually USAC Midgets on dirt. I think from now to five years, when he is 12, he needs to stay in that bracket. Sure, I'd love to get him in Late Models because there are 12- to 15-year-olds, but I want to hold him off. That day will come, so I don't need to rush it."
Notice he says that he doesn't need to rush it. Great advice that could help a lot of racers out there today.


text: In this image released by the U.S. Navy the U.S. Navy variant of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the F-35C, conducts a test flight over the Chesapeake Bay. U.S. Navy/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption U.S. Navy/Getty Images The Two-Way Pentagon Grounds Fleet Of F-35 Fighter Jets Because Of Engine Problems February 22, 2013 At an estimated cost of $400 billion, it is the Pentagon's most expensive weapons program. While ambitious in its scope, the program has had numerous stumbles.