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Nov. 30, 2003 — Some planes are meant to accomplish something new and great; some are meant to perform a modest task over and over again, without fail, thousands of times. And some airplanes, regardless of original purpose, change the way we think about flying. Aviation halls of fame mostly honor aviators — not aircraft. So, with the help of readers, we've selected 10 planes that shaped modern aviation, and 10 runners-up that also played a major role.
Claim to fame: Defined commercial aviation.
It wasn't fast and it wasn't glamorous, but the durable DC-3 set the template for commercial aviation as we know it. Its origins were pragmatic, all the way back to the day in 1935 when American Airlines convinced Donald Douglas to build an aircraft that could accommodate sleeping berths and more passengers. Other airline executives quickly appreciated the plane's flexibility and affordability and filled out their fleets with DC-3s.
Customers clamored for seats and executives willingly paid for its fold-down sleeper beds and luxury service. But as the Depression deepened, the Douglas Sleeper Transport model was reconfigured to pack in 28 passengers. The DC-3's affordable tickets and proven safety record convinced Americans who had never flown before to take to the air. And with the DC-3 priced at about $120,000, half the cost of other transports, airlines could buy more planes and add new routes. Soon the airlines were showing some of their first profits ever — proof that flying could in fact make money.
After the war, the airlines built up their fleets again with DC-3s and surplus C-47s, sometimes buying them for just a few thousand dollars. As the airlines developed hub systems, DC-3s remained mainstays of commercial fleets and survived in mainline service well into the jet era. Dozens remain in service today.
With its remarkable flying record and comfortable ride, the DC-3 demonstrated that air travel could be for everyone. History has largely borne that out.
Runner-up: Boeing 747
Claim to fame: Flew more passengers farther than ever before. Made it possible to quickly travel almost anywhere.
As jets became popular in the 1960s, fares dropped and airlines wanted to carry more passengers over longer distances. Pan Am pressed Boeing for a plane that would push the limits of passenger travel. Boeing tweaked plans for a massive military transport and turned out the 747 in just over two years.
The first wide-body passenger jet, the 747-100 could carry nearly 500 passengers across 6,000 miles. Its modern incarnation, the 400 series, remains the largest passenger plane ever assembled. (The Airbus A380 will take that crown when it enters service in 2006.) With the 747, the farthest distances on Earth became just a day's flight away.
Claim to fame: First major success of the jet age. Set template for most commercial jetliners.
The first U.S. commercial jet aircraft, the 707 — and its oft-overlooked prototype, the 367-80 ("Dash 80") — has been the basis for every Boeing jet since the Dash 80's maiden flight in 1954.
Runner-up: Boeing 737
Claim to fame: World's most-produced jetliner.
The 737 represents today what the DC-3 used to: Air travel that's safe, cost-effective and immensely popular. If you've ever flown on an airplane, chances are it was on a 737. Originally conceived as a shorter-range jet that would complement the 727, modern versions can now provide transcontinental and intercontinental service. Its affordability prompted the creation of low-fare airlines like Southwest. With more than 4,000 having rolled off the assembly line, the 737 is now the default for short- and medium-haul flights around the world. The six-abreast seating and scant legroom of most current configurations may be a far cry from the luxury that once defined jet travel, but that too is why the 737 is a symbol of modern air travel.
Claim to fame: First piloted supersonic aircraft.
A plane built for superlatives, the X-1 didn't disappoint. It was still known as the XS-1 on Oct. 14, 1947, when pilot Chuck Yeager took the first of two aircraft built for the program by Bell Aircraft (with a rocket engine from Reaction Motors) on the ninth powered flight of the Air Force's joint test program with NACA (the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, NASA's precursor). Few other single flights have ever been as important.
Other models like the X-1A would carry pilots over 70,000 feet and Mach 2, but Yeager's moment would never be trumped. The X-1 set the path for modern military aviation and space flight, along with commercial aircraft that would break the sound barrier for anyone who could afford to ride it.
Runner-up: North American X-15
Claim to fame: World's fastest airplane. Only aircraft to fly itself into space.
The world's first hypersonic airplane (built to travel over five times the speed of sound), the X-15 was created for research. It proved itself on 199 flights from 1959 to 1968 and its rocket systems propelled pilots up to speeds as high as Mach 6.7 (4,520 mph) and over 354,000 feet, some 67 miles high. That exceeded the U.S. definition for flying into space, which meant X-15 pilots could qualify as astronauts. At least one man who flew the X-15 would go on to even higher speeds and more glory: Neil Armstrong. The X-15 research helped create the space shuttle and will be crucial to future space plane development.
Claim to fame: Helped the Allies win the war in Europe. Set a standard for military bombers.
The prototype to what would become the Flying Fortress initially lost out to the Douglas B-18 in competition. But after Germany invaded Poland in 1939, orders began rolling into Boeing from a nervous Washington and from the Royal Air Force in Britain.
Perhaps most important, it could drop 6,000 pounds of bombs at a distance of 1,100 miles from its base — which gave it a key role (along with the long-range B-24) in raids on Berlin, Dresden and Rome. Though more than 12,000 were produced, most B-17s were scrapped after the war — largely relegating the planes' flying days to the memories of the men who flew them.
Runner-up: Boeing B-29
Claim to fame: Helped the Allies win the war in the Pacific.
Even as the B-17 went into production, the U.S. government asked for a bomber with even more range. Building on the successful concepts of the B-17, Boeing created a new plane that could go twice as far (2,200 miles) and carry even more bombs. The Superfortress didn't fly its first mission until 1944, but American generals quickly amassed fleets of the B-29 within bombing range of Tokyo; on some missions, over 1,000 B-29s were sent to bomb the Japanese capital.
Of more than 4,000 B-29s built, one retains a certain notoriety: the Enola Gay, which released the first nuclear bomb over Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945.
Claim to fame: Heroic air power in World War II.
The British were originally responsible for the P-51 Mustang (their designation) when they commissioned a new fighter in 1940, to be built by North American Aviation from an original Curtiss blueprint. U.S. officials took two to evaluate and eventually were won over. By war's end, the NAA factory — a model of efficiency — had turned out some 15,000 of these versatile planes, which in just two years took down nearly 5,000 enemy aircraft in the European theater, more than any other aircraft.
The P-51's real value was as a bomber escort: Crews of B-17s and B-24s found the Mustang an essential "little friend" that could pick off Luftwaffe fighters prowling the edges of bomber formations. Its long-range cruise capabilities allowed it to join the bombers on runs from British bases. That dazzling performance and power earned it another nickname: "Cadillac of the Sky."
Runner-up: Supermarine Spitfire
Claim to fame: A versatile fighter-bomber throughout the war.
Though American aircraft won much of the glory, the various designs of the British Spitfire proved invaluable throughout the war.
Eventually able to top 400 mph, the plane's elliptical wings and maneuverability pushed the edges of Allied technology and were an able match for Germany's powerful Messerschmitt fighters and their fuel-injected engines. Spitfires were essential in almost every major engagement, including the Battle of Britain and D-Day.
Claim to fame: First mass-produced airplane. First U.S. airmail service.
A slow, if solid, plane that redlined near 75 mph, the Jenny never found combat glory. But thousands of these sturdy biplanes were used for military training; most U.S. and Canadian pilots in World War I trained on them.
Thousands of of Jennys were produced during the war. As peace returned, the Army sold off many for surplus, dirt-cheap, and pilots grabbed them up. If you were a pilot in the early days of flying, a Jenny was likely your first plane. (It certainly was for Charles Lindbergh.) Jennys could soon be found almost everywhere as daredevil pilots spread airplane gospel in the barnstorming years of the 1920s. During those years, many Americans got their first glimpse of a flying machine when a Jenny appeared overhead.
Runner-up: Vickers Vimy
Claim to fame: First nonstop transatlantic flight.
Designed as a World War I bomber, the Vickers Vimy was put into service in 1919, too late for much use in the war. But just 14 days before the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, British flyers John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown took their Vimy from the Newfoundland coast to a crash landing in Galway, completing the first successful nonstop crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, nearly 2,000 miles in just over 16 hours. In December 1919, the Vimy went on to win an England-to-Australia air race and again proved its amazing endurance.
Charles Lindbergh's Ryan NYP — "The Spirit of St. Louis," that is — was specifically built for his long overwater flight. With a periscope instead of a windshield, it helped Lindbergh perform his extraordinary feat but had little adaptability for other uses. The Vimy completed a similar feat eight years earlier with only small changes to its original configuration.
Claim to fame: First production jet aircraft. First jet fighter.
Though the experimental Heinkels He-178 — the world's first jet aircraft — first flew in 1939, Germany showed little interest in turbine technology until several years later. Berlin eventually turned its attention to jets, but engineers couldn't get a prototype of the Me-262 into the air before mid-1941 and couldn't start full production until 1944 — too late for jets to play a major role in the war.
Though U.S. engineers had been working on their own jet fighter, the Lockheed P-80, in the waning years of the war, the advances made in Willi Messerschmitt's factories were scrutinized by the Allies after the fall of the Reich. Those designs helped pave the way for many of the jet fighters that have staked claim on the skies in the 70 years since the Me-262 was developed.
Runner-up: Boeing B-52
Claim to fame: A versatile cornerstone of U.S. military power.
Born out of the end of World War II, with the Army Air Corps looking for a bomber that could fly farther and with more bombs than Convair's massive B-36, the B-52 Stratofortress was destined for a completely new type of fight. By the time the first production B-52 was delivered to Strategic Air Command in 1955, the Cold War was under way and the eight-engined bomber's payload was to be nuclear. For the next four decades, B-52s constantly patrolled the skies on alert for any Soviet threat, the keystone of the U.S. strategy of nuclear deterrence.
Over the years, both the missions and the aircraft evolved. The Air Force also wanted B-52s for reconnaissance and for payloads of conventional bombs. The Arc Light program brought the B-52 to the skies over Vietnam, from which they could level large swaths of jungle.
In-flight refueling allowed the BUFF (Big Ugly Fat Fellow, an apt moniker for a half-million-pound aircraft) to fly nonstop for over a day, striking targets around the world from bases on U.S. soil. It rained munitions on Saddam Hussein's Republican Guard in the first Gulf war, was key to air support in Afghanistan and helped military planners carry off their "shock and awe" assault on Baghdad last March. Newer technology has arrived, but has never supplanted the B-52.
Claim to fame: The planes that gave many pilots their wings.
Clyde Cessna's company had been building utilitarian aircraft since 1927, but in 1946 he unveiled his 120 and 140 models: high-wing, lightweight, two-seaters that could be used for personal transport. With the Depression and the war behind them, aviation entrepreneurs figured Americans would soon take to the skies in their aerial versions of the family car. A popular four-seat version, the 170, came two years later and Cessnas' fabric surfaces were converted to metal.
The Skyhawk went on to become the most-sold aircraft in general aviation. Hundreds of thousands of pilots have learned to fly behind the controls of a 150 or 172; any pilot you meet has probably flown one. More powerful models, like the 182 Skylane and the 206 Stationair, are in wide use by private pilots and companies. Cessna even produces a 12-seat single-engine prop, the Grand Caravan, for commuter and cargo airlines. Though liability concerns halted its single-engine production from 1986 to the mid-1990s, pilots today can still buy a new Skyhawk nearly 50 years after it was first designed.
Runner-up: Piper Cub
Claim to fame: An invaluable small airplane for over 70 years.
Long before the Cessna factory began churning out personal airplanes, the Taylor Brothers Aircraft Company was tinkering with designs sufficient to power a two-seat trainer. William Piper bought out the firm and by 1936, the J-2 Cub was in steady production. Soon after, the J-3 was unveiled. It was modest, with a 65 h.p. Lycoming engine and a top speed slightly above 80 mph.
But as hints of war emerged in the late 1930s, the J-3 Cub was chosen for the Civilian Pilot Training program and eventually put into the war for scouting and light transport. Thousands of Cubs rolled out of the factory — over 14,000 by the end of production in 1947. Most military pilots in the war got their first training in a Cub.
Though Piper hoped to market the Cub to pilots coming home from the war, sales fizzled. But thousands of Cubs remained in service for decades and many still fly, offering passengers a fun-filled glimpse at aviation's past.
Claim to fame: First transatlantic passenger airplane. Most luxurious airplane in passenger service.
If the DC-3 and 737 shaped what air travel has become, Boeing's Clipper ships represent what might have been.
Boeing responded with the B314, which would be the largest passenger craft until the 747 was introduced nearly three decades later. Its four 1,200 h.p. engines could carry 74 passengers over 3,500 miles at 183 mph.
More importantly, it could carry them in unparalleled luxury. With two decks (one just for the crew), it contained a dining room where four-star hotels catered meals from a fully stocked galley, separate dressing rooms for men and women and a private suite in the rear. Overnight flights provided berths for 40 passengers.
The Clippers launched the first passenger service across the Atlantic on June 28, 1939, from New York to Southampton, England. A one-way ticket cost $375. Franklin Roosevelt became the first sitting president to fly when a Clipper carried him to the an 1943 Allied summit in Casablanca. (Winston Churchill also arrived on a B314, his preferred airplane.)
Limited passenger service continued through World War II, even as the military took over most of Pan Am's 12 Clippers. But after the war, interest in the high-priced luxury of a Clipper flight was replaced by demand for more efficient, cheaper land-based models. The era of flying boats, and of true luxury for air travelers, was over.
Runner-up: Lockheed Constellation
Claim to fame: Last of the piston-engine passenger craft. One of the most stylish airplanes ever built.
Though early versions were used during the war, Lockheed's Constellation and Super Constellation got their real start in 1946 when they were put to use on both domestic and international routes.
Able to cruise well over 300 mph, it made long-range flights feel routine. Lockheed's final version, the 1649 "Starliner," was easily able to reach Europe from most U.S. cities.
The Connie could breed both love and frustration. Use of the troubled Wright Cyclone engine led to frequent flame-outs and failures — including one engine that fell off on a transatlantic Pan Am flight to London. But its sleek, refined looks matched the aesthetics of the times and many consider it the most beautiful airplane ever constructed.
But by the time airlines got the Starliner in 1956, jet travel had become the clear future of passenger aviation and the Connie's time was up.
Claim to fame: Fastest and highest-flying production aircraft.
Since its predecessor A-12 was tested in 1962 and revealed to the world in 1964, the SR-71 "Blackbird" and its family of aircraft — once shrouded in Cold War secrecy — have become renowned for speed and sheer power. Yet much of what they achieved during high-flying reconnaissance missions remains a mystery.
The Air Force was forced to cancel the Blackbird program in 1990, then brought them back briefly in the mid-90s before they were permanently retired. NASA also flew versions of the SR-71 for research, first during the 1970s and then again in the 1990s, before ending flights in 2001.
Forty years after it was engineered, its speed and altitude records remain unparalleled.
Runner-up: Lockheed C-130
Claim to fame: A life-saving airlift that can land almost anywhere.
Big, bulky and never glamorous, the C-130 and its variants have provided a half-century of unfailing service into some of the most hostile places on Earth. It can carry over 41,000 pounds of people and cargo and has been used for every imaginable task — from resupplying the DEW line in the Arctic to evacuating casualties in Vietnam. A C-130 was the first plane to land after U.S. troops stormed the Baghdad airport earlier this year.
Outside of military service, the Hercules flies cargo operations and even firefighting missions for the U.S. Forest Service. In other configurations, it has served as an air tanker (KC-130), flying command-and-control center (EC-130) and hard-hitting gunship (AC-130). Loaded at nearly over 150,000 pounds, it can still land in about 2,000 feet — an astounding feat for an aircraft its size. No runway? No problem — the C-130 can ease onto a dirt strip.
Like the B-52, it serves as proof that the most durable technology doesn't need to be new.
© 2013 msnbc.com Reprints


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Screen's annual UK Stars of Tomorrow issue is a definite highlight of my year: meeting gifted young talents who will have an impact on this industry in the coming years. It feels like a real privilege to meet these professionals at the start of their careers.
Screen's headquarters are in the UK, so it might seem an obvious choice for this feature to put a special emphasis on British talent. But it's more than location and convenience - Britain is a hotbed of talent, and here's why…
» The UK offers a range of top schools and training providers. Many of the young writer-directors on these pages have taken advantage of the excellent training in the UK at institutions such as the National Film and Television School, London Film School and Met Film School. And actors have resources such as RADA, LAMDA and Guildhall. Creative Skillset supports training at all levels.
» The UK also benefits from its size. Because the film industry is smaller than in, say, Los Angeles, it's easier to network and to meet mentors. Brits have a greater chance of getting access to someone via personal connections.
» There is fantastic overlap between film, TV and theatre in the UK. Film actors frequently start on the famed British stage and return there throughout their careers - just look at Helen Mirren currently starring in The Audience in London's West End. Also, TV is seen as a viable way to kickstart a writing or directing career, and the BBC, Channel 4 and Sky all offer valuable training grounds.
» There is institutional support for rising talent. Creative England works regularly with first and second-time film-makers and is spearheading the development of a new regional talent network (with the BFI and other agencies). The BFI earmarks special funding for debut features and recently made its Vision Awards more welcoming to relative newcomers. Film London's Microwave low-budget initiative has supported works such as Lilting by our 2013 Star of Tomorrow Hong Khaou. Film4 is especially fantastic at spotting and working with new directors and supporting them as their careers develop and grow.
» There are currently some great opportunities for young people. Game Of Thrones shoots in Belfast and has been a major boon for rising British actors. TV shows such as Skins, Misfits and Downton Abbey have been strong launchpads for others.
» When I moved to the UK from the US eight years ago, I quickly noticed how highly the wider community regards actors. Creative professions aren't sneered at as dreamers or timewasters. The Queen regularly knights actors - this is the land of Olivier, not Lindsay Lohan.
» British talent travels easily - working in the English language makes it easier to be recruited into the US industry. Who could have guessed a few years back that Spider-Man, Superman and Batman would all be British? And I was recently very impressed with Emma Watson's southern Californian pitch in Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring. This Valley Girl didn't sound anything like Hermione.
Wendy Mitchell is Editor of Screen International

subset: commoncrawl


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I feel that it is important for you to know how I feel about Tony Hawk coming to Bluffton on Thursday. Finally, someone important in skateboarding comes to Bluffton where the skateboard scene isn't as "popular" as it should be and all of a sudden people care.
Now that people hear that Tony Hawk is coming to have a demo at our local skate park, people who constantly put down skateboarding are coming. Which I don't feel is fair to people who truly appreciate the art of skateboarding.
We are very excited for the Birdhouse Skateboard team to come and skate with us skaters. I feel that him coming isn't about skateboarding anymore it's about publicity; that is not what skateboarding is about.
All of the kids who don't skate are going to pretend they actually care about skateboarding when what they are actually after is an autograph. This is very frustrating for all of the local skaters.
It's also very important for the truth to be told about who really got the skate park going. Ryan Roberts is the person who spent two years searching and begging for signatures to send to the city council, and it finally worked. All credit for the skate park being here should go to him. He has changed the whole skate scene in Beaufort County.
Now all of the sudden certain people are trying to take his credit by saying they built it and got everything started for the skate park. Which isn't fair to Ryan or the people who signed petitions for the park.
Thank you for taking your time to read this.
Bluffton High School junior


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Subscribe To Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman Contract Includes A Justice League Movie And A Solo Film Updates
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Yesterday brought the big news that Gal Gadot's deal with Warner Bros. will see the actress play Wonder Woman in three upcoming feature film projects, but what remained unclear were the exact specifications of the contract. Will the character only be getting the chance to appear alongside other superheroes on the big screen, or will she finally be getting a solo movie of her very own? Today Variety has found an answer to that important question. According to the trade's sources, the first project in Gadot's contract will be Zack Snyder's Man of Steel sequel, a.k.a. Batman vs. Superman, but in the next few years she will also be starring in both Justice League and Wonder Woman movies.
While it may seem as though this is a big, long-term plan for WB, the new report seems to suggest that the studio is still trying to play it safe with Princess Diana of Themyscira. The contract that Gadot signed is half the length of the ones most stars get over at Marvel Studios - where stars are locked in with six-picture deals - and the reason for this is because Warners is still unsure about how audiences will react to the portrayal. Variety says, "Since its taken so long to find the right parts to make a Wonder Woman movie work, WB and DC don't want to rush into a large commitment if fans are still not drawn to a standalone movie featuring the character."
Still, the studio does seem very dedicated to making an big screen version of the classic superheroine work on the big screen. In October of last year Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara identified the character as a priority, the studio needing to find a way to expand their DC Comics movies beyond just Batman and Superman, and just a few weeks later Warner Bros.'s President of Creative Development and Worldwide Production Greg Silverman echoed those comments by saying:
"We are taking it all very seriously and are trying to do a plan that's respectful to those characters and maximizes the stories as best they can. So everything that has been speculated are things that we've thought about."
Gadot will be making her debut as Wonder Woman alongside Henry Cavill's Superman and Ben Affleck's Batman in the upcoming Man of Steel sequel, which will begin production in May and is now scheduled to be released on May 6, 2016 instead of its original July 17, 2015 date.
Are you excited for Gadot's version of Wonder Woman? Do you think she could end up playing the character for many years to come? Would you prefer to see a Wonder Woman movie before or after a Justice League movie? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.


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America's poor jobs report has rattled world markets. Germany's DAX index fell 2 percent Friday. Wall Street saw its worst week of the year, as slowing job growth stoked fears that recovery in the United States is faltering. Last month, the economy added only 115,000 jobs.
But the more telling number is 169,000. That's the number of jobs lost in the euro zone in March. For all its sluggishness, the US economy is still growing and its unemployment rate is down to 8.1 percent. The euro zone appears to be contracting and its unemployment rate has risen to 10.9 percent, a 15-year high.
There are myriad structural reasons for this dichotomy. But the distinction getting the most attention these days is a policy difference: America has chosen growth. Europe has chosen austerity. And it looks like the Europeans are losing the argument.
Everyone recognizes that austerity is hard. But what if it's wrong, too? This is boosting calls for more growth-oriented policies – on both sides of the Atlantic – which is having important political repercussions.
On Sunday, millions of voters in France and Greece go to the polls and are likely to throw out the leaders who have backed austerity and spending cuts. In France, Socialist Francois Hollande is expected to win the presidency and has pledged to renegotiate the austere European Union treaty that would cap national deficit and debt levels. In Greece, both major parties are so discredited by the cuts that they have begun to initiate that it's not clear that they can win a majority of parliament even in coalition.
In the Netherlands, which is in far better economic shape than Greece, the government collapsed over the debate about austerity. Even German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has been the face of German insistence on budget cutting and spending reform, is beginning to talk about the need for growth as part of those reforms.
That growth-vs.-austerity debate is also moving to the forefront in the US. It was behind the brinksmanship over raising the federal debt ceiling last year. It is a prime mover in the various congressional attempts at tax reform. It could crystallize this fall in the election, depending on how closely presumed GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney ties himself to GOP budget-cutters in the US House.
So far, austerity has not fallen into disrepute in the US the way it has in Europe (perhaps because Americans have not felt its bite). An ABC News/Washington Post poll last month found that support for the tea party movement has slipped somewhat since last September but remains at a still-high 41 percent. The fate of tea party candidates in the US House in this fall's elections will be an important bellwether. After the election, a lame duck Congress must decide what to do about several tax and budget cuts that expire at the end of the year, which represent some $500 billion in federal stimulus.
If they decide to withdraw that stimulus, US growth will slow.
No one denies that the US and other indebted nations will have to embrace austerity at some point to reduce their rising pool of red ink. The big debate has always been about timing. Here's the problem with starting austerity too early when the economy is still too weak, according to Lawrence Summers, a former economic adviser to President Obama, writing Monday in The Washington Post. When official interest rates are near zero, every 1 percent cut in government spending reduces the size of its economic output by 1 percent to 1.5 percent. So trying to reduce your debt-to-asset ratio through spending cuts just reduces your assets, so the ratio never goes down.
Take Greece's austerity plan: In exchange for a bailout, it has agreed to cut spending so that it will average a budget surplus of 4.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) per year between 2014 and 2020 (before debt payments). Under official projections, Greece will be able to reduce its debt-to-GDP ratio from 160 percent to 120 percent by the end of the period. Private forecasters are skeptical. For example, Greece's GDP will fall 5 percent this year, according to Standard & Poor's, not 4.3 percent as the official forecast calls for. Realistically, according to the Royal Bank of Scotland, Greece's actual debt-to-GDP ratio will be no better off in 2020 than it is today.
Of course, embracing growth doesn't mean that a nation can keep up piling on debt. At some point private investors lose confidence and quit financing its operations at reasonable interest rates, as happened with Greece. So how can a nation cut its debt without shrinking its economy?
By backloading the cuts for a period when the economy is growing more robustly, argues Christina Romer, another former Obama economic adviser who now teaches economics at the University of California, Berkeley.
"The core of a more sensible approach is to pass the needed budget measures now, but to phase in the actual tax increases and spending cuts only gradually – as economies recover," she wrote in an op-ed for The New York Times last Sunday. "What's to stop policy makers from promising the moon and not delivering? History shows that countries have done such gradual consolidations before. In 1983, for example, the United States passed a Social Security reform plan that was backloaded in the extreme: it specified tough changes, including higher taxes and increases in the retirement age, to be phased in over almost three decades."
Of course, history also shows that lawmakers often don't follow through on making the tough cuts that they've agreed to. If the US fails to reduce its unsustainable deficits, then the holders of its debt eventually will lose confidence, forcing far harsher taxes and spending cuts than US politicians are contemplating.
Congress mush also overcome the sharp partisan divide over how to rein in spending: through spending cuts or tax increases or both, which will play out in the upcoming debate over tax reform. Optimists on the left and the right think Republicans and Democrats can strike a grand bargain on tax reform, perhaps as early as the lame duck session of Congress right after the election.
That's not only achievable, it would be a signal accomplishment, Forbes magazine publisher Steve Forbes told an audience in Boston earlier this week. If the US can get the tax and spending balance right, it will be an example for Europe and the world to follow.


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Economic evaluation of a task-shifting intervention for common mental disorders in India
Christine Buttorff a, Rebecca S Hock b, Helen A Weiss c, Smita Naik d, Ricardo Araya e, Betty R Kirkwood f, Daniel Chisholm g & Vikram Patel f
a. Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, United States of America (USA).
b. Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA.
c. MRC Tropical Epidemiology Group, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, England.
d. Sangath Centre, Porvorim, India.
e. Academic Unit of Psychiatry, University of Bristol, Bristol, England.
f. Centre for Global Mental Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London, WC1E 7HT, England.
g. Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland.
Correspondence to Vikram Patel (e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com).
(Submitted: 24 February 2012 – Revised version received: 21 August 2012 – Accepted: 22 August 2012 – Published online: 14 September 2012.)
Bulletin of the World Health Organization 2012;90:813-821. doi: 10.2471/BLT.12.104133
Non-communicable diseases account for a growing burden on the health systems of developing countries. The effective management of these diseases typically requires a collaborative effort across the health workforce as well as continuing care for months or even years. In resource-poor areas, a "task-shifting" strategy can be beneficial, in which community or lay health workers (with oversight from primary-health-care practitioners and specialists) provide "front-line" care, instead of physicians and trained nurses.1 There is growing evidence of the effectiveness of such task-shifting in the management of some chronic conditions, including infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS),2,3 diabetes4 and some mental disorders.5–9 Although the strategy appears particularly attractive in the many low-income countries with inadequate numbers of physicians and trained nurses, there is considerable institutional resistance to the widespread implementation of the strategy and also concern that the quality of care will deteriorate.10 There is a clear need for more studies comparing the health outcomes of patients attended by lay health workers with those of patients attended by physicians and trained nurses. There is also a need for more studies in which the cost–effectiveness of the task-shifting strategy is evaluated.10
Depression and anxiety, two of the most prevalent non-communicable disorders, are often encountered in primary-care settings.11 Depression is predicted to become the leading cause of disability-adjusted life years by the year 2030.12 Depressive and anxiety disorders are classified separately in the tenth revision of the International statistical classification of diseases and related health problems (ICD-10).13 In public-health interventions, however, they are often grouped together as "common mental disorders" because they show a high degree of comorbidity, have similar epidemiological profiles and respond to similar treatments.11,14–16
In several studies, collaborative stepped care led by lay health workers has been found to be successful in the primary care of depression and/or anxiety in low- or middle-income countries.17–19 This approach encourages the most effective sharing of tasks between medical, specialist and non-medical staff. There are various "steps" or levels of treatment, with the most intensive treatments reserved for the most severe cases. Used together, the collaborative-care and stepped-care components of this strategy can maximize the efficient use of scarce resources, especially in those public health facilities where case management has previously been relatively poor.20 In the MANAS trial, the effectiveness of this approach in the primary care of patients with depression and/or anxiety was investigated in Goa, India. The design, implementation and general effectiveness of this cluster-randomized controlled trial have been described in detail elsewhere.18,19,21 Both public and private facilities were included in the trial because in India's private facilities, the quality and costs of care are both generally higher than in public facilities. For example, private facilities offer repeated consultations with the same physician and are primarily financed with out-of-pocket payments from the patients. In contrast, many patients attending a public facility may see a different physician on each visit but will not pay for any of the consultations.
The present study evaluates the cost–effectiveness and cost–utility of the MANAS trial. We hoped that the additional resources needed to train, pay and supervise the lay health workers used in the "task-shifting" approach to the primary care of common mental disorders would promote recovery and reduced disability in a more cost–effective manner than more conventional care. In any particular country, the CHOICE programme of the World Health Organization (WHO) deems an intervention to be highly cost–effective if it generates an extra year of healthy life for an amount no greater than the country's per capita gross domestic product.22
Study site
The present study formed part of the MANAS trial, which has been registered with Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT00446407) and previously described in detail.18,19,21 In brief, the trial was carried out in the state of Goa, in western India. Participants who met the initial eligibility criteria (e.g. aged > 17 years and spoke one of the four study languages) were screened for depression and/or anxiety by means of a pre-tested General Health Questionnaire.23 Subjects found positive for either of these common mental disorders were invited to participate. The trial comprised two consecutive phases: an evaluation of the task-shifting intervention in 12 public centres for primary health care that were operated by the government of Goa (Phase 1), and an evaluation of the same intervention in 12 private general practitioner clinics (Phase 2). In each phase, health-care facilities were randomized to the intervention arm (i.e. collaborative and stepped care) or the control arm (i.e. enhanced usual care, described later).
Intervention arm
Subjects with depression and/or anxiety in the intervention arm received both collaborative care and stepped care. The collaborative care of each eligible subject was provided by three key health-care providers: the existing, full-time physician at the facility, a full-time lay health worker (or "health counsellor") trained to provide psychosocial interventions, and a mental health specialist who visited each study facility once or twice a month. For stepped care, the intensity of the care offered to a subject was matched with the severity of that subject's disorder, to optimize the use of scarce resources. Consenting subjects in the intervention arm were educated about their symptoms and the link between depression, anxiety and interpersonal difficulties. They were also taught strategies to reduce their symptoms (e.g. relaxation breathing exercises and scheduling activities) and provided with tailored information about the relevant social and welfare organizations. Subjects with mild depression and/or anxiety who did not respond well to such psycho-education were offered antidepressants and/or interpersonal therapy, as were subjects with moderate to severe depression and/or anxiety. The interpersonal therapy focused on the subject's relationships with other people and their coping with events such as role transitions, conflict and grief. Case management, with proactive monitoring of outcomes and adherence support, formed the backbone of the intervention.
Control arm
Eligible subjects in the control arm received "enhanced usual care". For this, the existing, primary-care physician in the facility was provided with the results of the initial screening and a treatment manual. Physicians were permitted to administer the treatments of their choice but did not have access to any additional (i.e. trial-related) human resources.
Health outcomes
The outcomes recorded for each subject 2, 6 and 12 months after recruitment were a psychiatric symptom score, presence/absence of either depression or anxiety and days of lost or reduced work. Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) over the 12 months of follow-up were generated from disability scores.
For each subject, at enrolment and at each follow-up, a psychiatric symptom score between 0 and 49 was evaluated using the Revised Clinical Interview Schedule, which measures 14 symptom groups of common mental disorder, including depression and anxiety. Although this schedule was developed in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland,24 it has been used in several studies in India.25–27 The PROSQY software package – a diagnostic algorithm based on the ICD-10 criteria for the diagnoses of common mental disorders28 – was used to determine whether a subject had a common mental disorder at each follow-up.
The 12-item short-form version of WHO's Disability Assessment Schedule29 was used to assess disability outcomes. Standardized summary scores were converted to a preference-weighted utility index,30 which was then used to compute the additional number of QALYs generated by the intervention over the 12-month follow-up.
The answers to two questions in WHO's Disability Assessment Schedule29 can be used to estimate the number of days in the previous month that someone was completely unable to work or able to work only part time because of a health condition. For the present study, these two numbers were summed to give the number of days in which working hours were reduced because of poor health. As decreases in psychiatric symptom scores or in the number of days of lost work would both be favourable outcomes, the reciprocals of these scores and numbers were used for the regression analyses, so that the resultant incremental cost–effectiveness ratios would be easier to interpret.
At each of the three follow-ups, subjects self-reported their health-care utilization, medication use and out-of-pocket payments on the same type of cost-of-illness inventory used in several earlier studies in India.25,31,32 Two key categories of costs were estimated: health-system costs (including those related to the intervention itself, comprising the costs of inpatient and outpatient care, medications and clinical investigations) and the "time costs" for the subjects and their families (i.e. the opportunity costs of time spent travelling to, waiting for or receiving care, plus the wages from any days of work lost).
The additional human resource use associated with the lay health workers employed in the intervention was evaluated using the clinical process indicator records listed in Appendix A (available at: http://sangath.com/images/file/MANASCEA_AppendixA.pdf). Some of the costs of the intervention were estimated by multiplying the total number of minutes a subject in the intervention arm had contact with a lay health worker by the per-minute cost of the health worker (Appendix A). All costs were calculated in Indian rupees (INR) for 2009 but are reported in United States dollars (exchange rate: INR 46.5 = US$ 1). As costs (and effects) for each subject were only followed for 1 year, no annual discounting was required.33
Costs, scores and days-of-work data from each follow-up were summed to give totals for the full year post-recruitment. Descriptive means and standard deviations (SDs) for the cost data are presented. To assess the differences between the treatment and control groups and to allow for the skewed nature of the data on costs and outcomes, generalized linear models were used, with gamma distributions and log transformations.34–36 Estimates were adjusted for baseline depression scores and are presented with confidence intervals (CIs). The data analyses used in earlier studies on the MANAS trial were based on cluster-level summaries37 but there were too few clusters to use this approach in the present study. Furthermore, the approach has been deemed inappropriate for analyses of cost–effectiveness.38 The analysis of resource use was based only on the data from subjects who were available for each of the scheduled follow-ups.39 In terms of subject age, gender and the other variables recorded, loss to follow-up appeared to be a random process. The substitution of missing data on costs with the corresponding mean, minimum or maximum values had no impact on our main conclusions (Appendix A). Cost–effectiveness acceptability curves,40 which show the probability that an intervention remains cost–effective at increasing monetary values,41 were plotted. All statistical analyses were performed using version 11 of the STATA software package (StataCorp. LP, College Station, United States of America).
Overall, 20 352 subjects were screened for depression and/or anxiety in the 24 study facilities. Of these, 3816 were found positive and 3434 met the criteria for eligibility; 2796 (81%) of the eligible subjects (1436 and 1360 subsequently assigned to the control and intervention arms, respectively) agreed to participate. In public facilities, 1437, 1416 and 1386 subjects were available at the first, second and last follow-ups. In private facilities, the corresponding numbers were 1054, 1013 and 981, respectively. Complete data were recorded for 1243 (75.4%) of the subjects recruited in public facilities and for 938 (81.7%) of those recruited in private facilities.
Public facilities
The descriptive means for costs are presented in Table 1. The mean total cost of the human resources associated with the intervention was INR 93 (US$ 2; SD: 1.53) per participant, or 2% of the unadjusted total health system cost incurred in the intervention arm. Subjects in the intervention arm had contact with the lay health workers, either in person or over the telephone, on a mean of 6.9 occasions (SD: 3.80) and for a mean total of 70.8 min (SD: 54.2).
Table 1. Average annual costs, per subject, in the intervention and control arms in public facilities, Goa, India, 2009
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The regression-adjusted cost differences between the intervention and control arms are presented, for those with complete data, in Table 2. Total health system costs were marginally higher in the intervention arm than in the control arm but this difference was not statistically significant. However, overall time costs for subjects and their families and total costs were significantly lower in the intervention arm than in the control arm (P < 0.001 and < 0.01, respectively).
Table 2. Between-arm difference in annual costs, per subject in public facilities, and health outcomes, Goa, India, 2009
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Health outcomes
Over the 12 months of follow-up, mean psychiatric symptom scores improved by 3.84 points (95% CI: 3.29 to 4.38) more in the intervention arm than in the control arm (Table 2). Furthermore, compared with their counterparts in the control arm, subjects in the intervention arm gained significantly more QALYs and achieved significantly more days of work (Table 2).
Cost–effectiveness and cost–utility
Although negative incremental cost–effectiveness ratios can be difficult to interpret,36,42 the ratios calculated in the present study indicate that the intervention was both less costly and more effective than enhanced usual care in terms of all the health outcomes investigated. The between-arm difference in QALYs gained appeared small (0.02), partly because it only relates to a single year, but this difference represents a mean of 7.3 additional days free of depression and/or anxiety for each subject in the intervention arm. The mean health system cost per case recovered at the end of follow-up (Appendix A) was INR 5959 (US$ 128; 95% CI: 105 to 157) in the intervention arm and INR 6933 (US$ 149; 95% CI: 131 to 169) in the control arm. The between-arm difference in the total costs per case recovered was even more striking, with such costs in the public and private facilities about INR 5600 (US$ 120) and INR 4000 (US$ 86) lower, respectively, in the intervention arm than in the control arm.
Sensitivity analysis
Uncertainty analyses can provide a range of conditions over which an intervention is plausibly cost–effective.33,43 In the public facilities, incremental cost–effectiveness ratios indicate that the intervention would be cost-saving under about half of the conditions illustrated in Fig. 1. Although the intervention would be more effective under the other conditions, it would also be more costly.
Fig. 1. Total costs versus outcomes at 12 months, in public facilities, Goa, India, 2009
Uncertainty in the cost–effectiveness of an intervention can also be illustrated as a cost–effectiveness acceptability curve (Fig. 2).44 There are no accepted threshold values to indicate willingness-to-pay for improvement in depression measures such as the psychiatric symptom score, but the probability that the intervention will be cost–effective at very low threshold values of < INR 400 (US$ 8.60; i.e. less than the amount earned by an individual working for 3 days for the legal minimum wage in Goa45) is very high (nearly 1.00). When the only outcome considered is the number of days of work gained, the intervention always appears to be cost–effective. When time costs are included, the intervention appears to be cost-saving, since it improves health outcomes while lowering costs.
Fig. 2. A cost–effectiveness acceptability curve for health system costs at 12 months, in public facilities, Goa, India, 2009
The results of other sensitivity analyses indicated that the cost data were sensitive to the missing observations (Appendix A). However, the cost differences between the intervention and control arms were found to be consistently statistically significant, in favour of the intervention arm, under all conditions except the worst-case scenario.
Private facilities
In the private facilities that were studied, none of the between-arm differences seen in health outcomes reached statistical significance (Appendix A). Although, per subject, mean health system costs and total costs in the intervention arm were INR 916 (US$ 20) and INR 1511 (US$ 32) lower, respectively, than the corresponding values in the control arm over the year of follow-up, the associated 95% CIs (in INR, −3426 to 1110 and −4221 to 1008; in US$, −74 to 24 and −91 to 22, respectively) both crossed zero. This is why we present the findings for public facilities only in the main body of the paper.
Despite the additional resources required for the intervention led by lay health workers, the health system costs incurred over the 12 months of follow-up were similar across the two arms. In the public (but not the private) facilities investigated, time costs were lower and health outcomes were significantly better in the intervention arm than in the control arm. In the public primary-care facilities, therefore, the intervention appeared to be not only cost–effective but also cost-saving; the subjects in the intervention arm used and/or lost less cash and showed greater improvement in their mental state than the control subjects. There were no statistically significant between-arm differences in any of the health outcomes investigated in private facilities, probably because the standard of routine care in such facilities (i.e. the basic level of care experienced in the control arm) was relatively high. In these facilities, however, the care of the subjects with depression and/or anxiety was cheaper in the intervention arm than in the control arm and therefore the intervention still appeared advantageous from a cost-minimization perspective.
The use of task-shifting to reduce the barriers posed by shortages of mental health professionals is becoming increasingly common. One study has already shown it to be an effective approach.46 The present results indicate that such task-shifting can reduce the total costs of the care of patients with depression and/or anxiety and improve health outcomes in public facilities. In such facilities the intervention was cost–effective by WHO's CHOICE programme criteria.22
Our study adds to the little that is known about the cost–effectiveness of task-shifting interventions for non-communicable or chronic diseases in developing countries. There is a clear need for more studies on this topic.6 A task-shifting pharmaceutical intervention for HIV/AIDS patients in South Africa was found to be cost–effective.47 There appears to have been only one previous investigation of the cost–effectiveness of a task-shifting intervention for the treatment of mental disorders in a developing country: in Chile, an intervention based on the stepped care of depression in women was found to increase health-system costs but provided an extra depression-free day for a small incremental cost of about US$ 1 per woman.17
The present study has several limitations. All the data on service utilization were participant-reported and therefore subject to recall bias. A recent review of self-reported service utilization in 42 studies identified several key factors that can influence the quality and accuracy of self-reported data, such as the sample population and cognitive ability, the recall time frame, the type of utilization, questionnaire design, the mode of data collection and the use of memory aides and probes.48 Most of these issues were addressed and mitigated in the present study, whose design was based on the Client Socio–Demographic and Service Receipt Inventory – European Version.49 A second limitation of the present study is that no baseline data on resource use were collected, although there were no significant between-arm differences in any baseline outcome measures. A third limitation is that detailed results are only presented for the public facilities, since the results from the private facilities did not show that the intervention was more effective. The full results from the private facilities are, however, available in Appendix A and other articles.18,19 Finally, our use of the minimum wage as a measure of the economic value of lost time was designed to be conservative but is subject to uncertainty. For example, there are some highly skilled workers in the study population who, presumably, earn much more than the minimum wage. There are also variable ways in which households cope with illness. A more detailed microeconomic analysis of household impacts is needed to provide better estimates of the associated costs.
In conclusion, for practitioners and policy-makers concerned about investing in lay health workers for improving the care of patients with non-communicable diseases, our findings demonstrate that the additional investments needed to scale up the MANAS intervention via task-shifting to lay health workers would probably be offset by reduced overall costs. Such an intervention could also provide significant clinical and functional benefits to people with depression and/or anxiety who attend public primary-care facilities. There may be a compelling economic case for investing in lay health workers for the care of other chronic and non-communicable diseases in India. Future studies should be conducted to assess the cost–effectiveness of such an intervention in other settings.
We thank the managements of the Directorate of Health Services, Government of Goa; the Sangath Centre and the Voluntary Health Association of Goa, and the staff of the 24 health facilities.
The MANAS Project is entirely funded by a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellowship in Clinical Science awarded to VP.
Competing interests:
None declared.
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text:
Thus far I've been talking about Romeo, but of course the title of the play is Romeo and Juliet, so it's time to introduce the leading lady.
Fortunately, Juliet is a heroine modern feminists can be proud of.
In setting up the title characters' relationship, Shakespeare pulls something of a bait and switch. They first meet at the masked ball in 1.5 -- an exchange which is ludicrously overgendered.
[To JULIET] If I profane with my unworthiest hand
This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this:
My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand
To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.
Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much,
Which mannerly devotion shows in this;
For saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch,
And palm to palm is holy palmers' kiss.
Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?
Ay, pilgrim, lips that they must use in prayer.
O, then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do;
They pray, grant thou, lest faith turn to despair.
Saints do not move, though grant for prayers' sake.
Then move not, while my prayer's effect I take.
Thus from my lips, by yours, my sin is purged.
Then have my lips the sin that they have took.
Sin from thy lips? O trespass sweetly urged!
Give me my sin again.
You kiss by the book.
This exchange casts Juliet firmly in the feminine-passive role, and it seems we are in for a straightforward courtly romance.
Not at all! Consider their next meeting, in scene 2.2
This is the infamous balcony scene. romeo overhears Juliet speaking of him from her balcony. He comes out to greet her, and, after a brief confirmation of their identities and their mutual attraction, they get down to business. Juliet says this:
[...]O gentle Romeo,
If thou dost love, pronounce it faithfully:
Or if thou think'st I am too quickly won,
I'll frown and be perverse an say thee nay,
So thou wilt woo; but else, not for the world.
In truth, fair Montague, I am too fond,
And therefore thou mayst think my 'havior light:
But trust me, gentleman, I'll prove more true
Than those that have more cunning to be strange.
I should have been more strange, I must confess,
But that thou overheard'st, ere I was ware,
My true love's passion: therefore pardon me,
And not impute this yielding to light love,
Which the dark night hath so discovered.
In short, Juliet has figured out that traditional courtship and passivity give women a raw deal. She's not ashamed to have expressed her desires, though she knows some may find it improper. This is very significant, since, as I will argue later, the central struggle in this play is the efforts by both Romeo and Juliet to cats off societal expectations. Just as romeo is told true manhood requires violence, Juliet has apparently been taught that true womanhood demands passivity. Like romeo, Juliet wants to escape the role she has been assigned.
Juliet continues to surprise and gratify the feminist reader throughout the play. A few lines later, she gives an excellent example of negotiation and boundary-setting:
Well, do not swear: although I joy in thee,
I have no joy of this contract to-night:
It is too rash, too unadvised, too sudden;
Too like the lightning, which doth cease to be
Ere one can say 'It lightens.' Sweet, good night!
This bud of love, by summer's ripening breath,
May prove a beauteous flower when next we meet.
Good night, good night! as sweet repose and rest
Come to thy heart as that within my breast!
In scene 3.2 she expresses explicitly sexual desire, a rarity among Shakespeare's heroines. She also chooses her loyalties (it's a rare Shakespearean heroine who truly rejects parental authority. they may temporarily be at odds with parents, but in the end, the father almost always approves of the husband.) In act 4, she actively seeks out the Friar's help. And, of course, at the end, it is she who chooses to die.
Her decisions aren't numerous, nor are they especially effectual-- she doesn't get what she wants or, ultimately, have much control over her fate. But she tries to live her own life, and tries pretty admirably, too. She is a clear victim of the patriarchy, spending the last half of the play being bought sold, and fought for by a group of powerful men-- a fate she eventually decides is literally worse than death.
The specific blend of patriarchal forces that drives her to suicide will be the subject of part three.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Romeo and Juliet 2: Female Agency
Posted by Orion at 9:35 PM
Labels: Fiction
2 comments:
You make some very interesting points about the society in which Romeo and Juliet operate.
In part I, you mention the Montague servants' comments about their sexual conquests in reference to the male and female stereotypes. Let us not forget the leader of all sexuality--Mercutio. His comments about poor, maligned Rosaline (a woman whose primary fault seems to be her desire to 'still live chaste') in II:1.
Where is part III?
thanks for your'passage,aha,i have an exam this afternoon,and i need such material .i am from china.
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Edwards, John, b. 1742 / A select collection of one hundred plates: consisting of the most beautiful, exotic and British flowers which blow in our English gardens: accurately drawn and coloured from nature, with their botanic characters, and a short account of their cultivation, their uses in medicine, with the Latin and English names
[Common German, or wild flower-de-luce; Common marshmallow], pp. Plate 1-2
Page Plate 1
This material may be protected by copyright law (e.g., Title 17, US Code).| For information on re-use, see http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/Copyright


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It's the state's marquee race: Republican Scott Brown, whose 2010 underdog win for U.S. Senate stunned the nation, vs. Democrat Elizabeth Warren, a first-time candidate who could steal the seat. The two are in a statistical dead heat closing in on the Nov. 6 election, the latest polls show, although a Republican political analyst says the odds are in Brown's favor.
It's the state's marquee race: Republican Scott Brown, whose 2010 underdog win for U.S. Senate stunned the nation, vs. Democrat Elizabeth Warren, a first-time candidate who could steal the seat.
The two are in a statistical dead heat closing in on the Nov. 6 election, the latest polls show, although a Republican political analyst says the odds are in Brown's favor.
"I think Brown has the edge in most polls, and I think he's had some momentum, and I think the general consensus of political observers is that his TV ads are far superior to Elizabeth Warren's," WBUR consultant Todd Domke said.
Former state Sen. David Magnani, D-Framingham, said Democrats are enthusiastically rallying behind Warren and working to get out the vote, even though, he conceded, "I think it's time for her to broaden her advertising and message base."
In the key battleground of MetroWest, volunteers for both campaigns are doing everything they can to sway voters, reaching out to them in person and by phone.
"As Democrats, we know we have a strong field game," said Dylan Hayre of Natick, who represented his district as a delegate at the Democratic National Convention. He came back fired up about Warren's chances in a contest of great national importance.
Ed McGrath, chairman of the Framingham Republican Committee and a member of the state GOP committee, reports Republicans are also campaigning hard.
"It will be a tough race and we've got to get some people convinced that we didn't convince before, and that's what we're working on trying to do," McGrath said.
Brown, then a state senator from Wrentham, did better than Democratic opponent Martha Coakley in most communities in MetroWest and the Milford area in January 2010. He won the late Ted Kennedy's seat in the special election with 52 percent to Coakley's 47 percent.
While Coakley beat Brown in Framingham, Natick, Sudbury and Wayland, he bested her in every other town in the area by up to a 30-point margin.
Democrats who are rallying behind Warren don't see that as a sign of a repeat win.
"Martha Coakley was a great candidate," Framingham Democrat Norma Shulman said. "She was not as passionate a candidate. Elizabeth is unbelievable."
In Framingham, the Democratic Town Committee printed a "Yes We Can Cook Book" featuring recipes from famous Democrats, including Warren and Gov. Deval Patrick. The committee reports the books are selling strongly, and proceeds are going to the local coordinated campaign.
Volunteers are regularly out holding signs, canvassing neighborhoods and calling up voters on behalf of Warren and state Rep. Tom Sannicandro, D-Ashland, who is challenged by Republican Jon Fetherston in his bid for re-election in the 7th Middlesex District.
With President Barack Obama up against Republican Mitt Romney, Democrats say they expect their party to do well, thanks to a boost from Obama supporters.
"That certainly will help Elizabeth as well," said Magnani, who has been working the phone bank.
"I actually think we're doing remarkably well," he said, "given this is a first-time campaign for her and she's running against an incumbent who's generally well-liked."
Press secretary Alethea Harney said Warren's commitment to reach out to voters across MetroWest has been met by great grassroots enthusiasm. The campaign has field offices open in Framingham and Holliston.
Magnani said the field organization is stronger this year than when Coakley ran, and folks are really energized.
"I think the key thing is that we actually deliver, that nobody gets complacent," he said.
Republicans contend that Brown, a moderate, will be hard to beat.
"I think people understand that Scott's getting the job done for them," McGrath said. "It's funny but some of the people who have the most issues with Scott Brown's record are the conservatives, people on my own town committee. Scott Brown's done a good job of reaching across the aisle."
The Republicans say they are out campaigning twice as hard as in 2010 out of 10 Massachusetts Victory 2012 offices across the state.
Workers have been busy inside the Framingham office on the corner of Rte. 9 and California Avenue, getting out the vote for Brown and other GOP candidates, including Fetherston.
"Central Mass. and MetroWest have always been strong areas for us, so it just goes to say that the enthusiasm of volunteers is also much higher," state GOP Party spokesman Tim Buckley said.
Massachusetts Victory 2012 campaigners recently made their 1 millionth contact with voters, and having ID'd them, will be working to get out the vote.
State GOP committee member Janet Leombruno of Framingham, a member of the Women for Brown coalition, said a lot of people believe "the Kennedy seat" is "rightfully owned by a Democrat."
The independent voters are the ones who will decide this race, Leombruno said.
Domke said Brown has been doing better than Warren at drawing support from undecided voters.
"Brown has smartly appealed to (them) by stressing that he's bipartisan and independent and more concerned about local and state issues whereas she keeps talking about national issues as if she's running for president," Domke said. "I think that's a big contrast between the two and his strategy seems to be paying off."
While Warren may not come off well on TV, Magnani said she is very warm and outgoing in person.
Shulman, a volunteer coordinator for the Warren campaign, and a member of the Framingham and statewide Democratic committees, said it's important that volunteers give voters a better understanding of the candidate and her ideas.
Shulman said Warren's promise to stand up for the middle class and fix what's wrong in Washington is resonating with a lot of people.
She said she'd hate to have people vote just based on seeing TV ads, "because those are just sound bytes."
Leombruno said everyone wants a Scott Brown lawn sign.
"You can disagree with his politics but the reality is he's done exactly what he said he's going to do," she said. "That's the thing that we believe is going to keep him in the seat."
Domke said this is the most watched U.S. senate race in the country, and an interesting one, pitting a moderate Republican against a liberal Democrat, with an unprecedented amount of money being spent on their campaigns.
Hayre, who just came back from the Democratic convention, said it's inspiring to work on such a meaningful campaign.
"This race matters to people across the country and you really got a sense of that just being there for five days," he said, adding, "We're going to make sure that on Nov. 7 that we have no regrets at all. And I think we're going to get the result that we want at the end of it."
Danielle Ameden can be reached at 508-626-4416 or email@example.com. Follow her on Twitter @DanielleAmeden.


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Kayo Satou made a name for herself as a fashion model. But then, she revealed she was born a man. Kayo is also one of Japan's top Street Fighter players. Watch out, she'll school you proper.
In an online webcast, Satou plays a Super Street Fighter IV ranked match against "gameinn", the gamertag fighting game champ Daigo Umehara uses. Umehara rocketed to internet stardom with this clip. The model is her customary Street Fighter character "C.Viper", and Diago is his customary "Ryu". The fighting is fierce and close. It's a good match.
Popular as ever, Satou continues to work as a fashion model and appear on Japanese variety programs.
Umehara vs. Kayopolice [YouTube via スピードネーター][Pic]


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Free From Pro Se-H. David Blalock
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text: Morning and Night Art Studio Tuesday, December 19, 2017 7:00 PM 9:00 PM 19:00 21:00 Google Calendar ICS Tuesday Night Drawing & Painting Studio7-9pm | 4 days per month | $180 registration, $45 materialsTuesdays, November 28, December 5, 12 & 19, 2017NUMU Atelier Tuesday Night Studio is open to adult students and mature teens. Classes are ideal for working adults needing time to connect with a regular routine of drawing and painting. Subjects will range from cast drawing, cast painting, still life and portrait drawing and painting. All drawing materials are provided by the atelier; a periodic materials fee will be charged to keep the studio stocked. Occasional $20 model fees may apply for special live model sessions. Register Today


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Posted in: Jobs > Sports and Recreation in Sri Lanka | Posted: |
Sports Data AG is one of the world's leading suppliers for sport-related live data. Our system is based on our unique, fully automated data extraction and supervision technology for highest quality standard, combined with a complex scout and video signal monitoring system.
We are currently providing the most reliable live data available worldwide for the sports organizations and media industry for all relevant distribution channels.
We have got our own network with 2500 scouts worldwide, who forward us live statistics directly from the venues.
The sports events we are covering include Soccer, Tennis, Basketball, Volleyball ,Beach volleyball,Handball, Futsal, Inc Hockey ,etc,etc
We are currently looking for live sports reporter (Scout) in Sri Lanka. If you are sports enthusiastic, and willing to earn return by your efforts, this will be a fantastic opportunity for you. We will offer you a long-term, reliable part-time job.
Job description:
After proper online training, scouts need to go to stadium which is close to their own live place to report match in live by using own mobile phone keypad. Take soccer match as example: scout need to input all relevant statistics like attacking, corner, yellow (red card), goal, etc. Sportradar's unique automated system will call scouts mobile phone 15 minutes before match start. There is no any phone cost on scout's side.
1, scouts must have basic knowledge on soccer and other relevant sports, but soccer is always priority.
2, Certain English communication and listening skill.
3, Reliable, honest as well as good time conception.
4, Must have mobile phone and handset.
Payment will be paid on time monthly.via Moneybookers.
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I have always thought (after reading that and hearing other people talk about it) that Luke olny burned the Remains of the suit and no the body. If Lucas does add a shot of Anakin disappearing a little I wouldn't mind that.
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Dickey focused on building velocity as spring continues
DUNEDIN, Fla. -- It's not very often that knuckleballers talk about the velocity of their pitches, but then again, R.A. Dickey has never been the prototypical knuckleball pitcher.
One of the main reasons behind Dickey's rise to fame in New York was his ability to throw the trademark pitch with some authority. Not only would the ball dance all over the zone, but it would also arrive at the plate with upper-70s and low-80s velocity on the radar gun.
DUNEDIN, Fla. -- It's not very often that knuckleballers talk about the velocity of their pitches, but then again, R.A. Dickey has never been the prototypical knuckleball pitcher.
One of the main reasons behind Dickey's rise to fame in New York was his ability to throw the trademark pitch with some authority. Not only would the ball dance all over the zone, but it would also arrive at the plate with upper-70s and low-80s velocity on the radar gun.
That type of speed was absent during his first couple of months in a Blue Jays uniform. An upper back and neck injury took away some of his comfort level on the mound, changed his release point and impacted his overall effectiveness on the mound. The good news is that the high velocity appears to be on its way back.
"This time last year, I remember peeking back there and seeing high 60s and low 70s," said Dickey, who topped out at 75 mph during his first start of the spring on Thursday. "I obviously feel better at this point than I did last year, which I hope will carry out throughout the spring and into the opening game."
The velocity is expected to trend upwards as Dickey gets deeper into Spring Training. The goal is to add a few more miles per hour to his knuckleball before the start of the regular season, which would have him sitting around 77-78 mph -- the range where he was during his 2012 National League Cy Young Award-winning year with the Mets.
An average speed in the high-70s also will help improve the overall range of his pitches. In the past, Dickey's had an ability to top out in the low 80s while mixing in a mid-60s slow knuckleball that was used almost in the same way that other pitchers throw changeups.
The discrepancy between all of those speeds will only make things tougher on opposing hitters. It limits their ability to get comfortable in the box, keeps them off balance and prevents a tendency to sit on one speed and swing for the fences.
"Ideally, towards the end of the spring, I like to have my comfortable knuckleball around 76 or 77 and my low one around 75," Dickey said. "I probably have three miles per hour to add on each of the high and the low from now until the end of spring. I want my fastball to be anywhere from 83-86, right in there. I'm off to a good start, feeling good, body feels great."
Dickey arrived in camp a couple of weeks ago and talked openly about his desire to fix a couple of patterns that emerged during the 2013 season. The first was his lack of velocity during the early part of the year, and the second was his ability to throw strikes on a consistent basis.
Knuckleballers often have a tough time limiting their number of walks. The pitch is notoriously tough to command, but in the past, Dickey always found a way to get his knuckleballs in the zone. From 2010-12 with the Mets, he never averaged more than 2.3 walks per nine innings, but last season, that rate rose to 2.9.
By the time the year came to an end, Dickey had issued 71 walks, which was 17 more than his previous high. The fact that Dickey surrendered the second-highest amount of home runs in the Major Leagues isn't what he found most alarming, it's the number of those that came with men on base. Cutting down the walks is the first step in rectifying that problem.
One thing that makes the adjustments a bit easier this time around is that he doesn't have the added stress of needing to prepare for the World Baseball Classic. One year ago, Dickey had to rush through the various stages of spring so that he could be ready to pitch for Team USA.
"Last year was a challenge," Dickey said. "This year I don't necessarily have those same challenges, but I have other challenges. I don't look at it as a time that I regret at all. I simply look at it as a time to learn from and try to apply what I learned to this year."
The first step in Dickey's preparation came on Thursday with a two-inning outing against the Phillies. The start included a pair of walks in the first, which was less than ideal, but the positive sign is that he quickly made an adjustment and induced a lot of weak contact.
Nobody is expecting perfection -- especially this early in camp. It's all about taking things one step at a time and slowly but surely making those adjustments.
"It was moving quite a bit," said Dickey, who allowed one unearned run in the 7-5 win over Philadelphia. "It was a little tough to find the zone there for a minute because it had so much depth late. It was a good sign all around. They only hit pieces of it really, the two hits I gave up were little flares. I was able to change speeds already with it and felt comfortable with that, so there were a lot of positives."
Gregor Chisholm is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, North of the Border, and follow him on Twitter @gregorMLB.


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Now that everyone can finally connect to PlayStation Network, this is probably a good time to tell you that you can pick up a free baseball jersey for your Home avatar, just by going and watching a trailer.
The duds are Joe Mauer's No. 7 home shirt for the Minnesota Twins (pictured). Mauer's the cover man for MLB 10 The Show, which drops tomorrow, and you guessed it, that's the game whose trailer you are supposed to watch. Head into the theatre, watch the trailer, boom, enjoy your new jersey.


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The minute you throw U2 into a conversation that includes faith and God folks come up with all types of reasons to either agree or hate the idea. This holiday season we have a series that surely create conversation. Sarah Hinlicky wrote an article sometime ago "I believe in God Do you U2" The article will be the back drop for the series and we will share some excerpts from that article.
So, what does make Christian
music? Does it have to be written specifically for church, for liturgical or
devotional purposes, to fall into that category? Should it refer to Scripture,
quoting directly or alluding by imagery? Should it explicit purpose be to
evangelized? Where do you think U2 should fits into all of this ? This series will give you some insights to a different view. Your comments and views are welcome within this page or on our facebook site. Of course you can always jump on our forum page.


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Vatican City, Nov 25, 2012 / 08:11 am (CNA/EWTN News).- After he celebrated Mass with six new cardinals for the feast of Christ the King, Pope Benedict spoke about God's kingdom and the Church's role in making it present in the world.
"The whole mission of Jesus and the content of his message consists in proclaiming the Kingdom of God and its practical application in the midst of men with signs and wonders," he said on the feast of Christ the King.
"But, as recalled by Vatican Council II, the Kingdom first manifests itself in the person of Christ, who established it through his death on the cross and his resurrection," he said.
"This Kingdom of Christ has been given to the Church, which is the seed and the beginning, and it has the task of proclaiming and spreading it among all nations by the power of the Holy Spirit."
The Pope also reminded the pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square for the Nov. 25 Angelus prayer that "at the end of the prescribed time, the Lord will deliver the kingdom to God the Father and offer him all those who have lived according to the commandment of love."
Pope Benedict then turned his attention to the Gospel for today's feast.
He recalled that Pilate asked Jesus if he is a king and Jesus replied 'Yes, I'm a king. I was born for this. I came unto the world for this: to bear witness to the truth and all who are on the side of truth listen to my voice.'
The Pope explained that all Christians are called to "prolong God's saving work by converting ourselves to the Gospel, by placing ourselves with conviction in the footsteps of that King who came not to be served but to serve and to bear witness to the truth."
The new members of the College of Cardinals, he said, "represent well the universal dimension of the Church and one of them has long been at service of the Holy Spirit," referring to American Cardinal James Michael Harvey.
He was head of the Papal Household for 14 years, in charge of arranging the Pope's schedule, including private and public audiences and looked after visiting world leaders. He will now serve as the cardinal-deacon for San Pio V a Villa Carpegna and as archpriest of the St. Paul Outside the Walls Basilica.
Pope Benedict pointed out that on Dec. 1 Rome's university students will partake in a pilgrimage to the tomb of St. Peter to celebrate the Year of Faith. Their visit will include the Pope celebrating First Vespers with them on the first Sunday of Advent.
The pontiff then offered a warm welcome to all the visitors and pilgrims in different languages.
He included greetings to English speakers, especially those who accompanied the new cardinals created in yesterday's consistory.


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Tweak says, "Can't Touch This!"
today's the first day of spring and the easter bunny came early this year
sooooo what's the deal with ar dawlish?
oh hello, you
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At some point in time, opening a cube left the cube viewer window off the screen(s)-had to use windows and left, right etc. to bring into view.
Found a TM1P.INI located in C:\Windows - removed this whilst not using any TM1 client components. All good now.
Edit: Removing the TM1P.Ini in the %appdata% folder did not work, nor did the one in ProgramData...
@ADMINS - please move this to Tips&Tricks as I cannot post directly. Thanks.
Cube Views opening off the screen
Ideas and tips for enhancing your TM1 application
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