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Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit
HR advice, guidelines and policies to keep your workplace safe
Claim your FREE copy of Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit: HR advice, guidelines and policies to keep your workplace safe!
Unfortunate but true, HR professionals and managers nationwide must deal with the horrific possibility of violence erupting in their own facilities.
To help employers prevent tragedies like those that paralyzed communities across the country in the past several years, Business Management Daily has prepared a free toolkit offering business advice, guidelines and policies aimed at keeping workplaces safe from employee violence.
Business Management Daily's free Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit contains prevention strategies, tips on identifying potentially violent workers, advice for managers on maintaining a safe workplace, two sample anti-violence policies adaptable for use in any company and checklists to use in case violence does erupt.
Preventing workplace violence in 5 steps
An effective workplace violence prevention program starts with employee screening and ends with publicizing a tough anti-violence policy, according to Dennis A. Davis, a former SWAT team liaison who now directs client training for the employment law firm Ogletree Deakins.
Davis says tough economic times could be a catalyst for violence—violence that could erupt at work. There's never been a better time to implement a workplace violence prevention plan with these five elements:
Preventing workplace violence Step #1
Screen Applicants
Your best chance to avoid workplace violence is to avoid letting in a violent person in the first place," Davis says. Ask all applicants for personal as well as professional references. Insist on a face-to-face interview so managers can gauge an applicant's temperament. Ask everyone who comes in contact with the applicant about their impressions. Then trust your gut. Does this person seem stable?
Preventing workplace violence Step #2
Craft a tough anti-violence policy
You need a policy that stands on its own—not part of some other general policy on professional behavior or misuse of office equipment. That sends the signal that you're serious about preventing workplace violence.
Preventing workplace violence Step #3
Establish a crisis management team
A crisis management team consists of six to eight people who function as coaches before violence erupts and incident managers if it does. Include staffers from the HR, legal and security functions. There should be a representative from senior management and your employee assistance program if you have one.
Claim your FREE copy of Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit: HR advice, guidelines and policies to keep your workplace safe!
Preventing workplace violence Step #4
Train front-line supervisors and greeters
"These people are your eyes and ears, your early warning system," says Davis. They'll probably know if someone is about to become violent long before anyone else does.
Preventing workplace violence Step #5
Publicize your anti-violence program
Use meetings, newsletters, e-mail and the intranet to get the word out that your organization has a zero-tolerance policy on workplace violence. Be sure everyone knows how to contact the crisis management team and when to call 911.
8 warning signs of violent employee behavior
When violence occurs at work, employees may say their violent co-worker "just snapped." But, the truth is, people usually don't snap. They display warning signs long before they actually act out. The key is to talk to employees early in this "pre-violence" stage to offer assistance and/ or let them know their behaviors are unacceptable.
Be on the lookout for workers who display any of these eight warning signs of violent behavior, according to Davis:
- Fascination with weapons That's different than ownership of weapons. (Think Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver.)
- Substance abuse Research shows a big correlation between substance abuse and violence.
- Severe stress Stress is a function of modern society but people with a propensity toward violence allow that stress to become an excuse for violence.
- Violent history "Once people cross that moral, ethical or professional barrier into violence," Davis says, "it's a lot easier for them to do it the next time."
- Decreased or inconsistent productivity Employees with a tendency toward violence have a harder time keeping a consistent level of productivity.
- Social isolation and poor peer relationships Loners are more likely to act violently because they don't have a social network to work out problems.
- Poor personal hygiene These people have moved into the dangerous "I don't care" phase.
- Drastic changes in personality It's a myth that you need to watch out for ultra-shy or ultra-outgoing employees. Davis says, "You need to pay attention to the person who flip-flops between the two."
Claim your FREE copy of Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit: HR advice, guidelines and policies to keep your workplace safe!
3 keys to managing the aftermath of workplace violence
Critical incidents can vary in intensity and severity. They can involve one person or many. Most critical incidents occurring in the workplace, however, have several resulting elements in common:
- An increase in absenteeism
- An increase in employee turnover
- Loss of productivity
- Business interruptions
- Increased workers' compensation claims
- Increased insurance premium rates.
However, those results can be influenced. With proper crisis management methods and post-incident intervention, an organization can recover from and decrease the negative fallout from an incident.
The following is a basic step-by-step crisis management guide to help you and your organization get back on track after a critical incident.
#1 Security: Out of harm's way
First and foremost, be certain that all employees, customers, clients, and visitors have been removed from harm's way. Make sure that local law enforcement has been informed of the incident. Provide emergency medical care for any injured parties.
If a threat remains, keep all personnel away from the site until it has been cleared by security or police.
After an incident occurs, it is imperative to reinforce security precautions with all personnel. Frequently, an organization has adequate physical/site security, but the measures have been disregarded or disabled by employees—usually as a corner-cutting convenience.
With the heightened awareness following a critical incident, your personnel will be more likely to hear and heed your warnings against these types of security breaches.
#2 Human resources: Critical incident response debriefings
As soon after the removal of the threat as possible, your HR director should schedule Critical Incident Stress Debriefings (CISD). CISDs are extremely important to the recovery of an organization following a critical incident.
They are not therapy sessions, but rather "psycho-educational" meetings. The intent is to educate employees on what to expect as a result of the trauma. There are three main phases of a CISD:
- Information. This is where the employees are given as much information about the incident as possible. This helps to decrease the number of rumors and myths that follow many traumatic incidents.
- Venting and validation. During this phase of the CISD, the participants are encouraged to share their fears, concerns and other feelings. Once these emotions are expressed, they are validated. This serves to reduce anxiety in an organization and minimize the need to talk about the incident when employees should be working.
- Prediction and preparation. During this final of the CISD phase, the facilitator helps the employees understand what to expect next. Example: Who will be questioned during the police investigation? Research has suggested that a CISD following a critical/traumatic incident can drastically reduce the negative impact on employees.
#3 Public relations: Manage the message
One of the most difficult invasions for most people is to have a microphone thrust in their face and asked to be instantly prophetic (coherent, intelligible, informed, etc.) following a critical incident. Don't allow any of your employees to be put in this situation.
If there is ever an incident in your organization that is of such magnitude that it generates media interest, it is essential that a company spokesperson be designated. If you have not already designated this person, do so immediately, before an incident can occur.
Almost every household has a scrambled Rubik's Cube that has never ever been solved. Use the online Rubik's Cube solver to get it fixed in less than 25 steps!
Claim your FREE copy of Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit: HR advice, guidelines and policies to keep your workplace safe!
Implementing a workplace violence and weapons policy
Policy considerations
To reduce the chance of workplace violence—or your liability if it does happen—establish a program that covers the following:
- Ban weapons, and have a zero-tolerance policy regarding threats in the workplace.
- Screen carefully by checking references and doing criminal background checks.
- Train supervisors to recognize personality changes and warning signs.
- Defuse disputes. Establish a mediation program to resolve employee disputes rather than letting them simmer.
- Evaluate your security system at least once a year. Consider whether you might need silent alarms, ID keys, cameras or even an armed guard.
- Make it a policy that any restraining orders involving employees must be reported to management, and include this in your employee handbook.
- Train front-line employees. Receptionists and front-desk clerks should be on the lookout for unusual or unsettling encounters, and have clear instructions on how to handle and report them to minimize risk to themselves and others. Every employee should be instructed as to when and how to contact the police.
- Establish procedures for employees to report threats or other violent behavior. Offer several avenues for reporting: supervisors, security personnel, human resources, or if there's imminent danger, everyone nearby.
- Document any threats and your response to them. Your zero-tolerance policy should dictate dismissal of an employee who makes a threat. If it's a worker's relative or friend who's being disruptive and dangerous, you are within your legal rights to terminate the employee, provided you give him adequate warning.
- Assess how your company handles stress-inducing events. For example, what is your procedure when a law enforcement officer or process server comes to see an employee? Confrontations shouldn't occur in view of other employees. You could instruct your receptionist to direct the officer to a private part of the office near an outside door, then quietly ask the employee involved to report to that area.
- Terminate with care. Have someone along as a witness if you have to terminate a violent employee; consider engaging backup security. Treat the worker with dignity, and allow a way for the person to depart quietly. Afterward, change the locks.
More Resources in the Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit:
The Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit contains lots of great resources for managers and HR professionals.
Claim your copy now and you'll also get:
Two Workplace Violence Sample Policies: Violence and Weapons
Memo to Managers: How your management style can stop workplace violence
Use this "Memo to Managers" article to educate your supervisors. Paste the content into an e-mail, company newsletter or other communication. Edit as desired.
Workplace Violence Prevention Resources
Use this list of online resources to help train your staff.
More on preventing violence from the theHRSpecialist.com
Hundreds of articles like these—full of practical HR advice—are available to HR Specialist Premium Plus Online subscribers.
Claim your FREE copy of Workplace Violence Prevention Toolkit: HR advice, guidelines and policies to keep your workplace safe!
© Copyright 2020 Business Management Daily, a division of Capitol Information Group, Inc. All rights reserved.


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DRESS-UP STORAGE CENTER: White
The new Dress-Up Storage Center features upper and lower storage areas with fabric bins for toys, shoes and dramatic play items; a sturdy wood dowel and hooks for hanging clothes and costumes; and a tall acrylic mirror for dramatic play. Durable laminate construction allows for easy cleaning and ensures years of use. Each fabric bin measures 11"W x 11.5"D x 6"H. Hangers and accessories not included. Adult assembly required. Ages 2+. 36"W x 24"D x 42"H
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January/February 2003
Whatever we call them—explainers, guides, interpreters, facilitators, hosts—floor staff are the front line of our institutions, key mediators between the science center's intention and the visitor's experience. A sometimes under-valued resource, they may be full-time or part-time, paid or volunteer, trained in science or in communication. In this issue, we take a closer look at science center floor staff: who they are, what they do, how they are trained, what impact they have on visitors, and how they might affect future audiences.
• Face to Face: Examining Educational Staff's Impact on Visitors, by Margie Marino and Judy Koke
• More Than a Coat, by Patricia Clizia
• Playful Attention: The Role of the Explainer, by Darlene Librero
• Crowd Pullers: Notes on Hiring and Managing the Ideal Explainer, by Anthony Richards
• Without a Script: The Art of Listening for Cues, by Margaret Zajonc Ostrenko
• Now Tell Me About It: Science as a Social Activity, by Sally Duensing
• Timely Transition: Floor Staff as Agents of Institutional Growth, by Luigia DeDivitiis
Download part 1 of this issue.
Download part 2 of this issue.


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Pakistan's powerful army chief has made reconciling warring factions in Afghanistan a top priority, military officials and Western diplomats say, the newest and clearest sign yet that Islamabad means business in promoting peace with the Taliban.
General Ashfaq Kayani is backing dialogue partly due to fears that the end of the US combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014 could energize a resilient insurgency straddling the shared frontier, according to commanders deployed in the region.
"There was a time when we used to think we were the masters of Afghanistan. Now we just want them to be masters of themselves so we can concentrate on our own problems," said a senior Pakistani military officer stationed in South Waziristan, part of the tribal belt that hugs the Afghan border.
"Pakistan has the power to create the environment in which a grand reconciliation in Afghanistan can take place," he said, speaking in the gritty town of Wana, about 30km from Afghanistan. "We have to rise to the challenge. And we are doing it, at the highest level possible."
On Dec. 7, Kayani hammered home his determination to support a negotiated end to the war in Afghanistan at a meeting of top commanders at the army headquarters in Rawalpindi.
"He [Kayani] said Afghan reconciliation is our top priority," said a Pakistani intelligence official, who was briefed about the meeting.
Major progress with Kayani's help could enable US President Barack Obama to say his administration managed to sway Pakistan — often seen as an unreliable ally — to help achieve a top US foreign policy goal.
Afghan officials, who have long suspected Pakistan of funding and arming the Taliban, question whether Kayani genuinely supports dialogue or is merely making token moves to deflect Western criticism of Pakistan's record in Afghanistan.
Pakistan backed the Taliban's rise to power in Afghanistan in the mid-1990s and is seen as a crucial gatekeeper in attempts by the US and Afghan governments to reach out to insurgent leaders who fled to Pakistan after their 2001 ouster.
However, relations between Taliban commanders and Pakistan's security establishment have increasingly been poisoned by mistrust, raising questions over whether Kayani's spymasters wield enough influence to nudge them towards the table.
Nevertheless, diplomats in Islamabad argue that Pakistan has begun to show markedly greater enthusiasm for Western-backed attempts to engage with Taliban leaders. Western diplomats, who for years were skeptical about Pakistani promises, say Islamabad is serious about promoting stability in Afghanistan.
"They seem to genuinely want to move towards a political solution," an official from an EU country said. "We've seen a real shift in their game-plan at every level. Everyone involved seems to want to get something going."
The army has ruled Pakistan for more than half its history and critics say generals have jealously guarded the right to dictate policy on Afghanistan, seeing friendly guerrilla groups as "assets" to blunt the influence of archrival India.
However, army attitudes towards former Islamist proxies have also begun to evolve due to the rise of Pakistan's own Taliban movement, which has fought fierce battles in the tribal areas and launched suicide attacks in major cities.
Kayani seemed to signal that the army's conception of its role in Pakistan and the region was changing in a speech to officers in Rawalpindi last month.


text: Although it carries a high expense ratio, this mutual fund is a great choice for this market. By Steven Goldberg, Contributing Columnist August 13, 2011 When Pimco honcho Bill Gross introduced the idea of a "new normal" economy about two years ago, it was controversial. Today it's conventional wisdom.SEE ALSO: SPECIAL REPORT: Investing in Volatile Markets The new normal is a U.S. economy that struggles to grow as individuals and governments at all levels pay down huge debts. Returns from stocks are subpar, and the economy is more vulnerable to shocks -- such as the ones that we've experienced in the past few weeks. Pimco Diversified Income (symbol PDVDX) is a superb fund for the new normal, and the views of its manager, Curtis Mewbourne, are timely even if you don't need another bond fund. The recent downgrade of America's debt rating by Standard & Poor's didn't come as a surprise to Mewbourne. "The reality is that the U.S. is not a triple-A credit," he says. With accumulated federal government debt roughly equal to the nation's gross domestic product, he says, the U.S. is "a lower-quality credit." Advertisement The stock market's dramatic selloff stemmed from "an acceleration of a lot of concerns that have been on people's radar screens," he adds. Congress was unable to strike a "grand bargain," including spending cuts and tax increases, that would have made serious progress toward fixing the government's debt problem. The euro zone continues to struggle with its heavily indebted countries. And the S&P downgrade, while expected, couldn't have come at a worse time. The U.S., Mewbourne says, could use short-term fiscal stimulus to boost growth. But Mewbourne and Pimco still think the U.S. will likely avoid a new recession. Instead, he sees real GDP growing at a sluggish 1% to 2% per year. The U.S. has never before grown that slowly for an extended period (although European countries have). The unanswered question: "To what degree can the U.S. operate so close to stall speed? Certainly, the odds of a recession are increasing." It's not just deleveraging that's slowing the U.S. economy. The new normal also acknowledges structural shifts in the economy, Mewbourne says. Most important, the unemployment rate is likely to remain relatively high, and many people will remain jobless for long periods. Reason: Many workers lack the education and training needed for jobs in the changing economy. Many of those who built new homes lost their jobs when the housing bubble burst in 2007. Workers with construction and related skills are among the most likely to be unemployed. And that will likely continue for years to come, Mewbourne says. Advertisement Where to Invest for the New Normal But investors can still make money. Emerging markets top Mewbourne's list. "We feel very confident that many emerging markets will increase their wealth and the size of their economies," he says. "Many people in emerging markets will undergo the transition from low income to middle income in a generation." Diversified Income has about 40% of assets in developing-markets bonds. Nor is it just emerging-markets companies that are benefiting from their growth. Much of Mewbourne's portfolio is invested in high-quality companies in developed markets that are doing increasing amounts of business in emerging markets. "We own multinationals that are well positioned to benefit from growth in emerging markets." High-yielding corporate "junk" bonds account for 27% of the fund's assets. I wouldn't be overly concerned about that. Pimco's credit analysts are among the best in the business. The fund's returns have been top-notch. Over the past five years through August 11, Diversified Income returned an annualized 7.4%, an average of 0.6 percentage point per year better than the Barclay's U.S. Aggregate Bond index. It ranks in the top 10% among multi-sector bond funds over that period. The fund currently yields 3.9%. Mewbourne thinks the fund will return 6% to 8% annually in the coming years. Not to shabby for the new normal. Advertisement The fund should hold up reasonably well if interest rates rise. Its share price should decline by less than 5% if interest rates were to go up by one percentage point. Mewbourne, 45, has been with Pimco 12 years and has a total of almost 20 years' experience. He's one of Pimco's most trusted managers. He heads the portfolio-management team in the firm's New York City office and manages Pimco's in-house charitable foundation. Diversified Income has assets of $4.7 billion, and Pimco has about $20 billion invested in other vehicles that employ the same strategy. Diversified Income's one flaw is, unfortunately, a big one. The Class D shares, which are the only ones that individual investors can buy without a load and without ponying up a huge minimum, carry a 1.15% expense ratio. That's outrageously high for a bond fund. Nonetheless, I'd hold my nose and buy the fund anyway. Steve Goldberg is an investment adviser in the Washington, D.C., area.


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Insights: Presents related statistical information as succinct, natural-language statements that reveal new insights from your data


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The final piece in the series leads with her road manager, John Byrne Cooke, about differences in her public and private personnae.
Songs from The Pearl Sessions include "Move Over," "Mercedes Benz," "Get it While You Can" and the outtake instrumental, "Pearl."
Full tracks at Spotify.
Janis Joplin – The Pearl Sessions.
2CD set in stores 4/17 from Legacy Recordings
Original LP, outtakes, studio chatter, live cuts and other rarities


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From HaskellWiki
Revision as of 06:15, 11 April 2013 by Henk-Jan van Tuyl (talk | contribs) (Added a link to Control.Proxy.Tutorial on Hackage)
This article is a stub. You can help by expanding it.
Pipes are a way to handle streaming data; for an introductory tutorial see Control.Proxy.Tutorial on Hackage.
- The pipe package on Hackage
- Pipes packages on Hackage
Blog articles
- Pipes 2.0 vs Pipes-core
- An introduction to guarded pipes
- Haskell for Purists - Pipe Finalization
- pipes 2.0 - Pipe Finalization
- Monoidal instances for pipes


text: LOGANWOOD Labsis located on two hundred and twenty five acres of rolling hills, creeks, and pastures inBaldwin County, Georgia. This gorgeous property borders the historical "Brown's Crossing",which, in the past, was a very busy community with a cotton gin at the hub of activity. The railroad came right through the center and stopped to pick up travelers and totransport the ginned cotton.The Labs at LOGANWOOD are raised in a NATURAL environment instead of in concretefloored kennels. They have plenty of room to run and play. The dams to be delivered are takento a secure location where they have their puppies in a whelping box under constant observation. The puppies are born in our home and stay in their whelping box until old enough to stay in akennel and run. As they approach 5 weeks old, they are transferred to a large grass kennel.We have found that being on grass helps to pottie train them easier. The puppies prefer to gopottie where the area is familiar.LOGANWOOD Labs is family owned with different members taking on specific res


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"Speaking to an audience, he said, you know voting is the best revenge," said Romney. "He told his supporters, voting for revenge. Vote for revenge?
"Let me tell you what I'd like to tell you: Vote for love of country," he said. "It is time we lead America to a better place."
Asked about the revenge kerfuffle, Obama campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, "Mitt Romney is ending this campaign with scare tactics in Ohio with a fake ad about the auto industry," she said, referring to an ad assailed by automakers as false, one suggesting that Jeep jobs in the U.S. are being sent to China. "The President was simply suggesting if you think the American people deserve better and if you believe the President is offering a better deal for the middle class you have the power to cast your vote."
It was an ugly and small-minded moment, especially for the end of a campaign when candidates usually try to stress larger, optimistic themes. Romney incorporated the "revenge" line in his speech in Ohio Friday night, saying that while Obama advises revenge, he, Romney, wants people to vote "for love of country."
As Obama traveled to northern Ohio Saturday morning, campaign official Jen Psaki was asked about the "revenge" remark. According to a White House pool report, Psaki said Obama had been speaking in the context of Romney's "scare tactics" in Ohio. The Republican is "frightening workers in Ohio into thinking, falsely, that they're not going to have a job," Psaki said, according to the pool report…
The problem is, the president was actually not speaking in the context of Romney's highly-controversial ads about bailed-out Chrysler adding production of Jeeps in China. In fact, Obama had not said a word about the Jeep controversy when he said "revenge."
Hard to believe that the guy who promised to "punish our enemies" is now talking about voting for "revenge."
If you watch the clip itself, it's not clear at all what Obama's supporters are supposed to want revenge for. Obama mentions Romney name in the context of his run for the senate in Massachusetts — back when Romney was quite the moderate — and the audience starts to boo. Obama says "no, no. Don't boo. Vote. Vote. Voting is the best revenge." Revenge for what? Him running for the senate? Revenge for Romney daring to challenge Obama? I understand Obama is bitter. That's been obvious for a while. But it's just a weird and narcissistic assumption that his supporters want "revenge" too. Doesn't mean it's wrong, though. Which makes the whole thing even creepier.
That's the best he can do? "Voting is the best revenge"? And against whom should voters seek "revenge" — other Americans? A candidate who has the support of about half the electorate? It is mind-boggling, really, that this sort of snide, negative motivation is what President Obama has saved up for his final appeal.
But that's really been the story of his campaign all along. Carpet-bomb Mitt Romney with negative ads during the summer and then make the last week of the campaign about Big Bird, "Romnesia" and "binders full of women." He apparently has given up on luring independent, less-partisan voters (Romney leads by double digits among independents, most pollsters say). In his yearning to turn out his base he must imagine that those voters bear as much animus against his opponents as he does. But of course that's not how he turned out his base last time. Then it was hope and change; now Romney is the hope and change candidate.
"Just yesterday he was asking his supporters at a rally to vote out of revenge," Ryan said to about 1,000 people at the college gymnasium. "Mitt Romney and I are asking you to vote out of love of country. That's what we do in this country. We don't believe in revenge."
Ryan then co-opted the president's famous slogan, changing it slightly:
"We believe in change and hope. We actually do," Ryan said. "In 2008 President Obama made all these lofty promises, it sounded so good. He said that we would have bi-partisanship, that he'd bridge the gap. He said he'd cut the deficit in half, that he'd get people working again, and he'd create jobs. You see all those jobs here in Marietta? Look, it sounded good and when he got elected people naturally expected him to deliver those results but it didn't happen and look what we got. Washington is more divided than it ever has been before. And the deficit, it doubled from what he said it would be."
Mitt Romney has been making a pitch for bipartisanship in the closing days of the race, and this morning rolled out an endorsement from Hillary Clinton's former Senate state director, Gigi Georges:
"For most of my life, I've been an active Democrat. I am proud to have worked for President Bill Clinton and then-Senator Hillary Clinton, and, during that time, I saw firsthand what can be accomplished by strong, bipartisan leadership. I know what it means to work across the aisle on issues that are important to the American people. And that's why I am supporting Mitt Romney. Governor Romney has a plan to restore the prosperity this country deserves and expects. He will work with people of good will no matter what their party, and he will pursue the policies that are in the best interest of our country, no matter who proposes them. That's what President Obama promised to do four years ago. But like so many of his promises, bipartisan cooperation is just another one he has broken. We can't have four more years of failed policies and two parties that can't work together. We need the change Mitt Romney is offering."
Romney, whatever else you think about him, is somebody who has fed the hungry, clothed the naked, and visited the sick. In Mr. Whedon's view of the world, none of that dirty-handed business is necessary: All that is necessary is that one cast a symbolic vote for the man who promises to care, and to express that care by expropriating money from people you don't like and giving it to people for whom you have a moral concern that is at best theoretical. That is the cheapest form of charity, which surely would occur to Mr. Whedon and his admirers, if they ever took the time to think about it. Fortunately for President Obama, they have shown neither the inclination nor the ability to do so.
For the Dumb Vote, voting is simply an expression of affiliation, a way of marking one's membership in the tribe of the compassionately ironic or ironically compassionate or whatever. It is a gesture for people who are absolutely certain that they are right — not because they have any meaningful information, but because they are absolutely certain that the other side is evil, which is why they so quickly and consistently revert to claims of racism against a movement that includes lots of non-white partisans, claims of misogyny against a movement that includes an enormous number of women, claims of aspiring Christian theocracy against a movement that includes a great many non-Christians and that is noted for its affinity with the Jewish state, etc.
The Romney campaign's message today is revenge, ours is the President's plan for the middle class.I'll take that contrast any day.
— Jim Messina (@Messina2012) November 3, 2012


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German Restaurant owner Sandra Schwaiger
invites you to experience authentic German cuisine expertly prepared and served
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Status of the site.
I have kept DND going for 10 years, on my dime and with donations maybe 2 of those years were covered in income from the site. At this point a couple things are clear to me, I have no time for this at least certainly not the time it would take to make it right. I am shelling out around $30 a month for this site that basically nobody uses. While that's not a lot of money and I could certainly keep doing it but without updates to this site and the lack of users over all I just don't see a point as is. It deserves better than that. I am hopeful that it could return to grace some day.
I am open to suggestions or you can try talk me out of it. I suspect very little will see this even.
Graphic Disorder - Facebook - Myspace - Grant Kustoms - Haggard Fab


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Tuesday, 13 September 2011 - Press Release
[For interviews email Domonique Young on email@example.com]
Darwin will remember the anniversaries of a series of bombing raids that took place during 1942 as it approaches the 70th Anniversary of the Bombing of Darwin on 19 February 2012. The bombing raids during WWII continued for nearly two years across Northern Australia after the initial attack on Darwin in February 1942.
September 25 to 27 marks the anniversary of five bombing raids on the city, Livingstone and Bynoe Harbour. Darwin city was attacked twice in the early hours of 25 September 1942, Livingstone Airfield on September 26 and both Bynoe Harbour and Darwin city on September 27.
Former Adelaide River army nurse Alva Curtis, who now resides at Esperance in Western Australia, clearly remembers the raids, which coincided with a full moon. "Planes didn't have the technology then that they do now so the pilots relied on the light of the moon to know where to bomb. "Darwin was bombed every full moon. Whenever the siren went off, it was lights out, under our beds and no one was allowed to smoke - everyone smoked back then."
Alva had more than a couple of close calls during the 21 month-long raid on Australia's north and recalls one time where she spent more than five hours in a dugout trench. "We were travelling back to Adelaide River when we were stopped at Winnellie by troops who said the planes were coming. It was only 6:30 in the evening but boy those planes came.
"They (the Japanese) were dropping 'daisy cutters' and it lasted hours. When we thought it was safe we got back into the jeep and had another go, but we didn't get too far before we had to make another run for it. "It was easily midnight before we made it home and the matron was very pleased to see us safe. We weren't in trouble as we thought we may be, but we weren't given the next day off either!" Alva affectionately recalls.
This month's remembrance is in lead up to a series of commemoration events that will take place from February 11 to 26 next year.
The main event will mark the 70th anniversary of the first bombing of Darwin to be held at the Darwin Cenotaph on 19 February 2012. The two-week program will include commemorative ceremonies, a schools competition and exhibition, historic talks, tours and movie screenings, the release of a commemorative coin and an AFL football match.
For more information visit www.frontlineaustralia.com.au and follow on Facebook and Twitter.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Darwin 1942 :: 70th Anniversary of the Bombing of Darwin
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|Home of Jasper Brown family. Photo from Kimmel Williams
When I began this blog in September 2010 I was hoping to keep my relatives informed about my research: new discoveries and old connections. In hearing feedback I get from my family (Special thanks to: Mark, Louise, Carol, Alyssa & Spencer) I feel I am being successful in meeting that goal.
I had also hoped to reach out to relatives I have not yet met, to share and compare information on our mutual family trees and branches. Recently I have met my first relative through my blog!
I was recently contacted by Kimmel R. (Hutchinson) Williams, my second cousin. Her parents are Charles and Edith Rose (Ball) Hutchinson. Edith is the daughter of James Alton & Mildred Olga (Brown) Ball. Olga and my paternal grandfather, Roy Jesse Brown, b. 8 March 1902, were siblings, children of Jasper Pascal and Rose Ella (Brumfield) Brown, married 21 December 1887 in Mississippi. Jasper and Rose had nine children, all born in Mississippi. Roy and Mildred were numbers 7 & 8. It is interesting to consider that, all these years later, their descendants are meeting on the internet.
We are just beginning to share information and photographs. I am thrilled we have made this internet connection and look forward to learning more.


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Posted in Services, Wednesday on October 2, 2019
God rescues the Jews and once again demonstrates his faithfulness.
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The Cleveland Orchestra Centennial Celebration
Season 46 Episode 12 | 1h 21m 6s
Celebrate the orchestra's centennial with a gala concert conducted by Franz Welser-Möst, featuring pianist Lang Lang, and works by Mozart, Strauss, and Ravel, with vignettes of past music directors.
Aired: 01/11/19
Expires: 01/10/22Video has closed captioning.
Problems Playing Video?
GREAT PERFORMANCES is made possible by the Irene Diamond Fund, Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Arts Fund, The Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation, LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, Rosalind P. Walter, The Agnes Varis Trust, The Starr Foundation, Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, Ellen and James S. Marcus, The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation, Lenore Hecht Foundation, Abra Prentice Foundation, The Lewis Sonny Turner Fund for Dance, Jody and John Arnhold, Anne Ray Charitable Trust, and PBS.


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The solution to the antiquated air traffic control system? Make pilots their own air traffic controllers!
Suppose that sometime this year two US airliners find themselves on a collision course. An air traffic controller relying on rapidly deteriorating 1960s-vintage equipment must distinguish the two planes from others on his radar screen and make a mental calculation about the likelihood of a crash. Though his radar display is two-dimensional, the controller must envision the planes' flight paths in three dimensions, then project the paths through time. He must take into account that, say, one plane is turning sharply and rapidly descending, while the other is slowly climbing. Alarmed, he'll quickly get on his radio to instruct one of the pilots to change course. Only if his message isn't garbled or drowned out or misunderstood will an accident be averted.
Now imagine the same scenario 15 years from now. Both planes carry satellite-based navigational equipment that identifies their positions with a precision far outstripping radar's. Instead of passing information by voice, pilots rely on digital communications gear that automatically transmits a constant flow of data about the planes' location, direction, and speed to controllers and other nearby aircraft. Surveillance and data processing equipment on the ground and aboard the aircraft projects the planes' flight paths over time, instantaneously making the same calculations that the 1996 controller struggled to do in his head. Long before the two aircraft seriously threaten each other, cockpit displays in both planes warn the pilots of the potential conflict and recommend course changes.
Welcome to "free flight," the aviation community's term for changes that constitute the most significant development in air traffic management since the invention of radar 60 years ago. Under free flight, many tasks now carried out by air traffic controllers will be automated, and some of the authority that controllers possess will be shifted to pilots. Not surprisingly, the engine driving free flight is digital technology, which has laid bare the obsolescence of the current air traffic control system.
"It's as though our telephone systems were still operating with manual switchboards, with telephone operators who were pulling the plugs out of one outlet and putting them in another," says James Coyne, president of the National Air Transportation Association, which represents airport businesses such as food vendors and repair services. "All of the information that flows to and from a pilot today in virtually all aircraft is done on a strictly single-voice channel, back and forth, with human beings actually saying all the words live. As anyone can imagine, that is an extremely inefficient way to convey data."
Free flight mirrors the shift from centralized mainframe technology to distributed, networked systems that's occurring in many realms. And, as in those arenas, the shift faces considerable obstacles, most notably cost. The Federal Aviation Administration, which oversees the US air traffic control system, has embraced the concept but may have a hard time persuading Congress to allocate the many billions of dollars that free flight will probably cost. Thanks to past debacles in developing air traffic management technology, the FAA's credibility is notoriously low, to the point that proposals for privatizing the agency are filtering through Congress.
Nevertheless, most discussion of free flight has a tone of inevitability, chiefly because it makes so much sense. Though free flight restores to pilots some of the same freedom to choose routes, altitudes, and speeds that aviators enjoyed before the advent of air traffic control in the mid 1930s, what drives it is not some romantic notion of airborne adventure, but economics. Pilots no longer required to follow rigid routes presumably would fly more direct paths to their destinations, saving fuel and increasing airline productivity. It's not surprising that free flight's strongest advocates are the nation's major air carriers, which maintain that free flight would enable the industry to recoup a significant portion of the US$3.5 billion it claims to lose each year because of limitations in the current air traffic control system. Since the industry only recently returned to minimal profitability after losing as much as $12.8 billion between 1990 and 1994, it's possible that free flight could make the difference for some carriers between lucrative and losing years.
Airlines aren't the only potential beneficiaries. Paul Fiduccia, president of the Small Aircraft Manufacturers Association, thinks that free flight soon could help make flying a small plane almost as simple as driving a car. The result, Fiduccia believes, is that general aviation for personal and business use could enjoy an upsurge in popularity after 15 years of stagnation. "What we're trying to do is feed the fruits of the digital revolution into airplanes," Fiduccia says. "If we do, you'll be able to fly a plane after a couple months of training. You'll have the same operational simplicity that you have in a car with cruise control. You get the plane in the air, you sit there, and you talk with your passengers for a few hours until you get to where you're going."
The FAA sees free flight's projected efficiencies as a way of coping with growth in passenger traffic, which the agency projects - perhaps overoptimistically - at 7 percent a year over the next decade. Free flight might reduce congestion at the nation's most crowded airports by enabling planes to land with less spacing between them. The National Air Transportation Association's Coyne thinks free flight could even eliminate the need for air traffic controllers, saving the federal government up to $5 billion a year. While other officials are far less sanguine about the safety of a system shorn of all controllers, some believe free flight would make likely a downsizing from the current workforce of 17,000 controllers. Nevertheless, even that prospect has not led the controllers union, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, to oppose free flight. Instead, union leaders have expressed tempered enthusiasm.
One charge notably absent is that free flight is unsafe. On the contrary, experts in government and industry are confident that free flight will enhance aviation safety, not jeopardize it. Considering that the current US air traffic control system is regarded as the safest in the world, that's a substantial claim, but one with considerable justification. For starters, free flight will enable planes to spread out over much of US airspace instead of sticking to prescribed routes, thereby reducing the likelihood of conflicts. In addition, the vastly greater precision of digitally based instruments will almost certainly increase safety. Air carriers already have installed an array of digital gear in their planes, and airline cockpits often have data about weather and surrounding aircraft that are more precise and comprehensive than the information controllers must rely on. Unfortunately, pilots can't use their sophisticated equipment to much advantage because the air traffic control system doesn't acknowledge its existence.
Virtually all the technology required for free flight is already in limited use or in development. The crucial navigation equipment is the US Department of Defense's satellite-based Global Positioning System, which provides accurate readings to within 76 meters of a plane's location, far outstripping the two- to four-mile standard that radar now provides. The FAA plans GPS enhancements that initially will bring accuracy down to 7 meters and ultimately to within a meter. A second vital component is data-link technology, which would transmit information to and from controllers and other planes almost instantaneously. One benefit is that it would eliminate the current communications delay - sometimes as long as 20 minutes - that occurs when planes flying oceanic routes cannot communicate directly with controllers. Finally, sophisticated surveillance and data-processing equipment installed on board and on the ground would survey the skies, project each plane's route, and notify pilots and controllers of potential conflicts. Though this equipment will cost several hundred thousand dollars per airliner, the airlines are enthusiastic enough about free flight to accept the expense.
The recognized "father of free flight," a United Airlines systems manager named William Cotton, described key components of free flight back in 1971, but it wasn't until two decades later, after the new technologies were developed, that his ideas took off. Though United's top executives initially were too preoccupied with other issues to pay attention, a May 1994 report co-authored by one` of Cotton's former deputies reached Representative Collin Peterson (D-Minnesota), chair of the House subcommittee with investigative jurisdiction over the FAA. Peterson, a recreational pilot who already used GPS technology in his own plane, was intrigued enough to hold hearings on free flight in August 1994. The hearings, in turn, forced the agency to take notice. After calling upon a committee of representatives from all segments of the aviation community to develop guiding principles for free flight, the FAA's administrator, David Hinson, embraced the concept during April 1995 and organized a task force to draw up detailed plans to implement it.
The task force's report, issued last October, calls for the introduction of free flight in three phases spread over a minimum of five years. In the first phase, extending through 1997, air traffic controllers would yield some of their authority and enter into a more collaborative relationship with airlines and pilots. Rule changes that do not require extensive investments in new technology would be instituted. For example, when a busy airport such as Chicago's O'Hare experiences a storm, controllers typically decide the order in which all of an airline's planes land. Chicago may be the final destination of most passengers in one plane, while half the passengers in another plane may be hoping to make connecting flights. Controllers, however, aren't aware of such passenger configurations, and, in any event, they're trained to sequence landings on a first-come, first-served basis. They may allow the plane filled with passengers bound for Chicago to land while the other plane circles overhead. Under free flight, controllers would simply inform each airline how many landing slots it could use during the storm, and the airline would decide the order in which its planes land. That change alone would save passengers thousands of wasted hours and airlines many millions of dollars.
Under the second phase, projected from1998 to 2000, airliners no longer would be limited to the rigid flight paths now prescribed by the FAA. Instead, they could choose the routes that best fit their needs. A cargo plane might choose a route that maximizes speed or fuel efficiency, even if that means flying through a storm. A passenger plane flying between the same two airports might choose to ensure passenger comfort by avoiding the storm at a sacrifice in speed. While controllers would continue to have responsibility for keeping aircraft from colliding, they would be instructed to approve all proposed routes as long as the planes maintain "separation" - the aviation term for collision avoidance. To do this, controllers would need digital "conflict probe" technology that tracks planes' projected courses and warns of potential conflicts.
It's in the third phase, optimistically projected to begin in 2000 and end perhaps a decade later, that free flight's full potential could be realized. Pilots no longer would need to ask controllers for permission to make route changes, and they'd even take on some responsibility for separation. Each plane would be considered to be surrounded by two hockey-puck shaped volumes of space, one inside the other. When conflict probe technology detects an intruder entering a plane's larger volume, known as the "alert zone," the two pilots and the ground controller would be warned to consider evasive action, while the smaller volume, called the "protected zone," would be considered inviolate. The size of a plane's zones would depend on the accuracy of its technology and its performance capacity: the more advanced the plane, the smaller the zones.
Though it's too early to predict the size of the zones, they almost certainly would be much smaller than the five miles of horizontal separation that the FAA now mandates for planes in midflight. Planes would be free to fly at speeds and altitudes that maximize their performance, instead of being hung up behind slower planes on prescribed air routes. Today controllers often begin shunting aircraft into line for landing at busy airports when the planes are as far as 600 miles from their destination, but digital sequencing tools would enable planes to fly at higher, more fuel-efficient altitudes until as close as 90 miles before landing.
The current system requires wide separation standards because controllers need large margins of error when making four-dimensional calculations in their heads. Airliners usually are required to stay on rigid flight paths because it's easier for controllers to keep track of them. Computers, however, can project the paths with relative ease. They can allow separation standards to be based not on controllers' mental capacities but on each plane's performance capability.
Most objections to free flight focus on cost. While many owners of small planes are enthusiastic about what they'd gain through free flight, such as access to many more airports in bad weather, they are worried about the expense of the equipment they'd need to install. Estimates are frustratingly vague, ranging from several thousand dollars upward. To allay such fears, the FAA has endorsed the principle that free flight should not penalize airplanes that don't carry the new technology. This pledge complicates an already labyrinthine transition to free flight, requiring that elements of the current system remain in place long after the new one is fully functional. One result is that the transition is likely to take 10 or 15 years, not the currently projected five.
An even bigger obstacle maybe the FAA itself, which is notorious for procurement fiascos. Air traffic controllers still use 1960s-generation computers because state-of-the-art replacements that were supposed to be installed starting in 1993 were never built, even though the agency spent billions of dollars on them. Many controllers still stare at radar screens in dimly lit rooms evocative of an earlier era, flipping toggle switches that date as far back as 1943. Now the FAA plans a more modest upgrade, but it will not be in place until late 1996 at the earliest, and it will not be compatible with free-flight technology.
All this, combined with the federal government's current budget constraints, means that Congress's willingness to allocate billions of dollars for free flight is uncertain at best. J. Roger Fleming, senior vice president of operations and safety at the Air Transport Association, which represents major US air carriers, worries that if Congress sticks to its 1995 budget resolution, "free flight, in my judgment, is highly improbable."
Still another formidable barrier is the US military, which would have to upgrade its fleet of 10,000 aircraft to accommodate free flight. To make even the slightest change in those planes, says Frank Colson, executive director of the Defense Department's Policy Board on Federal Aviation, would cost $1 billion; installing the sophisticated technology that free flight entails would cost many billions and take at least 10 years. Asked whether this expense poses a substantial obstacle to free flight, Colson only says, "I hope not," and professes to pin his hopes on a long transition.
It is an intriguing role reversal. After all, one justification given for airline deregulation back in 1978 was that it would spawn innovation in an industry long accustomed to applying technological advances developed by the military. Now the airlines have proposed a major innovation of their own, and the military's response is: Maybe we can't afford it.


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Short SabbaticalPosted: March 5, 2012 | Author: georgesblog360 | Filed under: Commentary, Social Conscience | Tags: Automotive, Commodities, Crisis, Economy, Engineering, Investment, Jobs, Money | 3 Comments
I've been away from my usual activities for a little bit. I picked up the materials to start a drafting project. I'm going to draw an engine that I've designed, over the last 40 years or so. I'm drawing it to demonstrate two principles. The first is to get around the pressure and fuel limitations in conventional engines. The second is to create a way to contain combustion in a small zone in the combustion chamber. This engi8ne would have both a load sensitive compression ratio and output speed. What I would do with it, beyond my own amusement, I don't know. Yes, it would get as lot better gas mileage, perhaps double.
I've read so many articles and papers about altering the pressure curve, and they seem to be a partial answer, not really changing ther curver that much. I also want to beat the pressure limit at which detonation and pre-ignition occurs. If the pressure level is physically altered after the fuel is burned, there can be no damaging uncontrolled reactions. It's just hot, inert gas.
The U. S. Patent Office has always been the most corrupt agency in the U. S. government. It's that little clause about awarding patents to the applicant "best able to bring a product to market". That's why the man who invented the intermittent wiper blade system had to fight Ford for years, and spend 5 million of his own money to get a judgment. At the last that I heard, he hadn't gotten a dime from Ford. The highest proprietary interest is served. I would rather put it in the public domain and have a thousand little cottage industry shops build it. That can't be stopped.
Commercial Identity Update: Mar. 1st, 2012Posted: March 1, 2012 | Author: georgesblog360 | Filed under: Commentary, Social Conscience | Tags: Banking, Corruption, Crisis, Fraud, Government, News, Poverty, Survival | 6 Comments
Thursday. Mar. 1st, 2012 – With so many issues rising up in debate, it becomes easy to forget that the structural mechanisms have been in place, for 150 years. The general public sees these institutions as altruistic and beneficial. They believe the news media when the Corporate Wars of Conquest are promoted. Unless that changes, people will be led around by the ring in their commercial identity noses.
Commercial Identity Update: Feb. 19th, 2012Posted: February 19, 2012 | Author: georgesblog360 | Filed under: Commentary, Social Conscience | Tags: Banking, Bible, Corruption, Currency, Government, Homelessness, Inflation, News | 2 Comments
The Feb. 19th update to "Two Masters" was written with the assumption that people are still free to decide which master they will serve. Taking a position for or against the position would resolve nothing, in the context of that writing. I contend here that, given the options, the question is why people choose to stay in debt slavery, and reject Biblical liberty. For the purposes of this writing, the choice3 of masters was decided when people chose their commercial identity. By voluntarily choosing U. S. citizenship, people have chosen to serve the debt slavery master, in perpetuity, cradle to grave. This is in stark contrast to the Biblical standard. A debtor would serve the lender for 6 years, and be freed from the debt, at the 7th year. In our culture, bankruptcy only frees the debtor to incur more debt. This system of unjust weights and measure deprive people of all liberty and property. It is all debt, from issuance into circulation, into and through the debt slavery of wages, legally defined as corpotrate profits, received as Federal employees. Like it or not, everything that U. S. citizens receive and possess, is taxable. Welcome to the Federal Debt Plantation.
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Two Masters Update: Feb. 19th, 2012Posted: February 18, 2012 | Author: georgesblog360 | Filed under: Commentary, Social Conscience | Tags: Banking, Bible, Democracy, Fraud, Government, Money, Poverty | 1 Comment
This topic is written with the belief that people still have the choice of which master they will serve. The rebellious streak in human nature wants to be free of any authority higher than itself. That is a philosophical and spiritual impossibility, as I will demonstrate. Most people respond to the principles that I express in these posts with; "Oh all that old Bible stuff doesn't apply to people today! Times have changed. We're so much more modern than dirt farmers and illiterate herdsmen." Are we really so advanced that there are no limits on behavior? The evidence of the news each day say that humanity hasn't changed a bit, in 6,000 years.
Commercial IdentityPosted: February 13, 2012 | Author: georgesblog360 | Filed under: Commentary, Social Conscience | Tags: Banking, Bible, Crisis, Currency, Government, Law, News, Poverty | 3 Comments
As I've written in the past, every conflict has a commercial root. This principle should be obvious. When the numbers don't match up with expectations, there is conflict. This applies to everything from the price of a candy bar going up a nickel, to the major changes in the economy. The only certainty is that there is a problem, and someone is going to pay for it. These conflicts get out of control because people fail to distinguish between humanity and commercial identity. In those instances when we find that people don't seem to be the people we thought we knew, it is because we knew their humanity. The standards and behavior change, when commercial identity takes over.
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Two Masters Update Feb. 12th, 2012Posted: February 11, 2012 | Author: georgesblog360 | Filed under: Commentary, Social Conscience | Tags: Bible, Conscience, Corruption, Homelessness, Law, Life, Ministry, Prophecy | 6 Comments
I don't know if the last decade will ever be completely behind me. There are parts of it that were necessary to change both my understanding, and direction. That, I can accept. The things that I can not excuse, remain. Learning from those experiences does not add value to the specific activities. Learning does bring me principled conviction. Today, I can describe that resolve. Yesterday, I couldn't.
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Legal Reality Newsletter – 2 February A. D. 2012Posted: February 3, 2012 | Author: georgesblog360 | Filed under: Commentary, Social Conscience | Tags: CourtsRights, Free, Harmon Taylor, Law, Legal, Newsletter, Police, Reality | Leave a comment
2 February A.D. 2012
Read the ticket before signing.
Sounds simple enough.
Read the ticket before signing. Front side, back side, third side (if there is one).
Some of the STATEs are figuring out that "we're" figuring out that they NEVER satisfy Due Process when it comes to Notice.
There is no Notice without the paperwork. A judge can "tell" the defendant what the charge is until that judge is blue in the face, and nothing about Notice will have been satisfied. Notice isn't satisfied without the paperwork.
There's a basic sequence of events. First there has to be something actionable. Then, a charge has to be made. Then, a charging instrument has to be printed out (from the computer) and signed by the (at least "a") witness. (Clerks are not witnesses. If a clerk is the charging witness, then that clerk can't get anywhere near that case under the disguise of Custodian of Records, AND there's some question as to whether the court, itself, is now the charging witness, given that the Clerk is the witness solely as a by-product of employment with the court. More details at some other time.) Then, that paperwork has to be served on the defendant "at a meaningful time and in a meaningful manner" to as to allow a "meaningful opportunity to respond."
As a practical matter, how in the world does anyone enter a responsive plea until one has Notice of what one is charged with having violated?
To enter that plea is to waive Notice.
Where there is no Notice, to pretend that there is is to waive Notice.
To agree to enter that plea, any plea, may also constitute waiver of Notice.
Read the ticket.
Some jurisdictions are now including language in addition to the agreement to appear. The agreement to appear is the equivalent of a personal recognizance bond. Some people go into orbit over that thought. That thought isn't worth much more than a passing glance, actually. Without the personal recognizance bond, the ticketing officer has the authority also to become the arresting officer. Some would-be defendants play the game that way. They go to jail for a few days and the matter is dropped. That's not what makes good sense to this author, but to each his own.
The additional agreement language may have to do with entering a plea.
Where a form has language that one is not interested in agreeing to, the solution is to "negotiate" that form. How does one "negotiate" a form? By using a pen and drawing a line through the part that one isn't interested in agreeing to.
To attempt to negotiate and to be told, "You can't do that," is to get evidence of "adhesion." Without the effort to negotiate, there is no "adhesion." The instant that negotiations are tried and not permitted, then there's evidence of "adhesion." Where the negotiation is not objected to, then there's nothing more agreed to than the timely appearance (whether by paperwork or also in person). (Not agreeing to appear is not sensible. No doubt someone will press this to that limit. If so, take good notes about what happened and be sure to share that experience.)
Read the ticket.
One does NOT have to agree to enter any plea. Agreeing to appear is one thing. Agreeing to enter a plea is completely another.
Read the ticket. If necessary, "negotiate" that ticket so as to preserve the right of Due Process, starting with service of the paperwork containing the charges alleged. If one agrees to enter a plea, because that's the language pre-printed on the (back of) the ticket, the one may very well have waived one of the best defenses going: violation of Due Process — no Notice.
Harmon L. Taylor
Legal Reality
Dallas, Texas
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SHRINKING THE CONE OF UNCERTAINTY WITH CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT FOR SOFTWARE TEAM DYNAMICS IN DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT by Pongtip Aroonvatanaporn A Dissertation Presented to the FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Ful llment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (COMPUTER SCIENCE) August 2012 Copyright 2012 Pongtip Aroonvatanaporn
Object Description
|Shrinking the cone of uncertainty with continuous assessment for software team dynamics in design and development
|Aroonvatanaporn, Pongtip
|Author email
|Doctor of Philosophy
|Document type
|Degree program
|Computer Science
|Viterbi School of Engineering
|Date defended/completed
|Date submitted
|Date approved
|Restricted until
|Date published
|Advisor (committee chair)
|Boehm, Barry W.
|Advisor (committee member)
Medvidovic, Nenad
Medvidović, Nenad
Settles, F. Stan
|Team synchronization and stabilization are essential especially for large software projects. Unfortunately, little is usually done to assess and reduce the uncertainties and knowledge gaps that exist within the project. As the project progresses through its life cycle, the team can gain more information about the project and the team's capabilities. These necessary data can be obtained through performing assessments on the team and the project. However, these assessment procedures are often complex, discouraging, and difficult to analyze; an effective framework and tool support can greatly enhance the process. Hence, with improved assessment methods, software project teams can quickly gather the necessary data, determine the actions needed to improve performance, and achieve an improved project outcome in the end. ❧ Furthermore, uncertainties in projects can significantly impact the cost and schedule estimations, which determine the scopes of the projects and the resources required to complete them. However, developing accurate and realistic estimates requires a high level of experience, expertise, and historical data. Oftentimes, once the resources have been estimated, little is done to reduce the uncertainties in the estimations as the project progresses through its life cycle. With improved software tracking and estimation mechanisms, teams can develop more accurate estimations, allowing the goals of the project outcome to be monitored and achieved with the available resources. ❧ This research investigates the appropriateness of current project tracking and team assessment methodologies, and develops a new assessment framework to effectively improve team synchronization and stabilization as well as project effort tracking and estimation. The COnstructive Team Improvement Process MOdel (COTIPMO) is an assessment framework developed to effectively achieve this by enabling software development teams to quickly track their project progress, continuously assess the team's performance, and make adjustments to the project estimates as necessary, thus shrinking the cone of uncertainty for software projects.
|cone of uncertainty; cost estimation; continuous assessment; team synchronization; team stabilization; process model
|Part of collection
|University of Southern California dissertations and theses
|Publisher (of the original version)
|University of Southern California
|Place of publication (of the original version)
|Los Angeles, California
|Publisher (of the digital version)
|University of Southern California. Libraries
|Electronically uploaded by the author
|Legacy record ID
|Contributing entity
|University of Southern California
|Aroonvatanaporn, Pongtip
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|SHRINKING THE CONE OF UNCERTAINTY WITH CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT FOR SOFTWARE TEAM DYNAMICS IN DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT by Pongtip Aroonvatanaporn A Dissertation Presented to the FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Ful llment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (COMPUTER SCIENCE) August 2012 Copyright 2012 Pongtip Aroonvatanaporn


text:
SEC511: Continuous Monitoring and Security Operations New
Mon, April 13 - Sat, April 18, 2015
- Contents | Additional Info
- Instructors: Christopher Crowley, Eric Conrad
- 36 CPEs
- Laptop Required
I run SOCs and this course will and does provide a gut check against what we are doing today.
We heard a lot of stories from history and experience, so perfect there! I just want to say, stories (if funny even better) are the best experience and take away for me at live conference!
SEC511: Continuous Monitoring and Security Operations. We continue to underestimate the tenacity of our adversaries! Organizations are investing a significant amount of time and financial and human resources trying to combat cyber threats and prevent cyber attacks, but despite this tremendous effort organizations are still getting compromised. The traditional perimeter-focused, prevention-dominant approach to security architecture has failed to prevent intrusions. No network is impenetrable, a reality that business executives and security professionals alike have to accept. Prevention is crucial, and we can't lose sight of it as the primary goal. However, a new proactive approach to security is needed to enhance the capabilities of organizations to detect threats that will inevitably slip through their defenses.
The underlying challenge for organizations victimized by an attack is timely incident detection. Industry data suggest that most security breaches typically go undiscovered for an average of seven months. Attackers simply have to find one way into most organizations, because they know that the lack of visibility and internal security controls will then allow them to methodically carry out their mission and achieve their goals.
The Defensible Security Architecture, Network Security Monitoring (NSM)/Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM)/ Continuous Security Monitoring (CSM), taught in this course will best position your organization or Security Operations Center (SOC) to analyze threats and detect anomalies that could indicate cybercriminal behavior. The payoff for this new proactive approach would be early detection of an intrusion, or successfully thwarting the efforts of attackers altogether. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) developed guidelines described in NIST SP 800-137 for Continuous Monitoring (CM), and Day five (5) will greatly increase your understanding and enhance your skills in implementing Continuous Monitoring utilizing NIST framework.
SANS is uniquely qualified to offer this course. Course authors Eric Conrad (GSE #13) and Seth Misenar (GSE #28) hold the distinguished GIAC Security Expert Certification (GSE). Both are experienced, real-world, practitioners who apply the concepts and techniques they teach in this course on a daily basis. SEC511 will take you on quite a journey. We start by exploring traditional security architecture to assess its current state and the attacks against it. Next, we discuss and discover modern security design that represents a new proactive approach to such architecture that can be easily understood and defended. We then transition to how to actually build the network and endpoint security, and then carefully navigate our way through automation, NSM/CDM/CSM. For timely detection of potential intrusions, the network and systems must be proactively and continuously monitored for any changes in the security posture that might increase the likelihood that attackers will succeed.
Your SEC511 journey will conclude with one last hill to climb! The final day (Day 6) features a capture-the-flag competition that challenges you to apply the skills and techniques learned in the course to detect and defend the modern security architecture that has been designed. Course authors Eric Conrad and Seth Misenar have designed the capture-the-flag competition to be fun, engaging, comprehensive, and challenging. You will not be disappointed!
With your training journey now complete and your skills enhanced and honed, it is time to go back to work and deliver on the SANS promise that you will be able to apply what you learn in this course the day you return to the office.
You Will Be Able To:
- Analyze a security architecture for deficiencies
- Apply the principles learned in the course to design a defensible security architecture
- Understand the importance of a detection-dominant security architecture and security operations centers (SOC)
- Identify the key components of Network Security Monitoring (NSM)/Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM)/ Continuous Monitoring (CM)
- Determine appropriate security monitoring needs for organizations of all sizes
- Implement a robust Network Security Monitoring/Continuous Security Monitoring (NSM/CSM)
- Determine requisite monitoring capabilities for a SOC environment
- Determine capabilities required to support continuous monitoring of key Critical Security Controls
- Utilize tools to support implementation of Continuous Monitoring (CM) per NIST guidelines SP 800-137
While the above list briefly outlines the knowledge and skills you will learn, it barely scratches the surface of what this course has to offer. Hands-on labs throughout the course will reinforce key concepts and principles, as well as teach you how to use key scripting tools (e.g., Python and Powershell) to automate continuous monitoring. We look forward to seeing you soon!
This is a technical course and a laptop is required to perform the hands-on exercises. Also, building and establishing a SOC are outside the scope of this course.
Course Syllabus
SEC511.1: Current State Assessment, SOCs, and Security Architecture
Eric Conrad
Mon Apr 13th, 2015
The prevention-dominant security model has failed. Given the frequency and extent of significant intrusions, this should not come as a surprise. In order to address the root of the problem, we must understand the current architecture and the design gaps that facilitate the adversary's dominance. What do we need to address to begin to make things better? Can we ever hope to win? What would winning look like? These are important questions that we must answer if we hope to substantially improve our security posture.
We begin with the end in mind, and define the key techniques and principles that will allow us to achieve that state. An effective modern SOC or Security Architecture must enable an organization's ability to rapidly find intrusions to facilitate containment and response. Both significant knowledge and a commitment to continuous monitoring are required to achieve this goal.
CPE/CMU Credits: 6
Day 1: Current State Assessment, SOCs, and Security Architecture
- Traditional Security Architecture
- Perimeter Focused
- Addressed Layer 3/4
- Centralized Information Systems
- Prevention-Oriented
- Device-driven
- Traditional Attack Techniques
- Modern Security Architecture Principles
- Detection-oriented
- Post-Exploitation focused
- Decentralized information systems/data
- Risk-informed
- Layer 7 Aware
- Security Operations Centers
- Network Security Monitoring
- Continuous Security Monitoring
- Modern Attack Techniques
- Adversarial Dominance
- Frameworks and Enterprise Security Architecture
- Enterprise Security Architecture
- Security Frameworks
- Security Architecture - Key Techniques/Practices
- Threat Vector Analysis
- Data Exfiltration Analysis
- Detection Dominant Design
- Zero Trust Model (Kindervag)
- Intrusion Kill Chain
- Visibility Analysis
- Data Visualization
- Lateral Movement Analysis
- Data Ingress/Egress Mapping
- Internal Segmentation
- Network Security Monitoring
- Continuous Security Monitoring
- Security Architecture - Design Tools/Strategies
- Mapping software
- Visualization
- Qualitative Risk Assessment
- Lab: Design Review
- Security Operations Center (SOC)
- Purpose of a SOC
- Key SOC roles
- Relationship to Defensible Security Architecture
SEC511.2: Network Security Architecture
Christopher Crowley
Tue Apr 14th, 2015
Understanding the problems with the current environment and realizing where we need to get is far from sufficient: we need a detailed roadmap to bridge the gap between the current and desired state. Day 2 introduces and details the components of our infrastructure that become part of a defensible network security architecture and SOC. We are long past the days where a perimeter firewall and ubiquitous antivirus was sufficient security. There are many pieces and moving parts that comprise a modern defensible security architecture.
In addition to discussing technologies like Next Generation Firewalls, UTM devices, Malware Detonation Devices, SIMs, DLP, and Honeypots that may not be found in all organizations, we will focus on repurposing traditional devices such as layer 3/4 firewalls, routers, switches, and NIDS. The goal of this course is not to give you a long list of items to add to the next year's budget, so we will focus on maximizing the capabilities of your current information security architecture, while pointing out new technologies that may offer a compelling return on investment (ROI).
CPE/CMU Credits: 6
Day 2: SOCs and Defensible Network Security Architecture
- SOCs/Security Architecture - Key Infrastructure Devices
- Traditional and Next Generation Firewalls, and NIPS
- Web Application Firewall
- Malware Detonation Devices
- HTTP Proxies, Web Content Filtering, and SSL Decryption
- SIMs, NIDS, Packet Captures, and DLP
- Honeypots/Honeynets
- Network Infrastructure - Routers, Switches, DHCP, DNS
- Mobile Devices and Wireless Access Points
- Threat Intelligence
- Segmented Internal Networks
- Routers
- Internal SI Firewalls
- VLANs
- Detecting the Pivot
- Defensible Network Security Architecture Principles Applied
- Internal Segmentation
- Threat Vector Analysis
- Data Exfiltration Analysis
- Detection Dominant Design
- Zero Trust Model (Kindervag)
- Intrusion Kill Chain
- Visibility Analysis
- Data Visualization
- Lateral Movement Analysis
- Data Ingress/Egress Mapping
SEC511.3: Endpoint Security Architecture
Eric Conrad
Wed Apr 15th, 2015
One of the hallmarks of modern attacks is an emphasis on client-side exploitation. The days of breaking into networks via direct frontal assaults on unpatched mail, web, or DNS servers are largely behind us. We must focus on mitigating the risk of compromise of clients. Day 3 details ways in which endpoint systems can be both more resilient to attack and also enhance detective capabilities.
These endpoints are increasingly portable devices that frequently stray beyond the traditional perimeter. This day ends with discussion about current modern security architecture and SOC design challenges and offers ways to accommodate rapidly changing business environments. Security architecture and virtualization, cloud services, mobile devices/applications, and web applications will be considered as the course moves from the design elements to the monitoring aspects.
CPE/CMU Credits: 6
Day 3: SOCs and Defensible Endpoint Security Architecture
- Security Architecture - Endpoint Protection
- Antimalware
- Host-based Firewall, Host-based IDS/IPS
- Application Whitelisting, Application Virtualization
- Privileged Accounts, Authentication, Monitoring, and UAC
- Whole Disk Encryption
- Virtual Desktop Infrastructure
- Browser Security
- Dangerous Endpoint Applications
- Java
- Adobe Reader
- Flash
- Microsoft Office
- Browsers
- Patching
- Process
- To Test or Not to Test
- Microsoft
- 3rd Party
- Current Architectural Challenges
- Virtualized Infrastructure
- Cloud Services
- Mobile Devices/Applications
- Portable Devices
- Web Applications
- Browsers
SEC511.4: Network Security Monitoring
Eric Conrad
Thu Apr 16th, 2015
Designing a SOC or security architecture that enhances visibility and detective capabilities represents a paradigm shift for most organizations. However, the design is simply the beginning. The most important element of a modern security architecture is the emphasis on detection. The architecture presented in days 1-3 emphasized baking visibility and detective capabilities into the design. Now we must figure out how to look at the data and continuously monitor the enterprise for evidence of compromise or changes that increase the likelihood of compromise.
We must first understand the approach and goals of monitoring and define a methodology for analysis. Key terms such as Network Security Monitoring (NSM), Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM), and Continuous Security Monitoring (CSM) can cause confusion, and we will make sure these terms are understood to enable the security professional to guide an organization in the best practices. Speaking of best practices: we will emphasize the continuous monitoring of the Critical Security Controls.
Then we will describe enabling continuous monitoring by developing a model for employing robust Network Security Monitoring (NSM). NSM will allow an organization to deal with and make sense of data that will rapidly allow for the detection of potential intrusions or unauthorized actions.
CPE/CMU Credits: 6
Continuous Monitoring Overview
- Defined
- Network Security Monitoring (NSM)
- Continuous Security Monitoring (CSM)
- Continuous Monitoring and the 20 Critical Security Controls
Network Security Monitoring (NSM)
- Evolution of NSM
- The NSM Toolbox
- NIDS Design
- Analysis Methodology
- Understanding Data Sources
- Full Packet Capture
- Extracted Data
- String Data
- Flow Data
- Transaction Data
- Statistical Data
- Alert Data
- Tagged Data
- Correlated Data
- Practical NSM Issues
- Cornerstone NSM
- Service-side and Client-side Exploits
- Identifying High-entropy Strings
- Tracking EXE Transfers
- Identifying Command and Control (C2) Traffic
- Tracking User Agents
- C2 via HTTPS
- Tracking Encryption Certificates
SEC511.5: Automation and Continuous Security Monitoring
Eric Conrad
Fri Apr 17th, 2015
Network Security Monitoring (NSM) is the beginning: we need to not only detect active intrusions and unauthorized actions, but also know when our systems, networks, and applications are at an increased likelihood for compromise. A strong way to achieve this is through Continuous Security Monitoring (CSM) or Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM). Rather than waiting for the results of a quarterly scan or an annual penetration test to determine what needs to be addressed, continuous monitoring insists on proactively and repeatedly assessing and reassessing the current security posture for potential weaknesses that need be addressed.
The volume of data that must continuously be sought and mined is vast: the goal of continuous monitoring would be out of reach without scripting and automation. Naturally, there are vendors and tools to scratch this itch, but they will be incomplete and require their own care, feeding, and monitoring. Day 5 describes how to perform continuous monitoring with simple tools and scripts.
Knowing how to script and automate is pointless unless you know what data should be captured and analyzed on a continuous basis. Again leaning on the Critical Security Controls, we will determine high value targets for continuous monitoring in an enterprise.
CPE/CMU Credits: 6
Continuous Security Monitoring
- Overview
- Continuous Security Monitoring (CSM) vs. Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) vs. Information Security Continuous Monitoring (ISCM)
- Cyberscope and SCAP
- Industry Best Practices
- Continuous Monitoring and the 20 Critical Security Controls
- Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) Strategies to Mitigate Targeted Cyber Intrusions
- Winning CSM Techniques
- Maintaining Situational Awareness
- Host, Port and Service Discovery
- Vulnerability Scanning
- Monitoring Patching
- Monitoring Applications
- Monitoring Service Logs
- Detecting Malware via DNS logs
- Monitoring Change to Devices and Appliances
- Leveraging Proxy and Firewall Data
- Configuring Centralized Windows Event Log Collection
- Monitoring Critical Windows Events
- Hands on: Detecting Malware via Windows Event Logs
- Scripting and Automation
- Importance of Automation
- PowerShell
- Hands-on: Detecting Malicious Registry Run Keys with PowerShell
SEC511.6: Capstone: Design, Detect, Defend
Eric Conrad
Sat Apr 18th, 2015
The course culminates in a team-based capstone project that is a full day of hands-on work applying the principles taught throughout the week.
The first component of the capstone requires teams to assess the deficiencies in a provided security architecture, and offer the best way to bridge the gap to achieve a robust security architecture/SOC environment. However, there is a twist...Teams must provide two different solutions to the same problem. One solution is the best-case-scenario where there are no budgetary constraints and unicorns and pixies frolic throughout the enterprise. While understanding the best we could possibly hope to achieve is laudable, an essential skill is to be able to distill down the best an organization can do given only what they have. So, teams first get it easy and have unlimited CAPEX, OPEX, and fully competent staff, and then teams are presented with the "real world" scenario and deal with no CAPEX, limited expansion of OPEX, and a less than ideal staffing capability.
The second portion of the capstone is an exercise in continuous monitoring. The task is to quickly and thoroughly instrument monitoring for a network; then the monitoring will be tested by authorized and unauthorized changes, system and application compromise, privileged account abuse, and lateral movement (to name a few). Teams will need to determine the extent of the changes, and perform triage to determine where containment and response efforts should be focused.
CPE/CMU Credits: 6
Day 6 - Capstone - Design/Detect/Defend
- Security Architecture
- Assess provided architecture
- $0 CAPEX - Security Architecture
- $$$$ CAPEX - Security Architecture
- Continuous Security Monitoring
- Using tools/scripts assess the initial state
- Quickly/Thoroughly find all changes made
Additional Information
Laptop Required
- CPU: 2.0+ GHz processor
- RAM: 8GB or higher
- 25 Gigabytes of free disk space
- Wired Ethernet port (or adapter)
- USB Port (USB 3.0 recommended)
- VMware Workstation 9, Player 5, or Fusion 5 (or newer)
- A Linux and Windows 8.1 Virtual machine will be provided in class
If you have additional questions about the laptop specifications, please contact firstname.lastname@example.com.
Who Should Attend
- Security Architects
- Senior Security Engineers
- Technical Security Managers
- SOC Analysts
- SOC Engineers
- SOC Managers
- CND Analysts
- Individuals working to implement Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM), Continuous Security Monitoring (CSM), or Network Security Monitoring (NSM)
Basic understanding of network protocols and devices. Experience with Linux and Windows from the command line.
Hands-on Training
- Automating/Scripting Continuous Monitoring
- Security Architecture Design and Review
- Cuckoo Sandbox
- Squid Proxy
- Snort for Exfiltration
- Snort for Pivot Detection
- DNS Sinkholes
- Data Leakage Detection
- Process Monitor
- Mod_security
- Log and Event Correlation
- Automating Vulnerability Scanning/Reporting
- Automating Port Scanning
- Automating Host Discovery
- Automating Service Detection
- Final Capstone: Security Architecture Assessment and Continuous Monitoring Exercise
What To Take Next?
Courses that Lead-in
- 401: Security Essentials
- 501: Advanced Security Essentials
- 502: Perimeter Protection
- 503: Intrusion Detection
- 504: Hacker Tools, Techniques, Exploits, and Incident Handling
- 566: Implementing and Auditing the Twenty Critical Security Controls
Courses that are good follow-ups
Author Statement
We are just beginning to accept that every organization can and will be breached. Perimeter-focused preventive security controls have failed. Attackers simply have to find one way into most organizations, and then the lack of internal security controls allows adversaries to take their time to achieve the goal.
This course assesses the current state of security architecture and continuous monitoring, and provides a new approach to security architecture that can be easily understood and defended. What I love most about this course is that when students walk out they have a list of action items in hand for making their organization one of the most effective vehicles for frustrating adversaries. Students are able to assess deficiencies in their own organizations security architectures and effect meaningful changes that are continuously monitored for deviations from their expected security posture. - Eric Conrad and Seth Misenar