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With the smart mix of violence and good humour, Matthew Vaughn has just upped the standards of the generic spy action comedy genre
Let's get one thing straight first, Kingsman: The Secret Service is no James Bond or Austin Powers, and there's certainly no shortage of movies with a plot about a wise experienced older member of an elite team recruiting a troubled young man who has potential. The character will then go through training and due to some unforeseen attack by terrorists or an evil organisation, the new recruit(s) is forced to go right into climatic action and save the nation or world. All this should already sound familiar to you already as such typical plot has been done to death. Most recent and memorably bad ones were Jack Ryan: The Secret Recruit (2014) and Wanted (2008).
However, the film was based on a 2012 comic book series and despite the massive lack of originality with the story and its predictable structure, director Matthew Vaughn (X-Men: First Class, Kick-Ass, Layer Cake) and his co-writer Jane Goldman managed make this espionage flick one of the most entertaining one of all time. It makes it even easier to appreciate when there hasn't been any good ones lately, especially not in this parody-like nature but with genuinely hilarious humour, awesome cinematography (George Richman) and decent over-the-top action choreography with fun gory violence. The closest reference I could think of is Vaughn and Goldman's Kick-Ass (2009), a superhero parody also based on a graphic novel with loads of laughter and violent action.
Here's the basic synopsis – after the death of another agent, super secret spy organisation Kingsman sets out to recruit promising young candidates for replacement. Top senior agent Harry Hart, a straight-up Bond-like ass-kicking British gentleman played by Oscar winner Colin Firth (The King's Speech), picks up a street kid nicknamed Eggsy (played by virtually unknown Taron Egerton, who has the pretty boy charm indeed), who not only has high potential but also the son of a fallen colleague from the past. While the training and interview process are happening, a tech tycoon philanthropist Richmond Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson) plots to reduce world population for apparent benefit of Earth's well being. Jackson's performance as as this movie cliche-conscious antagonist is, to me, the most standout one in the film. Mark Strong (The Imitation Game, RocknRolla) plays Agent Merlin, Oscar winner Sir Michael Caine (The Dark Knight Trilogy, Alfie) plays Chester King "Arthur", the head of the Kingsman, and Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker of the original Star Wars trilogy!) has a small role (literally) as well but I couldn't recognise him at all. Let's see you could!
Yes, again, the plot sounds like a lot of other movies (not to mention that the antagonist's evil plan reminded me of a Twilight Zone episode), but it's quite well constructed. There were probably only two flaws I couldn't forgive – one has something to do with the training and selection process of the candidates while the other being Valentine's cool female assassin Gazelle (Sofia Boutella) who has blades for prosthetic legs but not explained why in the movie even though it's obvious that the audience would be curious about it.
The film is not only funny with entertaining violent action while being stylish at the same time, it's also satirical and it has two awesome scenes that I believe I would remember for a long time – one is the hardcore violent brawl in the church with cool camera work and choreography, and the other, well, I shall not spoil it. Let's just say it'll "blow your mind". And the shameless brand/product placements for Guinness and McDonald's here are probably the best commercials in a movie these brands ever had. Another funny thing is that this movie is really made for Valentine's Day, like really, with a countdown to the occasion in the third act, and yet it doesn't have any unnecessary boring-ass romance subplot.
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Post-credit scene: None, but there's a rather cliched mid-credit scene.
What I would've named the film: "Not Just Another Spy Flick"
Malaysia censorship: There are a few entertainingly violent scenes and some vulgarities but nothing seemed to be cut when I watched it at the press screening held at TGV 1 Utama.
Second opinion: My girlfriend said that the movie is "damn nice" and that she really liked the humour.
Verdict: The only movie you should catch on Valentine's Day this year. Perhaps the best spy action comedy in recent years, if not one of the best of all time.
Rating: 4 / 5
Based on: "The Secret Service" comic book series by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons
Genre: Spy action comedy
Running Time: 129 minutes
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Screenwriters: Jane Goldman, Matthew Vaughn
Cast: Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Michael Caine, Samuel L. Jackson, Taron Egerton
Malaysia Release Date: 19 Feb. 2015 (sneak previews 13 – 15 Feb. 2015)
Rated: 18
Local Distributor: 20th Century Fox Malaysia
Production: Marv Films
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Next time you take the family for a zoom in the sky (wouldn't it be nice to do that every weekend?), leave your old Cesna in the hangar, and get them on board The-Jet by Cirrus.
Crafted from alloy and composite materials, this jet accommodates seven people. It has a special two-door facility similar to coupes. It's also economical since it is powered by a single engine. But what really sets it apart from other small jets and planes is its designer interior. The cockpit is made of glass and is ahead of all other cockpits in terms of technology.
"'Jet Age' takes on a whole new meaning, a more personal meaning, with the opportunity for a personal jet,' The-Jet.com says. "Cirrus believes our new emerging class of personal jet will create and fulfill an exciting market sector - the realm between high performance single-engine airplanes and the very light jet (BLJ) class."
Also, in the case of an emergency, the jet's nose is equipped with parachutes for James Bond-style getaways.
Cirrus' The-Jet
varkeychaya — May 4, 2008 — Autos

subset: commoncrawl


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Ashleigh Barty Looks To Take Miami Momentum Into Clay Season
Miami Open champion Ashleigh Barty is remaining optimistic ahead of the clay court season.
Miami Open champion Ashleigh Barty is looking to take her recent momentum into the clay court season.
The Australian who won her first premier mandatory title last week has remained optimistic ahead of the clay season despite it being her weakest surface.
After breaking into the top 10 in the world for the first time, Barty is now looking for more success on clay, "It has been a while since I have been on clay and it is a short season," Barty said to ABC Australia.
"I only play five, six, seven weeks on it but I think I have the game on clay to be able to do some damage. I just have to learn how to use it properly, learn how to enjoy it."
The clay season for Barty will begin at the Mutua Madrid Open in May after the 22 year-old represents her country in their Fed Cup tie against Belarus in Brisbane in April.
"I just have to be able to learn how to use it properly, how to enjoy it. The depth across women's tennis is getting better and better and I think that is one of the big things. Yes it is open, but it is stronger than ever before in the top 30 and the top 40 in the world."
Despite Barty's recent success, her expectation have not been limited as she now wants to be apart of the world's top eight, "I think number eight [is my next goal]," she explained.
"You have to keep going one at a time I suppose, but I have to continue to do the right things both on and off the court."
The clay court season has already started for some players as the Volvo Car Open in Charleston has already begun on the green clay.
In the next weeks players will be preparing for the second grand slam of the year at Roland Garros, which begins on the 26th of May. Simona Halep is the defending champion.
Latest news
Former No.1 Ana Ivanovic Names The Toughest Opponent Of Her Career
The three-time grand slam finalist didn't chose the likely candidates such as Serena Williams or Maria Sharapova when asked about her most difficult rival.
2008 French Open champion Ana Ivanovic has played many stars of the WTA Tour throughout her career, but has made a surprising revelation about who she felt was the most difficult to play.
Ivanovic took on the likes of Justine Henin, Maria Sharapova and Dinara Safina in all three of the grand slam finals she contested. She only managed to win one out of her 10 meetings with Serena Williams and formed a high-profile rivalry with compatriot Jelena Jankovic. Nevertheless, when asked who her ultimate test is on the Tour, she mentioned none of them names.
Instead, she said her most troublesome rival during her career was Karolina Pliskova. The 2016 US Open runner-up who is currently ranked third in the world on the WTA Tour. The two clashed five times over a two-year period (2014-2016) with the Czech winning all of those encounters. Overall Ivanovic won just one out of 11 sets played between the two.
"For me the hardest player to play against was Pliskova. It was really hard. The last few years (of my career) we played a few times and to read her serve, you wouldn't expect the shot to be coming the way it was," she told Eurosport's Hanging out with Babsi.
"She could really disguise her game very well and I like to read and play the game. Which is why I love playing on the clay. But with her it was very difficult."
Fellow former tennis pro Barbara Schett, who conducted the interview with Ivanovic, agreed with the verdict on Pliskova. Pliskova has won 16 WTA titles so far in her career and earned $19,997,689 in prize money. Which is $4 million more than what Ivanovic has earnt.
"She takes control really early in the rally and doesn't give you any time. I've never played against her but I can imagine it is very uncomfortable," said Schett.
"You don't really get into rallies and she has a great serve. She disguises (her shots) very well and it is not always easy to see," Ivanovic then added.
Tough task for Clijsters
Besides looking back on her career, Ivanovic is still keeping a watchful eye on what is taking in place in the sport. Recently another former rival Kim Clijsters began her comeback to the Tour at the age of 36. The mother-of-three has played in two tournaments so far, but has lost both of her opening matches to Garbine Muguruza and Johanna Konta.
Ivanovic, who is four years younger than the Belgian, says she has been impressed by the comeback. Although she believes it will be hard for her to return back to the top.
"I have been watching some of her matches and she has been striking the ball amazingly well, but I really hope she can get back to that level to play like she used to," she said.
"Personally, I don't think it'll be easy after being out for so many years."
Clijsters first retired back in 2007 before returning a couple years later by winning three out of her four grand slam titles. She then hung up her racket for a second time in 2012 before returning once again this season.
"It's amazing what she achieved. I still respect her so much, it's just difficult to imagine now after having three kids and being out for so long to make a comeback," Ivanovic commented.
"Not because she's not fit, but because your body just reacts differently. When you are out of competition you realise how much fine-tuning is necessary and she's been out a while."
Ivanovic retired from Tennis in December 2016 at the age of 29.
Latest news
Wimbledon Champion Simona Halep Wary About Return To Tour
The world No.2 is expecting a tough time when she returns to action following the lengthy suspension of the sport due to COVID-19.
Simona Halep has admitted that she has concerns about returning to tennis following a lengthy period away from the sport.
The two-time grand slam champion hasn't played a competitive match since winning the Dubai Tennis Championships in February. All professional tennis tournaments have been suspended or cancelled since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Officials are hoping to get the sport back on its feet during the summer but an exact return date is still to be confirmed with the US Open set to announce next month if their tournament will go ahead or not.
Spending her lockdown in Romania, Halep is expecting a tough time when she returns to action due to having a lack of match play. To fill the void, some top 10 players have entered into domestic tournaments. Both Petra Kvitova and Karolina Pliskova are playing tournaments in the Czech Republic. Meanwhile, Elina Svitolina is set to play in a behind the doors event in Berlin in July. Halep is yet to publicly commit to playing any such event.
"My longest break before the lockdown has been of 3-4 weeks and [returning to competitions] was very difficult for me. You lose pace, you lose focus … and then physically, if you idle about for a whole week you've lost half a year," news agency AGERPRES quoted the 28-year-old as saying.
" I don't know what others have done during this time, maybe some did training runs, maybe they did strength workouts, I don't know, I can't assume. But I feel it on my own skin that it will be a bit difficult for me. It matters a lot that I haven't had official matches. You can train five hours a day for a whole year, if you are not on an official game, you're out when you step on court … I mean, you're not in the game at all. There's a big difference."
Despite her concerns, Halep's time away from the sport has allowed her to appreciate things she wouldn't usually have time to do due to the demanding travelling requirements of tennis. Speaking about the lockdown, she says it has enabled her to evaluate her time on the Tour as well as the future.
"I learned a lot from the two-month isolation. I realized that in the last 6 years I've been actually on a total lockdown," she explains.
"It occurred to me that I have to change something in my life, in order to also develop on the emotional and personal side. The fact that I've been on lockdown for 6 years has helped me become world No. 1, but now, for me to have a happy life without tennis, I am slowly trying to experience new feelings, see something else."
Halep started 2020 by winning 10 out of 12 matches played. Besides her triumph in Dubai, she also reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open before losing to Garbine Muguruza. Halep is one of four women to have already made more than $1 million in prize money this season.
Latest news
Former No.1 Karolina Pliskova Hits Out At Men Worrying About Equal Pay In Tennis
The world No.4 explains why she personally doesn't want equal pay on the tour, but criticises those who worry that women players might do so in the future.
Czech tennis star Karolina Pliskova has labelled men who voice opposition against equal pay as 'super weak' as she becomes the latest player to throw her backing behind the possibility of a merger of the two premier tennis Tour's.
Pliskova, who is a former US Open finalist, spoke out about the topic when questioned by the PA Press Agency. In recent weeks there has been growing calls for the ATP and WTA to be merged into one. Support for the idea gained momentum when Roger Federer tweeted his support for it. However the heads of the two governing bodies have already been in discussions about working closer together in some capacity since the start of this year.
Although the prospect of a merger remains low due to the complex process that it would involve, both the ATP and WTA have vowed greater collaboration to help enhance the future of the sport. One of the main talking points behind the calls is pay. There is equal prize money at all of the grand slams, however, it does differ behind the men and women on the Tour. Last year six men earned more than $7 million in prize money compared to one on the WTA Tour (Ash Barty).
Weighing in on the topic, Pliskova has interestingly said that she is not interested in campaigning for her to be paid similar to her male counterparts. Arguing that the two genders should not be compared. However, she has voiced her frustration at those who are against the concept of equal pay.
"I don't think so and I am not the one who wants it. But I don't like the men who are complaining that we would get the same money. I think it is super weak from them that they complain we have the same money as them," she said.
"The only time it is true is at grand slams. I understand they play longer, but they are men. They are stronger than us. I don't see the reason why we should compare each other. I don't need to have the same prize money as men. But to have the same chance to play on centre court or to have the same chance to be on TV, that should be possible with these changes."
As of March 20th Pliskova has made $19,997,689 in prize money throughout her career, which is the 19th highest tally in the history of women's tennis.
Speaking more specifically about a possible merger, the 28-year-old believes it would help enhance the women's tour. Although she is staying cautious about the prospect of such a thing happening in the future.
"I think for the women's tour it can only help. I don't know exactly what they are discussing but if there is any chance to say yes, then I would say yes," Pliskova said.
"It needs to be positive also for the ATP so they need to find a balance so it is a forward step for both. It might take a couple of years to get going. It will be different, but I don't think for the players it would change that much. It would be a good step."
Pliskova is currently ranked third in the WTA rankings and has won 16 WTA titles. She is set to return to action next week at the LiveScore Cup in Prague.
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To become our certified agent/partner, Fill the form and our staff will contact you.


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"It is a very inconvenient habit of kittens that, whatever you say to them they always purr." – Lewis Carroll
Quick Look:
Designer: N/A
Artist: N/A
Publisher: Total Fame Limited
Year Published: 2017
No. of Players: 2-5
Ages: 8+
Playing Time: 10-30 minutes
Find more info on BoardGameGeek.com
Rules and Setup:
Kitten Casualty is a fast 2-5 player card game where you are working to be the first to gather 500 points in cards or to be the last player in the game. You will be doing this by playing cards down in front of you with various values and taking or destroying the cards in front of the other players.
Setup of the game is very straightforward. Place the Overlord card in the middle of the table (this will be the start of the discard pile). There is a single deck of cards that will need to be shuffled, then each player will receive five cards in their hand. That's it!
Player rules are straight forward as well. On your turn, you will start by drawing one card from the pile, then playing up to three cards from your hand. If, at the start of your turn, you do not have any cards in hand, you will draw five cards from the deck.
Most of the cards do have a point value on them, ranging from 0 to 150 points. Additionally, there are cards that have abilities on them, ranging from taking someone's card from their hand or in front of them, to destroying cards from other players, to swapping one of your cards with someone else's card. Additionally, there are cards that allow you to "build" a special Kitten Lord. Within the deck of cards, you will find legs, two arms, a head, and a body. If you are the first to build it, you will be able to eliminate a player from the game, placing all their cards into the discard pile.
As you play these cards, the first person who reaches 500 points will take the Overlord card that was placed in the middle of the table. That player can now choose to eliminate one player from the game. That player then takes all the cards they've played this round, place them in the discard pile, and game play continues. All of the other players will still have their cards that they had played up through that round. The game continues until only one player remains.
The game's theme doesn't add or detract from the game. You are looking to score 500 points, and the point value of the cards do not seem to be based on the cats being used. Thematically, you can use anything and the game would be the same. You might have to change a word or two, and no change to gameplay.
Mechanically, the game is solid (draw one, play three). You will be playing each turn working toward playing cards that increase the points in front of you while trying to stop your opponents from getting more points. While you may end with cards in your hand that you cannot play until certain conditions are met (and that will happen), there are very few instances where you cannot play a card and need to pass on your turn.
Game Play:
Gameplay can go on for a while--over 30 minutes, depending on the types of players you have. When played with folks whose focus was on just getting the points as fast as possible with little interaction or manipulation of the other players, a full game can take close to 20 minutes, but with people who are used to the "take-that" approach, a 4-player game can be around 40-45 minutes.
Artwork and Components:
The artwork on the game cards is about cats (of course) and while it is done in a cartoony style, and is very good. Cleanly drawn and easy to read text on the cards, the card stock is good, using a standard core. The rules are clear and easy to understand, though some of the words used may have a different meaning depending on the card or way it is used, causing some minor confusion.
The Good:
The artwork really does shine, giving the feel of a cute game. Game play does take typically around 25-30 minutes depending on the play style of the players, and is very easy to pick up and learn how to play. The theme is light enough that kids can play it without any issues, and can be enjoyed by families.
The Bad:
Some of the issues that the game has surrounds the cards, ranging from word usage on them to finding cards that you cannot play. An example is the Revive card, which can only be played if someone picks to eliminate you. With the way the rules stand, this card can only be played when you have been targeted, or if you use a card to switch a card with someone else. There is no discard mechanism in the game, nor can you draw any other cards (other than the one a turn) until you are able to play or someone can take that card away. Balancing card and game play is another challenge in the game, where players can end up with a hand of a number of very powerful cards and do a lot of damage to the other players to lock in the victory. You will want to make sure the game is played by players who have a similar play style.
Final Thoughts:
Kitten Casualty is a fun, family-friendly card game that supports up to five players. Full of cute artwork and easy rules, kids will be able to easily pick up and play this game within a few minutes of picking it up for the first time. While there are some issues with cards or balanced play across different game styles, the game is being looked at by the developer and doing a remastered version with changes in the wording of cards, new artwork, and some changing to the rules.
Delton Perez - Reviewer
Delton Perez is a FLGS owner with 2 locations in Puerto Rico. Originally from Boston, he currently lives in the wilds of Ohio, where he currently resides with his family. By day, he is a Retail Consultant working in New York in the Fashion Industry, but by night, meeples, dice, and cardboard take over. Delton also runs a gaming organization based in Northeast Ohio that focuses on running game nights at Libraries, Schools, and Churches on a scheduled, monthly basis. At times, Delton has even been able to sleep, though proof has yet to be found.
See Delton's reviews HERE.
Kitten Casualty Review Reviewed by NeedsOfTheOne on May 25, 2018 Rating:


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Via The Sun:
A SENIOR Labour MP has compared Oxford University left-wingers to far-right Pegida supporters after they were accused of anti-Semitism.read more
Blasting the warring Oxford Labour students, John Mann MP said: "The use of the term Zio as an abuse by some Oxford so-called left-wingers is comparable to the language of Pegida zealots.
"Overt anti-Semitism rife amongst certain elements at Oxford University. These casual racists need to be directly challenged and more."
Pegida is an anti-Islamist umbrella group for the far right in Germany which has held demonstrations against immigration and asylum seekers. The group has been accused of inciting violence and has attracted support from hooligans and neo-Nazis.


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SAN FRANCISCO — Travis Kalanick, who built Uber into a transportation behemoth, was ousted as chief executive of the ride-hailing company in June by unhappy investors. Now, one of those investors has escalated the battle by suing Mr. Kalanick, claiming fraud and other transgressions, in an attempt to remove him from Uber's board of directors.
Benchmark, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm that is one of Uber's largest shareholders, filed suit against Mr. Kalanick on Thursday in Delaware Chancery Court, accusing the former chief executive of fraud, breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty.
At the heart of the suit is how Mr. Kalanick obtained outsize control of several Uber board seats in 2016, which Benchmark said he achieved through "material misstatements and fraudulent concealment" of information. Mr. Kalanick's "overarching objective is to pack Uber's board with loyal allies in an effort to insulate his prior conduct from scrutiny and clear the path for his eventual return as C.E.O. — all to the detriment of Uber's stockholders, employees, driver-partners, and customers," the suit said.
The suit added that Mr. Kalanick's position on Uber's board "is thus improper and inequitable, and should be invalidated."
The move signaled a new level of power politicking over the fate of Uber, the privately held company that is valued at nearly $70 billion. Mr. Kalanick, who had built Uber up over the last eight years, stepped down in June after pressure from investors, leaving no clear successor, though he remained on the company's board. Uber's directors have since fought behind the scenes over matters including potential candidates for chief executive, with the dissension hampering decision-making.
The suit shines a spotlight on governance issues at Silicon Valley start-ups. Most young technology companies are built atop the partnerships of entrepreneurs and the venture capitalists who fund them. In recent years, start-up founders have gained more control over their companies as investors have agreed to give up more of their authority to get a piece of the hottest firms. Mark Zuckerberg, a founder of Facebook, and Snap's founders, Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, all control voting rights at their companies, for example.
Benchmark's suit shows that the balance of power is delicate. Investors will go to great lengths to undercut a company founder if they believe their investment is endangered.
"This is a power struggle over management," Steven Hill, author of a book on Uber's economic impact, said of Benchmark's lawsuit. "The board looked the other way for years while Travis engaged in all sorts of unethical and even illegal behavior. He is their monster."
Benchmark declined to comment further on its suit, which was earlier reported by Axios. Uber also declined to comment.
A spokesman for Mr. Kalanick said, "The lawsuit is completely without merit and riddled with lies and false allegations." The spokesman said Benchmark was acting in "its own best interests" instead of those of Uber, and added that Mr. Kalanick "is confident that these entirely baseless claims will be rejected."
Mr. Kalanick is not interested in returning to Uber as chief executive, according to a person involved in the proceedings, who asked to remain anonymous because he was not authorized to talk publicly. Others have said Mr. Kalanick wants to be a shadow leader without necessarily having the chief executive title.
Benchmark invested in Uber six years ago, when the ride-hailing service was a minnow. Bill Gurley, a Benchmark partner, joined the company's board at the time. Benchmark's then-20 percent stake in Uber has now ballooned into one worth of billions of dollars.
For years, the relationship between Mr. Kalanick and Mr. Gurley — and by extension Benchmark — was close. But that changed this year when Uber was plunged into a series of scandals. Among other things, the company faced claims that its workplace included sexual harassment, and it was sued by Google's sister company, Waymo, for stolen trade secrets over self-driving cars. Mr. Gurley distanced himself from Mr. Kalanick, and Benchmark eventually allied itself with other concerned Uber investors to push Mr. Kalanick out.
Benchmark currently owns a 13 percent stake in Uber, and Mr. Kalanick has a 10 percent chunk, according to the suit. Even so, Mr. Kalanick has significant clout over the company.
That's partly because of a move he made in June 2016, which the suit hones in on. At the time, Mr. Kalanick got Benchmark to approve an amendment to the company's charter that gave him the right to nominate three new directors to add to Uber's eight-member board. According to the suit, Benchmark would never have agreed to the move had it known of Mr. Kalanick's "gross mismanagement and other misconduct at Uber."
Yet Mr. Kalanick deliberately hid the problems at Uber, Benchmark claimed in the suit, and therefore he obtained the rights over the three new board seats fraudulently.
After Mr. Kalanick stepped down in June, he also left the board seat that is designated for the chief executive, the suit said. Mr. Kalanick then immediately reappointed himself to one of the three new board seats that he controlled through the 2016 amendment. He has since refused to give up control of the other two board seats, according to the suit.
In public, the board said there was a détente. "We look forward to continuing to serve with him on the board," said the board about Mr. Kalanick in a statement at the time.
But his continued attachment to Uber has taken a toll, the suit said. For weeks, Mr. Kalanick has privately been waging a war against those who pushed for his dismissal, according to current and former Uber employees. And that has interfered with Uber's chief executive search and other situations, including a possible investment from Japanese conglomerate SoftBank.
Last month, many of Uber's board members were excited about one prospective candidate for chief executive, Meg Whitman, who is the chief executive of Hewlett Packard Enterprise. But Mr. Kalanick was not part of that group and had his own preferred candidates. Ms. Whitman eventually posted on Twitter that "Uber's C.E.O. will not be Meg Whitman."
In the suit, Benchmark said it was seeking a judgment that the 2016 amendment to Uber's corporate charter should be voided, and asked for an injunction to stop Mr. Kalanick from participating in Uber board matters.
"Kalanick's improper actions, if allowed to continue, would cause irreparable harm to Uber by exposing it to reputational, regulatory and other risks," Benchmark said in the suit.
Mr. Kalanick, for his part, may have anticipated that this day would eventually come. In a YouTube video dated June 16, 2011, he spoke to a group of young entrepreneurs about his experience helping to create a start-up.
In bold, black lettering splayed across a PowerPoint slide behind Mr. Kalanick was the following phrase: "V.C.s tend to kill founding C.E.O.s."
"There are forces all around you to take you out," Mr. Kalanick said in his presentation.


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Yoshi's Story (Nintendo 64) review
"It says a lot when, after a few replays, I am able to beat Yoshis Story in under a half hour, without taking any damage whatsoever. "
Community review by Suskie (February 19, 2009)
Mike Suskie is a freelance writer who has contributed to GamesRadar and has a blog. He can usually be found on Twitter at @MikeSuskie.
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Greetings! I´m ShadowHaken, and welcome to another article where I'll be talking about the latest anime/manga that I´m reading or watching.
Disclaimer: English is not my native language, so I apologize in advance for anything that is badly written or completely incomprehensible.
You can watch this and other animes on Crunchyroll
Fuuka is the sequel of the Manga "Suzuka" which centers on Yuu Haruna, a shut in boy who loves twitter and by some circumstances he gets to know Fuuka Akitsuki, a girl who alongside her will embark on a musical journey.
Chapter 01:Fuuka!
The Chapter starts with Yuu, a normal and boring teenagers who appears has a smartphone attached to his hand and an avid Twitter user, so much that basically he is an open book if one read his feed; in any case he has finally come to Tokyo and it´s just going to grab dinner, he puts his face away just for a moment since that new artist Koyuki Hinashi has a new song; suddenly until he hears some running steps and the voice of a female telling him to get out of the way.
Yuu turns around his head and he looks a light-blue haired girl who is about to fall above him… And so she does, various Cds come out of the girl´s bag. Yuu Ask her if she is Ok, then he sees something that a pervert would say it´s wonderful… A pure white panties; Yuu quickly turns around while he blushes, the girl, angry gets up and says that he must have taken a picture of her, violently she grabs Yuu´s phone and smash it to the ground only to second after she gives a big slaps to Yuu´s face making him fall to the ground. The girl grabs her things except for a Cd and leaves.
Little did Yuu know that this "Unfortunate" accident would be the first meeting with this girl, Fuuka Akitsuki, a girl who will turn his world upside down and would make show him a new path for her, himself and much other people.
Later Yuu has finally reached his house and he is greeted by 2 of his 3 Sisters, who tells him that he is late and they already know what happened since Yuu tweets about everything and anything that happens to him.
In the dinner room the third Sister tells them that their Parents have reached America safely. In that moment we get to know that Yuu and his little Sister lived with their Parents in the countryside until their Dad got promoted and had to move to the United States and since according to his Mom he was unable to live alone, both of them moved to such country. So it was the decision of the family that both Yuu and his little Sister move out to Tokyo where their big Sis lives.
Also we get to know that in the next day Yuu will go to enter his papers in the School. At the same time that the most popular singer at the moment is none other than Koyuki Hinashi, who was a childhood friend of Yuu, so much that they even had nicknames for each other, nicknames like: "Tama-Chan" for Koyuki and "Nico-Kun" for Yuu. In any case all of that is ancient history now and their paths has been long separate since so many years ago.
The Next day Yuu goes to the School and enter his papers, everything is in order so tomorrow he will start his first day in there. In any case Yuu wanted to ask if the teacher knew a girl who would go on life throwing people´s phones and slapping people, since he has the Cd that she forgot. Continuing, Yuu goes to the roof and starts taking pictures since the scenery is very nice and commenting on twitter, suddenly he turns around and sees that weird girl and he tooks a picture.
The girl, hears the sound and she blushes since for her it seems that Yuu is again taking pictures of panties! The pervert! She goes down and ask for the phone since she want to look if he has a picture of her. Yuu denies such thing and says that he was just taking photos of the place! The girl, whose name is Fuuka, says that if he has nothing to hide then he has nothing to fear! But Yuu says that he has personal info on this! Ina ny case the struggle ends when the cellphone falls to the ground. Yuu then goes running in order to grab it since technically this isn´t his phone; but rather a loan from the repair shop!
In the search for the cell phone Fuuka joins him and tells him that she is going to find out if Yuu has been taking pervy photos, and if that´s the case she will hit him. In any case Yuu tells her to use her cell phone and call him in order to hear it; but his petition is denied because…
She doesn´t have a cell phone, yeah that is weird… Fuuka says that she prefers to use her time hearing music rather than being in twitter or searching whatever on the internet; still Yuu says that with a cellphone one can hear music too; but Fuuka just says that she has a Discman for that! And talking about Cds, Yuu gives her the Cd she lost and he says that he wasn´t taking photos that time and continues his search, he didn´t found the cell phone BTW.
In the evening Yuu reaches his house and founds that his 3 sisters are in undies or naked… In any case he decides to ignore such thing and goes to his room and he doesn´t know what to do since his cell phone was not only a tool; but the way he entertained himself. In any case he remembers Fuuka and says that she is weird indeed.
The next day Yuu realizes that he is in the same classroom as Fuuka, after that everything went normal and after class he was getting ready to go home, until he sees that weird Fuuka girl being harassed by weird dude who wanted to accompany him to someplace… At first Yuu didn´t wanted to intervene; but then he decides to enter in action and runs towards them.
He reaches the place all tired and with the need of breathing really hard, still he tells the guy to let her go since it is obvious she doesn´t want to AND this is a School, not a place to be hitting on girls!
The guy looks at Yuu and then laughs since this is a misunderstanding, he wasn´t trying to seduce her or anything! He just wanted that Fuuka joined the Track field club! Since she is the daughter of the Silver Medal winning athlete Yamato Akitsuki and the Track field athlete Suzuka, a thoroughbred, so she has track field on her veins! Still Fuuka just doesn´t want to join such club! After realizing that, Yuu gets red as a tomato and runs covering his face.
After such fiasco where Yuu tried to look good; but just ended looking like a dork our Main character is regretting everything and feels like dying of embarrassment. In any case Fuuka comes to him and gives him the cell phone since after all Yuu gave her the disc.
Also she presents with him, she is, as you know, Akitsuki Fuuka. The next day, Yuu is in the roof looking at some movie tickets that his Sis gave it to him, it´s for the movie "Half & Half" which BTW it´s based on another manga of the same author (Seo). In any case Fuuka was also in there and she looks at the tickets and gets all excited since her favorite artist Koyuki Hinashi sings the main theme for the movie! She says she likes the" hedghehogs" band too; but since they have been on hiatus since forever Koyuki has trump them in her ranking!
In any case since Koyuki sing the theme she feels like she has to see the movie and since Yuu has 2 tickets then… they should go and see it together.
And so the day came and Yuu is awaiting in Shibuya for Fuuka´s arrival they have agreed to met in front of the Hachiko statue (for more info watch the Harrison ford movie :P) and well, Fuuka is taking her sweet time to come, or so he believes since in front of such statue and unable to our main character to see, his girl is already awaiting for him and she is thinking that he is taking his time to come.
In any case Yuu´s followers are saying that he is on a date, Yuu, yo dawg! Continuing he decides to check in front of the statue while at the same time Fuuka decides to check the back of the statue and no luck for both of them.
Yuu then remembers that he doesn´t know quite well the city so it might be the case that there are more than 1 Hachiko statue and decides to look her in such hypothetical place, at the same time Fuuka gets up to a railing and she yells Yuu´s name asking where he is, making that Yuu gets a run around and run for where Fuuka is waiting for her!
Now it´s movie time and they are making the line to enter; in the line well… A little more pink and it would be a love nest for the other moviegoers/couples who wants to see this romantic movie.
In that moment Fuuka has a proposal to Yuu…
To pretend being her boyfriend for a while, Yuu all surprised asked why is that?! And Fuuka tells him that the couples will receive some limited edition straps and she wants them. In any case in order to look like a couple what should they do? Be embraced all lovey-dovey? No! That´s too much, then… Holding hands. Yuu hesitates still and barely touches Fuuka´s hand, until she makes him grabs all the hand and both are blushed, Yuu is relieved by seeing that he is not the only one whose heart is pounding like crazy.
A movie and some Alpaca straps later Fuuka is saying that she had lots of fun and that the main theme made by Koyuki was amazing! Although Fuuka hasn´t said anything about the movie, in any case she gives to Yuu one of the straps since thanks to him she got one. Yuu says that is not necessary; but Fuuka incist and he grabs one, although it is not like if they are a couple and—
Fuuka says that they don´t know that yet! In any case she had lots of fun on this date with him! Yuu blushes and see how she goes.
The credits roll; but it´s not the end!
Yuu receives a PM in twitter, someone is asking him if they remember? That person obviously is…
End of the Chapter
Chapter 02: Take Flight!
The chapter starts with Fuuka who is talking with their parents in the phone, Her Mom, Suzuka, ask her about her studies and she says that…uh… She is doing ok? In any case she got asked again to join the track team; but she doesn´t want that.
In her parents' house both Yamato and Suzuka (featuring Fuuka´s Sibling) are talking about that and Yamato is Ok that Fuuka doesn´t go to the track team, even though when she was little he gift her a lot of equipment. Back in Fuuka´s house she is hearing music and trying to erase or calm certain feeling of uneasiness.
In the School Yuu is reading again the message, such message comes from "Tama-Chan" know as everybody else as the ultra popular pop Idol/Singer Koyuki Hinashi, Yuu hasn´t answered yet and he doesn´t know what to say to her. In any case while he is walking he sees Fuuka who is looking at the window while she is hearing music. She turns around and Yuu can see how there are tears in Fuuka´s eyes, she is crying. She starts running and Yuu looks at the window, a hot blonde guy was int here… Maybe she was crying for him?
Later in the class Yuu is thinking about what he sought and it seems that chick´s magnet , who responds by the name of Mikasa, is very popular and maybe Fuuka has feelings for him; but he does not, and maybe it is because of that the reason she was crying.
Also… Maybe this is a new love triangle… The eyes of these two [not really] alpha males crosses for a second, suddenly the teacher enters and she says that she needs the attention of the "going home club members" since she has something for them…
Which is cleaning the pool and the people wit no clubs: AKA Yuu, Fuuka and Mikasa have to do it. Yuu wanted to talk with Fuuka about what he sough and everything… In any case the cleaning starts and Yuu can see how well Fuuka and Mikasa get along, also that Fuuka is living in an apartment building of a relative of hers, also that she is very good cleaning.
In any case for Yuu this work is impossible since it is too much.
Fuuka then tells Yuu that she will show him how it´s done until she slips and falls on her buttocks, then Yuu can see Fuuka´s panties…Again. Especially because since her skirt is wet they are visible.
Mikasa tells her that and she goes to change, not before interrogate a little with Yuu regarding his sightings.
While Fuuka is changing Mikasa and Yuu start talking and it seems that indeed both Fuuka and Mikasa gets really well. And Yuu just wants to tell him to consider Fuuka´s feelings, since it is so obvious that she is drooling for him!
Anyway, after some time the pool is clean and Mikasa goes to left the things, Yuu takes the opportunity and asks Fuuka about her relationship with Mikasa. It is obvious she is in love with him; but he flirts with every girl so she must be suffering!...And…And… And all of that!
Fuuka laughs and says that Mikasa and her are only friends especially because… Mikasa enters the conversation and says his big not so well guarded secret:
He is not interested in Girls, which means he is homosexual, if that wasn´t clear enough. Yuu is impressed for that revelation and it looked he was at the verge to act as Seinfield and friends in that chapter, saying "Not that there is anything wrong with that" after every sentence.
Anyway, Fuuka and Yuu are walking home and Yuu ask her then why she was crying? Fuuka then remembers and says that it must have been because of the new Koyuki´s song which is very good; but also very sad, it is about a girl who misses so much the person she loves, Yuu should hear it, it will make him cry!
In any case besides the fact that Yuu jumps at conclusions very often, there it is indeed something that bothers Fuuka, she still doesn´t know what it is; but everything she tries to do(including Track field) doesn´t feel right for her… Still she is glad that Yuu worried for her well being, that means he is a very kind person.
Later Koyuki was hearing some Hedgehog´s song and suddenly a PM came from her twitter account, it is from Yuu…Or "Nico-Kun" he tells "Tama-Chan" that he is glad to be in contact with her even though they haven´t seen in ages, also that she appears in Tv so much that he and his sister have sought her in there, that she is a very good singer; so much that even a friend of his cried while listening to his music!
After reading the message, Koyuki is very glad that her "Nico-Kun" answered her.
The next day in P.E. one can see that Fuuka is truly athletic and very good at sports, so much that Nachi-Sempai (the guy who was bugging her to join in the track field team) yells at her saying that she should join, which she denies!...Also the teacher comes and punishes the upper grade student.
Yuu, whow as looking at the scene, says that it was like if Fuuka had wings, Mikasa then enters and says some poetic things about how Fuuka is a bird and she is in a cage and how Yuu is the key holder to let the bird set free and fly high… Needless to say, Yuu didn´t understood a word that Mikasa said.
After PE Fuuka invites Yuu to do something this Saturday, so he better not have any other plans!
Later that day Koyuki is looking nervous at her phone and she decides to grab him, for her face it is obvious that her heart is pounding a lot. She makes the call and "Nico-Kun" answers, they make a little talk and suddenly "Tama-Chan" is able to hear a weird conversation between Yuu and his Sisters (where one was in undies again… Not like I am complaining or anything).
After such intervention Koyuki has calmed and says that it is good that he and his sisters haven´t changed at all. In any case the message is that Koyuki is inviting Yuu to assist to her concert this Saturday in the Budoukan, the same stage where the Hedgehogs played some time ago.
…Still Yuu says that he can´t go since he already made plans with a friend, he is very sorry; but he will go to the next one for sure! Koyuki says that it is Ok, non problemo amigou!… Err anyway, before leaving she asks "Nico-Kun" if it´s Ok if she can call to this number from time to time… As friends, really!
Yuu says that it is Ok. The phone call ends and Koyuki acts like a total maiden in love.
And so the Saturday comes and Yuu goes to the location where Fuuka will be waiting for him. And it is the Budoukan, they are going to see Koyuki Hinashi´s concert! Fuuka explains him that she planned to come with a familiar of hers; but she had to cancel, so as substitute and in reward for taking her to the movies, she choose Yuu! (get it?).
In the back stage of the Budoukan, Koyuki is talking to someone of her staff about how nervous she is, her crush she had and how some (if not most) of the songs are about him, and all.
Back with Fuuka and Yuu, our Main character have decided to tell "Tama-Chan" about this as a surprise later, In the night.
The lights goes off and the people gets hyped. The light bars illuminate the place, in the backstage Koyuki remembers the memories she had with her very dear childhood friend Yuu, the only person she has ever fallen for and the reason why she become a singer.
The lights in the scenery turns on and Koyuki appears in front of the crowd, making the public goes crazy with excitement. She looks at this universe filled with shinning light bars and in the first lines she is able to see it, it was Him… "Nico-Kun" has come to see her!
The concert starts and Koyuki gives her all with her song! Yuu is happy that her friend "Tama-Chan" has made her dream a reality.
The concert ends and both Yuu and Fuuka goes back home, Fuuka says that there was something different in Koyuki´s voice this time, she says that most of her songs, especially the sad ones, feel like blue; but this time the color it was yellow, like if she was in truth happy this time around… Maybe because it was a live concert.
Yuu ask Fuuka what is she talking about? Music and colors? Fuuka then sings a little; by hearing her voice, Yuu was amazed at how talented Fuuka is, so much that he even compliments her about that! Fuuka says that she is not so great; although thanks for the compliment.
Then Yuu says that maybe Fuuka haves what it takes to be a musician… Fuuka then just says her good bye and leaves.
Later that night Yuu is talking with Koyuki and he is saying how great her concert was, she is truly good! Also that it ended up that the plan with his friend was the concert, so he didn´t knew either. After hearing such words Koyuki starts crying in happiness, since that special someone for her thinks that she is amazing.
Meanwhile Fuuka is taking a bath and thinking about what Yuu told her… She has made her choice.
The next day, after School, Fuuka drags Yuu to a shrine a place where both her Mom and Dad made a wish and something awesome happened after that, that´s why she wants to make a wish with him. She gives Yuu a coin and both of them pray in order to make Fuuka´s dream to become a reality.
In that moment, Yuu remembered the words of Mikasa, and it seems that his actions has opened this birdcage and this bird called Fuuka now can fly freely, and now in his eyes he can almost see some wings in Fuuka´s back, now that she knows what she wants to do, and that thing is…
The Credits roll; but it´s not the end!
Fuuka, Yuu and Mikasa are talking with the teacher, they will form a band!
End of the Chapter.
My Impressions
<<<I´m Sick of being bored
I don´t have more time to lose
I´m going in search of a dream>>>
-Nada que perder (Nothing to lose) from Mana.
Well, we started with a good and solid first 2 chapters! As a matter of fact the time went flying while I was watching it, and it even was good paced so even if they cut off some material from the manga, still the history is being cohesive enough to keep you motivated and , at the very least in my case, I didn´t felt too exhausted after watching these 2 chapters, so in truth this is a very good start for this series.
Now talking about the characters in particular, in the case of Fuuka she is really likeable and adorable, in truth the anime has focused more on her charms and not so much on her annoyances that she has as a character, thing that it sort of make sense regarding to what is coming since she is front and center, motivation and everything for this story.
In the case of Koyuki Hinashi… I like her; but before going into more details with her I will say this: the "Childhood friend who you haven´t see in a life time and is in love with you since forever" (yes that was long :P) is a little annoying, I´m not only talking about Koyuki; but for other girls like Serena in Pokémon and such, where even if they are amazing characters and even ship them sometimes… Still the fact that someone that you haven´t been able to surpass a childhood crush it is kinda silly or even a little sad since it makes me think on either how lonely they are since they didn´t knew another people or how bad was their life when they got separate; but oh well, I already ventilated so time too talk about this girl here.
Koyuki Hinashi, she is nice and well in the case of the anime a certain aura of sadness is surrounding her, like some part of me wants to ship her; but no… Other part no, anyway, I like her voice and she is cute anyway.
Now with Yuu-Kun He is cool, not so much of the image of a looser like how he is reflected in the manga, still his traits are recognizable and that is good enough, at the very least for me.
Finally some of the songs are catchy especially the opening, which grew on me after hearing it like 3 or 4 times; oh and "Fuuka" is pronounces as "huuka" or something like that :P
Anyway, my two cents. See Ya Next Time!


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WIREs Computational Statistics
Statistical computing with R: selecting the right tool for the job—R Commander or something else?
Journal Article
- Author(s): Jason Wilson
- Article first published online: 22 Aug 2012
- DOI: 10.1002/wics.1228
- Read on Online Library
- Subscribe to Journal
R Commander (Rcmdr) is one of the most popular graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for R. Why is R Commander so popular? What does it do? When should R Commander be used? When should it not be used? What are the alternatives to R Commander? What can be said about using R Commander, or an alternative, to teach introductory statistics courses? The answers to these questions form the sections of the paper. Included is a Box describing many of the alternative R GUIs (RExcel, Deducer, Rattle, and RKWard) and interactive development environments (IDEs—RStudio, REvolution, and RKWard). Advice is given to help the user 'select the right tool for the job'. WIREs Comput Stat 2012, 4:518–526. doi: 10.1002/wics.1228


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Eric Holder, the worst Attorney General in American history, was held to the fire over Operation Fast & Furious, while gun-grabbing liberal Democrats like the Brooklyn ambulance chaser Upchuck Schumer tried to cover for Holder's corruption...blaming (you guessed it) Bush!
The scumbag Holder did not even apologize to the family of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry, who was killed with one of the guns linked to Fast & Furious (Opposing Views).
Sen. Cornyn asked Holder whether he had apologized to the family of Agent Terry, but Holder said that he hadn't even spoken to the family. Sen. Cornyn then gave Holder the opportunity to apologize to the Terry family on the spot, but Holder declined. "I certainly regret what happened to Agent Brian Terry," Holder managed to say. But further demonstrating the Obama Administration's refusal to take responsibility for any wrongdoing, Holder added, "It is not fair, however, to assume that the mistakes that happened in Fast and Furious directly led to the death of Agent Terry."
Agent Terry's family responded to Holder (ABC15.com)
....The fact of the matter is that the men who killed Brian Terry were armed with brand new military grade assault weapons and ammunition. The weapons were allowed to be purchased with the full approval of ATF and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Arizona; both agencies falling under the control of the Attorney General.
Now common sense would dictate that law enforcement should never let guns walk; yet, ATF let guns walk. Common sense would dictate that law enforcement should never allow guns to be delivered to dangerous criminals; yet, ATF allowed weapons to flow to members of certain Mexican drug cartels.
Common sense would dictate that every effort should be made to interdict guns before they can be delivered to the criminal element; yet, ATF chose not to interdict those guns. Common sense would dictate that only bad things can happen when dangerous criminals are allowed to purchase military grade assault weapons; yet, ATF ignored that risk. This was Operation Fast and Furious and it defied common sense.
President Obama has spoken often about the need for transparency in our government. Furthermore, the President, when referring to Operation Fast and Furious, has said, "People who screwed up will be held accountable." Well, we know who screwed up: they were ATF supervisors in the Phoenix Field Office who thought up and initiated this plan, ATF Headquarters executives who allowed it to continue, and officials in the Department of Justice who didn't put a stop to it when they had the opportunity.
Operation Fast and Furious and the way that DOJ and ATF have handled both the actual investigation and its aftermath are excellent examples of the precise need for transparency and accountability.
The Attorney General has said that he did not know about the flawed tactics being used by ATF in Operation Fast and Furious; if this is true and he did not know, then he should have known. After all, he is the Attorney General of the United States and the head of the Department of Justice under which ATF belongs.
Mr. Holder needs to own Operation Fast and Furious. In the end, Mr. Holder may chose not to apologize to the Terry family for the role that ATF and DOJ played in the death of Brian Terry, but the Attorney General should accept responsibility immediately. It is without question, the right thing to do.
Showing the leadership this nation and the Republican Party needs in their 2012 nominee, Sarah Palin wrote that Holder should be fired.
Fast and Furious isn't just your typical government incompetence. This is a deadly tragedy. U.S. border agent Brian Terry was gunned down with weapons connected to Holder's debacle. At least 200 Mexican citizens were also killed by criminals using Fast and Furious weapons. We can only imagine how many more people will be murdered by criminals our government armed.
When an agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives blew the whistle on this operation, the DOJ leaked sensitive information about him to the press. This week, the former U.S. Attorney for Arizona, who was ousted in the wake of the scandal, admitted to being the leaker.
And where is President Obama's Attorney General Eric Holder in all of this? When did he first know about the operation? In his testimony to the House Oversight Committee on May 3, 2011, Holder stated, "I probably heard about Fast and Furious for the first time over the last few weeks." But the DOJ's own documents prove that Holder had been receiving briefings on Fast and Furious for nearly a year before that date. In other words, our government's top law enforcement official, Eric Holder, lied to the American public. He finally admitted this week to the Senate Judiciary Committee, "In my testimony before the House committee [on May 3], I did say a few weeks. I probably could have said a couple of months. What I said about a few weeks was inaccurate based on what happened."
When the nation's highest law enforcement official lies to the American people, he must go.
And if he claims that he didn't lie, then how else do we explain this situation? He's either lying or he's so grossly incompetent and lazy that he didn't read important life and death briefings from his deputy attorney general and didn't know about this deadly operation run by people under him. So, which is it? Incompetent, lazy, or lying? No matter which explanation fits, he needs to go.
I stand with the members of Congress who are calling for Holder's resignation. I stand with the family members of Brian Terry who are demanding transparency and accountability. Mr. President, where do you stand?
As of tonight, 38 House members are calling for Holder's resignation. Hell, he should be imprisoned.
South Carolina has come under assault again by the Obama Regime, for passing a law to stop illegal immigration, (letting new Democrat voters into America). Earlier, the National Labor Relations Board attacked the state because Boeing was building a plant there. Reason? South Carolina is non-union. That didn't make Obama's thuggish union goons happy. Now, documents show NLRB members were gloating about "destroying the economy" (Nice Deb).
Judicial Watch, having issued an FOIA request, last July, finally received the documents from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) concerning the NLRB's decision to file a lawsuit against Seattle-based Boeing for opening a $750 million non-union assembly plant in North Charleston, South Carolina, to manufacture its Dreamliner plane (Judicial Watch v. National Labor Relations Board (No. 11-1470)).
Washington, DC — November 9, 2011
Among the highlights:
•On April 22, 2011, Acting NLRB General Counsel Lafe Solomon sent an email to Wilma Liebman, outgoing Chairwoman of the NLRB, "The article gave me a new idea. You go to geneva [Switzerland] and I get a job with airbus [French company]. We screwed up the us economy and now we can tackle europe." Solomon's comment was in response to an article published in French on the European Planet Labor website noting the devastating potential economic impact on South Carolina if the plant were to be scuttled: "Two billion dollars were invested in Charleston, 1,000 employees were recruited, and the site was supposed to open in July… until the NLRB meddled in."
•On April 22, 2011, NLRB attorney Debra Willen received an email, in which Republican Sen. James DeMint of South Carolina is ridiculed as "Sen. Dement."
•On May 12, 2011, NLRB Deputy Assistant General Counsel Joseph Baniszewski emailed a political cartoon to Deputy Assistant General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo mocking the state of South Carolina with regard to Boeing Corporation's decision to locate its manufacturing facility in that state.
"We screwed up the economy" That would make a great campaign ad against Obama in 2012.
Then there's the newest Obama scandal, the bankruptcy of taxpayer funded Solyndra. The White House has ignored a House subpoena, but e-mails show that an Obama donor petitioned the Regime for the money for the failed company.
And Obama wants higher taxes? Why? So he can give it to his political allies as rewards while the rest of us have to do with less?
No wonder the media is looking for other distractions to cover.


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Tell a story with this beautiful necklace that features five carved, antique jade (c. 1900) stones. The jade hangs from a 24", 14K gold necklace and is sure to be a conversation starter the next time you wear it!
For more than a 100 years, The American Cancer Society has been leading the fight to end cancer. With your support, we have helped usher in an era where more people survive cancer than ever before. By translating our research findings into action, we've seen a 20% decline in US ca cancer death rates since the early 1990s.
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The first weekend in May heralds the start of the garden fair season throughout France. We always make a visit to the fete at La Brande, Fouleix which is about thirty minutes drive from here at Le Banquet.
The Jardins de la Brande is a specialist shrub nursery which hosts this two day plant fair in beautiful surroundings known as the woodland gardens of 'Hortus and Sylve'.
With a huge selection of plants from over forty specialist 'producteurs', together with artisans, artists and crafts people Les Printanières de la Brande is one of the most interesting places to spend a weekend in the glorious May sunshine!


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The Beelers Tell the Stories Behind their New Album "You're Loved"
The Beelers are a family trio based in Union County, Tennessee. Members include siblings Cory, Robin, & Tina. "You're Loved" is the trio's third album to be released. Previously, they have had released two records on their own: "Common Ground" and "Follow the Road." "You're Loved" is the Beelers' debut Skyland Records, a subsidiary of Crossroads Records. With the support of a major label, the quality of the album shines in terms of the A-list of songwriters including Lee Black, Kenna West, Rebecca J. Peck, Jason Cox, and many others. And with producer Roger Talley on the helm, the sound is impeccable, crisp, and spot-on.
Q: Thank you for doing this interview with us. Tell us a little bit about yourselves.
We are The Beelers, a trio of siblings. My brother, Cory is 35 years old and is an ordained evangelist. He's a better preacher than singer, but don't say I said that! ha! My sister, Tina who is a few years older, usually serves as the referee for Cory and myself. We asked the audience from the stage, do you believe in miracles? and tell them we are a miracle, for not having killed each other from traveling the country together for the past 8 years! ha! we have learned thru our experiences on the road, we all have big personalities and each of us are always right :)
On a serious note, the man who owned Praise 96.3 in Seymour, TN heard Cory preaching and singing at one of their events and just approached him and asked if he'd be interested in meeting one of his friends in Nashville and possibly doing this for a living. Well, that has been Cory's dream forever. He wants to preach/sing to a stadium full of people. So they arranged for him to meet Beckie Simmons and her husband, Glen Bates at Lee Greenwood's place in Sevierville on the eve of Black Friday 2009.
Our Mother died at 48 years old with colon cancer and my sister and I have assumed the role of his Mother and are protective over him. Cory was also born triplets (3 little boys). One baby didn't make it through delivery and our other little brother had an aneurysm when he was 5 years old and died. Our home was so sad. And now Cory is the only one left. We say he has the talents of three! As he can do almost anything. He can play almost every instrument, yet none of us can read music!
So we go with him to Sevierville that night (only for support, we were on our way of town to Nashville for the biggest shopping day of the season) and after he plays the piano and sings a couple for her. Beckie tells him..."you're too contemporary...you need parts/harmony". So Cory kindly offered us and said "my sisters can sing." We go down to meet with them, thinking we were just going to say goodbye and thanking them for their time (mind you, Mr. Chris White was also standing right there beside them) and they asked us to sing. We refused! As this was not in my plans! the thought of traveling and singing did not entice me in the least, nor my sister!
So after they keep begging, we sing one song...the rest is the beginning of the story of the past 8 years. we were in Beckie's living room within 3 days listening to songs to record. We have had many doors open for us and meeting some of the greatest people that's ever stepped on the earth throughout this experience. We have been on TBN with Jason Crabb as our host (who humorously pointed out how funny it is when God manipulates your steps...when you think you're going shopping, but wound up forming a group that night).
We have been on Daystar in Texas, hosted by Guy Penrod. We were on the roster for Dollywood for 6 consecutive years. Now, fast forward to last year. We just started feeling like maybe we were to the end of the journey, thinking maybe God had other plans for us. We received a call from a friend in GA who asked us to "fill in" for a group that got sick. It was an annual event to benefit the Shriners and he was in a panic. Our dad is a Shriner, so we agreed.
Knowing full well, we weren't getting paid, our hotel, gas,etc. would come from us, but it was for the Shriners and they were down a group. So we all agreed we would go...expecting absolutely nothing in return (I think God likes that). And that's the evening we met Roger Talley. The Talleys were the featured group. Our sound was terrible! so many things went wrong that night! But we noticed Roger standing at our table while we were on stage and the second we came off the stage, he approached us. I personally thought he was going to tell us we needed to find another job and that we were an embarrassment to the industry. But he was so kind and compassionate. He said we "inspired him" on stage. That made us so happy.
We instantly felt a connection to him and felt a friendship blossom. After about 2 months of meeting him, we received a letter from him. He said "I don't know what God has in store for your family, I just know I want to be a part of it". That just about killed us. So we met up with him for supper and the rest is history. another little tidbit is that my husband, Steve who owns a successful pool company here in Knoxville, is our manager and actually owns The Beelers. He does it all, he's the soundman, the money person, the IT person who runs the website, the booker of events, the keeper of the dates, etc. I never would've believed that my husband who is so backward and shy can dress up like a million bucks and shake hands with everyone saying "Hi, I'm Steve with The Beelers" its a beautiful sight!
Q: How did you get to work with the people at Skyland/Crossroads for the release of "You're Loved?"
Although we feel there's some irony in the fact that after we sang for Beckie and Glen that night in Sevierville, Chris White handed us a card and told us to call him sometime. But we came to Crossroads/Skylande through Roger because that's who he uses. They've treated us like family!
Q: Did you approach the making of "You're Loved" any different compared to your previous two albums?
The different approach on You're Loved vs anything we've done in the past is that Roger came to my house and brought us songs to listen to and let them "speak to us" giving us the privilege to choose our own songs. That is so very important to us. It's hard enough to sing the songs 10,000 times at 10,000 places, much less them not really appealing to you in the first place. So that's the advantage we have with these new 12 songs. They already live in our spirits. We would sing them at the White House!
Q: On this record you have Roger Talley on the helm. What was it like working with him?
Each of us has referred to our summer and working with THE Roger Talley and Crossroads as a "vacation". He is so mild and easy to get along with. When you have siblings like us, it doesn't take much to pick a fight, ha! Roger has become the missing piece to The Beelers. We went to eat one day and all rode together, after laying a few tracks and Cory drove, I said "Cory! Roger barely has room to get out of his door, you parked too close to the other car"...Roger just kindly spoke up in his sweet voice and said "Robin, Cory parked his car perfectly, I have just enough room to get out" HA! He is a pure joy. From start to finish, he made this transition easy and comfortable. He is now a Beeler :)
Q: One of the standout tracks is "Those Memories of You (Ringing of the Hammer)" which is a re-writing of Alan O'Bryant's "Those Memories of You," which was a Top 5 hit for the Trio (Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt & Emmylou Harris). Tell us the story behind this song.
There is definitely a story behind "Ringing of the Hammer". That song was very popular around 1987, the year my little brother died. My Mother was 38 years old when he died and she was never the same afterwards. She would smile and be kind, but it was like her world turned "gray". Every time that song would come on the radio (and back then you were at the mercy of the radio and what they played, not like an MP3 or Pandora today) she would just light up! she would make everyone be quiet and she would listen with her hands over her face! it was so sad but on the other hand, it seemed to make her happy to grieve when that song came on, like she was giving him reverence. It was a beautiful thing.
So when that song went off the charts and started to die, my Dad put Godly lyrics with it and started singing it at church. There was a local group here in Knoxville called The Joyful Sounds. This was 3 ladies, two of which are my aunts (Dad's sisters). They took off with "Ringing of the Hammer" here in Knoxville and on the Mulls Singing Convention but never knew how to go about getting rights/permission to sing it and record it, so it died down.
When Roger was coming to the house and bringing songs, he said "We really need one more. Can y'all think of anything that we could do? We really just need one more". So I just spoke up and said what about "Ringing of the Hammer" ? We, the Beelers, have never sung that song in our lives. And we were just sitting in front of the fireplace and started singing it, the parts fell perfectly into place and was one of the easiest songs we've ever sung in our lives! Roger said "I'll take that". It was so sweet and it thrilled our hearts.
We still didn't know how to go about getting permission, but Roger said just leave that to Jeff Collins and Greg Bentley. We saved that track for last just in case we didn't get permission and the day was lingering on and getting late and Greg came flying through the door with the fax in his hand, saying that said "sure!" We were elated! Timing means so much to us. We felt that was a God thing and to us, that musical track stands out more than any of the others to me. There is so much history with that little tune, it's deep in our souls and like a raging fire. Can't wait to share with the world!
Q: In my review of "You're Loved," I raved about the ballads. What were looking for in a song when you were choosing songs for this record?
Well as for the ballads and what we're looing for is something that speaks to us. The words have to have meaning and depth. Each of these songs that Roger brought to us, spoke to us. We immediately said "yes" to the ones that were chosen.
There's a little story behind "Heaven Knows" (which is where we got the title "You're Loved").Before Roger, a couple of guys had approached us (Ken Harding and Michael Sykes) saying they'd heard about us and wanted to meet and talk. We had met with them a few times and actually had chosen a song from them called "Heaven Knows" by Kenna West. One thing after another happened with that intervention. Either we couldn't agree on songs, or we couldn't agree on this, that or the other. They are both fabulous guys and we still have a great relationship with them but just chose to do differently.
After meeting Roger, we were sitting at The Chop House in Sevierville and I thought to myself...if Roger can still get me that song (which spoke to my heart in a mighty way AND I normally don't like to lead songs) but if we can still record that song that was brought to us by Ken Harding...Then I will know this is the right road we're on and we're doing what God wants us to do. So I just spoke up and asked him, "what are the chances of us getting one of the songs they brought to us" he asked what was the title and who was the writer. I told him and he just picked up his phone and sent Kenna West a text. She immediately responded with "Absolutely and I'm honored they remembered the song"...so there you have it...that birthed the song "Heaven Knows" which gave us our title "You're Loved".
Q: How do you wish this record would impact the lives of our listeners for the cause of Christ's kingdom?
Our goal is to lift heavy hearts and remind people to be encouraged. Life can get so hard. I'm reminded of our home when our little brother died, or a few years later, when our Mother died and Cory was only 15 years old. During that time, we would've taken any type of encouragement. A smile, a handshake, a hug and definitely a song. We learned through the past 8 years none of this is about US. This has never been my plan. I get stage fright, I get nervous feeling like people are judging me and like I'm taking an upper hand to the crowd.
But a sweet little lady named Lauren Talley came to my house in the past few months and shared some of her heart with me. She explained that in a dying world, where people are hurting, depressed, sad, angry, overwhelmed that they just need to be encouraged. They don't care if you have on pretty earrings or if your shoes match! This is the work of the Lord that he's entrusted you with, now go help him! Greatest advice I've ever received as a singer. Seems like my worries have subsided since. I just get up there and do my best. We just want to do our part and remind the world that thru the good Lord, there's a better day.
Tags : roger talley the beelers the beelers interview the beelers you're loved album review the beelers news
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Come and help us get our church home ready for the Advent and Christmas seasons!
This fun and festive family-friendly event has been designed to allow people of all ages to come and have fun and play a role in getting our church ready for the holidays!
There will be dinner starting at 5 p.m. – so come from school, errands, or work as your schedule allows, and gather around the table with your family and our church family. We will then spread out around the church to decorate every nook and cranny – there are jobs for children, grown-ups, and everyone in between!
We'll end the evening all together in the sanctuary, singing favorite Christmas carols and enjoying a few seasonal movie clips and more.
Please come and join us – and invite friends and neighbors… this event is open to everyone and A LOT of fun! It's a great way to get the church ready for Advent while getting yourself into the spirit of the season, too!
PLEASE NOTE: We DO need a count to order food AND to ensure that we have the numbers to make the event happen – so PLEASE RSVP to this event by calling the church office at 978-922-3295!


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TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - House of Representatives (DPR) deputy speaker Fahri Hamzah expressed support for President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's intention to construct a presidential state palace in Papua as it reflects a revolutionized mentality and maritime axis.
"It is very important to have a physical presence in Papua. An establishment of a palace in Papua is a great physical symbolism," said Fahri at the parliamentary complex on Tuesday.
The House deputy maintains that he had long pitched the idea and would definitely agree if the Capital City of Indonesia is moved to the land of Papua. He also said that Indonesia must get used to the Asia-Pacific tradition as Papua is one of the significant areas in the Pacific.
"This means that the largest island in the Pacific other than Australia is Papua," said Fahri Hamzah.
Fahri also suggests for the government to re-establish the operations of Biak airport and expand the regions within the vast land of Papua. He said that there should be at least six provinces and a number of districts.
"Let's not talk about the population but rather about the number of people and the vastness of the territory. We are obliged to make that island a prosperous one," said Fahri.