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France's Emerald Coast, or Cote d'Emeraude, stretches along the northern shores of Brittany, between Cap Frehel in the west and close to Mont-Saint-Michel in the east. The granite coastline is jagged and rocky, creating dramatic and picturesque landscapes set against a backdrop of beautiful emerald green and turquoise blue waters. It is best to visit the area between June and September, when the weather is warm and the beaches are sunny and inviting. The charming towns and historic fishing villages throughout the Emerald Coast are enticing, and there is a lot to see, do and eat, from the walled port city of Saint-Malo to the medieval town of Dinan, along the coastal town of Dinard to the fishing village of Cancale and the majestic peninsula of Cap Frehel with its striking cliffs and lighthouses overlooking the sea.
It's no surprise that seafood is abundant along the Cote d'Emeraude. Cancale, in particular, is known as the oyster capital of France. In addition to seafood, the area is known for other specialties. Below are some highlights of what and where to eat and drink along the Emerald Coast in France.
Seafood Platter in Cancale
If you're looking for fresh seafood and a lot of it, make a beeline for Cancale and walk along the port. Cruise by the myriad seafood restaurants and browse their daily catches, then take your pick. You won't be disappointed when your gigantic seafood platter arrives, piled with seasonal delights such as crabs, langoustines, pink and gray shrimp, whelks, clams and oysters. Pair with a beautiful bottle of French wine and you're set for the afternoon.
The Oyster Stands of Cancale
Cancale is the French oyster capital, and the seafood stands of Cancale are an oyster lover's dream come true. A stroll along the beach leads you to the edge of the port, where a treasure trove of oyster stands await your arrival. The oysters beds are located in the Port de la Houle along the harbor just a few feet away, and the selection varies from the common Crassostrea gigas to the larger, rare, flat-shelled pied de cheval huitre. Pick your poison and the oysters are freshly shucked for you to enjoy on a plate by the beach. Depending on which oysters you choose, you will be instructed to eat them with either a fresh squeeze of lemon or with nothing at all. Make sure to try the very rare pied de cheval oysters that are native to the region. These are collected in the sea and not farmed, and some are between 10 and 20 years old. These oysters have a very distinct light, nutty flavor. Once you're done with your oyster feast, simply throw the shells over the wall, where they will join the thousands of other oyster shells on the beach, basking in the sun by the sea. Port de la Houle, 35260 Cancale, France
Maison Hector Gaufrerie and Sandwicherie
Maison Hector is a fun, vibrant diner that serves sandwiches, crepes, gaufrettes, beignets, soft serve and more. Everything is made to order, and everything can be filled or topped with various additions such as nutella, soft serve and whipped cream. I went for a hot, fluffy beignet filled with strawberry and vanilla soft serve, topped with powdered sugar, and it may have been one of the most exciting moments of my life. 9 rue Porcon de la Barbinais Intra-Muros, 35400 Saint-Malo; 02 99 40 99 18; maisonhector.com
Le Coquillage
Michelin-starred chef Olivier Roellinger's Le Coquillage is located in a majestic chateau in Saint-Méloir-des-Ondes, and the food is just as beautiful and romantic as the setting. Chef Roellinger received three Michelin stars at his former restaurant and renounced them in 2008. He then opened Le Coquillage, which has earned one Michelin star and focuses on perfectly seasoned fresh seafood dishes inspired by the cuisine of Brittany and Normandy (Roellinger is famous for his spices and seasonings). The massive cheese and dessert carts filled with aged cheeses and decadent French sweets are an excellent bonus at the end of an already stellar meal. Reservations are recommended, and you can also choose to reserve a room in the chateau, making it the perfect getaway. Le Buot, 35260 Saint-Méloir-des-Ondes, France; +33 2 99 89 25 25; maisons-de-bricourt.com
Le Zag
Le Zag is located in Dinan, a charming, medieval riverfront city in Brittany, and is the perfect spot to have a glass of wine and a delicious pizza when visiting the ancient city. Located along the banks of the Rance River on the port, the terrace has beautiful viewsm and the menu is comforting yet innovative. Chef Olivier Gousset creates authentic Italian pizzas and risotto with a French twist. I recommend the pizza with sardines, caramelized leeks, olives, tomatoes and mozzarella. Save room for dessert, too — the ice cream topped with meringue and macarons is pretty insane. 7 Rue du Port, 22100 Dinan, France; +33 2 96 80 55 84; restaurant-le-zag-dinan.com
Le Sanchez in Dinan
Le Sanchez is a famous artisanal ice cream shop in Brittany with an amazing range of flavors and an extensive menu. Skip the lines at Le Sanchez's flagship location in Saint-Malo — lines can stretch over two blocks in the summer! — and head to its quieter sister location in Dinan. The selection may be smaller, but the place still carries Sanchez's signature ice cream and sorbet flavors, sundaes, parfaits, profiteroles, banana splits, and crepes. I love the yogurt ice cream with marbled red fruit sauce, red fruit and crumble, as well as the lemon ice cream with marbled lemon cream, meringue and crumble. It's so delicious that I wanted to have a second ice cream right after I finished my first cone. 2 Rue de l'École, 22100 Dinan, France; +33 2 96 39 81 01; facebook.com/Le-Sanchez-Dinan
Bordier Creamery
Jean-Yves Bordier is the guy to know for all things butter and cheese. He hails from an extensive family of cheesemongers and ages his cheeses in seven natural reconstituted cellars. Bordier started his butter empire in 1985 in Saint Malo after he acquired La Maison du Beurre, which was founded in 1927. Utilizing a traditional 19th-century method, he has refined his technique to create soft, balanced and flavorful butters. This shop is an all-in-one butter haven, fromagerie, charcuterie, wine shop and museum. In addition to the classic sweet and salted churned butters, flavors include smoked salt, herb and Szechuan pepper, Madagascar vanilla, yuzu and seaweed. Make sure to stop by and pick up some delicious butter from Bordier Creamery while you're in town. And then spread it all over everything you own. 9 rue de l'Orme, 35400 Saint Malo Intra Muros, France; +332 99 40 88 79; lebeurrebordier.com
Maison Georges Larnicol
Kouign-amann is a classic French pastry from the Brittany region. It is rich and dense and hints at what it would be like if a flaky, delicious croissant got really drunk on butter and sugar and then baked itself to a caramelized golden perfection. I prefer the kouign-amann from Maison George Larnicol, which come in a variety of flavors, such as classic, pistachio, raspberry, rum raisin, salted butter caramel, chocolate and more. I stick with the classic usually, but it's always fun to try other flavors, too. 6 Rue Saint-Vincent, 35400 Saint-Malo, France; +33 2 99 40 57 62; chocolaterielarnicol.fr
Le Comptoir Breizh Café
The buckwheat galette is a specialty of Saint Malo, and Le Comptoir Breizh Café is known for its innovative French-meets-Japanese galettes and crêpes. After opening crêperies in Tokyo with much success, Breton-born chef Bertrand Larcher and his wife decided to open locations in France as well, beginning in Paris. Inspired by Japanese sake bars with a Zen ambience, they opened the minimal and sleek Le Comptoir Breizh Café in Saint-Malo, their 11th location. Guests sit along a wooden counter facing the open kitchen, where chefs masterfully create crispy thin galettes and crepes to order. Ingredients are seasonal, and the menu changes regularly. Options can include galettes filled with smoked herring and Saint-Malo potatoes; smoked salmon with ikura, crème fraiche and dill; French ham, spinach, sunny-side up egg and cheese; and egg, Andouille sausage, cheese and asparagus. Breizh Café also offers more than 60 artisanal varieties of cider, the traditional beverage typically served with galettes. Stop by Le Comptoir Breizh Café for a fun take on the galette, and have a decadent crepe topped with poached pears, salted butter caramel and whipped cream for dessert, too. 6 Rue Orme, 35400 Saint-Malo, France; +33 2 99 56 96 08; breizhcafe.com
La Belle Époque
La Belle Époque is not your typical bar. On one side, there is your standard bar/pub set up, with a selection of beer, wine, vodka, whiskey, gins and mixers, but what makes La Belle Époque really special and fun is the rum bar on the other side of the room. This small three-seat bar serves house-infused rum libations strong enough for any sailor. In the summers, the floors are covered in sand, and the whole town hangs out here — high schoolers, college kids, adults and tourists — it's the place to be for a boozy night out. 11 rue de Dinan, Saint-Malo, France; 02 99 40 82 23; facebook.com/La-Belle-Epoque-Saint-Malo
Le Riff Magnétique
Le Riff Magnétique is a great dive bar centered around rock music. There is usually a DJ spinning vinyl from the 1950s, '60s and '70s, and the room gets packed with a fun, hip crowd. The venue also hosts concerts, and a there is a wide array of art and posters on the walls, including one of my personal faves, the album cover to singer-songwriter Daniel Johnston's Hi, How Are You? It's like the East Side of Austin, Texas, meets Saint-Malo, France. 20 Rue de la Herse, 35400 Saint-Malo, France; +33 2 99 40 85 70; leriffmagnetique.com


text: Official USSF announcement today. Orlando City Stadium. ...wait for it....wait for it.......there will be a lottery. TICKET LOTTERY Information regarding ticket availability to the general public will be announced in the near future. Due to the anticipated high demand for and limited supply of tickets to the match, U.S. Soccer will use a lottery system to allocate tickets among those who apply. The process will ensure that those interested have a fair opportunity to attend the game. Certain groups will have a greater chance in the lottery process compared to the general public. U.S. Soccer Members as of June. 1, 2017, and others in the U.S. Soccer community will have their applications included in an early lottery selection phase prior to the inclusion of those applications from the general public. If you are not already a U.S. Soccer Member, click here to join now. Circle members of the U.S. Soccer Development Fund receive Group A Priority Access to the ticket lottery. Coaches Circle and Presidents Circle members can enjoy individual customer support and concierge services for their ticketing needs. Individual households or places of business will have the opportunity to request a maximum of four tickets and to apply only once. Following the completion of the application phase, a computer program will randomly select those who are to receive tickets. The successful applicants will be notified and their transaction will be completed

subset: commoncrawl


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Held the 15 in November of 2013, to the 19:00 hours, at ETSI computing. Campus Miguel Delibes, Valladolid.
The program was as follows:
- Opening of the Act by the Sr. Rector
- Greeting from the Director of the school
- Intervention carried out by members of the first class of studies in computer science
- Delivery of distinctive to new graduates
- Mention to students with the graduation award
- Imposition of scholarships to the students of the 1st promotion in computer science
- Brief musical performance by the "Piccolo" choir under the direction of D. Ramiro Real


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Church History
In 1807 Pastor Daniel Cooke founded the Knockconny Baptist Church in the townland of Knockconny near Ballygawley. From small beginnings God has blessed the work of faithful Pastors and members. As men and women have been graciously saved by God the numbers have increased. One notable Pastor was Matthew Simpson. Between 1884 and 1897 Pastor Simpson pastored Knockconny and Mullycar despite being blind. On Sunday he regularly spoke in other churches as well as these two churches. He became widely known as a extremely gifted preacher, orator and poet. During the early 1900's the church remained small and at one point even seemed like closing. However God used men like Pastors RJ Clendining, A Lyttle, W Beattie and J. Smyth. Pastor Jim Smyth was the longest serving Pastor in the Knockconny(19 years). It was during his time that the new Knockconny Church was built on the Dungannon Road by the Church members. The building was completed and opened in September 1961 bringing the Knockconny name to the new site. In 1982 a hall was added to the church during the Pastorate of Pastor Freddie McClauglin. Pastors Mervyn Darragh, Mark Patterson, and Colin Cooper faithfully served God in Knockconny until November 2014. Colin now works with Northern Region Ministries and is currently ministering in Craigavon Baptist Church. We praise God for what he has done and what he is continuing to do while we are actively seeking to find a pastor. The stones and bricks of any church are the generations of ordinary men and women, whom God has saved by faith, the cement is God's grace, saving and sustaining every believer; the foundation is Jesus Christ, 'the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.' (John 1v29).
To receive a copy of 'A Work in Progress', a book on the history of Knockconny Church, please fill in the form below
The book is free but any donations will go to Baptist Missions.


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Go to the About the Faculty section
Go to the Research section
Go to the Departments section
Go to the News section
Go to the Events section
Go to the Virtual tour section
Go to the Contacts section
This event has now finished. Please see our events website for details of upcoming events at Brookes.
307, John Henry Brookes Building, Headington Campus, Gipsy Lane site
Medical experts and agnotology in the fume controversy of the Huelva copper mines (1888-1890) with speaker Dr Ximo Guillem-Llobat, IHMC López Piñero, Universitat de València, Spain
Tea will be available from 4:15pm. Seminars will conclude by 6pm.Directions to the campus can be found at /about-brookes/contacts-maps-and-campuses/
For further information please email Dr Cassie Watson, email@example.com
Our websites use cookies (session, persistent, third party, advertising and performance) so they function correctly, to help us improve them and for targeted advertising. To find out more and learn how to disable these cookies, please see our cookies policy.


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The majority of the fruit for this special bottling comes from the Shifflet Vineyard on the sloping benchlands of the Oak Knoll AVA. The influence of cool breezes from the San Francisco Bay fosters rich, yet bright, Merlot flavors. To enhance the wine's structure, a small percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon from Missimer Vineyard in the Stags Leap District contributed additional structure and tannin. Cold soaking the destemmed grapes accentuated the wine's fruitiness, while barrel aging married oak spices with Merlot's dark berry flavors.
Appellation: Oak Knoll, Stags Leap District
Barrel Aging: 22 Months, 100% French Oak (50% New)
Varietal Composition: 96% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Sauvignon
Production: 304 cases
Our 2015 Barrel Select Merlot was chosen from our finest barrels of the vintage---ones that showed extraordinary sense of place, as well as exceptional texture and balance.This Merlot's aromas reveal dark, rustic black cherry, black currant and blackberry fruit notes with hints of dark chocolate, wild sage and violet. The focused entry expands on the palate into sumptuous, darker fruit flavors of blackberry and black plum alongside warmer nuances of vanilla, allspice, kola nut and black pepper, all influences from aging in French oak barrels. Supple tannins and vibrant acidity beautifully frame the flavors and carry them through on the long more bitter espresso-like finish. Only 304 cases were produced and they are available exclusively at the winery.
Our winemakers tasted every single barrel to select ones that capture the distinctive array of flavors and plush mouthfeel that Merlot develops in the cooler, southern regions of Napa Valley. They selected the majority of the fruit from Shifflet Vineyard on the sloping benchlands of the Oak Knoll AVA. This region has a cooling influence from the San Francisco Bay and well-drained soils, which slow the ripening of Merlot for full flavor maturity and supple tannins. To enhance the wine's structure, a small percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon from Missimer Vineyard in the Stags Leap District contributed additional structure and tannin.
Although in 2015 we received three-quarters of our normal rainfall, the cumulative effect of four years of drought in Napa Valley resulted in a light crop. Fortunately, the vintage made up for the small quantity by yielding outstanding grape quality. The small clusters and dry, warm conditions promoted an early, condensed harvest that kept us hopping. At Provenance, we began the harvest picking Sauvignon Blanc on August 8 and wrapped up the vintage with Cabernet Sauvignon by October 12. The wines of 2015 are known for their highly concentrated, complex flavors.


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Fistral Beach Hotel and Spa
Tel: +44 01637 852221
Fax: +44 01637 872988
This accommodation does not have any available rooms
Guide Prices
- Number of Rooms / Units
- 44
|Room / Unit Type
|Room / Unit Tariff*
|Best Double/Twin B&B
|£120.00 per room (breakfast included)
|Best Double/Twin RO
|£100.00 per room (room only)
|Economy Double RO
|£70.00 per room (room only)
|Econony Double B&B
|£80.00 per room (breakfast included)
|Luxury Suite B&B
|£250.00 per room (breakfast included)
|Luxury Suite RO
|£200.00 per room (room only)
|Sea View Double Room/Twin B&B
|£100.00 per room (breakfast included)
|Sea View Double/Twin Room RO
|£90.00 per room (room only)
|Standard Double/Twin B&B
|£90.00 per room (breakfast included)
|Standard Double/Twin RO
|£80.00 per room (room only)
*As a guide, prices are per room per night for hotels, guest houses, B&Bs and serviced apartments and per week for self-catering accommodation.
Note: Prices are a guide only and may change on a daily basis.
Re-opens 4th July 2020.
It's reassuring that many of you are looking to the future and planning your visit to Fistral Beach Hotel soon. Don't forget that whilst our hotel may be closed, our Reservations team are open for business, albeit at home. For more information please see our latest statement regarding COVID-19. CLICK HERE
Welcome to the Fistral Beach Hotel and Spa, exclusively for adults, with its stunning sea views, laid back luxury and contemporary beach style. The magnificent location on one of Cornwall's finest beaches makes the Fistral Beach Hotel and Spa an excellent setting to check in and chill out.
Every room is beautifully designed with modern, coastal chic interiors and well-appointed furniture to deliver a light, airy ambiance. Many of the bedrooms offer unrivalled views over Fistral Beach and all are equipped with the latest technology, with flat screen televisions and wireless internet access as standard. And for those looking for that something even more special, ask about the unforgettable Rockstar suite!
Dune Restaurant enjoys an excellent reputation for delicious cuisine, with elegant décor and a laid back atmosphere. Not to mention its unbeatable views!
Fistral Beach Hotel and Spa is also home to Fistral Spa, one of the finest spas in the South West. Created to provide an environment where guests can escape from everyday stresses and reconnect with their senses, Fistral Spa boasts nine luxurious treatment rooms offering ESPA treatments, a hair salon, spacious relaxation room, state-of-the-art fitness suite, swimming pool, sauna, steam room and hot tub.
Gin Tasting at Fistral Beach Hotel and Spa
At the Bay Bar in Newquay we offer a wide range of Gins and are proud to serve the best in local Gin distilling.
Order your Fistral Gin Experience and you will receive six different Cornish Gins, all mixed with different flavours and served with delicious nibbles that complement each and every flavour. Along with a Gin map, showcasing the origins of each Gin and our chosen flavour pairings.
Our Gin Experience costs £30 with nibbles, or £20 without.
Order at the Bay Bar, sit back, relax, watch the waves roll in and experience a true taste of Cornwall.
For more information, please visit www.fistralbeachhotel.co.uk or call 01637 852221.
Map & Directions
Road Directions
Travel south on A30 until A39 exit (Signed Newquay/St Dennis/Indian Queens) at Highgate Hill Roundabout take 3rd exit onto A39. At next roundabout take 2nd exit (signed Newquay A392) continue along the A392 through Quintrell Downs roundabout (2nd exit) and straight over Morrisons roundabout to Trevemper roundabout (at the bottom of the hill) take 2nd exit (signed Newquay A392) then at next roundabout (Trenance Boating Lake) take first exit (Gannel Link Road) continue until next roundabout turn left onto Pentire Road. Take second right into Esplanade Road. We are on the left hand side overlooking Fistral Beach POST CODE: TR7 1PT Bay Hotel & Fistral Spa
Public Transport Directions
Getting to Newquay has never been easier. Travel by Bus, Coach, Plane or Train we now have outstanding transport links which make Cornwall accessible from all corners of the globe. Please copy this link into your browser for more information; http://www.visitnewquay.org/travel-newquay/getting-here.php
- Free Wi-Fi available
- Additional meal details
- Bar
- Cater for vegetarians
- Half board supplement (£)
- Local Produce English Breakfast
- Restaurant
- Room service
- Serve breakfast
- Serve evening meal
- Serve lunch
Establishment Features
- Accept coach parties
- Available for wedding receptions
- Beach within 2km
- Business facilities (eg. Fax/ modem)
- Cater for groups
- Cater for individuals
- Central heating throughout
- Conference facilities
- Electric Car charging point
- Event venue
- Exclusive Use
- Free car parking
- Gym and Leisure facilities
- Hot Tub/Spa Bath
- Ironing facilities
- Licenced for alcohol
- Licenced for civil marriages
- Lift
- Near coastal path
- Night porter
- Non smoking areas
- On-site parking or valet parking
- Open All Year
- Public telephone
- Regular evening entertainment
- Restaurant
- Sea Views
- Separate guests' lounge
- Spa and Treatment Room
- Spa Facilities
- Staff fluent in foreign languages ** (List of languages are separately given)
- Swimming Pool
- Wireless Broadband Internet Access
Key Features
- Non smoking establishment - All public areas are non-smoking
- Romantic
- Seafront - On the clifftops overlooking Fistral Beach
Leisure Facilities
- Gym
- Health/Fitness/ Beauty Facilities
- Hot Tub
- Indoor pool
- Sauna
- Spa bath
- Spa Treatments
- Swimming pool
- Water sports facilities
Parking & Transport
- Car parking
- Off site parking
- On site parking
Payment Methods
- Accept Bank Transfers, Internet Payment or SWIFT/IBAN
- All major credit cards accepted
- Delta accepted
- Maestro accepted
- MasterCard accepted
- Solo accepted
- Special group rates
- Visa accepted
Room / Unit Features
- Colour television in all bedrooms
- Colour Television in all units
- Digital TV
- Free View TV
- Free Wi-Fi
- Ground Floor Bedrooms Available
- Hairdryer in all bedrooms
- Non smoking rooms available
- Non smoking rooms available
- Radio in all bedrooms
- Tea & coffee making facilities in all bedrooms
- Telephone in all bedrooms
- TV in all bedrooms
- WiFi
Specialist Features
- Aim to attract conferences and business meetings
- Christmas/New Year Programme
- Honeymoon Breaks
- Marketed as green/environmentally friendly
- Marketed to any other specialist market
- Mobile Phone Reception
- Special provisions for lone female travellers
Travel & Trade
- Commission/net rates apply
- Free accommodation for coach driver
- Group discounts available
- Packed lunches available
- Room/unit allocations available
- Wi-fi available
Venue Facilities
- Area for musician/band
- Beach adajacent for photography
- Catering available in house
- Champagne breakfast available
- Choice of marriage rooms
- Dedicated wedding planner
- Garden/grounds available for photography
- Hair/Beauty salon at venue
- Overnight accommodation available
- Range of drinks packages
- Red carpet welcome
- Reduced rates for guests staying overnight
- Sea views available for photography
- Special rates for small/midweek weddings
- 4 Visit England Stars Hotel
Opening Times
|Open Christmas
|Open New Year
|2020: Re-open 4th July (4 July 2020 - 31 Dec 2020)
* Please visit their website for the new conditions & procedures for booking. Non-residents are always welcome at the hotel, year round.


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Birthday Shopping – Goodies from Whole Foods (Except for the Sorbet)
So all but one of these goodies were bought at my local Whole Foods Market. The first photo is of Citrus Roasted Potatoes and Sweet & Sour "Meat" (seitan, basically). That was ready made right there in the store, although it was cold when I tasted it at the store, so I heated all of it up in the microwave when I got home. The potatoes weren't as good as the Alexia potatoes that I like, just so so. The Sweet & Sour "Meat" however was very good, but had this weird spicy aftertaste effect. I couldn't eat it all at once, because when stuff is too spicy and I eat it too quickly, my mouth will react to it as if I ate something I'm allergic to. So while I ate most of that, I had to give some to my mom. If I get more of that in the future, I'll only get small amounts of it (I got 1/4 lb of both dishes).
The Macaroni & Vegan Cheese by Candle Cafe (2nd and 3rd photos) was alright. The cheese sauce ingredients are basically the same as the ingredients in Daiya Cheddar Cheese, so I think that was probably shredded Daiya in there to begin with. I added some more when I heated it up in the microwave. Pretty expensive at $5.99, so I'd wait until it went on sale to get some more. I probably wouldn't get it very often, as I really don't eat a lot of pasta no matter what is on it or how it's fixed.
The Tofu Spinach Ravioli (bottom middle photo) was also by Candle Cafe and priced at $5.99. I haven't tried it yet. I'm saving it for lunch & dinner at work this week, but I might heat it up and sample it this evening when I fix Monday's lunch/dinner.
The Garden Lentil Salad… meh. I really don't like it much, so I'll have to blend that in with some other dishes or stick it in a sandwich or veggie burger stuff with other things.
The Whole Fruit Strawberry Sorbet was bought earlier in the week at another store. While it tastes exactly the same as the Strawberry sorbet I wrote about in this post, it's not as cheap. The store brand was $1.89 per pint, but it was limited edition and sold out sometime back in mid-March. So I have to get this stuff instead, which is $3.69. Ridiculous. But it's so good.
But yeah, those are my birthday goodies I bought (except the sorbet, which is a weekly goodie)…


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Haven't found anything yet?
The maritime and nautical wallpaper collection was inspired by the feeling from the New England coast. Natural elements such as wood planks or wood bark, brick or concrete, leather and fine lines are mapped to the non-woven wallpapers. Sun, wind and salt took effect on the appearance of the surface to from an honest used-look style.


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Ogio Men's On-Point Polos
Ogio Men's On-Point Short Sleeve Polos
The Ogio Men's On-Point Short Sleeve Polos features a very forward look for an all-around dapper appearance, and with technical fabric that offers an anti-microbial finish and moisture-wicking properties, you're sure to stay dry, and comfortable.
- Brand New. Factory Sealed. Still in Plastic with Tags.
- Mens Golf Wear
- Moisture-Wicking and Anti-Bacterial
- Right chest fashion pocket
- Stand and Stay Collar
- Four-button placket
- Material: 60% Cotton, 40% Polyester


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Be a Bulk Buyer
Hardware superstores are wonderful in that they carry a tremendous range of landscaping supplies to suit your needs at a moment's notice. But you will often pay a dear price for the convenience.
As evidence, you can evaluate prices for common products, such as mulch. Mulch is an incredibly basic and simple material, and it's easy to pick up a bag or two at a time when you're gathering supplies for your projects.
But those individual bags are enormously expensive when you stop to add up the numbers. Local landscaping companies often drop truckloads of the stuff right at your home (minus the fancy bags) for a much lower price. What's more, some cities give away mulch for free, so long as you have a vehicle to transport it.
The same logic applies to other landscaping items. That includes sand, gravel, straw, wood chips, and much more.


text: Within its neighborhoods, The Bronx holds countless stories. Not only does the northernmost borough serve as home to hallowed ground like Yankee Stadium and the famed New York Botanical Garden, but it's also yielded some of history's greatest narrators from Chazz Palminteri to Slick Rick. Don Q proudly adds to that tradition with his 2017 mixtape, Corner Stories [Highbridge The Label/Atlantic Records]. Threaded together by an interview with hip-hop tastemaker Rob Markman, its 12 songs place listeners into the heart of Don's own Highbridge neighborhood, witnessing moments of life on his come up unfold with the lucidity of A Bronx Tale and airtight rhymes that stand out as confessional and catchy. Without any traditional initial push, it quickly captivated press and listeners. Stereogum proclaimed him, "The New York rap hardass we need," while further praise arrived from Vibe, XXL, HotNewHipHop, and more. From the first bar, his authenticity separated him on Corner Stories."I didn't want it to be like a regular mixtape," he explains. "I wanted it to have the feel of an album, so the fans know that I'm capable of dropping a great project and not just a bunch of songs with rapping here and there. This is all real. Highbridge is a big neighborhood by Yankee Stadium. When we were young, it was fun. There were a lot of house parties. When you get older, shit just changes. People start dying or going to jail. Friends aren't friends anymore. I'm telling you about it. With Rob's narration, it was a special moment."It's also a moment that Don has been preparing for since grade school. After buying Jay-Z's classic Dynasty: Roc La Familia and studying "mixtape" era Lloyd Banks, Cassidy, and Fabolous, he would spend hours writing rhymes and preparing for impromptu rap battles throughout the neighborhood. He released one mixtape at 17 but kept relatively quiet, penning music intermittently until 2014."I didn't have any motivation to keep rapping," he admits. "I didn't have money to be in the studio. A lot of other shit was going on. I was still worried about school. I wasn't focused. In 2014, it sort of dawned me. I knew if I didn't make it rapping; my life was going to be fucked up. It was going to be a lot of illegal activity. I've got a daughter to take care of. I can't be risking my freedom. I knew this was the only way I could do something special, get my family out of the hood, and make my mama proud."He put his head down and got to work. In between fiery cameos on Meek Mill's DC4 and Dave East's "No Hook," he unleashed his proper mixtape debut Don Season in 2016 as well as the collaborative High Bridge The Label: The Takeover Vol. 1 with fellow label mate and longtime friend A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie. Along the way, he crafted what would become Corner Stories beginning with an idea back in 2014."I had the name," he recalls. "I remember I told everyone, 'I'm going to call it Corner Stories.' I'm going to share the story about the corner. That's what we're doing every day. That's our life."The first single "2 Perks" pairs an airy beat from Murda Beatz [Gucci Mane, French Montana] with Don's impenetrable flow. He comes out of the gate swinging with visual and visceral bars that practically explode on impact before the undeniable refrain."I was going crazy on that beat," he says. "I just went for it. It's a turn up song."Produced by Scott Storch, "Take Me Alive" [feat. Styles P & Jadakiss] bridges eras of East Coast rap. Styles P and Jadakiss volley back and forth with Don, igniting lyrical fireworks in the process. Elsewhere, "Chasing These Bands" [feat. PnB Rock & Fabolous] can make any club go up with its unforgettable hook. "I grew up listening to Fab," he adds. "It's unbelievable to have him on a song. It was lit."The journey climaxes on the title track "Corner Stories." At the beginning, Markman asks, "Certain tapes really take it to another level for an artist…does this feel like one of those for you?" Don's gruff delivery gives the only answer anyone needs…"That's a lyrical exercise letting everyone know I really do this," he continues. "Before we close this tape, I'm going to go hard. The interview made it even harder. It's got that whole good Don Corleone vibe."Ultimately, Don Q makes The Bronx proud with a project that sparks a career he's long worked towards. "I'd love to get people motivated," he leaves off. "The people who never came from anything can get it. I'd love it if my music helps somebody do what they've got to do or gets them through the day."


text:
Frequently Asked Questions
Table of Contents
How is a diamond made?
Diamonds are made from carbon using either a High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) or a Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) process.
Are these real diamonds?
D.NEA only sells real carbon diamonds with a hardness of 10. It is not a simulant (Cubic Zirconia, Moissanite, etc.) and has all the same properties as a mined diamond.
What is the difference between synthetic and simulant?
A synthetic diamond possesses all the same properties as a mined diamond. A simulant may look like a diamond, but does not possess all the same properties as a diamond. A synthetic diamond is also commonly known as a lab-grown diamond, lab-created diamond, man-made diamond or cultured diamond.
Why are blue and white more expensive than yellow?
The speed diamond crystals grow depends on helper elements inside the growth unit, that ultimately become part of the diamond and give the diamond its color. Nitrogen makes a diamond yellow and helps it grow the quickest. Boron makes a diamond blue, though it grows much slower than a yellow. The absence of helper elements greatly slows the growth of the white diamonds, making them grow the slowest of the colors. The length of time in the growth units impacts the price.
How do their prices compare to mined diamonds?
In general, fancy blues are about 1/10th the cost of a comparable mined blue, yellows are about 1/4th the cost of a comparable mined yellow and whites are about the same price.
How do you disclose diamonds as lab-grown, not mined?
All of our certified diamonds are laser inscribed and fully disclosed as lab-grown. Furthermore, there are various methods to distinguish the difference between mined and grown diamonds.
- Learn more about certificates and identification.
Where can I buy a synthetic diamond?
You can buy online, toll-free over the phone at 877.LAB.DIAMOND, mail, fax or in-person.
What sizes are available?
We offer yellow diamonds up to two carats, blue up to 1.25ct and white up to one carat. These are the upper limits; average and in-stock sizes will vary.
What color diamonds are available?
Diamonds can be grown in yellow, blue or white (colorless). Yellows can be further processed to create other colors.
Why are whites so hard to make?
White diamonds, though the most available in mined diamonds, are the most difficult to grow in a lab. The diamond must be grown with little to no nitrogen present in the resulting diamond. By limiting the amount of nitrogen, the carbon crystal growth is greatly slowed down. The longer the diamond in growing, the more prone it is to failure.
Can I request a particular color, size or shape?
You can special order a diamond as long as it is within the range we can consistently produce. We also have a waiting list for any criteria, and we will notify you once something becomes available.
Are pink diamonds and other colors available?
Pink, green, purple and other colors are available on request. These diamonds are grown as yellows, then treated to become other colors.
Can I buy a rough diamond?
We only offer polished diamonds, and do not sell any rough diamonds.
Do you offer jewelry to mount the diamonds into?
We have a wide selection of jewelry, from high-tech tension settings to eco-friendly classics as well as custom designs. Simply choose your loose diamond and pair it with your choice of jewelry. Regardless of how it is pictured, the jewelry can accommodate all colors and most shapes and sizes of our loose diamonds.
Can I have a custom made piece?
If you have a design you would like produced, we offer custom design services, and can produce your ideal piece of jewelry.
Do you have matched side stones or many melee sizes?
We have many diamonds available from 0.02cts and up in blue and yellow colors, with limited availability for whites. Matched pairs and suites are available for earrings, side stones and other jewelry.
Do you offer an eco-friendly metal?
All of our D.NEA jewelry is available in eco-friendly platinum, gold and silver.
What metal should I choose?
Each metal has it own advantages and drawbacks, and your choice is mainly a personal preference. We recommend platinum or 18kt gold for engagement rings.
What about metal allergies?
Some people have allergies to nickel, which is present in some gold alloys. Platinum group metals are hypoallergenic and offer an allergy-free solution. Our jewelry is nickel-free and should not irritate even the most sensitive skin.
Where does the diamond color come from?
During growth, other elements assist the growth of the carbon lattice. These elements become trapped in the diamond, giving it color. Yellow diamonds come from nitrogen and blue comes from boron.
Are the colors permanent?
All of our as-grown colors (yellow, blue, white) are stable and permanent and will never fade or change color. Treated colors such as pink and green are permanent and stable under day-to-day wear, though care should be taken when exposed to extreme temperatures such as a jewelers torch.
- Learn more about color and treated colors
Are the colors even? Why do some outsides look lighter?
Sometimes our photos give the appearance that the center of a diamond is more saturated in color than the outer edges. In our camera setup, the camera looks directly into the table facet, seeing the true color of the diamond. Due to their angles, the crown facets can pick up reflections from our lighting setup, making the edges appear lighter in our pictures. The color seen in the center of the diamond is the best representation of what the eye will see in-person and is even throughout the diamond.
What is color zoning?
An example of
color zoning
Do D.NEA diamonds exhibit fluorescence?
In most cases, no. Some yellow diamonds may exhibit weak fluorescence but, in general, neither our blues, whites nor yellows have fluorescence.
How are pink, green and other colors made?
Pink, purple, red, green and other colors are produced on request, though they are not our mainstream product. The color is the result of post-growth treatment; it is an induced color. The only way to create a pink is to grow a diamond with low nitrogen, then subject it to a combination of irradiation and heat treatment (annealing).
How do lab diamonds differ from irradiated mined diamonds?
Colors of D.NEA diamonds, namely, yellow and blue, are the same as corresponding colors of natural diamonds. They have the same nature, the same stability with time and when exposed to high temperatures, as with mined colored diamonds, are guaranteed to never fade or lose its color. Color of each D.NEA diamond is magnificent as-is, and needs no improvement.
Irradiation is used when it is necessary to improve color of unsightly brown or washed-out "cape" diamonds. However, colors of irradiated diamonds may fade or change when being set or when heated above 300 degrees Centigrade.
We do not speculate on which color is better, irradiated or natural–it's a matter of preference and taste. The main difference that exists between irradiated diamonds and as-grown D.NEA diamonds is stability of color. Colors of our diamonds are stable with time and when exposed to high temperatures.
At D.NEA, we can apply different color treatment methods to our diamonds in order to create additional colors–pink, purple, green, red–and currently do it only upon request, since color treated diamonds are not our mainstream product.
How to distinguish between mined and created diamonds?
Created diamonds are chemically, physically and optically identical to their mined counterparts. They are grown in a machine under very strict conditions, allowing for natural diamond growth. There are various methods available to identify it as lab-created rather than mined, including laser inscription, disclosure, inclusions and various equipment.
Can I make a diamond out of my carbon (e.g. ashes, hair)?
Diamonds are made out of carbon, and so are all forms of life (humans, pets, plants, etc.). The carbon used to grow our diamonds is purified and highly refined, though technically it is possible to grow a diamond from "contributed" carbon. It is not something we actively promote, though can evaluate on a case-by-case basis.
Can I become a retailer?
We do have a wholesale program available for qualified jewelry retailers. Please contact us for details.
Can I become a distributor in my country?
We currently sell to customers throughout the world. If you are a retailer or distributor and are interested in our colored diamonds, please contact us.


text:
How to Create "Gotta Have It!" with Dr. Mark Goulston
Posted by John Livesay in podcast0 comments
Episode Summary
Today's guest on The Successful Pitch is Dr. Mark Goulston who's written over seven books with great titles such as "Just Listen" and "Talking To Crazy." He said his whole intent is to heal the world one conversation at a time. I really love that. He said "When you talk with people, talk with them, not at them and not over them if you really want to have a successful pitch." One of the questions that we talk about is people are feeling when they hear your pitch is do I trust you not to hurt me? It's that whole fight or flight response that I talk about all the time. He's got a four-step process he's going to share on how to get people to say "I gotta have what you're pitching" and he really gives great insights on exactly what it takes to get people to connect with you when they not only feel like you've listened to them but as he describes you listen into them. Find out what that's all about. Enjoy the episode.
Listen To The Episode Here
How to Create "Gotta Have It!" with Dr. Mark Goulston
Hello and welcome to The Successful Pitch. Today I'm honored to have Dr. Mark Goulston who is the author of seven books. One of them is "Just Listen," which is a top seller and he's traveled around to India and Europe promoting it. Another book is called "Talking To Crazy" and that book was a finalist in the Audible Book Oscars and has been featured on Oprah.com and as if that's not enough, he's a former FBI hostage negotiator and most recently he has started doing a one man show where he channels Steve Jobs coming back from the grave to talk about what he did and ask questions that the audience might have. He's there to answer them. So, Mark, or should I say Steve, welcome to the show.
I'm so glad to be on, John. I was really looking forward to this and actually, right out of the gate, something, an insight that I would give people. The success of Steve Jobs, one of the main things he was able to do is he was what I'd call a first class noticer. And noticing is different than looking, watching and seeing. When you notice something, you're actually tuned into it.
So, I'm bringing that up because one of the things that I notice about you, John, and why you're effective and I think people who know you will say "That guy had you right." You talk with people. Too often people talk at us, over us or they talk to us in a way that's kind of intellectual but there's an inviting way in your tone and you talk with people and it's laced with a desire to be of service, to be helpful.
Also, what I pick up in your tone is, this guy I can trust to never hurt me and that's rare.
Well I really appreciate you saying that Mark. That means a lot, especially coming from you, which you're an expert in empathetic listening and people regard you as a people hacker. So you can cut right to what the issue is.
I do pride myself on making people feel safe when they're with me. I think it's the highest compliment I can give anybody is that I feel safe to be myself with you and if anybody ever says that back to me, that they feel safe that I would never hurt them, that is a huge compliment. Because when we have that empathy going on between two people, I think that's a key factor to communication and likability and if you've got that going on, then you can start a potential bus relationship but without it you're probably not going to be successful.
Source: Pexels
[Tweet "Talk with people not at or over them."]
Boy, is that true. You know, you just triggered something. I was fortunate to have six mentors, they all passed away and my last one was a fellow named Warren Bennis and anybody who knows anything about leadership will know that name. He was one of the pioneers in the leadership field. Some will say he invented it.
He was at USC, died a couple years ago. I remember about 10 years ago he was telling me about his 80th birthday celebration. He mentored Howard Schultz at Starbucks and David Gergen from CNN. He's advised four presidents and there's a charming and shy part of Warren. I remember he was telling me after that celebration, he said, "You know Mark, they made a big deal over me in Cambridge" and we were at a restaurant and he leaned in and he was looking to see if anyone was looking, and he said, "and you know, I liked it."
I said something, which I would say to you, and maybe this is something for listeners to consider. I said "Warren, what you don't realize, people don't just respect you, they love you. And the reason they love you is something that they pick up that I knew within 30 seconds of meeting you. And what I knew is that I could trust you to never hurt me."
So great.
And a lot of the people that you coach, or that you mentor, they can't say that. Howard Schultz at Starbucks can't say that about many people. That he can trust people to not hurt them.
And then Warren looked at me and he's kinda shy and he said "You know Mark, a lot of nice things have been said about me and I think people trust me to not hurt them is the third best thing I've ever heard and I can't remember one and two."
Even better. Oh, that's terrific.
I'm saying, people who are pitching, if in this day and age where everybody has their guard up. If people can trust you to not hurt them, you've got a leg up on the competition. And that's the leg up that you have, John, and that's why I actually wanted to pursue you after I heard your wonderful presentation recently.
Thank you Mark. Well I really feel that, that is the secret, isn't it? If you're pitching someone to buy something from you, you've got a product to service, an app, whatever it is, and they feel that you got your back, that you won't hurt them. You'll make them look good to their boss or whatever it is, if they buy from you, if something goes wrong you're going to be there to help them through it. That's a huge reason why they pick you.
If you're trying to get someone to join your team and they feel that you're never going to humiliate them or embarrass them in front of anybody, either inside or outside of the company. In that quote "You've got their back", they're going to be loyal.
Of course, if you're pitching to get funded, that's everything. An investor has to trust that you're going to make good use of their funds and not hurt them with how you spend their money and how you treat them.
Absolutely, I think that's all true. I think you said it in your presentation, and maybe I got the order wrong but, that people need to like you, trust you and then figure out how you can help them.
Did I get the order right or did I get it backwards?
Source: Pexels
[Tweet "Do I trust you not to hurt me?"]
Just a little backwards but I start with the gut. That's where I move up the body. So, I tell people it's a gut thing. They have to trust is a gut thing. Do I feel safe? Is the whole fight or flight response needs to kick in?
So, it starts at the gut and then it moves to the heart, which is the likability factor, and then the head. So that's the chakras if you will, that move up and down. So energy wise, I start with the gut, move up to the heart and then the head and that really is, I think if we can explain that to people in a way that they understand that and don't start from the head, they'll be way ahead of everyone else.
Let's talk about "Just Listen." I love the topic of listening. I'm fortunate enough to be friends with Elaine Gordon who co-authored a book with her husband, at the time, Tom Gordon, about parent effectiveness training, which then got translated into Leader Effectiveness Training and this whole concept of active listening that came about in the 60s, has always been a huge interest of mine. And you certainly are, you know, the expert traveling around the world.
So, my question to you, Mark, is what, if any, differences do you see in India and Europe versus here and how we listen?
Well, I think in America, and the world sees us this way, I think we're becoming more transactional. In fact, I think, relationships are really being challenged now because in order to relate you need to pause enough to listen and consider what the other person's saying.
And part of what I talk about in "Just Listen" is the difference between listening to someone and listening into them. And I'm going to demonstrate it with you. So, if I'm listening to you, you've asked me questions. You know, a substantive question, so, what do you think around the world, their view on listening. Do you think Americans listen better, worse than other places and I gave you kind of a substantive answer.
So, I'm listening to you but here's an example of my listening into you, and tell me if it's accurate. As I listen into you, I realize that this show is a calling for you. And it calls out to you and with that in mind, it's really important for you to give quickly, usable, actionable tips that people can use in their life today to make them more effective today.
It's really important also, to protect them from some of the gobbly gooks so that they can't use it today or use it ever. I'm guessing, you're also protective of your audience. So, every now and then you get and expert on and you think to yourself "This is unbroadcastable. I mean, this guy is a great academic but gee, I don't want to do this to my audience." And maybe out of respect you have to share it but I think you really care about bringing value to your audience.
Is any of that true?
All of it's true. 100%, you have definitely listened into me and I can share with the people listening to this podcast, what that feels like when someone doesn't just listen to your question.
Let me tell you, half the people don't listen to you, so that feels great to just have somebody hear the actual question. But the part where it really resonates with you and makes it feel like "Whoa, I'm really connected to this person." Is what you just did for me when you listened into me. And you put into words a feeling that I have not expressed in exactly that way. I will say I'm really passionate about hosting a podcast. I love hosting a podcast. It brings me great joy. It's one of the best decisions I've ever made. But I've never said it is a calling and when you said it I thought "That's absolutely true. It is a calling." I didn't even know it was a calling until I started it but I love that it feels like that to you.
And that certainly is what it feels like to me. And so that's 100% right on the money. So, the goal for my listeners hearing that information is, if you can figure out how to listen into somebody, you're going to not just have a connection on an intellectual level but an emotional level. And that's what pulls people in and wants them to know you better, spend time with you, do business with you. All of that, right?
Right. And I can't resist building on this little exchange. I didn't expect it to be so authentic but here we are. I've been talking around the country on how to create gotta have it.
So, what happened was about two or three years ago, I decided that I was tired of persuading anyone to do anything because a lot of what I taught, or what people needed, to listen better, to get out of their own way, I wrote two books on that, that did very well. But I had to persuade them but they didn't want it.
It's exhausting to persuade people to do things that they need that will make their life better but they don't want it. And so I decided, what do I do if I want to stop persuading them and I came up with this idea. If I could figure out what causes customers, clients, investors, or talent to think to themselves "I gotta buy that. I gotta have it" or "I gotta work there" or "I gotta invest there."
If I can figure out how to create gotta, you don't have to sell anyone on anything. And what happened is, I came up, this is how I got into Steve Jobs, is I came up with a four-step formula that results in gotta have it. And what happened is you went through the four steps when I listened into you.
Oh, yeah. And the four steps, that was just third step that you just mentioned. So, the four steps to creating gotta have it are whoa, W – H – O – A, wow, W – O – W, hmmm, H – M – M – M, yes. Whoa, wow, hmmm, yes. And then whoa is, I can't believe what I just saw, heard, read, or felt.
So, the whoa for you was, you know I was teeing myself up and you were thinking "Oh, I hope this guy doesn't make a fool out of himself thinking he can read my mind. Oh, he's listening into me, sure. I mean, I might be a nice guy, Mark, but you're about to go off a plank."
And then when I got it right the whoa was, I can't believe what I just heard and I never thought I was pursuing a calling, but I am. And the wow is, that's amazing, unbelievable. That's astonishing that you knew that about me. And that, when I asked you, what did that feel like? You laughed with delight because whoa, wow creates delight. And then the hmmm, which you're doing all over the place right now is, hmmm, this is too good not to use somewhere.
Maybe what I'll do is right a blog on my calling, you know. When you pitch, if it's a calling to be of service to your customers or investors, your pitch is going to be better.
So, I don't know what you're going to do with it but the hmmm is, you're thinking there's something to this. I'm not going to forget what we just talked about. And then the yes is, when you figure out how you're going to use it, you go to yourself "Sold." And when I'm playing Steve Jobs now, one of the biggest whoa, wow, hmmm, yes moments is, and I'll give you a taste, I'll morph into Steve Jobs –
Oh, yes.
– visiting Xerox Park. And so, so, in 1979 we went to Xerox Park. We got this invitation to see these three things they were working on. So, I go there with Woz and they showed me three things but I didn't even notice two of the things they showed me something, the windup computers or something about a different organization. I didn't even notice that stuff. I was blinded by the first thing they showed me and that was the graphical user interface with the mouse and the icons. It was just like watching Atari where I used to work at.
It was the best thing I'd ever seen in my life, hands down. And when I saw it and when I played with it and I felt it, I looked at Woz and he whispered in my ears "Once they go there, they're never going back the other way" and we both went "Hmmm, this is too good." And so it was a good deal that we allowed Xerox to buy a million dollars of our Apple stock for just showing us these three things. And then the yes was when we went back to Apple, they didn't give us the formula but we went back and we said "We're going to create something and we called that the Macintosh."
So, that was the whoa, wow, hmmm, yes. If you're not doing that with your products and services, I've been dead for five years so I feel for you but I'm looking at … in this day and age now, since I've died, if you're not creating whoa, wow, hmmm, yes, you're creating nah, never mind, no thanks, pass.
Wow, I can't help myself. I say "Wow" to that.
What you've done there, Mark, that is so powerful, is you've given us two examples. One is yourself and one is Steve Jobs, of a system, as you said before, the four steps of making people feel like I gotta have this. And you did it with me live and then you just did it with, what Steve Jobs did I in the past. And you've connected the dots for us of when you have whoa and wow happening you're creating delight.
And then emotion is so rare and so coveted that it's a magical formula. And of course, then I really love that you took and played the opposite of what happens when you don't have that formula, which is, you know, never mind, and all the other negative stuff that's the opposite of all the positive feelings that you want to elicit.
It's a true gift. I can see why people around the world have you coming and speaking to them about this. And my big question to you is, who do you think is going to channel you when you are no longer on this planet, many years from now hopefully?
Not my wife or children because, what's the saying "A Shoemaker's…" No, actually I love my wife and children but they don't even know what I do.
How funny.
Well, my dad was a workaholic. And he brought it home so one of the things I declared to myself is that I, even if I have work on my mind, once I'm home, I want my wife and my children to feel that they have a husband and a dad there. I think I've done a pretty good job but I could improve upon those areas.
Well, it's just sometimes people joke around like "Oh, if they were ever to make a movie of my life I'd want" I don't know "George Clooney to play me, or Brad Pitt." So, I just thought it's a fun question to tease you with of whose going to channel you 50 years from now. Because I think what you're saying is just as relevant and timeless as what Steve Jobs had to say and get left as a legacy.
Well, let's jump into this other book that I just love the title, "Talking To Crazy: How to Deal With Irrational and Impossible People in Your Life." I want to start the questioning with this book, what if talking to crazy is the self-talk we're talking? What if we go a little crazy sometimes with our irrational fears and thoughts?
Well, it's interesting because the two chapters in "Just Listen," which as I said, went on to become the top book on listening in the world. It's in 17 languages and there were two chapters that people were interested in. One was called, Steering Clear of Toxic People, this was in "Just Listen." And the other chapter was How To Go From OF to OK, let's call the F fudge.
And it's a chapter on how to calm yourself down when you're with people who drive you crazy. So, there was so much interest in that, that I created a whole book about "Talking To Crazy" about how to deal with people who drive you crazy and how to calm them down and calm yourself down.
They fit nicely together because "Just Listen" was a way of listening into people. So, when I listened into you, you opened up. "Talking To Crazy" takes it a step further. So you're not just listening into people, you're leaning into their, what you think is craziness, and you're disarming them.
So, I'm going to give a tip to people and this is going to be the best part of the interview I believe. Often when I give presentations, especially to entrepreneurs and business owners, it's kind of a throwaway and it's not so much of a throwaway, I'm thinking of making it the centerpiece, I say to people "How would you like to get through to people who don't want your advice or solutions and when you give your advice or solutions it seems to make the conversation worse?"
Of course, who doesn't want that and who hasn't experienced that, right? Everybody.
That's right. So, when I speak to CEO groups or I will tell you, speak about whoa, wow, hmmm, yes. Even if my talks going well, they all whip out a piece of paper and pencil when I'm about to say that.
And so, here's a way of listening into that. A lot of times we get in conflict, especially in our personal life because there's one person who processes information where they think and they do but they don't like to feel. When you press them for their feelings, they don't know what they're feeling. Many of these people tend to be left brained, analytical problem solvers but they stay away from feelings.
Then the F word is feelings. Don't make me talk about my feelings. And on the other end are people who feel and then do and they don't like to think. Now, it's not that they're thoughtless, it's that many of them have incredible intuition. Creatives are like this and I will tell you, someone whose incredibly intuitive and incredibly creative, I will trust their intuition over big data anytime.
In fact, one of the things that Steve Jobs prided himself on, he said this on many occasions. He said "We never had focus groups. I don't believe in focus groups." And part of it is, he was tuning into the future of people. So, he was very much tuned into what would a future in which consumers who think that technology is just for geeks and nerds and engineers, what would a future look like where they would love technology. And so he tuned into that.
I think that's so valuable on a lot of levels. One is when you have your pulse on the zeitgeist of what's going on and anticipating what people will want, my favorite definition of luxury is giving somebody something they want or need even before they know they want or need it. And that's what I think you're talking about here is anticipating a need. And if you were to rely on a focus group and test this out, people are like "Hmmm, I don't think I need an iPad" or whatever the new product is but he put a spin on it because he didn't let that … "Well you just don't know you need it yet because you haven't seen what this one does" for example.
So that is such an insightful way of not lighting the crazy take over. So, let's continue down that path of who do you calm people down or what's a tip that you have for calming yourself down when you get a little crazy.
Okay, so let me finish the anecdote because I'm going to save a few marriages tonight and there are some people listening who have been sleeping in the den for three nights and now they get to sleep back in the bed.
So, if you're a think-do person and when the other person seems to want the conversation to have more emotion in it, here's what you do. time you're in a conversation, you're a think-do person and you're with a feel-do person, you're going to utilize something called mediated catharsis. And that's a big, ugly word but what it means is you're going to mediate they're getting stuff off their chest safely that normally they couldn't say to you because if they did, it'd start a war.
So, there you are within a person who tends to process things in a feel-do manner and what you say to that person is, in the middle of an argument, or something like that, if you can pull yourself out of being emotionally shutdown, which is what happens to analytic types, you look your partner in the eye. And let's just call that partner, and I'm just making up a name, let's call that partner Nancy, or I'll just say it, I'll use my wife's name, Lisa because she's more of a feel-do and I'm more of a think-do.
So, if we're escalating, what I might say and what I have said is, while it's escalating I'll look her in the eye and I'll say "Lisa, Lisa, I got a way out of this. It's better than our usual." And she'll go "What?" I say "Yeah, I got a way out of this that lands us in a much better place. Just play along with me. If it doesn't work, we can go back to where we were arguing. We won't miss a step. Just play along with me."
And so, what happens is, that's sort of disarming, but I'm looking into her eyes and then I say "Say this to me" and I'm looking right into her eyes and she thinks … She doesn't know what I'm going to say and I say "Say to me this. Mark, when you play shrink with me, you give me all these solutions and you give me advice, it feels like you're talking down to me. Like I'm some, you know, idiot. And you may think you're making the situation better but you're actually making it worse. Save that for your clients." And I say "Could you say that with a little energy?"
And she looks at me and I say "No, you can ad lib it." What happens is, she will actually say those things, which normally if she said them without my being prepared, I get defensive about it. And what happens is she says them, I'm looking her straight in the eye and what I'm noticing, being a first class noticer, is that I notice that she's getting stuff off her chest. I'm also noticing that I'm not getting defensive because I invited her to do it. And then what happens is, she starts to giggle. She starts to giggle because she safely gets stuff off her chest that normally she wouldn't and as that happens, you follow me, you have mediated the catharsis.
I gotta tell you the other side. So, I was doing this with a couple and I did the reverse and a wife of an entrepreneur said to me "You know, everybody respects my husband but he's kind of a stiff. Everybody likes me but my husband says I talk too much. You know, but people like me." And the husband would agree with that.
And so I said "This is what you're going to say to your husband. Next time you get into one of these arguments what does he do? "Oh, he kinda shuts down. I can see he doesn't know what to do." So, this is what you're going to say to him and we'll call him Joey. The challenge is you're going to have to stop yourself in mid vent and that's not going to be easy because you're a feel-do person. But if you can pause and look him straight in the eye and he's going to be like a deer in the headlights of a car, because he doesn't know what to do.
And if you say to him "Joey, Joey, Joey, I got something to get us out of this. Play along with me." Now if you just say that, he's just going to start laughing and exhale "Oh, it's over, great. Tropical storm is over." But to do it completely you say "Joey, play along with me" and then you say this to Joey. And we'll call her Joan.
"Say this to me Joey. Joan, when you start to get emotional and you start to raise your voice and when you start to say, you know, you always do this and you never do this, it makes me want to run and push my head into a wall. You make me absolutely nuts and I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't. If I say nothing, it's bad. If I say something, it's wrong and I just don't know what to do.
So, I had Joan say this to Joey. "Could you say that Joey?" And he's going "What?" And she said "I'll help you along." And then I asked her several days later. I said "How did it go." She said "I've got good news and bad news. The good news is, you know, it took him a few minutes to get into it but then he really got into it and he went on for seven minutes about all these things he couldn't stand about me and all these different things. But I didn't get defensive because I was watching, like you said, exactly what was happening. And he just went on for seven minutes. So, that's the good news."
I said "What's the bad news?" "Well, since that time, he won't stop telling me how much he adores me. He's following me around like a puppy dog. He's stroking my shoulder. He's creeping me out. I kinda like him when he was a nerd."
Oh, how funny.
And she was kinda laughing, but do you see how leaning in –
Well, I see what you just have done here Mark, which is brilliant. You took the opening of the podcast about being a first-class noticer. Gave us an example of how to listen into someone and took it into the other book of how to resolve conflict by being a first-class noticer, listening in and using empathetic listening and going inside someone's head of their worst thoughts that they've never voiced but you know what they are anyway and giving them permission to voice them so that it diffuses the situation. That's what I saw and heard. It's pretty masterful.
That was an amazing summary. I'm impressed.
Well, I'm a first-class noticer.
No, that was really impressive, I'm telling you. Well, I'm glad we could roll with this together, as opposed to checking boxes and me being off the track.
No, it's fantastic. Well, before I let you go, I'm going to ask you to tell us a story. It could be your favorite story or just a story that you think has a great lesson on what's it like to negotiate with someone who's holding someone hostage.
What's it like to negotiate with someone whose holding someone … So what I would … No, I was a trainer of hostage negotiators.
Negotiation. Right so what license did you train the trainers? I guess, would be the better question.
My training's were, and you can find some online. If you go to YouTube and look up FBI goulston, you'll see an old, old training. And what I used to do with FBI and police, that all day training session that I would often be the icebreaker. So, this would get them really involved, is I would, and in this old video you'll see it. What I did is I take off my sport jacket. Underneath it I'm wearing a police uniform and I haven't shaved for a couple weeks. I think I put on some broken glasses.
So, these are all police and FBI. You can see them, their backs. And I go from, just like I went into Steve Jobs, I go from Doctor Goulston and I say "I'm" I forget the name "I'm Joe. I'm in your department and a year ago I'm the guy who shot the kid with the plastic gun. And I've been on medical leave for a year." And then I pull a gun out. And I hold it to my neck. And I say "And unless you talk me out of it, I'm going on permanent leave and then you live with the ghost of someone that you should have been able to save and couldn't. And this time it's one of your own."
And then no matter what they do, I think you can see this in the video, no matter what they do, I always pull the trigger. And then I say "This is what you didn't say. This is what you didn't ask that would have made me turn over the gun."
And one of the tips that I often gave in training, and this is in "Just Listen," there's something that I call the magic paradox. And I'm going to end by sharing a different anecdote and talk about how you develop a lifelong relationship with a fortune 50 CEO that nobody can get through to.
I can't wait for this.
So, I get a call from this CEO, because I was doing something on leadership, and this guy is a good to great level five leader. He wasn't in Jim, what's his name's book but, he's one of these humble CEOs. He does a great job but he's a little bit nerdy who wants to be cool. So, if you can picture that kind of mentality.
So, I get a call and he says to me "Doctor Elmarko." I said "Who is this?" And they told me his name and I'll change his name and we'll call him Jack. That's not what his name was. And he said "It's Jack" and I was following up and I hadn't followed up after the Harvard Business Review made an introduction.
Not one to be outdone "I said Doctor Eljacko, how are you?" And he said "Well, I'm going out of town but I wanted to be able to set a time so we can follow-up on that conversation." I said "Where you going?" He said "New York." And I said "For business or work?" He said "Both." I said "Well, when I see you, we'll talk about work, what's going on at home?" And he said "Well, I have a mom and she's got Alzheimer's and she's in, she's out, she's kinda stoic and then she's just out of it. My dad's taking care of her, my sister's taking care of her. You know, she was just really wonderful lady and it's just been ravaging her and, you know, that's just kinda what it is."
And then, because I can be a little bit bold, I say to him, and he went on a little bit, I said "I have a direct command for you." This is a big CEO. He said "What?" I said "I have a direct command for you. Listen to this." And I can tell that he's kind of angry and I said "From what you tell me about your mother, there's no joy at that home. And when she's out of it, your dad and your sister see how out of it she is. And when she's not out of it, she sees how much of herself she's lost. And from what you told, she's a noble person. When you go see her, I want you to do something that I call the magic paradox. And what you're going to say to her, if she seems a little bit with it, is your going to say 'Mom, I bet you sometimes feel that nobody knows what it's like to wish it was all over. Isn't that true?'
Now you're not mentioning the D, the dead word, but if it hits true, she's going to start to cry with relief because she's too stoic to tell your dad or your sister that she just wishes it to be over.
And then if she says that, you follow it up with this question 'And I bet you sometimes feel that you can't keep doing this for much longer. Isn't that true?' And if you do that she'll start to cry further and you'll be giving her a gift. She'll be lighter. It won't clear her Alzheimer's but it'll make the situation better and you'll – and you might start to cry."
And it gets very quiet on the phone. So, I thought he hung up on me and I said "Are you still there?" And he said "I had the car pull over and I'm writing down everything you said, exactly."
So, a few months later, I'm meeting him in his big office. I'd forgotten that. I'd forgotten that part of the conversation or meeting. And could have kicked myself because that was the most important part of that first call. And we have a great conversation and he's very shy. And at the end of it he says "Oh, by the way. Do you remember the conversation we had when I was on my way to New York?" And I said "Oh yeah, you mean the one with your mom?" He said "Yeah." I said "Yeah, what about that?"
He looked me straight in the eye and he said "I did exactly what you told me to do and she did exactly what you said she'd do." He's a shy guy and he reached down and took my hand with two hands and he looked at me and he got a little tearful and he said "Thank you."
Well, that is tugging at my heart strings and so moving. I think the big takeaway, again, there is, you listened into him and you helped him listen into his mother. And when you get that kind of connection with somebody they'll be happy to do business with you, stay in touch with you, take a meeting, whatever else you might want to do with them because you touched them at the heart level and the gut level and given them a gift. And I can't tell you enough, Mark, what a gift you've given me and everyone fortunate enough to listen to these wonderful insights and stories.
Thank you so much. You know, one of the things you've said more than once, is the key is looking someone straight in the eye, whether it's a spouse or someone you're engaged with in business or negotiating in a hostage situation. So that's another big takeaway that I think everybody, sort of, intuitively knows but might forget that it's when you really want to connect, look someone straight in the eye.
And you've done that with us emotionally, verbally and I can't thank you enough. So, if people want to follow you, obviously, you have over 256 thousand twitter followers. I am certainly one of them and I can understand why other people do. And that's strictly at your name @MarkGoulston.
Is there any, and of course you have a wonderful website. We're going to put all the book show notes for people to buy the books. Is there any last little piece of advice you want to leave us with?
Yeah, I have a personal mission in life. The personal mission in life is healing the world one conversation at a time.
Source: Pexels
[Tweet "Heal the world one conversation at a time."]
What I would like more than anything is if you made a commitment, everyone listening, that at least once a week, someone in your life, or maybe even just one of these faceless strangers that you walk past. If you look them in the eye, if it's a faceless person you might say "How you doing?"
If it's someone you love, look them in the eye. And if you let go of any agenda, my favorite quote about listening comes from a British psychoanalyst, Wilfred Bion and he said "The purist form of listening, is to listen without memory or desire." Because when you listen with memory you have an old agenda that you're plugging people into. When you listen with desire, you have a new personal agenda that you're plugging people into but you're not listening to them.
And once a week, find a person and you can say "How are things going?" And look them in the eye. And I will tell you, if you look for fear, anger, disappointment or frustration, that they're feeling alone in, it's always there.
And you might even say to them, as you're looking, "Let me ask you, what was the most frustrating, disappointing or upsetting thing that's happened to you in the last week?" And then get them to be specific. In other words, don't bait and switch. When they tell you about it use what I call a conversation deepener.
So, when they're telling you something about the story and say "This was really awful" or "I didn't know what I was going to do." When they pause say "Say more about the awful. Say more about didn't know what you were going to do." And if you notice you'll see that they open up even more.
And if you have, I will tell you, if you have no agenda, other than ought listen to them and watch the relief it brings them, you might develop a lifelong relationship, which is what I have with that CEO, we're buddies from two conversations.
I can email him anytime and I get a response within 12 hours.
Of course.
We'll we're going to tweet that out and I can't think of a better way to leave this wonderful episode than just telling people listen without memory or desire.
Thanks again, Mark.
Links Mentioned
- Website: markgoulston.com
- Twitter: @MarkGoulston
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/markgoulston
- Website: popprotocol.org
- Biz Journals syndicated columnist
- John Livesay Funding Strategist
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The Baltic Dry Index is a leading indicator of industrial production and trade (click for update). It charts the cost of freight movements in 26 of the world's biggest shipping lanes of "dry" materials, such as coal, iron ore and grain which feed into the production of finished goods some weeks or months ahead. It rose above 11,600 in July 2008 and subsequently fell to 715 on November 28, 95% below the June high (click for updates).
This collapse in the BDI was the most dramatic exemplification of the sudden and brutal bear market in commodities, and shows the intimate relationship between the credit dysfunction and world trade. The "inability of shippers to get banks to accept letters of credit from other banks" notes Yves Smith, will lead, if not reversed, to "Smoot Hawley on steriods."
You can see the powerful disinflationary forces across the commodity sector in the series of links gathered by Russ Winter at his perceptive Winter Watch:
"Coffee, higher costs to the economy? No, abating.
Drinks and beverages? Maybe Joe can afford his sixpack again.
Metals, higher costs to the economy? No, enormous relief.
Copper cathode for transmission lines? huge relief
Logs? Timberrrrrr!
Rubber? meets the road
Rice, panic buying? No, hoarding bubble has burst.
Oranges, prices killing consumers? Nao mais.
Beef? Rollar coaster but on the down slope.
Shrimp? cheapest in years
Olive oil? cheapest in years.
Soybean meal used to feed poultry? the hyperinflationary spike is gone, good riddance!
Cotton for clothes? Look for big sale items this Christmas on clothes, and hardly distressed selling."
Bob Kuttner Behaving Badly—Noted
1 hour ago


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San Bernardino
The 2019 Point-In-Time Count (PITC) of sheltered and unsheltered persons and families living in the area is scheduled for Thursday, January 24, 2019 from 6:00 am to 10:00 am.
According to the San Bernardino County Homeless Partnership (SBCHP), the effort to count and survey homeless individuals will help promote government and private funding and other resources for local communities to help people exit life on the streets and prevent homelessness. College students, civic/nonprofit organizations, faith-based institutions, current/formerly homeless, bilingual individuals, service providers, business and neighborhood groups and anyone who would like to help alleviate homelessness.
In preparation, SBCHP is gearing up for the event. This year for the first time, volunteers conduct the entire PITC using a web-based application designed specifically for the San Bernardino County Point In Time Count.
Adult volunteers are needed from every community and from all walks of life to become a member of the team who will count and administer a brief sub-population survey to those who are homeless. For more information and/or to sign up for a volunteer position please see the San Bernardino County Homeless Partnership website at sbcounty.gov/sbchp or, contact: Michele Bletcher (909) 386-8231 or email firstname.lastname@example.com.
Volunteers are encouraged to attend to a Homeless Advocates gathering where officials will share more information about how to prepare for the Point-In-Time count and provide information regarding best practices.
During the session, volunteers will be introduced to the smart phone/device application that will be used to complete this year's survey, so they can be knowledgeable and ready to be most effective during the survey process.


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Greeks Pull Cash Out of Banks as Confidence Wanes
Greeks are pulling money out of banks at an increasing rate.
ATHENS, Greece -- Worried for the future, Greeks are pulling money out of banks at an increasing rate and either transferring it abroad when they can or hiding it at home.
"I know a lot of people have drawn their money from the bank," said Apostolis Manafas 57, unemployed, of Athens. "I have friends that even hide their money in their closets. It reminds me of our grandparents and old Greek movies, where people sewed their savings in their mattresses."
Greeks withdrew more than $900 million Monday and another $600 million Tuesday, according to the Greek Central Bank. While deposits have been steadily leaving banks since the start of the country's debt problems in 2009, this week's outpouring of cash reflects a new level of panic, analysts say.
Meanwhile, in Spain, the newspaper El Mundo said customers have withdrawn more than €1 billion ($1.27 billion) since the state took over Bankia, the country's fourth-largest lender, a week ago. Bankia insisted its depositors' money was safe, and the government denied there was a run on the bank.
The withdrawals in Greece follow that country's failure to form a unity government after recent elections. A coalition of leftists insisted the country refuse to enact budget cuts agreed to by the previous government in order to qualify for billions of dollars in debt relief from Europe and the International Monetary Fund.
Greece's caretaker Cabinet was sworn in Thursday and will lead the country into a new election June 17.
Some Greek fears the fight against austerity could force Greece out of the 17-member eurozone of nations that use the euro as currency and require the country to return to the drachma, the previous Greek currency that would likely be worth far less than euros.
"It's a game of chicken between the EU and Greece," says Raoul Ruparel, head of economic research at Open Europe, a London based think tank.
Ruparel says new elections may give one side the political majority to take action. But until then, "It leaves [Greeks] in a very uncertain position. As long as this is going on, there is a cloud hanging over Greece as a whole."
Margarita Manousou, editor of a Greek tourism publication in Athens, says most Greeks want to remain in the eurozone but are worried about being punished by the European Union for objecting to what they consider harsh cuts in public benefits and welfare demanded by terms of a debt bailout.
"People are scared they will lose their money," she said.
The EU has threatened to withhold further bailout loans if Greeks elect a government that opposes the bailout's austerity measures.
Bank withdrawals seem to mirror the mood of the country at various points.
Deposit outflows have averaged between $2.5 billion and $3.8 billion a month, some of that from unemployed Greeks drawing down their savings. But in March and April after Greek's international lenders agreed to fund bank recapitalization, Greeks put $2.5 billion back into their accounts.
For a while in the spring things were looking up, says Stathis Christophi, associate director of global banking at HSBC in London.
"But now it is a really bad situation," he said.
Originally from Greece, Christophi said even he had a former colleague call this week asking how to open a bank account in London. He says wealthy friends are buying property abroad or moving money where they can.
"The whole banking system is paralyzed," Christophi said.
The more money that leaves, the more Greece is dependent on the EU, says Ruparel. And the EU will continue to demand political and economic reforms in return for additional funds. It's a contradiction that will continue the country's tailspin until it can gain more secure footing.
Greece is in its fifth year of depression, and its economy has contracted 22% in that period while unemployment has soared to 21%. In spite of two approved bailouts, the last in March, as well as a shaving of its debt, the economic crisis in the country hasn't eased.
So for now, withdrawing money from bank accounts "is a natural response when you are [being] blackmailed," says Manousou. "The choice is either you vote right wing or Europe will take away your money."
Reyasam reported from Berlin


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Hey guys,
As you know from my last post I'm in California (Los Angeles to be exact) working with my Dad. Hollywood has been fun: we've done some quick sightseeing and hit the hotel pool to cool down, but alas, I still have work to do. I have to go GEOCACHING and place that Travel Bug I found in Maryland a few months ago.
Well, here is my Geocaching video roll: Hope you enjoy!
Geocaching with Sam: placing a Travel Bug
Signing off,
Related articles
- Geocaching: What's a Travel Bug? (samuellcollins.wordpress.com)
- Geocaching: Cool Caches with Samuel L Collins (samuellcollins.wordpress.com)
- 1st Annual Summer Geocaching Hunt (samuellcollins.wordpress.com)


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We presented our paper on "Impact Analysis of OCR Quality on Research Tasks in Digital Archives" at this year's International Conference on Theory and Practice of Digital Libraries (TPDL2015).
We describe how humanities scholars currently use digital archives and the challenges they face in adapting their research methods compared to using a physical archive. The required shift in research methods has the cost of working with digitally processed historical documents. Therefore, a major concern for the scholars is the question how much trust they can place in analyses based on noisy representations of source texts.
Based on interviews with humanities scholars and a literature study, we classify scholarly research tasks according to their susceptibility to errors originating from OCR-induced biases. Search results for "Amsterdam", for example, are likely to be influenced by the confusion of the letters "s" and "f", especially for material that was created before 1800, when the "long s" was still used.
In order to reduce the impact of such errors, we investigated which kind of data would be required for this and whether or not it is available in the archive.
We describe our study of example research tasks performed on the digital newspaper archive of the National Library of The Netherlands. In this study, we tried to reduce the uncertainty of the results as much as possible with the data publicly available in the archive.
We conclude that the current knowledge situation on the scholars' side as well as on the tool makers' and data providers' side is insufficient and needs to be improved.
Source: SEALINCMedia


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PROS has highly experienced WordPress experts in San Diego who have developed, designed & optimized hundreds of WordPress projects.WordPress is a popular platform to build beautiful, scalable and responsive websites. It also has a large repository of plugins and themes which enhance the capabilities of this platform. WordPress CMS is very simple, user-friendly and easy to use. That's why more than 14% of the top 1 million websites on the internet are powered by WordPress.
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ATLANTA—The Southern Living Hotel Collection has added four hotels: The Willcox Inn (Aiken, SC), The Henderson Park Inn (Destin, FL), The Swag (Waynesville, NC), and The Inn at Willow Grove (Orange, VA).
The Willcox is a Colonial Revival landmark on the National Historic Register that opened in 1898. The Henderson Park Inn is an adult-only hotel offering 35 guestrooms. The Swag is a family-owned-and-operated, all-inclusive inn located in the high mountains of Western North Carolina just 50 miles west of Asheville. Located on a private 40-acre estate in the foothills of Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains, The Inn at Willow Grove is a boutique hotel in an 18th century plantation house and surrounding cottages.


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The United States spends almost as much money on its military as all other nations in the world combined.{1} Paying for past, present, and future
wars consumes 54% of our Federal budget.{2} These figures are not controversial, everyone on all sides of the debate acknowledge them. The dispute is over whether we need such a huge military, and why.
Why do we spend so much? Canada is not massing troops to pour over the border, Mexico is not arming for war against us. There is not a nation on the planet who poses any credible military threat to America.
Yes, terrorists have attacked us. But the bulk of our military budget goes for "big-ticket" items like aircraft carriers and nuclear submarines, stealth bombers and supersonic fighters, armored divisions and ICBMs. None of these expensive weapons are effective against terrorists who conceal themselves within a civilian population.
So, again, the question is why? This question is not new, and the answer has not changed. After resigning from the Marine Corps in 1935, Major General Smedley Butler (holder of two Congressional Medals of Honor) wrote the following:
"I spent thirty-three years and four months in active military service as a member of this country's most agile military force, the Marine Corps. I served in all commissioned ranks from Second Lieutenant to Major-General. And during that period, I spent most of my time being a high class muscleman for Big Business, for Wall Street and for the Bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism. I suspected I was just part of a racket at the time. Now I am sure of it. I helped make Mexico, especially Tampico, safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys [today Citi Bank] to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefits of Wall Street. The record of racketeering is long. I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-1912. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. In China I helped to see to it that Standard Oil went its way unmolested. During those years, I had, as the boys in the back room would say, a swell racket. Looking back on it, I feel that I could have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in threedistricts. I operated on three continents."
{1} U.S. vs. Global Defense Spending
{2} Where Your Income Tax Really Goes
{3} Military Expenditure Database
Military Spending — The Basic Truth [PDF version of this post, as a flyer]


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'Isaac's Storm' a cautionary tale for the new century
ATLANTA (CNN) -- Isaac Cline was a legend around Galveston, Texas -- the weatherman who, as the story went, recognized a big storm was coming, warned the town's residents, and helped save thousands of lives.
But writer Erik Larson wanted a fresh angle for his book on America's deadliest hurricane, and was inclined to dismiss the rather hackneyed tale of heroism.
Then one day, in a small government library outside Washington, D.C., he stumbled across a newspaper article that Cline had written several years before the September 8, 1900, hurricane. In it, Cline boldly declared a cyclone could never seriously damage the city, and that anyone who thought otherwise was delusional.
"When I read that," Larson said in a telephone interview, "I realized that maybe this guy was not quite the hero history has made him out to be."
Larson proceeded to write "Isaac's Storm," a 1999 best-seller centering on the tragically misguided meteorologist who, in fact, failed to forecast the storm that would kill more than 6,000 people.
Not a disaster book
The author, whose work is getting renewed attention as the nation marks the hurricane's 100th anniversary, insists "Isaac's Storm" is not, first and foremost, a disaster book. Rather, it's a cautionary tale about an era in which great technological progress created a flawed sense of invincibility.
"The broader message is that technological hubris will always get you in trouble with nature," Larson said.
As scientists forge ahead in decoding man's genetic makeup, among other breakthroughs, the message remains just as relevant.
"We do have the power to cause some dangerous shifts in the world around us that can really hurt us," he said.
Although modern meteorologists enjoy an array of powerful forecasting tools, Larson said Americans should be careful about assuming there won't be another Big One on the scale of Galveston, according to the top hurricane experts he interviewed.
"To a man, they said we are very concerned about the complacency that these tools can bring, and each has a nightmare disaster that they say could happen one day that could take hundreds if not thousands of deaths," he said.
A lesser-known catastrophe
Larson was drawn to the story of the hurricane, which virtually destroyed the growing Galveston area, because he had never heard much about it. Even though it was more destructive than either the 1906 San Francisco earthquake or the 1889 Johnstown Flood in Pennsylvania, both have become more prominent cultural icons.
He suggests Texas' relative remoteness from the United States, and perhaps Galveston's own desire to put the storm behind it, may have played a role in that, but that the answer may lie somewhat deeper.
"I think on some level a storm like this was such a dark event that something this dramatic and this awful, in 1900 national psyche couldn't get around it," he said.
"Isaac's Storm," which recently was released in paperback, joins "Into Thin Air" and "The Perfect Storm" on a growing list of recent best-sellers capturing the ferocity of Mother Nature. With a nod to Jack London, Larson notes that the trend is nothing new.
"This ageless theme of man against the elements," he said, "is one of the most powerful and compelling of all literary time."
The actual 'Perfect Storm': A perfectly dreadful combination of nature's
Isaac's Storm
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