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The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers And Broadcasters (NTWAB) today announced that Natalie Voss has won the 2016 Media Eclipse Award for Writing in the News/Enterprise category for "'Something's Wrong With My Brain' – The Lurking Danger of Concussions for Jockeys," an examination of head trauma and the racing industry's response to preventive measures, which appeared on the Paulick Report website on December 30, 2015.
This is the first Eclipse Award for Voss, who resides in Georgetown, Ky., and is the Features Editor for the Paulick Report, which earned its second Media Eclipse Award this year following the announcement earlier today that John Scheinman had won the award for Outstanding Writing in the Feature/Commentary category.
Voss will receive her trophy at the 46th Annual Eclipse Awards dinner and ceremony on Saturday, January 21, at Gulfstream Park Racing & Casino in Hallandale Beach, Fla. The Eclipse Awards are presented by Daily Racing Form, Breeders' Cup and The Stronach Group and produced by the NTRA.
"I am still completely overwhelmed and honored to win an Eclipse Award," said Voss, who grew up riding hunter/jumpers in Virginia, and later earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Equine Science from the University of Kentucky. "As someone who loves this sport, this was a difficult topic to write about but sometimes in order to make things better, you have to shine a light on something that's hard to see."
In "Something's Wrong," Voss explores the problems of repeated head trauma, and compiled data through medical professionals and probed how the industry is managing the problem of recovery time for jockeys, and delved into the effectiveness of their riding helmets.
Voss tells part of that story through the life of retired jockey Gwen Jocson, featured in Sports Illustrated as a young rider, who finished her career with 763 wins but left the sport in 1999 because she was losing her balance. Jocson returned for the Lady Legends race at Pimlico in 2010, which she won, but realized something was wrong, and she needed help.
What actually helped in her diagnosis was the opening of the feature film "Concussion," which revealed the high incidence of head trauma in the National Football League and the discovery of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) by doctors studying the problem and the subsequent reluctance of the NFL to acknowledge it.
Interestingly, Voss found that racing does accept the problem of concussions but lacks proper funding to combat the issue.
Seemingly in contrast to the NFL, the Jockey's Guild and the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund have no problem conceding the damage from concussions is a risk for riders. That sense of self-awareness doesn't mean CTE in jockeys is well understood. Football has been the public face of sports concussion issues – as a result, it has received most of the most funding dollars. The racing world is still struggling to quantify the problem. A report from the University of Kentucky's Dr. Carl Mattacola at this year's Jockey Club Welfare and Safety Summit revealed that 8.6 percent of falls by jockeys during races from 2012 to 2015 resulted in concussions, per the Jockey Industry Database.
Jocson's symptoms are very similar to those of the retired football players in the film, who suffered from memory issues and emotional imbalances. In discussions with the Jockeys' Guild National Manager, Terry Meyocks, Voss found that some riders similarly forgot events, such as riding a race following a concussion, and could be especially vulnerable for major damage.
As a potential remedy for recovering riders, Voss introduces a device from Dr. Mark Lovell, an early CTE researcher in the development of the ImPACT system (Immediate Post Concussion and Cognitive Testing), to address the issue. It is a test that can be taken on an iPad or Iaptop, which measures "an athlete's memory, reaction time, and processing speed to gauge neurological function."
At the time of the article's publication, Meyocks said that there was still no "universal concussion protocol for evaluating riders before allowing them to take mounts after a fall."
"As an industry, we don't support jockeys as much as we could," Voss said in retrospect. "As a rider myself, I have a bit of a frame of reference for the risks that jockeys take and what they are going through in a sport where most of the people involved are not riders."
The winning submission can be accessed here: http://www.paulickreport.com/news/ray-s-paddock/somethings-wrong-with-my-brain-the-lurking-danger-of-concussions-for-jockeys.
Honorable mention in the News/Enterprise category went to Margaret Ransom for "The Shocking Untold Story of Maria Borrell," which appeared on USRacing.com on May 26, 2016, and to John Cherwa for "A Horse is a Horse of Course, but What do they Think on Kentucky Derby Day?," about the sensory systems of racehorses, which appeared in the Los Angeles Times on May 3, 2016.
Judges in News Enterprise category were Jane Goldstein, former Santa Anita Park publicity director; Jenny Kellner, former New York Post writer and former New York Racing Association publicist; and Bill Kolberg, racing publicist.
Tickets to the Eclipse Awards are available for $425 each. Dinner tickets and reservations for the official event hotels – the Turnberry Isle Miami and the Grand Beach Hotel – can be accessed by contacting Casey Hamilton of the NTRA at email@example.com.
The Eclipse Awards are named after the great 18th-century racehorse and foundation sire Eclipse, who began racing at age five and was undefeated in 18 starts, including eight walkovers. Eclipse sired the winners of 344 races, including three Epsom Derbies. The Eclipse Awards are bestowed upon horses and individuals whose outstanding achievements in North America have earned them the title of Champion in their respective categories. Those awards are voted by NTRA, Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters (NTWAB). Eclipse Awards also are given to recognize members of the media for outstanding coverage of Thoroughbred racing.


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Posts tagged 'shopping'
It's bigger than hip-hop
– posted by russellmania3000
Damn, son. Fuck coffee, I'm awake now, ready to go 12 rounds. My employer is a professional sports franchise that will go unnamed, whose mascot is an outsized mutant rabbit named Hip-Hop and he has a supremely gay theme song. I've been trying to get it changed to Dead Prez for a while, but to no avail. Something about being family-friendly or whatever, I hear them talk about kids and I tune out. By the way, in our office we can use "gay" as an epithet as much as we like without being sent to sensitivity training or whatever. So if that's your beef, I really don't want to hear it.
I work in interactive marketing so I check out the Google competition for anything I'm involved in, just for kicks. I checked for Redikulus a while back and there used to be a lot more that has since dropped off the face of the nets. There was a pretty cool clothing company that I can find neither hide nor hair of anymore. But there are two interesting things of note.
The first result, regrettably, is for a misspelling of Ridikulus, a Harry Potter spell. Christ, we are in poor company. But more importantly, as luck would have it, there's a rapper who goes by same, and why shouldn't there be? We really asked for it when we chose this spelling. Listen Mr. I Started Rapping At 6, I don't care if your pops is in jail or what part of Las Vegas you're from. I watched CSI and it seems like a goofy as all hell kind of place. If you so much as even think about purchasing redikulus.com, you will be in for a world of hurt, mon ami. No wait. What I meant was: perhaps we can come up with a business arrangement that will benefit both of us…
The other and infinitely more compelling item of interest with which we share a name is Redikulus Dae, an annual street fair/shopping festival in Rhinelander, WI. Sweet crackers, there's even a second annual Hodag Roaring Contest. I am so there. Back up a minute. Hodag, you say? Yes. Think of it as a Midwestern chupacabra. There's not enough drugs in this city for me to make up shit like this. American folklore is truly fascinating and batshit crazy.
Anyway…as you were.
February 8, 2009 at 10:50 PM russellmania3000 Leave a comment

subset: commoncrawl


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The Basics of How to Place a Bet and Have Fun With It All
Whether you're entirely new to sports betting or you just need a quick refresher so you don't look like a deer in headlights at the sportsbook, we've got your back. Following is a quick primer on how you bet on college football games.
What You Can Bet On
To be clear, you can bet on just about anything. If you'd like to wager money, a sportsbook will give you plenty of ways to do so. There are some bets, though, that are the most common when you're betting on college football and we'll focus on those here.
Betting on the Spread
For every college football game there's a spread. Basically the sportsbook will look at the two teams (let's say the Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Georgia Bulldogs in this example) and decide which team is likely to win. Based on that, the bookmaker will apply a point penalty to the team most likely to win. That point penalty is the spread. By applying a point penalty, the bookmaker is encouraging more people to bet on the underdog, or less likely to win team.
When you're betting on the spread you're not betting on which team is the better team. Rather, you're betting on if the favored team is that much better.
For example, if most people thing Alabama is likely to win, you may see the spread written as Alabama -3. This reads as, "Alabama is a three point favorite." If you bet on Alabama, in this instance, you are betting that they not only win, but they do so by more than three points. By more than a field goal. Alabama -3 is the same thing as Georgia +3. If you bet on Georgia in this example, you are saying that Georgia will either win OR they will lose by less than three points.
When you bet on a spread you are betting on one of the teams to exceed expectations.
Betting on the Total
Maybe you aren't sure whether Alabama or Georgia will win, but you think it will be a high scoring game. In this case, you can bet on the total of the game. For every NFL game sportsbooks will also set a total: it's the sum of each team's score at the end of the game. You can bet whether the total will be over or under the oddsmakers' prediction.
For example, if you see Green Bay -7 28. That reads as, "Alabama is a seven point favorite and the total of the game will be 21 points." If at the end of the game, the score was Alabama = 21 and Georgia = 10 then your total game score was 31 points. If you bet over, you win your bet!
Remember, though, that the public loves to bet the over. And bookmakers know this! The total game score offered on the bet will be padded to account for this preference.
Betting on Who's Going to Win
If you really don't want to deal with point spreads and game totals, you can simply pick which team you think will win: Alabama or Georgia. This is called a moneyline bet. For a moneyline bet, you need to consider the vig (or the odds) set by the sportsbook. Most vigs start at -110. This means that "in order to win $100, you have to bet $110." That extra $10 is a fee or penalty to the sports book. It's how Vegas stays Vegas.
If oddsmakers always offered a -110 vig for matchups, they would lose money over time because bettors would keep picking the more favorable team or opponent. Thus, oddsmakers increase the vig in order to discourage betting on favorite teams. If the odds are set at -300, we would read that bet as "in order to win $100, you have to bet $300."
If Alabama is a huge favorite in the game against Georgia, the vig is going to be steep. The bookmakers will force you to risk a lot to win a little. Vigs are -110 or close to it when games are toss ups.
Betting on Random Things
If sports really aren't your thing, you can still have fun placing a bet: consider a proposition "prop" bet.
A proposition bet is a defined outcome bet such as yes or no, up or down, over or under, heads or tails, etc.
If you want to get in on the betting action, but really don't like sports, you can bet on the game's coin toss or whether or not the game will go into overtime. (If you really don't like sports we assume you'll be betting on it not going into overtime!)
How to Place Your Bet
Place a Straight Bet on the Spread
Back to our example, if the spread reads: Alabama -3, you would read that as: "it's a three point spread," or "Alabama is a three point favorite." As a bettor, you select one side to bet on.
You write or say the spread based on the side you are betting. If you take Alabama -7 this means you are accepting a three point penalty at the end of the game; you believe Alabama will win the game against the Georgia and they will do so by more than a field goal (which is a key figure).
To take that bet you would write or say "I bet $X on Alabama -3" If you do not think Alabama will win OR you don't think they'll win by more than three, you would write or say, "I bet $X on Georgia +3."
Place a Straight Bet on the Total
If the line is: Alabama -7 28, you can simply bet "over" or "under" on that total game score of 28.
Place a Moneyline Bet
If the line is Alabama -3 28 and the odds are -120, you know that in order to win $100 you have to bet $120. Thus, if you want to bet on Alabama to win, you simply write or say, "Alabama to win."
Note: the odds (-120 in this example) are a ratio. You do not have to put down the full $120. Instead you could bet $12 and win $10. Conversely, you could bet $240 and will $200.
Like we said above, there are plenty of other types of bets and betting scenarios, but this will get you through a basic visit.


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American Paint Co. PINT - Beach Glass
Regular price $24.95
The perfect blue-green, beach color.
American Paint Company offers an all natural, zero VOC, eco-friendly, and solvent free paint. Having made the cleanest, healthiest paints and finishes for the residential and commercial markets for the past 25 years, it was only natural to offer our products to the DIY market. Our paints contain no acrylic, no fungicide, no co-polymers and no worries! The consumer needed it, your health demanded it, and we will provide it.


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Yemen\'s Mukalla residents breathe sigh of relief after year of Qaeda rule
MUKALLA (Yemen) - Ten days after Gulf-backed forces drove Al-Qaeda out of the Yemeni port city of Mukalla, the signs of their harsh year-long rule are still everywhere for relieved residents to see.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula took advantage of the chaos of fighting between pro-government forces and Iran-backed rebels to expand its control in southern Yemen, seizing Mukalla in April last year.
AQAP ruled with an iron fist over the city of 200,000 people, capital of the vast desert province of Hadramawt.
"We lived in terror," said Mujahid al-Qaiqi, a resident of the central neighbourhood of Dis.
The 22-year-old said he had fears of either being detained by Al-Qaeda or forced to join its ranks.
AQAP established a religious police force tasked with enforcing strict Islamic rules.
The jihadists forced women to cover themselves from head to toe and banned mixing between sexes in public.
They also banned all music, a harsh move in a city with a reputation for its traditional music.
"They even banned songs and dances at weddings," said resident Alawia Sakkaf.
Issa Ghaleb, a seller of music CDs, said militants arrived one day at his shop and ordered him to erase all recorded music and films.
"Instead, they offered videos of Al-Qaeda operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria," he said.
Al-Qaeda angered the people of Mukalla by destroying ancient tombs and mausoleums, claiming they were forms of idolatry banned in Islam.
Its police systematically detained couples found together in the city, verifying their identities to ensure that they were close relatives, said resident Saleh Nasser.
Banners announcing the Islamists' orders against such behaviour are still in place.
"Faithful woman: protect your pure body from prying eyes," declares an AQAP sign still hanging in a street.
Violators were hunted down and their punishments were often meted out in public.
On January 4, the militants stoned to death a woman accused of adultery.
Eventually, however, authorities backed by a Saudi-led coalition turned their firepower on the Sunni Muslim extremists, launching a broad operation against them.
The jihadists vanished when fighters loyal to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi swept into the city on April 24 with the backing of Emirati and Saudi special forces.
Now on the streets of the city, patrols and checkpoints manned by security forces have replaced those of the jihadists.
The pro-government forces search vehicles thoroughly in search of infiltrators.
Al-Qaeda's black and white banners have made way for flags and pictures of Emirati and Saudi leaders.
Despite its restrictions on freedoms, Al-Qaeda made sure public services remained operational in areas under its control.
That was while residents elsewhere across the impoverished country complained of shortages of water and food as well as power cuts due to the ongoing conflict.
"Al-Qaeda militants have made sure that public services like water and electricity were working and they managed to do that," said Abduljabbar Bajbir, a student from Shihr, a coastal town 60 kilometres (40 miles) east of Mukalla that was also controlled by the jihadists.
In a statement released by Al-Qaeda on April 25 justifying the retreat of its militants, it reminded people of services offered to inhabitants during its rule.
It said jihadists "saved the city from the Huthis," the Shiite rebels considered heretics by Sunni Islamists, and cities along the coast of Hadramawt had "enjoyed security unseen elsewhere in the country".
The statement described the jihadist withdrawal from Mukalla as tactical to avoid the destruction of the city, insisting that Al-Qaeda rule allowed it to prosper economically.
But for residents, providing services was not enough to accept AQAP's rule.
"We feared the consequences of their deviant ideology," said Bajbir, who fled Shihr when Al-Qaeda militants threatened him for criticising them on Facebook.


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We're offering up an Army Birthday emblem in game and celebrating the history of Army-Navy cooperation. Supplies, Transport, and Direct Support. All you have to do is login to the game between Friday, June 14th (04:20 PT | 06:20 CT | 07:20 ET) to Monday, June 17th (04:20 PT | 06:20 CT | 07:20 ET)
Also, to see what The_Chieftain has to say about the three forms of support, click the patch above or the link below.
The History of Army-Navy Cooperation


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June 11, 2015
THE's Asia's top 100: University of Tokyo No.1 and NUS No.2
by Anisah firstname.lastname@example.com
Despite the gains Malaysia has made in the 2015 QS University Rankings: Asia, local varsities again failed to feature in Times Higher Education's (THE) 2015 ranking of Asian universities released today.
THE's Asia university rankings sees Singapore's National University of Singapore (NUS) maintaining its second place and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) rising to 10th place.
Topping the list is Japan's University of Tokyo, while University of Hong Kong is at third place, followed by China's Peking University and Tsinghua University.
Thailand has two universities in this year's top 100: King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi at 55th place and Mahidol University at 91st. Countries like Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Iran also show improvements.
In contrast, Malaysia has so far featured just once in THE's annual Asia University Rankings: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) came in at 87th place when the ranking debuted in 2013.
The representative Fran Langdon told The Malaysian Insider yesterday that local universities had "poor global visibility". "In the case of Malaysia, it really is a case of 'you have to be in it to win it' and unless we see more participation from Malaysia as a whole, I do not anticipate its universities making the tables in the near future – they are suffering from poor global visibility for one."
But she was unable to reveal which Malaysian universities had submitted data to be ranked, saying THE only disclosed the names of those that made the top 100.
Previously, THE editor Phil Baty told The Malaysian Insider that local universities' refusal to submit data to be ranked, as well as weak research, are two reasons they fared badly in THE's rankings.
In an immediate response, DAP's MP in charge of education, Zairil Khir Johari, said Malaysia could not be afraid to compete with the world if it wished to be world class.
"A few weeks back, Second Education Minister Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh once again repeated his claim that Malaysian universities could become world class at their current rate of progress," he told The Malaysian Insider yesterday.
"Unfortunately, such a claim is nothing but a pipe dream when it cannot be backed up by empirical statistics. The only way to prove that Malaysian universities are progressing is through competitive international assessments such as the THE, QS, Thomson Reuters and other world rankings."
He said the government was wrong to point to Malaysia's performance in the QS rankings as proof it was doing well, since world-class universities did well across the board in all rankings, rather than a select few.
Yesterday, QS revealed that UM broke into its Asia's top 30 rankings, while Malaysian universities across the board improved their rankings in its latest evaluation for 2015.
But Zairil said in the Centre for World University Rankings, UM only managed to place 492nd in the world, while it ranked 423rd in the Thomson Reuters Best Global Universities Rankings. "Unfortunately, cherry-picking is disingenuous," he said.
Baty had in the past similarly cautioned Malaysia not to rely solely on rankings that put them in a good light, while QS said its ranking should not be used as the only measure of quality of Malaysian institutions.
On May 21, Idris acknowledged the need to participate in THE's rankings, but did not mention any deadline."We are aware that the QS ranking isn't the only ranking out there. But we must begin with the QS rankings. For instance, children start out by riding ponies before they ride horses," Idris had said.
He had also told the Dewan Rakyat that last year's SCimago Journal and Country Rank revealed Malaysia had published more journals than Singapore in 2013.
But Zairil said Idris was again being "selective" about facts, adding that Malaysia had 63 institutions of higher learning, while Singapore only had 32.
"As such, number of publications is a terrible indicator as we should technically be doubling Singapore's output. A more nuanced assessment should be based on the impact and quality of research, such as the Thomson ISI Index for scientific articles and other impact assessments.
"For example, NTU in Singapore placed first in Asia in terms of quality and impact of research, based on research by Thomson Reuters and Elsevier. Being only 23 years old, this is a great achievement as it has outperformed universities from Hong Kong, Korea and Japan."
Zairil said Asia was projected to be the next "global higher education superpower" as a result of vast improvements in many Asian universities, but Malaysia appeared to be left out of the Asian education renaissance.
"Besides China, other countries that have done well are Japan, though its dominance is now increasingly threatened by newcomers, South Korea and Taiwan.
"Hong Kong, for example, has seen all six of its universities ranked in the top 50 now, an improvement from last year. Even Macau has entered the rankings with the University of Macau at joint 40th place."


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Welcome to Craigmoss Highland Homes
Craigmoss Highland Homes is owned by Isabelle and Harry, who have been visiting the West Coast of Scotland since the late 70's.
They have been privileged to be able to purchase properties in their 2 favourite locations on the West coast of Scotland.
These beautiful, self catering holiday cottages in the Scottish highlands are now available to let – Glenelg and Plockton are both set in beautiful surroundings, close to Skye, and each boasting their own individual charms and local attractions.
The scenery in the area is simply stunning! Both locations are havens for artists, photographers, and for those who want to explore, walk, cycle, climb, fish, or simply chill out.
All the Holiday cottages are self catering, pet-friendly and have access to gardens, patio, garden furniture, fire pit / barbecue, wood / coal burning stoves & many other luxuries to make your stay more enjoyable. All of the Plockton houses can be rented individually or together so would be ideal for large groups or several families who want some independence & yet a location close together.


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Some time ago, we took a first look at a large book with bound-in direct-mail folders created for Crane's Business Papers between 1921 and 1926. Displayed among these pages are illustrations of historical scenes from prominent advertising artists, such as Rene Clark, with typography from the likes of Frederic Goudy.
I ran across another wonderful example of Clark's work for Crane; this time with some direct historical significance. The image shows a British soldier demonstrating papermaking in what was to become Crane's first mill in Milton, Mass.
The accompanying copy reads:
"If it hadn't been for a certain British soldier stationed in Boston in 1760, whose name has been forgotten (some accounts say his name is Hazelton) there might never have been any Crane's papers.
"There was a paper mill at Milton near Boston at that time, but it had shut down because no one knew how to run it. The Royal Governor of the Province, on being told that there was an enlisted man among the King's troops who was a paper-maker, arranged to have him furloughed from his regiment. He started the mill going and remained in charge until others had learned the art of making paper.
"This was the very mill where Zenas Crane learned the trade of paper-maker. If it had been shut down at the time he was ready to become an apprentice, he might have gone into some other trade.
"But thanks to the unknown soldier, the mill was ready when Zenas Crane was. On such slight events do great issues hang."
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
The Unknown Soldier and Crane's Papers
Some time ago, we took a first look at a large book with bound-in direct-mail folders created for Crane's Business Papers between 1921 and 1926. Displayed among these pages are illustrations of historical scenes from prominent advertising artists, such as Rene Clark, with typography from the likes of Frederic Goudy.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Uncovering History with a Pair of Stone Hands
For quite a few years, I've looked at this piece of paper in a case at the Crane Museum of Papermaking and said to myself, "I need to get this thing translated." The case in which it is displayed is full of moments in American history chronicled on invitations or announcements on Crane paper. As their anniversaries roll around, I'll blog about them.
So, during a visit to the Museum earlier today, I vowed to do something about getting this thing translated. I figured I would take a picture and go to my go-to peeps who read The Crane Insider here and on Twitter.
While endeavoring to place the paper back in the case, Stone Hands Hopkins dropped it on the floor.
It landed upside down......I mean, why would I ever bother to turn it over during all those years!
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Bringing Correspondence Back with Elle and Maggie
By Guest Blogger
Mindy Lockard
Manner of the Month
Ty's parents are gone for the month. We miss them because they are wonderful people and because they are hands-down our best babysitters! Today two letters arrived in the mail, one for each girl. The short letters shared tales of their adventures and sweet sentiments of missing us.
The girls without a poke, prod, or firm suggestion got out their personal stationery and with their very best simple sentence structure, limited vocabulary, and pictures were responding to the letter the best way they knew how. They didn't worry about the notes being perfect, they simply wanted to respond.
Yes, we could have saved time and money by sending over an e-mail, picking up our cell phones or skyping. All of which we can do. But instead we shared a longstanding tradition: pen to paper and heart to heart!
Some say handwritten correspondence is a dying art. To save this beautiful gesture, I ask you to join me. Here's how. The next time you have the urge to send an e-mail telling someone how much they mean to you or just to say "hi", get out your stationery instead. Trust me, not only will you pleasantly surprise the recipient, you may even surprise yourself with how beautiful it feels to extend such a gracious act. Truly. If you should need help, I'm on my way armed with a gracious living defibrillator and a few Justin Timberlake moves ready to bring correspondence back!!
Friday, September 11, 2009
Highlighting Gold Stationery Highlights
I noted with interest the other day that the price of gold has topped $1,000 per ounce. The only gold I have is engraved on Crane's stationery. For those of you who possess some of that magic metal, you can part with only a shaving or two to own some of these:
Buy low, sell high!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Two Words Shouted or Three Words Written
U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson's spontaneous eruption during the president's address to Congress last night left me shaking my head, wondering where our sense of community, of common purpose, of dignity, respect and courtesy have gone.
His shouted two words: "You lie!" were so reflective of our disappearing civility toward those with whom we disagree. We see it 24/7/365 on talk radio, on editorial pages, cable and network news, at town hall meetings and on street corners.
When I peruse the extensive archives of written correspondence that has been received by Crane & Co. over more than 200 years, I see plenty of disagreement: "Dear Messrs. Crane & Co. We are in receipt of your samples of the 25th inst. and find them to be lacking......" The sender might be quite put out, but he is civil, courteous and respectful. The same is true of the letter written by Crane to the aggrieved party.
Sitting down, composing your thoughts, and taking up pen and paper almost unfailingly creates an aura of civility. There's nothing spontaneous about writing someone. One gives thought and weight to their words. And they expect thought and weight to be returned by the recipient.
So, imagine if Joe Wilson had listened respectfully and civilly and gone back to his office and pulled out a piece of his personalized House stationery and instead of shouting two words, he starts by writing three:
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Martha Stewart Holiday Cards - Yes, It's That Time
It's the day after Labor Day and it still feels like summer, but protocol calls for stowing away the seersucker jacket and white pants until next season. The nights are cooling off here in Vermont, some trees are starting to show some color, and dinner tonight is lamb and roast potatoes.
Yes, I'm gearing up for fall and among the many annual autumnal activities is the search for the perfect holiday card. As you can imagine, I don't mean the rack at the drug store; I'll write more about that later on.
So, to help get you started on the quest for that perfect card, here are some brand new offerings from the Martha Stewart boxed holiday collection:
Friday, September 4, 2009
Making Money in Maine - Currency Hot Off the Press
I recently had the great pleasure of attending the 2009 Northeast Kingdom Typography Congress held in Portland, Maine, at Wolfe Editions and at Ascensius Press in South Freeport.
The main theme of the congress was printing money - no not counterfeit money - but artistic impressions in the spirit of money.
Using the extensive collection of presses, type, ornaments, ink and paper at David Wolfe's Pleasant Street studio, here are the results:
These note are obviously not real. But the one that follows is all-too-real. This $100 Trillion note from Zimbabwe was brought to the Congress by banknote expert Mark Tomasko from his extensive collection. Back in April, you could buy some eggs for breakfast with this.


text: Dodger Report post Posted May 23, 2007 Ok, I'll kick this off with a few football books. And top of the list has to be:Ossie: King of Stamford BridgeBrilliant book. I'd recommend this to non-Chelsea fans and even non-football fans. Aside from anything else, it really does give you an insight into Peter Osgood, the man himself, and shows you what a truly great man he was, as well as a great player - and his heart was ALWAYS with the club.Another couple of Chelsea books that I haven't got yet, but which I'll be ordering very shortly. both by Rick Granville:Chelsea FC: The Official Biography - The Definitive Story of the First 100 YearsChelsea Football Club: The Official History in PicturesFor those that need it, these two books provide more than enough evidence that Chelsea does indeed have a rich and varied history. And finally (for now), a couple of non-Chelsea football books. Both have plenty of pictures so are even suitable for Scousers:Football: The Golden AgeI bought this one the other day on a recommendation - it's a truly wonderful book filled with 300 or so photos evocative of all aspects of the game in days gone by. In a similar vein: Football Days (Mitchell Beazley Sport) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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Reality Check: Roys ad attacks fellow Democrat Pocan
4 Democrats facing off in primary for 2nd Congressional District
MADISON, Wis. — Candidates in the 2nd Congressional District race are running television ads, with one of them alleging a quid-pro-quo in the state Legislature.
In an aggressive attempt to define her opponent in a four-way Democratic primary, state Rep. Kelda Roys essentially accuses state Rep. Mark Pocan of pay-to-play politics.
"Remember Mark Pocan? The politician who caved in on voting for tax giveaways to big corporations," a narrator says in the ad.
A WISC-TV analysis found this misleading. Roys is referring to bills which each passed 82-12 last year, with the majority of Democrats voting for them, including Pocan.
One bill wiped out income taxes for two years for companies that moved to Wisconsin.
The second bill expanded the state's economic development tax credits by $25 million. That program was actually started in 2009 and was created by a bill that Roys voted for in the state Legislature.
Who has received these tax credits? The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation said that since 2011, 60 companies have benefited, which is expected to create more than 3,000.
The companies include Emmi Roth in Monroe, Filament Games in Madison and some larger companies such as 3M and Polaris.
"Now we find out that after raising campaign cash from predatory lenders, Mark Pocan undermined and delayed legislation to crack down on payday lenders," the ad said.
WISC-TV found this also misleading. Pocan took a $500 donation from a representative for a payday loan company in 2008. So did 13 other lawmakers, Democratic and Republican, including Gordon Hintz, who was the sponsor of the bill to regulate payday lenders.
The Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee also raised nearly $34,000 in 2009-10 from a number of payday loan industry-connected donors. But that money was not just used to help Pocan. It helps in the re-election efforts of all Democrats, presumably including Roys.
So what happened with the bill?
Hintz tried to petition the Assembly speaker to assign his bill to a specific committee, and Pocan intervened, telling Hintz that it was the speaker's prerogative where to assign legislation and he wouldn't question that power.
Did that undermine or delay efforts to regulate payday lenders? A payday lending bill did get a public hearing and it did pass both houses, with the support of Pocan and Roys.
It wasn't the original bill that Hintz introduced but was a compromise many Democrats lauded at the time as the first meaningful regulation of payday lending in Wisconsin. The University of Wisconsin-Madison and WISC-TV will host a debate between 2nd Congressional District Democratic primary candidates next Tuesday. Pocan and Roys are participating in the debate, as well as Iraq war veteran Matt Silverman and electronic security consultant Dennis Hall.
The four Democratic candidates will meet in the H.F. DeLuca Forum in the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery on the UW-Madison campus at 330 N. Orchard St. The debate will begin at 7 p.m. and is open to the public, though seating is limited.
WISC-TV will air the debate Aug. 12 at 10 a.m. and on WISC-TV's sister channel, TVW, the same day at 7 p.m.
The winner of the Aug. 14 primary will face Republican Chad Lee in the Nov. 6 general election.


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With the countdown towards the start of this year's Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia less than two weeks away, I thought this topic was apt. On this day in 1924, the first Winter Olympics were held in Chamonix, France (in the French Alps). Originally known as the "International Winter Sports Week", or en français, La Semaine Internationale des Sports d'Hiver, these Olympic Games lasted from January 25th to February 4th, with 16 nations participating and 258 athletes competing in total.
The Winter Olympics had many antecedents. In 1901, five years after the birth of the modern Olympics at Athens, Sweden held the first organized international competition in winter sports. Called the Nordic Games, this competition was exclusive to Scandinavian nations. Interestingly, the first time that winter sports were staged at the Olympics were in 1908 (London, UK) for figure skating, and 1920 (Antwerp, Belgium) for men's ice hockey. As a separate Winter Olympics event did not exist at the time, both the figure skating and ice hockey events were held months after the Summer Olympics were held.
In 1924, the French Olympic Committee decided to host a Winter Olympics in the foothills of the French Alps, in conjunction with the Summer Olympics that were to be held later in the year in Paris. On January 25th, 1924, the first Winter Olympic games were held, with the following six sports being played: bobsleigh, curling, ice hockey, military patrol (known today as the biathlon), skating (both figure skating and speed skating), and Nordic skiing (cross-country skiing, Nordic combined, and ski jumping). The sixteen nations participating were: Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Finland, France, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Norway, Poland, Switzerland, Sweden, the United States, and Yugoslavia.
Here are some interesting facts about the First Winter Olympic Games:
- Norway won the most medals at the games, with 4 gold, 7 silver, and 6 bronze for a total of 17 medals. Finland won the second most medals, with 4 gold, 4 silver, and 3 bronze (total of 11).
- These Olympic Games in the winter of 1924 marked the first time that the host country failed to win any gold medals. At Chamonix, France won 3 bronze medals, and no gold. Since Chamonix, this feat has only occurred four other times, at St. Moritz, Switzerland (Summer, 1928), Montreal, Canada (Summer, 1976), Calgary, Canada (Winter, 1988), and Sarajevo, Yugoslavia (Winter, 1984).
- Oddly enough, in 1974 the last medal of the 1924 Winter Olympics was handed out. Anders Haugen of the United States was awarded the bronze medal in a ski jumping event, after Olympic officials had discovered that a scoring error had occurred, placing Haugen incorrectly in fourth place. By the time Haugen received his bronze medal in 1974, he was 86 years old. I hope by that age he was not ski jumping any longer…
- From 1924 to 1992, Winter and Summer Olympics were held on the same year, every four years. A decision in 1986 however by the International Olympic Committee placed the Summer and Winter Games on separate four-year cycles in alternating even-numbered years. Consequently, the next Winter Olympics after 1992 (Albertville, France) were held in 1994, at Lillehammer, Norway.
- Canada won its first Winter Olympics gold medal in men's ice hockey, uniquely defending their title from the previous Summer Olympics. Women's ice hockey would not be added to the Olympic until 1998, at Nagano, Japan. Here's to another ice hockey gold medal (in both men's and women's mind you) this year at Sochi, 90 years after Chamonix! 🙂


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Vol. IV: "Wonder"
Fiction by Zachary Eller, Kyle Raymond Fitzpatrick, T.S. McAdams, Rebecca Orchard, Megan E. O'Toole, Bernard Steeds • Nonfiction by Stephanie Dickinson, Jean Jackman, Amie McGraham, Mia Nakaji Monnier • Poetry by Rachel Alarcio, Rhiannon Conley, Jan Harris, Mitchell Nobis, Peter Marcus, Katrinka Moore, Matt Morgan, Krista Nave, Esther Ra, Jessica Reed, Hilary Sallick • Stage & Screen by Matt DeNoto, Charles Duffie, Ruben Grijalva • Experimental Narratives by Fateme Banishoeib, Trinie Dalton, Rebecca Durham, L.I. Henley & Laura Maher, Madronna Holden & David Woldensberger • Interview with Jeffrey Lo • Visual Art & Comics by Emma Arkel, Doug Fogelson, Lauren Carly Shaw, Arturo Stanig
Flash 405: 2018 Issue
Guest Judges Edwin Bodney, Glen David Gold, Rebecca Luxton, Brianna J.L. Smyk • 1st Place Winners Sarina Bosco, Kate Bove, Johnson Cheu, Evan McMurry • 2nd Place Winners Tracy Davidson, Jackie DesForges, Roxanne Geti, Jon Mozes • Honorable Mention Maryann Aita, Guy Biederman, Doug Van Gundy, Carol Ann Martin, Kayla Monsanto, Kristin Olsen, Martin Jon Porter, Brie Radke, Cameron Snyder, Mia Kirsi Stageberg
Vol. III: "Orbit"
Fiction by Jason S. Dennis, Brian Howlett, Sasanka Jinadasa, Jack Kirne, Cira Davis, Drew Shinozaki • Nonfiction by Glenn Deutsch, Angela Santillo, Sherry Shahan, Renee C. Winter • Poetry by Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo, Jessica Beyer, Edwin Bodney, Tresha Haefner, Yessica Klein, Ronald Koertge, Leon Lowder, Fran Markover, Larry Pike, Jen Sage-Robison • Stage & Screen by Orit Ackerman, Charles Leipart, James McLindon, Michelle Sarkany • Experimental Narratives by Janet Kaplan, Mark Stein • Interview with Edwin Bodney • Visual Art & Comics by Val Britton, Melanie Cook, Krystal Meldrum, Leah Oates
Flash 405: 2017 Issue
Guest Judges Trinie Dalton, Lauren Gorski, David Lott and Michele Raphael (Angels Flight • literary west), Laura Rensing • 1st Place Winners Cayce Osborne, Amir Safi, Chelsea Sutton, Linda Willing • 2nd Place Winners Cathy Baker, Ava Bergen, Guy Biederman, Emma Musty • Honorable Mention Neal Adelman, Joanna Bettelheim, Michael Harris Cohen, Keri Culver, Jason Dennis, Ellen Devlin, Roxanne Geti, Jillian Kovach, Megan Merchant, Eric Andrew Newman, Joan Slatoff, Bobby Wilson
Vol. II: "Surface"
Fiction by Aimee Bender, Laura Bonazzoli, Christina Craigo, David Crist, Robert Kerbeck, Ashley Roque, Phoebe Yeoh • Nonfiction by Maryann Aita, Melanie Kachadoorian • Poetry by Alessandra R. Castellanos, Iris Jamahl Dunkle, Rob Griffith, Brad Johnson, Konstantin Kulakov, Jack Liskin, Michael McLaughlin, MK Punky, Woody Woodger • Stage & Screen by Lena Ford, Arthur Keng, Jonathan Kuhn • Experimental Narratives by Gwen Goodkin, William Powhida • Visual Art & Comics by Shirin Abedinirad, Shawn DePasquale, Sherard Johnson & Whitney Cook, Sarah Meyohas, Nicholas J.J. Smith, Deborah Stevenson
Flash 405: 2016 Issue
Guest Judges Annlee Ellingson, Judith Freeman, Amy Gerstler, Mellinda Hensley, Abigail Mitchell • 1st Place Winners M.A. Jay, Michael Sarabia, Melissa Secola, Mary Wysong-Haeri, Mike Yim • 2nd Place Winners Lisa Beebe, Olivia Parkes, Lisa Renee, Amy Rossi, L.M. Wetzork • Honorable Mention Sam Brighton, Chad V. Broughman, Randall Brown, Genelle Chaconas, Shane Cubis, John Durham, Matthew Fiander, Nicholas Gustavson, Joyce Li, Nina Mamikunian, Raj Ramaswamy, Kayleigh Shoen
Vol. I: "IX Lives"
Fiction by L Philip Darrow, William Deverell, Sonia Greenfield, Hafeez Lakhani, Conor Teevan • Nonfiction by Stephanie Abraham, Orli Robin, Rebecca Thomas • Poetry by Jonathon Andersen, Ace Boggess, Tyler Gillespie, Robert Jackson, David James, Matthew Kolb, Maja Lukic, Claudia Rankine & John Lucas, Matthew Woodman, Jan Worth-Nelson • Stage & Screen by Michael P. Adams, Jeffrey Lo • Interview with Richard Rayner • Artwork by Frances Stark, Anthony Samaniego, WRDSMTH
Before Exposition Review, there was the Southern California Review. SCR was the literary journal of the students of the Master of Professional Writing Program at USC. When USC announced that the MPW program would close its doors in 2016, editors both past and present–current students and alumni–came together to find a way to keep the spirit of the journal alive.
Exposition Review is proud of our history and honored to continue on the legacy and tradition of the Master of Professional Writing program and Southern California Review.
Below, you can view the volumes & some of the work published by the editors of Exposition Review:
Vol. VIII: "Remnants"
Fiction by Lisa Alexander, Mark Broeske, Robert Faus, Janet Fitch, Vera Kurian • Nonfiction by Alan Barstow, Katharine Coldiron, Judith Freeman • Poetry by Paul Bone, Clayton Clark, Jonathan Greenhause, Ivan Hobson, David Lehman, David Moolten, Jenny Morse, David Wagoner • Stage & Screen by Julia Cho, Brighde Mullins • Interview with Bernard Cooper • Artwork by Anthony Conover, Bernard Cooper
Vol. VII: "In Transit"
Fiction by Amy Boulanger, John Brantingham, Dave Hunter, Dana Johnson, Joseph Rathgeber, Susan Levi Wallach • Nonfiction by Catina Bacote, Tony Barnstone, Lynell George • Poetry by Tony Barnstone, Kevin Craft, Dante DiStefano, Bill Glose, John Grey, Sierra Nelson, James F. Sargent, Ralph Sneeden, Sarah Steinke, Sarah Wainscott • Stage & Screen by Jennifer Maisel, Rebecca Gorman O'Neill • Comics by M. G. Lord, D. C. Simpson, Veronica Vera • Interview with Susan Orlean • WriteGirl by Gabrielle Gorman, Kira Lazzarini
Vol. VI: "Control"
Fiction by Jesse Hassenger, Trinie Dalton, Jonathan Danielson, Ilya Leybovich, John Teresi, Diana Wagman, Erika Wurth • Nonfiction by Sven Birkerts, Brenda Miller, Graeme Mullen, Emily Rapp • Poetry by Ian Berry, Ace Boggess, Nan Cohen, Amy Gerstler, Ryan Ridge, David Starkey • Stage & Screen by Jon Robin Baitz • 826LA by Donna Chung, Cas Sotomayor
Other volumes as the Southern California Review (Vol. I – VIII; 2008 – 2015):
As the Southern California Anthology (Vol. I – XXVI; 1982 – 2007):
You can still purchase many of these SCR and SCA print volumes. Email us at firstname.lastname@example.com for more information.


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Today's the last day Goober will have his "outie"... tomorrow he's having his surgery.
I said I wasn't worried about it.
I am.
I can't help it.
I know I'm being silly.
Today is Anne of Cleves birthday. She is my favorite of all of Henry's wives.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Look! A Diversion!
Today's the last day Goober will have his "outie"... tomorrow he's having his surgery.
7 comments:
Of COURSE you're worried; your baby is having a medical procedure done! I'd be worried if you weren't worried. He'll be fine, I'm sure, let him milk it for some sympathy and extra attention for a day or two. Lifting you guys up in prayer!
- September 22, 2008 at 1:53 PM
- Robin said...[Reply to comment]
Sending many good thoughts and a heap of virtual chocolate your way.
- September 22, 2008 at 3:01 PM
- Heather of the EO said...[Reply to comment]
I get worried about a little finger prick and a blood draw at a regular old appointment. I'm a total medical wuss. if that makes you feel better.
I'm sure it will go just as smooth as possible.
Peace to you,
- September 22, 2008 at 3:23 PM
- NinjaPrincess said...[Reply to comment]
When my son was 5 he had surgery. My husband wanted to go into the OR with him and stay until he fell asleep. Hubby told me I could go in and be with him when he woke up. I figured this was a good plan, because I thought the OR would make me woozy, and I would enjoy some snuggle time with my sleepy guy as he came out of anesthesia.
Only...apparently anesthesia makes my son, how do you say...violent?! Instead of sleepy snuggles, I ended up wrestling the preschool version of a an angry badger.
Fun times!
- September 22, 2008 at 3:35 PM
Of course you are worried, that is your baby and you are a great mommy. Make sure and take something to keep your hands busy, yet that doesn't require a lot of attention span, sounds crazy, but it helps. I'll be thinking of you tomorrow. BIG HUGS for both of you!
- September 22, 2008 at 4:13 PM
- Unknown said...[Reply to comment]
There's nothing wrong with worrying about your kids, its natural.
Sending lots of love for today and remember, if he gets to have ice cream on the way home, that means you do to.
- September 23, 2008 at 5:30 AM
- carrie said...[Reply to comment]
You know he will be fine!
And thanks for the link to Wikipedia, I am SOOOOO addicted to watching The Tudors right now! That was an interesting read! :)
- September 23, 2008 at 6:58 PM


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In all the excitement of studio moves and wallpaper development I forgot about my little Illuminate book and having been shouting about it much lately. I had a royalty statement last week though and I was pleased to learn that it is doing very well out there without me. Today, thanks to the lovely Sharon Dale at the Yorkshire Post I have a big feature all about it...and about the wonders of hand crafted lighting in general. It features House of Chintz, Holly Ross and Amy Adams of Perch! ceramics in Brooklyn. It's a great piece and you can find it on page 6 of the Property Section. Thanks Sharon x
I went to the wallpaper factory yesterday and it was beyond awesome. I will be back soon with lots of photos. Wallpaper could be as little as ten weeks away!


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Ten years ago today, in my very first blog post, I said,
Neither a farmer nor a gourmet, I can't promise technical explanations or rarefied flights of fancy.
Still, there is a rich variety of apples still available here in New England, including many heirlooms.
If you don't know these apples, prepare to be amazed.
Maybe there has been a rarified flight of fancy or two. Still, my best work here is when the prose gets out of the way and the apples speak.


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The School Friends are a community of approximately forty five schools and colleges with a direct link to the Cathedral's Learning and Engagement Department.
For a small annual subscription, members receive many benefits including invitations to participate with other School Friends at events like the annual School Friends' Service and Teacher Twilight CPD sessions, as well as 10% discount off the cost of group visits.
Stay in the know
The Partnerships Co-ordinator can help with memberships, bookings, as well as details of the latest School Friends' exclusive offers. I am on leave until the 31 May and will get back to you on my return.
Vicky Rowlands
Partnerships Co-ordinator
01243 812986


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I think I alluded to this last week but the gathering of the Maryland Liberty Caucus should make for an interesting party next week at Turf Valley.
One would also have to assume that a number of others who are considering statewide campaigns – at least at the top of the ticket – would also be having hospitality suites as well. Obviously Larry Hogan is no stranger to having events at the convention, nor is David Craig. And with Blaine Young making his presence known both in Crisfield and in Ocean City it's not going to be a shock to see him around, either.
Yet the interesting thing will be to see how many outside groups will be trying to win influence in the Maryland GOP. Obviously the Liberty Caucus is working from the conservative right, so what will the establishment do to counter?
Consider that Howard County is the home base of National Committeeman Louis Pope, who is credited with whipping the votes necessary to pass new rules in the GOP which would help the establishment choice in future campaigns. (These were written under the assumption that Mitt Romney would be the incumbent President, but could be used in supporting yet another so-called "mainstream" candidate.) It would be my guess that he will have a large presence in his home county.
Or folks could attend a Friday evening workshop on precinct organization and targeted voter contacts, which will run before the "official" opening of the hospitality suites at 8 p.m.
I've also found out that those who don't have to sleep one off will have Congressman Andy Harris as the breakfast speaker. Not sure who the lunch speaker(s) will be, but supposedly "they should be very good!" I guess I'll have to wait to see who "they" are but I always get lunch anyway.
Regardless, it will be good to get together and commiserate with some like-minded people for a change. As far as I know, there are no burning issues on the agenda since Alex Mooney hasn't resigned yet. There may be a little bit of a row at the convention itself regarding a no-confidence vote in party leadership but there's not enough upset people for that to go anywhere at this late date.
If things are to change for 2014, it may end up being best to work outside the normal channels until the movement is large enough to overwhelm.


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Christian Avard
Friday September 22, 2006
An academic has claimed to RAW STORY that a decline in reported rape of 85% in the past 25 years can be tied to an increase in pornography consumption.
In a study for Northwestern University's Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper Series titled "Porn Up Rape Down," Anthony D'Amato, a Leighton Professor of Law at Northwestern University, argues that the proliferation of pornography has lead to a sharp decline in rape across the United States.
According to a 2005 National Crime Victimization Survey, the national rate of rape decreased from 2.5 to 0.5 for every thousand people over a 30-year span from 1973 to 2003. The explanations offered include less lawlessness associated with crack cocaine, women being taught to avoid unsafe situations, that more potential rapists are already in prison for other crimes, and sex education classes telling boys that "no means no."
But in an interview with RAW STORY, D'Amato argues that these are minor factors and do not explain the decline in rape. "Suppose you distribute free condoms to a country, and you find, five years later, that the birth rate has gone down 85%. Would you say that it's just a cosmic coincidence or would you say that the distribution of condoms caused the drop in the rate of birth? The reasoning is the same for my position on rape: the causation factor is reasonably inferred, " said D'Amato.
In "Porn Up Rape Down," D'Amato compiled data from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. In 2001, the four states with the lowest per capita access to the Internet were Arkansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, and West Virginia. The four with the highest per capita Internet access were Alaska, Colorado, New Jersey, and Washington.
When compared to Disaster Center's figures for forcible rape for the years 1980 and 2000, the four states with the lowest Internet access showed a 53% aggregate per capita increase in rape, while the four states with the highest Internet access showed a 27% decrease in incidence of rape.
"Critics argue that exposure to depictions of violence causes violent behavior," said D'Amato. "They say that rape is just a subcategory of this principle. They couldn't be more mistaken. Exposure to violent movies, TV programs, or video games has NOT produced more social violence. It has produced the opposite. The amount of social violence per capita in the year 1900 when street gangs attacked pedestrians and murders were common far exceeds the incidence of violence today. Sure, there is violent behavior, but when it happens it makes headlines. Back then it happened so often that it wasn't newsworthy."
"It's not a big mystery," says Bruce David, Editorial Director of Hustler magazine. "It's consistent with all the research data we've seen. In countries where adult material is legal, generally speaking there is a decline in instances of rape and spousal abuse and we have also seen in places where adult material is illegal that the abuse of women can be rampant, like Afghanistan where women are shot in soccer stadiums."
Will Ryder, Director of Hustler's Barely Legal and Britney Rears video line wholeheartedly agrees. "I have always felt this was an absurd claim and that quite the contrary would take place, due to the fact that most who view adult entertainment usually conclude their session with a self-satisfaction reward and are too damn tired to leave the house and rape somebody. The last damn thing he wants to do is go out and hunt somebody down," said Ryder.
D'Amato's interest in the rape-pornography question began in 1970, when he served as a consultant to President Nixon's Commission on Obscenity and Pornography. When the Commission found there was no connection between pornography and violent anti-social behavior, Nixon according to D'Amato was furious.
In the 1980s, President Reagan created a similar commission under Attorney General Edwin Meese, who D'Amato said "packed it with people who were on record denouncing pornography." In "Porn Up Rape Down" D'Amato wonders how the social facts could change so drastically in the decade between the Nixon and Reagan reports.
Critics contend that none of D'Amato's conclusions make any sense. "My experience with women across the U.S. is that women now do not report rape," said Gail Dines, associate professor of Sociology and Women's Studies at Wheelock College. "I teach and speak on campuses all over and I know that only 34% of rapes are ever reported and increasingly women are not believed when they tell their stories. I also hear stories that when women do go forward, the college or university will clamp down on women. Or the alleged rapist will get friends to harass her until she drops charges and terrorizes them out of reporting it. This happens everywhere."
Dines also disagreed with the National Victimization Survey conclusion that incidents of rape have decreased by 85%. "It doesn't matter where the statistics come from because women are not reporting. I very rarely meet a woman who has reported a rape. It's by far the exception rather that the rule."
D'Amato believes the most important lesson people should take away from "Porn Up Rape Down" is to question the results of governmental reports. "If people can learn to distrust the findings of governmental commissions, such as the Warren Report, the 9-11 report, or the Meese report on social violence, we would become a more free and democratic nation," said D'Amato. "Our government engineers these reports to shield the perpetrators or to promote the business interests of its cronies and campaign contributors. As I tell my law students, the first thing you need to know about being a lawyer is not to trust the written word."
But critics like Dines suggest that D'Amato or those who reviewed his study fail to understand the myriad factors that influence rape. "What causes rape and violence against women is a very complicated issue. No feminist I know would ever say that only pornography is the sole cause of rape. There are multiple causes," said Dines. "To look at the causes of rape you have to look at multiple factors and variables and all I can say is it was reviewed by people who are not aware of the research that's been going on or did not question the nature of debate he was using."
[Clarification: RAW STORY is not endorsing Mr. D'Amato's claim, but rather reporting it is an item of interest.]


text: dustman 0 Report post Posted January 16, 2013 Playing as Avila astrologer with real interest in all things related to math, I've managed to build up most of the skills (including all classes maxed) just a month or so after mid-term exams. And stopped going to classes at all. One-two detentions a week were a norm, but it would save far more days for research and adventures. And, out of blue, I've been suspended Three (!!!) weeks my activity looked like classes-detention-rest (rest in last 2 weeks). Now I think if it is worth it or not, time-wise. Ten wasted slots per week for classes vs. eleven free slots (plus eventual holidays). Maybe yes, maybe not, but fortunately it happened prior to end-term exams. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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Continuous Arm Rocker
$1,995.00 - $2,400.00
Adapted from our iconic Continuous Arm Chair, this iteration, in rocker form is designed and crafted to last, bringing joy and satisfaction to all who use it. The rocker promises the same comfort and uncompromising quality as our the Continuous Arm Chair but with the added pleasure of gentle movement.
Made to Order
Please select from the options below to create a piece made just for you, standard lead times apply.
Product Information
|TMCR [n/a]
38″H x 24″W x 29″L
Ash, Cherry, Walnut
Tom Moser
|Product Sheet
Altered from our original Continuous Arm Chair, the Continuous Arm Rocker is crafted in sustainably harvested North American hardwood, provides the perfect amount of roll while providing ample stability.
The rocker's namesake arm is created using flitch-cut hardwood. The process involves quartering and steaming sections of logs, then slicing them into tenth-inch thick strips. The knife cuts produce no sawdust – and thus no waste – and the board's full strength is preserved. When the pieces are shaped and glued back together, the arm is comprised of eleven different layers, while retaining the strength and appearance of solid wood.
The shape of the continuous arm – oval at the top, round in the middle, and U-shaped where it meets the arms – requires intensive handwork. Each arm is trimmed, then filed by hand using a course file called a horse rasp, then a finer rasp, and then finished with a hand sander. Even the holes are drilled by eye.
The Continuous Arm Rocker also includes other refinements, such as a highlight (raised section) that runs around the back of the chair, where the spindles join the seat. The spindles extend all the way through the seat and are wedged top and bottom, making them not only aesthetically pleasing but easy to repair should the need ever arise. The spindles are so finely tuned, you can pluck them the way you would with a string on a harp and they should resonate at the same frequency.
The legs represent the rocker's final distinction. Most Windsor chairs have stretchers that connect the legs to one another. Over time, stretchers get creaky, gather dust and interfere with feet seeking space for a more comfortable position. Recognizing another opportunity, we have replaced the stretchers with a curved brace called a ship's knee. Supportive and strong, the ship's knee is created from 1/32" laminated ash that is bent to shape, and then set into a slot that is cut and shaped into the leg, so it is flush with the surface.


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Barnes & Noble, Inc. announced this morning that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Barnes & Noble College Booksellers, the privately-held chain of college stores owned by B&N founder Len Riggio. B&N is valuing the purchase at $596 million, or $460 million after including B&N's cash on hand. The college operation had sales of $1.8 billion in the fiscal year ended May 2 with comp sales growth of 1.0%, and although profits were not broken out, B&N said it would have earned an additional $121 million before EBITDA in the past year from the acquired properties.
B&N said B&N College will continue to be run out of its Basking Ridge, N.J., offices with Max Roberts remaining as president. The company operates 624 college bookstores serving about four million students. In a prepared statement Riggio explained the logic behind the deal: "Although both companies previously thrived as separate entities, owing to distinctions in their product offerings, the definition of textbooks and trade books has become increasingly blurred. This trend will accelerate with e-book offerings. Thus, combining both businesses on a single branded platform will enable the combined company to cross-promote print and digital offerings to all of our customers."
Irene Miller, a B&N board member who chaired the independent committee that reviewed the chance to acquire the college unit, said, "Reuniting the companies and bringing home the B&N brand is a big, big deal." The college operation was spun off after B&N bought the B. Dalton chain. The college group's position in the college market will bring a predictable revenue stream to B&N, Miller said, while making it easier for the two to work together to compete more effectively in both the e-book and traditional textbook market. B&N CFO Joe Lombardi said that while there will be some cost savings from the deal, the main driver was the chance for B&N to bring its expertise to the college store area to help college bookstores sell more trade titles and to improve their Web sites and e-commerce operations. Lombardi sees more opportunity in taking on the operation of bookstores from colleges who are looking to outsource those operations; B&N said its new contract pipeline should add $53 million in annualized sales.
Lombardi acknowledged that the college market is being rapidly changed by technology, but said the purchase "turns a threat into an opportunity," noting that in five to 10 years B&N expects to be selling "trade books, physical textbooks, and digital books online and through our stores."
The stock market gave the deal high marks in its initial reaction, boosting B&N's stock price by 12% when the market opened this morning.


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The Deimos Predator Executioner, also known as the Predator Executioner, is a variant of the standard Deimos Predator Destructor main battle tank used by the Space Marine Legions and after the Second Founding by the Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes. The Deimos Predator Executioner is an ancient and revered design that dates back to the time of the Emperor of Mankind's Great Crusade, where it was used by the Space Marine Legions as they conquered the galaxy. The Deimos Predator design differs from other Predator variants in that its turret and sponson-mounts are eloquently curved to the point that they are almost circular and the tank makes use of more advanced internal systems and support for technologies now lost to the Imperium. Each and every Deimos Predator was Artificer-crafted by the finest machine-wrights of the great forge-complexes of Mars. The Deimos Predator Executioner is no longer manufactured on a large scale, or at all, for the Chapters of the Space Marines as the Mars Pattern Predator is now used almost exclusively by the Adeptus Astartes. As Plasma Weapons technology has been nearly lost to the Imperium in the late 41st Millennium, the Predator Executioner's main weapon, the Plasma Destroyer, is extremely rare and difficult to replace. However, these vehicles still survive in the Armoury of many Chapters, revered as both relics of the long-forgotten past and as symbols of a Chapter's ancient heritage.
The Deimos Predator Executioner replaces the standard Deimos Predator's turret-mounted Autocannon, known as a Predator Cannon, with a turret-mounted Executioner Pattern Plasma Destroyer. The Plasma Destroyer is a powerful Plasma Weapon that is able to to blast apart even the most powerful armour with contemptuous ease. The Predator Executioner was fielded in large numbers by the Space Marine Legions during the Great Crusade, although by the late 41st Millennium Plasma Weapons technology has nearly been lost to the Imperium. As a result, surviving Deimos Predator Executioners are revered as treasured relics that cannot be easily replaced. It is unknown if the Mars Pattern Predator can be armed with the same weapon loadouts as the Deimos Predator variant, or even if the Adeptus Mechanicus would allow it if it were possible. The Deimos Predator Executioner can also be armed with a turret-mounted Heavy Conversion Beamer in place of its Plasma Destroyer. The Heavy Conversion Beamer is an ancient and poorly understood weapon that fires a high intensity beam of anti-matter that transforms matter into pure energy. A heavily armoured target and dense material will be rent apart as its matter is transmuted into pure electromagnetic energy. The denser the material of the target, the more energy that is converted, making Predator Executioners into extremely powerful siege units and long-range tank destroyers. Yet, this firepower is gained at the cost of maneuverability and increased vulnerability to short-range attacks. The Deimos Predator Executioner, as with all Predator tanks, can be armed with up to two sponson-mounted weapons including Heavy Bolters, Heavy Flamers, or Lascannons. The tank can be equipped with a variety of Pintle-mounted weaponry, including a Combi-Bolter or other Combi-Weapon, a Heavy Flamer, a Heavy Bolter, or a Havoc Missile Launcher. The vehicle can also be outfitted with a Hunter-Killer Missile Launcher, a dozer blade, an auxiliary drive system, extra armour plating, armoured ceramite plating, or an advanced Machine Spirit (Artificial Intelligence). All Deimos Predator Executioners are equipped with smoke launchers and a searchlight.
Adeptus Mechanicus Technical Specifications
|Vehicle Name:
|Deimos Predator Executioner
|Main Armament:
|Single Turret-mounted Plasma Destroyer
|Forge World of Origin:
|Mars, Deimos (Mars' Moon)
|Secondary Armament:
|2 Sponson-mounted Heavy Bolters
|Known Patterns:
|360 degrees
|1 Driver, 1 Gunner
|-15 to 28 degrees
|Quad Mark II Adaptable Thermic Combustor Reactor
|Main Ammunition:
|12 Shots from photonic fuel cell (approx.)
|46 Tonnes (approx.)
|Secondary Ammunition:
|1100 Rounds
|6.6 metres (approx.)
|6.0 metres with sponsons (approx.)
|4.4 metres (approx.)
|65 millimetres
|Ground Clearance:
|0.44 metres
|55 millimetres
|Max Speed On-Road:
|60 kilometres per hour (approx.)
|Gun Mantlet:
|65 millimetres
|Max Speed Off-Road:
|45 kilometres per hour (approx.)
|Vehicle Designation:
|Transport Capacity:
|Firing Ports:
|Access Points:
Also See
- Imperial Armour - The Horus Heresy - Book One: Betrayal, pp. 116, 119, 124, 154, 156, 216-217, 256
- Deimos Predator Executioner, Forge World


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What are the cost benefits to buying logs instead of a kit?
Logs and log fasteners account for only about 30% of construction cost. Purchasing logs and fasteners from us allow you to source the remaining 70% of construction cost where you desire.
Log cabin logs and log construction materials are unique and are not normally available through traditional construction channels. We can provide log cabin logs at a reasonable price.
Our specialty is providing Iowa White Oak logs for cabins and making this product easily available. Buyers can work with their local contractors and lumber companies for roofing, doors, windows, and construction lumber.


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Banking giant Investec battled weak economic growth in its two core markets South Africa and the UK to post a 9.4 per cent full-year profit rise.
The South African financial services group said it delivered a "sound" performance against a challenging operating environment, in its results for the year ending 31 March.
Read more: Investec profits rise ahead of asset management London listing
The company posted operating profits of £664.5m – a 9.4 per cent increase on £607.5m the previous year.
But growth would have been 12.6 per cent were it not for the weakness of the rand.
Investec said it was on track with the demerger and London-listing of its asset management division, which it announced in the september.
Assets under management increased by 7.3 per cent to £111.4bn over the twelve months, while profits rose just 0.7 per cent to £179.4m as higher UK costs, lower performance fees in South Africa and Mifid-related investments hit earnings.
Investecs growth was driven by its bank and wealth business, which increased profit by 13 per cent to £485.2m, led by its UK specialist bank which offset a weaker performance in South Africa.
The Anglo-South African group also revealed plans to close its Click and Invest robo-advice business after two years of losses in order to "manage costs and allocate capital effectively."
The online investment services made losses of £12.8m last year on top of £13.5m losses the previous year, and the company has also taken a £6m write-down on the platforms software.
Joint chief executives Fani Titi and Hendrik de ToitRead More – Source


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It is important the young minds are trained in international standards since they require technical skills to meet with the challenges of Twenty-first century. At the same time equally important is our understanding for our own culture and tradition. In this period of increasing inclination towards the Western culture, forthcoming generations should never miss to acquire the essence of social, political and cultural frame of our ancestors.
Yuvabharathi School makes it a point to make children recognise that they belong to a rich artistic tradition. Art and Craft, drama, music and the delight in celebrating Tamil festivals are greatly encouraged here.


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By draw two parallel lines across the left hand corner of the cheque, this crossing can prevent the cheque from being directly encashed. The crossed cheque must be deposited into a bank account. If the cheque has been stolen, it is easily traced by locating the account it was deposited into.
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Blog Archives
Lately I've been trying to re-connect with some old friends, acquaintences and collegues. I have successfully re-connected with Kerry who was the first IT person I worked with when I got into the tech world. We worked on lots of stuff together, computers, running cable, climbing in attics and busting through concrete… I also got back in touch with Carol who was another of the first IT people I met when I first got into tech. We worked at the same little IT shop for over a year and did a lot of work for state and local government offices in the area.
Other contacts I've reached are Jim who is an IT director for my home county, and Eddie who was an intern when I worked for county government. I am still trying to hunt down the IT Director I worked for in my last county job. I haven't been able to track down contact info for my old boss, the guy I first started working for at my first IT job, but I'll find him eventually. I also recently talked to Jenni who was also in our IT department in my last county job. I'm still waiting on the low down on whats been going on since I've been gone. Also heard to Chris and a few others.
Its nice to catch up with people and see what everyone's been doing. If you are reading this and know me or used to work with me, please leave me some comments here and re-connect!
Hard drive faulure … fake out!
Yesterday, Liz tells me that she can't get into our external hard drive to get to our picture library. This kinda freaks me out since we have nearly 500GB of data on this drive. So I try a few quick things to see if I can get her access to the drive, I see some warnings in the event log about the disk and some transaction log error. I assume the drive is dead or perhaps I unseated some cables when I put in the new processor the other day. So when I got home from work I checked it out, plugged everything in and it came right up the first time, no problems. I'm not sure what happened, but I didn't have any trouble with the drive, and Liz said she tried the same thing, so I don't know what happened. Its working ok and our data is safe….for now.
FIOS Update
So now that I've had FIOS for several months, I thought I would post an update. Here are my observations so far…
1. I love the ActionTec wireless router that comes with the service. It is a very flexible and fully featured with a firewall, MAC address filtering, port forwarding, and more. I took a little while to adjust to the settings on the router, as you have to click save in more than once place for your settings to be saved and applied, which is a little different, but once you figure out the little neuances of the router, you are good to go! It will do anything and everything I need and more.
2. My only gripe so far, is something that happened when my IP address changed. I had the service for probably over 2 months before my IP changed for the first time. When it did change, my home network lost internet connectivity and my dynamic DNS client was unable to connect to the internet to update my IP. This caused several hours of outage for my home e-mail and internet connectivity. I have not yet had another IP change, so I'm hoping the first time was just a fluke. (NOTE: This won't be an issue for most people, unless you run DNS for accessing services on your home network like I do).
3. The speeds are consistent and fast, every time I run the Verizon speed test, it comes out over 20MBps down, and nearly 5MBps up, with only slight variations. The bandwidth is exceptional, very fast, and reliable. I have had not real service outages at all and am very pleased with the quality of service I am receiving.
4. In order to optomize the speed your computer will see on the FIOS network, it may be necessary to run the FIOS connection optomizer. This basically changes some TCP/IP settings in the registry to optomize throughput on the FIOS system. These are the same type of settings people have been adjusting since the internet was created, I've done it with dialup before, and this is just the most modern way to optomize the connection. Its no big deal, but you will see lower than advertized speeds unless you run the optimizer.
5. The price of the service is comperable to service with other providers in the area, but the speeds are much faster without increasing the cost of the service.
I am overall very pleased with Verizon FIOS service. I highly recommend it to anyone currently using a cable provider. I've been a cable user for years, and took a long time to make the decision to switch. I am happy that I did, and will never go back to cable. I would also point out that Verizon offers a 30 day money back guarantee, so you can always give it a try and test it out to see what you think. You can cancel at the service if you don't want to keep it. Plus then your home will be wired for the service should you decide to use it again in the future.
Server Closet picture
Pardon the cable mess, but here is a picture of my server closet. I have two domain controlers (PCs on the left) and one Exchange server (HP desktop on the right laying flat). My FIOS router is on the top left on top of the black HP desktop/server. Right next to that is my Road Runner cable modem (Motorola SBG900). On the bottom shelf, I have a Dell Power Connect 16 port 10/100 switch. My vonage router is at the other end of the lower shelf and just above that is a phone (now the only phone connected to Vonage – until I cancel the service). I will be dropping road runner and Vonage this coming week, so the collection of devices will be reduced by 2 and a few cables will be removed.
Issue with Public LAN in Windows – Exchange Clustering
Yesterday I began a demo of a Windows Server 2003 Cluster running an Exchange 2003 virtual server. This is a 2 node active/passive cluster. Everything was fine until I got to the part where I was showing hardware failure and the resulting failover performance. I unplugged the public LAN ethernet cable from the active cluster node. To my dismay and embarrasment the cluster administrator locked up and failover never happened. I was sure I had tested this particular scenario before during the initial setup. After thinking about this a little more I probably tested this with the default cluster during setup, and not after Exchange was up and running. Why would you want to disconnect the public LAN cable right? Well, when tested I discovered that Exchange in a cluster is very sensitive (as it usually is) to losing its public LAN interface. Anytime Exchange (clustered or not) loses connection to AD and DNS, it can hang. Well my problem was cuased by the Exchange 2003 services hanging once public LAN connectivity was lost. I found that the cluster was trying to stop the Exchange services but they were hanging. The cluster can't failover to the second node until the core Exchange services are stopped and Exchange cluster resources are marked as offline. So because the services were hanging, my cluster would not fail over to the second node.
Weekend Summary
This weekend was a busy one in Tampa, with lots of things going on. This past Saturday, the Strawberry Festival kicked off. I really want to go and get some fresh strawberry shortcake, its soooooo good! They also sell flats of fresh strawberries for a good price as well. I was going to go down to Plant city and get some yesterday afternoon, but I was pooped and ended up taking a nap. (I must be getting old, I've been taking naps almost every weekend lately). It rained most of Saturday evening and night, so we stayed in. Amanda brought the kids over that afternoon (on Sat) and the kids played togther and we (the adults) watched Star Trek Voyager until about 8 or 8:30.
After the kids went to bed Liz and I watched some of the episodes of Monk from Season 5 that we had missed since dropping cable. We sitll have 3 more episodes to go and we'll be caught up. BSG was new last night, but I have to wait to watch it until it shows up in the newsgroups.
The Great Speaker Hunt
I recently decided that I'd like to replace the older surround sound speakers currently installed on my multimedia PC at home. Since I don't have cable or DirecTV or any other paid TV Service, I use my multimedia PC to download/watch any shows or movies (not counting DVDs) that I want to see. This works out great for me, and the quality is amazing. My multimedia machine is a 1.8GHz AMD system, with 512MB of RAM, a 400GB hard drive, and Realtek HD Audio processor. I checked out my system specs and found that if I bought a really nice set of surround sound speakers, I'd probably need a new sound card. I like the Realtek HD audio, but the physical outputs on the motherboard are limited. I won't have enough outputs to power a decent speaker set in 5.1 surround. So I went online and took over an hour to decide on a new sound card. I ended up getting the Creative Audigy EAX PCI. Its not an expensive card, but should deliver good quality 5.1 6 channel audio to my living room. Now the hunt is on for a good speaker set, I want to get something thats 5.1 surround, has 2 right channels, 2 front channels, a center channel/sub. I need something with a remote for volume control. I also want something if possible, on stands, so I won't have to worry about finding temporary stands or mounting stuff on the wall.
I think I found a few sets on eBay that look pretty nice, and are fairly affordable. I don't really need a receiver, because I won't be using it for any radio or with any other inputs. All my multimedia comes from my multimedia PC, so as long as whatever I get connects to my multimedia PC, I'm set. I don't want to go overboard either, since I won't be using them to their full potential till we either move to a more secluded area, or the kids are older. We live in a close neighborhood, so I don't want to make too much noise! I'll try to put together some kind of diagram and spec listing for my multimedia PC and home theatre system once its complete.
Good weekend
Saturday was a productive day, as I got the CAT5 cable I needed run to my entertainment center. I can now playback video downloaded from my main PC directly on the TV over my home network. I was using wireless before and it was aweful and slow. Its much better now hard wired. I might put the wireless back in the PC and not run another cable at all to the computer desk as I wanted to do earlier. It will be even better when I can replace the older PC currently used for video playback with a nicer machine.]]>
Can't use FIOS :-(
I recently came to the sad realization that I am not going to be able to use FIOS for my home ineternet connection afterall. This is very sad, as I was looking forward to using this new service from Verizon. I was very impressed with their wireless router and the upload speeds, but sadly I will be forced to cancel my account. The issue is that they expire your IP address every 104 minutes, making it a true DHCP (Dynamic IP) network. Where with Road Runner they have a DHCP network, but your IP pretty much never changes. I've had RR for almost 2 years, and its only changed once because I got a new cable modem, so it got a new IP address. I checked into using Dynamic DNS services, which the Verizon router supports, but I have more than one domain, so updating my IP with more than one domain would be a problem. Most dynamic DNS services assume you only have one domain to work with at home. I have 3 main domains that I use, and some supporting domains. So I am going to have to stick with Road Runner for now. I am sure there are workarounds I could do, like run the dynamic DNS service clients on my various computers at home and set each one for a different domain, but that is a huge liability in that if one of them doesn't work right, then mail services for that domain will stop working until I realize what happened and fix it manually. Right now I don't host any websites on my home network just e-mail, but e-mail is important and I don't wait any problems with mail flow, I have enough trouble with that at work, I don't need it at home too.
Multimedia PC
Now that I have a big screen TV and no cable or DirecTV, I discovered a need to connect a PC to my TV to watch shows I download now in HD. I had the grand idea to buy a video card with DVI out and use my mail server (starbuck) to playback video I download from the internet. So I got the video card last night and put in into Starbuck. I was very disappointed to find that there were no drivers from ATI that would work with the card and support Server 2003. So that shot down that idea. The whole reason I wanted to use starbuck was because its a more powerful machine, at almost 2GHz and 1.5GB of RAM. So as a last resort, I took my old backup server (janeway) and reloaded it with Windows XP Pro. I installed the video card and proceeded to setup the machine to be my playback computer. The bad thing is that its dog slow, this thing only has a 667MHz CPU and 512MB of PC100 SDRAM. So I finally got it all setup and drivers installed and connected it to my TV. I had to tweak the video settings and finally got it to where I could see the Desktop on the TV. I installed my codecs and began trying out the video playback. So far it all worked with only one hiccup, its on wireless, and a cheap wireless card at that. So I was copying over a 1GB+ file to playback and the wireless disconnected at 85% of my file copy and I lost it. I gave up around 11:30pm and went to bed. I plan to run cable into a wall jack behind my entertainment center so I can hard wire the connection, rather than rely on flakey wireless. Of what I was able to watch, I think this setup will work for now, but I definately need to get a better machine to use for video playback.


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Six Reasons to Lease Your Trade Show Display
Jan 9, 2020 1:00:00 PM
When I was younger, my mother often told me that money didn't grow on trees. At the time, it was an easy visual for my nine-year-old self to understand. As I got older, I rolled my eyes. Now, as the owner of a growing business, I wish that money trees were real!
One of the biggest challenges for any business is financial management. Cash, borrowing, and efficient resource management impact our businesses every day. If you've decided to commit to trade shows, how can you make it work with so many demands for your cash? Leasing may be your answer.Read More
Refurbish Your Display: 5 Ways to Save Money
Jan 4, 2019 1:30:00 PM
Is your display a few years old and needs to be refreshed? If you find yourself wanting to update your trade show booth or exhibit, whether it's the design or the hardware, there are simple, cost-effective ways to do so before considering a brand new display.Read More
What the heck are Pop-up Displays and why do I need one?
Jul 10, 2017 7:05:25 PM
If you have ever wandered around a trade show then you have most likely seen a Pop Up display, but if haven't attended a trade show as an exhibitor you might not have known what you were looking at. Now here you are about to attend a trade show as an exhibitor and it suddenly matters a little more to you...Read More
Trade Show Terms You Need to Know
Sep 22, 2016 5:42:00 PM
New to the exhibit circuit? There's a lot to learn! Knowing some of the key terminology from within this industry will help…Read More
How To Save Money in Your Trade Show Budget
Apr 14, 2016 4:22:00 PM
Maybe your company is cutting costs, or maybe you've just been meaning to streamline your trade show budget for a while, and just aren't sure where to start. No matter the reason why, if you need to start reducing costs in your trade show marketing plan, we can help…Read More
7 Free (or Cheap) Hacks to Make Your Booth Better Right Now
Mar 17, 2016 10:15:00 PM
With the loonie in the gutter and a barrel of oil worth less than dinner at McDs, it might be hard to find cash to invest in your trade show display this year. On the flip side, a great looking exhibit can help you boost sales and generate new business.Read More
5 Ways Renting a Display Will Save You Money
Jan 25, 2016 9:34:00 AM
Renting your trade show display can be a great way to save money in your trade show budget—on both short-term and long-term costs.Read More
Think Trade Shows Don't Work? 7 Things You Are Doing Wrong
Sep 18, 2015 11:01:00 AM
If you've tried exhibiting before and you've decided that they just don't do what everyone says they do—generate new leads and sales, create brand awareness, reach new audiences, make better business connections—then you are doing something wrong. You might be guilty of one or more of these seven trade show fails:Read More
Exhibitor Q&A: Everything you need to know about Global Petroleum Show
Jul 29, 2015 11:52:00 AM
There are many factors to be considered when choosing which shows to include in your exhibiting calendar, and once a particular show is penciled in, a plethora of other details to hammer out, from choosing your booth location to deciding on a size and style of display.Read More


text: Are you tired of not living the life you truly want? Not feeling happy or fulfilled? Not living a life filled with purpose, passion and meaning? Are you interested in understanding WHY your life is the way it is? WHY, no matter what you have tried in the past, nothing really worked? WHY you couldn't step out of your Comfort Zone? Most important- do you want to know HOW you can change that? Then this book for you! Creating Change will take you on a journey through your own conscious and sub-conscious mind, your unique kind of intelligence, your habits and limiting beliefs. You will become aware of some scientific facts about your brain, how it works and why it functions the way it does. You will learn certain methods and tools to make your brain work for you instead of against you by, among others, eliminate limiting beliefs and non-supportive habits, and how to re-program your programmed mind so you can reduce the level of stress, fear and self- judgment and by that enable yourself to find your true passion and purpose, enlarge and expand the level of (self) love and acceptance, health and joy. Creating Change offers an all-round step by step program that covers a wide range of crucial information which will support and help you create the reality you desire and deserve.