text: Two-time Super Bowl referee Bill Carollo has been honoured by the National Football League Referees Association.The organization chose Carollo, who worked 20 years in the NFL and retired in 2008, on Wednesday. The award recognizes an NFL officials outstanding career on the field and in support of the NFLRA.One of 22 NFL game officials to work 10 or more championship or Super Bowl games, Carollo joined the leagues officiating staff in 1989 as a side judge. He moved to the referee position in 1996, where he remained until his retirement.Carollo refereed the 30th and 37th Super Bowls. He now is co-ordinator of football officials for the Big Ten, Mid-American and Missouri Valley conference.Carollo also played a key role in labour negotiations between the league and the NFLRA in 2001 and 2006.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Freddie Freeman Jersey . Advancing to the Champions League quarterfinals should be a formality after Lionel Messi scored a penalty and Dani Alves added a late second to secure a commanding 2-0 advantage over City in the round of 16 on Tuesday. David Justice Jersey . Expensive. The NFL fined Tomlin $100,000 on Wednesday for interfering with Baltimores Jacoby Jones on a kickoff return in the third quarter of a 22-20 loss to the Ravens on Thanksgiving night. http://www.baseballbravesproshop.com/han...-braves-jersey/. Onyshko, from Minnedosa, Man., will compete in artistic gymnastics while Hanet, from Kelowna, B.C., will compete in lawn bowling as a para-athlete. "It is exciting that our Canadian athletes are starting to arrive at the Games Village," said Chantal Petitclerc, Canadas Chef de Mission. Babe Ruth Jersey . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., who trains out of San Diego, will fight bantamweight champion (Rowdy) Ronda Rousey on July 5 in the co-main event of UFC 175 in Las Vegas. Atlanta Braves Jerseys . In a matter of days, he went from unwanted to wanted, from fired to hired, from discarded by the Philadelphia Eagles with reputation tarnished to rock star treatment and a new fat contract from the Washington Redskins.CLEVELAND -- After 475 pitches, 20 runs and more than five hours of baseball, the Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers settled this lengthy game in a most bizarre fashion: a walkoff balk. Al Alburquerques bases-loaded balk in the 13th inning Wednesday gave the Indians an 11-10 victory over Detroit. "I dont even know where to start with that game," Indians right-fielder David Murphy said. "I dont know if that was a baseball game or a marathon combined with a circus." Murphy tied the game that took 5 hours, 16 minutes in the ninth with a two-run homer off Joe Nathan Alex Avilas two-out homer in the top of the 13th put Detroit ahead, but the Indians scored twice for their second walkoff win in the three-game sweep. Mike Aviles led off with a single against Phil Coke (0-1) and took second on Michael Bourns sacrifice. After Asdrubal Cabrera was hit by a pitch, Michael Brantley lined a single to left for his fourth hit that scored Aviles, who slid home before Rajai Davis throw. After a groundout, Alburquerque relieved and pinch-hitter Yan Gomes was walked intentionally to load the bases. Ryan Raburn took the first pitch for a ball. As Alburquerque went into his set position, he appeared to move his leg and glove and then stopped. Indians manager Terry Francona couldnt remember a game ending on a balk, but he knew Alburquerque committed one. "It was definitely a balk," he said. "If they hadnt have called it we would have went out there and argued." The Tigers put up no argument. "He just went to come set and he stopped and it was pretty blatant," Avila said. "There wasnt any controversy about that one." According to STATS, the game-ending balk is the first since July 4, 2011, when the Royals Aaron Crow committed one in the ninth inning against the White Sox. Its also the first walkoff balk in extra innings since June 16, 2011, when the Mets D.J. Carrasco did it against the Braves. Josh Tomlin (3-1), the Indians ninth pitcher, worked the final three innings. Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera and manager Brad Ausmus were ejected in the sixxth inning by plate umpire Tim Timmons for arguing balls and strikes.dddddddddddd Raburn raised his arms in victory after the balk was called and the Indians rushed from the dugout to mob Cabrera at the plate. Cabrera had been hit on the knee by Cokes pitcher and spent several moments on the ground before going to first. The Indians bid to win in the 10th ended when Davis throw to the plate got Lonnie Chisenhall, who was trying to score on Bourns flyball. Zach McAllister allowed four runs in the first and didnt retire a batter in the third. Having already used seven relievers, Francona had no choice but to call on Tomlin in the 11th even though the right-hander was scheduled to start Thursday in Baltimore. Asked how long Tomlin would have pitched, Francona said, "Till we won or lost. There was nobody else." "I dont know if Ive ever done that before, but I was ready," Tomlin. "They asked me about the 10th inning if I could pitch, so I ran and got my spikes." A roster move to add Thursdays starter will be made before that game. Max Scherzer allowed seven runs in seven innings. He gave up one run in the first, five in the second and another in the third, but blanked the Indians over his final four innings of work. The right-hander gave up 12 hits and threw 113 pitches. Scherzer, last seasons AL Cy Young winner, had allowed six total runs in his previous six starts, all wins, over 39 innings. A dropped throw by Cabrera helped Detroit break a 7-all tie in the eighth. J.D. Martinez, who hit a two-run homer in the first, had three RBIs. Victor Martinez was 3 for 6 with two RBIs, including a solo homer in the third. Chisenhall hit a solo homer for Cleveland. McAllister allowed five runs in two innings. NOTES: Tigers OF Torii Hunter had the day off. ... Indians DH Jason Giambi played for the first time since May 3 when he strained his right calf. He came off the 15-day disabled list Tuesday. ... Victor Martinez is 8 for 13 with seven RBIs lifetime against McAllister. ... Bench coach Gene Lamont ran the team after Ausmus was ejected. ... McAllister is 0-4 with a 9.51 ERA in his last six starts. ' ' '


text:
Nutritional Strategies to Prevent Postpartum Dysgalactia Syndrome in Lactating Sows
Clinical signs and causes of lactation failure
Lactation failure in sows is a common issue, mostly caused by mastitis-metritis-agalactia (MMA). Signs of mastitis, metritis or agalactia, or any combination thereof, may be exhibited following infection of the udder or uterus, or reduced milk production.
The term MMA is starting to be used less often, as the condition is now categorized as a subtype of postpartum dysgalactia syndrome (PDS). Sows affected by PDS produce insufficient colostrum and milk in the first few days after farrowing. Sows or gilts that develop agalactia will typically have normal milk production 12 to 24 hours post partum, but this is followed by partial to complete agalactia. The farm manager or producer will know something is wrong when healthy newborn piglets stop growing, and some piglets may die without any clinical signs of disease.
PDS is closely related to herd health, water intake, nutrition and the farrowing house environment. Risk factors of PDS include:
- Concurrent disease
- High bacterial infection pressure (poor disinfection of farrowing pens)
- Mycotoxicosis (aflatoxins, zearalenone)
- Hypocalcemia and ketosis
- Poor quality or inadequate water supply
- Inadequate farrowing house temperature
- Prolonged duration of farrowing
- Lack of supervision during farrowing
- Sows dirty prior to farrowing
In Brief
- Sows with PDS are unable to provide colostrum or milk for their newborn piglets, stunting piglet growth and causing piglet mortality.
- Various factors contribute to PDS, including farrowing house environment, management practices and nutrient supply.
- Adding a PFA to sow diets throughout the production cycle can reduce the incidence of PDS.
Role of nutrition and feeding regime
Nutrition is a significant factor in the development of PDS, and how the sow is fed from before gestation to farrowing, and throughout lactation affects the incidence of PDS. Sows are fed restricted amounts of a complete diet in days before parturition. These diets have high nutrient and energy densities, and low fiber content, which often causes drier and harder feces, indicating an impaired passage of digesta and constipation. Hermansson et al. (1978) reported constipation in approximately 25% of sows with agalactia. Constipated animals suffer a reduction of intestinal peristaltic movements, which changes the environmental conditions in the intestine. The levels and quality of fiber and protein in the diet are both important factors to consider. First, a higher fiber content in the transition diets fed during the periparturient period reduces the incidence of hard feces (constipation) and increases feed intake by the sow in early lactation. Second, it has been reported that supplementing feed with functional amino acids (e.g., arginine, cysteine, L-glutamine and leucine) can change the composition of the intestinal microbiota in the animal to improve gut health and function. Sows that are too fat at parturition are also at a higher risk of PDS (Göransson, 1989) and feeding sows ad libitum shortly after farrowing increased the risk of PDS compared to restricted feeding (Papadopoulos et al., 2010). Milk let-down and subsequent milk production was more problematic in sows fed diets with lower vitamin E levels (Mahan, 1991).
Diets containing a phytogenic feed additive (PFA) may reduce the incidence of PDS and increase feed intake during lactation. Selected PFAs have shown to have the following effects in sows:
- Stimulation of endogenous secretions
- Improvement of nutrient digestibility
- Modulation of the gut microbiota
- Reduction of inflammatory processes
- Upregulation of anti-inflammatory target genes
In the following trial, the BIOMIN PFA, Digestarom®, was added to a sow diet for 55 days (from the 80th day of gestation until weaning). Sows fed the Digestarom® diet showed increased lactation feed intake (+10%) and milk production (+15%) (Table 1). Consequently, 5.8% more piglets were weaned per litter and piglet weight was 6% higher at weaning, and the incidence of diarrhea was substantially lower (-50%).
High colostrum and milk yields are essential for piglet viability and growth during the pre-weaning period. However, many modern pig herds have a problem with PDS. Therefore, preventive measures should be put in place in both management practices and diet formulation. Adding PFAs to the diet could form part of a nutritional strategy to improve the performance of lactating sows, and therefore their offspring.
Hermansson, I., Einarsson, S., Larsson, K. and Backström L. (1978). On the agalactia post-partum in the sow: A clinical study. Nordisk Veterinaermedicin. 30(11), 465–473.
Göransson, L. (1989). The effect of feed allowance in late pregnancy on the occurrence of agalactia post partum in the sow. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. 36(1–10), 505–513.
Mahan, D. (1991). Assessment of the influence of dietary vitamin E on sows and offspring in three parities: reproductive performance, tissue tocopherol, and effects on progeny. Journal of Animal Science. 69(7), 2904–2917.
Papadopoulos, G., Vanderhaeghe, C., Janssens, G., Dewulf, J. and Maes, D. Risk factors associated with postpartum dysgalactia syndrome in sows. Veterinary Journal. 184(2),167–171.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Babies are big business. There is a product out there for just about everything a mom could need. For parents who don't want their tot straying away -- there's a baby leash. There is even a blouse designed so that moms and dads can carry their infant inside of it, close to their heart. Though there were the best intentions in the conception of these products, some of these inventions are almost too strange to be true.
More from CafeMom: 13 Genius Breastfeeding Hacks to Make Life as a Nursing Mom So Much Easier
A baby product should make a mom's life easier. There are so many caretaking tasks that need to be done while on the go. From diaper-changing to feedings and even potty training, tools should make any of these tasks easy and quick. The problem? Not every product meets that criteria. And some are just downright strange.
More from CafeMom: The Average Age of First-Time Moms Around the World -- How Do You Compare?
We rounded up some of the most bizarre baby gear out there. Some of which will absolutely make people wonder, "What were they thinking!?" Or maybe there's even a few that seem like they're worth trying. After all, there is that saying that one man's trash is another man's treasure! Here are the absolute weirdest and most bizarre baby products we've come across.
Pint-Size Plastic Urinal1
The manufacturers promise that the Peter Potty Flushing Toddler Urinal will make potty training easier and faster because it provides a real "stand-up" experience. It even has a water reservoir that flushes real water through the unit. Can you imagine parking this thing in your bathroom? Even worse, it's another thing you have to clean.
Peter Potty Flushable Urinal ($59, Walmart)
The Daddle2
Playing horsie is a classic childhood game, but this product takes it to a whole other level. The Daddle promises a "soft saddle," "adjustable straps," and a "sturdy saddle horn." And while those are nice comforts, the Daddle maybe takes itself a little too seriously.
The Daddle ($43.19, Amazon)
A Breastfeeding Harness3
In theory this breastfeeding harness is for moms who are formula-feeding their babies, but it also is marketed as being useful for dads, which is a little out of our comfort zones. But hey, if it gets your baby to eat, who are we to judge?
Nurse Me Tender ($39.99, Nurse Me Tender)
More from CafeMom: 30 Brilliant Tattoo Ideas for Moms Who Want to Get Inked
Riding Vacuum Cleaner4
Talk about multitasking! The Buster is a specially designed vacuum cleaner that cleans and keeps the kid entertained for a few minutes. You have to admit, this is either a genius hack for mom and baby, or ... it's a little evil.
Rideable Vacuum Cleaner by Kristina Andersson (Yanko Design)
Get Your Baby Hooked Up5
The Babykeeper Basic allows you to safely hang your little one anywhere ... and I mean anywhere. Apparently, it makes using a public restroom with your baby a breeze. Just hook her to the stall door and go about your, er, business.
Babykeeper Basic ($39, Mommy Essentials)
Bad Teeth Binky6
The Classic Billy Bob Pacifier makes it look as though your baby has a mouth full of bad teeth. Which is pretty incredible given that your child probably doesn't have teeth at all yet! This would make an excellent prank gift, or an easy gag for Halloween.
Billy Bob Teethe Thumb Sucker Pacifier ($4.87, Amazon)
Poop Alarm7
Instead of listening for grunts and cries, this "Poop Alarm" detects urine and feces every three minutes and lets you know if your baby needs a changing. Then it makes a noise and the LED lights flash to let you know that you need to get right over! Maybe a helpful tool, but definitely a conversation starter.
Baby's Poop Alarm (Price upon request, hktdc)
A Moving Potty Trainer8
Don't worry, there is a built-in splash guard in this rocking potty chair -- not that it's going to help much. Is this genius or would any mom be too worried to let her child potty-train on the move?
Riding Potty Chair by Potty Patty ($27.95, Potty Training Concepts)
Nose Sucker9
NoseFrida, "The Snotsucker," is perhaps the grossest product on this list. The tube is placed beside the nostril, while the parent sucks the mucus out (ughh, sorry), but it has been proven to be an effective way to clear your child's nostrils.
Fridababy NoseFrida Nasal Aspirator ($19.00, Amazon)
More from CafeMom: 20 Kids' Toys That Offended or Creeped People Out
potty mitts10
For the germaphobe mom in all of us. Meant for when your little ones have to use the public restroom, the Potty Mitt keeps their hands clean if they need to touch the toilet seat. And while that does make them a practical bathroom tool, they certainly look pretty silly.
Potty Mitts - Disposable Hand Covers for Kids (Amazon)
Baby Pod11
You probably have heard that playing music for your babies while they're in utero is good for them. Well, this product takes that idea to the extreme. The Baby Pod music system is inserted vaginally so that music radiates directly to your womb. And if you're worried, yes, it is waterproof.
Baby Pod ($165.95, Baby Pod)
The Baby Lasso12
Having a little trouble getting your little ones to sit still while you change their diaper? In comes the diaper lasso. Just place your baby's legs into the fabric rings for extra help during changing time. Whatever you do, don't forget to take the diaper lasso off before leaving the table.
Baby Lasso Diaper Changing Assister (Amazon)
More from CafeMom: 17 Freaky Things You Should Never, Ever Google
As the voice in their commercial reminds us, "Yes, this is a REAL product." The Windi is a way to help alleviate your baby's gas via a small insertable tube that is inserted into their backside. Here's the crazy thing -- the Windi actually has rave reviews on Amazon! Go figure!
The Windi Gas and Colic Reliever for Babies ($14.99, Amazon)
The Tinkle Tube14
It may not be apparent exactly how to use the Tinkle Tube, but essentially both ends of the plastic tube come off and help your little boy aim while you're in a public restroom. The website says that you can replace the plastic ends and put it back in your purse -- but that's an act that's a little hard to feel good about doing.
Tinkle Tube Boy's Potty Toilet Aid ($7.99, Amazon)
Crib Dribbler15
This is actually a prank gift box that was too crazy not to include! In reality, the Crib Dribbler is just a hilarious box for you to wrap your actual baby shower gift inside. However, the jokes written on the sides are more than worth the price!
Prank Pack Crob Dribbler ($7.50, Amazon)
More from CafeMom: 7 Things Babies Do in the Womb That'll Blow Your Mind
Baby Heels16
What better way to start the lifelong torture that is women's shoes than to buy your baby a pair of high heels? No worries, this version is soft and won't hurt your baby's feet, but we have to wonder if babies need heels before they even have teeth!
Baby High Heels (Heelarious)


text:
The Prodigy is our all-mountain directional twin built for hard-charging kids.
Most kids boards are made with very basic materials and are designed for first-time riders. Not the Prodigy. The Prodigy features the same premium materials and performance features as Jones' adult models and offers quick learning young riders a solid foundation to keep progressing their skills. The 3D Contour Base nose+tail edges on the Prodigy's 3D Contour Base 1.0 allow for fluid 'no catch' turn initiation while the CamRock profile keeps the board floating in any snow condition. The Prodigy is also designed to be a little narrower than most other kids boards so small-footed riders can learn to rail turns with the board up on edge.
Like a serrated knife slicing into the snow, Traction Tech improves your edge grip by adding multiple contact points along the running length of your board.
Traction Tech is a critical feature for rockered boards. Rocker improves glide in mixed conditions, but the decreased edge contact makes it harder to really lock
into your turns and hold a solid edge. Traction Tech is crucial to offset the edge drift of rocker. — Jeremy Jones
Next level technology for ultimate response
Glide. Flow. Float.
3D Contour Bases are designed to make every run smoother and every turn more effortless by reducing the drag of the board tips. 3D Contour Bases enhance glide and improve float helping you ride faster and with better flow.
I've been on a quest to design a snowboard that offers the friction free glide and edge-to-edge fluidity of a surfboard for years. 3D Contour bases finally cracked the code on how to achieve this next level of board performance. Jeremy Jones
High Performance, Sustainably Made Gear
We design gear that balances performance, durability and sustainability. We strive to make equipment you can trust with the most eco-conscious materials possible. New for 2020, all our snowboards and splitboards are molded with Super Sap Bio-Resin.
Proud member of 1% For The Planet, we donate 1% of sales to fight climate change by supporting our non-profit partners Protect Our Winters and Community Carbon Trees.


text:
2004 BMW Z4 E85 Cold Start Problem, what is the reason? how to solved? BMW ICOM interface under 199Euro can be very helpful.
Car model and year:
04 BMW 4 E85 with 23,800 miles bought used in 07 with 15K miles.
No service other than oil changes.
when car is cold and upon start after about 20 seconds engine has major skip and may continue to run for another 15 to 20 seconds and then will often cut off. After 2 or 3 more cycles of starting , running engine for 10 to 15 seconds the engine will then continue to run fine and then throughout the day no starting problems will be experienced.
Occasionally in one of those +/- 5 starting cycles engine will start and run but with very rough idle ( pressing gas pedal does not change RPMs) requiring that I perform a manual throttle reset that will often result in the next start as normal with no unwanted engine shut offs.
Suggestion 1:
- Have you checked the battery voltage? It's very unusual to have an ECU, coding or even a mechanical issue at this mileage but if the battery is low all vehicle settings, memories and ECUs will go hay wire.
Result: I checked battery voltage this morning. 12.23 cold.
Ran battery charger for about an hour and charger indicated full charge but showed only 12.7.
Used another vehicle to jump and with jump vehicle running Z4 battery still showing 12.7.
Upon start same results of requiring throttle reset and 4 restarts until it ran without shutting off.
Suggestion 2:
If the battery/alternator power supply are sufficient, I would check the electrical throttle valve next. You can read more on this here:
and here:
Note that even the gas pedal position plays a role in initial calculations so make sure nothing is stuck there.
You most likely have the DME problem in this case as you have DME specific codes. All the lights and other problems including the throttle should resolve once the DME software is reflashed (excluding the seat belt tensioner which will require part purchase either new or from eBay). To update the DME software you will need to install Winkfp the flashing software which is part of the BMW standard tools. You will also need a connection to the car. The guy in the other forum that reflashed his own DME used the D-can cable that he purchased online and connected his laptop to his OBD port. The software and cable can be both acquired from BMW geeks here:
https://www.bimmergeeks.net/downloads and here https://www.bimmergeeks.net/cables
Although he was successful in his task DMEs are notorious for requiring long time to update, flash or code which creates a higher risk of error occurring due to disconnection, low battery voltage and other causes. When errors occur during firmware installation there is a big risk of the DME becoming non responsive and you lose the ability for further trials to reupload the software or use the DME again (aka turning into a brick).
Therefore it has been advised that during DME software procedures the following must be met:
1- The vehicle must be connected to a charger of specific parameters and quality to provide a Continous (non pulsatile) charge with equals to or more than 90 amps during the entire procedure
2- The communication to the vehicle has to be done using a BMW ICOM device as used by the dealer. These are now sold online for about $200 range.
Some people elect to take the risk and attempt the more affordable route. Many succeed but some get in trouble.
After you install Winkfp you have to update the program with the Z4 most current software. This can be easily done using bmw coding tool and sp Daten files. All available through the link above.
Winkfp and ECU programming require some learning but there are many material on YouTube and BMW forums (e.g bmwcoding) that explain how to and help with software installation and computer settings.
If you find this process overwhelming you can always get the software updated at the dealer. Your indie probably has it too as he owns several BMWs. Otherwise BMWgeeks and other coders offer remote coding. On the BMWcoding website there are ads for local coding services by state as well. Good luck!
Finally solved:
Since my last post where I began to pursue
1) reprogramming of the DME by local tech or
2) purchase of the service from DME repair companies.
As I researched I selected Module Experts in Jacksonville FL.
With a lower price of $240 to repair and reprogram (I thought) I sent my DME to them. Also, based on verbal discussion of my trouble codes and including their web site indicating they could reprogram DMEs for BMW and Mercedes, etc. I contracted with them .Additionally, they did not require the EWS.
Shortly after they received my DME I received a call and the sales person indicating I had a short in the DME requiring replacement. Ouch! So after I agreed to another $688 they returned a re manufactured DME. After install of re man DME it performed just like my original DME. I experienced the same cold start symptoms, similar check sum, ram check, failures, and throttle error codes, etc.
I later determined they reloaded the same code from my original DME to the re manufactured supplied unit. At first the sales person was resistant to issue a credit for the re man DME claiming my original DME with the short remained the reason for my cold start problem. But after discussion with the senior tech where he stated " we do not reprogram DMEs" and discussion with a manger, Darrel, he agreed to a refund after I returned the re man DME. In hindsight a poor decision on my part that resulted in $240 loss and continued Z4 down time.
After review of my problem with RPM and ECU doctors I selected RPM Motorsports, Canada to do the work on my original DME.
I received and installed the reprogrammed DME on Tuesday 3/26 and installed the EWS and DME.
Upon first crank same presentation of cold start issues. Did a manual throttle rest and with second crank it started OK (YEA!), although it seemed to run rough. Ran a code check and saw a host of new codes, but none of the RAM check failures and throttle codes.
New codes presented:
2786 Throttle valve potentionmeter 1
2787 Throttle valve potentionmeter 2
2807 Pedal position sensor
27Bd Exhaust Camshaft activation
2797 Idle speed control valve open
2796 Idle speed control valve closed
27C4 Main relay
Cleared codes.
Started ok but Z4 was presenting what seemed like misfire.
Read codes this time:
None of the above but just:
27AA Fuel Injector Cylinder 2
2746 Misfire Cylinder 2
Added some Fuel injector cleaner and ran for 10 miles or so but misfire remained.
So thinking now I have a bad injector on Cyl 2 from possibly the car sitting too long.
Also, I have restarted on multiple successive mornings with outside temp of high 20s and low 30 s and it started OK. After clearing codes and reread I saw again:
27AA Fuel Injector Cylinder 2
2746 Misfire Cylinder 2
So the saga seems to be coming to a close with cost of $530 and the reprogramming of the DME by a company (RPM ) with the expertise to fix it!
Source: https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?2388104-2004-Z4-E85-Cold-Start-Problem
Edit by Laurance
BMW ICOM for big sale ( April 11 to April 17)


text:
|Posted by Obi Van Helgen on December 6, 2009 at 10:28 AM
Hey folks,
Sorry for not updating the site for so long but I had a hell of a load going on in my life. Nevermind now iam back and I brought you something nice and little. This is the first trailer for the sequel to Sonic Short Adventure. It is called Sonic Short Adventure A Christmas Carol for now and its a christmas based Sonic game with Adventure Fields and a lot more than simple Jump and Run Levels...oh well just go and watch the trailer.^^ The Game will be released sometime around christmas(well not after christmas but sometine before...)
So yea have a nice day,
Obi Van Helgen
Categories: None
Oops, you forgot something.
The words you entered did not match the given text. Please try again.


text:
Skeletons in the Closet
Author: Kayla Bain-Vrba
Title: Skeletons in the Closet
Series: None
Genre: Paranormal
Pairing: M/M, Bi
Rating: Three Petals
On the Publisher's Website:
It's no secret that Riley used to practice dark magic, but he gave it up gladly when he fell in love with Landon. But Riley has spent the last year trying to shield Landon from just how dark his past really was, desperate to keep him safe and hold on to their fragile relationship.
Then Dyami, Riley's old partner, returns to town and threatens to kill them both if Riley doesn't return to his old ways…
Maggie's Review:
I received this book as an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This story was a cute bit of fun. Riley has sworn off dark magic and is very happy in his relationship with Landon. He had to suppress the part of himself that used to revel in his evil power in order to create a happy life, which I thought gave him a nice touch of depth. Landon was also an interesting character. He knows Riley is holding back, but can't figure out how to convince Riley that Landon is able to handle even Riley's strongest powers. Then Dyami appears and throws a wrench into their relationship.
Riley and Landon both share the spotlight, but at times I found myself struggling to keep track of whose perspective was in charge. I think that was because Riley and Landon's voices were too similar. While they were both interesting people, it did feel like the only significant difference between them was their upbringing, which made them hard to tell apart. I did like the dynamic between them and I did feel their love and their desperation to keep each other alive while fighting against Dyami's schemes, which I feel saved the book from becoming monotonous.
The story also felt a bit like a snapshot: a single, significant spot of time in the characters' larger story. I feel like there could have been a much larger plot and this small section was chopped off instead. Which isn't to say I didn't enjoy reading the book, but there was something missing because of it.
Maggie's Recommendation:
I found this story cute and fun, so I do recommend it. However, I had difficulties telling the two main characters apart at times and felt like there was something missing to the overall plot. This was a good read that needed just a bit more to be great.
Leave a Reply.
Magnolia's Reviews
Maggie reviews paranormal and fantasy novels and novellas. She also interviews authors and hosts giveaways.
April 2018


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Guests: Mickey Sherman, Geoffrey Fieger, Dr. Werner Spitz, Randy Wyrick, Norm Early, Michael Dobbs, Giovanni DiStefano
LISA DANIELS, GUEST HOST: Coming up, jurors in the Scott Peterson trial hear gruesome details of what the bodies of Laci and her baby Conner were like when they were found.
DANIELS (voice-over): Using pictures so disturbing they left some jurors in tears, a medical examiner testifies Laci had not given birth before she died, helping to disprove a defense theory that Conner was born alive.
Plus, sealed transcripts from Kobe Bryant's dismissed criminal case leaked to the media. We hear new details from Kobe's first interview with police before he was arrested for allegedly raping a 19-year-old woman.
And CBS admits documents about the president's National Guard service may be questionable, but is standing by its story. So, where did those memos come from? Reports say this former National Guardsman may have given them to CBS.
The program about justice starts right now.
DANIELS: Hi everybody, I'm Lisa Daniels. Dan is off tonight.
We'll bring the very latest developments in Scott Peterson's murder trial in just a minute, but first, up on the docket tonight, Hurricane Ivan, now Tropical Storm Ivan, but it's left its mark all over much of the Gulf Coast, and it's still dumping rain further north in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. Ivan slammed into the coast early at about 3:00 this morning as a category three storm, carrying winds of up to 130 miles per hour spawning tornadoes, ripping roofs of homes, hotels, and even a hospital, knocking out power to more than one million people in four states, and forcing more than two million to evacuate their homes.
Now so far Ivan has killed 18 in the U.S. after taking the lives of 68 people in the Caribbean. One of the hardest hit spots is Pensacola in Florida's panhandle, and that's where NBC's Ron Blome is. He joins us now on the phone.
Ron, that area really got socked.
RON BLOME, NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT (via phone): Oh, it did and it began shortly after midnight and it didn't let up until almost sunrise. It was hurricane-force winds throughout the night. Even just before sunrise, the steady winds, not gusts, steady winds were being clocked at 98 miles an hour at the Pensacola Naval Air Station. Well, the results were just devastating. As you drive around Pensacola or at least attempt to drive around, you're negotiating wires and swinging stoplights but mostly trees down, and then there are downtown area.
There are many buildings that were knocked down, many historic old structures made of brick, brick that once came over in the holes of old sailing ships turned into structures of very historic nature, they were just demolished and blown out by the storm and there's quite a mess to be cleaned up. A big transportation problem now faces the area. The Interstate 10 bridge, a key link along the southern coast, the bridges that go out of Pensacola over towards Tallahassee, several key segments were just lifted up by the storm surge that was 15 or more feet there and washed away, and that's going to take quite some time to replace and the detour is just enormous, way up through Alabama.
Another bridge, the Garcon Point Bridge, linking down to the Navarre Beach area, also lost segments and the important Pensacola Bay Bridge, which leads out—approaches on the gulf breeze side, the south side leading back, were also washed away and they've done some temporary work and only getting police cars over there. That's keeping thousands of evaluated residents from getting over to see their homes.
As you said, hospitals were damaged. Four of them in all had major damage here. No patients injured at the time. The Naval Air Station Hospital supposedly received the most damage, but we haven't been able to get out there because of the debris and such. It's a very devastating scene.
You know, we had Hurricane Charley in Punta Gorda, which was just absolute destruction of all the mobile home parks. Frances brought in a lot of floods and moderate destruction and now Ivan, its impact just incredibly devastating to the Pensacola area. Not as many homes destroyed because they weren't the mobile homes, but a lot of roofs taken off. There's going to be a lot of damage, and as you said, just the power out to millions here in this county area, about 330,000 without power tonight. It's going to stay that way for a while.
DANIELS: All right. NBC's Ron Blome surveying the damage in Pensacola, Florida. Thank you very much.
Now let's go to Janet Shamlian in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Janet, tell us what's the latest.
JANET SHAMLIAN, NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Well Lisa, 70,000 people in this state are without power right now but really, this damage, this community, rather, did suffer some damage as did many others in Mississippi along the Gulf Coast but for the most part, this state was spared the brunt of the storm. Most of the businesses look like the one here behind me, boarded up, prepped to go, but no actual damage.
In terms of damage here, we do have some street flooding, billboards crashed to the ground, but the biggest problem is likely to be the economic impact. That's because there's a very large refinery here. The nation's eighth largest refinery and there's a large shipyard here which employs 12,000 people. Both of them shut down, as well as the port, due to the threat of Hurricane Ivan.
That is the latest from here in Mississippi. Lisa, now back to you.
DANIELS: OK, NBC's Janet Shamlian reporting from Pascagoula, Mississippi. Thanks so much for that report.
Now on to the Scott Peterson case. Laci's baby was not born before her body was dumped in the San Francisco Bay. That testimony coming from the pathologist who conducted the autopsies on both Laci and Conner. Another graphic and extremely intense day of testimony in the trial, so graphic it actually kept Laci's family out of the courtroom and also bolstered the prosecution's theory of the murder.
Now Brian Peterson, no relation, of course, to Scott Peterson, took the stand today for his second day of testimony. It's his medical opinion that the baby was expelled from Laci's decomposing body in the San Francisco Bay. Now that's a crucial point, because, remember, the defense has argued that Conner may have been born alive and disposed of well after Laci.
Let's go straight to the courthouse and Edie Lambert from NBC affiliate KCRA. She's been in court for all the testimony. Edie, this was a crucial day for the prosecution.
EDIE LAMBERT, KCRA CORRESPONDENT: It really was and you know, Lisa, at the end of the day we still don't know how Laci or Conner Peterson was killed. We don't know exactly when they were killed but you're exactly right. The coroner's opinion that Conner remained protected in his mother's womb until close to the time that his body was discovered is a key point for the prosecutors.
Let's run through the prosecution timeline for you so you can put all this together. Now the prosecutors say that Laci was murdered on December 23 or 24, 2002, inside her Modesto home. Prosecutors believe her husband then dumped her body in the San Francisco Bay. At that point her doctor said she was about 33 weeks pregnant.
Nearly four months later, her remains washed ashore, a day and a mile apart from Conner's, April 13 and 14th of 2003. Now here's a comparison with what the forensic anthropologist found. She testified that Laci's remains had been in the bay for three to six months and that Conner was anywhere from 33 to 38 weeks old. The low end of those numbers matches the prosecution's timeline.
However, the defense made some points as well. Mark Geragos is trying to show that this baby was considerably older than about 33 weeks. Scott Peterson would have been under surveillance at that point, and also that someone handled the baby before throwing Conner's body into the bay. Now the twine that we can show you from a sketch of the autopsy photo is part of his theory.
He says the bow was tied by human hands. It's not just debris that the baby washed into. Today the coroner said that the skin under that twine was intact. The twine is not the cause of death but the coroner could not say how the twine got on the baby.
Also, the anthropologist's best estimate of Conner's age is 35 or 36 weeks, that helps the defense, and there is no conclusive proof that Conner was not born alive. The coroner could not say conclusively either way.
Now, I have to tell you, Lisa, these are awful pictures to look at. Yesterday the jury saw autopsy pictures of Laci, a lot of bones, her body was badly decomposed. In Conner's case, his body was very much intact and there's no getting around that these are pictures of a dead baby. Once again, some members of the jury brought to tears. Scott Peterson wiped away tears as did his mother Jackie who was sitting right behind him.
I can also point out that the prosecution for the first time today suggested a cause of death for Laci. He asked the coroner about strangulation or suffocation. The coroner said that either of those could leave no trace evidence. This could explain why Modesto police found no blood in the home. Prosecutors obviously, saving this evidence for the end of their case. They're expected to wrap up in just over a week.
Lisa, back to you.
DANIELS: OK, Edie Lambert, thanks so much for the update and I'm going to ask you to stick around because when we come back, the fun begins. We're going to bring in our all-star legal team and a medical examiner to break down what today's testimony means for the Peterson trial.
Plus, new transcripts surface from Kobe Bryant's first interview with police the night after a woman accused him of rape.
And later, Dan talks with one of Saddam Hussein's lawyers. He says Saddam may run for office in Iraq's January election. We're going to bring you that interview coming up.
And, of course, your e-mails. Make sure you send them to abramsreport
· one word -- @msnbc.com. Remember to include your name and where you're writing from. And Dan is going to respond at the end of the show. Stay with us.
DANIELS: Coming up, an emotional day in court in the Scott Peterson trial. A forensic expert testifying that Laci Peterson was still carrying her baby when she died. Our legal panel weighs in when we come back.
SCOTT PETERSON, ON TRIAL FOR MURDER: Hey beautiful. I just left you a message at home. It's 2:15. I'm leaving Berkeley. I won't be able to get to Vella Farms to get that basket for Papa. I was hoping you would get this message and go on out there. I'll see you in a bit sweetie. Love you. Bye.
DANIELS: That was the very last message that Scott Peterson left for his wife Laci as he returned from that fishing trip on Christmas Eve of 2002. Now prosecutors believe he was coming back from dumping his pregnant wife's body in the San Francisco Bay.
Today testimony centering around the condition of Laci and her baby Conner bodies when they were found on the banks of the bay nearly four months later. Now the forensic pathologist who conducted the autopsies said the baby was still in Laci's womb when she was discarded and now we're going to bring in our legal team.
OK, we'll start with criminal defense attorney Geoffrey Fieger, medical examiner Dr. Werner Spitz, and in the courtroom today, criminal defense attorney Mickey Sherman and also KCRA reporter Edie Lambert who is still with us. Thank you all for being here. We do appreciate it.
Mickey, I'm going to begin with you. You were in court all day. If I'm Mark Geragos, at this point I'm not very happy with how this day went for me.
MICKEY SHERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: You know, I disagree. I don't think it was such a bad day for him. They brought in a very good forensics expert who was a very good witness, very credible. He didn't try and shade things. He didn't try and exaggerate.
He spoke in a very down-to-earth tone and language we could all understand. He wasn't obnoxious or offensive by any means and he was very credible. But at the end of the day his conclusion was is that the evidence shown does not show how the bodies were destroyed.
DANIELS: Yes, but I disagree...
SHERMAN: It doesn't say whether or not...
DANIELS: Mickey, what about the graphic nature...
SHERMAN: Yes.
DANIELS: ... of those photos? We're talking about photos without a head...
DANIELS: ... without a neck, without a brain, with one leg. This is a juror...
DANIELS: ... jury of regular people. They're not used to seeing this.
SHERMAN: But Lisa, every murder case has those photos. There is the autopsy photo or the crime scene photo, it's just part of the deal. And the jurors I saw—a couple of them were teary, there's no question, but I thought the majority of them, they were not nonchalant but they kept taking notes and they didn't seem to be absolutely shocked by them and they were shocking but, you know, it's just part of the deal.
I don't think the fact that they were so graphic means that, you know, this guy is guilty. Certainly the moral outrage factor sometimes kicks in and they just want to punish somebody and they may pick the nearest guy, which is Scott Peterson, perhaps for some good reason...
DANIELS: OK, I want to bring in...
SHERMAN: ... but by the same token...
DANIELS: ... Geoffrey Fieger...
SHERMAN: ... the pictures don't do it.
DANIELS: Geoffrey, do you agree with Mickey?
GEOFFREY FIEGER, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: On the photos, yes, he's 100 percent correct. The photos are always brought in and they can work both ways. If they're inclined to convict, then they're inclined to really go after Peterson and that will come cropping in the death penalty part of the case if he's convicted. If they're not inclined to convict, then the pictures mean nothing.
However, with regard to the evidence today, the evidence that that baby came out of the top of the womb which means it's virtually impossible for it to have come out in any other way other than the body deteriorating, Laci's body deteriorating, and the fact that that baby had what's called meconium, which is a baby's first bowel movement and it would never have had it had it lived past the first few hours.
It could not exist. It doesn't exist in babies that are alive for weeks or months like Mark Geragos is suggesting. That makes Mark Geragos' theory nonsensical and the final big picture is if Mark Geragos is suggesting there's a vivisectionist out there that aborts children out of the wombs of mothers, kills the mother and then strangles fetuses or young babies, I want to see that case...
DANIELS: All right, I'm going to bring in...
FIEGER: ... in the United States. That's absurd.
DANIELS: Dr. Spitz, you've been a medical examiner for over 50 years. I've heard a bunch of legal experts today say that they have never seen photos this gruesome. Obviously, you've dealt with this for your 50 years in your profession. How does this measure up?
DR. WERNER SPITZ, FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST: Well, this is no different than any body, whether it died from trauma or not from trauma, somebody who died of a heart attack who is placed in the ocean for four months would look that way.
DANIELS: So, how...
SPITZ: And both come along the waterways and cause certain injuries, and that's what happened here.
DANIELS: So Dr. Spitz, how do you complete an autopsy that has a torso and one internal organ in it?
SPITZ: Well, yes, it's true, it's a lot more difficult, but it can be done, and it was done in this case, and it was done very well. And Dr. Peterson came to conclusions that are totally supportable, but insupportable is the contention of the defense here that some voodoo people came out of the woodwork and caused certain injuries and killed the baby and then dumped the mother. That doesn't make sense.
DANIELS: All right, I'm going to bring in a woman's perspective for a moment. Edie Lambert, are you with us?
LAMBERT: Here I am.
DANIELS: All right. Well I know that there were jurors crying, some were shaking their heads, they were gasping. This jury is made up of ordinary folks. They're not used to seeing this. Can you describe what their reaction was, especially the women?
LAMBERT: Yes, it really runs the spectrum, Lisa. On one side, there is a woman, she's an alternate juror who is a mother. She cried yesterday. She cried again today. A lot of the women sitting in the front row, I saw them with their hands over their mouths. One juror just really hardly looked at the photos of baby Conner at all.
On the other side, one of the jurors is trained as a doctor and a lawyer. He seemed fairly dispassionate taking notes. To him I'm sure he's seen these kind of photos before, so you really see the spectrum on this jury.
DANIELS: All right. Geoffrey Fieger, Mickey Sherman, Werner Spitz and Edie Lambert stick around. Much more on the Peterson case when we come back.
Also ahead, Kobe Bryant's attorneys trying to keep the recordings of his first interview with police before he was arrested for rape under wraps, but a copy is out. We hear from the reporter who got it.
And CBS vowing to investigate whether or not the president's National Guard documents are real. So why is it still standing by that report and who are their sources? We'll discuss it when we come back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think the common goal that we both have is for justice. And that's where the hearts of both our families are, and, you know, all the rest is—you know, what's important is having justice.
DANIELS: Today graphic testimony so gruesome it actually kept Laci Peterson's family home in Modesto, far away from the courthouse. Scott's family, however, was present for the testimony this week. Let's bring back our legal team.
Geoffrey, I want to go back to something that you said earlier. I thought Mark Geragos today from what I read sounded like a broken record asking the forensic pathologist over and over again if it was possible that the baby could have been cut out of the uterus. How could he make that when we heard Brian Peterson, no relation to Scott Peterson, the forensic pathologist, say there was no indication of a vaginal birth. There was no indication of a c-section and there were no incisions. Is he beating a dead horse at this point?
FIEGER: Yes, Geragos makes, I think, intrinsic fundamental mistakes and he does it in many trials, so I've got a lot of criticisms of Geragos for that reason. This theory that if he pursues is underscored by the fact that he's claiming that there's a vivisectionist out there that kills women, pregnant women, takes their baby out of the womb, and then keeps the babies alive and strangles them.
Now beyond the fact that the physical evidence doesn't support it, to pursue that theory is ridiculous in this case.
FIEGER: It's just ridiculous. It hurts Scott Peterson. It doesn't help Scott Peterson. Geragos should go away and say somebody else killed Laci and dumped her body there, not that somebody else took the baby out of the womb. That ain't flying.
SHERMAN: But, isn't that what he's doing, Geoffrey? I mean, really, he's not going to set out to prove that Joe Blow, the vivisectionist or...
FIEGER: Yes he is...
SHERMAN: ... cult person did it.
FIEGER: Yes he is...
SHERMAN: No...
FIEGER: That's what he said in opening, Mickey...
FIEGER: That's what he said in opening. The baby was kept alive.
SHERMAN: Yes, but he is not going to try and prove that. All he's going to do is try and raise questions with the jury, which he's been doing fairly well and he's going to try and create reasonable doubt. Granted, he was wrong to make that promise or that pledge or that forecast that he was going to show that the baby was...
FIEGER: And if you've got...
FIEGER: And Mickey, if you've got somebody on that jury who is willing to go each step along the way and say if there's reasonable doubt at any place, I'm not convicting, because he's presented no reasonable alternative.
SHERMAN: Yes.
DANIELS: All right. This is the question I have for Mickey...
SHERMAN: He doesn't have to.
DANIELS: Mickey, let me summarize the defense's theory right now.
Somebody abducted and killed Laci, I don't know. Maybe it was aliens.
He's not saying...
DANIELS: ... the child was born alive and murdered later. The twine was intentionally tied around the baby's neck. We've now heard testimony that the twine was chemically similar to what washed ashore a couple of miles away. How does Geragos save his defense?
SHERMAN: His defense does not have to be an affirmative defense. Everyone presupposes that Geragos has to prove that the baby was born, that somebody pulled the baby out of her stomach. He doesn't have to prove anything. He can just sit on his thumbs and let the state stumble as they've done several times here...
FIEGER: Then why say ridiculous things?
FIEGER: Then why say ridiculous things?
SHERMAN: Well, because you never know what a jury is going to buy. And look at juror number four who got kicked off the case. He bought everything.
DANIELS: Edie...
DANIELS: Let's bring in Edie. Edie, many people are saying what Mickey is saying that the prosecution really has not lived up to what they should be doing here. Do you think that it was smart for Mark Geragos to continue to pursue his theory? Why not just poke holes in what the prosecution is saying?
LAMBERT: It's tough for me to give an opinion in this case since I'm covering this as a reporter, but certainly that is what legal analysts are saying outside of court and certainly if he can simply put it out there that perhaps Laci Peterson was kept alive for a longer period of time and then dumped in the bay along with the baby still inside of her, that could fit his timeline and also what the forensic pathologist is saying.
I mean, he does not need to prove that this baby was born, it seems. He only needs to prove that the baby was kept alive for a longer period of time, because after 33 weeks, Scott Peterson would have been under surveillance. I think it may be that he could have left it at that.
DANIELS: And that's fair that you can't say an opinion because you are a reporter. Dr. Spitz, I have a question for you. From what you read about the autopsy, is it consistent that Laci was probably in the water from three to six months?
SPITZ: Yes. It is totally consistent. From what I've read in the autopsy, from the description of the remains as they were presented, that is totally consistent. It is also consistent that the child was protected for a lengthy period of time and expelled much closer to the time that the remains were found.
DANIELS: All right. A lot of good insights from our all-star panel. Geoffrey Fieger, Werner Spitz, Mickey Sherman and Edie Lambert, thank you so much for being with us.
And coming up, sealed documents in the Kobe Bryant dismissed rape case are leaked to the media. We have details from his first interview with police, where he admits to an extramarital affair.
And CBS finally admitting that their documents may not be authentic, but they're still standing behind the reports on President Bush's military record.
We'll be right back.
DANIELS: Coming up, Kobe Bryant's lawyers are fighting to keep recordings of what he told police before he was arrested for rape secret. But guess what? The recordings are now out. We talk to the reporter who has them, but first, the headlines.
MARK HURLBERT, EAGLE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: The victim has informed us, after much of her own labored deliberation, that she does not want to proceed with this trial.
DANIELS: That was D.A. Mark Hulbert announcing that his office was indeed dropping the criminal charges against Kobe Bryant two weeks ago, but remember, the civil trial is still on. Media outlets have been fighting without any success to have the documents from Bryant's case unsealed, but now some of those documents along with a CD were obtained exclusively by the "Vail Daily News", ripping details of what Kobe tells detectives before his arrest.
Now last night in a stroke of luck, Randy Wyrick, a reporter for the "Vail Daily News" received an anonymous package in the mail. What was in it? Kobe Bryant's statements about last summer's incident to sheriff investigators and also a CD recording of his chilling interview.
Randy Wyrick joins us now to talk about the contents of those exclusively obtained items. Randy, thanks for joining us today.
RANDY WYRICK, "VAIL DAILY NEWS" REPORTER: Lisa, thank you so much for having us.
DANIELS: All right. I've got a simple question for you. How did you get it?
WYRICK: It's one of these classic cases where it's better to be lucky than good. And so far the—God and the good people of Eagle County have been so good to us. We knew that young Mr. Bryant was going to be questioned two hours before he did. We knew that he was going to have surgery in Vail weeks before he showed up...
DANIELS: OK, Randy...
WYRICK: ... and we also knew...
DANIELS: Randy, I'm not buying that. Come on. What's the truth? How did you get it? You're a well-connected guy, don't just toss it up to luck.
WYRICK: Well, it also helps to burn a lot of shoe leather, make no mistake about that. You know, there's no substitute for hard work and the "Vail Daily" staff has worked real hard on this story since it started last summer, last July.
DANIELS: I don't know if I'm buying that, but what impact will Kobe's statement have on the pending civil trial and who will be affected more, Kobe or the accuser? Let's bring in former Denver D.A. Norm Early, who is also an MSNBC legal analyst and let's bring back criminal defense attorney Mickey Sherman. We liked you so much before, we want you back.
All right, so what do you think, Mickey? Do you buy that? A package just...
SHERMAN: No, what a slime—what a sliming here. I mean, you know, where did this come from? I don't think it came from the victim. I think it obviously came from law enforcement, whether it's the prosecutor's office or the police, but those are the people who had custody and control of this item and they let it out, and I blame the "Vail Daily News" for publishing it.
Don't forget all the media had all the negative, all the bad stuff, the shrink stuff, the suicide attempts, the sexual escapades of the victim and everyone had the decency not to report it, which I thought was amazing, but as soon as it's over, they get something on Kobe Bryant, it's not enough that the case was dropped, we've got to throw a lot of mud on his face.
DANIELS: OK Mickey, let me interrupt...
SHERMAN: That's not right.
DANIELS: ... the finger pointing for just a second. I want to read you part of the transcript from the audiotape. Let's look at it.
Bryant: Is there any way I can settle this, whatever it is I mean?Detective Winters: Well, what do you mean by settle?
Bryant: If my wife found out that anybody made any type of allegations against me she would be infuriated.
Detective: Kobe...
Bryant: That's all I care about.
Winters: And I understand.
Bryant: What she says I don't care about.
I want to know, Mr. Norm Early, what impact will this have in a civil case, how much of this is going to be allowed in?
NORM EARLY, FORMER DENVER DISTRICT ATTORNEY: Well, I think the judge in the criminal case already analyzed the method by which this was obtained. As we all know, it was a surreptitious recording that was made over an hour, hour and 15-minute period and some of these statements that you hear now are excerpts. But I disagree with Mickey totally. This woman was shredded in the media.
She was villainized in the media and now that law enforcement or whomever decided to let the public know a little bit about Kobe Bryant, you know, people are yelling foul. This woman was fouled all the way through this case, 14 months of foul balls against this woman, and now we hear the defense crying, hey, it's not fair, let the public know a little bit about it.
I think the statement comes in and I think the statement is something that really can't tell, because we haven't seen it...
DANIELS: OK, I want to interrupt you...
EARLY: ... in its entire context.
DANIELS: ... because I want to bring back Randy if he's still talking to me. You've heard the audiotape. On your Web site, you posted a draft of the transcript, which I looked at, but what does the tape sound like?
WYRICK: It was awfully difficult to listen to. Detective Loya and Detective Winters were pretty clear. As we established, Detective Loya had a tape-recorder in his shirt pocket. There was a pen in his pocket, it banged up against it constantly, so it made it a little bit difficult to listen to. But, you know, you can hear Mr. Bryant's tone of voice. He sounds agitated. He sounds a little upset, as you would be, as anyone would be if they were facing these sorts of accusations, a little bewildered, and not quite sure what to make of all this...
DANIELS: Randy...
DANIELS: Let's talk about the dirt, the grimy stuff. What surprised you on the tape? Anything shock you?
WYRICK: Well, not really. The idea that he was going to say it was consensual was not a shock or surprise. He's been saying that all along. That she came up to his room. That they had some sort of sex and that she left the room of her own free will and (UNINTELLIGIBLE) what was surprising is that he said she kissed him goodbye and in the meantime asked him for a couple of autographs.
DANIELS: All right...
EARLY: Lisa...
WYRICK: ... he didn't sign them.
DANIELS: I've got to interrupt this...
DANIELS: ... because I've got to thank you all. Big thanks to Randy Wyrick...
EARLY: All right.
DANIELS: Hopefully you'll get more packages and will come right back on the show—Mickey Sherman and Norm Early.
And coming up, much more.
EARLY: Thank you Lisa.
DANIELS: CBS is admitting that there may be some problems after all with those documents about the president's National Guard service, but CBS is insisting its story still holds up, so the question is—who gave the memos to CBS in the first place?
And he's defending one of the most hated men in the world. Dan talks with Saddam Hussein's lawyer.
You're watching MSNBC.
DANIELS: Well, you heard it here first yesterday. CBS and Dan Rather are on the defensive, trying to convince many doubtful Americans that memos relating to President Bush's military service are, in fact, real.
NBC News correspondent Fred Francis has all the details.
FRED FRANCIS, NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): CBS News, under fire for a week for calling into question President Bush's service in the National Guard—Dan Rather.
DAN RATHER, "60 MINUTES", CBS NEWS: We have new documents and new information on the president's military service.
FRANCIS: The charge—Bush did not follow orders to get a flight physical, that his superior was pressured to—quote—"sugarcoat Bush's records." Since then charges by detractors of CBS News that the documents are fakes.
(on camera): Rather fired back using a quarter of one broadcast to defend CBS News and charging that his critics had a political agenda.
(voice-over): Last night, another CBS News salvo defending its reporting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Those who have criticized aspects of our story have never criticized the heart of it, the major thrust of our report, that George Bush received preferential treatment to get into the National Guard and once accepted, failed to satisfy the requirements of his service.
FRANCIS: A former officer of that Texas National Guard unit, Major General Bobby Hodges said he first had the memos read to him and agreed they were correct. But when he saw the memos, he told NBC News, he now believes they are fakes. The secretary of Lieutenant Colonel Jerry Killian, Bush's commander who allegedly wrote the memos says while she thinks the memos are fakes, she says Killian did believe Bush was not following an order.
Fred Francis, NBC News, Washington.
DANIELS: While the controversy over the authenticity of the documents continues, the search for the source of the memos leading several journalists to somebody who was reportedly a primary source for the CBS story. He's a former National Guardsman who has made headlines in the past for his involvement with the president's military records.
Joining me now to tell us what his own investigation has revealed, "Washington Post" staff writer Michael Dobbs. Michael, thanks for coming on the show.
MICHAEL DOBBS, "THE WASHINGTON POST": Thank you for having me.
DANIELS: Well your article today points the finger toward Bill Burkett as a possible source of the memos. Who is this guy?
DOBBS: Well, Bill Burkett is a former Texas National Guard officer. He served in the Guard in the late '80's at headquarters in Austin and while he was there, he had various arguments with his superiors. He says that he overheard a conversation between several Bush aides and the commander of the Texas National Guard...
DANIELS: All right. Well you know what I'm going to ask you, what's his motivation? What's the motive?
DOBBS: The motivation for supplying documents to CBS?
DANIELS: Yes.
DOBBS: I can't speak to his motivation because it's not—we haven't demonstrated that he is the person. We've shown circumstantial evidence that the documents were faxed from a Kinko's copy shop 20 miles from his house, but we haven't yet made the final link and we're far from exploring his motivations.
DANIELS: Well, your article says that there are markings on the memos that show they were faxed to CBS News from a Kinko's, as you said, in Abilene, Texas. How do you determine that? What did you see?
DOBBS: I determined that by talking to another of CBS' sources, a man called Bob Strong (ph), a former Guard officer who served in the Guard in the late '70's who was interviewed by Dan Rather and shown documents by Dan Rather, the original CBS documents, which had this fax marking at the top saying Kinko's, Abilene.
DANIELS: Well, is there bad blood between Burkett and President Bush or maybe should I say was there bad blood between Burkett and Dan Rather? What—I'm still not understanding the motivations.
DOBBS: Well, there's certainly bad blood between Burkett and Bush and the Texas National Guard, that's true. That's come out in the past and Burkett has said repeatedly that he thinks Bush aides ordered the destruction of records.
DANIELS: All right. Well, either you're incredibly gutsy or you're going to regret pointing your finger to Bill Burkett. I guess time will tell. Thank you very much for coming on the show, though. We do appreciate it, Michael Dobbs.
DOBBS: Thank you.
DANIELS: Gunmen take two Americans and a British man hostage in Iraq, kidnapping them from a house in Baghdad. We're going to get the very latest from Iraq.
And he's definitely got one of the toughest jobs in the legal profession—defending Saddam Hussein. Dan talks with Saddam's lawyer when we come back. Keep it here.
DANIELS: Back now with the latest on Iraq and late word, the U.S. military says American war planes struck what it said was a meeting of some 90 insurgents who had gathered at a site near Fallujah to plan more terrorist attacks. Officials said that at least 60 of the insurgents were killed in those attacks. Part of another violent day in Iraq that began when three civilians, including two Americans, were taken hostage by Iraqi insurgents after being abducted from their house in Baghdad this morning.
NBC's Mike Kirsch has the very latest.
MIKE KIRSCH, NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At 6:00 a.m., the power went out in house number 36, 3607 of Baghdad's upscale Mansur district where American contractors Jack Hensley and Eugene Armstrong working for a Dubai based firm had been living for the past seven months. According to witnesses, the insurgents planned well.
They waited until the only unarmed guard walked out of the house to start the generator and that's when 10 gunmen, waiting in two vehicles moved in. The hostage takers armed with AK-47 assault rifles walked through the front gate and without firing a shot, went up to the second floor of the building. They quickly made off with the two Americans, both around 50 years old, and a British man.
KIRSCH: They kidnapped three people, taped their mouths and handcuffed them, says this neighbor. This early morning abduction is a new terror tactic, reaching right into the heart of Baghdad. And comes just eight days after two Italian aide workers were snatched nearby in broad daylight. More than 100 foreigners among them, at least six American have been taken hostage since the fall of Saddam Hussein. Twenty-six of them have been executed, including Americans Nick Berg and Keith Maupin.
(on camera): Abducting foreigners has become one of the main weapons of a increasingly sophisticated and daring insurgency. Militants trying to pressure foreign companies and governments to stop supporting U.S. efforts here.
(voice-over): Today's abduction now means there are fewer places where Americans can feel safe in Iraq.
Mike Kirsch, NBC News, Baghdad.
DANIELS: While the first priority for Iraqi authorities and the American military may be establishing security in Iraq, the new Iraqi judiciary is planning how it will try Saddam Hussein. The deposed Iraqi dictator was last seen at his first court appearance, a preliminary hearing he attended without a lawyer.
Up to this point, Saddam has still not met with any of the attorneys claiming to represent him. Now Dan spoke recently with one of those attorneys. His name Giovanni DiStefano, who expects to meet with Saddam in the coming days. Dan began the interview by asking DiStefano when he was expecting to meet Saddam.
GIOVANNI DISTEFANO, SADDAM HUSSEIN'S LAWYER: Well, the answer to that question is yes, and we expect both myself and Mr. Rashdan, another lawyer from Jordan, we expect to meet him within the course of the next seven days. And perhaps I should explain the reason why there has been a delay. Most people will know that the previous director of the tribunal, Dr. Salem Chalabi, was of course removed from office.
It's not our business as to why he was removed or if he was removed rightly or wrongly. He was replaced by Dr. Mohammed Zubaidi, who has taken very much the reins in his hands. And we have a situation where we have a defendant who has been in custody for over 10 months without having had access to any type of proper legal advice. And contrary to popular belief, the United States of America do comply with international regulations, and they are the ones that have been pushing very heavily, the Iraqis, for them to get a move on.
DAN ABRAMS, "THE ABRAMS REPORT": But you can understand, can you not, I mean this is a country that just completed a war. He was initially considered a prisoner of war in which case you're not entitled to a lawyer. So it actually does take time to get the wheels of justice moving in a country that's creating a new justice system, no?
DISTEFANO: Well that, of course, is correct, and there is a precedent in America, the Guantanamo Bay situation. But, ever since the Iraqis retained sovereignty, which is now for two months, you have a situation where a person, a number of people are in custody without legal access.
ABRAMS: Prime Minister Allawi has said he expects Saddam Hussein to go on trial sometime this year, certainly before Iraq's January elections. Do you see that happening?
DISTEFANO: Well, I don't, but I can tell you the reason why, of course. Dr. Allawi was here in Rome and he met our prime minister here and I can tell you that the Italian position here as far as they are concerned, they simply want to know when this is all going to come to an end because of the situation that's been created. And another thing that I think that people in America should be aware of, it is not excluded that President Saddam Hussein will run for office in the January elections...
ABRAMS: Come on, really...
DISTEFANO: ... if there is no trial...
ABRAMS: ... I mean Saddam Hussein is going to run for president of Iraq and wage a serious campaign? I mean he's going to be—I mean the chances of him being a free man to do that are almost nil.
DISTEFANO: Well, of course, you have a number of precedence. Of course, you have Bobby Sands in the United Kingdom who is a member of the IRA who starved himself to death, as many people know. He was a member of a parliament and Slobodan Milosevic, my other client, Dr. Schessel (ph), many people. It is not excluded. At the moment, Saddam Hussein is an innocent man. He hasn't been tried. In fact, we don't even have an indictment.
ABRAMS: Do you enjoy representing—I mean you say that Slobodan Milosevic is one of your other clients. You know, I've got to ask you the question. Do you enjoy representing these international outlaws?
DISTEFANO: Well, I don't know whether they're international outlaws. That has to be proved yet. But, you know, they are people that are facing fairly serious allegations. At the moment, however, Saddam Hussein is facing nothing because there is no charge. There is no indictment. In fact, there is no anything. And we don't know the basis, really, upon which he is being held.
ABRAMS: Very quickly, I'm almost out of time, but there's been a lot of discussion about various people saying that they're representing Saddam Hussein. And since he hasn't been able to speak to his lawyers, how do we know who his lawyers really are?
DISTEFANO: Well, there is a committee of which I am one of those that was appointed by his Excellency's wife and daughters. We have in the time of Dr. Chalabi—I met with Dr. Chalabi in London. We prepared a power of attorney for his Excellency. And then, of course, Dr. Chalabi was strangely removed from office. But Dr. Mohammed Zubaidi is getting a move on and there is legal representation. There will be a trial.
There will be an outcome. There will be an election. And there will be an exit strategy for the United States and everybody else that's been involved in this.
ABRAMS: Yes. Giovanni DiStefano, thank you very much for coming on the program. We appreciate your time.
DISTEFANO: Thank you very much. Thank you.
DANIELS: OK, that does it for us here. Dan is back tomorrow. Up next, "HARDBALL" with Chris Matthews.
Have a great night.
Copy: Content and programming copyright 2004 MSNBC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Transcription Copyright 2004 FDCH e-Media, Inc. (f/k/a Federal Document Clearing House Inc., eMediaMillWorks, Inc.), ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No license is granted to the user of this material other than for research. User may not reproduce or redistribute the material except for user's personal or internal use and, in such case, only one copy may be printed, nor shall user use any material for commercial purposes or in any fashion that may infringe upon MSNBC and FDCH e-Media, Inc.'s copyright or other proprietary rights or interests in the material. This is not a legal transcript for purposes of litigation.


text:
Complete Story
ALERT! Ohio Medicaid Proposes Oxygen Rates Cut 36% off Lowest Ohio Round 2 Bid Rates
Submit Comments and Attend Nov. 18 Medicaid Hearing
The Ohio Deparment of Medicaid (ODM) has a directive under Ohio's budget legislation effective 7/01/13 to unbundle certain services from the nursing home per diem rates and restore the payments to fee-for-service. OAMES actively worked to unbundle custom seating/wheelchairs since the change went into effect on 8/01/2009, along with the Multiple Sclerosis Society Ohio Chapters and Invacare, given the evidence that these services were virtually eliminated for nursing home residents.
In the 11th hour of the legislative process, oxygen and medical transportation services were also unbundled from the LTC per diems. OAMES did not support this decision for oxygen, nevertheless, the Ohio Department of Medicaid by law is required to unbundle and update the oxygen rules and fees to operationalize the mandate for effective date of 1/01/14.
In a meeting with Medicaid officials on September 26, ODM informed OAMES that they would restore the private residence and long term care oxygen rules into one policy and reduce the oxygen rates for both LTC and homecare to 64% of the lowest Round 2 bidding rates! (For example, E1390 would drop from $153.64 to $54.89.)
OAMES representatives expressed strong and immediate opposition and agreed to meet on October 11 at an HME providers' facility to educate the Medicaid policy staff and decision-makers on the various modalities and technology of the oxygen benefit, discuss the unique differences of the Medicare and Medicaid populations and how these changes would devastate Ohio Medicaid consumers who rely on home oxygen services.
The Oct. 11 meeting was lengthy and constructive. Thank you to Carl Mulberry and his team at Columbus Medical Equipment for hosting an excellent site visit and in-service. At this meeting, OAMES provided a response paper which supplemented our discussion about the evolution of the oxygen benefit, the cross subsidization of codes, patient acuity and consumption needs, and raised the need to reduce administrative burdens and processes that increase not only providers' costs, but the State's expenses as well.
The rules "package" to operationalize unbundling was filed on October 15 to meet the January 1 implementation date and the public hearing has been scheduled for Nov. 18. ODM asked OAMES to submit revisions to the proposed oxygen rule now which we are currently doing. In the meantime, we need ALL OAMES member companies who provide oxygen service to PARTICIPATE in the public process and make your concerns heard!
How to access proposed rules:
- There are several affected rules - the proposed drafts are available at www.registerofohio.state.oh.us/. Click on thE link and follow these steps:
- Go to the second box on the left regarding rules and select the 4th option listed, Public Hearing date and filing agency
- Enter the hearing date – Nov. 18, 2013
- Select the Filing agency – 5101, Department of Job and Family Services
- Limit the search to: "Proposed rules"
- Click search
- Scroll down to find the various DME rules – oxygen, wheelchairs, repair, fee schedule – you'll find them linked on the left
Action needed by OAMES members:
1.Submit comments and attend the public hearing!
You can send your comments as noted below or present them at the hearing. Even if you'd prefer not to read your comments at the hearing, submit them by email but attend so that we can fill up the room to show the strong opposition for these rules. (Be sure to copy me at email@example.com when you submit your comments.)
Hearing: November 18, 2013, Monday – 10:00 a.m.
Lobby Hearing Room, Rhodes State Office Tower
30 East Broad Street, Columbus, OH 43215
Mail: Ohio Department of Medicaid
c/o Ohio Department of Job and Family Services
Office of Legal and Acquisition Services
30 East Broad Street, 31st Floor, Columbus, OH 43215-3414
Fax: (614) 752-8298
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
2. Reach out to your referral sources, respiratory therapists in your community and affected consumers and urge everyone to engage. These proposed rate changes will absolutely compromise patient care and devastate the home oxygen benefit!
3. Attend OAMES Annual Meeting on Nov. 19-20 to hear Director John McCarthy's update and share your concerns in-person. He is scheduled to make a Medicaid presentation on day one which presents a timely opportunity to voice concerns with the top Medicaid official. Representatives from Medicaid Policy will also be hosting a session so this is an excellent time to get in front of these decision-makers.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact OAMES executive director Kam Yuricich at OAMES. We understand these battles are exhausting and frustrating but it's essential to engage in these efforts for a healthcare benefit that relies heavily on government payers.


text:
For companies providing goods or services in foreign European countries, there may be a requirement to VAT register as a non-resident VAT trader. Many countries permit the foreign company to register 'directly' with the tax office, without having to appoint a local representative.
However, under certain circumstances, the tax authorities will requires the company to appoint a Fiscal Representative in the destination country. This company must be tax registered and willing to act as the local representative of the company, managing with queries and filing obligations of the company for dealings with the tax authorities.
In some cases, the fiscal representative may be jointly liable for all VAT payments of the company.
The tax authorities regard a fiscal representative as the local agent of the foreign trader – which leads to several compliance obligations. Additionally, since the fiscal rep is jointly liable for the trader's taxes, it is industry practice to require a security deposit or bank guarantee in favour of the Fiscal Representative to mitigate against potential risks if the company reneges of any liabilities.


text:
Biaxial Systems
Wille Geotechnik® offers a number of different types and sizes of biaxial devices. They allow for the direct testing of soils under real plane strain conditions. More accurate assessments of strength parameters and shear banding phenomena can be simulated through such tests. Different types of construction and sample sizes are also available. The picture to the right shows a special edition version of this device, which was manufactured for unsaturated soil testing in plane strain tests.


text:
Don't let recognition technology leave you behind
Is your company keeping up with the latest trends in recognition? Well, if you're not using social media to engage employees, you might as well also be using dial-up for your internet. Social recognition is vital for its efficiency and effectiveness in driving employee engagement, which in turn drives productivity and helps recruit and retain high performing employees.
Much in the same way as social media has completely changed the way companies market products and services, social recognition has become one of the primary tools for engaging employees. And just like social media, having a platform for social recognition is no longer just a "nice to have" option – it's a necessity and an expectation for leading organizations to have a mechanism for social recognition.
Social Recognition Platforms Continuing to Improve and Becoming Standard
According to research company Gartner, by 2018 social recognition will be the norm in not just the largest, most forward-thinking organizations but also in most mid-sized companies.
Most leading companies are recognizing this need, which is driving the growth of online social recognition platforms that allow managers to give recognition quickly, efficiently and regularly. And, as importantly, employees can interact using peer-to-peer recognition.
Through social media, it is easier to make social recognition a part of the company culture. Many companies are now using online or software-based platforms that use the concepts of online social networking to increase recognition.
If your organization is not currently using social recognition, or is using an outdated system, it is time to start thinking about how to up your game in terms of social recognition.
Tying Social Recognition to Other Types of Programs
Many companies also use a number of other activities to help drive more social recognition. Using company celebrations, special events, gamification, team building activities, company-based community volunteer opportunities and other activities is a great way to increase use of social recognition by employees.
All of these activities help employee engagement, and it's also a great way to keep remote employees engaged. The natural inclination is for employees to use the company intranet or social platform to interact with each other about these topics. The more you are able to engage employees in using your internal social platform, the more likely they are to return and offer recognition to peers. This keeps the cycle going.
RPI is Your Resource for Social Recognition Planning and Implementation
RPI is a great source of information about how to create a culture of engagement in your company. To learn more about Social Recognition strategy, you can start with RPI's Best Practice Standards® and feel free to contact RPI with any additional questions. RPI offers a great forum for learning more about the effectiveness of social recognition and what types of platforms you can use or steps you can take to get started. As a member you have access to the best and brightest in the world of employee recognition and engagement, as well as the opportunity to become an expert yourself through the Certified Recognition Professional (CRP) certification.
This post has not been tagged.
Recognition Professionals International 1000 Westgate Drive, Suite 252 St. Paul, Minnesota 55114 Phone: 651-290-7490 | Fax: 651-290-2266
email@example.com © 2020 Recognition Professionals International All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy
Recognition Professionals International is accredited by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) and is authorized to issue the IACET CEU.


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- 11-20-2013, 07:44 AM #1Member
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Hello, New here! want help with - C#, VB.NET, TSQL, Javascript, HTML
Hi I am new here and I am looking for information and the best way to accelerate in these programs. C#, VB.NET, TSQL, Javascript, HTML
I have recently been discharged from the military. My branch of service was the army and I was military police. And have always been interested in computers and found a company out here in Chicago that is looking for junior software engineers. I have always been pretty good with tech but have never known how to do the above that I have mentioned. If anyone here can give me a legit online college that offers these or knows the best way I can get certified in all the categories mentioned above, It would be highly appreciated. Thanks a lot!
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Re: Hello, New here! want help with - C#, VB.NET, TSQL, Javascript, HTML
This is a Java forum, so none of the above are applicable.Please do not ask for code as refusal often offends.
** This space for rent **
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Re: Hello, New here! want help with - C#, VB.NET, TSQL, Javascript, HTML
W3Schools Online Web Tutorials Is free and provides good written tutorials and examples for many web based technologies
Online video tutorials & training | lynda.com Required a monthly membership fee, but has many high quality video tutorials on a wide range of technologies
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text: We understand that your car is an essential part of day-to-day life, so when it comes to getting service & repair work done, we want to make things as easy as possible. Did you know that here at Brighton we have a unique "Service While You Sleep" option? This has already proved popular with both business users and mums & dads who need the car for the school run – with everyone, in fact, that doesn't want to be without their car during the day time. Simply drop your vehicle to us in the afternoon or early evening, leave it overnight for our expert technicians to carry out any work required, then collect it from 7am the following morning. Service While You Sleep - no downtime at no extra cost and a lift home or a loan car overnight if required. Talk to a service advisor today.


text:
Dog Tired has partnered with Z&E Canine Manners, an indoor dog training facility owned by Nildan Atkay, CPDT-KA. The facility is located in the Quadrangle Shopping Center (next to the Piggly Wiggly) in West Ashley, between Highway 17 and Sam Rittenburg Boulevard.
Dog Tired clients receive a special one-time discount at Z&E Canine Manners of 10% off select introductory classes.
Call 843-697-6808 or visit their website www.ZECanineManners.com for more info and a full class schedule. Contact Z&E Canine Manners to book!
Make sure you mention you heard through Dog Tired!
Refresher Dog Training IS BACK! Designed for dogs that already have training, but may need some extra practice. We will cover the basics of Leave It, Drop it, Recall, and Walking Nicely on a Loose Leash. We will spend 15-20 minutes per session reinforcing those commands. Great way to keep the behaviors fresh while your pup is lodging or with us for daycare!
Available Classes with 10% Discount:
Puppy-B-Good Class, 6 weeks, $120
Dogs 12 to 22 weeks
- For puppies who have either graduated from our Puppy Socialization class or who have not yet had formal training.
- Cues/commands will include sit, down, wait, come, leave it/drop it, leash walking, as well as addressing puppy behaviors such as house training, crate training, nipping, & more.
Adult Manners & Obedience Class, 6 weeks, $120
Dogs 6 months and up
- Geared toward dogs with no prior formal training as well as those in need of a refresher.
- Cues/commands will include sit, down, wait/stay, come, leave it/drop it, leash walking & more.
- NO aggressive or reactive dogs please; consult with the instructor prior to sign up if you are unsure.


text:
Sell-by stamps on food are now law
We South Africans have become accustomed to seeing date marks – those "use by" and "best before" dates on food, but it's only in the past month that they've become a legal requirement.
The new food labelling regulations, which finally came into force on March 1, make it compulsory for food manufacturers to put date stamps on food, with the exception of a few items, such as honey; unprocessed, unpacked meat and fresh produce; vinegar and sweets. Foods that have to be chilled; cooked products, pre-packed, prepared vegetables and fruit; juices with a limited shelf life – in fact, any food that could lead to food poisoning if not stored properly – must carry a use-by date.
And it's illegal to offer for sale, relabel or donate any food that is past its use-by date. Other foods – those with a longer shelf life – must carry "best-before" dates and while it's not an offence to continue to offer such food for sale, it's clearly not best practice.
It is now illegal to remove or alter any date mark – be it a use-by date or a best-before date. And so to this week's case.
Jacqui Cramb regularly shops at the Food Lover's Market branch in Rinaldo Road, Glen Anil, Durban.
When visiting the store about a month ago, she checked the date marks on a few packs of Sasko muffin mix and noticed that they had expired, as had the entire batch of that variant.
She alerted the manager, who apologised and instructed an employee to remove the expired stock.
When Cramb returned to the store just more than a week ago, she saw what she presumed was fresh stock of Sasko's bran muffin mix, but she was in for a shock when she went to check the dates. There were none.
"Stock of the other variants of the same product had current date marks, so naturally I smelt a rat," Cramb says. "I suspected that someone had wiped off the expired dates and put the same stock back on the shelf."
Cramb reported her experience to Consumer Watch, and I took up the case with Food Lover's Market's head office.
Responding, the group's Devon Currie said the store manager at that branch had issued instructions that the stock in question be returned to the supplier, as was normal practice.
But the store's receiving manager allegedly instructed a merchandiser to wipe the dates off the expired packs and pack them back on the shelves instead. This while the store manager was away at an annual conference.
That receiving manager is currently on leave and, according to Currie, will face a disciplinary charge of sabotage on his return, along with the merchandiser. Currie said a full inquiry would be conducted.
Food Lover's Market KZN regional manager Leonel Luizinho said the incident, while isolated, was hugely regretted by the company.
He said the company had not only inspected the rest of the stock in that store to ensure no other dates had been tampered with – they hadn't – but also intended to introduce more stringent control measures to ensure that there wasn't a repeat incident.
Technology that's outdated
Who knew that date marks were so easy to remove?
I was curious about just how that merchandiser had allegedly removed the best-before dates on those packs. Did he apply a solvent of some kind – meths, perhaps?
I didn't have any meths on hand, so I dabbed a solvent I did have – an acetone-free nail polish remover – on to some cotton wool and then applied it to one of those Sasko muffin mix packs.
The date mark came off the shiny plastic pack with a single, light wipe. Astonished, I opened my grocery cupboard and tried the nail polish remover on other products.
Off came the Lay's chips best before date, and the Marie biscuits one, the Five Roses tea date, and the one on the All Gold tomato sauce, too. No effort required – they came straight off, leaving no trace.
Then I opened my fridge and just as easily removed the dates from the milk, yoghurts, mayonnaise and orange juice, as well as the date mark on the pack of frozen fish in my freezer.
However, the can of Lucky Star pilchards was resistant – it faded, but didn't disappear, and the Koo baked beans can date didn't budge at all.
So, clearly there are different processes and inks that manufacturers can use to date mark their products, and some are more tamper-proof than others.
I asked the Consumer Goods Council (CGC) whether it advised industry players with regard to best practice when it comes to date marking, to make the dates as tamper-proof as possible. Responding, spokesman Mateboho Tsiu said the council's Food Safety Initiative "advises and encourages" its members to adhere to the regulation that the date marking may not be removed or altered.
But how this was done was the responsibility of the individual food manufacturers or retailers, he said. So clearly this is not a big issue for the CGC.
Sasko's marketing manager, Danie Bower, told me that it was the packaging material on which the dates are printed, rather than the ink used, that made it possible for the date to be removed with a solvent.
Which doesn't explain why I was able to remove the dates on some cans and not others.
Tiger Brands spokeswoman Trisha Naidoo said the company was "horrified" by my discovery and said an internal audit would be carried out as a result. While its Koo baked beans cans date mark didn't budge, the date printed on to its All Gold tomato sauce glass bottle date came off with a single wipe.
"We are horrified by your report – the fact that date coding can be removed that easily and the ramifications of that is appalling, to say the least," she said. "Our date coding system follows a standard operating procedure, which is a regulated requirement. Depending on the type of packaging material and product, the appropriate ink, as recommended by the supplier, would be used. We believe that this matter is certainly an industry challenge."
Simba's national quality and vendor assurance manager, Nicolette Samson, said: "Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Date marking is clearly critical to keep our customers informed. We will be looking into this new information."
Tric Stone, consumer liaison manager for AVI Limited, which includes Five Roses tea and Bakers biscuits in its stable, said that to print its date marks, the company mostly used MEK (methyl ethyl ketone) ink, which was fast-drying, non-smearing, and highly resistant to sunlight, high temperatures, high humidity and "rubbing".
While the company did not consider the use of nail polish remover to remove date codes to be "common consumer practice", Stone said, it was aware of the fact that "there are unscrupulous operators out there".
She said I would probably have been able to remove the date marks from "most packaging types", other than that with date marks applied by means of a laser.
"Alternative robust date code printing methods form part of our considerations to consistently raise the bar in our offerings to our consumers," Stone said.
Anthea Abraham, communications manager for the Oceana Group, which produces the Lucky Star range of canned fish, said traceability was hugely important to the business, so the production codes and best-before dates on its cans were printed with a range of specialised inks.
"Our ink changes colour during the sterilisation process to provide proof of sterilisation. It will fade if you try to remove it, but cannot be removed completely," she said.
"Our focus has been on the can code being tamper-proof."
Whether a date mark is merely removed, or removed and replaced with a falsified date, it's a grave consumer injustice, not to mention illegal.
So clearly it's in everyone's interests that food manufacturers direct their resources into coming up with date marks that are as tamper-resistant as possible, whether that means changing the packaging material, the ink, or the process used.
* Consumer Watch will not be published next Monday.
The Star


text:
Museums are more fun with friends! Have your next group outing at the Upcountry History Museum.
Groups of 10 or more receive a discount of $1 per person UNLESS a docent led tour is requested. Groups must register prior to museum visit and pay as a group to receive group discount.
Docent Led Tours
The Upcountry History Museum has a corps of trained docents who can lead your family or group on an engaging tour of the Museum's exhibits.
- Tours are available for groups of 10 or more at the rate of an additional $1 per person.
- The group discount rate does not apply for docent led tours.
- Tours must be scheduled at least 2 weeks in advance.
- Please allow a minimum of 1 hour 15 minutes and as much as 2 hours for a docent led tour.
To schedule, please contact Kristen Pace at 864.467.3100 x118 or firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
On the call today, we discussed http://www.w3.org/2011/webappsec/track/issues/8. Specifically, whether the following markup should be controlled by the frame-src or the object-src directive: <object data="http://www.yahoo.com/"></object> The question boils down to whether we're thinking about directives syntactically or semantically. Syntactically, the Yahoo home page is being loaded by the object tag, so it should be controlled by the object-src directive. Semantically, the Yahoo home page is being displayed in a frame, so it should be controlled by the frame-src directive. Jacob Rossi and Brandon Sterne both argued for the syntactic approach as being consistent with the other directives and better aligned with their implementations. I tested WebKit just now, and it seems to implement the semantic approach. The current plan is to adopt the syntactic approach, making <object> always controlled by object-src regardless of whether it's used to display a plug-in or a frame. If you have any feedback on this topic, please feel encouraged to respond to this email. Thanks, AdamReceived on Tuesday, 6 December 2011 23:02:06 UTC
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