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Seventh-day Adventist Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant denomination founded in America the mid-19th century during the Second Great Awakening. The basic tenets of Adventism were based on a version of premillennial evangelical Protestantism and focused on the prophecy that Christ would return in 1844. They also strongly held the belief that the Sabbath was Saturday (the 7th day), so they opposed laws making Sunday the Sabbath.
The church was organized in 1863 around the belief that Jesus indeed had entered the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary in 1844. Ellen G. White (1827-1915), while holding no official role, was the dominant personality and moved the denomination to a concentration on missionary and medical work. Beginning in the 1890s, the Seventh-day Adventist Church was impacted by the Holiness Movement. Borrowing from the holiness movement, Albion Fox Ballenger and Sarepta M. I. Henry sought to bring together law and gospel themes, and thereby fill a spiritual need not met by Adventist emphasis on moral behavior. Revival focused on being filled with the Holy Spirit and healing. Mission and medical work continues to play a central role in the 21st century.
The church professes 28 fundamental beliefs which it sees as being based on the Bible, which it states is the only basis of its faith. The church believes that the writings of Ellen G. White are divinely inspired and useful for guidance, but do not take place of the Bible, which they believe is the only source of doctrine. Healthy food is part of the religion. Most Adventists are vegetarians, and reject caffeine and alcohol. Adventists in Battle Creek, Michigan, developed America's breakfast cereal industry.
Adventist missionary activity has been quite successful, and over 90% of members are outside the U.S., including 34% in Africa, 33% in Latin American, versus 8% in the U.S. and Canada. There is a very active missionary program in 230 countries. There are 15 million members, with the greatest numbers in Brazil (1.3 million); the US (950,000); India (920,000); the Philippines (750,000); Peru (660,000); Mexico (550,000); and Kenya (530,000). There are 64,000 churches and 16,000 ordained ministers.[1]
Worldwide the church operates 107 colleges and medical schools, and 7300 elementary and secondary schools. Total enrollment is 1.5 million. It operates over 700 hospitals, sanitaria and clinics. The worldwide budget is $2.7 billion, with $420 million spent on aid and relief efforts.[2]
Origins in Millerism
The Second Great Awakening saw a general revival of evangelical Christianity, and was especially strong among Yankee Protestants in the "Burned Over" district of upstate New York. William Miller was a Baptist Minister who earnestly looked forward to the return of Christ, but who become inordinately consumed with determining the date. In 1831 he announced he had dated the Second Coming to 1843, when the world would end in a fiery purge. A recalculation moved the date to October 22, 1844. Both dates passed with no Second Coming; to his credit Miller recognized his error and repented of his actions, and thereafter no longer sought to predict a date.
Reinterpreting 1844
After the failed prediction of October 22, 1844, a solution was provided for the problem by an Adventist named Hiram Edson. He argued that Miller misunderstood the nature of the predicted event, that it was not Christ's return to earth, but His entering in the holy of holies of the Heavenly temple, marking the beginning of the second phase of Christ's atoning work. This teaching was what would later become the SDA doctrine of Investigative Judgment, for which Heb. 9 in invoked, in which Seventh Day Adventism holds that Jesus began determining who among the forgiven was redeemed. (cf. 2Tim. 2:19) The chief proponent of this idea was Mrs. Ellen G. White. White, a woman of little education who reported she received prophetic visions and teachings from God, is considered to be the real founder. At that time, most Christians were opposed to women holding positions of church leadership.
Those who did not abandon Millerite Adventism concluded that God had indeed purged the heavenly sanctuary but did not appear on earth due to the sinfulness of humankind. The years of the Great Disappointment, 1843 and again in 1844, might have been the end of the Adventism movement. Instead, it was the beginning. True, Miller lost his audience but many believers soon found a new leadership in Ellen G. White (1827-1915). By 1863, this group had a new headquarters (Battle Creek, Michigan) and an official new name: Seventh-day Adventists. The national headquarters was later moved to Maryland.
Until 1870 the church had a "shut door" policy focused on veterans of the 1844 experience, seeing them as a saving remnant. The membership was only 5,400 and the door was shut to new members. Under White's guidance the denomination in the 1870s turned to missionary work and revivals, tripling its membership to 16,000 by 1880; rapid growth continued, with 75,000 members in 1901. By this time operated two colleges, a medical school, a dozen academies, 27 hospitals, and 13 publishing houses.
The Adventists had closely followed American politics, matching current events to the predictions in the Bible. They were alienated and hostile, for the government tolerated slavery and seemed to have lost its pure republicanism. Their magazines showed the U.S. government as an ugly monster. Under White's guidance the alienation softened. Adventists by the 1890s believed that the government might become a dangerous beast (as depicted in Revelation chapter 13), but had not reached that stage yet. The graphic images of government now depicted a friendly looking American buffalo.
The Seventh Day
"Seventh-day" means the observance of the original Sabbath, Saturday, is still a sacred obligation. Adventists argued that just as the rest of the Ten Commandments had not been revised, so also the injunction to "remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy" remained in full force. But this theological point turned the young group into a powerful force for religious liberty. Growing into its full stature in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, these Adventists opposed Sunday laws on every side. Many were arrested for working on Sunday.[3] In fighting against the real threat of a legally established National Day of worship, these Sabbatarians had to fight for their liberty on a daily basis. Soon, they were fighting for religious liberty on a broader, less parochial basis.
The fear that other Protestants would establish a Christian Sunday expanded into opposition to the establishment of a "Christian" identity for the nation, and opposition to school prayer. This led to alliances with secularists in the American political spectrum.
Adventist emphasis on health and healing coincided with broader emphases on proper diet (specifically the Kosher dietary laws), promoting vegetarianism, nonsmoking, and temperance—which usually means abstaining from alcohol, premarital sexual, and vulgarity. From Kellogg's Corn Flakes (an Adventist innovation) to sanitaria emphasizing natural cures to first-rate nursing and medical schools, as well as medical missions around the world, Adventists formed many alliances with more innovative forces, both secular and religious.
In the 20th century premillennial fundamentalism and political conservatism are often associated with each other. The premillennialism of Seventh-day Adventists, however, has not shared the outlook of that conservatism. The Adventists' views on race, prohibition, religious pluralism, the observance of the Sabbath (in the context of establishing Sunday as a national day of rest), and other matters exhibit similarities and differences when compared to the views of premillennial fundamentalists. Adventists have wanted to keep America Protestant, but they stressed liberty as the essence of Protestantism and thus helped to expand American religious pluralism.[4]
At the end of World War II, the church reported 226,000 members in the US and Canada, and 380,000 elsewhere; the budget was $29 million and enrollemnt in church schools was 40,000.
Advent of Christ
Just because Christ did not return to earth in the 1840s did not mean that his return was not imminent, the Adventists argue, nor did it mean that preparations for that return should not remain uppermost in the minds and hearts of Seventh-day Adventists. Adventism is still the essential element in the identity of the group.
Internal disputes
The major doctrinal conflicts that troubled the movement throughout the last third of the twentieth century include disputes over the nature of Ellen White's inspiration and authority, challenges to orthodox Adventist interpretations of Daniel 8, and debates over the role of good works in salvation. As with many doctrinal crises among evangelical Protestant churches, these conflicts often arose in disputes between the church's academics, increasingly trained in secular academic traditions, and its more theologically conservative, even reactionary, clerical administrators. In each case these controversies revealed an ambivalence by Adventists toward other Christians and secular society. They asked, are we like them or different, and how much does it matter? It was a crisis of identity for the church.[5]
Role of women
Although the denomination was formed by a woman at a time women were not generally allowed in pulpits, the Adventists reversed policy at the same time most denominations became more accepting of women leaders. When Adventists wanted to emphasize their separation from the world, they denounced the gender roles of the larger society, and when they de-emphasized separatism and moved toward accommodation, they advocated gender norms, behaviors, and expectations similar to those of Fundamentalists.[6]
In the history of creationism in the United States, the emphasis on flood geology is largely an outgrowth of Seventh-day Adventism.[7]
Evangelicals throughout the 19th century denounce Adventism as an illegitimate cult, the same is said of other Protestant Baptist-origin Millerite movements.[8] The main bases for their view is the Adventist teaching of the Investigative Judgment (which is not taught by any other Christian denomination, and lacks Scriptural basis in their view) as well as the Adventist emphasis on keeping Old Testament Laws (such as worship only on Saturday) as mandatory for Christians.[9]
Notable people associated with Adventism
- Dr. Ben Carson, 2016 Republican presidential candidate.
- Will Keith Kellogg, founder of Kellogg's cereal company.
- George Konrote, current President of Fiji.
- Sheila Jackson Lee, Democratic U.S. Representative for Texas's 18th congressional district.
- Christopher Mwashinga, Tanzanian author and poet.
- Little Richard, world-renowned rock and roll musician.
- Isabel Ruiz Lucero, artist and founder of Heaven Sent Gaming
- Sojourner Truth (Isabella "Bell" Baumfree), abolitionist and women's rights activist.
- Ellen G. White, founder of the religion.
See also
External links
Further reading
- Edwards, Calvin W. and Gary Land. Seeker After Light: A F Ballenger, Adventism, and American Christianity. (2000). 240pp online review
- Land, Gary. "At the Edges of Holiness: Seventh-Day Adventism Receives the Holy Ghost, 1892-1900." Fides et Historia 2001 33(2): 13-30
- Morgan, Douglas. Adventism and the American Republic: The Public Involvement of a Major Apocalyptic Movement. (2001). 269 pp.
- Morgan, Douglas. "Adventism, Apocalyptic, and the Cause of Liberty," Church History, Vol. 63, No. 2 (Jun., 1994), pp. 235–249 in JSTOR
- Neufield, Don F. ed. Seventh-Day Adventist Encyclopedia (10 vol 1976), official publication
- Pearson, Michael. Millennial Dreams and Moral Dilemmas: Seventh-day Adventism and Contemporary Ethics. (1990, 1998) excerpt and text search, looks at issues of marriage, abortion, homosexuality
- Schwarz, Richard. Light Bearers: A History of the Seventh-day Adventist Church (3rd ed. 2000), official history
- Vance, Laura L. Seventh-day Adventism Crisis: Gender and Sectarian Change in an Emerging Religion. (1999). 261 pp.
- ↑ See statistics at online
- ↑ See Official statistics online
- ↑ And in one interesting case, a grocery store owner in Arkansas -- which had an exception to Sunday laws specifically for Adventists -- became an Adventist solely to gain Sunday business: the grocery store owner's son was Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys.
- ↑ Morgan (1994)
- ↑ See Vance (1999)
- ↑ See Vance (1999)
- ↑ Ronald L. Numbers, The Creationists: The Evolution of Scientific Creationism (1992)
- ↑ Seventh-day Adventism, Apologetics Index research resource
- ↑ The objection is not Saturday worship per se (many megachurches hold services on Saturday evenings as well as Sunday mornings) but the view that worship must be held only on Saturdays.


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In the Name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Divorce, based on Quran
Based on Quran we learn that God discourages divorce and encourages the continuation of marriage. Striving to preserve marriage is a duty for both husband and wife, even in extreme cases of misbehavior (4:34,128). The discouragement of divorce is understood in the light of 2:226-227 where a 4-month cooling off period is issued before considering the decision of separation, in 4:35 where it is decreed that an arbitrator from each side should be appointed to try to reconcile the couple, in 4:22-23, where God is stating that unlawful marriages (out of ignorance) are not to be broken, in 2:232 where it states that reconciling after divorce is purer and more righteous choice, and in 2:229 where two chances are given to the divorced couple to get back together
Divorce, however is decredd by God for the believers in exceptional circumstances when all atempts of resolving disputes between the spouses are failing. There have been a lot of abuse and violation of God's laws when it comes to divorce. There are also a lot of misconceptions about the women's rights before, during and after the emotional turmoil of divorce. This article is to state the laws relating to divorce that are decreed by God in Quran and must be followed by those who believe in God and reverence Him.
Appoint an arbitrator
[4:35] If a couple fears separation, you shall appoint an arbitrator from his family and an arbitrator from her family; if they decide to reconcile, God will help them get together. God is Omniscient, Cognizant.
Wait 4 months cooling off before divorce
[2:226-227] Those who intend to divorce their wives shall wait four months (cooling off); if they change their minds and reconcile, then God is Forgiver, Merciful. If they go through with the divorce, then God is Hearer, Knower.
If the estranged couple chooses separation they must go through with it equitably. There must be two equitable witnesses witness the divorce before God
[65:2] Once the interim is fulfilled, you may reconcile with them equitably, or go through with the separation equitably. You shall have two equitable witnesses witness the divorce before God. This is to enlighten those who believe in God and the Last Day. Anyone who reverences God, He will create an exit for him.
Divorced women to observe an interim period
[2:228] The divorced women shall wait three menstruations (before marrying another man). It is not lawful for them to conceal what God creates in their wombs, if they believe in God and the Last Day. (In case of pregnancy,) the husband's wishes shall supersede the wife's wishes, if he wants to remarry her. The women have rights, as well as obligations, equitably. Thus, the man's wishes prevail (in case of pregnancy). God is Almighty, Most Wise.
[65:4-5] As for the women who have reached menopause, if you have any doubts, their interim shall be three months. As for those who do not menstruate, and discover that they are pregnant, their interim ends upon giving birth. Anyone who reverences God, He makes everything easy for him. This is God's command that He sends down to you. Anyone who reverences God, He remits his sins, and rewards him generously.
Exception for observing interim period:
[33:49] O you who believe, if you married believing women, then divorced them before having intercourse with them, they do not owe you any waiting interim (before marrying another man). You shall compensate them equitably, and let them go amicably.
After the fulfilment of the interim the divorced women is free to do whatever she wants
Although the following verse is in context of widows, it appears to be applicable to a divorcees too.
You Shall Observe the Pre-Marriage Interims
[2:234] Those who die and leave wives, their widows shall wait four months and ten days (before they remarry). Once they fulfill their interim, you commit no error by letting them do whatever righteous matters they wish to do. God is fully Cognizant of everything you do.
[2:235] You commit no sin by announcing your engagement to the women, or keeping it secret. God knows that you will think about them. Do not meet them secretly, unless you have something righteous to discuss. Do not consummate the marriage until their interim is fulfilled. You should know that God knows your innermost thoughts, and observe Him. You should know that God is Forgiver, Clement.
Divorced women have to be provided for
This is probably one of the abused laws in the Quran. But God holds us responsible for our innermost thoughts. If one observes God's laws then God makes it easy for him / her.
[65:7] The rich husband shall provide support in accordance with his means, and the poor shall provide according to the means that God bestowed upon him. God does not impose on any soul more than He has given it. God will provide ease after difficulty.
Alimony For Widows and Divorcees
[2:240] Those who die and leave wives, a will shall provide their wives with support for a year, provided they stay within the same household. If they leave, you commit no sin by letting them do whatever they wish, so long as righteousness is maintained. God is Almighty, Most Wise.
[2:241] The divorcees also shall be provided for, equitably. This is a duty upon the righteous.
Compensation when marriage is not consummated
Breaking the Engagement:
[2:236] You commit no error by divorcing the women before touching them, or before setting the dowry for them. In this case, you shall compensate them - the rich as he can afford and the poor as he can afford - an equitable compensation. This is a duty upon the righteous.
[2:237] If you divorce them before touching them, but after you had set the dowry for them, the compensation shall be half the dowry, unless they voluntarily forfeit their rights, or the party responsible for causing the divorce chooses to forfeit the dowry. To forfeit is closer to righteousness. You shall maintain the amicable relations among you. God is Seer of everything you do.
Divorced women entitled to stay
in the same house she stayed before divorce
Do Not Throw the Divorcees Out Onto the Streets
[2:231] If you divorce the women, once they fulfill their interim (three menstruations), you shall allow them to live in the same home amicably, or let them leave amicably. Do not force them to stay against their will, as a revenge. Anyone who does this wrongs his own soul. Do not take God's revelations in vain. Remember God's blessings upon you, and that He sent down to you the scripture and wisdom to enlighten you. You shall observe God, and know that God is aware of all things.
[65:6] You shall allow them to live in the same home in which they lived with you, and do not make life so miserable for them that they leave on their own. If they are pregnant, you shall spend on them until they give birth. If they nurse the infant, you shall pay them for this service. You shall maintain the amicable relations among you. If you disagree, you may hire another woman to nurse the child.
Divorce can be retracted twice:
In other words, if the couple reconciles after the first divorce and wish to be husband and wife again, they can re-marry. This is allowed for two divorce only. If the couple divorces third time they have to observe God's commandment in 2:230 (quoted below.) God makes it not-so-easy for the couple to divorce. This law serves as a deterrent for those who want a divorce for the third time and they would be very careful to take this step.
[2:229] Divorce may be retracted twice. The divorced woman shall be allowed to live in the same home amicably, or leave it amicably. It is not lawful for the husband to take back anything he had given her. However, the couple may fear that they may transgress God's law. If there is fear that they may transgress God's law, they commit no error if the wife willingly gives back whatever she chooses. These are God's laws; do not transgress them. Those who transgress God's laws are the unjust.
[2:232] If you divorce the women, once they fulfill their interim, do not prevent them from remarrying their husbands, if they reconcile amicably. This shall be heeded by those among you who believe in God and the Last Day. This is purer for you, and more righteous. God knows, while you do not know.
[2:230] If he divorces her (for the third time), it is unlawful for him to remarry her, unless she marries another man, then he divorces her. The first husband can then remarry her, so long as they observe God's laws. These are God's laws; He explains them for people who know.
Also note the words "It is not lawful for the husband to take back anything he had given her." in 2:229.
In case there is a baby during the interim: If during the observation of the interim period it is discovered that the divorced women is pregnant then as stated in 65:4 the interim ends upon giving birth. God has decreed the following law dealing with the infant:
[2:233] Divorced mothers shall nurse their infants two full years, if the father so wishes. The father shall provide the mother's food and clothing equitably. No one shall be burdened beyond his ability. No mother shall be harmed on account of her infant, nor shall the father be harmed because of his infant. (If the father dies), his inheritor shall assume these responsibilities. If the infant's parents mutually agree to part, after due consultation, they commit no error by doing so. You commit no error by hiring nursing mothers, so long as you pay them equitably. You shall observe God, and know that God is Seer of everything you do.
Under what conditions can a woman divorce her husband?
Whichever party chooses for divorce must obey the laws as aforesaid. Normally divorce is mutually decided by the couple. If the aforesaid laws are observed, there could be a situation where either of the spouse may not give their consent but if the arbitrators from both the families decide that divorce is the best solution for the estranged couple then they would, nevertheless go through divorce. The divorce laws are applicable to both man and woman (4:35 and 2:237 indicate this) except that there are certain additional laws which a divorced woman has to observe.
The following seem to be the only conditions where a believing women leaves her husband without observing the above laws. In fact, I think in this case even a formal divorce is not required under Quran. However if the law of the land requires a formal divorce then one must follow suit.
[60:10] O you who believe, when believing women (abandon the enemy and) ask for asylum with you, you shall test them. God is fully aware of their belief. Once you establish that they are believers, you shall not return them to the disbelievers. They are not lawful to remain married to them, nor shall the disbelievers be allowed to marry them. Give back the dowries that the disbelievers have paid. You commit no error by marrying them, so long as you pay them their due dowries. Do not keep disbelieving wives (if they wish to join the enemy). You may ask them for the dowry you had paid, and they may ask for what they paid. This is God's rule; He rules among you. God is Omniscient, Most Wise.

subset: commoncrawl


text: HONOLULU (AP) A white hearse pulled up to the entrance of a downtown Honolulu cathedral Thursday, carrying the remains of a saint known for caring for exiled leprosy patients in the 1880s.A metal box containing the remains of St. Marianne Cope was carried into the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Peace for what was a cross between a funeral Mass and a homecoming ceremony.She was 80 when she died of natural causes in 1918 at the remote Kalaupapa peninsula on the island of Molokai, where leprosy patients were exiled. Her remains were exhumed from Kalaupapa in 2005 and taken to Syracuse, New York, where her religious congregation is based.Born Barbara Koob in Germany, she immigrated with her family to Utica, New York, when she was a year old. In 1883, the nun accepted a mission to care for leprosy patients in Hawaii.She gained sainthood in 2012 after the Vatican authenticated two miracles that were a result of her intercession.Relocation from New York was necessary because the buildings of the campus where her remains were housed are no longer structurally sound, requiring the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities to move to another part of Syracuse.St. Francis sisters carried the box into the cathedral atop a carrier made out of koa wood in the shape of a canoe.It makes sense to keep her remains in Honolulu, as opposed to Kalaupapa, which can be accessed only via plane or mule, said Bishop Larry Silva of the Honolulu diocese.Hundreds packed into the cathedral, where people lined up for a chance to kiss the box, wrapped in a Hawaiian funerary cloth and draped with lei and a quilt bearing a Hawaiian flag design."The mortal remains of this frail creature of God…have an incredible spirit of their own, an aura that makes us want to be near them, to be changed by the very odor of holiness that emanates from them," Silva said in his homily. "We want to touch the relics of this woman who dedicated herself to healing, so that we may be healed and may be healers."The remains a full collection of her bones arrived Sunday in a casket aboard a United Airlines flight from Newark, New Jersey, said diocese spokesman Patrick Downes.After Thursday's Mass, diocese officials planned to place the sealed zinc-coated metal box containing the bones upright in a koa and glass cabinet in the cathedral. The display cabinet already contained her relic, a small box of bone fragments a nun brought to Honolulu in 2011. The relic was taken on a tour of the Hawaiian islands.The diocese plans to build a chapel at the 170-year-old cathedral where her remains will be entombed underground, said Alika Cullen, cathedral general administrator.__Follow Jennifer Sinco Kelleher at http://www.twitter.com/JenHapa.


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A new social networking site developed with USPTO input provides a forum for subject matter experts to post questions and answers about the U.S. patent system, along with prior art that may be relevant to pending patent applications.
Ask Patents, the new site launched by StackExchange in September, allows third parties to post information about the following topics:
- examples of prior art for a specific claim of a patent or patent application;
- questions about patent law or the patent approval process; and
- thoughts about how to interpret a specific patent.
According to a USPTO press release, the USPTO hopes that the site will become a forum through which third parties will submit prior art that may be relevant to examination of pending patent applications. USPTO examiners can then check the site to see if anyone has submitted prior art that may be relevant to an application that is under review.
Based on information posted so far, the answers provided by subject matter experts appear to be very thoughtful, and off-topic questions are quickly shut down. Building on ideas from the USPTO's former Peer to Patent pilot program, which sought prior art submissions for specific patent applications, the Ask Patents website allows anyone to discuss any patent or patent application. As the site's popularity grows, it will be interesting to see whether enough subject matter experts have time to continue the high level of interaction on the site.


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How Important Are Blog Followers?
Some bloggers have celebration posts when they reach a certain milestone of followers--like 100 or 200. Others take the time to recognize new followers in posts. I've even seen blog contests with rewards for the specific purpose of boosting their following.
Obviously, we're paying close attention to those who follow our blogs. But why? And how important are those followers anyway?
Most of us have a "Follower Gadget" on our blogs. This allows people to sign up to get a feed of our posts in their blogger dashboard, google reader, or even on the blog itself. It's an easy way to make our blogs more accessible to readers and show support to one another.
My follower policy has always been fairly straightforward. If someone signs up to follow my blog, I almost always reciprocate. Of course I can't read and comment on the blogs of everyone I follow. I wouldn't have a life if I did. And I'm sure many of my followers don't read my blog every time I post either.
So, why do we pay such close attention to how many people follow us? Can we really use the number of followers as a reliable method for knowing whether our blogs are successful (as we alluded to in the last post)? And what is the definition of "success" anyway?
It's clear from the last post that everyone defines success differently. Here's how I personally define blogging success: I long for my words to make an impact on lives--whether to encourage, instruct, or enlighten. I want readers to connect with what I'm writing, in my blog and books. When my words make a difference, I'm satisfied.
Can the number of our followers help us determine whether our posts are doing what we intend? Here's my opinion: No and Yes. Helpful, aren't I? Let me explain.
No, we can't rely upon the number of followers to define success.
Because I've been blogging for over a year, I've noticed an interesting phenomenon. Many of our followers fall by the wayside. They may read and comment on our posts for a while, then for whatever reason they stop or grow very sporadic.
In other words, some "followers" don't technically stop following our blogs--their pictures and numbers are still in our gadgets. But for whatever reason, they no longer read our posts, if they ever did to begin with. We just can't stay connected with everyone no matter how hard we try.
How many of my 300 followers read my blog regularly or even on a semi-regular basis? I have no way of tracking that. So, what does the number really stand for? If only a quarter of my followers are actually reading my blog, that doesn't give me a very big platform, does it?
And then, what about those who read my blog, but aren't signed up? Some of them might be more faithful than than those in my follower gadget (hi mom!).
If the numbers aren't reliable, then why bother to have a follower gadget at all? Well, because. . .
Yes, the numbers of followers give us an indication we're doing something right.
In some ways, I look at the follower gadget as one way people give me a "thumbs up." When they click to follow they're saying, "Hey, I like something about you, your blog or what you wrote."
It's one small way to know if I'm meeting the needs of readers, that something I'm saying is resonating with others--especially because not everyone who signs up to follow leaves a comment. In fact I have plenty of followers who never leave comments.
I usually get a few new followers per week. I'm always curious which blog topics seem to elicit the most interest. I'm not sure if I have a scientific grasp yet (or if I ever will!) on which topics are hottest. But when I have a slew of new followers on a specific post, I take note of it.
Do agents and editors put stock in blog popularity? Sarah Forgrave asked this great question in the last post. In other words, would the number of followers make a difference in landing an agent or book deal?
I can only answer from my experience, and I would have to give a resounding NO. It made absolutely NO difference in my efforts to acquire an agent and it made even less difference in getting my book deal.
Realize I'm speaking from a fiction writer perspective. This is completely different for non-fiction in which platform is one hundred times more important. For fiction writers, we could have 1000 followers, but if we don't have a well-written, saleable book, the number of followers won't do us a lick of good.
In summary, I would have to say this: Blog followers can be a helpful indicator that we're on track with blogging, but certainly don't tell the whole story.
What's your opinion? How important are blog followers to you? Do you want more followers? Why or why not?
57 comments:
I totally agree with your sentiments. I think the number just makes you feel whether you're headed in the right direction or not. If I have a dry spell of a few weeks where I get NO new followers, I'm start to wonder... what I am doing that is NOT attracting new people... or what can I do TO attract them? It kinda gives me direction a bit.ReplyDelete
At the moment, I'm 2 from my 100 milestone (so if you read this and don't follow me... FEEL FREE! ha!) Okay, shameless goofy plug aside, I'm happy with my almost 100. It's not as many as some, but given them time I have devote to it, again, I'm satisfied with it, as long as it keeps growing a little at a time:-)
I get a SiteMeter report every week that tells me how many visitors I've had and how many page hits for that particular time period. I'm pleased, because I see the number climb, but I don't obsess over it.
As for actual "followers," I honestly would have to look to see how many I have.
I've become comfortable posting twice a week, because to devote more time to the blog would take away from writing time and that thing called "life." I try to make my posts about writing and life in general, and my aim is to make those who read my posts say, "Okay, I can identify with that." If that happens, I guess I've succeeded.
As for whether blog followers translate into book sales, I guess time will give us the answer there.
Thanks for sharing your journey with us.
I enjoy the new followers because it gives me a new person to maybe have the opportunity to connect with and share and learn from them as well.ReplyDelete
I don't watch the numbers. Like you said, I'm sure many don't even follow but it is a good tool to use so if they want to find you, they can, as I read my blog list every morning.
What attracts me to sign into a blog is the first few lines of the post--like a book--it needs to pull me in enough to read it all. So it gives us good practice in working on our hooks:)
First - ever since I've been following your blog, I do read every post! : ) I may not comment every time, but I do read the posts.ReplyDelete
Second - I love my followers. There's a sense of doing something right, that my writing impacts someone, somewhere, enough so that they are following me.
In some ways, the followers are an ego boost. I mean, wow, someone wants to read something I wrote. So, minimally at least, followers amp up self-esteem just a bit and that, in many ways, is a part of success.
As for more followers . . . geesh, the pressure, the angst, to have to come up with something brilliant to say at least three times per week. I'm pretty content with my follower base. I've met some great people, and learned tons of stuff. If my followers grow, then great. If not, well, then great also, because I happen to have a bang-up group of followers right now.
I agree that blog followers are kind of a "thumbs up." Whether they continue to read or not, or comment or not, something initially made them click that follower button. I wrote for a long time with a handful of followers and no comments...at that point I had to keep the faith with myself that somehow what I was doing was worth it. Then people finally began reading and commenting and now I think to myself that they wouldn't waste the time if I wasn't touching them somehow. I do feel you have to draw the line between running a popularity contest and attracting readers who follow because they truly want to read your writing. My own my stats are on the lower side I suppose, growing in baby steps. I guess if I was all over FaceBook and Twitter, I'd have more. But the pace right now works. I am grateful for all my followers, and especially those who make a point of leaving a constructive comment.ReplyDelete
Like you, I long for my words to make an impact on lives. Sometimes the more concentrated I become on followers and social networking the easier it is to be distracted from my ultimate vision--God, family, writing (books first, short stories, articles, posts somewhere further down on the list).ReplyDelete
I'm thankful to have the followers I do, but I never want to define my value/worth by that.
I appreciate how we've "met" through blogging!
~ Wendy
I agree that a "follow" is like a thumbs-up. (Or it means that I followed them first and they followed back, which is nice, too.) I get more of a thrill out of comments that show that someone really got value from a post of mine, but they all come back to the same thing: a little thumbs-up that the blog writing is worth checking out once in a while.ReplyDelete
As for blogging-as-marketing, I don't think followers mean much in that area until you've got thousands... but I like to think that those of us in the hundreds have a sign that it's a "healthy" blog. It's not a platform by itself, but it is a good starting point for the official author website. It means we're in the game.
I like your summation of how important blog followers are and totally agree with the "thumbs up" idea.ReplyDelete
This makes perfect sense to me, Jody. Indicator is a really good way to define the meaning of followers.ReplyDelete
I'm mixed on the followers thing. I was reluctant to put it on my blog initially, but I get a little zing whenever I see a new follower has found me. I try to write consistently strong posts but I've seen other bloggers rise much more quickly in follower numbers than my own (obviously I pay attention to numbers to some degree). I don't think that's an indication of whether my writing is good or I'm hitting it with my readers, though. Like Scott, I feel pretty good with the reader bunch I've got going right now, I've loved the connections, and if I continue to grow, even if it's slow and steady, I'll feel like my words are making an impact. At the end of the day, Jody, that's really it, isn't it? You are so right about that. Good thoughts! And yours is a blog I do follow consistently, so thanks. And responding to your comment on my blog this morning, I do consider you a friend, even if it's just online for now. :) I hope we have a chance to meet IRL someday like I did with a couple other blogger friends over the weekend. :) We moms of five need to stay connected.ReplyDelete
I just do my thing and am amazed that ANYone would want to peek in.ReplyDelete
But, I am grateful for their input. My favorite part of blogging is what I learn from others. It never ends...which is a cool thing.
I agree with you about followers. That's why I added a site meter at the bottom of my page. It privately tracks how many people view my pages and for how long. Then, I can compare week-to-week or even month-to-month to make sure I'm on the right track. Obviously, there are times when I expect readership to be lower like over the holidays or when I've been sick and haven't posted for a couple of days. No matter what though, those numbers don't make all that much of a difference. I blog to force myself to write every day and keep in touch with other writers. I suppose if nobody read my blog, I'd be discouraged though.ReplyDelete
Look at me, going on and on... must be the caffeine I just inhaled. LOL
Lynnette Labelle
We are so on the same page, Jody. All we can do is write words that we hope will touch people and let go of the result. Can't control who finds our blogs, whether they read them, whether they comment on them, etc. You're doing everything right, my friend. No worries.ReplyDelete
Thank God for "thumbs up!" I give my girls the sign whenever they rise to meet a goal, for our family it means to keep looking up.ReplyDelete
I appreciate everyone who follows my blog, and it never stops making me smile to see a new reader on the sidebar. To God be the glory!
The follower number is not the end goal, but it sure helps make the journey feel a lot less lonely. It feels good to know people connected with something - anything - enough to click the follow button. Like good coffee shops, we all have our regulars and our sometimes visitors, but it's up to us to make sure the coffee is ready when they come! Ha ha. (I have no idea where that came from) :-)ReplyDelete
Great thoughts, Jody. And thanks for answering my question. I've always wondered with all the platform talk how much it applies in practice. Especially in fiction, it sounds like a blog can't hurt but that the story is still king.ReplyDelete
As I'm figuring out what topics are most popular on my blog, it's been interesting to see the statistics on statcounter. The ones that interest me the most are the hits that came from Google because it shows what the person searched for. Hands down, the most Google traffic I've gotten has been related to searches about short pregnant woman's clothing. So apparently I need to turn my blog into "Petite Pregnant Women Unite". LOL
I love your posts this week.ReplyDelete
I actually think it DOES make a difference on the book deal part. Now that I have an agent, we've been talking marketing. She was thrilled that I "seem" to have a lot of people reading my blog. She asked me how many people had subscribed to it through feedburner. We talked about the QT blog and how many people read/follow/subscribe to it.
It's all about reaching people at the ground level -- something authors are expected to do these days. So while I totally agree that not every follower comes and reads every time I post (my site meter stats show that), at least it shows that I'm running a reputable blog with SOME readership. Comments show that too.
And as Maggie S (author of SHIVER) said, this can help get more money/a better deal when your book goes out on submission. Like the book is good enough to buy but maybe you'll get MORE than you would have if you didn't have quite the online presence through your blog. Does that make sense?
I agree with you as much as I can. Since I haven't gone out on submission yet, I don't know if my blog will have any effect. My blog did help land me an agent, however. She loved me on Twitter and visited my blog. When she loved that as well, she invited me to query her directly. I already had and received a form rejection. The combination of Twitter and my blog opened the door back up for me, and the rest, as they say, is history.ReplyDelete
As a writer, you can never take any writing/marketing things you do for granted. I get a smile on my face every time I have a new follower on my blog. I hope my words inspire and make people laugh.
- AnonymousJanuary 20, 2010 12:53 PM
Wordpress doesn't have a follow me button, so I don't know how many I have (or if I even have any).ReplyDelete
Having a few followers is nice, I like the answers to questions I ask or the advice given.
Good post! I'm not a blogging expert, but I agree with you. I would like to see more followers on my blog because I like to meet new people, follow and support their blogs if I can, and perhaps be a blessing to them. My current blogging gang is a wonderful, supportive bunch! It is such a blessing.ReplyDelete
Happy writing:)
these thoughts are great. I love blogging and I would probably do it even if no one read mine. However, it does encourage me to continue writing when someone says they enjoy what I do. The most impactful comments for me are the ones in which someone states that I've encouraged them or made them think. That's what I want to do with my writing. I look at blogging as a practice run. I am building a writing practice and I'm gaining backbone with every positive comment. I know, most people always comment positively, but there's nothing wrong with that! I don't expect a professional critique with my posts. And that positivity trickles into my books and gives me the courage to submit those queries!
I abide by your rules as well. If someone follows me I follow back and I always respond to commenters blogs. I use to respond to each reply but it soon became too much. I'm very humbled by the fact anyone would follow me or leave a comment. All is appreciated!ReplyDelete
I agree, Jody. They won't sell your book. I think it's great for instant gratification and motivation, though. On the days I moan that I'll never get published or that my writing is crap, all I have to do is click on my blog and see that someone does like my writing after all. Inspiring!ReplyDelete
Thanks for your input! I think what we both agree on is that the BOOK is the key for fiction writers. Without a saleable book, we got nothin'. Right? But if we do have a good book, then a successful blog *could* act as a bonus. It might not, but it sounds like in some cases it could.
When I got my agent last spring, my blog was still very small. And likewise, when I got my book contract, my blog was too small to make any difference. My book alone clinched the deal.
I think those writers who are gaining a web presence and developing successful blogs, might have an advantage in getting an agent or editor to take a second look at them. But ulitmately, it's the story that get the deal done.
This statementReplyDelete
"In some ways, I look at the follower gadget as one way people give me a "thumbs up." When they click to follow they're saying, "Hey, I like something about you, your blog or what you wrote."
hits the nail on the head. I never thought about it but it's so true.
I'm torn over this. Ultimately, I'd love for lots and lots of people to read what I've written.ReplyDelete
However, I do treasure the relationships, and that part is so much easier when there aren't a ton of people.
I enjoy blogging, and making dear bloggy friends, and thanks for this post.ReplyDelete
I do smile when I gain a new follower, and will celebrate when I reach 100 followers. But, as you say, it probably has no effect on getting my next book published.
Unless I had 10,000 followers and that really is not my goal.
I like blogging cuz it expands my circle of friends and acquaintances, worldwide.
I started blogging mostly for myself - to impose the discipline of (near) daily writing, and also to chronicle my journey of "becoming a writer." My only rule of blog posts is to write about subjects that matter to me and/or reflect a personal truth. I don't write a post just to boost my numbers (because yes, the more you post the more viewers you get), but I've found it's so rewarding to make connections with readers that it motivates me to write more.ReplyDelete
As a yet unpublished writer, anything that boosts self-esteem and fosters the love of writing is a boon. I don't have too many followers yet, but I love the ones I have! If my words inspire even one person, that's a success in my mind. That means the words were better put on the page than kept inside my head! :-)
I think it's the if a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it.ReplyDelete
Comments and followers make yu feel like someones listening.
Of course any number that others might have more or less of gives us a sense of success or failure. It's all relative, and we like to consider ourselves in relation to others.ReplyDelete
I have followers. I follow. Not much. I read a large number of blogs primarily through Google Reader. This does not require me to follow anyone. The blogs I follow are primarily because, like you, I chose to reciprocate when others decided to follow me. Actually, screwed things up in GR because then I had duplication with my blog subscriptions.
Rarely a week goes by that someone I've never met or heard from doesn't comment on a blog post of mine or said me an email. Just one. They are not followers but I'm glad they're reading as I suspect the writers of the many I read are.
I don't put much stock in the whole following thing.
I appreciate this post, as after almost two years of blogging, and hardly any followers, I've wondered about many of the points you pondered.ReplyDelete
In the end, I'm having some good success as a playwright, and my blog is where I visit, ponder things and wonder & wander around cyberworld.
But, I sure WOULD LOVE to have more followers and a lot more comments! They are important to me, like friends, I like logging on and being greeted by them.
Insightful post - thanks!
- AnonymousJanuary 20, 2010 4:24 PM
I am more delighted with faithful followers than just a number. When I changed from blogger to wordpress my number of followers dropped by half and that showed me how many were true blue to my blog. It is interesting. I am thankful for each one. :O)ReplyDelete
Good post! At this early stage, I just enjoy connecting with soulmate writers and hope that God uses something I say to help another at an earlier stage.ReplyDelete
I don't even know how to count the blog appearances other than visits to the website in general!!!!
Hi Jody -ReplyDelete
I look at Followers as another opportunity to connect with fellow bloggers. Their posts inspire me, bring me up short, teach me, and cheer me when I'm down. Hopefully, I do the same for them. :)
Interesting post.ReplyDelete
Yes, I've been curious when I get a slew of new followers and wonder what specially drew them to my blog.
I will say this: Your blog is in my "Favorites" blog folder, which I read through daily, if not weekly. (Translated: Your posts are useful, spot on regarding publishing and the art of writing. Write on, girl!)
I'm with you on the importance of "followers" on my blog.ReplyDelete
I enjoy many blogs that I don't follow or comment on. Also I'm sure it's the same for those who follow mine.
What's important, more than the numbers, is what I learn from other bloggers and some of the great friends I've made along my writing journey.
I love having followers but at times it feels a bit like a popularity contest.. more important to me though is having commenters. I like to hear what people thought of what I wrote, even if it's a few words, even if they don't agree. It's always amazing to me how many people read a blog and don't comment. Much the same way they read a magazine or book I suppose?ReplyDelete
Your blog is definitely one I always read, though I may not always comment. Sometimes everyone before me says all that I want to say. (I will say I have thought about just writing "ditto" as my reply!)ReplyDelete
I'm always shocked that there are people who sign up to follow my blog. Seriously, my blog is just a fluffy blog, not much to it but a little bit of everything. As I grow as a writer, I hope to have more to offer, but right now, I'm not fixated on followers. I just want to connect in some way.
FYI...I am unplugged this week, but had to check you out! :)
I would love more followers, because I think it makes my blog look like it has more traffic. However, like Richard, I also have site meter to measure visits. My parenting blog will generate a steady stream of people each week. My football blog will generate more hits in September than the other 11 months of the year combined. Steady is good.ReplyDelete
I, like you, am unable to read every blog from everyone I follow. I wish I had the time. I am following them because they give something to my life.ReplyDelete
I would like to have more people following me, don't we all. My desire is to give something to their lives, the same reason I read blogs.
Thanks for bringing this up.
Like you Jody, I long to make a positive difference in peoples' lives. The more who follow my blog, the more opportunity I have to do that. But...ReplyDelete
I try not to let the numbers mean too much to me. I want this to be a ministry, not an addiction.
Insightful post. It's grand fun to watch the follower numbers climb, but you have to realize that only a small number of those followers will actually become regular visitors. It's my policy to reciprocate to my most of my followers as well, but I try to keep my blog roll list culled to only those I will actually be able to read and respond to. If I'm not regularly reading a blog, I won't be following it.ReplyDelete
I love writing my blog. I feel so great, so satisfied when I post, then the followers, all those beautiful encouraging faces smile at me, and some of them stop by and leave a comment which gives me the spark to write more.ReplyDelete
I do not like this side of blogging. I always feel like it's a popularity contest. I mean, if I compare myself to you (just as an example), you have WAAAY more followers than me and people actually comment, like a lot, on your blog. And you've only been blogging a year? Wow. I have been blogging for a really long time and have yet to reach 50 followers. I've pledged to blog at least three times a week this year, and while I see people reading, I don't get many comments, so it's hard to know if it's worth it. I enjoy it, but I always get this feeling I'm doing it wrong.ReplyDelete
Or maybe I'm just really boring. :0)
great post. I completely agree!ReplyDelete
Every follower, every reader, represents a life, someone who could reflect the God of the Universe and spend eternity in His presence and glory. Eternity!ReplyDelete
Do blog followers and readers matter? You bet they do! I like to think of how they matter to the One who created them. I like to think of each blog post as a chance to impact a life, forever.
Because that's what it is.
My natural tendency, which I have to watch carefully, is to go through my blogging activities numb and blind. Not seeing, not feeling, the privilege handed to me each time someone visits my pages and ponders my words.
It's not about numbers. It's about the conversations. Are we having a conversation that matters, that helps and encourages and informs people even in a small way?
That's success.
Your posts are always so helpful and honest.ReplyDelete
I love the connections and the community of blogging.
It has changed me for the better.
And there are bloggers that are part of my day.
But I haven't added the following thing yet, I'm not so sure that I like all the little faces . It looks like facebook.
See... you made me be honest.
I do get a smile when I see that Follower number tick slowly upward, but I also realize that most of my "followers" don't really read that often and comment even less frequently. I've been wondering lately how much it even matters. Besides, you know, inflating my ego.ReplyDelete
I will have to take this into account if I am entertaining enough to have as many followers as you are!ReplyDelete
I am the same as you I write to inspire, and through the followers hope to get advice and inspiration :)
Love your blog! And I am excited to see all of your future posts!
As another Wordpress blogger I don't have access to a Follower button but there is a subscriber option. I have daily stats available so I can see basic numbers increasing. Will it mean anything in the long run? I don't know, but what I find valuable right now is the interaction with those who leave comments. From them I gain what I hope is mutual benefit, information and encouragement. For all the other silent followers, I can only hope my words are meaningful and relevant, but I'll never know.ReplyDelete
Hi, Jody. I like these posts this week. (I'm a little behind) I don't really look at the follower gadget very much except to check out who new has stopped by and is following. I like to say hello to those people to invite them to join in the conversation.ReplyDelete
I don't know that having a lot of followers is a bad thing. I'm not sure how good it is, either. I think you're doing well to have so many comments to your post.ReplyDelete
I tend to follow blogs that give good advice about blogging, book promo, and writing. If a blog is new to me, I'll read several posts before I decide to follow or not. I tend not to follow blogs when it's all or almost all book reviews or promo posts of the author's own books. I want to read interesting, helpful articles. An occasional promo post, however, is fine.
What do you think about the number of Twitter followers? Same as the number of blog followers?
- AnonymousApril 08, 2010 6:53 PM
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.ReplyDelete
Great post, and yes I totally agree. I like to see the numbers slowly rise. It says I'm doing something right and am connecting with readers. Wonderful.ReplyDelete
What's surprising is twice this month I lost a follower. I was devastated. Who would go to all the trouble of actually unfollowing? The effort alone stumped me. Had I done something? Said something?
I could drive myself crazy worrying about it. I know I'm doing the best blogging I can possibly do, so I'm sticking with it no matter what.
Great to meet you, Jody.
Just reading this now. Karen Lange referenced it. Good thoughts. Hope your books continue to do well. Looks/sounds like they are!ReplyDelete
Hi Jody .. I've seen you around and via Karen have eventually joined up! and came by to read this post .. it's just great to be part of a wonderful blogging community that's the main thing.ReplyDelete
Cheers Hilary
Hi Warren, Glad you found this post through Karen L.! I always appreciate you stopping by!ReplyDelete
And greetings to you too, Hilary! Glad you stopped by via Karen L. too!
Blessings to you both!


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The warm weather of the Memorial Day weekend gave me a great excuse to explore some more new terrain in the vicinity of my favorite local backcountry destination, Silver Lake. Most of my trips into the Silver Lake backcountry have begun at the Falls of Lana trailhead, and have involved climbing, then finishing with a downhill. The reasons for this are pretty obvious – on a longer run, it is easier to finish on a downhill than on a climb. I had been considering starting a run into the Silver Lake environs from the uphill side, a popular trailhead in Goshen, which of course would require a significant uphill climb at the end of the run. It seemed like a good day to give it a try! To get to this trailhead, take 125 up to Ripton, but take the Ripton-Goshen road ( a right turn) shortly after passing through town. Stay on this road, passing the Blueberry Hill Inn, until you get to the right turn onto Silver Lake Road. Take a right turn here, and stay on Silver Lake Road until you get to the end of the road, where there is a pretty good sized parking lot. I decided to make my first ever run along the Ridge Trail, which follows the ridge just to the west of Silver Lake, and return by the more commonly traveled Leicester Hollow Trail, effectively mirroring a run I did last year along the Chandler Ridge, the ridge just to the east of the lake.
Reaching this parking lot in the early evening hours on the Saturday of Memorial Day Weekend, I was fortunate to sneak my compact car into the last spot in the lot! I was greeted in the lot by the gentleman who was the host at the Silver Lake Campground a mile below, who was stationed at the trailhead to inform would be campers that the campground below was full. I smiled, and pointed to my small fanny pack, and I think he understood that I was not planning to spend the night on the shores of the lake, but who knows?
I began the run with a short downhill on the Goshen Trail, the shortest route to Silver Lake. within a few yards, I passed through the power line clearing – It is kind of funny that this wonderful semi-wilderness area is also a source of hydroelectric power, using the stored water in Silver Lake, and the power station below near the shores of Lake Dunmore.
Shortly after passing the power line, the Ridge Trail takes and obvious, well marked turn to the left, heading south along the ridge. Much of the first mile or two of this trail is slightly overgrown and muddy, a reflection of the relative rarity in which it is traveled. While it climbed some early on, and had a few small ups and downs along the way, it was generally a downhill trip in this section. I was hoping to find views comparable to those on its eastern twin, the Chandler Ridge Trail, but saw none – this was "just" a run through the woods. At about 3 and a half miles, I came across a complicated series of crossing paths, but staying on the well labeled trail, I managed to stay on course. A short, easy descent alongside a small stream brought me to a lovely quiet country lane, where I assumed (correctly) that a right turn would connect me with the Leicester Hollow trail for my return.
Taking the right turn, the country road quickly met a forest service gate, marking what is probably the official start to the Leicester Hollow Trail. The smooth running on this hardened trail, met a bridge coming in from the left (and based on previous experiences, where the crossover from Chandler Ridge joins) and stayed on the runner's right side of the rocky stream. The easy running soon ends, as the trail gets much rougher – NOT due to Irene (the usual blame for washed out trails these days) but due to flash flooding from the summer of 2008. After about a mile of rough going, in, out and around stream beds, the trail became easier going, with only a slight uphill tilt. The trail eventually entered a clearing, where the presence of old apple trees indicated human habitation at some point in the past. Examination of an 1871 Leicester map shows this site as the former home of one Mrs F. Glynn, who I know nothing else about!
At about a mile past this homesite, as my mind was wandering with the sense of timelessness that often accompanies a long trail run, seeing the sunset over Silver Lake, I realized that I should conclude this run soon if I did not want to have to complete it after dark. I could also smell the campfires from the happy campers in the full backcountry campground.
Mindful of the time, I stayed on the trail along the east shore of Silver Lake, going a little faster now, until I joined the dirt road trail connecting the Falls of Lana parking lot below with the Goshen parkking lot above, aned took the right turn for one last climb to my awaiting car. This measured in at about 9.5 miles, with about a 900 foot descent and climb.


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Not sure if this could help, but in Colorado, USA they use terms like "scraper" for a house that needs to be completely knocked down/scraped or "fix and flip" or even the more colorful "lipstick on a pig" (describing cosmetic updates that have been made to a scraper).
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Americans resoundingly reject ObamaCare. What, then, accounts for the Democrats' determination?
Democrats believe health care is a right. Start with that premise and everything else makes complete sense. Rights — whether the right to vote or to freely assemble or to avoid self-incrimination — exist independent of popular feeling, poll numbers or even, in the case of health care, the Constitution.
Democrats don't care how much ObamaCare costs. When President Barack Obama addressed Republicans, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., carefully outlined the costs of this "reform." He explained why costs figure to go up, not down. To someone truly interested in a cost-benefit analysis, these points warrant a rebuttal. But as MSNBC host Ed Schultz said, when it comes to health care reform and money, "I don't care how much it costs." An owner of an NFL team fired his coach despite the team's winning record. He explained, "I gave him an unlimited expense account — and he exceeded it." To Democrats, "economic justice" knows no price tag.
Democrats consider election losses a small price to pay for health care "reform." Predictions range from moderate fall election losses to a bloodbath resulting in a Republican takeover of the House and possibly even the Senate. To this Democrats say, "So what?" Once health care reform becomes law, that's that. Only a Republican charge with a filibuster-proof Republican supermajority in the Senate could undo it. Besides, President Bill Clinton got re-elected when the Republicans took over the House. And although he gives Republicans no credit, Clinton thereafter governed closer to the center, turned House Speaker Newt Gingrich into a convenient whipping boy, cruised to re-election and left office with a budget surplus. Obama, Democrats figure, could do a lot worse.
Democrats blame Americans' confusion about ObamaCare's virtues on Republican "lies." Democrats claim that ObamaCare would decrease costs while retaining the same or better health care quality. Republicans say the opposite. Massachusetts' RomneyCare, which is similar to ObamaCare, has failed to reduce costs. The three big entitlement programs — Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — are all in deep financial trouble. At inception, the programs' cost estimates were wildly underestimated. None of this provides cautionary lessons. Republicans lie.
Democrats believe that they truly care about people and that Republicans don't. Obama tells of an uninsured self-employed Ohio woman receiving cancer treatment at the Cleveland Clinic.
The woman, he says, faces the prospect of losing her home because of the hospital bills. Never mind the Cleveland Clinic offers millions of dollars of non-reimbursed care annually. Never mind that the world-renowned medical facility said it has no intention of going after her home. And never mind that the woman, according to the hospital, is likely eligible for several charitable programs.
Democrats say, "If you like things as they are, don't worry." Eighty-five percent of Americans have health insurance, and 89 percent of them are satisfied with it. This poses a problem for "reform." MSNBC's Chris Matthews once wrote that because HillaryCare failed to calm the satisfied, it collapsed. "People," said Matthews, "saw their hard-won benefits and options being siphoned off to fund the health needs of all comers. Instead of securing the health care of the 'working family,' Hillary Clinton was offering 'universal coverage' for those who didn't work, financed by those who did. It was an offer people were eager and quick to refuse."
Democrats say, "If you like your plan and your doctor, you can keep them." But won't some employers drop their employee plans, pay the fines and slough the costs onto the taxpayers? And won't some doctors, as polls suggest, restrict their practices or quit altogether? No, because, well, they just won't.
Democrats bask in an Obama-loving liberal traditional media. The media cheerlead for health care "reform" and desperately want to give the President a "victory" — while accepting preposterous claims at face value. ObamaCare promises to extend health insurance to 30 million people; promises financial assistance to those unable to afford insurance; requires all employers to offer health insurance or pay fines; requires every American to obtain insurance or pay a fine; and promises to attack "unwarranted" insurance premium increases while requiring insurers to enroll those with pre-existing illness without dropping anyone's coverage. And it would lawfully achieve all of this without increasing the deficit!
Democrats believe that if people are too dumb right now to see the benefits of ObamaCare, someday they will. If not, opponents will be powerless to do anything. Some people refuse to see what's best. That's why God created Democrats.
Democrats ultimately want a Canadian-style single-payer system. ObamaCare will result in cost overruns, caregivers driven out of business, declining quality, rationing, reduced innovation and bureaucrats determining who gets what, how and when. What then?
When the complaints grow loud enough, Democrats will be ready — with a plan to "reform" the "reform."


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Every movie needs a villain, and for one of the top grossing movies of the last week, the villain resides among us. At least that's how the movie seemed to portray it at times, but Art Howe, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman in the blockbuster baseball film Moneyball, tells a very different story of the events interpreted by Hollywood.
Howe, who played for the Astros from 1976-82, managed them from 1989-93 and now does the pre- and postgame shows for Fox Sports Houston, living in Houston all the while, was the manager of the Oakland Athletics club on which the movie was based. He was shown being consistently at odds with general manager Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) and consumed with his own personal financial future.
His recollection of the events is quite different, and Howe felt betrayed by the movie, based on a 2003 Michael Lewis book for which he says he was consulted only for about 10 minutes.
Here are his thoughts on his unceremonious big screen debut.
Q: What was it like to be portrayed on screen and how did you feel you were portrayed?
A: First of all, Philip Seymour Hoffman physically didn't resemble me in any way. He was a little on the heavy side. And just the way he portrayed me was very disappointing and probably 180 degrees from what I really am, so that was disappointing too.
Q: Was the contract an issue? I know that was a big thing in the movie and almost how they introduced you in the movie.
A: That was fictitious. They didn't do their homework as far as the movie was concerned because I was on a two-year contract through 2003. I had another year after that. My agent always took care of my contract; I never negotiated with Billy, especially not in the hallway of the clubhouse. Never happened.
Q: What was your working relationship like with Billy?
A: It was a job. It was a work of labor. He was a little difficult to work with. We got the job done. I had a great staff and our minor league system did a good job of preparing players for us. And our scouting department, before this so-called Moneyball, did a great job of bringing good young players into the system.
Q: Was he a clubhouse presence like he was portrayed in the movie?
A: More so than any general manager I've ever worked with. He'd lift weights during the game right across the hall and be in the clubhouse. Generally when we were home, he was in the clubhouse almost every night.
Q: Did you find that to be OK? Undermining?
A: He's my boss. I guess he has the right to be in the clubhouse. In the past, general managers really didn't come in the clubhouse that much. In fact, when I was a player, I rarely saw my general manager. But times have changed.
Q: What were your thoughts at the time of the way he and Paul DePodesta (aka Peter Brand, played by Jonah Hill in the movie) did their player evaluations?
A: It was different. It was certainly a different thing to a degree, but everybody in baseball knows that on-base percentage is important. He really zeroed in on that, and everybody bought into it that there was something really different that they were doing.
Q: How do you look back on your time in Oakland?
A: I think it was a great learning experience, and for me it was a good experience. We went from last place to first place. My last few years there, we played in the postseason, won 102 and 103 games, set an all-time record for winning streak with 20 straight wins. I'm real proud of what I helped achieve there; it certainly wasn't a one-man deal or a two-man deal. It was the whole organization. Great pitching with (Mark) Mulder, (Tim) Hudson and (Barry) Zito and a guy named (Cory) Lidle, who was our fourth starter and had a good year for us, and Billy Koch had (44) saves for us. Miguel Tejada was MVP at shortstop. Zito was the Cy Young Award winner that year, and Koch was the Fireman of the Year. That's where I was really disappointed with the movie also, is that none of these players got any credit.
Q: Carlos Pena played an interesting role, and it wasn't even a footnote what he went on to do. Did you see stardom when you first saw him, or at least his ability to get to an All-Star level like he's gotten to?
A: Right from the beginning. We knew he was an outstanding defensive first baseman. He's a rookie; there's going to be learning curves and he's going to have to take some lumps. As we've actually seen throughout his career, he's kind of a streak type hitter. He went through a funk with us and Billy decided he didn't want him with us anymore. It kind of opened the door for one of his experiments, I guess, with Scott Hatteberg. And Scottie's a great guy, a good teammate and a hard-nosed kid. He did a good job for us.
Q: Would you like to manage again?
A: Under the right circumstances, yes.
Q: Do you feel that this (movie and book) affects your name in baseball circles?
A: It certainly doesn't help it the way I was portrayed. I think the book hurt me and now the movie. I want people who don't know Art Howe – that's the problem with the movie – I've spent my whole career trying to build a good reputation and be a good baseball man and someone who people like to play for and all of the above. Then in two hours, people who don't know me – and Brad Pitt's a big name, people are going to see his movies – and all these people across the country are going to go in and get this perception of me that's totally unfair and untruthful. So I'm very upset.


text:
Former competitive cyclist Lance Armstrong announced
Wednesday morning that he will be stepping down as the chairman of the Lance
Armstrong Foundation, also known as LIVESTRONG. Armstrong, who founded the
charity in 1997 and has helped raise approximately $500
million for cancer research since then, will remain on the board of
directors. While the controversial step-down comes as the evidence of Armstrong's use of performance-enhancing drugs continues to build, it seems
that Armstrong has decided to relinquish his post on his own accord.
The news comes just weeks after the US Anti-Doping Agency released a 200-page report chronicling
more than a thousand pages of evidence which proved Armstrong's use of
sophisticated doping techniques while competing. Even after he was stripped
of his seven winning titles from the Tour de
France and banned from the sport of cycling, Armstrong's reputation continues
to suffer. Just minutes after the announcement of
his resignation, Nike
Inc. decided to end their endorsement deal worth millions with the cycling star. Although Nike has terminated their contract with Armstrong, they will continue to support his popular charity since the brand is Livestrong's most important corporate partner.
Shack, a well-known electronics retailer, also acknowledged the end
of their corporate partnership with Armstrong, who served as a sponsor since
2009. Radio Shack declined to specify the end date of the sponsorship deal, but
did express pride over their collaboration with Livestrong, which raised over
$16 million for cancer research.


text:
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