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On the flight home from Washington last week for the Fourth of July recess, Rep. Joe Heck (R-Nev.) read all 1,200 pages of immigration reform that had just passed the Senate.
It is a document that probably has no political future in the GOP-controlled House, but Heck may be a prime example of why House Republicans will be forced to grapple with immigration in the next few months, despite deep opposition within their caucus and their party.
Heck's district begins just south of the glitzy hotels and casinos on the Vegas Strip and stretches into the neighboring suburbs teeming with Latino and Asian immigrants, who work at the same hotels and casinos. Those immigrant employees comprise about a quarter of the district's voters and last year they mostly backed President Obama, in part because of his support for immigration reform that is embodied in the recently approved Senate bill.
But the conservative Republican voters who secured Heck's reelection last year oppose any legislation that would give a pass to immigrants living in the United States illegally, especially because of Nevada's persistently high unemployment rate.
This is an immigration crossroads, where demographics and ideology collide, and because of this, Heck may be one of the few Republicans with a responsibility to try to persuade his GOP colleagues to take action on the issue.
He said that those Republicans who oppose a House debate "have to understand that for those of us who represent districts that have a large foreign population, this is not a Mexican issue, this is not a Hispanic issue. This is an issue about a broken legal immigration system. They've got to understand that we've got to address this broken immigration system or, quite honestly, we maintain the status quo and we continue to see a growing illegal population."
House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) has said that on immigration, he will hold votes only on bills backed by a majority of House Republicans, which disqualifies the Senate measure Heck spent so much time with last week.
"Like any 1,198-page bill, there are some good things in there, there are some bad things in there," he said in an interview. "I hope that when those provisions are addressed in the House that we have the opportunity to tighten up the areas that need to be tightened."
Among the things in the Senate bill that Heck wants to change are making it a prerequisite that hundreds of miles of new border fencing be built and more agents be deployed to help eliminate illegal border crossings before any illegal immigrant is given a chance to start the process of becoming a U.S. citizen.
And he wants to toughen the education requirements for the children of illegal immigrants seeking citizenship.
Heck held a town hall meeting at a library auditorium here Tuesday night. About 80 people attended, and of the 15 questions he took, 10 were about immigration.
"Let's face it, we have a broken legal immigration system," he told the crowd at one point.
"No, we don't," one man shouted.
"Yes, we do," Heck shot back.
"You're just not enforcing the law," the man replied.
But Heck pressed on: "We do an awful lot of legal immigrant visa casework in my office. And we have folks that have been in the queue waiting for a visa to bring their spouse from the Philippines for 15 years."
"I think it's ridiculous," he added as others shouted at him. "As the grandson of Italian immigrants who came through Ellis Island . . ."
A woman cut him off, saying, "But they didn't come illegally."
"I understand that," Heck said. "And that's because they didn't have to wait 15 years back in Italy. It's not easy, but it's something we have to address."
Later, a younger woman in the back of the room put Heck on the spot: Would he vote for the Senate bill if it ever earned a vote in the House?
He wavered at first, then said, "If it was brought up in the House, there would be an opportunity to amend it."
But the woman pressed him again.
"As it's currently written, I would vote no," he said.
Knowing he couldn't please everyone, Heck remained hopeful.
"There are just some fundamental differences between certain individuals and party ideology," he told the crowd. "There will always be those divisions. But there's always the opportunity to come together, as we've seen in the House and in the Senate, to pass bills that everybody can get behind."
Heck is also facing considerable pressure from national Democrats who are pushing him to support immigration reform modeled on the Senate bill that most Republicans consider unacceptable.
Among Heck's constituents is Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.), whose home town of Searchlight sits in the southern part of the Republican's district. Reid held a rally Monday just off the Strip to celebrate the Senate measure's passage and to urge House Republicans to support it.
"We're a long ways from finished, we're only halfway done. But what a good halfway this is," Reid told hundreds who were packed into the local headquarters of the Culinary Workers Union. He urged the crowd to call GOP lawmakers such as Heck and "tell them that Speaker Boehner cannot stand in the way of what the American people want and are going to demand."
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is airing Spanish-language radio ads here that criticize Heck's recent vote for a plan that would force the Department of Homeland Security to resume deporting the children of illegal immigrants. Similar ads are airing in 22 other House districts, in California, Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, New York and Pennsylvania, that are represented by Republicans who narrowly won reelection or have many Latino voters.
"Voting on immigration reform by itself may not win or lose a specific congressional district," DCCC Chairman Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) said in an interview. "On the other hand, yet another failure by Republicans to find a compromise and solve a problem could win or lose the House. So this fits into a general narrative of whether Republicans like Joe Heck and others choose to pander to their right-wing base, or listen to the concerns of moderates and independents who expect some compromise."
Heck dismisses the push from Democrats.
"I'm not the speaker, I'm not the majority leader, I'm not a committee chairman. You can pressure me as much as you want, but I'm not the one that decides what gets a vote on the House floor," he said.
But some voters say that where Heck ends up on immigration will determine whether they support him for reelection in 2014.
Bob Yeary, a retired school teacher from Las Vegas, was one of the voters shouting at the lawmaker Tuesday night when he suggested that the immigration system is broken.
"He's in a tough position," Yeary said, adding later that Republicans will face severe electoral consequences if they support a significant immigration overhaul. "The GOP will be destroyed if we let 40 million, 50 million immigrants in at this time," he said.
Then there's Otto Merida, who leads the Las Vegas Latin Chamber of Commerce and is a registered Republican. He meets regularly with Heck, and often tells him "that immigration is something that will determine how we vote for you in the next election. This is very important to us," he said. "And if you don't do it, unfortunately I'll have to vote against you and campaign against you, even though I like you. This is the right thing to do and we need to do it right now."
Astrid Silva, 25, has emerged as a prominent spokeswoman for immigrant advocates in southern Nevada. She crossed the Rio Grande with her family from Mexico as a 4-year-old girl and eventually settled in Las Vegas. She has spoken with Heck about immigration reform five times in recent months.
"We know that Heck understands our issues. He's been evolving on it," Silva said.
But she's ready and willing to campaign against Heck if he doesn't vote the way she wants.
"We've waited decades for this and I do think that we have momentum right now," she said. "If Congress takes much longer on it, we won't lose the momentum, but we will get very impatient."


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Producer Robert Zemeckis verifies that the Roger Rabbit sequel still hasn't been plunged into a giant vat of dip. We're still not 100% behind Roger Rabbit 2 - but like it or not, here it comes.
MTV caught up with Zemeckis, only to find out that the original screenwriters Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman were still working on the Roger Rabbit sequel, which he coyly mentioned was coming along "great."
Thankfully, some brilliant soul in Hollywood talked Zemeckis out of using his usual creepy performance capture for all of the film's animated characters. Whoever you are, we thank you. But now that we know that Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) might not show up in this followup, what's the point? The man who hated toons was a great foil to the first movie's ridiculous rabbit. These two screenwriters are really going to have to dream up a wonderful protagonist, or this movie could easily fall into Cool World territory. And nobody wants that.

subset: commoncrawl


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[I don't know a better term than "non-fixed frequency instruments" but I mean things like string instruments, voice, trombone as opposed to things like a piano which has a fixed (typically 12-et) tuning]
If a string ensemble, or trombone ensemble or voice ensemble trains to avoid beats inherent in 12-et and instead perform with just intonation, how do they cope when then playing as part of an ensemble that includes fixed-frequency instruments?
Presumably if you're playing a passage in union with a fixed-frequency instrument, you're going to fall into 12-et to avoid beats with that instrument but then you'll get beats with other instruments playing different notes, something you've been trained to avoid.
So I'm interested in how trombonists, string players and vocalists (who have been trained to be sensitive to beats) cope with this "double standard".


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FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) – The federal government sued Ferguson on Wednesday, one day after the city council voted to revise an agreement aimed at improving the way police and courts treat poor people and minorities in the St. Louis suburb.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch said Ferguson's decision to reject the deal left the department no choice except to file a civil-rights lawsuit.
"The residents of Ferguson have waited nearly a year for the city to adopt an agreement that would protect their rights and keep them safe. … They have waited decades for justice. They should not be forced to wait any longer," Lynch told a Washington news conference.
The Justice Department complaint accuses Ferguson of routinely violating residents' rights and misusing law enforcement to generate revenue – a practice the government alleged was "ongoing and pervasive."
Ferguson leaders "had a real opportunity here to step forward, and they've chosen to step backward," Lynch said.
Ferguson spokesman Jeff Small declined to comment. Messages left with Mayor James Knowles III were not returned.
Ferguson has been under Justice Department scrutiny since 18-year-old Michael Brown, who was black and unarmed, was fatally shot by white officer Darren Wilson 18 months ago. A grand jury and the Justice Department declined to prosecute Wilson, who resigned in November 2014.
But a scathing Justice Department report was critical of police and a profit-driven municipal court system. Following months of negotiations, an agreement between the federal agency and Ferguson was announced in January.
A recent financial analysis determined the agreement would cost the struggling city nearly $4 million in the first year alone. The council voted 6-0 Tuesday to adopt the deal, but with seven amendments.
Hours before the lawsuit was announced, Ferguson leaders said they were willing to sit down with Justice Department negotiators to draw up a new agreement.
"We ask that if they (the Justice Department) feel there needs to be some additional changes to the agreement, we sit down and talk," Knowles said.
That seemed unlikely from the outset. Within hours of the Tuesday vote, Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, said in a statement that the department would take "the necessary legal actions" to ensure Ferguson's police and court practices comply with the Constitution and federal laws.
Knowles said the seven amendments were formulated after the analysis showed the deal was so expensive it could lead to dissolution of Ferguson. The analysis suggested that the first-year cost of the agreement would be $2.2 million to $3.7 million, with second- and third-year costs between $1.8 million and $3 million in each year.
Ferguson has an operating budget of $14.5 million and already faces a $2.8 million deficit. Voters will be asked to approve two tax hikes in April, but approval of both would still leave the city short.
A big part of the cost was the requirement that Ferguson raise police salaries to attract better candidates, including more minority officers. Removal of the pay-raise clause was among the seven amendments.
Another new provision states that the agreement will not apply to any other governmental entity that might take over duties currently provided by Ferguson. That means, for example, that St. Louis County would not be beholden to the agreement if it takes over policing in Ferguson.
St. Louis County police spokesman Brian Schellman said if the county were ever asked to take over policing in Ferguson, "we would consider the implications of the consent decree before entering into such an agreement."
Knowles doesn't believe neighboring municipal departments would agree to cover Ferguson under the Justice Department's requirements.
Defiance has often defined Ferguson in the 18 months since Brown's death.
Days after Brown's death, then-Police Chief Tom Jackson released surveillance video showing Brown's involvement in a theft at a small grocery store just moments before the shooting, with the burly teenager pushing the store owner. The video's release only heightened anger among protesters.
Knowles has vigorously defended Ferguson. Even as protesters and civil rights leaders called for reforms, the mayor noted that Ferguson was already making changes to municipal courts aimed at easing the burden on people accused of minor violations. In fact, city revenue from court fees and fines has declined by hundreds of thousands of dollars since the shooting.
It's not uncommon for local governments to seek changes to agreements even after negotiations, but the overwhelming majority of investigations still end up in a settlement.
Samuel Bagenstos, the former No. 2 official at the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, warned that the federal agency "is serious about bringing a lawsuit if they don't get a deal."
"If Ferguson insists on making significant changes to the deal they've already worked out, that's probably not going to work out well for them," said Bagenstos, now a law professor at the University of Michigan. "And I think at the end of the day, Ferguson understands that, and we'll probably see a deal pretty soon."
The Justice Department has initiated more than 20 civil rights investigations into law enforcement agencies in the last six years, including in Baltimore and Chicago. In the last 18 months, the department has reached settlements with police departments that included Cleveland and Albuquerque.
There have been occasional disagreements.
In 2012, the Justice Department sued Maricopa County, Arizona, after failing to reach agreement on allegations that the sheriff's office targeted Latinos with discriminatory stops and arrests. County officials voted in July to settle parts of that lawsuit.
The federal government also sued North Carolina's Alamance County following an investigation that alleged biased policing practices against Latinos there. But a federal judge last August ruled in the county's favor, saying the Justice Department failed to prove the sheriff ordered deputies to target Hispanic residents. That case is on appeal.


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It Can't Be Over - the Finale (aka "The Best Year Yet!")
Well, it's official - the MAcc 2012 class has graduated! The Graduate Programs Office held a lovely reception for our class on Friday evening. It was wonderful to have my family meet my friends and their families. We enjoyed catching up over hors d'oeuvres before the start of the official ceremony, which included thought-provoking and entertaining speeches by Dean Mangum, professors Anil Arya and Pat Turner, student Jeff Howard, alumnus Bobby Murphy (class of 2010), and Michael Petrecca, a partner with PwC. We all got our names called as we walked across the stage, which is something that of course cannot happen for everyone at the university's commencement. The finishing touch on the ceremony was a video montage of our MAcc year - so much fun! I loved having our entire class together one last time, but of course it was a bittersweet evening. I was not (and am admittedly still not) ready for our MAcc year to be over.
On Saturday, my family got to experience my exciting Ohio State life through lunch with MAcc friends and families, pictures with my undergraduate Cohort, a Cohort reception, a picnic with my roommates and families, and the candlelight ceremony on the Oval. The student speaker at the candlelight ceremony encouraged us to define our Ohio State years in 6 words, and though it would be hard to capture the essence of my time at Ohio State in such limited vocabulary, I will say this about my MAcc year: This was the best year yet!
On Sunday, commencement was held in Ohio Stadium. There was a record-setting number of graduates (around 10,640), and about 50,000 guests were there for the ceremony. Despite the stifling heat, the ceremony was fun and impressive. As the first listed graduate program in the commencement agenda ("accounting" comes first alphabetically, apparently), we all had good seats for the speakers and enjoyed sitting together as a class. We heard from President Gee, Archie Griffin, and Susan Rice, the U.S. Permanent Ambassador to the United Nations. Then we each got our picture taken on the field as we received our diplomas. It's amazing we can get our individual photos and our actual diplomas! What a logistical feat! There was a group of us MAccers who got our picture taken with university president Gee after the ceremony, and then many of us went back to Fisher to get post-graduation pictures together.
It is so sad that many of our classmates have already left Ohio, but I know we will keep in touch! This has been a phenomenal year with lifelong friendships and lessons. I can say with certainty that the faculty, staff, and students I have had the privilege of getting to know this year have impacted my life in so many positive ways, many I likely have yet to realize. I look forward to seeing where life takes us all but know there are wonderful things ahead for everyone! In the meantime, there are about 20 of us taking CPA classes together this summer, and I am so thankful for their company. We just can't get away yet, and I look forward to sticking around Ohio State and Fisher over the summer. In the fall, though, a new class of awesome MAccers will start their new adventures at Ohio State, and I am so excited for them! I hope that one year from now they will also be saying "This was the best year yet!"


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For Your Consideration: 12 Years A Slave's Historical Importance Doesn't Automatically Make It The Best Picture
It is no easy task to stand here, covered in targets, claiming that one of the most important African American films in recent cinema is not the deserved Best Picture for this year's Oscars. In the middle of Black History Month no less.
So let me start with an apologist's backpedal, behavior that is certainly familiar where the subject of slavery is concerned. Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave is absolutely one of the greatest films of the year, if not many years past, and while I don't know if can say I loved it, given the often unsettling narrative, I was completely riveted by the long and bruising path that Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) was dragged down. The journey from beginning to end was a hard one, but it came across as well-earned by the time the credits rolled. I felt like I had experienced Northup's trials and tribulations myself, stripped of my comparatively carefree life and sent into a world of tragedy and despair.
But no, that's ridiculous, because I didn't actually experience anything nearly as shattering as the malicious treatment Northup endured for his twelve-year servitude. In fact, with the two-month cushion sitting between now and my first viewing, I can barely recall the mental anguish I felt while watching it. And I'm not sure where this sense of diminishing emotion comes from.
Perhaps because McQueen didn't over-dramatize Northup's violent thrust away from his life as a free man, using a similarly simple tactic to unremarkably grant him back his freedom by the end of the film. These shifts weren't jarring enough for me to feel a connection to his life before or after. I completely respect McQueen sticking to the memoir's non-melodramatic nature, for it is this contemplative (rather than exploitative) approach to the material where 12 Years angles away from its parallels with slavery films and miniseries that we've seen in the past. But when the viewer is only given time to sit with its main character and think about the things that are happening to him, that's when it stops transcending the material and reminds us that this is a movie about slavery.
To qualify that as a sub-genre of film sounds callous and reductive, as one probably wouldn't limit their descriptions of other nominees The Wolf of Wall Street to "an addiction movie" and Gravity to "a space movie." But when all the unspecific adjectives like gripping, emotional and strengthening are taken away, the description is pretty much limited to the obvious. I blame my hatred of film loglines for this reliance on multi-threaded plotlines.
It's a refreshing change of pace to have such a gutting drama told without the stereotypical villain inevitably facing off against the lead in some showdown, and it allows for a more realistic string of biased assholes to come in and out of Northup's life with varying levels of intensity. But without a major conflict to grasp onto, my attention span was free from any feeling of anticipation. Calling this "one man's fight against a million men's plight" is certainly Best Picture-worthy, but we're never really taken to an edge in 12 Years a Slave. I suppose you could count seeing nude, scarred-up slaves bathing edgy, or the unflinching scenes of whip-fueled abuse. But that material, when taken out of context, is no more disturbing than something in the climax of an indie horror. The tolerance of the viewer factors in here, of course.
And no, I'm not comparing this movie to direct-to-video schlock, but that comparison points at how important context is when considering 12 Years as a Best Picture. This is a film whose importance needs at least a sliver of independence from the subject matter it is talking about, without letting the heavy hand of slavery overwhelm the details of its merits. Is this film really the sum of so many amazing parts that it outperforms everything else we've seen this year?
One cannot consider the best film of an entire year without thinking ahead, wondering if a particular choice will retain its glory and sit high atop the mountain of cinema through future generations. A Best Picture should be so memorable that its name should come up instantly when asked. Through hindsight, we've often seen the Academy pick the "wrong films" to award its top honors, even when there aren't any other clear frontrunners. If I'm feeling less interested in this pic after only two months, I can't imagine the dwindling fondness I'll feel for it twelve years down the road.
Many prestigious films come from unforgettable true stories, but there are even more that get lost in the critical mix and become mere footnotes. Should Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave indeed beat out the other nominees for Best Picture, it will not be a crime against movies, and I will applaud a little harder than I would for most of the other nominees. This film is no footnote, but a rewarding chapter of filmmaking, with strong performances and gorgeous cinematography laying out a troubling tale of historical ignorance. It is indeed one of the best films of 2013. Just not THE best.
Your Daily Blend of Entertainment News
Nick is a Cajun Country native, and is often asked why he doesn't sound like that's the case. His love for his wife and daughters is almost equaled by his love of gasp-for-breath laughter and gasp-for-breath horror. A lifetime spent in the vicinity of a television screen led to his current dream job, as well as his knowledge of too many TV themes and ad jingles.


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Good job unions. There go 18,000 jobs. And there go Zingers, and Wonder Bread.
Hostess is toastessPosted: November 16, 2012 by aliceaitch in Filthy Hippies, Fucking Markets, Funniest End of Civilization Evah, Liberal FAIL, Union Wins Again
Surprise motherfuckers! You thought you could continue to fuck that chicken and it'd keep shitting out untentable salaries and benefits, and now it's been fucked to death. So now instead of reduced wages and benefits, you get NOTHING. And the freude keeps getting more and more schaden every fucking day.


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Maryland mall workers well trained for shooting
- Those who can flee malls safely should keep hands up%2C expert says
- There%27s no negotiating with an %22active shooter%2C%22 law enforcement has learned
- Maryland mall is the latest in string of shootings involving stores
Stacy Hanson was buying his wife a Valentine at a Salt Lake City card shop seven years ago when a gunman entered the store. There was no back room, and customers hid where they could. Hanson tried to talk to the man and was shot three times, partially paralyzed from the waist down.
News of a shooting Saturday at a Columbia, Md., shopping mall brought back a flood of memories for Hanson -- one of four people injured at Trolley Square that day, when six died.
Two employees of the Zumiez store at The Mall in Columbia were killed and the man police identified as the shooter, Darion Marcus Aguilar, then killed himself.
Those with painful memories include Hanson, who was one of four injured in the Utah shooting spree that killed six others, including the gunman. A former advertising copywriter who was an avid outdoorsman, Hanson read about the Maryland shooting in his local newspaper but didn't need it to remind him of his personal horror.
"I think about it every time i get into my wheelchair," Hanson said Sunday.
Security training and other measures are ramping up at malls and stores, which are increasingly working closely with law enforcement to combat the threat of shootings and possible terrorist activity.
Since late last year, the Federal Bureau of Investigations and Department of Homeland Security have held training seminars with retail officials across the country. In November, managers from The Mall in Columbia attended one of those seminars at a local college, says Rich Mellor, the senior security adviser to the National Retail Federation. The association updated its 2011 guidelines for dealing with shooters last year.
"We've seen evidence of the lives saved by people doing training on this," Miller says.
The shooting Saturday was but the latest in what appears to be a growing number of mall shootings, though store security experts say shootings at schools and other places still far outnumber those in retail settings.
"The chances of some violent incident on a street, at a gas station or at a busy sport venue, are much greater," says Joseph LaRocca, founder of RetaiLPartners, a loss prevention consulting firm.
Still, retailers and law enforcement officials have stepped up security efforts.
When shooting broke out in Columbia on Saturday, store employees and customers appeared to follow the right protocol, experts said. When a gunman is in a mall, store employees are supposed to take customers into a back room, close the door or store gates and wait for police to tell them when it's safe to leave.
"It looks like it paid off. They did exactly what they were supposed to do," says Jim Sadler, senior general manager of the Westroads Mall in Omaha, scene of one of the largest retail shootings on record in 2007, when eight people were killed and four injured.
While little can be done to stop someone intent on killing in a confined area full of people, mall and shopping center owners have stepped up training on how to respond to violent incidents. Many conduct drills and practice evacuations.
The retail federation last year updated its 2011 guidelines on dealing with so-called "active shooters," who are distinguished from armed robbers just trying to get out with merchandise or money.
Hanson's approach is not recommended.
"Active shooters don't negotiate or converse," says Miller, who has headed loss prevention and security at retailers including Macy's and Helzberg Diamonds. "You are going to have to fight for your life."
The guidelines, written in cooperation with the Department of Homeland Security, now urge store workers to tell those who can safely flee to keep their hands up and remind them that police can't respond to those who are injured until they have dealt with the gunman, Miller says.
Customers inside stores are still urged to seek shelter in the back behind locked doors or gates, but Miller says the latest guidelines recommend that people "evacuate if it's safe and you know where the shooting is coming from." Often, however, the sound of gunfire can echo and its location can be difficult to determine.
Sadler's Omaha mall finished extensive training last year in how to respond to shootings, even though mall employees had responded properly in 2007.
"It's like in schools now," Sadler says. "You don't just drill for things like tornadoes, you drill for shootings, too."
Shopping areas have to balance their desire not to alarm shoppers with the need to protect them. Metal detectors could give people second thoughts about entering. The former Bannister Mall in Kansas City, Mo., tried putting towers with armed guards on the roof years ago, which understandably heightened concerns and was discontinued.
"If this type of thing keeps happening, I would envision much tighter security at malls, most likely with metal detectors and fewer entrances," says Dan Doyle, chief human resources officer and former loss prevention chief for the 500-store Beall's chain in the Sun Belt. "I want to make it clear, though, that I still believe it is safe to shop."
Parking lots have always gotten attention as potential areas of crime, especially around the holidays. Now, they're getting more scrutiny.
Retailers now "look at the common areas and the mall parking lots equally the same to make sure they are safe and secure," Sadler says. "But there is a definite balanced approach that you have to take" in protecting shoppers but not alarming them.
Anne Bagley, who hid in a store closet at Trolley Square that day seven years ago, has never been able to go back there. Although her grandchildren, 14 months old and 3 years old, didn't see what happened, the five family members were rushed out of the mall "straight past the shops where the dead bodies were." All the fire trucks prompted the youngest girl to ask, "Where's the fire?"
Recently, when her grandchildren were visiting from New York, Bagley says they drove by the mall. The older girl, now 10, said, "There's Trolley Square. That's where I almost got shot." Bagley says they reassured her, "You were safe. We were protecting you."
Hanson, who says he used to be more cynical, has been heartened by all the kind-hearted people who have since helped him and tries to forget about the "horrendous people in this world."
"What you have got to understand is that it is something that happens and it wasn't your fault," Hanson says he reminds himself. "I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."


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Zabar's Handsliced Double Smoked Nova Salmon
Item# 211001I
- Serving Size: 6-8 people per pound
Zabar's Handsliced Double Smoked Nova Salmon
Item# 211001I
Additional Information
If you like the lean, toothsome texture of Scotch-Cured Salmon, but you want a smokier flavor, Double-Smoked is your salmon. It's the smokiest one we've got! Each piece is hand-sliced by our Zabar's Appy Counter Experts. And as always, the smokehouse cures our Double-Smoked according to Saul and Ann's exact specifications, and no side gets sold without their approval. With that kind of attention, you know you are getting the best. You and your bagels deserve it. Choose 8-oz or 1-lb. Overnight shipping required.
- Package Size: Default
- Serving Size: 6-8 people per pound
Requires Overnight Shipping


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Every Friday morning, Max Schmidt rises early to prepare a big batch of scrambled eggs using two dozen eggs, cheese and locally processed pork sausage. There is fresh coffee cake or homemade rolls made by his wife, Georgia, and, of course, a fresh pot of coffee and orange juice. An extra 2 lb. of pork sausage is prepared to top it off.
It's a meal fit for a king. But for the 70-year-old Elma, IA, pork producer, it's his way of taking care of his family. Although the four young men crowded around the kitchen table aren't his immediate family, they are his pork-producing family and all are partners-owners in KMAX Farms LLC.
Energized by a hearty meal, plenty of discussion and laughter, Schmidt and the young team set off to ship two loads of market hogs to an area packer.
Solid Relationship
It's a good relationship that is built on mutual trust and respect, sharing duties and decision-making among the partners and Schmidt, says Duane Bodermann, a 20-year veteran and manager of pork production for the nursery-to-finishing operation. At age 43, he is the eldest of the employees-turned-partner group. He is in charge of the 6,000 nursery spaces scattered around a half-dozen sites.
Trent Thiele, 30, who joined the team in 2011, is manager of pork production for the 14,000 finishing spaces sited on a variety of locations near partner's homes, where land adjoins Schmidt's 3,600 acres of cropland. Siting was intentional to allow manure application locally, appeasing neighbors' concerns about manure odors and tankers visible on rural roads, Schmidt says. There are eight permitted sites, all within a five-mile radius of the home farm.
Brian Haeflinger, 30, who started in 2008, manages the farm's computer-automated feedmill, which is capable of producing up to 150 tons of feed daily. Normal operation is 70 tons of feed a day. The mill was built in 2009, when the local feedmill at Elma went out of business. Brian also helps load market hogs, power washes barns and performs other tasks as needed.
Jason Haeflinger, 30 (Brian's twin), who started in 2005, handles daily chores at many production sites and assists where needed. Jason is also in charge of economic control, checking feeders daily. "Feed wastage is one of our biggest problems. You can't afford to waste $300-a-ton feed," Schmidt says.
Operation Evolution
Schmidt says all of the hogs, hog barns and land they sit on, and the feedmill are owned by KMAX Farms LLC, with shares purchased by the partners.
The seeds for development of the LLC were planted about 15 years ago, when Schmidt and Bodermann set up their first agreement. "We built this 800-sow unit together on land that Duane owned. He owned the land and I owned the barn," Schmidt recalls. "It was based on a 10-year plan, which stipulated that in 10 years I was obligated to sell him the barn and he was obligated to buy it."
By 2004-2005, when the transaction was to move forward, the hog market tanked and creditors indicated the deal wouldn't cash-flow for Bodermann, Schmidt explains. So the pair "agreed to get along, because it was all we could do," Bodermann adds.
"It was a good summer to get out of sows, which were selling for $63/cwt. Baby pigs were virtually worthless and lots of pigs were available for sale. We were buying weaned pigs for $3 [each]," Bodermann says. The sow herd — 800 sows housed inside and 450 housed outside — were all shipped to market.
About that time, Schmidt was serving as environmental committee chairman for the National Pork Board. On a committee trip to Canada, he got a firsthand look at some sow facilities with impressive productivity; few litters were less than 12-13 piglets.
Realizing that he couldn't compete with the Canadians on sow productivity convinced him to stick to his farm's strengths, and focus on nursery and finishing pig production.
Schmidt and his team currently buy 1,000-1,200 pigs a week from two sources on contract, one near Faribault, MN, and the other near Rockford, IA. Three-week-old pigs weighing 13 lb. are raised in half a dozen nurseries for six weeks, and then spend the next 18 weeks in the eight finishing barns. Pigs are marketed at 280-290 lb.
Some packers prefer heavy weights, Schmidt says. It also helps spread the cost of the $40-$45 weaned pigs and high-priced feed over more pounds of pork. "When you can put an extra 20 lb. on that pig, you can buy fewer weaned pigs in a year's time and still come out with the same amount of revenue," he adds.
Roughly two-thirds of KMAX Farms' pigs are sold on the open market; the remaining one-third are sold on contract.
"It is one of the problems that I see in the industry: Very, very few producers are on the open market. They all want a contract and don't want to hassle with it. But I think it is necessary that somebody go out there and do the bidding to maintain the integrity of the hog market," Schmidt says.
Passing on an Operation
"We all think when we get to retirement age, we can pass the farm on," Schmidt observes. Speaking from experience, Schmidt says his father couldn't let go of the family farm, although he kept talking about it. "Farmers just have a tough time of letting go of the land," he explains.
So as aged, he decided to put together a succession plan. The problem was, neither of his twin sons, Leland or Roland (now 43), was interested in staying on the farm. Leland became a minister and Roland, a teacher. Both reside in Spirit Lake, IA.
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In the meantime, numerous employees have come and gone, and the only longtime employee remaining in the operation is Mary Starr, who is nearing retirement.
All four partners in KMAX Farms started as employees. Their rule is that employees must work at least one year before they can be considered to become a partner.
Senior partner Bodermann explains how the LLC actually works at KMAX Farms. "The LLC is a fixed number of shares, and the value of those shares can change. Max is obligated to sell shares to the partners-owners at the value of those shares down to 51% of the shares, which Max will always maintain, as is required by Farm Credit," Bodermann explains.
"It gives these people the chance to become owners without the huge capital expense of starting their own operation," Schmidt notes. Each partner is required to invest a minimum amount of capital. For most, that means borrowing money. But it ensures that everyone has "some skin in the game," he adds.
"It is a good opportunity for us as younger farmers to get started because we are buying into an already-running operation with no startup fees," Thiele adds. "Max has built up a lot of relationships with the hog buyers and the packing plants, and provides a lot of wisdom. He has made it through a lot of tough times."
"This obviously puts the onus on everybody to do their part, make this operation work, and gives everybody the opportunity to help their families out in the long run," Bodermann says.
The five-member team is able to spread out the risk of farming. And Schmidt says he is most proud of the fact that they get the job done without conflict. "We all get along and we recognize that that is important," he says.
LLC and Corn
The LLC agreement also obligates any partner who produces corn to sell the grain to KMAX Farms. "My corn goes to the LLC, and the LLC can buy it on a weekly basis to match the elevator price locally," Schmidt says. "The LLC can also take positions on the Chicago Board of Trade, just as I can take positions to shift my risk."
A year ago, the LLC got hammered by a very poor corn crop in northern Iowa, plus competition from four nearby ethanol plants that reduced the available supply and ramped up local corn prices.
"That's one of the synergies we have here as grain producers and livestock producers — we are taking money out of one pocket and putting it in the other," Schmidt relates.
"Last fall, I sat here with a brand-new combine and half a corn crop," he laments. "These guys asked, 'How are we going to buy corn?' and I said, 'We've got to bid more than somebody else.'"
But Schmidt and partners devised a better plan. "We offered to harvest people's corn for $22/acre, haul it to our mill for free, dry it free of charge and store it for free," Schmidt explains. The catch, of course, was that the corn had to be sold to KMAX Farms by June 30.
The strategy worked. The farm picked up 100,000 bushels of corn. "It was taking something we had that didn't cost us cash, in exchange for something of value that we didn't have," Schmidt says.
LLC and Manure
"Since the LLC is in the hog business, we regard the manure as extremely valuable. Not only does it have nutrients, it has micronutrients that you just can't get commercially," Bodermann remarks.
"The way it works, the LLC sells the manure to whoever in our group needs it, for 40% of the value of manure based on the nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium value," he adds.
"Last year, I paid the LLC $110,000 for manure and then had to haul it to my fields for application," Schmidt explains. He maintains and owns the manure-hauling and application equipment, which the other partners are free to use on their land. Bodermann, for instance, operates 150 acres near Elma, IA.
"We figure that it costs 50% of the value of the manure to get it on the land, which runs about $45/acre for all of the equipment, including the manure pump, tractor, manure spreader and the labor," Schmidt says.
The partners feel the most effective time to sample and analyze manure from finishing pits is when the pits are half empty. Research tests on soils at KMAX Farms fertilized only with hog manure have consistently contained adequate levels of nitrogen, he says.
Part of the goal in setting up the LLC was to see its partners become leaders in the community, just as Schmidt has been. He served as president of the Iowa Pork Producers Association in 1999, was a member of the National Pork Board during 2000-2003, when the checkoff program was transitioning, in addition to serving as chairman of its environmental committee. Currently, he is president of the Iowa Pork Foundation, which provides seed money for special projects and scholarships.
Bodermann is president of the Howard-Winneshiek School Board, the third-largest school district, geographically, in the state. Jason Haeflinger leads the after school program for the latchkey kids in Elma. Brian Haeflinger is a 4-H leader and president-elect of the Howard County Farm Bureau. Thiele heads up the roller skating program for kids in Elma in the winter, and wants to become more involved in pork producer organizations.
New Ventures
The LLC is also looking at new ventures. A couple of the partners have interest in feeding Holstein cattle. "This is the hotbed area for new cattle barns in Iowa, so we took a tour of different kinds of cattle-feeding operations," Schmidt says.
The partners agree a 500-head cattle barn would be the most efficient for the LLC to operate jointly.
Ensuring Succession
To ensure the future success of KMAX Farms, Schmidt took the unusual step at inception of the LLC to designate in his will that the LLC members will inherit $1 million worth of his shares when he passes on.
"My long-term goal in life was to create a viable enterprise that lived beyond me and that has somebody to carry on this operation," Schmidt says.
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* Nov 29, Guardian, "Chinese police question Ai Weiwei's wife – Lu Qing released after three hours of questioning, according to the artist and activist"
* Nov 29, Telegraph, "Chinese police question Ai Weiwei's wife – The wife of Ai Weiwei, the Chinese artist and dissident, was taken in for almost three hours of questioning by police in Beijing on Tuesday and warned her not to leave the city."
* Nov 26, Guardian, "Ai Weiwei: 'Every day I think, this will be the day I get taken in again…'The more he is harassed by his government, the more Ai Weiwei becomes a symbol of activism in China. But how much longer can he continue to speak out?"
* Nov 26, Taipei Times, "Ma defends Chinese artist Ai Weiwei"
"President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday called for China to respect human rights and defended Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei's (艾未未) right to freedom of expression as he attended an exhibition of Ai's work at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum."
* Nov 25, Seattle PI "Taiwan leader calls for artistic freedom in China"
"The distance between Taiwan and China will be determined by their views on human rights protection," Ma [Taiwan President] said. "When our views get closer, the two sides will move closer."
* Nov 23, Media Bistro, "Ai Weiwei's Assistant Investigated for Pornography, Internet Supporters Go Nude (or Nearly) in Show of Solidarity"
* Nov 22, MSNBC, "Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei answers reader questions"
Q: How did you react to the love shown by your supporters who raised money to help you with your legal issues with the government? Were you at all surprise, and how did those who oppose you respond to this kind of support?
Ai Weiwei: I was deeply impressed, firstly surprised by the reaction of the people who openly support me, who was accused by the state with tax fault. This never happened in a nation like china where the authority is the law. And people really can express their feeling against the accusations. With my unique condition, because I have been working with internet for the past few years, and created a space where the oldest power structure seems much less powerful. So people used the money as a voting ticket to express their feelings against authorities, which was trying to manipulate judicial system, and to punish someone who have different opinions, or even a simple expression which reflects certain kind of freedom. In less than 10 days with restriction that my name can not even be recognized on Chinese internet, we got support over 9 million yuan(about 1.4 million dollars), and that not only came as a surprise to me, but a surprise o the whole society and the authorities as well. That would become a symbolic event which really announced a kind of people's power from Internet.
Q: I didn't think you were allowed to talk to the press after being released from prison, what's changed?
Ai Weiwei: I'm not talking to press. I'm talking to people.
Q: Do you believe that you can beat the tax evasion charges?
Ai Weiwei: In current conditions I don't think we can change the outcome of tax evasion investigation because we don't have independent judicial system. We don't even have independent tax department. Chinese media, tax bureau, and the court, they are all under one party's control. There's no miracle about it. But at the same time, we already won the trial outside the trial. People openly discuss it and support me. It's already a victory. It will also be a reminder to the powers that they should never use justice as a means for revenge, otherwise that would really hurt themselves, and put the nation in a shadow when there's no trust in justice.
* Nov 22, MSNBC, "The story behind the chat with Ai Weiwei"
* Nov 22, WaPo, "Ai Weiwei rallies his followers in protests"
* Nov 21, 2011 Guardian, "Ai Weiwei supporters strip off as artist faces 'porn' investigation"
* Nov 21, Telegraph, "Ai Weiwei's followers' mass nudity protest" (uncensored nude photo)
* Nov 21, HuffPost, "Ai Weiwei Supporters Tweet Naked Photos"
"艾未粉果 Ai Wei Fans' Nudity – Listen Chinese Government: Nudity is NOT Pornography"
I like this one "@yanglicai: 同光同罪". In rough English translation, "if nudity is breaking the law, I am breaking the same law, sentence me the same way")


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Why is a woman's vote more valuable?
In Afghanistan.
The Answer:
The Answer:
when an Afghan translator who spoke Pashtun with a local accent called the candidate and said he had 200 registration cards to sell on behalf of his village, the candidate immediately offered him $15 each.Read more about the Afghanistan market for votes here.
He wanted to know how many of the cards were for female voters; those are more valuable because, out of respect for cultural sensitivities, women's registration cards do not bear photographs, so they are easy for anyone to use. In many places, families do not allow women to leave their homes, so the men of the family normally cast their votes for them.
Labels: markets in everything


text: The competitive spirit of the Olympics is spreading even to linguistic levels. Apparently some are perturbed by the growing trend to use 'medal' as a verb now, as in Danell Leyva medalled in the men's all-around, instead of saying that athletes 'win medals'. A silly debate for sure as not only is this a very productive phenomenon in the English language (see also 'friend' instead of 'add as friend', 'text' instead of 'send text message', etc.), but even the Oxford English Dictionary has accepted it as a verb for years. Read more about it The National.


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You are looking at a horse on the 85th day of gestation. It's an extraordinary photo taken by an extraordinary photographer—Tim Flach. The image is weirdly beautiful, almost magical. A peaceful beauty. We know it's a horse but it almost feels like a being from another planet.
This is one of the most incredible photos I've seen in 2013.


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One of the first steps for literacy development for young readers is to provide them with meaningful activities that provide successful and enjoyable reading experiences.
Utilizing George Washington and Cha – Cha the Chimpanzee Get Super Soaked FUN and FRIENDLY Book Reports you can facilitate the development of your young child's early reading accomplishments by extending their reading experience success.
All The Presidents' Pets Book Reports offer a variety of activities with many high-frequency words and illustrations that provide direct support for meaning, word solving, and language structure.
Through a series of learning activities focused on discovery, recognition, and application your children will learn to generate ideas and demonstrate comprehension.
Your children will also benefit from daily opportunities for practice in applying their reading, writing, and spelling knowledge and skills.
Through these experiences and their growing familiarity with texts such as simple recounts, stories, spelling and printing – they develop an understanding of the story, vocabulary and language structure; and of the communicative possibilities of images and sounds.
Applying BRIGHT KIDS supported and independent reading activities your children will learn to construct words and sentences and to combine words, images, and sounds to express personal thoughts and feelings and communicate ideas and information in a number of oral and written forms.
Parents and teachers can use their downloads with any PC or Mac, SmartBoard, Whiteboard, projection system allowing you the freedom to enrich your child's reading experience with the technology you are using at home or in the classroom.


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No.3 Silver/Black
From start to finish, each aspect of the No.3 has been designed with care in our studio by our founder- SoHm. We've drawn inspiration from the basic form with its rounded corner which is considered carefully with the back case. The double layer dial is also the special part with a very minimal index. From the front side, you will see no crown at all, it is hidden in a flat-sided body. The No.3 took us one full year to be presented with a lot of efforts.
Featuring 18mm leather strap in Full-grain leather, this watch houses a reliable Swiss Ronda 763 Quartz Movement with its own date function at 6 o'clock – alongside its 31x40mm case protected by sapphire glass lens. The No.3 is made of stainless steel, milled and then given a rich ion case coating for durability, while the only noticeable branding is embossed (and printing) as the number 12 on the dial.
This watch has 6 versions in 3 colors: black, white, burnt sienna dial mixing with black and burnt sienna cases.
Case diameter 31x40mm Stainless steel
Case thickness 7mm
Finishing Matte Black
Movement Swiss Ronda 763 quartz
Crown Stainless steel
Lens Sapphire glass
Back case Stainless steel
Strap 18mm Full-grain Leather
Battery life 4 years
Warranty 1 year


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Saturday, October 2 & Sunday, October 3, 2010
Noon – 3 p.m.
Regular Garden admission
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden
1800 Lakeside Avenue
Richmond VA 23228
Located in historic Richmond, Va., Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden offers year-round beauty with more than 40 acres of spectacular gardens and the mid-Atlantic's only classically styled Conservatory open to the public. Great shopping and dining plus a new Children's Garden with a Tree House make the Garden a fun place to visit anytime. Come see why Lewis Ginter is the place where plants-and people-grow!


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Dentist: Login
Click on "Shop Now" button and use the code SMILES to get 10% off any purchase
Welcome to mydentist, parsonage street, bury. From teething toddlers to denture wearers, our practice caters for all. Along with the full range of NHS dental services, you'll find a great selection of cosmetic treatments, including tooth whitening and dentures.
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Rio Tinto Metal Web Mam
June 8, 2021
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Extensive Powder Metallurgy industry news coverage, and the following exclusive deep-dive articles and reports:
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(HealthDay News) — More than a quarter of women about to undergo breast cancer surgery experience breast pain, with genetic polymorphisms in inflammatory cytokines correlating with pain, according to a study published in the May issue of The Journal of Pain.
Birha McCann, R.N., C.N.S., of the University of California in San Francisco, and associates recruited 398 women with breast cancer prior to surgery to determine the occurrence rate and characteristics of preoperative breast pain. The women completed self-report questionnaires and were genotyped. Variations in pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine genes were assessed for those who did and did not report pain.
The researchers found that 28.2 percent of women self-reported breast pain. These women were significantly younger (P < 0.001), were more likely to be nonwhite (P = 0.032), were less likely to be postmenopausal (P = 0.012), reported lower Karnofsky Performance Status scores (P = 0.008), and had undergone more biopsies (P = 0.006). Presurgical breast pain was significantly less likely for carriers of the minor allele for a single nucleotide polymorphism in interleukin (IL)1-receptor 1 and significantly more likely for carriers of the minor allele of a single nucleotide polymorphism in IL13.
Continue Reading
"Findings suggest that breast pain occurs in over a quarter of women who are about to undergo breast cancer surgery," the authors write. "Based on phenotypic and genotypic characteristics found, inflammatory mechanisms contribute to preoperative breast pain."


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TFANK'S SILK ROAD: The vibrant blue Barbara Tfank dress Michelle Obama wore on the campaign trial Monday was very of-the-moment colorwise, but the vintage fabric used to make it dates back decades. The rolled-neck dress was made from Bianchini-Férier silk twill in a mosaic tile motif. The print was created by artist-designer Raoul Dufy, who worked for the company from 1912 to about 1928. At that time, Dufy was known for the fabrics he made for Paul Poiret. Having collected Bianchini-Férier fabrics for 10 years, Tfank bought the Dufy-made mosaic one at an auction.
RELATED STORY: Political Fashion: Brightening Up for Daytime Television >>
"Talk about the holy grail. I have collected archival fabric for years and this particular one was done with roller printing by hand," she said. "When you look at the design compared to today's digital printing, the difference is between artwork and making a Xerox."
The First Lady wore the dress at Florida State University. A friend, who Tfank had shown the unusual fabric to, spotted the dress on C-SPAN and called the designer to tell her the news. Monday's sighting marked the fifth time Tfank has dressed the First Lady; a visit to Buckingham Palace last summer and the President's State of the Union address earlier this year were two of the other occasions. Tfank declined to comment on dressing Obama, nor would she offer retail prices for her collection. Polyvore listed 10 Barbara Tfank dresses retailing from $2,140 to $3,340.
As for how the First Lady's allegiance affects Tfank, she said, "I jokingly said to someone, 'People now know how to pronounce my name.' This definitely helps increase visibility and name recognition. It is a great honor and a pleasure to be of assistance to the First Lady. She kind of personifies everything that is great about women."


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Jesus loves everyone yet, so few ever think to truly love Him in return. Most refuse to believe that such a man existed as the Son of God and the Son of Man. The idea seems impossible so, they downsize Jesus into a form they can relate to and understand. Prophet, teacher, a myth, philosophical allegories are the boxes spiritually blind human beings use as a neat place to categorize and store Jesus. Once packaged and labeled, He is then stuffed in back of a dark closet of the mind. Jesus becomes another file to pull up from memory to be used as self justification or to impress another with personal intellectual prowess. In those who are bitter toward God because they don't approve of how He governs or are mad because He didn't acquiesce to their personal requests, Jesus becomes a weapon of ridicule to use against those who name, Jesus and are known as His followers. Jesus Christ is a favorite curse word for those who in their anger of not getting what-they-want-their-way, deny the existence of God even though, their whole angry state of being and every word they speak against God and His Son, defines them. Still, Jesus loves them and views them as equal with all of God's errant children. Many of the religiously pious also, miss out on recognizing the power of God's love expressed to the uttermost in Jesus, the Son of God and the Son of Man. Priding themselves upon adherence to traditions and doctrines, they trade in the power of God for a form of godliness and their pride inhibits the power of God's love from transforming their lives. Yet, Jesus loves them. Still others live out their lives by instinct, following the desires of their heart that can never fill what every heart hungers for, the filling of divine love. Jesus loves these children too. He gave His life for all of us in obedience to God, His Father and also, to all of God's errant children, as an expression of pure, sacrificial love. He poured out His blood for the purpose of covering all of our error to give us the opportunity to reconcile with our Father by adoption through Christ that we might become like Jesus, sons of men and sons of God. Though Jesus made this sacrifice centuries ago, it still remains open for an unknown length of time but not forever. This offer is available to everyone because God plays no favorites and above all things: God honors the ability He gave us, to choose. Whatever any of us decide to believe about Jesus, or the place we give Him in our life is our personal, sovereign choice and no matter the consequences, God will not take that power of self away.
Look around you, look behind the present virtual-iron-curtain of delusion, and examine the true state of the world in which you are living. The world offers many things but it doesn't offer love. It is a hard, cruel place that entices all with exciting, temporary pleasures that generally, come at the personal expense of self and others. The world created by human beings is vicious, a place where one will become either predator or prey, and the struggle to survive over-rides any happiness derived from material gain or personal power. Into such a world everyone of us in born and also in each of us, is a void that hungers for divine love. Instinctually, we know what we hunger for is the very ingredient missing that keeps the societies we build from becoming a paradise. This realization when we allow it and then couple it by looking within to see we are like the community we live in because it is of us and we too lack divine love and are possessed by a dark void. A hole, where love that goes beyond a warm feeling or a fragile, emotional bond is absent, a cavity in the soul that only divine love can completely fill. None of us can give the world what we don't have and the only, way we can receive the love we hunger for and the world so desperately needs is to allow Jesus to come into our lives and be made complete. This doesn't mean we will become instantaneously, perfect but when we are reconciled to a right relationship with God, when we are adopted into His family, a spiritual training process begins and though we remain human as the offspring of man, we also become the spiritual children of God. Choosing first to accept God's divine love by accepting Jesus as the person He describes Himself to be and personally, applying his sacrifice is the first step in learning how to love as Jesus loves. Learning to love Him back is the process of living for Christ rather than for self and then, choosing to love others with the same kind of divine love we receive from Jesus in hopes that others who are hungering for love will also, invite Jesus into their lives.
I see turmoil increasing in the world around me and the specter of it causes even this old believer to sometimes, feel threatened. It seems darkness is descending and many are actually, calling for that descent. Angry ears are deaf to love but the night enveloping the world is the void that exists in every fallen human being; a gaping black hole that only divine love can fill. Jesus is the embodiment of divine love. None of us have the power to change or fix the world but each of us retains the power of personal choice. Jesus is the answer and He satisfies our great lack, one hungry heart at a time. If you are troubled, consumed by the turmoil without and within please, take a second look at Jesus. Read the Bible and consider who He says Himself to be and use the power God gave you to be saved from the gaping need within that only, Christ can fill. In a world that seems bent on self-destruction, choose Jesus; receive true love and eternal life.


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As more and more of our data moves to Apple's iCloud and other server-based services, it's hard to believe that just a few years ago we relied solely on iTunes to keep our devices up-to-date with our content libraries. Even though iTunes' role in managing iOS devices has diminished, Apple hasn't completely abandoned syncing. Here's a guide to doing it right.
Do you need to use iTunes if you already use iCloud?
When you first sync your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad with iTunes, you must physically connect it to your computer via USB. (After you've synced for the first time, you can also enable Wi-Fi sync, which lets you connect to iTunes via Wi-Fi only.) Depending on what categories you select to sync, you can then load music, movies, apps, TV shows, ringtones, podcasts, books, and photos onto your device from your Mac. These might be ebooks you've bought on Amazon or music you've ripped yourself, in addition to any iTunes-purchased content.
In contrast, iCloud syncs only content you've purchased from iTunes and apps and app data from the App Store. iCloud lets you re-download, over the air, your purchased music, movies, apps, TV shows, ringtones, podcasts, and books from the iTunes or App Store. (If you subscribe to iCloud's $25 per year iTunes Match service, you'll also be able to sync up to 25,000 songs you own but that aren't on the iTunes Store.) All other content that you've purchased or ripped elsewhere won't be synced via iCloud, nor can Apple's cloud service sync with your iPhoto or Aperture library.
If you have no content on your computer that you want to keep on your iOS device, you may not need to use iTunes at all. The majority of folks, however, will likely want content from both iCloud and their computer, and in that case they'll need to use iTunes.
What iTunes can do for you
Here's how iTunes offers a real advantage:
It lets you keep full backups of your app data so that you can restore a device faster than you can via iCloud: If you plan to buy a new iOS device, you can restore your purchased apps and content via iCloud—but that process can be very slow. If you use your computer and iTunes, however, a full iOS device restore will take minutes, not hours.
You can make encrypted local backups of your device: Want to make sure no one can crack open your backups? iTunes offers an encrypted-backups option that protects your backups with a password. (iCloud also encrypts your backups, but you again have to access them from a server, rather than store them locally.)
You can easily rearrange your home screens and app layouts: Even in iOS 6 and Apple's upcoming iOS 7, rearranging apps on new home screens can be a pain. iTunes offers a clickable rendition of your device's home screen, where you can drag apps, create folders, and more, all with the click of a button.
You can add files to your apps: iTunes' app file sharing lets you drag and copy files from your computer to specific apps on your iOS device; you can then view them on your iPhone or iPad. While Dropbox's, Mail's, and iOS's respective 'Open In' commands make it relatively simple to add files to other apps on your iPhone or iPad, sometimes you might want to add a large file without sending it through Dropbox or Mail to add it to do so.
You can copy apps and their data: iCloud sync stores only your app's data (game high scores, text files, saved passwords, and such) on its servers, not the apps themselves. When you need to restore your device, iCloud turns to the App Store to get the app. But if, for some reason, an app of yours gets removed from the iTunes Store, iCloud won't be able to restore it.
If you sync your device with iTunes, however, all those apps and their data get copied to your computer for future restores, regardless of whether they're still on the store. Granted, this takes up more space on your computer's hard drive, but it ensures that an app you rely on won't mysteriously vanish if you restore or upgrade your device.
How to add personal media to iTunes
If you want to enjoy your non-iTunes-purchased music, videos, books, or photos on your device, you must first make sure to import that content into iTunes on your computer.
To add an external media file to iTunes, simply drag it to the application's Dock icon on your computer. Alternatively, with iTunes open, choose File > Add to Library and select the files.
When it comes to your photographs, iTunes sources images from either iPhoto, Aperture, a folder on your hard drive, or (for Windows users) Photoshop Elements 3 or later. To sync your images with your device, you'll either need them to be in one of these programs or you'll need to create a folder for them.
Not all media files play nice with iTunes: If you're having a problem adding your content, check out our tips for troubleshooting music, video, ringtones, and ebook uploads.
Get ready to sync
Syncing your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad with your computer is really quite easy. Gather your device and its USB charging cable, and make sure you have installed the latest version of iTunes on your Mac. Plug in your device, and iTunes should launch, displaying your device's summary screen.
If iTunes doesn't immediately display your device, click the Devices button in the upper right corner of the iTunes window. (If you're syncing more than one iOS device with the same computer, you'll instead see a button called X Devices, where X is the number of devices you have.) Alternatively, select your device from the iTunes sidebar. If the sidebar isn't visible, choose View > Show Sidebar.
To find options for what you can sync and how you sync it, click the tabs at the top of the iTunes window.
See an overview with the Summary Screen
The summary screen offers a brief overview of your device, displaying its name, capacity, phone number (if applicable), serial number, and iOS version number. (Click the Summary tab if it isn't displayed already.)
Here you can control how you back up your device. By default, iTunes asks you to choose one option (iCloud or your computer) for backing up. Still, if you choose to back up automatically via iCloud, you can always make an additional manual back up to iTunes by clicking the Back Up Now button you see here.
Other options include syncing only checked songs and videos, syncing SD video over HD video, converting high-bit-rate music to lower-quality (and smaller) files for your device, and specifying accessibility settings.
Additionally, if you'd like to use Wi-Fi Sync to connect your device wirelessly to iTunes in the future, click the 'Sync with this [device type] over Wi-Fi' checkbox.
Not much info to be had
The Info tab, at one point, was the main way to sync your contacts, calendars, and mail between your computer and your device. Now that most people have Google and iCloud accounts, however, this information usually syncs seamlessly over the air. If you're using a service that won't wirelessly sync with your device for whatever reason, you can manually sync it here, but most users should be able to ignore this pane entirely.
Wrangle your apps
Click the Apps tab to see syncing options for all your apps. By default, any you've downloaded directly to your device are copied to iTunes when you sync (or if you've turned on Automatic Downloads in iTunes > Preferences > Store). On this page, iTunes lets you pick and choose the apps you'd like to sync, as well as rearrange your home screens.
Make apps appear and disappear: A comprehensive list of all the apps you own shows up in a column on the left side of the pane; this includes iPhone-only apps, as well as iPad-only and Universal apps. You can sort these apps by name, kind, category, date, and size by using the pop-up menu above the list. To load an app onto your device, click the Install button to the right of the program's icon; to remove the app, click the Remove button.
Below the list, you'll see a checkbox that allows you to automatically sync any new apps you've purchased on your computer in the iTunes Store. (If you have Automatic Downloads enabled on your device, this checkbox is irrelevant, as any new purchases you make on your laptop or desktop will automatically download directly to your iPhone.)
Organize your home screens: On the right side of the Apps window is a preview of your device's home screens. You'll see a large, editable screen, as well as numbered thumbnails representing your other screens. Click a thumbnail to reveal it in the editing window. Here, you can click and drag an app's icon to change its location. Or, if you see an app you'd like to remove, mouse over it and click the X that appears in the top left corner of the app icon.
Create folders: Still overwhelmed by your apps? Create folders to organize them. Drag one app onto another app; after a slight delay a folder appears with the two apps inside of it. The folder name is editable and you can rearrange icons within the folder.
Add files to some apps: Scroll down further on the Apps tab to access the File Sharing section. Some Apple and third-party apps allow you to add files from your computer via iTunes. (If you have no apps that support file sharing, this section won't appear.) Click an app in the Apps list to see any files associated with it. To add a file, just drag it from your desktop or click the Add button.
Sync your music
Click the Music tab to see your options for tunes. To add nonpurchased music to your device, click the Sync Music checkbox. iTunes lets you choose between two options: copying your entire music library or copying selected playlists, artists, albums, and genres. You also have the option to include or exclude music videos and voice memos.
Check for space: If you're wary of sticking your whole music library on your device, you can preemptively see how much space it will take by looking at the capacity bar at the bottom of the iTunes window. When you select the Entire music library option, iTunes estimates how much space the files will take up and adjusts the bar accordingly. You can also see how many songs you'll be loading in the upper right corner of the pane.
Fill extra space with surprises: If you decide to pick and choose, iTunes loads a complete list of your music for your perusal. Under the 'Include music videos' and "Include voice memos' options, choose whether you'd like to fill any remaining free space with randomly selected music. Mix and match artists, playlists, albums, and genres by selecting the appropriate checkboxes.
For iTunes Match customers only: If you use iCloud's $25 per year iTunes Match service, you won't be able to sync your computer's music. That's because iTunes Match takes over the Music app when enabled, allowing you to stream music from your digital library rather than storing it locally on your iPhone, iPod, or iPad. iTunes will let you sync any voice memos you've made, but nothing beyond that. If you want to sync and store music on your device, just go to Settings > Music on the device and disable iTunes Match. When you next plug in your device, you should have access to all music sync options.
Sync (ring)tones
The Tones tab lets you sync ringtones you've created or purchased from the iTunes Store. (If you don't have any, this pane won't show up.) If you want to sync all your ringtones, select All Tones; otherwise, click Selected Tones.
Sync your movies
When you click the Movies tab, you see a list of all the movies you have loaded into iTunes, represented by name and a movie poster or selected screenshot. This might include the latest movie you downloaded from iTunes to watch on the plane, as well as projects of yours that you're carrying around just in case you catch a movie producer in an elevator.
Click the Sync Movies checkbox, and you can automatically include all videos, selected videos, playlists, most recently uploaded videos, or unwatched videos. If you've rented movies from the iTunes Store on your computer, they appear at the very top of the screen. Transfer a movie to your iPhone or iPad by highlighting it, and then clicking the Move arrow. If you decide you don't want to load the film on your device, click the arrow a second time.
Sync TV shows
As with the Movies tab, you see a list of your television shows, grouped by series, in the TV Shows tab.
Click a show and, in the right column, you see a list of its episodes, organized by season. When syncing manually, you can choose only individual episodes or seasons of selected shows. You can also copy over playlists that include TV episodes. If you choose to sync automatically, however, you can copy over an entire series (or your entire television library). You can also filter within that series to sync only unwatched or newly added episodes.
If you've rented TV shows on your computer from the iTunes Store, they appear at the very top of the TV Shows tab. Transfer one to your iPhone or iPad by clicking the Move arrow. You can remove it from your device by clicking the arrow a second time.
Sync your podcasts
The Podcasts pane presents you with a list of all your subscribed podcasts, grouped by series. (If you haven't subscribed to any, this pane won't show up for you.) That said, this is one case when iTunes syncing may not be necessary. If you already have the Podcasts app on your iPhone or iPad, that will probably suffice.
Clicking a podcast displays a list of the show's episodes, organized by date in ascending order. You can choose to sync your podcasts manually or use iTunes' automatic options, which offer syncing for the most recently uploaded or unplayed episodes for selected shows or all shows.
Sync books, PDFs, and audiobooks
The Books pane divides books and Audiobooks into two sections. Choose to sync All books or Selected books. You can peruse a list of your ePubs and PDFs if you want to pick and choose. The Sync Audiobooks pane is organized much the same way.
Sync photos and personal video
Unlike your other content, your photos and personal video files are only linked to iTunes, rather than stored there. (Your original files remain in Apple's iPhoto, Aperture, or the image folder you're syncing with.)
To sync photos, go to the Photos pane and choose the application or folder iTunes should link from. For example, if you keep all your images in iPhoto, enable the Sync Photos from option and choose iPhoto in the pop-up menu.
You can sync images according to how they are organized in that application. For example, if you use iPhoto, you'll see images organized by date. Otherwise you can select only your Pictures folder or a custom folder of your choice.
Unfortunately, you can't sync your iPhone or iPad with more than one program or with multiple folders. You have to choose one. As with all the other media panes, you can sync your entire photo library to your device or choose selected albums, projects, and (in iPhoto's or Aperture's case) Events, Faces, or images with certain star ratings.
[Executive Editor Jon Seff and Senior Editor Dan Moren contributed to this article.]


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1300.1 - New South Wales Year Book, 1999
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 03/03/1999
|Page tools: Print Page Print All
ABS releases New South Wales Year Book 1999
The Australian Bureau of Statistics today released the 79th edition of the New South Wales Year Book, containing a comprehensive and detailed statistical review of all aspects of the State's government, environment, economy and social conditions. A full range of data collected by the ABS is supplemented with information from over 50 NSW Government departments and authorities.
Additional features include an historical timeline with details of major events in NSW since 1788 and selected historical statistics back to 1901. An entirely new section on People and the Environment has been added this year and there is a special article which looks at significant trends in the labour market over recent years, such as the growth in part-time casual and temporary employment.
The 1999 New South Wales Year Book is an easy-to-use reference tool with more than 350 pages of information in the form of text, tables, graphs and colour maps. Over the years, it has proven to be an excellent resource for business, school and home as well as a useful source of stories for media. The chapters cover topics such as government; geography and climate; births, deaths, marriages and divorces; social and welfare; health; law and order; transport and communication; industry, and more.
Some facts in brief from the New South Wales Year Book
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12.03.2013 - Bike Magazine Tweeting About Lezyne
Bike Magazine gave a little love to Lezyne's shop-quality CNC Rod and BB/Cassette tools in a tweet the other day.
"Lezyne bills the CNC rod as 'shop-quality' and it is a thing of beauty." Get a look at the full article here and remember to follow Bike Magazine and Lezyne on Twitter for more updates and articles.


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Precision of frameless stereotactic probe positioning (VarioGuide) into the brainstem
Search Medline for
|May 20, 2009
Objective: The quality of performing biopsies or placing probes into deep seated brain structures significantly depends on the precision of the technical procedure. Frameless stereotaxy, guided by neuronavigation, has its advantage in preoperative imaging; however, accuracy of this technique has been discussed. The study evaluates the precision of positioning brainstem probes using a navigated frameless stereotactic system in an experimental setting.
Methods: Using the frameless stereotactic system (VarioGuide, BrainLab) probes (n=33) were placed into a specially designed model filled with agarose. In a second experimental series, anatomical specimens (n=8) were used to position a total of 32 catheters into the pontine brainstem using ether a suboccipital or a pre-coronal entry point. Before intervention a thin sliced CT (GE, Lightspeed) for planning was performed in both settings and fused to a volumetric T1 MR data set (MP rage, GE Signa Twin Speed 1.5 Tesla). Using frameless stereotaxy, flexible catheters (PVC, 3Ch) were placed through an outer guide cannula. After this procedure a further CT as well as MR imaging were performed to compare the course and the position of the catheters to pre-interventional planning. The deviation between the planned position and the actual location of the catheter's tip was measured to evaluate the precision of the navigated intervention.
Results: Using the VarioGuide system a mean target deviation of 2.8±1.2mm in CT and 3.1±1.2mm in MRI was detected with a mean catheter length of 151mm in the agarose model. Catheter placement in the anatomical specimen revealed a mean tip deviation of 2.2±1.2mm in CT and 2.1±1.1mm in MRI imaging for the sub-occipital approach and a mean catheter length of 59.5mm. For the pre-coronal approach a deviation of 1.95±0.6mm in CT and 1.8±0.7mm in MRI was measured (catheter length 85.9mm).
Conclusions: The system-based deviation of frameless stereotaxy using the VarioGuide reveals good values for probe placement in deep seated brain tissue locations. Therefore we assume its accurate applicability for biopsies and probe placement in patients.


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Director of First Impressions
This is one of the most important, lowest paid and most frequently overlooked job descriptions in most organizations.
I refer to all customer-facing, non-sales employees, who have an opportunity to talk to your customers, as directors of first impressions. I'm sure this has happened to you more than once:
- You called an organization with a sincere interest to explore doing business with them, but the person who answered the phone was rude, oft-putting and/or, in some cases, downright insulting.
- The first impression you received from this individual dissuaded you from doing business with that company.
Most of us have no idea how our directors of first impressions sound and/or behave.
There are many reasons for this.
First and most importantly is we rarely, if ever, inspect the quality of work done by our directors of first impressions.
- When was the last time you monitored phone calls?
- When was the last time you coached your people to articulate your company's value propositions?
Most of the CEOs and business owners that I work with admit that they rarely, if ever, have even considered doing any of these easy tasks.
Unfortunately, the failure to do these tasks allows your director of first impressions to make a random impression on your marketplace, by which I simply mean that they are not in alignment with your website, your marketing material, brochures, et cetera. In some cases, they don't even sound like they work for the same company that attracted a prospect or a customer!
Here's what you can do about this.
First, record their phone conversations. If your phone system does not facilitate recording calls, utilize a digital recorder and just record your employee. By monitoring what they say, you'll learn a lot about the impressions that are being made on your marketplace.
Secondly, and this is the most important thing you can do, is write out scripts. That's right; a written script should be presented to each director of first impressions. This script should be fifteen seconds, maybe twenty seconds, in length.
But, they must reemphasize your company's core value proposition.
Without a script, your people will fall back on what they believe is in the best interest of your company. On many occasions, I've observed that what the director of first impressions believes is the most important thing to say and/or way to behave is not in compliance with management's wishes.
Make sure you don't fall victim to the problem of making bad first impressions by assuming that your people are doing the work the way you want them to.
One last tip: Have a friend of yours that also owns a business call your company and ask for assistance and/or service.
Have him/her tell you how the call went. This will let you know whether or not your first impressions are positive ones or negative. As always, inspect that which you expect.


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A flop gone wrong: 'Producers' is lighthearted fun
Joey Cruse first saw the Mel Brooks musical "The Producers" when he was in high school, and almost immediately set his sights on someday playing Leo Bloom.
Cruse will get his chance Friday when the show premieres at the Muni.
"Ever since I watched 'The Producers' for the first time, I've always wanted to be Leo Bloom," said Cruse, now 20 and a senior at the University of Illinois at Springfield.
"He's been one of the parts I've always wanted to try. So when (co-directors) Doug (Hahn) and Gary (Shull) picked this show, I was like, 'I'm going to have to audition for it.' I really wanted the part, and it was just so great when Doug gave me the call."
While Cruse is making his Muni debut as Bloom, he will co-star with Springfield theater veteran Gus Gordon, who plays Max Bialystock.
Max and Leo scheme to raise $2 million to produce "Springtime for Hitler" on Broadway, hoping the show fails miserably so the duo can cook the books and keep the leftover money.
But Max and Leo's plans go awry when the crowd misinterprets the show's bad acting for satire and finds the performance hilarious.
Cruse said he and Gordon complement each other well, which mimics the relationship between Max and Leo.
"(Leo has) got his problems, his complications, his obsessions — like he needs his blanket all the time," Cruse said. "He's very prone to panicking. If anything goes wrong, then he's going to freak out about it and just snap and break down.
"That's where Max comes in … because Max can talk his way out of everything. That's why they make such a good team."
Co-director and choreographer Gary Shull said Cruse and Gordon combine to make the perfect male leads for the show.
"In watching them work together, I think it's very helpful for Joey," Shull said. "I'm not saying that (Gordon) is guiding him at all, but I just think that having somebody to play off of that's that experienced has got to be excellent for him.
"They pretty much carry this whole show, because they're on nearly all the time."
"The Producers," a comedy set in 1959 New York, is making its first appearance on the Muni stage. The show first appeared as a movie in 1968 before hitting the Broadway stage in 2001; a touring production stopped at Sangamon Auditorium in 2007. (The Broadway version was made into a movie in 2005.)
"The Producers" exhibits Brooks' humor at its finest, co-director Doug Hahn said. He also co-directed "Chicago" and "A Chorus Line" with Shull at the Muni.
"We haven't made it through rehearsals without laughing, and we've watched it six weeks now," Hahn said.
But Shull and Hahn said the humor isn't for everyone. Shull warned that the production is geared for audiences of high school age and older.
"It's just such a happy, silly, fun (show)," Shull said. "I don't want to say slapstick, but it's just there in front of you, and we're trying to go with it.
"It's not a kid's show. It's an adult-themed show."
Sean VanAusdall-Rose of Jacksonville plays Roger De Bris, a terrible New York director who is hired by Max and Leo in the hope that he will help "Springtime for Hitler" flop.
VanAusdall-Rose said the humorous nature of the show makes it very enjoyable to be in the cast.
"I've done a lot of shows in the past, (but) I don't think I've ever had as much fun with a show as I've had with this one. … It's a constant laugh riot," VanAusdall-Rose said.
"This is probably the most outlandish show I've ever done."
Elizabeth Smith has the lead female role. She plays Ulla, Max and Leo's beautiful secretary who eventually becomes Leo's romantic interest.
"Liz is amazing. She sings, she dances, she acts, she does it all," Cruse said. "She's going to be famous one day."
In addition to providing the audience with plenty of laughs, Shull expects the show to be big — as in big sets, big musical numbers and big, extravagant costumes. Shull said he and Hahn are working to make sure these elements don't slow down the show.
"We're trying to make this a very fast-paced show," Shull said. "It's going to be an army working the sets so there's no big delay between scenes.
"And we're using the side stages a lot. If a set has to be changed on stage, we're using side stages for the next part of the show so that when the next scene comes up there's not a big delay or music interlude for the set change to happen. It's already happened."
As for the long songs — some of which have 20 pages of music — Shull said they serve their purpose.
"The songs tend to be very long but it's good because it develops the story," Shull said. "It's not like they're just thrown in, even though they're nonsensical sometimes — most of the time — because it's Mel Brooks humor."
Brooks' humor should leave audience members with smiles on their faces, Hahn said.
"They'll just go away having laughed their (behinds) off and (having seen) a first-rate show," Hahn said. "Times are kind of hard right now. For two hours and 15 minutes … they're going to forget everything. They're going to be laughing."
Blake Toppmeyer can be reached at (217) 788-1546.


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Nets put an end to Thunder's home streak
Oklahoma City, OK – Joe Johnson, Brook Lopez and the Brooklyn Nets got out to a fast start and held off a late Thunder run to snap Oklahoma City's lengthy home winning streak in a 110-93 decision on Wednesday.
Johnson made five of Brooklyn's nine 3-pointers and netted a season-high 33 points, while Lopez added 25 points in putting an end to the Nets' seven-game skid against the Thunder.
Deron Williams totaled 19 points, 13 assists and five steals for the Nets, who improved to 3-1 under interim head coach P.J. Carlesimo.
"We showed ourselves what we're capable of doing," Carlesimo said. "This game was an excellent performance."
Oklahoma City, which had won 12 straight at Chesapeake Energy Arena, pulled even after trailing by as many as 23 in the first half, but got outscored 25-8 over the final seven minutes.
Kevin Durant led the way with 27 points, but was ejected for the first time in his career after getting hit with two technical fouls during the Nets' final push. Russell Westbrook chipped in 26 points and 10 assists, but committed six of the club's 20 turnovers.
The Thunder trailed, 61-45, at the break, but erased most of the deficit by scoring on six straight possessions late in the third quarter, as a Westbrook pull-up jumper made it a 71-68 game.
The margin was 76-72 in favor of the visitors heading to the fourth, and 3- pointers by Durant and Kevin Martin on consecutive touches tied things at 85-85 with 7:11 remaining.
A Johnson runner followed by Durant's missed 3-pointer preceded a string of six straight Nets free throws, and it was again a double-digit affair, 99-88, after a Lopez jumper with 3:04 to play.
A little over a minute later, Kendrick Perkins was whistled for an offensive foul, and a frustrated Durant uncharacteristically lost his cool when voicing his displeasure to the referee.
"I thought it was a bad call," explained Durant. "You get frustrated throughout a game, you show emotion. That's how you can tell you love it."
Williams' ensuing two free throws after the technical fouls pushed the lead to 106-90, and the Nets cruised from there.
Johnson and Lopez's combined 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting outscored the Thunder in the opening quarter, as the Nets jumped out to a 33-19 lead.
After shooting 64 percent (14-of-22) in the first frame, Brooklyn made an efficient 52 percent (11-of-21) in the second to stay in front. The biggest difference was 23 points after Johnson's deep trey made it 55-32 with 3:25 left in the half.
Game Notes
Oklahoma City had not lost at home since Nov. 14 versus Memphis ...Nets forward Gerald Wallace, who was questionable with a knee injury, played 37 minutes and scored six points ... The Nets outscored Oklahoma City at the foul line, 25-13.


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text:
The impact of microscope-integrated intraoperative near-infrared indocyanine green videoangiography on the surgery of arteriovenous malformations
Search Medline for
|May 20, 2009
Objective: Microscope-based intraoperative near-infrared indocyanine green (ICG) videoangiography was shown to be useful and as an adjunct to intra- or postoperative digital subtraction angiography (DSA) in aneurysm surgery. The goal of the present study was to evaluate intraoperative ICG videoangiography in arteriovenous malformation (AVM) and dural arteriovenous fistula (dAVF) surgery.
Methods: Patients with AVM evaluated for surgical treatment were enhanced to the study prospectively. The ICG technique was performed microscope-integrated (Carl Zeiss Co., Oberkochen, Germany). ICG videoangiography sequences were analyzed time related to differentiate between arterial, early venous, capillary and venous filling. Furthermore the ICG videoangiography was compared with the pre- and postoperative angiography.
Results: 29 ICG videoangiographies were performed in 12 patients in 12 operative procedures. In 28 ICG investigations the image quality and spatial resolution was excellent to analyze the arterial, early-venous, capillary and venous phases. As a result a real-time evaluation of the angioarchitecture of parts or the complete vascular pathology was possible and comparable with images of DS angiographies. In two cases the ICG videoangiography provided information to change the surgical procedure. In all cases, the postoperative angiogram corresponds to the ICG examination performed to control the resection quality. At last, no side effects were observed after the injections of ICG. In one patient with a deep thalamic AVM the final ICG investigation was not conclusive due to probably the depth of the surgical field.
Conclusions: Microscope-integrated ICG videoangiography in AVM and dAVF surgery provides useful information about intraoperative configuration and residual nidus detection. This simple and safe real-time feedback could be considered as a useful additional tool for the surgeon.


text: Gatwick Airport auto parking might be a minefield. Where do I start looking for Gatwick car parking? Should I want Gatwick short-term or Gatwick lasting parking? Do I Need To choose Gatwick BAA Vehicle parking? How can i find a easy Gatwick airport terminal parking selling price checker and can I compare Gatwick car parking… Continue reading Airport Parking – Time & Money Saving Advice


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[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/08/26/art.bill.jpg caption="Bill Clinton will reportedly not attend the convention Thursday night."]
DENVER (CNN) - Hillary Clinton will be on hand for Barack Obama's acceptance speech, but according to a source close to former President Bill Clinton, he will not: the source tells CNN that Clinton will not join his wife at Invesco Field Thursday night.
To Leslie. If Barack loses it will be because more people have seen just what he is. Don't blame it on anyone but him. What a poor loser. If you don't win, don't blame someone else. Grow up.
Wow, what is new!?. I expected for Mr. Clinton not to be present for this historic day. It is time that we as Dem, Rep, and Ind to UNITE and put our differences aside. This is NOT about the Clintons this is about OUR FUTURE. We must realize voting for Mr. Mc will be voting for the past and not for the future.
– MA for Obama