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AP: Sequestration means mass furloughs in April
By STEPHEN LOSEY | Comments
The Pentagon is planning to furlough hundreds of thousands of civilian employees beginning in April if a deal is not struck to avert sequestration, according to an Associated Press report.
The AP said that Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter told reporters Friday that if sequestration's budget cuts go into effect as scheduled on March 1, employees will be furloughed one day per week between April and Sept. 30, the end of fiscal 2013. The AP reported that Carter said the furloughs would likely save $5 billion.
The Army also on Jan. 22 officially froze civilian hiring and ordered managers to lay off temporary employees and let term employees' appointments lapse once they expire. Thomas Lamont, the Army's assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs, said in a memo that day that the Army may not extend any job offers. Firm job offers extended before Jan. 22 will be honored as long as an entry-on-duty date had been set.
Lamont said the hiring freeze will remain in effect until he revokes it in writing. Some top Army leaders, including the heads of the Army commands, will be able to approve exceptions to the hiring freeze and temporary employment terminations, and to extend the appointments of term employees as long as they support mission-critical needs that, if left unfilled, would cause mission failure or national security breaches. This authority should be used "sparingly," Lamont said.
The Army also issued guidance Jan. 16 on ways to plan for budgetary uncertainty such as sequestration or a year-long continuing resolution. The document said commands should plan for as many as 22 days of furloughs beginning April 16 at the earliest. If furloughs are necessary, the Army said few exceptions will be granted. But "furlough is a tool of last resort," the guidance said — sending employees home without pay would require Army Secretary John McHugh's approval, and the Army would have to negotiate with unions first.
Navy Rear Adm. J.P. Mulloy also issued a memo Jan. 14, which told Navy commanders to plan for one-day-per-week furloughs beginning the week of April 16, and lasting through the end of September. In his memo, Mulloy said furloughs would take place governmentwide and have limited exceptions.
The Defense Logistics Agency is preparing to furlough virtually all of its more than 25,000 employees for up to 22 days between April and the end of the fiscal year.
The Defense Finance and Accounting Service is hoping to avoid furloughs by freezing hiring, halting performance award nominations, and slashing travel, training and overtime. But in a Jan. 17 email, DFAS Director Terri McKay said more stringent actions — such as furloughs — may be necessary if sequestration takes place or the current continuing resolution expires without another agreement in place to further fund the Defense Department.
Sequestration would cut roughly 9 percent from Defense's budget by the end of fiscal 2013. But even if Congress and President Obama come to a deficit reduction agreement that avoids sequestration, it still will likely contain steep budget cuts.

subset: commoncrawl


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Posted by Editoress on 06/20/03
Squamish Mountain Bike Festival
Test of Metal ready to roll this weekend
The Squamish Test of Metal cross-country mountain bike race is ready to roll this Saturday, June 21, with an 11 a.m. start at Brennan Park Recreation Centre. The Test of Metal is the prestigious headline event of the Squamish Mountain Bike Festival taking place over the course of the weekend.
Cyclists from all over the world are descending upon Squamish this weekend for the racing and festivities, a testament to the continuing growth of mountain biking and the festival's commitment to putting on the best race anywhere.
"This is the highlight of the year for mountain biking in Squamish, which is recognized as a mecca," says Cliff Miller, Test of Metal race director and organizer of the Squamish Mountain Bike Festival. "It's a big draw for recreational racers from all over and also for pro racers, as the Test of Metal is now an International Cycling Union sanctioned race."
The Squamish Mountain Bike Festival starts on Friday, June 20 at 6 p.m. with racers taking to the streets on Cleveland Avenue in Squamish Town Centre for the Intergalactic Chariot Race Championships. The chariot races are head to head competition where mountain bikes pull fabricated chariots around and over obstacles up and down the crowd-lined street. Preceding the chariot races is a show and shine where riders on cruiser bikes will cruise the chariot race course.
On Saturday, June 21 the Test of Metal, an epic 67-kilometre race, rolls on the streets and world-class trails of Squamish with the spectacle of 800 racers, from top pros to weekend warriors, all leaving the start line together. Immediately after the Test pack rolls past the start line, up and coming nine- to 14-year-old racers in the Teen Test hit the streets and trails on an abbreviated Test of Metal course. The finish area and Mountain Building Centres Marketplace will once again be located the Squamish Loggers Sports Grounds just south of the Recreation Centre. On Saturday night, the Test of Metal party features D.O.A., the longest reigning punk act in Canada, live at the Howe Sound Inn and Brewpub. D.O.A. is fresh off a coast to coast tour in the U.S. and will be primed to rock the Brewpub.
Sunday is a busy day for the festival. At 9 a.m. at Squamish Station Shopping Centre is the M ini Metal, where aspiring four- to eight-year-olds get a chance to race. At noon, freeriders are featured at the Rock Star Invitational Freeride Dash for Cash in Valleycliffe where top local riders compete on Squamish's double black diamond trails to see just who really is the best local freerider. The Test of M etal Trials Competition will take place at the south end of Cleveland Avenue in Squamish Town Centre (right across from the Howe Sound Inn and Brewpub) in Squamish Town Centre. The trials event showcases some of the world's best obstacle riders. The competition starts at 10 a.m., with pros taking to the course at 1 p.m.
Superweek is Coming!
In the past, some have considered the SISU BC Cup Series as an emerging Championship, offering challenges only to the developing racer. How things have changed in only a few short years...
Most can't believe the all-out speed of the races, or the intensity levels of the province's best road racers. BC racing has developed its own style; Flat out and very aggressive from the gun. Racing outside of the province is somewhat more controlled, with strategic attacks and well-planned blocking techniques. In BC, riders attack at every opportunity, then, unleash a counter-attack on top of their last attack. The "faster the better" seems to be the motto of the riders competing in the SISU BC Cup Series. This may be the reason why BC produces many of Canada's best cyclists, and, perhaps the reason why BC athletes continually make up the backbone of Canada's National Teams.
The remaining events in the SISU BC Cup Series - perhaps the toughest, most prestigious, and definitely among the richest 10 days of racing in Canada - collectively known as SuperWeek; A week of racing that brings North America's top teams together to vie for over $30 000 in cash and prizes over seven events. SuperWeek, Tour de White Rock in particular, also has the distinct honor of crowning the overall SISU BC Cup Champion, in front of thousands of spectators and media.
Launching SuperWeek July 18th, the Tour de Delta, in its third year, has enjoyed tremendous success thanks to the vision and support of the entire community - from the crowds that line the streets, the hundreds of volunteers, to Mayor Lois Jackson's enthusiastic support; community pride is evident throughout the three days of racing. The Tour's grueling three-stage format is host to a hill climb, downtown criterium, and an unforgettable road race, all of which are attacked by the fastest riders on the continent. For complete Tour de Delta details, please go to www.tourdedelta.com.
New to the SISU BC Cup Series, and encompassed within SuperWeek, the marked return of the Tour de Gastown is a spectacular twilight criterium set on the historic cobblestones of Gastown, in the heart of Vancouver's business center. The Tour de Gastown is a celebration of brute horsepower and speed that was witnessed by over 24 000 screaming spectators in its returning year! This prestige event will award SISU BC Cup points to the top 3 BC licenced riders, only adding to what is sure to be the fastest race in Canada! With sprint speeds in excess of 65km/hr, the blur of riders negotiating slick cobbles along a technical course, the Tour de Gastown will entertain even the most demanding adrenaline junkies. Get up close and personal with the Tour de Gastown, visit www.tourdegastown.com.
Bringing SuperWeek and the SISU BC Cup Series to a finale, the Tour de White Rock, going into its 24th year, is perhaps the most established race in the country - And what a show it puts on! Mimicking the events of the previous week's Delta races, with a tremendously challenging hill climb up the steep bluffs of White Rock, a Criterium held in the center of the community, and an epic, 140km road race that stretches its way along the sandy beaches of Crescent Beach before heading into the hills of White Rock. Standing in the way of potential victors of the road race, is Magdalen Avenue; a steep, snaking grade that shatters the peloton from the first lap to the tenth. The Magdalen Avenue climb, coupled with Columbia Avenue on the backside of the course, where King and Queen of the Mountains are named, are just two elements playing pivotal roles in this race. The two climbs together help to determine which riders will taste success, and the key to many riders' demise. For complete Tour de White details, go to www.city.whiterock.bc.ca
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Archibald Gracie IV was born 17 January 1859, in Mobile, Alabama. In 1912 he was a resident of Washington, DC and New York City. Gracie was married with four daughters, two died very young (one was killed in an elevator accident), and the only one to reach maturity died shortly after marriage.
A member of the wealthy Gracie family of New York state, one of Gracie's ancestors had built Gracie Mansion which became the official residence of the mayor of New York City in 1942. Gracie was a graduate of St. Paul's Academy in Concord, New Hampshire and of West Point Military Academy. Later becoming a colonel in the Seventh Regiment, United States Army, Gracie was independently wealthy, active in the real estate business and an amateur military historian.
Gracie's father, Archibald Gracie Jr. (1832-1864), was schooled at Heidelberg, Germany and West Point, New York. He had resigned from the Army in 1856 to go into the cotton-brokerage business in Mobile, Alabama. At the outbreak of secession, Archibald Gracie Jr. broke with his Unionist father and served with the Confederate forces as militia captain of the Washington Light Infantry. In 1862 he was promoted to brigadier general and fought through the Battle of Chickamauga, one of the bloodiest battles of the American Civil War. On December 2, 1864, General Gracie was killed while observing Union Army movements at the siege of Petersburg, Virginia. Respected by his troops, he was eulogized in a poem "Gracie, of Alabama" by Francis O. Tickner.
Although Archibald Gracie IV was only about 5 years old when his father died, he had spent seven years writing a book, "The Truth About Chickamauga". In 1912, following the publication of his book, Colonel Gracie decided we needed to relax, and took a trip to Europe. Leaving his wife and daughter at home, he travelled to Europe on the Oceanic. On this eastward voyage, he made friends with one of the ship's officers, Herbert Pitman who was later the Third Officer on the Titanic.
Gracie took return passage on the Titanic, boarding at Southampton he travelled as a first-class passenger (ticket number 113780 £28 10s, Cabin C-51).
This was the era when gentlemen formally offered their service to "unprotected ladies" at the start of an ocean voyage, and once on board, Gracie offered his services to three sisters who were returning to America having attended a family funeral in England, and were travelling unaccompanied. These were Mrs E. D. Appleton, Mrs R. C. Cornell and Mrs John Murray Brown. With them, also unaccompanied, was their friend, Miss Edith Evans. Gracie knew the sisters well. Gracie's wife and the sisters were friends and Colonel Gracie had known Mrs Appleton's husband at St. Paul's Academy.
"these three sisters were returning home from a sad mission abroad, where they had laid to rest the remains of a fourth sister, Lady Victor Drummond, of whose death I had read accounts in the London papers, and all the sad details connected therewith were told me by the sisters themselves. That they would have to pass through a still greater ordeal seemed impossible, and how little did I know of the responsibility I took upon myself for their safety. Accompanying them, also unprotected, was their friend, Miss Edith Evans, to whom they introduced me."
During his other transatlantic trips it had been Gracie's custom to take as much exercise as needed to stay in prime physical condition. However on this trip he had devoted much his time to social enjoyment and reading books from the ships library. He had spent much time with Mr Isidor Straus who had regaled him with tales of his adventures during the Civil War. He loaned Mr Straus a copy of his new book, "The Truth About Chickamauga".
He also joined the writers' group, "Our coterie", led by Helen Churchill Candee of which Edward Kent, Edward Pomeroy Colley, Hugh Woolner, J. Clinch Smith and Mauritz Håkan Björnström-Steffansson were members.
On the evening of Saturday, 13 April, Gracie decided it was time to cut back on the socializing and start his fitness regimen again. He arranged with Steward Charles Cullen, his room steward, to awaken him early on Sunday morning in order to play squash with the racquet attendant, Fredrick Wright, to work in the gymnasium with Mr T. W. McCawley, and to swim - all before breakfast.
"I enjoyed myself as if I were on a summer palace by the seashore surrounded by every comfort. I was up early before breakfast and met the professional racquet player in a half hour's warming up preparatory for a swim in the six foot deep tank of saltwater heated to a refreshing temperature."
Following breakfast, Gracie attended Church service in the Dining Room, where the hymn was No. 418 of the Hymnal, "O God our help in ages past". He finished reading Mary Johnston's tales of adventure and escapes "Old Dominion" and returned the book to the ships library. He then spent some time with Isidor and Mrs Straus and they returned the book he had loaned them.
Sunday night, after diner, Gracie and his table companions Clinch Smith and Edward Kent, adjourned to the Palm Room where they enjoyed coffee as they listened to the Titanic's band. After circulating and socializing for a while, Gracie retired early to his cabin, C-51, to be ready for the following mornings exercise session.
After about three hours sleep, he was awakened by a jolt. He noted the time as 11:45 PM, then opened the cabin door and looked out. He saw no one and heard no commotion. He could hear steam escaping and there was no sound of machinery running. Realizing that something was wrong, Gracie removed his nightwear and got fully dressed. Wearing a Norfolk coat he left his cabin and made his way the Boat Deck.
It was a cold, starlit night with no moon. There was no sign of ice or other ships. He jumped over the barrier dividing first and second class and roamed the entire Boat Deck. He saw a middle aged couple strolling along arm-in-arm but there was no sign of any officers or any reason for concern. Returning to the A deck companionway he encountered Bruce Ismay with a crew member, they seemed preoccupied and did not notice him.
At the foot of the stairs there were a number of men passengers who had also been disturbed by the jolt. This was where he learned that the ship had collided with an iceberg, his friend Clinch Smith handed him a piece of ice, commenting that he might like it as a souvenir. He also learned that the mailroom was flooding and the postal clerks were busy moving two hundred bags of registered mail.
Gracie and Smith were now joined by some ladies, and at this time they noticed a tilt in the deck. Realizing that the situation was worsening, the men returned to their staterooms where Gracie hastily packed all his possessions into three large travelling bags ready to transfer to another ship. After putting on a long Newmarket overcoat and returning to the deck, Gracie found that everyone was putting on the life preservers. Steward Cullen insisted that Gracie return to his stateroom for his. Returning to A-Deck, Gracie located the unaccompanied ladies he had promised to escort.
"Our hopes were buoyed with the interchange of wireless messages with passing ships one of whom was certainly coming to our rescue. To reassure the ladies of whom I had assumed special charge I showed them a bright white light of what I took to be a ship about 5 miles off."
When the order to load the lifeboats came, Gracie escorted the four ladies to the Boat Deck and since the crew did not allow any men to approach the lifeboats, he released the ladies to the custody of 6th Officer Moody. During the Titanic's final hours, Mrs Appleton and Mrs Cornell became separated from Mrs Brown and Miss Evans. Mrs Cornell and Mrs Appleton were eventually helped into Lifeboat 2.
Shortly after midnight, while looking for his friends, Gracie met the racquet coach, Wright, in the stairway of C-Deck and jokingly cancelled his 7:30 a.m. lesson for the next morning. Wright seemed concerned, probably because by that time he knew the racquet court to be filling with water.
Together with Steward Charles Cullen, he obtained extra blankets for distribution to the lifeboats. Gracie then rejoined Clinch Smith who informed him that fellow first class passengers Björnström-Steffansson and Woolner had put Mrs Candee into into Lifeboat 6, the third boat to leave. Mrs Straus almost entered Lifeboat 8, - then she turned back and rejoined her husband, she had made up her mind: "We have lived together for many years. Where you go, I go." Gracie, Woolner and other friends tried to persuade her, but she refused. Mr and Mrs Straus went and sat together on a pair of deck chairs.
Just then someone pointed out that a group of men were trying to take over Boat 2. Second Officer Lightoller jumped into the boat and threatened them with his empty gun driving them all out. With the help of Gracie and Smith they were able to load 36 women and children into this boat, and it was lowered at 1:45 under the command of Fourth Officer Joseph Boxhall. It was the fifteenth boat to leave the Titanic and contained 20 people although its maximum capacity was 40. The lifeboat needed to travel only 15 feet to reach the water. In normal circumstances it would have been 70 feet.
Gracie and Smith continued to assist Lightoller, now loading the women and children into Lifeboat 4. One of the ladies Gracie lifted into the boat was was the pregnant teenage wife of John Jacob Astor. Lightoller tried to remove thirteen year old John Borie Ryerson from the boat, but was persuaded by the boys father to allow him to stay. Lifeboat 4 was under the command of Quartermaster Perkis, it left at 1:55 a.m.
At around 2:00 am all of the Titanic's rockets had been fired and all the lifeboats had been lowered save for the four collapsible Engelhardt boats with canvas sides. Collapsibles A and B were still lashed upside down to the roof of the officers' quarters. The crew was having trouble removing the canvas covers and Gracie gave them his penknife.
Collapsible D was lifted, righted and hooked to the tackles where Boat 2 had been. The crew then formed a ring around the lifeboat and allowed only women to pass through. The boat could hold 47, but after 15 women had been loaded, no more women could be found. Lightoller now allowed to men to take the vacant seats. This was when Gracie found Mrs Brown and Miss Evans were still on board, so he escorted them to the lifeboat. When Gracie arrived with the female passengers, all the men immediately stepped out and made way for them. Thinking there was only room for one more lady, Edith turned to Mrs Brown and told her, "You go first. You have children waiting at home." Mrs Brown was helped in and the boat left the Titanic at 2:05 a.m. under Quartermaster Bright. Edith Evans would never find a space in any of the lifeboats and died in the sinking. As the collapsible was lowered to the ocean, two men were seen to jump into it from the rapidly flooding A deck.
Ironically these two men were Gracie's friends, Woolner and Björnström-Steffansson, who had found themselves alone near the open forward end of A-deck. Just above them Collapsible D was slowly descending towards the sea, and as the water rushed up the deck towards them they got onto the railing and leapt into the boat, Björnström-Steffansson landing in a heap at the bow. Woolner's landing was similarly undignified but they were safe.
Gracie and Smith were still working on the Collapsibles when the bridge dipped under at 2:15. Gracie and Smith turned and headed for stern when met a crowd of men and women coming up from steerage.
"My friend Clinch Smith made the proposition that we should leave and go toward the stern. But there arose before us from the decks below a mass of humanity several lines deep converging on the Boat Deck facing us and completely blocking our passage to the stern. There were women in the crowd as well as men and these seemed to be steerage passengers who had just come up from the decks below. Even among these people there was no hysterical cry, no evidence of panic. Oh the agony of it."
As the Titanic foundered, Gracie and Clinch Smith stayed with the crowd. As the water rushed towards them, Gracie jumped with the wave, caught hold of the bottom rung of the ladder to the roof of the officers mess and pulled himself up. Clinch Smith disappeared beneath the waves never to be seen again. As the ship sank, the resulting undertow pulled Gracie deep into icy waters, he kicked himself free far below the surface and, with the aid of his life preserver, swam clear. Clinging to a floating wooden crate, Gracie was able to swim over to the overturned Collapsible B and, with a little help managed to climb onto it.
When Gracie first got to the boat there were about a dozen people on it. All told some thirty men and women managed to climb on the partially submerged boat during the next few minutes. Some of the men were quite dry, they had apparently been on the boat as it was swept off. Gracie, teeth chattering, hair frozen tried to borrow a cap to warm his head, the man refused. The boat was slowly sinking.
Lightoller now took took command. He ordered all the men to stand. He got them into a double column, facing the bow. Then, as the boat lurched, he ordered then to lean to the left or right, whatever was necessary to counteract the swell. They found that Harold Bride, the junior wireless operator was on board. Lightoller questioned him about the positions reported by the rescue boats and determined the the Carpathia should arrive about dawn.
Just after 3:30 am the survivors heard the sound of a cannon being fired, and as dawn broke around 4 am the Carpathia came into sight. The men on B were now desperately trying to stay afloat. The Carpathia was 4 miles away, picking up survivors from the other lifeboats. About 400 yards away, Boats 4, 10, 12 and D were strung together in a line. Lightoller used his officers whistle and got their attention. Boats 4 and 12 cast of at once and rowed over. Boat 4 arrived first and started transferring the survivors from the foundering collapsible. Gracie was unable to make the jump and crawled into Boat 12. Lightoller was the last to leave.
By 8:15 am all boats were in but for 12. Gracie worked in vain to revive a lifeless body lying beside him. At 8:30, Boat 12 made fast and Gracie was able step onto the Carpathia 's gangway. Laying under a pile of blankets on a sofa in the ship dining room, while his clothes dried in the ships bake oven, Gracie discovered cuts on his legs and body and a wound to his head. He was to be black and blue and sore for days.
Colonel Gracie wrote an account of the tragedy that was published as "The Truth About The Titanic" in 1913. Gracie never finished proofing the manuscript as he died on 4 December 1912 at his ancestral home in New York, N.Y., having never fully recovered from the trauma of that night. Many survivors were at the graveside for his burial at Woodlaw Cemetery,New York, together with members of his regiment.
Archibald Gracie was the third survivor of Titanic to die, being preceded in death by Maria Nackid on 30 July 1912 and Eugenie Baclini on 30 August 1912.
Colonel Gracie's estate was divided between his wife and his daughter Edith. Mrs Gracie lost most of her wealth when a property brokerage collapsed. Col. Gracie's final surviving child, Edith Temple Gracie Adams, died childless1 in late 1918, (from pneumonia in the influenza epidemic), about a year after her marriage. Mrs Gracie then sued her son-in-law Dunbar Burchell Adams (son of a chewing gum magnate) over her daughter's $150,000 share of the Gracie estate but the case failed, she reached a settlement by which she received $75 per weeks from the son in law. When he too died she persuaded his father to keep up the payments after a hiatus.
(Atlanta Constitution 22 October 1933)
On 19 April 1924 Mrs Gracie married 'Humberto Aguirre de Urbino' whom she believed to be a wealthy Chilean count and diplomat. In fact, he was a fraudster and golddigger... each probably married for money not realising until it was too late that neither was wealthy. She alleged that he choked her with a blanket and locked her in a bathroom then stole a cheque and $5,000 in jewellery before fleeing the country, working a passage as a dishwasher. She sought but failed to have him extradited from Chile and finally, the marriage was annulled after which she reverted to the name of her late first husband. She died in 1937.


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January 29, 2009
10 Good Things About Offline Gmail
1. You can easily create proper shortcuts for Gmail from the settings page.
2. Now that's available offline, Gmail can truly become an application rendered by Chrome.
3. Some of the attachments are available offline and you can copy the files from Google Gears' cache.
4. Even if your Internet connection goes down, you can continue to read your messages and post replies, so you don't have to until the connection goes back up.
5. Gmail finally becomes usable if you have a slow or unreliable network connection. Enable the "flaky connection mode" and Gmail will cache your messages. "In flaky connection mode, you access the mail that's stored locally on your computer, regardless of your connection status. This makes it much faster to read and send mail, which is nice when you're on a slow or flaky connection. Your account will continue to sync in the background when it's able to do so, with no disruption to your experience."
6. Even if you have a fast Internet connection, it's faster to load data from your computer than from Google's servers, so the "flaky connection mode" is a good way to speed up Gmail.
7. Most Gmail features work even when you are offline, including themes, Gmail Labs and keyboard shortcuts.
8. You can cache messages for more than one account and switch between them.
9. The change of the online/offline status is seamless and you don't have to manually sync data.
10. This is the best implementation of an offline Google app.
28 comments:
My 'Red stars' disappear (they turn to yellow stars actually) if I go into 'Flaky connection mode', seems not all features are supported.
ReplyDeleteAnonymousJanuary 29, 2009 at 11:25 AMAll I can say is Awesome!!!
AnonymousJanuary 29, 2009 at 11:27 AMAnd doesnt work in Germany, because gmail.com doesnt work frome here....
AnonymousJanuary 29, 2009 at 11:34 AMAlso can't add/send attachments in 'offline' GMail :(
AnonymousJanuary 29, 2009 at 11:46 AMUh... welcome to last century? "Offline" email is exciting to gmail users? Weird.
AnonymousJanuary 29, 2009 at 12:36 PM@Ted Howard:
Firefox has already implemented the HTML 5 offline standard, but I'm concerned that it seems to only use a single SQLite database for everything (which if corrupted, mangles *all* of your data), while Gears uses a separate database for each site for safety and security. Also, I'm curious as to how the Gears->HTML5 migration will be handled. If I switch to using the browser rather than Gears, will I have to download all my data again? It's a long way off, but I hope someone is thinking about writing a migration tool.
AnonymousJanuary 29, 2009 at 1:14 PMI looked over the HTML 5 spec at whatwg.org to answer my question about Firefox. I was confusing the application cache of section 5.7 (Offline Web applications), which Firefox implements, with the client-side database storage of section 5.10 (Structured client-side storage). But I still don't know what the migration plan will be when browsers implement client-side storage.
Is flaky really good for all? I have good, fast, stable connection, should I use?
ReplyDeleteWhere does Gmail Offline keeps its data?
Can we delete them manually if we decide not to use offline?AnonymousJanuary 29, 2009 at 7:49 PMLon Hon Chun:
Base location for Gears running in Firefox:
Windows XP
%USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\%FIREFOXPROFILE%\Google Gears for Firefox\
Windows Vista
%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\%FIREFOXPROFILE%\Google Gears for Firefox\
Ubuntu Linux
~/.mozilla/firefox/%FIREFOXPROFILE%/Google Gears for Firefox/
The cleanest way to delete offline files would be through the Gears settings dialog, which in Firefox is at Tools->Gears Settings.
...5. Gmail finally because usable if...
I think you meant "became"?AnonymousJanuary 30, 2009 at 12:28 AMmmm well im not sure about this feature. and about google gears in general ; I mean could you guys please enlighten me here.
- When / Why should i set up the offline mode ? I mean should i keep the offline mode on so that i get my mail permanently sync'ed to my harddrive and can read them on the train? But then will i still be able to receive emaisl leaving the offline mode on permanently?
or should i just turn the offline mode when i unplugged my computer from my internet connexion and wait for hours before my mail is actually syn'd to my hard drive?
i'm confused here
"4. Even if your Internet connection goes down, you can continue to read your messages and post replies, so you don't have to WAIT until the connection goes back up."
I guess I a "WAIT" at the right place... ;-)This will also work in Germany, Austria, and internationally---I myself am using offline mode from Austria. I think I am able to do this because I have set my Gmail to English. It could be the case that Google just has not translated this app yet, so you've got to use english
ReplyDelete2. Now that's available offline, Gmail can truly become an application rendered by Chrome. and prism or fluid!!!!
ReplyDeleteAnonymousJanuary 30, 2009 at 6:41 AMI have got it enabled and all messages downloaded, now when I go to the mailbox even if I'm on-line and I click on the address bar I get "Your connection to this website is not encrypted" even when I'm using https://mail.google.com/. There's no padlock on my browser. Strange, is this normal??
It would be nice if the Google Team would update gears to work with the latest version of Firefox. I'm running 3.1b2 and am dead in the water. Gears should be looking for "3.*" not "3.0".
When will an update occur?AnonymousJanuary 30, 2009 at 8:21 AMI have a 'sync' link at the right up corner, I click, it pop out a window to tell me sorry cannot find the information,
i don't know whether it means calendar will have a offline mode, if it is, i really appreciate that.
I've turned it on on two machines and for both regular and apps IDs and it seems to be working pretty well.
One problem I've noticed is that sometimes I have to hit "refresh" to see new messages even when opening the interface for the first time. I'm thinking it might have to do with the flaky connection mode which I turned on just to see what would happen.AnonymousJanuary 30, 2009 at 1:22 PMNice. Granted, I already use GMAIL offline via Outlook and iMAP. Nice however since you can cut Outlook from the equation now (although I probably won't... yet).
AnonymousFebruary 1, 2009 at 3:26 AMOne issue that I'm having is that I have my data saved on a separate and much larger partition than my "C" drive. Google Gears, however, saves everything to C drive and after downloading messages and docs from two different hosted Google accounts, my C drive is running out of space. I use Google Chrome and can not find any Gears settings. Does anyone know if it is possible to configure where the Google Gears Caches is saved to?
I really appreciate this. But is there a way to switch Gmail to offline mode manually even though I'm still connected to the internet?
ReplyDeleteYes, check the flaky connection mode.
ReplyDeleteI agree that offline Gmail is great -- really, it drops the final barrier to businesses using Gmail for their domain names. Is there still any reason to use a desktop email program? The only thing I can think of is the lame 20mb attachment limit, which will hopefully be addressed with GDrive (or whatever Google ends up calling it).
Don't want to ramble on too much in comments, so here's a link to my other thoughts about why companies should switch to Gmail...I'm still wanting to know how to set Gmail offline even when the computer is connected to the internet. Putting it on Flaky mode did not work.
ReplyDeleteI tried to delete de attachments stored on my hard disk (something like 2Gb) but I wasn't able to locate them even following your instructions.
Is there anyone who was able to delete them?AnonymousMay 20, 2009 at 12:36 AMWhere data are stored on my hard disk?
AnonymousMay 15, 2011 at 7:34 PMSame question. I want to use this as a backup for deleted accounts in Google Apps. Is it possible?


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8 Memorable Super Bowl Halftime Shows [VIDEOS]
So I call Madonna doing the halftime show "an episode of GLEE for the OLDER GENERATION" ! HA! What do you think? Where's the country stars? - (tom jordan)
During Sunday's Super Bowl, Madonna will take center stage for the halftime show. She's working with the famous acrobat troupe Cirque du Soleil on a concept for the gig, but only time will tell if it'll fly — or flop.
With that in mind, let's revisit some of the more memorable halftime shows — both good and bad — of years past.
1989 — Elvis Presto — Super Bowl XXIII
This Elvis impersonator didn't sing any Elvis songs — he did card tricks instead. Badly. The show was so cringeworthy that in the introduction, even the exceedingly professional Bob Costas says sarcastically, "This is the single proudest moment of my life."
1991 — New Kids On The Block — Super Bowl XXV
In a blatant commercial for Disney, Mickey Mouse led a zillion children onto the field, where they sang before New Kids On The Block took the stage. Because when you think of football, you think of pink castles and kids and boy bands, right?
1992 — 'Winter Magic' — Super Bowl XXVI
The idea was to promote the upcoming Winter Olympic games, but the execution was a cheesefest that looked like a 1970s variety show. And what's with the Christmas music a full month after the end of the holiday season? Ugh.
1993 — Michael Jackson — Super Bowl XXVII
You need only watch the clips above to understand the NFL once had a problem with terrible halftime shows. So when it decided to change course, it turned to Michael Jackson — who delivered and then some. In fact, the halftime ratings were higher than those for the game itself. After this performance, the networks never cut away during halftime again.
2002 — U2 — Super Bowl XXXVI
Performing only a few months after 9/11, U2 paid tribute by scrolling the victims' names on a 200-foot screen as the band played 'Where the Streets Have No Name.' At the end, Bono opened his jacket to reveal the Stars and Stripes lining within.
2004 — Janet Jackson/Justin Timberlake — Super Bowl XXXVIII
A halftime show sponsored by MTV — what could go wrong? Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake put on a pretty good show before the now-infamous "wardrobe malfunction" that led to protracted court battles over fines and countless debates about what is and isn't "decent."
2007 — Prince — Super Bowl XLI
In a rain-soaked show that spotlighted the Purple One's performance skills, Prince rocked up a series of his hits and some terrific covers. But during his signature 'Purple Rain,' he appeared as a giant silhouette with a guitar that looked like a big … well, let's just say the racy implication was clear.
2011 — Black Eyed Peas — Super Bowl XLV
Just about everything that could go wrong here did — the Peas screeched to be heard over a sound system that didn't work right, the costumes were bizarre, and some of the special-effects fizzled. Even Slash and Usher couldn't save this mess.


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Being Female, Being Soldiers, Being Alone
This is a complicated topic for me so I'm going to mull rather than follow my usual M.O. and pronounce! I'm really interested in knowing what people think – and please, a real conversation, not a bandwagon holler from one POV or the other. I'd have written this as an op ed piece for one or more of the places where my writing usually appears, but I just didn't feel as though I'd sorted things out enough myself to opine with any real clarity so here I am: thinking aloud more than saying anything definite, setting a few thoughts down.
From Elizabeth Wurtzel's most recent nerve-irritating, naval-gazing rant on one end and the lifting of the ban on women in combat at the other, and Ann Sheybani's musing on why men don't want you to kick their ass, I've been dwelling on the matter of what it means to be female in America, a very different variety of female than is found, say, in Sri Lanka.
The Pentagon ruling, in particular, has made me think deeply about what is expected of women – which is very different from what they are physically capable of doing should the need arise. I acknowledge that there are some who agree with Loudon Wainwright III and the sentiments expressed in his classic, 'Men,' (listen below), but I wonder if they are the majority. Maybe they are.
NPR has a quick, five-point run down on the basics of the ruling here, so I won't go into the technicalities around the decision, I am more interested in talking about what our collective consciousness is about women, particularly as it relates to their sense of worth and the realization of their potential.
I've been following the posts following Wurtzel's piece on Facebook, where 40 something, serially heart-broken women claim she is articulating their particular angst, and where the vast majority of women simply want people like Wurtzel to quit whining about their bourgeois troubles. Elsewhere, there are people screaming about how women in combat positions will have to deal with having to relieve themselves in public, and others – mostly women already in combat – swearing that they have what it takes to fulfill their mission in the military.
In my piece for VQR on feminism I spoke about what it meant to grow up in a culture that expected everything from girls/women – an "everything" that was large enough to include both professional success and a joyous embrace of femininity. And though I take exception with some of what Ann Sheybani's advocacy, (mostly because it is a predominantly heterosexual dealing with of our gender), I understand exactly what she is talking about. I can find a stool and climb up to fetch myself some vast tin of, say, olive oil from the upper reaches of a supermarket shelf, but I routinely glance around and ask for help from the nearest guy (or a taller woman). If I rent a car and cannot figure out the half a dozen new-fangled operations, I find a guy who can do it for me. A full 100% of the time the men to whom I turn for help oblige with charm and a certain self-conscious delight. I am pretty sure it is not that different from the happy feeling I get when a guy turns to me and says "which shirt do you think might look better with this tie?" When a man runs ahead to hold a door open for me and I turn to smile in thanks, I know there is a moment of mutual recognition that we are both playing a role that is as natural as breathing – where I am grateful for being cared for, and he is grateful for the ability to be a caregiver. And it lasts even if I keep walking on and hold the next door open for him.
We talk so much about the fact that there is violence perpetrated against women and yet we seem, as a culture, more often than not, to ask men not to treat us with any gentleness. To be saying, I can look after myself, you don't need to. I wonder if this world view reduces us, more than it ever has before, to being simply bodies with female parts, rather than human beings with a feminine air, an air that softens the eye of the beholder and thereby protects us from the body with male parts?
Okay, so I know that all sounds very old-fashioned, Southern-belle, conservative, Republican – none of which I am, ack ack – but I hope that I'm getting close to getting at what I'm thinking here. And before somebody starts throwing the phrase "blame the victim" at me, let me categorically state that I am a strong advocate of all of our usual progressive causes surrounding violence against women in any form.
Some things to ponder: many American men of my generation married non-American women; many women of my generation remain terrifyingly accomplished, impeccably turned out, and alone; a disproportionate number of men end up unhappily married to dreadfully shallow women who are, nonetheless, undoubtedly female; the number of wonderful men married to equally wonderful women is alarmingly low. It's a WTF moment. And it is particularly true for the young girls and boys whom we are raising right now, the ones who will go off into the future imagining that, somewhere down the line, they will be able to make the right partnership (whatever their sexual orientation), with the right person, that it will all just "happen" because it should, even though nearly everything we are teaching them to be right now stacks the odds against that eventuality.
I'm thinking also about two guys I know, Shann Ray, and Elliott Woods. Shann's reflection on the women he is surrounded by, for Poets and Writers, captures some of the what I imagine "femaleness" means to a man. And Elliott (who served in the US military and has since returned to cover the war in its aftermath), and I have had many conversations about American masculinity, what has become of it, a conversation that skirts (sorry) the issue of what has become of American femininity. Both of these guys are men among men: solidly in thrall of women, appreciative of their immeasurable gifts and strengths, yet also aware of what they, as men, bring to the table, a warm, care-giving, courageousness that is as humble before fragility as it is brave before challenge.
It makes me think about war. About women heaving 200 pound men fallen in battle back to safety as a way of life, not in a time of dire necessity. About men fighting to "protect a homeland," yet wondering (setting aside the political discussion of wars and invasions undertaken on a whim), what there is to protect if it is nothing more than themselves. It makes me think of the kids that Sonia Nazario speak of in her book Enrique's Journey, the ones who say, repeatedly, "yes, she can send us money, but we'd rather have our mother with us here." About what we create as a culture when we say all of can do everything, yet forget that if all of us do everything then there really is no need for the creation of meaningful relationships with each other, or for the establishment and nurturing of a collective community to which we bring what small or great part it is in us to bring to it.
It makes me think about an exchange with an old friend who has been undergoing a lot of turmoil who said, when I congratulated her on her strength, how tired she was of being strong, how ready she was to embrace that part of her that was fragile and have someone else (in this case her partner), carry her through the tough times. It makes me think of the junior prom, and the beautiful, smart, absolutely amazing girls who went alone, and the equally wonderful boys who also went alone, because the girls did not know how to let the boys know they cared about being asked, and the boys were too intimidated to do the asking of girls who never looked like they needed anything from anybody that they couldn't get for themselves.
So there's my thinking for this Sunday. How about you?


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Media Advisory: Fortinet to Demonstrate Advanced Security at Scale for VMware Integrated OpenStack Clouds at VMworld 2016
SUNNYVALE, Calif. – August 25, 2016 –
John Maddison, senior vice president products and solutions, Fortinet
"Enterprises are increasingly deploying virtualization, cloud and software-defined solutions in their IT infrastructure to gain efficiencies from on-demand and pooled resources, however security remains a key concern with these new IT models. Protecting these highly dynamic environments requires a Security Fabric with tightly integrated security and network technologies that share intelligence, and collaborate to detect, isolate, and respond to threats in real time. At VMworld®, we are excited to demonstrate how Fortinet continues to expand its virtualized security solutions and now protects VMware® Integrated OpenStack environments to meet the on-demand and multiple layers of security required for these dynamic cloud networks."
Overview of Fortinet at VMworld 2016
Fortinet® (NASDAQ: FTNT), the global leader in high-performance cybersecurity solutions, today released details about its upcoming participation as a Platinum Sponsor at VMworld 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada in Booth #1947.
- Fortinet will demonstrate how it is the first security provider to integrate its virtual enterprise firewall solution, FortiGate VMX, with VMware NSX® and VMware Integrated OpenStack environments. Read more about the partnership on our blog here.
- Additionally, Fortinet will present on scaling and segmenting the agile data center with software-defined security and VMware NSX as well as conduct demonstrations of several of the Fortinet Security Fabric virtualized security solutions for the software-defined data center (SDDC).
Fortinet Speaking Sessions
Title: Deep Dive: Extending L4-L7 Security Controls for VMware NSX and VMware Integrated OpenStack Environments with Fortinet Next Generation Security
Date & Time: Monday, August 29: 4:00 – 5:00p.m.
Room: South Pacific B
Jason Bandouveres, director product management, Virtualization Solutions, Fortinet
Vanessa Little, senior manager, NFV Ecosystem Architecture, VMware
Marcos Hernandez, principal engineer, Network and Security Business Unit, VMware
Title: Scale and Segment the Agile Data Center with Software-Defined Security and NSX
Date & Time: Wednesday, August 31: 12:30 – 1:30p.m.
Room: South Pacific B
Speaker: Warren Wu, senior director, Product Marketing, Fortinet
Technology Demonstrations at Fortinet Booth #1947
The Fortinet Security Fabric provides seamless, ubiquitous protection across the distributed enterprise, from Internet of Things (IoT) to the Cloud. Fortinet's cloud security solutions enable organizations to securely and elastically scale protection to their private, public and hybrid cloud infrastructure and workloads, as well as segment within the cloud, between endpoints, and enterprise networks.
Several virtualized security solutions will be demonstrated in the Fortinet booth including:
- Fortinet Security Fabric and all virtual appliances for VMware vSphere®, demonstrating seamless security across the entire attack surface.
- Cloud Security with FortiGate VMX and VMware NSX, highlighting the scale and benefits of elastic security and micro-segmentation with NSX.
- Advanced Threat Protection with FortiSandbox-VM, FortiMail-VM and FortiWeb-VM, spotlighting actionable advanced threat protection for VMware vSphere environments.
- FortiGuard Labs Threat Map, illustrating global and local threat intelligence across the hybrid cloud for end-to-end awareness and intelligence across enterprise networks.
Fortinet will also be hosting a Network Security Experts Bar in its booth, where VMware customers and show attendees can ask questions or discuss the latest security technologies, threat landscape insights, or advanced network security techniques and tips with Fortinet security experts and threat researchers.
Executive Briefings: Fortinet executives and threat researchers will be available for press interviews during the conference. Please contact Darlene Gannon (email@example.com) with any requests.
About Fortinet
Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) secures the largest enterprise, service provider, and government organizations around the world. Fortinet empowers its customers with intelligent, seamless protection across the expanding attack surface and the power to take on ever-increasing performance requirements of the borderless network - today and into the future. Only the Fortinet Security Fabric architecture can deliver security without compromise to address the most critical security challenges, whether in networked, application, cloud or mobile environments. More than 280,000 customers worldwide trust Fortinet to protect their businesses. Learn more at https://www.fortinet.com, the Fortinet Blog, or FortiGuard Labs.
Copyright © 2016 Fortinet, Inc. All rights reserved. The symbols ® and ™ denote respectively federally registered trademarks and unregistered trademarks of Fortinet, Inc., its subsidiaries and affiliates. Fortinet's trademarks include, but are not limited to, the following: Fortinet, FortiGate, FortiGuard, FortiManager, FortiMail, FortiClient, FortiCare, FortiCloud, FortiAnalyzer, FortiReporter, FortiOS, FortiASIC, FortiWiFi, FortiSwitch, FortiVoIP, FortiBIOS, FortiLog, FortiResponse, FortiCarrier, FortiScan, FortiAP, FortiDB, FortiVoice and FortiWeb. Other trademarks belong to their respective owners. Fortinet has not independently verified statements or certifications herein attributed to third parties and Fortinet does not independently endorse such statements. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, nothing herein constitutes a warranty, guarantee, binding specification or other binding commitment by Fortinet, and performance and other specification information herein may be unique to certain environments. This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve uncertainties and assumptions. Changes of circumstances, product release delays, or other risks as stated in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, located at www.sec.gov, may cause results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in this press release. If the uncertainties materialize or the assumptions prove incorrect, results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and assumptions. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements. Fortinet assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, and expressly disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.


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Table of Contents:
From a strategy for Africa to an EU-Africa strategic partnership
Outline of the Community (European Union) legislation about From a strategy for Africa to an EU-Africa strategic partnership
These categories group together and put in context the legislative and non-legislative initiatives which deal with the same topic.
Development > African Caribbean and Pacific states (ACP)
From a strategy for Africa to an EU-Africa strategic partnership
Document or Iniciative
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council of 27 June 2007 – From Cairo to Lisbon – The EU-Africa Strategic Partnership [COM(2007) 357 final – not published in the Official Journal].
The first historic European Union (EU)-Africa summit, which was held in Cairo in 2000, launched a more structured political dialogue between the EU and Africa, in particular through regular meetings between senior officials and ministers. Following the creation of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) in 2001 and the African Union (AU) in 2002, a second summit should have been held in Lisbon in 2003 but was postponed due to controversy over the participation of certain countries.
In October 2005, at a joint meeting with the AU Commission, the European Commission adopted a Communication on the EU strategy for Africa, which was formally approved by the European Council in December of the same year. This strategy has reinforced the coherence of internal EU policy and the coordination of the Commission and the Member States' policies towards Africa.
In December 2005, participants at the fifth EU-Africa ministerial meeting in Bamako agreed that the next step should be to develop a joint EU-Africa strategy. This position was subsequently confirmed by the European Council in December 2006 and by the AU summit in January 2007.
This joint strategy will serve to reinforce the political dialogue between the EU and Africa in order to:
- go beyond the framework of simple development cooperation by opening up the dialogue to common political concerns and issues of common interest;
- go beyond the African continent by moving on from a strategy focused exclusively on African concerns to address European and global issues and, as a result, take action in the relevant fora;
- move beyond fragmented support for African aspirations to find regional and global solutions to the most important challenges;
- guarantee increased participation of African and European citizens on the strategic partnership and thus contribute to the strengthening of civil society in both continents.
Following approval of the broad thrust of the joint strategy at the eighth EU-Africa ministerial troika meeting, the finalised strategy was adopted at the second EU-Africa summit (see "Related acts").
The joint strategy will pursue four political objectives, namely:
- reinforcement of the partnership, transforming it into a genuine partnership of equals;
- promotion of key issues with respect to development, such as peace and security, governance and human rights, trade and regional and continental integration in Africa;
- joint response to global challenges;
- promotion of a wide-based and wide-ranging people-centred partnership.
Specifically, the European Commission is proposing five joint initiatives, which will be included in an action plan annexed to the joint strategy. They are:
An energy partnership
This partnership will create a platform aiming at:
- reinforcing the current dialogue on issues such as access to energy and energy security;
- scaling up investment in energy infrastructure;
- investing a higher proportion of oil and gas revenues in development activities;
- mainstreaming climate change into development cooperation.
Moreover, the partnership should build on existing instruments, such as:
- the overall framework of the UE-Africa infrastructure partnership and its trust fund;
- the EU Energy Initiative (EUEI) and its ACP energy facility;
- the national and regional indicative programmes under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF);
- the thematic programme on the environment and sustainable management of natural resources, including energy.
Partnership on climate change
The partnership will strengthen cooperation between the EU and the AU in the following areas:
- disaster risk reduction;
- halting deforestation;
- participation of developing countries in the global carbon market;
- promotion and deployment of environmentally friendly technologies;
- better monitoring of the environmental effects of climate change.
In January 2007 AU leaders, recognising the vulnerability of Africa to climate change, committed themselves, through the Addis Ababa Declaration, to integrating climate change into their development policies, programmes and activities at national and sub-regional level. This constitutes a sound basis for a partnership between the EU and the AU in this area.
Partnership on migration, mobility and employment
With respect to migration, cooperation between the EU and Africa will involve the establishment of a network of Africa-based migration observatories which will collect, analyse and disseminate information on migration flows within Africa and between Africa and the EU. Special attention will be given to the skilled labour issue.
As regards mobility, the partnership will aim at building African capacity in the area of migration information management. Moreover, it will encourage the movement of skilled labour through the creation of partnerships between European and African institutions such as universities and hospitals.
Finally, in order to offer Africans a genuine alternative to migration to Europe, the partnership will focus on creating more and better jobs in Africa, particularly in the formal economy.
Partnership on democratic governance
The AU and the EU must stimulate the dialogue on governance issues of mutual interest, such as human rights and natural resource management, through the creation of a governance forum that will bring together non-state actors, national parliaments, local authorities and regional organisations. Moreover, the EU will explore new strategies for increasing European Community and Member State funding to support the Pan-African governance architecture.
Political and institutional architecture
The Commission stresses the need to strengthen the dialogue between all EU and AU institutions, in particular between the European Parliament and the Pan-African Parliament, and also between the European Commission and the AU Commission. The EU and the AU could also hold joint ministerial meetings. These efforts will build on the existing biannual EU-Africa ministerial troika meetings and on summits of the Heads of State or Government, which could be held every two or three years alternately in Europe and Africa.
On this basis, the European and African partners are working together to draw up the joint strategy and the action plan. Apart from the aforementioned initiatives, the establishment of partnerships on peace and security, democratic governance and human rights, science, the information society and space is envisaged, with particular emphasis on the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Related Acts
Lisbon declaration [Not published in the Official Journal] (pdf ).
This declaration, which was adopted at the close of the second EU-Africa summit on 8-9 December 2007 by the Heads of State or Government of 53 African countries and the 27 EU Member States, lays the foundations for the new strategic partnership of equals between Africa and the EU. This declaration, which contains the philosophy and commitments of the partnership, was adopted at the same time as the first joint EU-Africa strategy and its first three-year action plan (2008-2010) (pdf ).
The strategic priorities identified form the basis of eight partnerships whose progress will be assessed at the next summit in 2010. These partnerships cover the following areas: peace and security, democratic governance and human rights, trade and regional integration, achieving the MDGs, and energy, as well as science, the information society and space.


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OROVILLE >> A trial date will be set for a 21-year-old man charged for allegedly raping a woman in May.
Butte County Superior Court Judge Kristen Lucena ruled Tuesday there was probable cause to hold defendant Vee Xiong on felony counts of forcible rape, sodomy by use of force, sexual penetration by foreign object and forcible oral copulation.
A trial date may be set Aug. 28.
During Tuesday's preliminary hearing, Butte County sheriff's detective Chris D'Amato testified about the investigation following the alleged incident at a Magalia residence on May 21.
Under questioning by deputy district attorney Stacy Edwards, D'Amato said he made arrangements to have the woman in the case transported to Enloe Medical Center for further examination. After a deputy said he had probable cause to arrest Xiong, D'Amato had the defendant taken to Oroville Hospital for examination.
The detective later questioned Xiong at the Sheriff's Office.
On June 18, D'Amato interviewed the woman. She said she was at her sister's residence with her sister and her sister's boyfriend.
At about 2 a.m., the roommate of the sister's boyfriend and Xiong came over. The woman saw the defendant and said hello at about 2:30 a.m. before going to bed.
The woman was awakened by a text message from her boyfriend at about 6:30 a.m. She put the dog outside and called the boyfriend back.
The defendant entered the bedroom without knocking and asked if she was OK. Xiong left after the woman said she was fine, but the defendant returned twice more.
On Xiong's fourth visit, he attempted to lock the door and allegedly tried kissing the woman. The woman said no repeatedly and told Xiong she had a boyfriend and wasn't interested.
The defendant allegedly removed the woman's underwear and got on top of her and committed the alleged acts. The woman said she tried to push Xiong away.
The medical exam of the woman showed small cuts on her genitals and redness to her neck and legs.
During defense attorney Erica Graves' cross-examination, D'Amato said the woman had sent several text messages during the alleged incident. The woman asked for someone to remove Xiong, but she didn't write the words rape or help.
Another deputy testified that the alleged incident reportedly ended when the woman's sister entered the room and Xiong ran out.
During arguments, Edwards said there was sufficient evidence to hold Xiong for trial.
Graves said the fact the woman didn't tell anyone she was being raped while trying to communicate with others appeared to be inconsistent with someone being sexually assaulted.
Xiong remains in custody with bail set at $250,000.
Reach reporter Ryan Olson at facebook.com/NorCalJustice and 896-7763.


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IRS starts accepting returns Wednesday
PANAMA CITY — May your refund be bountiful.
The IRS will begin accepting tax returns Wednesday for most filers.
Mike Dobzinski, a spokesman for the IRS in Florida, said "the vast majority" of the more than 120 million households will be OK to file Wednesday. However, those claiming residential energy credits, a depreciation of property credit, some education credits or general business credits will have to wait until mid-February.
IRS officials originally had planned to open the filing process Jan. 22 but had to push that back by eight days as the president and Congress discussed the federal budget and changes to tax policy.
Dobzinski said the IRS does not anticipate any further changes and the April 15 filing deadline will remain in place.
"You can still get an extension for six months if you want. That hasn't changed," Dobzinski said.
The IRS encourages taxpayers to e-file their return and use direct deposit to get their refund. About 80 percent of the county's taxpayers currently file their returns electronically, Dobzinski said.
"It's fast, it's convenient and it's safe," Dobzinski said of e-file. He added direct deposit will ensure the refund doesn't get lost in the mail or end up at the wrong address.
IRS officials also are encouraging taxpayers to research the deductions that apply to them. Floridians who itemize should be sure to claim the state and local sales tax deduction, Dobzinski said. People who bought bi- ticket items in 2012 like cars or boats should claim the deduction if they are entitled, he added. Also, the residential energy tax credit was extended this year, so taxpayers who qualified by putting in the proper windows, insulation, water heaters or other items should get their credit.
Finally, the earned income tax credit for "low-income working Americans" was important to Bay County taxpayers last year and probably will be important again this year. Last year 17,000 taxpayers in Bay County claimed it, getting an average credit of $2,226 for a grand total of about $39 million, Dobzinski said.
Those who are getting a refund usually can expect the money to arrive within 21 days, Dobzinski said.
- What: Those who qualify can get free tax assistance from the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program
- When: Jan. 22 to April 15; Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Where: A.D. Harris Learning Village, 819 E. 11th St.
Click for more info


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The faithful remnant in captivity: "the secret of the Lord" there
Chapter 1 sets before us
the royalty of Judah, formerly established by God over
His people in the person of David, falling under the
power of Nebuchadnezzar; and the king, Jehovah's
anointed, given up by Jehovah into the hands of the head
of the Gentiles, on whom God now bestowed dominion. That
which was announced by Isaiah (chap. 39: 7) falls upon
the children of the royal seed; but God watches over them
and brings them into favour with those that kept them.
This was especially the case with respect to Daniel; The
two characteristics of the faithful remnant in captivity
are prominently marked in this chapter:firstly,
faithful to the will of God, although at a distance from
His temple, they do not defile themselves among the
Gentiles; secondly, their prayer being granted,
understanding is given them, as we see in chapter 2 in
Daniel's case, even the knowledge of that which God alone
can reveal, as well as His purpose in that revelation.
They alone possess this understanding, a token of divine
favour and the fruit of their faithfulness through grace.
This is the case with Daniel in particular, whose faith
and earnest fidelity marks out the path of faith for his
companions. This did not interfere with their subjection
to the Gentiles, whose power was the ordinance of God for
the time being. But this is a most important element: the
place of true knowledge, of intelligence of the divine
mind, what is called the secret of the Lord, in the days
of Babylonish corruption and power, is the thorough
keeping oneself undefiled by the smallest contact with
what it gives, with the meat with which it would feed us.


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(S/M) Adidas crop t-shirt vintage blue
Brand: Adidas
Talla: XL
- Measures
Length: 41cm
Width: 64cm
Shipping information
Shipping information
Every day at 10:00 a.m. orders leave from our workshop. The processing time is usually 1 day, and after sending them, the delivery times are as follows (in working days):
Spain (peninsula): €4.95 – 24/48h
Balearic Islands: €7.20 – 48/72h
Portugal: 7'20€ - 24/48h
As soon as we send your order you will receive a link in your email so you can track it.
vintage goods status
vintage goods status
All our products are vintage and, therefore, show the natural wear and tear of the years. However, none of them have flaws such as tears or stains, and if they do, it is always clarified in the description.
Sizing and measurements
Sizing and measurements
The size is indicative and we define it, so we recommend consulting the measurements for greater accuracy.
Measurements are taken with the garment on plan.


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To be a homophobe in 2014 is, increasingly, to find oneself on the fast track to social scorn. In an environment of growing acceptance, we condemn homophobic feelings, particularly in men, because we think they come from inside the individual and are thus his full responsibility. A man who says hateful things about gays is "backward." He's protecting his social status, or maybe he's secretly gay himself. He needs to grow up or come out already.
However, the continued existence of homophobia—despite the obvious downsides—raises questions about its basic nature: Do psychological theories like those above really explain why gayness, specifically, evokes such fear, the kind that can sometimes even lead to violent speech and action? Do they account for why homophobia is such an easy bulwark against masculine insecurity? Why does coming out seem so impossible to some men? The only way to answer these questions is to stop thinking of homophobia as a personal choice and understand it as the inevitable and deliberate result of the culture in which American men are raised.
Clearly, men in America have grown up learning to be scared of gayness. But not only for the reasons we typically think—not only, in the end, because of religion, insecurity about their own sexuality, or a visceral aversion to other men's penises. The truth is, they're afraid because heterosexuality is so fragile.
Heterosexuality's power lies in perception, not physical truth—as long as people think you're exclusively attracted to the right gender, you're golden. But perception is a precarious thing; a "zero-tolerance" policy has taught men that the way people think of them can change permanently with one slip, one little kiss or too-intimate friendship. And once lost, it can be nearly impossible to reclaim.
Put another way, the zero-tolerance rule means that if a man makes one "wrong" move—kisses another man in a moment of drunken fun, say—he is immediately assumed to be gay. Women have a certain amount of freedom to play with their sexuality (mostly because society has a hard time believing in lesbian sex at all). Male sexuality, on the other hand, is understood as unidirectional. Once young men realize they are gay, they become A Gay Person. We don't hear about gay men discovering an interest in women later in life, and we rarely believe men when they say they are bisexual—the common, if erroneous, wisdom is that any man who says he is bi is really just gay and hasn't admitted it yet.
The result of all this is that men are not allowed "complex" sexualities; once the presumption of straightness has been shattered, a dude is automatically gay. That narrative does not allow much freedom to explore even fleeting same-sex attractions without a permanent commitment. I knew a guy who, straight in high school, hooked up with dudes for the first semester of college. He was then in a monogamous relationship with a woman for the rest of college; in the weeks before graduation, I would still hear people express confusion about the existence of their relationship.
The zero-tolerance policy is legitimately scary, then, not just because it sticks you with a label, but also because it erases a lifetime of straightness. One semester of experimentation was worth more than every other hook-up and romance of this guy's life—both before and afterward.
Indeed, such erasure is scary even if homosexuality itself isn't a bad thing. Even if religion and Esquire didn't teach men to be scared of each other's bodies, they would still be afraid of the way a brush with gayness can so suddenly erase the rest of their sexuality. With so much on the line, it's no surprise that men take up the job of policing this boundary themselves, lest it be policed by someone else, to their detriment.
It's worth noting that men confront their fear with brilliant creativity. High-schoolers accuse each other, their activities, and even objects of being gay with precisely the zero-tolerance attitude that they themselves are navigating. A popular game in high school was "fag tag," where boys slap each other's packages with the back of their hands. In college they played chicken, where two guys each slide their hand up the other one's inner thigh. Whoever gets freaked out first loses—or wins, really. These games aren't just grounded in disgust with homosex; they are playing out exactly what society has taught men about heterosexuality: One wrong move, and you'll be permanently marked.
Homophobia, then, is precisely a fear, and one that these men are not at all foolish for entertaining. The behavior it engenders is a perceptive response to a sick system, rather than a sickness itself. That's why I don't hold a grudge against the kids in high school who said "fag," or the occasional bartender who makes a weird comment about my date—they're understandably more scared of me than I am of them.


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The case against evidence
From fingerprints to high-tech CSI, forensic science plays a much smaller role than you would think
At criminal trials, there is always talk about doubt, reasonable doubt. But in recent years, with the rise of DNA technology and other forensic evidence techniques, many Americans have a growing sense of confidence, if not certainty, that we're locking up the guilty and freeing the innocent. The backbone of modern justice, it seems, is not a judge in a long, black robe, presiding over a courtroom, but a forensic analyst in a crisp, white coat, laboring over a microscope. In science we trust.
A 2006 survey of more than 1,000 Michigan jurors found that nearly half of the jurors expected to see some sort of scientific evidence in every criminal trial. Nearly 75 percent expected to see scientific evidence presented in murder trials. And still another study, published just this year, found that people trusted such evidence almost blindly. In this study, a random sample of 1,201 potential jurors in California said they considered scientific evidence, like DNA and fingerprints, to be far more reliable than the testimony of police officers, eyewitnesses, or even the victims themselves.
Prosecutors call it the CSI effect, suggesting that fictional television shows, like the long-running "CSI," helped convince science-wary Americans to believe in the power of forensics. But the facts haven't hurt, either. At trial, when possible, prosecutors are always keen on
calling forensic experts to testify — even when no forensic evidence has been found. Failure to do so, prosecutors say, would almost surely sink their chances of winning a conviction.
But does forensic evidence really matter as much as we believe? New research suggests no, arguing that we have overrated the role that it plays in the arrest and prosecution of American criminals.
A study, reviewing 400 murder cases in five jurisdictions, found that the presence of forensic evidence had very little impact on whether an arrest would be made, charges would be filed, or a conviction would be handed down in court.
A mere 13.5 percent of the murder cases reviewed actually had physical evidence that linked the suspect to the crime scene or victim. The conviction rate in those cases was only slightly higher than the rate among all other cases in the sample. And for the most part, the hard, scientific evidence celebrated by crime dramas simply did not surface. According to the research, investigators found some kind of biological evidence 38 percent of the time, latent fingerprints 28 percent of the time, and DNA in just 4.5 percent of homicides.
"Forensics had no bearing on the outcome at all," said Ira Sommers, professor of criminal justice at California State University, Los Angeles, who coauthored the research with colleague and fellow professor Deborah Baskin. "It was not a significant predictor of the district attorney charging the case and had no relation to actually getting a conviction. That's a pretty stunning finding considering all the hype around forensic evidence."
And according to Baskin and Sommers, there's reason to believe that the findings aren't limited to murder cases alone. In research yet to be published, the California professors say they have made similar conclusions regarding the small role that forensic evidence plays in solving other crimes as well. In assault, robbery, and burglary cases, investigators collect forensic evidence less than a third of the time, the researchers have found, and only a small fraction of that evidence ever gets submitted to a lab for study, making it essentially "a nonfactor," Sommers said, "a rare phenomenon."
The new research, to be published in the Journal of Criminal Justice, comes at a time when forensic science is already under siege, with some questioning whether certain forensic practices are even that scientific. The National Academy of Sciences authored a report last year questioning the reliability of many forensic methods, deploring the lack of standardization and certification within the trade, and calling for sweeping reforms. The report, which gave voice to concerns that many forensic scientists had been whispering for years, reached the White House, where President Obama directed a subcommittee on forensic science to study the suddenly prickly matter.
That committee is expected to report its findings and make policy suggestions in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, twice in the last 18 months, the Senate Judiciary Committee has held hearings generally bemoaning the state of American forensic science — and perhaps with good reason.
Hundreds of crime labs across the country are unaccredited; laws in most states don't require them to be. And even those with accreditation have had problems. In 2008, the city of Detroit shuttered its crime lab after an audit found a 10 percent error rate in ballistic evidence. Last year, New York's inspector general chastised the state police there for overlooking evidence that a crime lab analyst was fabricating data. Just last spring, San Francisco was forced to shutter its drug analysis unit after allegations that an analyst was skimming seized drugs for personal use. And Massachusetts hasn't been immune to problems. In 2007, the state Executive Office of Public Safety commissioned a report that documented a backlog of untested DNA from 16,000 cases, including homicides and sexual assaults — a discovery that the report labeled "a crisis."
Meanwhile, across the country, a backlog of DNA evidence continues to fester and grow despite the $330 million dedicated since 2004 to attack the mountain of untested evidence. The problem, according to a special report published in June by the National Institute of Justice, is that crime labs' capacity for the work has not kept pace with increased demand for testing. The scientific samples just keep coming in, queuing up to be analyzed.
"I think the district attorney is just like us, just like everybody," said Sergeant Paul McLaughlin, supervisor of one of the homicide squads at the Boston Police Department. "The more the better. The more of this stuff you can get, the more they like it."
Police investigators first began using forensics — specifically, fingerprint identification — near the turn of the 20th century. And as late as the 1960s, such information — as valuable as it was — was stored on rudimentary cards, recalled Frank Jordan, San Francisco's former chief of police, forcing police officers seeking an identification to wade into a sea of paper.
"You had reams and reams of files — file cards with fingerprints — and you had to check them, by hand, in our crime lab," recalled Jordan, a 33-year veteran of the force before his retirement in 1990. "It could easily take a couple of weeks to do that. And if you were going further, and sending it on to the national lab, it would take another three to four weeks again."
Computerization began altering that in the 1980s, Jordan said. And soon thereafter, DNA changed the entire ballgame. In 1990, a federal report determined that DNA evidence was "both reliable and valid." Police and prosecutors quickly began seeking out such evidence, given its power to link a suspect to a crime scene — or exclude a suspect from a crime scene — through a genetic footprint.
Since 1989, according to the Innocence Project, a legal clinic dedicated to exonerating the wrongfully convicted, 261 people have been exonerated and freed from prison due to DNA evidence. And every day, in courtrooms across the country, prosecutors use such evidence to lock up the guilty.
"I can name, off the top of my head, a dozen cases that were practically solved exclusively through forensic evidence," said Patrick Haggan, chief trial counsel for the Suffolk County district attorney's office. "It was the main — if not the only — evidence presented to the jury."
Undeniably, Haggan is right. Across the country, there are many examples where the discovery of DNA, or other scientific evidence, cracked a case that had long gone cold. Just last month in Suffolk Superior Court, prosecutors won a murder conviction in a case that had gone unsolved for 26 years, thanks to DNA that finally linked a career criminal to the rape and murder of an 18-year-old woman.
But Baskin and Sommers say that forensic evidence, while compelling, isn't nearly as important to a murder case as other factors. Analyzing 400 murder cases committed in 2003 in California's Los Angeles County, Indianapolis, and three smaller Indiana cities, the researchers found that cases were more likely to end up in court if witnesses came forward or if the victim and the suspect knew each other. Such factors made cases easier to solve and, apparently, easier to prosecute, according to the research, while, on the other hand, forensic evidence was "not a significant factor."
"I think it's pretty clear that forensic evidence has at best a limited impact on criminal case outcomes — at best," Baskin said. "Really, it's not determinant in the vast majority of cases. It does not significantly impact the conviction of cases. And I think the other point is, few cases actually have forensic evidence."
Perhaps not surprisingly, these findings have not been met with universal applause among investigators, prosecutors, and the people actually doing the work: forensic analysts.
"You're telling me that it doesn't have anything to do with the prosecution?" said Pete M. Marone, who oversees Virginia's four state crime labs and who served on the National Academy of Sciences panel that authored last year's report on the state of American forensics. "If it's insignificant or inconsequential, then why do my people always have to go testify why they didn't find DNA?"
Haggan went a step further, saying the new research seemed "completely inaccurate." He suggested that a broad overview of cases misses the subtleties within a trial and cannot account for how the mere presence of forensic evidence forces the defense to change its tactics. Take, for example, he said, the 2005 murder of cab driver Heureur Previlon in Brighton, in which police linked two suspects to the crime scene through blood found on their clothes. "By placing them at the scene," Haggan said, "they could no longer claim they didn't do it. They had to go with self-defense."
However, both police and prosecutors acknowledge that there is some truth in the new findings. DNA evidence in homicide cases can be hard to come by, they acknowledge, especially in gang-related incidents, drive-by shootings, and cases where victims were randomly targeted. In Fresno, Calif., this year, police have investigated 38 murders, but found DNA in just four, according to Captain Dennis Bridges, commander of the Fresno Police Department's violent crime bureau. And even if they had DNA evidence in more cases, Bridges added, detectives wouldn't know that for days, maybe weeks, after the crime. What matters in the immediate aftermath of a murder, he said, is finding eyewitnesses — just as the new research concludes.
Eyewitness testimony has its own flaws; recent studies have documented deficiencies in our ability to accurately identify our attackers. But police and prosecutors agree that jurors want to hear from real people just like them, who happened to see something horrifying.
"Every case is different. But in the vast majority of extremely serious cases, you need a mix of percipient witnesses and corroboration through forensic evidence," said Middlesex District Attorney Gerard T. Leone. "If all you have is forensic evidence — even if it's ultra-definitive on its face; DNA matching the defendant and it's in a critical place — jurors still want to hear from people."
Given that reality — and the new findings — Baskin and Sommers say the lesson is clear: Police should spend more time out in the community before a homicide happens, making connections with everyday people, especially in high-crime neighborhoods, so that when a dead body turns up on a street corner, investigators have a better chance of getting witnesses to come forward.
But there's also a secondary lesson, they say, about American society at large and the paradoxical nature of what we say we expect and what we really want. Potential jurors may say in surveys that they want scientific evidence in a criminal trial or that they find DNA evidence more reliable than the testimony of others. "But when push comes to shove," Baskin said, "they're still convinced by someone else testifying that they saw it."
In this way, perhaps very little has changed about criminal trials. Perhaps modern justice isn't so modern after all. Despite all our scientific know-how, jurors weighing life and death decisions still crave what Leone calls the "human element:" the act of watching another person testify and deciding if they're telling the truth.
As these witnesses enter the courtroom, a hush often falls on the gallery. Jurors — bored by days of dry testimony given by well-rehearsed experts — lean forward in their seats, pens at the ready to take notes about what the eyewitness has to say. They have seen this moment on television, too, and it's usually really, really interesting.
Freelance writer Keith O'Brien, winner of the Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism, is a former staff writer for the Globe. E-mail him at email@example.com.


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The Global Carbon Project just released their annual report ('Carbon Budget 2007'), which makes for rather depressing reading, at least if you were hoping for a turn-around any time soon in global carbon emissions. The media release associated with the report is packed with good information, and so I'll reproduce it at the end of this blog post. There have also been some news reports on this in the Australian and international media in which I am quoted, such as here, here and here.
My comments on the report, made to AusSMC, are as follows:
The carbon emissions growth story coming out of the latest Global Carbon Project analyses isn't getting any brighter. At the average rate of CO2 accumulation in the atmosphere over the last few years, we'll reach a concentration of 450 parts per million by about the year 2040. And that's an optimistic outlook under a business-as-usual economic scenario, if carbon 'sinks' in the ocean miraculously cease their decline in effectiveness, and industrial emissions growth somehow stagnates at the current output. A more realistic projection, accounting for further decline in carbon sinks and ramping up of industrial activity, suggests 2030 is a plausible timeline. But whatever the specific date, 450ppm CO2 commits us to >2 degrees C global warming and all the disastrous consequences this sets in train.
Of particular concern is that emissions from deforestation (mostly the burning of rain forest) in our nearest tropical neighbour region, Southeast Asia, continue to skyrocket. Not only is this damaging to this area's rich biodiversity (because habitat is degraded and fragmented), but it also has a huge impact on the region's carbon budget. Yet Southeast Asia, like Australia is particularly susceptible to the impacts of climate change from sea level rise and changes in rainfall patterns. Emissions from Southeast Asian forest loss now exceed those of Latin America or Africa – truly the global 'hotspot' of CO2 from deforestation. Australia's regional role in abatement has never been clearer.
Each year that Australia's industrial emissions and Southeast Asia's forestry emissions continues to grow, our chances of avoiding the worst consequences of climate change diminish. Are we willing to continue to act like a lazy audience in a movie theatre, watching passively as a disaster film plays out in slow motion, in which we are the real-life actors? Who is going to ask the projectionist to turn off the reel before we get to the disturbing climax and the end credits start to roll?
This report is timely in the sense that it is a good lead in to another blog post I plan to make within the next few days, which will try to clarify the confusion around whether we are currently at atmospheric concentrations of 455 or 380 ppm CO2-equivalent. The answer is very much that… it depends…
(I also suggest you grab the PDF of their PowerPoint presentation, which has some excellent visuals)
[ppm = parts per million, 1 Pg = petagram (1 billion or 1000 x million tons), C = carbon (multiply by 3.6 to get mass in terms of CO2)].
Atmospheric CO2 growth
Annual mean growth rate of atmospheric CO2 was 2.2 ppm per year in 2007 (up from 1.8 ppm in 2006), and above the 2.0 ppm average for the period 2000-2007. The average annual mean growth rate for the previous 20 years was about 1.5 ppm per year. This increase brought the atmospheric CO2 concentration to 383 ppm in 2007, 37% above the concentration at the start of the industrial revolution (about 280 ppm in 1750). The present concentration is the highest during the last 650,000 years and probably during the last 20 million years.
Emissions from land use change
Land use change was responsible for estimated net emissions of 1.5 PgC per year to the atmosphere. This is largely the difference between CO2 emissions from deforestation and CO2 uptake by reforestation. Emissions for 2006 and 2007 were extrapolated from the previous 25-year trend of 1.5 PgC per year. Land use change emissions come almost exclusively from deforestation in tropical countries with an estimated 41% from South and Central America, 43% from South and Southeast Asia, and 17% from Africa. An estimated 160 PgC were emitted to the atmosphere from land use change during the period 1850-2007.
Emissions from fossil fuel and cement
Emissions increased from 6.2 PgC per year in 1990 to 8.5 PgC in 2007, a 38% increase from the Kyoto reference year 1990. The growth rate of emissions was 3.5% per year for the period of 2000-2007, an almost four fold increase from 0.9% per year in 1990-1999. The actual emissions growth rate for 2000-2007 exceeded the highest forecast growth rates for the decade 2000-2010 in the emissions scenarios of the Intergovermental Panel on Climate Change, Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (IPCC-SRES). This makes current trends in emissions higher than the worst case IPCC-SRES scenario. Fossil fuel and cement emissions released approximately 348 PgC to the atmosphere from 1850 to 2007.
Regional fossil fuel emissions
The biggest increase in emissions has taken place in developing countries, largely in China and India, while developed countries have been growing slowly. The largest regional shift was that China passed the U.S. in 2006 to become the largest CO2 emitter, and India will soon overtake Russia to become the third largest emitter. Currently, more than half of the global emissions come from less developed countries. From a historical perspective, developing countries with 80% of the world's population still account for only 20% of the cumulative emissions since 1751; the poorest countries in the world, with 800 million people, have contributed less than 1% of these cumulative emissions.
Carbon intensity of the economy
After decades of improvements, the carbon intensity of the global economy, the carbon emitted per unit of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), was stalled during the period 2003-2005. This change was largely caused by China's rapidly growing share in economic output and carbon emissions. Since 2005 China's energy intensity (which underpins carbon intensity) has decreased (improved) by 1.2% in 2006 and 3.7% in 2007 compared to 2005 levels (according to the National Energy Administration in China).
CO2 removal by natural sinks
Natural land and ocean CO2 sinks have removed 54% (or 4.8 PgC per year) of all CO2 emitted from human activities during the period 2000-2007. The size of the natural sinks has grown in proportion to increasing atmospheric CO2. However, the efficiency of these sinks in removing CO2 has decreased by 5% over the last 50 years, and will continue to do so in the future. That is, 50 years ago, for every ton of CO2 emitted to the atmosphere, natural sinks removed 600 kg. Currently, the sinks are removing only 550 kg for every ton of CO2 emitted, and this amount is falling.
Natural Ocean CO2 sinks
The global oceanic CO2 sink removed 25% of all CO2 emissions for the period 2000-2007, equivalent to an average of 2.3 PgC per year. The size of the CO2 sink in 2007 was similar to that in the previous year but lower by 0.1 PgC compared to its expected increase from atmospheric CO2 growth. This was due to the presence of a La Nina event in the equatorial Pacific. The Southern Ocean CO2 sink was higher in 2007 compared to 2006, consistent with the relatively weak winds and the low Southern Annular Mode (a circumpolar pressure oscillation between Antarctica and southern mid-latitudes). An analysis of the long term trend of the ocean sink shows a slower growth than expected of the CO2 sink over the last 20 years.
Natural Land CO2 sinks
Terrestrial CO2 sinks removed 29% of all anthropogenic emissions for the period 2000-2007, equivalent to an average of 2.6 PgC per year. Terrestrial ecosystems removed 2.9 PgC in 2007, down from 3.6 Pg in 2006, largely showing the high year-to-year variability of the sink. An analysis of the long term trend of the terrestrial sink shows a growing size of the CO2 sink over the last 50 years.
Conclusions. Anthropogenic CO2 emissions have been growing about four times faster since 2000 than during the previous decade, and despite efforts to curb emissions in a number of countries which are signatories of the Kyoto Protocol. Emissions from the combustion of fossil fuel and land use change reached the mark of 10 billion tones of carbon in 2007. Natural CO2 sinks are growing, but more slowly than atmospheric CO2, which has been growing at 2 ppm per year since 2000. This is 33% faster than during the previous 20 years. All of these changes characterize a carbon cycle that is generating stronger climate forcing and sooner than expected.


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Time Machine Tour Bonus Material
Taken from the DVD - Time Machine Tour
A selection of clips taken from Cliff's DVD collection, including Castles In The Air, On The Beach, The Soulicious Tour, The Time Machine Tour, Still Reelin' And A'Rockin' - Live In Sydney and the 75th Birthday Tour. Enjoy!
Taken from the DVD - Time Machine Tour


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Giants beat Rangers 11-8; own best Spring record
Surprise, Ariz. – The Giants defeated the Rangers 11-8 today in front of a record crowd of 12,014 at Surprise Stadium. Ryan Vogelsong started the game for the Giants and earned the win, tossing 4.0 innings with 2 strikeouts while allowing 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks. Shane Loux earned the save, throwing 0.1-inning.
<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri SF plated 2 runs in the top of the 1st after Pablo Sandoval tripled to score Mike Fontenot, who reached base on a fielder's choice. Sandoval was then knocked in by Cody Ross, who had a 2-out single.
The Giants scored 5 runs on 5 hits in the 4th inning. Brandon Belt knocked in Pablo Sandoval with a double to right. Nate Schierholtz, Chris Stewart and Andres Torres all singled and were driven in by Mike Fontenot, who hit a high flyball to centerfield, which fell to the ground after being lost in the sun.
SF added two more runs in the 6th after Schierholtz hit his first spring home run, a 2-run clout, giving the Giants 9-4 lead. The Giants added to their lead in the top of the 9th inning with 2 more runs to put the game away for good.
Torres finished the game with a pair of singles and Sandoval went 2-for-3 with a triple, RBI and 2 runs scored. Schierholtz had a 2-for-3 day with HR and 2 RBI.
Tomorrow, the Giants host the Milwaukee Brewers at Scottsdale Stadium. The Giants will send RHP Matt Cain to the mound to face LHP Randy Wolf of the Brewers. Game time is at 1:05 p.m. and can be heard at sfgiants.com.
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Two years, I've been blogging about mystery novels. Well, two years and three days, but what's three days between friends? Throughout this time, I've kept one thing foremost in my mind – read what I want to read.
Despite this being a book review blog, I don't want to give bad reviews to anything, as that will mean that I've wasted my time reading something I didn't enjoy. If someone asks me to review something that is outside my comfort zone, I've adopted (after one unfortunate experience) a suck-it-and-see policy. If I don't like it after a few chapters, then I won't finish it and I won't mention it on my blog. Of course, if I've paid for something and get to the end… sorry, dear author, but then I'll talk about it.
I digress. As I said, I read what I want to read. And more often than not, it's an historical mystery. And if it's an historical mystery, then more often than not, it's by Paul Doherty. (That's possibly not quite true, but I imagine, dear reader, that it feels like it sometimes.) And so, despite only reading one a couple of books ago, I was in the mood. Hugh Corbett (one of Doherty's strongest series) book fourteen. Any guesses what I thought of it?
Well, I'll keep the summary simple.
1303, Corfe Castle. Many local girls murdered with a crossbow. Roger Bacon's secret papers. French scholars. Corbett's arch enemy. A locked room murder. Oh, and pirates. Lots of pirates.
And I'll keep the review simple.
Outstanding – one of Doherty's finest. Two well constructed parallel mysteries, along with well-hidden solutions. Get it now.
Where can I find a copy?
Some paperback copies are still knocking around, or it's available as a mid-price ebook.
And finally…
This is the last post before Christmas, so I'd like to wish my readers a Happy Christmas and a well-read New Year.