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Lots of comment on the partnership between PR Newswire and Technorati, but the most interesting I've seen is Ian Delaney on why it's helping to make journalism tougher and raising the quality standard.
A journalist can't get away with simply editing a news release – because everyone can see the original and do it themselves. This means the journalist has to do proper research such as phone calls to check facts and get background.


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The Weight of Expectations
By Danny Gray11 years ago
The Leafs have started the month of November 2-2. Now feels like an appropriate time to remind everyone about the cognitive bias known as anchoring.
In case you forgot, or have not read the article I wrote about it over the summer here is a brief refresher:
Anchoring is a cognitive bias that causes people to rely on one piece of information when making a judgment or decisions. Most often we "anchor" any subsequent analysis to the first piece of evidence or information we encounter. This all occurs subconsciously. For example, students taking part in a study were asked simply to write down the last two digits of their Social Security Number. Professors then auctioned off a series of items to the highest bidder. They found that students with higher Social Security Numbers were willing to pay more for an item than those with lower ones. Simply thinking about a number influenced their perception of the objects' value.
You can read the full article here.
9-3-1. That was the Leafs' record on November 4. Those were the days. Two straight losses have engendered an existential crisis among many fans. What has happened to the Leafs? Why has Phil Kessel not scored a hat-trick this month? What we need to remember is that despite two straight losses this team is still outperforming expectations. While awesome a 9-3-1 start was entirely unexpected by anyone paying close attention to this team.
Almost every single knowledgeable observer forecast that this Leafs team, while improved, would fight for a playoff spot all year and likely finish somewhere between 7-10 in the Eastern Conference. This has not changed. What changed are our expectations. The Leafs' unfathomably hot start has created an anchor in the minds of many fans. If this is the standard by which they will be judged for the rest of the season, prepare to be disappointed.
The month of October should not change your evaluation of this team. The Leafs will still have to fight for a playoff spot. They will still likely finish somewhere between 7th and 10th in the East.
The only conclusions that can be drawn from the month of October are as follows:
- The Leafs are an improved team.
- They have the ability to play excellent, playoff worthy hockey.
- These points are money in the bank for when they inevitably regress.
The Leafs are 2-2 thus far in the month of November. Something fans' would have been perfectly happy about if told before the month of October.
Recent articles from Danny Gray

subset: commoncrawl


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Baking soda and vinegar: the only cleaning products you should ever buy
From getting stains out of carpet to deodorizing the garbage disposal, you'd be hard pressed to find a cleaning problem either baking soda or vinegar can't fix.
Baking soda and vinegar are two things that I always buy in bulk, simply because they both offer up so many uses at such an inexpensive price. Most of this post is going to consist of a list of things you can do with these items outside of cooking, but I'm going to restrict it to things I've done myself. There are many more uses out there.
Baking soda alone can be used to remove odors from almost anything, from refrigerators to carpet. Just sprinkle some in the offending area (on the carpet, in your shoes) and let it sit or put some on a plate and let it sit. It just sucks the odor right out of there.
If you mix enough water with baking soda to make a paste, it works well as a toothpaste, a facial scrub, and as a sunburn reliever. I actually have some baking soda paste applied right now to my left shoulder to alleviate sunburn. It will work on pretty much any minor skin irritation, too.
If you've got heartburn, mix a teaspoon of baking soda in a cup of water and drink it. It cures my heartburn more effectively than almost anything else.
Pour a spoonful in a dirty or smelly toilet bowl and leave it sit for a couple of hours. The odor will go away, as will at least some of the stain (if not all of it).
There are more esoteric uses as well, such as putting a couple pinches of baking soda in the water you use to soak dry beans to reduce the "gassiness" of the beans.
What about vinegar?
Pour some vinegar on unwanted grass or weeds at full strength and those weeds will shrivel up and die. This works great for sidewalk cleanup.
Use half a cup of vinegar in lieu of laundry softener to make your clothes feel wonderfully soft (there's no vinegar smell, either). It also helps to brighten up bright colors.
You can remove many stains from fabrics by applying a mix of one part vinegar to four parts water. This mix gets rid of many minor stains. If the stain is tough, apply some pure vinegar directly to the stain (it gets rid of coffee stains, for example).
Mix five parts water to one part vinegar in a spray bottle to wash windows (it's a lot cheaper than Windex and works just as well).
If you have some wilted vegetables, soak them in water with a teaspoon of vinegar and they'll freshen up quite a bit.
If you have hard water stains, soak a cloth with vinegar and let the cloth sit on those stains. This does a great job of removing them.
You can really deodorize the garbage disposal by making some vinegar ice cubes. Toss these cubes down the drain, then run the disposal with some cold water.
These uses just scratch the surface – they just happen to be the ones I've found useful in the last year or so. A simple Google search will find you many, many more ideas (some untested, I'm sure).
This post is part of a yearlong series called "365 Ways to Live Cheap (Revisited)," in which I'm revisiting the entries from my book "365 Ways to Live Cheap," which is available at Amazon and at bookstores everywhere. Images courtesy of Brittany Lynne Photography, the proprietor of which is my "photography intern" for this project.


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University co-hosts conference to inspire collaboration, preservation of grasslands
Monday, Aug. 5, 2013
MANHATTAN -- Nearly 200 researchers, students, ranchers and conservationists will gather in Manhattan Aug. 12-14 for the biennial America's Grasslands Conference. The event will focus on the status, threats and opportunities facing America's declining grasslands.
It is the first time for Kansas State University to host the conference, which will be at the Hilton Garden Inn, 410 S. Third St., Manhattan. The event is co-hosted by the National Wildlife Federation.
This year's conference, "America's Grasslands: The Future of Grasslands in a Changing Landscape," will focus on collaborating with ranchers to conserve grasslands.
"Native grasslands and the wildlife that depend on them are disappearing at alarming rates," said Aviva Glaser, agriculture policy specialist at the National Wildlife Federation. "This conference will bring together scientific experts, resource managers, ranchers, conservationists, policy experts and many other stakeholders to discuss the major threats and opportunities associated with conserving grasslands in a changing landscape."
"We want to do what we can to help the conservation and careful management of the American grassland," said John Briggs, Kansas State University professor of biology who is helping organize the conference. "It's going to take all of these groups working together. We can't just work in a vacuum."
Conference events will also take place at the Manhattan Conference Center, which is connected to the Hilton Garden Inn. The nearby new Flint Hills Discovery Center and the Konza Prairie Biological Station made Manhattan a natural fit for this year's conference, said Briggs, who is also director of the Konza Prairie Biological Station. The last conference, in Sioux Falls, S.D., two years ago, attracted more than 250 people.
On Aug. 12, conference participants will have the option to tour local grasslands, including the Flint Hills Native Tallgrass Prairie and the Konza Prairie Biological Station. Aug. 13 and 14 will include breakout sessions, presentations, posters and round-table discussion surrounding a variety of topics related to native grassland conservation and restoration. An opening reception on Aug. 12 will take place in the Flint Hills Discovery Center and a dinner on Aug. 13 at the Konza Prairie Biological Station will give participants the chance to talk informally and collaborate.
Kansas State University and the offices of the provost, vice president for research, dean of agriculture and dean of arts and sciences have provided $5,000 total to cover the cost of registration for several graduate students. The funds are supporting graduate students from 10 different universities, including graduate students at Kansas State University.
Sponsors of the conference include National Wildlife Federation, World Wildlife Fund, Environmental Defense Fund, The Nature Conservancy, Ducks Unlimited, Sharp Brothers Seed Co., Grassland Heritage Foundation and the Consortium for Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability. Many other organizations will attend, as well as state and federal government officials, ranchers from across the plains and several members of Native American tribes.
More information about the conference is available at http://www.nwf.org/What-We-Do/Protect-Habitat/Healthy-Forests-and-Farms/Americas-Grasslands-Conference.aspx.


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The Canon kit lowering the barriers for filmmakers
Discover how Canon technology is opening up access to filmmaking and challenging the old constraints of cost, complexity and time.
For every image a photographer shares with an audience, there are many others sitting unseen in personal archives – some stored, some discarded and some forgotten. But as a photographer's archive is a valuable resource, a reliable and efficient photo management system is an important business tool, both for unearthing hidden gems and forging new opportunities.
As a full-time professional photographer and filmmaker, Canon Ambassador Clive Booth has amassed huge numbers of images working on advertising campaigns, commercials and short films for corporate clients including ASUS and Intel, fashion labels such as House of Holland and luxury brands Hackett London and Aston Martin.
"I'm sitting on tens of thousands of images," he says. "At the office I have an 80TB mirrored RAID with back-up." Clive, who originally trained as a graphic designer before working for the BBC as a cameraman, has learnt the importance of having an effective photo management system to easily access his diverse image archive, from fashion and beauty to portraiture.
Here he reveals how he conscientiously organises his extensive image library, and outlines the benefits of having a reliable back-up strategy, while Chris Cartledge, Product Marketing Specialist at Canon Europe, shares the benefits of Canon's new cloud-based photo platform, image.canon.
Like many professionals, Clive takes full advantage of both local and cloud-based storage and editing. "I always shoot in RAW," he says. "I use a non-destructive workflow [making changes without overwriting the original image data] across desktop and cloud, so I can jump straight from my laptop to my smartphone and continue to edit. Everything I can do on the desktop I can do from the palm of my hand.
"There's a really great argument for using files this way. I shot some images the other day and I can go through any of the galleries on my phone – all the RAW files sit in the cloud – and the adjustments to the previews are in sync with my laptop."
New service image.canon offers photographers free cloud storage and seamless transfer of images, straight from a Canon camera. Replacing Canon's iMage Gateway, image.canon provides a centralised hub where photos and movies – including RAW images and 4K clips – can be safely stored and readily accessed for 30 days.
"Almost all Wi-Fi-enabled Canon cameras are compatible, and cameras released after the launch of image.canon will automatically transfer images and movies to the service when connected to the internet," explains Chris.
"The initial version of the image.canon service will allow users to store up to 10GB of photos and movies in long-term online storage, and transfer an unlimited number of photos and movies to a connected service such as Google Drive and directly to a home computer," explains Chris.
image.canon provides long-term storage of an entire photographic library in social media size, plus 10GB available to store the most important original pictures in full resolution (including RAW). The cloud-based service is set to expand during the year to further complement Canon's Digital Photo Professional (DPP) editing software.
Clive keeps every image he takes, doing varying degrees of edit depending on his preferences. "I never delete a file, RAW or JPEG," he says. "I'll do a one to five-star edit. The five, four and maybe three-star selections are the photos I'm sure I want to keep."
When developing a photo management system, it's crucial to build in protections, including embedding copyright information into each image's EXIF data and ensuring files are named appropriately for ease of use.
"Images tend to end up everywhere in this day and age, so it's important to include your copyright and other relevant information – usage instructions, contact details and agent's details if you have one – on every single one," says Clive. "I add my copyright information and then categorise them in named folders on a drive.
"What I should do, and I know I should do, is keyword everything – but I don't. I think a lot of creatives are the same – I just want to get at the image files." If adding keywords to all files seems too daunting, it can be incredibly valuable to add just a few to help when hunting for specific images at a later date.
The key is to keep them relevant, says Clive. "Make the extra effort and put in a few keywords, such as people's names."
Whether you're working in the studio or shooting on location, Clive stresses how essential it is to make a back-up and then a second – and keep them apart, ideally storing one off-site in the cloud.
"I can tell you some horror stories," he says. "One photographer had an intricate scale model of an oil refinery built in the desert. After the shoot, the model was taken down. That night their vehicle was broken into and the image drives were stolen. The team had to completely rebuild the model and reshoot it. Imagine how you and your clients would feel if you couldn't reshoot – if it was one-off, like a wedding…"
"If I'm working on location with my laptop, everything gets backed up to two ultra-portable 2TB SSDs, which I then separate in case something happens to them. The worst mistake you can make is to delete a folder that you haven't backed up. My biggest fear is losing data, which is why cloud storage is so important."
Written by
*As of May 2020, cameras that use the CR3 RAW format can transfer RAW images to image.canon. RAW files from cameras that record in the CR2 format may be supported in a future service update.
Discover how Canon technology is opening up access to filmmaking and challenging the old constraints of cost, complexity and time.
Discover how the flagship Full Frame mirrorless camera's video capabilities make it the future-proof choice for creative filmmakers and photographers.
The filmmakers of Lance, La Leyenda Negra, Mucho Mucho Amor and No, I Don't Want to Dance! explain why they chose Canon kit and how they used it.
Think the future is mirrorless? Action sports photographer Samo Vidic and Canon product expert Mike Burnhill reveal where DSLRs still have the edge.
Click here to get inspiring stories and exciting news from Canon Europe Pro


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Hawaii Times Building penthouse in downtown Honolulu for sale or lease
The historic Hawaii Times building makes a perfect home base for anyone who works downtown or in Chinatown. It's conveniently located right next door to O'Tooles Irish pub and nearby Kumu Kahua Theatre, and the building is just a step away from Chinatown and the downtown central business district.
With just 15 residential units, though, there's rarely an opportunity to snag an apartment here, but right now, there's not one but two units available. We recently covered a studio in the building; now, a 2,177-square-foot penthouse unit is up for sale or lease.
There's a private kitchen with a raised bar, one bathroom, a lanai and large windows with views overlooking the Honolulu Harbor. It's perfect if you want to stay inside and avoid the crowds—you'll be able to see the fireworks displays over Aloha Tower on New Year's Eve and Fourth of July. A bonus: There's plenty of natural lighting and there's even access to the building's rooftop deck to check out panoramic views of the city and harbor.
There are remnants of the previous tenant, The Limtiaco Company, including bookcases attached to the wall and IT wiring. But this place is definitely huge, there were so many rooms it felt like walking through a maze. It is a spacious unit with large ceilings, so you won't feel cramped. Happy house hunting!
Money talk: Call for pricing.
Contact: Jodi Aurely, American Land Company, Ltd., 808-536-6111, email@example.com.


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Zevachim 16-22
History of the Bama
Offering a sacrifice to Heaven on a bama a private altar was permissible during certain periods in history. Until the Mishkan was built in the Wilderness and during the first 14 years following the arrival in Eretz Yisrael, when this sanctuary was in Gilgal, the bama was legitimate. During the 369 years when a more permanent sanctuary stood in Shiloh the bama was outlawed. It regained its legitimacy when that sanctuary was destroyed and relocated to Nov and then Givon for a period of 57 years. Once the Beit Hamikdash was built in Jerusalem the bama was outlawed forever.
During the periods of the Mishkan in the Wilderness and its stationing in Shiloh, and during the Beit Hamikdash era, only a kohen could perform the service of offering a sacrifice. It was not necessary, our gemara states, to have a kohen at a time when it was permissible to offer sacrifices on a bama. As support for this Rashi cites a mishna (Zevachim 113a) and a few historical examples of a non-kohen offering a sacrifice on a bama. One of these is the sacrifice offered in the days of the Prophet Shmuel (Shmuel I, 11:15 and 13:9). Others are those offered by Gideon (Shoftim 6:26) and Manoach, father of Shimshon (ibid. 13:19).
The precedent cited from Shmuel is easily understandable. This was during the period when the Mishkan was in Nov and the bama was legitimate. Since Shmuel was not kohen this conclusively proves that a non-kohen can perform the service on a bama. But there is a problem with the proofs from Gideon and Manoach. Both of them lived in the era of the Judges when the Mishkan was in Shiloh and the bama was outlawed. The gemara (Zevachim 108b) explains Manoachs sacrifice as a horaat shaah an extraordinary command from Heaven to temporarily ignore the ban on the bama. If this was an extraordinary situation perhaps it also warranted the ignoring of the need for a kohen and thus leaves us without a precedent for a non-kohen performing the service on a bama in an ordinary situation. What is even more problematic is the proof from Gideon. Our Sages (Temurah 28b) clearly state that in regard to his sacrifice eight regular requirements for the service were suspended by a direct order from Heaven, one of them the need for a kohen.
Readers are invited to offer their explanation of this difficult Rashi.
Zevachim 16a
Dressing the Part
"You are described as a kingdom of kohanim and a holy nation and you must dress the part!"
Thus spoke the Persian King Azagdar as he raised the belt worn by the Sage Huna bar Natan.
This was a reference to one of the items in the dress code prescribed for kohanim by the Prophet Yechezkel. In addition to wearing a linen turban and linen trousers the kohanim were instructed to avoid girding themselves in any place that is sweaty (Yechezkel 44:18). In practical terms this meant that the belt they wore around their robes had to be placed above the hips and below the level of the elbows.
Even though this was specifically required only of an actual kohen, the Persian ruler extended its application to every member of the "kingdom of kohanim".
When Huna related this incident to the Sage Ameimar he was told that this was a fulfillment of the prophecy that "kings shall be your nursemaids" (Yeshayahu 49:23). Although the real fulfillment of this prophecy will come only at the end of days when the nations will consider it a privilege to serve the "kingdom of kohanim," a glimpse of this golden hereafter was occasionally provided.
Zevachim 19a


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I was recently nominated by Jamsu for the Mystery Blogger Award! This means that it's time to come up with some more facts about myself… I'm not sure if I'm an interesting enough person for this. But, as always, thank you so much for the nomination! ❤
You can see the previous versions of this award here: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5
What is the Mystery Blogger Award?
It's an award for amazing bloggers with ingenious posts. Their blog not only captivates; it inspires and motivates. They are one of the best out there, and they deserve every recognition they get. This award is also for bloggers who find fun and inspiration in blogging, and they do it with so much love and passion.
The rules for the award are:
- Put the award logo/image on your blog.
- Mention the creator of the award and provide a link
- List the rules
- Thank whoever nominated you and provide a link to their blog.
- Tell your readers 3 things about yourself.
- Nominate 10-20 people.
- Notify your nominees by commenting on their blog.
- Ask your nominees any 5 questions of your choice with one weird or funny question (specify).
Here are three things about me:
- I drink a lot of coffee now, but I once didn't drink coffee for four years out of pure spite. This guy my cousin was dating told me that it was impossible to finish college without regularly drinking coffee and I wanted to prove him wrong. So I did.
- I just took a road trip to Tennessee with my manager and I thought it was going to be weird but it was so much fun!
- I've never once broken or sprained anything, I've never fainted, and I've never had a cavity. Nothing ever happens to me, but in this case, it's a good thing.
5 questions from Jamsu:
1. Do you have a best friend?
I do. Oh, you wanted more information than that? Okay.
My best friend that I see on an almost daily basis is my co-worker, Rhovena. She's one of the only people in my real life that knows about my blog and also, she's so much fun and she's the only person I ever actually do things with.
My best friend that I hardly ever see that I've known forever is Brigitta. She loves books as much as I do, or maybe more, because she sometimes reads eight or ten books at a time. In fact, when we were in middle school, she would read while she walked to school and almost die on a daily basis.
And my favorite person is Daniel, who I met through this blog and just finally after all these months met in person. (I might still be crying about how great he is.) Daniel is the actual best person I've ever met in my life.
2. A book character you recently fell in love with?
Kvothe from The Name of the Wind.
3. What one superpower would you like to have?
Teleportation, because, see above, my friends live far away.
4. What is the 13th book on your shelf?
Depends on which shelf we're looking at, but the one in my immediate view right now is A Conspiracy of Stars by Olivia A. Cole.
5. What is your favorite snack?
I just had another tag ask me this! Sour Patch Kids are my favorite but I can't keep them in my house because I'll eat the whole bag.
Since this is my sixth time doing this tag, I'm not going to nominate anyone. If you haven't already been nominated, please consider yourself tagged! I would love to see your answers either in the comments or in your own post. ❤


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Qi, Hantang (2006) Strategy process and guanxi in Chinese township and village enterprises: a case-study approach. Asia Pacific Business Review, 12 (1). pp. 1-18. ISSN 1360-2381 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/13602380500336988)


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Shayne Looper: Was the apostle Paul a sports fanatic?
The 2012 Olympics are finally here. Over the next two weeks we can follow our favorite athletes as they compete across a range of 300 different events, from basketball and gymnastics to badminton and handball.
There was no badminton in the first Olympic Games, but competition did include running, boxing, discus, javelin, pankration (something like today's mixed martial arts), horse and chariot racing and wrestling. Olympia was the best known ancient sports venue, but the Pythian, Nemean and Isthmian Games were also very popular.
The games teach us the value of self-control, discipline, training and adherence to principle. The Olympic athletes, badminton players included, can make us shake our heads in disbelief at the strength, skill and determination of which humans are capable.
People are often surprised to learn that the Bible contains references to the sports played at Olympia and the other ancient venues. Indeed, St. Paul's frequent references to the games have led some scholars to think of him as a sports fanatic.
A more conservative assessment of the relevant texts would suggest that Paul was, at the very least, familiar with the sporting events held at the games. Even this is a little surprising since the earliest games were held in honor of the Greek gods and included elements of idol worship — something a Jew like Paul could not participate in.
Further, in many events the athletes (always male) wore little or no clothing, something Jewish people found extremely offensive. If Paul was a sports buff in that culture, he must have read the sports page in the closet.
Nevertheless, his letters reveal both a general knowledge of sports and a familiarity with specific sporting events, like those held at the Greek games. In a passage in his first letter to the Corinthian Church, where the Isthmian Games were held, he refers to both track events and boxing, and describes the rigorous training undertaken by those preparing to compete.
Paul was also familiar with the prize athletes won and uses the laurel wreathe, the ancient version of the Olympic gold medal, as a metaphor for winning in life. In his letter to the Corinthians he expresses concern over the real possibility of being "disqualified for the prize" that God the Judge awards.
In letters to the Galatians and the Philippians, the image of the track is clearly in view. In Galatians 2 he may be thinking of the "diaulos," which was comparable to our 400 meter race. In Philippians 3 a longer race, like the "dolichos" that covered about five kilometers, is in mind. Paul knew that only the competitor who perseveres wins.
St. Paul is not the only biblical writer who knew about the games. St. Peter also refers to them, as does the author of Hebrews. He writes: "Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us."
These biblical writers understood something many contemporary Christians miss: Success in the Christian life requires training, conditioning and focused effort. There is a spiritual athleticism required. Learning to parry the curses of enemies or to cast our cares on God requires training, just like boxing and the javelin throw.
No one wins the prize in the Christian life without exertion. Any emphasis on grace that negates the need for effort is at odds with biblical teaching. Lazy Christians, like lazy athletes, don't win. What's more, they don't even have much fun. That's something to keep in mind as we watch this year's Olympic Games.
Shayne Looper is the pastor at the Lockwood Community Church in Michigan. He can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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When introduced last year, many of us enjoyed Google Earth simply for the cool factor. The combination of satellite images, 3-D images, and maps makes swooping over the surface of a virtual planet a harmless and sometimes educational diversion. Today, Google announced the addition of Featured Content for Google Earth, which consists of multimedia overlays from different content providers.
Initial Featured Content comes from the likes of National Geographic, the Jane Goodall Institute, the US National Park Service, Discovery Networks, and the United Nations Environmental Program. The overlays have been developed using Google's Keyhole Markup Language, an XML file format aimed at modeling and storing geographic features. Featured content can be activated from a new drop-down menu in the Layers sidebar; once it is selected, small icons representing featured content litter the globe and users can access information by clicking on one of them.
I fired up Google Earth and took it for a spin with some of the featured content enabled. Upon selecting National Geographic, North America was blanketed with tiny yellow rectangles. Clicking on a National Geographic symbol in the middle of the US gave me an overlay with a photograph, a brief narrative, and a "Read more..." link. Clicking the link took me to a photo essay on the Great Plains on National Geographic's site.
Featured content from National Geographic on Google Earth
The overlays were similar for the other providers, but clicking on the Discovery Channel link for Denver transported me to the Discovery Networks site where I watched a car commercial followed by a two-minute clip on the city of Denver from the Travel Channel. A National Park icon took me to that park's homepage.
Google describes the goal of the featured content as being educational in nature. "We are excited to provide users with the opportunity to learn more about the natural wonders and manmade landmarks of the world with featured content for Google Earth," according to the director of Google Earth and Maps, John Hanke.
The search company plans to bring in new featured content providers and depending on how interested users are in the new content, gains an additional revenue stream from the commercial sites that are featured. Adding information from the National Park Service, the Jane Goodall Institute, and the UN Environmental Program looks to be a more altruistic move, and the educational nature of such content may prove to be the biggest draw of the new Featured Content.


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U.S. vacation-home sales jumped in 2013, making up the biggest market share in seven years, as the surging stock market gave affluent Americans a confidence boost.
Vacation properties accounted for 13 percent of all sales, the highest level since 2006, when the share was 14 percent, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday. The portion of investment sales, excluding purchases by institutional investors, fell to 20 percent from 24 percent in 2012 as prices rose and the supply of foreclosures dwindled.
"Growth in the equity markets has greatly benefited high-net-worth households, thereby providing the wherewithal and confidence to purchase recreational property," Lawrence Yun, the Realtors group's chief economist, said in a statement.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index, which reached an all-time high Tuesday, was up 179 percent from its 12-year low in March 2009. Vacation-home sales rose 30 percent last year to 717,000, while investment-home sales fell 8.5 percent to about 1.1 million transactions, the Realtors group said.
Sales of seasonal properties are down about a third from the 2006 peak of 1.07 million.
About 38 percent of vacation-home buyers paid with cash in 2013, compared with 46 percent of investment buyers, according to the report. Distressed homes, including foreclosures, accounted for 42 percent of purchases by recreational buyers and 47 percent by investors.
The typical vacation-home buyer was 43 years old with a household income of $85,600, and the property was a median distance of 180 miles from the primary residence, the Realtors group said. About 41 percent of seasonal properties purchased last year were in the South, followed by 28 percent in the West, 18 percent in the Northeast and 14 percent in the Midwest.
The U.S. has 8 million vacation homes and 43.7 million investment units, compared with 74.7 million owner-occupied units, according to an analysis of Census Bureau data by the Realtors group.s


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What events are on and where? For a full list of the activities Click Here>
The Commonwealth Games Federation discussed the idea of a Millennium Commonwealth Youth Games in 1997. In 1998 the concept was agreed on for the purpose of providing a Commonwealth multi-sport event for young people........ More>
The II Commonwealth Youth Games have begun. For the latest results Click Here> or click on the indivudal sport below.
Telstra Country Wide - Proud Supporter


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On weekend mornings throughout the 1960s, public service announcements were part of regular programming. We found this gem which is a collection of warnings about protecting livestock during a nuclear attack. It is particularly amusing because of the use of marionette dolls.
For more Cold War era resources check out our:
US History PowerPoints
- US Foreign Policy in the Cold War Era: Truman to Kennedy
- US Foreign Policy in the Cold War Era: Johnson to the Fall of the Berlin Wall
- The 1950s
- 1960s
- Vietnam
- The 1970s
- Late History Overview: 1970s, 1980s, 1990s
Classroom History Games


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Washington (CNN) – According to several participants on a conference call with major bundlers late Monday night, Barack Obama's re-election campaign encouraged donors to fundraise for a Democratic super PAC supporting the president, marking an about-face on Obama's position toward outside spending groups.
Obama has been an outspoken critic of current campaign financing laws, in particular a Supreme Court ruling that allowed the creation of super PACs. Until now he has kept his distance from the group, Priorities USA Action.
Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker
But in the wake of the group's anemic fundraising, made public last week, the campaign changed its position. Earlier Monday, it announced to members of its national finance committee that it will use administration and campaign officials as surrogates at PAC events.
On the call, a campaign official made clear that after donors contribute the maximum amount allowed to the Obama campaign, fundraisers should encourage donors to give to Priorities USA, according to a source who was on the call.
"Bundlers" are fundraisers who solicit campaign contributions from their personal and business networks. The total raised is considered bundled through the individual.
Campaign officials gave guidance on practices and policies, stressing the importance that super PACs are legally prohibited from coordinating with campaigns.
Another bundler questioned the effectiveness of the new approach, explaining every large donor of means had already been approached for a donation by Priorities USA. This fundraiser said the campaign formally pulled back the curtain last night but most high-profile contributors had already been pressed in person to donate to the super PAC.
The source also said Priorities USA held its own cocktail party for heavy hitters at a national finance committee meeting six months ago.
"This decision was not made overnight," one campaign official said. "The money raised and spent by Republican super PACs is very telling. We will not unilaterally disarm."
Additional concern about Republican spending versus Democratic super PAC spending was expressed on the campaign call Monday night, underlining the group's need to turn up the pressure and meet its fundraising goals, a source said.
Through the third party groups, Democrats and Republicans can run negative ads without the candidates they support signing off at the end of the commercials, as they're required to do in ads paid for by the campaigns.
Super PACs can put distance between the president and attacks on his Republican opponent. On Monday, senior administration officials reaffirmed that they believe the race will be close.
Parallels to the president's change of heart on campaign finance were also seen in the last election cycle. In the 2008 race, he initially embraced public financing but became the first candidate to reject it. Obama then went on to make history raising $750 million for his campaign.
Since the 2010 Supreme Court ruling that paved the way for super PACs, Obama has been an outspoken critic of the effect they have on politics.
In October of that year, shortly before the mid-term elections, the president lambasted the role of outside spending groups, particularly those that are not required to disclose its donors.
"This isn't just a threat to Democrats," he said. "This is a threat to our democracy."
Some Republicans, meanwhile, have already hit back with charges of hypocrisy on the president's turnaround on the issue.
"Just another broken promise," House Speaker John Boehner said Tuesday when asked about the change.
The conservative groups American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS, which plan to raise $300 million to help defeat Obama and his agenda in November, also responded.
In an e-mail blast, Jonathan Collegio, the groups' spokesman, called the Obama campaign's move a "brazenly cynical" reversal.
Also see:
Obama campaign to support super PAC fundraising
Romney says Obama infringing upon religious rights
Biden's 2012 message: 'Osama bin Laden is dead and General Motors is alive'
Rocky Mountain High expectations
Waffle, waffle, waffle. Jump the fence, climb over the fence, perch on either side of the fence.
Until the law is changed, he has every right to raise as much as he can to combat the "millionaire club" members who donate to the GOP. Go President!
Gotta fight fire with fire!
Makes sense. You have to change tactics once the corrupt Supreme Court said unlimited money can be given to a candidate, thus now making elections "up for sale". Power to the people. Obama 2012!
Hope and change! Oh, wait....
I understand you have to compete to win and in competing you must take up a SUPERPAC but when does one word stands for anything? For months he has denounced them as "wrong" and now only because he sees them as not being able to be stopped he jumps into the fray with his own? I just think it's ridiculous. It was the same story during his first election and everything else he has said. If you want to stand firm, STAND FIRM ON AN ISSUE.
DO NOT START BLAMING THE REPUBLICANS FOR SUPERPAC's IF YOU ARE NOW USING ONE. YOU CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS, denounce it as wrong and take it up and still denounce it.
haaa.. more proof there is no diff between the two parties. wall street funded presidents..all of them since JFK.
Dr. Ron Paul wont even talk to small lobbying groups. Search your hearts, souls and minds America.. he is the only one who cares about us.
This is just another way for the rich and corporations to give more money then they are allowed to, to a candidate. This along with "legal" lobbying groups need made against the law.


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For a $50K household, married couple, two kids, all income from earnings and standard deductions, the current tax burden is $8.3K. Under 9-9-9, that would grow to $13.5K, an increase of over $5,000 (hat tip: CCH, BS). The WaPo fact checker came to a similar conclusion. E Klein too.
(I expect that any minute now the Tax Policy Center will release a slew of data supporting these points with their much more detailed tax model.)
But Lowrie wouldn't accept that conclusion. In fact, he asserted that their federal tax would be lower because they'd move from a 15% payroll tax to a 9% income tax. This, as I said on air, is "patently wrong."
First of all, assuming they plan to exist, they'll need to consume stuff, and thus they'll also face the 9% sales tax. That already makes their tax rate 18%, higher than the 15%.
But as Michael Linden points out, and this is widely agreed upon by tax economists, the incidence of the 9% tax on business income (which denies businesses a deduction for wages paid) also hits them, which is why former Joint Tax Committee chief of staff Ed Kleinbard described the tax as a 27% payroll tax for families whose incomes derive from earnings (note that Lowrie is perfectly comfortable with the standard assumption assigning the incidence of the employers side of the payroll tax to the family—this one re the business tax is equally standard).
For a family with $500K, same assumptions as above, their tax bill would fall by $44K.
But where this plan really gets regressive is when you get up into the families who derive their income from non-labor sources. While the details of the plan are fuzzy when it comes to capital gains and dividends, it seems clear that those earning thousands or even millions of dollars in these types of non-labor income would enjoy a massive tax cut. And that would further widen the disparity between the highly preferential treatment of capital gains and dividends on the one hand, and the taxation of "ordinary" wage and salary income on the other.
We've got enough income and wealth inequality coming from the pretax distribution—we don't need to exacerbate it through the tax code.
Middle class families that depend on earnings will pay more taxes under the Cain tax plan. High income families will pay a lot less. His advisors who say otherwise are misleading the electorate and that must not stand.


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'Hawaii Five-0' Costume Designers Reveal Local Fashion Favorites
As megahit 'Hawaii Five-0' wraps up its third season, show costumers and locals Erika Aresta and Michael Fong share their favorite island shopping spots and the brands they reach for, on and off set.
photos: DAVID CROXFORD
Manuhealii Kaiwi Kiwi Shock men's pullover aloha shirt, $54.
Andy South Lenka skirt, $195.
LOCAL Brands For the Show
Michael Fong: Manuhealii and Rix have very bold designs and work well for local party scenes. Manuhealii has more of a retro-Hawaii feel and Rix designs are a little unusual. 5 Hoolai St., 808-261-9865.
LOCAL Fashion Designer
Erika Aresta: My all-time, favorite Hawaii designer is Ari Southiphong. Her Andy South collection is all about beautiful, ultra-feminine lines and elegant fabrics. Andy South Atelier, by appointment only, 12 S. King St., 808-744-1167.
Andrew Mau Shaka bronze bottle opener, $100, Fishcake.
Martin and MacArthur natural-edge carved Koa bowl, $445.
LOCAL Little-Known Shop
MF: Fishcake in Kakaako is good for home furnishings and decor. It's got such an unusual collection of items. When shopping for someone who has everything, you can usually find something there. 307 C Kamani St., 808-593-1231.
LOCAL Island-Inspired Gifts
EA: Martin and MacArthur stocks great Koa wood pieces. I love to stuff their bowls with local goodies and ship them as gifts to the mainland. Waikiki Beach Walk, 808-447-2797.
Alii Kula Lavender Lavender Rosemary Gardeners Salve, $24.95.
Chenoa Double Leaf Tahitian pearl earrings, $220.
LOCAL Beauty Buy
MF: Alii Kula Lavender's Lavender Essential Oil, Lavender Rosemary Gardeners Salve and Lavender Body Butter Creme. If you're on Maui and make the drive up Haleakala, definitely stop at the farm. It's very beautiful and calming. Island Vintage Organic and Natural, Royal Hawaiian Center, 808-923-3383.
LOCAL Jewelry Line
EA: Chenoa of Kailua makes beautiful jewelry incorporating Tahitian pearls. Designer Chenoa Salmon made me gorgeous two-tiered gold earrings. Muumuu Heaven, 767 Kailua Road., 808-263-3366.


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by Paul Benson
Untwisting The Pretzel Logic of Pre-trib Theory
…and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. Revelation 20:4
Most pre-trib teachers and preachers have a pet 'proof' they like to take out and cuddle quite often. They claim that a post-tribulation Coming of Christ to catch away the Church absolutely cannot be the correct view as it leaves no mortals alive to populate the millennium. But is there any traction there; or are they merely spinning their wheels, and once again making a lot of noise over nothing?
Let's look at the question of who will populate the millennium from the perspective of what actually is (and what is not) taught in the Scriptures; and not just the unsupported opinions and theories of man.
Watch Your Step Now!
There is a major obstacle in effectively answering this question. The pre-trib promoters posing this question have it so pre-loaded with the presumptions of their theory that you have to be careful not to stumble over all their misunderstandings, and mistake them for fact. Wading through all of this to get to a proper conclusion can be quite a chore; unless you understand most of their argument is mere fluff. It's just 'filler' to puff up their pretzel and make it seem larger than it really is. Once you see that, and learn to side-step it all, you can cut to the chase so to speak.
Before we attempt to answer the question let's look at some of the unsupported notions they stuff this question with (all the while demanding you answer according to their 'guidelines' of what is truth on this issue). Don't let this section bog you down with too much info to assimilate. I am merely showing here the presumptive nature in which the question is presented; making it so difficult to give an effective response that might be accepted by them. The solution to this question (given toward the end of this write-up) is actually quite simple. As simple as reading the Bible, and believing what it has to say.
A Cagey Quote
Here is a quote on this subject from a pre-trib teacher named Thomas Ice that gives a good example of what I am referring to. Let's see how many presumptions we can spot in this quote from Mr. Ice. I've numbered the ones I see with [brackets].
THOMAS ICE QUOTE: A problem generated by the viewpoint of premillennial, posttribulationism is as follows: Who will populate the millennium with mortals, if the rapture occurs in association with the second coming? Pretribulationists have no problem explaining how such a scenario will take place… [*1] However, for posttribulationism this issue is in my opinion an unsolvable problem. [*2] If the posttribulational view that rapture occurs in conjunction with the second coming is accepted, then the rapture event will result in all believers alive at Christ's return being transformed from their current mortal state to immortality via a translation to heaven. [*3] Since all unbelievers will be judged or killed at Christ's return (Matt. 13:30, 36–43, 47–50; 24:36–41; 25:30, 31–46), thus, there will be no mortals left to enter into the thousand-year reign of Christ. [*4] For example in Matthew 25:31–46, the sheep and goat judgment that will take place shortly after the second coming, how will any goats (unbelievers) make it into the [*5] kingdom? After placing the goats on the left, the text is clear when it says, [*6] Then He will also say to those on His left, Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; … And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. (Matt. 25:41, 46 ). [*7] It is not surprising that very few posttribulationists even attempt to answer this issue in their writings. END QUOTE
This quote by Thomas Ice seems at face value to have a bit of scholarly merit about it; but a closer examination proves otherwise. I see at least seven statements in this one quote which are (right or wrong) merely unsupported opinion; and not things that are expressly stated in the Bible. Statements that are presupposed, and then read into the issue at hand.
Presumption 1). There is no proper answer apart from a pre-trib perspective; it is an unsolvable problem. This predetermined conclusion firmly closes the ears of the one asking the question, and thus makes any corrective teaching offered merit-less as it contradicts what is (in their mind) absolute fact. What is the sense in talking to someone who has their ears plugged? Save your breath!
Presumption 2). If that rapture occurs at the Second Coming ALL believers alive at Christ's return will be transformed to immortality via a **translation to heaven. But we must ask ourselves here: are all believers caught away at Christ's Return; or are there some who were not ready for that event and left behind? Notice how they have hijacked the 'left behind' concept and applied it to their own pre-trib theory; BUT they refuse to acknowledge that concept in regard to the Second Coming (which is the context it was stolen from in the first place)! The Scriptures clearly indicate some believers will not be ready for the Return of Christ. Are the foolish virgins destroyed with the wicked for running short on oil? Opinions vary greatly on that topic.
**{There is nothing in the Bible that says the catching away is a 'translation' that takes the Church to Heaven. More pre-trib error}
Presumption 3). All unbelievers will be killed at Christ's Second Coming. As we will see later the statement that: 'in a post-trib catching away scenario every one else but the resurrected Christians perishes' is not in line with the Word. Post-trib theory actually teaches no such thing; this notion is forced into the mix by the one espousing this 'proof'.
FOOD 4 THOUGHT: And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. 12 Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. Daniel 12:11-12
What was meant by the words 'blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the 1,335 days'? If all were killed by the wrath of God at the return of Christ there would be no one alive to be the recipient of this blessedness.
Presumption 4). The sheep / goat judgment will take place immediately after the Second Coming. It says in Matthew 25:31-32 that Christ will be seated on his throne for this judgment. It does not say how long he will have been enthroned when this judgment takes place. Some believe it will be 1000 years later (I personally don't). But we do not know for sure if this judgment is right after he returns, or possibly at the end of the millennium. Any claim of timing is speculative.
Presumption 5). The Kingdom being referred to is the millennial Kingdom. Those who believe the sheep / goat judgment, and the damnation of the wicked, takes place at the end of the millennium say this is the eternal Kingdom being spoken of here, not the millennial Kingdom. There is no way to prove this either way by the Scriptures that I am aware of; it is just opinion.
Presumption 6). Again we see a presumption of timing expressed here. Just man's opinion.
Presumption 7). Very few post-trib adherents deal with this issue in their writings. He gives here the impression his proof is so solid no one dares to question it! This is actually a very misleading statement; and in fact a total falsehood! What world is he living in? Nearly every post-trib author I know addresses this 'proof' in one fashion or another. And most categorize it as an over-inflated non-issue as the Scriptures themselves make this 'unshakable proof' into a moot point which we shall now see.
(SIDE NOTE: Please understand this: I am not saying I agree with all the alternative beliefs I gave to counter Mr. Ice's opinionated suppositions; or even that I disagree with all his notions. Some of it he does have right in my estimation. I am just attempting to show how they inflate the issue into something huge and formidable, stating mere opinions as 'Bible Truth', in order to build a fortress (straw-man argument) in which they can shelter themselves from the truths which debunk their pre-trib theory.
As long as they have their indisputable 'who will populate proof' to retreat to, they can tag every argument presented as invalid (at least in their own minds). But in reality their 'proof' is more of a hole in the sand with an upside down body protruding from it, than any stronghold of doctrinal truth. And they need to pull their head out, and examine the rest of the Bible to see if they are in sync with the truth or not. And they are certainly not!)
The Witness Of The Word
Let's lay aside these speculations, presumptions, and opinions of man; and read what the Bible really has to say on this issue of who will populate the millennium. As I said it's as simple as believing what we read in the Scriptures. The book of Zechariah has something very enlightening to bring our way.
Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. 2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. 3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. Zechariah 14:1-3
The 14th chapter of Zechariah is clearly a description of the coming of our Lord. and the events associated with the time of his Return. The nations of the world will confederate to attack and occupy God's beloved city. But it seems he is going to take that a little personally! The passage teaches he will vanquish those who have come against Jerusalem, and set her free once again. Now notice what he says of the citizens of those warring nations who do not participate, or who are not destroyed, in this battle.
And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. 17 And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. 18 And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. Zechariah 14:16-18
To obfuscate the clear point made here pre-tribbers will twist and tussle and wrest and wrangle with this passage. But in the end it clearly says what it clearly says. There will be survivors of all those nations who came against Israel who will enter the millennium! And this simple observation answers our question in a simple fashion.
We see it is not the 'unsolvable problem' Mr. Ice made it out to be, now is it? When we unload the question of all its pre-trib baggage, and look to the Word of God, we see this unpalatable giant ole' pretzel of an issue (that they made it out to be) is turned into a tiny little bread stick easily consumed and digested. It is truly the irrelevant non-issue that so many post-trib authors, including yours truly, have long said it was.
It turns out to be just one more pre-trib proof that is no proof at all!
These people who have entered the millennium are NOT the Resurrected Church; and they are NOT national Israel. It clearly and plainly labels them as heathen. It also clearly and plainly says they are the survivors of the battle of Armageddon; not the rebellious descendants of the believing Jews who re-populated the planet (as most pre-trib teachers will erroneously state). It says 'every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem'. Clearly a reference to those not destroyed in the battle of Armageddon. Sorry Mr. Ice, you are wresting the Word of God here, and promoting gross error.
We also find indication of survivors in Daniel's vision of the end-time kingdoms who enter the millennium. Let's look at that passage.
As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time. 13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. Daniel 7:12
A study of Daniel chapter 7 shows another description of the return of our Savior to rule and riegn. We see there the Beast kingdom is destroyed, but the other three end-time kingdoms are spared, although brought down from a position of dominion. The reference to 'people, nations, and languages' prohibits the notion this is talking about the saved Jews who made it through the tribulation. This is clearly a large diverse group of people.
But brother Paul, doesn't the Bible say ALL the *unbelievers are destroyed at Christ's return? Does it? Only if you hold to a presupposed notion of such, impose that notion upon certain passages, and choose to ignore the full counsel of the rest of the Scriptures. Obviously some folk have drawn some incorrect conclusions concerning eschatology, and worked quite diligently to integrate them into the belief system of the Body of Christ.
*This may take some of you by surprise: The judgment of the sheep and goats is not about believers versus unbelievers. It is about the righteous versus the wicked. At the return of Christ ALL will become believers. Faith is no longer necessary when Jesus is right there before your eyes. Wicked, righteous, undecided, too young to know right and wrong, or too old and callused to change your ways, YOU WILL BELIEVE in Jesus Christ in that day! There will be no unbelievers left! All who enter the millennium (saved or unsaved) will believe in God in that day. The question is: will they serve him?
Some other possible sources of people who could make the transition into the millennium might be the children of the wicked who are too young to knowingly accept the Mark of the Beast (Hat tip John Little Omegashock.com), backslid or lukewarm Christians (foolish virgins), or possibly those like Cornelius (Acts ch. 10) who though not yet saved was viewed by God as a just man. Is Jesus going to destroy innocent children, stumbled Christians, or those like Cornelius when he returns? I have a problem accepting that.
Exiting Stage Before The Curtain Falls!
I realize that in this article I have not thoroughly addressed each and every facet of their suppositions concerning the matter, or even every claim of theirs which seems to carry some validity. I could have said a lot more.
But please, EXCUSE ME! if I do not feel a great need to.
If I can see good solid evidence of unsaved mortals entering the millennium in the Word of God, then that is enough to make their proof into a non-proof. Let them wrestle with their wayward understanding of the issue, and all their straw-man arguments which allow them to cast aside proper reasoning. I'll find something else more fruitful to apply myself to (rather than try and teach truth to someone who is fully persuaded nothing I have to say could ever solve their unsolvable problems)! I'll focus my attention instead upon those with ears to hear, and who prayerfully consider what is presented to them.
Hopefully that is describing you!
May the good hand of God be upon our efforts to seek out his truth in this age of great deception and apostasy;
Paul Benson
I welcome your input.
If you would like to share comment or criticism please feel free to do so in the section below. Overly long comments may be edited for length. Also I will not post the false teachings of others.
Thank you for visiting my site.


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Metropolitan Opera reaches deal with stagehands
NEW YORK (AP) — New York City's Metropolitan Opera reached a deal early Wednesday with its stagehands and said it expects to avert a lockout by reaching agreements with the remaining unions.
The opera company said rehearsals will continue and the season will open as scheduled Sept. 22 with a new production of Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro."
Met general manager Peter Gelb demanded pay cuts of about 17 percent, citing skyrocketing production costs and shrinking audiences. Union members countered that such a radical move was unwarranted on a $2.8 million deficit against a $326 million budget — while they say Gelb wasted many millions on failed productions.
Details of the agreement with the stagehands were not disclosed, but Matthew Loeb, president of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, said the deal includes mandatory cost reductions from management and an independent monitor to track budget performance.
"We've always been willing to contribute to a solution that will keep the world's best operas in front of the world's greatest opera fans," Loeb said.
Fifteen unions representing about 2,500 chorus singers, orchestra musicians, stagehands, carpenters and others had been negotiating on and off since February. Their contracts expired July 31.
Musicians from the two largest Met unions reached tentative four-year deals Monday. The orchestra and chorus agreed to cuts of 3.5 percent and 3.5 percent more within six months.
The Met management also wanted to slash pensions and health care benefits, which remained intact.
The deals must still be ratified.
Most orchestra and chorus members at the Met made about $200,000 last year, including overtime costs they blame on Gelb's penchant for extravagant productions.
With the lockout deadline approaching the 11th hour several weeks ago, a federal mediator stepped in to try to bring the two sides closer. Gelb's lockout deadline was extended several times while a financial analyst conducted a study of company accounts.
The stagehands were the largest bargaining unit that had not reached a tentative agreement before Wednesday.
Negotiations will continue with eight smaller unions including those representing scenery painters and costume and makeup artists.


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Wilson, Jonathan (Bilal) A. J. (2011) Abandoning hurdles in the race for halal branding. Halal Focus.
Wilson, Jonathan A.J. (2013) Opinion: so what is 'Islamic marketing' & what's all the noise about? Halal Focus.


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Chelyabinsk Meteorite Superbolide Asteroid 3.9 grams #11
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This Meteorite is a piece of a near earth Asteroid that fell to earth in 2013 around the Southern Ural Mountains region in Chelyabinsk Oblast. It was the worlds largest meteoric event in over 100 years. Metaphysically, it's healing properties can be used to balance and align the energy body(s).
Metaphysical Properties
Chelyabinsk meteorite has been called the "messenger stone" of space rocks. Holding this meteorite brings a sense of peace and with a quiet reminder to slow down. Meditating with the meteorite one can access ancient knowledge that may have been lost millennia ago. There is also an aspect to this meteorite's energy that is protective if called upon when facing negative forces. One should be responsible if utilizing the meteorites protective side. Combine with rose quartz to experience the "depth of love and all of its faces".
Stony (Chondrite) Meteorites enhance otherworldly connections and assist with astral travel. Stony meteorite's energy is primarily attuned to interdimensional communication. They aid in strengthening the ability to connect telepathically with extra terrestrial (ET) beings beyond this physical dimension. Being silica based, Chondrite meteorites can be programmed. They can also provide a sense of stability and balance in new environments. Meteorites also offers a unique opportunity to work with energies beyond our solar system.
In addition to the metaphysical properties listed above the energies of olivine, feldspar, and chromite also apply. Because the Chelyabinsk meteorite was a piece of an Asteroid in our solar system the astrological aspects could also be considered when working with the meteorite's energy.
About Chelyabinsk Meteorites
On Febuary 15, 2013 at 9:22 am an impacting Asteroid entered the atmosphere over the Ural Mountains, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia. As the sun began to rise an extremely bright meteor (Superbolide) fireball entered from the eastern horizon. For a brief time the initial flash from the 58 foot 12,000 ton Asteroid was brighter than the sun. An extraordinarily massive amount of energy was released from an air-burst that sent multiple shock-waves thundering through the air. Thousands of meteorites fell all over the area. The largest one landed in the center of a lake. The large meteorite fragment later recovered from the bottom of lake Chebarkul weighed 1190 pounds! Witnesses said they heard hissing sounds and saw steam rising from the lake after the large asteroid fragment went through the thick ice. Many meteorites were collected out of the snow by local people. This was the largest meteoric event the world had seen since the 1908 Tunguska event.
That same year in 2013 the "Church of Chelyabinsk Meteorite" was founded to learn from this metaphysical meteorite. The churches founder, Andrei Breivchenko said "A lot of the information is still on the heavenly bearer itself and that needs visionaries to have closer contact with the tablets,".
In November of 2014 scientists and astronomers from Czech Republic and Canada published findings documenting the most likely origin of the Chelyabinsk meteorite. The Chelyabinsk meteorite was once a part of Asteroid 86039 which in our solar system.
May 7, 2022 researchers announced they found never before seen exotic carbon crystals in the meteoric dust of the Superbolide. This was the first time in history that quasi-spherical and hexagonal rod graphite microcrystals had been seen by scientists.
Sources with more info about the Chelyabinsk meteorite's historical importance, the science of its origins, and metaphysical properties can be found on our blog page.
The trajectory, structure and origin of the Chelyabinsk asteroidal impactor
This meteorite is one of a kind. You will receive the exact one pictured. Close-up photography is used in natural sunlight to show detail. The item may appear larger than actual size. Please see size listed for the dimensions. 1" = 25.4 millimeters.
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Under pressure from law enforcement lobbyists and private industry, a California lawmaker has abandoned his effort to restrict how personal information on the whereabouts of drivers generated from high-tech license-plate scanners can be collected and stored in a database.
State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, proposed the bill [PDF] in March after California Watch reported that a private company had stockpiled more than a half-billion records on drivers from the license-plate readers.
The scanner is affixed to the outside of patrol cars and captures the geographic location of motorists along with the date and time, regardless of whether the individual is a wanted criminal, a fact that alarms privacy groups. The Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco said it was disappointed by the bill's fate.
Simitian said in an interview that he was encouraged when the proposed legislation survived two committees, but any momentum had shifted once it reached the Senate floor, where Simitian realized he didn't have the votes.
"I'm disappointed but not surprised by the lack of sensitivity to privacy concerns on the part of public entities, including law enforcement," Simitian said. "This is not uncommon in my experience. I think for many of these organizations … they see privacy as a fairly abstract right."
Police rely on an in-car alert to inform them if a scanned license plate is connected to a stolen vehicle or if the driver is wanted for some reason. But historical data also can be searched to determine where a driver has been and when, an alluring feature for criminal investigators and intelligence analysts.
Livermore-based Vigilant Video touts the intelligence value of its National Vehicle Location Service, and by earlier this year, some 1,200 new law enforcement users were being signed up to use the system every month. Shawn Smith, president and founder of Vigilant, said police in California alone have conducted some 80,000 queries of the service with 35,000 positive auto identifications.
Smith said he wouldn't be surprised if some form of legislation regulating license-plate readers surfaced in the future, but it didn't seem to him that the law enforcement community had been asked for feedback before Simitian introduced the bill. He said success stories involving the technology were handed over to police, who in turn used them to convince senators of the public safety benefits.
"I think at the end of the day, it made a big difference," Smith said of the stories. "I don't think it did in Senator Simitian's mind, but it did in the minds of his colleagues."
The examples are endless, Smith said. Immigration agents have used the National Vehicle Location Service to track down illegal immigrants. The district attorney in Los Angeles has used it to locate difficult-to-find witnesses. Police in Long Beach used it to find an identity theft suspect who was targeting veterans – she eventually was captured in Chicago after fleeing California.
"Although proponents would have you believe that this is a privacy bill, the fact is that there is no expectation of privacy in a public-displayed license plate," several California law enforcement groups wrote to the state Senate earlier this year.
Simitian said he did previously work with the California Highway Patrol on rules for plate readers and knew what the views of police were, but he said the latest bill "turned out to be a bigger lift than I anticipated."
Data in the system comes from both police, who turn it over from their own plate readers for nationwide searches, and auto repossession companies that work with banks to hunt down delinquent borrowers. Civilian fleets of "scout cars" armed with license-plate readers are used to compile data on behalf of private industry.
Simitian wanted to limit to 60 days the length of time law enforcement agencies and companies like Vigilant could store such data, but exceptions would have been made for information needed in felony investigations. His legislation also called for blocking private businesses from selling or giving the data to anyone who is not a law enforcement officer and making the data available to police only with a search warrant.
Vigilant says searches of the National Vehicle Location Service already are restricted to approved law enforcement officials, but Simitian's bid would nonetheless have prevented police in California from turning over data generated by their own scanners to any entity not engaged in law enforcement, such as private companies.
Many law enforcement agencies already have guidelines for how data from plate readers can be used. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department in North Carolina, for instance, told California Watch in January that it destroys irrelevant records after 180 days and cannot conduct nationwide searches through the National Vehicle Location Service.
The senator said he offered to compromise with law enforcement, but police still pushed for access to data collected by private companies.
"Essentially, law enforcement's argument was, 'We think private-sector entities ought to be able to stockpile information on law-abiding citizens, and that information should be available to law enforcement upon request without a warrant or any probable cause,' " he said.


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"Live simply, love generously, serve faithfully, speak truthfully, pray daily. Leave everything else to God." I saw this quote while sitting in a café the other day. As I consider the direction of my life, these words speak to me about a simple yet profound calling. So often, we're looking for the big, the extravagant, the noticeably noble. We want to be significant, and we perceive significance as something evident to the masses.
Yet what if greatness has a humbler definition?
And that's why this has become my prayer, and my desired life-theme. To truly live simply—not bogged down by temporary things, unnecessary work, trivial concerns, or excessive material endeavors. To love generously: that my love for all would be abundant, honest, and overflowing…not in word alone, but in action and in truth.
Father God, remove every ounce of selfishness from within me: my self-centeredness, self-preservation, self-exaltation. Move in my heart to make me someone who thinks of others more than I think of myself.
Let my service be for the motive of honoring you by helping others. Let it be pure and untiring, all-encompassing—infiltrating all I do and done with all my heart, soul and strength. I confess I've grown weary in well-doing. Please renew my strength.
Tame my tongue to be still when I need to be silent and to speak truth boldly and always with love. Strip me of the veil of the fear of man.
I've been prayerless, so move me to pray. Prayerlessness is the root of all my trials, or my misunderstanding of your purpose in the midst of trials. Release me from bondage to laziness and unbelief, that my prayers may flow unwavering, unhindered, and unceasingly to you.
Build up my faith to know with confidence that when I've done all you ask of me, I can be at peace and leave all else to you. I want to live at ease with you, knowing you alone hold my life and I will stand before you alone at the end to give account for my thoughts, words, and actions.
This is my simple prayer.
Photo Credit: Free photo: Woods, Forest, Trees, Winter – Free Image on Pixabay …


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- Victoria Beckham might be adding shoes and accessories to her dress collection, because she's apparently sick of advertising other designers' goods. [Sun]
- Fergie says she wanted her Avon scent to smell "fresh, and yet modern at the same time." [People]
- There is one image from Sonia Rykiel's lingerie collection for H&M on the Internet. The collection, modeled by Caroline Trentini, Anne Vyalitsyna, and Lara Stone, features a lot of rosettes, some in perhaps ill-considered places. (Rosette nipples, anyone?) [Nitrolicious]
- Lady Gaga says during the filming of Beyoncé's video for the upcoming single "Video Phone," she aped Beyoncé's style and choreography so well the crew took to calling her "Gee-yoncé." Gaga also says she and Beyoncé are working on music together next. [People]
- Meanwhile, if anyone were ever destined to receive an Accessories Council Excellence Award, it's Gaga. [WWD]
- Fashion's Night Out: becoming an annual event, according to Mayor Bloomberg. Who should know. [WWD]
- Christian Lacroix says, in this annoying all-caps interview, "THE TRIBUNAL WILL DECIDE ON OCTOBER 27TH WHICH « DOSSIER » THEY'LL FAVOR. FALICS SUBMITED ONE, SOME OTHER FINANCIAL PEOPLE DID TOO AND I CHOSE TO GIVE MY SUPPORT AND SIGNATURE TO THE SHEIKH OF AJMAN WHO SEEMS TO BE THE STRONGEST SOLUTION. WE'LL SEE...WHATEVER WILL BE THE NEWS ON NEXT TUESDAY IT WILL BE A RELIEF." The designer also said, of his house's erstwhile collaborations with Pucci and Hermès, "IT WAS NO MORE POSSIBLE WITH OUR LAST AMERICAN BACKERS. WE'LL SEE WITH THE NEXT. IF I'M STILL PART OF THE VENTURE." If? If? If he's still part of the venture? It's too early in the morning for this heart-rending inconstancy. [UnNouveauIdeal]
- And with that, hearings on the $100 million Emirati bid to take over the house of Lacroix have been delayed until November 17. The bankruptcy judge nonetheless says it is "likely" the sheikh's bid will be the one approved. [AFP]
- Don't expect a Givenchy H&M collection anytime soon. Although the brand put together a capsule collection, at 40% off its regular astronomical pricepoint, for Barneys New York, designer Riccardo Tisci says of mass-market diffusion collaborations, "It's too early. I'm still building the brand, and we want to stay on image." Tisci also revealed he's in New York to work on costumes for a secret show. "I'm here for work on an upcoming show in 2011, which I'm doing all the costumes for. I can't say much more, but the performance is a combination of music and opera, and will travel worldwide. A project like this has been my dream." Sounds intriguing. [Fashionologie]
- Julianne Moore says working with Tom Ford as a director was easy. "Tom is incredibly, incredibly meticulous and has a work ethic like nothing I've ever seen," says the actress. "He works very, very hard and is always very prepared and cares about every tiny detail." [People]
- Eric Ripert, chef of Le Bernardin, on Roberto Cavalli's habit of sitting down at Italian restaurant Serafina and ordering from Manana, the Mexican place next door: "I would find that very insulting. And I won't let him! It's like me going to Roberto Cavalli and then asking the designer next door to bring a dress for my wife, and then dress her in his boutique. I would not do that. I would go to Hermès." Burn, Cavalli! [Grub Street]
- The Sun has its nose out of joint about the press copy accompanying Kate Moss's new perfume. "The fragrance opens with illuminating pink pepper, white freesia and invigorating mandarin. Warm base notes of tonka bean, vanilla and skin musks add a depth and refinement," is kind of disgustingly over-the-top as PR speak goes. But anything that prompts a cranky old Englishman to write the words "Nobel Prize for shit-erature" goes back to being OK in our book. [Sun]
- Steve Madden, everybody's favorite just-like-the-runway-but-made-of-pleather-and-still-over-$100 shoemaker, is getting into the clothing business. It will be women's wear, made under license, and expect to see its "Bohemian flair" in department stores early next year. [Crains]
- There's now a bullshit term for world leaders wearing jeans: Power Jeans. [WSJ]
- And there's a new bullshit term for idiotically priced jeans, too. $300-and-up denim will no longer be known by that hideous pre-recession term, "Premium Jeans." It is, instead, "Artisanal Jeans." [NYTimes]
- Ellen Von Unwerth says, of her favorite shot, "I took this maybe three years ago, on a fashion shoot for Italian Vogue. We developed a romantic story to go with it: a woman comes back to the place where she grew up, and finds it all dusty and falling apart. We shot it in a chateau in Paris. The girl was a model, and it was the only time I worked with her. After this, she disappeared. She was from eastern Europe, Romania maybe, and even the agency couldn't find her again. So she's like a ghost. The picture certainly has a ghostly feeling." For some reason, we find this really disturbing. And sad. What happened to this girl? [Guardian]
- Carlos Falchi sure seems like an upright guy. Reports the Times: "Once he said to a girl, 'That's my bag.' She didn't care for the remark, but then it sank in that this pot-bellied, gray-haired guy with silver bracelets was really him, the designer Carlos Falchi. Maybe in an age of brands and manufactured nostalgia she didn't even think he was real. She called her mother, who bought the bag 30 years before, and put Mr. Falchi on the phone and then closed the celebrity moment with a photo." Falchi's Target line debuts on November 1. [NYTimes]
- Duckie Brown co-designer Steven Cox got to thinking about men's and women's fashion after Miuccia Prada said recently that men's wear should be more influenced by women's wear. "Originally we had this whole conversation about using women's fabric. I don't really agree with that," said Cox, of the Duckie Brown collection. "Because what makes a fabric women's? You know, there is no penis or vagina in a fabric. Like, why is chiffon women's and why is it not men's? I don't know." [The Cut]
- Saks, eyeing the success of sample sale e-tailers like Gilt, is looking to replicate their tactics, and host its own online sample sales. [WSJ]
- Avon earned $156.2 million in the third quarter. Last year, during the same period, the company made $222.6 million. [Crains]
Ana Gasteyer Satirizes the Girl Boss in 'American Auto'