text:
Yankees blank Red Sox, 6-0
NEW YORK — Vidal Nuno rebounded from two awful starts to pitch two-hit ball into the sixth inning, Kelly Johnson and Brett Gardner hit consecutive homers, and the New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox 6-0 on Friday night in the opener of a series between struggling powers.
Brian McCann added a two-run homer for New York, which has won six of the eight meetings with Boston this season.
In his first at-bat as a 40-year-old, Derek Jeter fisted a single to right field with one out in the first. His birthday was on Thursday, the Yankees' final day off before playing 17 straight going into the All-Star break.
After Jacoby Ellsbury doubled, Jeter scored on Mark Teixeira's sacrifice fly off Brandon Workman (1-1) for the early lead. The Yankees captain also singled in the fourth for hit No. 3,390 and went 2 for 4 in New York's second win in six games.
The Red Sox have been playing even worse, scoring three runs or fewer for the 11th time in 13 games and losing for the sixth time in eight games. Fourth in the rugged AL East, Boston trails the Yankees, who entered the night in third, by six games.
New York manager Joe Girardi could have skipped the struggling Nuno (2-4) and given the ball to rookie ace Masahiro Tanaka because of the extra day of rest but, in a feisty pregame Q&A with media, Girardi insisted he was interested in protecting his entire staff, not just the Japanese sensation.
Nuno rewarded Girardi with 5 2/3 impressive innings after he gave up a total of 13 runs in 9 1/3 innings in losses to Oakland and Baltimore. He yielded a leadoff single to Jonny Gomes in the second and a one-out double in the third to Brock Holt. Nuno then retired 10 straight before walking David Ortiz, his last batter.
Dellin Betances, Adam Warren and Matt Thornton finished the three-hitter.
Holt possibly saved a run in the second when he made a leaping catch above the wall on Brian Roberts' fly to right field. But he could only watch as Johnson's two-run homer in the fourth went deep into the bleachers in right field, his first home run in 85 at-bats.
Gardner connected six pitches later, giving New York a 4-0 lead.
Workman was otherwise solid, allowing seven hits and two walks in seven innings. He struck out five.
McCann golfed a drive into the second deck in right off Craig Breslow in the eighth.
Around The Bases
Red Sox SS Stephen Drew snapped an 0-for-29 skid with a double in the seventh. ... Red Sox manager John Farrell said LHP Felix Dubront is being bumped to the bullpen. Dubront was not happy. "I have to stay positive and do my work," Dubront said. ... Boston OF Shane Victorino (strained right hamstring) and 3B Will Middlebrooks (broken finger) had setbacks in their rehabs. Both have stopped baseball activities and there are no timetables for their return. ... Yankees LHP CC Sabathia (right knee) will make his first rehab start Saturday for Class-A Tampa. Sabathia has been out since May 11 with degenerative cartilage problem in his knee. He will likely need to make two more rehab starts. ... Up next: a matchup of aces. Boston LHP Jon Lester (8-7) vs. Tanaka (11-2).


text:
Except for an occasional traffic jam caused by the limousines clustered in front of the entrance, the Hotel Bristol might go altogether unnoticed behind its discreet white facade on the rué du Faubourg St. Honoré. The Bristol does not shout; nothing is ostentatious about it. Everything is understated and quite luxurious: polished white Carrara marble floors, Baccarat crystal chandeliers, Savonnerie rugs in muted green and royal blue, eighteenth-century Gobelin tapestries on the walls, Louis XVI sofas and armchairs upholstered in velvet and silk brocade.
After a four-year renovation completed last year, the Bristol's 195 rooms provide the additional luxury of space, rare even in the most palatial of Paris hotels; a deluxe double here is more like a junior suite elsewhere--and so on up the scale to the apartment suites, each with an immense, California-style terrace (1,100 and 1,600 square feet, respectively) overlooking the garden. The rooms are done in quiet colors and lush fabrics, with just a few carefully chosen antique furnishings and much attention to detail: good reading lamps, plenty of wooden hangers in well-lighted closets. The truly large bathrooms are floor-to-ceiling pale marble, each with king-sized tub and separate stall shower, double-band basins, bathrobes, slippers, hair dryers and Hermés toiletries. Each also has a magnifying makeup/shaving mirror with interior light, said to have been invented by the hotel's founder, Hippolyte Jammet.
Built over an eighteenth-century mansion, the Bristol opened in 1924. The original building, just behind the presidential Elysée Palace, was once the residence of Madame de Pompadour; her private theater, an exquisite oval room with carved oak paneling and a milky-white domed skylight, is now the hotel's winter restaurant. In summer, the restaurant moves to the glass-walled conservatory overlooking the hotel's remarkable 13,000 sq.-ft. garden, complete with colonnade, manicured hedges, giant magnolia trees and an old stone fountain.
Summer or winter, the Michelin one-star restaurant has a 330 franc (approximately $65) fixed priced menu (at lunch and dinner) as well as the seasonal--and suitably pricey--á la carte cuisine of Chef Emile Tabourdiau: sea bass carpaccio with herbs, langoustine salad with avocado mousse and crab dressing, open lobster ravioli with sweet peppers and caramelized tomatoes, truffle omelet, roast Barbary duck with ginger, spicy poached peaches with a Champagne and saffron sabayon, dark-chocolate and pistachio ice cream with coconut-rum sauce. There are perhaps a few too many dishes of innards for American taste (veal kidneys, sweetbreads, tête de veau) but there are enough other choices to compensate. The wine cellar, with 31,000 bottles, is reputedly one of the best in the country. Cigars are permitted in both dining rooms, and the hotel's own humidor offers Montecristo, Cohiba, Punch and Davidoff (Dominican) No. 2.
The rooftop indoor swimming pool, teak-decked like an ocean liner, was designed by the naval architect who produced yachts for Niarchos and Onassis. At one end a trompe-l'oeil wall mural expands the "view," with straw-hatted figures promenading on the prow of a ship plowing through the blue sea toward Cap d'Antibes; bay windows on both sides have a more terrestrial outlook over the city skyline, as does the new fitness center--small, but outfitted with computerized exercise equipment, sauna and personal trainer or massage on demand.
With a staff-guest ratio of two to one, the Bristol has long been celebrated for its service--fast, attentive, unobtrusive and, of course, discreet. About the only complaint ever made is that the hotel is almost too perfect and thus a little cold and impersonal, but it seems precisely that impeccability that attracts the high-powered business executives, statesmen and celebrities who have always been its regular clientele, from Konrad Adenauer and Charles de Gaulle to Jackie Kennedy Onassis and Marilyn Monroe.
-- Judy Fayard is a writer who makes her home in Paris.
Hotel Bristol
112 r. Faubourg St. Honoré
Phone: 33(1)42669145
Room Rates: about $500 to $720; suite: $1,620

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Here's a guest column written by Jim Pokrandt that is running in the Sky-Hi Daily News:
The Windy Gap Firming Project (WGFP) intergovernmental agreement (IGA) is in final form but has not been totally wrapped up because two important preconditions have not been completed, General Counsel Peter Fleming reported to the Colorado River District Board of Directors at its October meeting.
Like the Colorado River Cooperative Agreement between Denver Water and the West Slope, the Windy Gap Firming Project IGA is a package of mitigation enhancements that would be part of the Windy Gap Firming Project once it is permitted for the Municipal Subdistrict of Northern Water by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
The preconditions for the River District's execution of the agreement are that the United States (1) makes a satisfactory finding that the WGFP can be operated consistent with Senate Document 80 — meaning no impact to the United States' obligations to the beneficiaries, including West Slope beneficiaries, of the Colorado Big Thompson (C‐BT) Project, and (2) adopts an enforceable provision recognizing that if the River District does not challenge the WGFP permitting decision, that it does not waive any legal rights regarding federal decisions involving the same or similar legal issues.
Fleming anticipated that that these conditions will be satisfied in the context of Reclamation's final record of decision on the WGFP, which is expected in the first part of 2014. In the meantime, Fleming said the River District has worked extensively with Grand County on matters related to the WGFP and the operation of the C-BT Project — including the Grand Lake Water Clarity Agreement and the upcoming initiation of the WGFP Carriage Contract negotiations.
With respect to the Grand Lake clarity issues, Fleming reported there have been several meetings with Reclamation and Northern to help ensure that a workable solution can be reached to meet the Grand Lake water quality standard. An important goal in that regard has been to avoid a stalemate over a massively expensive "fix" that could require a separate congressional authorization and appropriation.
With regard to the WGFP carriage contract negotiations, the River District has assisted Grand County in efforts to secure the best possible negotiating position in Reclamation's negotiation process.
Fleming said the River District believes Grand County's specifically identified role in Senate Document 80 entitles the county (and its advisers) to a more involved position in the negotiations than Reclamation's standard "sit and‐observe" role for members of the public in its contract negotiation process.
Another goal is to ensure that the Windy Gap water that Grand County is entitled to use pursuant to the IGA can be stored in Granby Reservoir for no charge or at a very affordable rate.


text:
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/04/18/art.polygamisthearingend.jpg caption=" Members of the FLDS Church walk out of the Tom Green County Courthouse following a custody hearing in San Angelo, TX "]
Judge Barbara Walther says:
-As to each child in each case, the court has heard sufficient evidence.
-Their requirements have been met... The court keeps the children...
-The court is ordering (DNA) maternity and paternity testing for each child.
-There will be a mobile lab at San Angelo coliseum...
-If you are a parent and have been or should have been named, please provide that information for DNA testing...
The hearing ends.
FLDS members are not talking so far...
They are all quietly leaving.
I am a polygamist. My "sister wife" (no, we are not sisters, that is just the technical term for our relationship) entered into this relationship as adults and with full consent from each other. We do NOT live on welfare. We are NOT members of the FLDS, LDS, Islam, or other religion. We live in a state where polygamy is technically legal so long as only one of the wives is legally married to the husband. Our husband makes a good living working in the IT sector. My sister wife is currently the 'stay at home mom' for our kids while I currently have a job as a CPA. In the past, I have been the stay at home mom while my sister wife worked. There is no brain washing, arranged marriage, child bride stuff going on. Our relationship is not for everyone, but we would not trade it for the world. There are about 25,000 other families out there in the US just like ours.
Polygamy per se is NOT a violation of federal laws. There really are no federal laws prohibiting polygamy. It is against the law on some states, but in others it is technically permissable.
Always has been and always will be: We, as parents, do not OWN our children, the government can take them away from us at any time forth the vaguest of reasons. Be honest everyone, that is the way it should be. There are parents out there that think it is right to beat their children because they wet the bed. There are parents out their that don't tend to their children properly. The only way to handle this is to remove the children from the home and investigate.
The judge is to be commended for her actions so far. The potential here is far reaching; . .The men are guilty of poligemy, pedophilia, rape, incest, false imprisonment; . . . the women are accomplices as well as victims. The lack of proper healthcare and education for the children; . . .And, what about the disparity between boys vs girls. There's more to that than is known so far. Not to mention welfare fraud and tax evasion and likely other criminal behavior. I would love to ask the women, "What are your hopes and dreams for your son, your daughters, yourself?", . .But, they have none.
One little bit of advice to the FLDS,,, Stay out of Texas,,They don't play!
· Posted By: lunchelaw @ 04/19/2008 2:34:56 PM
Comment: 400+ children should not be separated from their families and their faith What about the Catholics? Maybe we should round up all the children following Catholic mass and put them in to protective custody to protect them from the Catholic priests? The Bishops haven't been forthcoming about identifying who the abusers are and we are aware of the coverup, so how can those children's parents justify repeatedly exposing their children to potential abuse at the Catholic Churches and private schools? Everyone knows that the abuse takes place, so aren't we abusing children by ripping them from their parents in order to protect them?
People in Child Services may be overzealous and have personal issues that caused them to seek that type of employment in the first place and may have a "cause." Also, they may be biased because of how much child abuse they have seen in their profession. In addition Texas may be afraid to send the children home due to the political fear of public outcry. There may be many factors keeping the children away from their families other than "abuse". This could be handled differently. We had Waco in Texas. And in Texas, some murder trials have lasted only a couple of days. Texas is also the state that wanted execute a mentally retarded Defendant. WHY did they have to go in with tanks and guns? Couldn't CPS just gone in to investigate with a clipboard? All the chlidren could be taken from their families for one year without due process and it is unfortunate for the children and their families, many who are born into their religion and believe in following the Bible in a very fundamental way. What amout the Amish? What about the Mennites? Those children are forced into their lifestyle and we're not ripping them from their homes. Also, every parent has influence over their children. All children imitate their parents and believe what their parent's beliefs are. We could all be abusing our children in that respect. I think we need to take a step back and work through what it means to remove children from their families and what the consequences of this are. I don't think the children will be thanking us.
Any marriage of a minor requires WRITTEN consent of the parents recorded with the county clerk, so if that does not exist, it's illegal. It's exceptionally easy to prove the allegations in that case (or defend as well).
As for getting married at 14, that would be an INCREDIBLY rare circumstance, and obviously didn't occur here. I'd be interested to see the circumstances where one has been approved since the law change, and I'd be extremely surprised if one was ever allowed to a much older man/woman.
M Landolphe D'Aquin-Burglass MD ThD
I have seen several comments related to the DNA testing that has been ordered (I especially liked it when AC was a little confused about it all! 🙂 sorry, i was unavailable for blogging last night)
I believe yours is the most interesting. I see 'MD' behind your name and find it very interesting that you doubt the conclusiveness of the DNA testing.
If nothing else, the DNA testing would be able to link the mothers and children, which would give a rather clear picture of the amount of incest even with the narrow gene pool. Of course, you will know I am referring to mitochondrial DNA. I would love to see how many of the the wives are married to the same men or have had children for the same men as their mothers or other immediate female relatives.
This is what the DNA testing will be most useful for. It will be interesting to see how they figure up the end results, as I'm sure you know that each level of relation will have to be placed into a certainty percentage. This is of course where things get tricky. I do not believe however, that this will cause the results to be found inconclusive in any way, the narrow gene pool could actually make the results stronger if the testing is strategically conducted. I am just grateful that I do not work in any of the labs that will be processing these tests! lol
I think it will show the amount of incest and is the first step at getting to the men who have abused these children and possible prosecution for their actions.
Here we go again where only the man is at fault, I see woman there that are over 50 and 60 years old and they do not know what the law is? Why are these woman not being arrested also? Did these woman not break the law also? Dont even say that these woman were brain washed like I said there are woman there over 60 why didnt one of them go to the police if they knew what was going on? Why did it take a 16 year old? Ask yourself that, every time something like this happens the woman escape justice. Yes those men envolved are evil but so are those woman for standing bye and doing nothing.
My daughter in elementary school expressed her views while we discussed the recent custody battle for children belonging to FLDS church members. " The victims seem to be more victimized here", she said.
If only Judge Walther could get a clue from this, i could hook her up with my daughter for solutions!!!
I'm a Texan writing to express my concern for the FLDS children in our foster care system. I keep hearing all of the talking heads on tv expressing their thanks to Texas for what we're doing. But, what no one seems to be addressing is that our CPS system in Texas is broken. Bless their hearts, our CPS workers are underpaid and overworked. We had over 33,000 children in the foster care system in F07 – and we don't have enough homes to place them in! Several months ago, there were articles in the Dallas Morning News about foster children spending the night in empty office buildings because there was no where to house them. CPS workers were volunteering their services to take turns spending the night at these facilities with them.
Our system in Tx is broken. The state only pays for the most basic of needs such as food and shelter – and it's not much. I just heard an ex-FLDS member say that these children are going to need extensive counseling. Most of the 33,000 children already in our system are not receiving that – and a lot of their stories are much worse than these. Believe me, I think what was done to these FLDS children is horrific and I do not condone them staying on the compound. But I am not convinced that we have the staff, the money or the ability to help 400+ more children coming into our system.
That's your story CNN.
Of course in this moral sewer that America has come to be, where the ACLU defends Planned Parenthoods refusal to submit records of abortions on pre-teens, the children in the custody of THE STATE are never murdered, abused, or raped (in OR more children die and are raped while in Foster Homes than at large; in one instance a CS agent was so drunk she drove off with her new ward on top of her car). Let's not forget Waco and the 24 children the FBI and ATF killed in order to "save" them. Or the infant the brave FBI sniper murdered at Ruby Ridge.
The men in the compound should be planting land mines, arming themselves, and preparing to take their children back from these modern day NAZI.
Jericho rising.
I see a lot of sympathetic people posting. And that is of course understandable, it is all to easy to relate this incident to yourself and your children or your religion. However, as citizens of the United States it is necessary for us to follow all laws that are not prohibited by the constitution. As far as i know, the constitution does not condone polygamy or statutory rape, so unless these cults move off of US land, they should be subject to US laws.
In fact, the complacency the government is showing in not enforcing even the polygamy laws undermines all attempts at enforcing other, more "valuable" or "important" laws.
It seems as though tthe government picks and chooses which laws are necessary and which are not, which is a concept that leaves me feeling uncomfortable and vulnerable.
It seems to me that there has been a lot of loose talk about how there is no stimulus for the children. eg no coloring books etc., perpetuating the idea that all these children were in some way being abused by their very environment. This is just spin as I seen coloring books when the young lady was showing the reporters around the compound. In fact she picked one up to show the camera. I believe that this whole affair was driven by the publics distaste for polygamy rather then any concerns for the children or their mothers.If they were so concerned for the children they could have come up with a better solution then to rip 400+ kids from their families!! They could have gone in with a whole pack of law officers,lawyers and social workers and got to the bottom of the allegations without subjecting the children to this,what must be for them a truly a terrifying situation. Who is truly safe from the state now?
What is the ratio of young male children to female children at the FLDS compound? If there is a very large difference, would that indicate a form of infanticide? Could these 'men' who are the perpetrators be tried under the Rome Statute at the International Court for the crime of sexual slavery?
A girl could get married legally in Texas at age 14 with the consent of a parent until the statute was changed in 2005. So it is possible for an 18 yr old mother to have three children today without any crime being committed. How is the State of Texas going to prove its allegations? Why is CNN failing to inform its viewers?
By the way, a 14-year old girl can still be married legally today if the parent gets the approval of a judge.
My God! People! ... If some 30 or 40 or 50 year-old man went after your 12 or 13 year-old daughter ... you'd have him strung up by his testicles ... why are these young girls any different? ... the mothers there say there's nothing wrong going on there ... 13 year old girls pregnant and having 4 kids by the time they're 18 or 19 ... there is something terribly wrong here ... we go overseas and stop this kind of thing over there ... why not here? ... these men are nothing more than incestous pedophiles ... Bravo to Texas for doing something about it!!!!
To Don in Georgia...this case is about child abuse, whether it be sexual, physical, emotional or verbal, not religion. From what I understand, a call was made. Whether it is a hoax or not, I have no idea. They were obligated to investigate when the call was received.
In fact, how many men are there and, what are they up to these days?
I'm glad the court kept the children in custody. I hope this can all be sorted out quickly and them placed in a safe environment that encourages the children creatively and intellectually as well as socially. These children have been so deprived – no toys, no crayons. All the FLDS women that have appeared on the 360 segments all seem to have the same personality – I hope the children will get the opportunity to have their own personality and be able to choose their own life style.
Annie Kate
Birmingham AL
How about the men? Are they going to be investigated?
Where are the men of FLDS?
The Young Lady that made the alleged hoax ccall is a hero and should be treated as such and not a criminal.
I bet you if she was a white woman she would have been treated diffrently.
What that brave woman did is to save a lot of innocent children and now she is the crimina ? unbelievable!.
-Kingsley Quartey
Alberta Canada
This whole case smacked of fraud by the government as soon as it broke. This is an outright assault on these peoples constitutional right to privacy and to practice their religion. Tell me Mr. Anderson, what's to stop the government from frabricating a phone call such as that (presuming that that wasn't what happened in this case) and kicking down yours or my door? The state didn't have probable cause and these children should be returned to the women and returned to their homes. They can't justify the means after the fact. This is criminal on the states part and proves we haven't learned anything from Waco or Ruby Ridge!
I want to submit a suggestion for news comment relative to the polygamist ranch in Texas...
It seems to me that taking the kids is nothing more than bailing water out of a boat being flooded with water... What we need to do is plug the hole!
What I'm thinking here is that we have a 1700 acre private community, that is under its law, not the law of the land! So, my question is what law inforcement is within that compound! In my mind its apparent they make and rule their own law.... So how come we can't have a law where if there's a community (even on private property, larger than maybe an acre) that its patroled by the sheriff, state police or something other than law from within the compound? This is different then private property of one family, this is a community and I don't care if it is on private property... We've just allowed another "Jim Jones" situation! How are the young innocent protected?
Again, is there a law?
Where is that Merrill Jessup hiding??
It would be interesting to see if ALL of the fathers and men on the compound will come forward to give DNA samples to the courts. I would have to assume that most of them won't if theinformation from those tests will implement them further in charges of child abuse.
Anderson... will you ask the lawyers on your show how they can be sure that all the men will provide samples?
I was thinking along the same lines as the person that made the previous comment. If the children were impregnated at such an early age, it wouldn't be unlikely that some of these sikko men would have impregnated their own teenage children, grandchildren or both. Would DNA testing be accurate for such inbreeding?
The attorney on the show tonight said that it would be tragic for the two-year-old in one family to be removed from her home because the 14-year-old four houses away was being abused (pardon the paraphrase, but I'm sure that's close to what she said). I completely disagree. The two-year-olds must be removed. They're in waiting to become 14. This cult is a nest of pedophiles, and must be stopped. The Constitutional implications are mind-boggling, of course, but the Court must err on the side of protecting children, protecting those who've been allowed no choice in this horror show. May God grant grace, wisdom, courage, perseverance to those trying to save these children's futures.
Does any one know if any of these children have birth defects because of all the mixed blood ? Really there must be some as if they dont know who belongs to who .
If I" father a child and that child's mother then collects FEDERAL MONEY (AFDC) and I have not paid suppofrt I am held liable for those funds.
The wackos at Jeff's church should be held accountable for the AFDC funds disbursed for their children and intrest accrude just like done by the IRS.
Just like how Capone was nailed ny the IRS the polygamists can be held accountable in the same way for ripping off the US taxpayers!!!
I have a question if these people where getting food stamps how in the world did they do it, when they don't have birth certificates?
Are there any elderly people at the FLDS compound? I haven't seen any. Considering the fact they throw boys out, I wonder what may become of the infirm.
Just wondering if there is incest, how would this affect DNA testing?
Also, has there been any attempt to bring in testimony from any of the lost boys, especially from the Eldorado compound? It is all just too bizarre...
What about the FLDS in Colorado City, Nevada? The same things are going on there; does the case in Texas give precedent for going into Colorado City?
Please tell me where the men are in this story....all we are hearing and seeing are women...are the men hiding?
Given these circumstances, the DNA "evidence" cannot be forensically conclusive. Nonetheless, the court may yet rule "ex cathedra" that it is "valid" and meets the criteria under the Frye case and its progeny. Should that obtain, I would expect the defense to seek immediate interlocutory appellate relief.
M Landolph D'Aquin-Burglass MD ThD
According to the laws of Texas, this courts action was appropriate but I am sincerely hoping that the children can be united at home with parents. To tell a 16 year old girl to marry someone older is considered abuse. OK so be it. -
However, I feel is it abuse for any child to be subjected to hate and racism in church teachings as in the Black Liberation Theology Churches and maybe others. When will the authorities look closely at what this "mind control" teachings will do to children when they have to grow up and live in the real world of all races and cultures.
Why is this not considered abuse?
Hoping that they can 'sort' this out. How accurate can the DNA tests be with this group having been a 'closed' gene pool for several generation?
Anybody got the 'scientific' data?
Well, the worst is rapidly coming to pass: "custody," DNA testing, fingerprints, "creating a paper trail." The black shirted storm troopers have landed! I wonder if the proceedings are being conducted in German (hmmmm....)
M Landolphe D'Aquin-Burglass MD ThD
I am a mother of 4 and I certainly am not in favor of allowing any child to be abused, but how do you justify taking over 400 kids out of parental homes. I know that CPS was stunned by what they found but the kids must be in shock , scared, and devasted. Wouldn't it be better to remove the men and appoint a trustee or law enforcement or someone to monitor the women and children at the compund through this transition. What if one day the gov't doesn't agree with my beliefs? What about the financial burden to this town?


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In 1992, Boeing's Phantom Works program began development on the Bird of Prey, a project managed by the U.S. Air Force, funded by Boeing, and borrowing the name from the Klingon starship in 1984's Star Trek III: The Search For Spock. It pioneered dozens of new technologies that we use in airplanes today, but the Bird of Prey was never meant for production.
Phantom Works is Boeing's secret(ish) in-house development arm, tasked with engineering, prototyping, and building classified projects, often for the U.S. military. Its vice president is Alan Wiechman, an engineer whose CV includes the Lockheed Have Blue, F-117 Nighthawk, and the Sea Shadow ship. And Wiechman headed up the Bird of Prey's development and design.
The single-seater jet was developed on the cheap--relatively speaking--coming in at around $67 million. Part of that cost savings came from using off-the-rack components, like the Pratt & Whitney JT15D-5C turbofan engine, nixing the expensive fly-by-wire systems in favor of hydraulics, and by using computer modeling--one of the first applications for an aircraft.
When the time came to build the Bird of Prey, the team used then-novel rapid-prototyping to build components, single-piece composite structures, and disposable tooling. In final spec, it measured 47 feet long, with a wingspan of 23 feet, and a curb weight of about 7,400 pounds.
When it took to the sky on September 11, 1996 for its maiden voyage, the Bird of Prey had a paltry cruising speed of 300 mph and a maximum altitude of 20,000 feet. But the Bird of Prey was never designed to warp time or space. It was about testing technologies, including rumors of active camouflage that would change color and reflection based on its surroundings.
After a total of 38 test flights over Area 51, the Bird of Prey was stashed away in April 1999, and declassified over three years later.
Boeing finally outed its baby Bird because, "the technologies and capabilities developed [in the program] have become industry standards, and it is no longer necessary to conceal the aircraft's existence." Some of those technologies eventually filtered down to the X-45A Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle, another radar-evading tech demonstrator developed for Darpa, while others--including the camo tech--haven't come into being. At least, not according to Boeing, which remains incredibly tight-lipped about the more mysterious aspects of the Bird of Prey.


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text:
North Korea has struck a tentative deal to begin nuclear disarmament after its test last fall, the U.S. envoy negotiating the agreement has said. But what about Kim Jong Il's chemical and biological arsenal?
The Chinese are marketing sweet potatoes grown in space. Talk about keeping a space program's focus back here on Earth.
After forcing YouTube to pull 100,000 of its clips from the video-sharing temple, Viacom is shifting clips from the likes of "The Daily Show" and MTV to its own websites. We're still wondering how you can watch them on the big screen.
More From Popular Mechanics
Dodge has a hot new concept ready to be unveiled in Geneva next month, but our favorite concept out there right now is still probably the Toyota FT-HS, which seems to be getting a ton of attention today.
With another super chip up its sleeve, Intel continues to impress with its emphasis on personal empowerment for putting the juice behind supercomputers.
The FBI lost 10 laptops with secret information on them from 2002 to 2005. That may not be as bad as the 26.5 million veterans who had their identities exposed last year, but it's still good reason to keep an eye on the FBI's computer sleuths—and on your personal data theft protection, especially how to destroy all your data. —Matt Sullivan


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NEW YORK, N.Y. – Dove is scrapping its plans to run a billboard in New Jersey that tells residents to embrace being called "The Armpit of America."
Unilever, the brand's Anglo-Dutch parent company, says the billboard featuring the well-known joke about New York state's notorious neighbour will not run this summer after all.
The news of the billboard sparked complaints after the New York Times published a story about it last week. The article included an image planned for the billboard, which featured a woman in a white tank top raising an arm behind her head to expose an armpit.
The text read, "Dear New Jersey, When people call you 'The Armpit of America,' take it as a compliment. Sincerely, Dove."
The ad was intended to promote a new line of Dove deodorants.


text:
School prayer bill headed to Mississippi governor
House approves bill to legalize student prayer before school audiences
The House has sent a bill to Gov. Phil Bryant that could legalize student prayer before school audiences.
Senate Bill 2633 is also meant to guarantee religious freedom in Mississippi public schools, ensuring students can talk about spiritual beliefs and aren't deprived of their rights.
The House voted 108-6 for final passage of the bill Wednesday.
The measure would guarantee student rights to talk about faith in classwork and allow them to organize religious clubs. But it also would create a path to allow students to pray at school events and during morning announcements.
It suggests naming such events as "limited public forums," choosing students to speak at each. The bill says schools can't punish students who pray, and sponsors say the aim is to promote such prayer.


text:
What is Podcast?
What is Podcasting?
A podcast is a series of digital media files, usually digital audio or video, that is made available for download via Web syndication. The syndication aspect of the delivery is what differentiates podcast from other files accessible by direct download or streaming: it means that special software applications, generically known as pod catchers (such as Apple Inc.'s iTunes or Nullsoft's Winamp), can automatically identify and retrieve new files associated with the podcast when they are made available, and that these files can be stored locally on the user's computer or other device for offline use. This is done by the podcatcher accessing a centrally-maintained Web feed, which lists files associated with a certain podcast.
I have created the Podcast and Live News page for the WCNY- public broadcasting station of CNY (www.wcny.org). Several types of media were used on the How to build Virtual TV? page.
Feed from PBS with programs preview, video streaming, audio streaming, RSS feed reader that read feeds from NPR, PBS and other trusted source of information.
Podcasting in Plain English:
A 3 minute explanation of podcasting.
Video & Audio Podcast in iTunes:
How does iTunes and iPod treat podcast files compared to song or audio book files?
Podcast won't show up in Party Shuffle unless you drag them into the Party Shuffle playlist, and Auto fill won't include podcasts when copying files to an iPod. In iTunes 4.9, there were some limitations to how podcasts could be used. For example, you could not access podcasts using Music Sharing or create a Smart Playlist of podcasts. These limitations do not exist in iTunes 5 and later
On an iPod, podcasts shouldn't appear when you select Shuffle Songs or Music Quiz.
What is an enhanced podcast?
An enhanced podcast can include chapter marks and photos. When you play an enhanced podcast in iTunes, a menu icon appears to the left of the display at the top of the iTunes window.
If you click this icon, a pop-up menu appears and displays the podcast's chapter marks, artwork, and start time of each chapter.
(Note: Mac OS X 10.2.x users won't see artwork in the pop-up menu, but everything else works the same).
When you play an enhanced podcast on an iPod, your iPod displays the name of the chapter you're listening to above the playback position in the episode. To see this, press the Select button during play to make a diamond appear in the bar. You can then scroll the wheel right to scrub forward, or left to scrub backwards.
What is Webcast?
A webcast is a media file distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology. A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand. Essentially, webcasting is "broadcasting" over the Internet.
The generally accepted use of the term webcast is the "transmission of linear audio or video content over the Internet".
A webcast uses streaming media technology to take a single content source and distribute it to many simultaneous listeners/viewers.
Visit Wikipedia to find out more about podcast and webcast
What is RSS?
RSS in Plain English Video. A short explanation of RSS and how it helps you save time reading the web.
RSS (an abbreviation for Really Simple Syndication) is a family of Web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works—such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video—in a standardized format.
An RSS document (which is called a "feed", "web feed", or "channel") includes full or summarized text, plus metadata such as publishing dates and authorship. Web feeds benefit publishers by letting them syndicate content automatically. They benefit readers who want to subscribe to timely updates from favored websites or to aggregate feeds from many sites into one place.
RSS feeds can be read using software called an "RSS reader", "feed reader", or "aggregator", which can be web-based, desktop-based, or mobile-device-based. A standardized XML file format allows the information to be published once and viewed by many different programs. The user subscribes to a feed by entering the feed's URI, often referred to informally as a "URL" (uniform resource locator), although technically the two terms are not exactly synonymous, into the reader, or by clicking an RSS icon in a browser that initiates the subscription process. The RSS reader checks the user's subscribed feeds regularly for new work, downloads any updates that it finds, and provides a user interface to monitor and read the feeds.
Several types of media were used on the how to build Virtual TV page. Feed from PBS with programs preview, video streaming, audio streaming, RSS feed reader that read feeds from NPR, PBS and other trusted source of information.
Web cast is a media file distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology.


text:
There are a lot of events that are scheduled on particular days of the week each month, for example the regular Windows Patch Day on the second Tuesday of each month, or in Perl 6 land that Rakudo Perl 6 compiler release, which is scheduled for two days after the Parrot release day, which again is scheduled for the third Tuesday of the month.
So let's write something that calculates those dates.
The specification format I have chosen looks like
3rd tue + 2 for the Rakudo release date, that is, two days after the 3rd Tuesday of each month (note that this isn't always the same as the 3rd Thursday).
Parsing it isn't hard with a simple grammar:
grammar DateSpec::Grammar {
rule TOP {
[<sign>? <offset=count>]?
token count { \d+ }
token quant { st | nd | rd | th }
token day-of-week { :i
[ mon | tue | wed | thu | fri | sat | sun ]
token sign { '+' | '-' }
As you can see, everything except the day of the week is optional, so
sun would simply be the first Sunday of the month, and
2 sun - 1 the Saturday before the second Sunday of the month.
Now it's time to actually turn this specification into a data structure that does something useful. And for that, a class wouldn't be a bad choice:
my %dow = (mon => 1, tue => 2, wed => 3, thu => 4,
fri => 5, sat => 6, sun => 7);
class DateSpec {
has $.day-of-week;
has $.count;
has $.offset;
multi method new(Str $s) {
my $m = DateSpec::Grammar.parse($s);
die "Invalid date specification '$s'\n" unless $m;
:day-of-week(%dow{lc $m<day-of-week>}),
:count($m<count> ?? +$m<count>[0] !! 1),
:offset( ($m<sign> eq '-' ?? -1 !! 1)
* ($m<offset> ?? +$m<offset> !! 0)),
We only need three pieces of data from those date specification strings: the day of the week, whether the 1st, 2nd, 3rd. etc is wanted (here named
$.count), and the offset. Extracting them is a wee bit fiddly, mostly because so many pieces of the grammar are optional, and because the grammar allows a space between the sign and the offset, which means we can't use the Perl 6 string-to-number conversion directly.
There is a cleaner but longer method of extracting the relevant data using an actions class.
The closing
} is missing, because the class doesn't do anything useful yet, and that should be added. The most basic operation is to find the specified date in a given month. Since Perl 6 has no built-in type for months, we use a
Date object where the
.day is one, that is, a Date object for the first day of the month.
method based-on(Date $d is copy where { .day == 1}) {
++$d until $d.day-of-week == $.day-of-week;
$d += 7 * ($.count - 1) + $.offset;
return $d;
The algorithm is quite simple: Proceed to the next date (
++$d) until the day of week matches, then advance as many weeks as needed, plus as many days as needed for the offset.
Date objects support addition and subtraction of integers, and the integers are interpreted as number of days to add or subtract. Handy, and exactly what we need here. (The API is blatantly copied from the Date::Simple Perl 5 module).
Another handy convenience method to implement is
next, which returns the next date matching the specification, on or after a reference date.
method next(Date $d = Date.today) {
my $month-start = $d.truncated-to(month);
my $candidate = $.based-on($month-start);
if $candidate ge $d {
return $candidate;
else {
return $.based-on($month-start + $month-start.days-in-month);
Again there's no rocket science involved: try the date based on the month of
$d, and if that's before
$d, try again, but with the next month as base.
Time to close the class :-).
So, when is the next Rakudo release? And the next Rakudo release after Christmas?
my $spec = DateSpec.new('3rd Tue + 2');
say $spec.next;
say $spec.next(Date.new(2013, 12, 25));
The code works fine on Rakudo with both the Parrot and the JVM backend.
Happy recurring hollidates!


text:
Misfits skeleton all ages tour flyer tee.
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text:
Bulmer supports up to 81 different languages such as Spanish, English, Portuguese, German, French, Turkish, Italian, Polish, Kurdish (Latin), Romanian, Dutch, Hungarian, Serbian (Latin), Czech, Kazakh (Latin), Swedish, Belarusian (Latin), Croatian, Finnish, Slovak, Danish, Lithuanian, Latvian, Slovenian, Irish, Estonian, Basque, Icelandic, and Luxembourgian in Latin and other scripts.
Please note that not all languages are available for all formats.
Cut as a private version for the Nonesuch Press in the early 1930s, Monotype Bulmer was first released for general use in 1939. Based on types, cut by William Martin circa 1790, used by the Printer, William Bulmer, in a number of prestigious works, including Boydell's Shakespeare. Martins types combined beauty with functionality. Narrower and with a taller appearance than Baskerville, it anticipated the modern face of Bodoni but retained vital qualities from the old face style. This new digital version of the Bulmer font family was drawn by Monotype following extensive research into the previous hot metal versions and a study of Bulmer's printed works. Additional weights have been designed together with a wide range of Expert and alternative characters.


text:
If you've listen to the recent podcast I did on Planetary Interaction, you'll know you that I've been playing with this on the test server more and more in recent days. I figured this would be a good venue to give some more detailed information on what I've found about the concept so far.
The idea here is simple: there are a lot of planets in EVE, and pre-Tyrannis they have almost zero value in the game, short of a warp-to target without infrastructure around it to blow you to pieces. Tyrannis hopes to change that — and more — by letting players create an industrial surface infrastructure. I'll get to the "why" of things later, for now lets look at the "how".
There are a specific number of planetary types, including the usual suspects like ice, temperate, gas, etc., as well as plasma, the most rare. Each type of planet has a specific number of materials available to work with, some unique for that type. You start your endeavor by purchasing a command center on the market, one suited for the particular type of planet you want to play with. The command center has stats like power and CPU amounts similar to a ship or POS control tower, with higher level centers having more of those stats. Once bought, put it in your hold, fly to your target planet, right click on it and select View in Planet Mode. Select the location of your new infrastructure and you're good to go.
You have two categories of tasks on the Planet View, build and scan. Build is obvious, but to determine what to build — and more importantly, where — you'll have to scan. Scanning lets you select a resource the planet holds, showing you specifically where deposits are located that you can extract. You can play with the settings to get a nifty heat map view of the world, and almost immediately you're going to wish you did this step first before planting your command center (hint hint!). You'll see why that is soon.
On a particular gas planet I was playing with, I decided I wanted to extract aqueous solutions and ionic solutions. After scanning for both, you'll see they will usually be a distance away from each other. Fair enough, so you head to the Build section of Planet View and select the appropriate extractor from the groups presented there, and being planting a few of each type into the locations you found the materials. This is somewhat like a market tab in a way, since you'll be charged for each item you plant , although only after you click the submit button so you have time to play around a bit. I put down a storage silo to hold my extracted goods as well.
Now you must link your infrastructure together. This is like establishing roads between your buildings, the creation of which will eat up a specific amount of your command center's stats depending on the distance of the links. Luckily you can optimize this at any time you wish. For instance if you have a cluster of three extractors in one area, linking each to the storage silo 50km away individually would be inefficient. It's better to link them all together as a cluster and one to the silo, since links are shared.
We're not done yet. Each extractor must be selected, so you can survey the area it's set down in for deposits. Each deposit in the list has a a total amount and amount per extract cycle indicated, which is calculated to show you the time it will take to deplete the deposit. Select something reasonable. Now you have to route the product, by selecting where you want it to go when extracted. Doing this to your silo will show how the product moves along the links you've established.
Once this has all been done, and presuming you haven't exceeded your control center's power and CPU attributes, click submit and your set will become permanent. You'll see your extractors will begin their work with a 15 minute cycle time. Lets get ready to take care of these raw materials.
Processor facilities let you convert your raw materials to more interesting products. Each planet type has two or more of these, each one is basically a processing tier. For my setup, I chose to put down two basic processors, linked to my storage facility. Each one converts one of the extracted materials into a product. Selecting each one, I chose the schematic for converting aqueous liquids to water for the first one, and ionic solutions to electrolytes for the second. Similar to the extractors you can set up the routing for the incoming and outgoing items. I also set down an advanced processor to take the water and electrolytes and convert it to coolant.
Just to give an idea of the amounts we're dealing with here, to get 5 units of coolant you need 40 units each of water and electrolytes. That means 12000 units of aqueous liquids and ionic solutions.
So once you get a product and you want to do something with it, then what? You have two options. First, shuffle the stuff to your command center and launch it into orbit, in a special can with a decaying orbit that you must scoop before it self destructs. Second, you can build a launch facility on the surface which lets you interface with the customs depot in orbit of every planet.
The customs facility is a new thing orbiting each planet in EVE, allowing you to import and export goods from the surface. By exporting via this method, the can doesn't hang out in space. This might seem less risky, however since the customs facility location is known to everyone it will probably end up being camped by those wanting to scan someone's cargo and suicide gank them for the goods inside.
So, now the why of things. In its current state there's not much purpose to most of this. So far I've seen that nanite paste can be constructed with some of the products from all of this, and I'm not sure what else out there can be constructed from the output of planet goo processing. The intent told to us is that this will eventually replace the remaining elements of the NPC market in EVE, and that is a good thing in my opinion. Additionally, this will all tie (somehow) into DUST 514, although the how of that is still a great unknown at this point.
There's an immense time and ISK sink at work here as well. Deposits must be re-surveyed when they deplete, so every few hours you'll be coming back to make sure stuff is still coming out of the ground. Infrastructure cannot be sold, only decommissioned, meaning you will lose the money invested. It seems to be only a matter of a few hundred thousand ISK on average for the different facilities, but that can add up especially when the ROI here is relatively low.
In a way it's a balanced stream of passive income, as all the elements along the way can be sold off on the market to other people who don't wish to mine/process their own. For the EVE gamer more concerned with PVP, this is a worthless addition for them directly. Industrialists and tinkerers may find a lot to reward them, but it remains to be seen if the commitment to develop this persists past a year. Think back to the Cosmos constellations and Faction Warfare for examples of promising new features that are current gathering dust…


text:
In the first minute
Your taste buds are atwitter and send pleasure signals to the brain. The message: More, please! As you chew, enzymes in your saliva break down the sugars and starches in the stuffing you've gobbled.
Within five minutes
Your stomach is frantically working to dissolve food and shuttle it to the small intestine, which will ferry nutrients like fat and protein into your bloodstream.
Within 15 minutes
Both your stomach and small intestine alert your brain—via hormones such as peptide YY—that they are beyond capacity. But if you hoovered your meal, your brain won't get the memo until after you've helped yourself to seconds.
More From Women's Health
Within the first hour
Post–apple pie, your insulin levels have spiked in an attempt to control the sugar that's coursing through your bloodstream.
Within 30 minutes of eating a salty meal, your blood vessels may become slightly less supple. If your diet is always packed with salty foods, you may develop stiff blood vessels, a heart-disease risk factor.
After one hour
Feeling drowsy? Don't blame the bird. Yes, turkey contains tryptophan—an amino acid the body converts into sleep-promoting serotonin—but your fatigue is really the result of your stuffed stomach. It sent a "rest and digest" signal to your brain, which, in turn, directed all available energy toward digestion.
Your stomach is stretched like a balloon and is pushing against surrounding organs, possibly leaving you achy or nauseated.
After one to two hours
Your liver has converted the food into nutrients that your organs can absorb. If you're lucky—and your carb reserves aren't already full—most of the fat and calories you ingested have been converted into short-term energy. (Had you worked out before bingeing, you'd have more room in that storehouse.)
Chances are, though, you've shoveled in twice as much as your body needs, which means the excess is converted into layaway triglycerides and may be packed into fat cells around your thighs, butt, and belly.
After two hours
Whew—your stomach has emptied and your blood vessels are back to normal.


text:
Ritchey Swiss Cross Canti Frameset
Many Ritchey-sponsored mountain bike champions were also cyclocross champions—Thomas Frischknecht, Henrik Djernis and Ruthie Matthes, to name a few. And though they were paid to race Ritchey mountain bikes, they often wanted a Ritchey cyclocross bike to race in the winter. This ultimately resulted in another iconic Ritchey model—the Swiss Cross. Now the Swiss Cross is back, and better than ever. We started with the same forged-and-machined integrated head tube design found on the P-29er—80 grams lighter than a standard 1-1/8" head tube and just as strong—a design which also provides much-needed shouldering room at the head tube. Tubing is an all-new triple-butted, heat treated steel designed to Tom's specifications for a classically lightweight, compliant, yet tough-as-nails frame. Geometry has been updated to reflect what 'cross riders want: race-ready handling and responsiveness that's still versatile enough to serve as a capable all-around rough road/trail bike. Tire clearance? Plenty. The Swiss Cross is designed with 'cross racing in mind, after all. But with two bottle cage mounts, the Swiss Cross is perfect for long mixed rides in the off-season.
- Painted-to-match Ritchey WCS Cross fork and WCS integrated headset included
- Bottom Bracket: 68mm English threaded
- Front Derailleur Clamp: 28.6mm (Caution: Front derailleur clamp MAX torque of 2.5Nm)
- Headset: WCS integrated drop-in 41.8 (included)
- 130mm rear spacing
- Weight: 1941g / 4.28lbs (55cm, frame only)
- Sold as frameset only
|Ritchey Swiss Cross chromoly
|Ritchey WCS Cross
|WCS integrated drop-in
|Bottom Bracket
|68mm English threaded (sold separately)
|Wheel Compatibility
|Front Derailleur
|Brake Compatibility
* Subject to change without notice.


text:
Michael Bastian knows a thing or two about putting a look together. The designer's is heralded by editors and well-dressed guys alike, and his namesake is, well... heralded by editors and well-dressed guys alike. So, because he's something of an expert, and because Gant happens to have a very stylish outpost in DC, we decided to pick Bastian's brain about how to dress for the biggest thing happening in our nation's capitol today: the inauguration. The impending inauguration parties, to be specific. Here, he gives us some insight on how to get outfit yourself for a celebration of presidential proportions — whether you're turning it out for a gala, or just taking it easy at the local bar.
Esquire.com: OK, to start, let's run down how you'd recommend dressing for the inauguration in a few different scenarios. First up: formal, from a classy dinner to a black tie ball.
Michael Bastian: I guess the answer to this depends on if you're a Democrat (really celebrating) or a Republican (just showing your face). But either way, Washington is a conservative town and it's always best to stick closely to the established dress codes for these types of things. Nice dark suit for a dinner, traditional black tie when the invitation says black tie. It's not the town to bust overly creative style moves in — save that for the LA and the Oscars.
ESQ: Now, what about something kind of dressy, but not full-on formal-wear required, like an evening at your well-to-do friend's house? The one with great taste and impeccable interior decoration.
MB: This is where you pull out that nice dinner jacket you couldnt resist buying but never quite know when to wear. Try it with a cashmere turtleneck and jeans or gray flannels, and a pair of cordovan or formal shoes.
ESQ: And finally, how about if you're just meeting friends to celebrate the occasion at the bar?
MB: Depends on the bar — but I think the worst thing you could possibly wear to a bar is the ubiquitous "bootcut jean, stripey untucked shirt, too much cologne" look that has plagued every bar in every city for the last 10 years. Try dressing up a bit instead — you'll stand out a little more.
ESQ: Is there anything that you can wear for inauguration parties that wouldn't work elsewhere?
MB: Maybe your "I donated 10 Million Dollars to Mitt's Super Pac and all I've got is this lousy T-shirt" T-shirt.
ESQ: Wearing red, white, and blue: Is it ever acceptable? How do you do it the right way, and avoid looking cartoonish?
MB: This only really works if one of the colors is not the expected shade — say the blue is light blue, or the red is actually more burgundy.
ESQ: For a lot of guys in DC, things are OK with most of their get-up, but something goes wrong when you get to the shoes. Any footwear advice for guys getting ready to attend an inauguration party?
MB: Don't be afraid of black patent formal shoes. They may look creepy in the store, but with the full look, they work better than anything else.
ESQ: And finally, considering your longstanding relationship with Stubbs & Wootton, I've got to ask: Can a regular guy wear Prince Albert slippers to an inauguration party? What's the right way to do it?
ESQ: I'm not sure what Prince Albert slippers are? Are they pierced? But I've yet to find myself in a situation where a pair of Stubbs & Wootton's wouldn't work somehow — they have a lot of personality and a lot of humor and are perfectly made. How many things, or people, can you say that about?


text:
Morning Minutes: Jan. 6
Word of the Day
Finesse fuh-NESS (verb) To make a finesse in playing cards, to play (a card) in a finesse; to bring about, direct or manage by adroit maneuvering; evade, skirt -- www.merriam-webster.com
Web Site of the Day
An online travel itinerary and trip planner, TripIt will help you manage the details of your trip. Instead of juggling pieces of paper for airline tickets, hotel reservations, maps and directions, manage your travel plans in one online place.
Number to Know
12: Today is the 12th day of Christmas, also known as Twelfth Night.
This Day in History
Jan. 6, 1994: Nancy Kerrigan is clubbed in the knee at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Detroit.
Today's Featured Birthday
Comedian/actor (Mr. Bean) Rowan Atkinson (55)
Daily Quote
"Faith is an oasis in the heart which will never be reached by the caravan of thinking." - Kahlil Gibran. Today is Gibran's birthday – he was born on Jan. 6, 1883.


text:
Have Questions?Ask An Expert
2023 BMC Roadmachine FOUR 12 Speed SRAM Rival eTap Disc Road Bike
Subcribe to back in stock notification
The BMC Roadmachine's frame and fork are constructed from BMC's Premium Carbon with all the benefits of the built-in TCC Endurance technology. Internal cable routing gives a clean aesthetic to the BMC Roadmachine FOUR 12 Speed Disc Road Bike, whilst the Premium Carbon D-Shape seatpost ensures next-level compliance in the saddle. SRAM's latest Rival eTap AXS 12-speed groupset offers a very wide gear range and wireless shifting, and is fitted along with 25mm XRD-522 wheels, 28mm tires and a conventional aluminium bar and stem.
Frame - Roadmachine Premium Carbon with Tuned Compliance Concept Endurance
- Internal Cable Routing
- PF86 Bottom Bracket
- Flat Mount Disc
- 12x142mm Thru-Axle
Fork - Roadmachine Premium Carbon with Tuned Compliance Concept Endurance
- Internal Cable Routing
- Flat Mount Disc
- 12x100mm Thru-Axle
- Gears - 2x12
- Chainwheel - SRAM RIVAL AXS 46-33T
- Cassette - SRAM RIVAL XG-1250 10-36T
- Chain - SRAM RIVAL 12 Speed
- Rear Derailleur - SRAM RIVAL eTap AXS
- Shifters - SRAM RIVAL eTap AXS HRD
- Brakes - SRAM Rival eTap AXS HRD - Centerline X Rotors (160/160)
- Handlebar - BMC RAB 02 - Ergo Top Shape - Compact Bend
- Stem - BMC RSM01
- Seatpost - Roadmachine Premium Carbon D-Shaped Seatpost / 15mm Offset
- Saddle - Fizik Taiga
- Hubs - XRD-522
- Rims - XRD-522 - Tubeless Ready - 25 mm
- Tires - VITTORIA RUBINO - 28mm
- Tire Clearance - 33mm (Measured Width)
- Weight Limit - 110 Kg
- ASTM Classification - Level 2
- *Specifications subject to change without notice
- BMC Bikes are only eligible for pick-up at our Miami store
For more information, feel free to email us at orders @ mackcycleandfitness dot com or hit us up on the live chat and we are happy to assist.
Order Processing and Shipping
Fuji, Giant, Specialized, BMC and Yuba bikes can only be picked up at our local store in Miami (5995 Sunset Drive, Miami, FL 33143). These brands do not allow any retailer to ship their bikes.
We accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Discover (as well as PayPal and Apple Pay) as forms of payment. Once your order is placed, the payment method is charged immediately and we do aim on shipping most orders within 24 business hours.
Orders usually ship within one business day after being placed.
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- A flat rate of $4.95 will be applied to orders with items subtotaling less than $50.
- Free shipping on orders over $50 (for orders less than 10lbs).
- Free shipping does not apply to orders that have a combined weight of 10lbs or more. (shipping weight of 10lbs or more)
- Bikes can only be shipped in the continental U.S. Bikes cannot be shipped to Alaska, Hawaii, or U.S. territories.
- All bikes that are shipped will require assembly that your local bike store will most likely charge an assembly fee for. It is highly recommended to bring your bike to your local authorized mechanic to assemble your bike to avoid your warranty from being voided. Assembly fees will vary by your local store.
Oversize Items
- For most oversized items like bicycles that weigh 15lbs and above, the shipping and handling charges are:
- $149.99 for adult bikes (and some 26" bikes) priced up to $3,000
- $199.99 for 26" and 29" SE Bikes
- $199.99 for E-bikes (Electric Bikes)
- $49.99 for kid's bikes that are 12" and 16"
- $79.99 for kid's bikes that are 20" and 24"
- Oversized orders will typically ship using UPS or FedEx.
- Indoor bikes (i.e. Stages SB20 and Wahoo Kickr) are considered overweight items by UPS and FedEx and cannot ship with regular UPS or FedEx Ground because they have a high probability of getting damaged. These indoor bikes must ship on a pallet and ship with our freight carrier (Southeast Freight) and the flat rate for freight shipping is $199.99 to any state in the U.S. except for Hawaii and Alaska.
Indoor bikes (i.e. Stages SB20 and Wahoo Kickr) are considered overweight items by UPS and FedEx and cannot ship with regular UPS or FedEx Ground because they have a high probability of getting damaged. These indoor bikes must ship with Kitzuma using our white glove service. The Kitzuma White Glove Service for these oversized bikes is $350.
If you wish to cancel your order after we charge your payment method, please contact us by phone at 305-661-8363 or email at email@example.com and we will refund your payment method asap provided that your order has not yet shipped.
Order Confirmation
After placing an order, you will get a confirmation email within 10 minutes. If you place an order with us and don't get a confirmation email check your "junk" mail folder - it will probably be in there; otherwise, shoot us an email at email@example.com and we'll resend an order confirmation to your email immediately.
Orders may only be canceled or changed on the same calendar day they are placed, after which they are subject to the terms of our Return Policy.
Order Status
When you place an order with us, you will receive a link that will allow you to track that order. Once your order ships, you will receive another email with tracking information (if available).
We want you to be happy with your order! With some exceptions (see below), if you are not satisfied with your order you may return it within 30 days of your receipt of merchandise for a refund of the purchase price less the original shipping fees. Returns can be shipped to:
- Mack Cycle and Fitness
- Attn: Online Sales
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More family records in new publications
Check out more family records in the volumes at www.irishancestors4u.com.The listed surname married into the Rossiters. Are they your ancestors?Do your ancestors share the history? Bargain at £19.95 plus postage for all this information.
Great Idea for a Christmas present for the person who has everything.
Also I am looking for any descendants of the Green/e family of Knockgreany, Coolgreany, Co Wexford.They were evicted in the Coolgreany Evictions of 1887 and the family scattered far and wide.


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Articles by Beth Toland
Beth Toland has a broad range of experience, having worked in most major functions of the web—from design and information architecture to content development and research. Her specialty is messaging and branding, which is particularly useful in solutions development and opportunity mapping. Beth has led projects for consulting firms Andersen and Sapient, and helped build the research practice at Marriott International.
Social Health Networking: A popular online format in unfamiliar territory
Revolution Health explored how one could leverage the dynamic world of social networking in providing targeted support toward better health goals. [Read More]


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Home > impact on women / resistance > Human rights organizations' double standards and hierarchy of (...)
Human rights organizations' double standards and hierarchy of rights
Thursday 20 May 2010, by
Belgium/Iran: Laws on veiling:
Everyone is Equal but Some are Just More Equal
For years, not only in Muslim countries but also in the West, the debate over a woman's right to veil has been recognized as a complex issue. In the last week of April 2010, two simultaneous discussions about veiling took place in two different locations across the world. In Belgium, the parliament put to vote a law banning women from wearing burqas in public spaces. In Iran, government officials announced their plans for further expansion and enforcement of both veiling and chastity laws. Based on the law in Belgium, if a woman covers her entire body, including her face, she will be fined the amount of 15-25 Euros – or imprisoned for one to seven days. Based on Iran's plan of action regarding the expansion of veiling and chastity, governmental entities are required to create further restrictions and limitations around issues of veiling and gender segregation within every public space.
In an issued statement, the human rights organization, Amnesty International urged the Belgian parliament not to pass this law which bans the wearing of burqas in public. Amnesty declared this law to be in violation of women's human rights:
"A general ban on the wearing of full-face veils would violate the rights to freedom of expression and religion for those women who choose to express their identity or beliefs in this way."
Similarly, Human Rights Watch issued a statement condemning the ban and urged Belgium not to pass this law:
"They violate the rights of those who choose to wear the veil, and do nothing to help those who are compelled to do so."
To this date, neither organization has shown any kind of reaction toward Iran's increasingly strict enforcement of mandatory veiling, which translates into increased suppression against women in Iran.
I do not intend to present a feminist critique of the actions of Amnesty International or Human Rights Watch, nor do I want to elaborate on the complex topic of whether the wearing of a burqa is considered the same as veiling. Here, I shall only focus on the actions of these two human rights organizations as it relates to the veiling laws of two different countries: Iran and Belgium.
A woman's right to cover encompasses both the freedom to veil or not to veil. Similarly, the right to refrain from publicly expressing one's religious beliefs must be recognized as part of the individual's right to express one's religious belief. The choice of not observing religious practices must be honored in the same way as the choice to observe religious practices.
After Iran's Islamist rulers came to power in February of 1979, they immediately enforced compulsory veiling. For the past 31 years, they have continued to violate the rights of all non-Muslim and non-religious women in this regard. The Iranian government's recent plan initiates a new cycle of repressions on women, be they in the workplace, at university, in schools or stadiums, on the street, or in other public spaces.
As such, the human rights of Iranian women, who happen to number half of Iran's 70-million population, continue to be violated without any statements, concerns or reactions by major human rights organizations. The same organizations urgently and passionately declare their opposition to the Belgian law banning the burqa, which in contrast, only affects about 25 to 30 women.
It is assumed that when we speak of human rights, we are speaking of the rights of all human being throughout the world without any exceptions or prioritizing of various populations. But it appears that Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch adhere to a different set of standards when reacting to Iran and its stricter enforcement of compulsory veiling.
The time has come for these organizations to explicitly declare their position regarding the Iranian government's increased use of force as it relates to women's dress code policies. Given the compulsory veiling of millions of Iranian women and their continued repression, humiliation and persecution as it relates to the "Islamist dress code", Iranian women deserve an explanation as to why their reality is considered unworthy of being a high priority.
By Shadi Sadr
Source: WLUML, 05/20/2010


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Warning! Do not read this while operating heavy machinery
I guess it was only a matter of time before I blogged about James Suckling's new online shtick. I really tried not to. I figured enough people were going to be putting him through the crapper, so why add to the pile? Besides, James seems like a nice enough guy (I met him once or twice back in the day), and he had the cojones to leave a well-paying job and go out on his own. (Somebody at Spectator told me how much he made there–yes, I have spies everywhere–and I won't repeat it here because it's hearsay, but let's just say, it was a lot. No, make that A LOT!)
But I've now changed my mind and decided to write about him. What brought about this change? Simple.
In the millions of words I've written on this blog, I've never shouted in CAPS, and now look what Suckling has made me do. I've shouted TWICE. No, FOUR TIMES! Wait…take a deep breath, Heimoff. Center yourself. Ommmmmm….where's my Valium?
O.K. I'm back. So we were talking about James. As we all know, he left Spectator last summer after, what? decades as their Italian guy and European editor. He started dropping hints immediately that he was gonna followup with something big. I fell for it. We Facebooked each other back around July. I figured it would be cool to write about what he was going to do. He told me he'd get back to me in September. He never did–a broken promise–but never mind. By then, James' "teasers" were the talk of the town, or, rather, the laugh of the town. They were so absurd, so self-important and snobby, nobody could be sure if James either didn't know he was making a fool of himself, was parodying himself, or if he did know and just didn't care.
For starters, there was those "I'm here with" teasers, where he asked "How do you find the best wines in the world before anyone else?" and then, there he was, hobnobbing with such undiscovered nobodies as Christian Moueix (Petrus, Trotanoy), Paul Pontallier (Margaux) and Jacques Thienpont (Le Pin). That caused some WTF? moments and raised eyebrows. (Palate Press estimated the average cost per bottle of James' "I'm here with" teaser videos at $360.) The same person who told me how much James made at Spectator told me his ex-colleagues there were "appalled" by what they'd seen of James' antics. James got huge, negative blowback for those videos (for instance, here and here). There were average-person remarks such as "am I the only one here who found the video just a bit OTT?" and "It is all very macho and testosterone driven." In one Tweet, James is said to have fatuously wondered, "Why do people get so angry about my videos?" Umm, James, do you really need to ask?
But wait, there's more. Then came even more infamous teasers of James pronouncing on scores. "I give this wine 94 points!" "I give this wine 92 points," he intoned, as if he were Moses, down from the mountain with the Ten Commandments, lifting the flaming tablets above his leonine head; or perhaps God Himself, naming the animals. That was appalling moment #2. Now, just the other day, there came into my email inbox appalling moment #3, an evite inviting me (well, not me personally, but I'm one of the gazillion people who must be on the email blast list) to a so-called "Vintage Cult Dinner" in L.A. "Imagine 20 CULT wine hero's -pre poured for our sit down tasting – hosted by America's top wine personality," this cheesy commercial bleats, ungrammatically (no apostrophe needed in "heroes" which, by the way, the brilliant framers of this press release misspelled; and they also lacuna'ed the necessary hyphen in "pre-poured"). And capitalizing the word "cult" is like leaving leftover pizza on the kitchen counter for New York cockroaches–all those Brentwood producers and their anorexic trophy wives swarming zomby-like to the restaurant, festooned with diamonds and gold and more money than they know what to do with, courtesy of the Bush tax cuts. "Taste over $7500 worth of CULT heros!" it again hypes (and misspells). All for a modest $659, not bad when you consider that's all it takes to get you some pretty good wine, chew some meat at an L.A. steakhouse, and, even better, meet The Man Himself, "America's top wine personality" (wait a minute, I thought that was Andy Blue or maybe Gary V.). But I suppose the "America's top wine personality" absurdity was dreamed up by James' talent agency, IMG, which puts him in some pretty classy company: the agency also represents Jeffrey Tambor, who played Gary Shandling's smarmy sidekick on The Larry Sanders Show,
and why am I thinking that James Suckling has become the Hank Kingsley of wine personalities?
James' producer, by the by, is the Hollywood legend James Orr, whom I have previously described as The Biggest Wine Snob I Ever Met. But I won't go into that again.
The reason James Suckling is a laughingstock is because everybody sees through what he's doing. He has decided to out-snob even Wine Spectator. James is selling his services, not to the great and deserving masses of people who love wine and want to learn more about it, but to über-rich vulgar showoffs who believe–because people like James assure them it is so–that Petrus etc. are the greatest things to which they can aspire–the kind of people who know nothing but think they know everything because they can afford anything: Shanghai businessmen, Abu Dhabi oligarchs, hedge fund hustlers and L.A. deal makers who put new meaning into the term excess.
Like I said earlier, James either doesn't know how this makes him look, or he doesn't care. His blog costs $15 a month, more expensive than some of the other for-profit wine blogs out there (Tanzer's is $95 a year and Parker's costs $99 a year), but if he gets, oh, say, 2,500 American snobs of Orr's ilk, 5,000 ambitious Indian technocrats, 5,000 score queens from China and Singapore, 1,000 ne'er-do-wells from the oil sheikhdoms, and let's throw in another 3,000 rich Germans, Japanese and Argentinians who want to know what other rich people are drinking and eating and smoking so they can out-Jones them, that's almost $3 million a year, and that's without gigs like the L.A. steakhouse deal, for which James must get a pretty penny.
You know, I think people would have respected James if he'd said something like "Now that I'm leaving the Spectator, I'm going to get out of the snob game and instead focus on interesting wines I can recommend for average people in this devastating worldwide economic meltdown." But no. Instead, James looks like Gordon "greed is good" Gekko, or maybe Nero fiddling while Rome is burning, a person unaware of and unconcerned with the colossal difficulties normal people are enduring because he's simply spent too much time being cossetted in the marbled palaces of declassé Eurotrash, smoking Cohibas, flying to L.A. to pal around with Maynard James Keenan, and giving a high score to the wine of his then-landlord, Salvatore Ferragamo (see also here, via Vinography), while living in pastoral splendor in one Ferragamo's properties, a "villa" described by Ferragamo's daughter, Amanda, as "three floors [with] a courtyard with a high wall, giving seclusion and privacy…". I'm here with Heimoff, in his little downtown Oakland condo which does not afford seclusion or privacy, and I give James' conflict of interest 98 points.
Maybe James knows that all this negative P.R. makes him look like the most morally bankrupt and cynically egotistical wine critic in the world. And maybe he doesn't care, because he's laughing all the way to the bank. Ka-ching.
He sure doesn't come across as the type of guy who engages in discussions unless they're about how unbelievably cool he is. Name-dropping doesn't qualify as discussion and that seems like what he does most of the time. His reputation in the industry supports that.
Steve, you are right, I can only afford wine 18 bucks or less so I don't ever want to see or read about anything over that price. Anyone who does is either a snob or pretentious. You are somewhat famous in your own right, why do you feel the need to rip everyone else. It seems to me that if the person is your personal friend then they are great wine writers. If they slight you in any way, real or perceived, you want your pound of flesh. I know your adoring masses love your quick wit but I don' get the joke.
Great post. I found this site through Alice Feiring's blog and am glad I did. I thought those videos were so pretentious it made me gag. Thanks for having the "cahones" to post this!
Steve. I am shocked.
I find so biased this article that I dont know how to start. You are pre-judging so badly that you are the one looking like Moses… or God himself.
1. Why should people interested in CULT tastings have to be snobs? What's wrong in spending 700us in a great tasting conducted by someone who knows the business?
2. You are saying that anyone who loves great wines and can afford them, regardless of their country of origin or occupation is a vulgar showoff wine snob that will follow James just to feel good about how to spend their own "excess"? Man, in this industry generalization is the mother of every single F*** Up!
3. Why is it so wrong that James is giving points to wines, when he has been doing it for so many years. Yes, we have to be humble and accept that it is very likely that he has tasted more wines than us, and he can give a score. Is Parker, Spectator and everyone else wrong by doing so?
I am really dissapointed by reading this article. I only can read envy and anger. We should have more Sucklings breaking the mold and daring to dive in the freezing waters of economical uncertainty, just to make the wine world a more diverse and rich place to enjoy and live.
As a frequent reader, I think you should focus on your own stuff and share with us all the postive and interesting things you have to write… not negative personal feelings. I think a big part of your readers will appreciate it.
It's remarkable how people can makes things so complicated. This is all very simple: Suckling comes off as a name-dropping, pretentious snob. That's all.


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Transesophageal Echocardiography (TEE)
What is transesophageal echocardiography?
Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is a test that produces pictures of your heart. TEE uses high-frequency sound waves (ultrasound) to make detailed pictures of your heart and the arteries that lead to and from it. Unlike a standard echocardiogram, the echo transducer that produces the sound waves for TEE is attached to a thin tube that passes through your mouth, down your throat and into your esophagus. Because the esophagus is so close to the upper chambers of the heart, very clear images of those heart structures and valves can be obtained.
Quick facts
- TEE is a test that uses sound waves to make pictures of your heart's muscle and chambers, valves and outer lining (pericardium), as well as the blood vessels that connect to your heart.
- Doctors often use TEE when they need more detail than a standard echocardiogram can give them.
- The sound waves sent to your heart by the probe in your esophagus are translated into pictures on a video screen.
- After this test, you may have a mild sore throat for a day or two.
Why do people have TEE?
Doctors use TEE to find problems in your heart's structure and function. TEE can give clearer pictures of the upper chambers of the heart, and the valves between the upper and lower chambers of the heart, than standard echocardiograms. Doctors may also use TEE if you have a thick chest wall, are obese, have bandages on your chest, or are using a ventilator to help you breathe.
The detailed pictures provided by TEE can help doctors see:
- The size of your heart and how thick its walls are.
- How well your heart is pumping.
- If there is abnormal tissue around your heart valves that could indicate bacterial, viral or fungal infections, or cancer.
- If blood is leaking backward through your heart valves (regurgitation) or if your valves are narrowed or blocked (stenosis).
- If blood clots are in the chambers of your heart, in particular the upper chamber, for example after a stroke.
TEE is often used to provide information during surgery to repair heart valves, a tear in the aorta or congenital heart lesions. It's also used during surgical treatment for endocarditis, a bacterial infection of the inner lining of the heart and valves.
What are the risks of TEE?
The few risks of TEE involve passing the probe from your mouth down into your throat and esophagus. You will get medicines before the test to make you calm and to numb your throat. But you may feel like gagging. You may also have a sore throat for a day or two after the test. In very rare cases, TEE causes the esophagus to bleed.
How do I prepare for TEE?
Check with your doctor. He or she may ask you not to have alcoholic drinks for a few days before the test, and not to eat or drink anything for at least 4 to 6 hours before TEE. Because you receive a sedative to help you stay calm, someone should drive you home after the test.
What happens during TEE?
Specially trained doctors perform TEE. It's usually done in a hospital or a clinic and lasts 30 to 60 minutes.
- A technician sprays your throat with a medicine to numb it and suppress the gag reflex. You'll lie on a table.
- A nurse puts an IV (intravenous line) in your arm, and gives you a mild sedative (medicine) to help you stay calm.
- The technician then places small metal disks (electrodes) on your chest. He or she attaches the electrodes by wires to a machine that will record your electrocardiogram (ECG) to track your heartbeat.
- The doctor then gently guides a thin, flexible tube (probe) through your mouth and down your throat, and asks you to swallow as it goes down.
- A transducer on the end of the probe sends sound waves to your heart and collects the echoes that bounce back. These echoes become pictures that show up on a video screen. This part of the test takes 10 to 15 minutes.
- When the doctor is finished taking pictures, the probe, IV and electrodes are removed and nurses watch you until you are fully awake. Then you can usually get up, get dressed and leave the clinic or hospital.
"The doctor was talking to me about the tube going into my throat, and before I knew it, he told me the test was over." Iris, age 68
What happens after TEE?
Your throat may be numb for a short time. Don't eat or drink anything until the numb feeling goes away — you could choke.
- You may have a little trouble swallowing right after the test, but this will go away within a few hours.
- It's common to have a sore throat for a day or two after the test.
- Because of the sedative you get during the procedure, don't drink alcohol for a day or two.
"My voice was a little hoarse the day after my test, but my throat didn't really hurt." Martin, age 54
What should I watch for?
If your sore throat gets worse or doesn't go away after a few days, call your doctor.
How can I learn more about TEE?
Talk with your doctor. Here are some good questions to ask:
- Why can't you perform a regular echocardiogram to get pictures of my heart?
- What will you learn from this test?
- When will I know the results of the TEE?
- Can I go back to work on the day of the test?


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NEWPORT BEACH, Ron Williams, U.S. Secret Service, retired; CEO Talon Companies, a professional security and risk management firm: I do not advocate or support the sale of assault weapons to citizens other than the military or police, and I agree that they should be banned. But guns are not the problem with violence in America.
If we followed the logic of avid supporters of banning guns, then perhaps we should ban box cutters, which were used on Sept. 11, 2001, to bring down three passenger planes and kill nearly 3,000 people. We should also ban items we can purchase at our local grocery store that can be used to make improvised explosive devices.
The issue of violence in America is one of culture, a lack of training to detect dysfunctional behaviors that indicate a propensity for violence and specific protocols to deal with the mentally ill or persons deemed to be dangerous to themselves and others.
We have allowed violent video games and movies to provide "entertainment." When "at risk" individuals see killing by playing the violent video games and watching violent movies they become desensitized to death. They are unable to distinguish between playing the game or watching a movie and reality. They began to lack empathy. We must address how we are being entertained, and there must be guidelines for acceptable games and movies in order to change our culture.
There must be more training in our schools and in our society to detect those behaviors that signal a person has a propensity for violence. The disaster at Columbine, Virginia Tech and, now, at Sandy Hook, could have been avoided if people had been trained to detect those behaviors and statements that indicate they were planning to engage in violence.
But changing our culture, and detecting aberrant and dysfunctional behaviors, will not deter violence unless we have a solution for how we should handle those we determine to be dangerous. In most cases of targeted violence, people close to the perpetrator knew they were dangerous, but there were no protocols or procedures to effectively deal with the perpetrator or perpetrators. Law enforcement can only react to a violent act.
Attorneys quickly advise their clients to get a Temporary Restraining Order without understanding that a TRO could cause some mentally ill folks to violently act out. Under the ruling in Tarasoff v. Regents of the University of California, a psychologist can only act if the person makes a direct threat on someone's life. Even if a person is deemed a threat to himself, herself or others, [an involuntary] commitment for a 72-hour observation at a mental institution frequently finds the at-risk person as dangerous when back on the street as when committed. We must have a lawful method of deterring and isolating those who are dangerous from the rest of society.
Banning guns is not the solution. Changing behaviors, training our citizens to detect those behaviors that indicate a propensity for violence and having firm policies and protocols to deter and isolate those who are deemed dangerous from the rest of society is the only way we can avoid targeted violence in the future.
Read the studies and compare statistics
LAGUNA WOODS, Ronald O. Davies: Dr. Phyllis Agran's letter, "Guns don't belong around children" [Letters, Dec. 29], is correct in saying that "the most basic need of parents is to protect their children." However, she is so very incorrect in claiming that "the safest home for a child is a home without a gun." The physician in Connecticut whose wife and daughters were raped and set on fire during a ghastly 2007 home invasion didn't have a gun to protect his family. Why would anyone want to proudly display a large lawn sign that invites criminals in by announcing a "gun-free home"?
It is offensive to claim that America has "a national culture that tolerates tragedies" like the Sandy Hook shootings. The entire nation abhors the murders by what was clearly a mentally ill person.
Agran quotes a study that included 18-year-old gangsters shot by police or other gang members as "children." When the ages of "victims" are dropped to 9 years old or under, these studies are basically useless. Far more lives are saved by guns than are taken by them. Studies have shown that firearms used or merely displayed in self-defense stop as many as 2 million crimes a year. If we were bombarded daily by these common stories perhaps there would be some balance in this discussion. But common outcomes don't make news. Rare and uncommon acts make headlines.
Accidental deaths by firearms are below 800 per year in the United States while sloppy handwriting by physicians cause about 7,000 deaths per year due to pharmacy errors. So physicians with pens are nearly 10 times more dangerous than guns.
I am an anesthesiologist, not a pediatrician, and I would never presume to ask a patient if they had alcohol in the house. Or matches. Or tobacco. Or pens.
It is the height of arrogance for a pediatrician, with, apparently, no weapons training, to advise parents about firearms in the home, especially when studies she quotes have been widely rejected.
Clear thinking on gun control
CORONA, Gene Richau: In a rare moment of clear thinking, some elected officials are finally getting serious about preventing malicious misuse of guns by putting forth proposals for stricter gun control laws. Definitely a step in the right direction – and it shouldn't stop there.
Thousands of people die in this country annually due to the reckless misuse of drugs and it's time we take a stand on drugs as well. We need to enact strict laws on the sale, transport and use of drugs. Regardless of cost, we need to create and fund a task force or federal agency with broad authority to crackdown on drug-related criminal activity. We need stricter federal sentencing guidelines to ensure that even minor offenses carry the maximum sentences, regardless of the circumstances.
State and local governments must take charge as well by enacting tough new laws, even going so far as to seize the property of those who unwittingly included in the commission of drug-related trafficking, whether they were aware or not. Finally, local governments need to create and fund departments within their local police agencies expressly for the interdiction and prosecution of those involved in the violation of the tough no-nonsense drug laws that are sorely needed.
If this strategy works in curtailing gun violence by keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, it will most surely force criminals to give up destroying America's youth with this insidious drug trade. If Prohibition worked to control the abuse of alcohol, it will surely work to control gun and drug violence.
What's that you say? We already have strict drug laws in place? And criminals are still breaking the law? Really? Well hopefully this time it'll be different. Lucy, get the football.
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