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I teach at Lehigh University in eastern Pennsylvania. I teach and do research on Postcolonial/Global literature and film, Modernism, African American literature, and the Digital Humanities.
Movies Seen Recently, Music I'm Listening To
(The one image that has stayed in my mind is the brief moment of violence that appears at the end of the film, involving Jake Gyllenhal's character... you know the scene I'm thinking of... terrifying)
Capote at least gets into the murky waters of the writer's (inevitable?) exploitation of his subject. I tend to side against Truman Capote: I would rather be a bad writer and a good person, than a good writer who denatures (or destroys) his subject to get the Story. There is a lot to debate here: was Capote really all that great? And: can't he be accused of helping to start the era of the mass-media's sensationalizing of violent crime? Or maybe: he was a great writer and a terrible human being? Or: aren't all great writers pretty much that way?
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And here are some older films I've been watching over the past few weeks:
Side Streets (1998; IMDB). Shashi Kapoor plays a really strange role in this small art movie about working-class ethnic New York. Kapoor plays a huge (in more than one sense) movie star whose brother is an NYC taxi driver married to Shabana Azmi. That alone seems rather unrealistic -- one finds it hard to accept that a huge Bollywood star might have a siblings who drive taxis in New York -- but the rest of the film is gritty and believable. There are also parallel plots involving Russian drug dealers, abject fashion designers, and an Afro-Caribbean couple who bicker at length about permission to drive a car. But the real reason to see the film is the scene at the end, where Shashi Kapoor goes nuts and pulls a Charles Bukowski in a posh hotel room.
Ash Wednesday (2002; IMDB). Another New York indie film, this one directed by Edward "cheekbones" Burns of The Brothers McMullen. Ed Burns is a little like John Cassavetes back in the day -- a commercial actor who makes low-budget independent films with the cash he gets from the forgettable films he does in Hollywood. And while Burns's films lack the searing emotional upheaval of Cassavetes flicks like Opening Night or Faces, there is something interesting going on here. The plot of Ash Wednesday is pretty gripping, though the acting by the Irish gangsters of Hell's Kitchen is at times quite weak. The Catholic themes of sacrifice, rebirth, and redemption are strangely appropriate for a gangster film, and are all at play in the film's climactic scenes.
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939; IMDB). There is nothing to criticize in this film: snappy 1930s dialogue, great plot, and total relevance to politics today (you can substitute Jack Abramoff for the bad guy in the film without any difficulty whatsoever). It also has the distinction of being the only world-class film I've ever seen that portrays a Senate filibuster as a scene of climactic, world-changing action.
Fiddler on the Roof (1971; IMDB). Yeah, I know it's a banal Broadway myth of the Russian Jewish shtetl, but the songs in this movie are just too much fun. And Topol's big lines have great camp value; I'm especially keen on the moments where he shouts "Tradition!" in an accusing way at God, only to wave off after a moment (eh, ok, so much for tradition). I only hope I'm half this entertaining and melodramatic when I'm fifty. Watching this again also reignited my interest in the Yiddish writer Sholom Aleichem, whose works I'm somewhat curious to read.
The First Time (1969; IMDB). This movie was made in 1969, but it feels like 1954. Wow, is it dated -- it has a script that seems to have been written by a rather sleazy fifteen year old boy. Just truly awful dialogue; I don't know how I watched it all the way through. Maybe it had something to do with Jacqueline Bisset? That would probably be a good guess.
Home Delivery (2005). We watched about half of this recent Bollywood film before falling asleep. It felt like a collage of bits from a TV sitcom crudely stitched together to try and form a film. Yawn -- and that, needless to say, pretty much sums up my attitude to most Bollywood flicks that have been coming out lately (except perhaps Bluffmaster and 15 Park Avenue, both of which I want to see).
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I've been listening to Matisyahu's Live at Stubb's, The Decemberists' Castaways and Cutouts and Picareseque, and the Bluffmaster CD soundtrack. Both the Decemberists and Bluffmaster rock, though in very different ways.
I'm still trying to decide about Matisyahu, who takes an Orthodox/Hasidic messianic vision and channels it into the lyrical and melodic conventions of roots rock reggae and dub. At times it feels a little like a gimmick, but some of the songs really do click quite nicely. There is some real poetry here, though there is also, on some of the longer "jams," a little smelly Phish. We'll see what they do with the studio album...
The Decemberists have been doing their thing for a few years, but I only just got their new CD a month ago. These are, I think, the best-written lyrics I've come across in recent years. Magnificent -- deserving of a separate post (coming soon, hopefully).
And on the lighter side of things, Bluffmaster is the ultimate Bollywood/Hip Hop fusion, complete with spadefuls of swagger. And with cool baritone vocals on some of the best tracks, Abhishek Bachchan is coming to fill in his father's shoes more and more... I don't know if "Sabse Bada Rupaiyya" is going to be as immortal as "Rang Barse," but at least it's got a nice beat and you can dance to it.
16 comments:
You write...."an image of an era ('the closet') that has passed?"
Do you really believe that everything is fine NOW? When, right as I speak, distributors have pulled the film in Utah. When
str8 guys in urban America STILL leave a seat between themselves at the movies so that everyone knows they are not that type of friends.
- electrostani said...
No, by no means do I mean that everything is fine now. When I refer to the closet, I'm talking about a very specific aspect of modern life: gay men posing as heterosexuals in order to protect their livelihoods from scandals.
While homosexuality is stigmatized by the American right, the idea of the closet is not as strong as it once was. For most people, it is not a scandal the way it was 30+ years ago.
In some rural parts of the country (and perhaps in Utah) the closet is still as big a phenomenon as it was earlier, but most gay people in the U.S. do not have to stay absolutely secret about who they are and how they lead their lives anymore.
That is not to say that things are hunky-dory, of course.
Hi Deep,
one more hindi movie you may want to catch is "rang de basanti" ...
How do you define most people?
Interestingly, why do you think the gay populace has taken to the internet so quckly? You could look up the personals on gay.com and will definitely notice how many MWM have personals.
I think we see and hear the gay people that are out. But we will never gauge the number that are in the closet.
Even here in L.A., around West Hollywood, no men hold hands outside the bounds of the few blocks that is the gay strip.
As an exercise, I did a informal survey about Brokeback mountain at a New Yr party - majority desis ,all long term US residents. Only one guy out of twenty people said he knew about the movie. This was in L.A. Everyone's kids had gone to see Narnia, though. Its a quasi Christian film. Less to do with Indians than I would guess.
I find that as long as you talk of writers, movie buffs, and suchlike it is a very tolerant sampling.But stray outside those bounds and not much has changed.
Ask any gay couple about their expereinces of checking into a hotel anywhere outside entertainment Meccas. It is dangerous to assume a favorable response from the person behind the counter.
My fear is that there is a creeping complancency in the fight for equality.
A second plug for Rang De Basanti -- what a rich, fun, and thought-provoking film....
with all due respect, your views on gay america are from a heterosexual viewpoint, and miss a lot.
i agree with neale, what you see above the surface is no reflection of what is underneath. although it is in some ways easier to be out of the closet today, the era of the closet is very much alive - even on the liberal east coast. there's a preponderence of gay personal ads where married men are looking for sex.
regarding the movie, i have read annie proux's short story, and largely liked the movie but was not bowled over. adding things in the movie not in the book made it unnecessarily long and slow in the middle.
"Or perhaps because it's simply a romance that never quite gets to full boil" is the central crux of the movie. the average heterosexual can probably never identify with the idea of forbidden love. a gay man needs to come to himself before he comes out to society. the former is infinitely harder than the latter, and the environment required to be able to do that easily has not largely changed over the decades.
Capote is my favorite film of the year. Btw, I thought you were *meant* to side againt Capote. When I first read some of his short stories, I remember thinking to myself what a nice person he must be. Now I know. I guess it's finally sunk in. People who write wonderful poetry and beautiful books full of sublime vision can nevertheless be selfish, manipulative, and low enough to play life and death games.
- Manish said...
Capote was so slow-paced I nearly fell asleep. Mummification, absolutely.
Bluff Master was cool until you realized it was a rip of The Game. And Abhishek rapping is just cheesy.
Capote was a lousy film. Philip Seymour Hoffman is getting all these accolades, when it's just a mannered, unsubtle performance that doesn't capture all the facets of who Capote was. He sounds exactly like him, I'll give him that. But he either misses or completely disregards Capote's charm and charisma. You know, there was a reason why Capote was the darling of the media, why he had so many friends, why people in the Heartland opened up to him. But you'd never know it from this splenetic boor.
As for the film itself, there are some interesting ideas about the relationship between artist and muse, which reminded me a little of Igmar Bergman's Persona. But the film doesn't deal with these issues with any deep insight, and the relationship between Capote and Perry Smith is flat and uninteresting, as the basic dynamic is just repeated and repeated. (By the way, "flat" and "uninteresting" are also good words to describe the film's visual style.)
And are we to believe that Catherine Keener's final put-down was supposed to be powerful and surprising? Sheesh! What an obnoxious movie.
- Mukhatib said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
a gay man needs to come to himself before he comes out to society. the former is infinitely harder than the latter, and the environment required to be able to do that easily has not largely changed over the decades
YES. This anonymous poster said what I was going to say. The closet manifests itself differently over time. People still carry it within themselves (and not only over gay identity) It's a matter of shame, which public exploitation of that identity through entertainment (the L word etc) has not completely washed away. -rl
Talking of Brokeback mountain, i am reminded of Abraham Verghese's fine exploration of homosexuality (as an AIDS doctor) in My Own Country, in the very same Appalachian setting. What a fine movie that would make...i think Mira Nair (?) made a forgetable made-for-TV version of My Own Country.
The soundtrack of Bluffmaster is def among the coolest in recent times. Vishal-Shekar seem to have captured the pulse of young India. Def one of the few albums you will keep playing for a while.
Nice post! You have said it very well. Keep going.
New movie coming up is "Rock on" of farhan aktar which is definitely going to be movie for younger generation...full mixture of western & Indian culture..
- Offshore software development India said...
Rock on is cool movie but i really liked Avatar It is really nice post


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Gently does it
Motoring: Spies on the dashboard can teach people to drive more economically—and tick them off if they fail to do so
SOME people always take things to extremes. For those trying to save fuel there is hypermiling, in which the really dedicated try to use less than 4.5 litres/100km (ie, travel more than 80 miles on a gallon) in a car that under normal use might do only half as well. Apart from driving very slowly and trying not to use the brakes (which dissipates energy), hypermilers employ other tricks, such as wiring the fuel injectors up to lights mounted on the dashboard so they can see whether or not they are squirting fuel into the cylinders. Although this is all too much trouble for most motorists, the hypermilers do have a point: driving technique plays a big part in how much fuel a car consumes. Now various devices are being used to help teach more moderate ways of driving economically.
Not surprisingly, companies that operate fleets of cars and trucks are among the first users of fuel-saving "eco-assist" systems. The most popular of these are global-positioning system (GPS) units that use live traffic information and other data, such as weather and past trends, to plot not the fastest but the most economical route to a destination at a particular time. According to iSuppli, a Californian research firm, fewer than 1% of new cars have such "eco-routing" systems fitted, but it expects that by 2020 a third will.
Interest is also growing in other devices that go beyond a simple fuel-economy meter and provide more information about drivers' behaviour. One such is used by Masternaut Three X, a British company that specialises in vehicle tracking. It taps into the engine-management system which, because of the increasing amount of electronics used in cars, contains data that can be analysed to monitor such things as excessive revving and harsh braking. This information can be shown as a series of warnings on the dashboard and is monitored by fleet managers. Firms using such systems say they can yield fuel savings of around 10% a year.
As well as discovering those with the heaviest feet on the accelerator pedal who could do with retraining, this can also help reduce accidents. "There is a correlation between driving efficiently and safely," says Dan Steere, chief executive of GreenRoad, a company based in California. For instance, driving more smoothly by anticipating manoeuvres and then braking and accelerating lightly not only uses less fuel but also tends to make drivers more alert to avoiding potential accidents.
GreenRoad's driver-monitoring device does not need to tap into the car's innards. It uses GPS to measure a vehicle's speed and a set of accelerometers to measure the forces acting on the car as it accelerates, brakes and turns. The data are analysed to determine how the vehicle is being driven and the results shown to the driver as green, amber and red LEDs. For fleet cars, the data can also be relayed to a control centre, so that Big Brother can tick off offending drivers.
Mr Steere claims that despite the Orwellian overtones most drivers will soon become comfortable with the device and value the fuel savings it offers. He has clearly never met Jeremy Clarkson.
This article appeared in the Technology Quarterly section of the print edition under the headline "Gently does it"
From the September 4th 2010 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contentsExplore the edition

subset: commoncrawl


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Behind The Basket
Our baskets are made by an amazing group of weavers in a village in Africa. The group consists of men and women who have developed this skill and art form which has been passed down from generations. They are now passing it down to their children in hopes of creating a legacy that will benefit their children.
It is important when purchasing items from other countries to ensure they are Fair Trade. It is very important to us here at Plum and Sparrow and it was one of the first standards we set in place. Being supporters of Fair Trade means that we can give back in more ways than one.
10% of every basket purchased at Plum and Sparrow is given back to the African village weavers. But because we want to help support the weavers and their families, we work together with our supplier and non-profit partner to provide additional aid to their communities. Your purchase helps these weavers and their families in several ways —including family healthcare and schooling for young children.We want to make sure the weavers are not only being treated with respect but also being paid a fair and equal price. Sadly, other basket weavers and shops do not abide by these standards which is why it is so important to us to let you know that when you purchase one of our baskets, we have a Fair Trade guarantee.
We value the skill of the weavers, who have been weaving these baskets for generations. To keep the tradition alive, we don't direct the weavers to produce certain color patterns. They have the creative freedom, as the true artists, being inspired in their own way to produce these pieces of art. Often, the color combination comes from materials that are readily available to them. This results in a true one-of-a-kind item, not replicated or mass-produced, that will forever be a part of your home.


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March 22, 2016 @ 9:03 pm
Galactic Gaming News #36 - Sci-Fi DLC
Ryan Murphy with a look at this week's video game headlines from out of this world. Firefight returns to Halo, Battlefront expands to the Outer Rim, and Fallout 4 goes robotic in first piece of DLC.
Halo 5 to receive Firefight update this summer
Halo 5: Guardians' newest multiplayer is Warzone Firefight, and 343 Industries showed it off in a new trailer released during the Halo World Championship Finals.
Star Wars Battlefront travels to the Outer Rim this month
A new DLC pack drops this month in the form of 'Outer Rim', which introduces four new maps, two heroes and an Extraction game mode.
First piece of DLC for Fallout 4 launches March 22nd
Automatron, the first paid add-on for Fallout 4, is out now on PlayStation 4, Windows PC and Xbox One.
Find more of Ryan's stuff at http://ryanmurphy.ca/ and on Twitter by following @RMurphy
If you're interested in more video game goodness, be sure to check out The Gamers Inn at http://gamersinnpodcast.com/
Leave us feedback by calling our voicemail number at (805) 328-3966 e-mailing at firstname.lastname@example.com or, send an audio message by clicking HERE
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I had a few different ideas for some Easter themed posts. The thing is, they all kind of centered around a bag of mini eggs. You know, the cute little candy coated chocolate eggs? Well, I had a few errands to run on Thursday (before everything would be closed for the holidays) so clearly that would be a good time to get them, no? Guess not, because I forgot to get my mini eggs. Wah, wah, wahhhh.
I had one back up plan, so that is what you get. Bunnies! Bunnies are pretty Easter-ish right? Read on to see two of the cutest bunny items you ever did see.


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Grenville Widows Lunch at Villiers – Dec 13th 2015Post thumbnail
The annual Grenville Lodge No. 1787 Widows lunch took place as usual at the fabulous Villiers Hotel in Buckingham (3 Castle Street Buckingham, MK18 1BS). We had a great turnout this year and would like to extend a very big thank you to all the lodge members that kindly volunteered to escort their guests to…Read More Grenville Widows Lunch at Villiers – Dec 13th 2015


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Guest blog post by Michael Cannon
You know things aren't going well in Massachusetts when supporters of RomneyCare write "there's some evidence that the reforms signed into law by Mitt Romney in 2006 are struggling." That's how The Washington Post's Ezra Klein puts it in a post defending RomneyCare. The New Republic's Jonathan Cohn offers a similar defense.
Klein mentions only a few of the difficulties confronting Massachusetts. Here are a few more:
- The Commonwealth Fund reports that even though Massachusetts already had the highest health insurance premiums in the nation, premiums rose faster post-RomneyCare than anywhere else; 21-46 percent faster than the national average.
- A recent study estimates that RomneyCare has so far increased employer-sponsored health-insurance premiums by an average of 6 percent.
- The success that Klein sees in Massachusetts' individual market — which accounts for just 4 percent of the private market — is merely the product of shifting costs to workers with job-based coverage.
- Contrary to Klein's post hoc spin that RomneyCare "was never an attempt to control costs," Romney himself promised that "the costs of health care will be reduced."
- Aaron Yelowitz and I find evidence suggesting that uninsured Massachusetts residents are responding to the individual mandate not by obtaining coverage but by concealing their insurance status. Coverage gains may therefore be less than official estimates suggest.
- Evidence is mounting that, despite stiffer penalties than ObamaCare will impose, increasing numbers of people are gaming the individual mandate by only purchasing health insurance when they need medical care. Such behavior could ultimately cause the "private" insurance market to collapse.
Nevertheless, the Klein/Cohn thesis is basically that costs have been climbing and employers have been dropping/curtailing health benefits for decades. So you can't blame that stuff on RomneyCare. We should instead be thankful that Massachusetts enacted a new raft of government price controls, mandates, and subsidies to protect residents from those features of "the American health-care system."
The only problem is that "the American health-care system" is the product of the old raft of government price & exchange controls, mandates, and subsidies. The largest purchaser of medical care in the country (and the world) is Medicare. Medicaid is second. The Left complains so much about fee-for-service medicine fueling rising health care costs and reducing quality, you'd never know that their beloved Medicare program is the primary reason for its dominance. Likewise, the reason why employers are dropping and curtailing coverage is that the government turned the private health insurance market into an unsustainable employment-based system that is doomed to unravel. Cohn's book documents the inhumanity of that system so well, you'd think it would sour him on the sort of centralized planning that created it. I could go on…
RomneyCare and its progeny ObamaCare are attempts by the Left's central planners to clean up their own mess. If Klein and Cohn want to defend those laws, pointing to the damage already caused by their economic policies won't do the trick. They need to explain why government price & exchange controls, mandates, and subsidies will produce something other than what they have always produced.
Cross-posted at Cato At Liberty


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This story was delivered to BI Intelligence "Payments Briefing" subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here.
Major UK card issuer Barclaycard announced more partnerships to integrate payment functionality into wearable devices, according to Finextra.
Now, the issuer has partnered with two firms, DCK Group, which partners with retailers for luxury jewelry, and Tappy Technologies, which works with watchmakers, in order to extend contactless payment functionality via chip to their offerings. The move will complement Barclaycard's proprietary line of wearables as well as existing partnerships.
Moving into wearables could be promising for Barclaycard.
- Contactless interest may have led to success in its proprietary line that could carry over to partners. In November, contactless card usage accounted for £2.9 billion ($3.6 billion) in sales, up 184% year-over-year (YoY), according to the UK Cards Association. That trend could indicate rising usage in noncard contactless payments as well, like mobile wallets or wearables. Since its launch last July, Barclaycard's proprietary wearables have seen 1.1 million transactions worth £6.6 million ($8.2 million), a figure that's a promising start and likely to rise.
- But Barclaycard will have to work to gain customers. However, while consumers are interested in, and apt to make, wearable payments, it's unclear if they will be willing to buy new products for this express purpose — a Barclaycard study of UK customers found that the group is most interested in retrofitting existing jewelry and wearables for contactless payments. That means Barclaycard's partnerships could be more effective if they work in turning existing items into payment devices rather than solely marketing new ly enabled offerings.
The rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) offers payments companies an opportunity to expand beyond mobile phones, cards, and point-of-sale devices, to a broad and diverse ecosystem of internet-connected devices.
We forecast that there will be 24 billion connected devices installed globally by 2020, up from nearly 7 billion today. And over 5 billion will be consumer connected devices by 2020, representing a massive expansion of touchpoints that could eventually offer payments functionality.
BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report that dives into the budding industry of connected device payments, providing a rundown of the stakeholders driving innovation in wearables, connected cars, and connected home devices. It also gauges the impact of new payment devices on different payments companies, along with how these devices could shift consumer purchasing behavior.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:
- The Internet of Things is ushering in a new era for payments companies and manufacturers. The rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) offers an opportunity to facilitate payments beyond mobile phones, cards, and point-of-sale terminals, on a broad and diverse ecosystem of internet-connected devices.
- More transactions could eventually pass through connected devices than smartphones. We estimate there will be 24 billion of these devices by 2020, with 5 billion of them being consumer-facing. This represents a massive expansion of touchpoints where payments could be enabled.
- Card networks have developed a basic framework to enable commerce in everyday devices. Visa and MasterCard are creating the underlying infrastructure to support the standardization of payments integration and stake themselves out as the key connected payments gatekeepers. Their payment platforms are universal, allowing digital payments to grow without being tied to the success of a particular manufacturer.
- Consumer-facing IoT companies have much to gain from enabling payments in their devices, including improving the value of the device, being able to cross-sell products through the device, and laying the groundwork for future opportunities to earn incremental revenue. For payments companies, connected payments offer a new revenue stream and an opportunity to gain market share ahead of competitors.
- Wearables, connected cars, and smart home devices will be the top connected payments product categories.
In full, the report:
- Frames the opportunity for embedding commerce capabilities in new devices.
- Explains how a device becomes commerce-enabled.
- Discusses the potential for payment-enabled wearables, connected cars, and smart home devices.
- Examines the impact of connected payments on key stakeholders.
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- Subscribe to an All-Access pass to BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report and over 100 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >> START A MEMBERSHIP
- Purchase & download the full report from our research store. >> BUY THE REPORT
The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you've given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of connected device payments.
Learn more:
- Credit Card Industry and Market
- Mobile Payment Technologies
- Mobile Payments Industry
- Mobile Payment Market, Trends and Adoption
- Credit Card Processing Industry
- List of Credit Card Processing Companies
- List of Credit Card Processing Networks
- List of Payment Gateway Providers
- M-Commerce: Mobile Shopping Trends
- E-Commerce Payment Technologies and Trends


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BOSTON – The U.S. Attorney's Office filed federal kidnapping charges against a French national who last month defied a judge's orders and fled the country with his 3-year-old child without the mother's permission.
Malik Benhamza, 33, who had been living in East Boston, is believed to be in Algiers, Algeria. Neither he nor the child have been seen or heard from since July 1.
The U.S. Attorney's Office on Monday filed a criminal complaint that charges him with a single count of international parental kidnapping. He is now considered an international fugitive.
The United States has no extradition treaty with Algeria, a country in northern Africa bordering on the Mediterranean Sea.
According to prosecutors, the child's mother, Jerusha Hall, in February was granted sole legal custody of the child by Essex County Family Court. Benhamza was granted visitation rights but only on specific days and times.
The family court judge also ordered that neither parent could travel outside Massachusetts with the child without written consent of the other parent.
On July 1, Benhamza did not return the child following a scheduled visit. Hall contacted law enforcement when the child was not returned, and officials tracked him by cell phone records to John F. Kennedy Airport in New York. A review of flight records showed that he and the child had departed on a Royal Air Moroc flight to Algiers where they disembarked.
If he is apprehended, Benhamza faces a penalty of up to three years in prison for international parental kidnapping.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding parental abduction to of from France, Algeria or The USA, we can help. Please feel free to contact us 24 / 7. We are always available at firstname.lastname@example.com or by calling our offices – +1 (805) CHILD-11 (+18052445311)


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We're pretty certain you've heard of those bracelets that have the initials WWJD as in What Would Jesus Do. You might have even heard of the bracelets that New Orleaneans were wearing several years ago with the initials WWBD as in What Would (Drew) Brees Do. But today, if you're struggling with debt, you might want to get a bracelet with the letters, WWDRD as in What Would Dave Ramsey Do.
The third most popular
If you've never heard of Dave Ramsey, you are the member of a small minority. He is a financial expert that has the third most popular radio program in America right behind Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity. In fact, more than 7.7 million people tune into his radio broadcast every week. He also makes live appearances such as the one he has planned for November in a 3000-seat arena in New Jersey.
What Dave teaches
The tips Dave teaches for managing money basically boil down to.
- Hate debt like the plague
- Budget carefully
- Start a $1000 emergency fund
- Use "snowballing" to pay off your debts
- Put three to six months of living expenses into savings
- Cut up your credit cards
- Invest 15% of your household's income into pre-tax retirement programs and Roth IRAs
- Pay off your home early
- Fund college for your kids
- Build wealth and donate to worthwhile charities
Snowballing your debts
Dave is credited with having come up with this strategy for paying off debt and it's a good one. The way it works is that you list all of your debts, including your mortgage (if you have one), in order from the one with the smallest balance down to the one with the largest. You then do everything possible to pay off the debt that has the smallest balance. When you've paid it off, you will have new money available that you can put to work paying off the card with the second smallest balance and so on. The reason why Dave recommends this is that he believes – and we agree – that when you pay off the debt that has the smallest balance, you'll see that you're making progress in zeroing out your debts and this will help keep you on track in paying off the rest of them. Where snowballing comes from is that as you pay off a debt, you will gain momentum like a snowball rolling downhill. And you will have an increasing amount of money available – again like a snowball gathers snow. Dave even offers a free snowball tool that could help you quickly organize your debts and get started paying them off.
Here's a video where Dave himself explains more about how you snowball debt.
Just makes sense
The rest of what Dave Ramsey would do or teach is pretty self-explanatory. The idea that you should have an emergency fund, three to six months of expenses in savings and funding your children's college education is not only self-explanatory but also just makes good common sense.
Paying off your house
It also makes good sense to pay off your house as quickly as possible. And this might be easier than you think. There are at least six ways to do this.
- Add an extra $500 or $600 to all of your payments. Just make sure that all the money is applied to your principal, not your interest or your escrow account. This will definitely free up money sooner than later.
- Make extra payments. If you can make an extra payment several times a year, this might be more difficult than paying a little extra each month but has the same benefits. You can make this less painful by making a payment every two weeks instead of once a month. If you do this, you should be able to knock off at least six years from a 30-year mortgage.
- Pay a lump sum. If you get a money gift, a bonus, an inheritance or a tax refund use the money to make an extra payment on your mortgage. Alternately, you could put the money into a savings account and then arrange to have automatic withdrawals made from it to your mortgage loan. That way you would have the best of both worlds, money in your savings account and money being applied to pay down your mortgage.
- Refinance to speed up the process. If you can refinance your mortgage, you should have a lower monthly payment and could then use the money you've freed up to make extra payments. The biggest issue here is called "declining home values," and your loan-to-value ratio. Plus you'll need to have a good credit score. But if you were able to get a new 15-year mortgage in place of that existing 30-year mortgage, you would definitely be out of debt much quicker.
- Reduce your housing costs. Would downsizing or selling your home and moving to a smaller one make sense? That will depend largely on how old you are and how old are your children. But if it would make sense, you could end up with a more affordable home and a much lower monthly payment.
- Use your retirement savings. The idea of using money from your retirement fund to pay off your house has become increasingly popular recently due to pending legislation in Congress that would waive the early withdrawal penalty if you take money out of a retirement account and use it to pay off a home loan. However, this might not make sense depending on how much you have in your retirement account. And definitely, don't do it if there is a possibility your home could be foreclosed.
What Dave doesn't do
Dave might be very big on the idea of using the snowball strategy to pay off debts but there are other ways to do this that might make sense – depending on your financial situation. As an example of these, you might use the avalanche method where you begin by paying off the debt that has the highest interest rate. Second, you could get a second job and use the money to pay off your debts. Third, you could borrow from your retirement fund and use the money to pay off your debts rather than to pay down your mortgage. And fourth, you might declare bankruptcy, which would discharge all or most of your unsecured debts (like credit card debts) but is basically an option of last resort because of what it would do to your credit for the next 7 to 10 years.


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Share your Easter photos
Staff Writer
The Daily Record
Do you remember getting ready for Easter Sunday as a child? Those days when young girls wore white dresses, spiffy hats and brand-new patent-leather shoes? If you have those photos handy, both from the past and current, share them with The Daily Record and we will put them in an Easter album. Email the photos to firstname.lastname@example.com or post them on our Facebook page. To start the album off, staff writers Linda Hall and Abby Armbruster share photos of when they were children.


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This article is one of several on fixing education. For more, readThe People's Professor,America 101, and the online exclusiveEducational Success: Stories of Innovation from the Utne Library.
The public schools have been bad and they deserve to be punished.
That's the mantra Americans have heard for the past eight years as politicians have scrambled to appease citizens battered by apocalyptic headlines about the state of the educational system, stories that detail how public schools are both epic disasters and the country's only ticket out of global decline, increasing poverty, and a coming society of dimwits.
And how did an administration hell-bent on warding off any responsibility for its own actions (torture, irresponsible war, a gutter-dwelling economy) react? They've assured us that failing schools will be held accountable. They transformed our society's greatest obligation into its greatest sin.
In 2002, with support from both sides of the congressional aisle, President Bush signed into law No Child Left Behind, federal legislation designed to punish schools into delivering higher test scores. Reformers jumped on the accountability bandwagon, brandishing the joys of abandoning the public schools through homeschooling or providing families with government-funded vouchers for private schools.
The public and its politicians have spent so much time placing blame on unyielding teachers' unions, stagnant administrative bureaucracies, and mind-numbing curricula that we've neglected to reflect on our own role in the problem. Americans need to reinvest, and not just by pouring more money into "the system." Citizens need to rededicate themselves to the promise of public education, a tradition founded on the ideals of educating every child, unifying a country that's been diverse since its inception, and instilling the civic-mindedness required of citizens in a healthy democracy (see "America 101").
So what can our elected representatives do to help turn the tide? A good start would be simply sending their children to public school. In 2007 a Heritage Foundation survey found that, while just 12 percent of American students attend private schools, 37 percent of U.S. representatives and 45 percent of U.S. senators have bailed out on public education and sent their kids to private schools.
The goal of the conservative Heritage Foundation's study was to shame privileged legislators into granting less well-off families the same "school choice" via vouchers. A different sort of shame is in order, though. If the country's representatives were invested in the system for the sake of their own children, not just for votes, our schools wouldn't be morphing into mindless test-prep centers. Teachers wouldn't be crafting heartbreaking appeals for donations for school supplies on sites like DonorsChoose.org.
Right-wing icon Grover Norquist was on to something when he helped to realign the '90s political landscape by bullying conservative candidates into pledging never to raise taxes. Citizens should exert the same pressure on their representatives to sign a new pledge that personally commits them to public schools.
For most parents, the situation is far trickier. Countless mothers and fathers do yeoman's duty propping up their public schools not only with fund-raising initiatives that put the bake sales of yore to shame, but also clocking so many volunteer hours that they more or less serve as unpaid employees.
A sinister meme has begun to infect middle-class communities, and it goes like this: If you really loved your children, you'd scrape together the money to protect them from the horrors of public schools and send them to private school.
The constant refrain of what private schools do better can be deafening: Smaller classes give students more teacher attention, kids are free from the tyranny of standardized testing, and collegial campuses offer functioning facilities. Perhaps most importantly, private schools haven't drained their curricula of arts and humanities classes. These laboratories of creative thinking have been steadily stripped from a cash-strapped public system ruled by a single-minded fixation on math and science scores.
There is, however, a strong case to be made for the advantages of public schools. They offer more advanced placement and college-credit classes, vocational courses, and work-based learning programs than private schools do. A 2007 study by the Center on Education Policy found that, after controlling for background factors like student achievement before high school, a family's socioeconomic status, and parental involvement, public school students performed just as well on achievement tests as private school students did, and made it into college at similar rates.
Then there are the intangibles to consider. For instance, too many private schools have become holding pens for mostly white, wealthy youngsters who head off to college without any inkling of the world beyond their gated communities. Worse, they carry with them the unchecked inclination to recreate this world elsewhere.
The irony is that the elite colleges these students are gunning for are becoming more inclusive (see "The People's Professor"). Bastions of the ivory tower like Harvard and Stanford are beginning to see the folly of a purebred student body and have retailored their financial aid to lure more middle- and lower-class students. As one Manhattan private school guidance counselor told the New York Post after parents went ballistic over a spate of Ivy League rejection letters last June, "It's getting harder for private school students because it's getting fairer for the rest of the world."
Americans have become accustomed to a debilitating media diet of negativity and cynicism, especially when it comes to education. It's time to refocus on the success stories, for inspiration and replication, because many of our schools–especially the ones serving students who can't afford to opt out of the system–are in need of repair.
Exceptional innovation is going on at some charter and traditional public schools. At the Harlem Children's Zone there's a Herculean effort to transform one devastated neighborhood through targeted charter schools and holistic initiatives focused on parenting and community health. The Knowledge Is Power Program has set up charter schools that are drastically lifting the performance of minority and low-income students through rigorous curricula and high expectations.
There are also promising new models of public school integration on the horizon in the wake of a 2007 Supreme Court ruling that nixed some race-based assimilation efforts. Focusing on class instead of race, and finding that the greatest predictor of student success after family background is a school's socioeconomic background, a handful of districts are mixing up their schools to raise the performance of all students.
The success of such ventures and the possibility of seeding that success elsewhere depend on politicians, parents, and society at large scrapping the doom-and-gloom mind-set that's allowed so many to regard our public schools as beyond repair. Public education requires not just public funding and public regulation, but also the commitment of a public that cares. If we're going to keep talking about accountability, it should be our own.


text: Back to the other day when I was wandering around aimlessly shopping at Sprouts and I spotted that beautiful okra. I needed something to go with the fried okra that I thought I was going to make. Fish is always a healthy choice and I figured I would make some blackened salmon or maybe catfish.… Continue reading Herbed Trout Fillets


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Where We're Located
1134 Main St.
Cincinnati, OH 45202
Phone: (513) 381-1524Get Directions
TripAdvisor® Traveler Rating
Bar Type
4 p.m.2 a.m. Friday
5 p.m.2 a.m. Saturday
Step into Japp's for a quick break from real time. Neighborhood favorite bartenders serve craft cocktails in an atmosphere that is a fun mix of vintage glamour and contemporary excitement. The elaborate drink list covers everything you could want: craft cocktails, wines, champagnes, and all sorts of beers, not to mention any liquor you could think of and bartenders who know how to mix them up.Show more


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Matthew 18:21 Peter came to Jesus. He asked, "Lord, how many times should I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"
STOP! Think about the process of recovery. About all the things God has forgiven you for. About all the things you haven't dealt with yet because you are not yet strong enough. All the things you know that He will forgive because of His unconditional love for you.
"How many times should I forgive my brother?" As many as it takes to repair the relationship.
Matthew 18:15-16 "If your brother sins against you, go to him. Tell him what he did wrong. Keep it between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won him back. "But what if he won't listen to you? Then take one or two others with you. Scripture says, 'Every matter must be proved by the words of two or three witnesses."
What relationships are you going to need help to repair?
Prayer: Lord, help me identify relationships I need help to repair.


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Now onto my last project! As some of you know I am a card maker, I love to make cards! But I decided back in February to attempt to make an 8 1/2X11 Scrapbook for a friend who is not so crafty and give it as a Christmas present. So through all the wonderful challenges that I have come across I have been able to complete many pages! But this one I made for the hop.
I ended up buying a Perfect Pages Grade School Kit to make this one! The apple cut is from DoodleCharms. You can click on the image to get a better view!
If you are here for the blog hop for the first time, please click here to be directed to the original posting, The original posting is the only comments that will be entered for the blog candy! I am the last blog for the hop!
Our hop will soon be coming to an end! I hope you check back in!
In case you get lost along the way here is a list of blogs to hop along:
Just click on the names!
Dorcas at 4 Crafty Angels
Cheryl at Cards by CG
Jen at Purple Scrapbooker
Carri at abusybee (That's Me!)
I also wanted to take this time to thank all of you that decided to follow me, even though it was not required to win my blog candy! I appreciate all of you that have been popping back and I will be coming around once I am caught up to visit!
I also wanted to answer a few quick questions that I received.
What did I use to adhere my projects together?
Mostly my ATG gun, I did also use my Scotch quick dry but this is what always happens when I use the Scotch:
Yes, that is a big blob of glue! I don't know why this happens! The top flys off! SO mainly my ATG gun!
Where do I find my acetate paper?
I usually buy it from Office Max, they carry it in their special copy and printing area.... but you can also buy the clear protective folders that you use as a report cover and that works perfect too!
The candy box is cut at 5 3/4 but is actually only 4 1/2 X 3 1/2 once assembled so it is to small to fit a set of standard A2 size cards.
The paper for the composition notebook was from DCWV Fun in the Sun Summer Stack.
Cookie the little hamster is alive!! Thank Goodness!! She recovered from complete exhaustion from being played with! And her friend loved the card!
How do I do it? I am abusybee! I love to stay busy! I am a night owl so I stay up super late, I do work full-time outside of the house, I do have a husband and children, I do cook dinner five nights a week, I am a list making control freak, my house is spotless except my craft corner... Don't hate me!! Here is my secret.... my big secret is.... I don't watch T.V.!! Only one show for one hour once a week and when it is in season.... MadMen!! That frees up a lot of time for me to craft! LOL!! So that is it that is how I do it! Feel free to contact me via my "contact me here" on my sidebar to chat, have questions or discuss Don Draper!
Thanks for joining in on the hop and a special thanks to Georgiana, Dorcas, Cheryl, and Jen! They all worked so hard and all the projects were amazing! Thanks Ladies!
Multi-task: Entry for Paper Cutz Challenge Back to School!


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Fascinating fact: the word "brand" comes from the ancient Norse word "brandr" meaning "to burn". One of the earliest uses of brands was to identify the ownership of cattle, searing a distinctive mark into the flesh of an animal.
Translated into the language of contemporary marketing, a great brand makes a burning impression in the mind of a customer. But it leaves more than just a neutral mark. Brands conjure up a complex set of thoughts, feelings, associations and beliefs. That baggage can weigh a brand down or lift it up.
As an example, consider Nike. As reported by Melbourne-based branding agency "Truly Deeply", the top five mental connections with Nike amongst consumers globally in 2010 were "swoosh", "just do it", "shoes", "sports" and "sweatshop". Four powerful positives, one damaging negative. (What would customers instinctively say about your brand – the good, bad and the ugly?)
Generally speaking, retailers are a long way behind manufacturer brands in understanding the art and science of branding, and we need to catch up fast. You can see the lag in studies like the BrandZ "Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands", where out of the first 20 brands, only three are retailers – McDonald's, Amazon and Walmart.
Actually, that's not strictly true, because the #1 brand in the survey is Apple, which is both a manufacturer and a retailer. (Although for how long is a big question, after Apple's insipid product release this week.) Numbers two and three are Google and IBM, so most of us can take a lesson from the tech companies (more on that next week).
How do you build a strong brand? A good place to start is to follow Interbrand's 10 Principles of Brand Strength, which I've added to with 10 questions to ask yourself about your brand:
- Commitment – how committed internally are you and your company to the importance of "brand"?
- Protection – how well do you protect your Intellectual Property?
- Clarity – do you have a clear idea of what your brand stands for in context of its values, positioning and proposition? And do you know who your customer is?
- Responsiveness – are you agile in how your brand responds to market changes? Does it continually evolve?
- Authenticity – is your brand based on an internal truth or capability, and does it have a back-story, a sense of its heritage?
- Relevance – how does your brand fit with your customer's needs and desires?
- Understanding – do customers 'get it'; do they have an intimate understanding of your brand?
- Consistency – does your brand line up consistently across all possible touchpoints?
- Presence – does your brand feel omnipresent; always present, commented on and talked about in a variety of media?
- Differentiation – how different and distinctive is your brand from competitors?
The final point is the real clincher in a world where consumers and shoppers alike have incredibly short attention spans.
So is your brand working for you or against you? How well does it adhere to the ten principles above? And most importantly, how genuinely different is it? For retailers in the second decade of the 21st Century, it's no longer good enough just to "sell stuff", you have to sell your brand and what it represents. And that means leaving the right kind of burning impression with customers.
Jon Bird is Chairman of specialist retail and shopper marketing agency IdeaWorks, and also of Octomedia, publisher of Inside Retail and the new Inside Shopper. Email: firstname.lastname@example.com Blog: www.newretailblog.com Twitter: @thetweetailer


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Has China hit peak urbanization?The skylines of some of China's biggest cities sprout from land that was farmed less than a generation ago. For the government, they're a soaring testament to the country's transformation into an urbanized superpower. And despite China's economic slump, there are plenty of bureaucrats who'd like to see the process continue. According to a report last week, local governments are planning to develop more than 3,500 new urban areas in the next few years, with capacity to house 3.4 billion people — or roughly half of humanity.
It's an audacious set of uncoordinated blueprints, and a good reminder that China's economic planners have yet to find a tool for growth they like more than shoehorning people into newly built cities. But thanks to sweeping demographic and economic changes, they'll need to find one: China's 40-year program of urbanization is reaching its limits.
As late as 1953, more than 85 percent of China's population was still rural. Starting in the 1970s, that began to change as the economy opened up, factories sprouted along the coast and the government loosened rules restricting where citizens could live. Over the next few decades, hundreds of millions of people left farms to work in the towns and cities that grew up around new factories. For a while, seemingly all a local government had to do to inspire growth was kick some farmers off their land, build an industrial park and offer tax breaks to the first factory willing to open up. In the early 2000s, I remember gazing skeptically at the massive urban settlements under construction tens of miles outside of central Shanghai. Yet when I returned a year or two later, they had become boomtowns, housing hundreds of thousands and driving property values so high that the factories were priced out. The process repeated itself across China.
But it couldn't last forever. In the spring of 2013, I visited Changxing Island in northern China. The local government was determined to turn the once-rural area into a major industrial and shipbuilding center. Yet the factories I visited were quiet, and the roads leading to them suspiciously uncrowded. I toured a handful of urban settlements dotted with high-rises that were obviously vacant. When I went to a restaurant, the tables were empty. In one memorable case, business was so slow that a waiter ran out the door to buy the ingredients for our order.
Several factors are setting these new urban settlements up for problems. Probably most important is demographic change. In the 1970s, China had a surplus of young, under-employed workers in its countryside. That's no longer the case. The working-age population has been in decline since 2011, and the country's birthrate continues to drop.
Today's workers also aren't nearly as interested in moving away from home as past generations were. Last year, China's migrant population fell by 5.68 million — the first decline in three decades. Conditions in the countryside have improved markedly in recent years, and rural incomes are rising faster than urban ones, thanks to decades of infrastructure investment and the growing reach of e-commerce. Even if a small-town Chinese is keen to leave home, his preferred destination is unlikely to be Changxing Island or any of the 3,500 new settlements reportedly on the drawing board. Only one in 10 migrants moved to small cities last year.
Despite these problems, the central government is still aiming to boost the urbanization rate to 60 percent by 2020. That will require an additional 100 million people to leave the countryside over the next four years — at a time when the economic rationale for doing so is increasingly dubious.
Rather than setting such goals, and erecting vast settlements to meet them, a better approach is to invest in some basic urban amenities, and then let workers decide for themselves where to live. A good step would be a program to deliver clean water to the hundreds of millions of Chinese who currently lack it. Another would be a national plan to control urban floods, like those that have afflicted central and southern China in recent weeks. Finally, the government needs to reform the antiquated "hukou" permit system that prevents rural migrants from easily acquiring the rights and services that their urban counterparts are entitled to.
None of these reforms has the visceral appeal of a new skyscraper. But collectively, they'll go a long way toward ensuring that China's cities are worth living in.
*The author is a Bloomberg View columnist. He is the author of "Junkyard Planet: Travels in the Billion-Dollar Trash Trade."
Adam Minter


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Back in September 2000, the Cardinal team president participated in a forum on stadium funding, held at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. At the time, the team was pushing hard for $200 million in public subsidies, with half coming from the state. Also on the panel: Mark Rosentraub, an urban-affairs professor, now at Cleveland State University, who's made a living throwing rocks at public subsidies for pro-sports franchises.
Rosentraub, at the forum, insisted a new stadium could be privately financed. Lamping said the professor didn't know what he was talking about.
But the Cardinal exec also hinted at what would happen if the state said no.
The Cardinals, Lamping said, would happily follow the example of the San Francisco Giants and pay for their own stadium.
"We'll do that deal," Lamping said.
Now, it looks as if the team will.
Lamping's statement was predicated on tax relief: Given the same tax burden as the Giants, he said, the Cards could finance a ballpark. Team owners, including Pulitzer Inc., which publishes the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, insist that the Giants pay zero taxes. That's news to the San Francisco franchise, which pays about $7.6 million annually to the government, according to team spokeswoman Staci Slaughter.
The Cards pay roughly $18 million a year in taxes. Mayor Francis Slay has convinced the Board of Aldermen to waive the city's 5 percent amusement tax on tickets, which would have saved the team about $3.4 million this year. That leaves the Cards with a tax bill about $7 million higher than their San Francisco counterparts.
Still a sizable sum. But there are plenty of ways for the team to close the gap in a town like St. Louis, which specializes in giveaways to sports franchises and big developers.
First off, St. Louis County has offered to pay $40 million in construction costs, no strings attached. In San Francisco, the team got $15 million from the government, but that money must eventually be paid back.
Then there's tax abatement. Under Slay's plan, the team's property-tax bill will be frozen at $490,000 for 30 years, with the city levying no taxes on a stadium with an estimated price tag of $333 million. That's a huge break, especially considering inflation: Goods and services that cost $490,000 in 1971 would cost nearly $2.15 million in today's dollars.
For the Coalition Against Public Funding for Stadiums, Slay's plan is a subsidy in sheep's clothing. Adding up the amusement-tax break, the county's contribution and another $40 million from the state to pay for a new Highway 40 interchange, the team will rake in $237 million in public money over 30 years, figures Fred Lindecke, coalition spokesman. That doesn't include property-tax breaks and the fact that the team stands to reap a windfall in ticket revenue, especially for club seats that can cost as much as $100. Busch Stadium has 281 such seats; a new stadium would have more than 5,000.
On paper, this may be as good a deal, at least for the team, as what the Giants swallowed.
Bottom line, the Cards must come up with $293 million. That's $3 million more than the Giants borrowed to build Pac Bell Park. The Giants pay about $20 million in annual debt service on a 22-year loan, bringing their combined stadium costs and tax burden to just under $28 million. And key interest rates today are far more favorable -- more than 4 percentage points lower -- than when the Giants took the plunge.
The Giants squeezed corporations and season-ticket holders for $134 million in construction costs through naming rights, advertising contracts and personal seat licenses. One of the biggest sugar daddies was Anheuser-Busch, which ponied up $35 million for a ten-year advertising deal, making the brewery a bigger sponsor on a per-year basis than the telecommunications company for which Pac Bell is named. Surely the Cardinals can count on similar support from the hometown brewer.
Do the math and it's no surprise that Craig Schnuck, president of Civic Progress, told the Post-Dispatch that the team wants to pay about $14 million a year to play in a privately funded ballpark. At that rate, and with no ticket taxes, the Cards' combined tax burden and stadium costs would total about $28 million, the same as in San Francisco.
Still, the Cards are playing coy, dangling the possibility that they could move across the Mississippi River and play in a stadium paid for by the state of Illinois. The politicians pushing this deal also focus on Illinois. Jeff Rainford, Slay's chief of staff, downplays the November 5 referendum, insisting that the Illinois legislative session, which doesn't begin until November 19, is the "critical deadline" for having a plan in place. He warns that the city would be "devastated" if the Cards leave.
Aldermanic President James Shrewsbury, who last spring said he wouldn't support waiving the ticket tax, has changed his tune, citing the Illinois threat. "I think Illinois sees something very tangible to gain by this," he says. "That's what worries me."
But smart money says the November 5 referendum is what's driving Slay's plan. Under the referendum, the city couldn't give tax breaks without a public vote, and so Slay needs everything signed into law before voters go to the polls. The "we're not really trying to thwart democracy" spin reached a laughable level when aldermen debated Slay's plan on October 11. "There's nothing in the bill that says people aren't going to vote," opined Alderman Stephen Gregali (D-14th Ward). "They're going to get to vote." True enough, but the horse will be long gone from the barn.
Even the most ardent foes of public financing admit that this deal is considerably better than $437 million in subsidies -- not counting highway improvements and other infrastructure -- that the previous pitch would have cost taxpayers over 30 years. In the realpolitik of pro sports, it looks like a better deal than most other cities have reached.
But Mike Jones, the city's point man in stadium negotiations under former Mayor Clarence Harmon, says the city could have done better.
"It doesn't look to me like [Slay] played as strong a hand as he had," says Jones, who was on the UM-St. Louis panel when Lamping said, "We'll do that deal."
Rainford's statement that the city would be devastated if the Cards leave draws a wry laugh from Jones. "By definition, if that's your mindset, you've already lost the negotiation," Jones says. "You can't cut a good deal if that's what you think."
Jones says an Illinois stadium is fraught with uncertainty, even if Springfield legislators deliver a deal financed entirely with public money. For one thing, there's the matter of a new bridge over the Mississippi. "That would be a big unknown for me to worry about," he says. "Before I went across the river, I'd want to know that that issue is resolved." For another, there's a lack of amenities in the Metro East.
If he'd been in charge, Jones says, he would have pitched the Cards high and inside. "At the end of the day, you have to establish the fact that 'I won't do this deal at any costs' -- and they have to believe that," Jones says. "I genuinely don't believe that a mayor of the city of St. Louis would ever lose an election over not giving a baseball team ... $4 million a year."
Jones says the stadium debate has dragged on largely because team owners miscalculated their political pull -- and overreached. The soap opera would have been over a long time ago if the brewery still owned the team, says Jones, who was an alderman and an Anheuser-Busch executive before Harmon tapped him to become deputy mayor.
"What you've got is some successful rich guys who nobody really knows and from a political standpoint nobody has to really give a damn about," he says. "What's the political penalty for pissing off Bill DeWitt? Pissing off August Busch is like messing with Harry ["Dirty Harry"] Callaghan.
"The question is, do you feel lucky?"


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As of July 1, 2013, Google Reader is going away. Which means, if you get your blog updates there, you need to find an alternative. There are many, but the two options below are easy, quick and free.
Option 1: Get email updates
The best, easiest choice (I think) is to sign up for email updates. You'll get a single, daily email when Parent Hacks has new content so you'll never miss a hack.
More importantly, I will NEVER give away, sell, or distribute your email address, and you can unsubscribe any time.
Important: if you were subscribed to Parent Hacks email through FeedBlitz, you will need to sign up again through the new service at MailChimp.
Option 2: Use a different feed reader
I now use Feedly for my RSS subscriptions. The interface is lovely and the migration from Google Reader is painless.
I love the way Sarah James of Whoorl laid out her transfer to Feedly (everything's prettier at Whoorl).
→ How to use Feedly (Whoorl)
Feedly has also put together detailed migration instructions:
→ Tips for Google Reader users migrating to Feedly (Feedly blog)
What to do now:
Or: head over to Feedly to begin the (quick) migration process.
Here's the link to the Parent Hacks feed:
Questions? Leave them in the comments and I'll reply here!


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You want to show off how awesome your softball team is. One of the easiest ways to do that is to look up funny and cool softball team names. If you are struggling to think of your own softball team name, then we have a few options that can help you. You can use one of the names on this list or modify it for a more unique option.
1. Super Heroes in Training: This is an inspiring team name for your softball team.
2. Nine Inch Males: This is a play on the popular band name, but it certainly sounds like a bunch of male players with a bit of an ego.
3. Bat Rage: This is a cute team name.
4. Carpet Munchers: There is a stereotype that a lot of lesbians like to play softball. Embrace that stereotype with a clever softball team name like this.
5. Pimp My Side: This is a cute play on the television show, "Pimp My Ride."
6. The Hitmen: Watch out for a softball team that has a name like this.
7. Good Wood: Clever, really clever.
8. The Soft Serves: Hopefully, the other team has a harder time than this softball team name would success.
9. Pants on the Mound: I don't even know what this name is supposed to mean, but it sounds pretty cool.
10. One Hit Wonders: It only takes one hit to get a home run, so who cares if you are a one-hit wonder?
11. Practice Makes Perfect: Hopefully, your softball team is willing to put in all of the extra practice time to be perfect.
12. Backdoor Sliders: This sounds like a double entendre that you might not like.
13. Habitat for Insanity: This is a play on the group, "Habitat for Humanity."
14. Mean Girls: Watch out for a team that names themselves this. They are not going to play nice or fair.
15. Wrangler Stampede: This is a fun softball team name.
16. Balls Out: Balls out and ready to play.
17. Pigs Might Fly: Pigs might fly before the other team wins or before your team wins? You can decide what this means.
18. Honey, I'm High: This sounds like a clever softball team name for states that have legalized recreational marijuana.
19. The Team Name: If you really cannot think of another team name, you can always go with this simple option.
20. Thunder Chickens: The first part of this name strikes fear in their hearts, but the last part just makes it funny and ironic.
21. Dirty Ball Bags: This is certainly a "dirty" team name.
22. Master Minds: This is one of the coolest softball team names on this list.
23. The Beer View Mirrors: This is the right name for a team that prefers drinking to actually playing softball.
24. Minimum Wagers: Cute!
25. Cleats & Cleavage: This is a clever softball team name for an all-girl softball team.
26. Home Run Hitters: This is a good way to boost your team's morale.
27. Venom: Fun!
28. I'd Hit That: This is a fairly clever softball team name.
29. Glove Love: Show your glove some love with this team name.
30. Misfits: This is a fun option.
31. Nice Snatch: This is a clever, R-rated play on the phrase, "nice catch."
32. Power Outage: Get ready to have some fun with this team name.
33. Alcoballics: Do you care more about the drinking after the game (or during) or the actual game? With a name like this, it probably isn't the game that you care about the most.
34. Head Hunters: The other team had better watch out if you have a team name like this.
35. Donkey Punchin' Kangaroos: This sounds cute, but it is a bit too long to really be that useful.
36. Pussy Riot: This was a Russian band that ended up in jail for protesting Vladimir Putin. It also sounds like an amazing name for a softball team.
37. Runs Not Buns: Fun!
38. Comets: This is a fairly typical team name.
39. Hit Squad: Watch out for the players on this team.
40. Scoring Is the Least of Our Problems: This does not sound like a team that is used to winning a lot.
41. Lavish Display of Ignorance: This team name is a bit too long to be that good, but it is still rather cute.
42. Balls to the Wall: When you are up against the wall, how do you respond? Do you give up or go down fighting?
43. Honeymoon's Over: Send the other team a clear message with this type of team name.
44. Swingin' Singles: This is a cute option.
45. Oddballs: Clever!
46. Master Batters: Say this one aloud, and you will instantly get the play on words.
47. Federals: Nice!
48. The A Playas: Show that your team is the A-team with a name like this.
49. Team Hazmat: For teams that are radioactive.
50. Ponytail Express: This is an adorable name for a team of all girls and is a modification of the famous mail carriers, the Pony Express.
51. Line Drivers: Fun!
52. Intimidators: Use this for an intimidating team.
53. Sons of Pitches: This is an obvious play on words.
54. The Wrecking Crew: Watch out for this team!
55. The Benchwarmers: Your confidence may need a bit of a boost with a team name like this.
56. Broken Bones: Eek!
57. Grim Reapers: This is an intimidating team name.
58. Blood, Bath & Beyond: This is a clever play on the popular brand name.
59. Hustlers: Get hustling!
60. The Abusement Park: Watch out for this team!
61. The Aluminum Alliance: This is a cute team name. Plus, its acronym is AA, which probably describes all of the players who want to spend their after-game hours drinking.
62. Here for Beer: This says it like it is.
63. Miracle Workers: For teams that like to come from behind for a win.
64. Pancake Batters: Cute!
65. Brokebat Mountain: This is a clever play on a popular movie.
66. The Untouchables: This is an intimidating team name option.
67. The Scrubs: Fun!
68. The Dirty Sox: You've heard of the White Sox, right?
69. The Big Gloves: You know what they say about big gloves.
70. Batting Divas: This is a cute team name.
71. Free Agents: Nice!
72. Weakened Warriors: Some people are weekend warriors. Your team is not quite to that level yet.
73. The Dirt Eaters: This is not a fortuitous name for your future success.
74. Hit for Brains: This is a play on words.
75. Rounders: Fun!
76. Victorious Secret: This is a team name that works well for just about any sports team.
77. Gold Gloves: Nice!
78. The Masterbatters: Say this aloud before you choose this double entendre for your team.
79. Dream Killers: This is an intimidating option.
80. The Spandex Eleven: Cute!
81. Ball Busters: Watch out for this team!
82. No Fear for Beer: Win or lose, it's where you drink afterward that matters.
83. Bad Intentions: Fun!
84. The Swillin' and Chillins': Cute!
85. Sweet Spot: For players that know how to hit the sweet spot.
86. Designated Drinkers: Hopefully, you have at least one designated driver on your team too.
87. The Windmills: Fun! Hopefully, your team doesn't spend each game tilting at windmills.
88. Heat Waves: Nice!
89. Help Wanted: This does not speak highly of your confidence on the field.
90. Axis of Ignorance: This is a clever option.
91. Divas, Achievas and Believas: We like this option.
92. Live Wires: Fun!
93. The Talent Warriors: This is a cute option.
94. Out of Control: Hopefully, your team has some level of control.
95. The Breaking Balls: Watch out for this team!
96. Left Behind: This is a play on the popular series of novels.
97. Yager Bombers: This is a fun softball team name if you also like to have a drink or two after the game.
98. The Strikers: The other team is not going to be worried much after hearing this team name.
99. Saved by the Balls: This is a clever play on the name of a popular television show.
100. Heavy Hitters: Bring out the heavy hitters for every softball game.
101. Dirt Eaters: Hopefully, it is the other team that is actually eating the dirt.
102. Silent Assassins: Be wary of a team with this name!
103. Blue Ballers: This sounds like the team name for an all-girl team that plays against co-eds or guys.
104. The Helmethead Heroes: Fun!
105. The Catchers in the Rye: This is a good team name if you happen to have a love for literature.
106. The Bunt Cakes: Bunt it, baby!
107. Breaking Ballers: You've heard of the show, Breaking Bad, right?
108. Bad News: Watch out for a team that has this name!
109. The Grass Stains: This is cute, but it won't strike fear in the hearts of the other team.
110. The Swingers: Don't be surprised if the other team thinks that you are up for swinging off the field, too.
111. The Strikes: This does not seem like a good future for your team.
112. Smooth Operators: Fun!
113. Fighting Ballerinas: Ballet and softball never really mix well.
114. Thunder Bunnies: Cute!
115. Comfortably Gloved: This is a nice team name.
116. Queen Bees: This is a good name for an all-girl softball team.
117. Beer Nuts: Do you care about actually playing or drinking after the game.
118. Banshees: This is a fun team name.
119. Strike Force X-Treme: Watch out for a team that has a name like this.
120. Happy Dugouts: Clever!
121. The Nick-of-Times: You managed to score that run just in the nick of time.
122. Bat Attitude: Hopefully, your team does not also have a bad attitude as well.
123. Know Nothings: Long ago, this was actually the name of a political party in the United States.
124. Intoxicated: This is for teams that like to pre-game with drinks instead of a warm-up.
125. Multiple Scoregasms: Funny.
126. Ice Cold Pitchers: Are the pitchers on your team ice cold or are you looking forward to ice cold pitchers of beer after the game?
127. The Tailgaters: Would you rather watch the game or play?
128. We Got Beer: This name says it all about your team's attitude.
129. The Heat: This is an easy option.
130. Brew Crew: This is for teams that prefer drinking to playing.
131. Leather and Lace: This is a cute team name.
132. Soup-A-Stars: Nice!
133. The Cereal Killers: This might not have anything to do with softball, but it sounds cute.
134. Fast Girls: This is one of the easiest softball team names.
135. Death Doctors: Watch out for this team!
136. In the Zone: Get in the zone with a name like this.
137. Nemesis: You are the other team's nemesis.
138. Mound Mermaids: Mermaids would never actually be on land, but it is too cute of a naming option to pass up.
139. The Fast and Furious: This is from the name of the popular film franchise.
140. Dirty Divas: Fun!
141. Grass Hoppers: This is a cute play on words.
142. Diktators: For a group that shows the other team who is the boss.
143. The Diamond Girls: A softball diamond or jewelry diamonds? You choose.
144. The Softies: This is a cute, easy option.
145. Super Drunk and Scary Dads: This sounds like a fun team name for a group of dads who like to play softball, but the name is a bit too long to really be that good.
146. E-LEMON-ators: You could make your team mascot a lemon with this team name.
147. Wrecking Crew: Watch out for a softball team that has a name like this.
148. Bench Warmers: The other team won't be worried about playing you if you choose a funny softball team name like this one.
149. Screwballs: Nice!
150. Smokin' Aces: For some reason, this always seems to be a popular softball team name.


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Corrosion protection - Everything you need to know
Corrosion is a vexed issue. But what is corrosion exactly? How does corrosion occur and how does corrosion protection work?
Depending on the location, the metals are subject to varying degrees of stress - the requirements for an anti-corrosion coating therefore vary.
Even though less complicated than the offshore area, onshore wind turbines also require a thorough service and maintenance concept. A frequent problem encountered by onshore wind turbines is corrosion.


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Case Report - Research in Clinical Dermatology (2018) Volume 1, Issue 2
A reflection on medical versus aesthetic dermatology: Case series.César Bimbi1* and Lorenzo Martini2
1Dermatological Committee of State Medical Council of Rio Grande do Sul Brazil, Brazilian Society of Dermatology, Brazil
2Department of Pharmaceutical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Italy
- Corresponding Author:
- Dr. César Bimbi
Member of Dermatological Committee of State Medical Council of Rio Grande do Sul Brazil
Brazilian Society of Dermatology, Brazil
Tel: (21) 2253-6747
E-mail: [email protected]
Accepted date: August 01, 2018
Citation: Bimbi C, Martini L. A reflection on medical versus aesthetic dermatology: Case series. Res Clin Dermatol. 2018;1(2):8-9
DOI: 10.35841/clinical-dermatology.1.2.8-9Visit for more related articles at Research in Clinical Dermatology
The intensity of interest in cosmetology overshadows investigative side of clinical dermatology. In this report, we show clinical cases where the need for attention and investigative interest is essential. Is it possible to reconcile the practice of cosmetology with clinical dermatology?
Sarcoidosis, Corticosteroids, Vitiligo,Tinea versicolor.
New techniques of cosmiatry and rejuvenation, hunted avidly by a large portion of the population have been changing dermatology over the last years. The benefic effect of cosmiatry cannot be denied nor the immense benefit for self-esteem and correction of aesthetic defects [1]. But it is also impossible to deny that this dermatological subspecialty robbed the attention and interest of clinical or medical dermatology.
Skin mirror internal diseases. Various systemic illnesses manifest in the skin and skin offers the advantage of easy access for biopsy and the possibility of early diagnosis of systemic diseases and so better prognosis. Solving mystery puzzles on complex or very rare diseases and syndromes makes the beauty of dermatology [2]. Fascinating medical cases where the general clinicians had already given up were elegantly unveiled by dermatologists with no need of anything but close inspection of tiny, otherwise unimportant lesions that often represents the tip of the iceberg [3]. We describe below clinical cases that demonstrate the need for investigation and the difficulty of some diagnoses, and also the gratification of a puzzle solved.
Case Reports
Case 1
A 35 years old female presented with asymptomatic nonprogressive hyperpigmented flat lesions over the left side of the neck for the past 1 month. There was no preceding history of topical applications or use of perfumes or fragrance. 28-yearold female patient came to the office complaining of a "minor irritation" on her left eyebrow that had started 6 months earlier. Biopsy showed granulomatous features of sarcoidosis. Under subsequent systemic investigation stage II pulmonary sarcoidosis with reticulo-endothelial involvement as enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes was found (Figure 1).
The early diagnosis was of substantial benefit to the patient in that with just 40 mg of prednisone for a short period of time, respiratory symptoms disappeared.
Case 2
56-year-old male patient complaining of a 2 year history of facial eruptions (Figure 2a). "An allergy" that had initiated by the nose which was treated firstly with antibiotics for acne rosacea, but with no improvement led to systemic corticosteroids under suspicion of systemic lupus. Microscopic OH examination showed hyphae and oral itraconazole and topical ciclopirox cleared the lesions quickly (Figure 2b).
Case 3
14 years old girl, came with spot around mouth (Figure 3a) emerging after sun exposure, and an obvious suspicion of perioral vitiligo was done, but in the hypochromic area close inspection showed fine furfuraceous scaling. Mycological exam revealed spores and filaments of Malassezia furfur (Figure 3b). Now improving with cyclopirox-olamine cream. Tinea versicolor was the diagnosis.
Case 4
11 year old boy had this nevocytic nevus (congenital) (Figure 4a) and "started another one "very similar macule on palm after beach summer season. Mycological exam revealed instead of a new nevus it turned out to be a case of Tinea nigra palmaris. This mycosis is more prevalent among young peoplecoming home from beaches.
Not a few times the clinical dermatologist worries that the intensity of interest in the cosmetology will overshadow the investigative side of the specialty. In every dermatologist, there should be something of the detective of diseases to put the difficult to diagnose pieces of a disease together by posing the right questions at the right time, and an open mind and deductive reasoning with attention to details. Recent over emphasis of dermatology on cosmetology may lead to lack of interest on the investigative aspects. Although aesthetic procedures may reach more economical rewarding results it may be wiser to exercise both parts of dermatology at least while cosmiatry don't get its independence.


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LE agencies awarded National Officer Safety and Wellness Awards
The program's goal is to identify agencies conducting unique and innovative programs aimed to reduce risk factors and sharing the results with the LE community
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund
WASHINGTON — For the third year, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and BJA's VALOR officer safety initiative, collaborated on the Destination Zero Program to highlight agency-level achievements in the areas of officer safety and wellness. The primary goal of the program is to create a platform that provides all U.S. law enforcement agencies with the ability to research successful and/or promising officer safety and wellness programs and identify the resources necessary to begin their own risk management initiatives.
The result of this program will culminate with presentation of the National Officer Safety and Wellness Awards at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund's annual Awards Dinner on Sunday, May 14, 2017.
The Destination Zero Program began in late 2014, with a goal to identify agencies conducting unique and innovative programs aimed to reduce risk factors and to share the design and outcomes of these programs with the entire law enforcement community. Agencies with successful programs were asked to submit details of their initiatives and be considered for the National Officer Safety and Wellness Awards, which will be presented during National Police Week in Washington, D.C. There was also a national open call for applications though an online application process.
Awards will be presented in the following four categories::
General Officer Safety:
This category features programs that directly affect officers' physical safety while performing their jobs.
Officer Traffic Safety:
These initiatives are designed to reduce automobile crashes and limit the risk factors of operating a motor vehicle or managing traffic. Programs that increased seatbelt use, limited distractions or reduced driving speeds are also included in this category.
Officer Wellness:
Fitness programs, mental health programs and initiatives, such as peer support groups and nutrition, are included in this category.
Comprehensive Safety:
Includes programs that demonstrated the most comprehensive approach and were strategically implemented into safety and wellness efforts. Agencies considered for this award had a strong overall program that was successfully marketed and innovative in its approach to gain employee participation.
Following months of review and evaluation of the submitted programs, the award process selected 11 finalist agencies whose respective program fell into one of the four officer safety and wellness award categories. The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund convened a distinguished panel of judges to evaluate the finalist programs. A seven-member selection committee, representing nearly every type of law enforcement agency, carefully considered each finalist program and selected the award recipients for each of the four categories.
The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and the Bureau of Justice Assistance are proud to announce the following 2017 Officer Safety and Wellness Award winners:
- General Officer Safety: Suffolk County (NY) Police Department
- Officer Traffic Safety: Snohomish County (WA) Sheriff's Office
- Officer Wellness: Stockton (CA) Police Department
- Comprehensive Safety: Burlington (NC) Police Department
In addition to the four winning agencies, the following finalists were also acknowledged:
- Officer Safety: Henderson (NV) Police Department
- Officer Traffic Safety: Las Vegas (NV) Metropolitan Police Department
- Officer Wellness: Rockville (MD) Police Department, Sidney (OH) Police Department and the Wisconsin Department of Justice
- Comprehensive Safety: City of Bend (OR) Police Department and the University of Vermont Police Department
The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and the Bureau of Justice Assistance are grateful to all participating agencies and extend congratulations to the four winning agencies and finalists for 2017. The National Officer Safety and Wellness Awards are presented annually, and agencies are encouraged to submit details about their successful safety and wellness programs to Nick Breul, Director of the Memorial Fund's Officer Safety & Wellness Initiative, at www.DestinationZero.org.