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Our trip to Venezuela is winding down. For our last outing, our cousin, Marisol, has planned a day trip to the Hacienda Santa Teresa, where sugar cane is grown and used to make rum. It is in a pueblo called El Consejo, which is a 90-minute drive from Caracas.
I am told that El Consejo is the town in which my grandmother spent her childhood. Tía Olivia says she visited the town a few years ago and found her mother's house still standing, which I can believe, as El Consejo seems untouched by time. Row after row of charming little houses festively painted in bright hues of pinks, yellows and blues.
The heat is more intense here. Once we arrive at the Hacienda Santa Teresa, we must wait for our tour time. We visit the gift shop where all kinds of rums are sold—orange-flavored rum, coffee-flavored, clear rum, premium rum, to name a few. For as little as $4.00 (U.S. funds) you can buy a bottle of rum.
Marisol tells me that when Venezuelans make a purchase of any kind—whether it be a loaf of bread or a new TV, they must present their "cédula" (a national photo ID). Even if they are paying in cash, they must show their identification. She is not sure why but assumes it's just another way the government seeks to control the people, presumably by keeping track of what they are buying and even where they are making their purchases. I use cash to purchase a bottle of rum and the saleswoman asks for my cédula. When I tell her I'm an American and do not have a Venezuelan ID, she asks me for my passport number. I write down a fake number, and she doesn't notice. The specter of Hugo Chávez hovers over everything.
We spend the entire day at the rum hacienda, where there's much to do—horseback riding, golf, listening to music at the bar, and even paintball. On the tour, we learn that the rum factory was founded more than 200 years ago. The tour lasts hours and multiple trolley rides across the hacienda. By the time it's over, we are all a bit exhausted and hot. Thankfully, our tour guides serve us refreshing, tall glasses of Cuba Libres. We then head back to the city, trailed by a beautiful sunset. All that's left to do, is pack and prepare for our journey home.
I came to Venezuela with apprehension and am about to leave, grateful for the time I was able to spend with family, yet also with a feeling of dread for their future. The U.S. State Department had unnerved me with its warnings about the country, and I came very close to canceling the trip. The good times with family, though, were mired by the shadow of Chávez. His plan to transform education in order to raise a nation of socialist children is chilling. Victor says that this may be just the thing that will motivate Venezuelans to fight back.
For now, despite all the new rules and regulations, the essence of the Venezuelan people is still intact. During my trip, I saw their determination to withstand any challenges or edicts thrown their way. They still go to nightclubs and take their kids to McDonald's. They still like to shop and go to the beach. And I think of my aunt, Bertina. At the rum hacienda, as we listened to music from an outdoor sound system, she suddenly took Tía Olivia's hand for an impromptu dance on the sidewalk. Such genuine moments help to hold at bay the fear of what the future will bring.
But it's a new year and for Venezuela, the future has arrived. Chávez has his new powers and the country holds its breath and waits. What will he do? Like a little bully, he has been poking at the U.S., trying to push its buttons. For the most part it hasn't worked. Largely ignored, he resents this country all the more. And to the American government, Chávez must seem like an annoying gnat. A silly nuisance.
Until now, perhaps. With his new powers, he's become the little bully that could. So Chávez, take a bow. For you may yet have the last laugh.
Related Articles
- Hugo Chavez takes more powers at the expense of the Parliament (politics.ie)
- Chavez takes another step towards tyranny (fullcomment.nationalpost.com)
- Hugo Chavez dismisses criticism from OAS chief (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- Chavez Says He May Pare Decree Powers Amid Criticism (businessweek.com)
- Colombian TV soap gets the boot in Venezuela (theworld.org)


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It pays to go slow
Saturday, 15 December 2012
Many of us will head off on a car trip at some stage during the festive season.
I used to dread long car trips, but a change in attitude, a little planning, some snacks and a thermos of tea (just like my Gran used to pack) have helped me embrace the journey.
I've learnt to love slow travel. The concept of slow travel is part of the slow movement - a movement that advocates a cultural shift toward slowing down life's pace.
Slow travel is about engaging with communities along the route and not letting the anticipation of arrival undermine the pleasure of the journey.
We'll be driving to the south coast in a few weeks. It's a trip that takes only four hours, but often takes us seven or more.
First stop is often The Australian Botanic Gardens in Mount Annan. Entry is free and being only minutes from the Hume Freeway, its café and playground provide a nice alternative to the roadside fast food stores.
Next to the café is my favourite part of the gardens, the Fruit Loop Garden, where I'll sneak a taste of bush tucker.
Late summer and early autumn, we stop in the Southern Highlands to forage apples from roadside trees. Last year we picked a huge basket. I stewed the lot and we had a freezer stash of stewed apples that we enjoyed as apple and rhubarb crumble for months.
We also often stop to breathe in the beauty of Fitzroy Falls and to browse the antique store. If it's the right time of year, we visit a nearby farm gate stall to buy a few bags of blueberries.
On longer trips we visit a library - a great place to stop because they're air conditioned, calm, free, and have power points to charge cameras, phones and laptops.
Playgrounds are another good place to stop. We use playgroundfinder.com to identify playgrounds with toilets along our route and have found some amazing ones.
Perhaps this festive season you could take time to add a little "slow" to your travels.
[Published in my column LESS IS MORE in the The Newcastle Herald Weekender Magazine 12 December 2012]

subset: commoncrawl


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Reviewed by Fred W. Anson
Title: Recovering Agency: The Price of Nice
Author: John Bradshaw
Publisher: John Bradshaw Media Group
Genre: Non-fiction, psychology
Year Published: 2008
Length: 100 minutes
Binding: Audio CD
Price: $70.00
Many of us remember John Bradshaw through his two PBS televised series on the family and "Inner Child" therapy (entitled "Bradshaw on the Family" and "Homecoming" respectively) with fondness. Some of us had an epiphany, others had fodder for new jokes, and still others had both. I was in the last category. At first I found in Bradshaw an endless mine for jokes ("My family was so out of control you could have used it for a wind chime", "My inner child punched your inner child in the nose", etc.) but many years and several family traumas later found it to be a rich well of wisdom . . . and some really silly "out there" New Agey junk. With Bradshaw one has to have one's discernment filters up to separate the wheat from the chaff. Thankfully the audiobook being reviewed here is, in this reviewer's estimation, mostly wheat.
Those familiar with those earlier Bradshaw works will remember that he repeatedly introduced the concept of the price of nice in them both. However, he didn't go into much detail on it, nor did he give the antidote for the problem. "Problem?" the reader may be asking at this point, "How can being nice be a problem?" As the product description from Mr. Bradshaw's website explains:
"The price is of nice is about your own life, and not really being connected with others," says noted New York Times Best Selling Author John Bradshaw, "Nice people often finish last in many ways."
In this powerful lecture, THE PRICE OF NICE, psychologist and Emmy nominated talk show host John Bradshaw, exposes the hidden and frequently destructive forces behind the façade of being the "nice guy", a people pleaser and co-dependent. This lecture is for people who use "nice" as a disguise to cover shame. John Bradshaw uncovers the dishonestly, selfishness, and resentments that builds as a result. He explains how to heal from co-dependency.
From our earliest years, we learn that we are rewarded with acceptance for being "nice" at the expense of being denied the expression of our true feelings or being who we really are. Ultimately, we become the actor in a role of being the nice guy or sweetheart. John Bradshaw explains how such behavior can destroy relationships and intimacy by never being honestly connected with others. It creates an intimacy vacuum where the victim is the nice person
In its ultimate destructive form, it erupts into rage or spontaneous acts of violence or it can be internalized in the form of emotional or physical illness. John Bradshaw offers practical insights into how we can learn to be kind but firmly direct about how we feel and find that place in our lives where we can be who we are. This series provides excellent resources and will help the listener understand how toxic, and potentially dangerous, a person who is, on most levels, "too nice," can be. Ministers, counselors, therapists and anyone in helping professions could gain much understanding from the material found in this series. The problem with being overly nice is that it is a mask for stored internal rage and it is at the same time rage producing.
And as he explains in the lecture, nice behavior eventually has a price for both the nice person and the people involved with him/her. It is alienating, indirectly hostile, and self destructive because:
1. The nice person tends to create an atmosphere such that others avoid giving honest, genuine feedback. This blocks emotional growth.
2. Nice behavior will ultimately be distrusted by others. That is,it generates a sense of uncertainty and lack of safety in others who can never be sure if they be supported by the nice person in a crisis situation that requires an aggressive confrontation with others.
3. Nice people stifle growth of others. They avoid giving others genuine feedback,and deprive others of a real person to assert against. This tends to force others in the relationship to turn their aggression against themselves. It also tends to generate guilt and depressed feelings in others who are intimately involved and dependent on them.
4. Because of chronic niceness others can never be certain if the relationship with a nice person can endure a conflict or sustain an angry confrontation. If it did occur spontaneously, This places great limits on the potential extent of intimacy in the relationship by placing others constantly on their guard.
5. Nice behavior is not reliable. Periodically the nice person explodes in unexpected rage and those involved are shocked and unprepared to cope with it.
6. The nice person by holding aggression in, may pay a physiological price in the form of psychosomatic problems and a psychological price in the form of alienation.
7. Nice behavior is emotionally unreal behavior. It puts severe limitations on all relationships and the ultimate victim is the nice person him/her self.
Mr. Bradshaw explains in the lecture that the antidote for nice behavior isn't being mean, it's being authentic. This can be a scary proposition for those of us who have become accustomed to using "nice" as a defense or coping mechanism. In particular, those recovering from a religious addiction may come to find that the "Be ye nice!" 11th Commandment of far too many of our faith communities has become so embedded in their theology and religious worldview that it's painful to knead it slowly out of the tangled up knot that they've created. Very often from these individuals, we will hear the protest that to not be "nice" isn't Christlike (or whatever religious terminology that's used to justify using niceness as a hiding place and aggression suppressant). To those folks I offer this:
Jesus wasn't Christ-like
Jesus was incredulous.
He was exasperated.
He was furious.
He insulted.
He ridiculed.
He told of coming judgment.
He exorcised demons.
He said he was God.
He said he had final authority given to him to judge the living and the dead.
He said he had power over life and death.
He scared people.
He confused people.
He repulsed people.
He wouldn't answer questions asked by the local authorities.
He stayed away three days knowing Lazarus would die, and then wept when he showed up to his tomb.
He supplied the party wine.
He preached fire and brimstone.
He used satire and mockery.
He frustrated his mother.
He told his apostles they had new names when he met them.
He used frustratingly vague metaphors and parables to purposefully judge a stubborn people (fulfilling Isaiah), and then later told the hidden meanings to the apostles.
He chose a forerunner who looked and smelled like a crazy hobo, and who badgered the local mayor over sexual and marital ethics.
He healed people on the Sabbath just to tweak the religious elite.
He monitored financial giving and gave live commentary on it.
He said the world hated him and his followers.
He told people to eat his flesh and drink his blood and let them walk away misinterpreting.
He had incredibly awkward and blunt conversations about spiritual things 15 seconds into meeting a stranger.
He let a presumably sensual woman wipe his feet with her hair.
He told a female stranger that she had five husbands.
He went out to eat with creepy guys who preyed on families via financial extortion.
He went to the most significant religious structure local to him and said he would destroy and rebuild it, speaking of his own body and predicting the destruction to come.
He said he existed before Abraham.
What is "Christ-like" about any of that?[1]
Based on the example of Christ alone I would suggest that Bradshaw is onto something: Christ was always authentic even though He wasn't always "nice". I would propose to my fellow recovering religious addicts that it's far better to be authentically genuine than inauthentically nice. Perhaps being truly Christlike, simply means being yourself – that is the new creation spoken of in 2 Corinthians 5:17 under the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit. I can't help but wonder if that was what Paul was really describing in Romans 8 and Galatians 5 when he wrote about "walking in the Spirit". The incarnated Christ exemplified "walking in the Spirit" and showed the full range of human emotion and behavior – including aggression and directness in that walk.[2] Simply put, the price of nice is too high if it means compromising truly Christlike behavior isn't it?
In the end, I found "The Price of Nice" to be an enlightening and liberating audiobook – and one with significant biblical support to boot.[3] I suspect that you will too.
[1] Aaron Shafovaloff, "Jesus wasn't Christ-like" And for those wondering this isn't in the Bradshaw lecture, I've added it here to support my point.
[2] I tackled the subject of the biblical case for aggression in my review of Andy Stanley's book "Enemies of the Heart: Breaking Free from the Four Emotions That Control You" entitled, "Three Hits and a 'Whiff'".
[3] For those who are unaware, John Bradshaw was raised Roman Catholic and has a Bachelor's Degree in Sacred Theology. Due to the rather overt New Age and Post Modern nature of some of his teachings I'm uncertain what where he stands theologically today – though in my opinion, he seems to be leaning toward the old heresy of Christian Pantheism – though I could be wrong.
As I said in the introduction, one must always have one's discernment filters up to separate the wheat from the chaff when it comes to Bradshaw. I always find an abundant of gems in his work but sometimes I have to push aside some pockets of New Age rubbish to get to it.


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Huntington University is a comprehensive Christian university of the liberal arts offering graduate and undergraduate programs in more than 70 academic concentrations, including our most popular programs in film and animation, nursing, psychology and social work. Founded in 1897 by the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, Huntington University is located on a contemporary, lakeside campus in Huntington, Indiana, in northeast Indiana. The university is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU).
'One of the Best'
Huntington University consistently ranks among the best universities in the Midwest by U.S. News & World Report, Forbes.com, and Princeton Review. The university has been selected as a top Reader's Choice by Fort Wayne Newspapers, and has been listed as a Military Friendly school.
Top Economic Value
Our graduates know the value of a Huntington education. Each year, 97% of our graduates find employment within six months. And 90% of our students receive some sort of financial aid. It's no wonder that Huntington has been recognized as a great economic value by Educate to Career and Washington Monthly.
Top 5 reasons that students choose Huntington
When we ask students why they selected Huntington University, here's what they say:
- spiritual atmosphere
- career preparation
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Discover for yourself. Come see us!
Individual visits: Arranged year-round
Special visit days: Departmental Days, Group Visit Days
Call our Office of Admissions at (800) 642-6493 or visit www.explorehuntington.com.


text:
A New York Times article Europe's Appetite for Seafood Propels Illegal Trade describes how fisheries collapse is leading roving bandits to scoop up the world's valuable fish leaving little behind for local fishers:
Fish is now the most traded animal commodity on the planet, with about 100 million tons of wild and farmed fish sold each year. Europe has suddenly become the world's largest market for fish, worth more than 14 billion euros, or about $22 billion a year. Europe's appetite has grown as its native fish stocks have shrunk so that Europe now needs to import 60 percent of fish sold in the region, according to the European Union.
In Europe, the imbalance between supply and demand has led to a thriving illegal trade. Some 50 percent of the fish sold in the European Union originates in developing nations, and much of it is laundered like contraband, caught and shipped illegally beyond the limits of government quotas or treaties. The smuggling operation is well financed and sophisticated, carried out by large-scale mechanized fishing fleets able to sweep up more fish than ever, chasing threatened stocks from ocean to ocean.


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- This event has passed.
WHEST Whole Health Employment Support Training Leadership and Mentorship Program
January 12, 2022 @ 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm
zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5350523241?pwd=RmZCWkk3Zm9XQ0E2bHJBaHFvNUc2QT09
Whole Health Employment Support and Training Program is much more than a basic job skills program. This 11 week program will review several areas of focus to help you improve your:
- Soft skills like communication, time management, and conflict resolution
- Whole health wellness like hygiene, nutrition, finances, and organizational skills
- Using technology including using a smartphone, searching the internet, managing social media, and Microsoft Office
- Applying for a job including resume building, job applications, dress codes and interviewing skills
- Skills on the job in any job including customer service skills and workplace ethics.
This program is facilitated by Peer Support Specialists in a strengths-based, person centered way. Along with the basic 11 week curriculum, participants can expect to receive mentorship in the following areas:
- Basic Empowerment
- Leadership skills building
- Employment search
- Mentorship in the discovery of personal strengths
- Mentorship in the development of professional goals
- Guidance in the first 3 months of employment as it relates to relationships with coworkers and supervisors, job duties, and ethics


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The human body harbors at least 10 times more bacterial cells than human cells. Collectively known as the microbiome, this community may play a role in regulating one's risk of obesity, asthma and allergies. Now some researchers are wondering if the microbiome may have a part in an even more crucial process: mate selection and, ultimately, evolution.
The best evidence that the microbiome may play this critical role comes from studies of insects. A 2010 experiment led by Eugene Rosenberg of Tel Aviv University found that raising Drosophila pseudoobscura fruit flies on different diets altered their mate selection: the flies would mate only with other flies on the same diet. A dose of antibiotics abolished these preferences—the flies went back to mating without regard to diet—suggesting that it was changes in gut microbes brought about by diet, and not diet alone, that drove the change.
To determine whether gut microbes could affect an organism's longevity and its ability to reproduce, Vanderbilt University geneticist Seth Bordenstein and his colleagues dosed the termites Zootermopsis angusticollis and Reticulitermes flavipes with the antibiotic rifampicin. The study, published in July 2011 in Applied and Environmental Microbiology, found that antibiotic-treated termites showed a reduced diversity in their gut bacteria after treatment and also produced significantly fewer eggs. Bordenstein argues that the reduction of certain beneficial microbes, some of which aid in digestion and in the absorption of nutrients, left the termites malnourished and less able to produce eggs.
These studies are part of a growing consensus among evolutionary biologists that one can no longer separate an organism's genes from those of its symbiotic bacteria. They are all part of a single "hologenome."
"There's been a long history of separating microbiology from botany and zoology, but all animals and plants have millions or billions of microorganisms associated with them," Rosenberg says. "You have to look at the hologenome to understand an animal or plant." In other words, the forces of natural selection place pressure on a plant or animal and its full array of microbes. Lending support to that idea, Bordenstein showed the closer the evolutionary distance among certain species of wasps, the greater the similarities in their microflora.
Researchers believe that the microbiome is essential to human evolution as well. "Given the importance of the microbiome in human adaptations such as digestion, smell and the immune system, it would appear very likely that the human microbiome has had an effect on speciation," Bordenstein says. "Arguably, the microbiota are as important as genes."


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Men's health: a population-based study on social inequalities
A saúde dos homens: desigualdades sociais em estudo de base populacional
Tássia Fraga BastosI; Maria Cecília Goi Porto AlvesII; Marilisa Berti de Azevedo BarrosI; Chester Luiz Galvão CesarIII
IFaculdade de Ciências Médicas, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Campinas, Brasil
IIInstituto de Saúde, Secretaria de Estado da Saúde de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil
IIIFaculdade de Saúde Pública, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil
This study evaluates social inequalities in health according to level of schooling in the male population. This was a cross-sectional, population-based study with a sample of 449 men ranging from 20 to 59 years of age and living in Campinas, São Paulo State, Brazil. The chi-square test was used to verify associations, and a Poisson regression model was used to estimate crude and adjusted prevalence ratios. Men with less schooling showed higher rates of alcohol consumption and dependence, smoking, sedentary lifestyle during leisure time, and less healthy eating habits, in addition to higher prevalence of bad or very bad self-rated health, at least one chronic disease, hypertension, and other health problems. No differences were detected between the two schooling strata in terms of use of health services, except for dental services. The findings point to social inequality in health-related behaviors and in some health status indicators. However, possible equity was observed in the use of nearly all types of health services.
Men's Health; Social Inequity; Health Surveys
Este trabalho avalia as desigualdades sociais em saúde, segundo escolaridade, na população masculina. Trata-se de um estudo transversal de base populacional, envolvendo 449 homens, de 20 a 59 anos, residentes em Campinas, São Paulo, Brasil. Realizou-se o teste qui-quadrado para verificar as associações e o modelo de regressão de Poisson para estimar as razões de prevalência brutas e ajustadas. O segmento de menor escolaridade apresentou maiores proporções de consumo e dependência de bebida alcoólica, tabagismo, sedentarismo e de consumo alimentar menos saudável, além de maiores prevalências de autoavaliação da saúde como ruim/muito ruim, pelo menos uma doença crônica, hipertensão, dentre outros problemas de saúde. Não foram detectadas diferenças entre os segmentos com relação ao uso de serviços de saúde, à exceção da utilização de serviços odontológicos. Os achados revelam que há desigualdade social na maioria dos comportamentos relacionados à saúde e em alguns indicadores de estado de saúde. Entretanto, observou-se possível equidade no uso de praticamente todos os serviços de saúde.
Saúde do Homem; Iniquidade Social; Inquéritos Epidemiológicos
Male excess mortality in practically all age groups, extensively documented in the literature, entails different life expectancies for men and women1,2,3,4. In Brazil, this difference is currently some 7.6 years (69.4 and 77.0 years for men and women, respectively), resulting in a significantly smaller male population in the older age groups5. Although women report higher diseases prevalence rates, when disease severity is analyzed, men normally present higher rates of chronic diseases with high lethality6.
Given this scenario, the Brazilian Ministry of Health took an important step in 2009 when it launched the National Policy for Integral Attention to Men's Health (PNAISH), which aims to promote improvements in the health of the Brazilian male population, contributing to the reduction of morbidity and mortality by means of addressing the risk factors and facilitating access to actions and services for comprehensive health care, with primary care as the gateway preferential of Brazilian Unified National Health System (SUS)7.
According to Courtenay8, hegemonic masculinity is the socially dominant gender construct that reflects and shapes social relations between men and women and among men. This construct is based on the hegemonic ideals and represents power and authority, necessary attributes for constituting men as such and their health-related beliefs and behaviors, the results of a social construction. In the constant quest for the ideals of manhood, power, and privilege, men are frequently led to adopt harmful health behaviors, with the emergence of relevant risk factors for illness1,8,9.
Various studies have analyzed how socioeconomic, ethnic/racial, regional, and gender inequalities impact the morbidity and mortality profile and access and use of health services10. However, few studies have focused on men's health and the effects of social inequalities1,2. According to Muntaner et al.11, measurements of social stratification, including level of schooling, are important predictors of morbidity and mortality patterns, and various studies have assessed the relationship between such indicators and health outcomes. Information on complete years of schooling has advantages over other measures of social stratification because it is universal, easy to collect, and stable over the individual's lifetime12.
Based on the above and considering the male population's vulnerability, especially at younger ages, this study aims to evaluate social inequalities in health according to schooling, among men 20 to 59 years of age living in Campinas, São Paulo State, Brazil.
This is a cross-sectional, population-based study, the data for which were obtained from the Campinas Health Survey (ISA-Camp) conducted in 2008-2009. Data were collected by previously trained interviewers, using a questionnaire organized in thematic sections: morbidity, accidents and violence, mental health, quality of life, use of health services, preventive practices, use of medicines, health-related behaviors, and socioeconomic characteristics.
The survey's sample was obtained by two-stage probabilistic sampling. Initially, 50 census tracts from the urban area of the City of Campinas were selected, with probability proportional to size, defined as the number of households, followed by a field survey to identify the existing private households in the selected tracts.
The households were selected in the second stage, aimed at conducting 20 interviews in each census tract for three population subgroups: adolescents (10 to 19 years), adults (20 to 59 years), and elderly (60 years or older), which constituted the study domains.
Samples of equal sizes were selected, with one thousand individuals for each domain. The number of interviews would allow estimating proportions of 0.50 with a sampling error of 4 to 5 percentage points for a 95% confidence interval and design effect of 2.
The data analyzed in the current study refer to the male population in the 20-59-year age bracket. For this group, the sampling error would be on the order of 6.2%. According to data from the 2000 Population Census (Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia and Estatística; http://www.ibge.gov.br), one thousand adults would be found by visiting 522 households. Providing for refusals and closed households (a total of 20%), 700 households were sampled. The sampling design for the ISA-Camp 2008 survey has been described in detail by Alves13.
The variables analyzed in the current study include:
a) Demographic and socioeconomic: interviewee's level of schooling (complete years of schooling); age; self-reported race/color; birthplace; religion; marital status; number of persons in the household; current occupation; type of worker; number of household assets; monthly per capita family income (in times the minimum wage); private health plan coverage; dental coverage;
b) Health-related behaviors: alcohol dependence (measured by the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test AUDIT, with 8 points or more considered positive for dependence)14; frequency of alcohol consumption (< 4 times/week and ≥ 4 times/week); current smoker; smoking cessation, defined as the percentage of ex-smokers among those who have ever smoked (current smokers and ex-smokers); passive smoker (non-smoker exposed to cigarette smoke at least 1 hour per day); leisure-time physical activity: active (at least 150 minutes per week, on 3 days of the week), insufficiently active (less than 150 minutes per week or on fewer than 3 days in the week), sedentary (no time devoted to leisure-time physical activity in the week); body mass index (BMI) according to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines15 for adults: underweight (< 18.5kg/m2), normal weight (18.5 to < 25kg/m2), overweight (25 to < 30kg/m2), excess weight (≥ 25 kg/m2); and obese (≥ 30 kg/m2); consumption of fruit, vegetables, leafy vegetables, and milk fewer than 7 days a week; daily soft drink (soda) consumption;
c) health status: bad or very bad self-rated health; common mental disorder (CMD), defined according to the Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20), with greater than 8 points defined as presence of CMD16; the following diseases reported as having been diagnosed by a health professional, based on a checklist: arterial hypertension (high blood pressure), heart disease, asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, tendinitis, RSI/WRMD, circulatory problems; self-reported health problems not diagnosed by a health professional: frequent headache or migraine, back pain or problem with spinal column, allergy, emotional problem, dizziness or vertigo, visual impairment (total or partial), use of eyeglasses or contact lenses, and use of dental prostheses; accidents in the previous year;
d) Use of health services: use of health services in the 15 days prior to the interview; hospitalizations in the previous 12 months; surgery any time in life and in the previous 12 months; dental visit in the previous 12 months; consumption of medicines in the previous 3 days; preventive tests for men 40 to 59 years of age: PSA and digital rectal examination in the previous year; routine medical consultation for individuals with arterial hypertension.
The dependent variables were all those related to health behaviors and conditions and use of health services, while the principal independent variable was schooling, categorized as 0 to 8 versus 9 or more years of school. Demographic and socioeconomic variables were used to characterize the study population. The estimated prevalence ratios were adjusted for age, and in the case of use of health services (medical consultations, hospitalization, surgeries, and consumption of medicines), for age and number of chronic diseases, to control for confounding.
Analysis of the associations between dependent and independent variables used the chi-square test with 5% statistical significance, and the crude and adjusted prevalence ratios (PR) and respective 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were estimated using Poisson regression. Data were analyzed with Stata 11.0 (Stata Corp., College Station, USA), which considers the different weights of individuals comprising the sample, as well as the sample design effect. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the School of Medicine, State University in Campinas (Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Estadual de Campinas UNICAMP), under case file 079/2007.
Data were analyzed from a probabilistic sample of 449 men living in Campinas, ranging from 20 to 59 years of age, with a mean of 37 years (95%CI: 36.02-37.95). In this population, 35.7% (95%CI: 27.9-44.3) reported 0 to 8 years of schooling, while the rest had 9 years or more. Except for religion, the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics showed statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) between men from the two schooling strata (Table 1). Men with less schooling showed higher proportions of non-white individuals, those born in other States, with lower income, and less medical and dental coverage. There were also proportionally more unemployed individuals among those with less schooling. Proportionally more men with more schooling had 15 or more household assets.
As for health-related behaviors (Table 2), there were higher rates of alcohol dependence, alcohol consumption four or more times a week, and smoking among men with less schooling. For leisure-time physical activity, there were proportionally more sedentary men among those with less schooling. Analyzing food consumption, men with less schooling shower a higher proportion of non-daily consumption (less than 7 days of week) of fruit, vegetables, and leafy vegetables.
As shown in Table 3, the male population with less schooling showed a higher prevalence of bad or very bad self-rated health and at least one chronic disease, arterial hypertension, frequent headache or migraine, and backache. Other diseases were not significantly associated with level of schooling. Visual impairment was significantly more prevalent in men with less schooling, who were also less likely to use eyeglasses or contact lenses when compared to men with more schooling. Use of dental prosthesis was also significantly more prevalent in men with less schooling.
Analysis of use of health services only showed a statistically significant difference for dental services in the previous year (men with less schooling were less likely to have used such services, as shown in Table 4). The other variables related to use of health services showed no significant differences between the two schooling strata.
This study's findings point to the magnitude of social inequality among adult men in Campinas; those with less schooling were underprivileged in relation to health-related behaviors, health conditions, and use of dental services.
Men with less schooling were significantly more likely to consume alcohol four or more times a week (PR = 2.97; 95%CI: 1.38-6.41). Another study in Campinas had shown similar results17. On the other hand, other studies have shown a higher prevalence of excessive alcohol intake in the social stratum with more schooling18,19.
Prevalence of alcohol dependence or abuse, as evaluated by AUDIT, was 15.9%, and men with less schooling showed a 67% greater probability of being alcohol-dependent as compared to those with more schooling. This inverse association between schooling and alcohol dependence is consistent with the results of health surveys in Campinas in 2003 20, detected by the CAGE test21, and in the city of Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul State22. There is a lack of consensus concerning the profile for frequent alcohol consumption and alcohol abuse according to different socioeconomic strata, although most studies indicate higher frequency of intake among individuals with higher socioeconomic status, while alcohol dependence is more common in the lower socioeconomic stratum23.
The current study showed an association between smoking and level of schooling, with a higher proportion of current smokers among men with less schooling (36.7%). This prevalence exceeds the estimates for socially more vulnerable segments in Brazil (24.2%) and in the city of São Paulo (28%) according to a telephone health survey in 2006, focusing on males 18 years or older24. An inverse association between schooling and smoking, as found in the current study, is a consensus in the Brazilian and international literature18,25,26,27.
Among men with less education, 70.9% were considered sedentary as defined by lack of leisure-time physical activity, and they were 1.33 times more likely (95%CI: 1.11-1.59) to be inactive as compared to men with more schooling. An inverse association between schooling and sedentary lifestyle was also found in health surveys conducted in the State of São Paulo, considering men 18 to 59 years of age28, and in Greater Metropolitan Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais State18. The high percentage of sedentary lifestyle among men in Campinas suggests a lack of stimuli and adequate locations for practicing physical activities, especially for men with lower socioeconomic status.
Non-daily consumption (fewer than 7 days a week) of fruit, vegetables, and leafy vegetables reached prevalence ratios of 1.25 (95%CI: 1.10-1.42), 1.55 (95%CI: 1.27-1.90), and 1.27 (95%CI: 1.11-1.45), respectively, in the male population with less schooling in Campinas. Similar results have been shown elsewhere in the literature29,30.
Bad or very bad self-rated health was found among 10.3% of men with less schooling, and was 2.91 times more frequent (95%CI: 1.97-7.09) than among those with more schooling. Other studies have found an inverse association between schooling and self-rated health31,32,33. According to Dachs31, age is the single most important factor in self-rated health, but schooling and income show relevant additional contributions to this health dimension.
The presence of one or more chronic diseases was significantly associated with level of schooling; prevalence was higher among men with lower socioeconomic status. Similar results were found in the Brazilian adult population (18 years or older), based on data from the Brazilian National Household Sample Survey (PNAD 2008)34, and in the population 30 years or older, according to the Telephone Survey for the Surveillance of Risk and Protective Factors for Chronic Diseases (VIGITEL 2006)35. The same relationship has been published in the international literature36,37.
With the exception of allergy, all the chronic diseases and self-reported health problems showed higher prevalence rates among men with less schooling. However, statistically significant differences were only observed for hypertension, frequent headache or migraine, backache, and visual impairment.
Arterial hypertension was associated with level of education, showing higher prevalence in men with less schooling. Similar findings have been observed for Brazilian adults 20 to 64 years of age, pointing to inequality between different social segments (defined by per capita family income)38 in the population 18 to 39 years of age in the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES), conducted from 1999 to 200439, and among American men 20 years and older40.
As in the current study, in Portugal41 and in Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil,42 headache and backache were associated with level of schooling, with prevalence inversely associated with schooling, a relationship that was mediated by the greater exposure of individuals with less schooling to heavy work overload, both at home and at work, among other factors43.
Visual impairment was associated with level of schooling and was more prevalent in the lower socioeconomic stratum, thus corroborating other studies in four cities in São Paulo State44, in Campinas23, and in the United States45. This inverse association was probably due to the fact that individuals with lower income and less schooling have less access to services that allow detection of their visual impairments or access to eyeglasses and contact lenses. The latter assumption was supported by this study, showing a lower proportion of use of eyeglasses and contact lenses among men with less schooling.
Use of dental prosthesis was more prevalent among men with less schooling. This calls attention to the problem of early tooth loss, a marker for social inequality46 that reflects less access to quality dental services.
Except for dental care, there were no statistically significant differences between men from different schooling strata in relation to the use of services, which could indicate a tendency toward equity in access in Campinas in terms of use of health services in general. Although the sample size may have prevented the study from detecting statistical differences between the two strata in access to health services, a similar result appeared in the elderly population in Campinas in the same household survey cited in the current study, suggesting that organization of the health system in the municipality is leading to more equitable access23.
As for use of dental services, the study's findings are consistent with those of other studies in Brazil that have indicated the presence of socioeconomic inequalities (assessed by income or schooling), whereby individuals from more vulnerable social strata were less likely to use dental services (PR = 0.61; 95%CI: 0.45-0.82)47,48. Data from the PNAD 2008 showed some attenuation in socioeconomic inequality over the years in the use of dental services, but still with a persistent degree of inequality49. Non-utilization of dental services is associated not only with socioeconomic issues50, but also with the scarce supply of public oral health services51.
Some limitations to this study should be considered. One was the sample size, sufficient to estimate most of the target prevalence rates, but insufficient for less frequent diseases and events. Another limitation was that the study was based on self-reporting, thus subject to information biases, which can underestimate or overestimate the real prevalence rates, such as those for socially undesirable behaviors, which tend to be underestimated23. In addition, the cross-sectional design does not allow establishing causal inferences between the variables. It is also possible that the social inequality shown here in relation to the presence of diseases may be underestimated, considering that individuals with less schooling tend to have less access to quality health services and diagnostic technologies, and thus would tend to underreport this information34.
This study is relevant as the first to use health survey data to analyze social inequalities in health in the population of young Brazilian men, the target public for the PNAISH. The study's findings can contribute to the equitable planning of strategic measures as proposed in the National Action Plan under the PNAISH52 and developed in the SUS, considering the magnitude of social inequalities observed in most of the health-related behaviors, the prevalence rates for some diseases, and the use of dental services. Such studies are necessary to detect and monitor health determinants for men, fostering discussion on the importance of inter-sector actions that extrapolate the health sector and favoring the improvement of health indicators and decreasing early mortality in the male population.
T. F. Bastos prepared the proposal, wrote the article, and planned, scheduled, and conducted the statistical analyses. M. C. G. P. Alves supervised the literature review, data analysis, and wrote of the article. M. B. A. Barros collaborated in the literature review and writing of the article. C. L. G. César collaborated in writing the article.
The authors wish to thank the CAPES for the Master's scholarship for T. F. Bastos; the CNPq for the research funding and scientific productivity grant for M. B. A. Barros (grant no. 409747/2006-8); and the Brazilian Ministry of Health and the Campinas Health Department for financial support to carry out the survey (Partnership UNICAMP/Funcamp/SMS nº. 4300).
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3. Secretaria Municipal de Saúde. Mortalidade em Campinas: informe do projeto de monitorização dos óbitos no município de Campinas. (Boletim nº. 42, julho a dezembro de 2007, Mortalidade e Gênero). http://www.fcm.unicamp.br/centros/ccas/arquivos/bo42.pdf (accessed on 10/Jun/2011).
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14. Barbor TE, La Fuente JR, Saunders J, Grant M. AUDIT the alcohol use disorders identification test: guidelines for use in primary health care. Geneva: World Health Organization; 1992.
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17. Barros MBA, Marín-León L, Oliveira HB, Dalgalarrondo P, Botega NJ. Perfil do consumo de bebidas alcoólicas: diferenças sociais e demográficas no Município de Campinas, Estado de São Paulo, Brasil, 2003. Epidemiol Serv Saúde 2008; 17:259-70.
18. Lima-Costa MF. A escolaridade afeta, igualmente, comportamentos prejudiciais à saúde de idosos e adultos mais jovens? Inquérito de Saúde da Região Metropolitana de Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil. Epidemiol Serv Saúde 2004; 13:201-8.
19. Malyutina S, Bobak M, Kurilovitch D, Nikitin Y, Marmot M. Trends in alcohol intake by education and marital status in urban population in Russia between the mid 1980s and the mid 1990s. Alcohol Alcohol 2004; 39:64-9.
20. Barros MBA, Botega NJ, Dalgalarrondo P, Marín-León L, Oliveira HB. Prevalence of alcohol abuse and associated factors in a population-based study. Rev Saúde Pública 2007; 41:502-9.
21. Guimarães VV, Florindo AA, Stopa SR, César CLG, Barros MBA, Carandina L, et al. Consumo abusivo e dependência de álcool em população adulta no Estado de São Paulo, Brasil. Rev Bras Epidemiol 2010; 13:314-25.
22. Mendoza-Sassi RA, Beria JU. Prevalence of alcohol use disorders and associated factors: a population-based study using AUDIT in southern Brazil. Addiction 2003; 98:799-804.
23. Barros MBA, Francisco PMSB, Lima MG, César CLG. Social inequalities in health among the elderly. Cad Saúde Pública 2011; 27 Suppl 2:S198-208.
24. Silva GA, Valente JG, Almeida LM, Moura EC, Malta DC. Tabagismo e escolaridade no Brasil, 2006. Rev Saúde Pública 2009; 43 Suppl 2:48-56.
25. Federico B, Costa G, Kunst AE. Educational inequalities in initiation, cessation, and prevalence of smoking among 3 Italian birth cohorts. Am J Public Health 2007; 97:838-45.
26. Malta DC, Moura EC, Silva SA, Oliveira PPV, Silva VLC. Prevalência do tabagismo em adultos residentes nas capitais dos estados e no Distrito Federal, Brasil, 2008. J Bras Pneumol 2010; 36:75-83.
27. Moura EC, Silva SA, Malta DC, Morais Neto OL. Fatores de risco e proteção para doenças crônicas: vigilância por meio de inquérito telefônico, VIGITEL, Brasil, 2007. Cad Saúde Pública 2011; 27: 486-96.
28. Zanchetta LM, Barros MBA, César CLG, Carandina L, Goldbaum M, Alves MCGP. Inatividade física e fatores associados em adultos, São Paulo, Brasil. Rev Bras Epidemiol 2010; 13:387-99.
29. Jaime PC, Monteiro CA. Fruit and vegetable intake by Brazilian adults, 2003. Cad Saúde Pública 2005; 21 Suppl:S19-24.
30. Figueiredo ICR, Jaime PC, Monteiro CA. Factors associated with fruit and vegetable intake among adults of the city of São Paulo, Southeastern Brazil. Rev Saúde Pública 2008; 42:777-85.
31. Dachs JNW. Determinantes das desigualdades na auto-avaliação do estado de saúde no Brasil. Ciênc Saúde Coletiva 2002; 7:641-57.
32. Barros MBA, Zanchetta LM, Moura EC, Malta DC. Auto-avaliação da saúde e fatores associados, Brasil, 2006. Rev Saúde Pública 2009; 43 Suppl 2: 27-37.
33. Peres MA, Masiero AV, Longo GZ, Rocha GC, Matos IB, Najnie K, et al. Auto-avaliação da saúde em adultos no Sul do Brasil. Rev Saúde Pública 2010; 44:901-11.
34. Barros MBA, Francisco PMSB, Zanchetta LM, César CLG. Tendência das desigualdades sociais na prevalência de doenças crônicas no Brasil, PNAD: 2003-2008. Ciênc Saúde Coletiva 2011; 16:3755-68.
35. Barreto SM, Figueiredo RC. Doença crônica, auto-avaliação de saúde e comportamento de risco: diferença de gênero. Rev Saúde Pública 2009; 43 Suppl 2:38-47.
36. Macintyre S, Der G, Norrie J. Are there socioeconomic differences in responses to a commonly used self report measure of chronic illness? Int J Epidemiol 2005; 34:1284-90.
37. Westert GP, Schellevis FG, de Bakker DH, Groenewegen PP, Bensing JM, van der Zee J. Monitoring health inequalities through general practice: the second Dutch National Survey of General Practice. Eur J Public Health 2005; 15:59-65.
38. Lima-Costa MF, Barreto S, Giatti L. A situação socioeconômica afeta igualmente a saúde de idosos e adultos mais jovens no Brasil? Um estudo utilizando dados da Pesquisa Nacional por Amostras de Domicílios PNAD/98. Ciênc Saúde Coletiva 2002; 7:813-24.
39. Grebla RC, Rodriguez CJ, Borrell LN, Pickering TG. Prevalence and determinants of isolated systolic hypertension among young adults: the 1999-2004 U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. J Hypertens 2010; 28:15-23.
40. Delpierre C, Lauwers-Cances V, Datta GD, Berkman L, Lang T. Impact of social position on the effect of cardiovascular risk factors on self-rated health. Am J Public Health 2009; 99:1278-84.
41. Rabiais S, Nogueira PJ, Falcão JM. A dor na população portuguesa: alguns aspectos epidemiológicos (2002). http://www.doentescomcancro.org/uhdc/pdfs/EstudoDorPopulacaoPortuguesa.pdf (accessed on 18/Sep/2011).
42. Silva MC, Fassa AG, Valle NCJ. Dor lombar crônica em uma população adulta do Sul do Brasil: prevalência e fatores associados. Cad Saúde Pública 2004; 20:377-85.
43. Vogt M. Prevalência e severidade da dor, cervical e lombar, nos servidores técnico-administrativos da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria [Dissertação de Mestrado]. Florianópolis: Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina; 2000.
44. Castro SS, César CLG, Carandina L, Barros MBA, Alves MCGP, Goldbaum M. Deficiência visual, auditiva e física: prevalência e fatores associados em estudo de base populacional. Cad Saúde Pública 2008; 24:1773-82.
45. Rysculova A, Turczyn K, Makuc DM, Cotch MF, Klein RJ, Janiszewski R. Self-reported age-related eye diseases and visual impairment in the United States: results of the 2002 National Health Interview Survey. Am J Public Health 2008; 98:454-61.
46. Hung HC, Colditz G, Joshipura KJ. The association between tooth loss and the self-reported intake of selected CVD-related nutrients and foods among US women. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol 2005; 33:167-73.
47. Araújo CS, Lima RC, Peres MA, Barros AJD. Utilização de serviços odontológicos e fatores associados: um estudo de base populacional no Sul do Brasil. Cad Saúde Pública 2009; 25:1063-72.
48. Baldani MH, Brito WH, Lawder JAC, Mendes YBE, Silva FFM, Antunes JLF. Determinantes individuais da utilização de serviços odontológicos por adultos e idosos de baixa renda. Rev Bras Epidemiol 2010; 13:150-62.
49. Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística. Um panorama da saúde no Brasil: acesso e utilização dos serviços de saúde, condições de saúde e fatores de risco e proteção à saúde, 2008. Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios PNAD 2008. Rio de Janeiro: Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística; 2010.
50. Gilbert HG. Access to and patterns of use of oral health care among elderly veterans. Med Care 1995; 33:78-89.
51. Moreira RS, Nico LS, Tomita NE, Ruiz T. A saúde bucal do idoso brasileiro: revisão sistemática sobre o quadro epidemiológico e acesso aos serviços de saúde bucal. Cad Saúde Pública 2005; 21:1665-75.
52. Departamento de Ações Programáticas e Estratégicas, Secretaria de Atenção à Saúde, Ministério da Saúde. Plano de Ação Nacional 2009-2011 da Política Nacional de Atenção Integral à Saúde do Homem. Brasília: Ministério da Saúde; 2009.
T. F. Bastos
Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Universidade Estadual de Campinas.
Rua Tessália Vieira de Camargo 126, Campinas, SP 13083-970, Brasil.
Submitted on 24/Nov/2011
Final version resubmitted on 09/Apr/2012
Approved on 17/Apr/2012


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Outlaws Bonnie and Clyde shot to death in stolen Ford
On this day in 1934, wanted outlaws Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker are shot to death by Texas and Louisiana state police officers as they attempt to escape apprehension in a stolen 1934 Ford Deluxe near Bienville Parish, Louisiana.
Beginning in early 1932, Parker and Barrow set off on a two-year crime spree, evading local police in rural Texas, Louisiana and New Mexico before drawing the attention of federal authorities at the Bureau of Investigation (as the FBI was then known). Though the couple was believed to have been responsible for 13 murders by the time they were killed, along with several bank robberies and burglaries, the only charge the Bureau could chase them on was a violation of the National Motor Vehicle Act, which gave federal agents the authority to pursue suspects accused of interstate transportation of a stolen automobile. The car in question was a Ford, stolen in Illinois and found abandoned in Pawhuska, Oklahoma. Inside, agents discovered a prescription bottle later traced to the Texas home of Clyde Barrow's aunt.
As authorities stepped up the pressure to catch the outlaw couple, the heavily armed Barrow and Parker were joined at various times by the convicted murderer Raymond Hamilton (whom they helped break out of jail in 1934), William Daniel Jones and Clyde's brother Ivan "Buck" Barrow and his wife, Blanche. In the spring of 1934, federal agents traced the Barrow-Parker gang to a remote county in southwest Louisiana, where the Methvin family was said to have been aiding and abetting the outlaws for over a year. Bonnie and Clyde, along with some of the Methvins, had staged a party at Black Lake, Louisiana, on the night of May 21. Two days later, just before dawn, a posse of police officers from Texas and Louisiana laid an ambush along the highway near Sailes, Louisiana. When Parker and Barrow appeared, going some 85 mph in another stolen Ford–a four-door 1934 Deluxe with a V-8 engine, the officers let loose with a hail of bullets, leaving the couple no chance of survival despite the small arsenal of weapons they had with them.
The bullet-ridden Deluxe, originally owned by Ruth Warren of Topeka, Kansas, was later exhibited at carnivals and fairs then sold as a collector's item; in 1988, the Primm Valley Resort and Casino in Las Vegas purchased it for some $250,000. Barrow's enthusiasm for cars was evident in a letter he wrote earlier in the spring of 1934, addressed to Henry Ford himself: "While I still have got breath in my lungs I will tell you what a dandy car you make. I have drove Fords exclusively when I could get away with one. For sustained speed and freedom from trouble the Ford has got every other car skinned and even if my business hasn't been strictly legal it don't hurt anything to tell you what a fine car you got in the V-8."


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The family of David A. Sinclair MD, the late Honolulu obstetrician who delivered Barack Obama on August 4, 1961, were surprised and honored to learn of his role when the President recently released his long-form birth certificate.
Dr. Sinclair was a freshly minted young doctor in 1961. Born in Portland, Ore., Dr. Sinclair had moved to Hawaii with his family as a child. He served as a fighter pilot in World War II, settling back down in Hawaii after the war. There, he attended college at the University of Hawaii, where he met his wife, Ivalee.
Dr. Sinclair received his medical training, including his residency in obstetrics and gynecology, at the University of California at San Francisco. He returned to Hawaii in 1960.
He delivered babies all over Hawaii, but his practice was centered at a hospital now known as Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women & Children in Honolulu, where President Obama was born, according to news accounts.
Dr. Sinclair died in 2003 at the age of 81.
"I'm just honored and proud of my father," said Karl Sinclair, one of Dr. Sinclair's six children.
"I think it's great," said Dr. Brian Sinclair, another son. "Hawaii was a very small place back then so I guess I'm not surprised."


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When we've been burned in a relationship, we go into new relationships a little more wary. "That's a two-edged sword," says relationship coach Amy Schoen. While being street-smart can help you avoid making the same mistake the next time, "It can also keep you so hyper alert to possible problems that you don't give yourself to a relationship," Schoen says. Here are some tips to help you when you're ready to try again.
1. Settle the past. Work with a therapist to understand how and why you picked your failed marriage.
2. Realize you can make a choice. OK. Something bad happened. You are not a victim. You can and will move on.
3. Learn who's safe and not safe and how to be safe. Once fooled, twice smart. Learn the early warning signs that someone lacks integrity and construct proper boundaries to keep people like that far from your heart.
4. Get clear about your expectations. What do you want for yourself? What are you moving toward? Know what your values are and be clear about what you're looking for in a relationship. Then, be bold about not settling for less.
5. Realize there are wonderful people everywhere. Uh huh, you ended up with a world class schmuck AND the world is full of really great people.
6. Learn where to go to meet people who enjoy the same things you do. If you like to dance, take dance lessons. If you like to hike, join a trail club.
7. Hold off on the sex. Give yourself time to get to know someone before jumping in the sack. Sociologist Dr. Edward Lauman's research found that 85 percent of couples had known each other at least 30 days before having sex and 45 percent waited at least a year.
8. Check out their "fit." How are they around your family and friends? How comfortable are you around theirs?
9. Pay attention to their overall behavior. Is this person an "easy keeper" or is your relationship full of drama? Are there periodic temper tantrums? Regular "flake sessions?" If so, next!
10. Listen to your gut. You have a built-in radar that alerts you when something is up. So, listen to and honor your intuition.
Laurie S. Moison (Hall) has written for newspapers in Vermont, New Hampshire, Delaware, and Washington, D. C. Author of four books, including "An Affair of the Mind," she has lectured nationally on sexuality, forgiveness, ethics and spirituality. She can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.
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Year: 2017
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Climate change, composting, and cashews Jan 28, 2023 15:35:02 GMT 1
Climate change, composting, and cashews
|Read More
We deal in Small, Medium and Large Scale Trade & Exportation of Cocoa Beans, Sesame Seeds, Cashew Nuts, Ginger, Cassava Chips, Hibiscus Flower, Gum Arabic, Cotton, Sorghum, Shea Nuts/Shea Butter, Bitter Kola, Kola Nut, Moringa Plant & Seeds,Charcoal, Local Foodstuffs & Beeswax.Services: (1)Non Oil Export(2)Charcoal Export(3)Food Export(4)Cow Gallstone(5)Export Books(6)Contracts
Office: 4, Ismail AbdulAzeez Street, Singer Bus Stop, Ewupe, Sango Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria, West Africa.
Export From Nigeria - Products & Services Marketing Ltd. Copyright @ 2023 All rights reserved. Motto: Extra Mile.


text:
Math and StatisticsLibraries for .NET
public override double Skewness { get; }
Public Overrides ReadOnly Property Skewness As Double
virtual property double Skewness {
double get () override;
abstract Skewness : float with get
override Skewness : float with get
The skewness of a distribution is a number that indicates
the degree of asymmetry of the distribution. If the distribution
has a longer tail on the left side of the maximum, the
skewness is negative. Otherwise, the skewness is
Copyright (c) 2004-2021 ExoAnalytics Inc.
Copyright © 2004-2021,
Extreme Optimization. All rights reserved.
Extreme Optimization, Complexity made simple, M#, and M
Sharp are trademarks of ExoAnalytics Inc.
Microsoft, Visual C#, Visual Basic, Visual Studio, Visual
Studio.NET, and the Optimized for Visual Studio logo are
registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.


text:
Microsoft Project Plan templates > > >
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text:
"Sirens" are these winged ones, like Mercury, who with his six wings here turns out to be god of commerce, trade, and thievery. This makes it sound like he could be patron siren of privateers/pirates/grain bulkers/all merchant shipping. He's also a messenger, and his message to me was "more ships…
like Ravnanger and
Arosa (ex-Clipper Reunion and ex-VoC Reunion) and
Margara although
this last one needs to be watched."
Photos, WVD.


text:
Last night, I made a rare airport run. Our niece from Chicago is visiting for the long weekend, and rather than send a car, we fought through both U.S. Open and Mets traffic to pick her up at LaGuardia Airport.
Regular readers know my views of U.S. airports in general and LaGuardia in particular. Despite the occasional spectacular views, it is on my list of worst U.S. airports, second only to John F. Kennedy International Airport.
It's as if we forgot what routine government spending was supposed to accomplish.
In general, American air travel is terribly annoying. Anytime someone we know comes thorough either airport, the conversation invariably touches on the sad state of U.S. infrastructure. Vice President Joe Biden compared LaGuardia to a third-world country. There are improvements coming, but it has been ever-so slow.
It's a tired but true litany: crumbling bridges and roads; how little the U.S. spends on infrastructure compared with other industrialized nations; the list of states' unmet infrastructure needs; the opportunity to make needed long-term repairs and improvements while financing costs are so cheap.
Repeated calls for improvements — and recent stimulus spending — are starting to have an impact. Of the four major terminals at LaGuardia, two have seen big improvements. Delta Terminal D is a fairly new construction, and its interior was recently updated. Terminal C is still being renovated, and from what I have seen they're doing a nice job.
Even on the dreaded Long Island Expressway, resurfacing has been accomplished from the city to Roslyn. It was started and completedquickly. For a brief moment, I was confused by the perfectly flat surface. The car glides along smoothly and silently, causing flashbacks to my last trip to Brussels.
Even conservative groups are starting to drop their irrational fear of everything government does to call for specific infrastructure projects. The American Enterprise Institute is pulling back from its dalliance with a fabricatedfantasy world to focus on the real world.
Michael R. Strain, a resident scholar at the AEI, argues in a Washington Postop-ed for more infrastructure spending. Ignore the partisan debate within and instead focus on the repair and improvement portion. Strain advocates for more state and local control. And he argues that the focus should be on "identifying high-social-value projects — upgrading shipping ports and airports; repairing power grids, bridges, roads, and schools; working to shorten commute times; upgrading everything with 21st-century technology."
This is a much more moderate position than we have seen in the past from a conservative. There is only a small gap between what the liberal left and the reasonable right are both advocating for when it comes to infrastructure.
This is all a bit of a tease. What has been accomplished so far has only made me (and perhaps, the public) hungrier for more: Better roads and bridges, more modernized airport terminals, smarter traffic controls, a more reliable electrical grid.
Let's hope that some common sense and common ground can get the revamping of America's infrastructure going. It is long overdue.
Originally Conservatives Learn to Love Infrastructure


text:
I decided to take advantage of the abundance of the Summer growing season by featuring a new unusual vegetable each week. These vegetables may be ones you've had before, or ones you've heard of but never dared to taste. Or, they may be ones you had no idea how to prepare to eat. I'll include a bit of information about the vegetable, a simple recipe, and a linky so you can share your favorite recipe featuring the vegetable of the week. The link collections will be open for a full month after I feature a vegetable, so you can experiment with it and then come back here and link up your successes!
The series will run through the end of August, and I'll publish a post every week or two. So far, I've featured artichoke, kale, eggplant, and this week, the beet!
If there's a vegetable you'd like to see featured in the series, or if you have a preparation tip to add, please let me know in the comments. And don't forget to link up your beet recipes below!
|Red/purple and golden beets
What we usually think of as a beet is really the beet root, but the beet is one of those vegetables that doesn't have any parts that are inedible. The young leaves and stems can be eaten raw in salads, more mature leaves can be stir fried (and used in dishes as you would spinach or kale), and the bulbous root can be cooked and eaten, too. It is a very useful vegetable!
I have to admit, I didn't used to like beets. I had an early childhood aversion experience with beets at a church dinner once (it involved pickled beets and me mistaking them for slices of jellied cranberry sauce) so I wrote them off way back then. When I was first living with my partner, we had a CSA delivery, and beets came in it one day. I told him, that I hated beets, but he insisted that I try them again, fresh (not pickled). I humored him, and tried one tiny little bite of beet, which he had steamed. To my great surprise, I found I liked them!
One issue with red/purple beets is the staining factor. When you remove the outer skin before cooking, the red juices will leak out more, and likely stain your fingers. My partner likes to peel and slice beets under a very small stream of water, so as to wash the juice away as it's leaked out. This method is quite effective at preventing the juice from staining his fingers. Another thing I have to mention is that eating beets can alter the color of your eliminations. People whose bodies can't break down betacyanin (responsible for the red pigment in red/purple beets) will have red urine after eating them. Many others will notice that their bowel movements turn red after consuming beets. This is nothing to be alarmed by! OK, now that we got that out of the way....
I think that thinking of them like carrots is a good way to approach a beet. They have a similar combination of sweetness and bitterness, and they're good cooked in some of the same ways. I think beets generally taste better in sweeter preparations rather than savory (though I know many would disagree with me on that).
My favorite way to cook beets is still the way I had them that first (second) time: steamed (maybe with a little butter on top).
Here's how:
- Remove the greens and the pointy root parts, and peel the outer layer of your beets:
- Slice the beets into bite-sized chunks, and place into a steaming basket (inside a large pot and on top of a couple inches of water). My beets were cut into about 1" cubes.
- Steam beets covered, over medium-high heat for 5-15 minutes, or until they're tender when poked with a fork. Mine took right around 15 minutes.
You can see here that the red beet color bled a bit into
the golden beets, but it didn't make them any less delicious!
The prep is the same for both methods:
- Choose a few (3-4) medium sized beets. The wider/larger they are, the less likely it is that your chips will curl up when you cook them.
- Peel your beets and cut off both ends (so they're a bit more flat than round).
- Slice very thinly with a mandolin, probably on the smallest setting. (This is one of those instances when using a gadget like this will come in handy. Uniform thickness—and more importantly in this case, thinness—is quite important for beet chips.) If you slice them at the right angle, you'll get a fun swirly pattern on your chips.
- Lay out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (and, optionally, salt lightly):
- Bake at 350°F for 15-20 minutes, watching closely so they don't burn. (The chips will still be pliable when they're done, and will firm up and become crispy as they cool down.)
- Lay out the beet slices on the dehydrator trays (and, optionally, salt lightly).
You can see well here how thinly these are sliced:
the trays are visible through the beets.
- Dehydrate at 135°F for about 30 hours, or until they reach your desired level of crispiness.
How do you like to eat beets?