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Legal experts discuss the federal investigation of a police shooting that resulted in the death of a retired veteran.
Post by: Anderson Cooper
Filed under: Crime & Punishment
The officer that shot the marine has been in several situations where he may have went too far. Why hasn't his name been released. He beat up a gentleman in white plains. He also handcuffed a lady that was in an accident who was having an asthma attack and would not let her use her inhaler. Please look into his history. Please post his history.
Killings of this kind are not aberrations. These are just ones that make it to the news. There are so many others that are hiding under the silent code of law enforcement. The fact is that white police officers have less regard for black lives and so do everyone in the judicial system. It's so easy to punish blacks in court over things other races take for granted. I have followed this phenomena, looking at cases and asking myself why. I guess "that's the way it is", like Bruce sang decades back. This might not be the mass murder leaders in Syria conduct, but all the same, they are undeserved and unjustified massacre, that add up over time. We should be fighting these hate killings here at home before telling some world leaders what they should do or not do to crush violent oppositions. It's slow extermination.
Anderson Cooper goes beyond the headlines to tell stories from many points of view, so you can make up your own mind about the news. Tune in weeknights at 8 and 10 ET on CNN.
Questions or comments? Send an email
Want to know more? Go behind the scenes with AC361°


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Story by
Emil Protalinski
Emil was a reporter for The Next Web between 2012 and 2014. Over the years, he has covered the tech industry for multiple publications, incl Emil was a reporter for The Next Web between 2012 and 2014. Over the years, he has covered the tech industry for multiple publications, including Ars Technica, Neowin, TechSpot, ZDNet, and CNET. Stay in touch via Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.
Microsoft Research today launched Code Hunt, a browser-based game for anyone interested in learning how to code by playing. The premise is straightforward: the player must write code to advance in the game.
The built-in tutorial introduces you to the game:
Greetings, program! You are an experimental application known as a CODE HUNTER. You, along with other code hunters, have been sent into a top-secret computer system to find, restore, and capture as many code fragments as possible. Your progress, along with your fellow code hunters, will be tracked. Good luck.
Code Hunt uses puzzles, which players explore by means of clues presented as test cases, and encourages players to iterate on their code to "capture" it. Their work is then scored depending on the elegance of their solution, and players are encouraged to continue on to the next challenge.
Instead of presenting you with a problem and comparing your solution to a set of fixed test cases, Code Hunt presents an empty slate and a set of constantly changing test cases. It thus teaches coding as a side consequence of solving a problem by matching inputs and outputs, Microsoft explains.
Let's be honest, learning certain aspects of programming can often be a long and arduous journey. Code Hunt aims to make the boring parts fun.
Code Hunt is based on Pex, Microsoft Research's implementation of dynamic symbolic execution (analyzing a program to determine what inputs cause each part of a program to execute), and runs on Microsoft Azure. Researchers Nikolai Tillmann, Judith Bishop, R. Nigel Horspool, Daniel Perelman, and Tao Xie also released a paper describing what they learned while developing Code Hunt.
Here is the abstract:
Learning to code can be made more effective and sustainable if it is perceived as fun by the learner. Code Hunt uses puzzles that players have to explore by means of clues presented as test cases. Players iteratively modify their code to match the functional behaviour of secret solutions.
This way of learning to code is very different to learning from a specification. It is essentially re-engineering from test cases. Code Hunt is based on the test/clue generation of Pex, a white-box test generation tool that uses dynamic symbolic execution. Pex performs a guided search to determine feasible execution paths.
Conceptually, solving a puzzle is the manual process of conducting search-based test generation: the "test data" to be generated by the player is the player's code, and the "fitness values" that reflect the closeness of the player's code to the secret code are the clues (i.e., Pex-generated test cases).
This paper is the first one to describe Code Hunt and its extensions over its precursor Pex4Fun. Code Hunt represents a high-impact educational gaming platform that not only internally leverages fitness values to guide test/clue generation but also externally offers fun user experiences where search-based test generation is manually emulated. Because the amount of data is growing all the time, the entire system runs in the cloud on Windows Azure.
You can read the full document yourself at the link below.
➤ Code Hunt: Searching for Secret Code for Fun (PDF)
See also – Microsoft Research reveals 3D browser SurroundWeb that displays content across multiple surfaces in a room and Microsoft Research built a smart elevator that uses AI to figure out what floor you're going to
Top Image Credit: Robert Scoble
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subset: commoncrawl


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By accident I washed a shirt without removing the name-tag sticker that was on it. The label is gone, but the sticky residue isn't. How can I get it off the shirt?
— Sherry Manning, Summerville, SC
Well, that is a sticky situation! To fix: Put the adhesive area facedown on a clean terry towel or washcloth and pour a little acetone-based nail polish remover on the spot (it should be safe, since the shirt is washable). Then rub with another clean towel to push the remover through the material. Turn the shirt over to check that the adhesive is coming off; it may take several attempts.


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I'm not a huge fan of sparrows, but it was quite entertaining watching a little posse of them brazenly trying to share my lunch recently.
Regular Random is a photo challenge hosted by Desley Jane at Musings of a Frequently Flying Scientist. Please pop over and take a look; and if you'd like to join in:
- choose a subject or a scene
- spend five minutes photographing it – no more!
- try to not interfere with the subject, instead see it from many angles, look through something at it, change the light that's hitting it
- have fun!
- tag your post #regularrandom and ping back to Desley's post.


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Losing someone important to you is one of the hardest things to experience in life. If you're young, bereavement can be even more difficult. But support and advice are available to help you get through it.
Losing someone important to you is one of the hardest things to experience in life. If you're young, bereavement can be even more difficult. But support and advice are available to help you get through it.
Your teenage years can be a lot of fun, but they're also often an emotional time. If someone close to you dies, it can be incredibly hard. Your world may feel as though it has crashed around you.
It can make you feel very alone, especially as a young person, because you might find that none of your friends have gone through anything similar and won't understand or know what to say.
Grieving is a natural part of recovering from a bereavement, and everyone's experience of grief is different. There are no rules about what we should feel, and for how long.
But many people find they feel a mixture of the following:
These feelings may be very intense, particularly in the early days and weeks. Time eventually helps these intense emotions subside, and there's no need to feel guilty about starting to feel better. It doesn't mean you're not respecting the person's memory or forgetting about them.
There are several things that can help you start to feel better. Looking after your health and talking to someone will help you get through this difficult time.
Talking about your grief is an important part of getting through a bereavement. Choosing who to talk to about your feelings is a very personal decision. Sometimes the most unlikely person can actually offer the most support.
If you've lost a family member, someone else in your family may also be good to open up to because they're likely to understand how you're feeling.
A close friend can be a good listener and a source of comfort and support, even if they haven't gone through this themselves.
There are lots of other sources of advice and support available, including:
During a time of grief, you may not feel like looking after yourself, but it's important to help you cope with the extreme emotions that come with bereavement.
Some of the following quite simple things can make a big difference, such as:
Important: Our website provides useful information but is not a substitute for medical advice. You should always seek the advice of your doctor when making decisions about your health.


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Keyword Search
Table of Contents
Previous Chapter
Meditations on First Philosophy
by Rene Descartes
1. I WILL now close my eyes, I will stop my ears, I will turn away my senses from their objects, I will even efface from my consciousness all the images of corporeal things; or at least, because this can hardly be accomplished, I will consider them as empty and false; and thus, holding converse only with myself, and closely examining my nature, I will endeavor to obtain by degrees a more intimate and familiar knowledge of myself. I am a thinking ( conscious ) thing, that is, a being who doubts, affirms, denies, knows a few objects, and is ignorant of many,-- who loves, hates], wills, refuses, who imagines likewise, and perceives; for, as I before remarked, although the things which I perceive or imagine are perhaps nothing at all apart from me and in themselves], I am nevertheless assured that those modes of consciousness which I call perceptions and imaginations, in as far only as they are modes of consciousness, exist in me.
2. And in the little I have said I think I have summed up all that I really know, or at least all that up to this time I was aware I knew. Now, as I am endeavoring to extend my knowledge more widely, I will use circumspection, and consider with care whether I can still discover in myself anything further which I have not yet hitherto observed. I am certain that I am a thinking thing; but do I not therefore likewise know what is required to render me certain of a truth ? In this first knowledge, doubtless, there is nothing that gives me assurance of its truth except the clear and distinct perception of what I affirm, which would not indeed be sufficient to give me the assurance that what I say is true, if it could ever happen that anything I thus clearly and distinctly perceived should prove false; and accordingly it seems to me that I may now take as a general rule, that all that is very clearly and distinctly apprehended (conceived) is true.
3. Nevertheless I before received and admitted many things as wholly certain and manifest, which yet I afterward found to be doubtful. What, then, were those? They were the earth, the sky, the stars, and all the other objects which I was in the habit of perceiving by the senses. But what was it that I clearly and distinctly] perceived in them ? Nothing more than that the ideas and the thoughts of those objects were presented to my mind. And even now I do not deny that these ideas are found in my mind. But there was yet another thing which I affirmed, and which, from having been accustomed to believe it, I thought I clearly perceived, although, in truth, I did not perceive it at all; I mean the existence of objects external to me, from which those ideas proceeded, and to which they had a perfect resemblance; and it was here I was mistaken, or if I judged correctly, this assuredly was not to be traced to any knowledge I possessed (the force of my perception, Lat.).
4. But when I considered any matter in arithmetic and geometry, that was very simple and easy, as, for example, that two and three added together make five, and things of this sort, did I not view them with at least sufficient clearness to warrant me in affirming their truth? Indeed, if I afterward judged that we ought to doubt of these things, it was for no other reason than because it occurred to me that a God might perhaps have given me such a nature as that I should be deceived, even respecting the matters that appeared to me the most evidently true. But as often as this preconceived opinion of the sovereign power of a God presents itself to my mind, I am constrained to admit that it is easy for him, if he wishes it, to cause me to err, even in matters where I think I possess the highest evidence; and, on the other hand, as often as I direct my attention to things which I think I apprehend with great clearness, I am so persuaded of their truth that I naturally break out into expressions such as these: Deceive me who may, no one will yet ever be able to bring it about that I am not, so long as I shall be conscious that I am, or at any future time cause it to be true that I have never been, it being now true that I am, or make two and three more or less than five, in supposing which, and other like absurdities, I discover a manifest contradiction. And in truth, as I have no ground for believing that Deity is deceitful, and as, indeed, I have not even considered the reasons by which the existence of a Deity of any kind is established, the ground of doubt that rests only on this supposition is very slight, and, so to speak, metaphysical. But, that I may be able wholly to remove it, I must inquire whether there is a God, as soon as an opportunity of doing so shall present itself; and if I find that there is a God, I must examine likewise whether he can be a deceiver; for, without the knowledge of these two truths, I do not see that I can ever be certain of anything. And that I may be enabled to examine this without interrupting the order of meditation I have proposed to myself which is, to pass by degrees from the notions that I shall find first in my mind to those I shall afterward discover in it], it is necessary at this stage to divide all my thoughts into certain classes, and to consider in which of these classes truth and error are, strictly speaking, to be found.
5. Of my thoughts some are, as it were, images of things, and to these alone properly belongs the name IDEA; as when I think represent to my mind ] a man, a chimera, the sky, an angel or God. Others, again, have certain other forms; as when I will, fear, affirm, or deny, I always, indeed, apprehend something as the object of my thought, but I also embrace in thought something more than the representation of the object; and of this class of thoughts some are called volitions or affections, and others judgments.
6. Now, with respect to ideas, if these are considered only in themselves, and are not referred to any object beyond them, they cannot, properly speaking, be false; for, whether I imagine a goat or chimera, it is not less true that I imagine the one than the other. Nor need we fear that falsity may exist in the will or affections; for, although I may desire objects that are wrong, and even that never existed, it is still true that I desire them. There thus only remain our judgments, in which we must take diligent heed that we be not deceived. But the chief and most ordinary error that arises in them consists in judging that the ideas which are in us are like or conformed to the things that are external to us; for assuredly, if we but considered the ideas themselves as certain modes of our thought (consciousness), without referring them to anything beyond, they would hardly afford any occasion of error.
7. But among these ideas, some appear to me to be innate, others adventitious, and others to be made by myself (factitious); for, as I have the power of conceiving what is called a thing, or a truth, or a thought, it seems to me that I hold this power from no other source than my own nature; but if I now hear a noise, if I see the sun, or if I feel heat, I have all along judged that these sensations proceeded from certain objects existing out of myself; and, in fine, it appears to me that sirens, hippogryphs, and the like, are inventions of my own mind. But I may even perhaps come to be of opinion that all my ideas are of the class which I call adventitious, or that they are all innate, or that they are all factitious; for I have not yet clearly discovered their true origin.
8. What I have here principally to do is to consider, with reference to those that appear to come from certain objects without me, what grounds there are for thinking them like these objects. The first of these grounds is that it seems to me I am so taught by nature; and the second that I am conscious that those ideas are not dependent on my will, and therefore not on myself, for they are frequently presented to me against my will, as at present, whether I will or not, I feel heat; and I am thus persuaded that this sensation or idea (sensum vel ideam) of heat is produced in me by something different from myself, viz., by the heat of the fire by which I sit. And it is very reasonable to suppose that this object impresses me with its own likeness rather than any other thing.
9. But I must consider whether these reasons are sufficiently strong and convincing. When I speak of being taught by nature in this matter, I understand by the word nature only a certain spontaneous impetus that impels me to believe in a resemblance between ideas and their objects, and not a natural light that affords a knowledge of its truth. But these two things are widely different; for what the natural light shows to be true can be in no degree doubtful, as, for example, that I am because I doubt, and other truths of the like kind; inasmuch as I possess no other faculty whereby to distinguish truth from error, which can teach me the falsity of what the natural light declares to be true, and which is equally trustworthy; but with respect to seemingly] natural impulses, I have observed, when the question related to the choice of right or wrong in action, that they frequently led me to take the worse part; nor do I see that I have any better ground for following them in what relates to truth and error.
10. Then, with respect to the other reason, which is that because these ideas do not depend on my will, they must arise from objects existing without me, I do not find it more convincing than the former, for just as those natural impulses, of which I have lately spoken, are found in me, notwithstanding that they are not always in harmony with my will, so likewise it may be that I possess some power not sufficiently known to myself capable of producing ideas without the aid of external objects, and, indeed, it has always hitherto appeared to me that they are formed during sleep, by some power of this nature, without the aid of aught external.
11. And, in fine, although I should grant that they proceeded from those objects, it is not a necessary consequence that they must be like them. On the contrary, I have observed, in a number of instances, that there was a great difference between the object and its idea. Thus, for example, I find in my mind two wholly diverse ideas of the sun; the one, by which it appears to me extremely small draws its origin from the senses, and should be placed in the class of adventitious ideas; the other, by which it seems to be many times larger than the whole earth, is taken up on astronomical grounds, that is, elicited from certain notions born with me, or is framed by myself in some other manner. These two ideas cannot certainly both resemble the same sun; and reason teaches me that the one which seems to have immediately emanated from it is the most unlike.
12. And these things sufficiently prove that hitherto it has not been from a certain and deliberate judgment, but only from a sort of blind impulse, that I believed existence of certain things different from myself, which, by the organs of sense, or by whatever other means it might be, conveyed their ideas or images into my mind and impressed it with their likenesses].
13. But there is still another way of inquiring whether, of the objects whose ideas are in my mind, there are any that exist out of me. If ideas are taken in so far only as they are certain modes of consciousness, I do not remark any difference or inequality among them, and all seem, in the same manner, to proceed from myself; but, considering them as images, of which one represents one thing and another a different, it is evident that a great diversity obtains among them. For, without doubt, those that represent substances are something more, and contain in themselves, so to speak, more objective reality that is, participate by representation in higher degrees of being or perfection], than those that represent only modes or accidents; and again, the idea by which I conceive a God sovereign], eternal, infinite, immutable], all-knowing, all-powerful, and the creator of all things that are out of himself, this, I say, has certainly in it more objective reality than those ideas by which finite substances are represented.
14. Now, it is manifest by the natural light that there must at least be as much reality in the efficient and total cause as in its effect; for whence can the effect draw its reality if not from its cause ? And how could the cause communicate to it this reality unless it possessed it in itself? And hence it follows, not only that what is cannot be produced by what is not, but likewise that the more perfect, in other words, that which contains in itself more reality, cannot be the effect of the less perfect; and this is not only evidently true of those effects, whose reality is actual or formal, but likewise of ideas, whose reality is only considered as objective. Thus, for example, the stone that is not yet in existence, not only cannot now commence to be, unless it be produced by that which possesses in itself, formally or eminently, all that enters into its composition, in other words, by that which contains in itself the same properties that are in the stone, or others superior to them]; and heat can only be produced in a subject that was before devoid of it, by a cause that is of an order, degree or kind], at least as perfect as heat; and so of the others. But further, even the idea of the heat, or of the stone, cannot exist in me unless it be put there by a cause that contains, at least, as much reality as I conceive existent in the heat or in the stone for although that cause may not transmit into my idea anything of its actual or formal reality, we ought not on this account to imagine that it is less real; but we ought to consider that, as every idea is a work of the mind], its nature is such as of itself to demand no other formal reality than that which it borrows from our consciousness, of which it is but a mode that is, a manner or way of thinking]. But in order that an idea may contain this objective reality rather than that, it must doubtless derive it from some cause in which is found at least as much formal reality as the idea contains of objective; for, if we suppose that there is found in an idea anything which was not in its cause, it must of course derive this from nothing. But, however imperfect may be the mode of existence by which a thing is objectively or by representation] in the understanding by its idea, we certainly cannot, for all that, allege that this mode of existence is nothing, nor, consequently, that the idea owes its origin to nothing.
15. Nor must it be imagined that, since the reality which considered in these ideas is only objective, the same reality need not be formally (actually) in the causes of these ideas, but only objectively: for, just as the mode of existing objectively belongs to ideas by their peculiar nature, so likewise the mode of existing formally appertains to the causes of these ideas (at least to the first and principal), by their peculiar nature. And although an idea may give rise to another idea, this regress cannot, nevertheless, be infinite; we must in the end reach a first idea, the cause of which is, as it were, the archetype in which all the reality or perfection] that is found objectively or by representation] in these ideas is contained formally and in act]. I am thus clearly taught by the natural light that ideas exist in me as pictures or images, which may, in truth, readily fall short of the perfection of the objects from which they are taken, but can never contain anything greater or more perfect.
16. And in proportion to the time and care with which I examine all those matters, the conviction of their truth brightens and becomes distinct. But, to sum up, what conclusion shall I draw from it all? It is this: if the objective reality or perfection] of any one of my ideas be such as clearly to convince me, that this same reality exists in me neither formally nor eminently, and if, as follows from this, I myself cannot be the cause of it, it is a necessary consequence that I am not alone in the world, but that there is besides myself some other being who exists as the cause of that idea; while, on the contrary, if no such idea be found in my mind, I shall have no sufficient ground of assurance of the existence of any other being besides myself, for, after a most careful search, I have, up to this moment, been unable to discover any other ground.
17. But, among these my ideas, besides that which represents myself, respecting which there can be here no difficulty, there is one that represents a God; others that represent corporeal and inanimate things; others angels; others animals; and, finally, there are some that represent men like myself.
18. But with respect to the ideas that represent other men, or animals, or angels, I can easily suppose that they were formed by the mingling and composition of the other ideas which I have of myself, of corporeal things, and of God, although they were, apart from myself, neither men, animals, nor angels.
19. And with regard to the ideas of corporeal objects, I never discovered in them anything so great or excellent which I myself did not appear capable of originating; for, by considering these ideas closely and scrutinizing them individually, in the same way that I yesterday examined the idea of wax, I find that there is but little in them that is clearly and distinctly perceived. As belonging to the class of things that are clearly apprehended, I recognize the following, viz, magnitude or extension in length, breadth, and depth; figure, which results from the termination of extension; situation, which bodies of diverse figures preserve with reference to each other; and motion or the change of situation; to which may be added substance, duration, and number. But with regard to light, colors, sounds, odors, tastes, heat, cold, and the other tactile qualities, they are thought with so much obscurity and confusion, that I cannot determine even whether they are true or false; in other words, whether or not the ideas I have of these qualities are in truth the ideas of real objects. For although I before remarked that it is only in judgments that formal falsity, or falsity properly so called, can be met with, there may nevertheless be found in ideas a certain material falsity, which arises when they represent what is nothing as if it were something. Thus, for example, the ideas I have of cold and heat are so far from being clear and distinct, that I am unable from them to discover whether cold is only the privation of heat, or heat the privation of cold; or whether they are or are not real qualities: and since, ideas being as it were images there can be none that does not seem to us to represent some object, the idea which represents cold as something real and positive will not improperly be called false, if it be correct to say that cold is nothing but a privation of heat; and so in other cases.
20. To ideas of this kind, indeed, it is not necessary that I should assign any author besides myself: for if they are false, that is, represent objects that are unreal, the natural light teaches me that they proceed from nothing; in other words, that they are in me only because something is wanting to the perfection of my nature; but if these ideas are true, yet because they exhibit to me so little reality that I cannot even distinguish the object represented from nonbeing, I do not see why I should not be the author of them.
21. With reference to those ideas of corporeal things that are clear and distinct, there are some which, as appears to me, might have been taken from the idea I have of myself, as those of substance, duration, number, and the like. For when I think that a stone is a substance, or a thing capable of existing of itself, and that I am likewise a substance, although I conceive that I am a thinking and non-extended thing, and that the stone, on the contrary, is extended and unconscious, there being thus the greatest diversity between the two concepts, yet these two ideas seem to have this in common that they both represent substances. In the same way, when I think of myself as now existing, and recollect besides that I existed some time ago, and when I am conscious of various thoughts whose number I know, I then acquire the ideas of duration and number, which I can afterward transfer to as many objects as I please. With respect to the other qualities that go to make up the ideas of corporeal objects, viz, extension, figure, situation, and motion, it is true that they are not formally in me, since I am merely a thinking being; but because they are only certain modes of substance, and because I myself am a substance, it seems possible that they may be contained in me eminently.
22. There only remains, therefore, the idea of God, in which I must consider whether there is anything that cannot be supposed to originate with myself. By the name God, I understand a substance infinite, eternal, immutable], independent, all-knowing, all-powerful, and by which I myself, and every other thing that exists, if any such there be, were created. But these properties are so great and excellent, that the more attentively I consider them the less I feel persuaded that the idea I have of them owes its origin to myself alone. And thus it is absolutely necessary to conclude, from all that I have before said, that God exists.
23. For though the idea of substance be in my mind owing to this, that I myself am a substance, I should not, however, have the idea of an infinite substance, seeing I am a finite being, unless it were given me by some substance in reality infinite.
24. And I must not imagine that I do not apprehend the infinite by a true idea, but only by the negation of the finite, in the same way that I comprehend repose and darkness by the negation of motion and light: since, on the contrary, I clearly perceive that there is more reality in the infinite substance than in the finite, and therefore that in some way I possess the perception (notion) of the infinite before that of the finite, that is, the perception of God before that of myself, for how could I know that I doubt, desire, or that something is wanting to me, and that I am not wholly perfect, if I possessed no idea of a being more perfect than myself, by comparison of which I knew the deficiencies of my nature ?
25. And it cannot be said that this idea of God is perhaps materially false, and consequently that it may have arisen from nothing in other words, that it may exist in me from my imperfections as I before said of the ideas of heat and cold, and the like: for, on the contrary, as this idea is very clear and distinct, and contains in itself more objective reality than any other, there can be no one of itself more true, or less open to the suspicion of falsity. The idea, I say, of a being supremely perfect, and infinite, is in the highest degree true; for although, perhaps, we may imagine that such a being does not exist, we cannot, nevertheless, suppose that his idea represents nothing real, as I have already said of the idea of cold. It is likewise clear and distinct in the highest degree, since whatever the mind clearly and distinctly conceives as real or true, and as implying any perfection, is contained entire in this idea. And this is true, nevertheless, although I do not comprehend the infinite, and although there may be in God an infinity of things that I cannot comprehend, nor perhaps even compass by thought in any way; for it is of the nature of the infinite that it should not be comprehended by the finite; and it is enough that I rightly understand this, and judge that all which I clearly perceive, and in which I know there is some perfection, and perhaps also an infinity of properties of which I am ignorant, are formally or eminently in God, in order that the idea I have of him may be come the most true, clear, and distinct of all the ideas in my mind.
26. But perhaps I am something more than I suppose myself to be, and it may be that all those perfections which I attribute to God, in some way exist potentially in me, although they do not yet show themselves, and are not reduced to act. Indeed, I am already conscious that my knowledge is being increased and perfected] by degrees; and I see nothing to prevent it from thus gradually increasing to infinity, nor any reason why, after such increase and perfection, I should not be able thereby to acquire all the other perfections of the Divine nature; nor, in fine, why the power I possess of acquiring those perfections, if it really now exist in me, should not be sufficient to produce the ideas of them.
27. Yet, on looking more closely into the matter, I discover that this cannot be; for, in the first place, although it were true that my knowledge daily acquired new degrees of perfection, and although there were potentially in my nature much that was not as yet actually in it, still all these excellences make not the slightest approach to the idea I have of the Deity, in whom there is no perfection merely potentially but all actually] existent; for it is even an unmistakable token of imperfection in my knowledge, that it is augmented by degrees. Further, although my knowledge increase more and more, nevertheless I am not, therefore, induced to think that it will ever be actually infinite, since it can never reach that point beyond which it shall be incapable of further increase. But I conceive God as actually infinite, so that nothing can be added to his perfection. And, in fine, I readily perceive that the objective being of an idea cannot be produced by a being that is merely potentially existent, which, properly speaking, is nothing, but only by a being existing formally or actually.
28. And, truly, I see nothing in all that I have now said which it is not easy for any one, who shall carefully consider it, to discern by the natural light; but when I allow my attention in some degree to relax, the vision of my mind being obscured, and, as it were, blinded by the images of sensible objects, I do not readily remember the reason why the idea of a being more perfect than myself, must of necessity have proceeded from a being in reality more perfect. On this account I am here desirous to inquire further, whether I, who possess this idea of God, could exist supposing there were no God.
29. And I ask, from whom could I, in that case, derive my existence ? Perhaps from myself, or from my parents, or from some other causes less perfect than God; for anything more perfect, or even equal to God, cannot be thought or imagined.
30. But if I were independent of every other existence, and] were myself the author of my being, I should doubt of nothing, I should desire nothing, and, in fine, no perfection would be awanting to me; for I should have bestowed upon myself every perfection of which I possess the idea, and I should thus be God. And it must not be imagined that what is now wanting to me is perhaps of more difficult acquisition than that of which I am already possessed; for, on the contrary, it is quite manifest that it was a matter of much higher difficulty that I, a thinking being, should arise from nothing, than it would be for me to acquire the knowledge of many things of which I am ignorant, and which are merely the accidents of a thinking substance; and certainly, if I possessed of myself the greater perfection of which I have now spoken in other words, if I were the author of my own existence], I would not at least have denied to myself things that may be more easily obtained as that infinite variety of knowledge of which I am at present destitute]. I could not, indeed, have denied to myself any property which I perceive is contained in the idea of God, because there is none of these that seems to me to be more difficult to make or acquire; and if there were any that should happen to be more difficult to acquire, they would certainly appear so to me (supposing that I myself were the source of the other things I possess), because I should discover in them a limit to my power.
31. And though I were to suppose that I always was as I now am, I should not, on this ground, escape the force of these reasonings, since it would not follow, even on this supposition, that no author of my existence needed to be sought after. For the whole time of my life may be divided into an infinity of parts, each of which is in no way dependent on any other; and, accordingly, because I was in existence a short time ago, it does not follow that I must now exist, unless in this moment some cause create me anew as it were, that is, conserve me. In truth, it is perfectly clear and evident to all who will attentively consider the nature of duration, that the conservation of a substance, in each moment of its duration, requires the same power and act that would be necessary to create it, supposing it were not yet in existence; so that it is manifestly a dictate of the natural light that conservation and creation differ merely in respect of our mode of thinking and not in reality].
32. All that is here required, therefore, is that I interrogate myself to discover whether I possess any power by means of which I can bring it about that I, who now am, shall exist a moment afterward: for, since I am merely a thinking thing (or since, at least, the precise question, in the meantime, is only of that part of myself ), if such a power resided in me, I should, without doubt, be conscious of it; but I am conscious of no such power, and thereby I manifestly know that I am dependent upon some being different from myself.
33. But perhaps the being upon whom I am dependent is not God, and I have been produced either by my parents, or by some causes less perfect than Deity. This cannot be: for, as I before said, it is perfectly evident that there must at least be as much reality in the cause as in its effect; and accordingly, since I am a thinking thing and possess in myself an idea of God, whatever in the end be the cause of my existence, it must of necessity be admitted that it is likewise a thinking being, and that it possesses in itself the idea and all the perfections I attribute to Deity. Then it may again be inquired whether this cause owes its origin and existence to itself, or to some other cause. For if it be self-existent, it follows, from what I have before laid down, that this cause is God; for, since it possesses the perfection of self-existence, it must likewise, without doubt, have the power of actually possessing every perfection of which it has the idea--in other words, all the perfections I conceive to belong to God. But if it owe its existence to another cause than itself, we demand again, for a similar reason, whether this second cause exists of itself or through some other, until, from stage to stage, we at length arrive at an ultimate cause, which will be God.
34. And it is quite manifest that in this matter there can be no infinite regress of causes, seeing that the question raised respects not so much the cause which once produced me, as that by which I am at this present moment conserved.
35. Nor can it be supposed that several causes concurred in my production, and that from one I received the idea of one of the perfections I attribute to Deity, and from another the idea of some other, and thus that all those perfections are indeed found somewhere in the universe, but do not all exist together in a single being who is God; for, on the contrary, the unity, the simplicity, or inseparability of all the properties of Deity, is one of the chief perfections I conceive him to possess; and the idea of this unity of all the perfections of Deity could certainly not be put into my mind by any cause from which I did not likewise receive the ideas of all the other perfections; for no power could enable me to embrace them in an inseparable unity, without at the same time giving me the knowledge of what they were and of their existence in a particular mode].
36. Finally, with regard to my parents from whom it appears I sprung ], although all that I believed respecting them be true, it does not, nevertheless, follow that I am conserved by them, or even that I was produced by them, in so far as I am a thinking being. All that, at the most, they contributed to my origin was the giving of certain dispositions ( modifications ) to the matter in which I have hitherto judged that I or my mind, which is what alone I now consider to be myself, is inclosed; and thus there can here be no difficulty with respect to them, and it is absolutely necessary to conclude from this alone that I am, and possess the idea of a being absolutely perfect, that is, of God, that his existence is most clearly demonstrated.
37. There remains only the inquiry as to the way in which I received this idea from God; for I have not drawn it from the senses, nor is it even presented to me unexpectedly, as is usual with the ideas of sensible objects, when these are presented or appear to be presented to the external organs of the senses; it is not even a pure production or fiction of my mind, for it is not in my power to take from or add to it; and consequently there but remains the alternative that it is innate, in the same way as is the idea of myself.
38. And, in truth, it is not to be wondered at that God, at my creation, implanted this idea in me, that it might serve, as it were, for the mark of the workman impressed on his work; and it is not also necessary that the mark should be something different from the work itself; but considering only that God is my creator, it is highly probable that he in some way fashioned me after his own image and likeness, and that I perceive this likeness, in which is contained the idea of God, by the same faculty by which I apprehend myself, in other words, when I make myself the object of reflection, I not only find that I am an incomplete, imperfect] and dependent being, and one who unceasingly aspires after something better and greater than he is; but, at the same time, I am assured likewise that he upon whom I am dependent possesses in himself all the goods after which I aspire and the ideas of which I find in my mind], and that not merely indefinitely and potentially, but infinitely and actually, and that he is thus God. And the whole force of the argument of which I have here availed myself to establish the existence of God, consists in this, that I perceive I could not possibly be of such a nature as I am, and yet have in my mind the idea of a God, if God did not in reality exist--this same God, I say, whose idea is in my mind--that is, a being who possesses all those lofty perfections, of which the mind may have some slight conception, without, however, being able fully to comprehend them, and who is wholly superior to all defect and has nothing that marks imperfection]: whence it is sufficiently manifest that he cannot be a deceiver, since it is a dictate of the natural light that all fraud and deception spring from some defect.
39. But before I examine this with more attention, and pass on to the consideration of other truths that may be evolved out of it, I think it proper to remain here for some time in the contemplation of God himself--that I may ponder at leisure his marvelous attributes--and behold, admire, and adore the beauty of this light so unspeakably great, as far, at least, as the strength of my mind, which is to some degree dazzled by the sight, will permit. For just as we learn by faith that the supreme felicity of another life consists in the contemplation of the Divine majesty alone, so even now we learn from experience that a like meditation, though incomparably less perfect, is the source of the highest satisfaction of which we are susceptible in this life.
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A guy I worked with, long ago, beat a man to death with a pipe. He didn't mean to; a friend of his had gotten into a drunken shouting match that escalated into a fight. Everyone's friends jumped in. My coworker, call him "John", grabbed the nearest weapon to hand. I don't know what the pipe was doing there; maybe they were near a construction site. Anyway, he hit a guy with the pipe, and the guy died. He felt terrible, especially because it was his friend who had clearly been the instigator of the fight. "My friend was acting like an asshole," he said regretfully. "None of it should have happened."
John was facing manslaughter charges in another state when we briefly worked together. "If your friend was acting like an asshole," I asked him, "then why did you hit the guy he was fighting with with a pipe?"
He looked suprised, as if it had never occurred to him before that this was even a question. "He was kicking the shit out of my friend," he said. "You have to stand by your friends."
Could that particular conflict have gone worse with a gun? It's hard to see how. It might have gone better; if one person had waved a gun, the fighting might have stopped.
Nonetheless, I think it's generally true that when guns are involved, potentially murderous conflicts are likely to turn murderous more often. When you are looking to kill someone, a gun is a great help, which is why we send armies into battle armed with great big rifles and not pieces of pipe. If there were no guns in the United States, I believe that the murder rate would probably be lower.
But while I believe that the completed homicide rate would fall, I don't think that the attempted homicide rate would be lower. I thought of John and his pipe when I read this by Ta-Nehisi Coates:
But the other day I was biking home at a relatively late hour. I was coming up Massachusetts Avenue, in Cambridge. I was a couple of blocks from my crib, when a car full of young black boys pulled up slowly next to me. They were laughing among themselves, and one of them mumbled loud enough for me to hear, "Wait, I thought that was my bike. I got my bike stolen last week," and then they drove off.
When you grow up as I did, you take these sorts of encounters as a threat. When I was a kid and we were looking to jump someone, it was pretty standard for them to "invent" a reason. I'm not saying that other people don't do the same (I suspect they do). But I am speaking from what I know. The (aborted) threat didn't scare me as much as my immediate response. I was very angry, and what I wanted, more than anything, in that moment, was for the car to stop, and for one of them to approach me. Then I would bash that kids head in with my bike lock.
That was a really stupid idea.
The man in me knows how macho imaginings usually outstrip reality. He also knows that this may not have even been a threat. He further knows that kids, in general, do dumb shit. But that wasn't the man in me talking. It wasn't the father who knows he needs to be around for his child. It wasn't the husband, who knows his wife is back in New York depending on him. It wasn't the writer who hopes that his best words are still in front of him. It was some little boy who got jumped repeatedly more than two decades ago, back in West Baltimore, and has spent the rest of his days just "wishing a n***r would," as my people say.
That boy is a damn fool. And part of any adults maturation must be keeping the idiot in them under wraps. But I can't kill the boy. Nor should I. It's that same boy who tells me not to punk out when I'm doing my miles, not to be a chump and take a day off from writing. The boy reinforces the man. But he needs guardrails.
I suspect that a good way to remove the guardrails is to put a gun in my hand. I didn't say anything when those kids rolled up on me. I knew I was outnumbered. But give me a gat, give me that same anger, and that thirst for revenge, and it takes nothing for me to see myself yelling at those kids, "N***r, what?" and hoping, praying, they stopped the car and got out.
It's a legitimate fear, and a common one. When various states debated "shall issue" concealed carry laws—essentially, rules making it legal for anyone who could pass a rudimentary background check to carry a concealed handgun—there were horrified predictions of the chaos that would ensue. Modern life gives us so many opportunities for frustration and rage, from bumper-to-bumper traffic to endless queues. Adding a handgun to this volatile mix was simply inviting mass disaster. And of course, anyone who meditates for a moment on their own dark heart can understand this fear. I'm pretty physically passive, and so squeamish that I find even very mild movie violence unbearable, but I too have fantasized about having a tank so that I could go after that testosterone-addled teenage jerk who just cut me off in traffic. God knows what's going through the brain of the testosteroe-addled teenage jerk when it happens to him. It's so easy to imagine how putting a gun in peoples' hands could lead to a body in the road.
But our imaginations, it turns out, are not a good guide to reality. None of this happened. Homicides did not rise after we legalized concealed carry, or ended the "assault weapons" ban. To date, holders of concealed carry licenses have not been involved in any more crimes than you'd expect from a group of people law-abiding enough to pass a background check. As Mark Kleiman wrote a few years ago, "There's simply no evidence that keeping guns out of the hands of those currently eligible to own them under Federal law (adults with no felony convictions, no domestic-violence misdemeanors or restraining orders, and no history of involuntary commitment for mental illness) reduces the level of criminal violence. Nor is there evidence that allowing anyone who can pass a background check and a gun-safety course to carry a concealed weapon increases the level of criminal violence."
If John hadn't found that pipe, he probably wouldn't have killed that guy. But the pipe didn't make him get into that fight. He got into a fight because he was a kid on the cusp of manhood, wandering around with a lot of other kids who were looking to show the world who really runs this place. When they met up with another group of manlings with the same idea, disaster ensued. The pipe made things even more disastrous. But it wasn't sufficient to make disaster happen, and quite possibly, it wasn't even necessary; plenty of people have died from getting kicked in the head, or slammed against the pavement, or stabbed with a broken bottle.
Those boys are indeed damn fools. But it turns out that most adults keep the idiot in them under wraps, not because they lack an adequate weapon, but because they have changed in too many ways: their brains have changed, they have more sad experience with where those confrontations lead, they have a better conception of the future (and better reasons to stay out of jail), and they have other measures of success which make it less necessary to prove that they're the tougest guy on the block. Putting a gun in the adult's hand doesn't make it any easier or harder to control that idiot; indeed, you could say that adulthood is the point at which you can look at a gun in your hand and immediately think of all the reasons you should avoid using it.
I don't know what happened to John; I left that place before he went to trial. I am sure he wished, in the end, that that pipe had not been there for him to pick up. Of course, it would have been better still if he and his friends had been capable of leaving it lying there on the ground.


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Lena Dunham's "Girls" is gloriously skewered in this fake advertisement for "Boys."
Like the HBO sitcom it sends up, "Boys" centers on a group of over-privileged twenty-somethings with severe work allergies, suspicious access to expendable income and relationship problems that would only trip up severe narcissists. It also satirizes Dunham's habit of filming herself naked.
Like "Girls," which stars the daughters of David Mamet, Brian Williams, the Bad Company drummer and some famous modern artist, "Boys" also is billed as an textbook example of celebrity nepotism. In this case the cast boasts such big name spawn as Wolf Blitzer's son Bear Blitzer and Daniel Craig's offspring, Craig Craig.
Instead of Brooklyn, these "Boys" have to attend their loft parties in Los Angeles. Looks like HBO should cue up the MGMT and clear some space in its lineup, because there's a new voice of a "trust fund generation" in town.


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Dr. Thomas Jan, DO, Massapequa Pain Management said,"Over the course of the past ten years I have seen the devastating destruction wrought by prescription abuse but I have also seen appropriate prescribing give a lease on life for those afflicted by chronic pain. At last, with Attorney General Schneiderman's I-STOP legislation we can start to address that devastation while ensuring that those who are afflicted receive appropriate treatment. With a complete and accurate prescription history, we can now offer pain relief with confidence and also identify those suffering from addiction so they may receive the treatment they need."
Post date: June 11 2012
A.G. Schneiderman's Landmark I-STOP Bill To Curb Rx Drug Abuse Unanimously Passes NYS Legislature
First-In-The-Nation Law Will Require Doctors To Check Patient Prescription History And Pharmacists To Update Database In Real Time
New York Will Be One Of The First To Implement E-Prescribing Of Controlled Substances, Ending Abuse Of Forged Or Stolen Scripts
Schneiderman: I-STOP Is A National Model For Fighting Prescription Drug Abuse
ALBANY — Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced the Legislature has unanimously passed the Internet System for Tracking Over-Prescribing Act, or I-STOP, a national model for other states and Congress to follow to curb prescription drug abuse, the nation's fastest growing drug problem. Introduced in June of 2011 by Attorney General Schneiderman, I-STOP is an online database that enables doctors and pharmacists to report and track controlled narcotics in real time. The bipartisan legislation - the first joint Attorney General-Governor program bill in recent memory - overwhelmingly passed the Assembly by a margin of 116-0 and the Senate 58 to 0.
"This is a major victory for the people of New York. With I-STOP, we are creating a national model for smart, coordinated communication between health care providers and pharmacists to better serve patients, stop prescription drug trafficking, and provide treatment to those who need help," Attorney General Schneiderman said. "I applaud the Legislature for taking action to curb the prescription drug crisis that has impacted families in every corner of this state, and Governor Cuomo for his leadership and commitment to signing I-STOP into law. Now, New York will be a national leader in protecting the public from the devastating consequences of prescription drug abuse."
Among the features of groundbreaking legislation passed today:
- I-STOP will make New York the first state in the nation to mandate that physicians consult a database of a patient's prescription history before prescribing a schedule II, III, or IV controlled substance. Accurate patient histories and better training will help physicians detect doctor shoppers and better serve patients at risk of addiction. Doctors can also use this information to avoid potentially dangerous drug interactions.
- I-STOP will make New York the largest, and only second state in the nation, to require real-time reporting by pharmacists when schedule II, III, IV or V prescriptions are filled.
- I-STOP will make New York one of the first states to schedule the universal mandate of e-prescribing for controlled substances in December of 2014. The regulations will be promulgated by December 2012. This will nearly eliminate the problem of forged or stolen prescriptions—used both by addicts, and criminal organizations obtaining pills to resell on the street.
- I-STOP will reschedule hydrocodone to Schedule II, ending automatic refills for this highly abused drug.
- I-STOP will schedule tramadol, a 'drug of concern' to Schedule IV (it is currently unscheduled).
- I-STOP will establish a safe disposal program providing a place for New Yorkers to get rid of expired and unneeded drugs to ensure that they are not left in medicine cabinets for children or addicts to access.
I-STOP will also deter fraud against private health insurers and the state government. Taxpayers have been paying for a substantial portion of the over-prescribed pills through the Medicaid program. Each ring of collusive patients and prescribers prosecuted by the Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit represented a loss to the State of at least $1 million.
Attorney General Schneiderman first introduced the I-STOP bill last June.
In January of this year, the Attorney General released a report detailing the scope of the prescription drug epidemic in New York State and demonstrating the need for action by the Legislature. According to the Attorney General's report:
- Statewide prescriptions for hydrocodone have increased 16.7 percent, while those for oxycodone have increased an astonishing 82 percent;
- In New York City, the rate of prescription pain medication misuse among those age 12 or older increased by 40 percent from 2002 to 2009, with nearly 900,000 oxycodone prescriptions and more than 825,000 hydrocodone prescriptions filled in 2009;
- In Buffalo, New York's largest methadone clinic outside of New York City, Catholic Health System, has begun to reorganize its service to accommodate an increase in care needed to treat the number of opiate-addicted expectant mothers and newborns;
- On Long Island, both crisis and non-crisis admissions to drug treatment that involve opiates other than heroin and have increased at alarming rates. Between 2004 and 2009, the number of deaths due to the toxic effects of prescription opioids more than tripled in Nassau County; and
- In the North Country, health care facilities have experienced a staggering increase in the percentage of non-crisis admissions for substance abuse involving prescription narcotics, eclipsing cocaine and heroin in Clinton and Franklin Counties, and surpassing even marijuana in St. Lawrence County.
I-STOP will vastly enhance the effectiveness of the present system. Its goal is to enable doctors and pharmacists to provide prescription pain medications, and other controlled substances, to patients who truly need them. At the same time, it will arm them with the necessary data to detect potentially dangerous drug interactions, identify patterns of abuse by patients, doctors and pharmacists, help those who suffer from crippling addictions and prevent potential addiction before it starts.
Leaders in law enforcement, the medical community, the Legislature, as well as parent advocates, praised Attorney General Schneiderman's critical role in shepherding the bill to passage. I-STOP is supported by U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, as well as a bipartisan coalition of 24 U.S. Representatives from across New York State, 20 addiction treatment provider organizations, the District Attorneys Association of the State of New York, New York State Association of Chiefs of Police, New York State Association of PBA's, and the Police Benevolent Association of the New York State Troopers, Inc.
Assemblyman Michael Cusick (D-Staten Island) said, "The information gap between doctors and pharmacists allows addicts and abusers to slip through our regulatory cracks. Only a real time system like I-STOP will fix it. To best protect the public, medical professionals must be able to update records of controlled substance prescriptions when they are written or filled. This legislation is the best solution to ensure patients receive the medication they need, and those who profit off of abuse receive the justice they deserve."
Senator Andrew J. Lanza (R-Staten Island) said, "This legislation allows our physicians and pharmacists to access real-time prescription histories to ensure that patients' prescription use is legitimate - not lethal. We are doing away with the state's outdated monitoring system, and will now have a modern database that is updated in real time so that no addict or criminal slips through undetected. I am proud to have sponsored this legislation with the Attorney General to give medical professionals the tools they need to improve health care service, stop prescription drug abuse, and most importantly, save lives."
Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano said, "Attorney General Schneiderman jump started the conversation in Albany about the prescription drug abuse problem and brought together the medical community, law enforcement officials, treatment providers and family members of abuse victims to determine the best possible policy solution to this growing epidemic. I am proud that Senator Majority Leader Skelos, Speaker Silver and the Legislature will pass the strongest laws yet of any state to combat this scourge on our communities. New York is once again setting the example for the rest of the nation on an issue of grave importance."
Westchester County District Attorney and President of the District Attorneys Association of the State of New YorkJanet DiFiore said, "The abuse of prescription drugs throughout our State is no better illustrated than by the rising numbers emergency room admissions for prescription drug overdoses. The District Attorneys Association of the State of New York supports Attorney General Schneiderman's legislation that now will greatly enhance the State's Prescription Monitoring Programs and for helping law enforcement cut off the supply of prescription drugs to the black market by getting the I-STOP bill passed."
Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Ricesaid, "The scourge of prescription drug abuse impacts every segment of society. I-STOP will be a potent tool to take on dirty doctors and pharmacists who put profit before patients, while helping identify addicts so they can receive the treatment they need. This legislation will save lives, and I applaud Attorney General Schneiderman for his leadership on this critically important public safety issue."
"This is another story of people and perseverance driving meaningful policy," said Congressman Brian Higgins, who led a federal delegation letter in support of I-STOP. "People like Avi and Julie Israel and others behind the 'Save the Michaels of the World' cause stood up and fought for change to stop the growing prescription drug epidemic. I am proud to stand with them, and to commend Attorney General Schneiderman and other state leaders who fought to see that today's electronic health technology is utilized to prevent future tragedies."
Senator Tim Kennedy, D-Western New York, said, "This is a major victory for the families of this state who understand first-hand the devastation of prescription drug abuse. The grieving mothers and fathers, who bravely shared the stories of their children lost to this epidemic, have driven this cause forward. We owe a debt of gratitude to Attorney General Schneiderman for taking action to address this growing crisis that is hitting our communities hard. I-STOP is the right solution to curb the skyrocketing number of overdoses, robberies and murders connected to prescription drugs in recent years, and I am proud to have been an early supporter of it."
Andrew Kolodny, MD, President of Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing, said, "Creating a system that lets us view narcotic prescriptions for our patients and requiring us to use it is before we prescribe is a powerful public health intervention. I'm confident that it will help bring the epidemic of painkiller addiction and overdose deaths under control. Attorney General Schneiderman and other state leaders came up with an innovative and balanced policy that effectively limits black market availability of prescription narcotics and helps us identify patients suffering from the disease of addiction. At the same time, it preserves access for patients who need these medications. This is going to save lives."
Avi Israelsaid, "Monday was the anniversary of my son's death and, although he isn't here to benefit from this important legislation, I want to thank Attorney General Schneiderman for all his efforts in getting I-STOP passed. With this new system, many families will be spared the tragic loss ours has experienced. With the implementation of mandatory patient history reviews and e-prescribing, doctor-shopping and overprescribing will be no longer possible, and young people like my son Michael will now be saved."
Teri Krollsaid, "I know firsthand that there is nothing as painful as losing a child. Now, with this new system, I am confident that doctors will now prescribe more responsibly and many parents won't have to share that grief."
Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds, Executive Director of Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence said, "I-STOP will help both law enforcement and the medical community get a handle on the fast-growing prescription drug problem in New York State. Most importantly, it will save lives. Attorney General Schneiderman's prescription drug abuse report documented the alarming spike in addiction, and the tragic deaths associated with prescription drug abuse. With I-STOP's passage assured, we will have a system in place that will start to solve this devastating problem."
Dr. Thomas Jan, DO, Massapequa Pain Management said,"Over the course of the past ten years I have seen the devastating destruction wrought by prescription abuse but I have also seen appropriate prescribing give a lease on life for those afflicted by chronic pain. At last, with Attorney General Schneiderman's I-STOP legislation we can start to address that devastation while ensuring that those who are afflicted receive appropriate treatment. With a complete and accurate prescription history, we can now offer pain relief with confidence and also identify those suffering from addiction so they may receive the treatment they need."
Dr. David Kim, Executive Director of Beacon Christian Community Health Center said, "Prescription drug abuse is a growing crisis on Staten Island and across the state. I applaud the leadership of Attorney General Schneiderman, the Governor's office, Assemblyman Cusick and State Senator Lanza in meeting with the pharmaceutical and medical communities to collaboratively address this issue. The I-STOP plan is a critical first step for doctors, pharmacists and patients in the combat against prescription drug abuse. It is a great example of all stakeholders coming together and working constructively to address this epidemic, saving meaningful lives from being wasted, or even lost."
Norwig Debye-Saxinger, President of Treatment Communities of America, said, "As treatment providers on the front lines of this crisis, we see every day the devastation that these drugs can cause to our families and communities. With these new measures in place, we are confident that New York will now be armed with the right set of tools to confront this problem and start reversing the upward trend of prescription drug abuse. We thank Attorney General Eric Schneiderman for his leadership on this issue and for taking into consideration the needs of treatment centers. We hope that other states will now follow New York's lead and pass similar legislation."
A copy of the Internet System for Tracking Over-Prescribing (I-STOP) Act can be read here


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Vocabulary Constabulary: Part One Newspeak is Annoying. November 7, 2017Posted by voolavex in New Speak, Social Issues.
Tags: cockney, curate, ferrets, Man Booker, Mr. Otis Regrets, parakeet, Pets, Posh, recycle, slang, trash, words
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Each generation and culture adds words to our languages. And that's to the good mostly. English, though, is really taking a beating. I blame, to some degree, social media, but other villains are at work. Who are they? Poseurs, snobs, wannabes, politically correct or just pretentious. Maybe you know someone like that? Off the top of my head these are a start – as this will be posted in installments.
When you select or choose a group of things – you do not become a curator automatically. I think the term robs real curators of their skills and education. If I want to display a group of "stuff" and I publish a photo – I did not curate it. I lumped it all together and snapped.
When you wrap up a token of esteem or affection or obligation and hand it to the recipient – this is not gifting. And if they rewrap it and palm it off on someone else – that is neither repurposing nor regifting. It's getting rid of it in a nicer way than the trash . You may be cheap, or hate the gift or already have one – but that's another gripe.
I have two cats who are pets. I adore them both and they are my constant company. I do not regard them as animal companions – the actual difference is in the definition of the word . It suggests cherishing. Mothers call babies pet; spouses and aunts and uncles do too. Grammies use it a lot. When I hear the word pet, I think of special and important and cuddling. An animal companion has all the warmth of the crossing sign lady at grade school. It would not be wise for me to elucidate on my feelings about service animal companions. Everyone is miserable somewhere along the line – it has been pretty much established that pets can alleviate or banish those feelings. Seeing eye dogs are service animals and those animals that perform therapeutic acts for the truly disabled. So far I don't think ferrets have made the grade, but they are cute little scamps and probably make their owners very happy. That is more a gift than a service.
Do you separate your trash? Recycle that which can be recycled. Compost? Good for you. So do I. Do you find other uses for things with specific names (funnel, sieve, jars, pretty box that held candy or cards)? So do I. Do you regard it as repurposing. I tend to think – "I wonder what I can do with that; it's too good to trash". For example – a friend sticks you with her parakeet and you are too nice to say no. You don't really want it but now it's yours. Can you repurpose it to be an alarm clock? (Birds are smart and easy to train I hear) Would you? It would become either a pet or a pass along to a friend who liked birds. Saying this could useful for something else is okay. Figuring out what can be, may be a problem.
Posh words from posh Britain are floating like jetsam across the pond. I admit to using some but I have also lived there (among the posh and titled – doncha' know) and have many wonderful UK friends (though not mates – that's sort of a guy word and also makes me think of soccer hooligans). I do use a lot of nasty Britslang. Strange bedfellows make for acquired habits quite often. Cockney rhyming slang is used by the posh because it is fun. It also allows you to call out people in code. But I am talking about everyday use. Suddenly (after eons of use in the Empire) we now have co-opted the word shortlist. When I see it -much more frequently – I am always looking for the Man Booker. I am always cheesed off when it isn't . Elevators are widely called lifts (something I am quite sure Mr. Otis Regrets) and we tuck in for eating. I have whole books of this slang but it's work to find the whole book. Bollocks! Feel free to add to this one. It shows no sign of ending and consider this: the Brits use bad language with a marvelous accent and can say almost anything still sound Belgravian.
I invite suggestions, comments and I shall make this post Installment 1. It will be occasional unless there are many suggestions. Players are welcome to participate. Free admission.


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The MondoRescue project has made quite some progresses again recently. So it"s time to publish mondo 3.0.1 and mindi 2.1.1. Those are bug fix versions mainly. Especially there is a fix for bad LVM i-want-my-lvm setup file, where sometimes duplicated lines were generated which was annoying, as well as an error again in some cases to compute the multiplier factor used when disk size changed.
Among the major improvements, we are now supporting kernel 3.2 new usb_common module, btrfs, grub2 and the launch of rpcbind at restore time to improve NFS restore support for at least RHEL 6.2 (on which I made my tests) and hopefully Debian 6 as well (feedback welcome !). All details are available in trac.
I have had multiple reports that this version was indeed better than 3.0.0 with regards to the issues mentionned upper, so I think it's time to make it official now, so a larger audience can test it. This is the version I'll push to Mageia tomorrow, once the build is done, and to Mandriva when time permits. What I find nice, is that latest releases receive more feedback, and also more pathces from contributors and users. A good sign !
The next task on my TODO list is to publish a newer version of project-builder.org as well, that is still helping me dramatically in building the 100+ tuples as well as indices for urpmi/yum/apt/… in the public repository.
Tags: Linux, Mageia, Mandriva, Mondorescue, Open Source, project-builder.org


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Crime Scene Pictures partners Adam Ripp and Rob Paris are teaming with Nick Wechsler to produce action thriller "Man With a Gun," based on a screenplay by Robert Hewitt Wolfe.
Wechsler, producer of "Under the Skin" and upcoming Steven Soderbergh male stripper pic "Magic Mike," will produce along with Crime Scene, which will also finance the pic.
The contempo Western is about a man seeking redemption: Eisenhower "Ike" Bell is on a mission to infiltrate the gangs of drug warlords in a U.S. border town that is slowly being suffocated by a drug war that it has endured for generations.
Rizal Risjad and Philip Elway will exec produce and Lizzy Bradford will co-produce. Paris and Ripp are in Toronto discussing the project with directors, and the duo plan to package the film in preparation for the Berlin Film Festival in Feburary.
"The appeal of this project is in its weaving of the classic themes of revenge and redemption being played out in a contemporary setting, with an iconic hero and a truly quirky cast of characters," Ripp and Paris said in a statement.
CAA and ICM will co-rep domestic theatrical rights.
Earlier this year, Crime Scene's Colin Firth-Cameron Diaz starrer "Gambit" was one of the biggest sellers at the Berlinale, where it was being shopped by Glen Basner's FilmNation.


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Waterfalls in France
Waterfalls in France belong to the most gorgeous waterfalls in Europe. I love France with its diversity, every region is unique with its own kind of waterfalls. There are two big mountain ranges in France, the Alps and the Pyrenees, with a high density of waterfalls. These are also the regions where you can find the biggest, the tallest and the most beautiful waterfalls of France. Off cause there are also gorgeous waterfalls in other areas, so don't get me wrong.
Waterfalls of France map
I have listed over 200 of the best waterfalls of France on a Google map. The "waterfalls of France map" is easy to use and there are links to all waterfalls of France with more information. Just click on the bigger map icon to view the "waterfalls of France map" fullscreen.
Best waterfalls in France
The French word for waterfall is "cascade" or plural "cascades". Sometimes also "chute" is used in the name of waterfalls in France or Switzerland (which partly speak French). If there are multiple waterfalls in a river, the biggest waterfall is often referred as "grande".
Most of the waterfalls can be found in the mountain chain Alps in eastern France and the Pyrenees in the south of France. The most famous waterfall of France, Grande cascade de Gavarnie is located in the Pyrenees and is also the most beautiful waterfall in France.
The Pyrenees is a mountain chain that forms a natural border between France and Spain and is 490 kilometer long. Although the highest peak in the Pyrenees is only 3.404 meters high (Aneto), there are dozens of peaks above the 3.000 meters and there are still a few glaciers left. Best period to visit the Pyrenees is from late Spring until early Summer. Early in the season the temperatures are rising quickly.
The Alps is a mountain chain that is much bigger and stretches over 1.200 kilometer, only part of it in France. The highest peak is also the most famous peak of Europe, is the Mont Blanc (4.810 meters). There are more waterfalls in the Alps then in the Pyrenees but it is hard to say which are more impressive. Waterfalls in the Alps are located more near each other then in the Pyrenees. Best period to visit the Alps is early summer and around glaciers in summertime.
Besides the Pyrenees and the Alps there are still several areas with mountains with beautiful waterfalls, like on the isle of Corse but also in the middle of France. Or the beautiful Cascade du Ray-Pic near Aubenas, there is enough to explore or to enjoy in France.
Biggest waterfalls by volume in France
The biggest waterfall in France is harder to determine. There aren't any figures know to me about average flow rates of rivers in France. Probably Cascade du Rouget in the Alps is one of the most powerful waterfalls in France.
The beautiful grande cascade de Gavarnie is also a waterfall with an enormous maximum flow rate. It can exceed up to 200 m3/sec. The average annual flow rate is 6 m3/sec.
Maybe cascade d'Ars also belongs to the most powerful waterfall in France. Early summer the flow rate is immense with a flow rate up between 2-8 m3/sec.
There are a few other karstic waterfalls that can burst extremely, but these huge streams are temporarily.
Highest waterfalls in France
The highest waterfall in France is the 'Grande cascade de Gavarnie' with a total height of 440 meter and a single drop of 281 meters. Late spring and early summer 'grande cascade de Gavarnie' is also quite a powerful waterfall. There are several other low volume water drops around cirque de Gavarnie with heights of 800 meter, but those streams are to tiny to be called an official waterfall.
Although 'grande cascade de Gavarnie' is commonly excepted as the highest waterfall in France, there are 3 other waterfalls that exceed a total height over 400 meter: Cascade de la Fare, Cascade de Moulin Marquis and Cascade de Pissevache (Sixt-Fer-a-Cheval).
Cascade de l'Arpenaz (Sallanches) is a good fifth highest waterfall of France with a single drop of 270 meter and a total height of 360 meter.
- Grande cascade de Gavarnie (440 meter)
- Cascade de Pissevache (400+ meter)
- Cascade de Moulin Marquis (400+ meter)
- Cascade de la Fare (+/- 400 meter)
- Cascade de l'Arpenaz (360 meter)
Most beautiful waterfalls in France
I have been so many times in France. From when I was young we already went on Holiday to France. The first waterfall I met in France was probably Cascade du Ray-Pic, a gorgeous waterfall formed as a result of volcanic activity.
The waterfall I visited most is probably grande cascade de Gavarnie, the absolute number one most beautiful waterfall in France, according to my personal opinion. When looking of pictures of the waterfall you will notice how tiny the people in front of the waterfall are. What I also like most is the scenery and the beautiful surrounding.
When doing a search on Internet what the most beautiful waterfall in France is, most of the time Cascade de Sillans will show up.
The waterfall that certainly belong to the most beautiful waterfalls in France is cascade d'Ars with a height of 246 meter. This is a waterfall in the Pyrenees and is located near Aulus les Bains.


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AUSTIN, TEXAS—Lance Armstrong has returned his Olympic bronze cycling medal, the latest fallout from his confession to using performance-enhancing drugs.
Armstrong won the medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. The International Olympic Committee in January vacated the medal Armstrong won in the road time trial. Armstrong tweeted Thursday he had given it back and a U.S. Olympic Committee spokesman released a statement confirming its return.
Armstrong's tweet included a photo of the medal and its blue ribbon along with the message: "The 2000 Bronze is back in possession of @usolympics and will be in Switzerland asap."
Armstrong declined further comment.
The IOC has said it will not reallocate Armstrong's bronze medal, just as cycling's ruling body decided not to declare any winners for the Tour titles once held by the American. Spanish rider Abraham Olano Manzano, who finished fourth in Sydney, will not be upgraded and the bronze medal will be left vacant in Olympic records.
Armstrong denied doping for years until his confession in January in an interview with Oprah Winfrey. The confession came after a U.S. Anti-Doping Agency report detailed widespread use of performance-enhancing drugs by Armstrong and his U.S. Postal Service team. Armstrong also has been stripped of the seven Tour de France titles he won from 1999-2005.
The IOC previously stripped Tyler Hamilton, a former Armstrong teammate, of his time-trial gold medal from the 2004 Olympics after he acknowledged doping.
Armstrong won his medal two months after winning his second Tour de France title. His U.S. Postal Service teammate, Vyacheslav Ekimov of Russia, won the gold and Jan Ullrich of Germany won silver.
Ekimov was Armstrong's teammate during the time period in which USADA outlined widespread doping on the team. Ullrich, who was a chief rival of Armstrong and finished second to him in the Tour de France three times, confirmed in an interview with a German magazine in June that he used blood-doping treatments during his career.
The IOC has not brought charges against either Ekimov or Ullrich.


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Digital Alert Systems From Monroe Electronics Contain a Known SSH Private Key and are Vulnerable to Remote Attack
File this one among the stories that fell through the cracks due to the 4th of July holiday in the U.S. According to a July 3 advisory from the Department of Homeland Security's ICS-CERT, the Root SSH Key for Monroe Electronics emergency alert systems has been compromised.
The private SSH key used in firmware images prior to version 2.0-2 of Monroe's DASDEC-I and DASDEC-II, which are emergency alert system (EAS) encoder/decoder devices used to broadcast EAS messages over digital and analog channels, has been compromised – though how it happened exactly remains a puzzle.
The SSH key was hardcoded into the devices, which is bad form really. Most programmers avoid it, but those who use hard-coded crypto keys in their firmware often do so because they feel it is safer than using hard-coded passwords. In reality, this sense of security is a false one.
In the case of Monroe's hardware, unless the default settings were altered during deployment, then the impacted systems are using a known key that enables remote access – meaning an attacker would have no problems accessing them if they are publically faced or if they've already compromised the network.
The vulnerability was discovered by Mike Davis, a principal research scientist at IOActive.
"Earlier this year we were shown an example of an intrusion on the EAS when the Montana Television Network's regular programming was interrupted by news of a zombie apocalypse. Although there was no zombie apocalypse, it did highlight just how vulnerable the system is," Davis said.
"These DASDEC application servers are currently shipped with their root privileged SSH key as part of the firmware update package," he continued. "This key allows an attacker to remotely log on in over the Internet and can manipulate any system function. For example, they could disrupt a station's ability to transmit and could disseminate false emergency information."
Monroe told customers about the problem in April, but have remained silent with regards to how the compromise was brought to their attention. They did however; tell customers that passwords were no longer being hard coded and that changes to password handling were implemented as part of the patching process.
"The EAS is designed to enable the President of the United States to speak to US citizens within 10-minutes of a disaster occurring," IOActive explained. "In the past these alerts were passed from station to station using the Associate Press (AP) or United Press International (UPI) 'wire services' which connected to television and radio stations around the US. Whenever the station received an authenticated Emergency Action Notification (EAN), the station would disrupt its current broadcast to deliver the message to the public."
According to an advisory from the company, most (but not all) of their customers have installed the updated firmware.
"For any of these issues to be resolved, we believe that re-engineering needs to be done on the digital alerting system side and firmware updates to be pushed to all appliances," Davis said.
Additional technical details on the vulnerabilities from IOActive are available here.
*Updated with revised headline, additional information from IO Active. Additional reporting by Mike Lennon


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Applications are now closed for our 2023 Master of Digital Media program.
We had a record year and received over 400 applications. Successful applicants will hear from us in March about next steps. The Master of Digital Media program engages students through coursework and projects to develop essential communication, collaboration & leadership skills. The unique curriculum meets the needs of new and expanding digital media markets.
MDM Grads By the Numbers
of graduates are working
in their fields
of graduates
work in games
startup companies have been created by alumni
Master of Digital Media
An internationally recognized, research informed and industry relevant professional graduate program that engages students in the development of digital media products.
Student Projects
The core differentiator of the Master of Digital Media program and other comparable Masters programs is the emphasis of experiential learning through project courses. In fact, 65% of MDM coursework is project-based.
Our students gain real-world experience with top employers
Our industry partners provide students with internships and employment opportunities and also work with students on collaborative projects. The MDM program is one of the only Masters programs that provides students with experience by working on real-world projects with real clients.
Student Life
Our students come from all over the world and from all professional and educational backgrounds. Students work in close collaboration throughout the 12-month program and enjoy the benefits of living and working in Vancouver, a dynamic city and international digital media hub.


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- Resources Home
- Publications
- Industry Sectors
- Waste Prevention
- Recycling
- Buy/Manufacture Recycled
- General Links
Resource Management
What is Resource Management?
Unlike traditional solid waste service contracts, resource management (RM) compensates waste contractors based on performance in achieving your organization's waste reduction goals rather than the volume of waste disposed. As a result, RM aligns waste contractor incentives with your own goals as you both explore innovative approaches that foster cost-effective resource efficiency through prevention, recycling, and recovery.
Coined by WasteWise partner General Motors Corporation (GM), RM was a logical outgrowth to its success with performance-based contracting in the area of chemical purchasing, use, and management. GM adopted RM in response to an internal waste reduction goal and the recognition that existing hauling and disposal contracts limited waste reduction efforts across its more than 70 North American facilities. GM's objective in executing RM contracts was to "provide a systems approach to resource efficiency that motivates cost reduction and conservation of plant resources."
Research to date demonstrates that RM is widely applicable in business, institutional, and municipal settings. Because most WasteWise partners rely on disposal contracts and some partners already use performance-based contracting practices, RM might be a useful model for WasteWise partners.
Traditional Hauling & Disposal Contracts
RM Contracts
|Contractor Compensation
|Unit price based on waste volume or number of pick-ups.
|Capped fee for waste hauling/disposal service. Performance bonuses (or liquidated damages) based on value of resource efficiency savings.
|Incentive Structure
|Contractor has a profit incentive to maximize waste service and volume.
|Contractor seeks profitable resource efficiency innovation.
|Waste Generator-Contractor Relationship
|Minimal generator-contractor interface.
|Waste generator and contractor work together to derive value from resource efficiency.
|Scope of Service
|Container rental and maintenance, hauling, and disposal or processing. Contractor responsibilities begin at the Dumpster and end at landfill or processing site.
|Services addressed in hauling and disposal contracts plus services that influence waste generation (i.e., product/process design, material purchase, internal storage, material use, material handling, reporting).
Standard Practices
1. Establish Baseline Cost, Performance, and Service Levels
- Define scope and service levels.
- Identify existing contract and compensation methods.
- Establish cost and performance benchmarks.
- Establish goals.
2. Seek Strategic Input from Contractors
- Convene pre-bid meetings with contractors to articulate goals and address questions.
- Allow or require bidders to submit operations plans for achieving specified improvements in existing operations.
3. Align Waste and Resource Efficiency Services
- Coordinate, integrate, and formalize all contracts and services included in the baseline scope identified in Practice 1.
- Ensure that contractor has access to "internal" stakeholders that influence waste management and generation.
4. Establish Transparent Pricing for Services
- Delineate pricing information for specific services such as container maintenance, container rental, hauling, disposal, etc.
- Allow variable price savings, such as "avoided hauling and disposal," to flow back to generator and/or be used as means for financing performance bonuses.
5. Provide Direct Financial Incentives for Resource Efficiency
- Establish compensation that allows contractor to realize financial benefits for service improvements and innovations.
- Assess liquidated damages for failing to achieve minimum performance benchmarks or standards.
6. Cap Compensation for Garbage Service
- Establish a cap on waste hauling/disposal service compensation that decreases gradually over time.
- Decouple contractor profitability from waste generation and/or service levels.
- Base compensation initially on reasonable estimates of current hauling and disposal service and costs as per Practice 1.
WasteWise Partner Example
One year after implementing RM contracts at several of its North American plants, GM realized a 20 percent reduction in overall waste generation (30,000 tons), a 65 percent increase in recycling (from 50,000 tons to more than 82,000 tons), and a 15 to 30 percent decrease in waste management costs.
GM's Orion Assembly Plant, Michigan
Before RM: Services provided by 9 contracts
- Hauling (2 contracts)
- Disposal (4 contracts)
- Waste Pad Assistance (1 contract)
- Consulting Studies (1 contract)
- Sludge Clean Out (1 contract)
After RM: Services provided by 1 contract
- Hauling
- Disposal
- Waste Pad Management
- Comprehensive Studies
- Two On-Site RM Managers*
- Off Site Support*
- Comprehensive Recycling*
- Environmental Reports*
- Waste Tracking Systems*
- Staff Training*
You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more.
WasteWise Resource Management:
Innovative Solid Waste Contracting Methods
To help organizations gain a firm grasp on the concept of Resource Management and negotiate their waste hauling contracts to focus on resource conservation, WasteWise developed this extensive "how to" manual. Available to download, the manual is broken into the following sections:
Cover (PDF) (1 pg, 104K)
Chapters 1 - 6 (PDF) (41 pp, 1.1MB)
Appendix A: RM Resources (PDF) (2 pp, 82K)
Appendix B: Sample RM Presentations (PDF) (12 pp, 157K)
Appendix C: Sample Work Plan (PDF) (3 pp, 82K)
Appendix D: Model Language for Resource Management Request for Proposals - Commercial/Industrial Sectors (PDF) (33 pp, 190K)
Appendix E: RM Compensation Options (PDF) (5 pp, 105K)
Appendix F: Comparison of Cost Proposals (PDF) (3 pp, 98K)
Appendix G: Climate Change Benefits (PDF) (3 pp, 87K)
Appendix H: WasteWise Partners Innovate with Resource Management (PDF) (3 pp, 118K)
Resource Management in Clark County,
Nevada (PDF) (45 pp, 691K)
In August, 2002, EPA Region 9 investigated how Resource Management (RM) contracting might assist Clark County, Nevada, to achieve higher recycling rates. Unlike traditional solid waste service contracts, RM compensates waste contractors based on performance in achieving waste reduction goals rather than the volume of waste disposed, creating an incentive to reduce waste, rather than increase it.
EPA's report found that there are significant opportunities to increase both recycling rates and recycling revenues, despite the fact that Clark Countys current franchise agreement and solid waste ordinance provide little incentive to increase recycling.
From Waste
to Resource Management: Reinventing Waste Contracts and Services (PDF)
(9 pp, 56K)
This document will help WasteWise partners answer basic questions about RM including: What is RM contracting? How is RM put into practice? How does RM benefit waste generators? How does RM benefit waste contractors? Because this concept paper is a work in progress, we would appreciate any comments from WasteWise partners. Please e-mail comments to firstname.lastname@example.com.
Strategic Contracting Increases Waste
Prevention and Materials Recycling (PDF)
(4 pp, 81K)
This article from the March 2001 issue of Resource Recycling highlights RM advancement among several Nebraska organizations.
Advancing Resource Management in Nebraska:
A Research and Demonstration Project (PDF)
(43 pp, 195K)
This report summarizes the results of a project sponsored by the Nebraska Environmental Trust in 2001.


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And When She Was Good - Laura Lippman
Author Laura Lippman's appearance at the Central Library, 14 W. 10th St. – initially scheduled for this evening, Monday, February 25, 2013 – has been cancelled due to the impending winter storm.
We appreciate you taking the time to RSVP for this event and will make every effort to notify you when and if the event is rescheduled.
Laura Lippman author of our 2013 Winter Reading selection, What the Dead Know, discusses her latest novel, And When She Was Good. Lippman was a reporter for twelve years at The Baltimore Sun, home of her "accidental PI" Tess Monaghan. She began writing the Tess Monaghan series while working fulltime and left daily journalism in 2001. Lippman has won almost every award in the crime fiction field: the Edgar®, the Anthony, the Agatha, the Shamus, the Nero Wolfe, Gumshoe and Barry awards.
Her current novel, And When She Was Good, continues Lippman's track record of bestselling thrillers that emphasize the resourcefulness and intelligence of her heroines.


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These are the best cities for St. Paddy's Day celebrations
About 10% of Americans claim Irish ancestry, but who knows how to throw the best St. Patrick's Day party?
WalletHub says Buffalo, N.Y., in its 2017 Best Cities for St. Patrick's Day Celebrations report. The credit score website studied four key metrics against 200 of America's most populated cities: St. Patrick's Day traditions, cost, safety and accessibility and weather. St. Patrick's Day traditions held the most weight in the study.
Boston scored No. 1 in traditions; Albuquerque, N.M. scored No. 1 in cost; Cedar Rapids, Iowa, came in No. 1 for safety and accessibility; and, Pittsburgh topped the list for best St. Patrick's Day weather.
Here is the list of the overall top 10 cities:
1. Buffalo, N.Y.
2. Madison, Wis.
3. Boston, Mass.
4. Cedar Rapids, Iowa
5. Worcester, Mass.
6. Pittsburgh, Pa.
7. Akron, Ohio
8. Tampa, Fla.
9. Philadelphia, Pa.
10. Cleveland, Ohio
Follow Ashley May on Twitter: @AshleyMayTweets