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Volkswagen Beetle Steering and Suspension Problems
kapital Posts: 1
in Volkswagen
I am rebuilding a '68 beetle for a "kit-car".
I have removed, checked and replaced the rear transaxles. I have also checked the spring plate angle. With full load on the rear axles, the rear wheels are still at an extreme angle. Any suggestions on obtaining the proper wheel alignment would be greatly appreciated.
I have removed, checked and replaced the rear transaxles. I have also checked the spring plate angle. With full load on the rear axles, the rear wheels are still at an extreme angle. Any suggestions on obtaining the proper wheel alignment would be greatly appreciated.
I'm looking for a car with great gas mileage. We're comparing the 2006 Scion XA with the 2007 Toyota Yaris.
We'll want the automatic. Haven't tested either. Like that the Yaris has the Cruise Control option, but the XA is available now and has been on sale for a few years. Otherwise, both seem about the same in terms of price, approx. mpg., safety, etc.
What would you choose?
Also, approximately how many miles do Toyota engines get before they die? (100k? 200k? 300K?)
Not sure if this needs a new forum, but I am assuming you are comparing the Yaris hatchback (not the sedan) to the xA.
First: They have the same engine, but the Yaris will get better gas mileage (around 5-8 mpg) because of the higher gearing.
Second: You will get more standard equipment in the Scion, but that is not to say that you cannot get most of it as mostly being optional on the Yaris.
Third: The xA is larger (about 5 inches). However, the Yaris has a reclining back seat. I have sat in the rear seat of a xA, and its SMALL.
Fourth: Both cars have center guages. Only the xA has the buttons on the steering wheel for the radio.
Fifth: This is matter of opinion, but the Yaris is more attractive.
Sixth: Scion gives you 3 free oil changes.
Seventh: The Scion will have a rougher ride than the Yaris. However, the Scion handles great especially with the front strut tie bar.
Eighth: The Scion is sold at MSRP only. You should be able to dicker on the price on the Yaris even though it won't be much.
I have not driven or seen a yaris in public, but I drove a regular xA and a 1.0 xA. However, I have read a lot about a Yaris and I give advice based on what I have read. I currently own a xB.
In conclusion, the Scion comes with more stuff, its very comfortable, but its not as attractive or does not get the gas mileage of the Yaris. I believe saftey is nill, meaning they are both safe for that size car. Any Scion or Yaris will be on the wrong end with a Suburban.
Toyota engines (with few exceptions like 99 Corollas I hear) last forever if you take care of them. My 95 Corolla has 184,000 on it now. I expect to get at least 300K before I sell it.
I would choose the Yaris because the extra gas mileage (to me) is more attractive because I live in a state that has higher gas prices than all the states around it. It comes down to what is more important. A better handling, more power, more features, cool radio, and I would guess a cheaper price (comparing apples to apples or features to features)is the Scion. While the Yaris is better styled, gets better gas mileage, can be cheaper (if options are carefully chosen), rides softer, and you can be the first one on your block to have it.
Personally, if it was me, I would get a Yaris S Sedan before either the xA or the Yaris HB just because its more practical. Having said that, I am leaving my xB out of the discussion since it wasn't listed.0
cherp Posts: 1Liked your comparsions between the Yaris and xA. Your impressions of the Yaris sedan vs. xB.0
Thanks, I appreciate your thoughts.
We'd be more interested in the sedan rather than the coupe.
We testdrove the XA over the weekend. It was a nice ride, but we had an awkward experience. (We were kept waiting over an hour, then told that the XA falls apart on the highway at speeds of 70 mph. What? Is that even true?)
I guess we thought no haggle price also meant attentive customer service. We're a little soured on the car buying experience, so are going to wait until Feb./March to testdrive the Yaris.
Before I start, all Yaris Sedan experience is from reading and pictures.
First: Same engine, but the Yaris is still more efficient because of the lower gearing in the xB.
Second: The xB not only comes standard with all the power stuff, radio, tach, but it comes with ABS and traction control. With the exception of the latter, the Yaris has it as a option.
Third: The Yaris sedan is 14 inches longer than the xB. Therefore, you get a real trunk in the Yaris. You can keep your stuff hidden from view. The xB's trunk is all vertical in cargo capacity. However, if you lower (the standard) rear seats, there is lots of room for about anything you would normally carry. The Yaris sedan has optional 60/40 rear seats for additonal space. You could put a huge TV in the xB, but not the Yaris. Otherwise, its a tradeoff.
Fourth: Both have center guages. The xB single tri-guage is left of center and it is angled toward the driver. I have had no problems of having to change my eyes to see it, like you would in the Yaris or xA.
Fifth: Both are attractive cars. The xB is screaming "I am a box". Its kind of like a old VW thing. EIther you like it of hate it. The Yaris Sedan is an attractive little car, but it does look like a smaller 2006 Camry. Look at the new Camry pictures.
Sixth: Scion still gives 3 free oil changes.
Seventh: The xB will still ride tougher than the Yaris. Having said that, the xB rides higher than the xA, so there is no equal comparison there. The xB is much better riding than the xA. I still believe the Yaris sedan will be smoother, expecially being 14 inches longer.
Eighth: The Scion is MSRP. You can dicker on the Yaris. If you option the Yaris up to the Scion, I would believe that the Yaris would be moe expensive before haggling. However, the Yaris starts out about $1000 (estimated)(S model) cheaper. The other two would probably be around $2000.
Ninth: AC is standard on both.
Tenth: The seats in the xB are extremely comfortable. The back seats are just huge, bigger than an Avalon. The rear center is also flat for extra seating. Even though the Yaris is 14 inches longer, I belive the front seat room would be around the same, with an advantage for the rear to the xB.
Eleventh: Performance would go the xB for about a second to 60 mainly attributed to the lower gearing. Both cars should not race a Celica. LOL
Final Decison: The new Yaris sedan is quite impressive. I believe its a very attractive car (especially the S). This car is only 3 inches shorter than my 95 Corolla. I believe that the Yaris Sedan is the more practical of the two. The xB is a great commuter car and it the rear seat is huge. If you have tall friends, they will love the xB. The xB also comes with lots of standard stuff. I personally added 838.00 worth of options to my xB which included fog lights and the front strut tie bar that makes handling way above the Yaris. The biggest tradeoff is the cargo area or the rear seat room. The xB, even though not as practical as the Yaris, is for 9/10 of all situations. I would rather have a Yaris for a trip to Disney.
Since I already own a 95 Corolla for my trip car, I chose the xB. However, if this would be my only car, I would pick the Yaris Sedan for the long run because its more practical plus it does (supposed to) get 5 more mpg. Although, if heavy trips are usually not done, it would come down to the real trunk in the Yaris vs the back seat in the xB. This would come down to personal preference.0
Honestly, between these two, its Yaris Sedan.
"We testdrove the XA over the weekend. It was a nice ride, but we had an awkward experience. (We were kept waiting over an hour, then told that the XA falls apart on the highway at speeds of 70 mph. What? Is that even true?)"
Both the xA and the XB will accelerate until you run out of 103. I know from experience that 80 comes up quicker than you would expect (like getting on the interstate). I would expect that the Yaris (sedan or HB) would be more sluggish.
"I guess we thought no haggle price also meant attentive customer service. We're a little soured on the car buying experience, so are going to wait until Feb./March to testdrive the Yaris."
Unfortunately, there is some real crappy Toyota dealers out there. When Lexus was started, you went to its own dealership and they Toyota decided that those customers should be treated like humans. Lexus has had wonderful customer service in the past almost 16 years. Since Scion is added to the existing Toyota dealers, it is hit and miss. There were supposed to be Scion only salesman at each of the selected Toyota dealerships that can carry Scion. However, as time passed, anyone will show you the Scions. When I test drove a Scion at one local dealership, the car salesman turned off the engine while I was driving to show that the car would not lock up. Needless to say, I went somewhere else to buy my xB. Hopefully, if its a Yaris Sedan, you want, you can find a decent Toyota/Scion dealership in a close proximity.
Don't forget, just because the sales department are jerks, that doesn't mean that the same service department won't be extremely nice to deal with. Its kinda like the right brain not communciating with the left brain.0
One to add, the xA and the 2006.5 xB has steering wheel controls for the radio.0
Mr_Shiftright Sonoma, CaliforniaPosts: 64,490I drive 75-80 mph in a Scion xA all the time. It's a little loud but not bad at all, and with the stereo on you don't even notice. So no, that statement is totally untrue. Don't expect 38 mpg at 80 mph though in either an xA or a Yaris.0
on a Yaris liftback with just the convenience package is $12,300 in a manual, and I guess about $13,100 in an automatic. Sounds like it is close to your price criteria.
There is a $700 gap between invoice and MSRP on the Yaris, according to Consumer Guide.
An xA manual shift with no options is $13,300 in the stick. I would say if you want the power package, then it's a wash between the two, pricewise. These two drive pretty similarly. So it would come down to whether you want 3 doors or 5, what you think of the looks, and how much you value the Toyota badge vs the Scion one.
Oh yeah, it's not totally apples to apples, because the Scion's stereo is better and it has ABS at that price, whereas the Yaris has slightly better fuel economy and a sliding/reclining rear seat at that price. And the Scion has a TACH!!!!!!!
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)0
Does anyone know why the Yaris isn't offered as a 5-door (4 door + liftback) here? It's available in Europe and Canada, and probably everywhere else. Could it be so that it doesn't compete with the xA, which is available only in the US?0
Bingo! You hit it right on the head. Too much in-fighting if they try to sell a 5-door Yaris at the same dealership as the xA.
Besides, Toyota is the sedan-and-truck company. Of all the Yarii brought to the U.S., only 20% will be the hatch, while 80% will be the sedan.
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)0
Yarii. I love it.
I'm looking forward to testdriving a Yaris and a Honda Fit, but I'll be going into it biased. I love my new xA.0
wakster Posts: 1I have been having a hard time looking for a Yaris Liftback, here in the Allentown, PA area, they only have sedans, and that already cost 1400+.
I'm now thinking of going with the Scion xA, they are the same engine right? why the difference in mileage though, I drive 80 miles 1 way so these 2 are my only choices right now, and my budget only allows me to go with xA or the liftback.
I need your help in finding a 3 door Yaris in the NY/NJ/PA area, or xA it is.0
rxb Posts: 6If you're willing to wait a couple months you should be able to find a dealer who will find or order a liftback for you - but probably not with a manual shift. I was thinking of an Xa, but I'm holding out for a Yaris because it sounds like the ride and handling are better (though I'm curious if anyone here can verify that), the space configuration inside is more flexible, and I prefer the way it looks. Also considering what it means, it sounds weird to say "I drive a Scion". Good luck.0
mackabee Posts: 4,709Considering Scion means "a descendant of" you should be proud to say you drive one.
I tested the Xa and both the sedan and liftback Yaris models, and found the Xa had a demonstrably superior ride and handling. The Yaris liftback had an especially bumpy ride to me. The Xa turned corners beautifully, and was rather peppy on acceleration. In fact, the ride was far more pleasant than my 2006 Corolla, which I have found tediously rough. I am close to trading it in for the Xa.0
micweb seems to think that the 2007 xa might be styled as the yaris, I assume it woud have the scion features you like still intact. you might want to wait for that and check it out. you can always get a 2006 at that time if you want...might even get a discount despite the no haggle policy.
ouch, trading in so fast takes the economy out of economy cars...unless the famous toyota resale value comes through in spades.0
In fact, the ride was far more pleasant than my 2006 Corolla, which I have found tediously rough. I am close to trading it in for the Xa.
hmmm, thats interesting. my buddy from chitown drives an xa. when i visit him i always insist on driving my corolla when we go out, as it is infinitely quieter than his xa and takes bumps much more softly. both our cars are fairly new, and there is no doubt that his car takes bumps like a go cart, while the corolla is much softer. every review i read before getting the corolla considered it a quiet highway cruiser. the xa engine is at 3000 rpm's at 60 mph :surprise:(versus 2350 for the corolla) , so no wonder its so loud on the highway. he agrees wholeheartedly with this assessment. his like of the xa is geared toward its looks. the corolla also beats his xa in the mileage department, and its most pronounced the more highway driving thats done (back to the excessive rpms of the xa). at least the yaris will do a little better than the xa in this regard.0
Hmmm...would you know when the '07 Xa might be coming out?
And as for the smoother ride of the '06 Corolla: some of them perform better than others. After my purchase, I tried out a couple more. One had a better ride, and another was even worse than mine. Also, there's an MSN car survey site, and about 1 in 5 respondents mentioned the bumpy ride. A Toyota rep rode with me and acknowledged no two production models are alike, but mine fell within spec and could not be modified without voiding the warranty.0
The Corolla feels fine on the freeways here in SoCal, which are kept in good shape. It's the street roads where I feel the jolts, far more pronounced than my old 1999 Corolla. Otherwise, the ride is fairly quiet to me. The car would be a dream if not for the bumpiness.0
I don't know when for it will be out for sure. I believe the Fall if it follows precendence,0
carfanatic007 Posts: 267I would strongly advise you NOT to trade in a 2006 Corolla for an XA. You would go upside down BIG time on your balance, and get a car which in my opinion isn't even close to being as good as a Corolla!0
Please elaborate. Before I trade, I need to know all I can. I'm at my wit's end with the bouncy Corolla. I'd even considered the Yaris, but found the liftback in particular to have a bumpy ride.
it all depends what you are comparing to. if youre comparing corolla to, say, a camry or maxima, yeah it may feel bumpy. but, in the compact class, nothing absorbs bumps better that a corolla. maybe your tires are inflated too high. maybe you need new tires. ive never heard anyone complain of the 9th gen corolla giving a bumpy ride. before i bought the corolla, i test drove everything i could many, many times. (i even went to about 8 different toyota dealers so they would not get sick of me test driving) i had narrowed it down to the xa and corolla. i actually like the unique looks of the xa. three things made the corolla the choice for me--(this is after at least 8 test drives of each car on all different types of road conditions)i.e. here is what youll give up if you make this trade--beyond the strong possibility that youll be upside down if financing is involved.
1)the ride in the corolla was much quieter and bumps in the road were absorbed much better--the xa engine drone (4000 rpms at interstate speed) was so tedious that the only solution was to crank the stereo louder than id like or to wear some noise reducing headphones. in the xa i could feel bumps right in my a**. the corolla at the same speed was more like 3000 rpms and while i could feel the bumps (as you will in any $15000 car) they were much less harsh than in the xa.
2)the price i paid for my 06 corolla ce w/cruise & power locks added to the standard features(which, by the way includes ac, cd player, power mirrors, outside temperature gauge--i love this feature) was only $770 more than the no haggle xa price.
3) corolla gets better gas mileage even though it is bigger and has noticeably more power than the xa. this was, for me, a very important factor. i communicated with many owners of both the xa and corolla to see what the real world mpg numbers were.--i found corolla owner to be getting 40+ mpg on mostly highway and 32-34 mostly city. SO FAR, AFTER 3 TANKS MY NUMBERS HAVE EXCEEDED THIS. xa owners just could not achieve those numbers. the body style causes too much drag for the tiny engine and it revs too high on the highway.
these are my observations, though i can see the appeal style wise of an xa or yaris. if i were 20 years old, the corolla might be too boring to me. i think in the corolla, toyota has combined economy with comfort better than any car in its class (yes i drove an 06 civic--no quieter, poorer mileage, and a HIDEOUS dash thats ridiculously long from driver to winshield.
note: the same arguments apply to the corolla vs yaris, particularly the way dealers are packaging the yaris with options($$)--the yaris does come closer to the corolla in the mileage department0
Perhaps the problem I'm having is exacerbataed by my comparing the new Corolla with my old '99 model. That was a smoother ride by far IMHO. The $15,000 price point observation you make holds validity in most cases, but I should mention what a Toyota repairman told me recently. He mentioned that there had been several complaints about bumpiness in late model Lexuses. These are high ticket items, so I'd have to believe Toyota's engineers are doing something different lately. I just don't know. And now the Yaris seems equally disappointing--my crappy old Ford Festiva (may it rest in pieces) was more pleasant to drive.
Taking the new Yaris models, the '06 Corolla (5 months broken-in), and the '06 Xa and Xb over the same test area had me conclude that the Xa took the bumps the best. And right now this is my pet peeve.
Thanks for your input. I really appreciate it, and welcome any assistance towards my imminent decision.0
Taking the new Yaris models, the '06 Corolla (5 months broken-in), and the '06 Xa and Xb over the same test area had me conclude that the Xa took the bumps the best. And right now this is my pet peeve.
i guess it goes to show even ride quality is very subjective between two people. i used to drive a 2001 corolla--i believe the '99 would be of the same generation. to me the current generation has a smoother, bigger car feel than the '01. all the scions mentioned seemed to me to be very harsh compared to either the '01 or the current model.
i think if you feel its enough of a problem and you really like the scion you could make the switch if you dont mind the financial hit. my one piece of advice would be: do not trade the corolla in unless you are in a big rush. youll do MUCH better selling it privately, but it will likely take some time as opposed to just trading it.
if you are a person who drives your cars into the ground for 10 or 15 years, then you should enjoy what you drive.0
The owner of the dealership I bought the Corolla from respects that I'm a repeat customer and is willing to credit back the car for max bucks (about $10-12K), as I'm going to get another car from him. He said he already made money from me, and is not trying to get more, that my satisfaction with his business would pay off in the future. He's being a mensch.
And if luck holds I will drive the sucker into the ground. I wonder how long Scions will last anyway?0
kdhspyder Posts: 7,160It's a Toyota ... Take care of it and you'll see 100-200K miles. You will likely tire of it before that though, human nature.0
tygger Posts: 59I would expect it to last ATLEAST 100-200k miles as most cars (esp. imports) last 100k w/ basic routine maintenance.0
The owner of the dealership I bought the Corolla from respects that I'm a repeat customer and is willing to credit back the car for max bucks (about $10-12K),
What did you pay, out the door, if I might ask?0


text:
Mafia 2 Multiplayer (M2-MP) is a free modification for Mafia 2 (PC) that allows users to play each other over the internet or a LAN with up to 1000 other players. We're using dedicated servers in which server owners can create their own custom gamemodes using squirrel with the ability of doing almost everything that you can do in singleplayer. We're working on bringing the best possible multiplayer experience for Mafia 2 fans.
this a virus

subset: commoncrawl


text:
TRENTON � The motto for the Jones County Heritage Festival is simple: �Unearthing our past, cultivating the future.� As the fourth annual festival took place on Saturday, those in attendance had the opportunity to witness practices from decades and centuries ago.
TRENTON � The motto for the Jones County Heritage Festival is simple: �Unearthing our past, cultivating the future.� As the fourth annual festival took place on Saturday, those in attendance had the opportunity to witness practices from decades and centuries ago.
The festival first started in 2009 after several years of planning by Jones County administrators. Each year, more people have come to the Jones County Civic Center to enjoy the festivities, with the exception of 2011 when Hurricane Irene canceled the event because of roof damage.
Even though rain was in the area on Saturday, thousands of people came out to enjoy the dozens of outdoor activities and vendors, along with the ones inside the Civic Center.
Jacob Morgan, who works as a field crop agent for the Jones County Cooperative Extension Service, said the purpose of the festival was to show people how things were done in the past and to help them learn about their heritage while having fun in the process.
�We�re just showing the way the life used to be,� Morgan said. �It�s not the focal point of the festival, but it�s an integral part. Back then, corn had to be shelled and ice cream was made by hand.�
Tobacco was the backbone of North Carolina, he said.
�Tobacco built the state as a whole,� Morgan said. �That�s the reason why the area by N.C. State, UNC and Duke is called Tobacco Road. Soybeans and corn were grown to feed animals, but tobacco paid the bills for many farmers.�
Several local acts performed inside the Civic Center, including members of the Pink Slipper Dance Academy in Trenton. Melanie Lassiter, 24, started the academy in 2008, which was the first dance studio built in the county.
Lassiter, who grew up in Trenton, wanted to provide something to her hometown she didn�t have as a child.
�I had to go out of the county to participate in dance growing up, so I wanted to have this academy here to give back to the community,� Lassiter said. �It�s a good family environment and builds the confidence of the children. It�s a great blessing to have the opportunity.�
Jennifer Wisener is a member of the Tar Heel Living History, a group who demonstrate how people did things from the mid-1800s. Wisener was in front of a sewing machine at a booth, showing how the machine operated, along with providing history.
�The patent for the first sewing machines came out around 1845, 1846,� Wisener said. �In the 1850s, the public could buy them.�
�We raise the sheep, shear them, wash the wool and sell it,� Beasley said. �Then, the wool is processed into yarn for us. We used to have to send yarn out of state, but now we can send it to Echoview Farm in Weaverville so we can have a complete North Carolina product. That�s what we�re looking for.�
Curtis Waters, 59, from Comfort, said what many residents of the county showed with their attendance.
�I�m from Jones County and I want to support what�s happening in my county,� Waters said.
Junious Smith III is a reporter for the Kinston Free Press.


text: This thermometer has a 1" dial with 5" slim stem, a plastic pocket case, shock-proof protection, stainless steel parts, and unbreakable polycarbonate crystal. It has a Safe-T-SetTM external recalibration design with a 1 point calibration for ? 1% at dial midpoint. The temperature range is 0? to 220?F with 2-degree divisions. While this thermometer resembles some in grocery stores, this model is much more accurate.


text:
I agree with Ray W. Smith, but I would also like to talk about tragedies that are not a result of violence but so-called accidents.
To the editor:
I agree with Ray W. Smith, but I would also like to talk about tragedies that are not a result of violence but so-called accidents.
Hunting accidents are most likely due to an error in judgment. They�re tragic when they happen but they are preventable. A child getting a hold of a weapon and killing themselves or another person is also preventable. A person killed while showing or cleaning a weapon is also preventable.
These are not intentional, but are preventable.
I feel if people were made to attend a safety course � gun owners and their families � and were also taught the proper way to disassemble and clean their weapons, some accidents may not happen. This would apply to each weapon they own.
Responsible gun ownership also means accountability. If you can�t handle this, then you shouldn�t own a firearm.
As for the commission of violent acts, insanity should no longer be used for an excuse or way out. A low IQ or mental retardation should also not be used as an excuse. These people know the evil they do and the hurt they cause. Right now, someone is probably thinking up a way to go beyond recent tragedies.
The death penalty should not be an option any more as it does little to bring closure and it doesn�t bring anyone back. It is also very expensive to keep someone on death row. Life in prison would serve the purpose and eliminate the possibility of executing an innocent person.
Billy James


text:
The View From 1776
§ American Traditions
§ People and Ideas
§ Decline of Western Civilization: a Snapshot
§ Books to Read
Monday, March 26, 2007
Krugman and Friedman - Part One
New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, a proponent of socialistic state-planning, takes a shot at Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman.
My neighbor David Lane asked for reactions to Mr. Krugman's essay, which appeared in the February 15, 2007, edition of The New York Review of Books. Mr. Krugman pays tribute to the late Milton Friedman, but disagrees with some aspects of his analysis of economic cause-and-effect.
Paul Krugman is a controversial apologist for rather far-left-liberal political and economic views. He is by training and former profession an economist himself. Before joining the Times as a columnist, he was held in high regard among academic economists. Today he is seen more as a propagandist whose economic predictions, usually damning Republic moves such as tax cuts, have often been notoriously wrong.
My reactions are based on detailed histories to be found in Benjamin M. Anderson's Economics and the Public Welfare, Murray Rothbard's America's Great Depression and Allan H. Meltzer's A History of the Federal Reserve: Volume 1, 1913-1951.
In this Part One, I will address only Mr. Krugman's assertion at the outset of his essay. He wrote:
And classical economics said that the answer to almost all problems was to let the forces of supply and demand do their job. But classical economics offered neither explanations nor solutions for the Great Depression.
That is not factual.
What were the facts?
The liberal-Progressive-socialist party line was laid out by Stuart Chase, the economist who coined the name New Deal. In that version, the one to which Franklin Roosevelt continually reverted throughout the New Deal, the Depression was the result of greedy capitalists (economic royalists, in FDR's terminology) who selfishly sucked up all the available money supply to continue building more and more unneeded manufacturing facilities. Neither Mr. Chase nor FDR offered an explanation, other than greed, for what motivated businessmen to such financially disastrous illogicality.
In Mr. Chase's theory, capitalists figuratively were holding large moneybags and scooping all available money into them. This left insufficient purchasing power for the workers. When they stopped buying, the Depression started.
That thesis doesn't hold water.
It's true that farmers and businessmen over-expanded. But only a moment's reflection should make clear that such action did not, and could not, suck all the credit out of the economy.
Whatever farmers and businesses borrowed from banks went to pay suppliers for seeds, fertilizer, and construction materials for new plants and raw materials for production. They had then to pay wages to farm hands and construction and production line workers. Funds borrowed by farmers and businesses obviously had to continue circulating in the same manner that prevails during normal business conditions.
What then did go wrong in 1929?
Contrary to Mr. Krugman's assertion, the cause of, as well the remedy for, the Depression were very clearly understood at the time.
The cause, in short, was massive over expansion of the money supply by the Fed during the early 1920s. This imparted inflationary pressures and created a false expectation of future market demand. Farmers and businesses over-expanded and had to curtail output sharply when the temporary excess demand came to an end, after the Fed tightened the money supply in 1928.
World War I having ended in 1918, the Fed expanded the money supply at the urging of European central banks in order to finance their nations' rebuilding of war-torn economies. A very large portion of the Fed's money supply expansion went into floating European government bond issues in the New York market, the proceeds of which were used to finance Europeans' imports from the United States.
The result was an early version of our 1990s dot.com boom and bust. Farmers bought extra land and machinery to supply a European market that was then producing very little of its own food. Machinery manufacturers invested in great expansion of productive capacity to meet European rebuilding demand.
Those expansions of output were far greater than our domestic market could support. As soon as European demand slackened, there was bound to be a recession in the United States, both in the farming (which then accounted for more than 50% of all employment) and in the manufacturing sectors.
Late in 1928 the Fed became alarmed at the degree to which excessive credit was spilling over into the stock market and speculative real estate investment (e.g. the early and abortive Florida land boom, which collapsed in 1925). The Fed began squeezing the money supply. Foreign government loan volume in New York fell off sharply.
Exports to Europe already had begun to decline. A major reason was the high level of United States tariffs (pushed to unprecedented heights in 1930 by the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act), which made exporting difficult from Europe to the United States. If Europe could not export as its industries recovered, it could not repay loans that had been floated earlier in New York, nor could it continue importing large volumes of farm goods and manufactured products.
American farmers and manufacturers began to suffer, ushering us into the 1929 stock market crash.
Bottom line: had the Fed not created excess money supply to accommodate European central banks early in the 1920s, there would have been no Depression.
AND, contrary to Mr. Krugman's assertion, there was a widely known and readily available remedy: let the economic cycle take its normal course.
Had we followed the successful course of the 1920-21 recession with little government intervention, workers would have been laid off until excess inventories were absorbed by the domestic market and costs of production had dropped to the point at which business could have rehired workers and increased production on a profitable basis.
The 1920-21 turn down, as severe at its outset as the 1930 Depression, lasted only a year. The roughly two-year dot.com recession that began at the end of President Clinton's administration, though subject to many more government interventions than in 1920, is another example of fairly quick recover. Businesses laid off workers and liquidated inventory. Uneconomic dot.com businesses, financed often before they had any sales, let alone profits, were allowed go into bankruptcy.
Why in 1929 didn't we follow the historical policy of non-intervention by the Federal government?
In a word: Hoover. President Hoover deserves all of the opprobrium heaped upon him by liberals, but not for the reason given in their textbooks. Writers who idolized Franklin Roosevelt have followed the New Deal script that aimed to discredit free-market capitalism and to extol the virtues of socialistic state-planning.
Far from being the old-style, laissez-faire conservative depicted by liberal historians, President Hoover was almost as much a state-planning activist as Franklin Roosevelt. Conservative economists, in fact, date the New Deal from 1930, two years before Mr. Roosevelt's election in 1932.
In Mr. Hoover's own words, in a 1932 campaign speech:
No government in Washington has hitherto considered that it held so broad a responsibility for leadership in such times….For the first time in the history of depression, dividends, profits, and the cost of living have been reduced before wages suffered…They were maintained until the cost of living had decreased and the profits had practically vanished…
Why, with the recent 1920-21 quick cure for recession still fresh in mind, would the President turn his back on tried-and-true policy and opt for large-scale Federal interventionism?
Mr. Hoover was a mining engineer by education and occupation. Before entering politics, he had made a fortune supervising the building of mines all over the world. He brought into government service the mindset of the early French social-engineers who orchestrated the first socialist regimes in France of the early 1800s. They too were professional engineers.
Their engineering mindset led to approaching economic and political situations from an idealized structural view point, rather than from a free-market view point. Unfortunately, in practice, no structural model works as planned, because it cannot allow for emotions and expectations of the millions of units comprising the marketplace. Only a free market setting prices can do that.
Immediately after World War I, Mr. Hoover had been immensely successful as the unpaid head of the emergency war relief measures in Europe. That catapulted him into President Harding's cabinet as Secretary of Commerce in 1921. There he advocated what French socialists called rationalization of industry. Hoover believed that there was excessive and therefore destructive competition in American business. To counter that he urged stronger business trade associations that would, among other things effectively conspire to set prices.
During the 1920-21 recession, Hoover had publicly urged that the Federal government establish a bureau for economic planning to prevent unemployment. Fortunately, President Harding vetoed the idea.
Nonetheless the idea took root. Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1922 organized the American Construction Council to advocate Federal and state funding for large public works projects. The plan was to smooth out the normal cyclical pattern of such construction work.
Another of Mr. Hoover's state-planning concepts implemented during his administration was first manifested in the middle 1920s. He was strongly pro-union and preached the idea that high wage rates led to higher productivity of labor.
In reality, as we see today in the auto industry, the reverse is true. Business investment in more efficient machinery and better production techniques increases productivity, which permits management to pay higher wages.
Believing as he did, President Hoover in 1930 advocated higher wages to increase productivity as the way to end the Depression. Business profits were the only part of the mix that he regarded as dispensable.
All of these conceptions were part of the "new era" of permanent prosperity proclaimed by liberal-Progressive economists, exactly as they were to do again in the 1960s on the eve of President Johnson's disastrous stagflation.
Such was the pattern of thinking that governed President Hoover's reactions to the 1929 crash and the widening recession in 1930.
He began large public works projects and direct financing of private businesses. The only difference between his administration and the New Deal was the much larger scale of the latter operations.
In 1930, two years before FDR's election, the giant Hoover Dam project was started in Nevada. In 1931 President Hoover established the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC). Its purpose initially was to shore up small rural banks without sufficient liquidity to meet depositor runs because of too heavy a concentration in farm loans and insufficient diversification of other assets.
Parenthetically, after Franklin Roosevelt's election in 1932, the RFC, greatly enlarged under Jesse Jones, was to become the banker for hundreds of private corporations that were never authorized by Congress. In what amounted to government-sponsored Enron-style off-balance-sheet dealing, the RFC lent money to individuals who used the funds to buy stock and capitalize those unauthorized corporations at President Roosevelt's behest. None of it showed up in Federal budgets scrutinized by Congress.
What appealed to President Hoover's engineering sense was an organized and planned economy, implemented by voluntary compliance and guided by central planning. Additionally, he favored higher inheritance taxes and regulations to eliminate stock market "speculation." In other words, socialism.
To that end, President Hoover called heads of major corporations to Washington for repeated conferences in which he urged them not to lay off workers, to keep up wages and prices, and to continue to produce. If they did not do so voluntarily, he suggested, the government would be compelled to impose regulations to that effect. Businessmen were inclined to knuckle under, because they had seen Hoover, as Secretary of Commerce, force U. S. Steel to bow to labor union demands.
Economic reality called for the opposite of President Hoover's policies.
In real life, artificially holding up wages forces businesses to lay off more workers than would be necessary in a free market. Maintaining prices of goods, rather than liquidating inventories at whatever price the market will bear, causes businesses to reduce production more than otherwise, because inventories can't be sold at high prices.
Manufacturing businesses had high fixed costs for plant and equipment. No matter what the level of production, they had to keep paying interest on the debt that financed the plant and equipment. To avoid running out of cash during a sales downturn, they had no choice but to reduce labor costs, which were then about 70% of total costs.
Recessions end and workers are rehired only when there is a visible opportunity for businesses to increase production at a profit. That is impossible so long as warehouses are full of unsold inventories, and labor costs are too high. Remedying that requires liquidating inventories to pay off bank loans and cut loan interest payments, as well as laying off workers to cut labor costs.
President Hoover's jawboning of business leaders flew straight into the face of economic reality. The result was to squeeze profit margins and thereby to forestall normal free-market recovery. When he left office after three years of the Depression, unemployed workers constituted 25% of the labor force, almost six times the level prevailing today.
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What's Wrong with the Lakers?
Two night's ago, the Los Angeles Lakers lost 95 to 83 to the Derrick Rose and Luol Deng-less Chicago Bulls, and fell to 17 and 24 at the midpoint of the NBA season. The Lakers are now 14.5 games back of the Clippers and are currently in 12 place, and the fourth team out of the playoff race in the Western Conference.
Lakers star guard Kobe Bryant had an awful night, as he shot 7 for 22 while scoring 16 points in 42 minutes. Bulls small forward Jimmy Butler shut him down and was the "Kobe stopper," but Butler said Bryant just had an off night and missed shots he normally makes.
For the Lakers though, it appears that the worse is just getting worst. The Bulls played excellent defense against the Lakers, as they held them to 3 of 17 from three-point range. Their shooting woes are just many of problems the Lakers have; they aren't winning. The Lakers in January have a .182 winning percentage and have lost nine out of eleven.
Kobe Bryant has to be frustrated, and has expressed his frustration when earlier this month, he said the Lakers are "old." It appears there is a lack of chemistry on the Lakers.
Bryant has tried to carry this team, and is averaging 22.1 shots per game, and it didn't help Monday when the Lakers got outscored by the Bulls, 26 to 14 in the fourth quarter.
Bryant isn't getting help from his stars around him, and getting outscored late in the fourth quarter puts more pressure on himself to take shots, and doesn't get the rest of the offense involved. For example, Dwight Howard had four minutes in the fourth quarter against the Bulls and Pau Gasol hasn't been himself as he is shooting jumpers and he is purely a center.
Bryant said after Monday's loss, he wants more time for Gasol, after Gasol came off the bench against the Bulls. However, Gasol said he isn't excited about that role. Perhaps that may be the best role, though. Jeff Van Gundy noted on SportsCenter that Manu Ginobili has come off bench in San Antonio and it has worked, so could it work in L.A.? After all, either Howard or Gasol are going to have to split time and make it work for the best for the Lakers or it may be time to depart with one of them.
I believe that part of the reason the Lakers are struggling is Mike D'Antoni doesn't know how to best use the Lakers roster. D'Antoni loves to run an up-tempo offense and this team cannot do it. He is using players like Gasol and taking him out of his comfort zone.
Whatever the Lakers do, it's going to have to take a whole team effort for the Lakers to get back into the playoff hunt and compete for a title to fulfill the expectations of a "super" team that was built in Los Angeles.
The Lakers hope to avoid a seventh straight road loss tonight against the Memphis Grizzlies.


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Addiction and Hypnosis
An addiction is a habitual indulgence in any substance, activity or practice, that is beyond your control and affects your life for the worse.
Do you feel out of control?
Are you concerned about a certain area of your life?
Do you feel compelled to do something?
Do you crave something?
Do you feel dependant on something?
If you answered yes to just one of these, it doesn't mean you have an addiction or a compulsion, but it might be that you need to address the behaviour.
It doesn't matter if it is a Cigarette addiction, Alcohol addiction, food addiction, Shopping addiction, Exercising addiction, Drug addiction, Sex addiction, chocolate addiction, Porn addiction, gambling addiction, masturbation addiction, these are just a few of the types of addictions people develop and might seek help from Empowerment Hypnotherapy. Anything which is pleasurable can become addictive.
There is a common pattern which lies behind all addictions, research shows that all addictive behaviour whether it's food, smoking, shopping, drinking or snorting cocaine, work through the same pathways in the brain, the expectation pathway.
Empowerment takes an holistic approach to change Make an appointment today for a free consultation with Alexia at Empowerment Hypnotherapy based in Leicester Leicestershire.
Over the years, I have devised an approach which incorporates happiness and long term results drawing upon Hypnotherapy, NLP and ideas from Human Givens Therapy to help you overcome that addictive or compulsive behaviour.
Why choose Hypnotherapy, Hypnosis and NLP over other therapies?
I take an Holistic approach towards helping people change. Hypnosis is a heightened state of awareness. During a Hypnotherapy session, you're more susceptible to suggestions, ideas and behavioural changes, which often results in a change in our daily perceptions. You will experience a unique encounter and connection within yourself that will allow you to feel much more open-minded, allowing you to have freedom of imagination and greater attention to details, especially when recalling events.
Sometimes described as a 'trance', a hypnotic state can induce deep relaxation and tranquillity reflected in physical attributes such as reduced heart-rate, breathing and metabolism; changes in brain patterns have been documented also. This altered state of consciousness allows you to have an increased ability to listen and communicate and will be able to organise your thoughts more clearly.
Before you consider Hypnotherapy as your treatment option:
You must want to let go and give up your habit -addiction. When you are in a relaxed state of mind (trance), as a hypnotherapist I can help you gain control over your life in many ways. We can explore any triggers for relapse can be identified and avoidance techniques will be explored.
At Empowerment Hypnotherapy, our focus will be on positivity and your ability to succeed; this can be reinforced as we explore various motivational techniques. We may also need to address any issues your image self-esteem and self-control.
To demystify the positive expectation (That the addiction feeds you)
Revamp your lifestyle (Find new ways to get your needs met)
Prepare for high-risk activities or times (Ensure you have a wide range of coping strategies in place)I
I strongly believe what you do between sessions really accelerates change. You will be expected to complete exercises at home which will assist you making the change.
Common addictions:
Addiction to Shopping
Addiction to Caffeine
Addiction to Chocolate
Addiction to Computers
Addiction to Drugs
Addiction to Exercise
Addiction to Food
Addiction To Gambling
Addiction to plastic surgery
Addiction to self-harm
Addiction masturbation
Addiction to Illegal Drugs
Addiction to Pornography
Addiction to Sex
Addiction To Self-Harm
Addiction to Gambling
Stopping Eating Disorders, addiction to starvation
Sugar Addiction


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You will need to put in Your Sites Name, a Tag Line for your blog, Time Zone, Date Display, and choosing what day of the week you want to have as "new week".
These thing must be done and only take a few minutes.
Watch on youtube.com
Watch this short video How To and then you will be on your way with your new blog.
This video was made for the Hot Blog Tips Youtube channel...you can find more blogging tips and discussions there.
Sheryl Loch


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Just a heads-up for all of you: tomorrow we've got the "No Boys Allowed" episode featuring the Jen & Tracie Power Team, fresh off their total ownage of Blag Hag's poll of atheism's most influential women. What can we say? Hit the UStream early for this one, gang.
The following weekend, sadly, we're going to be pre-empted, a thing that looks like it's going to happen one Sunday per month for the next couple of months, at least. This is due to ChannelAustin using the studio for training purposes, most likely, so there's not a whole lot we can do about it. Well, I suppose we could fill in that weekend by shooting at Matt's place again, but I suspect with his work schedule and getting over a cold, he's probably not up for the hassle of it.
And thus I leave you, dear readers, with a small irrelevant item that I have no doubt will top off your WTF tanks for the rest of the weekend: some imaginative entreprenuer has decided that the one thing women really need when hosting baby showers for their expecting friends is a fetus-shaped cookie cutter. You are encouraged to decorate the cookies made therefrom with the baby's name, thus committing all shower attendees to a bizarre and rather queasy-making form of communion as the baby is symbolically passed around and eaten. Well, necessity is the mother of invention, they say.


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New artists will exhibit their work at the Nov. 21 Downtown Huntington Beach Art Walk.
Cristina Hoyos, a postmodern Surrealist artist from Colombia, will have her work on display, according to event manager Mary Ann Senske.
Hoyos explores the theme of "Witness" by using the image of a mysterious eye in the sky that appears in many of her paintings, collages and drawings, Senske said by email.
InnOcean will feature a specially commissioned work by artist Josh Agle, known as Shag, and the Huntington Beach Art Center is presenting "The Cylinder, the Sphere, the Cone," an exhibition by artists Pat Warner, Gary Simpson and Lana Shuttleworth.
The art walk takes place from 6 to 9 p.m.
For applications to be a host or a participating artist, go to hbdowntown.com or call (714) 536-8300.
Get your blowout on at MyBlow
Get lush locks at the new MyBlow LA, a blowout dry bar based in Los Angeles, which opens Nov. 15 at the Irvine Spectrum.
The 1,300-square-foot shop, near Nordstrom and Target, has 12 stations for blowouts and features a mix of contemporary and antique decor with hanging mirrors, a marble countertop and touches of white and silver mixed throughout the salon, according to spokesman Roy Hasson.
For $35, you can get "The Perfect Blow," the salon's signature blowout; "Big Head," a blowout that gives a lot of volume; or "Slick Lick," a sleek straight blowout. Other options are available at additional cost.
MyBlow is celebrating the holidays with Sunday Mimosas and Morning Blow and Cocoa.
MyBlow is in the Irvine Spectrum, 99 Fortune Drive No. 179, Irvine; (949) 943-3100 or email email@example.com.
Fendi debuts new look at South Coast Plaza
The newly remodeled 2,800-square-foot Fendi boutique at South Coast Plaza debuted its "Palazzo" concept, designed to reflect the brand's headquarters in Rome.
The design features an alternating curved facade that is wrapped in "soft-tone Roman Navona Travertine vertical panels, a classic ancient Roman stone, and vertical ribbed-glass panels made of parchment color with back-lit artisan glass," according to a news release.
Fendi, known for its handbags, furs, shoes and other accessories, plays up its offering at the South Coast Plaza boutique with a luxurious seating area and more intimate shoe area.
The store is having a private launch event in connection with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Wednesday.
Fendi is in the Jewel Court at South Coast Plaza, 3333 Bristol St. Call (714) 751-111.
Fashion takes the stage at event
The latest fashions from emerging designers will take over Newport-Mesa as the OC Fashion Showcase kicks off Thursday and continues through the weekend.
Peggy Tanous of the "Real Housewives of Orange County" will host the event, which starts at 6:30 p.m. at Newport Lexus for VIP ticket holders, who will be given a chance to mingle with celebrities and other guests at the celebrity meet-and-greet. The fashion show and entertainment starts at 8 p.m. Newport Lexus is at 3901 MacArthur Blvd.
Action sports and swimwear take the stage Friday at the Chuck Jones Center for Creativity, 3321 Hyland Ave. in Costa Mesa, across from the OC Mart Mix. VIP arrival will start at 6:30 p.m. with a red carpet and celebrity meet-and-greet event. The fashion show begins at 8 p.m.
Saturday is an invitation-only event, but on Sunday the showcase ends with a fashion show at the Westin South Coast Plaza Rooftop, 686 Anton Blvd. in Costa Mesa. The VIP event starts at 6 p.m., with the fashion show and entertainment starting at 7:30 p.m.
The showcase "promotes Orange County as a strong presence in the fashion industry and raises money to benefit the Orange County Fashion Trade Assn.," a nonprofit that gives scholarships to local students in need, according to a news release.
VIP tickets for the individual events are $49.99 and general admission is $34.99.
For more information, visit http://www.OCFashionshowcase.com.
Give thanks at Sapphire Laguna
Thanksgiving dinner doesn't have to be stressful, thanks to Chef Azmin Ghahreman at Sapphire Laguna. The restaurant is offering three options for the big feast: a prix-fixe dinner at the restaurant; a 10-item Thanksgiving meal to-go; or a la carte dishes at the Pantry that can be bought to go.
Those interested in dining at the restaurant can enjoy the three-course prix-fixe meal from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Prices for the meal vary based on choice of entree and beverage. Children's meals are half-priced.
The 10-item Thanksgiving meal to-go serves six to eight people and includes a traditional herb-roasted Diestel hen turkey and fixings such as potatoes, stuffing, chutney, gravy, rolls, three side dishes and a dessert, the news release said. Cost is $345 plus tax.
A la carte items vary in price. A Thanksgiving dinner for one is available, as are vegetarian requests. The Thanksgiving menu is at http://www.sapphirellc.com/pdf/thanksgiving-2012.pdf. Call (949) 715-9889 for more details.
Cannery giving back during November
The Cannery Seafood of the Pacific in Newport Beach is donating 25% of November sales to Heifer International, a nonprofit that works to end hunger and poverty and teaches people to care for the Earth, according to a news release.
Last year, owner Ron Salisbury and patrons donated $27,000 to the cause.
The Cannery, originally a commercial fish cannery in 1921, serves "the finest seafood available." The restaurant is at 3010 Lafayette Road, Newport Beach. Call (949) 566-0060 to make a reservation or visit http://www.cannerynewport.com.
ALISHA GOMEZ is the city editor of the Coastline Pilot. She can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com or (714) 966-4618.


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Evangelism: Naturally Speaking Good News
Foundational to speaking of Christ naturally is a strong assurance of your identity: "I am a new creation in Christ" (2 Cor. 5:17, NIV here and throughout). Supernaturally, you are a new person credited with the righteousness of Christ …Read More
Will Metzger
Will Metzger has been a campus minister at the University of Delaware since 1965, where he serves with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and Christian InterAction.


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To create a favorable political climate and protect their profits, both the food and tobacco industries have devised ways to anticipate -- and counter -- threats. Their tactics, often hidden from the public, reveal an important lesson: Success happens over the long haul -- advocates should plan accordingly. Read more >
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We love good food.
Good food needs regional and seasonal products. These are the pillars of our cuisine. Not more, nor less.
We travel a lot throughout the country, try and taste, visit local farmers and question neighbours. We pick and choose the best Sri Lanka has to offer. Be it Nalin's fish, Ravi's papaya, Roshan's buffalo milk or Dinesh's vegetables - we need to know our suppliers personally.
Besides the focus on Sri Lanka's overwhelming world of spices we will also let our european and austrian backgrounds influence our cooking. RIght now we are making our own brezels, baking our own bread and Austrian pastries and produce our own jam with a selection of Sri Lankan fruits. Even though the latter might be due to our occasional homesickness.
Be sure that we will find the appropriate choice to overwhelm your palate: nature's best fruits from our own UTMT fruit stand, your singhalese inspired egg-dish in the morning or for example the classic chicken curry for dinner on our picturesque terrace.


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|Uribe, Pedro - University Of Wisconsin
|Jansky, Shelley
|Halterman, Dennis
Submitted to: Molecular Breeding
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/16/2013
Publication Date: 2/1/2014
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/58407
Citation: Uribe, P., Jansky, S.H., Halterman, D.A. 2014. Two CAPS markers predict Verticillium wilt resistance in wild Solanum species. Molecular Breeding. 33(2):465-476.
Interpretive Summary: Verticillium wilt of potato is a widespread disease that results in yield loss. It is a soil-borne pathogen that is difficult to control. Very little resistance to the disease is present within cultivated potato varieties. Therefore, control of the disease is currently reliant on the application of fumigants before planting, which is costly and environmentally unfriendly. We have identified a region of the potato genome that is associated with resistance to Verticillium wilt. In order for breeders to track this resistance within breeding populations, we have developed a marker that is associated with resistance that can be used instead of determining the resistance phenotypes of populations in the field. The results of this work will impact the development of Verticillium resistant cultivars by not only providing resistant parental germplasm but also a rapid way to predict whether progeny will be resistant.
Technical Abstract: Verticillium wilt of potato is a persistent problem across several production areas of the United States. The disease, which is caused primarily by the fungus Verticillium dahliae is difficult to manage, causes yield losses and contaminates the soils for subsequent plantings. Control strategies based on host resistance are seen as long term, stable solutions, but difficult to achieve given the genetic nature of the host. To provide breeders with marker assisted selection alternatives for this disease, we generated a molecular marker on the coding region of Ve2, a potato gene with homology to the tomato Ve2 gene that confers resistance to V. dahliae. The position for the marker was determined according to the consensus sequences of Ve2 homologs of wild Solanum species that were screened for resistance or susceptibility to the pathogen. Experimentation leading to the development of the marker and tests of its usefulness against a wide range of Solanum tuberosum diploid and tetraploid material are presented here.


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Returning: SurvivorBy David Knox on April 19, 2012 / Filed Under Programming 14At last.Nine has finally scheduled Survivor: One World.It will begin at 10:30pm Tuesday May 1st.The 24th edition of the reality series strands 18 castaways on a single Samoan beach, where they are divided into all-male and all-female tribes to vie for the $1 million top prize.Nines scheduling is way behind the US, which began on February 15th. So far 9 episodes have aired.Unless it schedules extra episodes it is extremely unlikely Nine will be able to catch up before the finale. And we hate learning Reality winners before airing in Australia on a reasonable turn-around. At least Seven delivers The Amazing Race within the week of its US screening.Nine has been waiting for Top Gear episodes to conclude before starting Survivor despite fans asking for it to air on GO!
I just watched this last night... Every TUESDAY at 10.00PM on NINE..!!
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Press Release
EMC Smarts 9.1 Extends Leadership In Managing Virtual Data Centers
EMC Smarts 9.1 Integrates with VMware vCenter and EMC SRM Suite—Delivers Insight and Management into Every Layer of Virtual and Physical Infrastructure
Story Highlights
- EMC® Smarts® 9.1 extends EMC's virtual data center management capabilities to now include root-cause and impact analysis for all VMware vSphere® attached storage through new and enhanced integrations with VMware vCenter ™ Server and the EMC Storage Resource Management (SRM) Suite.
- New capability to provide root-cause and impact analysis for wireless networks through discovery of wireless controllers and the monitoring of wireless access points.
EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC) today announced significant enhancements to EMC® Smarts software, further extending EMC's leadership in managing virtual data centers and cloud environments. EMC Smarts 9.1 now includes root-cause and impact analysis for all VMware vSphere attached storage through new and enhanced integrations with VMware vCenter Server and the EMC SRM Suite. Smarts 9.1 software enables users to visualize and understand storage and virtual machine relationships and dependencies in both physical and virtual data centers—and is a leading solution capable of correlating VMware DRS and SDRS (Distributed Resources Scheduler and Storage Distributed Resources Scheduler) activity to overall data center management. With this latest release of Smarts, EMC is delivering another management solution supporting EMC's position as the #1 storage choice for VMware environments.
The EMC SRM Suite is EMC's single, easily consumable monitoring and reporting package that provides performance, capacity, and configuration management for EMC and select third-party storage arrays. EMC Prosphere® is a key component of the SRM Suite. Through Smarts 9.1 integration with the SRM Suite, EMC ProSphere now provides EMC Smarts 9.1 with storage topology- and device-level information to enhance the EMC Smarts management model.
The new enhancements to Smarts enable high service-level assurance and operational efficiency by eliminating management blind spots. Smarts delivers detailed insight into virtualized IT environments, from virtual machines to the underlying physical infrastructure. Smarts gives customers the ability to easily understand the fast-changing relationships and interdependencies among physical and virtual infrastructure elements. These elements include physical, virtual, and wireless networks, virtual switches, VMware vSphere Storage and virtual machine vSphere vMotion activity, virtual machine impacts, and device and path information for all VMware vSphere attached storage.
Smarts 9.1 Technology Highlights:
- Increased Virtual Data Center Visibility— Delivers line-of-sight of virtualized IT environments, from virtual machines to the underlying physical infrastructure, so that users can understand the interdependencies—including virtual networks, virtual switches, vSphere vMotion activity, VM impacts, and all VMware vSphere attached storage.
- Comprehensive Configuration Management— Delivers ability to see all changes and deviations from approved configurations, leverage policies to ensure desired configurations automatically remain compliant, make device updates and corrections faster and more easily, and eliminate the possibility of human error creating a service-impacting problem.
- Enhanced Ability to Identify & Act— Delivers the ability to automatically identify root causes, and quickly separate symptoms from problems so users can address the appropriate issue impacting application and service delivery. Users can also determine risk conditions by seeing performance degradations and understanding dependencies—before business impact occurs. In addition, customers can manage key cloud-enabling technologies, including protocol management, MPLS, optical, multicast, and VoIP.
Announced earlier this year, VMware vCloud® Suite 5.1 is a complete and integrated cloud infrastructure solution that integrates VMware's leading virtualization, cloud infrastructure and management portfolio—simplifying the adoption of cloud era technologies for customers. With this latest version of EMC Smarts, EMC is extending a holistic view across all IT infrastructure elements to dramatically improve availability and performance of applications and services. Smarts delivers a complete, unified view into the entire virtual data center, enabling customers to effectively visualize and understand the complex interrelationships among virtual assets, their underpinning physical elements and the applications and data sources that relate to them. While VMware is managing the virtual infrastructure, Smarts is managing the supporting "shared" physical and virtual infrastructure to provide a complete view of the physical and virtual environments.
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Nadine Routhier, Vice President, NCR Telecommunications and Technology
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It's common knowledge that people in L.A. love their cars. Maybe they lavish such affection on their automobiles because they spend so much time riding (or sitting, as the case may be) in the infamous Los Angeles traffic. Or maybe they just appreciate the creativity, beauty, and power of this most iconic of twentieth century inventions.
From the 1924 Bentley in Jay Leno's garage to Charlie Sheen's cliff-tumbling 2010 Mercedes-Benz, cars play a special role in the history and culture of Los Angeles. Some say California was designed for cars. But who is designing the cars?
Automotive designers use design principles and emerging technology to create commercial, yet innovative, designs for new cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, coaches, and vans. Often working in tandem with a large team of engineers, designers work to ensure that their concepts look good, can actually lead to functioning automobiles, meet relevant environmental laws, and are priced appropriately.
The tasks of a car design team are usually split into three main aspects: exterior design, interior design, and color and trim design.
- Exterior Design: This refers to development of the proportions, shape, and surfaces of the vehicle. Exterior design is first done by a series of digital or manual drawings, and clay models are made from those drawings. Even with 3-D software and virtual models, the clay model is still the most important tool in evaluating the design of a car. The data from these models are then used to create a further mockups of the final design.
- Interior Design: Automotive interior designers develop the proportions, shape, placement, and surfaces for the instrument panel, seats, door trim panels, headliner, pillar trims, and so on. The emphasis is on ergonomics and the ultimate comfort of the passengers. The design process for the interior design of the car is the same as with exterior design (sketch, digital model and clay model).The aesthetic value of the interior will need to correspond to ergonomic functionality and utility features as well. In particular, vehicular electronic components and parts will give more challenges to automotive designers who are required to update designs based on the latest emerging gadgetry, such as mobile devices like GPS navigation, satellite radio, mobile TV, MP3 players, and video playback.
- Color and Trim Design: This is what it sounds like. This designer researches, designs, and chooses the interior and exterior colors and trim (or color and materials). These materials include paints, plastics, fabric designs, leather, grains, carpet, headliner, and wood trim.
Automotive design is practiced by designers who have art backgrounds in industrial design or transportation design. Careers related to auto design include product design, automotive engineering, and electrical engineering. Successful designers need to be creative and should have strong math, drawing, and science skills.
Since automotive design is a very competitive field, good grades in school will help when looking for that first job. Courses such as industrial design, electrical engineering, mathematics, environmental science and computer-aided drafting may be required for designers looking to break into the industry.
An automotive engineering degree program can provide simulation training and hands-on experience in the field. An internship or work study program is often a necessary part of many automotive engineering colleges.


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Author Notes: Do you want to add a little kick to your drink? Here is terrific way to spice up any cocktail, smoothie, sangria or punch.
Tropical and juicy, this healthy combination of punch and a cocktail offers vitamins A and C. Jalapeno delivers more than a spicy kick: Anti-inflammatory carotenoids give the pepper its bright red skin. And to spike it: Stir Blanco or Anjou tequila, such as Casa Noble Crystal, into the juice. This organically produced liquor is triple-distilled for a pure agave flavor.
In this recipe came out the "Mad Scientist" side of me, while getting ready for my granddaughters 20th birthday. I used two recipes: one for Spicy Papaya Sunrise Punch, which I watched on Martha Stewarts' show and the second, just a basic recipe for Tequila Sunrise with an addition of Pomegranate Juice, which I had in a Brazilian restaurant. I used two melons instead of papaya and also expended the ingredients from 1 glass to 6 or 8 including the ice. The health benefit notes are also from Martha Stewarts show.
Serves: 6-8
• 4 cups orange juice, preferably fresh (from about 8 oranges)
• 2 cups tequila (Blanco or Anjou tequila, such as Casa Noble Crystal) or any you have
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons pomegranate juice
• 3 cups diced honeydew
• 3 cups diced watermelon
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 1/2 red jalapeno (sliced; seeded if desired to reduce heat)
• Ice cubes
• Slices of lime for garnish
• Slices of jalapeno for garnish
- Puree melons, lime juice, and jalapeno in a blender until smooth. Strain and chill.
- In a large punch bowl or a pitcher, combine orange, pomegranate juices and tequila; mix in the melon, lime and jalapeno mixture.
- In each glass, place ice, top with the punch. Serve, stirring just before drinking, garnish with a slice each of lime and jalapeno.
More Great Recipes:
Cocktail|Punch|Fruit|Jalapeño|Lime Juice|Melon|Pomegranate Juice|Tequila|Fall|Summer|Thanksgiving|Valentine's Day


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Pete McIntosh slips a hand into the gently-flowing Tukituki River and scoops out a strand of mossy green algae, matted like wet hair. This is periphyton. Deeper in, a bigger weed, macrophyton, extends fronds from the gravel bed. Both are signs of the river's poor health due to too many nutrients - phosphorus and nitrogen - from farms and sewage ponds and the river's reduced flow, linked to over-allocation of groundwater for farming.
"The weed changes the ecology of the river - reducing the insects and bugs which trout and native fish prefer," says McIntosh, Hawkes Bay Fish and Game's regional manager. The result is smaller and fewer fish. "This used to be one of the top four fishing rivers in the country. Now it wouldn't make the top 10."
The Tukituki is also a playground for the nearby residents of Hastings and Havelock North. "Growing up in Hawkes Bay, you always used to go to the river for a swim. Now, I wouldn't bring my daughter here, and I definitely wouldn't let her put her head under the water." The nutrients in sufficient concentration are highly toxic to wildlife, dogs and humans.
Drought has only made things worse - reducing the flushing effect which keeps algal growth at bay. McIntosh has never seen the river this low.
140 km upstream, in the foothills of the Ruahine Ranges, sheep farmer Craig Preston surveys pasture burnt golden brown by six months of drought and shakes his head: "This will be the end for lamb and wool in this country. It will knock us back two years and the suffering trickles down to the community for three years. We have to find a better use of the land."
Alongside Preston's property, the Hawkes Bay Regional Council is promoting a solution both to the Tukituki's environmental plight and to the farmers' thirst for water. What began as a scheme to reduce pressure on the groundwater which feeds the river has grown into a proposal to build the country's biggest dam in 20 years: a wall of concrete 83m high and 510m wide to flood a valley on the Makaroro River. The 4.5 sq km lake will store up to 90 million cubic metres of water, diverted further downstream into an irrigation canal and piped to the farm gate. The water could irrigate around 30,000 ha of the Ruataniwha Plains and transform the use of the land. Oh, and there's a hydro-electric power generator as well, able to serve up to half of central Hawkes Bay.
"We didn't set out to build a monument," says regional council CEO Andrew Newman, who is fronting the proposal. "This is the win-win solution - environmentally, economically, socially."
Eighteen smaller schemes came and went before it became clear that a very big dam would maximise the opportunities for healthier rivers and farm incomes, Newman says.
Water - the Government has identified it as the key to rural prosperity and the summer drought has only underscored its importance to our economy, with predictions it will shave $2 billion off GDP. Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy on Monday talked-up water storage as the answer to current and future droughts. "We don't have a shortage of water in this country - we don't have an ability to store that water."
But the climate has never been better to change that. The Government has earmarked $400 million from the partial asset sales process to invest in water storage infrastructure (it will expect a return on these investments), on top of funding already available for groups to progress schemes to "investment-ready"status. Hawkes Bay may be first to dip into the new fund - its water storage proposal is the furthest advanced of a number of irrigation schemes in the pipeline: smaller dams in Wairarapa, Nelson and central Otago and several river diversion schemes in Canterbury.
The Government at the same time has introduced a mechanism to fast-track "projects of national significance" through resource consent hurdles via the new Environmental Protection Authority. The council - which, as natural resource regulator, has an obvious conflict of interest in building a dam - will ask Environment Minister Amy Adams in May to "call-in"the project for an EPA board of inquiry. That process has a 9-month deadline and includes a submission period limited to just 20 days. The board's decision can be appealed only on points of law.
And while opening the floodgates for intensified land use, the Government has been slow to toughen safeguards for freshwater freshwater quality - only now drafting reforms.
All of these issues are colliding in Hawkes Bay. Water allows more intensive farming - more stock per hectare or additional crops a year - as well as increases in cultivated area. But environmentalists worry that irrigation hastens the conversion of farms and forest to "dirty dairying" and degrades waterways. At the Green Party's annual conference in Napier last month, co-leader Russel Norman branded the scheme "subsidised pollution".
"This dam will bring more large-scale industrial dairy farms to Hawke's Bay driven by debt and shareholders to exploit the land, the rivers, the cows and the workers,"
Never look a gift horse in the mouth
If Hawkes Bay gets the go ahead, the Government will expect a return on its investment and local farmers will also be invited to invest. But the water will be among the country's priciest - estimated to cost farmers 22-25 cents a cubic metre against a historic average of around 16 cents. And farmers will have to "take or pay", even in a wet year. On-farm infrastructure (piping and irrigators) will cost farmers $3500-$4500 a hectare.
Surveying parched fields from a hill on his Ruataniwha Plains farm, central Hawkes Bay Mayor Peter Butler can see the difference water makes - farmers with irrigation are green with crops or pasture; those without are bare. But drought in central Hawkes Bay is routine in January and February, and aquifers until now have supported a land use pattern of mixed cropping, lamb and beef grazing and some dairying.
What's different about this drought is that it started last September and has turned the whole North Island brown. Scientists predict a cycle of more dry years and the aquifer supply has been over-allocated.
"If we could get 40,000 ha of irrigated land, we would be an oasis in the North Island," Butler says. "There'd be no other place like this. If it was dry the cows would still be milking twice a day; people finishing lambs would still be finishing thousands of lambs from dry breeding country; crops would still be growing. Everything would just carry on."
The benefits would flow into the main towns, Waipukurau and Waipawa, he says. "Imagine the extra tractors and trucks requiring engineering companies and mechanics. If farmers are making more money they will be spending it on the good things in life. "This could be absolute boom times."
But how much is too much? What are the costs and who will pay - economically, environmentally and socially? While most farmers and local politicians share the council's enthusiasm, it's an understatement to say the scheme has polarised opinion in Hawkes Bay - and it's not just greenies taking deeply-entrenched positions.
You can lead a horse to water but you cannot make it drink
With the council driving the process and bypassing the Environment Court for the EPA there is concern democracy will be drowned in the rush. Although the proposal was included in last year's long-term plan consultation, critics say not enough was known about it - only now are some technical details surfacing.
Opponents have wide-ranging concerns from price and farm economics to democracy. McIntosh says the EPA is a more political process - the Minister appoints the board and may consult the council on its make-up. He also worries it will be less scientific than the Environment Court.
While the scheme was costed into last year's long-term plan consultation, details have changed and technical reports are continuing to emerge.
An umbrella environmental forum, Te Taio, claims the regional council refused a meeting to hear its concerns. Chairman John Cheyne says the council has spent $8 million to date on consultant reports and feasibility studies; opponents are largely volunteers who face an uphill struggle if it goes to a board of inquiry.
"I don't think the council has really been interested in anybody who doesn't agree with them." says Cr Liz Remmerswaal, a lone dissenting voice on the regional council. "There's a certain amount of 'getting the project over the line'. "
An environmentalist who rose to prominence fighting plans to build into the cliffs at Julian Robertson's Cape Kidnapper's development, Remmerswaal says she won't be seeking re-election. She says the council has conducted mock consultation with hand-picked stakeholder groups.
"It's like the fairy tale on one side and the reality check on the other and there's group-think going on around the council table which isn't healthy.
"This is going to look good on Andrew Newman's CV but it's not going to stop drought."
Farm economist Barrie Ridler is challenging the model used to estimate profitability gains for dairy farmers, claiming most gains come from improved farm practices and the irrigation costs will halve the profit. Ridler, a former senior lecturer at Massey University, farmer and consultant, says the council model also ignores farmers' debt servicing costs. He is promoting an alterative dairying model where profitability rises with lower stocking but, along with other critics, he gets short shrift from the scheme's proponents.
Why not take a breath and give everyone a say?
Newman says objectors had their chance during the long-term plan consultation.
"The gestation of these projects often takes a decade. My objective is to get it to a decision point within five.
"There's some real negative consequences - environmentally, economically and socially, if this thing doesn't run."
Though it's unusual for such projects to be led by bureaucrats rather than a politician or farmers, Newman is clear that the council can be both natural resource regulator and a facilitator of economic growth.
"It's not my ego that's got us here.
"Experience says you don't get these things across the line, or even to a decision point, unless you drive it."
The council needs to show investors there's enough demand for the scheme to be profitable and is wooing farmers with discount prices if they sign-up early and incentives for deep bore water users. None has obliged - while many are keen, most want more details before taking the plunge.
"It's going to be expensive, no two ways about it," says Hugh Ritchie, a third generation farmer and staunch supporter of the scheme. "Whoever goes in will need to be a good operator."
But Ritchie - who chaired the Tukituki stakeholders group which launched the process - has reaped the productivity gains of irrigation on his 300ha farm at Otane and, like others, has bought land in the irrigation zone.
"The Canterbury [irrigation] experience has been that there's a multiplier effect: huge benefits flow to the community from the additional dollars spent. You drive through Waipukurau or Waipawa at the moment and you see empty shops."
He hears the green argument that we can manage better with the resources we've got but argues that means standing still.
"You've got to build your economy on something you are good at. We've got an advantage in agriculture - we are blessed with water."
The scheme is modelled on best-practice farmers like Ritchie - "the top 20 per cent"- buying in. "My gut feeling is we can make it pay at 20 cents a cubic metre and that in 20 years' time that will seem bloody cheap," says Ritchie. "But there's a pretty big tie-up to efficiency and to changes in land management. It recognises that to get access to water we will need to meet certain environmental outcomes."
A sizeable area on the Makaroro River will be flooded to create the 7km long lake. It is mostly modified land: logged then converted to pasture or pine forest, though remnants of native bush remain - home to rare native birds and long-tailed bats. But environmentalists are less worried about the lake's impacts than the downstream effects.
Their over-riding concern is the power of water to change the way land is used - ushering in a conversion to dairy farms that will lead to more nitrate and nitrogen contamination of the river.
Everyone agrees irrigation will bring change - increasing property values by bringing water to the farm gate, whether farmers can afford to take it or not. "We've got farmers who are 60 years old," says district mayor Butler. "Some have no sons. They are not going to change their system and invest in irrigation when they'll be gone in 5 to 10 years. That's when the big-time investor farms come in because they can afford to do it."
Pete McIntosh and other critics fear those investors will be corporate dairy farms - the irrigation costs dictating the kind of returns that have fuelled the dairying boom in Southland, Canterbury and other regions. And with increased dairying comes increased nitrate leaching and nitrogen runoff into streams and rivers. Dairy farms lose an average 39kg/ha of nitrogen each year from soil, compared with 8 kg for sheep and beef, a 2009 MAF study found.
Proponents unashamedly nod to Canterbury, where irrigation has changed the landscape - and economy. Mayor Butler says his constituents are well aware of the difference dairying has made to Ashburton where "every second person's a millionaire". Yet environmental concerns about the pressure on the braided rivers led to the suspension of ECan, the elected Canterbury Regional Council.
There is, however, yet another string to the Hawkes Bay council's bow. To deal with the Tukituki's ill health, it has drafted a plan change for the catchment (which it also wants handled by the EPA board of inquiry because of its links to the irrigation proposal). The plan change raises minimum flow levels, introduces limits on pollutants and requires farmers taking groundwater to follow good farming practices, such as nutrient budgeting and fencing off streams.
An early bonus is that it has forced the Central Hawkes Bay District Council to spend $6.2 million to treat sewage at Waipukurau and Waipawa to a higher standard before it is released into the river, significantly reducing phosphorus contamination.
But the plan change at the same time allows for significant increases in nitrate and nitrogen levels in the river and its tributaries. The new limits allow for nitrate and nitrogen levels to rise three to five times in some parts of the river, says McIntosh. "They are creating headroom for more nitrates to allow for more dairying. Once nitrates get into the groundwater it's almost impossible to keep it out of the river and there's a lag effect."
The council cites advice from freshwater scientists that phosphorus is the main cause of algal growth in the Tukituki and that fixing the sewage ponds should fix the river, even if nitrogen levels rise.
McIntosh disagrees, and independent water scientists say the science is uncertain. "They've sold the nutrient problem as a phosphorus problem when it's actually both."
Horses for courses
The council and most farmers doubt that the dam will trigger the wholesale conversion to milking cows which critics fear. Dairying's thirst for water makes it an expensive proposition. The council's consultants predict a third of the newly irrigated land, about 10,000 ha, will go into dairying, with the economics stacking up well for sheep and beef and crop farms, which need less water than dairy farms.
"[Dairying] isn't everyone's cup of tea," says crop farmer Richard Dakins, who farms near Takapau in the south of the irrigation zone. Like Hugh Ritchie, he expects productivity gains from double-cropping, perhaps attracting another processing company.
"It's like an insurance policy - it gives you confidence to grow things because you know you're going to get the extra value.
"I think the bigger benefits will be downstream - for the health of the rivers and for the community: more labour on farms and more demand for services."
"I don't think I would look back if it goes ahead - I don't think the region will look back."
McIntosh hopes they are right - stressing that Fish and Game would welcome improved summer flows for the river and economic gains for the region.
"We have never been opposed to the dam, but not at the expense of the river.
"If they can improve the flows and the water quality, we are in. But we still don't know what the flows are going to be and the water quality is definitely going to drop."
At the Ongaonga general store - a classic grocery, cafe, post office and petrol bowser in the middle of nowhere - a woman reflects the community's uncertainty about the scheme. "I'm a farmer and a fisher - it needs to be good for both.
"I'm worried that only the rich farmers will be able to afford it, not the ordinary Joe Bloggs. We need simple answers and information - not graphs."
Thinking big: Ruataniwha water storage
Off-farm costs
An estimated $230 million for 90 million cubic metre dam on the Makaroro River, 6.3 megawatt power station, irrigation canal and piping to farm gate.
BOOT (Build, Own, Operate and Transfer) model is proposed, with investment company operating for 35-70 years before handing back.
Council to invest $80m. Government also a likely investor.
Other potential investors: iwi (Ngati Kahungunu), food processors, power generators, farmers, Fonterra.
Potential water trading regime.
On-farm costs
Farmers pay estimated $3500-$4500 per ha for piping, irrigators and pumps (where needed).
Water take charge estimated at 22c-25c a cubic metre. Contracts will be "take or pay".


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Teronya H, Tennessee
- 12/1/2012
About Me
Walt Disney World has been my "laughing place" since my first visit at age two, the year the Magic Kingdom first opened. A happily married, busy mom of two young boys, I also work as a Cardiovascular Services Outreach Manager for our region's largest health care system. I enjoy volunteering in many capacities, especially in my church, and also serve on the Board of Directors for a local outreach ministry in my community. I always look forward to spending lots of my 'free time' in the happiest place on Earth! I sincerely hope I can help you plan a Walt Disney World vacation that will allow you to experience the magic the way I do every time I visit!
About My Family
Married to my high school sweetheart for 22 years, we are raising two adventurous, athletic, and funny boys, ages 9 and 4. My "Mr. Incredible" is a hard-working attorney and golf enthusiast, and has been an avid fan of Walt Disney World since our honeymoon there. He surprised me with a membership in the Disney Vacation Club over ten years ago, and our family has enjoyed our "welcome home" to the Walt Disney World Resorts ever since! We love to invite our family and friends to join in our DVC vacations, and enjoy introducing others to the wonderful world of Disney!
About My Disney Experience
Walt Disney succeeded in creating a magical place- recognizing the rich history of those who came before us and building on the optimism, joy, and hope for a great, big beautiful tomorrow! As a child, this formula created pure magic for me. And now, as an adult, I realize that the magic continues because of the wonderful cast members (employees of WDW) who have a passion for creating magical moments for all of their guests! I've learned if you plan first, and then just relax, allowing flexibility in your schedule, the magical memories will happen without much effort at all!


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Celebrating 20 Years of Magic
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