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Content Marketing and iNeedArticles Website are buzzwords of the moment but there is confusion over what that really is and why a business should do it. This article sets out some of the basics.
The Best Jon Leger Article Software and More Traffic Strategies
If you create content that your prospective customers need and want, they will find it, consume and engage with it and ultimately transact a profitable action with you. They may also share that iNeedArticles Website derived content with their own friends and contacts, amplifying the effect.
So this is where you start – developing a content marketing strategy. First you need to work out what your audience wants. Finding them is easy, but working out what they're really interested in and why they visit certain sites or retail outlets is the issue.
All consumers are looking for solutions to their problems. Work out what those problems are and you can target your article marketing based on your iNeedArticles Website derived strategies for maximum effect.
Once the aims of the content marketing programme are set and customer needs identified, then you need to create the content to fulfil that need. That content can take many forms – here are just a few; videos, infographics, social media content, apps, website articles, blogs, eNewsletters, photos/illustrations, animations, webinars, microsites, etc.
If you can't produce that content yourself, you will need the support of writers, bloggers, designers and web developers. You will need a network of tried and trusted partners – videographers, coders, app builders etc – who will work to your strategy and brief.
Instant Article Wizard Review
Article marketing is one of the best ways that a business can promote itself. By doing something as simple as writing an article, a business can make its products and services available to a wider audience. Use the advice in the following article if you want to use article marketing.
One of the biggest problems marketers encounter with their article campaigns is that they do not complete enough articles to make an impact. Your articles do not have to be long, but they do need to be of a very high quality. And the more you write and the more locations you send them out to, the better your odds of success become.
Writing can be a good way to earn income for one's personal finances. Using the internet to sell ones writing such as how to guides or short stories can produce a return for a low to free start up costs. One can also take things they may have already written for school or fun to save time.
When you are trying to market your articles, always remember that providing information should come first. You can sell yourself, just do not make it too obvious. The readers are looking for things that will benefit them, and when you only attempt to sell yourself, the reader will have no benefits.
Content Marketing Trends in 2017
If you are a passionate marketer just like me, who is striving hard to keep up with the pace of vicissitudes occurring in the content marketing industry, you will definitely enjoy exploring this article! Talking about the year 2017 on advertising community, it was fully action-packed with lots of new endeavors.
Keeping in mind the eventful online marketing industry, it is impossible to admit that this pace would get any lower. So do you have any plans to cope up with the pace? I know it is somewhat daunting, but this is why I have written the blog! Let us discuss some of the leading trends of 2017 in the content marketing industry so that we are ready to handle it:
Personalization Phenomenon
Due to the bombardment of content and the development of new trends, the users are fully aware of the pros and cons. They are enjoying the luxury as a result of these advancements, but the users are also being manipulated and misguided through online marketing.
To handle this scenario, the marketers are now working on the Personalization phenomenon. The more user-friendly the content and online presence is, the more likely it is that the customers will feel relaxed and secure. Features offered should be more collaborative, and the individualized experience should be integrated.
Diversification of Advertisement
As the process of information flow on the internet is a never ending story, I should say, the customers have access to the online content information through various resources. Do you know the effects of these additional variables and considerations on the buyer? They are much confused now, but as everything has Pros and Cons, the people now are much more knowledgeable.
Thus they take more time to decide. They are inclined to conduct more researches than before. The decisions these days are complex, and the marketers are using more diverse mediums to attract their potential customers.
Buying Arenas: More than Ever!
The online shopping platforms are increasing day by day. Every company has its online marketing portal also as the online presence liberates you from the physical existence limitations. Now, due to this ease for the buyers, the online marketers have also been blessed by the numerous opportunities for advertising and conversion of potential customers.
Many vendors have gone 'online' via their App, and they are paying to the advertisers to display their App so that the customers can buy directly from that application. Through this method, the potential customer is converted before they move on to the vendor's website. This is indeed a great accomplishment for the vendors.
Mobile-optimized Marketing: On the Go!
Desktops usage has reduced over the past ten years, due to the increasing usage of the Mobile Phones and Tablets. The cell phones these days are bigger in size having larger screens and easier-to-use interface. Browsing the Internet through cell phones and tablets is a fun-filled activity. The marketing experts are paying more attention towards the responsiveness of the websites on these platforms.
Companies like Google, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter (and much more) are structuring their applications for the Cell Phones and Tablets, making sure that the leads are generated colossally.
Better the Amalgamation; Better The Results!
The Online Marketing strategy of the organizations is now integrated into the concept of mainstream marketing. Moreover, the online marketing has taken the place of the traditional marketing and its campaigns. The online marketing is traceable and diverse in nature.
To exemplify, I would like to mention regarding the interdependency of various marketing techniques. No matter how excellently written the online content is, without SEO it is not worthy enough to generate leads.
If you think keeping pace with these trends is difficult, you can take help from an online content marketing company that can cater your content marketing requirements effectively.
The Best Autoresponder System for Article Marketing MailingFind ONE Good Keyword.
Since Article Builder creates content, selects the title and builds links to thearticles that it posts to your blogs for you without you having to lift a finger, you don't have to deal with keyword research on your internal pages. That means the only keyword research you need to do (and you don't even really "NEED" to do it… it just helps,) is for the homepage.
To do this use Jon Leger's Keyword Titan Software but you can also use the Google Keyword Tool and stick in any one of the general categories that Article Builder covers. Next, just go to the homepage of Article Builder to find the list.
Now filter down to only those keywords that have at least 1,000 exact global monthly searches and that is fairly general… just about any topic under that niche would fit "under" it.
Then grab all of those keywords and start plugging them into the keyword analyzer of Keyword Titan until I find one that has a "Moderate" to "Easy" competition rating.
If you don't have Keyword Titan it's not quite as accurate, but you can go by the Google Keyword Tool's competition metrics and find one that has "Low" to "Medium" competition.
Once you have found one, that's what you target the homepage (root) of your new blog to. Of course you can get MUCH more in depth and technical with your keyword research and there's nothing wrong with that. But just go for volume and don't waste much time.
Return to Category Page: http://textsuiteuser.com/higher-google-rankings-jon-leger-article-software/
TextSuite User – More Traffic – Hints and Ideas to Make Best Use of Jon Leger's Article Content Creation and Article Marketing Software Products


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Summer's over. Time to break out the cashmere. We work with one of the best Italian mills to create ours—it's famously soft, comes in completely custom colors and, if you treat it with love, it will last forever. This one fits like your favorite sweatshirt, only it's way more luxe.
Size & Fit Details

subset: commoncrawl


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Well, it's that time of year again, and so much has happened since last year that it's hard to know where to begin[1]. There is so much to tell about our Fabulous, Fabulous Lives© in this year's Fabulous, Fabulous Christmas Letter 2009©. This year was especially Fabulous, as we welcomed a new presence into our lives that has changed our family for the better[2]. As I write this letter, Mark and I are sitting by the fire sipping our organic free-trade vegan mulled cider, reminiscing about our day. We spent the evening huddled around our glossy baby grand[3], singing Handel's Messiah in four-part harmony. (Unfortunately, Karis was struggling with the alto part, but she was able to recite Luke 4 using Baby Signs[4]). Jafta concluded our evening with a stirring rendition of Silent Night on his dulcimer, and then he and India performed the pas de deux[5] from The Nutcracker. Just a typical night in the Howerton house.[6] As we sit and reflect back on the year, I think it's fair to say it was marked by some highs[7] and some lows[8]. The beginning of the year ushered in my third trimester of pregnancy, and any of you who know me well know that this was a season of great joy and expectancy[9]. On April 26th, we welcomed Karis Jade Howerton into the world,. We had a brief adjustment period,[10] but I can safely say that we have finally found our new baseline as a family of five.[11] Shortly after Karis was born, my mother came for a visit, and then my sister and her family, and then my nephews stayed for a week. We've found that having a house full of visitors is a great way to acclimate to life with a newborn.[12] We also got to take a trip to Seattle to visit with Mark's brother and family. Of course, a year in the Fabulous life of the Howertons wouldn't be complete without several trips to our favorite Caribbean vacation spot that we love to frequent[13]. Just thinking of the sights and sounds of that tropical island remind me of so many memories from the last 3 years.[14] Speaking of, I am sure you've noticed that our family photo is still missing our little boy from Haiti we've been trying adopt for so long. In last year's Christmas letter, I jokingly said that if he wasn't home by this Christmas, that I would need a straightjacket.[15] Thank goodness I am a patient, laid-back person who doesn't mind ambiguity.[16] We are sending a photo of Keanan along with this letter. Would you set it somewhere in your house and pray for our adoption process when you see it? We could certainly use it. I am hopeful that next year our photobooth picture is a little more crowded. Jafta had a great year being four. He continues to be our little renaissance man. He loves literature, wooden toys, sketching architecture, and going to his Mensa meetings[17]. He got the chance to play on his first baseball league, and let me tell you, the offers just came rolling in[18]. After a couple of games spent in the outfield, he decided that baseball was boring, and he's now convinced that basketball is where the action's at. He is big man on campus in the older preschool class, and the tallest in his class by far. India got to join her brother at preschool this fall since she finally decided to lead a diaper-free existence.[19] She is enamored with all things princess right now, and doesn't feel her day is complete until she has made at least six costume changes. She turned three in October with a High School Musical celebration, and we are happy to have one more child out of the terrible two's.[20] Karis is almost nine months old and her personality is emerging every day. We have her on a strict combination of Babywise and Attachment parenting.[21] We've figured out how to do her tummy time in a sling, and I feed her "on demand" at precise 3-hour intervals.[22] Mark has continued to enjoy working as a therapist in private practice. It's tough to talk too much about Mark's work due to confidentiality stuff, but he's had some interesting cases this year, helping out the marriages of some high-profile couples.[23] He loves his flexible schedule and spending time with the kids, and continues to enjoy golf.[24] I have taken a little break from seeing clients during this season.[25] I'm still supervising a few interns and I will be teaching two classes in the grad psych department at Vanguard, but I prefer to spend my days doing traditional stay-at-home mom things.[26] I've also continued to dabble in writing for a couple online outlets. It's nice when something you love can also pay the bills.[27] In my spare time, I also decided to train for a 1/2 marathon.[28] I'm running the Disney World half in January, and I'm raising money for an amazing ministry in Haiti.[29] As always, we are grateful for your friendship and support, and thankful you've taken the time to read up on our antics[30]. We hope you have a wonderful New Year! ~The Howerton Family
[1] My focus group tells me this sentence is the best way to start a Christmas letter, because sounding busy = more Fabulous.
[2] Yep. That fancy blender from Costco is everything we had hoped for and more.
[3] An ancient, out-of-tune piano that has a ding on each key from being played with drumsticks by an anonymous percussion enthusiast in the house. Hint: also a spiderman fan
[4] Okay, not quite. But I swear I saw her give a fist pump when Russell won on So You Think You Can Dance.
[5] I had to google that word to know how to spell it.
[6] Actually, everything in that paragraph is a lie. It's the middle of the day on a Sunday and I'm alone in my kitchen, having just threatened Mark with his life if he didn't GET THESE LOUD KIDS OUTTA MY HAIR SO I CAN FINISH THIS FRIGGIN' LETTER ALREADY.
[7] Trips to the beach, the snuggie, Judas Priest at the OC Fair, Susan Boyle singing that song from Les Miz
[8] Two kids in diapers,
three six months of very little sleep, the flu (twice), Susan Boyle singing that song from Les Miz
[9]Panic , misery, back pain, and hormones
[10] How the heck will we fit all these kids in a Honda CRV? Or in a shopping cart, for that matter?
[11] Lowered standards, caffeine, earplugs, and boxed wine from Target
[12] Because after they all leave, that 1300 sq. ft. house that previously felt so cramped will feel like a sprawling mansion
[13] Haiti is technically in the Caribbean . . . right?
[14] Oh, the sense memory of bug spray, burning trash, and sweltering 80% humidity
[15] And that was a surprisingly accurate prediction of my current state.
[16] Stop laughing
[17] Okay, in actuality he loves sports, Transformers, guns, video games, and pretty much everything I've tried to steer him away from.
[18] We got offers to sell raffle tickets, to sell pancake breakfast tickets, and to run the snack bar. Go team!
[19] At least on M/W/F mornings, that is. I'm not above lying on the preschool application to get a little "me time."
[20] Although, so far our experience has been that 3 is the new 2. Or the new 13. Or the new Bipolar Disorder.
[21] Actual parenting technique we've employed with #3: Simmer down over there. I've got other kids to deal with.
[22] Oh man, these inside mommy jokes are funny to like THREE PEOPLE!
[23] But he would like to disclose that Tiger Woods was NOT one of them.
[24] Although, with the addition of the third kid, right now his enjoyment of golf usually involves watching it on tv.
[25] Because I spend enough of my time breaking up fights between family members, thank you very much.
[26] Putting a video on for the kids while I play on facebook
[27] And when I say blogging is paying the bills, I'm referring of course to the cable bill.
[28] Nope. That's actually not a joke. But please try to look a little less surprised that I'm doing something athletic.
[29] Please check it out and consider supporting me. www.heartlinerunners.blogspot.com
[30] Hey Kristen, it's Kanye. I'm gonna let you finish, but 2005's Fabulous Fabulous Lives© was the best Christmas letter of all time!


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SportsQuest, Richmond, VA, has been experiencing some difficulties that include missed rent payments, an end to a partnership, an eviction from its training facility and a lawsuit from the Virginia attorney general's office.
SportsQuest provides individuals and families in the Central Virginia region access to multiple facilities, youth and adult sports leagues, a fitness center, community events and discounted rates on sports training.
Numerous media outlets are chronicling the troubles of SportsQuest, which has had filings of mechanic's liens for unpaid bills totaling more than $1 million since last June, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported.
"It's been a challenging year," SportsQuest CEO Steve Burton told the newspaper last week. "I look forward to better days."
Last week, SportsQuest was evicted from its Midlothian, VA, training facility, which housed a basketball court and a weightlifting facility. At the same time, the Richmond Indoor Sports Experience (RISE) ended its partnership with the company. Richmond BizSense reported that the building's landlord took down the SportsQuest signs and told members that SportsQuest no longer operated the gym.
"Steve [Burton] always promised one more thing, but I could only take that for so long," building owner Neil Carns, told the newspaper. "Your patience just runs out."
SportsQuest had planned to build a 250-acre, $250 million Olympic-style sports village in Midlothian, but those efforts have been halted for the time being. Chesterfield County leaders agreed to a $4.3 million investment in the complex in the summer of 2010, the newspaper reported. The county signed a $2 million, 20-year lease for the use of soccer fields, which are in operation, but the remaining $2.3 million is for a senior center and indoor basketball court that have yet to be built, according to the newspaper.
Earlier this month, the Virginia attorney general's office sued SportsQuest, alleging that the company violated the state's health spa and consumer protection acts. The complaint was filed in the Circuit Court of Chesterfield County.
The lawsuit is in relation to the sports village, not the training facility, in Midlothian. In the complaint, Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli alleges that SportsQuest sold prepayment contracts from September 2009 to April 2011 without disclosing a projected opening date for the facility. After April 2011, SportsQuest also sold prepayment contracts that disclosed a projected opening date that has passed without the facility opening. Cuccinelli contends that each contract is void and unenforceable under the Health Spa Act. He is seeking restitution for consumers who bought memberships.
An investigation by the Office of Consumer Affairs revealed that as of July 9, 2011, SportsQuest had sold 725 memberships, according to the complaint. The range of fees for pre-paid 36-month contracts is from $800 to $2,600, and the fees for memberships on a month-to-month basis go as high as $249.95, according to the complaint. SportsQuest could face civil penalties of up to $2,500 per violation.
At the time of the lawsuit, Burton wrote a note on the company's blog in which he said the company would be broken up into three units: events, the academy and memberships. Burton also wrote that two prospective groups were engaged in acquiring the academy and memberships businesses. The Times-Dispatch, however, reported that no sales have been completed.
"While we have experienced delays related to the economy and pursuit of the east campus (sports village), we are confident that we will resolve any issues through our on-going discussions," Burton wrote on the blog.


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Choke hold by cop killed NY man, medical examiner says
Willie Grace | 8/4/2014, 6:46 p.m. | Updated on 8/4/2014, 6:46 p.m.
The New York City medical examiner's office Friday confirmed what demonstrators had been saying for weeks: A police officer's choke hold on a man being arrested for selling loose cigarettes killed him. The death has been ruled a homicide.
Eric Garner, 43, died July 17 after being confronted by police on Staten Island for allegedly selling illegal cigarettes.
During the encounter, Garner raised both hands in the air and told the officers not to touch him. Seconds later, a video shows an officer behind him grab the 350-pound man in a choke hold and pull him to the sidewalk, rolling him onto his stomach.
"I can't breathe! I can't breathe!" Garner said repeatedly, his cries muffled into the pavement.
The cause of Garner's death was "compression of neck (choke hold), compression of chest and prone positioning during physical restraint by police," said Julie Bolcer, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner's office. The death was ruled a homicide.
Acute and chronic bronchial asthma, obesity and hypertensive cardiovascular disease were listed as contributing conditions in a controversial death that sparked anti-police demonstrations and calls for a federal investigation.
Douglas Auer, a spokesman for the Richmond County district attorney's office, said the investigation into the death was continuing.
"We await the issuance of the official death certificate and the autopsy report," he said in a statement.
There was no immediate reaction from Garner's family.
The video of the incident showed the Staten Island man lying on the ground motionless after he was taken down by a group of officers. An asthmatic, Garner was later declared dead at a nearby hospital, according to CNN affiliate WCBS. Police said he suffered a heart attack and died on the way to the hospital.
"This is a terrible tragedy that occurred ... A terrible tragedy that no family should have to experience," New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said after the death, calling the video of the incident "very troubling."
Garner, a grandfather with six children, had a lengthy criminal history, including more than 30 arrests, and had been previously arrested for selling untaxed cigarettes in May, according to police.
But demonstrators in New York called the police response during his arrest excessive and criminal.
On July 19, Garner's friends and family rallied with the Rev. Al Sharpton in Harlem, demanding a full investigation into Garner's death, according to WCBS.
Officer Daniel Pantaleo, who is seen on the video choking Garner, was put on modified assignment and stripped of his badge and gun as the New York Police Department continues to investigate the incident, WCBS reported. The choke hold tactic is prohibited by the NYPD.
Two EMTs and two paramedics also were suspended without pay, according to Erika Hellstrom, vice president of development at Richmond University Medical Center.
In a statement, Patrolmen's Benevolent Association President Patrick J. Lynch called Pantaleo's reassignment "a completely unwarranted, kneejerk reaction for political reasons." He said the move "effectively pre-judges this case and denies the officer the very benefit of a doubt that has long been part of the social contract that allows police officers to face the risks of this difficult and complex job."
Police Commissioner William Bratton ordered an extensive review of the NYPD's training procedures after Garner death.
After a two-hour meeting with NYPD Training Commissioner Ben Tucker last week, Bratton ordered a "top to bottom review of all the training that this department provides to its personnel, specifically focusing on force, how do we train our officers for a takedown, how do we train them to use the various levels of force that they're authorized to use."
"I would anticipate that coming out of this effort that there will be a re-training of every member of the New York City Police Department in the weeks, months and potential years ahead," Bratton said.
For more information go too http://www.cnn.com


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Black Candy
Black Dum Dum Lollipops - Black Cherry
2 lb Bag$12.99
Licorice CHIPS
8 oz Bag$9.99
All Black Everything! Black candy can be used in many different ways. For a black and silver grad celebration, or at an elegant themed cocktail party. Adding black will introduce a sense of sophistication to your event. Black is totally the new pink.


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Understood Our Saa S Market Very Helpful Good Referrals
Fund: StarVest Partners
Posted by firstname.lastname@example.com on 2011-02-08
We were introduced to Starvest by Golden Seeds, we did not fit StarVest's criteria and we proceeded to raise our $5 million Series A round with Golden Seeds and BDC (subdebt provider). We found Jeanne very knowlegable about our space and very helpful. She introduced me to two very successful CEOs of SaaS companies in StarVest's portfolio, with customer profiles very similar to ours. These introductions brought me key insight at very inportant junctures in our business, and helped me in strategic decisions and persuasive discussions with customers and investors. Jeanne is ACES in my book!PRIVATE: Members Only


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The C-130's been around for a long, long time. Korean War old. Propeller old. It's a hell of a tough old plane, delivering cargo and people reliably around the world, but it's time to replace it. How 'bout this monster?
The Lockheed "Speed Agile" looks like something the X-Men would pilot, but it's currently undergoing testing in the world's largest wind tunnel, owned by the Air Force. Designed to be super flexible and capable of landing in "oh, shit, there's no runway" settings, the Speed Agile would also be able evade radar for crucial runs. The one you see here is only 23 per cent of the real deal. Which doesn't exist yet. But if it ever does see the light of day — which is a huge if, with any military prototype — it'll be gigantic. I just hope they build it tough enough to withstand a direct drone hit. [DEW Line via DefenseTech]


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Conservative Media Fail In Their Attempt To Dismiss Report About Romney Bullying Incident
Research ››› ››› CHELSEA RUDMAN
Right-wing media have rushed to dismiss the Washington Post's report that Mitt Romney held down a high school classmate and cut his hair, claiming that "the source" for the story "wasn't actually there." In fact, the Post story relied on accounts from five separate sources, four of whom were named, and as the Post's ombudsman noted, their "accounts remain unchallenged." Romney himself said that he's "seen the reports" about the incident and that he's "not going to argue with that."
Wash. Post Article Describes Romney Forcibly Cutting High School Classmate's Hair
Wash. Post: "Mitt Romney's Prep School Classmates Recall Pranks, But Also Troubling Incidents." From a May 10 article in The Washington Post:
Mitt Romney returned from a three-week spring break in 1965 to resume his studies as a high school senior at the prestigious Cranbrook School. Back on the handsome campus, studded with Tudor brick buildings and manicured fields, he spotted something he thought did not belong at a school where the boys wore ties and carried briefcases. John Lauber, a soft-spoken new student one year behind Romney, was perpetually teased for his nonconformity and presumed homosexuality. Now he was walking around the all-boys school with bleached-blond hair that draped over one eye, and Romney wasn't having it.
"He can't look like that. That's wrong. Just look at him!" an incensed Romney told Matthew Friedemann, his close friend in the Stevens Hall dorm, according to Friedemann's recollection. Mitt, the teenage son of Michigan Gov. George Romney, kept complaining about Lauber's look, Friedemann recalled.
A few days later, Friedemann entered Stevens Hall off the school's collegiate quad to find Romney marching out of his own room ahead of a prep school posse shouting about their plan to cut Lauber's hair. Friedemann followed them to a nearby room where they came upon Lauber, tackled him and pinned him to the ground. As Lauber, his eyes filling with tears, screamed for help, Romney repeatedly clipped his hair with a pair of scissors. [The Washington Post, 5/10/12]
Right-Wing Media Dismiss Article By Claiming "The Source" For The Story "Wasn't Actually There"
Daily Caller: "Cracks In The Washington Post Story On Romney's 'Pranks' Emerge." From a May 10 post on the conservative site The Daily Caller:
A question emerges in reading the Washington Post piece on Mitt Romney today: How can Romney's old pal Stu White tell the Washington Post that he has "long been bothered by the Lauber incident" -- and then later admit to ABC News that he was "not present for the prank" and "was not aware of it until this year when he was contacted by the Washington Post"?
This is curious.
The Washington Post story reports: "I always enjoyed his pranks," said Stu White, a popular friend of Romney's who went on to a career as a public school teacher and has long been bothered by the Lauber incident."
But ABC News, says: "White was not present for the prank, in which Romney is said to have forcefully cut a student's long hair and was not aware of it until this year when he was contacted by the Washington Post." [The Daily Caller, 5/10/12]
Doocy Claimed That "The Source For The Story, Stu White ... Wasn't Actually There." On the May 11 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, co-host Steve Doocy summarized the Washington Post article and then claimed that there are "cracks in the story." He referred to one person named in the story, Stu White, as "The Washington Post's source" for the article and said White "wasn't actually there" for the incident:
DOOCY: Another story that flashed across your computer screen and across your television as well was this 5,000-word story in The Washington Post yesterday where it's alleged that when he was in high school, Mitt Romney was involved in a prank where he and some other guys bullied a kid with long hair, got him down, and cut his hair. Some are now wondering whether or not it was a hit job because there's some cracks in the story. For instance, apparently, The Washington Post's source for the story, Stu White, who said -- is quoted as saying, "I was always bothered by the Lauber incident" -- he wasn't actually there. And he wasn't present for the prank, and he only heard about it this year when he was contacted by The Washington Post.
Co-host Gretchen Carlson then read a statement from Lauber's family saying that the "portrayal of John is factually incorrect and we are aggrieved that he would be used to further a political agenda." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/11/12]
Doocy: "The Facts Are Falling Apart, And Falling Apart Fast. So Is It Just Another Media Hit Job?" Later in the broadcast, Doocy said: "Meanwhile, chances are, you saw the report -- a mainstream newspaper calling Mitt Romney a big, bad high school bully. Problem? Well, the facts are falling apart, and falling apart fast. So is it just another media hit job?" [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/11/12]
Megyn Kelly: "The Key Guy On Whose Testimony This Is Based Now Admits He Wasn't There." On the May 11 broadcast of Fox News' America Live, host Megyn Kelly said:
KELLY: And yet, Chris, many in the media today -- I'm talking mainstream media reporting today -- still is not mentioning the fact that the key guy on whose testimony this is based now admits he wasn't there, and the sisters of the alleged victim have come out and said, "Not to our knowledge, and our brother would not want this being reported in this way." And so there are at least some questions about the accuracy that are not also being added by other outlets reporting the Post's front-page story today. [Fox News, America Live, 5/11/12]
Hannity Claimed "A Lot Of These Accounts Have Fallen By The Wayside" And Added, "That Person Has Rescinded The Story -- His Story." On the May 11 broadcast of his talk radio show, host Sean Hannity discussed the Post story with University of Pennsylvania professor Anthea Butler. Hannity claimed that "a lot of these accounts have fallen by the wayside" and claimed that "that person has rescinded the story -- his story." From the show:
BUTLER: I think, though, that's what important about this is something very, very specific. And you know, bullying is wrong on every count, but what the difference is, is that Mitt Romney says, "I don't remember," and you've got all of these accounts. And so if the people [unintelligible] --
HANNITY: No, no, no. A lot of these accounts have fallen by the wayside.
BUTLER: I don't think so.
HANNITY: Oh, yes they have.
BUTLER: I meant, there's a couple of people from the story who have said, you know, "This was really terrible."
HANNITY: OK. And there's also other --
BUTLER: "I thought about it for years afterward" --
HANNITY: And -- but wait a minute. But that person -- wait a minute.
BUTLER: And they [unintelligible]
HANNITY: That person has rescinded the story -- his story. And he said, I didn't know about this, they put my name in this piece, until they had contacted me. And the family is saying, the sister of this kid, by the way who died in 2004, she described her brother as a very unusual man. He didn't care about running with a peer group. And they say that what they're saying, this portrayal is factually incorrect, and they don't like this being used to further a political agenda. [Premiere Radio Networks, Hannity, 5/11/12]
But Five Sources Gave The Post Accounts Of The Incident -- And Stu White Wasn't One Of Them
Wash. Post Article Listed Five Sources For Lauber Story. The Washington Post article cited five students who "gave their accounts independently of one another," four of whom spoke on the record and one of whom asked to remain anonymous:
A few days later, Friedemann entered Stevens Hall off the school's collegiate quad to find Romney marching out of his own room ahead of a prep school posse shouting about their plan to cut Lauber's hair. Friedemann followed them to a nearby room where they came upon Lauber, tackled him and pinned him to the ground. As Lauber, his eyes filling with tears, screamed for help, Romney repeatedly clipped his hair with a pair of scissors.
The incident was recalled similarly by five students, who gave their accounts independently of one another. Four of them -- Friedemann, now a dentist; Phillip Maxwell, a lawyer; Thomas Buford, a retired prosecutor; and David Seed, a retired principal -- spoke on the record. Another former student who witnessed the incident asked not to be identified. The men have differing political affiliations, although they mostly lean Democratic. Buford volunteered for Barack Obama's campaign in 2008. Seed, a registered independent, has served as a Republican county chairman in Michigan. All of them said that politics in no way colored their recollections. [The Washington Post, 5/10/12]
Stu White Was Not One Of The Five Sources Who Gave Accounts Of The Lauber Incident To The Post. While the Post did issue a clarification stating that White "has been disturbed by the incident since he learned of it several weeks ago from a former classmate," White was not one of the five sources the Post interviewed who described Romney holding down Lauber and cutting his hair. [The Washington Post, 5/10/12]
Wash. Post Ombudsman: Accounts From The Five Sources "Remain Unchallenged." From a May 11 post by Washington Post ombudsman Patrick Pexton on his blog:
The Post changed the story after talking to White again and discovering that White only learned of the prank in recent weeks after being told of it by a Cranbrook classmate.
Kevin Merida, national editor of The Post, said on Friday that "We should have updated it with a note." I agree with Merida. I would have used strike-through text online to make it clear to readers that that part of the online story was changed. I think that's just the better part of candor. There is now an editor's note at the very bottom of the story. The Post is not calling it a correction. I think it is a correction, but not germane to the central theme of the story.
This part of Horowitz's story is tangential at best. It is only about how one person, who was not an eyewitness, felt about the incident.
Four of the five witnesses to the forcible haircut cited by the Post are on the record, by name, and remember it well. Their accounts remain unchallenged. I also think it's important to point out that Romney quickly apologized after the story was published, and although not a detailed apology, I think his demeanor in the apology seemed genuine. [WashingtonPost.com, Omblog, 5/11/12]
And Romney Himself Said He's "Not Going To Argue" With "Reports" About The Incident
Romney: "I've Seen The Reports -- Not Going To Argue With That." On the May 10 edition of his Fox News show, host Neil Cavuto asked Romney about the Post story. Romney said that he didn't "recall the incident" but that he was "not going to argue with" the "reports." From the show:
ROMNEY: Well, first of all, I had no idea what that individual's sexual orientation might be. Going back to the 1960s, that wasn't something that we all discussed or considered. So, that's simply just not accurate. I don't recall the incident myself, but I've seen the reports, and not going to argue with that. There's no question but that I did some stupid things when I was in high school. And obviously, if I hurt anyone by virtue of that, I would be very sorry for it and apologize for it. [Fox News, Your World with Neil Cavuto, 5/10/12]
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3 April 2008
Dear Members of Parliament,
We write on behalf of the European business travel community and corporate travel buyers, concerning the Parliament's forthcoming consideration of the Commission's proposal to revise the 'Code of Conduct' Regulation for Computerised Reservation Systems ("CRS") [COD/2007/0243]. Mr Timothy Kirkhope has published the Parliament's draft Report on behalf of the Transport Committee. The report will no doubt be widely endorsed by the overwhelming majority of travel industry participants.
For nearly 20 years the existing Regulation has governed the behaviour of the CRSs currently used by travel agencies to make reservations for their business and leisure customers, and of the airline owners of such systems (known as 'parent carriers'). History has demonstrated the painful lesson that whenever airlines hold financial interests in CRSs they inevitably will engage in competitive abuses in both the airline and airline distribution sectors - unless this misconduct is effectively restrained by clear rules. Since nearly all corporate travel to this day is booked by travel agencies equipped with CRSs, the issue of getting the Code right is of especial significance to business travellers. A multitude of other stakeholders have expressed similar concerns, including BEUC and ECTAA (on behalf of European travel agencies).
On its face, the proposed revised Code seemingly includes all of the required safeguards against predations by parent carriers and systems they own. Unfortunately, this is not the case. At the final press conference announcing the revisions to the Code, the Commission volunteered the view that, despite maintaining the definition of parent carriers, specific airlines with significant stakes in a CRS were no longer considered parent carriers. Specifically, Air France, Iberia and Lufthansa, who collectively hold over 46% of the equity of the Amadeus CRS, would not be subject to the revised Regulation. Even in a regulated environment where overt abuses of market power to favour Amadeus have been curbed, these three airlines have found sufficient tools at their disposal to steer travel agencies to use the system they own that Amadeus boasts market shares of over 75% in each of the three Member States where its three airlines are dominant as air carriers.
Stakeholders have been stunned to learn that parent carrier rules in the EU today apply to no one. Nowhere in the consultation process did the Commission express this view, nor invite comments on the meaning of parent carrier, nor ask for submissions on the issue of the scope of application of parent carrier rules. Even more tellingly, none of the aforementioned airlines even suggested they were not bound by the parent carrier safeguards at the Hearing of 2 May 2007. To the contrary, the airlines complained the duties of a parent carrier were "obsolete" or "burdensome."
Clearly this has rendered the most critical protections of the Code toothless. In ways that before were patently unlawful, the three Amadeus owners are now free to discriminate in favour of Amadeus, and Amadeus is free to discriminate in favour of its three owning airlines. The upshot is that travellers all across the EU are now staring directly into the abyss of higher fares, less choice and poorer service.
The German airline Lufthansa, believing it has a green light from the Commission to ignore its historic duties under the Code as a parent carrier of Amadeus, has already announced a scheme, to take effect in October, which will sharply increase the costs of travel for consumers in Germany.
Parliament has the opportunity to correct the parent carrier loophole created by the Commission to avoid detrimental effects for travellers across the EU. Without amendment travellers will face a less competitive environment for air fares, and many small/medium-sized travel agencies will find it increasingly difficult to remain competitive while operating rival systems to Amadeus. Accordingly, we call on the Parliament to close this dangerous loophole by amending the definition of parent carrier so as to leave no doubt that, given their ownership interests in Amadeus and their representation on its Board, Air France, Iberia, and Lufthansa remain parent carriers and must respect the historic safeguards against competitive abuses that have long applied to parent carriers.
We thank you for taking the time to consider this important matter, and urge your support of the Kirkhope report.
Kind regards,
International Airline Passengers Association
Belgian Association of Travel Management
Business Travel Coalition
The Business Travel Partnership Ltd
Philips Electronics
Dow Europe
Marathon Oil Ireland Limited
Sterling Jewelers Inc.
ABN AMRO Bank NV
Selfridges Retail Limited
LFC Consulting
Airtrak Travel systems
McMaster University
Shell Oil Company Nigeria
Inter IKEA Group
Elavon Financial Services, LTD
Expedia Corporate Travel
Norseman Travel Limited
The Travel Company Edinburgh
Yorkshire Travel Services LTD
O'Flaherty Holdings Limited
ExpressJet Airlines
Baillie Gifford & Co
Liberty Global Europe
Garber | FCm Travel
Ben Lawries Travel Ltd
Dawson and Sanderson Limited
Northrop Grumman
The Travel Centre Ltd
American Express Business Travel
Glen Travel
Harman International Industries
Travel Harbour
Novo Nordisk A/S
Medway Travel Limited
NetJets Europe
Travelogica AB
Jules Boutin Travel Bureau
MTS Travel
A.T. Kearney, Inc.
Johnson Controls
Lubrizol Ltd
Lafarge M
Rich Products Corporation
Illinois Tool Works Inc.
HealthCare California
RTW Travel Group Limited
Windsor & Neate Travel
The Travel Bureau Ltd
Courtesy Travel
Online Regional Travel Group Ltd
Camberley Travel Centre
Giles Travel Ltd
Barrhead Travel Service
The Corporate Travel Partnership
Matrix Travel
S & N Pickford Ltd
Tickets Anywhere
Omega Executive Travel
The Travel Professionals Ltd
Wayne Travel Management
Stewart Corporate Travel
Senior International Travel Ltd
Lupus Travel Ltd
Baxter Hoare Travel LTD
Baldwins Travel Agency
Fair's Fare
Norad Travel Group Ltd
Colpitts World Travel
Carnival UK
Tommy Hilfiger
Eaton Corporation
Travel Management Alliance
Sun Chemical Ltd Packaging Div
Corporate Travel Partners
IFC Specialists, LLC
Prime Findings,LLC
FANUC Robotics America, Inc.
University of Alaska
QA Business Travel Ltd
Blue Marine Travel
John Proctor Travel
Forward Travel Management
Business Travel Direct
T2Impact Ltd
Cresta World Travel
LasVegasConventionTravel.com Inc.
The Travel Team
MKI Travel and Conference Management, Inc.
MH-Global lCommunications Network
BuonViaggio Travel
Horizon Travel


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Under the guise of a "get," ESPN's Jeremy Schaap has been enlisted as an unofficial P.R. agent for linebacker Manti Te'o. And Schaap spent extensive time on SportsCenter presenting Te'o's side of the story, serving as the indirect mouthpiece for a man who claims no involvement in a hoax but who after months of talking freely and loosely on camera suddenly has no desire to do so.
Schaap opened his extensive on-air monologue by vouching for Te'o's credibility.
"He answered every question I asked," Schaap said. "He didn't seem nervous. He seemed to be able to communicate clearly about everything that had happened over the course of several years in his relationship with Lennay Kekua. To my ears, he made a very convincing witness in his own defense. I'm sure people will form their own judgments when we have a chance to put out more of what he said. I don't know how many questions were asked, but as I said he answered all of them, really unflinchingly. If he's making up his side of the story, he's a very convincing actor. Of course, there were suggestions over the last couple of days — more than suggestions, theories posited — about whether he was a party to this hoax, if he just helped perpetuate this hoax. He adamantly denies having anything to do with it, and I asked him directly about that."
After Schaap explained the situation for roughly 10 minutes, he was asked about Te'o's demeanor.
"He was very composed, he was very collected," Schaap said. "There wasn't any hemming or hawing. He certainly seemed to have his timeline down straight. I did not detect any inconsistencies. And I think, you know, significantly from his point of view anyway, when it was over he was relieved. He said he was very relieved to have unburdened himself of this."
Schaap vouched for Te'o's credibility once again in explaining why Te'o didn't want to do the interview on camera.
"Obviously we would have preferred to do this on camera," Schaap said. "He felt more comfortable in a setting without cameras, felt he could be more relaxed without a lot of people in the room. Wanted this to be as natural a setting as possible. I think it would have been beneficial to him to do this on camera because as I said he was very composed and collected but that's not what he wanted to do. It's not the first time somebody hasn't wanted to do an interview on camera."
Schaap is right, but it's the first time the otherwise camera-eager Te'o has spurned a camera. And so instead of giving the audience at large an opportunity to watch him explain himself, the conduit to Te'o's overall credibility is the guy who was granted an interview that Te'o didn't have to give at all. That fact naturally will make the interviewer — whoever it is — more inclined to paint the subject of the interview in a positive light.
Indeed, a questioner less friendly to Te'o's predicament could have led the report with this statement: "Te'o admitted that he never met the fake dead girlfriend, and that he lied to his family about meeting her." Choosing to focus on that aspect of the interview at the outset of the report would have prompted many to instantly wonder whether, if he lied to his family about meeting her, he's lying to the rest of us about his lack of involvement in the hoax.
"I knew that — I even knew, that it was crazy that I was with somebody that I didn't meet, and that alone — people find out that this girl who died, I was so invested in, I didn't meet her, as well," Te'o told Schaap. "So I kind of tailored my stories to have people think that, yeah, he met her before she passed away, so that people wouldn't think that I was some crazy dude."
In a court of law, having someone admit to a lie is powerful, because it gives the lawyer more than enough ammunition to argue that everything the person says shouldn't be taken at face value, and possibly shouldn't be believed at all.
And while Schaap claimed he detected no inconsistencies, Schaap's explanation of Te'o's ongoing references in the media to his dead girlfriend after learning that she wasn't dead speaks to a stew of potential inconsistencies that, if fully and completely probed, could expose a flaw that would be fatal to Te'o's entire story.
"[Notre Dame Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick] said that on December 6, Te'o got a phone call from a person who he believed to be Lennay Kekua, who he thought had died on September 12," Schaap explained. "Te'o says he did get that phone call on December 6, but that did not convince him that this had all been a hoax. That took longer to get around to. But between December 6 and December 26, when he went to Notre Dame to tell them about the problem, he continued to talk about Lennay Kekua, his girlfiend, in several interviews, including an interview with our Chris Fowler during the Heisman Trophy presentation on December 8th. And [Te'o] explained why that happened, because he said he wasn't convinced that Lennay Kekua hadn't died, that she was a hoax, now he was thinking maybe she was alive. She had given him some story about drug dealers."
So why did he keep referring to her as being dead?
There are more tidbits that appeared not in Schaap's on-air report (or in the original ESPN.com story that contained only 32 words from Te'o regarding his denial of involvement) that make us wonder how Te'o could have been oblivious to the existence of a hoax, which based on his admission that he lied to his father would cause a reasonable person to wonder whether he's lying to the rest of us now.
First, the latest ESPN.com article says that "T'eo tried to speak with Kekua via Skype and FaceTime on several occasions, but the person at the other end of the line was in what he called a 'black box' and wasn't seen." Second, the ESPN.com article says that Te'o "planned to meet Kekua in person several times, including in Los Angeles and Hawaii, but on each occasion she called off the meeting or sent others in her place." Third, the ESPN.com article explains that "Kekua once requested his checking account number in order to send him money," but that "Te'o did not provide his account number." Fourth, the ESPN.com article says that Te'o didn't go see her in the hospital when she was recovering from a car accident or battling leukemia because "it never crossed my mind" to do so. Fifth, the ESPN.com article says that Te'o didn't attend Kekua's funeral because "her mom didn't want me to come."
Perhaps the strangest question arises from Te'o's claim to Schaap that, as explained by Schaap on air, "[r]ight up until a few hours before the Deadspin story broke two days ago [Te'o] wasn't quite sure what happened but at that time he got a phone call from Ronaiah Tuiasospo in which he admitted that he had perpetrated this hoax and in a series of communications also apologized for it." The notion that Te'o "wasn't quite sure what happened" until "a few hours before" the story broke doesn't mesh with the very clear picture painted Wednesday night by Swarbrick of extensive meetings and a private investigation with a comprehensive report, or with the reported plan by Te'o to go public with the hoax two days before the story broke.
The only conclusion that we draw from any of this is that it's still too early to draw any conclusions. Te'o's uncle has raised a potential financial incentive via raising funds for leukemia victims hasn't been explored and wasn't even mentioned anywhere in the on-air or online ESPN reports.
If Tuiasosopo used the fake dead girlfriend as a way to raise money, with or without the knowledge or assistance of Te'o, the appropriate authorities should look into the situation. Indeed, the request for checking account numbers could be enough to green light a criminal investigation. A high-profile case like this one would, if any laws were broken, send a strong message of deterrence to anyone who is tempted to "catfish" not for sport, but for profit.


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Kikuhamon Branch Cutter 6.5" (High Carbon Steel)
Product Code: N-8101
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Item# N-8101
Blade steel: High carbon steel
Largest diameter it will cut: 13/32"
Overall length: 6.5"
Blade length: 13/16"
Weight: 0.20lbs
Used extensively for delicate branch cutting of Bonsai. This cutter will remove the branch and leave a straight (flat) cut zone on the Bonsai tree. Most branch cutters are designed to cut diameter that is one-third the size of the blade, one half at the maximum.
If a branch cutter seems to require extra force to cut a certain size branch, it is recommended to use a larger branch cutter.
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News from the world of Maths
In our Science fiction, science fact project we asked you which question from the frontier of physics you'd most like to see answered on Plus. We have just closed the poll and with nearly 20% of your vote the winning question is Does infinity exist?.
Happy Pi Day to you! Happy Pi Day to you! Happy 3.14159265358979323846264338327950288.... Day to you! Happy Pi Day to you!!
If you've been worrying about how to combine the imminent Olympic fever with that other great passion — maths — then salvation is about to arrive. John D Barrow, eminent cosmologist, best selling author and director of the Millennium Mathematics Project (of which Plus is a part), has written a book, 100 essential things you didn't know you didn't know about sport, exploring the maths behind your favourite disciplines. And if you're near London or Cambridge you can see Barrow himself talk about some of its contents — for free!
Today is International Women's Day! Plus is run entirely by women who are happily disregarding maths and gender stereotypes, so we're very pleased to join in the celebrations. We've got lots of content by or about women mathematicians on Plus and here are some of our favourites. (And we'd like to ask all remaining dinosaurs to stop sending us emails starting "Dear Sirs"...)


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It's finally time to resurrect my blog from its long hiatus! I've actually missed being on Walking In Public… digging up blog content has always kept me engaged with the publishing/art/design industries, and it motivates me to write and draw regularly. So, I'll be back on the blog for a long while, with all-new features and updates on my journey to success in the children's book world!
What have you missed while I've been away from the blog? Here are the best things that happened, circa 2011:
Annie's Top 5 2011 Professional Developments
1. Illustrated and designed the Little Farmer app.
You may remember that I began a project working on a toddler game app, called Little Farmer, back in May. Well, after months of illustrating, designing and developing, we released it for sale in the iTunes store in October! It has been a really wonderful experience working with a talented developer, Anita Hirth, to create artwork that children can interact with, right there on any iPhone. There's much more to say about the process of creating an app, and my future in the digital world… but those are subjects for bigger posts!
In the meantime, purchase the app here, or watch the video trailer, above!
2. Joined the Children's Book Council's Early Career Committee.
I've been attending events for young adults in the publishing industry for awhile, so it was exciting to be asked to represent Penguin Young Readers (and designers everywhere) on the Children's Book Council's Early Career Committee. This organization creates opportunities for those in the first 5 years of the children's book industry to network, learn, and become more involved in their fields… so their mission is right up my alley! Since becoming a part of the team this summer, I've had a TON of fun making great friends with 20-somethings in different houses, through planning creative programming. I'm also having a blast designing fliers, making good use of my design time and talents.
If you haven't already, make sure to catch up on the CBC and ECC's fabulous social media enterprises – Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
3. Made friends with WordPress.org.
One of the biggest hurdles in creating marketing materials for Little Farmer was: what to do about the website? A website is obviously essential for promoting any business or product, but my knowledge of web design is spotty at best. I've taken a class on Flash, but I gotta admit, coding scares the bejeezus out of me. So I turned to the platform I knew best – WordPress, home of this very blog! WordPress.org is actually slightly different from its blogging sister WordPress.com. In a day or two, you can create practically any site imaginable, using existing templates, posts and pages, and update new content anytime – hardly any coding required. The process is worth a separate future post, but here are the first two sites I made:
www.smartcookiestudios.com (using Suffusion theme)
www.anniebethericsson.com (using Blue Bubble theme)
4. Designed a few picture books.
What was I up to at my real job? Designing wonderful titles with Putnam and Nancy Paulsen Books! In addition to my regularly scheduled board books, anniversary editions and novel interiors, I had the opportunity to have my own picture book assignments. My first book, Half-Pint Pete the Pirate, was quickly followed by Dave Horowitz's hilarious, "spaghetti-western-style" Chico The Brave. I also was honored to redesign Jan Brett's Beauty and the Beast reissue, and also redesign the jackets of a few international imports. My favorite? The Aussie "new classic", Maudie And Bear.
5. Freelanced Projects.
Lastly, I'm happy to report that in addition to my busy schedule and pet app project, I also picked up a few freelance gigs. Chief among them was an exhibition catalog for the Simms Taback retrospective at the Museum of Ventura County.
I'll never forget that I was able to get to know Simms and work with him on this 16-page booklet of his work, in the few last months before his death this December. He was a truly exceptional man with a kind heart, a keen eye for design, and an inspirational wealth of artistic creativity. It was always wonderful to speak with him, and I loved that he was so involved with every aspect of his craft. It does give me comfort, though, that before he passed, he saw the publication of his final book, Postcards from Camp, the opening of the exhibit, and travelled with friends and family. He will be sorely missed!
Read more about Simms' amazing life and work here.
. . .
And now, looking forward to 2012… keep reading here for more posts, new content, and as always, a love of illustration, books and design all around!


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Join me every week for Win-It Wednesday, with 24-hour giveaways just for you!
Looking for a creative toy to get your child's imagination moving? Gummy Lump has a wide selection of art and craft supplies, as well as imaginative play sets and more. My personal favorite is the massive selection of Melissa & Doug toys, everything from wood food to jumbo building blocks to massive floor puzzles.
For 2011 they will be posting 300 crafts for preschool-aged kids on the Gummy Lump blog and Facebook page in their 300 Crafts for Kids in 2011 project. It's a fabulous way to get some great ideas of things to do with your kids throughout the year!
Plus, you'll be automatically entered to win a weekly giveaway just for posting your completed project from 300 Crafts for Kids on their Facebook page! Projects will be age appropriate and take between 5 and 30 minutes to complete on average using basic art supplies like child safe scissors, stick glue, glitter glue, paintbrushes, watercolor paint, construction paper, cotton balls, sequins, foam stickers (hearts, stars, etc.), pipe cleaners and googly eyes. Oh, and be sure you're saving your toilet paper and paper towel tubes, too!
Gummy Lump can't wait to see the projects you create! Good luck and happy crafting!
Three lucky Deal Seeking Mom readers will each win a Gummy Lump Creativity Prize Pack that includes:
To enter, tell me what your one favorite craft to do with your kids or as a kid yourself is.
Every reader has four methods available to enter this contest. Choose one each of any combination of method one, two, three, or four for up to a total of 4 entries!!!
If you are reading this in your email or feed reader, please CLICK HERE to visit the original blog post to enter. Email entries will not be counted.
Methods of entry:
1. Leave a comment. What is your favorite kids craft?
2. Join the GummyLump.com community on Facebook and the Deal Seeking Mom community on Facebook for more conversation, additional deals and a peek at the freebies I receive in the mail each week. Come back and leave a separate comment letting me know you've done so!
3. Follow @DealSeekingMom and @GummyLump on Twitter and tweet the following. Be sure to come back and leave a separate comment with the link to your tweet!
Enter to win 1 of 3 @GummyLump 300 Crafts Prize Packs from @DealSeekingMom: https://dealseekingmom.com/?p=69201
4. Subscribe to my feed via RSS or email. You must confirm your email subscription for it to be a valid entry! Leave a separate comment letting me know you have done so. If you're already a subscriber, simply leave a separate comment letting me know you're already subscribed. Lovin' my subscribers! You guys make this all possible.
(3) Gummy Lump Creativity Prize Packs, as described above
This giveaway ends at 12 p.m. EST on 2/3 and is open to all U.S. residents 18 years or older. I'll use And the Winner Is to select the winning comment. Winner will be notified by email and listed on my Giveaway Winners page. Winners must respond within 48 hours of notification to claim their prize. Good luck!
While you're in a contest entering mood, don't forget to check out the Giveaway Gathering for a variety of contests being hosted on Deal Seeking Mom readers' blogs!
DISCLAIMER: If you have won any giveaway from Gummy Lump in the past 90 days you are NOT eligible to win this giveaway


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Inside Insurance: Diamonds aren't just a girl's best friend; robbers and burglars like them, too
What's hot and what's not on the list for home break-ins and robberies? According to the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.), as of 2011, jewelry tops the list with 17 percent of total homeowner claims while electronics is next with 13 percent of these claims. In third place, furniture comes in at 11 percent.
What's not hot: Beds and mattresses. The average amount paid for each homeowners claim, between 2005-09 was $27,691 for fire, lightening and debris removal, according to ISO, a Verisk Analytics company. Number two might be a surprise. It's bodily injury and property damage at $18,050. Wind and hail, by comparison, was ranked at $6,881. Theft came in at $2,805.
The average number of claims filed per 100 policies is defined as claims frequency. Over the '05-'09 period, wind and hail topped the list at 2.19 while water damage and freezing was ranked 1.44. Theft came in at .50 while fire, lightening and debris removal at .49.
While 97 percent of homeowners had homeowners insurance to replace their jewelry and electronics, only 29 percent of renters purchased renters insurance, a 2011 I.I.I. poll conducted by ORC International found.
Here is an indicator of what the economic downturn has done to homeownership and to those who rent. In the U.S., the home ownership rate was 65.1 percent in 2010, down from 66.2 percent in 2009, according to the U.S. Census. In some of the largest cities renters outnumbered owners, including New York, where 69.0 percent of households were renter occupied, followed by Los Angeles (61.8 percent), Chicago (55. 1 percent) and Houston (54.6 percent).
Average insurance premiums in 2009 and renters insurance premiums gives some regional perspective on who pays what. For homeowners insurance, Georgia ranked 24th in 2009 at $787 while Alabama ranked 11th at $987. Tennessee was ranked 22nd at $784 and South Carolina ranked 12th at $970.
In the same year for renters insurance, Georgia ranked 9th with $214 while Alabama was 8th at $216. Tennessee was ranked 11th with $211, and South Carolina at 15th with $198. These rankings were based on a homeowners and renters policy for owner-occupied dwellings, and the renters insurance rates were based on broad named-peril coverages for personal property of tenants.
In 2010, Georgia ranked 38th with 66.2 percent while Alabama was 10th with 70.1 percent. Tennessee ranked 22nd at 68.1 percent and South Carolina ranked 18th at 68.7 percent.
In 2010, California, Hawaii and Florida had the highest homeownership costs, based on the percentage of homes in which owners spent 30 percent or more of their income on homeowner-ownership related expenses. In our neck of the woods, Georgia homeowners ranked 17th at 37.9 percent. Alabama was 35th at 32.5 percent while Tennessee homeowners were 33rd with 33.2 percent and South Carolina was 31st with 33.8 percent.
Nationwide, 48.9 percent of renters spent at least 30 percent of their household income on rent and utilities in 2010. Georgia ranked 13th at 49 percent while Alabama ranked 28th with 46.7 percent. Tennessee renters also came in at 28th spending 46.7 percent on rent and utilities. What state ranked first? That would be Florida with 55.6 percent.
Your home should be a safe place, right? In 2009, more than 21 million Americans or 1 in 14 people experienced an unintentional injury in the home that required aid from a medical professional, according to the National Safety Council. The Council says the economic cost of home injuries was $192.2 billion.
Sadly, the number of deaths from unintentional home injuries rose 123 percent from 29,200 in 2000 to 65,200 in 2009.
These numbers may sound abstract to some, but they provide more information about what it takes to own a home, rent a home, provide a safe environment in a home and financially protect you and your family.


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Mr. Kamal Hathi on SQL Server 2012, PowerPivot, SharePoint and Azure
Monday, April 30, 2012
In a short newspaper article a friend stumbled upon, he saw that Mr. Kamal Hathi, Director of Program Management at Microsoft is coming to Israel for the Think Next Convention. It was also detailed that Mr. Hathi was responsible for the SQL Server Business Intelligence technologies. As the time of the convention drew nearer, I felt more and more interested in trying to catch him for an interview about SQL Server 2012. At the end, I had to finish my questions quickly as Mr. Hathi did not stay till the convention, but I did feel like I had quite...
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FRP hoods are "thicker" than Factory Hoods, it may be necessary to adjust all rubber stoppers. Some may need to be timmed or removed completely. FRP Hoods are stiffer than factory steel/aluminum hoods, which factory hood can actually twist to follow the fender line, even if one fender is lower than the other. Fender alignment may need to be adjusted for properly alignment.
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GRAHAM � The woman at the center of an immigration battle after using a false Social Security number to attempt to get cable service � whose initial criminal charges were dismissed � was indicted Monday on two felonies.
Lorena Yanez-Mata, 26, of Robin Lane, Graham, was indicted on charges of felony common law uttering and identity theft.
According to the indictments, issued Monday by the Alamance County grand jury, Yanez-Mata is accused of using a falsely made Social Security card that �looked valid� to attempt to obtain cable service from Time Warner Cable on Huffman Mill Road in Burlington on July 30. The Social Security number belonged to Adrian Hernandez, the bill of indictment said.
Yanez-Mata had yet to be served with the indictments Wednesday.
Burlington Assistant Police Chief Chris Verdeck said the bills would be entered into a statewide database of warrants and orders for arrest, NCAWARE. When officers enter a person�s name into the database, unserved actions appear. Officers in the jurisdiction where Yanez-Mata lives, in this case Graham police, could also search for and serve unserved actions in their area.
Last month, Yanez-Mata�s original charge of obtaining property by false pretense was dismissed during a district court hearing after an assistant district attorney determined the charge didn�t fit the alleged crime. Alamance County District Attorney Pat Nadolski later said that dismissal was an error and that Yanez-Mata was still being investigated and was likely to be charged.
Following that dismissal and amid protests against her deportation, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security dropped its case against Yanez-Mata Dec. 13 � the day before she was scheduled to appear before an immigration judge in Charlotte. A spokesman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said the case didn�t meet the federal government�s standards for prosecution and deportation.
Yanez-Mata said she�s lived in the U.S. illegally for eight years. She has a 7-year-old daughter and said she was trying to get cable for her.
On July 30, while completing an application for cable service, Yanez-Mata was led from the Time Warner Cable office and arrested after an employee alerted an off-duty Burlington police officer working security that the Social Security card appeared altered. An on-duty officer was called to the scene and she was arrested.
Through an interpreter, Yanez-Mata admitted to the Times-News in December that the Social Security card was falsified.


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Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko is making good on his promise to "strike hard" against any Belarussian citizens heeding social-network appeals to protest against growing economic hardships.
By Thursday, more than 450 people who took part in flash-mob rallies in more than 30 towns around Belarus had been rounded up by the KGB security services, and accused of using Twitter, Facebook, and the Russian-language Vkontakte to facilitate illegal gatherings, according to the independent Belapan news agency. According to the agency, many face up to 15 days in prison for "hooliganism."
The largest such meeting saw thousands of mostly young protesters assemble, for the third Wednesday in a row, in the capital city of Minsk's central Oktyabr Square, for a wordless, hand-clapping display of "displeasure" over Mr. Lukashenko's strong-armed measures to fill a gaping budget deficit that have slashed living standards and introduced Soviet-style shortages in the space of a few months.
Organizers had called on protesters to remain silent, display no banners or slogans, and behave peacefully in order to evade Belarus's draconian demonstrations law, which bans almost any explicitly political meeting that has not been sanctioned by authorities.
Unlike previous occasions, when police merely dispersed the rallies, they reportedly moved in and arrested more than 100 in Minsk alone. A statement issued by police Wednesday warned that what looks like a "childish prank" on the Internet becomes a serious crime in the "real world," and blamed "instigators" abroad for stirring up the passions of Belarussian youth.
"The instigators have gone as far as to articulate openly their main purpose, which is staging a revolution through social networking sites in Belarus," the police statement said. "However ridiculous the purpose may appear, some people can really buy into these openly criminal intentions," and face severe legal penalties, it added.
Social media-power revolt
Flash mobs powered by social networks are a new experience for Belarus, a closed, post-Soviet nation of 10 million, often referred to in the West as "Europe's last dictatorship."
But such protests are likely to grow, and become more effective, as the country's summer of discontent grinds on. In a May opinion survey by the independent Institute of Sociology, Economy, and Political Studies in Minsk, over half of Belarussians said they could "not feed" or could "barely feed" their families on incomes whose buying power has been plunging since January.
"The situation is really tense," says Andrei Bastunets, deputy chair of the independent Association of Journalists in Minsk. "Salaries are effectively cut in half, while prices are up. People are getting restless."
Trouble between Minsk and Moscow
Belarus's state controlled economy has been in trouble since Russian subsidies and cheap energy started tapering off a couple years ago, amid increasingly acrimonious relations between Minsk and Moscow. Lukashenko worsened matters by ramping up state spending by 40 percent in advance of his reelection campaign last year, including a 50 percent salary hike for all public sector workers.
Lukashenko, who's run Belarus with a mixture of economic paternalism and police state rigor since 1994, won reelection with 80 percent of the votes. But he lost European Union pledges of assistance by launching a brutal crackdown against political opponents, who took to the streets to allege electoral fraud. More than 600 people were arrested, including seven presidential candidates, and many remain in prison.
Moscow, which previously bankrolled Lukashenko, has put a heavy price on any further assistance.
"Russia has abandoned its imperial ambitions in the traditional sense. It's not going to be sending tanks into Belarus," says Fyodor Lukyanov, editor of Russia in Global Affairs, a leading Moscow foreign policy journal. "What Russia wants is for Lukashenko to let go of valuable assets that the state controls, and sell them to Russian interests. That includes pipelines, refineries, potash and maybe a few choice industries."
The other main potential source of financial relief, the International Monetary Fund, has insisted on similar conditions, including a free-floating ruble.
"All creditors insist that Belarus enact reforms, but Lukashenko resists," says Yaroslav Romanchuk, an economist who was presidential candidate for the liberal United Civil Party. "He's using all the tools of the centralized economy to dig in and hold on."
Lukashenko's policies to manage the budget shortfall, estimated at 16 percent of GDP, have shifted most of the pain onto the population. Measures include a steep devaluation of the Belarussian ruble, state price controls on basic foodstuffs, fuel rationing and export bans to prevent Belarussians from trading in neighboring Poland or Russia.
Economic meltdown
Experts say efforts to freeze gas and basic food prices have led to panic buying and the inevitable shortages, while the best produce now finds its way onto a burgeoning black market. The Belarussian ruble has lost about 60 percent of its value since January, including a whopping 36 percent devaluation in May. A US dollar officially costs about 5,000 rubles, but can rarely be found in currency exchanges; on the street dollars can be bought for 8,000 rubles and up.
Belarus's industrial economy, which depends heavily on increasingly unaffordable imported inputs, has slowed disastrously.
"Many of my students, who combine study with work, say they've been fired, forced to take unpaid leave, or had their salaries slashed," says Oleg Manayev, director of the Institute of Sociology, Economy and Political Studies.
"Our polling shows that people overwhelmingly blame the authorities for the deterioration in living standards," he says. "That's something new. We didn't see that even a couple years ago."
Lukashenko may find temporary salvation in yielding to Russian demands and letting go of key assets, though that may eventually undermine his 17-year-old system of rule, especially the ability to placate the population with high public spending.
Early this month Moscow media reported that Russian fertilizer tycoon Suleiman Kerimov, a close associate of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, was in talks to buy a controlling share of Belaruskali, one of the world's biggest potash producers, for as much as $7 billion.
That kind of cash infusion might enable Lukashenko to close this year's budget gap, consolidate his rule and possibly ride out the storm, says Mr. Romanchuk.
"We are deep into this crisis, and we don't see any steps toward liberalization from Lukashenko," he says. "If he can get what he wants by selling off one or two assets, the pressure will be off and he won't see any need to undertake reforms," that might eventually allow a market-driven economic recovery.
"That might work for him, at least for a while, but things for ordinary Belarussians are going to keep getting worse," he says.


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Kmart Black Friday 2012
Kmart's Three Days of Thanksgiving Doorbuster Deals on Gadgets
Attention, Kmart shoppers: say "turkey" three times, and you'll be granted three days of doorbusting Black Friday deals. Done? Oh good — here's a rundown of this weekend's Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday gadget sales.
But first, a little vocab lesson. An Early Thursday Doorbuster begins at 6 a.m. Thanksgiving Day and runs until 4 p.m. Stores will reopen at 8 p.m. on Thursday and close at 3 a.m. early Friday morning, marking the beginning of the Late Thursday Doorbuster deals. Stores open again two hours later, at 5 a.m. Friday morning, and run until 11 a.m. for Friday Doorbuster deals, which are effective through Saturday. Whew. Wipe your brow, and take a breath.
We've noted the Thursday morning, Thursday evening, and Friday morning deals below. Happy shopping!
Early Thursday Doorbusters
- A 23.5-inch LED 1080p HDTV by Seiki is $88 (originally $190).
- RCA's 42-inch plasma is marked down to $200 (originally $450).
- Grab the 32-inch LCD HDTV by Proscan for $97 (originally $250).
- When Kmart members purchase the 47-inch LG LED 1080 HDTV for $600 (originally $700), they will receive 20,000 extra points.
- 32-inch LCD/DVD HDTV by Proscan is $230 (originally $300).
Late Thursday Doorbusters
- Save $100 off of RCA's 39-inch LCD 1080p HDTV at $330 (originally $430).
- A 32-inch LCD HDTV by Samsung is $250 (originally $330).
- The 24-inch RCA LED 1080p HDTV is $200 (originally $230).
- The 32-inch RCA LCD with built-in DVD is discounted at $240 (originally $330).
- The 50-inch Proscan 1080p LCD HDTV is marked down to $288 (originally $700).
- LG's 50-inch plasma HDTV is on sale for $550 (originally $700), and members will receive an additional 20,000 points.
Friday Doorbusters
- The 46-inch RCA LCD HDTV is half off at $300 (originally $500).
- The 40-inch Toshiba HDTV is $380 (originally $500), while the 32-inch Toshiba HDTV is $250 (originally $280).
- Seiki's 22-inch LED HDTV is $140 (originally $170).
- The 19-inch Proscan LED HDTV is on sale for $88 (originally $130).
There's tablets, cameras, and more in store after the break.
Early Thursday Doorbusters
- There's Android 4.0 goodness in the X-treme 7-inch 4GB tablet with microSD for $40 (originally $70).
Friday Doorbusters
- The Mach Speed 9.7-inch Trio Stealth running Android 4.0 is $220 (originally $170).
- Pick up a Netbook 8-inch tablet for $100 (originally $170).
Early Thursday Doorbusters
- For Windows 8 fans, Asus' X401A 14-inch laptop with 3GB ram and 320 GB hard drive is $220 (originally $370).
- The 4Sight 9-inch multitouch Android tablet is on sale for $90 (originally $140).
Late Thursday Doorbusters
- HP's 15-inch g6 Pavilion Windows 8 laptop is $300 (originally $500).
Early Thursday Doorbusters
- The GE 15X optical zoom digital camera is marked down to $80 (originally $130).
- Fork over one President Ulysses Grant for a Fujifilm AX 550 digital camera at $50 (originally $80).
Late Thursday Doorbusters
- Canon's PowerShot A2300 digital camera with 5X optical zoom and HD video is $80 (originally $140) and comes with a free 8GB SD card. Members also receive a bonus 10,000 points.
- The GE G100 15X optical zoom, 14.4MP digital camera with HD video is $119 on Thursday, and $130 on Friday (originally $180).
Gaming Consoles
Early Thursday Doorbuster
- Save $100 on an Xbox 360 bundle with Kinect for $200.
Late Thursday Doorbusters
- Members save $20 on the Nintendo DSi at $80 (nonmembers pay $95).
Media Players
Early Thursday Doorbusters
- Sony's Blu-ray Player with built-in WiFi is $90 (originally $130).
Late Thursday Doorbusters
- Save $50 off of Panasonic's DVD Home Theater System at $100 (originally $150).
Friday Doorbusters
- Samsung's Galaxy Prevail no-contract phone from Boost Mobile is on sale for $30 (originally $100).
- The Net10 Unimax no-contract phone is $40 (originally $80).
And don't forget about our Walmart, Best Buy, and Target Black Friday guides, too!


text: Use mouse scroll wheel over image or pinch-to-zoom on touch devices. You can also click and drag around on image. Park it 1 1 Follow '12 Audi RS6 on ADV.1's Parked to Audi by ADV.1 Wheels Vehicle Info: 2012 Audi RS 6 Keywords Sign up to add your own keywords More from this Garage: More from this Profile: Project 2017 Ford GT - SEMA Show Garage Audi Garage BMW


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When it comes to developing brooms for commercial-duty cleanup, we've got it down.
SweepEx manufactures innovative and versatile products to make cleanup of debris simple. We have an entire range of brooms that can be mounted on forklifts, tractors, trucks, or even backhoe buckets. Indoors or outdoors, during any type of weather, our brooms will quickly cleanup spills, rocks, dirt, dust, and snow. With the addition of our specialized accessories, SweepEx brooms will effectively pick up nails and staples, as well as leaves and other materials.
Users find that SweepEx's equipment mounted and walk-behind rotary brooms are able to tackle any problem; our brooms will easily sweep away fine powder that may be missed by other brooms, while being tough enough to move heavy rocks. Wet or dry, our brooms are designed to clean it up. Plus, with our wide range of brush styles, widths, and depths, users can get the broom that meets their individual needs.


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Are you a budding entrepreneur looking to start your own business? Are you running a small business and need help better organizing your day-to-day activities? If so, it's essential that you have the right tools to support your endeavors. Fortunately, the mobile apps market has created a wide variety of powerful, cost-effective alternatives to help small businesses get the job done.
Developers have been busy creating apps for businesses, including word processing, presentation, spreadsheet, customer management, scanning, expense tracking and invoicing, to name just a few. In this slideshow, we've featured 18 highly rated iOS apps that may give your SMB the advantage it needs to succeed.
All apps are available via the iTunes store.
Related Topics : Vulnerabilities and Patches, Resellers, Broadcom, Broadband Services, Supercomputing
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