text:
Over the past decade, Dr. Dog has evolved from a lo-fi novelty act into a theater-filling force of indie rock. Scott McMicken is the guitarist and one of the lead singers in the Philadelphia-based group. The A.V. Club sat down with McMicken to discuss different theories regarding the band's infamous name, to geek out over The Beatles, and to contemplate the rise of neo-psychedelia. Released by Anti- Records Feb. 7, Be The Void is the band's sixth full-length album. They play at Old National Centre tomorrow.
The A.V. Club: Is this your biggest headlining tour yet?
Scott McMicken: I definitely think it will be. Each release of an album seems to push us to bigger and bigger venues. With each new release, you prove your worth in a venue and then can take another step up. But, on any given tour, we might play to, like, 3,000 people in New York and then 200 in Knoxville, or a dive bar in Iowa City then some massive balcony theater in Chicago. It makes touring challenging, because you want to fill a big room, so we put more thought and ideas into the stage production and the overall visual experience of the show. But then you pull up to a club that's just a pizza restaurant, and we're like, "What do we do with this 30-foot backdrop we made?"
AVC: When you have to play those little venues again, do you just revert to the Dr. Dog of yesteryear? Does it become more of a raw show?
SM: Oh yeah, out of necessity. The inherent loud messiness of those cramped quarters encourages a sweaty show. But I think that one of Dr. Dog's strong suits is our ability to adapt. I mean, a lot of things you have to do on the road might require you to go play a radio station in an office building where you just bring what you can carry in your hands. There are so many weird promotional things you have to do as a band, but I think those are the things I end up most proud of. Those are the things you have to do when your back is against the wall. It keeps you on your toes, and you never get too comfortable with what you do. I see in a lot of other bands maybe they get too comfortable, but that's the thing that can't happen. I feel there isn't any risk then.
AVC: Do you feel like you've taken risks as songwriters as well?
SM: Our adaptability, if not a mission statement, has always been the natural reality for our band. It's not our choice to play such a diverse set of venues, but that's just what it is, so that's what you make work. It's been like that for recording too, going all the way back. Ten years ago, when all we had to record on was a four-track, it didn't feel any less full of potential compared to now when we just flip open a computer with 24 tracks. Even in a philosophical sense, it's about realizing a context and just getting the most out of a situation.
AVC: Does this philosophy also apply to Be The Void?
SM: I think, as a band, we're becoming self-aware. Beauty and surprises come when your back is against the wall, so, what if you strategically choose to put your back against the wall? I really like the creative faculties that have to kick in there. In the way we did this new album, we were constantly exercising these self-imposed parameters just to see what could come out of that. We've never been excited by having many choices. Less technology has always kept our minds sharper. There are a thousand choices now, especially in a recording process. With this album, we talked to producers, considered all kinds of different ways to record, but ultimately we decided to just do it on our tape machine in our humble studio with nobody else around. And that was a really liberating decision.
AVC: The songwriting credits for Dr. Dog are basically split between yourself and Toby Leaman. Is it ever a challenge to share the songwriting duties with someone else?
SM: Toby and I have known each other for 20 years now. The first time we ever hung out, in the eighth grade, we went and played music together. So I don't really have a sense of myself as a musician without him, and vice versa. It's weird though, especially on this new record, when I look at it objectively I can see that we are very different. Especially as we evolve further into our own identities as songwriters, I might see a side of him that is truly and uniquely Toby, and seeing that pushes me to find the version of that honesty in myself, but the results are very different. And it shows in the music, but it just makes sense for us to put our songs side by side. The idea of being the only songwriter in a band just sounds like too much for me. It's nice to have that double amount of material and feel just as proud of a song that he writes. I have the same affection for his songs [as] anything that I write. It's something I don't take for granted and am very grateful for. We've only understood our friendship as musicians.
AVC: That's impressive. You guys have been partners in music for 20 years?
SM: Well having a band is almost like having a child. I mean, good parents will try to be on their best behavior, even if they're not getting along, because there's something bigger there you have to preserve. And that's how it is for me and Toby. Pretensions do exist, and it can get nuts, but there's always something bigger, and that's the music.
AVC: MGMT and The Flaming Lips are a couple of the big names that led a revival in psych-rock over the past few years, but how do you think Dr. Dog contributed to the recent resurgence of that genre?
SM: I think about the lo-fi thing, and vocal harmonies, or '60s pop—all these things that were exactly what people were holding against us in 2004—but now the culture has changed. If we came out now, like if we released Easy Beat this year, I think it would be so much better received now than it was back then. We were doing so much three-part harmony because we were obsessed with the Beach Boys back in 1999, or whatever. I remember it was kind of a novelty act for us, and we embraced that. We embrace whatever seems to put a smile on someone's face. If your appreciation for Dr. Dog requires some understanding that it's naïve or bubbleheaded, I would encourage that just as much we make lofty claims of integrity or artistic merit or something.
AVC: Either way!
SM: I do think it's fair to say though; we're not that big. We're not MGMT or what they did. But, I think, after years of touring where you don't have a bus that you can crawl onto, we've been able to hang out with a lot of different people. And it's been clear, even early on, that a lot of musicians would come to our shows. So, I'm reluctant to say this, but maybe we have had some sort of influence. Like, we toured with The Head And The Heart, and even they said they were inspired by our band. But, if you're influenced by Dr. Dog, I don't know what that even means. I mean, why be influenced by Dr. Dog? Why not just be influenced by The Beatles?
AVC: Are The Beatles the golden standard?
SM: I've never been a super-avid Beatles listener, and yet I'll be the first to admit their huge influence. Obviously there's something to millions of ears that is so inherently aesthetically pleasing. It's gentle and playful, but it's rich and deep. It's as simple as it is complex, all these fundamental aspects of beauty are apparent there. So they are this catchall, because: A) They were very adventurous people. You were able to map their lives and character through their songwriting, which shows their commitment to their craft. And, B), sonically, there is just that color. It was inherent in the sounds of their voices. And the elements we've really taken from The Beatles, the three essential ingredients really, are the sound of the drums, the sound of the voices, and the sound of the bass. The bass always had a very clear, distinct melody and was always moving the songs forward. You hear that in a lot of Motown too, but not much other music. And the drums are like the frame of reference. I feel like, in the whole story of the evolution of fidelity, it's been about the triumph of drumming. Everything is scaled to the drums. They create such a large sound, so you have to build everything up around them to fill that sonic experience. But their voices—Paul McCartney and John Lennon had the best voices in all of rock 'n' roll without any sort of manipulation, but Lennon was known to be very insecure about his voice and would manipulate it a lot. He would use lots of echo, or singing in unison with himself, or pitch-manipulate it. It kept that very youthful sound.
When you obsess about older music, and you want to know how to sound like that, The Beatles documented every single thing they've ever done. Ringo Starr put towels on his drums. Most drummers would tune their drums, but he just put towels on them. They did snare overdubs simply to solve problems in poor engineering. But all of these things become definitive characteristics of their music—things that sound awesome, but came out of necessity.
The Beatles comparison gets thrown around all the time, though. I remember Oasis was called Beatles-esque, but everything that The Beatles conveyed through their music, philosophically and sonically, was so far beyond Oasis. I can't find an end to investigating what The Beatles represent to music. The Beatles are underrated in the way they're used as a cultural signpost for what music comes from. They were more adventurous than any of us can even comprehend, because they came from a time when there was no Beatles before them. The things that they came up with in such a short period of time, and styles they traversed and owned, that in itself is such an incredible achievement.
AVC: They still haven't worn out their welcome, even as new generations keep coming up.
SM: And that ought be! The one frustrating thing is that, somewhere along the narrative of musical history, there was, like, this spite that came up and said, "We get it musicians, don't be into them anymore."
AVC: But you think we should be into them even more now.
SM: Yeah! It's the same with Bob Dylan, too.
AVC: The Beatles and Bob Dylan both really cared about their art it seems.
SM: Yeah, it was a way of life.
AVC: When did you realize Dr. Dog was what you were really doing with your life?
SM: A definitive point was when Jim James took us out on tour with My Morning Jacket back in 2004. It was at a time when we didn't even really have an official album out yet. But I put a few songs on a homemade CD and jewel case that I'd put, like, sprinkles and stuff in. My girlfriend took one to a My Morning Jacket show and gave it to Jim James afterwards and introduced me to him. A couple weeks later, Jim James sent me a letter saying how much he enjoyed the music, and also asked, "So what's the deal? Do you have a label or are you going on tour?" And at that point, we had nothing. Just those CDs. So I wrote him back and told that to him, and then he invited us to go on tour with My Morning Jacket. So, that was insane and really made us tighten the screws. I mean, our band at that point was so conceptual, and was just this rotating cast of our friends. We had a guy who just danced behind an orange sheet, a fake audience member who was designed to be a really weird dude who was just into the music no matter how big the crowd was, stuff like that. We didn't have gear either. We borrowed drums, had a battery-powered keyboard that belonged to someone's sister. So, before we knew it, we went from that to touring with My Morning Jacket! We practiced so much and got so dialed up for it. I think it very much shaped our career in those early days.
I had a lot of paranoid issues about what it was going to be like going on tour with a huge rock band. I pictured Mötley Crüe in VH1 Behind The Music; I was really that naïve about it. I thought, "Oh no, now I'm gonna have to start doing drugs all the time!" But lo and behold, My Morning Jacket is just a bunch of really awesome dudes who are very similar to my friends, and they just work really hard every night to put on incredible shows. No nonsense or debauchery or antics, nothing that was the least bit intimidating or frightening. And when I saw that, I realized, well, this could be done. I'm so glad that that even happened to us, just to be the little brother in that situation, for them to show us, you know, "This is how you do it." Even to this day, My Morning Jacket is still one of the hardest working and most exciting live bands on the planet, and it makes me feel so proud to see them because I know it's nothing but hard work that got them there.
AVC: There's this episode of King Of The Hill where the brand name of the dog food is called Dr. Dog. Did you get your band name from that?
SM: Weird, no! A friend of mine also just gave me a children's book by Babette Cole called Dr. Dog. But we didn't take it from her either.
AVC: Maybe she and Mike Judge are just fans of your music.
SM: Hey, that would be cool!


text:
Teen Researchers Defend Media Multitasking
Doing Homework With Music, Texts, Tweets Works Better for Some
Some teens doing homework while listening to music and juggling tweets and texts may actually work better that way, according to an intriguing new study performed by two high-school seniors.
The Portland, Ore., students were invited to the annual conference of the American Academy of Pediatrics in San Diego this past weekend to present a summary of their research, which analyzed more than 400 adolescents. The findings: Though most teens perform better when focusing on a single task, those who are "high media multitaskers"—about 15% of the study participants—performed better when working with the distractions of email and music than when focusing on a single activity.
The results are a surprise. Previous research generally has found that people who think they are competent multitaskers actually perform worse than others who try to focus on one thing at a time. But the latest study looked only at teens and is one of the few multitasking-research projects focused on this age group. The student researchers suggest this may explain the different outcomes.
'What our research is suggesting is that maybe our brains as adolescents and digital natives have adapted to this media influence.'
"We really wanted to see how media multitasking is affecting young people," said Sarayu Caulfield, 17 years old, as she stood beside the poster presentation of the study at the AAP conference.
"What our research is suggesting is that maybe our brains as adolescents and digital natives have adapted to this media influence and because we've grown up with it we're able to cope with all these different stimuli," said 18-year-old Alexandra Ulmer.
Ms. Caulfield and Ms. Ulmer, who say they aren't heavy multitaskers themselves, conducted the study as part of the Oregon Episcopal School's science-research program. The project, which took two years to complete, placed second in the behavioral-science category at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in May in Los Angeles, the world's largest precollege science competition. The teens over the summer presented their research at the National Institute on Drug Abuse in Washington, D.C., part of the National Institutes of Health.
Nora Volkow, director of NIDA, said she was impressed with the teenagers' research. "This study explored whether experience with multitasking affected behaviors controlled by the prefrontal cortex, an area involved in self-control," she said. "As more studies of the kind that Alexandra and Sarayu carried out so successfully become published, and as more young people become exposed to these new cognitive modalities, we may find that multitasking is not necessarily always bad," she said.
In the study, participants were classified as high, medium or low media multitaskers, using a standardized test developed by researchers at Stanford University. Those rated at the high level reported spending an average of three hours a day multitasking, including at least 50% of the time they were doing homework. Students at the low level spent 20 minutes a day multitasking on average, and barely at all while doing homework.
Of the 403 total participants, 60 were classified in the high group, 50 in the low group and the rest were moderate media multitaskers.
The students, whose average age was 14½, were randomly sent into one of two rooms where they did a variety of cognitive tests on a computer to make use of their working, or short-term, memory. In one room, called the multitasking room, students were required to do the tests while listening to music. They were told they could do whatever they wanted on their phone or computer and to expect one or more emails, which they should respond to as quickly as possible. Not everyone actually received an email.
The students in the nonmultitasking room did the same computer tests but without any distractions.
"What we found is on average most people perform better when focusing on one single task," said Ms. Ulmer. "But this one group of people—the high media multitaskers—performed best when they are in a multitasking environment. The high media multitaskers actually excelled in the multitasking room."
Another finding: Participants in the multitasking room who didn't receive an email, after being told to expect one, performed worse. "It was the anticipation of receiving an email that was more detrimental to their performance than actually receiving the email," said Ms. Ulmer.
The tests used in the study involved simple tasks such as identifying whether a particular colored rectangle had moved when scenes on a computer screen were changed. It isn't clear if the findings would pertain to more demanding situations, such as multitasking while doing calculus homework.
Ms. Ulmer and Ms. Caulfield said they have begun seeking a scientific journal interested in publishing their study. They said they would like to continue doing scientific research when they enter college.
The teens received guidance on their research from Clifford Nass, a communications professor at Stanford and a leading researcher on multitasking, who died while the project was under way. The teens were then aided by Donald Roberts, a professor emeritus in communications at Stanford and an authority on media and youth.
Dr. Nass and colleagues had conducted an earlier study with 100 college-age students. It found heavy media multitaskers were less effective than people doing one task at a time in such functions as controlling memory, switching between activities and paying attention. The study was published in 2009 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"Heavy media multitaskers' ability to focus on relevant information and not be captured by the irrelevant was worse," said Anthony Wagner, a psychology and neuroscience professor at Stanford and a co-author of the 2009 study. Dr. Wagner said the study and subsequent work by other researchers haven't been able to answer the question whether the act of heavy media multitasking affects attention and impairs a person's ability to filter out distractions, or whether the people themselves are naturally that way.
Other research has considered whether media multitasking can change the brain's structure. In a study published in September in the online journal PLOS One, researchers from the University of Sussex in England found people who juggle multiple media devices have a lower density of gray matter in the anterior cingulate cortex, a region of the brain involved in cognitive and emotional processing, compared with people who use one media device at a time. The study, which took brain scans of 75 adults, didn't prove multitasking was responsible for the differences in brain structure, the study said.
Some research has indicated there may be a genetic component to people who multitask well.
A 2010 study, conducted at the University of Utah, found there may be a category of people the researchers labeled "supertaskers" who perform extremely well at multitasking. The study tested 200 participants in a driving simulator and tested them again while also subjecting them to a demanding audio test that included math problems and other challenges. Most participants showed a significant decline in driving performance when the audio test was added. But for 2.5% of the people—the supertaskers—there was no change.
Write to Sumathi Reddy at email@example.com
Photo from: https://www.google.com/search?q=digital+native+photo&client=firefox-a&hs=LX0&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=np&tbm=isch&imgil=Rt-qprqlTVsahM%253A%253BGPMgNHpLSK4LIM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.trintech.com%25252Fcadency-blog%25252Fare-you-a-digital-native-a-rock-or-a-sponge%25252F&source=iu&pf=m&fir=Rt-qprqlTVsahM%253A%252CGPMgNHpLSK4LIM%252C_&usg=__vQOiihobRQQmPg1x8PsrQ04aClA%3D&biw=1024&bih=615&ved=0CDcQyjc&ei=KvE8VL6hC9GcygTxsYKAAQ#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=Rt-qprqlTVsahM%253A%3BGPMgNHpLSK4LIM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.trintech.com%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2013%252F10%252Fdigital_native.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.trintech.com%252Fcadency-blog%252Fare-you-a-digital-native-a-rock-or-a-sponge%252F%3B517%3B513

subset: commoncrawl


text: VCI CREPE PAPER TDS RUSTX manufactures VCI Crepe Papers which have exceptional strength, tear resistance. Volatile Chemicals coated on Natural Kraft Paper can provide protection of up to 10YEARSin packaged condition. Goods wrapped in or protected by RUST-X VCI crepe paper are not affected by corrosion. The reason for this is that the air surrounding the metals protected with RUST-X crepe paper, is very heavily impregnated with the inhibitors released from the protective paper. The micro-moisture droplets become so heavily impregnated with corrosion inhibitors released from RUST-X VCI crepe paper that these droplets themselves become rust preventives, and will not form corrosion on the metal surfaces. In effect corrosion cannot occur in vicinity of the VCI crepe Paper. VCI Crepe papers are used to protect components that require high shelf life and protection against corrosion. These have a high VCI chemicals carrying capacity and are useful in protecting components for longer periods and also provide better abrasion resistance compared to thin film plastics. Application Method:Wrapping the components, placing in viscinity of the components (1/3 of surface area) Metals Protected: Iron &Aluminum Property Value Unit Test Method Weight of base paper (gsm) 45 GSM T-410 VCI coating (gsm) 10+/-4 GSM T-410 Burst Factor 25+ BF Colour Brown Corrosion Test Pass 48 HOURS B-117-09 Creping % 25% GSM Total GSM 65-70 GSM By Calculation


text:
|Home Installation Source Code Bugs Screenshots Forum FAQ Screencasts
What's New
- Released version 0.9.5 for Firefox only.
(2008 07 12)
- Released version 0.9.1 for Firefox only.
(2007 02 12)
- Released version 0.9.0 for Firefox only.
(2007 01 16)
- Released version 0.8.5 for Firefox only.
(2006 09 19)
- Released version 0.7.9 for Firefox only. (.8 beta)
(2006 03 29)
- Released version 0.7.0 for Firefox only.
(2005 06 10)
- Released version 0.6.5 for Firefox only.
(2005 05 13)
- Released version 0.6.0 for Firefox only.
(2004 10 28) no contextual menu at the moment
- Released version 0.5.0 with FireBird support.
(2003 07 10)
- Released version 0.4.0 with drag'n'drop support.
(2002 07 05)
- Released version 0.3.0 with a "contextual" menu.
(2002 07 03)
- First release of Refspoof Toolbar
(2002 06 13)
it works now with firefox 3 (v0.9.5) :)
I actually would like to see some reviews about the extension
on the addons.mozilla.org refspoof page .. if you have some time to spare :) :)
for help, comments or suggestions post at the new refboard
if you want to send some mail use "refspoof AT gmail DOT com" ..
for a short explanation watch the screencasts
if you found a bug use preferrably the bugs page
Click here to test the referer propagation
test here how referrers are handled by https (you need to add an exception to firefox to test this)
Where to download / install?go to the addons.mozilla.org refspoof page
and click the green "Add to Firefox" button
if you want to install a version manually get it from the installation page
something doesnt work!read the FAQ about "it doesnt work!"
What is it ?A simple toolbar that allows to load a page with a different referer.
What is changing the referer good for?That is up to you.
But if you have a need for this you probably know the answer already. Maybe you want to hide where you really came from, or maybe your a web developer who needs to test some features on your website. Pornzilla might give you another idea ;) ..
or you might want to access a (wsj) newspaper article as if it was posted on digg.com (screencast)


text:
Details the labeling used on pad-mounted switchgear and transformers sited in public areas adjacent to residential properties, shopping centers and schools. May be used for equipment sited in utility or industrial properties that are not normally accessible to the general public. Contains Mr. Ouch labels.
Terms & ConditionsTo display, copy and/or download a copy of the document you have requested, NEMA's permission is subject to the following terms and conditions, which you must agree to by clicking on the "I Accept" button below:
If you choose not to accept these terms and conditions, please exit this page.


text:
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text:
First Look: 4505 Meats Butcher Shop, San Francisco
When Ryan Farr decided to open a brick-and-mortar butcher shop, things moved pretty damn quickly.
"We got the lease and opened in just two weeks," he says of the brand-new home of 4505 Meats on Mission Street. "I was going to do a pop-up but once we starting looking into everything, I realized it made the most sense to do a shop."
Chalk it up to 4505's incredible popularity around San Francisco, perhaps. In addition to their presence at a number of farmers markets (including the Ferry Building, Mission Community, Divisadero, and Montclair Village), Farr and his team of expert meat mongers have been spreading the carnivorous love at events like Outside Lands (we loved their offerings this year and last), and with their drool-worthy meat CSA (their holiday turducken has become near-legend).
But it's not just a love of animal parts that has hungry San Franciscans lining up religiously for 4505's sausages, burgers, and chicharrones. They've become known for serious quality and creativity when it comes to meat since opening in 2009.
The shop, which opened just before Christmas, is a testament to the continual care and attention Farr brings to his products. Luscious cuts of beef and pork sit alongside cured slabs of bacon, ham hock, and fat back. Shoppers sample tongue pastrami while examining towering terrines. Housemade spice blends (chili, harissa) are stacked on the counter, next to a sign for armagnac gravy. Freezer cases feature duck chili along with rendered duck fat; there are tubs of dog food destined for some seriously lucky pups.
Farr is generous with the cooking advice, too. Galley's of his book, Whole Beast Butchery, paper the walls, and plastic wrapped cuts feature preparation instructions (sear, roast, or braise).
But one can't discount the sausages, here. In addition to a jaw-dropping selection of uncooked offerings (turkey apple Campari sausage?!), the shop is offering three of hot sausages per day (when we visited: the bacon-studded hot dog, cheddar brat, and Magnolia chicken beer sausage), all available straight up on an Acme roll, or as the base for one of five special combos (from $7-$8). You may see the now-famous Zilla ($8), a Ferry Building staple featuring Namu kimchee, $$ sauce, and chicarrones, or be temped by one of Farr's new creations.
Still to come? A corner counter, some outdoor tables, and some more hot foods. Farr mentions the appearance of smoked meats, like brisket.
Overall, Farr is looking forward to becoming a presence in the neighborhood.
"A lot of people who live around here don't know us yet," he says. "But they're getting to know us, and it's great."
Check out some of the tasty meat offerings, and sausages! at 4505 Meats in the slideshow above.
4505 Meats
1909 Mission Street, San Francisco CA 94110 (map) 415-255-3094; 4505meats.com


text:
Increasing price pressures are forcing medtech companies to become more cost conscious—firms can no longer simply increase prices.
New regulatory and reimbursement challenges, along with fast-moving changes in how health care is delivered and paid for, are making it essential that medical device manufacturers become more nimble and improve their operations efficiency.
With the right approach, medtech companies can drive sustainable growth and even create a competitive advantage by significantly improving all dimensions of operations, including supply chain, logistics, procurement, inventory management, lean manufacturing, and quality.


text:
When a cell is selected on a JTable, the default behavior is to give focus to the selected cell, but does not go into edit mode (blinking cursor).
What I want is to make the cell go into edit mode whenever a cell gets focus.
This will make it easier for users to quickly identify that the cell is already editable.
Usually, the users double click on the cell because they think that the cell is not yet editable even when they have already tabbed into it.
I have read the recommendations to override the changeSelection() method.
I did not override the changeSelection() method, but what I have done is this:
// set focus to description column this.itemListTable.changeSelection(row, 1, false, false); this.itemListTable.editCellAt(row, 1);
Stack overflow occurs whenever I call editCell() method.
I have tried replacing editCellAt() with methods such as:
None of them makes the cell go into edit mode.
Thanks in advance for your help!


text:
The United Nations Security Council, which usually deals with armed conflict, declared on Monday that there is a new kind of threat to political stability: a disease. AIDS in Africa is killing 10 times as many people as war, sabotaging the economy, and creating a generation of orphans. Such devastation can easily lead to massive social breakdown.
But to some Africans there is another reason that the Security Council, which arbitrates on matters of ethnic conflict, should focus on AIDS. Zimbawe's minister of health, Timothy Stamps, asked the Council whether the apathy of wealthy nations toward the epidemic represents "lack of understanding or a new form of racial discrimination, another ethnic cleansing process?"
Stamps and other speakers contrasted the billions spent on "that other virus" -- Y2K -- with the estimated $150 million donor countries gave to AIDS in Africa during 1997, the last year for which figures are available. That's "piddling compared to the need," U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Richard Holbrooke told the Voice.
While Monday's meeting, which Holbrooke orchestrated, will not bring expensive HIV drugs to Africa's 23.3 million infected people, it does place unprecedented pressure on African governments to fight the disease more vigorously and on wealthy countries to pony up more aid and reduce Africa's staggering debt. "I don't think it will be the usual talking," says Milly Katana, an HIV-positive activist in Uganda. "It will help get the whole world to look at AIDS as their concern and increase resources."
Vice President Al Gore, who chaired the meeting, announced that the administration will ask Congress to add $100 million to international AIDS efforts, mostly in Africa, and $50 million to spur vaccine development for third-world diseases, including AIDS. That's not enough to staunch the epidemic, but Holbrooke says the U.S. has already been asking Japan and other countries to pump up their assistance, and Japan told the Council they are considering new aid. Moreover, a new UN effort, The International Partnership on AIDS, aims to raise annual spending on AIDS in Africa to about $2 billion per year.
Most of this money will go toward prevention -- an understandable decision, but one that will abandon those already infected to die. The debate over drug access has focused on the astronomically expensive anti-HIV drugs. Uganda's health minister, Chrispus Kiyonga, told the Council that providing them to his country's 2 million HIV patients would cost 12 times more than the nation's total annual budget. But ACT UP claims -- and the director of the Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS concurs -- that just $1.5 billion could provide treatment and prophylaxis for common AIDS opportunistic infections to all the world's 34 million HIV patients.
Holbrooke, who made his name in war-torn Bosnia and Kosovo, says AIDS "is a direct, cancerous growth on the political, social, and economic security of Africa." He also fears that unless the stigma is lifted, AIDS "will create a unique, new untouchable caste," which could inflame violence and civil strife.
On his recent trip to Africa, Holbrooke was particularly moved by six HIV-positive Namibian women who were willing to talk with him, but who were forced "to come in a covered van to a curtained room because if they were seen in public they would lose their jobs and be ostracized." Such stigma is common throughout Africa, says former Nigerian health minister Olikoye Ransome-Kuti. "There's no reason for that, and if the Security Council makes that clear to the whole world, it would be wonderful."
Because the Security Council has never before addressed a health issue, getting AIDS on the agenda required some diplomatic footwork. Holbrooke was most worried about Russia, China, and France. But Paris and Peking signed on, Holbrooke recalls, "and then the Russians, in an act of classic Russian heavy-handedness, said they opposed it, would go along with it because everyone else wanted it, but -- and this had us all in the aisles laughing -- they would refuse to speak. To which I was tempted to say, 'Do you promise?'"
One touchy issue was testing UN peacekeepers. Enrolling soldiers in peacekeeping forces can actually be a hard-currency moneymaker for poor countries, but some African armies have high HIV rates. Holbrooke worries that such soldiers could export AIDS. That would "create almost the greatest irony of all: in the cause of peacekeeping to spread a disease which is killing 10 times as many people as war."
So, says Holbrooke, "I believe that we should insist that the UN test. I'm again encountering enormous resistance. Do you want to know who from? Guess. The Africans." They oppose testing "because of the stigmatization issue and the privacy issue."
Potentially, there's a deeper pitfall: If armies dismiss HIV-positive soldiers -- something Holbrooke adamantly opposes -- that could inflame discrimination and worsen economic insecurity, hardly what the Security Council wants to accomplish. Military jobs provide some of the surest incomes in developing nations, and each African breadwinner often supports 15 or more dependents. Discharging HIV-positive soldiers would rob families of the money they desperately need to prepare for when the infected soldier dies.
Of course, HIV-positive soldiers are only half the problem. Uninfected soldiers from countries as different as Finland and Nigeria have contracted HIV on peacekeeping missions and brought it back home. Holbrooke says he and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan are committed to providing UN peacekeepers with "a massive education campaign along the lines of what the U.S. army did in World War II with gonorrhea."
What Africans Want Much More Than Testing soldiers is increased funding for development of a preventative vaccine and treatment for the infected. Ransome-Kuti has long castigated African governments for not trying to ration the drugs. Deciding who gets treated would be "difficult, since I believe so much in equity," says Ransome-Kuti. "But treatment for none of the millions of our people who are HIV-positive, that is absolutely dreadful."
"This is a continual struggle," says Holbrooke. In East and Southern African villages, one finds grandmothers who have lost children, and so are forced to raise their orphaned grandchildren. "On Tuesday morning, life will not have changed for them," Holbrooke notes. "But we can help the next generation."
This article was originally published in the Village Voice.
More articles by Mark Schoofs.


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value (in economics)
value, in economics, worth of a commodity in terms of other commodities, or in terms of money (see price). Value depends on both desirability and scarcity. The marginal theory of value, pioneered in the late 19th cent. by Leon Walras, Stanley Jevons, and Carl Menger, has been highly influential in economics. It takes account of both scarcity and desirability by holding that the total value of a good depends on the utility rendered by the last unit consumed. It developed in opposition to David Ricardo's earlier labor theory of value, which holds that the value of a good derives from the effort of production, based on supply. Ricardo asserted that the cost of production can be reduced to the cost of labor, either paid in wages or used as capital, the physical means of production. In the marginal theory of value, there is an exchange value, as Ricardo postulated, but there is also a use value, which signifies the utility of a given commodity for satisfying a human desire. This distinction is equally important in Marxian economics. Marginal theory is fundamental to modern economics, because it points out that both supply and demand have an impact on the price of a commodity.
See M. H. Dobb, Theories of Value and Distribution Since Adam Smith (1975); M. Allingham, Value (1983); B. Fine, ed., The Value Dimension (1986).


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Disclosure: I have nothing but contempt for all organized religions but Islam is especially vile, intolerant, violent and wretched. I am not an atheist but I absolutely believe that if Jesus and the Prophet Mohammad suddenly visited planet earth today that they both would be appalled by the brutality and inhumanity of both religions. Because of my knowledge of Islam, I oppose Muslim immigration into western nations because Islam is a symbol of oppression, violence and intolerance.
Furthermore, I 100% oppose US interventions in Muslim nations because as a defender of human and natural rights, I absolutely abhor violence, especially the violence of the US and its rabid neocon psychopaths. The US is guilty of horrific crimes against the Muslim world.
I'm sure that Muslims are perplexed at the rising resistance to Muslim immigration into western nations. I've studied Islam since 911 - its theology, its culture and its history, and there is nothing that even remotely suggests that Islam is a peaceful and tolerant theology and culture.
Anyway, I will let loose with a few my complaints against Islam and why Islam is so destructive and grotesquely out of touch with modern concepts of human and natural rights.
1. FGM. Islam leads the world in female genital mutilation (FGM) or slicing off the clotoris.
Prevalence of female genital mutilation by country
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is practised in 30 countries in western, eastern, and north-eastern Africa,[5] in parts of the Middle East[6][7] and Asia,[8][9] and within some immigrant communities in Europe, North America and Australia.[5][10] The WHO defines the practice as "all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons."
According to a 2013 UNICEF report covering 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East, Egypt has the region's highest total number with 27.2 million women having undergone FGM, while Somalia has the highest prevalence rate of FGM at 98%.Sane and humane societies do not do indulge in such barbarism in the name of a deity, culture or religion. I don't want these folks anywhere near America.
2. Honor Killings. Muslim women who are not virgins and even rape victims are frequently honor killed by their own families. Honor killings are proliferating in the west as Muslim immigration increases. Only a savage people will brutally murder their females in the name of a deity and family honor. Honor killings in Muslim nations is rarely even prosecuted.
The estimated 27 victims of so-called "honor killings" each year in the U.S. don't fit neatly into the FBI's exhaustive Uniform Crime Reporting Statistics.
Hidden among thousands of nondescript murders and cases labeled as domestic violence are a mounting number of killings motivated by a radical and dark interpretation of Islam. Honor killings and violence, which typically see men victimize wives and daughters because of behavior that has somehow insulted their faith, are among the most secretive crimes in society, say experts.
Her parents, who have subsequently died, also forced her other sisters to enter into arranged marriages, she said. "As a young person growing up in Britain, going to their houses, you'd see horrific stories of them being beaten and abused," she said. "Yet my mother's response was to tell them to stay there because it was their duty to make the marriage work for the sake of our honor."
Sanghera wept as she recalled the fate of one of her sisters, whom she said was beaten by her husband. "She went to my family, for help. But at the age of 24 she set herself on fire and committed suicide, here.
5. Child Brides. It is not unusual for young girls to not only be forced into marriages to older men but some even die from being so violently raped by their savage Muslim husbands. Stories like this are indeed disturbing.
Yemeni child bride dies of internal bleeding
A 12-year-old Yemeni bride died of internal bleeding following intercourse three days after she was married off to an older man, the United Nations Children's Fund said.The Huffington Post also documented several cases of child brides.
Yemen Child Brides
While stories like this make me cringe in horror, they are not unusual in the Muslim world.
6. Muslim Men Consider Non-Muslim Women Whores and Rape Them. There is a rape crisis in Europe and European women are increasingly raped by Muslim men and even gang raped. Because Muslim society is probably the most sexually dysfunctional society on the planet, these men will seek a sexual release and with a strong prohibition against non-marital sex with a Muslim women, they just rape non-Muslim women; besides Muslim men view infidel women as whores.
Sweden Opened Its Doors To Muslim Immigration, Today It's The Rape Capital Of The West.
Sweden began opening its doors to Muslim immigrants in the 1970s. Today it pays a high price for having done so. The group suffering the severest consequences of such an open door policy has been Swedish women.REPORTING WHAT THE MEDIA WON'T: Massive Increase in Rape Spreading Through Europe – Muslim Immigrants Plan to Make Rape of Non-Muslim Women Legal When they Take Over the West
As Muslim men immigrated to Sweden, they brought with them an Islamic culture sanctioning rape.
7. Murder and brutality toward gay folks. The plight of homosexuals and lesbians in Muslim nations is pretty horrific.
79 countries where homosexuality is illegal
The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, or ILGA, lists 75 countries with criminal laws against sexual activity by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex people (LGBTIs), but that's an understatement.According to the Washington Post, there are 10 countries with the death penalty for homosexuality. They are: Yemen, Iran, Iraq, Mauritania, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan and United Arab Emirates. Read the Washington Post article here.
The death penalty can be imposed for same-sex intimacy in eight of them.
A gay man writes about how terrified he is of Muslim immigration. I'M A GAY MAN AND MASS MUSLIM IMMIGRATION TERRIFIES ME
8. Extreme intolerance against every imagined or perceived insult to Islam. .The Christian world has endured endless insults against its religion including taxpayers being forced to fund the Piss Christ and the Virgin Mary Covered in Elephant Dung. Christians didn't go out murder anybody but Muslims go on a murderous rampage for every perceived insult to Islam. In free nations, freedom of though and freedom of expression are highly valued rights even if they insult somebody. Hurling insults is just a national pastime in free societies whether it's at politicians, religions or anything.
Muslim violence against those who insult Islam is deeply disturbing.
The Danish cartoonist who survived an axe attack
Soon after the attack on the Danish cartoonist by a Muslim, stories started surfacing about attacks on non-Muslims all over the world over a silly cartoon. There were indeed murders attributable to the cartoon incident.
Cartoon controversy spreads throughout Muslim world
Then there is the infamous Charlie Hebdo attack in January, 2015 that resulted in 11 folks being massacred by pissed off Muslims, here.
9. Food and Booze Muslims are religiously banned from consuming alcohol or pork. However, western nations are booze swilling and pork choming nations. Why would Muslims even want to be in nations where pork and booze liberally flow? Well, Muslims have so intimidated westerners that they are demanding that pork be removed from public schools and other places because it OFFENDS Muslims. This is not only bullshit but compliance with such insane demands constitutes and act of appeasement and capitulation to Muslims which only empowers them. Muslim demands are exploding.
Muslim flight attendant sues after she's suspended for refusing to serve alcohol
Booze, dogs too much for some Muslim cabbies
Last year, the airports commission received a fatwa, or religious edict, from the Minnesota chapter of the Muslim American Society saying "Islamic jurisprudence" prohibits taxi drivers from carrying passengers with alcohol, "because it involves cooperating in sin according to Islam."Muslim Costco employee refuses to touch pork; sues after getting transferred to different department
In the Quran, Muslims are barred from consuming intoxicants — generally understood as alcohol, though the prohibition also extends to narcotics. Devout Muslims interpret the ban to include carrying, buying or selling alcohol. Additionally, dogs are considered unclean.
The above are just a few incidents and hundreds more routinely occur because some damn Muslim is demanding NOT to be offended by what he/she perceives as an affront to their religion or they are filing lawsuits against companies who don't go along with their Islamization schemes.
10. Shariah Law The thought of living under intolerant and barbaric Shariah law is too horrifying to contemplate. Non-Muslims are treated like sub-humans, along with women; Shariah Law is theological totalitarian tyranny for Muslims and non-Muslims. It's like America's fundamentalist Christians who would welcome Old Testament Law but thankfully, they are a pitiful minority. Yet, polls in Europe and America disclose that a frightening percentage of Muslims would impose Sharia Law if they had the votes to impose it.
Poll reveals 40pc of Muslims want sharia law in UK
4 out of 10 Danish Muslims want Quran-Based law
POLL: MOST U.S. MUSLIMS WOULD TRADE CONSTITUTION FOR SHARIAH - 'Quran should be highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion'
51 percent of U.S. Muslims prefer Shariah11. Terrorism Murderous acts of terrorism committed against non-Muslim is epidemic. Let's review the extremely abbreviated SHORT list. 100% of these attacks have been attributed to Sunni Sanafist Wahhabist, a vile and violent sect of Islam that was spawned in Saudi Arabia and is rapidly and globally proliferating with money from Sunni gulf monarchies (and even the US). Sunni Salafist Wahhabists consider the Kurds and Shiites infidels, as well as Christians, Jews, Hindus and all other folks who do not subscribe to the radically intolerant views of the Wahhabists.
There are now an estimated 3 million Muslims residing in the United States as citizens or with permanent legal status, and more than 250,000 new Muslim residents enter the U.S. per year as refugees, on work visas and student-based visas, according to the Center for Immigration Studies.
A poll commissioned in May 2015 by the Center for Security Policy showed that 51 percent of American Muslims preferred that they should have their own Shariah courts outside of the legal system ruled by the U.S. Constitution. And nearly a quarter believed the use of violent jihad was justified in establishing Shariah.
The largest death tolls from Sunni Salafist Wahhabist terrors arise from attacks on Kurds and Shiites but the western media ignores the bloody carnage. In Nigeria, an oil rich nation that is roughly 50% Christian and 50% Muslim, Sunni attacks on non-Muslims, mostly by Boko Haram that operates in several African nations and is funded by wealthy Sunni Salafists.
Very recent Islamic terror attacks.
November 21, 2015 – Suicide bombers affiliated with Boko Haram kill at least 10 in northern Cameroon.
November 20, 2015 – Bamako hotel attack. Gunmen yelling "Allahu Akbar" storm a hotel in Bamako, Mali. At least 27 killed, and more than 80 were taken hostage.
Although Mali is 98% Muslim and Sunni, Mali Muslims follow a benign form of Islam and are non-violent and have never participated in jihadism or terrorism. Apparently, Mali has been infiltrated by Sunni Salafist Wahhabists.
An estimated 90 percent of Malians are Muslim, mostly Sunni belonging to Maliki school of jurisprudence influenced with Sufism. Religion of Mali, here.Sufism is a deeply spiritual form of Islam with no history of violent.
November 17, 2015 – A suicide attack at a market in Yola killed more than 30 people and hospitalised more than 80. The attack is thought to be the work of Boko Haram.
November 13-14, 2015 – Simultaneous terrorist attacks in Paris kill 136, and wound 352.
November 12, 2015 – Twin suicide bombings kill 42 people in the capital city of Beirut.
October 31, 2015 – Bomb on board a Russian jet brings it down in Sinai, bound for St Petersburg, killing 224 people.
October 22, 2015 – 20 people were killed in the northeast state of Borno, Nigeria in a Boko Haram attack.
October 10, 2015 – Multiple suicide bombings in Chad killed 33 people and injured 51. The attack is believed to be the work of Boko Haram.[
October 3, 2015 – In Baghdad, two suicide bombings in Shiite majority neighbourhoods kill at least 18 people and injure 61. Attack claimed by ISIL.
September 24, 2015 – A bomb attack on a Shia mosque in Sana'a killed 25 and injured dozens more during prayers for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. Claimed by ISIL.
September 17, 2015 – Two suicide bombings in Baghdad killed 10 and injured 55. ISIL claims responsibility.
August 13, 2015 – 2015 Baghdad market truck bombing A truck bomb in a Baghdad market killed more than 70 and injures 200.
The above list goes on and on but from here on I will just list major Sunni Salafist attacks on non-Muslims.
November 5, 2009 – Fort Hood shooting, at Fort Hood near Killeen, Texas. 13 dead, 33 injured
June 1, 2009 – 2009 Little Rock recruiting office shooting by Abdulhakim Muhajid Muhammad. 1 killed and 1 injured
November 26, 2008 – Muslim extremists kill at least 166 people and wound numerous others in a series of coordinated attacks on India's financial capital, Mumbai.
July 11, 2006 – 2006 Mumbai train bombings: Seven bomb blasts over a period of 11 minutes on the Suburban Railway in Mumbai. 209 killed and over 700 injured.
July 7, 2005 – Multiple bombings in London Underground. 53 killed by four suicide bombers. Nearly 700 injured.
September 1, 2004 – Beslan school hostage crisis, approximately 344 civilians including 186 children killed.
March 11, 2004 – Madrid train bombings, killed 191 people and wounded 1,800.
August 25, 2003 – Twin car bombings killed 54, and injured 244 people in Mumbai.
October 23, 2002 – The Moscow theater hostage crisis was the seizure of the crowded Dubrovka Theater by Islamists. 170+ dead (including 40 perpetrators) 700+ injured.
October 12, 2002 – 2002 Bali bombings in the tourist district of Kuta on the Indonesian island of Bali, killing 202 people and injuring 240.
September 11, 2001 – 4 planes hijacked by 19 al-Qaeda members: two planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City, New York; one into The Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia; and one into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. 2,977 victims killed.
December 24, 2000 – Christmas Eve 2000 Indonesia bombings of churches in eight cities, 18 killed. October 12, 2000 – Attack on USS Cole in the Yemeni port of Aden. 17 American sailors were killed, 39 injured.
August 7, 1998 – 1998 United States embassy bombings in Tanzania and Kenya. 224 dead, 4000+ injured.
November 17, 1997 – Luxor massacre, 6 armed Islamic terrorists attacked tourists at the Luxor ruins. 62 killed, 26 injured.
June 25, 1996 – Khobar Towers bombing, 20 killed, 372 wounded.
The Sunni Salafist Wabbabist attacks in Syria have led to a bloody civil war with death tolls topping 200,000. The victims have been Kurds, Shiites, Alewites, Christians, Yazidi and other non Sunni Salafist Wahhabist sects.
Source of above terror attacks here.
Conclusions: It's impossible for any sane person to conclude that Islam is a peaceful religion and that Muslims are nice folks. Yeah, some Muslims may be decent folks but if decent Muslims fail to rise up and fight the murderous jihadists and the scourge of Sunni Salafist Wahhabism, they really aren't much different.
The real tragedy is that wherever Islam lands, bad things happen and human rights are non-existent.
To be continued.......


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Best definition
Longmeadow is a town outside of Springfield in Werstern Mass.People who live in other towns stero-type longmeadow as being rich,
snobby, and annoying. However, longmeadow is just competitive, being state champs for hockey and winning the superbowl for football. It is a trend for the kids at the highschool to wear northfaces, popped collars and ugg boots. Yes, longmeadow is previlaged and has money. They don't exclude blacks or people of other race/religion because they have a mix of all kinds of people at the high school. Basically longmeadow shouldn't be looked down upon because it really is a very nice town.
"I live in longmeadow"
"Oh i hear they have a great school system!"
"Oh i hear they have a great school system!"
longmeadow: define #2
An upper-middle class preppy, country clubbing, New England town outside of Springfield, MA. Longmeadow is competitive, but not snobby. In Longmeadow, pee-wee lacrosse is more important than pee-wee soccer. Longmeadow parents drive BMW's, Audi's and Mercedes. Longmeadow families vacation in Vermont, Cape Cod and Nantucket. Longmeadow youth epitomize the preppy deadhead style, whereby a ripped bleached out polo shirt is fine, as long as the collar is worn up. LL Bean Bulcher mocs, or worn out penny loafers are a good look. Messy hair and boxer shorts tie in to the casual preppy look. Labels are very important. J.C. Penny knock offs are grounds for school bullying. Longmeadow's public schools are more like private prep schools. Longmeadow is sarcastically referred to as "the ghetto". Longmeadow kids grow up with a strong motivation for material success. Longmeadow is not to be confused with East Longmeadow. It is not uncommon to find a new Porsche in the L.H.S. student parking lot.
There is only one Longmeadow. It is the wealthiest town in Western Massachusetts.
longmeadow: define #3
A Suburb of Springfield, MA. One of the most affluent in Western Massachusetts. The schools are excellent. The athletic department in the high school is excellent. However, the music program is far better. The only reason people move to Longmeadow is for the school system. Due to the supposedly excellent school system, some people can get into Ivy League schools even if they have the IQ of a bumblebee. Typically a resident, known as a Longmeadowite is to wear a female colored polo with a popped collar if male, and uggs if female. The most popular cars in the area tend to be Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Volvo, and lots of minivans. Everything is centered towards the high school. Pee-Wee Lacrosse here is taken more seriously than Pee-Wee Soccer. The town is reportedly 40 percent Jewish.
Longmeadow is south of Springfield, MA, West of East Longmeadow, North of Enfield, East of Agawam.
longmeadow: define #4
A wealthy town in the Springfield area of Western Massachusetts filled with a lot of Jewish white people. Lots of big, expensive houses. A BMW and Mercedes parked in every street. Oh, and they have a Gap.
"I'm moving to Longmeadow!"
"Haha, yeah right…too bad you're wicked poor and not white."
"Haha, yeah right…too bad you're wicked poor and not white."
longmeadow: define #5
longmeadow is a very nice town and it thought of as snobby, but in reality thats only a small portion of the population. yes, people in longmeadow have money but that is no reason to hate them. the fashions of longmeadow frequently change but right now the latest fashions are: uggs, leggings, rain boots, hardtails, vests, and peacoats. most of the cars in the lhs parking lot are nothing special. there are few mercedes and bmws but that doesnt mean that everyone in longmeadow is rich. so if oyu live in east longmeadow stop whining about longmeadowers. just because they have a better record with sports doesnt give you permission
Longmeadow is the better version of east longmeadow, the neighbor
the ghetto, the shops, uggs, football champs, wealth
longmeadow: define #6
Town with a genrally nice and welcoming population. Excellent school system, complete with athletic and music programs. Not to be confused with the poorer, less white/rich town of East-Longmeadow, which has resented Longmeadow since day one when they realised we were better than most of them.
"Wow, East-Longmeadow sure are cool skipping school so they can vandalise our cars while we're in class"
longmeadow: define #7
Longmeadow is located outside of Springfield, Mass. and is widely held as one of the most affluent towns in Western Mass, if not all of Massachusetts. Longmeadow has an amazing public school system, outstanding atheletics, and an even better music program:) No public school in Western Mass can compare to the highest average score on MCAS (In Longmeadow) or to the constantly winning sports teams, and choral ensembles. Longmeadow is not snobby, and there are not THAT many McMansions… Its annoying to the residents of Longmeadow that they are viewed as snobby for having money, and pushing their children to succeed in their lives.
Many expensive clothing stores and restaurants can be found in Longmeadow


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Friday, November 1, 2013
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For 400 years, Taiwanese have been subject to foreign colonizers -- first the Dutch and Spanish, then the Manchu Empire, then the Japanese empire and finally the "Republic of China" KMT Chinese Nationalist Regime of Chiang Kai-shek and his son. In particular the last 100 years of first Japanese then KMT rule were brutal in attempted obliteration of Taiwan's Identity. Herein is chronicled the fight for its recovery.
Hoklo Taiwanese Word for the Day:
• chhôan-piān-piān
used in the sentence: Saⁿ-ê hong-thai chò-hóe lâi, góa kā sok-si̍t-mī kā be̍h-á-chiú chhôan-piān-piān.
• There is a lot of uncertainty in Taiwan because of the KMT-controlled government's aims at forcing through ECFA and its attendant binding Taiwan closer to authoritarian China.
Taiwanese has many words related to uncertainty:
There are different levels of uncertainty.
To say, "possibly," one might say khó-lêng or tāi-khài. "Perhaps" it is better to use kiám-chhái. To express a greater degree of uncertainty, as in "maybe," one says bô tiāⁿ-tio̍h or bô tek-khak.
If you are certain that something is not possible, use bô khó-lêng. Most certainly not: pèng m̄-sī.
Possibly not: bô it-tēng.
Certainly: it-tēng, tek-khak, tong-jiân.
Certain: it-tēng, khak-si̍t.
To express an unspecificied-- Tī bó͘ chi̍t ê soaⁿ-téng... "In a certain mountain..." (src: Maryknoll)
One uses bó͘, "certain; particular," to particularize a mountain without specifically naming which one. Notice that in English the word "certain" has a broader range of meanings whereas Taiwanese uses distinct words.
• Unfortunately, because the R.O.C. government-in-exile suppresses the use of Taiwanese and other non-Mandarin languages in public schools in Taiwan, there is not much opportunity to learn the vocabulary of the non-Mandarin languages associated with an academic setting. Furthermore, few essay or papers in these languages have ever been written by students. The normal editing processes are never experienced. The following Taiwanese expressions describe editing practices.
* Underline this sentence = "kā chit kú ê ē-bīn oē sûn"
oē = draw ; sûn = line ; ē-bīn = underneath
[Notice the homonym: the noun oē 話 in "kú-oē" meaning speech/word and the verb oē 畫 meaning draw/sketch. These two homonyms are obviously different in their Han characters. But actually in the romanization, one has very little trouble differentiating them because of their distinct parts of speech and the noun often being associated in a compound word and the verb often being associated with an object -- e.g. kú-oē "sentence" vs. oē tô͘ "draw a picture" ]
* Circle this sentence = "Kā chit kú-oē kho͘--khit-lâi." or "Kā chit kú-oē kho͘ kho͘-á"
Kho͘ is a verb that means "to circle" ; kho͘-á is the noun that means "a circle" -- just as in English one can say: "Circle this sentence." or "Circle a circle around this sentence." Or to get more fancy you could translate it as "Circumscribe a circle..."
* If the word or phrase is really poorly written, sometimes you should just strike it out. Taiwanese is quite vivid in the way to say that. Jack-the-Ripper fashion, literally, you say "kill/murder/slash that sentence!" = "Kā hit kú-oē thâi-tiāu." or "murder that word..." = "Kā hit jī thâi-tiāu." This word "thâi," meaning kill/murder/slash w/knife, is also what someone who is good at bargaining can do: Kā i thâi kè-siàu. "Cut/kill the price."
• Poa̍h-kiáu 賭博 means "gambling." In the fall of 2009 there was a referendum being held in Phêⁿ-ô͘ (Penghu or the Pescadores) on whether or not to allow gambling casinos ( kiáu-keng ). Unfortunately, gambling profits are often controlled by organized crime ( o͘-siā-hōe ) and corrupt government officials ( tham-ù ê chèng-hú ). Where you find casinos you also find drugs ( to̍k-phín ), violence ( po̍k-le̍k ), sexual crimes ( sek-chêng ), and human trafficking ( jîn-kháu ê bé-bē) where the victims are controlled with drugs ( iōng to̍k-phín khòng-chè in ). A few people or mafia organizations can make huge profits off gambling, but for most residents, there is no benefit ( hó-chhù ) but rather an accumulation of societal problems -- particularly addiction in its various forms.
Gambling proponents often use spin ( hó-thiaⁿ-oē ) to trick people (kā lâng phiàn--khì).
· Taiwanese still has the saying with variations that basically translate as "An Austronesian Grandmother and a Hoklo Grandfather" --- For example,
"Ū tn̂g soaⁿ-kong, bô Tn̂g-soaⁿ-má." -- "Have a Han grandfather, but no Han grandmother..." With that intermarriage of Austronesian and Han that makes up today's Taiwanese people, I thought it would be interesting to share some marriage and kinship related terms:
Chheⁿ-ḿ 生姆 or originally written 青姆 means a son or daughter's mother-in-law. Mandarin uses a different word: 親家母
Chhin-chiâⁿ 親情 relative by marriage, in-laws. Mandarin uses a different word: 親戚
· Expression: "... chhin-chhiūⁿ teh ùn tāu-iû." Ùn means "to dip." Tāu-iû 豆油 is "soy sauce." Notice that the Taiwanese word is different from the Mandarin: 醬油 ㄐㄧㄤˋㄧㄡˊ. Taiwanese uses this character 醬 pronounced chiùⁿ to mean "pickled" or "canned" as in chiùⁿ-chhài 醬菜 "pickled/canned vegetables."
This expression "teh ùn tāu-iû" is used in social circumstances to describe very short visits. If someone "drops by" and then leaves, it is like dipping food in soy sauce.
This expression is also very appropriate to describe the attitude of the Chinese Nationalists of Chiang Kai-shek's regime. They treated Taiwan as a temporary place from which they would fight back to China. They spoke of winning back China within three years after fleeing as refugees to Taiwan in 1949. So you can notice today that all the beautiful architecture is mainly from the Japanese era (pre-1945). The KMT regime put up many hasty structures, allowed squatter shack communities of former soldiers to take over many of the parks in the cities, and generally allow industry to heavily pollute the environment and degrade the landscape because they thought of Taiwan mainly as a resource to be exploited before heading back to China.
· hān-chè 限制 suppress
kìm-chí 禁止 forbid {The Korean word 금치 "kum-chi" shows a consonant-vowel homology with Taiwanese but not with Mandarin}
These two words are what the colonialist KMT Chinese Nationalist Party and the Japanese empire before them in Taiwan did in an attempt to destroy Taiwan's native languages.
• "developed baby fat from nursing" hàng-leng
When a nursing infant grows well with lots of fat rolls, one does not call the infant the common words for "fat" such as pûi-ê or tōa-kho͘-ê. Taiwanese has this special word hàng-leng for "baby fat." If you say that about a baby, the mother will be very delighted to receive the complement. Incidentally, the word tōa-kho͘ literally means "large circumference" and kho͘ specifically refers to the metal bands that circle around the old wooden buckets and hold the pieces of wood together. (Or think of whiskey barrels.)
• "how much?"
lōa-chē 若多 {The literary pronunciation (JI)of 若 is Jio̍k and 多 is To}; Mandarin uses a different word -- 多少 ( ㄉㄨㄛ ㄕㄠˇ)
In Taiwan, you can still sometimes bargain for things you buy. But unlike Thailand, it is usually pretty standardized so that people are not automatically marking up the price 400 percent because you are a foreigner. So even if you do not bargain, you can get a decent price in Taiwan.


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Do you watch anime?
Moderator: Big-Will
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Do you watch anime?
I have been watching Sailor Moon for two years now. It's my favorite anime because it has magical girls and deals with good and evil. I like anime with supernatural powers. I always visualize about having one of my own So what about you? Do you watch anime in your spare time?
It's me Ikyman
Re: Do you watch anime?
and when there are good ones, i'm usually over at crunchyroll getting my anime on.
Ernest Hemingway
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Re: Do you watch anime?
Black Butler/Kuroshitsuji is my most favorite anime.
"Give me prime laughter!"-The Undertaker<3
Re: Do you watch anime?
AxayPaulene wrote:Don't we all?Niels0827 wrote:But he (RideTheLightning)wanted Kensuke's hot man chowder.
Re: Do you watch anime?
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Re: Do you watch anime?
Niels0827 wrote:http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v426/ ... 897901.png
Seriously, nobody likes you. Fuck off.
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Re: Do you watch anime?
I've suddenly gotten back into Dexter's Labatory (Cartoon Network-not quite anime but nice to bring up). Some of the jokes when it first came on were over my sad head but now that I'm older...ironically I find it funnier.
Re: Do you watch anime?
Free single download:
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Re: Do you watch anime?
Anyway, InuYasha sucks ass, Bleach is sucking now, and the only anime worth watching (other than Cowboy Bebop and FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood) is Eureka 7, and I've seen it before. Samurai 7, from what I've seen, is decent, too. Oh, and I really enjoyed Casshern Sins.
REVERSE THE POLARITY OF THE NEUTRON FLOW! (Proud Doctor Who fan.)
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Re: Do you watch anime?
GeminiShamrock wrote:Eureka 7.
Eureka Seven was a good one.
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Sailor Moon
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Re: Do you watch anime?
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Re: Do you watch anime?
Kensuke wrote:I wouldn't say I'm a huge overall anime fan because I don't know much about the many ones that are out there. However I do love the Dragonball Series, Naruto, Full Metal Alchemist and One Piece.
I watch all those same series. I also love Death Note and Rurouni Kenshin. I prefer the Pokémon manga over the anime.
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Re: Do you watch anime?
The most recent was Death Note, for the storylines and even the animation quality.
But the first one I really enjoyed was Star Blazers (or Space Battleship Yamato), a bit of old-school anime from the '70s. Recently, I found three volumes from the first season (out of three), and wouldn't mind finding sweet deals on the rest of them.
AngusArt updated 4/9/17.
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Pressure in the eye is called intraocular pressure (IOP). Tonometry tests the amount of pressure in the eye.
Elevated eye pressure can lead to eye damage. This may be part of a disease called glaucoma. If left untreated, glaucoma can cause blindness. Tonometry is used to screen for glaucoma. It is also used to monitor the treatment of glaucoma.
You may have ocular hypertension. This happens when pressure is elevated but is not caused by glaucoma.
There are no major complications associated with this procedure.
There are 2 main types of tonometry: the noncontact air puff method and the applanation method that flattens the cornea with pressure. The type of tonometry that is done will depend on the equipment your doctor has and the type of test they decide to do.
You may be asked to remove corrective lenses, such as contacts.
For both methods, you will be asked to sit in an exam chair. You may be asked to place your chin in a special cradle and rest your forehead against a bar. The chin cup and forehead rest will balance and steady your head.
You will be asked to look into an instrument. A puff of air will be blown into the eye. No instruments come in contact with the eye.
Anesthetic drops will be placed in your eyes before the test. This will numb your eye. A small amount of an orange dye may also be placed into your eye. When your head is balanced and steady, you will be asked to look into an instrument with a blue light. A probe will push against your eye. How hard the probe has to push lets the doctor know how much pressure is in the eye. This test does not hurt because the eye is numb. This test is considered the most accurate method of checking pressure.
Another method of applanation tonometry is the use of a handheld device shaped like a pen. The device will be pushed against the front of your eye to get pressure readings. Again, it does not hurt because the eye is numb.
There are other devices that are used to check eye pressure. The ones listed above are the most common.
The numbing drops and dye wear off in about 20 minutes. It is important not to rub your eye while it is numb.
A few seconds
This test is painless. Some people do experience a slight sting or tingling due to the anesthetic drops.
If you are having the procedure for glaucoma screening, your doctor will discuss the results with you and determine treatment options, if needed.
If you are having the procedure to monitor an existing diagnosis of glaucoma, your doctor will determine if your current care is helping to lower your eye pressure.
After the test, call your doctor if you have any of the following eye discomforts:
In case of an emergency, call for emergency medical services right away.
Glaucoma Research Foundation
National Eye Institute
Canadian Association of Optometrists
Canadian Ophthalmological Society
Five common glaucoma tests. Glaucoma Research Foundation website. Available at: http://www.glaucoma.org/glaucoma/diagnostic-tests.php. Updated April 22, 2013. Accessed June 16, 2016.
Tonometers. The College of Optometrists website. Available at: http://www.college-optometrists.org/en/college/museyeum/online_exhibitions/optical_instruments/tonometers.cfm. Accessed June 16, 2016.
Last reviewed May 2018 by Michael Woods, MD Last Updated: 5/26/2015


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Amazon's Profits Drop As Investments and Sales Rise
Amazon's revenues jumped 38 percent during the first quarter, compared to the year-ago period, but net income fell as the giant retailer invested heavily in all sorts of businesses.
The Seattle-based company said revenues totaled $9.86 billion, compared with $7.13 billion in the year-ago period, and that net income decreased 33 percent to $201 million or 44 cents a share.
In a statement, Jeff Bezos, Amazon's founder and CEO, said: "We love inventing on behalf of customers and have never been more excited about the long-term opportunities."
But you have to wonder how much investors love it.
The company's stock dropped $3.12, or 1.7 percent, in regular hours, and then slid another 90 cents in after-hours trading.
Besides investments, analysts questioned what impact the Japanese earthquake had on Amazon's results, since the region is particularly strong for the company. Here's updates from the call on that subject, as well as news from Amazon that it will start selling its ad-subsidized Kindle a week early.
In some regards the quarter demonstrates a return to the company's frothy days when the motto was get big fast, and then later, that morphed into get bigger faster.
To be sure, the company is dipping its toes into a variety of pools, ranging from cloud computing to traditional e-commerce to digital commerce. It's building hardware, such as the Kindle e-reader, announcing a new version recently that's supported by advertising. It's also just beginning to reveal where it's mobile strategy is going with a promotion that crosses both its Android Appstore and its handset business.
To be sure, one of those growing pains was felt last week when when its cloud services crashed, leading to outages for nearly a week. The company did not comment on the crash in its earnings release, but it will likely have to answer analyst questions during this afternoon's call.
Still, Amazon was able to meet its own sale forecasts, which predicted net sales of between $9.1 billion and $9.9 billion.
Sales also exceeded analyst expectations, who were hoping for revenues of $9.54 billion, representing a 34 percent increase from the same period last year, according to consensus forecasts from FactSet Research. However, Amazon fell way short of analyst's earnings estimates of 61 cents a share. Amazon reported 44 cents a share for the quarter.
In the second quarter, Amazon is predicting software net sales ranging between $8.85 billion and $9.65 billion, representing year-over-year growth of 35 percent and 47 percent. Operating income is expected to be between $95 million and $245 million, declining by 9 percent to 65 percent.


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Warren Buffett is a big fan of Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg's book, "Lean In."
It inspired his recent column in Fortune, where he wrote, "we've seen what can be accomplished when we use 50% of our human capacity. If you visualize what 100% can do, you'll join me as an unbridled optimist about America's future."
He spoke on gender issues again, this time during a live interview, "Office Hours With Warren Buffett," with career site Levo League, where he shared some great career advice for young women. Here are some of the best quotes from his talk:
Stop holding yourself back
"I've seen very, very bright women. I use the example of Katherine Graham. ... While she was CEO of The Washington Post, the stock went up [by a lot]. She won a Pulitzer Prize. But she'd been told by her mother, she'd been told by her husband, she'd been told by lots of people that women weren't as good as men in business. It was nonsense.
"And I kept telling her, you know, 'Quit looking at that fun house mirror. You know, here's a real mirror. You're something.' And as smart as she was, as high grade as she was, you know, as famous as she became, right to her dying day, you know, she had that little voice inside her that kept repeating what her mother had told her a long time ago. So everybody should get a chance to live up to their potential. And women should not hold themselves back. And nobody should hold them back. And that's my message."
Demand equal pay
"I do very little negotiation with people. And they do little with me, in terms of it ... if I was a woman and I thought I was getting paid considerably less than somebody else that was equal coming in, that would bother me a lot. I probably wouldn't even want to work there. I mean, [if] somebody's gonna be unfair with you, in salary, they're probably being unfair with you in a hundred other ways. I mean who should you spend your time with?"
Make yourself known
"[One woman] told me that she went to Harvard Business School. The women just didn't raise their hand as often as the men. I raise my hand all the time. When I didn't even deserve to. So you wanna get over the idea, as I wrote in the [Fortune] article [that] males — there's a lot of Wizard of Oz in us. I mean, you get behind the curtain and you'll find out that it wasn't quite that imposing."
Know the power of your potential
"Look what's happened since 1776, most of the time, using half our talent. I mean just imagine what's gonna happen when we, you know — go full blast with 100%. And you know, it's incumbent on everybody to try and help people — particularly if you're in a boss's type position, to help the people achieve their potential. And women have every bit the potential men do."


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Stay-at-home moms: Don't fall for the media chatter that "opting out" of work to raise kids will sound the death knell for your career. It IS possible to get back in. You just need some advice and inspiration. Remember, as a full-time mom, you opted into the most important job in the world - raising the next generation of capable and responsible adults. There's no need to … [Read more...] about 11 Tips For Stay-At-Home Moms Who Want To Go Back To Work
Career-Boosting Resolutions for Moms
January is a time to take a look at the past year and make plans for the year ahead. For career-minded moms, it's a good time to make resolutions that will lead to success in 2018. Interestingly, nearly 45 percent of Americans say they usually make New Year's resolutions, mainly for self-improvement. Although many resolutions aren't kept, it's important to make career-focused … [Read more...] about Career-Boosting Resolutions for Moms
Caring For Sick Relatives Without Losing Your Job (or Your Mind)
If you haven't had to care for an elderly or ill loved one, you either know someone who has or you will soon do it, too. Seniors now, for the first time, comprise the largest age group in the country and will be the first to rely on a less affluent younger generation to care for them. One in six employees cares for an elderly or disabled family member, but less than 25% of them … [Read more...] about Caring For Sick Relatives Without Losing Your Job (or Your Mind)
The Summer Juggle – Tips For Working Parents
Few times of the year are more exhilarating for kids than early summer. No school! Swimming! Camp! Kick the Can! Popsicles! All life's bounty in a three month period. But for parents, the excitement is often replaced with…dread. And stress. And frustration. Especially for working parents, the summer juggle, with its constantly changing schedules, can be far from fun or … [Read more...] about The Summer Juggle – Tips For Working Parents
Why Women Should Rule the World
March is Women's History month, but let's face it - women change the world every day. No matter what our "jobs" are (we usually have many), we know our real job is to grow the future. We're good at it, too. Special thanks to artist Jessica Sabogal whose genius created this poster to advance women's rights. Our high emotional intelligence and social skills make us more … [Read more...] about Why Women Should Rule the World


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November 3, 2008, 1:30 pm 0 Comments (closed)
Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon dressed up as milk and cookies for Halloween. [via]
Choice, guilt, and professional cooking.Keep reading »
Thank God, the Tiki Bar Is open.
With extra salt, light on the butter, or au naturel.
Hand-drawn illustrations and super-saturated photographs.
Loved by soccer moms and stoners alike.
Video clips from the film.
Fish, meet barrel.
EMD picks the books that made the decade.
Nothing says "I'm serious about what I put in my mouth" more...
Two grandmas, one waffle cone.
©2008-2010 Eat Me Daily


text: "Homecoming, fueled by a mystery, is also a powerful meditation on justice, history, and the nature of evil. . . . Schlink has written another lean, meticulously structured, disquieting thought-provoker." —Los Angeles Times "A beguilingly oblique novel. . . . Despite its intricate, maze-like progression, Homecoming has surprising narrative thrust." —The Economist"Sensitive and disturbing. . . . The reader's mind opens to the story like a plant unfurling its leaves to the sun." —The New York Times Book Review"Plot twists and surprises and sometimes outright lies complicate the book's multilayered homecoming theme. . . . Schlink has woven a homecoming tale as fascinating as Homer's Odyssey, its inspiration." —Seattle Times


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Digitimes has a very sparse report naming OmniVision as the supplier for the CMOS imaging sensor for the next-generation iPhone hardware expected to be released this summer. "Market sources" say that Apple has ordered 3.2 megapixel sensors from the company, which beat out STMicroelectronics and Aptina Imaging as the supplier. The latter company supplied the 2 megapixel sensor in the current iPhone hardware.
OmniVision currently lists several sensors suitable for mobile phone applications in the 3 megapixel range, all of which use a 1.75�m pixel size and use the company's OmniPixel3 technology. OmniPixel3 purports to offer higher dynamic range and much-improved low-light performance, which should improve image quality significantly, especially in less-than-ideal lighting conditions. The sensors also support video, some up to 30fps, which would come in handy for those rumored video capabilities coming in iPhone OS 3.0.
The larger number of megapixels is rather insignificant compared to the other image quality improvements, since few of the images are likely to be printed. However, if Apple plans to incorporate Wavefront Coding technology, which uses specialized optics and digital processing to achieve much sharper images with greater depth of field, the iPhone could become a serious snapshot camera replacement. OmniVision offers a 3.2 megapixel sensor and necessary decoding processor package, but it must be paired with specific optics to work. The current iPhone camera lens could be described as "barely adequate" (and that's being nice).
The Digitimes report also says that OmniVision will be supplying Apple with 5 megapixel sensors "for another Apple product expected to be launched later in the year." OmniVision's 1/4" 5 megapixel sensors support 1080p and 720p HD video recording in addition to using a backside illumination technology, which offers additional improvements in light gathering capabilities. Those sensors are also available with Wavefront Coding processors. Perhaps this unnamed product is one of the mystery devices identified in iPhone OS 3.0 internals.
Regardless of the latter rumor, from the looks of OmniVision's sensor offerings, iPhone snapshots should be getting a significant boost in quality. Considering how craptastic the current hardware is in anything other than bright, sunny lighting, it should make a compelling upgrade for those who use the camera often (myself included).