tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64637135736971813992024-03-07T21:28:03.524-08:00k-campaighk.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-30880489174822726362013-06-24T07:11:00.001-07:002013-06-24T07:11:52.795-07:00k-campaigh test post content<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
k-campaigh test post content</div>
k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-60467464990002554072013-06-05T04:01:00.002-07:002013-06-05T04:01:41.528-07:00Delhi professor discovers three new legless amphibians<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Three new species of legless amphibians were discovered from forests of northeast India. Amphibian researcher professor SD Biju, professor, University of Delhi, popularly known as 'Delhi's Frogman' led the team that made this discovery together with his PhD student Rachunliu G Kamei.<br /><br /><br />This discovery is a result of collaboration between DU and The Natural History Museum, London through The Royal Society London/ CSIR, India initiatives.<br /><br />The research team had two collaborators from The Natural History Museum, London - Drs David Gower and Mark Wilkinson. The new find has been published in the latest issue of Zootaxa (International Journal of Zoological Taxonomy). In a rare scientific feat in 2012 February, which was described as 'discovery of the year', Biju and his team found a new family of legless amphibians commonly known as caecilians.<br /><br />The new family has been named Chikilidae, consisting of tailless burrowing caecilians, which evolved separately from other caecilian species more than 140 million years ago.<br /><br />In fact Biju has the rare feat of discovering two new families of amphibians - one in 2003 (the famous purple frog) after a gap of 100 years. The three new species discovered belongs to the to the caecilian amphibian family Chikilidae that was described in the year 2012.<br /><br />According to Biju, "Worldwide, there are less than 200 species of caecilians. The discovery came following an unprecedented fieldwork effort of soil-digging surveys (involving over 1200 person hours of soil digging) in about 250 localities spread over five years (2006-2010) in various parts of every Northeast Indian state (Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Sikkim and Darjeeling district of West Bengal) such that the sampling was truly representative of the biogeographic region. The work is one of the most extensive systematic program of dedicated caecilian surveys ever attempted and the first in Northeast India.<br /><br />The results were based on morphological traits and using molecular (DNA) markers. Chikilidae comprises a group of caecilians that has been shown to be of ancient lineage (about 140 million years old) with its closest relatives in Africa, and so far known to be restricted to only the Northeast India.<br /><br />This publication is unique because the family Chikilidae contained so far only one species (Chikila fulleri) known only from a broken museum specimen, which is over 100 years old. The caecilian-dedicated soil-digging surveys across the Northeast India revealed that three species of Chikila were unknown to science. The three new species have been named as Chikila alcocki, Chikila darlong and Chikila gaiduwani. </div>
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Source <a href="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Delhi-professor-discovers-three-new-legless-amphibians/articleshow/20435141.cms?">http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Delhi-professor-discovers-three-new-legless-amphibians/articleshow/20435141.cms?</a></div>
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k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-24543617806339583472013-04-15T22:09:00.001-07:002013-04-15T22:09:34.355-07:00Pure Michigan Campaign Brought $1 Billion in Tourism in 2012<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The "Pure Michigan" tourism campaign was a rousing success in 2012, according to new figures released on Monday. The report, compiled by research firm Longwoods International, estimated that the campaign resulted in 580,000 more trips to the state than in 2011, and generated an additional $80 million in new business, according to reports by television station WOOD and other media outlets.<br /><br />The Pure Michigan campaign to spark more tourism both from within and from outside the state launched in 2006. In 2011, state officials began placing a greater emphasis on the campaign's potential impact, and increased funding. This year, the tourism initiative will receive a $13 million boost in television advertising. The new ads will air around the country, as reported by the Associated Press.<br /><br />Here is some of the key information that has emerged from the new report on tourism in Michigan.<br /><br />* All told, the Pure Michigan campaign helped convince more than 3.8 million out-of-state visitors to take a trip to Michigan in 2012. Those 3.8 million people generated an estimated $1.1 billion in tourism, as noted by WOOD.<br /><br />* Research by Longwoods International also found that the Pure Michigan campaign generated an estimated $5.76 in tourism for every $1 spent on out-of-state advertising.<br /><br />* Gov. Rick Snyder is reportedly quite pleased with the Pure Michigan campaign, stating in a news release on Monday that it "plays a vital role in growing our tourism industry by consistently attracting new visitors to Michigan, as well as "delivering a strong return on investment," as quoted by WOOD.<br /><br />* Last year, Longwoods International conducted an online survey to determine the impact that putting an even greater emphasis on the Pure Michigan campaign in 2011 had made on the state's tourism. That report, released in 2012, indicated at that time that the efficacy of the Pure Michigan campaign in attracting tourists from outside the state looked to be on an upswing, bringing in 3.2 million visitors from out-of-state and raising nearly $1 billion.<br /><br />* Longswoods International's 2012 report was released on Monday at the start of the annual Pure Michigan Governor's Conference on Tourism, a three-day affair that takes place at Detroit's Renaissance Center each year.<br /><br />* As noted by The Michigan Traveler, however, not all the numbers released Monday regarding the campaign showed indications of being on the same upward trend. The overall return on the Pure Michigan campaign's investment -- the amount the campaign brings in overall versus what is spent -- dropped from $9.85 per $1 in 2011 to $8.06 per $1 in 2012.<br /><br />* Still, the vice president of Travel Michigan, George Zimmerman, told The Michigan Traveler on Monday that the state has "tourism momentum." </div>
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Source <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/pure-michigan-campaign-brought-1-billion-tourism-2012-221600832--finance.html">http://news.yahoo.com/pure-michigan-campaign-brought-1-billion-tourism-2012-221600832--finance.html</a></div>
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k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-562777050840883562013-03-25T03:58:00.001-07:002013-03-25T03:58:48.968-07:00Mark Zuckerberg to enter politics with political campaign group <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The 28-year-old billionaire is forming a political campaign group that is expected to focus initially on liberalising the US immigration and visa system.<br /><br />Mr Zuckerberg, who has previously donated $100 million (£65 million) of his $13 billion fortune to the state school system in his native New Jersey, is said to be ready to use another $20 million on the new venture.<br /><br />Work on the group will reunite him with Joe Green, his room-mate at Harvard University, who also went on to be a successful technology entrepreneur.<br /><br />The pair are courting other financial backers.<br /><br />Technology firms such as Mr Zuckerberg's social networking giant have complained that America's strict migration controls prevent them from recruiting talented foreigners and overseas graduates. <br /><br />Earlier this month he and 99 other chief executives wrote a letter to President Barack Obama and leaders in Congress, urging them to ensure that plans currently being drawn up address this problem.<br /><br />"Many high-skilled immigrants who want to stay in America are forced to leave because they are unable to obtain permanent visas," they wrote. "Some do not bother to come in the first place".<br /><br />Mr Zuckerberg is also poised to further upset Left-wing admirers whom he shocked earlier this year by hosting a fundraiser in his California home for Chris Christie, the Republican governor of New Jersey.<br /><br />His new campaign group is to be fronted by Jon Lerner and Rob Jesmer, political consultants from the Right wing of the Republican party, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.<br /><br />Mr Lerner once produced an advertisement dismissing American liberals as "latte-drinking, sushi-eating, Volvo-driving, New York Times-reading" freaks.<br /><br />However Joe Lockhart, a former press secretary for Bill Clinton and PR chief for Facebook, will also be involved in the campaign group, it was reported.<br /><br />Senators from both parties are thrashing out details of a bill to overhaul the US immigration system, which Mr Obama named as his top priority after being sworn in for a second White House term.<br /><br />The plan is expected to include a "pathway" to US citizenship for at least some of the 11 million illegal immigrants estimated to be living in the country.</div>
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Source <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mark-zuckerberg/9951337/Mark-Zuckerberg-to-enter-politics-with-political-campaign-group.html">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mark-zuckerberg/9951337/Mark-Zuckerberg-to-enter-politics-with-political-campaign-group.html</a></div>
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k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-86403239150599197412013-02-25T02:36:00.001-08:002013-02-25T02:36:17.170-08:00KFC launches China campaign to rebuild brand <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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KFC launched a campaign on Monday to rebuild its battered brand in China, promising tighter quality control after a scandal over misuse of drugs by its poultry suppliers.<br /><br />The company, a unit of Yum Brands Inc., promised to test meat for banned drugs, strengthen oversight of farmers and encourage them to improve their technology.<br /><br />It said more than 1,000 small producers used by its 25 poultry suppliers have been eliminated from its network.<br /><br />KFC is China’s biggest fast-food chain, with more than 4,000 outlets, but was hit hard when state television reported in December that some suppliers violated rules on the use of drugs to fatten chickens.<br /><br />The company estimates January sales plunged 37%. “Starting now, we will stress strict management and the principle of zero tolerance in food safety,” Sam Sun, the chairman of Yum Restaurants China, said at a news conference.<br /><br />“We will immediately drop any supplier that lacks the determination or the ability to manage breeding well.” The complaint against KFC was less serious than other product scandals in China over the past decade in which infants, hospital patients and others have been killed by phony or adulterated milk powder, drugs and other goods.<br /><br />But KFC’s high profile attracted attention, and its status as a foreign company with less political influence meant Chinese media could publicize its troubles more freely.<br /><br />Yum, based in Louisville, Kentucky, said it expects sales in China to tumble by up to 25% in the current quarter. The company also owns Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.<br /><br />CEO David Novak said earlier the company would need the “gift of time” for the controversy to die down. KFC has declined to say when it expects the business to fully recover.<br /><br />The stakes are high for Yum. Even before the chicken scare, growth in China was slowing and fell into negative territory in October.<br /><br />Executives blamed slower Chinese economic growth and the comparison with earlier explosive expansion. But KFC and other Western fast food chains also face mounting competition from young but ambitious Chinese rivals.<br /><br />The locals started out copying global brands, but are developing their own identity and the elusive skills to manage chains of hundreds of outlets and networks of far-flung suppliers.<br /><br />One chain, Yonghe Dawang, copied KFC’s Colonel Sanders logo so closely with its image of a smiling, grandfatherly Chinese man that Western tourists did a double-take at its restaurants.<br /><br />More recently, Yonghe Dawang has developed its own image and switched to a logo of a noodle bowl. Since being acquired by Jollibee Foods Corp., a Philippine fast food upstart that has expanded throughout Southeast Asia, Yonghe Dawang has expanded to 307 restaurants.<br /><br />Zhen Gong Fu, which sells bowls of rice with beef, pork and other meat, has 479 restaurants nationwide. Other competitors include Master Kong Chef’s Table, with 100 outlets in 30 cities.<br /><br />Executives note that Yum has bounced back from other troubles, such as an avian flu scare in 2005 that dragged down sales by as much as 40%. The company says it plans to maintain its rapid pace of opening new restaurants in China.<br /><br />Another 700 new sites are planned for this year, with Yum focusing more on cities outside Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen where it sees greater potential for growth.</div>
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Source <a href="http://www.livemint.com/Consumer/VvJXJ9dGAtOxUO2GWxRANL/KFC-launches-China-campaign-to-rebuild-brand.html">http://www.livemint.com/Consumer/VvJXJ9dGAtOxUO2GWxRANL/KFC-launches-China-campaign-to-rebuild-brand.html</a></div>
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k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-77300537145895348522013-01-14T00:16:00.001-08:002013-01-14T00:16:20.235-08:00National stage: Will Modi be BJP’s campaign committee chief?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Will he, won’t he? Narendra Modi, who has convincingly held on to his throne in Gujarat is now reportedly set to be primed for a role in national politics by making him in charge of the campaign committee while the party evaluates if he is to be the next prime ministerial candidate.<br /><br />The Economic Times quotes an unnamed BJP leader as saying,”This is a strategic way to elevate Modi and enthuse the cadre ahead of the next contest at the Centre without disturbing the equations within the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.”<br /><br />According to the leader, the elevation is a result of the BJP and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh coming to an agreement that Modi needed to be elevated beyond his restricted role in the state.<br /><br />As Firstpost noted, even in this time’s Vibrant Gujarat summit while industrialists were effusive in their praise, they stayed clear of Prime Minister references, given that there’s a strong possibility he might just make it to the race. Likely, they didn’t want to end up on the wrong side of the UPA government by endorsing him openly just yet.<br /><br />The BJP leader is also no stranger to campaign management, both having micro-managed his own campaign in the state and managing national campaigns in the past as well. He has managed national campaigns for senior party leaders like LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi in the past, and has also been national secretary of the party where he was in charge of states like Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, and Jammu and Kashmir.<br /><br />Modi has campaigned in other states across the country during local elections but hasn’t played a prominent role in the national politics of the party so far. Facing some elements of dissent among leaders within his own party and from others who are part of the NDA alliance, the Gujarat Chief Minister has been bringing his allies and supporters closer and more in the open as seen during his swearing in ceremony.<br /><br />As he prepares for his big step into the national arena, Modi and the BJP can be expected to make small incremental moves to test the waters before deciding the Guajrat Chief Minister’s role in the next national elections. This may just be the first of many more to come.</div>
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Source <a href="http://www.firstpost.com/politics/national-stage-will-modi-be-bjps-campaign-committee-chief-586908.html">http://www.firstpost.com/politics/national-stage-will-modi-be-bjps-campaign-committee-chief-586908.html</a></div>
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k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-6387081309814066622012-12-10T01:34:00.003-08:002012-12-10T01:34:43.729-08:00Pakistan activists support renaming of chowk after Bhagat Singh<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>Pakistani Civil society activists have filed two applications in a
Lahore High Court asking it to make them parties to a case challenging
the renaming of a traffic roundabout in Lahore after freedom fighter
Bhagat Singh.</b></div>
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Activists Taimur Rehman and Saeeda Diep filed the applications in the
Lahore High Court yesterday through lawyer Yasir Latif Hamdani.<br />
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They contended that a frivolous impression was created by
Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool, the petitioner in the case, that the decision
to rename Fawara Chowk at Shadman after Bhagat Singh was a "conspiracy
against Pakistan". <br />
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However, the office of the registrar of the High Court raised
objections to the applications. The applicants stated that the renaming
of the roundabout after Bhagat Singh was a "supreme act of patriotism".<br />
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They said Pakistan is a Muslim country where everyone respects and cherishes the Prophet Mohammed. They said the <a href="http://english.samaylive.com/tag/Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool" title="Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool ">Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool</a> had no locus standi in the matter as Bhagat Singh was known to hold no animosity towards Islam or the Prophet.<br />
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They argued that Bhagat Singh was a non-communal freedom fighter who
stood for the independence of the subcontinent from British imperialism
for all people, including Muslims.<br />
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The applicants also said the <a href="http://english.samaylive.com/tag/Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool" title="Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool ">Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool</a>
was incensed by the move to rename the roundabout, which was earlier
named after Chaudhry Rehmat Ali, who in his writings abused and attacked
Pakistan's founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah.<br />
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They said it was true that Ali came up with the name Pakistan but it
was well-known that he distanced himself from the country after its
creation in 1947 and chose to live in Britain for the rest of his life
and wrote against Jinnah and the Muslim League.<br />
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They further argued that the decision of the Lahore city district
government to rename the roundabout was a legitimate exercise of
executive authority which could not be impugned as it was an executive
decision and was certainly not anti-Pakistan or anti-Islam by any
stretch of imagination.<br />
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The applicants asked the court to make them party to the case. The
Tehrik-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool, a sister organisation of the Jamaat-ud-Dawah,
had moved the High Court against the city district government's decision
to name the roundabout after Bhagat Singh.<br />
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It even threatened to launch a drive against the move.<br />
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Source <a href="http://english.samaylive.com/world-news/676518779/pakistan-activists-support-renaming-of-chowk-after-bhagat-singh.html" target="_blank">http://english.samaylive.com/world-news/676518779/pakistan-activists-support-renaming-of-chowk-after-bhagat-singh.html </a></div>
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k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-64046128056739151842012-11-26T22:53:00.002-08:002012-11-26T22:53:27.224-08:00Back Bay Mission;Hard Rock Casino fight hunger and homelessness<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Dozens of people from different
walks of life sat together preparing to receive a hot meal, a meal some
take for granted every day. </div>
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During this National Homelessness
and Hunger Awareness Week, the Back Bay Mission and Hard Rock Casino
hope to touch the lives of these men, women and children even if it's
just for a day. </div>
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Back Bay Mission volunteers say on
any given night more than 600 people go homeless or hungry, so they
wanted to break bread with them at the Micah Day Center during the 7th
Annual Homeless and Hunger Day Meal. </div>
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The meal was provided by the Hard
Rock Casino and Hotel. Some of the Hard Rock's employees have been
volunteering their time with this charitable event for six years now.
Senior Vice President of Gaming Operations Joe Farruggio said anyone can
use a helping hand. </div>
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"Sometimes people need help, these
people, some of them are American Veterans that have worked all their
life and just lost their job and they have nobody else to turn to," says
Farruggio.</div>
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Volunteers with the organization
say although there's an attached stigma to the state of homelessness and
hunger, they keep their doors open to anyone who falls short. </div>
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Source <a href="http://www.wlox.com/story/20113017/back-bay-missionhard-rock-casino-fight-hunger-and-homelessness" target="_blank">http://www.wlox.com/story/20113017/back-bay-missionhard-rock-casino-fight-hunger-and-homelessness </a></div>
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k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-72591398417405959002012-10-05T00:16:00.001-07:002012-10-05T00:16:29.176-07:00Intelligence effort improperly collected information about citizens, not terrorists<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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A multibillion-dollar information-sharing program created in the
aftermath of 9/11 has improperly collected information about innocent
Americans and produced little valuable intelligence on terrorism, a
Senate report concludes. It portrays an effort that ballooned far beyond
anyone's ability to control.</div>
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What began as an attempt to put local, state and federal officials in
the same room analyzing the same intelligence has instead cost huge
amounts of money for data-mining software, flat screen televisions and,
in Arizona, two fully equipped Chevrolet Tahoes that are used for
commuting, investigators found.</div>
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The lengthy, bipartisan report is a scathing evaluation of what the
Department of Homeland Security has held up as a crown jewel of its
security efforts. The report underscores a reality of post-9/11
Washington: </div>
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National security programs tend to grow, never shrink, even
when their money and manpower far surpass the actual subject of
terrorism. Much of this money went for ordinary local crime-fighting.</div>
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Disagreeing with the critical conclusions of the report, Homeland
Security says it is outdated, inaccurate and too focused on information
produced by the program, ignoring benefits to local governments from
their involvement with federal intelligence officials.</div>
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Because of a convoluted grants process set up by Congress, Homeland
Security officials don't know how much they have spent in their
decade-long effort to set up so-called fusion centers in every state. </div>
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Government estimates range from less than $300 million to $1.4 billion
in federal money, plus much more invested by state and local
governments. Federal funding is pegged at about 20 percent to 30
percent.</div>
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Despite that, Congress is unlikely to pull the plug. That's because,
whether or not it stops terrorists, the program means politically
important money for state and local governments.</div>
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A Senate Homeland Security subcommittee reviewed more than 600
unclassified reports over a one-year period and concluded that most had
nothing to do with terrorism. The panel's chairman is Democrat Carl
Levin of Michigan, the ranking Republican Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.</div>
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"The subcommittee investigation could identify no reporting which
uncovered a terrorist threat, nor could it identify a contribution such
fusion center reporting made to disrupt an active terrorist plot," the
report said.</div>
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When fusion centers did address terrorism, they sometimes did so in
ways that infringed on civil liberties. The centers have made headlines
for circulating information about Ron Paul supporters, the ACLU,
activists on both sides of the abortion debate, war protesters and
advocates of gun rights.</div>
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One fusion center cited in the Senate investigation wrote a report
about a Muslim community group's list of book recommendations. Others
discussed American citizens speaking at mosques or talking to Muslim
groups about parenting.</div>
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No evidence of criminal activity was contained in those reports. The
government did not circulate them, but it kept them on government
computers. The federal government is prohibited from storing information
about First Amendment activities not related to crimes.</div>
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"It was not clear why, if DHS had determined that the reports were
improper to disseminate, the reports were proper to store indefinitely,"
the report said.</div>
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Homeland Security Department spokesman Matthew Chandler called the
report "out of date, inaccurate and misleading." He said that it focused
entirely on information being produced by fusion centers and did not
consider the benefit the involved officials got receiving intelligence
from the federal government.</div>
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The report is as much an indictment of Congress as it is the Homeland
Security Department. In setting up the department, lawmakers wanted
their states to decide what to spend the money on. Time and again, that
setup has meant the federal government has no way to know how its
security money is being spent.</div>
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Inside Homeland Security, officials have long known there were
problems with the reports coming out of fusion centers, the report
shows.</div>
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"You would have some guys, the information you'd see from them, you'd
scratch your head and say, `What planet are you from?'" an unidentified
Homeland Security official told Congress.</div>
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Until this year, the federal reports officers received five days of
training and were never tested or graded afterward, the report said.</div>
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States have had criminal analysis centers for years. But the story of
fusion centers began in the frenzied aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001,
attacks.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The 9/11 Commission urged better collaboration among government
agencies. As officials realized that a terrorism tip was as likely to
come from a local police officer as the CIA, fusion centers became a hot
topic.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
But putting people together to share intelligence proved complicated.
Special phone and computer lines had to be installed. The people
reading the reports needed background checks. Some information could
only be read in secure areas, which meant construction projects.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
All of that cost money.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Meanwhile, federal intelligence agencies were under orders from
Congress to hire more analysts. That meant state and local agencies had
to compete for smart counterterrorism thinkers. And federal training for
local analysts wasn't an early priority.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Though fusion centers receive money from the federal government, they
are operated independently. Counterterrorism money started flowing to
states in 2003. But it wasn't until late 2007 that the Bush
administration told states how to run the centers.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
State officials soon realized there simply wasn't that much local
terrorism-related intelligence. Terrorist attacks didn't happen often,
but police faced drugs, guns and violent crime every day. Normal
criminal information started moving through fusion centers.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Under federal law, that was fine. When lawmakers enacted
recommendations of the 9/11 Commission in 2007, they allowed fusion
centers to study "criminal or terrorist activity." The law was
co-sponsored by Sens. Susan Collins and Joe Lieberman, the driving
forces behind the creation of Homeland Security.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Five years later, Senate investigators found, terrorism is often a secondary focus.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
"Many fusion centers lacked either the capability or stated objective
of contributing meaningfully to the federal counterterrorism mission,"
the Senate report said. "Many centers didn't consider counterterrorism
an explicit part of their mission, and federal officials said some were
simply not concerned with doing counterterrorism work."</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
When Janet Napolitano became Homeland Security secretary in 2009, the
former Arizona governor embraced the idea that fusion centers should
look beyond terrorism. Testifying before Congress that year, she
distinguished fusion centers from the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task
Forces that are the leading investigative and analytical arms of the
domestic counterterrorism effort.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
"A JTTF is really focused on terrorism and terrorism-related
investigations," she said. "Fusion centers are almost everything else."</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Congress, including the committee that authored the report, supports
that notion. And though the report recommends the Senate reconsider the
amount of money it spends on fusion centers, that seems unlikely.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
"Congress and two administrations have urged DHS to continue or even
expand its support of fusion centers, without providing sufficient
oversight to ensure the intelligence from fusion centers is commensurate
with the level of federal investment," the report said.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
And following the release of the report, Homeland Security officials indicated their continued strong support for the program.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Source <a href="http://lubbockonline.com/filed-online/2012-10-02/intelligence-effort-improperly-collected-information-about-innocent-citizens#.UG6IU2fwC_I" target="_blank">http://lubbockonline.com/filed-online/2012-10-02/intelligence-effort-improperly-collected-information-about-innocent-citizens#.UG6IU2fwC_I </a></div>
</div>
k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-34746757689105671262012-08-08T03:49:00.001-07:002012-08-08T03:49:58.738-07:00People’s Saarc steering committee formed<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span id="ctl00_ContentPlaceHolder1_lblNewsDetailMain"></span></div>
Civil society
organisations and various individuals of Sindh province formed a
15-member steering committee of People’s Saarc (Sindh Chapter) during
their meeting held at the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) House.<br />
<br />
The
steering committee of People’s Saarc, representing civil society
organisations of the province, would chalk out various activities and
programmes to mobilise public opinion towards a South Asian Union. Over
60 people attended the meeting.<br />
<br />
The members nominated on
the committee, include: Karamat Ali (PILER), Nasir Mansoor (NTUF), Asad
Butt (HRCP), Hameed Baloch (political worker), Noor Mohammad (trade
union leader), Mohammad Ali Shah (Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum), Zulfiqar
Halepoto (Pakistan Peace Coalition), Suleman Abro, Bilquis Rehman
(HANDS), Ejaz Qureshi (Benazir Bhutto Chair, Karachi University), Zahida
Detho (SRPO), Mir Askari (NSF), Dr Tipu Sultan (PMA), Zehra (Labour
Party) and Lateef Mughal (Peoples Labour Bureau).<br />
<br />
People’s
Saarc is an initiative of organisations and individuals working on
regional peace, and is a parallel process to the official SAARC aimed at
presenting the South Asian civil societies’ collective voices on
pressing regional issues.<br />
<br />
Earlier, Karamat Ali, Executive
Director of Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (PILER),
briefed the meeting about the People’s SAARC process. He said that
after the election of all provincial steering committees a national
steering committee would be elected. According to him, Saarc Summit is
planned to be held at Kathmandu, Nepal, by the end of this year. The
Peoples SAARC meeting is also planned on the occasion and a memorandum
would be presented to the heads of the Saarc states.<br />
<br />
Source <a href="http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-4-124520-Peoples-Saarc-steering-committee-formed" target="_blank">http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-4-124520-Peoples-Saarc-steering-committee-formed </a><br />
</div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-17389359854643786972012-07-09T03:40:00.002-07:002012-07-09T03:40:58.980-07:00Top political guns agree to save their billions, escape routes<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span id="ctl00_ContentPlaceHolder1_lblNewsDetailMain"><b></b></span></div>
<b>Some key
cabinet members of the ruling coalition as well as Pakistani politicians
having offshore bank accounts, properties and businesses would be the
major beneficiaries of the constitutional amendment allowing dual
nationality holders to become members of parliament.</b><br />
<br />
The
proposed amendment, as approved by the cabinet on Wednesday, if passed,
would relieve the Pakistani politicians, including President Asif Ali
Zardari, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, ANP leader Asfandyar Khan Wali, PML-Q
leaders Chaudhry Shujaat and Chaudhry Pervez Elahi, MQM chief Altaf
Hussain and a large number of parliamentarians, ministers and advisers,
etc, from public pressure to bring back their foreign wealth worth
billions of dollars to Pakistan.<br />
<br />
In a recent statement
coming out of Switzerland, it was stated that Pakistanis had close to
US$97 billion deposited in Swiss accounts.<br />
<br />
In addition,
this amendment would save the skin of some influential cabinet members
like Adviser to Prime Minister on Interior Abdur Rehman Malik.
Unconfirmed reports even suggest that Minister for Petroleum Dr Asim
Hussain and some others also have dual nationality.<br />
<br />
Allowing
the overseas Pakistanis having foreign nationality to contest elections
would also mean allowing the politicians and parliamentarians to keep
their accounts, properties and businesses abroad. Moreover, such an
amendment would pave the way for dual nationals, settled abroad, to
become president, prime minister or to get hold of any key cabinet slot
including defence, foreign and finance ministries.<br />
<br />
Pakistan
did have the likes Moeen Qureshi and others as prime ministers besides a
number of parliamentarians and ministers having dual nationality but
such serious constitutional violations were the consequence of serious
lapses on part of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).<br />
<br />
Till
recently the ECP had been overlooking the constitutional bar on dual
nationals to become member of the Senate, National Assembly and
provincial assemblies owing to which a number of dual nationals have
been entering parliament and were able to hold key public offices.<br />
<br />
Of
late the ECP has decided that every candidate willing to participate in
the elections for Parliament would have to submit under oath that
he/she had no foreign or dual nationality.<br />
<br />
The doing away
of this constitutional restriction could see what happened in the case
of Moeen Qureshi and others who ruled and ruined Pakistan and ran away
with their suitcases as soon as their rule ended without any fear of
being held accountable.<br />
<br />
It is generally demanded that
Pakistan should be ruled by those who live and die with the people of
Pakistan and who do not have any option other than Pakistan. For the
same reasons, the media in Pakistan and the civil society generally see
with abhorrence the foreign businesses, bank accounts and luxury
properties of the country’s leaders and MPs.<br />
<br />
For the same
reasons the media and the civil society had welcomed Raza Hayat Hiraj’s
recent constitutional amendment bill, which provided for
disqualification of a member of parliament if he possesses any bank
account, assets, wealth or business outside Pakistan or has dual
nationality. The bill also sought dismissal from the government service
of those members of the judiciary, defence forces and civil services on
similar grounds.<br />
<br />
It is argued that dual nationals, who are
interested in taking part in the elections and want to contribute
towards the progress and prosperity of Pakistan by taking part in active
politics, should sacrifice their foreign nationality to ensure that the
national wealth is not plundered and shifted to offshore accounts as
has been repeatedly happening in the past.<br />
<br />
Source <a href="http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-13-15822-Top-political-guns-agree-to-save-their-billions,-escape-routes" target="_blank">http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-13-15822-Top-political-guns-agree-to-save-their-billions,-escape-routes </a><br />
</div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-75300445959230697532011-10-10T21:55:00.001-07:002011-10-10T21:55:35.578-07:00Thousands pack downtown Ocean Springs for Cruisin<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">If you wanted to see classic cars, listen to some old time rock and roll, and just have a good time, downtown Ocean Springs was the place to be Friday night. The city hosted a sock hop for Cruisin' the Coast, and thousands showed up to take part in the fun.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">As the sun was setting on classic cars, and the temperatures cooled down, the streets of Ocean Springs were just starting to heat up. </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Dennis Landry was one of the stars of the show with his burn-out truck.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"Wow, I got all the traffic shut down. Where's the fire department when you need them?" Landry asked. "I hope the cops love me." </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Baby Charlie was another star. Mom Lauren Russell believes in starting them young. </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"He's gonna be a cruiser with his dad and his grandpa," Russell said. "He's enjoyed it. It's been a pretty day."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Thousands of people and hundreds of cars made for a spectacular show. First time cruisers from Texas summed up the experience perfectly, praising the beaches, the hospitality, and all the t-shirts.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">No matter where you looked, people were swinging to the music, including a little girl in a tiny poodle skirt.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Speaking of poodles and other dogs, they were part of the act as well. There's just something about Cruisin' that all party animals love. </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Percy Lott and Genelle Rick are planning on tying the knot soon. But Cruisin' puts the wedding on the back burner for now. Other things take priority. </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"I like all the old cars and I love Ocean Springs and I just like all the people, the music, the food, just all the excitement," Rick said.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">And what would Cruisin' be without making a few classic memories of a time that never seems to get old. The cameras were out in force capturing the cars and special moments. </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">For first time cruisers like Tia Gordon, here with her dad who's been cruisin for seven years, it's a day she won't forget anytime soon. </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"It's real nice, lovely really," Gordon said. "When it comes to all these classics, I love classic cars."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Visit our Cruisin' the Coast-Ocean Springs Photo Gallery to see more from the downtown party: http://oceansprings.wlox.com/photo-gallery/events/51588-cruisin-coast-ocean-springs</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The fun continues in Ocean Springs Saturday as the city hosts the third and final day of the Cruisin' venue throughout downtown. To see the full schedule, visit http://www.cruisinthecoast.com/Schedule.html.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Source <a href="http://www.wlox.com/story/15646183/thousands-pack-downtown-ocean-springs-for-cruisin">http://www.wlox.com/story/15646183/thousands-pack-downtown-ocean-springs-for-cruisin</a></div></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-8616590231820622082011-07-26T01:28:00.000-07:002011-07-26T01:28:25.742-07:00USTA invests $1.3 million in tennis program for youngsters<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The United States Tennis Association has expanded its efforts to get more kids playing tennis.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Last week it announced a $1.3 million investment to help introduce 10 and Under Tennis in 26 communities across the country. Each community will receive $50,000 grants over a three-year-period to build new courts, adapt current ones and create programming in schools, parks and other areas.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The program, 10 and Under Tennis, provides young players a chance to play a scaled-down style of the game, and the USTA aims to bring it to more than 100 American markets during the next five years.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"Imagine if an 8-year-old tried to play baseball on the same sized field and with the same distance from the pitching mound to home plate as the New York Yankees play," said Kurt Kamperman, the USTA's chief executive of community tennis. "Unlike other sports, we've been forcing young kids to play by the same rules as the pro stars, and it really isn't conducive to getting them in the sport."That's where 10 and Under Tennis differs. It's played on a smaller court with lighter racquets and slower balls.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Earlier this month, the USTA announced it will offer free USTA junior memberships to children ages 10 and under. On Wednesday, it announced that Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf would partner with the USTA and will be featured in an upcoming advertising campaign promoting 10 and Under Tennis.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Kamperman said 10 and Under Tennis has already seen good results.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Said USTA Chairman of the Board and President Jon Vegosen: "The scaled-to-size equipment and smaller playing area allows kids to rally and play the kid early on increasing the likelihood that they'll have success and return to the court and continue to have fun."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Source <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/sports/tennis/2011-07-21-usta-10-and-under-tennis_n.htm">http://www.usatoday.com/sports/tennis/2011-07-21-usta-10-and-under-tennis_n.htm</a></div></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-5100882742621068262011-06-23T00:55:00.001-07:002011-06-23T00:55:59.536-07:00Sarah Palin's Bus Tour May Not Reach Iowa and South Carolina<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">When Sarah Palin said that her bus tour would not only hit New Hampshire, but Iowa and and South Carolina, too, it was taken as a sign that she was serious about a presidential campaig after all. But when she'll actually venture to those latter two states is uncertain, Real Clear Politics' Scott Conroy reports. The bus schedule was never formalized, but her aides indicated the Palins would hit those critical early voting states sometime in June. Instead, Conroy writes, the Palins are back in Alaska, enjoying the summer's 19 hours a day of sunlight.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Conroy elaborates:</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">As Palin enjoys her sojourn to the 49th state, she has not reconnected with key early-state figures like Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, and she may have jeopardized whatever political momentum she gained from her recent reemergence in the 2012 discussion. Her political action committee's website still greets visitors with a stale banner, announcing the nationwide bus tour beginning "[t]his Sunday, May 29th."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Last week, she shot down a report that she'd decide on a presidential campaign within a week. So right now, the only thing Palin's actually in the running for is an Emmy. TLC has submitted Sarah Palin's Alaska for consideration in four Emmy categories--cinematography, picture editing, music composition, and best reality program. As Christian Heinze notes, "If the show wins in any of those categories, Palin herself gets an Emmy, because she's listed as an executive producer of the show."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Source <a href="http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2011/06/sarah-palins-bus-tour-may-not-reach-iowa-and-south-carolina/39116/">http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2011/06/sarah-palins-bus-tour-may-not-reach-iowa-and-south-carolina/39116/ </a></div></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-84011620827867100502011-04-06T21:30:00.000-07:002011-04-06T21:30:32.548-07:00Need for protection of child rights stressed<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Growing cases of violation of child rights should be a matter of grave concern for every responsible individual. Government, civil society and media should join hands for checking these violations.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">These views were expressed by speakers at a seminar titled “Violation of Child Right-Media Responsibilities” organised by Hameed Nizami Press Institute of Pakistan (HNPIP) in collaboration with Sahil and Actionaid on Tuesday. The seminar was presided over by Justice (r) Nasira Javed Iqbal. MPA Arifa Khalid Pervez was the chief guest while Director HNPIP Absar Abdul Ali conducted the meeting.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The speakers stressed the need for improving child rights situation in the country.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The speakers included Taseer Mustafa (Journalist), Shoib Mirza (Editor Phool Magazine), Dawood Saqlain (Provincial Manager Actionaid), Iftikhar Mubarik.(Sahil Coordinator), Akmal Awaisi and Sajjad Cheema. While speaking on the occasion, Nasira Javed said the US, despite claiming so called champion of human rights, was still avoiding to sign the UN Child Rights Convention.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“The Convention on the Rights of the Child (an international treaty that recognises the human rights of children) is the most widely and rapidly ratified human rights treaty. Only two countries, Somalia and the United States, have not ratified this celebrated agreement”. She said the teachings of Islam are the best source of guidance for the solution of every problem.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">She also highlighted the need for family planning, which in her view, had become a forgotten idea for Punjab government. However, she hoped for the good future regarding overall human right situation in Pakistan. “No need to worry as many individuals, NGOs has been working to improve child rights situation in the country”, she added.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">HNPIP Director, earlier, told the participants of the event that over 1.2 million children have become street children in society, having no roof to sleep under and passing their life without any care. The speakers expressed their grave concern over increasing number of street children in Pakistan. The speakers said the cases of violation of children’s right were reported almost on daily basis. </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“Trafficking, torture and abuse of children is rife in many parts of the country,” they observed. They regretted hundreds of thousands of children were engaged in forced child labor, while the number of street children was also on a constant rise. They stressed free education, healthcare and shelter to citizens including children was the responsibility of the state. The speakers appreciated the HNPIP for organising the seminar on important issue, saying, when the huge number of children were working in hazardous, it was need of the hour that the government, the civil society and the media work jointly for improving the child rights situation in the society.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Source <a href="http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Lahore/06-Apr-2011/Need-for-protection-of-child-rights-stressed/1">http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Lahore/06-Apr-2011/Need-for-protection-of-child-rights-stressed/1</a></div></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-33456893231901805782011-03-29T00:56:00.000-07:002011-03-29T00:56:37.692-07:00Supreme Court skeptical about Arizona’s campaign finance law<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The Supreme Court majority that in recent years has struck down campaign spending restrictions as assaults on free speech seemed ready Monday to do the same with Arizona’s public financing plan.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Under Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. , the court’s conservative majority has declared unconstitutional major portions of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance act. And the court’s loosening of spending constraints on corporations and unions in last year’s Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission roiled the midterm elections.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“Do you think it would be a fair characterization of this law to say that its purpose and its effect are to produce less speech in political campaigns?” Justice Anthony M. Kennedy asked the lawyer for groups challenging Arizona’s Citizens Clean Elections Act.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“I believe that that is a goal, and I believe that’s the effect,” answered William R. Maurer, a lawyer for the Institute for Justice, which represented independent groups objecting to the law’s restrictions.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The case raises a new issue for the court. After a wave of political corruption in the state capital, Arizona voters in 1998 approved a public financing system for statewide and legislative candidates. It grants qualified candidates an initial sum and then provides “matching funds” based on the spending of their privately financed opponents who spend more. Candidates also are granted money if an independent group spends against them or for their opponents.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Maurer told the court that the case was governed by a 2008 Supreme Court decision, in which the court by a 5 to 4 vote struck down the “millionaire’s amendment” in the McCain-Feingold campaign finance act. That provision allowed a congressional candidate to raise money in excess of contribution limits if his or her opponent was spending large sums of personal wealth.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The Arizona law similarly burdens a privately funded candidate, Maurer said, because it turns “my act of speaking into the vehicle by which my political opponents benefit with direct government subsidies.”</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Maurer received strong resistance from Justice Elena Kagan. She had argued the Citizens United case as President Obama’s solicitor general and was on the losing side of the court’s 5 to 4 decision.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Kagan challenged Maurer’s contention that the purpose of Arizona’s law was to level the electoral playing field — something the court has said is not sufficient for restricting political spending and speech — rather than to combat corruption.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“That’s what the purpose of all public financing systems are,” Kagan said. She added that for 40 years such systems “have been based upon the idea that when there is a lot of private money floating around the political system, that candidates and then public officeholders get beholden to various people who are giving that money and make actions based on how much they receive from those people.”</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Kagan’s support of campaign finance restrictions seemed as strong as that of the justice she replaced, John Paul Stevens. But that does not change the balance on the court.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The justices who have voted to strike down spending restrictions sharply questioned Bradley S. Phillips, a Los Angeles lawyer representing Arizona, after his opening statement that the law results “in more speech and more electoral competition and directly furthers the government’s compelling interest in combating real and apparent corruption in politics.”</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Roberts, who did not ask Maurer a question, seemed particularly concerned that the law seemed to discourage spending by independent expenditure groups. “If you knew that a $10,000 expenditure that you would make that would support a candidate would result in $30,000, $40,000, $50,000, depending on how many opposition candidates there were available for them, wouldn’t you think twice about it?” Roberts asked.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“I think thinking twice is not a severe burden,” Phillips responded.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“Well, if you’re thinking twice and one way you’re thinking is not to do it, that sounds like a sufficient burden,” Roberts replied.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Roberts and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. also disputed the idea that the goal of the act was not to level the playing field. It even says so on the election commission’s Web site, Roberts said.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The Obama administration is supporting Arizona, and Assistant Solicitor General William M. Jay told Roberts that whatever is written on a Web site “isn’t dispositive of what the voters of Arizona had in mind when they passed this initiative.”</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Jay also said that while publicly funded candidates are subjected to a ceiling on their spending, privately funded candidates and independent groups have no such limit.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The court in 1976 held that public financing of campaigns did not violate the Constitution, and Maurer said the challenge of the Arizona law went only to the matching funds portion. A handful of other states have similar laws.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">A decision in the combined cases of Arizona Free Enterprise v. Bennett and McComish v. Bennett will come sometime before the court adjourns at the end of June. </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Source <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/supreme_court_skeptical_about_arizonas_campaign_finance_law/2011/03/28/AF2xXIrB_story.html?wprss=rss_homepage">http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/supreme_court_skeptical_about_arizonas_campaign_finance_law/2011/03/28/AF2xXIrB_story.html?wprss=rss_homepage</a></div></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-3946575335507921542011-03-09T19:54:00.001-08:002011-03-09T19:54:46.817-08:00State HFAs Urge Congress To Protect and Support Vital Federal Housing Programs, Launch Faces of Home Campaig<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Life -changing stories of working families benefiting from a range of federal housing programs will be at the forefront of this week’s annual Legislative Conference of the National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA).</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The Faces of Home campaign illustrates the “life-changing impact HFA programs have across the spectrum of housing need, from making first-time homeownership possible for working families, to developing affordable rental housing in partnership with the private sector, to providing safety net rental assistance for the most vulnerable among us,” said Barbara Thompson, executive director of NCSHA.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“These success stories, along with the hard facts on the country’s scarce supply of affordable housing, are what HFAs will carry with them as they petition Congress this week to support and protect the vital federal housing programs HFAs administer.”</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Consider the situation of 71-year-old Jennie, who lost her home to foreclosure after her husband of 38 years passed away and she couldn’t afford the payments on her own. “I didn’t want to leave, but I didn’t have a choice,” she said. “I didn’t know what would happen to me. I was afraid I would end up homeless.” But Jennie was one of the lucky ones. Her children helped her find an affordable apartment at Bethel Ridge Estates, a development for seniors that was financed with Low Income Housing Tax Credits issued by the Missouri Housing Development Commission.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">In the desert Southwest, Marjorie Delgarito and her family were living in a small trailer with no running water or electricity on the Navajo Nation when she heard about a new apartment complex being built nearby. “We [used to have] five five-gallon jugs of water we hauled into the house for washing and bathing,” Marjorie said. “We gathered and chopped wood for heat. The kids had to hurry and finish their homework outside before dark.” The family now lives in the Chaco River Apartments, one of the first rental housing developments ever to be built on the Navajo Nation. The New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority financed the development in part with HOME funds. “The kids…are all on the honor roll now,” Marjorie said. “We are very happy.”</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">In Florida, Tamela Nelloms, a working mother of three who grew up in public housing as one of nine siblings, never thought her homeownership dreams would come true. She didn’t know anyone who had ever bought a home and had no idea how the process worked. Now, thanks to the Florida Housing Finance Corporation and its federal housing bond-supported low-cost mortgage program, Tamela is a proud first-time homebuyer with a monthly payment well within her economic means. “I wanted my kids to have what I didn’t,” Tamela said. “My boys will grow up knowing that anything in life is possible. This home has changed all of our lives.” (These and other stories of transformation are available on NCSHA’s official Faces of Home website at www.ncsha.org/faces-of-home.)</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Thompson stressed that future funding levels and tax incentives for a wide range of housing programs could all be in jeopardy as Congress debates cuts in the current federal budget and considers tax reform, the future of the housing finance system, and long-term deficit reduction strategies.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">“Housing Bonds, Low Income Housing Tax Credits, HOME, and Section 8 are time-tested programs that effectively provide affordable housing around the country,” said Thompson. “HFAs have successfully administered these programs for decades, and nothing demonstrates the importance of that work like the powerful stories of transformation and hope chronicled in the Faces of Home campaign.”</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The Faces of Home web exhibit features stories of people from every state who have received housing help from their HFA. Stories are searchable by state or by program, and offer a glimpse into the larger story of the integral role HFAs play in affordable housing, and why that role matters so very much—to the people whose lives are changed, the communities they live in, and to the economy.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">HFAs are state-chartered housing agencies that operate in every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. Though they vary widely in their characteristics, including their relationship to state government, HFAs have in common their public purpose mission to provide affordable housing to the people of their states who need it.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">NCSHA is a national, nonprofit organization created by state HFAs to assist them in increasing housing opportunities for lower income and underserved people through the financing, development, and preservation of affordable housing.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">About 200 HFA leaders are expected to meet with members of Congress during NCSHA’s three-day Legislative Conference.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Source <a href="http://www.realestaterama.com/2011/03/07/state-hfas-urge-congress-to-protect-and-support-vital-federal-housing-programs-launch-faces-of-home-campaig-ID08747.html">http://www.realestaterama.com/2011/03/07/state-hfas-urge-congress-to-protect-and-support-vital-federal-housing-programs-launch-faces-of-home-campaig-ID08747.html</a></div></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-37769925699471287272011-02-08T22:53:00.001-08:002011-02-08T22:53:49.701-08:00Meanings of flowers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Q Every year for Valentine's Day I gave my sweetheart red roses. However this year I would like to give her some different kind of flowers.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Could you give me some ideas on different flowers. Also would you be able to tell me the meaning of these flowers? -Jessie, Windsor</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">A Roses are traditional, but other flowers are becoming increasingly popular as Valentine's Day gifts for that special person in your life. For years I gave my sweetheart red roses also.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Then a couple years ago I switched for a different flower.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">My choice for my wife, was a dozen long stem red carnations which symbolizes love, pride and admiration. A few years ago my wife gave me a card for Valentine's Day and that card had the meanings of many different flowers. Some examples are:</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Roses: The love language of different coloured roses have many meanings.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Red roses say, quite simply, "I love you" and are the traditional roses for Valentine's Day because they represent beauty and perfection. Orange roses might make the boldest statement on Valentine's Day. They represent desire and enthusiasm, symbolize passion and anticipation and definitely articulate pensioned romance. If you are newlyweds, give your husband or wife white roses. They mean innocence and purity and are traditionally associated with marriages and new beginnings.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Carnation: Symbolizes pride and beauty. A red carnation symbolizes love, pride and admiration; a pink carnation symbolizes the love of a woman or a mother.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">A purple carnation symbolizes capriciousness. A yellow carnation symbolizes disdain, rejection or disappointment while a white carnation symbolizes innocence and pure love. A striped carnation conveys refusal.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Alstroemeria: Wealth, prosperity, fortune and friendship.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Amaryllis: Splendid beauty. It is used to indicate worth beyond beauty.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Anemone: On a darker note indicates fading hope and a feeling of having been forsaken. On a positive note it symbolizes anticipation.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Anthurium: Hospitality, happiness and abundance.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Aster: Patience, elegance and daintiness.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Bird of Paradise: Joyfulness, magnificence, and wonderful anticipation.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Calla Lily: Symbolizes magnificence and beauty. White Calla lilies combine these two attributes with purity and innocence.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Chrysanthemum: Symbolizes fidelity, optimism, joy and long life. A red chrysanthemum conveys love; a white chrysanthemum symbolizes truth and loyal love while a yellow chrysanthemum symbolizes slighted love.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Daffodil: Symbolizes regard and chivalry. It is indicative of rebirth, new beginnings and eternal life. It also symbolizes unrequited love. A single daffodil foretells a misfortune while a bunch of daffodils indicate joy and happiness.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Daisy: Symbolizes innocence and purity. It conveys loyal love and "I will never tell."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Delphinium: Symbolizes big-heartedness, fun, lightness and levity. It also indicates ardent attachment.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Forget-me-not: Which blooms in white, blue and lavender, means true love, hope, and of course, remembrance or memories, which may reflect on wonderful times together.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Freesia: Symbolizes innocence and thoughtfulness.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Gardenia: Symbolizes you're lovely, secret love, joy, sweet love, good luck.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Gerbera: Belongs to the daisy family and therefore assumes the symbolism associated with the daisy flower. Gerbera specifically conveys cheerfulness.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Gladiolus: Symbolizes strength of character, faithfulness and honour. The Gladiolus flower signifies remembrance.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Heather: While white heather symbolizes protection and indicates that wishes will come true.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Hyacinth: Playfulness and a sporty attitude and in its extreme rashness and constancy. Blue hyacinth stands for constancy, purple for sorrow, red or pink for play, white for loveliness and yellow for jealousy.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Hydrangea: Heartfelt emotions. It can be used to express gratitude for being understood. In its negative sense hydrangea symbolizes frigidity and heartlessness.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Iris: Symbolizes eloquence. Purple iris is symbolic of wisdom and compliments. Blue iris symbolizes faith and hope.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Yellow iris symbolizes passion while white iris symbolizes purity.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Jasmine: White symbolizes amiability, while yellow symbolizes grace, elegance</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Larkspur: Symbolizes levity or lightness. It is also indicative of fickleness and haughtiness.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Flowers are looked upon as a very personal, intimate or cherished gift, so it matters not which flowers you may choose, to give on Valentine's Day.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Also as long that you remember your sweetheart for any or all occasion or just when your thinking of your loved one, flowers are very nice to receive or to give.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Send a question to the Master Gardener hotline, (519) 561-6328 or email essexwindsor@mastergardeners. fastmail.fm</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Source <a href="http://www.windsorstar.com/life/Meanings+flowers/4230029/story.html">http://www.windsorstar.com/life/Meanings+flowers/4230029/story.html</a></div></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-68512472781456695472011-01-19T20:48:00.000-08:002011-01-19T20:48:17.160-08:00Worms Reloaded Cheats<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Click Game Icon to Download Game <span class="searchterm1">Worms</span> <span class="searchterm2">Reloaded</span> </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> Game Icon<br />
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PIV 1250, 1MB RAM, 2GB HDD, 128MB video card ESRB rating: n/a<br />
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release date: Aug 26, 10 (released) </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> Download Cheat Game <span class="searchterm1">Worms</span> <span class="searchterm2">Reloaded</span> in Various Game Consoles </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> Steam Achievements<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Source </span><a href="http://www.21cheat.com/search/worms+reloaded+campaigh+21+solution%20" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">http://www.21cheat.com/search/worms+reloaded+campaigh+21+solution </a></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6463713573697181399.post-3817153971966238062011-01-12T02:40:00.000-08:002011-01-12T02:40:22.356-08:00'I'm a Believer' campaign launches to help Detroit<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">With a rousing new song to enlist Detroiters to believe in the city and turn it around, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing unveiled a new $10-million advertising campaign Tuesday that will plaster the city with billboards and flood the news media with its positive message.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The "I'm a Believer" campaign comes from a volunteer effort led by two local media specialists tired of all the Detroit bashers who live in the region and beyond. It addresses the hope that Detroit can rebound and regain its status as a world-class city.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"We're coming back," said Bing, when asked Tuesday why people should believe in Detroit. "We will be the city everyone wanted to be."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Newly elected Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel said the suburbs support Detroit's need to be successful.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"The suburbs developed from the city of Detroit," he said. "Their success is our success. The issues they are facing, we are facing. If Detroit does not come back, the suburbs will have a difficult time doing the same."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Paige Curtis, co-founder of the campaign and an owner of a Bloomfield Hills advertising agency, told the 200 dignitaries who showed up Tuesday at the Renaissance Center to launch the effort that Detroit needs more than another ad campaign.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"What we needed, and what we told the mayor, was we wanted to recruit an army, an army of volunteers to help Mayor Bing change our city, and that's what makes 'I'm a Believer' different. It's a call to change hearts and a call to action to encourage people to stop whining and do something."</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Detroit paid nothing for the campaign. Its $10-million cost, raised totally from donations, reflects what someone would have paid to design the campaign, create its ads and a Web site, and buy advertising time and space.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">"I'm a Believer" will feature 40 billboards and a slew of radio, TV and print ads with some of the region's leaders, entertainers and celebrities. The ads point people to the campaign's Web site, where they will find dozens of opportunities to help make Detroit a good, clean, safe place to live.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Spots feature Bing; the county executives in the tri-county area; Detroit's police and schools chiefs; Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy; numerous metro Detroit news media personalities, mystery writer Elmore Leonard; rapper Ro Spit, and music producer Trick Trick, among others.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Ferndale singer and songwriter Jill Jack wrote the campaign's song. She delivered it Tuesday with the City Mission Choir, a youth group in Detroit's Brightmoor neighborhood, and Beth Griffith, backup singer for Detroit blues songstress Anita Baker.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The ads will try to offset years of bad publicity that have made Detroit a poster child for the aging Rust Belt and a magnet for photographers who consider the city's abandoned buildings a new art form they dub ruin porn.</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Source </span><a href="http://www.freep.com/article/20110112/NEWS06/101120346/1319/10-million-Im-a-Believer-campaign-launches-to-help-Detroit"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">http://www.freep.com/article/20110112/NEWS06/101120346/1319/10-million-Im-a-Believer-campaign-launches-to-help-Detroit</span><br />
</a></div>k.ahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17293152672895349210noreply@blogger.com0