Thank goodness this gets behind her.
------Original Message------
From: SI com Alerts
To: mark@rauterkus.com
ReplyTo: cnnalerts@cnn.com
Subject: 2004 Athens Summer Games News
Sent: Feb 16, 2011 2:04 PM
Alert Name: 2004 Athens Summer Games News
Turkey lifts provisional doping ban on Taurasi
02/16/11 12:44 PM, EST
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) -- Turkey's basketball federation lifted American star Diana Taurasi's provisional doping suspension Wednesday after a lab retracted its finding that she tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance.
Read the full story at http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/basketball/wnba/02/16/taurasi.ban.removed.ap/index.html
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Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Fw: Tiger Polo Spring League
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
From: "Jim Staresinic" <jimstar@connecttime.net>
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2011 09:30:57 -0500
To: <scottdmg@aol.com>; <mark.rauterkus@gmail.com>
Subject: Tiger Polo Spring League
With the assistance of a couple of club parents, we’ll be launching our marketing/communications for the Spring League this week. The competitions dates are:
April 3rd and 10th
May 8th, 15th and 22nd (on the 22nd we will be at Chartiers Valley
All but the last date will be at North Allegheny and times are TBD but likely noon to 4.
Entry deadline will be Monday, March 28th which will give us about one month for people to sign up. More details to come this week, but wanted to get you guys in the loop early so that you can start recruiting. We hope to make this much bigger than last year.
Jim
Loss of school pools linked to drownings | Stuff.co.nz
Loss of school pools linked to drownings | Stuff.co.nz"We are losing our culture of swimming education and it is having disastrous effects," she said.
"We really need the government to make this a priority... it is a life or death issue."
Monday, February 14, 2011
Pittsburgh schools want more students in AP courses
A HUGE mistake from Pittsburgh Public Schools.
Pittsburgh schools want more students in AP coursesThey needd to say that more students are desired for AP and IB courses.
Airport here desires overflow from East Coast
Bribery and restrictions of freedom loom large.
Airport here desires overflow from East Coast
Fw: SSSNA E-Blast 2/14 - Meeting Tomorrow 2/15, Soup Contest this Saturday
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From: South Side Slopes Neighborhood Association <sssnapgh@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2011 07:10:32 -0500
To: South Side Slopes Neighborhood Association<sssnapgh@gmail.com>
Subject: SSSNA E-Blast 2/14 - Meeting Tomorrow 2/15, Soup Contest this Saturday
2/15 - SSSNA General Meeting -
The next meeting of the SSSNA is February 15 at 7:00 PM. The rescheduled program from our January meeting includes Dr Lindenbaum from UPMC Urgent care Center, Zone 3 Police, and Councilman Bruce Kraus. The meeting is held in the main lounge of St Paul of the Cross Retreat Center, 148 Monastery Ave. in the south Side Slopes.
The next meeting of the SSSNA is February 15 at 7:00 PM. The rescheduled program from our January meeting includes Dr Lindenbaum from UPMC Urgent care Center, Zone 3 Police, and Councilman Bruce Kraus. The meeting is held in the main lounge of St Paul of the Cross Retreat Center, 148 Monastery Ave. in the south Side Slopes.
2/19 South Side Soup Contest - Volunteers Needed
See below for a message from Jennifer Jeffers, Committee Chair for the Soup Contest:
The Seventh Annual South Side Soup Contest will be held on Saturday, Feb. 19, from noon to 3pm.
Last year's event far exceeded expectations, raising over $20,000 and more than 1,000 canned food items for The Brashear Association Food Pantry. This is a wonderful event that showcases the South Side neighborhood and a great opportunity for South Side residents and local business owners to work together for a good cause.
A large event such as this takes a lot of time and energy, which is why we're reaching out for volunteer support. Right now, we're specifically in need of Soup Captains. The Soup Captain acts as the onsite manager at each of the soup stops overseeing volunteers, checking in contest attendees, and monitoring soup and other supplies. In addition, the Soup Caption will be the direct point of contact for the event management staff. The Soup Captain must be present at the retail location for the duration of the event and are integral to the management and success of the event.
Below is a link to WQED OnDemand, who did a feature on last year's event. The short video provides further information about the contest and the Brashear Association's Food Pantry.
http://www.wqed.org/ondemand/onq.php?id=734
If you're interested in being a Soup Captain this year, please contact me. There will be a Soup Captain Orientation meeting on Wednesday, February 16th at 6pm at the Brashear Association, where we will go into further detail. If you aren't able to be a Soup Captain but would still like to volunteer, please let me know. We have many duties available for our volunteers. Any time that can be offered is greatly appreciated!
For more information about the South Side Soup Contest, please visit www.southsidepgh.com.
Thank you for your time,
Jennifer Jeffers
Committee Chairperson
jeffersjh@hotmail.com
Last year's event far exceeded expectations, raising over $20,000 and more than 1,000 canned food items for The Brashear Association Food Pantry. This is a wonderful event that showcases the South Side neighborhood and a great opportunity for South Side residents and local business owners to work together for a good cause.
A large event such as this takes a lot of time and energy, which is why we're reaching out for volunteer support. Right now, we're specifically in need of Soup Captains. The Soup Captain acts as the onsite manager at each of the soup stops overseeing volunteers, checking in contest attendees, and monitoring soup and other supplies. In addition, the Soup Caption will be the direct point of contact for the event management staff. The Soup Captain must be present at the retail location for the duration of the event and are integral to the management and success of the event.
Below is a link to WQED OnDemand, who did a feature on last year's event. The short video provides further information about the contest and the Brashear Association's Food Pantry.
http://www.wqed.org/ondemand/onq.php?id=734
If you're interested in being a Soup Captain this year, please contact me. There will be a Soup Captain Orientation meeting on Wednesday, February 16th at 6pm at the Brashear Association, where we will go into further detail. If you aren't able to be a Soup Captain but would still like to volunteer, please let me know. We have many duties available for our volunteers. Any time that can be offered is greatly appreciated!
For more information about the South Side Soup Contest, please visit www.southsidepgh.com.
Thank you for your time,
Jennifer Jeffers
Committee Chairperson
jeffersjh@hotmail.com
Thank you for being a part of the South Side Slopes Neighborhood Association - Neighbors working together to make the Slopes a more livable, beautiful, and safe community. The SSSNA hopes to keep the community informed about upcoming events, news in the Slopes, and volunteer opportunities through this E-Blast. If you do not wish to receive this E-Blast, reply to this email and you will be removed. Feel free to forward to any neighbors you think may be interested.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Helmets and heads
Sports such as hockey and football should start to use throw-away helmets, much like bike helmets. A bike helmet works once. Then it breaks or cracks. Then it is worthless and needs to be tossed away.
In hockey, some have called for the removal of helmets to make the game safe. Rather than remove the helmet, make it a helmet that breaks if it has an impact that is too hard. Then the player and his broken helmet would need to sit out the rest of the game.
I favor throw away helmets, not toss away players.
In hockey, some have called for the removal of helmets to make the game safe. Rather than remove the helmet, make it a helmet that breaks if it has an impact that is too hard. Then the player and his broken helmet would need to sit out the rest of the game.
I favor throw away helmets, not toss away players.
Post-Gazette.com: ".
After rejecting a proposal that would have forced players to sit out at least one play if their helmet is dislodged, the committee decided to gather data on how prevalent the problem is in college football."
The Eagle gives insights into Wikipedia and some kid named Donovan
The Eagle: "Wikipedia Ain’t So Bad, and Yes, I’m a Geek
-Ah Wikipedia, it’s the first thing up when you Google something, it contains more than 17 million articles, and has more than 365 million readers. Almost every kid in America has seen its white pages at least once in their lives. Wikipedia even has its sister sites that range from anything that focuses from video games to military secrets. But in schools Wikipedia and all of its sister sites are shunned, exiled, and segregated from the other articles on the internet. Teachers, or at least some of them, believe that Wikipedia will contain false information. And they don’t want anything Wikipedia-related in a student’s work. But just how reliable is Wikipedia?"
-Ah Wikipedia, it’s the first thing up when you Google something, it contains more than 17 million articles, and has more than 365 million readers. Almost every kid in America has seen its white pages at least once in their lives. Wikipedia even has its sister sites that range from anything that focuses from video games to military secrets. But in schools Wikipedia and all of its sister sites are shunned, exiled, and segregated from the other articles on the internet. Teachers, or at least some of them, believe that Wikipedia will contain false information. And they don’t want anything Wikipedia-related in a student’s work. But just how reliable is Wikipedia?"
Chuck Tanner: The Last World Series Manager That Mattered
Yesterday, Major League Baseball lost a unique player, marvelous manager, and an incredible man.
Rest in Peace Charles William Tanner.
Welcomed to this world in New Castle, PA on the 4th of July in 1928, Chuck Tanner was born to be a baseball man. A left-handed and hitting left-fielder, Chuck Tanner recorded a unique feat. On April 12, 1955, in his first at-bat for the Braves, Chuck Tanner laced a home run in Milwaukee. It was a statistic that would be remembered countless times, and duly so.
After a journeyman career, Tanner transitioned to a managerial career, starting in 1963 in the minor leagues. In 1970 his Major League Managerial career began with the Chicago White Sox. He piloted that team for five years before being fired. He immediately was hired by Oakland in 1976. His team recorded a ML record 341 stolen bases that year but Chuck didn't impress.
In another one of the most unique twists in Major League history, Chuck Tanner—a manager—was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Two years later, Tanner's “We Are Family” Bucs, lead by Wilver Dornell Stargell, won the World Series when Omar Moreno snagged a rather routine fly-ball in Baltimore.
Baseball in Pittsburgh has not been the same since.
Tanner had his share of ups-and-downs in the remaining six seasons of his Pirates career. He was let go for young Jim Leyland and moved on to Atlanta for three more seasons. Tanner's major league managerial career was 1,352 and 1,381.
In the years since, Tanner had been a regular site at Three Rivers Stadium, and then PNC Park. Most recently, Tanner was a Senior Advisor to management. He could be seen leaving the ball park early, taller than you might expect, thin and always in a good mood.
As a kid, Chuck Tanner was seen exclusively as a good man and a fantastic motivator. When Phil Garner, then the manager of the Houston Astros, managed the National League All-Stars in the game at PNC, he chose Chuck to be a special guest coach. Tanner also threw out a ceremonial first pitch.
A couple of years ago, I'd see Chuck leave PNC Park. One day in particular I excitedly saw him talk with the ticket takers near the Home Plate Gate, as I worked Security just outside the gate. I was impressed that a “Big League” personality by any gauge, was talking to the part-time workers in red vests. I couldn't imagine Tony LaRussa or Lou Pinella (who also was traded once as a manager) talk to the riff-raff at the ball park.
Then Chuck Tanner came my way.
“Hello Mr. Tanner, how are you?”
“I'm good. How are you?”
Chuck stopped in his tracks.
I extended my hand and he shook it.
“Do you know what I refer to you as,” I asked.
He looked inquisitive and smiled.
I smiled broadly back to him.
“You are the manager of the last World Series team THAT MATTERED.”
With that, Chuck Tanner registered the words. And smiled ever more broadly.
As I remember, he reached out and put his left hand on my shoulder.
Chuck Tanner then laughed with me and said, “Thank you.”
It was a light-hearted moment between two guys who loved the Pittsburgh Pirates.
At that moment, Chuck Tanner treated me like a friend.
Just like he has countless other baseball fans. They too were his friends.
The Pittsburgh Pirates, one of the most storied teams in the history of all baseball, lost one of its most storied managers. A true leader. A Man. Rest in Peace Chuck Tanner. And thanks.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Murphy pushes bill to shield U.S. from China's currency
Over-reaching looks like this.
Murphy pushes bill to shield U.S. from China's currencyMurphy's meddling isn't what I want him to do.
After their efforts were rebuffed at the end of the last Congress, Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Upper St. Clair, and Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, reintroduced a bill Thursday targeting China for its allegedly undervalued currency.
Read more: http://post-gazette.com/pg/11042/1124607-84.stm#ixzz1Deq2l2rd
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Fw: [school-discuss] Open Source (and Open Data) bills in NH
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
From: Joel Kahn <jj2kk4@yahoo.com>
Sender: owner-schoolforge-discuss@schoolforge.net
Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2011 14:24:43 -0800 (PST)
To: <schoolforge-discuss@schoolforge.net>
ReplyTo: schoolforge-discuss@schoolforge.net
Subject: [school-discuss] Open Source (and Open Data) bills in NH
| I don't know how many of you are following the activities of Open Source for America, so I figured it wouldn't hurt to pass this along. Hopefully, it will at least provide more useful material for discussions--so spread the word. I'm wondering if this could somehow come up during the fight for the 2012 New Hampshire presidential primary.... :-) Joel --- On Thu, 2/10/11, Cohn, Seth <Seth.Cohn@leg.state.nh.us> wrote:
|
435 volunteers
Steve's idea makes sense:
With redistricting we will have 435 new US congressional districts by 2012.
How about creating a loose network of 435 non-partisan, non-aligned Facebook
Pages for each district?
Each page would be designed for people who live in the new district to
exchange views across the political spectrum.
My experience is that participation in each page will need to be built and
someone(s) needs to tend the garden so to speak to remove spam and really
abusive stuff IF you want sustained quality participation. (If you prefer
pitched battles among the most partisan 1% then run it on auto-pilot.)
So, why not have each page built as a student project with students from
different ideological perspectives working together to make it work and
learn how to facilitate and recruit online. Key is seeding discussions with
news and links of direct relevance to the district and local implications of
national policy.
Anyone want to take this idea and run with it? Contact us:
http://e-democracy.org/contact team@e-democracy.org
(P.S. There is actually an example of a virtual parlimentary constituency
discussion in Kenya like this. Why not in the U.S.?)
My mentor, Fletcher Gilders, talked about as a glory day flashback from Kenyon College
Fletcher was the best. I miss him greatly.
Kenyon Vaults Back ino Diving After a Decade of Rest - The Kenyon Collegian - Sports: "It wasn't until the mid-1980s that the diving program really came into its own. 'The diving team of the mid '80s up to the late '90s was better than any team in that time,' Steen said. The reason? The hiring of the 'best diving coach of all time,' according to Steen — Fletcher Gilders. Gilders, an NCAA Division I record-setting national champion for Ohio State University, was one of the most successful divers in collegiate history. He was so successful as a diver that his national record, set while at OSU, was not overturned until Greg Louganis came along. After a very successful and decorated career as the swimming and diving coach at Ohio University (developing three Olympic divers and winning eight Mid-American conference titles), he came to Gambier to coach the diving squad in 1985. During his 12 years coaching at Kenyon, Gilders produced three Division III champions and won three NCAA Division III Coach of the Year honors. Now deceased, he is remembered much fondness and respect.Fletcher retired -- but really, he died way too young. The guy was a lot like the recently departed Jack LaLane. Fletcher was shorter, fit like a bull, functional in his problem solving, and clever with his insights as to what movements to coach and what to ignore until later.
The diving team took a turn for the worse after Gilders' retirement. Without such a dedicated, consistent and 'high-caliber, absolutely adored' coach as Gilders, according to Steen, the program had since fallen into somewhat of a rut for the latter part of the '90s and into the 2000s."
Raja for Commissioner - Raja’s Story
Raja for Commissioner � Raja’s Story: "A first generation American, Raja was born in Bangalore, India, known as the “Silicon Valley of India.” After graduating from the region’s leading university with a degree in electrical engineering, he moved to Pittsburgh to attend graduate school earning a Masters in Computer Science from the University of Pittsburgh and an MBA with Honors from Carnegie Mellon."
Allegheny Grows funds first-year projects in Wilkinsburg, Bellevue and Penn Hills
Hold the hoe!
Where is this field turned garden, exactly?
Allegheny Grows funds first-year projects in Wilkinsburg, Bellevue and Penn Hills: "Penn Hills officials are providing a water truck and leaf-mulch compost for a community garden on the site of a former municipal ballfield. The tract had been planted as a garden last year by a youth group. Produce grown through this year's effort will benefit up to three local food pantries."I love the garden efforts. But let's not take over any more ball fields.
Where is this field turned garden, exactly?
Voters Choice Act is introduced in PA again
For more information, please contact Bob Small (610-543-8427) or Ken Krawchuk (267-496-3332)
The Pennsylvania Ballot Access Coalition (PBAC) is pleased to report that their Voters' Choice Act has been introduced in the Pennsylvania Senate as Senate Bill 21.
The prime sponsor of the Act, originally authored by the PBAC in 2005, is state Senator Mike Folmer (R-48) of Lebanon. According to Folmer, "Both the federal and state Constitutions begin with the same three words: 'We ThePeople.' In order to give the people a stronger voice in their state government, we need to eliminate barriers for candidates seeking office. No state makes it more difficult for third party and independent candidates to run for office than Pennsylvania. My 'Voters' Choice Act' significantly eases these restrictions. "The Act offers greater freedom of choice to Pennsylvania voters by making it much less difficult for independent and third party candidates to get their names on the November ballot.
Under current law, Democratic and Republican candidates are required to collect between 1,000 and 2,000 signatures to get their names on the statewide ballot, while all others must collect as many as 67,000 signatures in recent years. But under the Voters' Choice Act, independents and candidates of political bodies would need to collect the same number of signatures as the candidates of the two old parties, and once a third party registers 0.05% of the electorate as members of that party(approximately 4,200 voters), their candidates may be nominated according to the party's rules, and at the party's expense, without having to collect signatures.
Ken Krawchuk, a Libertarian member of the PBAC and two-time candidate for Pennsylvania governor, applauded Sen. Folmer's initiative. "Why should one candidate be forced to collect thirty-three times as many signatures as another?" Krawchuk asked. "The only thing the existing law does is stifle competition at the ballot box and prevent new ideas from being introduced into the political debate. In a land that's known for freedom, how can such a thing be fair?"
According to Carl Romanelli, a Green Party member of the PBAC, "Passage of the VCA will demonstrate that legislators are serious about reform and leveling the playing field. It is heartening to see support for this legislation among Greens, Libertarians, Constitutionalists, Reformers and independents. We are respectfully requesting all PA Senators of goodwill to lead this effort for Pennsylvania. "The PBAC encourages all citizens to contact their state senators and request that they co-sponsor the Voters' Choice Act, Senate Bill 21.
The Pennsylvania Ballot Access Coalition is a group of individuals and organizations committed to building better government in Pennsylvania. Formed shortly after the 2004 election cycle, the Coalition includes leading members of the Libertarian Party, the Green Party, the Constitution Party, the America First Party, the Reform Party, the Prohibition Party, the Socialist Party, the Unified Independent Party, the New American Independent Party, the Social Democrats USA, and the Ralph Nader campaign, among others. The purpose of the Coalition is to reform the restrictive Pennsylvania ballot access laws and bring them in line with the constitutional mandate that "Elections shall be free and equal."
More information about the Coalition and the Voters' Choice Act can be found at http://PaBallotAccess. org.
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Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Better late than never - news - the-press | Stuff.co.nz
In sports news elsewhere, a promise is made -- broken -- and fixed. Sounds like the NFL and those 400 tickets to the Super Bowl -- but it isn't.
Better late than never - news - the-press | Stuff.co.nz
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
Penguins, city discuss redevelopment
This is what lies look like.
Penguins, city discuss redevelopment
Penguins, city discuss redevelopment
"We understand and respect [the historic review] process," he said. "We think that waiting until that is done doesn't make a whole lot of sense in terms of" being ready to start development once a decision has been made.
Read more: http://post-gazette.com/pg/11039/1123834-53.stm#ixzz1DOSdUIHf
Monday, February 07, 2011
Our 30 Year Mistake
Our 30 Year Mistake
I hope that Egyptians are able to work toward a more free and just society. Unfortunately, much of the blame for the unrest in Egypt and the resulting instability in the region rests with US foreign policy over the past several decades. The US government has sent more than $60 billion to the Egyptian regime since the Camp David Accords in 1978 to purchase stability, including more security for the state of Israel. We see now the folly of our interventionist foreign policy: not only has that stability fallen to pieces with the current unrest, but the years of propping up the corrupt regime in Egypt has led the people to increase their resentment of both America and Israel! We are both worse off for decades of intervention into Egypt’s internal affairs. I wish I could say that we have learned our lesson and will no longer attempt to purchase – or rent – friends in the Middle East, but I am afraid that is being too optimistic. Already we see evidence that while the US historically propped up the Egyptian regime, we also provided assistance to groups opposed to the regime.
Game for learning? Not Monday morning in the Pittsburgh schools
Game for learning? Not Monday morning in the Pittsburgh schools
The Steelers and all our sports teams are hard workers, and sports teaches us that. But it is also a prime teacher of and platform for building relationships. We are Pittsburgh. We know Coach Tomlin. We feel for the players and the team and the organization and the city and the region and each other. This is a time to travel, to network, to be in community. And this time and these lessons are not presented every week nor every lifetime.
We take an extra two hours to insure that we value and invest the relationships of community.
Then there is one other reason. Those that work hard, rest hard. Recovery is part of the wellness factors. To study and learn in school, we have to be prepared.
The NFL gives the teams an extra week to prepare for the SuperBowl. We can provide an extra two hours to prepare for the Monday classroom. That's our time to shine and we want to be there -- ready to do the heavy lifting of learning.
I'm glad we had an extra two hours today. Next time, I'll ask for a two and a quarter hours -- just for good measure as I'm still running a tad late.
Go to school!
Steeler Nation, as we all know, is no nanny state. So why do Pittsburgh Public Schools students need a two-hour delay the morning after the Super Bowl?Sports are games of space, time and relationships.
The reason, the district said, is "for the safety of our students."
A spokeswoman said Thursday, "As you know, with the Super Bowl comes a lot of Super Bowl parties and such. We just feel it's best not to have our students out very early with people who have been up late." The people she was referring to were those "on the road who may be out early after having a very late night."
While some Pittsburghers have been known to celebrate a Super Bowl victory with excessive gusto, it's easier to imagine their recklessness in public between midnight and 2 a.m. than at 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. We can't help but wonder if the real reason for canceling the first two hours of class Monday is to give adults -- parents, teachers, bus drivers, cafeteria staff, etc. -- more time to get on their game face for work. If so, for shame.
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11036/1123120-192.stm?cmpid=news.xml#ixzz1DHfLfVcW
The Steelers and all our sports teams are hard workers, and sports teaches us that. But it is also a prime teacher of and platform for building relationships. We are Pittsburgh. We know Coach Tomlin. We feel for the players and the team and the organization and the city and the region and each other. This is a time to travel, to network, to be in community. And this time and these lessons are not presented every week nor every lifetime.
We take an extra two hours to insure that we value and invest the relationships of community.
Then there is one other reason. Those that work hard, rest hard. Recovery is part of the wellness factors. To study and learn in school, we have to be prepared.
The NFL gives the teams an extra week to prepare for the SuperBowl. We can provide an extra two hours to prepare for the Monday classroom. That's our time to shine and we want to be there -- ready to do the heavy lifting of learning.
I'm glad we had an extra two hours today. Next time, I'll ask for a two and a quarter hours -- just for good measure as I'm still running a tad late.
Go to school!
Saturday, February 05, 2011
Colin Delany's book on politics and use of the internet
Colin wrote:
I just put out a completely updated version of the Epolitics.com Online Politics 101 guide to using digital tools to, well, change the world! The new version (2.0) has 22 chapters covering the tools and tactics of online politics (including a new one on Twitter), and is rewritten from beginning to end to reflect the changes in online advocacy since 2008. Since initial publication in 2006, the earlier versions have been downloaded over 50,000 times and have been used as a roadmap by campaigns around the world. Best of all, it's free! More info:
Blog post with announcement and details
http://bit.ly/e1KhPr
Direct link to the PDF download page (the guide can also be browsed by
chapter on Epolitics.com)
http://bit.ly/fezMzb
Obviously, please help spread the word! Pass it along to anyone you think might benefit -- that's what it's here for. Oh, that and to give people a reason to buy me drinks.
Colin Delany
Epolitics.com -- dissecting the craft of online political advocacy
http://www.epolitics.com
cpd -at- epolitics -dot- com
http://www.twitter.com/epolitics
202-xxx-xxxx - cut by blogmaster.
Thursday, February 03, 2011
Education Week: An Open Message to President Barack Obama
Education Week: An Open Message to President Barack Obama
President Obama, when you were elected in 2008, teachers, parents, and most of us with an abiding faith in the public school envisioned a new era of school support and renewal in accord with the hopes and promises engendered by your election campaign. Instead, the centerpiece of your education program so far, the Race to the Top, reinforces, expands, and intensifies the No Child Left Behind Act of President George W. Bush and the America 2000 manifesto of President George H.W. Bush—all of which have embraced nationalized high-stakes testing as the instrument of accountability imposed upon children and teachers.
Another challenger for Kraus
Another challenger for Kraus
The slate is getting crowded for Bruce Kraus's South Side City Council seat.
Kraus is already getting challenged for the Democratic nomination by SS Chamber of Commerce president Gavin Robb. Yesterday Democratic committeeman Jason Phillips joined the fray, saying in a statement that the "crux of his campaign focuses on our need to fix our roads, improve snow and ice removal from our secondary street, pick up garbage, demolish blighted homes, eradicate graffiti and most of all, provide Police, Fire and EMS services to our residents. Mr. Phillips invasions a City Council tenure where constituent services rank highly."
The Inflation Intifada: Hunger And Revolution In The Third World - Jerry Bowyer - The Great Relearning - Forbes
The Inflation Intifada: Hunger And Revolution In The Third World - Jerry Bowyer - The Great Relearning - Forbes
The point is that with economic power comes economic responsibility. With the status of economic super-power comes the burden of economic super-responsibility. The U.S. dollar, at least for now, is the reserve currency of the world. When we explicitly tinker with its value we implicitly tinker with the currency values of the world. When we force food into gas tanks, large swaths of the world starve. When western elites fiddle, the cities of the world burn with revolution.
Thinking about the Pittsburgh Promise
Wouldn't it be nice if the kids that graduate from Pittsburgh Public Schools (or Pgh Charter Schools I guess) that attend out-of-state universities for undergraduate education (and hence can't get Pittsburgh Promise funding) could:
+ Use the Pgh Promise for grad school (Medical, Law, Dental, etc.) within PA. Pay up to $10K per year to not exceed $40k.
+ Use Pgh Promise funds for home ownership of primary residence within the city if under the age of 30. Pay up to $10k per year and not to exceed $40k total.
I'd rather see the students that attend out-of-state schools get the same funding as those that attend in-state schools, but the above options mentioned above seem to push for the desired results and offer another level of 'gracious fairness' to the formula.
+ Use the Pgh Promise for grad school (Medical, Law, Dental, etc.) within PA. Pay up to $10K per year to not exceed $40k.
+ Use Pgh Promise funds for home ownership of primary residence within the city if under the age of 30. Pay up to $10k per year and not to exceed $40k total.
I'd rather see the students that attend out-of-state schools get the same funding as those that attend in-state schools, but the above options mentioned above seem to push for the desired results and offer another level of 'gracious fairness' to the formula.
Diocese to sports fans: Behave yourselves
Sportsmanship concerns: Diocese to sports fans: Behave yourselves
Meanwhile, in other sportsmanship news in Pittsburgh, we've got this action on the ice.Diocese to sports fans: Behave yourselves
Thursday, February 03, 2011
By Kaitlynn Riely, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Parents and coaches in the Pittsburgh diocese's 100 Catholic elementary schools received a letter recently warning that those who do not control their tempers would be banned from Catholic school sports.
The letter, written by Ronald T. Bowes, assistant superintendent for public policy and development and the athletic director with Pittsburgh Catholic Schools, was prompted by two recent though separate incidents in the diocese's Catholic school basketball league.
Without going into detail, Dr. Bowes' six-paragraph letter mentions "serious incidents" that involved "conduct unbecoming Catholic school students, coaches and parents."
In a phone interview Wednesday, Dr. Bowes declined to name the elementary schools involved but said that in both incidents one student accused another of using a derogatory term. The two incidents involved separate teams and separate players, and after the accusations were made, parents and fans yelled and argued.
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11034/1122594-455.stm#ixzz1CuC6M62A
Fate of Civic Arena debated
Fate of Civic Arena debated
Franklin Toker, an architecture professor and the author of "Pittsburgh: A New Portrait," argued that the arena "is, historically, the most representative building now standing in the city of Pittsburgh," more so than the Cathedral of Learning, the county courthouse or the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.Go Professor Toker!
He said the arena's planning and construction "coincided exactly with the most exhilarating, most creative and most ambitious moment this city has ever known: the Pittsburgh renaissance."
Read more: http://post-gazette.com/pg/11034/1122591-53.stm#ixzz1Cu8yZh2V
Egyptian army starts rounding up journalists: News24: Africa: News
Egyptian army starts rounding up journalists: News24: Africa: NewsFriday, is designated "departure day" for Mubarak.
Good spam
Spam was something to eat, and it wasn't the worst we'd get. But, those were the good old days. Here is some spam that is a message from the old folks to the youngsters.
If you are 36, or older, you might think this is hilarious!
When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking twenty-five miles to school every morning.... Uphill... Barefoot... BOTH ways...yadda, yadda, yadda
And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way in hell I was going to lay a bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it!
But now that I'm over the ripe old age of forty, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today. You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in a damn Utopia! And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it!
1) I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have the Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the damn library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalog!!
2) There was no email!! We had to actually write somebody a letter - with a pen! Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox, and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!
3) Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass! Nowhere was safe!
4) There were no MP3's or Napsters or iTunes! If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself!
5) Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio, and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished, and then the tape would come undone rendering it useless. Cause, hey, that's how we rolled, Baby! Dig?
6) We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you were on the phone and somebody else called, they got a busy signal, that's it!
7) There weren't any freakin' cell phones either. If you left the house, you just didn't make a damn call or receive one. You actually had to be out of touch with your "friends". OH MY GOSH !!! Think of the horror... not being in touch with someone 24/7!!! And then there's TEXTING. Yeah, right. Please! You kids have no idea how annoying you are.
8) And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either! When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your parents, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, the collection agent... you just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!
9) We didn't have any fancy PlayStation or Xbox video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games like 'Space Invaders' and 'Asteroids'. Your screen guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen.. Forever! And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!
10) You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your ass and walk over to the TV to change the channel!!! NO REMOTES!!! Oh, no, what's the world coming to?!?!
11) There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying? We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you spoiled little rat-bastards!
12) And we didn't have microwaves. If we wanted to heat something up, we had to use the stove! Imagine that!
13) And our parents told us to stay outside and play... all day long. Oh, no, no electronics to soothe and comfort. And if you came back inside... you were doing chores!
And car seats - oh, please! Mom threw you in the back seat and you hung on. If you were lucky, you got the "safety arm" across the chest at the last moment if she had to stop suddenly, and if your head hit the dashboard, well that was your fault for calling "shot gun" in the first place!
See! That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids today have got it too easy. You're spoiled rotten! You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in 1970 or any time before!
Regards,
The Over 40 Crowd
Wednesday, February 02, 2011
Meeting Notice for nonprofits doing open source software for Saturday
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
-----Original Message-----
From: "Terence J. Golightly" <vze27hs6@verizon.net>
Sender: wplug-announce-bounces+mark.rauterkus=gmail.com@wplug.org
Date: Tue, 01 Feb 2011 22:39:22
To: mark.rauterkus@gmail.com<mark.rauterkus@gmail.com>
Reply-To: Announcements only <wplug-announce@wplug.org>
Subject: [wplug-announce] Meeting Notice
Hello,
WPLUG is hosting a general user meeting on Monday February 7th from
6:30pm until 8:00pm at the Panera Bread on Centre Ave. in Shadyside.
This meeting will be a "Techno Salon" which is a small group discussion
forum about a current topic in Free Software. This Techno Salon topic is
"Free Software in use by Pittsburgh nonprofits and beyond". Special
guests will be Johnny Qwalick of Goodwill, Dave Sevik of
computereach.com and Susy Robison from The Homeless Children's Fund.
For more information about this meeting please click on the following links:
http://wplug.org/wiki/Meeting-20110207
http://wplug.org/wiki/Panera_Centre
Please rsvp to events@wplug.org. Seating is limited. Preference will be
given to Members.
Sincerely,
Terry Golightly
Vice Chair Your WPLUG
info@wplug.org
_______________________________________________
wplug-announce mailing list
wplug-announce@wplug.org
http://www.wplug.org/mailman/listinfo/wplug-announce
-----Original Message-----
From: "Terence J. Golightly" <vze27hs6@verizon.net>
Sender: wplug-announce-bounces+mark.rauterkus=gmail.com@wplug.org
Date: Tue, 01 Feb 2011 22:39:22
To: mark.rauterkus@gmail.com<mark.rauterkus@gmail.com>
Reply-To: Announcements only <wplug-announce@wplug.org>
Subject: [wplug-announce] Meeting Notice
Hello,
WPLUG is hosting a general user meeting on Monday February 7th from
6:30pm until 8:00pm at the Panera Bread on Centre Ave. in Shadyside.
This meeting will be a "Techno Salon" which is a small group discussion
forum about a current topic in Free Software. This Techno Salon topic is
"Free Software in use by Pittsburgh nonprofits and beyond". Special
guests will be Johnny Qwalick of Goodwill, Dave Sevik of
computereach.com and Susy Robison from The Homeless Children's Fund.
For more information about this meeting please click on the following links:
http://wplug.org/wiki/Meeting-20110207
http://wplug.org/wiki/Panera_Centre
Please rsvp to events@wplug.org. Seating is limited. Preference will be
given to Members.
Sincerely,
Terry Golightly
Vice Chair Your WPLUG
info@wplug.org
_______________________________________________
wplug-announce mailing list
wplug-announce@wplug.org
http://www.wplug.org/mailman/listinfo/wplug-announce
Dallas dreams different sports dreams for the future.
------Original Message------
From: SI com Alerts
To: mark@rauterkus.com
ReplyTo: cnnalerts@cnn.com
Subject: 2004 Athens Summer Games News
Sent: Feb 2, 2011 4:34 PM
Alert Name: 2004 Athens Summer Games News
Frank Deford: Even during the Super Bowl, Dallas has its eyes on the Olympic Games
02/02/11 02:09 PM, EST
Even as Dallas bursts its buttons, hosting the Super Bowl for the first time in Jerry Jones' new American coliseum, the city has developed an even greater itch it wants to scratch.
Read the full story at http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/frank_deford/02/02/dallas.olympic.games/index.html
______________________________________________________________________
Receiving too many alerts?
Visit manage your alerts to narrow your topic further. Add words or
phrases in your alert criteria and refine your alert. You can also change
your delivery frequency to "daily" or "weekly" to receive your alerts to fit
your busy schedule. To edit your alerts, visit the manage alerts page:
http://audience.cnn.com/services/si/alerts/manageAlerts.jsp?source=si
______________________________________________________________________
2011 Cable News Network LP, LLLP.
A Time Warner Company.
All Rights Reserved.
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
From: SI com Alerts
To: mark@rauterkus.com
ReplyTo: cnnalerts@cnn.com
Subject: 2004 Athens Summer Games News
Sent: Feb 2, 2011 4:34 PM
Alert Name: 2004 Athens Summer Games News
Frank Deford: Even during the Super Bowl, Dallas has its eyes on the Olympic Games
02/02/11 02:09 PM, EST
Even as Dallas bursts its buttons, hosting the Super Bowl for the first time in Jerry Jones' new American coliseum, the city has developed an even greater itch it wants to scratch.
Read the full story at http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/frank_deford/02/02/dallas.olympic.games/index.html
______________________________________________________________________
Receiving too many alerts?
Visit manage your alerts to narrow your topic further. Add words or
phrases in your alert criteria and refine your alert. You can also change
your delivery frequency to "daily" or "weekly" to receive your alerts to fit
your busy schedule. To edit your alerts, visit the manage alerts page:
http://audience.cnn.com/services/si/alerts/manageAlerts.jsp?source=si
______________________________________________________________________
2011 Cable News Network LP, LLLP.
A Time Warner Company.
All Rights Reserved.
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
EPLC Regional Workshops for School Board Candidates
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
From: Ron Cowell <cowell@eplc.org>
Date: Tue, 1 Feb 2011 18:07:47 -0500
To: Ron Cowell<cowell@eplc.org>
Subject: EPLC Regional Workshops for School Board Candidates
EPLC 2011 REGIONAL WORKSHOPS FOR SCHOOL BOARD CANDIDATES
The Education Policy and Leadership Center, with the Cooperation of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) and Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials (PASBO), will conduct A Series of Regional Full-Day Workshops for 2011 Pennsylvania School Board Candidates.
Incumbents, non-incumbents, campaign supporters and all interested voters are invited to participate in these workshops.
Registration is $40 and includes coffee/donuts, lunch, and materials. For details and registration information, please go to http://www.eplc.org/SchoolBoardCandidateWorkshops.shtml
Philadelphia Region
Saturday, February 26, 2011 – 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, 1605 West Main St., Norristown, PA 19403
Lehigh Valley
Saturday, March 5, 2011 – 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Catasauqua Area School District, District Administration Office, 201 N. 14th St., Catasauqua, PA 18032
(Organized by the Children’s Coalition of the Lehigh Valley)
Pittsburgh Region
Saturday, March 12, 2011 – 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Doubletree Hotel Pittsburgh/Monreville, 101 Mall Blvd., Monroeville, PA 15146
Harrisburg Region
Saturday, March 19, 2011 – 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Pennsylvania School Boards Association Headquarters, 400 Bent Creek Blvd., Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Registration Fee - $40
Registration fee includes coffee/donuts, lunch, and materials.
AGENDA
8:00 a.m. – Registration & Coffee
8:30 a.m. to Noon – Morning Sessions
PART I – Legal and Leadership Roles of School Directors and School Boards
PART II – State and Federal Policies: Implications for School Boards
Noon – Lunch & Discussion
12:45 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. – Afternoon Sessions
PART III – Candidates and the Law
PART IV – School District Finances and Budgeting
Register at http://www.eplc.org/SchoolBoardCandidateWorkshops.shtml
Tuesday, February 01, 2011
A guide to developing a local outcomes framework for culture and sport
A guide to developing a local outcomes framework for culture and sport: "A guide to developing a local outcomes framework for culture and sport
One of the modern challenges to public services is to be able to demonstrate that investment and action are improving people’s lives.
Culture and sport, perhaps now more than ever before, must demonstrate the contribution the sector makes to better outcomes for individuals, communities and places.
This web resource provides guidance for councils and their partners on how to create a local outcomes framework for culture and sport. This will help you measure and evidence the difference your service makes and its contribution to local priorities. It will also help you make the case for continued investment of public money."
I was the 10th person to view this video.
Goodbye for Uncle Douggie - a memorial
A Memorial - "Reflections Of Doug's Life" will be held at the Holiday Inn - McKnight Road - Thursday, Feb. 3rd from 1 to 3 p.m. Come share your memories of Doug Hoerth.
The above info came to me via the Lynn Cullen Facebook page.
Property Tax lawsuit in Philly
Dear Friends -- Below are links to today's Sunday Philadelphia Inquirer and Saturday's Philadelphia Daily News articles on the lawsuit we filed Friday afternoon on behalf of 18 property owners from throughout the City. If the links don't work, copy and paste them into your browser.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20110130_Group_sues_to_force_new_Phila__tax_system.html
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20110129_Group_sues_city_over_planned_property-tax_increase.html
As with any reporting, the articles reflect the views of the writers and cannot give a full picture, so I urge you to read the entire complaint when you get a chance. You can obtain copies of the 36-page Complaint and its exhibits by visiting www.FixPhillyTaxes.org and scrolling to the bottom of the webpage. If you have any trouble, email me and I can send the legal docs to you in pdf format.
You can help to keep the momentum going by forwarding this to your friends, colleagues, neighbors, neighborhood associations, civic groups, etc. and by clicking on the Inquirer article and writing a comment about the suit.
We have never claimed to have all the answers to the many tough policy questions that must be addressed in resolving the long-standing illegalities plaguing our beloved City's assessment system, BUT we have to got to talk about and face them in order to make progress. If nothing else, the lawsuit should help to kickstart and motivate these discussions.
Thanks for your support of this important reform effort.
Rev. Ken Metzner
Monday, January 31, 2011
Apples to Apples. Go figure
(posted by me at another blog in a thread about the SI article about Aliquippa.)
Think again.
The PIAA and high school sports are NOT about districts, but rather about schools (for classification only) and teams from schools and athletes from schools. The district is not REALLY a factor in athletics.
I am not mixing the apples and oranges -- nor making bad analogy defenses.
Team to team comparisons are what matters in sports the most, then it is school to school. District to district, not so much.
As per talk of ALL OF THEM -- as in All Schools -- then talk about the LEAGUES, the WPIAL, the District VIII, the PIAA.
"Do you think you are fooling someone?" No. Do you?
Teachers do not NEED to be faceless. It is a choice. Anonymous is fine. Posters don't need to be bullies either. What you surmise and what I do are different. BTW, I surmise that you are him too, but just with a different handle, again.
Ready....
Apples = students;
Apple bushel buckets = teams;
Apple trees = schools;
Apple orchards = leagues;
One orchard (DVIII) is right in the middle of another orchard (DVII = WPIAL).
The school district could be represented as various farmers with certain choices of fertilizers, ambitions and options. Some farmers might only have one apple tree. Others a few. Farmers would also have other realms to care for (say oranges, livestock, etc.).
Competitions in HS sports are among student to students and among teams to teams. That's apples to apples and bushels to bushels.
An orange, go figure, could be a musician -- or -- a student in a calc class -- or -- some fully different asset to a farmer.
The head farmer, say Farmer Lane, could choose to focus 100% of the efforts on the chickens, a stable of horses and other fields and gardens and leave the apples to their own -- out of sight, out of mind. Ripe, rot, no worries.
Meanwhile, we're still waiting for you to deliver some analogy and any value for moving the conversation in the wake of the SI feature.
Think again.
The PIAA and high school sports are NOT about districts, but rather about schools (for classification only) and teams from schools and athletes from schools. The district is not REALLY a factor in athletics.
I am not mixing the apples and oranges -- nor making bad analogy defenses.
Team to team comparisons are what matters in sports the most, then it is school to school. District to district, not so much.
As per talk of ALL OF THEM -- as in All Schools -- then talk about the LEAGUES, the WPIAL, the District VIII, the PIAA.
"Do you think you are fooling someone?" No. Do you?
Teachers do not NEED to be faceless. It is a choice. Anonymous is fine. Posters don't need to be bullies either. What you surmise and what I do are different. BTW, I surmise that you are him too, but just with a different handle, again.
Ready....
Apples = students;
Apple bushel buckets = teams;
Apple trees = schools;
Apple orchards = leagues;
One orchard (DVIII) is right in the middle of another orchard (DVII = WPIAL).
The school district could be represented as various farmers with certain choices of fertilizers, ambitions and options. Some farmers might only have one apple tree. Others a few. Farmers would also have other realms to care for (say oranges, livestock, etc.).
Competitions in HS sports are among student to students and among teams to teams. That's apples to apples and bushels to bushels.
An orange, go figure, could be a musician -- or -- a student in a calc class -- or -- some fully different asset to a farmer.
The head farmer, say Farmer Lane, could choose to focus 100% of the efforts on the chickens, a stable of horses and other fields and gardens and leave the apples to their own -- out of sight, out of mind. Ripe, rot, no worries.
Meanwhile, we're still waiting for you to deliver some analogy and any value for moving the conversation in the wake of the SI feature.
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog Blog Archive � Open Public Data: Then What? - Part 1
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog Blog Archive Open Public Data: Then What? - Part 1: "We tend to assume that the opening up of public data will only produce positive outcomes for individuals, for society and the economy. But the opposite may be true. We should start thinking further ahead on the possible consequences of releasing public data, and how we can make sure they are mostly positive."
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Interesting doping theory about a cyclist suspension
Posted on the Supertraining public list and worth repeating as a theory.
----
Clenbuterol
Posted by: "wreckless61a" Johan.Bastiaansen@pandora.be
I don't know how much information about the Contador case got through to the US. But here's the rumour from Europe.
First of all, Alberto Contador was found to have very low levels of clenbuterol in his blood. The amount found was 400 times less than what a WADA accredited lab must be able to detect. It is strange that a lab used such an accurate and expensive test. Unless they had a reason.
Anyway, that's what he was accused of.
He then claimed it was a very low dose (true) and he got it from eating tainted beef that was wrapped in plastic. This was either given to him as a gift, or a cook bought it on the local market. Both explanations are highly unlikely, but what's interesting is the explicit mention of the plastic wrap.
The most likely scenario is this. Contador was using micro dosages of clenbuterol early in the season during training. Also he was tapping his blood to be used for blood doping later in the competition. Perhaps they had the blood tested but it wasn't flagged because of the low levels.
Riding the Tour de France he used this blood. The lab initially didn't find the clenbuterol. What they did find however were plasticizers in his blood, a sure evidence of blood being stored in plastic bags and injected in his bloodstream.
So now they knew he was dirty, but they didn't have anything to charge him with, since this test was not accepted by WADA.
That's when they turned around and took a closer look at his blood. And that's when the low levels of clenbuterol were found.
To me, this is a very likely scenario, because it explains why Contador mentioned the plastic wrap of the meat, and it also explains why the lab would use a test that is 400 times more accurate than required.
Regards,
Johan Bastiaansen of Hasselt, Belgium
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
----
Clenbuterol
Posted by: "wreckless61a" Johan.Bastiaansen@pandora.be
I don't know how much information about the Contador case got through to the US. But here's the rumour from Europe.
First of all, Alberto Contador was found to have very low levels of clenbuterol in his blood. The amount found was 400 times less than what a WADA accredited lab must be able to detect. It is strange that a lab used such an accurate and expensive test. Unless they had a reason.
Anyway, that's what he was accused of.
He then claimed it was a very low dose (true) and he got it from eating tainted beef that was wrapped in plastic. This was either given to him as a gift, or a cook bought it on the local market. Both explanations are highly unlikely, but what's interesting is the explicit mention of the plastic wrap.
The most likely scenario is this. Contador was using micro dosages of clenbuterol early in the season during training. Also he was tapping his blood to be used for blood doping later in the competition. Perhaps they had the blood tested but it wasn't flagged because of the low levels.
Riding the Tour de France he used this blood. The lab initially didn't find the clenbuterol. What they did find however were plasticizers in his blood, a sure evidence of blood being stored in plastic bags and injected in his bloodstream.
So now they knew he was dirty, but they didn't have anything to charge him with, since this test was not accepted by WADA.
That's when they turned around and took a closer look at his blood. And that's when the low levels of clenbuterol were found.
To me, this is a very likely scenario, because it explains why Contador mentioned the plastic wrap of the meat, and it also explains why the lab would use a test that is 400 times more accurate than required.
Regards,
Johan Bastiaansen of Hasselt, Belgium
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Fir for how long now?
The below may be of interest:
http://well. blogs.nytimes. com/2010/ 12/29/phys- ed-if-you- are-fit-you- can-take- it-easy/.
...a number of newly published studies offer compelling reasons to get out and exercise on the one hand, as well as new estimates of just how little we can do and still benefit on the other.
The most sobering of the recent studies, published last month in The British Journal of Sports Medicine, looked at a large group of retired elite male athletes, most now in their 50s. Some had remained physically active, although they were no longer competing. Others had taken fully to sloth, avoiding almost all exercise. When the researchers examined the health profiles of the two groups, they found, to no one's surprise, that the sedentary ex-athletes had a much higher risk of metabolic abnormalities, including insulin resistance, than their more active counterparts. Training hard and often in their youth had not conferred lifelong health benefits on the athletes as they aged, not if they now sat around all day.
Similarly, although in a more compressed time frame, a study published earlier this year found that when a group of world-class kayakers completely quit training (at the end of a competitive season), they rapidly lost strength and endurance. After only five weeks of not training, according to one measure of strength, they'd sloughed off about 9 percent of their muscular power and 11 percent of their aerobic capacity.In other words, being almost completely inactive, whether for a short or prolonged period of time, inexorably de-tones muscles and compromises health. The benefits of regular activity don't last long.
But there is a loophole. In these same studies, as well as others, relatively small amounts of activity allowed participants to maintain much of the health and fitness they had previously gained. In the kayaking study, for instance, some of the athletes didn't completely cease their training at the end of the season; they merely cut back, limiting themselves to one weight-training session and two endurance workouts per week (a fraction of their full-season training) and consequently lost barely half as much of their aerobic power as the kayakers who stopped exercising altogether. Five weeks "of markedly reduced training in a group of elite athletes seems effective for minimizing the large declines" in conditioning "that take place by completely stopping physical training," the authors wrote.Even more relevant to those of us who aren't world-class athletes (and aren't, therefore, likely to reduce our training to three sessions a week), a study just published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise suggests that visiting the gym only once a week may be enough for young and older athletes to hold onto past strength gains.
For the study, researchers with the University of Alabama at Birmingham recruited one group of adults in their 20s and 30s and another in their 60s and 70s and had both groups undertake a four-month program of fairly strenuous weight training, with thrice weekly, multiset sessions at the gym. By the end, all of the volunteers were dramatically stronger and had added considerable muscle mass.The researchers then randomly assigned the volunteers to different groups for the next eight months. One group quit all exercise. Another cut the number of their training sessions by two thirds, showing up at the gym only once a week. The final group not only reduced the number of their gym sessions to once a week, but completed only a third as many exercises during that session, for a total reduction in exercise volume to one-ninth.
At the end of the eight months, the groups' muscle size and strength varied markedly. The volunteers who stopped all exercise, whether they were young or old, had lost most of their newly acquired muscle mass, as well as a large portion of their strength. Those who'd continued to train once a week, however, had maintained much of their muscle mass, as well as their strength. The younger volunteers had even added muscle mass with the once a week full sessions (although not with the shortened bouts). Older volunteers hadn't augmented their muscle size during the maintenance routines, but they had lost little of their strength gains, even when their exercise volume was reduced to a ninth. A "once per week exercise dose was generally sufficient to maintain positive neuromuscular adaptations," the study authors concluded.
There are caveats to these encouraging findings, of course. You must have a baseline level of fitness to maintain, for one thing. Before they moved to the once-a-week routine, the weight trainers completed four months of three-times- a-week sessions. If you have no fitness base, resolve now to build one. The latest studies also did not pin down just how long you can maintain a reduced level of exercise, without the vestiges of fitness finally slipping away. The maintenance portion of the strength-training experiment lasted eight months; the kayaking study stretched only to five weeks. At some point, you probably have to return to a full exercise program. But for now, a little may be enough.
http://well. blogs.nytimes. com/2010/ 12/29/phys- ed-if-you- are-fit-you- can-take- it-easy/.
...a number of newly published studies offer compelling reasons to get out and exercise on the one hand, as well as new estimates of just how little we can do and still benefit on the other.
The most sobering of the recent studies, published last month in The British Journal of Sports Medicine, looked at a large group of retired elite male athletes, most now in their 50s. Some had remained physically active, although they were no longer competing. Others had taken fully to sloth, avoiding almost all exercise. When the researchers examined the health profiles of the two groups, they found, to no one's surprise, that the sedentary ex-athletes had a much higher risk of metabolic abnormalities, including insulin resistance, than their more active counterparts. Training hard and often in their youth had not conferred lifelong health benefits on the athletes as they aged, not if they now sat around all day.
Similarly, although in a more compressed time frame, a study published earlier this year found that when a group of world-class kayakers completely quit training (at the end of a competitive season), they rapidly lost strength and endurance. After only five weeks of not training, according to one measure of strength, they'd sloughed off about 9 percent of their muscular power and 11 percent of their aerobic capacity.In other words, being almost completely inactive, whether for a short or prolonged period of time, inexorably de-tones muscles and compromises health. The benefits of regular activity don't last long.
But there is a loophole. In these same studies, as well as others, relatively small amounts of activity allowed participants to maintain much of the health and fitness they had previously gained. In the kayaking study, for instance, some of the athletes didn't completely cease their training at the end of the season; they merely cut back, limiting themselves to one weight-training session and two endurance workouts per week (a fraction of their full-season training) and consequently lost barely half as much of their aerobic power as the kayakers who stopped exercising altogether. Five weeks "of markedly reduced training in a group of elite athletes seems effective for minimizing the large declines" in conditioning "that take place by completely stopping physical training," the authors wrote.Even more relevant to those of us who aren't world-class athletes (and aren't, therefore, likely to reduce our training to three sessions a week), a study just published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise suggests that visiting the gym only once a week may be enough for young and older athletes to hold onto past strength gains.
For the study, researchers with the University of Alabama at Birmingham recruited one group of adults in their 20s and 30s and another in their 60s and 70s and had both groups undertake a four-month program of fairly strenuous weight training, with thrice weekly, multiset sessions at the gym. By the end, all of the volunteers were dramatically stronger and had added considerable muscle mass.The researchers then randomly assigned the volunteers to different groups for the next eight months. One group quit all exercise. Another cut the number of their training sessions by two thirds, showing up at the gym only once a week. The final group not only reduced the number of their gym sessions to once a week, but completed only a third as many exercises during that session, for a total reduction in exercise volume to one-ninth.
At the end of the eight months, the groups' muscle size and strength varied markedly. The volunteers who stopped all exercise, whether they were young or old, had lost most of their newly acquired muscle mass, as well as a large portion of their strength. Those who'd continued to train once a week, however, had maintained much of their muscle mass, as well as their strength. The younger volunteers had even added muscle mass with the once a week full sessions (although not with the shortened bouts). Older volunteers hadn't augmented their muscle size during the maintenance routines, but they had lost little of their strength gains, even when their exercise volume was reduced to a ninth. A "once per week exercise dose was generally sufficient to maintain positive neuromuscular adaptations," the study authors concluded.
There are caveats to these encouraging findings, of course. You must have a baseline level of fitness to maintain, for one thing. Before they moved to the once-a-week routine, the weight trainers completed four months of three-times- a-week sessions. If you have no fitness base, resolve now to build one. The latest studies also did not pin down just how long you can maintain a reduced level of exercise, without the vestiges of fitness finally slipping away. The maintenance portion of the strength-training experiment lasted eight months; the kayaking study stretched only to five weeks. At some point, you probably have to return to a full exercise program. But for now, a little may be enough.
Friday, January 28, 2011
College tour of Historically Black Schools in the South
The 5th Annual NEED Tour of Historically Black Colleges and Universities is accepting applications for 10th grade students to visit colleges and universities in Alabama, Atlanta, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and District of Columbia. The tour will take place April 16th - April 23, 2011. Please visit the NEED website http://www.needld.org to download the HBCU Tour Application. There are a limited number of spaces available, therefore send in the application as soon as possible. If you have questions, please contact Arlene Tyler Holland at atyler@needld.org or 412.566.7393.
Sole Trader, Partnership, Company and Trust Business Structures
My photo from Auckland was used in a business article on the web. Cool.
Sole Trader, Partnership, Company and Trust Business Structures
Sole Trader, Partnership, Company and Trust Business Structures
Before starting a new business it is important to understand how different business structures affect income tax payments. Being informed helps to determine which structure best suits a business and its owner.
Read more at Suite101: Sole Trader, Partnership, Company and Trust Business Structures http://www.suite101.com/content/nz-business-structures---sole-trader-partnership-company-trust-a222303#ixzz1CLxoeHSE
Thursday, January 27, 2011
TV dictates USA Sevens: Sport: Rugby: Sevens
Start to tune into Rugby Sevens now -- because the NFL season next year is NOT going to happen without a labor agreement. Rugby -- as the nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
The pools and match schedule have been announced for the 2011 USA Sevens, the fourth event in this year’s HSBC Sevens World Series, to be played in Las Vegas on February 12-13.
As current World Series leaders, England head Pool A as top seeds. All four Cup quarter-finals will be played at the end of day one, February 12, allowing the Cup final to be broadcast live throughout the US on February 13.
USA Sevens Tournament Director Dan Lyle added: “Four years ago, USA Sevens set out to attain mainstream legitimacy and exposure in the context of American sport, and this exciting new partnership with NBC reflects the hard work achieved to realise this opportunity.
“Working with our event partners NBC Sports, the IRB, USA Rugby and some fantastic new sponsors, we look forward to presenting the 2011 tournament to the largest US audience ever to have watched our great sport.”
In addition to the four Cup quarter final ties being played at the end of a lengthened day one, the four trophy finals are also rearranged at the end of day two. In order for the Cup final to coincide with prime time across the east coast of America, the showpiece match will be played before the three other finals at 14:15 local time.
Top seeds England won the first event of the season in Dubai. On day one in Las Vegas they face Argentina, France and Caribbean qualifiers Guyana in Pool A.
Eight-time World Series winners New Zealand won the second event in George line up as second seeds in Pool B with opening matches against Wales, Kenya and South American qualifiers, Uruguay.
Samoa and Fiji currently lie in third and fourth position respectively in the World Series standings. Fiji face Australia, Scotland and Canada in Pool C, while defending USA Sevens champions Samoa face a mouth-watering tie against hosts US as well as South Africa and Japan in Pool D.
After the first two events in Dubai and South Africa, England lead the HSBC Sevens World Series with 44 points. New Zealand are second (40), Samoa third (36), Fiji fourth (32) and South Africa fifth (24).
The third leg of the World Series will be played in Wellington, New Zealand on February 4-5, after which the teams will travel on to Las Vegas for the USA Sevens.
Contador blasts 'unfair' ban: Sport: Other Sport: Cycling
Contador blasts 'unfair' ban: Sport: Other Sport: Cycling
The International Cycling Union (UCI) had provisionally suspended Contador in August, in advance of a decision on his immediate future by the REFC, after trace amounts of clenbuterol, a banned weight loss/muscle-building drug also used to fatten cattle, were found in a urine sample taken during the Tour de France.
Contador denies any wrongdoing, and says he unknowingly ingested the clenbuterol from beef brought from Spain to France during the second rest day of the Tour, just four days before he won his third title on 25 July.
Clenbuterol was banned by the European Union in 1996, but it is still administered illicitly by some cattle farmers.
Fitzgerald announcing county executive bid Friday
Fitzgerald announcing county executive bid Friday
County Council President Rich Fitzgerald will declare his candidacy for county executive Friday morning at event where he will showcase an endorsement from Rep. Mike Doyle.
The widely anticipated announcement will take place in the courtyard of the Allegheny County Courthouse, the same spot where Controller Mark Patrick Flaherty, so far the only declared candidate for the post, unveiled his bid earlier this month. So far, they are the only competitors for the Democratic nomination to succeed the incumbent, Dan Onorato, who has announced that he will not seek a third term.
On council, Mr. Fitzgerald was known as a close ally of the Onorato administration. He has made no secret of his interest in the county's top post, quietly laying the foundation for a bid over the last year while Mr. Onorato pursued his unsuccessful quest to be elected governor.
On the Republican side, county Councilman Matt Drozd has said that he is exploring a bid. Patti Weaver, a key organizer of the region's Tea Party movement has also acknowledged interest in the office. Many Republican committee members received an email last weekend advising them that Ms. Weaver would make an announcement earlier this week, but that event was subsequently canceled. Jim Roddey, the county GOP chairman, said he expects Ms. Weaver to announce her candidacy late next week. Ms. Weaver did not return a call seeking clarification or her plans.
Fw: [ooo-announce] The OpenOffice.org Community Announces the Release of OpenOffice.org3.3
*OpenOffice.org 3.3 Ready for Download*
--Free Productivity Suite Used by More than 100 Million Now Includes
Enterprise Features--
Hamburg, Germany, 26 January 2011--- The OpenOffice.org Project today
announces the release of OpenOffice.org 3.3, which includes features and
improvements addressing current and future user requirements, regardless
of scale. Stepping into a new arena, OpenOffice.org 3.3 brings to
enterprise users, both in public and private sectors, improved
compatibility with Microsoft Office, spreadsheet and presentation
enhancements, and superior security and collaboration options. A full
list of what the Project's Community have accomplished can be found at
<http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.3/>.
OpenOffice.org 3.3 marks a milestone in the suite's maturation. Ten
years after the Project was initiated, the suite has grown from being
the "free alternative" to the default and even preferred choice for the
more than one hundred million who have come to value the quality,
reliability, and extensibility of the application, as well as the
flexibility given by the the suite's file format, the OpenDocument
Format (ODF), the leading open standard for office documents.
To download OpenOffice.org 3.3 for free: <http://download.openoffice.org/>
There is a lot that is new and enhanced in OpenOffice.org 3.3. But not
least, it is also simply faster, both in startup time and in overall
operation. Some of the of new elements include:
* embedded standard PDF fonts
* new document security and collaboration options
* provisions for one million rows in a spreadsheet
* new options for CSV (Comma Separated Value) import in Calc
* ability to insert drawing objects in Charts
* improved slide layout handling in Impress
* a common search toolbar
Andrew Southworth, Network Coordinator, Canadian Labour Congress, wrote,
"It's never been just about the savings. The Canadian Labour Congress
selected OpenOffice.org in support of what it does and how it goes about
doing it. It's the full support of the ODF that frees us from committing
to any one vendor. And it's the extensions, the enterprise elements and
the open-source code that gives all those we represent and work with in
Canada, from schools to hospitals to libraries to private sector
corporations the freedom of real productivity — without being locked
into a particular company's vision of how you should work. Saving money
on software is great. But OpenOffice.org, with its support of the ODF,
is more than about the bottom line. It's about the freedom to choose the
best."
A full guide to new features is available at
<http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.3/>. The security
bulletin with full details of the potential vulnerabilities fixed is at
<http://www.openoffice.org/security/bulletin.html>.
OpenOffice.org is fully supported by the worldwide Community and by
professional companies, both large and small. Oracle proudly continues
the sponsorship of the Project building the application and welcomes
contributions from all.
* Press Kit: OpenOffice.org <http://marketing.openoffice.org/press_kit.html>
* The Case for OpenOffice.org: <http://why.openoffice.org/>
** Contact
Peter Junge (UTC +08h00), Beijing, China
OpenOffice.org Marketing Project Lead
pj @ openoffice.org
- International Marketing Contacts:
<http://marketing.openoffice.org/contacts.html>
**About OpenOffice.org**
The OpenOffice.org Project is composed of an international team of
volunteer and sponsored contributors who develop, translate, document,
support, and promote the leading open-source office productivity suite,
OpenOffice.org®. The Project, sponsored by Oracle, spans the globe, and
its community includes members from all sectors. Thanks to the efforts
of the Community, OpenOffice.org software may be downloaded and used
entirely free of charge for any purpose, private or commercial. All are
encouraged to join the Community and participate in the making and
promotion of the suite and file format.
OpenOffice.org software uses the OpenDocument Format OASIS Standard
(ISO/IEC 26300), as well as supporting file formats used by such as
Microsoft Office, and is available on major computing platforms in over
100 languages. OpenOffice.org software is provided under the GNU Lesser
General Public License version 3 (LGPL v.3). It offers all users the
license of using what works and working with what's there, all for free.
--Free Productivity Suite Used by More than 100 Million Now Includes
Enterprise Features--
Hamburg, Germany, 26 January 2011--- The OpenOffice.org Project today
announces the release of OpenOffice.org 3.3, which includes features and
improvements addressing current and future user requirements, regardless
of scale. Stepping into a new arena, OpenOffice.org 3.3 brings to
enterprise users, both in public and private sectors, improved
compatibility with Microsoft Office, spreadsheet and presentation
enhancements, and superior security and collaboration options. A full
list of what the Project's Community have accomplished can be found at
<http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.3/>.
OpenOffice.org 3.3 marks a milestone in the suite's maturation. Ten
years after the Project was initiated, the suite has grown from being
the "free alternative" to the default and even preferred choice for the
more than one hundred million who have come to value the quality,
reliability, and extensibility of the application, as well as the
flexibility given by the the suite's file format, the OpenDocument
Format (ODF), the leading open standard for office documents.
To download OpenOffice.org 3.3 for free: <http://download.openoffice.org/>
There is a lot that is new and enhanced in OpenOffice.org 3.3. But not
least, it is also simply faster, both in startup time and in overall
operation. Some of the of new elements include:
* embedded standard PDF fonts
* new document security and collaboration options
* provisions for one million rows in a spreadsheet
* new options for CSV (Comma Separated Value) import in Calc
* ability to insert drawing objects in Charts
* improved slide layout handling in Impress
* a common search toolbar
Andrew Southworth, Network Coordinator, Canadian Labour Congress, wrote,
"It's never been just about the savings. The Canadian Labour Congress
selected OpenOffice.org in support of what it does and how it goes about
doing it. It's the full support of the ODF that frees us from committing
to any one vendor. And it's the extensions, the enterprise elements and
the open-source code that gives all those we represent and work with in
Canada, from schools to hospitals to libraries to private sector
corporations the freedom of real productivity — without being locked
into a particular company's vision of how you should work. Saving money
on software is great. But OpenOffice.org, with its support of the ODF,
is more than about the bottom line. It's about the freedom to choose the
best."
A full guide to new features is available at
<http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.3/>. The security
bulletin with full details of the potential vulnerabilities fixed is at
<http://www.openoffice.org/security/bulletin.html>.
OpenOffice.org is fully supported by the worldwide Community and by
professional companies, both large and small. Oracle proudly continues
the sponsorship of the Project building the application and welcomes
contributions from all.
* Press Kit: OpenOffice.org <http://marketing.openoffice.org/press_kit.html>
* The Case for OpenOffice.org: <http://why.openoffice.org/>
** Contact
Peter Junge (UTC +08h00), Beijing, China
OpenOffice.org Marketing Project Lead
pj @ openoffice.org
- International Marketing Contacts:
<http://marketing.openoffice.org/contacts.html>
**About OpenOffice.org**
The OpenOffice.org Project is composed of an international team of
volunteer and sponsored contributors who develop, translate, document,
support, and promote the leading open-source office productivity suite,
OpenOffice.org®. The Project, sponsored by Oracle, spans the globe, and
its community includes members from all sectors. Thanks to the efforts
of the Community, OpenOffice.org software may be downloaded and used
entirely free of charge for any purpose, private or commercial. All are
encouraged to join the Community and participate in the making and
promotion of the suite and file format.
OpenOffice.org software uses the OpenDocument Format OASIS Standard
(ISO/IEC 26300), as well as supporting file formats used by such as
Microsoft Office, and is available on major computing platforms in over
100 languages. OpenOffice.org software is provided under the GNU Lesser
General Public License version 3 (LGPL v.3). It offers all users the
license of using what works and working with what's there, all for free.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Hello, I Must Be Going: A Requiem For A Talk Show Curmudgeon
When I moved to Pittsburgh in 1990, my first job was selling copiers, practically door to door. I was on the road a lot, and (with the exception of my then-fiance), without a friend. I was still in love with radio, especially “talk” radio, and I fortuitously found 1250 am WTAE.
The afternoon shift was helmed by an unconventional host named Doug Hoerth. He could talk about books, TV, movies other entertainment, as well as politics. He was very intelligent, and downright goofy. I fancied him right away.
In 1990, Doug was in Pittsburgh for only 10 years and he was still a Jersey-boy at heart. That separated him from a lot of “yinzers,” that continue to populate the local talk show landscape. Matter of factly, Doug talked about reading newspaper after newspaper, magazine after magazine, book after book. (I learned about William F. Buckley's run for Mayor of New York exclusively because of Doug's show. I got Buckley's out-of-print book out of the Carrick library immediately after work one day as a result.)
It might be hard to find a more well-read talk show host (not to be confused with Jerry Bowyer, the smartest talk show host I've ever heard, but that's another story), as Hoerth went to downtown newsstands for New York tabloids and anything else he could read.
In the early 1990's, Doug Hoerth was as good a talk show host as there was anywhere. Anywhere.
Granted it also helped that Doug was surrounded by other talented talkers, like Lynn Cullen and Phil Musick. Lynn, I remember, wept on the air when former Pittsburgh Mayor Richard Caliguiri died suddenly. Musick was even more of a fan of books than Hoerth, but he wasn't nearly as entertaining (Phil was a writer first). It's easy to say that that lineup was the best I heard in my 20 years in this great city.
Hoerth was also eclectic. Some would say weird. He was.
A former bud exterminator in Florida, Hoerth challenged a radio station program director to put him on the air. That was the beginning of a storied career. He worked at much-larger KDKA but really found his footing at WTAE. It was obvious that Hoerth was prickly. His life was an open book for long-time listeners. He was an alcoholic, clean since something like the late 1970's. Unlucky in love—if memory—serves he was married once, long-divorced and without children.
Doug went out of his way to never mention exactly where he lived, but frequent listeners could figure out it was Bellevue, a working-class hamlet just north of downtown. He didn't cook, but ate every meal at restaurants in his neighborhood. Other than those outings, he boasted of never leaving his apartment, which was a stone's throw from his “Wall of Unwed Mothers,” a loitering area for young girls pushing strollers.
Some “homespun” stories revolved around a coffee pot he kept in his bedroom. It was a makeshift bedpan he used so he wouldn't have to haul himself out of bed at night. I'm not sure if that was inspired by anything Jean Shepard wrote. Shepard, a popular radio personality far before his “A Christmas Story” became a holiday staple, was one of Hoerth's inspirations.
Hoerth was summarily bumped from the afternoon shift to morning drive for inexplicable reasons. His show wasn't the powerhouse of intelligentsia it once was, with Hoerth and producer Lawrence Gaines talking about their lack of sleep, “All in the Family” and “The Godfather” over and over again. I'm not sure when it happened, but Hoerth was let go by WTAE. His prospects were limited.
For a while, another AM talker, WPTT, tried to pick up the mantle of smart, local talk. They hired Cullen, and after a while off the air, plucked Hoerth from near obscurity and put him back behind the microphone. (I even called the station and talked with the program director in an attempt to cast a vote on Hoerth's behalf about a year and a half before he was signed.) His first shift back was a frantic, excitable mess. But it was fantastic to have him back.
Internationally-known Forensics Pathologist Cyril Wecht was a perpetual guest. The two had tremendous discussions about everything under the sun, and Hoerth could stand toe-to-toe with the famed attorney/man-of-science. That wasn't always easy to do in talk radio, as Wecht's “Progressive” viewpoints often clashed with those of “Classic Liberal” Bowyer. Hoerth, a Libertarian, pretty much got along with everyone on air.
Another famed Pittsburgher, wrestler Bruno Sammartino was another visitor who was great for grand stories. In fact, it was on Hoerth's show that Sammartino “outed” famed actor Vincent Price for “liking larger men.” According to the long-time champ, Sammartino patronized a New York bar with friend Frank Sinatra and was unsuccessfully approached by Price. Hoerth about took a spit take on air. As did all who listened.
Granted, there was a time in which even I burned out from Uncle Dougie. His “edginess” was gone, never to return, except for the story of his mother.
Hoerth's mother lived with him during her waning years. After her passing, Doug started to talk that she was “back.” With Doug Hoerth telling the story, with his flare and sincerity, you truly thought it might be possible (even though it rarely happened outside of Divine Intervention). It was classic Hoerth.
Along the way he hosted listeners on Fridays. Four average joes would come in and they'd all discuss the issues of the day. I was originally on first after Major League Baseball players avoided a work stoppage. Most were happy. I said the Pirates would never compete unless there was a salary cap. To this day, they have not been competitive.
I was on again about a year later. During a commercial break, Hoerth looked at me, shook his finger and said. “You. You're good.” It was a triumph for sure. Hoerth then raced out and had a cigarette. Doug liked cigarettes. A lot.
It's a little known fact that Doug SCREAMED into the microphone, largely because of his own horrendous hearing. He said it was from a lifetime of listening to music through head phones. It was still jarring to hear his distinctive laugh and terrific thought of consciousness at a high decibel.
It's been a few years now since Doug Hoerth was let go from WPTT. The station nearly went dark, but it was saved by Ron Morris, “The American Entrepreneur.” It's a “Money Talk” station but Morris and long-time producer Darryl Grandy played a piece or two from Doug's archives today. Darryl, like Gaines (who passed a few years ago), like my friend Greg Kuntz, like my friend John Sawa, like my friend Dan Zabo, were producers for Doug Hoerth. And sadly, they were all shunned by the reclusive genius that was Doug Hoerth.
The radio show was Doug's reason to go on. And fan, any long-time listener knew it was.
According to published reports, a friend was worried about Hoerth earlier this week and called authorities. His body was found in his apartment. According to his own broadcasts, Hoerth was terrified of dying alone in his apartment and not being found for a while. That's exactly what happened.
Long time fans can't watch Blazing Saddles or hear Groucho Marx and not think about Doug Hoerth, the boy from Jersey who did good.
Doug Hoerth, dead at 66. Pittsburgh radio will never be the same. We all lost a friend.
Thin Ice Warnings
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/danger-thin-ice-ice-drowning-of-siblings-prompts-national-drowning-prevention-alliance-to-warn-keep-children-pets-off-frozen-bodies-of-water-114555834.html
If you fall through ice-
* Don't try to climb out immediately. Instead, kick to get horizontal in the water with your legs behind your torso. Then, try to slide forward onto solid ice.
* Once out of the water, roll away and avoid standing until you are several body lengths away from the ice break.
* A set of ice picks are ideal safety tools for rescuers and victims alike. When the ice pick is jammed on the ice, the retractable sheath exposes the pick. This allows a rescuer to crawl out to the victim, or gives a victim the opportunity to crawl his way out of the ice hole.
When trying to rescue a person who has fallen through ice-
* Call, or have someone call 9-1-1 first.
* Try to improvise a throwing assist, such as an empty jug with a line attached.
* If going onto ice to reach a victim is unavoidable, use a device to distribute the rescuer's weight over a wide area.
* Use a reaching assist, such as a branch or hockey stick, to extend the reach of the rescuer and prevent him or her from being dragged into the water by the victim.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
Dowd wants to dissolve parking authority, others
Liquidate! Liquidation! YES.
Pittsburgh should get rid of all the authorities. Nuke em all. Take them apart, brick by brick.
This may take some time, say 1 to 5 years. Don't be stupid and give the assets away so that the rich get richer. We don't need some no-bid contracts and those wire pullers swooping in to build a Mon-Valley Toll Road over the once public process.
But Dowd wants to make the authorities MORE independent of city government and that's just wrong. What's that about? Wishing upon a star? To make the URA more independent of city government comes when developers are private firms that choose to develop and invest as they so choose. That's more independent. But, that's not an authority any more, that's the marketplace at work.
Pittsburgh city Councilman Patrick Dowd says he may launch a campaign to dissolve the city parking authority, saying that body and some other authorities are stuck in a no man's land between independence and subservience to the city.For years, I've been saying the same things -- sorta.
Mr. Dowd said he would prefer making the parking authority, Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority and Urban Redevelopment Authority more independent of city government.
But if that can't be done, he said, he'll consider taking steps to dissolve them and bring their operations under city control. He said he'd start with the parking authority, which was drawn into last year's pension bailout controversy.
Read more: http://post-gazette.com/pg/11024/1120264-53.stm#ixzz1Bz2wvqNW
Pittsburgh should get rid of all the authorities. Nuke em all. Take them apart, brick by brick.
This may take some time, say 1 to 5 years. Don't be stupid and give the assets away so that the rich get richer. We don't need some no-bid contracts and those wire pullers swooping in to build a Mon-Valley Toll Road over the once public process.
But Dowd wants to make the authorities MORE independent of city government and that's just wrong. What's that about? Wishing upon a star? To make the URA more independent of city government comes when developers are private firms that choose to develop and invest as they so choose. That's more independent. But, that's not an authority any more, that's the marketplace at work.
Dissent Magazine - Winter 2011 Issue - Got Dough? How Billion...
Wire pulling and wire pullers article about education and schools. Power and money influences explained, in part.
Dissent Magazine - Winter 2011 Issue - Got Dough? How Billion...
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Honoring Count Noble, the 'Man O'War of English setters'
Honoring Count Noble, the 'Man O'War of English setters': "The champion bird dog from a century ago may be recognized with marker in Sewickley"Perhaps the dog lover, Bruce Kraus, got something accomplished?
If not, give out a proclamation, won't ya?
He saved the Carnegie Library System -- if only we could have a new tax to pay for it.
Fw: Progress Report -- Never want to open an email with this first line.
Hi Tyranny Fighters:
This probably will my last message before being arrested and incarcerated. The current situation is:
1. In my civil case against the Department of Homeland Security, et al. Judge Holwell has issued an ORDER to not write to him again. This make it awkward to continue this case.
2. In the criminal case, I will mail the attached letter tomorrow. As you can see from the attached pdf, a legal team has been formed and has authority to act on my behalf while I am incarcerated.
3. It is important that the rest of you continue extra-legal action on a continuous basis.
4. Recently I have given speeches to the Campaign for Liberty in Orlando, FL on January 8, 2011, and to the Libertarian Party of Manhattan, NY annual convention on January 15, 2011 discussing the fate of the nation.
5. I am slated to give radio interviews on January 23 with Corey Moore of 89.3 KPCC, on January 27 with Lee Parker of Global Freedom Report, and on February 4, 2011 with Rob McNally on WKRP.
6. My book entitled "The Non-Trials" has been sent to the publisher. It should be at booksellers within a week or two. The sales price is $25.95. The book discusses my journey through the NY State and federal courts after my arrest of April 17, 2007 across the street from the UN in New York City.
7. We have raised about $2000.00 in donations for field work organized by James Cox. This is enough money for two weeks. Obviously we will need more to keep the program going. Please make contributions through Pay Pal to TyrannyFighters.com. Any questions should be addressed to bile. James intends to start canvassing northern Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina in the next few weeks.
Also the national Libertarian Party is sending 1,000 door hangers plus 200 bumper stickers for free. I would like to extend James canvassing to Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and eastern Texas in future weeks. However we will need more donations immediately to do so. So far donations have ranged from $3.33 to $250.00. Please give what you can.
> 8. Suggested Books
> Michael Badnarik gives a course about the U. S. Constitution using his book "Good to be King."
>> His E-mail address is in the header of this E-mail.
>
>
> Mike Benoit has written a book entitled "Sham and Shame of the Federal Income Tax." You can purchase it directly from him for five dollars. He will send you a pdf free. His E-mail address is in the header of this E-mail.
>
> 9Warning
> You should know that the Federal Protective Service, and possibly the FBI, is intercepting my E-mails. Another violation of our civil liberties. Be prudent if you write to me. However a U. S. court recently has ruled that If the government wants to see your emails stored by an Internet service provider, they first will have to get a warrant. See:
> http://www.allgov.com/Top_Stories/ViewNews/US_Court_Rules_Warrants_Needed_to_Spy_on_Emails_101216
>
> THE PRICE OF FREEDOM IS ETERNAL VIGILANCE
>
> THE PRICE OF JUSTICE IS ETERNAL PUBLICITY
>
> Yours in freedom and justice—Julian
>
Update:
This probably will my last message before being arrested and incarcerated. The current situation is:
1. In my civil case against the Department of Homeland Security, et al. Judge Holwell has issued an ORDER to not write to him again. This make it awkward to continue this case.
2. In the criminal case, I will mail the attached letter tomorrow. As you can see from the attached pdf, a legal team has been formed and has authority to act on my behalf while I am incarcerated.
3. It is important that the rest of you continue extra-legal action on a continuous basis.
4. Recently I have given speeches to the Campaign for Liberty in Orlando, FL on January 8, 2011, and to the Libertarian Party of Manhattan, NY annual convention on January 15, 2011 discussing the fate of the nation.
5. I am slated to give radio interviews on January 23 with Corey Moore of 89.3 KPCC, on January 27 with Lee Parker of Global Freedom Report, and on February 4, 2011 with Rob McNally on WKRP.
6. My book entitled "The Non-Trials" has been sent to the publisher. It should be at booksellers within a week or two. The sales price is $25.95. The book discusses my journey through the NY State and federal courts after my arrest of April 17, 2007 across the street from the UN in New York City.
7. We have raised about $2000.00 in donations for field work organized by James Cox. This is enough money for two weeks. Obviously we will need more to keep the program going. Please make contributions through Pay Pal to TyrannyFighters.com. Any questions should be addressed to bile. James intends to start canvassing northern Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina in the next few weeks.
Also the national Libertarian Party is sending 1,000 door hangers plus 200 bumper stickers for free. I would like to extend James canvassing to Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and eastern Texas in future weeks. However we will need more donations immediately to do so. So far donations have ranged from $3.33 to $250.00. Please give what you can.
> 8. Suggested Books
> Michael Badnarik gives a course about the U. S. Constitution using his book "Good to be King."
>> His E-mail address is in the header of this E-mail.
>
>
> Mike Benoit has written a book entitled "Sham and Shame of the Federal Income Tax." You can purchase it directly from him for five dollars. He will send you a pdf free. His E-mail address is in the header of this E-mail.
>
> 9Warning
> You should know that the Federal Protective Service, and possibly the FBI, is intercepting my E-mails. Another violation of our civil liberties. Be prudent if you write to me. However a U. S. court recently has ruled that If the government wants to see your emails stored by an Internet service provider, they first will have to get a warrant. See:
> http://www.allgov.com/Top_Stories/ViewNews/US_Court_Rules_Warrants_Needed_to_Spy_on_Emails_101216
>
> THE PRICE OF FREEDOM IS ETERNAL VIGILANCE
>
> THE PRICE OF JUSTICE IS ETERNAL PUBLICITY
>
> Yours in freedom and justice—Julian
>
Update:
Friday, January 21, 2011
Thank You Mr. White, P-G Sports Reporter, with correction from a few weeks ago
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11021/1119389-361.stm
City League clarificationGood to have this reported upon properly.
There is one change in the City League's plan to possibly join the WPIAL.
Within the next few weeks, a City League athletics overhaul committee will submit a proposal to Pittsburgh Public Schools superintendent Dr. Linda Lane for the league to join the WPIAL for the 2012-13 school year. Under the proposal, the City would have nine schools in the WPIAL.
Current City League schools Allderdice, Brashear, Carrick, Langley, Oliver, Perry and Westinghouse would join the WPIAL along with two other schools.
University Prep and Pittsburgh Science and Technology would combine for sports under a cooperative sponsorship agreement.
The ninth City League school in the WPIAL would be Obama. Schenley is closing after this school year, and its students will be part of Obama, which will move into the Peabody High building for the 2011-12 school year. Peabody also is closing at the end of the school year.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
One Million Legos + Two Years + Bored Ohio State Buckeyes Fan = Lego Ohio Stadium | Sportress of Blogitude
One Million Legos + Two Years + Bored Ohio State Buckeyes Fan = Lego Ohio Stadium | Sportress of BlogitudeWhat do they say about the buckeye? It is a nut of little worth. Just joking.
Who would love to have such a model of Pitt Stadium? What about the Civic Arena? How about Forbes Field?
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