(RNS) For the second time in less than a year, the Gallup poll reports that a majority of Americans would vote for an atheist for president.
The latest survey, from June, found that 54 percent of those asked said they would vote a "well- qualified" atheist into the Oval Office -- the highest percentage since Gallup began asking the question in 1958, when only 18 percent said they would back a nonbeliever.
On the other hand, the survey showed that those who do not believe in God still come in behind every other group polled for, including gays and lesbians (68 percent) and Muslims (58 percent).
Still, an imaginary atheist candidate passed the 50 percent threshold for the first time when Gallup asked the question in August 2011, so the trend is upward.
"We have seen an enormous change over time in the willingness to vote for an atheist," said Karlyn Bowman, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, which reports the numbers in its current newsletter.
"But I think the numbers also remind us that this is a deeply religious country. That doesn't mean we are all going to church on Sunday, but that having religion in your life is valuable to most Americans and I think that explains the resistance."
Indeed, in the current poll, 43 percent said they would not vote for a well-qualified atheist, a percentage that was higher among Republicans than Democrats (58 percent) or independents (56 percent).
And there is more discouraging news for nonbelievers. In his analysis of the recent data, Gallup's managing editor Jeffrey M. Jones writes that for groups whose approval ratings hover within a narrow range of percentage points for more than 10 years -- which might be happening for atheists -- it can take more than fronting an appealing atheist candidate to reach more universal numbers, like those enjoyed by women (95 percent), blacks (96 percent) and Catholics (94 percent).
"It may be that there is an inherent bias that isn't going to change" for some groups, like atheists, whose numbers have leveled off, Jones said. "It is, in many cases, a long process and some of these groups have a way to go."
Herb Silverman, president of the Secular Coalition for America, knows that first-hand. In 1990, he ran for governor of South Carolina where an old law banned atheists like him from holding public office. Silverman lost -- by a landslide -- though his candidacy did lead to the repeal of the law by the state's supreme court.
Silverman, who tells the story of his run for office in his book "Candidate Without a Prayer," says that to push their approval numbers higher, more atheists need to "come out," just as gays and lesbians have done.
"I think prejudices will always be with us, so I am not optimistic enough to think (atheists' approval rating) will be near unanimous," he said. "But I think the more role models we have the better things will be."
Tom Flynn, editor of Free Inquiry magazine, an atheist publication, agrees.
"When you think you don't know any atheists then they seem horrible, but when the person at the desk across from you is an atheist then those stereotypes don't hold," Flynn said.
But he's a glass-is-half-empty guy, too.
"We have to keep in mind that we atheists are still the group that the smallest number would vote for," he said. "We are riding that train into the sunlight of equality, but we are still sitting in the caboose."
Pet stores have long been under fire for selling dogs from puppy mills. After years of protestors, petitions, boycotts, and angry animal rights activists, some are starting to make serious changes. The latest trend is for retailers to shift from stocking their shelves with mistreated puppy mill pups to filling their shops with adoptable dogs from high kill animal shelters instead. Many of these transformations are being done through the help of animal advocate organizations such as Pet Connection Inc. and Best Friends.
Best Friends, a Utah-based animal sanctuary has single handedly helped almost 40 pet shops in the US to convert to adopt only stores through its Puppy Mill Initiatives program. In their stand against puppy mills and irresponsible breeding, the Best Friends Puppy Mill Initiatives program holds peaceful demonstrations in front of pet stores that sell puppy mill dogs. Representatives from the campaign strive to educate consumers about inhumane treatment of dogs in puppy mills and encourage people to adopt versus purchase pups from pet stores. Best Friends launched their first Puppy Mills Initiative program in Los Angeles in 2008 and have since expanded their efforts across the country.
Pets of Bel Air, an upscale boutique pet store in Bel Air, California, was once considered the pet store to the stars, outfitting the likes of Paris Hilton with pricey teacup Chihuahuas, before being forced to close down from allegations of selling pets from 28 separate puppy mills. With the help of Best Friend, the store is now occupied by Fresh Paws of Bel Air, which is run by Ilene Katz and Linda Massaro. The stores new owners have taken a stand against puppy mill dogs and have dedicated their retail space towards their humane business model that involves finding homes for deserving shelter dogs. The boutique adopts out dogs for a fee of $495 to $650 and gives half the cost back to the shelter or the rescue organization from which the dogs came from.
As many tighten their belts on vacation budgets, there has been an increase in travel insurance purchases. This makes sense; travelers want to protect their vacation dollars now more than ever. A travel insurance policy can provide protection against many circumstances which could sideline vacation plans.
However, do you really need travel insurance?
Before purchasing a policy, check to see if you are already insured against some of the most common travel-related problems. For example, if you?re traveling domestically, your health insurance plan may provide coverage for medical emergencies during your trip. Similarly, the loss or theft of luggage may be covered through credit card benefits, homeowners insurance, or renters insurance.
If you decide that you still need a travel insurance policy, be sure to understand what you?re purchasing. Make a list of the benefits you require and compare plans which offer them. ?The search function on squaremouth.com allows visitors to use a variety of filters to locate and compare only policies which include the coverage they are looking for, helping them to find the best price.
Remember that the best policy isn?t always the most expensive one. Based on your needs, it may even be the cheapest one! Remember, if you have questions about a policy, ask them. All carriers are required to provide customers with a money back guarantee of at least ten days, which allows extra time to analyze a policy. In the event that you decide to purchase travel insurance, take advantage of this to make sure you have purchased the right policy for your needs.
Travel insurance isn?t always necessary, but if you do decide to purchase a plan, there are many resources available on Squaremouth?s website worth taking advantage of.
Computer security champions on Wednesday were urged to hunt down and eliminate hackers, spies, terrorists and other online evildoers to prevent devastating Internet Age attacks.
The first day of briefings at a prestigious Black Hat computer security gathering here opened with a former FBI cyber crime unit chief calling for a shift from defense to offense when it comes to protecting networks.
"We need warriors to fight our enemies, particularly in the cyber world right now," Shawn Henry said in a Black Hat keynote presentation that kicked off with dramatic video of hostage rescue teams training.
"I believe the threat from computer network attack is the most significant threat we face as a civilized world, other than a weapon of mass destruction."
The peril grows as water supplies, power grids, financial transactions, and more rely on the Internet and as modern lives increasingly involve working and playing on smartphones or tablet computers, according to Henry.
He rolled off a list of adversaries ranging from spies and well-funded criminals to disgruntled employees with inside knowledge of company networks.
"Cyber is the great equalizer," Henry said.
"With a $500 laptop with an Internet connection anybody, anywhere in the world can attack any organization, any company," he continued. "The last time I checked, that was about 2.3 billion people."
After 24 years of working for the FBI, Henry in April switched to the private sector as the head of a division at startup CrowdStrike specializing in cyber attack incident responses and identifying adversaries.
The computer security industry to expand its arsenal beyond just building walls, filters and other safeguards against online intruders to include watching for, and gathering intelligence on, culprits who have slipped through.
"It is not enough to watch the perimeter," Henry said, equating computer security to protecting real world offices. "We have to be constantly hunting; looking for tripwires."
In the cyber world, that translates into monitoring system activities such as whether files have been accessed or changed and by whom.
"The sophisticated adversary will get over that firewall and walk around, like an invisible man," Henry said. "We have to mitigate that threat."
Tactics for fighting cyber intruders should include gathering information about how they operate and the tools used, and then sharing the data in the industry and with law enforcement agencies in relevant countries.
"Intelligence is the key to all of this," Henry said. "If we understand who the adversary is, we can take specific actions."
Teamwork between governments and private companies means that options for responding to identified cyber attackers can range from improved network software to political sanctions or even military strikes, according to Henry.
"You can't make every school, every mall, every university, and every workplace impenetrable," Henry said. "We have to look at who the adversary is and stop them in advance of them walking in."
Black Hat founder Jeff Moss, the self-described hacker behind the notorious Def Con gathering that starts here on Thursday, backed Henry's argument.
"Maybe we need some white blood cells out there; companies willing to push the edge and focus on threat actors," Moss said, calling on the computer security community to "raise the immunity level."
Moss is head of security at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which oversees the world's website addresses.
"So, am I Luke, or am I Darth Vader; sometimes I'm not sure," Moss quipped about his roles in the hacker realm and the computer security industry.
"It depends upon which day and who asks."
Moss proposed that cyber attackers also be fought on legal fronts, with companies taking suspected culprits to court.
"I can't print money; I can't raise an army, but I can hire lawyers and they are almost as good," Moss said. "One way to fight the enemy is you just sue them."
Henry feared that it may take an Internet version of the infamous 9/11 attack in New York City to get the world to take the cyber threat to heart.
"We need to get down range and take them out of the fight," Henry said.
"As well-trained, well-equipped cyber warriors you can have an impact; the stakes are high."
Alternative sports all within a few miles of Preston Hollow ? and a few in
Did you know that tug-of-war, hand tennis and live-pigeon shooting have been Olympic sports? Well, the bird-shooting thing was held just once, in 1900. But doesn?t it go to show that what is considered a sport is subjective? And sports ? even ones with funny names like cornhole or mushball ? can be life-enhancing. Whether you?re looking for improved physical fitness, healthy competition, camaraderie or pure silliness, there?s a sport for you. You just might not know it exists.
Archery
Archery at Elm Fork Shooting Sports by Danny Fulgencio.
Preston Hollow resident and Southern Methodist University alumnus Clint Montgomery has been practicing archery since his mom said ?no? to the BB gun, he says. He has played other sports ? tennis, football, basketball ? but he always liked the bow and arrow, despite the fact that it wasn?t exactly mainstream. As the director of the Dallas Archery Club, he hopes to make it more accessible.
Many years ago, you could find people practicing archery at public parks and bowling alleys all around Dallas, Montgomery says, but times have changed. Now, we?re in an era where we must be protected from ourselves. The Dallas Archery Club, which started long ago in Lake Highlands as a benefit for Texas Instruments employees and recently opened facilities in Plano and North Dallas, aims to change all that and make archery available to everyone. To that end, they offer opportunities to try the sport at little or no cost.
The sport has enjoyed a surge in popularity, thanks in part to the teen drama ?The Hunger Games,? Montgomery says.
?Since we?ve made [archery] accessible, every race, creed, size and age and ability ? a kid in a wheelchair, even ? can be seen side by side here at the range. Everyone is the same on the [shooting] line.?
The club is working with the Dallas Park and Recreation Department to create mobile ranges at public parks around the city. Montgomery says he hopes the club will have 50 or so ranges throughout the region in the near future. Once you take up the sport seriously, the equipment ? a bow and arrows ? runs around $200. But it?s sort of like golf in that you can spend what you want to spend ? the fancy stuff is upward of $2,000.
Start shooting //An intro to archery class is held 11 a.m.-noon Saturdays and 6-7 p.m. Wednesdays at the Texas Archery Academy Indoor Range, 600 Accent Drive, Suite B, in Plano. It?s $10 per person, and all equipment is included. You can try archery for free 9 a.m.-noon Saturdays at the Elm Fork Shooting Range, 10751 Luna. It?s $5 to practice longer. Visit dallasarchery.com to learn more.
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Silk
Lone Star Circus School. Photo by Can T?rkyilmaz
Becky Foster was 49 when she donned her first sparkly unitard.
Having never practiced gymnastics or ballet as a child, the middle-aged mom joined the Lone Star Circus School, dangling on the silk alongside spry 20-year-olds.
?People think you?re crazy,? Foster says.
Lone Star is a local nonprofit organization founded by Fanny Kerwich, an eighth-generation circus performer. It was originally created for children, but four years ago, Preston Hollow resident Stephanie Stewart convinced Kerwich to open the school to adults.
?It?s kind of a lost art,? Stewart says. ?I had such a passion for it, and I thought there had to be other adults interested in it, too.?
Photo by Can T?rkyilmaz
The silk involves two long pieces of fabric that hang from the ceiling. Performers climb the silk while moving their bodies into different positions. The first step is to master the climb.
?Most people can?t climb at first, so we start out slow. It may feel intimidating, but everyone else is in the same boat. Once people realize how it really is, the intimidation goes away.?
Stewart says people will notice a difference in their bodies after three weeks of practice, building strength and endurance. Serious students such as Foster develop a dancer?s body with long, lean muscles.
?It?s all-encompassing. You feel energized and not so eager to just go home and watch TV.?
In addition to the silk, advanced students can learn other circus tricks ? most of which involve suspending the body in the air on the trapeze or the lyra (a hoop).
Kerwich says she hesitated to make circus performing accessible to everyone, fearing that the art form would become watered down. After all, it?s not just a pastime ? it?s her heritage.
?You don?t give that away,? she says.
She came around after considering the impact it could have on people?s lives in a world overrun with technology and endless streams of information.
?In this time, we don?t know what to feel anymore. This is very, very pure. It?s a beautiful way to be happy.?
Perform silk //The summer session runs through Aug. 25. Adult classes meet on weekdays at the Palaestra Gym, 4335 N. Beltwood. The cost is $20-$22 per class or $140 per month for unlimited classes. Private lessons also are available. For details and to register, call 214.206.1449 or visit lonestarcircus.org.
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Cornhole
Get the bag in or near the hole. Players, two per team, take turns throwing beanbags at a hole located at one end of an elevated platform. Though it is one of the few sports that allows you to hold a beer in one hand as you compete, it can get serious.
Play cornhole // You can find a cornhole league any season of the year. Dallas Sport and Social offers a league that plays weekly at Draft Picks, 703 McKinney. The cost is $68.50 for a team and $38.50 for an individual player. For details, visit dallassportsleagues.com/leagues/cornhole.
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Dodgeball
Photo provided by Dallas Dodgeball
Getting smacked in the face with a speeding foam ball doesn?t hurt that bad, says Tom Wakefield, commissioner of Dallas Dodgeball.
?We had a lady get hit right in the face, and she just laughed,? he says. ?It?s a sport that anyone can play. It?s the most natural sport there is.?
The group hosts co-ed, open-play games every other week near the Galleria for children and adults ? including soccer moms and 6-year-old girls ? with plans to launch a league later this year.
Wakefield and his son formed the group eight years ago, inspired by the 2004 comedy ?Dodgeball.? After watching the movie, they searched the internet for local leagues. They didn?t find any, so they started their own.
?Other people must have been looking for leagues, too, because we had 40 or 50 people sign up in the first week.?
The rules of dodgeball are lengthy, but the objective is simple: Grab a ball, and hurl it at an opposing team member to try and eliminate him or her from the game. Repeat. The last team standing wins.
Most people play recreationally, but there a few serious athletes. Wakefield took his best players to the Toronto Dodgeball Tournament in February 2011 where they placed fifth out of 20 teams from the United States and Canada.
Play dodgeball // Dallas Dodgeball hosts recreational games 4:30-6:30 p.m. Saturdays at alternating venues: Sole Roll Indoor Soccer, 4435 McEwen by the Galleria, and the Dunford Recreation Center in Mesquite. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children 12 and under. The Dallas Dodgeball Shootout is an open tournament for ages 17 and up, set for 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Oct. 13 at Sole Roll. Registration is $200 per team with a cash prize. For details, visit dallasdodgeball.com.
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Ultimate Frisbee
Photo by Can T?rkyilmaz
Photo by Can T?rkyilmaz
When you think Frisbee, do you imagine a couple of college-age dudes, all smiles, tossing colorful disks on a windswept beach? Sure, that?s Frisbee. But it ain?t Ultimate Frisbee. The formations look a little like football, and the objective is to move the disk into the end zone. There?s a lot of running, passing, jumping and falling, but it is non-contact ? at least that?s what the rules dictate. Ultimater Mike Ahern has been playing since 1993 and says he likes not only the athleticism involved, but also the ?camaraderie of the Ultimate community.? It?s different from many other team sports in that, in general, individuals sign up for the league and then are drafted onto a team as opposed to a bunch of people forming a team and then joining a league.
?The Ultimate way makes for more of a sense of community because you get to know more people, and you?re less likely to develop deep grudges,? Ahern says. ?That guy you?re mad at one season may be your teammate in the next.?
The Ultimate Frisbee demographics skew younger, Ahern says, but there is a significant subset of older people playing these days, and that stereotypical Frisbee guy ? ?the protohippie, let?s say? ? is an endangered species. And it?s not just the guys. About one-third of the players are female, Ahern says.
Play disk // Beginners can find pick-up games at 6:30 p.m. Mondays at The Village Apartments (8303 Southwestern) or Wednesdays alternating among Glencoe Park near SMU, Norbuck Park at Northwest Highway and Buckner, and Lake Highlands Park. Winter league is popular among Dallas players, though the games are held at Prestonwood Polo Club in Oak Point. The cost is $70 per player and includes a disc and T-shirt. Visit dallasultimate.org.
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Table tennis
Hit the hollow ball back and forth across the table with small paddles. Keep the ball in-bounds but try to get it past your opponent. It?s like miniature tennis ? but don?t call it ping-pong. The King of the Court Table Tennis League takes the fast-paced sport seriously. But the players still know how to have fun. The league, offered by the umbrella group Big D Sports and Entertainment, includes prizes, happy hours and post-game socials.
Play table tennis //The King of the Court League plays Thursday nights at Heights Recreation Center, 711 W. Arapaho. Registration is $160 per team. The summer league is in session. For details on the fall league, visit bigdfun.com/sports/richardson/table-tennis.
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Indoor rock climbing
Climb to the top of an artificial rock wall, using the climbing holds that jut out from the wall. Try not to look down. We may not have any mountains around Dallas, but you can still experience what it?s like to climb one. Indoor rock climbing engages all your muscle groups and promotes balance. It can get competitive, though. Exposure Rock Climbing in Carrollton oversees Team Texas, a youth climbing team that has won four USA Climbing national championships.
Climb //Exposure Rock Climbing is at 2389 Midway. Day passes are available for $20, including all the necessary equipment. Private lessons are $50 per one-hour class. Visit exposurerockclimbing.com.
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Flag football
Move the ball into the end zone without losing the flag attached to your waist. It?s a non-contact version of mainstream football. Flag football still involves the same skill and athleticism ? minus the part where you are slammed to the ground. Instead, each down ends when a defensive player grabs the flag of the offensive player.
Play flag football // Big D Sports offers co-ed and men?s recreational, upper recreational and intermediate leagues that play Wednesdays and Saturdays at Glencoe Park at Central Expressway and Martel. The cost is $575-$600 per team. For details on the fall league, visit bigdfun.com/sports/flag-football.
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Bike polo
Photo by Danny Fulgencio
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Hit the ball with a mallet into the opposing team?s goal ? all while riding a bicycle. It?s like horse polo for the urban athlete. It may seem like a new fad, but bike polo actually was invented in 1891 by Irish cyclist Richard Mecredy. There are more than 160 registered teams in the United States, and the sport recently gained popularity in Dallas.
Play bike polo // Dallas Bicycle Polo plays at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays at Norbuck Park at Buckner and Northwest Highway near White Rock Lake. There usually is extra gear available for newbies. Visit leagueofbikepolo.com/club/dallas-bicycle-polo.
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Roller derby
Skate counterclockwise around a circuit track in two teams of five players. Each team?s designated ?jammer? scores points by lapping the opposing team while ?blockers? use physical force to stop them. This is the quintessential contact sport for women, so you have to be willing to take an elbow to the jaw every now and then. Besides, in roller derby, bruises are badges of honor. Plus, you get to adopt a clever, tough-sounding name such as Babe Ruthless.
Roll //Assassination City Roller Derby league plays at Fair Park Coliseum, and Dallas Derby Devils play at NYTEX Sports Centre in North Richland Hills. For details about fall leagues, visit acderby.com or derbydevils.com.
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Pole dancing
Hold on to a pole, and wrap your body around it, forming different acrobatic positions. It?s not just for exotic dancers. Pole dancing is considered performance art and requires a great deal of strength, flexibility and stamina. In fact, the U.S. Pole Dance Federation hosts a national championship in September. But most people pole dance for exercise.
Start pole dancing // Zensual Dance offers classes at MoveStudio, 17062 Preston, Suite 108. The cost is $15 for an introductory class. Call 469.426.5090 or visit zensualdance.com.
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Kickball
Kick the big red ball. Run the bases without getting tagged. Think baseball, but the bat is your foot. Seriousness ranges from just-out-here-to-meet-people to no-mercy-in-it-to-win-it. Far North Dallas-based Dallas Sport and Social offers mostly year-round kickball leagues. A season is typically seven regular-season games plus playoffs, if you?re good enough.
Play kickball //Games are held at Glencoe Park near SMU or Norbuck Park at Northwest Highway and Buckner. The cost is about $75 per person or $630 for a team. To sign up, visit dallassportsleagues.com.
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Badminton
Hit the shuttlecock or birdie with your racket to your opponent?s side of the court in such a way that he or she cannot return it. The game looks a little like tennis. It is an Olympic sport, so it can get competitive, but many play recreationally. The Dallas Badminton Club, founded in 1988, is active year-round and attracts players from different backgrounds.
Play badminton // The Dallas Badminton Club meets 7-10 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays and has open play 11:15 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays at Reverchon Recreation Center, 3505 Maple. The cost is $60 for individuals and $100 for families. Call 214.670.7720 or visit dallasbadmintonclub.com.
An entrepreneurs day spent examining and working through hundreds of email messages is a day thrown away because they are able to do more with their time. Fortunately, email encryption, anti-spam, and email archiving might help manage web mail to deliver much better productivity for companies.
Blocking Unsolicited mail
Junk mail is unrequested e-mails sent to people. They mainly focus on certain users within a particular group, while some target anyone arbitrarily. Its main purpose is to market a product, support, or brand promoted by a certain company. This organization desires to have more consumers to get a lot more profits. Emails with no valuable email filtering software cant sort which emails are junk mail or otherwise.
Junk mail companies can also vary. Many online gaming players, for example, may send email communications to promote an internet site, blog, and so on. Cellular phone consumers might also receive unsolicited mail SMS randomly. At these times, charges may apply and the client winds up having to pay extra amounts.
While delivered or obtained junk e-mail may be innocuous, an e-mail list full of such e-mailmessages is frustrating. Checking the mentioned e-mail communications can be tedious as you try to arrive at important emails. In some instances, deficiency of spam blocker could also prove harmful. Emails with spyware and adware can easily corrupt your personal computer or a network system fast. Spyware and adware may even cause file losses and such occasion leaves you vulnerable as an organization. Papers lost often means lack of ability to reconcile product sales differences because you dont hold the papers to justify your claim. It may also lead to legal cases if unscrupulous individuals got your client information and other important details.
This condition is a sure-fire way to spend far more. Your business will more than likely need fixes and resetting at this time. Restoring data files on your own may also mean spending on overtime work. Even worse, you may also need a lawyer to defend against suits as they come.
Encryption and E-mail File Archiving
email encryption is a method of delivering secured electronic mails. Authorized individuals have the key to open the program code and therefore read its entire material. When compromised or acquired by the incorrect receiver, information will be more challenging to figure. Many e-mail message encryption software program have certain limitations. Some may not enable printing of the e-mail communication when unauthorized.
email archiving software is mostly about holding and saving communications. This ensures records are typically in certain semblance of order for later access. Certain software applications may try this by means of cloud storage to allow online accessibility anytime. They may likewise arrange confined accessibility through limited passwords.
Simple guidelines
False positive involves authentic emails taken out by the anti-spam software program. When you buy, check the numbers offered by merchants in regards to this feature. Ideally, lower number of false positives is far better to decrease the risk of deleting significant communications. When it comes to file encryption and archiving, go through the basics before choosing advanced solutions. At times, fundamental characteristics might curently have the solutions youll need and this might be more affordable.
Merchant status also matters so better check with with colleagues and friends if they are aware of efficient merchants. You may also do your very own research by browsing through accounts and media information on the top suppliers. Compare prices, package deals, consumer warranties to protect your interests.
A deadly onslaught of bombings and shootings killed at least 106 people in Baghdad and across Iraq, the Associated Press reported on Monday. Though no one has taken responsibility, al-Qaida in Iraq said last week that it would attempt to destabilize the country and drive the government out of power this week. More than 200 people were wounded in the coordinated terrorist attacks, the deadliest of their kind in two years.
Diplomats and international groups have condemned the attacks, which were largely aimed at Sunni populations.
Here's a closer look at the facts surrounding al-Qaida's latest offensive and the international response.
Attacks spread across the country: Neighborhoods in Baghdad, Diyala province, towns surrounding Kirkuk, and Mosul were all among the victims of the attacks, with the only Shiite-dominated town attacked being Diwaniyah. Three people were killed there, and another 25 were wounded.
In another offensive, three carloads of gunmen pulled up to an Iraqi base in Udaim and killed 13 soldiers before fleeing.
U.N. decries Ramadan attacks: The Secretary-General's Deputy Special Representative, Gyorgy Busztin issued a press statement on Monday, saying that "the scale and brutality of the attacks are appalling -- especially now, when Iraqis are not only celebrating the holy month of Ramadan, with its messages of peace and reconciliation, but are also welcoming thousands of returnees who have fled the ongoing violence in Syria."
State Department says al-Qaida "going to fail": U.S. State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland took a question on the Iraq bombings during a Monday briefing, noting that the U.S. provides security support to the Iraqi government, though Iraq was responsible for its own security.
She said that al-Qaida in Iraq staged the Ramadan attack in an effort to turn Sunnis against their government, but said of the group that "they're going to fail. The Iraqis know they're going to fail. But regrettably, this is a bloody pattern that we've seen in years past, that Ramadan has been exploited for the agendas of terrorists and those who don't have the best interest of Iraq at heart."
Attacks foreshadowed in Najaf: The holy city of Najaf witnessed car bombs along with Baghdad on Sunday, Reuters reported. Those bombings killed 20 people and wounded another 80.
Shawn Humphrey is a former contributor to The Flint Journal and an amateur Africanist, focusing his personal studies on human rights and political issues on the continent.
As mentioned earlier, we've just gotten our hands on Qualcomm's latest development platform to see how its first quad core chipset fares. And boy, that APQ8064really doesn't disappoint, but it should be no surprise -- we've already seen how the top dual core S4 chipsets already beat their quad core competitors in certain aspects, so it's only natural for the quad core S4 Pro to annihilate them. As you can see in our chart after the break, the APQ8064-based MDP easily beat the Tegra 3-based One X and Nexus 7, as well as the Exynos 4412-based Galaxy S III. And partly thanks to the Adreno 320 graphics core, the MDP even scored an astonishing 132fps in our GLBenchmark test, while the quad core Galaxy S III with Mali-400 graphics came second with 99fps, with the remaining devices lingering around 60fps only.
Obviously, the question remains how big of a trade-off there is on battery life in exchange for those two extra cores and the more powerful graphics chip. That said, we have a feeling that Snapdragon's Krait architecture and asynchronously clocked cores will again prove that Tegra 3's 4-PLUS-1 design isn't the best solution for battery efficiency -- as many of you might already know. We shall see when APQ8064-based products become available later this year. For now, take a gander at our numbers and photos.
Update: Hit the break for our hands-on video with the MDP. Also, we had a chance play with the 13-megapixel autofocus camera in the worst possible lighting conditions, and it acquitted itself rather well considering the circumstances. Check out the sample gallery below.
Myriam Joire contributed to this mind-blowing hands-on.
A recent article in Hawaii News Now recalls the circumstances surrounding a fatal Kauai helicopter crash from the perspective of one of the survivors, a San Francisco area woman ? Dania Hanson. The helicopter accident occurred a little over five years ago and ended with the wrongful death of her boyfriend. The two had booked a helicopter tour and were enjoying a ?dream vacation? together when the helicopter went into a tailspin and crashed at a campground on Kauai?s north shore.
Hanson?s boyfriend died just six minutes after the crash occurred. The accident also exacerbated Hanson?s pre-existing nerve damage, making it a permanent condition and causing her difficultly even standing. In addition to the severe personal injuries, Hanson has also suffered psychological damage as the result of the crash.
If you or a loved one have been involved in any type of personal injury accident, it is important to seek the advice of a knowledgeable Hawaii personal injury attorney. Even if filing a lawsuit is the furthest thing from your mind, it is important to obtain critical advice concerning your rights in order to determine your next steps. Often, you may be able to obtain compensation that will help you cope with any physical and emotional trauma that results from a serious accident.
Here, the National Transportation Safety Board determined that a manufacturing defect in the tail of the helicopter caused the crash. Manufacturing defects may be the root cause of many types of transportation accidents ? including car accidents, motorcycle accidents, truck accidents, even helicopter and airplane accidents. Manufacturing defects are a special type of negligence called product liability, which covers injuries resulting from the faulty design or manufacturing flaws in a company?s product. When a person is injured or killed, the company may be held legally responsible in a personal injury lawsuit.
If it can be proven to the court that the manufacturer is guilty of negligence in the design, construction or marketing of the product and that this negligence led to your injury, you may be able to secure a large settlement. Product liability lawsuits can arise in a variety of circumstances including airbags that fail to deploy, dangerous children?s toys and prescription drugs with harmful side effects.
For more information or if you believe you or a loved one has been injured as the result of a faulty or defective part, or has suffered a serious personal injury, contact the top Hawaii personal injury lawyers at Bostwick & Peterson, LLP for an immediate consultation.
You?ve just eaten a big meal and leaned back in your favorite chair to watch your favorite TV program. As you begin to relax, your chest starts to hurt so much it feels like it?s on fire. You may be experiencing heartburn.
According to studies, about 30% of adults experience occasional heartburn, while 10% experience heartburn almost every single day. Heartburn is common, and an occasional episode is generally nothing to worry about. However; supplementing your diet with a digestive enzyme supplement could prevent a more serious problem.
Most heartburn problems are mild, but if a person experiences frequent discomfort, there may already be some complications that need medical treatment or the use of prescription medications. If a person encounters heartburn several times a week, or if it returns soon after the effects of antacids wear off, medical attention may be necessary.
A person with heartburn should also consult a doctor if he or she often wakes up at night due to discomfort brought about by reflux. One may need further medical care, if a person experience difficulty swallowing, regurgitates blood or black material, suddenly loses weight, or if the stool is black in color.
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Heartburn usually follows after a heavy meal. To understand how this condition comes about, it is best to be aware of what exactly happens when we eat food. The food that is swallowed travels from the mouth to the stomach through a hollow tube called the esophagus. Before food enters the stomach, it must pass through a tight muscle at the lower part of the esophagus called the Lower Esophageal Sphincter (LES).
The lower esophageal sphincter prevents food from traveling backward into the esophagus.
Once in the stomach, stomach acid slowly digests the food. This acid is very strong and can damage most parts of the body. This is why adding digestive enzyme supplement to your diet is important. Along with proper chewing of your food digestive enzymes is required for proper digestion.
Fortunately, the stomach is protected from its own acid by a special mucous layer. The esophagus, however, does not have any such special protection. If the lower esophageal sphincter does not close completely, the lower part of the esophagus can be damaged by stomach acid. When this happens, heartburn is experienced.
Heartburn can last for several hours and is often worse after eating, or when lying down, or when a person who just ate suddenly bends over. Heartburn is the most common symptom of reflux. Reflux occurs when acid in the stomach, which is there to help digest food, rises up into the esophagus, causing pain, irritation, and discomfort.
Some other factors that can make heartburn worse include certain foods such as fatty and spicy foods, chocolate, caffeine, onions, tomato sauce, carbonated beverages and mint. Alcohol, large meals, lying down too soon after eating, cigarette smoking, sedatives, calcium channel blockers and antidepressant medications can also trigger heartburn.
Heartburn, also called acid indigestion, is the most common symptom of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD); a disease in which stomach acid or, occasionally, bile flows back (refluxes) into the esophagus. Heartburn usually feels like a burning chest pain beginning behind the breastbone and moving upward to the neck and throat. Many people say it feels like food is coming back into the mouth leaving an acid or bitter taste.
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Most people can manage the discomfort of heartburn with lifestyle changes. But if heartburn is severe, these remedies may offer only temporary or partial relief. Heartburn pain can be mistaken for the pain associated with heart disease or a heart attack, but there are differences. Heartburn pain is less likely to be associated with physical activity.
You should always consult with your healthcare provider before taking supplements or over the counter medications.
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This afternoon I passed no fewer than 4 trucking company vehicles all sporting corporate logos that had a swish icon. They were either horizonal or vertical, red or blue. I?m sure if we check back with each of these companies, none of the images existed before Nike and their swoosh became synonymous. I imagine none of these companies realize that being a follower does nothing to strengthen their brands but rather strengthens the leader because of the similarities of image.
A lot of business people think wrongly that if they use a swoosh in their logos they will be on their way to fame and fortune. Let?s face it, Nike has worked very hard since it?s beginning to develop a brand that builds a strong active relationship with it?s customers. Their icon could have been a box ? it is the association in the customers mind that is important. As Nike grew, it?s icon came to represent it. Much as Target and Apple are doing. Because of the reputation Nike has built, the association with the swoosh icon is strong and has cache because of it. Not the other way around.
Develop your brands to ?Lead not follow.?? Differentiation is the goal, with it come the rewards.
Check out this video to learn How To Become A FSBO Marketing Consultant Using Facebook. It is so important to have Listings.? They are the lifeblood of the Real Estate industry.? Prospective Buyers and Sellers are coming together for one reason, the HOME.? Use the homes and they will grow your business.? For Sale by Owners are a ripe targeted market for picking up new listings.? After all, these are Sellers that have identified that they want to sell their home.? The reason most people sell their homes themselves is to save commissions.? For this reason it is important that you build rapport and show FSBO?s that you are not just trying to get paid.? Stand out with your property marketing.? Use the Property Websites, Virtual Tours, Posting Tools, Text Capture and more to present how you are a cutting edge professional and will get their Home more visibility in the Internet. At the same time, you can charge for your marketing knowledge, tools and services.
In this video, learn how to:
charge for your Marketing services (make some money)
grow your database of prospective Sellers and Buyers
find FSBOs
present to FSBOs to become their Marketing Consultant
increase your opportunities to become a Buyers Agent or eventually the Sellers Agent
There is a great Facebook Business Page that can be built for you as a Marketing Tool when presenting to FSBOs.? It is known as ?FSBO Marketing On Steriods?.? Click HERE to go to this Facebook Page.? Check out ALL the Marketing Buttons as they tell a story of what you offer to give great exposure to the FSBO?s home.? More exposure?quicker sale.
Click HERE for the PowerPoint Presentation shown in this video AND the FSBO Marketing Agreement and Exhibits.? Download them and start signing up FSBOs.
I hope you enjoyed this video?and I certainly hope you can make use of this Marketing Strategy. ?If not, maybe you can forward this video to someone else that can by clicking the SHARE button below. ?I am Glen Marino, President of Aspen Mortgage Corporation, and I finance real estate so give me a call if you or someone you know could use my help and please subscribe for FREE to my blog for future marketing tools and strategies by putting your email address in the SUBSCRIBE Box on the right hand side.? And don?t forget to click on the ?Training Videos? category to see the other great marketing tools and strategies designed to help grow your business.? Until next time, have a great day!
This entry was posted in Training Videos and tagged Aspen Mortgage Corporation, Facebook, facebook business page, For Sale By Owner, FSBO, FSBO Marketing Consultant, FSBO Marketing On Steriods, home, homes, homes for sale, How to become a fsbo marketing consultant, Listings, Marketing Consultant For FSBOs, Marketing Strategy, property marketing, prospective buyers and sellers, real estate industry, sell their home, Sellers, Single Property Websites. Bookmark the permalink.
The Food and Drug Administration will be focusing scrutiny on the safety and efficacy of metal-on-metal hip replacement implants in response to increased international concern over the higher than normal incidence of complications, including the need for removal of the all metal devices. The devices in question have been implicated in over 16,800 adverse events since their introduction in 2000, after coasting through the FDA?s questionable 510k ?fast track? approval process, which allows manufacturers to skip normal testing protocols if a new device is similar to others already in use. This is the same approval process that allowed the introduction of the Gynecare Prolift vaginal mesh systems that are also currently being studied for their serious complications and side effects.
Medical manufacturers, such as Johnson & Johnson and Zimmer Holding, Inc., introduced metal-on-metal implant implants as a more reliable and long-lasting alternative to traditional polyethylene plastic or ceramic and metal combination devices. Between the years 2006 and 2007, metal-on-metal implants were used in 30% of all hip replacement procedures, but that number has fallen to approximately 10% in the years since. The decrease comes as a result of registries in both the United States and abroad reporting higher incidences of complications with the all metal implants, which have a revision (replacement) rate of six percent, three times higher than the replacement rate for the older ceramic or plastic devices. Additionally, authorities in Great Britain are now recommending that patients with all metal implants undergo annual blood screenings to insure that metal ions produced by friction between device components is not leaking into surrounding tissues.
This is frightening news for the approximately 500,000 people currently living with the metal-on-metal devices, and has prompted product recalls from companies like Johnson & Johnson, which recalled its ASR hip replacement system in 2010, and has allotted $3 billion to cover potential lawsuits related to its use.
The FDA?s advisory panel, which convened in late June, will provide recommendations on the continued use of metal-on-metal implants. Even if the panel recommends discontinuation, it is unlikely to cause a disruption of hip replacement procedures, as the earlier ceramic or plastic and metal combination devices still offer a safer and more reliable alternative.
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The Writing and Speaking questions below were shared by S who recently took an IELTS exam in London.
Writing test
Writing task 1 (a report)
We were given a line graph describing the percentages of people in four different age groups who went to a cinema in one of the European countries between 2000 and 2011.
Writing Task 2 (an essay)
In order to improve safety on our roads more severe punishment should be established for driving offenses. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
Speaking test
Interview
- Tell your full name. - What do you do? - What do you like about your job? - What kind of meal do you like? - Which meal is more important to you: breakfast, lunch or dinner? Why? - Do you prefer to eat once a day or three times a day? Why?
Cue Card
Describe a situation where you were close to a wild animal. Please say
- When and where was it? - What animal was it? - What was the animal doing? - Why do you remember that day? - How did you feel about it?
Discussion
- Tell me about people?s attitude towards animals in your country. - Why do people keep pets in their homes? - What is the difference between keeping a fish and a dog? - What do you think about people who don?t like to keep dogs in their homes? - What is the role of the zoos in the society? - Why are they important in educating people?
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Recently I read an article where children were asked what they would change about their home if they were given the chance. What special room would they create? Or what extra space would they love to have? The answers were typical of children and they wanted cinemas, a giant swimming pool, a playroom or a park in the garden! How fab would that be! I love the way a child?s imagination works. One child even wanted a Dr Who Tardis!
I asked my own children what special room they?d love to have. Miss R was all about the dressing up and she?d love a special room full of dressing up clothes, mirrors and clip clop shoes, all in a Rapuzel like tower. Miss E was rather more restrained and wanted a huge library where she could just magic in the books she needed. Oh and it would have a secret lock which would keep out Miss R!
This all got me thinking abouth the things l might like to change about my home. As the children have grown older we?ve found we need a different kind of space to a few years ago. When they?re babies they need a cot somewhere, they have some toys usually stored in a room downstairs, and you need lots of kitchen storage for all the eating and drinking paraphernalia. Now mine are older and much more independent, they have their own rooms crammed full of toys and books and we don?t have much of their bits on the ground floor. The trouble is it creeps down the stairs an awful lot and it would be useful to have another room where they could hang out and store all these treasures.
So my wish list to change my home (if I had the budget!):
Extend on the kitchen and side return of the house creating a large eating/dining/living space. Included would be a downstairs loo and seperate utility. Huge bifold doors out onto the garden. Ideally made of glass to let in lots of light.
Create an office/study to store my TinyTalk business gear in the now redundant dining room.
Convert the loft into another bedroom or two. Ideally with a shower room. We have 3 rooms upstairs but the 3rd is very small and a loft conversion would be great for visitors.
So not much then! I?d only need about ?50k -?70k or more. We?ve actually thought about this in great detail, drawn out plans and ideas and looked at other houses in our area where the same conversions have been done. It?s all possible just held back by a lack of budget. We can but dream, and you never know, one day we may manage it.
If you had the chance, what would you change about your home? Maybe nothing, do you live in your dream home already? Does the space work well for your family? Have you done a large conversion, or added extra rooms? Do let me know.
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*Thank you to Redrow Homes. I took the idea for this post from a piece of research they conducted when asking children about moving home. They found children became understandably anxious about moving and so give a scrapbook to families with young children buying a Redrow Home. In the scrapbook the children can write notes, draw pictures and keep contact details of friends so they don?t lose touch when they move. What a lovely idea!
A Somali child who recently arrived at a refugee camp in Dolo, Somalia sits under a tree while waiting for food rations on Wednesday, July 18, 2012. The U.N., which declared a famine in Somalia one year ago, says conditions have improved but that 2.5 million people are still in crisis. (AP Photo/Jason Straziuso)
A Somali child who recently arrived at a refugee camp in Dolo, Somalia sits under a tree while waiting for food rations on Wednesday, July 18, 2012. The U.N., which declared a famine in Somalia one year ago, says conditions have improved but that 2.5 million people are still in crisis. (AP Photo/Jason Straziuso)
Workers distribute food aid from the World Food Program at a refugee camp in Dolo, Somalia on Wednesday, July 18, 2012. The U.N., which declared a famine in Somalia one year ago, says conditions have improved but that 2.5 million people are still in crisis. (AP Photo/Jason Straziuso)
A barefoot child stands among ragged tents at a refugee camp in Dolo, Somalia on Wednesday, July 18. 2012. The U.N., which declared a famine in Somalia one year ago, says conditions have improved but that 2.5 million people are still in crisis. (AP Photo/Jason Straziuso
Women wait in line at a food distribution site in Dolo, Somalia on Wednesday, July 18, 2012, The U.N., which declared a famine in Somalia one year ago, says conditions have improved but that 2.5 million people are still in crisis. (AP Photo/Jason Straziuso)
Workers distribute food aid from the World Food Program at a refugee camp in Dolo, Somalia on Wednesday, July 18. 2012. The U.N., which declared a famine in Somalia one year ago, says conditions have improved but that 2.5 million people are still in crisis. (AP Photo/Jason Straziuso)
DOLO, Somalia (AP) ? The long, dusty walks from hungry homes to far-away refugee camps are again claiming lives in Somalia one year after up to 100,000 people died in the country's worst famine in generations.
Two lethal factors are again combining to send families fleeing from their homes: Too little rain and too many guns.
Enough rain did fall in Somalia this year to prevent a repeat of last year's massive famine, but it wasn't enough to keep everyone fed. In addition, al-Shabab militants who have been forced out of larger cities are infiltrating smaller towns where they are demanding payments from families in money, livestock or children, residents said.
The weekslong walks to refugee camps made by hundreds of thousands of Somalis last year turned sandy paths into roads of death for the famine's weakest victims. Refugees in Dolo are telling similar heartbreaking tales of weak children being left behind to die. One baby being carried on her mother's back in recent weeks died during the walk, a doctor said.
In a cruel replay of last year's hunger marches, many families who left refugee camps as the crisis eased this year went home, attempted to plant food but are now returning to the stick-hut camps.
"Before we were hoping for a good rain. But we got very little," said Ali Ganoon Abdi Rahman, a 75-year-old who walked nine days with his wife, daughter and four grandchildren. They arrived in Dolo earlier this week.
Rahman said that al-Shabab militants are active in his village in the Bay region of Somalia, but he hopes to return. "We came here because of hunger and security. Let these two things be sorted then we will go back."
The U.N. declared a famine in Somalia last July 20 as hundreds of thousands of people set out on foot in search of food, filling refugee camps in Mogadishu, Ethiopia and Kenya. The U.N., which declared the famine over in February, never released a death toll. But the British government estimated between 50,000 and 100,000 people died.
Some 12 million people needed assistance at the height of last year's famine. The numbers are much lower this time around but still staggering. The U.N. says 2.5 million people need aid to survive.
In Mogadishu, tens of thousands of refugees still live in impoverished camps. For Aden Mohamed, the famine's horrors are far from over. He sobbed as he carried the lifeless, shroud-draped body of his 2-year-old son, who died Thursday morning of malnutrition.
With tears running down his cheeks, Mohamed whispered the word "hunger" as he shuffled toward a rough grave dug on the edge of a sprawling camp close to Somalia's parliament building.
"If there is no drought and famine why are our children dying of hunger?" asked the mourning father of six as his neighbors nodded. "Our children are dying every day! Our stomachs burn with hunger. Our hearts cry in silence every day."
Mark Bowden, the top U.N. humanitarian official on Somalia, said: "While famine conditions are no longer present, we need to make no mistake, the absence of famine does not mean that people are not in crisis. ... Malnutrition and mortality rates have improved but remain among the highest in the world."
Security in Mogadishu is the best it has been in years, after African Union and Somali troops pushed out al-Shabab last August. But the curses of Somalia ? no real government, endless warfare, poor harvests ? continue for hundreds of thousands.
The U.N. says that 18 percent of children born in the country will not reach the age of 5. A third of children are moderately or severely underweight. Only a third of children are enrolled in school.
Aid groups are increasing their efforts in Mogadishu, now that security has improved. But the U.N. says it needs $576 million to implement needed programs over the rest of 2012. Groups like Oxfam are appealing for help.
"In 2011 the world didn't act until famine was declared, and the delay cost lives and money. Now, with the warning signs of a worsening crisis, lessons from last year must be learnt. Now is the time to invest in aid," said Senait Gebregziabher, Somalia country director for Oxfam.
In Dolo, refugee camp leader Noor Hassan Filig watched as hundreds of men and women lined up to receive food from sacks with an American flag emblazoned on the side at World Food Program distributions that restarted Wednesday. Filig said many people are returning to Dolo because of militant demands.
"Al-Shabab is asking for families to pay a tax after they lost control of the big towns. They are forcing men to participate in the fighting," Filig said. He added later: "Nobody likes them."
About 1 million Somalis are living as refugees in Kenya, Ethiopia, Yemen and Uganda, and another 1.4 million are internally displaced inside Somalia, meaning 25 percent of the country is displaced, said Bruno Geddo of the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR.
"Some are fleeing in anticipation of more fighting. Some are fleeing from drought, some are fleeing forced military recruitment. Either you give up a camel, give up a child or pay thousands of dollars," Geddo said.
Nurse Abukar Mohamud helped screen new arrivals in Dolo and administer vaccinations. He said the most desperate story a newly arriving mother shared with him was about how her youngest child died on her back while she was walking.
"The signs of malnutrition are rising," he said of the new arrivals. "I'm wondering why there is so much."
___
Associated Press reporter Abdi Guled in Mogadishu contributed to this report.
That sound drowning out the applause for this year's Emmy nominees announced Thursday morning is the grinding of teeth over worthy shows and stars Emmy ignored.
For instance, Jeff Probst already has four Emmys for hosting CBS' "Survivor." But did he deserve to get voted off the Emmy island when this year's nominations were handed out?
What about "The Killing"? Viewers were disgruntled by the mystery underlying this AMC drama, but you didn't have to care who killed Rosie Larsen to realize that co-stars Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman gave two of the year's best performances.
Sure, Fox's "American Idol" has slipped in the ratings, and two of its judges are jumping ship. But does that explain why this TV juggernaut has been snubbed for a nomination as best reality-competition program ? for the first time ever?
Meanwhile, Fox's "House," which recently ended its eight-year run, goes empty-handed into Emmy annals deprived of one last chance for a best drama trophy, or a best actor nod for its star, Hugh Laurie.
Other lame-duck series are getting a similar Emmy cold shoulder.
FX's firefighter drama "Rescue Me" has now concluded its seven-year run with routine Emmy neglect for this outstanding series and its gifted star-writer-producer.
And ABC's much-honored "Desperate Housewives" will be remembered in its eighth and last season only with a nomination for the late Kathryn Joosten in the category of supporting actress in a comedy.
FX scored big with its splendid comedy "Louie" and its creepy "American Horror Story." But why not some Emmy love for "Sons of Anarchy," the network's riotous motorcycle-gang drama that boasts a gang of wonderful actors, including 2011 Golden Globe winner Katey Sagal?
Emmy continues to shrink from vampire and zombies. Again this year, both wildly popular "True Blood" on HBO and "The Walking Dead" on AMC were shut out of major drama awards.
HBO's mystical comedy-drama "Enlightened" was spurned, as was its co-creator and star, Laura Dern, whose Golden Globe-winning performance as its scrambled heroine is among the best of her career.
And while all six regulars on "Modern Family" snagged nominations, a fellow ABC comedy, "Happy Endings," went unnoticed by Emmy, as did its six excellent co-stars.
Not one, but two freshman drama series on the Starz network were overlooked: "Boss," starring Kelsey Grammer as the tyrannical mayor of Chicago, and "Magic City," set in the sordid glamour of 1960s Miami Beach. But both series will be courting Emmy with second seasons.
With the broadcast networks continuing to cede Emmy glory to cable, Emmy seemed suitably unimpressed with last season's new crop of broadcast shows.
Only nine freshman series on the five broadcast networks got so much as a lone minor nomination, and only one, Fox's comedy "New Girl," scored a major acting nod. In fact, it got two of them: for lead actress Zooey Deschanel and supporting actor Max Greenfield.
But what about two other breakout hits from last season: CBS' sitcom "2 Broke Girls" and ABC's fairy-tale drama "Once Upon a Time"?
Couldn't Emmy have made room for at least one of the funny "Broke" co-stars, Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs? And why was Emmy blind to the spell cast by any of the "Once Upon a Time" ensemble?
When it comes to Emmys, AMC's "Mad Men" has nothing to complain about. The advertising drama continues its reign this year by picking up a leading 17 Emmy nominations. But, oddly, none of those was for costumes. Even though the series has never won in this category, it has landed a best costume nomination every year since "Mad Men" began. Why none this year? Viewers who savor the characters' eye-popping '60s sartorial style have to be wondering.
If Emmy's annual bumper crop for "Mad Men" has become ritual, another of this year's big scorers is, by contrast, a big surprise. "Hatfields & McCoys," a three-night miniseries that aired at the end of May, made history on ? fittingly ? History channel by averaging 13.8 million viewers as the most-watched miniseries ever on cable.
Following on that ratings triumph, the program (recounting the famous interfamily feud) collected 16 nominations. Nothing to argue about there: This is the sort of out-of-nowhere surprise that Emmy watchers thrive on.
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EDITOR'S NOTE ? Frazier Moore is a national television columnist for The Associated Press. He can be reached at fmoore(at)ap.org and at http://www.twitter.com/tvfrazier
Hit the ball with a mallet into the opposing team?s goal ? all while riding a bicycle. It?s like horse polo for the urban athlete. It may seem like a new fad, but bike polo actually was invented in 1891 by Irish cyclist Richard Mecredy. There are more than 160 registered teams in the United States, and the sport recently gained popularity in Dallas.
This afternoon I passed no fewer than 4 trucking company vehicles all sporting corporate logos that had a swish icon. They were either horizonal or vertical, red or blue. I?m sure if we check back with each of these companies, none of the images existed before Nike and their swoosh became synonymous. I imagine none of these companies realize that being a follower does nothing to strengthen their brands but rather strengthens the leader because of the similarities of image.
