Pacific Rim: Monster Mash

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><b><i>Pacific Rim</i> </b></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><b>(2013) • <a href="http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/wb/pacificrim/" style="color: #27a9c5; text-decoration: none;">View trailer</a></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><b> </b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><b>3.5 stars. Rating: PG-13, for intense sci-fi violence and brief profanity</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #5e5e5e; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b>By <a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/12885694730612878577" style="color: #27a9c5; text-decoration: none;">Derrick Bang</a> • </b></span>Originally published in <i><a href="http://www.davisenterprise.com/" style="color: #27a9c5; text-decoration: none;">The Davis Enterprise</a></i>, 7.12.13</b></span></span></span></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings></xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves>false</w:TrackMoves> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing> <w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing> <w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:DontAutofitConstrainedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> </w:Compatibility> </w:WordDocument></xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="276"> </w:LatentStyles></xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 10]><style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style><![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <br /><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Guillermo del Toro must have loved Godzilla movies as a kid.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His newest action fantasy, <i>Pacific Rim</i>, is a valentine to the dozen or so romp ’em, stomp ’em features that starred “the big G” during del Toro’s formative years. (Quite a few more have been made since then.) This tip of the hat clearly is deliberate, since the director and fellow scripter Travis Beacham refer to their ginormous critters as <i>kaiju</i>, the Japanese term — literally “strange beast,” but more commonly “giant monster” — coined, back in the day, to describe Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan and their ilk.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjylp-R5OFQNaWthRY5u15kaJLngJC5zBAuP08AWfvu-r-n0EEa7QGUujrChBF5I1exGSWz9C-GPAjpyuGsqWaIJN4b2yBabY9veq87FYwymIoVyMcyL60hgrq4pcGG_VBkkHgEVyzLSFk/s1600/Pacific+Rim+blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjylp-R5OFQNaWthRY5u15kaJLngJC5zBAuP08AWfvu-r-n0EEa7QGUujrChBF5I1exGSWz9C-GPAjpyuGsqWaIJN4b2yBabY9veq87FYwymIoVyMcyL60hgrq4pcGG_VBkkHgEVyzLSFk/s400/Pacific+Rim+blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Strapped into the high-tech body suits that make them "one" with the giant robot<br />warriors into which they've been placed, Raleigh (Charlie Hunnam) and Mako (Rinko<br />Kikuchi) prepare for a battle they already know is unwinnable, against a monstrous<br />beast with adaptive "enhancements" that have made it far stronger than their<br />mechanical avatar.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Throw in plenty of 21st century whiz-bang special effects, and the result is a high-tech thrill ride that blends <i>big</i> monsters, equally massive robot-like avatars, and the stubborn pluck of a puny human race unwilling to go quietly into that good night.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During a summer laden with end-of-the-world scenarios — zombie apocalypse and Kryptonian apocalypse, not to mention the biblical Book of Revelations — this one takes the prize for cheeky absurdity. At the same time, del Toro and Beacham pay careful attention to the human element, giving us would-be saviors who are inspiring for their fortitude, and endearing for their flaws.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not to mention, it’s always nice when a screenplay takes the optimistic view, and shows world powers uniting in an effort to save the planet. Such all-for-one selflessness goes all the way back to H.G. Wells’ <i>War of the Worlds</i>, and the reminder is refreshing in this divisively cynical age.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Audacious fantasy has been del Toro’s stock-in-trade ever since 1997’s under-appreciated and genuinely creepy <i>Mimic</i>. He also was the perfect choice to adapt graphic novelist Mike Mignola’s lunatic <i>Hellboy</i> series, and — as an executive producer — del Toro has chaperoned riveting projects such as 2007’s wonderfully atmospheric <i><a href="http://derrickbang.blogspot.com/2008/01/orphanage-creepy-childs-play.html">The Orphanage</a></i>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And let us not forget his masterpiece: 2006’s <i>Pan’s Labyrinth</i>, the Oscar-winning horror film that brought adult sensibilities to a genre too frequently willing to settle for much less, and which demonstrated that human monsters can be much, much worse than anything cooked up by our vivid imaginations.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Pacific Rim</i> doesn’t wade through such high-falutin' waters, though; this is simply del Toro’s first stab at a crowd-pleasing, mega-budget summer blockbuster, and he has done a commendable job.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The film, set in the not-too-distant future, opens with an extended flashback: An unseen narrator recalls the unexpected arrival of the first <i>kaiju</i>, an enormous — and quite savage — amphibious creature bent on death and destruction. It rises from the ocean depths and wreaks considerable havoc before being brought down by conventional military hardware.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apparently passing this off as an isolated incident — perhaps a lone, Bradbury-esque behemoth, driven by curiosity to the surface world — mankind is similarly unprepared months later, when the next one arrives. And then another. And another, at noticeably shorter intervals. Scientists realize that they’re coming from some sort of dimensional portal deep in the Pacific Ocean.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><a name='more'></a><br /> <div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Faced with the obvious need to Do Something, the world’s nations pool their resources and develop the largest, most versatile and aggressively lethal weapon ever devised. This is the Jaeger Program, which constructs 25-story-tall mechanical “robots” that are operated by two pilots whose minds are linked both to each other, and to the machine’s limbs and assault gadgets.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Think Wii technology, taken to the obvious extreme.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For a time, the ploy is successful; thanks also to a computer-sensor “early warning system” that registers portal activity, the <i>kaiju</i> become an irritating but dispatchable menace. Jaeger pilots, like Apollo astronauts, turn into the world’s new heroes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Years pass ... and, then, the unthinkable. The <i>kaiju</i> adapt; a Jaeger robot falls. The pendulum shifts, and Earth’s first line of defense loses its edge.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Yes, this is all back-story!)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The story proper opens as the Jaeger Program is scrapped, much to the dismay of its guiding light, Pan Pacific Defense Corp Commander Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba). World leaders shift their strategy to the construction of tall, thick sea walls apparently intended to prevent the <i>kaiju</i> from making landfall. (This seems an idiotic notion on all sorts of levels, not the least of which is the havoc increased numbers of the monsters would wreak on ocean life.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Predictably, this new defense proves less than successful. Worse yet, scientists have determined that the <i>kaiju</i> are popping up at exponential rates, leading to the ghastly realization that, soon, two of them will appear at the same time.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All hope now rests with the remnants of Pentecost’s Jaeger program, and its four surviving robots: Gypsy Danger, from the USA; China’s Crimson Typhoon; Russia’s Cherno Alpha; and Australia’s Striker Eureka. Although everybody already knows that Jaeger tech has proven unsuccessful, mankind isn’t about to go down without a fight. (Damn straight!)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Del Toro never works with big-name stars, preferring the greater verisimilitude of fresh faces blended with seasoned character actors. Our all-American good guy, Raleigh Becket, is played by Charlie Hunnam, best known these days for his ongoing role on TV’s <i>Sons of Anarchy</i>. Hunnam is properly clean-cut, and Becket is a flawed tragic hero: an emotionally crippled, one-time Jaeger pilot who never recovered from the years-ago battle that marked the beginning of the end.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Still, as Pentecost insists — in the grand tradition of such underdog sagas — “You’re the best we’ve got.” Elba probably is one of very few actors who could make that hoary line sound credible; his Pentecost is the epitome of crisply starched, unswerving loyalty to tactical precision. We’ve not seen a military commander rendered so persuasively since George C. Scott’s George S. Patton.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Australian Jaeger is manned by the father-and-son team of Herc and Chuck Hansen (Max Martini and Robert Kazinsky). Martini, a longtime acting veteran, exudes the sort of hail-fellow-well-met Aussie charm that we’ve come to expect; Herc also grants Becket the respect he deserves. That isn’t the case with Chuck, played by Kazinsky — a relative newcomer — as an arrogant snot whose only saving grace is ownership of an adorably sloppy bulldog.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pentecost has a ward, Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi), the now-grown survivor of a horrific <i>kaiju</i> attack that terrified her as a child. Although she has trained just as hard as anybody else, and wants desperately to co-pilot a Jaeger, Pentecost holds her back; acknowledging her Japanese devotion to honor and respect, she complies.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Becket won’t have it. Recognizing that he and Mako share the all-essential mind-meld compatibility necessary for superior Jaeger control, he naturally rebels. (Cue the inter-personal tension.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On top of which, Mako is seriously cute.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kikuchi brings unexpected emotional gravity to these proceedings; as also is the case with Hunnam’s Becket, we learn much about her personal tragedy. Mostly, though, Kikuchi makes Mako <i>interesting</i>, and she effortlessly wins our hearts and minds.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A shout-out also goes to Mana Ashida, who plays Mako’s younger self. This little girl brings frightening intensity to a flashback sequence that explains her thirst for revenge.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We never get to know the Russian or Chinese pilots, which is a shame. For openers, they <i>look</i> intriguing ... and, more to the point, del Toro muffs this opportunity to make his film as inclusively international as the storyline.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Comic relief is supplied by Charlie Day and Burn Gorman, as Geiszler and Gottlieb, a pair of whack-job scientists with <i>way</i>-outside-the-box views on how best to tackle the <i>kaiju</i>“problem.” They’re the original odd couple: Day’s Geiszler is sloppy and dangerously impulsive, while Gorman’s Gottlieb is fussy, prissy and just as misguidedly wary. They’re obviously conceived, by del Toro and Beacham, as an entertaining alternative to the boring, white-garbed scientist-types who customarily offer dull-as-dishwater “explanations” in such films.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But we know right away that salvation must lie with these nutball researchers, despite their tendency to try Pentecost’s patience.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, Ron Perlman — a familiar face in del Toro’s films — pops up as Hannibal Chau, a Hong Kong-based black marketeer who has made a fortune selling <i>kaiju</i> parts on the black market. Perlman chews up the scenery in style; he’s the only actor, thus far, able to give the late James Coburn’s devious ear-to-ear grin a run for its money.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Production designers Andrew Neskoromny and Carol Spier have a field day with the opulent sets, from the Loccent Command Center, home of the holographic computers that monitor the <i>kaiju</i> battles, to Chau’s opulent “<i>kaiju</i> reclamation center.” Visual effects supervisors John Knoll and James E. Price do equally well with the city-leveling battle scenes; we’ve come a long way from the days when Godzilla would stomp cardboard cities.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Much of the film’s persuasive, pulse-pounding power comes from cinematographer Guillermo Navarro’s ability to convey the essential sense of size and scale. Unfortunately, the 3D effects were applied after the fact; although the results are better than most cases of “fake 3D,” the finished film nonetheless suffers from the overly “dark” look that is typical of retroactive enhancement.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Pacific Rim</i> won’t win any awards for originality, but that’s not an issue; del Toro and Beacham intend their film as a genre homage, much the way George Lucas riffed classic westerns in <i>Star Wars</i>, and Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich updated H.G. Wells in 1996’s <i>Independence Day</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><br /></div><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This high-tech monster mash is ripping good fun, as is the case with <i>White House Down</i>. And there’s nothing wrong with that, when it comes to popcorn action flicks.</span></span><!--EndFragment-->

2013 action Burn Gorman Charlie Day Charlie Hunnam fantasy Guillermo del Toro Idris Elba Max Martini Rinko Kikuchi Robert Kazinsky Ron Perlman Sci-Fi Pacific Rim: Monster Mash

Pacific Rim   (2013) •  View trailer   3.5 stars. Rating: PG-13, for intense sci-fi violence and brief profanity By  Derrick Bang  •  Origin...

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Body of missing bicyclist found in Shenandoah National Park

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjueyqJvZozjp7dSSLWUSTJAOB3GHAI4FFLwG7HtHm7qAEEDDtaF9NfNfqwuuDG0_r12zqK-G9oErnyxfswJ7g6f8nmj1wDNvF1u_DxXZC3XYnBOX_g2fVggtnmuTDswpWlNZwG0FOcD3Oe/s1600/National+Park+Service+emblem.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjueyqJvZozjp7dSSLWUSTJAOB3GHAI4FFLwG7HtHm7qAEEDDtaF9NfNfqwuuDG0_r12zqK-G9oErnyxfswJ7g6f8nmj1wDNvF1u_DxXZC3XYnBOX_g2fVggtnmuTDswpWlNZwG0FOcD3Oe/s200/National+Park+Service+emblem.jpg" width="153" /></a></div><br />The <a href="http://www.nps.gov/shen/parknews/search-concludes.htm">National Park Service has posted that the body</a> of the bicyclist missing since July 6 has been found in Shenandoah National Park:<br /><blockquote>The body of Tyler Keefer was located today in the Dickey Ridge area of the park, marking the end of a multi-day search. The cause of death is under investigation.<br /><br />Keefer, 21, had been missing since Saturday, July 6. His family reported him missing to the Front Royal Police Department and park officials were notified Monday that his bicycle had been located near the Dickey Ridge Trailhead.<br /><br />Shenandoah National Park employees and trained volunteers, including dog teams, ground searchers, and support personnel were involved in the search. National Park Service personnel were assisted by Front Royal Police Department, Virginia Search and Rescue Dogs Association (VSRDA), Dogs East Search and Rescue, Blue and Gray Search and Rescue Dogs, and canine team dispatcher, Melissa Taylor. Shenandoah National Park wishes to thank these cooperating search teams for their response and continued efforts.</blockquote>Prayers for the family of this young man....<br /><br />H/T to <a href="http://rockfishtoreeds.blogspot.com/">Merlot</a><br /><br /><b>UPDATE:</b> <a href="http://www.nvdaily.com/news/2013/07/missing-hikers-body-found-in-park.php">Missing hiker's body found in Park</a>

Blue and Gray Search and Rescue Dogs Dickey Ridge Dogs East Search and Rescue Front Royal Police Department Melissa Taylor missing person Shenandoah National Park Tyler Keefer Body of missing bicyclist found in Shenandoah National Park

The National Park Service has posted that the body of the bicyclist missing since July 6 has been found in Shenandoah National Park: The bo...

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Miss. private prison 'like a jungle'

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwGi3IPmbLBHGjUXo-0sUyaLZl691GzQORe-8YFnDH5fnjbTdVcxuPYE9amTipo8IyIR1sMUA2LOfjn34IJ1Mwr05lDYrsuhHJf7v-iLUYF-5LCgLCdoxsg8UduAoOnPdXHPOid7EvktKw/s1600/prison+barcode.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwGi3IPmbLBHGjUXo-0sUyaLZl691GzQORe-8YFnDH5fnjbTdVcxuPYE9amTipo8IyIR1sMUA2LOfjn34IJ1Mwr05lDYrsuhHJf7v-iLUYF-5LCgLCdoxsg8UduAoOnPdXHPOid7EvktKw/s200/prison+barcode.jpg" width="200" /></a>Another private prison is exposed as a barbaric hellhole. This time it's in Mississippi.<br /><br />We've told you about the<a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/04/private-prison-hellhole-outed-in-ohio.html"> private prison hellhole in Ohio</a> owned by Corrections Corporation of America (a big <a href="http://alecexposed.org/">ALEC</a> supporter, of course). Abuse was rampant, conditions were abysmal.<br /><br />Now <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-12/gangs-ruled-prison-as-for-profit-model-put-blood-on-floor.html">Bloomberg</a> tells us about Walnut Grove juvenile detention center in Malone, Miss. It was run by GEO Group, the private prison company in Florida<a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2012/01/security-worse-at-private-prisons.html"> that wanted to take over nearly half of the state's prisons</a> last year. (They failed.)<br /><br />The state finally took control of Walnut Grove back from GEO Group in 2012, fed up with its dangerous and derelict care. Bloomberg reports,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Staff shortages, mismanagement and lax oversight had long turned it into a cauldron of violence, where female employees had sex with inmates, pitted them against each other, gave them weapons and joined their gangs, according to court records, interviews and a U.S. <a href="http://topics.bloomberg.com/justice-department/">Justice Department</a> report.</blockquote>Here's an account of one bloody riot at the prison. The guard captain knew it was coming, but management told him to handle it himself:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Eighteen corrections officers were at the prison the day of the assault, he said -- one for every 60 prisoners. One, a gang member herself, walked through the cellblock freeing Vice Lords, then left. When the beatings and stabbings stopped, six inmates were rushed to the hospital, one with permanent brain damage. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">“You got 60 inmates there and it’s just me,” said McAfee, the former guard and one of those who responded to the melee. “You just had to sit there and wait while people are fighting. It was a horrible experience.” </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">The worst hurt was Michael McIntosh, then 20. Six weeks after the incident, his father found him in a hospital three hours away in Greenville. The younger McIntosh’s eyes were red and blinded by blood. He had a baseball-sized lump on his head, multiple stab wounds and brain damage. He made noises like a small child.</blockquote>Read the whole thing <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-12/gangs-ruled-prison-as-for-profit-model-put-blood-on-floor.html">here</a> if you need any more convincing that private prisons are a bad idea.<br /><br />

Miss. private prison 'like a jungle'

Another private prison is exposed as a barbaric hellhole. This time it's in Mississippi. We've told you about the private prison he...

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Does The HCG Diet Help Me With Weight Loss And Can I Get It In Salt Lake City?

<div style='font-style:italic;' class='uawbyline'>By Esme Spence</div><br /><br /> <div class='uawarticle'>It may have crossed your mind that everyone seems obsessed with the HCG diet at present, and you may also be unsure as to how it works and if it will help with weight loss. To be frank the main reason there is such a buzz about it, is because it is incredibly effective. As well as working great, it is a quick and safe way to have weight loss, without killing yourself at the gym or starving yourself. Another benefit is that you will enjoy the same weight loss whether you get injections or take it orally, so your diet plan can be tailored to what suits you.<br /> <br /> The HCG diet is currently at the forefront of a leading weight loss diet because it's effective, safe, and easy. No more starving yourself! Just fat burnt and a healthier body! One of the greatest perks of your participation in this diet is that it won't impact your work or home obligations - no exhaustion or expensive gym memberships!<br /> <br /> Everyone deserves to be healthy and happy. The HCG diet has become a leader in the weight loss industry and has helped millions of people achieve their weight loss and health goals. It all began in 1950 with a doctor name Dr. ATW Simeons, who discovered that small doses of HCG were lessening the appetite of overweight men and women. It also led to weight loss around the hips, thighs, buttocks and stomach areas, normally places that are hard to slim. Since the year 2000, the HCG Diet has skyrocketed into a diet craze. HCG weight loss has been publicized on hundreds of TV shows including Fox News, NBC, Oprah and on CBS. It is also mentioned in Kevin Trudeau's best selling book; The Weight Loss Cure, which has sold hundreds of thousands of copies.<br /> <br /> The biggest reason for this explosive growth is that the HCG Diet Plan really gets results without gimmicks. It's that simple. It is one of the fastest ways to lose weight and keep it off. Another reason for the contagious popularity is that the HCG Diet is considered to be free. Though the HCG costs money, the money saved on food spent in one week pays for the diet. The other weeks are just money saved while the fat melts away. This is because when you are on the HCG diet you only have to eat 500 calories a day in order to feel full, whilst your body uses up excess fat stores.<br /> <br /> Do not attempt weight loss by eating 500 calories a day without HCG as this is simply starving yourself. It can also result in terrible side effects such as headaches, insomnia and other medical issues. Using HCG provided by your Salt Lake City distributor or medical spa means you have a support network as well as diet plan and will result in better success and loss.<br /> <br /> If HCG weight loss seems to be right for you, then contact your local Salt Lake City supplier for more information.<br /> <br /> </div><br /> <div class='uawresource'><br /> <div style='font-style:italic;' class='uawabout'><br /> About the Author:<br /> </div><br /> <div class='uawlinks'>Want to find out more about <a href='http://www.elase.com/utah/vive-weight-loss'>weight loss Salt Lake City</a>, then visit Esme Spence's site on how to choose this or other services like <a href='http://www.elase.com/utah/lip-augmentation'>lip injections Utah</a> for your needs.</div><br /> </div><br />

Does The HCG Diet Help Me With Weight Loss And Can I Get It In Salt Lake City?

By Esme Spence It may have crossed your mind that everyone seems obsessed with the HCG diet at present, and you may also be unsure as to...

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Old School New Body Review - Does Old School New Body Work?

<div style='font-style:italic;' class='uawbyline'>By Summer Walton</div><br /><br /> <div class='uawarticle'>This recognized Old School New Body review may be launched in order to aid people all over the world to exercise and possess their fantasy figure, in addition to help them to take pleasure in the best decision for the children, regarding the buying "Old School Fresh Body" program.<br /> <br /> Consumers who are going to this page are trying to find an unbiased review with regard to Old School New Body, and for everything that they can discover on it.<br /> <br /> For this reason this recognized Old School New Body review has been looking to provide sole, true information on the system.<br /> <br /> Everybody age groups, is the most normal thing in the entire world, but it is as much as every person to help make the process proceed slower or even faster.<br /> <br /> Because of this , program boy slowing down growing older will always be extremely popular all around on earth.<br /> <br /> This program states have determined the best physical exercise principles and contains developed a Several steps program, in order to assist people workout the old design and reduce the process of getting older.<br /> <br /> Step one specifics how individuals should not be worried about eating generally speaking, that the low-fat diet is not necessary.<br /> <br /> Mcdougal believes that folks should not cease eating normal foods. Fats are accountable for producing probably the most important the body's hormones, Testosterone is actually resulted coming from people eating meals which are packed with cholesterol.<br /> <br /> Thus fat will in reality help the body to replenish.<br /> <br /> Step two talks about spinning courses, and the fact that they aren't producing virtually any powerful well being effects for the human body. In addition to the cardio exercise, spining is really not so suggested, because of the sitting down position.<br /> <br /> Third step is trying to acquire inside individuals minds as well as talk about excess fat and age group. The fact that women and men everywhere tend to be fat is really because they consume, drink and never exercise for example fat folks rather than since they're growing old. Body fat doesn't worry about age, or possibly gender.<br /> <br /> Seniors burns up body fat like any youngster can.<br /> <br /> The next thing, number Several is focused on water and real water. Folks are being suggested to consume plenty of pure h2o, and that will additionally burn fat normally.<br /> <br /> Besides the proven fact that by h2o, people will grow to be thinner, it will likewise increase their degree of energy, help renal system and liver organ work properly.<br /> <br /> The last step in it Old School New Body has evolved no longer working out a whole lot. It is actually informing people to not necessarily exercise excessive, but rather execute certain smart exercises, within just an hour per day. <br /> <br /> </div><br /> <div class='uawresource'><br /> <div style='font-style:italic;' class='uawabout'><br /> About the Author:<br /> </div><br /> <div class='uawlinks'>Click here if you want to find out more about this product <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pg1xaWl-dcU">Old School New Body</a>.</div><br /> </div><br />

Old School New Body Review - Does Old School New Body Work?

By Summer Walton This recognized Old School New Body review may be launched in order to aid people all over the world to exercise and po...

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The Parable Of Attaining Muscle Tissue Without Body Fat

<div style='font-style:italic;' class='uawbyline'>By Sam Douglas</div><br /><br /> <div class='uawarticle'>A lot of you have expressed concerns about gaining too much body fat during such a high calorie diet, and ponder whether you want to do some exercising aerobically to counterbalance the weight gain.<br /> <br /> Absolutely not.<br /> <br /> That will be detrimental to gaining muscle. For the most powerful results, you either have to train and diet to achieve muscle or lose weight. One or the other. An advanced true hardgainer, you can not do both. By trying, you will not make any substantial progress in either case. So, the time has come to gain weight. You will worry about shedding fat later.<br /> <br /> The truth is there are no magic pills, powders, foods or exercises which will allow you to build muscle and lose fat at the same time.<br /> <br /> Everything is determined by your genetics and metabolism. Some people can do it, some can't. If you are naturally thin and also have a difficult time gaining weight of any kind, it will be silly people to think you will be able to build muscle while always keeping your body fat low.<br /> <br /> Most skinny guys want to gain more muscle, but you are afraid of gaining body fat. They see every one of the bodybuilder photos and study the stories about people gaining pounds of muscle while losing pounds of fat - They want to do the same. When examining these photos, you need to know that most of such people do not have your system type. Most of them are overweight and want to lose fat, not gain muscle.<br /> <br /> 'Well', you say, 'What about those who transformed their bodies? They lost fat and gained muscle'. Yes, nevertheless the vast majority of these people were overweight, or had high degrees of body fat. To put it differently, their metabolisms were, typically, slow. They merely dieted and trained for weight loss.<br /> <br /> Weight training helped them to tone up and slightly increase their muscle mass by replacing a few of the fat with muscle. However, you will never increase your weight far above your original starting weight on that type of diet.<br /> <br /> Quite simply, even though you gain some muscle, you will actually weight less!<br /> <br /> For instance, Big Joe weighs 189lbs with 18% body fat. This computes to be 34lbs of fat and 155lbs of muscle. He then goes on a fat reduction diet and slowly diets as a result of a ripped 5% body fat at 168lbs, that is 8.4lbs of fat and 160lbs of muscle. He lost 26lbs of fat, and his awesome weight only took place by 21lbs. So, looking until this we realize that they managed to also gain 5lbs of muscle. You can see that he has more muscles than as he started, anf the husband looks totally ripped, but his weight decreased because his main goal was fat reduction. He looks superior, and his measurements changed, but he only increased his total weight by five pounds.<br /> <br /> In case you are very thin, you can't do this. Yes, your body fat will decrease, and will also also provide you with more muscle mass, but it is not going to increase your weight. You may just get much thinner. Big Joe was 'big' in the first place; we are not. To get the same results as Big Joe, you should first gain the body weight, and then focus on losing one's body fat later. Joe had the dimensions; he just required to trim down. And we don't have the size to work with, so we must force our bodies to grow beyond our body's comfort range. This can be the hard part.<br /> <br /> This is why if you want to grow beyond your current size, you will need to diet for it specifically.<br /> <br /> Remember, most of you have extremely fast metabolisms. Gaining weight will likely be extremely difficult.<br /> <br /> The only method you will get bigger is to shock one's body.<br /> <br /> You must shock one's body by:<br /> <br /> 1. Training with heavy weights, and<br /> <br /> 2. Eating plenty of calories.<br /> <br /> The very first shock is with weight training. You should focus on compound free- weight exercises, and lift household names, which will stimulate the biggest amount of muscle tissue. Your body responds to this stimulus by improving your muscle mass.<br /> <br /> The second way we must shock bodies are by eating more calories than one's body is used to. This can be the the crucial element in gaining mass. Once you overload your system with plenty of protein and fats, your body has no other option but to get weight. <br /> <br /> </div><br /> <div class='uawresource'><br /> <div style='font-style:italic;' class='uawabout'><br /> About the Author:<br /> </div><br /> <div class='uawlinks'>Go to this link in order to find out more about this product <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHZbPCOxQeI">Customized Fat reduction Review</a>.</div><br /> </div><br />

The Parable Of Attaining Muscle Tissue Without Body Fat

By Sam Douglas A lot of you have expressed concerns about gaining too much body fat during such a high calorie diet, and ponder whether ...

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EU INVOLVEMENT IN MALI

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font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style><![endif]--> <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFJFd9k3HppRKjnoe2L-x4ERZu5dHB2ib3zwTr-yus0qcxFQoFzLP-MBSkCIQ6RbtZpGQcwlo6J0Cnbn4l-nU87PdcXsqQUsprysRwwiZOhAGfmCL6IlWaP3Bm2B_3CRyRa6cKMdAkYAR/s1600/4mali_flag_Hemera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFJFd9k3HppRKjnoe2L-x4ERZu5dHB2ib3zwTr-yus0qcxFQoFzLP-MBSkCIQ6RbtZpGQcwlo6J0Cnbn4l-nU87PdcXsqQUsprysRwwiZOhAGfmCL6IlWaP3Bm2B_3CRyRa6cKMdAkYAR/s320/4mali_flag_Hemera.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-no-proof: yes;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">WHY THE SAHEL IS CRUCIAL TO EUROPE'S NEIGHBORHOOD – AND ITS SECURITY STRATEGY </span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The ongoing crises in SYRIA and EGYPT have marginalized the conflict in MALI in the WESTERN media. But the FRENCH-led military intervention in that country is facing a complex and challenging transitional period. UNITED NATIONS Special Envoy for the SAHEL Romano Prodi recently warned the international community to “not forget the SAHEL, or you will have more MALIS if you do.” That is a prospect that EUROPEAN countries — including FRANCE — will certainly not relish, yet they lack the political will or the capacity to ensure a favorable outcome. Transatlantic actors now, more than ever, need to rethink their cooperation in the region and strengthen their alliances with local powers.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">FRENCH MILITARY INTERVENTION IN MALI ALSO REVEALED THE RELUCTANCE OF COUNTRIES TO SHARE THE BURDEN FOR PROVIDING SECURITY IN THE SAHEL</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOOUvFkdquNoOD59uw50fAf2KJzLxlzU2jXrdyHgMrn2ww2yUw8u40E-alHngJAQNejyPlVVH8YmViIJbabPCQ6fAbL2iSwmSLiLUEGmRyUUT5qerTrUejXI5ACT7xNnRObGuo28eUXA0H/s1600/FCB71F5A-F9E8-451A-BCEB-CC99F2BD6907_w640_r1_s.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOOUvFkdquNoOD59uw50fAf2KJzLxlzU2jXrdyHgMrn2ww2yUw8u40E-alHngJAQNejyPlVVH8YmViIJbabPCQ6fAbL2iSwmSLiLUEGmRyUUT5qerTrUejXI5ACT7xNnRObGuo28eUXA0H/s320/FCB71F5A-F9E8-451A-BCEB-CC99F2BD6907_w640_r1_s.png" width="320" /></a></b></div><br /> <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The two main challenges facing the transatlantic partners are their ability to assume responsibility for regional security and their securing local support for their efforts. Despite receiving official backing from allies on both sides of the Atlantic, the FRENCH military intervention in MALI also revealed the reluctance of countries to share the burden for providing security in the SAHEL. The problem stems mostly from the divergence of perceptions within EUROPE on the relevance of the SAHEL to its immediate security concerns.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">See also: <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue;">QUEST FOR AFRICA</span></b><span style="color: blue;"> at:<a href="http://geopoliticsrst.blogspot.co.at/2012/12/usa-china-and-africa.html">http://geopoliticsrst.blogspot.co.at/2012/12/usa-china-and-africa.html</a></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">SAHEL: NEW SAFE HAVENS FOR TERRORISM AND TRANSNATIONAL CRIME IN THE REGION SHOULD BE CONSIDERED A THREAT TO ALL EUROPEAN NATIONAL INTERESTS</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The first step should therefore be to redefine the scope of EUROPE’S neighborhood strategy in order to include the SAHEL area as a whole. For obvious historical reasons, FRANCE will continue to be more involved in the stability of this part of AFRICA than other countries, but the development of new safe havens for terrorism and transnational crime in the region should be considered a threat to all EUROPEAN national interests, just as instability in the CAUCASUS should concern WESTERN EUROPEAN countries. At this point, FRANCE has neither the political will nor the capacity to assert sole leadership in a vast region stretching from SENEGAL to the HORN OF AFRICA. A U.S. interpretation of FRENCH assertion in region as a reason for its disengagement would therefore be a miscalculation. Once a common EUROPEAN vision is built, the path for a genuine transatlantic approach to security in the SAHEL and a division of labor can then be charted, with the UNITED STATES possibly assuming responsibility for technical and logistical support and for training. The training of AFRICAN troops should eventually become the centerpiece of transatlantic operations in the region, keeping in mind the lessons learned from the previous failed experience in MALI pre-2012.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Background Information:</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 1;"><b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">USA INCREASES ITS PRESENCE IN AFRICA "THE RISING CONTINENT", WHILE EUROPE KEEPS ON UNDERESTIMATING IT. At: </span></b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/07/africa-and-usa.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/07/africa-and-usa.html</a>and<b><span style="mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;"> </span></b><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/09/chinas-winning-strategy-in-africa.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/09/chinas-winning-strategy-in-africa.html</a><b><span style="mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;"></span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">COOPERATION WITH AFRICAN NATIONS SHOULD GO BEYOND THE SCOPE OF SIMPLE MILITARY INTERVENTIONS AND SECURITY PARTNERSHIPS</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhidKeKw43ZqJMS6sSuuifbBuWSXgLUulBKtJGmQt6441aPCWYZskHO6F_5wAZzOqueLS5rDCIYPbFX7xA5OUmX2CRV5Jtt88hMvTiJeCLudJQOHEc2teiwmEzmPLh2yqdhT4-ghdNzTU9W/s1600/Eutm-mali.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhidKeKw43ZqJMS6sSuuifbBuWSXgLUulBKtJGmQt6441aPCWYZskHO6F_5wAZzOqueLS5rDCIYPbFX7xA5OUmX2CRV5Jtt88hMvTiJeCLudJQOHEc2teiwmEzmPLh2yqdhT4-ghdNzTU9W/s320/Eutm-mali.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">That objective goes hand-in-hand with the second challenge: establishing strong and durable security partnerships with local partners in order to ensure the operability of a transatlantic strategy in the region. The gradual diminishing of power-projection capabilities in EUROPE and the UNITED STATES has reinforced the necessity of establishing strong regional partnerships in the context of the struggle against terrorism. Although some transatlantic actors have recently strengthened their defense partnerships with countries in the region — for instance, FRANCE with CAMEROON, the IVORY COAST, DJIBOUTI, GABON, SENEGAL, the CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC, and TOGO, and the U.K. with ALGERIA — this type of cooperation should go beyond the scope of simple military interventions, as the struggle against transnational crime and terrorism in the region will inevitably involve EUROPE’S long-term engagement. During U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to his country, SENEGALESE President Macky Sall outlined the expectations of leaders in AFRICAN and EUROPE for stronger triangular cooperation in support of counterterrorism efforts in clear terms.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Background Information: </span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">SEVEN ECONOMIES IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA ARE EXPECTED TO BE AMONG THE TEN FASTEST GROWING ECONOMIES IN THE WORLD. At: </span></b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/04/africa-forgotten-and-underestimated.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/04/africa-forgotten-and-underestimated.html</a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a 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5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style><![endif]--></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The cooperation between the FRENCH and CHADIAN military in MALI serves as a model here, having proved to be both effective on the ground and recognized as legitimate by international institutions. But security partnerships between EUROPEAN and AFRICAN states need to go beyond the establishment of military bases, and should aim to address the main weakness of EUROPEAN militaries today: a lack of effective cooperation in intelligence and surveillance in this sparsely-populated region. The recent U.S.-FRENCH negotiations over the purchase of 16 Reaper drones for surveillance have highlighted EUROPEAN shortcomings in this domain. In this context, developing coordinated operations with AFRICAN armed forces<i> </i> is crucial in ensuring that these new capabilities will be used efficiently.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Although unintentional, the U.S. re-balance to ASIA has made the issue of transatlantic cooperation in the SAHEL resurface to the top of the agenda, as EUROPEAN capitals question the real extent of U.S. “strategic retrenchment,” both globally and in the region. In parallel, the evolution of the SAHEL should also be used in EUROPE to highlight the necessity of reassessing its security strategy, and undertake a true assessment of the capabilities that are attached to it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">By Martin Michelot and Martin Quencez <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>via Stratrisks </span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br /></div>

EU INVOLVEMENT IN MALI

WHY THE SAHEL IS CRUCIAL TO EUROPE'S NEIGHBORHOOD – AND ITS SECURITY STRATEGY  The ongoing crises in SYRIA and EGYPT have marginalized ...

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Head of Technical and Adult Services Librarian - Plainville Public Library

<strong>Head of Technical and Adult Services Librarian - </strong><strong><strong><span style="color: #48286d;">Plainville Public Library</span></strong></strong> is looking for an energetic, personable and motivated profession librarian to head its technical and adult services. The position supervises a cataloging department of 3, does copy and some original cataloging, selects adult materials, provides adult reference services and is part of the overall library management team of 3. The position would be assigned some special projects and would be in charge of the library in the absence of the Director and Assistant Director. We are looking for a professional who will solve problems with creativity and feel a commitment to modern library service. Salary range: $49,000 - $52,000. Qualifications: M.L.S. degree and public library experience. Send resume, letter of introduction and completed application (available <a _fcksavedurl="http://www.plainvillect.com/Downloads/JOB%20APPLICATION%20IV%20CELL%20NUMBER-04-26-2011-13.pdf" href="http://www.plainvillect.com/Downloads/JOB%20APPLICATION%20IV%20CELL%20NUMBER-04-26-2011-13.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>) to: Carole Johnson, Personnel Office, Town of Plainville, One Central Square, Plainville, CT 06062. The application process will remain open until the position is filled. Equal Opportunity Employer.

Head of Technical and Adult Services Librarian - Plainville Public Library

Head of Technical and Adult Services Librarian - Plainville Public Library is looking for an energetic, personable and motivated profession...

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Teen/Adult Services Librarian - Wethersfield Library

<strong>Teen/Adult Services Librarian - </strong><strong><strong><span style="color: #48286d;">Wethersfield Library</span></strong></strong> is looking for an energetic, approachable, tech-proficient Librarian to join its busy Adult Services department. This is a part-time combined Teen/Adult Services position at 19 hours per week. You will manage the library's teen programming, outreach, and collection development, provide a wide range of services at the adult information desk, and perform other duties as assigned. Wethersfield Library emphasizes superior customer service. Required: ALA-MLS; public library experience with teens and adults preferred. You must be able to work 1-5pm Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and 1-9pm Thursday, plus one Saturday per month in rotation. $26.50/hour, no benefits. Mail cover letter and resume by July 31, 2013 to: Wethersfield Library, 515 Silas Deane Highway, Wethersfield CT 06109 Attn: Pam Kelly. Emailed letters/resumes will not be accepted or considered; no phone calls please. AA/EOE/M/F.

Teen/Adult Services Librarian - Wethersfield Library

Teen/Adult Services Librarian - Wethersfield Library is looking for an energetic, approachable, tech-proficient Librarian to join its busy...

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Woot! New Calif. law protects jobs

California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill yesterday that scraps the state's $750-million-a-year bad-business boondoggle known as the enterprise zone program. The program killed scores of good-paying union jobs to create minimum-wage jobs elsewhere in the state.<br /><br />California Teamsters have long opposed enterprise zones. Earlier this year, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/03/workers-pay-to-lose-their-jobs.html">Teamsters were laid off</a> when two companies --  building products distributor Blue Linx and laboratory supply and distribution company VWR -- moved to enterprise zones in California. Our brothers and sisters were told the law forbade them from following their jobs.<br /><br />In place of enterprise zones,<a href="http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2013/07/jerry-brown-signs-california-enterprise-zone-overhaul-legislation.html"> the law</a> establishes the <a href="http://business.ca.gov/">Governor's Economic Development Initiative</a>, meant to create good jobs. A statewide sales tax exemption will apply to manufacturing equipment or research and development equipment purchases for biotech and manufacturing companies.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-5y3IxkzPke4Z61wM1OikpqE_JyRwbM5b1bJijzQ0cctXFbgophrQ_4Q42zakxohDSE3reCBcYfqYFKprfyt6VTkjyn61BMema5jgM3PwXdvUh_lOiIr8Yy-1SGoV8kFM-T2jH86DK91N/s1600/7.12.13gov.brown.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-5y3IxkzPke4Z61wM1OikpqE_JyRwbM5b1bJijzQ0cctXFbgophrQ_4Q42zakxohDSE3reCBcYfqYFKprfyt6VTkjyn61BMema5jgM3PwXdvUh_lOiIr8Yy-1SGoV8kFM-T2jH86DK91N/s320/7.12.13gov.brown.png" width="320" /></a></div>Brother Doug Bloch from <a href="http://www.teamstersjc7.org/">Joint Council 7</a> in San Francisco witnessed the signing and called it a "great moment for the state's workers."<br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Under the new program, money that was originally directed toward companies like Walmart and FedEx to create minimum-wage jobs will now go to manufacturers who create new jobs that pay at least $12 an hour. Hiring credits could go to Teamster employers in food processing, dairy, breweries, beverage and more. They'll also be eligible to get tax credits for equipment investments, including any retrofits they do to their plants to comply with AB 32, the Greenhouse Gas initiative.  And employers who want to transfer jobs now need to offer people the right to move with their job at their current rate of pay.  </span><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">In short, this is a big win for us.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Californians can now be more secure that corporations will not eliminate their jobs by moving their plants just to pad their bottom lines. Teamster strong!</span><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br /><br />

Woot! New Calif. law protects jobs

California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill yesterday that scraps the state's $750-million-a-year bad-business boondoggle known as the ent...

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'Let's keep the gamblers out of banks'

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4Om_c568L7zvC4_m0xHaY3r4K3pkzhwuhgODDVF7xFRV0UEAurV6T1u-jjnJ4fs1RHeCs3RHP9rumD1Nyx_RBRahSC9ji4lufO_MljA_rW9Y1Jgh1jVaLT2a_PfzJ3ZxBABVH2YaNriV/s1600/elizabeth+warren.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4Om_c568L7zvC4_m0xHaY3r4K3pkzhwuhgODDVF7xFRV0UEAurV6T1u-jjnJ4fs1RHeCs3RHP9rumD1Nyx_RBRahSC9ji4lufO_MljA_rW9Y1Jgh1jVaLT2a_PfzJ3ZxBABVH2YaNriV/s320/elizabeth+warren.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren dropped a bombshell -- actually two -- on federal bank regulators yesterday.<br /><br /><a href="http://wallstreetonparade.com/2013/07/senator-warren-drops-a-bombshell-in-senate-hearing-bipartisan-bill-to-restore-glass-steagall-being-introduced/">Wall Street on Parade</a> reports they were probably expecting a pat on the back because they're requiring banks to keep more money on hand in case they get into trouble (as they did in 2008 when they crashed the economy). Instead, Warren scolded them for failing to put bankers in prison.<br /><br /><a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/regwatch/finance/310479-warren-hammers-regulators-on-trials-for-firms-who-skirt-financial-rules">The Hill</a> reports Warren asked why they chose to fine banks accused of wrongdoing instead of prosecuting them for crimes. She asked for more information about bank violations and the agreements reached with the banks.:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Then the public could evaluate for themselves if you’re really out there fighting on their behalf.</blockquote>(We have an idea...)<br /><br />Warren also announced she and three other senators, including Arizona's John McCain, were introducing a bill to restore <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glass%E2%80%93Steagall_Act">Glass-Steagall</a>. That's a Depression-era law that separated risky gambling on Wall Street with traditional banking. It worked to keep the financial system stable for decades, until the banks managed to get it repealed.<br /><br /><a href="http://wallstreetonparade.com/2013/07/senator-warren-drops-a-bombshell-in-senate-hearing-bipartisan-bill-to-restore-glass-steagall-being-introduced/">Wall Street on Parade</a> reported the regulators stared in silence as Warren described why she was sponsoring the legislation. (They represented Treasury, FDIC, Federal Reserve and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.) She told them:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">“…the four largest banks are now 30 percent larger than they were just five years ago and they have continued to engage in dangerous, high-risk practices. So, later today Mr. Chairman, Senators McCain, Cantwell, King and I will introduce a 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act. For half a century after the Great Depression, Glass-Steagall kept this country safe by separating the risky activities of investment banks from the basic checking and savings accounts that consumers rely on every day.  </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">“The banks lobbied for weaker regulations and eventually the regulators started unraveling Glass-Steagall and finally in 1999 Congress repealed what was left of it. So now we propose a 21st Century Glass-Steagall so that we can return to the basics and try to keep the gamblers out of our banks.  </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">“Now, based on what the regulators did to Glass-Steagall over the past 30 years, I don’t expect that anyone on this panel will jump up and endorse the new Glass-Steagall bill; even so, we’re going to keep pushing for it.”    </blockquote>Stay tuned...<br /><br />

bank criminality Elizabeth Warren Glass-Steagall 'Let's keep the gamblers out of banks'

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren dropped a bombshell -- actually two -- on federal bank regulators yesterday. Wall Street on Parade repo...

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A Personal Trainer Cupertino Provides 4 Outdoor Activities That Will Help You Stay In Shape

<div style='font-style:italic;' class='uawbyline'>By Tammy Walker</div><br /><br /> <div class='uawarticle'>Cupertino is a little town within the Santa Clara County in California. It's situated on the western edge of the Santa Clara Valley and some parts of the town have extended towards the foothills of the mountains in Santa Cruz.<br /> <br /> Because of this, people in Cupertino are fond of outdoor activities, like trekking, hiking and mountain climbing and in fact, the towns are surrounded with bike lanes and bicycle traffic is typically heavy. So here's a list of 4 outdoor activities that can help you to stay fit, as shared by a personal trainer Cupertino.<br /> <br /> * Swimming<br /> <br /> If you have a pool in your house outdoors, then swimming is the perfect outdoor exercise for you. If you don't have a pool, then you can check out some of the hotels and resorts in Cupertino and see if they have a pool where you can swim.<br /> <br /> Experts say that swimming can help you to burn up to 900 calories especially if you do it more frequently. The personal trainer Cupertino would recommend that you also try a variety of strokes, such as back stroke, freestyle and butterfly.<br /> <br /> * Hiking<br /> <br /> Hiking will not only help you to stay fit but is also a great opportunity for you to explore the beauty of your surroundings. So schedule a walk in the park daily and enjoy the beautiful national parks and forests all over Cupertino.<br /> <br /> The personal trainer Cupertino says that hiking can help you to burn as much as 700 calories, although this will also depend on your pace and on how much weight you have. Ask your kids or other family members to join you for a more enjoyable hike. But don't forget to bring bottled water to keep you hydrated.<br /> <br /> * Biking<br /> <br /> For those who yearn for a more adventurous activity, visit some of the nearby beaches in Cupertino and rent a kayak. You can have your fellow adventurous friends to join you as well, because kayaking is more enjoyable when done in a group. This activity can make you to burn up to 400 calories in one hour, depending on your pace and your weight too.<br /> <br /> * Biking<br /> <br /> Biking is also another outdoor sport activity that is guaranteed to help you to burn calories, so invest on a good bike and spend a few hours of your time each day for biking. You can bike in the park or on some other safe places in Cupertino. The personal trainer Cupertino stated that biking for at least an hour each day can help you to burn up to a thousand calories. Again, this will pretty much depend on your speed and your body weight.<br /> <br /> So these are some of the outdoor sports that a personal trainer Cupertino will highly recommend to those who would like to burn calories in a fun and relaxing way. Do these activities every weekend and you'll certainly be surprised to see a great improvement on your body in only a few months.<br /> <br /> </div><br /> <div class='uawresource'><br /> <div style='font-style:italic;' class='uawabout'><br /> About the Author:<br /> </div><br /> <div class='uawlinks'>Getting in great condition with the assistance of <a href="http://www.theperfectworkout.com/personal-trainer-cupertino/">Personal Trainer Lafayette</a> not only enhances your own entire body but furthermore your well being as well. The advantages that you can get from <a href="http://www.theperfectworkout.com/personal-trainer-lafayette/">Personal Trainer Cupertino</a> are countless.</div><br /> </div><br />

A Personal Trainer Cupertino Provides 4 Outdoor Activities That Will Help You Stay In Shape

By Tammy Walker Cupertino is a little town within the Santa Clara County in California. It's situated on the western edge of the San...

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