5 Reasons that will slow your Metabolism

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Metabolism is the processes in the body that convert food and drink into energy. Lots of reasons that will slow your Metabolism, we chosen 5 of them: </span></span></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="5 Reasons that will slow your Metabolism" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhBRjNGVs0jSV3qRg6hYILF0ZSpU89fFt6w__Dc5IwKuJ4oM9vnHYzSmOt_UDisUyUAtzefmcUrrk6y_YpMHOK83XhIPA4l5353kazqxkIx6ZCt0neJTw3nGV4ghiaP81zGc6ZzIVr6tU/s640/5+Reasons+that+will+slow+your+Metabolism.jpg" title="5 Reasons that will slow your Metabolism" /></div> </br><center><script type="text/javascript"><!-- google_ad_client = "ca-pub-5028478688240504"; /* LargeInPost_waysforweightloss_300-600 */ google_ad_slot = "6695176472"; google_ad_width = 300; google_ad_height = 600; //--></script><script type="text/javascript" src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"></script></center></br> <br /><br /><br /><br /><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Salmon:</span></b><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The oil in salmon help your body process foods more effectively. The omega3 in wild salmon help improve insulin sensitivity, which shrinks fat from your waistline. Wild salmon also activates the thyroid hormone for a faster metabolism.</span></div><br /><br /><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Coffee:</span></b><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">When you drink coffee quarter of an hour before a workout, enabling you to train more intensely. Coffee stimulates adrenaline, which sends a order to your fat stores to burn fat. Advice; make it caffeinated and black.</span></div><br /> <br /><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Brazil Nuts:</span></b><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Brazil Nuts containing high amounts of selenium (the enzyme most important) who plays a special role in controlling the effects of a thyroid hormone that helps us manage our fat metabolism.</span></div><br /> <br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Do not starve yourself:</b></span><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">If you eat too little, your body will break down valuable muscle tissue for energy. If you want to increase your metabolism and continue lose weight, eat enough so do not starve yourself. You must eat six smaller meals throughout the day.</span></div><br /><br /><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"> Shortage of exercise:</span></b><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">When your muscles are working, your metabolism speeds up.. When you don’t exercise, fat can build up in your body and slow your metabolism. Regular exercise can boost your metabolism over the long term.</span></div><br /> <br /></div> </br><center><script type="text/javascript"><!-- google_ad_client = "ca-pub-5028478688240504"; /* inPost_waysforweightloss_336-280 */ google_ad_slot = "6975892477"; google_ad_width = 336; google_ad_height = 280; //--></script><script type="text/javascript" src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"></script></center></br>

Metabolism 5 Reasons that will slow your Metabolism

Metabolism is the processes in the body that convert food and drink into energy. Lots of reasons that will slow your Metabolism, we chosen 5...

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Wreath no. 3

<span style="font-size: large;">Here's the third wreath I made to mark Autumn.  It's for my older sister - she loved the one I had made for my mother.  </span><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGbHo2oTS97oFLWJckfmCeJqRh46kGGtsrDyE-x3GxwkO6XzvztSk1ec39O7U3Qj6iSbxaXZfJUOJ7-9ce3n3ZQQWx7rvbcdvWrdDkzyvv6qNLXlDg6fXMNZv4HpVTZKzYWJCdm34O_EmG/s640/blogger-image--1458765303.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGbHo2oTS97oFLWJckfmCeJqRh46kGGtsrDyE-x3GxwkO6XzvztSk1ec39O7U3Qj6iSbxaXZfJUOJ7-9ce3n3ZQQWx7rvbcdvWrdDkzyvv6qNLXlDg6fXMNZv4HpVTZKzYWJCdm34O_EmG/s640/blogger-image--1458765303.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Here it is hanging in her front door </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcrFi9HoklkMkhtBVsM2S6JktxsdkwVWylxBTlZYqW-EeB5dUdAM8hNxNBqzvVUINRB4-mRoUC4PgxXcBO_kMyV9zVfWaYEhGPLUpcT93Gq-8DMWiBV9zAZZ8CbQN4eZppVbUw-TPFGlSU/s640/blogger-image--200288544.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcrFi9HoklkMkhtBVsM2S6JktxsdkwVWylxBTlZYqW-EeB5dUdAM8hNxNBqzvVUINRB4-mRoUC4PgxXcBO_kMyV9zVfWaYEhGPLUpcT93Gq-8DMWiBV9zAZZ8CbQN4eZppVbUw-TPFGlSU/s640/blogger-image--200288544.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinzhnY54A0E6zgaU4qILwdqpVfVPxQY66cV8ppBfVYWLMCsvngbL1ogCsAOxuulU5Q0amZjUvwlB_PiHg2lnGYkMsRm6anRQB_n-G3i4YdUA6ZiUy0p-6z5hBwtnBEYEj3f9D1mimDVVkP/s640/blogger-image--418549923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinzhnY54A0E6zgaU4qILwdqpVfVPxQY66cV8ppBfVYWLMCsvngbL1ogCsAOxuulU5Q0amZjUvwlB_PiHg2lnGYkMsRm6anRQB_n-G3i4YdUA6ZiUy0p-6z5hBwtnBEYEj3f9D1mimDVVkP/s640/blogger-image--418549923.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><br></div>

Wreath no. 3

Here's the third wreath I made to mark Autumn.  It's for my older sister - she loved the one I had made for my mother.   Here it is ...

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Post Bikram Breakfast

<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;">After 6.30am Bikram (eek!) this morning we went to M&S for breakfast.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;">Half price breakfast - what a bargain!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidOrO8xtw-fJ9OXhw89xKr2J8He3cD8bedUK4lcqznZMzFUKcAL-IzHtStlFOMTj2Orr4uPK8rgCqpYyOrTgv_vserVY7oLqkVUVv3vOp7beLc9tCUxU_0A_fKCmBJCM2DFrxQPWD9c5Uc/s640/blogger-image--154813794.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidOrO8xtw-fJ9OXhw89xKr2J8He3cD8bedUK4lcqznZMzFUKcAL-IzHtStlFOMTj2Orr4uPK8rgCqpYyOrTgv_vserVY7oLqkVUVv3vOp7beLc9tCUxU_0A_fKCmBJCM2DFrxQPWD9c5Uc/s640/blogger-image--154813794.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;">Marks & Spencer's Restaurant in Grafton Street is bright and airy.  I took a picture of this side of the restaurant because there was no one in it - it was full on the other side!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir6SEe2O0t9a6o_Pua8wkCwKa7QQJdlvmhzTsl7qCP_Pt_hI4f8Pne8ISIrqwHFXjnFHUR1h5kkQt5X6uOUIp3cmJq-xDOcDtaooj3NCpVNEmUmgR-mQz31ADwwUNnqd6JCrWev64qdFrf/s640/blogger-image-124904062.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir6SEe2O0t9a6o_Pua8wkCwKa7QQJdlvmhzTsl7qCP_Pt_hI4f8Pne8ISIrqwHFXjnFHUR1h5kkQt5X6uOUIp3cmJq-xDOcDtaooj3NCpVNEmUmgR-mQz31ADwwUNnqd6JCrWev64qdFrf/s640/blogger-image-124904062.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;">Smoked salmon and scrambled eggs in a bagel</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMu9ozqNsBQw8C8crjurxeVxN1RqUQ1kPmsrjsqbN2TeQiWv_K7oCasgJc0rxNNSVPTLXlY67lGAevXSW4XqKu5XNz6YU0uiaPtW4uEescELlD9BOkOttLIAvIczR3seo3PSc78-oY-wpO/s640/blogger-image-1527197702.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMu9ozqNsBQw8C8crjurxeVxN1RqUQ1kPmsrjsqbN2TeQiWv_K7oCasgJc0rxNNSVPTLXlY67lGAevXSW4XqKu5XNz6YU0uiaPtW4uEescELlD9BOkOttLIAvIczR3seo3PSc78-oY-wpO/s640/blogger-image-1527197702.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;">Pancakes with creme fraiche and berry compote</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUXsSBZIGR28DgMuKfwi-sJMRC2-8coIMw6BHxT7HO3kNOeiSG8q0otPgM0mll_U09Eebn3VBtEYCFgZqgTLxBbH_TQqVOrxa3WYVxWCu_m0puKRB0IxU9EK87xqu3zCXWXKVH9DiyFDmY/s640/blogger-image-849767706.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUXsSBZIGR28DgMuKfwi-sJMRC2-8coIMw6BHxT7HO3kNOeiSG8q0otPgM0mll_U09Eebn3VBtEYCFgZqgTLxBbH_TQqVOrxa3WYVxWCu_m0puKRB0IxU9EK87xqu3zCXWXKVH9DiyFDmY/s640/blogger-image-849767706.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sourdough toast </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmwsyX2qhAxK_PYbpft1bufdiKNyMD_SJ7qFvuWJEaj1FW7wGHdMJKH1gic04Povouqq_h415j5uiEsM5DHvI9os18bqT4Ds5NB65gQxWqCLARNi2EZISmjTeRk4owjIUIaW7IbSjWncYg/s640/blogger-image--285178678.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmwsyX2qhAxK_PYbpft1bufdiKNyMD_SJ7qFvuWJEaj1FW7wGHdMJKH1gic04Povouqq_h415j5uiEsM5DHvI9os18bqT4Ds5NB65gQxWqCLARNi2EZISmjTeRk4owjIUIaW7IbSjWncYg/s640/blogger-image--285178678.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;">Eggs Benedict </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXiSIoIicUnQ80RG5rTgbKh79_EHrStXy-3S-qz2p0OfAzEGOEEqVcdCm3PUtdapBlfMcc3cus2XWGG2Q4kTcbJSzTIPq4758uC-2kjlXoE6Zhwj_RwknrjKbSABlsHAx7Ux-qvS6KIBV8/s640/blogger-image-250120750.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXiSIoIicUnQ80RG5rTgbKh79_EHrStXy-3S-qz2p0OfAzEGOEEqVcdCm3PUtdapBlfMcc3cus2XWGG2Q4kTcbJSzTIPq4758uC-2kjlXoE6Zhwj_RwknrjKbSABlsHAx7Ux-qvS6KIBV8/s640/blogger-image-250120750.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwtNUnHMMcAFQkNx2sziPOdgoQSibtICeRnln9y-PcyCleFM4wOkk7Ia2cDrCssSP3IjvCvfs4TMGVfxStuQEaBeBPa_qb1G3VAkkZ0bvuEgscqvQQoz0u6Orf4d0_g9y9qffsXQNOpupR/s640/blogger-image-1850908342.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwtNUnHMMcAFQkNx2sziPOdgoQSibtICeRnln9y-PcyCleFM4wOkk7Ia2cDrCssSP3IjvCvfs4TMGVfxStuQEaBeBPa_qb1G3VAkkZ0bvuEgscqvQQoz0u6Orf4d0_g9y9qffsXQNOpupR/s640/blogger-image-1850908342.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;">Such value!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU0xgGc_tfdJuC1w7IYmIbjDw2xOmpVq8jleUCHC4nAN7H_av3pceMIg7X3_T43cDh0qIOpTJMXAYafroMRzL19oE9SlX0KsDOTKZbHBS6l5MU6JfzBPMhjoj-0dR6lkdUALdIWw1dkmXX/s640/blogger-image-1553022529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU0xgGc_tfdJuC1w7IYmIbjDw2xOmpVq8jleUCHC4nAN7H_av3pceMIg7X3_T43cDh0qIOpTJMXAYafroMRzL19oE9SlX0KsDOTKZbHBS6l5MU6JfzBPMhjoj-0dR6lkdUALdIWw1dkmXX/s640/blogger-image-1553022529.jpg" /></a></div><br />

Post Bikram Breakfast

After 6.30am Bikram (eek!) this morning we went to M&S for breakfast. Half price breakfast - what a bargain! Marks & Spencer's R...

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Today's Teamster News 09.20.13

<a href="http://www.kirotv.com/news/news/strike-lockout-possibilities-darigold-workers/nZ2Df/" rel="nofollow">Strike, lockout possibilities for Darigold workers</a>  KIRO TV   ...Workers at Darigold, who have worked without a contract since June 1, staged an informational picket line a couple of weeks ago with signs that read "just practicing." Now the members of Teamster Local 117 believe their company has set the stage for a lockout or strike...<br /><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/18/union-membership-middle-class-income_n_3948543.html?utm_hp_ref=business" rel="nofollow">Middle-Class Decline Mirrors The Fall Of Unions In One Chart</a>  Huffington Post   ...This week the Census Bureau reported the <a href="http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/p60-245.pdf" rel="nofollow">latest depressing decline</a> in middle-class incomes during the so-called economic recovery. But it may have missed an important factor in this story. As union membership declines, middle-class incomes shrink...<br /><a href="http://www.correntewire.com/income_poverty_and_healthcare_2012_the_patient_did_not_get_worse_but_remains_seriously_ill" rel="nofollow">Income, Poverty, and Healthcare 2012: The Patient Did Not Get Worse But Remains Seriously Ill </a> Corrente   ...A comparison of real household income over the past five years showed an 8.3 percent decline since 2007, the year before the nation entered an economic recession, and a 9.0 percent decrease from the 1999 peak of $56,080...<br /><a href="http://oilprice.com/Energy/Gas-Prices/The-Era-of-Cheap-Gasoline-is-Over.html" rel="nofollow">The Era of Cheap Gasoline is Over </a> OilPrice   ...The last time the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in the United States was below $3.00, however, was the day before Christmas Eve 2010. AAA said that, on average, prices may never be that low again...<br /><a href="http://citizen.typepad.com/eyesontrade/2013/09/as-presidents-export-council-meets-no-chance-to-meet-obamas-export-doubling-goal-exports-fall-under-.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+eyesontrade+%28Eyes+on+Trade%29" rel="nofollow">As President’s Export Council Meets, No Chance to Meet Obama’s Export Doubling Goal; Exports Fall Under Free Trade Agreements</a>  Public Citizen   ...recent government data show it will be virtually impossible to meet Obama’s stated goal of doubling exports by the end of 2014. The same data shows that in 16 out of 16 months since the Korea “free trade” agreement (FTA) took effect last year, U.S. goods exports to Korea have fallen below the average export level in the year before the deal...<br /><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/20/world/europe/pope-bluntly-faults-churchs-focus-on-gays-and-abortion.html?_r=0" rel="nofollow">Pope Says Church Is ‘Obsessed’ With Gays, Abortion and Birth Control</a>  New York Times   ...Six months into his papacy, Pope Francis sent shock waves through the Roman Catholic church on Thursday with the publication of his remarks that the church had grown “obsessed” with abortion, gay marriage and contraception, and that he had chosen not to talk about those issues despite recriminations from critics...<br /><a href="http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-fi-ct-onlocation-film-czar20130918,0,4158515.story" rel="nofollow">Search for L.A. film czar drags on at City Hall</a>  Los Angeles Times   ....L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti is still searching for a film czar to serve as an industry advocate in City Hall and to help stop runaway production...<br /><a href="http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2013/09/aar-rail-traffic-increased-in-august.html" rel="nofollow">AAR: Rail Traffic increased in August</a>  Calculated Risk   ...The Association of American Railroads (AAR) ... reported increased total U.S. rail traffic for the month of August 2013, with intermodal setting a new record and carload volume increasing overall compared with August 2012...<br /><a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/09/19/meely-navy-yard-shooting-understaffed/2837045/" rel="nofollow">Union rep: Cutbacks cost lives in Navy Yard shooting</a>  USA TODAY   ...A top union official for Washington Navy Yard police says he believes fewer lives would have been lost had the department not been understaffed during the attack that left the shooter and 12 of his victims dead...<br /><a href="http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2013/09/tensions_between_bart_and_unio.php" rel="nofollow">Tensions Between BART and Unions Escalate, Transit Strike Looming</a>  SF Weekly   ...After another full day of negotiations Wednesday, it's fair to say things between BART and its unions are getting worse, not better...<br /><a href="http://peoplesworld.org/labor-to-play-heavily-in-state-elections-next-year/" rel="nofollow">Labor to “play heavily” in state elections next year</a>  People’s World   ...Organized labor, with its community allies, will "play heavily" in state gubernatorial and legislative races next year, its top two political operatives say...<br /><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/09/19/watch-the-growth-of-u-s-income-inequality-with-this-animated-map/" rel="nofollow">Watch the growth of U.S. income inequality with this animated map</a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Washington Post   ...Here's <a href="http://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2013/09/state-inequality-visualizations.html" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue;">a fascinating visualization</span></a> of how inequality in the United States has evolved over the years...<br /><a href="http://www.boston.com/business/news/2013/09/19/postmaster-says-usps-may-need-emergency-rate-hike/e8272wQV5SRxZ0N3eVHQgP/story.html" rel="nofollow">Postmaster says USPS may need emergency rate hike</a>  Associated Press   ...The Postal Service may need an emergency rate increase to stay afloat, according to Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe who says the agency’s cash balance next month likely will cover only five days of its average daily expenses...<br /><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elizabeth-kucinich/monsanto-protection-act_b_3921968.html?utm_hp_ref=business&ir=Business" rel="nofollow">The Monsanto Protection Act Is Back!</a>  Huffington Post   ...The agrichemical companies may have the best lobbyists in town. Last May, the agrichemical giants -- Monsanto, Dow, Syngenta, Bayer, DuPont, BASF -- pulled off a stunning maneuver to protect their massive profits. These companies could have legal protection to continue selling their products even if the courts pulled the products from the market...<br /><a href="http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-jpmorgan-case-rare-admission-bank-broke-law-20130919,0,735274.story" rel="nofollow">In JPMorgan case, a rare admission: bank broke the law</a>  Los Angeles Times   ...The $920-million settlement <a href="http://www.latimes.com/topic/economy-business-finance/financial-business-services/jpmorgan-chase-%26-co.-ORCRP010217.topic" rel="nofollow">JPMorgan Chase</a> and Co. struck with regulators in the "London Whale" fiasco contains something rare: an admission the bank broke the law...<br /><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/19/more-amazon-warehouse-workers-sue_n_3950295.html?1379590888" rel="nofollow">More Amazon Warehouse Workers Sue Retailer Over Unpaid Security Waits</a>  Huffington Post   ...A growing number of Amazon.com warehouse workers are suing the online retail giant and its contractors for requiring them to undergo time-consuming and unpaid security screenings in order to do their jobs...<br /><a href="http://wepartypatriots.com/wp/2013/09/19/misplaced-idea-to-private-the-tennessee-valley-authority-brings-unions-gop-together/" rel="nofollow">Misplaced Idea to Private the Tennessee Valley Authority Brings Unions, GOP Together</a>  The We Party   ...The budget proposed by President Barack Obama in April floated an idea to privatize the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), a crown jewel of the New Deal. Labor unions expressing deep opposition to the idea are being joined by unlikely allies in the fight...<br /><a href="http://www.prnewschannel.com/2013/09/19/ohio-unions-keep-watchful-eye-on-right-to-work-legal-challenge-in-indiana/" rel="nofollow">Ohio unions keep watchful eye on Right to Work legal challenge in Indiana</a>  PR News Channel   ...Ohio union supporters are anxiously watching the developments in Indiana on the heels of the state’s controversial Right to Work law being ruled unconstitutional by a Lake County judge last week…<br /><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penda-d-hair/wisconsins-antivoting-law_b_3942241.html" rel="nofollow">Wisconsin's Anti-Voting Law Heads to Federal Court</a>  Huffington Post   ...With deceptively little fanfare or attention, a federal judge in Wisconsin is poised to preside over the first trial challenging a photo ID law under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act...<br /><a href="http://florida%20gov.%20rick%20scott%20seeks%20supreme%20court%20review%20of%20worker%20drug%20test%20%20associated%20press/" rel="nofollow">Florida Gov. Rick Scott seeks Supreme Court review of worker drug test</a>  Associated Press   ...Florida Gov. Rick Scott plans to seek U.S. Supreme Court review of his executive order requiring random drug tests for thousands of state employees...<br /><a href="http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20130918/NEWS04/309180048/Senator-Flawed-bidding-process-led-privatization-prison-food-service?nclick_check=1" rel="nofollow">Senator: 'Flawed' bidding process led to privatization of prison food service</a>  Lansing State Journal   ...A Republican senator told the Civil Service Commission on Wednesday that a flawed bidding process led to the state’s decision to privatize food service for 45,000 Michigan prisoners and eliminate about 370 state jobs...

Today's Teamster News 09.20.13

Strike, lockout possibilities for Darigold workers   KIRO TV   ...Workers at Darigold, who have worked without a contract since June 1, stag...

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BETA BOT MALWARE

<div class="post-title-wrap"><h1 class="title" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNsG4sVABlBSAL9ADYDex81_YKJV3rh34bioNKLJ2OZK0ikLoPdFm3ZpYyfSGy1zH3GDOMlsGe5nDLA752-0kaxAfOLyLVoS5ijh-1hCSEFNRGughP1VoT2n7752j4gDVf990vq2Jkq1Ya/s1600/thumb.php.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNsG4sVABlBSAL9ADYDex81_YKJV3rh34bioNKLJ2OZK0ikLoPdFm3ZpYyfSGy1zH3GDOMlsGe5nDLA752-0kaxAfOLyLVoS5ijh-1hCSEFNRGughP1VoT2n7752j4gDVf990vq2Jkq1Ya/s320/thumb.php.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></span></h1><h1 class="title" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #134f5c;">FBI WARNS "BETA BOT" MALWARE CAN KILL YOUR ANTI - VIRUS PROGRAMS, STEAL DATA</span> </span></h1><h1 class="title" style="text-align: center;"></h1></div><a href="http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/fbi-warns-%E2%80%9Cbeta-bot%E2%80%9D-malware-can-kill-your-anti-virus-programs-steal-data?source=nww_rss" target="_blank"><strong>Source: Network World</strong></a><br /><br /> The FBI sent out a warning today about an uptick in the use of malware known as Beta Bot that can steal sensitive data such as log-in credentials and financial information.<br /> The FBI says Beta Bot blocks computer users’ access to security websites and disables anti-virus programs, leaving computers vulnerable to compromise. Cyber criminals aiming Beta Bot at financial institutions, e-commerce sites, online payment platforms, and social networking.<br /><br /> From the FBI: “Beta Bot infection vectors include an illegitimate but official looking Microsoft Windows message box named “User Account Control” that requests a user’s permission to allow the “Windows Command Processor” to modify the user’s computer settings. If the user complies with the request, the hackers are able to infiltrate data from the computer. Beta Bot is also spread via USB thumb drives or online via Skype, where it redirects the user to compromised websites.<br /><br /> Although Beta Box masquerades as the “User Account Control” message box, it is also able to perform modifications to a user’s computer. If the above pop-up message or a similar prompt appears on your computer and you did not request it or are not making modifications to your system’s configuration, do not authorize “Windows Command Processor” to make any changes.”<br /><br /> The FBI recommends running a full system scan with up-to-date anti-virus software on the infected computer. If Beta Bot blocks access to security sites, download the latest anti-virus updates or a whole new anti-virus program onto an uninfected computer, save it to a USB drive and load and run it on the infected computer. It is advisable to subsequently re-format the USB drive to remove any traces of the malware, the FBI stated.<br /><br /> RSA’s Limor Kessem, Cybercrime and Online Fraud Communications Specialist, <a href="https://blogs.rsa.com/new-commercial-trojan-inth3wild-meet-beta-bot/">wrote about Beta Bot</a> in May saying:  “It appears that a much anticipated event has finally transpired in the cybercrime arena, with the release and active sale of a new commercially-available Trojan family that has begun around January this year, circulating under the name Beta Bot. RSA researchers have recently come across samples of this user-mode rootkit, analyzing its behind-the-scenes infrastructure. Beta Bot actually started out as an HTTP bot and not a banking Trojan, but it has since evolved, donned a trigger list, and was repurposed for financial fraud that includes targets such as banks, ecommerce and even Bitcoin wallets.<br /><br /> According to research performed by RSA it was inferred that Beta Bot (alias: Troj/Neurevt-A) is not the creation of an amateur. The malware is a persistent Ring-3 rootkit with layers of anti-security protection (such as not executing within virtual machines, thus avoiding sandboxes), AV-disabling features, and even a DNS redirecting scheme to isolate bots from security-themed online resources, including RSA’s official website

BETA BOT MALWARE

FBI WARNS "BETA BOT" MALWARE CAN KILL YOUR ANTI - VIRUS PROGRAMS, STEAL DATA Source: Network World The FBI sent out a warning to...

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Of blogs and blogging–a guest post from Elkanah House Senior Primary School

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is a guest post from Karen Stadler who is the ICT Integrator at Elkanah House Senior Primary in Table View. This </span><a href="http://karenstadler.wordpress.com/2013/08/13/of-blogs-and-blogging/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">post</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> appeared on her excellent blog </span><a href="http://karenstadler.wordpress.com/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All Things ICT</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. I asked Karen if I could use it as a guest post because Elkanah House Senior Primary is the epitomy of blogging in the school environment. The Principal, Arthur Preston, has a blog, both ICT teachers have blogs and the different grades have blogs. It seems there is also a Library blog and a Sports blog. All the known links will be shown below! Congratulations to Elkanah House  for setting this great standard in blogging at a South African school.</span></i><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinJFvIafOIr6B5NaVnlXYemFbQgK0s0RhCBcTRpFJqQ43zPMtkFuc1Ed-Qjd5svEI2mJPHei12KuSONXpMo82YHvbr0GsyqGeB_Nf0ndfsgZ0Oj3ZvNpsn_IKnjxiTpJPNitsgMVDfnMA/s1600-h/image%25255B4%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg6MPAJjzFxmitsdxNm_mTx3ANso9uw4RpMFC9AljMv07jc1Ko5E0X79xxdmkMz01gXY03hR-Ae9yzv1JapkF9fxnqi8xZ3dY3bOkLHUkIkSPuEpFie6WvjL5IRhLDKLxVny37zUfmK80/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Karen reports in her post “</span><a href="http://karenstadler.wordpress.com/2013/08/13/of-blogs-and-blogging/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Of Blogs and blogging…”:</a></b></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“One of my goals this year was to see that each student in our school was set up with a blog and also to set each Grade up (Grades 4, 5 and 6) with a Grade blog which the teachers could share and take turns to post articles or photos to. Well, I can happily say that I have achieved these goals – and more. We even have a school library blog and a school sports blog going now!</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“For the students I decided to use the <a href="http://www.kidblog.org/">KidBlog.org</a> platform because it is safe and secure and can be controlled by the teacher. It is a great stepping stone for future blogging. For the Grade blogs, Library and sports blogs I chose <a href="http://www.wordpress.com/">WordPress.com</a> simply because it has served me well and I have found it easy to use. </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“I have to say, getting the students to blog has been a whole lot easier than getting the teachers to blog. Granted, they have more features on their blogs, which have at times, been trying for the teachers and frustration levels have been high on occasion (especially when the internet doesn’t play along and loading images takes much longer than anticipated – and you know how teachers are about their time). There have been highlights too, such as a teacher blogging via her laptop directly from camp, so the parents got the latest camp news hot off the press! The students, however, don’t sweat the small stuff and don’t worry as much about mistakes. They simply keep on trying until it works or they are satisfied with the result. We are now at the stage where the students are asking to blog, which is most encouraging! The learning curve has been a little more steep for the teachers, but we are definitely getting there. Having said this, it is difficult to keep the momentum going (my own blog is proof of this) and the teachers need reminders to blog and keep their students blogging. They seem to have difficulty in finding topics to blog about, but this will change over time and it will become more intuitive the longer they blog. I have tried to help by sending them ideas for blog posts and also links to further reading for blog posts. </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Reasons for teachers to blog</b></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"I do believe blogging can play a very important role in the classroom and this is why I encourage our teachers to blog: </span><br /><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It opens a window into a more personal aspect of your classroom life.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is another way of keeping in contact with your parents.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is a way of sharing information, content, links etc. with students and parents alike.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It could be a showcase for student work, as well as a way in which to post homework.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is a method of reflecting on work done, learning that has taken place or places that have been visited etc.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With a blog you can share news in a paperless way!</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Blogging encourages responses from parents, pupils and other visitors, so it is another way in which to engage in a conversation.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you keep at it, it could transform your teaching and be the link to technology use in your classroom.</span></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Reasons for students to blog</b></span></div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"I believe our students should blog for the following reasons: </span><br /><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It teaches them to write for a wider audience, not just their teacher.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They learn valuable skills such as proof reading.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They learn how to react to comments in an informed manner and also how to write effective comments.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A student blog could become an online portfolio of work done (something I am working towards).</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Student blogging forms an integral part of digital citizenship and makes up an important part of their digital footprint.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It opens their worlds up, especially when they interact with other students from around the world. </span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They have something that they can be proud of and which is accessible anywhere in the world.</span></li></ul><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Although the blogging has come along in fits and starts so far this year, I am positive that if we stick with it and keep making the effort, the students and teachers alike will see the value in it and we will go from strength to strength.” </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">SchoolNet says: </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you for letting us share your lovely article Karen.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Known blog links at Elkanah House</span></b><br />Here are the known links to the Elkanah House Senior Primary blogs:</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Karen's lovely ICT blog 'All things ICT' (ICT Senior Primary): <a href="http://karenstadler.wordpress.com/">http://karenstadler.wordpress.com/</a></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Arthur Preston's principals blog 'Head Thoughts':  <a href="http://headthoughts.co.za/">http://headthoughts.co.za/</a><br />Juanita Oosthuizen's 'Technoboffins' (ICT Junior Primary): <a href="http://technoboffins.wordpress.com/">http://technoboffins.wordpress.com/</a></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monni's Art (Art Teacher) blog: <a href="https://monniart.wordpress.com/">https://monniart.wordpress.com/</a><br />The Fabulous Fours (Grade 4): <a href="http://elkgr4.wordpress.com/">http://elkgr4.wordpress.com/</a><br />The Fantastic Fives (Grade 5): <a href="http://elkgr5.wordpress.com/">http://elkgr5.wordpress.com/</a></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Senational Sixes (Grade 6): <a href="http://elkgr6.wordpress.com/">http://elkgr6.wordpress.com/</a></span></div>

Blogging Of blogs and blogging–a guest post from Elkanah House Senior Primary School

This is a guest post from Karen Stadler who is the ICT Integrator at Elkanah House Senior Primary in Table View. This post appeared on her ...

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Applications for Microsoft Innovative Educator Experts close on 30 September 2013

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEpDPp4ZSw6aUNhJsa_ecea7GuSIAqVj08A8s1PhqZnNzzTEbyWve8zu_f1cFEiWkqsE_CH9DJmfmo_ya_vTY5x_nPwT6wsJn5HKHwuds4tddP6OAFLZNy00DXqBGfjQlbOybQhADRzH8/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="78" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSXvBUpL3eVlWfla47xwUFh8aP0SJ3oHTxL6hJhfM8thFioWd15PyR8FJTif8mTokF0YPPsmeLPzFibMmhm9Gf03VuJu-6q25CQGKGKxyLA4S7jjl3KhEqqdFon4kaQCrLR6xopbiz-UI/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="218" /></a></div><br /><i><br /></i><i>Submitted by Megan Rademeyer</i><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have not yet uploaded your learning activity to the <a href="http://www.pil-network.com/">Partners in Learning Network</a> and applied to be a <a href="http://www.pil-network.com/Educators/expert">Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert</a> you have until 30 September to do so. From the entries that are received from South Africa and Lesotho, teachers will be selected to attend the Global Partners in Learning Forum taking place in Barcelona, Spain in April 2014. This year we are looking for teachers who have produced a creative and engaging learning activity AND who have the willingness and passion to share their skills with others. If you think you have what it takes to be a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert visit the <a href="http://www.pil-network.com/Educators/expert">Partners in Learning Network</a> for more information. </span></div>

Microsoft Applications for Microsoft Innovative Educator Experts close on 30 September 2013

Submitted by Megan Rademeyer If you have not yet uploaded your learning activity to the Partners in Learning Network and applied to be a Mi...

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Pop Quiz: Bernanke vs. Berezniki

Which one has the more unstoppable sinkhole policy?<br /><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Bernanke:</b></span><br /><br /><b>January 6, 2010</b><br /><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/01/26/politics/main6141737.shtml">Obama Backs Bernanke for Likely 2nd Term - CBS News</a><br /><br /><div style="color: #666666;"><i>The Fed is all but certain to keep its key bank lending rate - it affects a wide range of rates on consumer loans - at a record low near zero when the meeting concludes on Wednesday.<br /><br />It is also expected to renew a pledge to hold rates at record lows for an "extended period" to nurture the recovery. <span style="color: red;">Economists think that means rates will stay where they are for at least six more months.</span></i></div><br />At least 6 months! And in hindsight, give or take 5 years or more! Hurray!<br /><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Berezniki:</b></span><br /><br /><a href="http://webecoist.momtastic.com/2008/08/26/incredible-strange-amazing-sinkholes/">13 of the Biggest, Strangest, and Most Devastating Sinkholes on Earth</a><br /><br /><div style="color: #666666;"><i><b>2. Berezniki</b><br /><br />In Soviet Russia, the ground moves you. Berezniki’s sinkhole began in 1986 and just grows worse with each passing year. <span style="color: red;">It’s unstoppable.</span> Currently it’s over 200m deep, 80m long and 40m wide. In case you’re thinking “Berezniki? Who cares?” you should know that 10% of the world output of potash comes from this area, and <span style="color: red;">the sinkhole is very close to destroying the mine’s sole rail line</span>.</i></div><br />Unstoppable! Very close to destroying the mine's sole rail line! Hurray!<br /><br />Too much sarcasm?

Pop Quiz: Bernanke vs. Berezniki

Which one has the more unstoppable sinkhole policy? Bernanke: January 6, 2010 Obama Backs Bernanke for Likely 2nd Term - CBS News The Fed is...

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Pizza Delivery Stories

This summary is not available. Please <a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2013/09/pizza-delivery-stories.html"> click here </a> to view the post.

Pizza Delivery Stories

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Save me from myself

It's been a long couple days with work stuff and i had to take a class yesterday and today for my state licensure.  Yesterday I got to come home to an empty house, had time to chat with a friend and decompress before they got home.  Today I wasn't so lucky and walked into the heart of a tornado of chaos.<br /><br />My adhd medicine wears off mid-afternoon which is fine.  Sometimes though the time release doesn't work right and I crash hard.  This might leave me headachy and tired, or like today the tiniest thing sets me off into a big ball of anger.<br /><br />Not that any of it was a tiny thing, my husband and children were coming at me from every angle assaulting me with questions and well just bothering me!<br /><br />So i threw a tantrum.  There's no other word for it.  Stomping feet and slamming doors and yelling at everybody.  I'm not proud of this but it's what i did. <br /><br />Kids are long since off to bed and hubby's out at a game.  I'm just here alone.<br /><br />I'm really sad because I royally screwed up.  i was awful to everyone.  I wish somebody could just save me from me.  I wish i could just have a hug (IRL lol) or maybe hubby could say something or do anything to snap me out of it while I'm being like that.  And it's not over for us, this will fester and blow out of control again in a few days.  We've talked about that, he's not interested in giving me attention if i'm being or was being difficult.  It frustrates the crap out of me.  Even if he doesn't want to help me, or make life more pleasant for him, i just don't see why he doesn't want to help his kids grow up with a better mom.  It's hard not to compare my relationship with those of friends and what you read.  Kind of depressing, really.<br /><br />A friend did something for me yesterday that was really sweet and took so much effort but i wasn't as appreciative at the time as I wish i was... dunno just feel bad.<br /><br />Friends had a baby last night and i didn't stop to see the little guy.  I had plenty of time while i was being all crazy and now i can't.  And i didn't call.  They go home in the morning and I can visit this weekend... just not the same. <br /><br />So all in all i've just been a bad person today.  Really really disappointed in myself.  Tomorrow's a new day though, just gotta keep my chin up until he gets over it. 

Save me from myself

It's been a long couple days with work stuff and i had to take a class yesterday and today for my state licensure.  Yesterday I got to c...

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Real Retail And Food Services Sales per Retail Employee (Musical Tribute)

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfBCreSFnBqn-yR57oeAtHLOGyphOMCgfkI8JISOyu4R8UU4gt-rhERrMTRmEVEK5uZ8xC3aa8yccYBLYP1q9CVoIBC_95zsuoxC5ic-yZfmjZXsYri8KKDcNEAD30u_Ih2Q2Q-N4sS_g/s1600/Real+Retail+and+Food+Services+Sales+per+Retail+Trade+Employee.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfBCreSFnBqn-yR57oeAtHLOGyphOMCgfkI8JISOyu4R8UU4gt-rhERrMTRmEVEK5uZ8xC3aa8yccYBLYP1q9CVoIBC_95zsuoxC5ic-yZfmjZXsYri8KKDcNEAD30u_Ih2Q2Q-N4sS_g/s320/Real+Retail+and+Food+Services+Sales+per+Retail+Trade+Employee.jpg" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Click to enlarge.</span><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4GtyMeEcPPE" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><b>Source Data:</b><br /><a href="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/graph/?g=mzA">St. Louis Fed: Custom Chart</a>

Real Retail And Food Services Sales per Retail Employee (Musical Tribute)

Click to enlarge. Source Data: St. Louis Fed: Custom Chart

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Book Review: Cities Without Ground

<a href="http://citieswithoutground.com/"><b><i>Cities Without Ground: A Hong Kong Guidebook</i></b></a> by Adam Frampton, Jonathan D. Solomon, Clara Wong<br /><a href="http://www.oroeditions.com//book/cities-without-ground">ORO Editions</a>, 2012<br />Paperback, 128 pages<br /><br /><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQd8TGP_i9O8mw0i9j1rcTIBKgY4dUHiQf8xYjbmG-dYUPO8F5iGvJ5st21REJcOkN5y5A1B3TBMNG091iPgNzgKu5LPVJx57Ez7w19g37yTCQqKY1WHQwl9w2sqH0jqSUdTL9dflP1DhQ/s1600/cover_CWG.jpg" /><br /><br />Think "guidebook" and most likely photos and descriptions highlighting particular objects—be they buildings, sculptures, parks, or even neighborhoods—comes to mind. But these entities are never separate from what is around them, a fact especially pronounced in cities, where new and old architecture, public art, and landscapes partake in almost constant negotiations with their surroundings. Then there are the networks—usually streets but comprising many more conduits in this age of infrastructure and flows—and this guide to Hong Kong, a "city without ground," is unique in this regard, for it focuses on the above- and below-grade walkways that traverse large sections of the city.<br /><br /><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoiHCF9CQxV26kwJkJfPchmHAtK3DMkas4dmvBx8mMLHQxCUZArVwF8_9SO3NnFnZynTY5GH7hSkEEW_guR3aGMmgq49RIK9Ne1JTcGjVlcOFuiE90D2xu5I0wpH5kX4ka2oHyrS0g4pOR/s1600/11.jpg" /><br /><br />So given the carefully honed subject of the guidebook, the question is "how are the walkways presented?" Photographs, like the elevated walkway above, hardly do justice to the complicated network that winds its way between, above, below, and sometimes within buildings. So exploded axonometric drawings, as shown below, are used to describe the walkway networks in various fragments throughout the city. Buildings are ghosted and the vertical dimensions are exaggerated, both aiding the clarity of the diagrams.<br /><br /><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqgQGnuqOhJc_HIImZwIzPuu5z6hqLmyXiY6ZrVVyTnJYYohzzYPBuT2z2EMLujxEUHXZy6CR7sdF5nUCtrx-kHeFqT5xn3cQdVBzGx_AyjRgxie6tC6fLaZvvw23a1BBKqy2omcLs5Tfx/s1600/09.jpg" /><br /><br />Given the complexity of the routes, and therefore the concomitant complexity of their representations, it's fruitless for the reader to try to understand every map in its entirety. Aiding one's reading of the diagrams are the numerous notes (shops, restrooms, bus stops, etc.) and activities (gambling, fishing spot, drunken expat, and men with bird cages, to hint at the variety). The latter is a particularly important part of the book, because it inserts the observations of the authors and their compatriots that helped make the book into the mix; and because it enables the reader to fictionalize and even personalize places and routes.<br /><br />After all, is there a big difference between a map labelled with an important event (Mr. X was born/died here; the Battle of X occurred here; etc.) and one marking a relatively unimportant but potentially exotic occurrence? In reality yes, but in the realm of maps, not really. Both the important and the mundane exploit the conventions of maps and help people to remember <i>something</i> by locating it in space. In the case of <i>Cities Without Ground</i>, I like the idea (especially having never visited Hong Kong) of taking a virtual stroll around Shun Tak Centre and Sheung Wan, for example, watching the tourists come and go from the casinos, then jostling past other passengers as I make my way to the Fabric Bazaar, passing "Save the Children" activists and a giant newscast on the way. It's a walk in my imagination, but one I wouldn't have taken otherwise without this guidebook.<br /><br /><b>US: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1935935321/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1935935321&linkCode=as2&tag=aweeklydoseof-20" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.com" border="0" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan.gif" /></a> CA: <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/1935935321/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1935935321&linkCode=as2&tag=aweeklydoseof-20" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.ca" border="0" height="28" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan-ca.gif" width="90" /></a> UK: <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1935935321/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1935935321&linkCode=as2&tag=aweeklydoseof-20" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.co.uk" border="0" height="28" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan-uk.gif" width="90" /></a></b>

Book Review: Cities Without Ground

Cities Without Ground: A Hong Kong Guidebook by Adam Frampton, Jonathan D. Solomon, Clara Wong ORO Editions , 2012 Paperback, 128 pages Thi...

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Autumn food creations!

<div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X7EDHL4J4Sk/UkIkFY4wIXI/AAAAAAAAJ18/ZUlDGHhcr6M/s1600/13+-+1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X7EDHL4J4Sk/UkIkFY4wIXI/AAAAAAAAJ18/ZUlDGHhcr6M/s320/13+-+1" width="320" /></a></div><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Since summer has come to an end I've been feeling very creative with recipes to cook up, not sure if it has to do with the change of season or what!</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It all started with the popular website called Pinterest, I tell you it's addicting! </span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">You can spend all day on there looking at all kinds of recipes, crafts and all kinds of things!</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've been on a smoothie kick lately and have one each morning for breakfast, and holds me over till lunch.</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fall food finds:</span></i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fTFVjXDbm4Q/UkNTrNCS64I/AAAAAAAAJ3U/l9VFOkSLTq8/s1600/13+-+1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fTFVjXDbm4Q/UkNTrNCS64I/AAAAAAAAJ3U/l9VFOkSLTq8/s320/13+-+1" width="320" /></a></div><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Went to trader joes and such the other day hunting down the famous pumpkin Greek yogurt but couldn't find any, I found some other pumpkin products though!</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Apples</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Pumpkin patch cookies</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Pumpkin butter</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Pumpkin pie Lara bar</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Pumpkin cream cheese</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Pumpkin spice granola</span></i><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Some of these products would go great in a smoothie or even on a bagel!</i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I also have one for dessert or an after workout recovery!</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qaoKGaNt9Wk/UkIj8LHGxII/AAAAAAAAJ1s/2rhw3lhXo2I/s1600/13+-+1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qaoKGaNt9Wk/UkIj8LHGxII/AAAAAAAAJ1s/2rhw3lhXo2I/s320/13+-+1" width="320" /></a></div><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">They are simple to make and oh so delicious!</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Apple pie smoothie:</span></i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xTahuOhqSBI/UkB5da_tt0I/AAAAAAAAJzE/RRHqh9l2S44/s1600/13+-+1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xTahuOhqSBI/UkB5da_tt0I/AAAAAAAAJzE/RRHqh9l2S44/s320/13+-+1" width="320" /></a></div><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">All I did was dice up an apple and toss it in the blender along with a cup of almond milk, a cup of cinnamon apple sauce, a teaspoon of vanilla extract and a half of a teaspoon of cinnamon sugar and blended it all up.</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It was sweet and delicious, great apple flavor and I added some truwhip on top with a cinnamon graham cracker and a dash of cinnamon sugar on top!</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Since the holidays are approaching and the leaves are changing their pretty colors, I've been browsing Pinterest just looking for recipes to test out and so glad I came across this delicious and creamy pumpkin pie recipe!</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It's on of my favorite things to eat during the holidays but can get very fattening depending on what you use.</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1aoIOKDrhak/UjuJoZRLWpI/AAAAAAAAJwk/3EBKDswpzjY/s1600/13+-+1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1aoIOKDrhak/UjuJoZRLWpI/AAAAAAAAJwk/3EBKDswpzjY/s320/13+-+1" width="320" /></span></i></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Can't go wrong with Greek yogurt, almond milk, banana, ice and pumpkin purée for this delightful festive drink!</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Tonight was the first time I've made it and wow!</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Robust creamy pumpkin flavor topped off with some truwhip topping, crumbled graham cracker and cinnamon sugar it tasted exactly like pie!</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I just about freaked when I saw that the orange leaf frozen yogurt shop had a new flavor for Fall !</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Can you guess what it was?!</span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Pumpkin pie:</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bQ6Exl5ux7I/UjjwKfFCs3I/AAAAAAAAJt4/TEfuuvTG8SQ/s1600/IMG_20130917_180640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bQ6Exl5ux7I/UjjwKfFCs3I/AAAAAAAAJt4/TEfuuvTG8SQ/s320/IMG_20130917_180640.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Delicious pumpkin pie frozen yogurt tasted just like pie but better because it was froyo and the spices tasted just right and went along perfectly with the graham crackers we had in the car!</span></i><br /><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Pumpkin cheesecake smoothie:</span></i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ojITNEeG5jo/UjybC8mcfiI/AAAAAAAAJxc/IAlwCsVUjqU/s1600/13+-+1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ojITNEeG5jo/UjybC8mcfiI/AAAAAAAAJxc/IAlwCsVUjqU/s320/13+-+1" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Similar to the pumpkin pie smoothie but with cottage cheese and a crunchy graham cracker blended in to make smooth and creamy just like pumpkin cheesecake!</span></i></div>

Autumn food creations!

Since summer has come to an end I've been feeling very creative with recipes to cook up, not sure if it has to do with the change of sea...

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Teamster women get fired up at New Orleans conference

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7FQTni6Gg7hT6Sz9tMAwJIgFO9LTSAs4L5fQsEsxZkk_Uw9At3yveDEltmfFM0-kYNgf584Cuwg6OYbXm25vAGti4oc9_dgas8fr4TL7lWFvLE-f-fNnWTHgJzdGR7q-1m8Ifcv4k_May/s1600/women's+conference+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7FQTni6Gg7hT6Sz9tMAwJIgFO9LTSAs4L5fQsEsxZkk_Uw9At3yveDEltmfFM0-kYNgf584Cuwg6OYbXm25vAGti4oc9_dgas8fr4TL7lWFvLE-f-fNnWTHgJzdGR7q-1m8Ifcv4k_May/s400/women's+conference+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teamster women find sisterhood is powerful!</td></tr></tbody></table>One thousand Teamster women -- the most ever -- are in New Orleans through Saturday to re-energize for the next year of battles against the enemies of working people.<br /><br />Commentator Donna Brazile, a New Orleans native, fired up the crowd during the opening session today with a rock 'em, sock 'em speech about the attacks on workers. Brazile said the battle we're fighting is unlike anything she's ever seen. She had special scorn for Congress, who, she said, "is picking on people who are too busy working two minimum wage jobs to make ends meet."<br /><br />"Get your butt out and vote," she implored the Teamster women.<br /><br />(Brazile's cousin, by the way, is a member of Teamsters Local 279 in New Orleans.)<br /><br />She echoed Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa's message. "There's a war on workers and a war on women," he said.<br /><br />That war looks the same, he said, wherever right-wing governors are attacking workers: in Ohio, with Gov. John Kasich, in Wisconsin, with Gov. Scott Walker, in Michigan, with Gov. Rick Snyder.<br /><br />Becky Strzechoski, director of the Teamsters Women's Conference, led the general session with a warning that the attacks on workers so prevalent in the United States are bleeding into Canada. And she reminded the crowd that a Teamsters contract is gender neutral.<br /><br />Teamster women will spend most of the next two days at workshops, learning about tools and tactics to use in fighting the war on workers -- and women.<br /><br /><br />

Teamsters Women's Conference Teamster women get fired up at New Orleans conference

Teamster women find sisterhood is powerful! One thousand Teamster women -- the most ever -- are in New Orleans through Saturday to re-energi...

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Real Annualized International Trade per Capita

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqXdrZXI8oHW0hp5WTW0vcWc6hYSkOjlVj0qjmcnlK9IG8VApQfBOHFEz-E7k6IPWPD2LTBfrrT3CNrpwjiTzTUWZ7gOOVyqOoFiFs8Wznl9ACXVUaVZMo4BbWKtlrpYnZRD4ebI1EIZE/s1600/International+Trade+per+Capita+-+Long-Term.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqXdrZXI8oHW0hp5WTW0vcWc6hYSkOjlVj0qjmcnlK9IG8VApQfBOHFEz-E7k6IPWPD2LTBfrrT3CNrpwjiTzTUWZ7gOOVyqOoFiFs8Wznl9ACXVUaVZMo4BbWKtlrpYnZRD4ebI1EIZE/s320/International+Trade+per+Capita+-+Long-Term.jpg" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Click to enlarge.</span><br /><br />Let's zoom in for a closer look.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVufb153qC-vQyaRU4ygHPrz7sGzl8nxM8Ynh8hr1-hNbov3GhvAlw8PGD4kh2ERrvQf7t38uVAo1dqsFG2KyAE7pgNW-Lzyx4uIn3dhZGwfvueQ7LbHA1vETDSKhIxGBgYOoGx4OVjMk/s1600/International+Trade+per+Capita+-+Short-Term.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVufb153qC-vQyaRU4ygHPrz7sGzl8nxM8Ynh8hr1-hNbov3GhvAlw8PGD4kh2ERrvQf7t38uVAo1dqsFG2KyAE7pgNW-Lzyx4uIn3dhZGwfvueQ7LbHA1vETDSKhIxGBgYOoGx4OVjMk/s320/International+Trade+per+Capita+-+Short-Term.jpg" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Click to enlarge.</span><br /><br />Sorry, China. It looks like we're pretty much done being your exponential growth engine.<br /><br /><b>August 11, 2013</b><br /><a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/russellflannery/2013/08/11/china-faces-years-of-slowing-gdp-growth-top-strategist-says/">China Faces Years Of Slowing GDP Growth, Top Strategist Says</a><br /><br /><div style="color: #666666;"><i>“We need to get used to the fact that the boom is over,” said Andy Rothman, China macro strategist at brokerage CLSA. <span style="color: red;">“The days when you could just roll out of bed and make money, or the days when you could expect that the growth rate for most things was going to be faster next year — that’s done. We should expect that for the foreseeable future, every year on average, most major economic data points are going to be growing more slowly.”</span></i></div><br />It could never happen here of course. This is America. Thanks to <a href="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/graph/?g=mzd">perma-ZIRP</a>, booms will never end again! Hurray!<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="236" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/yFFljFuGfmc" width="420"></iframe><br /><br /><div style="color: #666666;"><i>Don't mind us we're just spilling our guts<br />If this is love I don't wanna be hanging by the neck<br />Before an audience of death</i></div><br /><b>See Also:</b><br /><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2010/06/sarcasm-disclaimer.html">Sarcasm Disclaimer</a><br /><br /><b>Source Data:</b><br /><a href="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/graph/?g=mz9">St. Louis Fed: Custom Chart</a>

Real Annualized International Trade per Capita

Click to enlarge. Let's zoom in for a closer look. Click to enlarge. Sorry, China. It looks like we're pretty much done being your e...

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TPP + China = even more reason to worry

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL5GNPh4L9dyFEjafZgdiLgok9fpP5_M0vgNOuTOWAXZejHvGXGnGsP1spLECr7NtKsbzE1Y7RlXgK3QNdhzmGV_vRO4iWp0vuqjkx_b7TV33eLlje3d5hnhidRw71jJ4kMMouyRMMkqih/s1600/tpp.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL5GNPh4L9dyFEjafZgdiLgok9fpP5_M0vgNOuTOWAXZejHvGXGnGsP1spLECr7NtKsbzE1Y7RlXgK3QNdhzmGV_vRO4iWp0vuqjkx_b7TV33eLlje3d5hnhidRw71jJ4kMMouyRMMkqih/s320/tpp.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Just when you think the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) can’t get any worse, it does. Now </span><a href="http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=33B91A19-6BFF-4BF3-965A-1E0084ABD1DD" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">China is making rumblings that it wants to participate</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> in the TPP. You know, the country that put the “sweat” in sweatshops!<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">America has seen what China can do to U.S. jobs, and it’s not good. This nation </span><a href="http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2012/08/24/report-america-lost-27-million-jobs-to-china-in-10-years" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">lost 2.7 million jobs to the Chinese</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> during the first 10 years after China was accepted into the World Trade Organization, but that is only the beginning if the world’s most populated nation is allowed to join the current 12-country Pacific Rim trade pact. <o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And did we mention that the </span><a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/china-drives-uptick-in-us-trade-deficit-96257.html" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">U.S. trade deficit with China topped $30 billion</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> for the first time in July? Good times!<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While trade negotiators are in the nation’s capital to try and work out unresolved portions of the TPP, those who support workers and their allies are </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/450001515036305/451382368231553/?notif_t=plan_mall_activity" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">taking to the street tomorrow</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> to say the public deserves to be heard on this trade agreement. There should be no quick up-or-down vote in Congress on something so important.</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Let's make them remember that when the U.S. negotiates a trade agreement, every provision should benefit working families, not big corporations. America doesn't need anymore "free" trade deals, it needs fair trade deals.</span></div>

China fair labor fair trade TPP TPP + China = even more reason to worry

Just when you think the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) can’t get any worse, it does. Now China is making rumblings that it wants to partici...

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So Where's The Outrage?

For years and years there has been a low grade howling that occasionally peaks at an ear shattering crescendo over gun control. It's like clockwork.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/how-many-die-from-medical-mistakes-in-us-hospitals?google_editors_picks=true">There is a new study that just came out that shows medical malpractice deaths dwarf gun deaths, automobile deaths and accidental deaths, combined.</a><br /><br />This new study shows that the problem is so rampant that they estimate it to be the third leading cause of death in America trailing only heart disease and all cancers combined.<br /><br /> <blockquote>In 2010, the Office of Inspector General for Health and Human Services said that bad hospital care contributed to the deaths of 180,000 patients in Medicare alone in a given year.<br /><br />Now comes a study in the current issue of the Journal of Patient Safety that says the numbers may be much higher — between 210,000 and 440,000 patients each year who go to the hospital for care suffer some type of preventable harm that contributes to their death, the study says.<br /><br />That would make medical errors the third-leading cause of death in America, behind heart disease, which is the first, and cancer, which is second. </blockquote><br />What kind of outrage do we hear about this?<br /><br />Crickets.<br /><br /><br />It seems medical malpractice isn't so messy and visually in your face.<br /><br />It's nice and tidy.<br /><br />My father almost kicked the bucket recently because a new doctor he was seeing prescribed him a new heart medication that built up in his body and started poisoning him.<br /><br />He was in the hospital for two weeks and had multiple "heart episodes" which is hospital speak for heart attack.<br />The medicine burned his lungs chemically. This was misdiagnosed as pneumonia at one point and he kept taking the medicine until it finally put him in the hospital.<br />His regular doctor finally figured out what the problem was but not before it damn near killed him.<br /><br /><br />This is just one example of the now estimated <i>Half A Million People A Year </i>that die because of medical malpractice yet you do not see angry mothers on the television demanding action, do you?<br /><br />This country has it's priorities fucked up and it is the media and special interests who are fanning the hysteria.<br /><br />I expect we will see more about this issue in the near future though.

So Where's The Outrage?

For years and years there has been a low grade howling that occasionally peaks at an ear shattering crescendo over gun control. It's lik...

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What I learned visiting my mom at the hospital - The Globe and Mail

<i><br>The 14th floor of Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto is an art gallery of sorts.<br><br>Its plantless courtyard displays a group of sculptures depicting men, women and children. Recalling the échorchés of bygone illustrated medical atlases, these dancing metal figures leap and squat, their skin stripped from their bodies to reveal bones and musculature. Pieces of steel, crusted by time and the elements, form sharp skeletons rounded out at the ribs, buttocks and biceps.<br><br>"What do you say they are again?" my mother asks, her IV pole in tow. "Aychorshays?"<br><br>I drone on about my graduate seminar on the politics of medical representations and the animation of corpses in anatomy books until another patient walks by.<br><br>"Enjoying your walk?" my mom asks.<br><br>"It's my Central Park," he replies.<br><br>We are in the hematology ward, 14A.<br><br>As I walk the halls, I'm filled with pride for Canada's generous and cutting-edge universal health care system, and sadness at why I am getting to know it first hand.<br><br>At 69, my mom is one of the oldest patients here. Eight months ago, she could walk two kilometres for grocery shopping, and swim with my three-year-old in Florida. She already had terminal leukemia but we didn't know it.<br><br>Like my mother, most patients are here for a chemotherapy regimen: seven days receiving chemicals by intravenous followed by four to eight weeks to recover and hope for remission and a possible stem-cell transplant.<br><br>Confined to the hospital because of their suppressed immune systems and reliance on blood transfusions, these patients walk the halls of this small space – once around the nurses' station, past the very sick young woman and the witty pretty one, past the visiting room and the family that brings in the delicious breaded chicken, then back to the elevators and the échorchés.<br><br>Pictures line the walls along their walk. Some are beautiful. I like the bright yellow painting of a girl made by a patient, and the framed child's drawing. There is a charming watercolour, and even the posters telling us to "remember to wash your hands" and "report any coughing or diarrhea" are not all that bad in design.<br><br>Suddenly, my mother stops in front of a framed colour print. "I hate this one," she says.<br><br>The picture is of a boy fishing from a rock, and there's a ghostly image of his grandfather in the background, hunched over and faintly rendered. "I can't believe they have this here," my mom says. "Wait, this one is worse."<br><br>The next print shows two empty Muskoka chairs on a cottage dock in the fall, and is titled The Last Visit. It is hokey and seemingly harmless. But my mom gets teary, and then I do too. We know there won't be another cottage season for us as a whole family.<br><br>My father arrives and wonders what is going on. It is strange to be crying here, in front of these awful artworks. So we start to laugh. "I'm going to avoid this stretch," says my mother as we continue walking the loop.<br><br>Later that afternoon, we talk about the pictures and our reactions to them. All have been donated in memory of a friend, a parent, a sibling or a spouse. We don't mock the tastes of others or the intention of the givers. Nor do we blame anyone – everything about these artworks and their display is grounded in love and generosity.<br><br>The problem is that many of these pictures were chosen while mourning. They are memorials, and carry the weight of tombs.<br><br>I fantasize about taking them down and putting them in a small room, one framed picture above the other from floor to ceiling, along with their tiny brass plaques – like a memorial wall in a cemetery. These pictures need to be placed somewhere to remember the dead, not here, where the living are pulling their clanking IVs along the linoleum, performing feats that make marathoners look weak.<br><br>I wonder if my visceral reaction is due to my occupation – I am an art history professor.<br><br>When I ask nurses and doctors their thoughts about them, most say they have never looked or noticed. They are busy. I don't blame them for not looking at art when their objects of study demand close visual examinations with life-or-death consequences.<br><br>Nonetheless, whenever my mom introduces me as her daughter the art historian, the talk turns to the pictures. The patients know them well. The wonderfully witty woman down the hall has even covered up one in her room on account of its fading sunset, its memorial plaque and what they imply.<br><br>When I leave the hospital after my visit, I pass the portraits of the men (and some women) who greeted me when I first arrived on the ground floor. Suited and stiff, or elegantly dressed and posed, these doctors, researchers and donors are celebrated through paint and photography.<br><br>Art matters here in the foyer: It lets us know who is important and to whom we should be thankful. But art also matters on the 14th floor: It starts conversations, creates environments, makes us laugh and cry. Art donated in memory of a loved one should not reflect the grief of the living, but embody the joy, energy and authenticity of the deceased.<br><br>My mother died in March. I am still looking for the perfect picture to donate.<br><br><a href="http://m.theglobeandmail.com/life/facts-and-arguments/what-i-learned-visiting-my-mom-at-the-hospital/article14346103/?service=mobile#!/">http://m.theglobeandmail.com/life/facts-and-arguments/what-i-learned-visiting-my-mom-at-the-hospital/article14346103/?service=mobile#!/</a></i>

What I learned visiting my mom at the hospital - The Globe and Mail

The 14th floor of Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto is an art gallery of sorts. Its plantless courtyard displays a group of sculptures d...

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Librarian II - New Haven Free Public Library

<strong>Librarian II - </strong><strong><strong><span style="color: #48286d;">New Haven Free Public Library</span></strong></strong>. Salary: Minimum $43,748 annualized. Closing Date: <span style="color: red;">September 27, 2013</span>. Nature of Work: This is professional library work beyond entry level. Incumbents are expected to have acquired the basic knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to perform the full range of tasks required at a fully capable level of competence. Duties are performed within the framework of established library policy under the general supervision and review of a higher level librarian. In addition, this position involves responsibility for the organization and maintenance of a special library collection or service. This current assignment is in the Young Minds / Youth Services area. Minimum Requirements: Masters degree in Library Science from an American Library Association accredited library school. Minimum of two years experience as a professional librarian and the necessary knowledge, abilities and skills, in addition to those from Librarian I, as stated in the job description, including but not limited to: Ability to organize and maintain a specialized library collection or service within a department; experience with a variety of on-line databases and the ability to apply this knowledge in planning and implementation of research or catalog work; Ability to evaluate and advise on the disposition of reference questions, or on matters of cataloging practice; Ability to instruct and train Librarian I and support staff. Instructions: Online job applications can be submitted to: <a _fcksavedurl="http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/HumanResources/CityJobPostings.asp" href="http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/HumanResources/CityJobPostings.asp" target="_blank">http://www.cityofnewhaven.com/HumanResources/CityJobPostings.asp</a>.

Librarian II - New Haven Free Public Library

Librarian II - New Haven Free Public Library . Salary: Minimum $43,748 annualized. Closing Date: September 27, 2013 . Nature of Work: This ...

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Kochs’ vast dark money network exposed

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI3OPJCPhfJhuq8sLoGzOIOFOGAtvnm_NH_ZcEnMbsy3l2Fi93oa9CXdB25rKILltx7P6cUwLXGlqJ0YWoLcctA-gxFU6B4bTtey5D7UDw49p2kkxtXAg9vG896QMiFGT1XrnsDsd8bD8t/s1600/Koch-Brothers-Exposed.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI3OPJCPhfJhuq8sLoGzOIOFOGAtvnm_NH_ZcEnMbsy3l2Fi93oa9CXdB25rKILltx7P6cUwLXGlqJ0YWoLcctA-gxFU6B4bTtey5D7UDw49p2kkxtXAg9vG896QMiFGT1XrnsDsd8bD8t/s200/Koch-Brothers-Exposed.png" width="200" /></a></div>New tax filings by a Koch-funded front group reveal the staggering scope of the political machine that wants to destroy workers' rights and turn us into feudal serfs. Exposed secret political spending by “<a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/behind-the-curtain-exclusive-the-koch-brothers-secret-bank-96669.html" rel="nofollow">Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce,” which included $250 million during the 2012 election cycle</a>, shines a light on the vast shadowy network of organizations, LLCs and business groups promoting anti-worker causes.<br /><br /><div>Our friends at the <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/cmd" rel="nofollow">Center for Media and Democracy</a> have <a href="http://prwatch.org/news/2013/09/12247/breaking-new-list-dark-money-shell-game-groups-connected-kochs" rel="nofollow">the story</a>:</div><blockquote class="tr_bq">The Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce's tax filing also lists the names and amounts of all of the entities it funded between late 2011 and the eve of the 2012 elections. Here is the list of the top five groups to which the Kochs' Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce funneled millions:</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"Corner Table LLC," known as the "<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Center_to_Protect_Patient_Rights" rel="nofollow">Center to Protect Patient Rights</a></strong>" (CPPR): three infusions of cash totaling $114,678,000. CPPR is at the center of a probe by the California Elections Board on "dark money" spent through shell groups to influence two ballot initiatives, among other concerns that have been raised about it.    </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"PR Dist LLC," described as "<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Americans_for_Prosperity" rel="nofollow">Americans for Prosperity</a></strong>," which is directed by David Koch: two infusions totaling $31,600,000.  </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong>The 60 Plus Association Inc.</strong>," $15,660,000  </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/American_Future_Fund" rel="nofollow">American Future Fund</a></strong>," $13,600,000 </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong>Concerned Women for American</strong> Legislative Action Committee," $8,150,000 </li></ul></blockquote><div>Freedom Partners’ tax report also shows it owns five other shell game groups that all share the same Washington DC street address: “American Entrepreneur Fund LLC,” “American Enterprise Group LLC,” “American Strategies Group LLC,” “MIC LLC,” and “American Strategic Innovations LLC."<br /><br />Creepy!<br /><br />CMD reports that the “<a href="http://sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=National_Federation_of_Independent_Business" rel="nofollow">National Federation of Independent Business</a>” received $2.5 from the Koch-funded “Freedom Partners” group. The NFIB claims to represent the interests of small business owners, yet it’s getting millions from the Kochs’ big corporation ... which would just as soon crush the small businesses that try to compete with it.<br /></div><div>And in case you needed a reminder of how intricate and well-funded the right-wing anti-worker arsenal is, there’s more:</div><blockquote class="tr_bq">Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce spent another $50 million on other groups, cumulatively, some of which are well known and some of which have flown below the public's radar:</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/American_Commitment" rel="nofollow">American Commitment</a></strong>," $6,260,000 </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong>Partnership for Ohio's Future</strong>," $500,000  </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong>West Michigan Policy Forum</strong>," $1,000,000  </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/American_Energy_Alliance" rel="nofollow">American Energy Alliance</a></strong>," $1,460,000 (has previously been connected to the Kochs) </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong>American Values Action</strong>," $230,000 (spent $14 million on "independent expenditures" including phone calls against Obama during the 2012 election; donors unknown/not registered as a PAC)  </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong>Common Sense Issues, Inc.</strong>," $50,000 </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong>Heritage Action for America, Inc.</strong>," $500,000 (connected to the Heritage Foundation, which has deep Koch connections)  </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"ORRA LLC (<strong>EVANGCH4 Trust</strong>)," $5,055,000 </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"POFN LLC (<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Public_Notice" rel="nofollow">Public Notice</a></strong>)," $5,466,250  </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Republican_Jewish_Coalition" rel="nofollow">Republican Jewish Coalition</a></strong>," $700,000 </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"RION LLC (<strong>Center for Shared Service Trust</strong>), $2,738,000 (closely connected to the Charles Koch Foundation) </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"SLAH LLC (<strong>Public Engagement Trust</strong>)," $1,500,000 (Arlington)</li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong>State Tea Party Express</strong>," $600,000 (operates out of Willows, California) </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"STN LLC (<strong>Themis Trust</strong>)," $5,781,000 </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"TONA LLC (<strong>Libre Initiative Trust</strong>)," $3,112,000 </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Tea_Party_Patriots" rel="nofollow">Tea Party Patriots</a></strong>," $200,000 (operating out of Woodstock, Georgia)</li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li>"TRGN LLC (<strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Generation_Opportunity" rel="nofollow">Generation Opportunity</a></strong>), $5,040,000 (a group aimed at Gen X that tries to pin the economic crash that began under President George W. Bush on Democrats) </li></ul></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><ul><li><strong>"The </strong><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=National_Right_to_Work_Committee" rel="nofollow"><strong>National Right to Work Committee</strong></a><strong>," $1,000,000 (which pushes anti-worker, union-busting measures)</strong></li></ul></blockquote><div>The next time you hear about a “grassroots” organization of concerned citizens whining about “big government” and “big labor” while calling for things like “right to work” for less laws and financial deregulation, odds are that those ordinary folks are in fact right-wing billionaire goons – or at least they’re getting paid by right-wing billionaire goons.   </div>

dark money Koch brothers right to work (for LESS) vast right-wing conspiracy Kochs’ vast dark money network exposed

New tax filings by a Koch-funded front group reveal the staggering scope of the political machine that wants to destroy workers' rights ...

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