Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Medtronic 2Q profit falls 35 percent on costs

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Medtronic’s fiscal second-quarter profit fell 35 percent as legal and other costs outpaced weak gains in medical device sales, but adjusted results met Wall Street expectations.

The medical device maker, based in Minneapolis, says profit fell to $566 million, or 52 cents per share, from $868 million, or 78 cents per share, during the same period a year ago. Revenue rose less than 2 percent to $3.9 billion from $3.84 billion.

The rise in sales was not enough to offset a 16 percent boost in expenses, driven by legal costs.

Excluding charges, Medtronic Inc. said it earned 82 cents per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect earnings per share of 81 cents on revenue of $3.9 billion.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Resume FAX Blaster – quickest way to send your Resume directly to Construction Employers

Find Construction Jobs distributes your resume directly to 1000′s of Architecture, Engineering and Construction employers.? A unique opportunity that allows YOU to choose the companies, that you would like to work with and Blast your resumes via FAX to employers directly through our resume blaster. The quickest way to get hired and achieve your dream job.

Our Main Features:

Our proprietary database of over 500,000 AEC employers is second to none! – our proprietary database contains personal and up-to-date contact information for thousands of Architecture, Engineering and Construction decision-makers in all sectors of the construction industry looking for talent. Directly to the hiring manager! Target multiple geographical areas – Find Construction Jobs has a radius-search feature that takes care of that! Exclude your current employer from seeing your resume or any other Architecture, Engineering or Construction company. Your resume is sent to the employer exactly the way you designed it. Comprehensive search criteria - the search engine for Find Construction Jobs was designed by building industry experts to give your resume blast the greatest impact by choosing from the largest number of specific industry sectors and job types available.

This is absolutely first of its kind where resumes are sent via Resume FAX Blaster.? In seconds your profile is on the table of the hiring manager of many companies to be considered.

Many construction firms are on the look out for the right candidate. So do not delay and blast your resumes with the help of our enormous potential employer database of your choice.

You pay us just pennies per fax!

?

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Arizona school district sends letters home about overweight kids

Chubby elementary school children in Flagstaff, Ariz., have more than just bullies to worry about. If they’re too fat, their school will notify their parents.

Starting in the fall, students in the Flagstaff district will?be weighed and measured at school. Students who are found to be overweight, marginally overweight, or underweight will have a letter sent home to their parents,?which will include graphs showing a range of appropriate weights for a given age and height.

Barry Hess, the vice chairman for the Arizona Libertarian Party and former Libertarian Party Arizona gubernatorial candidate, describes the Flagstaff school district’s decision to send notes home as “absurd.”

“I’m surprised that parents aren’t coming out against this with pitchforks and saying, ’shut up, stop ruining our kids,’” Hess told The Daily Caller.

Hess could not believe that parents of children in the Flagstaff school district would accept this new policy.

“This is an attempt [by the school district] to take over everything except responsibility for the child,” Hess told TheDC. “This is not providing an education, and the district is completely overstepping its boundaries here. It’s none of the school’s business to try to tell parents what they have to do. They don’t even care about kids being overweight. The school district just cares about breaking down the resistance of parents to an unsubstantiated authority.”

A Flagstaff Unified School District human resources representative, who did not provide a name, said, “this is not really anything new, it’s not a policy, I’m not even sure it can be called a policy. Every child that shows something significant in testing will have a letter sent home.”

An Arizona Daily Star editorial on Nov. 16 suggested that this was, in fact, a new policy. “Beginning this fall the [Flagstaff] district will measure and weigh elementary-school children and send letters to parents whose children are overweight or heading that way,” the paper’s editorial read.

K. Alison Clarke-Stewart, a psychology and social behavior professor at the University of California, Irvine, expressed concern that letters of this nature could potentially harm the self esteem of children.

“The message to parents about their children’s weight should be accompanied by a cautionary note that they should NOT make their children feel worse about themselves. They should not start lecturing the child about being fat,” Clarke-Stewart wrote in an e-mail to TheDC.

If parents do receive a letter regarding their child’s weight, Clarke-Stewart recommended the obvious: the child’s parents would be wise to promote a healthy diet.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

SNL takes on TSA: ‘It’s our business to touch yours’ [VIDEO]

Saturday Night Live spun its humor into the TSA body-scan/pat-down debacle that has the whole country talking this weekend. In a parody thematically pulled from your run-of-the-mill late night adult encounters advertisement, viewers are enticed to pursue such an “encounter” by simply: booking a U.S. flight and refusing a body scan. From there, a handsy TSA agent will do the rest:

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Royal Construction Company announces New Services

Home Remodeling and Construction is a broad field. These services can cover a magnitude of different job types.

With the release of their new website, Royal Construction Company has also released a list of more specific service types including commercial renovations, home improvement and building restoration. Royal Construction Company has continued to provide customers with an extensive list of quality services. The company has repeatedly showed knowledge and expertise in every type of building, remodeling and construction. Their new service list are helping more consumers find a company that can offer specialization.

There are many consumers out there searching for specific job types like historic building restoration or commercial renovations that can’t seem to find an expert they can count on. Finding a contractor who has the expertise and also has a strong dedication to quality is not an easy task. Royal Construction Company has grown their clientele based upon reputation and word of mouth. In the Maryland Remodeling and Construction Industry, Bill Murray is a well known and respected contractor. His company was built upon his own principles of honesty, intergrity and his attention to detail.
Today Royal Construction Company is providing home remodeling and construction in Annapolis, Arnold, Severn, Severna Park, Glen Burnie, Edgewater, Stevensville, Millersville, Crofton and Bowie, Maryland. With the release of his new website, Ben is capturing a larger audience and advertising to the more communities. If you are looking for any type of home remodeling and construction, we recommend visiting the Royal Construction Company website today. With a broad set of services they can offer their expertise on any type of project, and are a contractor you can count on to get the job right the first time.

Their expertise is not just in construction or home remodeling, this company has been providing all types of restoration and improvement throughout Maryland. Visit their website today for a list of services they can provide.

Home Renovation Annapolis
Bathroom Remodeling Annapolis
Kitchen Remodeling Annapolis

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Feng Shui Bed Position North – Feng Shui In Today’s Style & Design

Feng Shui Bed Position North

Feng Shui Bliss

You may be wondering whether living a heartfelt belief in a Feng Shui lifestyle can really make a difference to positively affect our lives and the lives of those around us. Feng Shui Bed Position North

It can.

Even Donald Trump once raved about Feng Shui on the CNN Network!

In my attempt to understand this ancient philosophy more, I have completed training classes and have done extensive research on Feng Shui.

I have been applying my Feng Shui training & principles to create a more harmonious environment which incorporates my existing design & style and simply addressing life’s invisible as well as visible forces.

By correcting the imbalances through the Feng Shui principles, I have since experienced more peace, calm and tranquillity – all of which I must credit to applying Feng Shui. I have achieved a more fabulous way of living that has quality. And that is bliss, indeed!
You, too can learn and use the ancient principles to transform your homes to attract, enhance and enrich your life.

Here are some broad concepts you can use to achieve a more well-balanced home and office. I have also included tips on what to avoid and how to deflect & dissolve any inauspicious energy lines.

Feng Shui At Home

The Main Door

In Feng Shi terms, the two most critical aspects of the house are the situation of the main door and the positioning of the bed in the bedroom.

For the Chinese, we believe our main door is the ‘mouth’ of the house. Being the forefront of the house, it plays a very important role because it conditions the chi of the house through which it flows through.

Hence, the main door area should be kept simple and free of clutter. It should provide us a smooth and pleasant transition between the outside world and the calmer and more tranquail world within.

To Avoid:
Once the main door is opened, it should not be directly in line with and within view of the back door – this is deemed inauspicious. Bliss Tip: Place a screen to block off the back door so that it will not be visible from the main door.

Do not let the main door open to full view of a toilet or a bedroom door – this is bad Feng Shui. Bliss Tip: To counter this, install a long mirror on the outside of the toilet or bedroom door and always keep the toilet or bedroom door closed.

The main door must not be located below any toilet on the floor above. The main door must not face directly at a staircase; a pillar; the edge of 2 walls or a protruding corner pointing directly at it. It should also not be facing any dilapidated building or two buildings separated by a narrow alley as this signifies broken luck. Bliss Tip: If the house faces such issues, install plants at the sides of the doorway or a hang wind chime at the entryway.

Ideally, the main door when opened, should reveal a serene landscape beyond.

The Hallway

Some homes have hallways aligning straight through with the front and back doors – this is inauspicious due to loss of chi. Bliss tip: Place some furniture and plants in an S-curve formation to deflect and slow the chi down.

The Bedroom

When arranging the bedroom, you need to consider the location to place the bed. For good luck, place the bed in the corner of the room diagonally opposite the door entrance.

Avoid putting the bed directly under a window, under a sloping ceiling or where its foot is pointing directly out of the door or window, positioning it against the bathroom door or where there are water pipes above the head.

Avoid heavy beams above the bed to eliminate the sense of oppressiveness – Bliss Tip: Either install a new ceiling to cover the beams or align the bed such that the beams run alongside the bed.

Try not to put the bed where there is something overhanging it. Do not hang pictures of fierce looking animals, abstract objects or having a water feature in the bedroom. Water is good Feng Shui in the house but not in the bedroom as it suggests financial loss.

Do not also position the bed where you can only get in and out on only one side – if you are unable to get in and out comfortably on both sides, it suggests that inevitably, problems will develop in one’s relationship.

Bliss Tip: For a firm sense of order which is good Feng Shui, install cabinets wherever appropriate to help organisation.

The Living Room

The living room is the most used space of the house being the family space, hence it should be bright, inviting and cheerful with ease of movement.

Paint the walls with bright colours and place the stereo set or TV here to generate noise and activity.

Do not position the main chair where it faces directly at the door otherwise, it is said to give rise to a tense atmosphere or place the main chair with its back to the window – it’s alright for the less important chairs. Bliss Tip: Put the main chair with its back against a solid wall.

Use rounded large scale upholstery pieces to form the seating arrangement. The sofas and armchairs should come with generous back support and comfortable armrests.

The seating arrangement to have a square formation to complete the symbolism of a perfect Feng Shui. L-shaped seating arrangements should be avoided as they are deemed less auspicious.

Depending on the taste, the living room can be styled and designed in either a formal or informal arrangement. Feng Shui Bed Position North

Fire Place

If the living room has a fire place, a southern spot in the living room is the best location for the fire place. Also equally auspicious locations are in the East, SE, SW and NE.

The Dining Room

Create a warm and inviting dining room – decorate it with warm colours, put a large dining table in the centre of the room with a bright hanging chandelier above.

Remember always that whether it is the dining chairs or even the paintings on the wall, have them in even numbers – this is because the Chinese believes that “Happiness always comes in pairs” which is good Feng Shui.

Bear in mind that table shapes also have symbolic meanings – the preference is for the round or square tables being the most auspicious as square means blessings of the earth and the circle, blessings of heaven! What bliss!

Though the octagon, the oval and oblong shaped dining tables are also acceptable, one must avoid the triangular shaped tables as triangles suggest aggression hence, this should not be used if we want to attract happiness into our home.

Bliss Tip: To complete, hang a beautiful mirror on the dining room wall to reflect the good food on the dining table or the happiness of the people around it.

The Kitchen

In Feng Shui for the kitchen, the positioning of the stove, sink and refrigerator is deemed very critical.

If the stove is placed between or opposite the sink and the refrigerator, it can cause unhappiness and discontentment between the husband & wife. Bliss Tip: Place any blue or light green items for example, put a green or blue floor mat between the stove and the other appliances or alternatively, cover the entire kitchen floor with green or light blue flooring.

If the refrigerator, sink and stove are all aligned in a straight row, it is said to give rise to confusion for the people in the house. Bliss Tip: In the similar fashion, put a green or light blue decoration piece on the wall above the stove and sink.

Staircase

Stairs that run directly toward the main door is a no-no as this will cause the chi to escape through the door signifying loss of money. Bliss Tip: Install a mirror on the wall beside the door or even above the door to reflect the stairs.

Stairs should not be dark, cramp and narrow so as not to block the flow of the chi energy. Bliss tip: Ensure the staircase and landing is well lit to encourage the chi to flow auspiciously upward. Paint light colours at the staircase and install colourful art-pieces. If the staircase is too narrow, install a big mirror to create a sense of space. Feng Shui Bed Position North

Plants & Trees

Having plants and trees around the house is deemed to be auspicious because the wood element signifies growth and development. They are particularly lucky when it’s allowed to thrive in the East, SE and South location of the property.

Water Features

These should be clean and serene. Water features work best in the North hence, mini water-fountains or ponds in the garden bring exceptional good luck when located in the North or even in SE corners. Other acceptable locations are East and SW sites
For main doors, the water feature should be placed on the left side from inside the house looking out to ensure the stability of the married couple living there. Avoid placing a water feature in front of the house on the right hand side as it tends to cause the husband to have a roving eye.

Home Office: Enrich the home career area with water elements.

Fish

Keep a tank of fish to lift your career. In Feng Shui tradition, fish always brings good luck. Keep a tank of lively goldfish in the north corner of your living room and watch your career thrive with positive developments.

Office

Peace should be the prevailing theme in any office environment.
The best place to sit in the office should be sited diagonal to the door. The desk should not face the door directly as the incoming energy will be too powerful. It is good to have a light directly above the door to create auspicious yang energy in the office

Feng Shui is all about the art of arranging space in order to bring positive results and the desired changes in our life – once you understand this, you will be able to apply it effectively in your home or office.

Alternatively, you can also seek help from Feng Shui masters who will be able to pinpoint the negative energy sources and recommend remedies.

I hope these tips, though they are not all encompassing, will guide you in creating a blissful environment that attracts and keep the bliss in your life.

I wish you great fortune and the best of luck in using Feng Shui! Feng Shui Bed Position North

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Monday, November 29, 2010

QDDR: we can hardly contain our excitement

Aid Watch is as excited as everyone else to get a leaked, advance summary?of the Quadrennial Development and Diplomacy Review, (HT Josh Rogin at Foreign Policy) which is a critical part of the US government process?to set its priorities? on Development.

We love to seize occasions where we can be more positive?to reward positive things happening,?and not be our usual snarky selves.

Today is not one of those occasions.

Some highlights of the QDDR:

It would concern us that the QDDR is as aggressive as previous efforts we have complained about that want to merge Defense, Diplomacy, and Development. Fortunately this alarming?militarization of development only covers actual or potential Failed States which according to the above?Map in the QDDR is the entire developing world.

The review recognizes that US suffers from “insufficient internal coordination”of existing officials, offices and bureaus?and so proposes to…create new officials, offices, and bureaus: Office of the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights; a new Office of the Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and Environmental Affairs; a Special Coordinator for Sanctions and Illicit Finance; a Bureau of International Energy Affairs.

The QDDR is very persuasive that the US government needs to set priorities, that it?should focus?on development issues where the US government has a comparative advantage, which turn out to be…all development issues: sustainable economic growth, democracy and governance, food security, global health, climate change, and humanitarian assistance.

We could go on, but let’s mercifully draw this discussion to a close, and move on to something more useful, like trying to think of an iPod playlist of songs most relevant to development.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

News: Challenge on Textbook Pricing

Textbooks companies have faced a number of challenges in recent years, such as open course content, an increasingly vibrant used-book marketplace, new publishers proposing alternative pricing models, and new federal rules requiring the unbundling of expensive add-ons from the traditional texts.

But a case that came before the U.S. Supreme Court last week suggests that the textbook companies might soon face an even stronger threat: themselves.

If the case Costco Wholesale Corporation v. Omega, S.A., falls for Costco (the high court heard oral arguments last Monday), the textbook publishers could see the U.S. market flooded with less fancy editions they had produced for students in poorer countries. The foreign editions might be flimsier, but their content is the same as the editions the textbook companies sell to U.S. students — and they are “often half or a quarter of the price of the domestic editions,” according to an amicus brief filed in the case by the Association of American Publishers.

In other words, students who don’t mind shoddier textbooks could buy editions intended for students in poorer countries at a fraction of the cost of what they would normally spend at their campus bookstore.

The textbook companies, meanwhile, say such a ruling would be disastrous. The anticipated decline in revenues from domestic sales, their lawyers say, would make it impossible for them to afford “the extensive research and development necessary to ensure that the information in textbooks is current and accurate.”

Full Story: News: Challenge on Textbook Pricing – Inside Higher Ed

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Why US Catholic Bishops selected NYC Archbishop as their new leader: they like his blog

This according to a Wall Street Journal article. Archbishop Dolan’s blog is here.

The future of social media is even brighter than I thought.

Occasionally Archbishop Dolan touches on development in his blog, like this post on a 19th century Haitian saint.? He also talks a lot about insulting stereotypes of Catholics? in the media, which maybe Aid Watch?should add to its campaign against insulting stereotypes (do you want to hear the one about reversing conditional probabilities on Catholic priests?)

By the way, Your Holiness, we would welcome a guest post on Aid Watch. In return, I can give you some unsolicited PR advice on handling all that bad publicity Your Church is getting?about sexual abuse of altar boys.? (If you are wondering how I know anything about PR, I have learned a lot from the stupid responses of aid agencies to aid critics.) Advance Hint: don’t?get defensive, don’t attack the attackers, just keep expressing sorrow and regret about the abuses.

This entry was posted in In the news and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Feng Shui Door Facing – Free Feng Shui Tips To Enhance Your Love, Career, And Wealth Luck

Feng Shui Door Facing

Build the life you always wanted! Make your living and working environment inviting, stimulating and comfortable!

Feng Shui is an age-old wisdom originated from ancient China some 3000 years ago. It is the culture of society and economics, the embodiment of culture stability pass down from generation to generation.

Feng Shui involves the study of landscape, air, space, location, time, sunshine and humidity. It is the knowledge of directing, balancing and harmonizing those forces called chi. It differs person to person and from place to place. Different people in different place will have different experience.

The Ba Gua or the eight trigrams is a set of symbols representing the universe. The formation and permutation of the Ba Gua is associated with the human affairs as well as the natural phenomenon. The Ba Gua is one of the most sacred symbols in the ancient Chinese culture. It symbolizes the relationship between Heaven, Earth & Man and the time. It penetrates into various studies of economics, politics, military science, philosophy, literature, medical science, the martial art and architecture.

Every one of us lives under the influence of two inseparable field of chi, above us is the immeasurable vastness of space and below us is the invariable power of earth. This is where we lives and raise our family. It is our home.

Here are some free Feng Shui tips for you:

Feng Shui Tip 1: The Effect of Electrical Appliances on Feng Shui

In Feng Shui, the auspicious areas of a house should be kept as spacious as possible so that the positive energy can be flow smoothly. There should not any obstruction to the flow of Chi (or Qi) in auspicious sectors. Thus, big or heavy furniture items should not be placed there. This is also an important concept in the practice of Vastu Shastra.

In Feng Shui, sound and electrical energy have the effect of activating Feng Shui stars (good or bad). Therefore, the placement of electrical appliances such as television, radio, fan or computer can affect the Feng Shui of a house. These electrical appliances should be placed at the auspicious sectors. Furniture which can be placed at the inauspicious sectors includes sofa, cupboard, etc.

Generally speaking, the left side of a living room is the Green Dragon while the right side is the White Tiger. The Green Dragon is considered auspicious while the White Tiger is considered inauspicious. Electrical appliances should generally be placed at the left side of the living room while the big furniture like cupboard or sofa should be placed at the right side of the room.

Feng Shui Tip 2: Road That Curves Away From a House

In Feng Shui, roads are the modern version of water. Thus, the curvature of a road affects the Feng Shui of a house. A road that curves away from a house facing the entrance creates a strong and negative flow of energy called Shar Chi (Sha Qi) towards the house. Since water represents wealth in Feng Shui, the presence of such as a road will have a negative wealth effect on the inhabitants of the house.

To solve this problem, place a windscreen in front of the entrance to prevent the negative Shar Chi (Sha Qi) from “entering” the entrance directly.

Feng Shui Tip 3: A Long Straight Road That Creates Shar Chi (Sha Qi)

In Feng Shui, a long straight road facing a house can create Shar Chi (Sha Qi) to the house. The longer the road is, the stronger the Shar Chi (Sha Qi) that is created. Inhabitants of a house facing this Shar Chi (Sha Qi) will encounter problems like accidents or other “blood-shedding” incidents such as having to undergo a surgery or operation.

The easiest way to solve this problem is to place a windscreen in front of the door or entrance. This will prevent the Shar Chi (Sha Qi) from entering the house directly. Feng Shui Door Facing

Feng Shui Tip 3 : A Door That Faces Another Door

In Feng Shui, a door facing another door can create Shar Chi (Sha Qi) between the two doors. There are four possible scenarios:

(a) Main door of a house facing main door of another house

In this scenario, the inhabitants of both houses are likely to be quick-tempered and quarrel frequently. To solve this problem, place a windscreen in front of the door.

(b) A room door facing a toilet door

This scenario takes place within a house. Besides problems of quick tempers and frequent quarrels, the inhabitants staying in the room might develop digestive and urinary diseases. To solve this problem, place a windscreen in front of the toilet door if the room is big enough. If there is not enough room for a windscreen, simply close the toilet door.

(c) A room door facing a kitchen entrance

This scenario is not as problematic as the first two scenarios. Nonetheless, inhabitants of the room will be prone to accidents and minor injuries and if the problem persists over time, inhabitants might encounter major accidents. To solve this problem, place a windscreen or hang a bead curtain in front of the kitchen entrance.

(d) A room door facing another room door

This scenario is the least harmful of the four. Tempers might erupt occasionally and if inhabitants are working in an office environment, office politics will occur frequently. To solve this problem, place a bead curtain in front of the room door.

Feng Shui Tip 4: Locating An Auspicious Main Door

The main door plays an important role in the Feng Shui of a house. Thus, it is important that the main door is located in an auspicious sector of a house. Generally speaking, the main door should be located in a position which enables positive Chi (Qi) to flow into the house.

If there is a pond or empty space in front of a house, the main door should be located at the centre of the house facing the pond or empty space.

If a road passes by the front of a house and slopes from left to right (or the left side of the road is longer than the right side as seen from the front of a house), the main door should be located at the right side of the house facing the road.

If a road passes by the front of a house and slopes from right to left (or the right side of the road is longer than the right side as seen from the front of a house), the main door should be located at the left side of the house facing the road.

A windscreen can be used to correct the location of an inauspicious main door. Feng Shui Door Facing

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

The failing promise of public education

We, the American public, hold it as an article of faith that those responsible for devising and implementing public policy have our best interests at heart. Our best minds are hard at work, striving to make the world a better place. Our elected officials are dedicated to protecting our freedoms, increasing our prosperity, and securing justice for all.

What, then, is the public to assume when, in spite of the best efforts of our most brilliant thinkers and politicians, freedoms erode, prosperity decreases, and for a great many, justice seems elusive? Surely, sinister forces must be at work.

Let us take for an example the nation’s system of public education. For years, American taxpayers have been sold on a triad of public policy fixes for public education. In order to improve student performance, state and federal governments must dedicate a greater portion of their budgetary dollars to education; class sizes must be reduced, and there must be greater oversight by the federal government. So fervent is the belief in this holy trinity of education, that to even ponder the efficacy of the federal Department of Education is seen as heresy. Any politician who attempts to curb the unrestricted flow of tax dollars to public schools is accused of not wanting to “invest in education.”

And yet, increases in spending have not resulted in a corresponding increase in student achievement. Studies have shown that over the last 50 years, student proficiency in math and English has shown little improvement even as spending and federal government oversight has increased and class size has decreased. Given the brilliance and dedication of our public servants, the failure of significant academic gains to materialize, in spite of billions spent on education, can only be the devil’s work.

And if you are a black man, the devil must, indeed, be working overtime.

Information recently culled from the National Assessment for Educational Progress, based on national math and reading tests given to students in the fourth and eighth grades, revealed some rather disheartening results. According to the New York Times, the report paints a picture for black males that is, “even bleaker than generally known.”

In 2009, math scores for black boys lagged behind those of both Hispanic boys and girls, and black males fell behind white boys by an average of 30 points, which is interpreted as three academic grades. Black males drop out of high school at a rate twice as high as white males and their SAT scores are on average 104 points lower. In short, the report shows that black males fall behind academically early on and never regain ground.

These are not students failing because they do not have access to the internet or don’t have Olympic-sized swimming pools. The sad fact is that the report demonstrates that middle-class black boys are scoring about as well as poor white boys. These are students who are not proficient in the basics of math and English.

The social cost of this failure is not to be underestimated.

Half of these students will drop out of high school; lacking a high school diploma and being functionally illiterate will qualify them for manual labor, which is steadily in the decline. They will join the ranks of the chronically unemployed; many of these men will make a life hustling on the streets and eventually become involved in the criminal justice system. Criminal records will make these men more unemployable, which will make it even more unlikely that they will have the financial means to support the children they father. It is a hellish cycle that will repeat generation after generation.

NEXT: Is culture responsible for the achievement gap?

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Why is nobody worried about the Asian brain drain?

Aid-financed scholarships for African students to study in the US or Europe would be worth a lot more than a million “capacity-building” projects. The usual argument against such scholarships is fear of brain drain — that the African students would not return home.

So why is nobody worried about brain drain of the gigantic numbers of Asian students studying in the US?

Source: Institute of International Education

This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Obama calls airport pat-downs frustrating but necessary

President Obama said today he sympathizes with passenger complaints about aggressive body pat-downs at airports, but his counter-terrorism aides say they are necessary to guard against hidden explosives.

Balancing privacy and security is a “tough situation,” Obama told reporters at a news conference following the NATO summit in Lisbon, Portugal.

“One of the most frustrating aspects of this fight against terrorism is that it has created a whole security apparatus around us that causes a huge inconvenience for all of us,” Obama said.

Full story:?Obama calls airport pat-downs frustrating but necessary – The Oval: Tracking the Obama presidency

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Essential Things You Need to Consider When Buying a Garden Office

In today’s world, garden offices have gained much popularity and are in great demand. People purchase garden rooms from different suppliers and manufactures. However, there are certain essential things that a person needs to consider before purchasing a garden office. A person, prior to purchasing garden offices, should ensure that he is getting the best deal. There are ten essential things that should be considered before buying a garden office or garden studio.

Before purchasing a garden office one must be sure of the purpose that it would serve. This will help the person to ascertain whether the requirements of the building can be met by the design. If the building is being purchased to be used as a garden office, sufficient amount of lighting should be provided. If the room is to be used as a gym, then there should be provision for sufficient ventilation. If it is for the purpose of garden a lodge, then there should be provision for proper heating.

The position of one’s garden office is also of utmost importance. One rarely requires planning permission most of the time as long as the garden office is situated at a distance of 5 metres from the person’s home and occupies less than 50% of the garden’s area. Permission is also not required if the garden office or garden studio is built for private use and is about 20 metres away from any public place.

A person while buying a garden office or garden studio should also be careful about the height of the building. However, the height of the modular garden offices should not exceed 4 metres. If the height of the garden office exceeds 4 metres a person will have to seek permission. Permission also has to be taken if the building consists of two or more floors. Permission also has to be taken if the size of the rooms exceeds 30 Sq metres.

Further, a person prior to buying a garden room should be sure of the type of room he requires. A person buying a room for a garden studio should ensure that the room is in accordance to his requirements. The design of the room should also be taken into account.

A person buying a room for the purpose of running a garden office should also check the materials used for both constructing and designing the office. There are numerous suppliers who can provide the best garden offices. For information regarding garden offices and garden studios visit gardenlodges.co.uk.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Subjective Well-Being

The Aid Watch blog is a project of New York University's Development Research Institute (DRI). This blog is principally written by William Easterly, author of "The Elusive Quest for Growth: Economists Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics" and "The White Man's Burden: Why the West's Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good," and Professor of Economics at NYU. It is co-written by Laura Freschi and by occasional guest bloggers. Our work is based on the idea that more aid will reach the poor the more people are watching aid.

"Conscience is the inner voice that warns us somebody may be looking." - H.L. Mencken

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Barack Obama does a right-turn on Afghanistan

The media have it wrong. According to them, the big news out of the NATO summit in Lisbon, Portugal, is the 2014 withdrawal date from Afghanistan.

In truth, the big news out of Lisbon is that Obama and NATO have abandoned any definitive timeline for military operations in Afghanistan. America and NATO, it seems, are going to stay there until the mission is complete and a sovereign, stable and self-sufficient Afghan state is assured.

To be sure, the “goal” or “target date” for ending offensive allied combat operations in Afghanistan is 2014. But as Obama himself acknowledged today in Lisbon, that may or may not happen, depending upon conditions on the ground. And so, “I’ll make that determination when I get there,” the president said in today’s press conference.

In any case, he added: American troops will remain in Iraq and Afghanistan for many years to come in order to conduct counterterrorism operations.

This is a big concession and thus big news. It marks a genuine right-turn on Afghanistan. I mean Obama’s newfound commitment to winning and to completing the mission there, his abandonment of hard and fixed deadlines, and his acknowledgement that America will maintain a long-term military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan for many years to come.

Here are Obama’s exact words, in context, after CBS News’ Bill Plante asked him whether he (Obama) would “keep U.S. troops committed [in Afghanistan] in a combat role [after 2014] if necessary.”

The other thing that I’m pretty confident we will still be doing after 2014 is maintaining a counterterrorism capability until we have confidence that al-Qaeda is no longer operative — and is no longer a threat to the American homeland and to American allies and personnel around the world.

And so, it’s going to be important for us to continue to have platforms to be able to execute those counterterrorism operations. And that’s true in Iraq as well. And obviously that’s even more true when it comes to core al-Qaeda.

You know, we don’t want, after having made these extraordinary efforts by so many countries — we don’t want to have to suddenly find ourselves in a situation where they [al-Qaeda] waited us out and they reconsolidated it [their military capabilities].

What accounts for Obama’s abrupt right-turn? I think it’s Gen. Petraeus and the performance of our troops on the ground. Media reports to the contrary notwithstanding, the surge in Afghanistan is shaping up to be as successful as the surge in Iraq. Obama recognizes this; and he knows that it would be unwise to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

Ironically, then, Obama, who ran for office as an anti-war candidate, and whose base of support comes from the far-left anti-war fringe, may well win reelection as a successful war president.

We can thank Obama for not being reckless and for heeding the advice and counsel of his military advisers. But we can especially thank Gens. McChrystal and Petraeus: because they are the farsighted and visionary leaders who laid out the grand military strategy necessary to achieve victory in Afghanistan.

Petraeus especially seems to have saved two American presidents, Bush and Obama, from themselves — and not only from themselves, but also from their political advisers, from the media, and from the military and civil service bureaucracies. Petraeus and McChrystal deserve our thanks and our praise.

John R. Guardiano is a writer and analyst in Arlington, Virginia. He writes and blogs for a variety of publications, including FrumForum, the American Spectator and The Daily Caller. Follow him at his personal blog, ResoluteCon.com, and on Twitter @JohnRGuardiano.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Construction Pipeline Reviews – Quality Business

So you’ve searched for construction pipeline reviews?

In this article I’m going to talk about construction pipeline reviews and give my full review on a great company that are currently serving over 2000 customers per month and continue to obtain a very high customer satisfaction rate of over 95%.

I spoke to construction pipeline because I wanted to ask them a couple of questions before going ahead with my full construction pipeline reviews! – I spoke to them about their customer satisfaction rate, how many customers they deal with, and why they get the odd bad review (like any company does).

Construction pipeline said that the problem they face is that they do business with over 2000 customers per month! Out of these 2000 a very small number aren’t satisfied yet still over 95% of customers are highly satisfied! They said that in business it’s simply not possible to satisfy everyone because people are individuals who have different expectations!

After speaking with construction pipeline prior to writing my construction pipeline reviews I decided to get online and do my research about this company! I’m personally a satisfied customer who does regular business with construction pipeline, however I wanted to see what other peoples thoughts were to gauge their reaction of a company that I would personally highly recommend!

Although I came across the odd positive review, some of the construction pipeline reviews I found were not so positive! Although I figured that these may be the small percentage of people who are not satisfied I was sceptical that they were even real as they were very vague!

After doing some more research I’ve found that some competitor companies will often post fake reviews about other companies and make up stories purely to ruin the reputation of their competitor companies! This is something that happens a lot in the world on online marketing as it’s something that is so easy to do because of the internet!

This is one of my construction pipeline reviews though and I’m telling the truth about a great company that have been providing me with a great service for quite some time now! I’m 100% satisfied with the service I’ve received and I urge other satisfied customers to come forward and write their own construction pipeline reviews to show this company as what they really are!

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Feng Shui Door Facing Door – Free Feng Shui Tips To Enhance Your Love, Career, And Wealth Luck

Feng Shui Door Facing Door

Build the life you always wanted! Make your living and working environment inviting, stimulating and comfortable!

Feng Shui is an age-old wisdom originated from ancient China some 3000 years ago. It is the culture of society and economics, the embodiment of culture stability pass down from generation to generation.

Feng Shui involves the study of landscape, air, space, location, time, sunshine and humidity. It is the knowledge of directing, balancing and harmonizing those forces called chi. It differs person to person and from place to place. Different people in different place will have different experience.

The Ba Gua or the eight trigrams is a set of symbols representing the universe. The formation and permutation of the Ba Gua is associated with the human affairs as well as the natural phenomenon. The Ba Gua is one of the most sacred symbols in the ancient Chinese culture. It symbolizes the relationship between Heaven, Earth & Man and the time. It penetrates into various studies of economics, politics, military science, philosophy, literature, medical science, the martial art and architecture.

Every one of us lives under the influence of two inseparable field of chi, above us is the immeasurable vastness of space and below us is the invariable power of earth. This is where we lives and raise our family. It is our home.

Here are some free Feng Shui tips for you:

Feng Shui Tip 1: The Effect of Electrical Appliances on Feng Shui

In Feng Shui, the auspicious areas of a house should be kept as spacious as possible so that the positive energy can be flow smoothly. There should not any obstruction to the flow of Chi (or Qi) in auspicious sectors. Thus, big or heavy furniture items should not be placed there. This is also an important concept in the practice of Vastu Shastra.

In Feng Shui, sound and electrical energy have the effect of activating Feng Shui stars (good or bad). Therefore, the placement of electrical appliances such as television, radio, fan or computer can affect the Feng Shui of a house. These electrical appliances should be placed at the auspicious sectors. Furniture which can be placed at the inauspicious sectors includes sofa, cupboard, etc.

Generally speaking, the left side of a living room is the Green Dragon while the right side is the White Tiger. The Green Dragon is considered auspicious while the White Tiger is considered inauspicious. Electrical appliances should generally be placed at the left side of the living room while the big furniture like cupboard or sofa should be placed at the right side of the room.

Feng Shui Tip 2: Road That Curves Away From a House

In Feng Shui, roads are the modern version of water. Thus, the curvature of a road affects the Feng Shui of a house. A road that curves away from a house facing the entrance creates a strong and negative flow of energy called Shar Chi (Sha Qi) towards the house. Since water represents wealth in Feng Shui, the presence of such as a road will have a negative wealth effect on the inhabitants of the house.

To solve this problem, place a windscreen in front of the entrance to prevent the negative Shar Chi (Sha Qi) from “entering” the entrance directly. Feng Shui Door Facing Door

Feng Shui Tip 3: A Long Straight Road That Creates Shar Chi (Sha Qi)

In Feng Shui, a long straight road facing a house can create Shar Chi (Sha Qi) to the house. The longer the road is, the stronger the Shar Chi (Sha Qi) that is created. Inhabitants of a house facing this Shar Chi (Sha Qi) will encounter problems like accidents or other “blood-shedding” incidents such as having to undergo a surgery or operation.

The easiest way to solve this problem is to place a windscreen in front of the door or entrance. This will prevent the Shar Chi (Sha Qi) from entering the house directly.

Feng Shui Tip 3 : A Door That Faces Another Door

In Feng Shui, a door facing another door can create Shar Chi (Sha Qi) between the two doors. There are four possible scenarios:

(a) Main door of a house facing main door of another house

In this scenario, the inhabitants of both houses are likely to be quick-tempered and quarrel frequently. To solve this problem, place a windscreen in front of the door.

(b) A room door facing a toilet door

This scenario takes place within a house. Besides problems of quick tempers and frequent quarrels, the inhabitants staying in the room might develop digestive and urinary diseases. To solve this problem, place a windscreen in front of the toilet door if the room is big enough. If there is not enough room for a windscreen, simply close the toilet door.

(c) A room door facing a kitchen entrance

This scenario is not as problematic as the first two scenarios. Nonetheless, inhabitants of the room will be prone to accidents and minor injuries and if the problem persists over time, inhabitants might encounter major accidents. To solve this problem, place a windscreen or hang a bead curtain in front of the kitchen entrance.

(d) A room door facing another room door

This scenario is the least harmful of the four. Tempers might erupt occasionally and if inhabitants are working in an office environment, office politics will occur frequently. To solve this problem, place a bead curtain in front of the room door.

Feng Shui Tip 4: Locating An Auspicious Main Door

The main door plays an important role in the Feng Shui of a house. Thus, it is important that the main door is located in an auspicious sector of a house. Generally speaking, the main door should be located in a position which enables positive Chi (Qi) to flow into the house.

If there is a pond or empty space in front of a house, the main door should be located at the centre of the house facing the pond or empty space.

If a road passes by the front of a house and slopes from left to right (or the left side of the road is longer than the right side as seen from the front of a house), the main door should be located at the right side of the house facing the road.

If a road passes by the front of a house and slopes from right to left (or the right side of the road is longer than the right side as seen from the front of a house), the main door should be located at the left side of the house facing the road.

A windscreen can be used to correct the location of an inauspicious main door. Feng Shui Door Facing Door

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

New Jersey Devils say former coach Pat Burns has died of cancer

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Saturday, November 27, 2010

LIVINGSTON: Stolen cross, stolen honor

Frank Woodruff Buckles was born in Missouri 109 years ago. He is a national hero and the last living American veteran of World War I. But as we observed this Veterans Day – a day conceived as a celebration of the end of that bloody war – there was no national monument to honor Mr. Buckles and 5 million other Americans who served our nation in uniform then. The sole National Monument to World War I has been destroyed by vandals, and the Obama administration refuses to allow its replacement, even by private citizens, even at private expense.

In 1934, John Bembrey, along with several fellow veterans, erected a simple cross on a granite outcrop in the Mojave Desert. Their intention was to commemorate the sacrifice made by their comrades in the Great War, and for the next 65 years, this modest memorial was quietly maintained by volunteers. In 2000, the Mojave Desert Cross was designated by the U.S. Congress as the only official National Monument to World War I.

Then the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other self-appointed guardians of the Constitution argued that the Mojave Desert Memorial Cross was an affront to the principle of separation of church and state. A decade-long battle ensued until April of this year, when the U.S. Supreme Court – the actual arbiter of the Constitution – issued a ruling that the cross could remain.

Full Story:?LIVINGSTON: Stolen cross, stolen honor – Washington Times

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Intelligence official: Pakistan denies US request to expand areas for Taliban missile strikes

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Why is nobody worried about the Asian brain drain?

Aid-financed scholarships for African students to study in the US or Europe would be worth a lot more than a million “capacity-building” projects. The usual argument against such scholarships is fear of brain drain — that the African students would not return home.

So why is nobody worried about brain drain of the gigantic numbers of Asian students studying in the US?

Source: Institute of International Education

This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Construction Databases

Infrastructure, the backbone of an economy, is what distinguishes a developed nation from a developing one. Be it roads, water supply, power grids or telecommunication, a good infrastructure facilitates the proper functioning of the society. We all know how fast the times are changing. To keep up with the pace, we have to prepare ourselves for the new challenges everyday. Knowing this, almost every nation is investing huge amount of capital in improving infrastructure today. The increasing number of construction projects in the US alone, is a testimony to the above statement. In today’s time, there is no need to invest time and efforts in building contacts. Every kind of information is just a click away. Today, many online portals exist, which provide information about the projects, companies, market, location and many more details about the current and upcoming construction projects.

Construction business is the in-thing in today’s time. Many private and commercial construction projects are coming up everyday. To give you information about the nitty gritties of the construction business, there are online portals which keep updating their databases from time to time. Targeting not only a niche community, but also the common public, these online portals provide the latest updates about the current construction reports. Construction, though seems like just a masonry work, is far from being a single activity. A huge amount of planning, designing and multitasking is required to execute the project well. A lot of things are to be kept in mind, such as the environmental impact, successful scheduling, budgeting, availability of materials and logistics, legal considerations and timely completion of the project to reduce the inconvenience caused to the public, during the whole process.

Bidding of tenders is one of the important stages of the overall construction process. There are different methods of construction procurement, like the traditional way of design-bid-build, the second way of design-and-build and the third, marketing contracting. To succeed in today’s competitive world, we need to know things before others. The updated databases of online portals provide the latest information about the construction project bids, which helps the bidders in investing/bidding at the right time.

Such portals also have a customer service cell, which answers all your queries in minimum possible time. Once you register on these portals, you get email alerts, construction project reports and company reports which give you an updated picture of the Construction Business regularly.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Why US Catholic Bishops selected NYC Archbishop as their new leader: they like his blog

This according to a Wall Street Journal article. Archbishop Dolan’s blog is here.

The future of social media is even brighter than I thought.

Occasionally Archbishop Dolan touches on development in his blog, like this post on a 19th century Haitian saint.? He also talks a lot about insulting stereotypes of Catholics? in the media, which maybe Aid Watch?should add to its campaign against insulting stereotypes (do you want to hear the one about reversing conditional probabilities on Catholic priests?)

By the way, Your Holiness, we would welcome a guest post on Aid Watch. In return, I can give you some unsolicited PR advice on handling all that bad publicity Your Church is getting?about sexual abuse of altar boys.? (If you are wondering how I know anything about PR, I have learned a lot from the stupid responses of aid agencies to aid critics.) Advance Hint: don’t?get defensive, don’t attack the attackers, just keep expressing sorrow and regret about the abuses.

This entry was posted in In the news and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Friday, November 26, 2010

Construction Databases: Easy access to useful bid information

With the coming up of construction databases, the way information is accessed and shared has undergone a dramatic change. Now you do not have to be lucky or high up in the construction industry to receive information about the latest construction projects in your area/locality or even in your state or country. These databases have uptodate information about projects in the pre-bidding and bidding stages.

Sites which own these construction databases offer easy access of information about the bidding process. At the click of a mouse, you can find bid due dates, project description, contact information, and more, without having to build contacts or rely on insider information. The websites enable you to search bids by state, project type or keyword. Thus you can identify and manage bidding opportunities in a convenient and effective manner.

How do these websites work? They provide weekly bid notices and construction project reports.When you subscribe to their services, you receive online, real-time access to bid notices reports. Each report provides all the information you need to make an informed decision about a particular project. Through the weekly delivery of this data, construction managers, contractors and building product manufacturers can begin working on projects much sooner than they would otherwise.

The best of websites that provide such construction reports, provide convenient options for accessing information. This enables you to find leads over your competitors by bidding early, before others know about a lucrative project.

Besides, sites which maintain construction databases also equip one with market/geographical insight. They provide you with an overview of the markets such as retail and hotel markets, as well as states that a particular company is currently working in. Moreover, by providing you a list of companies that are similar to a certain company, they enable us to form a good idea about our competitors, which is particularly helpful when making construction project bids .

Finally, certain websites even put you in touch with the research staff who make the construction project report , if you have got a question on a specific project. You can also find contact information for the key decision makers in a certain project.

Also you need to keep in mind that through the project information theses sites offer, you’ll not only track projects, you can also develop contacts in the construction industry.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

US official: US not committing to ending combat role in Afghanistan in 2014

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Daniel Day-Lewis set for Steven Spielberg’s ‘Lincoln’

Steven Spielberg’s tapped Daniel Day-Lewis to star as Abraham Lincoln in Spielberg’s long-gestating “Lincoln” project for DreamWorks.

Friday’s announcement — made by Spielberg and Dreamworks co-chairman and CEO Stacey Snider — came nine years after Spielberg first launched development of a Lincoln biopic and five years after he’d held talks with Liam Neeson to portray the 16th president.

Spielberg noted in the announcement that he’s never worked with Day-Lewis previously.

“Daniel Day-Lewis would have always been counted as one of the greatest of actors, were he from the silent era, the golden age of film or even some time in cinema’s distant future,” Spielberg said in a statement. “I am grateful and inspired that our paths will finally cross with Lincoln.”

Project’s based on the 2005 book “Team of Rivals” by Doris Kearns Goodwin with the adaptation by Tony Kushner. Spielberg will direct and produce with Kathleen Kennedy.

Full story:?Day-Lewis set for Spielberg’s ‘Lincoln’ – Entertainment News, Film News, Media – Variety

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

LifeLock the Strongest Identity Protection

Our identity plays very important role in this modern world considering that there are so many electronic devices which are activated by our identity such as credit card. Therefore it’s important for us to always make sure that our identity is safe and protected from criminals because once the criminal can steal your identity then it will easier for such criminal to drain out all your money from your bank account.

In such situation all you need is surely a company that provides you the most reliable identity protection and you can easily find it when you visit Idtheftquiz.com. This website represents a company that offers you LifeLock Promotion where you can get a free identity theft for a month at the most reasonable and affordable prices. LifeLock itself is known as the most advanced security system which is aimed to make sure that your identity is protected and safe.

At this website you can also find lifelock reviews to learn the large benefits you can get from it as well as how to get such reliable protection to make sure that your identity is safe. The customer service in this website will always be happy to receive any of your questions at simply anytime.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

The Most Reliable Protections against Identity Theft

In this modern world our identity is very important to us since once we lose our identity there might be possibilities for us to lose a lot more what we have. The electronic device such as credit cards are generated and activated by our personal identity information so when you lose your identity or someone steals it from you so anyone who has your identity information and the access to withdraw all your money from your bank account.

Due to such reason therefore it’s necessary for us to get our identity protected. One most recommended place that you should visit when you want to get a full identity protection is at Lifelockreviews.net. This website represents an online company that provides you LifeLock Review and information to inform you that LifeLock can be the best solution for such problems. At this website you can learn that LifeLock is made with full protections to make sure that your identity is strongly protected and perfectly safe.

In order to ensure that LifeLock is highly reliable this company even offers you US$1 million to the clients once a criminal can break the security system and steal the identity information from you. Please visit this website to Compare LifeLock features and prices.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Madagascar military group claims take-over

ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar (AP) — A colonel who supported a politician’s takeover in Madagascar last year says he and other top-ranking officers have taken over the Indian Ocean island nation.

Col. Charles Andrianasoavina was joined by the head of security of the president he helped oust last year when he made the declaration Wednesday to reporters he called to a military base near the airport.

Andrianasoavina said nothing about the whereabouts of Andry Rajoelina, the politician who seized power last year. Rajoelina is believed to be in the capital.

The claim comes in the midst of a referendum to accept or reject a new constitution that calls for keeping Rajoelina in power indefinitely. Voting is continuing, with few on the island aware of the officers’ declaration.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here

Construction Pipeline Scam and Review

Contruction Pipeline Scam, or Not?

I have worked at construction pipeline for over 3 years. It really bothers me when I see people post bogus reviews about construction pipeline scams. We are a family ran business with real people that take great pride in their work. All of our competitors are plan centers or permit pushers that focus on public information that they sell. We actually spend hundred of man hours every week talking with general contractor trying to find opportunities for all of our clients. Do we make errors? Of course, we are human. But this is the most valuable aspect of our company, because we just don’t automate everything.
The way the internet effects publicity now a days, it really turns the focus of our company from something valuable, where someone can post a complaint somewhere and it gets undue attention. Construction Pipeline scam is a myth! The truth of the matter is, we do business with over 2,000 customers every month. Do we satisfy everyone? No. But what company can?
If a person were to actually study the construction pipeline scam myth, they would find that it is actually a small handful of people that are truly unhappy with the service that we provided them. Just like every person out there, we are family people too, working to take home a paycheck and support our wives’ and children. There is no construction pipeline scam.
We could do an experiment to really show people how the internet postings are for the most part fictitious. We have 50 employees. We could take the name of any company or person out there, and have everyone start posting complaints. They don’t have to be valid complaints, because most complaint sites just let you post whatever without any actual investigation of the facts. And then lets sit back and google your name or company. Scary, huh? Well, that mostly what our complaints are.
If a person were to really read construction pipeline scam and construction pipeline review they would find some horrific stories. Now I’ll be the first to admit, errors have occurred through out our 20 year history; things like billing errors ect.,, but the outlandish tales that you read are bogus.
Just like any business, we give a receipt with terms and conditions. Most of the people that have posted complaints are people that are actually in debt to our company. And when they get called about there debts, they start posting “construction pipeline scam” on construction pipeline reviews.
If you or any company or person out there really is interested enough in construction pipeline reviews and truly want to know about construction pipeline scam, then go to Dunn And Bradstreet. This will give you a real glimpse of our company. You can see our credit history along with our business endeavors. What you’ll find is a company that has near perfect credit, that has never had leans or holds and has a good track history of paying not only every vendor that we’ve done business with, but not one complaint from any of our employees that we’ve ever employed. Can these companies that write construction pipeline scam on their construction pipeline reviews say the same? 99% can’t!!!!
Well, that the real story of the mythological “Construction Pipeline Scam”!

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.


View the original article here