Monday, June 30, 2008
Page 447
Movie Reviews: Wanted
27 June 2008 10:32 AM, PDT
Wanted is another comic-book of a movie likely to go over well at the box office, according to analysts. (In fact it's based on the comic books of Mark Millar and J.G. Jones.) It also goes over well with the critics. Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times calls it "an action picture that's exhausting in its relentless violence and its ingenuity in inventing new ways to attack, defend, ambush and annihilate." Kyle Smith in the New York Post says that Wanted will satisfy most audience's wants: "a stunt sundae with stunt sauce on the side and a side order of stunts." Elizabeth Weitzman in the New York Daily News predicts that "your adrenal glands will be working overtime." And Claudia Puig in USA Today concludes: "The thrilling stunts and hyperkinetic action scenes are the undisputed stars of this surprisingly entertaining film." On the other hand, Manohla Dargis in the New York Times suggests that all the furious mayhem really signifies not a whole lot. "Beating down the audience is what the crudest entertainments try to do, and in this respect, and in every other, Wanted is nothing new," she writes. And Mick Lasalle in the San Francisco Chronicle observes: "There are two ways, equally valid, of looking at Wanted: (1) as a go-for-broke action movie of mixed quality and modest but definite entertainment value, or (2) as a sick, sick movie for a sick, sick public." He then goes on to make the case for both viewpoints, concluding, "The sound of cheering you'll hear tonight in the multiplex is not good news."
27 June 2008 10:32 AM, PDT
Wanted is another comic-book of a movie likely to go over well at the box office, according to analysts. (In fact it's based on the comic books of Mark Millar and J.G. Jones.) It also goes over well with the critics. Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times calls it "an action picture that's exhausting in its relentless violence and its ingenuity in inventing new ways to attack, defend, ambush and annihilate." Kyle Smith in the New York Post says that Wanted will satisfy most audience's wants: "a stunt sundae with stunt sauce on the side and a side order of stunts." Elizabeth Weitzman in the New York Daily News predicts that "your adrenal glands will be working overtime." And Claudia Puig in USA Today concludes: "The thrilling stunts and hyperkinetic action scenes are the undisputed stars of this surprisingly entertaining film." On the other hand, Manohla Dargis in the New York Times suggests that all the furious mayhem really signifies not a whole lot. "Beating down the audience is what the crudest entertainments try to do, and in this respect, and in every other, Wanted is nothing new," she writes. And Mick Lasalle in the San Francisco Chronicle observes: "There are two ways, equally valid, of looking at Wanted: (1) as a go-for-broke action movie of mixed quality and modest but definite entertainment value, or (2) as a sick, sick movie for a sick, sick public." He then goes on to make the case for both viewpoints, concluding, "The sound of cheering you'll hear tonight in the multiplex is not good news."
Page 446
The Universe by David McCarthy
Often when we struggle to understand something a tutor will say: “Look at the bigger picture.” The Universe is the bigger picture of our world and looking at it is the best way to put our world in perspective. Especially now that Google Sky is up and running and free for each of us to use whenever we feel the need to seek perspective.
Too often we find people that are hemmed into their local town and give little thought to events in other parts of their state. Others are interested in their state above their nation. Some have no time, or interest, in what happens beyond the borders of their own nation in the misguided belief that it cannot affect them. We only have to look at the problems of the Middle East and understand how they affect taxpayers in the nations of the allied coalition to dispel the myth that what happens outside of your national borders does not affect you. We all share this tiny planet and if a new strain of influenza occurs in a remote nation it is a worldwide problem within 24 hours.
Many years ago a friend advised that I start looking at the universe to gain perspective of the world and I count this advice as the best I ever received from any source.
Planet Earth is part of the Milky Way Galaxy and that is just one galaxy among many thousands of others. Often, on a clear night, I sit on my porch and look up at the vastness of the Milky Way and find myself meditating about how small Planet Earth really is and how insignificant it is in the overall structure of eternity. It is a fact that a massive meteorite could wipe out the planet at any time and the galaxy will still continue with negligible adjustment. My next thought is that there are so many other galaxies and they would not even have to adjust.
It was not until I started accepting the Universe that I was able to see the World in its true perspective and in life I started becoming more positive and less judgemental. To see my planet in an overall perspective proved a catalyst for me to start achieving what I was capable of achieving and I am happily shocked at the result. The main thing is that I now know that less than 5% of the human race live to achieve what they are capable of. We all have the same equipment; it is just that some use it better than others.
Often when we struggle to understand something a tutor will say: “Look at the bigger picture.” The Universe is the bigger picture of our world and looking at it is the best way to put our world in perspective. Especially now that Google Sky is up and running and free for each of us to use whenever we feel the need to seek perspective.
Too often we find people that are hemmed into their local town and give little thought to events in other parts of their state. Others are interested in their state above their nation. Some have no time, or interest, in what happens beyond the borders of their own nation in the misguided belief that it cannot affect them. We only have to look at the problems of the Middle East and understand how they affect taxpayers in the nations of the allied coalition to dispel the myth that what happens outside of your national borders does not affect you. We all share this tiny planet and if a new strain of influenza occurs in a remote nation it is a worldwide problem within 24 hours.
Many years ago a friend advised that I start looking at the universe to gain perspective of the world and I count this advice as the best I ever received from any source.
Planet Earth is part of the Milky Way Galaxy and that is just one galaxy among many thousands of others. Often, on a clear night, I sit on my porch and look up at the vastness of the Milky Way and find myself meditating about how small Planet Earth really is and how insignificant it is in the overall structure of eternity. It is a fact that a massive meteorite could wipe out the planet at any time and the galaxy will still continue with negligible adjustment. My next thought is that there are so many other galaxies and they would not even have to adjust.
It was not until I started accepting the Universe that I was able to see the World in its true perspective and in life I started becoming more positive and less judgemental. To see my planet in an overall perspective proved a catalyst for me to start achieving what I was capable of achieving and I am happily shocked at the result. The main thing is that I now know that less than 5% of the human race live to achieve what they are capable of. We all have the same equipment; it is just that some use it better than others.
Page 445
The Basics of Astrology by Rose
What is a Natal Chart?
If you look at the words 'natal chart' you could read them another way 'birth map' - this may help you understand what is being talked about. Basically, the natal chart is a map of the sky including the positions of the planets for the time that you were born. Where you are born has an impact on what is seen in the sky, e.g., if two people were born on the same day and at the same time but in a different city and country, what is seen overhead would be different. This would mean that their natal charts showing planetary placements would be different from each other.
So, the first step in using astrology is to draw a map of the sky for the moment a person is born. This map includes all the planets, plus a few other points of interest such as the horizon and the middle of the sky directly over the birthplace. The time of birth is important for detailed work because it affects the position of the various parts of the chart, in particular the zodiac sign on the eastern horizon (this gives the Rising Sign/Ascendant) and position of the point over the birthplace (this gives the position of the Mid heaven).
If the time of birth is unknown it can be worked out through major life events by an experienced astrologer who specializes in this branch of astrology: this is known as rectification. To do this you would need to give the astrologer as many major life events as possible such as: marriage; birth of children; major moves; divorce; death; new business ventures or jobs; and/or any other significant changes to your life.
Another way of finding out what time you were born is to contact the hospital you were born in. In the majority of cases they have this information recorded on the mother's file. I know this is the case in Australia but I'm not sure about other countries but it is still worth a try!
Natal Chart Interpretations
Once the natal chart has been prepared, the positions of the planets in different zodiac signs (ie, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, etc) can be 'interpreted'. This is an area that people interested in astrology usually become a little skeptical about the validity of astrology because the interpretations can vary greatly from one astrologer to another. One way to understand these differences in interpretation is to understand that the planets and other points in the natal chart are used as symbols: as such, they have quite a broad ability to represent different qualities depending on the age, sex, marital status, belief system, etc of the person whose natal chart is being interpreted.
Interpretation is also affected by the particular areas of interest of the individual astrologer. For example, some of the areas of specialization include psychological, past-life, medical, child-based, and the list goes on!
The type of information gained from the natal chart includes understanding the early home life, relationship with parents and how these affect adult relationships. There are many others areas that can be looked at in quite a comprehensive way such as how you are perceived by the people around you, emotional needs, how you express love and affection, etc.
The information found in the natal chart can also provide an insight into what talents a person may possess that have not yet been realized or used to full potential.
Natal charts offer the benefit of self-understanding which may give a person a whole new perception of themselves, direction in life and open up possibilities for new directions in life; both in the physical and psychological sense.
What is a Natal Chart?
If you look at the words 'natal chart' you could read them another way 'birth map' - this may help you understand what is being talked about. Basically, the natal chart is a map of the sky including the positions of the planets for the time that you were born. Where you are born has an impact on what is seen in the sky, e.g., if two people were born on the same day and at the same time but in a different city and country, what is seen overhead would be different. This would mean that their natal charts showing planetary placements would be different from each other.
So, the first step in using astrology is to draw a map of the sky for the moment a person is born. This map includes all the planets, plus a few other points of interest such as the horizon and the middle of the sky directly over the birthplace. The time of birth is important for detailed work because it affects the position of the various parts of the chart, in particular the zodiac sign on the eastern horizon (this gives the Rising Sign/Ascendant) and position of the point over the birthplace (this gives the position of the Mid heaven).
If the time of birth is unknown it can be worked out through major life events by an experienced astrologer who specializes in this branch of astrology: this is known as rectification. To do this you would need to give the astrologer as many major life events as possible such as: marriage; birth of children; major moves; divorce; death; new business ventures or jobs; and/or any other significant changes to your life.
Another way of finding out what time you were born is to contact the hospital you were born in. In the majority of cases they have this information recorded on the mother's file. I know this is the case in Australia but I'm not sure about other countries but it is still worth a try!
Natal Chart Interpretations
Once the natal chart has been prepared, the positions of the planets in different zodiac signs (ie, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, etc) can be 'interpreted'. This is an area that people interested in astrology usually become a little skeptical about the validity of astrology because the interpretations can vary greatly from one astrologer to another. One way to understand these differences in interpretation is to understand that the planets and other points in the natal chart are used as symbols: as such, they have quite a broad ability to represent different qualities depending on the age, sex, marital status, belief system, etc of the person whose natal chart is being interpreted.
Interpretation is also affected by the particular areas of interest of the individual astrologer. For example, some of the areas of specialization include psychological, past-life, medical, child-based, and the list goes on!
The type of information gained from the natal chart includes understanding the early home life, relationship with parents and how these affect adult relationships. There are many others areas that can be looked at in quite a comprehensive way such as how you are perceived by the people around you, emotional needs, how you express love and affection, etc.
The information found in the natal chart can also provide an insight into what talents a person may possess that have not yet been realized or used to full potential.
Natal charts offer the benefit of self-understanding which may give a person a whole new perception of themselves, direction in life and open up possibilities for new directions in life; both in the physical and psychological sense.
Page 444
The Iraq War | Five Years Later and We are Still There by Jill Gauntley
Whoever takes on the huge task of becoming President during this tumultuous time will have their work cut out for them. One in four people disagree with how President Bush has handled the Iraq War even if they supported the war in the beginning. Our military is being exhausted by repeated deployments, involuntary extensions, and activations of the Reserve and National Guard.
Only one of the three candidates has any military experience, John McCain who was a prisoner of war POW, during the Vietnam War. Those of us who are old enough see great similarities between the Iraq War and the Vietnam War which continued through my entire childhood. I just don’t know if Clinton or Obama have the experience that it is going to take to get us out of the Iraq War. I have listed their basic viewpoints on the war, some of which are very contradictory.
Hillary Clinton: Opposed troop increase. No timetable for completing withdrawal. Voted for war.
Barack Obama: Combat troops out in 16 months. Spoke against war at start.
John McCain: Early critic of how the war was fought backed troop increase. Opposes scheduled pullout.
McCain directly confronted the biggest obstacle to his White House ambitions: his unyielding support of a war that more than two-thirds of the country has turned against. "I understand the frustration caused by our mistakes in this war. I sympathize with the fatigue of the American people," he told cadets at the Virginia Military Institute. "But I also know the toll a lost war takes on an army and a country. It is the right road. It is necessary and just." McCain cited "the first glimmers" of progress from the president's "surge" of troops into Baghdad The former Vietnam prisoner of war warned against "false optimism" and urged Americans to have patience with the military's commanders as they pursue a new strategy in the Middle East "that deals with how things are . . . and not how we wish them to be."
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama both support a withdrawal of troops and state their ideas of how they would accomplish this but whether these are feasible or not remains to be seen. They both support change which the American people desperately need. If not for the Iraq War, this could be a very exciting time in US politics; History is being made, we could have the first black President or the first woman President. No one is excited though, our economy is struggling without any end in sight, and people are sad and hopeless. I just hope that whoever we elect in November has the strength to do what has to be done to create the change.
My personal opinion is that we have no business being in the Iraq War at this time. I, like most Americans, at first thought it was necessary for our national security. The American people have not benefitted from the Iraq War. Lives are shattered and loved ones have been lost. I speak from experience as my only brother is a veteran of the Iraq War. He went into the war as a proud American soldier but has returned as a destroyed man. Those who have benefitted the most in this conflict are those who suffered the least; the multinational oil companies and the contractors with the no-bid reconstruction contracts.
To voice your opinion on the Iraq War and other relevant topics check out TellMeYourIdea.com.,a political forum that is unscripted, non-partisan, politically relevant & unfiltered where citizen contributors can debate politics on a national, state or local level. Your opinions are relevant at www.tellmeyouridea.com
Whoever takes on the huge task of becoming President during this tumultuous time will have their work cut out for them. One in four people disagree with how President Bush has handled the Iraq War even if they supported the war in the beginning. Our military is being exhausted by repeated deployments, involuntary extensions, and activations of the Reserve and National Guard.
Only one of the three candidates has any military experience, John McCain who was a prisoner of war POW, during the Vietnam War. Those of us who are old enough see great similarities between the Iraq War and the Vietnam War which continued through my entire childhood. I just don’t know if Clinton or Obama have the experience that it is going to take to get us out of the Iraq War. I have listed their basic viewpoints on the war, some of which are very contradictory.
Hillary Clinton: Opposed troop increase. No timetable for completing withdrawal. Voted for war.
Barack Obama: Combat troops out in 16 months. Spoke against war at start.
John McCain: Early critic of how the war was fought backed troop increase. Opposes scheduled pullout.
McCain directly confronted the biggest obstacle to his White House ambitions: his unyielding support of a war that more than two-thirds of the country has turned against. "I understand the frustration caused by our mistakes in this war. I sympathize with the fatigue of the American people," he told cadets at the Virginia Military Institute. "But I also know the toll a lost war takes on an army and a country. It is the right road. It is necessary and just." McCain cited "the first glimmers" of progress from the president's "surge" of troops into Baghdad The former Vietnam prisoner of war warned against "false optimism" and urged Americans to have patience with the military's commanders as they pursue a new strategy in the Middle East "that deals with how things are . . . and not how we wish them to be."
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama both support a withdrawal of troops and state their ideas of how they would accomplish this but whether these are feasible or not remains to be seen. They both support change which the American people desperately need. If not for the Iraq War, this could be a very exciting time in US politics; History is being made, we could have the first black President or the first woman President. No one is excited though, our economy is struggling without any end in sight, and people are sad and hopeless. I just hope that whoever we elect in November has the strength to do what has to be done to create the change.
My personal opinion is that we have no business being in the Iraq War at this time. I, like most Americans, at first thought it was necessary for our national security. The American people have not benefitted from the Iraq War. Lives are shattered and loved ones have been lost. I speak from experience as my only brother is a veteran of the Iraq War. He went into the war as a proud American soldier but has returned as a destroyed man. Those who have benefitted the most in this conflict are those who suffered the least; the multinational oil companies and the contractors with the no-bid reconstruction contracts.
To voice your opinion on the Iraq War and other relevant topics check out TellMeYourIdea.com.,a political forum that is unscripted, non-partisan, politically relevant & unfiltered where citizen contributors can debate politics on a national, state or local level. Your opinions are relevant at www.tellmeyouridea.com
Page 443
High quality and fashionable design Ceramic jar by jeya
These ceramic treat jar are high-quality, heavyweight Pet Ceramic Treat Jars come in eye-catching designs that are sure to attract customer attention. They provide customers a whimsical twist on a practical necessity. Lead-free ceramic jars have an airtight seal that locks in freshness and flavor to keep treats tasting great. A great way to send love to any dog in the country is by sending this beautiful ceramic treat jar that comes with a tub full of gourmet dog treats - which can be personalized with the name of any lucky dog.
These dog treat jar are high-quality ceramic bowls have a fashionable design that will look great in any decor. This high-quality treat jar is whimsical, fun, and a great decorative piece! Lead-free ceramic jars have an airtight seal that locks in freshness and flavor to keep treats tasting great. These lead-free ceramic jars have an air-tight seal that locks in the freshness and flavor of our gourmet treats.
The dog Ceramic Treat Jars have a refreshing new look that turns any meal into an epicurean delight. The pet’s ceramic ware is dishwasher safe for easy cleanup. Matching Ceramic Dishes are also available. Beautiful hand painted doggie treat jar. This dog biscuit canister will look great in any home. This canister features a hand painted paw print on the jar. Created by artisans in the USA, each one is a true work of art.
Attractive and functional ceramic dog bowls in fashionable colors. Match your ceramic dog food bowl with a decorative ceramic treat canister. Ceramic dog bowls are heavy so they resist being pushed around the floor while your dog is feeding. Sleek, Classic Greek lines make our Ceramic Dog jar a favorite of pet owners. Unique wavy texture inspired by Mediterranean shores. Handcrafted ceramic ware is dishwasher safe.
The cheap Ceramic treat jar Blue canisters bowls are sanitary, dishwasher safe and come in many styles. All ceramic treat container come with an air tight seal to keep treats fresh. Many Dog Treat Jars are available with personalization. Ceramic Treat Jars have a refreshing new look that turns any meal into an epicurean delight. The pet’s ceramic ware is dishwasher safe for easy cleanup. Matching Ceramic Dishes are also available. Please purchase online http://www.katiewongnyc.com
These ceramic treat jar are high-quality, heavyweight Pet Ceramic Treat Jars come in eye-catching designs that are sure to attract customer attention. They provide customers a whimsical twist on a practical necessity. Lead-free ceramic jars have an airtight seal that locks in freshness and flavor to keep treats tasting great. A great way to send love to any dog in the country is by sending this beautiful ceramic treat jar that comes with a tub full of gourmet dog treats - which can be personalized with the name of any lucky dog.
These dog treat jar are high-quality ceramic bowls have a fashionable design that will look great in any decor. This high-quality treat jar is whimsical, fun, and a great decorative piece! Lead-free ceramic jars have an airtight seal that locks in freshness and flavor to keep treats tasting great. These lead-free ceramic jars have an air-tight seal that locks in the freshness and flavor of our gourmet treats.
The dog Ceramic Treat Jars have a refreshing new look that turns any meal into an epicurean delight. The pet’s ceramic ware is dishwasher safe for easy cleanup. Matching Ceramic Dishes are also available. Beautiful hand painted doggie treat jar. This dog biscuit canister will look great in any home. This canister features a hand painted paw print on the jar. Created by artisans in the USA, each one is a true work of art.
Attractive and functional ceramic dog bowls in fashionable colors. Match your ceramic dog food bowl with a decorative ceramic treat canister. Ceramic dog bowls are heavy so they resist being pushed around the floor while your dog is feeding. Sleek, Classic Greek lines make our Ceramic Dog jar a favorite of pet owners. Unique wavy texture inspired by Mediterranean shores. Handcrafted ceramic ware is dishwasher safe.
The cheap Ceramic treat jar Blue canisters bowls are sanitary, dishwasher safe and come in many styles. All ceramic treat container come with an air tight seal to keep treats fresh. Many Dog Treat Jars are available with personalization. Ceramic Treat Jars have a refreshing new look that turns any meal into an epicurean delight. The pet’s ceramic ware is dishwasher safe for easy cleanup. Matching Ceramic Dishes are also available. Please purchase online http://www.katiewongnyc.com
Page 442
Love at First Strike-Baseball in Latin America by Grant Eckert
Baseball in the United States dates back to the 1840s, but many other countries picked up and played the sport soon after. In Cuba, students who enrolled in the United States educational system returned home to the island nation with a bat and a ball. The popularity of the game in Cuba was so high as to be considered part of the identity during the war for independence during the late 1800s.
The Spaniards assumed that the baseball practice and teams were just a cover-up for the preparation to go to war. Throughout the Caribbean region, Cuban players spread their newfound knowledge which increased the popularity of the game. It was two Cuban brothers who carried the game to the Dominican Republic and Cubans in the country of Venezuela along with Venezuelan nationals who had matriculated in the U.S. brought the sport to Venezuela, beginning in 1895 and to the island of Puerto Rico in 1897.
In Mexico, it was also Cubans who had fled from the island during its struggles for independence that brought baseball to Mexico. The Cubans in Mexico were assisted by U.S. merchant marines and railroad workers. Various regions of Mexico were converted to the sport during the years from 1877 to 1899. In terms of popularity, the sport of baseball is number one in Cuba, Dominican Republic and Venezuela with a strong showing in Puerto Rico.
Mexico still places football as the dominant sport. In Central America, baseball is also very popular. In the United States, players from Latin America and Puerto Rico have become a growing force in major league baseball. There are professional leagues organized in Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Dominican Republic.
As in the rest of the world, football (soccer) is unquestionably the most popular sport in Latin America. Yet, it is also true that in much of the Caribbean basin, baseball is the number one sport. In fact, where U.S. imperial power spread throughout the world, and in Latin America specifically, the influence of baseball was the strongest. During a military occupation, many countries were introduced to American baseball.
It has been said that if Fidel Castro had been a better baseball player, the history of the Cold War might have played out very differently. Castro is an avid fan and once played the game. The reverse is also true: Orlando Hernandez "El Duque" left Cuba in 2000 and played for the New York Yankees in the World Series.
Baseball season in Latin America stretches from October to January. The winners of the four national leagues meet in February to play the Caribbean Series. Mexican players participate in a summer minor league that has connections with the U.S. Minor League Baseball governing body. Mexico has been given Triple A status. There are also Dominican Republic and Venezuelan summer rookie leagues that are affiliated with Minor League Baseball.
Although professional baseball existed in Cuba from 1878 until 1961, it was abolished by the Cuban government at the professional level. The Cuban national team now dominates the world amateur competitions, winning gold medals at Barcelona in 1992 and Atlanta in 1996.
About 30 percent of the major league players in baseball today are connected to Latin America in some fashion. Either they are from Latin America or are descendants of Latin Americans who grew up in the U.S. In the general population, only eleven percent of the people are from Latin America. Latino baseball players overwhelmingly are foreign born and claim Cuba, Nicaragua, Panama, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic as a birthplace.
Unfortunately, some of the major teams have gained a reputation for an almost sweatshop approach to baseball academies in the Latin American region. Young boys with talent are signed and sent to these training regimens where life is harsh in the hopes of winning a contract with one of the major clubs. Many of these players travel to Latin America to play the winter league baseball games in the Latin American leagues.
The countries in the Caribbean basin that are baseball enthusiasts send national teams with championship titles to participate in the Caribbean World Series each year since 1949. For players of Latin American descent, the opportunity to play in Major League Baseball is high success and tremendous financial gain.
Beginning in 2006, the World Baseball Classic between the United States, Puerto Rico, Japan, Mexico, Panama, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, was held. Nicaragua did not attend, but Cuba did send a team. The tournament was won by Japan, which was a tremendous surprise to many if not most of the observers.
Baseball in the United States dates back to the 1840s, but many other countries picked up and played the sport soon after. In Cuba, students who enrolled in the United States educational system returned home to the island nation with a bat and a ball. The popularity of the game in Cuba was so high as to be considered part of the identity during the war for independence during the late 1800s.
The Spaniards assumed that the baseball practice and teams were just a cover-up for the preparation to go to war. Throughout the Caribbean region, Cuban players spread their newfound knowledge which increased the popularity of the game. It was two Cuban brothers who carried the game to the Dominican Republic and Cubans in the country of Venezuela along with Venezuelan nationals who had matriculated in the U.S. brought the sport to Venezuela, beginning in 1895 and to the island of Puerto Rico in 1897.
In Mexico, it was also Cubans who had fled from the island during its struggles for independence that brought baseball to Mexico. The Cubans in Mexico were assisted by U.S. merchant marines and railroad workers. Various regions of Mexico were converted to the sport during the years from 1877 to 1899. In terms of popularity, the sport of baseball is number one in Cuba, Dominican Republic and Venezuela with a strong showing in Puerto Rico.
Mexico still places football as the dominant sport. In Central America, baseball is also very popular. In the United States, players from Latin America and Puerto Rico have become a growing force in major league baseball. There are professional leagues organized in Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Dominican Republic.
As in the rest of the world, football (soccer) is unquestionably the most popular sport in Latin America. Yet, it is also true that in much of the Caribbean basin, baseball is the number one sport. In fact, where U.S. imperial power spread throughout the world, and in Latin America specifically, the influence of baseball was the strongest. During a military occupation, many countries were introduced to American baseball.
It has been said that if Fidel Castro had been a better baseball player, the history of the Cold War might have played out very differently. Castro is an avid fan and once played the game. The reverse is also true: Orlando Hernandez "El Duque" left Cuba in 2000 and played for the New York Yankees in the World Series.
Baseball season in Latin America stretches from October to January. The winners of the four national leagues meet in February to play the Caribbean Series. Mexican players participate in a summer minor league that has connections with the U.S. Minor League Baseball governing body. Mexico has been given Triple A status. There are also Dominican Republic and Venezuelan summer rookie leagues that are affiliated with Minor League Baseball.
Although professional baseball existed in Cuba from 1878 until 1961, it was abolished by the Cuban government at the professional level. The Cuban national team now dominates the world amateur competitions, winning gold medals at Barcelona in 1992 and Atlanta in 1996.
About 30 percent of the major league players in baseball today are connected to Latin America in some fashion. Either they are from Latin America or are descendants of Latin Americans who grew up in the U.S. In the general population, only eleven percent of the people are from Latin America. Latino baseball players overwhelmingly are foreign born and claim Cuba, Nicaragua, Panama, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic as a birthplace.
Unfortunately, some of the major teams have gained a reputation for an almost sweatshop approach to baseball academies in the Latin American region. Young boys with talent are signed and sent to these training regimens where life is harsh in the hopes of winning a contract with one of the major clubs. Many of these players travel to Latin America to play the winter league baseball games in the Latin American leagues.
The countries in the Caribbean basin that are baseball enthusiasts send national teams with championship titles to participate in the Caribbean World Series each year since 1949. For players of Latin American descent, the opportunity to play in Major League Baseball is high success and tremendous financial gain.
Beginning in 2006, the World Baseball Classic between the United States, Puerto Rico, Japan, Mexico, Panama, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, was held. Nicaragua did not attend, but Cuba did send a team. The tournament was won by Japan, which was a tremendous surprise to many if not most of the observers.
Page 441
Mixed Martial Arts Boxing Equipments by shijina
All over the world, boxing is a sports game which fetches more craze among people. The equipments come in different varieties, prices, colors and designs to meet the requirement of the customer around the world. When the person practices their sports activity or they goes for a competition, they use these kinds of equipments. Different sorts of sports equipments are available in the market to meet the demands of customers who needs.
Special trainings will be provided to the boxer to compete with the opponent using different techniques available. Generally, when people compete each other will be wearing all kinds of boxing gears on their body. Different sorts of equipments are available in the market and some of the equipments are gloves, headgear, bags, medicine ball, rings, mouthpiece, handwraps, shoes and more numbers.
Mma Gloves
People wear gloves on their hands to be protecting their hands at the time of kicking or fighting each other. Generally, the person who compete each other will wear gloves in their hands to be protective. Some of the gloves are bag, training, pro fight, mma, aerobic and even more.
Headgear
Headgear is a kind of gear used by people on their head to protect against any injury or damages. Headgear protects boxers against cuts, scrapes or swells on their head and reduces risk to some extent.
Handwraps
The sports handwraps protects people against injury and damages at the time of practicing the game. Handwraps are special instruments designed for boxers to protect their bones, tendons and muscles of their hands at the time of kicking, fighting. Mma handwraps are popular kind of instruments used by the people and it fetches more demand among people.
Mouthpiece
Mouthpiece is special product used by the boxers by keeping that gear on the mouth to safe against punching. Generally, all kinds of players will be using this instrument to protect them against injury. It is suggested that the product should be boiled in hot water and then use it.
Heavybags
Mma heavybags are punching bags to make their practice at their home or gym in desirable manner. The appearance of heavybags will be in larger, cylindrical fitted with metal rings from top to bottom. It comes in leather or synthetic material as per the requirement of the customer for reasonable prices.
Boxing ring
Boxing ring is a kind of gear used in the match. In the place provided, the ring will be used to play the game safely. It is kind of loop which will be raised on the platform corners. The ring will be four parallel rows if ropes on corners with turnbuckles.
All over the world, boxing is a sports game which fetches more craze among people. The equipments come in different varieties, prices, colors and designs to meet the requirement of the customer around the world. When the person practices their sports activity or they goes for a competition, they use these kinds of equipments. Different sorts of sports equipments are available in the market to meet the demands of customers who needs.
Special trainings will be provided to the boxer to compete with the opponent using different techniques available. Generally, when people compete each other will be wearing all kinds of boxing gears on their body. Different sorts of equipments are available in the market and some of the equipments are gloves, headgear, bags, medicine ball, rings, mouthpiece, handwraps, shoes and more numbers.
Mma Gloves
People wear gloves on their hands to be protecting their hands at the time of kicking or fighting each other. Generally, the person who compete each other will wear gloves in their hands to be protective. Some of the gloves are bag, training, pro fight, mma, aerobic and even more.
Headgear
Headgear is a kind of gear used by people on their head to protect against any injury or damages. Headgear protects boxers against cuts, scrapes or swells on their head and reduces risk to some extent.
Handwraps
The sports handwraps protects people against injury and damages at the time of practicing the game. Handwraps are special instruments designed for boxers to protect their bones, tendons and muscles of their hands at the time of kicking, fighting. Mma handwraps are popular kind of instruments used by the people and it fetches more demand among people.
Mouthpiece
Mouthpiece is special product used by the boxers by keeping that gear on the mouth to safe against punching. Generally, all kinds of players will be using this instrument to protect them against injury. It is suggested that the product should be boiled in hot water and then use it.
Heavybags
Mma heavybags are punching bags to make their practice at their home or gym in desirable manner. The appearance of heavybags will be in larger, cylindrical fitted with metal rings from top to bottom. It comes in leather or synthetic material as per the requirement of the customer for reasonable prices.
Boxing ring
Boxing ring is a kind of gear used in the match. In the place provided, the ring will be used to play the game safely. It is kind of loop which will be raised on the platform corners. The ring will be four parallel rows if ropes on corners with turnbuckles.
Page 440
Pet Classifieds Advice & Tips by Martin Davis
When you want to reach as many people as possible with your pet related ads, pet classifieds are often the best way to go. Many people are constantly checking these and if you use online pet classifieds services, you´ll reach thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of potential buyers. This obviously opens up huge potential, whether you are selling animals or pet accessories. However, your ads need to be written to sell, otherwise, they´ll just sit there like a lump.
Where to List
The first thing to consider is where your pet classifieds will be listed. There are plenty of free pet classifieds sites out there and you can definitely use these services, but they aren´t going to get the same results as a paid service. The reason for this is pretty simple, you will not receive the same responce as you would if your advert looks amazing and really jumps from the page.
If you have the time and energy to sort through free classifieds sites until you find some relatively spam free ones,( http://www.adflyer.co.uk) go for it. Also, you´ll get much faster results by upgrading your advert on the above website. Spammers are nowhere to be seen on this site, so you´ll have your ad in front of more trusting viewers.
Writing Your Pet Classified
Most classifieds are going to be fairly limited in length. The majority of pet classifieds are required to be 100 words or less, but the length varies. You also don´t want the ad to be too long, since people will be scanning the page and longer ads are more likely to get skipped.
The idea is to get as much information as possible into as small a space as possible. This is done with clever writing and use of the right words. You want the potential buyer to know everything necessary in order to decide that they are interested and to weed out the ones who are interested in something else. For example, if you are selling purebred puppies and someone is just looking for a friendly mutt to play with the kids, you don´t want them ringing you.
Start your pet classifieds off with an eye-catching phrase. It should instantly communicate what you are selling and should be short enough to catch the reader´s attention. To get some ideas, take a look at some other classifieds listings to see what is working for others.
You may use a question or a description to start off your ad. For example, “Looking for man´s best friend?” or “Cutest kittens on Earth!” This instantly lets the reader know what you are selling and if they are interested, they´ll keep reading.
The next part of your ad needs to describe what you are selling and why it is desirable. This is where you should put any information like what is the breed of animal, what colour, if it has had its shots or any other pertinent information. This is basically an elimination, where the client will decide if they are interested in the animal you are listing for sale or not.
Finally, you´ll need contact information. How do you want people to contact you? Should they ring you or write an email? Decide on this and add the information at the bottom of the ad. It can be a good idea to offer more than one form of communication.
Whether or not you include the price is up to you, but you will tend to get more valid responses if the price is there in your pet classifieds, since anyone unwilling to pay your price probably won´t bother contacting you.
Writing great pet classifieds takes some practice, but there´s no reason you can´t rewrite until you are satisfied that you have the best possible ad to put out there.
When you want to reach as many people as possible with your pet related ads, pet classifieds are often the best way to go. Many people are constantly checking these and if you use online pet classifieds services, you´ll reach thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of potential buyers. This obviously opens up huge potential, whether you are selling animals or pet accessories. However, your ads need to be written to sell, otherwise, they´ll just sit there like a lump.
Where to List
The first thing to consider is where your pet classifieds will be listed. There are plenty of free pet classifieds sites out there and you can definitely use these services, but they aren´t going to get the same results as a paid service. The reason for this is pretty simple, you will not receive the same responce as you would if your advert looks amazing and really jumps from the page.
If you have the time and energy to sort through free classifieds sites until you find some relatively spam free ones,( http://www.adflyer.co.uk) go for it. Also, you´ll get much faster results by upgrading your advert on the above website. Spammers are nowhere to be seen on this site, so you´ll have your ad in front of more trusting viewers.
Writing Your Pet Classified
Most classifieds are going to be fairly limited in length. The majority of pet classifieds are required to be 100 words or less, but the length varies. You also don´t want the ad to be too long, since people will be scanning the page and longer ads are more likely to get skipped.
The idea is to get as much information as possible into as small a space as possible. This is done with clever writing and use of the right words. You want the potential buyer to know everything necessary in order to decide that they are interested and to weed out the ones who are interested in something else. For example, if you are selling purebred puppies and someone is just looking for a friendly mutt to play with the kids, you don´t want them ringing you.
Start your pet classifieds off with an eye-catching phrase. It should instantly communicate what you are selling and should be short enough to catch the reader´s attention. To get some ideas, take a look at some other classifieds listings to see what is working for others.
You may use a question or a description to start off your ad. For example, “Looking for man´s best friend?” or “Cutest kittens on Earth!” This instantly lets the reader know what you are selling and if they are interested, they´ll keep reading.
The next part of your ad needs to describe what you are selling and why it is desirable. This is where you should put any information like what is the breed of animal, what colour, if it has had its shots or any other pertinent information. This is basically an elimination, where the client will decide if they are interested in the animal you are listing for sale or not.
Finally, you´ll need contact information. How do you want people to contact you? Should they ring you or write an email? Decide on this and add the information at the bottom of the ad. It can be a good idea to offer more than one form of communication.
Whether or not you include the price is up to you, but you will tend to get more valid responses if the price is there in your pet classifieds, since anyone unwilling to pay your price probably won´t bother contacting you.
Writing great pet classifieds takes some practice, but there´s no reason you can´t rewrite until you are satisfied that you have the best possible ad to put out there.
Page 439
Mixed Martial Arts Boxing Equipments by shijina
All over the world, boxing is a sports game which fetches more craze among people. The equipments come in different varieties, prices, colors and designs to meet the requirement of the customer around the world. When the person practices their sports activity or they goes for a competition, they use these kinds of equipments. Different sorts of sports equipments are available in the market to meet the demands of customers who needs.
Special trainings will be provided to the boxer to compete with the opponent using different techniques available. Generally, when people compete each other will be wearing all kinds of boxing gears on their body. Different sorts of equipments are available in the market and some of the equipments are gloves, headgear, bags, medicine ball, rings, mouthpiece, handwraps, shoes and more numbers.
Mma Gloves
People wear gloves on their hands to be protecting their hands at the time of kicking or fighting each other. Generally, the person who compete each other will wear gloves in their hands to be protective. Some of the gloves are bag, training, pro fight, mma, aerobic and even more.
Headgear
Headgear is a kind of gear used by people on their head to protect against any injury or damages. Headgear protects boxers against cuts, scrapes or swells on their head and reduces risk to some extent.
Handwraps
The sports handwraps protects people against injury and damages at the time of practicing the game. Handwraps are special instruments designed for boxers to protect their bones, tendons and muscles of their hands at the time of kicking, fighting. Mma handwraps are popular kind of instruments used by the people and it fetches more demand among people.
Mouthpiece
Mouthpiece is special product used by the boxers by keeping that gear on the mouth to safe against punching. Generally, all kinds of players will be using this instrument to protect them against injury. It is suggested that the product should be boiled in hot water and then use it.
Heavybags
Mma heavybags are punching bags to make their practice at their home or gym in desirable manner. The appearance of heavybags will be in larger, cylindrical fitted with metal rings from top to bottom. It comes in leather or synthetic material as per the requirement of the customer for reasonable prices.
Boxing ring
Boxing ring is a kind of gear used in the match. In the place provided, the ring will be used to play the game safely. It is kind of loop which will be raised on the platform corners. The ring will be four parallel rows if ropes on corners with turnbuckles.
All over the world, boxing is a sports game which fetches more craze among people. The equipments come in different varieties, prices, colors and designs to meet the requirement of the customer around the world. When the person practices their sports activity or they goes for a competition, they use these kinds of equipments. Different sorts of sports equipments are available in the market to meet the demands of customers who needs.
Special trainings will be provided to the boxer to compete with the opponent using different techniques available. Generally, when people compete each other will be wearing all kinds of boxing gears on their body. Different sorts of equipments are available in the market and some of the equipments are gloves, headgear, bags, medicine ball, rings, mouthpiece, handwraps, shoes and more numbers.
Mma Gloves
People wear gloves on their hands to be protecting their hands at the time of kicking or fighting each other. Generally, the person who compete each other will wear gloves in their hands to be protective. Some of the gloves are bag, training, pro fight, mma, aerobic and even more.
Headgear
Headgear is a kind of gear used by people on their head to protect against any injury or damages. Headgear protects boxers against cuts, scrapes or swells on their head and reduces risk to some extent.
Handwraps
The sports handwraps protects people against injury and damages at the time of practicing the game. Handwraps are special instruments designed for boxers to protect their bones, tendons and muscles of their hands at the time of kicking, fighting. Mma handwraps are popular kind of instruments used by the people and it fetches more demand among people.
Mouthpiece
Mouthpiece is special product used by the boxers by keeping that gear on the mouth to safe against punching. Generally, all kinds of players will be using this instrument to protect them against injury. It is suggested that the product should be boiled in hot water and then use it.
Heavybags
Mma heavybags are punching bags to make their practice at their home or gym in desirable manner. The appearance of heavybags will be in larger, cylindrical fitted with metal rings from top to bottom. It comes in leather or synthetic material as per the requirement of the customer for reasonable prices.
Boxing ring
Boxing ring is a kind of gear used in the match. In the place provided, the ring will be used to play the game safely. It is kind of loop which will be raised on the platform corners. The ring will be four parallel rows if ropes on corners with turnbuckles.
Page 437
A Treadmill is an Intimate Partner of Your Health by Angulo Fu
With today's fast-paced lifestyle, more and more people exercise less time. Pressure from all makes many people in a physical state of sub health. Treadmill has provided people with a convenient and speedy way of training. It enables people in the busy to still enjoy a better life. A luxurious home treadmill can be an intimate partner of your health.
A treadmill is a piece of indoor sporting equipment used to allow for the motions of running or walking while staying in one place. The word treadmill traditionally refers to a type of mill which was operated by a person or animal treading steps of a wheel to grind grain.
The principle is a belt system (an electric motor or flywheel connected to a circular run of material) where the top of the belt moves to the rear so as to allow a runner to run an equal, and necessarily opposite speed. Thus the speed of the run can easily be set or measured (the rate at which the belt moves is the rate at which the runner moves). The more expensive, heavy-duty versions are motor-driven. The simpler, lighter, cheaper versions are passive, moving only when the walker pushes the belt with their feet, and operates just to resist the motion.
Pressure is everywhere! It is commonly believed that only rich middle-aged businessmen suffer from stress. In fact anyone may become ill as a result of stress if they experience a lot of worry over a long period and their health is not especially good. Our living and working conditions may put us under stress. Overcrowding in large cities, traffic jams, competition for jobs, worry about the future, and big changes in our lives, may cause stress. As with all illnesses, prevention is better than cure. Exercise is the most scientific method of prevention. Then what kind of exercise? Running!
Though heavy work, we still have solutions! Treadmill is popular with both the family and gymnasium equipments. Of all family fitness equipments, treadmill may be the best choice. Now, purchase a luxurious home treadmill for your family! Indoor treadmill has a lot of advantages than the outdoor exercise, which means that indoor exercise is not easily affected by weather conditions. In the inland cities, air quality is not very good, and sometimes there is dust in spring weather. What’s more, neither too cold nor too hot is suitable to take exercise. Whereas indoor environment is more quiet and balanced than outside temperature, so that you are allowed to do some exercise whenever you want. After a whole day of tense and tired work, what you want may be a thorough physical and mental relaxation when you go home. After proper rest, you can exercise on a treadmill for half an hour or so. Although it may feel that the body will be a certain degree of exertion, the sweat from your body will be due to remove the toxins arising from pressure, expedite the metabolism, increase lung capacity and enhance human immunity, thus you regain a cheerful mood, and the whole person is again full of vitality. In addition, for those OLs who desire to maintain the shape, indoor treadmill is good news, absolutely! Busy working every day prevents these women friends from running. And an indoor treadmill can easily solve the problems of gaining weight. But one thing we must pay attention to is to insist. Persist in running for as long as 20 to 30 minutes a day, you will receive unexpected results.
Made-in-China.com could provides you with both perfect products and personalized services!
With today's fast-paced lifestyle, more and more people exercise less time. Pressure from all makes many people in a physical state of sub health. Treadmill has provided people with a convenient and speedy way of training. It enables people in the busy to still enjoy a better life. A luxurious home treadmill can be an intimate partner of your health.
A treadmill is a piece of indoor sporting equipment used to allow for the motions of running or walking while staying in one place. The word treadmill traditionally refers to a type of mill which was operated by a person or animal treading steps of a wheel to grind grain.
The principle is a belt system (an electric motor or flywheel connected to a circular run of material) where the top of the belt moves to the rear so as to allow a runner to run an equal, and necessarily opposite speed. Thus the speed of the run can easily be set or measured (the rate at which the belt moves is the rate at which the runner moves). The more expensive, heavy-duty versions are motor-driven. The simpler, lighter, cheaper versions are passive, moving only when the walker pushes the belt with their feet, and operates just to resist the motion.
Pressure is everywhere! It is commonly believed that only rich middle-aged businessmen suffer from stress. In fact anyone may become ill as a result of stress if they experience a lot of worry over a long period and their health is not especially good. Our living and working conditions may put us under stress. Overcrowding in large cities, traffic jams, competition for jobs, worry about the future, and big changes in our lives, may cause stress. As with all illnesses, prevention is better than cure. Exercise is the most scientific method of prevention. Then what kind of exercise? Running!
Though heavy work, we still have solutions! Treadmill is popular with both the family and gymnasium equipments. Of all family fitness equipments, treadmill may be the best choice. Now, purchase a luxurious home treadmill for your family! Indoor treadmill has a lot of advantages than the outdoor exercise, which means that indoor exercise is not easily affected by weather conditions. In the inland cities, air quality is not very good, and sometimes there is dust in spring weather. What’s more, neither too cold nor too hot is suitable to take exercise. Whereas indoor environment is more quiet and balanced than outside temperature, so that you are allowed to do some exercise whenever you want. After a whole day of tense and tired work, what you want may be a thorough physical and mental relaxation when you go home. After proper rest, you can exercise on a treadmill for half an hour or so. Although it may feel that the body will be a certain degree of exertion, the sweat from your body will be due to remove the toxins arising from pressure, expedite the metabolism, increase lung capacity and enhance human immunity, thus you regain a cheerful mood, and the whole person is again full of vitality. In addition, for those OLs who desire to maintain the shape, indoor treadmill is good news, absolutely! Busy working every day prevents these women friends from running. And an indoor treadmill can easily solve the problems of gaining weight. But one thing we must pay attention to is to insist. Persist in running for as long as 20 to 30 minutes a day, you will receive unexpected results.
Made-in-China.com could provides you with both perfect products and personalized services!
Page 436
Digital Video Downloads by Kevin Cantera
One of the hottest trends in the cyber world is the explosions of video downloads from the Internet, to your computer, your iPod-style entertainment device, or, more and more, to your cell phone. Microsoft has launched its version, MSN Video Downloads, which gives video junkies all kinds daily television programming, including video content from MSNBC.com, Food Network, FOX Sports and IFILM Corp., for download to Windows Mobile -based devices.
Since the launch of the Microsoft Windows Mobile-based Portable Media Center, more than 20 new content partners, including CinemaNow Inc., MLB.com, MSNBC.com, MSN Music, MTV Networks Music, Napster Inc., SnapStream Media Inc. and TiVo Inc., have agreed to make video available online specifically formatted for Windows Mobile-based multimedia devices.
People subscribing to Microsoft’s premium service can select the content they want to receive from the Web site. Digital videos are downloaded daily to a Windows Media Player 10 library, ready to be synchronized with Portable Media Centers and other devices. The video content is compliant with devices that play video, and is optimized for Portable Media Centers.
Google Video lets you search a growing archive of televised content – everything from sports events to dinosaur documentaries to news programs. In addition to televised content, Google also lets you host video from anyone who wants to upload content. The upload program lets you submit videos electronically to Google Video, as long as you own the necessary rights (including copyrights, trademarks, rights of publicity, and any other relevant rights for your content). Just use the upload tool to send your videos to Google. Before going live, your video has to go through a number of steps which you can track through your account.
After uploading your video, you must enter information about your video, including its title and description. After verification, your video will be made available for users to search, preview, purchase, and play. At any time after you upload your video to Google, you'll have the opportunity to add more videos, update the information about each video, or remove your video from the program.
One of the hottest trends in the cyber world is the explosions of video downloads from the Internet, to your computer, your iPod-style entertainment device, or, more and more, to your cell phone. Microsoft has launched its version, MSN Video Downloads, which gives video junkies all kinds daily television programming, including video content from MSNBC.com, Food Network, FOX Sports and IFILM Corp., for download to Windows Mobile -based devices.
Since the launch of the Microsoft Windows Mobile-based Portable Media Center, more than 20 new content partners, including CinemaNow Inc., MLB.com, MSNBC.com, MSN Music, MTV Networks Music, Napster Inc., SnapStream Media Inc. and TiVo Inc., have agreed to make video available online specifically formatted for Windows Mobile-based multimedia devices.
People subscribing to Microsoft’s premium service can select the content they want to receive from the Web site. Digital videos are downloaded daily to a Windows Media Player 10 library, ready to be synchronized with Portable Media Centers and other devices. The video content is compliant with devices that play video, and is optimized for Portable Media Centers.
Google Video lets you search a growing archive of televised content – everything from sports events to dinosaur documentaries to news programs. In addition to televised content, Google also lets you host video from anyone who wants to upload content. The upload program lets you submit videos electronically to Google Video, as long as you own the necessary rights (including copyrights, trademarks, rights of publicity, and any other relevant rights for your content). Just use the upload tool to send your videos to Google. Before going live, your video has to go through a number of steps which you can track through your account.
After uploading your video, you must enter information about your video, including its title and description. After verification, your video will be made available for users to search, preview, purchase, and play. At any time after you upload your video to Google, you'll have the opportunity to add more videos, update the information about each video, or remove your video from the program.
Page 435
About SMS Messaging by ECS Technologies
SMS messaging or the short message service messaging is a very popular mobile interaction method these days. Due to its low cost nature this service is highly popular among the teenagers these days.
First you have to know some important facts and trivia about the SMS messaging service. Basically the idea of SMS messaging was come in the early 1980s. But this service was come to an effect in 1985 for and to GSM mobile handsets only. After that it became available for each and every telecom technology like CDMA, AMPS, Satellite phones and even Landlines too. Surprisingly, some online messengers are also providing the messenger to mobile and mobile to messenger SMS facilities. Basically SMS is a short message of at most 160 characters, which can be written by using mobile keypads in general. It can be sent from a mobile to another mobile. To overcome the limitation of the 160 character limit the Long message service is also there. Long Message service is nothing but the collection of some SMSs. Basically a Long Message of more than 160 character uses to divide itself in some 160 character SMS. Then each and every 160-character phrase sent one by one to the receiver’s mobile phone. Generally all the digital mobile phones do have the feature of short message service option.
Due to the improvement of SMS some monophonic ring tones can also be sent through SMS using some special format. Later the scope of SMS was increased and the technology enables the man to send likes of pictures and video clips using GPRS system from one mobile set to another. But this service is named Multimedia Messaging Service or simply the MMS. But now it is possible to do something like MMS through SMS. The SMS can be sent in special text formatting in likes of bold and italics. Also some icons, animations, sound effects, pictures, and special ring tones can be sent through SMS these days. This type of Short Messaging Service is known as Enhanced Messaging Service or simply the EMS. According to the researchers this EMS service is the intermediate stage between the SMS system and the MMS system. But this EMS system seems to grab some rapid popularity!
Now, the following statistics about the Short Message Service seems to be really interesting. In 1995, the initial stages of SMS, each and every customer used to send a SMS once in every two and half month. Again, in early 2000s each and every customer was sending some 30 to 40 SMS in every month. Again some 9 Million SMS were sent among the mobile users in the very first day of 2007 that’s too only in UK!
Short Message Service is too much successful due its low cost nature. Again you need not to reply at that instant when you receive the SMS. These are the some of the facts that makes the SMS really popular.
Some literature minded people do believe that the short nature of words will kill the art of literature some day. But to people, interaction is more important than the literature. So here is the high possibility the progress of the SMS system will continue.
SMS messaging or the short message service messaging is a very popular mobile interaction method these days. Due to its low cost nature this service is highly popular among the teenagers these days.
First you have to know some important facts and trivia about the SMS messaging service. Basically the idea of SMS messaging was come in the early 1980s. But this service was come to an effect in 1985 for and to GSM mobile handsets only. After that it became available for each and every telecom technology like CDMA, AMPS, Satellite phones and even Landlines too. Surprisingly, some online messengers are also providing the messenger to mobile and mobile to messenger SMS facilities. Basically SMS is a short message of at most 160 characters, which can be written by using mobile keypads in general. It can be sent from a mobile to another mobile. To overcome the limitation of the 160 character limit the Long message service is also there. Long Message service is nothing but the collection of some SMSs. Basically a Long Message of more than 160 character uses to divide itself in some 160 character SMS. Then each and every 160-character phrase sent one by one to the receiver’s mobile phone. Generally all the digital mobile phones do have the feature of short message service option.
Due to the improvement of SMS some monophonic ring tones can also be sent through SMS using some special format. Later the scope of SMS was increased and the technology enables the man to send likes of pictures and video clips using GPRS system from one mobile set to another. But this service is named Multimedia Messaging Service or simply the MMS. But now it is possible to do something like MMS through SMS. The SMS can be sent in special text formatting in likes of bold and italics. Also some icons, animations, sound effects, pictures, and special ring tones can be sent through SMS these days. This type of Short Messaging Service is known as Enhanced Messaging Service or simply the EMS. According to the researchers this EMS service is the intermediate stage between the SMS system and the MMS system. But this EMS system seems to grab some rapid popularity!
Now, the following statistics about the Short Message Service seems to be really interesting. In 1995, the initial stages of SMS, each and every customer used to send a SMS once in every two and half month. Again, in early 2000s each and every customer was sending some 30 to 40 SMS in every month. Again some 9 Million SMS were sent among the mobile users in the very first day of 2007 that’s too only in UK!
Short Message Service is too much successful due its low cost nature. Again you need not to reply at that instant when you receive the SMS. These are the some of the facts that makes the SMS really popular.
Some literature minded people do believe that the short nature of words will kill the art of literature some day. But to people, interaction is more important than the literature. So here is the high possibility the progress of the SMS system will continue.
Page 434
Satellite TV - More than the basics by Nicole Evans
If you are looking for versatility when it comes to programming with Direct TV and you are looking for something with a little more bulk than the basic packages but you do not want to spend a large amount of money then there are several options available to you with the satellite TV packaging. Basic packaging on satellite TV only covers just that the basics. If you want something, more consider the intermediate package choices.
The first choice xtra this package gives you all the basics when it comes to music, sports, family programming plus you get channels of educational value like PBS, Biography and the History International Channel. Love sports they have sport stations as well and a number of additional channels designed specifically for younger audiences. There are also usually premium move package deals offered with this package. These are usually free for a certain number of months and may include several channels or sets of channels within a particular grouping. For example, Starz one of the premium channels when it comes to movies offers 12 different stations under its package, while Showtime has nine different stations. These are two of the more frequently offered promotional options.
Of course, the package comes with local stations, no cost for equipment and installation is usually free as well. The Choice Xtra package for Direct TV also comes with over 200 different stations. Adding HD access grants you access to high definition as well as a variety of independent channels that are market specific. If you want 200 plus channels, local stations, movies, sports, music, documentary stations, educational and specialty programming, as well as family friendly program with the ability to record your favorite shows whether or not your home consider the Choice Xtra plus DVR package. This package offers all the channels of Choice Xtra plus the DVR service package including the receiver. This may or may not be free depending on your area. HD access is still extra per month on this package but there are usually premium movie channel promotional options available.
Choice Xtra options give you the added benefit of recording your favorite programming, all your local station, a little bit of everything when it comes to what is available when it comes to Direct TV stations. Of course, programmable guide options are available as well allowing you to set up stations for each member of your family or household and parental controls so you can be sure your family is watching safe, age appropriate programming. In addition, you
have access to the best in news, sports, music and educational programming on the planet all with a price tag that will not break the bank. Direct TV also gives superior reception and quality when it comes to picture and sound with no need to worry about the static, intermittent signals and line run though picture that sometimes comes with digital cable.
If you are looking for versatility when it comes to programming with Direct TV and you are looking for something with a little more bulk than the basic packages but you do not want to spend a large amount of money then there are several options available to you with the satellite TV packaging. Basic packaging on satellite TV only covers just that the basics. If you want something, more consider the intermediate package choices.
The first choice xtra this package gives you all the basics when it comes to music, sports, family programming plus you get channels of educational value like PBS, Biography and the History International Channel. Love sports they have sport stations as well and a number of additional channels designed specifically for younger audiences. There are also usually premium move package deals offered with this package. These are usually free for a certain number of months and may include several channels or sets of channels within a particular grouping. For example, Starz one of the premium channels when it comes to movies offers 12 different stations under its package, while Showtime has nine different stations. These are two of the more frequently offered promotional options.
Of course, the package comes with local stations, no cost for equipment and installation is usually free as well. The Choice Xtra package for Direct TV also comes with over 200 different stations. Adding HD access grants you access to high definition as well as a variety of independent channels that are market specific. If you want 200 plus channels, local stations, movies, sports, music, documentary stations, educational and specialty programming, as well as family friendly program with the ability to record your favorite shows whether or not your home consider the Choice Xtra plus DVR package. This package offers all the channels of Choice Xtra plus the DVR service package including the receiver. This may or may not be free depending on your area. HD access is still extra per month on this package but there are usually premium movie channel promotional options available.
Choice Xtra options give you the added benefit of recording your favorite programming, all your local station, a little bit of everything when it comes to what is available when it comes to Direct TV stations. Of course, programmable guide options are available as well allowing you to set up stations for each member of your family or household and parental controls so you can be sure your family is watching safe, age appropriate programming. In addition, you
have access to the best in news, sports, music and educational programming on the planet all with a price tag that will not break the bank. Direct TV also gives superior reception and quality when it comes to picture and sound with no need to worry about the static, intermittent signals and line run though picture that sometimes comes with digital cable.
Page 433
Classical for Beginners by Gavin Borchert
Now and then, people ask me for advice on where to begin with the daunting world of classical music recordings. They've heard bits here and there, they're curious, they imagine they'd probably enjoy it once they got involved, but they wouldn't know where to look if they walked into -- oops, I mean logged onto eMusic.com and started poking around. My strategy is always to offer a handful of suggestions, in as wide a variety as possible. "Try these," I say. "See what grabs you, and we'll work from there."
That's the idea behind this Dozen. Here are 12 recordings selected to entice people who have had little exposure to classical music, but who know they want more. I've carefully contrived the list to cover a wide range of colors and styles, instruments and moods, shapes and sizes. Some pieces are light, some heavy; some charming, some imposing; some dramatic, meditative, amorous, tragic, lofty, goofy. All in all, the selections encompass 1,200 years of music history -- and they've all been chosen to make a good first impression and whet your appetite. They're "gateway" works, if you will. I'd be surprised if there were anyone who couldn't find something on this list that pleasured and intrigued them. Think of it as a sampler, a tapas menu: if you don't care for the stuffed olives/Renaissance Mass, try the garlic shrimp/20th-century string quartet.
Are these the twelve greatest works ever? No, though some of them could justly claim a place on such a list. Most of these are works I actually have suggested to people, and which have gotten a favorable response. Others I have seen appeal to newbies in ways I never expected. Others are just a few personal favorites which I proselytize for whenever possible.
Gregorian Chant For Easter
Artist: Capella Antiqua, Munich
Release Date: 2006
The recorded history of "classical" music in the Western "art" tradition (so many of these terms are so problematic) begins in the medieval period with music composed for church use -- settings of sacred texts in Latin for choirs singing in unison, just one note at a time. The serene meditativeness of Gregorian chant (named for liturgical reformer Pope Gregory, 540-604, who launched the practice according to legend) has made it popular in recent years, usable as a backdrop for anything from yoga to post-rave chilling. There are plenty of chant CDs out there, some with hipper packaging, but these performances by the male voices of Capella Antiqua, Munich, surrounded by a cathedral-like halo of reverb, are stately and gorgeous.
Ockeghem: Requiem
Artist: Ensemble Organum, Marcel Pérès
Release Date: 1993
A friend of mine, also a musician, has played a number of classical pieces for his infant son, and reports that Allen seems to like the music of Johannes Ockeghem (c. 1410-1497) best. It could be the way this Renaissance composer weaves voices together to create a sort of ear-blanket. Or perhaps this music's low gentle murmuring reminds him of sounds in utero. Either way, the Ensemble Organum's performance of this Requiem (a Mass to honor the dead) is spacious and calm, but also possesses a sort of authoritative, virile resonance.
Bach: Six Concertos for the Margrave of Brandenburg
Artist: Trevor Pinnock
Release Date: 2008
Incomparably joyous and sparkling, these six pieces can claim to be both the greatest of baroque instrumental works and, with the possible exception of Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" concertos, the most popular. Composers in the baroque era (roughly 1600-1750) prioritized a musical skill called counterpoint, the practice of combining independent instrumental or vocal lines into a complex whole. Johann Sebastian Bach had no rivals (and surely never will) in this art, giving every section of the orchestra something rewarding -- and fun -- to do. He built structures of grandeur and irresistible energy. Each of these concertos are scored for a different combination; if you'd like a taste, try the first movement of the Concerto no. 2, in which four bright-toned soloists (violin, flute, oboe and trumpet) dance festively around the accompanying string orchestra, or the fleet finale of the Concerto no. 3, a whirlwind showpiece for strings alone.
MOZART: Overtures
Artist: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
After Bach and his contemporaries had brought Baroque counterpoint to its peak, composers of the next generation reacted by lightening the texture of their music. The melody line dominated, and the middle and bass instruments were entrusted with harmonic and rhythmic accompaniment rather than with independent lines of their own. This new style, though, was no less bubbling and energetic -- see the overtures (instrumental preludes) which Mozart (1756-91) wrote for his operas. Brilliant attention-getters, arresting but never too pompous, full of catchy tunes, cheeky wind solos and stirring trumpet-and drum passages, these overtures are played with great verve by Capella Istropolitana.
CHOPIN: Etudes Opp. 10 and 25
Artist: Freddy Kempf
Release Date: 2004
Frederic Chopin's music, full of innovations in nuances of harmony and delicate coloristic effects, pushed the boundaries of what a piano could do. In these two sets of etudes (completed in 1832 and 1836), he also pushed piano technique, making unprecedented demands of virtuosity in works that are still among the most richly dazzling ever written. Not all the pieces are finger-tanglers, though; some are studies in sensitive touch and singing melody. Though pianist Freddy Kempf's technique is precise, these etudes are for him poetry first; in op. 10 no. 3 in E or op. 25 no. 1 in A-flat, he phrases the surface melody with the expressivity a great vocalist might bring to it.
Pearl Fishers and Other Famous Operatic Duets
Artist: Various Artists
It occurred to me that an album of duets might make an even better introduction to opera than one of solo arias -- even though those big diva/divo moments are what the general public thinks of when they hear the term opera. Duets, of course, display the character interplay that the dramatic side of opera is all about: love, conflict, friendship -- or betrayal, as in the searing finale to Act II of Verdi's Otello, when Iago falsely swears loyalty to the title character. Two rapturous and justly popular duets recorded here come from French operas, the rest from Italian. Complete recordings of many of these operas are also available on eMusic, so if these excerpts whet your appetite, you can move on to explore the entire work.
Dvorak / Haydn / Shostakovich: String Quartets
Artist: Quartetto Cassoviae
Release Date: 2000
Contained on this disc is a mini-history of the string quartet itself: an elegant, buoyant piece (1799) by Franz Josef Haydn, a pioneer of the form; a fragrantly tuneful example (1893) by Antonin Dvorak, written under the influence of American folksong; and a bitter, semi-autobiographical work (1960) by Dmitri Shostakovich, reflective of his state of mind during a life lived under Soviet oppression. The Quartetto Cassoviae's performance of this last quartet is perhaps the disc's most impressive: it's taut, wiry, grippingly expressive and even a little nightmarish.
Alexander Borodin: Symphony No.2 - Conducted by Carlos Kleiber & Erich Kleiber
Artist: Kleiber
Release Date: 2003
I chose this symphony because I clearly remember my sister, eight or nine at the time, dragged to one of my school orchestra concerts and, at its conclusion, telling me she liked this piece best. The brusque gesture that launches Alexander Borodin's Second Symphony (1876) is definitely one of the more arresting openings: glowering, passionate and Russian, Russian, Russian. Compare it to the sinuous oboe melody that comes later, and you hear the two sides of Borodin's musical personality: barbaric vs. sensuous, both tinged with the exotic folk colors of ancient Asian tribes. This disc is also the only one I know that offers father-son performances of the same work, by Erich (1890-1956) and Carlos Kleiber (1930-2004).
STRAVINSKY: 125th Anniversary Album - The Rite of Spring / Violin Concerto (Stravinsky, Vol. 8)
Artist: Jennifer Frautschi
When Igor Stravinsky got a commission to write music for a ballet depicting ancient fertility rituals, did he intend from the start to revolutionize musical history? He filled his colorful score (completed in 1913) with pounding, asymmetrical rhythms and harsh dissonances -- unprecedented elements at the time; he's one of the many composers in the first few decades of the 20th century who tossed a bomb into the middle of Romantic-era assumptions about what music could be. This earthy, viscerally intense showpiece still startles audiences -- especially those who see classical music as something stuffy and genteel. Think of it as heavy metal classical. Robert Craft, a longtime colleague of the composer, conducts a particularly gutsy and un-pretty performance.
Strauss: Symphonia Domestica / Eine Alpensinfonie / Oboe Concerto / Duett-Concertino
Artist: Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
Release Date: 2006
This disc shows the two sides of composer Richard Strauss. In the Symphonia domestica (1903) and Eine Alpensinfonie (An Alpine Symphony, 1915), he capped the tradition of German romanticism with two of the grandest and most opulent orchestral works ever; in his two nostalgic concertos (one for oboe from 1945, the other for clarinet and bassoon from 1947), he revived the spirit of Mozart in slender, tuneful, but autumnal pieces for a (much) smaller orchestra. Oboe soloist Jonathan Small, in particular, plays with ravishing fluency, and conductor Gerard Schwarz is especially adept in this soaring, sweeping music.
Daughters Of The Lonsome Isle
Artist: Margaret Leng Tan
Release Date: 1994
Just by inserting screws, rubber erasers and other tidbits between a piano's strings, John Cage (1912-1992) was able to turn the instrument into a miniature percussion orchestra. This was just one of the avant gardist's many innovations. On this disc, keyboardist Margaret Leng Tan, the world's foremost toy piano virtuoso, pays homage to Cage's experiments, his rhythmic vitality and the Zen-inspired spirit that led him to ask profound conceptual questions about music. But even as Cage challenged traditional notions of music, it's not hard to find great beauty, wit, depth and spiritual gentleness in his work. It's scarcely possible, for example, not to fall in love with Cage's pulsing, gnomic Bacchanale or the elegiac In the Name of the Holocaust, which proves that the instrument he called a "prepared piano" was just as capable of stark intensity.
Reich: Different Trains
Artist: The Duke Quartet, Andrew Russo & Marc Mellits
As a child in the early '40s, composer Steve Reich used to travel across the U.S. by train each year. In thinking about the very "different trains" he could have been riding as a Jew had he grown up in Europe, Reich was inspired to compose this powerful work for string quartet and tape. Snippets of recorded interviews with actual railroad employees are woven among the urgently churning string parts, with their licks echoing the speakers' vocal inflections. Also included here is Reich's 1967 Piano Phase, which was a groundbreaking early work that used a compositional technique that caught his imagination: complex rhythmic effects achieved by subtle shifts in temporal coordination between musicians, creating a trance-like rippling effect.
Author Detail:-
Here author Gavin Borchert writes about 12 various colorful classical albums from the best of collection by eMusic especially for the beginners. EMusic brings in online music, mp3 downloads, free music downloads, audio books, music downloads, free mp3 downloads and much more. For more details, visit www.emusic.com.
Now and then, people ask me for advice on where to begin with the daunting world of classical music recordings. They've heard bits here and there, they're curious, they imagine they'd probably enjoy it once they got involved, but they wouldn't know where to look if they walked into -- oops, I mean logged onto eMusic.com and started poking around. My strategy is always to offer a handful of suggestions, in as wide a variety as possible. "Try these," I say. "See what grabs you, and we'll work from there."
That's the idea behind this Dozen. Here are 12 recordings selected to entice people who have had little exposure to classical music, but who know they want more. I've carefully contrived the list to cover a wide range of colors and styles, instruments and moods, shapes and sizes. Some pieces are light, some heavy; some charming, some imposing; some dramatic, meditative, amorous, tragic, lofty, goofy. All in all, the selections encompass 1,200 years of music history -- and they've all been chosen to make a good first impression and whet your appetite. They're "gateway" works, if you will. I'd be surprised if there were anyone who couldn't find something on this list that pleasured and intrigued them. Think of it as a sampler, a tapas menu: if you don't care for the stuffed olives/Renaissance Mass, try the garlic shrimp/20th-century string quartet.
Are these the twelve greatest works ever? No, though some of them could justly claim a place on such a list. Most of these are works I actually have suggested to people, and which have gotten a favorable response. Others I have seen appeal to newbies in ways I never expected. Others are just a few personal favorites which I proselytize for whenever possible.
Gregorian Chant For Easter
Artist: Capella Antiqua, Munich
Release Date: 2006
The recorded history of "classical" music in the Western "art" tradition (so many of these terms are so problematic) begins in the medieval period with music composed for church use -- settings of sacred texts in Latin for choirs singing in unison, just one note at a time. The serene meditativeness of Gregorian chant (named for liturgical reformer Pope Gregory, 540-604, who launched the practice according to legend) has made it popular in recent years, usable as a backdrop for anything from yoga to post-rave chilling. There are plenty of chant CDs out there, some with hipper packaging, but these performances by the male voices of Capella Antiqua, Munich, surrounded by a cathedral-like halo of reverb, are stately and gorgeous.
Ockeghem: Requiem
Artist: Ensemble Organum, Marcel Pérès
Release Date: 1993
A friend of mine, also a musician, has played a number of classical pieces for his infant son, and reports that Allen seems to like the music of Johannes Ockeghem (c. 1410-1497) best. It could be the way this Renaissance composer weaves voices together to create a sort of ear-blanket. Or perhaps this music's low gentle murmuring reminds him of sounds in utero. Either way, the Ensemble Organum's performance of this Requiem (a Mass to honor the dead) is spacious and calm, but also possesses a sort of authoritative, virile resonance.
Bach: Six Concertos for the Margrave of Brandenburg
Artist: Trevor Pinnock
Release Date: 2008
Incomparably joyous and sparkling, these six pieces can claim to be both the greatest of baroque instrumental works and, with the possible exception of Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" concertos, the most popular. Composers in the baroque era (roughly 1600-1750) prioritized a musical skill called counterpoint, the practice of combining independent instrumental or vocal lines into a complex whole. Johann Sebastian Bach had no rivals (and surely never will) in this art, giving every section of the orchestra something rewarding -- and fun -- to do. He built structures of grandeur and irresistible energy. Each of these concertos are scored for a different combination; if you'd like a taste, try the first movement of the Concerto no. 2, in which four bright-toned soloists (violin, flute, oboe and trumpet) dance festively around the accompanying string orchestra, or the fleet finale of the Concerto no. 3, a whirlwind showpiece for strings alone.
MOZART: Overtures
Artist: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
After Bach and his contemporaries had brought Baroque counterpoint to its peak, composers of the next generation reacted by lightening the texture of their music. The melody line dominated, and the middle and bass instruments were entrusted with harmonic and rhythmic accompaniment rather than with independent lines of their own. This new style, though, was no less bubbling and energetic -- see the overtures (instrumental preludes) which Mozart (1756-91) wrote for his operas. Brilliant attention-getters, arresting but never too pompous, full of catchy tunes, cheeky wind solos and stirring trumpet-and drum passages, these overtures are played with great verve by Capella Istropolitana.
CHOPIN: Etudes Opp. 10 and 25
Artist: Freddy Kempf
Release Date: 2004
Frederic Chopin's music, full of innovations in nuances of harmony and delicate coloristic effects, pushed the boundaries of what a piano could do. In these two sets of etudes (completed in 1832 and 1836), he also pushed piano technique, making unprecedented demands of virtuosity in works that are still among the most richly dazzling ever written. Not all the pieces are finger-tanglers, though; some are studies in sensitive touch and singing melody. Though pianist Freddy Kempf's technique is precise, these etudes are for him poetry first; in op. 10 no. 3 in E or op. 25 no. 1 in A-flat, he phrases the surface melody with the expressivity a great vocalist might bring to it.
Pearl Fishers and Other Famous Operatic Duets
Artist: Various Artists
It occurred to me that an album of duets might make an even better introduction to opera than one of solo arias -- even though those big diva/divo moments are what the general public thinks of when they hear the term opera. Duets, of course, display the character interplay that the dramatic side of opera is all about: love, conflict, friendship -- or betrayal, as in the searing finale to Act II of Verdi's Otello, when Iago falsely swears loyalty to the title character. Two rapturous and justly popular duets recorded here come from French operas, the rest from Italian. Complete recordings of many of these operas are also available on eMusic, so if these excerpts whet your appetite, you can move on to explore the entire work.
Dvorak / Haydn / Shostakovich: String Quartets
Artist: Quartetto Cassoviae
Release Date: 2000
Contained on this disc is a mini-history of the string quartet itself: an elegant, buoyant piece (1799) by Franz Josef Haydn, a pioneer of the form; a fragrantly tuneful example (1893) by Antonin Dvorak, written under the influence of American folksong; and a bitter, semi-autobiographical work (1960) by Dmitri Shostakovich, reflective of his state of mind during a life lived under Soviet oppression. The Quartetto Cassoviae's performance of this last quartet is perhaps the disc's most impressive: it's taut, wiry, grippingly expressive and even a little nightmarish.
Alexander Borodin: Symphony No.2 - Conducted by Carlos Kleiber & Erich Kleiber
Artist: Kleiber
Release Date: 2003
I chose this symphony because I clearly remember my sister, eight or nine at the time, dragged to one of my school orchestra concerts and, at its conclusion, telling me she liked this piece best. The brusque gesture that launches Alexander Borodin's Second Symphony (1876) is definitely one of the more arresting openings: glowering, passionate and Russian, Russian, Russian. Compare it to the sinuous oboe melody that comes later, and you hear the two sides of Borodin's musical personality: barbaric vs. sensuous, both tinged with the exotic folk colors of ancient Asian tribes. This disc is also the only one I know that offers father-son performances of the same work, by Erich (1890-1956) and Carlos Kleiber (1930-2004).
STRAVINSKY: 125th Anniversary Album - The Rite of Spring / Violin Concerto (Stravinsky, Vol. 8)
Artist: Jennifer Frautschi
When Igor Stravinsky got a commission to write music for a ballet depicting ancient fertility rituals, did he intend from the start to revolutionize musical history? He filled his colorful score (completed in 1913) with pounding, asymmetrical rhythms and harsh dissonances -- unprecedented elements at the time; he's one of the many composers in the first few decades of the 20th century who tossed a bomb into the middle of Romantic-era assumptions about what music could be. This earthy, viscerally intense showpiece still startles audiences -- especially those who see classical music as something stuffy and genteel. Think of it as heavy metal classical. Robert Craft, a longtime colleague of the composer, conducts a particularly gutsy and un-pretty performance.
Strauss: Symphonia Domestica / Eine Alpensinfonie / Oboe Concerto / Duett-Concertino
Artist: Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
Release Date: 2006
This disc shows the two sides of composer Richard Strauss. In the Symphonia domestica (1903) and Eine Alpensinfonie (An Alpine Symphony, 1915), he capped the tradition of German romanticism with two of the grandest and most opulent orchestral works ever; in his two nostalgic concertos (one for oboe from 1945, the other for clarinet and bassoon from 1947), he revived the spirit of Mozart in slender, tuneful, but autumnal pieces for a (much) smaller orchestra. Oboe soloist Jonathan Small, in particular, plays with ravishing fluency, and conductor Gerard Schwarz is especially adept in this soaring, sweeping music.
Daughters Of The Lonsome Isle
Artist: Margaret Leng Tan
Release Date: 1994
Just by inserting screws, rubber erasers and other tidbits between a piano's strings, John Cage (1912-1992) was able to turn the instrument into a miniature percussion orchestra. This was just one of the avant gardist's many innovations. On this disc, keyboardist Margaret Leng Tan, the world's foremost toy piano virtuoso, pays homage to Cage's experiments, his rhythmic vitality and the Zen-inspired spirit that led him to ask profound conceptual questions about music. But even as Cage challenged traditional notions of music, it's not hard to find great beauty, wit, depth and spiritual gentleness in his work. It's scarcely possible, for example, not to fall in love with Cage's pulsing, gnomic Bacchanale or the elegiac In the Name of the Holocaust, which proves that the instrument he called a "prepared piano" was just as capable of stark intensity.
Reich: Different Trains
Artist: The Duke Quartet, Andrew Russo & Marc Mellits
As a child in the early '40s, composer Steve Reich used to travel across the U.S. by train each year. In thinking about the very "different trains" he could have been riding as a Jew had he grown up in Europe, Reich was inspired to compose this powerful work for string quartet and tape. Snippets of recorded interviews with actual railroad employees are woven among the urgently churning string parts, with their licks echoing the speakers' vocal inflections. Also included here is Reich's 1967 Piano Phase, which was a groundbreaking early work that used a compositional technique that caught his imagination: complex rhythmic effects achieved by subtle shifts in temporal coordination between musicians, creating a trance-like rippling effect.
Author Detail:-
Here author Gavin Borchert writes about 12 various colorful classical albums from the best of collection by eMusic especially for the beginners. EMusic brings in online music, mp3 downloads, free music downloads, audio books, music downloads, free mp3 downloads and much more. For more details, visit www.emusic.com.
Page 432
A Quick Primer On The Types Of Indian Bread by Jitendra Patel
Bread is integral to the dining culture of India. It is generally referred to as roti in the local language. The growth of a wide range of cereals and grains in the country has led to the preparation of different types of breads. Each differs from the other in the ingredients used, in the shape, size, and the taste. The cooking method too differs widely from one part of the country to another. The Indian bread is generally composed of flour made of wheat, rice, corn or lentils. It is known differently in the different parts of the country. It is named variously as phulka, chapati, paranthas, rumali, naan, puri , phefras, do-patris and bhatia.
A majority of the Indian bread is made of wheat and can be broadly divided into three kinds: bread that is roasted on a griddle, bread that is fried and bread that is baked.
The most popular form of the Indian bread is the roasted form, known as chapati. This kind of bread is unleavened and is made of only flour and water. The Dough is prepared and the bread is rolled out of it. At times the bread is puffed out by dropping the bread on hot coals for a few minutes. This type of bread is called phulka. At times the bread is kneaded with milk and water and is very thin. In western India these are known as khakras. Another variant of the roasted bread is the rumali which is made by stretching the dough with hand and tossing it several times in the air before roasting it.
Fried breads are also widely popular in India. These refer to the breads which are shallow fried in fat after being rolled out into a triangular or a square shaped size. At times there are seasonal vegetables, potatoes or fenugreek seeds that are added to the dough. These breads are generally termed paranthas. Another type of fried bread is the puri. These are round, puffy and are deep fried in oil. At times poppy seeds or lentils are added to the dough to bring a different flavor to the puris. These are generally served during festive occasions. A hugely popular south Indian specialty is the dosa that is made by spreading a batter of rice and urad bean on an oiled pan.
Some types of Indian bread are baked in modern electric ovens or the Indian styled ovens called tandoor. One of the very popular types of baked bread is the naan. The dough for the naan is leavened before being baked in the tandoor. Sometimes nigella seeds or saffron water is added to give it a distinct flavor. At times garlic paste, dates, cottage cheese (paneer) or almonds are also added to the dough to give it a different taste.
Indian breads are always served to the accompaniment of vegetables, sweet dishes and curries. Bread is a staple food of a majority of the Indians. Most of the Indian households consume bread for all the three meals of the day. Indian breads comprise complex carbohydrates as well as a good amount of dietary fiber and make for a nutritious and wholesome meal.
Bread is integral to the dining culture of India. It is generally referred to as roti in the local language. The growth of a wide range of cereals and grains in the country has led to the preparation of different types of breads. Each differs from the other in the ingredients used, in the shape, size, and the taste. The cooking method too differs widely from one part of the country to another. The Indian bread is generally composed of flour made of wheat, rice, corn or lentils. It is known differently in the different parts of the country. It is named variously as phulka, chapati, paranthas, rumali, naan, puri , phefras, do-patris and bhatia.
A majority of the Indian bread is made of wheat and can be broadly divided into three kinds: bread that is roasted on a griddle, bread that is fried and bread that is baked.
The most popular form of the Indian bread is the roasted form, known as chapati. This kind of bread is unleavened and is made of only flour and water. The Dough is prepared and the bread is rolled out of it. At times the bread is puffed out by dropping the bread on hot coals for a few minutes. This type of bread is called phulka. At times the bread is kneaded with milk and water and is very thin. In western India these are known as khakras. Another variant of the roasted bread is the rumali which is made by stretching the dough with hand and tossing it several times in the air before roasting it.
Fried breads are also widely popular in India. These refer to the breads which are shallow fried in fat after being rolled out into a triangular or a square shaped size. At times there are seasonal vegetables, potatoes or fenugreek seeds that are added to the dough. These breads are generally termed paranthas. Another type of fried bread is the puri. These are round, puffy and are deep fried in oil. At times poppy seeds or lentils are added to the dough to bring a different flavor to the puris. These are generally served during festive occasions. A hugely popular south Indian specialty is the dosa that is made by spreading a batter of rice and urad bean on an oiled pan.
Some types of Indian bread are baked in modern electric ovens or the Indian styled ovens called tandoor. One of the very popular types of baked bread is the naan. The dough for the naan is leavened before being baked in the tandoor. Sometimes nigella seeds or saffron water is added to give it a distinct flavor. At times garlic paste, dates, cottage cheese (paneer) or almonds are also added to the dough to give it a different taste.
Indian breads are always served to the accompaniment of vegetables, sweet dishes and curries. Bread is a staple food of a majority of the Indians. Most of the Indian households consume bread for all the three meals of the day. Indian breads comprise complex carbohydrates as well as a good amount of dietary fiber and make for a nutritious and wholesome meal.
Page 431
Best Kulfi in NYC by vmbjohn
If it’s kulfi, it’s got to be Asharfi, and sure enough any Ambavadi will vouvh for it Ironically, Asharfi’s success story started with selling kulfi from his tiny larri at Law Garden to the biggest name in the kulfi business in town today. Young Ramchandra Gupta migrated to ahmedabad from Sonai in Mainpuri district of Uttarpradesh, only with dream of making it big.
He decided to sell kulfi. His expertise in kulfi making and Asharfi’s capital, set the ball rolling in 1954. Here they used to make about 5kg kulfi daily. Enough to sell off the same day, at 1.20 paisa per tin ( kulfi mould ) of the cream treat. During the day and night he sold kulfi from the larri (stall). Three years down the line Ramchandra Gupta embark full time in to kulfi making and marketing. He was then jointed by his sons. He was then help out by his sons in his booming business.
By 1960 the entire family was staying at a house in Bank of Baroda, Gandhi road and they also set up their own manufacturing unit at the Bank of Baroda, Opp. Gandhi Road. The larri (stall) at Law Garden now graduated into shop. By this time they were selling malai, pista, badam and kesar kulfi but now there are many flavours. Ramchandra Gupta’s son Harish five years old then, used to help him.
Drain the almonds and place three-quarters of them in a liquidiser with the reserved milk. Blend the mixture until the almonds are roughly ground. The mixture should be crunchy. Add the almond mixture and sugar to the hot milk and continue simmering, for a further 10 to 20 minutes, stirring constantly. This allows the flavour of the almonds to penetrate the milk.
Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature, then place in the refrigerator until chilled. Roughly chop the remaining almonds and stir them into chilled milk with the double cream and rose water. Stir thoroughly so that the ingredients are well and truly mixed. Pour into a metal cone-shaped container, or any other suitable freezer container, and freeze until solid. Transfer to the refrigerator 20 minutes before serving, then turn out if necessary. Ready you are Kulfi Please visit in the site www.indomunch.com for extra details.
If it’s kulfi, it’s got to be Asharfi, and sure enough any Ambavadi will vouvh for it Ironically, Asharfi’s success story started with selling kulfi from his tiny larri at Law Garden to the biggest name in the kulfi business in town today. Young Ramchandra Gupta migrated to ahmedabad from Sonai in Mainpuri district of Uttarpradesh, only with dream of making it big.
He decided to sell kulfi. His expertise in kulfi making and Asharfi’s capital, set the ball rolling in 1954. Here they used to make about 5kg kulfi daily. Enough to sell off the same day, at 1.20 paisa per tin ( kulfi mould ) of the cream treat. During the day and night he sold kulfi from the larri (stall). Three years down the line Ramchandra Gupta embark full time in to kulfi making and marketing. He was then jointed by his sons. He was then help out by his sons in his booming business.
By 1960 the entire family was staying at a house in Bank of Baroda, Gandhi road and they also set up their own manufacturing unit at the Bank of Baroda, Opp. Gandhi Road. The larri (stall) at Law Garden now graduated into shop. By this time they were selling malai, pista, badam and kesar kulfi but now there are many flavours. Ramchandra Gupta’s son Harish five years old then, used to help him.
Drain the almonds and place three-quarters of them in a liquidiser with the reserved milk. Blend the mixture until the almonds are roughly ground. The mixture should be crunchy. Add the almond mixture and sugar to the hot milk and continue simmering, for a further 10 to 20 minutes, stirring constantly. This allows the flavour of the almonds to penetrate the milk.
Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature, then place in the refrigerator until chilled. Roughly chop the remaining almonds and stir them into chilled milk with the double cream and rose water. Stir thoroughly so that the ingredients are well and truly mixed. Pour into a metal cone-shaped container, or any other suitable freezer container, and freeze until solid. Transfer to the refrigerator 20 minutes before serving, then turn out if necessary. Ready you are Kulfi Please visit in the site www.indomunch.com for extra details.
Page 430
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
By JOHN ANDERSON
Read other reviews about this film
Powered By MRQE Review
'Hellboy II: The Golden Army'
Selma Blair and Ron Perlman reteam for 'Hellboy II: The Golden Army'
A Universal Pictures release, presented in association with Relativity Media, of a Lawrence Gordon/Lloyd Levin production, in association with Dark Horse Entertainment. Produced by Lawrence Gordon, Mike Richardson, Levin. Executive producer, Chris Symes. Co-producer, John Swallow. Co-executive producer, Mike Mignola. Directed by Guillermo del Toro. Screenplay, del Toro, Mike Mignola, based on the Dark Horse comicbook created by Mignola.
Hellboy - Ron Perlman
Liz - Selma Blair
Abe Sapien - Doug Jones
Johann Krauss - John Alexander,
James Dodd
Voice of Johann - Seth MacFarlane
Prince Nuada - Luke Goss
Princess Nuala - Anna Walton
Tom Manning - Jeffrey Tambor
Professor Broom - John Hurt
Curmudgeonly, cantankerous, cigar-chomping Hellboy is a cross between a '40s noir detective and a burning fireplace, but he's also cool enough to make "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" the hipster's hit of the summer. Yes, Catholic imagery has always run rampant through helmer Guillermo del Toro's movies, including "Pan's Labyrinth," which he made in between the two "Hellboy" entries, but he's really an evangelist of fanboy excess: Given the right push by Universal, he'll be making fantasy-horror acolytes out of the heretofore unconverted.
In a previous life, del Toro might have been a maker of clocks -- clocks inhabited by gargoyles instead of cuckoos, and which exploded on the hour. But there's a precision to the visual ornateness of "Hellboy II" that exceeds even that of its predecessor. It's certainly a more deliberately (and successfully) funny movie, thanks largely to the drily ironic Hellboy -- Ron Perlman, who returns with the rest of the cast, and without whom an onscreen Hellboy would have been almost unthinkable.
Based on the comicbooks by del Toro's co-scripter, Mike Mignola, the pic finds Hellboy about to become Hell Man -- his incendiary girlfriend Liz (Selma Blair) is pregnant, although she doesn't tell him till much later. But since we learn this at the beginning of the film, it shades everything that follows -- a elaborate sequence early on, in which Hellboy battles a towering green forest deity on the streets of New York while balancing a baby in his arms, gives us an indication of just what a caring, paternal figure the guy can be, despite looking like he's shrink-wrapped in red Naugahyde and has the temperament of a wolverine.
But the reason the movie plays so well has nothing to do with the leading man's paternal instincts; rather, it's rooted in del Toro's rococo instincts for the stylishly creepy and crawlingly macabre, his clockmaker's preoccupation with detail, and a flair for combining state-of-the-art technology with his taste for the antique, the gothic, the Catholic. Not to disparage the f/x guys, but what's onscreen in "Hellboy II" is all about the seismic eruptions in del Toro's head. Comparing his work to most fantasy cinema is like comparing cave drawings to the Cathedral of Cologne.
Still, "Hellboy II's" widespread popularity will be about the humor, which begins in a flashback to Christmas 1955, when the young Hellboy -- the progeny of a collaboration between the Nazis and Satan -- is awaiting Santa Claus. His father figure, Professor Broom (John Hurt), reads him a story, about an ancient people who created a Golden Army that was so invincible and ruthless it had to be retired; a pact made with the human race; and a crown divided -- two parts to the ancients, one to the humans, with the army in cold storage until the crown was reassembled.
This is a bedtime story? On Christmas Eve? But it serves as a preamble to what will follow some time later (50 years? These so-called people age well). Hellboy is working for the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense alongside Liz and the Piscean Abe Sapien (Doug Jones), and under the supervision of the unctuous Tom Manning (Jeffrey Tambor) who urges Hellboy to keep his work quiet. Undercover. Clandestine. Be discreet! Naturally, the first big fight scene ends up with Hellboy crashing out of a burning building and onto a police car.
The instigator of all this mayhem is the otherworldly, martial-artsy Prince Nuada (Luke Goss), who wants his people to regain their rightful place in the order of things; his twin sister, Princess Nuala (Anna Walton), knowing her bro is bonkers, sides with the humans and hides the key part of the crown. The results include chases, battles and a lot of quick-cooking mythology.
And, of course, creatures. Nuada is assisted by what seems to be a tusked gorilla with porcupine spindles on his back and an iron fist that turns into a medieval mace; the small, evil fairy-cockroaches that Nuada unleashes upon an unsuspecting crowd at an auction house (where the crown is up for bid) are efficiently carnivorous and natteringly unnerving.
The weak link in all this fun is Nuada himself. Goss embodies all the menace of Keanu Reeves, and his voice is roundly unimposing.
The movie bogs down only when the story leaves the city and heads for Ireland where, inexplicably, the Golden Army dwells. The army's awakening and combat is easily the least interesting sequence in the film -- the most conventionally chaotic and pedestrian. Hellboy's encounter with Nuada, atop a giant mechanism that looks like the insides of a cosmic watch, is invigorating. And probably the result of del Toro channeling one of his past lives in Switzerland.
More than one option
* (Person) Mike Richardson
Executive Producer, Actor, Producer
* (Person) Mike Richardson
More than one option
* (Person) Doug Jones
Production Supervisor, Assistant Accountant, Assistant Production Accountant
* (Person) Doug Jones
Actor, Voice
* (Person) Doug Jones
Photography, Video
* (Person) Doug Jones
Swing Gang
* (Person) Doug Jones
Driver
* (Person) Doug Jones
Construction
* (Person) Douglas Jones
* (Person) Doug Jones
Actor
More than one option
* (Person) John Alexander
Puppeteer, Animal Services, Stunts
* (Person) John Alexander
Actor
* (Person) John Alexander
Carpenter, Welder
* (Person) John Alexander
Coordinator, Production Assistant
* (Person) John Alexander
* (Person) John Alexander
Director
More than one option
* (Person) Anna Walton
* (Person) Anna Walton
More than one option
* (Film) Hellboy
* (Tv) Hellboy: Sword of Storms
Camera (Deluxe color), Guillermo Navarro; editor, Bernat Vilaplana; music, Danny Elfman; music supervisor, Kathy Nelson; production designer, Stephen Scott; supervising art director, Peter Francis; set decorator, Elli Griff; costume designer, Sammy Sheldon; sound (Dolby Digital/SDDS/DTS), Mac Ruth; sound supervisors-designers, Scott Martin Gershin, Martin Hernandez; re-recording mixers, Mike Prestwood Smith, Mark Taylor, Michael Keller; visual effects supervisor, Michael J. Wassel; makeup effects designer, Mike Elizalde; prosthetic/animatronic creatures, Creature Effects, Filmefex Studio KFT, Euroart Studios, Solution Studios; visual effects/animation, Double Negative; stunt coordinator, Domonokos Pardanyi; assistant director, Cliff Lanning; casting, Jeremy Zimmerman. Reviewed at Avco Westwood, Los Angeles, June 28, 2008. (In Los Angeles Film Festival -- closer.) MPAA rating: PG-13. Running time: 110 MIN.
By JOHN ANDERSON
Read other reviews about this film
Powered By MRQE Review
'Hellboy II: The Golden Army'
Selma Blair and Ron Perlman reteam for 'Hellboy II: The Golden Army'
A Universal Pictures release, presented in association with Relativity Media, of a Lawrence Gordon/Lloyd Levin production, in association with Dark Horse Entertainment. Produced by Lawrence Gordon, Mike Richardson, Levin. Executive producer, Chris Symes. Co-producer, John Swallow. Co-executive producer, Mike Mignola. Directed by Guillermo del Toro. Screenplay, del Toro, Mike Mignola, based on the Dark Horse comicbook created by Mignola.
Hellboy - Ron Perlman
Liz - Selma Blair
Abe Sapien - Doug Jones
Johann Krauss - John Alexander,
James Dodd
Voice of Johann - Seth MacFarlane
Prince Nuada - Luke Goss
Princess Nuala - Anna Walton
Tom Manning - Jeffrey Tambor
Professor Broom - John Hurt
Curmudgeonly, cantankerous, cigar-chomping Hellboy is a cross between a '40s noir detective and a burning fireplace, but he's also cool enough to make "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" the hipster's hit of the summer. Yes, Catholic imagery has always run rampant through helmer Guillermo del Toro's movies, including "Pan's Labyrinth," which he made in between the two "Hellboy" entries, but he's really an evangelist of fanboy excess: Given the right push by Universal, he'll be making fantasy-horror acolytes out of the heretofore unconverted.
In a previous life, del Toro might have been a maker of clocks -- clocks inhabited by gargoyles instead of cuckoos, and which exploded on the hour. But there's a precision to the visual ornateness of "Hellboy II" that exceeds even that of its predecessor. It's certainly a more deliberately (and successfully) funny movie, thanks largely to the drily ironic Hellboy -- Ron Perlman, who returns with the rest of the cast, and without whom an onscreen Hellboy would have been almost unthinkable.
Based on the comicbooks by del Toro's co-scripter, Mike Mignola, the pic finds Hellboy about to become Hell Man -- his incendiary girlfriend Liz (Selma Blair) is pregnant, although she doesn't tell him till much later. But since we learn this at the beginning of the film, it shades everything that follows -- a elaborate sequence early on, in which Hellboy battles a towering green forest deity on the streets of New York while balancing a baby in his arms, gives us an indication of just what a caring, paternal figure the guy can be, despite looking like he's shrink-wrapped in red Naugahyde and has the temperament of a wolverine.
But the reason the movie plays so well has nothing to do with the leading man's paternal instincts; rather, it's rooted in del Toro's rococo instincts for the stylishly creepy and crawlingly macabre, his clockmaker's preoccupation with detail, and a flair for combining state-of-the-art technology with his taste for the antique, the gothic, the Catholic. Not to disparage the f/x guys, but what's onscreen in "Hellboy II" is all about the seismic eruptions in del Toro's head. Comparing his work to most fantasy cinema is like comparing cave drawings to the Cathedral of Cologne.
Still, "Hellboy II's" widespread popularity will be about the humor, which begins in a flashback to Christmas 1955, when the young Hellboy -- the progeny of a collaboration between the Nazis and Satan -- is awaiting Santa Claus. His father figure, Professor Broom (John Hurt), reads him a story, about an ancient people who created a Golden Army that was so invincible and ruthless it had to be retired; a pact made with the human race; and a crown divided -- two parts to the ancients, one to the humans, with the army in cold storage until the crown was reassembled.
This is a bedtime story? On Christmas Eve? But it serves as a preamble to what will follow some time later (50 years? These so-called people age well). Hellboy is working for the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense alongside Liz and the Piscean Abe Sapien (Doug Jones), and under the supervision of the unctuous Tom Manning (Jeffrey Tambor) who urges Hellboy to keep his work quiet. Undercover. Clandestine. Be discreet! Naturally, the first big fight scene ends up with Hellboy crashing out of a burning building and onto a police car.
The instigator of all this mayhem is the otherworldly, martial-artsy Prince Nuada (Luke Goss), who wants his people to regain their rightful place in the order of things; his twin sister, Princess Nuala (Anna Walton), knowing her bro is bonkers, sides with the humans and hides the key part of the crown. The results include chases, battles and a lot of quick-cooking mythology.
And, of course, creatures. Nuada is assisted by what seems to be a tusked gorilla with porcupine spindles on his back and an iron fist that turns into a medieval mace; the small, evil fairy-cockroaches that Nuada unleashes upon an unsuspecting crowd at an auction house (where the crown is up for bid) are efficiently carnivorous and natteringly unnerving.
The weak link in all this fun is Nuada himself. Goss embodies all the menace of Keanu Reeves, and his voice is roundly unimposing.
The movie bogs down only when the story leaves the city and heads for Ireland where, inexplicably, the Golden Army dwells. The army's awakening and combat is easily the least interesting sequence in the film -- the most conventionally chaotic and pedestrian. Hellboy's encounter with Nuada, atop a giant mechanism that looks like the insides of a cosmic watch, is invigorating. And probably the result of del Toro channeling one of his past lives in Switzerland.
More than one option
* (Person) Mike Richardson
Executive Producer, Actor, Producer
* (Person) Mike Richardson
More than one option
* (Person) Doug Jones
Production Supervisor, Assistant Accountant, Assistant Production Accountant
* (Person) Doug Jones
Actor, Voice
* (Person) Doug Jones
Photography, Video
* (Person) Doug Jones
Swing Gang
* (Person) Doug Jones
Driver
* (Person) Doug Jones
Construction
* (Person) Douglas Jones
* (Person) Doug Jones
Actor
More than one option
* (Person) John Alexander
Puppeteer, Animal Services, Stunts
* (Person) John Alexander
Actor
* (Person) John Alexander
Carpenter, Welder
* (Person) John Alexander
Coordinator, Production Assistant
* (Person) John Alexander
* (Person) John Alexander
Director
More than one option
* (Person) Anna Walton
* (Person) Anna Walton
More than one option
* (Film) Hellboy
* (Tv) Hellboy: Sword of Storms
Camera (Deluxe color), Guillermo Navarro; editor, Bernat Vilaplana; music, Danny Elfman; music supervisor, Kathy Nelson; production designer, Stephen Scott; supervising art director, Peter Francis; set decorator, Elli Griff; costume designer, Sammy Sheldon; sound (Dolby Digital/SDDS/DTS), Mac Ruth; sound supervisors-designers, Scott Martin Gershin, Martin Hernandez; re-recording mixers, Mike Prestwood Smith, Mark Taylor, Michael Keller; visual effects supervisor, Michael J. Wassel; makeup effects designer, Mike Elizalde; prosthetic/animatronic creatures, Creature Effects, Filmefex Studio KFT, Euroart Studios, Solution Studios; visual effects/animation, Double Negative; stunt coordinator, Domonokos Pardanyi; assistant director, Cliff Lanning; casting, Jeremy Zimmerman. Reviewed at Avco Westwood, Los Angeles, June 28, 2008. (In Los Angeles Film Festival -- closer.) MPAA rating: PG-13. Running time: 110 MIN.
Page 429
Hot And Fresh Chicken Manchurian by mbjohn
The Chicken Manchurian easy to make, which completes half the work. For gravy, it follows more of a Chinese style than an indo-chinese. Those who prefer the sweet taste of the manchurian, don’t add sugar. If there is chicken broth available, substitute the water with the chicken broth. Enjoy the recipe with the chicken fried rice.
“Desi Chinese” is probably a term that you have never heard before. The word “desi” is a direct reference to almost anything Indian (including person, place or thing). So essentially Desi Chinese is Chinese food Indian style. It’s the best of both worlds and simply delicious. It’s old world fusion cuisine at its best. Traditional Chinese dishes are prepared with aromatic Indian flavors and spices.
Chicken Manchurian is a favorite among fans, it is easy to prepare and tasty. Served along side stir fried noodles with vegetables or fragrant jasmine rice, it makes for a delightful meal. A vegetarian version can be made by easily substituting the chicken pieces with cauliflower florets (Gobi Manchurian).
There are many different variations of this recipe and I have tried most of them. The one below is my very own and a favorite in my house especially with kids.Combine all the ingredients mentioned for making the balls with the exception of oil. Heat the oil in a frying pan. Make 16 small lemon-sized balls of this mixture, squeezing out excess water to prevent breakage. Deep fry the balls a few at a time. Drain when golden brown and cooked.
For the sauce- Heat 4 tablespoons of oil in a pan. Add the ginger, garlic and green chilies. Fry over a medium flame for 1 minute. Add the Soya sauce, chili sauce, pepper, sugar, ajinomoto, stock and salt. Bring to a boil. Add the fried balls and cook covered on low heat for about 3 minutes. Add the cornflour mixed with water and stir continuously, so that the sauce become thick. Garnish with spring onion tops. Serve with rice or noodles. Ready you are Chicken Manchurian Please visit in the site www.indomunch.com for extra details.
The Chicken Manchurian easy to make, which completes half the work. For gravy, it follows more of a Chinese style than an indo-chinese. Those who prefer the sweet taste of the manchurian, don’t add sugar. If there is chicken broth available, substitute the water with the chicken broth. Enjoy the recipe with the chicken fried rice.
“Desi Chinese” is probably a term that you have never heard before. The word “desi” is a direct reference to almost anything Indian (including person, place or thing). So essentially Desi Chinese is Chinese food Indian style. It’s the best of both worlds and simply delicious. It’s old world fusion cuisine at its best. Traditional Chinese dishes are prepared with aromatic Indian flavors and spices.
Chicken Manchurian is a favorite among fans, it is easy to prepare and tasty. Served along side stir fried noodles with vegetables or fragrant jasmine rice, it makes for a delightful meal. A vegetarian version can be made by easily substituting the chicken pieces with cauliflower florets (Gobi Manchurian).
There are many different variations of this recipe and I have tried most of them. The one below is my very own and a favorite in my house especially with kids.Combine all the ingredients mentioned for making the balls with the exception of oil. Heat the oil in a frying pan. Make 16 small lemon-sized balls of this mixture, squeezing out excess water to prevent breakage. Deep fry the balls a few at a time. Drain when golden brown and cooked.
For the sauce- Heat 4 tablespoons of oil in a pan. Add the ginger, garlic and green chilies. Fry over a medium flame for 1 minute. Add the Soya sauce, chili sauce, pepper, sugar, ajinomoto, stock and salt. Bring to a boil. Add the fried balls and cook covered on low heat for about 3 minutes. Add the cornflour mixed with water and stir continuously, so that the sauce become thick. Garnish with spring onion tops. Serve with rice or noodles. Ready you are Chicken Manchurian Please visit in the site www.indomunch.com for extra details.
Page 428
'Wanted' a potent weapon overseas
Action film blows away foreign box office
By DAVE MCNARY
'Wanted'
'Wanted' came out with both guns blazing overseas, easily winning the weekend with a surprisingly robust $33 million at 1,922 playdates in 22 territories.
More Articles:
BIFA bash moves venue
Berlin's WCF gives funds to five films
Moon shines on 'Autumn Ball'
Endemol sets up in Turkey
Kangaroo halted in its tracks
Cuatro, ARD score at soccer final
Universal's assassination actioner "Wanted" came out with both guns blazing overseas, easily winning the weekend with a surprisingly robust $33 million at 1,922 playdates in 22 territories.
With a socko $17,169 per-location average in its day-and-date launch, "Wanted" underlined the drawing power of action pics in the international market as it hunted down No. 1 finishes in almost every territory and looked to keep local pic pirates at bay.
The movie posted particularly boffo returns in the booming Russian market -- $11 million at 612 -- as it rode the popularity of local helmer Timur Bekmambetov, known for the Russian "Night Watch" movies. The figure represented U's top launch and the best debut for an R-16 pic in that market.
Universal Intl. president David Kosse said the results exceeded internal forecasts and cited the pic's "fresh" look plus the star power of Angelina Jolie, Morgan Freeman and James McAvoy.
"Wanted" opened with an impressive $8 million (including previews) in the U.K., matching the launch of Disney's much-anticipated "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian." The Blighty take marked the third highest 18-rated film launch behind "Hannibal" and "Sweeney Todd."
South Korea also saw boffo biz with $6.7 million at 240, representing U's top launch in the market along with the best opening of an 18-rated Hollywood film.
Except for the U.K., Universal aimed "Wanted" mostly at fast-burn markets due to the likely impact of piracy, which typically diminishes performance once a pic opens in vulnerable territories. Thailand took in $1.1 million, followed by Hong Kong and Singapore with $870,000 each, the Ukraine pulled in $833,000, Malaysia with $770,000, the Philippines with $746,000, Turkey with $508,000 and Poland with $484,000.
Kosse told Daily Variety that the pic's performance was particularly impressive given that "Wanted" -- based on a graphic novel -- had been a largely unknown property with mainstream auds. Kosse acknowledged "Wanted" will face serious competish next weekend from Sony's Will Smith tentpole "Hancock." "I think 'Hancock' will do very well, but I think we've got a lot of momentum from this weekend," he said.
More than one option
* (Co) Daily Variety
Filmography, Year, Role
* (Co) Daily Variety
"Wanted" opens next weekend in Italy, followed by a staggered international release over the next three months.
Unlike Universal, Disney opted for a smallish foreign day-and-date launch for "Wall-E." The pic nonetheless tallied an impressive $3.1 million at 400 Latin American playdates in half a dozen markets. The toon led in Brazil with $1.6 million in the third biggest Pixar launch after "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo" and topped Chile with $525,000 and Colombia with $498,000.
"Wall-E" hits its first major foreign markets next weekend with launches in Mexico and Russia and will open gradually over the rest of the year to maximize local playability opportunities, following a pattern similar to that employed for "Ratatouille." Given its pedigree and the strong market for CG toons, "Wall-E" could wind up as the best foreign performer this year, a list currently topped by Par's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," which has amassed $413 million to date, including $11.4 million over the weekend. "Finding Nemo" is the top international performer among Disney/Pixar titles with a $525 million foreign cume, followed by "Ratatouille" with $410 million and "The Incredibles" with $362 million.
More than one option
* (Film) Nightwatch
* (Film) Night Watch
1973 - Elizabeth Taylor, Brian G Hutton
* (Film) Night Watch
2006 - Konstantin Khabensky, Timur Bekmambetov
* (Tv) Alistair MacLean's Night Watch
* (Film) The Night Watchman
More than one option
* (Person) Morgan Freeman
Narrator, Director, Executive Producer
* (Person) Morgan Freeman
Actor
More than one option
* (Tv) Sweeney Todd
* (Film) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
More than one option
* (Film) Hannibal
2001 - Anthony Hopkins, Ridley Scott
* (Film) Hannibal
Fred Tanner, Xavier Koller
* (Film) Hannibal
1960 - Victor Mature, Edgar G Ulmer
More than one option
* (Person) Will Smith
Director, Song, Creator
* (Person) Will Smith
* (Person) William Smith
* (Person) Will Smith
Camera, Cinematographer
* (Person) Will Smith
More than one option
* (Film) Onskas
* (Film) Wanted
* (Film) Dead Beat
* (Film) Wanted
* (Film) Crime Spree
* (Tv) Wanted
Action film blows away foreign box office
By DAVE MCNARY
'Wanted'
'Wanted' came out with both guns blazing overseas, easily winning the weekend with a surprisingly robust $33 million at 1,922 playdates in 22 territories.
More Articles:
BIFA bash moves venue
Berlin's WCF gives funds to five films
Moon shines on 'Autumn Ball'
Endemol sets up in Turkey
Kangaroo halted in its tracks
Cuatro, ARD score at soccer final
Universal's assassination actioner "Wanted" came out with both guns blazing overseas, easily winning the weekend with a surprisingly robust $33 million at 1,922 playdates in 22 territories.
With a socko $17,169 per-location average in its day-and-date launch, "Wanted" underlined the drawing power of action pics in the international market as it hunted down No. 1 finishes in almost every territory and looked to keep local pic pirates at bay.
The movie posted particularly boffo returns in the booming Russian market -- $11 million at 612 -- as it rode the popularity of local helmer Timur Bekmambetov, known for the Russian "Night Watch" movies. The figure represented U's top launch and the best debut for an R-16 pic in that market.
Universal Intl. president David Kosse said the results exceeded internal forecasts and cited the pic's "fresh" look plus the star power of Angelina Jolie, Morgan Freeman and James McAvoy.
"Wanted" opened with an impressive $8 million (including previews) in the U.K., matching the launch of Disney's much-anticipated "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian." The Blighty take marked the third highest 18-rated film launch behind "Hannibal" and "Sweeney Todd."
South Korea also saw boffo biz with $6.7 million at 240, representing U's top launch in the market along with the best opening of an 18-rated Hollywood film.
Except for the U.K., Universal aimed "Wanted" mostly at fast-burn markets due to the likely impact of piracy, which typically diminishes performance once a pic opens in vulnerable territories. Thailand took in $1.1 million, followed by Hong Kong and Singapore with $870,000 each, the Ukraine pulled in $833,000, Malaysia with $770,000, the Philippines with $746,000, Turkey with $508,000 and Poland with $484,000.
Kosse told Daily Variety that the pic's performance was particularly impressive given that "Wanted" -- based on a graphic novel -- had been a largely unknown property with mainstream auds. Kosse acknowledged "Wanted" will face serious competish next weekend from Sony's Will Smith tentpole "Hancock." "I think 'Hancock' will do very well, but I think we've got a lot of momentum from this weekend," he said.
More than one option
* (Co) Daily Variety
Filmography, Year, Role
* (Co) Daily Variety
"Wanted" opens next weekend in Italy, followed by a staggered international release over the next three months.
Unlike Universal, Disney opted for a smallish foreign day-and-date launch for "Wall-E." The pic nonetheless tallied an impressive $3.1 million at 400 Latin American playdates in half a dozen markets. The toon led in Brazil with $1.6 million in the third biggest Pixar launch after "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo" and topped Chile with $525,000 and Colombia with $498,000.
"Wall-E" hits its first major foreign markets next weekend with launches in Mexico and Russia and will open gradually over the rest of the year to maximize local playability opportunities, following a pattern similar to that employed for "Ratatouille." Given its pedigree and the strong market for CG toons, "Wall-E" could wind up as the best foreign performer this year, a list currently topped by Par's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," which has amassed $413 million to date, including $11.4 million over the weekend. "Finding Nemo" is the top international performer among Disney/Pixar titles with a $525 million foreign cume, followed by "Ratatouille" with $410 million and "The Incredibles" with $362 million.
More than one option
* (Film) Nightwatch
* (Film) Night Watch
1973 - Elizabeth Taylor, Brian G Hutton
* (Film) Night Watch
2006 - Konstantin Khabensky, Timur Bekmambetov
* (Tv) Alistair MacLean's Night Watch
* (Film) The Night Watchman
More than one option
* (Person) Morgan Freeman
Narrator, Director, Executive Producer
* (Person) Morgan Freeman
Actor
More than one option
* (Tv) Sweeney Todd
* (Film) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
More than one option
* (Film) Hannibal
2001 - Anthony Hopkins, Ridley Scott
* (Film) Hannibal
Fred Tanner, Xavier Koller
* (Film) Hannibal
1960 - Victor Mature, Edgar G Ulmer
More than one option
* (Person) Will Smith
Director, Song, Creator
* (Person) Will Smith
* (Person) William Smith
* (Person) Will Smith
Camera, Cinematographer
* (Person) Will Smith
More than one option
* (Film) Onskas
* (Film) Wanted
* (Film) Dead Beat
* (Film) Wanted
* (Film) Crime Spree
* (Tv) Wanted
Page 427
About Sweet Potato by Prabakar S
Sweet potatoes in their many varieties are a highly nutritious food, easy to prepare, heavenly tasting, and extremely versatile on any menu. Yet, they are undervalued, ignored, and underappreciated. Some people enjoy the wonderful flavor and health benefits of sweet potatoes year round, but for many families sweet potatoes appear on the table at Thanksgiving and only then. We know of some folks who have never even eaten a sweet potato.
Sweet potatoes were actually born in Mexico, Central, and South America, as well as the West Indies. Their botanical name, Ipomoca batata, was derived from the American Indians of Louisiana who were growing them in native gardens as early as 1540. The Indians referred to sweet potatoes as batatas.
In his first voyage to the West Indies Columbus discovered many new foods which he brought back to Spain. Sweet potatoes were among his ship's treasures. The Spanish relished them and began cultivating them immediately. Soon they were profitably exporting them to England where they were included in spice pies to be devoured at the court of Henry VIII.
The French, not to be outdone, planted them at the request of Louis XV. They were favored in France only until his death and then lost popularity for thirty years until the Empress Josephine, who was from Martinique, craved them. It was then that sweet potatoes again became trendy in Paris restaurants for a time, but once more fell into obscurity. It was the Portuguese who carried Sweet Potatoes to Asia and Africa where they have become an important staple of the diet even today.
There are two major varieties of sweet potatoes, the yellow, drier, more mealy kind with lighter beige colored skins, and the orange, more moist, sweeter ones with reddish skins that are usually called "yams." True yams, however, are nothing like the sweet potato, but are a tuber native to Africa, very starchy, not very sweet, and grow as large as 100 pounds. For more details visit http://www.indomunch.com
Sweet potatoes in their many varieties are a highly nutritious food, easy to prepare, heavenly tasting, and extremely versatile on any menu. Yet, they are undervalued, ignored, and underappreciated. Some people enjoy the wonderful flavor and health benefits of sweet potatoes year round, but for many families sweet potatoes appear on the table at Thanksgiving and only then. We know of some folks who have never even eaten a sweet potato.
Sweet potatoes were actually born in Mexico, Central, and South America, as well as the West Indies. Their botanical name, Ipomoca batata, was derived from the American Indians of Louisiana who were growing them in native gardens as early as 1540. The Indians referred to sweet potatoes as batatas.
In his first voyage to the West Indies Columbus discovered many new foods which he brought back to Spain. Sweet potatoes were among his ship's treasures. The Spanish relished them and began cultivating them immediately. Soon they were profitably exporting them to England where they were included in spice pies to be devoured at the court of Henry VIII.
The French, not to be outdone, planted them at the request of Louis XV. They were favored in France only until his death and then lost popularity for thirty years until the Empress Josephine, who was from Martinique, craved them. It was then that sweet potatoes again became trendy in Paris restaurants for a time, but once more fell into obscurity. It was the Portuguese who carried Sweet Potatoes to Asia and Africa where they have become an important staple of the diet even today.
There are two major varieties of sweet potatoes, the yellow, drier, more mealy kind with lighter beige colored skins, and the orange, more moist, sweeter ones with reddish skins that are usually called "yams." True yams, however, are nothing like the sweet potato, but are a tuber native to Africa, very starchy, not very sweet, and grow as large as 100 pounds. For more details visit http://www.indomunch.com
Thursday, June 26, 2008
page 426
Debt is a Product in America
The #1 sickness in America concerning finances right now is debt. Debt is a product in our culture and it is vigorously aimed at you and me everyday, everywhere. As a society, we borrow more money than the last two generations times two and your online credit report reflects these habits! Some companies like Sears make more profit from their credit department than from all the physical products they sell.
But It's the Norm Isn't It?
We are programmed from childhood to make automatic decisions regarding our personal spending habits thus negatively affecting our online credit report. A few 'real world' examples are listed below:
- leasing a car instead of paying for it in cash (unheard of right?)
- 90 days same as cash (NOT... really the same in more than 75% of the cases)
- rent-to-own (translation = paying 2, 3, 4 times the actual value of the product)
- 30 year vs. 15 year mortgages (an accepted lengthy and very costly way of purchasing a house)
What to do? Well, I hate to give the obvious answer here but how about saving money! Try saving money in a money market account for a couple years and then paying for a slightly used car in cash or with a 50 to 75% down payment. Wow, imagine having that extra money every month that most people dump into their lease or high rate loan. Try saving money for 3-6 months interest and risk free for that thing that you needed and you might find that you can get it cheaper with hundreds OR even that you want to use your hard-earned money for something more practical. Your credit report will thank you as well.
Penny Pinching is Boring!
Most people today think that to be frugal one must live out of a shack and only make purchases when they are on clearance (or if it's life or death). Well they're only half right. Have you heard the expression "It's the little things that count"? This holds very true when dealing with financial decisions. While large purchases definitely have great effect on one's online credit report as well as their overall situation, it is often the everyday spending habits that accumulate and hold them back from attaining wealth of any sort. What many people fail to realize is that the majority of true millionaires in America (those with net worths exceeding 1 million dollars) got rich from thinking outside the box and not following the crowd. Try thinking a little more about how you handle your money and you might find that you know more than you think you do.
Summing Up the Debt Sickness Fiasco
A decision as simple as using a debit credit card instead of a credit card shows discipline. Report that paying with cash instead of credit shows that you have properly budgeted your money and it just feels better to own something the day you walk away with it. Your credit report will also reflect these positive actions. Since the average consumer has little control over their own spending habits, the credit report picks up the slack and in turn there are more negative items to show for it. Even statistics show that using cash when making purchases will greatly reduce spending thus causing you to think harder as a consumer before swiping that credit card. Get off to a good start by seeing what is on your online credit report. By removing negative items from your online credit report you can improve your credit rating.
page 425
The Debt
In America, it is not only accepted that the majority of us are knee-deep in credit card debt, it is normal. Two generations ago it was just flat out wrong - a sin, to have any kind of debt at all. Today it is quite a different story and credit card debt is a mega, multi-billion dollar a year industry. The major credit card companies are eating it up like hotcakes and our credit reports are taking a lot of the heat. More than 75% of all college students are in credit card debt within their first year of school. From Sears to Visa to Diner's Club, people are adding to the debt stock pile that the distributors thrive off of. There are tens of thousands of websites that support and offer more to this enormous problem and it has got to stop! We have to draw the line individually, because there are no boundaries on the excessive spending in America.
What's Really Happening
It's even stated in the Bible - "The borrower is slave to the lender." In any case, where you have taken out credit on something; be it a car, mortgage, student loan, credit card, etc..., you are borrowing money. Not only that, but you are borrowing more money than you need. The average APR (annual percentage rate) on a credit card is 19%! In many cases, when a credit card is "maxed out" you will pay only interest with the minimum payment. As if this wasn't enough stress, the creditors harass you like their life depends on it and you begin to feel uneasy about even answering the phone.
Is Debt Consolidation the Answer?
Many consumers are drawn in by debt consolidation loans. It feels like instant relief and the monthly payments go down. Suddenly you feel like life is getting better by the minute. Oh and what's this, there is left over money from the loan - PERFECT! You needed this for that yard project or supplies or something that you've been waiting to have the extra money for. Why not reward yourself, you have taken a big step and your financial future is improving. Or is it? The fact is that you have fallen into another trap. You are now borrowing more money with an interest rate and you most likely got more than you needed. Statistics show that even though the math often works for a consolidation loan, the consumer ends up with his ears nailed to the wall.
What to do Now
STOP BORROWING MONEY! This would be a good first step. Stop right now. Do not borrow a dime. If you don't have it - don't spend it. You can build up an emergency savings account to pick up any negative events that may occur. This emergency savings account is of course another article but you get the basic idea right? Oh, you still feel you need plastic in your wallet? Get a debit credit card. At least with a debit card you can only spend what is in your bank account. You can also use most credit card debit cards just like a credit card for purchases. Your credit report will begin to reflect this positive behavior because there will be no more credit card bills piling up. Here is a saying to ponder before you think of making another large purchase - "If you can't afford it, don't buy it. If you can afford it, sleep on it."
To read more about how you can get your online credit report free with no obligations and get a prepaid Mastercard debit card with no immediate debt, go to www.cleancreditonline.com
page 424
Too many people are being confused, mislead and taken advantage of by tem, "Free Credit Report". We set the record straight so that won't happen. Text How many of us have looked at anything offered to us for "free"? Not me? Of course I have. In this day in age when gas prices are listed as "Arm" and "Leg", providing health insurance for your family costs more than some mortgage payments and the cost of raising kids looks like a hockey stick pasted onto a graph, you bet I look at offers to save money.
Therein lie's the problem. It seems like the vast majority of American consumers are desperate to cut costs, any costs, and will jump too soon at offers promising to do just that. Sometimes when you combine a cost cutting mentality with the importance of credit, not only to purchase the big ticket items important to us, but more and more to simply survive in this economy, desperation happens. Unfortunately, the marketers know this too. So, without a little education anyone can get confused and the likelihood of being taken advantage of increases significantly. The good news is that just a little education will save you plenty.
Take for example, the term "Free Credit Report". It now ranks right up there with the ubiquitous, "new" and "improved". "Free Credit Report" has become part of that lexicon of advertising buzz words that are absolutely meaningless to me. But for many, there is much confusion over this term. Why? I think mainly because it has been announced that federal law dictates we are all entitled to a free credit report on the front page of all the newspapers.
We know everyone wants a free credit report, which is why we started our site. People naturally want something that is mandated by law to be at no cost, is front page news and is so incredibly important to each of us if we want to purchase just about anything. We know people want their free credit report and because most all of us work so hard for our money, we think people deserve hearing the truth about the subject. That is why we even put a section on our page entitled, "The Truth About Free Credit Reports".
So, is it not true? Yes, it is true, it's just that the devil is in the details and the resulting confusion has been a bonanza for those seeking to cash in on the confusion. In fact, each of us in the good ole U. S. of A. is entitled to a free credit report. But, how do you get it? Where do you get it? Who is giving it to you? Why is it being offered for free? And most importantly, who cannot offer you one for free?
Who cannot offer a free credit report? Let's start with the last one first because it shines a lot of light on the rest of the questions. Any company, web site or service that is in business for a profit and is not named Experian, Trans Union or Equifax is not able to provide anyone at any time with anything remotely resembling a credit report free of cost. Period. End of story. Got that? Further, there is one place set up on the web to get free copies of credit reports at no cost and it is: www.annualcreditreport.com . We'll talk more about this site a little later but, other wise, caveat emptor, let the buyer beware.
How then are these offers being made? Look closely, the "Free" report is usually offered initially upon signing up for a service that charges your credit card each month for monitoring your credit. If you cancel the service just in the nick of time, before the charge is made to your card, you will get it at no cost. What a hassle! And the bet is you will wake up at least one, if not a couple or more months later with several charges to your card. You think these guys make foolish bets?!
Then what caused a free credit report to be offered on the front page of newspapers, who is providing them and how and where do I get one? Due to the importance of consumer credit history, identity theft and complaints from consumer rights groups about having to purchase a credit report in order to gain knowledge about the contents shown on individual consumer reports, even if it was reported inaccurately, a change was mandated.
The Fair and Accurate Consumer Trade Act (FACTA), a revision of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, provided for one credit report free of charge from the reporting agencies (Experian, Trans Union and Equifax) every twelve months, if and only if, you haven't received a credit report in the previous twelve months. The consumer, by either mailing a written request to the three major credit reporting agencies or going to www.annualcreditreport.com one can obtain the free report if they meet the criteria. This program was and is being phased in to sections of the U.S. by the credit reporting agencies starting in the western states, with the northeastern states at the time of this writing still to come.
However, Pamela Yip of The Dallas Morning News writes that even this has not been without its problems.
"The Federal Trade Commission said Experian Information Solutions Inc., one of the three major credit bureaus, settled complaints that it "deceptively marketed 'free credit reports' by not adequately disclosing that consumers automatically would be signed up for a credit report monitoring service and charged $79.95 if they didn't cancel within 30 days... . With the help of the Federal Trade Commission, the bureaus established www.annualcreditreport.com as the only authorized online source for consumers to get a free report under federal law.
While many consumers haven't had any problem getting their reports, others say they've been hit with sales pitches for products and services from the credit bureaus or were diverted to imposter sites. The FTC said the company led consumers to its www.freecredit report.com and www.consumer info.com Web sites. Radio, TV, e-mail and Web ads promised free reports and "a bonus - free trials of a credit-monitoring service."
The FTC said consumers "were assured that: 'Your card will not be charged during the free trial period. However, valid credit card information is required to establish your account.' "
What the Web sites didn't adequately disclose is that consumers would be charged the $79.95 annual fee if they didn't cancel within 30 days, the FTC said.
"ConsumerInfo billed the credit cards that it had told consumers were 'required only to establish your account,' and, in some cases, automatically renewed memberships by rebilling consumers without notice," the agency said.
As part of the settlement, the FTC required ConsumerInfo.com, an Experian company, to "give up $950,000 in ill-gotten gains."
Experian also has agreed to provide refunds to consumers who purchased credit-monitoring products and ordered a free credit report between Nov. 1, 2000, and Sept. 15, 2003.
"It's unfair and deceptive to promise consumers something for free and then trick them into paying for products they didn't want in the first place," said Lydia Parnes, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.
"It wasn't an attempt to mislead at all," said Peg Smith, an Experian executive vice president. "We absolutely deny any wrongdoing." She does acknowledge that consumers may have been confused.
"To the effect that our product offering has caused that confusion, we certainly regret that," Ms. Smith said. "We encourage consumers to read the language in any disclosure on any Web site, including our own."
The FTC also requires ConsumerInfo.com to state clearly that its free credit report offer isn't related to the federal program." http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=list&p_topdoc=21
The reality is that no one credit report or combination of three credit reports by and of themselves is sufficient to educate oneself about where you stand as a consumer in the eyes of a lender. Imagine a high speed race boat zooming across a lake at top speed without a steering wheel. Where it is going is a complete mystery but one thing is for sure, it will crash and crash quickly unless you get control. That's right, you. Because without your credit scores and the knowledge about what they mean, how they were calculated or how a lender views them, you are headed for a crash.
No bank, credit card issuer, mortgage company, retail store or any other credit provider will grant you any item, service or product without looking almost exclusively at your credit scores and the average person has no idea what their scores are and even if they did, many if not most, wouldn't know what they mean.
For example, most people don't even know that repeated "pulling" of your credit reports by potential credit grantors lowers your scores by as much as four points per "pull". You start "shopping" around for the best rate on a credit card by allowing each credit issuer to run a credit report on you and your score will take a dive. The difference between a 699 score and a 700 represents thousands and thousands of dollars in interest.
Often, credit issuers don't make it perfectly clear that your credit history is being accessed when you respond to their offer for a new card over the phone. The call center sales representative also doesn't explain and state clearly to you, that your credit history will show an "official inquiry" which counts against your scores whether you are accepted or rejected.
Most people don't know that a maxed out credit card lowers their scores even if they pay on time every month. Many don't know until it is too late that one late payment on one credit card will cause the interest rate charged to skyrocket not only on that card but any other cards that have a balance! Most also don't know that a credit card balance showing less than thirty per cent of the available balance improves the score. Most don't know that in calculating credit scores, your payment history counts as 35% of the score, amounts owed count 30% of the score, length of your credit history counts 15% of the score, new credit is 10% of the score and types of credit in use is 10%.
What is the truth about free credit reports? The truth, is that consumers need to read the fine print very, very carefully and get educated. The truth about credit reports in general is that only part of the story is being told by one. The truth, is that knowledge is power and without it your money is being taken from you, your buying power and therefore your future is being dictated to you rather than by you and that the cost of everything including insurance is based on your scores.
If asked for my advice to the average consumer? Worry less about getting a "free" report and more about the real cost of being ignorant regarding credit. Worry more about the immediate and long term costs of not taking control of what is reported on your credit report both the correct and incorrect. Gain some credit knowledge. It is easy to do and will literally save you a fortune. One thing is absolutely for sure, your money and future and your children's future will be severely impacted by your credit. How, is up to you.
Therein lie's the problem. It seems like the vast majority of American consumers are desperate to cut costs, any costs, and will jump too soon at offers promising to do just that. Sometimes when you combine a cost cutting mentality with the importance of credit, not only to purchase the big ticket items important to us, but more and more to simply survive in this economy, desperation happens. Unfortunately, the marketers know this too. So, without a little education anyone can get confused and the likelihood of being taken advantage of increases significantly. The good news is that just a little education will save you plenty.
Take for example, the term "Free Credit Report". It now ranks right up there with the ubiquitous, "new" and "improved". "Free Credit Report" has become part of that lexicon of advertising buzz words that are absolutely meaningless to me. But for many, there is much confusion over this term. Why? I think mainly because it has been announced that federal law dictates we are all entitled to a free credit report on the front page of all the newspapers.
We know everyone wants a free credit report, which is why we started our site. People naturally want something that is mandated by law to be at no cost, is front page news and is so incredibly important to each of us if we want to purchase just about anything. We know people want their free credit report and because most all of us work so hard for our money, we think people deserve hearing the truth about the subject. That is why we even put a section on our page entitled, "The Truth About Free Credit Reports".
So, is it not true? Yes, it is true, it's just that the devil is in the details and the resulting confusion has been a bonanza for those seeking to cash in on the confusion. In fact, each of us in the good ole U. S. of A. is entitled to a free credit report. But, how do you get it? Where do you get it? Who is giving it to you? Why is it being offered for free? And most importantly, who cannot offer you one for free?
Who cannot offer a free credit report? Let's start with the last one first because it shines a lot of light on the rest of the questions. Any company, web site or service that is in business for a profit and is not named Experian, Trans Union or Equifax is not able to provide anyone at any time with anything remotely resembling a credit report free of cost. Period. End of story. Got that? Further, there is one place set up on the web to get free copies of credit reports at no cost and it is: www.annualcreditreport.com . We'll talk more about this site a little later but, other wise, caveat emptor, let the buyer beware.
How then are these offers being made? Look closely, the "Free" report is usually offered initially upon signing up for a service that charges your credit card each month for monitoring your credit. If you cancel the service just in the nick of time, before the charge is made to your card, you will get it at no cost. What a hassle! And the bet is you will wake up at least one, if not a couple or more months later with several charges to your card. You think these guys make foolish bets?!
Then what caused a free credit report to be offered on the front page of newspapers, who is providing them and how and where do I get one? Due to the importance of consumer credit history, identity theft and complaints from consumer rights groups about having to purchase a credit report in order to gain knowledge about the contents shown on individual consumer reports, even if it was reported inaccurately, a change was mandated.
The Fair and Accurate Consumer Trade Act (FACTA), a revision of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, provided for one credit report free of charge from the reporting agencies (Experian, Trans Union and Equifax) every twelve months, if and only if, you haven't received a credit report in the previous twelve months. The consumer, by either mailing a written request to the three major credit reporting agencies or going to www.annualcreditreport.com one can obtain the free report if they meet the criteria. This program was and is being phased in to sections of the U.S. by the credit reporting agencies starting in the western states, with the northeastern states at the time of this writing still to come.
However, Pamela Yip of The Dallas Morning News writes that even this has not been without its problems.
"The Federal Trade Commission said Experian Information Solutions Inc., one of the three major credit bureaus, settled complaints that it "deceptively marketed 'free credit reports' by not adequately disclosing that consumers automatically would be signed up for a credit report monitoring service and charged $79.95 if they didn't cancel within 30 days... . With the help of the Federal Trade Commission, the bureaus established www.annualcreditreport.com as the only authorized online source for consumers to get a free report under federal law.
While many consumers haven't had any problem getting their reports, others say they've been hit with sales pitches for products and services from the credit bureaus or were diverted to imposter sites. The FTC said the company led consumers to its www.freecredit report.com and www.consumer info.com Web sites. Radio, TV, e-mail and Web ads promised free reports and "a bonus - free trials of a credit-monitoring service."
The FTC said consumers "were assured that: 'Your card will not be charged during the free trial period. However, valid credit card information is required to establish your account.' "
What the Web sites didn't adequately disclose is that consumers would be charged the $79.95 annual fee if they didn't cancel within 30 days, the FTC said.
"ConsumerInfo billed the credit cards that it had told consumers were 'required only to establish your account,' and, in some cases, automatically renewed memberships by rebilling consumers without notice," the agency said.
As part of the settlement, the FTC required ConsumerInfo.com, an Experian company, to "give up $950,000 in ill-gotten gains."
Experian also has agreed to provide refunds to consumers who purchased credit-monitoring products and ordered a free credit report between Nov. 1, 2000, and Sept. 15, 2003.
"It's unfair and deceptive to promise consumers something for free and then trick them into paying for products they didn't want in the first place," said Lydia Parnes, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.
"It wasn't an attempt to mislead at all," said Peg Smith, an Experian executive vice president. "We absolutely deny any wrongdoing." She does acknowledge that consumers may have been confused.
"To the effect that our product offering has caused that confusion, we certainly regret that," Ms. Smith said. "We encourage consumers to read the language in any disclosure on any Web site, including our own."
The FTC also requires ConsumerInfo.com to state clearly that its free credit report offer isn't related to the federal program." http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=list&p_topdoc=21
The reality is that no one credit report or combination of three credit reports by and of themselves is sufficient to educate oneself about where you stand as a consumer in the eyes of a lender. Imagine a high speed race boat zooming across a lake at top speed without a steering wheel. Where it is going is a complete mystery but one thing is for sure, it will crash and crash quickly unless you get control. That's right, you. Because without your credit scores and the knowledge about what they mean, how they were calculated or how a lender views them, you are headed for a crash.
No bank, credit card issuer, mortgage company, retail store or any other credit provider will grant you any item, service or product without looking almost exclusively at your credit scores and the average person has no idea what their scores are and even if they did, many if not most, wouldn't know what they mean.
For example, most people don't even know that repeated "pulling" of your credit reports by potential credit grantors lowers your scores by as much as four points per "pull". You start "shopping" around for the best rate on a credit card by allowing each credit issuer to run a credit report on you and your score will take a dive. The difference between a 699 score and a 700 represents thousands and thousands of dollars in interest.
Often, credit issuers don't make it perfectly clear that your credit history is being accessed when you respond to their offer for a new card over the phone. The call center sales representative also doesn't explain and state clearly to you, that your credit history will show an "official inquiry" which counts against your scores whether you are accepted or rejected.
Most people don't know that a maxed out credit card lowers their scores even if they pay on time every month. Many don't know until it is too late that one late payment on one credit card will cause the interest rate charged to skyrocket not only on that card but any other cards that have a balance! Most also don't know that a credit card balance showing less than thirty per cent of the available balance improves the score. Most don't know that in calculating credit scores, your payment history counts as 35% of the score, amounts owed count 30% of the score, length of your credit history counts 15% of the score, new credit is 10% of the score and types of credit in use is 10%.
What is the truth about free credit reports? The truth, is that consumers need to read the fine print very, very carefully and get educated. The truth about credit reports in general is that only part of the story is being told by one. The truth, is that knowledge is power and without it your money is being taken from you, your buying power and therefore your future is being dictated to you rather than by you and that the cost of everything including insurance is based on your scores.
If asked for my advice to the average consumer? Worry less about getting a "free" report and more about the real cost of being ignorant regarding credit. Worry more about the immediate and long term costs of not taking control of what is reported on your credit report both the correct and incorrect. Gain some credit knowledge. It is easy to do and will literally save you a fortune. One thing is absolutely for sure, your money and future and your children's future will be severely impacted by your credit. How, is up to you.
page 423
Having a blemish on your credit report can lead people to believe that it will be impossible for them to obtain a mortgage or refinance their current one.
Although having less than perfect credit can be a challenge, all hope is not lost.
There are lenders out there, and many of them, who specialize in doing mortgages for people with challenged credit. These lenders are known as sub prime lenders.
You may not be familiar with sub prime lenders because they are not the type of institution to set up shop on every street corner like the banks.
Sub prime lenders deal with all kinds of special and unique situations. Whatever your situation may be, there is a good chance that there is a lender out there with a program for you.
For instance, sub prime lenders have programs for people with poor payment history, people who have had bankruptcies, people who are in foreclosure and are looking to be bought out, etc. Over all if your credit history is poor, you will most likely have to go with a sub prime lender.
My suggestion to you would be to find a broker to shop around for the best possible program for you.
A broker is not a lender, their job is to guide and educate you through the loan process. Most brokers have a contact list too literally hundreds of lenders across the country including sub prime lenders. Allow for the broker to assess your financial situation, than fit you into a program that you both can agree on.
The down side to dealing with a sub prime lender is the interest rate. You can count on it being high. If you have bad credit, the lender will see you as a risk, and the penalty you pay for being considered a risk is in the interest rate.
The point is this, regardless of your credit issues, there most likely is a lender out there who will deal with you, just make sure the deal you agree on is in your best interest and not in the best interest of the broker or the lender.
When deciding to purchase a home or refinance your existing one, always do your homework. Continue to educate yourself so you know what to expect going forward, and don't be afraid to shop around for the best deal out there. Just because your credit isn't the greatest doesn't mean lenders won't be competing for your business because they will.
Your credit can be repaired over time if you pay your bills on time, so make this a goal and work toward it.
Although having less than perfect credit can be a challenge, all hope is not lost.
There are lenders out there, and many of them, who specialize in doing mortgages for people with challenged credit. These lenders are known as sub prime lenders.
You may not be familiar with sub prime lenders because they are not the type of institution to set up shop on every street corner like the banks.
Sub prime lenders deal with all kinds of special and unique situations. Whatever your situation may be, there is a good chance that there is a lender out there with a program for you.
For instance, sub prime lenders have programs for people with poor payment history, people who have had bankruptcies, people who are in foreclosure and are looking to be bought out, etc. Over all if your credit history is poor, you will most likely have to go with a sub prime lender.
My suggestion to you would be to find a broker to shop around for the best possible program for you.
A broker is not a lender, their job is to guide and educate you through the loan process. Most brokers have a contact list too literally hundreds of lenders across the country including sub prime lenders. Allow for the broker to assess your financial situation, than fit you into a program that you both can agree on.
The down side to dealing with a sub prime lender is the interest rate. You can count on it being high. If you have bad credit, the lender will see you as a risk, and the penalty you pay for being considered a risk is in the interest rate.
The point is this, regardless of your credit issues, there most likely is a lender out there who will deal with you, just make sure the deal you agree on is in your best interest and not in the best interest of the broker or the lender.
When deciding to purchase a home or refinance your existing one, always do your homework. Continue to educate yourself so you know what to expect going forward, and don't be afraid to shop around for the best deal out there. Just because your credit isn't the greatest doesn't mean lenders won't be competing for your business because they will.
Your credit can be repaired over time if you pay your bills on time, so make this a goal and work toward it.
page 422
With the popularity of plastic money these days, credit cards are gaining immense importance. With growing usage of credit card the number of people in debt and the amount of debt for each of them is also increasing at a fast pace. Almost every household in the US today is undergoing the threats of debt problems. People undergoing credit card debts should ideally opt for debt consolidation in order to lead a debt free life. In the US more than half of the population has an average of $8000 debts, only because of the usage of credit cards.
You must be eager to know:
* How is the process of debt consolidation beneficial to settle credit card debts?
* How is it useful to consolidate my credit card debts?
A credit card debt consolidation loan can be a resource to consolidate the outstanding balances on your cards into one single loan. They can also be transferred to one single card that has a lower interest rate than the ones you are currently paying. The path to savings should be very cautiously chalked out and one needs to make calculated moves all the time. It is advisable to opt for credit cards with low interest rates rather than paying high interest rates for some credit cards. Calculate the interest on your credit card debts and transfer it accordingly. We offer free membership.
The ideal way to consolidate your credit card debts!
For better understanding find out how consolidating your credit card debts can be helpful.
Let's say you have $100 in outstanding credit card debt and the average annual percentage rate (APR) on that card is 18 %. If the outstanding balance remains at $100 then over the course of a year you would pay approximately $18 in interest charges alone. If you consolidate your credit card debt into a single loan with a lower interest rate or if you do a balance transfer onto a credit card with a low interest rate you would save a significant amount of money.
If the new loan or credit card have a 9% APR then you would save roughly $10 in interest charges over the course of that same year. If you save $10 for a debt of $100, then think about a debt of $10,000. This trick will save you $1,000 over the course of that same year. Just think of $100,000 debts; you can save $10,000. And this amount of $10,000 can be used to repay some of your debts. Life becomes easy with simple calculations and cautious moves.
If you are undergoing major debt problems feel free to contact us. Our experts will help you to consolidate your debts and restore your financial position. Consolidating your debt is perhaps the fastest, safest and best way today to get rid of your financial obligations and we are experts in this field. Fill our free membership form to view all the alternatives. With debt consolidation we are here to consolidate all your financial loans in a single monthly payment. We help you in your journey towards being debt free.
You must be eager to know:
* How is the process of debt consolidation beneficial to settle credit card debts?
* How is it useful to consolidate my credit card debts?
A credit card debt consolidation loan can be a resource to consolidate the outstanding balances on your cards into one single loan. They can also be transferred to one single card that has a lower interest rate than the ones you are currently paying. The path to savings should be very cautiously chalked out and one needs to make calculated moves all the time. It is advisable to opt for credit cards with low interest rates rather than paying high interest rates for some credit cards. Calculate the interest on your credit card debts and transfer it accordingly. We offer free membership.
The ideal way to consolidate your credit card debts!
For better understanding find out how consolidating your credit card debts can be helpful.
Let's say you have $100 in outstanding credit card debt and the average annual percentage rate (APR) on that card is 18 %. If the outstanding balance remains at $100 then over the course of a year you would pay approximately $18 in interest charges alone. If you consolidate your credit card debt into a single loan with a lower interest rate or if you do a balance transfer onto a credit card with a low interest rate you would save a significant amount of money.
If the new loan or credit card have a 9% APR then you would save roughly $10 in interest charges over the course of that same year. If you save $10 for a debt of $100, then think about a debt of $10,000. This trick will save you $1,000 over the course of that same year. Just think of $100,000 debts; you can save $10,000. And this amount of $10,000 can be used to repay some of your debts. Life becomes easy with simple calculations and cautious moves.
If you are undergoing major debt problems feel free to contact us. Our experts will help you to consolidate your debts and restore your financial position. Consolidating your debt is perhaps the fastest, safest and best way today to get rid of your financial obligations and we are experts in this field. Fill our free membership form to view all the alternatives. With debt consolidation we are here to consolidate all your financial loans in a single monthly payment. We help you in your journey towards being debt free.
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