Posts

Canadian annual seal hunt begins amid controversy

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

The Honourable Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, opened the Canadian seal hunt amid protests by animal rights groups, at a time when bans on seal product imports are becoming more prevalent internationally.

Seal hunters along the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence are allowed to catch a maximum of 270,000 Harp Seal pups from a total estimated population of 5.5 million. 8,200 is the allowable catch of Hooded seals from an estimated population of 600,000, and seal hunters may catch 50,000 grey seals from an approximate population of 300,000.

The Harp seal pups may be killed as soon as they have molted their white pelts, which occurs 10 to 21 days after birth.

It is reported that Russia has shut down the seal hunt on its shores. The United States, Netherlands, and Belgium ban the import of seal products. The European Parliament committee has endorsed a ban on seal product imports by the 27 European Union (EU) member states, in the form of a proposed bill that would still allow the Canadian Inuit to trade in seal products for first nation cultural purposes. All members of the EU must approve the bill for it to become law.

“While we are extremely disappointed that the European Parliament has called for a ban of the trade of seal products, our position remains that any ban on a humanely conducted hunt, such as Canada’s, is completely without merit. We will continue to explore all legal and diplomatic options and we will exercise our rights to their fullest extent under international trade laws if and when it becomes necessary and appropriate.”

“Sealing is a significant source of income in many small, isolated coastal communities throughout Atlantic Canada, Quebec and the North, and creates critical employment opportunities for processing plants, as well as fuel, food and equipment suppliers in coastal communities,” said Minister Shea.

“Our government will continue to defend the rights of Canadian sealers to provide a livelihood for their families through our humane, responsible and sustainable hunt,” she said. “It represents as much as 35 per cent of a sealer’s annual income and is important for thousands of families at a time of year when other fishing options are limited at best.”

The first area to open up to the seal hunt was the Gulf of St. Lawrence, where 30 percent of the catch is allowed.

Sixteen observer permits have been issued. “The majority of the observers are people who protest against the seal hunt, but there are journalists and other observers as well. We try to make sure there’s an even proportion of sealing activity and observer activity,” Mr. Jenkins, Department of Fisheries and Oceans spokesman said. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) is going to observe and record the commercial seal hunt.

“It’s devastating to be here, to know the commercial seal hunt has started again. It’s clear that a change is on the horizon with the European Parliament voting on a proposal to ban seal-product trade in the EU and many people in the Canadian sealing industry believe that could spell the beginning of the end of the commercial seal hunt,” commented Rebecca Aldworth, director of the Canadian chapter of Humane Society International.

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Financial Planning

Private Vs. Public High School &Amp; College Admissions Success

This week I’m going to answer a popular question among parents concerning whether from a college admissions perspective if it’s better for a student to attend a public or private high school and how this decision factors into the admissions equation. After having attended both public and private high schools myself, interviewed several administrative insiders and college admissions officers our research has shown that the short answer is no and the long answer is that it depends. I’ll explain what I mean by both these terms and what strategies are most useful for high school students in this edition of college planning Saturday.

In order to effectively answer this question let’s start by talking about the major differences between public and private high schools as they relate to both you as a parent, your student and their ability to get into College.

Cost of Attendance:

Many parents make the mistake of believing that if a high school charges more it must be better. Not true. Not only do private high schools tell Colleges that you most likely do have spare cash available for College tuition many College specific scholarship programs are not available to students. Likewise, it we have also found that many expensive private high schools in the country provide an educational experience that is only equivalent to that of a well funded public high school. The reason is that many private high schools invest their endowment money in order to continually build their brand name. Yes they have the capacity to provide better classrooms, facilities and teachers but the question you want to ask yourself is to what degree they actually do so. They are most valuable when they actively invest substantial sums of capital into building the structures and conditions necessary to help students outperform national averages on important metrics of high school achievement. Many of these schools however have proven incapable of doing so.

Many of the core services that your student needs in fact to get into a top college like stellar AP classes, SAT preparation and extracellular opportunities are available at many great public high schools for free. A national survey taken by the College Board revealed that Colleges on average accepted roughly 25% of their students from private high schools while 65-70% of students were from public high schools. This data suggest that Colleges do not distinguish their admissions criteria by whether a high school is public or private but rather what percent tile your student ranks within that given school.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dplGN0ESXD4[/youtube]

High School Class Ranking:

As a result one of the most important things you should be looking at is not whether the high school is nationally ranked high enough but rather where your student places within their graduating class. This is why students who attend highly competitive high schools where the majority of students all have private tutors, SAT prep classes and lots of encouragement at home will have a far more difficult time graduating in the top 10% of their class than students who attends a far less competitive schools and have less support at home. It is actually more challenging therefore for students who attend more competitive high schools to graduate high enough in their senior class to significantly distinguish themselves.

Class Curriculum:

Most public high schools, because their funded by mostly state and federal funds will only typically offer general classes in the core subjects of math, English, reading, writing, science history and physical education. In addition to these core subjects, many public high schools offer programs in the music and the arts. In contrast because private high schools are funded internally, the breath of their curriculum is often much larger and more narrowly tailored towards specialized programs and the diverse interests students may have. So from a purely curriculum perspective private high schools are far superior in that they have the capacity to offer students a very diverse and rich learning experience. Now where parents typically error on this specific point is thinking that this matters to a College. It doesn’t. The reason is simple, College admissions departments hate subjectivity and there is no way as of yet to fairly and objectivity take into account the vast differences that specific classes have on whether a student is qualified for admissions. Instead, your focus should lie on what is measurable and what is objective and what Colleges actually look at which includes GPA, SAT and other standardized measures of achievement. I can’t tell you how many times we have worked with clients whose students took generic AP classes, did excellent and got into some great Colleges while other clients had their students take highly complex specialized classes, did mediocre and were surprised when their admissions competitiveness suffered as a result.

Location:

This is a factor many parents fail to take into account when thinking about public versus private high schools. When I attended private high school some years ago, one of the biggest challenges I had with attending was that I had to commute via bus 60 minutes every day. After working with thousands of families as a financial and admissions advisor I am convinced that this plays a critical role in getting into College. Why? Because doing well in your classes and tests are based not on how much time your student spends at school but how much time they spend at home mastering the material. Learning is an integrated process that is the result of always thinking about and applying class concepts. If your student is spending their time focused on logistics and travel it only makes this learning process more challenging to achieve.

Passion & Desire:

Most importantly, if you want to your student to have the opportunity to attend the College of their dreams then it’s vital that you keep in mind that research reveals that student ability and achievement is not something you academically create but rather something you unleash within them. How do you unleash your student’s abilities you may ask? Easy. Allow them to learn and grow in an environment their most passionate in. It’s like a quote my mentor once told me that “attitudes are more important than abilities, motives than methods and character than cleverness; and at the end of the day the heart takes precedence over the head… so follow your heart and your abilities will unleash like an avalanche”. That is perhaps the on universal truth inherent in all the students of families we have worked with that were most successful in getting into any College they desired.

So remember, having your child attend a highly competitive private prep school is pointless if you’re not focused on having them academically distinguish themselves within their class. That is one very important factor in College Admissions and one that can be accomplished at any high school, public or private.

To discover the business-side behind the admissions and financial aid process the “stuff-behind-the-stuff” sign up to receive (1) a free chapter of Phillip Lew’s College Planning book, (2) a report on which colleges give grants for high income families and (3) a database on where to find the highest quality private scholarships. To instantly receive these free gifts go to totalcollegesolutions.com and watch our 5 minute introductory free video.

Article Source: sooperarticles.com/education-articles/college-and-university-articles/private-vs-public-high-school-38-college-admissions-success-466445.html

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facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002424546693Author: Phillip Lew

Dove ad viewed more than 3 million times on YouTube

Saturday, November 4, 2006

An advertisement for Dove beauty products has been viewed by well over three million people, without ever being on television. A copywriter from Ogilvy Toronto, the advertising agency that created a spot named “evolution”, uploaded the advertisement to video sharing website YouTube.

While the official upload of the ad itself has been viewed 1,119,262 times, there are dozens of copies of the ad on YouTube, adding to a minimum of 3,059,546 views. The official copy of the video is the website’s 12th most viewed this month, 53rd of all time.

Unofficial uploads have each received high levels of viewership, with 449595, 445322, 207906, 201670, 195265, 116501, and 102634 plays.

The agency did not originally intend to upload the video to YouTube, only display it on the company’s homepage. Staff member Tim Piper uploaded it to his account on October 6, about a week before it first got media coverage on Good Morning America.

The ad begins with a woman walking into a photo shoot. From there, she is primped and plucked by hair and makeup artists, then tweaked on a Photoshop-like program. The photo-manipulation is then posted on a billboard for the fictional “Easel Foundation Makeup” brand. Two young, teenage girls walk past, glancing at the board. “No wonder our perception of beauty is distorted” ends the ad in text, “Every girl deserves to feel beautiful just the way she is.”

The creative team for the ad included Tim Piper, Mike Kirkland, Janet Kestin, Nancy Vonk, directors T Piper (treatment and post production) and Yael Staav (live action) from Reginald Pike, Soho post production, Rogue editing, Vapor music, Gabor Jurina and Make-up: Diana Carreiro, and Reginald Pike.

The official French copy of the ad has only received 132 views, although it was only uploaded on November 2, 2006.

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“Creationism and intelligent design have no place in the UK science curriculum” says UK Government

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

The Government is clear that creationism and intelligent design are not part of the science National Curriculum programmes of study and should not be taught as science.

The U.K. government defined Intelligent Design along with creationism as religion and ruled that neither has a place within the country’s school science curriculum.

This was in reaction to an electronic petition launched by James Rocks of the “Science, Just Science” campaign, a group formed to oppose “Truth in Science” and other groups in the anti-evolution lobby in the UK. The petition was signed by 1,505 people.

In the petition details, Rocks wrote, “Creationism & Intelligent design are greatly featured in the media and are being used disingenuously to portray science & the theory of evolution as being in crisis when they are not. Moreover groups such as Truth in Science are targeting our nation’s children and their science education with material that is not only non-scientific but have been rejected by the scientific community. These ideas therefore do not constitute science, cannot be considered scientific education and therefore do not belong in the nation’s science classrooms.”

A spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s office wrote: “The (UK) Government is aware that a number of concerns have been raised in the media and elsewhere as to whether creationism and intelligent design have a place in science lessons. The [UK] Government is clear that creationism and intelligent design are not part of the science National Curriculum programmes of study and should not be taught as science.”

The government will also be “publishing guidance for schools, on the way creationism and intelligent design relate to science teaching”.

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Public Relations

Qualities Of The Best Body Shops In Lubbockt

byAlma Abell

One of the prized possessions that most people have is a car and they will go to great lengths to make sure that their car stays looking its best. For people who value the look of their car, being involved in an accident can be a very stressful and heartbreaking situation for them. The damage that can be caused in a car accident can be quite extensive and will require a professional touch in order to get it back to its original condition. In most cases, you will have a variety of different body shops in your area to choose from, which means you have to do research to find the right one. Here are a few qualities to look for when trying to find the Best Body Shops in Lubbock.

Great Communication is Key

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkYEhE5wIMc[/youtube]

One of the best qualities to look for in a body shop is a good sense of communication. You want a body shop that will walk you through the steps they are taking to get your car repaired properly. The more you know about the process, the better equipped you will be to make the right decisions along the way. The last thing that you want is a body shop that seems secretive about what they are doing because this is a prime environment for getting taken advantage of.

Itemized Estimates

Another very important thing that you need to look for when trying to find the right body shop is the way that they do their estimates. You want to get an itemized estimate of the job that you need done because this will give you all of the information that you need to make your decision on which shop to choose. The more you know about what a particular body shop can offer you, the easier it will be to choose the right one to use.

If you are looking for the Best Body Shops in Lubbock, then look no further than the team at Texas Body and Frame. They will be able to get the repairs that you need done in a timely manner. You can call them or visit their website.

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ABC to move Internet news network back to U.S. TVs

April 6, 2005

The U.S. television network ABC says its 24-hour news network, ABC News Now, will become a permanent 24-hour television news network starting in July. Currently, the operation is only available on the Internet as a streaming media web site.

The network started as a experiment by the Walt Disney Company-owned ABC in the summer of 2004 during the U.S. presidential campaign nomination conventions. It was mostly broadcast as a subchannel or shared channel within the bandwidth of an existing digital television (DTV) channel already owned by ABC. For instance if the local ABC affiliate is on Channel 7 with a DTV channel of 23, then ABC News Now may have been available on digital channel 23.1, sharing the same bandwidth.

Because few households in the U.S. are equipped to tune in digital over-the-air sub-channels, and virtually none are carried on local cable companies, ratings were low for the fledgling digital channel. Adding to that technical difficulty, cable carriage of the network was small. ABC News Now was delivered to only 6 of the 110 million U.S. households via cable. Most viewers of the network, 30 million at last count, watched the network via the Internet.

Citing money reasons, ABC shuttered the over-the-air ABC News Now broadcasts in January to focus on building the web-based service. But come July, ABC plans to return its news network and its 20 original programs to local TV stations. Without any commitment from national cable or satellite companies, ABC will return to digital sub-channels on local DTV transmissions.

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Sweden’s Crown Princess marries long-time boyfriend

Monday, June 21, 2010

Sweden’s first royal wedding since 1976 took place Saturday when Crown Princess Victoria, 32, married her long-time boyfriend and former personal trainer, Daniel Westling, 36. The ceremony took place at Stockholm Cathedral.

Over 1,200 guests, including many rulers, politicians, royals and other dignitaries from across the world, attended the wedding, which cost an estimated 20 million Swedish kronor. Victoria wore a wedding dress with five-metre long train designed by Pär Engsheden. She wore the same crown that her mother, Queen Silvia, wore on her wedding day 34 years previously, also on June 19. Victoria’s father, King Carl XVI Gustaf, walked Victoria down the aisle, which was deemed untraditional by many. In Sweden, the bride and groom usually walk down the aisle together, emphasising the country’s views on equality. Victoria met with Daniel half-way to the altar, where they exchanged brief kisses, and, to the sounds of the wedding march, made their way to the the silver altar. She was followed by ten bridesmaids. The couple both had tears in their eyes as they said their vows, and apart from fumbling when they exchanged rings, the ceremony went smoothly.

Following the ceremony, the couple headed a fast-paced procession through central Stockholm on a horse-drawn carriage, flanked by police and security. Up to 500,000 people are thought to have lined the streets. They then boarded the Vasaorden, the same royal barge Victoria’s parents used in their wedding, and traveled through Stockholm’s waters, accompanied by flyover of 18 fighter jets near the end of the procession. A wedding banquet followed in the in the Hall of State of the Royal Palace.

Controversy has surrounded the engagement and wedding between the Crown Princess and Westling, a “commoner”. Victoria met Westling as she was recovering from bulemia in 2002. He owned a chain of gymnasiums and was brought in to help bring Victoria back to full health. Westling was raised in a middle-class family in Ockelbo, in central Sweden. His father managed a social services centre, and his mother worked in a post office. When the relationship was made public, Westling was mocked as an outsider and the king was reportedly horrified at the thought of his daughter marrying a “commoner”, even though he did so when he married Silvia. Last year, Westling underwent transplant surgery for a congenital kidney disorder. The Swedish public have been assured that he will be able to have children and that his illness will not be passed on to his offspring.

Westling underwent years of training to prepare for his new role in the royal family, including lessons in etiquette, elocution, and multi-lingual small talk; and a makeover that saw his hair being cropped short, and his plain-looking glasses and clothes being replaced by designer-wear.

Upon marrying the Crown Princess, Westling took his wife’s ducal title and is granted the style “His Royal Highness”. He is now known as HRH Prince Daniel, Duke of Västergötland. He also has his own coat-of-arms and monogram. When Victoria assumes the throne and becomes Queen, Daniel will not become King, but assume a supportive role, similar to that of Prince Phillip, the husband of the United Kingdom’s Queen Elizabeth II.

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Nine jailed over sexual abuse in Bradford, England children’s home

Saturday, March 2, 2019

On Wednesday, nine men were jailed due to sexual abuse and rape of two teenage girls at a children’s home in Bradford, England. A tenth defendant was found not-guilty.

The nine men were prosecuted for 22 different crimes. These included rape and inciting child prostitution.

Judge Durham Hall QC said they “appear not to have shown any respect for the minimum standards of decent behaviour.” Prosecutor Kama Melly QC said the victims were “ripe and vulnerable to manipulation” and had been used “to satisfy [the accused’s] sexual desires”.

One of the victims decided to allow her name to be made public. She said she did this to show victims “there is nothing to be ashamed of”. One of the victims said the men thought they were “nothing but a toy to play with”.

Bradford Council stated, “The Safeguarding Board will look closely at this case to see if there are any lessons we can learn that could help us keep young people safer”.

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Tenders

Sore Member Or Male Organ Fracture Heres How To Know}

Sore Member or Male Organ Fracture Heres How to Know

by

John Dugan

Many men know the feeling of a sore member. It usually happens after an extended or rough intimacy session, when the manhood skin is irritated from constant friction. A sore member can also result from a variety of other causes (none of which are nearly as much fun!). This might include rigorous exercise, wearing a new style of underwear, self-pleasuring too often or even sleeping in an awkward position. Good manhood care is usually all it takes to remedy the problem of a sore member rather quickly.

Sometimes a mans organ can become so sore that it makes him wonder if he has suffered a male organ fracture. This cringe-worthy injury involves serious damage to the manhood as a result of significant trauma, usually during intimate activity. Just how clear is the difference between a sore member and a male organ fracture?

Sore member or male organ fracture?

Make no mistake: If its a male organ fracture, there will be no doubt. A sore member, no matter how bad the soreness might seem, is a leisurely walk in the park compared to a male organ fracture.

A sore member often has other signs associated with it. There might be redness and dryness, irritation, and even peeling of the manhood skin. There could be some abrasions as well. Slight swelling and some very sensitive and tender areas are also hallmarks of a sore member. In most cases, it will be evident why the soreness is there such as an adventurous evening with an enthusiastic partner.

A male organ fracture is much more serious. That seriousness is often evident immediately, as there will be a pop or crack sound accompanied by excruciating pain. Any hardness will immediately vanish, but might be replaced by significant and painful swelling. The manhood might also bend to one side or the other.

The fracture usually happens when the manhood slips out of the partner during intimate relations, and then winds up bending against the pelvic bone on the next thrust. Too much pressure and a fracture is the result.

But how can it be a fracture? After all, there are no bones in the manhood!

Heres what happens: The male organ becomes hard thanks to blood flow through two cylinders of spongy tissue known as the corporal body. The pressure of the blood in the corporal body is what keeps the member rigid during an erection. The corporal body is encased in the tunic, a tough protective outer membrane.

When a male organ fracture occurs, that pop is the tunic rupturing. As soon as that happens, the corporal body loses the ability to stay firm, which leads to a very quick loss of hardness. The manhood might bend at the area of the fracture. It might also lead to immediate and serious bruising or even some bleeding, if the fracture is severe enough.

Cures for sore member or male organ fracture

A male organ fracture is a medical emergency. When it happens, go straight to the emergency room. Remember that the pain can be severe, so it might be best to ask someone else to make that drive to the hospital blacking out behind the wheel would definitely make a bad situation much worse! In most cases, surgical repair will be necessary to help ensure proper intimate function in the future.

Obviously a sore member is a much easier situation to handle. A high-quality manhood health crme (health professionals recommend Man 1 Man Oil, which is clinically proven mild and safe for skin) can help reverse the damage and turn irritated skin into the smooth, supple skin it was meant to be. This can be achieved through powerful vitamins and nutrients, such as vitamin A, D, and E, applied directly to the skin in a strong moisturizer, such as Shea butter. Continue using the manhood health crme on a regular basis after the skin has returned to normal this will ensure that the member stays as healthy as possible.

Visit http://www.menshealthfirst.com for additional information on most common manhood health issues, tips on improving member sensitivity and what to do to maintain a healthy male organ. John Dugan is a professional writer who specializes in men’s health issues and is an ongoing contributing writer to numerous websites.

Article Source:

eArticlesOnline.com}

“Woofstock” dog festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

North America’s largest outdoor dog festival came back to Toronto last weekend for its fifth year. It ran from the 9th of June to the 10th of June at Toronto’s historical St. Lawrence Market. A Wikinews reporter was there on Sunday to report on some of the events that happened on the last day.

The “Woofstock” dog festival attracted as many as 140,000 people with their dogs. The festival had tons of accessories, sold under tents, to buy for dogs; food, toys, designer clothes, and more. About 400 vendors and exhibitors were there to promote their products, which also gave private dog companies or groups a chance to show their new products. The local SPCA and some animal rescues were under tents answering questions from visitors. While walking, all visitors could see the CN Tower and other very tall buildings.

One of the local TV stations, Citytv, was there. They hosted a live event at the show which was broadcast on TV. People came up on the stage and asked questions regarding their dogs and the host and co-host answered them.

A man, who called himself the “Chalk Master”, drew two pictures on pavement with chalk. He did it for free but donations were welcome. One was a picture of a girl’s head beside a dog’s head, and another with a wolf.

“Hello Humans. I’ve been invited here to provide your eyeball(s), with some pretty colours. I don’t get paid as I work this weekend strictly for tips… so, if you like what you see please make a DONATION. If you don’t like it simply reach into the pocket of the person next to you and give me their money. CHALK MASTER.”

A contest called “Canada’s top dog” had its own tent with a professional photographer taking pictures of dogs behind a white screen; the winning photo is to be published on the cover of “Puppy and dog basics” magazine.

Large “Gourmet” dog bones were also served from a cart and table.

Next year’s festival is expected to be bigger and better with even more attractions.

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