Gunman at Illinois campus said to have stopped taking medication

Friday, February 15, 2008 

After the death of five students in Illinois from the shooting Thursday, in which police say a former graduate student entered a university classroom at Northern Illinois University with several guns and opened fire, hitting over 20 people before taking his own life, a day later students are expressing shock.

Students today held a vigil for the 5 dead students, who died after the gunman entered the hall dressed in black and carrying a shotgun and three hand guns and began firing as students sought cover under desks. One student who escaped unharmed told reporters his life has changed as a result of what he experienced.

“I am going to be in class from now on, looking over my shoulder, because if he would have come through the back door, I would not be here right now. I would have been dead,” he said.

Police say the gunman was Steven Kazmierczak, 27, a former graduate student in Sociology at the school. Police say he purchased the shotgun and two of the handguns on Saturday, indicating he may have planned the attack in advance, but authorities have not determined a motive for the shooting.

Kazmierczak had no criminal record but had been a patient for a year at Thresholds-Mary Hill House, a psychiatric treatment center for teens. Under Illinois state law he would not have been able to purchase a weapon legally if there had been a record of arrests or mental problems, but police said he had stopped taking an unspecified medication recently and his behavior had become erratic.

Kazmierczak received a Dean’s Award from the university’s Sociology Department in 2006. He served as a member of the school’s Academic Criminal Justice Association and was considered a good student, but he was not enrolled this semester.

Thursday, police arrived on the scene of the shooting within two minutes, but they were too late. Witnesses say the gunman fired multiple shots in a matter of seconds, reloaded, fired some more and then took his own life.

In Washington Friday, President Bush reacted to the shooting. “This morning I spoke to the President of Northern Illinois University,” said Mr. Bush. “I told the President that a lot of folks today will be praying for the families of the victims and for the Northern Illinois University community. Obviously a tragic situation on that campus, and I ask our fellow citizens to offer their blessings, blessings of comfort and blessings of strength.”

This is the latest in a string of shootings at U.S. schools in recent years, the worst being the shooting at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg, Virginia 10 months ago that left 32 students and teachers dead. That incident ranks as the deadliest armed rampage in U.S. history. The shooter also killed himself in that case.

British government apologises for suggesting the Pope could create a brand of “Benedict” condoms

Sunday, April 25, 2010 

The British foreign office has apologised, after a leaked memo about a visit by Pope Benedict XVI suggested that he might launch a “Benedict” brand of condoms, bless a gay marriage, and open an abortion clinic during a papal visit to the UK.

The memo followed a brainstorming session, where members of the Papal Visit Team came up with ideas for the first papal visit to Britain in 28 years, and was sent to senior civil servants via email on the 5th of March, with the title “Policy planning ahead of the Pope’s visit”. Attached files included an “ideal visit list”, and said “Please protect; these should not be shared externally.” However, the memo was leaked, and published in the Sunday Telegraph newspaper.

The ministry apologised, saying that it was “ill-judged, naive and disrespectful,” and that the responsible member of staff had been transferred to other duties.

Other suggestions were that the pope should change policy to allow female bishops, sponsor AIDS clinics, “spend night in council flat in Bradford” and “do forward rolls with children to promote healthy living.” A further idea was to change the national anthem to a charity song “God Save the World”, performed as a duet by Queen Elizabeth II and the pope.

It also said that the Pope should acknowledge clerical sex abuse scandals; British-papal relationships are strained, following the recent resignation of an Irish bishop and other allegations of Catholic Church child sex-abuse. The pope has been criticised for not taking a firm stance. In March 2010, the Pope sent a letter to Irish Catholics, expressing sorrow for the sexual abuse by Catholic priests to minors, and promising reform.

The four-day papal visit to England and Scotland is scheduled to take place in September 2010, but a “highly-placed source in the Vatican” said, “It’s even possible the trip could be cancelled as this matter is hugely offensive.”

False cancer cure claims lead to federal charges against five US companies

Saturday, September 20, 2008 

The United States Federal Trade Commission filed charges against five companies for “deceptive advertising of bogus cancer cures”. An additional six companies also named in the federal agency’s complaint have settled and their cases will not go into litigation; however, they will be required to send letters to their former customers, and four will be forced to offer reimbursement

The five companies charged are Omega Supply, San Diego, California; Native Essence Herb Company, El Prado, New Mexico; Daniel Chapter One, Portsmouth, Rhode Island; Gemtronics, Inc., Franklin, North Carolina, and Herbs for Cancer, Surprise, Arizona. According to Lydia Parnes, director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, “There is no credible scientific evidence that any of the products marketed by these companies can prevent, cure, or treat cancer of any kind.”

Attorney Richard Jaffe who represents the firm Native Essence, one of the companies charged, protested against the FDA’s action. “In our view it’s a battle between the right to speak and the government’s censorship.” Native Essence sells herbal supplements and informs customers of herbs that have historic use for cancer and other ailments. Jaffe asserts the claim of historic use is truthful and does not necessarily mean that the herb is effective. Other items marketed by the companies named in the action include laetrile, essiac tea, mushroom extracts, and black salve. FDA representative Douglas Stearn expressed concern that people who have cancer may select these items instead of treatments that have been studied and found effective, or that unstudied herbal treatments could produce drug interactions with conventional medicine.

Before filing legal action the FTC sent over 100 warning letters and many firms dropped or changed the health claims for their products. In conjunction with the announcement the FDA announced a new website http://www.ftc.gov/curious that urges cancer patients to discuss all treatments they consider trying with their physicians, warns about the dangers of delaying or stopping cancer treatments in favour of alternative medicine, and gives advice about spotting and reporting false health claims.

Homeopathy proponents jailed for allowing daughter to die

Wednesday, September 30, 2009 

In Sydney, Australia, Thomas and Manju Sam were jailed after being convicted of manslaughter on Monday. The court found they had failed to take their ill daughter to medical appointments, and shunned the effective conventional medical treatments offered. Instead they chose homeopathic ‘alternative’ medical treatments which the medical profession generally considers to be pseudoscience. As a result, their then nine-month-old malnourished daughter Gloria died of the skin disorder eczema in 2002.

In the evidence, the Crown prosecutor, Mr Tedeschi, said that the Sams ignored repeated advice to send Gloria to a skin specialist for her eczema. The severity of her condition made her skin so thin that it was constantly breaking and becoming infected. Creams provided by medical doctors were not used; they preferred to employ homeopathic drops as a method to treat her illness. By the time they finally sought treatment, “her skin was weeping, her body malnourished and her corneas melting”, and she died from the complications and massive infection caused by the effectively untreated eczema.

In his ruling, Supreme Court Justice of New South Wales Peter Johnson stated that “Gloria suffered helplessly and unnecessarily … from a condition that was treatable.”

Thomas received a maximum sentence of eight years and is no longer allowed to practice homeopathy. Manju received a maximum sentence of five years and four months.

Homeopathy is a form of alternative medicine which uses substances that have gone through a process of serial dilution so extensive that in most cases, no molecules of the original are likely to remain. There is no convincing evidence that it has any effect greater than placebo. For it to work as homeopaths claim, basic well-tested scientific laws would have to be wrong.

Guide To Cheltenham Betting 2011

Submitted by: Daniel Stanley

The Cheltenham Festival is the apex of all horse jump racing. This 2011 marks a special event for Cheltenham as the festival celebrates its centennial year.

The entirety of the horse jump racing calendar centers to and is geared towards the festival. It comes once a year in March that for four days all the best horses from Ireland and Britain aspires to become champions in their respective categories. The Cheltenham Festival features a total of 26 races wherein 12 of which are Grade 1s.

The Cheltenham betting 2011 is all about the art high rolling with over 600 million pounds to be expected to change hands in all 27 festival races. The feature race will be the fourth race on the card each day supported with grade 1 races and handicaps. We have the best Cheltenham betting odds comparison tables for each festival race category where you can have a look out for the best price of your selection and open an account with an authorized bookmaker by registering on online Cheltenham betting sites plus you get to benefit from having up to the minute updates and most of these bookmakers offer a

Cheltenham Festival free bet.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWTi0Z6uj6U[/youtube]

Day one

Race day opening of the Cheltenham Festival is really pure excitement as the Champion Hurdle is highlighted as the feature race of the day. The event is connected with the Supreme Novices Hurdle which also opens the festival and subsequently followed by the Arkle Chase. It is truly a great day for racing enthusiasts.

Day two

The second day of the Cheltenham 2011 Festival race meeting highlights six interesting events including the Champion Bumper which is the flat race run which adopts the National Hunt rules and the showpiece event, the Queen Mother Chase. The Queen Mother Chase is often seen as on the bookmaker s most feared events as the horse favorites has the tendency to perform excellently in this event. Another event is the Coral Jump, even if the event is relatively new to the racing meeting it has already registered a strong following as it have a strong Irish winning charm to it. Meanwhile the newest addition to the Cheltenham races is the National Hunt Novice Chase.

Day Three

The third day of the race festival highlights the Ladbrokes World Hurdle which is now the fourth race on the card. The Ryanair is another of the day s highlighted event with the Pertemps as the final race of the day. There is a new race in the festival s list, the Jewson Novices Handicapped Steeple Chase which is the first race on the card.

Day Fou

This is the final day of the race meeting and it features the Cheltenham Gold Cup and most of the race enthusiast eagerly waits if Kauto Star can make a repeat of this 2009 win or if crowd favorite Denman can avenge his defeat and make a comeback from his injury. The Triumph Hurdle and the Albert Bartlett race are one of the best races in the Cheltenham 2011 Festival.

About the Author: Get the chance to learn what Cheltenham betting 2011 are all about. Visit

freebettingonline.co.uk/cheltenham-betting-2011

to get more information.

Source:

isnare.com

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Moderate Cold Hardy Traits In Date Palms And Fan Palms

By Pat Malcolm

The Canary Island Date palm, Phoenix canariensis, is one of the most sought after and spectacular palm trees seen in Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Lower Texas, and coastal South Carolina. This large, formal palm tree, looks great when grown next to Mediterranean architectural structures at resorts and hotels, such as the Cloister Hotel, at Sea Island, Georgia, where the large Canary Island Date palms are planted and grown at the entrances to the hotels, and stretching up the boulevards as a street tree along Sea Island Drive. These Canary Island Date palms produce dates, but barely palatable; are very slow growing, and the unique triangular leaf scars are very ornamental. You can buy Canary Island Date palms in large specimen sizes that are extremely expensive, but small trees are reasonably priced at most nurseries.

Other Phoenix Date Palm trees that show moderate cold hardy traits are the standard Biblical Date palms, Phoenix dactylifera; the celebrated plant of the Scriptures of the Hebrew Bible, documented thousands of years ago in Deuteronomy 8:8, ‘A land (Israel) of wheat and barley, and vines and fig trees, and pomegranates, a land of olive oil, and dates (palms).’ A huge grove of these large date palms grow outside Yuma, Az, where the date products are harvested seasonally from the trees with tall ladders, as they have been for decades past.

The Wild Date palm, Phoenix sylvestris, called the Sylvester palm, is not a fast growing date palm tree, but the blue-green foliage forms a large canopy of leaves that persists for years. The wild, large date palm tree, Phoenix sylvestris, can grow to 40 feet, but the trunk is slender, and this wild date palm will readily hybridize with other date palms growing nearby. You can buy large specimens of wild, date palm trees that are very expensive, but smaller trees can be purchased at reasonable prices. This palm tree has also been called a Toddy palm, because the sweet dates are harvested and fermented into an alcoholic drink, a Toddy.

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

The Chinese Fan Palm, Livistona chinensis, is a well adapted tree to large areas of the South. The huge leaves are fan shaped (palmate), and not fast growing, but the large heavy leaves give a weeping appearance. You can buy these Chinese fan trees cheap, but almost any nursery sells them, and they can survive cold hardy temperatures, around 20 F.

Mexican Fan Palm Tree, Washingtonia robusta, is also called the Washington Palm Tree, and grows faster than most other cold hardy Palm Trees. The fan shaped, bright green leaves are large, growing 6 feet long. Mature Washington Palm trees can grow 100 feet tall, and small Washington Palm Trees are so fast growing and inexpensive to buy, many people are planting them. Large Washington palm trees planted in front of motels at Waycross, Georgia, have survived extreme cold winters, and even when leaf canopies were frozen and black, the new shoots grew back in the Spring to renew their beauty.

The European Fan Palm, Chamaerops humilis, also called the Mediterranean Fan Palm, is a beautiful cluster palm; a favorite palm tree planted abundantly at the Cloister Hotel, at Sea Island, Georgia. The European Palm Tree forms multiple, daughter, closely connected, palm trees that were planted and grown as circular groups, although if the daughter palm trees are removed after the trunks grow to 3 – 4 feet, single trunked specimens can be grown in the landscape. The leaves are very variable in color, from green to silver. This very delicately leaved plant is controlled by a graceful, slender trunk, that is embedded with long brown fibers. In Mediterranean areas, the European Palm tree is often grown as a street tree, planted in large containers. Its slow growing character makes the European palm tree well adapted for planting in pots.

About the Author: Patrick A. Malcolm, owner of TyTy Nursery, has an M.S. degree in Biochemistry and has cultivated palm trees for over three decades.

Source: isnare.com

Permanent Link: isnare.com/?aid=77068&ca=Gardening

Looking For Dental Care Advice? Read This

Looking For Dental Care Advice? Read This

by

kim valerio

A lot of people believe that whitening toothpaste is the best choice for them. However, while whitening toothpaste is good to mix in when you need to adjust color, it is important to make sure that your toothpaste cleans deeply. Otherwise, bacteria can build up in your mouth over time.

Teeth Whitening

Prior to investing in nonprescription whitening products, speak with your dentist or oral hygienist. Often, these things weaken tooth enamel. A lot of them are safe for you to use, but it\\’s hard to tell these apart from ones that harm you. A professional can recommend the safest product for you.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mF19fLcOlTg[/youtube]

Avoid food and drink that stains your teeth while you are undergoing teeth whitening treatments. Your efforts will be ruined if you go back to your bad habits. You need to change your habits if you want to whiten your teeth, after all.

Teeth whitening products can work, but sometimes they cause more trouble than they\\’re worth. They can weaken enamel and leave your teeth in a condition where they can easily break or develop cavities. It\\’s best to talk to your dentist about teeth whitening choices which they recommend for your needs.

Do a home teeth whitening treatment. There are a few ways to do this, but the most popular way is to rinse your mouth with hydrogen peroxide for a few days. Because this can damage your enamel, you should not do it too often, but it can certainly brighten your smile without too much cost.

Dental Care

It is significant to teach kids the importance of good dental care as early as possible. Help them to understand why brushing is important and how it keeps their teeth clean. Establishing good early habits will set the foundation for your child taking care of their teeth as they get older.

Sometimes brushing and flossing is not enough. If you are still having trouble with plaque, go to the store and look for an antimicrobial mouth rinse to help you. Use it according to the directions on the package to help finish off your dental care routine. You should notice an improvement.

When someone close to you has poor dental care habits, it can be an uncomfortable topic to bring up. A great way to drop hints is to tell your friend about a great new toothpaste you are using. You can pick them up whitening strips and tell them you got a deal on buy one get one free. They will be touched that you thought of them, rather than insulted.

Get your kids excited about brushing their teeth. There are many great videos out there that can not only show your kids how to brush their teeth, but also why it is so important. Watching other kids and characters that they like displaying good dental care habits, will hopefully motivate them to do the same.

As was stated earlier, some people think that whitening toothpaste is the only type of cleansing their teeth need. You should mix in a mouthwash that attacks bacteria if you are going to use whitening toothpaste. Otherwise, gum disease can end up lurking behind those perfectly pearly white teeth.

As a 3rd party reviewer, I really like researching different businesses online and topics that are interesting to me. To find out more about dental plans by Hobble Creek Dental, go to their site at

HobbleCreekDentalCare.com

Article Source:

ArticleRich.com

Printing Letterheads The Easy Way

Submitted by: Brent Durell

Sending official correspondences require letterheads. After all, these letterheads contain your company or business logo as well as all the essential contact information. What you present through your letterheads mirror the kind of business image you want to project. Thus, making letterheads requires you to pay attention to details as well as work on an the over-all appeal of your letterheads.

At first, making letterheads may seem complicated, but once you get the technique as well as familiarize yourself with the different design concepts and principles, then you are set. You may be wondering how graphic designers and even design beginners come up with interesting design templates for letterheads. If you want to know more about the design and printing process, continue reading the following:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f69Up7fQ7Ww[/youtube]

– Get all the design elements – text and images, among others – that you need to include on your letterheads. First on the list is your company or business logo? Otherwise, you need to start making one. You do not have to work on your company logo on your lonesome. You can get the services of a graphic designer who can take care of the job. However, you also have to provide your own creative inputs, so that the designer will have an idea about what you want for your letterheads. Aside from the logo, another design element that you can include is the business slogan. Your company maybe has one which gives everyone an idea about what you can offer as well as what your business is heading. The company logo as well as the slogan may be two different components, but when you get too see them in one sitting, it tells you, immediately,, what you can get from getting their services.

– Make use of full color printing instead of monochrome. Monochrome may just turn out to be boring. If you have the budget for it, go for full color printing. There are a lot of benefits from making use of full color. For one, you can make your letterheads be visually appealing. Any color can add that needed spark and energy. Use color printing when you have to print images as this make the print results more realistic and vibrant. If you are worrying about the cost, there are promos and discounts available for printing materials, such as ink. Online, you can also avail of discount cards that work like those discount cards offered by retail shops or grocery stores. On the dates the discount cards are valid, make your purchase and you will enjoy price cuts.

– Lay out your letterheads in such a way that you can promote your logo and make your contact information visible. For design and editing, you can make use of design software that is available on your personal computer. If you do not have one, you can install Adobe or Corel applications. Software plug ins may also be needed, so download these from the internet. Design beginners may want to make use of Microsoft Publisher which is a user-friendly computer application. You can easily create letterheads without being burdened by different, seemingly-complicated steps. If you wish to make your letterheads professional though, you can always get the services of a graphic designer. Take time brainstorming with your designer, so that the two of you can come up with an interesting take on letterheads.

About the Author: Learn how to create letterheads –

printplace.com/printing/letterhead-printing.aspx

Source:

isnare.com

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