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Sand Cat (Felis Margarita)

Two makers came up with a novel way to keep their rescue hens warm: chicken sweaters!
Nicola Congdon, 25, and her mother, Ann Congdon, from Cornwall, England, knit their rescued battery hens woolly sweaters to keep them warm this winter. (Photo: SWNS)

Jaguarundi

Flat-headed Cat (Felis Planiceps)

Caracal (Caracal Caracal)

Hi Bugs, long time no read!

Kon asa ka na mang bantawan sa kalibotan naglipay-lipay, dalikyat diri sa atoa aron mag-EB ta!

Time will tell

The AEC is set to become fully functional December 31.

"Time will tell if today's signing ceremony is just more style over substance,” Curtis Chin, a former U.S. ambassador to the Asian Development Bank told VOA. “But come January 1, the ASEAN Community will be much less than today’s soaring rhetoric but certainly much more than ever envisioned decades past.”

Some in the region predict implementation of the AEC will excessively benefit corporate interests, not the majority of the region's population.

“As ASEAN moves towards regional economic integration, unequal and unsustainable economic growth will result in worsening poverty, inequalities of wealth, resources, power and opportunities between countries, between the rich and the poor and between men and women,” warned the ASEAN Civil Society Conference and ASEAN Peoples' Forum in a joint statement.

Signing just a start

But analysts say much work remains for the most important pillar - the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) - to achieve its primary goal of allowing freer movement of skilled workers, trade and capital for the region’s more than 600 million people â€" more populous than North America or the European Union.

Integrating ASEAN economies, intended to help the region compete with giants China and India, would create the world’s seventh-largest single market.

Compared to the European Union, the AEC is culturally and politically more diverse with various systems of government including communism (Laos and Vietnam), a military junta (Thailand), authoritarian (Cambodia), quasi-civilian (Myanmar) and a monarchy (Brunei).

Corruption

In a number of the ASEAN states corruption is considered endemic, a problem seen as hampering the economic integration process.

“I did raise with Prime Minister Najib â€" as I have with many of the leaders here in Southeast Asia, but and also many of the leaders in Africa, in Latin American and everywhere we go - the importance of transparency, accountability, the importance of rooting out corruption - all of which are impediments to development, all of which hold countries back,” President Barack Obama told reporters in Kuala Lumpur Sunday.

A new ASEAN-U.S. Strategic Partnership announced during the summits in Malaysia outlines five priority areas of engagement including expanding economic cooperation.

Steve Herman
Last updated on: November 22, 2015 8:37 PM


KUALA LUMPURâ€"Leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Sunday signed a declaration establishing a formal economic, political, security and socio-cultural community.

“Our ASEAN way has guided us and will continue to be our compass as we seek to realize a politically cohesive, economically integrated, socially responsible and a truly people-oriented, people-centered rules-based ASEAN,” said summit host, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, at the signing ceremony, which was witnessed by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

Najib hailed the establishment of the ASEAN Community “as a landmark achievement” more than a dozen years after the concept was first proposed.

Many tariff barriers have already been eliminated among ASEAN states although many politically sensitive sectors remain protected, such as agriculture, auto production and steel.

"Now we have to assure freer movements and removal of barriers that hinder growth and investment," Najib added.

An artist puts finishing touches on an effigy of “Pnoycchio” that they will be using in a march rally on Mendiola bridge in protest against the unresolved Maguindanao Massacre on November 23, 2009, that killed 58 people including 32 journalists. JAIL JACINTO/NorthboundPH

@inquirerdotnet
12:51 AM November 23rd, 2015


KUALA LUMPURâ€"US President Barack Obama on Sunday said he would host the leaders of 10 Southeast Asian nations next year as he rejected accusations that the Middle East turmoil was distracting him from focusing on Asia.

Obama said he had invited leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to the United States, insisting that good ties with Asian nations were “absolutely critical” to US security.

“I’m pleased they accepted and I look forward to continuing our work,” he said, speaking in Kuala Lumpur at the end of a marathon week of diplomacy that has taken in summits in Turkey, the Philippines and Malaysia.

Obama said his Asia tour, which had been initially overshadowed by terrorist attacks in France, Lebanon and Mali, was neither distracted by nor “somehow disconnected from pressing global events.”

“This region is not a distraction from the world’s central challenges but is critical to security, prosperity and human dignity around the world,” he said.

America’s self-styled “Pacific president,” Obama has been frustrated to see his stops in Malaysia and the Philippinesâ€" designed to highlight his stated refocus on Asiaâ€"overshadowed once again.

The invitation to Asean leaders comes after a week that has seen the United States and China repeatedly trade barbs over the tense maritime standoff in the South China Sea, as they jostle for influence in the rapidly developing Southeast Asian region. AFP

AFP
8 hours ago


The Hague (AFP) - An international tribunal on Tuesday began hearing a case brought by the Philippines over disputed islands in the South China Sea, in an increasingly bitter row with China.

Manila has called for the tribunal, which is more than a century old, to rule on the dispute, appealing to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea, putting it in conflict with several neighbours, and is a party to the Convention but has rejected the court's jurisdiction on the issue.

"Our position is clear: we will not participate to or accept the arbitration," foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a regular briefing earlier Tuesday.

The hearing, expected to last until November 30, is being held behind closed doors. But Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam are allowed to have observers present.

Beijing has never precisely defined its claims to the strategic waterway, through which about a third of all the world's traded oil passes.

The waters -- claimed in part by Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Brunei -- have become the stage for a tussle for dominance between Beijing and Washington, the world's two largest economic and military powers.

Following a stand-off between Chinese ships and the weak Philippine Navy in 2012, China took control of a rich fishing ground called Scarborough Shoal that is within the Philippines' claimed exclusive economic zone.

Beijing has in recent years rapidly built artificial islands, which neighbours fear will be used as military outposts.

Manila hopes that a ruling in its favour from the court, which was established in 1899, could put pressure on Beijing to rein in its territorial ambitions.

In a July hearing in The Hague, Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario warned the very integrity of UN maritime laws was at stake.

China's behaviour had become increasingly "aggressive" and negotiations had proved futile, del Rosario said.

Subay sa maong istorya, kagahapon sa udto gisulayan og kontak sa Sun.Star SuperBalita ang tagdumala sa punerarya pinaagi sa telepono, ug gikumpirma ang maong hitabo sa empleyado, kinsa naghangyo nga di isuwat ang pangalan.

Gisaysay niini nga Septyembre 27 miabot si Nanay Zosima sa punerarya diin gi-serbisyonan kini subay sa mando sa kabanay nga nagdala niini.

"Naa si Nanay Zosima diri sa non-air namo nga room. Wala na gyud siya giduaw, magduha na ka bulan karong November 27. Mas maayong anhion ninyo para makasaksi mo sa sitwasyon," sulti sa nakatubag sa telepono.

Kagahapon sab sa buntag, naadtoan ang haya ni Nanay Zosima sa TV5-Davao News team aron mokuha og istorya, ug naabtan ang duha ka naglamay apan wa kini miatubang sa news team.

Dugang nasayran sa SuperBalita nga mokabat na sa P200-mil ang bayrunon sa punerarya, apan nagdumili paghatag ang nakatubag sa telepono sa maong impormasyon sanglit kabanay lamang ang makapangutana niini.

Mga komento sa netizen pulos nanawagan nga mapalubong si Nanay Zosima sa dunay mga malumong kasingkasing nga katawhan nga nakabasa sa mga komento sa shares sa Facabook.


Gipatik sa mantalaang SuperBalita Davao Nobiembre 25, 2015.

Didto niya nadiskubrehan ang istorya nga mipaluyo niini, human nanugilon ang iyang higala nga gikan mipalit og sigarilyo sa tindahan gawas sa punerarya.

Nanugilon dayon ang barkada ni Rollin nga subay sa gisaysay sa tindera, magduha na ka bulan si Nanay Zosima nga gihaya ug natingala sila nga wala na ginaduaw sa iyang mga kabanay.

Gisaysay sab sa tindera nga gihatod ang patay nga lawas ni Nanay Zosima sa iyang anak sa maong punerarya diin sa unang haya daghan pa ang mga nagbilar apan miabot ang pipila ka adlaw, wala nay mibisita tungod naglagot ang ubang kabanay sa usa sa iyang mga anak.

Giingon nga ang usa sa mga anak ni Nanay Zosima nga naa sa abroad nagpadala og kuwarta sa iyang igsuon diri sa Davao City aron mapahiluna ang haya ug mapalubong ang ilang inahan, apan giingong gisugal ang kuwarta sa casino sa pamasin nga madoble kini.

"Sabi ng tindera, nung September pa siya dinala ng kanyang anak d'yan. Si nanay daw ay may anak sa abroad. Nagpadala daw ng pera ang anak ni Nanay sa kapatid n'ya dito para maasikaso ang libing ng kanilang nanay ngunit sinugal daw sa casino ang perang pinadala dahil nagbabasakaling madoble ata ang pera, pero sa kasamaang palad natalo raw," tipik sa post ni Rollin sa iyang Facebook account.

Gisaysay pa sa post nga human nga wa na'y miduaw sa haya ni Nanay Zosima gikan sa mahalon nga kuwarto, gibalhin kini sa tagdumala sa punerarya sa non-aircon nga lawak.

Nasayran pa nga ang mga bulak sa ubang gipanghaya ginabutang nalang sab didto sa haya ni Nanay gumikan naluoy ang mga tagtungod sa kauban niining gihaya sa mga mahalong mga kuwarto.

"Simula no'n, hindi na raw binalikan si Nanay ng kanyang anak. Nung una, sa magandang kuwarto raw nakalagak si Nanay, pero mga ilang linggo, inilipat siya sa dulo na hindi na ginagamit na room at lahat ng mga lantang bulaklak sa iba't ibang room doon nilalagay," sumpay sa post ni Rollin.

Ni JEEPY P. COMPIO



DAVAO. Kini ang lungon sa 83-anyos nga lola kinsa giingong duha na ka bulan nga gihaya sa usa ka punerarya sa dakbayan sa Davao tungod wa na gibalik sa iyang mga kabanay human ang kuwarta nga gipadala sa anak gikan sa abroad gipildi sa sugal sa lain niyang anak. (Hulagway gikan sa Facebook)


USA sa mga nag-trending karon sa Facebook mao ang usa ka 83-anyos nga lola kinsa duha ka bulan na nga gihaya sud sa usa ka punerarya sa dalang Camus, Barangay 7-A Poblacion, siyudad sa Davao.

Sa Facebook post sa netizen nga si Rollin (bansagon gitago sa SuperBalita), makita ang hulagway ni Nanay Zosima (bansagon gitago), taga Buhangin, Davao City, ibabaw sa iyang lungon, diin makita sab ang mga pangalan sa iyang mga kabanay nga nakasuwat.

Siyam palang ka oras ang maong post sukad sa pagsuwat ning balita, miani na og 129 likes ug dunay 182 shares, walay labot niini ang mga comments ug likes sa mga Facebook account nga gi-share-ran sa maong post.

Gisaysay ni Rollin ang iyang kasinatian dihang naglamay sab siya namatay niya nga higala sa tapad niini nga kuwarto.

Natahap siya tungod sa halos tibuok gabii walay bisan usa nga naglamay sa haya ni Nanay Zosima.

Ang biktima gidali sa pagdala sa iyang mga kabanay sa tambalanan sa lungsod apan gideklarar kini sa mga doktor nga patay na sa paghiabot niini.

“Wala gyud siya maka-survive Sir, kay maayo man gud nga pagkahabwa ang iyang tinai. Gipugos intawon dihang gidala sa tambalanan,” dugang ni PO2 Gesim.

Gipangita nila si Tangpos hangtud kagahapon sa buntag apan wala na kini sa iyang panimalay nga gibiyaan niini nga nakakandado.

Matod sa kabanay sa biktima ug mga higala nga komedyante kaayo ang maestro hinungdan nga nagtuo sila nga wala makadawat ang suspek sa pangu­medya niini.

Si Tangpos giingong hilumon nga pagkatawo.

Wala usab magkaaway ug magkalalis ang biktima ug ang suspek kay nag-uban silag inom.

“Basin daw sa komedya sa biktima nasuko ang suspetsado pero wala gyud nila maestablisar giunsa sa pagkomedya niini nga nasakit man siya sa pagmaayo,” matud ni PO2 Gesim.


Gipatik sa mantalaang SuperBalita Cebu Nobiembre 02, 2015.

Diin kaha nakakita og pisi si Ondoy...

Pakapin na man tingali ni ni Ms. Kris. Naglalis, di nag-atubangay, lisod galing lubton pagdunggab...

Bay Cat (Catopuma Badia)

Andean Cat (Leopardus Jacobita)

Na hala, ako ang orange tabbby. Dia ra ka, ay, a black and white kitty...

Bitaw, Inday's tender look is barks away...

He he, posing pa...

Chinese Mountain Cat (Felis Bieti)

Canadian Lynx (Lynx Canadensis)

Kodkod (Leopardus Guigna)

Margay Cat (Leopardus Wiedii)

http://thechive.com/



Pallas Cat (Otocolobus Manul)

He he, mora mag naghinol sa kang Inday...

Ni Decemay Padilla, Rowena Capistrano ug Lorjerist Llanto (Banat) | Updated November 24, 2015 - 12:00am


CEBU, Philippines â€" Pormal na nga midangop sa Department of Health (DOH)-7 ang 23-anyos nga inahan, kansang pantog naapil pagkahiwa atol sa iyang Caesarian Section operation sa pagpanganak niini sa Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC)) niadtong Nobiyembre 6.

Sayo niini, una nang mikatap sa Facebook Account sa usa ka Red Tamura ang video diin gisaway ang VSMMC tungod sa nahitabo sa iyang ig-agaw nga daw sama sa ‘gipraktisan’ lang sa doktor nga niopera niini.

Kagahapong adlawa, ang reklamante nga si Jermelyn Bactismo, uban sa iyang kapuyo nga si Leonard Parantar, taga Barangay Pitalo, Lungsod sa San Fernando miduso sa ilang letter of complaint ngadto sa buhatan sa DOH-7. Ang duha mipasangil sa mga doktor sa VSMMC nga wala magtagad kang Bactismo human sa operasyon niini.

Sila pa hinuoy buot pagastuhon sa maong doktor alang sa pagpatan-aw sa nahiwa niyang pantog ngadto sa pribadong tambalanan nga wala man silay kwarta. Gusto ni Bactismo nga manubag ang doktor sa obligasyon niini kaniya hangtud nga siya maayo.

Ang duha gitabangan ni 1st District Congressman Gerard Anthony ‘Samsam’ Gullas nga maoy miabaga sa iyang pagpa-laboratory sama sa cystogram ngadto sa Chong Hua Hospital. Ang maong proseso mao ang pagtino kun wala na bay leak sa iyang pantog nga nagisian sa doktor nga nag-opera kaniya.

Hangtud sa pagsang-at nila sa reklamo, wala pa gihapon motubag ang VSMMC sa ilang reklamo. Ang duha mipadayag nga ilang ipadayon ang ilang reklamo tungod sa ilang pagpasagad sa ilang trabaho nga nakahatag kanila karon og grabeng kahasol ug kasakit. â€" /EIM) (BANAT NEWS)

Argentine sovereign debt rose on Monday on news of his election, with the 2033 dollar discount bond hitting its highest level since April 2007 US040114GL81=R. While Argentina's stock market was not yet open for business, the Frankfurt-listed American Depository Receipt of Argentina's Grupo Financiero Galicia (GGALyb.F) jumped 6.28 percent.

Macri defeated leftist ruling party candidate Daniel Scioli as voters punished outgoing President Cristina Fernandez for her handling of the economy and her abrasive style of leadership.

The 56 year old faces a number of economic challenges. Slow growth is driven by unsustainable spending, inflation is at well above 20 percent and capital controls have backfired to leave foreign reserves at nine-year lows.

The country is also mired in a messy debt default that is blocking access to global credit markets.

Macri, who served two terms as mayor of Buenos Aires, has promised to dismantle a web of currency controls and trade restrictions that have deterred investors and hobbled growth.

Policy changes such as eliminating hefty taxes on grains exports and revamping economic data long viewed as manipulated by Fernandez's government will be quick hits to underscore his intent to bring change.

But elsewhere he will have to move carefully.

http://www.reuters.com/
Mon Nov 23, 2015 8:10am EST
BUENOS AIRES | BY RICHARD LOUGH

Conservative challenger Mauricio Macri turned Argentine politics on its head on Sunday, kicking the ruling Peronist movement out of power with a promise to liberalize the ailing economy and end a culture of divisive politics.

Macri, the son of an Italian-born construction magnate, won the election by tapping into frustration over anemic growth, high inflation and corruption, and will become only the third non-Peronist leader since the end of military rule in 1983.

The other two failed to finish their terms, however, a reminder of the difficulties that Peronist labor unions, state governors and opponents in Congress could cause Macri if he is unable to get the economy growing quickly.

After an unpredictable campaign that pitted poorer Argentines grateful for generous welfare programs against others exasperated with state shackles on the economy, Macri will need to deliver on pro-business reforms without hurting the poor.

"We've been saying from Tierra del Fuego in the south to Jujuy in the north that we have to build an Argentina with zero poverty, and that's what we're going to do together," Macri told his jubilant supporters on Sunday night.

The interview was filmed three weeks ago, before the terror attacks in Paris that killed 130 people, Sky said.

"We're seeing a classic case of not dealing with the problem, because, I mean, it sounds awful to say, but some of us were saying 20 years ago that if we didn't tackle these issues, you would see ever greater conflict over scarce resources and ever greater difficulties over drought, and the accumulating effect of climate change, which means that people have to move," the prince told the broadcaster.

"And, in fact, there's very good evidence indeed that one of the major reasons for this horror in Syria, funnily enough, was a drought that lasted for about five or six years, which meant that huge numbers of people in the end had to leave the land."

Asked if there is a link between climate change, conflict and terrorism, he said: "It's only in the last few years that the Pentagon has actually started to pay attention to this. I mean, it has a huge impact on what is happening."

He also said he doubted whether the 118 leaders attending the Paris talks will be able to reach a deal to limit greenhouse gas emissions.

"There's been so many of these conferences that have happened over the years and I think I go back quite a long way on all this," he said.

At least 250,000 people have been killed and more than 4 million refugees have been forced to flee Syria â€" according to the UN â€" since the civil war started in 2011.

Jane Onyanga-Omara, USA TODAY 7:41 a.m. EST November 23, 2015
AFP 546413604 I RYE AUS WE





LONDON â€" Britain's Prince Charles has said that climate change could be one of the causes of the civil war in Syria, terrorism and Europe's refugee crisis.

Charles, a known environmental campaigner, is scheduled to give a keynote speech at the opening of the United Nations conference on climate change in Paris next week.

In an interview with Sky News due to be aired Monday, the heir to the British throne said he was concerned that disaster would follow if issues such as global warming are not addressed more urgently.

Your dream house

Advantages

1. Nothing says "I've made it" more definitively than the idea of having your own house. In the Philippines where about half of the people do not own property, having a place to call your own is no small feat.

2. Unless a major disaster strikes, your house will probably stay with you for good. Not just that, you can hand it over to your kids and their future children, turning the place into tangible family heritage.

3. Unlike cars, the price of a house appreciates over time. A property you bought today can be valued over three times more over the years, so selling it means cashing in on something way, way bigger than what you bought before. For example, a unit at Deca Homes Villa Leyson in Cebu cost P180,000 in 1998. Seventeen years later, it now has a fair value of P750,000, a 317-percent jump.

Disadvantages

What can go wrong when you decide to buy a house? We can't seem to think of anything big enough to weigh more than the potential benefits. However, it's important to choose a trustworthy developer that will give you the bang for your buck, and even make you richer in the future.

Your dream car

Advantages

1. Given the horrendous state of public transport in the Philippines, having your own car gives you the advantage of moving from one place to another when you need to, minus the hassle of lining up and getting stressed out in traffic.

2. Having your own car eliminates logistical problems whenever traveling in groups. There's no more need to meet up in a different place and commute together to your destination when you can just pick up friends or family and go straight to where you're heading.

3. A car is a mobile status symbol, a statement that you're serious about your money and you've made it far enough to invest in big things. Also, it's probably a lot easier trying to look "cool" when you have your own car, right... ?

Disadvantages

1. Along with a new car comes a long list of things you need to spend for. Aside from the hefty car insurance, there are also the occasional trips to the casa for maintenance and repairs. It's enticing to pimp your ride with accessories, but they also come at a price.

2. Unless you have your own driver and the patience to get stuck in traffic, maneuvering on your own on the busy streets could be a taxing ordeal.

3. The price of a car depreciates over time, and as the vehicle grows old it becomes riddled with defects. If you're planning to sell your car for another one, it will take an insane buyer to get it from you at a higher price.

(philstar.com) | Updated November 23, 2015 - 3:40pm





It's no easy decision when you don't want to put your hard-earned money to waste. Which one then is worth investing more than the other?


MANILA, Philippines â€" When deciding between apples and oranges, Ronaldo and Messi, The Beatles and the Beach Boys, it's hard to look for the clincher when you're caught between two good and seemingly equal things.

If you're a hardworking young professional or a millennial who's no stranger to indecision, there will come a time when you will reap the fruits of your hard work and decide where to put your money. Deciding between a pair of shoes and a pair of jeans is a little easy when you can buy both, but what if it's as big as choosing between a car and your own house?

It's no easy decision when you don't want to put your hard-earned money to waste, but let's do away with the analysis paralysis and find out which one is worth investing more than the other.

Ni KRIS C. SIALANA


MAAYONG pagkataop sa kutsilyo sa sampot sa usa ka lalaki human giluba sa suspetsado nga kaila ra usab niini niadtong Biyernes sa hapon sa Baloy, Tablon, sa dakbayan sa Cagayan de Oro.

Talandugon si Ronnie Torayna, 35, ulitawo nga lumulupyo sa susama nga dapit.

Sa impormasyon gikan sa tambalanan diin nadala ang biktima gibutyag sa igsuon niini nga igo lang nga nag-uban kini ngadto sa suspetsado nga naila nga si Patring, 60, sa dump truck nga naghakot og balas.

Giingong kalit lang miduol ang suspetsado kinsa lango sa ilimnong makahubog ug nagkalalis ang duruha sa wala masayri nga rason nga misangpot gayud sa pagpangdunggab.

Nakaangkon og samad dinunggaban ang biktima diha mismo sa iyang sampot hinungdan nga kritikal ang kahimtang niini.

Sa pagsulat niini nga balita nagpabilin pa nga gawasnon ang suspetsado samtang ang biktima giobserbahan pa usab sulod sa Northern Mindanao Medical Center, Cagayan de Oro.


Gipatik sa mantalaang SuperBalita Cagayan de Oro Nobiembre 22, 2015.

He he...

Dili baya ni siya super batig nawong. Ang iyang pagkapangag maoy nagdala og hilas...

3. Determine if you need to have a difficult conversation.

And now, it’s time to confront the dark side of “busy.” As we all know, “being busy” can be a method by which we disengage from a relationship we no longer want to have. The kids call it “ghosting” â€" distancing yourself from a relationship without ever explaining why. If you’re using “busy” in this way, it’s worth determining if you need to have that difficult conversation with the person you’re ghosting. While it’s always uncomfortable to “break up” with a friend, some friendships deserve this attention. In some cases, it’ll cause great sadness to both parties to “busy” a friendship to death.

2. Set a time frame.

If you’re busy because of an especially difficult crunch time either at work or at home, it’s helpful to make your friends aware of just how long this “busy” time will last. For example, if you know your project will wrap up in a month and your schedule will open up soon after, communicate your desire to reconnect with everyone then. Even if that month turns into two, your friends will appreciate that you expressed the desire to be together again as soon as possible.

Three better options:

All that being said, just because “busy” is not a word that generates closeness, that doesn’t mean you can’t communicate the same thing in a way that does. Here are some tips for telling your friends you just can’t right now, without hurting their feelings:

1. Be more specific

There’s an easy way to eliminate the vagueness of “busy” and that’s telling friends specifically what you’re busy doing. Of course, this takes more of your time and effort â€" something that can be challenging when you’re already really swamped. But it’s worth doing because the difference in how the message is received is significant.

Let’s say you invite a friend to your birthday party and she writes back: “I’d love to but I’m really busy!” But what if she had written: “I’d love to but Jack has a karate competition that evening and he specifically asked me to watch him this time. Have some champagne for me, though!”

Feel the difference? The second message explains your friend’s reasoning, gives context, and communicates that she’s still invested in your happiness. The first message, frankly, is a blow-off.

3. It means “not right now.”

Often, “busy” simply means that you have higher priorities right now than seeing friends â€" which is totally fine. You may be caring for a child or launching a new product; there are lots of legitimate reasons why friendships fall down one’s list of priorities. The issue is that “being busy” doesn’t communicate any of that.

Saying “not right now” when someone tries to engage with you is a relationship killer because it fosters a feeling of rejection. “Busy” is the friendship equivalent of “not right now.” It lacks a sense of caring about the other person and fosters distance as a result.

2. It’s open to (negative) interpretation.

The vague nature of “I’m really busy” leaves the real reason why you’re being unavailable to a friend open to interpretation. While many people will accept “being busy” as enough of a reason for not hanging out the first few times you use it, eventually friends will see it as a veil over a more sinister reason for staying away: Maybe you don’t like them anymore and are too afraid to say it.

In other words, “busy” allows others to fill in the blank of your true intentions. Often, they will fill that blank with a negative assumption. In a worst-case scenario, friends may feel like your “busy” is a way of blowing them off without having to state a reason for doing so.

Let’s discuss the top three reasons it’s time to be done with “busy”… and three ways to replace it with something better.

1. Everyone is busy.

These days, saying you’re busy is basically like saying you’re alive.

Being busy may once have been an indicator of importance; it may once have implied that many people and projects relied on you. Now, it’s a filler word that can be applied to any situation: You could be 10 years into your job and be “busy.” You could be between jobs and be “busy.” You could be vacationing and be “busy.” The word itself no longer relates to any specific, making it basically meaningless â€" and meaningless language is a problem for relationships because it doesn’t help other people understand what, specifically, you’re going through. It actually impedes mutual understanding.

http://news.yahoo.com/
November 21, 2015 8:03 AM


By Kira Asatryan


There’s this word that you probably use all the time. It’s a seemingly harmless word â€" close to meaningless, really â€" but it’s slowly, subversively tainting your relationships.

Look back over any recent texts and emails you’ve sent to friends. If they look something like this, you’re caught in this word’s trap:

“I’d love to hang out! But I’m really busy.”
“Sorry I didn’t get back to you earlier! I’ve been so busy.”
“What’s going on with me? Just busy as usual!”

You guessed it. The single-word saboteur is BUSY.

It’s stealthily driving your friends away, and it’s time to eliminate it from your social vocabulary.

To be clear, there’s nothing wrong with actually being busy: People can certainly have many obligations and still maintain great relationships. And it’s not being busy that drives people away; it’s the word itself.

Ni Gabriel Bonjoc, EIM (Banat) | Updated November 22, 2015 - 12:00am


CEBU, Philippines â€" Nisudlot ang mata sa usa ka drayber sa electronic tricycle human kini gipusil sa wa mailhing mamumuno diha sa Burgos St., Barangay Dumlog, siyudad sa Talisay niadtong Biyernes sa buntag.

Naila ang biktima nga si Melanio Junio, 57,  taga sitio Paglaum, Barangay Dumlog.

Matud pa ni Police Officer 3 Jason Del Campo sa Talisay City Police nga nahinabi sa Banat News, gikan nipalit og numero sa lotto ang biktima ug nagbarugbarog kini sa nahisgutang lugar samtang naghuwat og pasahero.

Apan sa kalit lang adunay duha ka mga wala mailhing tawo nga nagsakay sa usa ka motorsiklo ang nangabot sa lugar ug ang backrider nikanaog ug gilipot ang biktima dayon pusil tumong sa luyo sa ulo niini.

Ang bala nilapos sa iyang agtang hinungdan nga nisudlot ang mata niini ug nakaingon sa iyang pagkahagba.

Gidala ang biktima sa Talisay City District Hospital apan nakabsan sa iyang kinabuhi. Ang mga mamumuno yano nga nisibat palayo sa dapit.

Si Del Campo nagkanayon nga ang kabanay sa biktima ang nihulagway sa namatay nga buotan ug way kontra sa ilang dapit hinungdan sa ilang kahibulong kun nganong kini gipusil.

Apan ang kapolisan mohimo og imbestigasyon kabahin sa impormasyon gikan sa mga kaubang drayber sa e-trike nga matud pa kusog kaayong mangilog og pasahero ang namatay.  Sigun pa nila nga hilig kining mosagol aron makakuha og pasahero ug mas barato kini maningil og plete.  (BANAT NEWS)

BC/DR planning for EMPs

EMP attacks are not likely enough for the enterprise to do anything about them, and if the attacks were more likely, the level of preparation required is so far beyond the financial scope of the enterprise that the investment is impractical.

If successful, the very first attack would disable servers, cause wide spread data loss and the inability to transact business through technology, crippling an economy, says Fleming. “It would also take out water supply, utilities, financial trading floors and banks, and send a country back into the Dark Ages in a matter of an hour,” says Fleming.

“It’s my opinion that this replaces nuclear attacks. It has wider coverage, it is much more effective, and it doesn’t hurt people otherwise,” says Fleming. A foreign actor using an EMP attack could invade the country soon after without the fear of nuclear radiation.

The best defense is a good offense mingled with hope. The U.S. continues to develop good offensive and defensive measures such as its own EMP weapons to defend our nation and its assets, including enterprise assets. NORAD would be aware of a large scale attack in time to act, according to Livingston.

Since the enterprise can’t really prepare for an EMP attack, the only additional comfort is the hope that history is a good indicator of the likelihood (or lack thereof) of an actual large scale EMP attack. Large scale EMP attacks haven’t happened yet. And as the potential for nuclear war is more a matter of deterrents and a balance of power than of actualities, hopefully large scale EMP attacks will prove to be no more than the same.

EMP threats to the enterprise

As the world economy becomes increasingly dependent on electricity, circuit boards, computer circuit boards, and other electronically powered devices, services, and infrastructure, the Chinese research and development of EMP attack capabilities is directed as a front line item toward disabling the first line of defense of an opponent, according to Fleming.

The effect would be that the enterprise would be immediately shutdown and become inoperable. “Anything to do with circuit boards and electronic technology would be blown out unless it is hardened,” says Fleming. Hardened electronics require features such as heavy wiring and additional capacitors to withstand the EMPs and absorb the energy enough to at least come back up after the attack. Since to date EMP attacks have been highly unlikely, such expensive electronics hardening is extremely uncommon even though the impact of an EMP attack would be severe.

The nation’s defenses are secure. NORAD has taken preventive measures to protect its technology. “The measurements at the Nevada Test Site during the last of the surface nuclear tests and the subsequent work to protect the NORAD Cheyenne mountain site ensures that EMP effects will not disable NORAD,” says Peter M. Livingston, president, The Alembic Group and an expert in early U.S. government EMP technology experiments.

If successful, the very first attack would disable servers, cause wide spread data loss and the inability to transact business through technology, crippling an economy. It would take out the water supply, utilities, financial trading floors and banks, and send a country back into the Dark Ages in a matter of an hour.

NORAD’s preparation doesn’t do anything to directly shield the enterprise in the event of a successful EMP attack. “There’s not much the enterprise can do because there will always be weak links in the system,” says Fleming. A large scale EMP attack would disable the public electric utilities and infrastructure so that the enterprise would lose power in addition to the damage those EMPs would directly inflict on an organization.

China’s advancements are in improved large-scale EMP attacks using long-range missiles such as their new DF41 mobile ICBM launchers, which have longer range than their DF31s, according to a report from The Blaze.

The U.S. won’t be left behind in EMP deployments. “EMP attacks have become more defined and developed. The technology is now more portable. It has become public information that the U.S. Air Force has enabled the technology on a drone. They can actually surgically target a building with it,” says Fleming. The intent is taking out electronics for the entire building.

According to reports carried by several news outlets including The Daily Mail, the U.S. Air Force and Boeing have developed a missile-based microwave EMP weapon that is mounted on and fired from drones. The reports confirm that the U.S. Air Force has the technology in its “tactical air force” today.

A report from the Motley Fool confirms the involvement of Raytheon in creating the actual EMP technology and Lockheed-Martin as the probable purveyor of the missile technology, i.e., the JASSM-ER missile that will carry the EMP payload.

Credit: Tony Webster

           
By David Geer
CSO | Nov 17, 2015 3:10 AM PT


Electromagnetic Pulse are back in the news as potential threats to the U.S. and other nations as the U.S. and China have announced significant progress in advancing the state of the art of these attacks. Nations, enterprises, and individual buildings and installations, which count on electric power and everything that it enables are at risk of being devastated by EMPs.

According to EMP Cover, EMP attacks move through the air in a manner similar to radio waves with electronics acting as antennas, receiving the waves; the EMP attacks overwhelm the electronics with up to 50K volts, burning them out. EMP attacks have historically been possible only as a bi-product of a nuclear attack or an intended cause of a large scale missile attack approximately 250 miles above the Earth’s atmosphere, according to T. Casey Fleming, CEO, BLACKOPS Partners, a special operations firm teaming America’s top experts from the critical disciplines required in defending U.S. companies against economic espionage.

14 hours ago



Newly crowned "Mr Ugly" Zimbabwe, Maison Sere, poses in Harare on November 20, 2015 (AFP Photo/Jekesai Njikizana)


Harare (AFP) - A 42-year-old unemployed man was crowned Zimbabwe's ugliest man at a pub pageant in Harare -- but the contest turned ugly when the runner-up accused judges of bias.

Maison Sere, who was missing several teeth and dressed in torn overalls, beat off five other contestants for the $500 Mr Ugly prize -- a large sum in a country facing massive unemploment.

"I want to thank God for winning this title, last time I came fourth. I just want to thank the judges for recognising me as the winner," Sere told journalists during a night of festivities Friday attended by 200 revellers.

But William Masvinu, a three-time Mr Ugly winner who walked off with a $100 second prize this year, cried foul.

"The judges were not fair, the organisers must look for new judges to start the contest afresh. I did not lose today," Masvinu said.

Show organiser David Machowa said he created the pageant in 2012 to celebrate "beauty in ugliness".

"The show last night was very successful, and I still have plans to host Mr Ugly world," he said.

Agoi dia na, gikumkom ni Inday...

For his part, Wilson lent The Birth of a Nation his approval by screening it at the White House and reportedly telling Griffith that it could "teach history with lightning."

Elsewhere in the book, Wilson attacked Reconstruction on the grounds that "the dominance of an ignorant and inferior race was justly dreaded." He was strongly against black suffrage: "It was a menace to society itself that the negroes should thus of a sudden be set free and left without tutelage or restraint." He praised those freed slaves who "stayed very quietly by their old masters and gave no trouble" but bemoaned that they were the exception, the being "vagrants, looking for pleasure and gratuitous fortune" who inevitably "turned thieves or importunate beggars. The tasks of ordinary labor stood untouched; the idlers grew insolent; dangerous nights went anxiously by, for fear of riot and incendiary fire."

At the end of Reconstruction, "Negro rule under unscrupulous adventurers had been finally put an end to in the South, and the natural, inevitable ascendancy of the whites, the responsible class, established." In a 1881 article that went unpublished, Wilson defended the South's suppression of black voters, saying that they were being denied the vote not because their skin was dark but because their minds were dark (yes, really).

Wilson's racism wasn't the matter of a few unfortunate remarks here or there. It was a core part of his political identity, as indicated both by his anti-black policies as president and by his writings before taking office. It is completely accurate to describe him as a racist and white supremacist and condemn him accordingly.

Lest one think this is a misrepresentation of Wilson's views, The Birth of a Nation actually cut off the most racist part of the first half of the quote:

The white men of the South were aroused by the mere instinct of self-preservation to rid themselves, by fair means or foul, of the intolerable burden of governments sustained by the votes of ignorant negroes and conducted in the interest of adventurers.

And that was only the last of three Wilson quote title cards in the film. This one came first:

[A]dventurers swarmed out of the North, as much the enemies of one race as of the other, to cozen, beguile, and use the Negroes.…In the villages the Negroes were the office holders, men who knew none of the uses of authority, except its insolences.

And then this one:

The Policy of the congressional leaders wrought…a veritable overthrow of civilization in the South.…in their determination to "put the white South under the heel of the black South."

Wilson's racism even extended to foreign affairs. While it had been customary to appoint black ambassadors to Haiti and Santa Domingo (now the Dominican Republic), Wilson didn't do that either. At the Versailles Convention in 1919, Wilson helped kill a proposal from Japan calling for the treaty to recognize the principle of racial equality. While 11 out of 17 members at the meeting considering the amendment favored it, Wilson, who was presiding, arbitrarily decided that the amendment had been defeated because the vote wasn't unanimous. This wasn't an actual rule that the proceedings were operating under; a simple majority vote was enough to decide that the League of Nations would be headquartered in Geneva. Wilson just really didn't want the treaty to recognize racial equality and wanted to appease the British Empire, which was premised on subjugating African and South Asian people.

Woodrow Wilson was a vocal defender of the Ku Klux Klan

Wilson was governor of New Jersey when he became president in 1913, but he had been born in Virginia and raised in Georgia and South Carolina. He was, historian William Keylor notes, the first Southerner to assume the presidency since Zachary Taylor in 1848. Southern racists, accordingly, rejoiced his election. "Washington was flooded with revelers from the Old Confederacy, whose people had long dreamed of a return to the glory days of Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe, when southern gentlemen ran the country," Keylor writes. "Rebel yells and the strains of 'Dixie' reverberated throughout the city."

Wilson himself was the descendant of Confederate soldiers, and identified deeply with the "Lost Cause" narrative, according to which the Confederacy was a government of noble men trying to preserve a decent agrarian way of life against crude Northern industrialists, rather than a separatist movement premised on white supremacy. Historian Wesley Moody describes Wilson's most famous book as an academic, A History of the American People, as "steeped in Lost Cause mythology." The book was generally sympathetic to the Ku Klux Klan, describing them as "men half outlawed, denied the suffrage, without hope of justice in the courts, who meant to take this means to make their will felt." ("This means" being violence and intimidation against black people.) The following quote from the book even made its way into The Birth of a Nation, D.W. Griffith's infamous feature valorizing the Ku Klux Klan as saviors of the South:

 
DW Griffith
"A great Ku Klux Klan."