Sunday, March 17, 2013

Mobile LIDAR technology expanding rapidly

Mar. 15, 2013 ? Imagine driving down a road a few times and obtaining in an hour more data about the surrounding landscape than a crew of surveyors could obtain in months.

Such is the potential of mobile LIDAR, a powerful technology that's only a few years old and promises to change the way we see, study and record the world around us. It will be applied in transportation, hydrology, forestry, virtual tourism and construction -- and almost no one knows anything about it.

That may change with a new report on the uses and current technology of mobile LIDAR, which has just been completed and presented to the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. It will help more managers and experts understand, use and take advantage of this science.

The full exploitation of this remarkable technology, however, faces constraints. Too few experts are trained to use it, too few educational programs exist to teach it, mountains of data are produced that can swamp the computer capabilities of even large agencies, and lack of a consistent data management protocol clogs the sharing of information between systems.

"A lot of people and professionals still don't even know what mobile LIDAR is or what it can do," said Michael Olsen, an assistant professor of civil engineering at Oregon State University, and lead author of the new report. "And the technology is changing so fast it's hard for anyone, even the experts, to keep up.

"When we get more people using mobile LIDAR and we work through some of the obstacles, it's going to reduce costs, improve efficiency, change many professions and even help save lives," Olsen said.

LIDAR, which stands for light detecting and ranging, has been used for 20 years, primarily in aerial mapping. Pulses of light up to one million times a second bounce back from whatever they hit, forming a highly detailed and precise map of the landscape. But mobile LIDAR used on the ground, with even more powerful computer systems, is still in its infancy and has only been commercially available for five years.

Mobile LIDAR, compared to its aerial counterpart, can provide 10 to 100 times more data points that hugely improve the resolution of an image. Moving even at highway speeds, a technician can obtain a remarkable, three-dimensional view of the nearby terrain.

Such technology could be used repeatedly in one area and give engineers a virtual picture of an unstable, slow-moving hillside. It could provide a detailed image of a forest, or an urban setting, or a near-perfect recording of surrounding geology. An image of a tangle of utility lines in a ditch, made just before they were backfilled and covered, would give construction workers 30 years later a 3-D map to guide them as they repaired a leaking pipe.

Mobile LIDAR may someday be a key to driverless automobiles, or used to create amazing visual images that will enhance "virtual tourism" and let anyone, anywhere, actually see what an area looks like as if they were standing there. The applications in surveying and for transportation engineering are compelling, and may change entire professions.

Just recently, mobile LIDAR was used to help the space shuttle Endeavour maneuver through city streets to reach its final home in Los Angeles.

Some of the newest applications, Olsen said, will have to wait until there are enough experts to exploit them. OSU operates one of the few programs in the nation to train students in both civil engineering and this evolving field of "geomatics," and more jobs are available than there are people to fill them. Due to a partnership with Leica Geosystems and David Evans and Associates, OSU has sufficient hardware and software to maintain a variety of geomatics courses. But more educational programs are needed, Olsen said, and fully-trained and licensed professionals can make $100,000 or more annually.

Other nations, he said, including Canada, have made a much more aggressive commitment to using mobile LIDAR and training students in geomatics. It is critical for the U.S. to follow suit, Olsen said.

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Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/Bc7DK1lXBuQ/130315151259.htm

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Saturday, March 16, 2013

Always Choose the Best Seat at Any Multi-Person Table

Always Choose the Best Seat at Any Multi-Person TableWhen you're out for a meal with friends, you can easily fail at picking the right seat and get stuck next to (or near) someone you don't want to sit with. This handy seating chart serves as an aid to ensure you get the best seat every time, no matter the size of the table.

As the infographic explains, you want to choose a seat that puts you in the middle of as many conversations as possible. Generally that means a central location, but when tables don't have an even number of people you run into difficulty. When you're at, say, a table with seven people, you want to sit in the middle on the less-populated side. It gives you easier access to everyone and ensures you won't wind up in the loner spot. The infographic also contains advice on how to engage in conversation in some of these awkward seating arrangements and other helpful (and funny) advice. Click the image below to see the full version or check it out on thisisnthappiness.

Choosing the Right Seat | thisisnthappiness

Always Choose the Best Seat at Any Multi-Person Table

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/dFs7RXNZv2Q/always-choose-the-best-seat-at-any-multi+person-table

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Friday, March 15, 2013

Guest Post: Simple Tips for Improving Your Home With Feng Shui ...

Today we have a guest post from Amber Collins about using feng shui in your home. Hope you enjoy:

Feng Shui Principles

The Chinese term feng shui means wind-water and it?s a system that is designed to help people cultivate balance in their lives, attract positive energy, and restore harmony. The energy, called Chi, can be brought to any office, room, garden, home, or space by utilizing the principles of feng shui. The principles of feng shui are connected to the five elements: water, wood, earth, metal, and fire. Directions are very important and even though it?s a somewhat complex system, and often quite expensive to incorporate fully, there are some inexpensive ways to utilize feng shui basics in your home:

  1. Directions: Start by honing in on the directions in your home. If you want to enhance the flow of Chi?in a specific area and thus boost a corresponding aspect of your life, you have to know where to focus and what each direction represents:
  • North ? Career
  • East ? Health and family
  • South ? Fame
  • West ? Creativity and children
  • Northeast ? Knowledge and wisdom
  • Northwest ? Spirit guides and mentors
  • Southeast ? Wealth
  • Southwest ? Relationships

For more luck and success in any of these areas and less stagnation, begin by removing the clutter. Old newspapers, clothes, and useless items all have to go to let fresh energy in. Fighting clutter is one of the most important rules of feng shui.

2.?Rearrange the furniture:

Feng Shui Living Room

Rearrange furniture so that you can move freely without any obstacles in your path. One of the best ways is to be able to move in a circular direction in the room.

3. Use Mirrors: If you want to turn your home into a lighter and therefore more positive area, you need some crystals and mirrors, which will reflect and bend the flow of the Chi. This provides more natural light in the rooms.

4. Add Colors:

Feng Shui Colors

Refreshing a home is easily done by using new colors and adding items in colors that are dominant for the certain area/direction:

  • North ? White, black and blue
  • Northwest ? White, black and silver
  • Northeast ? White, green and blue
  • East ? Yellow, green, brown and orange
  • South ? Orange and red
  • Southwest ? Yellow, beige and pink
  • Southeast ? Violet, purple, burgundy and sage
  • West ? White and gold

5.?Liking it: The most important thing when it comes to feng shui is actually liking it and accepting the changes it brings to your home. If you feel that feng shui is good for your living space and you feel more relaxed and comfortable, then you know you?ve made the right choice for your space.

Amber Collins is a professional freelance writer and dedicated Feng Shui practitioner. She loves writing about any daily activities that are part of most women?s lives, such as cleaning and?home organizing in South Lambeth?so as to enhance the quality of life. Her story of following her passions in home making and writing about it will inspire you. Her present article is dedicated to deep cleaning as a way for eliminating the clutter in your home.

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Categories: Interior Design & Decorating | Tags: Chi, Feng Shui, Feng Shui Home, Feng Shui Principles, Rearranging furniture | Permalink.

Author: Iris Interiors LLC

Iris Interiors LLC is a full-service interior decorating company located in Central New Jersey. We are known for equestrian inspired interiors, as well as classic and timeless designs with eclectic, chic, and modern elements.

Source: http://irisinteriors.wordpress.com/2013/03/15/guest-post-simple-tips-for-improving-your-home-with-feng-shui/

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CA-NEWS Summary

New pope urges Church to return to its Gospel roots

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - In his first public Mass, Pope Francis urged the Catholic Church on Thursday to stick to its Gospel roots and shun modern temptations, warning that it would become just another charitable group if it forgot its true mission. In a heartfelt, simple homily, the Argentinian pope laid out a clear moral path for the 1.2-billion-member Church, which is beset by scandals, intrigue and strife.

Canada eyes "Buy America" relief in Trans-Pacific pact

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Canada is pushing hard in trade talks with the United States and nine other countries for changes to U.S. "Buy America" provisions that have complicated cross-border trade, a top Canadian official said on Friday. "Those provisions don't only have a negative impact on Canada, they have a negative impact on American businesses who are dependent on our integrated supply chains," Canadian Trade Minister Ed Fast said in an interview.

Blasts, clashes kill at least 25 in central Baghdad

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Coordinated blasts killed at least 25 people in the heart of Baghdad on Thursday near the heavily fortified Green Zone, where several Western embassies are located, police and medics said. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the explosions, but Sunni Muslim insurgents have been redoubling their efforts to undermine Iraq's Shi'ite-led government and foment inter-communal conflict this year.

France pushes EU to end Syria arms ban

BRUSSELS/PARIS (Reuters) - France will urge other European Union governments at a summit on Thursday to lift an embargo on supplying weapons to the Syrian opposition, President Francois Hollande said, saying Europe could not allow the Syrian people to be massacred. Hollande justified his call to increase European help to the Syrian opposition after a two-year uprising against President Bashar al-Assad by saying that weapons were being delivered to Assad's government, particularly by Russia.

Opposition leader wants to debate Venezuela's Maduro

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's opposition leader challenged acting President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday to "stop lying" and have a debate, adding that he was sorry if he had caused offense during the increasingly bitter run-up to an April 14 election. The death last week of socialist leader Hugo Chavez set the stage for the vote pitting Maduro, his preferred successor, against Henrique Capriles, a 40-year-old centrist state governor.

Israelis, Palestinians pin no peace hopes on Obama trip

SDEROT, Israel/GAZA (Reuters) - Five years ago, a few months after a Palestinian rocket crashed through his kitchen ceiling, Pinhas Amar received a more welcome guest at his southern Israeli home - Barack Obama, then running for president of the United States. Amar holds up a picture he now keeps in a back room - unframed and glued to thin cardboard with crumpled corners - of himself showing the missile damage to Obama. He was impressed by the candidate, he says. The president Obama became: less so.

Iraq war costs U.S. more than $2 trillion: study

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. war in Iraq has cost $1.7 trillion with an additional $490 billion in benefits owed to war veterans, expenses that could grow to more than $6 trillion over the next four decades counting interest, a study released on Thursday said. The war has killed at least 134,000 Iraqi civilians and may have contributed to the deaths of as many as four times that number, according to the Costs of War Project by the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University.

Tunisia's broadened government begins mission to ease unrest

Tunis (Reuters) - Tunisia's new Islamist-led government, broadened to include independents to defuse unrest after the assassination of an opposition leader, began work on Thursday pledging to tackle grave economic woes before elections later this year. The new leadership got a reminder of the volatile discontent it is grappling with when Adel Kehdri, an unemployed 27-year-old man, died on Wednesday after setting himself on fire to protest at economic and social hardships.

Chavez gone, but his jailed opponents languish

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's Hugo Chavez may be dead, but his jailed opponents are still wrestling with his ghost and their relatives see little hope of freedom if the divisive socialist's prot?g? wins the presidential election to succeed him. A judge, a local police chief and a former army general who was once Chavez's defense minister are among a host of opponents who fell foul of the socialist leader hailed as a champion by millions of poor Venezuelans but reviled by foes as a despot.

Serbia, Kosovo close in on deal to end ethnic partition

PRISTINA/BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbia and Kosovo said on Thursday they were close to a deal to end the ethnic partition of the former Serbian province with Belgrade coming under increasing pressure from the European Union as it nears a decision on opening membership talks. Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic said the two sides were "never closer" to settling their differences, after separate talks with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton in Pristina and Belgrade.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ca-news-summary-000541452.html

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Saudi nationals are among GCC tourism industry's best guests | St ...

Ahead of the Saudi Travel and Tourism Investment Market 2013 event opening in Riyadh on 31 March, John Pelling, the General Manager of The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort, has shared his experience in playing host to the Kingdom's increasing numbers of five-star holidaymakers.

"We've always known that Saudi Arabia, with its youthful population in excess of 28 million, is the GCC's top feeder market. Now, we believe they are among our key markets. This is based on a few key data points: the average size of their travel party, length of stay and incremental spend," said Pelling.

Saudi Travel and Tourism Investment Market 2013 is one of the leading events providing dedicated information about the Kingdom's tourism and travel industry.

Of key interest to GCC industry watchers is a new outbound Saudi travel trend - a demonstrated preference for luxury beach resorts in the Gulf.

We used to see a Saudi Arabian preference for city breaks in the Gulf. Now staying near the beach in large family parties is proving to be very popular. They want well-appointed accommodation, world-class dining, but also beach and pool access and activities for children that ensure absolute privacy and relaxation.

Located on Saadiyat's pristine beach, framed by the prestigious Saadiyat Beach Golf Club and with sweeping views of the Arabian Gulf, the hotel is also 10 minutes away from Ferrari World and the newly launched Yas Waterworld.

The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort actively participates in roadshows and provides customised collateral and special packages for Saudi guests.

The hotel is widely acclaimed for its signature St. Regis butler service as well as its extensive leisure and recreational facilities. The latter includes a spacious state-of-the-art fitness centre - St. Regis Athletic Club with indoor squash courts and outdoor tennis courts, four outdoor swimming pools including a tiered family pool, an indoor lap pool and a large spa with 12 treatments rooms.

Young guests are also catered for with the Sandcastle Club, which offers captivating, thoughtful activities in a welcoming environment. It also features play areas inside and out, a sand pit, an outdoor pool and age-based activity rooms to inspire the imagination of children aged 1 - 12.

Source: http://www.ameinfo.com/saudi-nationals-gcc-tourism-industrys-bbest-333451

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The 10 Commandments of Social Media for Brands|Social Eyes ...

While the anonymous, public and often informal nature of Internet dialogue often leads corporations to relax their guard, it?s important to note: Managing a brand?s social media presence is a tricky balancing act. The key to being successful? Keeping things polite and professional, and constantly acknowledging your audience?s voice, while adding value or insight to customer exchanges.

Looking to enhance your corporate social media efforts? Here are 10 simple rules every corporate social networking team should follow to better connect with fans and maximize the value of their online presences.

1. Thou shalt be patient and considerate.

While many campaigns seem to go viral overnight, it?s important to remember that businesses rarely experience instant breakthroughs or meteoric audience growth on social media. More important than chasing huge follower or subscriber counts is to consistently and meaningfully engage an audience by creating helpful and insightful content that addresses key concerns or speaks to consumer needs.

Over time, through constant two-way dialogue with users, this commitment will help your business build a loyal and involved following, the influence of which may far outstrip that of larger, less engaged audiences.

Be relevant, generous and sincere. While doing so may not seem as sexy or instantly gratifying as posting a viral video or infographic, it will help you build trust, empathy and, most importantly, relationships, the currency of the modern social realm.

2. Thou shalt not be indifferent to the voice of thy customer.

When you engage in social media, you commit to playing a role in very public customer conversations. This entails consistently having to acknowledge other parties? opinions, and embracing both the good and the bad, including harsh or critical feedback.

Instead of looking the other way when someone posts something unflattering, take a moment to objectively assess the feedback. Constructive criticism not only presents opportunities to improve our efforts to serve end-users; it also presents a chance to engage in human exchanges, and apologize and appease the situation.

In other words, the goal is to create conversations, not critiques, and optimize the level of customer support and service provided to your audience. Sometimes, simply taking a moment to acknowledge others? voices, or answer questions directly can bridge gaps that threaten to build a gulf between you and end-users.

3. Thou shalt be true to thyself.

You?ve?spent ample time crafting your brand?s mission and values across your website, marketing materials and advertising efforts. Now is not the time to abandon the positive image?you?ve?worked so hard to cultivate, or forsake professionalism or propriety in the name of popularity.

Given the medium?s more personable nature, social media exchanges should certainly be more human than formal. But all should be respectful of customers, audience needs and the positive image?you?ve?worked so hard to cultivate. It?s important not only to respect followers? time and intelligence, but also to be consistent with your branding and messaging across all platforms. That way, fans and followers know both who you are and the values that your business stands for.

4. Thou shalt think before you post.

Trade secret: Every post or status update you share should add value for your audience, regardless whether that value comes in the form of enlightenment, entertainment or an uplifting exchange.

Therefore, make every share unique, and think about how to ensure it counts ? i.e., what can you add to the conversation that others can?t? As a simple example, retweeting posts of note is an excellent way to share information, but adding your own opinion or links to further resources is an even better use of time. Likewise, if you post every single little detail or update about your brand, industry and products, fans may become fatigued. Respect your audience and think about how to make posts superlative, singular and of notable worth before sharing.

The key question to ask yourself: What?s in it for?them?

5. Thou shalt be brief.

Remember to keep it short and sweet on social media. You have only a few seconds to catch someone?s attention, and even less time to keep it. Therefore, make sure your posts have an immediate impact and utilize concise language, links, references or (better yet) visual assets, such as photos, videos and inforgraphics. These quickly convey key information at a glance.

Look for ways to distill an idea down to a single statement or elevator pitch that clearly and quickly communicates subject matter, tone and target audience, and provides further points of reference should audiences wish to dive deeper into the topic.

6. Thou shalt not hog the conversation.

In many ways, social networks serve as the world?s largest cocktail party. But no one wants to be stuck with a self-centered conversation hog.

The same rule applies to your social media presence, where it?s important to listen before speaking ? doubly so, as the dynamics of conversation and rules of online behavior differ depending on context and parties in attendance. Dedicate the majority of your time proactively engaging your audience, then split the remaining time between content your audience will care about and promoting your brand.

7. Thou shalt do good.

Think of social media as the world?s largest megaphone or amplifier ? it can project your online voice louder, farther and faster than ever before.

Always be engaging and upbeat (negativity never reflects well on the poster, especially online, where conversational subtlety and nuance are often lost in translation), and take advantage of the opportunities presented to promote positivity. Material you post online should be less promotional than beneficial in nature, designed to help viewers save time or money, enhance learning and awareness, or offer key opinions and insights. From securing support for charitable ventures to offering deeper looks at evolving trends to helping fans and followers make valuable connections, consistently look for ways to aid, assist and uplift your audience.

8. Thou shalt keep it strictly business.

While color and personality are always welcome online, business and pleasure seldom mix well in social media contexts ? personal and corporate accounts are best kept separated. Remember: Users following business accounts do so because they identify with the brand, and expect content in keeping with its core image and focus. Posting anything outside of this realm may prompt confusion, surprise or indifference, and has the potential to reflect poorly on your brand.

Communications should universally be polite, professional and on-topic. Where the risk of misinterpretation or controversy exists, play it safe and skip posting. Keep your tone and voice upbeat and respectful ? avoid complaints, negative comments and stabs at the competition at all costs.

9. Thou shalt respect the hashtag.

Twitter hashtags are great vehicles for highlighting topics of relevance, drawing audience?s attention and fostering fan engagement. However, they can also be dangerous when used incorrectly ? i.e., too frequently or in inappropriate contexts.

Oftentimes, brands overuse hashtags or place them in unrelated posts to drive added visibility. But doing so may leave viewers feeling cheated, especially if those hashtags add no relevant context to conversations or potentially alienate readers. This can cause a negative reaction to your online voice and ultimately your business, which will not only hinder fan acquisition but potentially detract from your brand.

10. Thou shalt not lie.

Skip the temptation to embellish, fib or inflate the truth online, especially since it can easily backfire or even lead to potential legal repercussions. Likewise, be honest with your audience. If fans and followers have questions about an evolving scenario ? e.g., a potential PR crisis -? sometimes, the best answer is simply a prompt: ?Apologies, but we don?t know. However, rest assured we?re working on it, and will let you know as soon as possible.?

Trust is the foundation of any relationship ? real or online, and its loss can have a marked impact on both your brand and customer perception. As Benjamin Franklin once pointed out, it takes many exchanges to build a positive reputation, but only one mistake to undo it.

(Source: Mashable.com)

Source: http://getsocialeyes.com/10-commandments-social-media-brands/

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Wedding & kids bday same day...


General Relationship Discussion Although anyone can post anywhere on Talk About Marriage, this section is for people interested in general relationship and marriage advice.


Old Today, 01:39 PM ? #1 (permalink)

Member

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Join Date: Jan 2013

Posts: 36


Hi all-this may be complicated. Will try to be as brief as possible.

We found out last year that my H's brother was getting remarried, the date they picked...our 8yo Ds birthday.

As soon as we found out date (months after it was picked), I was annoyed (not a good relationship w/ H's family, felt like someone should have given us the heads up to make sure we planned on being in town or maybe even recognize that it was already a special day for our family, but no, no one said a word).

I said would do whatever D wanted to do. If she wanted to share her day and go to wedding, fine with me, if she didn't want to, I would honor that for her and would skip the wedding- we are NOT close with his brother or bride to be. He was immediately pissed as he felt like the wedding was more important than OUR d's bday. I disagree.

Months go by, holidays come and go including family get togethers, the wedding is mentioned but no one ever mentions the other event that day. I'm a little offended.

Early this year, bride to be calls H and asks if D would be in the wedding. We talk to her and she agrees. Ok. Well, based on our previous conversation, I clearly stated I would go if D wanted to share her day. Obviously she was willing to share if she agreed to be in the wedding. I assumed we would ALL be going.

Invitation comes, I left on counter so H could see. I forgot it was there and never mailed RSVP, H never mentioned it. Groom calls H to confirm we are coming and ask about rehearsal dinner. We had already told them D agreed to be in wedding so I assumed we would have to attend all events.

H asks me the other night "Are you going to XX wedding?"

He ASKED me if I was attending his brothers wedding...I took this as a HUGE insult. Um- 1) I told you I would go if D wanted to share her day. 2) We discussed it with her together, she agreed she wanted to go/be part of the wedding so by default, we would all be going. 3) I would assume that the simple fact that we are married 10+ years, together 20+ years, that any major event in either family located close by would not need to be discussed unless there was some other conflict on that day.

My real questions to all of you-----Am I crazy to feel insulted that he didn't assume we would ALL be attending, A family wedding, in town on our D's bday? I almost feel as if he doesn't want me to go (very strained marriage and not a good relationship w/ inlaws). He has done this type of thing before, we'll decide to go somewhere, then he comes back and says, "well if you don't want to, I'll go by myself" AFTER I said I would go.

Any thoughts or questions?

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Old Today, 01:56 PM ? #6 (permalink)

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Join Date: May 2012

Posts: 463


A few things here...in the grand scheme of things, a wedding in the family is usually going to take precidence over a non milestone childs birthday. From what it sounds like, you are not terribly close to the bride or groom and really, missing the wedding would not have been a huge deal. Since you are not that close, I think it is unreasonable to expect them to feel the same way about your daughters birthday as you do.

To be blunt, in most cases, outside of immediate close family, nobody really cares about your kids birthday to the point where they would even think about it beyond remembering to get a card the night before.

As far as your husband asking if you planned on going to the wedding, sure, it is a safe assumption that you would all be going, but I do think it is unreasonable for you to feel insulted just because he didn't have the same assumption you did and actually ASKED you what you planned on doing instead of just assuming.

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Old Today, 02:23 PM ? #13 (permalink)

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Join Date: Aug 2012

Posts: 585


Quote:

Hi all-this may be complicated. Will try to be as brief as possible.

We found out last year that my H's brother was getting remarried, the date they picked...our 8yo Ds birthday.

As soon as we found out date (months after it was picked), I was annoyed (not a good relationship w/ H's family, felt like someone should have given us the heads up to make sure we planned on being in town or maybe even recognize that it was already a special day for our family, but no, no one said a word).

I said would do whatever D wanted to do. If she wanted to share her day and go to wedding, fine with me, if she didn't want to, I would honor that for her and would skip the wedding- we are NOT close with his brother or bride to be. He was immediately pissed as he felt like the wedding was more important than OUR d's bday. I disagree.

Months go by, holidays come and go including family get togethers, the wedding is mentioned but no one ever mentions the other event that day. I'm a little offended.

Early this year, bride to be calls H and asks if D would be in the wedding. We talk to her and she agrees. Ok. Well, based on our previous conversation, I clearly stated I would go if D wanted to share her day. Obviously she was willing to share if she agreed to be in the wedding. I assumed we would ALL be going.

Invitation comes, I left on counter so H could see. I forgot it was there and never mailed RSVP, H never mentioned it. Groom calls H to confirm we are coming and ask about rehearsal dinner. We had already told them D agreed to be in wedding so I assumed we would have to attend all events.

H asks me the other night "Are you going to XX wedding?"

He ASKED me if I was attending his brothers wedding...I took this as a HUGE insult. Um- 1) I told you I would go if D wanted to share her day. 2) We discussed it with her together, she agreed she wanted to go/be part of the wedding so by default, we would all be going. 3) I would assume that the simple fact that we are married 10+ years, together 20+ years, that any major event in either family located close by would not need to be discussed unless there was some other conflict on that day.

My real questions to all of you-----Am I crazy to feel insulted that he didn't assume we would ALL be attending, A family wedding, in town on our D's bday? I almost feel as if he doesn't want me to go (very strained marriage and not a good relationship w/ inlaws). He has done this type of thing before, we'll decide to go somewhere, then he comes back and says, "well if you don't want to, I'll go by myself" AFTER I said I would go.

Any thoughts or questions?

You're using any excuse you can to be passive aggressive against your husband and his family. Sorry but you're WAY OFF base.

1. You asked your D hoping an 8 year old would say no because what 8 year old wants to give up their B-day..that failed
2. Your SEARCHING for reasons to be insulted. Your husband asks if you were going because you've made it ABUNDANTLY clear you want nothing to do with it.
3. You need to get over yourself and deal with this properly and stop being a manipulative person who is putting her grudges ahead of the family's well being.

You plan a BIG birthday party the week before the wedding. You explain the plan to your daughter. You THANK your H's brother for ACTUALLY WANTING TO INCLUDE HIS NEICE! You put on a smile and be nice and MAYBE JUST MAYBE you enjoy your time with YOUR family...because while you're married...they're YOUR family too.

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The more I love my wife!

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Source: http://talkaboutmarriage.com/general-relationship-discussion/69452-wedding-kids-bday-same-day.html

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Another Prohibitionist Is Blind to the Drug War's Costs (Atlantic Politics Channel)

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Thursday, March 14, 2013

The 'Bushwhack Boogie' beginnings (CNN)

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GOP draws stark budget contrasts with Obama

President Barack Obama, escorted by House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving, right, waves as he arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 13, 2013, for closed-door talks with House Speaker John Boehner and the House Republican Conference to discuss the budget. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

President Barack Obama, escorted by House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving, right, waves as he arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 13, 2013, for closed-door talks with House Speaker John Boehner and the House Republican Conference to discuss the budget. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, center, walks to his meeting with President Barack Obama on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 13, 2013. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

President Barack Obama, escorted by House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving, right, arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 13, 2013, for closed-door talks with House Speaker John Boehner and the House Republican Conference to discuss the budget. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

(AP) ? House Republicans drew stark contrasts with Democrats on tricky budget issues as President Barack Obama came to the Capitol on Wednesday in a stepped-up effort to improve relations with lawmakers whose votes he needs to enact his second-term agenda.

Obama was holding a rare meeting with House Republicans geared at thawing political gridlock, even though he conceded in an interview airing hours earlier that a political accommodation may be impossible.

Many Republicans who long have chided Obama for failing to engage their party on the nation's biggest problems are applauding his newfound outreach ? part of a concerted effort by the president to mend ties with Congress in hopes of reaching a grand compromise on fiscal issues.

Neither side is backing down from entrenched positions that have prevented deals in the past ? a status quo scenario that Obama acknowledged could preclude any agreement.

"Ultimately, it may be that the differences are just too wide," he said in an interview broadcast Wednesday on ABC's "Good Morning America," hours before he was to meet with House Republicans at the Capitol.

"It may be that, ideologically, if their position is, 'We can't do any revenue,' or 'We can only do revenue if we gut Medicare or gut Social Security or gut Medicaid, if that's the position, then we're probably not going to be able to get a deal," he said.

The issues separating the two parties are the same as they have been all along ? fundamental disagreements over whether to pair tax increases with budget cuts in an effort to rein in the nation's deficit.

Exhibit A: the House GOP's new budget proposal, crafted by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., who ran against Obama as the 2012 Republican vice presidential nominee but broke bread with him last week as the president initiated his congressional "charm offensive."

Ryan and House Republicans put forward their 2014 budget fully mindful that it would be dead on arrival at the White House and in the Democratic-controlled Senate. The plan, which the White House immediately panned, doubles down on longstanding Republican proposals to slash funding for programs Obama and Democrats sorely want to protect. It includes a repeal of Obama's health care law ? a major component of his legacy ? and Medicare changes that would shift more of the cost to future patients.

"I understand that not everyone shares our view. And I respect that difference of opinion. All I ask is that you join in the effort. If you don't like our plan, offer your own," Ryan said Wednesday at a budget committee meeting.

Democrats rejected it out of hand, arguing that November's election, in which Democrats gained seats and Obama won a second term after campaigning on the need for more revenue, showed Americans had rejected the GOP approach.

"While providing a tax windfall to the very wealthy, this proposal absolutely guts vital investments that are essential to shared prosperity, upward mobility, and rising middle class," said Democratic Rep. Chris Van Hollen, the budget panel's top Democrat.

Nor has Obama budged from his insistence that any budget include new tax revenues ? the key sticking point in February's failed attempt to avert $85 billion in automatic spending cuts that both parties agreed made for bad policy.

Meanwhile, Senate Democrats were to unveil a counterproposal Wednesday that aides said would raise taxes by almost $1 trillion and would use savings to repeal the automatic spending cuts ? a nonstarter for House Republicans.

The resolve from both sides to dig in their heels on the most contentious issues raises an important question about Obama's efforts to make nice with Republicans: What's the point?

The president said in the network interview that he was searching for the "common-sense caucus."

Earlier, White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters, "We're not naive. There are disagreements and obstacles. But the president is at the head of this effort because he believes deeply in it."

In reaching out to lawmakers, Obama hopes to attract more moderate elements from both parties in Congress to deal comprehensively with the nation's long-term fiscal imbalance. The fence-mending campaign started with a dinner Obama hosted last week at a hotel near the White House for a dozen Senate Republicans and continues this week with the House GOP meeting Wednesday and a pair of closed-door sessions with House Democrats and Senate Republicans on Thursday.

In interviews and on Sunday talk shows, many Republicans on the receiving end of Obama's overtures have praised the president for making an effort ? even if they feel it's too little, too late.

"We welcome it," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Tuesday. "I told the president on Friday I hope he'll invite all of our members down for these dinners."

But other Republicans are refusing to give Obama the benefit of the doubt.

Fueling their reluctance is the not-so-distant memory of being hammered by the president on a near-daily basis amid last month's fight over the automatic spending cuts; Obama claimed Republicans alone were responsible for blocking a deal.

"All of a sudden there's a pivot literally overnight, where he wants to come to the caucus and everyone should get out the drums and pound them and sing songs," Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., who chairs the House GOP's campaign committee, said in an interview. "It doesn't work like that in any relationship I've been in."

White House aides say Obama is also sensitive to the fact that for Republicans looking ahead to the 2014 elections, appearing too chummy with a Democratic president could inflict more harm than good ? especially for Republicans from conservative states who fear a primary challenge from their right.

A House leadership aide said that Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, believes Obama's outreach is genuine but that GOP leaders perceive it to be geared mostly toward boosting Obama's own standing. The aide was not authorized to discuss publicly internal GOP deliberations and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The White House argues it's the opposite. Freed from the need to run for re-election, aides said, Obama feels more flexibility to strike deals with Republicans that include provisions that liberals in his own party might not want, such as an adjustment for Social Security cost-of-living increases. Obama proposed the idea Tuesday in a meeting with Senate Democrats, but it's not included in the plan Senate Budget Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., was to unveil Wednesday.

Murray's proposal would raise taxes by almost $1 trillion over a decade and cut spending by almost $1 trillion over the same period. But more than half of the combined deficit savings would be used to repeal the spending cuts that began to hit the economy on March 1 and are set to continue through the decade.

The president will release his own budget proposal in early April, although aides are playing down its significance because prospects that Congress will take up his plan are negligible.

___

Associated Press writer Andrew Taylor contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-03-13-Budget%20Battle/id-698882d2c91549eaa9a0ec2b12f91d29

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Cate Blanchett heads to HBO for 'Cancer Vixen' | Inside TV | EW.com

cate-blanchett

Image Credit: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

Cate Blanchett isn?t a name you usually associate with television ? even HBO. Tuesday, news broke that the Oscar-winning actress was set to develop Cancer Vixen: A True Story into a feature film for the cable network. EW confirmed Blanchett is set to star in and executive produce the project. Deadline reported the news first.

The best-selling memoir tells the story of author and New Yorker cartoonist Marisa Acocella Marchetto?s 11-month battle with breast cancer, which forces her to reevaluate her glamorous Manhattan life, her work, and her upcoming marriage.

It?s still very early in the process. Blanchett and her fellow executive producers, Trudie Styler and Celine Rattray, are currently deciding on a writer to adapt the material.

Follow @ldbahr

Read More:
EW Review: ?Cancer Vixen?
HBO?s ?Behind the Candelbra?
HBO is developing a ?Bored to Death? movie

Source: http://insidetv.ew.com/2013/03/12/cate-blanchett-heads-to-hbo-for-cancer-vixen/

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Wednesday, March 13, 2013

'Destiny': Gay couple on adopting baby found in subway

By Pei-Sze Cheng, NBCNewYork.com

To understand how Danny Stewart, Peter Mercurio and their son Kevin became a family of three, you have to go back 12 years to the 14th Street A/C/E subway station in Chelsea.?

"As I was leaving the subway, I glanced over to my left and thought I saw a doll," recounted Stewart. "I continued up the stairs because I didn't think anything of it, but I glanced back at the floor and I saw legs moving."

Stewart quickly discovered it was no doll, but a newborn baby bundled up in a sweatshirt, his umbilical cord still attached. After calling 911, Stewart's next call was to his partner.

"Danny is a really calm person so when he called me frantic, I knew something was wrong," said Mercurio. "I literally felt his heart beat through the line and the panic in his voice."

Read more at NBCNewYork.com

By the time Mercurio reached the subway station, the NYPD had already responded. Police named the baby Daniel "ACE" Doe, because it was Danny who found him at the A-C-E train station. A citywide search began for the baby's mother, covered by local news stations including NBC 4 New York.

Three months later, no one had come forward and Stewart found himself at a family court hearing. As he explained to the judge how he found the baby, the judge suddenly asked him if he would be interesting in adopting the baby.

"I think everyone in the court room, their jaws dropped, everyone was quiet," said Stewart. "Everyone was looking at me, and I said, 'Yes, but it's not that easy.' And she said, 'Well, it can be.'"

Stewart and Mercurio had only been dating for three years, and they had not discussed having a family. Gay marriage wasn't legal then, either, so they weren't married. But Stewart said at that moment, he just knew the right thing to do.

"I thought, 'Maybe this is destiny, maybe this is divine intervention. This is a gift we're given and how can we say no to a gift?'" said Stewart.?

At first, the couple thought they would have months to prepare for the baby's arrival because of the mountain of bureaucracy and paperwork they had to go through, but the judge surprised them once again. A week after the initial court hearing, and three days before Christmas, the judge asked them if they would like to care for him for the holiday weekend.

"And he's been with us ever since," said Mercurio. "It was the best Christmas present ever. It was amazing."

They named the baby Kevin and eventually became his official adoptive parents. Kevin is now 12 years old and almost as tall as his dads. His parents want to protect his privacy, so NBC 4 New York did not interview the boy on camera, but off camera, the boy said he could not imagine what his life would be like if his fathers had not found him.?It's something his parents often think about as well.

"It's something that's changed our lives forever, and we're better people for it, said Mercurio. "And we love him to death."

"I can't imagine life without him," said Stewart.

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/13/17295317-maybe-this-is-destiny-gay-couple-reflects-on-adopting-baby-found-in-subway?lite

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Tuesday, March 12, 2013

The War Against the Second Amendment Has Only Just Begun (Powerlineblog)

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City Tech Professor Appointed to Commission on Opticianry ... - CUNY

March 11, 2013 | New York City College of Technology

Brooklyn, NY ??Kimberly Strickler, assistant professor of vision care technology at New York City College of Technology (City Tech), was recently appointed a voting member of the Commission on Opticianry Accreditation.

Strickler1

Recognized by the Council for Higher Education (CHEA), the Commission is a not-for-profit organization that accredits two-year degree opticianry programs in the United States. It fosters excellence in opticianry education by setting standards, assessing effectiveness and identifying those academic programs that meet the standards with the goal of producing competent graduates.

In addition, Professor Strickler was appointed by the New York State Society of Opticians as a member of the Continuing Education Committee for licensed opticians in New York State.

Professor Strickler coordinates City Tech?s eyeglass clinic and ophthalmic dispensing. She is certified by the American Board of Opticianry and National Contact Lens Examiners and is licensed in New York and Florida. She is presently secretary of the National Federation of Opticianry Schools, and a member of the New York State Society of Opticians and the Optical Women?s Association.

She received an associate of arts degree in counseling from Jordan College in Michigan, a BS in ophthalmic optics from The City University of New York (CUNY) and an MA in multicultural studies from the College of Staten Island/CUNY.

New York City College of Technology (City Tech) of The City University of New York (CUNY) is the largest public college of technology in New York State. Located at 300 Jay Street in Downtown Brooklyn, the College enrolls more than 16,000 students in 65 baccalaureate, associate and specialized certificate programs.

Source: http://www1.cuny.edu/mu/forum/2013/03/11/city-tech-professor-appointed-to-commission-on-opticianry-accreditation/

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Edwards heart valve system good as surgery at three years: trial

By Bill Berkrot

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Patients who received the original version of Edwards Lifesciences Corp's non-invasive heart valve replacement system had a nearly identical death rate after three years as those who had open-heart surgery, with no increased risk of stroke, according to results from a clinical trial.

The data, presented on Monday at the American College of Cardiology scientific meeting in San Francisco, should provide doctors with some reassurance about the durability of the Edwards transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), known as Sapien.

Three years after implantation, the death rates for any reason in high-risk patients deemed eligible for surgery was nearly identical at 44.2 percent for Sapien and 44.8 percent for those who got new valves via standard open-heart surgery.

Heart related death rates also mirrored each other at three years - 30.1 percent for Sapien versus 30.2 percent for surgery.

"It gives me a level of comfort that ... the late mortality is largely associated not with the device implanted, but with the intrinsic patient co-morbidities," said Dr. Martin Leon, a co-lead investigator of the trial.

TAVR allow surgeons to replace diseased heart valves by threading the new valve into place through an artery, sparing patients the chest cracking, open-heart surgery. The Sapien and newer generations of the valve system is widely considered to be Edwards' most important product line.

Edwards' shares, which had been down nearly 3 percent prior to release of the data, were off $1.72, or 1.9 percent, at $88.58 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Because it is relatively new and there were concerns about a high number of strokes seen shortly after the procedure early in the 699-patient study, the big unanswered questions around Sapien were how it would hold up long after implantation and whether a higher stroke rate would persist after 30 days.

The three-year follow-up data should help to answer those questions.

"There seems to be no structural deterioration thus far," said Dr. Vinod Thourani, co-lead researcher of the Partner study, who presented the findings at the meeting.

The stroke data was also encouraging. At three years, the Sapien stroke rate was 8.2 percent compared with 9.3 percent for the surgical group.

The stroke rate with Sapien had been higher at two years. But between two and three years there were nine strokes in the surgical arm and only one in the Sapien arm.

"So whatever early tendency that was observed that indicated a higher stroke frequency with TAVR has been more than negated with the late follow-up," Leon, director of the Center for Interventional Vascular Therapy at Columbia University Medical Center in New York, said in an interview.

"The main message is there really is no constant hazard related to TAVR that suggests that stroke rates will be higher over time," said Leon, who earlier at the meeting presented data that compared a newer, smaller and easier-to-use version of the Sapien already available in Europe with the original.

A problem of blood leakage around the valve was overwhelmingly higher with Sapien than with the surgical group, researchers said.

Thourani, co-director of the Structural Heart and Valve Center at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, said even mild leakage is associated with higher death rates after valve replacement.

However, Leon said, "If you look at sub group of patients who had none or trace valvular leak, they had an extraordinarily low mortality - half that of surgery."

Edwards is attempting to address the problem with newer valves in its developmental pipeline that include a skirt or cuff around the valve designed to prevent leakage.

The Sapien, which has been supplanted in Europe and elsewhere by the newer Sapien XT, was first approved in the United States in late 2011, only for patients considered too frail to survive open-heart surgery. That was expanded last autumn for a wider group of high-risk patients of the type included in this study.

But for U.S. approval to be expanded into younger and lower-risk patients, Edwards much continue to demonstrate the long-term safety and durability of the system.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has asked for five years of follow-up data and Edwards plans to follow these patients forever, Leon explained.

Of the latest findings, Leon said: "From as much as you can determine from an additional year of follow-up, these are all encouraging signs."

(Reporting by Bill Berkrot; Editing by Maureen Bavdek)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/edwards-heart-valve-system-good-surgery-three-years-153534373--sector.html

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Monday, March 11, 2013

Why You Actually Require Search Engine Optimization ...

By way of se?

Search engine optimization is some thing that no business that keeps a presence on the internet can afford to ignore. The world wide web is tough, if not entirely not possible to navigate without having the the use of a search engine like Google, and when you believe about all the traffic that filters by way of Google on a every day basis, it is apparent that search engine optimization can serve as an massive benefit to business that draw some or all of their clients by means of their webpage.

Via search engine optimization, you will take benefit of the folks who are coming by means of search engines like Google. The goal of search engine optimization is to guarantee that the hyperlink to your website is as close to the top of the list of natural search results as attainable when words relating to their enterprise are searched. Simply because more than fifty percent of all purchases on the internet are preceded by the use of a search engine and because folks seldom tend to look beneath the first 4 or five benefits of their search, it can be observed that search engine optimization is an critical component of getting the net site visitors that you need to have.

Search engine optimization offers numerous benefits over classic techniques of marketing. When you succeed in optimizing your web page for search engine benefits, you have also succeeded in making a page that is deemed to be relevant and useful to the search subject. 1 of the most important things about search engine optimization, nevertheless, is the fact that it is self-motivated, directed marketing. Essentially, no 1 desires to be bombarded with advertisements and links when they do not have time or aren?t in the mood. With search engine optimization, even so, your potential buyers are already looking for you, and when they discover your page, they will be pleased and grateful.

Whether you supply high tech networking options or you are an artist with a budding on the web gallery, it can?t be overstated that you require make certain that you can grab the interest of folks who may grow to be clients. If you are seeking to perform with search engine optimization methods, there are a lot of locations to start off. Taking into consideration creating your keyword density and making certain that you give plenty of context for those search phrases Google is definitely sophisticated adequate to choose up on sites that merely stuff their pages with lists of keywords. Think about developing an article archive or a glossary to assist you with this. You can also attempt to raise your position with Google through a concentrated effort at link constructing. By means of link creating, that is, generating sure that lots of internet sites link to you with out your offering a link in return, you can make confident that your standing with the search engine goes up.

If you are interested in search engine optimization but aren?t sure exactly where to start off, there are a lot of pros and consultants who can assist you out. These men and women carry out optimization projects on behalf of their consumers and their services can range from simple suggestions to functioning with the HTML code of your webpage. No matter how you do it, make sure that you don?t let this essential resource leave your internet site in the dust! Search Engine Placement An Vital Web Marketing and advertising Method - Trackpedia

Source: http://culturapopulara.ro/?p=30531

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NKorea's Kim visits front-line troops amid tension

South Korean Army soldiers work on their K-9 self-propelled artillery vehicle during an exercise against possible attacks by North Korea near the border village of Panmunjom in Paju, South Korea, Monday, March 11, 2013. South Korea and the U.S. on Monday kicked off an annual military drill amid worries about a possible bloodshed following North Korea?s threat to scrap a decades-old war armistice and launch a nuclear attack on the U.S. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

South Korean Army soldiers work on their K-9 self-propelled artillery vehicle during an exercise against possible attacks by North Korea near the border village of Panmunjom in Paju, South Korea, Monday, March 11, 2013. South Korea and the U.S. on Monday kicked off an annual military drill amid worries about a possible bloodshed following North Korea?s threat to scrap a decades-old war armistice and launch a nuclear attack on the U.S. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

South Korean protesters hit a huge banner with a picture of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a rally denouncing North Korea's recent threat and supporting South Korean President Park Geun-hye near the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 11, 2013. South Korea and the United States began annual military drills Monday despite North Korean threats to respond by voiding the armistice that ended the Korean War and launching a nuclear attack on the U.S. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

South Korean protesters wearing masks hold placards during a rally denouncing the annual joint military exercises, dubbed Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, between South Korea and the United States, near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 11, 2013. South Korea and the United States began annual military drills Monday despite North Korean threats to respond by voiding the armistice that ended the Korean War and launching a nuclear attack on the U.S. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A South Korean protester holds a sign during a rally denouncing the annual joint military exercises, dubbed Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, between South Korea and the United States, near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 11, 2013. South Korea and the United States began annual military drills Monday despite North Korean threats to respond by voiding the armistice that ended the Korean War and launching a nuclear attack on the U.S. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

South Korean protesters wearing masks hold placards during a rally denouncing the annual joint military exercises, dubbed Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, between South Korea and the United States, near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 11, 2013. South Korea and the United States began annual military drills Monday despite North Korean threats to respond by voiding the armistice that ended the Korean War and launching a nuclear attack on the U.S. The letters read "When the war occurs, all 70 million people will die." (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

(AP) ? North Korea's young leader urged front-line troops to be on "maximum alert" for a potential war as a state-run newspaper said Pyongyang had carried out a threat to cancel the 1953 armistice that ended the Korean War.

Kim Jong Un told artillery troops stationed near disputed waters that have seen several bloody clashes in past years that "war can break out right now," according to a report by North Korean state media.

Kim's visit and the armistice claim are part of a torrent of angry North Korean rhetoric that has followed last week's U.N. sanctions over Pyongyang's Feb. 12 nuclear test. Pyongyang has also vowed to strike the United States with nuclear weapons.

It is unclear, however, what will come next and whether North Korea will match its words with action. A U.N. spokesman said that Pyongyang cannot unilaterally dissolve the armistice. Pyongyang is also years away from acquiring the smaller, lighter nuclear warheads needed to pose a credible nuclear missile threat to the United States.

Indeed, several signs pointed to business as usual between the Koreas ? despite the bluster.

North Korea apparently cut one telephone and fax hotline at a village straddling the Demilitarized Zone between the countries, but otherwise there have been no substantial operational changes, Seoul's Unification Ministry and Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday.

There are at least two other working communication channels between the Koreas. As they did Monday, the two Koreas used a separate military hotline Tuesday to allow hundreds of South Koreans to cross the border to a jointly run factory park in the North Korean border town of Kaesong, according to the South's Unification Ministry.

Much of the bellicosity is seen as an effort to shore up loyalty among citizens and the military for Kim Jong Un.

Still, North Korea's anger, and Seoul's stern rebuttals, is boosting animosity and causing worries on an already tense Korean Peninsula. The rivals this week are also holding dueling military drills.

U.S. National Security adviser Tom Donilon told the Asia Society in New York that Pyongyang's claims may be "hyperbolic," but the United States will protect its allies.

"There should be no doubt: We will draw upon the full range of our capabilities to protect against, and to respond to, the threat posed to us and to our allies by North Korea," Donilon said.

Aside from the nuclear threats, Pyongyang has so far only made a somewhat mysterious promise to strike its enemies at a time and place of its own choosing. This alarms many, however, as two sudden attacks blamed on North Korea killed 50 South Koreans in 2010.

Seoul has responded to North Korean threats with tough talk of its own and has placed its troops on high alert.

The North Korean government made no formal announcement on its repeated threats to scrap the 60-year-old armistice, but the country's main newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, reported that the armistice was nullified Monday as Pyongyang had said it would.

The North has threatened to nullify the armistice several times before, and in 1996, after one such vow, it sent hundreds of armed troops into a border village. The troops later withdrew.

Despite the Rodong Sinmun report, U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said the armistice is still valid and still in force because the armistice agreement had been adopted by the U.N. General Assembly and can't be dissolved unilaterally.

Nesirky added that officials at U.N. headquarters in New York were unaware of any operational changes on the ground on the Korean Peninsula.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said the U.S. was "certainly concerned by North Korea's bellicose rhetoric. And the threats that they have been making follow a pattern designed to raise tension and intimidate others."

The angry words from both Koreas haven't stopped them from communicating about the only remaining operational symbol of joint cooperation, the Kaesong industrial complex. It is operated in North Korea with South Korean money and know-how and a mostly North Korean workforce ? and provides a badly needed flow of hard currency to a country where many face food shortages.

"If South Koreans don't go to work at Kaesong, North Korea will suffer" financially, said analyst Hong Hyun-ik at the private Sejong Institute in South Korea. "If North Korea really intends to start a war with South Korea, it could have taken South Koreans at Kaesong hostage."

The 11-day U.S.-South Korean joint military drills that started Monday involve 10,000 South Korean and about 3,000 U.S. troops. Those coincide with two months of separate U.S.-South Korean field exercises that began March 1.

Also continuing are large-scale North Korean drills that Seoul says involve the army, navy and air force. The South Korean Defense Ministry said there have been no military activities it considers suspicious.

The North Korean rhetoric escalated as the U.N. Security Council on Thursday approved a new round of sanctions over Pyongyang's nuclear test.

"This is part of their brinksmanship," said Daniel Pinkston, a Seoul-based expert on North Korea with the International Crisis Group think tank. "It's an effort to signal their resolve, to show they are willing to take greater risks, with the expectation that everyone else caves in and gives them what they want."

Part of what North Korea wants is a formal peace treaty to end the Korean War, instead of the armistice that leaves the peninsula still technically in a state of war. It also wants security guarantees and other concessions, direct talks with Washington, recognition as a nuclear weapons state, and the removal of 28,500 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea.

Pinkston said there is little chance of fighting breaking out while war games are being conducted, but he added that he expects North Korea to stage some sort of provocation in the future.

North Korea was responsible for an artillery attack that killed four South Koreans in 2010. A South Korean-led international investigation found that North Korea torpedoed a South Korean warship that same year, killing 46 sailors. Pyongyang denies sinking the ship.

South Korean and U.S. officials have been closely monitoring Pyongyang's actions and parsing its recent rhetoric, which has been more warlike than usual.

Under new President Park Geun-hye, South Korea's Defense Ministry, which often brushes off North Korean threats, has looked to send a message of strength in response to the latest comments from Pyongyang.

The ministry has warned that the North's government would "evaporate from the face of the Earth" if it ever used a nuclear weapon.

While outside scientists are still trying to determine specifics, the North's rocket test in December and third nuclear test last month may have pushed the country a step closer to acquiring the ability to hit the U.S. with weapons of mass destruction.

Analysts have also said that more missile and nuclear tests are possible reactions from North Korea.

North Korea has a variety of missiles and other weapons capable of striking South Korea. Both the warship sinking and island shelling in 2010 occurred near a western sea boundary that North Korea fiercely disputes. It has been a recurring flashpoint between the rivals that has seen three other bloody naval skirmishes since 1999.

___

Associated Press writers Peter James Spielmann at the United Nations, and Nedra Pickler, Matthew Pennington and Bradley Klapper in Washington contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-11-Koreas-Tension/id-ea20f9eb0b5a43cdb86b94dfaaf53031

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