Frugal Living: Sep 13, 2008

misc.consumers.frugal-living
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living?hl=en

misc.consumers.frugal-living@googlegroups.com

Today's topics:

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Wonderful!!!!good news!!! Newest NIKE shoes 8-35USD at www.ciciaaa.cn
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/9d4f5f445a5402b6?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Fri, Sep 12 2008 9:55 pm
From: cicitrade01@yahoo.cn

hi
We are supplier in china Footwear Apparel Handbags Jeans&Pants Cap
Accessory
1) Top quality, reasonable price, safe shipping, and best service
2) Sport shoes for men, women and kids with all sizes available
3) Sport shoes with different colors and styles available in stock
4) The material and size can be required to make in accordance with
customers' requests

Price :8-35usd 6-30EURO 5-30Pounds

size chart
Men Size:
US: 7 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 10.5 11 11.5 12 13 14 15
UK: 6 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 10.5 11 12 13 14
EUR: 40 41 42 42.5 43 44 44.5 45 45.5 46 47.5 48 49
Women Size:
US: 5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5
UK: 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5 5 5.5 6
EUR: 35.5 36 36.5 37.5 38 38.5 39 40

Kid's
US: 11C 12C 12.5C 13C 1Y 1.5Y 2.5Y 3Y
EUR:28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35

Clothing Size:
S M L XL XXL XXXL XXXXL XXXXXL

Footwear
http://www.ciciaaa.cn
Apparel
http://www.ciciaaa.cn
Handbags
http://www.ciciaaa.cn
Jeans&Pants
http://www.ciciaaa.cn
Cap
http://www.ciciaaa.cn
Accessory
http://www.ciciaaa.cn
electronics product
http://picasaweb.google.com/cicitrade.eleltronics
CiCi
www.ciciaaa.cn
MSN:cicitrade@live.cn
Building Material Market, Goutou Denizen Committee, XiaChen Office
Putian City Chengxiang District CiCi Trade Co., Ltd

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Best way to activate service through PagePlus
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/65540bdf1b5324ab?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 12:00 am
From: agksoe890@gmail.com

I do not see any reason why anyone would want to go tru a dealer while
they can deal direct with Pagaplus Customer Service. I'd suggest
averybody to avoid the "Over the phone" customer service. Email, in my
case is the best way to do business with PP. Any Verizon digital phone
will work. I've been with PP for quite awhile now and I'm very pleased
so far.
On Sep 5, 1:41 pm, Doc <docsavag...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> If I want to activate PagePlus prepaid cel service, any
> recommendations as to the best way to do it? I see PagePlus has 3
> different plans, do you need to activate *under* a particular plan or
> are activation and selection of a plan two different issues?
>
> I see there are activations available on ebay, as well as vendors on
> PagePlus's site. Any advantage, disadvantage to going one route or the
> other? Is there anything to know that a vendor might not tell you?
>
> As I understand it, the only phone that's guaranteed to work is a
> Verizon phone. Why is this? Can you use ANY Verizon phone? Does it
> matter if it's a few years old - i.e. used?
>
> As an observation, I called the PagePlus customer service number and
> got someone who spoke very fractured, heavily Spanish-accented
> English, who it seemed ultimately hung up on me when I couldn't
> understand them and asked them to repeat themselves. Called back and
> got someone else who was also marginally intelligible, who gave me a
> number for a PagePlus vendor that is out of order.
>
> Anyone have any major problems with PagePlus customer service?
>
> Thanks for all input

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 8:42 am
From: Todd Allcock

At 13 Sep 2008 00:00:39 -0700 agksoe890@gmail.com wrote:
> I do not see any reason why anyone would want to go tru a dealer while
> they can deal direct with Pagaplus Customer Service.

AFAIK, PP customer service doesn't activate phones, so you need a dealer to
start your service.

> I'd suggest
> averybody to avoid the "Over the phone" customer service. Email, in my
> case is the best way to do business with PP. Any Verizon digital phone
> will work. I've been with PP for quite awhile now and I'm very pleased
> so far.

As am I- they're an excellent rural backup for my more featured GSM phones.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: free wonderful thing..all you S..EXPECTED free freee( sexy..)
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/03e93f3b950ab88a?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 12:19 am
From: big nature

well its all about sharing freindly messages ,
POEMS
FEELINGS
SCIENCE,
CHATING
, jokes , funny images and a lot of fun

*********************************
http://simcord.blogspot.com/
*********************************

see upto the BOTTOM

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Milenko Kindl comes to Lousiana
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/e7de7836acdd538f?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 12:56 am
From: yuma400000@yahoo.com

Milenko Kindl

LAKE CHARLES, La. - Storm surge driven by Hurricane Ike breached
levees in coastal Louisiana Friday and flooded hundreds of homes in
areas along the Gulf of Mexico still recovering from Gustav.
ADVERTISEMENT

About 1,800 homes and business flooded in coastal Cameron Parish as
the storm churned toward expected landfall in Texas, said Gov. Bobby
Jindal, and he expected water to eventually inundate all 2,900 homes
in the area. Flooded homes were reported in other parishes, though
numbers were sketchy at nightfall.

Flooding was reported in areas from Plaquemines Parish in southeast
Louisiana to Cameron Parish on the Texas line.

"It's going to be devastating for people," said Cameron Parish
emergency preparedness director Clifton Hebert. "We don't have the
wind that Rita brought, but we have at least the same storm surge, if
not a little more."

In nearby Terrebonne Parish, crews worked to plug at least four
breaches. Officials said areas in which Rita inundated 10,000 homes in
2005 were vulnerable again.

More than 160 people were rescued from flooding Friday, Jindal said.

About 130 people remained in the fishing community on the barrier
island of Grand Isle after storm surge cut off the only road to the
mainland, said Gov. Bobby Jindal.

Jindal said search and rescue teams would head to the island as soon
as wind abated and water receded.

He told residents they could break into a state wildlife and fisheries
lab that was deemed a safe structure. He called it "the most unusual
piece of advice I might give."

More than 100,000 customers were without electricity Friday night, a
number that also included some customers who lost power in Gustav, the
Louisiana Public Service Commission said.

Milenko Kindl
Banja Luka
Banjaluka

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 1:30 am
From: "Runge12"

<yuma400000@yahoo.com> a écrit dans le message de
news:6dce8fc3-92bf-4f0b-86f1-5929a150ce6b@i76g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
> Milenko Kindl
>
> LAKE CHARLES, La. - Storm surge driven by Hurricane Ike breached
> levees in coastal Louisiana Friday and flooded hundreds of homes in
> areas along the Gulf of Mexico still recovering from Gustav.
> ADVERTISEMENT
>
> About 1,800 homes and business flooded in coastal Cameron Parish as
> the storm churned toward expected landfall in Texas, said Gov. Bobby
> Jindal, and he expected water to eventually inundate all 2,900 homes
> in the area. Flooded homes were reported in other parishes, though
> numbers were sketchy at nightfall.
>
> Flooding was reported in areas from Plaquemines Parish in southeast
> Louisiana to Cameron Parish on the Texas line.
>
> "It's going to be devastating for people," said Cameron Parish
> emergency preparedness director Clifton Hebert. "We don't have the
> wind that Rita brought, but we have at least the same storm surge, if
> not a little more."
>
> In nearby Terrebonne Parish, crews worked to plug at least four
> breaches. Officials said areas in which Rita inundated 10,000 homes in
> 2005 were vulnerable again.
>
> More than 160 people were rescued from flooding Friday, Jindal said.
>
> About 130 people remained in the fishing community on the barrier
> island of Grand Isle after storm surge cut off the only road to the
> mainland, said Gov. Bobby Jindal.
>
> Jindal said search and rescue teams would head to the island as soon
> as wind abated and water receded.
>
> He told residents they could break into a state wildlife and fisheries
> lab that was deemed a safe structure. He called it "the most unusual
> piece of advice I might give."
>
> More than 100,000 customers were without electricity Friday night, a
> number that also included some customers who lost power in Gustav, the
> Louisiana Public Service Commission said.
>
> Milenko Kindl
> Banja Luka
> Banjaluka

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Toddler killed by van's power window
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/d16eb14bf1ca3011?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 3:27 am
From: ultimauw@live.com

http://www.ktla.com/pages/content_landing_page/?Toddler-Dies-After-Getting-Stuck-In-Powe=1&blockID=55921&feedID=1198

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Miodrag Smoljanovc Cvrcko is cash machine
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/fa96466db4fae34c?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 4 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 3:31 am
From: Miodrag Smoljanovic Cvrcko

Miodrag Smoljanovc Cvrcko

Sept. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Barack Obama may be playing possum.
ADVERTISEMENT

John McCain's campaign is boasting about a surge in fundraising
following his pick of running mate Sarah Palin, a swell of cash that
his campaign says has eroded the money advantage Obama once enjoyed.

The Illinois senator's campaign hasn't done much to refute the notion
its financial edge may be shrinking. So far, though, Obama's aides
privately say they're keeping a low profile so donors don't get
complacent, suggesting that August contributions -- to be disclosed
next week -- will top February's one-month record of $55 million. And
Palin, while energizing Republicans, has also motivated Democratic
donors.

Less than two months before Election Day, money raised from this point
comes on top of millions of dollars Obama has already spent to train
staff and open offices in competitive states -- building a more
extensive operation than McCain and Republicans have been able to put
together so far.

``This was always an election where we needed to significantly broaden
the battlefield and put in play a whole series of states that have not
been competitive,'' said former Democratic National Committee Chairman
Steve Grossman, who is raising money for Obama, 47. ``That takes a lot
of money. I have no doubt we'll be able to implement that plan.''

Obama may yet face fundraising challenges. Unlike McCain, 72, the
Democrat spurned federal campaign financing and is banking on money
from supporters. Attracting contributions may get tougher if the
Republican Arizona senator's poll numbers keep strengthening.

Victory Prospects

``Contributions follow prospects of victory,'' said Costas
Panagopoulos, director of Fordham University's Center for Electoral
Politics and Democracy in the Bronx. ``If the prospects diminish, so
will some of his contributions.''

By the same token, Republicans may rake in more than expected if
McCain holds onto his bounce in the polls since the Republican
National Convention.

``Folks are much more inclined to invest when they think there is
going to be a payoff,'' former Republican National Committee deputy
chairman Eddie Mahe said.

McCain's campaign organization is limited to $84.1 million in public
financing. Obama isn't subject to spending restrictions after becoming
the first major-party nominee to refuse public funding.

Obama raised more than double McCain's haul before the nominating
conventions, $390 million to $160 million, and spent some of that
money hiring workers and setting up get-out-the-vote operations.

On-The-Ground Organization

``The story of the Democratic primary was a superior on-the- ground
Obama organization,'' said Rogan Kersh, associate dean of New York
University's Wagner School of Public Service. ``This fundraising
differential may mean we see that movie sequel in November.''

In June and July, Obama spent $5 million on staff; McCain spent $2.8
million, Federal Election Commission reports show. Last week, Obama
opened 35 new offices in Pennsylvania, the campaign announced. Obama
is also competing in states such as Virginia and North Carolina that
in recent elections haven't been hospitable to Democratic presidential
nominees. There are 27 offices in Virginia, for example, according to
his Web site.

That means McCain and the RNC during the two-month sprint to Nov. 4
will be spending part of their budget matching expenditures Obama has
already made. This week, McCain and the RNC began adding campaign
staff, with an eye toward doubling the size of the party's ground
operation in 14 states.

Party Assistance

In the money contest, McCain is getting help from the national
Republican Party, which has so far taken in $100 million more than the
Democratic National Committee to help promote its ticket.

In mid-June, Obama set a goal of raising a combined $450 million for
his campaign and the DNC by Election Day. Reaching that target
requires an unprecedented average of $100 million per month. Democrats
didn't hit the mark in July, when Obama drew $51 million and the DNC
got $27 million.

Both parties now say they're on a pace to meet the mid- summer
fundraising targets -- which would give Obama and the Democratic Party
about a $100 million spending advantage.

Time for Fundraising

Even so, Obama has to take time away from competing for votes to raise
the private contributions his campaign needs. He spent Sept. 5 at two
New Jersey events, including one at the home of musician Jon Bon Jovi
where donors gave $30,800. On Sept. 16, he's scheduled for a $2,500-
per-person Beverly Hills, California, fundraiser and concert featuring
Barbra Streisand.

``It's a huge advantage when you're not so heavily encumbered by
fundraising,'' said former Representative Jim Davis, a Florida
Democrat. ``But Senator Obama has found the balance between the time
he spends getting to know people and funding his campaign.''

Obama has also gone back to his small donors -- 49 percent of his
contributors through July 31 gave $200 or less. That means the
Democratic nominee has millions of financial supporters who can donate
again without exceeding federal contribution limits.

His campaign raised $10 million on Sept. 4, the day after Palin
addressed the Republican nominating convention, for its biggest one-
day haul of the campaign.

``We had a terrific summer,'' said Obama's campaign manager, David
Plouffe. ``We always knew the Republicans would do well financially.
They always do. Our imperative is to just make sure that we raise what
we need to execute our plan.''

McCain raised $50 million last month, campaign manager Rick Davis
said, including $10 million after Palin was picked. ``Basically what
we've done is take money out of the equation,'' Davis said.

== 2 of 4 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 4:34 am
From: "Runge12"

"Miodrag Smoljanovic Cvrcko" <miodrag.smoljanovic@gmail.com> a écrit dans le
message de
news:8cf48003-96b4-42e6-be40-4b1c8e4428fd@k30g2000hse.googlegroups.com...
> Miodrag Smoljanovc Cvrcko
>
> Sept. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Barack Obama may be playing possum.
> ADVERTISEMENT
>
> John McCain's campaign is boasting about a surge in fundraising
> following his pick of running mate Sarah Palin, a swell of cash that
> his campaign says has eroded the money advantage Obama once enjoyed.
>
> The Illinois senator's campaign hasn't done much to refute the notion
> its financial edge may be shrinking. So far, though, Obama's aides
> privately say they're keeping a low profile so donors don't get
> complacent, suggesting that August contributions -- to be disclosed
> next week -- will top February's one-month record of $55 million. And
> Palin, while energizing Republicans, has also motivated Democratic
> donors.
>
> Less than two months before Election Day, money raised from this point
> comes on top of millions of dollars Obama has already spent to train
> staff and open offices in competitive states -- building a more
> extensive operation than McCain and Republicans have been able to put
> together so far.
>
> ``This was always an election where we needed to significantly broaden
> the battlefield and put in play a whole series of states that have not
> been competitive,'' said former Democratic National Committee Chairman
> Steve Grossman, who is raising money for Obama, 47. ``That takes a lot
> of money. I have no doubt we'll be able to implement that plan.''
>
> Obama may yet face fundraising challenges. Unlike McCain, 72, the
> Democrat spurned federal campaign financing and is banking on money
> from supporters. Attracting contributions may get tougher if the
> Republican Arizona senator's poll numbers keep strengthening.
>
> Victory Prospects
>
> ``Contributions follow prospects of victory,'' said Costas
> Panagopoulos, director of Fordham University's Center for Electoral
> Politics and Democracy in the Bronx. ``If the prospects diminish, so
> will some of his contributions.''
>
> By the same token, Republicans may rake in more than expected if
> McCain holds onto his bounce in the polls since the Republican
> National Convention.
>
> ``Folks are much more inclined to invest when they think there is
> going to be a payoff,'' former Republican National Committee deputy
> chairman Eddie Mahe said.
>
> McCain's campaign organization is limited to $84.1 million in public
> financing. Obama isn't subject to spending restrictions after becoming
> the first major-party nominee to refuse public funding.
>
> Obama raised more than double McCain's haul before the nominating
> conventions, $390 million to $160 million, and spent some of that
> money hiring workers and setting up get-out-the-vote operations.
>
> On-The-Ground Organization
>
> ``The story of the Democratic primary was a superior on-the- ground
> Obama organization,'' said Rogan Kersh, associate dean of New York
> University's Wagner School of Public Service. ``This fundraising
> differential may mean we see that movie sequel in November.''
>
> In June and July, Obama spent $5 million on staff; McCain spent $2.8
> million, Federal Election Commission reports show. Last week, Obama
> opened 35 new offices in Pennsylvania, the campaign announced. Obama
> is also competing in states such as Virginia and North Carolina that
> in recent elections haven't been hospitable to Democratic presidential
> nominees. There are 27 offices in Virginia, for example, according to
> his Web site.
>
> That means McCain and the RNC during the two-month sprint to Nov. 4
> will be spending part of their budget matching expenditures Obama has
> already made. This week, McCain and the RNC began adding campaign
> staff, with an eye toward doubling the size of the party's ground
> operation in 14 states.
>
> Party Assistance
>
> In the money contest, McCain is getting help from the national
> Republican Party, which has so far taken in $100 million more than the
> Democratic National Committee to help promote its ticket.
>
> In mid-June, Obama set a goal of raising a combined $450 million for
> his campaign and the DNC by Election Day. Reaching that target
> requires an unprecedented average of $100 million per month. Democrats
> didn't hit the mark in July, when Obama drew $51 million and the DNC
> got $27 million.
>
> Both parties now say they're on a pace to meet the mid- summer
> fundraising targets -- which would give Obama and the Democratic Party
> about a $100 million spending advantage.
>
> Time for Fundraising
>
> Even so, Obama has to take time away from competing for votes to raise
> the private contributions his campaign needs. He spent Sept. 5 at two
> New Jersey events, including one at the home of musician Jon Bon Jovi
> where donors gave $30,800. On Sept. 16, he's scheduled for a $2,500-
> per-person Beverly Hills, California, fundraiser and concert featuring
> Barbra Streisand.
>
> ``It's a huge advantage when you're not so heavily encumbered by
> fundraising,'' said former Representative Jim Davis, a Florida
> Democrat. ``But Senator Obama has found the balance between the time
> he spends getting to know people and funding his campaign.''
>
> Obama has also gone back to his small donors -- 49 percent of his
> contributors through July 31 gave $200 or less. That means the
> Democratic nominee has millions of financial supporters who can donate
> again without exceeding federal contribution limits.
>
> His campaign raised $10 million on Sept. 4, the day after Palin
> addressed the Republican nominating convention, for its biggest one-
> day haul of the campaign.
>
> ``We had a terrific summer,'' said Obama's campaign manager, David
> Plouffe. ``We always knew the Republicans would do well financially.
> They always do. Our imperative is to just make sure that we raise what
> we need to execute our plan.''
>
> McCain raised $50 million last month, campaign manager Rick Davis
> said, including $10 million after Palin was picked. ``Basically what
> we've done is take money out of the equation,'' Davis said.

== 3 of 4 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 5:44 am
From: Frog in a bucket

On 13 Sep, 12:31, Miodrag Smoljanovic Cvrcko
<miodrag.smoljano...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Miodrag Smoljanovc Cvrcko
>
> Sept. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Barack Obama may be playing possum.
> ADVERTISEMENT
>
> John McCain's campaign is boasting about a surge in fundraising
> following his pick of running mate Sarah Palin, a swell of cash that
> his campaign says has eroded the money advantage Obama once enjoyed.
>
> The Illinois senator's campaign hasn't done much to refute the notion
> its financial edge may be shrinking. So far, though, Obama's aides
> privately say they're keeping a low profile so donors don't get
> complacent, suggesting that August contributions -- to be disclosed
> next week -- will top February's one-month record of $55 million. And
> Palin, while energizing Republicans, has also motivated Democratic
> donors.
>
> Less than two months before Election Day, money raised from this point
> comes on top of millions of dollars Obama has already spent to train
> staff and open offices in competitive states -- building a more
> extensive operation than McCain and Republicans have been able to put
> together so far.
>
> ``This was always an election where we needed to significantly broaden
> the battlefield and put in play a whole series of states that have not
> been competitive,'' said former Democratic National Committee Chairman
> Steve Grossman, who is raising money for Obama, 47. ``That takes a lot
> of money. I have no doubt we'll be able to implement that plan.''
>
> Obama may yet face fundraising challenges. Unlike McCain, 72, the
> Democrat spurned federal campaign financing and is banking on money
> from supporters. Attracting contributions may get tougher if the
> Republican Arizona senator's poll numbers keep strengthening.
>
> Victory Prospects
>
> ``Contributions follow prospects of victory,'' said Costas
> Panagopoulos, director of Fordham University's Center for Electoral
> Politics and Democracy in the Bronx. ``If the prospects diminish, so
> will some of his contributions.''
>
> By the same token, Republicans may rake in more than expected if
> McCain holds onto his bounce in the polls since the Republican
> National Convention.
>
> ``Folks are much more inclined to invest when they think there is
> going to be a payoff,'' former Republican National Committee deputy
> chairman Eddie Mahe said.
>
> McCain's campaign organization is limited to $84.1 million in public
> financing. Obama isn't subject to spending restrictions after becoming
> the first major-party nominee to refuse public funding.
>
> Obama raised more than double McCain's haul before the nominating
> conventions, $390 million to $160 million, and spent some of that
> money hiring workers and setting up get-out-the-vote operations.
>
> On-The-Ground Organization
>
> ``The story of the Democratic primary was a superior on-the- ground
> Obama organization,'' said Rogan Kersh, associate dean of New York
> University's Wagner School of Public Service. ``This fundraising
> differential may mean we see that movie sequel in November.''
>
> In June and July, Obama spent $5 million on staff; McCain spent $2.8
> million, Federal Election Commission reports show. Last week, Obama
> opened 35 new offices in Pennsylvania, the campaign announced. Obama
> is also competing in states such as Virginia and North Carolina that
> in recent elections haven't been hospitable to Democratic presidential
> nominees. There are 27 offices in Virginia, for example, according to
> his Web site.
>
> That means McCain and the RNC during the two-month sprint to Nov. 4
> will be spending part of their budget matching expenditures Obama has
> already made. This week, McCain and the RNC began adding campaign
> staff, with an eye toward doubling the size of the party's ground
> operation in 14 states.
>
> Party Assistance
>
> In the money contest, McCain is getting help from the national
> Republican Party, which has so far taken in $100 million more than the
> Democratic National Committee to help promote its ticket.
>
> In mid-June, Obama set a goal of raising a combined $450 million for
> his campaign and the DNC by Election Day. Reaching that target
> requires an unprecedented average of $100 million per month. Democrats
> didn't hit the mark in July, when Obama drew $51 million and the DNC
> got $27 million.
>
> Both parties now say they're on a pace to meet the mid- summer
> fundraising targets -- which would give Obama and the Democratic Party
> about a $100 million spending advantage.
>
> Time for Fundraising
>
> Even so, Obama has to take time away from competing for votes to raise
> the private contributions his campaign needs. He spent Sept. 5 at two
> New Jersey events, including one at the home of musician Jon Bon Jovi
> where donors gave $30,800. On Sept. 16, he's scheduled for a $2,500-
> per-person Beverly Hills, California, fundraiser and concert featuring
> Barbra Streisand.
>
> ``It's a huge advantage when you're not so heavily encumbered by
> fundraising,'' said former Representative Jim Davis, a Florida
> Democrat. ``But Senator Obama has found the balance between the time
> he spends getting to know people and funding his campaign.''
>
> Obama has also gone back to his small donors -- 49 percent of his
> contributors through July 31 gave $200 or less. That means the
> Democratic nominee has millions of financial supporters who can donate
> again without exceeding federal contribution limits.
>
> His campaign raised $10 million on Sept. 4, the day after Palin
> addressed the Republican nominating convention, for its biggest one-
> day haul of the campaign.
>
> ``We had a terrific summer,'' said Obama's campaign manager, David
> Plouffe. ``We always knew the Republicans would do well financially.
> They always do. Our imperative is to just make sure that we raise what
> we need to execute our plan.''
>
> McCain raised $50 million last month, campaign manager Rick Davis
> said, including $10 million after Palin was picked. ``Basically what
> we've done is take money out of the equation,'' Davis said.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/sep/13/uselections2008.republicans

The bloody rise of the vote hunter

Whether it's moose, duck or bongo, the slaughter of gentle creatures
has been the making of many a Republican politician

All this talk about moose hunting! It is as though, because of the
animal's enormous size and imposing antlers, bringing one down is a
heroic feat of marksmanship. Nothing could be further from the truth.
As Henry David Thoreau wrote in The Maine Woods, killing these big,
gentle, myopic creatures is more "like going out by night to some
woodside pasture and shooting your neighbour's horses".

Thoreau's descriptions of the moose he saw in Maine are inspired and
fanciful: "They made me think of great frightened rabbits"; "It
reminded me at once of the camelopard". And he alludes to the moose's
"branching and leafy horns - a sort of fucus or lichen in bone". In
all these descriptions there is affection and awe. The killing of a
moose is in Thoreau's view always a tragedy. He witnessed one being
shot, and "nature looked sternly upon me on account of the murder of
the moose". In another passage, Thoreau grudgingly acknowledges that
moose are hunted by Indians out of necessity - for their meat, for
their hides, as part of Indian custom and tradition. This was in 1853.

American politicians seldom take notice of American writers,
especially the boldest ones, like Thoreau, whose every word is at odds
with their grovelling and grandstanding, and their sanctimonious cant.
Think of the average politician today and then reflect on how Thoreau
had no time for organised religion, how he mocked clergymen, jeered at
missionaries, warmongers and Bible-thumpers. He was a defender of John
Brown and the rebellious spirit in American life, and especially a
proponent of human rights. He hated the thought of the wilderness
being opened to development; he wrote scathingly of lumberjacks and
logging operations. He would have cheered the demonstrators and sign-
carriers outside the Republican convention in St Paul. He would have
mocked the people inside. He would have denounced the prison at
Guantánamo. He wrote against injustice; he despised politicians and
hunters.

And yet, as we saw at the Republican convention, hunting seems to
define a certain species of American politician. It's nothing new.
When Teddy Roosevelt left office he travelled to Africa, and - in the
role of evil twin to the Biblical Noah - hunted down and killed two
(and sometimes 18) of every species of animal that could be found from
the Kenyan coast to the swamps of southern Sudan: total bag, 512
creatures. In his account of the safari, African Game Trails (1910),
he wrote: "The land teems with beasts of the chase, infinite in
number ..."

"Infinite" is credulous hyperbole - many of those animals are now
extinct or severely endangered. Take the bongo, a large African
antelope - nearly as large as a moose - now almost gone, because of
hunters and poachers. In Uganda, where it roamed in sizable numbers
when I lived there, it has been wiped out. Maurice Stans, the
disgraced Nixon commerce secretary, helped in the effort to eradicate
this gentle animal when, in the 1960s, he sicced his dogs on them -
the conventional way to corner a bongo - then presumably gestured to
his gun bearer ("Here is your bunduki, bwana"), and shot two of them,
as trophies. It was not an incidental act: Stans defined himself
politically as a big-game hunter.

You would be forgiven for believing that the Menendez brothers gave
Dick Cheney lessons in handling a shotgun - still, he is by all
accounts a keen hunter. But who knew that Justice Antonin Scalia was
also a duck hunter? Perhaps it is not odd that someone who advocates
physical harm to a human being wouldn't shrink from blowing a small
bird apart. Earlier this year, asked his views on torture, Scalia said
on the BBC: "It seems to me you have to say, as unlikely as that is,
it would be absurd to say you couldn't, I don't know, stick something
under the fingernail, smack him in the face. It would be absurd to say
you couldn't do that." Cheney agrees with him on the subject of
torture, so it is no surprise that these men are hunting buddies,
huddled in the same duck blind, torturing animals to death with
buckshot.

A lot can be told from the animals that people choose to kill. The
French shoot the most melodious larks and turn them into pâté. Many
English people are still indignant that restrictions have been placed
on the hunting of foxes, bongo style, chasing them with dogs that tear
them to pieces.

There is hunting for sport, and hunting for the pot; and, of course,
hunting for votes. The name of Teddy Roosevelt, the hunter, the moose
skinner, was invoked just the other day at the Republican convention,
in Fred Thompson's praise of Governor Sarah Palin. This mother of five
is now celebrated as a moose hunter and, more than that, as a moose
skinner, moose eater - and perhaps hanger of moose-head trophies. As
Governor Palin was delivering her acceptance speech, an immense colour
photograph of Alaska was projected behind her on the giant screen,
where in the twilit foreground a moose could be seen, placidly staring
at its reflection in water. And on the following day, in the video
that encapsulated her life, Palin was described as having risen early
with her father on cold mornings in Wasilla to go moose hunting, to
augment the family's diet.

Moose hunting is now seen as a possible Republican vote-getter,
especially as the hunter in question is a slightly built and
bespectacled mother of five. This casting against type presumably has
the same effect on the public imagination as the revelation that
defensive tackle Roosevelt Grier found relaxation in needlepoint.

I have no strong views on hunting, only the usual disgust when I see a
creature senselessly slaughtered at no risk to the hunter - "a
fabulous animal", as Thoreau called the moose, serving as no more than
a target and an excuse for a stew. In a book Sarah Palin probably has
not read (someone as philistine and driven as she is doesn't seem to
have much time for reading, as her quest to ban books in the Wasilla
public library probably indicates), Thoreau remarked on how moose
sometimes weigh a thousand pounds, and how they "can step over a five-
foot gate in their ordinary walk".

While people cheered, Palin was lauded for knowing how to "field-
dress" a moose. Thoreau, who watched such an operation take place,
wrote: "Joe [his Penobscot guide] now proceeded to skin the moose with
a pocket knife, while I looked on, and a tragical business it was; to
see that still warm and palpitating body pierced with a knife, to see
the warm milk stream from the rent udder, and the ghastly naked red
carcass appearing from within its seemly robe." I read that and
somehow am not provoked to cheer.

In one of the great passages in the Chesuncook chapter, Thoreau writes
how the moose and the pine tree are linked in his mind. "A pine cut
down, a dead pine, is no more a pine than a dead human carcass is a
man." And he anticipated the environmental movement when he spoke of
the "petty and accidental uses" of whales and elephants, turned into
"buttons and flageolets". He continues: "Every creature is better
alive than dead, men and moose and pine trees, and he who understands
it aright will rather preserve life than destroy it."

· Paul Theroux's new book, Ghost Train to the Eastern Star, has just
been published by Hamish Hamilton paultheroux.com

== 4 of 4 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 9:59 am
From: "Runge12"

Yes michaelnewpoort, still nothing to say, eh ?

"Frog in a bucket" <michaelnewport@yahoo.com> a écrit dans le message de
news:05f13b5d-21fe-4af0-821d-086c8bd520c2@73g2000hsx.googlegroups.com...
On 13 Sep, 12:31, Miodrag Smoljanovic Cvrcko
<miodrag.smoljano...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Miodrag Smoljanovc Cvrcko
>
> Sept. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Barack Obama may be playing possum.
> ADVERTISEMENT
>
> John McCain's campaign is boasting about a surge in fundraising
> following his pick of running mate Sarah Palin, a swell of cash that
> his campaign says has eroded the money advantage Obama once enjoyed.
>
> The Illinois senator's campaign hasn't done much to refute the notion
> its financial edge may be shrinking. So far, though, Obama's aides
> privately say they're keeping a low profile so donors don't get
> complacent, suggesting that August contributions -- to be disclosed
> next week -- will top February's one-month record of $55 million. And
> Palin, while energizing Republicans, has also motivated Democratic
> donors.
>
> Less than two months before Election Day, money raised from this point
> comes on top of millions of dollars Obama has already spent to train
> staff and open offices in competitive states -- building a more
> extensive operation than McCain and Republicans have been able to put
> together so far.
>
> ``This was always an election where we needed to significantly broaden
> the battlefield and put in play a whole series of states that have not
> been competitive,'' said former Democratic National Committee Chairman
> Steve Grossman, who is raising money for Obama, 47. ``That takes a lot
> of money. I have no doubt we'll be able to implement that plan.''
>
> Obama may yet face fundraising challenges. Unlike McCain, 72, the
> Democrat spurned federal campaign financing and is banking on money
> from supporters. Attracting contributions may get tougher if the
> Republican Arizona senator's poll numbers keep strengthening.
>
> Victory Prospects
>
> ``Contributions follow prospects of victory,'' said Costas
> Panagopoulos, director of Fordham University's Center for Electoral
> Politics and Democracy in the Bronx. ``If the prospects diminish, so
> will some of his contributions.''
>
> By the same token, Republicans may rake in more than expected if
> McCain holds onto his bounce in the polls since the Republican
> National Convention.
>
> ``Folks are much more inclined to invest when they think there is
> going to be a payoff,'' former Republican National Committee deputy
> chairman Eddie Mahe said.
>
> McCain's campaign organization is limited to $84.1 million in public
> financing. Obama isn't subject to spending restrictions after becoming
> the first major-party nominee to refuse public funding.
>
> Obama raised more than double McCain's haul before the nominating
> conventions, $390 million to $160 million, and spent some of that
> money hiring workers and setting up get-out-the-vote operations.
>
> On-The-Ground Organization
>
> ``The story of the Democratic primary was a superior on-the- ground
> Obama organization,'' said Rogan Kersh, associate dean of New York
> University's Wagner School of Public Service. ``This fundraising
> differential may mean we see that movie sequel in November.''
>
> In June and July, Obama spent $5 million on staff; McCain spent $2.8
> million, Federal Election Commission reports show. Last week, Obama
> opened 35 new offices in Pennsylvania, the campaign announced. Obama
> is also competing in states such as Virginia and North Carolina that
> in recent elections haven't been hospitable to Democratic presidential
> nominees. There are 27 offices in Virginia, for example, according to
> his Web site.
>
> That means McCain and the RNC during the two-month sprint to Nov. 4
> will be spending part of their budget matching expenditures Obama has
> already made. This week, McCain and the RNC began adding campaign
> staff, with an eye toward doubling the size of the party's ground
> operation in 14 states.
>
> Party Assistance
>
> In the money contest, McCain is getting help from the national
> Republican Party, which has so far taken in $100 million more than the
> Democratic National Committee to help promote its ticket.
>
> In mid-June, Obama set a goal of raising a combined $450 million for
> his campaign and the DNC by Election Day. Reaching that target
> requires an unprecedented average of $100 million per month. Democrats
> didn't hit the mark in July, when Obama drew $51 million and the DNC
> got $27 million.
>
> Both parties now say they're on a pace to meet the mid- summer
> fundraising targets -- which would give Obama and the Democratic Party
> about a $100 million spending advantage.
>
> Time for Fundraising
>
> Even so, Obama has to take time away from competing for votes to raise
> the private contributions his campaign needs. He spent Sept. 5 at two
> New Jersey events, including one at the home of musician Jon Bon Jovi
> where donors gave $30,800. On Sept. 16, he's scheduled for a $2,500-
> per-person Beverly Hills, California, fundraiser and concert featuring
> Barbra Streisand.
>
> ``It's a huge advantage when you're not so heavily encumbered by
> fundraising,'' said former Representative Jim Davis, a Florida
> Democrat. ``But Senator Obama has found the balance between the time
> he spends getting to know people and funding his campaign.''
>
> Obama has also gone back to his small donors -- 49 percent of his
> contributors through July 31 gave $200 or less. That means the
> Democratic nominee has millions of financial supporters who can donate
> again without exceeding federal contribution limits.
>
> His campaign raised $10 million on Sept. 4, the day after Palin
> addressed the Republican nominating convention, for its biggest one-
> day haul of the campaign.
>
> ``We had a terrific summer,'' said Obama's campaign manager, David
> Plouffe. ``We always knew the Republicans would do well financially.
> They always do. Our imperative is to just make sure that we raise what
> we need to execute our plan.''
>
> McCain raised $50 million last month, campaign manager Rick Davis
> said, including $10 million after Palin was picked. ``Basically what
> we've done is take money out of the equation,'' Davis said.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/sep/13/uselections2008.republicans

The bloody rise of the vote hunter

Whether it's moose, duck or bongo, the slaughter of gentle creatures
has been the making of many a Republican politician

· Paul Theroux's new book, Ghost Train to the Eastern Star, has just
been published by Hamish Hamilton paultheroux.com

==============================================================================
TOPIC: cheap jimmy bags
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/b4b1645c0010f748?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 5:01 am
From: dd

our website: www.sourcesoso.com

new jordan shoes in http://home.51.com/photo.php?user=sourcesoso

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Florida Homeowners Insurance
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/3234019fd7de028f?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 11:36 am
From: "ares"

Thanks, Harry (I'm an oldtimer who hasn't been here much the past several
years....) .
I've been considering similar but want to stay in the state; didn't realize
you had moved out;
.... what states would you recommend though, just in case? I like to live
way below my means,
but this has seemed to have trapped me into ridiculous expensess for the
time being.
Of course it wasn't like this when I first moved, and yeah, I view it as a
racket as well.....I would like to have fire and liability protection
though, and dealing with
insurance companies, I see that you feel secure but when it comes time to
claim, it could be a nightmare.
I could pay off the mortgage but didn't want to tie up that money just
now... I might consider
it..... one of my stocks unexpectedly took a major dive right when I was
going to sell a chunk of it and had I
lowered my price a couple of points I wouldn't be in that mess but it should
come back... it's just waiting for
it to do so...
ares

<hchickpea@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:ouglc41het5l9mom1s97rt793h7dkoft0k@4ax.com...
> Heh. One of my reasons for leaving Florida.
> If you own outright, without a mortgage, I guess you could try to get
> a fire only policy and a personal liability policy. If you have a
> mortgage, the mortgage docs undoubtedly require your maintaining
> insurance.
>
> Simply put, I refuse to pay anywhere near that amount in a Ponzi
> pawnsie game, where I stand a minimal chance of collecting and an even
> smaller chance of being treated fairly if I do collect. The "sense"
> that you need is the sense to beat them at their own game. Sell the
> property, reduce your exposure by buying a smaller place and invest
> the difference. You'll pay less taxes, lower insurance, lower power
> bills, and be in a stronger position. If a hurricane comes, you can
> wait out the rush of repairs and contractor scams and take a vacation,
> or park a travel trailer on your property while repairs are made.
>
> Or you could do like we did, move out of the state and drop property
> tax and insurance to 1/4 of the amount we were paying.
>
>
> On Fri, 12 Sep 2008 18:15:06 GMT, "ares" <ares@verizon.net> wrote:
>
>>I don't know if this topic's been posted before but I would be interested
>>to
>>see what was said. But my homeowner's insurance
>>is proposed to be $6700 roughly this year, which is a huge amount of money
>>to me. If I can eliminate the 'hurricane' portion of it, I believe it can
>>be reduced by $3300. And I am hearing that the 'hurricane' portion of it
>>actually includes any wind driven damage, so it's not just hurricanes as
>>named on the news. Well, the deductible for such hurricane insurance is
>>$22000. I live in an area where we haven't had anything close to a
>>hurricane in the 35 years I've lived here, and never any weather driven
>>damages. And should there be a storm, it would likely be a mild to
>>moderate one, and if there is damage, it is most likely to come to less
>>than
>>the $22000 deductible, I would imagine, unless I got real unlucky.
>>
>>Well, the other thing is that they have estimated my replacement cost
>>almost
>>$500,000. This is really close to the market value of my home. And that
>>doesn't account for the fact that my lot is over 2 acres in a hot area,
>>and
>>has considerable value, perhaps 1/5 that amount. AND they say the
>>personal
>>property coverage is for $240,000. I have NOWHERE NEAR that amount of
>>stuff. So, they say that the personal property is considered as a percent
>>of the home value. To me this means I am paying to insure things I don't
>>have. And what about if there is a loss.... if I am paying to insure
>>$240,000 of property, how would I ever collect $240,000 if I never had
>>that
>>much? This all makes me take their coverage as stated, less seriously.
>> I never had the chance to really look this policy over and think about it
>>before, but these things don't make sense to me, as the buyer of such
>>policy. Oh, and another thing is that my house is way too large, and
>>should
>>the whole thing get knocked down in a storm, I would not want to make this
>>home so large again. Yet they are saying they HAVE TO insure me for
>>replacement cost, and supposedly no other insurance company would do so
>>for
>>less either. Can someone make sense of this all for me? I am just
>>considering dropping the hurricane insurance and putting the savings aside
>>for myself just in case. And heck, the roof will need replacing
>>eventually
>>anyway.......
>>ares
>>
>

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 3:42 pm
From: hchickpea@hotmail.com

The various states where Floridians have fled appear to be Tennessee,
North Carolina, Texas, and to a lesser extent, Alabama and Georgia.
Property taxes and insurance costs are lower once you get away from
the coasts.

Ours was the last house in the neighborhood that sold prior to the big
crunch. There were a number of factors in the decision to move, but a
big one was the rising insurance costs and possibility of the policy
getting canceled and our having to go with Citizens. We could have
held on the taxes because of no senior left behind SOH, but our
position was just getting too risky and the potential for the area to
degrade out from under us too great. We probably should have moved a
year earlier, but events happened at their own pace.

Stocks are too volatile now, and the economic spin untruthful enough
that I'm afraid even the newsletters are being fed doctored
information on the general state of affairs. If there were no
derivatives, I'd feel a lot more comfortable. As it is, the economy
is a house of cards that can only be propped up so much. If the con
is good enough, we'll be fine for a few more years, perhaps 'til that
mythical 2012. If not, there are some frightening scenarios possible.

Just remember that the money you are paying out now for insurance and
taxes isn't worth as much as it used to be. I guess that is a good
thing?

On Sat, 13 Sep 2008 18:36:47 GMT, "ares" <ares@verizon.net> wrote:

>Thanks, Harry (I'm an oldtimer who hasn't been here much the past several
>years....) .
>I've been considering similar but want to stay in the state; didn't realize
>you had moved out;
>.... what states would you recommend though, just in case? I like to live
>way below my means,
>but this has seemed to have trapped me into ridiculous expensess for the
>time being.
>Of course it wasn't like this when I first moved, and yeah, I view it as a
>racket as well.....I would like to have fire and liability protection
>though, and dealing with
>insurance companies, I see that you feel secure but when it comes time to
>claim, it could be a nightmare.
> I could pay off the mortgage but didn't want to tie up that money just
>now... I might consider
>it..... one of my stocks unexpectedly took a major dive right when I was
>going to sell a chunk of it and had I
>lowered my price a couple of points I wouldn't be in that mess but it should
>come back... it's just waiting for
>it to do so...
>ares

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Progress Report: Culture for Schools - Colleges - Universities
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/57fc6a589252cdca?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 12:25 pm
From: family-living

Progress Report: Culture for Schools - Colleges - Universities

Family Genealogy & History Internet Education Directory:
Scholarly mega site map of world wide Internet resources,
<www.academic-genealogy.com/>, now includes:
the Official Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games, while still
carefully watching the National Hurricane Center - USA.

From a celebrity political standpoint, keep updated with:
News, Media and Travel:
2008 U.S. Election: Zogby International
The next President of the United States:
John Sidney McCain III: Ancestry & VP:
Sarah Louise Palin: Ancestry - SARAH (pdf)
or: Barack Hussein Obama II: Ancestry & VP:
Joseph Robinette "Joe" Biden, Jr.: Ancestry.

Otherwise, have the family history and genealogy
world at your fingertips, using key Internet sites.

Schools - Colleges - Universities: Alumni
and Genealogy Education, is an indexed
worldwide comprehensive resource for top
educational institutions; their genealogy,
family history and related records & services.
http://www.academic-genealogy.com/schoolscollegesuniversities.htm

SOME EXAMPLES:

* UMAC: University Museum & Collections
Protect the heritage in the care of universities.
- UMAC Worldwide Database
http://publicus.culture.hu-berlin.de/collections/index.php

GERMANY has:
. . .
University of Hamburg: Department Biologie
- GenomeWeb - Lists of Genome Sites.
Authoritative collection of the best genome
related sites on the Web, for those interested
in DNA and other related subjects.

INDIA has:
. . .
International Institute of Information Technology:
Digital Library of India

NORWAY has:
. . .
The University of Tromso (Norwegian:
Universitetet i Tromso) the world's
northernmost university, with its vast
Historical Microdata around the World
http://www.rhd.uit.no/nhdc/micro.html

UNITED KINGDOM has:
. . .
King's College London:
Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England:
Database - Links (PASE) database to cover
all of the recorded inhabitants of England
from the late sixth to the end of the eleventh
century; from a systematic examination of
the available written sources for the period,
including chronicles, saints' Lives, charters,
libri vitae, inscriptions, and coins.
. . .
University of Warwick Department of History
- Network for Parish Research:
Study of British and European parishes circa
A.D. 1300 to1800. Includes works on religious,
social, political and cultural aspects, as well as
interdisciplinary and comparative perspectives.

UNITED STATES has:
. . .
- (UT) Utah Colleges and Universities
- Brigham Young University: BYU
- BYU Family History Library:
- Alphabetical List of Resources
- Selected Internet Research Sites
- Center for Family History & Genealogy
- Harold B. Lee Library
- Electronic Reference Databases A-Z
- Utah Local History Bibliography

And much, much more.

Respectfully yours,

Tom Tinney, Sr.
Who's Who in America,
Millennium Edition [54th] through 2004
Who's Who In Genealogy and Heraldry, [both editions]
Family Genealogy & History Internet Education Directory
http://www.academic-genealogy.com/

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Creepy Behavior; Jon Monsarrat spams college girls??
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/ea8c2bf8d512200a?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 12:34 pm
From: Concerns

http://media.www.hlrecord.org/media/storage/paper609/news/2003/04/17/News/Dating.Service.Creator.Accused.Of.Harassing.Students-419629.shtml

Dating service creator accused of harassing students
By: Emily Kimball
Posted: 4/17/03

"Hey! Let me put it this way. I'm a good judge of character. You seem
fantastic. I'd like to meet you. Love that 'Up late talking and
snuggling on the sofa' and 'Singing to me.' Sure, I'll play guitar &
sing for you. :) I know you're busy and this whole dating thing feels
like a burden. Maybe we can change all that. What have you got to
lose? Being romanced by a tall, fun, handsome gentleman will be quite
nice! :) Zing me a note and let's do a 'just coffee'. When? Or just
email is fine if you're shy. My profile is below, and two pics are
attached. :) Ciao, bella! Jon"

In the months following the MIT-Harvard-Wellesley Valentine's Match-
Up, some law students' inboxes continue to be flooded with unwanted
and potentially harassing e-mails like the one above.

Around Valentine's Day this year, Harvard Law School students received
fliers in their Harkboxes encouraging them to sign up for the Match-
Up, a service that promised to pair each participant with 20-30
compatible matches within the three university communities. Three
thousand two hundred people participated by Valentine's Day, and then
another 600 signed up when a second round was offered for those who
missed out the first time.

The survey included questions about the participant's religion,
smoking preference, idea of a romantic date, favorite movie, weekend
activities and hobbies.

The website describes the event as a "free service run by students, in
association with the MIT Young Alumni Club, the Harvard Med School
Student Council and other communities" including "MIT grads, alumni,
ugrads and others; Harvard grads, alumni, ugrads and others; Wellesley
alumni and ugrads."

However, Jon Monsarrat, a 34-year old MIT business graduate,
apparently organized the event on his own, as none of the listed
sponsors claim any involvement with the service or know of any other
genuine participants.

Johannes Kratz, of the Harvard Medical School Council, said that when
he was contacted by Monsarrat, he agreed to inform medical students
about the Match-Up and said that it would be fine to be listed as a
participant, but had no further contact with Monsarrat. "HMS Student
Council had absolutely no part whatsoever in setting up, sponsoring,
promoting, or hosting the match other than what I just described,"
said Kratz.

Eric Sit, MIT Young Alumni Chair, also agreed to publicize the event
to its members. ""After assuring us that all data would be kept
securely and confidentially, we said sure," Sit said. "We didn't have
anything to do with how it was run."

Since Valentine's Day, numerous HLS women have received e-mails from
Monsarrat requesting that they start dating him. He did not just email
the 20 or so people he had been matched with by the web service. In
fact, according to 3L Nicole De Sario, he admitted in an email to one
of her friends that he had sorted through all of the Match-Up profiles
himself, and used the service to gain access to many women's contact
information.

De Sario's friend wrote back two or three times saying she wasn't
interested, but Monsarrat continued to write her, including charts of
his weight loss, promises to lose more in the future and persistent
demands to meet with him. At one point he wrote, "You've made me wait
too long; I'm getting impatient."

De Sario realized the problem could be more widespread when she
herself started receiving emails from Monsarrat, one of which is
copied above. She e-mailed the site address that is listed on the
Match-Up web page to complain about the emails, but received no
response.

At De Sario's request, the Women's Law Association sent out an email
alerting the Law School community of the incident, urging students to
forward any correspondence to the Dean of Students and StopIT, an
organ of the Information Systems organization at MIT that monitors
misuses of the MIT computing system.

"A bunch of people came forward," De Sario said. Students sent e-mails
to the Dean of Students, who then made arrangements for a group of
students to speak with the Harvard University Police."

"It hasn't yet risen to a legal violation, De Sario added. "But it is
clearly a moral and ethical violation, and my concern is that it could
amount to a harassment claim."

According to Massachusetts law, criminal harassment applies to:
"Whoever willfully and maliciously engages in a knowing pattern of
conduct or series of acts over a period of time directed at a specific
person, which seriously alarms that person and would cause a
reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress.... Such
conduct or acts described in this paragraph shall include, but not be
limited to, conduct or acts conducted by mail or by use of a
telephonic or telecommunication device including, but not limited to,
electronic mail, internet communications or facsimile communications."

Administrators and police are still unaware of just how many women
have been contacted, or whether or not anyone has met with Monsarrat.
However, the police will be sending him a cease and desist letter
warning him of the potential legal implications of his actions.

"The police department is writing a letter to the guy and they sort of
said that was the end of it unless someone was suffering some kind of
serious harm," said 3L Bill Dance, Law School Council President.
"Which is why it would be useful to find out if someone was suffering
more serious harm."

"Everyone you talk to knows someone who was contacted," Dance added.

"According to Enice Matera, Student Services Officer in the Dean of
Students Office, there haven't been cases of serious or widespread
harassment over e-mail at the Law School before. "To my knowledge, I
don't remember anything like this happening before," she said.

StopIT is continuing to monitor and receive e-mails forwarded by
students who have corresponded with Monsarrat. According to Tim
McGovern, a StopIT member, their goals in any such case "are to
facilitate or mediate between parties to reach a mutually acceptable
set of conditions," which include "agreement on steps forward, no
contact orders and so forth."

Any student who has been bothered by Monsarrat can contact Amy
Schlosberg at the Harvard University Police Department (amy-
schlosberg@harvard.edu) and StopIT@MIT.edu with attachments of any e-
mails received from or sent to Monsarrat.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: PETPORTE CATFLAP OFFERS EMAIL bestcatflaps@aol.com
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/75339fe4973b0afc?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 2:46 pm
From: bestcatflaps@aol.com

I sell these - they are �89.99 while stocks last plus special offer on
p&p.....I can supply wall or door versions, tunnels etc... just email
me for details. Payment can be through cash on collection (bham) or
cheque, postal order or through paypal. Please email best cat flaps @
aol.com for details.

Thanks

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Inexpensive phone service
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/4c0ab58dc25b6114?hl=en
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== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 7:20 pm
From: t_taufer

If you really want to save money, try <a href="http://
www.bluezsolutions.com/offers/vonage_phone_service.html">Vonage</a>
for home phone service. I get home phone service for less than $20.00
a month, and I still get all of the great features like voice mail,
caller id, and unlimited long distance.

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 8:36 pm
From: "Rod Speed"

t_taufer <t_taufer@hotmail.com> wrote:
> If you really want to save money, try <a href="http://
> www.bluezsolutions.com/offers/vonage_phone_service.html">Vonage</a>
> for home phone service. I get home phone service for less than $20.00
> a month, and I still get all of the great features like voice mail,
> caller id, and unlimited long distance.

There are plenty of operations that do voip without any monthly charge at all.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: are there any high lumen LED night lights out there?
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/29f39b8e5f78705c?hl=en
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== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 8:27 pm
From: John Savage

"OhioGuy" <none@none.net>
> I'm looking for an LED night light. All I've been able to find so far are
>el cheapo ones that either use a single LED, aren't diffused properly, or
>don't produce enough lumens that my wife will let me get away with using it.

It's not clear whether you want light to fall on the floor, or the walls.
In general, I expect this to be dependent on the sightedness or fraility of
the persons navigating the rooms.

A small circle of light is wasted when directed onto a dark floor, but it
can be stretched into a large triangle by directing it downwards along a
white wall. A series of such LEDs will light the way.

Some of the solar garden lights (solar cell, NiCd, single LED) contain a
very clever one-piece optics which converts a narrow vertical beam into
a few hundred radial beams. You might be able to cannibalise these for
their optics. (Cheaper by the dozen.) Then you could add in your own
choice of high lumen LED. As a night light it works well when placed near
floor level against a light-coloured wall.

As far as the "frugal" theme extends, if you were to have the lights
switch on automatically, by an infrared sensor, you might be able to
power them off cells recharged by the garden light solar cells mounted
in a sunny out-of-the-way spot.
--
John Savage (my news address is not valid for email)

==============================================================================
TOPIC: CVS Pharmacist calls customer a "Fucking AIDS freak"
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/5f6c5d62367cf192?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 9:37 pm
From: chief_thracian@yahoo.com (Chief Thracian)

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 16:47:43 -0400, Patriot Games
<Patriot@America.Com> wrote:

>Most people don't like fags, and just about everybody doesn't like
>AIDS-Fags!

Hatred is nothing to be proud of. Nor is a prejudice justified, just
because it's a majority opinion. Germans made that mistake, and it led
to a holocaust.

I feel terribly sorry for your wife or girlfriend (you have one) and
for your children (if you have any). Must be a living hell to have to
exist under the same roof with such a shitbagfull of hetero feces as
yourself!

You're no patriot...you're a traitor, AND terrorist. Gaymerica: love
it or leave it!

--
Zeke Krahlin
http://www.gay-bible.org

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 10:48 pm
From: "Rod Speed"

Chief Thracian <chief_thracian@yahoo.com> wrote
> Patriot Games <Patriot@America.Com> wrote

>> Most people don't like fags, and just about everybody doesn't like AIDS-Fags!

> Hatred is nothing to be proud of.

Not liking isnt hatred.

> Nor is a prejudice justified, just because it's a majority opinion.

You get to like it or lump it.

> Germans made that mistake, and it led to a holocaust.

And everywhere else did too, and it didnt.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: CFL specs: "SBCFL" Floodlights?
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/23d861342cf79cfd?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 9:58 pm
From: don@manx.misty.com (Don Klipstein)

In article <TuqdnXECJZf7cFfVnZ2dnUVZ_rHinZ2d@comcast.com>, JR Weiss wrote:
>Today I replaced an outside floodlight fixture with IR and motion
>sensors. I got one that specifically said on the outside of the box that
>it was compatible with CFL bulbs. In the spec sheet, however, it
>specifies "SBCFL" bulbs of max 30 watts each.
>
>So, what is "SBCFL"? Do I have to look for something specific on the
>package?
>
>Also, this fixture has an option of running the bulbs at "half
>brightness" for specified periods. Assuming I can find dimmable CFL
>floods, are there any cautions with their use?

Motion sensor floods are a bad application for CFLs.

Cold cathode CFLs do well there (lack of starting-related wear, even
used in marquees in Las Vegas!), unless the temperature is below 90-95 F
(32-35 C) in which case they need time to warm up from "seriously dim"
unless they are on a lot and have been for the previous several minutes.
Cold cathode CFLs also mainly come in wattages around 8-9 watts or less,
and are less efficient than the usual hot cathode ones if the wattage is
over 4 watts.
The cold cathode ones usualy have longer life expectancy of 20,000-or-so
hours.

Bottom line: For motion sensor floods, use incandescent. If they are
on so much as to deserve a more energy-efficient lamp, then ditch the
motion sensor.
Beyond that - see if you can find an LED lamp rated for dimmers and
electronic switching devices - then you can put an LED lamp in your motion
sensor floodlight. LED lamps have no need to warm up and do not
suffer wear from starting. Good luck finding one more than half as bright
as about 50 watts incandescent floodlight equivalence, regardless of what
is claimed.

Good Luck,

- Don Klipstein (don@misty.com)

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 10:06 pm
From: don@manx.misty.com (Don Klipstein)

In article <gaet25$bpv$1@registered.motzarella.org>, Dave wrote:
>
>"JR Weiss" <jrweiss98155remove@remove.comcast.net> wrote in message
>news:TuqdnXECJZf7cFfVnZ2dnUVZ_rHinZ2d@comcast.com...
>> Today I replaced an outside floodlight fixture with IR and motion sensors.
>> I got one that specifically said on the outside of the box that it was
>> compatible with CFL bulbs. In the spec sheet, however, it specifies
>> "SBCFL" bulbs of max 30 watts each.
>>
>> So, what is "SBCFL"? Do I have to look for something specific on the
>> package?
>
>Self-ballasted. Kind of redundant, as all COMPACT (the "C" in CFL)
>fluorescents are self-ballasted.

Only true of ones with screw bases.

Most without screw bases are not self-ballasted. Major examples are:

PLC-26/F26DTT

PLC-13/F13DTT, PL-13/F13TT

PLC-9/F9DTT, PL-9/F9TT

PL-7/F7TT

PL-5/F5TT

There are a few others

Ballastless CFLs are popular in commercial installations, especially in
recessed ceiling fixtures - one advantage is that the ballast is separated
from the heat of the bulb!

There are also "dimming ballasts" for nice smooth great dimming of CFLs
- requiring ballastless compatible CFLs! (Along often-usually with their
own related special dimmer controls)

There are a few pin base SBCFLs (I have yet to see any) for use in
newer construction in California that has its own energy efficiency
mandates as well as the "known to the State of California to cause cancer"
stuff...

- Don Klipstein (don@misty.com)

No, you don't need to look for anything
>specific on the package. Main thing is to make sure that the actual power
>draw is 30W or less (though the light output rating will probably be listed
>as much higher, like 80W or something) and that the CFL has the same type of
>base (the screw part) that your fixture is compatible with.
>
>> Also, this fixture has an option of running the bulbs at "half brightness"
>> for specified periods. Assuming I can find dimmable CFL floods, are there
>> any cautions with their use?
>
>OK, don't know if dimmable CFL floods exist. I'd be surprised if they do.
>
>I'd suggest that you NOT use the half brightness feature for CFL floods.
>First, you have nothing to gain by doing so. CFL floods are not as bright
>as other floods to begin with. So they are about "half brightness" right
>out of the box*. If a dimmable version of a CFL flood existed, I'd have to
>ask WHY?!? Also, the only reason to run the flood at half brightness would
>be to save energy. But you are saving better than 50% of electricity just
>by using CFL floods. (assuming you are willing to put up with decreased
>brightness, see below)
>
>Also, the ballast in the self-ballast CFL flood will require full voltage to
>work properly. If you reduce the input voltage to the CFL flood (by using
>the "half brightness" setting), one of two things will likely happen:
>1) Nothing (the bulb won't light)
>2) Bulb will light, but lifetime of the CFL flood bulb will be GREATLY
>reduced
>
>* CFL bulbs (including CFL floods) are rated according to their
>incandescent equivalent, but those ratings are greatly optimistic. For
>example, if you get a "100W" CFL that uses 27W of power, the light output
>would be roughly equivalent to a 50W or 60W incandescent bulb, but the CFL
>manufacturers want you to believe that it is a good replacement for a 100W
>incandescent. To truly get 100W incandescent brightness, you might need a
>"150W" or more RATED CFL, which might draw 50W or more of actual power. So
>in the end, you might be wondering if it's even worth it to pay extra for
>the CFL? I mean, if you get equivalent brightness, you really aren't saving
>all that much, in terms of electricity usage or money. I prefer CFL for
>other reasons though. I've had CFLs last for several years while similar
>incandescent bulbs are doing pretty good to last for several weeks. Some of
>my floodlights are mounted about 20' off the ground on the side of my house
>(very hard to reach, even with a ladder). Not to mention the ordinary
>indoor fixture at the top of the stairwell where NO ladder can reach,
>easily. In these locations, having a bulb last several years is a GOOD
>thing, and the slight energy savings is just an added bonus.
>
>
>

==============================================================================
TOPIC: In-house visit by a "Rainbow vacuum" salesperson
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/8cbbcbc71d84da35?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Sep 13 2008 10:08 pm
From: info_at_air-space_dot_us@foo.com (thestuccocompany.com)

thestuccocompany.com had written this in response to
http://www.thestuccocompany.com/maintenance/In-house-visit-by-a-Rainbow-vacuum-salesperson-212813-.htm
:

This is ma\' SIG
-------------------------------------
Ignoramus32056 wrote:

> We had a visit by a saleswoman who was trying to sell us a $2,000
> "Rainbow cleaning system". For just listening, we received a
> gift of
> some bed sheet and also a "gift travel certificate" from a
> company
> called "Certs, Inc". (which is a florida based travel gifts
> company
> that does not make me very excited)

> http://www.rainbowsystem.com/

> What this thing is, it seems, is a 25k RPM impeller sitting on top of
> a Lexan bowl filled with water. The impeller sucks air in, makes it
> whirl in a way that it makes contact with water and sheds the dust and
> other stuff into water.

> There is no filter, like on conventional vacuums that trap particles
> into a filter. Water acts as a filter.

> The machine was supposedly "1.9 HP", however, when measured
> with my
> Kill-A-Watt power meter, it registered only 850 watts consumed from
> the wall outlet, so it could not be more than 1 HP. OK, we all know
> that everyone is lying about HP these days. No biggie. If it was 1.9
> HP, it would trip the breakers all the time.

> As a side comment, what we have now is a Sears Kenmore upright vacuum
> that is a real beast, it uses about 13 amps and has a HEPA filter.

> Then the saleswoman proceeded to make various points, which I may not
> remember all or in correct order, but I will mention a few.

> 1. Vacuum cleaners do not pick up sand from carpets/rugs, well.
> No comment on my part.

> 2. After just 15 minutes of use, due to dust getting into the fine
> mesh of the vacuum's filter, the "air flow" diminishes due to
> dust
> blocking the little pores. So a vacuum cleaner is not usable.

> This was a total lie, as was easy to demonstrate with my vacuum which
> has its bag 2/3 full already. It still sucked well and produced a lot
> of suction and air flow.

> 3. Vacuums blow dust around and increase amount of dust.

> I cannot say that it is false, for sure, but the 2.3 full bag in our
> vacuum attests that it traps at least some dust. Plus, it does have a
> HEPA filter.

> She did some acrobatics by taking out the HEPA filter, which had some
> dust on the back, kind of mashed it in her hands a little and put
> back, -- then when the vacuum turned on, a lot of dust was indeed
> blown out.

> 4. Then there were some demonstrations that Rainbow would still pick
> up dust after vacuuming with a Sears vacuum, which could possibly be
> true but I think that she cheated a bit by going outside the area that
> I actually vacuumed, a bit -- it is kind of hard to tell, I think so
> but my spouse is not so sure.

> 5. She made some claims about infections that her system prevented,
> which went somewhat over my head but overall I was not sure if it was
> not complete bunk.

> We did not purchase this system in the end, but I wanted to hear some
> opinions on this stuff.

> i

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Frugal Living

Blog Archive

Saturday, September 13, 2008

25 new messages in 16 topics - digest