There comes a time in the evolution of every business that a decision needs to be made concerning whether or not to expand to reach a larger marketplace and, if so, the best method to achieve that goal.
Franchising, which is one method of expansion, has become increasingly popular in the past three decades. There is no doubt as to its success but the important questions are whether it is right for you and whether you are ready to be a franchisor. To help you answer those questions, let's explore what being a franchisor requires, mentally, physically and financially.
You first need to understand that franchising is a business in and of itself. Your existing business (the underlying concept which you want to franchise) is another business. It is necessary, therefore, for you to begin adjusting your thinking to the new business at hand. It is, of course, advantageous to have a unique or superior product or service concept to offer to the public; however, it will not hold up well without a good franchise system built around it. Conversely, some less than outstanding concepts have made a name for themselves as a result of a superior franchise system.
The single most important aspect of any franchise system is the trademark or service mark which is being licensed to the franchisee. Your first priority should be to design a unique mark by which your franchise system and its products or services will be identified. You then must search the files of the federal government and the states in order to determine whether anyone else is presently using the same or a similar mark. If you have a green light, you must proceed to secure a registration of that mark for yourself. Your franchise agreement must protect your interest in those marks and you must set up strict and well enforced standards for the franchisee to follow so as not to endanger those marks.
The offer of a franchise is subject to state and federal regulations. The penalties for failure to comply with those laws can be damaging both to our pocketbook and your reputation. You must present prospective franchisees with a specially prepared disclosure document (known as an offering circular) in strict compliance with those regulations at least ten business days before they sign the franchise agreement or pay you any money. There are also fifteen states which may require you to register the offering and submit the disclosure for review before marketing can occur within their jurisdictions. Furthermore, any form of advertising which is used to solicit a prospective franchisee must comply with governmental regulations.
There is more to being a franchisor than simply having a franchise agreement and an offering circular. The franchisees that receive that disclosure and eventually sign the agreement must be trained to operate an outlet in an organized manner. Therefore, an operations manual must be prepared and a training program should be in place. A staff of qualified individuals who will run the franchisor's organization and train the franchisees must be assembled. Once again, remember that franchising is a different business. Thus any existing manual which merely outlines the day-to-day conduct of your present business will not be adequate to explain to a franchisee how he or she is to operate your concept. You should develop a program of continual field support to assist franchisees with problems which they may encounter in daily operations of the outlet. The team assigned to that function will also monitor and report on the franchisee's compliance with your standards. The creation of an aggressive advertising campaign to promote your franchised outlets and the image which you wish them to convey to the marketplace is of utmost importance.
Although federal and state regulations do considerably inhibit your ability as a new franchisor to indicate the income potential of an outlet to a prospective franchisee, it is still wise to have a prototype of the typical outlet in existence in order to indicate the viability of the concept and your actual hands-on experience in its operation.
It is also advantageous from a sales standpoint to have an actual facility which a prospective franchisee can visit since you will be engaged in a new business (franchising); your existing business needs to be secure enough to function without your daily participation. Likewise, do not expect to raid the ranks of your present organization in order to staff the new business. Remember, they must be replaced.
To be a successful franchisor, you must be committed to meet these and other requirements. However, it is very possible for you to do this in an efficient manner with help from individuals experienced in the franchising process - so long as they have your best interests at heart.
You have, no doubt, heard of the fantastic sums of money which a franchisor may gain from a franchise system by way of the initial franchise fee, monthly royalty payments and contributions to the advertising budget from franchisees. Although you may eventually realize great income from your franchise system, the road leading up to that result could be expensive. We believe in teaching the client to do or oversee as much of the work the client is willing to do himself. This will save the client a healthy portion of the fees which some development and consulting firms charge. The major advantage is that the client receives a greater understanding of what franchising is all about and receives first hand training on how to become a quality franchisor, rather than relying on others who may not have your total interest at heart.
Proper franchise development does take time. Depending upon the extent to which you wish to market your offering, you should be prepared to devote six months to one year to that task. Don't expect to create the necessary documentation overnight and head straight to marketing. You need to be trained to think and act like a franchisor, to learn the new business that you area in and the obligations that it entails and to make intelligent, informed decisions regarding the structure of the franchise system. In addition, registration of your offering with a state regulatory agency can take a good deal of time and patience.
Who should you choose to develop your franchise system? Attorneys will normally only handle the franchise agreement, the offering circular and the registration. Attorneys with a true background in franchising are few in number and high in price. All others will be learning the ropes at your expense - and they charge by the hour. Most attorneys will provide you with a document which may be "legal" but which is rarely constructed from the standpoint of a businessman or a marketing specialist. We take every client and their individual needs seriously. We are dedicated to teaching, informing, educating and training franchisors in how to effectively and professionally become the best franchisor possible. Our basic philosophy is to teach the client to do as much as he can, while providing expert assistance in those areas the client decides not to accomplish himself. We think that's keeping your best interests at heart.
Copyright (c) 2009 Ken Hollowell
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Texas Inmates Get Phone Calls
Now you can routinely call Texas inmates and others in Texas prisons. This past Friday, the Texas prison board was informed of the first in a series of system-wide program additions of telephone service that will be phased in over the course of the next year to the 112 facilities of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
The country's second-largest prison system furmed up a contract with a telecommunications firm from Kansas, allowing state prisoners up to 120 prepaid or collect call minutes of phone time per month. Thirteen prisons were updats in April, another 31 in May, and by the end of September the director and general manager of corrections markets of the Kansas company plans to have the entire system up and running. Embarq Crop. was given a contract for seven years minimum.
Inmates have had routine phone access in most states for a while now, but Texas inmates were previously only allowed to have one five-minute phone call every three months, and even then they required the warden's express permission and a monitor.
This new program will let prisoners have up to fifteen minutes for each call for friends and family, although calls to victims or their families will not be allowed, and the services will not be made available to the 36,000 prisoners who have disciplinary issues or known gang affiliations. The service will also be barred from prisoners on death row. The inmates will be able to prepay for calls, for about 23 to 43 cents a minute.
So far, 65,000 of Texas's inmates have enrolled in the program. Family and friends of inmates can register online, and those who are on the prisoner's list must submit a copy of their telephone bill and their driver's license, to check their names against the pre-approved list of visitors' names. There are several layers of intense checking that occur, to maintain security, and the system itself is chock-full of investigative technology.
The plan to give inmates updated telephone privileges was decided after a strong crackdown on contraband cell phone usage, which were being smuggled into prisons by the hundred. Security was tightened to catch those leaving or entering with cell phones, phone components, and chargers. This was partly a reaction to an incident in which an inmate on death row used an illegal cell phone to make threats to a Texas state senator.
The original resistance to allowing a more permissive land-line system was due to the idea that prisoners could keep up their criminal connections while on the inside, planning and perhaps even executing more illegal actions through their cellphones and networks of criminals. However, recently the technology surrounding phone use has improved enough to make monitoring phones calls feasible, allowing officials to record and later consult phone conversations to check for illegal activity. Of course, phone calls to attorneys or lawyers of record would not be monitored, to respect attorney-client confidentiality.
In 2007, the state legislature passed the measure allowing the project by a landslide, and through the charging system, the budget board expects to reel in $5.8 million dollars per year. Corrections officers and experts also maintain that phone communication availability will keep inmate morale up, allowing them contact with loves ones, and will prove to be a good incentive, reward, and punishment.
Copyright (c) 2009 Jared Jones
The country's second-largest prison system furmed up a contract with a telecommunications firm from Kansas, allowing state prisoners up to 120 prepaid or collect call minutes of phone time per month. Thirteen prisons were updats in April, another 31 in May, and by the end of September the director and general manager of corrections markets of the Kansas company plans to have the entire system up and running. Embarq Crop. was given a contract for seven years minimum.
Inmates have had routine phone access in most states for a while now, but Texas inmates were previously only allowed to have one five-minute phone call every three months, and even then they required the warden's express permission and a monitor.
This new program will let prisoners have up to fifteen minutes for each call for friends and family, although calls to victims or their families will not be allowed, and the services will not be made available to the 36,000 prisoners who have disciplinary issues or known gang affiliations. The service will also be barred from prisoners on death row. The inmates will be able to prepay for calls, for about 23 to 43 cents a minute.
So far, 65,000 of Texas's inmates have enrolled in the program. Family and friends of inmates can register online, and those who are on the prisoner's list must submit a copy of their telephone bill and their driver's license, to check their names against the pre-approved list of visitors' names. There are several layers of intense checking that occur, to maintain security, and the system itself is chock-full of investigative technology.
The plan to give inmates updated telephone privileges was decided after a strong crackdown on contraband cell phone usage, which were being smuggled into prisons by the hundred. Security was tightened to catch those leaving or entering with cell phones, phone components, and chargers. This was partly a reaction to an incident in which an inmate on death row used an illegal cell phone to make threats to a Texas state senator.
The original resistance to allowing a more permissive land-line system was due to the idea that prisoners could keep up their criminal connections while on the inside, planning and perhaps even executing more illegal actions through their cellphones and networks of criminals. However, recently the technology surrounding phone use has improved enough to make monitoring phones calls feasible, allowing officials to record and later consult phone conversations to check for illegal activity. Of course, phone calls to attorneys or lawyers of record would not be monitored, to respect attorney-client confidentiality.
In 2007, the state legislature passed the measure allowing the project by a landslide, and through the charging system, the budget board expects to reel in $5.8 million dollars per year. Corrections officers and experts also maintain that phone communication availability will keep inmate morale up, allowing them contact with loves ones, and will prove to be a good incentive, reward, and punishment.
Copyright (c) 2009 Jared Jones
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Understanding The Risks Of Taking Humira
An autoimmune condition called rheumatoid arthritis affects at least two million Americans, according to the Arthritis Foundation. This condition is where the body actually attacks the joints, causing inflammation, pain, and deformity. It is estimated that out of the two million people who suffer from this condition, there are at least a half a million who use a drug called Humira to find relief.
Humira (adalimumab) is a strong TNF (tumor necrosis factor) blocking drug. Approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration in 1998, this drug increases range somekeyword motion, life expectancy, flexibility, and reduces pain. This is accomplished by blocking the inflammation process.
Humira is also used for the treatment of Crhon's disease, which is an inflammatory bowel condition. Studies done by the Mayo Clinic have shown this immunosuppressant to increase the risk for some very serious and at times deadly side effects.
Humira has been known to triple the risk of developing various cancers of the skin, breasts, and the gastrointestinal system. This would include such cancer as lymphoma, which is a cancer of the lymph nodes. Humira has also shown to double the chances of a serious infection such as pneumonia, cellulites, and tuberculosis.
More recent studies are now showing an increase of autoimmune disorders. Humira users are at greater risk for lupus syndrome type disorder. Other side effects are not quite as serious and more common. These include injection site pain or other abnormal site reactions, headaches, rash, Upper and Lower respiratory infections, and sinus infections.
Patients with uncommon allergies, history of heart disease, Hepatitis B, nervous system disorders, or serious infections should discuss these with a doctor prior to taking Humira. Older patients in poorer health who have been on this medication for a longer duration do seem to be at a greater risk for these more severe side effects of Humira and need to be monitored closely.
Other side effects of Humira include weakness, shortness of breath, dry cough, fever, night sweats, chills, chest pain, weight loss, or dizziness. If any of these symptoms are experienced, discontinue use and contact your doctor immediately. You may want to consider cancer screening prior to taking Humira.
Studies have shown the overall risk of a serious life threatening side effect with Humira is small, but due to how widely varied the effects are between patients, doctors and patients need to be fully informed and educated on the possibilities.
One item to mention in regards to the side effects of Humira. You may be entitled to monetary compensation if you or a loved one has suffered from a serious side effect of Humira. You would need to speak to an attorney in regards to your loss and he can evaluate the validity and assist you in determining what recourse you have if any.
Disclaimer - The information presented here should not be interpreted as or substituted for medical advice. Please talk to a qualified professional for more information about Humira.
Humira (adalimumab) is a strong TNF (tumor necrosis factor) blocking drug. Approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration in 1998, this drug increases range somekeyword motion, life expectancy, flexibility, and reduces pain. This is accomplished by blocking the inflammation process.
Humira is also used for the treatment of Crhon's disease, which is an inflammatory bowel condition. Studies done by the Mayo Clinic have shown this immunosuppressant to increase the risk for some very serious and at times deadly side effects.
Humira has been known to triple the risk of developing various cancers of the skin, breasts, and the gastrointestinal system. This would include such cancer as lymphoma, which is a cancer of the lymph nodes. Humira has also shown to double the chances of a serious infection such as pneumonia, cellulites, and tuberculosis.
More recent studies are now showing an increase of autoimmune disorders. Humira users are at greater risk for lupus syndrome type disorder. Other side effects are not quite as serious and more common. These include injection site pain or other abnormal site reactions, headaches, rash, Upper and Lower respiratory infections, and sinus infections.
Patients with uncommon allergies, history of heart disease, Hepatitis B, nervous system disorders, or serious infections should discuss these with a doctor prior to taking Humira. Older patients in poorer health who have been on this medication for a longer duration do seem to be at a greater risk for these more severe side effects of Humira and need to be monitored closely.
Other side effects of Humira include weakness, shortness of breath, dry cough, fever, night sweats, chills, chest pain, weight loss, or dizziness. If any of these symptoms are experienced, discontinue use and contact your doctor immediately. You may want to consider cancer screening prior to taking Humira.
Studies have shown the overall risk of a serious life threatening side effect with Humira is small, but due to how widely varied the effects are between patients, doctors and patients need to be fully informed and educated on the possibilities.
One item to mention in regards to the side effects of Humira. You may be entitled to monetary compensation if you or a loved one has suffered from a serious side effect of Humira. You would need to speak to an attorney in regards to your loss and he can evaluate the validity and assist you in determining what recourse you have if any.
Disclaimer - The information presented here should not be interpreted as or substituted for medical advice. Please talk to a qualified professional for more information about Humira.
Frequently Asked Questions About Articles Of Incorporation
What are Articles of Incorporation?
Articles of incorporation are needed when a business decides to incorporate. Articles of incorporation are a set of rules that determines how a corporation should be managed and they are filed with the government in your area. In order for a business to become a corporation, the Articles of Incorporation must be filed with the appropriate agency. It is important to know that in, they may not be called Articles of incorporation in your area. They may also be referred to as Certificate of Organization, Certificate of Formation or Certificate of Organization.
Where do I file the Articles of Incorporation?
Articles of Incorporation must be filed with the government in the area in which you intend to incorporate. Typically the forms are filed with the Secretary of State. However, if approved you may use another regulatory agency or company. There will be a fee associated with filing Articles of Incorporation and this will vary depending on where you live.
The forms needed to file the Articles of Incorporation should be readily available to you from a variety of venues. You can obtain them by printing them on your computer from the web site of the Secretary of State. You can also obtain the forms needed by writing to or calling your Secretary of State and asking them to mail the form.
What information is contained on the Articles of Incorporation?
There is a variety of information that is required when you file the Articles of Incorporation. These are the basics in all areas. However, your local government may require additional information. It is important that you conduct full research on what your area may require.
The first piece of information to be listed on the Articles of Incorporation includes the name of the corporation. This will be the legal business name under which the corporation will conduct business. This should include any designators at the end such as Inc. or Corp.
You will also be required to determine the purpose of your corporation as stated by the government in your area. The name and address of the person responsible for accepting any legal notices in regards to the business named, such as an attorney.
Another piece of information that is required on the Articles of Incorporation includes the number of shares the business is allowed to issue. The type of business the corporation is conducting will determine the amount of shares issued and how many people can hold them.
The final requirement for the Articles of Incorporation are the signatures. This should be of the incorporator or any directors along with the addresses of all signatories.
Other requirements that may be required in your specific area could include the duration of the corporation, if the corporation will have preemptive right or cumulative voting and if the business will offer various classes of their stock shares. It is important that you research all areas of the Articles of Incorporation and understand what is required and what additional items may be added to your filing.
Articles of incorporation are needed when a business decides to incorporate. Articles of incorporation are a set of rules that determines how a corporation should be managed and they are filed with the government in your area. In order for a business to become a corporation, the Articles of Incorporation must be filed with the appropriate agency. It is important to know that in, they may not be called Articles of incorporation in your area. They may also be referred to as Certificate of Organization, Certificate of Formation or Certificate of Organization.
Where do I file the Articles of Incorporation?
Articles of Incorporation must be filed with the government in the area in which you intend to incorporate. Typically the forms are filed with the Secretary of State. However, if approved you may use another regulatory agency or company. There will be a fee associated with filing Articles of Incorporation and this will vary depending on where you live.
The forms needed to file the Articles of Incorporation should be readily available to you from a variety of venues. You can obtain them by printing them on your computer from the web site of the Secretary of State. You can also obtain the forms needed by writing to or calling your Secretary of State and asking them to mail the form.
What information is contained on the Articles of Incorporation?
There is a variety of information that is required when you file the Articles of Incorporation. These are the basics in all areas. However, your local government may require additional information. It is important that you conduct full research on what your area may require.
The first piece of information to be listed on the Articles of Incorporation includes the name of the corporation. This will be the legal business name under which the corporation will conduct business. This should include any designators at the end such as Inc. or Corp.
You will also be required to determine the purpose of your corporation as stated by the government in your area. The name and address of the person responsible for accepting any legal notices in regards to the business named, such as an attorney.
Another piece of information that is required on the Articles of Incorporation includes the number of shares the business is allowed to issue. The type of business the corporation is conducting will determine the amount of shares issued and how many people can hold them.
The final requirement for the Articles of Incorporation are the signatures. This should be of the incorporator or any directors along with the addresses of all signatories.
Other requirements that may be required in your specific area could include the duration of the corporation, if the corporation will have preemptive right or cumulative voting and if the business will offer various classes of their stock shares. It is important that you research all areas of the Articles of Incorporation and understand what is required and what additional items may be added to your filing.
Friday, September 28, 2012
Weave Divorce
But disassociate is not a pharmacon to perfect the dilemmas that you, as a couple, are having. In fact, it could often lead to more poker-faced problems, such as financial, housing, and conJoint curb.
Why avoid divorce?
After a free, a former student partner is said to feel woebegone and lonely. He or she may withdraw from any social gatherings because her or her previous monogamy that extinct badly has repose such a dent on his or her self-image and self-worth. Or he or she may fluently prong up in one bad pertinency after another in an effort to inveigle the loneliness.
You dont hunger this to happen to yourself. Partners should not consider divorce good because everyone else is act it and they survived. Rather, you should avoid divorce at all cost, leaving it only as an flipside when everything else backslides.
Your parents, siblings, and friends would tell you otherwise. However, their opinion should only have, at lion's share, a valid effect on your decision. They should not be the one to decide whether or not your matrimony is silent rate saving. The consociation that you have with your headache is personal, independent and one. No matter what general public say, you and no sole else really apprehend what is really going on bounded by you and your partner.
Divorce is not easy.
Take on a great abstract attorney to make everything smooth and easy for you. While this may be valid at some level, remove, no matter how smooth and uncomplicated, puts much pull on both you and your partner.
There is no such thing as an easy disjoin. It is a very stressful and feeling process one that you are not going to laugh away any time soon after the papers have been signed.
Now, you might say that a brooding marriage is no march in the park either, so that when you work to avoid divorce, you are giving yourself a harder time than you should.
But total relationships that are worth your while require firm work. A percentage of it. In order to initiate a marriage trial and avoid take apart, some changes must be executed. But dont make the mistake of being able to pocket money your partners personality. You can change small modes, but you can never change the all person. You condition accept this or go ahead with appearing for someone else..
Why avoid divorce?
After a free, a former student partner is said to feel woebegone and lonely. He or she may withdraw from any social gatherings because her or her previous monogamy that extinct badly has repose such a dent on his or her self-image and self-worth. Or he or she may fluently prong up in one bad pertinency after another in an effort to inveigle the loneliness.
You dont hunger this to happen to yourself. Partners should not consider divorce good because everyone else is act it and they survived. Rather, you should avoid divorce at all cost, leaving it only as an flipside when everything else backslides.
Your parents, siblings, and friends would tell you otherwise. However, their opinion should only have, at lion's share, a valid effect on your decision. They should not be the one to decide whether or not your matrimony is silent rate saving. The consociation that you have with your headache is personal, independent and one. No matter what general public say, you and no sole else really apprehend what is really going on bounded by you and your partner.
Divorce is not easy.
Take on a great abstract attorney to make everything smooth and easy for you. While this may be valid at some level, remove, no matter how smooth and uncomplicated, puts much pull on both you and your partner.
There is no such thing as an easy disjoin. It is a very stressful and feeling process one that you are not going to laugh away any time soon after the papers have been signed.
Now, you might say that a brooding marriage is no march in the park either, so that when you work to avoid divorce, you are giving yourself a harder time than you should.
But total relationships that are worth your while require firm work. A percentage of it. In order to initiate a marriage trial and avoid take apart, some changes must be executed. But dont make the mistake of being able to pocket money your partners personality. You can change small modes, but you can never change the all person. You condition accept this or go ahead with appearing for someone else..
The Top Ten Hiring Mistakes
Hiring a new employee is something that professionals often postpone as long as possible. It is important to find the right person to fill the vacancy. The hiring process takes time and effort. There is a big temptation to add someone who is available at that moment and looks like they have the skills to do it. This is often a mistake. Here is a list of other hiring mistakes that professionals frequently make:
1. No job description By writing down in detail the tasks that this employee will be required to do the hiring manager will be able to see clearly the qualifications a person will need to do this job.
2.Hiring someone without the necessary skills It will be clear from the job description what skills are necessary for the job. Testing the candidate to be sure that his or her skills are current is also important. (Use a Proof reading, filing, or grammar skills assessment.)
3.Hiring someone without having the person take a behavioral assessment The assessment will help you see if this person will fit into the office and compliment the skills of the other people. It will also help you to communicate with the person in a way that that person will hear. Most managers tend to hire people like themselves when in fact they may need someone who can do some of the things that the manager doesnt enjoy.
4.Hiring someone whose temperament or personality is wrong for the job Some positions require people who are talkative and friendly and others require people who enjoy working by themselves. Certain tasks require a detail oriented person while others need some one who sees the big picture. Knowing the personality type and temperament that is best for the particular position will help the manager find the right person.
5.Hiring friends and/or relatives Often people hire friends or relatives to be kind or to do a favor for someone. If the decision turns out to be a bad one, the situation can get really uncomfortable. It is often difficult to give feedback to friends or relatives and they often resent being put in a position where they have to be grateful for the opportunity but are really angry with you for the criticism.
6.Not interviewing the candidate To really get to know if you can work with someone you need to speak with him/her directly either face to face or by phone.
7.Not preparing for the interview by creating a set of questions that you ask everyone Spending time preparing a set of probing questions for the candidates will help you to determine which candidate most closely fits your job description.
8.Not posting the job, advertising it in the paper and/or using a recruiter so that you get multiple candidates giving you a choice Some are tempted to hire the first applicant. If you advertise for candidates in multiple ways and use a recruiter too, you should have a variety of candidates to interview and select from.
9.Not screening the candidates so you interview everyone Once you have a group of candidates it is easiest to have screening interviews to weed out those who are definitely inappropriate. Often screening interviews are done by phone but also could be done by email.
10.Not checking references and background. It is tempting once you have settled on a candidate to hire him/her on the spot. It is worth taking the time to check references and background to be sure that this candidate has honestly presented him/herself.
1. No job description By writing down in detail the tasks that this employee will be required to do the hiring manager will be able to see clearly the qualifications a person will need to do this job.
2.Hiring someone without the necessary skills It will be clear from the job description what skills are necessary for the job. Testing the candidate to be sure that his or her skills are current is also important. (Use a Proof reading, filing, or grammar skills assessment.)
3.Hiring someone without having the person take a behavioral assessment The assessment will help you see if this person will fit into the office and compliment the skills of the other people. It will also help you to communicate with the person in a way that that person will hear. Most managers tend to hire people like themselves when in fact they may need someone who can do some of the things that the manager doesnt enjoy.
4.Hiring someone whose temperament or personality is wrong for the job Some positions require people who are talkative and friendly and others require people who enjoy working by themselves. Certain tasks require a detail oriented person while others need some one who sees the big picture. Knowing the personality type and temperament that is best for the particular position will help the manager find the right person.
5.Hiring friends and/or relatives Often people hire friends or relatives to be kind or to do a favor for someone. If the decision turns out to be a bad one, the situation can get really uncomfortable. It is often difficult to give feedback to friends or relatives and they often resent being put in a position where they have to be grateful for the opportunity but are really angry with you for the criticism.
6.Not interviewing the candidate To really get to know if you can work with someone you need to speak with him/her directly either face to face or by phone.
7.Not preparing for the interview by creating a set of questions that you ask everyone Spending time preparing a set of probing questions for the candidates will help you to determine which candidate most closely fits your job description.
8.Not posting the job, advertising it in the paper and/or using a recruiter so that you get multiple candidates giving you a choice Some are tempted to hire the first applicant. If you advertise for candidates in multiple ways and use a recruiter too, you should have a variety of candidates to interview and select from.
9.Not screening the candidates so you interview everyone Once you have a group of candidates it is easiest to have screening interviews to weed out those who are definitely inappropriate. Often screening interviews are done by phone but also could be done by email.
10.Not checking references and background. It is tempting once you have settled on a candidate to hire him/her on the spot. It is worth taking the time to check references and background to be sure that this candidate has honestly presented him/herself.
The non-divorce Divorce
This past week, typically mindless commentary during a popular morning talk show caught my attention. All of a sudden amidst my morning routine, I heard words and phrases like "solution" and "cost-effective" and "best interests of the children" and "divorce." The host claimed there is a new phenomenon in which a married couple remains together, in almost every sense of the word, despite the fact that both desire a divorce. He referred to it as the "non-divorce" divorce. Supposedly, this trend is gaining popularity as the solution to a failed marriage.
The "non-divorce" divorce is a mutual verbal agreement between two married individuals who want to keep their marriage in tact, but fully accept that the relationship is over. The goal is to feel divorced while continuing to live together and not get a divorce. In other words, the couple does not want to go through the divorce process, but they don't want to reconcile either. They don't want to hire attorneys, file papers, argue over custody or support, lessen the time their children see either of them, or lose one-half of their financial assets. So, they decide to remain as if they are married. They live in the same family home as roommates, participate in their children's lives as they had before they wanted a divorce, and maintain/preserve the marital estate.
Of course, most couples who attempt the "non-divorce" divorce are those who have children and/or those that have been married a considerable period of time and do not feel it is beneficial to disrupt the community on an emotional or financial level. Or at least they feel that the costs of a divorce clearly overshadow the costs of remaining together-even when there is no love left.
I cannot speak to the negative psychological effects that could result from this "solution." However, I can certainly speak to the negative legal effects and problems that could arise.
First, if you never decide to separate in family law terms (that is, one party making a conscious decision that the marriage is irrevocably over and communicating the intention to end the marriage), there is never a date of separation. The "date of separation" is important in family law because it marks the end of the community. From that date there is no longer a collection of community assets or community debts-instead, a spouse's separate property and debts begin to accumulate, as they did before marriage. Your spouse will continue to be entitled to one-half of all of your property and you will be liable for one-half of your spouse's debt. Therefore, if you are both managing your finances separately without full disclosure and mutual agreement, you could be adversely affected. What's more, your spouse will continue to be entitled to all benefits they were when you were happily married, including possible rights to the family home, life insurance, devises/gifts from a will or trust, and health insurance, to name a few.
The determination of a long term marriage (which can yield indefinite spousal support) is also associated with the date of separation. For example, if your marriage is eight years in duration, and you attempt a non-divorce for 3 years, followed by a real dissolution, the court's characterization of the marriage as long term will probably be contested and require substantial litigation.
Living as financially independent roommates could also present a problem with expenses. Unless you agree to distribute both of your respective incomes in a way that benefits the community, one spouse may not have enough to support his or her lifestyle. Regardless, if you are still residing in the family home with your spouse, the courts will not grant any spousal or child support. Since you have avoided going to the courts entirely, a support award is virtually impossible anyway.)
In the same way, no child custody or visitation orders will ever be established. This means that after attempting the "non-divorce" divorce for a year or so, and after resorting to the real thing, a parent may have a hard time making a case that he or she should be the primary custodian. This is because even if one parent is the primary caregiver during the non-divorce, this fact will be hard to establish if both parents were living in the same home all the while.
For the aforementioned reasons, the non-divorce presents significant legal problems. Spouses who try this "solution" cannot be guaranteed that one spouse will not attempt to obtain a legal divorce down the road. If this occurs, a spouse will not be afforded some of the protections that a traditional divorce provides. In order to ensure that you make an educated decision, you should speak to an attorney who specializes in family law matters. He or she can point you to two potential solutions-a post-nuptial agreement or a legal separation. Both options will cost some amount of fees and time in mundane paperwork, but will allow you to live whatever lifestyle you want with protection and peace of mind.
Copyright (c) 2007 Law Offices of Donald P. Schweitzer
The "non-divorce" divorce is a mutual verbal agreement between two married individuals who want to keep their marriage in tact, but fully accept that the relationship is over. The goal is to feel divorced while continuing to live together and not get a divorce. In other words, the couple does not want to go through the divorce process, but they don't want to reconcile either. They don't want to hire attorneys, file papers, argue over custody or support, lessen the time their children see either of them, or lose one-half of their financial assets. So, they decide to remain as if they are married. They live in the same family home as roommates, participate in their children's lives as they had before they wanted a divorce, and maintain/preserve the marital estate.
Of course, most couples who attempt the "non-divorce" divorce are those who have children and/or those that have been married a considerable period of time and do not feel it is beneficial to disrupt the community on an emotional or financial level. Or at least they feel that the costs of a divorce clearly overshadow the costs of remaining together-even when there is no love left.
I cannot speak to the negative psychological effects that could result from this "solution." However, I can certainly speak to the negative legal effects and problems that could arise.
First, if you never decide to separate in family law terms (that is, one party making a conscious decision that the marriage is irrevocably over and communicating the intention to end the marriage), there is never a date of separation. The "date of separation" is important in family law because it marks the end of the community. From that date there is no longer a collection of community assets or community debts-instead, a spouse's separate property and debts begin to accumulate, as they did before marriage. Your spouse will continue to be entitled to one-half of all of your property and you will be liable for one-half of your spouse's debt. Therefore, if you are both managing your finances separately without full disclosure and mutual agreement, you could be adversely affected. What's more, your spouse will continue to be entitled to all benefits they were when you were happily married, including possible rights to the family home, life insurance, devises/gifts from a will or trust, and health insurance, to name a few.
The determination of a long term marriage (which can yield indefinite spousal support) is also associated with the date of separation. For example, if your marriage is eight years in duration, and you attempt a non-divorce for 3 years, followed by a real dissolution, the court's characterization of the marriage as long term will probably be contested and require substantial litigation.
Living as financially independent roommates could also present a problem with expenses. Unless you agree to distribute both of your respective incomes in a way that benefits the community, one spouse may not have enough to support his or her lifestyle. Regardless, if you are still residing in the family home with your spouse, the courts will not grant any spousal or child support. Since you have avoided going to the courts entirely, a support award is virtually impossible anyway.)
In the same way, no child custody or visitation orders will ever be established. This means that after attempting the "non-divorce" divorce for a year or so, and after resorting to the real thing, a parent may have a hard time making a case that he or she should be the primary custodian. This is because even if one parent is the primary caregiver during the non-divorce, this fact will be hard to establish if both parents were living in the same home all the while.
For the aforementioned reasons, the non-divorce presents significant legal problems. Spouses who try this "solution" cannot be guaranteed that one spouse will not attempt to obtain a legal divorce down the road. If this occurs, a spouse will not be afforded some of the protections that a traditional divorce provides. In order to ensure that you make an educated decision, you should speak to an attorney who specializes in family law matters. He or she can point you to two potential solutions-a post-nuptial agreement or a legal separation. Both options will cost some amount of fees and time in mundane paperwork, but will allow you to live whatever lifestyle you want with protection and peace of mind.
Copyright (c) 2007 Law Offices of Donald P. Schweitzer
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Taking A Copyright Thief To Court
If all else fails, you can file a copyright infringement lawsuit. This remedy has some drawbacks.
Litigation can be costly. In many cases, the likely value of the misappropriated material and any damages received will be less than the amount obtainable in a judgment.
You also have to deal with the very real problem of collecting a judgment. In many cases, the offending party will be unable to pay if you prevail, and collecting via wage attachment or other options may be inefficient and impractical.
If the case crosses into a foreign country, things become even more complicated. Enforcing a judgment against a foreign entity can be remarkably problematic.
Copyright infringement cases are governed by federal statute and case law and must be filed in a Federal District Court.
If you own a copyright and can successfully prove a violation, you may be able to win damages that approximate the profits lost from the infringement and the profit generated by the offender during the period of violation. You can also receive statutory damages that may reach as much as $150,000 per violation.
During the case itself, you may also be able to get a restraining order requiring the offending party to remove the material until the matter is resolved.
Fighting copyright infringement in the courts can make sense in the right situations. When the value of the content is significant and you can prove your case effectively, it may be sufficiently lucrative to pursue. A willingness to litigate may also signal that you take copyright infringement seriously, acting as a deterrent to other would-be thieves.
Pursuing a copyright infringement case does require a high level of specialized skill. Thus, anyone considering a case of this sort is advised to seek representation from appropriately qualified legal counsel. This is not a do-it-yourself project.
In most cases, litigation just doesnt make sense. However, it may be necessary when all other remedies are exhausted and a violating party refuses to take appropriate action.
Before instigating legal action, make sure you have clearly assessed the merits of your case with your attorney and that you are prepared to see the matter through. If you arent ready to take that kind of action, it may make more sense to do your best to seek other remedies.
Litigation can be costly. In many cases, the likely value of the misappropriated material and any damages received will be less than the amount obtainable in a judgment.
You also have to deal with the very real problem of collecting a judgment. In many cases, the offending party will be unable to pay if you prevail, and collecting via wage attachment or other options may be inefficient and impractical.
If the case crosses into a foreign country, things become even more complicated. Enforcing a judgment against a foreign entity can be remarkably problematic.
Copyright infringement cases are governed by federal statute and case law and must be filed in a Federal District Court.
If you own a copyright and can successfully prove a violation, you may be able to win damages that approximate the profits lost from the infringement and the profit generated by the offender during the period of violation. You can also receive statutory damages that may reach as much as $150,000 per violation.
During the case itself, you may also be able to get a restraining order requiring the offending party to remove the material until the matter is resolved.
Fighting copyright infringement in the courts can make sense in the right situations. When the value of the content is significant and you can prove your case effectively, it may be sufficiently lucrative to pursue. A willingness to litigate may also signal that you take copyright infringement seriously, acting as a deterrent to other would-be thieves.
Pursuing a copyright infringement case does require a high level of specialized skill. Thus, anyone considering a case of this sort is advised to seek representation from appropriately qualified legal counsel. This is not a do-it-yourself project.
In most cases, litigation just doesnt make sense. However, it may be necessary when all other remedies are exhausted and a violating party refuses to take appropriate action.
Before instigating legal action, make sure you have clearly assessed the merits of your case with your attorney and that you are prepared to see the matter through. If you arent ready to take that kind of action, it may make more sense to do your best to seek other remedies.
Stimulus-related Restrictions And Fy 2010 Quota H-1b Filing
The Employ American Workers Act (EAWA), signed recently by President Barack Obama, puts severe restrictions on potential H-1B employers who have received the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) funds. The Act makes such employers H-1B dependent employers, forcing them to make attestations including efforts to recruit US workers, offering non-discriminating wages to H-1B non-immigrants and US workers, and not causing displacement of US workers.
There is widespread resentment in the H-1B community, both employers and employees, about this issue. We have been asked the question whether such restrictions on recipients of stimulus funds would impact the number of H-1B petitions for the Fiscal Year 2010, the filing for which opens on April 1, 2009. We believe the impact would be minimal for the reason that H-1B workers account for less than one-tenth of one percent of the U.S. workforce including those employed in the banking and financial sectors who are the major beneficiaries of the stimulus package.
H-1B is a nonimmigrant visa classification granted by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to foreign nationals to be employed in the U.S. in "specialty occupations" that require a minimum of bachelor's degree or equivalent. The current worldwide quota of H-1B visas is 65,000 per year. Out of this, 6,800 are reserved for nationals of Singapore and Chile. In addition to this worldwide quota, there is a special quota of 20,000 visas available to holders of advanced degrees from U.S. graduate schools. Further, certain employers in academic and research areas are exempt from this quota. The fiscal year starts on October 1, and petitions can be filed up to six month ahead of the start of employment, so the filing opens on April 1. If enough petitions are received to trigger the 5-business-day filing rule, as happened in 2008, the filing will end on April 7. Otherwise USCIS will continue to accept petitions until the quota is capped.
Last year, 163,000 petitions were filed in the first five days of filing, including 31,200 against the U.S. advanced degree category. As a result, a random lottery was conducted as was done in 2007, to determine the ultimate recipients of the coveted visas.
In the past couple of years, immigration law firms had seen a mad rush leading up to the filing date of April 1. Obviously this year such rush is absent mainly because of the downturn in the economy. So the widespread feeling is that this year there may not be as many petitions filed in the early days of filing as the previous years due to the recession and widespread layoffs. But even if the number of petitions filed is just half of last years total, the quota would still get capped. Further, as regards the U.S. advanced degree quota cap, there are thousands of foreign students in the US whose petitions were not picked in the lottery last year. A large percentage of them would be candidates again this time, in addition to those graduated later, putting more demand on that category.
Also, we have seen a sudden spurt in new inquiries in the past week or so. Moreover, most of our H-1B employer clients are looking beyond the current economic downturn. They are confident that things would turn around by the time the employment period of the new H-1Bs starts on October 1, 2009. So we keep urging our clients to file the Fiscal Year 2010 quota-subject H-1B petitions on April 1 or as soon thereafter as possible.
Disclaimer: The information in the above article is of a general nature only and should not be taken as legal advice. Always seek professional legal advice before proceeding with your case.
Copyright: The Law Offices of Morley J. Nair, Inc.
There is widespread resentment in the H-1B community, both employers and employees, about this issue. We have been asked the question whether such restrictions on recipients of stimulus funds would impact the number of H-1B petitions for the Fiscal Year 2010, the filing for which opens on April 1, 2009. We believe the impact would be minimal for the reason that H-1B workers account for less than one-tenth of one percent of the U.S. workforce including those employed in the banking and financial sectors who are the major beneficiaries of the stimulus package.
H-1B is a nonimmigrant visa classification granted by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to foreign nationals to be employed in the U.S. in "specialty occupations" that require a minimum of bachelor's degree or equivalent. The current worldwide quota of H-1B visas is 65,000 per year. Out of this, 6,800 are reserved for nationals of Singapore and Chile. In addition to this worldwide quota, there is a special quota of 20,000 visas available to holders of advanced degrees from U.S. graduate schools. Further, certain employers in academic and research areas are exempt from this quota. The fiscal year starts on October 1, and petitions can be filed up to six month ahead of the start of employment, so the filing opens on April 1. If enough petitions are received to trigger the 5-business-day filing rule, as happened in 2008, the filing will end on April 7. Otherwise USCIS will continue to accept petitions until the quota is capped.
Last year, 163,000 petitions were filed in the first five days of filing, including 31,200 against the U.S. advanced degree category. As a result, a random lottery was conducted as was done in 2007, to determine the ultimate recipients of the coveted visas.
In the past couple of years, immigration law firms had seen a mad rush leading up to the filing date of April 1. Obviously this year such rush is absent mainly because of the downturn in the economy. So the widespread feeling is that this year there may not be as many petitions filed in the early days of filing as the previous years due to the recession and widespread layoffs. But even if the number of petitions filed is just half of last years total, the quota would still get capped. Further, as regards the U.S. advanced degree quota cap, there are thousands of foreign students in the US whose petitions were not picked in the lottery last year. A large percentage of them would be candidates again this time, in addition to those graduated later, putting more demand on that category.
Also, we have seen a sudden spurt in new inquiries in the past week or so. Moreover, most of our H-1B employer clients are looking beyond the current economic downturn. They are confident that things would turn around by the time the employment period of the new H-1Bs starts on October 1, 2009. So we keep urging our clients to file the Fiscal Year 2010 quota-subject H-1B petitions on April 1 or as soon thereafter as possible.
Disclaimer: The information in the above article is of a general nature only and should not be taken as legal advice. Always seek professional legal advice before proceeding with your case.
Copyright: The Law Offices of Morley J. Nair, Inc.
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Reclaiming Or Reinventing History That Is The Question
When I went to have a look at the end notes for Vincent Bugliosis masterful, recently published 1,612-page treatise on the JFK assassination, Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy, a book that emphatically tells readers once and for all why they should believe that Lee Harvey Oswald killed Americas thirty-fifth president, I found a few things that were incongruous. Ill get to that, but first, what about the author?
Mr. Bugliosi lets readers know right up front that he has a professional interest in the Kennedy assassination that dates back some twenty-one years to 1986, and theres no question that he has penned a valuable scholarly document to support his point of view -- that Lee Harvey Oswald did in fact kill John F. Kennedy. There can also be little argument that Mr. Bugliosi, a world-famous trial lawyer and the author of the international blockbuster Helter Skelter, is more of a heavyweight when it comes to these things than am I, a simple country doctor. But I also have a take on who killed JFK, one that I put forward in my latest CJ Floyd mystery, The Mongoose Deception.
Why believe my take on the assassination, one thats light years removed from that of the esteemed Mr. Bugliosi? Well, you dont have to, but its America, and even country doctors are entitled to their opinions. And by the way, I say right up front, in very Bugliosi-like fashion, that Oswald didnt do it.
More to the point, how do the two books differ? To my way of thinking, they differ in two very clear ways. Reclaiming History is a scholarly book of nonfiction supported by twenty-one years of research. The Mongoose Deception, is a book of fiction with a mere years worth of research to prop it up, as I point out on page 2 of the novel in a prominent disclaimer.
Since I started out to write my work of fiction, I didnt think it would matter that much that my world and Mr. Bugliosis didnt run parallel, especially since at the time I started Mongoose, I had no idea that Mr. Bugliosi was in the midst of writing the definitive JFK assassination book. But lo and behold, I made a tactical error. So thrash me with a wet noodle! I forgot about The Da Vinci Code and the uproar that ensued when the public, and more particularly the Catholic Church, accepted Dan Browns thriller as gospel. I forgot that in these days of docujournalism, people too often see fiction as fact. So in an attempt to see if my fiction paralleled fact, Bugliosi-style, that is, I sat down and read Reclaiming History, hoping to simply compare my take on who did it in a 376-page mystery and historical thriller with a factual 1,612-page treatise. When I finished dissecting the two books (and by the way, as you might expect, Mongoose took very little time to dissect when contrasted with Reclaiming History, I was left with two questions that Im sure Mr. Bugliosi would suggest make The Mongoose Deception pure hogwash.
First question: Who really killed JFK -- was it Oswald or someone else? Second question: What about the black Secret Service agent Abraham Bolden, a real-life person who claims even to this day that he was aware of an attempt on JFKs life in Chicago weeks prior to Dallas? Is that hogwash too? Bolden grabbed my interest early on in my research for Mongoose because, like me, he is African American. But unlike me, he was jailed after claiming he had information about a planned hit on JFK in Chicago prior to Dallas. To this day, Boldens full story remains untold. It is his historical presence that triggered a good measure of my interest in writing The Mongoose Deception. For the record, Bolden doesnt appear as a character in Mongoose, and for the record, Mr. Bugliosi gives him rather short shrift, relegating him to end-note treatment in Reclaiming History. (Incidentally, the end note is referenced in the book, but I couldnt bring it up in the end-note and source-note diskette provided with Reclaiming History.)
After stumbling across Boldens claim that there was a planned attempt on Kennedys life in Chicago, I read Lamar Waldrons book Ultimate Sacrifice in which Waldron suggests -- with very good source documentation, I might add -- that not only was there an attempt on Kennedys life in Chicago but that there was also an attempt planned for Tampa, Florida, weeks before Dallas.
I integrated this history into Mongoose, but there is essentially no Abraham Bolden, no Chicago, and no Tampa in Reclaiming History -- just Dallas! It seems a little strange for a scholarly treatise to skip over such important events, but since I (simply a country doctor) am not one to argue with a scholar, I moved on.
More to the fact, I am also no conspiracy buff, and I really dont know for certain if Oswald killed JFK, whether Kennedy was killed by the person I claim to be the real assassin in The Mongoose Deception, or if JFK was killed by the late James Brown, Popeye the Sailor Man, or the pope. What I do know is that end notes that cant be found in a purported scholarly work dont make a whole lot of sense.
Enough, you say. Spare us the mystery of the missing notes. We arent scholars either. Were the truth-starved public, and all we want is the bottom line. Who pulled the trigger? Ill get to that, but if I were the one doing the asking, Id first ask, were there really two other attempts on Kennedys life prior to Dallas? The Mongoose Deception says there were. Reclaiming History says there werent. Read both books and decide for yourself. But when you do, I suggest you take The Mongoose Deception to the beach, or at least to a comfy chair in your house, your local coffee shop, or the library. As for Reclaiming History, youll have to decide when and where to read those 1,612 pages yourself.
Finally, although I wont name names here so as not to spoil Mongoose for you, heres a final tidbit. Attorney Bugliosi claims that one of the people of interest as the purported JFK triggerman, a person thought by many to have been involved in the JFK hit, couldnt possibly have killed Kennedy because he was in prison at the time. Yet if you scan the footnotes to Reclaiming History, youll find that the esteemed Mr. Bugliosi admits that that person was actually undergoing medical treatment in France at the time -- and strangely, no one seems to be able to pinpoint the exact whereabouts of the person or those treatments. Thats something I think every country doctor needs to think about. Fodder for fiction? You bet.
So, enough with the comparisons. The Mongoose Deception is fiction, and Reclaiming History is, according to its author, pure unadulterated fact. Who really killed JFK? you ask in desperation. Read both books, and several others on the subject to be on the safe side, and then decide for yourself.
Copyright 2007 Robert Greer
Author
Robert Greer lives in Denver where he is a practicing surgical pathologist, research scientist, and professor of pathology and medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. He edits The High Plains Literary Review and reviews books for KUVO, a Denver NPR affiliate.
Mr. Bugliosi lets readers know right up front that he has a professional interest in the Kennedy assassination that dates back some twenty-one years to 1986, and theres no question that he has penned a valuable scholarly document to support his point of view -- that Lee Harvey Oswald did in fact kill John F. Kennedy. There can also be little argument that Mr. Bugliosi, a world-famous trial lawyer and the author of the international blockbuster Helter Skelter, is more of a heavyweight when it comes to these things than am I, a simple country doctor. But I also have a take on who killed JFK, one that I put forward in my latest CJ Floyd mystery, The Mongoose Deception.
Why believe my take on the assassination, one thats light years removed from that of the esteemed Mr. Bugliosi? Well, you dont have to, but its America, and even country doctors are entitled to their opinions. And by the way, I say right up front, in very Bugliosi-like fashion, that Oswald didnt do it.
More to the point, how do the two books differ? To my way of thinking, they differ in two very clear ways. Reclaiming History is a scholarly book of nonfiction supported by twenty-one years of research. The Mongoose Deception, is a book of fiction with a mere years worth of research to prop it up, as I point out on page 2 of the novel in a prominent disclaimer.
Since I started out to write my work of fiction, I didnt think it would matter that much that my world and Mr. Bugliosis didnt run parallel, especially since at the time I started Mongoose, I had no idea that Mr. Bugliosi was in the midst of writing the definitive JFK assassination book. But lo and behold, I made a tactical error. So thrash me with a wet noodle! I forgot about The Da Vinci Code and the uproar that ensued when the public, and more particularly the Catholic Church, accepted Dan Browns thriller as gospel. I forgot that in these days of docujournalism, people too often see fiction as fact. So in an attempt to see if my fiction paralleled fact, Bugliosi-style, that is, I sat down and read Reclaiming History, hoping to simply compare my take on who did it in a 376-page mystery and historical thriller with a factual 1,612-page treatise. When I finished dissecting the two books (and by the way, as you might expect, Mongoose took very little time to dissect when contrasted with Reclaiming History, I was left with two questions that Im sure Mr. Bugliosi would suggest make The Mongoose Deception pure hogwash.
First question: Who really killed JFK -- was it Oswald or someone else? Second question: What about the black Secret Service agent Abraham Bolden, a real-life person who claims even to this day that he was aware of an attempt on JFKs life in Chicago weeks prior to Dallas? Is that hogwash too? Bolden grabbed my interest early on in my research for Mongoose because, like me, he is African American. But unlike me, he was jailed after claiming he had information about a planned hit on JFK in Chicago prior to Dallas. To this day, Boldens full story remains untold. It is his historical presence that triggered a good measure of my interest in writing The Mongoose Deception. For the record, Bolden doesnt appear as a character in Mongoose, and for the record, Mr. Bugliosi gives him rather short shrift, relegating him to end-note treatment in Reclaiming History. (Incidentally, the end note is referenced in the book, but I couldnt bring it up in the end-note and source-note diskette provided with Reclaiming History.)
After stumbling across Boldens claim that there was a planned attempt on Kennedys life in Chicago, I read Lamar Waldrons book Ultimate Sacrifice in which Waldron suggests -- with very good source documentation, I might add -- that not only was there an attempt on Kennedys life in Chicago but that there was also an attempt planned for Tampa, Florida, weeks before Dallas.
I integrated this history into Mongoose, but there is essentially no Abraham Bolden, no Chicago, and no Tampa in Reclaiming History -- just Dallas! It seems a little strange for a scholarly treatise to skip over such important events, but since I (simply a country doctor) am not one to argue with a scholar, I moved on.
More to the fact, I am also no conspiracy buff, and I really dont know for certain if Oswald killed JFK, whether Kennedy was killed by the person I claim to be the real assassin in The Mongoose Deception, or if JFK was killed by the late James Brown, Popeye the Sailor Man, or the pope. What I do know is that end notes that cant be found in a purported scholarly work dont make a whole lot of sense.
Enough, you say. Spare us the mystery of the missing notes. We arent scholars either. Were the truth-starved public, and all we want is the bottom line. Who pulled the trigger? Ill get to that, but if I were the one doing the asking, Id first ask, were there really two other attempts on Kennedys life prior to Dallas? The Mongoose Deception says there were. Reclaiming History says there werent. Read both books and decide for yourself. But when you do, I suggest you take The Mongoose Deception to the beach, or at least to a comfy chair in your house, your local coffee shop, or the library. As for Reclaiming History, youll have to decide when and where to read those 1,612 pages yourself.
Finally, although I wont name names here so as not to spoil Mongoose for you, heres a final tidbit. Attorney Bugliosi claims that one of the people of interest as the purported JFK triggerman, a person thought by many to have been involved in the JFK hit, couldnt possibly have killed Kennedy because he was in prison at the time. Yet if you scan the footnotes to Reclaiming History, youll find that the esteemed Mr. Bugliosi admits that that person was actually undergoing medical treatment in France at the time -- and strangely, no one seems to be able to pinpoint the exact whereabouts of the person or those treatments. Thats something I think every country doctor needs to think about. Fodder for fiction? You bet.
So, enough with the comparisons. The Mongoose Deception is fiction, and Reclaiming History is, according to its author, pure unadulterated fact. Who really killed JFK? you ask in desperation. Read both books, and several others on the subject to be on the safe side, and then decide for yourself.
Copyright 2007 Robert Greer
Author
Robert Greer lives in Denver where he is a practicing surgical pathologist, research scientist, and professor of pathology and medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. He edits The High Plains Literary Review and reviews books for KUVO, a Denver NPR affiliate.
Putting Public Domain Materials To Work For You
Public domain information is one of the most exciting things for people running an information marketing business, especially those just getting started, says Information Marketing master, Yanik Silver. Public domain offers a nearly endless source of content and a way for people to legally steal an information product.
Public domain materials can include, ideas, facts, works granted or donated to the public, government material, software/freeware and even formerly copyrighted materials.
Copyrighted materials that are now in the public domain are materials printed in the U.S. before 1923 and those printed between 1923 and 1963 if the copyright was not renewed in the 28th year, which describes approximately 85% of all copyrighted materials. This wide net allows information marketers to catch some real gems.
Places to find public domain materials include: libraries, used book stories, aliberis.com, firstgov.gov and google.com/unclesam.
Public domain materials can be used as the basis of an information marketing business or used as supplementary materials to other products you already have. You can also take the basic public domain materials and then create derivative products from it that you can use to feed search engines, upsells, sell on Ebay, email autoresponders, websites, podcasts and many other sections of your marketing venture.
Case in point a student of Yanik Silvers public domain program had a passion for wrestling. He found a public domain wrestling manual originally written in 1911. He copied it and started selling hard copies of the manual for $50. Then he took each of the lessons illustrated in the manual and created a step-by-step video series and is selling the videos. He now makes a six figure income off of his wrestling information business.
Another example is Rebecca Find, working with an early 20th century book called The Science of Getting Rich. She created a website, recorded the book, broke the book into sections and built an e-class around it and has monetized this one book in a variety of different ways.
Before getting started with any public domain material it is advisable to seek some legal counsel or at a bare minimum do your own due diligence. Ways you can check it yourself is copyright.gov to search for any book after 1950 or to simply work with an attorney.
The bottom line is that you can use public domain materials in so many ways and you can very quickly get your information business up and running. The extent to where you take it from there is limited only by your imagination.
Public domain materials can include, ideas, facts, works granted or donated to the public, government material, software/freeware and even formerly copyrighted materials.
Copyrighted materials that are now in the public domain are materials printed in the U.S. before 1923 and those printed between 1923 and 1963 if the copyright was not renewed in the 28th year, which describes approximately 85% of all copyrighted materials. This wide net allows information marketers to catch some real gems.
Places to find public domain materials include: libraries, used book stories, aliberis.com, firstgov.gov and google.com/unclesam.
Public domain materials can be used as the basis of an information marketing business or used as supplementary materials to other products you already have. You can also take the basic public domain materials and then create derivative products from it that you can use to feed search engines, upsells, sell on Ebay, email autoresponders, websites, podcasts and many other sections of your marketing venture.
Case in point a student of Yanik Silvers public domain program had a passion for wrestling. He found a public domain wrestling manual originally written in 1911. He copied it and started selling hard copies of the manual for $50. Then he took each of the lessons illustrated in the manual and created a step-by-step video series and is selling the videos. He now makes a six figure income off of his wrestling information business.
Another example is Rebecca Find, working with an early 20th century book called The Science of Getting Rich. She created a website, recorded the book, broke the book into sections and built an e-class around it and has monetized this one book in a variety of different ways.
Before getting started with any public domain material it is advisable to seek some legal counsel or at a bare minimum do your own due diligence. Ways you can check it yourself is copyright.gov to search for any book after 1950 or to simply work with an attorney.
The bottom line is that you can use public domain materials in so many ways and you can very quickly get your information business up and running. The extent to where you take it from there is limited only by your imagination.
Parks And Recreation In Rochester Minnesota
Recreation and outdoor activity is an essential and rewarding part of life. Taking time off to relax and simply enjoy leisure activities can improve the quality of life of anyone. The Park and Recreation Department of Rochester, MN has known this for years, and has been providing a wide range of recreation opportunities for many years. The Park Board turned 100 years old in 2004, but parks have played an important role in the lives of visitors and residents of Rochester for almost 150 years. Considering that Rochester was founded in 1854, which is 154 years ago as of 2008, it is obvious that outdoor recreation has been a critical element of peoples lives since the city was founded.
The park system back then was most likely a simple field of grass, or a place where the children would come to play games. Today, the Park and Recreation Department in Rochester offers over 3500 acres of park land spread throughout more than 80 parks. Amidst this land one will find over 60 miles of trails (biking/hiking), 56 playgrounds, 42 tennis courts, 14 picnic shelters, 2 outdoor pools, a beach, 35 horseshoe courts, 46 baseball/softball diamonds, 28 soccer fields, 11 basketball courts, 2 dog parks, 18 sand volleyball courts, 3 cross country ski trails, 2 Frisbee golf courses, 2 garden plots, and an archery range. The Department not only provides the land and upkeep of these locations, but also works with private organizations to provide activity opportunities. On almost any day of the year, one can watch or participate in a number of different sports, including baseball, football, soccer, rugby, lacrosse, softball, cricket, volleyball, golf, cross country skiing, and many others. If there is a desire for a particular activity, one will be able to find a place to try it. The park system is able to offer practically any outdoor activity, and because the system is so spread out, there are parks available in all areas of the city. Two of the more unique locations in town include Quarry Hill Park and Soldiers Field Park.
Quarry Hill Park, located on the northeast edge of town, is a 290-acre park with hiking trails, fishing ponds, historic sandstone caves, fossil beds in a prehistoric limestone quarry, tennis courts, a baseball diamond, a playground, and a picnic area. Popular with both adults and children, Quarry Hill is able to offer a number of different activities through these facilities. The park is also home to the Quarry Hill Nature Center. The goal of the Center is to open the minds and eyes of children and parents alike through science and discovery. It offers programs, classes, workshops, and a number of special activities throughout the year. The Center is also home to over 100 mounted animals, a 1,700 gallon fish tank, and a collection of live animals. During the school year, Quarry Hill is a popular destination for class field trips, and is visited by about 35,000 students annually.
Closer to the downtown area, Soldiers Field Park is also a popular destination for residents and visitors. The park is a favorite spot for picnics and parties, with picnic shelters, baseball diamonds, a pool, a golf course, and playground equipment close by. It has also become a popular spot for Ultimate Frisbee, and a game can usually be found on any given evening if the weather is nice. A major attraction of Soldiers Field Park is the Soldiers Field Veterans Memorial. It was built to honor the Veterans from Southeast Minnesota who have died serving their country, and is dedicated to those who served the country to help keep freedom a reality.
Each park in Rochester holds its own unique characteristics and charm. Even in a world that is becoming more automated and dependent on electronics, the desire for outdoor activity and recreation will not subside. The Rochester Park and Recreation Department has had a long and successful history, and holds an even brighter future. There is no doubt that the quality of life of Rochesters citizens and visitors will continue to improve as the Park System moves forward.
Copyright Rochester411
The park system back then was most likely a simple field of grass, or a place where the children would come to play games. Today, the Park and Recreation Department in Rochester offers over 3500 acres of park land spread throughout more than 80 parks. Amidst this land one will find over 60 miles of trails (biking/hiking), 56 playgrounds, 42 tennis courts, 14 picnic shelters, 2 outdoor pools, a beach, 35 horseshoe courts, 46 baseball/softball diamonds, 28 soccer fields, 11 basketball courts, 2 dog parks, 18 sand volleyball courts, 3 cross country ski trails, 2 Frisbee golf courses, 2 garden plots, and an archery range. The Department not only provides the land and upkeep of these locations, but also works with private organizations to provide activity opportunities. On almost any day of the year, one can watch or participate in a number of different sports, including baseball, football, soccer, rugby, lacrosse, softball, cricket, volleyball, golf, cross country skiing, and many others. If there is a desire for a particular activity, one will be able to find a place to try it. The park system is able to offer practically any outdoor activity, and because the system is so spread out, there are parks available in all areas of the city. Two of the more unique locations in town include Quarry Hill Park and Soldiers Field Park.
Quarry Hill Park, located on the northeast edge of town, is a 290-acre park with hiking trails, fishing ponds, historic sandstone caves, fossil beds in a prehistoric limestone quarry, tennis courts, a baseball diamond, a playground, and a picnic area. Popular with both adults and children, Quarry Hill is able to offer a number of different activities through these facilities. The park is also home to the Quarry Hill Nature Center. The goal of the Center is to open the minds and eyes of children and parents alike through science and discovery. It offers programs, classes, workshops, and a number of special activities throughout the year. The Center is also home to over 100 mounted animals, a 1,700 gallon fish tank, and a collection of live animals. During the school year, Quarry Hill is a popular destination for class field trips, and is visited by about 35,000 students annually.
Closer to the downtown area, Soldiers Field Park is also a popular destination for residents and visitors. The park is a favorite spot for picnics and parties, with picnic shelters, baseball diamonds, a pool, a golf course, and playground equipment close by. It has also become a popular spot for Ultimate Frisbee, and a game can usually be found on any given evening if the weather is nice. A major attraction of Soldiers Field Park is the Soldiers Field Veterans Memorial. It was built to honor the Veterans from Southeast Minnesota who have died serving their country, and is dedicated to those who served the country to help keep freedom a reality.
Each park in Rochester holds its own unique characteristics and charm. Even in a world that is becoming more automated and dependent on electronics, the desire for outdoor activity and recreation will not subside. The Rochester Park and Recreation Department has had a long and successful history, and holds an even brighter future. There is no doubt that the quality of life of Rochesters citizens and visitors will continue to improve as the Park System moves forward.
Copyright Rochester411
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
In Hot Pursuit Of The recanting Victim
Copyright 2006 Law Offices of Donald P. Schweitzer
In case you didnt know, we are living in a state where uncooperative victims of domestic violence are ducking and running from prosecutors and investigators who wish to compel their testimony. At this very moment, thousands of victims are holed up in their homes or are on the lam in their attempts to avoid contact with law enforcement officials.
I have many concerns about the governments aggressive practice of pursuing uncooperative victims and I believe there needs to be a change in the way our criminal justice system handles first time offenses involving domestic violence.
The Recanting Victim
The recanting victim phenomenon is nothing new. Any professional who has ever worked with domestic violence cases knows that a great number of people who report domestic violence frequently change their mind about pressing charges, once things have cooled off and reality sets in about the consequences of a criminal conviction. It is often the case that the accused and accuser make up, move back in with one another, and attempt to make things better.
Out of concern for people inflicted with the Domestic Violence Syndrome (i.e., people who are perpetually trapped in abusive relationships), prosecutors have adopted the philosophy that it is their job to rescue victims from making the wrong decision, and that it is their ethical duty to bring the perpetrator to justice, in spite of the consequences a conviction will have on the parties relationship or family.
The Use of Spontaneous Statements
Using an exception to the hearsay rule, often called the excited utterance doctrine, prosecutors used to successfully prosecute domestic violence cases, when the victim either refused to testify or recanted his or her statement. During trial, the prosecutor would simply play the 911 tapes taken from the incident and call the responding officer to the stand who would testify as to what the victim told him about the incident during the investigation. This type of evidence was permitted under the theory that the victims spontaneous statements were reliable since they were made when the victim was under a great deal of stress from the incident, and therefore the victim was not likely to have fabricated his or her story.
Prosecutors knew that it was much easier to secure a conviction when the victim refused to cooperate, given the impossibility for the defense to cross examine a 911 tape or a police officer who is merely regurgitating what the victim had said during the investigation. Thus, the preferred domestic violence case for most prosecutors was one in which the victim refused to cooperate and never set foot in the court room.
The Crawford Decision
In 2003, the glorious days of prosecuting domestic violence cases came to a screeching halt based on a United States Supreme Court decision entitled, Crawford v. Washington. According to the Crawford decision, the Confrontation Clause excludes "testimonial" hearsay from trial unless the declarant testifies at trial, or the declarant is unavailable to do so and the accused had an opportunity to cross-examine the declarant at the time of the hearsay. The high courts decision put an end to the long standing practice of calling police officers to the stand to testify on behalf of the recanting victim. Consequently, it is now necessary in most cases that the victim testifies in order for the prosecution to obtain a conviction.
The New Game
In spite of the Crawford decision, the District Attorneys Offices mad dog approach to these cases has not changed. Prosecutors are now going to extreme lengths to compel victims testimony. For example, when victims refuse to appear in court, prosecutors sometimes obtain body attachments or warrants for their arrests, and then send their investigators after the victims to have them hauled into court. In other instances, prosecutors will go so far as to charge victims with contempt of court for failing to appear. Thus, it is not unheard of these days where both the accuser and the accused are facing criminal charges.
Furthermore, frightening cat and mouse games are being played out on the streets as a result of the District Attorneys current position of chasing after victims. Government officials are pounding on the doors of victims homes, going to victims work places, and conducting around the clock surveillances of the victims known hangouts. Meanwhile, victims are taking time off of work, refusing to answer their phones, and booking trips out of the state to avoid detection.
At the risk of being labeled a proponent of domestic violence, I believe it is time for a change in the way our system handles cases involving uncooperative and recanting victims of domestic violence. My belief that we need to change the criminal justice systems method for handling these cases is based on the following four arguments:
1) The governments position of not listening to victims of domestic violence when they do not wish prosecution is based on a flawed assumption that these people cannot think for themselves. Most people who call the police because of a domestic disturbance do not suffer from Domestic Violence Syndrome. After all, women are much more independent than they were in the past, and it is much easier for people to leave relationships these days with the help of emergency protective orders issued by the police and restraining orders issued by the family courts.
2) If a person truly wants to continue in a relationship or has hopes of keeping a family together, why is the government so quick to interfere with that decision? Isnt it a no-brainer that a criminal conviction for domestic violence is likely to damage the relationship, especially where there has been a loss of liberty or employment opportunities?
3) If our main concern in these cases is to protect victims of domestic violence, why are we making it scary for people to call the police? Certainly in some cases it is appropriate for the police to simply keep the peace without making an arrest. However, with the current policy, people who are deserving of this basic police service do not call the police because of the severe consequences that usually follow.
4) Why is our government wasting so much money chasing after recanting victims when the likelihood of obtaining a conviction is so little? Although I do not have statistics to support this argument, I know from being in court that there is an enormous increase in the amount of these cases dismissed in spite of the governments expenditures in attempting to locate uncooperative or recanting victims.
A New Approach- Domestic Violence Diversion Programs
In a state that has shown drug addicts a great deal of compassion by decriminalizing the use and possession of drugs and by creating diversion programs, I believe we should be more sympathetic to uncooperative victims and their families who wish to stay together. People who call the police regarding domestic disturbances should be listened to when they desire prosecution and also when they do not.
Admittedly, in some cases it may not be appropriate to follow the victims request. Some examples are where there are repeat offenses or where there are serious injuries. In these cases the government should prosecute the offender in spite of the victims wishes, to promote safety and to send a strong message to the public that domestic violence is wrong.
Conversely, where it is a first offense with little or no injuries, and the victim expressly states that he or she does not wish prosecution, the system should give the offender the opportunity to participate in a domestic violence diversion program. This program would require the offender to attend batterers treatment classes, and upon successful completion of the program, the case would be dismissed. Without a doubt, this program is much more likely to achieve the desired results of teaching people how to manage their anger and resolve conflicts, while allowing people to keep their relationships intact.
In case you didnt know, we are living in a state where uncooperative victims of domestic violence are ducking and running from prosecutors and investigators who wish to compel their testimony. At this very moment, thousands of victims are holed up in their homes or are on the lam in their attempts to avoid contact with law enforcement officials.
I have many concerns about the governments aggressive practice of pursuing uncooperative victims and I believe there needs to be a change in the way our criminal justice system handles first time offenses involving domestic violence.
The Recanting Victim
The recanting victim phenomenon is nothing new. Any professional who has ever worked with domestic violence cases knows that a great number of people who report domestic violence frequently change their mind about pressing charges, once things have cooled off and reality sets in about the consequences of a criminal conviction. It is often the case that the accused and accuser make up, move back in with one another, and attempt to make things better.
Out of concern for people inflicted with the Domestic Violence Syndrome (i.e., people who are perpetually trapped in abusive relationships), prosecutors have adopted the philosophy that it is their job to rescue victims from making the wrong decision, and that it is their ethical duty to bring the perpetrator to justice, in spite of the consequences a conviction will have on the parties relationship or family.
The Use of Spontaneous Statements
Using an exception to the hearsay rule, often called the excited utterance doctrine, prosecutors used to successfully prosecute domestic violence cases, when the victim either refused to testify or recanted his or her statement. During trial, the prosecutor would simply play the 911 tapes taken from the incident and call the responding officer to the stand who would testify as to what the victim told him about the incident during the investigation. This type of evidence was permitted under the theory that the victims spontaneous statements were reliable since they were made when the victim was under a great deal of stress from the incident, and therefore the victim was not likely to have fabricated his or her story.
Prosecutors knew that it was much easier to secure a conviction when the victim refused to cooperate, given the impossibility for the defense to cross examine a 911 tape or a police officer who is merely regurgitating what the victim had said during the investigation. Thus, the preferred domestic violence case for most prosecutors was one in which the victim refused to cooperate and never set foot in the court room.
The Crawford Decision
In 2003, the glorious days of prosecuting domestic violence cases came to a screeching halt based on a United States Supreme Court decision entitled, Crawford v. Washington. According to the Crawford decision, the Confrontation Clause excludes "testimonial" hearsay from trial unless the declarant testifies at trial, or the declarant is unavailable to do so and the accused had an opportunity to cross-examine the declarant at the time of the hearsay. The high courts decision put an end to the long standing practice of calling police officers to the stand to testify on behalf of the recanting victim. Consequently, it is now necessary in most cases that the victim testifies in order for the prosecution to obtain a conviction.
The New Game
In spite of the Crawford decision, the District Attorneys Offices mad dog approach to these cases has not changed. Prosecutors are now going to extreme lengths to compel victims testimony. For example, when victims refuse to appear in court, prosecutors sometimes obtain body attachments or warrants for their arrests, and then send their investigators after the victims to have them hauled into court. In other instances, prosecutors will go so far as to charge victims with contempt of court for failing to appear. Thus, it is not unheard of these days where both the accuser and the accused are facing criminal charges.
Furthermore, frightening cat and mouse games are being played out on the streets as a result of the District Attorneys current position of chasing after victims. Government officials are pounding on the doors of victims homes, going to victims work places, and conducting around the clock surveillances of the victims known hangouts. Meanwhile, victims are taking time off of work, refusing to answer their phones, and booking trips out of the state to avoid detection.
At the risk of being labeled a proponent of domestic violence, I believe it is time for a change in the way our system handles cases involving uncooperative and recanting victims of domestic violence. My belief that we need to change the criminal justice systems method for handling these cases is based on the following four arguments:
1) The governments position of not listening to victims of domestic violence when they do not wish prosecution is based on a flawed assumption that these people cannot think for themselves. Most people who call the police because of a domestic disturbance do not suffer from Domestic Violence Syndrome. After all, women are much more independent than they were in the past, and it is much easier for people to leave relationships these days with the help of emergency protective orders issued by the police and restraining orders issued by the family courts.
2) If a person truly wants to continue in a relationship or has hopes of keeping a family together, why is the government so quick to interfere with that decision? Isnt it a no-brainer that a criminal conviction for domestic violence is likely to damage the relationship, especially where there has been a loss of liberty or employment opportunities?
3) If our main concern in these cases is to protect victims of domestic violence, why are we making it scary for people to call the police? Certainly in some cases it is appropriate for the police to simply keep the peace without making an arrest. However, with the current policy, people who are deserving of this basic police service do not call the police because of the severe consequences that usually follow.
4) Why is our government wasting so much money chasing after recanting victims when the likelihood of obtaining a conviction is so little? Although I do not have statistics to support this argument, I know from being in court that there is an enormous increase in the amount of these cases dismissed in spite of the governments expenditures in attempting to locate uncooperative or recanting victims.
A New Approach- Domestic Violence Diversion Programs
In a state that has shown drug addicts a great deal of compassion by decriminalizing the use and possession of drugs and by creating diversion programs, I believe we should be more sympathetic to uncooperative victims and their families who wish to stay together. People who call the police regarding domestic disturbances should be listened to when they desire prosecution and also when they do not.
Admittedly, in some cases it may not be appropriate to follow the victims request. Some examples are where there are repeat offenses or where there are serious injuries. In these cases the government should prosecute the offender in spite of the victims wishes, to promote safety and to send a strong message to the public that domestic violence is wrong.
Conversely, where it is a first offense with little or no injuries, and the victim expressly states that he or she does not wish prosecution, the system should give the offender the opportunity to participate in a domestic violence diversion program. This program would require the offender to attend batterers treatment classes, and upon successful completion of the program, the case would be dismissed. Without a doubt, this program is much more likely to achieve the desired results of teaching people how to manage their anger and resolve conflicts, while allowing people to keep their relationships intact.
Download The Reader Full Movie - Free And Legal Way
Download The Reader Full Movie - Free And Legal Way
The Reader is a literary neo-classic film based on the novel by Bernhard Schlink. Stephen Daldry (The Hours) crafts the storyline for a perfect adaptation in the big screens.
**To Download The Reader Full Movie visit the link in the resource box under this article.
The film is a fine portrayal of conflicts between a man and woman of two different generations who engages with each other in a forbidden romance in the post World War II Germany. Starring in the film are Nicole Kidman, Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, Karoline Herfurth, Hannah Herzsprung, David Kross and Bruno Ganz. The Reader is produced by Scott Rudin, Anthony Minghella and Sydney Pollack. David Hare is the films screen writer.
The film starts in 1995 Berlin, where an emotionally numb attorney Michael Berg (played by Ralph Fiennes) quickly takes the viewers back to 1958. A young Michael (David Kross) suffers from what is known later to be scarlet fever and he is helped home by an older woman Hanna (Kate Winslet). They gradually fall in love which turns into more intimate physical relationship as Michael recovers. Thereafter Hanna disappears from the scene and Michael becomes an attorney. Michael is shocked many years later with the startling reappearance of Hanna in a courtroom as a defendant of war crime trial. Michael discovers a once-monster to be his love of life. How does he deal with it? Well, the film does not give out an easy answer to this problem but shows a variety of rising complications.
From the plot, you might have become impatient to see the movie right away. Well, there is good news for you. You dont really need to queue for box office or search DVD stores for the movie since you can download The Reader full movie right at your home. Surprised? Dont be. It is plain and simple. If you wish to download The Reader full movie and many other famous movies from internet to your home PC, just pay a nominal $50 rental fee and enjoy unlimited, quality and super-fast downloads.
What are the benefits you get when you download The Reader full movie or any other movies of your choice? There are literally many benefits. Some of the major ones are:
Downloaded movies are completely legal property of yours. No risk of copyright violation whatsoever.
You can enjoy virtually unlimited downloads with the rental fee paid per month.
Downloaded movies can be conveniently viewed at any time. No more time management hassles for theatre show.
Downloaded contents are totally free of spyware or unwanted software (a natural phenomenon found with downloaded files).
You can download movies, arrange them suitably and make your own DVD collection by burning them from your PC.
Now, to download The Reader full movie or any movie for that matter, simply visit the following site just under this article. The site will open a new horizon from where you can download movies to your hearts desires.
The Reader is a literary neo-classic film based on the novel by Bernhard Schlink. Stephen Daldry (The Hours) crafts the storyline for a perfect adaptation in the big screens.
**To Download The Reader Full Movie visit the link in the resource box under this article.
The film is a fine portrayal of conflicts between a man and woman of two different generations who engages with each other in a forbidden romance in the post World War II Germany. Starring in the film are Nicole Kidman, Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, Karoline Herfurth, Hannah Herzsprung, David Kross and Bruno Ganz. The Reader is produced by Scott Rudin, Anthony Minghella and Sydney Pollack. David Hare is the films screen writer.
The film starts in 1995 Berlin, where an emotionally numb attorney Michael Berg (played by Ralph Fiennes) quickly takes the viewers back to 1958. A young Michael (David Kross) suffers from what is known later to be scarlet fever and he is helped home by an older woman Hanna (Kate Winslet). They gradually fall in love which turns into more intimate physical relationship as Michael recovers. Thereafter Hanna disappears from the scene and Michael becomes an attorney. Michael is shocked many years later with the startling reappearance of Hanna in a courtroom as a defendant of war crime trial. Michael discovers a once-monster to be his love of life. How does he deal with it? Well, the film does not give out an easy answer to this problem but shows a variety of rising complications.
From the plot, you might have become impatient to see the movie right away. Well, there is good news for you. You dont really need to queue for box office or search DVD stores for the movie since you can download The Reader full movie right at your home. Surprised? Dont be. It is plain and simple. If you wish to download The Reader full movie and many other famous movies from internet to your home PC, just pay a nominal $50 rental fee and enjoy unlimited, quality and super-fast downloads.
What are the benefits you get when you download The Reader full movie or any other movies of your choice? There are literally many benefits. Some of the major ones are:
Downloaded movies are completely legal property of yours. No risk of copyright violation whatsoever.
You can enjoy virtually unlimited downloads with the rental fee paid per month.
Downloaded movies can be conveniently viewed at any time. No more time management hassles for theatre show.
Downloaded contents are totally free of spyware or unwanted software (a natural phenomenon found with downloaded files).
You can download movies, arrange them suitably and make your own DVD collection by burning them from your PC.
Now, to download The Reader full movie or any movie for that matter, simply visit the following site just under this article. The site will open a new horizon from where you can download movies to your hearts desires.
Monday, September 24, 2012
Does The Pirate Bay Conviction Change Anything
The four founders of The Pirate Bay have been found guilty of assisting with copyright infringement. The question for many people is whether this changes any thing? The answer is that it does not.
The Pirate Bay prosecution has been a media darling for some time now. This is due, of course, to the founders who have treated the trial with the merit it deserves - none! The came to court in a party bus and things pretty much went downhill from there. As was predictable from the start, the "gang of four" has been found guilty. Their penalty? 1 year in jail and a multimillion dollar fine. They've indicated they'll appeal.
The various media groups involved in the prosecution are touting this as a great victory. Is it really? Haven't we heard this before from them? Yes, we have and we'll probably hear it again. Why? The prosecution of these cases is simply never going to work. While the media groups may be successful closing down a particular site, they'll never defeat the file sharing going. After all, they thought they had won the war when they beat Napster. We all know how that turned out!
As we sit here, I can guarantee you one thing. Somebody is opening up another bit torrent site just like The Pirate Bay. It will join the thousands of other sites that make file sharing possible. Users of The Pirate Bay will get over their anger and migrate to these sites. Files will be shared. Media groups won't get paid. In short, nothing will have changed.
This endless cycle is emblematic of one thing. The old media groups are failures. Much like newspapers, they have failed to figure out how to translate to the new digital age. The web is not going to go away and neither is file sharing. Until the MGMs of the world begin to understand this and try to come up with ways to monetize their offerings, The Pirate Bay will be avenged by thousands of other sites. It doesn't matter how many lawsuits the large conglomerates file. It just doesn't.
The Pirate Bay prosecution has been a media darling for some time now. This is due, of course, to the founders who have treated the trial with the merit it deserves - none! The came to court in a party bus and things pretty much went downhill from there. As was predictable from the start, the "gang of four" has been found guilty. Their penalty? 1 year in jail and a multimillion dollar fine. They've indicated they'll appeal.
The various media groups involved in the prosecution are touting this as a great victory. Is it really? Haven't we heard this before from them? Yes, we have and we'll probably hear it again. Why? The prosecution of these cases is simply never going to work. While the media groups may be successful closing down a particular site, they'll never defeat the file sharing going. After all, they thought they had won the war when they beat Napster. We all know how that turned out!
As we sit here, I can guarantee you one thing. Somebody is opening up another bit torrent site just like The Pirate Bay. It will join the thousands of other sites that make file sharing possible. Users of The Pirate Bay will get over their anger and migrate to these sites. Files will be shared. Media groups won't get paid. In short, nothing will have changed.
This endless cycle is emblematic of one thing. The old media groups are failures. Much like newspapers, they have failed to figure out how to translate to the new digital age. The web is not going to go away and neither is file sharing. Until the MGMs of the world begin to understand this and try to come up with ways to monetize their offerings, The Pirate Bay will be avenged by thousands of other sites. It doesn't matter how many lawsuits the large conglomerates file. It just doesn't.
Computer Consulting Finding Your Prospects Among Your Leads
Some signs are important to look for when looking for your sweet spot computer consulting clients. Most of these businesses will be doing at least a seven-figure annual sales volume with 10 to 25 employees. In this article, you'll learn how to use additional criteria to pick out your sweet spot computer consulting clients.
Computer Consulting: The Good Signs and the Bad
Some industries tend to be more IT-intensive than others. Soon, you'll learn the industries that are most likely to need your computer consulting services. There are some good signs and bad signs when it comes to the probability of a business hiring you. You will learn to recognize right off the bat whether a business is going to be receptive to spending $1,000 to $2,000 for computer consulting services.
A really good sign is if you go in to meet with a prospective client and you find out that theyre working with another solution provider in your local community but theyre dissatisfied. Why is that a good thing for you? If theyre dissatisfied and looking around for someone else, that tells you that theyre willing to pay for professional computer consulting services.
A bad sign is theyre working with a moonlighter or they have a friend or a family member who helps out once in a while or theyre getting volunteer support, and theyre not used to paying for high-level professional services. That's a big red flag. Any price you quote them is going to seem really high when they're accustomed to getting service for free.
Sweet Spot Clients Run in Packs
Your sweet spot clients that are willing to spend $1,000 to $2,000 per month on IT services are going to have relationships with other trusted business advisors in the local community like accountants, attorneys, and management consultants. Sometimes theyre even working with other niched tech providers. This will work to your advantage when they start referring you to their contacts.
The Bottom Line about Computer Consulting
By learning to recognize the characteristics of a sweet spot client, you'll save yourself lots of time and energy and more easily turn your prospects into clients. In this article, youve learned more about computer consulting.
Copyright MMI-MMVI, Computer Consulting 101. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}
Computer Consulting: The Good Signs and the Bad
Some industries tend to be more IT-intensive than others. Soon, you'll learn the industries that are most likely to need your computer consulting services. There are some good signs and bad signs when it comes to the probability of a business hiring you. You will learn to recognize right off the bat whether a business is going to be receptive to spending $1,000 to $2,000 for computer consulting services.
A really good sign is if you go in to meet with a prospective client and you find out that theyre working with another solution provider in your local community but theyre dissatisfied. Why is that a good thing for you? If theyre dissatisfied and looking around for someone else, that tells you that theyre willing to pay for professional computer consulting services.
A bad sign is theyre working with a moonlighter or they have a friend or a family member who helps out once in a while or theyre getting volunteer support, and theyre not used to paying for high-level professional services. That's a big red flag. Any price you quote them is going to seem really high when they're accustomed to getting service for free.
Sweet Spot Clients Run in Packs
Your sweet spot clients that are willing to spend $1,000 to $2,000 per month on IT services are going to have relationships with other trusted business advisors in the local community like accountants, attorneys, and management consultants. Sometimes theyre even working with other niched tech providers. This will work to your advantage when they start referring you to their contacts.
The Bottom Line about Computer Consulting
By learning to recognize the characteristics of a sweet spot client, you'll save yourself lots of time and energy and more easily turn your prospects into clients. In this article, youve learned more about computer consulting.
Copyright MMI-MMVI, Computer Consulting 101. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Brand Name Registration Chennai Trademark Registration Trademark Assignment Chennai Ipr
Brand Name Registration Chennai Trademark Registration Trademark Assignment Chennai Ipr Firm Chennai
What are the purposes of the project management?
Purpose: The Purpose of Project Management is to be able to manage any significant unique efforts / endeavor / change in an organization, (where money, time and skills are involved) with appropriate Controls and Processes to efficiently and effectively maximize the chances of success. It is said that more than 15% of projects with untrained employees and improper / informal project management techniques fail, per statistics from around the world.
The mission of nishtha is to promote that knowledge base along with ethics and good conduct in professionals, educate and orient them in the field of project management and develop skills in them that would then bring immense value in Organizations for management of their projects in a superior and successful manner.
Constant practice and continued improvement with such practices leading to delightful and successful accomplishments by professionals and companies that would bring glory to this profession would be the ultimate success of this mission. This is achieved through proper definition of scope, better estimation of time and cost, good management of Human Resources and the related communication & Procurement, with proper quality planning and execution to minimize or eliminate identified risks, all, performed in an Integrated manner. Adherence of such standardized globally recognized practices will help lower cost and increase the revenue and success of the companies.
Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing and managing resources to bring about the successful completion of specific project goals and objectives. It is sometimes conflated with program management, however technically that is actually a higher level construction: a group of related and somehow interdependent engineering projects.
Benefits: For Corporate and business functioning in any industry / business line, employees trained in Project Management are critical to manage new endeavors in their business. The Project Manager can spearhead and manage the project through effective coordination of sponsors, vendors, team members and various other stakeholders in successfully realizing the requirements.
E-Learning is revolutionizing the training world. Companies cannot afford to send people off for a week to take a class. Travel itself makes such training too expensive and disruptive. Add in lost productivity and it just doesn't make sense. Can any company really afford to be sending employees off for a week - or even a few days - for classroom training every time a new version of a key technology comes out?
E-Learning is the answer to today's training challenges. With MindLeaders' skill assessment modules, managers and employees can figure out what training is needed and then start a training program that allows them to track the results.
What are the purposes of the project management?
Purpose: The Purpose of Project Management is to be able to manage any significant unique efforts / endeavor / change in an organization, (where money, time and skills are involved) with appropriate Controls and Processes to efficiently and effectively maximize the chances of success. It is said that more than 15% of projects with untrained employees and improper / informal project management techniques fail, per statistics from around the world.
The mission of nishtha is to promote that knowledge base along with ethics and good conduct in professionals, educate and orient them in the field of project management and develop skills in them that would then bring immense value in Organizations for management of their projects in a superior and successful manner.
Constant practice and continued improvement with such practices leading to delightful and successful accomplishments by professionals and companies that would bring glory to this profession would be the ultimate success of this mission. This is achieved through proper definition of scope, better estimation of time and cost, good management of Human Resources and the related communication & Procurement, with proper quality planning and execution to minimize or eliminate identified risks, all, performed in an Integrated manner. Adherence of such standardized globally recognized practices will help lower cost and increase the revenue and success of the companies.
Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing and managing resources to bring about the successful completion of specific project goals and objectives. It is sometimes conflated with program management, however technically that is actually a higher level construction: a group of related and somehow interdependent engineering projects.
Benefits: For Corporate and business functioning in any industry / business line, employees trained in Project Management are critical to manage new endeavors in their business. The Project Manager can spearhead and manage the project through effective coordination of sponsors, vendors, team members and various other stakeholders in successfully realizing the requirements.
E-Learning is revolutionizing the training world. Companies cannot afford to send people off for a week to take a class. Travel itself makes such training too expensive and disruptive. Add in lost productivity and it just doesn't make sense. Can any company really afford to be sending employees off for a week - or even a few days - for classroom training every time a new version of a key technology comes out?
E-Learning is the answer to today's training challenges. With MindLeaders' skill assessment modules, managers and employees can figure out what training is needed and then start a training program that allows them to track the results.
Limited Liability Companies Defined
The following are a number of questions and concepts specific to Limited Liability companies along with their respective answers and definitions. The information provided will provide the basic knowledge necessary for someone interested in forming an LLC. An additional bonus are the examples which give real world applications and tie everything together.
1. What is A Limited Liability Company?
A limited liability company or "LLC" is a business entity that is authorized by specific legislation in most states of the United States and in many foreign countries. In almost every instance, the state or country in question issues a charter to the LLC upon its formation. The most significant characteristic possessed by LLCs is part of its name, that is, it provides limited liability. In this regard, it is very similar to a corporation.
2. How Do You Form An LLC?
An LLC is formed by filing the Articles of Organization with the relevant secretary of state in the U.S. or other licensing agency in a foreign country. The Articles of Organization are normally very brief and simple and provide only basic information with respect to the name of the company, the agent for service of process, the company's address and its manager or members.
3. How Is An LLC Structured?
An LLC is structured much like a partnership except that it has members instead of partners. The LLC can be member managed in a manner similar to a general partnership or it can be manager managed like a general partner does in a limited partnership. If the LLC is member managed, normally, all of the members have an equal vote and decide between themselves on not only the major business and financial policies, but, also the every day operations. If the LLC is manager managed, the members only decide on major financial and business decisions and the manager handles all of the day-to-day business operations.
4. How Is The Structure Of The LLC Determined?
The founding members or promoters of the LLC determine the structure of the LLC by means of an Operating Agreement which is similar to a Partnership Agreement. Normally, when the Articles of Organization are filed, the state requires that the organizers determine in the Articles whether or not the LLC is member managed or manager managed. The members have an experienced attorney draft the Operating Agreement which sets forth the different rights and responsibilities of the members and covers matters such as capital contributions, division of profits, management, member meetings, transfers of member interests, dissolution and indemnification.
5. What Are The On-Going State Fees For An LLC?
California imposes an $800 Annual Franchise Tax on LLCs. This amount is due on the 15th day of the fourth month after the beginning of the fiscal year. For the first year, the due date is the 15th day of the fourth month from the date the LLC was organized. In addition, California, in its arrogance, also imposes a gross receipts tax on LLCs. For LLCs whose annual revenue is between $250,000 and $499,999, the additional fee is $900. The fee increases to $2,500 for annual revenues between $500,000 and $999,999 to $6,000 for annual revenues between $1 million and $499,999, and to $11,790 for annual revenues of $5 million or more.
6. Tax And Accounting Treatment?
The LLC can elect to be taxed as either a partnership or a corporation. Almost always it is better to be taxed as a partnership. What this means is that the LLC files an Information Return and issues K-1s to its members showing the member's share of the income or loss that the LLC incurs. The members then report this amount on their own individual Returns. The LLC, if it is taxed like a partnership, does not pay any income tax. If the LLC is a single member LLC, the owner may treat it as a disregarded entity for tax purposes and report the tax and related accounting on the individual tax return of the member. This eliminates the necessity of a tax return for the LLC.
7. Charging Order Protection
A charging order is a court order available to a judgment creditor directed to a limited liability company or limited partnership of which the judgment debtor is a member or partner which grants the judgment creditor the right to whatever distributions would otherwise be due to the debtor member/partner whose interest is being charged. The purpose of the charging order is to prevent the judgment creditor of an individual partner/member from access to the partnership/LLC assets while at the same time, giving the creditor some relief relative to distributions from the entity to the partner/member. The charging order denies the creditor direct access to the LLC assets and limits the creditor exclusively to collection of the income or distributions which the LLC assets might engender, but which can be withheld from distribution at the discretion of the LLC manager. What this means is that a creditor who has obtained a charging order only has the right to receive distributions from the entity when and if such distributions are ever made even though the entity itself may have substantial income. The charging order remedy is often times the exclusive remedy available to the creditor and provides substantial asset protection for the LLC owner.
8. Putting Real Estate in the LLC.
If the primary purpose of the LLC is to hold title to a real estate investment, the members will need to deed or convey the real property involved to the LLC by means of a formal deed that needs to be recorded. All of the rents with respect to the real property should be deposited in the LLC bank account and all expenses with respect to the property should be paid for out of the LLC bank account. All contracts with respect to the real property and service arrangements should be exclusively in the name of the LLC.
9. Examples.
The following are some examples of when and why an LLC might be wisely selected:
a. Ms. Simon is a widow, who in addition to her residence, owns a four-plex . She is concerned about potential liability above and beyond what insurance would cover and has elected to place the four-plex into an LLC of which she is the single member. She treats it as a disregarded entity for tax purposes and all of the tax and accounting are reported on her individual Return.
b. Dave, his brother Bill and their friend, Richard, each own a one-third interest in a small shopping center. They have created an LLC in which to hold title to the shopping center so as to protect their respective personal assets from any claims with respect to the shopping center. All three of them participate equally in the LLC which is member managed by the three of them and treat it as a partnership for tax purposes. The LLC files a partnership Return and Dave, Bill and Richard each receive a K-1, the information of which they report on their own individual Tax Returns.
c. Ron owns a 25% interest in a 76 unit apartment building which he manages. The other 75% is owned by various members of Ron's family and by some friends. Ron has placed the apartment complex into an LLC which is a manager managed LLC since Ron is the one who does all of the management duties and responsibilities. The LLC reports its taxes as a partnership and Ron and all the other members receive K-1s for their shares of profits and Ron also receives a salary or guaranteed payment as manager which is paid to him as an expense before there is a division of profits.
d. The LLC can also be used to operate a retail or other business in a situation where limited liability is desirable, but the flexibility of the LLC is required.
Copyright (c) 2009 Jeffrey Matsen
1. What is A Limited Liability Company?
A limited liability company or "LLC" is a business entity that is authorized by specific legislation in most states of the United States and in many foreign countries. In almost every instance, the state or country in question issues a charter to the LLC upon its formation. The most significant characteristic possessed by LLCs is part of its name, that is, it provides limited liability. In this regard, it is very similar to a corporation.
2. How Do You Form An LLC?
An LLC is formed by filing the Articles of Organization with the relevant secretary of state in the U.S. or other licensing agency in a foreign country. The Articles of Organization are normally very brief and simple and provide only basic information with respect to the name of the company, the agent for service of process, the company's address and its manager or members.
3. How Is An LLC Structured?
An LLC is structured much like a partnership except that it has members instead of partners. The LLC can be member managed in a manner similar to a general partnership or it can be manager managed like a general partner does in a limited partnership. If the LLC is member managed, normally, all of the members have an equal vote and decide between themselves on not only the major business and financial policies, but, also the every day operations. If the LLC is manager managed, the members only decide on major financial and business decisions and the manager handles all of the day-to-day business operations.
4. How Is The Structure Of The LLC Determined?
The founding members or promoters of the LLC determine the structure of the LLC by means of an Operating Agreement which is similar to a Partnership Agreement. Normally, when the Articles of Organization are filed, the state requires that the organizers determine in the Articles whether or not the LLC is member managed or manager managed. The members have an experienced attorney draft the Operating Agreement which sets forth the different rights and responsibilities of the members and covers matters such as capital contributions, division of profits, management, member meetings, transfers of member interests, dissolution and indemnification.
5. What Are The On-Going State Fees For An LLC?
California imposes an $800 Annual Franchise Tax on LLCs. This amount is due on the 15th day of the fourth month after the beginning of the fiscal year. For the first year, the due date is the 15th day of the fourth month from the date the LLC was organized. In addition, California, in its arrogance, also imposes a gross receipts tax on LLCs. For LLCs whose annual revenue is between $250,000 and $499,999, the additional fee is $900. The fee increases to $2,500 for annual revenues between $500,000 and $999,999 to $6,000 for annual revenues between $1 million and $499,999, and to $11,790 for annual revenues of $5 million or more.
6. Tax And Accounting Treatment?
The LLC can elect to be taxed as either a partnership or a corporation. Almost always it is better to be taxed as a partnership. What this means is that the LLC files an Information Return and issues K-1s to its members showing the member's share of the income or loss that the LLC incurs. The members then report this amount on their own individual Returns. The LLC, if it is taxed like a partnership, does not pay any income tax. If the LLC is a single member LLC, the owner may treat it as a disregarded entity for tax purposes and report the tax and related accounting on the individual tax return of the member. This eliminates the necessity of a tax return for the LLC.
7. Charging Order Protection
A charging order is a court order available to a judgment creditor directed to a limited liability company or limited partnership of which the judgment debtor is a member or partner which grants the judgment creditor the right to whatever distributions would otherwise be due to the debtor member/partner whose interest is being charged. The purpose of the charging order is to prevent the judgment creditor of an individual partner/member from access to the partnership/LLC assets while at the same time, giving the creditor some relief relative to distributions from the entity to the partner/member. The charging order denies the creditor direct access to the LLC assets and limits the creditor exclusively to collection of the income or distributions which the LLC assets might engender, but which can be withheld from distribution at the discretion of the LLC manager. What this means is that a creditor who has obtained a charging order only has the right to receive distributions from the entity when and if such distributions are ever made even though the entity itself may have substantial income. The charging order remedy is often times the exclusive remedy available to the creditor and provides substantial asset protection for the LLC owner.
8. Putting Real Estate in the LLC.
If the primary purpose of the LLC is to hold title to a real estate investment, the members will need to deed or convey the real property involved to the LLC by means of a formal deed that needs to be recorded. All of the rents with respect to the real property should be deposited in the LLC bank account and all expenses with respect to the property should be paid for out of the LLC bank account. All contracts with respect to the real property and service arrangements should be exclusively in the name of the LLC.
9. Examples.
The following are some examples of when and why an LLC might be wisely selected:
a. Ms. Simon is a widow, who in addition to her residence, owns a four-plex . She is concerned about potential liability above and beyond what insurance would cover and has elected to place the four-plex into an LLC of which she is the single member. She treats it as a disregarded entity for tax purposes and all of the tax and accounting are reported on her individual Return.
b. Dave, his brother Bill and their friend, Richard, each own a one-third interest in a small shopping center. They have created an LLC in which to hold title to the shopping center so as to protect their respective personal assets from any claims with respect to the shopping center. All three of them participate equally in the LLC which is member managed by the three of them and treat it as a partnership for tax purposes. The LLC files a partnership Return and Dave, Bill and Richard each receive a K-1, the information of which they report on their own individual Tax Returns.
c. Ron owns a 25% interest in a 76 unit apartment building which he manages. The other 75% is owned by various members of Ron's family and by some friends. Ron has placed the apartment complex into an LLC which is a manager managed LLC since Ron is the one who does all of the management duties and responsibilities. The LLC reports its taxes as a partnership and Ron and all the other members receive K-1s for their shares of profits and Ron also receives a salary or guaranteed payment as manager which is paid to him as an expense before there is a division of profits.
d. The LLC can also be used to operate a retail or other business in a situation where limited liability is desirable, but the flexibility of the LLC is required.
Copyright (c) 2009 Jeffrey Matsen
Throw Away Your Computer - Lose Your Case
A few years ago, Debby Johnson, an attorney from a large firm based in Kansas City, contacted me about a relatively simple matter. I was to travel to offices in Sacramento from my San Francisco-area labs, copy a computer's disk drive, and locate emails sent by the plaintiff to his 9 brothers and sisters. The case was a product liability lawsuit for tens of millions of dollars. The plaintiff claimed that his health had been damaged by an international firm's defective product, although he was symptom-free at the moment. What was the product? Let's say it was coffee.
From the cool Bay Area in summer, I traveled to downtown Sacramento, where it was a balmy 106 degrees. I knew I was sweating, but inside I was cool. I wondered if someone else would be in hot water soon.
It is not unusual for me to never meet my client, for computers can be shipped to me at my lab, but Debby was there in the law offices of the plaintiff's attorney. In an oak-paneled conference room we met with counsel for "the other side" and with the plaintiff himself. He sat smugly with his shiny computer on the conference table, friendly enough in spite of his contention that I would never find the offending emails he had allegedly sent years before. My client believed that this fellow had sent emails to his siblings that would disprove his contention - that would show him to be making up a case to snag a cool few ten millions.
I took the disk drive from the smug fellow's computer to make a forensic working copy. I was surprised to find that the hard disk was 100GB in size. A drive of that capacity was fairly new and unusual to see in those days. It was supposed to be 20GB or less. Fortunately, there was an electronics superstore nearby, so I doffed my suit jacket, cranked up the air conditioning on my lab wagon (that beauty just turned over 200,000), and headed on over for some new gear. 45 minutes and a bit of melted rubber later I arrived back at the scene to forensically clean the new disk drive by writing zeroes to every sector.
Once cleared to my satisfaction, I set up the copy process. In those days, while I was partial to Diskology's Disk Jockey, the version I had then didn't seem to be able to handle what was such a large drive for the time. I used ByteBack on a forensic Intel box I had brought just in case. I began the copy process and it went without a hitch. Still, I began to wonder - wasn't this a pretty big drive to have been around at the time of the alleged emails? And for that matter, wasn't this computer pretty fast for its age. Were the emails written before XP hit the market? I was beginning to suspect that the game was rigged, and that I never would find the plaintiff's deleted emails on that computer.
I talked to Debby. I guessed that the plaintiff was right about the task being futile - because the offending emails were never on this computer. I was willing to look for them, but I didn't want to waste my client's cash. Debby asked me to look into the matter of the components' age when I got back to HQ. A few inquiries with the manufacturer and a couple of Google searches later, I discovered that Windows XP was almost too new, the disk drive was a couple of weeks too modern, and the computer was a month or two younger than those emails.
Debby called opposing counsel - who had no idea why this might not be the original system - until he checked with his man. Turns out he had "set it on the curb for trash pickup" because it "wasn't working." The attorneys weren't happy. The court wasn't happy. The only solution was for me to go to the nine brothers and sisters in four states to copy their personal computers and sift through those for the offending emails.
Do you think they were happy to hear from me? Would you be if your brother put you on the spot like that? Each of them had to agree that a perfect stranger - one who was working against their beloved brother - could come into their homes and look through everything on their personal computers. The most telling example of their displeasure was from one brother, a former Viet Name-era Green Beret, who - in response to my phone call asking when would be a good time to show up - said "I didn't spend two years marching up and down the God**m Ho Chi Minh Trail for this s**t!" I understood.
It turns out that nobody had never gotten around to telling this group that a computer guy would be calling and they needed to cooperate. I found that out when I told Debby of the righteous resistance I had come up against. She straightened it out with counsel and the next set of phone calls I made to the sibs was a lot more congenial.
The next several days, traveling from state to state, town to town, brother to sister to brother and on and on to copy the private data of nine innocent family members had its challenges. But that's a story unto itself...I'll spare you most of the details. Upon my return, the protocol called for me to search all of the data for any correspondence from - let's call him "The Brother" that referenced his struggles with ... we're calling it "Coffee". The next task was to print out what I'd found and get it to the "other side" and the judge to detrmine if anything was private or privileged. Debby and her firm were not to get a look at the data until anything either private or irrelevant had been picked out, and only the remainder produced.
What did I find? Around the time of the alleged emails, lo and behold, I found actual emails. The whole family was talking about The Brother's struggle with Coffee, their individual investigations into Coffee, and the upcoming lawsuit about Coffee. At one point, one email pointed out that this guy Burgess was going to be looking into everyone's email, and wouldn't it make sense not to talk about "Coffee"? They agreed. They now spoke only of ... "the C-Word."
I just can't talk about most of the other stuff I found. There are some things on your computer you wouldn't want me talking about, I'm sure. Same with my own computer.
But there was one particularly interesting finding. When I called the Green Beret Brother (GBB) from his sister's place across town, and asked for permission to head on over to make the copy of his computer, he obligingly told me it was okay. When I got there, he first asked me to read and sign a statement that I wouldn't hold him liable for any damage to me or my equipment - unintentional or otherwise. Well that was a little scary coming from a guy trained in the arts of stealth, war, and undoubtedly the garrote. Still, I signed it, if that was what it took to let me do my work. Everything went fine. And I left alive and undamaged - a plus, indeed!
Once in my lab, I discovered the last thing that had happened on his computer. About one minute after my phone call for permission to go over, GBB had sent himself an email and then immediately deleted it. The subject, all in caps, was "COFFEE!" No "C-Word" fooling around for him. The message in the body was simple and succinct: "If you find this email, F*** YOU!!!!!" Full self-expression is a wonderful thing. There was also a deleted photograph attached to the deleted email. It was a very recent photo of GBB's one-finger salute. Visual aids are always helpful in understanding the subject matter, don't you think?
In the end, I produced about 75 pages of documentation I thought relevant. Of course, I had to include GBB's missive. Opposing counsel called everything irrelevant or privileged of course, but the judge allowed it all with a few lines redacted. Everyone's favorite was the literate bit produced by GBB.
As for The Brother - the court decided that not only was he not very honest, due to the destruction of the most important data in the case - his original computer - but the evidence and the relevant emails showed him to be apparently undamaged by the Coffee. The case went to defeat, Debby and her firm were happy, and GBB became a legend.
Copyright (c) 2008 Steve Burgess
From the cool Bay Area in summer, I traveled to downtown Sacramento, where it was a balmy 106 degrees. I knew I was sweating, but inside I was cool. I wondered if someone else would be in hot water soon.
It is not unusual for me to never meet my client, for computers can be shipped to me at my lab, but Debby was there in the law offices of the plaintiff's attorney. In an oak-paneled conference room we met with counsel for "the other side" and with the plaintiff himself. He sat smugly with his shiny computer on the conference table, friendly enough in spite of his contention that I would never find the offending emails he had allegedly sent years before. My client believed that this fellow had sent emails to his siblings that would disprove his contention - that would show him to be making up a case to snag a cool few ten millions.
I took the disk drive from the smug fellow's computer to make a forensic working copy. I was surprised to find that the hard disk was 100GB in size. A drive of that capacity was fairly new and unusual to see in those days. It was supposed to be 20GB or less. Fortunately, there was an electronics superstore nearby, so I doffed my suit jacket, cranked up the air conditioning on my lab wagon (that beauty just turned over 200,000), and headed on over for some new gear. 45 minutes and a bit of melted rubber later I arrived back at the scene to forensically clean the new disk drive by writing zeroes to every sector.
Once cleared to my satisfaction, I set up the copy process. In those days, while I was partial to Diskology's Disk Jockey, the version I had then didn't seem to be able to handle what was such a large drive for the time. I used ByteBack on a forensic Intel box I had brought just in case. I began the copy process and it went without a hitch. Still, I began to wonder - wasn't this a pretty big drive to have been around at the time of the alleged emails? And for that matter, wasn't this computer pretty fast for its age. Were the emails written before XP hit the market? I was beginning to suspect that the game was rigged, and that I never would find the plaintiff's deleted emails on that computer.
I talked to Debby. I guessed that the plaintiff was right about the task being futile - because the offending emails were never on this computer. I was willing to look for them, but I didn't want to waste my client's cash. Debby asked me to look into the matter of the components' age when I got back to HQ. A few inquiries with the manufacturer and a couple of Google searches later, I discovered that Windows XP was almost too new, the disk drive was a couple of weeks too modern, and the computer was a month or two younger than those emails.
Debby called opposing counsel - who had no idea why this might not be the original system - until he checked with his man. Turns out he had "set it on the curb for trash pickup" because it "wasn't working." The attorneys weren't happy. The court wasn't happy. The only solution was for me to go to the nine brothers and sisters in four states to copy their personal computers and sift through those for the offending emails.
Do you think they were happy to hear from me? Would you be if your brother put you on the spot like that? Each of them had to agree that a perfect stranger - one who was working against their beloved brother - could come into their homes and look through everything on their personal computers. The most telling example of their displeasure was from one brother, a former Viet Name-era Green Beret, who - in response to my phone call asking when would be a good time to show up - said "I didn't spend two years marching up and down the God**m Ho Chi Minh Trail for this s**t!" I understood.
It turns out that nobody had never gotten around to telling this group that a computer guy would be calling and they needed to cooperate. I found that out when I told Debby of the righteous resistance I had come up against. She straightened it out with counsel and the next set of phone calls I made to the sibs was a lot more congenial.
The next several days, traveling from state to state, town to town, brother to sister to brother and on and on to copy the private data of nine innocent family members had its challenges. But that's a story unto itself...I'll spare you most of the details. Upon my return, the protocol called for me to search all of the data for any correspondence from - let's call him "The Brother" that referenced his struggles with ... we're calling it "Coffee". The next task was to print out what I'd found and get it to the "other side" and the judge to detrmine if anything was private or privileged. Debby and her firm were not to get a look at the data until anything either private or irrelevant had been picked out, and only the remainder produced.
What did I find? Around the time of the alleged emails, lo and behold, I found actual emails. The whole family was talking about The Brother's struggle with Coffee, their individual investigations into Coffee, and the upcoming lawsuit about Coffee. At one point, one email pointed out that this guy Burgess was going to be looking into everyone's email, and wouldn't it make sense not to talk about "Coffee"? They agreed. They now spoke only of ... "the C-Word."
I just can't talk about most of the other stuff I found. There are some things on your computer you wouldn't want me talking about, I'm sure. Same with my own computer.
But there was one particularly interesting finding. When I called the Green Beret Brother (GBB) from his sister's place across town, and asked for permission to head on over to make the copy of his computer, he obligingly told me it was okay. When I got there, he first asked me to read and sign a statement that I wouldn't hold him liable for any damage to me or my equipment - unintentional or otherwise. Well that was a little scary coming from a guy trained in the arts of stealth, war, and undoubtedly the garrote. Still, I signed it, if that was what it took to let me do my work. Everything went fine. And I left alive and undamaged - a plus, indeed!
Once in my lab, I discovered the last thing that had happened on his computer. About one minute after my phone call for permission to go over, GBB had sent himself an email and then immediately deleted it. The subject, all in caps, was "COFFEE!" No "C-Word" fooling around for him. The message in the body was simple and succinct: "If you find this email, F*** YOU!!!!!" Full self-expression is a wonderful thing. There was also a deleted photograph attached to the deleted email. It was a very recent photo of GBB's one-finger salute. Visual aids are always helpful in understanding the subject matter, don't you think?
In the end, I produced about 75 pages of documentation I thought relevant. Of course, I had to include GBB's missive. Opposing counsel called everything irrelevant or privileged of course, but the judge allowed it all with a few lines redacted. Everyone's favorite was the literate bit produced by GBB.
As for The Brother - the court decided that not only was he not very honest, due to the destruction of the most important data in the case - his original computer - but the evidence and the relevant emails showed him to be apparently undamaged by the Coffee. The case went to defeat, Debby and her firm were happy, and GBB became a legend.
Copyright (c) 2008 Steve Burgess
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Should Small Business Owners Care About Web 2.0 Marketing Tools
Should Small Business Owners Care About Web 2.0 Marketing Tools
Copyright 2006 John Jantsch
A new internet gold rush has been taking hold with the emergence of social networking, blogging, podcasting and other web 2.0 experiments. Media companies and Internet giants have reacted promptly by acquiring many of the new players to take advantage of these new advertising vehicles and evolve their endangered models. Yet advertisers themselves have stayed on the sidelines to a great extent. Small businesses especially have reacted cautiously to web 2.0 marketing fearing its hype and its inherent risks and represent a very small portion of the x million blogs.
It seems that there are several emerging trends that every small business should be aware of. We thought we would share these trends through examples of small businesses that have been the first to capitalize on web 2.0 and have reaped early benefits.
Trend #1: Establish a blog as your primary web presence. Customers value who they do business with sometimes as much as what they buy. Blogging provides you with a more personal environment where you can both promote your product and present a more personal view of your business. Blogging also allows you to initiate an on-going conversation with your customers and build a long term relationship. Blogging is especially important in professional services small businesses where the person is the product and where word of mouth and recommendations are the primary sales driver.
Horsefeathers, a restaurant in North Conway, N. H., publishes a blog about food, wine, local events and restaurant news as a way to keep customers connected and loyal ( ).
Patti Thompson is the president of Way-Fil Jewelry, Inc. located in Tupelo, MS. She serves as the appraiser, designer and one of two bench jewelers.( ). She writes a combination of personal stories, stories about her store and appraisal posts (What is gold sodium thiomalate?). She also links her blog to her EBay store.
Trend #2: Take advantage of emerging hyper local blogs. With the number of blogs exploding (a blog is created every second!) and readership skyrocketing, the blogosphere is reaching a sufficient scale to address hyper local content. A similar phenomenon happened in the internet space when readership and websites reached a tipping point to be able to offer relevant content for very small customer segments such as a city and provide local search. This new trend in blogging makes local advertising for small businesses very relevant, for example restaurants, hotels, real estate brokers or accountants.
Cornerstone Wealth Advisors () in Overland Park, KS created a blog about investing and other financial matters and use it as the jumping off point for several practice groups.
Blogging Ohio ( ), which is part of Weblogs ( ), is a great example of this trend with posts that focus on specific towns in Ohio. Lake County, OH ( ) has also started a local community blog and local sponsored links such as local restaurants, hotels or country clubs.
Trend #3: Use web 2.0 marketing to market to bloggers. Bloggers have become a growing and influential customer segment with strong economic power. As this customer segment reaches critical mass, some small businesses have understood the opportunity to target them and build marketing approaches that appeal to their tastes and preferences.
Bloggersfuel is a great example of this focused marketing ( ). Bruce Frcek has developed this blog to keep bloggers up to date on what is happening in the specialty coffee industry and with its online store Boca Java (www.bocajava.com) and to hear directly from bloggers on ideas about blogging and coffee.
Daily Greencine ( ) publishes a blog around independent and alternative cinema that gets 80 000 visitors each month and helps drive traffic to online rental and video on demand store GreenCine (www.greencine.com). The blog helped double the stores revenues.
Trend #4: Leverage emerging web 2.0 advertising platforms. Web 2.0 start ups are positioning themselves as aggregators of advertising and providing new platforms to market small businesses.
AdCandy ( ) allows consumers to develop advertising slogans and suggest product improvements for their favorite brands. Protechd ( ), a small company making iPod covers uses AdCandy to run a contest letting visitors create their ad campaign and slogan, thus helping raise awareness for its brand in its target customer segment.
Zixxo ( ) allows small businesses to create and manage their own online coupons and syndicate them out to local consumers through partner websites and RSS feeds. John example of coffee shop
Trend #5: explore emerging audio and video marketing (podcasting and vloging). The recent massive growth in these new formats triggered by the Apple IPOD and by new start ups such as You Tube will develop new advertising media that can be particularly appropriate for specific small businesses.
Chaz, a yoga instructor ( ), has a yoga studio in Louisville, KY and has been using podcasting on itunes for a series of instructional videos that promote his yoga techniques and his studio.
Dave Seitter, () a construction attorney located in Kansas City, Mo has created a monthly expert teleseminar and converted it to a podcast.
Copyright 2006 John Jantsch
A new internet gold rush has been taking hold with the emergence of social networking, blogging, podcasting and other web 2.0 experiments. Media companies and Internet giants have reacted promptly by acquiring many of the new players to take advantage of these new advertising vehicles and evolve their endangered models. Yet advertisers themselves have stayed on the sidelines to a great extent. Small businesses especially have reacted cautiously to web 2.0 marketing fearing its hype and its inherent risks and represent a very small portion of the x million blogs.
It seems that there are several emerging trends that every small business should be aware of. We thought we would share these trends through examples of small businesses that have been the first to capitalize on web 2.0 and have reaped early benefits.
Trend #1: Establish a blog as your primary web presence. Customers value who they do business with sometimes as much as what they buy. Blogging provides you with a more personal environment where you can both promote your product and present a more personal view of your business. Blogging also allows you to initiate an on-going conversation with your customers and build a long term relationship. Blogging is especially important in professional services small businesses where the person is the product and where word of mouth and recommendations are the primary sales driver.
Horsefeathers, a restaurant in North Conway, N. H., publishes a blog about food, wine, local events and restaurant news as a way to keep customers connected and loyal ( ).
Patti Thompson is the president of Way-Fil Jewelry, Inc. located in Tupelo, MS. She serves as the appraiser, designer and one of two bench jewelers.( ). She writes a combination of personal stories, stories about her store and appraisal posts (What is gold sodium thiomalate?). She also links her blog to her EBay store.
Trend #2: Take advantage of emerging hyper local blogs. With the number of blogs exploding (a blog is created every second!) and readership skyrocketing, the blogosphere is reaching a sufficient scale to address hyper local content. A similar phenomenon happened in the internet space when readership and websites reached a tipping point to be able to offer relevant content for very small customer segments such as a city and provide local search. This new trend in blogging makes local advertising for small businesses very relevant, for example restaurants, hotels, real estate brokers or accountants.
Cornerstone Wealth Advisors () in Overland Park, KS created a blog about investing and other financial matters and use it as the jumping off point for several practice groups.
Blogging Ohio ( ), which is part of Weblogs ( ), is a great example of this trend with posts that focus on specific towns in Ohio. Lake County, OH ( ) has also started a local community blog and local sponsored links such as local restaurants, hotels or country clubs.
Trend #3: Use web 2.0 marketing to market to bloggers. Bloggers have become a growing and influential customer segment with strong economic power. As this customer segment reaches critical mass, some small businesses have understood the opportunity to target them and build marketing approaches that appeal to their tastes and preferences.
Bloggersfuel is a great example of this focused marketing ( ). Bruce Frcek has developed this blog to keep bloggers up to date on what is happening in the specialty coffee industry and with its online store Boca Java (www.bocajava.com) and to hear directly from bloggers on ideas about blogging and coffee.
Daily Greencine ( ) publishes a blog around independent and alternative cinema that gets 80 000 visitors each month and helps drive traffic to online rental and video on demand store GreenCine (www.greencine.com). The blog helped double the stores revenues.
Trend #4: Leverage emerging web 2.0 advertising platforms. Web 2.0 start ups are positioning themselves as aggregators of advertising and providing new platforms to market small businesses.
AdCandy ( ) allows consumers to develop advertising slogans and suggest product improvements for their favorite brands. Protechd ( ), a small company making iPod covers uses AdCandy to run a contest letting visitors create their ad campaign and slogan, thus helping raise awareness for its brand in its target customer segment.
Zixxo ( ) allows small businesses to create and manage their own online coupons and syndicate them out to local consumers through partner websites and RSS feeds. John example of coffee shop
Trend #5: explore emerging audio and video marketing (podcasting and vloging). The recent massive growth in these new formats triggered by the Apple IPOD and by new start ups such as You Tube will develop new advertising media that can be particularly appropriate for specific small businesses.
Chaz, a yoga instructor ( ), has a yoga studio in Louisville, KY and has been using podcasting on itunes for a series of instructional videos that promote his yoga techniques and his studio.
Dave Seitter, () a construction attorney located in Kansas City, Mo has created a monthly expert teleseminar and converted it to a podcast.
Critical Keys To Grow Your Business... Even In A Down
Critical Keys To Grow Your Business... Even In A Down Economy!
How can I even think about growing my business in this economy?"
That's a good question to ask. But your business can survive, and even thrive in a down economy.
How? Well, you've got to have a time-tested and proven plan to do so. Because if you don't have a plan for your business growth, even when facing a tough economy, then your business growth may actually become a catalyst for the demise of your business!
Remember, business growth just for the sake of growing, means absolutely nothing. Instead, what we want is to grow our businesses using proven strategies that also help build our profits along the way.
One such strategy is to employ the "Power of Strategic Focus".
The "Power of Strategic Focus" is employed by sharply and clearly focusing on a goal with the specific intention of applying a proven, sound strategy, or plan of action. All of your action steps are considered, premeditated, and tactical. They are taken because the specific strategy focused on requires it. The focus is therefore "strategic" in that it encompasses the process of implementing time-tested actions that are deliberately timed, and calculated in advance to achieve a desired result.
When your business is being attacked by the downward spiraling effects of a tumbling economy, that's exactly when you MUST employ the "Power of Strategic Focus". When facing a down economy, your desired result, or goal is to survive, and even grow. And you can do that by single-mindedly focusing your daily business actions and decisions on just these 3 critical keys:
3 Critical Keys To Grow Your Business Even In A Down Economy
1. You MUST strategically focus all of your daily business decisions and actions on the direction you want your business to move. When in the midst of a down economy, it is critically important that you are crystal clear about the vision you have for your business, and the specific goals you want to accomplish. Your unrelenting effort must be on keeping your business moving daily towards accomplishing its long-term Vision and Goals.
2. Next, you MUST strategically focus on staying in contact with what I call your "Ideal Customers and Clients". Most businesses earn 80% of their profits from only 20% of their customer base. Therefore, your initial focus should be on identifying exactly who those "Ideal Customers and Clients" are in your business. Once you have done that, then any marketing you do must be tactically focused primarily on them; particularly if marketing budget constraints are in effect. Keep your "Ideal Customers and Clients" informed about your products, services, and any new offerings you provide. Don't assume that they are already aware of your products and services. Remind them anyway ..., tactfully. How, by informing them how your products and services will benefit them. Continually. Constantly. Target your "Ideal Customers and Clients". Especially when in a down economy.
3. Finally, keep your eyes focused on the prize. And for all businesses, this means ..., Cash Flow. You may not be aware of this, but every business has a unique manner of generating Cash Flow. Take a hard look at your own business. Does your Cash Flow come primarily from focusing on generating profits from your customers, your products, your services, your hours, or your cost of goods sold? Once you discover your business' unique manner of generating Cash Flow, then you must make sure to unrelentingly take specific actions daily to continue generating Cash Flow. Make one more call. Write another letter. Sell one more of your products. Whatever action you do take, make sure that it does generate additional Cash Flow.
There you have them. The 3 critical keys to grow your business, even in a down economy.
When you employ the "Power of Strategic Focus" on these 3 keys while you're in the midst of a downturn in the economy, your business will not only survive it, but continue to grow and be profitable.
Copyright (c) 2008. Miguel Mendez, Jr. All rights reserved.
How can I even think about growing my business in this economy?"
That's a good question to ask. But your business can survive, and even thrive in a down economy.
How? Well, you've got to have a time-tested and proven plan to do so. Because if you don't have a plan for your business growth, even when facing a tough economy, then your business growth may actually become a catalyst for the demise of your business!
Remember, business growth just for the sake of growing, means absolutely nothing. Instead, what we want is to grow our businesses using proven strategies that also help build our profits along the way.
One such strategy is to employ the "Power of Strategic Focus".
The "Power of Strategic Focus" is employed by sharply and clearly focusing on a goal with the specific intention of applying a proven, sound strategy, or plan of action. All of your action steps are considered, premeditated, and tactical. They are taken because the specific strategy focused on requires it. The focus is therefore "strategic" in that it encompasses the process of implementing time-tested actions that are deliberately timed, and calculated in advance to achieve a desired result.
When your business is being attacked by the downward spiraling effects of a tumbling economy, that's exactly when you MUST employ the "Power of Strategic Focus". When facing a down economy, your desired result, or goal is to survive, and even grow. And you can do that by single-mindedly focusing your daily business actions and decisions on just these 3 critical keys:
3 Critical Keys To Grow Your Business Even In A Down Economy
1. You MUST strategically focus all of your daily business decisions and actions on the direction you want your business to move. When in the midst of a down economy, it is critically important that you are crystal clear about the vision you have for your business, and the specific goals you want to accomplish. Your unrelenting effort must be on keeping your business moving daily towards accomplishing its long-term Vision and Goals.
2. Next, you MUST strategically focus on staying in contact with what I call your "Ideal Customers and Clients". Most businesses earn 80% of their profits from only 20% of their customer base. Therefore, your initial focus should be on identifying exactly who those "Ideal Customers and Clients" are in your business. Once you have done that, then any marketing you do must be tactically focused primarily on them; particularly if marketing budget constraints are in effect. Keep your "Ideal Customers and Clients" informed about your products, services, and any new offerings you provide. Don't assume that they are already aware of your products and services. Remind them anyway ..., tactfully. How, by informing them how your products and services will benefit them. Continually. Constantly. Target your "Ideal Customers and Clients". Especially when in a down economy.
3. Finally, keep your eyes focused on the prize. And for all businesses, this means ..., Cash Flow. You may not be aware of this, but every business has a unique manner of generating Cash Flow. Take a hard look at your own business. Does your Cash Flow come primarily from focusing on generating profits from your customers, your products, your services, your hours, or your cost of goods sold? Once you discover your business' unique manner of generating Cash Flow, then you must make sure to unrelentingly take specific actions daily to continue generating Cash Flow. Make one more call. Write another letter. Sell one more of your products. Whatever action you do take, make sure that it does generate additional Cash Flow.
There you have them. The 3 critical keys to grow your business, even in a down economy.
When you employ the "Power of Strategic Focus" on these 3 keys while you're in the midst of a downturn in the economy, your business will not only survive it, but continue to grow and be profitable.
Copyright (c) 2008. Miguel Mendez, Jr. All rights reserved.
Friday, September 21, 2012
You Have To Want It!
So you want to own a home business. Maybe an online internet business. Why not, you've heard all the promises$1,000 a week stuffing envelopes, $10,000 a month Brokering Notes, $28,000 in days, not weekssimply returning phone calls, Make $4,280 a month to simply shop at home, $4,000 cash first 2 days. You get the picture.
I read these ads right off of "Home Business" August 2007 magazine. There's a lot of hype and promises out there. Maybe you have gotten involved in some of these companies and realized, after you spent your $1,000 or more to join, it really wasn't as easy as they said, plus they didn't have a system.
One of my favorites are the sites that have the long copy and ask you to buy before they even show you what it is, wow that's ballsy. I have to be honest with you here. I fell for a lot of this hype and promises, to find out they just don't work.
I want to help you not make the same mistakes I did. So where do you start? What do you look for? What I'm going to share with you is what to look for in a home based business. It's not going to be some hyped, hypothetical non-sense. I'm going to give you the hard facts on what to look for.
1. Find a mentor. Someone who is going to be there for you. Someone you can trust. Someone who has a system. Someone who has the results you are looking for. Someone who is willing to listen to your needs and actually cares about your success.
2. Make sure the system is duplicatable. Make sure you talk to everyone on the team and ask if they are successful with the system. This is where most businesses fall short, leaving a trial of destruction and not success.
3. Make sure the products being sold are legitimate stand alone products. Meaning that the products would sell themselves if on a shelf at a store. Most network marketing and direct sales companies are built on a compensation plan and not a stand alone product. If this isn't the case you will have a hard time building residual income and a stable business as most people will not be able to duplicate what you are doing and your attrition will be huge.
One way to tell if the products are viable is to see what percentage of the products sold are retail sales. If people are only buying the products to be able to turn around and sell them to other recruits, beware. This is so critical. Besides who doesn't want to be proud of what they're selling. there are enough legitimate companies marketing legitimate products out there. Find one that feels right to you!
4. Make sure the team you are working with has a true-turnkey marketing system in place that anyone can duplicate. A system that anyone can plug into and get instant results with. If you have to figure out your own lead generation or if the company relies on recruiting family or friends, purchased leads or newspaper advertising, RUN. RUN FAST! If you don't have a reliable way of getting quality prospects in front of what you are offering you cannot be successful long term.
5. The system should also replace most of the redundant and boring things that cause most people to fail. Turnkey marketing systems that actually are proven to work are difficult to find. This is usually the weak linkLook closely.
6. Make sure that the company has a long term vision and is going to be financially stable as long as your are going to be marketing for it If the company has bad PR, it's for a reason. Bad PR kills companies quick. Also make sure the company is NOT hiding offshore in the Bahamas or Panama somewhere to keep out of reach of the attorney general. This a key sign of company's true colors.
7. Find a Top-Tier direct sales company to work with. I have personally never achieved a significant income with MLM, affiliate, referral, or network marketing type business models. The attrition is too big and the commissions too small.
8. Make sure you don't have to pass up any sales as part of a qualifications processYou should be in a income earning position from day one. This is critical. Besides what happens after you pass up your qualifying sales? You're on your own! Your sponsor has no further financial interest in your success.
9. Make sure that the company you are working with has no conflict of interests.. You can recognize this as large monthly fees, selling you leads, or partnerships and alliances that are PROFIT CENTERS designed to line the company's pockets with your money.
10. Finally, is what you are about to do something you can be passionate about and would you be willing and eager to share it with others? If not how can you be successful if you lack the self confidence and pride in what you are doing. Do something meaningful and make what you do about "helping others". Be proud and passionate and if you are using the right system, it will be impossible to fail.
In conclusion, I would also like to say that You Have to Want It! You have to be willing to put in the time and money it takes to be successful, to have that Time Freedom you have always wanted. Treat it like a business not a hobby. Even if you have a job, it is very feasible to start a home based business. I know, I did it.
There are no free lunches here. You have to be willing to give up that night time television. You have to want it! You can't buy an education like this, because they don't teach it.
It wasn't until I started focusing and doing all the things that this business offered, taught and required of me that I became successful.
Copyright (c) 2007 Mark Molina
I read these ads right off of "Home Business" August 2007 magazine. There's a lot of hype and promises out there. Maybe you have gotten involved in some of these companies and realized, after you spent your $1,000 or more to join, it really wasn't as easy as they said, plus they didn't have a system.
One of my favorites are the sites that have the long copy and ask you to buy before they even show you what it is, wow that's ballsy. I have to be honest with you here. I fell for a lot of this hype and promises, to find out they just don't work.
I want to help you not make the same mistakes I did. So where do you start? What do you look for? What I'm going to share with you is what to look for in a home based business. It's not going to be some hyped, hypothetical non-sense. I'm going to give you the hard facts on what to look for.
1. Find a mentor. Someone who is going to be there for you. Someone you can trust. Someone who has a system. Someone who has the results you are looking for. Someone who is willing to listen to your needs and actually cares about your success.
2. Make sure the system is duplicatable. Make sure you talk to everyone on the team and ask if they are successful with the system. This is where most businesses fall short, leaving a trial of destruction and not success.
3. Make sure the products being sold are legitimate stand alone products. Meaning that the products would sell themselves if on a shelf at a store. Most network marketing and direct sales companies are built on a compensation plan and not a stand alone product. If this isn't the case you will have a hard time building residual income and a stable business as most people will not be able to duplicate what you are doing and your attrition will be huge.
One way to tell if the products are viable is to see what percentage of the products sold are retail sales. If people are only buying the products to be able to turn around and sell them to other recruits, beware. This is so critical. Besides who doesn't want to be proud of what they're selling. there are enough legitimate companies marketing legitimate products out there. Find one that feels right to you!
4. Make sure the team you are working with has a true-turnkey marketing system in place that anyone can duplicate. A system that anyone can plug into and get instant results with. If you have to figure out your own lead generation or if the company relies on recruiting family or friends, purchased leads or newspaper advertising, RUN. RUN FAST! If you don't have a reliable way of getting quality prospects in front of what you are offering you cannot be successful long term.
5. The system should also replace most of the redundant and boring things that cause most people to fail. Turnkey marketing systems that actually are proven to work are difficult to find. This is usually the weak linkLook closely.
6. Make sure that the company has a long term vision and is going to be financially stable as long as your are going to be marketing for it If the company has bad PR, it's for a reason. Bad PR kills companies quick. Also make sure the company is NOT hiding offshore in the Bahamas or Panama somewhere to keep out of reach of the attorney general. This a key sign of company's true colors.
7. Find a Top-Tier direct sales company to work with. I have personally never achieved a significant income with MLM, affiliate, referral, or network marketing type business models. The attrition is too big and the commissions too small.
8. Make sure you don't have to pass up any sales as part of a qualifications processYou should be in a income earning position from day one. This is critical. Besides what happens after you pass up your qualifying sales? You're on your own! Your sponsor has no further financial interest in your success.
9. Make sure that the company you are working with has no conflict of interests.. You can recognize this as large monthly fees, selling you leads, or partnerships and alliances that are PROFIT CENTERS designed to line the company's pockets with your money.
10. Finally, is what you are about to do something you can be passionate about and would you be willing and eager to share it with others? If not how can you be successful if you lack the self confidence and pride in what you are doing. Do something meaningful and make what you do about "helping others". Be proud and passionate and if you are using the right system, it will be impossible to fail.
In conclusion, I would also like to say that You Have to Want It! You have to be willing to put in the time and money it takes to be successful, to have that Time Freedom you have always wanted. Treat it like a business not a hobby. Even if you have a job, it is very feasible to start a home based business. I know, I did it.
There are no free lunches here. You have to be willing to give up that night time television. You have to want it! You can't buy an education like this, because they don't teach it.
It wasn't until I started focusing and doing all the things that this business offered, taught and required of me that I became successful.
Copyright (c) 2007 Mark Molina
The Controversy Over Roadside Field Sobriety Tests
Copyright 2006 Lance Knowlton
Roadside field sobriety tests (FSTs), developed at the behest of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), are commonly employed by police officers during DUI stops to determine whether a driver is under the influence of alcohol.
FSTs generally consist of a battery of three to five exercises, such as walking and turning in a different direction, standing on one leg, nystagmus (using the eyes to track an object), touching the finger to the nose and reciting the alphabet.
The officer may subjectively decide whether the individual failed the test, or he may decide after applying recently-promulgated federal scoring standards. The NHTSA thinks these tests are a reliable way to gauge sobriety; however, there is mounting evidence that they are anything but.
Many FSTs are based on the concept of divided attention, which occurs when an individual must concentrate on more than one thing at the same time. A driver must divide her attention among various physical and mental activities to safely operate a vehicle, and her ability to do so is significantly reduced by the consumption of alcohol.
Ideally, FSTs evaluate the same mental and physical capabilities that a person needs to drive: information processing; short-term memory; judgment and decision making; steadiness, sure reactions; clear vision; small muscle control; and coordination of the limbs.
The most recently developed of the FSTs is the horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) test. HGN does not test a drivers ability to divide his attention, but it is thought to be an even more accurate means to detect whether a person has consumed alcohol because it measures involuntary eye movement.
Nystagmus is an involuntary oscillation of the eye, and it occurs naturally in human eyes when they focus too far off center (straight ahead). If a sober person tracks an object from side to side, the eyes will follow it smoothly up to a certain point, when they will begin to oscillate. If an intoxicated person tracks an object from side to side, alcohol will make nystagmus more pronounced, meaning the eyes will oscillate sooner.
However, alcohol is not the only cause of pronounced nystagmus. Nystagmus can be caused by inner ear problems, flu, strep throat, measles, syphilis, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, hypertension, glaucoma and epilepsy.
Temporary conditions such as motion sickness, sun stroke, eye strain or fatigue, and changes in atmospheric pressure may also result in nystagmus. Further, the consumption of common substances such as caffeine, nicotine, or aspirin can also lead to nystagmus. An individuals circadian rhythms or biorhythms also affect nystagmus readings.
The integrity of the original research affirming the validity of the HGN test has been called into question, and in 2001 additional research indicated that the test is improperly administered by most police officers. HGN, however, is not the only FST to be called into question. The entire battery of tests appears to offer dubious evidence of intoxication.
The most obvious problem is that the conditions under which FSTs are given almost guarantee failure: usually late at night; along a graveled or sloped roadside; with unsteady lighting from passing cars headlights, the officers flashlight and patrol cars strobe and headlights; and sometimes gusts of wind from intemperate weather or passing cars. The test is given to a person who is usually nervous and possibly frightened.
In 1991, Clemson University conducted a study on the accuracy of FSTs. Police officers were shown videotapes of individuals performing six common FSTs and asked to determine whether they were too intoxicated to drive. The officers concluded that almost half of the people were too drunk to drive; however, unknown to the officers, none of them had consumed any alcohol.
Given the questionable reliability of FSTs, it is no wonder they are surrounded by controversy and DUI defense attorneys often advise people not to submit to them.
Roadside field sobriety tests (FSTs), developed at the behest of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), are commonly employed by police officers during DUI stops to determine whether a driver is under the influence of alcohol.
FSTs generally consist of a battery of three to five exercises, such as walking and turning in a different direction, standing on one leg, nystagmus (using the eyes to track an object), touching the finger to the nose and reciting the alphabet.
The officer may subjectively decide whether the individual failed the test, or he may decide after applying recently-promulgated federal scoring standards. The NHTSA thinks these tests are a reliable way to gauge sobriety; however, there is mounting evidence that they are anything but.
Many FSTs are based on the concept of divided attention, which occurs when an individual must concentrate on more than one thing at the same time. A driver must divide her attention among various physical and mental activities to safely operate a vehicle, and her ability to do so is significantly reduced by the consumption of alcohol.
Ideally, FSTs evaluate the same mental and physical capabilities that a person needs to drive: information processing; short-term memory; judgment and decision making; steadiness, sure reactions; clear vision; small muscle control; and coordination of the limbs.
The most recently developed of the FSTs is the horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) test. HGN does not test a drivers ability to divide his attention, but it is thought to be an even more accurate means to detect whether a person has consumed alcohol because it measures involuntary eye movement.
Nystagmus is an involuntary oscillation of the eye, and it occurs naturally in human eyes when they focus too far off center (straight ahead). If a sober person tracks an object from side to side, the eyes will follow it smoothly up to a certain point, when they will begin to oscillate. If an intoxicated person tracks an object from side to side, alcohol will make nystagmus more pronounced, meaning the eyes will oscillate sooner.
However, alcohol is not the only cause of pronounced nystagmus. Nystagmus can be caused by inner ear problems, flu, strep throat, measles, syphilis, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, hypertension, glaucoma and epilepsy.
Temporary conditions such as motion sickness, sun stroke, eye strain or fatigue, and changes in atmospheric pressure may also result in nystagmus. Further, the consumption of common substances such as caffeine, nicotine, or aspirin can also lead to nystagmus. An individuals circadian rhythms or biorhythms also affect nystagmus readings.
The integrity of the original research affirming the validity of the HGN test has been called into question, and in 2001 additional research indicated that the test is improperly administered by most police officers. HGN, however, is not the only FST to be called into question. The entire battery of tests appears to offer dubious evidence of intoxication.
The most obvious problem is that the conditions under which FSTs are given almost guarantee failure: usually late at night; along a graveled or sloped roadside; with unsteady lighting from passing cars headlights, the officers flashlight and patrol cars strobe and headlights; and sometimes gusts of wind from intemperate weather or passing cars. The test is given to a person who is usually nervous and possibly frightened.
In 1991, Clemson University conducted a study on the accuracy of FSTs. Police officers were shown videotapes of individuals performing six common FSTs and asked to determine whether they were too intoxicated to drive. The officers concluded that almost half of the people were too drunk to drive; however, unknown to the officers, none of them had consumed any alcohol.
Given the questionable reliability of FSTs, it is no wonder they are surrounded by controversy and DUI defense attorneys often advise people not to submit to them.
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