2009
Oct 
31

Chris Burton joins Mid-America Christian University in OKC

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Chris Burton joins Mid-America Christian University in OKC

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Oct 30, 2009

Chris Burton has been appointed associate vice president for the Office for University Advancement at Mid-America Christian University in Oklahoma City.

Burton is the senior administrative officer for the university advancement program. He administrates and manages all of MACU’s development and fundraising, alumni affairs and community relations programs.

Since 2007, Burton has been the director of Campus Crusade for Christ in Oklahoma. Before joining Campus Crusade, Burton worked for two years at Dynegy Inc. in Houston.

He is a id badge holder graduate of the University of Oklahoma and will graduate in December with a Master of Arts in Biblical Studies from Dallas Theological Seminary.

Center for Community Health Opens in Skid Row to Provide Healthcare Services to Nearly 9,000 Patients Annually

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Center for Community Health Opens in Skid Row to Provide Healthcare Services to Nearly 9,000 Patients Annually

PR Newswire, Oct 29, 2009

– Integrated Healthcare Delivery System to Help Improve Health Outcomes and Overall Access to Care -

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ — The Weingart Center Association, JWCH Institute and the County of Los Angeles announced today the opening of the Center for Community Health Downtown Los Angeles, a state-of-the-art medical facility that provides integrated care to the more than 18,000 homeless and low-income people in and around Skid Row. The 21,000-square-foot facility, located at 522 S. San Pedro Street, is expected to meet the healthcare needs of nearly 9,000 patients annually. The center will provide a variety of medical services under one roof, including medical, mental health, substance abuse services, dentistry, ophthalmology and pharmacy. The opening of the center represents more than five years of dedicated work by collaborative partners and successfully demonstrates how important public-private partnerships are in addressing the needs of the community.

“This is an unprecedented opportunity to open a health center that provides comprehensive services under one roof,” said Gregory C. Scott, president and chief executive officer of the Weingart Center Association. “The Weingart Center is very excited to be a part of this collaboration that provides the much-needed access to care and a ‘medical home’ for the people in our community without the stigma associated with lack of housing and poor access to health coverage.”

Los Angeles County’s estimated homeless population is the largest in the nation. On any given night there are there are approximately 75,000 homeless people living on the streets, of which 5,000 are located in Los Angeles’ Skid Row. According to the Los Angeles Housing Authority, more than 74 percent are affected by depression, mental illness, substance abuse, physical disabilities, AIDS/HIV related illnesses, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and other chronic health conditions. Hospital emergency rooms are the primary source of healthcare for 48 percent of these individuals who lack access to regular medical services.

“This new health center is a giant step forward as we work to meet the nearly overwhelming need for quality healthcare services in and around Skid Row,” said Al Ballesteros, chief executive officer of JWCH Institute. “The integrated service delivery approach will help to eliminate service duplication, maximize resources and expand current services.”

The Center for Community Health emerged from the Skid Row Homeless Healthcare Initiative created by the Weingart Foundation in 2003. The Weingart Foundation began the initiative to address the unmet health needs of homeless individuals and support improvements in healthcare delivery to enable access to care. Funding from the foundation and other philanthropic organizations made it possible for community organizations to develop this innovative approach to healthcare delivery.

“The Weingart Foundation is exceptionally proud to provide the lead gift for this community health center,” said Fred Ali, president and chief executive officer of the Weingart Foundation. “We would also like to acknowledge the other funders that joined this long-term effort. The Weingart Foundation is dedicated to improving the quality of life in Southern California and this health center is an exciting culmination of community efforts to address the important healthcare needs of individuals in Downtown Los Angeles.

The County of Los Angeles is providing professional staff from various departments to implement this integrated model of care. The Department of Mental Health will provide mental health screening, assessment, treatment and medication support. The Department of Public Health will provide radiology services social anxiety treatment and host TB medical clinics on site to provide TB testing, treatment and directly observed therapy, as well as substance abuse services through the DPH-Alcohol and Drug Programs Administration. The Department of Health Services will provide HIV testing and treatment, and referrals for mental health services and case management.

“The County of Los Angeles is proud to be a part of the unique partnership and opening of the Center for Community Health,” said Kathy House, manager of the Service Integration Branch of the County’s CEO’s office. “The center provides a unique approach to healthcare integration in the county which we hope will serve as a model for replication.”

About the Collaboration

The opening of the Center for Community Health represents more than five years of dedicated work by the collaborative partners and successfully demonstrates how important public-private partnerships are in addressing the needs of our communities. The Weingart Center Association dedicated one of its facilities for the center, led the capital campaign and played an instrumental role in raising approximately $5.5 million for the renovation of the building

CBOI founder’s award nomination

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CBOI founder’s award nomination

Real Estate Weekly, Oct 14, 2009

Stuart Cohen, founder of the City Building Owners Insurance (CBOI) Program, has been nominated for a prestigious 2009 Power Broker Award.

The awards competition, administered by Risk and Insurance magazine, honors brokers who excel in building long-term client relationships and bring credit to the insurance industry by upholding the highest ethical standards.

Previous winners have been lauded for innovative thinking that benefited their clients and made a significant change in their industry.

Cohen’s big idea came after hearing the same story again and again: owners of small commercial buildings in New York would ask their existing property and casualty insurance agent, the one who insured their home and car, for commercial insurance

Their agent would go oregon auto insurance quotes to a commercial broker for a policy and present it to the client.

“Too many people wound up with a ‘one size fits all’ policy that didn’t fit them,” said Cohen. “And they were paying too much for it.”

Sensing an opportunity, Cohen approached several leading property and casualty insurance markets a year ago and suggested they tailor policies to smaller commercial building owners in New York. All agreed.

“The response was immediate,” Cohen. “We started getting several inquiries a day from property owners

Tati jury told of neckinjury

Filed under: Uncategorized — admin @ 10:18 am  
Tati jury told of neckinjury

0 Comments | Western Mail (Cardiff, Wales), Oct 29, 2009

A WOMAN whose body was found buried in a shallow grave died from a neck injury, a court heard yesterday.

Ermatati Rodgers’ injury was caused by manual or ligature strangulation or a kick, blow or stamp but not a fall, saidHomeOffice pathologist Dr Brian Rogers. “We have a young woman who appears healthy who has died suddenly,” he told the jury at Mold Crown Court.

Her personal injury solicitor father Sabri Jalil, who lives on the island of Sumatra, told police the family did not have a history of genetic diseases.

He also said she had been planning to return to Indonesia.

Lukasz Reszpondek, 30, a Polish cheese cutter working at a dairy in Wrexham, denies murdering Mrs Rodgers, 41, at his former home in Trinity Street, Rhostyllen, in January 2008. Reszpondek claims he had panicked when she collapsed and died in his home, and buried her body the following night. It was found by police 14 months later.

The case continues.

Plumas Bancorp Reports Third Quarter and Year to Date Results

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Plumas Bancorp Reports Third Quarter and Year to Date Results

Market Wire, October, 2009

Plumas Bancorp, (NASDAQ: PLBC), a bank holding
company and the parent company of Plumas Bank, today announced a third
quarter 2009 net loss of $1.14 million ($0.27 per diluted share) versus
earnings of $390 thousand, or $0.08 per diluted share, during the third
quarter of 2008. For the nine months ended September 30, 2009 Plumas
Bancorp reported a net loss of $5.65 million ($1.28 per diluted share), as
compared to earnings of $1.66 million, or $0.34 per diluted share, during
the same period in the prior year. The decline in earnings for both the
quarter and the nine month period are primarily related to an increase in
the provision for loans losses, provision for other real estate owned
(”OREO”) and higher FDIC insurance assessments.

Douglas N. Biddle, president and chief executive officer, remarked, “Our
continued efforts to reduce our current level of non-performing loans are
beginning to bear fruit. In this regard, we completed foreclosure actions
on several loans during the third quarter resulting in a $14 million
decrease in non-performing loans. As these balances transfer to OREO we
have much greater control surveyor surrey over the eventual disposition of these assets.”
Biddle added, “We were also pleased with the progress we have made in
generating non-interest income through our government-guaranteed lending
activities as demonstrated by an increase in SBA loan sale gains from $111
thousand during the first nine months of 2008 to $215 thousand during the
same period in 2009

Does Snow Leopard fix Leopard annoyances? Unfortunately, not always. It even adds some new ones.(Mac User)(Product/service evaluation)

Filed under: Uncategorized — admin @ 9:38 am  
Does Snow Leopard fix Leopard annoyances? Unfortunately, not always. It even adds some new ones.(Mac User)(Product/service evaluation)

Macworld, November, 2009 by Griffiths, Rob

Leopard was a fine operating system, but there were always medical answering services things about it that I found annoying. (To see my bottom-ten list, with full descriptions, see macworld.com/4270.) When Snow Leopard shipped, one of the first things I did was check to see whether those annoyances were still there. Unfortunately, many of them were. And I found a couple of new ones while I was at it.

10

100 layoffs at Valley Mental Health will affect patients, other

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100 layoffs at Valley Mental Health will affect patients, other

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Oct 30, 2009 | by James Thalman Deseret News

People with mental illnesses trying to blend into the community are worried they’ll find themselves outcasts because of a $10 million budget deficit at the outpatient clinics they consider a necessary safety net.

“There’s nowhere else to go, this is it,” one woman told a Valley Mental Health staff member who is among 100 to 125 employees who will be laid off by the end of the year to help make up for county, state and federal budget shortfalls.

“These cuts are causing a lot of anxiety and feelings of despair and panic attacks that these folks already have as it is,” a part- time staff member said Wednesday, noting that no matter how well the cuts are absorbed, “they are going to have real effects on the people who are struggling just to get through the day.”

Valley Mental Health has seven locations in Salt Lake, Summit and Tooele counties that offer mental-health and substance-abuse assessments and addiction therapy.

Several people said many of their friends or family members receiving care are at least in part dealing with psychoses either directly related to or made worse by substance abuse.

The cuts couldn’t come at a worse time. County and state mental- health and substance-abuse agencies, as well as area emergency shelter providers, estimate that just under 20,000 people in the Salt Lake area need services, but there is only room for 1,800 to receive inpatient and outpatient services.

“Add the fact that more and more people are being roughed up by the economy, and the urge to self-medicate or relapse or just let a mental illness take over completely often gets unbearable,” said Terrell Young, a recovering addict and substance-abuse counselor at the Rescue Mission of Salt Lake. “And it’s not just the guys who come here, it’s the shirts and ties in the offices downtown.”

Along with cuts for Valley Mental Health, which contracts with the state for mental-health services and receives funding from county, state and federal government agencies, seven people with the state Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health have also been laid off. The state and county rely on Valley to help keep people mainstreamed and functioning in the community as much as possible.

the cure for insomnia On Tuesday, families and friends of people with mental illness gathered to brainstorm ways to deal with pending layoffs.

Just because the funding goes away doesn’t mean the needs do, group members said, noting that other service providers, such as emergency rooms and jails, can expect an increased load.

Right now, Valley clients will receive more group therapy, and hours of operation will be curtailed, said clinical director Richard Hatch

2009
Oct 
30

Gun nuts: Montana sends a shot across the bow of federal regulation

Filed under: Uncategorized — admin @ 4:31 pm  
Gun nuts: Montana sends a shot across the bow of federal regulation

National Review, Nov 2, 2009 by Travis K. Avulla

Great Falls, Mont.

LONG has Montana been enthusiastic on the subject of guns, but the Montana Firearms Freedom Act takes the cake.

Passed this spring by the state legislature, a group of folks who meet for 90 days every other year, the law declares that any weapon or round of ammunition made in Montana and remaining within state borders “is not subject to federal law or federal regulation, including registration, under the authority of Congress to regulate interstate commerce.” This bold declaration of independence became law October 1, though even before then the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms had sent out a memorandum to gun dealers, the summary of which was: Don’t even think about it. A lawsuit is pending.

A nearly identical piece of legislation had been defeated in the 2005 and 2007 sessions of the legislature, but this year a groundswell of public anxiety about federal regulation of guns led to votes that were not even close. The act won passage 85-14 in the house and 29-21 in the senate, with many Democrats–most seattle lawyer of them town-dwelling folk–lining up behind their country brothers and voting “yea.”

This bit of classically Montanan orneriness comes in the wake of a surge in gun sales throughout the United States. Whatever havoc the recession may be wreaking on other parts of the economy, the guns-and-ammo business is not just unfazed, but prospering. In the immediate aftermath of Barack Obama’s election, gun sales spiked everywhere. CNN reported a run on the market, with one dealer describing a single Saturday of sales that equaled an average week’s receipts.

In recent months, gun sales have tapered off, but it remains difficult to find handgun ammunition. Demand far outstrips supply. At sporting-goods stores in Great Falls, this centrally located town of 56,000 surrounded by farms and ranch land, the popular .38- and .44-caliber ammo is regularly sold out.

Last month, the largest gun show in Montana convened here. It was a sea of hundreds of display tables whose 3,850 linear feet teemed with guns, ammunition, and related paraphernalia. In one corner, a Republican county commissioner handed out popcorn to constituents. Although he’s not up for reelection until November 2010, he considers this a must-do event. Attendance at the spring gun show topped 7,000 and declined slightly, to 5,500, this fall. I arrived on a Friday afternoon, before the official opening, and found a line of two dozen men waiting to gain admission. By Saturday afternoon, most handgun ammunition had sold out

Margaret and Queen Mum-in-Law

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Margaret and Queen Mum-in-Law

0 Comments | People (London, England), The, Dec 7, 2008

Byline: richard arnold

Buck House, 1952 – Prince Philip moves in with the Missus, Margaret and Queen Mum-in-Law.

And what a picture of life behind palace doors was painted in C4’s The Queen’s Coronation about Pip and the women in citizens band radio his life.

You had to pity the poor bloke and his brave attempts to modernise life at The Palace where mail was still being delivered between family members under the same roof by footmen.

Naval man Philip suggested introducing walkie-talkies – but sadly there were no takers for ‘CB – E’ radios back then…!

(C’mon, it is panto season.)

2009
Oct 
29

'Good person' sick over lying at work

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‘Good person’ sick over lying at work

0 Comments | Deseret f80 treadmill News (Salt Lake City), Oct 28, 2009

Dear Annie: I am a good person. I always try to do the right thing. But I did something stupid, and it could cost me my job and the respect I have earned.

For 10 years, I have been the director of a preschool. Every member of the staff has to take 18 hours of learning in-service. One of my staff members was absent during one of the in-service exams, so I took the test for her and signed her name.

I could get fired and probably should be. I am sick about it. I knew it was a mistake as soon as I mailed it in. Please tell me what to do. Should I tell my boss upfront and resign? Or do I live with the stress and pray I don’t get caught? I will never do it again, but I doubt anyone will care about that. — This Is Not Me

Dear Not You: We don’t think you will be able to live with the stress. It’s already eating you up inside, and you will forever anticipate the truth coming out. Did the absentee woman ask you to take the test for her? If so, she could lose her job, as well. You made a terrible mistake and will have to face the consequences, but there is a possibility that if you are forthcoming and sincerely sorry, you will be given another chance.

You might also wish to talk this over with your clergyperson or counselor and ask for guidance.

Dear Annie: Can you settle a dispute between my husband and me?

“Lenny” is retired and does the majority of the housework and taking care of our cats. On weekends, I like to get up early while Lenny sleeps in. One cat prefers to be fed at the crack of dawn, but the other two sleep late and aren’t hungry. I usually feed the one cat but not the others