Q & A: Gluten and other stuff | Midwest PRS: Hand & Plastic Surgery

Here is a question from one of my readers:

Please summarize the benefits of gluten-free for those of us who don?t have celiac disease. ?There is a lot of information swirling about now that the food industry has found a new niche to market. ?While it?s always nice to have more choice & selection, especially for those who already have identified the need, it?s easy to be suspicious of the industry?s motives behind driving a premium-priced product.

Please try & separate the wheat from the chaff for us on this topic!

Great question. Here is the ?low-down? from my perspective.

From a non-celiac perspective, you don?t necessarily need to go? gluten-free? for the sake of gluten, per se. It helps on many levels, but obviously is not mandatory, as it is in celiac disease. As a result,? you can have items that contain gluten, like rye krisps and oatmeal for breakfast, for instance. But you shouldn?t base your diet in these items as the mainstream media suggests in the campaign to eat more ?healthy whole grains? and such because even for an otherwise healthy person wheat is a highly destructive carbohydrate, that we tend to eat way, way to much of, and plays a huge role in making us fat and sick.

Why? Gluten certainly plays a role, which I will discuss in a minute, but so does the fact that products that contain gluten like bread, bagels, toast, and crackers, by and large, are essentially sugar.

The starch that is in wheat is called amylopectin-A, which is highly digestible and shoots your blood sugar up more than table sugar. That?s right: more than table sugar based on the glycemic index.

What is the Glycemic index?**

The Glycemic Index is a numerical Index that ranks carbohydrates based on their rate of glycemic response (i.e. their conversion to glucose within the human body). Glycemic Index uses a scale of 0 to 100, with higher values given to foods that cause the most rapid rise in blood sugar. Pure glucose serves as a reference point, and is given a Glycemic Index (GI) of 100.

Glycemic Index values are determined experimentally by feeding human test subjects a fixed portion of the food (after an overnight fast), and subsequently extracting and measuring samples of their blood at specific intervals of time. The earliest known work on the Glycemic Index was done by Dr. David Jenkins and associates at St. Michael?s Hospital in Toronto, Canada. More recently, an effort to expand the Glycemic Index has been made by Jennie Brand-Miller and her associates at the Human Nutrition Unit of the University of Sydney in Sydney, Australia.

So what is the Glycemic Index of Bread and table sugar respectively? Sugar: 68 Bread:70?YIKES!

Now, you know. Bread = sugar. Simple.

But the story doesn?t end here, and gluten does in fact, come back into play?even for a regular person without celiac disease because gluten has a very unique property,? specifically it digests to something called gliadin, which enters your blood stream, crosses your blood-brain barrier and activates appetite.

Gliadin is a? protein which activates receptors that respond to morphine and similar receptors that respond to marijuana (called endocannibanoid receptors) which give you the ?munchies.?? Now, you can see that wheat not only raises your blood sugar aggressively, promoting a strong insulin response, which will eventually make you hungry, wheat also acts on your brain, to trick it to eat more than it needs or should, ie overeat through a central mechanism.

So I should shop in the gluten-free section? Absolutely not. And here is where the trick is that you need to know to be successful in going gluten free in a non-celiac patient: gluten-free is worse on your blood sugar.

Here is the proof. Most gluten-free products use potato starch. What is the Glycemic Index? 85. That?s worse than either sugar or bread! And white rice flour, which is used a lot in wheat free products is close behind at 64.

So what does this mean? What do I do? I know this all sounds confusing, but stick with me. It makes sense, and you will love the result when you have more energy, less migraines (if you suffer from them), less gut disturbances, and you lose weight effortlessly. I have written a post on going gluten-free which details this a bit more, but here is the version in the nutshell:

1. Cut out bread and all bread products. Period. It?s the single most effective and important step in the process. Do this and nothing else, and you will see some nice results. It?s also the hardest step, and people hate it initially, but then when they see the results, they love it!

2. Have that extra piece of meat, salad, olives, cheese or a piece of low-impact fruit (for me, it?s apples and almond butter). Don?t stuff yourself, but you don?t have to not feel full or be hungry.

3. Experiment with some gluten free grains (oats, quinoa), but count your carbs! Don?t have 80 carbs worth! Have less, maybe 1/2 cup.

4. Don?t base your diet in grains, but a little rice, potato, quinoa can be nice to have. Remember grains = starch = sugar. You don?t need grains in your diet to be healthy. A lot of vegetarians will cut our wheat, for instance!

5. Potatoes can work too in small amounts, but be careful. You can eat a lot of carbs really quickly with potatoes.

6. Nuts are great snacks. But don?t go nuts on nuts, cheese, and dairy. You can overeat these easily and your body still has to process these calories.

7. Buckwheat, coconut, and almond flours ROCK. Learn to use them. Watch the carb count, though?buckwheat is kinda high, but lots of protein and a low GI?Buckwheat does keep you full.

8. Keep your low carb lifestyle intact (don?t treat yourself with sugar and starches now you are gluten free!)

Those are of course, beginner tips. Every one has to modify according to both their needs and their desires. It?s not medical advice I am giving, and if you have medical issue, it?s important to note that you should see your doctor.

But for many people these tips help, without being too restrictive, giving you some nice options rather than spending a lot of money going directly to the gluten-free products, that are high in carbs.

You can otherwise shop normally, enjoying all the regular food you like to enjoy!

**The Glycemic Index (GI) is controversial, and diets based on GI have been shown not help you lose weight. But here is the trick: use GI as a guideline?a compass, for instance. If you are walking in the woods, and you need to go north, but you run into a deep gorge, don?t just keep walking! You will have to make some adjustments. The fact is, dieting is the same way. You will have to figure out and adjust your own path a little bit, but that doesn?t mean you should go south, if you are headed north. I am a fan of the GI, and I think it serves as? a good guideline for the majority of people.

Source: http://www.midwestprs.com/q-a-gluten-and-other-stuff

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Sailing Beginner ? How to Sail ? Raising the Mainsail | South ...

Home ? Uncategorized ? Sailing Beginner ? How to Sail ? Raising the Mainsail

Now in preparation for sailing I have to get out in open water using my kicker. Here's how I do it. I lock the tiller in a straight position by a piece of rope, I named the tiller rope that is nothing more than a rope tied between two cleats on the each side of the stern of the sailing boat.

Click here to read the full article at Travel-and-Leisure:Sailing Articles from EzineArticles.com -->

Source: http://south-florida-yacht-charters.com/2012/sailing-beginner-how-to-sail-raising-the-mainsail/

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SpaceX capsule arrives at ISS with precious cargo

A privately built robotic space capsule arrived at the International Space Station early Wednesday (Oct. 10) to make the first-ever commercial cargo delivery to the orbiting lab under a billion-dollar deal with NASA.

The unmanned Dragon spacecraft was captured by station astronauts using a robotic arm after an apparently flawless approach by the cargo-laden space capsule, which was built by the private spaceflight company SpaceX. It is the first of 12 resupply flights SpaceX will fly for NASA under a $1.6 billion deal.

"Looks like we've tamed the Dragon," station commander Sunita Williams said as the spacecraft was captured by a robotic arm. "We're happy she's onboard with us. Thanks to everyone at SpaceX and NASA for bringing her to us ? and the ice cream."

The astronauts' chocolate-vanilla swirl ice cream, a rare treat for the space station crew, was a last-minute item packed along with the nearly 1,000 pounds (453 kilograms) of supplies riding up to the orbiting lab on the Dragon capsule. [Photos: SpaceX's Dragon Arrives at Space Station]

The SpaceX spacecraft was captured at about 6:56 a.m. EDT (1122 GMT) by Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide as the space station soared 250 miles (402 kilometers) above the Pacific Ocean, just west of Baja California. The capsule will be attached to an open docking port on the station in the next few hours.

SpaceX launched the Dragon spacecraft into orbit on Sunday (Oct. 7) atop a Falcon 9 rocket (also built by the company) from a pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. It is expected to spend at least three weeks linked to the space station and be filled with nearly 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms) of experiment results and station gear for the return trip to Earth.

SpaceX officials watched over the Dragon capsule's arrival from the company's mission control center in Hawthorne, while NASA monitored the orbital rendezvous from its station Mission Control at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. ?The spacecraft is expected to splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near Southern California on Oct. 28.

The station crew said Dragon was a welcome sight as it approached their orbital home.

"It's nice to see Dragon flying over the U.S.," Williams said during the space rendezvous.

With NASA's space shuttle fleet retired, the space agency is relying on private spacecraft to ferry supplies and astronaut crews to and from the International Space Station. SpaceX's Dragon is the first American spacecraft to launch to the space station since NASA's final shuttle mission in July 2011.

Wednesday's Dragon arrival followed on the success of a May test flight to the station by SpaceXto prove that its privately built space capsules could rendezvous with the orbiting lab and return home safely.

The Hawthorne, Calif.-based SpaceX is one of two companies with a NASA contract for unmanned cargo delivery missions. The other company, Orbital Sciences Corp., of Virginia, has a $1.9 billion contract for eight resupply missions using its new Antares rocket and Cygnus spacecraft. Orbital's first rocket test flight is expected later this year.

SpaceX is also developing a manned version of its Dragon spacecraft. The company is one of four spaceflight firms pursuing private space taxis to serve NASA's need to fly astronauts to and from the International Space Station.

You can follow SPACE.com Managing Editor Tariq Malik on Twitter?@tariqjmalik?and?SPACE.com on Twitter?@Spacedotcom. We're also on?Facebook?&?Google+.?

Copyright 2012 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/spacex-dragon-capsule-arrives-space-station-precious-cargo-113552311.html

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Online Reputation Management, The Airtel Way

K Srinivas, President of Consumer Business from Bharti Airtel shares about the online reputation management system at the ?telecom giant and the challenges ahead.

Are you concerned for your brand?s offline image only? Then think again!

It?doesn?t?matter whether your business is present or not on social media. People are anyways talking about you and the onus lies on you to track them and address rational queries regarding your business. And if you think that by turning a deaf ear to complaints then you could be the next case study for a ORM disaster and join the party with Volkswagen India.

Or better be like Bharti Airtel and treat ORM like an insurance policy.?Bharti Airtel Limited, world?s third-largest mobile telecommunications company has been setting new benchmarks in the social world. Along with designing exciting social media campaigns for its fans on various social networks, the brand has made a serious investment in efforts and money in understanding and managing online reputation.

K Srinivas, President, Airtel

?We acknowledge a post/tweet almost instantly. Our acknowledgement time is 10 minutes?, shared K Srinivas, President, Consumer Business, Bharti Airtel.

The claim stood true by the brand when some time back I was running from pillar to post to set up an internet connection at my new flat. The power of tweets work faster than calling up the customer care these days and a study done also highlighted that @Airtel_Presence has been the most responsive telecom brand on Twitter.

Airtel has been one of the earliest pioneers in utilizing social media as a form of creating greater connect between brand and customer. Over time the brand has made a presence at arm?s length and has online presence across popular social networking sites ? Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn,? Google+ and 114 online consumer forums such as Grahak Sewa, National consumer helpline , CORE, Consumer Court and some privately managed 3rd party consumer forums like consumer complaints.in, Indiaconsumerforum.org etc. Additionally, the brand also has a ?need help? form on the website, which also allows customers to submit queries/concerns/requests.

?We initiated our presence on prevalent social networking sites and online consumer forums in 2009.? We created a universal ID named ?Airtel Presence? and embarked on a journey to manage online customer sentiment?, added Srinivas.

The?back end?process of ORM

Today ORM and CRM go hand in hand and the objective is beyond the regular thank you or sorry for a response.

Any mention of the Airtel brand, positive or otherwise is the first step for work to begin. The immediate step that follows is to acknowledge it instantly and then try to resolve the grievance of the customer as soon as possible. ?This is not all. Srinivas also shared the extensive process which goes behind the scenes over an email conversation with me:

?Once the contact is established with the customer, the back-end team calls the customer to address his query/request. For tweets/posts which are complaints, the team calls the customer, understands the issue in detail, and resolves the complaint to customer?s satisfaction. 85% of our queries/complaints online are resolved the same day, and cases which require more back-end processing time, the team ensures that the customer is kept updated and ensures end-to-end resolution and close-looping with the customer.?

ORM tools, negative content and trolls

This extensive process looks simple on papers but when you have 122 million subscribers then you need specialized tools to monitor such a mammoth data and channel it to the right department. At Airtel there is a specialized team that handles ORM. Srinivas?highlights a very crucial fact here that,

?We work with domain experts on our ORM effort and use proprietary tools in addition to analytics data. Such data is used to pick up trends and issues, and monitor sentiment towards the brand and implement course correction where required. The tools help us keep track of the pulse of our customers and prospects. ?

And what happens when there is a negative buzz going on about the brand? ORM is challenged when the times are bad and when you are in a client serving business you are always in a pressure cooker situation.

Srinivas?shared that as a policy, ?We don?t delete negative posts or try to get such content removed. Airtel believes that removing such content does not resolve the problem/issue. If indeed, there is an error on our part, we apologize to the concerned/affected customers and quickly work towards resolving the issue.?

A great message for brands who are wondering how to tackle ? apologize and move ahead. Alas! we have stories with unreasonable excuses that have turned into a butt of jokes. Along with this we all know Internet is the residing place for trolls and no matter what you do, they would be waiting to strike. But Airtel believes in doing its work genuinely and not bother?much about trolls.

?We have sufficient brand loyalty and online presence to not let these trolls affect our brand image.?

Challenges ahead

However, I?m assured by Srinivas that despite making every one happy being a challenge, they are striving to do so with every passing day.

?There are obvious challenges that exist in cyber space ? for example mass impact of a single tweet, one post on Facebook, customer expectation of instant acknowledgement/resolution of the concern etc.. However, we keep a constant track of ?mentions? about the brand online, and the social media team instantly gets in touch with the customer and ensures resolution and close-looping.?

Having being fortunate enough to wear two hats ? one of a user and the other as a business on social media, I believe that addressing customer?queries?is a must and then the intent to show that a resolution is on it?s way will give customers a bit of respite. Airtel, as a brand is not only doing well on ORM but also bringing an entire change in the process so that customer service could be taken to the next level.

We continually examine trends in negative mentions and ensure that the customer feedback is incorporated in our products/services/policies/procedures?

Prasant Naidu

Founder and Blogger at Lighthouse Insights. Loves to experiment in social media and believes social media is a game changer for SME's.

Twitter - More Posts

Tagged as: online reputation management, social media insights, telecom on social media

Source: http://lighthouseinsights.in/online-reputation-management-at-airtel.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=online-reputation-management-at-airtel

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Analysis: Cities hit by recession ask voters to approve more debt

(Reuters) - Houston-area schools want to borrow $1.9 billion to modernize most of the high schools, while Seattle says it needs $290 million to upgrade a seawall protecting the downtown waterfront so it can withstand an earthquake.

San Francisco wants to sell $195 million of debt to repair and improve worn-out parks and playgrounds that it says have been "loved to death"

Voters in these and a number of other big U.S. cities -- some with already-high debt loads -- will decide on Election Day whether to borrow even more or face prospects for reduced services or higher taxes.

The United States needs $2 trillion of infrastructure upgrades, according to a 2011 report by the Urban Land Institute and Ernst & Young. Many of these roads, bridges, dams, water and sewer plants serve major metropolitan areas, but the recession left many cities struggling to pay for capital projects and services.

Elected leaders are wary of asking voters to approve more borrowing.

"Politicians are very sensitive to the current economic climate and hesitant to go to the voters for anything that would incur additional costs for debt, but there's also a recognition that revenues will not be enough to support our capital needs," said Miguel Santana, Los Angeles city administrative officer.

Some cities are reaching levels of borrowing that fiscal monitors call critical, a no-go zone where high debt service costs can crowd out education, police and fire protection, or other priorities. A look at 10 prominent cities reveals markedly different debt profiles, according to data Moody's Investors Service compiled for Reuters.

Many large cities, such as Boston, New York or Chicago, do not require voter approval to sell debt, relying on built-in policy safeguards. Boston, for example, limits debt service to 7 percent of expenditures. In other cities, voters must make the decisions on borrowings, as Seattle and Houston will do this November.

Voters have mixed records when it comes to taking on debt, with citizens in some cities more restrained than in others.

One measure used to assess whether a city or state has over-borrowed is debt service as a percent of operating expenditures.

"Anything between 5 and 7 percent is enough, as a general rule of thumb," said Mark Tenenhaus, director of municipal research at RSW Investments, LLC, in Summit, New Jersey.

Seven out of 10 large cities have gone beyond that guideline, spending more than 7 percent of their annual budgets on repaying debt in 2011, according to Moody's.

"Financial solvency has deteriorated significantly in seven of the 10 cities following the 2008 recession," said Dan Flaming, president of the Economic Roundtable in Los Angeles.

POPULISM VS POLICIES

Many states restrict how much debt cities can issue, by tying it to a set percentage of property revenue or the tax base, for example. A number of cities added their own limits.

The purpose of requiring voters to approve new debt is to minimize over-borrowing by politicians who are eager to avoid tax hikes. Seattle's voters, for instance, have helped keep public borrowing in check.

The city has a top AAA credit rating from Moody's, partly due to its low debt burden. Its debt service as a share of spending is 6.4 percent - the third lowest of the 10 cities on the credit agency's chart.

Seattle voters must approve new debt as well as the taxes to pay it off, officials said.

In November, Seattle voters will be asked to approve selling $290 million of general obligation bonds to upgrade the Alaskan Seawall to safeguard the downtown waterfront, utilities and transportation. General obligations are backed by a government's full credit and ability to tax.

The improvements would cost the owner of a home worth $360,000 about $59 a year, according to the City Council.

Seattle pays for more of its capital improvements with cash than many of its peers. Michael Van Dyck, the city's director of debt financing, said about 70 percent to 80 percent of general government capital improvements are paid for with cash.

Seattle's home state of Washington, which ranks in the top 10 states with the highest debt per capita in the nation, is trying to become more tight-fisted. Washington will ask voters to cut the amount of debt the state is allowed to sell, aiming to keep debt service from rising to 7 percent of state spending from around 6 percent now, according to a spokesman for the state treasurer.

Voters in San Francisco - like all localities in California - have considerable power over debt. A two-thirds vote is required for sales of general obligation bonds, according to Nadia Sesay, director of the city's Office of Public Finance.

November's ballot includes a $195 million bond sale for parks and recreation. Voters have approved the past four bond measures, Sesay said.

Moody's, which rates San Francisco at AA2, cited its "conservatively structured debt portfolio." The city's debt service as a percentage of spending is 8.2 percent.

Only 813,000 people live in San Francisco but its capital needs are staggering. The 10-year plan totals $24.7 billion - including improvements planned by independent entities, such as the airport, which sell their own debt, according to Sesay.

San Francisco caps the total amount of debt it can issue at 3 percent of the assessed value of the property tax base, according to Sesay.

By policy, the city has kept its property tax rate at the 2006 level, she said. That has compressed total debt outstanding to about 1.09 percent of the assessed value, she said.

"We are mindful of how the debt affects the taxpayers," Sesay said.

However, other taxing jurisdictions in San Francisco, such as the school district, have increased assessments. The tax rate has risen to $1.172 per $100 in fiscal 2012 from $1.141 in fiscal 2008, according to bond documents.

That compares with Seattle's lower rate of $1.016 per $100 of assessed value, according to budget documents. That figure also includes overlapping tax districts.

HOUSTON'S HIGHER BURDEN

Requiring voter approval has not shielded some other cities, such as Houston, from running up debt. This year, Houston-area voters will decide on more than $2.7 billion of debt for the city, the schools and community colleges.

"That's a monumental year around here in Houston," said Ronald Green, controller. "We are definitely behind on our infrastructure; I think every big city has that issue."

Steven Craig, an economics professor at the University of Houston, said if the bond sales are rejected, local governments could try again in a couple of years. But delays could prove costly, increasing the amount of repairs that are needed later.

Some cities in the metropolitan area might have to borrow more if voters reject a referendum by the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County - which includes Houston - to keep diverting 25 percent of sales tax revenue to cities for road improvements instead of spending it on the transit system.

"This would presumably increase bond requests by cities in the future to build roads for which they will not have current tax money if it passes," Craig said.

Houston's debt service is already 16.5 percent of total spending, more than double that of either Seattle or San Francisco. Houston's property tax rates are the lowest of the three. They have remained at $0.63875 per $100 of assessed value from fiscal 2009 to 2012.

Houston's debt service in proportion to spending had not gone up between 2007 and 2011, but Craig said "the fact that debt is relatively high suggests there is not a lot of room to fix the big problems to come."

Still, Moody's gives Houston the same rating as San Francisco: AA2, which is considered high-grade. One factor that helps Houston is its policy of limiting the average life of its bonds, currently to about 11 years.

Paying loans off swiftly saves money because debt with shorter maturities carries lower interest rates and the bonds are repaid more rapidly.

"It's seen as way of keeping our AA rating on our debt," said Green.

(Reporting By Joan Gralla; editing by David Gaffen and David Gregorio)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/analysis-cities-hit-recession-ask-voters-approve-more-201838613.html

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Bert Was Nervous About Public Speaking?But Hit ... - The Bert Show

October 8, 2012 at 7:48 am | Category: Today's Show | Tags: Bert Weiss, GLAAD

On Friday, Bert admitted that even though he talks to the masses for a living (although, honestly, it feels more like friends), the thought of speaking publicly (as in, not behind a radio mic), gives him MAJOR nerves.

He accepted a huge honor on Saturday night -?his GLAAD Award?(check him out in the picture with his wife, Stacey, and friend, Melanie) and shared his speech below.

Nailed it.

?

The Speech

I can?t tell ya how many times on The Bert Show the women on the show?have said that when women go out they don?t dress for men. They dress?for other women. Well, for the first time in my life I kinda understand?what they mean. I mean, I knew I was gonna be here tonight around all?these great looking gay men. So, I went out, got a spray tan. I shaved my?arms and my chest. Not because of the women here but because of the?guys, ya know.

What an honor to be here tonight. And I sincerely mean that. But, in all?honesty, I?m having some really mixed feelings.

I?m a little embarrassed actually. I?m a little embarrassed that awards?are given out to people that embrace the unconditional pursuit of happiness. I still shake my head when I think we?re living in a world in?which open-mindedness needs to be honored.

I?m ready for all of us ?loving each other? and ?accepting each other??to be the norm. Not something that needs to be honored.

Physically, I could not care less what anybody does in the privacy of?their own home. I don?t care what freaky, freaky insurrection/Love Shack/Kama Sutra stuff happens in anybody?s home accept mine. I don?t?care.

What I DO care about is a persons right to express love freely. With?whomever you want. Wherever you want.

The arrogance behind one person or a group saying that you can?t?pursue your happiness because it isn?t the same as my happiness is appalling and unthinkable.?When Melissa Carter was on the show she use to tell me that every day she sees discrimination. So, as I was preparing for this I tested her?theory. And, sadly, she?s right.

A headline from Friday On?NBC: New archbishop in gay-friendly Bay Area?strongly opposes same-sex marriage

ABC News on Thursday: Gay Boy Scout, Bullied by Troop, Denied Eagle?Rank

Wednesday in Texas: Gay couple thinks hate crime is linked to local?pastor?s anti-gay article

Tuesday:?Gay Pride March Banned in Serbia

Monday: Gay Nigerian fears he will be killed if he is forced to return -?The maximum punishment for same-sex sexual activity in Nigeria is 14?years? imprisonment.

The fact that men and women still have to live within themselves?and not be their authentic selves at home or socially or at work is absolutely pathetic. I wish it were laughable. But it?s pathetic.

I realize now that the only thing I?m really closed minded about is?close-minded people.

This should be so easy. I wish every adult had the same attitude about?homosexuality that my 10 year old does. Over the summer my wife and I had invited our neighbor to come hang out with us at our beach?house in South Carloina. Our neighbor brought his boyfriend. At some point over the?weekend my son innocently turns to me and says, ?Dad, why do Mark?and Mike sleep in the same room and the same bed?? So, I said to him,?well, Hayden, you know how mommy and daddy love each other very?much? Well, sometimes men fall in love with other men and women fall?in love with other women. It?s no different. His reaction was exactly this:??Oh. You wanna play some video games??

Let me leave with some signs of encouragement. Because squeezed in?between those discriminating headlines I read a few seconds ago there?we these:

Record number of gays seeking seats in Congress?

Gay TV Characters hit record high

Boxer Orlando Cruz says, ?I?m a proud gay man!?

California became the first state to ban the use for minors of disputed?therapies to ?overcome? homosexuality, a step hailed by gay rights groups across the country that say the therapies have caused dangerous?emotional harm to gay and lesbian teenagers

I can only imagine that there are days where you?re exhausted.?Exhausted hiding in some cases. Exhausted hearing the subtle homophobia going on around you. Exhausted sticking up for your?basic rights.

I encourage you to try and continue to be defiant. Be yourself. You?have no other option. You are fighting a battle for freedom. For personal rights. For each other. And there is absolutely no fight?worth fighting that is more important than that.

Thank you for allowing me to be part of this special night with you?tonight.

?

Related posts:

Source: http://thebertshow.com/bert-was-nervous-about-public-speaking-but-hit-a-home-run-with-his-glaad-acceptance-speech-check-it-out/

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This Spicy Ferris Wheel Adds a Little Amusement Your Kitchen Counter [Kitchen]

If you're going to do any sort of serious cooking, you're going to need some spices. And if you're going to have some spices, you're going to need a way store them in a way where you can see what you need and get at it quick. This clever spice rack ferris wheel takes care of both those problems in one fell swoop. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/3rM3UUypJbo/a-spicy-ferris-wheel-for-your-kitchen-counter

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Oil prices fall after warning from World Bank

NEW YORK (AP) ? A strong warning from the World Bank that growth in Asia may slow further dragged down the price of oil Monday.

The World Bank signaled the possibility of a "more pronounced slowdown" in China, the world's second largest economy after the United States. It also cut its growth forecast for Asia. Red-hot growth in emerging markets like China and India helped boost oil consumption coming out of the global recession.

Benchmark crude fell 74 cents to $89.14 in morning trading in New York. The contract hasn't closed lower since Aug. 2.

At the pump, gas prices remain stubbornly high. The national average for gasoline rose 3 cents over the weekend to $3.818 a gallon. But Californians are now paying an average of $4.668 a gallon, the highest price in the nation, after a jump of 50 cents in the past week. Some motorists there are paying over $5.

In response, Gov. Jerry Brown has ordered state smog regulators to allow cheaper winter-blend gas to be sold three weeks early in the state. And Sen. Dianne Feinstein has called for a federal investigation because she doesn't think the higher prices are related to supply and demand.

Experts are predicting prices in California could climb to an average of $4.85 before coming down.

In London, Brent crude, which is used to price international varieties of oil, fell 36 cents to $111.66.

Other futures in morning trading:

? Natural gas fell 2 cents to $3.37 per 1,000 cubic feet.

? Heating oil was flat at $3.16 per gallon.

? Wholesale gasoline fell 2 cents to $2.93 per gallon.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-10-08-Oil%20Prices/id-1440c3d7501a48738889228e062e9073

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D.C. sniper 10 years later: ?I was a monster?

John Lee Malvo is escorted from court, Jan. 14, 2003. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP)

Lee Boyd Malvo, who was convicted along with John Allen Muhammad in the 2002 D.C. sniper shootings that left 10 dead and three wounded, says he remembers the killings vividly but can't explain why he did what he did.

"I was a monster," Malvo told the Washington Post in a recent interview from a Virginia prison where he's serving six consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. "If you look up the definition, that's what a monster is. I was a ghoul. I was a thief. I stole people's lives. I did someone else's bidding just because they said so. There is no rhyme or reason or sense."

Malvo, now 27, was a teenager at the time of the shootings. Muhammad was executed in 2009. The shooting spree lasted three weeks before the pair were arrested at a truck stop in Maryland.

"At that point in time, I had been desensitized," Malvo continued. "In the midst of the task, there is no feeling. It got to a point where I'd get in a zone. There was nothing else but whoever is before me, and anything that comes between me and, as you would say, the target, I'm either going to destroy, or if it's too big, find a way around it. Nothing is going to stop me but death to get that done."

Muhammad was a father figure to him, Malvo said.

"I trusted him," he said. "I was unable to distinguish between Muhammad the father I had wanted and Muhammad the nervous wreck that was just falling to pieces. He understood exactly how to motivate me by giving approval or denying approval. It's very subtle. It wasn't violent at all. It's like what a pimp does to a woman."

"He picked me because he knew he could mold me," he said. "He knew I could be what he needed me to be. ... He could not have chosen a better child."

After their arrest, Malvo said, he claimed responsibility for the killings in an attempt to save Muhammad from the death penalty.

"I did everything I thought I could do to save his life," Malvo said. "It was just a mixture of half-truths, details that only I or the killer would know, because I was there. What's crazy is this entire process. I'm concerned for him, and he doesn't give a rat's a-- whether I live or die."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/d-c-sniper-10-years-later-monster-192331103.html

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