The 3rd Annual Goodreads Choice Awards--Polls Are Now Open for Voting!
Vote Now in the Opening Round! »
We want to know which books you loved from 2011. Choose the year's best books in our 2011 Goodreads Choice Awards, the only major book awards decided entirely by readers. Select your favorites in 22 categories: Fiction, Nonfiction, Mystery & Thriller, Memoir & Autobiography, Young Adult Fantasy, and many more! Will Tina Fey's Bossypants win Favorite Book of 2011? Who has more steam—Jodi Picoult or Haruki Murakami? Will the Steve Jobs biography be a late-breaking contender? Grab a seat ringside, because it's going to be a battle until the polls close November 30!
We analyzed statistics from the 87 million books added, rated, and reviewed on the site in 2011 to list 15 books in 22 categories—that's 330 nominations. We did not consult a panel of experts or form a secret committee of publishing insiders. Readers know what's good and what's great. These nominations are based on a book's number of ratings and average rating as pegged by the more than 6 million readers on Goodreads. To emphasize reader's choice even more, the opening round also accepts write-in votes. So you can vote for any 2011 book published before November 30 (December books will be eligible next year).
You have three chances to vote. The opening round lasts until November 13. Vote now to make sure your favorite books make it into the semifinals.
On November 14, the top 5 write-in votes in each category become official nominees, bringing the total to 20 nominees in each category and you have a second opportunity to cast your vote.
The final elimination round launches November 21. We will narrow the field to the top 10 books in each category, and you will have one last chance to vote. Final voting closes November 30, and winners will be announced in December.
Now's your chance! Vote for the best books of 2011! »
posted by Jessica on November, 01
The 3rd Annual Goodreads Choice Awards--Polls Are Now Open for Voting!
Vote Now in the Opening Round! »
We want to know which books you loved from 2011. Choose the year's best books in our 2011 Goodreads Choice Awards, the only major book awards decided entirely by readers. Select your favorites in 22 categories: Fiction, Nonfiction, Mystery & Thriller, Memoir & Autobiography, Young Adult Fantasy, and many more! Will Tina Fey's Bossypants win Favorite Book of 2011? Who has more steam—Jodi Picoult or Haruki Murakami? Will the Steve Jobs biography be a late-breaking contender? Grab a seat ringside, because it's going to be a battle until the polls close November 30!
We analyzed statistics from the 87 million books added, rated, and reviewed on the site in 2011 to list 15 books in 22 categories—that's 330 nominations. We did not consult a panel of experts or form a secret committee of publishing insiders. Readers know what's good and what's great. These nominations are based on a book's number of ratings and average rating as pegged by the more than 6 million readers on Goodreads. To emphasize reader's choice even more, the opening round also accepts write-in votes. So you can vote for any 2011 book published before November 30 (December books will be eligible next year).
You have three chances to vote. The opening round lasts until November 13. Vote now to make sure your favorite books make it into the semifinals.
On November 14, the top 5 write-in votes in each category become official nominees, bringing the total to 20 nominees in each category and you have a second opportunity to cast your vote.
The final elimination round launches November 21. We will narrow the field to the top 10 books in each category, and you will have one last chance to vote. Final voting closes November 30, and winners will be announced in December.
Now's your chance! Vote for the best books of 2011! »
posted by Jessica on November, 01
Federal Judge Threatens Oakland Police Department With Court Takeover Over Ongoing Abuses
MARK KARLIN, EDITOR FOR BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT
Due to past law enforcement abuses, the Oakland Police Department (OPD) has been operating under the monitoring of a federal judge overseeing a consent decree since 2003.
Although it is difficult to set aside the deplorable record of the OPD in dealing with protesters for a moment - including Occupy Oakland advocates last Tuesday - it has a history of using excessive force on a daily basis. This includes the unnecessary drawing of guns, extortion and framing arrested individuals that is so egregious that the department may be put into receivership by the federal courts.
According to a September 11, 2011 article in the Bay Citizen, just a little over a month prior to the infamous Tuesday assault on Occupy Oakland, the federal judge overseeing the police department lambasted their conduct:
In a hearing that exposed the breadth of the problems facing Oakland, a federal judge blasted the Oakland Police Department Thursday for failing to make court-ordered changes designed to reduce police misconduct and abuse.
Before a courtroom full of city leaders and police department brass, U.S. District Court Judge Thelton Henderson highlighted a series of issues that "indicate to me the city and the department still don't get it."
Shortly prior to the assault on Occupy Oakland, the superintendent of the OPD resigned - after the scathing report by the federal judge - and Howard Jordan was appointed as interim chief of police. What was Jordan's prior role as assistant chief of the OPD? According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Jordan:
has been the Police Department's top authority on bringing the force into compliance with a consent decree ordered after four officers were accused more than a decade ago of systematically beating and framing suspects.
The consent decree is the most critical issue facing the department, as a federal judge warned last week that the city faces the possibility of having its Police Department placed in federal receivership due to its failure to fully comply with the court order. Such a move could result in the city losing control over its police budget, its biggest general fund expense.
Jordan, as interim superintendent, oversaw and directed the police action against Occupy Oakland supporters.
This federal consent decree is separate from the accord that the OPD was compelled to reach in 2004, which prohibits the use of potentially lethal and harmful suppression techniques against peaceful crowds, which BuzzFlash at Truthout pointed out they violated last week.
There's a thin blue line in law enforcement between enforcing the law and breaking the law. It's clear to US District Court Judge Henderson that the OPD keeps crossing that line.
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The Ruse of the Religious Right’s Call for ‘Racial Reconciliation’
BILL BERKOWITZ FOR BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT
Over the years, the use of the term 'racial reconciliation' by the Religious Right has never been meant to promote social justice, advance the cause of civil rights or strengthen America's tattered social safety net. Instead, 'racial reconciliation' was incorporated into the agendas of various right wing religious/political organization as a marketing tool; an attempt to recruit African Americans to conservative politics. As researcher and writer Rachel Tabachnick recently pointed out at Talk To Action, the New Apostolic Reformation use of Reconciliation ceremonies "are not about pluralism, but about proselytizing - for both charismatic evangelical belief and right wing politics."
During their halcyon days of the late 1990s, the Promise Keepers men's movement made 'racial reconciliation' a focal point. These days, Lou Engle, a prominent player in the New Apostolic Reformation, is using 'racial reconciliation' to promote rallies that his organization, TheCall, has organized.
"it's important to first understand that everything the Religious Right does is in the service of one goal and one goal only: increasing the movement's political power," Rob Boston, Senior Policy Analyst with Americans United, told me in an email. "Over the years, some Religious Right leaders have seen outreach to African Americans and Latinos as a step toward building a powerful voting bloc based on 'culture war' issues.
"The thinking is that since some black and Latino churches oppose gay rights and are wary of legal abortion, members of these communities can be drawn into the Religious Right's orbit. Thus, these sporadic attempts at 'racial reconciliation' have nothing to do with improving relations between the races, facilitating inter-racial dialogue or addressing past instances of injustice. They are merely efforts to add a new constituency to the Religious Right in the hopes of making the conservative movement (read: the Republican Party) more powerful."
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Mobile web content adaptation techniques
Introduction
This article will help you pick from amongst the many techniques for building a mobile website. It doesn't describe how to do it, rather it instead tries to help you to pick the right approach. Before we begin it's worth clarifying exactly what the goal of the exercise is. Generally speaking, people who are looking to build a mobile site fall into two categories. They're either:
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UN warns on rising anger of 7 billion
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 31, (Agencies): UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Monday warned world leaders that they face mounting protests from the world of seven billion people unless they tackle inequality.
Highlighting famine in east Africa, the Syria unrest and... more..
Arrest warrant for Arafat wife
TUNIS, Oct 31, (AFP): A Tunisian court has issued an international arrest warrant against the widow of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat over alleged corruption, a justice official said Monday.
Justice ministry spokesman Kadhem Zine el Abi... more..
Bombings force Pakistani children into work
PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Oct 31, (AFP): At seven years old, it’s a struggle for Zabita Khan to work all afternoon, dodging vehicles, rickshaws and donkey carts to carry drinks for thirsty customers in a hot, crowded Pakistani market.
But two years ago ... more..
dvd burning – I have DVD burning software…. DVDFAB Platnium…?
I have DVD burning software…. DVDFAB Platnium…? I would like to burn 2 short movies onto one disk… How do I do it…? I have some Verbatim DVD+R disks.. Single layer…. with Lightscribe AND some TDK DVD+R 1-16x 4.7GB RW….. Any help would be appreciated The Ten Commandments (DVD) Review by: Britt Gillette Nominated for [...]
How To Convert Home Movies And Videos To Dvd
Most of people like to record special occasions in our life, wedding ceremony, graduation ceremony, Thanksgiving Family Reunion, etc. We make our moments permanent. However, shooting home movies is just not enough to keep your sweet memories. Editing and burning home movies to DVD is definitely the best choice. You may wonder why we need [...]