53mph Dirk Auer.

Boneman's Daughters

This week, theChristian Fiction Blog Allianceis introducingBoneman's DaughtersCenter Street (April 14, 2009)byTed DekkerABOUT THE AUTHORTed is the son of missionaries John and Helen Dekker, whose incredible story of life among headhunters in Indonesia has been told in several books. Surrounded by the vivid colors of the jungle and a myriad of cultures, each steeped in their own interpretation of life and faith, Dekker received a first-class education on human nature and behavior. This, he believes, is the foundation of his writing.After graduating from a multi-cultural high school, he took up permanent residence in the United States to study Religion and Philosophy. After earning his Bachelor's Degree, Dekker entered the corporate world in management for a large healthcare company in California. Dekker was quickly recognized as a talent in the field of marketing and was soon promoted to Director of Marketing. This experience gave him a background which enabled him to eventually form his own company and steadily climb the corporate ladder.Since 1997, Dekker has written full-time. He states that each time he writes, he finds his understanding of life and love just a little clearer and his expression of that understanding a little more vivid. Dekker's body of work encompassing seven mysteries, three thrillers and ten fantasies includes Heaven's Wager, When Heaven Weeps, Thunder of Heaven, Blessed Child, A Man Called Blessed, Blink, Thr3e, The Circle Trilogy (Black, Red, White), Obsessed, Renegade, and Chaos.ABOUT THE BOOKWould you kill an innocent man to save your daughter?They call him BoneMan, a serial killer who’s abducted six young women. He’s the perfect father looking for the perfect daughter, and when his victims fail to meet his lofty expectations, he kills them by breaking their bones and leaving them to die.Intelligence officer Ryan Evans, on the other hand, has lost all hope of ever being the perfect father. His daughter and wife have written him out of their lives.Everything changes when BoneMan takes Ryan’s estranged daughter, Bethany, as his seventh victim. Ryan goes after BoneMan on his own.But the FBI sees it differently. New evidence points to the suspicion that Ryan is BoneMan. Now the hunter is the hunted, and in the end, only one father will stand.If you're an avid Dekker fan, and would like wallpaper and counters for your blog, go HERE.You can listen to an audio clip HEREWatch the VIDEO:If you would like to read the first chapter of Boneman's Daughters, go HERE.

Minimums Definitely Required

I dont usually delve into the conservative quarter of the blogosphere, because whenever I do, I stumble across something like this that makes me despair for the future of the human race& The basic premise: Maryland is soon to enact a new law - supported, surprise surprise, by Wal-Mart, Target, and Sears, among others - that will allow retailers to sue suppliers who have been forcing minimum-retail-price agreements on them. Chad, it seems, doesnt quite understand, as he puts it, the need for government to regulate certain aspects of business. Or, as he puts it, all that stands between greedy suppliers having their way with Wal-Mart and their customers is the powerful hand of government stepping in to outlaw such practices? Heres a hint: it really has nothing whatsoever to do with the suppliers, Chad. Minimum-pricing agreements do serve the suppliers interests, to be sure, but they exist primarily for one reason: to level the playing field between big businesses like Walmart and smaller, privately-owned family businesses. In a lot of areas, those minimum-pricing agreements are pretty literally all that are keeping small family businesses afloat. Walmart, being the good capitalists that they are, would very much like everyone who lives near one of their stores to shop there, and arent afraid to use fairly malicious tactics to ensure that long-term goal by forcing the competition out of business. Suppose Walmart opens a new store in a small town with a popular, family-owned lawnmower dealership and small-engine-repair shop. Lawn mowers are basically commodity items; a Lawnmaster 120XE is a Lawnmaster 120XE, no matter where you buy it from. Suppose Lawnmaster has set the 120XEs minimum retail price at $149.99; thats the lowest Walmart and the family business can sell it for, and even if they do so, theyll still turn a profit. (Im unaware that any manufacturer has ever set a minimum retail price below wholesale cost; doing so wouldnt make any sense.) Its an even playing field for everyone, and Walmarts success or failure in the local lawnmower business is going to have to ride on the success of their customer service and other related intangibles. Worst-case scenario, everyone in town has the same prices on the 120XE; more likely, the Walmart stops carrying the 120XE there and goes with the GrassKutter 1000, a Chinese-made mower with a 30-day warranty and that can be sold for a much lower price, like $89.99, and tries to compete apples-to-oranges on raw price alone. Without that minimum pricing agreement, however - or if Walmart is able to sue their way out of the agreement - theres absolutely nothing stopping them from selling the 120XE mower for, oh, $74.98. Sure, they will lose money on every mower they sell, but they can - and happily will - absorb it as a loss leader in the long-term because such a tactic will quite quickly force the small family shop out of business. And then, once theyve eliminated the competition, you can bet the price of that mower will climb back up past $149.99. Remember - minimum pricing agreements have nothing whatsoever to do with the wholesale price the retailer pays. If Walmart doesnt like the price someone is charging them, theyre already free to, as Chad so eloquently puts it, tell them to go pound sand. That doesnt change - all that changes is Walmarts ability to sell that product at uncompetitive and unsustainable low prices. Competition is good, because it eliminates monopolies, de-facto or otherwise. The new law in Maryland has nothing to do with preventing greedy suppliers from having their way with Wal-Mart and their customers; its all about big retail giants crushing the independent competition and screwing, in the long run, the customer. Here in Minnesota, theres a law on the books that forces businesses to sell gasoline at a minimum mark-up per gallon. (Something like nine cents, I think, but I could be wrong.) The law exists entirely because some big chain box stores, especially in small communities, used to sell gas, as well, and did so at ridiculously low, below-cost prices. (Often as part of some sort of gimmick - spend $25 on merchandise and save $0.25 per gallon on gas, or something like that.) Independent gas stations couldnt compete with the loss-leader tactics of the big stores, and went out of business by the dozens. Government meddling with the markets? Or simply government leveling the playing fields? Well, here in Minnesota, your view on that probably depends on whether or not your car runs on ethanol or diesel fuels, which the big box stores generally didnt sell. Likewise, with the hypothetical lawnmower prices above, you might think that Walmart should be free to charge whatever they want, and if the family-run business fails, well, thats just market forces at work, right? You might think that - right up until the day your lawnmower breaks, and you discover Walmart not only doesnt do small-engine repairs, they just forced the only place within a hundred miles that did out of business. Obviously, Walmart thinks you should just buy a new mower& from them, naturally, since theyre the only game in town. The only people who benefit from this new law in Maryland are big businesses like Walmart and Target. Everyone else - from small-business owners to average working-class Joes - gets royally shafted. Whats not to get? Copyright

Cooking Tips for Broiling a Chicken

For decades, broiled chicken has been the meat of choice for those on low-fat and low calorie diets. Unfortunately, broiled white chicken has also acquired a reputation for being bland, rubbery and dry.That's a real shame, because chicken - especially white meat chicken - is one of the most versatile proteins available. All it takes is a bit of knowledge about how to broil (or grill) chicken so that it stays moist and flavorful and you will find that chicken tastes great even without all the sauces and gravies.How to Broil Chicken That Melts in Your MouthOne of the most important things to keep in mind about chicken white meat is that it has little fat of its own. The fat is all in the skin. While that makes it relatively easy to cook chicken with almost no fat, it also means that chicken white meat is prone to becoming very dry when cooked without the skin. Want to avoid dried out broiled chicken breasts? Here are some tips for broiling chicken that will be moist and delicious.1. If fat is not a concern, broil breasts with the skin on, and turned toward the heat source. For broiling, start with the skin side down, and then flip chicken pieces halfway through. Broiling breasts with the skin on will not appreciably increase the fat content of the meat as long as you remove the skin before eating it.2. If using skinless breasts, rub them lightly with olive oil or marinade before broiling. Experiment with flavored olive oils to find flavor combinations that you like. Or, brush breasts with Italian dressing - or spray lightly with cooking spray to give them a light coating.3. Precook chicken breasts in chicken stock before putting them under the broiler. They will start out infused with extra moisture and flavor, and spend less time drying out under the broiler.4. Use an herb rub to crust the chicken on the outside. You will a get browned, crusted outside and moist, tender inside.5. Your heat source should be about 5 to 6 inches away from the top of the chicken for best broiling.6. Flavor chicken meat with herbs, salt and spices before broiling.7. Preheat the broiler for 9 to 10 minutes before putting the meat in. If you try to broil chicken in a broiler that is not preheated, they will dry out before they cook through.8. Keep your eye on the chicken while it is cooking. If edges are cooking too quickly, rearrange the pieces on the pan or adjust the heat.9. Conversely, shield the thinner edges of chicken breast with foil to prevent them burning before the rest of the chicken is cooked.10. Flip chicken when top side is browned. Since breasts will not all cook at the same rate, keep an eye on the chicken so that you can remove breasts when they are done and prevent them from drying out.11. Use tongs to turn chicken. Do not pierce with a fork or juices will escape, leaving chicken dry and stringy.12. Brush top side of chicken with marinade, barbecue sauce, Italian dressing or flavored olive oil after turning. A light basting will refresh the moisture and infuse flavors into the meat.Broiling a Whole ChickenGenerally, whole chicken is roasted, often after being stuffed with forcemeat of some kind or other. However, a whole chicken can be cooked under the broiler for a very different taste. You just need to flatten the chicken before cooking. Follow these directions for flavorful broiled whole chicken.1. First, butterfly the chicken2. Remove the backbone: Using a heavy knife or kitchen shears, cut close to the backbone from neck to tail on each side of the bone, and then remove it.3. Flatten the chicken: Spread the chicken skin side up on your table or counter, and bang the breast with your fist to break the collar bone and some of the ribs.4. Fold the wings to either side of the shoulders.5. Cut a slit in the skin at either side of the breast tip.6. Insert the tips of the drumsticks through the slits in the skin.7. Brush the chicken with olive oil and spices. Or use flavored olive oil.8. Put chicken skin side down in broiler pan - not on a rack.9. Broil about 5 inches from the heat for five minutes.10. Brush the chicken with oil and spices and place back under the broiler.11. After five minutes baste again, using the juices in the pan, and place back under broiler for five minutes more.12. Baste chicken, and then sprinkle with salt, pepper and spices and turn skin side up.13. Broil and baste skin side for fifteen minutes more, basting every five minutes to ensure meat remains moist.14. Chicken is done when juices run clear yellow from pricked drumstick.Stephanie Larkin is a freelance writer who writes about cooking tips and tips for the home, often discussing specific products such as the Nu Wave Oven.

Cooking Tips for Broiling a Chicken

For decades, broiled chicken has been the meat of choice for those on low-fat and low calorie diets. Unfortunately, broiled white chicken has also acquired a reputation for being bland, rubbery and dry.That's a real shame, because chicken - especially white meat chicken - is one of the most versatile proteins available. All it takes is a bit of knowledge about how to broil (or grill) chicken so that it stays moist and flavorful and you will find that chicken tastes great even without all the sauces and gravies.How to Broil Chicken That Melts in Your MouthOne of the most important things to keep in mind about chicken white meat is that it has little fat of its own. The fat is all in the skin. While that makes it relatively easy to cook chicken with almost no fat, it also means that chicken white meat is prone to becoming very dry when cooked without the skin. Want to avoid dried out broiled chicken breasts? Here are some tips for broiling chicken that will be moist and delicious.1. If fat is not a concern, broil breasts with the skin on, and turned toward the heat source. For broiling, start with the skin side down, and then flip chicken pieces halfway through. Broiling breasts with the skin on will not appreciably increase the fat content of the meat as long as you remove the skin before eating it.2. If using skinless breasts, rub them lightly with olive oil or marinade before broiling. Experiment with flavored olive oils to find flavor combinations that you like. Or, brush breasts with Italian dressing - or spray lightly with cooking spray to give them a light coating.3. Precook chicken breasts in chicken stock before putting them under the broiler. They will start out infused with extra moisture and flavor, and spend less time drying out under the broiler.4. Use an herb rub to crust the chicken on the outside. You will a get browned, crusted outside and moist, tender inside.5. Your heat source should be about 5 to 6 inches away from the top of the chicken for best broiling.6. Flavor chicken meat with herbs, salt and spices before broiling.7. Preheat the broiler for 9 to 10 minutes before putting the meat in. If you try to broil chicken in a broiler that is not preheated, they will dry out before they cook through.8. Keep your eye on the chicken while it is cooking. If edges are cooking too quickly, rearrange the pieces on the pan or adjust the heat.9. Conversely, shield the thinner edges of chicken breast with foil to prevent them burning before the rest of the chicken is cooked.10. Flip chicken when top side is browned. Since breasts will not all cook at the same rate, keep an eye on the chicken so that you can remove breasts when they are done and prevent them from drying out.11. Use tongs to turn chicken. Do not pierce with a fork or juices will escape, leaving chicken dry and stringy.12. Brush top side of chicken with marinade, barbecue sauce, Italian dressing or flavored olive oil after turning. A light basting will refresh the moisture and infuse flavors into the meat.Broiling a Whole ChickenGenerally, whole chicken is roasted, often after being stuffed with forcemeat of some kind or other. However, a whole chicken can be cooked under the broiler for a very different taste. You just need to flatten the chicken before cooking. Follow these directions for flavorful broiled whole chicken.1. First, butterfly the chicken2. Remove the backbone: Using a heavy knife or kitchen shears, cut close to the backbone from neck to tail on each side of the bone, and then remove it.3. Flatten the chicken: Spread the chicken skin side up on your table or counter, and bang the breast with your fist to break the collar bone and some of the ribs.4. Fold the wings to either side of the shoulders.5. Cut a slit in the skin at either side of the breast tip.6. Insert the tips of the drumsticks through the slits in the skin.7. Brush the chicken with olive oil and spices. Or use flavored olive oil.8. Put chicken skin side down in broiler pan - not on a rack.9. Broil about 5 inches from the heat for five minutes.10. Brush the chicken with oil and spices and place back under the broiler.11. After five minutes baste again, using the juices in the pan, and place back under broiler for five minutes more.12. Baste chicken, and then sprinkle with salt, pepper and spices and turn skin side up.13. Broil and baste skin side for fifteen minutes more, basting every five minutes to ensure meat remains moist.14. Chicken is done when juices run clear yellow from pricked drumstick.Stephanie Larkin is a freelance writer who writes about cooking tips and tips for the home, often discussing specific products such as the Nu Wave Oven.

Global Uncertainties: Security for All in a Changing World Programme

Details of opportunities for fellowship funding from the UK Research Councils:
The cross-Council programme focuses on the nature and interactions of five global issues: conflict, crime, environmental degradation, poverty and terrorism, and their implications for various concepts and contexts of security and insecurity. Within this framework, this fellowship call focuses specifically on how ideas and beliefs of individuals, communities and nation states relate to these five global phenomena.
Fellowship applications under this call must address one or more of the following key research areas:
How do individuals and communities develop their ideas and beliefs about security and insecurity?
Why do some ideas and beliefs lead to conflict, violence or criminal activity? What lessons can we learn& that provide the basis for countering those ideas and beliefs that reinforce conflict, violence and crime?
How do issues around the cycle of knowledge production and use interact with the creation, management and resolution of insecurities?
How are risks and threats communicated, constructed, represented and received by key actors and communities, using different media and cultural forms for different audiences, including the use of language, images and symbolism?
Is there an acceptable balance between national security needs and the protection of civil liberties and human rights? If so, can one be secured? And how do we balance local needs against global responsibilities within a security context?
How should institutions with responsibility for different aspects of a broad security agenda, including security forces themselves, evolve to meet new risks and threats?
Its an exciting opportunity for researchers based in the UK, and the funding is also available to non-UK researchers looking for a chance to work at a UK institution:
Applications are open to both senior/professorial level researchers and to researchers at an earlier stage in their research career looking to achieve an international research leadership role during the period of the fellowship (minimum 3 years post-doctoral, or equivalent, research experience). Applications from leading overseas researchers seeking to conduct research on a relevant topic at an eligible UK research institution will also be welcomed. Applications from researchers who have not previously worked on security issues but wish to apply their expertise to research in this more broadly construed security agenda are encouraged.
The deadline for applications is 25th September 2008. Many more details, including FAQs [pdf] and a programme overview [pdf] via the ESRC website.

The Dating Showhand

Is dating no longer a journey of discovery?As time comes to lay claim to my youth and society sheds its pseudo exo-skeletal of conservatism in favour of liberal pursuits, I’ve come to realize that dating is no longer a passage of chance and discovery of partners, but instead, it’s now a deliberate display of limitations and flaws.Through time as my notoriety spreads and my face becomes increasingly familiar, I find a lack in the need for me to properly introduce myself. It’s gone from,“Hi, my name is Butterfly. I am an asshole, I have short attention spans, no morals and no emotions. Commitments irritate me and expectations crumble me. If you are fat and stupid, you will be laughed at.”To,“Hi, my name is Butterfly, but you already know me. Are we hooking up?”This was great for me because people already knew what to expect from me, and I always believed that honesty was the best foundation for any form of dating to be built on. It worked so well that 4 years on, I still remain single.Yet of late, women too, are no longer contented to taking a leap of faith. Instead, we weave in our shortcomings in parabolic quips and anecdotal instances. We comment on our flaws blatantly to sift the eligibles from the generic improbable. We now play out our flaws and expectations like a game of poker, waiting to see who folds up first.It’s almost like a filtering process where we say, “Here are my issues. Let’s date if you are fine by them”. And there I was thinking that contractual dates with a time expiry was something only I would propose. Then some time back, I found myself negotiating on dating terms.It all started when she whined about lack of eligible men who would break her mould of boring pencil pushers. This was over a glass of Bellini and I thought it was absolutely ridiculous that she was having a drink with me and yet I wasn’t even considered.I raised my hand in mock protest and questioned how she could ever have excluded me in her list when wit and humour played considerable catalytic nods in her choice of men.She: “That’s because you are a very confusing guy. I think you are a very nice guy, but I also think you are a player. Which are you?”On the one part, one testimonial of me sending a drunk friend home and not exploiting the situation -despite her having her hands all over me and her tongue very nearly in my aural orifices -, changed her perception of me. This was despite the fact that I explained that morals and chivalry had nothing to do with it, but only because she was drunk and I was worried she was going to chug on me.I have no restraints when it comes to kissing hot women, and promptly assured her that if the girl was sober, I would have fucked her. I do not have that much integrity to de-track the advances of attractive women.Me: “I’m definitely not nice.”Then almost as if a defense mechanism kicked in, we started a list of anti-dating campaigns that would make Cupid turn in his grave.She: “I’m not looking for anything long term, cos I’m leaving.”Me: “It sits well with me that commitment is not your thing.”At one point it spilled over to horoscopes, which I have no clue on as to the zodiac compatibilities because in my world, compatibility is measured in cup sizes, sex drive, dancing ability and choice of music.And it’s an unorthodox exchange because in conventional dating, the right approach would be to impress, compliment shamelessly and then throw in a good dose of deception. Oh, we all know half the shit people say while they are trying to court a person only stays true till after the honeymoon period ends. It’s called a relationship life-cycle.Yet, this has become strangely familiar to me. If I’m not keeping my distance and reminding people how much of an ass I can be, then it is them telling me how unpredictable and demanding they will be if we started dating.It works like this,Girl: “I need a lot of attention.”Me: “I need a lot of space and time alone.”Girl: “I need to know where my man is at all times.”Me: “I hate having to report to anyone on my schedule.”If I didn’t know better, I’d say we were made for each other. Whoever said relationships are built on differences is a moron and probably has a girlfriend with such enormous tits that it is solely sustaining the relationship.The day it sags to her knees is the day he is going to realize that, that was the dumbest quote in history. Topped only by that Subaru challenge winner years ago who when asked what was his secret to winning said, “I realized it’s not about mental determination. It’s about keeping your hands there”. Wow Sherlock, we never realized that.Has dating really degenerated into a state of being able to digest your partner’s flaws? Or is this just a disclaimer, to reject all future blames by simply saying, ‘I told you so’. We are taking out the joys and perils of discovery and injecting it with predictability and honesty.Hi, my name is Butterfly. And this is what I can offer..