Wednesday, April 27, 2011
salem school district has cuts
Salem School district will be losing 400 employees, 228 of whivh will be teachers. Athletics as well are going to be losing funding, they will be cut $150,000. Employees still working have agreed to to keep working even though their salaries have taken a combined cut of 13.1 million dollars. It's difficult to say that students of these districts will still recieve the same education as their resources are continuing to be cut.
A Fire That Killed Five Kids
In vancouver Washington a father of five may have intentionally set the house on fire and killed five of his own children all under 13 years of age.
There are no other facts of this story as of right now.
If you want to read this for your self go to Katu news. com and its the main story.
There are no other facts of this story as of right now.
If you want to read this for your self go to Katu news. com and its the main story.
Blake Mycoskie of TOMS shoes
THE IDEA WAS GENIUS, really. Blake Mycoskie, at the time best known for a 2002 stint on the reality show The Amazing Race, was looking to start something. He’d already started half a dozen businesses, from laundry to billboards, but nothing had inspired him. Mycoskie wanted to inspire. Add to the world, not take from it. He was young, motivated, overflowing with entrepreneurial spirit… and without an idea. He had some cash, but where to put it? His muse finally arrived in Argentina, of all places.
He’d gone there in January 2006 to learn how to play polo— Argentina has some of the best polo farms in the world. But in the backcountry, he saw other things: many poor children, shoeless, and some of the locals wearing simple yet incredibly comfortable farming shoes. So he was sitting on that Argentinean polo farm one day “and that’s where the epiphany happened,” he says. Cool shoes… a style not seen in the States… redesign them, bring them north, and for every pair you sell, give a pair away to one of those shoeless children.
TOMS Shoes—and high-profile “philanthropic capitalism”— was born. He has created an entire business model that inspires. “Ultimately, I’m trying to create something that’s going to be here long after I’m gone,” he says.
Business has thrived. As the fashion industry and consumers have embraced the many styles of TOMS Shoes, “shoe drops” organized by the company in Argentina, Ethiopia and South Africa have distributed 140,000 pairs of shoes to needy kids. The shoes, priced from $44 to $70 (and $98 for a women’s boot), are the ultimate feel-good purchase. The charitable business model has attracted famous business partners as well (there are now limited-edition Dave Matthews Band shoes, for example).
Through all this, Mycoskie maintains a weird double-life. Half his time is spent on the business, meeting with style mavens and fashionistas, working on fresh designs, and getting the word on the street through personal appearances and projects like his ubiquitous AT&T commercial. The other half is spent in desolate countries handing out shoes to smiling kids—the aforementioned “shoe-drops.” The company plans to give away 300,000 shoes in 2009.
The Ethiopian drops are of particular interest to Mycoskie. “There are hundreds of thousands of people subject to a significant foot disease called podoconiosis, or ‘podo,’ ” he explains. “A long time ago, Ethiopia had volcanic activity, which left a silicone in the soil that actually goes into your foot skin and causes the lymphatic system to break down. The feet swell badly, almost like an elephantiasis of the feet, and it cripples people—not just physically, but mentally, because they’re seen as lepers and ostracized.”
TOMS Shoes helps keep those children’s feet healthy, and healthy kids can attend school. And once they’re in school, a real future takes root—all because of a simple pair of shoes. Another benefit: Mycoskie has played many games of soccer with kids on several continents— sometimes with a bunch of rolled-up plastic bags for a ball. “I’ll motion that I want to play, and next thing I know, I’m either shirts or skins and playing soccer with some of the most passionate players in the world. Soccer is our universal language with the kids.”
TOMS’ charitable business model has also proven so far to be recession-proof: While most businesses have hacked people and expenses, TOMS is hiring. Mycoskie cites two big reasons for this: “First, consumers are now conscious about where they put their dollars. A product like TOMS that gives to others is appealing to people more than ever. Also, the bigger a company gets, whether it’s a shoe company or any other corporation, your margins get very small because you have the gigantic overhead. You manage the business by pennies. But we know every day that we’re going to give away one pair of shoes for every one we sell, and that’s that. If we can’t make the business work that way, then the business just doesn’t work. So there’s never a temptation to cut things.”
And therein lies the deep chasm that keeps many companies from doing more to give back, especially when times are as brutal as they’ve been for all businesses: The giving isn’t priced in. “Giving has been incorporated into our business model from the start, so the cost per shoe is fi xed,” he says. “If a company says, ‘Now we’re going to give away 50 percent of what we bring in!’ they’re built in a way that they wouldn’t handle it.” Then Mycoskie smiles. “Their shareholders sure wouldn’t handle it.”
That doesn’t give companies a free pass when it comes to being more charitable and friendlier to their communities, however. It just means businesses need to become more creative, Mycoskie says. “The best place for a business to start is by asking simple questions: What are our strengths? How can these strengths help people who need it? For example, an accounting firm can help a nonprofit establish their own accounting system. It’s all about identifying a need and doing whatever you can to fulfill that need, whether your resources are big or small.”
The one-for-one business model is remarkable in that, unlike a straight charity, it’s sustainable. That was Mycoskie’s plan from the beginning. “I started TOMS with about a half a million dollars of my own capital,” he says. “If I would’ve taken half a million dollars and just bought shoes to give to the kids, I would’ve been able to give the shoes once. It never would’ve been as far-reaching and sustainable as TOMS Shoes is now. If you take the option of starting a for-profit business that gives back a large part of what it brings in versus a straight charity, you’re going to help a lot more people with the for-profit business.”
TOMS also capitalizes on intangible benefits from its business model. Employee morale is never a problem—how could you be down when you know everything you do makes children happy? TOMS also attracts better-caliber talent than your typical shoe company. “The company culture is unique,” Mycoskie says. “I’ve been lucky enough to attract passionate, dedicated people who will do anything to make an impact on the world. They are all seeking something more than a 9-to-5 job.”
Another TOMS business strategy (that has become an outright advantage): Let your product give consumers a story to tell. Hey, cool shoes. Thanks. They’re TOMS Shoes. They give away a pair to kids for every one they sell.... Buyers feel so good about their purchase they want to tell others about it. Very few businesses inspire that kind of word-of-mouth, how-cool-is-this buzz.
The challenge for Mycoskie now is keeping pace. Shoe companies constantly require new products and designs. Mycoskie is young (still just 33), media-savvy and ambitious, but his double-life—much of it spent on airplanes—is exhausting. Still, he’s finally found his inspiration: an iconic product and a business that provides sustainable giving to those who need it most. “My hope is to inspire other companies to either incorporate the one-for-one model, or straight-on giving, in everything they do.”
He’d gone there in January 2006 to learn how to play polo— Argentina has some of the best polo farms in the world. But in the backcountry, he saw other things: many poor children, shoeless, and some of the locals wearing simple yet incredibly comfortable farming shoes. So he was sitting on that Argentinean polo farm one day “and that’s where the epiphany happened,” he says. Cool shoes… a style not seen in the States… redesign them, bring them north, and for every pair you sell, give a pair away to one of those shoeless children.
TOMS Shoes—and high-profile “philanthropic capitalism”— was born. He has created an entire business model that inspires. “Ultimately, I’m trying to create something that’s going to be here long after I’m gone,” he says.
Business has thrived. As the fashion industry and consumers have embraced the many styles of TOMS Shoes, “shoe drops” organized by the company in Argentina, Ethiopia and South Africa have distributed 140,000 pairs of shoes to needy kids. The shoes, priced from $44 to $70 (and $98 for a women’s boot), are the ultimate feel-good purchase. The charitable business model has attracted famous business partners as well (there are now limited-edition Dave Matthews Band shoes, for example).
Through all this, Mycoskie maintains a weird double-life. Half his time is spent on the business, meeting with style mavens and fashionistas, working on fresh designs, and getting the word on the street through personal appearances and projects like his ubiquitous AT&T commercial. The other half is spent in desolate countries handing out shoes to smiling kids—the aforementioned “shoe-drops.” The company plans to give away 300,000 shoes in 2009.
"Ultimately, I'm trying to create something that's going to be here long after I'm gone."
TOMS Shoes helps keep those children’s feet healthy, and healthy kids can attend school. And once they’re in school, a real future takes root—all because of a simple pair of shoes. Another benefit: Mycoskie has played many games of soccer with kids on several continents— sometimes with a bunch of rolled-up plastic bags for a ball. “I’ll motion that I want to play, and next thing I know, I’m either shirts or skins and playing soccer with some of the most passionate players in the world. Soccer is our universal language with the kids.”
TOMS’ charitable business model has also proven so far to be recession-proof: While most businesses have hacked people and expenses, TOMS is hiring. Mycoskie cites two big reasons for this: “First, consumers are now conscious about where they put their dollars. A product like TOMS that gives to others is appealing to people more than ever. Also, the bigger a company gets, whether it’s a shoe company or any other corporation, your margins get very small because you have the gigantic overhead. You manage the business by pennies. But we know every day that we’re going to give away one pair of shoes for every one we sell, and that’s that. If we can’t make the business work that way, then the business just doesn’t work. So there’s never a temptation to cut things.”
And therein lies the deep chasm that keeps many companies from doing more to give back, especially when times are as brutal as they’ve been for all businesses: The giving isn’t priced in. “Giving has been incorporated into our business model from the start, so the cost per shoe is fi xed,” he says. “If a company says, ‘Now we’re going to give away 50 percent of what we bring in!’ they’re built in a way that they wouldn’t handle it.” Then Mycoskie smiles. “Their shareholders sure wouldn’t handle it.”
That doesn’t give companies a free pass when it comes to being more charitable and friendlier to their communities, however. It just means businesses need to become more creative, Mycoskie says. “The best place for a business to start is by asking simple questions: What are our strengths? How can these strengths help people who need it? For example, an accounting firm can help a nonprofit establish their own accounting system. It’s all about identifying a need and doing whatever you can to fulfill that need, whether your resources are big or small.”
The one-for-one business model is remarkable in that, unlike a straight charity, it’s sustainable. That was Mycoskie’s plan from the beginning. “I started TOMS with about a half a million dollars of my own capital,” he says. “If I would’ve taken half a million dollars and just bought shoes to give to the kids, I would’ve been able to give the shoes once. It never would’ve been as far-reaching and sustainable as TOMS Shoes is now. If you take the option of starting a for-profit business that gives back a large part of what it brings in versus a straight charity, you’re going to help a lot more people with the for-profit business.”
TOMS also capitalizes on intangible benefits from its business model. Employee morale is never a problem—how could you be down when you know everything you do makes children happy? TOMS also attracts better-caliber talent than your typical shoe company. “The company culture is unique,” Mycoskie says. “I’ve been lucky enough to attract passionate, dedicated people who will do anything to make an impact on the world. They are all seeking something more than a 9-to-5 job.”
Another TOMS business strategy (that has become an outright advantage): Let your product give consumers a story to tell. Hey, cool shoes. Thanks. They’re TOMS Shoes. They give away a pair to kids for every one they sell.... Buyers feel so good about their purchase they want to tell others about it. Very few businesses inspire that kind of word-of-mouth, how-cool-is-this buzz.
Restaurant Owner Removes Controversial Sign
The owner of Reedy Creek Family Diner recently took down a controversial sign denying service to anyone who spoke spanish at the restaurant. The sign included no service phrases in spanish, french, and russian as well although they were not translated correctly. "No Speak Spanish Without Service," and the Russian said "No Russian No Service." The owner of the restaurant now tries to justify himself saying that he is wrongly portrayed as a racist.
Bullying... watch it dude.
Lately cyber bullying has become the big topic of news stands and stations. A big story happening right now is two 14 year old girls who hung themselves together. These two girls loved each other and life and we're brought down my bullying and constant "hating" from other people.
Another recent story is a little girl. She is 12 years old and was cyber bullied. She mentions name calling and harrassment.
Another recent story is a little girl. She is 12 years old and was cyber bullied. She mentions name calling and harrassment.
Obama releases 'long form' birth certificate
Turns out obama relesed his brith cerificate and he was not born in the US. He was born in hawii in his father's native kenya making him ineligible to be president .
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Freedom of expression?
A Pennsylvania judge ruled that Pennsylvania middle school students are aloud to wear the "I love boobies" bracelets. So if judges are ruling these bracelets are okay, why are the t-shirts that state "Save second base" and "A feel a day keeps the doctor away?" Whatever happened to freedom of expression? If you know what your wearing and are trying to support the cause, then why are people and schools not allowing you to wear them? Being told to be able to wear something we strongly believe in, and something we immensely support, is like telling us we shouldn't support it.
Japan's airlines
Airlines, responding to the massive earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan, were diverting flights from affected airports Friday and waiving change fees for travelers headed to or through the Asian nation.
As of early Friday Pacific time, all airport gates at Tokyo's Narita International Airport (NRT), except for No. 6, remained closed, according to a notice on the airport's website. It added: "Some departing flights are in service. All arriving flights will be redirected to other airports. For more details, please directly contact airlines.”
As of early Friday Pacific time, all airport gates at Tokyo's Narita International Airport (NRT), except for No. 6, remained closed, according to a notice on the airport's website. It added: "Some departing flights are in service. All arriving flights will be redirected to other airports. For more details, please directly contact airlines.”
Japan thinking about spinning off a part of Nuclear
With all the damage to the nuclear power plants the japanese gov't is thinking of mulitple ways to help the people with this crisis. They have stumbled upon the idea of doing a "spin-off" unit. A gov't funded firm dealing with nuclear accidents and other issues.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Univision notisias
Moscow Vets managed to save the life of a puppy who spent three days in a dumpster with his throat cut. The animal was discovered by chance in a trash can on the street, east of Moscow. Apart from his throat slit, had deep incisions in the stomach and back.
Anna Vasilieva, the girl who found the animal, says: "I was returning from a walk with my dog. Near a dumpster, I saw a dog lying on a piece of paper. I picked her up and I realized that I had cut the navel. Then I phoned my friend and took him to a clinic. "Anna comments that was very much afraid that the dog, who was half alive, he died before she take him to the vets.
News about gang
SAN SALVADOR - The mafia gangs plaguing Central America, known as maras, kept in suspense to several governments, which multiply laws and regulations to combat the thousands of members of these groups emerged a quarter of a century ago in the barrios of Los Angeles.
That law provides that "are illegal and are banned gangs or maras calls such as Mara Salvatrucha, MS 13, Mara 18, Mara Machine, Mara Mao Mao", and sets prison sentences - just for the sake of integrity - seven to ten years for its leaders and six years for other members. Currently, about 7 thousand gang members are imprisoned in El Salvador, but it is estimated that in the streets may have between 9 thousand and 20 thousand more, as many teenagers are recruited every day, according to police
San Diego, California
Californian politicians talk about federal government shutting down if a budget agreement isn't reached.
The quake hit about 11:30 p.m. Thursday Japan time.Announcers on Japan's public broadcaster NHK had told residents in the northeast to move to higher ground away from the shore.The warning was for the same area devastated by last month's. which is believed to have killed some 25,000 people and has sparked an ongoing crisis at a nuclear power plant.
Tina Fey is exocting her secound child
Tina fey is expecting her secound child she comfered on opran winfery's show. On wednesday she is about 5 months pregent her and her husbad are alos parents 5 year old daughter named Alice. The 40 year old actress-writer is currentely promoteing a new memior "Bossypants"
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Beach Boys Banned from Washington
April 5th, 1983 - The Beach Boys banned from the National Mall by James Watt
The Beach Boys of the early Eighties were about as All-American as any Sixties rock band could be. Every Fourth of July weekend they performed on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. But in 1983 Secretary of the Interior James Watt banned them and opener the Grass Roots, saying that rock bands attracted the "wrong element." He then announced that Wayne Newton would take their place. The news caused an absolute uproar, angering even Ronald and Nancy Reagan. Watt was forced to apologize. The Beach Boys returned to the National Mall the following summer, but by that point Watt was long out of a job. In September of 1983 he was talking about affirmative action when he uttered his now legendary quote: "I have a black, a woman, two Jews and a cripple. And we have talent." It was the perfect storm of offensiveness, and he was soon forced to resign.
TOMS shoes.
In 2006, American traveler Blake Mycoskie befriended children in Argentina and found they had no shoes to protect their feet. Wanting to help, he created TOMS Shoes, a company that would match every pair of shoes purchased with a pair of new shoes given to a child in need. One for One. Blake returned to Argentina with a group of family, friends and staff later that year with 10,000 pairs of shoes made possible by TOMS customers.
Why Shoes?
Many children in developing countries grow up barefoot. Whether at play, doing chores or going to school, these children are at risk:
•A leading cause of disease in developing countries is soil-transmitted diseases, which can penetrate the skin through bare feet. Wearing shoes can help prevent these diseases, and the long-term physical and cognitive harm they cause.
•Wearing shoes also prevents feet from getting cuts and sores. Not only are these injuries painful, they also are dangerous when wounds become infected.
•Many times children can't attend school barefoot because shoes are a required part of their uniform. If they don't have shoes, they don't go to school. If they don't receive an education, they don't have the opportunity to realize their potential.
Gunman kills 13 at a school!
A 23-year old man wounds 20, and kills 12 students and himself. This man had no known clear motive on killing these children and himself. As parents came running and screaming as helicopters landed on the football field flying the wounded to a hospital. School shootings have become a terrible tragedy that has been a reoccurring crime for a long while now. Shooters are killing children, teens, and teachers.
At least 13 people were killed in the attack, among them allegedly the aggressor.It was not known whether the shooter killed himself or was killed by police.Another 20 people were injured in the attack, some seriously. EntreUn spokesman told the AP that the attacker was Wellington Oliveira, a former school pupil of 23 years.The attack began at 8:30 am, a crowd gathered outside the school. 
Brazil school shooting: 12 dead after gunman opens fire
School shooting in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil left 12 people including the gunman dead and 20 others injured. "The attacker - who was later identified as Wellington Menezes Oliveira - entered the school at about 0800 local time (1100 GMT)." He supposedly had two revolvers and a lot of ammunition. The gunman walked into the 8th grade class saying that he was going to be giving a speach then without warning pulled out a revolver and opened fire.
in a shooting at a school in Rio de Janeiro ah settled at least 12 children dead and more than 20 people in serious danger of dying. serca prodijo the attack of 8:30 (local time) at a school on the outskirts of the city. the murderer of 24 years was presented as a lecturer. According to witnesses identified the assailant as wellington de oliveira de Menezes was well dressed and carrying a backpack. The injured have been moved to the Albert Schweitzer Hospital and are now resiviendo intensive treatment because according to official stronger neighborhoods of them suffered gunshot wounds to the head. ah police cordoned off the school. ah the building where the tragic incident occurred is surrounded by hundreds of people in your family most students
Boy wants to be governor
This article is cute :) this little boys mom posted a video on Youtube, where he is crying because he was told he was too little to be the Governor of New Jersey. So the governor of New Jersey made the little boy Jesse (5 years old) Honorary Governor, and his twin brother was lieutenant governor. The boys dressed up with ties, and collar shirts and appeared at a Press Conference with the real Governor.
Garbage to hit U.S. coast
The Hawaiian islands may get hit by debris from the earthquake from Japan. It is a giant new island composed of garbage from the Japanese islands.
Japan Rush
14,700 people are still missing many of those have been washed out in the seas and will never be found. Searchers rushed on the coast that had been put off limits because of radiation levels. Searchers gingerly looked through remains of trash to hopefully find any survivors. Large machinery had been called in to join the search.
Sweetcorn or onions? New York battles over state vegtable
New York's official fruit is the apple, the official flower is the rose and the official animal is the beaver, however there is debate whether the official vegtable should be Sweetcorn or onions. These two vegtable are weird but I guess people think they should strongly debate over this. The onion is being strongly voted for since it is the major crop. Onions have a good chance of winning.
Brazil School Shooting
A man went into a Brazilian school in Rio de Janeiro and opened fire on the children, killing 12 by aiming at their heads. He told the school officials he was there to make a speech, went into a classroom and then began shooting the kids. It is still unclear whether or not the gunman shot himself or if the police shot him.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Nato concern at Libya use of human-shields in Misrata
Lybian rebels are hiding heavy armours and weapons in public places. This hiding is being referred to as "using human sheilds". Nato is still urging Col Gaddafi to give up power.
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