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The Best Clothing Styles for Your Body Type

Saturday, November 3rd, 2007

The majority of women do not have the model body type that allows designer clothing to drape over us effortlessly, but we can come pretty close if we make the right choices. This begins by understanding your body type and letting go of those inner demons telling you to be thinner so you\’ll look better in clothing. How many times have you or a friend said “I refuse to buy any new clothes until I lose ten pounds”, or my favorite, “I\’ll by this smaller size and it will give me incentive to lose weight”. Ladies, please stop!

Train your eye to choose clothing that flatters your individual shape, not an idealized form. Get to know your body and its unique measurements. When you learn to balance your proportions and accentuate your assets, you will achieve effortless style and will have the ability to look as good as any fashion magazine model.

BODY TYPE 1: Triangle
Often referred to as the “pear”, you have narrow and sloped shoulders, and larger hips. Most have a slim torso and rib cage and your waist may be smaller in proportion to your hips. You also have a fuller bottom and legs. This is the most common figure type.

FIT SOLUTIONS
The key is to draw the eye away from your widest hip area. Your best styles will accentuate your neck and slim upper body and minimize your lower half.

Tops: Avoid a short boxy line on top. Your best tops will focus on widening your shoulders. Choose ballet and boat necks, puff sleeves, dolman and batwing sleeves. V-necks and blouses with princess seams that accentuate your waist. Stay away from crop tops and anything that stops at your navel or above - it will cut you in half thus accentuating your lower half!

Dresses: Empire waisted and babydoll styles as well as kimono, dolman and flutter sleeved. Wrap dresses that accentuate your waist and draw attention to your neck and shoulders with a v-neck style.

Skirts: Choose a circle or a-line skirt with a lower waist and minimal waistband. Straight skirts work well worn just above the knee in a fabric that drapes well.

Pants: A straight cut with a bootleg or slight flare is your best bet. Choose a lower waist pant that has a flat front - no pleats or pockets placed across your widest part! High waist pants that are at or above your navel can mold around your hips and butt and give the appearance of bulk. Capris should also have a slight flare at the bottom.

Fabric and Color: Darker colors will recede and make you look smaller, so generally darker bottoms and lighter tops work nicely. Bold, large prints can work well for taller Type 1 women, but stick with smaller prints if you are average to petite.

BODY TYPE 2: Hourglass

You have well proportioned shoulders that are in line with your hips and a waist approximately 10″ smaller. Curvy describes you the best and you have a small to average, defined waistline and an average to full bottom and many have of you have great legs.

FIT SOLUTIONS
You can wear any type of clothing that stays in proportion to your height and weight. Find clothing with shape and soft, fluid fabrics to highlight your curves.

Tops: Almost anything goes. Best bets are fitted blouses, halters, wrap tops, and blouson. If you have a fuller bust, avoid breast pockets, pleating or ruffles in that area.

Dresses: Tank and sheath dresses, nipped-waist and bias, wrap, strapless and anything that highlights your curves.

Skirts: Pencil and bias cut skirts look great on your body-type. If you are fuller in the stomach and hips, avoid excess material or horizontal pockets in this area.

Pants: A straight cut with a bootleg or slight flare is your best bet, but you can opt for slimmer styles if your hips and thighs are average to small. Choose a lower waist pant that has a flat front.

Fabric and Color: Experiment with color, prints and texture to see what fits your personality and stature. Choose fabrics that drape well and are not stiff. You want to highlight your curves, not hide them or create a boxy midsection.

BODY TYPE 3: V-Shape

You may describe your figure as boyish or athletic, but you are lucky to have the model type body that looks great in almost every style. Your shoulders are broader than your hips. Your waist is average and less defined and you have narrow hips, a smaller and sometimes flat bottom with slimmer legs.

FIT SOLUTIONS
Your narrow hips give you choice and versatility. If your shoulders are very broad, you will want to add volume to your hips for balance and stay away from styles that exaggerate the shoulder area.

Tops: V-necks, U-necks, sleeveless and tanks with wider straps. Avoid tops with a horizontal line or widening effect near the top such as puff sleeves, boat necks, epaulettes, or fussy details.

Dresses: Avoid high waistlines and empire seams or ruffles near the top. Look for details like bold prints, pockets and pleats on the lower half to add fullness and keep it simple on top.

Skirts: Torso skirts with soft pleating, tiers and gathering are your first choice because they add volume and balance your figure. Stay away from any style that gathers at the natural waist or appears to cut you in half, thus exaggerating the upper body.

Pants: Your choice - with narrow hips you can wear them all.

Fabric and Color: Experiment with color, prints and texture to see what fits your personality and stature. Create interest on the bottom half with prints and color and keep the top simple to downplay the shoulder area.

Michelle Lieck is the owner of http://www.ladylanguage.com an online boutique committed to helping women look and feel good in their clothing. The site offers contemporary, affordable women\’s apparel and an area that allows women to shop by their body type.

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What is Digital Rights Management (DRM)?

Tuesday, September 4th, 2007

DRM stands for Digital Rights Management, or as some people call it, Digital Restrictions Management. Put simply, DRM consists of various restrictions applied in music or video files, so their use (such as playback) can be controlled by a third party, usually the company holding the copyright for a song or movie. DRM is not just a copyright protection technique but a whole set of technologies that aim to implement the DRM strategy each distributor of digital content specifies. As an example, DRM can verify that the user that bought an audio file is actually the same user playing the file. DRM technology can also be used to limit the number of PCs a file can be played on. The major disadvantage of DRM is that these restrictions are not always clear when a user buys a digital product.

Which Multimedia Formats Support DRM?

If you’re expecting to see MP3 in this list, guess again. Due to it’s open nature, the MP3 standard is unable to support DRM. Furthermore, there is no centralized coordination in the development and evolution of the MP3 format so don’t expect digital music stores to offer songs in the MP3 format.

Advanced Audio Coding: The AAC format, used by iTunes and iPod, is based on Apple’s QuickTime. It was originally designed as a replacement of the MP3, and can actually compress files better than the MP3 format can.

Windows Media Audio: WMA is a closed-source standard of digital music. It was designed to compete with the MP3 but in reality, it’s actually AAC’s main competitor, especially with regards to DRM support and buying music online. The latest version of WMA offers similar quality to that of AAC and better than that of MP3 files. This means that much smaller files can have CD quality. WMA is based on the ADvanced System Format (ASF) which can integrate different streams of audio and video as long as they belong to the Windows Media family.

RealNetworks & Sony: Both of these companies offer music download services. Real mostly uses the AAC format with the Helix DRM system, while Sony uses the OpenMG DRM system on ATRAC3 files. It is expected that Sony will support other music formats in the future.

Now that you know what DRM is, are you ready to start downloading music legally?

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Online Targeting and Harassment

Saturday, August 25th, 2007

Most internet harassment goes on in chat rooms and newsgroups, also via email. Internet law has tightened up since the early free wheeling days when there were very few controls in place. For example it’s become a federal crime in the US to anonymously “annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any person” via internet or other telecommunication systems. So it’s on the books, if people choose to go after the bullies.

Some people do. In a precedent setting case in 2006, a Florida woman, Susan Scheff, successfully sued for defamation over the internet and was awarded $11.3 million. The defendant was unhappy with the referral service offered by the plaintiff and posted complaints and insults on the internet, accusing Ms Scheff of being a”crook” and a “fraud”.

Another 2006 case in the UK suggests that tolerances are rapidly changing. Internet users are becoming less willing to put up with personal attacks, and in some cases are taking it all the way to the top. In the UK case, a Tracy Williams was ordered to pay damages of 10,000 pounds plus 7,200 pounds in costs for accusing a male acquaintance, Michael Keith-Smith, of being a “sex offender” and “racist blogger”. She also accused his wife of being a prostitute.

I’m not wholly enthusiastic about these cases, because a legal chill is liable to act as a powerful disincentive when it comes to simple use of language. After all, part of the power of the net is that it is a lot less regulated than many other aspects of our lives. This is why we need to police ourselves and avoiding indulging in behavior that will provide justification for those who are eager for excuses to increase regulation and control.

If you do become a target of harassment or defamation, stay cool. Don’t react or get into a flame war with the people doing the harassing. Make a point though of keeping a record - emails, posted comments etc, along with dates, times and any identifying information that may come in handy at a later date.

Depending on the stealth method used, you might be able to acquire additional info about the source of the attack. Legitimate services such as “nslookup” and “tracert” enable users to track hosts, IP addresses and MAC addresses. There are also professional services you can enlist that use the information you provide to dig for additional info. Make sure they operate within the law, as some are little more than hackers-for-hire.

As in any ordinary case of harassment, it’s important to build the case and gather the evidence. Don’t release any of this material to the person you suspect is behind the abuse, until and if you are prepared to go the distance.

If you are concerned about your privacy and reputation, it may be advisable lower your profile. Often disengagement and non-reaction stops harassment because most cyber trolls and bullies get their jollies from the belief that they are ruining your life.

If there is no hidden history or baggage you are anxious to keep confidential i.e. criminal record, then continue to put your best foot forward. Most users savvy with the ways of the net are well aware that defamation is a weapon that can be used for any one of a number of malicious reasons. There are outspoken politicians and pundits online who attract pages of gossip and speculation on Google. Most of them remain unaffected by it and keep on trucking.

Over time, defamatory commentary loses its edge when it becomes apparent that nothing has come of it. It gets to be old news. In a way you will be stronger for it. Other net users get to know who is being harassed and look to see how the target is reacting. In the case of bloggers, it’s important not to allow harassment to become an obsession, and especially not a subject for constant posts. To most readers this comes across as a bit unhinged and obsessive. Not helpful, since the average visitor has little or no interest in a blogger’s personal online angst.

It really comes down to the individual in the end. If you’ve nothing to hide - you have nothing to fear except fear itself.

Aidan Maconachy is a freelance writer and artist based in Ontario. You can visit his blog at http://aidanmaconachyblog.blogspot.com/

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Finding Time Through Effective To-Do Lists - 3 Myths And 3 Tips

Wednesday, July 4th, 2007

Finding time is like finding treasure, right? The next question is how to spend it!

If time is money, then to-do lists are the smart budgets that ensure you pay your bills and still have cash left over for that special something. They’re powerful and they’ll work for you. If you hate them, lose them or never even start them, learn how to use them to your advantage.

It’s easy, once you’ve decided you want to use your time well and will do whatever’s necessary. Here are 3 common To-Do Lists Myths and 3 Tips to dispel those myths with Effective To-do Lists.

To-Do List Myth #1: “To-do lists don’t work.”

Reality: Effective To-do Lists are extremely successful if you construct them well and follow them! Make sure you construct to-do lists as realistic plans that align with your values. Then they’re like mini-navigation systems, guiding you through your day and keeping you on track.

To-Do List Myth #2: “To-do lists will just make me feel rotten (or guilty or overwhelmed) at the end of the day.”

Reality: Effective To-do Lists will make you feel powerful and accomplished at the end of the day! The secret? Make them short. Only put on what you can realistically do and are motivated to do. If a project can’t get done today, don’t put it on today’s list. Or only enter the small portion you can accomplish. Anything else goes onto your weekly or monthly list, in doable chunks!

To-Do List Myth #3: “To-do lists will just remind me of what I hate in my life or what I’ll never be able to get around to doing anyway.”

Reality: If making Effective To-do Lists helps you face what you dislike and identify what you want and never find time for, that’s a benefit. Examine what you have identified as necessary. If it’s truly necessary, then clarify why you value it. Don’t waste your time resenting it. If it’s not necessary, omit it. If you feel a pang over a valued activity you never get around to, commit to reworking your time choices!

For reinforcement, print this out and post it prominently. Make Effective To-do Lists. Learn to plan and accomplish tasks in manageable increments.

You’ll love how Effective To-do Lists help you find time!

Want to find more time? Visit http://www.findingtime.net/ and learn more timely tips. When you sign up for the free, Award-Winning Finding Time E-zine, you receive two insightful articles at http://www.findingtime.net/ezine.html. Let Paula Eder, Ph.D., The Time Finder, help you find time to revitalize your life!

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Theory Of The Nude In Art

Wednesday, July 4th, 2007

My friends and family often ask me why so many artists paint (as they say) “naked people”. Some think that the nude is only pornography, while others just think that it’s out-dated in the art world. Most artists will tell you something along the lines of “we don’t see them as ‘naked’ we just see beauty”. Though this may be true, it doesn’t answer our question. As a classically trained artist myself I have a theory on why people make art using the nude. I think the first step in understanding the nude in art is to understand why people made them in the past, and why they continue to make them.

There are three basic categories of nudes, which are not necessarily mutually exclusive (sometimes they overlap):

The Ideal Nude: Originating with the Greeks, the ideal nude is just a concept really, the basis of which was most clearly explained by Plato. He stated that within all things there is a universal and divine “form” that defines it. For example: if you look at 100 trees, each individual tree will look different, yet they are all similar enough to categorize them as trees. What is the sameness or underlying quality of the tree which makes it a tree? This thing, this sameness, Plato called form. Greek artists took this idea and tried to find the ideal form of the human body. They used shapes in the human body, much like a musician would use musical notes to form a chord. The idea was to create a harmony through repetition and variation of certain visual elements of the body. Excellent examples of this are, of course, classical Greek and Roman sculpture, Leonardo da Vinci (who also could be mentioned in all of these categories for different works), Donatello, Rafael, and the Neo-classicists of the 19th century.

The Observed Nude: Originating in the Fayum portraits of ancient Greece in a technique of painting called Encaustic, which uses wax as a medium for pigment instead of oil or water. The main purpose of this originated in portraiture and was all about trying to capture the individual’s personality and particular appearance. Great examples of this can be found in the paintings of Rembrandt, John Singer Sargent, and ancient Roman portrait busts.

The Expressive Nude: This form is intended to do just what the name implies. The nude is used here as the main vehicle for the artist’s expression, usually with emotive, and in the case of the Renaissance, devotional purposes. Great examples would be the work of Michelangelo (who could be classified under ideal nude as well) and most of the artists of the modern period: Rodin, Picasso, Matisse, Kathe Kollwitz, Edvard Munch, and Paul Gauguin etc…

I would like to rephrase our original question in the interest of brevity and to be more specific. “Why is it that the most recurring subject in all of art history by far is the human face and body?” Modern scientific research also gives us a clue to the reasons behind our question. The human face and the human body are psychologically stimulating to the mind. Our brains are actually hard wired to recognize human form. Take, for example, a chimpanzee. If you look at three different chimps for 5 seconds, would you be able to tell them apart as individuals? Now if you look at three human faces for 5 seconds, I bet your success rate will be much greater. But a chimp can recognize and differentiate between other chimps much easier, just as you can recognize a human face much easier.

You might say, Ok I understand why we look at faces, that makes sense, but why nude? Well there are multiple reasons. First (and least important to me) is tradition. There is a long tradition predating even the Egyptians of recreating the human body. So, as a method of teaching art, there are lots of people who have done it before and so there are a lot of excellent techniques and examples for artistic training that have been developed which apply to other forms of art as well. Second, it is a test of skill. If one can make a believable representation of something that we are so familiar with, then everything else is a piece of cake. If I paint a chimpanzee you would be less critical of whether it looks real or not than a human face, simply because most of us don’t see chimps every day for our entire lives. Some artists get caught up in this challenge for perfection and are never satisfied with their degree of skill, (I know I never am) and so continue to pursue impossible perfection even though most people might not see the minute faults of the work which the artist does. –The next passage includes much of my opinion on the subject and is not intended to force my views on anyone, but merely to share another point of view.

Third, (and most importantly to me) the nude, when I choose to paint it, is representative of something more than observation. My works are meant to evoke complex emotions or thoughts in the viewer, and are not meant to be decorative, though beauty is important to me. Since nudity is not often seen in normal everyday settings, it implies that there is something more to the interpretation. It makes the piece more intimate. For me, art is about conveying the complexity of life; its joy and its sorrow. If I paint a nude with a certain degree of sexuality implied, it is to communicate the dual nature of every human being. All of us, from the most pious, to the most base, from the greatest ideals of compassion and love, to fear and jealousy; we are all torn between what we are and what we wish to be. We all have some desire to do or see something greater than what is before us, and we all struggle with the desire for immediate pleasure. It is this tension between our animal and divine sides that I attempt to evoke; and in doing so, perhaps to help myself and others understand a little bit more about being human.

Richard Scott is a figurative artist in Brooklyn, NY. He holds an MFA from the distinguished New York Academy of Art, and is an emerging artistic force in the art world. He is also a noteworthy art theorist, and writes peer selected reviews on art theory, criticism, and literature. His work can be viewed online in the Joelle-Scott Gallery: http://www.memoreejoelle.org

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Ayurvedic Herbs For Your Detox Diet

Friday, June 8th, 2007

Ayurvedic herbs have long been used for its therapeutic and healing abilities. In fact, they are gaining in popularity throughout the world as more and more people emigrate and as more find out about the benefits of these herbs. There are specific types of Ayurvedic herbs that can be included in your detox diet. These Ayurvedic herbs aid in the detoxification process of the liver.

The liver is an important organ where your body wastes are eliminated. These body wastes then turn into bile which are made up of metabolic waste, dead cells, and other toxins that are filtered out from the liver. The bile then goes to the gallbladder and to the intestines where fats are broken down. It also becomes a lubricating agent that prepares the body for bowel movement.

Ayurvedic herbs can help to jumpstart the production of bile. Curcumin, an Ayurvedic herb, is one example. It is an active compound for bile production. Being an antioxidant, adding Ayurvedic herb in your detox diet actually doubles up the normal production of the bile, thus results to a more efficient bowel movement and excretion of body waste. You should expect that as dietary toxins are eliminated in a more frequent manner, you would become healthier.

Another popular Ayurvedic herb is Triphala. It is also used as treatment for gastrointestinal conditions and improves digestion. It increases bile excretion and keeps cholesterol at a normal level. It is also a potent antioxidant that fights free radical.

Using Ayurvedic herbs for your detox diet can prove to be very beneficial. A thorough cleansing process involving Ayurvedic herbs can take as long as 45 days. During the cleansing period, you are not advised to fast or skip on your liquid diets as this may create an imbalance. Also, you could have to stay clear of foods that may clog up your body’s waste channels. These include frozen, packed, canned and processed foods. These are the types of food that are very hard to digest.

Herbs used should preferably be fresh. Ayurvedic herbs would work also when added to fresh foods that promotes digestion. These include organic vegetables and fruits, soups and flat breads. To prepare for a detox diet that uses Ayurvedic herbs, your normal meals should include leafy green vegetables like Brussels sprouts and cabbage. Light grains are also recommended like barley, quinoa and small servings of rice. You also need to drink plenty of warm water to flush out toxins through the process of urination.

Including Ayurvedic herbs in your detox diet can most definitely aid in the removal of toxic waste from your body. Still, you require great discipline when adopting a detox diet. However, the rewards in improved health and more energy, will be well worth it.

Got constipation, bad breath and weight that you need to lose? Reap benefits from detox cleansing. Sign up to free research and special reports by Sandra Kim Leong on colon and liver cleansing, juice fasting and on detox cleansing diets here at http://www.Detox-Cleansing-Diet.com

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Laser Focus - What You Visualize, You Materialize

Friday, June 1st, 2007

So, everyone wants to know what it takes to succeed at anything and everything! The most frequent question I am asked is “what is the secret to success”. I truly think this is a most amusing question. First of all, if the question is asked then the person asking has not looked within to find out how they themselves define success. They have not become clear on what they want and their purpose.

Everything in life comes down to knowing what you want. Regardless of where you are striving for success, i.e. relationships, business, career, finances, sports, love or any other area of your life. If you do not know exactly what you want then you certainly will never know when the opportunities or solutions present themselves.
I am a believer in the saying “what you visualize, you materialize”.

So I hear the moans already, someone else is going to tell me to visualize my goals. Absolutely I am. If you can not see yourself in receipt of what you want, then you will always just want it, never have it. This is a very simple truth.

But what does it take to visualize goals? Laser focus for starters.

1) Get perfectly clear on what you want, be very specific

2) Get in tune with what it will feel like when you have it

3) Apply that feeling, or energy to focus on your desire

4) Like a laser beam, make every action you take move you closer to that goal

5) Be present with your goals, know every minute of the day what the goal is

6) Never give up and never give in, do not settle for anything less

7) Everyday, take a few minutes to visually tap into these feelings.

When visualizing your goals, it should be almost like a memory, something you are very familiar with, not just a want.
Make it very personal, as you visualize, get excited with how it feels to have accomplished the goal
So, what is the secret? Laser focus on your desire. Regardless of what the desire is, everything you do will either move you toward your goal or away from your goal. To become this aware of your thoughts and visualization, you must be focused and totally clear on what you are looking to achieve.

What you think about and give energy to, comes about.

Wanda Grindstaff is recognized in the Direct Sales industry as a true leader. She now teaches a very simple system to assist people in accomplishing major income goals. Serious entrepreneurs are invited to request information on starting a home based business. For more information, contact her at wgrindstaff@ec.rr.com or visit http://www.abundantlifestylenow.com

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Internet Content Theft Hurts Honest Online Article Authors

Wednesday, May 9th, 2007

How bad is content theft on the Internet these days? Well it is pretty bad and although it has not reached epic proportions yet it seems to have a very unfortunate hyperbolic trend line there. As an online article author I often notice people stealing my work and then I see it on the Internet somewhere without any mention or credit for it.

Recently a fellow author said to me; “I am sorry they did that to you Lance” and well I said; Interesting comments you have and yet it is not necessarily what they are doing to “Lance” but rather what they are doing to the integrity of the Internet and the authors who create content and put it online. I noted some 50 articles from on one site that were stolen, as they were written by other article authors.

That same website blog stole articles from me as well. So, I think when another article author stated; “that’s terrible for them to do that to you.” My thoughts are it is horrific what it does for the legitmate article authors and bloggers out there. One author who has also been a victim stated that he had written some 1 million words over his life time and if they stole some of his bad stuff, he would not care much. Yes and to that point, after writing 3.5 million words in some 18-months, I have written some great stuff, some good stuff and some stuff which is barely passable. On the lousy material, sure who cares if someone steals it, nevertheless that is not for the thief to decide is it? I certainly hope this article is of interest and that is has propelled thought. The goal is simple; to help you in your quest to be the best in 2007. I thank you for reading my many articles on diverse subjects, which interest you.

“Lance Winslow” - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is a guest writer for Our Spokane Magazine in Spokane, Washington

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Hybrid Car’s Poses Threat to Safety of Blind Persons

Tuesday, May 8th, 2007

In the recent American International Automobile Dealers Association newsletter, they pointed out the threats posed by hybrid cars to blind people. The report stated that crossing the street has become more challenging for those who are visually impaired. This is due to the fact that hybrid electric cars like the Toyota Prius switch to its electric motor during low-speed driving or idling. This feature has endeared the car to some of its users because not only it reduces noise pollution but also reduces the car’s fuel consumption. These cars are efficient on city driving where frequent accelerating and decelerating are required, and the city streets are where most blind persons roam.

In consonance with this, the Wall Street Journal reported that some blind people already had close calls with hybrid vehicles. It is a common knowledge that visually handicapped persons relies on their sense of hearing to navigate busy streets. And since hybrid cars produces almost no sound at all just as silent as an EBC brake rotor when engaged, on low speed driving, blind people will not know if there is a car within the vicinity. This heightened the risk faced by blind people in traversing a city’s walkways. The quietness that hybrid cars may be a strong selling point for the car manufacturer but it poses a constant threat to blind people and this fact should not be ignored.

In response to the increased risk that blind people is now facing with the growing number of hybrid vehicles on our streets, the National Federation of the Blind has been lobbying for car manufacturers to take action with regard to the thereat posed by hybrid cars. The advocacy group stressed out those quiet hybrid vehicles not only poses threat to those people who are blind but for other sighted pedestrians. Cyclists and elderly persons also rely on a car’s sound to determine the position and speed of a vehicle. They also pointed out that while there are still no fatalities or injuries caused by the relative quietness of a hybrid car, the increasing popularity of hybrid cars may soon have a negative impact on the safety of pedestrians.

The National Federation of the Blind proposes to car makers that hybrid cars should at least emit a sound audible to pedestrians who rely on car sounds in navigating a city’s thoroughfare. The Committee on Automobile and Pedestrian Safety under the NFB suggested that a device may be integrated to a hybrid car’s axle which will produce an audible sound as the wheels of a car rotate. They also recommended that a sensor be developed that will warn a blind person if a hybrid car is in the area. These suggestions though are still to be relayed formally to car manufacturers since a meeting between the NFB and representatives of the automotive industry has yet to take place.

The call for action of the NFB has yet to be addressed by the automotive industry. In connection with this, the spokesman for the Alliance of Automotive Manufacturers, Charles Territo said that they are willing to look into the problem. “We’re interested in hearing about the concerns of the blind community, and we’ll work with them to ensure that they’re addressed”, Territo said. Meanwhile, Bill Kwong, spokesman for Toyota also said that he was not aware of the problem and further said that drivers and pedestrians share the responsibility of watching out for each other. But the NFB pointed out that the Toyota spokesman did overlook the fact that blind pedestrians cannot watch out for hybrid vehicles since they are after all, blind.

Anthony Fontanelle is a 35-year-old automotive.buff who grew up in the Windy City. He does freelance work for an automotive magazine when he is not busy customizing cars in his shop. You can visit EBC Brake Rotors for more information.

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No Such Thing As The Truth

Saturday, May 5th, 2007

With Rudy Giuliani having thrown his hat into the presidential ring, his time as mayor of New York suddenly loomed large, particularly with three disturbing incidents and his reaction to them. In 2002, after 9/11, Rudy was riding high. He was dubbed the Mayor of the World by the New York Times magazine which made him its Person of the Year. And, in my opinion, if anyone truly deserved such an accolade, it was the mayor of New York. He could not have been more of a father to his citizens when they needed him most, nor could he have been more caring and compassionate to shocked New Yorkers blasted by the carnage. Yet Rudy is living proof of the power of perception, including his own, to either vilify or sanctify, according to the moment.

As I watched him tirelessly leading the city throughout that September and beyond, I was extremely inspired by his unselfishness, humility, obvious compassion and quiet approachability. A natural leader. The cold-hearted mayor I had heard about up to a few months before seemed many miles away, bearing little relation to the man who now commanded so much respect and genuine authority. Right then he represented two completely different versions of ‘the truth’ according to one’s perception, expectation and frame of reference.

In fact, many other Black people in New York would have had some trouble adjusting their lens to double check that this new saintly figure was the same mayor who presided over three particularly brutal incidents and even backed his policemen in doing two of them too.

Zero Tolerance of Crime

According to the Times magazine, in 1997 Abner Louima, a Haitian man, was sodomised with a mop handle by policemen in a Brooklyn-precinct bathroom. Two years later, an unarmed street pedlar named Amadou Diallo was killed when police in the Bronx fired 41 shots at him in a dark lobby. In 2000, barely 18 months before 9/11, “an unarmed security guard named Patrick Dorismond, who had been trying to hail a cab outside a midtown bar, was shot to death after a scuffle with undercover cops…. Giuliani denounced the policemen who brutalised Louima but defiantly backed the ones who killed Diallo and Dorismond.” In their cases the juries actually cleared the policemen of wrong doing. Giuliani had declared zero tolerance on crime and would not let a little matter of skin colour block his objective, which gave a licence to others to rob African Americans of their rights and even their life.

“After Dorismond was killed, Giuliani’s instinct to defend the police” led him to attack the unarmed Black victim and “he authorised the release of Dorismond’s juvenile record” to “prove” his propensity for violence. “The dead,” Giuliani argued, “waived their right to privacy.” Even close friends and supporters were appalled. The man who had “saved New York city” saw his popularity ratings plummet to new lows. But therein lies the capacity of power to change perception of what constitutes ‘the truth’. As I said in my book, managing the diversity maze, ’Truth’ is governed by privilege. It always looks so right when one has the power to support it. Thus ‘the truth’ of “Black people, women and others who suffer under such inequalities will seldom share anything with the ‘truth’ of the exploiters because they are both coming at that singular ‘truth’ from two different positions of privilege: one group has it and the other has not. That is what keeps equality from ever becoming a reality and cements its unequal foundations, regardless of the superficial flurry of activity and proliferation of fine words to prove otherwise.”

With the support of the majority White community behind the law enforcers, crime assumed a particular colour. Giuliani had to show how a tough mayor should act towards those who were perceived to be the most troublesome, especially if they were easily identifiable. According to the magazine, “New York City was getting better, but the mayor seemed to be getting worse”. It was easy for him to feel unassailable. Inflated by his own idea of ‘the truth’, he seemed uncaring as to the consequences of it.

In mitigation, he told the reporter, “People didn’t elect me to be a conciliator. If they just wanted a nice guy they would have stayed with Dinkins” (the former mayor). “They wanted someone who was going to change this place. How do you expect me to change if I don’t fight with somebody?” he asked. “You don’t change ingrained human behaviour without confrontation, turmoil and anger.”

And this statement of his truth, for me, is absolutely right. Except, if it came from a Black male, it would have been dynamite, regarded as somewhat dangerous; disturbing enough to merit the attentions of the security forces who would have questioned his intent and been wary of his actions. But Rudy is White, which carries its own might, and that’s all right. He had both the colour and the power to give credibility and life to his version of ‘the truth’. A Black male talking about ‘confrontation and anger’ had better watch his back! There would be no ’truth’ in that.

Sense of Frustration

But, I am one of those who agreed with that simple ‘truth’. From the day I took on this thankless task of changing hearts and minds, I have felt that unmoving attitudes cannot be changed with just fine words and flowers. One has to be armed with something stronger: like ‘confrontation, turmoil and anger’.

Change always starts with confrontation and challenge: confronting the self to change personal perceptions; confronting others as well as the issues no one wishes to acknowledge or which everyone pretends do not matter. To challenge basic injustice and discrimination in order to get at this elusive ‘truth’.

Once there is confrontation there is turmoil. Any form of negative challenge disturbs the status quo and unleashes the worst anxieties within us. Anger swiftly follows, both from resentment at being challenged and from frustration on the part of the challenger at the lack of change or the slowness of it. However, once confrontation begins, it is like a pandora’s box which either generates argument and debate or unleashes a riot of indignant emotions, often leading to violent actions.

In the light of my book, managing the diversity maze, Rudy Giuliani’s simple statement answered a lot of questions about my own ‘truths’ and objectives. This book has confronted the issues head on, starting from the Establishment to the individual, and a good deal of turmoil has followed in the ensuing reality check. But then, I have never shirked from the task! People who benefit from the status quo will seldom ever change unless it continues to reward them in some significant way.

I admire Rudy Giuliani a great deal now because some time in 2000 he had the humility to question his version of ‘truth’ regarding one section of the community and also the courage to face up to the negativity of the fact. With the two brutal murders fresh in his mind, he pledged his remaining time in office to “breaking down some of the barriers” he felt he had placed between himself and visible minority communities. “I don’t know exactly how you do that,” he said, “but I am going to try very hard.” That’s the mark of true leadership. Taking full responsibility for one’s actions.

He did succeed in some measure and reached his zenith with 9/11 because he began to confront his version of ‘the truth’, not a comfortable thing to do, but a necessary one in dealing with difference. Rudy will be fine as a president because he has seen so much death and destruction, everything else would have paled into insignificance. He learnt how to interact. In these awful tragic moments, the meaning of life assumes a clarity over questionable ‘truths’ which is almost blinding.

Next time you are hell-bent on seeking ‘the truth’ as you see it, just remind yourself that personal perceptions dictate our individual truths. That the nearest thing to a universal ‘truth’ happens only when majority perceptions merge in agreement on the same versions of ‘the truth’. But even then, one has to be careful to ensure that this ‘truth’ is not being ruled by vested interest, is not being stifled by unbending traditions, is not holding commonsense to ransom, is not being used to bolster injustice and inequity and is not being held hostage to the latest fad for a select group. In other words, in our search for the truth, we will always meet some road blocks or false versions of it. The test is to tease out which ‘truth’ we are prepared to hang on to, in the face of the consequences for ourself and others.

ELAINE SIHERA (Ms Cyprah - http://www.myspace.com/elaineone) is an expert author, media contributor and columnist. The first Black graduate of the OU and a post-graduate of Cambridge University, Elaine is a CONSULTANT for Diversity Management, Personal Empowerment and Relationships. Dynamic extrovert with a passion for living and people. Author of: 10 Easy Steps to Growing Older Disgracefully; 10 Easy Steps to Finding Your Ideal Soulmate!; Money, Sex & Compromise and Managing the Diversity Maze, among others (available on http://www.amazon.co.uk). Also the founder of the British Diversity Awards and the Windrush Achievement Awards.

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