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NEWS RELEASE
April 26, 2010                                                          Contact: Erica Jesberger, 544-4916

Columbia Basin College is celebrating Earth Day and Arbor Day this Thursday, April 29 with events on the Pasco campus at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

A solar-powered concert featuring musician Jonathan Kingham will be in the HUB from 11 a.m. to noon followed by a tree planting ceremony at 1 p.m. east of the W building along 20th Avenue. The solar power is courtesy of Franklin PUD. Students and staff in attendance at the tree planting will be taught the proper way to plant a tree and tree seedlings will be given to those wanting to plant at their own homes.

At the tree planting ceremony, the Department of Natural Resources and the Washington State Urban and Community Forestry Council will present a flag and plaque to CBC staff and students in recognition of being a Tree Campus USA school. The Arbor Day Foundation named CBC a 2009 Tree Campus USA College last August. CBC is the first and only community college in the state of Washington to be named a Tree Campus USA school.

NEWS RELEASE
April 26, 2010                                                             Contact: Frank Murray, 542-4835

FreeForm, Columbia Basin College’s jazz choir, dominated the competition at the Reno Jazz Festival over the weekend in Reno, Nevada.

Directed by Dave Cazier, FreeForm was named the Outstanding College Choir among all two- and four-year colleges and universities. Winning the title was a daunting task since FreeForm was the first college to perform in the two-day event. Out of a possible 1,000 points per scoring judge, FreeForm earned 900, 925, and 933.

Not only did FreeForm earn the first place award, but all of its soloists received awards for outstanding musicianship. FreeForm was the only vocal group in any classification to receive awards for all soloists, as well as the largest number of awards to any one vocal group.

CBC’s soloist winners included:
Manuel Avila, piano
Michael Douglas, guitar/vocal
Omar Farias, drums
Luke Noll, percussion
Josh Osborn, vocal
Tracy Rasmussen, vocal
Brian Williams, bass

For further information, contact Bill McKay, dean for arts and humanities, 542-5531.

Published April 26, 2010
By Anusha Roy, KVEW TV
 
PASCO — It’s all about the sunshine for Pasco fifth graders today.

At a sustainability expo at Columbia Basin College students had a chance to explore alternative energies.

There were  solar and wind powered trailers and demonstrations by employees from the Franklin Public Utilities District. Some Pasco High School students also taught lessons about alternative energy. The expo wraps up tomorrow. Anywhere from 1,100 to 1,200 fifth graders will attend. Tomorrow Chiawana High School students will teach lessons. 

The expo was put on by a sustainable environmental network. It’s a group of citizens from organizations like Franklin PUD and the City of Richland.

Published April 22, 2010
By Josh Peterson, KVEW TV

Washington’s soon to be adopted budget is forcing Columbia Basin College to prepare for more cuts.

The college is waiting for final numbers from the state, but expects to lose at least $1.5 million.

CBC’s President says a bulk of the cuts will come from the college’s support services and administration.

He says he wants to keep as much of the cuts away from student learning as possible, but it won’t be easy.

“It’s just going to be a challenge for us to continue to meet the demand of a growing community. We’re gonna do our best. But we’re hoping that next time, we won’t take much of a cut, if at all” said Richard Cummins, CBC President.

The list of cuts are expected to be finalized next month.

They’ll go into effect in July.

NEWS RELEASE
April 27, 2010                                                         Contact:  Erica Jesberger, 544-4916

The documentary Inside Islam: What a Billion Muslims Really Think will be shown tonight at 7 in the Gjerde Center on the Columbia Basin College Pasco campus.

After the film, a panel of Muslim professionals from the Tri-Cities will comment on the film and answer audience questions.

Focused on the issues of terrorism, democracy, and gender justice, the film challenges the popular notion that Muslims and the West are on a collision course and instead highlights a shared relationship that is based on facts, not fear. The film asks questions on many Americans’ minds: Why is there so much anti-Americanism in the Muslim world? Who are the extremists and how do Muslims feel about them? What do Muslims like and dislike about the West? What do Muslim women really want?
 
Inside Islam: What a Billion Muslims Really Think runs 55 minutes. This free public showing is sponsored by the CBC Reads committee, the Office of Diversity, and the Associated Students of CBC.

After the Giannoulias spot was released, the Kirk campaign on Tuesday sent out a reply:

below, from the Kirk campaign…

The Alexi Giannoulias Spin Cycle

From loans to criminals to the collapse of his bank, Alexi has a history of spinning inconvenient truths

Alexi Giannoulias is employing a serious spin cycle as he attempts to elicit sympathy for his reckless decisions that brought down his family bank and cost the FDIC $394 million. As it has often been the case throughout his career, Mr. Giannoulias resorts to pointing fingers when he finds himself in an inconvenient situation.

Bright Start: When the Bright Start college fund lost $150 million of Illinois families’ college savings, Alexi loudly blamed the fund manager, Oppenheimer Funds. Alexi neglected to mention that he chose Oppenheimer to manage Bright Start, and that he was well aware that certain Bright Start funds were having problems in April of 2008, six months before he eventually pulled out of the troubled funds. [1]

Loans to Criminals: When Alexi’s loans to convicted bookie and pimp Michael “Jaws” Giorango first came to light during his 2006 Illinois Treasurer campaign, Giannoulias called him “a very nice person”, and disputed Giorango’s criminal record saying “I don’t know what the charges are that makes him this huge crime figure.”[2] When asked in an interview whether it was acceptable for the State Treasurer to invest money with crime figures, Giannoulias replied that the Treasurer must get “the best rate of return.”[3]

When those excuses didn’t fly, Giannoulias claimed he had no role in the loans, even though he was Chief Loan Officer, saying “If it was up to me, I probably would have recommended against these loans.”[4]

When asked for more details in the Senate campaign about how Giorango came to get loans at Broadway Bank, Giannoulias hid behind his deceased father, saying “It’s tough to ask my father questions.”[5]

Broadway’s Collapse: Alexi said nobody could have foreseen the problems that led to Broadway Bank’s collapse. But Broadway Bank had 12 times the national average of risky “hot money” brokered deposits.[6] The dangers associated with brokered deposits have been well-known since the Savings and Loan crisis, and the New York Times called them “one of the primary factors in the accelerating wave of failures among small and regional banks nationwide.”[7]

Now Alexi is claiming it is Congressman Kirk’s fault.

Alexi Giannoulias has a big problem. Last week, federal regulators closed his family’s money-losing Broadway Bank, where he acquired the financial expertise he touted in running for state treasurer in 2006. So where does he place the blame? On Mark Kirk, his opponent in the race for the U.S. Senate.

… As it is, Broadway’s losses are far bigger than most other failed banks, amounting to a third of its assets. “The real question is why it wasn’t closed a long time ago,” says Washington, D.C.-area banking consultant Bert Ely. “It was a badly run bank.”

A badly run bank. Someone is to blame for that, and it isn’t Mark Kirk. (Chicago Tribune, 4/27/10)

There are serious questions about Broadway Bank and how it got to this point that Alexi will have to answer as his campaign moves forward. As we enter Alexi’s Spin Cycle, how will Alexi spin this?

Did Alexi Giannoulias pull his campaign funds out of Broadway before it failed?

The FDIC only insures up to $250,000. Given the deadline imposed by the FDIC, did Alexi change banks to protect his campaign cash, or did he leave it in Broadway because he had advance knowledge that the bank would be acquired?

Apple’s impressive growth as a company is a good thing for end users in a number of ways. Apple has more money to spend on innovative new product designs, for example, and its easier to get service and support for your products, not to mention software and accessories.

The iPad has been a pretty big success so far, especially for a category-busting product. But investors and Apple users aren’t the only ones to have taken note of the product’s success. The iPad is now being used as scam bait to sucker in people who might not be that familiar with the warning signs of internet scams, which, not coincidentally, is just who the iPad seems directed at as a device.

So far, the scam only works on Windows PCs, but even if you’re a Mac-using iPad owner, make sure any friends and relatives using the other platform are aware of the ruse. Basically, you get an email telling you that iTunes needs to be updated in order to update your iPad device, and provides a link to the software in question.

Of course, instead of taking you to some kind of iTunes download, the link instead opens up a direct line to their sensitive information, if accessed via a PC. Specifically, the malware in question is Backdoor.Bifrose.AADY, which uses Internet Explorer to open a back door on your system and look around for software serial numbers and login data, including usernames and passwords for various sites.

People on Macs or other Apple platforms, like the iPad and iPhone, won’t be affected at all by following the link, but obviously it’s never a good idea to open suspicious links in emails in case that changes in future versions of the scam.

At least for now, the iPad itself hasn’t been a target for hackers and/or malicious code. Apple’s securely locked down content distribution system in the form of the App Store really helps things there, but it’s only a matter of time before it becomes a target in a big way, and this attack is the first sign of why that’s a dangerous prospect. You’ve no doubt seen the articles about people picking up the iPad as their first ever computer. That category of user is the ideal candidate for malicious software, since they’ve yet to experience the nasty side of the Internet and don’t have any built-in defenses against these types of scams.

The iPad is raising Apple’s profile, and that means trouble for those uneducated about Internet security risks. It could also mean problems for all Mac users in the long run, as the iPad draws more people to OS X in the same way the iPod and iPhone did before it. But for now, it’s still the most secure platform around, so enjoy it while it lasts.

Rome or Bust: We flog the new Lotus Evora from England to Rome and back.

For as long as most folks at Lotus Cars in Hethel, England, can remember, most everyone has eaten lunch in the office, worked eight-and-a-half hours Monday through Thursday, and then taken off the rest of the day at noon on Friday.

Keep Reading: 2010 Lotus Evora – Road Test

Related posts:

1. 2010 Lotus Evora – Video
2. 2010 Lotus Exige S 260 Sport – Short Take Road Test
3. 2010 Lotus Evora – Second Drive

When hitting the shops overseas, many credit cards will charge you additional international transaction fees. The savvy traveler needs to equip themselves with a credit card that charges low or no fees at all. Here’s the current rates for the seven credit cards with the lowest international transaction fees:

Capital One 0%
PenFed 0%
Discover 2%
American Express 2.7%
Bank of America 3%
Chase 3%
Citi 3%

Credit Card Tips for the International Traveler [LowCards]

Might We Suggest…

• Google TV, and Your Android Apps
  News broke today regarding Google’s TV initiatives, and Android is reportedly part of them. Learn how you can think ahead for your Android apps in today’s episode of Building ‘Droids!…

Yes to ban, no to bombs

This is a response to “Veil ban overreaches” [editorial, Opinion, April 26].

What could you not hide under a burqa or a niqab? People, especially in the Western world, should keep their thoughts to themselves and be grateful for attempts to minimize the dangers associated with such garments.

This happens to be the reality of the times and has nothing to do with the rights of good, Muslim women and everything to do with the safety of the general public, which is any government’s responsibility.

If you writers could tell the difference between a pregnant woman and a man wearing an explosive belt around his middle while walking about under a niqab, with only slits for the eyes, or a burqa with netting over the face, then you are much more talented than the rest of us.

— Ruth Quiban, Seattle

Beggars can’t be choosers

Confronting “the veil” is the opposite of Islamophobia. The French are being courageous in confronting it. France has a right to expect immigrants to become Frenchmen. Immigrants could wear the burqa at home.

Immigrants need to join the country they moved to, not demand acceptance for everything they want to bring. I expect people who live here to become Americans; The French should have the right to the same.

— Jackie Harden, Seattle

Andy Rubin, VP of engineering for Google and one of the chiefs behind Android smartphones, just slipped a little bombshell into an interview with the New York Times’ Bits blog. In it he says that Flash will be coming with the Froyo version of Android. Much of the interview is paraphrased, but writer Brad Stone relates the following:

He also promised that full support for Adobe’s Flash standard was coming in the next version of Android, code-named Froyo.

Doesn’t get much more clear than that. There’s also some good stuff on Android’s openness ("We use the same tools we expect our third party developers to") the iPad (he bought one for his wife) and Android and/or Chrome tablets ("If a consumer walks into store and two of those tablets are my company’s choices, I’m all good.") [NYT Bits blog]

Edit: Good lord, people. Yes. The writer (and not Rubin, actually) said "full support." Read into that what you will. We choose to believe that means Flash is coming with Froyo. At launch? Maybe. We’ll just have to see, won’t we …

We can find a better way

Arizona’s conservative leaders right now are, in effect, swinging their clubs like neolithic cavemen at anything that moves, even though they might knock the brains out of the members of their own community. [“Arizona’s unhelpful law invites racial profiling,” editorial, Opinion, April 27].

I am referring, of course, to the recent passage of SB-1070. This law compels any Arizona police officer to arrest anyone who looks “illegal.” The law also makes a provision to allow anyone —a flag-waving super patriot for sure —to sue a police department that does not try to apprehend the illegal border crossers. I think they will have to stop 50 in order to catch five real “culprits.”

But of course, Arizona’s leaders do not mind inconveniencing Arizona’s Mexican-American population. In their minds it will be all right to stop people, scrutinize them and then let them go. The right to be free of police abuse is no bother to these leaders.

That sure beats trying to find out what propels human beings —mostly Mexicans —to cross the U.S.-Mexican border without proper documentation. It sure makes it convenient to allege that most, if not all illegal crossers are drug traffickers. That most undocumented crossers are simply looking for work — the work that you and I do not want — is not important.

Couldn’t we do better than the neolithic club-swinging, racial profiling and stopping and interrogating brown-skinned people? Couldn’t we find a better way?

— Carlos Gil, UW professor emeritus, Seattle

Arizona governor wants to suppress Hispanic vote

There are other motives besides illegal border crossings in Arizona’s “desperate move.” In what had been a reliable Republican state, Democrat Janet Napolitano was twice elected governor in 2002 and 2006. The expanding Hispanic community in Arizona votes for Democrats.

When Napolitano was appointed U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer advanced to the governor’s office. Her fear of losing an upcoming election is probably greater than her concerns about illegal immigrants.

In 2004, as secretary of state, Brewer blocked more than 100,000 voters, mostly Hispanic, from registering. Registering to vote if you are not a citizen is a crime, but no one has been prosecuted.

Federal prosecutor David Iglesias was sent by then-President George Bush and “brain” Karl Rove to investigate the illegal voters, but was unable to find one valid voter-fraud case. As a result, he was fired by the Bush administration. Seattle attorney John McKay suffered a similar fate when he failed to find fraud in the governor’s race between GOP Dino Rossi and Gov. Chris Gregoire.

Perhaps Brewer’s “goal is control of our borders …,” but history and evidence indicate that Hispanic-voter suppression is her primary objective.

— Bill Taylor, Renton

Filed under: Aftermarket, Budget, Sedan, Government/Legal, Honda

There’s a reason car thieves prefer run of the mill vehicles like the Honda Accord over flashier metal. With thousands of the things running the roads of every city in America, it’s nearly impossible for law enforcement to track down one car out of the masses. And that’s nearly exactly what the NYPD told Amanda Pogany three years ago when her 1996 Accord was stolen. Then something unexpected happened. During a recent raid on a chop shop, the police turned up Pogany’s car, though it had changed somewhat from the last time she saw it.

The individual who bought the stolen Honda from the thieves had completely worked it over. Not only did Pogany find a new engine under the hood and new wheels on each corner, the car had been converted from an automatic to a manual transmission. Police estimate the car is now worth quite a bit more than when it vanished back in 2007.

Sadly, the Accord’s rightful owner hasn’t taken it for a spin just yet. Ironically, Pogany doesn’t know how to drive stick, and she’s currently fighting through the mountains of red tape involved with getting a new VIN and re-titling the car. Thanks to everyone for the tips!

[Source: New York Daily News]

Teacher’s stolen Honda Accord returned with new engine, upgrades originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 27 Apr 2010 13:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lack of oversight for service providers cause for concern

Editor, The Times:

Congressman Jay Inslee’s guest column to The Seattle Times, “Protect consumers by ensuring Internet freedom” [Opinion, April 24] exposes the challenges of no independent oversight of the Internet providers.

Along with these dangers is that Comcast is hoping to absorb NBC Universal, which would make it a gigantic media monster.

We have learned from the bank failures that lack of oversight brings the temptation of larger-than-life business enterprises to cheat. We cannot trust Wall Street to play honestly anymore. Greed is the bottom line. Meanwhile, taxpayers bail out the bank failures while those responsible are given multimillion-dollar salaries.

How stupid could we be?

If Comcast goes bust —and it will without the Federal Communications Commission to rein it in, we will be on the hook again. Do not underestimate the cable providers’ lobbyists. Hopefully, Congress will fashion a law that allows the FCC to hold Comcast and other communication providers responsible and accountable.

— Bill Wippel, Normandy Park

Get the government out of here

The guest column by Congressman Jay Inslee editorial is so typical of our left-leaning, liberal-progressive leadership.

Why do our leaders’ mindsets always arrive at only one solution? More and bigger government control is always better, and in this case, Inslee wants the Federal Communications Commission to now control the Internet. Inslee obviously believes the poor and ineffectual consumer needs government to again step in and exercise even greater control over our daily lives.

To Congressman Inslee and all others like him: I say quite emphatically, no thank you. I prefer a limited and smaller federal government than the one we have. I prefer to make and be responsible for my decisions in the online marketplace. Since the advent of the Net, “we” —the consumer, businesses and agencies of the local, state and federal government —have enjoyed much success and benefit from the Net and we have done it without the FCC’s involvement.

I certainly see no need for the FCC to become involved now. I do not need government controls in order to make my own decisions of choice with respect to the Net. In a competitive capitalist marketplace, there will always be effective choices for the consumer to make; unless of course, the government interferes by allowing oligopolies to occur.

In the Puget Sound, there is no lack of choice for service providers.

I do not see the threat that Inslee is so concerned about. Inslee’s recommendation for the FCC to control the Net is purely another example of government overreach in the name of “we must save the people.” What I need saving from right now is not the Internet providers; it is our overstepping government. I, and many others like me, plan to do something about that in November.

— Gary Whitsell, Woodinville

below, Schakowsky release….

REP. SCHAKOWSKY MAKES OPENING REMARKS AT FIRST MEETING OF PRESIDENT OBAMA’S FISCAL COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, DC (April 27, 2010) – Rep. Jan Schakowsky (IL-9) released the following statement today. As prepared for delivery, Schakowsky made the following remarks at the inaugural meeting of President Obama’s National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. Schakowsky is one of 18 members appointed to the bipartisan commission.

“I am honored to be a member of President Obama’s Fiscal Commission and thank Speaker Pelosi for this opportunity to participate.

“We are all here today charged with a critical mission: “Identifying policies to improve the fiscal situation in the medium term and to achieve fiscal sustainability over the long run.”

“We gather here today, not as accountants, actuaries, bean counters looking through green eye shades at columns of numbers, but as policy-makers who care deeply about the lives of the American people of today and tomorrow who are impacted by the economic policies of our country. As the President said last week, “…some on Wall Street forgot that behind every dollar traded or leveraged there’s a family looking to buy a house, or pay for an education, open a business, save for retirement. What happens on Wall Street has real consequences across the country, across our economy.”

“The exact same can be said about the task in which we are engaged. Balancing the budget and reducing the debt are not ends in and of themselves. The welfare of the American people must be the goal of our fiscal policy. Everything we do here must be measured in terms of the impact on the well-being of our people, the opportunities we provide to our children and the values of our democratic society.

“Much will be said about what we can and cannot afford. These questions must be considered in the broadest possible context. For example, I believe that we can’t afford to skimp on educating our children, assuring access to quality, affordable health care and retirement security, achieving energy independence, investing in our infrastructure, supporting medical research, and creating more jobs. Bottom line, while we are committed to freeing our children and grandchildren from crippling debt, we must be just a committed to assuring that they are not ignorant, sick and unemployed.

“There also are many items and practices we can’t afford to continue that I intend to put on the table. We can’t afford to continue paying for armies of insurance company bureaucrats who do nothing but deny claims while CEOs take multimillion dollar salaries and bonuses. We can’t afford costly procurement and contracting policies that result in fraud and abuse. We can’t afford tax loopholes that incentivize moving American jobs overseas. We can’t afford to pay for outdated and ineffective cold war weapons systems. We can’t afford to deploy 200,000 American service men and women plus as many contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan indefinitely. We can’t afford to let Wall Street run amok. Frankly I’ve heard enough sanctimonious statements by the most entitled about entitlement programs, Wall Street bankers who pay themselves tens of millions in bonuses while lecturing retirees who bring home an average of $18,000 per year about tightening their belts.

“We must acknowledge that the current deficit is not solely the result of spending and tax policy. A substantial cause of the current deficit was the recklessness of big Wall Street banks that cost 8 million Americans their jobs and failure of regulatory policies that were needed to prevent our financial sector from spinning out of control. A recession like the current one is no time to make the same mistakes that led to a double-dip downturn in the 1930’s. A short-term reduction of the deficit is the worst thing we could do for the economy. We need government spending to create the jobs that drive continued economic growth.

“I am absolutely convinced that our mission is not impossible. We’ve done it before, just over a decade ago. We ushered in an era of fiscal responsibility during the Clinton Administration, creating over 20 million jobs, producing budget surpluses and rapidly declining debt, and we can do it again. We’ve already begun to see signs of progress. Americans should be confident that we have it within our power to fully restore the economy and the soundness of the federal budget while keeping our commitment to both our grandparents and our grandchildren.

“Americans should feel confident that this great country can continue the American tradition of each generation looking forward to an even better life than the one that came before it. It is up to us to show the way.”

— ## —

Matt Damon and his wife Luciana are expecting their fourth child later this year.

The Oscar winner, 39, and Luciana, 34, already have two girls Gia Zavala, 19 months, and Isabella, 3. Luciana has a daughter, Alexia, 11, from a previous marriage.

“Everyone is excited,” Damon’s rep says.

Respectful reminder for riders

The story of Velda Mapelli’s death by bike collision was saddening, especially because it did not have to happen. [“Woman, 83, was vital, an athlete,” NWFriday, April 23.]

I have seen the potential for this kind of accident many times as I have walked, biked and run on the Burke-Gilman Trail and around Green Lake.

I feel lucky I have not been hit when passed by bikers individually or in groups of two or more. If I am lucky, I would hear an “on your left” from a biker, alerting me of an intention to pass and giving me enough time to move. But I know at times that I am less than 6 inches away from collision with more than 180 pounds of biker and bike moving 25 miles an hour (or more) straight into me.

This is especially the case if I get distracted and move to my left without seeing or hearing who may be coming from behind. Distraction could easily happen with the noise from nearby traffic next to the trail, listening to my iPod, being in a runner’s reverie or being in a foggy exhaustion during a long-distance run.

There is also the silence of road bikes with small tires. They move relatively silently until they are upon me, suddenly zooming passed. Each time is a shocking and frustrating experience.

Not all bikers are in such a hurry. The most polite bikers are usually a husband and wife with kids in tow, who move relatively slowly past me, saying “on your left.” They give me time to adjust and I usually wave my hand and at times to say thanks.

I know bikers just want to enjoy themselves, get a good workout or get to where they need to as fast as they can. They do not mean any harm, but at times, I think some bikers are absolutely clueless to the potential for an accident or injuries, much less death.

Bikers need to be educated about the potential dangers and damages they could be liable for. Perhaps their bikes need to be licensed —so one can write down a number for a report —or there needs to be increased penalties or fines. Perhaps walkers and runners need to be reminded about their movements across a busy multiuse trail with bikers moving by swiftly.

In the end it gets down to walkers, runners and bikers being more thoughtful and courteous in sharing the road.

— Ron Greeley, Seattle

Surprised accidents hadn’t happened sooner

I would like to thank Janalee Roy [“Keep a watchful eye,” Northwest Voices, April 23] for writing in about the fatal accident which occurred on April 20 on the Cedar River Bike Trail. To be very honest, I am surprised that it hadn’t happened sooner.

My husband and I own a condo right across the street from the trail and I have walked it going on my sixth year almost every day with my dog or with a friend who walks the trail twice a day. The bicyclists who frequent that path have absolutely no regard for the walkers. If you are walking and they are in front of you, it is typically OK. But if they come up from behind, watch out.

They would get as close as they could to you and then at the last minute, they cut around you. Never a “on your left, biker coming” — not a word. Then they have the nerve to shake their heads at you for being on their side, which is untrue.

It is very dangerous and I wish the police would just come once and observe their behavior. We all need to respect each other on the path; I just do not think the bikers do. The question is not if an accident like this will happen again, it is when.

— Cindy Kraayeveld, Renton

The PS3 already has a foothold in motion gaming there’s the PlayStation Eye, and let’s not forget that the PS3 controllers already come with some form of motion control. Sony is stepping it up further with