Knght School
Winterfest Medieval Fair 2011
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Winterfest Medievil Fair
Parramatta Park
Sydney
Australia
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Arc de Triomphe
Arc de Triomphe
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05/2011
5dmarkII
Architecture
France
canon 5d markII
europe
french
landmark
low lighting
night photography
paris
travel
Arc de Triomphe
Summer flow ii
Summer flow ii
I had a trip to Pont Melin Fach up river from Pontneddfechan on Sunday to show a friend and his girlfriend visiting from Australia the waterfalls. After a couple of fruitless (photographically speaking) hours at a couple of the falls we walked back up stream towards the car park. Surprise surprise, as soon as we’d decided to head off something grabbed my attention and got me snapping. The reflections and intertwined currents of the river on the flatter sections between the car park and the first of the falls were what caught my eye and I could have spent another couple of hours teasing out pictures from the river’s surface. As it was I made do with a couple of handheld shots while everyone else carried on up to the car park.
Not sure if I prefer this cooler photo or the previous upload with the splash of pink in the top right. I've uploaded both, perhaps you can tell me which you think works best. If you don't like either I'd also welcome any constructive criticism.
PS please have a look on black for the full effect (press L)
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Landscape
Pontneddfechan
Water
Brecon
Brecon Beacons National Park
River
Abstract
UK
Reflections
Afon Hepste
surprise surprise, summer flow, melin, constructive criticism, full effect, car park, beacons, waterfalls, currents, reflections, girlfriend, australia, photo
Friday, July 1, 2011
LA - The Shining
LA - The Shining
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la
los angeles
california
usa
united states
estados unidos
star
jack nicholson
walk
walk of fame
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Thursday, June 30, 2011
@hannahdemilta's first beer after 30 days sober!
@hannahdemilta's first beer after 30 days sober!
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Clashes Erupt Before Greek Austerity Vote
ATHENS—Clashes broke out between dozens of anarchists and police in front of Greece's parliament Wednesday, just ahead of a vote on a five-year austerity plan the country needs to pass to avoid default.
Eye witnesses said that demonstrators smashed marble paving stones in the Athens central square and threw rocks at police, prompting them to respond by firing tear gas and clearing the area of people in front of Parliament.
The violence dispersed an otherwise peaceful demonstration of about 10,000 people that had gathered for a second day to march against the €28.4 billion ($40.81 billion) billion austerity plan. Parliament is due to vote on the austerity package later Wednesday.
Passage of the additional spending cuts and new taxes has been set as a condition for another international bailout to keep Greece from defaulting on its debt. The stakes are immense. If the government fails to carry the vote, European financial markets could nosedive in anticipation of a deepening crisis for the euro and for government-debt markets.
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![[SB10001424052702304314404576413411474167894]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_uJBiuFM0DDfH20LPva-FvhRqRlvbtimd6x_a0oX79FBKtpql45EwxwC8IB0JipJvazcx-VT2g6zqaNsdTFV6zV91ynsyMDyMfd2JXFsVFoepcNibl42uFHf5NvPMRQpBwQ1a_bDw-_TW9Zcj9RIhhf=s0-d)
Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images
Protestors clash with riot police during a 48-hour general strike in Athens on Wednesday. Protestors clashed with police, who fired tear gas several hours before the Greek Parliament was to vote on an austerity package.
The Socialist government controls 155 seats in Greece's 300-member parliament and needs a simple majority of 151 votes to pass the measures. Despite earlier wavering by four lawmakers within its ranks, that majority now appears to be holding.
"I'm optimistic about the future of the country," government spokesman Elias Mossialos told a morning television news program. "I think the entire Socialist parliamentary group will vote for the measures." One of the four Socialist Party dissenters—Thomas Robopoulos from the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki—said he would vote for the package, the Alter private-television channel reported early Wednesday.
According to private broadcaster SKAI, a second wavering Socialist, Alekos Athanasiadis, has now withdrawn his earlier dissent and will also vote to support the package. In addition, the two other rebels are believed to have softened their opposition, while there are indications that the government could pick up a handful of votes from one of Greece's smaller opposition parties, Democratic Alliance, which controls five seats in parliament. The party announced this week that it would allow its members to "vote their conscience," meaning that some of their parliamentarians may now also swing behind the government.
Analysts also don't rule out that one or two members of the main opposition New Democracy Party may break ranks and vote with the Socialists—although they would face expulsion from their party.
"Barring last-minute surprises, political analysts anticipate that the bill will secure the backing of 154 ruling-party deputies [and potentially a few from the opposition]," HSBC Pantelakis Securities said in a research note.
Greece faces another critical test Thursday, when parliament will hold an article-by-article vote on the legislation implementing the austerity plan and a promised €50 billion privatization program. But with the overall outlines of the austerity plan expected to pass Wednesday, the vote on the implementing legislation is expected to be a formality.
The opposition New Democracy Party has pledged to support large parts of the implementing legislation, including the articles relating to privatizations and cutting public spending—although it opposes the tax increases outlined in the bill.
The center of Athens was cordoned off early Wednesday by thousands of police bracing for a second day of violent protests over the austerity plan, which many Greeks believe will lead to further job losses and bigger burdens on households.
Protesters from a new, grass-roots movement of self-styled "indignant" Greeks have vowed to encircle the parliament building to prevent lawmakers from voting on the package. At the same time, Greece's two major umbrella unions—which have declared a 48-hour general strike—are also planning fresh protests Wednesday.
In May last year, Greece narrowly avoided default with the help of a €110 billion bailout from its euro-zone partners and the International Monetary Fund. But still facing prohibitively high borrowing costs on international markets, Greece is now seeking about €100 billion in fresh aid.
The European Union and IMF, however, have demanded that the country pass the austerity plan, the implementing legislation and the privatization program before they will release existing funds to the country or agree to a new aid package.
Greece faces a cash crunch in mid-July and is counting on euro-zone finance ministers to release the next tranche of its existing loan before then. The parliamentary vote is timed to precede a special meeting of those ministers July 3 at which they will decide whether to release that disbursement.
northern greek city, elias mossialos, private broadcaster, european financial markets, four lawmakers, greek parliament, member parliament, peaceful demonstration, riot police, government spokesman, morning television, private television, debt markets, country government, paving stones, eye witnesses, austerity, socialist government, parliamentary group, nosedive
How Much Would the Olympic Hockey Teams Cost?
If several NHL owners are nervously watching the Olympic hockey semifinals Friday, it's with good reason. More than $300 million worth of hockey players are still participating in the tournament, risking injury for the sake of national pride.
Not surprisingly, Team Canada leads the way with a combined "payroll" of nearly $128 million. The Canadians, a team made up entirely of NHL stars, earn more money than the combined price of the entire Slovakian and Finnish teams, two other remaining squads in the tournament. (Note: For the five Finns and nine Slovaks who aren't currently playing in the NHL, we used their most-recent NHL salary.)
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TKtk
Sidney Crosby of Canada
Breaking things down position by position, the disparity is even clearer. The Canadians' forward corps alone earns only about $5 million less than Team USA's precocious squad that is also entirely made up of NHL players. In fact, the Canadians' checking line of Mike Richards ($5.75 million), Rick Nash ($5.4 million) and Jonathan Toews ($2.8 million) earns more than the trio of goalies playing for the U.S. ($12.02 million). And Canada's seven-man defensive unit ($32.63 million) earns more than all the Slovakian forwards, this despite the presence of high-profile NHL stars Marian Gaborik ($7.5 million) and Marian Hossa ($5.23 million).
To put Team Canada's price tag in perspective, it is virtually identical to the NFL salary cap, despite football's larger rosters and revenue. Nonetheless, the team is paid about $73.4 million less than what New York Yankees' players made last summer. Kevin Greenstein
The Price of Gold
Here's an estimated look at how much the final four Olympic hockey teams would cost in combined NHL salary.
TOTAL SALARIES*
Canada
$127,977,000
U.S.
$83,629,000
Finland
$64,091,000
Slovakia
$54,943,000
*For players no longer playing in the NHL, their most recent salary was used
Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page W4
olympic hockey teams, jonathan toews, marian gaborik, marian hossa, nfl salary cap, new york yankees, nhl stars, finnish teams, rick nash, nhl owners, wall street journal, national pride, mike richards, nhl players, olympic hockey, breaking things, team canada, slovakian ebook download, slovaks, hockey players
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