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—Louisianan, Louisianian, adj., n./looh ee'zee an"euh, looh'euh zee-, looh'ee-/, n.a state in the S United States. 4,203,972; 48,522 sq. mi. (125,672 sq. km). Cap: Baton Rouge. Abbr.: LA (for use with zip code), La.
* * *State (pop., 2000: 4,468,976), southern U.S. Lying on the Gulf of Mexico, it is bordered by Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas.It covers 47,719 sq mi (123,592 sq km); its capital is Baton Rouge. It can be divided physically into the Mississippi River flood plain and delta, and the low hills of the Gulf of Mexico coastal plain. It is the only U.S. state to be governed under the Napoleonic Code. Indian occupancy in the area probably spanned 16,000 years; at the time of European settlement the region was inhabited by the Caddo and Choctaw. French explorer La Salle descended the Mississippi River in 1682 and claimed the entire river basin for France. The city of New Orleans was founded in 1718, and Louisiana became a French crown colony in 1731. Colonization increased in the 1760s with the arrival of French-speaking Acadians (Cajuns) from Nova Scotia. Spain controlled the territory from 1762 to 1800; then it passed back to the French. The lands that constitute modern Louisiana were acquired by the U.S. as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and became the Territory of Orleans in 1804. Louisiana became the 18th U.S. state in 1812. It seceded from the Union in 1861 at the start of the American Civil War and was readmitted in 1868. The plantation economy continued with the farmer class denied land ownership, which contributed to the rise of the populist Huey Long in the 1920s. After World War II Louisiana experienced more rapid development with the rise of offshore oil and gas drilling. Major agricultural products are soybeans and cotton; tree farming and shrimp fishing are also important. Petroleum and natural gas are the chief mineral resources.
* * *IntroductionLouisiana, flag of constituent state of the United States of America (United States). It is delineated from its neighbours— Arkansas to the north, Mississippi to the east, and Texas to the west—by both natural and man-made boundaries. The Gulf of Mexico (Mexico, Gulf of) lies to the south. The area of Louisiana includes more than 3,000 square miles (7,770 square km) of inland waters. The capital is Baton Rouge.Admitted to the union in 1812 as the 18th state, Louisiana commands a once strategically vital region where the waters of the great Mississippi (Mississippi River)-Missouri (Missouri River) river system, draining the continental interior of North America, flow out into the warm, northward-curving crescent of the Gulf of Mexico. It is not surprising that seven flags have flown over its territories since 1682, when the explorer René-Robert Cavelier, sieur (lord) de La Salle (La Salle, René-Robert Cavelier, sieur (lord) de), placed a wooden cross in the ground and claimed the territory in the name of France's Louis XIV. The consequent varieties of cultural heritage run like bright threads through many facets of the social, political, and artistic life of the state.With parts of its land lying farther south than any portion of the continental United States except southern Texas and the Florida peninsula, and with New Orleans, its largest city, lying on roughly the same parallel as Cairo, New Delhi, and Shanghai, Louisiana owes much of its complex personality to its geographic position. The subtropical climate of the state has provided the magnificent brooding scenery of the coastal bayous, and the lush, dank vegetation of its shores conceals a wealth of petroleum and natural gas. The fertile soil covering much of the terrain made Louisiana a rich agricultural area by 1860, with flourishing sugarcane and cotton plantations. A lumber boom occurred at the turn of the 20th century, and Louisiana underwent rapid industrialization after World War II. Mineral output is great, and the state ranks among the country's leaders in oil and gas production.But progress has not been without its tragic and turbulent aspects: bitter territorial disputes and violent internal struggles for political power impeded the social and economic development of the state and crippled many of its political institutions. The wealth of the plantations was accumulated through the extensive use of slaves, whose descendants comprise nearly one-third of Louisiana's population and whose culture has contributed much to the social fabric of the state. Racial conflict marked the development of the state from the American Civil War period (1861–65) and Reconstruction (1865–77) through the civil rights movement of the 1950s and '60s. The guarantee of suffrage (through the Voting Rights Act ) and ever-increasing African American political involvement, however, have helped move the state toward being a more racially egalitarian society.Since the 1960s the state's economy, tied closely to the fluctuating oil industry, has experienced slower economic growth and less diversification than many other Southern states. More recently, corruption in state politics and an explosion of crime in the New Orleans area have marred that city's colourful image. Although the rich cultural heritage of the state is still enjoyed by many, tourism declined precipitously and businesses and residents suffered major losses after Hurricane Katrina devastated parts of the Gulf Coast (including New Orleans and other parts of Louisiana) in August 2005. Area 47,716 square miles (123,584 square km). Pop. (2000) 4,468,976; (2007 est.) 4,293,204.LandReliefThree types of regions are found in Louisiana: lowlands, terraces, and hills. The lowlands consist of the coastal marshes and the Mississippi floodplain, with its natural levees and moderate relief. The Red River valley has a low-elevation relief, with red soils in its alluvial plain and many raft lakes built by impounding water from logjams. The terraces include much of the so-called Florida Parishes to the north and northeast of the Mississippi delta, as well as the prairies of southwestern Louisiana. Hills flank the Red River valley and lend contour to the northern portion of the Florida Parishes; the state's highest point is Driskill Mountain (535 feet [163 metres]), in northwestern Louisiana.DrainageLouisiana shares the general physiographic characteristics common to the Gulf Coast states of the southern United States, with the vital exception of the Mississippi River, which borders and then flows through the state and extends its delta far into the Gulf of Mexico. The changing course of this great North American river has created the huge Atchafalaya River basin and has dumped tons of sediment along the coast. Despite this, the beachless coast of Louisiana is eroding; at the end of the 20th century, land was vanishing at a rate of about 24 square miles (62 square km) per year. This loss has been caused in part by the system of levees (or embankments) constructed by the federal government to keep the Mississippi in a central channel, which left side channels open to erosion. In 2005 Hurricane Katrina (Katrina, Hurricane) eroded an additional 73 square miles (189 square km) of the Louisiana coastland.SoilsThe soils of Louisiana have been one of the state's priceless resources; more than one-fourth of the total land area is covered by the rich alluvium deposited by the overflowing of its rivers and bayous. Muck and peat soils are found within the coastal marshes, while the bottoms hold rich alluvial soils: the lighter and coarser bottom soils of the Mississippi and Red River valleys and the older alluvium and loessial, or windblown, soils. Within the uplands, or hills, there are more-mature soils that are less fertile.ClimateLouisiana's climate is subtropical, a natural result of its location on the Gulf of Mexico. As it also lies at the mouth of the vast Mississippi-Missouri river valley, roughly halfway between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans, the state is also affected by continental weather patterns. Hot, humid summers, tempered by frequent afternoon thunder showers, alternate with mild winters. Louisiana is subject to tropical storms, and the hurricane season extends for six months, from June through November. Average annual temperatures range from 64 °F (18 °C) in the extreme north of the state to 71 °F (21 °C) at the mouth of the Mississippi River. The highest monthly average is 82 °F (28 °C) in July, and the lowest is 50 °F (10 °C) in January. In summer it is the humidity, rather than the heat, that is one of the more marked characteristics of the state's subtropical climate. The frost season falls roughly between November 1 in northern Louisiana and December 14 in the extreme southeast. The average growing season ranges from 220 to 320 days and the average precipitation ranges from almost 45 inches (1,140 mm) at Shreveport to more than 56 inches (1,420 mm) at New Orleans.Plant and animal lifeNatural vegetation in Louisiana is found in three major divisions: the first consists of forest, upland pines and hardwoods, bottomland hardwoods, and bald cypress; the second consists of prairie, or dry grassland; and the third consists of marshland, or wet grassland. In the southern half of the state, along a zone running westward from Baton Rouge, live oaks with their characteristic drapings of Spanish moss predominate. The magnolia, whose blossom is the state flower, grows throughout the state.Muskrats and other fur-bearing rodents, together with alligators, have been trapped in the marshes of southern Louisiana. There is a great variety of birds, native and migrant, but the once-frequent brown pelican (the state bird) has become an endangered species. The gray squirrel, deer, and dove are plentiful. Fish, shrimp, crayfish, crabs, and oysters are a source of food and income in the coastal and swamp areas.PeoplePopulation (Louisiana) compositionAs a diversity of landscapes and forms of settlement characterizes the state, its peoples and its cultures also represent many Louisianas. The earliest European settlers were French or Spanish; only later did “les Américains” settle in the northern part of the state and in the Florida Parishes. Each area of settlement preserved a cultural heritage strongly marked by adherence to either Roman Catholic or Protestant faith. The Louisiana French, particularly the descendants of the Acadians (most of whom were French settlers deported by the British from Canada in the 1700s), came to dominate much of southern Louisiana; many of those who arrived to live among them have been assimilated to the local Cajun (etymologically derived from Acadian) way of life. The Cajun French dialect is spoken in many parishes, and throughout southern Louisiana one may hear English spoken with a French accent. In addition, there are a number of cultural islands in both the northern and southern regions of the state. These are made up of Italian, Spanish (Isleños), Hungarian, German, and Dalmatian-Slavonian communities. There are also ethnically mixed settlements.From the earliest days of the state, African Americans have played an important role. Prior to the mid-20th century, the African American population was concentrated in the areas surrounding the plantations that were sustained by their labour. In contemporary Louisiana, the greater portion of the African American community has chosen to pursue nonagricultural work in urban and suburban areas. Although Louisiana's African American population has been denied many of the traditional avenues leading to social and economic power, their culture has nevertheless contributed immensely to the life and character of the state and of New Orleans.Louisiana's patterns of historical settlements have generated not only a unique Cajun culture but also an ethnically and linguistically distinct Creole culture of mixed French, African American, and Native American heritage. Based on—but distinct from—the French language, the Louisiana Creole language is itself a reflection of the diverse heritage of its speakers. Later migration to and through New Orleans from Europe, Latin America, and Cuba further enriched the state's ethnic diversity, which has always been greater than that of other states of the Deep South (South, the).Settlement patternsNorthern Louisiana forms a natural region including the northeastern Louisiana delta, the Red River valley, and the northern Louisiana hills. Southern Louisiana, composed of the parish of Avoyelles and all the parishes that lie south of latitude 31° N, has three major subregions: (1) the Florida Parishes in the east, (2) southwestern Louisiana, which contains many Anglo-Saxon Protestants but also has an important French minority, and (3) a region in between, variously known as Cajun country, the river and bayou country, or the sugar bowl.The earliest settlements in the river and bayou parishes were “line” villages, where farmsteads were each built at the riverfront of a long and narrow lot, with the stream serving as a highway. The line village pattern contrasted with the irregular pattern stemming from the ancient land-division system of metes and bounds used by the Anglo-Saxons of the Florida Parishes. Where the natural levee was wide enough, plantations were established. Before the Civil War, people came to the uplands of northern Louisiana from the eastern states and settled in isolated farmsteads among the pine woods. Southwestern Louisiana was developed after 1880, and its prairies were converted into rice fields. Settlement there resembled a grid system of land division found throughout the interior of the United States.By the early 21st century southern Louisiana contained nearly three-fourths of the state's population. A predominantly urban population was achieved for the first time in 1950. Since then the vast majority of Louisianans have been urban dwellers, mostly in the Greater New Orleans area and Baton Rouge, the seat of state government and the centre of the chemical industry. Other urban concentrations are located in Lafayette in the south-central part of the state and at Shreveport in the northwest. Much of northern and western Louisiana is sparsely populated.Demographic trendsLouisiana has experienced some significant demographic changes in the 20th century. Prior to World War II many African Americans migrated to other states; after the war much of the remaining African American population left Louisiana's rural farmlands for its urban areas. African Americans now constitute nearly one-third of the state's residents. Whites (i.e., those of European ancestry) account for nearly two-thirds of the state's population. A fraction of the populace is Hispanic, and an even smaller segment is of Asian or Pacific Islander descent. The number of foreign-born residents of Louisiana declined over the 20th century, leaving some four-fifths of the population composed of native-born Louisianans. The vast majority of foreign-born residents live within the urbanized parishes of the state, especially in New Orleans.EconomyLouisiana's economy was based mainly on agriculture in the 1700s and 1800s, with cotton as the primary crop in the northern part of the state and sugarcane the principal crop in the south. Lumbering began to grow in the late 1800s and remained a major part of the state's economy into the 21st century.World War II hastened the industrial growth of Louisiana to the extent that the numbers of the labour force engaged in manufacturing increased considerably. Petroleum and natural gas extraction also grew rapidly. Chemical production, based on the state's readily available hydrocarbons, sulfur, salt, and water resources, boomed between 1947 and 1957, when the first big move to offshore petroleum production was made. Later in the 20th century, expansion of service opportunities—especially in tourism, retail, and government—helped position the service sector as the state's top employer. Despite these developments, Louisiana's economic growth has been slower than that of most other states and has trailed well behind the national average.Agriculture and forestryAgriculture is much less important to Louisiana's economy than it was earlier in the state's history. Only a small fraction of residents earn their living on farms, and most of the production comes from relatively few large farms in the alluvial plains of the Mississippi River. Cotton, sugarcane, rice, soybeans, corn (maize) and feed grains, and sweet potatoes are the main agricultural crops produced in the state. Poultry and eggs, beef cattle, and dairy products are also important. Tree farming, catalyzed by conservation efforts, is now the most valuable agricultural activity. Louisiana is among the top timber producers in the country. The vast majority of the state's trees are softwoods (pines), harvested primarily for making wood pulp and plywood.Resources and powerPetroleum resources are found in the southern and northwestern parts of the state; the main oil fields have been developed between Shreveport and Monroe. Drilling was moved out into the gulf in the mid-20th century. natural gas resources have also been exploited. Including offshore drilling in federal waters, Louisiana ranks high in the production of both crude petroleum and natural gas. The petroleum industry was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina (Katrina, Hurricane) in August 2005, but by late 2006 it had nearly regained pre-hurricane production. Offshore drilling for natural gas also declined but rebounded quickly.Oil in Louisiana is often found in association with numerous salt domes (blisterlike intrusions in the bedrock), and sulfur lies in the caprock overlying the salt. The state is a national leader in the production of salt and is also a major source of sulfur, sand, gravel, and clay.Natural gas has long been the primary source of Louisiana's electricity, generating about half of the state's total supply. Coal-fired plants provide another one-fourth of Louisiana's energy. A smaller but nonetheless significant portion of energy comes from the state's nuclear power stations.ManufacturingChemical, petroleum, and coal products are Louisiana's leading manufactures, and manufacturing accounts for roughly one-sixth of the gross domestic product. The chemical industry provides about one-third of all of the industrial activity in the state. The extraction and processing of petroleum and natural gas became the state's largest industrial activity in the 20th century, with much of the petroleum being converted to chemicals. The chemical industry is concentrated along the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Lumber and wood products, transportation equipment and metal products, and processed food are other important manufactured items.TransportationLouisiana's waterways have always been an important means of transportation. The state's vast system of navigable waterways include the Intracoastal Waterway. It is Louisiana's only east-west waterway and canal system and runs some 310 miles (500 km) from Mississippi Sound to the Sabine River. It is part of a larger waterway extending from the Caloosahatchee River in Florida to Brownsville, Texas. The port of New Orleans ranks among the busiest in the country in volume of seaborne freight, while Baton Rouge, farther up the Mississippi River at the head of deep-channel navigation, is important for shipping of petroleum and chemical products, including aluminum and grain.Railroads (railroad) became common after the 1830s, initially as feeders to the steamboat traffic; the Clinton and Port Hudson line was the first railroad in the state. Railroading reached its peak in the early 20th century in connection with a feverish lumber boom, and there are nearly 3,000 miles (4,800 km) of track still in use in Louisiana. The state also has several thousand miles of highway. There are dozens of airports in Louisiana, though only a handful offer commercial flights. New Orleans International Airport, a leading continental link, is a major point of connection with Latin America.Government and societyConstitutional frameworkLouisiana's current constitution, its 11th, was adopted in 1974; it requires a two-thirds majority of each house of the state legislature, and then a majority of the electorate, to amend it. Louisiana has had more constitutions than any other state in the country. The constitution that was adopted in 1921 was Louisiana's 10th in 108 years. It remained in force for more than 50 years, a period during which the state underwent more fundamental change than had occurred in all the preceding years of statehood.The governor of Louisiana remains the state's most powerful official, not only from the weight of tradition (and personal performance) but also because of the extent of patronage among the many executive agencies, boards, commissions, and offices filled by gubernatorial appointment. The governor is elected to a term of four years and is permitted to serve no more than two consecutive terms. The lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, state treasurer, and superintendent of education are also elected to four-year terms, as are the agriculture, insurance, and elections commissioners. The Louisiana legislature has two houses: the Senate, with 39 members, and the House of Representatives, with 105 members. Legislators in both chambers are elected to four-year terms. The 1974 constitution retained a 1956 amendment that requires a two-thirds vote by both houses on taxation measures in order to curb spending by the governor.Local self-government in Louisiana followed the Virginia system of county government. The parish (county), the municipality, and the special district are the units of local government. There are 64 parishes, with land areas that vary from roughly 180 square miles (466 square km) in Orleans parish near the city of New Orleans to more than 1,300 square miles (3,370 square km) in Cameron parish in the state's southwestern corner. The name of the elected parish governing board, the “police jury,” is not found anywhere else in the country.There are about 300 incorporated municipalities in Louisiana, described as state units, which exercise narrowly construed powers. The charter of incorporation detailed by law outlines three classes of municipalities based on population: city (5,000 or more), town (1,001 to 4,999), and village (1,000 or less). Special districts established by the legislature provide for the administration of new or expanding functions of local government.A 1975 statute mandated an open primary system for the election of state officers. Under this system, all candidates appear on a single ballot. The candidate who receives more than 50 percent of the votes in the primary is elected to office. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a runoff election is held between the two candidates who received the most votes; these candidates may be members of the same political party. Previously, Democratic nomination was tantamount to victory in the general election. In the open primary, however, the division of the Democratic vote by multiple candidates practically assured a runoff position for a lone Republican candidate. In consequence, Louisiana in 1979 elected its first Republican governor since Reconstruction.The highest court in the state is the Supreme Court. Its seven justices are popularly elected for 10-year terms. Judges in the Court of Appeals, the district courts, and most of the lesser courts are also popularly elected.Louisiana's legal system differs from that of the other 49 states in that it is based not on common law but on civil law, which is code, or written, law. The state draws on its colonial inheritance, in which the adopted code was based on the Napoleonic Code of France and further influenced by Spanish laws, both of which had a common source in Roman law. The civil law consists of broad principles drafted by authorities in various fields of law. In Louisiana the law is enacted in the constitution, which vests in the legislature the authority to make law, whereas the functions of the courts are limited to the application of the law to given sets of facts. Courts are not bound by previous decisions. The law governs all personal and property rights and has been extended to civil and criminal procedures.Health and welfareThe legislature has established programs to provide a system of economic security and social welfare for various categories of citizens. The state gives aid and welfare to mothers and children and provides aid to people with disabilities. Various state departments provide some aspects of welfare aid, but by far the most important is the Department of Social Services, which provides services to Louisiana citizens through a central office in New Orleans and local units in parishes. Penal and correctional institutions operated by the state are administered under the general authority of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections. The penal system has often been subject to an excess of political interference.The so-called Charity Hospital system, supported and administered by the state, is fairly unusual among the 50 states. The system maintains several general and psychiatric hospitals. The Charity Hospital of Louisiana, in New Orleans, founded by private endowment in 1736 and later adopted by the state, is one of the country's oldest public hospitals.EducationLouisiana has nearly two dozen public and about 10 private institutions of higher education. Louisiana State University (LSU; 1853), which is both the land-grant (land-grant college) and the arts and sciences university, is the keystone of the state system of higher education, with campuses in Baton Rouge, Eunice, Shreveport, and Alexandria. Its former campus, in New Orleans, has become the University of New Orleans (1856). Louisiana Tech University (1894), in Ruston, and the University of Louisiana at Monroe (Louisiana at Monroe, University of) (1931; university status, 1970) are among the other public universities, many of which grew from junior colleges in the 1930s and '40s. Southern University (1880), in Baton Rouge, with campuses also in Shreveport and New Orleans, is a public historically black institution, as is Grambling State University (1901), in Grambling. Private historically black schools include Dillard (1930) and Xavier (1915; Roman Catholic), both in New Orleans. Among other prominent private institutions in the city are Loyola University (1837; Catholic) and Tulane University (1834). A number of public and private institutions offer online degree programs.Cultural lifeChristian churches are important influences on Louisiana's cultural life, especially the Roman Catholic Church in southern Louisiana and the Baptists in northern Louisiana and among African Americans throughout the state. New Orleans and many smaller communities have been able to support the arts and philanthropic institutions. The Creoles (Creole) developed a distinctive architecture, art, and cuisine centred on New Orleans.In rural culture and the arts, Louisiana more than holds its own. This is especially evident in the realm of music, whether it be African American song (including the celebrated rural blues), Cajun fiddling at the fais do-dos (country dances held in southern Louisiana), the Creole zydeco tradition, or the community hymn singing of northern Louisiana. The urban jazz style that was taken by New Orleans migrants to Chicago and elsewhere, as well as the Dixieland music played by bands at Preservation Hall in New Orleans, are also hallmarks of Louisiana's cultural heritage.Louisiana has produced a number of important literary figures, including Truman Capote (Capote, Truman) and Ernest J. Gaines (Gaines, Ernest J.). Many of Capote's earlier works were set in the South, while the bulk of Gaines's novels were cast specifically in Louisiana. Gaines's The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1971) was highly acclaimed for its depiction of rural life in Louisiana from an African American perspective.Since the early 19th century, New Orleans has been a major cultural centre of the United States. Its French Quarter has attracted such artists as John J. Audubon (Audubon, John James), the great wildlife painter, and George Catlin (Catlin, George), noted for his portrayals of the American West, and has been the haunt of writers such as Walt Whitman (Whitman, Walt), Sherwood Anderson (Anderson, Sherwood), and William Faulkner (Faulkner, William). The city has also been home to an opera company, as well as various symphony orchestras since the mid-20th century. Other cities, notably Shreveport, Monroe, Baton Rouge, and Lafayette, have established their own museums and galleries, orchestras, choruses, theatres, and other cultural institutions, especially since the 1930s.Tourism has developed as an important component of the state's economy, using the appeal of the antebellum past and the attraction of Creole cuisine—a blend of French, Spanish, African American, and Native American dishes. A series of parades and balls culminating in Mardi Gras (Shrove Tuesday) has become a national attraction in New Orleans. There are many public parks and gardens, and the state is advertised as a sportsman's paradise for hunting and fishing.New Orleans is an important centre for both professional and collegiate sports. Tulane usually fields strong collegiate gridiron football teams, and the city is also home to the National Football League (NFL) Saints team. The Super Bowl NFL championship game has been played on multiple occasions in New Orleans, and the Sugar Bowl of collegiate football is held there annually (generally early in January). New Orleans also has a professional men's basketball team (the Hornets). In Baton Rouge, LSU has long been a powerhouse in both collegiate football and basketball. The state's larger cities also host a number of minor league football, baseball, and ice hockey teams.The literate Creole culture provided the state with a long press tradition; the first newspaper, Le Moniteur de la Louisiane, appeared in 1794. Eight others were published in New Orleans at the turn of the 19th century, and the rural parishes likewise published their own papers. The New Orleans Times-Picayune, one of the state's oldest newspapers, has the largest circulation in Louisiana. There are about 20 other dailies published in the state. Louisiana is well served by numerous radio stations and nearly three dozen television stations.HistoryEarly settlementThousands of years before European exploration, various indigenous peoples occupied the region that later became Louisiana. There are prehistoric Indian archaeological sites, most notably of the Woodland culture at Poverty Point (designated both a state historic site and a national monument) and the Mississippian culture at Marksville (also a state historic site). Most Louisiana peoples lived in hunting and gathering camps in the uplands and coastal prairies, though there were farming villages in the rich low-lying areas known as bottoms. It is estimated that the native population was about 15,000 in the area when settlement by Europeans began during the 1700s. By 1980 only about one-fifth as many Native Americans remained. The heritage of Louisiana's original inhabitants is present in the many Native American place-names that lend colour to the state's map.The first European known to have explored present-day Louisiana was the Spaniard Hernando de Soto (Soto, Hernando de) in 1541, but it was the French who later colonized the region. Serious colonization by France began in 1702, when Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville (Iberville, Pierre Le Moyne d') and his brother Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville (Bienville, Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de) struggled to found permanent settlements. The city of New Orleans was established by Bienville in 1718. Royal charters covering the area had been granted, first to French merchant Antoine Crozat in 1712 and then in 1717 to the Scottish businessman John Law (Law, John), whose Company of the West failed in 1720. When Louisiana became a French crown colony in 1731, its population had grown from fewer than 1,000 to nearly 8,000, including slaves. In addition to the French settlers, many thousands of Germans arrived, settling on the river just above New Orleans on what became known as the German Coast. Colonization increased again during the 1760s with the arrival of the French-speaking Acadians, who had been expelled from Nova Scotia by the British.In 1762 Louisiana and New Orleans were ceded to Spain by a secret treaty that was to establish nearly four decades of Spanish rule and influence in the area. In 1779 the Spanish wrested Baton Rouge from the British and took all of West Florida, which then extended from the peninsula westward across the Gulf Coast to the Mississippi River. In 1800 the Spanish returned Louisiana to France, and three years later the United States, under the leadership of Pres. Thomas Jefferson (Jefferson, Thomas), bought Louisiana from the French emperor Napoleon I. The Louisiana Purchase, a vast acquisition of land for the country, included New Orleans and much of present-day Louisiana state, as well as most of the territory between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains.The 19th centuryLouisiana was subsequently divided into the Territory of Orleans, which consisted essentially of the state within its present boundaries, and the Territory of Louisiana, which included all the vast area drained by the Mississippi and Missouri (Missouri River) rivers. In 1810 the Territory of Orleans consisted of 77,000 people, and statehood proposals were beginning to be heard. When in 1812 the territory petitioned to enter the union, the eastern region now called the Florida Parishes—where the people had rebelled against the Spanish and established the Republic of West Florida—was included. On April 30, 1812, Louisiana entered the union as the 18th state. Between December 1814 and January 1815, New Orleans was the site of the final battle of the War of 1812 (1812, War of), in which U.S. troops led by Gen. Andrew Jackson (Jackson, Andrew) defeated the British.After the war, settlers from the east rushed to New Orleans and other areas of the young state. New Orleans also became home to thousands of newly arrived immigrants from the West Indies, Germany, and Ireland. As the upper reaches of the Mississippi valley became more populated in the first half of the 19th century, New Orleans grew and prospered as the main trading centre of the western United States. Large amounts of grain, cotton, and meat came to New Orleans via steamboats on the rivers, and the city's merchants sold upriver a wide variety of goods that they imported into the city.An agricultural boom took place, and cotton and sugarcane production expanded. Both crops were cultivated primarily by slaves of African descent, and a wealthy plantation society emerged. Small farmers' opposition to planters was apparent in Louisiana state politics, especially after settlement expanded in the hilly northwestern part of the state. Overall, the planters generally prevailed. Many Louisianans were uncertain about secession in 1860, but the state did join the Confederate States of America in 1861 as one of the original seven states in that union.Southern Louisiana's separation from the Union was short-lived, and by May 1, 1862, New Orleans was occupied by Union army forces under Gen. Benjamin F. Butler (Butler, Benjamin F). The general, intolerant of the lack of cooperation that he received from some Louisianans in the occupied state, had at least one dissident hanged, his intention being to make local residents see clearly the costs of war. Soon Pres. Abraham Lincoln (Lincoln, Abraham) was encouraging the creation of a pro-U.S. state government in Louisiana so that it could reenter the union. Among the controversial issues was whether to give the state's African Americans the right to vote as part of a reconstructed Louisiana, a decision that Lincoln ultimately approved. Despite much debate and controversy, however, the state failed to rejoin the union until after the war ended. Wartime Louisiana foreshadowed the problems of emancipation and Reconstruction that awaited the rest of the South in the postwar period. In the years immediately following the war, ex-Confederates won control of the state government and instituted policies that severely limited the rights of newly freed slaves. However, with the official advent of Reconstruction in 1867, which brought U.S. control over state political matters, a new constitution was written that protected the political rights of African Americans. Louisiana was finally readmitted into the union in 1868.Political conflict occurred between the Republicans (Republican Party) who were centred in New Orleans and the former Confederates from the rural parishes. Although they would soon dominate the Democratic Party, during the time between 1868 and 1876 the former Confederates relied heavily on extralegal terrorism that was organized by such groups as the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), the White Camellia, and the White League—all of which worked to create mayhem for the Republicans. They frequently murdered Republican candidates and officeholders. The U.S. army was the only force that was able to counter such terrorism. When the army was finally withdrawn from Louisiana in 1877 as part of a bargain to settle the contested presidential election of 1876, the anti-black, anti-Republican Louisianans secured their power in state politics. A new constitution was enacted in 1898 that disenfranchised nearly all African Americans, and a system of legalized discrimination, in the form of segregation, ensued shortly thereafter.The plantation economy was re-created after the Civil War, but many small farmers, white and black alike, were unable either to buy land or to hold onto what they originally owned and were thus forced into sharecropping or tenancy (tenant farming). Agrarian protests that emerged during the 1880s and '90s produced the People's (Populist (Populist Movement)) Party and what seemed at the time to be a chance to overthrow the state's planter-merchant-lawyer rule. By the early 20th century, however, the elite were able to defeat the reform movement of the farmers and solidify conservative rule in Louisiana.Louisiana since c. 1900Louisiana's economy began to diversify significantly in the late 1800s with the emergence of a large timber industry, which continued as a major part of the state's economy into the 21st century. Extensive lumbering attracted large corporations to Louisiana for three decades following 1890, and the discovery of oil and gas reserves helped to increase industrial development. The conservative political leadership of the state refused to tax the extractive industries heavily, however, and the controversy that ensued helped propel the rise of the left-wing demagogue Huey Long (Long, Huey), who was elected governor and then senator beginning in the late 1920s. Through a ruthless political machine that he tightly controlled, Long dominated virtually every public decision made at the state level until his assassination in 1935.With the support of the rural areas and the emerging working class, Long's administration raised welfare benefits and educational services and built many new bridges, roads, and hospitals. Long's political allies and his brother, Earl K. Long (elected governor in 1948 and 1956), perpetuated his liberal spending policies, and his legacy of public benefits financed by increased taxation has continued to some extent to the present day.During and after World War II, Louisiana experienced significant new economic development, which was heavily concentrated in the petrochemical industry and increasingly concerned with offshore oil and natural gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. The growth of the petrochemical industry raised the overall prosperity of the state after 1940 and contributed heavily to a significant increase in personal income among state residents. In the 1930s and '40s, African Americans in Louisiana, led by a well-educated middle-class group of New Orleaners, began to challenge the entrenched system of segregation (segregation, racial), mainly by arguing against discrimination in the courts. Black Louisianans rose up against segregation more forcefully in the 1960s as part of the nationwide civil rights movement.Louisiana's politics, although more open since the 1960s, have hardly lost their colourful, controversial character. The Republican Party has become more competitive in state politics, as evidenced by the election of Republican governors and members of Congress and the state legislature. One Republican, David Duke—an avowed white supremacist and former head of the KKK—was elected to a term (1989–93) in the Louisiana House of Representatives and has run for other state and federal offices. Edwin W. Edwards, a flamboyant Democrat who was elected governor four times between 1972 and 1992, enacted liberal policies but was often accused of public corruption; although acquitted of charges in the 1980s, he was convicted in 2000 of racketeering, fraud, and extortion.Since the 1970s Louisiana's economy has often sputtered, a reflection of its overdependence on the oil industry, which has tended to tie the state to boom-and-bust cycles. The state also failed to diversify into other industrial activities as fast as some other Southern states, and its service sector has lacked the dynamism of various neighbouring states on the Gulf Coast. The damage and devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina (Katrina, Hurricane) in August 2005 severely affected the state's economy and infrastructure—notably in southern Louisiana—although oil and gas extraction did rebound relatively quickly. After the disaster, the state began to rebuild and repair the affected areas with support from the federal government and a plethora of local and national organizations. Louisiana also introduced incentives to revitalize tourism, notably in the New Orleans area.Additional ReadingBooks on the state's geography include Fred B. Kniffen and Sam Bowers Hilliard, Louisiana: Its Land and People, rev. ed. (1988), a concise cultural geography with maps and illustrations; and Louisiana Writers' Project, Louisiana: A Guide to the State (1941, reprinted 1976), also available in a new revised edition ed. by Harry Hansen (1971), an indispensable survey of life in Louisiana. DeLorme Mapping Company, Louisiana Atlas & Gazetteer (2003), focuses on topography; while Charles Robert Goins and John Michael Caldwell, Historical Atlas of Louisiana (1995), concentrates on historical geography. Glenn R. Conrad (ed.), The Cajuns, 3rd ed. (1983), presents essays on Acadian history and culture in Louisiana. Rudolf Heberle, The Labor Force in Louisiana (1948), provides a benchmark from which to study the state's industrial development. Roger W. Shugg, Origins of Class Struggle in Louisiana: A Social History of White Farmers and Laborers During Slavery and After, 1840–1875 (1939, reissued 1968), is a classic treatment of the political process from 1812 to the 1880s. James Bolner (ed.), Louisiana Politics: Festival in a Labyrinth (1982), highlights the structure and practice of Louisiana's government. Mark T. Carleton, Perry H. Howard, and Joseph B. Parker (comps.), Readings in Louisiana Politics, 2nd ed. (1988), provides classic statements of social, economic, and political history with accounts of developments from colonial status onward. Perry H. Howard, Political Tendencies in Louisiana, rev. and expanded ed. (1971), is a historical examination of social structure and voting behaviour. Peyton McCrary, Abraham Lincoln and Reconstruction: The Louisiana Experiment (1978), provides an excellent account of the state's conflicts during the American Civil War. T. Harry Williams, Huey Long (1969, reissued 1996), is a fascinating and sympathetic biography of the politician.Overviews of the state's history can be found in Alcée Fortier, A History of Louisiana, 4 vol. (1904), a classic; Joe Gray Taylor, Louisiana: A History, rev. ed. (1984), an introduction; and Noel Gray, A Short History of Louisiana (1965), which gives attention to the role of the African American community. Glenn R. Conrad (ed.), Readings in Louisiana History (1978), is comprehensive and includes maps and bibliographies. A helpful bibliography is Light Townsend Cummins and Glen Jeansonne (eds.), A Guide to the History of Louisiana (1982). Continuing scholarly research is presented in Louisiana History (quarterly). Adam Fairclough, Race and Democracy: The Civil Rights Struggle in Louisiana, 1915–1972 (1995), provides much new material on the civil rights movement in Louisiana.Robert J. Norrell
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When I was painting for my first solo show Avara found some blackout blinds in the street during hard rubbish & thought they would work well as a canvas. I was previously using plywood & cement boards, also found, but was looking for something larger & more versatile
My studio at the time was a tiny bedroom, so this painting occupied our living room floor for about a week until it was finished. I had to stand on a stool to see what needed to be done with it. Everything related to my work has come through a series of events such as these. Whether it be found materials, chance meetings or slow repeated practice, nothing is forced or faked
Contrary to popular belief, I have found that all that is needed comes easy, and all that is not is hard.

domain: artistic


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Milk Thistle Extract
Botanical Source:Silybum Marianum
Country of Origin:Northeast of China
Appearance:Light Yellow Powder
Silymarin:70%by HPLC;Silybin:30%by HPLC
Loss On Drying: ≤5%
Sulphated Ash: 5%
Heavy metal: 10PPM
Residual Solvents: 0.05PPM
Milk Thistle is a plant that belongs to the sunflower family, has ancient origins in the Mediterranean. It was initially used for liver problem and as an antidote for mushroom poisoning throughout Europe.
Main Uses:for mood disorders (depression, anxiety, stress) for insomnia and sleep disorders for headaches, migraines and general pain for stomach problems (colic, nervous stomach, indigestion, etc.) to relieve menstrual cramps and premenstrual syndrome (PMS)
Camellia oil, also known as tea seed oil is the actual green tea oil. Camellia oil comes from the seeds of Camellia sinensis, the plant from which all the tea is made. Camellia oil(Tea seed oil) is a wonderfully healthy in more ways than one. Camellia oil is great for cooking, and from nutritional point of view. Camellia oil(Tea seed oil) is used in a number of beauty products. Camellia oil has been used as a cooking for centuries in Southern China and they make many more uses with it.
Camellia oilis extracted from the seeds of the tea plant. That makes it the real tea oil. Tea tree oil on the other hand does not come from the tea plant. It comes from the tree called Melaleuca alternifolia.

domain: biology


Liu M.,PetroChinaHuabei Oilfield Company |
Xiong L.,PetroChinaHuabei Oilfield Company |
Zhang Y.,PetroChinaHuabei Oilfield Company |
Li Z.,PetroChinaHuabei Oilfield Company
Drilling Fluid and Completion Fluid | Year: 2015
The relief well, Wen23-6J, for the Well Wen23-6X is the first relief well drilled with the aid of SDI's magnetic range correction technology, and will greatly help in building a working gas storage of 3.9×108 m3 (active storage of 7.93×108 m3). The Well Wen23-6X is an accidental well drilled in 2005, with 2300 m of fish left in it. Long time of contact of borehole wall with drilling fluid makes it difficult to (even with SDI's advanced technology) detect the well path with no fish in it when drilled to 2588 m. The newly drilled hole only met with the old hole at five depths during drilling. 73 m3 of cement slurry was injected in 8 times into the hole to the meeting points. To ensure an effective sealing of the hole, a fixed direction-fixed tool face orientation perforation technology was applied the first time after the cementing of the relief well. Ultra-fine cement slurries were squeezed into #34 and #29 sandstones. Negative pressure (37.84 MPa) testing shows that the plugging of the well is successful and gas storage can be built around the relief well. ©, 2014, North China Petroleum Administration Drilling Technology Research Institute. All right reserved.


Before the Flood
Publication Year: 2016
Publisher: National Geographic
Source ID: shanti-sources-81601
Collection: Contemplation and Ecology
Abstract: Before the Flood, presented by National Geographic, features Leonardo DiCaprio on a journey as a United Nations Messenger of Peace, traveling to five continents and the Arctic to witness climate change firsthand.


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When you get right down to it, the success of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise is nothing short of improbable. Created by a duo of New England indie comic creators in the early 80s, an offbeat style parody of Frank Miller comics with an initial print run of 3,000 issues went from underground sensation to global sensation in about the span of three years. TMNT managed to be saints of the underground, inspiring a boom in black and white indie comics, and icons of commercialism at roughly the same time; most comics can only hope for one. The history of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles can’t help but be fascinating, and provides Turtle Power: The Definitive History of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, released in 2014 for the 30th anniversary of the characters, ample material. And while Turtle Power never quite lives up to its definitive claims, it’s an intriguing watch packed with some unexpected emotion.
Perhaps the greatest boon to Turtle Power, is the astounding amount of video footage that exists from the early days of the Turtles’ creation. Co-creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird filmed an impressive number of home videos documenting the pair working in their early living room “studio” and fleshing out ideas for the Turtles.More than the interviews with the creators themselves the people around them (which are ample and informative), these home videos capture on film footage of a pair of creative and excited young dorks pouring their ideas onto paper. This footage, displayed on a TV in a familiar sewer lair, captures the energy of the early days, but also can’t help but reflect the Eastman and Laird’s wistfulness for those days when paired with their interview audio. Footage of meetings between Eastman, Laird, and executives with toy company Playmates reveal not only cool looks at early concept art and action figure prototypes, but also the roadblocks, compromises, and flashes of creativity that went into turning an indie darling into a commercial juggernaut.
The film’s weakness is that it doesn’t spare this same time and attention for all facets of TMNT history. There’s a wealth of material covering the beloved original cartoon and the production of the first movie in ’89. There are fantastic conversations with luminaries such as Brian Henson, who recalls his father Jim Henson’s experience working on the movie, and there’s a fun segment exploring how the original cartoon vocal cast approached their characters, the highlight of which is the late James Avery (Uncle Phil on Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) speaking about imbuing the evil Shredder with Shakespearean gravitas. But after the first movie, very little information of true worth is revealed. Scant details are divulged about the production of the second movie and the poorly received third movie isn’t so much danced around as vaulted over.
Released by Paramount, whose parent company Viacom currently own the rights to the franchise, it is clear there was an edict against exploring the lower moments in Turtle history. Viewers hoping for details on, say, how the creators wethered the failure of the reviled “Next Mutation” which gave the world lady Ninja Turtle Venus de Milo (seriously) are left hoping. In fact, there’s a swath of time between the early 90s and the excellent 2012 cartoon that goes completely unexplored, a period that saw the cooling of “Turtlemania”, but also the release of another well-received cartoon and a fourth feature length film. By the time the film opts for a montage of fans saying nice things about the franchise and its various incarnations instead of mentioning about 15+ years of the franchise’s history, you’d be forgiven for having serious doubts about claims to “definitive history”.
What an edict from franchise owners could do to bar exploring weaker entries in the Turtle canon, it could not do to eliminate the air of melancholy that underlies Turtle Power. The main story told might be about the ascendancy of Ninja Turtles from scrappy underdogs to cultural powerhouse, but the real emotional arc is how that success strained the friendship of the co-creators. There is no big, outsized argument between Eastman and Laird, but the film documents how unimaginable financial success hastened the drifting apart of two men whose personalities were already vastly different. The lively, energetic “Raphael” of the duo Eastman speaks about the development of the franchise a little differently from the quiet, introspective “Donatello” Laird, but both hint at a sadness that the creative and personal partnership that gave rise to TMNT’s success suffered for it.The two are never filmed together in the contemporary interviews, making their reminiscing about early days over footage of the two together in the early 80s all the more poignant. Hearing the two men talk about their past together and seeing the emotion the underlies it makes the fluff-filled back half of the film much more interesting to watch, far more emotionally investing.
Turtle Power: The Definitive History of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is not a very accurate title, but is probably catchier than the more accurate alternative Turtle Power: The Early Days of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Then Maybe Some Other Stuff, I Guess. For the hardcore fan or the curious viewer who grew up with the cartoons, there’s enough great early archival material to make for a breezy watch, but those looking for that definitive history will probably want to keep searching.

domain: library


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Chris Rock’s younger brother Kenny Rock has challenged Will Smith to a boxing match in the wake of Smith’s attack on the comic at the Academy Awards, Your Content has learned.
Kenny Rock, 42, has challenged Will Smith, 53, to a boxing match.
Chris Rock’s younger brother made the announcement in New York on Tuesday.
Claims to have drawn up a contract with a promoter for the potential fight.
Kenny said he has been texting brother Chris, 57, who is ‘doing great’
Match comes after Will slapped Chris at the Oscars last month,‘according to The Daily Advent.
Your Content for the latest updates. Have a story or news tip? Contact our 24/7 newsroom at 833.336.8013 or e-mail our tip line: [email protected]

domain: news


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In Chinese, different characters can have the same pronunciation. These are called homophones. In this game, you are presented with a random selection of character tiles. Your job is to match the homophones as quickly as possible. Earn achievements by beating time goals and by completing games with no errors.
What's new in version 1.0.1
Fix minor layout issues in iOS 7.1.
ReleaseJune 9, 2014
Date AddedMarch 21, 2014
Additional RequirementsCompatible with . iTunes account required.

domain: game


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MIAMI — World Omni Financial Corp. heated up the securitization pipeline for the second time this year with a $941.5 million transaction, according to a presale report from Fitch Ratings Agency. However, the transaction showed a high percentage of extended-term loans, and slightly weaker credit quality, according to Fitch.
The issuance — which closed Sept. 14 — still garnered “broad investor interest,” said Bryan Romano, assistant treasurer at World Omni Financial Corp. “In general, demand for auto ABS continues to be strong,” Romano told attendees at IMN ABS East 2016 in Miami. World Omni’s 2016-B transaction “was well-received by the market,” he said, and specifically in the A-1 tranche.
The World Omni Auto Receivables Trust 2016-B — backed by retail installment loans on new and used cars and light-duty trucks manufactured primarily by Toyota Motor Corp. — also had the lowest percentage of new vehicles since 2012. The percentage of new versus used vehicles are 90% and 10%, compared with 95% and 5% in the 2016-A trust.
The weighted average Fico score is 719, a decrease from 722 in 2016-A, according to the report. However, while the average Fico is at its lowest since 2008, “approximately 58% of the pool have Fico scores at or above 701, down from 59% in 2016-A and 61% in 2015-B,” Fitch said in the report.
WOART 2016-B has a weighted average original term of 70.1 months, up from 69.9 months in the 2016-A transaction. “Loans with original terms greater than 60 months total 81.1% in 2016-B, the highest to date in a WOART pool,” Fitch said in the report.
Check out the video below for Romano’s full response to investor demand, World Omni’s latest securitization, and how the auto ABS market is fairing currently:
For more auto finance insights like this, register for the upcoming Auto Finance Summit, Oct. 5-7 at Bellagio Las Vegas. Visit www.AutoFinanceSummit.com for more information.Like This Post


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La Vergne Duclos Invoice Design September 26, 2018
A Proforma invoice is an invoice provided by a supplier in advance of providing the goods or service. A quotation in the form of an invoice prepared by the seller that details items which would appear on a commercial invoice if an order results. It is more of a customs declaration form used in international trade that describes the parties involved in the shipping transaction the goods being transported and the value of the goods. It is the primary document to declare value for customs. It is not a true invoice because the seller does not record a pro forma invoice as an accounts receivable and the buyer does not record a pro forma invoice as an accounts payable.
Coletta Jung Invoice Design September 28, 2018
When a line item such as the VAT number doesnt add up on an invoice the AP team will need to find the error and correct it manually to be able to process the invoice. This is very time consuming and can cause delays in paying the invoice. Investing in IMS can help to reduce the amount of time the discrepancy can take to rectify by flagging invoices that have any mistakes and making sure the invoice isnt processed until it has been corrected.
Fifine Renaud Invoice Design September 28, 2018
Itemized List of Services - must be specific People want to know what theyve paid for. Most people will not pay for something described merely as "Design." Tell them exactly what they have received: e.g. "Design of three-page static website for Sporting Goods Department." Be as specific as possible. In five years would both you and the client know what you meant by your description? Also specify whether the charge is project-based or hourly.
Madeleina Desbois Invoice Design September 28, 2018
All invoices regardless of the way in which they are sent (whether on paper or in electronic format) must include a series of mandatory fields. Article 6 of Royal Decree number 1496/2003 Spanish law which regulates the content of an invoice establishes these fields as:
Ninon Doucet Invoice Design September 28, 2018
Electronic invoices provide an important means of reducing the costs of processing sending distributing and maintaining invoices resulting in a simplification of administrative procedures and a considerable reduction in the amount of time and space consumed as the invoices are transmitted through telematic means accomplished by applying technical certification mechanisms (electronic signatures) which guarantee the basic elements required in any invoice (the authenticity of its origin and integrity of its content) and allow them to be maintained in digital format which affords immediate access to them at any given moment.
Moreen Picot Invoice Design September 28, 2018
if you are using a limited company as your payment structure you will need to raise invoices for the services you provide or goods that you sell this article explains how to prepare one with an example the best practices you need to know double taxes case example proforma invoice example and in the end I will give you tips about how to find a good invoice example online I will also include a couple of invoice example free download in Microsoft Word and Excel format for you to use.
Nichole Potier Invoice Design September 28, 2018
In order to comply with regulations and ensure that an electronic invoice has the same legal validity as a paper invoice the corresponding electronic document must contain the same mandatory fields as any other invoice must be signed with an electronic signature based on a recognized certificate and must be sent from one computer to another with the parties mutual consent. This combination of factors provides a Telematic Invoice with sufficient reliability so as to indisputably guarantee its integrity and the authenticity of its origin.
Clarette Lepage Invoice Design September 27, 2018
Proforma invoices basically contain much of the same information as the formal quotation and in many cases can be used in place of one. It should give the buyer as much information about the order as possible so arrangements can be made efficiently. The invoices inform the buyer and the appropriate import government authorities details of the future shipment; changes should not be made without the buyers consent.

domain: finance


Democrat Congressman Louis Guiterrez (D-IL) says 40 to 50 Republicans in the House are ready to vote for what he calls “comprehensive immigration reform,” meaning the Senate’s Gang of 8 bill, perhaps with a few changes. If your U.S. Congressman is home and brave enough to hold a Townhall, put him/her on the spot now and ask if he/she supports immigration reform as written by the Gang of 8. If she/he says ‘no,’ ask them what they will support about the Senate bill, then ask him/her to promise not to support any House version of the Senate bill that will go to conference for reconciliation. If you are told the bill will fix the problems, tell them they lie. In the video below you will hear Guiterrez say he wants “to get to conference.” If this radical one-time “leader of the the Puerto Rican Socialist Party – a Marxist-Leninist, pro-Cuban organization” wants to get to conference, be assured he will do everything possible to get there, but he can only do it with the help of Republicans. See the video below. I’ve removed the video as it is set on autostart and I can’t change the setting, so…view it at The Hill (it’s long and filled with propaganda anyway).
The fact is, few if any of those Republicans deciding to support the Gang of 8 idea of immigration “reform” won’t be holding Townhalls. They won’t go on-the-record. They are afraid of you. Do some research and come to some conclusion about your Representative, and if that conclusion is, he/she is likely to cave rather than work with her/his own peers on a series of individuals bills that start with securing the border, make contact with him/her over and over and express your dismay and anger.
If we can believe what we hear coming out of the House, there are those working to bring about some type of reform using smaller bills, one-at-a-time, rather than mammoth legislation that no one understands and no one reads.
If Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) is your representative, call his office and say you expect him to abide by an earlier promise not to bring up an immigration vote until, and unless, there are a majority of Republicans supporting a specific piece of legislation.
The rule is an old concept, but practiced by former GOP speaker J. Dennis Hastert, it says that when the GOP controls the House, the Republican leadership will not move on legislation unless the “majority of the majority” supports the position. Source: Townhall, Neil McCabe
There are 234 Republicans in the House of Representatives. Forty or 50 isn’t close to a majority, Democrats 200, zero Independents.
The Townhall article linked above is dated June 15, 2013 and indicates Boehner has no plan to honor what the majority of his Party wants.
Now, the speaker declared the rule a dead letter and signaled his desire to pass the president’s immigration agenda by building a new coalition with Democrats.
As conservatives recoiled at the heresy, members of Team Boehner reassured outsiders that under speakers Hastert and Newton L. Gingrich, the rule was violated anywhere from 18 to 30 times.
To the Republican careerists surrounding the speaker, it is not a big deal. But, the numbers involved make it a really big deal if the GOP expects to win elections.
In the House GOP today, the “majority of the majority” is housed in the 170-member Republican Study Committee, its the conservative bloc.
One gauge of the RSC’s effectiveness is that only 104 out of 242 Republicans voted for the RSC’s alternative Fiscal Year 2013 Budget. That puts the conservative terra firma in the House at slightly less than one-quarter of the body.
If Boehner holds to those 138 Republicans, who voted against the conservative budget plan, he is still short 80 votes for the 218 votes that make majority in the 435-seat House.
This is where it gets juicy for the Democrats. Minority Leader Nancy P. Pelosi (D.-Calif.) knows how to collect and hold on to votes. If she gives Boehner a number it is solid, unlike the sand dance numbers the speaker gets from his own whip Rep. Kevin O. McCarthy (R.-Calif.).
Think about it. We have the majority on an issue that will change America significantly and forever. We have Representatives wanting a fix for the illegal problem, but they want to do it right, and they want to secure the border first. They don’t want felons to remain in the country. They perhaps, will prevent the entire family tree from flooding over the border. We don’t know because we haven’t seen these smaller bills, but Boehner must give them a chance.
In stark contrast to prior Obama administration statements, Illinois Democratic Rep. Luis Gutierrez told The Daily Caller that he and the National Council of La Raza were deeply involved in the crafting and implementation of a controversial Obama administration memo that many conservatives believe amounts to a policy of amnesty for millions of illegal immigrants.
Guiterrez says he knows who the 40 or 50 are. Democrats lie like a rug, so let’s pray he’s wrong but take nothing for granted. Search-out your local Townhalls and see if you can make a difference, and keep this on your radar for when Congress is back in session in September.


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Select () or exclude () categories to narrow your recipe search.
As you select categories, the number of matching recipes will update.
Find exactly what you're looking for with the web's most powerful recipe filtering tool.
"This was a great recipe,my whole family loved it. I made fried rice to go with it,we used some of sauce to put over our rice it tasted great. I will definetly make thisagain. "

domain: food


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What you have discovered here is a private notebook, whose pages are the fragments of my shattered mind.
I, like all writers, am an informant, a reject of society.
I am an exhibitionist, a pervert, a barking dog.
Take care, in the throes of these ribald entertainments, these weird joys of the mind, that you do not become a mere voyeur, peering toward a lighted room at the distant end of some labyrinthine corridor.
Take care that you do not forget yourself…
…for the labyrinth stares back.
…for it is you who performs here.


Microsoft’s first dual-screen Android smartphone Surface Duo to come with an unlockable bootloader
On Wednesday, Microsoft launched its first Android Smartphone Surface Duo with a pre-order price of $1,399 (Rs 1,04,641.77 approx). Microsoft’s dual-screen Android smartphone that was first announced back in October 2019 and is now open for pre-order and Microsoft will probably start shipping the gadget by the first week of September. Now it is also revealed that Microsoft Surface Duo will allow users to unlock the bootloader.
A bootloader is a vendor-proprietary image responsible for bringing up the kernel on a device. It guards the device state and is responsible for initializing the Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) and binding its root of trust. The bootloader is comprised of many things including splash screen.
As Microsoft will allow Surface Duo users to unlock the bootloader it would be easy to Surface Duo users to root the phone and flash supported custom ROMs. According to Microsoft, the Surface Duo Android smartphone will have a locked bootloader as default and users will require to unlock it if they want to root their Surface Duo.
Before unlocking the bootloader it’s worth knowing that Surface Duo will be shipped with Android 10 out of the box and will receive Android 11 update as soon as it is public. Unlocking the bootloader and flashing custom ROM may not allow Surface Duo to download future Microsoft updates. Microsoft has promised that it will be providing three years of features and security updates for Surface Duo devices. Meanwhile, Google and Samsung also provide 3 years of full updates for their flagship, Pixel and Galaxy smartphones respectively.
If you are buying Microsoft Surface Duo then you should also know that Surface Duo uses Microsoft’s custom-engineered Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI), which enables full control over firmware components. This also allows Microsoft to deliver enterprise-grade security to Surface Duo and the company is responsible for every line of firmware code.
For more news on tech and cybersecurity stay tuned on Android Rookies by subscribing to our newsletter from here.


NEW DELHI (AFP) - Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday called off his sit-in protest demanding police reforms that has seen him run the city from a pavement for the last two days.
Mr Kejriwal told a crowd that two policemen he wanted suspended for misconduct would be sent on leave, but he failed to secure his main demand that the city's police force be put under his government's control.
He said that the lieutenant-governor of Delhi, an appointee of the central government, had appealed to him to end his protest, which turned violent on Tuesday.
"After the lieutenant governor's appeal, we all have decided to end our protest here today," Mr Kejriwal told a crowd of cheering supporters after dark on Tuesday.
"I'm very happy today. Today the people of Delhi have won. I want to congratulate the people of Delhi," he added.
Mr Kejriwal, an anti-corruption campaigner who swept to power last month, declared himself an "anarchist" on Monday and called a mass demonstration to disrupt Republic Day celebrations at the weekend.
Overnight, the 44-year-old slept outside on a pavement under a thick blanket, awakening to rains and strong winds.
His central demand was that the Delhi police, widely viewed as corrupt and inefficient, be transferred to his state government's control from the national Home Ministry.
As with other demands in the past by different chief ministers, the central government refused to agree because of Delhi's status as the national capital.
Mr Kejriwal says the police, the focus of public fury after the fatal gang rape of a student in December 2012, have failed to prevent crimes against women.
"We are committed to ensuring the security for women in Delhi. If any woman in Delhi is attacked, we will not sit quiet, we will raise our voice," he said on Tuesday night.
Critics immediately branded his move a U-turn as Mr Kejriwal had originally demanded the suspension of some five officials in total over recent crimes, according to the Press Trust of India.
"A climb down for CM (chief minister) of Delhi!" Kiran Bedi, a former high-ranking police officer and previously an anti-graft colleague of Mr Kejriwal, tweeted.
Mr Arun Jaitley, a senior leader of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, called it a "theatre of absurd".
Clashes broke out on Tuesday between riot police armed with batons and dozens of supporters of Mr Kejriwal when they were prevented from joining his sit-in protest.
Aides brought him files for the administration of the city of 17 million people as he sat with other members of the Cabinet at the protest site, near the high-security area that houses the Parliament and the presidency building.
He had warned earlier on Tuesday that he would escalate the demonstration and was prepared to sit indefinitely.
Thanks to barricaded roads leading to the protest that caused traffic chaos and forced the closure of nearby subway stations, #AAPdrama and "Arvind Kejriwal" turned into top trending Twitter topics in India.
Mr Kejriwal was sworn in as chief minister of the city of 17 million last month after his new Aam Aadmi (Common Man) Party made sensational gains in state elections against India's two biggest parties.
He plans to shake up national elections due before May by once again taking on the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP.
But after enjoying overwhelmingly positive media coverage and support from the poor and middle-class, there are signs his latest campaign has backfired and the honeymoon is over.
"Anarchist CM Plunges Delhi Into Chaos," read the front-page of the Hindu newspaper on Tuesday morning, while the Economic Times headlined "Kejriwal Reduces Govt to a Chaotic Street Play".
Mr Kejriwal, a former tax official, rejected criticism that he was failing to govern responsibly, and was instead relying on grassroots tactics. "Some people say I'm not working, that the Delhi government is not working. We are here to support women's safety which is an important issue," he said during the day.


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- 24 Hour Emergency Dental Care in Haverstraw, NY
- Emergency Toothaches, Extractions, Pain Relief Today
- Weekends, Nights and Holidays
The Haverstraw Dentist is understood to provide various sorts of treatments including teeth whitening, porcelain veneers, orthodontics, dental implants, and dental bonding. The patients are needed to submit their dental records, photographs, as well as insurance coverage. These documents will be utilized by the dentist to make a report on the patient’s problem. As soon as this record is made, it is forwarded to the insurance provider.
Patients must see a Haverstraw dentist to obtain a full examination. A tooth whitening procedure includes the application of bleaching services in order to eliminate any kind of stains from the teeth. The treatment consists of bleaching representatives that are used to the teeth as well as bleaching toothpaste. This procedure is done under the supervision of the dentist in order to prevent harming the tooth enamel. In order to have an extra permanent remedy, dental veneers are made use of. Veneers are also known as clear dentures that can be removed as well as changed with another. These veneers are made from porcelain that can be repainted with colors that match the color of the original tooth.
Teeth placement can also belong of the treatment that the Haverstraw dentists offer. A dental implant is put inside the affected area in order to take care of the broken or absent tooth. There are several strategies that can be used to install the dental implant such as the fusion, suspension, or mesh. Sometimes, even dentures can be positioned in order to remedy the tooth. Since there are numerous treatments offered for the patients, the most effective point that patients can do is to get in touch with the dentist for the finest therapy strategy to fit their needs.
Emergency Dentist Open 24 Hours
If you are dealing with any kind of oral trouble, there is a likelihood that you require an emergency dentist for you. At the very least, if your teeth are broken or broken, you need to seek the aid of a dentist as soon as feasible. Nevertheless, an emergency dentist is only there when you need it, except normal points. The professional can handle minor problems, yet he or she will probably recommend mosting likely to your pedodontist to obtain real remedy as well as reconstruction done.
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Numerous grownups are required to visit the physician more frequently than their children since their teeth are not typical. Naturally, the children’s teeth will at some point expand till they get to the age of 16 years old. For grownups whose teeth run out placement or are harmed, a trip to the dentist’s office is necessary for regular checks. You need to keep in mind that the endodontist will certainly clean your teeth regularly and also that you should also brush your teeth every day. Besides, the patient needs to comply with a specific oral health program that she or he should follow while seeing the surgeon. This is necessary so as to avoid periodontal disease and cavities. An emergency dentist is then necessary for regular checkups.
Emergency Tooth Extraction
Do you recognize that in some cases, there is a need for an emergency tooth extraction? There are several reasons for tooth infection and an emergency tooth extraction is done when the problem is not immediately seen or detected by a pedodontist. Occasionally the problem can go unnoticed and also can continue to become worse or might also come to be infected. This sort of tooth infection calls for an immediate remedy. If your tooth becomes infected with oral bacteria, it may need to be removed to quit additional infection or it might also bring about much more severe oral troubles.
In many cases, teeth end up being contaminated because of making use of dental implants, the removal of a wisdom tooth, or also gum disease. In some cases an infection can spread from one tooth to an additional, creating the infection to infect an additional tooth. When this occurs, it is vital that you obtain emergency tooth extraction and also ask for it to be done today. See to it that you recognize the degree of the damage and after that ensure that you inform your medical professional about it. Prior to you schedule your emergency tooth extraction, you have to likewise tell your physician regarding any type of various other dental work that you will be carrying out in the following few days or weeks that will certainly call for emergency care.
Emergency Dental Services
If you’ve ever before needed an emergency dental appointment, you understand just how much of a trouble it can be trying to obtain a pedodontist in your area. You might require an appointment that is two to three weeks away or extra. You’ll require to complete the standard types as well as await weeks to see a qualified surgeon that can aid with your trouble. Often, though, your family practitioner can not help you due to the fact that you do not have insurance.
You’re stuck awaiting days in unpleasant tooth discomfort just to obtain the responses you require. An emergency care service from a local pedodontist can make all the distinction between an unpleasant tooth or a healthy tooth.
- Emergency Dentistry
- Pain Management
- Tooth Extraction
- Dental Implants
- Root Canal Treatment
- Smile Makeover
- Crown and Bridge
- Porcelain Veneers
- Invisalign Clear Braces
- Teeth Whitening & Fillings
- Family Dentistry
- Adult & Children Treatment
- Cosmetic Dentistry
Professional Dental Implants Haverstraw
Dental taking care of has actually gotten popularity over the years. These synthetic teeth have many advantages, the foremost being the center of maintaining a fantastic smile that is not influenced by any type of decay. The implant enlivens missing teeth, making them look much like the natural teeth that exist. The mouth feels cleaner as well as appears much more comfortable when there is no extra dental caries in the mouth. The selection of these implants makes a difference in one’s look as they help to create an outstanding and also welcoming smile.
The reasons for requiring a replacement for missing out on teeth that need repair can be varied. There are several diseases that cause loss of teeth and also the circumstance gets worse when the teeth have actually been damaged and are not anticipated to recoup totally in a particular amount of time. This might lead to the serious staining of the teeth. Eventually, the patient might experience discomfort with discomfort when chewing as well as sucking. Since the mouth has a particular form and also shape, any kind of type of asymmetry results in the putting on of the crowns. A replacement tooth or teeth can be installed if the problem gets worse.
For more information about our emergency dental clinic call us our customer representative.
Emergency Pediatric Dentist Haverstraw
For most families, emergency pedodontist is a part of the daily regimen. Several children are brought into a dental office for problems with their teeth. This is particularly true during the winter season months when children are covered in long coats and hats. During the winter months, young children with harmed teeth require toothpaste, even often. However, a toothache can be a source of anxiety for moms and dads. Throughout these times, it is necessary that moms and dads understand how to manage the circumstance.
The initial step to appropriately dealing with a scenario of dental care is to call the emergency dental care team. These professionals will attend to the issue immediately. They will certainly take the child to the emergency room for a doctor’s appointment and also load a prescription for discomfort medication. Once the drug has actually been offered, they will provide the child discomfort drugs that the child can use until their following appointment. Throughout the following see, the surgeon will certainly fit the child with a temporary crown to assist boost the look of the teeth. After the crown has actually been set up, a crown cap will certainly be removed to ensure that the teeth are straightened.
Do pediatric dentists do surgery?
Pedodontist has a various kind of experience than their adult equivalents. These are the professional who does pediatric dental surgery, pediatric prosthetics, and orthodontic care too. As these kinds of procedures call for a certain amount of expertise and also knowledge of the procedures that need to be performed, it is necessary for the child’s moms and dads to be alert about the type of dental surgery that their child would certainly be going through to ensure that they can identify the very best practitioner for their child. This will certainly assist in picking one of the most knowledgeable and also reliable one that would certainly have the ability to manage the child’s case.
Prior to discussing pediatric dental surgery and also the procedures that require to be lugged out on a child, we have to discuss the points that are involved with this sort of surgery. With pediatric oral surgery, there are many kinds of dental procedures that need to be done. These procedures consist of bonding, root canal treatment, replacement tooth origins, gum repair, tooth bleaching, root canal treatment, dental bridges, bone grafting, root planing, jaw surgery, teeth cleaning, crowns, fillings, veneers, prosthetic devices, dental bonding, periodontal disease treatment, as well as plastic surgery. It additionally covers lots of various other kinds of dentistry such as orthodontics, podiatry, prophylaxis, periodontics, as well as psychiatry. The sorts of dental surgeries are extremely varied and also they have a variety of anticipated outcomes.
Emergency, Cosmetic, and General Dentistry located in Haverstraw, NY
When you have tooth pain, it is necessary to get relief as fast as possible. That’s where 24/7 Emergency Dentist in Haverstraw comes in to help.
Call our Emergency Dentists Today at (888) 477-2554

domain: medical


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ALBANY, N.Y. — State lawmakers are looking into mental health treatment in state prisons and a rise in the number of suicides in correctional facilities.
The Assembly is holding a public hearing on the subject Tuesday morning in Albany. Lawmakers will focus on issues related to the implementation of the Special Housing Unit Exclusion Law.
In 2010, 20 inmates committed suicide in state prisons, twice the number in 2009 and the highest suicide rate since 1982. More
PrisonerPal.com True Crime Today Magazine Subscriptions for Prisoners since 1975

domain: sociology


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For parents with picky eaters, sometimes the battle to get them to eat something, anything, is enough to be thankful for small miracles of any sustenance they’re willing to try. One component of picky eating that parents may overlook, however, is the texture of food. Children with sensory issues especially have difficulty with variances in color and texture.
Also important with children who lack variety in their food choices, is to choose the healthiest, organic, non-GMO snacks like Kashi layered granola bars in “peanutty dark chocolate”, in order to make their choices count.
In the video below, an accomplished organic chef, Jonathan Justus, from a quaint little restaurant in Missouri called Justus Drugstore (a restaurant), talks about starting with the most basic concepts, pledging to use whole, farm raised meats and farm grown foods. He takes us on a journey of experiments in the various uses of texture to entice the palate.
Another great tip — composition. Interesting plates, those looking like pieces of art can further spark interest in children and influence their eating habits.
After watching the video, it gave us an idea. Make a game of introducing new foods by setting up ramekins of different healthy foods and asking the kids to explain the texture, taste, smell and where it came from and whether or not it is healthy:
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About Hawaii, The Big Island
It’s easy to feel awed on Hawaii Island. From the molten magma flowing from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park to the snow-capped heights of Maunakea; from the green rainforests of the Hamakua Coast to the jet-black sands of Punaluu Beach; Hawaii Island is an unrivaled expression of the power of nature.
To avoid confusion with the name of the entire state, the Island of Hawaii is often called the “Big Island,” and what an appropriate name it is. Nearly twice as big as all of the other Hawaiian Islands combined, its sheer size can be inspiring. You’ll find all but two of the world’s climatic zones within this island’s shores.
The dramatic size and scope of the largest Hawaiian Island create a microcosm of environments and activities. On this island’s vast tableau, you’ll find everything from extravagant resorts and incredible golf courses to modest local towns and sacred Hawaiian historical sites, from the birthplace of King Kamehameha I to Hawaii’s first missionary church in Historic Kailua Village (Kailua-Kona). With so much to see, it’s best to experience the island in small pieces.
The conference resort is located on the Kohala Coast.
Hawaii Island FAQs
What is the time difference from the continental U.S.?
Hawaii follows Hawaii Standard Time (GMT-10 hours), which is 5 hours behind Eastern Standard Time and 2 hours behind Pacific Standard Time. Hawaii does not observe Daylight Savings Time so add one extra hour to the time difference during this period (March through November).
Where is the main airport on Hawaii Island?
Travel to Kona International Airport (KOA) in Kona to the west, or Hilo International Airport (ITO) in Hilo to the east. Most visitors arrive in Kona. There is also the option of flying into Honolulu International Airport (HNL) first and then taking a short, 35-40 minute flight to Hawaii Island.
Do I need a car to get around Hawaii Island?
We recommend a rental car for flexibility and ease, and we strongly suggest booking before you arrive. All the major rental companies are found on Hawaii Island. There are also guided tours of every type from bus tours and taxis to private limos.
Do I need my passport to get to Hawaii Island?
Since Hawaii is the 50th state, you won’t need to bring your passport unless you’re visiting from outside the United States or traveling to another country after Hawaii.
What should I pack on my trip to Hawaii Island?
It’s warm on Hawaii Island, so pack your summer attire. Pack a light, waterproof jacket for hiking or exploring the tropical rainforests of Hilo and the Hamakua Coast and warmer clothes if you plan to visit the uplands of Waimea and the higher elevations of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Bring casual dress clothes or resort wear if you plan on experiencing some fine dining.
Travel Information for Non-U.S. Citizens
To determine which documents you require, contact the U.S. Customs and Border Protection or consulate in your country.

domain: travel


What Is This Deep, Dark Web and What Does It Mean to Your Privacy, Your Money and Your Business
The deep, dark web sounds like it could form the backdrop of a horror film or a spooky story told around a campfire. And until recently, that’s probably what most people would assume when they heard the term.
In reality, the deep web and the dark web make up the majority of the Internet that can’t be accessed through traditional methods. Believe it or not, Google can’t find everything.
What is the Deep Web?
To illustrate the deep web, think of the Internet like an iceberg. It might seem monumental above the ocean’s surface, but the majority of the frozen structure lies beneath the waves, unseen by the naked eye. Also known as the invisible web or the hidden web, the deep web – 90 percent of the total World Wide Web – consists of URLs not indexed by standard search engines, such as Google, Yahoo and DuckDuckGo.
The deep web isn’t nearly as shady as its name implies. Its contents include anything hidden behind HTML forms, including web mail, online banking services and content such as online publications and video-on-demand that is hidden behind a paywall.
Deep web content may not be found via search, but it generally can be accessed via direct URL or IP address, although it could require a password or other credentials to access the page. Some large web publications, such as HuffPost, don’t even index all of their content. Therefore, even though it’s published on a very public site, it can’t be found via search and therefore is part of the deep web.
A History of the Deep Web
Most modern users are unaware, but the World Wide Web was once entirely “hidden.” The Internet as we know it today is the child of the 1970s-era ARPANET, a computer network the U.S. government developed to share sensitive data. Later, ARPANET’s networks evolved into the single worldwide network we know today.
But the World Wide Web we now recognize was born in 1991. Earlier version of the internet only sent and received data, such as emails, chat rooms and discussion forums. Suddenly, the Internet became a place to store data, and web pages were built to provide information on everything under the sun. But how could users find it?
Search engines were introduced to solve that dilemma. Of course, the earliest search engines were far more primitive than today’s Google. They didn’t predict a search, they couldn’t decipher queries with multiple words to determine what was being asked. And they certainly didn’t efficiently crawl trillions of pages in seconds.
Even so, the introduction of search engines created what we now call the surface web. Before then, every web page in existence would be considered the dark web (although the term didn’t exist at the time).
What is the Dark Web?
While the terms are often used interchangeably, the deep web and the dark web aren’t the same entity. The dark web is a part of the deep web that exists only on what are known as darknets, networks within the Internet that require specific software, configurations or authorizations to access. Whereas, the deep web makes up the majority of the Internet, the dark web forms only a small part of it.
Because sites on the dark web can’t be accessed by traditional web browsers such as Chrome or Firefox, they can only be accessed with special software such as The Onion Router, or TOR. Once inside, however, users can surf most of the dark web much as they browse the surface web.
Still, some dark websites are more like the deep web – they aren’t indexed for search and can only be accessed by typing the URL directly. Often such pages are used in illegal activities – sales of drugs and illegal firearms, child pornography, money laundering and sex trafficking, all paid for by anonymous cryptocurrency. In fact, bitcoin can even be used in a crowdfunded “Assassination Market,” which allows dark web users to pay towards having someone assassinated.
Who Uses the Dark Web?
It might be easy to assume that only criminal types – pedophiles, terrorist groups, drug dealers and the like – could ever want to use the dark web. After all, the reason criminal illegal activities take place there is because it’s use is almost completely anonymous. There are no browsers or search engines tracking use of the dark web. But just because someone accesses TOR doesn’t mean he or she is breaking any laws. There are plenty of kitten photos on the dark web, too.
Some people browse the dark web out of nothing more than curiosity. But it also serves some important purposes. Whistleblowers such as Edward Snowden have utilized the dark web to anonymously gather sensitive information, as have law enforcement agencies and investigative journalists.
Both the deep web and the dark web also appeal to privacy advocates, who want nothing more than to shield their Internet use from advertisers and the ever-watchful “big brother.” It’s also become a haven for legitimate consumers from certain parts of the world to purchase items and visit sites that might be otherwise prohibited by an over-reaching government.
How Is the Dark Web Accessed?
Because sites on the dark web mask their IP addresses, they cannot be accessed with traditional web browsers. But TOR and other encryption-friendly software allows users to view this secret network of sites. TOR, an open-source project that developed a Firefox-fork web browser features security and encryption enhancements that can not only browse the dark web but also scrambles a user’s IP address into secrecy.
The FBI has cracked the TOR code, although those holes may have since been recoded, so law enforcement may be tracking those who access the dark web. Therefore, it’s now recommended to access TOR and other dark-web browsers through a Virtual Private Network. VPNs hide Internet usage secret by encrypting it and even providing a fake IP address. They also prevent hackers from stealing users’ identity or personal files.
If you’re not sure what you’re looking for, you can check out the Darknet Market List, which includes many of the “best” black market websites in the deep web. Or, check out available lists of the hidden web sites and tested .onion sites.
Remember, the dark web can be a scary place. Fortunately, there are ways to protect yourself. Check out Jolly Roger’s guide to staying safe in the deep web. No matter what, don’t use the same passwords you use anywhere else, don’t provide your name or other identifying information and don’t make purchases from your primary cryptocurrency account.
What the Dark Web Means to Your Privacy and Your Money
Ever wonder how hacked information is traded? When identity thieves access thousands of account numbers, what do they do with them? Mainly, they sell them on the dark web. Credit card numbers can sell for anywhere from $5 to $30 each. Sometimes criminals steal it just because, and “dump” thousands of account numbers for anyone to access.
While some access the dark web to protect their privacy, it’s also a prime location for identity thieves to gather information. And once data is there, little can be done to save it from theft. There’s a good reason users are advised to create strong passwords and change them frequently. Also, be sure to always use antivirus software on all devices – it does more than stop computer viruses!
If you become aware of a data breach, notify your bank or other issuing institution immediately. Don’t wait for fraud to occur. Even after accounts are cancelled or frozen, be sure and monitor them for suspicious activities. Email and social media accounts could also become compromised, so it’s a good idea to change all your passwords. Regular monitoring – and if necessary, freezing – of your credit reports can also protect you from further identity theft.
What the Dark Web Means to Your Business
Denver-based OWL Cybersecurity recently released a report showing nearly every Fortune 500 company has been exposed and has a presence on dark web. And many of these are companies with the highest levels of protection available.
A company’s firewall and other system protections generally stop external hackers from infiltrating its network and servers from traditional sources, not the dark web. Protecting a business from the dark web requires tracking outgoing information, since hackers often steal data in small amounts over a period of time.
To ensure your outgoing business information is continuously tracked, be sure the company network monitors it and flags any suspicious activity. Firewalls block suspicious incoming traffic, but they often don’t filter information that’s going out, so don’t assume yours is keeping you safe.
Be sure that even one-person virtual businesses are operated through a sufficient network firewall, and no matter what don’t allow any type of dark web browser to be installed on any company device.
Companies can also protect themselves by:
2. Creating backups of all files and formulating a disaster recovery plan. If a network is compromised by Ransomware, often the only way to recover is through a full system restore.
3. Educate employees on cyber security. Cybercrime often occurs from social engineering, phishing or email errors.
4. Use dual-factor authentication and strong passwords. With dual-factor authentication, even a stolen password doesn’t equal a “key to the kingdom.”
5. Consider cybersecurity insurance. Even the best efforts don’t remove all risk. In the event of a hack, the insurance could help you recoup your damages.