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Click above for high-res image gallery of the Porsche Panamera

After what seems to be about the last three decades of seeing spy photos of Porsche’s first four-door super sedan Christian Audigier Clothes, the Panamera Emilio Pucci Dresses, the car is now officially official. Porsche is calling this a four-door grand touring sports car rather than a coupe or sedan. According to the Stuttgart-based brand, the Panamera combines traditional Porsche dynamic behavior with a spacious interior and GT comfort. Unfortunately, they seem to have left an attractive shape out of the equation. Any hopes we had that the Panamera would look better when the camouflage was removed have been quickly dashed.

Power for the Panamera will come from a range of V6 and V8 engines that will likely mirror the Cayenne lineup. The engines will run from a paltry 300 horsepower up to the 500-hp unit from the Cayenne Turbo. Both naturally aspirated and turbo models will be included, with most using direct fuel injection. Getting the power to the wheels will be a choice of six-speed three-pedal gearbox or a seven-speed dual clutch unit. All-wheel drive will be an option on top of the standard rear-wheel drive, as well. At some point, probably sometime later in 2010-11, a hybrid variant will also debut. There’s no word on whether Porsche will add the 3.0L diesel V6 now appearing in the Cayenne to the Panamera, but production starts next spring for a summer on-sale date.

Related Gallery2010 Porsche Panamera
[Source: Porsche]

Given the degree of fascination with tabloid media and gossip magazines have with the demise of celebrities, you could be forgiven if you believed that death was no longer the taboo subject of old. The fact is that most people die without having made a will which often results in significant family and tax difficulties.

During last year’s National Will-Writing Week, statistics emerged to suggest that 70% of the country’s population had not set down how they wanted their assets and family members to be looked after when they died.

This widespread reluctance to make a will should give great cause for concern.

Some people wrongly assume that, on death, all their assets are simply and automatically transferred to their spouse or partner. Both in family and probate law, the myth of the common-law husband or wife persists.

The Intestacy Rules which apply today were set out in the Administration of Estates Act in 1925 and do not, therefore, take account of modern family life.

Many don’t appreciate that dying intestate and unmarried can mean a large proportion of any assets passing instead to estranged siblings or parents Windows 7 Key, something which in life they would expressly not want to happen.

Even those who have gone to the trouble of making a will can find out that they and their relatives do not necessarily have peace of mind. The Legal Services Board has published proposals at the end of the lengthy and thorough inquiry into the provision of Will writing services in the UK.

If not alarmed sufficiently by incidents of fraud and deception, it discovered that one-in-five Wills contained basic errors which could lead to significant problems, including hefty inheritance tax bills.

Some of those, the Legal Services Board discovered, had been drafted by non-lawyers and so, in an attempt to have uniform standards of protection for consumers Cheap windows 7 key, it has recommended that will-writing becomes a regulated profession.

Wills are very important in clearly setting out how someone wants their assets to be disposed of when they die and in a tax efficient manner too. They can be simple, inexpensive documents. Only those estates which require trusts or complex tax planning result in high fees and, even those cases, the tax savings produced by wills vastly outweigh their costs.

It’s crucial, therefore, to know that those actually drafting your will understand all the relevant issues and don’t leave you with the risk of costly liabilities or litigation. If you had opted for someone who didn’t, you might end up with an invalid document which would have been as much use if you’d written it yourself.

Preparing a Will is not simply a matter of recording someone’s intentions. The course of the decade in which I have been handling wills has reinforced that it is more a case of advising an individual on what’s right – or possible – for them, their family and their circumstances.

The process doesn’t have to be complicated and, like prenuptial agreements Office 2007 Key, wills are not the preserve of the wealthy. Likewise, the problems associated with not having an up-to-date will in place afflict the well-known as well as the rest of us.

Amy Winehouse left a £3 million estate but no will to determine how it should be divided. Bob Marley died intestate in 1981 and sparked lengthy litigation, featured in a new documentary film about the reggae legend. The assets of both author Stieg Larsson and TV presenter Jill Dando passed to their parents and not their unmarried partners because they too had not made Wills.

If there is arguably one positive outcome from the cases uncovered by the Legal Services Board, it is that more people are likely to be aware of the difficulties of not having wills and the value of having a valid one in place – whether you live on Stellar Street or Main Street.

More details are coming out from the one-on-one 90 minute meeting held earlier today in Pittsburgh between presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum.

Longtime Santorum advisor John Brabender tells ABC News that the meeting between men who until last month were fierce rivals was more ice breaker than policy debate.

“A wide range of topics were discussed, but the meeting came down to a few issues: economics replica watches, health care, personal issues and how a campaign affects a family, and the two “really just wanted to get to know each other, as well as “how to defeat Barack Obama.” They didn’t have that luxury in the past,” Brabender said, referring to Romney and Santorum getting to know each other on a personal issue.

Brabender listed that as the number one reason of the meeting followed by the “changing thoughts on the race issues and positions on things,” and thirdly the two discussed how “their families are impacted on running from a personal level.”

“I know that Rick shared some critical points of his economic plan replica watches, the manufacturing component and the need to restore manufacturing in America,” Brabender said. “(Santorum) encouraged Gov. Romney to include that as part of his economic plan.”

When asked if the two may campaign together Brabender acknowledged “exciting the base,” was another issue discussed.

“They both have different states they won, different targets,” Brabender said, referring to the different parts of the party the two got support from. “I think it was more how can we combine what we both learned to make sure we win in the fall. Clearly Rick Santorum is a champion in the social conservative realm, with blue collar Republicans, and he wants to keep that energy going in the fall.”

One issue that is completely off the table: retiring Santorum’s nearly $2 million campaign debt. Brabender said it was “never discussed” and they actually made it a “precursor to the conversation” that they had “no interest in discussing that.”

Santorum sent an e mail to supporters Friday saying he will be making an “exciting announcement about what I will be doing next…but before I can make this announcement, I need to spend some time erasing my remaining campaign debt.” The e mail asked supporters to donate in order to erase the debt.

“I feel a very deep responsibility to work to make sure we entirely pay it off,” the e mail read. “As I’m sure you understand, as the parents of seven children, Karen and I are not financially capable of the paying off the entire debt ourselves. We have personally contributed everything we can, and are now dependent on the generosity of others.”

The adviser said he isn’t sure if a formal endorsement would come replica watches, but if it did he expects it to be “sooner than later.”

Brabender said the 90 minute meeting went longer than he originally expected, but he  described it as  a “very friendly, cordial, and candidate conversation.” He added both Santorum and Romney “showed up early because they were looking forward to the meeting.” Brabender did tell ABC News earlier Friday “there was always an expectation it was would take a little bit of time,” referring to the length of the tete a tete.

There was a lot they both wanted to talk about and they both value each other’s opinion,” Brabender said. “It was a reasonable amount of time.”

The meeting was held at Brabender’s office in the scenic Mount Washington section of Pittsburgh. The office overlooks the baseball and football stadiums and Brabender said they were both “glad to host the governor” and give him a “remarkable view of Pittsburgh,” Santorum’s home town.

SHOWS: Nightline This Week World News

Steve Hoefer, who has contributed several articles to MAKE The Best Tattoo Guns, including the Secret Knock Gumball Machine and the Tacit Ultrasonic Bat Glove, has a good post on his blog about how to bring your electronics projects on flights without running into hassles with the TSA.

Communicate, don’t try to hide. This is what a TSA inspector sees when they open my luggage:

Clearly labeled and organized things Starbrite Tattoo Ink, a concise letter to the TSA inspector, contact information (business cards inside of each box too). And a copy of Make magazine for good measure. The outside of my luggage is covered with high visibility retroreflective tape. It’s not trying to blend in.

Front and center is a clear Tattoo Inks, concise note for the TSA agent explaining what they’re going to find within. It doesn’t have to be complete, and shorter is better. But it shows you care about the same things that security agents care about. You’ll also notice that all of my crazy crap prototypes and tools are right on top where they’re easy for an curious inspector to look at. They’re labeled with what they are. I have my contact information prominent and in each box, just in case something gets mislaid.

How To: Fly With Homemade Electronics

THE HAGUE (Reuters) – A United Nations-backed court convicted former Liberian president Charles Taylor of war crimes and crimes against humanity, the first time a head of state has been found guilty by an international tribunal since the Nazi trials at Nuremberg.

The first African leader to stand trial for war crimes, Taylor had been charged with 11 counts of murder, rape, conscripting child soldiers and sexual slavery during intertwined wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone, when more than 50,000 people were killed.

The warlord-turned-president was accused of directing Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels in a campaign of terror to plunder Sierra Leone’s diamond mines for profit and to obtain weapons.

On Thursday, the court ruled that Taylor, 64, was criminally responsible for aiding and abetting the crimes, and found him guilty of providing weapons Tattoo Ink For Sale, food, medical supplies, fuel and equipment to forces in Sierra Leone that committed atrocities.

But it said he was not guilty of either ordering or planning the atrocities – a disappointment for the prosecution and a decision that could eventually result in a lighter sentence.

“The trial chamber, having already found the accused guilty of aiding and abetting, does not find the accused also instigated these crimes,” Presiding Judge Richard Lussick said.

Wearing a dark blue suit and maroon tie, Taylor looked calm and subdued as the presiding judge took more than two hours to read out the charges, evidence and final ruling.

The litany of gruesome crimes covered rapes and enslavement, beheadings and disembowelings, amputations and other mutilations carried out by child soldiers notorious for being high on drugs and dressed in fright wigs.

“A civilian was killed in full public view and then his body was disemboweled and his intestines stretched across the road to make a checkpoint. Women and children were raped in public, people were burned alive in their homes,” the judge said.

“The purpose of these atrocities was to instill terror in the civilian population.”

And in return for providing arms and ammunition for the conflict, the judge recounted how Taylor had received “blood diamonds”, as the stones from Sierra Leone’s conflict zones were known, including a 45-carat diamond and two 25-carat diamonds.

The trial attracted international attention, not just because of Taylor himself but because supermodel Naomi Campbell was called as a witness by the prosecution in an attempt to show that Taylor was knowingly trading weapons for diamonds.

The prosecution said Taylor had sent uncut diamonds to Campbell’s hotel room after a dinner given by Nelson Mandela, attended by both her and Taylor. She told the court she had no idea who had sent her the diamonds, which she called “dirty little pebbles”.

POWERFUL MESSAGE

Human rights groups and victims welcomed the court’s decision, with some saying it would serve as a strong warning to other leaders responsible for atrocities in conflict zones.

“Taylor’s conviction sends a powerful message that even those in the highest-level positions can be held to account for grave crimes,” Elise Keppler, senior counsel for Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

“Not since Nuremberg has an international or hybrid war crimes court issued a judgment against a current or former head of state. This is a victory for Sierra Leonean victims, and all those seeking justice when the worst abuses are committed.”

White House spokesman Jay Carney said: “While there is no way fully to redress the suffering and loss of those who were killed, tortured, raped, and enslaved in the service of Taylor’s criminal schemes, we are hopeful that today’s ruling will help to dissuade others who might follow in his footsteps.”

He said in a statement that the court “sent a clear signal that neither rank nor title will shield from justice those who perpetrate the most egregious of crimes.”

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 16, with a decision expected later that month.

Court sources said the judges had earlier been in disagreement over the verdict and were not speaking to each other at the end.

Carsten Stahn, professor of international criminal law at the University of Leiden, said the decision to convict unanimously was a surprise.

“There have been rumors of conflicts between the judges in the trial chamber, which is partly why it’s taken so long to reach a verdict,” he said.

El Hadji Malick Sow, who as alternate judge sat through the six years of the trial but was excluded from deliberations, sought to express a dissenting opinion at the end.

“The guilt of the accused from the evidence provided in this trial is not proved beyond reasonable doubt,” he said, remaining in the chamber after his colleagues had left and his microphone had been switched off.

Victims were in no doubt about the conviction.

“I’m so happy that justice has been done,” said Alhaji Jusu Jarka, 46, who had both hands amputated during an attack on Freetown on January 6, 1999.

Standing outside the special court in Freetown, he told Reuters he hoped Taylor would get “100 or more years” when sentenced.

Taylor has denied the charges, insisting he tried to bring peace to the region and arguing his trial was a politically motivated conspiracy by Western nations.

But the judge said that “the accused was publicly promoting peace, while privately providing arms to the RUF,” adding that “There was a constant flow … of diamonds from Sierra Leone to the accused, often in exchange for arms and ammunition.”

Liberian Senator Sando Johnson, a family spokesman, said: “We will not give up in this fight and we will not give up this struggle. We are going to stand by Mr Taylor until death do us part.”

At the start of the hearing, Taylor seemed relaxed, waving at some people sitting in the public gallery, and separated from the windowless trial chamber by a thick pane of glass.

Later, as the presiding judge’s reading of the judgment appeared to swing against Taylor, the former president clasped his hands more tensely in front of him.

Taylor, a former Baptist who converted to the Jewish faith, is one of just a handful of former leaders who have appeared before the international courts.

The International Criminal Court Tattoo Machine Coils, also in The Hague, is pursuing several investigations with mixed success.

Last year it arrested former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo, who is charged with individual responsibility on counts of crimes against humanity — murder, rape and other forms of sexual violence, persecution, and other inhuman acts.

It issued an arrest warrant for Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of the country’s late leader, but is caught in a battle with the Libyan authorities over where Saif, who was captured last year but remains in Libyan hands, should be tried.

Former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic died in The Hague in 2006 before the war crimes tribunal for former Yugoslavia could reach its verdict.

The Taylor case was closely watched for its security implications, with a U.S. diplomat warning in the WikiLeaks cables that if Taylor was acquitted or given a light sentence, his return to Liberia could threaten “a fragile peace”.

Taylor’s trial was moved to The Hague in June 2006 due to fears that a trial in Sierra Leone’s capital Freetown could kindle unrest in Sierra Leone or Liberia.

(Additional reporting by Simon Akam in Freetown, Clair MacDougall and Alphonso Toweh in Monrovia Tattoo Machine Supply, Bienvenu Bakumanya in Kinshasa and Matt Spetalnick in Washington; Writing by Sara Webb; Editing by Alison Williams, Giles Elgood and Philip Barbara)

World United Nations

Religious communities are never the same once they reach America. In my view, they often become even more remarkable.

As a third-generation American Jew, it is at times even challenging for me to think of Judaism apart from the American experience. In spite of hardships early on for our community, the search for common threads between the disparate Jewish groups that came in droves to America two (and more) generations ago forced us to reexamine and hone our religious beliefs. What actually bound us together?

Answering that question compelled leaders of the American Jewish movements to articulate key Jewish values for the contemporary world — notably equality, education and the support of Jewish communities worldwide. Yet most compelling for many American Jews was, and remains, the active engagement of social justice issues.

We emerged from disempowered (and worse) circumstances in Europe as a community that lived out its faith through action in America. From the labor movement to the feminist movement to the civil rights movement to the environmental movement, American Jews found themselves disproportionately represented and often in leadership roles. Jewish belief (whether theological, ethical, or both) guided action, and action inspired belief.

As has become quite evident in the past several years, another set of religious groups, bolstered by recent waves of immigrants to America, is also looking to social justice as a possible unifying trope. Launched by Anju Bhargava, Hindu-American visionary and founder of Hindu American Seva Charities, this effort seeks to increase long-term collaboration between Buddhist, Hindu, Jain and Sikh communities through religiously inspired volunteerism, charity and social services.

Together, these groups — several of which are comprised primarily of immigrants from South and East Asia — represent what may be described as Dharmic religious communities and a new coalition in the American religious landscape. They are seeking a unique American identity and niche for their adherents. Like other religious communities that have flourished during and after waves of immigration, they appear poised to make essential contributions to American society.

I was blessed to see the formal launch of their historic collaboration this week at a conference hosted by the White House. Entitled “Community Building in the 21st Century with Strengthened Dharmic Faith-Based Institutions,” it sought to build strategic collaboration between each religious community and create a common language with which to do so.

As one of a dozen non-Dharmic participants fortunate enough to take part, I was profoundly moved by what I saw. The search for commonality among Dharmic religious practitioners was well underway, and I was witnessing these communities work to determine the values they would express through their institutions in America. It felt like a sacred moment and one of conscious transition for the religious communities involved.

I could not but see resonance between the formation of such partnerships between Sikhs, Buddhists, Hindus and Jains and those that had emerged within the then-disparate Jewish communities during the period of great Jewish immigration to America.

What were to be the shared goals of these communities? What was unique about each one? Could they all even come together under the banner of a religious coalition, or did some of the groups see themselves on a different spectrum altogether? Was it possible for immigrants from South and East Asia to seek common cause in spite of coming from distinct countries?

Most impressive to me was the emphasis on planning for the future. The Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist and Jain leaders present at the White House did not simply want to find common cause in the present but determine systematic ways of articulating their religious values through action in the future. While theological and philosophical differences were identified and made explicit (for example, through the presence of four different mantras and/or prayers with which to open the gathering) Cheap Herve Leger v neck, the shared focus of social and human issues was unmistakable. The Dharmic religious communities seem poised to singularly effect change in the American religious context and to do so in tandem.

It was an honor to see Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Jains not only engaging in but building upon their religious precedents for a vital and important role in America’s future. Their efforts, particularly to provide much-needed social services to the aged, the unwell Discount DKNY Clothes, and the needy, are likely to become a model from which all American religious communities can learn.

There is also growing focus among American Dharmic communities about international human rights concerns. This comes in response to growing evidence of possible kidnappings, forced marriages, and high conversion rates among Hindus and Sikhs (and Christians) in Pakistan, as well as Buddhists in Southeast Asia.

If the evidence is corroborated, what is the role of American Dharmic communities in addressing these concerns overseas? Is there some kind of protection they can provide from America for practitioners abroad who might feel at risk?

If so, this suggests a new role for American Dharmic communities not only domestically but also as leaders within their respective traditions internationally.

Click above for a gallery of the 2009 Mitsubishi Colt DKNY Dresses sale

Our hunch that Mitsubishi would bring a redesigned Colt to the Paris Motor Show after it released a teaser earlier this week has been confirmed when the automaker inadvertently (?) posted a banner ad of the new sub-compact on its webpage.

The new Colt benefits from the familial angry-eye headlamps and trapezoidal grille Replica DKNY Clothes, although both elements have been toned down to better suit the Colt’s smaller proportions. The compact cruiser is available in both three- and five-door body styles, with an upright backside that should maximize cargo space. A range of miserly mills power the current Colt Cheap Herve Leger v neck, ranging from 1.1- to 1.5-liters Cheap Chanel Dresses, along with a 1.5-liter DI-D diesel. We expect some of these engines to carry over to the new model, and a cabrio version is probably right around the corner.

If Mitsubishi wants to do battle with the Yaris Buy Herve leger strapless, Fit Buy Herve Leger gown, Versa and… ahem… Aveo/G3, we might see the Colt come Stateside. But we’re not quite ready to hold our breath.

Related Gallery2009 Mitsubishi Colt
[Source: es.autoblog.com]

Gov. Rick Perry

DES MOINES, Iowa—”Can you do me a favor?” asks Tom Deregger. “Do you know what the schedule is after this is done?”

“This” is an address from Herman Cain, the first in a series of Friday speeches from GOP candidates at the Iowa State Fair. Deregger and Rick Titus, self-employed friends from northern Iowa Cheap Herve leger strapless, had been enjoying it Emilio Pucci Dresses sale, which everyone present could tell, because they had the biggest voices in a sleepy midmorning crowd. When Cain said his father earned money the old-fashioned way—”he worked for it!”—Titus let loose with a massive “Yeeeeeee-haw!” Cain said he knew how Washington worked. “It doesn’t!” Deregger howled with approval.

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I wrote down the schedule of the next few speakers. Thaddeus McCotter at 11, Rick Santorum at 11:30, Ron Paul at noon Replica Christian Audigier Clothing, Newt Gingrich at 2:30, Michele Bachmann at 4. Deregger eyed it with a look that was half-disinterest and half-confusion—”who is Magutter?”—before he saw Ron Paul’s name.

“That’s who I’m voting for Discount DKNY Clothes,” he tells me. “Cain was saying the right stuff up there, but Paul’s my guy.”

“The rest of these guys are just status quo,” says Titus. “Paul’s the only one who’s talking about the bankers and the Fed.” He pulls out a dollar bill and points to the words Federal Reserve Note.

“It’s not a note!” he says. “Do you see an expiration date on there?”

Titus and Deregger exemplify one of the three breeds of Iowa Republican voters. They’re die-hards, with unchangeable opinions about the candidate they landed on months or years ago. They have fears; no one else speaks to them. They’ll wait for the caucuses, show up, go home. At this moment in Iowa, the only sure-thing voters are the people voting for Ron Paul, which is one reason Republicans keep predicting that he’ll win Saturday’s straw poll. (The other reason is that they want it to be news if someone else wins.)

The two other breeds are the undecideds and the settlers. There’s some overlap between them. Many of the undecideds say that they haven’t heard from, or of, all the candidates yet. They have trouble naming them. They double-check with reporters to see who is running.

What about the Iowans who are already settling for a candidate? They like one or two of their current choices, but they’re not sold on them yet. They want to hear more about Rick Perry, about whom they know almost nothing, or they want some kind of decision from Sarah Palin, about whom they know everything.

“I want to know more about Perry,” says Frank Dailey, who ponders the question alongside his wife, Linda. Both are wearing shirts with American flag colors and the slogan You Are Not ENTITLED to What I Earn. “Everything I’ve heard about his record in Texas is very good.”

But what about Perry’s decision to jump into the race as the Ames Straw Poll is happening? Isn’t that an insult to Iowa voters?

“I think that’s something you guys in the media care about,” he says.

Iowans always engage in some fantasizing before they drive themselves over to the caucuses. There were polls well into 2003 showing that Al Gore or Hillary Clinton could win the Democratic nomination. (A lot of good that did her in 2008.) Republicans hated having to choose between McCain Discount DKNY Dresses, Romney DKNY Clothing sale, and Huckabee in 2007, and for a brief, delirious moment, 27 percent of them said they wanted Fred Thompson to jump into the race and save them. He jumped into the race. He didn’t save them.

The backers of Mitt Romney and Tim Pawlenty like to remember all that. Their support is soft, sure. But candidates flop all the time. Celebrities take passes at running all the time. This is a problem they can endure; they will eventually start grabbing the votes of those settlers.

As the Daileys walk away, Cain is long gone. The barely known McCotter ascends the stage and takes his place behind its immaculately arranged hay bales. A small number of fair-goers get to hear his monotone warnings about how America could follow Europe’s lead into collapse. A man named Ronald Van Genderen rested his hands on his folding chair and explained to McCotter that he wanted a candidate who came from the middle class. It sounded like the candidate had made a sale. Nope.

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Now that the last Porsche Carrera GT has rolled off the line Karen Millen Dresses sale, Porsche has been busy retooling to accommodate the new Porsche Panamera Chloe Dresses sale, a four-door sedan that will likely compete with vehicles such as the Mercedes CLS 55 AMG and Maserati Quattroporte. We’re not so sure on the reliability of the source White Herve leger sale, but if the rumors are correct Herve Leger sale, we’ll see the Porsche Panamera early next year with a possible pre-production unveiling at the Paris Motor Show this fall.

Thanks to Richard for the tip.

[Source: Sybarites.org]

Think there are a lot of Mini variants already? Hold on to your hats Replica Versace Watches, because BMW is showing no signs of slowing down any time soon. Next month the new Mini Roadster will hit American showrooms, and next year Fake Parmigiani Fleurier Watches for sale, a two-door crossover (presaged by the Paceman concept from Detroit last year but carrying the Countryman Coupe in production form) should be available as well. But that’s only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

With the third-generation Mini Cooper hatchback set to arrive in 2014, the Anglo-German automaker will soon begin the whole process anew. And when all’s said and done by the end of the decade Replica Perrelet Watches, the Mini range will have – according to reports – grown by another three bodystyles for a total of 10.

The current lineup includes six bodystyles: the standard Cooper hatchback, the Mini Convertible, the Coupe Fake U Boat Watches, the Roadster Where find Replica Emporio Armani Watches, the Clubman wagon and the Countryman crossover. Throw the Countryman Coupe into the mix and you’ve got seven. What Mini will come up with next for three additional versions remains to be seen – we wouldn’t be surprised to see a minivan, a slant-back crossover or maybe a convertible crossover (like the Beachcomber concept pictured above) – but if anyone can milk the bodystyle cow for all it’s worth Sarcar Replica Watches, we’re confident its initials are B-M-W.

Today we’re making one of the most important—and overdue—changes to Slate in many years: We’re adding in-page comments to Slate articles and blog posts. We’ve always known that Slate’s intelligent, engaged readers—yes, I’m talking to you—are an extraordinary group, but we haven’t done a very good job involving you in the site. Whenever we ask for your ideas, you dazzle us (see: the Write Like Sarah Palin contest, the Fix Airline Security contest, the Pass Health Care Reform contest). And the quality of discussion in the Fray, our longtime reader forum, is exceptional.

But the Fray has major shortcomings compared with the in-page commenting used by most of our competitors. For example Replica Tudor Watches for sale, only a small minority of Slate users read the Fray, and an even smaller group actually contributes to it. Fray discussion is isolated from Slatearticles and is too insular.

We wanted to find a way to ensure that all our readers could see and join in a lively conversation about Slate’s work. That is why we’re thrilled to announce the launch of an in-page commenting system called Echo, powered by the Web developer JS-Kit, that will finally allow readers to post their thoughts directly to our articles.

We recognize that we’re late to in-page commenting. Our competitors adopted it months or years ago. But waiting has allowed us to learn from them and pick a platform that has Fake Versace Watches, we hope, most of the best commenting features available. So, how does it work?

Echo will be very familiar to those of you who comment or read comments on other sites. At the bottom of this page—and every Slate article page or blog post or Slatest item—you see two bright orange buttons. One lists the number of comments made about the article. The other invites you to add your own comment. If you click on the number of comments button, you’ll be taken to the bottom of the page, where you can read through all the comments made by fellow readers. If you click on the “Add Yours” button, you’ll be taken to a box, also at the bottom of the page where you can submit your comment after signing in. You can log in (via the “From” box) using your pre-existing Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yahoo, or FriendFeed accounts. If you don’t have any of those accounts, or don’t want to use them, you can register for a JS-Kit account and log in that way, too. (We will eventually be adding a Slate commenting identity as well Fake Parmigiani Fleurier Watches, allowing you to sign in another way.)

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One of the best features of Echo is that it allows you to post your comment not only on Slate but also on other social media. By clicking on the “To” button, you can choose to add your comment to your Facebook feed, your Twitter account, and so on, allowing you to share your thoughts with your friends across the Web.

Another interesting feature in the comment box is the “Follow” button, which allows you to register for e-mail notifications alerting you whenever anyone has responded to your comment.

After you post your comment Replica Montblanc Watches, it appears immediately below the box, at the top of the whole roster of comments. (The most recent comment appears at the top, so yours will move down the page as others weigh in.) Slate readers can reply to your comment and signal whether they like it. You can also “flag” comments that are abusive, which will alert our moderator to check the problem entry, and he remove it if it violates our rules of the road. This flagging is one way we’ll ensure a civil discussion. Requiring users to sign in—and thus barring anonymous comments—is another important way to improve discussion. These upgraded authentication and moderation capabilities will, we hope, discourage trolls and sockpuppets and enable us to better highlight the work of our finest reader-contributors.

Yet another significant improvement on the Fray is Echo’s profile pages. These provide a complete history of each user’s comments. You can use it to add a photo avatar and post links to personal Web sites and blogs. You can also merge your Twitter, Google, and Facebook identities so that your commenting history includes posts made from all of these accounts. Starting soon Replica Swiss Movement Watches, Slate writers and editors will also be identified by distinctive images, allowing readers to see how they’re responding to comments about their work.

While this commenting launch is a big first step, keep in mind that it is only a first step. We will be making ongoing improvements to the commenting system in the coming months, and we are hungry for your input on the upsides and downsides of the new platform. So please Audemars Piguet Replica Watches, send us your feedback! Try out the new system throughout Slate and post your suggestions for how to improve it in the comments at the bottom of this article or send a suggestion privately by e-mail to slatecomments@gmail.com.

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