Transit, parking services expanded for Miami Heat parade

Miami-Dade Transit is beefing up Metrorail and Metromover services to accommodate people going to Monday?s parade celebrating the Miami Heat?s NBA championship, and additional parking lots will be available for fans to use.

Downtown trolley service will be rerouted during the parade, which will run from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

The Metrorail and Metromover will monitor passenger loads and add trains as needed to accommodate parade traffic. ?Express pay? lanes will be set up at certain Metrorail stations before and after the parade so riders can pay cash ? they should bring exact change of $2 each way ? if they don?t have an EASY Card or EASY Ticket.

Express-pay lanes wll be set up at Dadeland South, Dadeland North, South Miami, Hialeah, Okeechobee and Tri-Rail transfer stations from 8 to 11 a.m., and at Government Center and Brickell stations from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Riders can exit the Metromover at Brickell, Eighth Street, Fifth Street, Bayfront Park and College/Bayside stations to reach the parade. Freedom Tower and Park West stations are the closest to the arena.

Parking will be available beginning at 7 a.m. Monday in special lots. Garage 3 of the College Station Garage off Northeast Third Street and Second Avenue will cost $15. Lot 19 between Northeast Fourth Street and First Street along Biscayne Boulevard; Lot 20 near the Hotel InterContinental Miami on Chopin Plaza; Lot 301 on Old Port Boulevard adjacent to the north side of Bayside Marketplace; and Lot C of the Arsht Center off Northeast 13th Street and Second Avenue will all cost $20.

Trolley service in downtown will be detoured during the parade. Between 10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. the Brickell-Biscayne trolleys will run from Southwest Second Avenue to Northwest Second Avenue between Coral Way and Northwest 15th Street. There will be no service along the Brickell-Biscayne route during that period. Service from Brickell Metrorail Station to Brickell Key will run normally.

The parade will start at 11 a.m. at the corner of Southeast Eighth Street and Second Avenue, head east on Eighth, then north on Brickell Avenue, across the bridge and north on Biscayne Boulevard to the arena.

At 12:30 p.m., the team will go inside AmericanAirlines Arena for an additional private celebration reserved for season-ticket holders. Neither the parade nor the indoor festivities will be shown on the big screen on the arena?s exterior.

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Equipment Lease Finance Industry Confidence Lower in June ...

Equipment Lease Finance Industry Confidence Lower in June

The?Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation?(the Foundation) releases the June 2012?Monthly Confidence Index for the Equipment Finance Industry?(MCI-EFI) today. Designed to collect leadership data, the index reports a qualitative assessment of both the prevailing business conditions and expectations for the future as reported by key executives from the $628 billion equipment finance sector. Overall, confidence in the equipment finance market is 48.5, down from the May index of 59.2, reflecting growing concern over the European debt crisis,?U.S.?unemployment, and regulatory and political uncertainty.

?

When asked about the outlook for the future, MCI survey respondent?Harry Kaplun, President, Frost Equipment Leasing and Finance, offered comments shared by others responding to the MCI survey,??Uncertainty is becoming more pronounced in the economy.? International economic problems,?U.S.?unemployment, and potential political changes all contribute to a hesitancy to make major capital expenditures.?

?

June 2012 Survey Results:

The overall MCI-EFI is 48.5, down from the May index of 59.2.

?

  • ??????????When asked to assess their business conditions over the next four months, 8.1% of executives responding said they believe business conditions will improve over the next four months, down from 17.1% in May. 64.9% of respondents believe business conditions will remain the same over the next four months, down from 77.1% in May. 27% believe business conditions will worsen, up from 5.7% the previous month.

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  • 8.1% of survey respondents believe demand for leases and loans to fund capital expenditures (capex) will increase over the next four months, a decrease from 20% in May. 64.9% believe demand will ?remain the same? during the same four-month time period, down from 77.1% the previous month. 27% believe demand will decline, up from 2.9% in May.

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  • 10.8% of executives expect more access to capital to fund equipment acquisitions over the next four months, down from 25.7% in May. 86.5% of survey respondents indicate they expect the ?same? access to capital to fund business, an increase from 74.3% the previous month. 2.7% survey respondents expect ?less? access to capital, up from no one who expected less access in May.

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  • When asked, 24.3% of the executives reported they expect to hire more employees over the next four months, down from 31.4% in May. 64.9% expect no change in headcount over the next four months, an increase from 62.9% last month, while 10.8% expect fewer employees, up from 5.7% in May.

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  • 78.4% of the leadership evaluates the current?U.S.?economy as ?fair,? down from 88.6% last month. 21.6% rate it as ?poor,? up from 11.4% in May.

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  • 8.1% of survey respondents believe that?U.S.?economic conditions will get ?better? over the next six months, down from 22.9% in May. 64.9% of survey respondents indicate they believe theU.S.?economy will ?stay the same? over the next six months, down from 65.7% in May. 27% believe economic conditions in the?U.S.?will worsen over the next six months, an increase from 11.4% who believed so last month.

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  • In May, 29.7% of respondents indicate they believe their company will increase spending on business development activities during the next six months, down from 37.1% in May. 70.3% believe there will be ?no change? in business development spending, up from 62.9% last month, and no one believes there will be a decrease in spending, unchanged from last month.

?

?

June 2012 MCI Survey Comments from Industry Executive Leadership:

Depending on the market segment they represent, executives have differing points of view on the current and future outlook for the industry.

?

Independent, Micro Ticket

?The Equipment Leasing & Finance industry is doing well.? However, the macroeconomic climate is unsettled which is muting our industry?s growth.??Paul Menzel, President and CEO, Financial Pacific Leasing, LLC

?

Independent, Small Ticket

?[We?re] concerned about what impact Europe?s problems and their banks may have on the?U.S.economy.??William H. Besgen, President and COO, Hitachi Capital America Corp.

?

Bank, Middle Ticket

?The future of the industry is good even with the changes on the horizon.? The next few months will be challenging due to the political and global economic conditions.??Elaine Temple, President, Bancorpsouth Equipment Finance

?

Independent, Large Ticket

?[It is] still to be determined.? JP Morgan did us no favors.? Europe [is] still choked with debt [which] will have a major impact on the?U.S.? The fast approaching budget/year end crisis for the?U.S.?will be last year all over again. ?Regardless of who is in the White House, the problem will not be dealt with.?Anonymous?????????

?

?

Why an MCI-EFI?

Confidence in the?U.S.?economy and the capital markets is a critical driver to the equipment finance industry. Throughout history, when confidence increases, consumers and businesses are more apt to acquire more consumer goods, equipment and durables, and invest at prevailing prices. When confidence decreases, spending and risk-taking tend to fall. Investors are said to be confident when the news about the future is good and stock prices are rising.

Who participates in the MCI-EFI?

The respondents are comprised of a wide cross section of industry executives, including large-ticket, middle-market and small-ticket banks, independents and captive equipment finance companies. The MCI-EFI uses the same pool of 50 organization leaders to respond monthly to ensure the survey?s integrity. Since the same organizations provide the data from month to month, the results constitute a consistent barometer of the industry?s confidence.

?

How is the MCI-EFI designed?

The survey consists of seven questions and an area for comments, asking the respondents? opinions about the following:

  1. Current business conditions
  2. Expected product demand over the next four months
  3. Access to capital over the next four months
  4. Future employment conditions
  5. Evaluation of the current?U.S.?economy
  6. U.S.?economic conditions over the next six months
  7. Business development spending expectations
  8. Open-ended question for comment

?

How may I access the MCI-EFI?

Survey results are posted on the Foundation website,?http://www.leasefoundation.org/IndRsrcs/MCI/, included in the?Foundation Forecast newsletter?and included in press releases. Survey respondent demographics and additional information about the MCI are also available at the link above.

?

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Travel Canada: The Rock is on a roll in Newfoundland

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ST. JOHN?S?These are heady days in this oft-beleaguered town. The oil industry has brought a boom. There are new condo projects downtown and restaurants serving blistered Naples-style pizzas and Japanese fusion cuisine. New shops on Water St. sell the sort of trendy goods you?d find on Queen West or Ossington.

Yet there are still those quintessential St. John?s experiences, including pubs that would make you swear you?re in Dublin, endless ocean views from steep, craggy cliffs, gaily painted ?jelly houses? and cars that screech to a stop so pedestrians can jaywalk on the busiest streets. Here?s how you can spend a great 2 days in this fabulous Canadian city.

FRIDAY

5 p.m. SIGNAL YOUR INTENTIONS

Signal Hill is just two minutes from downtown by car. But you?ll feel a world away, with sweeping vistas out to sea and back into town and ? depending on the famous fog ? down to Cape Spear.

This is where Guglielmo Marconi received the first transatlantic message, back in 1901. If your timing is right, you might see a parks worker dressed in 19th-century military gear firing volleys to salute a departing cruise ship as it slips through the rugged narrows. There are tours and military tattoos and all sorts of events in season. pc.gc.ca

8 p.m. INVENTIVE CUISINE, SANS FOAM

Situated in an old house with small rooms, there?s plenty of traditional cuisine done up with surprising flair at Bacalao. The caribou in partridgeberry sauce is lean and tasty with perfect gnocchi and roasted vegetables. They also have fresh cod, of course. Seal flipper pie comes with red wine and spices that resemble a mince tart. The honey brown ginger cake is made with local beer and topped with scalded cream. The menu is inventive, but this is, thankfully, not nouvelle cuisine. Says owner Andrea Maunder: ?Foam belongs in cappuccino, not on a plate.? 65 Lemarchant Rd., 709-579-6565. bacalaocuisine.ca

10 p.m. GEORGE ST. HIGHJINKS

When I was there, Bridie Molloy?s featured an old-timer with long, stringy grey hair and a cool-looking guitar playing traditional Irish tunes. There?s frosted glass and warm wood and fireplaces.

O?Reilly?s has a cool balcony area and lots of live music, as well as local Yellow Belly beers.

At Kelly?s, you might get ?The Wild Rover? followed by a singalong ?Sweet Caroline.? When I was there, an old-timer got up to do a jig as his wife (I think) danced and pretended to unbutton her blouse. The young staff howled with laughter. I jokingly turned to a young woman behind the bar and asked if the old guy was her boyfriend. ?I wish,? she said. ?He?s adorable.? And that is why you should go to St. John?s. georgestreetlive.ca

SATURDAY

8 a.m. WAKE UP TIME

Top-notch coffee, fabulous baked bread and inventive sandwiches are among the fabulous treats at Rocket, a bright and cheery spot that feels like country store meets Ossington. Try the croissants with lemon curd or the cranberry chocolate almond loaf. The sitting room next door has tables and chairs painted in the same deep pastels you?ll find on the city?s nearby ?jelly houses.? For lunch, try the pulled pork sandwich with a bottle of ginger and lemon grass cordial. 272 Water St., 709-738-2011. rocketfood.ca

9 a.m. A PERFECT FISHING VILLAGE

The name of a small lake with a great walking/jogging/biking trail around it, it also refers to the tiny, quaint, fishing village on the shores of the rocky bay, which is enclosed by giant, brooding dark cliffs topped with scraggly evergreens. The Quidi Vidi Brewery draws crowds for an array of fresh beers, including an Iceberg beer and Eric?s Cream Ale. 15 Barrows St., 709-738-4040. quidividibrewery.ca

10 a.m. A TASTE OF WILD NEWFOUNDLAND

Take a leisurely drive past fine, country homes on your way out to the coast near Middle Cove Beach. Parts of the area look like southern Ontario?s rolling hills, but the scenery quickly gives way to stark cliffs and wild ocean. In late spring or early summer, small fish called capelin move in and spawn. Locals gather them up and puffins and whales come for the free picnic.

Head to Flatrock, which looks like a smaller version of Gaspe, and check out the pretty Our Lady of Lourdes grotto, with its Catholic monuments. Pope John Paul II came here in 1984. townofflatrock.com

NOON, WATER STREET WATERING HOLE

At Celtic Hearth, they?ve taken a series of old shops and converted the space into an Irish-style pub. There are elements from the shops that used to occupy the premises: old-time candies, funky hardware and cigars alongside bright red fire trucks and dolls outfitted in frilly lace. Ask for the lobster macaroni and cheese; with huge chunks of fresh seafood. Wash it down with a Quidi Vidi beer. 298-300 Water St., 709-576-2880. Part of Bridie Molloy?s, which is upstairs.

2 p.m. A LITTLE CULTURE

The Rooms is a fine place to learn about the history of this magic ? and sometimes tragic ? place. You?ll find old-time photos of guys in swim trunks on top of an iceberg or fun shots such as ?Mrs. Howell and the girls on a picnic in 1943.?

Especially touching are stories about Irish immigrants coming over on crummy boats during horrific Atlantic storms. One exhibit talks about a trip of six weeks on a ship where the mast broke on Day 3 and waves poured over the deck. ?You may be sure that there is not a saint in the calendar that was not invoked.?

There?s also cool, modern art, displays on the cod fishery and Basque whalers from Spain, plus exhibits on native Beothuk and Inuit (from Labrador).

The building is bright and airy and there are killer views of downtown and the harbour. Adult admission is $7.50, with reduced rates for students, children and seniors. 9 Bonaventure Ave., 709-757-8000. therooms.ca

5 p.m. JELLY TIME

Brilliant blue. Autumn gold. Deep cranberry. Cape Cod grey. Avocado. And colours the crayon people have never discovered. This city?s ?jelly houses? are something to behold; brilliant displays of wild, fog-repelling (okay, maybe not) paint with a ton of character. You?ll find some of the best on Gower Street. Check the former Cochrane Hotel at Cochrane and Gower. It?s said to have housed everyone from Marconi to Leon Trotsky in its day.

8 p.m. WATER STREET DINING

Bianca?s does a tremendous cod served over tender gnocchi with bacon and a spicy rose sauce with broccolini and asparagus. Also try the pork belly, which is tender and rich, or the shrimp and lobster bisque. Owner Bianca Tzanov, who came from Bulgaria, says it took a few months for Newfoundlanders to catch on to her different menu, billed on the website as regional-based but also avant garde with Mediterranean roots. 171 Water St., 709-726-9016. biancas.net

10 p.m. DUCK INTO THE DUKE

This pub on Duckworth Street is a favourite of Jim Cuddy from Blue Rodeo and is featured on the Republic of Doyle. The fish and chips are plentiful, with a crunchy exterior. Be aware that often in this town you?ll be offered dressing (kind of a powdery, turkey-like stuffing sprinkled on top), plus gravy. There?s homey wallpaper and stained-glass light fixtures and scarves from soccer clubs around the world. Nothing fancy but just right. 325 Duckworth, 709-739-6344. dukeofduckworth.com

SUNDAY

10 a.m. RECHARGE YOUR BATTERY

You can?t really do St. John?s without a stroll out to the Battery; the impossibly colourful (there?s that word again) collection of ramshackle homes that line the rocky entrance to the harbour. Head out Duckworth, turn right on Battery Road and look for a place to park, or just make a 10- to 15-minute walk from downtown.

There are welcome signs everywhere you go and the trail is well-marked. You?ll zag past blue, orange and pale green homes and artist studios. Finally, just before you enter the North Head Trail below Signal Hill, you?ll cross over somebody?s front deck, about a metre from their front door. One can only surmise they get dressed before picking up the morning paper. The trail can be a tad slippery but the views of the narrows, the surging surf, the boats, the gulls and abandoned military posts are tremendous.

NOON, A TASTE OF NAPLES

Piatto is an upscale Italian place on Duckworth, with the de rigeur Vespa in the window, a wood-fired pizza oven and a fun, bistro-like feel. My salumi appetizer was $14 and came with roasted, sweet peppers, prosciutto, speck and sliced salami, plus focaccia bread, a few olives, two small slices (not the good, crumbly stuff) of parmesan and two wedges of, um, brie. There was a half-ton of meat on my Sicilian pizza; spicy sausage and prosciutto and roasted peppers but the crust was a tad thick for real Neapolitan pie. 377 Duckworth, 709-726-0909. piattopizzeria.com

2 p.m. QUEST FOR ICE

There may not be icebergs this far south in July but, in May, there were still plenty out and about. The folks at Iceberg Quest will take you out for a couple of hours and show you some of nature?s most sublime sights.

If the bergs aren?t around, and some years they simply don?t appear near St. John?s, you can get close-up views of puffins or take a whale-watching trip. One of my tour guides, Nathan, says he knows some of the whales by sight. ?Two of them we call Mutt and Jeff. Whatever one does, the other does the same. It?s great. They sometimes get within a couple feet of the boat.? The ticket booth is at Pier 6 at Harbourfront, near The Keg. Tours are $60 for adults, $55 for seniors and $28 for kids 12 and under. 866-720-1888. icebergquest.com

5 p.m. CAPE CRUSADERS

Cape Spear, a national historic site, can be stunningly lovely. Or not. Troops stationed here during World War II complained of being cold, clammy and miserable. There are two lighthouses and a great boardwalk and old battlements from the war. It?s the easternmost point of North America, far closer to Ireland than to Vancouver, and a lot of folks come for the sunrise. There?s a big sign down near the water that tells folks that Canada either begins here or ends here, depending on your perspective. It?s a great place to say hello to St. John?s. Or goodbye.

jbyers@thestar.ca

JUST THE FACTS

SLEEPING Murray Premises is an old warehouse that?s been converted into a boutique hotel on the waterfront. Almost all rooms have Jacuzzi tubs of various sizes, plus free wi-fi, fireplaces and flat-screen TVs. Many rooms have exposed-brick walls and wood pillars. The back door empties out 70 or 80 steps from the bars on George St., making this an ideal location. Rooms for July 15 and 16 recently ranged from $189 for a queen to $239 for an executive suite with a two-person Jacuzzi and a king bed. 5 Beck?s Cove, 866-738-7773. murraypremiseshotel.com. The Chef?s Inn is a cozy B&B owned by local chef Todd Perrin and run by his parents, Bill and Wanda. My room had an ensuite bath, a small TV and a view of the harbour. Cute as a proverbial button. Wanda will leave out lemon cake for your breakfast if you have an early-morning flight. 29 Gower St., 877-753-3180. thechefsinn.ca

WEBSURFINGnewfoundlandandlabrador.com, stjohns.ca

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Mexico says catches presumed son of top drug lord

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The Brainpower Initiative: The Push to Fund Early Childhood ...

By Robert Rivard

Four-year-old children do not vote, and none were present Wednesday in City Council chambers to hear their futures debated, sometimes contentiously, by elected officials so clearly divided by class, ethnicity, and the disparate educational opportunities that come with where you happen to live.

None of the city?s 20,000, four-year-old preschoolers were there, but you could feel their presence as one of Mayor Juli?n Castro?s most ambitious undertakings reached the debate floor.

Joe Robles Jr.

Joe Robles Jr.

A blue ribbon Brainpower Task Force headed by USAA CEO and (ret.) Major General Joe Robles (task force co-chair and H-E-B Chairman and CEO Charles Butt was not present) made the case for an unprecedented new level of investment in the city?s at-risk children before they enter kindergarten. Robles was joined at the podium by the task force?s education consultant, Gillian Williams, the president of School Turnaround?and co-author of the early childhood learning book, ?Teaching Young Children.?

The task force, which includes a broad array of business and education leaders, is proposing a?five-year, $146.5 million investment in two new early childhood learning centers and programs. That proposal would give 4,000 of the most at-risk children access to all-day learning and development opportunities they do not now enjoy.

Gillian Williams

Gillian Williams

Assistant City Manager Peter Zanoni outlined the numbers, noting the median household will pay less than $8 in annual sales taxes to fund the program, in part because 15-20% of the city?s sales tax revenues are collected from visitors, tourists and conventioneers. San Antonio has an uncommitted 1/8 cent of revenue before it reaches the state-mandated maximum 8.25% sales tax, a level already reached by every other major Texas city. City staff project the 1/8 cent tax will yield about $30 million a year.

Castro opened Wednesday?s meeting in the crowded chambers by saying, ?Changing the trajectory of education achievement is, perhaps, the most important factor? in lifting children out of poverty. Juli?n and his twin brother, Joaqu?n, a state representative now running unopposed for a seat in the U.S. Congress, were the beneficiaries of strong support from their mother, Rosie Castro, a single parent and well-known civil rights advocate. The Castro twins emerged from this city?s Westside barrio to earn undergraduate degrees from Stanford and law degrees from Harvard.

Mayor Juli?n Castro addresses a gathering of SA2020 supporters. Photo courtesy of Mayor Castro.

Mayor Juli?n Castro addresses a gathering of SA2020 supporters. Photo courtesy of Mayor Castro.

Robles offered his own story: ?I?ve been a passionate advocate for the value of a good education ever since I was a young man because a good education changed my life.?

Robles, who once told me he had been an indifferent student, came from a Midwest family of blue-collar workers. He seemed destined for the same life, but his enrollment in a military program for minorities that propelled him into officer?s training school and higher education opportunities led to highly successful leadership careers in the military and business.

Such compelling narratives are abundant on the current Council and give Castro a solid majority that was evident on Wednesday.

Councilman Diego Bernal

Councilman Diego Bernal

?We have to do something to right the wrong? done by state lawmakers, said District One Councilman Diego Bernal, referring to the $5.6 billion in cuts to education spending that were made in the last legislative session. ?And it was a wrong. There is an element of social justice here.?

Bernal also was raised by a single mother and went on to earn undergraduate, graduate and law degrees at the University of Michigan.

District Four Councilman Rey Salda?a, a South San High School graduate, also attended Stanford, where he earned two undergraduate degrees and a master?s degree in the School of Education. He was the first to speak in support of the task force?s recommendation: ?We are going to pay for these kids one way or the other,? he said, noting that some officeholders oppose an annual $6,500 education investment now, but support the cost of incarcerating failed students turned felons in state prisons at a cost to taxpayers of $30,000 ?a year.

Councilman Rey Salda?a

Councilman Rey Salda?a

Given Castro?s own strong mandate from voters and widespread support from community and business leaders, he seems all but certain to win approval of the Brainpower Initiative when it goes before voters on the Nov. 6 ballot. But the mayor probably will not win unanimous Council support for the program. Most of the four-year-old children who will benefit from the program will be found in seven of the city?s 10 council districts.

Council members in the three Northside districts, 8, 9 and 10, ?showed a distinct lack of support for the task force?s recommendations.

Councilman Carlton Soules

Councilman Carlton Soules

District 10 Councilman Carlton Soules led the opposition Wednesday with a now-familiar display of ?mind-numbing cross-examination that spared no insignificant minutia. At one point, Robles sprang from his seat to help Gillian Williams respond to a question, saying he felt like he ?was sitting on a tack.?

There was an almost surreal quality to District Nine Councilwoman Elisa Chan?s persistent demands of Robles and Gillian Williams that they provide a likely outcome to the program. It?s almost impossible to predict such outcomes, they responded, but Chan insisted on at least an estimate, which was not forthcoming. At one point, Chan?s line of questioning prompted a chorus of simultaneous replies from Castro, Robles, and task force member Ana ?Cha? Guzman, the outgoing president of Palo Alto College.

Councilwoman Elisa Chan

Councilwoman Elisa Chan

The accountability demanded by Chan is understandable, but her own experience and that of her husband, both successful small business owners, also is instructive. Both were born and raised in China and then pursued advanced educational opportunities in the United States thanks to government programs.

?From K-3 you learn to read, and from 4-12 you read to learn,? Guzman told Chan. ?If you don?t learn to read by K-3, you?ll never read to learn.?

District 8 Councilman Reed Williams, who is leaving office after he completes his current term, remained unconvinced: ?It could probably pass in this room. I doubt it could pass in our city.?

That assessment may prove wrong, even in District 8. USAA is in Williams? district, where Northside ISD Superintendent John Folks, who recently retired, is a strong advocate of the proposal and a task force member. The city?s other highly recognized former superintendent, Richard Middleton, of the Northeast ISD, also served on the task force.

Councilman Reed Williams

Councilman Reed Williams

Castro?s initiative isn?t without its critics among his many supporters. Proponents of other successful, underfunded school programs are displeased they were excluded from the program because they do not serve pre-K children. Many question what will happen to the four-year-olds when they enter the first grade and lose the intensive pre-K support.

Other critics question vaguely defined plans to recruit an executive director for the Brainpower Initiative and how such an entity will be constructed. Two new early learning centers, one on the Northside and the other on the Southside, will be staffed by teachers who could be city employees operating outside the control of school boards. Reformists might welcome such an experiment, but others will question whether educators should be on the city?s payroll. The location of the two centers, still undetermined, also will generate disagreement.

An acting executive director will be appointed before the Nov. 6 election, and while no candidates have been publicly identified, Castro would be smart to consider his own on-staff education expert, Jeanne Russell. The former Express-News education reporter and editor also worked as a public school teacher. She has a master?s degree in education from the University of California-Davis along with?a master?s in journalism and Latin American studies from New York University. She served as the mayor?s point person leading the task force as it studied best practices across the country and debated the best use of the 1/8 cent sales tax. ?I have a firsthand appreciation of her professional skills and passion for education reform, and it wouldn?t surprise me if a national search for a permanent director concluded with her appointment.

What wasn?t addressed by opponents Wednesday?s meeting was this: the status quo in San Antonio is unacceptable, and no credible alternative proposals have been put on the table. There is abundant data that shows current early childhood education investment is inadequate. There are growing demands across the city for improved schools that graduate more ?college ready? students and reverse unacceptably high dropout rates.

Castro ran for office promising to address the city?s most pressing education challenges. His mandate from voters gives him the opportunity and authority ? some would say moral imperative ? to act. By all signs, the children who will turn four years old over the next five years will be the beneficiaries of Castro?s initiative. It won?t be difficult to measure outcomes a decade out, but for now, there are no guarantees, only opportunities.

For an earlier story on The Rivard Report looking at The Brainpower Initiative, click here.

Follow Robert Rivard on Twitter?@rivardreport?or on?Facebook.

-->

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No charges for dad who killed daughter?s alleged attacker

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Ibogaine: A Very Important Medicine Over The Decades | Self ...

The jungles around the globe have proven to be a bounty of priceless medicines over the decades. One of those marvels is the Iboga plant, which is certainly native to the rain forests of Central Africa. Chemical compounds in the plant stimulate the central nervous system. In other words, properties in the plant are psychoactive. People native to the area in which the Iboga plant grows found over various centuries that when chewed, it could actually produce hallucinations. These hallucinations became part of traditions in which people had visions where they could glimpse portion of the unseen world. As science started supplanting religious beliefs, the psychoactive properties of several plants started being utilized in drugs.

One region in which the offshoot of the Iboga as well as other plants, which is known as Ibogaine, indicates promise is the management of addictions to several substances. Ibogaine therapy is presently banned in the USA, where this drug is known as a controlled chemical. It?s also banned in a number of other countries as well. Even so, you?ll find clinics and self-help groups which help people with their addictions through the use of Ibogaine.

It is the visions that people got from the chewing of the Iboga plant that have some therapeutic advantage of people with addiction. Along with counseling and other treatment plans, people may use the perspective inducing properties of this element to relive some of the events that may have triggered their addiction. There seems to be some benefit to the introspection that this chemical helps induce that aids people in attempting to overcome addictions to harmful substances.

So far, the major benefits of using this drug for addiction therapy have been mainly seen in the treatment of addiction to opiates, like heroin and morphine. It has additionally been used in the management of dependence on nicotine, methamphetamine and alcohol.

This medicine is still considered illegal, so it seems unlikely that this chemical will be a major part of addiction therapy anytime soon. Considering that people have experienced a few success in making use of it to overcome dependence on a variety of substances, its obvious that a lot more study of this chemical is needed. Perhaps with more study and additional success made from its use, this drug may nonetheless become part of the method in battling drug abuse. Just as it aided people in religious rituals it could be a benefit in the modern, scientific time.

Nick Sandberg, also known as Devaraj, is the founding father of the ibogaine.co.uk website. He worked promoting ibogaine from the late 90s til around 2002 in the United Kingdom, and created this great site in that time. Nowadays he is helping to operate a religious community in Dorset, yet still sometimes keeps this web site and loves to connect with what is happening in the Ibogaine.

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