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All you need to know about carbs

Carbs are a part of nearly every dieter’s vocabulary. A number of diets are famous for fighting carb consumption. But you should know that not every carbohydrate is created alike. While it is true that you can lose weight by cutting carbs, carbs are also necessary for a good diet.

To begin with, we should define our terms. Carbs are derived from a number of different sources. They are present in bread, pasta, fruits, and vegetables. There are also a number of different types of carbs. For instance, carbs come in the form of sugars, starches, and fiber.

For the most part, the digestive system divides carbs into sugar molecules which can be taken into the bloodstream. The majority of carbs are transformed into glucose or blood sugar. In this way, carbs provide energy for our bodies. Those who lack sufficient carbs in their diet may suffer from fatigue.

Carbs can be filled with nutrients. For instance, fruit contains vitamins A and C, fiber, and folate. Vegetables are also a good vitamin and fiber source; in fact, they usually contain a greater variety of minerals than other foods do. Whole grains can provide you with fiber, protein, and B vitamins. Legumes can provide you with protein, iron, and potassium.

But carbs can also be potentially bad for your health. For instance, cookies, potato chips, and soft drinks also contain carbs in the form of sugar and flour. You should know that refined carbohydrates have been linked with diabetes and heart diseases, making these carbs a dangerous choice. There are a number of good reasons to ban these carbs from your diet. For instance, they are extremely high in calories and offer little in the way of nutrients. Because they contain no fiber, they will not keep you satiated. In fact, such carbs offer you zero nutrients, but plenty of fat.

Therefore, you should avoid processed grains and sugars. Instead, eat whole grains, fruits, and vegetables to maximize your nutritional intake. Instead of eliminating carbs completely from your diet, simply ban those that increase the size of your waistline.

There is another way to think about carbs. You can generally divide them into two categories: simple and complex. A simple carb, such as sugar, promotes weight gain. As a result, you should select low-sugar foods, especially low-sugar beverages. In contrast, complex carbohydrates promote weight loss. Health experts recommend that dieters consume between 55 and 65 percent of their calories from these types of carbs. Such carbs include fruits and vegetables and a number of other natural foods.

But it isn’t enough to simply eat fruits and vegetables. You also need to avoid fattening sauces and condiments such as mayonnaise and butter. By adding butter to your broccoli or mayonnaise to your potatoes, you can raise the calorie amount exponentially, sabotaging your diet.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture promotes a food pyramid that recommends as many as eleven servings of bread, pasta, and cereal. However, a number of dieticians are suggesting that Americans should cut the carbs–period. In one poll, 81 percent of the respondents said they were abiding by a low-carb diet.

It is interesting to point out that neither the American Heart Association nor the American Diabetes Association believes that the glycemic index should be considered when following a weight loss plan. While the Diabetes Association concedes that various foods offer different glycemic responses, the Association’s leaders believe the most critical factor is the number of carbs rather than the form of the carbs consumed.

Granted, dietary information about carbs can be confusing. However, a number of dieticians say that, while you might not want to cut carbs out of your diet entirely, you should eat carbs only in moderation. Health experts also say that you should limit your carb intake to good carbs and pass up the bad ones. By following such a plan, you should have energy–but you shouldn’t pack on the weight. It may be difficult at first to follow such a diet plan, since many of us are conditioned to eat bad carbs in order to elevate our moods. In time, however, you may find that you enjoy the fruits and vegetables you’re eating, and you may not even miss those tortilla chips.

Currently, there are a lot of people applying for jobs as a para planner. Para planners are considered to be financial advisers or consultants. When you are a para planner, you are expected to conduct an interview with a client and chat about his or her financial status and monetary ideas. The data collected in the conversations is then placed in a software where it is recorded on a daily basis. This software will give you the potential and possible solution or ways to achieve your financial ambitions. This kind of job is generally easier said than done. You need to have expertise on the area of financial services in order to do all of these things. A ps146 in the form of a diploma of nursing services is needed. This PS 146 is a prerequisite of the ASIC – Australian Securities and Investments Commission, in order to work as a qualified financial planner. The diploma of financial services can be obtained by attending an 8-day course either online or inside a classroom if you have the time. Once you obtain your diploma of financial services, you are then considered a qualified and competent financial adviser, able to handle clients effectively.

In today’s highly competitive internet universe, the importance of attracting highly targeted traffic to your website cannot be overemphasized. Routing web traffic to your site can be your only means of survival, especially in the cutthroat world of ecommerce. Getting a high search engine ranking can be very difficult. Fortunately, there is plethora of website promotion strategies you can use to drive traffic to your website.

There is a wide variety of strategies you can adapt, from paid advertising to affiliate marketing. However, most of these techniques require payment. Nevertheless, there are ways to promote your website and increase your web traffic without spending anything. Writing articles is one of the best web site promotion strategies you can use, and they can be very effective. How, you may ask, can writing articles help improve your web traffic? Here are the top seven ways in which it can help explode your business.

1.Reach more people

When you write good articles, it would be a shame not to share them with other people. You can post your articles in your website or you can submit them to other sites such as e-zines and online publishers. By submitting your articles to these sites, you give exposure not only to your ideas but also to your website. Simply include a link back to your site or include your information in the resource box. With this, you get exposure and free advertising as well. Submit your articles to popular e-zines and take advantage of their popularity. Other sites who find your article relevant may also link back to you. Thus, you increase your link popularity, which is one of the most important strategies in the internet world. Remember that most people are looking for information online and by filling this need with your quality article; you may reap the benefit of more exposure and higher web traffic.

2.Free Advertising

Submitting your articles to other websites presents an opportunity to advertise your website without paying exorbitant fees. Although you should avoid marketing language in your articles and make it informative and useful to your readers, you can always include your site’s link in the resource box. In addition, by making your article relevant and helpful to your readers, you are making a good impression for your website, which could ultimately lead to a visit and hopefully a purchase. Good quality content in an article is far better and more effective than a few lines of ad space. You have a very special opportunity to presell your product or service to your prospective customer.

3.Gain High Search Engine Ranking

Create a new web page for your article in your website. Optimize your article to make it search-engine friendly. Use top-ranked keywords and Meta tags that can give your website a high search engine ranking. As soon as you upload your new webpage to your server, search engines will spider through it and you can gain an increase in search engine ranking. Remember that search engine optimized content is a very effective strategy to gain a high ranking in search results.

4.Increases Link Popularity

Instead of looking for other sites who would want to establish reciprocal links with your site, you can simply submit an article to other sites. Just do not forget to include a link to your site in your resource box. When these websites pick up and publishes your article, you automatically get a link partner. Try to get as many link partners as you can. Link popularity is one of the factors used by search engines in determining search engine rankings. Make your article especially useful and appealing, so that more websites will be encouraged to publish it.

5.Optimizes your site for improved search engine ranking

By making your site keyword rich, you can greatly improve the search engine ranking of your site. Remember that keyword density is one of the most important factors that search engines use when determining the search engine ranking of site. However, you should always provide relevant, useful and pertinent information. Avoid the temptation of overusing keywords just to gain a high ranking as this may turn off most web surfers. Relevance and quality is still the most important things to consider when writing articles and it will be doubly useful to your site if you make these articles search-engine optimized.

6.Establishes a Good Impression and Reputation

By writing excellent, original and relevant articles, you not only give your site exposure, you are also creating a good impression on your prospects. Encourage more people to visit your site and do business with you by establishing an impressive reputation through your articles. Be seen as an expert in the field and your will ultimately gain more customers eager to do business with you.

7.Enhances your credibility through references and testimonies

Certainly, your articles are going to receive feedbacks and testimonies when you publish them in e-zines and free article sites. Record these positive feedbacks and comments and use them as promotional material in your website or in any of your advertising efforts. Your credibility will be greatly enhanced by these feedbacks, as it will create a good impression on your prospects as well as your existing customers. In this highly competitive world, excellent credibility and trust may be the only things you need to attract new customers or make loyal patrons out of your existing customers. Original, relevant, useful and pertinent articles are important tools you should utilize to improve and explode your business

Author is writter for sites such as Information Today

Supposing you haven’t understood gambling house games of luck, please continue to read…

Baccarat

Typically, a betting saloon is a house that organizes betting. Here, patrons will play handling one armed bandits or plenty of other games of luck. Betting saloon games usually include mathematically calculated percentages constituting them which ensure the casino reserves dominion versus the gaming devotees. Very many betting house games can encourage you to become dependent rapidly. You have the notorious one-armed-bandit, a coin operated gadget with three drums that revolve if a knob attached to it is operated. The machine typically pays correlating with an array of images shown on the information screen of the contraption. Deplorably, betting saloon pastimes allow some semblance of supremacy, deluding the gambler – the victim is bestowed with choices, but in actual fact these can not realistically nix the client’s negative odds. That is brought about by the the casino never paying up the full amount as expected. This systematic arrangement is regularly seen at work in acclaimed casino games such as five-card stud, dice, roulette or blackjack.

Blind Poker is really an immensely popular casino pastime. The customers, holding screened hands, make wagers into a principal pot that is given to the winning gamester sitting on the winning combination of cards. (Of course, the shameless bluffer can easily win as well.) Not far removed from poker, blackjack too is an immensely fashionable casino game. A substantial part of its acceptance is a result of its peculiar mix of chance and cunning & choice making, not to forget a method termed “card counting”. This is a very complex technique through which gambling fans are in a position to dramatically shift the winning odds of the card game to their own advantage both by betting and procedural opetations established on the hands shown. Craps is yet another well known gambling hall pastime utilizing the throw of a couple of dice. Visitors are betting on the score of 1 spin, or on a series of rolls of 2 dice. Contrary to blackjack, there can’t be a credible bona fide winning betting system people could put to use to ramp up the odds. Roulette is a well-known casino gambling pastime – a croupier twirls a roulette wheel encompassing a set of precisely thirtyseven (in the case of French roulette) or, respectively thirtyeight (American or Vegas roulette) independently numbered chambers in which a ball will eventually come to a stop, thus marking the final winning number Whenever the participant wagers on a number and hits it big, which is to say they’ve got a lucky hand, the guaranteed premium is going to be 35 to 1, the original wager being paid out. So in total it is increased by a factor of 36.

Please make sure to be guarded nonetheless for these gambling saloon games of luck should be rated extremely dependency forming. Myriad lives have been demolished by addictive gambling and though it feels entertaining, undertake to restrain yourself.

May 15, 2008 – First Female Brewmaster Since Prohibition Comes to Long Island for Special Event at Bobbique Patchogue, NY. Eric Rifkin, award-winning chef and restaurateur announced today that Carol Stoudt would be the guest of honor at his restaurant’s upcoming Brewmaster Dinner. This event, which is part of a monthly Brewmaster Dinner Series, will be held on June 3rd, at Bobbique restaurant located on Main Street in Patchogue, NY. Carol Stoudt, the first female brewmaster in the US and owner of Stoudt Brewing Company (Adamstown, PA), will be mixing, mingling and serving up some great beer at the upcoming Brewmaster Dinner. “We are so thrilled that Carol will be joining us,” said Chef Rifkin, owner of Bobbique. “She is one of the most prominent women in the beer industry. Attendees at the dinner are in for a really amazing night,” he added. Originally a kindergarten teacher, Carol became the figurehead and face of Stoudts Brewing Company. After raising five children, Carol and her husband Ed built the Stoudts Brewery in 1987 and soon became pioneers in the craft brewing industry. Carol, the self-titled “Queen of Hops”, has been working to promote her company’s beer and the craft beer industry for more than twenty years. Ms. Stoudt is making a special visit to Long Island to attend the Brewmaster Dinner at Bobbique on June 3rd. The evening begins promptly at 6:30 pm with a meet & greet with Ms. Stoudt and a delicious lineup of appetizers, including Smoked Portobello Fries, House Smoked Sausage, Pulled Pork Sliders & Crunchy Fried Pickle Chips–paired with Stoudts Gold Helles Lager. A five-course dinner will follow and showcase Chef Rifkin’s talents. Each course will be paired with a specially selected beer from the Stoudts Brewing Company portfolio. Dinner begins promptly at 7:00 pm and the menu includes: B.L.T. Salad (chopped brisket, lettuce, and tomato), Apple Smoked Beef Short Ribs, BBQ Jumbo Freshwater Prawns, Bobbique’s signature St. Louis Ribs, and will conclude with a Fallen Chocolate Souffle. Seating is limited and reservations are strongly recommended. Tickets are $45 each and are inclusive of tax and gratuity. Bobbique is located at 70 West Main Street in Patchogue, NY. For more information visit www.bobbique.com or call 631-447-7744 for reservations. You must be 21+ to attend this event.

“Systems are logical, programming is physical.”
– Bryce’s Law

For something that is supposed to be “soft”, software exhibits
some pretty “hard” characteristics. The original premise behind the
COBOL programming language was to devise a language that could
be easily ported to several computers. As we all know, this never
truly happened due to computer manufacturers who tweaked the language
to suit their particular needs. What ran on an IBM machine, for
example, didn’t necessarily run the same on Honeywell, UNIVAC, or
the rest of the BUNCH. Consequently, software developers had to
maintain different versions of source code to suit the particular
needs of the various computer compilers. This plagued all third
generation languages until Sun introduced JAVA in the 1990’s. The
JAVA premise that a programmer should “write once, run everywhere”
was the right idea and the language began to gain momentum, until
it ran into Microsoft who didn’t want to turn the operating system
into an inconsequential afterthought. JAVA lives on, but not to
the extent it should have, and developers are back to managing
separate versions of source code.

The point is, software does in fact exhibit some very “hard”
characteristics as it is married to the host computer configuration
making it not very portable. As mentioned, this creates headaches
for those of us, particularly commercial software vendors, in
terms of maintaining consistency in the different versions of
our products.

What to do?

Back in the 1970’s and 1980’s we were faced with the dilemma of
managing a single product on over a dozen different platforms. We
quickly came to the realization we would go stark raving mad
managing multiple versions of source code and came to the conclusion
we had better come up with a solution pretty quick. Because of our
experience in converting software, we became well versed in the
nuances of the various compilers and devised a Repository (we
called it a “filter program” at the time) which maintained the rules
of the various compilers. We were also very disciplined in writing
code to specific standards and embedded certain switches in the
base source code. When we were ready to produce a new release of
our product, we would feed the base code into our “filter program”
which would then create the different versions of the source
code ready for compilation. This saved us an incredible amount
of time and brought consistency to all of the versions of the
product. In other words, our programming staff worked with only
one set of code (not multiple variations), the “filter program”
then analyzed it and created the necessary permeation for a targeted
platform. As compilers changed, we would update the “filter
program” accordingly.

We also learned to maintain print maps, screen panels, messages
and help text separate from the source code, which greatly
enhanced our ability to create a new version of the product to
suit a foreign language and culture; see “Creating Universal
Systems” at:

http://www.phmainstreet.com/mba/pride/isspus.htm

Let us take it a step further, for years we have touted
there are logical and physical dimensions to Information
Systems. Using the “PRIDE” Standard System Structure concept
in “PRIDE”-ISEM, we look upon Systems and Sub-Systems (business
processes) as logical constructs, and Procedures and Programs
as physical constructs. Further, data components such as inputs,
outputs, files, records and data elements can be specified
logically and implemented physically many different ways. Let
me give you an example; back in the 1980’s one of our “PRIDE”
users (a large Fortune 500 electronic conglomerate) bought
into our logical/physical concept and decided to put it to the
test. Working from their corporate offices, they designed a
complete Payroll System which they wanted to implement as the
corporate standard across all of their divisions and
subsidiaries. They completed the system with a recommended
programming solution they wrote themselves (no packages were
used) which I believe was an IBM MVS solution using COBOL. However,
they recognized early on this implementation wouldn’t work
across the board in the company. Consequently, they gave the
system specifications to all of their divisions who would then
program it themselves in-house. The project turned out to be
a major success and the company ended up with multiple
implementations of the same system under IBM MVS, VM,
Honeywell GCOS, UNIVAC Exec, HP MPE, DEC VAX/VMS, and
Prime; all working harmoniously together. Other “PRIDE” users
experienced similar successes, particularly in Japan.

All of this drives home the point that systems are logical in nature,
and that programming is physical. If systems are designed
properly, there is no reason they shouldn’t behave identically
on whatever computer platform you come up with. Better yet, it
allows us to easily migrate our systems from one configuration
to another. Uniformity and consistency in execution; and portability
to boot. Imagine that.

Tim Bryce is the Managing Director of M. Bryce & Associates (MBA)
of Palm Harbor, Florida and has 30 years of experience in the field.
He is available for training and consulting on an international basis.
He can be contacted at: timb001@phmainstreet.com

Copyright © 2006 MBA. All rights reserved.

For centuries, the systems of communications throughout the world have been swiftly evolving.

In the 1400s, the printing press created the ability for mass publication and circulation of literature, opening the door for the Christian gospel to reach around the world through books, tracts and the Bible itself. During the late 1800s, the telegraph and telephone were invented, further spreading the opportunities for Christian evangelism. In the mid 20th century, radio and television further advanced that possibility. Now, in the 21st century, we can literally reach millions live through streaming video. For the Christian evangelist, there is a truly awesome marriage of religion and technology.

Bishop E. Bernard Jordan, Founder and Chief Prelate of Zoe Ministries, is a paradigm of this shift from the pew to cyberspace. From the simple input of information into a database, to carrying religion into all of the world through technological advances such as live streaming, Bishop Jordan has moved his ministry from drawing hundreds of people to the pews of the local church, to drawing millions of people to witness and experience his prophetic ministry through the wonder of computer technology.

His parishioners now have access to the prophetic ministry 24 hours a day, seven days a week, whether through teachings and messages concerning God, spirituality and prophecy, or through the ability to purchase books, teachings and music. According to the Bishop, “Because of the blessing that computer and internet technology represents, my parishioners are now only a ‘click’ away from God; they are only a ‘click’ away from the prophetic word.” His outreach is truly interactive via special Faith Chat sessions during live services on Sundays, Tuesday evenings, and Thursday evenings.

Whether it is Jane Danielsen of Denmark, who views the live streaming telecasts weekly, Lillian Holmgaard of Denmark, who gathers people together in her community around the computer to view the live telecasts; Carl Ameho from South Korea who views the telecast several times throughout his day to experience the power of prophecy or Frans Zegers of the Netherlands who faithfully views the Power of Prophecy telecast, Bishop Jordan’s parishioners are in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Africa and throughout the world.

There is a growing need for leaders in the Church to expand their ministry and to reach larger groups of people all around the world. The world is waiting eagerly to hear the spiritual truths that have been burning in the hearts and minds of many pastors, preachers, evangelists and prophets.

People are in need of an answer, yet the fact is many do not want to physically go to church. Yet these people are hungry for the word of God. Therefore, spiritual leaders of all faiths must now open their minds to the use of the Internet, live streaming and other advanced forms of technology to get their message to the world.

If Jesus, Buddha or Mohammed were to bring their message in this day, they would use the most advanced means of technology available to communicate their message to as many people as they could reach.

There is a growing concern in urban America about the accessibility of this powerful and relatively inexpensive technology. Only 25% of African-Americans appear to be functional in the information age. This alarming figure can be attributed mainly to the fact that there are more black males in prison than in college. Many are blue collar workers, whose jobs limit their access in the arena of technology. Perhaps religion could possibly bring more exposure to the importance of computers and advanced technology to a community that has been frozen out of the information age.

If they know that their favorite preacher is available on the Internet via live streaming, and they have the ability to interact with him/her from the comfort of their home, what a milestone that could be! With the ability to download sermon messages at no charge, make online donations, and personally interact with the preacher by way of the Internet.

In the last five years, Zoe Ministries has lost 80 percent of its local congregation (pew members), but has doubled its revenue through the faithful partners worldwide who access the ministry through the most powerful means of technology available, the Internet. Religion and technology must make sense. Both areas must merge if we are going to reach the world with the gospel. To those who espouse this philosophy, the 21st century will become an age where technology is integrated into religion by allowing people to have their religious experience by way of the Internet. A “soul” used to be defined as the person we could see, but now we are discovering that a “soul” is the person whom we cannot see.

Visit Bishop Jordan’s website at www.bishopjordan.com and experience the Power of Prophecy telecasts via streaming, 24 hours a day, seven days a week; and on Sundays at noon EST, and Tuesday and Friday evenings at 7:00 p.m. EST, experience the live streaming, where you can log into the Faith Chat Room and dialogue and interact with the Master Prophet himself, E. Bernard Jordan. Contact Zoe Ministries at 212-316-2177.

Bruce Prokopets Executive Editor Press Direct International

“I would be true” the old hymn goes; But, life is not an easy road, And I have not always stayed the course Nor given Him my heavy load. I listened to the lies told me While in college and around That I had evolved from apes, And to them I was bound. What doubt flooded me When I learned to care for them More than I should care for me And my fellow man! After all, if I am just an animal And from animals I came, Then does God even exist? Will there be any blame? So, true to Him I wasn’t. No, I said to myself, “I will believe this theory And put God on the shelf.” I pretended to live for Him: I sang in the choir, went to church – However, when the light was off My life was in a lurch! But, God’s Spirit had not left me; He let me know quite well That I was not at all happy While working for hell! Inside I knew what I should do: Repent and change my ways or bust! So, I did. I decided to let go My doubt, and Him I would trust. As soon as I decided that A wonderful change took place – My heart was so repentant; My sins were all erased. Oh, I still struggle every day To always be true to Him; But, doubts will never again Take me from my Friend. No! I will never return to doubting. I will shout for all to hear, “Life’s too short to let doubt in… Be true to your Lord, so dear! “Be true, stand firm; Take up His armor and stand! Listen to His loving voice, And obey His commands! “Be true all through life’s struggle And evil will flee away; For God’s promises are always true And truly show the way. “Yes, be true to the King Eternal, And listen to His voice – One day you’ll surely see Him, And forever will rejoice!”http://www.originalpoetry.com/be-true

Think of writing like karate…it’s about DISCIPLINE.

Writing, like other forms of art, work or talent, requires discipline. It won’t ever be enough that you say to yourself that you are a writer. Only when you write and write with discipline can you call yourself one. Before you can earn a black belt in karate, you have to dedicate yourself, practice and instill discipline in yourself to learn the moves and techniques.

The same goes for writing. Don’t just read books. Devour them. Ray Bradbury, author of Zen in the Art of Writing, suggests books of essays, poetry, short stories, novels and even comic strips. Not only does he suggest that you read authors who write the way you hope to write, but “also read those who do not think as you think or write as you want to write, and so be stimulated in directions you might not take for many years.” He continues, “don’t let the snobbery of others prevent you from reading Kipling, say, while no one else is reading him.”

Learn to differentiate between good writing and bad writing. Make time to write. Write even though you’re in a bad mood. Put yourself in a routine. Integrate writing into your life. The goal is not to make writing dominate your life, but to make it fit in your life. Julia Cameron, in her book The Right to Write, sums it best: “Rather than being a private affair cordoned off from life as the rest of the world lives it, writing might profitably be seen as an activity best embedded in life, not divorced from it.”

Believe that EVERYONE HAS A STORY — including you.

Extraordinary things happen to ordinary people. As a writer, your job is to capture as many of these things and write them down, weave stories, and create characters that jump out of the pages of your notebook. Don’t let anything escape your writer’s eye, not even the way the old man tries to subtly pick his nose or the way an old lady fluffs her hair in a diner. What you can’t use today, you can use tomorrow. Store these in your memory or jot them down in your notebook.

Jump in the middle of the fray. Be in the circle, not outside it. Don’t be content being a mere spectator. Take a bite of everything life dishes out. Ray Bradbury wrote, “Tom Wolfe ate the world and vomited lava. Dickens dined at a different table every hour of his life. Moliere, tasting society, turned to pick up his scalpel, as did Pope and Shaw. Everywhere you look in the literary cosmos, the great ones are busy loving and hating. Have you given up this primary business as obsolete in your own writing? What fun you are missing, then. The fun of anger and disillusion, the fun of loving and being loved, of moving and being moved by this masked ball which dances us from cradle to churchyard. Life is short, misery sure, mortality certain. But on the way, in your work, why not carry those two inflated pig-bladders labeled Zest and Gusto.”

Attack writing with PASSION.

The kind of writing you produce will oftentimes reflect the current state of your emotions. Be indifferent and your writing will be indifferent. Be cheerful and watch the words dance across your page.

Whenever you sit down to write, put your heart and soul in it. Write with passion. Write as if you won’t live tomorrow. In her book, Writing the Wave, Elizabeth Ayres wrote: “There’s one thing your writing must have to be any good at all. It must have you. Your soul, your self, your heart, your guts, your voice — you must be on that page. In the end, you can’t make the magic happen for your reader. You can only allow the miracle of ‘being one with’ to take place. So dare to be you. Dare to reveal yourself. Be honest, be open, be true…If you are, everything else will fall into place.”

Copyright (c) 2004 Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ

The ultimate value of life depends upon awareness, and the power
of contemplation rather than upon mere survival- Aristotle
Sexual assault is non-consensual sexual contact. Women, men and
children of all ages can be victimized by sexual assault. A
rapist may be a stranger, acquaintance, or relative. In 1998,
the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Statistics reported
that roughly 18% or 17.7 million women had experienced rape or
attempted rape at some point in their lifetime. While there is
no absolute protection against sexual assault, there are
precautions you can take to help reduce your risk of being
sexually assaulted by a stranger. Here are an important few:
Close and lock your doors even during the summer months. Wear
clothes and shoes that allow you to move quickly When walking,
project an assertive image and walk confidently. Familiarize
yourself with your surroundings and try to think about where you
will go if you find that you must make a quick getaway. Always
have your key available and ready when approaching your home or
car doors. Remember also that a key in between your fingers can
serve as a weapon. If someone attacks you, yell “fire” rather
than “help.” Try not to allow yourself to drop your guard if
someone that you do not know approaches you with a question.
Often strangers will ask a question like “Excuse me, do you know
what time it is?” “How do I get to route 301 from here?” or say
something like “It sure is hot out here!” In spite of this
distraction, try to keep your guard up. Avoid walking alone,
especially after dusk. Most people are more at risk of being
assaulted by people who know them. Between 70-80% of all sexual
assaults occur at the hands of someone that the victim knows.
Share these important suggestions to help reduce the risk of
acquaintance rape: Know that it can happen to you or someone
you love. Ignoring the reality may further increase the risk.
Trust your instincts. Never leave your beverages unattended if
you are in the company of persons you do not know and trust well
whether male or female. Think carefully about being alone with
a person that you do not know well. Evaluate how well you really
know the persons you chose to spend time alone with. When
dating, be on alert for controlling behaviors. Try to avoid
being in a position that causes you to be dependent upon another
person. Carry a well-charged cell phone and always know whom you
can call in a jam. Communicate your limits and boundaries
clearly in short concise statements. Polite statements may be
ignored. Make it clear that your decision is not up for
discussion. Reassure people you care about that they can come
to you if the unfortunate happens and someone assaults them.
Many victims will never share their painful secret with those
who might expect that they would. Children and other loved ones
should be assured that you will not blame them and they will not
be in trouble if they share “secrets” with you. Take the time to
educate yourself about sexual assault and the effects on the
victims, you may need it sooner than you realize. Right now is
the time to talk to your loved ones who will be attending
college. Maintain ongoing communication with young men as well
as young women about safe behavior. Encourage young men to
educate themselves about consent and remind them not to support
jokes or situations in which someone may be assaulted. These
tips may help to reduce your risk of sexual assault but may not
entirely prevent this violent crime from occurring. It is
important to keep in mind that the offender is always to blame
and that sexual assault is never the fault of the survivor. No
one asks or deserves to be sexually assaulted. If the
unfortunate does happen, help is available.