Fish in Baked Beans Sauce (Ikan Masak Sos Kacang Panggang)

 Does it sound unusual combination? Well, try it.... not bad actually and especially nice if your kids love baked beans. I actually ran out of idea for dinner and when peeping into the pantry I saw a can of baked beans... I already had the fish thawed so why not add the baked beans into the cooking....

By: Roz@HomeKreation
Serves: 5 persons
INGREDIENTS:
1 whole Fish (about 700g)
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
3 cloves Garlic*
3 Shallots*
1/2" Ginger* (* pounded) 
2 tbsp Chili Paste
1 Big Onions - sliced
1-2 Potato - sliced round & deep fried until cooked 
1 can Baked Beans
1 cup Water
Salt
Garnish - chopped spring onion (optional)

METHOD:
1. Rub fish with salt & turmeric powder.
Deep fry until both sides are golden & slightly crispy.
Place onto serving dish.

2. Heat up few tbsp oil & stir-fry pounded ingredients* until fragrant.
Add in chili paste & stir until fragrant.
Add in baked beans, big onion, water, salt and let it boil.
Add in fried potato slices & stir well.
Pour onto fried fish.
Sprinkle with chopped spring onion (I skipped bcoz my family don't fancy it).

3. Serve immediately with white rice.
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BAHASA MALAYSIA VERSION

Lauk ni sebenar nya dah seminggu lalu tapi asyik kesibukan dan keletihan saja sekarang ni tak larat nak tongkat mata tetengah malam update blog.... maaf ya kekawan yg selalu menjengah & hampa bila tiada update dari Along. Meh lah menjamu lauk yg tak seberapa ni.... rasa2 nya pelik tak lauk sos kacang panggang ni? Sedap juga lah rasa nya.... sebenar nya Along tak tau nak masak apa dgn ikan tu, buka almari nampak lak setin kacang panggang, cuba2 jer lah.... boleh tahan gak sedap nya.

Tip dari Along: lebihkan air untuk sos ni sbb kacang panggang tu menyerap air & sos jadi kering sedikit bila di hidangkan. Juga lebihkan pedas untuk imbangkan rasa manis kacang panggang.

By: AlongRoz@HomeKreation

Hidangan: 5 orang

BAHAN2:

1 ekor Ikan (berat anggaran 700g)

1/2 st Serbuk Kunyit

3 ulas Bwg Putih*

3 ulas Bwg Merah*

1/2" Halia* (* tumbuk) 

2 sb Cili Mesin

1 bj Bwg Besar -hiris

1-2 bj Kentang - hiris bulat & goreng

1 tin Kacang Panggang

1 cwn Air

Garam

Bhn Tabur - Daun Bwg (optional)

CARA2:

1. Lumur ikan dgn garam & serbuk kunyit.

Goreng dgn minyak dalam sehingga garing di kedua2 belah ikan.

Angkat & letakkan ke dlm pinggan.

2. Panaskan beberapa sudu minyak & tumis bhn tumbuk* sehingga wangi.

Masukkan cili mesin & kacau sehingga garing.

Masukkan kacang panggang, bwg besar, air, garam & masak sehingga mendidih.

Masukkan kentang goreng & kacau sebati.

Tuangkan ke atas ikan goreng tadi.

Taburkan daun bwg (Along tak letak sbb org kat rumah ni tak suka).

3. Hidangkan segera dgn nasi putih.

Playing Politics with Data

In the increasingly polarized political environment in the United States, it is hard to imagine policy-making becoming even more ideological and subjective.  This is the main concern of two associate professors from Columbia University Emi Nakamura and Jon Steinsson and assistant professor Nicolas Vincent from HEC Montreal in a recent Bloomberg View op-ed.


Sparked by recent legislation passed in the U.S. House of Representatives in early May, the trio outlines a dangerous trend of conservative governments all over the world (Argentina, Greece, and Canada) playing politics with data collection that serves as objective voice in policy-making.  Most notably, Greece's misreporting of budget deficit statistics that resulted in an criminal investigation as the country faced total economic collapse.


According to the authors, "It’s hard to overstate how dangerous the destruction of high-quality, objective statistical information would be."  The three main statistical agencies in the United States - the Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Bureau of Labor Statistics - "account for less than 0.05 percent of President Barack Obama’s $3.7 trillion proposed budget." 


This issue is being played out in the media as the budget deficit and economy is the main concern on the minds of voters heading into the upcoming national elections.  Increasing awareness and educating the public about the importance of collecting reliable demographic data could swayvoters as they head to the polls this November.

Asian Americans and Identity

Data from the Pew Research Center demonstrate how different Asian American groups identify themselves.  Overall, 62% of all Asian Americans usually describe themselves by articulating their country of origin.  19% refer to themselves as Asians or Asian Americans, and 14% identify simply as Americans.  

Between Asian groups, however, there is some variation in the ways individuals identify.  About three quarters of both the Vietnamese and Korean populations identify with their country of origin.  Indian, Chinese, and Japanese Americans exhibit the smallest percentage of individuals who identify with their country of origin (six in ten).

Another way to look at the data is by distinguishing the foreign born population of Asian Americans from the native born population of Asian Americans.  Among the foreign born, seven in ten identify with their country of origin, while only four in ten in the native born population will do the same.  Conversely, a mere 9% of foreign born Asians describe themselves as American, but 28% of the native born call themselves as American.

Brookings Institution Finds Economic Recovery in Metro Areas to be Sluggish and Uneven

The Brookings Institution released its July Metro Monitor, in which the organization inspects key economic indicators from each of America’s 100 largest metropolitan areas in order to assess the national recovery.  The findings point towards a sluggish recovery.  Since the fourth quarter of the previous year, employment among the U.S.’s most populated regions rose 0.5%, unemployment fell 0.3%, GDP grew 0.6%, and housing prices decreased 2.1%.  Brookings points out diminishing GDP growth and meager job numbers as the most troubling indicators. 

Texas metro areas, due to a booming natural gas sector, experienced a more mild recession, and have thus pulled out of the downturn better than most regions.  High-tech metro areas such as Boston, Raleigh, San Jose, and Seattle have benefited from stabilization in housing prices, while on the other hand the majority of metro areas in the west have performed poorly.

U.S. Naturalization

The Economist's recent Daily Chart depicts the number of naturalizations that occurred over the past decade in a handful of countries.  The graph also displays the proportion of each country's population that is foreign born.


The nations that naturalized the most citizens were the United States, Russia, and Canada. With a figure of 6.6 million, the United States naturalized the most citizens from 2001-2010. Russia comes in second, with about half as many naturalizations at 3.1 million people, while Canada follows with just under 2 million naturalized citizens in just as many years. Other countries with more than a million naturalized immigrants are Britain, France, and Germany.

However, the countries that naturalized the most immigrants are not necessarily the ones whose populations have the greatest proportion of foreign born people.  For example, while the United States conferred citizenship on 6.6 million individuals in the past decade, immigrants only account for 13% of its total population.  On the other hand, Australia and Switzerland naturalized 1 million and about 0.4 million people, but both their foreign born populations constitute 27% of the total population, the most of any countries depicted in the graphic.  Countries with other high proportions of foreign born people are New Zealand (23%), Canada (20%), Spain (15%), and Sweden (15%).

NON-PROFIT MEMBERSHIP LISTS NOW REQUIRED IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

By Peter Chepucavage

The NEW D.C. Nonprofit Corporation Act of 2010 overhauls the laws regarding the formation and operation of nonprofits organized under D.C. Law. It is the first substantial change to the D.C. Nonprofit Code since 1962.

The new law replaces the old law and applies to nonprofit corporations formed under the 1962 D.C. Nonprofit Code, effective January 1, 2012. It also applies to nonprofits formed under the pre-1962 D.C. law who have not elected to be covered by the 1962 Nonprofit Code (so-called “Old Act Companies”).

Of particular interest are provisions requiring that individual members be provided names and addresses of all members. The new D.C. Nonprofit Corporation Code (the “Nonprofit Code”) requires that the nonprofit maintain accurate membership lists. Section 29.413.01 requires the nonprofit to maintain a “record of its members, in a form that permits preparation of a list of names and addresses of all members, in alphabetical order, by class, showing the number of votes each member is entitled to cast.” A member is entitled to inspect and copy the membership list upon giving the nonprofit five days notice the organization must also give notice of the availability of the list for elections. In each case the organization may suggest alternative means of communicating with members.

 The ramifications of such a requirement are still uncertain as the law went into effect in January but it should have an impact on alternate slates and airing of gripes. The law prohibits commercial use of the list. A summary is found at: http://dcblog.foundationcenter.org/dc-nonprofit-corporation-act-2010/along with a number of alerts on individual sections.

Because penalties can be imposed Plexus recommends careful consideration as to how to comply with the law. While transparency and open communications are always desirable abuse of such lists is possible. An alternative approach might be for the organization to create a blog where members can communicate with each other and the Board if that is acceptable to the members.

Origami in the Boardroom: Lost Talent

By Neil Bohnert

A selection from Origami in the Boardroom and Other Misadventures in Nonprofit Governance©

I was attending a two-day board meeting, a regular gathering of executives from across the United States.  The primary purpose was to debate and formulate national policy issues.  Toward the end of the first day, as the meeting continued to drift aimlessly, I noticed the man to my left deftly folding his agenda into ever-smaller geometric segments until a three-dimensional form emerged.  Wonderful origami!  He handed me the finished work and whispered, “This is the best thing to come out of this meeting all day.”

My attention was riveted on his work, not because it was distracting and more entertaining than the meeting (although it was on both accounts), but more because it exhibited the great loss of talent so often designed into board meetings.  I’m not speaking of his talent for origami, but his experienced talent for analyzing, debating and deciding important issues.  And that talent was being squandered.   This was a CEO of a sizable organization in a major city whose mind could not be idle and who found the meeting so numbing his only recourse, besides walking out, was to make something constructive with the materials at hand.  It’s not incidental that it was the agenda he used, symbolizing clearly that the printed agenda had no value for him except as raw material for origami. 

The point of this story is there was a great opportunity lost.  The executive had taken time from his business to debate and construct important policy.  The board had assembled its collective wisdom to advance the organization.  Both parties lost in the exchange. 

The second point is that the opportunity was squandered forever.  You may say it was unfortunate that some time was lost, but the reality is that it was an opportunity that was lost forever; one that can never be recaptured.  Every minute spent in a meeting is either an opportunity gained or an opportunity lost.  Foregoing the opportunity is not a postponement.  It is a loss—final.

Why do we permit such loss?  Why do we design such loss into our meetings?  Well, you say, we don’t purposely set out to waste time and talent.  Of course we don’t.  But we do allow meetings to be conducted in ways that are not focused on purpose and outcomes.  Agendas are loosely constructed (except when they’re fashioned into origami).  Discussions are unfocused.  Information is presented in time-consuming and mind-numbing ways. Decisions are often uninformed.  Important issues are underplayed or missed entirely and unimportant issues are overworked.  And the result is a meeting that is ineffective and underproductive.

A common complaint heard from volunteer board members is, “That meeting was a waste of time”.  The speaker may be saying it was a waste of my time; or we could have done all that in halfthe time; or there must be a better wayto do what we need to do.  Whatever the specific meaning, the result is that feeling of loss.  And who has time to waste?  Who wants to feel that their contribution to a worthy mission is wasted?  And how do these people talk about the organization to others?

What, then, is the remedy?

We know people want to contribute.  We also know people have the capacity to do better.  What’s missing?  Probably it’s little more than the knowledge of how and where to begin.

Let’s start with giving up what we’ve “always done.”  Habits learned from our experiences on boards, councils, committees, school organizations, clubs, and myriad social organizations have evolved over 400 years when the first “modern” organizations emerged from feudalism.  Change begins with leaving behind the old habits.

Let’s start with taking on new practices that advance the organization and its mission.  After all, the core mission of the organization cannot be well served if the organization itself is not well served. 

Let’s start with redesigning our meetings to recognize and mobilize the wealth of talent in the boardroom and using it to meet the needs of today’s organization.

What can we learn from this story, a true-life misadventure?  The many forms of origami in the boardroom, or the mental equivalent, disengaging from the meeting, are signals that the group is ready to be re-energized.  The nurturing of a strong, effective governance function requires constant work and assessment. Origami is a marvelous talent, but not one to be displayed in the boardroom.

Let’s get started!

National LGBT Newspaper Alliance Forms

A new National Gay Media Association (NGMA) has formed to bring together the top regional newspapers serving the U.S. lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities. The LGBT market controls more than $600 billion in annual spending, and NGMA will work to coordinate advertising spending in effective local LGBT media markets.

“The regional LGBT media continue to serve their communities with strong newspapers and online content,” said Tracy Baim, spokeswoman for NGMA and publisher of Windy City Times. “The LGBT movement is driven by a very local model. Many of our issues are different from city to city, and state to state, so our strongest media are the ones attuned to issues in their communities.”

The more than 150 regional LGBT media reach more than 3 million readers combined through weekly, biweekly and monthly newspapers and magazines. The annual Gay Press Report notes that the combined advertising spending in LGBT media was $307 million in 2011, with 95% of that spent in local markets.

NGMA is a new alliance of the “best of the best” in LGBT media, representing long-time brand names in regional media, including the Bay Area Reporter in San Francisco and the Washington Blade, both founded over 40 years ago, just at the start of the modern gay-rights movement. Other NGMA members are Bay Windows (Boston), Between the Lines (Detroit), the Dallas Voice, Gay City News (New York City), GA Voice (Atlanta), and Windy City Times (Chicago). These papers, along with their digital extensions represent an estimated 500,000 weekly newspaper readers.

Rivendell Media, the oldest and most experienced media rep. firm representing LGBT media to advertising and marketing companies, founded NGMA in 2011. “NGMA is the premiere vehicle for national advertisers to reach the gay and lesbian marketplace,” said Todd Evans, president of Rivendell, which also represents more than 100 other LGBT media.

“Gay media is local media,” said Evans. “It provides the best on-the-ground information to serve the diverse LGBT community. No one media outlet can be all things to the LGBT community, but regional media can do this best.”  The NGMA has its roots in the old National Gay Newspaper Guild, which provided the impetus for growth in the gay marketplace by providing the first verifiable readership demographics surveys of the gay press that sparked interest by Madison Avenue. Today the demographics of the LGBT consumer are well documented and this new organization will further the growth of LGBT media and provide the opportunities Madison Avenue demands today.


ABOUT NGMA:The National Gay Media Association is a professional organization dedicated to bringing together common marketing procedures and standards to local gay media outlets, print or digital, to encourage and promote national advertising. 
For further information, contact Todd Evans, Rivendell Media 212-242-6863.

Spicy Oyster Sauce Chicken (Ayam Sos Tiram)

 This dish looks like curry but not quite.... check out the ingredients and method and you will see the difference compared to typical Malay curry... no coconut milk, uniquely adding oyster sauce and chili paste....

By: Roz@HomeKreation
Adapted from: Mamasya (originally by Sajian Perantauan)
Ingredients slightly modified
Translated into English by HomeKreation
INGREDIENTS:

½ Chicken – cut

2 Potato@ - cut

4 tbsp Oyster Sauce

2 tbsp Tomato Sauce@
¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
1 big Onion*

2 cloves Garlic*

3 tbsp Chili Paste*
1 cm Ginger* (* blend) 

1 Lemongrass – bruised
2 tbsp Curry Powder
½ cup Water
1 Tomato – cut

Salt

(@ not in the original recipe)

METHOD:

1. Rub chicken with salt & turmeric powder & deep fry until cooked.

Keep aside.

2. Deep fry potatoes until cooked & keep aside.
3. Heat up some oil & stir fry blended ingredients* and curry powder until fragrant & oil bubbled out from the paste.
Add in chicken, lemongrass & stir well for few minutes.
Add in oyster sauce, tomato sauce, salt, water & cook until boiled & thicken.

Add in tomato and potatoes & cook few more minutes.  
4. Serve with rice/bread.

****************************************

BAHASA MALAYSIA VERSION

Terjumpa resepi ni kat blog Mamasya sewaktu googling.... memang sedap Ayam Sos Tiram ni.... tq Mamasya!

By: AlongRoz@HomeKreation

Adapted from: Mamasya (originally by Sajian Perantauan)

Along ubahsuaikan sedikit bahan2 nya & resepi di taip semula utk mudah rujuk

BAHAN2:

½ ekor Ayam – potong
2 biji Kentang@ - potong 
4 sb Sos Tiram
2 sb Sos Tomato@
¼ st Serbuk Kunyit
1 labu Bawang Besar*
2 ulas Bawang Putih*
3 sb Cili Mesin*
1 cm Halia* (* kisar) 
1 btg Serai – ketuk
2 sb Serbuk Kari½ cwn Air
1 biji Tomato – potong 
Garam
(@ takda dlm resepi asal tapi Along tambah)

CARA2:
1. Gaulkan ayam dgn serbuk kunyit dan garam dan goreng sehingga masak.
Angkat & ketepikan.
2. Goreng kentang sehingga empuk dan ketepikan
3. Panaskan sedikit minyak & tumis bahan kisar & serbuk kari sehingga terbit minyak.
Masukkan ayam dan serai, masak sebentar sehingga sebati rasa.
Masukkan sos tiram, sos tomato, garam, air dan biarkan menggelegak.
Masak sehingga kuah pekat. 
Masukkan tomato & kentang & masak sebentar lagi.
4. Hidangkan dengan nasi/roti.

Census Predicts Hispanic Population Within U.S. to Grow to 132.9 Million by 2050

Roberto Ramirez, Chief of the Ancestry and Ethnicity branch of the U.S. Census Bureau, appeared on C-SPAN to discuss the current and future Hispanic population in America.  Currently, 52 million Hispanics reside in America, accounting for 16.7% of the entire U.S. population.  In the past decade, the U.S. population added 30.1 million residents, 16.7 million (55.5%) of whom were Hispanic. 

Births within the U.S. contributed to almost two thirds of the growth within the Hispanic population, with migration accounting for the other third.  Additionally, Hispanics predominantly originate from Mexico, with more than 31 million hailing from the nation.  Mr. Ramirez projects the Hispanic population within the U.S. to swell to over 132 million, 30.2% of Americans, by 2050.

UPDATE: Webinar on using Quantitative Data in the Classroom today at *1 pm*

On Wednesday, June 27, at *1 pm*, EDT, ICPSR and the Social Science Data Analysis Network (SSDAN) will host the third webinar in a series aimed at integrating quantitative data analysis into substantive undergraduate social sciences courses. This webinar will feature Dr. Jill Bouma, Associate Professor of Sociology at Berea College in Berea, KY, and Dr. Dana Greene, Research Fellow, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who will discuss how they challenge their students in lower-division courses to define and describe stratification in the U.S. and the world today.
Participants will learn how Dr. Bouma and Dr. Greene successfully lead their students through the investigation of topics such as income inequality, housing segregation, race, and gender using quantitative data and methods. In addition to promoting a deeper understanding of the content, students taught with these methods improve critical thinking skills and develop a greater appreciation of the social sciences. Viewers will also learn where they can access some of Dr. Bouma and Dr. Greene's teaching materials to adapt for their own use.
Pre-registration is not required. To view the webinar, visit https://www3.gotomeeting.com/join/978777294 a few minutes before *1 p.m.* on Wednesday, June 27.

Homicides Up 38% In Chicago

Monica Davey of The New York Times examined homicides in some of America’s largest cities.  Chicago’s Mayor, Rahm Emanuel, ranked safer streets among his top three priorities when he first took office; however, homicides are up 38% from a year ago.  Killings have fallen in other cities like New York and Los Angeles, something Mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg attributes in part to the city’s controversial stop-and-frisk program.  Philadelphia joins Chicago as a major city in which homicides have increased.  As of June 20, 173 homicides were reported in the City of Brotherly Love, up from 143 by the same time last year.  It is important to note that Chicago has experienced a drastic drop in killings since the early 1990s when more than 900 were killed annually.

TQ All for My Birthday Wishes

Alhamdulillah, yesterday was my 47th birthday and I had great time.... one of the best birthday celebration! First of all, syukur ke hadrat ilahi di kurniakan kesihatan, kebahagiaan, kejayaan, rezeki dan semuga lebih panjang umur untuk tingkatkan lebih ibadat selepas ni. 

This year, my birthday celebration is complete as AlongRiz is home during his summer vacation. The kids surprise me with a huge Secret Recipe birthday cake and gifts from their own pocket money. My hubby spoilt me with my chosen gifts - La Gourmet cast iron cooking set and I thought that was it.... on my birthday itself there was another one.... Habib diamond ear-rings! Hubby also gave a dinner treat at the newly opened Meritz Hotel (Grand Old Lady restaurant) to celebrate triple birthday celebration for me, himself & AngahRuz.

Birthday sensation will not be complete without wishes from relatives and friends. I was poured with more than 200 greetings from phone calls, sms, emails and facebook.... masyaallah... thanks so much to all for the wishes and greetings! I felt very overwhelmed! Some friends also bought me gifts - thanks to Mala for lovely silk tudung, Salviana for silk suits, Audrey for cute jewel box mailed from KL! 

Today I was surprised by my colleague in the office with birthday song along a Secret Recipe Cheesecake (thought they forgot yesterday but they actually waited until today because I was in meetings). It was a joint birthday celebration for me, Daphne & Joanna who were born in June. Thanks all, for your thought & treat despite extremely busy weeks during the peak period.

Special thanks to all my cyber friends for wishes and below greeting cards posted at Facebook, love ya all:

fr Yusnani Saafi

fr Sharmila Sulaiman

fr KakPaty

fr Ibh Sue

Fr Nor@Secubit Garam

fr Sri Idayu Ghulam Rasol

fr Azita Zain

fr Norlia Ismail

fr Mimiey Yaacob

fr Ivy Sew

fr MaSaly

Juga tq yg hantar belated wishes:

fr Nur@CetusanRasa

fr Linda Noordin

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CEOs: Leadership Lessons from Lincoln

By Virgil Carter

The importance of successful and reasoned leadership at executive levels is probably obvious.  What may not be so obvious is the type of leadership needed for success under varying circumstances.  For example, non-profit organizations may face a wide variety of situations, ranging from a downturn in the economic fortunes of the organization to rapid organizational growth in new markets.  Membership and volunteer participation may be up, down or radically changing.  Competitive organizations and markets may threaten the future of many non-profits.  Internal differences of view may create crippling paralysis within the organization.  These and other challenging situations call for many different types and experiences in leadership.  Where can we look for examples of successful leadership in challenging circumstances such as these? 

One historical source, full of examples of triumph over staggering challenges, is the life and achievements of Abraham Lincoln.  So much has been written about Abraham Lincoln that the useful available sources may appear endless.  An excellent and instructive work, however, is Team of Rivals, by historian, author and Pulitzer Prize winner Doris Kearns Goodwin. 

In her book, Goodwin documents the life of Lincoln, his political rivals for the Republican nomination for President in 1860 and how Lincoln ultimately won the Presidency when no one expected him to do so.  Displaying great vision, courage and self-reliance, Lincoln thereafter appointed his political rivals to his cabinet during the turbulent years of the Civil War.  Each of these rivals must have felt their superiority to the inexperienced President, because “they were the strongest men”.  In the end, however, it was Lincoln who became the strongest of them all, and guided the nation through one of its most troubling and challenging times.

What were some of Lincoln’s leadership strengths that changed history?  Goodwin identifies these, among others:

• Visionary yet a practical realist
• Superhuman empathy
• Decisive & steadfast:  possessed the “long view” w/steadfast vision & unswerving commitment to purpose
• Ability to strike compromise & control own emotions
• Never used authority or coercion—motivated by communications & infinite patience
• Fair--inspired others to overcome petty rivalries
• Excellent story teller & communicator
• Honesty & integrity
• Subordination of himself to his work
• Sense of proportion & humor
• Ability to rise above personal slights; ability to get along w/persons of clashing ideologies
• Refrained from turning competitors into enemies

As a non-profit organization CEO (or aspiring one), what can we learn from Lincoln?  If your organization is diverse and opinion-rich, chances are you have “rivals”, of one kind or another.  Fortunately, few of us will ever face the extreme levels of leadership challenge faced by Lincoln.  Considering Lincoln’s leadership strengths and how they were put into practice, however, may enable all of us to become better leaders, forging important bonds with our own “team of rivals”,  and enabling success regardless of the challenge.  Good luck!

Over a Third of American Companies are Hiring

Gallup tracks the percentage of employed Americans who report their company is hiring or laying off workers.  The most recent tally displays an improving job market, in which 35% of companies are hiring compared to 16% that are letting go of employees.  These percentages have hardly changed since four years ago, when 37% of companies were hiring and 16% were laying off.  However, since bottoming out at 24% in late 2009, the percentage of companies that were seeking employees has risen steadily to its current level.  Conversely, the percentage of companies laying off its workforce peaked in early 2009, and has since fallen consistently.

Richy Rich: Income Inequality Infographics

Over the past year we have heard the media frequently use the term "99%."  It's a figure that Occupy Wall Street has been quick to employ to find common ground with the masses.  It's also a phrase that pundits have used to comment on the platforms of this year's presidential candidates.  But The Atlantic features a new way of looking at the 99% / 1% divide, by depicting incomes along a stacked bar chart that resembles the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.

The interesting chart comes from Scott Winship and is published on the Brookings Institution's website in an article about inequality within the top 1%.  The differences are striking.  If we take the poorest person in the top 1% of US incomes and put him on the 160th floor, then we would find the poorest person in the top 10% living on the 35th floor. Or, to put it another way, the disparity in earnings for these two individuals can be represented as a difference in 125 stories.  On the other hand, consider the median household income.  The poorest person in the top 50% of earners is separated from the poorest person in the top 10% by a mere 22 floors. The top one hundredth of incomes is separated from the poorest of the top 1% by 150 floors.  By contrast, the difference between the poorest individuals in the top 1% and those in the 2% is 67 floors

This is how the "temple" looked 100 weeks ago!  Unbelievable!  We have gone from empty lot and ground breaking to a nearly complete edifice ready for the open house and dedication in just over two years!  Compare that with the 40 years of construction for the beautiful Salt Lake Temple.

We have been truly blessed for generations to enjoy such marvels of technology, construction, and prosperity!

Week 100

This is the 100th week since construction began on the temple.  And since visible work has nearly ceased, for the purpose of this blog, I am declaring the construction phase complete.

When I visit the temple block, I can see some concrete edging here and gutter there being completed, or some roses or bushes being planted, but for the most part it is just small details that remain.  

Of course, I have no idea what it is like on the interior.  I have to assume that there are also just small details to complete, which, I am willing to bet, will give the contractor sleepless nights until he turns the building over to the church after the inspections are finished and all the issues have been resolved.

Now, we just have to wait for the fences to be taken down and the open house to start.  That will be a momentous day!

 There is now a large road grader on the lawn of the tabernacle, but I cannot see any more work that has been done for over a month.

 

It is a beautiful temple!  I hope that everyone in Brigham City and surrounding areas, whether they are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Days Saints, or members of another faith, or no faith at all, will come and see the interior of the temple at the open house before it is dedicated.

This glorious building is a testament to our belief in the eternal nature of the soul of men and women.  Because of Jesus Christ, we will live again after our life here in mortality!  Furthermore, our condition in the next life depends on covenants we make and keep in this life.  For, as Christ said to his disciples, "Come, follow me".