American and International Info Resources

Up until 30 years ago, JUDO was the martial art. Then with the introduction of the more mysterious martial arts with more of a “killing” edge to them this coupled with the focus of the USJF/USJI (the leading Judo organizations in the US and the world) focus on Olympic competition and the simple fact that training in judo is painful and to this day, very difficult to get a black belt rank in it, especially if you are in a competitive area. I could probably write another 5 pages on this, but I will stay on point.

During these years EVERY major metropolitan Police Department had a Judo club. Even countries like Thailand taught Judo to there police force, NOT Muay Thai. I personally train a number of law enforcement officers and I have seen the results first hand. So why is Judo the martial art for law enforcement?

The primary purpose of non-lethal force with law enforcement is to get your target to comply. What is the most realistic way of getting someone to do something you don’t want to with out seriously damaging them? How can you get someone from their feet to the ground as quickly as possible? How do you know what its going to be like for real? The answer is JUDO.

First off, when most people “resist” arrest, it’s an ego thing. They are looking to be restrain, or they don’t want to look like a punk and go quietly. The advantage the cop has is that the suspect knows that the officer is not trying to kill him or her. I realize this is a disadvantage in some situations, but that’s what the stuff @ www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com is for.

First, the object of judo is to throw the opponent from his feet to his back. Think about the majority of the altercations policemen get in, most of the time the skel is just kind of testing the officer. Once the suspect feels that the officer is going to be a tough customer, he’ll comply. Nothing drives this point home better than taking someone from their feet to their ass with one shot. Usually, when the guy is on the ground, he’ll take his medicine, since he knows the cop really isn’t going to kill him, a lot of time, that’s all it takes. Plus, to witnesses, it just looks like you pushed or pulled him over; mean while, they hit the deck HARD. Just ask my friend who threw guys one night with sasae tsuri komi ashi (lifting, pulling, ankle throw). These guys were fighting each other, and the guys on the scene had to get them to stop. So, he got in the fray and tossed ‘em all. Well, I guess they felt that getting up and fighting again wasn’t that much of a priority.

A popular argument is that most fights go to the ground. This may be true, but most people don’t know what they are doing. Most people don’t study judo.

One of the primary components of judo is being able to stay on your feet. You develop this skill as a by-product of the training. Just gaining the ability to stay on your feet is worth the price of admission. Especially when you are in a ’scrum’ maintaining your balance is a primary concern.

The fact is, there is not better way to practice imposing your will on someone who is non compliant. Nothing gives you greater confidence than throwing a man that has 100 pounds on you. Nothing. Especially when that guy doesn’t want to be thrown.

Another important component is the pinning and submissions of judo. To secure a full point in judo you need to hold him on his back for 25 seconds. Being able to hold a man down until the cavalry arrives will save your life. Plus, while this guy struggles, you are just squeezing the life out of him. Trust me, when it comes time for you to put the cuffs on him, he’ll be as compliant as a wet noodle.

Strangles and arm-bars, yep, Judo has them too. If you have to put someone “out of commission” and you really want to know how to strangle someone who doesn’t want to be strangled, you’ve come to the right place. When they wake up, you will have them cuffed and ready to go. (Uh-oh, the choke hold alarm! Hey, I am not talking about liability; I am just trying to save your life).

Lastly the overall toughening and body conditioning is second to none. If you can “randori” for 30 minutes, non- stop - you’re in really good shape. So why aren’t some many people, knocking down the doors of every Judo club. Because it’s hard work and it hurts. There’s no junior black belt, student of the month. Your gi is white and the work is hard. No secrets, just hard work.

The irony and the tragedy: the guys who train with me are only a few. Most of the guys interested in this type of training are SWAT or tactical guys. Unfortunately, these guys are the least likely to get in a roll around. That’s the irony. The tragedy is the guys who are most likely to need good hand to hand fighting skills are the patrolmen doing car stops, domestic violence; and all of the first response details. By the time the SWAT shows up, the situation is intense and the reality of a hand to hand confrontation is highly unlikely if not damned near impossible.

© www.thetruthselfdefense.com

Damian Ross is the owner of Zenshin and instructor of Tekkenryu jujutsu and Kodokan Judo. He started competing in the combative sport of wrestling in 1975 at the age of 7 and began his study of Asian martial arts with Moo Duk Kwan Tae Kwon Do at the age of 16 in 1984. In 1989, Shinan Cestari gave a seminar at Sensei Ross’s dojo. Sensei Ross has trained under Shinan Cestari’s direction ever since. In addition to Tekkenryu Jujutsu, Judo and Tae Kwon Do, Sensei Ross has also studied Bando. Sensei Ross continues his study of Judo under the direction of 8th degree black belt Yoshisada Yonezuka and Tekkenryu Jujutsu under it’s founder, Carl Cestari. Below are is a list of some of his title ranks:

Yodan (fourth degree black belt) Tekkenryu Jujutsu under Carl Cestari
Shodan (First degree black belt) Kodokan Judo under Yoshisada Yonezuka
Varsity Wrestling Lehigh University under Thad Turner
2nd Degree Black Belt Tae Kwon Do
http://www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com

Tie together people’s ultimate interests and you’re guaranteed to reveal a phenomenon we title a sportsbook bets location. Seriously, what could be more creative? Visualize a party of men clapping for a home sports heroes, and incessantly lays are guaranteed to be proclaimed tied to the tumult. Because they want to get their share of the action, spectators often venture to figure out who will prevail the coming meet. All of this turns to become a fun little meet titled sportsbook bets location.

It is bound to appear obsessive, but indeed sports betting is really just diverting and to tie up with your fellow sports addicts. Here, you’ll be able to risk a a slight budget of loot and regardless have an extraordinary time. Read on a few leads to help everyone get started sports betting. To place your wager, you’ll call on a sportsbook bets location, i.e. a setup which accepts sportsbook bets location. In the United States, you’ll find four states to do sports betting absolutely legally, but informally you can try it essentially anywhere if you pin down a bookie and you’re legally an adult. On the list of games you can choose to bet on are pro and, beyond, college basketball & football, professional baseball and hockey, and, beyond, wagers on both horse and dog racing. Punters could bet money on the comprehensive tally of a fight or game, at which point a given contestant will be knocked out, and even if a given tossed coin in a fight or game will come down either heads or tails.

Williams: 3 Tar Heels undecided on NBA

The sportsbook company will bank on statistical methods be of assistance to you choose which sports heroes you think will prevail. First of all, there is the probability, meaning specific points advantage pertaining to the losing contestant anticipated to take a licking by a specified number points. Evidently, this describes the betting outfit’s proven method of organizing unbiased wagers for a sportsbook. E. g., we might bet money on a lineup anticipated to take a licking and and regardless profit from the wager if the contestant does actually lose by a specified number of points. There’s a lot of varying breeds of stakes- parlay bets, straight bets, over/unders, teasers, which are related to to parlays differing in that you may either subtract or add points from the likelihood to hedge your stakes etc., the straight bets, where you’ll pick the side which you guess will make it or go under being the most typical in sports betting.

So why not experiment with it, and relax all at once? Only safeguard you won’t get too enthusiastic and squander your entire retirement pension on a quirk… If you don’t you might find yourself distressful for the rest of your life…

Swords of Honor will now carry the quality made swords called Generation 2. These swords will include Roman Gladius swords, Scottish swords, Celtic swords, Crusader swords, Viking swords, Movie and Fantasy swords, and more. Also, a very special limited edition “Iron Mistress” is now available in limited quantities.

The manufacturer is now producing the new swords (unlike any they have ever produced) with all new specifications, and a new tempering process that will truly make the Generation2* swords ready to win the Steel-to-SteelSM challenge. Each piece of the sword or knife and each scabbard it made and fit for just that piece, not mass produced and mass assembled. Each one is meticulously done, but yes at different specialized stations.

All tangs are a continuation of the blade that runs completely through the handle and connects to the pommel (not the thin rod used in most all swords). Although they are historically correct in appearance, specifications were set to produce a sword that could withstand the riggers of steel to steel and not produce a failure.

The first test was on several 2″x 4″s standing up and split them with no marring on the blade. The second test was on a 2″x 4″ cross ways resting on a solid rest and striking straight down. It did not cut all the way through, but it did cut deep and again did not mar the blade or edge. Then the ultimate test was Steel-to-Steel *, with 9 good blows. These tests resulted in NO breakage or looseness developing in the blade, tang, or handle of the swords.

* Steel to Steel Swords is the Service mark of Generation2 / Imperial Co., Inc. Copyright© 2001 -2004 all rights reserved.

Check out these fine swords and many more at http://www.swordsofhonor.com.

Swords of Honor was established in 1999 and has been serving Sword and Medieval enthusiasts for the past 7 years.

VoIP is turning out to be the technological innovation of the century. VoIP is registering over 100% growth annually and the chief patrons as of now seem to be businesses because with the ‘PROPER’ application of VoIP they are able to cut down their operating costs by almost 40%. The key word here is ‘PROPER’. This article will shed some light on the factors which play a vital role in the successful implementation of VoIP as a business tool.

To make a successful transition onto VoIP you should:

• Not discard your existing system altogether, but build up a hybrid system which combines both VoIP & PSTN as there are quite a few rough edges still existing in the domain of inter-operability between the existing system and VoIP.

• Do a proper survey of all the VoIP service providers and ask about their service quality with special emphasis on the type of algorithms they employ because the voice quality depends to a very large extent on the algorithms. Also get to know about their ASR (answer seizure ratio) it is a measure of the number of calls properly terminated, that’s why it can give you an insight into the quality of the routes the service provider uses, so a good ASR would mean that the VoIP service provider is offering quality services.

• Look for players who have expertise in various applications of VoIP like video conferencing, toll free numbers, DID( direct inward dialing number), calling cards because if the VoIP service provider is able to handle applications of various hues that would mean that the system used is stable and that he has an all encompassing expertise of VoIP.

• Make sure to ask about customer support services, as initially you would need a great deal of expert help to get your VoIP bandwagon rolling.

As with anything new, a proper approach can guarantee that you reach the objectives you had set out for and in the case of VoIP it’s even truer. Follow these rules and the transition of your business onto VoIP would surely be easy.

VoIP Phone Service
ALEN
voip-traffic.com

A Mediterranean cruise is without doubt the most
varied type of cruise available. There are more than
120 seaports around the Mediterranean coastline,
offering numerous combinations of cruise vacations
over one-week, two-week or longer trips.

A huge clash of cultures await all who opt for a
Mediterranean cruise. You can visit no less than
17 different countries, including such nations as
Spain, Italy, Greece and Egypt. Each nation has its
own unique attractions, all of which you can sample
as your cruise ship gracefully sails around the calm
blue Mediterranean Sea.

More than 50 companies offer cruises along varied
routes in the Mediterranean. Some companies specialize
in providing Western Mediterranean cruises,
concentrating on ports of call around Portugal,
Spain, France, Italy and Morocco. Other companies
offer Eastern Mediterranean cruises which take in
Croatia, Greece, Turkey and countries in the Middle
East. Popular specialist Mediterranean cruises include
a tour of the North African nations, a Mediterranean
islands cruise that visits the island nations of
Cyprus and Malta, as well as cruises around the Greek
Islands. If you’re after a longer vacation, it is
possible to arrange a cruise itinerary that takes
you around most if not all of the Mediterranean
nations.

History, culture, grand cities, ancient monuments,
romantic islands and breathtaking views are all
within easy reach on a Mediterranean cruise. In the
Western Mediterranean you can discover the traditional
white Andalucian villages of Southern Spain, sample
the world-famous Manzanilla sherry in Cadiz and visit
the cultural hub of Europe in the shape of Barcelona,
before travelling onwards to the French Riviera.

A cruise that takes in the wonderful coastline of
Italy yields such treasures as the dormant volcano of
Mt Vesuvius, ancient Pompeii and the stunning city of
Rome. The islands of Sicily and Sardinia hold many
delights too on a Western Mediterranean cruise.

In the Eastern Mediterranean, cruise passengers can
discover the spectacular Croatian coastline and its
beautiful city - Dubrovnik, before diving
southeastwards to sample classical Greece and its
sultry islands. The island of Crete is always worth
a visit, if only for the historic Palace of Knossos.

A visit to the holy city of Jerusalem is a
worthwhile excursion from both Israeli ports -
Haifa and Ashdod - on a Mediterranean cruise of the
Middle East. Egypt’s Port Said is well worth a visit
too. Port Said provides access to the world famous
Suez Canal, which takes vessels into the Red Sea and
onwards in to the Arabian Sea.

The Mediterranean region has seen many a civilization
rise and fall. It is a crucible of human evolution
and is rich in relics left over by more than 6,000
years of occupation. If you’ve ever wanted to discover
what it felt like to be an Egyptian pharaoh, Roman
warrior or a Greek philosopher, a Mediterranean cruise
can give you just that opportunity…

Looking for Cruise information ?

Go to http://www.azcruises.com to find out all you need
to know about taking your dream Mediterranean Cruise vacation.

Can you believe that in today’s age of technology that moves faster and faster, we’re still struggling to find the keys to make the world a healthier place? With all of the advances in genetically altering foods and changing the additives and chemicals in food it’s amazing that we haven’t solved the age old problem of being overweight and unhealthy. It’s amazing, but not surprising that as a nation we are getting more and more unhealthy with each passing day.
The processed foods tend to make people more hungry which causes spikes in insulin which then cause the crash which we all dread. That’s the worst part about getting trim and healthy. The hunger pains. Getting thin and trim doesn’t have to be a fantasy anymore. We now know that it’s a simple equation of calories out over calories in. If you ingest less calories, then the energy you expend that is the real way to getting rid of ugly body fat.
There’s a ton of solutions out there to help those who want to get to their ideal weight. Acceletrim is one of the weight loss solutions that do actually help in combatting the food additives and helps signifigantly with the hunger pains that everyone hates. Women who exercise see accelerated results with products like this. When ever there’s a solution for weight loss we need to look at how it’s affecting the physiology overall. Basically we need to reverse engieer the process that makes people fat. Beginning and end of story. Again, you’ve got to burn more calories that you consume. It’s not hard to find Acceletrim online if you just type it in. Infact it’s only found online.
Back to the point at hand. To find a real way to lose weight there’s five rules that will really help.
Here they are: Don’t eat after eight at night, drink as much water as you can, walk for thirty minutes a day, make sure to eat five meals a day evenly spaced, and seventy five percent of your weight in grams of protein.
One more thing. There’s a pretty cool video you should check out about getting healthy on you tube. It’s all about accelerated weight loss, you can find it on you tube.

Travelcasting is the commercial application of podcasting for the travel industry. Travelcasting is the distribution and publishing of audio and video feeds, that offer travel information delivered over the Internet, for on demand listening.

“This is a new step in the evolution of on-demand travel information delivery, making it accessible, informative, useful and appealing” says Ryan Hoback, CEO of What I Want POdcasting. This mix presents the travel industry with a very unique opportunity to reach its audience through this new medium. Those individuals, who are already seeking travel information actively, will use RSS subscription technology built into each podcast feed, to receive information immediately as it is updated by each organization. With one click of a button, a user can subscribe to a feed that may be interesting, and any related information that is ever updated to that feed will be automatically processed to their personal aggregator. An aggregator is able to subscribe to a feed, check for new content at user-determined intervals, and retrieve the content.

To take this process one step further, podcasting publishes each feed with the capability to be transferred to any portable audio or video device. So with the growth of the ipod and all the other portable media devices, you have the ability to grab travelcasts and place them on your portable player for listening or viewing. Most users attach their portable players to their computers daily or weekly, and once the player is attached they automatically receive the new travelcast updates.

The flexibility of this medium is what will drive the growth of Travelcasting tremendously over the next few years. There are a numerous formats that can be used in developing a travelcast. Virtual audio and video tours, give the power to the listener or viewer to receive on-demand travel tours for their destinations. In addition, podcasts are being placed on portable video devices to offer high-end guests tours of the property when they check-in.

The best thing about travelcasting is that the marketing opportunities are endless. With normal media, once a program is developed it only lives for a certain amount of time, and then it goes dormant and no longer exists in society. With podcasting, these feeds can be published to the web so that they will live forever, or until the organization request for them to be removed.

Here are some examples of how podcasting will affect the travel industry. The best sales associates for most resorts are travel agents and agencies. Travel agents and agencies rely on each resort to constantly update them with new deals and promotions, as well as supply them with the tools they need to promote the resorts, in order to keep clients satisfied. With podcasting, and its subscription based technology, you can put out audio or video updates of information that you would like the travel agencies to use, and they will receive as soon as it is posted on your server.

Another example of its use could be in coordination with existing web pages. Most resorts have numerous web pages which deliver travel information in text format. By providing an audio or video link on that page it gives the user a different and potentially more effective format for receiving the information. So not only can these audio and video feeds be placed on web pages where “one-click” lets you listen or view a travelcast, it can be sent to portable devices as well. This is also a great way to teach your existing users how to start utilizing travelcasting services by easing them into it, fusing your current website with new technology.

The options are wide open for the development of travelcast programs that are cutting edge, and highly opportunistic in terms of converting listeners into consumers.

The popularity of portable on demand information will grow even greater as wireless internet services continue to flourish across the country. These portable devices will no longer have to be connected to the internet; they will receive information wirelessly as it is updated. In addition, as cell phones and portable devices continue to merge together, the market grows larger.

For organizations that have members worldwide, the distribution of company information is very important, and once again this offers each institution a method of on-demand delivery which is convenient to all. Travelcasting can also be used as a direct line of communication, by recording video-casts of company messages from executives for company wide distribution.

There are numerous uses for travelcasting, and over the next few years it will explode in popularity. It is beneficial to organizations as well as the consumer, and it will be seen as a great tool in any travel organizations’ operations.

Slideshows for wedding receptions are becoming very popular. It is most definitely the “In” thing to do, and before long wedding slideshows will become so common that the thought of not having a slideshow at the wedding reception will be equal to the thought of not having a photographer at the wedding reception! However, some brides and grooms are a little reluctant at the prospect of showing a slideshow at their wedding reception. Here are some of the top 5 reasons that we have been exposed to, and our solutions to them.

1. We don’t want to bore our guests. - This is a very legitimate concern. Afterall, how many of us really want to sit down and watch picture after picture of the same two people and their friends - whom you may not even know - over and over and over again? You can see the audience yawning without even being there. It can make you tired just thinking about such a slideshow. However, this is not the case with creative video slideshows. With creative elements added into the slideshow, the audience sits amazed in the midst of laughter and tears while enjoying being entertained and having no idea how much time has actually passed by. In addition to the creative elements included in the creative slideshows, clients are counseled in how to create a slideshow that will involve the audience, not bore them.

2. We feel like we’re showing off or being prideful by displaying picture after picture of just us. - Another legitimate concern, but totally obsolete. This is your day - it is about you! Enjoy your day that’s all about you and your new love - celebrate! This is a once in a lifetime event! And a good slideshow consultant can help you create a slideshow that is entertaining and extremely enjoyable to all your guests.

3. It’s too time consuming. - Yes, gathering up photographs, and videos does take time. So ask mom and dad, brother and sister, grandmom and grandpop, aunt and uncle, and very close friends to help. Think of the wonderful memories you’ll be creating as you sit down together to go through old photos and to watch videos that haven’t been viewed since they were taped. Make some fresh cookies and hot cocoa, or some other delicious snack to serve as you spend the afternoon together reminiscing. This will be time well spent as you share these tender and intimate moments with those you love the most.

4. It’s too expensive. - How can you put a price on memories? Photos will yellow, crack, and fade. And even VHS tapes lose their quality over time. However, once you place your favorite photos and video clips on DVD’s or CD’s, they will last forever. Never cracking, yellowing, fading or degrading. Another big bonus is that they make wonderful gifts for you to give to family and close friends after the wedding reception ceremony. Think of the joy on your mother’s, father’s, and grandparents face when you hand them, their own copy of the DVD!

5. I just don’t know where to begin. - We realize that this project can seem overwhelming amongst all the other wedding planning that must be done, so we created the “12 Steps to a Successful Slideshow Production” checklist for you to follow. No need to stress out on what to do next, just follow the steps. You can also call or email your professional slideshow consultant at Sands of Time Multimedia Creations and she or he will be glad to help you with any questions or concerns you may have.

So, what are you waiting for? Let’s get started creating a creative video slideshow presentation for your wedding reception that will add to your day’s events and keep your guests talking about your wedding day for years to come! View some samples and experience the difference!

Publishing this article is permited electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are included. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated.

Film Scanning has become a necessary piece of equipment for the digital darkroom that enables the photographer to continue to shoot pictures the traditional way with film and slides. The scanner allows you to convert the film to digital files and take advantage of the use of software editing, enhnancing and publishing. There are some clear advantages to using a dedicated film Scanner over a flatbed scanner when scanning film or slide negative transparencies. Both a film scanner and flatbed scanner operate using a light source and sensors that scan through the transparency. A dedicated film scanner utilizes a transmissive light source while a flatbed scanner uses a reflective light source. A transmissive light source is a direct linear light source that reflects through the transparency. A reflective light also shines through the transparency, however it is contained or diffused under the glass bed of the scanner and relected off another surface. This is the lid or top surface of the flatbed scanner. The result is greater density and clarity scanned from the transmissive light from a dedicated film scanner. Current higher quality flatbed scanners offer transparency and negative holders and often include an additional light source on the lid to mimic the transmissive light. However, the ultimate operation of a flatbed scanner is still very similar to that of a copy machine. Although some may see an advantage in the flatbed scanner to scan batch negatives or slides quickly, the disadvantge becomes the ability to customize each individual slide or negative that may have different densities or exposure. With a dedicated film scanner, you have the ability to expose or scan each frame at varying degrees of resolutions and corrections. Most dedicated film scanners also offer the batch feature as well. Two main components are essential for a quality scan: resolution and dynamic range. Resolution is the mesurement of pixels the scanner can capture within the scan. Dynamic range is the degree of tonality that is captured within the scan. Most dedicated film scanners offer dynamic ranges greater than 3.6 with 0, the purest white and 4.0, the deepest black. While flatbed scanners have improved greatly in the past few years with higher resolutions, you must be careful on those claiming very high resolutions. This is often interpolated resolution or in simple terms, the scanner guesses on the number of pixels rather than contain the true optical pickup of pixels in the film scanning process. Author: Kimberly Renter Copyright, 2005 Owner of a Film, Photo and Slde Scanning Service at http://filmnfile.com This site also offers more scanning information and a forum to discuss photography. email at inquiries@filmnfile.com