sgusers7的部落格

上周我在北京出席一個討論中國資產證券化的研討會，自存倉事緣去年中國政府重推資產證券化，惹來市場不少憧憬，會上有不少外國財經專家，他們慣性地用先進國家經驗評論中國金融市場的種種發展障礙，雖然是老生常談，但也算真實反映中國市場目前面對的難題，包括監管機構混亂、信息不流通、投資者對信貸風險認識偏低，以及金融機構和產品太過依賴政府信譽支持形成道德風險等等。大家討論了3 個小時，會議快結束時，我突然有一頓悟：這不是中國金融市場的問題，這是中國的問題。監管機構混亂信息不流通先說監管，中國的資產證券化產品，主要有兩種，一是銀行的債務資產打包、二是由證券公司安排的非信貸類資產，例如地產和基建，前者由銀監會監管，產品在銀行間市場銷售，銀行作為資產出售方，目的是收縮資產負債表和割離信貸風險。後者由證監會監管，在交易所掛牌，證券公司作為第三方，安排項目是為了賺取安排費，這些是歷史背景。發展至今，業界要推新產品，常常不知叩那個門才正確。但監管混亂，不是金融業的專利。由毒奶到高鐵，問題都與監管有關。朋友告訴我，中國現在公務與平民的比例是1 比40，這麼龐大的機構，效率卻是那麼低。談到信息不流通，甚至作假，中國的投資散戶和普羅消費者一樣，都是最不受保障的一群，股市固然迷你倉新蒲崗為大股東集資服務，很少顧及小投資者的利益。奇怪後者亦甘於做順民，跟風炒消息，任大戶把控。此外，銀行銷售的理財產品亦欠缺詳細的風險披露，整個資本市場都是向金融機構和企業傾斜，消費市場亦然。以食品為例，中國老百姓視食物安全為社會危機之最，問題很多時出在食品鏈上游，大家根本不知道自己在吃什麼。中國金融最大風險乃道德風險賣東西的心存僥倖，買的人又莽撞。不幸地，中國的GDP 增長並沒有帶來相應的民智上升。國內很多高風險的房地產和不賺錢的基建項目，都被包裝成理財產品向個人投資者推銷，散戶貪圖高利率對信貸風險不求甚解。造假成風令百姓對什麼都失去信心，但弔詭的是，事情出錯後，百姓一旦蒙受損失，又轉過頭來要政府負責。朋友在信託公司擔任融資工作，他有一機構客戶有興趣投資某信託產品，條件是這信託產品必須有部分賣給散戶，還要是在信託公司所在地的居民（方便他們上訪？）機構客戶的想法：萬一產品出現違約，因為有小市民參與，政府為了維穩，必定會補償或逼迫金融機構補底，難怪有人說，中國政府背負的真假間接或直接的債務，永遠算不清。中國的金融市場最大的風險就是道德風險。老外煞有介事地分析中國金融改革之路，我心�想這是我們炎黃子孫3000 多年的醬缸文化，要改可不是那麼容易。迷你倉出租

本港上市內銀本周踏入業績期，儲存倉由招行（3968）及重農行（3618）將率先於本周五（16 日）公布中期盈利。綜合券商預測，國有大型銀行上半年淨利潤，按年增長8%至15%，中小行增幅則平均介乎9% 至18%【表】。券商認為，內銀中期業績表現平平，未會有太大驚喜。內地6月份鬧錢荒，對銀行淨息差的影響在中期業績或有所反映。瑞銀預計，第二季內地股份制銀行，基於資金市場緊張及出於加強流動性管理的考慮，在縮減同業業務，以及整體資產規模增長減慢下，淨息差縮窄程度會較大。ROE達20%支持股價美銀美林則認為，內銀第二季淨息差，會延續過去數季的趨勢，小型銀行與農行（1288）淨息差按季收窄約5至10個基點，大型銀行淨息差維持穩定。擁有最多同業業務的民行（1988），料於第三季會顯著減少同業業務，對該行淨息差的影響屆時才會真正浮現。非利息收入方面，美銀美林預計，在內地嚴打虛假貿易及銀行表外信貸減少下，第二季內銀的費用收入增長將較首季減弱，惟鑑於去年底同期因中銀監整頓銀行違規收費而導致的迷你倉沙田基數，今年上半年內銀費用收入仍可錄得20%以上的強勁按年增幅。內地經濟增長放緩，市場對內銀的關注焦點，離不開資產質素的變化。中銀監早前公布內地銀行業主要財務指標顯示，第二季不良貸款率為0.96%，與第一季持平，反映資產質素大致維持穩定。不過，摩通直言，內地企業借貸比率高，是金融風險的一大主因。企業債務對國內經濟生產總值（G D P），由2008 年的92%，升至2012 年底的124%；另外，企業現金流亦呈減弱�象。在內地非銀行融資增長規模收縮、企業盈利增長減慢，加上流動性趨緊令借貸成本上升，或會削弱企業的還款能力，令銀行確認更多不良貸款。摩通相信，內銀平均的股本回報率（ROE）以年化計仍可達20%左右，短期為股價提供支持，惟基於對中長期內銀表現持審慎看法，該行視之為沽售多於低位吸納的機會。摩通較為看好工行（1398）及建行（939），因認為這兩家銀行的貸款組合較平衡，對影子銀行的相關貸款風險較低，以及擁有較強的零售存款基礎，能較好地抵禦內地逐步放開利率管制的影響。迷你倉價錢

明天就是七夕情人節，迷你倉價錢�豐信用卡特地和多家五星級飯店、餐廳、電影院及各大通路合作，推出消費優惠活動。包括五星級飯店用餐85折起、知名牛排館及冰淇淋買一送一、頂級飯店住宿2,888元起。指定商店刷卡滿額分期，還抽頂級行李箱，讓情人們在表達愛意之餘又不傷荷包。�豐（台灣）商業銀行個人金融暨財富管理事業處資深副總裁葉清玉表示，若想過個有質感又不讓荷包大失血的情侶們，迷你倉庫議可善用信用卡提供的優惠活動，無論吃大餐、看電影、或安排兩人浪漫外宿一晚，只要花點心思，即能輕鬆共度情人節。此外，�豐卡友在指定特約商店刷卡消費並辦理分期，不僅享有分期零手續費，還可抽知名品牌行李箱，抽獎機會只到9月底。如果還想不到要送什麼，當作情人節禮物的話，不妨申請一張�豐信用卡附卡給另一半，9月30日前辦卡還享有附卡專屬首刷禮200元現金回饋。（周奕豪）儲存

Source: Globes, Tel Aviv, IsraelAug.self storage 11--In March 2012, something happened in the Big Apple: Sarah Jessica Parker and her husband, Matthew Broderick, decided to leave the West Village in Manhattan, and they bought a house in Brooklyn Heights. Parker, as the character Carrie Bradshaw, was a symbol of the eternal love of the Manhattan neighborhood. In an episode of the television series, in which Miranda told her three girlfriends that she and her family were moving to Brooklyn, her friends officially declared mourning that the Brooklyn Bridge and a few subway stops now separated them from their red-haired friend.Nonetheless, prices in some Brooklyn neighborhoods, especially those close to Manhattan, have narrowed the gap to apartment prices in Manhattan, and even exceeded them in some cases. For example, Brooklyn Heights, which has a view of the Statue of Liberty and is just one subway stop from Wall Street, is the most expensive neighborhood in Brooklyn, and it has absorbed former Manhattanites like Parker and Broderick. Neighborhoods such as Williamsburg and Crown Heights, for which there was once no demand at all, have become fashionable and attracted young people and modern businesses. Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg, which more or less resembles Sheinkin Street in Tel Aviv in its better days, draws large numbers of artists and there is strong demand for office and residential space.According to "Bloomberg", the median price of a 1-3 room apartment in Brooklyn was $550,000 in the second quarter of 2013, 15 percent higher than in the corresponding quarter in 2012. Manhattan covers 60 square kilometers, while Brooklyn covers 250 square kilometers and has 2.5 million residents. In 2003, Brooklyn released millions of square meters of industrial space for residences in Williamsburg and Green Point, both of which are across the East River from Manhattan. This resulted in a construction boom, which the sub-prime crisis turned into abandoned building sites by 2010. Construction is only now resuming at some of borough's abandoned sites, indication of a slow recovery.The mass of construction in Brooklyn is now concentrated in rental residential projects, because they are lower risk than building residential apartments for sale.TerraCRG founder Ofer Cohen, who specializes in commercial properties in Brooklyn says, "2011 was the first year of recovery, with a doubling of activity from 2010 to 2011. For us, this was an opportunity in a market that was starting from zero. Brooklyn is today a much hotter place to invest in than Manhattan. People believe that Brooklyn has not yet maximized prices like in Manhattan, and there is room for a further rise in prices. In 2003-08, industrial land in downtown Brooklyn was rezoned for residential use and increased building rights from three to 32 floors. This created the potential for millions of square meters of residential space, so there are landowners with an interest to sell properties to developers."Since 2010, rents have risen 10 percent a year. As a consequence, even now, 95 percent of the apartments under construction in Brooklyn are for rent, which means that there are few apartments to buy. In Williamsburg, the average rent rose from $450 per square meter in 2010 to $650 per square meter in 2013. Therefore, there is less risk is building rental apartments than building for sale," says Cohen."Israeli insurance companies seeking high yields from rental projects (which do not yet exist in Israel) are going around Brooklyn looking for deals. Since there is no inventory of new apartments for sale, there is still demand to buy them. In contrast, banks are still afraid of financing projects of hundreds of apartments for sale. Developers see the opportunity, but the bank looks at the risk."Artists and gays were the firstBrooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz told "Globes", "Over the years, it has become increasingly difficult to live on an average salary without parents who can provide the equity to buy a home. There are neighborhoods in Brooklyn where it is easier to buy an apartment, but they are not the buyers' first choice. Nevertheless, we've already seen that the higher demand neighborhoods were once very unattractive, and the pioneers who identified them were artists, gays, and lesbians. They were followed by families to these apartments."Markowitz adds that the difference in apartment prices in high-demand Brooklyn neighborhoods has narrowed compared with Manhattan, and that the quality of life in Brooklyn is better. "Our neighborhoods are full of families with children, because the conditions here are better for families. In Manhattan, you don't see the sky, but you see it in Brooklyn, and this should not be taken for granted. Even Manhattan's nightlife can now be found in Williamsburg, which attracts young people. It reminds me of the 1960s, when I would go to Greenwich Village in Manhattan."Brooklyn's changing investment potential has been spotted by American and foreign real estate companies, including Israeli companies such as Gaia Real Estate, owned by Danny Fishman, Adama Holding Ltd. (TASE:ADMA.B1), and Naftali Group LLC, owned by developer, chairman and CEO Miki Naftali, the former CEO of Yitzhak Tshuva's Elad Properties. Most of the companies operating in Brooklyn's real estate market build long-term rental projects.A company that actually builds residential projects for sale in Brooklyn is UpReal Private Investments Ltd., which was founded in 2008 by David Goldberger, Rony Laor, and Eyal Yagev. The company, which initially invested in Phoenix and Indianapolis, decided to focus on New York in 2010, and in the past few years, it has invested in Brooklyn real estate by recruiting private investors. Upreal's local partner is Brookland Captial , owned by Boaz Gilad and Assaf Fitoussi. The company finds lots or buildings, buys them, and builds projects with 20-40 apartments on the site. All the apartments are for sale, and investors receive a return on their investment within a predetermined period of 18-24 months. Investment in Upreal starts at $100,000, and is usually $200,000-300,000.One of Upreal's biggest investments in the past year has been the purchase of Brooklyn churches, which it converts into residences. With迷你倉the entry of young secular families to residential neighborhoods, local churches have slowly lost their parishioners. Most of the churches were financially supported by adjacent schools, and the change in the character of the residents has resulted in the closing of some of these schools, and the financial wherewithal to maintain the churches waned.Supervising churchesUnlike in Israel, churches in Brooklyn are built on private land, which the landowners can sell, subject to approval of the sale by the district attorney who oversees that the deal is legal and verifies that the pastor is not selling the land to associates.Also unlike in Israel, the land is not zoned for a religious institution, but the urban plan for the street applies, which means that churches in residential neighborhoods can be converted into residential projects. "The purchase of churches to convert them into residences is a new business, which allows us to acquire churches at low prices and convert them into residences on the basis of the neighborhood mix," says Gilad. "Local brokers know to tell us exactly what the area needs, whether large apartments for families, or small apartments for young people. On the basis of the demand, we build the project."One of the churches recently bought up UpReal is at the corner of 2nd Street and Sixth Avenue in Park Slope. "We saw the potential of this property, because it is sought-after neighborhood, prestigious but not ostentatious, and with no available lots at all. The property is located two streets from Prospect Park, which is two-thirds the size of Central Park."Gilad says that UpReal bought the lot for $6.2 million, paying 10 percent from equity, and the rest coming from private investors. The company will not demolish the impressive church, but will convert it into 13 large apartments of 200-300 square meters each. "Homebuyers here are families that work on Wall Street. They're paying here $12,000 per square meter, the same as for an apartment in Manhattan.""Due to the sub-prime crisis, Americans don't want to buy a home on paper. They want to touch the walls. That is why we're selling apartments only when 80 percent of the building is built. Buyers obtain mortgages for up to 97 percent of the price. In contrast to Israeli banks, the percentage of financing has not changed, but the tests of the borrowers' ability to pay have become much stricter. In the US, they say that, before 2008, it was enough to have a beating heart to get a 110 percent mortgage. Today, borrowers are meticulously examined before they are given financing.The Brooklyn mall will be a huge successGoldberger is aware of the problematic image of real estate-based financial investments, especially in a place like New York, partly because past actions of some companies ended up in court. He says that investors in UpReal can go on to New York City Hall's website to review the status of plan. Every one of UpReal's construction sites in Brooklyn has a sign showing the plans for the project."We're talking about financial investment, and real estate is the tool for achieving the return desired by investors, just as they would choose to invest their money in bonds," says Goldberger. "The investor no longer receives direct ownership of the asset, and he does not have to worry whether he has a tenant or not to guarantee his return on investment. The investor shares in the profit at a predetermined exit date." He says that the investments are suited for investors with diversified portfolios of NIS 1 million or more, but definitely not for people whom this is their only source of disposable income.David Holmes, a Brooklyn native and adviser for private equity funds in New York, says, "Investor psychology about Brooklyn is also changing. It was always thought that people from Brooklyn had no money, and that the Spring Mall built in southern Brooklyn eight years ago would not survive. The fact is that it's a huge success, because Brooklyn has 2.5 million residents who had no mall, and has also resulted in the opening of malls in Queens and the Bronx. Just six months ago, an H&M store was opened in Brooklyn. Although Brooklyn will always be Manhattan's kid brother, there is change. Big players like Wall Street investors who never looked at Brooklyn are now looking at it. Banks are also prepared to do business in BrooklynAptsandlofts real estate agency owner David Maundrell says, "When I was a boy, I remember that Williamburg was considered dangerous because it had an industrial area that was full of foreigners. In 1992, I suddenly saw blondes coming to the neighborhood, artists began occupying the lofts, but everything froze in 2007, and even people who wanted to obtain financing to buy couldn't. Brooklyn brokers could only make a living from leases. Today, the situation has reversed, and there are more options for buying in Brooklyn than in Manhattan. Due to the difference in prices between Brooklyn and Manhattan, people prefer to live in Brooklyn and take the train to work in Manhattan. While a two-room apartment on the Upper West Side costs between $900,000 a $1 million, a similar apartment in north Brooklyn will cost $700,000."In June, UpReal bought a church on Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights, very near the house of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. The shuttered church and its adjacent school were bought for $3 million, and will be converted into 42 two and three-room apartments. UpReal estimates that because all the properties were bought cheaply, the investors have already made a return on their investment, which is around 20 percent a year.UpReal has also spotted demand for small apartments in the formerly undesirable Bushwick neighborhood. It recently bought an Anglican church at 1250 Bushwick Avenue for $2.2 million, after it decided to close down along with its adjacent school. "We'll build 23 small 45-65-square meter apartments, which will be sold for $300,000-420,000 each, compared with $500,000 for an apartment in Williamsburg," says Gilad. "Only young people buy here."The correspondent was a guest of UpReal.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Globes (Tel Aviv, Israel) Visit the Globes (Tel Aviv, Israel) at .globes.co.il/serveen/globes/nodeview.asp?fid=942 Distributed by MCT Information Services文件倉

By AN BAIJIEanbaijie@chinadaily.新蒲崗迷你倉com.cnAround 300 employees at a company in Beijing have been detained on suspicion of illegally sourcing personal data to make a profit.The suspects, from Tistina International Collection, are accused of using the data to off-load inferior collectibles, such as memorial coins and stamp albums, at high prices.Around 300 officers were sent to raid the company’s office in Fengtai district on Wednesday, Beijing Public Security Bureau said in a statement on Saturday.Four hundred employees were initially questioned, and about 300 were taken into custody, it said.Police said the company hired women to cold-call people whose data they had illegally obtained to sell the collectibles, and each employee made at least 200 calls a day.Tistina had completed more than 30,000 transactions, with a total value of 100 million yuan ($16.3 million), according to the statement, which added that the company founder, a 38-year-old man identified only as Han, of Panjin in Liaoning province, has not been captured.Zi Xiangdong, a spokesman for Beijing Public Security Bureau, said the investigation is ongoing.Calls to the company went unanswered omini storage Sunday.Beijing Youth Daily reported the company had so much information that police had to use four vehicles to transport the documents. The data included names, cellphone numbers and addresses, much of it obtained through online shopping and credit card records.The report said a female employee told police she earned 2,000 yuan during the first month she worked for the company. By the third month, she was making 18,000 yuan, since she knew how to persuade people to buy the collectible items.Elderly people were targeted, she told police.Public security authorities have been cracking down on the illegal trade of personal data in recent years.In April 2012, more than 1,700 suspects, including civil servants, were detained in 20 provinces for selling or buying personal information, Xinhua News Agency reported.“The trade infringes privacy and leads to fraud activities,” said law professor Liu Deliang at Beijing Normal University.People who sell or illegally obtain personal data face criminal sentences, according to Chinese law, while it is also forbidden for any person or organization to steal or sell personal information.Cao Yin contributed to this story.self storage

Police arrested four people during heated clashes between pro- and anti-government groups outside a public meeting between Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying and residents of Tin Shui Wai yesterday.迷你倉出租Four men were arrested during the afternoon, as scuffles broke out between government supporters and members of pan-democratic groups, many of whom were rallying against land reclamations in Kowloon West and the New Territories.Scores of pan-democrats massed outside the community hall at Tin Ching Estate on Sunday in the scorching heat, chanting anti-Leung slogans and calling for him to step down. But most of the estimated 500 people at the town hall meeting supported the government.“We hope Leung doesn’t step down … he loves Hong Kong and he loves this country,” said Tom Law, a retired schoolteacher, who had lined up in the morning to enter the hall.“He has been trying to help young people, especially in terms of housing issues.”Further away from the community hall, protest groups were rallying behind a range of causes.“We are here to protest the government plan to extend the landfill in Kowloon West,” said Tuen Mun district councillor Josephine Chan Shu-ying. “We are also asking the government to construct more community facilities儲存倉for Tin Shui Wai.”Several members of pan-democrat groups said they had been attacked by paid “protestors” from outside the area. “I was trying to film something and then someone kicked me and poured water on me,” said one of them, who gave his name as John.An 11-year-old boy was reportedly injured in a scuffle, police said. He did not require medical treatment.Many of Leung’s supporters were camped around the square with loudspeakers, praising his policies and criticising radical pan-democrat members.Lawmaker Albert Chan Wai-yip of People Power criticised Leung’s administration for having a “Communist Party gangster mentality, which was slowly encroaching on the lives of Hong Kong people”.A large number of officers were deployed and two were injured, police said. Some protesters accused the police of being heavy-handed.“The first person was arrested for common assault, the second and third were arrested for disorderly conduct in a public place, and the fourth was arrested for assaulting a police officer,” Yuen Long deputy district commander Chan Lok-wing said.League of Social Democrats vice-chairman Avery Ng Man-yuen, who threw a folding chair at the chief executive’s car, was arrested for disorderly conduct in a public place.迷你倉沙田

Source: Odessa American, TexasAug.儲存 11--Last weekend, another family mourned the death of their beloved child -- another young person lost their life on the treacherous streets and highways in the Permian Basin.A rollover accident in the 8600 block of Highway 191 claimed the life of 20-year-old Dustin Wiginton when his Chevrolet Blazer collided with a Dodge Avenger and rolled several times landing in the eastbound lane of 191.Sunday in a Facebook post, his obviously heartsick father, Ricky Wiginton, asked if anyone remembered when people "used to drive with respect for other drivers around here." He pleaded with everyone to please people be careful, your life depends on it, my son Dustin was taken in a car accident on 191 Friday night..."Ricky is one of many parents, family members and friends who have lost loved ones on area roadways and tragically, the death toll continues to climb.I can say, Ricky, while people used to drive with a bit more courtesy in Odessa, the roads have always been a bit dicey. But the roads were not lined with folks trying to text or get somewhere in a hurry, or with as many 18-wheelers as is the case today. Back in the day, the fatal, tragic accidents almost always had to do with speeding.Remember the slogan "Drive Friendly?" Well, that's not the case around here anymore. Gene Powell, public information officer at the Texas Department of Transportation, wants to revive that mantra."We are seeing more wrecks and fatalities and it is about driving patiently and respectfully," he said.He's right, and he added that we are seeing plates from all 50 states down here and not everyone is used to our traffic patterns."It's not to say it's outsiders -- it's everybody," Gene said.He told me recently that they are installing wire cable barriers along I-20 from west Odessa to Loop 250 in Midland and this should be strong enough to stop an 18-wheeler from crossing the median. Well I'm putting in my request for another barrier along 191.But here's a scary thought. We need to be aware of what the folks driving around us are doing. Case in point, I heard a report the other day from someone who was driving down a busy highway and this person witnessed a girl with her feet on the dash, the steering wheel between her knees and what? A cell phone was in her hands. A fatal wreck waiting to happen.Ten years ago, we respected other drivers, Gene observed."Today, you can expect the worst from everyone around you," Gene said.Five years ago it was safe to come out of the H-E-B pa新蒲崗迷你倉king lot. Today it's not. So take alternate routes or "the roads less traveled." It may take a little more time, but what's time when you are making the road safer for everyone.As for the Wiginton family, our hearts reach out to them and the many other families who have tragically lost loved ones. And so did many, many others via Facebook posts."So very sorry for your loss. You are right. People now days are either super careless and don't pay attention because of their phones or they have such a huge sense of entitlement that they feel that they own their spot on the road and will run you off the road instead of be courteous and share the road," Shannon Krugman posted."My prayer is that Dustin's death be a learning experience for the many careless drivers in the area, and that people see how easily one lapse in judgment could take someone's child from this earth. God bless you in this time of hurt and prayers for your family and a change in this community!" wrote Stephanie Niemann Tibbets."I moved back here to be with the grand kids and my aging father after being in San Antonio for 21 years," posted Angela Fenton Ayers. "Thought coming back to West TX would be a good break from the traffic in San Antonio...yeah right. Have been rear ended and run off the road. Ran off the road on 191 when someone changed lanes, went across the center median into oncoming traffic lost control of the car on rocks skidded back across the direction I was going and ended up on the service road. Don't know how I kept the car upright. The lady did turn around and came to see that I was ok. I'm so sorry for your loss. God's peace to you and your family."Michelle Alexander Snell posted: " I cannot imagine the depths of your pain but I've had 4 friends who've lost their sons so I've seen the pain. I only hope you can find a tiny bit of comfort in the memories and stories you share about Dustin. ..Nothing is that important to be speeding like a fiend to get somewhere unless it's a real emergency."And finally, Dustin's father, who is a local truck driver, pleaded with drivers to slow down."I see every day people doing things and driving like there is no tomorrow, please let's change the way we think behind the wheel."Come on, folks, we can do this.Contact Celinda Hawkins on twitter @OAciti, on Facebook at OA Celinda Hawkins or call 432-333-7779.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Odessa American (Odessa, Texas) Visit the Odessa American (Odessa, Texas) at .oaoa.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesmini storage

Source: Tulsa World, Okla.self storageAug. 11--On the last day of Girl Scout camp, the camp flag is taken down.It's walked over to a campfire and cut up. Counselors-in-training say what each strip represents."You sing songs and you remember that this is the last time that the same group of girls will be in the same place at once," described 16-year-old Katie Childs, who's been a camper for 10 years."It's really -- nice, for lack of a better word."Summer is finished and so too is summer camp.So is the sailing and the horseback riding. The swimming and the endless laughter. The horsing around on the basketball court and all those summer arts and crafts.The days that seemed to take their time for the children's sake wear thin when August hits.Summer is finished, says the Girl Scouts closing camp ceremony. But the memories and value of a summer well lived persist for campers at scout camp and other programs across the region.'Lifelong memories'"It's like recess all day long," said camper Lauren Martino, during her last week at Riverfield Country Day School's Camp Raven.Among the camp sessions she participated in were Alice in Wonderland camp -- Lauren made a Mad Hatter hat and other crafts for a tea party -- and Caring Camp, in which campers volunteered at a number of social service agencies around Tulsa.The 11-year-old learned about gardening and cooked kale chips. She made some new friends whom she called "kinda weird."One found a cicada shell during a treasure hunt, placed it on her shoulder and walked around with it.Lauren wrinkled her face at the memory. She would never do that.These are the experiences Camp Raven director Ric Breig said he hopes campers take away whether they played sports all summer, learned about bugs one week or toiled away at a treehouse whenever they had a spare moment."It's the memory. I had memories, parents had memories. I want them to make lifelong memories. 'Hey, at summer camp, we built a bridge and we built it with our own bare hands and that bridge is still here today.' Or 'I remember this funny time when so-and-so spewed milk out of his nose' and 'that happened at camp, that happened here.'"'Big transformation'At the W.L. Hutcherson Family YMCA, children enrolled in the center's Next Level Basketball Leadership camp are taking a break before their coach walks through some drills with them.Among them, O.C. Walker III is getting ready to practice. Whole days devoted to the game have really sharpened the eighth-grader's skills."I was OK. Then, like the middle of camp, I started getting better and better, and now I can take the ball behind my back and stuff. I could shoot pretty good but now I can shoot better."The coaches have noticed too."Not only his skill level has increased but also his confidence," said Chivas Miller, sports director for the branch. "When he first got here ... 迷你倉e really wasn't confident in his game, didn't know too much about basketball ... and literally in a five-week span he's gone from not really knowing much about the game to now he's one of the best players in the camp. Even the way he talks is different. You can tell there's been a real big transformation."Walker's outcomes and those of the other campers are not unlike what camp advocates tout as benefits of camp.In a community environment, campers stand to not only build self-esteem, self-worth and self-identity, but also to refine skills in other areas."When you've just got a week and you've got time, I mean how often does anyone have time to just sit and be creative for a week?" asked Paul Knight, who leads a number of music camp sessions at Camp Raven. "I love songwriting camp because it gives me time to sit and write ... while they're working on their own, I get to work on my own."There are few time constraints, no deadline, Knight said.The only pressure of summer camp is lapping in all the adventure, learning and memories before the end of the week.'Switch!'Katie, who will be a camp counselor next year, won't forget the service project she worked on in which she had to paint a bathroom stall.She included the words to one of her favorite camp songs.It goes "I don't care if I go crazy, 1-2-3-4-5-6, Switch! Crazy go I if care don't I, 6-5-4-3-2-1, Switch!"And then there was the hike up Lake Hill, she recalled."It's a pretty steep hill."The girls would joke as they made it up the incline. At points when the trip got tough, chipper words of Girl Scout encouragement would ring in the air. There was a bit of cheesiness the girls would laugh at, Katie said. But she liked it, too.She said of new Girl Scouts, often any nervousness apparent on the first day of camp is replaced with a type of sadness by the last.A sadness such that, Katie said, camp counselors make an extra push for upbeat activities the final stretch of camp.Like the Shipwreck dinner. Girls can't eat with anything but tongs.At one particularly memorable meal, the high school junior had to eat spaghetti with a butter knife. She still laughs at this recollection.In a decade of summers at camp, Katie has met people she never thought she'd meet, made some best friends, went inner-tubing and learned about chores -- "I think my mom appreciates that."You become a sister to everybody, she said. And camp becomes like a second home."And that's what it does," Katie said. "It makes you feel like you have a second home."But summer camp is over now -- for this year at least.School is around the corner, she knows."I welcome the air conditioning."Bravetta Hassell 918-581-8316bravetta.hassell@tulsaworld.comCopyright: ___ (c)2013 Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) Visit Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) at .tulsaworld.com Distributed by MCT Information Services文件倉

WANT to know how much energy your company is using and how to drive costs down?Green Koncepts Pte Ltd says its Koncepts Energy Management (KEM), which provides real time energy intelligence, has the answer.迷你倉 According to the firm, KEM, launched last year, is the first cloud energy management platform to hit the market here.Green Koncepts founder and chief executive Kenneth Lee said: "We provide to the industries what Bloomberg provides to financial market participants - real time energy intelligence."Essentially, the KEM is a convergence of intelligent sensor networks, smart metering, wireless communications, as well as information technology.First, data gathered by intelligent sensors and smart meters are transmitted through existing power cables or wireless communications to a KEM gateway, which can come in different physical forms. Capable of supporting appliances that conform to different industrial protocols in a plug and play manner, the KEM gateway then sends these data through the Internet to a cloud server. From there, users are then able to gain access to real-time information via their mobile devices or PC browsers.The KEM can be up to five times more cost-effective than traditional solutions, said Mr Lee in a recent interview.In the short term, setting up the KEM is non-disruptive to businesses because it does not require shutdowns or additional cabling works. The utility model of sharing a cloud server also rids the need for users to build individual on-site servers, thus lowering investment, maintenance and labour expenses in the long term.With the cloud computing technology that KEM uses, businesses and property owners with an international footprint are now able to consolidate energy data from various real estate - even those overseas - in a single location. "By using this cloud platform, we are able to stream these data centrally, and allow a centralised monitoring station to understand exactly how the buildings are performing," explained Mr Lee.Subsequently, the knowledge that energy is not being optimised would give rise to the desire for correction, which is why intelligent lighting controls feature as an optional function of the KEM.Green Koncepts will soon release a management tool that provides in-depth analytics and diagnostics on the performance of chilled water systems. This will allow businesses and property owners to optimise the energy consumption of chiller plants, which could come up to a substantial amount since air-conditioning alone typically accounts for 50 per cent or more of a building's energy consumption, said Mr Lee. Additionally, the product also has functions capable of churning green building compliance reports and tenant bills, thus giving businesses and property owners greater convenience in carrying out measurement and verification, as we文件倉l as tenant management.In particular, the KEM has the potential to replace mechanical timers in lighting controls, and facilitate the use of daylight energy harvesting in countries that experience fluctuating hours of sunshine.Yet, the KEM is flexible in that its functions are "modular by nature", meaning that users can purchase only the ones that they require. Mr Lee said that this makes KEM suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). "Most of the time, solutions are available only to the big companies with deep pockets," explained Mr Lee.To cater further to the local SMEs, Green Koncepts is currently in the midst of applying to the Infocomm Development Authority to establish KEM as a pre-qualified infocomm package under the iSPRINT funding for packaged solutions. If successful, SMEs that adopt KEM will then be able to receive a 70 per cent grant of the qualifying costs. Aside from SMEs, Green Koncepts' customers include big names such as NCS, Singapore Polytechnic and UOL Group Limited.On the whole, these clients have reported savings of 8-18 per cent of energy consumption, largely due to a greater sense of awareness and participation that resulted from the availability of energy usage patterns, he said.It therefore comes as no surprise that Green Koncepts has received positive responses from the market since the inception of KEM last year, and is en route to achieving its first million dollar turnover this year.Mr Lee has very big plans for KEM. He said that turnover is expected to grow exponentially to a projected $324 million as part of Green Koncepts' five-year outlook. He forecast that its current eight-man team will grow to 350 by 2018.The company has also ventured overseas. "We decided very early on that in order to achieve these numbers, we need to grow our international business immediately," said Mr Lee. Currently, Green Koncepts is working with regional partners in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Discussions with one Japanese and two European parties, which Mr Lee expects to conclude successfully by next year, are also in the works. He said: "On a global basis, we have a very large addressable market." This includes conventional urban spaces such as buildings, campuses and business parks, as well as newer ones such as data centres and smart cities.All in, the emerging urban sustainability industry is said to have an addressable market totalling US$1.3 trillion, based on third-party research reports. Mr Lee envisioned: "If we can even get one per cent of the market, we'll be a US$13 billion company."And since it has established a first-mover advantage in the field of cloud energy management, where there are only a few players in the global market according to Mr Lee, Green Koncepts could just be the next Singapore enterprise to make its mark on the world map.存倉

Source: The Augusta Chronicle, Ga.self storageAug. 11--The Richmond County Sheriff's Office is looking to add an extra set of eyes on patrol, in the form of cameras clipped to the front of police uniforms.Deputy Stephen Jones, who has worn a testing unit for the past two weeks, said the technology is simple to operate. With a Muvi body camera clipped at about chest level on his uniform, Jones showed how video can be captured without even touching the camera.A small beeper-style device clipped to his belt allows Jones to switch on video, snap photos and end the recording, all while maintaining eye contact with the person he is speaking with.He said he records every traffic stop."You can upload the videos, download them to a CD and turn them in as evidence to rectify any kind of complaints against you," he said.The Waynesboro Police Depart衫ent has been using the technology for the past two years. Police Chief Augustus Palmer III said all sworn officers are equipped with the cameras, including himself. They are required by policy to record almost every interaction with civilians."If the officer is doing the right thing, it's his best friend," he said. "If he is doing something wrong, it's his worst enemy."The cameras that his department uses cost between $100 to $200 each.Blanchard said the sheriff's office is still in the testing and research phase. Much like the license plate reader technology it is testing, the agency will try several types and styles of body-worn cameras before making a decision.The units currently being tested range from $400 to $500 each. Unlike the license plate readers, there is no extra start-up cost to ensure software and 迷你倉ardware compatibility. The test units can plug into any office computer and transfer files like a smartphone.Lt. Lewis Blanchard said a 2012 study found that 85 percent of law enforcement officers say body-worn cameras reduce false claims of misconduct and the likelihood of litigation against the agency.Palmer said he agrees. Since his department mandated the cameras on all officers, complaints against officers have dropped drastically.Sheriff Richard Roundtree and Chief Deputy Patrick Clayton saw the technology implemented while working on the Richmond County Board of Education Police Department, Blanchard said."They saw that it was a positive thing and saw the results there, even on a smaller scale. That made them want to move forward with bringing it here," he said.The catch is the cost associated with using the technology on a larger scale. The sheriff's office dwarfs the school system in sworn officers.It might be a while before Augustans will see every officer with a camera. Blanchard said the soonest the sheriff's office would purchase cameras is next year."Anything you're testing and evaluating this year is for purchase next year," he said.Palmer said any agency looking into the technology should also look to include a policy on its use. He said that would help prevent abuse of the technology."Everyone needs to have a policy to not record each other," he said. "We don't need to record co-workers, just the traffic stops and the face-to-face encounters."Copyright: ___ (c)2013 The Augusta Chronicle (Augusta, Ga.) Visit The Augusta Chronicle (Augusta, Ga.) at chronicle.augusta.com Distributed by MCT Information Services文件倉

■卡列茲基（Anatole Kaletsky）自由放任的貨幣主義時代已經結束，儲存倉全球正漸漸邁向一種新型態的凱因斯派需求管理。主要經濟體的政府和央行如今一一扛下管理失業的責任，而這原本是1970年代貨幣學派戰勝凱因斯學派時央行棄守的職責。上周三輪到由英國發難，新任英格蘭銀行（央行）總裁卡尼效法柏南克，也把降低失業率納為貨幣政策的主要目標。卡尼原是加拿大央行總裁，被英國政府挖角，為的就是要揭開「貨幣行動主義」（monetary activism）的新紀元。他在周三的首度正式記者會上，實踐了這個承諾。卡尼不僅一如預期，明確承諾會在一到兩年維持利率接近於零，他還做了更大膽、學理上更爭議的決定。他宣布，失業率還未降至7%以前，英格蘭銀行絕不考慮縮減貨幣刺激措施。他刻意打破柴契爾夫人1979年當選首相以來就支配英國經濟政策的一項禁忌。過去30年來，英國沒有一個央行總裁敢公開挑戰柴契爾主義，即貨幣政策只能藉控制通膨來促進經濟繁榮。的確，英格蘭銀行過去未曾公布失業率預測，理由是解決失業問題必須靠與就業彈性和競爭有關的結構性供給面措施，而非央行政策。如今，卡尼在記者會上預測，失業率可能直到2016年都會維持在7%的門檻以上，因此目前接近於零的利率水準至少會再維持三年。市場和媒體剛開始都未能了解這項聲明的重大意義。英國長期利率不但沒有降低，反而被拉高，市場解讀為卡尼的「前瞻引導」附帶很多條件。不過，只要投資人深思卡尼談話的更深涵義，這種立即反應很可能轉向。卡尼列出三個迷你倉沙田讓英國央行考慮解除貨幣緊縮的條件：一是英國央行預測兩年內的通膨超過2.5%時；二是「中期通膨預期」無法保持穩定時；三是零利率政策危及金融穩定，央行靠加強管理和監督也無濟於事時。不過，細觀這些條件，沒有一項可能會在這幾年內發生。央行的通膨預測和市場的通膨預期都不像7%那樣明確，如何解讀全看英國央行。譬如，就算實際通膨高達5%，英國央行也不曾公布過高於2.5%的通膨預測。所以通膨疑慮不太可能推翻失業率7%的新承諾。至於金融穩定的變數，卡尼周三的談話帶給所有央行一個極富啟發性的政策參考。他表示，金融穩定的威脅，最好不要靠貨幣緊縮來因應，而要靠更嚴格的管理和監督。這暗示英國央行如今扛下的權力和責任，比聯準會肩負通膨和就業雙重使命更廣。不過，就算納入金融穩定成為三重使命，恐怕還是不夠。在現實中，還有很多總體經濟目標需要央行和政府聯手管理，像是財政能力、經常帳的維持，有時候還需要穩定匯率，瑞士央行即為一例。全球各國央行漸漸體認，要在通膨、失業、金融穩定、財政永續等目標間作取捨極為複雜。各國央行也默認，這些目標必須同時管理，雖無法面面俱到，總得優先處理有危險的目標。凱因斯派需求管理在1960年代後期失敗，因為當年的政府和央行過於注重失業，結果讓通膨擴大到難以收拾。往後幾年，決策者應記取這個教訓。不過，正確的教訓並非通膨在各目標中最為重要，而是總體經濟政策必須著重在解決任何最迫切的問題—目前無疑的就是失業問題。（作者Anatole Kaletsky是路透專欄作家）迷你倉價錢

美國國際貿易委員會（ITC）9日針對蘋果公司向其控告南韓三星侵權案作出終判，新蒲崗迷你倉裁定三星侵犯了蘋果2項行動電子設備專利，分別是觸控螢幕滑動手勢識別技術（949專利）以及耳機插入狀態偵測（501專利）。未來60天內，若歐巴馬政府沒有駁回ITC這項裁決，三星部分舊機型將無法繼續在美國市場銷售。不過，ITC同時也駁回了蘋果提出的其他4項侵權指控。目前不清楚會有多少款三星手機和平板電腦適用9日的判決而被美國禁售。但三星與蘋果2年多來的專利訴訟，牽涉的多半是不再熱門的舊機款，因此就算禁售令60天後生效，影響的僅限於三星在2010年生產的舊機款，對三星營收衝擊不大，不過可能影響三星日後行動裝置的功能設計。三星對ITC的判決表示失望，但也慶幸ITC駁回蘋果對其另4項侵權指控，包括長方形與圓角的設mini storage部分。三星稱蘋果已不能利用過於廣泛的設計專利來壟斷這些設計。蘋果對判決感到滿意，稱ITC跟日本、南韓、德國、荷蘭和美國加州的法院一樣，「拒絕三星公然抄襲蘋果產品之舉。專利制度理應用於保護真正的創新。」不到一周前，歐巴馬才罕見地否決了ITC6月對蘋果部分產品侵犯三星專利祭出的禁售令。不過這兩個ITC審議的專利戰存在明顯差異。先前被白宮否決的禁售令牽涉的是所謂「標準關鍵專利」（STANDARD-ESSENTIAL PATENT），亦即專利權擁有者只能收取「公平、合理、非歧視性」的權利金，不能據此要求禁售。而在9日的判決中，三星侵犯蘋果的專利屬於商業性以及非標準關鍵專利。雖然蘋果的專利不算多，但是在訴訟上十分有優勢，就因為很多是「非標準關鍵專利」。只要對方侵權，就可以要求禁售對方產品。self storage