Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Is the Avi Ben Stella car crash a hoax, or a real child in trouble?
Facebook and Twitter are now blanketed with status updates from people posting notices similar to the following:
“PRAYERS NEEDED for 12yr old Avi Ben Stella who, after a serious car crash, is now in a critical coma. Pls. change your status for 1 hr so more people can become aware and... add to the prayers. We would do it for your son, pls. do this for somebody else's son.”
Is it possible that this is a request for prayers for a real child who is in trouble? Yes, it is possible. But is it likely? Probably not.
The internet abounds with bogus viral messages like the Avi Ben Stella post, which take off and seem to take on a life of their own. Most of the time, the stories are simply untrue. Some are mere pranks, while others have a more malicious intent.
A search through news sites yields no stories about a child named Avi Ben Stella being injured in a car accident. Snopes.com has the story classified as “undetermined” as of the writing of this article, and indicates the story has been floating around since mid-August 2009. Google indicates that this is one of the most highly searched stories on the internet, and yet no one can find anything to verify it is true.
According to another Examiner, threads on the name Avi Ben Stella eventually lead to a page which tries to load malware on your computer. This seems like the most likely explanation of the story's origin.
Before forwarding messages and asking people to pray for children you don't actually know, check out the story on Snopes.com or through legitimate news websites. Otherwise, while you are praying and recruiting prayer volunteers, someone else will be having a laugh at your expense – and maybe downloading spyware on computers in the process.
And if the story of Avi Ben Stella is true, someone with proof of its truth needs to come forward and set the record straight.
Telemark Services: A Staggering 34% of IPVPN Users Unlikely to Recommend Their Global Service Provider
Aug 10, 2009 (M2 PRESSWIRE via COMTEX) -- Telemark Services, Manchester, UK announced today that it has updated its Peers Recommend dataset that contains 787 responses to the single question: How likely are you to recommend your service provider to your peers? It has provided access to this information through its online portal www.PeerPreference.com "The willingness of IPVPN users to recommend IPVPN service providers is strikingly variable," said Janet Watkin, Director at Telemark Services, "and since peer recommendation is often thought to be among the best indicators of an overall positive customer service experience it is well worth a visit to the PeerPreference.com site to see who gets the thumbs up" The following IPVPN service providers were covered in the survey: AT&T, BT, Cable & Wireless, China Telecom, Colt, Embratel, Global Crossing, HGC, KDDI, KT, NTTCom, Oi, Orange Business Services, Pacnet, PCCW, Portugal Telecom, SingTel, Swisscom, TDC Song, Telecom Italia, Telefonica, TeliaSonera, Telmex, T-Systems and Verizon Business.
About PeerPreference.com PeerPreference.com helps IP VPN users select the 'best fit' service provider(s) for their specific purchase criteria and it helps IPVPN service providers benchmark perceived performances cost effectively.
About Telemark Services Telemark is an established marketing services firm offering OCEAN (Outstanding Customer Experience, Analysis and News), consultancy, publications and online analysis with proven expertise in measuring customer satisfaction, competitive analysis, benchmarking, trend analysis, channel management, new product development, demand estimates, branding, tariff analysis, and business strategy, exclusively within the telecommunications and ICT sectors. Telemark is often the first-choice supplier for many organisations with a requirement for international market research and analysis covering emerging technologies such as VoIP, ICT convergence and hosting applications. For more information, please visit www.telemarkservices.com or email info@telemarkservices.com CONTACT: Eilis Hanson, Telemark Services Tel: +44 (0)1204 396542 e-mail: eilis.hanson@telemarkservices.com WWW: http://www.peerpreference.com ((M2 Communications disclaims all liability for information provided within M2 PressWIRE. Data supplied by named party/parties. Further information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at http://www.presswire.net on the world wide web. Inquiries to info@m2.com.
The Voile CRB Telemark Ski Binding
This binding, which comes in a Women’s specific version, is arguably one of the best all around bindings on the market right now for many reasons. Anyone just getting into telemark skiing will find it ideal because of its release capability. The CRB or “Complete Release Binding” will take the jitters away from those afraid of fall related knee injuries and make those switching over from alpine breathe a sigh of relief. It is also the only binding on the market that releases in the event of a backward fall.
Voile made sure the price point isn’t scary either, as the CRB comes in at an affordable $175.00 and it’s “din like” settings are easy to set with the aid of the recommended settings chart that comes in the box.
Those who are more advanced should consider the benefits of this binding. The CRB is climbing wire compatible for touring and its release feature allows separation from your skis in the event of an avalanche. When your skis can’t pull you down you have a greater chance of ending up near the surface of the flow.
Those who are more advanced should consider the benefits of this binding. The CRB is climbing wire compatible for touring and its release feature allows separation from your skis in the event of an avalanche. When your skis can’t pull you down you have a greater chance of ending up near the surface of the flow.
The CRB also comes complete with ski brakes that engage just like alpine bindings and are just about as easy to get back into after released. Remember to specify your boot size; mondo size 24-26.4 / US size 5-8.5 for short rod and 27-31/9-13 for standard rod lengths. Ski waist width is needed for the available brakes sizes. The CRB has “alpine”, “x-wide” and “Insane” brake widths of 68mm-80mm, 82mm-92mm and 100mm-110mm respectively. For those of you with K2 skis you’ll need to get the specific screw kit, available for a meager four bucks.
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