Author Amy Scobee recounts abuse as Scientology executive
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Monday, October 11, 2010
Wikinews interviewed author Amy Scobee about her book Scientology – Abuse at the Top, and asked her about her experiences working as an executive within the organization. Scobee joined the organization at age 14, and worked at Scientology’s international management headquarters for several years before leaving in 2005. She served as a Scientology executive in multiple high-ranking positions, working out of the international headquarters of Scientology known as “Gold Base”, located in Gilman Hot Springs near Hemet, California.
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When redecorating a kitchen or bathroom, the options for flooring are a bit more limited than those in some other areas of the home. Two potential choices are tile and linoleum. Understanding the pros and cons of each of these options will make the choice a little bit easier.
- Cost
Linoleum is typically cheaper to purchase than tiles. This is especially true in the case of natural stone tiles, but is also usually the case with ceramic or porcelain tile. Because it is typically faster to install unless old flooring needs to be removed first, it can also be less expensive to install linoleum. Many of the newer types of linoleum can easily be installed by a somewhat skilled do-it-yourselfer. Tiles may be better off being installed by a professional, as they are more skilled and will be able to complete the job more quickly than a homeowner would. Professionals also have the right equipment to cut any tiles to size if this should become necessary.
- Appearance
A tile floor will have a much more higher-end appearance than one made of linoleum or vinyl flooring. However, there are many options available for either tile or linoleum to make it easy to match the decor of the home.
- Use Considerations
Linoleum tends to offer a more padded surface, which can be better if you spend a lot of time on your feet. Tile is a much harder surface and can feel cold when the temperatures in the home drop during the winter.
- Maintenance
Both linoleum and tile flooring are relatively easy to maintain. The grout between the tiles needs to be sealed to prevent stains, and many types of natural stone tile need to be regularly resealed. Over time, a linoleum floor will gradually become a bit stained and discolored even with regular sweeping and mopping. A tile floor is less likely to have this problem, but a heavy object falling on the floor may crack a tile, so it’s a good idea to have some spare tiles on hand just in case something happens and a tile needs to be replaced. Visit Elitecarpetca.com for more information. You can also like them on Facebook for more information.
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U.S. manufacturer General Motors seeks bankruptcy protection
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Monday, June 1, 2009
United States automobile manufacturing firm General Motors filed for bankruptcy and Chapter 11 protection from its creditors at 12:00 UTC Monday, in a Manhattan, New York federal bankruptcy court. This was the largest bankruptcy filing for a U.S. manufacturing company, and with declared assets of $82.29 billion and a debt of $172.81 billion, and the fourth largest bankruptcy filing in recent U.S. history — after the bankruptcies of {{w|Lehman Brothers|| ($691.06 billion), Washington Mutual ($327.91 billion), and WorldCom ($103.91 billion).
The filing, expected to be the first of many, was for a New York GM affiliate, Chevrolet-Saturn of Harlem Incorporated. Numbered 09-50026, it named GM as a debtor in possession, and was filed before judge Robert Gerber.
GM is to be represented throughout the filing process by Weil Gotshal & Manges, a New York law firm specializing in bankruptcy.
The chief restructuring officer, named in the filing, is to be Al Koch, a managing director at AlixPartners LLP in New York, who will report directly to Fritz Henderson, the Chief Executive Officer of General Motors.
In its bankruptcy petition, GM listed its primary creditors as:
| Name | Amount owed (USD millions) |
|---|---|
| Wilmington Trust | 22,000 |
| United Auto Workers union (UAW) | 20,560 |
| Deutsche Bank | 4,440 |
The amount owed to UAW excludes “approximately $9.4 billion corresponding to the GM Internal VEBA”. USD22,760 millions are owed to bondholders.
Analysts have observed that the effect of the bankruptcy filing on the U.S. economy is not expected to be as major as it once would have been. One such voice, Mark Zandy, an economist at Moody’s Economy.com, commented that “Bankruptcy now is irrelevant in terms of the economic consequence of what’s happening to GM.” Such analysts believe that the economic impact of GM’s problems has already been felt, with its effects on parts suppliers and employment. They also believe that GM’s programme of accelerated payments, and its participation in a U.S. Treasury program to ensure prompt payments to parts manufacturers, will have cushioned the effect of the bankruptcy itself.
Speaking on Bloomberg Radio, David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, stated that the fragility of the parts suppliers, the loss of whom would threaten the entire automobile manufacturing industry, was of more immediate concern than the GM bankruptcy.
Also filing for chapter 11 protection today were Saturn LLC and Saturn Distribution Corporation, subsidiary companies of General Motors.
As a consequence of the bankruptcy, General Motors Corporation (GM.N) was removed from the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and was replaced by Cisco Systems (CSCO.O), these changes scheduled by Dow Jones & Company to take effect from the opening of trading on June 8.
