Obama’s Wireless Stimulus Package

August 19th, 2015

On the whole, the Obama administration’s new wireless plan is one of the cleanest and most uncontroversial budget proposals in recent memory and it is supported by the fact that the GOP, which is currently balking at most of President Obama’s budget proposals, has not elected to attack this one. The reason is simple; on the face of it, Obamas wireless plan intends to dramatically expand the reach of wireless access providers, and thus, the potential market as well.

Overall, bottom lines will increase, as well the wireless network, allowing access providers to begin to phase out the infamous last mile problem. DSL and Cable Internet are costly to build out and maintain, while wireless is not. With the recent FCC Net Neutrality legislation, it is clear there is a heated focus on expanding wireless infrastructure to shift the bulk of communication to the wireless model. Already, most new phone numbers are mobile. The Plain Old Telephone network is being phased out, and a home phone makes little sense in light of the convenience of cell phones.

Plan Details: The Money

Broadcast Spectrum Auction: One of the key parts of the proposal was the 500 MHz broadcast spectrum auction, currently held by television and radio broadcasters, and would be sold off specifically for licensed mobile access providers. The total cost of the program is currently estimated at $18 billion, and total revenue is $27.8 billion over 10 years, hence the Obama wireless plan will realize a $9.6 billion net gain. Some will go to the current holders of the spectrum to be sold off in exchange for voluntary surrender of the spectrum.

Infrastructure: The next major part of the plan is the investment of $10.7 billion to build a public safety wireless infrastructure. This will provide police, fire, and other public services high-speed wireless access, allowing them to share video and exchange email. While a little vague, the scope of the plan is extensive and would involve dedicating the D Block of broadcast spectrum for public safety. Much of the cash would be spent on towers and infrastructure to support the use of the spectrum. The recent buyback of the Wireless Philadelphia, a multimillion-dollar effort to provide free wireless and its re-tasking to fire and police use is an example of the goal of this phase of the plan.

Other Funding: $5 billion would go to fund an expansion of the Universal Service Fund, ensuring low-income families access to wireless services, and to support companies that invest money in building private infrastructure in areas traditionally too costly to develop profitably. Safelink wireless is an example of this initiative, providing cell phones and monthly airtime to low-income American.

An additional $3 billion would be invested in research and development of wireless technologies in the education, health care, and energy sectors, which would dovetail with existing health care technology initiatives. Additional funds are already allocated in the Commerce and Agriculture Departments through the Recovery Act and will be used to fund wireless development in rural areas.

Effects of the Plan

With the deployment of DTV and the end of analog broadcast television, a starting gun was sounded and the race was on. Much of the news, beginning with Google’s attempt to enter the most recent spectrum auction and the recent FCC Net Neutrality Act has been the pole positions of the race. For many years, the federal government has supported efforts to bring telephone service to outlying areas of the country. Now the government will assist in the expansion of wireless access to replace the existing infrastructure and create a wireless broadband future.

The plan intends to be a win-win effort with commercial entities benefiting from the creation of a much larger market base, and lower cost of wireless access and America benefiting from a major step forward in technological development. Consumers will benefit by having mobile access nearly everywhere. Finally, the taxpayers will realize 9 billion dollars in revenue over the next ten years. It is rare that any federal program is this balanced and universally accepted.

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How To Prepare For A Career In Agriculture

August 9th, 2015

There are several ways to prepare for agriculture jobs. One of those ways is through formal education, such as earning a college degree. Another popular way to prepare for an agriculture job is to get on-the-job training. Either of these methods of preparation will work to help you with your career, although formal education is often more helpful for finding higher-paying jobs. Below you will find some helpful information regarding agriculture jobs and how to prepare for a career in this field.

If you are choosing to obtain a college degree in agriculture, there are several options. Depending on what you want to do, you could major in anything from agricultural business management, to animal sciences, to herd management or crop and soil development. Many colleges offer general courses in agriculture to help students decide what they want to emphasize in their educational career. It is always helpful to talk with advisers for information about classes, career options, and course requirements. This option is popular for many because it allows students to choose their own area of study that suits their interests. Many agriculture students also get scholarships and internships to help them learn more about the field.

Another common option for preparing for an agriculture job is to receive on-the-job training. This kind of training could be received at any number of places where you start at a lower-level position and learn other jobs along the way. By choosing this option, you can focus more on agricultural methods and practice. This option also guarantees that you have a job after you are done training. Often, the more training you receive the more skills you obtain and the more opportunities you have for receiving higher pay rates. Employers also get to know you and often provide positive references for other job opportunities that come along.

Either way you choose to prepare for a job in agriculture, you will be sure to succeed and learn the trade well. Many people choose to obtain a formal degree in any number of fields related to agriculture, while others learn from work experience. Both of these methods will teach you what you need to know about working in the field of agriculture. All you have to do is start searching for a new opportunity to learn.

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Are You Agriculture Manufacturer Or Distributor Gear Up For Unpredictable Future.

July 29th, 2015

In the earlier days, there were fertile lands to cultivate and food was plentiful and inexpensive. Agriculture was the only main occupation for the mankind. Over the years, the scientific advancement in every sector and the advanced technology has opened a new way, providing plethora of opportunities to the humans. Agriculture manufacturers and suppliers in the Middle East countries like Kuwait, Dubai and Saudi Arabia are showing more interest to produce as well as secure food supplies.

The main crops in UAE are tomatoes, dates, melons, potatoes, citrus, fodder crops and melons. The incessant supply of underground water from the nearby mountains plus the plentiful rainfall helps the crops to grow. The other vegetables and commodities are imported from various countries to meet their food supplies and agriculture products needs. Government in Middle East countries are taking steps to encourage domestic production.

There are few hurdles to agriculture in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are lack of arable lands, extreme heat conditions, periodic locusts swarms and limited ground water supplies. The steps to increase the land under cultivation have resulted in the depletion of underground water. In addition to agriculture, fishing in the rich waters create livelihood for centuries along the coast.

With the help of technology, agriculture can be done with adequate water supply, thereby making farming sustainable and get the best agriculture products in Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. The proper linking between the farming market and agriculture suppliers, agriculture manufacturers and exporters in Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Qatar to come up with the best deal to enhance food security without compromising on the quality of the agriculture products. Therefore, the low quality agriculture products will not be oversupplied in the market. Besides the increasing water scarcity will not be overstrained.

The food safety, environmental protection, high technology irrigation techniques and good agricultural practices will strengthen the agriculture in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. As the demands of agriculture products increase every year, the food supply volume from agriculture suppliers and manufacturers are expected to increase. Due to the immense development in Dubai and other neighbouring countries, the increase in population has given rise to rural areas, which are now slowly turning into a new city.

The mankind is entering a phase called a food gap, which is the difference between production and demand, could be more than double. Running a farm is a daunting task as it involves more complexities from weather and land to water.

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Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac And Ginnie Mae – Who Are They

July 11th, 2015

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae are common names associated with federal lending and home loans. They have offerings that stem from no down payment home loans to helping dislocated residents of disaster areas, to providing assistance to the elderly. If you are any age and are considering a home loan, you’re struggling with mortgage payments and need assistance, or you’re elderly and cannot afford repairs on your home, one of these entities may be able to assist.

Who Are Fannie, Freddie and Ginnie?

The Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), better known as Fannie Mae, and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC), better known as Freddie Mac, are government sponsored entities (GSEs). Fannie Mae was originally a federal user established in 1938. In 1968, however, Congress passed legislation enabling the user to become a private enterprise. Freddie Mac was birthed in 1970 for the purpose of expanding the secondary mortgage market.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are private corporations owned by shareholders. The funding for their operations is achieved through the sale of mortgage-backed securities (MBS), which are sold on the open stock market. In contrast, the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA), better known as Ginnie Mae, is owned, operated and insured by the U.S. Government. Created in 1968, Ginnie Mae’s mission is basically the same as Fannie and Freddie. The main difference is that Ginnie’s operations do not depend on the sale of MBS for funding. Ginnie sponsored loans are fully backed by the U.S. Government.

The purpose of the three agencies is to buy mortgages on the secondary market to free up funding for banks and lenders to make more home loans. They don’t directly provide loans to borrowers. Instead, they buy mortgages from primary lending institutions that meet their lending standards.

Many lenders receive funding for mortgages from one of these agencies. The advantages of secondary lenders are that loans can be made with lower interest rates, and money is easily moved to enable anyone anywhere in the U.S. to obtain a mortgage, as long as they meet certain criteria.

What Do Fannie, Freddie and Ginnie Have to offer?

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae all fall under the oversight of the U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) department. Generally, their charters are the same. They free up funding for primary lenders to make more home loans. In concert, they make housing more affordable to those who may not necessarily qualify for prime loans. Their overall mission is to assist single families, support and provide assistance to housing and neighborhood development, and generate capital in the open stock market. Their missions include making home ownership and rental housing more accessible and affordable.

Who Do Fannie, Freddie and Ginnie Offer It to?

You may become a recipient of products and services provided by Fannie, Freddie or Ginnie. One of the primary factors for consideration is your income and the geographic location in which you want to live or buy a home. If you are low- to moderate-income, you may be eligible for a no down payment home loan or low rent housing. You may be more qualified to obtain a home loan if you want to buy a home in a government designated area. These are typically areas with a significantly lower population than a metropolitan city; although, there may be other qualifications.

How does all this work? If you’re interested in buying a home, go to the Fannie, Freddie or Ginnie website and look for the link that takes you into a section about finding a lender. Follow the instructions to find a qualified lender. If you’re looking for an affordable rental, go to either website at FannieMae or FreddieMac and look for Support for renters or something about renting.

If you want to see all offerings available from each, go to the govloans website. If you’re a farmer, you’ll want to select Agriculture. For small business, you’ll want to make the Business selection. If your living situation was impacted by a disaster, like Hurricane Katrina, then you would select Disaster Relief. If you’re a Veteran, you’ll want to select Veteran. For all housing offerings, select Housing. Regardless of your home situation, Fannie Freddie or Ginnie may be able to help.

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Why Portable Air Conditioning Hire for Agriculture is Essential

July 10th, 2015

Portable air conditioning for hire is not only an essential option for hotels, pubs and clubs, leisure centres and gyms, but also in the agriculture industry. Read on to find out why portable air conditioning is essential for the agriculture industry.

Article body: Portable air conditioning for hire is not only an essential option for hotels, pubs and clubs, leisure centres and gyms, but also in the agriculture industry. Why? Because without the option of hiring portable air conditioning units and chilling units (-chillers’), many arable farmers and dairy producers would simply go out of business.

What consumers expect Customers can be demanding at the best of times, but never more so than when it comes to food. They want fresh, good quality produce that not only tastes good, but is also reasonably priced and always available when they desire it (seasonal factors notwithstanding, of course).

So what does all this mean for people working in farming and agriculture? And how does hired portable air conditioning play a crucial role in keeping arable farmers and dairy producers in business, and their customers satisfied?

The potato storage process The British are renowned for loving their potatoes (mashed, boiled, roasted, baked, fried-), but there is much more to successfully growing, picking and taking to market a healthy potato crop than one would think (be that a small crop, or one that is grown in fields consisting of hundreds or even thousands of acres, and is managed by a major arable farming company).

The potato storage process must be managed expertly, or the potato crop will be ruined, meaning the arable farmer may well also be. Unless potatoes are stored in a temperature-controlled, well-ventilated environment, then the lot could fall victim to fungal disease, as well as viral and bacterial agents. Storing potatoes at temperatures near 4C / 39F is usually best.

Hiring portable air conditioners is the -perfect insurance’ By hiring the right cooling equipment (portable air conditioners and chillers) and placing the units in the right locations in a potato storage facility (or indeed, a facility used for the storage of other -cornerstone’ vegetables grown on arable farms) the terrifying prospect of losing an entire crop to the aforementioned threats can be removed.

Protecting dairy produce Portable air conditioning and chiller units for hire are no less effective when it comes to protecting dairy produce. Fully cured Cheddar, for example, is a hard, natural cheese that is hugely popular not only across the UK, but also worldwide. The export market is a multimillion pound one, in fact; so imagine how catastrophic it would be for a dairy farmer to lose most or even all of his stock, simply because the existing cooling system failed overnight, or, by some oversight, the system was set at the wrong temperature – a mistake that was only discovered when it was too late.

High quality Stilton is also -not just a cheese’. It is a very valuable commodity, as are most speciality cheeses. A large dairy company can produce tonnes of it (and other dairy foods/products) annually; however some of the biggest producers fail to place enough importance upon having a contingency plan in place, should their built-in cooling system let them down, and all their dairy produce is rendered inedible before it even makes it to the maturing room.

Being prepared is the key Of course, the vast majority of arable farmers and dairy producers take steps to protect their produce from harm, but the smartest ones also have a contingency plan in place, should the unthinkable happen: a cool storage system failure suddenly occurs, and before the crop(s) can be saved, the -rot’ has already set in, and thousands of pounds’ worth of produce is inedible and worthless (sometimes in just as a few hours). The hiring of portable air conditioning units and chillers provides the best solution, a genuine safeguard against every arable farmer and dairy producer’s worst nightmare becoming a reality.

As well as being the ideal emergency back-up option, portable air conditioning units for hire for agriculture applications can be:

– Used immediately; – Easily stored; – Hired on a short contract basis, and then returned. (This is ideal when it comes to getting extra air conditioning and cooling systems in place in, say, the run up to Christmas, when food production is significantly increased to meet massive consumer demand) – The perfect -stop gap’ between the removal of an existing (fixed) air conditioning system, and the installation of a new one at an arable farm or a dairy farm; – Added to an existing air conditioning solution when extra air conditioning is required.

Food for thought indeed. Article submitted by Steve Reeve, Sales Director at Andrews Sykes. Andrews Sykes is the UK’s largest specialist air conditioning hire company, with over 25 years’ experience. The company serves virtually all industry sectors including agriculture and farming using machinery sourced from the world’s top manufacturers.

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