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As Netflix has spread its video streaming services around the globe, the company's been met with curiosity, skepticism and, at times, indifference.

But none of the Silicon Valley giant's adventures abroad generated the mix of fear and anxiety that it has stirred in film-loving France before its launch this month.

In a country of proud cinephiles, Netflix has been bashed by national politicians, vilified by cultural leaders and brushed off by potential broadcast partners who have instead beefed up their own competitive video offerings. These groups worry that Netflix will undermine the complex system created by broadcasters and the government to protect a French film industry that is central to the country's identity, and a significant part of its economy.

As the headline in Le Monde put it on the eve of Netflix's launch in France: "Let the Carnage Begin."

Aware of how it is being perceived, Netflix spent months wooing the French, both in public and behind the scenes. The stakes for the company are high.

Netflix is increasingly dependent on international markets for growth, analysts note, and France is one of the largest countries left to conquer. Yet appealing to local consumers is costly, and the company is promising big investments to acquire and produce local content. To ease cultural fears, executives have tried to make the case that the company will expand consumer choice and film production.

For now, though, the French are skeptical.

"We want to say welcome to Netflix," said Dante Desarthe, co-chairman of France's Guild of Authors, Directors and Producers. "But we want them to be respectful of the rules we have created here in France to protect our cinema."

Last weekend, tucked in the shadows of the Basilica of St. Sernin, a 12th century church that defines the Toulouse skyline, was an irreverent symbol of the French people's consuming passion for film.

Created in the middle of this southern French city was an encampment called Grovillage, the site of a weeklong film festival dedicated to a cult satire about a fake country called "Groland."

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Netflix struggles to win over skeptics in film-loving France

ST. JOSEPH, MI St. Joseph police are asking for the public's help in locating a 14-year-old girl last seen Sunday, according to a press release issued by the St. Joseph Department of Public Safety.

Investigators said Brianna Marie Hardin was reported missing from her home at 2809 Sunnydale Dr. around 7:17 p.m. Sunday.

Hardin's parents told officers that they last saw their daughter mowing their backyard and that she was upset over family issues prior to her disappearance.

Officers said no foul play is suspected in Hardin's disappearance since she is believed to be a runaway.

Hardin is described as a white female who stands around 5-foot-3, has long light brown hair, hazel eyes and weighs approximately 190 pounds. She was last seen wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt, three-quarters length black yoga pants white a blue stripe down the sides and black shoes with bright green trim and yellow laces, the release stated.

Hardin suffers from bi polar disorder and anxiety, police said. She is not believed to have a phone or money with her.

St. Joseph police are asking anyone with knowledge of Hardin's whereabouts or knowledge of her disappearance to contact them at 269-926-2538. Tipsters can also call anonymously at 269-985-0301.

Alex Mitchell covers county government and taxes for the Kalamazoo Gazette. Email him at amitche5@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter.

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Police seeking 14-year-old St. Joseph teen last seen mowing lawn

How to Choose Low-Maintenance Plants for an Urban Garden - This Old House
This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook and landscape architect Stephanie Hubbard give suggestions for creating a big impact in a small city garden. (...

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Last week The New York Times, in alliance with the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation, put out a call for names of the invisible women who "built New York." Other than midcentury urbanist Jane Jacobs, well known for fighting tooth and nail against vast urban renewal projects, early designers (read: pre-WWII) credited with New York City's urban fabric is a list of white men: Robert Moses, Edward Durell Stone, Frederick Law Olmsted, and more.

California had Julia Morgan and Ray Eames. France had Charlotte Perriand. England had Eileen Gray and Alison Smithson. The Midwest had Marion Mahoney Griffin. Brazil had the wildly talented Lina Bo Bardi. New York had Norma Merrick Sklarek, the first licensed African American female architect, until she left for the West Coast because no one would in New York would hire her. That's not to say that women didn't play a huge role in building NYCsimply that they did so under the radar. Many are interns, daughters, wives, or clients. Their influence was ingeniously negotiated; they've been listed as "unknown," they've created parks, and they've shuffled into interior design. A few examples:

Photo via NYC Architecture

When she died in 1918, The New York Times wrote in Fay Kellogg's obituary that she was the "foremost woman architect in the United States." Kellogg began her study of architecture under a German tutor, who taught her drawing and math. After her father talked her out of becoming a doctor, she went to Brooklyn's Pratt Institute for two years and then to Paris, where she fought to get admitted to the Ecole des Beaux Arts, which at the time only accepted men. She was unsuccessful for herself, though her protests are thought to have cleared the path for its first female graduate, famed California architect Julia Morgan, who graduated from the institution in 1902. She came back to the U.S. and began working with architect John R. Thomas, designing, among other things, the grand staircase in the city's Hall of Records (now known as the Surrogate's Court). What's more, she opened her own firm in 1903, and established "specialist in steel construction" (also according to the obituary) by renovating and building seven buildings for Manhattan's American News Company. This was all before she died at 47a very young age for any established architect.

Photo via The Blogazine

Neither an architect nor engineer, designer Florence Knoll never technically "built" anything, but is still largely responsible for the look of midcentury (read: Mad Men) Manhattanclean lines, geometric patterns, splashes of color. She trained under the likes of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Eero Saarinen, Walter Gropius, and Marcel Breuer, but never joined their ranks. Still, her influence cannot be overstated. She convinced her husband Hans Knoll, with whom she founded midcentury furniture megalith Knoll, to work with Europe's expat architecture community, as well as curated New York's new minimalist aesthetic. What's more, she famously refused to be pigeon-holed as anything but a creator: "I am not a decorator," she said. "The only place I decorate is my own house."

Photo via NYC Parks official site

As NYC's Chief of Tree Plantings, a position she nabbed in 1936, landscape architect Clara Coffey brought greenery to the Hutchinson River Parkway and swapped out the fences and hedges of the Park Avenue Malls with flowerbeds and kwanzan cherry trees.

The adage "anonymous was a woman" is especially pertinent to Doris Dreyfussor, as she was known in her husband's office, "Mrs. Marks." The secret wife of skilled industrial designer Henry Dreyfuss, Doris was unlicensed for the entirety of her career, despite the fact that Henry once remarked, "I wouldn't have a business without her."

Photo via New York Botanical Gardens official site

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Gender Studies: These Five Anonymous Women Helped Build New York City

SOUTH Lismore is set to become a home repair hot-spot after Bunnings got the go-ahead for a $5 million improvement to its existing store that will roughly coincide with the opening of a new $11.5 million Masters Home Improvement store, right next door.

The new look Bunnings will have an extended timber trade sales yard and nursery, while the general warehouse will also be expanded to include kitchen and bathroom displays, Bunnings chief operating officer Peter Davis said.

"We have been part of the Lismore community since 2001 and we're looking forward to bringing an even better store," he said.

"As part of the expansion the total store area will grow to almost 10,000 square metres.

"The existing building materials and landscape yard will be fully enclosed to create a weather proof timber trade sales area, a canopy will be added over the nursery and extra covered floor space will allow for a wider range of products," he said.

The expansion is expected to be complete by early 2015 and will include implementation a number of energy and water saving design features.

Bunnings will continue trading through the upgrade period.

Late last year the Council approved a new $11.5 million Masters Home Improvement store, now under construction next to the Bunnings store on Bruxner Highway, south of Three Chain Road.

The Masters store will be 10,000 square metres in size and create more than 250 retail and construction jobs.

The store is due to be open a few months after Xmas.

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Bunnings announces $5m expansion to Lismore hardware store

Nurdianah Md Nur | Sept. 29, 2014

Efforts include providing an ICT test-bed, co-developing cybersecurity master class, providing internship programmes and participating in a security challenge.

Security provider Symantec has partnered Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) in an effort to nurture the next generation of cybersecurity talent in Singapore and strengthen the republic's cyber ecosystem.

Under a three-year Memorandum of Understanding, the two organisations will jointly undertake four key initiatives.

Firstly, the Infocomm Infrastructure Security and High Availability Centre - which is jointly established by NYP and Symantec - will be equipped with an infocomm technology infrastructure test-bed. The test-bed will provide a platform for students and industry to design, validate and test secure ICT systems that can guard against the latest cyber security attacks. The platform will double up as a training environment for students to hone their cyber defence and response skills through realistic simulation of real-world cyber attack scenarios.

Secondly, NYP and Symantec will co-develop a cybersecurity master class.

Thirdly, Symantec will open an annual internship programme for NYP students to allow them to gain a broader understanding of the security industry.

Finally, NYP will be participating in Symantec's Cyber Readiness Challenge, a competition that models scenarios after the current threat landscape using realistic, virtualised IT infrastructure. As part of the challenge, students will be tasked to step into the shoes of hackers to better understand them and their thought processes. This virtual immersion is hoped to enable students to gain a better understanding of the global threat landscape and critical security intelligence needed to improve an organisation's security posture.

"Today's cybersecurity landscape is evolving at an incredible rate and the requirement for cybersecurity talent pool is rapidly increasing," said Tan Yuh Woei, Symantec's senior country director for Singapore. "Through this partnership with NYP, we hope to attract, develop and nurture future generation of cybersecurity talent by providing them with appropriate training and knowledge."

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Symantec and Nanyang Polytechnic to strengthen Singapore's cybersecurity talent pool

Ryan Duffy, who served as the communications director for Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford the last two years, is joining the Tallahassee public relations firm Hill + Knowlton Strategies.

Known for his calm, self-effacing manner, Duffy, 30, will serve as vice president, the company announced Monday. Duffy has also served a press secretary for the Florida House Leadership Team under then-House Speaker Dean Cannon. He also served as spokesman for Bill McCollum's gubernatorial campaign in 2010. From 2007 to 2010 he served as speechwriter for U.S. Senators Mel Martinez and George LeMieux. He started his career as speechwriter to former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.

"Ryan has established himself as a battle-tested communicator who knows the ins and outs of the state capital and Florida's public affairs landscape," said Harry Costello, the firm's Florida general manager and executive vice president. "From his strong background in speechwriting for a former governor and two U.S. senators to his role as spokeswman for a house speaker, Ryan has found success in every endeavor. He will offer our clients invaluable insight and expertise."

In a statement, Duffy said he's "thrilled" with his new job.

"I'm looking forward to joining an already stellar team and helping clients to navigate public policy issues and communications challenges statewide," he said.

He holds a mster's degree in political management from George Washington University and a bachelor's in political science from Florida State University.

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Hill + Knowlton hires Weatherford spokesman Ryan Duffy

(Courtesy Karen Perry) Daggett County Commission Chair Karen Perry and her husband, Boyd, moved to the county after falling in love with the area. Perry and the rest of the commission have submitted proposals to Rep. Rob Bishop and his Public Lands Initiative legislation they hope will generate more tourism in the county.

Manila Karen Perry knows firsthand the power of Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area.

The landscape, people and outdoor lifestyle pulled her family back again and again until they finally bought a trailer and parked it on property near Manila.

Now a county commissioner, Perry and others believe if they can just get people to visit their spot in the rugged and remote northeastern corner of Utah, theyll come back.

The Daggett County commissioners are hoping Congressman Rob Bishops Public Lands Initiative will help them put that tourism and economic development strategy into play.

In trade for designating additional wilderness lands in the High Uintas, county leaders hope to build additional resorts along the reservoir and a ski hill on the horizon.

"Our businesses have not been doing quite so well as they did in the 70s and 80s," Perry said. "We are trying to garner new interests and other activities that will bring more people to our beautiful county."

The idea of another ski area in Daggett County population 1,059 in the 2010 Census may raise eyebrows along the Wasatch Front, but its the kind of bucket list item Utah counties are floating as part of Bishops far-reaching legislative push. Daggett County is one of the first to put its plan on paper.

The Public Lands Initiative, also backed by Utah congressmen Jason Chaffetz and Chris Stewart, has been pitched as a way to "bring resolution to some of the most challenging land disputes in the state of Utah," according to a staff report. Bishop, the report says, is hoping to prove that conservation and economic development can coexist in Utah.

Proposals in Daggett County include designating wilderness, swapping land between federal and state agencies to allow commercial development and securing designation for the Green River under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.

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Daggett County pins economic hopes on wilderness land swap

Sept. 30, 2014, midnight

AN Albury woman who lit a fire that went on to burn about 30 hectares of bush on Nail Can Hill has mental health issues, a court has found.

The womans car quickly became engulfed by flames after she set fire to grass near Nail Can Hill.

AN Albury woman who lit a fire that went on to burn about 30 hectares of bush on Nail Can Hill has mental health issues, a court has found.

When asked why she had lit the blaze, the 56-year-old woman told police: Want to make smoke for symbol of Olympic Games.

It was at 2.41pm on December 29 last year that the woman used a cigarette lighter to set fire to grass and leaves in Rosedale Drive, West Albury.

She parked her car about 150 metres from the end of a bitumen road, where the landscape is native bushland.

The fire spread quickly towards Nail Can Hill, and also engulfed the womans car.

She became frightened and ran from the area, waving down a woman passing by in a car.

My shoe is broken and I just set my car on fire, she told the witness.

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Woman wanted Games symbol

Siam Paragon Malls beauty department store by HMKM, Bangkok Thailand
Siam Paragon Mall #39;s beauty department store by HMKM, Bangkok Thailand Discover more interior design inspirations on http://www.homedesignlove.com interior design decorating interior...

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