Religion Clause is blog that reports news pertaining to the first amendment of the Constitution: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” The blog is created by a professor emeritus of law from the University of Toledo. The blog is a selection of news postings regarding court cases based on the first amendment that are currently being decided in the United States. The blog is free from overt editorial comment and appears to be ecumenical in its inclusive postings.

The posting on Religion Clause is prolific. There is an average of five postings per day. The blogger freely discloses his news sources on the side bar of his blog. There are literally hundreds of websites, news sources, and journals that he consults to keep his blog up to date. The factual tone and the extensively cited sources prove the legitimacy of this blog. He also receives at least a few comments for each posting, remarkable for the number of postings per day. Uniquely, these comments are almost always well written and erudite.

The tone of Religion Clause is completely neutral. It is simply a resource on which you can find a nearly inclusive list of news articles related to the first amendment. What makes it an interesting read is the content of the subjects themselves. There are articles related to people wanting to express their religion in a public manner and fighting for those rights. Then there are articles related to people who do not want a religious encroachment into the public sphere. Both types of articles are given the same weight and are often closely juxtaposed on the pages of the blog. Both constitutional scholars and laymen will enjoy reading about the court cases that define and redefine what it means to be religious in America.

The design and layout are pretty straight forward and to the point. Again there is none of that screaming attitude that a visitor would love to see. Visitors would have preferred tattoo motifs to have embellished the site. There is not really much chat on the origin, genesis, and development of tattoos all over the world, as also no explanation about as to how celebrity came to be identified with tattoos.

There is nothing on how society views tattoo. As a sign of rebellion, attitude or simply as kids and adults gone wrong. This is a blog which gives out information. You get to know which celebrity wears which type of tattoo, and that’s about all. While there is no denying the fact that it is a treasure trove of facts on the tattoos worn by celebrities; one feels that this information could have been presented in a manner that is explosive. Tattoos denote rebellion! Give us Jim Morrison and not tame reporting.

Tattoo aficionados would find plenty of information, but very little explanation. That apart I would prefer the home page to define the character of the blog. I do not think it does that. Tattoos are such a visual medium of communication. That should come across the moment you enter the site. The picture quality could have been better. After we need to show case two stars over here. The tattoo and the star (pun unintended). More power to the tattoo.

Art is a visual language; universally understood and conveyed to invoke expression and personal thoughts. It has no boundaries and restriction. It cannot be classified nor encounter prejudice. It’s classless and doesn’t belong to any race or gender.

Art gave birth to our current written words via the invention of pictograph of the Sumerian civilization, in the land of the two rivers; Mesopotamia the blogger’s birth place.  The blogger says his source and inspirational drive, which determine his art practice. Conveying forgotten ancient text, which is as relevant now as when it was first inscribed on clay tablets many centuries ago.

Beyond pottery is an alternative approach to ceramic. Exploring the expressive aspects of pottery to convey ancient history, philosophy and power of nature.

]]> http://risingblogs.com/beyond-pottery-2/feed/ 0 http://risingblogs.com/benefits-of/ http://risingblogs.com/benefits-of/#comments Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:36:36 +0000 Goby http://risingblogs.com/?p=183 Benifitof.net is a great blog that elaborates on the factor “benefits of…” of various types of food, life style, science and technology related items and miscellaneous aspects like immigration, marketing, volunteering etc. The blog has been set up to provide its readers with information related to their daily lives and how small things can benefit them in a long run.

The blog has been able to focus very well on its purpose because it has articles which are deeply researched and explain about the main keyword in easy English, so that the users belonging to various communities across the world understand it.

Even though the blog is accomplishing a great task, it doesn’t give an appealing look to the readers. If the blog’s design and layout are a little brighter, the readers won’t navigate. Additionally, the ‘contact us’ and ‘home’ links are missing. Therefore the site misses the ‘organize’ factor, though it doesn’t appear to be chaotic or crowded. The archive and RSS links can be found easily. The written content seems to be original. One thing good about the blog is that the information that seems to be scattered over the Internet can be found here in a comprehensive and pleasant manner.

It is difficult to track how regularly the posts are added in the blog, since there is no archive. For any website to have good traffic, it is essential that the posts are added regularly. Even if the website Benifitof.net is read, there are not many comments. One thing good about the blog is that it offers pure information and doesn’t make claims. Also, the blog doesn’t have any links to other sites. You can follow Benifitof.net on Twitter. Twitter presence of any website creates good traffic and increased sales.

Overall the blog can be passed off as one with content that will add value to your life.

Beginning Internet Marketing’s ethos is that there are no secrets, just knowledge. Internet marketing shouldn’t be a black box art form which you, as a business owner or website editor farm out and hope for the best!

This is why we have developed our Beginning Internet Marketing DVD’s series with our first release being “Understanding Search Engines”. These DVD’s and tutorial materials gives you the essential tools and techniques you need to make better informed decisions online. Regardless of whether you intend to perform Internet marketing activity yourself or subcontract the undertaking to specialist suppliers, the knowledge you will glean is invaluable to your success.

Beginning Internet Marketing is a trading name for Fasttrack IT.net Ltd, a UK company formed in 2000. We have worked with a range of companies from large organisations, like Royal Dutch Shell, right through to SMEs and sole-traders.

Our mission and purpose is to provide small and medium sized businesses the means to get the very best that the Internet has to offer their marketing efforts. We leverage our experience with corporate companies and apply a streamlined approach to make SMEs more effective and efficient.

While there is a plethora of content and many click-through options on Michigan Liberal.com, reading and posting comments for an individual blog means clicking on a link and waiting for the page to reload, a rather cumbersome process. It also means that the casual reader won’t be introduced to user comments. With a fast connection this isn’t much of an issue, but it would be nice to see comments and posts on the same page.

Most of the tone of Michigan Liberal.com is only mildly left of center. The blog raises an issue, such as the right to dry clothes outdoors and then explains why they support this idea. This is done is a non-confrontational manner with little to do derisive language. Most of the postings are that way. However, a few bloggers get a little aggressive in their word choice, especially when talking about decisions made by the GOP. With tighter editorial reins the non-abrasive writing style that is prevalent in other blog posts might make this left-leaning blog more palatable to centrist and those, just right of center.

The topics covered by Michigan Liberal.com are varies and interested to those who are living in Michigan, as well as those who are simply interested in national affairs. There are articles about green technology, the Big Three car manufacturers, Michigan politics, education, and much more. The ecumenical topic selection and the two to three posts a day make this blog worth being on the reading list of a news junkie.

The blog is maintained by four people – the Chief Editor, two contributing editors, and an administrator. It was started in the March of 2004 and has been updated regularly till date. The blog title itself states that this is the longest running blog on world climate change.

There are categories listed on the right hand side of the page like most of the blog and some of the categories are adaptation, animals, climate models, climate history, precipitation, and temperature history. So a reader can navigate easily to one of the required category of posts.

The overall layout of the blog is simple. It doesn’t seem as though much effort has been put into making it an aesthetic blog. The blog has a header and that’s all. But the best part is that the content is neatly organized. The white space is a bit higher compared to the contemporary blogs, but this allows easy navigation and provides legibility to the readers.

There are links to other websites offering information on climate from the blog. Some of the websites linked are Climate Audit, CO2 Science, and Master Resource. The names of some books and DVDs on the topic of climate change are also listed on the side bar. Apart from this, there is a special category providing links to information on satellite temperatures, CRU temperatures, and NCDC.

Overall World Climate Report is a very informative blog and there are options to share the posts via email, Twitter, or Facebook. You can also bookmark it on Google bookmarks, Digg, Delicious, Stumble Upon, LinkedIn, etc.

I mean I like the gritty style and the raw in –your- face appeal of the layout, but it could do with a bit more soul. Even when dishing out gossip, a dash of humor and philosophy impart a bit of a depth to the blog. For instance while discussing the travails of Hulk Hogan and his hapless son, there could be an attempt at empathy even through one’s castigation of the Hogans’ attitude. To further buttress my point, I immediately connected with the part where the author is nostalgic about her blog. That showed feelings.

I have no complaints with the black and pink combination. The blog creates a bit of atmosphere in fact. It is very psychedelic, punk, irreverent and all that – would like the empty black spaces filled up a little though. The blog’s layout can appear a little fuller.
I would work on content a little. The gossip sounds like well, routine done to death gossip. Need insight, fresh interpretation here. Whoever be the reader, he or she will appreciate that. Overall the blog conveys what it set out to – a zany humorous and fun take on daily life and the cultural icons as perceived by the author. It definitely has a style of its own, which I feel needs to evolve from salacious to risqué and a little less edgy. With time it will acquire greater depth and soul.

The popular categories of posts on this website are air, composting, gifts, gadgets, global warming, recycling, home tips, health, shopping, society, technology, wildlife, and water. Each post is an interesting one. Most of them contain novel ideas and thoughts. Some posts are videos from Youtube or similar sites which provide insights or ideas on living green.

The layout and design of the website is good and the site is quite user friendly. The header has this lovely looking leaf structure. And the links like About, Subscribe, and Archives are put in leafy shapes instead of the conventional tab shapes. But there is one particular thing which might not be comfortable for a reader. There are a lot of advertisements in between the posts and these are not distinguishable. It does serve the purpose of advertising but not of reading. These advertisements have no borders and may be quite confusing for a new reader on the website. Sometimes when the post has a lot of content, the information on the sidebar and advertisements give it a cluttered look. Distinguishing borders may be the perfect idea to give the blog that great look.

There are links to other green blogs and websites from Green thinkers. The posts can be shared or bookmarked at Digg, Delicious, or emailed. Some of the contributing writers on this website are Nathan, Scott Smith, Tabitha Long, Steve Balogh, and Paige. Certain posts do mention about the latest technology which help you go green and conserve a lot of energy or recycle.

The author is a medical librarian and holds a graduate degree from the University of Pittsburgh in the library and information science discipline. You can find more about the author on the ‘About’ page of the blog. One noticeable fact about the contents of this page is the layout and order of topics. All relevant information is neatly and orderly placed. It is very easy for a reader to find what he or she is searching for. There is a ‘Contact’ page. Being a wordpress blog, the user interface has been nicely laid.

There is a page titled Useful Health Information Links on the website. This list is being updated regularly and is very useful. It contains links to trusted websites and covers topics from birth to cancer, pregnancy to abortion, heart health to mental health, and so on. From the blog you can get updates on the weekly medical programs being conducted, latest advancements in the field of health, especially women’s health, and other medical and health related news.

Some may find the overall layout of the blog as not that pleasing and aesthetic. But if you spend a couple of minutes on the blog you are sure to locate things easily. The color and template used is simple and allows easy navigation to other links and web pages.

If you find the articles interesting or have suggestions, you can leave comments on the specific posts. The author is very interactive and responds to the comments from readers.