Weekend Pick: Snowy Luau Festival at Timberline
Just when you thought it was safe to go outside, here comes a classic mid-Atlantic March storm to put the brakes on spring once again. It feels like every time winter appears to be over, it rears its wet, heavy head in the form of an epic snow dump, and this week is no exception. The good news is it bought regional ski resorts a couple more weekends of open slopes; something the industry desperately needed following a slow start to the winter season. With enough snow, March can be the perfect time to hit the slopes. It’s one last hurrah; a salute to Jack Frost in the form of skiing corn in shorts and t-shirts. Nothing is cooler than a warm breeze on your face as you shred melting snow beneath your skis.Sunday marks St. Patrick’s Day, an excuse to party if there ever was one and there is no party as rowdy as a ski resort party weekend. We could be looking at the perfect party storm – which happened to be my nickname in high school – at Timberline Resort this weekend. They are hosting their annual Snowy Luau Festival and when you combine Hawaii attitude with St. Patrick’s Day aggressiveness, literally anything can happen.Head up to the resort on Saturday for a Rail Jam, Pig Roast, and late night dance party. Stay for Sunday’s Slopestyle competition, costume parade, and basic St. Patrick’s day revelry like pinching strangers and eating potatoes. Wait…not sure about that last one.View Larger Map
By Gonzalo Silva Infante/Diálogo March 20, 2019 The Peruvian Armed Forces Joint Command kicked off 2019 with a milestone in the history of its participation in peacekeeping missions: Female officers joined the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA, in French) for the first time. The IV Contingent of the Peruvian Engineering Company deployed to Africa on January 14 for one year. A total of 205 officers of the Peruvian Armed Forces comprise the contingent, which includes 20 women—11 from the Army, six from the Navy, and three from the Air Force. Aside from having the first group of female officers to join MINUSCA, the unit has the highest number of female officers deployed in the same contingent. The Joint Command seeks to increase female participation in non-war military operations, in line with United Nations’ (UN) recommendations. The contingent also includes officers from the three branches of the Armed Forces to equally benefit from the experience. “For most people, going abroad is a personal experience that marks the professional life,” Peruvian Army Colonel Carlos Sánchez Silva, head of the Peacekeeping Operations Unit of the Joint Command’s Office of International Affairs, told Diálogo. “It increases personal capacity. It’s a great opportunity, especially to get our female personnel further involved.” Crucial participation According to the UN, female officer participation in peacekeeping missions is crucial for the success of any operation. The tasks blue helmets perform—collecting information, identifying conflict points to carry out patrols, and providing relief to the people—depend on positive interactions with the community. UN research suggests female officers win the people’s trust with more ease. In addition, they are more aware of the needs of the most vulnerable members of the community. “I could also say it’s easier for us to approach women and children who are coming out of a problem related to exploitation or sexual abuse in a conflict,” said Peruvian Air Force Major Pamela Vilela, assigned to Sector West MINUSCA Headquarters in Bouar, capital of the Central African Republic. “A female blue helmet is a role model for women in the community. It’s a fact that women can and must perform a leadership role in conflict resolution and in the transition from conflict to peace.” In 2015, the UN approved Resolution 2242, intended to double the number of women in military and police contingents within five years. In several reports, the Security Council also encouraged member states to deploy the same percentage of women as within their armed forces. However, a UN report issued in February 2019 showed that female officers represented only 4.6 percent of the close to 75,000 service members deployed in peacekeeping operations and some special political missions. “We are at 12.2 percent,” Col. Sánchez said. “We are going to increase that participation every year. In 2023 we need to be at 15 percent. I’ll be the head of the contingent next year [2020]; my responsibility is to increase female participation in this type of mission.” No limits Peruvian blue helmets’ participation in the Central African Republic peacekeeping mission dates back to December 2015. Since then, troops conduct various engineering tasks, such as construction and maintenance of airfields in the country; repair of airstrips, roads, and bridges; upkeep of MINUSCA’s headquarters; and transport of construction material, among other activities. According to Col. Sánchez, female officers fulfill similar tasks in positions their male counterparts use to occupy. They conduct administrative tasks in human resources, logistics, and protocol, and medicine and mental health. “In terms of contingents, this is not the first experience,” Col. Sánchez said. “Female personnel participated at MINUSTAH [United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti]. Women are very responsible in the tasks they are assigned; it’s a distinctive characteristic they have. They’re very persistent and create a transmission, a contagious effect that arises from their strength.” For Maj. Vilela, the opportunity is key not only for her career, but for Peruvian female officers. “Nowadays, when you talk about Peruvian military women, you’re talking about multitasking women,” the officer concluded. “[They are] women capable of working in any area, without any limitations. I believe that having a mixed Peruvian contingent in Africa for the first time means new challenges that will have a great impact on our country.”
continue reading » The utilization of chip technology in credit cards was introduced to combat credit card fraud and increase information security. Credit cards are embedded with microprocessor chips, commonly known as “EMV technology”—named after the original developers, Europay, MasterCard and Visa. Unlike traditional magnetic stripe cards, chip-enabled cards support dynamic authentication, which includes unique data in each transaction and makes stored data significantly more difficult for would-be thieves to copy. To encourage the adoption of this technology, there was a fraud liability shift in October 2015: Now, if merchants choose not to provide EMV payment terminals, but the card the consumer used is chip-enabled, the liability for any counterfeit card purchases will fall to the merchant rather than the card issuer. In the case of a “technology tie”—where both the card issuer and the merchant, or neither the card issuer nor the merchant, adopt EMV technology—the liability remains with the issuer. The transition to EMV technology has generally been successful.While initial evidence suggests that the introduction of EMV technology has reduced fraud where the credit card is physically present, there has been an increase in “card not present” fraud—fraudulent transactions in situations where the customer is not required to physically present the card to the merchant, such as online or over the phone. One study estimates that, as a result of the EMV liability shift and the increase in e-commerce, CNP fraud in the U.S. is expected to increase from $3.1 billion in 2015 to $6.4 billion in 2018. This increase in CNP fraud is not surprising. As credit card information has become harder to steal through in-person transactions, it is only logical that identity thieves would look for an easier target: the enormous and still rapidly growing online sales market. Additionally, the U.S. was one of the last major economies to shift to EMV technology; data collected after other countries transitioned to EMV demonstrated that there would likely be an increase in CNP fraud after the shift. For example, one year after “chip-on-chip rates hit a breaking point of … 50 percent” in Canada, CNP fraud increased by 30.1 percent. In Australia, the increase was a staggering 126.1 percent. A November 2016 report from ACI Worldwide estimated that CNP fraud attempt rates in the U.S. would increase 12 percent by volume. 46SHARESShareShareSharePrintMailGooglePinterestDiggRedditStumbleuponDeliciousBufferTumblr
After a record season and traffic growth of almost 30% compared to last year, which is the largest percentage increase in traffic of all airports in Croatia, Rijeka Airport in January this year has already confirmed three new airlines for the summer season 2019, Lufthansa, Volote and TUI to fly to 3 new destinations (London Gatwick, Manchester and Marseille). It was also confirmed that the mentioned line will continue to operate in the winter, which means that there will be a direct air connection between Rijeka and Belgrade throughout the year. Air Serbia is a Serbian national airline that flies to a total of 49 destinations in Europe and the Mediterranean, and it is especially important that it has direct flights to the Middle East and North America and offers direct flights to international destinations in Asia, Australia and Africa through Etihad Airways. The sale of tickets for the direct line Rijeka – Belgrade has already begun, and on that route Air Serbia ATR aircraft with a capacity of 66 seats and A319 with a capacity of 144 seats will operate every Tuesday and Friday from June 4 to October 25, 2019. 
Now the arrival of Air Serbia at Rijeka Airport has been confirmed, so the direct line Rijeka – Belgrade will be introduced in June, reports HRT. In addition to these new airlines, the rest of this year’s new airlines have been confirmed: Condora to Frankfurt and Transavia to Eindhoven, which has significantly increased the number of flights by as much as 300% in Ondos this year, and will start flights in April 2019.
UNICEF works globally with the travel and tourism sector, governments and civil society organizations to promote the children’s rights perspective in the industry and to support companies in the sector in recognizing and managing their impact on children. Today, the Ministry of Tourism, the Croatian National Tourist Board and UNICEF signed an Agreement on Cooperation in Promoting Children’s Rights in the Croatian Tourism Sector. Cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism and the Croatian National Tourist Board is an important step in realizing children’s rights in Croatian tourism and contributes to the sustainable development of tourism and society as a whole, said Regina M. Castillo, Head of UNICEF in Croatia. Photo: Unicef As part of the cooperation, the Ministry of Tourism, CNTB and UNICEF will promote the importance of caring for children’s rights in the tourism sector, through conferences, congresses and other events, and organize trainings on children’s rights for tourism workers. The Ministry of Tourism and the CNTB will also provide support to UNICEF’s programs to support the most vulnerable children in Croatia and their families. “We are extremely proud of our cooperation with UNICEF in promoting children’s rights in the tourism sector in Croatia, especially if we take into account that children under 14 make up 18% of total Croatian tourism and a very important segment in tourism. Accordingly, a large number of our promotional campaigns around the world, but also our overall tourist offer is aimed precisely at families with children, ” said the director of the Croatian National Tourist Board, Kristjan Stanicic. “Tourism as an important industry has a great impact on children. The safety of children traveling with their parents, decent wages and working conditions for parents or guardians, working conditions for young employees, caring for the environment in which children grow and develop – are just some of the areas of interaction between the tourism sector and children. The Ministry of Tourism and the Croatian National Tourist Board are strong partners who will work with UNICEF to raise awareness of these impacts and encourage good practices that will have a positive impact on the lives of children and their families. We are happy that one of the leading tourist groups in Croatia – Arena Hospitality Group will join us in this important work “, said Regina M. Castillo, Head of the UNICEF Office in Croatia. On this occasion, the partnership of Arena Hospitality Group and UNICEF in supporting the UNICEF program initiative was announced. “For a stronger family”Which ensures the improvement of the quality of social support to families facing difficulties. Arena Hospitality Group will in its selected hotels, resorts and camps in cooperation with UNICEF launch a series of activities aimed at guests and employees to promote children’s rights and solidarity with the most vulnerable members of our society. The funds raised as part of the cooperation will be used to support families with children from the social welfare system in the County of Istria. Photo: Unicef Arena Hospitality Group the first tourist group in Croatia to provide support to families with children from the social welfare system in the Istrian County in cooperation with UNICEF The main goal of the cooperation is to encourage good practices in tourism in the context of children of guests, children of families employed in tourism and young students and workers. “Tourism is an industry of experiences and emotions, and our wish is that all children who visit Croatia have the opportunity to see all the best that Croatia has to offer in order to remain in their unforgettable memories. Likewise, tourism can be an opportunity for everyone to create it together. That is why the Ministry of Tourism, through a part of the programs intended for young people, always encourages children and students to be creative and innovative. We want young people to be involved in creating competitive and responsible tourism and that is why cooperation with UNICEF is another step by which we build the foundations of the future of Croatian tourism because in the end man is always the key to success.” said Tourism Minister Gary Cappelli. “Arena Hospitality Group, as the first Croatian hotel company to expand its portfolio beyond the borders of Croatia, continuously invests in the development of social responsibility towards its guests, employees, partners, shareholders and the community in which it operates. In our work, we are especially focused on families with children to whom we strive to provide a variety of quality content and the highest level of service. But we also take into account the needs of families with children in our community who face various life difficulties. By joining forces with UNICEF, we will support the implementation of the program initiative “For a Stronger Family”, which will help strengthen systematic support for the most vulnerable families with children in the County of Istria. We are especially proud to include our employees in the project, who will draw attention to the importance of solidarity with our guests through activities with families and children “, said Reuel Slonim, President of the Management Board of Arena Hospitality Group dd Cover photo: UNICEF
Video Player is loading.Play VideoPlayNext playlist itemMuteCurrent Time 0:00/Duration 1:44Loaded: 0%Stream Type LIVESeek to live, currently playing liveLIVERemaining Time -1:44 Playback Rate1xChaptersChaptersDescriptionsdescriptions off, selectedCaptionscaptions settings, opens captions settings dialogcaptions off, selectedQuality Levels720p720pHD540p540p288p288p180p180pAutoA, selectedAudio Tracken (Main), selectedFullscreenThis is a modal window.Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.TextColorWhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentBackgroundColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentTransparentWindowColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyTransparentSemi-TransparentOpaqueFont Size50%75%100%125%150%175%200%300%400%Text Edge StyleNoneRaisedDepressedUniformDropshadowFont FamilyProportional Sans-SerifMonospace Sans-SerifProportional SerifMonospace SerifCasualScriptSmall CapsReset restore all settings to the default valuesDoneClose Modal DialogEnd of dialog window.This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button.Close Modal DialogThis is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button.PlayMuteCurrent Time 0:00/Duration 0:00Loaded: 0%Stream Type LIVESeek to live, currently playing liveLIVERemaining Time -0:00 Playback Rate1xFullscreenHow to bid at auction for your dream home? 01:45A house that hit the market for the first time in almost 40 years has sold for a whopping $2.8 million.Known as Highgate, the home, which sits on 1712sq m of land in the heart of blue chip Clayfield, was built in the 1920s, and was previously owned by Elizabeth Hart, the second woman to be admitted as a solicitor in Queensland. MORE NEWS: Century-old Ascot mansion sells for first time in nearly 50 years This house made $170,000 in 15 minutes Highgate has six bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, an office plus a separate office/studio with a balcony.Designed by Richard Gailey, it has a mix of formal and informal living spaces with ornate original features such as a working fireplace, lead lighting, french doors, hardwood floors, decorative horse-hair plaster ceilings, hand cut crystal chandeliers and antique bronze light fittings. Its north-facing, wide verandas overlook the saltwater swimming pool, pergola and large level garden and lawn. This house earns more than a heart surgeon The property was marketed by Ray White New Farm agents Christine Rudolph and Matt Lancashire.Ms Rudolph said three registered bidders battled to buy the property when it went to auction on Saturday. “What is lovely about this one is that during the auction campaign I was able to meet with family of all of the previous owners, from the Walsh, Hart and Woolhouse families,” she said.“Each family had an emotional attachment to the home and for the Woolhouse family (the vendors), they were happy to see it sold to another family who will appreciate it and take it into its next chapter,” Ms Rudolph said. Live like a millionaire for $20k a day in the Whitsundays
Bidding for the property started at $1 million, but jumped in $500,000 lots, before pausing at $2.7 million.Ms Rudolph said the property was then announced on the market at $2.8 million, and sold under the hammer to a prominent Queensland pastoral family.“It was really lovely as post auction the vendors got a chance to meet with the new owners,” she said. Some years later the couple also added a freestanding office.More from newsParks and wildlife the new lust-haves post coronavirus12 hours agoNoosa’s best beachfront penthouse is about to hit the market12 hours ago“All of the work they had done was carried out in such a meticulous way so as to tie intothe original house that you can’t tell what is new and what was old,” Mr Woolhouse said. “They did quite a bit of work to it,” he said. “They renovated it and extended it in thelate ’80s to early ’90s, adding an open-plan kitchen, dining and rumpus room, attic andthe billiard room.” 117 Adelaide St East, Clayfield, sold for $2.8 millionHart sold the home to Patricia and Steve Woolhouse in 1982 and it has been retained by the family ever since.Their son Daniel Woolhouse said after his parents bought the home, they carried outsubstantial renovation works.
Loading… FacebookTwitterWhatsAppEmail分享 Rory McIlroy has his eye on a piece of PGA Tour history this week as he targets a successful defense of The Players Championship.Advertisement The world number one arrives at Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida aiming to become the first player to go back-to-back at TPC Sawgrass.“I don’t think you ever need an extra motivation when you come to this golf tournament, but to be the first one to defend here would be very cool,” McIlroy told reporters on Tuesday.McIlroy will tee off on Thursday after an encouraging start to the season that has seen him post five top-five finishes in six starts.He was in the hunt for victory at last weekend’s Arnold Palmer Invitational but slid out of contention after two double-bogeys on the final round.Nevertheless, the Northern Irishman sees similarities between his start to this season and last year, when he bagged the first of four wins in 2019 at The Players after a run of consistent performances.“It’s nice to be back,” McIlroy said. “A lot of similarities between this year and last year in terms of how I’ve played the first few events of the year, given myself some chances, haven’t quite been able to capitalize, and yeah, obviously would be wonderful to replicate what happened last year.”Webb Simpson, the 2018 Players Champion, will not be surprised if McIlroy ends up walking away with the $2.7 million winner’s cheque this weekend.Simpson believes the 30-year-old McIlroy is comfortably the world’s best player.“Not needing to say this, but he’s certainly the best player in the world right now,” Simpson said. “He’s floated in and out of the best player in the world for his whole career it seems like.“His bad play and bad stretches is better than most every guy out here. And when he’s playing his best, he’s hard to beat.“He’s already created the opinion that he’s going to go down as one of the great players ever in golf, which is great for him, great for us, great for our Tour. He’s one of those guys that you expect to be in contention every week.”Rory McIlroy is aiming to become the first man to defend The Players ChampionshipRead Also: Tokyo 2020 sport climbing test event to go ahead without athletesThis week’s tournament – often described as golf’s fifth unofficial major – is taking place against the backdrop of the coronavirus crisis that has decimated the global sporting landscape.PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said the tour had set up a task force of officials who were monitoring the outbreak on a day-to-day basis.“I think it goes without saying that the health, safety, wellbeing of our players, our fans, our tournaments, everybody that’s involved in our ecosystem is of utmost importance,” Monahan said. Promoted Content15 Celebs You Probably Didn’t Expect To Be CheerleadersBest & Worst Celebrity Endorsed Games Ever MadeXi Ding Created Caricature Version Of Marvel Characters14 Amazing Pictures Of Unusual Objects Cut In HalfWhat Is A Black Hole And Is It Dangerous For Us All?7 Reasons It’s Better To Be A VeganEver Thought Of Sleeping Next To Celebs? This Guy Will Show YouWhat Happens To Your Brain When You Play Too Much Video Games?Japanese Inventions That Make You Wish You Lived In JapanMind-Bending Technology That Was Predicted Before It Appeared7 Things That Actually Ruin Your Phone9 Facts You Should Know Before Getting A Tattoo
It requires that discrimination against Jewish people be treated in the same manner as acts of racial discrimination within the state’s public schools, and in accordance with the First Amendment. The law also defines anti-Semitism as including “dehumanizing or stereotypical allegations about the Jewish community.”Upon signing the bill into law, DeSantis said, “An institution that adopts any anti-Semitic policies or guidance, that is going to be verboten.”The new measure passed through the Florida Legislature without any dissent during the last session.Republican Senator Joe Gruters, from Sarasota, introduced it in the Senate. Despite receiving some criticism over it, he says, “Listen, at the end of the day, you know this was positive,” said Gruters. “Every single member of the Florida Legislature— Republican, Democrat— voted for this bill.” Florida is putting into place new measures to address anti-Semitism in public schools.On Wednesday, Governor Ron DeSantis took time during his mission trip to Israel to sign into law a new anti-Semitism law, which is effective immediately and includes Florida’s public universities.Today @AGAshleyMoody joined me as I planted a tree on behalf of the people of Florida in the beautiful John F. Kennedy Peace Forest. As this tree grows, it will serve as a symbol of the strong friendship between Florida, the United States and the nation of Israel. pic.twitter.com/5IJgxWixqe— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) May 29, 2019
Bill Cretaro was not just a varsity assistant coach, but he had long and deep ties to Chittenango, having raised his family in the village and taught and coached at the high school for 30 years.To a man, all of the returning Bears players supported Cretaro’s promotion. Senior lineman Nate Vivelo said that Cretaro “goes above and beyond” in his devotion to the team and is almost like a second father to his players.But it isn’t just a new head coach that has Chittenango enthused. So does having 14 seniors back who are bent on improving from last fall’s defeat to eventual champion Skaneateles in the first round of the Section III Class B playoffs. “They (the returning seniors) just weren’t satisfied with what they did last year,” said Cretaro. “They want to reach goals, and the key is having all our players feel that way.”Senior lineman John Spencer said that players, throughout the summer, put in extra hours in the weight room, working at least six days a week and, at times, starting at 6 a.m.“It’s a change in culture,” said Spencer. “We are working harder and are more focused.”Who starts under center remained an open position battle during August practices. Senior Warren Tedford is the incumbent, but he could get some help from promising sophomore Aidan Cavotta, and Tedford will have plenty of solid talent around him.Three players – Robert Connell, Nate Smith and Tavian Albertson – return at tailback, with Connor Van Patten and Nate Addison at fullback to give Chittenango lots of backfield depth.Two more returnees, Nick Farr and Seth Kimball, line up at wide receiver, joined by Ethan Roble and Elias Clement, so there’s options there, too, behind what could be a formidable offensive line.Five players return up front, led by Vivelo at guard and Spencer at center, with 300-pound Cody Hendrix at the other guard spot flanked by tackles Matt Eisenhut and Nick Korosec.It’s imperative that they all stay healthy since they’ll form the heart of the Bears’ defensive line, too, with Hendrix and Vivelo flanked by the likes of Bryce Erickson.With several players likely to go both ways, Smith, Kimball, Farr and Albertson will rotate at linebacker with Jake Inman, while in the secondary Connell and Cavotta could line up with Shane Kolb.Of course, in order to get to the top of Class B East, Chittenango must, at some point, topple Cazenovia. The Bears will get a chance Sept. 21 when it visits Buckley-Volo Field, after it opens Friday at Mexico and then hosts Vernon-Verona-Sherrill Sept. 13.“We do believe putting in all of these hours (of work) is what it takes to stop Cazenovia,” said Smith.Tedford said the Bears were committed “24/7” to this season, and Cretaro said that kind of effort, combined with “guys working hard for each other and picking each other up”, could lead to something great.Besides, added Cretaro, “the school year at Chittenango is a lot better when we have a good year in football.” Tags: Chittenangofootball Energy, optimism and renewed spirit is not difficult to find on any Central New York high school football team in August as formal practices start and the promise of a great season remains ahead.Yet there is particular enthusiasm in Chittenango about what might take place in 2019, due to a new yet familiar face to lead the Bears program and the players’ full commitment to seeking a championship.Curt Kielbasa stepped down after last season, his teams having gone 14-11 in his three years at the helm, including a 4-4 mark last fall, and Chittenango didn’t look far to find his successor. Share this:FacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditComment on this Story 
If you tried wrapping your head around USC’s football team this season, chances are you’d find yourself wanting to know more.Because of the ever-vigilant eye of the sports media and its constant barrage of prediction and analysis, it’s become a real challenge for a program of USC’s stature to sneak up on anyone. Still, this year’s squad possesses an enigmatic quality that’s hard to place.It’s not that the coverage isn’t there, for plenty of outlets continue to scrutinize the Trojan program on a daily basis. It’s not that coaches and players are being exceptionally cryptic or reserved or coy in their interviews. It seems more that there’s just less to know right now.Here’s what we do know: USC is irrelevantly ranked No. 25 in the preseason Associated Press poll. Junior quarterback Matt Barkley will return and will play well, likely making a splash in the Heisman race. And Tom Brady is jealous of this season’s receiving corps. That’s about it.If you read the preliminary depth chart aloud, the number of times you heard “or” might lead you to believe you were glancing over the crew team’s inventory.We don’t know which tailback is going to find a way to distinguish himself from the rest. Will it be sophomore Dillon Baxter? Redshirt freshman D.J. Morgan? Junior Curtis McNeal? Freshman Amir Carlisle? USC coach Lane Kiffin probably couldn’t even guess.Will redshirt freshman Xavier Grimble or another tight end develop a connection as Barkley’s comfort target, a role Anthony McCoy shaped so well in 2009?What constitutes Monte Kiffin’s simplified defense? Will USC be able to apply it to any level of success on that side of the ball?Then, of course, there are the motivation questions. Can USC figure out how to cope in its second year of bowl ineligibility? Can Kiffin start to carve a legacy like his predecessor?The sheer number of questions left unanswered to this point can be troubling with the opener against Minnesota just two short days away. This obscurity suggests a level of unpreparedness that could render the Trojans sorely regretful Saturday night. A loss to Minnesota seems implausible, but if USC isn’t ready, a 0-1 start is far from out of the question.“I would be blown away if this team is overconfident: number one, because we’re not very good, and number two, because [Minnesota] is very, very well-coached and has a dynamic playmaker touching the ball every snap,” USC coach Lane Kiffin said after Wednesday’s practice.That said, it’s premature to necessarily associate indecision with disarray.With little at stake this season, it’s understandable for Kiffin to wait as long as he can before playing his hand, giving everyone on the depth chart a shot to blow him away. And the last thing he needs is the intricacies of his pop’s defensive modifications getting out to opponents.Really, staying off the radar and providing critics with so little fodder to craft narratives and sketch out the season is an advantage. Expectations can be a healthy burden on a team. Eschewing them as much as possible allows these guys to go out and play and not concern themselves with how they stack up.Then there’s the strategic leg up.You can place your bets now that Minnesota coach Jerry Kill lacks even the faintest idea of who will be lining up at the bottom of USC’s I-formation Saturday afternoon, or at receiver, guard, tackle, center or a handful of other positions.Minnesota’s already an enormous underdog coming into the Coliseum this weekend, and now it has to gameplan for about seven billion lineups? There’s no relief in facing an opponent that has so many options and so much left to reveal.One of the great aspects of Oregon’s stellar season last year was that the team crept up on everyone, both on and off the field. The Duck’s 72-0 shellacking of New Mexico in the opener last season was an eye-opening statement of authority that the Ducks were going to, well, make a splash. Yes, they were already ranked No. 11 at the time, but few saw that uptempo game rushing them all the way into the national championship game.USC’s team this year is no 2010 Oregon — in part because its offense isn’t so hectic but also because the Trojans have no championship to play for. Still, that model of taking teams by surprise is worth emulating. USC has a rare chance this year to evade the microscope that comes as a packaged deal with the program’s prestige, and the team would do right to take advantage of it.The lack of information about this team is puzzling, especially to fans.But that indefinable quality? That’s not going to hurt the team one bit. “Suicide Blitz” runs Thursdays. To comment on this article, visit dailytrojan.com or email Danny at savitzky@usc.edu.