Word: softened
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...propose that the group cut up to 2 million barrels from its daily 32-million barrel output, hoping to push the price back up to about $90 a barrel. The effect would be to raise prices in the U.S. and Europe, just when Western leaders are scrambling to soften the landing of their slowing economies. OPEC's proposal, fumed British Prime Minister Gordon Brown last Friday, "is absolutely scandalous...
...start with lower standards and ramp up in subsequent years. California, for example, required only modest proficiency gains of 2.2 percent a year from 2001 until last year, when required percentage increases leapt up to 11 percent a year. The California state superintendent admitted he hoped that Congress would soften the federal law when it came up for reauthorization in 2007. But the law wasn’t softened, and the huge increases now required mean that many schools which have had solid records of improving test scores over the past six years have been put on probation...
...distinct from his classical pieces. Yet their liveliness seems strained; at this level of abstraction, where “blob” comes to mind quicker than “art,” Wein’s work underwhelms. It is really only when Wein is able to soften brute force and add definition to the abstract that the beauty of his genius is unmistakably evident. With “Man with Plow,” Wein simplifies, so that the man in the sculpture lacks incredible muscularity, and instead exudes a rustic, humanistic charm. With downcast eyes...
...paid tribute not just to the generic superiority of any Democrat compared to John McCain, but specific, personal tribute to Obama's power to inspire, his "intelligence and curiosity," his "humanity," his strength, his policies, his judgment and his priorities. He praised McCain's character as well - just to soften him up before bludgeoning Republicans for eight years of waste and greed and global incompetence...
...years for a plastic bottle to degrade in a landfill. But as plastic ages or is exposed to heat or stress, it can release trace amounts of some of its ingredients. Of particular concern these days are bisphenol-a (BPA), used to strengthen some plastics, and phthalates, used to soften others. Each ingredient is a part of hundreds of household items; BPA is in everything from baby bottles to can linings (to protect against E. coli and botulism), while phthalates are found in children's toys as well as vinyl shower curtains. And those chemicals can get inside us through...