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__label__cc	0.70125	0.29875	JIPL - February 3, 2017 February 3, 2017 Last Friday, January 27, Georgia Law was fortunate to hear from six experts on the subject of Big Data and how the law can be adapted to respond to increased personal data collection. Dr. Lea Shanley, Dr. Renata Rawlings-Goss, attorney Robert Ball, Professor Fazal Khan, Professor Christian Turner, and Professor Joseph Miller debated the ways in which attorneys can respond to problems created by Big Data. Putting the issue in context, Mr. Ball began by saying that the current generations are leaving behind more data than any generation beforehand. He argued that new technology has created a new data trail, with our phones, FitBits, Jawbones, and Apple Watches constantly collecting personal information about our heart rates, locations, and activity levels. Dr. Rawlings-Goss and Professor Khan discussed how this increased collection of information can actually benefit society in the healthcare arena, as doctors and scientists now have greater access to information about one’s lifestyle and health profile. Further, health insurance providers may be able to rely on this data in reducing a person’s insurance premiums. However, Professor Khan was quick to note that our devices also collect and store highly sensitive information about one’s lifestyle decisions and medical status. He argued that this data must be fiercely protected, just as electronic medical records protect sensitive health information. Professor Turner argued that the law cannot yet answer questions posed by big data, namely, who owns and has rights to this collected information. Turner suggested that the next generation of lawyers will be charged with the task of applying the law to preserve individual privacy in this new information age. Turner emphasized that existing property law has not yet addressed Big Data ownership and how information can be protected. However, Professor Miller countered that the law will soon adapt to answer the legal challenges presented by data collection, just as the law has done in the past. Miller cited the evolution of property law to respond to problems posed by intellectual property. Like the copyright and patent legal regimes, Professor Miller suspects that law will develop and evolve in order to protect an individual’s data rights. The Journal of Intellectual Property Law thanks all who made this panel possible, and we look forward to hosting the 2018 Big Data Panel next year.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line858
__label__wiki	0.965865	0.965865	PHS head football coach heading home to Texas By: Steven Law - Updated: 2 months ago By Steven Law Special to the Chronicle PAGE – Page High School’s head football coach will be resigning at the end of the school year to take a position as offensive coordinator at Elkhart High School in Elkhart, Texas. Mitchell Stephens has been the head football coach for the Sand Devils for the last two seasons, leading his teams to an overall 18-5 record during that time. During his first year he guided his team to the first round of the state playoffs, and during his second year he got them to the second round. Stephens grew up in Texas and said the reason for returning to his home state is so he can be closer to family. “My grandparents and parents are getting older,” Stephens said. “It will be nice being only an hour away from my mother, rather than 20 hours. I feel like God brought me here and now God’s giving me signs to return home.” Though he’s looking forward to being back in his home state, Stephens says there are several things he’ll miss about Page and coaching at the high school. Stephens is proud of his football team’s record and accomplishments, adding that he’s most proud of seeing the growth many of his players have shown. “I’m proud of the accomplishments of these kids,” he said. “Winning football games is great, but seeing my players grow and watching them go on to play college ball and meet other big life goals is what I’m most proud of from my time here.” Stephens said Page will always have a spot in his heart. “The school, the community and the church have all been very welcoming, and I’ll miss them,” he said. “This place is dear to my heart and I want to leave on good terms.” The high school has posted a position for head football coach, said PHS Athletic Director Ernie Rivers. “We appreciate everything he’s done for the program,” Rivers said. “He’ll be missed.” Level 2 sex offenders register in Page Elements: Canyon de Chelly 'We've made mistakes' Newest game in town: Lake Powell-Opoly Page High School’s head football coach will be resigning at the end of the school year to take a position as offensive coordinator at Elkhart High School in Elkhart, Texas.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line863
__label__cc	0.594427	0.405573	H2O guitarist Todd Morse quits band Tuesday, November 10, 2015 11:36 AM PT New York hardcore punk outfit H2O has apparently lost the services of Todd Morse (guitar, vocals), who had been with the band for roughly two decades. In an interview conducted with journeyofafrontman.com prior to the release of the band's new album, Morse explained his departure: "I officially resigned this year. They're about to do a new record and I just have so much going on musically. I'm trying to move most of my time towards music that I'm into now, as an older guy. It just wasn't honest for me to do another H2O record. Hardcore is a special thing that you don't want fake. I just didn't wanna fake it anymore. It was a twenty year run with H2O. I wrote a ton of songs with them. I'm proud of everything and I'm proud of them. And I'm sure that the new record's gonna be great." Morse is currently a touring member of The Offspring. Related: H2O • H2O, Comeback Kid tour dates • H2O, Battery, Sharp Shock to tour Europe • The Bash Music & Craft Beer Festival 2019 announced • Comeback Kid, H2O, The Eulogy mini-tour • East Coast Tsunami Fest 2017 lineup announced	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line864
__label__wiki	0.705082	0.705082	Paris Hilton Announces Candidacy for President Paris for Prez Erik Deckers Laughing Stalk Syndicate It was the snit heard 'round the world. The snarky, scantily-clad video response that got pundits tongues wagging about something other than politics, at least until their wives saw them. Paris Hilton says she's running for President. The vapid, blond heiress and star of "The Simple Life," announced her candidacy in a spoof video on FunnyOrDie.com. Hilton said she was running because that "wrinkly white-haired guy" – John McCain, for those of you emerging from under your rocks – used her image in a TV spot against his opponent, presumptive President of the United States, Barack Obama. "Hey America, I'm Paris Hilton, and I'm a celebrity too," she said without a sense of irony or shame. "Only I'm not from the olden days, and I'm not promising change like that other guy. I'm just hot." Oh man, this is really bad. I've always been a big supporter of third party candidates, but my one litmus test is whether they can even spell "candidate." And that they haven't starred in an Internet sex video/ I swear, if she wins, I'm moving to Canada with Alec Baldwin, unless he chickens out like he did last time. (Big wussy. The guy swore up and down he would move to Canada if George Bush became President, but we're stuck with him and his 17 brothers.) Still, I don't think she's got a real shot, so I'll probably be here for a while. "But then that wrinkly white-haired guy used me in his campaign ad, which means I guess I'm running for President," she continued. Yeah, right. By that logic, since her boyfriend used her in that sex video, I guess that would make her a slut. . . Uh oh, this is worse than I thought! Do they get the NFL in Canada? Can I get the Dish Network to work up there? "So thanks for the endorsement, white-haired dude, and I want America to know I'm, like, totally ready to lead." Oh good, as long as you're TOTALLY ready. I mean, we wouldn't want someone who was , like, only concerned about whether certain other world leaders are, like, hot, or whether the White House clashes with her outfits. She'll probably appoint Extreme Makerover's Ty Pennington the Secretary of the Department of the Interior to make sure. "I'll see you at the White House," she concluded. "Oh, and I might paint it pink." Looks like I've got a tough decision to make. Do I go for the big city or the small town? I've been to Toronto, and it's a nice city with a strong arts community. But if I lived in a smaller town, I'd be closer to nature and some really good fishing. Dryden, Ontario is gorgeous in the summer. But even as I pace the floor and gnaw on my fingernails, I have to admit, her energy policy made some sense. "We can do limited offshore drilling with strict environmental oversight, while creating tax incentives to get Detroit making hybrid and electric cars. That way, offshore drilling carries us until the new technologies kick in, which will create new jobs and energy independence. Energy crisis solved. I'll see you at the debates, bitches." But then she, like, totally shot herself in the foot when she said she was considering Rihanna, the R&B artist, as her vice presidential nominee. Come on! Rihanna?! Are you kidding me? Everyone knows she doesn't have the foreign affairs experience needed to re-establish the U.S. as a world leader. Plus, she was born in Barbados, so she's not a natural-born American citizen, which means she can't take on that role. While some people would say Britney Spears, Hilton's fellow celeb and John McCain commercial target, is the emotional favorite, I think Cameron Diaz is the better choice. She can shore up the Hispanic vote and improve relations with Latin America. Of course, you'll also need Ashton Kutcher to head up the Department of Homeland Security (Hey Iran, you've been PUNK'D!). And what do you think of Scarlett Johansen as the Secretary of State. . .? Uh, excuse me. I don't know what came over me. If anything, I'm worrying too much about something that will never happen. Hilton is only 27, eight years too young to run for president, which means I don't have to worry about a global disaster for eight more years. But with her sordid past, I doubt she could even be elected dog catcher of Putnam County. Besides, I'm hoping Lindsey Lohan will be out of rehab and ready to run for Senate by 2016. FunnyOrDie.com John McCain online video Paris Hilton presidential election	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line866
__label__cc	0.737261	0.262739	Energy Versus Spirituality I often tell people, that as an Atheist, I believe in energy, but not in spirituality. It means that I stay mindful of what is rather than what isn’t. That I am invested in the earth rather than in the imaginary. People often describe the intense feeling of being interconnected with all of life as a spiritual experience. I see that experience as simply tapping into what we actually are—elements of earth that are all part of the life source that it grows in cycles of time. When my niece stayed with me last summer, she observed how I interact with other life forms. Whether it was being mindful of tiny crabs under rocks at the beach, or the way that I show respect and appreciation for my two cats, she was intrigued by how I strive to honor all of life. If we’re only aiming to think of ourselves in the scheme of our environment, then we fail the environment completely, of which we are a part. For me, this is a meditative state of living within an awareness of all energy and life forms. That’s not to say I’m always in that state, but I aim for it. In all honesty, it is most difficult to feel that way towards other humans when they can be challenging to deal with. In comparison to the state of being grounded in nature, spirituality specializes in the things that are unseen and unverified. It generally believes in the existence of “souls,” but only for human beings. Spirituality either makes gods of imaginary entities, or of the universe itself. Because its basis is within the imagination, it breeds superstitions of all kinds that build fear in people, and lead to an obsessive development of rules and regulations. In both the East and the West (except in extremely ancient and indigenous traditions), it furthers the concept that we must transcend the body through prayer and rituals of purification, that lead us toward the dream of immortality after death, or reincarnation. I’ve been working on my book, on the history of religion and conquest, for the past three years now. It’s been a fascinating journey, and what continues to be most striking is the interconnection of myth stories throughout time and region. It is also interesting to perceive exactly when certain ideas took shape, and how they affected culture on a massive scale. For example, if a person comes to a vague idea about what it takes to get to paradise (and imaginary ideas are always vague), they may do whatever it takes to get there, even if that means killing hundreds of people for the glory of their god. If they believe that the apocalypse will occur in their own lifetime, they may live in extremes of piety, seeking signs and symbols at every turn. And if they believe in purity, they will attempt to regulate bodies and control women through a rigid patriarchy. These various reactions then become layered in the culture, both within these beliefs, and outside of them. Every decade, the number of people who attend church in the U.S. goes down. According to the Public Religion Research Institute, in 1986 only 10 percent of young people (eighteen to twenty-nine) claimed to be religious “nones,” while in 2016 that category went up to 39 percent.[1] One aspect of that shift, is that our sense of ethics has grown beyond religious literature and institutions. In my own case, when I read the Bible I’m struck by the violence, the hatred for outsiders, and the way in which women are property with less rights than they ever had before. In the New Testament, the Evangelical concept of “family values” appears ironic next to the words of Jesus telling his followers to leave their families and follow him. Adding to this ethical disconnect, in the age of science, people are less susceptible to a literal belief of myth stories. Two attacks that I often see made against Atheists is that we must either be nihilists or pantheists. Even in my dashboard dictionary, the example for nihilist is: “dogmatic atheists and nihilists could never defend the value of human life.” My question is, why does life lose value without a belief in things that don’t exist? Shouldn’t life have more value if I only believe in existence? As for the view that I must be a pantheist, this assumes that as a human, I must worship something. I don’t believe in worshipping anything at all. Instead, I am simply aiming for awareness. Activities that bring me toward this daily goal are: Exercise – to achieve balance in mind and body. Expression – for meditation and reflection. Experience – to build connection within a diverse community. Empathy – through understanding other points of view. Exploration – which brings clarity from being outside of routines. This is my practice of cultivating presence in an energetic world that is alive, and therefore constantly shifting and in flux. These points might sound basic, but I find them challenging because every day is a new beginning. For example, I have days when I would like to avoid flow, and stay within a rigid space of control. It is easy to grow cynical and hard. Much more of a challenge, however, to remain open and flexible and alert to the experience of life. [1] Fred Edwords, “Faith and Faithlessness by Generation: The Decline and Rise are Real,” The Humanist, August 21, 2018, https://thehumanist.com/magazine/september-october-2018/features/faith-and-faithlessness-by-generation-the-decline-and-rise-are-real. You are currently browsing entries tagged with nihilism at Lauren J. Barnhart.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line867
__label__cc	0.735028	0.264972	The Life of the City February 13, 2013 § 12 Comments A man in my writer’s group often makes the comment that the rough draft of my second memoir could use more plot. Writing a memoir is a long process of layering, of recalling memories that are revived through old journal entries. By the end of the process, there is always a plot, but never it seems, before the final draft. It made me think of all my favorite books. They don’t follow a traditional narrative arc, but they do capture life itself – ‘Post Office’ by Charles Bukowski, or any book by Henry Miller, for example. In real life, plot does not take the same shape as in a novel. It only exists as something to be noticed from many years past. It’s a narrative device to hold the reader’s interest, a method of pacing and cliffhangers. In life, we are not aware of the plot until we have reached an entirely different evolution of self. My second book is difficult to build since it captures the time I spent living in Hoboken, NJ/New York City. There were always a million things happening at once, much more than what should be captured on the page. In a three year span I was a poet, a belly dancer, a singer/songwriter on the mandolin, a percussionist in a bossa nova band, a hostess at a popular restaurant, a literary agent, an artist’s assistant for someone famous, a pool player, a coffee drinker, a groupie, and a mad downer of whisky. I was out every night, and working every day. Many universes collided, which is part of the fun, and exactly what made it so fascinating to live through. In New York, the parallel life shifted between being very poor, while often being among the extremely rich. Within my tribe there was a great deal of tension within the “us verses them”. We despised the rich. Abused them if they came within our dive bar territory. And yet, we often depended on the rich to get by. To play those games, you had to pretend to be someone you weren’t. There was a massive growing process that took place within that struggle, and a process of letting go. This week I read Ernest Hemingway’s mostly memoir ‘A Moveable Feast’. It’s the first book by Hemingway that I have ever enjoyed, and I’m surprised that I gave him another chance. I never lose faith in him, though I don’t like any of his novels (minimalism, no adjectives, run-on sentences, bare expanses, macho posturing). Of ‘A Moveable Feast’ Hemingway writes, “If the reader prefers, this book may be regarded as fiction. But there is always the chance that such a book of fiction may throw some light on what has been written as fact.” Is there a plot in this book? Of course not. It’s a love letter to Paris and his time spent with Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, James Joyce, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and the love he shared with his first wife Hadley, and their baby, Bumby (including Bumby’s babysitter, a cat named F. Puss). Hemingway makes Fitzgerald sound like a tiresome alcoholic with a cuckold for a wife; Zelda, a wife jealous of her husband’s talent who makes him drink to distract him from his craft; Stein, an egomaniac with no patience for women other than Alice. To get through it all, Hemingway drinks plenty of whiskies with soda and lemon juice (a delicious drink). And then, just when you feel he’s really had enough, supreme, in all of this, is the joy of being a writer in a city like Paris. “The blue-backed notebooks, the two pencils and the pencil sharpener (a pocket knife was too wasteful), the marble-topped tables, the smell of early morning, sweeping out and mopping, and luck were all you needed (Hemingway, 91).” By the end of the book, you feel the sadness that Hemingway experienced at the loss of this world he inhabited, and his young family. The rich were drawn to his success and left him feeling empty. Other women drew him away from Hadley and filled him with regret. But in the end, there was always Paris. “We always returned to it no matter who we were or how it was changed or with what difficulties, or ease, it could be reached. Paris was always worth it and you received return for whatever you brought to it. But this is how Paris was in the early days when we were very poor and very happy (Hemingway, 211).” In ‘A Moveable Feast’ the place becomes the plot. No matter how many people pass through, or how quickly they appear and then disappear. This is the life of the city: a constant rotation of people and experiences that you should never expect to last. But it’s beautiful while you are at the center, watching the menagerie orbit around you. The Scent of the Circus October 17, 2012 § Leave a comment I just finished reading My Apprenticeships, by Colette – the French novelist and performer born in 1873, most famous for the novel Gigi. My love for the writing of Colette has always felt like a guilty pleasure – like intensely dark chocolate, a red bouduior drenched in velvet, or my new perfume Black Afgano, a hypnotic blend of hashish and tobacco. I slip into Colette’s books and fall away from distraction – finding complete understanding of all that I have left behind to be with her. My Apprenticeships is a memoir of Colette’s young adulthood as a country girl, new in Paris, and married to M. Willy – an older man who had a knack for publishing and self-promotion. M. Willy asked her to write stories based on her days in boarding school with a few titillating bits thrown in. He eventually published them under his own name, and the Claudine series became so popular that every girl in Paris wanted to look just like Claudine. But Colette received none of the credit, or the proceeds. “Love comes disguised as a thunderbolt and often vanishes at the same pace (Colette, 103).” The problem with M. Willy was that he was in love with his own power over oblivious doe-eyed youth – the minute Colette began to near thirty, with success in the theater as an actress, he was done with her. He suggested a different kind of life, and by different, she understood that he was asking her to leave. “How old was I? Twenty-nine, thirty? – the age when life musters and arrays the forces that make for duration, the age that gives strength to resist disease, the age when you can no longer die for anyone, or because of anyone. Thirty already – and already that hardening which I would compare to the crust that lime-springs form, dripping slowly (Colette, 101).” Before M. Willy’s suggestion of a different kind of life, a woman offered Colette a traveling show with thirteen trained greyhounds. “I have forgotten the name of the envoy who let fall this balm, this dew, this temptation, this breath of the high-road, this scent of the circus. I shrugged my shoulders and refused even to see the thirteen greyhounds. Thirteen greyhounds, their fabulous necks outstretched, the curve of their bellies drinking in the air. And thirteen hearts to conquer. Disquiet, anxiety. It was all very well for me to shrink back into my scribe’s virtue, my familiar, faithful fear, anxiety remained, working within me, for me. Thirteen greyhounds, a rampart, a family, a home. How did I ever let them go (Colette, 122)?” Just as I am, Colette was a complete nomad and a solitary homebody at the same time. She was theatrical (No matter how many times I turn my back on it, there are always new ways to be on the stage). She never had many female friends (women blow in and out of my life like the breeze). She lacks sentiment, or any idealistic tripe, and yet, her writing revolves around love – realistic love rather than fake, idealized love. For a long time I worked for the circus. Unfortunately, there was no act with thirteen glorious greyhounds. As suited to my homebody needs, it was a circus that doesn’t travel – they just change shows every four months to create a different theme on the same variation. Teatro Zinzanni – a dinner theater involving vaudeville acts, an opera singer, a chanteuse, acrobats, trapeze artists, aerialists, jugglers, and lots of sequins. The tent is one hundred years old, and imported from Europe. You get the sense that Colette could have performed there. Table 13 is haunted, and the guests that sit there always behave in a ridiculous way and leave feeling dissatisfied somehow. Sometimes in the back hall, the chairs flip themselves off the hooks on the wall. At night, after the show is over, one lamp is left lit on the stage to keep the bad spirits away – it’s an old circus theater tradition. To be in the tent after everyone is gone late at night, is more intense even than the spectacularly glitzy show. The quiet is strange because you still hear the sounds in the air – forks clinking, voices singing, the announcer bellowing, the instruments swooping music to the swinging people in the air. The tent holds an enormous amount of energy. Every night 268 people are served their food simultaneously. Within five minutes they all have their plates. Every entrée somehow always tastes the same, no matter what it is. It tastes like it’s been in a heating box for hours. At the circus, I worked as a dancing server. Every night I crammed into a small mirrored-dressing room with ten other girls who had beautiful bodies and very loud mouths. We applied our liquid eyeliner, tons of rouge and bright matte lipstick. We swapped fishnets (this weird extreme version that are so strong they leave dents in your legs, but are not quite strong enough to withstand the abuse that we put them through). The girls gossiped, sang at the top of their lungs, and swapped stories about auditions, boys, and crappy day jobs. Being quiet, I always felt like I was on the outside looking in. The loudmouths had their own club, and the quiet ones had secrets shared backstage when everyone else couldn’t hear. 99 percent of the performers were introverts when offstage. They were from all over the world, and the one thing that stood out, was how lonely they all were. Well, except for the performers that lived in Seattle. As for the international stars – the more beautiful, ethereal, and otherworldly they were, the more alone they seemed to feel. They never stopped traveling from circus tent to circus tent, wherever they could find them, throughout the world. Marriages didn’t last, unless the partners were in an act together, or always in the same show. The servers looked up to the performers with adoration and jealousy. Almost all of the servers were actors or musicians. We presented the performers like diamonds every night, while we were relegated to the periphery of the tent with brief food-baring dances at the center. We were scolded whenever we accidentally stepped into the performer’s spotlight, or tripped into their path. Every Sunday night to make up for it, we all went to sing karaoke down the street. We needed that moment in the limelight to refuel our egos. One night, we found ourselves up against the cast of Hello Dolly, and surprisingly, we put them in the dust with our singing skills and audience lust. Besides being told every now and then that I needed to “sparkle more” or that my tickets were “too perfect,” I suppose I wasn’t so bad at being a server at Teatro Zinzanni. Five nights a week, sometimes more, I was there doing the exact same repetition every night. The circus began to feel like a broken record, a loop that could suck me into the vortex. I had tendinitis from carrying too many plates, and my back was always a mess. Without fail, just before we opened the curtains to let the guests into the tent, I had anxiety attacks – dizzy and nauseous, like I was about to pass out. Work came home with me too. The same workmares haunted me over and over in my sleep – flashing lights, lurid faces, and some terrible obstacle course to get to my tables. In general, the same cluster-fuck that I lived every single shift. Now when I see my past coworkers from TZ, I am always impressed by their extreme energy. I wonder if it’s the tent that gave them that tenacity, or if they would just naturally be that way if they had not worked there. Being around greatness makes you strive to be great as well. No one wants to be that server in the wings, and if you don’t get out eventually, you languish there until you are too old to “sparkle” anymore. It’s obvious that the theater added to Colette’s greatness as a writer. In the theater she studied people and places, traveled, and gained admirers. She became a ravishing woman in that circle of activity. In one of my favorite scenes from My Apprenticeships, Colette meets Mata Hari, and relays what a fake she thought she was. “The people who fell into such dithyrambic raptures and wrote so ecstatically of Mata Hari’s person and talents must be wondering now what collective delusion possessed them… the colour of her skin was disconcerting, no longer brown and luscious as it had been by artificial light but a dubious, uneven purple… (Mata Hari) did not move a muscle as the voice of Lady W________ rose beside us, saying in clear, plain words: “She an Oriental? Don’t be silly! Hamburg or Rotterdam, or possibly Berlin (Colette, 129-130).”” Teatro Zinzanni was exactly like Mata Hari. For a while I was in love with the fantasy life. On rainy, depressing days I could escape into the lights and forget my own life. But then the cracks began to show – the constant stench of body odor backstage and non-stop febreze spray in the pits of our costumes, the guy who refused to pay on New Years Eve, the way we all had to fake it every night of our lives, the way I had no life outside of the tent, and how the rest of the world began to feel distant and strange, like it was passing me by and I was missing it. On my bookshelves, there are fifteen books by Colette. I stumbled onto them in chance meetings in bookshops. Some are almost impossible to find. My favorite (and her favorite as well) is The Pure and the Impure – a dark foray into the erotic underworlds of Paris. There is really no plot, just character after character swimming in their own particular decadence. When I first read the book, decadence was my tool for self-discovery. Now I see it as a tool for avoiding pain. I’m not in pain anymore, so I don’t’ really need decadence, at least, not all that much of it. Colette understood life, unflinchingly – her writing is poetic because of this. It’s not the poetry of solitude, but the poetry of human understanding – beautiful life, dark life, art that imitates life, life that always has a new beginning. European Sampler Platter February 23, 2012 § Leave a comment In my junior year of college, I had the opportunity to tour Western Europe in a student group. We traveled through Rome, Florence, Venice, Vienna, Salzburg, Munich, Normandy, Paris, and London for three weeks, and I chose to extend my stay for two more weeks in Paris, London, and Edinburgh. At one point, we hit four cities in 24 hours, and I experienced culture shock in each new destination. The energy was frenetic in Rome. Vespa’s buzzed between lanes of traffic and came inches away from our feet in alleys. Buildings loomed majestically and echoed with centuries of history. Sexy people were everywhere in tight pants and bright colors. My fellow classmates made embarrassing comments like, “The women here dress like whores.” They taunted me for checking out the men and I started a running joke, “I’m admiring the architecture.” When the men approached us, “American girls! Where are you from?” One of the girl’s snapped, “Don’t talk to them! They’re probably in the mafia!” I desperately wanted to talk to them, but every time I made an attempt, the girls pulled me away. The boys at our school looked nothing like Italian men, didn’t know how to dress, and never acknowledged us as sexual beings. It was thrilling to be noticed, even if they noticed everyone. I didn’t care. I felt as I usually did, that my classmates were from the backwoods, and had no compass for reading other cultures. I began to completely disassociate myself from the group entirely. I did not want to be identified with them, and started doing whatever I could to blend in wherever we went (something I have mastered so well over the years that in foreign countries, people ask me for directions). Though the others were amazed at religious sites, I felt sick over the obsessive power of the Catholic Church, and the awe instilled for the church through art. We were told that the foot on the statue of Saint Peter had been replaced because it had been worn away from too many kisses of the devout. I watched as people broke down in tears, so moved to kiss a stone foot. I never quite got over how much I loved Italy. I’d been so excited to see the other cities, that I failed to grasp completely, the place I was in. Austria was beautiful, while Germany was the exact opposite of Italy. We went from anarchy, passion and wine to precision, sterility, and beer. In Bavaria, amidst the opulent rooms of Kind Ludwig’s Hunters Palace, I actually passed out on the floor. Once again, the history of squandered wealth, over-consumption, and insanity overtook my psycho-sensitivity. On the outside, I managed to put on a happy front, and had a song to sing for every place and time. But I felt increasingly alone, and recorded my thoughts privately in a journal. I figured out how easy it was to get lost on purpose and lose the group. In Paris I lost them in the Metro, and realized I hadn’t been keeping track of how to get back to the hotel. I stared cluelessly at a metro map when a little man approached me, “Come with me! I can take you where you want to go!” “No thank you. I’m fine.” I learned quickly to make it look like I knew what I was doing and spent the afternoon wandering the Champs Elysees. When the tour ended, the other students went home or broke off into small groups that I met up with now and then. In hostels I was suddenly exposed to the sort of people I’d been kept away from all of my life. Aimless wanderers hoping to hook up with someone, bragging about how many bottles of wine they’d finished off in a night, solving the mysteries of humanity through astrology. Before this, under the scrutiny of our group leaders we’d been lucky if we could sneak off and drink a glass of wine. In Paris I stayed in a crappy hostel and caught something, possibly from brushing my teeth in the tap water. I was later diagnosed with a strange combination of virus’s that resembled a cross between Mono and Hepatitis. My neck swelled up to the size of Rocky Balboa’s, and I needed to sleep all afternoon. By Scotland I was very weak. I walked through the ruins with a girl from Quebec. On her first day in Scotland a guy on the street yelled cuss words at her for no reason at all. She hated it there, but I kind of enjoyed the grittiness of the culture. The day before I met her I had a fit of extreme anxiety and depression (a common occurrence back then). I realized that if I took a walk without my ID, and got hit by a car and died, no one would have known my identity. Insignificance and immortality hung over my head, and I fingered my laundry cord, trying to think of a place to hang from. Preposterous, since I didn’t even know how to tie the knot. I had met someone in a nightclub in Portland before the trip, a trombonist whose band was #2 on the pop charts in Paris. It was strange to hear their music on the radio. He had a golden look about him, and was everything I’d ever dreamed of – intensely creative, passionate, and most unbelievable of all, attracted to me. In every city I kept seeing his face over and over – in the server in Austria who winked at me, in the Englishman who gave up his seat on the tube for an older lady, in the sexy dancer who stole the show in Fosse. I was so obsessed that I bought tickets to see the show again, but an understudy filled in for my dancing man. I was afraid that being gone for so long, the trombonist would disappear, just like the dancer. For the last few days of my trip, I left my hotel where I’d had breakfast with stamp collectors and workingmen, and took the tube into a wealthy neighborhood to stay with an American couple that could put me up for the weekend. When I arrived there was banana bread and tea waiting for me on the table. They gave me a large room with a queen size bed, sink and vanity in my room. It felt like a luxurious paradise after all the dank empty rooms and nasty beds with springs poking up into my back. I was painfully shy at the time, but as my trip progressed, I began to talk to people more and more. The desperation of traveling alone with little contact stretched me out of my comfort zone. I was about to come into a new place in life of empathy. And my journey through Europe would change me, most noticeably after I returned home. That following summer I would fall in love with the trombonist, or think I did, and begin to write obsessively about everything that I felt. I learned that in order to truly experience people, you have to take risks. I didn’t want to be like the other girls on my trip, constantly shying away from life out of fear. This week I read one of Henry Miller’s lesser-known works, The Colossus of Maroussi. As World War II broke out, Miller left Paris and went to Greece where he found a spiritual place, uplifted by the history of gods who share our humanity. He was stunned by the white lightness of the landscape, the generosity, the poverty, and the women who resembled queens, even in such a harsh way of life. “To live creatively, I have discovered, means to live more and more unselfishly, to live more and more into the world, identifying oneself with it and thus influencing it at the core, so to speak (Miller, 206).” Europe was really the beginning of my life as a writer – learning to breathe into the world, awakening to my senses. How We Perceive Nudity November 17, 2011 § Leave a comment In my evolution of what I like to call “Gypsy Jobs” my latest addition is working as a model for the art school up the hill. I have always had a fascination with Bohemian Paris, artists and their muses, Kiki de Montparnasse. So after several months of thinking about it, I finally brought in my application. On my first day I had two back-to-back three-hour classes. Bright and early that morning, when I usually wake up, I began with an open studio, monitored by a student. There is always that initial funny feeling when you first take off your robe, like here goes nothing. They started with 10 one minute poses, then 5 ten minute poses, and 2 twenty minute poses. During the longer poses I began to hallucinate. I was staring at a speck on the blanket covering the stage. The speck started to move. I was convinced it had come to life as a bug. In the next class, I stared out the window at a tree and soon I was a heron flying through the large open center of its branches. I didn’t feel awkward once I was on the stage, only when I was waiting to go on. The pain however was another thing. By the end of twenty minutes, even in a basic standing pose, my feet fell asleep and my legs felt stuck when I was finally able to move. I realized you can’t rest your weight on one straight leg or else you’ll hyperextend and cause an injury. Even though it’s less striking, I’ve learned to always keep both knees slightly bent. I’ve gotten a lot of compliments since then on my stillness as a model. Having an active mind saves me. I focus on a point, do breathing-exercises to work through the pain, and then distract myself by thinking of interesting memories or ideas for my writing. Now that I model two to four times a week, it feels completely natural, and I forget that I’m not wearing any clothes. It actually feels cozy. Last week at a long pose session I walked through the class to see their interpretations. In the drawings my weight ranged from 110 to 160. One woman was drawn to the more Rubenesque, and said she tends to draw what she is working with, as in her own body type. The men drew me much thinner than the women. I thought of our differing perceptions – how women put themselves in the females position, and men see women with rose-colored glasses. The experience of posing got me thinking about how we interpret nudity in our society. Years ago my friend took two of us girls to a nude beach in New Jersey. It was a gorgeous place. I found it beautiful that people of all ages, shapes, and sizes were completely out there. I swam topless and hung out with an older guy in the waves, having fun. Later on at a restaurant I saw him again with his clothes on and had to look twice. He looked like a Senator or an Investment Banker, though I’d had no way to interpret him without his clothes. Now we were back in our hierarchies and I wanted to go back to the beach where we were all equals. I had a phase when I lived in Hoboken, where I’d drink so much gin I became inspired to take off all my clothes in the confines of my apartment with friends. I guess I liked the feeling of absolute freedom. But the guys interpreted it to mean that I was ready to go. Climb on in or take a number and come back another day. I look back on my own spontaneity in amazement – a desperate need for an adrenaline rush. And it is interesting how nudity outside of the confines of an art class, a nude beach or a hospital is interpreted as sexual. But nudity is much more nuanced than that. Nudity also brings to mind our own mortality, our equality as human beings, the mystery of existence, anatomy, art, beauty, the poetry of motion and form. Friends and family may not quite understand my job or how I can feel comfortable without clothes. My mother still asks my husband, “Are you okay with this?” But for the first time in years I am enjoying a job and looking forward to going to work. I get to learn more about something I love – art, and be in an academic environment with enormously talented people. I take romantic walks afterwards, feeling poetic, drinking coffee and eating crepes with enough time left in the day to write for a while before dinner. When I’m not at the school, I’m thinking about the next time I get to be there, creating new poses for the students. It’s an instance where life led me to two books. The Nude Female Figure and The Nude Figure by Mark Edward Smith. They are both visual references for the artist working without a model. I am learning the range of the human form, thinking of ways to inspire the artists. And now, I find myself returning to the place where I began – painting and drawing figures just as I did when I was a kid and was obsessed with fashion illustration and portraiture. Artists of all ages are honored to be able to work from a live model and respect the opportunity. I get the sense that they are grateful for the model’s bravery. And in the stillness of a pose my mind is in motion, building ideas and images, undisturbed, in perfect meditation. You are currently browsing entries tagged with paris at Lauren J. Barnhart.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line868
__label__cc	0.629563	0.370437	338. Thusa Jātaka “With sense so nice,” etc.—This story was told by the Master while living in the Bamboo Grove, of prince Ajatasattu. At the time of his conception there arose in his mother, the daughter of the king of Kosala, a chronic longing to drink blood from the right knee of king Bimbisara (her husband). Being questioned by her attendant ladies, she told them how it was with her. The king too hearing of it called his astrologers and said, “The queen is possessed of such and such a longing. What will be the issue of it?” The astrologers said, “The child conceived in the womb of the queen will kill you and seize your kingdom.” “If my son,” said the king, “should kill me and seize my kingdom, what is the harm of it?” And then he had his right knee opened with a sword and letting the blood fall into a golden dish gave it to the queen to drink. She thought, “If the son that is born of me should kill his father, what care I for him? “ and endeavoured to bring about a miscarriage. The king hearing of it called her to him and said, “My dear, it is said, my son will slay me and seize my kingdom. But I am not exempt from old age and death: suffer me to behold the face of my child. Henceforth act not after this manner.” But she still went to the garden and acted as before. The king on hearing of it forbade her visits to the garden, and when she had gone her full time she gave birth to a son. On his naming-day, because he had been his father’s enemy, while still unborn, they called him prince Ajatasattu. As he grew up with his princely surroundings, one day the Master accompanied by five hundred Brethren came to the king’s palace and sat down. The assembly of the Brethren with Buddha at their head was entertained by the king with choice food, both hard and soft. And after saluting the Master the king sat down to listen to the law. At this moment they dressed up the young prince and brought him to the king. The king welcomed the child with a strong show of affection and placed him on his lap, and fondling the boy with the natural love of a father for his child, he did not listen to the law. The Master observing his inattention said, “Great king, formerly kings when suspicious of their sons had them kept in a secret place, and gave orders that at their death they were to be brought forth and set upon the throne.” And at the request of the king he told him a legend of the olden time. Once upon a time when Brahmadatta reigned in Benares, the Bodhisatta was a far-famed teacher at Takkasila and trained many young princes and sons of brahmins in the arts. Now the son of the king of Benares, when he was sixteen years old, came to him and after he had acquired the three Vedas and all the liberal arts and was perfect in them, he took leave of his master. The teacher regarding him by his gift of prognostication thought, “There is danger coming to this man through his son. By my magic power I will deliver him from it.” And composing four stanzas he gave them to the young prince and spoke as follows: “My son, after you are seated on the throne, when your son is sixteen years old, utter the first stanza while eating your rice; repeat the second stanza at the time of the great levee; the third, as you are ascending to the palace roof, standing at the head of the stairs, and the fourth, when entering the royal chamber, as you stand on the threshold.” The prince readily assented to this and saluting his teacher went away. And after acting as viceroy, on his father’s death he ascended the throne. His son, when he was sixteen years of age, on the king’s going forth to take his pleasure in the garden, observing his father’s majesty and power was filled with a desire to kill him and seize upon his kingdom, and spoke to his attendants about it. They said, “True, Sir, what is the good of obtaining power, when one is old? You must by some means or other kill the king and possess yourself of his kingdom.” The prince said, “I will kill him by putting poison in his food.” So he took some poison and sat down to eat his evening meal with his father. The king, when the rice was just served in the bowl, spoke the first stanza: With sense so nice, the husks from rice Rats keen are to discriminate: They cared not much the husks to touch, But grain by grain the rice they ate. “I am discovered,” thought the prince, and not daring to administer the poison in the bowl of rice, he rose up and bowing to the king went away. He told the story to his attendants and said, “To-day I am found out. How now shall I kill him?” From this day forth they lay concealed in the garden, and consulting together in whispers said, “There is still one expedient. When it is time to attend the great levee, gird on your sword, and taking your stand amongst the councillors, when you see the king off his guard, you must strike him a blow with your sword and kill him.” Thus they arranged it. The prince readily agreed, and at the time of the great levee, he girt on his sword and moving about from place to place looked out for an opportunity to strike the king. At this moment the king uttered the second stanza: The secret counsel taken in the wood By me is understood: The village plot soft whispered in the ear That too I hear. Thought the prince, “My father knows that I am his enemy,” and ran away and told his attendants. After the lapse of seven or eight days they said, “Prince, your father is ignorant of your feeling towards him. You only fancy this in your own mind. Put him to death.” So one day he took his sword and stood at the top of the stairs in the royal closet. The king standing at the head of the staircase spoke the third stanza: A monkey once did cruel measures take His tender offspring impotent to make. Thought the prince, “My father wants to seize me,” and in his terror he fled away and told his attendants he had been threatened by his father. After the lapse of a fortnight they said, “Prince, if the king knew this, he would not have put up with it so long a time. Your imagination suggests this to you. Put him to death.” So one day he took his sword and entering the royal chamber on the upper floor of the palace he lay down beneath the couch, intending to slay the king, as soon as he came. At the close of the evening meal, the king sent his retinue away, wishing to lie down, and entering the royal chamber, as he stood on the threshold, he uttered the fourth stanza: Thy cautious creeping ways Like one-eyed goat in mustard field that strays, And who thou art that lurkest here below, This too I know. Thought the prince, “My father has found me out. Now he will put me to death.” And seized with fear he came out from beneath the couch, and throwing down his sword at the king’s feet and saying, “Pardon me, my lord,” he lay grovelling before him. The king said, “You thought, no one knows what I am about.” And after rebuking him he ordered him to be bound in chains and put into the prison house, and set a guard over him. Then the king meditated on the virtues of the Bodhisatta. And by and bye he died. When they had celebrated his funeral rites, they took the young prince out of prison and set him on the throne. The Master here ended his lesson and said, “Thus, Sire, kings of old suspected in cases in which suspicion was justified,” and related this incident, but the king gave no heed to his words. The Master thus identified the Birth: “At that time the far-famed teacher at Takkasila was I myself.”	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line870
__label__cc	0.617704	0.382296	Every Breath You Take? Not Your Average Love Song. Kelly Burke December 13, 2014 March 2, 2015 Rock'n'Roll It’s a love song, no? It’s about missing his lover, no? It’s beautiful and should be played at weddings, no? “No” is the right answer. “Every Breath You Take”, by the rock group, The Police, and written by Sting (it’s cool to have only one name) is one of the greatest stalker songs of all time, but most people think it’s a love song. It’s not. I’ve heard of people playing it at their wedding, but that has to be because they have never listened to the words. Every move you make Every bond you break Every step you take I’ll be watching you” If you aren’t paying much attention, maybe those lines don’t tell you that this is a stalker song, but the “bonds you break” should have been a clue. Your love might tell you that they love watching you, hearing you breathe, watching you walk, but if they also keep track of the “bonds” you break, that’s a bad thing. “O can’t you see, You belong to me How my poor heart aches with every step you take” This is another clue that this song isn’t about love. If they were together, why would his heart ache? He’s watching her, but from a distance. “Since you’ve gone I been lost without a trace I dream at night I can only see your face I look around but it’s you I can’t replace I feel so cold and I long for your embrace I keep crying baby, baby please” Sting is clearly yearning for a lost love, but in a rather unhealthy way. He’s crying at night instead of moving on. That’s a tell tale sign of a future stalker. The song’s sound is pretty, it invokes pleasure and love. It’s beautifully sung by Sting and I think that is why people miss out on the lyrics. The song was the biggest song of 1983, was a 1984 Grammy winner and is #84 on Rolling Stone’s Top 500 Songs of All Time (it’s a good tune, but it’s not that good). The next time you hear the song, listen carefully and you’ll catch the stalker tone of the song. Then you can be better informed the next time someone suggests the song is a love song. The all time stalker song is still the Beatles’ “You Better Run For Your Life”, which I’ve written about before. Kelly Burke, master attorney, former district attorney and magistrate judge, is engaged in private practice. He focuses on personal injury cases and corporate litigation. These articles are not designed to give legal advice, but are designed to inform the public about how the law affects their daily lives. Contact Kelly atkelly@burkelasseterllc.com to comment on this article or suggest articles about the law that you’d like to see. every breath you take, love song, police, stalker Previous Grand Jury Still The Best System Next Want To Work? You’ll Need A License For That. Published by Kelly Burke View all posts by Kelly Burke	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line874
__label__wiki	0.597269	0.597269	Earth & Space Weather ~ Perseid Update, Superstorm, New Volcano and More August 14, 2017 Posted by Michael Silver Earth & Space Weather August 13, 2017: Yet another SEVERE thunderstorm has spawned performing more like a land based HURRICANE doing incredible damage this time in Finland! The “storm” overwhelmed weather instruments and caused weather websites to crash from the inundation of rapid traffic by concerned citizens in the line of the storm. * 90 mph winds were recorded … Unreal… FMI weather experts say the front is still developing over the Swedish island of Gotland, but winds that it created reached speeds of 40 meters per second over Poland, where some of the storm’s precipitation fell as hail. (90 mph) “The gusts were very strong in Helsinki and its coastal area in particular. Our automated observation equipment rejected the measurements because the readings were so severe,” says FMI meteorologist Henri Nyman. FMI says its website crashed last night, due to the overwhelming amount of people who were checking in on the progress of the storm. The servers couldn’t handle the surge in traffic. Hundreds of 112 calls In a story that was last updated at 11 pm Saturday evening, Yle interviewed rescue service representatives that said fires, downed trees and water damage kept them busy in the evening – but at the time it appeared that no one had been killed or badly hurt in the storm. Rescue services say the worst damage from the storm concentrated in western Vantaa, where winds toppled dozens of trees in one go in some areas. Already by nine pm, hundreds of calls had been made to emergency numbers, mostly about felled trees and traffic signs, and other debris that had been thrown about by the storm. http://www.severe-weather.eu/swe-face… August 13, 2017: 91 NEW volcanoes have just been ‘discovered’ in Antarctica, making it the largest volcanic ridge on planet earth. If these things even began to warm, not even get close to erupting, could begin catastrophic LAND ice melting which would raise sea level. Other possible issues could be ocean salinity ratios would become anomalous in areas, which could create a domino effect with the food chain. Not a good scenario by any means. https://www.theguardian.com/world/201… Geologists say this huge region is likely to dwarf that of east Africa’s volcanic ridge, currently rated the densest concentration of volcanoes in the world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Researc… August 13, 2017: A destructive, towering 60,000ft very severe thunderstorm has just developed in the Texas Panhandle and is slowly moving South/Southeast. Expect large hail, high winds, flash flooding and hurricane-like conditions. Heads UP! GOES-16 August 13, 2017: Relevant data you should know everyday. These numbers are more important than the outside temperature. Make them part of your day and be safe out there. Thank you good guys and gals that have subscribed to PS4Prodigy Gamers new youtube channel. He is nearing his Giveaway Contest goal of 1000 new subscribers thanks to you! He needs less than 300 hundred subscribers and then he’ll have the drawing to pick the winner of the Samsung Galaxy Note III Smartphone, NEW never used. Subscribe to enter….it could be yours!* Link below… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sgqkn… Excellent NON-TOXIC Sunblock below “BADGER” (Amazon) #MrMBB333 Website: https://www.mrmbb333.com Subscribe to my channels below YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/MrMBB333 (Subscribe) CLIMATE CHAOS Channel YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCItd… Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pg/MrMBB333 Twitter: https://twitter.com/MrMBB333 Google+: https://plus.google.com/+MrMBB333 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrmbb333	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line875
__label__cc	0.739501	0.260499	Your Liver. Your Life. The American Liver Foundation gives voice to millions of Americans who struggle every day with liver disease. Read their stories here and consider sharing yours. Your Health. Our Mission. ALF’s mission is to promote education, advocacy, support services and research for the prevention, treatment and cure of liver disease. Diet Information With your generous contribution you help the American Liver Foundation provide education and support services to the 30 million Americans affected by liver disease and help to fund critical research that one day will make liver disease a thing of the past. These are the Faces of Liver Disease Stories of real people like you afflicted with liver disease The American Liver Foundation’s new ambassador, Will Rodgers, has a unique way of raising awareness about liver disease. As an... Will Rodgers, a four-time NASCAR K&N Pro Series winner is prepped and ready to return to the scene of his... PHOTO CAPTION: Yuko Kono, MD, Gastroenterologist & Hepatologist, Clinical Professor of Medicine with UC San Diego Health (center), ALF’s... This year marks the second International NASH Day (Non-Alcohol Steatohepatitis) on Wednesday, June 12th! We're proud to join a global coalition... I am proud to note that the American Liver Foundation’s Pacific Coast Division (PCD) has been chosen as facilitating... Each year, as part of our advocacy mission, the American Liver Foundation brings individuals from across ALF’s nationwide liver community... Promoting support services is one of the pillars of the American Liver Foundation’s mission, together with education, advocacy and research. ... In addition to live educational events like Ask the Experts, as well as webinars on aspects of liver disease... Parenting while living with Primary Biliary Cholangitis Parenting while living with PBC can present all sorts of challenges, such as how to talk to your children about... In an interesting juxtaposition, this month two of the American Liver Foundation’s Divisions held Academic Debates less than a week... I am pleased to note that membership in the American Liver Foundation’s new NASH Facebook Support Group has surpassed 500... ALF Welcomes New Members to Corporate Council The American Liver Foundation’s work is made possible by a diverse group of supporters. Individuals whose lives and hearts have... Make sure you're receiving ALF news and information about programs, events, advances in research, resources in your area, support groups and much more by entering your zip code here. Enter your zipcode: This is the brief description of the Ask the Experts program. This is the brief description of the Love Your Liver program. This is the brief description of the ALF Inspire Community program. Walk for your friends and family. Raise money to support ALF’s mission. Find a Walk Event Participate for your friends and family. Raise money to support ALF’s mission. Find a Challenge Event Support ALF by dining at a Flavors event near you. Find a Flavors Event Create your own way to raise money and support ALF’s mission. We’ll help! Join Our Monthly Donor Program Show your support by joining the American Liver Foundation monthly donor program and pay respect to a loved one who has lost the fight or who is struggling against liver disease by giving in his or her honor. With your support, ALF continues to promote liver wellness, provide help to many affected by and at risk for liver disease, and work to find better treatments and a cure for all diseases of the liver. Help us to continue this vital work. Your Monthly Donation Amount $ USD/MONTH About Your Liver Faces of Liver Disease	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line884
__label__wiki	0.667162	0.667162	What Happens To Your Data When You Die? Alex Senemar Jul 27, 2015 · 13 min read The race to “cure death” has gripped Silicon Valley. In 2012, Google hired Ray Kurzweil, the ‘futurist’ inventor best known for popularizing the idea of the “technological singularity,” a hypothetical ‘super-intelligence’ that will one day vastly outstrip the capacities of human beings. As Google’s Director of Engineering, Kurzweil’s job is to turn the fantasies of science fiction into consumer products — and Google has invested billions in hopes that Kurzweil’s dreams could one day become reality. One notable project, called “Calico,” was announced the year after Kurzweil joined Google: a secretive biotech firm researching age-related diseases and developing anti-aging technology. Soon, Kurzweil promises, age and disease will disappear altogether, giving way to “software-based humans” with holographically projected bodies. If Google has its way, mortality will be conquered by human machines. As the world grows increasingly dependent on internet technology, many human beings have already begun living like ‘cyborgs.’ Your electronics are collecting detailed information about you every second, not to mention the enormous amount of data you share about yourself while navigating the internet — meanwhile, internet corporations have harvested that data to assemble detailed profiles of your habits and behaviors, in hopes of more effectively predicting and analyzing human activity. In Kurzweil’s most optimistic predictions, human beings will not be able to upload their brains to robot surrogates for at least another thirty years. Let’s assume it’ll take a bit longer for the elixir of immortality to appear at your local drug store (if this technology is ever affordable to those outside the ‘one percent’). Odds are, if you’re reading this article, you are going to die someday. But, when that day comes, what will happen to your electronic “persona” — your digital doppelganger that has made its life on the internet? Ray Kurzweil: “Immortality by 2045” The data that ‘represents’ you on the internet, for the most part, does not belong to you. In fact, it often isn’t even created by you — it’s generated passively, an idle consequence of your living in a world in which all ‘things’ can be connected by the internet. So who really owns ‘your’ data? That was the question at the heart of a recent lawsuit in Spain. In 1998, the newspaper La Vanguardia printed an auction notice from the Labour Ministry on page 23, listing all the property seized by the Social Security Department, with their locations, descriptions, and owners. Among the listed properties was a house owned by a young lawyer named Mario Costeja González and his wife — who, at the time, were saddled with debt. Ten years later, La Vanguardia decided to digitize its entire archive; Google’s web crawlers consumed the data, and soon the historical documents could be accessed via search. By that time, González was divorced and had paid off his delinquent bills — but he now discovered that the top search result for “Mario Costeja González” was the notice in La Vanguardia that his house had been foreclosed. González filed a complaint with the Agencia Española de Protección de Datos (the Data Protection Agency, part of the European Union’s computer privacy regulation system) demanding that the article be taken down — but, because the information contained in the article was accurate, the complaint was denied under ‘free speech’ protections. So, González filed another complaint against Google, insisting that they remove the link from search results; this complaint was approved. Google sued in the Audiencia Nacional (the National High Court), which referred the case to the European Court of Justice (CJEU), the ‘Supreme Court’ of the E.U. In 2014, the court finally ruled in favor of González, determining that González’s privacy was protected by the ‘right to be forgotten‘: “the right of individuals to have their data no longer processed and deleted when they are no longer needed for legitimate purposes.” The auction notice published in La Vanguardia. The decision in González’s case was a reversal of previous rulings made by the CJEU. In June 2013, the court’s Advocate General had said that enforcing a ‘right to be forgotten’ would “entail sacrificing pivotal rights such as freedom of expression and information,” by placing search engines in the role of ‘web censor.’ Although Google is doing ‘personal data processing,’ he argued, Google itself is not the ‘data controller’ — that is, search engine providers only locate and cache data in order to index them, but cannot actually distinguish ‘personal’ data from ‘non-personal’ data. The judges in González’s case disagreed: in the process of caching and indexing websites, Google interprets, transforms, and sorts the information to figure out which results are ‘relevant’ — therefore, Google must also be responsible for the content contained in the links. Google is now tasked with deciding, on a case-by-case basis, which ‘takedown’ requests are valid under the European Union’s privacy laws. The infrastructure for such requests already exists, for censoring sites illegally hosting copyrighted content, child pornography, or malware. The difference here is that the company must make a judgment in each case whether censoring a link adequately balances the ‘right to be forgotten’ (covering data that is “inadequate, irrelevant, or no longer relevant”) with the right to ‘free speech’ — a much more ambiguous sets of concepts. Google was clearly unhappy with the result — Kent Walker, Google’s general counsel, told The New Yorker: “We like to think of ourselves as the newsstand, or a card catalogue…We don’t create the information. We make it accessible. A decision like this, which makes us decide what goes inside the card catalogue, forces us into a role we don’t want.” But the analogy of a ‘card catalogue’ is a little misleading — after all, a librarian must still decide which books will be stored in the library, and which books will be left out. Google’s PageRank algorithm is a mechanism for regulating the flow of information; it is so effective at interpreting and ‘ranking’ web content that ninety-five percent of all search traffic ends on the first page of Google’s search results (leading to the meme: “The best place to hide a dead body is on page 2.”) The ‘card catalogue’ analogy breaks down even further when you consider the amount of information Google collects from its users in order to improve its services, like personalized search and targeted advertisements. Google is in the business of consuming information, not just ‘making it accessible’ — and they have lofty plans for the data they consume. One day, when the internet’s vast supply of data is fed to Google’s artificial intelligence, will we be celebrating the technological utopia of Ray Kurzweil’s imagination? Or will we be looking back longingly at the days when Google was ‘just’ a “newsstand?” Jules Polonetsky, executive director of the Future of Privacy Forum, had this to say about the González case: “[F]or the Court to outsource to Google complicated case-specific decisions about whether to publish or suppress something is wrong. Requiring Google to be a court of philosopher kings shows a real lack of understanding about how this will play out in reality.” The concern about censorship is very real — but, from another perspective, it could be said that the titans of Silicon Valley already resemble ‘philosopher kings,’ on a much greater scale than Polonetsky has in mind. As cryptographer Bruce Schneier wrote in his book Data and Goliath: “Our relationship with many of the internet companies we rely on is not a traditional company-customer relationship. That’s primarily because we’re not customers. We’re products those companies sell to their real customers. The relationship is more feudal than commercial… We are tenant farmers for these companies, working on their land by producing data that they in turn sell for profit.” “Move Fast and Break Things” Schneier’s comparison of contemporary surveillance to ‘feudalism’ is not exactly historically accurate — but Schneier isn’t an anthropologist, he’s a computer security scholar with a deep understanding of the global surveillance apparatus. The ‘feudalism’ metaphor, like the analogy to ‘philosopher kings,’ is a way of illustrating the degree to which our activities are monitored and regulated by alien powers beyond our reach; and in this ‘surveillance society,’ it’s often not possible to ‘opt-out.’ However, it’s important to point out that Silicon Valley’s ‘philosopher kings’ aren’t just interested in ‘profiting’ off of your data — corporate strategists have ideological agendas, ambitious plans for transforming society and shaping the future. As Mark Zuckerberg told potential investors before Facebook’s IPO: “Facebook was not originally created to be a company. It was built to accomplish a social mission — to make the world more open and connected.” In pursuit of this ‘connected’ world, Internet users have become subjects of a massive social experiment — well, many experiments, actually. Following Google, Facebook employs academics trained in sociology and behavioral psychology to study its users and learn more about their habits. Cameron Marlow, head of Facebook’s Data Science Team, sees Facebook’s corporate aims as equivalent to the aims of scientific inquiry: “The biggest challenges Facebook has to solve are the same challenges that social science has,” he told the MIT Technology Review. Facebook’s analysts want to learn why some ideas spread and take hold, while other ideas fade away; they want to know how our attitudes and beliefs are affected by the people in our communities; and, eventually, they want to understand how to predict our future actions by observing our past. For example, in 2012, users were prompted to check a box on their Timeline indicating they were registered organ donors, which triggered a notification to their friends; Facebook tracked the organ donor enrollment database and discovered that enrollment increased by a factor of 21 in a single day. In 2014, Facebook’s researchers conducted a psychological study to understand “how emotions are spread” by manipulating the News Feeds of half a million randomly selected users, altering the number of ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ posts they saw, to see how these changes affected users’ emotional states. They learned that people tended to ‘mimic’ the sentiments of their News Feed: those who saw more ‘positive’ posts wrote ‘positive’ posts of their own, and those exposed to ‘negative’ vibes responded in kind. Other experiments have more immediately practical application — for instance, using ‘tags’ on users’ photos to ‘teach’ computers how to recognize faces. Marlow told the Technology Review that the purpose of these studies is to support the ‘well-being’ of Facebook users — and, he hopes, to “advance humanity’s understanding of itself.” Facebook’s new motto. When it started up, Facebook’s motto was “Move Fast and Break Things.” The idea was to “set aside standard, conventional rules,” and not be afraid of failure — the developers wanted to build innovative tools quickly, so they could begin testing them out on users, even if there were still some bugs and things weren’t working ‘perfectly.’ Last year, the motto was changed: “Move Fast With Stable Infrastructure.” “In the past we’ve done more stuff to just ship things quickly and see what happens in the market,” Brian Boland, Facebook’s VP of product ads, told Bloomberg. “Now, instead of just throwing something out there, we’re making sure that we’re getting it right first.” The change in Facebook’s corporate culture reflects its changing relationship with its users; no longer a web novelty, it has become deeply integrated into the infrastructure of the internet, accounting for twenty-five percent of all internet traffic and 500 billion API calls to other applications each day. Zuckerberg’s vision is becoming a reality: an ‘open’ society where every minute detail of our lives can be translated into ‘data,’ stored on a server, and interpreted by machines. We still haven’t really addressed the question posed in the title of this article: What happens to your data when you die? To be honest, there isn’t a clear answer. The ‘right to be forgotten’ is enforced through the “distributed regulation” that is characteristic of privacy laws today. Rather than implement regulations themselves, governments have ‘deputized’ companies like Google and Facebook to interpret and enforce the laws — where that fails, consumers can resort to litigation to hold the companies accountable. As such, each corporation has its own set of protocols for handling the data of the deceased: Google allows users to designate a beneficiary who will ‘inherit’ their account for three months, with an option to download the data before it is deleted permanently; family members can provide Facebook with proof of death (a certificate or obituary) to request deletion or ‘memorialization’ of an account; and so on. The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) has published a few guides to ‘preparing your digital estate’ for after your death. They recommend taking an ‘inventory’ of the websites where you have an account, documenting your usernames and passwords, and writing a list of instructions into your “last will and testament” — telling your heirs where your passwords are written down, and what you want them to do with your data. But, in many instances, AARP’s solution is not be feasible: it’s a violation of most companies’ terms of service to access another person’s account, dead or alive. In one case in 2005, the mother of a 22-year-old who died in a motorcycle accident got her son’s Facebook password from a friend, and emailed the company to ask if she could log in to his account — within a couple of hours, the password was changed and she was locked out. The mother was forced to sued Facebook for access, and the courts had to figure out for the first time how to handle a person’s “digital assets” upon death. She lost — besides the problem of the terms of service, Facebook’s lawyers argued that the Stored Communications Act prohibits sharing personal information, even if a request is made in a person’s will. A related case unfolded the same year: a widow wanted access to her husband’s Gmail account, which contained information necessary to operate the business they ran together; she lobbied senators in her home state of Connecticut, resulting in the first ‘digital remains’ law in the United States, a legal framework for data access by survivors’ families. Since then, a four other states have passed similar laws to streamline internet companies’ obligations to the deceased; the Uniform Law Commission has also proposed a Digital Access Act which would allow “digital assets” (like Facebook photos, YouTube videos, e-mail conversations) to be treated as ‘tangible’ assets which can be legally inherited — like photographs or letters found in your parents’ attic. But these legislative solutions only address a small dimension of the problem of ‘data ownership.’ Although you may get access to some of the ‘assets’ you shared on the internet (photographs, videos, e-mails, etc.), you don’t get to see any of the insights that were generated as a result of analyzing that information — the detailed behavioral profile assembled based on your social media activity, for example, or the population-level insights obtained by analyzing many profiles in aggregate — the ‘product’ that was manufactured using your data as ‘raw material.’ Furthermore, all the remedies described above place the burden on the user to protect their own privacy; unless you plan ahead for how your data will be handled after you die, or your family members are exceptionally persistent (and possibly litigious), it will sit on the companies’ servers in perpetuity. If the data was truly ‘yours,’ this arrangement would be nonsensical — or, as Bruce Schneier put it, “Privacy should be a fundamental right, not a property right.” John Oliver: “Right to be Forgotten” Google has refused to enforce the ‘right to be forgotten’ ruling outside of the European Union — meaning that even if your information is censored at google.de, google.fr, and so on, it can still be found at google.com. Their reasoning makes some sense; if information censored in one country must be blacked-out across the world, Google attorney Peter Fleischer wrote at Google’s Policy Blog, “We would find ourselves in a race to the bottom. In the end, the Internet would only be as free as the world’s least free place.” But the issue reveals fundamental limitations of any data privacy system enforced at a ‘state’ or ‘national’ level, in a world of data networks that flow across borders. At this point, whether the data is ‘public’ or ‘private’ — whether it can be seen by anybody, or is hidden behind a password — is irrelevant: in either case, it’s often beyond your control. With the emergence of more sophisticated corporate surveillance technologies like ‘supercookies,’ and the proliferation of ‘data broker‘ firms accumulating information about you in bulk, it has become difficult to know who has access to ‘your’ data, or where that data is being kept. In the “End of Privacy” issue of Science, political economist Abraham Newman speculated about the potential emergence of ‘data havens,’ like ‘tax havens,’ where companies stash data in jurisdictions with weak privacy protections, so they can continue to make use of it even when it has been ‘deleted’ elsewhere. And we haven’t mentioned government agencies that may have secretly obtained your information and hidden it somewhere ‘regulators’ can’t see. So, even when legal ‘protections’ are put in place, you have very little say over what happens to ‘your’ information when you die — largely because you have very little control over this information when you’re alive. As with most of the topics covered on this blog, the future is unclear. Even as some of these ‘policy’ questions get resolved in litigation and legislation, the philosophical questions will remain. Data has its own ‘life’ and activity — for all this talk about ‘ownership,’ “1s” and “0s” don’t actually ‘belong’ to anybody. The best we can hope for is effective means of securing our most sensitive data, and mechanisms of transparency for understanding exactly what information is already ‘out there.’ In this brave new world, we have to worry about spies and corporations taking advantage of our electronic doppelgangers today… but we may also have to consider the anthropologists and economists who will be browsing our e-mails and ‘profiles’ hundreds of years from now, looking for insights into how we lived our lives, digging for clues about the world we inhabited. In the past, being ‘forgotten’ was an inevitability, not a ‘right’ — today, it seems, the internet never forgets. Check out our app at Sherbit.io	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line887
__label__cc	0.688522	0.311478	Ajegba, Paul C. () Email: Ajegbap@michigan.gov Website: http://www.michigan.gov/mdot Director Ajegba has served the Michigan Department of Transportation for 28 years. He was appointed to serve as Director by Gov. Gretchen WHITMER effective Jan. 1, 2019. Ajegba served for three months as the Metro Region engineer and before that as the University Region Engineer. During his seven years in the University Region, Ajegba oversaw his team's involvment in the planning, design and construction of several major projects including the U.S. 23 Flex Route - a project nominated for the America's Transportation Award. Ajegba holds a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering from Prairie View A&M University and a master's degree in construction engineering from the University of Michigan. He's a licensed professional engineer in Michigan.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line891
__label__cc	0.527261	0.472739	Michigan Journal of Law Reform Volume 52 Blog Posts Access to Medicaid: Recognizing Rights to Ensure Access to Care and Services Posted on November 11, 2012 by prospectusmjlr Colleen Nicholson* 2 U. Mich. J.L. Reform A22 The Supreme Court has defined Medicaid as “a cooperative federal-state program through which the Federal Government provides financial assistance to States so that they may furnish medical care to needy individuals.”1 In June 2012, the Court found the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’s (PPACA) Medicaid expansion unconstitutional.2 The Court took issue with the threat to withhold all of a state’s Medicaid funding if they did not comply with the expansion, finding it coercive and a fundamental shift in the Medicaid paradigm.3 However, Medicaid in its current form may not always be effective at providing beneficiaries with timely access to the care to which they are entitled.4 For Medicaid to function as intended, Congress must amend the definition of “medical assistance” in the Medicaid Act and give Medicaid beneficiaries and providers an enforceable federal right to sue the states when they do not set provider reimbursement rates at levels that are adequate to attract sufficient Medicaid providers to provide enumerated services for enrollees. Medicaid provider reimbursement rates are so low in some states that current Medicaid beneficiaries may be unable to receive covered medical care. For example, because of low reimbursement rates, at one time there were no providers of early and periodic screening, diagnostic, and treatment services (EPSDT) in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.5 EPSDT services are basic pediatric services that states are required to provide to eligible beneficiaries who request them.6 The current recession has exacerbated this problem, as states cut provider reimbursement rates in an attempt to cover increasing numbers of beneficiaries with dwindling state finances.7Thirty-nine states cut Medicaid reimbursement rates in 2010, and fifteen of those states also reduced or eliminated benefits.8 If the current funding levels leave Medicaid beneficiaries without the statutorily mandated reasonable access to the medical care to which they are entitled, reforms are needed to bring Medicaid into compliance with its programmatic goals. To strengthen Medicaid as a program that provides access to care for beneficiaries, the definition of medical assistance in the Medicaid Act should be clarified. Over the past fifteen years, a circuit split has emerged as to whether “medical assistance,” a term used throughout the Act, referred to the actual provision of services, to reimbursement for services actually provided, or to both.9 Congress attempted to resolve the split, defining medical assistance in PPACA as both the funds provided to pay for medical care and services, and the care and services themselves.10 This amendment seemingly clarified that the states have an obligation to provide access to covered services for beneficiaries rather than merely reimburse providers for services provided. Despite rather explicit congressional intent, the circuit split persists and must be resolved.11 Otherwise, the states have no obligation to ensure that Medicaid beneficiaries are able to receive care, seemingly frustrating Medicaid’s aim. Therefore, Congress must further amend the definition of medical assistance to clarify that states have an obligation to provide Medicaid beneficiaries with access to certain covered services. In addition to a conclusive recognition of what states’ Medicaid obligations are, Medicaid beneficiaries and providers need an enforceable right to sue the states and challenge state reimbursement levels. Because states may not always set reimbursement at rates adequate to provide beneficiaries with access to care, there needs to be some legal avenue for beneficiaries to challenge the states when these rates are set at inadequate levels.12Possible vehicles include the reasonable promptness,13 availability,14 and equal access provisions of the Medicaid Act,15 but the circuits are split on whether, and for whom, these provisions create rights enforceable under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.16 Therefore, Congress must also clarify that at least one of these § 1983 avenues is available to challenge inadequate Medicaid provider reimbursement rates. Without a concrete, universally recognized enforceable right, Medicaid beneficiaries and providers have no means of challenging the states for failing to fulfill their Medicaid responsibilities, short of calling on the Secretary of Health and Human Services to withhold some or all of the state’s Medicaid funding until the Secretary is confident that the state’s plan for medical assistance will comply with all of the statutory provisions.17 Such a course of action is undesirable, as it could lead to even less access to care for current Medicaid beneficiaries in the affected states. Therefore, beneficiaries should be able to bring an action against the state to challenge state provider reimbursement rates if the rates do not attract enough providers to offer care in compliance with the reasonable promptness, availability, or equal access clauses. Congress should amend the definition of “medical assistance” in the Medicaid Act and explicitly recognize enforceable rights in the reasonable promptness, availability, and equal access provisions to clarify what states are required to do under Medicaid and allow beneficiaries to challenge states that do not meet their obligations. The Court struck down the Medicaid expansion as an irresistible “gun to the head” in National Federation of Independent Businesses v. Sebelius because, according to the Court, the expansion changed the fundamental nature of Medicaid and created an entirely new program.18 However, the proposed amended definition of “medical assistance,” coupled with recognition of rights enforceable through § 1983, would merely further the aims of Medicaid. Medicaid was designed to “furnish medical care to needy individuals,”19not provide reimbursement to medical providers. Therefore, providing individual Medicaid beneficiaries and providers with an enforceable right to sue the states, and giving the states a greater incentive to reign in provider reimbursement rates, would make Medicaid a program worth expanding, should Congress find a constitutional way to do so. * J.D. Candidate, December 2013, University of Michigan Law School. Wilder v. Va. Hosp. Ass’n., 496 U.S. 498, 502 (1990); see 42 U.S.C. § 1396a (2006). ↩ See Nat’l Fed’n of Indep. Bus. v. Sebelius, 567 U.S. ___, 132 S. Ct. 2566, 2603-04 (2012). ↩ See id. at 2601-08. ↩ See 76 Fed. Reg. 26342, 26344 (May 6, 2011) (to be codified at 42 C.F.R. pt. 447) (noting that access to Medicaid health care and services at the state level is in need of federal guidance). ↩ See Westside Mothers v. Olszewski, 454 F.3d 532, 540 (6th Cir. 2006). ↩ 42 U.S.C. § 1396d(r) (2006). ↩ See Office of the Actuary, Ctrs. for Medicare & Medicaid Servs., U.S. Dep’t of Health &Human Servs., 2011 Actuarial Report on the Financial Outlook for Medicaid 17–18 (2011).↩ Martina Brendel, Note, When a Door Closes, a Window Opens: Using Preemption to Challenge State Medicaid Cutbacks, 86 Chi.-Kent L. Rev. 925, 925–26 (2011). ↩ Compare Bruggeman ex rel. Bruggeman v. Blagojevich, 324 F.3d 906, 910 (7th Cir. 2003) (holding that medical assistance did not refer to actual medical services), and Mandy R. ex rel. Mr. and Mrs. R. v. Owens, 464 F.3d 1139 (10th Cir. 2006) (holding that the Medicaid Act requires reimbursement for covered services, not the direct provision of services by the state), with Bryson v. Shumway, 308 F.3d 79, 81, 88–89 (1st Cir. 2002) (assuming medical assistance included services), and Doe v. Chiles, 136 F. 3d 709, 714, 717 (11th Cir. 1998) (interpreting medical assistance as services). ↩ See 42 U.S.C.A. § 1396d(a) (West 2011); see also H.R. Rep. No. 111–299, pt. 1, at 649–50 (2009). ↩ Compare John B. v. Goetz, 626 F.3d 356, 360 n.2 (6th Cir. 2010) (“The definition of ‘medical assistance’ has changed since we decided Westside Mothers II, but the new definition does not affect this holding because a state may still fulfill its Medicaid obligations by paying for services.”), withDisability Rights N. J., Inc. v. Velez, No. 06–4723, 2010 WL 5055820, at *3 (D.N.J. Dec. 2, 2010) (holding that because of the change in law, “it would result in manifest injustice were we to maintain our previous interpretation of ‘medical assistance’”). ↩ See Sean Jessee, Comment, Fulfilling the Promise of the Medicaid Act: Why the Equal Access Clause Creates Privately Enforceable Rights, 58 Emory L.J. 791, 811 (2009). ↩ 42 U.S.C. § 1396a(a)(8) (2006) (stating that a state plan for medical assistance must provide requested assistance with reasonable promptness to all eligible individuals). ↩ Id. § 1396a(a)(10) (describing the minimum medical services a state plan for medical assistance must make available for eligible beneficiaries). ↩ Id. § 1396a(a)(30)(A) (requiring that a state plan assures “that payments are consistent with efficiency, economy, and quality of care and are sufficient to enlist enough providers so that care and services are available under the plan at least to the extent that such care and services are available to the general population in the geographic area”). ↩ Compare Westside Mothers v. Olszewski, 454 F.3d 532, 542–43 (6th Cir. 2006) (holding that the equal access provision does not create an enforceable right for Medicaid beneficiaries or providers), Bruggeman ex rel. Bruggeman v. Blagojevich, 324 F.3d 906, 910 (7th Cir. 2003) (interpreting the reasonable promptness provision to entitle providers to reasonably prompt reimbursement for actual services provided rather than a right for beneficiaries to have reasonably prompt access to covered medical care), with Sabree ex rel. Sabree v. Richman, 367 F.3d 180, 192 (3d Cir. 2004) (finding that Medicaid beneficiaries have enforceable rights under the reasonable promptness and availability provisions), Bryson v. Shumway, 308 F.3d 79, 89 (1st Cir. 2002) (finding that the reasonable promptness provision creates a § 1983 cause of action), and Doe v. Chiles, 136 F.3d 709, 719 (11th Cir. 1998) (holding that Medicaid beneficiaries have a federal right enforceable under § 1983 to reasonably prompt care). ↩ See 42 U.S.C. § 1396c (2006) (describing the Secretary of Health and Human Services’ ability to withhold payments to states after finding a lack of compliance with Medicaid provisions). ↩ See 132 S. Ct. 2566, 2604 (2012). ↩ Wilder v. Va. Hosp. Ass’n., 496 U.S. 498, 502 (1990). ↩ This entry was posted in Caveat, Caveat Volume 46 by prospectusmjlr. Bookmark the permalink. © 2011 Michigan Journal of Law Reform Russ Smith, 2013 Email: mjlr@umich.edu	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line892
__label__wiki	0.526573	0.526573	CIBSE Awards Oxford Radcliffe hospital is low-carbon innovation project of the year Designed to be the most energy-efficient hospital in the UK to date, the specialist Cancer Care Centre for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust. Designed to use a third less energy than the target for a conventional new-build hospital is the new specialist Cancer Care Centre for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust The new specialist Cancer Care Centre for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust is designed to be the UK’s most energy-efficient hospital to date following the adoption of a sustainable low-energy solution completed by Halcrow Yolles. The £120 million project will add 35 000 m2 of space to the existing facilities. At the outset, the project was conceived as a sustainable low-energy building with reduced carbon emissions, pollution and water use. The key to low energy use is an array of geothermal boreholes serving heat pumps to provide heating and cooling. This array is around 10 times larger than anything in the UK to date. There will be 250 boreholes, each 123 m deep, and eight heat pumps providing 3.1 MW of heating and cooling. The building is also designed to incorporate natural ventilation wherever possible to reduce the need for mechanical ventilation and room cooling. The estimated energy consumption of 36.8 GJ/100 m3 is significantly lower than the target for a conventional new-build hospital of 55 GJ/100 m3. Indeed, the project has achieved an ‘excellent’ score of 71.59 using the NHS Environmental Assessment Tool (NEAT). Solar gains through the highly glazed facades are limited by brise-soleil. There is fixed solar shading on the South and West elevations to minimise overheating, yet balanced to allow maximum use of daylight. A rainwater harvesting system serving every lavatory on the development and the irrigation system considerably reduce the use of mains water. A major role in the development of the design was the early integration of the IES thermal simulation suite. At preferred bidder stage, the whole hospital was modelled in one go. At detailed design stage, the hospital was modelled room by room, with correct constructions, patient and staff occupancy, medical equipment, small power and lighting loads. IES software was used to determine bulk airflow through naturally ventilated rooms and to predict peak summer temperatures in them. IES software was also used to predict heat and coolth taken from the ground and added to it by the close-loop ground-source borehole array as the designers of the boreholes required hourly figures over the course of a typical year to economically size the array.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line894
__label__wiki	0.991262	0.991262	SpaceX promised to fly tourists to the Moon. How's that going? by Jackie Wattles @jackiewattles June 7, 2018: 1:32 PM ET See the SpaceX Starman's journey through space Last year, Elon Musk's hard-charging rocket company SpaceX announced it would send two paying customers on a trip around the moon sometime in late 2018. Nothing else has been announced officially, but there have been several indications in recent months that the mission won't happen this year — and maybe not for few years. SpaceX spokesperson James Gleeson confirmed in a statement this week that the company "is still planning to fly private individuals on a trip around the Moon." But he declined to elaborate or comment on the mission's timeline. Elon Musk's SpaceX has said it plans to send 2 paying customers to the moon. The initial plan was to fly the space tourists, whose identities are a tightly held secret, on a Falcon Heavy. That's the massive SpaceX rocket that delivered Musk's Tesla into space for its historic, inaugural flight four months ago. But Musk threw a curve ball in February when he told reporters that, for the time being, SpaceX had no plans to certify the Falcon Heavy for human spaceflight. That implied that his plans to use it to transport space tourists have changed. Instead, Musk said, SpaceX would turn its focus to its next bold idea: The Big Falcon Rocket, or BFR. That's the gargantuan spaceship and rocket system that the company wants to build to carry humans into deep space. Related: SpaceX to build Mars rocket at the Port of Los Angeles "You could send people back to the Moon" on the Falcon Heavy rocket, Musk said at the time. "But I wouldn't recommend doing that, because I think the new architecture, the BFR architecture, is the way to go." Gleeson, the SpaceX spokesperson, declined to say this week whether the company has officially changed which rocket it plans to use to use for the Moon mission. But if plans to use the Falcon Heavy have indeed been abandoned, the anonymous space tourists could have a long wait until the ambitious BFR system is ready for them. Musk said earlier this year that SpaceX will begin testing just the spaceship portion of the BFR in 2019, and that the full system could be ready for deep space travel by 2022. Related: SpaceX's fairing recovery attempt, explained Note, however, that Musk is known for highly optimistic timelines. He initially projected the Falcon Heavy, for example, would be ready to fly in mid- to late 2013. It actually arrived more than four years after that. SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell gave a more generous time frame for BFR's debut during a TED Talk in April, saying it would launch "within a decade." Even if Musk changed his mind and decided to use the Falcon Heavy for the Moon mission after all, it still isn't likely to happen before the year is out. The company said back when the plan was first announced that it wouldn't launch the tourism mission until after it was already flying astronauts for NASA regularly, and it hasn't done so yet. SpaceX inked a deal with the space agency in 2015 to develop a way to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station using its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket, a vehicle that's much less powerful than the Falcon Heavy or prospective BFR. But the company has faced significant delays — as has its competitor Boeing (BA), which also has a crew contract with NASA. Related: SpaceX launches beefed up Falcon 9 rocket The latest projections from NASA say SpaceX could deliver the first astronauts to the space station in December. The US Government Accountability Office has said it could actually be months later than that. A lot of questions remain about SpaceX's space tourism plans. But in the meantime, Musk's rocket company is on a tear, with its core business of making frequent uncrewed trips to space to deliver satellites into orbit or ferry cargo to the space station. In the early hours of Monday, SpaceX launched its 11th mission so far this year. That's an unprecedented pace of launches and further evidence that SpaceX has successfully shaken up a relatively stagnant rocket industry. The company, founded by Musk in 2002, changed the game with its pioneering reusable rocket technology, which mas made space travel much less expensive than it had been. CNNMoney (New York) First published June 7, 2018: 9:09 AM ET	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line902
__label__cc	0.657509	0.342491	Home > Share tips > Engineering profits: the British industrial champions to buy now Engineering profits: the British industrial champions to buy now By: Dr Mike Tubbs 20/06/2019 Move over, Germany and Sweden. There are several world-class UK engineers in profitable niches supplying a vast array of industries with vital equipment. Dr Mike Tubbs picks his favourites. When it comes to engineering, few investors would immediately think of the UK. The “Mittelstand”of successful medium-sized engineering companies is widely known as the backbone of the German economy. There are also smaller countries – Sweden being one example – that boast several excellent engineering companies. But there is also a group of British engineering companies who are global leaders in their market niches, the equal of – or superior to –their German counterparts. Britain’s “Mittelstand” Engineering is a broad field. This analysis excludes defence-engineering companies (in which the UK is also strong) and the many successful unlisted UK engineering businesses, such as Dyson and JCB. It concentrates on firms in electrical, electronic, mechanical, fluid, automotive and chemical engineering. They are all market-leading specialists with a global presence. In most cases well over 90% of sales stem from outside the UK and the group has a firm footprint in all three main world regions (Europe, the Americas, and Asia Pacific). Such a wide geographical spread of sales reduces the impact of a downturn in any one world region. As leaders or strong players in their market niches, they should be able to demonstrate high profitability, defined as an operating margin (operating earnings as a proportion of sales, or EBIT/sales) of 14% or more. That gives us the nine companies in nine different sub-sectors listed in the table below. They range in size from AB Dynamics (with a market capitalisation of £0.6bn) to Halma (£7.6bn). The 2018 EBIT/sales ratio stretches from 14.1% to 39.1% for Victrex. The nine most profitable specialist engineers We will now briefly describe what each of the nine companies does, their growth records, their dividend yields and records, and the strength of their balance sheets. We will then select the most promising on the basis of their profitability, long-term focus – judged by investments in research and development (R&D) and capital expenditure (capex) – and long-term profitable growth records. These nine companies are all international in outlook with the vast majority of their revenue coming from outside the UK (over 90% for all but one). All specialise in relatively small niches in which they can be world leaders. AB Dynamics (Aim: ABDP) designs and makes equipment to test systems for the car industry, including vehicle suspensions, steering, noise and vibration. It also provides services in the areas of design, safety engineering, prototype manufacture and testing. It supplies all the major automotive manufacturers and 95% of sales are made outside the UK. Bodycote’s (LSE: BOY) expertise is in the thermal processing of metals to improve strength, durability, and corrosion resistance. It is one of the largest companies offering such services, with 92% of revenue coming from outside the UK. It also offers metal joining, surface treatments and hot isostatic pressing (HIP), which converts metal powders into strong solid components. It serves industries including renewable energy, aerospace, mining and electronics. Major camera manufacturers are among its clients. A dividend darling Halma (LSE: HLMA) is a safety specialist across several industries, with products including gas-detection devices, pollution gauges, water-pipeline leakage monitors, and food- and water-quality testing equipment. Halma has a very high return on capital (a key gauge of profitability) and the enviable record of having increased its dividend by 5% or more for the last 40 consecutive years. Renishaw (LSE: RSW) has a global reputation for its precision metrology products and also boasts a small but growing precision-healthcare division (where offerings include robotic surgical systems) that has just moved into profit. The vast majority of its revenue is earned overseas (Britain contributed 5% in 2018). Rotork (LSE: ROR) is the world-leading manufacturer of equipment to control the flow of liquids and gases. It has a worldwide network to provide local services, maintenance and upgrades. More than 94% of its revenue comes from outside the UK. Spectris (LSE: SXS) helps companies to improve overall quality and productivity. Services include materials analysis, testing and measuring, and industrial controls. Applications include boosting the recovery rates of oil and gas, improving the performance of consumer electronics, and monitoring contamination in the pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals industries. The company combines hardware, software and services to achieve improved productivity and nearly 92% of sales are made overseas. Spirax-Sarco (LSE: SPX) specialises in the control and management of both steam and electrical thermal energy. It is a global business with 127 operating units in 47 countries and 91% of revenue comes from outside the UK. Victrex (LSE: VCT) is the leading producer of PEEK polymer, a light but mechanically strong advanced polymer resistant to chemicals and wear. It is used by industries such as aerospace, automotive, energy, and electronics. It has also been used in medical implants in more than nine million people. Victrex is a global business with 98% of revenue coming from outside the UK. Weir Group (LSE: WEIR) was formed in 1871 and has always been noted for its innovative pumps. It now supplies a wide variety of products, including pumps, centrifuges, valves and controls to the mining, infrastructure and oil and gas sectors. More than 98% of revenue comes from outside the UK. Narrowing down the list Company Sub-sector Market cap Sales growth 2017/2018 EBIT/sales AB Dynamics Automotive £0.6bn +51% 21.3% Bodycote Thermal processing £1.5bn +5.6% 18.2% Halma Electronics £7.6bn +11.9% 16.8% Renishaw Metrology £2.9bn +13.9% 25.6% Rotork Flow-control engineering £2.7bn +8.3% 18.0% Spectris Productivity engineering £3.1bn +5.2% 14.1% Spirax-Sarco Energy control £6.5bn +15.5% 26.0% Victrex High-performance polymers £1.8bn +12.3% 39.1% Weir Group Mining and oil & gas £4.1bn +23.4% 14.2% Companies likely to be good investments will show a record of profitable growth and invest in R&D and capex to maintain their growth edge over competitors. They should also have strong balance sheets and a reasonable price/earnings (p/e) ratio in relation to their growth prospects. The nine companies split into two groups – the first with 2020 p/e ratios in the range between 12.5 and 17, and the second with 2020 p/es from 21 to 42. The first group consists of Bodycote, Spectris, Victrex and Weir, with Victrex at the top of the group with a p/e of 16.9 and the others in the range 12.5-14.5. Victrex invests around 5% of sales in R&D and has proved able to find new applications for its advanced polymer materials and continuously improve existing ones. Recent progress has been made, for example, in dental applications with an agreement signed last year with Straumann Dental, one of the world’s top companies in the sector. Spectris also invests in the future, with about 7% of sales invested in R&D. However, Spectris has a mixed record of growth with earnings per share (EPS) dropping from 2014 to 2016 and turning negative in 2016. Bodycote’s profits also fell a little in each of the two years from 2014 to 2016 and Bodycote invests little in R&D. In the more expensive group we have AB Dynamics, Halma, Renishaw, Rotork and Spirax-Sarco. The two companies in this group with high R&D investment are Renishaw (around 12% of sales) and Halma (with more than 5%). R&D as a percentage of sales is much lower for the others. AB Dynamics works for the automotive industry, which typically squeezes suppliers’ margins, so in the long term the combination of low R&D and automotive customers may well reduce margins. AB’s p/e of 42 does not therefore make it an attractive investment. Halma, Rotork and Spirax-Sarco are all high-quality companies, but look expensive for now. Halma has just reported a 2019 pre-tax profits increase of 20% and its shares are up more than 60% since late October, with a 2020 p/e of 36. Spirax-Sarco’s stock has jumped by 49% since December and now stands at a forward p/e of 31. Rotork is up rather less at 27% since early December 2018 and costs 21 times 2020 profits. Renishaw is an interesting case, since the share price has dropped by more than 30% since last summer, giving a 2020 p/e of 24. The reason for the drop is the cyclical reduction in demand from the electronics sector and a recent fall in sales to China, probably connected with the trade war. However, Renishaw serves cyclical manufacturing industries and has recovered from previous downturns. It continues to invest heavily in R&D during downturns to give its product range a boost for when the upturn comes. And Victrex’s share price is down 62% from its high last September. In summary, the two companies to consider now are Victrex and Renishaw. I would put Halma, Spirax-Sarco and possibly Rotork on a watchlist for when their valuations are lower. All five pay dividends, with yields of 0.8% for Halma, 1.5% for Renishaw, 1.9% for Rotork, 1.1% for Spirax-Sarco and 2.8% for Victrex; include the special dividend for 2018 and the latter yield climbs to 6.8%.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line903
__label__wiki	0.599301	0.599301	For the dated April 23, 2016, the song rose one more spot to number nine, becoming the week's highest airplay gainer retaining an 89 million audience, rising 12 percent from the previous week.[62][63] The song rose two more spots the following week, leaping from 9-7.[64] It would rise one more spot at a new position at number 6. [65] The following week, it fell one spot, after one of Prince's songs entered the top five shortly after his death. The track would rebound a 7-5 leap, earning the group their first top five entry, marking them as the first all-female group to attain this honor since The Pussycat Dolls' "Buttons" with Snoop Dogg song peaked at number three in 2006. For the week marked May 21, 2016, the track boosted an 8 percent climb at radio and a 10.5 million audience impressions and was aided in the climb with 15.9 million weekly United States streams, which were down one percent.[66] The track would fall one spot after Justin Timberlake's "Can't Stop the Feeling!" made its hot shot debut at number one. It rose one spot for the week marked June 4, 2016 at number, retaining its previous peak position. Following a performance of the track on the Billboard Music Awards, the song leaped 5-4, earning the group their highest entry and peak on the chart. For that week, it recorded a 10-7 jump on Digital Songs, selling 73,000 copies, a 26 percent increase and earned the group their first top five hit on Radio Songs, leaping 6-4 with a 105 million audience, rising 5 percent. On the Streaming Songs chart, the track stayed at number 5 with 15.8 million streams, a decrease of 2 percent.[67] There are loads of resources for making money online as an affiliate. You could source products from ClickBank, Commission Junction, Rakuten Marketing, Share-a-Sale, Impact Radius and many others. Plus, many of the larger companies have their own affiliate programs as well. Do your due diligence and find the right company with a relevant product or service to your audience that you can sell as an affiliate. Work as an online interpreter or translator. If you’re fluent in a foreign language, it makes sense to look for work as an online interpreter or translator. Depending on your individual skillset, you could find work translating blog posts or eBooks, transcribing recorded lessons or speeches for clients, or translating through Skype or another online video service. And, thanks to the increased use of foreign languages in the United States, getting started could really pay off. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment for interpreters and translators is expected to increase 17% nationally through 2026. However, not matter what method you choose to make money online, understand that you might be able to make some money fast, but for the sizable returns, you'll need significant sweat equity. However, a year from now, you'll be happy you started today. Remember, time is far more valuable than money. Focus on creating passive income streams that will free up your time so that you can quit the rat race and focus on the things that matter. That's the important thing here. This is similar in concept to micro-tasks, except that it is oriented toward specific services, such as cleaning services, pest inspection, handyman services, house cleaning, lawn & garden services or any of the skilled trades. It might actually be more accurate to say that it is a platform where skilled service providers can offer their services to site visitors, similar to Angie’s List. Sociotechnical systems (STS) theory explains the interaction between social and technological factors. STS examines the relationships between people, technology, and the work environment, in order to design work in a way that enhances job satisfaction and increases productivity.[44] Originally developed to explain the paradox of improved technology but decreased productivity,[52] the theory can be applied to the design of telework. One of the principles of STS is minimal critical specification.[53] This principle states that, unless absolutely essential, there should be minimal specification of objectives and how to do tasks in order to avoid closing options or inhibiting effective actions. Telecommuting provides teleworkers with the freedom to decide how and when to do their tasks.[35] Similarly, teleworkers have the responsibility to use their equipment and resources to carry out their responsibilities. This increase in responsibility for their work also increases their power,[53] supporting the idea that teleworking is a privilege and in some companies, considered a promotion.[46] A popular tactic to make money on social media is to pay for advertising affiliate products. Create ads for particular affiliate products that are big sellers and have a high yield. Then target these ads at specific custom audiences to ensure your ads are viewed by those who will have an interest in the product you are promoting. If viewers click through your from advert to the product page and make a purchase then you will earn an affiliate fee. It was accompanied by a music video directed by Director X and filmed in a construction site of a house. It was released on February 26, 2016 on the group's Vevo channel. The video received commentary from critics over the double entendres in the visuals, which are present in the lyrics as well. The girls are seen interacting with male construction workers and performing choreographed dance routines dressed in construction gear. "Work from Home" won the award for Best Collaboration at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards and the American Music Awards, winning the group their first award in this network.[15] Its music video reached one billion views in October 2016, and became the most viewed music video of 2016.[16] Coworking is a social gathering of a group of people who are still working independently, but who share a common working area as well as the synergy that can happen from working with people in the same space. Coworking facilities can range from shared space in formal offices to social areas such as a coffee shop. Entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs often cowork in shared office and workshop facilities provided by business incubators and business accelerator organizations. In entrepreneurship, coworking allows creative start-up founders, researchers and knowledge workers to meet and share ideas, collaborate, share new research, and find potential partners. Suppose I was to tell you that I would pay you up to $15 to process rebates from various products and companies. I would send you a list, you proces the rebates and you get paid twice a month. All you need is a computer, internet access and our training program. Would you be interested? Chances are you would be! I know I would be too! Lucky for you that I stumbled across some crazy back door information about the rebate processors position that's going to knock your socks off. Trust me when I say you'll be so thankful that I go to the bottom of this opportunity. As of 2012, estimates suggest that over fifty million U.S. workers (about 40% of the working population) could work from home at least part of the time,[12] but in 2008 only 2.5 million employees, excluding the self-employed, considered their home to be their primary place of business.[13] The number of employees reported to have worked from their home "on their primary job" in 2010 has been reported as 9.4 million (6.6% of the workforce), though, this number might include the self-employed.[14] As of 2017, roughly 3.7 million employees—2.8% of the workforce—work from home at least half the time, Global Analytics Workplace reports.[15] Very few companies employ large numbers of home-based full-time staff.[citation needed] The call center industry is one notable exception: several U.S. call centers employ thousands of home-based workers. For many employees, the option to work from home is available as an employee benefit but most participants only do so a fraction of the time.[16] Top paid among work-from-home sectors are home-based physicians and radiologists in which it is suspected that they earn near the $1,975 median weekly income of physicians, as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, making it a six-figure job. Studies show that at-home workers are willing to earn up to 30% less and experience heightened productivity. [17] In Australia, "Work from Home" debuted at number 39 on the ARIA Charts after its first week of release.[75] It climbed to number three in the fourth week, becoming their second top ten and first top five single in the country.[76][77] The song stayed in the charts for nearly thirty weeks. Since its release, the song has been certified quintuple platinum and has also become one of the best-selling songs by an all-female group there. A similar trend followed in New Zealand where the song debuted at number 21 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart after its first week of release.[78] It climbed to number two in the fifth week, becoming the group's first top-five single in the country.[79] "Work from Home" also became the group's highest peaking single in New Zealand, surpassing "Miss Movin' On", which peaked at number 27 in July 2013.[80] On April 15, 2016, it became their first number-one single in the country.[81] The single was certified double platinum, becoming the group's best-selling song, after "Worth It" was certified platinum. Daily Surveys can be taken one or more times per day. This is indicated in the survey description. Other targeted surveys can be taken as you see them. Be sure to complete these when you see them. Some surveys may accept a limited number of responses from people matching your demographics, and can sometimes disappear quickly. New surveys come out all the time too! If you can find and restore items like furniture and appliances, you can make a substantial amount of money. You can acquire the items on Craigslist, or even at garage sales or estate sales, restore them, and then list them for sale on the site. You may also be able to market certain items on eBay, particularly if they are small, unusual, but high in price. Do you see all of those articles, tutorials and guides all over the Internet? Somebody wrote every one of them! If you have decent writing ability (no, you don’t need a journalism degree!), and knowledge in a few specific topic areas, you can be one of those writers. It’s an opportunity to make money online and without ever leaving your home. It’s also the kind of venture that can start out as a small side business, but grow into a full-time career. What Employees Say: “Company is comprised of hard-working individuals who are extremely passionate about what they do. We have done wonderful things for communities through foundations, IBO’s and our own employees giving back. It is exciting to be part of a growing company that has allowed me to use my knowledge to help build my department. I am proud to see how far we have come..” —Current Employee You'll also need ecommerce software, fulfillment software, worry about warehousing, customer service, refunds and so on. But that's not all. You'll also need traffic. Think search engine optimization, Facebook ads, and other social media campaigns. Sound like a lot of work? Sure, it is. Especially if you do it all on your own. You could opt for Amazon's platform, which might be the easier route. But, then again, at the end of the day, this is a serious business, which could produce significant profits. So you're either all in or you're not. •The website has no contact information. A legitimate business has a way for you to reach them. Look for an "About" page that offers information on the company or CEO, along with a phone number, address, or contact email. (Try calling the number to see if anyone answers.) A website with only a contact form and no other way to get in touch with an actual human is suspicious.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line907
__label__wiki	0.728901	0.728901	You are here: Home » Artist » Emmylou Harris To Celebrate Opry Anniversary Emmylou Harris To Celebrate Opry Anniversary Sherod Robertson • December 15, 2011 Photo: Joel Dennis, Hollo Photograhics, Inc. Emmylou Harris will be honored by the Grand Ole Opry on her 20th anniversary as an Opry member Sat., Jan. 21, 2012 at the historic Ryman Auditorium. Harris was inducted into the Opry on Jan. 25, 1992. Harris’ 20-year milestone will be celebrated with performances by the honoree, fellow 20-year Opry veteran Vince Gill, Rodney Crowell, with whom Harris is currently working on a duets album and Grammy winner Shawn Colvin (in her Opry debut). “Emmylou is treasured not just by all of us at the Grand Ole Opry, but also by fans around the world,” said Pete Fisher, Opry VP/GM. “She’s shared so many great musical moments with us over the past 20 years, singing with and introducing us to some of her favorite musical collaborators. We’re excited to celebrate her Opry anniversary at the Ryman, a stage on which she’s displayed such incredible artistry through the years.” With her early singing partner Gram Parsons, Harris was at the forefront of the ’70s country rock movement. Over her career, she has enjoyed seven No. 1 and 27 Top 10 hits. Among her most memorable releases: “If I Could Only Win Your Love,” “Together Again,” “Sweet Dreams,” “Making Believe,” “To Daddy,” and “Heartbreak Hill.” In 1999 Billboard Magazine recognized her distinguished career achievements with its highest honor – the Century Award. Harris was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2008 and has won 12 Grammy Awards. Tickets can be purchased at www.opry.com. Tags: featured-2 Category: Artist, Featured, Weekend Sherod Robertson is President and Owner of MusicRow Enterprises. He oversees all operations and develops strategic initiatives for MusicRow magazine, RowFax, and MusicRow's CountryBreakout chart. Robertson previously served as Director of Finance of Arista Records after beginning his career as Vice President of Finance and CFO at Reunion Records. Android 4.0: In Time For The Holidays » « Live Nation Uncorks BigChampagne Data	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line909
__label__wiki	0.507345	0.507345	NHLOutsider "Not Your Average Hockey Blog" Butler, PA • United States • 28 Years Old • Male The Lockout -- Why I Am Part of the Problem As much as I hated to see it, the last NHL lockout made sense to me. The gap between haves and the have-nots was growing at a ridiculous rate, and truth be told, I was glad to see the NHL take action before it got too far out of control like it has in Major League Baseball. The results of that lockout speak for themselves. Parity has returned to the league and ultimately, I think the league is better because of it. This one, however, doesn't make any sense to me. I won't pretend to understand all the ins and outs of what each side wants, and quite frankly, I don't care. The league has grown in popularity in the states and made substantial strides in several key markets. No matter what the ultimate outcome, I can see no way that the league as a whole will be better when this situation has been resolved. But I'm not writing this blog to critique the merits of the lockout. I'm not writing to condemn Gary Bettman or rip Donald Fehr. I'm not even writing this to vent my frustrations with the NHL or NHLPA. I love hockey. I was never good enough to play at any real competitive level, but even now as I near 30, I suit up every chance I get to play the greatest game in the world. And as much as I love to play, I'm an even bigger fan and student of the game. I've been a youth hockey coach, I've refereed and I'm a Penguins season ticket holder. While the commissioner, the owners and the players' association certainly own their part in the lockout, I believe a big reason why the lockout remains in effect is...me (and others like me). Part of me wishes I could tell you that this lockout has turned me against the NHL brand and that when play resumes (whenever that may be), I won't be going back. But that would be a lie. If I wake tomorrow morning and the league announces that the season is going to start tomorrow night, I'd be calling off of work and be in my seats in a heartbeat. My love for the game is unconditional; I know it...and so does the NHL. Whether it's one more day or one hundred, when it's decided that it's time to drop the puck, I'll be the first in line. I do believe that some of the fringe fans that hockey has gained over the past few years may walk away for awhile and the momentum the NHL has built since the last work stoppage has been halted, but it's not irreparable. Die hard fans like me will always return to the game. We'll continue to go to the games, support our favorite teams and players, bring our friends and family into the fold, and over time, we'll rebuild what this lockout has broken down. I've done my share of whining and complaining about the greed behind this latest lockout and lack of respect and dedication shown to the true fans of hockey by the league, it's owners and the players' association. But I can't in good conscience ignore the role that I and other like-minded fans play in this as well. The players make the league worth watching, but we make it profitable. And as long as there are people like me willing to pay to be a part of the game no matter what actions the NHL takes to deter us from doing so, I fear this situation will continue to repeat itself. I'm addicted to hockey. I know it and more importantly, the NHL knows it. And unless this changes, the league will continue to exploit my addiction for their gain. And that is why I am part of the problem. Filed Under: NHL Lockout Pittsburgh Penguins Gary Bettman NHLPA BrentD10 December 17, 2012 3:53 PM ET \| Delete Hockey fans are among the most dedicated in sports, especially in the "North American" sports. (Let's face it, some of the soccer fans in England, S. America, etc. are bonkers.) We Canadians have hockey in our DNA, so it's a given we'll all be back. You US based fans, (though not as common as up here) make up for fewer numbers with passion and dedication. You're right, we have to take the blame for being taken for granted, because we can be taken for granted. 08 Inaugural NHL_Outsider Blog 08 Penguins Nostalgia -- #71 K-Squared 09 Penguins Nostalgia -- #32 Dicky T 09 10 Remaining UFAs that Could Help the Pens in 2012-13 13 Rick Nash...How much is too much? 15 The Lockout -- Why I Am Part of the Problem	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line910
__label__wiki	0.628619	0.628619	Blue Jackets' Owner Gone, But Will Never Be Forgotten Posted 7:14 PM ET \| Comments 2 Fans of the Columbus Blue Jackets have known tears of disappointment for seven years, but with the passing of team owner John H. McConnell, the tears cut deeper, and go far beyond the game. The gentleman so highly regarded by players, coaches and fans all over the National Hockey League lost his battle with liver cancer on Friday. For fans like myself, his loss feels like losing a grandfather. All of the depression from losing seasons and the limited number of highlights mixed in wouldn't be possible without Mr. Mac, and for that, I am so grateful. What most fail to realize is that prior to McConnell's hard-nosed campaign to the NHL to bring an expansion franchise to Columbus, most around the sport found some snooty one-liner to bash the city. McConnell persisted, and continued to bring league executives to Columbus and sell the market, something few thought he could do. But he did, and look what he built. McConnell owned Worthington Industries, one of the most successful steel companies in the world, and generated almost $3 billion in annual profits. He retired in 1996. He bought the Blue Jackets with his own money, which has escalated exponentially after putting up his own car for collateral to buy his first load of steel. Nationwide Arena, one of the league's most beautiful buildings, was built with his own money. Not a single tax dollar, and that’s the way he liked it. McConnell called the Blue Jackets his 'gift to the city,' and it's a shame the team he watched from its infancy couldn't get into the playoffs for him. Whenever his face is shown on the video board at Nationwide, he smiles and thanks the fans for the minutes-long standing ovation they give him. It's not an ovation just because he's the owner, it's because people in Columbus truly loved him, and he loved the fans. Upon reflecting, I can't figure out if I'm hurt more by his passing, or by the fact that the players who spoke so highly of him couldn't give a little more to get their butts into the postseason. Throughout his life, McConnell was the dark horse, the one whom few thought could make it big, especially given his humble beginnings. He saw his team and the city as winners, no matter how often people doubted his ability to sell hockey to stupid Midwesterners. There are some fans in Columbus that criticized McConnell for being frugal with the team's payroll, and not spending enough to get into the playoffs. He publicly stated that he has never set a hard cap for team executives. What did he say? He said he wanted them to spend whatever they needed to win. That alone says it all. Opening night in Nationwide Arena will be far different this October from years past. There will be the excitement, of course. But there will also be an empty feeling, and no video board message from the man all of us have come to admire. What will be on that same video board is a tribute to the man responsible for all of the kids wearing Blue Jackets jerseys playing street hockey, parents taking their children to their first game, the people who couldn't afford to attend a game in any other NHL city, and hockey fans just happy to have their own team. And it better be one hell of a video. Mr. Mac, we all will miss you, but all we can do is thank you for bringing our team to us. Just think--when the Blue Jackets do make the playoffs, you'll have the best seat in the house. --Rob Mixer [email][email protected][/email] Filed Under: blue jackets nhl April 26, 2008 11:29 AM ET \| Delete Thoughtful words CBJ09. There are fans of many other pro teams that have no idea what a good and dedicated owner can mean. (A good example: Leafs fans and MLSE.) It is unfortunate that the Blue Jackets have not been able to make it past the regular season, but your time will come. I hope the commitment that Mr. McConnell brought to Columbus and the team continues. Predaceous April 27, 2008 9:51 AM ET \| Delete I'm sorry to hear about this. Our newspaper barely prints stuff about our own team, let alone one in Columbus. I really hope that your current ownership situation is stable. I'd hate to see Balsillie swoop down on Columbus. That buzzard is still circling NHL franchises to see which city he can rip the heart out of. I personally thought that the Blue Jackets had a great chance of making the playoffs this year. In fact, I don't believe it was the players that quit this year, I think it was management. The Jackets' GM shocked me when he traded away Fedorov and Foote instead of bringing in help for the first truly serious push the Blue Jackets have made. I hope you make the playoffs next year. Your city has waited long enough.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line911
__label__cc	0.709642	0.290358	Posts Tagged ‘Ireland’ numerology for Ireland Baldwin Posted in "secret" number (month +y+e+a+r of birth), 47 (Seven of Cups), 65 (King of Pentacles), Ireland Baldwin, path of destiny / how you learn what you are here to learn (sum of all of the letters), tagged 30 Rock, 8Z, Alec Baldwin, Baldwin, Daily News, Ed Peterson, Ireland, Kim Basinger, Manhattan, Matthew Hiltzik, New York City Police Department, numerology on April 5, 2013\| Leave a Comment » Thursday April 4th, 2013 at 9:15 AM Maybe Ireland Baldwin is still holding a grudge against her dad, Alec Baldwin, for that infamous angry voicemail. The budding model, who recently signed with IMG, has chosen to do her first professional photo shoot for the New York Post–a paper with which Baldwin had a very public, and very heated, disagreement this past February (he allegedly called a Post paparazzo “a racial epithet, a “crackhead” and a “drug dealer.”) Legal battles aside (both Baldwin and the photographer filed assault charges against each other), 17-year-old Ireland was more than happy to strip down to a bikini on a boat on a 40-degree day. She’s already a pro! And kind of a dead ringer for her mom, Kim Basinger. Of her decision to pose for the Post in light of her dad’s relationship with the paper she said, “You know, he has his own agenda and I have my own… he’s him and I’m me, and I know he’s done things that he regrets himself and that he’s sorry for, but you know, the past is the past.” She added that their relationship is just fine and that they “text and talk on the phone all the time.” Head over to the Post for the full editorial. The paper also reports that she’s got stories in the works with W and Vanity Fair so expect to be seeing more of this Baldwin. from: http://fashionista.com/2013/04/ireland-baldwins-first-modeling-gig-an-eff-you-to-dad/ Ireland Baldwin was born on October 23rd, 1995 according to http://www.astro.com/astro-databank/Baldwin,_Ireland 23 +1+9+9+5 = 47 = her “secret” number = Famous. Name recognition. Internationally known. Famous last name. 9953154 2134595 65 her path of destiny = 65 = Worldly success. Making it big time. Making the big bucks. “Rude, thoughtless little pig.” numerology for Charlaine Dalpe Posted in 37 (King of Cups), Charlaine Dalpe, what you must do/have to do (first letter of the first name and second from the last letter of the last name), tagged Edmonton Journal, Grande-Vallée Quebec, Ireland, Millea, Montreal, Passage East, Plastic bottle, Tourism Ireland on October 26, 2012\| Leave a Comment » 10/25/2012 1:04 pm EDT When two young Canadian girls put a message in a bottle into the St. Lawrence River in Quebec in 2004, they probably didn’t expect it to be found by a 10-year-old boy almost 2,500 miles away. According to the BBC, Oisin Millea, a 10-year-old boy from Passage East in Ireland, discovered the plastic bottle on the beach near his home village while he was surveying the aftermath of a recent flooding last Thursday. Inside was a hand-written note in French signed by two girls, Charlaine and Claudia. “I thought it was just rubbish. So I picked it up, looked in the bottle and then I opened it,” Millea told CBC Montreal. He added, “There was loads of stuff washed up. I thought there was just a label inside this bottle but when I saw the hair band used to keep it together, I opened it up,” according to AFP. At first Millea had trouble deciphering the note, which had been stuffed into a green two-liter plastic bottle. “I tried to read it and I thought it was in Spanish, and then I found out it was in French,” Millea told CBC Montreal. According to the Edmonton Journal, after a little help from Google translate, Millea was able to read the letter. “06/2004.Hello, we are two girls who had the idea to launch a bottle into the sea. We are called Charlaine and Claudia. We are both 12 and we live in Montreal. We are on vacation in the Gaspésie, in the village of Grande Vallée. We had the idea to launch a bottle into the sea because we saw a TV show about young people putting messages in bottles. If you find our bottle, tell us when and how you found our bottle. Also tell us your name, age, place of residence. Example: Paris, Miami, etc. To finish, if you don’t have Internet, go to a friend’s or go to an Internet café because we are very curious to know if our bottle was found. — Charlaine and Claudia” The letter also included an email address to contact the girls. However, when Millea and his family attempted to send an email, the address was no longer active. According to UPI, Millea then took his letter to a local newspaper. Armed with only the first names of the mysterious letter senders, Millea wasn’t sure he would be able to find the two Canadian girls. Thanks to social media, though, the story quickly went viral. It was eventually covered by a Montreal newspaper where Charlaine and Claudia saw a headline searching for them. The girls — Claudia Garneau and Charlaine Dalpe — are now both 20. They were able to get in touch with Millea through the newspaper and set up a meeting over Skype. “It’s a bit unreal,” Dalpé told the Edmonton Journal. “It’s really special, like something you see in the movies. You don’t expect something like this to happen for real.” According to CBC Montreal, Tourism Ireland also took note of the story and offered the women a free week-long trip to Ireland, during which they will be able to see their 8-year-old message again. Millea’s mother, Aoife, said finding the letter was the perfect catch for her son. “Ever since he was a young boy, he has searched the beach and area for treasure,” she told the Edmonton Journal. “This is his treasure.” Now Millea plans to send his own message in a bottle — and who knows where it might end up. from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/25/irish-boy-oisin-millea-fi_n_2011784.html Charlaine Dalpe what she must do/had to do = CP = 37 = Message in a bottle. numerology for Claudia Garneau Posted in 55 (Ace of Swords), Claudia Garneau, path of destiny / how you learn what you are here to learn (sum of all of the letters), tagged Edmonton Journal, Grande-Vallée Quebec, Ireland, Millea, Montreal, Passage East, Plastic bottle, Tourism Ireland on October 26, 2012\| Leave a Comment » Claudia Garneau her path of destiny = 55 = Mind-blowing. Handwriting. A piece of paper. numerology for Oisin Millea Posted in 55 (Ace of Swords), Oisin Millea, path of destiny / how you learn what you are here to learn (sum of all of the letters), tagged 7Y, 8Z, Ed Peterson, Edmonton Journal, Free, Grande-Vallée Quebec, Hosts, Ireland, Millea, Montreal, New York City, numerology, Passage East, Plastic bottle, Tourism Ireland, Web Design and Development on October 26, 2012\| Leave a Comment » Oisin Millea 69195 493351 55 his path of destiny = 55 = Mind-blowing. Handwriting. A piece of paper. numerology for Jennifer Gallagher Posted in 26 (Page of Wands), Jennifer Gallagher, R.I.P., rest in peace, soul number / who you are (sum of the vowels (a,e,i,o,u.y)), tagged Barack Obama, Batman, Denver, Denver Post, Iowa, Ireland, University of Colorado Hospital, West Lake on August 20, 2012\| Leave a Comment » MONDAY AUGUST 20, 2012 2:08 PM A nurse who treated victims of the ‘Dark Night Rises’ theater massacre in Aurora, Colo., has drowned while on a family vacation in Iowa. Jennifer Gallagher, 46, of Denver went swimming in West Lake Okoboji the night of Aug. 6 and her body was found the next day. The Denver Post reports that Gallagher helped care for victims taken to University of Colorado Hospital and was among the staffers who met with President Barack Obama during his visit. A selection of images from Gallagher’s memorial, including a group photo of her and the staff at University of Colorado Hospital during a visit by President Barack Obama. Gallagher’s husband, Greg Pinson, told the Irish newspaper The Herald that she had moved from Ireland to the U.S. in the 1990s, attending school to become a nurse. “She was brilliant at helping people get through their illnesses. She loved treating people who were in bad situations — it’s the type of person she was,” Pinson told the Herald. “She wasn’t a very strong swimmer and I suppose she just wasn’t able to stay afloat,” Pinson added. Twelve people were killed and 58 were wounded or injured in the July 20 shooting rampage at a midnight movie showing of the latest Batman movie. from: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/nurse-treated-dark-knight-rises-massacre-victims-drowns-iowa-article-1.1140376#ixzz247dPWux5 Jennifer Gallagher her soul number = 26 = Popular. Photogenic. Movies. In the news. Making headlines. numerology for Kanye West (Lamborghini) Posted in 19 (The Sun), Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, Kimye, personal year, tagged Cannes Film Festival, Ireland, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, Lamborghini, Lamborghini Aventador, Los Angeles, Watch the Throne on June 9, 2012\| Leave a Comment » June 8 2012 6:56 PM EDT Lamborghini mercy, guess what Kim Kardashian got Kanye West for his birthday? No, it wasn’t the Murciélago — we’re pretty sure Yeezy already has one of those, seeing as the exclusive model was the inspiration for his new G.O.O.D. Music single “Mercy.” Instead, Kimmy kicked it up a notch and dropped $750,000 on a Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 for her beau’s 35th birthday. Hopefully TMZ didn’t ruin the surprise when they published pics of the rare black two-door sports car. According to the site, Kardashian couldn’t bring the gift to ‘Ye because he’s in Ireland with Jay-Z for another stop on the European leg of their Watch the Throne Tour, so Kim took a video of the car in L.A. so she could show him. “Kimye” began dating earlier this spring and have since become prime targets for the paparazzi, who have snapped the lovebirds on both coasts. The pair were also spotted at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where Yeezy premiered his “Cruel Summer” film. Last week, TMZ reported that both Kanye and Kim put their Los Angeles-area homes up for sale, fueling rumors that the two are planning to move in together. On Wednesday, ‘Ye and his G.O.O.D. Music comrades dropped the video for their “Mercy” single, which they spot in an art-deco inspired parking garage. Now that the Louis Vuitton Don has a new toy to rap about, we wonder if a remix is on the horizon. from: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1686983/kim-kardashian-kanye-west-birthday-lambourghini.jhtml Kanye West was born on June 8th, 1977 according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanye_west 6 + 8 +2+0+1+2 = 19 = his personal year (from June 8th, 2012 to June 7th, 2013) = His time to shine. Front and center. Proud of his hard earned success. numerology for John McCallister Posted in 41 (Ace of Cups), John McCallister, life lesson / what you are here to learn (month + day +y+e+a+r of birth), tagged Fianna Fáil, Ireland, Mary-Lou McDonald, Northern Ireland, Pat Rabbitte, Republic, Sinn Fein on May 29, 2012\| Leave a Comment » 29 May 2012 03:34 ET Trim Castle, on the green grassy slopes of the Boyne river, is an imposing wreck. The historic town and neighbouring Navan were once fortresses against Sinn Fein but in last year’s election the party won its first Dail seat in Meath in the Irish state’s history. Peadar Toibin, the party’s Meath West TD, has been busy canvassing for a No vote in Thursday’s referendum on the fiscal treaty, which is designed to safeguard and stabilise the euro currency. And although Fianna Fail is the main opposition party he says the real opposition to the Fine Gael and Labour coalition is coming from Sinn Fein. “There isn’t a hair’s breadth between Fianna Fail, Labour and Fine Gael at the moment,” he says, “Fianna Fail are at sea; there are power struggles happening. Sinn Fein, in contrast, is a united cohesive party with a clear ideological vision of how they want to see Ireland and that’s resonating with the people of Ireland.” “Sinn Fein in contrast is a united cohesive party with a clear ideological vision of how they want to see Ireland and that’s resonating with the people of Ireland” Peadar Toibin Sinn Fein TD In these difficult recessionary times Sinn Fein in the Republic sees itself as the voice of lower and middle income earners. Its message seems to be chiming with voters – if polls are to be believed. With Fianna Fail still being punished for its role in the banking crisis and the government raising taxes and cutting public expenditure Sinn Fein is on the rise. But Labour’s Communications, Energy and Natural Resources minister, Pat Rabbitte accuses the party of cynical opportunism in manipulating disquiet about Ireland’s and Europe’s problems. He says: “It’s an irony now that the performance of Ireland is constrained by the difficulties in Europe. A year ago Ireland was Europe’s problem; now Europe is Ireland’s problem. That means there are circumstances there to be exploited. Sinn Fein are doing that and ignoring the fact that they are doing exactly the opposite up the road in Newry.” Those comments strike a chord with John McCallister, the South Down MLA for the Ulster Unionist party. He accuses Sinn Fein of rejecting austerity in the Republic while implementing similar measures and cutbacks, particularly in education, in the Northern Ireland executive. A year ago Ireland was Europe’s problem; now Europe is Ireland’s problem. That means there are circumstances there to be exploited. Sinn Fein are doing that and ignoring the fact that they are doing exactly the opposite up the road in Newry.” Pat Rabbitte Labour minister “They supported the budget that implemented cutbacks all across the board. Then you look at the Republic, which is arguably in a much worse financial state than the United Kingdom. And there they’re opposed to austerity and urging a No vote to the treaty. It’s pure hypocrisy and should be highlighted at every opportunity,” he says. Because of the Republic’s broadcasting referendum rules Sinn Fein, as the main party opposed to Thursday’s referendum, has been getting extensive publicity for its anti-austerity message. The party’s deputy leader, Mary-Lou McDonald, who has been a frequent contributor to programmes, rejects that charge of hypocrisy saying Northern Ireland and the Republic’s political and economic arrangements are currently very different. She said: “The realities in the two jurisdictions are like comparing apples and oranges. In the north there simply aren’t the tax-raising and fiscal powers that there are in the south. What you need to do is to ensure those powers are devolved to the Assembly and then you can have much more coherence north and south in terms of policy formation.” The Republic’s next general election is due in 2016 – a big year in the republican calendar and for the Sinn Fein project. If current polling trends continue – and it is a big if – the party could well be in government north and south of a border it opposes. Then again if Greece and the Republic of Ireland are forced out of the Eurozone and the markets decide the new punt is a satellite currency of sterling many will then wonder what Easter 1916 and the last 100 years was all about? from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-18244324 John McCallister was born on February 20th, 1972 according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_McCallister 2 + 20 +1+9+7+2 = 41 = his life lesson = Things get ugly.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line914
__label__cc	0.534945	0.465055	The Natural Sciences Collections Association (NatSCA) is the UK’s organisation for representing Natural Science Collections and the staff that work with them. We are a registered charity (No. 1098156) run by unpaid volunteers elected from our membership. To increase awareness of the scientific and cultural value of Natural History Collections. To raise the standards of care and interpretation of Natural History Collections To facilitate the exchange of information amongst curators and managers of Natural History Collections. To promote the professional views of Natural History curators and conservators. To lobby for better resourcing of Natural History Collections. We are keen for our members to feel connected with what is going on and we want to hear what you have to say, so please feel free to comment. If you’re not a member of NatSCA you are welcome to use the resources we make available here, but please consider spending the £20 to join, which will help support our work and will provide you with a hard copy of our journal and discounts when attending our seminars and workshops. For more information see our page on membership. 7 thoughts on “About NatSCA” Chris Farnworth says: February 10, 2017 at 8:32 pm I am a chemist looking for a UK supply of Pyroxylin, and I was intrigued to see that it was mentioned in a paper by Simon Moore, can you tell me where you get your Pyroxylin from? If there is a charge, please let me know how much. Chris Farnworth PaoloViscardi says: February 11, 2017 at 2:04 pm We will pass on your enquiry to Simon to see if he can offer suggestions of suppliers. Simon Moore says: February 11, 2017 at 2:42 pm BDH/Merck used to have it as flakes moistened with alcohol. Unsure if VWR stock it. Chance & Hunt appear to stock it – 01928-793 000. Hope that this proves fruitful. robipoet says: April 1, 2017 at 7:13 pm Hi there. I’ve been reading various articles on NatSCA on line. I am not a scientist by trade. I am a published poet, educator and historical researcher living in Windsor, Canada. The Hunterian Collection is something I am delving into at the moment. His connection to T.P. Yeats, esp. It turns out that Yeats was also pals with Dru Drury, a stellar collector of insects and Henry Seymer who was a painter and collector. I have also made an association with Thomas Davies, ( 1737-1812) an artillery officer who lived in turns in Canada, New York State, Plymouth and elsewhere in the UK. He is a renowned landscape painter and contributor to the flora and fauna of early Canada. I am presently working on a full scale biography on Davies. In NatSCA news 4, 2004 there is mention of William Hunter’s Insect collection and in Appendix 2 is attached a list of some of the contributors. On page 10 there is a reference to Blom or Blomfield. I believe this may very well be Thomas Blomfield. Blomfield was born in Kent in 1744, the son of a minister. He entered Woolwich as a gentleman cadet in 1758 and became a fire worker in 1759 in the Royal artillery, just a few years behind Davies. He commanded a bomb vessel at Havre, then in 1762 as a lieutenant, he was present at the capture of Martinique. In January 1773, he became a captain lieutenant in the third battalion. Then in 1776, he became an aide de camp for Lord Townsend. That same year he was in Quebec under Major General Philips and was actively involved in the building of floating batteries while in the Canadian camp. He went into winter quarters in Quebec. The next year he joined Burgoyne’s army at Ticonderoga and was wounded in the tongue at the battle of Bemis Heights. On January 19th, 1780 he became a Captain in the Royal artillery and was sent back to London as the inspector of artillery at the brass factory. He may have had contact with Davies in 1780 when he was ADC for Amherst at Whitehall. In 1782 Captain Blomfield was appointed inspector of the Artillery at Woolwich and proofed the ordnance. We know that Blomfield was likely a collector of plants and animals and both men may have shared mutually in this pastime. Like Davies, and Blomfield, these fellow soldier engineers and draftsmen, stationed in early outposts became observers and absorbers of scientific information from their natural surroundings. Keen to the fluxes in seasons, the changing landscape and the people and forests surrounding them , they made a lasting contribution to early scientific and military exploration in this country. Another name listed here-Sautier may be an early draftsman, surveyor who spent time in New York. Collin says: August 31, 2017 at 4:55 am I love your aims. For me as a Taxidermist, I follow the same. Good Luck! Any newsletter available to keep me up to date? PaoloViscardi says: August 31, 2017 at 9:40 am Hi Collin, you can subscribe to the blog (there should be a button in the right-hand bar on the screen) and if you join NatSCA there is an annual Journal and an email list – check it out here: http://natsca.org/ Collin says: September 1, 2017 at 12:23 am done! Thanks	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line916
__label__cc	0.535642	0.464358	Folke Tersman Moral Disagreement Folke Tersman, Moral Disagreement, Cambridge University Press, 2006, 160pp., $60.00 (hbk), ISBN 0521853389. Reviewed by Andrew Fisher, University of Nottingham According to Tersman, there are two related and common mistakes in the metaethical literature. One is made by antirealists who assume that the argument from disagreement is a simple and successful defence of their position. The other, from the realists, assumes that the argument can easily be defeated in a few quick moves. Tersman in his interesting and engaging book attempts to expose these mistakes and give the collection of arguments under the label 'the argument from disagreement' the philosophical analysis they deserve. As such this is a much needed and valuable book. According to Tersman, there are several arguments from disagreement. He focuses on three. The first argues that the best explanation of the existing moral diversity is that there are no objective moral truths. One may point out that disagreement isn't normally taken as a guide to the objectivity of truth, e.g. within science. Fine, the argument would continue, but in such cases we can show that the 'apparent' disagreement is due to various cognitive shortcomings -- i.e. lack of evidence, a bias, etc. Moreover, when considering moral disagreement, this route is not necessarily available to us. There are in fact faultless moral disagreements. As such, we can move from the fact that there is genuine moral disagreement to the claim that there are no objective moral truths. Tersman is unimpressed by this argument and in chapters 2 and 3 proposes responses to them. He considers whether the argument fails because it has an inadequate account of cognitive shortcoming and whether the discussion has any bearing on the realist/anti-realist debate at all. In the light of this, he concludes that this first version of the argument from disagreement is unsuccessful: All of the proposals that have been considered leave the realist with plenty of room to respond, and none of them strengthens antirealism to any significant extent. (61) In chapter 4 Tersman considers the second variant of the argument from disagreement - the 'argument from inaccessibility'.[1] This differs from the first as it does not start from the supposed empirical fact that there is genuine moral disagreement. It couches the debate in terms of the possibility of genuine disagreement. If realism is true and we can't, a priori, rule out genuine disagreement then moral truths must be inaccessible. For if there had been objectively true answers to moral questions, then we would have reason to expect convergence on them, at least in the long run and among competent inquirers. This is because agents with no cognitive defects will eventually track down the moral truth, and if two agents have no cognitive shortcomings then they will converge over the same moral truths; however, if the realist can only offer us inaccessible moral truths, then so much the worse for realism. Tersman thinks that this argument -- like the last -- fails (81). It seems that the space for a coherent and challenging 'argument from disagreement' is disappearing fast. However, in chapters 5 and 6 Tersman develops his positive account. In 5 he deals with what he calls the 'argument from ambiguity'. This argument is, he tells us, the 'key' (xv) because if the realist can respond to this, then the other 'arguments from disagreement' would be no problem. However, Tersman argues that there is no believable response to the argument from ambiguity and, as such, realism should be rejected. In Chapter 6, Tersman elaborates a recurring issue in his book concerning translation as a positive reason for rejecting moral realism. Essentially, and in basic terms, certain views of translation: support the claim that we can correctly translate someone's words with our "right", "good," and so on, in spite of the fact that we assign different truth conditions to sentences that predicate them. For that claim is incompatible with realism. (107) For the rest of this review I consider the 'argument from ambiguity'. First, it is worth making a terminological point. Tersman has a clear account of what being a realist amounts to. First, cognitivism: that moral judgments consist solely of suitably qualified -- in functional terms -- beliefs (12). Second, antinihilism: there are facts in virtue of which moral judgements are true (17). Third, absolutism: that any version according to which people ascribe different properties to an action by judging it right, wrong, and so on is incompatible with realism (18). Fourth, objectivism: that moral judgments are true and representational in the same way as physical claims (19). So, why does the argument from ambiguity -- the 'key argument' -- threaten moral realism? Tersman claims that, 'Hare was possibly the first to launch the argument from ambiguity.' (85) My rough interpretation of this version of the argument from ambiguity is as follows: (1) A missionary finds that some cannibals, although using 'good' just as he does, as 'the most general adjective of commendation', also finds that they apply it differently -- e.g. to those who collect the most skulls, those who are the most aggressive, etc. (2) If the missionary and the cannibals have different applications then they must express different beliefs when applying 'good'. (3) If they express different beliefs then the missionary and cannibals must be referring to different properties. (4) If the missionary and cannibals are referring to different properties then they must mean different things by 'good'. (5) If they mean different things by 'good' then there can be no genuine disagreement between them about what is/isn't good. Moreover - and this is the key: (6) We do believe that the missionary and cannibals can have a genuine disagreement about what is 'good'. When the missionary claims that eating human flesh isn't good and the cannibals say it is, they do feel opposed to one another, they engage in a debate to try to convince each other, etc. Therefore, we seem forced to reject at least one of (3), (4) or (5). So either: (7) Although the missionary and cannibals apply 'good' differently, they express the same belief and refer to the same property, and 'good' has the same meaning for them. (8) Although the missionary and cannibals refer to different properties with the term 'good' (because they express different beliefs), they mean the same by 'good'. (9) Although the missionary and cannibals have different beliefs, they refer to the same property and thus mean the same by 'good'. Essentially, Tersman argues (a) that (7)-(9) aren't available to the realist, and that as such the realist has to construe the disagreement as merely apparent, but (b) given (6) it is implausible to construe the disagreement as merely apparent. This is the argument from ambiguity. Let's consider (a) and (b) in turn. The typical response from the modern realist on behalf of (a) is to accept (9) and this is how I will restrict my discussion.[2] They reject the assumption that reference is determined by 'what is in the head' (of course, with certain internalist qualifications). If reference is fixed by, say, actual causal regulation, then the fact that people have different beliefs doesn't challenge the fact that they are referring to the same property. Realism is saved, since it can show why disagreement that appears to be genuine really is genuine. It can show that the missionary and the cannibal aren't talking 'at cross purposes' when debating whether, say, headhunting is 'good', and they can as such respect (6). Tersman rejects this causal story as a way of accepting (9). His basic reasoning is as follows. How does one decide when one is having a genuine moral disagreement with someone? Do we consider which property it is that regulates our opponent's evaluative terms? No: In "deciding" whether to regard this person as a genuine opponent … we simply don't care about which property it is that regulates his use of [the term in question] (94). So the causal story seems to miss the mark. Is (9), then, an untenable option? Not yet. Tersman considers two other options. The realist could adopt Burge's 'social externalism', or Wedgwood's 'conceptual role semantics'.[3] However, he suggests that both of these will fail. I won't go into the details of Tersman's argument here. However, his account of Wedgwood's conceptual role semantics leads me into a number of worries I had with the book. First, I was slightly perturbed by the fact that the cognitive and ontological issues were sometimes run together: the target of an argument is sometimes said to be realism, but the argument is couched in terms of cognitivism/non-cognitivism (the whole discussion of the 'argument from ambiguity' is an example). This isn't a huge problem; however, I think the reader needs to be particularly attentive to the shift in emphasis, and it would have been beneficial to have more 'signposting' to this fact. Second, I think that there is a bigger potential problem in how Tersman defines 'realism'. For him, for instance, John McDowell, Richard Miller and Ralph Wedgwood turn out to be non-cognitivists and anti-realists. This may cause us concern. To highlight this worry, consider a quotation from where Tersman discusses Wedgwood's conceptual role semantics: the main problem in the present context is that realism is conceived as a continuity thesis. It says that moral judgements are beliefs not different in kind from beliefs of areas such as, say, physics, where this partly means that their contents are determined in the same way. Wedgwood's account, by contrast, entails that their contents are determined differently. The meanings of terms in physics are given by rules of theoretical reasoning, whereas the meanings of moral terms are given by rules of practical reasoning. This is to surrender the game to the antirealist. (98) I think the realist should be less of a coward in the face of this battle. Is it really that crazy that the 'content of beliefs' about electrons is 'determined' in a different way than the content of beliefs about goodness? It seems sensible to me that the realist would read this above quotation as a good reason to give up the continuity thesis. Why, after all, would we think that moral judgements express the same types of belief as those in, say, physics? Arguably, then, we could ask about what starting point this discussion has. In other words, we could suggest that what, for example, Wedgwood's account does is give us a more fine-grained and subtle way of specifying the realist position -- it forces us to give up a crude form of the continuity thesis. This discussion matters because it means that there could be a jolly good reason for accepting (9) e.g. via conceptual role semantics, say, and as such rejecting the argument from ambiguity -- and thereby the 'key argument' in Tersman's book. However, let's put this point to one side. Let's grant that the realist has to accept that some apparently genuine disagreements -- such as between the missionary and the cannibals -- are just that, merely apparent. Of course, the pressing question now is, 'so what?' 'Why would the truth of that claim pose a threat to realism'? (99). 'Can't the realist just "dig in his heels" and suggest that we are often confused about things?' Tersman suggests not -- things just aren't that easy for the realist. This discussion forms the second part of his 'argument from ambiguity'. One way of framing the alleged problem for the realist might be this. If there were disagreements with all the features of genuine ones, but which aren't genuine, then how come they have all the features of genuine disagreements? But Tersman argues that this way of proceeding isn't the best, since it makes it far too easy for realists to respond. First they could argue that we typically enter a disagreement with the presumption that our opponent refers to the same property. We believe that the opponent means the same by their terms as we do. So the reason that there is a feeling of genuine disagreement is just that the parties falsely believe that there is a conflict of beliefs. Or second, the realist could claim that the reason there is a feeling of a genuine disagreement is because there is a clash of attitudes -- not a clash of beliefs. After all: Realism implies that moral judgement consists of beliefs. But this does not exclude that ethical sentences are often used to express desires as well, and that clashes of desires in some cases underlie disputes over such sentences (101). Tersman's point, though, is that the challenge that these responses address isn't the most powerful way of putting the challenge to the realist. The question isn't merely how the realist can explain the disagreement. For given the comments above, they could probably do this relatively easily. The point is that in proceeding like this, they are appealing to something external to realism. And this is important, for it was meant to be moral disagreement per se that gave the realist their advantage in the anti-realist/realist debate. But given the ambiguity claim, this form of reasoning isn't available. Given that there could be cases where people believe they are in a genuine disagreement -- they are disposed to engage each other in discussion, they "feel opposed," they develop arguments and so on -- but where they don't actually disagree, then conceiving of moral disagreements as conflicts of belief doesn't provide the best explanation of why people who are in moral disagreement behave as if moral disagreements are conflicts of belief. An explanation requires something else, something external to realism. Or to put it another way, the cognitivist infers from moral disagreement to the claim that people in disagreement have incompatible beliefs, but this inference is only plausible if the realist can show that disputes that have the features of a genuine disagreement don't satisfy the ambiguity condition. Unfortunately they can't: by committing themselves to an idea about the nature of moral disagreement that is neither prompted by nor justifiable in terms of the idea that moral judgements consist of beliefs, this would leave them with little reason for remaining cognitivists. (106) This conclusion in conjunction with another argument in chapter 4 is meant to provide a tough challenge for the realist. There are a number of things that I think are worth asking oneself when considering this argument. For instance, 'What counts as a good or bad explanation?' 'When is an inference a bad inference?' 'Why are cognitivists, cognitivists in the first place? -- are they motivated by arguments to the best explanation?' Or perhaps most important, 'Has Tersman characterised cognitivism in a way that the cognitivists are going to be happy with?' I can't follow up on any of these here. Needless to say, there are many more interesting and controversial things in the argument from ambiguity and in the book in general -- in particular I haven't even touched on the issues about the role of translation that Tersman focuses on in chapter 6. However, overall I found Tersman's book very interesting and thought provoking. And although I felt it required slightly more detail in parts (especially the argument from ambiguity), it is clearly presented and does a good job of clarifying the issues surrounding 'the argument from disagreement'. And I believe that anyone interested in metaethics should read it. [1] Tersman's discussion is informed by Crispin Wright's Truth and Objectivity. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1992. [2] See, for instance, Boyd. R. "How To Be a Moral Realist," in G. Sayre-McCord (ed.), Essays on Moral Realism. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1998, 181-228 and Brink, D. O. Moral Realism and the Foundations of Ethics. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1989. [3] For example, see T. Burge "Individualism and the Mental", in P. French, T. Uehling, and H. Wettstein (eds.) Midwest Studies in Philosophy 4, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1979. R. Wedgwood "Conceptual Role Semantics for Moral Terms," Philosophical Review 110 (2001), 1-30.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line919
__label__cc	0.507842	0.492158	ADB realigns operations to better meet region’s challenges The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is realigning its operations to emphasise inclusiveness, build resilience, and strengthen support for middle-income countries, according to a midterm review report of its Strategy 2020, ADB’s long-term strategic framework. “The Asia-Pacific region is changing fast — and so must ADB,” said ADB president Takehiko Nakao. The region continues to face a huge poverty challenge. More than 700 million people live below the extreme poverty line of $1.25-per-day. The report showed that extreme poverty in the region can be eliminated by 2025. However, this may not be enough. Poverty in Asia and the Pacific is understated on the current poverty threshold of $1.25-per-day, Nakao noted, emphasising that the threshold is too low for poor populations in the region to subsist. More than 1.6 billion people live on less than $2-a-day and are highly vulnerable to job loss, health problems, prolonged recession, inflation, crop failure, and environmental dangers. Inequalities within and between countries in the region are also increasing. At the same time, a majority of ADB’s 45 developing member countries are already middle-income countries. All but two of them are expected to reach middle-income status by 2020. “The challenge for ADB is to help developing member countries eradicate remaining poverty, support greater inclusiveness to address inequalities, and become more relevant and effective in middle-income countries," Nakao said. The report, approved by ADB's Board of Directors yesterday, identifies 10 strategic priorities. The first seven priorities seek to sharpen and rebalance ADB operations and strengthen responsiveness to the changing business environment. The remaining three aim to increase ADB’s capacity and effectiveness. Poverty reduction and inclusive economic growth; environment and climate change; regional cooperation and integration; infrastructure development; middle-income countries; private sector development and operations; knowledge solutions; financial resources and partnerships; delivering value for money; and organising to meet new challenges are the key priorities. The report reconfirmed that ADB will continue to focus on infrastructure development, as infrastructure plays a critical role in reducing poverty and promoting inclusive growth. ADB will also double its investments in health and education, sectors that enable better access to opportunities for all. Middle-income countries will need to become more innovative and raise their productivity to avoid middle-income traps. To better serve its client countries, ADB itself has to become more innovative, Nakao said. The report outlines ADB’s new approaches in mobilising resources, simplifying processes, strengthening staff skills, and using information and communications technology.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line920
__label__cc	0.694977	0.305023	Stanford Business – What is the economic impact of venture capital on US economy? Posted on November 7, 2015 by GCASE News New academic report measures the impact of venture capital funded companies by Ilya A. Strebulaev Stanford Graduate School of Business, Professor of Finance Director of The Emerging CFO: Strategic Financial Leadership Executive Program Will Gornall Sauder School of Business Assistant Professor, Finance Division Over the past 30 years, venture capital has become a dominant force in the financing of innovative American companies. From Google to Intel to FedEx, companies supported by venture capital have profoundly changed the U.S. economy. Despite the young age of the venture capital industry, a fifth of current public U.S. companies received venture capital financing. Venture capital (VC) is a high-touch form of financing that is used primarily by young, innovative, and highly risky companies. Venture capitalists provide not only financing but also mentorship, strategic guidance, network access, and other support. These investments are highly speculative — most of the companies that receive VC funding will fail, even as some become runaway successes. Three out of the five largest companies in the world received most of their early external financing from VC. Clearly, Apple, Google, and Microsoft are among the most innovative and most important companies in a generation. But how important are these and other VC-backed companies to the U.S. economy? How do they compare to industrial behemoths such as General Motors or massive financial institutions such as Bank of America in terms of job creation and overall economic impact? We set out to quantify the long-term impact of VC on the U.S. economy. We started by classifying companies as either VC-backed or non–VC-backed, considering only public companies that are traded on major U.S. stock exchanges. While most successful VC investments end with the company being acquired, reliable information is currently available only on those companies that become publicly listed. Thus, our results likely underestimate the impact of VC on the economy. We called a company as VC-backed if it was financed in its early stage by a VC fund. Our starting point is the classification used in Thomson One data. We cross-checked that with IPO data constructed by Jay Ritter. We then manually checked more than 200 companies that together represent more than 80% of the market capitalization of the VC-backed companies. As of December 2013, our sample of public companies had 4,063 firms with total market capitalization of $21.3 trillion. Of those, 710, or 18%, of the companies are VC-backed. Their total market capitalization is $4.3 trillion (20%). These companies tend to be young and fast growing, which explains why their revenue is a relatively smaller fraction of the revenue of the total sample (10%), but their research and development is 42% of the total. That is more than a quarter of the total government, academic, and private U.S. R&D spending of $454 billion. They also employ 4 million people. This exercise both understates and overstates the importance of VC. We overstate the importance of VC funding to the extent that successful VC-backed companies may well have been successful even without VC financing. Of course, the fact that so many successful entrepreneurs choose VC financing suggests that this financing plays an important role in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. On the other hand, we understate the importance of VC financing because we ignore the positive spillovers these firms create. From Windows to FedEx, the technologies developed by VC-backed firms have changed the world beyond. Another major way our previous analysis understated the importance of VC for today’s young companies is because so many public companies were founded before the VC industry even existed. For example, Ford and General Electric were founded more than 100 years ago. While a number of well-known companies were funded by the first generation of the venture capitalists starting in the 1950s, the U.S. VC industry came into its own only after a regulatory change in 1979 that allowed pension funds to invest in VC. That rule change, known as the Prudent Man Rule, led to a greater than tenfold increase in the money entrusted to VC funds: VC funds raised $4.5 billion annually from 1982 to 1987, up from just $0.1 billion 10 years earlier. VC-backed companies include some of the most innovative companies in the world To level the playing field, we redid our analysis using only those companies founded during or after 1979. The idea here is to see what portion of the companies that could have received VC financing choose to use VC financing. This exercise excluded the likes of Ford and General Electric, and focused on companies founded since the regulatory changes. This analysis changed the results dramatically. Of the currently public U.S. companies we have founding dates for, approximately 1,330 were founded between 1979 and 2013. Of those, 574, or 43%, are VC-backed. These companies comprise 57% of the market capitalization and 38% of the employees of all such “new” public companies. Moreover, their R&D expenditure constitutes an overwhelming 82% of the total R&D of new public companies. Given that the VC industry has been in large part spurred by the relaxation of the Prudent Man Rule, these results also provide an illustration of the impact that changes in government regulation can have on the overall economy. Our results also suggest that the VC industry has leveraged a small amount of capital — when compared to the private equity industry — into investments that resulted in a large number of important companies. Over the past 50 years, the U.S. VC industry has raised $0.6 trillion and made its investments from that pool. Over that same period, the private equity industry raised four times as much, at $2.4 trillion — four times as much. In 2014, the private equity industry raised $218 billion, almost 10 times the $31 billion raised by the VC industry. In fact, VC funds invest in only 0.19% of new U.S. businesses. VC-backed companies include some of the most innovative companies in the world. To get an idea of the importance of these companies, it is instructive to look at research and development. In 2013, VC-backed U.S. public companies spent $115 billion on research and development; up from essentially zero in 1979. These VC-backed companies now account for a 42% of the R&D spending by U.S. public companies. That R&D spending produces value for not just those companies, but also the entire world through positive spillovers. VC-backed companies make up a consistently high fraction of those companies undergoing initial public offerings. Between 1979 and 2013, over 2,600 VC-backed companies had their initial public offerings. They made up 28% of the total number of U.S. IPOs during that period. The percentage of initial public offerings that were VC-backed varies by year. That percentage reached a high of 59% during the dot-com boom, but has been greater than 18% in each of the last 20 years. The VC industry specializes in investing in innovative companies with a huge potential for growth. Because these investments are risky and most of these companies fail, VC funds seek to invest in companies where small investments can generate huge returns. That naturally leads to a focus on certain industries. The industries most impacted by investment have been technology (for example, Apple, Google, or Cisco), retail trade (Amazon, Starbucks, or Costco), and biotechnology (Amgen, Celgene, or Genentech). Industries with higher capital needs, such as finance and primary industries, have seen relatively few VC successes. The small, targeted investments VC funds make are a poor vehicle to finance capital-intensive projects, such as real estate development or mining. While the technologies that VC-backed companies developed have transformed many of those industries as well, our current analysis does not allow us to study that indirect impact. VC-backed companies play an increasingly important role in the U.S. economy. Over the past 20 years, these companies have been a prime driver of both economic growth and private sector employment. Since 1974, a quarter of net job growth for publicly listed corporations has come from VC-backed companies. VC-style financing is not the sole reason these companies succeeded; in fact, VC was not even the sole source of financing for many of these companies. However, large and growing fractions of entrepreneurs are choosing VC financing. These entrepreneurs think VC financing is the best way to grow their companies. That makes it clear that VC is an important part of the innovation ecosystem and has helped some of the world’s most successful companies to grow. >>READ MORE – PDF Study >>READ MORE – @ Stanford.edu SOURCE: Stanford.edu tagged with Economics, Venture Capital	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line921
__label__wiki	0.747891	0.747891	Operations and Decision Technologies john.turner@uci.edu PhD, Operations Research, Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University MSc, Operations Research, Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University B.Math. Honors Operations Research Co-op, University of Waterloo Media planning / advertising allocation Applied & large-scale optimization john.turner@uci.edu Personal website John Turner, Associate Professor of Operations and Decision Technologies, joined The Paul Merage School of Business in 2010. He holds a PhD in Operations Research from the Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University. For his doctoral work titled Ad Slotting and Pricing: New Media Planning Models for New Media, Turner was honored by INFORMS with the 2011 George B. Dantzig Dissertation Award. This award is given for the best dissertation in any area of operations research and the management sciences that is innovative and relevant to practice. More recently, Turner was named a 2012 Yahoo! Faculty Research & Engagement Program Scholar for his work in planning and scheduling online advertising, and was awarded the 2014 INFORMS William Pierskalla Best Paper Award in Health Care Management Science for his work on designing a trauma care system in Korea. Turner's research interests include applied optimization, large-scale optimization, revenue management, media management, health care management, and problems that lie at the interface of operations and marketing. His research has been published in leading journals, including “Scheduling of Dynamic In-Game Advertising” in the journal Operations Research, “Planning of Guaranteed Targeted Display Advertising' in Operations Research, “Simultaneous Location of Trauma Centers and Helicopters for Emergency Medical Service Planning' in Operations Research, “A Unified Framework for the Scheduling of Guaranteed Targeted Display Advertising under Reach and Frequency Requirements” in Operations Research, “A Large U.S. Retailer Selects Transportation Carriers under Diesel Price Uncertainty” in Interfaces, “Mixed Planar and Network Single-Facility Location Problems” in Networks, and “Evaluation Set Size and Purchase: Evidence from a Product Search Engine” in the Journal of Interactive Marketing. Turner’s primary research stream addresses various problems in the planning, pricing, and scheduling of online advertising. Applications of his research include webpage banner ads, dynamic in-game advertising (ads that are seamlessly placed into 3D video games), electronic outdoor billboards, and the next generation of digital TV. Prior to his academic career, Turner worked in the IT industry as a consultant, as an operations analyst in retail distribution, and as a quantitative analyst in the financial sector. Turner also holds an M.S. in Operations Research from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University, and a B.Math., Honors Operations Research Co-op with a minor in Computer Science from the University of Waterloo, Canada. Hojjat, A., J. Turner, S. Cetintas, J. Yang. A Unified Framework for the Scheduling of Guaranteed Targeted Display Advertising under Reach and Frequency Requirements. Operations Research, In Press (Accepted). Arkhipov, D., J. Turner, M. Dillencourt, P. Torres, A. Regan. 2016. Yield Optimization with Binding Latency Constraints. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Soft Computing and Machine Intelligence (ISCMI), In Press (Accepted). Choudhary, V., I. Currim, S. Dewan, I. Jeliazkov, O. Mintz, J. Turner. 2016. Evaluation Set Size and Purchase: Evidence from a Product Search Engine. Journal of Interactive Marketing, In Press (Accepted). Drezner, Z., C. H. Scott, J. Turner. 2016. Mixed Planar and Network Single-Facility Location Problems. Networks, In Press (Accepted). Cho, S-H., Hoon Jang, Taesik Lee, John Turner. 2014. Simultaneous Location of Trauma Centers and Helicopters for Emergency Medical Service Planning. Operations Research, 62(4) 751--771. Hojjat, A., J. Turner, S. Cetintas, J. Yang. 2014, Delivering Guaranteed Display Ads under Reach and Frequency Requirements. In Proceedings of the 28th AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, pp. 2278-2284. Turner, J., B. Peterson, S-H. Cho, S. Kekre, A. Scheller-Wolf. 2012. A Large U.S. Retailer Selects Transportation Carriers under Diesel Price Uncertainty. Interfaces, 42(4) 365--379. Turner, J. 2012. The Planning of Guaranteed Targeted Display Advertising. Operations Research, 60(1) 18--33. Lee, T., H. Jang, S.-H. Cho, J. Turner, 2012. A Simulation-Based Iterative Method for a Trauma Center - Air Ambulance Location Problem. Proceedings of the 2012 IEEE Winter Simulation Conference, pp. 955-966 Turner, J., A. Scheller-Wolf, S. Tayur. 2011. Scheduling of Dynamic In-Game Advertising. Operations Research, 59(1) 1--16. 2015 Dean's Honoree for Teaching Excellence, University of California at Irvine 2014 INFORMS William Pierskalla Best Paper Award in Health Care Management Science 2012 Lave-Weil Prize for Best Working Paper on Problem Solving, Carnegie Mellon University 2012 Yahoo! Faculty Research & Engagement Grant 2011 INFORMS George B. Dantzig Dissertation Award, First Place 2011 Council on Research, Computing & Library Resources (CORCL) Award.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line924
__label__cc	0.579598	0.420402	maritza.salazar@uci.edu PhD, New York University MSW, University of Southern California BA, Standford University Group dynamics and processes Team-based organizations Global teams Impact of culture on work behavior Management of innovation and learning Professor Salazar joined The Paul Merage School of Business in 2016 as an Assistant Professor of Organization and Management. Her research focuses on learning and innovation in teams and organizations. Her scientific research yields novel insights that enhance the competitiveness of firms, the effectiveness of teams, and the quality of the work experience for individuals. Through detailed field studies, survey research, and rigorous experimental methods she explores several research questions including: How can organizational structures and human resource practices enhance multinational firm performance? What are the underlying psychological, social, and cognitive processes that promote collaboration in teams comprised of members from different cultural backgrounds? How can leadership, team composition, and training enable science teams to integrate diverse knowledge, methods, and approaches to solve complex problems? Professor Salazar is the recipient of numerous research awards including a major multi-year grant from the National Science Foundation ($420,000) focused on studying and facilitating the integrative capacity of interdisciplinary science teams. She has also consulted, advised, or spoken about her research on the science of team science at various academic institutions. She was also invited to use her team science expertise for the Army Research Office, Fortune 500 companies, the National Institutes of Health and medial centers around the country. Salazar, M. & Salas, E. (2013). Reflection of Cross-Cultural Collaboration Science. Journal of Organizational Behavior. Vol. 34, pp. 910-917. DOI: 10.1002/job.1881. Bedwell, W. L., Wildman, J. L., DiazGranados, D., Salazar, M., Kramer, W. S., & Salas, E. (2012). Clarifying collaboration: An integrative multilevel conceptualization. Human Resources Management Review, 22(2), pp.128-145. Salazar, M., Lant, T., Fiore, S., Salas, E. (2012). Integrative Capacity: A New Perspective for Understanding Interdisciplinary Team Processes and Outcomes. Small Group Research, DOI: 10.1177/1046496412453622. 2015 Invited Panelist, Symposium on Enhancing the Effectiveness of Team Science, National Academies of Science 2014 International Best Paper Award Finalist, Careers Division, Academy of Management 2013 National Science Foundation Grant, Science of Science Policy & Science of Organization ($420,000)	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line925
__label__wiki	0.787796	0.787796	These Two $1 Million Grants Are a Waste of Money Pablo Eisenberg Editor’s Note: Pablo Eisenberg is one of philanthropy’s most outspoken observers, and here he takes up the recent awarding of two grants, each for a million dollars, to organizations that are a part of the philanthropic infrastructure. There are a number of issues at play here, and as with any op-ed, we do not necessarily agree with Pablo’s stance. However, he remains one of the insightful champions who have kept open dialogue alive in philanthropy. As always, we invite readers to respond. At a time when small grassroots, advocacy, and watchdog nonprofits are desperately fighting to maintain their precarious budgets, two recent million-dollar grants to two established, well-financed organizations seem inappropriate and a waste of philanthropic resources. It is hard to tell why the Ford, Hewlett, Packard, Kresge and Robert Wood Johnson foundations and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund would combine to provide general support funding to the Center for Effective Philanthropy, based in Boston, and Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, an affinity group of the Council on Foundations, both of which already receive ample financing from the foundation world. The Chronicle of Philanthropy labeled the grants as akin to MacArthur genius awards for nonprofits. The funders said it was an effort to step up the two organizations’ work to improve the performance of foundations. But however the grants are called, they do not appear to carry the seeds of creativity and innovation. Genius organizations, they are not. The Center of Effective Philanthropy has an annual budget of $7 million and a staff of 36. It does research on foundation practices and is perhaps best known for its “satisfaction” surveys of foundations, which try to determine the reaction of both foundation and grantee staff to a foundation’s grantmaking process. This is the softest type of evaluation; the Center does not sponsor independent, hard-hitting evaluations. Nor does it explore some of the more fundamental ailments of the field: the lack of diversity on foundation boards, the enormous growth in unsolicited proposals, the inequity of who gets the benefits from foundation funding, the stagnant payout rate; the dangers in the increasing number of mega-foundations, and the issue of philanthropic control and power. In short, it is by no means a foundation change agent. Grantmakers for Effective Organizations is an in-house institution that tries gently to push the foundation community toward better standards, greater accountability, higher performance and more effective leadership. It has an annual budget of $4.5 million and a staff of 25. But it, too, does not have much of an advocacy bone, preferring not to engage in the tougher issues that face the foundation world. What is notable about the two recipient organizations is that their boards are almost entirely composed, with few exceptions, of foundation or ex-foundation people. James Abernathy, former ED of the Environmental Support Center, appears to have been the lone nonprofit representative in the history of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations. No major nonprofit leaders or community activists have had the opportunity to contribute to the thinking and decision-making of either organization. During the past year, the Center for Effective Philanthropy received $1,400,000 in general support from the six funders that just gave the organization an additional million dollars. And its funders’ list comprises a “who’s who” of major foundations. Did it really need the new money? Similarly, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations has an impressive stable of funders, large and small. The past year, it received $200,000 from the Ford Foundation and $425,000 over three years from the Hewlett Foundation in addition to its $1 million grant. It is not in need of additional resources. As an insider within the foundation community, it can command whatever support it requires. So why give it more? The two grants send an unfortunate, indeed undesirable, message to the nonprofit community. Not that the two recipients are doing a lousy job; in fact, both organizations are well led and doing competent, if pedestrian, work. But their undeserved grants say loud and clear that foundations seem to care more for their own colleagues than for those nonprofits that are laboring hard under financial duress to address our society’s major social, economic, environmental, and cultural problems. There are plenty of fine nonprofits in in a variety of fields that could use a couple million dollars. Our major foundations should think about them before they make other, similarly well intended but unsuitable awards. Perhaps we should consider ourselves fortunate that the six funders did not give additional million-dollar grants to the Council on Foundations and Independent Sector. Pablo Eisenberg is a senior fellow at the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute. Philadelphia Foundation Invites a Moment of Engagement on Its Anniversary By Ruth McCambridge and Erin Rubin Drumroll, Please, for the Engaged Cities Awards! By Derrick Rhayn Bullitt Foundation Elects for a Five-Year Wind-Down By Catherine Jones A Different Kind of Grant Program in the Richness of Chicago The Patience of Conservative Philanthropy and Our Federal Court System An Ugly Naming Rights Fiasco Plays Out at Paul Smith’s... By Pablo Eisenberg On Gun Control, White House Fails to Tap Power of (Its Own... Fleishman’s World – An Essay	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line927
__label__cc	0.538406	0.461594	Open Access Publishing of Medical Imaging Articles Open Medscience provides a platform for Open Access Publishing through its Blog and the peer-reviewed Journal of Diagnostic Imaging in Therapy (JDIT) on the topics of medical imaging modalities and theranostics according to the aims and scope. The JDIT peer-review process is coordinated by the Editorial Director to complete an initial assessment of your article within 3 days of submission. If successful, the medical imaging article will enter the peer-review process which should be completed within 28 days leading to a successful e-publication. Benefits of Open Access Publishing On publication, the JDIT article will be assigned a CrossRef DOI number and HTML CrossMark to indicate the current version. All articles published on the Open Medscience platform will undergo Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) prior to publication in a routine effort to make them more search engine friendly, with a focus on Google search. The Journal of Diagnostic Imaging in Therapy is registered in the ROAD (Directory of Open Access Scholarly Resource) database. JDIT articles where possible are stored in the British Library, Internet Archive and PDF-Archive. Open Medscience aims to maximise exposure of the published article throughout its extensive media links. JDIT adopts the COPE (Code of Conduct for Journal Editors). Medical Imaging Articles All medical imaging articles are published on the open access platform under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) initiative for the free dissemination of scientific knowledge. This licence allows for the free and unlimited access to the full-text of all articles published by Open Medscience; all published material is free to be used only if proper citation of the original publication is stated; the open access publication is supported by the authors’ institutions and various funding bodies Disclaimer: The published article may contain images, figures and table formats which may have been from other published sources. In these cases, the Journal of Diagnostic Imaging in Therapy including the Blog published by Open Medscience Limited does not hold the copyright for the published material. Therefore, all authors must seek permission to re-license the published content from the original copyright holder to ascertain whether this material can be used in other media formats. At Open Medscience, we aim to improve the way research findings are addressed and communicated. Therefore, Open Medscience will be open to any suggestions and are committed to working with authors, readers and editorial board members and reviewers to improve the future of open access publishing. You Are Here: Home » Home » about us ISSN: 2057-3782 Online Open Access Articles Journal of Diagnostic Imaging in Therapy Diagnostic Medical Imaging Blog	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line929
__label__wiki	0.788854	0.788854	UNPO: Oromo: Nationwide Protests Against Continued Marginalization and Suppression August 8, 2016 Tags: Africa, Genocidal killings against Oromo people, Grand #OromoProtests, Oromia, Oromo, Oromo News, Self determination, UNPO Oromo: Nationwide Protests Against Continued Marginalization and Suppression Photo Courtesy of: Awol Allo 2016 @Zehabesha Already, dozens have been killed and thousands arrested by security forces in what is a new, nation-wide wave of Oromo protest which has swept through Ethiopia. When the protests started in November 2015, the focus was primarily on the central government’s proposed expansion of the capital into Oromo territory. Since then, the protestor’s focus has widened – mainly due to the government’s brutal response – and they now raise broader economic and political grievances which are also shared by other ethnic groups in Ethiopia. Below is an article published by African Arguments: Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo, have staged nationwide rallies today to protest their continued marginalisation and persecution by the government. These are a culmination of ongoing protests by the Oromo people since November 2015 and mark by far the most significant political development in the country since the death of the country’s long-time authoritarian leader, Meles Zenawi, in 2012. At least hundreds of thousands of protestors reportedly took to the streets in more than 200 towns and cities across Oromia, Ethiopia’s largest regional state, to demonstrate against widespread and systematic persecution. According to local media reports, over 50 individuals have been killed and thousands arrested as police and security forces opened fire on peaceful protestors. These details are likely to change as more information comes in, though the government has severely restricted the internet and social media making communication difficult. What are now widely referred to as the #Oromoprotests began in November 2015 when the government introduced the Addis Ababa City Integrated Master Plan, effectively expanding the territorial limits of capital Addis Ababa into neighbouring Oromo towns and villages. Oromo political leaders and activists argued that the plan, as designed, would displace millions of Oromo farmers from their ancestral lands and would threaten to eventually cleanse Oromo culture and identity from the area. The protests were triggered by the announcement of the Master Plan and menacing land-grab policies that have already displaced more than 150, 000 Oromo farmers from the area, but they were also manifestations of a much deeper crisis of massive ethnic-based inequalities and discontentment that have been boiling underground, waiting to erupt. Since the protests have begun, the government has arrested and jailed many of its vital and outspoken activists and organisers. A recent report by the Human Rights Watch puts the death toll from the first seven months of the protest at over 400 while the figure tallied by activists is significantly higher. The Oromo are the largest ethnic group both in Ethiopia and East Africa, consisting of more than a third of Ethiopia’s 100 million people. However, the group has been marginalised and discriminated against by subsequent Ethiopian governments. Oromo culture and identity have been stigmatised and pushed into the periphery of country’s national life, while Oromo history has been filtered out of public memory. Since assuming state power in 1991, the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF) has sought to exploit historic disagreements between the Oromos and Amharas, the second largest ethnic group, to sustain the hegemony of ethnic Tigrayan elites. The TPLF framed longstanding Oromo demands for equality and justice as the greatest threat to Ethiopia’s unity and regional stability, and it used historic antagonisms between Oromo and Amhara as a political instrument to legitimise, justify, and consolidate its political and economic hegemony. The “Oromo question” became the quintessential Ethiopian problem. Within this frame, Oromos are presented as narrow-minded, extremist, and exclusionary, while the Amharas are presented as chauvinist and violent. By producing crisis between the two groups, the current TPLF-led system presented itself both locally and internationally as the only moderate centrist force that can secure Ethiopia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity from the secessionist threat of the Oromos and the perceived far-right extremism of the Amharas. In the decade since 9/11, Ethiopia refashioned itself as an anchor of stability in an increasingly restless region and began to build a reputation as a regional policing and intelligence powerhouse. As part of this West-facing strategy, it announced its 2006 invasion of Somalia as a war against terrorism, conning the US into sponsoring its proxy war with Eritrea. As the crisis in Somalia deepened, Ethiopia cemented its reputation further, emerging as America’s most reliable partner in the Horn of Africa. This is not a partnership based on shared values of freedom, liberty, and commitment to democracy, but one based purely on security considerations. Ethiopia served as America’s local ally, and America, in turn, provided enormous financial, technical and diplomatic support. This brought in much-needed resources for the government to build the political and security infrastructure that has as its main aim the policing, control, and surveillance of internal dissent and opposition. As the US began to define its foreign and human rights policy through the lens of fighting terror − entering a period of post-truth and post-moral politics in which sacrificing people in distant places in return for security became fair game − this emerged as the paradigmatic threat upon which the West’s fears and anxieties were projected. This made its ally Ethiopia completely impervious to criticism, even as the government used its grotesque anti-terrorism law to crush dissent, decimate the opposition, muzzle the media, and shrink civic space to extinction – all the while holding periodic elections. Just as terrorism in the West is entangled with religion, terrorism in Ethiopia is entangled with ethnicity. And Oromos have been the primary victims of Ethiopia’s cynical appropriation of the cultural referents and resonances of the War on Terror. Ethnic domination forms the hidden underside of the terrorism-politics nexus in the country. And its anti-terrorism law has provided the government with the most powerful political device to criminalise, police, and prosecute independent expressions and articulations of the Oromo question. Through the magic of this law, even the most basic of demands for human rights or expressions of opposition to government policy can be twisted into an existential threat. Ethiopia’s persistent turn to its anti-terrorism law to purge critical opposition, activists, journalists, and community leaders is an unqualified disgrace to Ethiopia and its partners on the Global War on Terror. The #Oromoprotests are a clear response to these and other forms of historic discrimination, and today’s nationwide protests mark a clear break from previous forms of protests in terms of its coordination and mobilisation. In a letter addressed to the government, protestors expressed their rejection of “the regime” and specifically asked the government to stop the violence against the Oromo, to free Oromo and other political prisoners, and to end military rule in Oromia and allow genuine self-rule, among others. The government’s violent response to peaceful demands has led protestors to demand more radical and systemic change. The #Oromoprotests are no longer a single-issue movement. This is unchartered territory for the country and how the government reacts could go a long way to determining its fate. But today’s protest makes it clear that there can be no more business as usual for Ethiopia’s ruling elites. http://unpo.org/article/19363	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line932
__label__cc	0.729058	0.270942	Windows 10 Creators Update to begin roll out on April 11 The latest major update called as Windows 10 Creators Update, will finally go live on April 11, 2017. This new update is especially targeted towards creative professionals, bringing in a lot of features like 3D design and broadcasting to all the users. These are some of the upcoming features in Windows 10 Creators Update. 1. 3D Design with the new Paint app With the Creators update, there is a big focus on 3D designing and creation. Windows 10 will now have the 3D Paint app, which makes it easy to create 3D objects from scratch, easily changing colors, stamping textures, or turning a 2D picture into a 3D work of art. Microsoft has also tied up with Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, and Lenovo to develop the world’s first Windows Mixed Reality-enabled headsets with the Creators Update, starting at just $299 USD. 2. Stream online with Beam Microsoft is introducing Beam, which lets you stream gameplay and interact with your community in real-time. It uses ultra low-latency and requires no extra hardware or software to make magic happen when you are on Twitch or YouTube, showing off your dribbling skills in Rocket League. With the additional Windows 10 Game Mode, Microsoft plans to dedicate more system resources towards improving gaming performance. 3. Microsoft Edge Windows 10’s native browser, Microsoft Edge, is a worthy upgrade to the ancient Internet Explorer. With the Creators Update, Microsoft Edge is aiming to be the best browser on Windows 10. Microsoft claims that Edge blocks 9% more phishing sites and 13% more malware than Chrome. The new update brings new features like advanced tab management to help you find, organize and open tabs you’ve set aside without leaving the page you’re on. It also makes it easy to discover and get your favorite e-books, which you can read on all your connected Windows 10 devices. Surface Book and Surface Studio coming to more markets Apart from the big Creators Update news, Microsoft also announced that the Surface Book and Surface Studio would be launched in more international markets, Austria, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, starting April 20th. You can read about all the features in Windows 10 Creators Update here. Posted by AnkitChawla@TWC with Tags Creators Update A constant learner of gadgets, Ankit has been writing about technology and the internet, in general, for the past three years, and has written for several well-known media outlets.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line933
__label__wiki	0.691029	0.691029	Iceberg Vodka Signs Ten Year Distribution Agreement with Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Canada Friday, June 8, 2018 9:00 am EDT #SGWS Canada has signed a ten year distribution agreement with Iceberg Vodka. TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Canada (“Southern Glazer’s”)—a division of the largest North American wine and spirits distribution company—today announced that it has signed a ten year distribution agreement with Iceberg Vodka, the only national vodka brand that is 100 percent Canadian owned and operated. This is Southern Glazer’s first agreement with Iceberg Vodka and represents the beginning of a long-term strategic partnership to expand distribution of the vodka brand throughout retail and on-premise locations in Canada. Southern Glazer’s will distribute Iceberg Vodka in nine provinces and three territories in Canada (excluding Newfoundland). The agreement was effective June 1, 2018, with the exception of Quebec, which launches October 1, 2018. “We are delighted to be joining Southern Glazers Wines & Spirits of Canada portfolio of brands, which is a perfect fit for Iceberg Vodka,” said David Meyers, President and CEO of Iceberg Vodka. “Together, we are excited about the opportunity to continue to drive and expand the distribution and sales of Iceberg, Canada’s Vodka, with Southern Glazer’s extensive customer base.” “When a supplier like Iceberg Vodka chooses to work with Southern Glazer’s, it reinforces the value that we bring to the Canadian marketplace,” added Doug Wieland, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Canada, for Southern Glazer’s. “We look forward to leveraging our selling expertise and deep data insights to introduce this quality vodka brand to more of our retail and on-premise customers throughout Canada.” Iceberg Vodka was conceived in 1994, on the vision of turning a limitless supply of iceberg water into a true Canadian business. We use a neutral spirit that is made from peaches and cream sweet corn, making our product naturally gluten free. The spirit is triple distilled and then blended with iceberg water, and charcoal filtered. This combination produces one of the smoothest tasting vodkas, making Iceberg Vodka the “world’s purest vodka™.” Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits is North America’s largest wine and spirits distributor, and the preeminent data insights company for alcoholic beverages. The Company has operations in 44 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, Canada, and the Caribbean, and employs more than 20,000 team members. Southern Glazer’s urges all retail customers and adult consumers to market, sell, serve, and enjoy its products responsibly. For more information visit www.southernglazers.com. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @sgwinespirits and on Facebook at Facebook.com/SouthernGlazers. About Iceberg Vodka Iceberg Vodka is Canada’s Vodka. We’re the only people crazy enough to sail far off the coast of Newfoundland to harvest actual icebergs. We brave the North Atlantic to bring back the world’s purest water to make the world’s purest vodka™, plain and simple. Canadian Iceberg Vodka Corporation is a private, Canadian business. Iceberg is the only national vodka brand that is 100 percent Canadian owned and operated. For more information, visit https://www.iceberg.ca. Cindy Haas, Office: (305) 625-4171, ext. 1166 or Mobile: (786) 498-7640 CindyHaas@sgws.com	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line935
__label__wiki	0.752243	0.752243	End of an era! Karl Lagerfeld, the superstar fashion designer, passes away at 85 Karl Lagerfeld, who enjoyed the stature of a god among mortals in the world of fashion has passed away at 85 in Paris after a prolonged illness. The German-born designer, who was the creative director for Chanel and Fendi, was one of the industry’s most prolific figures and worked up until his death. Lagerfeld also designed collections for his own brand and collaborated with high street brand H&M. Karl your genius touched the lives of so many, especially Gianni and I. We will never forget your incredible talent and endless inspiration. We were always learning from you. A post shared by Donatella Versace (@donatella_versace) on Feb 19, 2019 at 3:51am PST Many fashion industry big-shots have paid tribute to the iconic designer Lagerfeld, including Italian designer Donatella Versace and Henry Holland. “To design is to breathe, so if I can’t breathe I’m in trouble” RIP @KarlLagerfeld #karlargerfeld 😥 — henry holland (@henryholland) February 19, 2019 He was born Karl Otto Lagerfeldt in 1933 in pre-war Germany. Lagerfeld changed his original surname from Lagerfeldt, because he believed it sounded “more commercial”. He emigrated to Paris as a young teenager, and became a design assistant for Pierre Balmain, before working at Fendi and Chloe in the 1960s. But the designer was best known for his association with the French label Chanel. He began his long career with the fashion house in 1983, a decade after Coco Chanel died. Lagerfeld’s designs brought new life to the label, adding glitz to the prim tweed suits the couture house was known for. Lagerfeld worked tirelessly, simultaneously churning out collections for LVMH’s Fendi and his own label, up until his death. He also encouraged new designers, like Victoria Beckham, who praised him for his kindness. Lagerfeld was known for his distinctive look in his later years, regularly wearing dark suits, accessorized with a pony-tail and tinted sunglasses. Lagerfeld said of his appearance: “I am like a caricature of myself, and I like that.” Contractors asked to increase greenery on ORR Raai Laxmi’s ‘Where is The Venkata Laxmi’ trailer is here!	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line936
__label__cc	0.654261	0.345739	Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Compares Combating Climate Change to Defeating Nazi Germany "[T]he last time we had a really major existential threat in this country was around World War II." Democratic socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez compared the battle against climate change to the war waged against Nazi Germany during a recent campaign event. The Republican National Committee (RNC) posted the video of Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks at an unspecified campaign on their YouTube channel on Friday. “So, when we talk about existential threats — the last time we had a really major existential threat in this country was around World War II,” Ocasio-Cortez said in the video. “And so we’ve been here before, so we have a blueprint of doing this before. None of these things are new ideas.” “What we have is an existential threat in the context of war,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “We had a direct existential threat with another nation, this time it was Nazi Germany, who explicitly named the United States as an enemy.” “And what we did is that we chose to mobilize our entire economy, industrialize our entire economy, and we put hundreds of thousands if not millions of people to work defending our shores and defending this country,” she added. “We have to do the same thing if we’re going to get us to 100 percent renewable energy. And that’s just the truth of it.” “It may seem really big. It may seem very ambitious. It may seem very radical,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “But the fact of the matter is we’re dealing with a radical truth and a radical reality, and the more that we choose to ignore it, the worse we are doing for our children and our grandchildren and frankly ourselves.”	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line937
__label__cc	0.609649	0.390351	GIVING UP ON SCHOOL REFORM? May 15, 2007 \| 9:00am MAYOR Bloomberg likens his efforts to improve New York’s public schools to a modern version of the civil-rights movement. Until recently, that comparison seemed apt. But his recent rushed agreement with the United Federation of Teachers has made me wonder whether the last and final phase of the reform has been compromised without so much as a skirmish – much less a good, long, New York-style fight. If so, then the comparison no longer applies. The UFT deal may signal the end of the mayor’s reforms – and a serious setback for children in struggling schools. I write this as a supporter of mayoral control of the public schools. Back in January 1990, I called for the overhaul of the entire system – the “school swamp,” singling out “the dominant culture of funded failure that corrupts the entire system.” Having fought for improvements in public education for years, I’d become convinced that the old Board of Education had to go. It was dominated by a teachers’ union that had forged its character in the 1968 Oceanhill-Brownsville strike and by other interests and institutions that served themselves first and poor students last, if ever. After the bitter 1968 battle, the UFT won the right to let experienced teachers steer clear of schools filled with minority children and toward the safer and better schools in the outer boroughs. Meanwhile, the new setup allowed local politicians (of all races) to dominate the corrupt and do-nothing community school boards. They filled local offices – 32 of them, with an average of 70 bureaucrats each – with local cronies and cousins because they saw the schools as sources of patronage, contracts and contributions. Scores of non-profit groups got into the act by running do-nothing programs for “at-risk” youth. As I wrote 17 years ago, “everyone in the system knows this sad unspoken secret: The poorer the performance of the students, the larger the payroll . . . Failure is funded. Success is ignored. There are no countervailing incentives for improved performance by teachers, administrators or students.” Along with my colleagues at the East Brooklyn Congregations (EBC) and Metro Industrial Areas Foundation, I fought this culture for another decade. We were delighted when Mayor Bloomberg won control of the system. He picked the best chancellor since Frank Macchiarola, Joel Klein, and together they began to implement many of the recommendations that I’d made back in 1990: * They vacated that symbol of hopelessness and red tape – the old Board of Education at 110 Livingston St. in Brooklyn – and relocated the new Department of Education to the Tweed Courthouse near City Hall. * They eliminated all the community-school-board offices and functions. (In fact, one of EBC’s new successful high schools uses the space of an old community-school-board facility for an institution filled with teaching and learning.) * They understood that the old corrupt culture had to be radically disorganized before a new and better culture could take hold. The Bloomberg team dismantled many habits and patterns that had nothing to do with student performance and improved instruction. * In addition to disorganizing the old culture, the Bloomberg administration encouraged and supported significant reorganizing – the rapid expansion of more than 170 new small schools, mostly high schools, now serving more than 60,000 students. Not every one of the new schools is a success. But the movement to create new public and charter alternatives to existing schools is a significant innovation and a key contributor to an improved public system, long-term. But two last major changes remained to be made: equalizing the inequitable funding of schools and redistributing teachers so that every school has a mix of experienced veterans and energetic newcomers. Because the UFT controls the assignment of teachers, the more experienced teachers gravitate toward better and safer schools and stay there. This means that higher-performing schools have larger numbers of experienced and capable teachers. It’s the equivalent of a voucher program for veteran teachers: They and their higher salaries may go where they please. Students and families in poor communities are stuck. The impact on the teaching corps in poor-performing schools is obvious. Newer and younger teachers have a very high attrition rate. Assigned to schools no other teacher chooses to go to, surrounded by teachers as new and inexperienced as themselves, younger teachers tend to have less support, less mentoring and less success. A large percentage leaves within three years. The effect on the students is also great. They don’t benefit from the wisdom and professionalism that years of trial and error can bring a teacher. Instead, they see the newest and least equipped teachers year after year. Turnover in their schools is much higher than in other schools. Their morale and performance suffer. The financial impact is also serious. Because the better schools have higher numbers of veteran teachers, they have bigger budgets than poorly performing schools. Funding formulas announced by Chancellor Klein last week begin to correct this unequal funding. But the success of the city’s most challenged schools depends not just on more funds but also on the gradual redistribution of more experienced teachers into every city school. Without a corps of veteran teachers, no amount of money can make students and schools succeed. The mayor can’t claim to complete his work without addressing this core challenge. If he concedes this power to the UFT – perhaps concerned by the threat of a “rally” staged by the UFT and its paid community groups – he has suspended this civil-rights struggle prematurely and crippled the momentum of reform. I still believe that the mayor will finish this fight. But he’d better hurry. The water is seeping back in. Those who want to reoccupy the old school swamp are patching their boats and preparing to sail. The Rev. Johnny Ray Youngblood is co-chair of East Brooklyn Congregations and of the Metro NY Industrial Areas Foundation. WHEN D.C. WAS CIVILITY'S CAPITAL The Manhattan blackout proved how fragile our infrastructure is	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line938
__label__cc	0.51654	0.48346	Op-ed by President Obama in USA Today: Let's Reclaim the Post-9/11 Unity September 9, 2011 at 11:31 AM ET by Op-ed written by President Obama in USA Today for the 10th Anniversary of September 11th. Ed. Note: An op-ed written President Obama appears in USA Today, In it, he urges Americans to reclaim the unity that moved us forward as a nation after the attacks on 9/11. The full text is printed below: Let's reclaim the post-9/11 unity Ten Septembers have come and gone since that awful morning. But on this 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, we are summoned once more to honor those we lost by keeping our country strong and true to their memory. Over the coming days, we will remember nearly 3,000 innocent victims — fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers, sons and daughters who were simply going about their daily lives on a beautiful Tuesday morning. And we'll talk to our children about what happened on that day, and what's happened since. Like every American, I'll never forget how I heard the terrible news, on the car radio on my way to work in Chicago. Yet like a lot of younger Americans, our daughters have no memory of that day. Malia was just 3; Sasha was an infant. As they've grown, Michelle and I faced the same challenge as other parents in deciding how to talk with our children about 9/11. One of the things we've told them is that the worst terrorist attack in American history also brought out the best in our country. Firefighters, police and first responders rushed into danger to save others. Americans came together in candlelight vigils, in our houses of worship and on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. Volunteers lined up to give blood and drove across the country to lend a hand. Schoolchildren donated their savings. Communities, faith groups and businesses collected food and clothing. We were united, as Americans. This is the true spirit of America we must reclaim this anniversary — the ordinary goodness and patriotism of the American people and the unity that we needed to move forward together, as one nation. Indeed, the last decade has been a challenging one for our country. But we have also seen the strength of the United States— in cities that have refused to give in to fear; in communities that have persevered through hard economic times; and, above all, in our men and women in uniform and their families who have borne an extraordinary burden for our security and our values. The perpetrators of those attacks wanted to terrorize us, but they are no match for our resilience. Today, our country is more secure and our enemies are weaker. Yet while we have delivered justice to Osama bin Laden and put al-Qaeda on the path to defeat, we must never waver in the task of protecting our nation. On a day when others sought to destroy, we choose to build. Once again, Sept. 11 will be a National Day of Service and Remembrance, and at Serve.gov every American can make a commitment to honor the victims and heroes of 9/11 by serving our neighbors and communities. Finally, on a day when others tried to divide us, we can regain the sense of common purpose that stirred in our hearts 10 years ago. As a nation, we face difficult challenges, and as citizens in a democratic society we engage in vigorous debates about the future. But as we do, let's never forget the lesson we learned anew 10 years ago — that our differences pale beside what unites us and that when we choose to move forward together, as one American family, the United States doesn't just endure, we can emerge from our tests and trials stronger than before. That's the America we were on 9/11 and in the days that followed. That's the America we can and must always be.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line939
__label__wiki	0.812455	0.812455	NY Expands Efforts Against Synthetic Cannabinoids "These extremely dangerous and deadly substances are wreaking havoc in communities across the state, and we are stepping up efforts to ensure these drugs remain off the streets and out of our correctional facilities," Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said. New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced April 12 a statewide plan to combat synthetic cannabinoids that includes prevention, education, treatment, and community engagement efforts, seeking to raise awareness of its dangers and to provide additional guidance to health care providers on effective treatment and recovery services. "These extremely dangerous and deadly substances are wreaking havoc in communities across the state, and we are stepping up efforts to ensure these drugs remain off the streets and out of our correctional facilities," Cuomo said. "With these new initiatives we can further educate the public on the dangers of these drugs while also continuing to ensure that those who bring this scourge into our communities will be held fully accountable." The state is launching K-2 Listening Forums in communities that have been affected by synthetic cannabinoid abuse, including New York City and Syracuse. The forums will include state representatives from the Department of Health, Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services, Office of Mental Health, State Police, Division of Criminal Justice Services, Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, State Liquor Authority, New York State Gaming Commission, and Department of Tax and Finance, as well as synthetic cannabinoid experts, community-based organizations, family representatives, people in recovery, and local government and law enforcement officials. In addition, the Department of Health, Office of Mental Health, and Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services have issued joint guidance to health care providers, hospitals, off-campus emergency departments, substance use disorder and mental health agencies, and local health departments to provide information on the risk indicators of synthetic cannabinoid intoxication and addiction and offer guidance for diagnosis and treatment. Cuomo first banned synthetic cannabinoids in 2012 through regulations empowering the Health Commissioner to close down stores where the drugs were sold. In 2015, he added two additional classes of compounds to the banned substances list, changes that were unanimously approved by the Public Health and Health Planning Council. DARPA GRIT Program Webinar Set for July 8 DOL Takes Major Actions to Boost Apprenticeship Programs HHS Selects Pilot Projects to Show Better Path to Disaster Medical Care New IARC Website Tracks UV Radiation Cancers FDA Proposes Cutting Nicotine Level in CIgarettes	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line943
__label__cc	0.647502	0.352498	Jefferson Madison Debates: John Adams on How to Fix Washington D.C. in 1791 and 2018 June 28th, 2018 // 7:26 pm @ Oliver DeMille “Odd, that so many should favor frames that seemed to be trying to outdo the art they held.” ~Brandon Sanderson, The Alloy of Law What You Think You See In the old American West, a façade town featured two- and sometimes three-story buildings lining Main Street, so visitors to the town would be impressed with how up-and-coming the community must be. But when a person walked around to the side and back of the buildings, it turns out they’d find mostly one-story structures—sometimes little better than shacks or huts. A few were even a façade built on the front of a rickety lean-to. Some were respectable buildings, but they were usually made of adobe or pine rather than the fine hardwood edifices promised by their Main Street facades. And, as I mentioned, they were only one story tall despite their appearance from the front. Indeed, the only purpose of the two- or three-story façade was to impress. In modern times, the idea that perception is reality has reached the level of myth. To Conform or Not To Conform It is taught in various circles as unquestioned truth, parroted in movies and television programs as a lasting principle, and often used to scold would-be individualists into working harder to conform and fit in. “We must impress others to get ahead in the world,” the common wisdom seems to assure us. C.S. Lewis lambasted this view in his classic, “The Inner Ring.” If you spend your life trying to impress and fit in, as almost everyone does, he warned, you’ll waste a lot of time and energy and miss many of the important things that really matter in life. Moreover, he predicted, you’ll fail to appeal to the only real society of substance, the other people who ignore trying to impress and fit in and instead set about doing good things in the world without worrying what others think. He called this group the true inner ring, whose motto was something along the lines of “perception is merely perception—truth, reality, integrity and quality are what matter.” John Adams wrote about this topic in his little-known and seldom-read classic, Discourses on Davila, which may be his best book next to Defence of the Constitutions of the United States (in fact, he referred to Davila as the fourth volume of Defence). He said that nearly every person is plagued by a debilitating desire to be esteemed by others, to impress and fit in, to be admired, and that this is the basis of many human flaws including jealousy, envy, ambition, vanity, hatred, revenge, pride, and most human pain. These are Adams’ specific words. Adams said this desire for admiration is as real as hunger, and the cause of more suffering, anxiety, stress and disappointment than famine. In contrast, the really good things in life, including virtue, nobility, honor, loyalty, wisdom, service, strength and so on, may or may not increase the admiration of others, but are often valued only to the extent that they do. Competing for Mediocrity Sadly, many people seek these things only if, and to the degree that, they increase admiration from others. Far too many things are sought by mankind only because they attract “attention, consideration, and congratulations…” Adams said. Likewise, too many good and important things are not pursued by many people because they do nothing to boost one’s status or station. By the way, the point of Adams’ book on Davila is to show that because of basic human nature—built on this inner drive of nearly all men and women to rise in station, and not just to rise, but to rise above other people—there will always be conflicts in human societies and institutions. His solution was to create separate branches of power, and to set up the government so these branches could check and balance each other in a way that no one government entity could become too powerful. The result, he said, would be that the people in the nation would be able to live free of overreaching government. In the process of making this argument he spends a great deal of time showing that this drive to fit in, impress, and in fact outdo other people (by being more impressive and fitting in better than them), was a serious obstacle to human happiness in families, schools, business and all facets of society. When people become more knowledgeable and learned, for example, they tend to engage in more, not less, conflict with other learned persons. He was not talking of debate, but of serious conflict. Thus our schools and great universities, which could be the salvation of society in many ways, are distracted from their potential because their leading inhabitants are constantly striving for Reputation, Notoriety, and Celebration. These three words are those used by Adams, which he capitalized for emphasis in his book. Likewise, Adams laments, our branches of government are unable to truly lead because those who should be our best hope for great progress immediately, upon being elected or appointed to office, set out to compete with all other officials for more Fame, Glory, Reputation and Credit. Again, these are Adams’ words. Growing or Shrinking Voters send representatives, presidents and others to do their will, to improve things, but the real work of most men and women lifted to leadership is to win this contest with each other. “Improve the Nation, or Impress the Nation. That is the question.” And the drive to impress nearly always wins the day. Adams wrote of humanity’s so-called honors in withering terms: “What is it that bewitches mankind to marks and signs? A ribbon? a garter? a star? a golden key? a marshall’s staff? or a white hickory stick?” He is mocking us now. “Though there is in such frivolities as these neither profit nor pleasure, nor anything amiable, estimable, or respectable, yet experience teaches us, in every country of the world, they attract the attention of mankind more than…learning, virtue, or religion.” Furthermore, Adams continues, they are sought by the poor, who believe such honors will lift them to equal status with the rich, and they are sought by the rich, who believe that without these symbols they will be lowered to the status of the poor. This is the great challenge of human progress—we ignore our great potential to focus on silly attempts to impress. We do it as children, as youth, as adults, and in old age. The solution, in the case of academia, is to closely avoid putting scholars or administrators in charge of education, but leave oversight to the parents. For government, the fix is to allow the people to frequently replace their officials at the election booth—to remove them as soon as they forget to do what the people sent them for. Symbol Above Currency Adams points out that ribbons, medals, titles, and other symbols of man’s honor, including the white hickory sticks of certain secret societies, aren’t of much use in real life. Though, if you are freezing, the hickory stick can at least be ignited and bring some warmth. But these ornaments are nevertheless widely sought because they are symbols of acceptance, fitting in, and impressing others. Such symbols show that, in fact, the Status Motive is even stronger in humanity than the Profit Motive. Indeed, giving war heroes and others who accomplish great acts of heroism large sums of money, cars, vacations or estates would be seen as crass by most modern eyes. Yet these are exactly what many of the ancients gave their champions and heroes, though chariots and carriages were more in vogue than cars. We give symbols for the highest achievements, precisely because their lack of monetary value communicates just how highly we esteem them—far above money. For Adams, the honors and symbols are frivolities only because we seek the honors and symbols rather than the actions for which they are awarded. This is deep insight into human nature, because for true heroes the ribbons and medals mean much less than simply knowing what they did. Flattery and Failure It is wonderful to honor heroic acts that truly merit our admiration and thanks, but too often, as Adams puts it, the “great majority trouble themselves little about merit, but apply themselves to seek for honor…” This is a serious indictment. He further says that most people try to gain such honors not by going out and serving in ways that merit them. Such service would be too difficult, or dangerous, or risky. Besides, just meriting great honors doesn’t ensure that one will receive them. After all, we are assured, “perception is reality”. So many people decide that a much better course is to ensure the world’s admiration the old-fashioned way, by directly seeking prestige and hiring publicists, PR firms, and commissioning scholarly studies and the support of experts. Adams says it this way: “…by displaying their taste and address, their wealth and magnificence, their ancient parchments, pictures, and statues, and the virtues of their ancestors; and if these fail, as they seldom have done, they have recourse to artifice, dissimulation, hypocrisy, flattery, empiricism…” But this is more than an interesting philosophical discussion about human nature. It actually cuts to the very heart of reality. Because of our thirst for honors, and because façade honors are easier to obtain, all our manmade institutions eventually fail. Adams mourns that government cannot solve the problems of humanity, nor will institutions of commerce and business. Plague of Power Families and churches come the closest, but even here we spend the generations warring about whether husband or wife should be the head, how long fathers should maintain dominance over their sons, and whether newly married couples now report to paternal or maternal grandfathers. Likewise, too many churches in history took up arms against unbelievers, and various religions and secular groups resort to violence when they fail to convince in other ways. Indeed, as soon as men create institutions of any kind, they usually begin to war—within the institution and/or with other institutions. The solutions, the real fixes to our challenges, Adams teaches, will not come from manmade institutions. We should set up the best institutions possible, but we can’t rely on them for everything because man’s hunger for approval and applause is always at work undermining progress. Adams quotes the English poets to make his point: “The love of praise, howe’er conceal’d by art, Reigns, more or less, and glows, in every human heart;” —Edward Young “All our power is sick.” If “All our power is sick”, indeed. If so, how can mankind progress? It turns out there is a solution, and Adams is excited to share it. Building Greatness In the cases of family, church, relationships and business, one should simply dedicate one’s life and efforts to truly serving in genuine, if challenging, ways that really make a positive difference. This was also recommended by C.S. Lewis, who said to ignore trying to impress and instead set out to genuinely serve. Both Adams and Lewis note that such service is only authentic when we give up concern about getting the credit. But Adams wants our political leaders to do the same. He sees real government leadership as deep, committed service, devoid of seeking credit or reward. He doubts that many will truly forget their drive to impress and seek only to frankly serve, but he holds out hope that a few will rise to such heights of true leadership. The best honors for such exceptionally great leaders aren’t the praise or baubles of men but the highest of all tributes—emulation. And in this Adams gives us mankind’s solution to its biggest challenges. Specifically, while mankind limits itself from great achievements to fight the petty battles of impressing others, becoming more impressive than others, fitting in, and fitting in better than others, the solution is to emulate those who do it better. What Leadership Is Parents who emulate great parents are the hope of the world, as are great teachers, inventors, artists, statesmen, leaders, entrepreneurs and others who emulate the greats. Emulation includes improving upon the best of the past, and as generations of parents and other leaders emulate the best and improve upon it, the world drastically improves. This, as Adams puts it, is a desire not to impress and fit in, “but to excel,” and “it is so natural a movement of the human heart that, wherever men are to be found … we see its effects.” Moreover, Adams assures us, it blesses communities and society as much as it helps individuals succeed. For those who are religious, nothing is more effective than trying to emulate the Son of God, the great prophets, Buddha, and other examples of charity, service and wisdom. We fall short in many ways, but in trying to answer the question, “What Would Jesus Do?,” as the modern saying goes, we reach for our very best. Our greatest heroes, regardless of our views on religion, should be the great men and women of history whose sacrifice and greatness makes them most worthy of emulation. Emulation is as strong an emotion as seeking admiration, and in fact most children learn emulation first. Which brings us to the topic of this article—How to fix Washington and put America back on track as a standard for freedom, opportunity and goodness in the world. According to John Adams (and C.S. Lewis, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, and many others), the answer is not to turn to leadership from our big institutions, even if they have as much power as the White House, Congress, Wall Street, Hollywood, Silicon Valley, the Justice Department, the Federal Reserve or even the Supreme Court and Madison Avenue. The solution lies in leadership, but not from the top down. We will not get back on track as a society until we lead from below, until we become a society of leaders, and the right kind of emulation is our most powerful means of lasting influence and change. Who you and I choose to emulate—really, truly, deeply, fully—will determine the future. Becoming Our Future It is the most powerful symbol, because who we want to be like on the greatest days of our lives will color the rest of our time on earth. But it is much more than a symbol. Too much of modern life is merely a façade. Too many of our institutions are hollow shells of what we need them to be—and of what they claim to be. Too often we choose the path of prestige over the path of quality. Too frequently we listen to the credible rather than the wise. Too many of our hours and days are spent on the things that are least important. It was Nietzsche, I think, who said that modernism began when we started substituting the morning paper for our morning prayers. Allan Bloom called this the closing of the American mind. Adams told us that such things are hollow, but in the Information Age the voice of understanding is too frequently drowned out by the roar of the crowd. In all this, however, there is an anchor. Who we decide to emulate, and how faithfully we do so, will make the future. And that goes for Washington as well. Category : Blog &Citizenship &Community &Constitution &Culture &Current Events &Economics &Education &Generations &Government &History &Independents &Information Age &Leadership &Liberty &Mission &Politics &Service &Statesmanship The Jefferson-Madison Debates: To Pay, or Not to Pay… June 12th, 2018 // 10:12 am @ Oliver DeMille Tackling a Universal Basic Income (Book Reviews: Annie Lowrey, 2018, Give People Money; Richard Weaver, 1948, Ideas Have Consequences [2013 reprint]) “Neither parents nor children have any other prospects than what are founded upon industry, economy, and virtue…. Hence arises a spirit of universal activity, and enterprise in business…. No difficulty or hardship seems to discourage them.” —Samuel Williams, History of Vermont, 1794 “Buy that latte and a child dies.” —Esquire, The Money Issue, April 2016 I recently saw a cartoon that made me smile. If I remember correctly, it portrayed a Raptor on the left, an ostrich-like creature in the middle, and a chicken [Editor: Kiwi, actually?] on the right. The caption read: I laughed pretty hard. If evolution really did go from raptors to chickens, Darwin’s survival of the fittest and natural selection leave a lot of questions. Funny. A similar energy frequently invades modern public policy. Far too many government programs seem to accept that if we have the right goals in mind, if our heart is in the right place and we’re really trying to fix things, it doesn’t matter much if we legislate in a way that will actually solve the problems. Just trying is, apparently, enough. For example, we want better education for our youth, but if throwing more money at public schools would really fix the problem, we’d be ahead of Japan, the United Kingdom and Switzerland in language, math, and science. In fact, the U.S. ranks 17th overall among industrialized nations (Source: Ranking America), and while we rank first in expenditures per student (over $12,000 per year for each high school student), American 15-year-olds score 31st in math literacy and 23rd in science (Source: CBSnews.com). Clearly something more than additional funding is needed—like a re-emphasis on real teaching, which means mentored personalization for each student. Instead, government programs keep throwing more money at schools in ways that don’t help, as if trying harder is somehow good policy. Likewise, if passing tougher gun laws would seriously solve or even significantly reduce violent crime, they might make sense. But since the statistics clearly show that such laws don’t fix the problem (criminals don’t really follow them, after all), why are we still even debating the topic? Why is it a good idea to have the law-abiding citizens unarmed and the criminals armed to the teeth—as a direct result of government policy—is pretty much mindboggling. But at least somebody is trying, right? Better than Bad One more example: if we really could significantly reduce the cost of health care for everyone, and at the same time insure everyone, keep the same doctor, and keep the same healthcare provider, who wouldn’t want that? But Obamacare was promoted and passed even though many of the experts warned of exactly what happened—premiums skyrocketed, many people had to change their healthcare providers, a lot of companies and states pulled out, and a lot of people couldn’t keep their doctor. “We had to try, though, didn’t we?” Some Americans apparently still think this is a sound basis for government policy. We subscribe to the kindergarten mentality of “‘A’ for effort,” or “‘A’ for intention” –regardless of principles or outcomes. In short, when we don’t understand human nature, we make mistakes. Numerous governmental attempts to solve our problems could be labeled: This time nobody’s laughing though, maybe because we realize that we are the chickens in the cartoon. And if you’ll forgive a mixed metaphor, now: Not a lot of people like being guinea pigs. We need a better standard for government policy than “But we have to try! It’s such a big problem, so even bad policy is better than no policy.” And yet: Not so. Government policies sometimes make things worse, not better. “Do you see the necessity of accepting duties before you begin to talk of freedoms? These things will be very hard, they will call for deep reformation.” —Richard Weaver, Ideas Have Consequences, 1948 “You need $1,000 today. How to get it.” —Headline in Esquire, The Money Issue, April 2016 Open Account, Open Mind Which brings us to a very important topic: A Universal Basic Income (UBI). The UBI has been recommended in one form or another by Mark Zuckerberg, Richard Branson, Ray Kurzweil, Bernie Sanders and others, and now Annie Lowrey’s new book Give People Money makes an energetic case for it. Lowrey’s subtitle outlines the major perceived benefits of the program: “How a Universal Basic Income Would End Poverty, Revolutionize Work, and Remake the World”. “Imagine if every month the government deposited $1,000 into your checking account,” suggests the ad copy for Give People Money, “with nothing expected in return.” Interesting. Nothing expected in return? What about the taxes needed to fund the $1K per person across the nation, or the globe? That’s actually quite a significant expectation. But I digress. Let’s keep an open mind and listen to Lowrey’s proposal. After all, even arch-conservative/libertarian thinkers Milton Friedman and Friedrich Hayek made a case for a Universal Basic Income, or something like it. Hayek said: “The assurance of a certain minimum income for everyone, or a sort of floor below which nobody need fall even when he is unable to provide for himself, appears not only to be a wholly legitimate protection against a risk common to all, but a necessary part of the great society in which the individual no longer has specific claims on the members of the particular small group into which he was born.” Friedman suggested that in times of economic stagnancy, when consumers aren’t spending and producers aren’t creating, it might be prudent to jumpstart the economy by “helicoptering.” This consists of dumping large amounts of cash from helicopters, allowing people to pick up the money and spend it—thus rebooting business. Of course, the actual idea behind “helicoptering” was to deposit a predetermined amount of money into the bank accounts of large numbers of people, those making less than a certain amount of money, not actually throwing cash from helicopters. While this plan focused on a one-time event, not a monthly deposit like most Universal Basic Income proposals, the principles are reminiscent. Ends and Beginnings To many conservatives, it makes sense that liberals, progressives, and socialists would endorse the idea of a Universal Income. But the same basic support from both Hayek and Milton Friedman is a head-scratcher. In context, Hayek seems to have made this proposal as an alternative to entrenched socialism: a system where most or all of the jobs are controlled and distributed by government. In such an environment, a Universal Income would actually provide the opportunity for a budding free market, a chance for entrepreneurship, or “to relocate” to another nation with more freedom. (See Matt Zwolinski, “Why Did Hayek Support a Basic Income?” Libertariansim.org). Lowrey’s proposal, in contrast to Hayek, is set in our current world. Or, more precisely, in a better world built on this one. The benefits of the program would be, mainly: End systemic poverty. By “hacking poverty”, we could eliminate much of the suffering and dead-end misery in the world (or nation). (Give People Money) Those who want more than the $1,000 per month, or whatever the UBI is, could work more or build a business, etc.—just like many people do now. But those who choose otherwise would at least have a basic living. Emphasize individual purpose. People could focus on doing work they love, rather than being tossed about by the cold demands of market forces. Individuals could emphasize their life purpose, and spend their days doing things they really care about. No more “crummy jobs.” (Ibid.) This might even help create a “groovy, Trekkie post-capitalist world without work”. (Ibid.) Improve social justice. It might even help nudge the world towards truly solving the problems of social injustice. “A UBI” Lowrey says, “would undercut the basis of such judgments [including racial, class, and gender discriminations] and be a powerful force for human dignity.” (Ibid.) It would also acknowledge “that our market economy leaves people out and behind, creating poverty and punishing individuals who cannot or are not working for an employer…. It would acknowledge our interdependence as well as our independence.” (Ibid.) Increase and spread freedom. Lowrey: “A universal, unrestricted cash benefit—just giving people money—would promote the ‘true individual freedom’ that comes from ‘economic security and independence’ as Roosevelt argued seventy years ago.” (Ibid.) Most people—whatever their political leanings—can agree with the goals of ending poverty, emphasizing individual purpose in life, improving social justice for everyone, and increasing/spreading freedom. Personally, I don’t know anyone who is against these 4 things. The devil, the cliché promises, is in the details. The disagreement turns on how to accomplish such ideals. Conservatives, libertarians, liberals and progressives, not to mention socialists, anarchists, communists, mercantilists, humanists, distributists, originalists and Keynesians have long pointed out the flaws in each others’ proposals. How indeed can such goals be realized? Or, as Nietszche often quipped: “How now?” It’s one thing to have a dream; quite another to implement it effectively—in a way that both works and lasts. Lowrey, fortunately, gives us specifics: She wrote: “Providing a $1,000-a-month UBI to every American citizen would mean spending something like an additional $3.9 trillion a year. This is equivalent to a fifth of the American economy—and equal to every penny the federal government currently spends, on everything from building bridges to fighting wars to caring for the elderly to prosecuting crimes to protecting wetlands.” (Ibid.) The obvious first question is: Who’s going to pay for this? Lowry: “The top 1 percent of earners pay about 40 percent of all income taxes, which comes to about $600 billion a year. You could tax away every penny they earned, and it would still not come close to paying for a full-fat UBI in other words.” (Ibid.) Not a good start. But, Lowrey points out: “Eliminating or trimming back other programs would help defray the expense. Right now, the government spends roughly $2.7 trillion on its social-insurance programs…. Still, a $1,000-a-month benefit, or a smaller one, would require new spending and likely new sources of revenue, regardless of how deep other budgets were cut…. Giving the same thing to everyone means spreading the butter a lot thinner, meaning that we need more butter.” (Ibid.) She identifies some of the major criticisms of a UBI, but suggests that “the knee-jerk opposition to some form of a UBI—crying that it is too expensive or unrealistic—feels over-wrought. Raising enough revenue for a $1,000-a-month UBI is more a matter of will than of mathematics, and would bring the United States’ tax burden in line with that of the European social democracies…. Creating a top tax bracket at 55 percent, instituting a modest wealth tax, ending the mortgage interest deduction, implementing a value-added tax—proposals like those would get us there.” (Ibid.) She further argues that since the U.S. government prints its own money, “dollars are not something the United States government can run out of.” (Ibid.) [Editor coughs and sputters…] Lowrey is quick to add that the government shouldn’t print so much money as to cause rampant inflation, but still, she maintains, government debts, deficits, and a bit of inflation aren’t the worst things in the world. A UBI is worth it, she seems to suggest. But her easy approach to the math is…well…you decide: “A financial transactions tax would raise an estimated $100 billion to $400 billion a year. A value-added tax could easily raise a trillion dollars. A well-designed carbon tax would raise about $100 billion a year. Moreover, a wealth tax, such as a hefty levy on estates over $3 million, could raise hundreds of billions.” (Ibid.) Taxes on robots are also a possibility, Lowrey suggests, as are Negative Income Taxes where the IRS sends monthly checks to everyone below the poverty level. (Ibid.) Where? How? On a personal level, I was very excited to read the section on “how” to fund a UBI. After reading over three-fourths of the book and its very interesting examples and ideas about UBI economics, I was thrilled to finally get to the nitty-gritty of the plan. The finances. But…it never came. The paragraph above was as close as it got. Granted, these are interesting ideas about funding a UBI, but there is no actual detailed proposal in this book. Disappointing, to say the least. In fairness, perhaps a specific plan for a UBI wasn’t Lowrey’s point—such a plan might detract from her real goal, which was to promote the idea of implementing a UBI. The plan can come later. Or, possibly, she has such a plan but felt that this book should emphasize the benefits of the idea, not get people caught up in the details of just one way to do this. Wise choice, perhaps. Still, without a specific plan, without real numbers, how can we assess the efficacy of pursuing a UBI? “We have to try” simply isn’t good enough. Especially when the numbers are so fuzzy. For example, a carbon tax might “raise about a $100 billion a year”, but how would the same tax reduce revenues from other segments of the economy—with profits impacted by energy prices? Increased fuel prices caused by such a tax would impact almost every sector of the economy. And, yes, a “value-added tax” might “easily raise a trillion dollars”, but this is a gross total, not net. The impact would be huge, and not all for good. Likewise, even if everything Lowrey says about increased taxes is true, what is the net impact of “[c]reating a top tax bracket at 55 percent, instituting a modest wealth tax, ending the mortgage interest deduction,” etc.? What, precisely, is a “modest wealth tax”? Modest by what standard? And how does such a tax impact charities, philanthropies, and those who receive inheritances? True, Lowrey’s point is that there are ways to increase taxes—and thereby pay for a UBI—but she says little about how such increases will redirect and redistribute money. Or even if any (or all) of these increases will boost or weaken the overall economy. If GDP actually declines, the source of UBI funding will dry up, or at least diminish—while the amount required to send out $1,000-per-month naturally goes up with population. I actually really like Give People Money—it is well-written, enjoyable to read, full of interesting stories – sometimes fascinating, always thought-provoking. The research and quotes are excellent. Any book that features George Jetson in the same sentence as Marie Curie has my attention. By the way, I spent three very enjoyable hours just reading the endnotes and looking up articles and sources that sparked my interest. Fascinating! I’m a Lowrey fan. In short, I recommend the book. It’s a great read, a fun trip into economic comparisons—from Keynes to Hunger Games to Maslow’s hierarchy to Ford trucks, AI and Silicon Valley. But I didn’t come away from it with any sense that a UBI is realistic. Intriguing, yes. Thought-provoking, yes. Realistic, no. Fundable, possibly—in the short term; but what about the lasting impact? There is another proposal of this type that is worth considering. Charles Murray has suggested that every adult receive $10,000 per year and that all other welfare-state programs be discontinued. (See In Our Hands; see also “A Guaranteed Income for Every American,” Wall Street Journal) This would cost taxpayers less than the current safety net, some argue, and it would put decisions in the hands of the actual people. Clearly a lot of government waste and misuse of funds would also be eliminated. The key to this proposal is that it would end all other government social-insurance programs, departments, polices and expenses. Interestingly, most of the criticism against Murray’s plan, nearly all from liberals and the Left, emphasizes that it is financially infeasible. According to Murray’s own numbers, there is a $355 billion shortfall the first year. (Ibid.) Murray suggests that the gap would be closed, eventually, as the population rises with upcoming generations. Still, the transition costs of, at least for a time, funding both the Social Security/Medicare/Medicaid model and also $10K a year to adults make the program unrealistic—as Murray himself says. But if we continue with our current system, he argues, it’s going to financially collapse anyway—better to get the ball rolling on a system that eventually will work. “Arrival of the Fittest” —Chevrolet/Corvette ad “How to lead experiments that actually work”. From the Starting Point But here’s the real challenge—for all UBI-style proposals, from Lowrey to Hayek to Murray. Would a Universal Basic Income even be good for people? Is it compatible with human society and culture, human needs, human potential? This is a big question. The most important question. At first blush, most people would like a check for $1,000 a month. Why not? A number of people could desperately use it. But what is not seen in this arrangement? Such a challenging question demands that we address what Aristotle called first things, or primary goods. First principles. The most basic foundations of human understanding are indeed vitally important, and take us back to the poignant question asked by philosophers, prophets, economists and political sages: To be human is to ______________. ??? The word we use to fill in the blank tells us a great deal about how we view the world. The original liberal answer, articulated most clearly by thinkers like Hobbes and Rousseau, was: To be human is to suffer. In contrast, the conservative answer, from Aristotle to Adam Smith, was: To be human is to struggle. There are, of course, other views. Shakespeare suggested that To be human is to err, The Romantics answered that To be human is to love, and the German Trifecta of Hegel, Marx and Nietszche argued that To be human is to fight and win—emphasis on win. But the initial debate between suffer and struggle remains at the center of today’s great conversation. See Both Sides The first approach makes the following case: human life is suffering it is up to all of us to lessen suffering as much as possible to do this, we need a great deal of power government is the entity most likely to obtain and use power in a way that greatly lessens human suffering in the world we should actively help grow the power and reach of government everywhere In short: Liberalism. The second view takes a different tack: the purpose of life is to struggle against all odds for goodness, righteousness, and progress this is best done by individuals alone and individuals voluntarily working in groups institutions that help individuals in this process are useful, but institutions must be carefully watched and limited because they frequently become distractions or even roadblocks to real progress ultimately the great, noble struggle of humans on this earth is threefold—to serve and help others in this life, to improve oneself in ways that make the world better, and in doing these first two things to prepare for better things in the life to come To wit: Conservatism. Richard Weaver argued that while the Progressive path tries to make life easier for everyone and institutionalize it for all, Conservatism programs attempts to help everyone more bravely and effectively embrace the path of hard things. (See Ideas Have Consequences). He taught that programs designed mainly to spread ease, especially forced attempts by government, were beneath the dignity and potential of mankind. Today’s Goal Weaver wrote of modern efforts to make everything easier for everyone, calling out people for promoting a life based on “Loving comfort, risking little, terrified by the thought of change…” He called this the “spoiled child psychology”, exhibited by too many adults in the modern world. The best, and worst, example of this, he said, is the widespread sense of entitlement among so many modern citizens. He spoke most forcefully against those who discourage lives of strenuous work, facing and overcoming challenges, struggling-failing-and-continuing-to-struggle. Such work, hard and continuous, is what life is about, Weaver taught. It is why we were born. To do things. Hard things. Alone. Together. Because work matters. And because lives of work and struggle are dignified, meaningful, and very often happy lives. We were not, he assures us, born to bask in lives of ease provided by bureaucrats or aristocrats or anyone else. Such a path he considered worthless. These are, ironically, hard words—especially to modern ears. “Like Macbeth,” Weaver wrote, “Western man made an evil decision, which has become the efficient and final cause of other evil decisions. Have we forgotten our encounter with the witches on the heath? It occurred in the late fourteenth century, and what the witches said…was that man could realize himself more fully if he would abandon his belief in the existence of transcendentals.” (Ibid.) The witches’ solution: Stop seeing life as the battle to seek heaven, and start fixing this earth, through manmade institutions and government power. (Ibid.) The result of this shift, from “embracing a life of struggle” to “a life of suffering and trying to institutionally force the end of suffering”, began our journey to what Weaver terms “modern decadence”. (Ibid.) In the drive to avoid and forcefully eliminate all suffering, to find the easy way and help our children seek even easier ways, most people turned to materialism. Away from service, and more to amassing money and things—as hedges against potential suffering. As Weaver put it: “Man created in the divine image, the protagonist of a great drama in which his soul was at stake, was replaced by man the wealth-seeking and-consuming animal.” (Ibid.) It turns out that while a belief in struggle led many people to work and serve humanity, a greater faith in suffering drives most toward materialism. Ironic. An even deeper irony followed: the philosophy of suffering as the great evil spawned a culture of seeking ease through material success, and this in turn created a focus on ease itself. The work motivated by materialism gave way to the work of finding ways to avoid work. Profound. In Weaver’s words: “a carnival of specialism, professionalism, and vocationalism…fostered and protected…strange bureaucratic devices.” (Ibid.) The new mantra: government must make things easier for everyone. Is it any surprise that today’s generation of youth—considered by many an embodiment of a sixth human sense of entitlement—are often referred to as Snowflakes? “We should be taken care of by the government” is a popular view. “Or if not by government, then by somebody. Anybody…” “Otherwise, how will our lives be easy?” In reality, this view extends far beyond any one generation. Weaver said modern society is replacing homo sapiens with homo faber—meaning from “wise humans” to “humans engineered by architects, by experts”. (Ibid.) From freemen to slaves. Weaver’s connection of “the easy life” to “slavery” is interesting. Certainly a life in slavery is not easy, but only those who engage the true struggle of life can remain truly free. And the struggle is hard, not easy. Period. Those who seek lives of ease unwittingly take the path toward slavery. As conservatives know: “If it is easy, beware…” In most cases, Easy Education, Easy Citizenship, Easy Career = Mediocre Education, Government by Elites, Middling Income. What, then, would Weaver say of a Universal Basic Income? “The egotism of work increasingly poses the problem of what source will procure sufficient discipline to hold men to production. When each becomes his own taskmaster and regards work as a curse which he endures only to gain means of subsistence, will he not constantly seek to avoid it?” (Ibid.) And what will such a man or woman do when money arrives each month and no work is required? A few people, when work is no longer asked of them, will turn their efforts to service, art, or other areas of interest. Some will follow a great passion or goal they’ve long wanted to pursue. But what actually happens is well documented. The majority of people, when suddenly retired, laid off, recipients of the lottery, or otherwise released from daily work, struggle to fill their time with things that bring happiness. Note that this is the wrong kind of struggle. Many such people soon find their newfound free time “accompanied by intensive explorations of the individual consciousness, with self-laceration and self-pity.” (Ibid.) They frequently turn “inward and there discover…an appalling well of melancholy and unhappiness…” (Ibid.) Weaver used these words to describe certain writers who embodied this view; but if Weaver’s words are a bit too flowery, they aren’t inaccurate. Many people find retirement, unemployment, or just lots of free time unsatisfactory and frustrating. Reaching for Greatness A 2015 report in The Atlantic noted: “The jobless don’t spend their time socializing or taking up new hobbies. Instead, they watch TV or sleep…. Two of the most common side effects of unemployment are loneliness, on the individual level, and the hollowing-out of community pride.” (Derek Thompson, “A World Without Work”) For many people, it turns out that “easy” is unfulfilling, in the same way that achieving something hard is one of the most rewarding things human beings ever experience. Words such as victory, accomplishment, triumph, success, progress, improvement, and even happiness, defy definition and mean very little unless they are preceded by difficulty and hard work. The greater the struggle, in fact, the greater the victory. Thomas Paine made this a central theme in his writings. The truth is that the reality flies in the face of modern thinking. Specifically, most people want hard, even if they don’t realize it. Without hard, most people simply aren’t happy. It turns out that hard isn’t always equal to suffering, but it is in fact a vital component of happy. “Easy” is nice as a vacation, but it isn’t the basis of a good life. “Hard” can be such a basis, as long as it is accompanied by freedom—or at least the opportunity to gain freedom. As for a Universal Basic Income, the jury is still out. If people don’t have to work for their basic living, some will argue, they’ll work for other things—better things. This is certainly true of some people, and it may be true for many more. That said: It is definitely not true of everyone. Whether it is true for enough people to make it worth adopting as public policy will likely be debated for many years to come. But the promise of a UBI, that it will significantly reduce human suffering, naturally sounds good to many moderns but sparks immediate skepticism in those who embrace the historical reality of human nature. Humanity has proven, many times, that hard challenges, within reason, are nearly always better for people than lasting times of ease. I have my doubts that a UBI will do much to fix the actual problem. It could easily do the opposite: when a lot more people aren’t working, some of them might use their time in ways that hurt others and increase suffering. This is certainly a possibility. Pushing Riding Forward Modern man, Weaver pointed out, has: “been given the notion that progress is automatic” that he/she has not just a right to pursue happiness but “a right to have happiness”, regardless of what he does, or doesn’t do. (Ideas Have Consequences) He has been told that someone else is responsible for his happiness, and that if he is sad, or unfulfilled, someone else is to blame. (Ibid.) He has been informed that if he feels frustration, some superior “in the hierarchy” has “practiced an imposition upon him”. (Ibid.) “The truth is,” Weaver said, “that he has never been brought to see what it is to be a man…. [T]hat he really owes thanks for the pulling and tugging that allow him to grow…. This citizen is now the child of indulgent parents who pamper his appetites and inflate his egotism until he is unfitted for struggle of any kind.” (Ibid.) And the following zinger: “The spoiling of man seems always to begin when urban living predominates over rural.” (Ibid.) Is it lost on anyone that this is directly related to Blue State/Red State culture? “In effect,” Weaver continues, “what modern man is being told is that the world owes him a living. He assents the more readily for being told in a roundabout way, which is that science owes him a living.” (Ibid.) “An artificial environment causes him to lose sight of the great system not subject to man’s control.” (Ibid.) Indeed, his moral and ethical senses are shaped by newspapers more than prayers, to paraphrase Nietszche. What does that “great system” say about work? Easy versus hard? Individual responsibility versus institutions? If we push aside the culture of newspapers and instant mobile news updates for a moment, and instead ask the kind of questions obvious in a culture based on the idea that “humans thrive in the hard struggle,” we find ourselves dealing with bigger issues: Is pay without work good for the soul? Is it good for family life, or is it more likely to hurt families? Will it naturally render adults more child-like, dependent? And, since the pay actually comes from the work of someone else, are we simply taking from their work and accepting it without recompense? What does the fact that they are forced to pay this money say about those who accept it? Can a people remain free under such an arrangement? Building or Breaking These are big questions. Unlike most modern policy debates, these big questions ignore the small talk and get to the real point. For some, this is distracting. “That’s not how it’s done,” scolds many a modern expert. But the truth is still relevant, right? Big realities do matter. The view of human life as a great struggle for goodness puts each citizen forward as a potential hero. But the hero’s currency, Weaver notes, is “exertion, self-denial, endurance”, while “the spoiled child” wants everyone to be protected from hard things—especially making a living. (Ibid.) Preferably, in this latter view, such protection will come from government—the regime as supreme being, the end-all of suffering, the all-powerful state. To be clear, a society of people who seek $1,000 (or other) payments from the government, not for work but just because they need or want it, is not on a path to freedom—or even to maintaining the freedoms they already enjoy. Speaking of payments from the government, the following story is related by Weaver in Ideas Have Consequences: “During the early part of the second World War there came to light the story of a farmer from the back country of Oklahoma—one of the yet unspoiled—who, upon hearing of the attack on Pearl Harbor, departed with his wife to the West Coast to work in the shipyards…. [T]he new worker did not understand the meaning of the little slip of paper handed him once a week. It was not until he had accumulated over a thousand dollars in checks that he found out that he was being paid to save his country. He had assumed that when the country is in danger, everyone helps out, and helping out means giving.” The Spiral Also from Weaver: “The past shows unvaryingly that when a people’s freedom disappears, it goes not with a bang, but in silence amid the comfort of being cared for…. If freedom is not found accompanied by a willingness to resist, and to reject favors [from the government], it will not long be found at all.” Easy kills. Hard is the future. But those on the side of freedom embrace the struggle. This is hard doctrine, no doubt. But it is the doctrine of a free people, and those who would remain free. Those seeking the way of ease will not, by definition, choose freedom—or fight for it when needed. Freedom is hard. Those searching for ever-easier paths will vote for more government, and when unearned $1,000 checks arrive each month to reward their search, a majority will do what makes the most sense in such a situation: vote for candidates who promise to increase the checks to $1,200 then $1,500 then $2,100…and more. Government will increasingly apply more force to the productive individuals and organizations in society, and everyone else as well. No free society can weather—financially, politically, or morally—such an electorate. “Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people. Those who have known freedom and then lost it have never known it again.” An important article that addresses the future of work, a basic universal income, and recent trends in technology and employment—Derek Thompson, “A World Without Work,” The Atlantic, July/August 2015 Daniel Pink, A Whole New Mind Joshua Cooper Ramo, Seventh Sense Virgil, Georgics Victor Davis Hansen, The Other Greeks Category : Blog &Book Reviews &Citizenship &Community &Constitution &Culture &Current Events &Economics &Generations &Government &History &Information Age &Leadership &Liberty &Politics &Service &Statesmanship The Jefferson-Madison Debates: The Next Civil War? May 13th, 2018 // 4:25 pm @ Oliver DeMille True or False…or False? It’s getting worse. Just watch the news. This phrase, the “Next Civil War”, was recently used by economic forecaster Harry Dent to describe the growing divide between Red and Blue state cultures. These two sides now disagree with each other to the point that in many cases people experience real hatred for those on “the other side”. Former president Barack Obama noted that people who largely get their news from the mainstream media and those who get their news mostly from Fox are basically living “on different planets.” They not only disagree on principles and solutions, he pointed out, but they fundamentally disagree on “facts”. What the Blue culture sees as incontrovertible truths, the Red culture frequently sees as lies. Fake. False. And the opposite is just as true: what the Red culture sees as fact is often considered false by Blue culture. No wonder the two sides are so angry at each other. When you disagree on what the facts are, the solutions promoted by the other side frequently appear ludicrous. Even dangerous. Both sides, each rooted in its own understanding of reality, watch the other side say and do things that are clearly and painfully hurtful—according to the set of obvious but differing “facts” they each believe. This divide is widening. We’ve reached the point that one of the worst things parents can learn about their child’s “significant other” or new fiancé is that he/she is a Republican, or Democrat—depending on the family. Religion, career, ethnicity, education, financial status, and even a criminal history, are largely negotiable in most modern families. But the other political party? Many parents turn Tevye: “If I try and bend this far, I’ll break.” Lynn Vavreck wrote in The New York Times (January 31, 2017): “In 1958, 33 percent of Democrats wanted their daughters to marry a Democrat, and 25 percent of Republicans wanted their daughters to marry a Republican. But by 2016, 60 percent of Democrats and 63 percent of Republicans felt that way.” And for many, the feelings run very deep. While in 1994 21 percent of Republicans viewed Democrats in the “Very Unfavorable” category, by 2016 the number was 58 percent. (Pew Research Center) In 1994 17 percent of Democrats saw Republicans as “Very Unfavorable”, but the number in 2016 had skyrocketed to 55 percent. (Ibid.) Aaron Blake summarized this concern in The Washington Post: “If 58 percent of Republicans hate Democrats and 55 percent of Democrats hate Republicans, that would mean about 35 percent of registered voters hate the opposite political party.” (June 19, 2017) “But that’s not quite hate…. 45% of Republicans see the Democratic Party as a threat to the nation’s well-being…. [and] 41% of Democrats see the Republican Party as a threat to the nation’s well-being”. (Ibid.) When you add independents, the “hate” one of the parties (those who see the other party as a threat to the nation) makes up 39 percent of registered voters or “About 1 in 4” Americans. (Ibid.) There are a lot of others who see the other side in an unfavorable light, around 33 percent of additional Republicans (for a total of 91% with “unfavorable” or “very unfavorable”) and 30 percent of additional Democrats (86% with “unfavorable” or “very unfavorable” views). (Ibid.) Note that all of this occurred before the Trump presidency. Again, this divide is real, and deep. In the Trump era the intensity has only increased. But does any of this justify the phrase “Next Civil War”? Not yet. Not unless we’re going to surrender to hyperbole. Yet this conflict is escalating in many sectors—it’s moved beyond the traditional battlegrounds of politics and news media to additional culture and power centers including education, television, movies, entertainment awards shows, daily and nightly talk shows (both radio and television), sports, and multiple venues on social media. Even social media and Internet platforms are getting involved by adjusting algorithms to promote certain political leanings—or dampen the voice of those they dislike—often without informing their customers. Platforms and Soapboxes For many Americans, the sight of some NFL players purposely kneeling during the National Anthem is the ultimate symbol of this divide. One side sees young role models and leaders using their public platform to bravely protest government abuse—especially what they consider racially charged police violence. The other side feels hurt and confused by millionaire beneficiaries of the American Dream figuratively spitting on the American Flag and the sacrifice of dead and maimed military heroes. It’s difficult to even discuss this situation rationally in many venues due to the raw and heartfelt emotions of people on both sides of the Red-Blue cultural divide. Sadly, many schools have also become places of great conflict. For example, a national uproar occurred when a middle school teacher assigned her students to write letters to political officials urging them to pass stronger gun control laws. Should teachers tell middle school children what sides to take on political issues? And assign them to engage in activism for one specific side? At what point does teaching become brainwashing? A father of one of the students, a policeman, refused to allow his child to do the assignment. The father deeply disagreed with the politics of the teacher, and many of the other parents disagreed with the politicization of middle school in general. In response to backlash, the teacher allowed students to skip the assignment without penalty, but didn’t suggest writing against stronger gun control if this more accurately aligned with the student’s views. The same week, an elementary student was expelled from school for drawing himself hunting during a “free art” assignment, and a high school teacher was fired for a lengthy history-class soliloquy describing current members of the military as “the lowest of the low” in our society. Red and Blue cultures passionately disagreed on how these events should be handled. Both sides largely see the other’s view as ridiculous and extreme. Another moment that epitomizes this division occurred on Broadway when the cast of Hamilton stopped the musical midstream to lecture the new Vice President elect, Mike Pence. Hamilton itself is an artistic icon—an American Les Miserables that underscores how the struggles of Washington, Jefferson, Hamilton and their families and peers unleashed freedom in a way that has now spread to people of all backgrounds. The lecture itself was seen by one side as a welcome comeuppance to a dangerous new administration, and by the other as yet another gauche elitist attack against the will of the voters and the American system. Networks, Numbers, and New Divides Thankfully this war is largely cultural—it has not devolved into massive physical violence between the two sides of a nation (like the French Revolution, U.S. Civil War, or Russian Revolution, etc.). Hopefully it will always remain peaceful. But in the fight for hearts, there is no doubt that a major civil war for the future of our republic is already under way. Worse, it is doubtful that any real solution is imminent. When one part of the nation generally believes most of what airs on CNN, ABC, NBC and MSNBC, while another part tends to place more trust in Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, or Trump tweets, the two aren’t going see eye-to-eye on much of anything. And when these two groups are the largest political blocs in our republic, we’re going to have genuine and repeated disagreements. Perhaps the epicenter of this battle for “the hearts and minds of the people” is found in the media. And this poses a major challenge. Why? Because most of modern media—from both the Left and Right—has three serious problems: 1-It is largely agenda driven (“Forget the facts, full speed ahead!”) 2-It is shallow. 3-It is electronic. Most people realize the problems with item #1. As a result, they stop listening to media outlets that are clearly against their views—and seem hostile to anyone with a different perspective. This has created another significant problem with modern media: 4-It is isolated. The Right listens to the Right, while the Left listens to the Left. Few listen to both. Few listen to the other side. Over time, media outlets increasingly cater to their narrow audiences, so the extremism increases. Result: the divisions in our nation are getting wider, deeper, and more susceptible to anger and, too often, extremism and unhealthy thinking and actions. The Missing Depth The 2nd and 3rd problems listed just above are equally dangerous. Many people are very busy—work, family, more work, community, more family. Little time is left over for meaningful civic involvement, much less for taking the time to really dig into each day’s news, truly understand what is happening, and go way beyond the 30 second sound bites or even 3 minute segments on any given story. An hour of the news is more than most can spare—and most hour newscasts only provide a very shallow overview of a few of the day’s news topics. In short, shallow. No time for depth. The result is that nearly all shows repeat a few top stories, with only a bit of detail. Even if a person watched television all day, he or she would usually only hear about the same top stories, addressed shallowly over and over—with different opinions but nothing really weighty or reflective. Depth is almost unheard of in most of today’s media. This is especially true of the electronic media. Besides, television, radio, and online media typically interact with human brains more like entertainment than like something really, truly important. When we watch or listen or surf our news, in most cases, we are in the mode of moving quickly from one thought to the next. Even if we try to focus, ads, pop-ups and crawlers invade our screen with multiple headlines and distractions all at once. Our devices were purposely designed this way, in fact. Reading the news, in contrast, naturally moves the focus into our intellect. A good start. “But nobody wants to read anything longer than a page…” today’s editors assure everyone. Many editors put the limit at “two paragraphs.” If we don’t read more deeply, we’ll truly and literally become a nation of sheep. Deep thinking is needed to deal with the reality of today’s complex and globally-interconnected world—for any citizen. And deep thinking about the news is basically impossible unless we’re reading (or listening/watching to a source that takes) much more than 5 minutes to really address an issue in some depth. The Jefferson-Madison Debates The term “fake news” means the following to most people: news that pushes a false agenda, distracts from truth, lies. But “shallow news” is just as bad for the nation. Even “accurate news” that is shallow is a major blow to our society. And this accounts for most of what media consumers experience. When it is both fake and shallow, we’re in real trouble. The Left and Right argue about which news reports are “fake,” but few even claim to offer real depth in their news. And even fewer consumers seem to be actively searching for and embracing deeper news. To reiterate: the Red-Blue divisions are growing, and intensifying, and this means that major problems are ahead unless we do something about it. My plan is to write a weekly (or, sometimes, every two week) article that treats real topics in enough depth to help readers take a step back from the constant screaming of electronic news, and really understand a topic (one at a time) enough to see behind the scenes of modern media spin and fake/shallow posturing. More will, of course, be needed to stop our seeming national sprint toward more civil conflict. But I know this weekly column will make a difference—for those who read it. It was the reading and thinking about articles and pamphlets during the American Founding generation that helped America gain freedom, and deep thinking is vitally needed today. I’m calling this new series of weekly articles The Jefferson-Madison Debates, and I hope you’ll join us. It’s going to be fun. — Oliver DeMille (RSS Feed sign up here ***) Category : Aristocracy &Arts &Blog &Business &Citizenship &Community &Constitution &Culture &Current Events &Economics &Education &Entrepreneurship &Generations &Government &History &Independents &Information Age &Leadership &Liberty &Mission &Politics &Producers &Prosperity &Statesmanship &Technology The Jefferson-Madison Debates: Are Today’s Education and Politics Entering the Age of Star Trek? May 12th, 2018 // 9:02 am @ Oliver DeMille “A shoe, too, is no longer a finished product, but an endless process of reimagining our extended feet, perhaps with disposable covers, sandals that morph as you walk, treads that shift, or floors that act as shoes.” —Kevin Kelly “We have long argued that as the Web extends in usage…increased access to factual information would improve the quality of public discourse. However, the opposite seems to be occurring.” —Don and Alex Tapscott Given how much technology has changed the world in the past twenty years, and how differently we now live, it’s easy to assume that the Internet Revolution has brought the big change—and this era of massive shifts will slowly relax back into some kind of normality. But the truth is that we are just at the very beginning stages of the Information Age. The changes have just begun. Following are a few of the major developments still ahead, as described by the experts on current technologies. As you think about each of these, consider the ramifications of these trends as they relate to the future of education, career, the economy, and the type of education needed for the emerging economy: 1. Autonomous vehicles. Self-driving cars are a reality.[i] How long they will co-exist with human drivers before the laws require all cars to be driven electronically remains to be seen.[ii] Self-driving planes, boats, and trucks will also change our lives drastically. Flying vehicles are next. As drone technology improves, taking people as passengers may not be too far away. 2. 3D Printing (additive manufacturing).[iii] This will revolutionize transportation, shipping, and manufacturing. Things that can be printed out in our own homes don’t need to be built in factories, or shipped by truck, airplane, or even drone. 3D printing will also have significant impact in medicine by printing certain medical implants.[iv] In fact, 3D printers now print food, including candy—and some people think it even tastes good.[v] One taste tester wrote: “It tastes like an after-dinner mint mixed with a sugar cube.”[vi] 3. 4D Printing. The printers will print smartobjects that are self-learning, and self-altering in response to their environment.[vii] 4. New Smart Materials. As Klaus Schwab, Founder of the World Economic Forum, put it: Some are “self-healing, self-cleaning, metals with memory that revert to their original shapes, chemicals and crystals that turn pressure into energy, and so on…. Take advanced nanomaterials [nano means smaller than the human eye can see] such as graphene, which is about 200-times stronger than steel, a million times thinner than a human hair, and an efficient conductor of heat and electricity. When graphene becomes price competitive…it could significantly disrupt the manufacturing and infrastructure industries.”[viii] 5. iMoneyCenter. As Forbes put it: “Your cellphone will become a global bank. Mobile money accounts already outnumber traditional bank accounts in parts of the developing world, and new technology will turbocharge that trend, allowing payments to anyone, anywhere, in local currencies.”[ix] 6. RFID (Radio Frequency Identification). Tiny tags can be put on pretty much anything, or anyone, and track where it is at any time, all over the world.[x] This technology is cheap and easy to use. The tags can even contain sensors that keep track of how well the item is doing, and what it is doing.[xi] Kevin Kelly said of the various kinds of small digital devices that are being created: “A few are shrinking to the size of the period following this sentence. These macroscopic measurers can be inserted into watches, clothes, spectacles, or phones, or inexpensively dispersed in rooms, cars, offices, and public spaces.[xii] Sensors can be built to watch and listen.” He also wrote: “Massive tracking and total surveillance are here to stay.”[xiii] The machines are becoming ubiquitous.[xiv] Moreover, a lot of people like it this way. One report summarized the trend as “Our Love-Hate Affair With AI.”[xv] The ramifications of the new era of machines for freedom and relationships of all kinds are immense.[xvi] 7. Gene Mapping and Synthetic Biology. This is popularly called the creation of “Designer Babies.” “It will provide us with the ability to customize organisms by writing DNA.”[xvii] “Today, a genome can be sequenced in a few hours for less than a thousand dollars.”[xviii] And at some point scientists foresee artificial memory implanting into peoples’ brains.[xix] Just download what you want to know—facts, dates, formulas, etc. Gene Mapping will impact agriculture and the energy sector (by producing biofuels) as well as medicine and education.[xx] 8. Personalized Medications. Medicine, from those used to treat advanced diseases to simple aspirin, will be personalized for each individual—“tailored to your DNA.”[xxi] These will likely be very expensive at first, further widening the gap between the upper and other classes. 9. Non-Communicative Relationships. A number of popular magazines each month present articles that tell men and women they need to turn off their electronic gadgets and talk to their spouse or significant other. The articles are detailed and specific, with advice like “look your spouse in the eye while you talk to her,” and “actually listen to the words he says and try to connect with his logic and feelings,” etc. The volume of such articles suggests that this is a serious problem. Relationships are often victims of addiction to electronic devices, texts, messages, and other incoming communication that is more highly valued than interaction with the live person in the same room. Relationships and Roboticships Moreover, emerging technology will very likely throw a serious monkey-wrench into many relationships. VR (Virtual Reality[xxii]) is incredibly advanced now, and will soon be on the market in extensive ways. A person can slip on a VR helmet or glasses and be transported mentally to a whole new world. Some VR research and development is focused on porn, although the tech world prefers the term “alternative relationships.” How will this impact marriage, family, education, and stable relationships? Robotics have reached the point that lifelike “partner dolls,” sometimes called “sex dolls”, that talk and interact are already available.[xxiii] Soon, experts say, they’ll be easily accessible online and sold in our corner neighborhood stores.[xxiv] It’s a potential revolution in lifestyles, and the impact on relationships will certainly be real.[xxv] It is unclear how this will influence marriage and family, but the prospects seem quite negative. A number of apps try to fulfill the same need—for relationships in an electronic format.[xxvi] If we find it difficult now to put down our phones or take off our headphones to engage in meaningful conversation and relationships, imagine how difficult it will be to turn off the robots, apps, and VR glasses.[xxvii] VR, and lifelike personal relationship robots, can be programmed (or told by the user) to never argue, nag, disagree, shout, or storm away.[xxviii] Again, such devices won’t take the place of quality, mature relationships, but they could very well hurt or make such relationships more difficult.[xxix] 10. The Rise of the Algorithms. Online technology now employs numerous advanced algorithms and AI technologies that are learning to do everything from sensing where our eyes are gazing (in order to know our interests and sell to us)[xxx] to what our politics are (as mentioned above, this could be to allow providers like Facebook and Google, or others, to determine what news feeds to send us—to promote their own political goals), to how empty the milk carton in our fridge is (in order to order a fresh one). Schwab said: “Amazon and Netflix already possess algorithms that predict which films and books we may wish to watch and read. Dating and job placement sites suggest partners and jobs—in our neighborhood or anywhere in the world—that their systems [algorithms] figure might suit us best. The Man AI in Charge “What do we do? Trust the advice provided by an algorithm or that offered by family, friends, or colleagues? Would we consult an AI-driven robot doctor with a near perfect diagnosis success rate—or stick with the human physician with the assuring bedside manner we have known for years?”[xxxi] AI is tasked with watching us and learning from us, and as AIs become smarter, some of them will be incredibly effective forecasters. Companies may even be valued based on their AI. For example, Kelly wrote: “Amazon’s greatest asset is not its Prime delivery service but the many millions of reader reviews it has accumulated over the decades.”[xxxii] These reviews, and the AI that runs them, learns from them, and uses them to help predict what books each user is likely to enjoy, is a huge asset. The concept of establishing corporate boards of directors made up entirely of Artificial Intelligence is discussed openly and seriously.[xxxiii] Do we want algorithms in charge of everything? In education, the possibilities are seemingly endless—and just as alarming. Kelly wrote: “The tiny camera eyes that now stare back at us from any screen can be trained with additional skills…researchers at MIT have taught the eyes in our machines to detect human emotions. As we watch the screen, the screen is watching us, where we look, and how we react. “Since this perception is in real time, the smart software [algorithms] can adapt what I’m viewing. Say I am reading a book and my frown shows I’ve stumbled on a certain word; the text could expand a definition.”[xxxiv] This means that the text of the book is changing before you read it, based on what you have read so far and how you reacted. In other words, the computer is in effect censoring what you read before you even read it. What about the author’s intent? Well, that depends. The AI, or the people who commission and oversee the AI, may decide to carefully protect the original text, or they may not. They may edit, censor, distract, etc.—whatever they think best achieves their goals. Remember that thing called Thinking? They may even have different ways of dealing with different people—like Google gaming the search system so that people who look up a certain Republican candidate get the most negative articles about him on the first page, while those who search for his Democratic opponent get the most flattering articles (or vice versa). Or they might simply guide your searches to the companies who paid them the most to do so. If these guides are personalized and targeted to each individual user (like in the movie Minority Report), different readers will literally be getting a very different education. One student will read very different things than a second student, while the third reads yet another thing—all determined by AI and/or those who program and control the AI. Kelly continued: “Or, if it realizes I am reading the same passage, it could supply an annotation for that passage. Similarly, if it knows I am bored by a scene in a video, it could jump ahead or speed up the action.”[xxxv] If we choose such functions on a menu, that’s one thing. But what happens if the big businesses or the cyber-governmental-industrial-complex just decides that this kind of censorship is best for the people? Or for a certain group or type of people, such as those from a certain religion or political party? On purely educational grounds, having the computer supply definitions, commentaries and links is bad for thinking. It teaches rote dependence on experts, even if the expert is an AI. If we don’t have to question, ponder, or debate the books we read, we’ll be thinking a lot less. The words censorship and brainwashing aren’t farfetched in this context. What about politics? The media and party-media machines already spread a lot of false information. What will happen when algorithms take over the media spin? It will personalize to each reader, each person using the Internet (or whatever kind of Supernet or Skynet takes its place). As such, the AI will learn how to confuse each person the most effectively. Again, this isn’t far from the personalized billboards and ads in the movie Minority Report. (Un)Locked Doors On an even larger scale, if an algorithm claims to predict which of various candidates would make the best president, prime minister, judge or senator, do we just give up voting altogether? After all, the voters seldom put in leaders who truly deliver what they promised. Or will the experts try to convince us that an algorithm-based AI should be our president and Congress and Court and make our top government decisions—getting rid of human error altogether? And in all this, let’s not forget that someone can access the algorithms. All computers can be hacked—so far. As author Marc Goodman put it: “There’s never been a computer system that’s proven unhackable.”[xxxvi] Bigger technologies mean bigger hacks, with more drastic impact on people. And won’t the growth of the Internet just funnel more and more power to a few elites who control the algorithms? The answer is “Yes. Emphatically yes!” In fact, is there any way to stop this from happening? 11. “Reshoring.” This means that when high tech processes like 3D printing, gene mapping, and RFID tagging become mainstream around the world, many industrial jobs will be lost—but a lot of high-tech jobs will move back to the most advanced nations in search of highly-trained workers with expertise in areas conducive to high tech.[xxxvii] Whether this will happen or not remains to be seen. It may not happen at all. “…many workers [may]…end up permanently unemployed, like horses unable to adjust to the invention of the tractors.”[xxxviii] 12. Portfolio Careers. These occur where a person’s career includes doing several different jobs for different employers in the same day.[xxxix] For example, one person might be a teacher during the school day, a restaurant manager during the evenings, and an eBay seller in his spare time—all to make ends meet. Portfolio careers may become very widespread in the new economy. A lot of people probably won’t like such a development, leading to increased class divisions and conflicts.[xl] 13. Even Greater Class Divide. As Schwab wrote: “…half of all assets around the world are now controlled by the richest 1% of the global population, while the lower half” of the population control less than 1% of world assets.[xli] Or as the Tapscotts put it: “…the global 1 percent owns half of the world’s wealth while 3.5 billion people earn fewer than 2 dollars a day.”[xlii] To be continued next week … [i] Schwab, 15, 147-148; see also Kevin Kelly, The Inevitable, 2016, 50-51; Brynjolfsson, 14-20; See Sam Smith, “The Truth About the Future of Cars,” Esquire, April 2016, 69-74; Erin Griffith, “Disconnected,” Fortune, August 1, 2016, 44. [ii] See Smith, 69-74. [iii] Scwhab, 15; see also Brynjolfsson, 36-37; Kelly, 53. [iv] Schwab, 15, 22, 161-167. [v] Andrea Smith, “Print Your Candy and Eat it Too,” Popular Science, January 2015, 24. [vi] Ibid. [vii] Schwab, 16. [viii] Ibid., 17. Category : Aristocracy &Blog &Citizenship &Community &Constitution &Culture &Current Events &Economics &Education &Entrepreneurship &Foreign Affairs &Generations &Government &History &Independents &Information Age &Leadership &Liberty &Mission &Politics &Postmodernism &Producers &Prosperity &Science &Technology An Update on the State of America: What’s REALLY Happening? October 28th, 2017 // 4:41 pm @ Oliver DeMille (It’s Not What You See On the News) “Keep your eyes on the ball.” I think every baseball coach I ever had repeated this advice like a mantra, and with good reason. A batter faces all kinds of distractions: players from the other team–both those on the field and those in the dugout–make a point of yelling, waving their arms, and doing whatever they can to distract a batter, to get him to take his eyes off the ball. The catcher says things from behind the plate. The opposing crowd yells boisterously in the stands, waves banners or hats or small children, and some honk their car horns or chant pithy slogans in unison. The good batter learns to ignore all of this noise and mental clutter, to focus only on the ball—eyes on the ball, always. The same focus is vital in politics. Most people realize this in a roundabout way, but they tend to think that media, the opposing party, and social media are trying to keep certain governmental leaders distracted. This does happen, but it’s not the real problem. In fact, media outlets and political parties trying to divert each other pale in comparison to the actual distraction. The Diversion The real problem occurs when the citizens get distracted. When they “take their eyes off the ball.” Both political parties routinely try to get citizens focused on tangents, and one of the most effective ways is to attack each other. Nothing keeps people misdirected like a good bout of Washington name-calling. If that isn’t working, the media can be counted on to up the ante and intensify the rhetoric, spin, and accusations. The more the citizens who tend to stay informed on the news can be diverted by such tactics, the less they tend to pay attention to their real role, their crucial responsibility—to keep the government in check, not let politicians and/or bureaucracies quietly (or loudly, for that matter) chip away at their freedoms. The media are supposed to help this important work by keeping a close eye on government and calling attention to federal excess and abuse. Sometimes they do this well, but mostly they join the political parties and politicians in creating more noise, clamor and misdirection. The Constitution gets attacked each month in a number of ways, but the media and parties tend to redirect the American people to other things, loud and emotional issues that spread anger, division, and a focus on personalities, parties, special interest groups, “who said what” and “who responded how”—and “how dare they!” While this is happening, our freedoms are whittled away behind the scenes. For example, as Senator Mike Lee pointed out, if the bills passed by Congress in any given year are stacked in one pile, and the policies adopted by the sprawling federal bureaucracy during the same time period (without any vote in Congress and usually with little or no media coverage) are stacked in another, the bureaucratic pile is many times higher than the first. Yet hardly anyone knows what the myriad government agencies are writing, implementing, and enforcing; almost nobody has a say in what they decide; and few even know it’s happening. By the time such policies start directly hurting you and other people, it’s often too late. This occurs year after year, decade after decade. Add to this the various court precedents and additional policies established by local, state and federal judiciaries, executives, and legislatures across the nation, along with international precedent, treaties, and agreements that American courts and the other branches of government are bound by or choose to comply with, and the “behind the scenes” pile of government regulations, policies, penalties and rules has grown (and is growing) even more quickly. The spread of governmental power in the past few decades has been almost exponential. Carly Fiorina was right when she repeatedly warned during the 2016 presidential primaries that America is being “crushed” under the overwhelming weight of regulatory overreach. Yet this is seldom, almost never, mentioned in the media—mainstream or otherwise. It is simply a non-story for most Americans. Instead, the media distract us with the latest White House skirmish, presidential Tweet, ridiculous things said by the media, or outrageous words or actions by a political official (sometimes Republican, other times Democrat) or Hollywood celebrity, sports star or recording artist. Even sports shows, late night TV, and various celebrity-studded awards shows have recently joined the fray. It all adds up to one glaring reality: Distraction, distraction, distraction. The problem isn’t so much that perception is reality, but that “the news cycle is reality” for far too many Americans. And, in fact, for a growing number of people “the latest post is reality.” We are living in a new era of political interaction. “Get your daily distraction here!” Buy a magazine, turn on the news, or read the headlines on your smartphone—it’s often at least 99% distraction. And no, this statistic isn’t scientific, it’s just my best guess. A true scientific study of the facts would quite possibly show that 99% is a bit low. The real issues, the most important realities, almost never pop up on the morning smartphone update. They only rarely appear in a television news program, and even the once-highly-trusted print media now serve up large swaths of distraction. We live in tabloid nation, at times, even when we try to follow the news. The truth is, I think most Americans kind of sensed this turn of events taking place during the 2015-2016 presidential elections. Media coverage was frequently so extreme that anyone who still trusts the media must not have watched the news during the past 24 months. Many on the Left are shocked by President Trump’s tweets; a lot on the Right feel the same way about the nightly news. That’s what effective distraction is all about. It keeps us uneasy, concerned, worried about what the other (“evil”) party might do. This kind of intense media environment is like a drug—great for ratings, but often light on truth. Those who get hooked have to get their daily fix, shake their heads, and try to sleep at night even though the world is “so close to the edge right now”. Thanks to smartphones, too many of us are even addicted to the hourly fix, each new headline scrolling across the handheld screen to remind us to stay mainlined to the latest media report. But there’s more to all this than initially meets the eye. At the same time we witnessed this momentous shift in American news and politics, especially its growing levels of intensity and divisiveness, we also experienced something else—mostly unarticulated, a feeling, a fleeting glimpse of…something. We’re not yet sure what it means, but it’s starting to look a bit like…dare we say it?…a new sort of wisdom. For example, during the election a friend told me he was deeply worried Trump would win. When I pressed him for details, he explained that he thought Trump represented a spreading American authoritarianism. Not conservatism. Not liberalism or progressivism. Just a desire to have someone strong in charge who would ignore the old political ways of doing things and instead just get things done, torpedoes-away-style if needed. I asked if he thought Hillary would be better, and he responded that she’d be normal—corrupt, a politician, the kind of president the red states would hate and watch closely. But predictable. And therefore better. Then he said the really profound thing that made me stop and think. “With Hillary in the White House and a large Republican majority in the House,” the government will be largely handicapped for the next four years. I like that.” He wasn’t just seeing things as liberal versus conservative. He was looking past media and party distractions and keeping his eye on the ball. Agree or disagree with his conclusions, but it struck me that his main focus was figuring out how his vote could help limit Washington. The most intriguing thing about this conversation wasn’t the Hillary versus Trump issue, which for him seemed entirely secondary. His concern was that everything hinged on how to keep America from losing more of its freedoms. At the time, I thought it was a remarkable discussion. But then another friend told me he supported Trump all through the Republican primaries because he believed Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, John Kasich, or any other mainstream politician might be elected along with Republican control of the House and Senate, meaning that there would be nobody to aggressively check their agenda. “But with Trump in the White House,” he predicted, “Republicans in Congress will work hard to check the president. He won’t get very much done—just a few big and important things like deregulation of past executive orders, a Right-leaning Court appointee, and major tax cuts. Congress will only support the things we really need, not all the Trump rhetoric.” Again, we discussed the specifics, with me mostly asking questions, but the most interesting thing I took from this conversation was that he, too, was looking for an election outcome that would check and limit Washington. He had a very different view than the other friend, and ended up voting differently, but they both had the same top goals in mind—protect our freedom, reduce the power of Washington, reboot the Constitution. Yet another friend took a drastically different viewpoint, but with the same ultimate goal. “I hope Hillary wins and both houses of Congress stay Republican, or that Trump wins and Democrats take control of the Senate,” she said. Then she ended with: “Anything to get the checks and balances working better.” Again: curtail Washington’s power and let the Constitution shrink the overreach of government. After this third conversation, I stopped being surprised when this approach came up. I didn’t see it much in the national media, but I heard similar thoughts from at least a half-dozen other people. Unlike the other heated elections I’d closely watched since 1992, this time around a lot more people seemed to be seeking something more than “the better candidate.” They wanted to see real change in Washington, not through a candidate, but by setting up Washington to do more internal fighting and do less. They wanted to limit the government. Is this change occurring because people are starting to give up on party politics as a real solution to our national problems? Or are they reading the Constitution and founding ideas more deeply? Or, alternatively, are there growing concerns that Washington has just become too big, too unwieldy? Was all this a coincidence? Maybe. Or perhaps there is a new wisdom, embryonic to be sure, rising in America. A new sense that if we want to be free, we’re going to have to look past blind trust in what the media tell us and dig deeper, think more deeply and independently about our freedom and our politics. Or could it be even more simple: Could it be that the media tipped their hand in 2015-2017, clearly signaling to a lot of Americans that it is “all in” for bigger government, more power to Washington, and more support for leaders who want to expand that power? As a result, perhaps a lot more people are looking around for new and better ways. If there’s one thing Donald Trump absolutely got right in 2016, it is that the time has arrived to “drain the swamp” that is Washington D.C. In fact, Barack Obama started his presidency with the same call for real change in Washington and the way it did business. So did Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan, for that matter. All came to the Oval Office as outsiders, promising to put Washington back in line. History seems to be teaching us that presidents don’t change the swamp as much as they want to. If a new wisdom is percolating among the American people, it will need to use the power of the voting booth to put disruptors and real innovators in office—many offices—and never again settle for mainstream politicians and managers of the status quo (from either party). To accomplish this, we’ll have to learn to largely ignore distractions from party politics and the manic media and instead keep our eyes on the ball: What is undermining the Constitution and our freedoms this month? This is what is really happening in America. And the stakes could hardly be higher: If we’re not up to the task, the elite politicians, bureaucracies, and media will win; families, middle America, the economy, and our posterity will be the losers. Category : Aristocracy &Blog &Citizenship &Constitution &Culture &Current Events &Economics &Generations &Government &History &Independents &Information Age &Leadership &Liberty &Mission &Politics « First« 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 »Last »	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line947
__label__wiki	0.500663	0.500663	Man Suffers Injuries Caused by Noise and Vibrations During an MRI A West Bloomfield, Michigan, man sustained debilitating, life-altering injuries after undergoing a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) procedure, without protection for his ears against the loud and intense noise and vibrations caused by the machine. The University of Michigan Health System radiology technician responsible for prepping Mr. H for his MRI failed to provide appropriate ear protection. Mr. H was also not warned of the dangers associated with prolonged exposure to the noise and vibrations produced by the machine. For over two hours, Mr. H was exposed, without protection, to harmful levels of noise and vibration that caused a variety of painful and long-lasting medical problems including; concussion, ongoing pain, continuous ringing in the ears, sensitivity to sound, severe headaches, nausea, dizziness, difficulty sleeping, short-term memory loss, and depression. Each day, Mr. H must takes steps to avoid loud sounds and noises that may trigger pain. Had the radiology technician followed standard procedures and provided Mr. H with earplugs or earphones, Mr. H’s exposure would have been minimized and he would not have been made to suffer the injuries he continues to struggle with on a daily basis. Jules Olsman and Donna MacKenzie have filed suit on Mr. H’s behalf against the University of Michigan Board of Regents and the radiology technician.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line948
__label__wiki	0.967453	0.967453	Making Music—and a Place to Rehearse—in Brooklyn The Wall Street Journal, written by Melanie Grayce West Kevin Dolan wanted a lasting, meaningful philanthropic project for his semiretirement instead of joining friends at the golf course and tennis courts. He's passing on the "adult summer camp" routine, explains the 60-year-old international tax attorney who previously worked at Merrill Lynch and continues to work part-time at a law firm. Mr. Dolan decided to take on something a little less "adventurous." He's building a 13,000-square-foot performance and recording space on the corner of Wythe Avenue and North Sixth Street in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn that will house the Original Music Workshop, a nonprofit that aims to help both aspiring and well-known musicians and composers. To get closer to the project, he moved to Williamsburg last month. "It's an unbelievable neighborhood. It's almost like a block party," says Mr. Dolan. "I'm the only person here, I think, who lives here that is over 35 years old, so far as I can tell." Though Mr. Dolan has experience fundraising and has volunteered with several nonprofits, the size and scope of this project—and the roughly $8 million he's committed—sets it apart. The Original Music Workshop will operate around the clock, allowing for performance, rehearsal, recording and broadcasting of any kind of music. "Everyone says this is a great project. It makes tremendous sense and there's such a need," says Mr. Dolan. "And the next thing is, 'Are you crazy?' And the answer is, yea, you probably have to be a little crazy to do something like this." Mr. Dolan estimates that the project and building—the building's core and shell should be done by the end of the year—will run about $14 million total. Now, he's looking for philanthropic investors to come in and seed some $6 million for the second phase of the project. Those investors would purchase equity in the building or provide interest-free loans. The hope is that the investors will ultimately donate their "shares" of the building to the nonprofit. The Original Music Workshop is nearly five years into development. It began with a townhouse that Mr. Dolan wanted to convert into a performance venue. That space wasn't right and then the project morphed and grew. There was a long real-estate search for the right site and a few years of seeking building permits. Part of what keeps Mr. Dolan moving forward on the project is his lifelong love for music. He enjoys classical baroque music, composes some of his own pieces and is an organist. "I can play at your wedding and do a pretty good job," he says. Music is part of a person's DNA and, for some, it's "almost a salvation," says Mr. Dolan. "The notion has been for quite a while to help the musician and composer community, particularly the younger folk. If you support them you support the art form." tags: The Wall Street Journal	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line949
__label__cc	0.635603	0.364397	Istanbul-Gyeongju World Culture Expo 2013 Links Silkroad DAEGU, SOUTH KOREA–(Marketwired / Asianet-Asianet – August 21, 2013) – Opens in Istanbul to run Aug. 31-Sept. 22 True taste of Korea-Turkey culture in 39 events in 8 categories Korean Wave actors, K-Pop stars to join forces With a rich history of 2,000 years, Gyeongju is heading for the European cultural city of Istanbul. The Province of Gyeongsangbuk-Do (Governor Kim Kwan Yong) will be in Istanbul Aug. 31-Sept. 22 for the Istanbul-Gyeongju World Culture Expo 2013 convening in the cultural capital of Istanbul. The Expo is being co-organized by Gyeongju and Istanbul under the theme of “Road, Encounter, Companion” and promises to be a global cultural festival with the attendance of more than 40 countries from Asia, Europe and the Americas. As the two cities at the Eastern and Western end of the Silkroad, Gyeongju and Istanbul share a particular historical intimacy. Ancestors of the Turks were active in Central Asia along with the ancient Korean kingdom of Goguryo as allies. During the Korean War (1950-1953), Turkey proved to be Korea’s blood brothers, dispatching as many as 15,000 soldiers to fight for South Korea’s cause. Gov. Kim said, “This is an important opportunity to highlight the cultural coherence between Korea and Turkey and a grand global march toward convergence between the two countries. This is the essence of the Istanbul-Gyeongju World Culture Expo 2013.” During the period of the Expo, Korea and Turkey will hold exhibitions, concerts and special visual and experimental presentations in 39 events in eight categories with particular focus on culture. Korea will be concentrating on highlighting the encounter between Korea and Turkey on the Silkroad and their subsequent companionship in the “Killer Contents in the Korean Cultural Pavilion” as well offer a purifying experience about its culture. There will also be an exhibition of collaborative exchanges in arts with the presentation of a photographic show of representative Korean photographers as well as a special unveiling of Korea’s cultural treasures. In the concert category, there will be the non-verbal presentation of “Flying” which was featured during the Gyeongju Expo and met with tremendous responses from audiences in Singapore and the romantic musical “Silla, Land of the New Kingdom” unraveling the love story of Empress Seondeok, all of which promises to mesmerize those in attendance. Along with these performances will be the “B-Boy Fusion Concert,” a traditional presentation of Korea’s customs and scenery and strolling actors, a street parade by a Turkish performance troupe, a demonstration of Taekwondo as well as a Korean-Turkish traditional fashion show. In the visual and experimentation category, the “Turkey-Korea Film Week,” “Exhibition of Renowned Korean Directors” and “Korea-Turkey Traditional Cultural Experience” are under preparation. During the movie week, more than 40 popular Korean and Turkish films will be featured. There will be an autograph signing event with leading Hallyu (Korean Wave) stars which should go a long way in increasing Korea’s visibility and popularity in Turkey. As for other special events, top Korean singers will join their forces in putting on a “K-Pop” concert along with the exhibition of traditional items from 19 countries during the “Silkroad Bazaar” and the “Global Traditional Performance Festival” participated in by 21 nations, prompting a cultural harmony between East and West. This is not all. There will be performances by troupes from Gyeongsangbuk-Do and Gyeongju and a Gyeongsangbuk-Do – Gyeongju Promotion Pavilion will be erected for increasing their visibility in terms of tourism and industry and creating a springboard to expand Korea’s presence in Europe while inducing more foreigners to come and visit Korea. Gov. Kim, who is also the co-chairman of the organizing committee of the Istanbul-Gyeongju World Culture Expo 2013, said, “This an event that symbolizes the vibrant cultures of Korea as symbolized by North Gyeongsang Province. We are determined to turn the Expo into an emotional cultural festival that the world can appreciate and enjoy.” Kadir Topbas, the Turkish-side co-chairman of the organizing committee, said for his part, “Turkey is a cultural furnace which attracts some 30 million visitors every year and it is a pleasure that we have the honor of sharing this Expo with Gyeongsangbuk-Do Province. Through thorough preparations, we are confident of turning the event into the biggest cultural extravaganza in Istanbul.” Riding on 2,000 years, Gyeongju has been organizing the Gyeongju World Culture Expo every two to three years to promote Korean culture, including the Silla heritage, to harmonize Korean culture with that of the world. A total of six expos have been held between 1998 and 2011, attracting an accumulated annual total of 56,000 cultural artisans from 298 countries. The cumulative number of visitors during the six expos reached 10 million. More information, visit the Istanbul-Gyeongju World Culture Expo (http://www.istanbul-gyeongju.com/en/). Istanbul-Gyeongju World Culture Expo organizing committee General, MENA, Pakistan Tags: Istanbul-Gyeongju World Culture Expo organizing committee	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line952
__label__wiki	0.505022	0.505022	Home Is Where The Heart Is Parent Guide Two half-sisters can't make their dysfunctional family whole. Overall C After the death of their mother (Joan Van Ark), half-sisters Cotton (Bailee Madison) and Sunny (Laura Bell Bundy) try to hang onto the thin family ties that bind them together. Violence C Profanity C+ Substance Use D+ Why is Home Is Where The Heart Is rated PG-13? The MPAA rated Home Is Where The Heart Is PG-13 for thematic material, substance abuse, some violence and language. They say you can’t judge a book by its cover, and the same is true for movie boxes. Take Home is Where the Heart is for instance. The package features two smiling young girls tenderly embracing a horse. The tag line reads, “Its never too late for a new start.” From that, plus a few clues found in the plot summary written on the back, I guessed it would be a sentimental story about reuniting a family and saving a small town—with some equine help. I was wrong. The female faces are those of the lead characters, ten-year-old Cotton (Bailee Madison) and her estranged half-sister Sunny (Laura Bell Bundy). Although Cotton does seem as sweet as candy, her young life has been soured caring for her single mom (cameo by Joan Van Ark) and easing the ailing woman’s pain (and perhaps addiction) with liquor supplied from the local bartender (Jonathan Banks). On the day of her mother’s death, the twenty-something Sunny (Laura Bell Bundy) returns from LA, bringing with her a dark cloud of hard living and unrealized tinsel town dreams. With no other relatives to turn to, Sunny reluctantly agrees to be Cotton’s guardian, even though she is obviously not well equipped for the job. The horse (that really plays only a minor part in the plot) lives next door with his owner Butch (Conrad Goode), a former football player with no apparent life goals. Still he is the most responsible adult about, so he’s fallen into the habit of keeping a watchful eye on Cotton. While doing so he happens to witness the visit of Sunny’s former flame Jackson (Rhett Giles) when he drunkenly drives up to the girls’ house hoping to reignite their relationship. His refusal to accept Sunny’s rebuff sparks Butch’s protective instinct to encompass the beautiful blonde too. The community that needs saving is Bent Arrow, Texas. The only business there that isn’t drying up is the pub where Cotton used to get her mother’s medicine. Unfortunately most of the regular customers (including one played by John C. McGinley) don’t pay their tab and the proprietor is on the brink of financial ruin. Yet that doesn’t stop him from handing out bottles of beer or serving drinks throughout the entire movie. As expected Butch, who happens to play guitar, falls in love with Sunny, who happens to have an amazing sing voice. Not only does this provide the possibility of a perfect family situation for Cotton (plus a few musical numbers), but it also offers hope for saving the struggling watering hole when the pair decides to perform a concert at the bar. (Remember though, this film doesn’t live up to its happy-ever-after promises.) The most unexpected thing about this movie is the amount of content concerns it crams into the two hour run time. All of the characters (except Cotton) engage in the aforementioned alcohol consumption, often to the point of inebriation (a couple of background cast members are depicted as unconscious), and one even combines booze will pills (resulting in a medical emergency). However, no connection is made in the script between drinking and the negative consequence the characters are experiencing, although there is a short conversation about a drunk driving accident. Unmarried sexual relationships are implied and one encounter is shown with some detail (the couple undresses and lay on top of one another while kissing passionately). A man physically abuses a woman by putting her in a chokehold until she retaliates by kicking him in the groin. And there is a smattering of profanities, crude slang and terms of deity used as expletives. While Cotton may be commendable for hanging onto her hope—audiences are likely to lose theirs when they discover the film isn’t as family friendly as the box art suggests. Directed by Rajeev Dassani. Starring Bailee Madison, Laura Bell Bundy, Conrad Goode, Jonathan Banks, John C. McGinley. Running time: 116 minutes. Updated July 17, 2017 Why is Home Is Where The Heart Is rated PG-13? Home Is Where The Heart Is is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for thematic material, substance abuse, some violence and language. Violence: Characters die and are grieved by loved ones. An orphaned child’s welfare is discussed. A character verbally bullies others. Bloody sports injuries are discussed. Characters trespass on private property. A jealous woman verbally threatens to kill a rival. A man physically threatens a woman, putting her in a chokehold and slamming her into a wall. She retaliates by kicking him in the groin. Characters give first aid treatment for a person who has overdosed. Medical care is depicted for a bloody head injury. A woman slaps a man. A character threatens to shoot a horse. Sexual Content: A shirtless man is shown in his underwear.Female characters are seen in revealing clothing, bath towels and underwear. Unmarried sex, miscarried pregnancies and abortions are mentioned. A man and woman skinny dip: underwear removal and bare legs, backs and shoulders are shown. A woman implies she’s had cosmetic breast surgery. A couple kisses passionately, then begin undressing (underwear removal and bare legs, backs and shoulders are shown) and then the man lies on top of the woman. Sexual relations are implied in several other scenes, with only kissing and embracing shown. Bathroom talk, slang anatomical terms and words for sex are used. A character vomits. Language: The script contains several mild profanities, moderate curses, and terms of deity uttered as expletives. Alcohol / Drug Use: Characters drink frequently at home, social gatherings and privately—sometimes to the point of intoxication. One woman even describes getting wasted as fun. Many scenes are set in a bar where regular customers constantly consume alcohol. Other locals, including a law officer, also come in for drinks. A bartender gives a bottle of hard liquor to a child, who takes it to her ailing mother (her illness is unidentified) to ease her pain. People consume beer at a town celebration, and some are shown inebriated or unconscious. Driving while drinking is both shown and discussed. Toasts are made to the dead. A character uses pills and alcohol (sometimes together) to deal with stress. A main character smokes. Home Is Where The Heart Is Parents' Guide Sunny claims she has a habit of messing up everything in her life. What things does she do that impact even her good opportunities? Do you think she understands the connection between her choices and the negative consequences she experiences? How does alcohol consumption affect the various characters in this movie? Even though Cotton doesn’t drink, how has alcohol affected her life? The movie begins and ends with a speech about hope. Do you feel that the story supports the narrator’s observations? Where would you find hope if you were in the situation depicted here? The most recent home video release of Home Is Where The Heart Is movie is August 19, 2014. Here are some details… Home Is Where The Heart Is releases directly to home video on August 19, 2014. Two sisters attempt to overcome the challenges of their upbringing in the movie In Her Shoes. Children also get the short changed because of their parents’ poor choices in The Past.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line956
__label__wiki	0.977883	0.977883	Tag: transgender in sports Four Minnesota newspapers publish full-page ad calling for transgender people to be banned from playing sports An anti-transgender group called the Child Protection League (CPL) paid for a full-page ad in four Minnesota newspapers calling for the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL), the governing body of high school sports in Minnesota, to reject a proposal to allow transgender athletes to participate in high school sports in Minnesota and ban transgender athletes from participating in Minnesota high school sports. The ad ran in Duluth, Mankato, St. Cloud, and Winona newspapers covering parts of northeastern, central, south central, and southeastern Minnesota. These ads amount to anti-transgender bigotry, right-wing fearmongering, and hate speech being published in Minnesota newspapers. Unlike the anti-transgender bigots, I firmly believe that transgender people should be allowed to play in sports with athletes of the same gender identity (i.e., transgender people who identify as male should be allowed to play on boys’/men’s teams, and transgender people who identify as female should be allowed to play on girls’/women’s teams). Child Protection League fearmongering full page ad gender in sports Mankato MN Minnesota State High School League right to play St. Cloud MN transgender in sports Winona MN	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line957
__label__cc	0.716953	0.283047	Xenophobia is the a fear or contempt of that which is foreign or unknown, especially of strangers or foreign people (Psychology dictionary 2010). Although this is rare and extreme it could be that everyone has an innate distrust for foreign people. Lev-Ari and Keysar (2010) found that people do not believe others or have a mistrust for what they are saying if they have a foreign accent. They did an experiment and asked people to rate how believable a fact such as ‘giraffes can go longer without water than a camel can’ when the speaker who told them was either a native english speaker, a non native speaker with a mild accent and a non native speaker with a strong accent. Their results found that it was rated as less believable when told by someone from a non native english speaker, especially with a strong accent. This could show that we do not trust those with foreign accents and so foreign people. Gavioli & Aston (2001) also found that british people often have a mistrust of foreigners even so to where they find others to be unintelligible and untrustworthy. Fear of strangers or foreigners can be explained through evolutionary processes: cavemen who stayed away from people they didn’t know would have been less likely to get attacked and so less likely to die. This would in turn, give them a higher chance of reproducing and passing their gene of mistrust to strangers on to their children. Over a while this will then result in an innate fear of foreigners which is in our genes. This is an explanation for us not trusting a foreign voice or face in situations like; over the phone to overseas call centers L Gavioli G Aston Enriching reality: language corpora in language pedagogy. doi: 10.1093/elt/55.3.238 Lev-Ari, S; Keysar, B. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 46 (2010) 1093–1096 (http://dictionary-psychology.com/index.php?a=term&d=Dictionary+of+psychology&t=Xenophobia) complexityofnormality permalink This is an intriguing topic, studies involving children have shown that they are more likely to trust and learn from a native-speaker, then a non-native speaker who has an accent. Childrens learning is dependant on the teachings of adults, and they will often disregard their own perceptions of the world if verbally informed (Jaswal & Markman, 2007). Kinzle, Corriveau, Harris (2010), found that children selectively recalled and learnt nonsense words from native-accented speakers, then foreign-accented speakers. This shows a somewhat, innate selective trust to those of the same accent and culture. As words were both meaningless in the experiments, thus it can be assumed children tend to orient around their own members of the native community in order to guide their learning. Alternatively, it can be seen that because words were nonesense, they are already difficult to process, so hearing words in a normal accent to their own would be easier to understand, when comparred to a foreign accent .This could mean that the child could better understand someone speaking in their own accent clearer, so it was easier for them to learn that word, instead of the foreign-accents nonesense word. An alternate view, provided by Birch, Vauthier & Bloom, (2008) shows that when children are provided with conflicting information via two or more adults, they will always trust the information given from an adult that has demonstrated reliability in history. This could be seen that children are more likely to recognise their own accent, and in such people with their own accent are more trusting because they know more about the culture they are in, whereas a foreign-accent would not neccessarily be as informative about the culture. This could give a reasoning to why as we grow up we have a preference to similar accented people, and trusting their information, because of early childhood development. Birch, S.A.J., Vauthier, S.A., & Bloom, P. (2008). Three- and 4-year-olds spontaneously use others’ past performance to guide their learning. Cognition, 107, 1018–1034. Jaswal, V.K., & Markman, E.M. (2007). Looks aren’t everything: 24-month-olds’ willingness to accept unexpected labels. Journal of Cognition and Development, 8, 93–111. Kinzler1,Corriveau, Harris. (2010). Children’s selective trust in native-accented speakers. Developmental Science Volume 14, Issue 1, 106–111. psue1b permalink The main study spoken of here focuses very much on the voice/accent of the person. To use a natural example. the apartheid situation in South Africa was and is a prime example of how physical appearance can produce much bias and distrust. Simply because of the colour of one’s skin the level and trust, and with it the level of unity, fell to pieces. Even now post apartheid and the political divisions, socially there are still clear divisions between all different races within the country without many having even spoken to each other. This supports the idea expressed that people from a different background to us we give less trust to and furthers it to say that it is even stronger when all the individual takes into account is the person’s physical appearance. Adam Hathaway permalink When I read this, my first thought was to the idea that people would use this research into having a natural distrust for foreigners as an excuse for racism, and so I decided to search for “evolutionary racism” on google and came upon on an article entitled thus on “conservapedia” (admittedly sounds a bit dodgy.) But I believe that the arguments presented in there do match the results of these studies. If we are predisposed to find foreign people less trustworthy, then we’re more likely to begin to hate them, if we hate them, we’ll eventually find ourselves believing that they are less human because we self-identify as human, and the more we hate something, the more we distance it from ourselves. This could eventually lead to the belief that we should dispose of them, and we’d be using the term “survival of the fittest” as our excuse because we believe that it is our duty to evolution to get rid of lesser beings. Laura Bird permalink It is less a case of trust and more a case of familiarity. To hear someone speak words that you are used to in a voice you are used to is almost always going to be easier to understand than hearing a voice (or a way of pronouncing words) that you are not used to. It may be that a person is more unsure of what they have heard and so doubt themselves and answer accordingly to avoid embarrassment. Furthermore it is difficult to control the effect that the tone and body language of a particular person on another person. For example if in the case of Lev-Ari & Keysar (2010) a British person was being asked questions by someone with a strong (for example) German accent who also happened to come across as a particularly hard or particularly intelligent person they may alter their actions and answers accordingly in the name of social desirability bias – after all, no one wants to make themselves look stupid in comparison to someone else or to incite conflict. Although it would be very difficult to compensate for effects that individual differences and first impressions may have on such experiments as these, It would be interesting to see a study similar to Lev-Ari and Keysar (2010) whereby people are given time to get used to a certain accent and subsequently assessed over time to see if the results change. jessicabutroid permalink I agree with you that people are less likely to trust those who are foreign and having different accents. But i also believe that the stereotype linked with these accents have a huge influence on trust. for example a german accent is less trustworthy than and american because of the stereotypes behind them, where germans are often thought of as more aggressive and that american accents are heard all the time through the media. The clarity of the voices may also have an impact on trust as listening to someone with a strong accent may make you believe you have heard wrong or that they do not speak english very well and so are not aware of whether what they are saying is accurate or not and so results in them being less trustworthy. This all gives support that there may be many reasons for why we do not trust foreigners and that it may not be due to innate behaviour. bethanhull permalink I agree that we are generally less likely to trust people with foreign accents. I think however the main reason for this is less to do with their accents but possibly more to do with the fear of the unknown. Ever since childhood we have always been told not to talk to strangers and not to trust them. The way a child sees a stranger is someone who is different to them so, not a child, different accent, wears different clothes and looks different. This is reinforced by the parents and then as someone develops into an adult they possibly continue with this thought process. I think that because of this, this would be an interesting area to do further research into. I think it would be interesting to look at whether it is accents from people overseas that people trust less or simply a different accent to their own (such as southern and northern). There is also the possibility that the media effects which accents we are more trusting of. The Disease of Racism: A Basic Diagnosis \| NGOMA SOUND The disease of racism: a basic diagnosis Global Views: The Real Cancer Within ”Racism” \| SCOOP News Leave a Reply to jessicabutroid Cancel reply « The Motives Behind Hate Crime Is psychological research based on western culture? »	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line961
__label__cc	0.703337	0.296663	άρθρο About Nicos Poulantzas Institute (NPI) Δημοσιεύτηκε: 08/03/2018 08/03/2018 The Nicos Poulantzas Institute (NPI) was founded in 1997 on the initiative of the political party Synaspismos, today SYRIZA. NPI is named after the Greek political sociologist Nicos Poulantzas. This choice signals the Institute’s embrace of the traditions of radical left thought. With his theoretical work and his committed participation in the left movement, Nicos Poulantzas became a prominent organic intellectual of the Left. His work, animated by the principles of democratic socialism and the ideas of Marxism, is integrally linked to the Left’s endeavour to overcome dogmatic rigidity, to fight against all forms of authoritarian rule and to contribute to fully-fledged social liberation. NPI aims at fostering the values of the Left, systematically developing an awareness of contemporary social, ecological, political and cultural issues and exploring the emerging changes within society. In addition, it seeks to contribute to the scientific research, theory and ideology as well as the political programme of the renewed, radical and ecological Left, while at the same time helping to develop the capabilities of its cardres through political education. The Institute’s fundamental functional principles include the commitment to the ideals of socialism with democracy and freedom, independence from the expedience of current political or party conjuncture, democratic functioning and the maintenance of the public character of all of its activities. The members of the Institute belong to the broader Left. The attempt to intervene in those areas where the development of a critical discourse is necessary, is closely interlinked with the dynamics created by the emergence of polymorphous social movements in many countries and the accompanying new forms of internationalism. Such movements struggle against the neoliberal, capitalist globalisation and resist the re-emergence of nationalist, racist and fundamentalist ideologies. In its attempt to be present in the dialogue that is unfolding all over the world, the Institute participates through its activities in the shaping of the goals and the strategies of the contemporary Left, in all of its dimensions (social, ecological, feminist, political, cultural etc). INP organises -either autonomously or in collaboration with other institutions in Greece or abroad- research, seminars, conferences, lectures, workshops, festivals and other types of events that cover a wide spectrum of issues (ranging from Greek, European and global politico-economic developments and policy issues, to history, philosophy, technology and culture). Publication and distribution of books, as well as of special brocures or audio focusing on Institute’s activities and other issues of broader theoretical, political or policy importance. Collaboration and coordination of activities with other institutes in Greece and abroad -research foundations, universities, political organisations, cultural institutions etc- for the development of common activities, exchange of documentation and ideas, participation in common research or other programmes on issues that relate to Institute’s aims. Nicos Poulantzas Institute is a founding member of the European Network for Alternative Thinking and Political Dialogue TRANFORM!. The TRANSFORM! Network is cooperating with the European Left Party, as well as with the European Parliamentary Group: European United Left/Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL). Full details at www.transform-network.org —————————————————————————————————————————————–> Nicos Poulantzas Institute is open to everyone wishing to contribute to the realisation of its goals. > In order to receive electronic updates about Institute’s forthcoming events e-mail your contact details to info@poulantzas.gr Nicos Poulantzas Institute Keramikou 46 and Millerou, 10436 Athens This entry was posted in English. Bookmark the permalink. 12/12/2018 Rosa Luxemburg’s open ended future: Socialism or Barbarism, Internationalism or Nationalism TWELFTH ANNUAL NICOS POULANTZAS MEMORIAL LECTURE Rosa Luxemburg’s open ended future: Socialism or […] 22/04/2015 The topicality of the strategy of the democratic path to socialism Εισήγηση από το συνέδριο «Κρίση, Κράτος και Δημοκρατία. Αξιοποιώντας τη θεωρία του Νίκου Πουλαντζά για την […] 09/08/2017 Circuitos económicos solidarios y liberación de fuerzas productivas Euclides André Mance, Circuitos económicos solidarios y liberación de fuerzas productivas from Institouto […]	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line964
__label__wiki	0.515595	0.515595	Report on Days 4 & 5 from the Eckerd College Writers Conference By Peter Pollak on January 24, 2014 in blog, Writing and Editing I’ll call the theme of Day 4 “wants versus needs” and that of Day 5 “story structure.” On Day 4, after the two workshop stories were discussed, we focused on identifying the elements of the story arc in the first part of the novel. Using the movie Legally Blond as a teaching devise, workshop leader Lori Roy broke the movie down into beats or segments, starting with showing the status quo at the start of the movie. (The Reese Witherspoon character is shown to be beautiful and rich, but also kind; she is preparing for a date with her boyfriend whom she expects to ask her to marry him.) The inciting incident in the movie––the breaking of the status quo––is her boyfriend’s dumping her, stating the woman he wants to marry is a Jackie (Kennedy) and not a Marilyn (Monroe). In a novel there can be one or a series of incidents that happens to the protagonist that upsets the status quo. What the protagonist does next determines the direction of the story. In Legally Blond, the R.W. character decides to go to law school. She still wants to get the guy, and thinks this is the way to do so. Every story must have a key event where the protagonist takes some step consistent with h/h character to try to get what s/he wants. The irony in Legally Blond is that what R.W. does to fulfill her want (marry her ex-boyfriend) eventually brings her into conflict with that want. She needs to be taken seriously and by taking herself seriously finds she no longer wants that marriage. The topic of story structure evolved out of the discussion of the two workshop contributions on Day 5, including the first 25 pages of my work in progress tentatively entitled “Chains of Time.” My synopsis for The Chains of Time envisioned a story divided into six equal parts which when completed would be around 800 pages in length and which I projected to be divided into two or three books. The problem with my game plan coming into the conference was how to introduce multiple protagonists in an alternative world that had to be “built”––i.e., readers had to know the story setting. The technique I tried out had the flaw of too great a disconnect between the macro world as described in an opening page “memo” and the micro world portrayed in the first 25 pages. Using a series such as the Harry Potter stories, I can see how there’s both an overriding story arc (the battle between Harry and Voldemort) and a story arc for each of the individual books. Therefore, the solution to my structural issues will require me to re-organize my story into three parts each with its own story arc while defining a conflict that encompasses the entire story. Sterling Watson gave the craft lecture on Tuesday on writing short, effective sentences. I told him I was concentrating on writing longer, more effective sentences. He said ‘stop’. We agreed that variety in sentence length was necessary. On Thursday, Laura Lippman showed how she uses visual tools to get unstuck when writing a story with complex story lines and Watson sped through a handout that encompassed more topics that the revision session label. Poet Peter Meinke and children’s author Laura Williams McCaffrey read Tuesday evening. Thursday evening the readers were Lori Roy, reading the first chapter of her second novel, and Stewart O’Nan, reading from a work in progress on F. Scott Fitzgerald. Laura Lippman, Lori Roy, Peter Meinke, Sterling Watson, Stewart O'Nan Report from Day 3 of the Eckerd College Writers Conference Interview with Eric Bakutis, author of Glyphbinder	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line965
__label__wiki	0.60722	0.60722	Published on The University Record (https://record.umich.edu) Home > Art & Design professor aims to make technology more personable Art & Design professor aims to make technology more personable By Olivia Puente When most people think of a cyborg, they may think of a half-human, half-machine hybrid akin to Arnold Schwarzenegger in “Terminator.” Sophia Brueckner would argue a bit differently about what being a cyborg means, as she considers herself to be one. “To me, being a cyborg doesn’t just mean biohacking or body modification. There are other ways we become part human and part machine,” said the assistant professor of art and design, and of information. “One time, I painted all of my childhood computers from memory, and the paintings unintentionally looked just like the old computer games I used to play. It was uncanny. Those games and the software I consumed growing up structured my memories and how I think. “I can’t separate who I am from the technologies that shaped me, and that’s when I realized I was a cyborg. We are all cyborgs, but most of us don’t realize it.” Sophia Brueckner, assistant professor of art and design and of information, refers to herself as a cyborg. (Photo by Scott C. Soderberg, Michigan Photography) Having grown up with computers since the age of 2, Brueckner has a very different outlook on how technology shapes people and might be used for good. Last year, she encouraged people to regard technology with a “critically optimistic” outlook in a TEDx talk. “Especially recently, technologists tend to focus on efficiency, and making communication more efficient is not the same as making it more meaningful. By making it so easy to connect, connection has become drastically stripped of meaning. What would happen if we designed technology with the goal of making our lives more meaningful rather than more efficient?” As a faculty member at the Penny W. Stamps School of Art and Design, Brueckner brings her sensitivity to technology’s effects and her focus on envisioning alternative futures to her students through a class called “Sci-Fi Prototyping.” Brueckner’s students build prototypes inspired by science fiction books, stories and films, and consider what might happen when their designs grow in scale in the near and far future. Brueckner draws inspiration from science fiction novels to develop her own technology — most notably, her Empathy Box. Inspired by a novel by Philip K. Dick, Brueckner’s device seeks to bring more meaning to connections through technology. The weekly Spotlight features faculty and staff members at the university. To nominate a candidate, email the Record staff at urecord@umich.edu. “The Empathy Box is a reaction against existing social media and how I think it is affecting our relationships negatively,” she said. “I was trying to experiment with an alternative social network, one that had no names, no numbers and no pictures. It’s a social interface that exists through a physical device allowing you to connect with many anonymous people through touch and emotion alone. It is meant to build your sense of empathy and connectedness with strangers.” Brueckner utilizes her diverse background in art and design as well as engineering to make technology more personable. “Each of these disciplines works in a different way and uses a different vocabulary. My challenge is to apply what I’ve learned to build bridges between these disciplines through both my research and teaching.” What memorable moment in the classroom stands out? Recently, I showed my sci-fi students the “Black Mirror” episode “Nosedive,” which portrays a dystopian future where people’s lives are taken over by social media. So many of my students made comments along the lines of “I can’t imagine how that would not happen. It’s going to happen.” … This level of pessimism is as dangerous as the equally common naive optimism. What can’t you live without? Books. I read very fast and finish a book every few days. Name your favorite spot on campus. My favorite place on campus is the new digital fabrication studio I worked to build at Stamps. It’s where both my students and I realize our ideas. This might be kind of surprising for someone whose work is all about technology and the future, but I live in a pre-Civil-War-era farmhouse out in the woods with limited internet and cell phone service. It gives me some distance and a useful perspective on how I want to structure my relationship with technology and also a more palpable sense of time and history, which really helps with long-term, extrapolative thinking. I am currently reading “Three-Body Problem” by Liu Cixin, a Chinese sci-fi author, because in August I am traveling to Shenzhen, the Silicon Valley of China, to research technology and manufacturing there. Who had the greatest influence upon your career path? I would say my grandfather, because he recognized and encouraged my talent for science and math as well as art. … I think this is a big reason I never saw art and design as something distant or separate from STEM disciplines though others frustratingly often do. Tags: Faculty Spotlight Source URL: https://record.umich.edu/articles/art-design-professor-aims-make-technology-more-personable	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line967
__label__wiki	0.63386	0.63386	ReelDecisions What should you watch tonight? The Revenant – Alejandro G. Iñárritu February 25, 2016 April 1, 2016 / ReelDecisions / Leave a comment The Revenant starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, and Domhnall Gleeson. Photo Credit: Everett/Rex/Shutterstock This is a movie about pain – mental and physical pain. Leonardo DiCaprio will make you feel every bit of suffering endured by his character, Hugh Glass, in The Revenant, Alejandro Iñárritu‘s latest 156 min tour de force. If gore and death make you at all squeamish, this is not the movie for you. Arrows cutting through flesh, burning bodies, claws ripping through skin and crushing bone, the disembowelment of a horse, these are just a few things that might turn a lot of people off. But if you can handle it, you’re in for a film experience that doesn’t come around very often. Fresh off of his Best Picture and Best Director win at the Oscars last year for Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Alejandro Iñárritu has directed and written yet another masterpiece, although arguably less, shall we say, odd. The Revenant takes place in the early 19th century American wilderness and tells the (embellished) true story of Hugh Glass, a renowned fur-trapper who was left for dead by the men he was guiding after he was viciously mauled by a bear. The majority of the movie is watching him struggle to survive and watching him try to make his way back to the camp to face the man who ultimately made the decision to leave him (Tom Hardy). From the group’s first ambush by natives, it’s clear that there will be a significant amount of violence throughout the movie. The scene with the bear is by far the most gruesome and realistic attack by a wild animal ever to be shown on screen; it just proves that there is absolutely no holding back in The Revenant. The horror stories from the set, from the freezing temperatures to the struggles to find the right setting and only being able to shoot an hour a day in order to get the ideal natural lighting, shows the director’s passion and desire to get things perfect. Whether or not you can stomach the brutal violence, there is no denying the fact that it is a visually stunning film. It’s as real as it’s going to get for a movie filmed in this age of technology. There are incredibly strong performances in The Revenant, led of course by Leonardo DiCaprio in one of his most outstanding immersions into a character to date. This is what acting is. Every moment is a struggle for Hugh Glass and Leo makes sure the audience struggles with him every step of the way. Even though they aren’t getting as much credit as Leo, Tom Hardy and Domhnall Gleeson are just as convincing, albeit with smaller roles (Tom Hardy also has a nomination for Best Supporting Actor). For a movie just over 2.5 hours, there isn’t much dialogue (especially for Leo) but nature and the subtle soundtrack play such strong parts that it doesn’t really matter. What Alejandro Iñárritu has done with this film is nothing short of spectacular. To get the audience to actually feel cold (and a little sore) when leaving the theatre is not an easy feat, and he certainly did his job with the help of the cast. Nominated for 12 (of 14) Oscars, The Revenant will certainly walk away with a number of wins on February 29th – and it would be an utter travesty if Leonardo DiCaprio did not win Best Actor. The Revenant saw a limited release in the U.S. at the end of December 2015 and has had a steady theatrical rollout from January 2016 through to the end of February 2016. Update: The Revenant won Academy Awards for BEST ACTOR, BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY, and BEST DIRECTOR Water the official trailer here: Mad Max: Fury Road – George Miller July 22, 2015 April 1, 2016 / ReelDecisions / Leave a comment Mad Max: Fury Road Starring Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron. Photo Credit: Jasin Boland© 2015 If there’s one thing everyone who watches Mad Max: Fury Road can agree on, it’s the fact that it is the definition of “intense”. It is two hours of absolute mayhem with only a couple scenes where you can actually breathe and relax your body… but only for a few seconds. There are countless post-apocalyptic car chases involving crazed, wide-eyed characters; plenty of hand-to-hand combat; a handful of models on the run; and a mostly-silent Tom Hardy caught in the middle of the chaos. Dialogue and backstory are limited, but the gist of the story isn’t that difficult to understand. It’s a barren world consisting of mostly sand and heat and appears to be set far in Earth’s future after what one can only assume is some nuclear disaster. Those who have survived are struggling with day to day life and fighting over oil and water. The man villain, called Immortan Joe, is hoarding a large water supply and imprisoning women who have been untouched by deformity as his wives. When one of his best (Furiosa, played by Charlize Theron) decides to rebel, all hell breaks loose. The unlucky Max (Tom Hardy) is literally caught in the middle of the chase but teams up with Furiosa when his options run out. It becomes obvious that Max has some issues relating to whatever happened in his past, but we’ll have to wait for the sequel to learn more – and there will definitely be a sequel. Thankfully for the younger generation, watching the original Mad Max trilogy from the 70’s and 80’s (Mad Max, The Road Warrior and Beyond the Thunderdome, all starring Mel Gibson) is not necessary; but given that the writing and directing is by the same man (George Miller), one can assume there are ties and similarities that would be appreciated by the crowd who liked the originals. Admittedly, sometimes it is difficult to understand what is going on and what the main villain is saying (think ‘Bane’ from The Dark Knight Rises), but in the end it doesn’t really matter. The action and cinematography are nothing short of spectacular and despite the general insanity going on on-screen, most of the stunts and action sequences seem ‘possible’ (with a few exceptions, of course). Unlike natural disaster movies that leave you rolling your eyes and saying, “Ya, right”, Max Mad: Fury Road will just leave you wide-eyed because it doesn’t give you time to think about anything else. The general concept of the film, the ensuing madness, and the extreme violence (somehow it is only rated 14A in Canada) will not appeal to everyone; but like it or not, it will still be an ‘experience’ you won’t be likely to forget. Just keep in mind that the “Oh my God!” look on your face (eyes wide, eyebrows up, forehead crinkled) might lead to a few more botox injections down the road, so budget accordingly. Mad Max: Fury Road was released on May 14, 2015 and is now playing in theatres where it has grossed well over $350M worldwide. Update: Mad Max won Academy Awards for: Best Achievement in Film Editing Best Achievement in Costume Design Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling Best Achievement in Sound Mixing Best Achievement in Sound Editing Best Achievement in Production Design Watch the trailer: The Drop – Michaël R. Roskam September 15, 2014 / ReelDecisions / 1 Comment The Drop starring the late James Gandolfini, Tom Hardy, and Noomi Rapace Dennis Lehane, the author of Mystic River and Gone Baby Gone that were famously adapted into award-winning films with amazing ensemble casts, brings us another adaptation of one of his short stories called The Drop. Teaming up with Director Michaël R. Roskam, they deliver a film that in many ways has the same feel to it as those other crime dramas but is significantly less disturbing than the two mentioned above. The film takes place in a gritty part of Brooklyn where the local watering hole doubles as the occasional “drop bar” for the city’s thugs and their money. Tom Hardy plays bartender “Bob” who just tries to keep his head down and his nose out of everyone’s business but his own. The late great James Gandolfini, in his final role before his unfortunate death, plays “Cousin Marv” the bar’s acting manager who now answers to some mean Chechens after losing ownership of the bar some years ago. Things start going wrong when the pair are robbed early on in the film, and the rest just follows from there. There isn’t much to the film in terms of plot but it never feels that way. We follow Bob as he rescues a Pitbull puppy and takes on the responsibility of being a dog owner with the help of a woman played by Noomi Rapace (Prometheus, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). As usual, Tom Hardy all but disappears into the character. He’s quiet, calculating, maybe a little naive, and yet it always seems like there’s something else hiding behind his sad puppy dog eyes and small smirk that makes a very rare appearance on screen. Noomi Rapace is equally as good as a woman with her own secrets. It’s a slow-burning film but it never loses your interest as you try to piece everything together. The odd scene will actually generate some laughs, or at least some chuckles, and are mostly brought on by Bob’s tell-it-like-it-is attitude, which also makes him the only truly loveable character in the film, next to Rocco the puppy of course. The Drop is a drama through and through but there is enough intrigue and there are enough moments that lighten the mood in order to sustain most viewers, even those who typically prefer more action to dialogue. It is possible, however, that some will find it a little too dull and seriously lacking in the shoot-em-up department. So those people looking for a lot of action and a true crime thriller will be a little disappointed but will likely still enjoy the film because as a viewer you really do want to find out where the story is going and how everything turns out for each character. Whether you notice it or not, you’re invested. Please enter your email address to follow and receive notifications of new movie reviews by email! Subscribe to ReelDecisions Reviews Deadpool 2 – David Leitch Mission: Impossible – Fallout – Christopher McQuarrie Red Sparrow – Francis Lawrence Darkest Hour – Joe Wright Lady Bird – Greta Gerwig Follow ReelDecisions on WordPress.com Academy Awards Action Action Movie All Movie Reviews Angelina Jokie Anne Hathaway Ben Affleck Best Actor Best Actress Best Picture Brad Pitt Chris Pine Christian Bale Christopher Nolan Christoph Waltz Cinematography Clint Mansell Coen Brothers Comedy crime Darren Aronofsky David Ayer David Fincher Denis Villeneuve Dennis Lehane Disney Distopia drama Edge of Tomorrow Emily Blunt Film fury Gillian Flynn Golden Globes Gone Girl Harrison Ford Horrible Bosses 2 Interstellar J.J. 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__label__cc	0.73349	0.26651	Home << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 >> [11–20] Begall, S.; Cervený, J.; Neef, J.; Vojtech, O.; Burda, H. Magnetic alignment in grazing and resting cattle and deer 2008 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 5316 105 13451-13455 Drea, C.M.; Wallen, K. Low-status monkeys “play dumb” when learning in mixed social groups 1999 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2093 96 12965-12969 de Waal, F.B.M.; Dindo, M.; Freeman, C.A.; Hall, M.J. The monkey in the mirror: hardly a stranger 2005 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 164 102 11140-11147 Griebenow, K.; Klibanov, A.M. Lyophilization-induced reversible changes in the secondary structure of proteins 1995 Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 6519 92 10969-10976 Jansen, T.; Forster, P.; Levine, M.A.; Oelke, H.; Hurles, M.; Renfrew, C.; Weber, J.; Olek, K. Mitochondrial DNA and the origins of the domestic horse 2002 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 772 99 10905-10910 Hauser, M.D.; Kralik, J.; Botto-Mahan, C.; Garrett, M.; Oser, J. Self-recognition in primates: phylogeny and the salience of species-typical features 1995 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2825 92 10811-10814 Hauser MD; Kralik J; Bott-Mahan C; Garrett M; Oser J Self-recognition in primates: phylogeny and the salience of species-typical traits 1995 Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 3003 92 10811 Ecker, C.; Marquand, A.; Mourao-Miranda, J.; Johnston, P.; Daly, E.M.; Brammer, M.J.; Maltezos, S.; Murphy, C.M.; Robertson, D.; Williams, S.C.; Murphy, D.G.M. Describing the Brain in Autism in Five Dimensions--Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Assisted Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder Using a Multiparameter Classification Approach 2010 J. Neurosci. 5191 30 10612-10623 Fraser, O.N.; Bugnyar, T. Do Ravens Show Consolation? Responses to Distressed Others 2010 PLoS ONE 5195 5 e10605 Lee, R.D. Rethinking the evolutionary theory of aging: transfers, not births, shape senescence in social species 2003 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 5465 100 9637-9642	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line969
__label__wiki	0.650932	0.650932	Philosophy of History and the Axial/Ecumenic Age On February 6, 2015 By renaudfabbriIn Bibliotheque philosophique, History and Revolution Philosophy of history as a topic does not go further back than the eighteenth century. From its beginning in the eighteenth century, it became associated with the constructions of an imaginary history made for the purpose of interpreting the constructor and his personal state of alienation as the climax of all preceding history. Until quite recently, philosophy of history has been definitely associated with the misconstruction of history from a position of alienation, whether it be in the case of Condorcet, Comte, Hegel, or Marx. This rigid construction of history as a huge falsification of reality from the position of an alienated existence is dissolving in the twentieth century. Once the deformation of existence, which leads to the construction of ideological systems, is recognized as such, the categories of undeformed human existence become the criteria by which deformed existence and systems must be judged. Hence, the ideological systems themselves become historical phenomena in a process that reflects, among other things, the human tension between order and disorder of existence. There are periods of order, followed by periods of disintegration, followed by the misconstruction of reality by disoriented human beings. Against such disintegration, disorientation, and misconception there arise the countermovements in which the fullness of reality is restored to consciousness. (…) If the concepts of order and disorder of existence are applied to the ever-increasing amount of historical materials, certain structural lines of meaning begin to emerge—always with the reservation, of course, that they may have to be revised in the light of advancing historical knowledge. One of the important results that will be incorporated in the forthcoming volume 4 of Order and History is the description of the Ecumenic Age. By Ecumenic Age is meant a period in the history of mankind extending roughly from the time of Zoroaster and the beginnings of the Achemenide conquest to the end of the Roman empire. This is the period in which the cosmological understanding of reality was definitely replaced by a new understanding of reality, centered in the differentiation of the truth of existence through Hellenic philosophy and the Christian revelatory experiences. Geographically, the Ecumenic Age extends from the Persian, and in its wake the Greek and Roman, developments in the West to the parallel development of ecumenic consciousness in the Far Eastern civilizations, especially in China. One of the aspects of this age has been caught in the concept of the Axis-time, the period in which, around 500 B.C., Heraclitus, the Buddha, and Confucius were contemporaries. Another aspect of this Ecumenic Age is the phenomenon which has given it its name—i.e., the imperial expansions through the Persians, Alexander, the Romans, the Maurya dynasty in India, and the Ch’in and Han dynasties in China. By about 200 B.C. we are no longer in a world of tribal societies or of small city states, but in the world of the ecumenic empires extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific. I have spoken of an ecumenic consciousness, meaning thereby that the actors and contemporaries of the imperial events interpreted them as a discovery and conquest of what they called the ecumene, as did Herodotus, or Polybius, or in China the first historians Ssu-ma T’an and Ssu-ma Ch’ien. The symbol ecumene becomes the idée-force of this period; and ecumenic conquest in the sense of domination over contemporarily living mankind has remained a fundamental force of history ever since, even if in practice the realization of such ecumenic—which now would have to become global domination—has never been achieved. The Ecumenic Age, therefore, has to be characterized by three of its more spectacular phenomena: (1) the spiritual outbursts on which Karl Jaspers concentrated; (2) the imperial concupiscential outbursts that have always attracted the attention of historians; and (3) the beginnings of historiography, in which the disorder created by the destructive expansion of empire is weighed against the order established, and the order established is measured by the newly differentiated understanding of existential order. This triadic structure of spiritual outburst, empire, and historiography characterizes a period in the history of mankind. In my opinion it has to supersede other constructions of history, even non-ideological constructions, such as for instance Toynbee’s earlier assumption of civilizations as the ultimate units of historical study. (…) None of these observations on discernible structures in the history of mankind, however, must now be converted in their turn into a doctrine. (…) The end of things, thus, has not come, and what a philosopher can contribute today to the understanding of an ongoing process is the understanding of the factors that make for integration and disintegration of the type just indicated. Eric Voegelin, Autobiographical Reflexions. Hegel’s dogmatic philosophy of History Philosophy of History, Millenarianism and Revolution	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line973
__label__wiki	0.986967	0.986967	Other Candidates With Princeton Ties By Kathy Kiely ’77, W. Barksdale Maynard ’88 Published online October 14, 2016 John C. Breckinridge and John F. Kennedy John C. Breckinridge Matthew Brady/Library of Congress/via Wikipedia Ran for President: 1860 Breckinridge, a graduate of Centre College in Kentucky, spent time as a graduate student at Princeton in 1838-39 but did not earn a degree. He became the youngest vice president in the nation’s history when he was elected, at age 35, as James Buchanan’s running mate in 1856. Like Burr, the first vice president from Princeton, Breckinridge would eventually be accused of treason. Democrats tapped the imposing Kentuckian for their national ticket because he was a rising star with an impeccable pedigree: His grandfather, for whom he was named, served as a U.S. senator and as attorney general in Jefferson’s administration. Through his mother, the younger Breckinridge was related to two past presidents of Princeton: his great-grandfather was John Witherspoon and his grandfather, Samuel Stanhope Smith. His cousin, Mary Todd, would marry Abraham Lincoln. READ MORE about the alumni who have run for the nation’s highest office in Princeton for President, a feature from our Oct. 26 issue Over 6 feet tall with deep-set blue eyes and, later in life, a flamboyant mustache whose handlebars grew to almost shoulder length, Breckinridge was, like Burr, frozen out by a jealous president. He won plaudits for presiding impartially over the Senate during a contentious time in the nation’s history. Though a devout states-righter, Breckinridge opposed slavery, supporting an effort to resettle slaves in Africa — an effort his kinsman, former Princeton President Samuel Stanhope Smith, helped to foment. In the 1860 election, the Democratic party split, with the southern faction supporting Breckinridge for president and the northerners backing Stephen Douglas. Upon Lincoln’s victory, Kentucky’s legislature then named Breckinridge to the Senate, where he worked fruitlessly first to reach sectional compromises and then to keep his state neutral. After his state voted to stay the union, Breckinridge was viewed as disloyal and ordered to be arrested. He fled to Virginia to become a general in the Confederate Army, taking a lead role in major campaigns, including Jubal Early’s daring 1864 raid on Washington, D.C., that made it within sight of the Capitol. In the last year of the war, Confederate President Jefferson Davis appointed Breckinridge Secretary of War. He worked to bring the conflict to an orderly end. “This has been a magnificent epic,” he told members of the Confederate congress. “In God’s name, let it not terminate in a farce.” He fled to Cuba and then Canada, returning to the United States when President Andrew Johnson issued a Christmas Day 1868 amnesty for Confederate loyalists. Despite pleas from admirers that included President Ulysses S. Grant, he would not again seek elective office. But he spoke out against the Ku Klux Klan as “idiots or villains” and in favor of reconciliation. When Breckinridge died on May 17, 1875, a Minnesota newspaper editor wrote, “Our country mourns from St. Paul to New Orleans and from New York to San Francisco. There is now no North and no South.” John F. Kennedy in 1935 Freshman Herald Kennedy is associated with Harvard perhaps as much as any president, but his first collegiate experience was at Princeton. “Ken,” as his roommates called him, entered in the fall of 1935 as a member of the Class of 1939; an illness cut his time at the University short. In 2013, on the 50th anniversary of Kennedy’s death, W. Barksdale Maynard ’88 wrote this history column describing how the University mourned the president: On that unforgettable Friday afternoon, Nov. 22, 1963, grim news spread across campus: President Kennedy had been shot in Texas. University offices closed, classes were suspended, construction equipment fell silent at the half-completed New New Quad. The next day’s Princeton-Dartmouth game and Prospect Street parties were called off. So were performances at McCarter and Theatre Intime, and the movie showings at the Garden and Playhouse theaters. At the Dulles Library of Diplomatic History at Firestone — a facility dedicated by former President Eisenhower 18 months earlier — a young employee, Charles Greene, was filing cards in a cabinet when he was distracted by secretaries in conversation. Soon one came over and told him about the radio report. Greene, who still works in that same section of the library, told patrons why the reading room was closing early. “They were appalled,” he says, as were so many others. The Prince published a two-page special edition that included a list of campus mourning services, a statement from President Robert Goheen ’40 *48, and a black-bordered note from the editors calling for Kennedy’s death to “be taken as a rallying cry for the rule of law, of reasoned strength, most important, of unity — for which until Nov. 22, 1963, he stood.” Some students wondered aloud what would become of Kennedy’s civil-rights agenda; Professor Arthur Link, biographer of an earlier Democratic president, Woodrow Wilson 1879, predicted to the Prince that new laws would be passed quickly now. Many grieved for the dynamic Kennedy, who had spoken on campus several times as U.S. senator. Some shared stories of “Ken’s” brief tenure as a Tiger undergraduate in 1935 (then ill, he remained for less than two months). “It got too tough for me here,” he once joked, “so I transferred to Harvard.” Now Princeton mourned her former son. Source URL: https://paw.princeton.edu/article/other-candidates-princeton-ties	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line976
__label__wiki	0.556653	0.556653	Home > Future Ophthalmologists RANZCO is the training college, professional body and membership organisation for ophthalmologists in Australia and New Zealand. Our membership includes around 95 per cent of ophthalmologists in Australia and New Zealand, as well as trainees and allied health professionals. RANZCO members, including trainees, are held to a standard of professional practice as encapsulated in the Code of Conduct. RANZCO provides a range of training opportunities and resources for future ophthalmologists, including vocational training, industry updates, events, a quarterly magazine and a regular scientific journal. As well as all the information available on the public RANZCO website, by signing in RANZCO trainees have access to exclusive information and resources, including all of our journals, the RANZCO Clinical Audit Tool (RCAT), ReD (the RANZCO e-Diary) and exam registration. RANZCO is also committed to fostering places of work and training where people feel included and valued. The Diversity and Inclusion Committee takes the lead in suggesting initiatives to the Board and Council that further these aims. RANZCO expects all Fellows, associates, trainees and employees to abide by the Policy on Diversity and Inclusion. See here for more information on RANZCO’s diversity and inclusion initiatives.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line980
__label__wiki	0.625802	0.625802	Her Husband Luigi Pirandello (1867–1936), Italian dramatist, novelist, short story and essay writer, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1934. Pirandello shares the stage with Ibsen and Brecht as one of the most influential modern dramatists of the early twentieth century. A prolific writer, he began his literary career as a novelist and writer of short stories, the best known of which is the novel The Late Mattia Pascal, published in 1904. Pirandello’s plays (nearly forty of them) won him an international reputation, with Six Characters in Search of an Author (1921) providing his most enduring contribution to modern European theater. Her Husband (1911) is Pirandello’s fifth novel. Martha King is the translator of numerous books. Mary Ann Frese Witt is Professor of French and Italian at North Carolina State University. 2000. "The Banquet", Her Husband, Luigi Pirandello The Chrysalis and the Caterpillar After the Triumph Mistress Roncella Two Accouchements School for Greatness A Light Gone Out The Flight Author’s Preface Magic Realist Tokyo Poe’s “The Man That Was Used Up” as a Subtext for Bartók-Terayama’s Magical Musical The Miraculous Mandarin raceni barmi boggiolo	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line982
__label__wiki	0.730101	0.730101	The Tram travels between the Manhattan station at 2nd Avenue between 59th and 60th Streets and the Tram station on Roosevelt Island. It travels a distance of 3,140 feet at a speed of up to 17 miles per hour in less than three (3) minutes. It rises to a maximum height of 230 feet and can carry a maximum of 109 passengers plus an attendant per cabin. The system annually transports more than two million passengers. Ridership is expected to increase once all housing development is completed and 14 acres of new park areas open. Each cabin (plus hanger and carrier) weighs 22,125 pounds empty and 41,525 pounds when fully loaded. The breaking load for each haul rope is 323,950 pounds. Each track rope has a breaking load of 827,297 pounds. The Tram can operate in all weather conditions except for lightning and winds over 50 miles per hour.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line986
__label__wiki	0.573275	0.573275	Tag Archives: J.J. Jackson Igor Prado’s artistic vision seemingly knows no bounds. When the Igor Prado Band made its recording debut a dozen or so years ago, the focus was on expertly played vintage-oriented music: Charlie Christian swing and related jazz styles, urban and jump blues, a hint of roots rock. As time passed, the scope widened to encompass a broad range of blues, from the most low-down to the jazzier edges of the genre, and classic R&B and soul. Along the way, the guitarist and singer collaborated with some of the finest musicians on three continents:, including Ari Borger, keyboard maestro Raphael Wressnig, Lynwood Slim, J.J. Jackson, Junior Watson, Mitch Kashmar, Kim Wilson, Mike Welch, Curtis Salgado, Whitney Shay, and others. In 2018, Prado made several bold moves. He recorded as a leader for the first time without the Prado Band, releasing a single (“You’re Gonna Have a Murder on Your Hands” b/w “Tell Me What’s On Your Mind”) with Justgroove that mixed slamming hard funk with silky urban soul and heavy blues guitar – something like Albert King meets Rick James at Bobby Womack’s house. His singing, which had grown stronger with each release, was dynamite. His most recent release, the single track “Lay Around & Love On You, “ carries the music to new places. This cover of a late-period Ray Charles tune incorporates disparate elements into a modern soul-blues masterpiece. Prado lists the building blocks: a rock and roll rhythm guitar part, direct from Chuck Berry; a Bill Withers-inspired groove; funky bass; angular piano that (almost) nods to “Sex Machine”; super bad hip-hop beats from Brazilian legend, Sorry Drummer; with an Afro-Brazilian feel underneath it all. To that mixture, Prado adds sound effects; sweet, layered background vocals; a relaxed, super-soulful lead voice (with touches of auto-tune, guaranteed to blow blues fans’ minds); and, naturally, tough, straight-ahead blues guitar. The result is like nothing we’ve heard before…or nearly so. The nearest analogue is Rick Holmstrom’s Hydraulic Groove. That genre-bending 2002 album, widely regarded as a masterpiece, proved in the end to stand alone as an object to be admired, rather than a significant influence on other artists. Until now, that is. Prado’s “Lay Around & Love On You” takes the Holmstrom soundscape – funky drums, deep grooves, great guitar playing, and the judicious application of sonic tricks and flourishes – and supercharges it with really killer vocals and a deep soul sensibility. Whether this is the beginning of a new tradition or merely a fantastic mash-up, Igor Prado has a created a challenging, jaw-dropping work of art. I can’t wait to hear what he does next. tagged as Blues, Brazil, Curtis Salgado, Funk, Hip-hop, Igor Prado, Igor Prado Band, J.J. Jackson, Jazz, Jump, Junior Watson, Justgroove, Kim Wilson, Lay Around & Love On You, Lynwood Slim, Mike Welch, Mitch Kashmar, R&B, Raphael Wressnig, Ray Charles, Sorry Drummer, Soul, Swing, Whitney Shay	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line989
__label__cc	0.538724	0.461276	Pulaski County Youth Services 201 S Broadway, Suite 220 Email Youth Services Please join PULASKI COUNTY JUDGE BARRY HYDE for the FIFTH ANNUAL CHAMPIONS OF YOUTH AWARDS GALA celebrating HEROES OF THE COMMUNITY and benefiting Pulaski County Youth Services’ after school and out-of-school programs. Doors open and the HEROES PRE-SHOW RECEPTION begins at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 11, 2018, at the Masonic Center at 712 Scott Street in downtown Little Rock. This year’s incredible event will honor Heroes of the Community. This year’s super-deserving honorees are: Advocate for Youth Award recipient the Little Rock Alumni Chapter of KAPPA ALPHA PSI Fraternity Inc.; Director’s Choice Award recipient EVE JORGENSEN; Visionary Award recipient LITTLE ROCK MAYOR MARK STODOLA; and Lifetime Achievement Award recipient C. J. DUVALL. Pulaski County Youth Services provides year-round afterschool and out.-of-school programs for students age 5 – 19. All of Youth Services’ incredible programs are free-of-charge; helping hardworking Pulaski County families save an average of $5,000 a year on childcare. In communities all over the County, our programs are engaging kids after school. We work to help our students achieve more academically and prepare them to be the next generation of community leaders. Annually, thousands of young people improve test scores, increase financial literacy, develop job skills, and build self-esteem in more than 20 Youth Services programs. For More Information and Buy Tickets	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1003
__label__wiki	0.614891	0.614891	Grandpa Hassan: the first war rutelegraf.com continues to publish an investigation about the "thief in law" Aslan Usoyane - one of the most significant and controversial figures in the criminal world over the past 15-20 years. In the last part of the publication, we talked about how Aslan Uoyan survived from St. Petersburg. To do this, they opened a case on the illegal possession of weapons. At the same time, a search was conducted in the Moscow apartment of Ded Hasan, in a criminal case opened in the Stavropol Territory. Ded Hasan and another “thief in law” Rudolf Oganov (Rudik Bakinsky) were suspected of creating an organized criminal group and organizing a number of murders. In the capital’s “lawyer” home, investigators seized about two kilograms of gold in bars and $ 380 thousand. It was not a small amount of manpower and resources to go free and hush up the criminal case in St. Petersburg. In the Stavropol Territory, thanks to its connections, the “thief in law” solved all the problems without much trouble. Almost immediately after his release, Grandfather Hassan began to deteriorate his relationship with Gregory Kazaryan. A source at rutelegraf.com in law enforcement agencies said that Ghazaryan began to suspect that people were “thieves in law,” including his son Nodar, who stole goods that Ghazaryan had stolen from businessmen. In 1997, the "authority" expressed all the accumulated claims to Usoyan, and a year later he was shot dead. In the same 1997, Grandfather Hassan came into the field of vision of the special services in connection with the investigation into the murder of the Vice-Governor Mikhail Manevich. The “thief in law” tried to take part in the privatization of a number of objects, and Manevich was responsible for this very direction in the mayoralty. In addition, during this period of time, Usoyan began a fierce war with Rudolf Oganov, which claimed many lives. As a result, Usoyan practically refused to encroach on St. Petersburg, limiting himself to the positions already won and looking at Kostya Mohyla. However, Grandpa Hassan eventually fell out with him. At some point, Konstantin Yakovlev decided that in the criminal world he was no less a figure than Usoyan and could well do without such a guardian. Conflicts began to arise between them more often, until they finally quarreled. Grandpa Hassan began to send to St. Petersburg to watch over their interests "thief in law" Vladimir Tyurin. Once Tyurik and Graves met at the St. Petersburg airport. A verbal altercation ensued, ending with the fact that Yakovlev asked the Turin to hand over to Khasan that in St. Petersburg, without looking at anyone, Usoyana would figure it out and send no one to the city. Tyurik transmitted this phrase, and soon the Grave was shot. As a source told rutelegraf.com, the first serious criminal war with Grandfather Hassan happened back in 1993-1994 with the “thief in law” Ilya Simonia (Maho). The origins of this conflict date back to the end of the 80s, when Simonia served time in a colony in the city of Tulun, Irkutsk Region. There he had a conflict with Vyacheslav Ivankov. Maho did not want to recognize the influence of Yaponchik and turned other prisoners against him. And Ivankov, in his turn, refused to consider Simonyi “a thief in law”, since he was a member of the Komsomol in his youth, and allegedly bought the title. When both were released, the war continued. Maho settled in the Irkutsk region, took a leading position in the local criminal world. Jap became the crown of "authorities" from the region, able to resist Simony, and the latter consistently killed them. Then Ivankov, together with his friend Aslan Uoyan, began work on discrediting Maho in the “thieves' world”. His positions began to weaken quickly, Simoniya tried to achieve a meeting with Grandfather Hassan in St. Petersburg, but he asked him to come to a meeting in Moscow. It was held in the restaurant "Mizuri", and Uoyan, Shakro, Tyurik and a dozen more "lawyers" took part in it. All of them almost unanimously (only the “criminal general” Vakhtang Ekhvay was against) decided to deprive Maho of his thief of dignity, accusing him of unsubstantiated murders and non-thieving behavior. The end of the event, Simony did not wait. After making claims, he with his fists attacked Grandfather Hassan, and then left.However, Maho did not intend to give up, he began to look for support among other "lawyers" and found one. For a long time, many "criminal generals", including Tariel Oniani (Taro), refused to recognize his defense. In 1994, Taro and Maho once met in one of the hotels of Ded Hasan. They began to sort things out with him. To which Usoyan gave up that he no longer knows such a “thief” as Maho. Simony again tried to start a fight with Grandpa Hassan. And soon in Irkutsk the shooting of people close to Maho began. In particular, the “thief in law” Paat Gudashuri, nicknamed the Tbilisi cattle, was killed. On August 28, 1994, Maho and Ehvay went on the Zhiguli in Sochi when a submachine gunner opened fire on them. The gangsters were injured and their driver was killed. After that, Simony went underground, rarely appearing in public. In 1996, he tried to return to Irkutsk, sending two of his messengers, the “lawyers” David Hmiadashvili and Bakuri Kalandadze, to start there. But they were immediately shot. Grandpa Hassan did not begin to destroy his enemy, Maho, preferring to trample him morally. Usoyan achieved that almost all “thieves” would recognize Simony’s “defense”, he would be removed from financial troughs, most of his colleagues would turn away from him. As a source told rutelegraf.com, as a result, in the criminal hierarchy, Simonius fell to the bottom. At first he was allowed to carry out attacks on truck drivers in Irkutsk. Then he moved to Moscow, where he joined the gang of borsetochnikov. And even in it, Maho was at the bottom - he was the driver of the bandits, snatching handbags. In 2010, he was detained as an ordinary member of the gang of borsetochniki.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1006
__label__wiki	0.924717	0.924717	Thomas Corwin Birth: 7-29-1794 Here follows the congressional bio, Corwin also attended the 1860 Republican nomination. CORWIN, Thomas, (cousin of Moses Bledso Corwin and uncle of Franklin Corwin), a Representative and a Senator from Ohio; born in Bourbon County, Ky., July 29, 1794; moved with his parents to Lebanon, Warren County, Ohio, in 1798; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1817 and commenced practice in Lebanon, Ohio; prosecuting attorney of Warren County 1818-1828; member, State house of representatives 1822-1823, 1829; elected as a Whig to the Twenty-second and to the four succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1831, until his resignation, effective May 30, 1840, having become a candidate for Governor; chairman, Committee on Public Lands (Twenty-sixth Congress); Governor of Ohio 1840-1842; unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1842 and declined to be a candidate for the nomination in 1844; president of the Ohio Whig convention in 1844; elected as a Whig to the United States Senate and served from March 4, 1845, to July 20, 1850, when he resigned to enter the Cabinet; appointed Secretary of the Treasury by President Millard Fillmore 1850-1853; elected as a Republican to the Thirty-sixth and Thirty-seventh Congresses and served from March 4, 1859, to March 12, 1861, when he resigned to enter the diplomatic service; chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs (Thirty-sixth Congress); appointed by President Abraham Lincoln as Minister to Mexico 1861-1864, when he resigned; settled in Washington, D.C., and practiced law until his death on December 18, 1865; interment in Lebanon Cemetery, Lebanon, Ohio. Letter from Frances Miller Seward to Augustus Henry Seward, February 15, 1847 Letter from William Henry Seward to Frances Miller Seward, April 26, 1849 Here follows the congressional bio, Corwin also attended the 1860 Republican nomination. CORWIN, Thomas, (cousin of Moses Bledso Corwin and uncle of Franklin Corwin), a Representative and a Senator from Ohio; born in Bourbon County, Ky., July 29, 1794; moved with his parents to Lebanon, Warren County, Ohio, in 1798; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1817 and commenced practice in Lebanon, Ohio; prosecuting attorney of Warren County 1818-1828; member, State house of representatives 1822-1823, 1829; elected as a Whig to the Twenty-second and to the four succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1831, until his resignation, effective May 30, 1840, having become a candidate for Governor; chairman, Committee on Public Lands (Twenty-sixth Congress); Governor of Ohio 1840-1842; unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1842 and declined to be a candidate for the nomination in 1844; president of the Ohio Whig convention in 1844; elected as a Whig to the United States Senate and served from March 4, 1845, to July 20, 1850, when he resigned to enter the Cabinet; appointed Secretary of the Treasury by President Millard Fillmore 1850-1853; elected as a Republican to the Thirty-sixth and Thirty-seventh Congresses and served from March 4, 1859, to March 12, 1861, when he resigned to enter the diplomatic service; chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs (Thirty-sixth Congress); appointed by President Abraham Lincoln as Minister to Mexico 1861-1864, when he resigned; settled in Washington, D.C., and practiced law until his death on December 18, 1865; interment in Lebanon Cemetery, Lebanon, Ohio. http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=C000791 http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/corsentino-costas.html http://politicalgraveyard.com/families/10355.html	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1008
__label__wiki	0.840489	0.840489	Home » Marie & Ors v Roselie (CS 112/2014) [2018] SCSC 645 (06 July 2018); Marie & Ors v Roselie (CS 112/2014) [2018] SCSC 645 (06 July 2018); [2018] SCSC 645.docx IN THE SUPREME COURT OF SEYCHELLES Civil Side: CS. 112 of 2014 [2018] SCSC 645 DORA SHELLY HELENE MARIE NEE ROSELIE First Plaintiff JOSEPH MATTHEW ROSELIE Second Plaintiff RALPH FRANCIS ROSELIE Third Plaintiff JOERAN GONSALVE Fourth Plaintiff MARIE CELINE ROSELIE Fifth Plaintiff LUCY MARLINE NELLA ROSELIE Sixth Plaintiff MOLLY RITA ROSELIE Heard: 20th May 2016; 27th October and 22nd November 2017. Counsel: Mr. N. Gabriel for the Plaintiffs Mr. F. Bonte for the Defendant Delivered: 6th July 2018. ANDRE J [1] This Judgement arising out of a Plaint filed before the Court by Dora Shelly Helene Marie (nee Roselie) (First Plaintiff); Joseph Matthew Roselie (Second Plaintiff), Ralph Francis Roselie (Third Plaintiff), Joeran Gonsalve Roselie (Fourth Plaintiff), Marie Celine Roselie (Fifth Plaintiff); and Lucy Marline Nella Roselie (Sixth Plaintiff) (Cumulatively referred to as(“Plaintiffs”), on 28th October 2014 and filed on the 5th November 2014 against Molly Rita Roselie (“Defendant”), wherein it is prayed inter alia, that (a) the sale of parcel number C 3387 to the Defendant is null and void and fraudulent and must be returned to the succession; and (b) order payment of costs of the action and any other order that the court may deem fit in the circumstances. [2] On 3rd of March 2015, the Defendant filed a Statement of Defence, wherein she generally denies the averments of the Plaint with further averments as further illustrated in the factual background forming the basis of this Judgement and moves for: (a) dismissal of the Plaint and (b) to entertain a counterclaim which she raised with costs and the latter counterclaim in that to declare the transfers of the 5th and 6th Defendants to be null and void on the ground of lesion and same returned to the Estate of the Deceased. [2] Thereafter, the matter was heard on the above-mentioned dates and the parties then respectively submitted written submissions of which contents have been duly considered for the purpose of this Judgment. [3] The salient factual background as per the records of proceedings for the purpose of this Judgement reveal as follows. [4] The Plaintiffs and Defendant are all siblings and Heirs (Exhibits P1), of late Helene Roselie who died intestate on the 22nd April 2013 (“Deceased”) (Exhibit P2). At the time of his death the Deceased was the owner of land parcel C1554 (“Property”), for which she had bare ownership subdivided into parcels C3385, C 3386 and C 3387 situated at Mont Plaisir, Anse-Royale Mahe. [5] In 2009, the Deceased transferred Land Parcel C 3387 to the Defendant for the sum of Seychelles Rupees One Hundred and Seventy five Thousand Rupees (S.R. 175,000/-) (“Defendant’s transfer”). It is averred by the Plaintiffs that the Defendant’s transfer was carried out without their knowledge and they were only made aware of the transaction after the demise of the Deceased. [6] It is also averred that the Deceased was not in good health since the year 2003 up to the period leading to her passing away hence authenticity of her signature on the Defendant’s transfer doubtful in that it is alleged to be different from the ones in the two other deeds of transfer (Exhibits P5 and P6), hence indicative of a fraudulent transaction by the Defendant and further in that the purchase price as indicated on the Defendant’s transfer was never transferred to the bank account of the Deceased hence the Defendant’s transfer amounting to a “donation deguisee” with the intention to deprive the Plaintiffs from benefitting from the Deceased Estate. [7] The Plaintiffs further averred that they have not been able to persuade the Defendant to transfer back the Defendant’s transfer to the succession of the Deceased Estate hence the Plaint and prayers afore-mentioned [paragraph 1] refers. [8] It is to note further that the Plaintiffs aver the Deceased also effected two transfers in the name of the (Sixth Defendant) (Lucy Roselie) of Parcel C 3385 and (Marie Celine Roselie) (Fifth Defendant,) of the 6th July 1995 and 7th July 1995 and it appears that the said two transfers are not being contested by the other Plaintiffs (Heirs) other than the Defendant counterclaiming on the ground of “lesion” and return to the Estate of the Deceased. [9] With reference to the counterclaim of the Defendant, the Plaintiffs move for its dismissal on the ground that such a rescission cannot be pleaded by the Defendant. [10] In her Statement of Defence, the Defendant as indicated earlier, generally denies the averments of the Plaint and further avers that the Deceased was in good health until her death and that the Defendant’s Transfer was done legally before a notary public and witnesses and that the first, fifth and sixth Plaintiffs knew about the said transfer long before it was done and during the Deceased’s lifetime and purchase duly transferred as indicated hence “donation deguisee” vehemently denied in the absence of proof to the contrary. [11] It is further averred by the Defendant that both fifth and sixth Plaintiffs were transferred parcels C3386 and C 3385 and that the Defendant with C 3387 all in the full knowledge of all concerned. [12] At the hearing, Plaintiffs called five witnesses namely Dora Roselie, Lucy Roselie, Doctor Sahar, Ralph Roselie and Marie Celine Roselie and the Defendant testified on her own behalf and called on witness Mr. Gerard Maurel Notary Public. [13] Dora Roselie testified in a gist as to the allegations in the Plaint as against the Defendant, that after the transfer of the two plots of land to the fifth and sixth Plaintiffs in the year 1995, which transfers she does not contest and accept as genuine, the Deceased was not in good health condition and was unable to walk until she passed away and that the Deceased was medically examined by a doctor which medical Report was produced (Exhibit P8) of the 22nd April 2014. [14] Dora Roselie further testified that the signature of the Deceased on the Defendant’s transfer is, “a bit blurry”; “signature of my mum is not the same as the other two”; “I do not think my mum signed this paper” (Exhibit P7). [15] As to the allegations of non-payment of the purchase price by the Defendant, Dora Roselie testified that there was no proof to their knowledge that it was paid and according to her all Heirs should have signed the Defendant’s transfer if the Deceased was sick. [16] Dora Roselie further claimed that she became aware of the Defendant’s transfer only upon the return of their brother Joseph Roselie from Canada to Seychelles and herself together with other Plaintiffs tried to negotiate with Defendant to return the Defendant’s transfer to the succession for redistribution to no avail hence the Plaint. [17] Dora Roselie further and finally testified that she was not contesting the transfers effected in favour of her two other sisters namely the fifth and sixth Defendants for according to her, “I saw them when they went to sign the papers at Mr. Mc Gregor’s Chambers together with my mother.” [18] In cross-examination, Dora Roselie insisted that the Deceased ought to have consulted all the Plaintiffs prior to the Defendant’s transfer and that she was however not contesting that the same procedure was not followed for the fifth and sixth Plaintiffs’ transfers and which transfers she accept as genuine. Further as to the alleged medical incapacity of the Deceased she testified that she was of the opinion that the medical Report (supra) was evidence of the Deceased unsound mind in that she has suffered “cerebral vascular accident”. [19] Doctor Barren Kumar Sahar testified, that he knew Deceased who was a patient prior to her passing away and a medical Report was drawn up as to Deceased medical condition (Exhibit P8). Expatiating on the Medical Report with direct reference to the allegations in the Plaint (supra) vis-a-vis the medical condition of the Deceased, Doctor Sahar testified that the Medical Report was drawn on the 22nd April 2014 and “it revealed that she was suffering from bilateral ostriatis of the knee most probably because of obesity and the age. The later developed hypertension and heart disease which was also found out later on and she was getting treatment for that. Then I think on 2013 she was admitted in the hospital where the vascular accident was diagnosed. Like a stroke we say in common language.” [20] Doctor Sahar continued testifying further that there was nothing indicative in the Report that the Deceased was unable to travel from home to the clinic or elsewhere but that in 2003 she was seen at her residence rather than her coming to the clinic. [21] As to the medical condition of the Deceased after the stroke, Doctor Sahar testified that “I cannot comment on that because I never saw the patient I just compiled a report according to the notes”. [22] In cross-examination, Doctor Sahar further testified that as to the allegation of the Deceased being of unsound mind, “I would not remember, but if there was something I would have mentioned because generally when I am writing a report go through the whole file”; “no, otherwise I would have mentioned.” [23] Lucy Roselie on her part testified that she was an heir of the Deceased and also owner of parcel C 3385 (Exhibit P5), transferred to her by the Deceased in 1995 prior to her death. She further claimed that contrary to the purchase price as indicated on the transfer she did not pay anything to the Deceased and that the Deceased was willing to transfer the said parcel in her name and that she has already built her dwelling house on the property. [24] Lucy Roselie simply endorsed her examination in chief in cross-examination confirming that she never paid for transfer (Exhibit P5) but was contesting the Defendant’s transfer for according to her it was done without her knowledge. [25] Ralph Roselie testified in a gist that he was the brother of the Defendant and the other Plaintiffs and that he was contesting the Defendant’s transfer for he claims his share to the Estate of the Deceased and that he was unaware of the transfer to the Defendant in that, “there are eight of us, we want all eight of us to get each our shares.” [26] Ralph Roselie further testified that he personally did not benefit from any transfer of land from the Deceased and that the Deceased died intestate. [27] Marie Celine Roselie on her part finally testified that she was the fifth Plaintiff and sister of the Defendant and contesting the Defendant’s transfer on the ground that it was done without her knowledge of its signature and neither payment of the purchase price. She confirmed knowledge of (Exhibits P5 and P6), latter being transfer of Parcel C 3386 in her name. She however testified that she was in agreement to transfer back her share in the Estate to be redistributed. [28] Upon cross-examination, the witness further confirmed transfers to herself and the 6th Defendant by the Deceased (Exhibits P5 and P6), but contested Defendant’s transfer (Exhibit P7), on the basis that the Deceased was sick and bedridden and that her signature is not the same as on her transfer document (Exhibit P6). In cross-examination, it should be noted Marie-Celine Roselie testified that the transfer done in her name by the Deceased was valid contrary to that of the Defendant for reasons given. [29] The Defendant as indicated testified on her own behalf and called one witness Mr. Gerard Maurel Notary Public. [30] Molly Reselie, the Defendant testified that the Defendant’s transfer is genuine and was performed by the Deceased to her (Exhibit P7) before Notary Public Gerard Maurel. That the Notary came to their residence at Anse Royale for the signature. [31] Upon cross-examination, Molly Roselie further confirmed the location of the signature of (Exhibit P7) and further confirmed that the Deceased “condition which was quite good and she was moveable but the assistance of a carer but her medical and mental condition were good.” And also confirmed that in 2012 his mother could not sign hence thumbprint (Exhibit D1). It was further confirmed that all the Plaintiffs knew of her transfer (Exhibit P7) and the Deceased informed them too and that it was in fact the sixth Plaintiff who brought all the documents to start the process from Praslin and that her to the contrary was not aware of the fifth and sixth Plaintiffs’ transfers as exhibited but she further testified in answer as to whether she was informed that, “No, we were not informed but we were like brothers and sisters, it was not an issue”. [32] Mr. Gerard Maurel being the Notary Public who attested to the signature of the Deceased with reference to (Exhibit P7) confirmed same and further testified that he prepared and attended to the signature of the Defendant’s transfer and the Deceased was “natural” her mind was sane and he did not find anything wrong in her mind when she was signing or talking to him. [33] Upon cross-examination, Mr. Gerard Maurel further testified that the transfer was signed in the year 2009 as per (Exhibit P7) and confirmed sanity of the Deceased at the time of signature. [34] I shall now move to consider the legal standard and analysis. [35] As indicated at [paragraph 1] (supra), the Plaintiff’s prayer as per filed Plaint is to the following effect that (a) the sale of parcel number C 3387 to the Defendant is null and void and fraudulent and must be returned to the succession; and (b) order payment of costs of the action and any other order that the court may deem fit in the circumstances. [36] The Defendant on her part denies the above allegations and counterclaims ‘“lesion” in respect of the fifth and sixth Defendants’ transfers (Exhibits P5 and P6). [37] Now, the relevant issues to be decided by this Court for the purpose of this Judgement are namely; firstly, whether the Defendant’s transfer was legally transferred by the Deceased to the Defendant; Secondly, whether, the purchase price “which allegedly” was never transferred amounted to “a donation deguisee” with the intention of depriving the other heirs from benefitting from the relevant parcel of land; thirdly, whether there was “lesion” as claimed in terms of the counterclaim of the Defendant and response of the Plaintiffs thereto. [38] Before considering the issues, it is trite law that “he who asserts must prove” and this is clearly evident in the matter of (Gopal & Anor v Barclays Bank [2013] SCCA 23) and applies to both the Plaintiffs in terms of their Plaint and Defendant in terms of her Counterclaim. [39] As follows, I will treat the relevant issues in chronological order as it appear at [paragraph 37] hereof. [40] The first issue being, whether the Defendant’s transfer was legally transferred by the Deceased to the Defendant and answering this question obviously involves a question of fact and dependent completely on the oral and documentary evidence adduced as to the existence of the Defendant’s transfer. [41] As per the evidence on record and illustrated on the Plaintiffs side, the Deceased who owned parcel of land C 1554 prior to her death subdivided same during her life time in three parcels of land namely C3385, 3386 and 3387 and thereafter transferred the first two parcels to the fifth and sixth Plaintiffs which transfers are accepted by all the Plaintiffs but that with reference to the Defendant’s transfer it is contested on ground of fraud in that the Deceased was not in good health since 2003 up to the period leading to her passing away (Exhibit P2) and that the Deceased signature on the Defendant’s transfer as compared to the other transfers are dissimilar indicative of fraudulent transaction hence prayers afore-said. [42] It is evident as above-referred from the first Plaintiff’s evidence that she testified in cross- examination that nowhere on the medical report (Exhibit P8) is it indicated that the Deceased was mentally incapable of signing a transfer deed in favour of one of her children during her lifetime but that there was proof of her not being well physically. Doctor Sahar who also testified on behalf of the Plaintiff and produced the medical Report testified that nowhere in the medical file and notes of the Deceased could he find and prove that the Deceased was not of sound mind in the year 2009 and or in the course of her treatment since 2003 up to the death in 2013. The other Plaintiffs who testified in this case as per evidence illustrated above, could not in any prove insanity of the Deceased either. [43] The Defendant on her side testified in no uncertain terms that her mother was medically fit and could understand what she was signing excepted physical incapacity which warranted the signature at her residence at Anse-Royale. Same was corroborated by the evidence of Notary Public Gerard Maurel who is the one who attested to the Defendant’s transfer and he clearly testified that the Deceased was sane and understood what was happening and what she was doing at the relevant time of signature. [44] Needless to say, based on the evidence of Notary Public Gerard Maurel, the Defendant’s transfer is an authentic document in terms of the provisions of Articles 1317 and 1319 of the Civil Code (“the Code”). [45] Article 1317 of the Code provides that: “An authentic document is a document received by a public official entitled to draw- up the same in the place in which the document is drafted and in accordance with the prescribed forms”. [46] Article 1319 of the Code on the other part provides that: “An authentic document shall be accepted as proof of the agreement which it contains between the contracting parties and their heirs or assignees. Nevertheless, such a document shall only have the effect of raising a legal presumption of proof which may be rebutted by evidence to the contrary. Evidence in rebuttal whether incidental to legal proceedings or not, shall entitle the court to suspend provisionally the execution of the document and to make such order in respect of it as it considers appropriate.” [47] The legal presumption of proof referred to in Article 1319 of the Code lays a burden on the party who impugned the document in this case the Defendant’s transfer to prove fraud in terms of signature not being that of the Deceased and insanity of the Deceased and in this case, the Plaintiffs. Such proof is to be administered by the Court subject to the rules of evidence [Paragraph 38] refers. [48] Now, concluding on the first issue with respect to the evidence of the Plaintiffs as to medical condition of the Deceased not being consonant to insanity and or mental incapacity to sign the Defendant’s transfer [Paragraph 42] and also the medical Report produced (Exhibit P8) not proving the said allegation of mental incapacity, it is apparent that there is not an iota of evidence in support of mental incapacity of the Deceased at the time the Defendant’s transfer was executed hence, for this reason as per the provisions of Article 1108 of the Code, the contract was a valid one in that, the Defendant’s transfer deed was executed by the deceased and did not lack consent which is a very crucial element of the validity of a contract. [49] Secondly, with respect to the authenticity of the signature of the Deceased being impugned by the Plaintiffs in this matter, again in line with the evidence of the Notary Public Gerard Maurel who attested to the execution of the Defendant’s transfer by the Deceased (Exhibit P7), it is clearly indicative the transfer was signed by the Deceased in his presence and he endorsed his attestation by his Seal of Office as proof of genuineness and thereafter forwarded same for registration under the Land Registration Act. Having thus shifted the burden to the Plaintiffs to prove illegality and invalidity it is evident that the Plaintiffs failed miserably to prove otherwise hence failure to discharge the required evidential burden in this respect. [50] It follows, on the basis of the above analysis, that the first issue as raised namely, “illegality of the Defendant’s transfer” is without any legal basis and is hereby dismissed. [51] With regards to the second issue in that, whether, the purchase price “which allegedly” was never transferred amounted to “a donation deguisee” with the intention of depriving the other heirs from benefitting from the relevant parcel of land. [52] The Plaintiffs testified that the Defendant never transferred the said amount to the bank account of the Deceased or at all. That the said One Hundred and Seventy Five Thousand (S.R. 175,000/-) transfer amounts to a “donation deguisee” with the intention of depriving the other heirs from benefitting from the said land parcel. [53] It may occur that a person wishing to prefer one child to others will transfer property during his or her lifetime to the child in the expectation that this will not count towards the Estate after death as clearly illustrated in the matter of (Contoret v/s Contoret [1971] SLR 257). Such gifts are subject to being annulled at the stage of opening of the succession if they are disguised donations “donations deguisee”. The donation itself will not be valid and void ab initio and the property transferred will simply be reduced to the disposable portion of the reserved Heirs. Usually the donation will be disguised as a sale of the property. In such a case, a Court seized to decide on such an issue will have to decide whether the sale was indeed a donation disguised as a sale or whether it was a genuine sale. The consideration for the transaction, the proximity of the transaction to the eventual death of the Deceased (donor), the reasons for the transfer all pointers as to whether the transfer was a disguised donation or not. [54] Generally, to prove a disguised donation, the Plaintiff ought to have proved bad faith and a fraudulent intention on the part of the testator as clearly illustrated in the matter of (Pragassen v/s Vidot [2010] SLR 163) where it was held that: “To invoke “donation deguisee”, bad faith on the part of the de cujus and for that matter fraudulent pretence not only be averred but must be proved against the defendant. In this case, none of the elements which constitute “donation deguisee” has been proved nor is apparent in the pleadings. It is clear that the lease agreement was a legally executed legal document as far as competence of the parties t it and its form is concerned hence the issue of disguised donation does not arise at all unless proved otherwise”. [55] In this matter, the Plaintiffs are alleging that the Defendant acted in bad faith and or under fraudulent pretence to prevent them from inheriting their reserved portions of the succession and it is incumbent upon the Plaintiffs therefore to prove that element but unfortunately after having analyzed the evidence of the Plaintiffs above they have not succeeded in doing so to the required standard in law. [56] Now, if a donor transfers immovable property but retains the usufructuary interest thereon, the law will regard this as an irrebutable presumption that the transfer was a disguised donation and this in terms of Article 918 of the Civil Code (“Code”) as clearly illustrated and ruled upon in the case of (Clothilde v/s Clothilde [1976] SLR 245). This is anyhow not the case in the current circumstances of the Defendant’s transfer which was transferred free from all encumbrances and in any event, the donor has passed away and would not retain the usufruct (if any existed prior to her demise). [57] It follows thus on the second issue upon above illustrated analysis, that the Plaintiffs have failed to prove their onus to prove that, “the purchase price “which allegedly” was never transferred amounted to “a donation deguisee” with the intention of depriving the other heirs from benefitting from the relevant parcel of land. In any event, proof of non-payment was never adduced before this Court in the course of the hearing. Hence the second issue is also dismissed. [58] As to the third issue arising to be determined in this case namely that, whether there was “lesion” as claimed in terms of the counterclaim of the Defendant and response of the Plaintiffs thereto. [59] The Defendant avers in her counter claim that the price on the face of the transfers is Seychelles Rupees Ten Thousand (S.R. 10,000/-) each for the transfer of the parcels C 3385 and 3386 to the fifth and sixth Plaintiffs (Exhibits P5 and 6). And the Defendant further pleads “lesion” to the said purchase price in that it is far below the market value and the Defendant prays that the said transfers be set aside and rendered null and void in view of the lesion and the land returned to the Estate of the Deceased. And the Defendant further avers that three valuers should be appointed to value the two properties and to report to the Court accordingly. “To satisfy the Court that a prima facie case exists the Plaintiff must submit a report by three experts who shall be bound to draw up a single report and to express an option by majority. The experts shall be appointed by the Court unless both parties have jointly agreed to appoint the three experts.” [61] Until the Defense proves lesion, the Plaintiff cannot surrender a right to genuine authentic registered document. And to that end, the Defendant has to meet the precondition for “lesion” as far as the evidence goes. As per the requirement under the Code, a Report must be produced by three experts for a prima facie case to exist. However, even there, Defendant has no prima facie case as far as “lesion” which has been averred in the alternative. [62] It follows on that basis alone, that the counter-claim cannot be entertained because the pre-condition has not been met. Hence the counter-claim is set aside accordingly. [63] In conclusion, the Plaint of the Plaintiffs is hereby dismissed with costs and counterclaim (pleaded in the alternative) likewise with costs. Signed, dated and delivered at Ile du Port on the 6th day of July 2018. S. ANDRE Judge of the Supreme Court Jean & Ors v Jean (CS 63/2015) [2017] SCSC 389 (11 May 2017); Roucou v Anthony ((Civil Side No: 269 of 2000)) [2011] SCSC 88 (30 October 2011); Freminot & Anor v Gill & Anor (CS 78/2015) [2016] SCSC 799 (20 October 2016); Nathalie Weller v Sarah Walsh (Civil Appeal SCA03/2015) [2017] SCCA 47 (07 December 2017); Cook v Barbe & Ors (NO 20/2016) [2018] SCSC 947 (19 October 2018);	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1009
__label__cc	0.736081	0.263919	Information technology governance and the role of the storage manager Find out how storage managers can avoid e-discovery and other compliance issues associated with an information technology governance process, how they can educate technology users, and what tools they can use for data archiving and data classification. No company wants to get dragged into a lengthy e-discovery process or be penalized for avoiding government compliance regulations. That's why information technology governance, which focuses on the performance and risk management of information technology systems, is so important. And it's not just the CIO's responsibility; storage managers must also develop and execute on a good information technology governance program, and educate users as well. Todd Erickson, news and feature writer at SearchStorage.com, recently interviewed Barclay Blair, director and practice lead at Phoenix-based Forensics Consulting Solutions' Information Governance Division. Blair explains the role of storage managers in building and caring for compliance systems; what tools they can use for data archiving, data retention, data classification and e-discovery; why they should look into creating an enterprise map of information; and how they can ensure their organization's readiness in case of litigation. You can read the transcript below or listen to the interview as an MP3. SearchStorage.com: Let's talk about how storage managers should be involved in an organization's information governance program. Why does the storage manager play a critical role in developing IT governance policies? Blair: The short answer to that question is that they're the only ones that understand the technology and the architecture. So their role is critical because they have to educate the lawyers and business owners on what's possible or practical in the storage environment when it comes to crafting policy. SearchStorage.com: What tools will storage managers need to successfully implement and run a company-wide information governance program? Blair: When I hear the word "tools," I actually think there are two categories of things that we need to think about. Certainly, there's the obvious: the software and the hardware. And then there's the other tools, like the policies, and the implementations and enforcement of those policies. On the software and hardware side, there's some pretty obvious tools that come into the mix today in a contemporary institution when it comes to information governance. Certainly, systems that help us separate out archiving functions and backup/business continuity functions are essential. There's an absolute plague in corporate America that has been caused by inappropriate use of backup systems for the archiving of data. The backup system is the worst of all possible worlds when it comes to litigation. So tools that help us clearly delineate between "we're keeping this stuff because it's a business record and we just want to move it off of our expensive systems, so let's archive it," and systems that are designed to keep all information in the event of some kind of disaster. So that's No. 1. No. 2 on the software and hardware side is that we need systems to help us automate the retention of data. There are a lot of smart tools out there that can help us automatically classify information and take the burden off of the employee when it comes to saying, "Hey, this thing's valuable; we have a statutory requirement or a business requirement to keep it, so let's put it here. This stuff has no value; let's get rid of it." The third area on the software and hardware side is tools that can help us get at the information in a precise and efficient way when we need to, and often the most dramatic need for that is in the context of a litigation audit or investigation. So in the world of e-discovery, that ability to pinpoint the information that we need, to find it and to suck it out of those systems, and manage it and produce it in an efficient way is essential. On the other side of the tools house -- on the policies and procedures side -- I think that a really valuable concept is the concept of systems of record, and defining systems of record. We define our systems of record -- i.e. the systems where we are going to manage the stuff that we keep long-term -- and then we invest in the right amount of governance for those systems, and we don't expect the same level of governance on systems that were just used for transitory information or temporary information. So defining what systems are the official systems, and then defining the level of governance we're going to put around them, helps create a realistic plan for taking control of information governance. SearchStorage.com: What can storage managers do to determine an organization's readiness for a government investigation or litigation? Blair: Well, one of the things that I like to say to my clients, and maybe they don't like to hear, is that if you stand back and look at this problem from a high level, I actually believe that the title CIO -- chief information officer-- is a lie. I simply don't believe it's true in most institutions. And what I mean by that is that most CIOs view his/her responsibility as limited to keeping the lights on, keeping the systems running. You know, there's the old saying in the technology world: "Garbage in, garbage out." And the view of the technologist, the storage manager, the CIO is that we can't be held responsible for the stuff that the business owners do and the systems that we manage. And that may be true. Certainly that's the way most IT departments are structured. But the problem with that is, OK, if it's not the guy or the gal with "chief information officer" in the title, then who is it at that executive roundtable who owns this responsibility? And I posit that at most institutions, it's nobody. So, therefore, it falls through the cracks. So what's the storage manager to do? I think that they have to help their institutions answer that question. One of the ways to help get to that question and answer that question is this concept of mapping of sources -- creating an enterprise map of what information the enterprise has, where it is, what it is and how to get to it. It can be a gargantuan task, but I think it's cut down to size by first focusing on systems and repositories that are litigation-likely; in other words, those systems that are likely to contain information of interest in a typical lawsuit or investigation that the company faces. And those systems are obvious: the e-mail system and all of its attendant backup systems, as well as anywhere else unstructured content resides. So I think putting together a source-mapping exercise will help to illustrate the gap that exists at every company between the IT understanding of information and the business understanding. And unless that gap is bridged, we're going to fail again and again when it comes to [information governance], whether just for day-to-day business purposes or for these extreme events we face in e-discovery. This was last published in February 2010 Focus on Storage in a VMware Environment –SearchConvergedInfrastucture Storage in a Virtual Environment: Expert Answers to 4 FAQ –SearchStorage.com Accelerating Time-to-Value: Fast-Growing Reduxio Implements Priority Engine to ... –TechTarget Three Tenets of Security Protection for State and Local Government and ... –DellEMC Avoid the Hype in AI—Identifying the Right Solutions for Your Business Needs –Intel Storage Decisions: Storage managers must explain ... – SearchStorage Building the business case for an information ... – SearchContentManagement Corporate reporting: The next information governance ... – SearchCompliance	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1015
__label__wiki	0.62328	0.62328	74. Review of SUMMER SHORTS Series B (August 14, 2013) 74. SUMMER SHORTS SERIES B Once again, 59E59 is offering two series of one-act plays by established playwrights, Series A and Series B, each program containing three new American premieres. I caught up with Series B before getting to see Series A (next week), but if Series B is any indication, the plays don’t seem to be linked by any specific theme, other than the need to connect with other members of the species. What links them more than any theme is a general air of comedic cuteness. There is nary a whiff of danger or true originality. Marian Fontana’s FALLING SHORT, directed by Alexander Dinelaris, begins the evening with the increasingly familiar sight of someone sitting at a laptop. This is Lee (Kendra Mylnechuk), a pretty young woman who makes her living as a food writer, and who is trying to meet someone via an Internet dating service. This, too, is a familiar trope. The comments being typed into the computer are expressed through dialogue, first with a performer (Shane Patrick Kearns) who plays multiple prospects by morphing vocally and physically from role to role, and then with a single character, Nate (J.J. Kandel), a struggling actor who is winning enough to land a date at a Williamsburg restaurant with Lee. This pushes us into FIRST DATE territory (the musical that just opened on Broadway and that I’ll be seeing tonight). Since he’s late in arriving, Lee engages in clever repartee with the sardonic, gay waiter (Mr. Kearns), and when Nate does get there, his presence belies what he said about himself on the dating site (the title gives a clue to the first lie). Soon there is pleasant chit chat about truth and lies, and romance begins to bloom. If you’re waiting for a big surprise, or some dramaturgic breakthrough, forget it. The surprise, in fact, is that there are no surprises. Well performed, it’s sweet, it’s cute, it’s here, it’s gone. In CHANGE, by Paul Weitz, directed by Billy Hopkins, we’re in the apartment of Ted (Alex Manette) and Carla (Allison Daugherty), a yuppie couple in their thirties with a couple of “little monsters,” as they lovingly call them, who have a guest over for the evening. The guest is a friend from college and just out of rehab, the skanky but handsome Jordan (Michael D. Dempsey), tattooed and greasy haired in his sleeveless black Dead Kennedys polo shirt. Jordan goes out to get some weed, which Ted and Carol, now responsible parents, have given up but are unable to resist when the subject arises, and Jordan blurts out before he goes that, while he likes both “cock” and “pussy,” he actually prefers the former. He’s late coming back and when he does, he brings with him not grass but packets of white powder. The trio snorts the stuff, and gets blasted, far more than if it were cocaine, which it isn’t. Now, under the spell of what is actually heroine, they drift into slow motion incapacity, unable to even attend to the offstage needs of their little monsters, and triangular sexual possibilities seem about to open up, with Ted revealing a proclivity we might have expected, and Carla ripe for anything. Just then, Jordan has to leave, and the good parents are left in their drug-induced stupor. It’s very much like what a student playwright, asked to do an assignment for a playwriting class about something he knows, might have come up with. The performances are fine but the play scores just a few points on the cuteness scale, and is superficial and unimportant, even if it's meant to put young middle class strivers under the microscope. In the evening’s closer, PINE CONE MOMENT, written by Alan Zweibel and directed by Fred Berner, the ages of the characters move forward by a few decades, but the computers are out again as Emma (Caroline Lagerfelt) and Harry (Brian Reddy) conduct a texting relationship, as in the first play on the program. Each has lost their spouse several years back and they are having a senior citizen affair over the Internet, although they’ve known each other for years. Standing behind each one and giving advice are their late spouses, Bunny (Camille Saviola) and Brian (James Murtaugh). Brian, even in the afterlife, continues handling his golf club, and Bunny . . . well, Bunny needs to be seen to be believed. She is a gum-chewing fireplug of a woman, short, stout, and fully packed into a tight red dress, bedecked with jewelry, and topped with a blazing bonnet of bright, blonde, bleached hair. She carries herself with broad where a broad should be broad attitude and keeps sitting on Harry’s knee so he can "knead her ass," a request that breeds the obvious pun, not once but several times. To cut to the chase, love blooms among the ruins, there’s a vigorous polka set to "The Lonely Goatherd" from THE SOUND OF MUSIC, and you hope neither dancer has a myocardial infarction before the lights go out. Cute enough? (Oh, talking about cuteness, I should note that the play also includes a bit around Kyu Sakamoto's 1963 hit, "Sukiyaki," a number I'd completely forgotten. Time to check that tune out again!) Series B, which I’ll visit next week, has plays by Neil LaBute, Lucas Hnath, and Tina Howe, none of whom brings cuteness to mind. UPDATE ON UPCOMING SHOWS Septemberis shaping up wi... 82. Review of AWAKE AND SING (August 27, 2013) 81. Review of THE CHEATERS CLUB (August 25, 2013) 80. Review of HARBOR (August 23, 2013) 79. Review of SUMMER SHORTS SERIES A INTERMISSION: A MOUNT AIRY STORY 78. Review of LET IT BE (August 18, 2013) 77. Review of AVI HOFFMAN'S STILL JEWISH AFTER ALL... 76. Review of FIRST DATE (August 15, 2013) 75. Review of SOUL DOCTOR (August 13, 2013) 74. Review of SUMMER SHORTS Series B (August 14, 2... 73. Review of MARRIED SEX (August 14, 2013) 72. Review of LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST (August 11, 201... 70. Review of UNBROKEN CIRCLE (August 7, 2013) 69. Review of BILL W. AND DR. BOB (August 1, 2013)... 68. Review of STORYVILLE (July 31, 2013)	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1019
__label__wiki	0.505455	0.505455	Today’s letter – take a memo The Governor of New York, Gov. David Paterson, issued a memo to State agencies last week, including those governing insurance and health care, saying they must immediately change policies and regulations to make sure “spouse,” “husband” and “wife” are clearly understood to include gay couples. “New York has a tradition of recognizing marriages performed elsewhere. This is not new law, but a simple extension of that policy.” Would you do the same for us in California? Such a memo might be targeted, for instance, at our state EDD who currently “redefines” marriage as HUSBAND/WIFE rather than deferring to the Family Code for the definition of Spouse. It might help the many county clerks offices who are resisting compliance with the law. And it would help underscore what you have said, that the Executive branch is fully committed to supporting the legislative and judicial branches in swatting out unfair treatment of California’s citizens. Today’s stamp: The Incredible Hulk from the Marvel Comics Super Heroes collection. What the EDD is doing should make you angry. Be my superhero again: terminate the hate that lingers in your government! Today’s letter – Germany’s apology “Germany wants to honor the persecuted and murdered victims, to keep alive the memory of the injustice they suffered,” and provide “a lasting symbol against intolerance and hostility towards gays and lesbians and against their alienation.” Those words (or in German, probably one really long word) are on a plaque on a new monument in Berlin. Nazi Germany’s campaign against homosexuals began in 1933 and by 1945 more than 50,000 men were convicted and separated from their liberty and property. It is estimated that between 5,000 and 15,000 of them were sent to concentration camps. Gay men (and those perceived to be gay) were forced to wear pink triangles and were sometimes used as medical guinea pigs. Unlike other groups of Nazi victims, the persecution of the gay community continued under the same law, with more than 50,000 convictions before a 2002 government pardoned them and finally abolished the legislation. Here in America, we like to think that we are better than the Third Reich, yet in 2008 we still convicting our own citizens of being gay, forcing them to wear “domestic partnerships” and separating them from the financial and social stability that only the time-tested law of marriage can provide. It is urgent that this ostracism, bullying and unequal treatment end. Please continue to support the freedom to marry and the downfall of the Constitutional Amendment to Limit Marriage. Today’s stamp: Wolverine from X-Men. Little is known of Wolverine’s past, but we do know “those who forget their past are doomed to relive it.” Wolverine uses his skills to help protect a world that hates and fears mutants like himself. Letter to Focus on the Family about unisex bathrooms and fear-mongering Gary Schneeberger Vice President for Media Relations Dear Mr. Schneeberger: In his May 30, 2008 press release “Dr. Dobson Decries Ritter’s Signing of SB200,” Dr. Dobson explains that because of this Colorado law removing the requirement for businesses to maintain separate restrooms for men and women, that “Henceforth, every woman and little girl will have to fear that a predator, bisexual, cross-dresser or even a homosexual or heterosexual male might walk in and relieve himself in their presence.” While I can understand Dr. Dobson’s concern about how this law might affect personal safety and decency, I would like to ask for a broader explanation from Dr. Dobson how a “bisexual, cross-dresser or even a homosexual” poses a threat that women and little girls should fear more than Dr. Dobson walking in himself. Would it be possible to arrange for Dr. Dobson to explain to me how teaching women to fear those who are simply honest about their sexual attractions serves to advance his stated goals of personal safety or gender-specific restrooms? Today’s letter – the cost of freedom Two million dollars a week for the next ten weeks. That is what the two sides in the gay marriage fight will be spending to either stop, or keep gay marriage in California. Imagine how much good we could do with $20 million. My church, All Saints Beverly Hills, hosts 100 homeless people every Monday, sends children to visit their incarcerated parents on Mother’s day, rotates eight people through New Orleans, and operates ravenous family, mercy and justice ministries. Their entire 2008 budget would be gone in a week. Every penny raised by the Los Angeles AIDS Walk would be spent in two weeks. The entire annual budget of AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) would only last nine weeks. I sometimes wonder if the gays would get more media by just taking the money sending it all to New Orleans. But then I think of the 50,000 domestic partners in California and how much less stress and worry they will have with the irreplaceable time-tested stability of marriage. And all California’s children, who will discover that their government supports their freedom to grow up and be who they are, and if they are lucky enough to find love, they can pursue it instead of celibacy, suicide or a vampire-like Larry Craig lifestyle. Clearly, every penny we spend defending the freedom to marry is well spent. Today’s Stamp: “Mickey Mouse” from “The Art Of Disney: Magic” postage stamp series. $20 million is 1/10th the annual budget of the Make-a-Wish Foundation of America. $20 million is $1.25 from every visitor to Disneyland in Anaheim. $20 million would fund the war in Iraq for two hours. . Today’s letter – everybody knows that it is time A Field Poll of 1,052 registered California voters asked “Do you approve or disapprove of California allowing homosexuals to marry members of their own sex?” and for the first time since 1977 – when California’s law was changed to ban the unions – a majority answered that yes, they do support same-sex marriage. As my Aunt wrote after she saw our story in the Chicago Tribune, “It’s about time.” The Wall Street Journal described it on their May 24 Opinion page, “Court Allows Gay Marriage: Tyranny or Its End?” And my Mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa said “It’s time for us to bring every American out of the shadows and into the light, and this decision does that here in California. Personally, I’m hoping to marry my fiancée of eleven years in a couple of weeks, and my friends, family and church are on the edge of their seats. Please, Governor, keep supporting the freedom to marry in our great state. Keep fighting against the amendment. And most of all, please do whatever you can to make sure marriages start as soon as possible and continue after November. Today’s letter – freedom, authorized I read today that the California Office of Vital Records told the head of the California Association of Clerks and Election Officials, Stephen Weir, that clerks would be authorized to hand out marriage licenses to all couples – not just heterosexual ones – as soon as Saturday, June 14! That works well for our plans. The following Tuesday, June 17, would be the eleven year anniversary of when my fiancée Frank and I first met. We have already looked each other in the eyes and promised each other, our families and God that we would share our lives together forever, but this recent ruling allows us to have that event witnessed, blessed and recorded by our government. We would like to get married on June 17, and if you are available, would like to invite you to perform the ceremony. You have been a pivotal individual in this quest for marriage, having chilled the San Francisco weddings and vetoed our two previous legislative attempts. We would want to have the event here in the Los Angeles area so our older parents and infant children won’t have to travel, but we could also come to Sacramento. Getting married will make us and our entire extended family happy. Having you perform the ceremony would be icing on the cake. Please let us know your intentions as soon as possible since we don’t have much time to make plans. Today’s letter – in support of Harvey Milk I am writing in support of the bill to create Harvey Milk Day in California in honor of the slain member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Just like the recent Supreme Court decision that removed the ban on gay marriage gave hope to every American who is “different,” Harvey Milk’s message and legacy gave hope to the disenfranchised, humiliated and beaten-down youth minorities of his day. “I ask for the movement to continue because my election gave young people out there hope. You gotta give ’em hope,” he said shortly before his assassination. Thank you for supporting Harvey Milk Day and keeping alive a legacy that every person can hope to have their dreams come true. Today’s letter – form letter is chilling A short time ago, I wrote to you in support of the California Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriage. Yesterday I received a form letter response from your office that was very nicely written, however factually inaccurate and intellectually offensive to California families, including mine. You wrote that “Proposition 22 … stated that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized on California,” but you choose to leave out an important detail: Proposition 22 was added to Section 308.5 of the Family Code. I have attached a copy of the Family Code; Section 308.5 has nothing to do with marriages performed in California. Section 300 (a) (also highlighted) was actually changed by the legislature in 1977 and signed by then-governor Attorney General Jerry Brown, something the legislation was specifically designed to address, something I pointed out to you almost a year ago, and a fact that the recent Supreme Court decision mentions explicitly. So when you write that you vetoed the legislative efforts to amend the marriage laws because of the sanctity of voter initiatives, you are not being honest. You could have signed the bills and responded to the legal challenge with the same argument about Section 308.5 and the unclear intent of the voters. But the worst part of your response to the Supreme Court Ruling is that you will merely “abide by the rulings of the state’s highest court.” It sounds to me like you are a sore loser. I wish you would join the people in celebrating the end of government tyranny in individuals’ personal and private lives. 1. Urge that same-sex marriages commence with all due haste. 2. Prod citizens to contribute to humanitarian efforts instead of limits on marriage. 3. Ask the Republican party to remove offensive language from the party platform. 4. Say all good citizens should vote against the Constitutional Amendment to Limit Marriage. Today’s letter – justification for taking away rights When can the Constitution take away the rights of individuals to participate in our economy and society? That was a question that the 9th circuit court decided in the case of Maj. Margaret Witt, an Air Force nurse who cared for injured patients on military flights and in operating rooms for nearly 20 years until she was discharged on the grounds that she had a six-year relationship with another woman, a civilian. The court did not vacate “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,” the policy that was used to oust Witt, but observed that the government may only “intrude upon the personal and private lives of homosexuals” to “advance an important governmental interest,” such as maintaining troop readiness or improving morale – and Witt, in fact, did the opposite. “Wounded people never asked me about my sexual orientation,” Witt said in a statement. “They were just glad to see me there.” In response to California’s Supreme Court decision, I wish you would do more than merely “abide” but instead celebrate the end of government tyranny in individuals’ personal and private lives. 2. urge citizens to contribute to humanitarian efforts instead of limits on marriage. 4. ask all good citizens to vote in November, but vote against the Constitutional Amendment to Limit Marriage. Today’s letter – bigot begone! Eddie Walker, the principal of Irmo High School in Columbia, S.C., announced he will resign from his post after the district approved a gay-straight alliance that supposedly conflicts with his religious beliefs. “Allowing the formation of this club on our campus conflicts with my professional beliefs and religious convictions,” Walker wrote in his resignation. The club provides support for gay, lesbian and straight students from an often hostile school environment. Reports show that in 2007, 31 percent of gay students were threatened or injured and 18 percent were physically assaulted because of their sexual orientation. The Lexington-Richmond School District could not stop the club from forming because of federal law prohibiting a club from being banned because of religious bias. “We truly believe it is unfortunate that this principal cannot see the immense harm that is caused when a social climate of rejection, condemnation and violence is justified with misguided religious belief,” said Brent Childers, executive director of Faith in America. California law now bans prohibiting individuals from getting married because of religious bias. There will undoubtedly be some people who will resign from the County Clerks offices because they are unwilling to uphold the law. When that happens, we must simply remember what President Eisenhower said when he considered ending the traditional segregation of the blood supply into “Colored,” “White–Hebrew,” and “White-Christian” in 1950. The Red Cross told him that the South wouldn’t accept “mixed blood.” Eisenhower replied “then the South will not get any blood!” and issued an executive order ending the practice. If Eddie Walker doesn’t want a gay-straight alliance at his school, then he is free to leave. “Those who deny freedoms to others deserve them not for themselves.”	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1021
__label__wiki	0.951293	0.951293	Mark Belanger Mark Henry Belanger Born: 6 / 8 / 1944 at Pittsfield, MA (USA) Died: 10 / 6 / 1998 at New York, NY (USA) This article was written by Frank Vaccaro The most electrifying defensive shortstop of his generation, Mark Belanger set the standard by anchoring a great Baltimore Orioles infield for most of 14 seasons. During this stretch, Baltimore won 90 or more games 11 times with six postseason appearances capped by the 1970 world championship. Belanger and Ozzie Smith are the only shortstops to retire with fielding averages over .975 while averaging more than five fielding chances per game. Belanger used two tiny black gloves per season and broke them in with spit and coffee. He got upset if anybody touched them. Watching him have a catch with a teammate on the sidelines was striking. He never seemed to actually catch a ball; rather he redirected them into his throwing hand. Sports Illustrated once wrote: “Belanger would glide effortlessly after a grounder and welcome it into loving arms; scooping the ball up with a single easy motion, and bringing it to his chest for a moment’s caress before making his throw.”1 Belanger’s fielding prowess was due to the start-and-stop speed of an All-American high school basketball star, his lightning-quick hands, and what scouts called Belanger’s First Step. A student of pitch counts, locations, and batter tendencies, Belanger sprinted at odd angles for the big hop and is best appreciated in slow-motion video. His small glove transferred the ball to his right hand – the seams of the ball always aligned the same way – enabling him to uncoil a strong throw on his next left step. In 18 years, he never dove for a ball, insisting that an all-out sprint was faster and maintained the mechanics of the play. And he was supremely confident: He never wore a protective cup. Belanger’s father, Edward, was of French-Canadian descent and worked as a maintenance man in Cheshire, a town in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts. His mother, Marie, was a first- generation Italian-American. Mark, the third of four children (he had an older brother, Al, and two sisters, Jeanne and Linda), learned how to field playing with his siblings on a cow pasture. Born on June 8, 1944, in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, he played basketball and baseball at Pittsfield High School. On the hardwood, he was a 6-foot-2 forward who jumped center, compiling 1,455 points in three years a school record until 2003. In baseball, he starred for both the high school squad and the local American Legion Post 68 team. On August 24, 1960, Belanger ripped a 14th-inning 340-foot game-winning double off the left-field fence at Alumni Field in Keene, New Hampshire, to earn Pittsfield Post a trip to Hastings, Nebraska, for the American Legion national championship. Scouts for the Orioles noted that Belanger “looks like he’s playing on roller skates to the accompaniment of music.”2 Based on scout Joe Cusick’s reports, after Belanger graduated from high school Baltimore offered him $35,000 to sign a contract. Belanger signed on June 19. That summer he played in 47 games for the Bluefield Orioles in the short-season Appalachian League and eight games with the Single-A Elmira Pioneers of the Eastern League. He hit .298 for Bluefield but was just 1-for-22 at Elmira. Belanger went to spring training with the Orioles in 1963. Ron Hansen, whom the Orioles had just traded to the Chicago White Sox, approached the rookie with this advice: “Learn to rock forward as the pitcher delivers the ball instead of starting from zero.”3 Belanger took it to heart. Over the years he not only leaned forward but anticipated left or right based on batter tendencies and pitch location. Sometimes Belanger would break right and then correct himself and break left – all before the crack of the bat on the ball. Before the 1963 season began, Belanger entered the US Air National Guard for a year of active duty, completing his basic training at Fort Dix, New Jersey, and playing on the camp baseball squad. Returning the next season with the Northern League’s Aberdeen (South Dakota) Pheasants, he hit just .226 but one scouting report enthused about his fielding: “Belanger could be a major-league shortstop if he never got another hit in his life.”4 He was far from perfect on the field, having made 20 errors in 44 games with Bluefield in 1962 and 23 errors with Aberdeen in 117 games in 1964, but talent evaluators had no doubt as to the shortstop’s potential. Belanger played for Earl Weaver at three levels along the way, and Weaver told him, “You're my shortstop if you hit .0001.”5 In midseason 1965, Belanger’s year at Elmira was interrupted by his first call-up to the majors when Luis Aparicio caught the mumps. In Kansas City, a gaggle of sportswriters converged on batting practice to find out who Belanger was. A’s coach Whitey Herzog said: “I saw him play in the Northern League. During the seven games I watched him, Belanger was the best shortstop I ever saw in my life.”6 Belanger debuted as a pinch-runner on August 7. In Fenway Park on August 10 he fielded his first ground ball. It came off the bat of Felix Mantilla, and Belanger started a double play with the graceful second baseman Jerry Adair. Belanger appeared in 11 games, but had only three at-bats, with one hit, a single off Kansas City’s Don Mossi on September 10. Listed as “needs hitting experience” in the spring of 19667, Belanger was one of five Elmira regulars who followed Earl Weaver to Triple-A Rochester. Belanger did not hit well in the first half and, feeling the pressure to succeed, began smoking cigarettes. Belanger asked Weaver to bench him but Weaver refused and Belanger responded by out-hitting league MVP Mike Epstein the second half, finishing at .262 for the season. The Rochester press called him Remarkable Mark. Called up at the end of the year, he appeared in just eight more games, but was there to join in the wild celebration when Baltimore clinched the pennant on September 22. Called “the greatest shortstop prospect in baseball history,”8 Belanger drew offers from many clubs but General Manager Harry Dalton was adamant: “I will never trade Belanger.”9 Playing behind Aparicio, a seven-time All-Star and seven-time Gold Glove winner in his career thus far, Belanger showed uneven play in his rookie year of 1967. On April 30 he dropped Aparicio’s feed as a second baseman and allowed an unearned run to score to give Steve Barber a loss in what ended as a no-hit game. (Barber threw 8 2/3 no-hit innings and Stu Miller 1/3 in the loss.) The Orioles’ manager, Hank Bauer, still said Belanger “sparkled”10 and Bauer liked the fact that Belanger hit well when given consecutive starts. Aparicio had an off-year and Belanger became his late-inning replacement. In the same May 14 game in which Mickey Mantle hit his 500th home run, Belanger hit one off Yankee Stadium’s left-field pole, victimizing the Yankees’ Mel Stottlemyre. Belanger married the former Daryl Apple on November 25, 1967, and the couple honeymooned at Mount Airy Lodge in the Poconos. On their fourth night together, Belanger heard the news that Baltimore had traded Aparicio to the White Sox, opening up the shortstop job. Back home in Pittsfield, Belanger was employed selling sporting goods in the Besse-Clarke department store. To get ready for the season, he squeezed lacrosse balls to build up his wrists. Belanger almost saw his season derailed when the Air National Guard ordered him to report to the 175th Fighter Group at Middle River, Maryland, just before the season. He missed Baltimore’s Opening Day, but joined the squad in time for the first Opening Day ever in Oakland, California, to which the Athletics had moved from Kansas City. California Governor Ronald Reagan threw out the first pitch in front of 50,000 fans and Belanger hit his second career home run. On July 10, Hank Bauer was deposed as O’s manager in favor of first-base coach Earl Weaver, who said, “Mark can be a star. A fifty-thousand-dollar player.”11 Perhaps, but he hit just .208 in his first year as a starting player. The next spring bullpen coach Charlie Lau approached Belanger to offer batting tips. Lau kept track of every pitch Belanger saw that year, sending him up to bat with instructions to take and swing on specific counts, and encouraging him to expect certain pitches in certain spots based on previous batter-pitcher matchups. Belanger responded with his best batting season ever, won his first of eight Gold Gloves, and earned the nickname Blade for his silhouette as Baltimore rolled to a team record 109 wins. He hit for a .287 average with 50 RBIs. Belanger became a respected member of the team, offering an articulate clubhouse interview and buffering Earl Weaver’s rants. Between the foul lines he was no-joke, all business, directing fielders to shade right or left and approaching rookies and new players with the abrupt “We don’t do it that way” – a line he even used on Jim Palmer in 1978.12 Backed by veterans Brooks Robinson and Frank Robinson, Belanger became a leader on the team, replacing Davey Johnson as assistant player representative. Even in the loose clubhouse atmosphere after wins, Belanger elevated small talk into something relevant without being called a clubhouse lawyer. Late after games, Belanger was still in his canvas chair by his locker talking baseball through a haze of Marlboro cigarette smoke and sips of National Bohemian beer. When the team’s mock “Kangaroo Court” was in session, Belanger was often fined one dollar for ludicrous imperfections, to which he would exclaim: “I appeal!” Detroit manager Mayo Smith declared that trying to get a hit through the left side of the Baltimore infield was like “trying to throw a hamburger through a brick wall.”13 But in the 1969 World Series the New York Mets did just that, rolling seeing-eye hits between Mark and Brooks – back-to-back no less – in the top of the ninth inning of Game Two en route to a five-game upset. When left fielder Don Buford lost Jerry Grote’s double in the sun in the 10th inning of Game Four, and Belanger almost caught the ball, color commentator Lou Boudreau said he “never saw a shortstop go that far.”14 Broadcaster Tony Kubek called him a fourth outfielder.15 In 1970 Charlie Lau signed with Oakland, and Belanger jammed his thumb in March. He was described as lost at the plate, batting “all-arm”16 without a clue. He developed “projection room eyes”17 from looking at so much film, but all he got for it was a .218 average and a mountain of broken bats. He did hit .333 in the American League Championship Series – in the opener against Minnesota, Belanger’s soft liner off pitcher Jim Perry’s glove was called the turning point, loading the bases for Mike Cuellar’s fourth-inning grand slam. Belanger hit just .105 in the World Series, but celebrated the Orioles’ victory anyway. The next year he rebounded to a more respectable .266 and captured his second Gold Glove. In 1972 Weaver gave a lot of middle-infield at bats to newcomer Bobby Grich, causing Belanger’s playing time to be cut in half (he hit just .186) and Baltimore suffered its worst record during Belanger’s career. After the season the Orioles traded away second baseman Davey Johnson and installed Grich there, giving Belanger his full-time job back. The next two seasons were remarkably similar for Belanger and the Orioles. He hit .226 and .225 and captured a Gold Glove award after each season. The Orioles had second-half surges each season to come from behind to win the division title, before dropping the League Championship Series to the Athletics each season. The tradeoff between Belanger’s lousy offense and great defense was usually one Weaver was willing to make, but he was not above trying to gain an edge. In September of 1975, Weaver often used Royle Stillman as the shortstop high in the starting lineup in road games, allowing rookie Stillman to bat in the first inning and Belanger to replace him in the bottom of the first. Stillman was an outfielder, and never played an inning of shortstop in his career, despite his six “starts” there in 1975. He hit 3-for-6 in these games. Belanger holds the American League career record for being pinch-hit for – 333 times. And if he wasn’t being pinch-hit for, he was sacrificing; his league-leading 23 sacrifices in 1975 were an Oriole record at least through 2009. In 1976, Belanger carried a .300 average into June and earned over a million votes in the All-Star balloting, making the team as a backup. When Peter Gammons wrote, “Belanger could be the first 140 lb. weakling to win the MVP award,”18 Belanger sought him out at Fenway Park and confronted him: “I’m 170 pounds, and I’m not a weakling.”19 The next year, writing for Sports Illustrated, Gammons called Belanger “the leader of the club.”20 One of the last players to represent himself and not use an agent, Belanger signed after 1976 for $60,000, a contract that was later extended through the end of the 1981 season. On July 28, 1977, even though he was going for his 50th consecutive errorless game, he was benched by Weaver and watched his replacement, Kiko Garcia, drop a first-inning pop-up that led to a big loss. Belanger’s streak ended on August 20 at 62 games, 48 of them starts. When the team contended in late September, the Baltimore Sun called Belanger the “blood and guts of the team.”21 But Belanger went beyond the established bounds of team leadership. He and his wife, Daryl “Dee” Belanger, hosted teammates for baseball talk and home cooking at his Timonium, Maryland, and Key Biscayne, Florida, residences. Pitcher Steve Stone credited one such evening with making him feel welcome with the team and for his subsequent 1979 success. In 1975 Mark and Dee even suggested that the Orioles play John Denver’s “Thank God I’m a Country Boy” during the seventh-inning stretch, the start of a tradition that has spread today to many sports in many cities. Belanger spent countless hours tutoring young infielders Doug DeCinces, Rich Dauer, Kiko Garcia, and Billy Smith, and the rookies helped him set the Baltimore record for double plays in 1977. When second baseman Dauer set a record by playing in 74 consecutive games without an error, he thanked Belanger. “He taught me how to play every hitter ... and taught me our pitching staff,” Dauer said.22 Belanger tapped his heart, as he did for so many players he liked: “He’s got it here,” he said.23 In 1980, a two-error game in July was noted to be his first in six years, and major-league shortstops surveyed by Sport magazine voted Belanger the best at the position. On September 4, 1981, Weaver benched Belanger, batting .165, for Lenny Sakata amid a team batting slump. Belanger, complaining about a sore shoulder, never started again. Sakata popped a grand slam two days later, coming out twice for curtain calls, and Weaver chortled, “He’s been keeping rallies going for us since he’s been in there,”24 a remark poignant for the punchless Belanger, who wasn’t even subbing in the late innings any more. Belanger’s last game with the Orioles was on October 4, but he asked Weaver not to play him, saying, “I haven’t been playing, and I’m not sharp.”25 Public-address announcer Rex Barney thanked Belanger in the top of the eighth inning for the privilege of watching him play. Applause built until Belanger appeared on the top step of the dugout and tipped his cap, an act that only made the stadium roar, delaying the game. Belanger added criticisms of Weaver that forced the Orioles’ hand in releasing him on November 13. Reflecting on the Orioles without Belanger, catcher Rick Dempsey said, “I feel like we lost half the club.”26 Belanger signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers for $250,000 on December 11, 1981, to play one last season. Along with his utility-infielder duties, he handed lineup cards to umpires and pitched batting practice. Walking by manager Tommy Lasorda’s office in March, Belanger cringed when Lasorda yelled out: “Belanger!” Expecting Weaver-like browbeating, Belanger entered the office only to be told Lasorda wanted a hug.27 He got a key hit in a Dodgers win on July 31, and walked twice in a final start against fireballer Nolan Ryan. The last grounder he fielded was from Tony Gwynn on September 21. For many, the close of Mark Belanger’s playing days only heralded the beginnings of his real contributions to baseball. The assistant player representative for Baltimore since 1971, Belanger rose to player representative in 1977 when Brooks Robinson retired and took pains to make sure Donald Fehr, then the chief counsel of the Major League Players Association, understood the rank-and-file’s concerns. Belanger was tested as the players’ front man in the 50-day strike of 1981 and fought for bargaining benefits that he himself would probably never collect. Belanger’s pro-union stance contrasted with that of big earners like Reggie Jackson, who seemed ready to cave in Upon Belanger’s retirement, player reps demanded that a spot be created for him right under Ken Moffett, the executive director of the players union. Belanger turned down a lucrative offer from Personal Management Associates, a Baltimore player agency headed by Ron Shapiro, and became a tireless “special assistant” to Moffett and later Don Fehr The partnership with Fehr was fruitful. Belanger brought credibility to executive-board sessions, and acted as Fehr’s personal bellwether for player opinion. Fehr himself claimed he didn’t feel comfortable in the job until 1986. Until then Belanger stood behind him at nearly every public appearance: arms folded, repeating key words, and interrupting Fehr’s legalese at least once with: “Don. You lost them.”28 Eventually Belanger’s own earnings topped $400,000 annually, yet he still took a personal interest in nearly every player grievance that came across his desk, helping the union move to Midtown Manhattan and to computerize member data. Still making time to play golf with his brother, Al, at the Berkshire Hills Country Club on Saturday mornings, Belanger saw the median major-league salary top $1,000,000 in 1992. A skiing accident at Lake Tahoe, Nevada, early in January 1997 led to lingering discomfort and a diagnosis of lung cancer that April. Belanger, who had quit smoking in 1991, took the challenge in an upbeat, optimistic mood. He married his second wife, Virginia French, three months later, and worked for the MLPA while an outpatient until he died shortly after the 1998 regular season ended, on October 6, at the age of 54. Besides his wife, he was survived by two sons, Richard and Robert. Ken Nigro, Baltimore Sun beat writer, 1969-1978, and TSN correspondent 1977-1979, interview. Jim Henneman, TSN Baltimore correspondent, 1976-1978, interview. Ed Belanger, brother, interview. 1 Pat Jordan, “Years Ahead of his Time,” Sports Illustrated, July 29, 1974, 44. 2 Doug Brown, “Belanger Army Call Could Help Birds,” The Sporting News, March 16, 1963, 69. 3 Baseball Digest, September 1980, 84. 4 Baltimore Sun, August 8, 1965, A2. 5 The Sporting News, March 25, 1967, 9. 7 Baseball Digest, March, 1967, 17. 8 The Sporting News, February, 25, 1967, 10. 9 The Sporting News, February, 25, 1967. 10 Baltimore Sun, March 1, 1967, C4. 11 The Sporting News, Sept. 21, 1968, 11 12 Baltimore Sun, Sept. 20, 1978, C7 13 Baseball Weekly, June 30, 1993, 71. 14 Chicago Tribune, October 16, 1969. 15 Baseball Digest, August 1988, 20. 16 Baseball Digest, December 1971, 71. 17 The Sporting News, August 22, 1970, 10. 18 Wall Street Journal, July 2, 1976, 1. 20 Sports Illustrated, Sept. 26, 1977, 62. 21 Baltimore Sun, October 2, 1977, C12. 22 The Sporting News, Sept. 30, 1978, 9. 23 The Sporting News, September 6, 1980, 28. 24 Baltimore Sun, Sept. 20, 1981. 25 Baltimore Sun, October 1, 1981. 26 Baltimore Sun, October 5, 1981, C1. 27 Los Angeles Times, May 9, 1982. 28 Sports Illustrated, March 8, 1993.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1025
__label__cc	0.701953	0.298047	Initial Response to Budget 2006, 16 Feb 2006 Budget Speech 2006, 15 Feb 2006 On the Scales: National Budget 2006, Feb 2006 All South Africans will reap the fruit of Economic Growth - 2006 Budget, Feb 2006 People's budget response to the 2005 medium term budget policy statement, 2 Nov 2005 2006 '? 2007: People'?s Budget, 2005 IDASA: Pre-Budget briefing 2006 Budget Information Services - IDASA SARPN acknowledges IDASA as the source of this document: www.idasa.org.za [ Share with a friend ] The proposed medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF 2006) takes place against a background of improved economic growth prospects, favourable inflation numbers, and a deficit position that is ripe for widening in coming years. Government projects an average economic growth rate of approximately 4.5 per cent over the next three years. Although economic growth is strongly fuelled by consumer demand, by announcing a comprehensive package of infrastructure spending, government intends to broaden the benefits of economic growth and impacts directly on the lives of the unemployed. In spite of government's much vaunted expansionary fiscal stance since 2001, a range of factors conspired to bring the deficit on the main budget to 1.0 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2005/06. These factors are in-year savings and lower than expected spending in the 2005/06 financial year. The MTBPS 2005 projects a growing deficit of 2.2 per cent in 2007/08, while in 2008/09, the projected deficit is reduced to 2.0 per cent of GDP. So, while real spending in the budget is set to increase, government has stuck to an affordable fiscal and policy regime. This is reflected in the primary balance, which although approaching the zero mark in outer years of the new MTEF, remains positive throughout the duration of the MTEF. If we further consider expected revenue overruns of approximately R30-50 billion, the scene is set for robust increases to the expenditure framework. Government expenditure (exclusive of debt service costs) is projected to grow at a real average annual rate of 6.3 per cent over the new MTEF. These resources are intended for service delivery and therefore prompt questions about the underlying assumptions of the proposed budget framework. Budget 2006 is premised on further control of the consolidated national and provincial wage bill and the slowing down of social development spending that has characterised recent budgets. Compensation is projected to grow at a real average annual rate of 4.1 per cent, while transfers to households (of which social grant payments are the main component) grow at a real average annual rate of 5.0 per cent. With the latter, annual growth rates of 4.7 per cent and 2.8 per cent in 2007 and 2008, contrast strongly with growth rates of 7.6 per cent in 2006 and 10.3 per cent in 2005. Slower real growth in wages and household transfer payments releases more resources for capital (infrastructure) spending and other categories of spending that are crucial for improving the quality of service delivery at provincial and local government levels. These developments affect service delivery in a number of ways: In social services, education expenditure is allowed to grow faster than social development and health expenditure, unlike trends in previous years. Also, to fund government's fee-free policy in public schools, more resources would flow to the non-personnel/non-capital budgets (NPNC) of education departments. With the proposed allocation of resources, we also expect more resources for capital expenditure, even though the exact balance or trade-off between NPNC and capital expenditure is not clear at this stage. In social development, greater attention will be put on the funding of welfare services at provincial level. Important legislation for children and older persons will receive attention. However, MTBPS 2005 did not provide estimates of the magnitude of such increases. Further capital spending in health, especially in relation to the acquisition of key medical supplies (goods and services) and further refurbishments (both maintenance and capital spending) to hospitals. Projected increases to the economic service sector where infrastructure plans for the roads and transport sectors are in the offing. The latest provincial level spending figures suggest that expenditure expansion in these areas is not unjustified, especially given the relatively high levels of spending on roads and transport votes at provincial level. The expansion of housing services in line with the comprehensive plan for the development of sustainable human settlements. In the justice and protection sector, government is trying to develop an appropriate balance between salary and other related cost categories. The assumptions of the 2006 budget framework are also reflected in the division of nationally collected revenue among the three spheres. Consistent with their service delivery burdens, provinces and local government achieve the largest real average annual growth rates over the new MTEF. Although the local government sphere is projected to grow at a real average annual rate of 20 per cent, the bulk of these increases relate to transfer payments to local government in 2006 to compensate them for the loss of RSC levies. Thereafter, local government is projected to grow by 5.7 per cent and 7.4 per cent in 2007 and 2008 respectively. Additional allocations to the local government sphere total R 2 billion over the new MTEF. Provinces' share of national revenue is projected to grow on average by 6.3 per cent over the next three years, which translates into R31 billion more over the previous year's budget estimates. Quality basic services in the context of provincial services invariably involve the issue of the composition of spending. Thus the national-level attempt at moderating personnel expenditure enables provincial education and health departments to focus on inputs that increase the quality of service delivery. This requires an increase in the discretionary spending power of provinces, which is duly proposed in the 2006 budget framework. The provincial equitable share is projected to grow by 6.3 per cent in real average annual terms and should therefore fund key innovations and changes in the education, health and housing portfolios at provincial level. Adding social development spending to the mix, these latest developments confirm that the heart of government's anti-poverty strategy is located in the social services sector. In the trade-off between the provision of direct services and the direct transfer of income, the 2006 MTEF is weighted more heavily in favour of the former. So what are other key expenditure issues and trade-offs that should be carefully looked at in the upcoming budget 2006? On the HIV/AIDS front, the MTBPS 2005 revealed that the community and home based care grant for those affected and infected by HIV/AIDS would be incorporated into the provincial equitable share. Given social development departments' lack of readiness to utilise equitable share funding for HIV/AIDS, we need to carefully track the allocations to community and home based care in budget 2006, especially in the provincial budgets. We also need to track whether the size of the health Comprehensive HIV and AIDS Grant approximates increased demand for ARV treatment by AIDS patients. Although the announcement of an additional R372 billion in infrastructure spending is welcome, we await details about whether these projects are sufficiently close to where the bulk of the urban poor live. The extent and magnitude of the progress provinces made in improving capital expenditure in education, health and housing. The answer to this question would provide an assessment of the validity of the assumption of increased capital expenditure in provinces generally and in social services more specifically. Measures to alleviate the debilitating effects of unemployment: Budget 2006 is strong on providing shared fiscal benefits to those in formal education and recipients of grant spending, but less clear on those that fall outside these categories (unemployed youth and adults). Recent evidence that points to the ease with which people fall back into poverty should bring closer scrutiny on these proposals in Budget 2006. The extent and magnitude of resources put aside for social welfare at the provincial level (excluding social security grant payments to households). Given the under-funding of these areas, MTBPS 2005 was too vague in its overall commitment to better funding of these key areas. Following from the last point and given government's intention of developing human resources, allocations to adult basic education and training programmes should be carefully looked at. We also need to carefully assess to what extent budget reform has resulted in more meaningful non-financial information in Budget 2006. Although this should be tracked in budget documentation and strategic plans, good information in the budget should allow convenient assessment of the effectiveness and efficiency of spending. IDASA Budget day 2006 contact persons: View - 139Kb ~ 1 min (1 pages)	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1031
__label__cc	0.633028	0.366972	Stanley Idaho & Sawtooth Adventure Co in the LA Times Idaho’s Stanley Basin runs wild A backcountry trip in the Sawtooth Range summons the spirit of the Old West. By Dan Blackburn, Los Angeles Times Click here to view the Original Article Reporting from Stanley, Idaho — Just an hour north of Sun Valley, Idaho’s celebrity hot spot, lies the Stanley Basin — an amazing region surrounded by snow-capped mountains, spectacular scenery and abundant wildlife, with the Salmon River — also known as the “River of No Return” — running right through the middle. Some 20 years ago, I spent serious time in this basin skiing and backpacking in the surrounding mountains, first with acclaimed Idaho mountaineering guide Joe Leonard and later alone or with various backpacking buddies. But for reasons unknown, I had not returned until one of them suggested a reunion of sorts with a small group of friends in this extraordinary place. When I first traveled to Stanley, the sign outside of town said “Population 100.” Today, the sign remains unchanged, and people who live here say the true year-round number may be more like 89 hardy souls. They certainly are outnumbered by elk, deer and maybe even by bald eagles and wolves, plus some mountain lions, bears and sandhill cranes. Much of the Old West is alive and well in this wild basin. The landscape unfolded dramatically beneath us as we slowly descended from Galena Summit. The Salmon River sparkled in the afternoon light, and green meadows sprawled at the feet of jagged mountains. The Sawtooth Range is very aptly named. Before long, my partner Gloria and I turned off the paved highway onto a dirt road leading to a campground on the edge of Pettit Lake — a large lake popular for trout fishing and as a jumping-off point for backcountry trips into the high mountains. Stanley veteran Greg Edson describes the area as “a mix of cowboy boots and river sandals.” He adds, “The views. The vistas. The sense of solitude. The most magnificent opportunity to experience lands as they’ve always been.” That’s not to say there haven’t been changes. Antelope now graze in the meadows, driven north by continuing development in the Sun Valley area. Long-necked sandhill cranes are a fairly recent arrival, and the area boasts three viable wolf packs, which were nonexistent until just a few years ago and are a subject of controversy, especially among ranchers and elk hunters. In addition, the depredation of bark beetles has killed large swaths of pines much as they have done in the Lake Tahoe area. However, the greatest impact has been the establishment of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area that covers 756,000 acres, including the Sawtooth Wilderness Area, and virtually bars development. It encompasses four mountain ranges with more than 50 major peaks topping 10,000 feet, more than 1,000 high-mountain lakes and 250 miles of trails. It also is the headwaters for four major rivers, including the famed Salmon River, whose waters stretch all the way to the Pacific Ocean and are a major destination for salmon swimming upstream to spawn. The Salmon is a premier location for whitewater kayaking, rafting and canoeing. Every summer, as many as 10,000 people take commercial rafting trips down the river, while an additional 5,000 make private trips. A couple of miles down river is a bridge that crosses over onto a road leading to Robinson Bar Ranch, which is owned by singer/songwriter Carole King. Interestingly, about 30% of the people who journey under the bridge and down the River of No Return come from California, which is surprising when you consider that the area is relatively unknown. We hopscotched our way down the river, stopping at various viewpoints to watch kayakers, rafters and canoe paddlers thread their way around some rocks and through fairly mild rapids. One of the most popular group trips is a four- to five-day wilderness excursion on the River of No Return with the rafts stopping at natural hot springs and resting on sandy beaches. Jared Hopkinson, who runs the Sawtooth Adventure Co., told us, “I dig watching people push themselves. There is a lot of bonding, and families become lifelong friends. It is kinda like going on a cruise, but more exciting.” For many visitors, the crucial lure is the region’s well-deserved reputation for trout fishing. Brook, rainbow and cutthroat trout rise to the surface of hundreds of streams, all snapping hungrily at colorful flies on the end of a line or snagging shiny spinning lures beneath the water. For those headed to the high mountain lakes, the best catch of any day is the spectacular golden trout. They may be California’s state fish, but they have been transplanted to Idaho’s icy mountain lakes, where they grow larger and seemingly more hungry. Our visit coincided with a special annual event in Stanley: the Sawtooth Mountain Mamas Arts & Crafts Fair. For 34 years, artisans from throughout the West have brought their finest work to town to support a truly important charity. The tented booths contain such things as handmade quilts, knives and other items made from elk bones and antlers, spicy barbecue sauce and lots of items in between. Buyers travel annually from New York and other cities to sample the wares and make purchases. The income supports scholarships for local students, emergency medicine and search-and-rescue training, and people in need or who are stranded in Stanley. The Mountain Mamas are the only service organization in the valley. Our big event was yet to come — a trip into the Sawtooth mountain backcountry. Because several stream crossings were running quite high, we decided not to hike in. Instead we contacted the Mystic Saddle Ranch to reserve a horse pack trip from Pettit Lake up to extraordinarily beautiful Alice Lake, which sits at 8,500 feet surrounded by multiple mountaintops and is renowned for gorgeous sunsets and sunrises. We wanted to be there for both. Wrangler Nick Wetherbee — looking as though he had just stepped out of a Western version of GQ magazine — fitted the packs on the horses, tightened the cinches on our two animals and led the way up a trail that varied from hot and dusty to tree-lined and rocky. Alice Lake is 6 1/2 miles into the high country and 1,500 feet higher than the trailhead. It wasn’t long before we were totally absorbed in the ever-changing scenery that unfolded before us. The horses were a little skittish crossing a couple of the fast-running streams, but Nick nudged them along and we reached the lake in time to set up our tent, fix dinner and settle in for sunset. Jumping trout snatched mosquitoes out of the air, and a Cub Scout troop arrived to share the scene. Clouds prevented what could have been a great sunset, so we called it a night and waited for sunrise. It was well worth the wait. My alarm shrilled at 5:30 the next morning, and by 6 a.m. the rising sun was painting the clouds, sky and mountaintops. The display lasted for 20 minutes and just got better and better. When it was over, I lay with my head propped up on my pack and gazed out over Alice Lake. It took some definite nudging from Nick and Gloria to get me to saddle up and start the ride back to our base camp. Jeff Bitten, a lean, soft-spoken, thoughtful rancher whose father started horse packing out of Mystic Saddle Ranch 42 years ago, says that he still enjoys getting on a horse and sharing the experience with other people but that fewer people are taking advantage of the opportunity. He adds, “What we’re losing is not having people have these experiences. If your memories now are only of the gas fumes from the city bus in front of you, then you are losing quality of life.” You do not have to camp here to experience the Stanley Basin. There are motels and a few guest ranches available. I was stunned at the growth of the old Redfish Lake Lodge. It has doubled, perhaps tripled, in size, and the lakefront was awash in people. When I last saw it, a mother bear and two cubs were frolicking in a sudden autumn snowfall, and a few cabins were being hand-hewn from local timber. Those cabins remain, but many more have been added. Everyone did seem to be having a good time. Sara Baldwin, the veteran U.S. Forest Service area ranger, dropped by our campsite while checking out conditions at Pettit Lake. Sara has been a ranger at Lake Tahoe, in Alaska and, now, here. I asked what makes this place so special, and she replied, “It’s a great place to restore yourself. The big highlight is the backcountry experience where you can reconnect with nature. That’s what people love about it. When people drive into the basin today, they know there is something different about this place.” Amen to that. We don’t plan to wait another 20 years to return again.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1032
__label__wiki	0.654653	0.654653	Hematopoietic Stem Cell Gene Therapy with a Lentiviral Vector in X-Linked Adrenoleukodystrophy Nathalie Cartier1,2,, Salima Hacein-Bey-Abina3,4,5,, Cynthia C. Bartholomae6, Gabor Veres7, Manfred Schmidt6, Ina Kutschera6, Michel Vidaud1, Ulrich Abel6, Liliane Dal-Cortivo3,5, Laure Caccavelli3,5, Nizar Mahlaoui8, Véronique Kiermer9, Denice Mittelstaedt10, Céline Bellesme2, Najiba Lahlou11, François Lefrère3, Stéphane Blanche8, Muriel Audit12, Emmanuel Payen13,14, Philippe Leboulch13,14,15, Bruno l’Homme1, Pierre Bougnères2, Christof Von Kalle6, Alain Fischer4,8, Marina Cavazzana-Calvo3,4,5,, Patrick Aubourg1,2,,† 1INSERM UMR745, University Paris-Descartes, 75279 Paris, France. 2Department of Pediatric Endocrinology and Neurology, Hôpital Saint-Vincent de Paul, Assistance Publique–Hôpitaux de Paris, 82 Avenue Denfert-Rochereau, 75674 Paris, France. 3Department of Biotherapy, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, 75743 Paris, France. 5Clinical Investigation Center in Biotherapy, Groupe Hospitalier Universitaire Ouest, Assistance Publique–Hôpitaux de Paris (Inserm), 75743 Paris, France. 6National Center for Tumor Diseases and German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum), 69120 Heidelberg, Germany. 7117 Southwest 72nd Place, Gainesville, FL 32608, USA. 8Department of Pediatric Immuno-Hematology, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, 75743 Paris, France. 9Nature Publishing Group, New York, NY 10013–1917, USA. 1013687 Quinton Road, San Diego, CA 92129, USA. 11Department of Biochemistry, Hôpital Saint-Vincent de Paul, 75674 Paris, France. 12Genosafe, 91002 Evry, France. 13Commissariatà L’Energie Atomique (CEA), Institute of Emerging Diseases and Innovative Therapies (iMETI), Fontenay-aux-Roses 92265, France. 14INSERM U962 and Université de Paris XI, CEA-iMETI, Fontenay-aux-Roses 92265, France. 15Genetics Division, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. ↵†To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: patrick.aubourg{at}inserm.fr Science 06 Nov 2009: Vol. 326, Issue 5954, pp. 818-823 Nathalie Cartier Salima Hacein-Bey-Abina Cynthia C. Bartholomae Gabor Veres Manfred Schmidt Ina Kutschera Michel Vidaud Ulrich Abel Liliane Dal-Cortivo Laure Caccavelli Nizar Mahlaoui Véronique Kiermer Denice Mittelstaedt Céline Bellesme Najiba Lahlou François Lefrère Stéphane Blanche Muriel Audit Emmanuel Payen Philippe Leboulch Bruno l’Homme Pierre Bougnères Christof Von Kalle Alain Fischer Marina Cavazzana-Calvo Patrick Aubourg For correspondence: patrick.aubourg@inserm.fr X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) is a severe brain demyelinating disease in boys that is caused by a deficiency in ALD protein, an adenosine triphosphate–binding cassette transporter encoded by the ABCD1 gene. ALD progression can be halted by allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). We initiated a gene therapy trial in two ALD patients for whom there were no matched donors. Autologous CD34+ cells were removed from the patients, genetically corrected ex vivo with a lentiviral vector encoding wild-type ABCD1, and then re-infused into the patients after they had received myeloablative treatment. Over a span of 24 to 30 months of follow-up, we detected polyclonal reconstitution, with 9 to 14% of granulocytes, monocytes, and T and B lymphocytes expressing the ALD protein. These results strongly suggest that hematopoietic stem cells were transduced in the patients. Beginning 14 to 16 months after infusion of the genetically corrected cells, progressive cerebral demyelination in the two patients stopped, a clinical outcome comparable to that achieved by allogeneic HCT. Thus, lentiviral-mediated gene therapy of hematopoietic stem cells can provide clinical benefits in ALD. X-linked adrenoleukodsytrophy [(ALD), Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man database number 300100] is a fatal demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS) caused by mutations of the ABCD1 gene encoding the ALD protein, an adenosine triphosphate–binding cassette transporter localized in the membrane of peroxisomes. The ALD protein participates in the peroxisomal degradation of very-long-chain fatty acids (VLCFAs) in oligodendrocytes and microglia, and deficiency of this protein disrupts myelin maintenance by these cells (1). Affected boys enter a phase of active multifocal brain demyelination when they are 6 to 8 years old. Most die before reaching adolescence. Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is the only effective therapy to date, provided that it can be performed at an early stage of brain lesions (2, 3). Beyond a certain stage, demyelination cannot be arrested. The long-term benefits of HCT in ALD are mediated by the replacement of brain microglial cells derived from donor bone marrow myelo-monocytic cells (4, 5). Because the potential of HCT is limited by donor-related constraints and carries a considerable risk of mortality, we reasoned that hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) gene therapy could be an appropriate therapeutic alternative. Lentiviral vectors, such as those derived from HIV-1, can transduce nondividing cells and allow (both in vitro and in mice) a more efficient gene transfer into HSCs than murine gamma-retrovirus (γRV) vectors (6, 7). For diseases like ALD, we did not expect that the limitations of γRV in HSC transduction could be overcome, because the genetically corrected hematopoietic cells have no growth advantage over unmodified cells. However, the greater efficiency of lentiviral vectors in HSC transduction suggested that gene correction might be achieved in a high percentage of HSCs and would therefore result in long-term expression of the therapeutic gene in all hematopoietic cell lineages of treated patients (8). ALD gene transfer with lentiviral vectors in vitro has yielded biochemical correction of monocytes/macrophages derived from ALD protein–deficient human CD34+ cells (9). In vivo, the transplantation of lentivirally transduced murine ALD Sca-1+ cells (a functional equivalent of CD34+ cells in humans) into ALD mice resulted in the replacement of 20 to 25% of brain microglial cells expressing the ALD protein 12 months after transplantation (10) (fig. S1). Unfortunately, because the ALD mouse does not develop cerebral demyelination (11), the neuropathological and clinical effects of lentiviral gene transfer could not be assessed in this model. When lentivirally transduced human ALD CD34+ cells were transplanted into nonobese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficient (NOD/SCID) mice, the recipient mice showed in vivo expression of ALD protein in human monocytes and macrophages derived from engrafted human stem cells (9). More importantly, human bone marrow–derived cells were shown to migrate into the brain of recipient mice and then differentiate into microglia expressing the human ALD protein (12). Ex vivo lentiviral-mediated transfer of the ABCD1 gene into CD34+ cells from ALD patients. On the basis of these promising preclinical data and our past experience in treating more than 35 ALD patients by HCT, we initiated a study of lentiviral-mediated HSC gene therapy in two ALD patients who had progressive cerebral demyelination and adrenal insufficiency and who had no human leukocyte antigen (HLA)–matched donor or cord blood for allogeneic HCT. These two patients, aged 7.5 years (P1) and 7 years (P2), had ABCD1 gene mutations (a large deletion from exon 6 in P1 and E609K mutation in P2), resulting in the absence of ALD protein detectable by immunocytochemistry in fibroblasts and white blood cells. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were taken from the patients after stimulation by intravenous injection of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor. After positive selection by an immunomagnetic procedure, CD34+ cells were pre-activated ex vivo with a mixture of cytokines (10). The cells were then infected with a replication-defective HIV-1–derived lentiviral vector (CG1711 hALD) expressing wild-type ABCD1 cDNA under the control of the MND (myeloproliferative sarcoma virus enhancer, negative control region deleted, dl587rev primer binding site substituted) promoter (10). Transduced CD34+ cells were frozen so that we could perform replication-competent lentivirus assays (10) before re-infusion. Cryopreserved transduced CD34+ cells (4.6 × 106 and 7.2 × 106 cells per kilogram, respectively) were thawed and infused into P1 and P2, after a fully myeloablative conditioning regimen with cyclophosphamide and busulfan. Because lentiviral correction does not provide human or mouse ALD HSCs with a selective growth advantage, we used a full myeloablation regimen, as this step would most likely increase the engraftment of transduced HSCs by removal of resident non-transduced HSCs. We observed that 50% (P1) and 33% (P2) of infused CD34+ cells expressed the ALD protein, as shown by immunofluorescence (10) 5 days after transduction. The lentivirally encoded ALD protein showed enzymatic activity, resulting in 55% (P1) to 68% (P2) reduction of VLCFA levels in transduced CD34+ cells (10). The mean number of integrated provirus copies per cultured CD34+ cell was 0.7 and 0.6 for P1 and P2, respectively, 5 days after transduction (10). The procedure was clinically uneventful. Hematopoietic recovery occurred at days 13 to 15 after transplant and was sustained thereafter. Expression of lentivirally encoded ALD protein in patient’s hematopoietic cells after autologous transplantation of gene-corrected CD34+ cells. At day +30 after infusion, ALD protein was expressed in 23 and 25% of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from P1 and P2, respectively (Fig. 1A). In P1, the percentage of PBMCs expressing lentivirally encoded ALD protein decreased to 13% at 9 months after transplant and has stabilized to ~10% at 30 months after transplant (Fig. 1A). In P2, ALD protein expression decreased to 17% at 9 months after transplant and has stabilized to 15% at 24 months after transplant (Fig. 1A). ALD protein expression correlated well with the mean number of integrated vector copies in the same cells (P1, 0.14 copies per cell, 30 months after transplant; P2, 0.20 copies per cell, 24 months after transplant) (10). VLCFA levels were reduced by 20 and 28% in the PBMCs from P1 and P2 at 24 and 20 months posttransplant, respectively. Download high-res image Gene marking in P1 and P2 after HSC gene therapy. (A) Percentage of peripheral blood lymphocytes and monocytes expressing ALD protein before and after HSC gene therapy. Lymphocytes and monocytes were isolated on a Ficoll gradient and analyzed for the expression of ALD protein after immunostaining with an anti-ALD protein monoclonal antibody (mAb) (12). (B and C) Expression of ALD protein in monocytes (CD14+), granulocytes (CD15+), T lymphocytes (CD3+), and B lymphocytes (CD19+) from P1 and P2. Cells were purified on microbeads with appropriate mAbs, and purity (>99%) was checked on a FACS cell sorter. Cells were then analyzed for the expression of ALD protein using an anti-human ALD protein mAb (16). (D) Plasma levels of VLCFAs expressed as C26:0/C22:0 ratio in P1 and P2 before and after HSC gene therapy. The gray band indicates the normal mean ± SD of C26:0/C22:0 fatty acid ratio. In both patients, the lentivirally encoded ALD protein was expressed at percentages between 9 and 14% in the different CD14+, CD19+, CD3+, and CD15+ peripheral blood lineages, in samples taken 24 to 30 months after transplantation (Fig. 1, B and C). Expression of ALD protein in bone marrow CD34+ cells (purity > 99%) went from 20 and 18% (12 months) to 18% (24 months) and 17% (20 months) in P1 and P2, respectively. Similarly, vector-derived sequences were present in 17.3% of colony-forming units–granulocyte-macrophage (CFU-GM) in P1, 24 months after HSC gene therapy, indicating effective gene transfer into common myeloid progenitors with long-term engraftment capacity. Longitudinal analysis of lentiviral vector insertion and clonal hematopoiesis after autologous transplantation of gene-corrected CD34+ cells. The clonal distribution of gene-modified cells in vivo was studied prospectively by a large-scale analysis of lentivirus insertion sites (ISs) with high-throughput 454 pyrosequencing of linear amplification–mediated polymerase chain reaction (LAM-PCR) amplicon (13). Clonal contributions to patient cells were visualized as different size bands representing the multitude of ISs (Fig. 2, A and B). The sensitivity of LAM-PCR combined with next generation sequencing permits the determination of entire insertion repertoires and thereby allows the physiology and kinetics of hematopoietic repopulation to be studied in detail. For LAM-PCR, we applied a combination of restriction enzymes according to an algorithm that allows the amplification of sequences covering all known genomic sequences. LAM-PCR on >98% enriched CD14+, CD15+, CD3+, C19+, and bone marrow CD34+ cells revealed a high number of distinct ISs, indicating a consistently polyclonal distribution of lentivirally corrected hematopoietic cells over time (Fig. 2, A and B). A total of 2217 (P1) and 1380 (P2) unique LAM-PCR amplicons obtained from patient cell samples before (P1, 501; P2, 484) and after transplantation (P1, 1719; P2, 900) were unequivocally mapped to specific positions in the human genome (14). Collision between samples may arise from the combination of exquisitely sensitive LAM-PCR with deep-sequencing technologies, creating false-positive sequence reads. Collision reads were excluded with the use of a predefined algorithm (10). Typical for lentiviral integrants, insertions were distributed mainly in gene coding regions (P1, 72.71%; P2, 75.80%), without a particular preference for transcriptional start sites, and frequently occurred in chromosomes harboring gene-dense regions (fig. S2) (15). Polyclonal hematopoietic repopulation after autologous transplantation of gene corrected CD34+ cells and identical integration sites in myeloid and lymphoid cells in P1 and P2. (A and B) LAM-PCR analysis of ex vivo transduced CD34+ cells before transplantation, as well as FACS–sorted cells and colonies at various months (M) after transplantation derived from P1 (A) and P2 (B). CFU, colony forming unit; BM, bone marrow; IC, internal control derived from the annealing of the LAM-PCR primers to the 5′LTR sequences. (C and D) Identical insertion sites found in myeloid (CD14+, CD15+, CFU-GM) and lymphoid (CD3+, CD19+) sorted cells in P1 (C) and P2 (D). Light blue, IS identified in myeloid cells at the same timepoint; medium blue, IS identified in myeloid and lymphoid cells at the same timepoint; dark blue, IS identified in lymphoid cells at the same timepoint. See table S1 for a detailed overview of identical IS found in the different sorted cell fractions over time. To determine whether HSCs had been transduced, we compared ISs of lentiviral vector in purified lymphoid CD3+ and CD19+ cells and myeloid CD14+ and CD15+ cells from P1 and P2 after transplant, as well as in their CFU-GM colonies derived from posttransplant bone marrow CD34+ cells. 86 out of 1846 ISs (myeloid, 940 ISs; lymphoid, 906 ISs) in P1 (4.6%) and 12 ISs out of 835 ISs (myeloid, 578 ISs; lymphoid, 247 ISs) in P2 (1.4%) occurred in both lymphoid and myeloid cells (Fig. 2, C and D). To estimate whether sharing ISs between different lineages could be indicative of initially transduced primitive hematopoietic progenitor cells, we calculated P values under the null hypothesis that insertions would follow a Poisson distribution with expected value E (10). The observed numbers of identities [86 (P1) and 12 (P2), respectively] were at least 22,000 (P1) and 18,000 times (P2) higher than the values expected by chance alone; i.e., they were calculated on the basis of a uniform random IS distribution both over the coding and the noncoding regions (P = 0). We used quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to verify that cross-contamination of CD3+ cells and CD14+ cells was below 0.2 to 0.4%. Even if one assumes a hypothetical 2% contamination rate by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS), the observed identities in both lineages were still at least 16,000 times higher than the expected values (10). These data indicate that a substantial number of clones with lymphoid and myeloid lineage capability exist and that lentiviral transduction of HSCs had been achieved. To monitor for early signs of vector-induced dominance of individual clones, we determined the quantitative contribution of individual clones to gene-corrected hematopoiesis by ordering all distinct ISs according to their abundance in every deep-sequencing run on samples containing more than 300 ng of DNA. (Fig. 3, A and B). The retrieval frequency (sequence count) of identical ISs in insertion repertoires obtained by high-throughput sequencing allows a good estimate of clonal contribution, provided that the analyses are performed in samples with comparable clonality, contain a sufficient amount of DNA (13), and an optimized choice of restriction enzymes avoids bias in the amplification of ISs by LAM-PCR. Clonal distribution varied, and no frequent clone re-appeared with an increasing count. No dominance emerged among active hematopoietic clones in the two patients. We also monitored whether the distribution of RefSeq genes with vector insertions changed over time. Insertions affecting the same gene or genomic region in two or more individual cell clones, termed common integration sites (CISs), can indicate that insertion in this particular locus might enhance clonal engraftment, survival or proliferation. No significant difference existed after sample-size adjustment in the proportion of CIS in cells sampled after re-infusion (P1, 30.71%; P2, 15.74%) compared with those sampled before re-infusion [P1, 8.58%; P2, 9.30%) (fig. S3)]. Retrieval frequency (relative sequence count) of individual integration sites in sequenced polyclonal cell samples from P1 (A) and P2 (B). The quantitative clonal contribution of individually gene corrected cells was assessed by counting identical integration site sequences after 454 pyrosequencing of LAM-PCR amplicons. The relative contribution of individual amplicons is given as the percentage of all insertion flank sequence reads encountered in the particular sample. The 10 most frequent ISs are ranked from 1 to 10, according to frequency. None of the most frequent ISs re-appeared or were found to contribute a large or growing portion of gene-modified cells to the circulation over extended periods of time. There was no obvious limitation to the clonal repertoire nor was there a clonal dominance. Genes listed in boldface were associated with multiple ISs in different clones (CISs), those listed in red were associated with ISs in both the lymphoid and the myeloid lineages, and those genes highlighted in gray were associated with ISs at more than one timepoint. All others, all less frequently encountered genetic locations that harbor ISs in the respective sample analyzed. We analyzed the gene classes targeted by the lentiviral vector using ingenuity pathway analysis. We found individual gene classes enriched in engrafted cells, but these classes differed between P1 and P2 (fig. S4). Although certain CIS or changes in gene-class enrichment might be related to vector insertion, these findings are currently without known biological or clinical relevance and will be monitored in the molecular follow-up of our patients. Neuroradiological and neurologic outcomes in ALD patients treated by HSC gene therapy. Before HSC gene therapy, the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan of P1 showed an abnormal hyperintensity signal that reflected demyelination of pyramidal tracts within the brain stem, pons, internal capsulae, and the periventricular frontal white matter, scored at 2.25 (maximum score = 34 points) (16) (Fig. 4A). Enhanced gadolinium contrast indicated that the demyelinating lesions were inflammatory and disrupted the blood-brain barrier (fig. S5). Contrast enhancement of demyelinating lesions disappeared completely 12 months after transplant (fig. S5). Demyelinating lesions continued to extend into the frontal white matter up to month 14 (demyelination score of 6.75), but since then have remained unchanged (Fig. 4A). Before HSC gene therapy, P2 had more extensive demyelinating lesions (Fig. 4B) than P1, with abnormal hyperintensity signal in the splenium of the corpus callosum, the white matter of parieto-occipital lobes, and the auditory pathways scored at 7 (Fig. 4B). Gadolinium contrast enhancement disappeared 9 months after transplant. A minimal contrast enhancement had reappeared in P2 16 months after transplant at the anterior edge of the left parietal white matter lesions, but it has not been detected since then (fig. S5). Lesions extended into the posterior parietal white matter up to 16 months after gene therapy but have remained stable since then (Fig. 4B). The hyperintensity signal involving the auditory pathways disappeared completely, indicating reversal of demyelination, a process that does not occur spontaneously in ALD. Thus, the demyelinating score of P2 remained at 7, as it was before gene therapy, despite the extension of lesions in the parietal white matter. These results are in sharp contrast with the continuous progression of cerebral demyelination in untreated ALD patients (Fig. 4C), but they are similar to what is typically observed after allogeneic HCT (2, 3). During the first 12 to 24 months after HCT, a brain MRI usually shows a progression of the demyelinating lesions, aggravating the demyelination score by 5 to 6 points out of 34 (3). The demyelinating lesions then stabilize or even reverse, as observed here, with no further changes for decades (2, 3). Brain MRIs from P1 (A) and P2 (B) before and after gene therapy. (A) Fluid attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) sequences show hypersignal involving the pyramidal tracts within the internal capsulae (white arrows) and periventricular frontal white matter of P1 before gene therapy. These lesions extended into the frontal white matter up to 14 months after HSC gene therapy and then did not show progression. (B) In P2, FLAIR sequences show hypersignal involving the corpus callosum, the parieto-occipital white matter (white arrows), and the auditory pathways before gene therapy. These lesions extended into the white matter of posterior parietal lobes up to 16 months after gene therapy and then stabilized with no further progression. (A and B) A mild dilation of frontal (P1) or occipital (P2) horns of ventricle is present 20 to 24 months after gene therapy. (C) Progression of cerebral demyelinating lesions in an untreated 8-year-old ALD patient (demyelination score at 26, 24 months after diagnosis). The neurologic outcomes of P1 and P2 were also reminiscent of successful allogeneic HCT (3). In untreated ALD patients, the decline of performance and verbal functions is inevitably continuous and devastating during the first 2 years after the onset of inflammatory demyelinating lesions (1). In 40% of ALD patients treated by allogeneic HCT, an initial decline of performance abilities without changes in verbal abilities is followed by stabilization (3). Before HSC gene therapy, P1 had normal neurologic examination and normal verbal intelligence (quotient of 108) but moderate nonverbal performance disability (quotient of 99). After gene therapy, his verbal intelligence has remained unchanged (quotient of 104). An initial decline in nonverbal performance (quotient of 74) has stabilized. He developed muscle weakness on the right side of the body at month 7, which then started to improve until nearly complete regression by month 14 after transplant. The motor and cognitive functions of P2 were normal before and remained so after HSC gene therapy (verbal and performance of 103 and 111, respectively, 20 months after gene therapy), with the exception of a persistent defect in the lower quadrants of the visual field that appeared 14 months after transplant and has remained stable thereafter. The myeloablative conditioning regimen is unlikely to have contributed to these clinical benefits. Of four patients showing a failure or a marked delay to engraft after this conditioning regimen in our allotransplantation series, all uniformly developed devastating progression of cerebral demyelination and cognitive decline. Plasma VCFA levels of ALD patients decrease by ~55% after allogeneic HCT (3), mostly reflecting replacement of liver macrophages by donor-derived cells. Plasma VLCFA levels were reduced by 39% in P1 and 38% in P2, 24 and 20 months after the transplant, respectively (Fig. 1D). Considering that liver macrophages and peripheral blood monocytes originate from the same myeloid precursors, this correction of plasma VLCFA was greater than expected, given that only 13 to 14% of peripheral blood monocytes expressed the ALD transgene in P1 and P2. Similar overcorrection of VLCFA accumulation was observed in PBMCs and transduced CD34+ cells from P1 and P2, possibly reflecting ALD protein overexpression or a preferential engraftment of corrected extravascular monocytes/macrophage progenitors early after infusion. Quantitative RT-PCR of PBMCs from P1 and P2 showed that the ABCD1 transgene was expressed at a four- to fivefold higher level than the endogenous mutated ABCD1 gene (table S2) (10). Discussion. Previous genetic correction of human HSCs with a murine γRV vector was successful only in the setting of immunodeficiency disorders such as adenosine deaminase deficiency and severe combined immunodeficiency–X1 (SCID-X1), in which the transgene conferred a selective growth advantage to lymphocytes derived from transduced HSCs (17–20). Lentiviral vectors based on HIV-1 are potentially superior to γRV vectors, particularly in short-term transduction protocols that minimize ex vivo cell manipulation, because they can be used to transduce candidate HSCs from patients and because they maintain sustained transgene expression even when the genetically corrected HSCs do not acquire a growth advantage (21, 22). In the present trial, the long-term stability of ALD protein expression in myeloid cells, as well as the presence over time of identical ISs in both the myeloid and lymphoid lineages, strongly suggest that HSCs have been transduced with the capacity to self-renew and repopulate multiple hematopoietic lineages. The adverse events that occurred in SCID-X1 patients treated with γRV vector gene therapy have raised serious concerns about retroviral integration–related mutagenesis and leukemogenesis (23). Transcriptionally active long terminal repeats (LTRs) of retroviral vectors are major determinants of genotoxicity (24), whereas the LTR promoter/enhancer of lentiviral vector used in this study is self-inactivating (SIN) upon transduction. This and other differences in lentiviral and oncoretroviral biology suggest that the risk of insertional mutagenesis by a SIN lentiviral vector may be lower than that with γRVs and even SIN γRVs (24–26). In our study, we took advantage of new deep-sequencing technologies for genome-wide monitoring of lentivirus-marked HSC clonality in the patients. Although we did not detect obvious clonal skewing or dominance in hematopoiesis, a longer follow-up and a larger sample size will be required to verify that the potential for genotoxicity of lentiviral vectors in this application is low. Before this gene therapy trial, we did not know how many corrected HSCs would need to be infused to achieve clinically relevant neurological benefit, because this crucial issue could not be addressed in the phenotypically normal ALD mouse (11). We only knew that all affected ALD boys who were successfully treated by allogeneic HCT and showed stabilization and/or regression of cerebral demyelination had more than 80% donor-derived engraftment (2, 3). In the current study, long-lasting expression of ALD protein in ~15% of monocytes (CD14+), a population of cells that have the same myelo-monocytic origin as bone marrow–derived brain microglia (27), was sufficient to obtain comparable neurological benefits after gene transfer into autologous HSCs, probably because ALD protein is overexpressed in microglial cells that derive from transduced CD34+ cells (28). Further studies will be needed to test the balance between less toxic partial myeloablation and the need for effective engraftment of transduced HSCs. The fact that the neurologic benefits of HSC gene therapy in ALD were comparable to those seen with allogeneic HCT supports further testing of this treatment in an extended series of ALD patients with cerebral demyelination who do not have an available HLA-matched donor or cord blood. HSC gene therapy might also be considered as a therapeutic option for adult ALD patients who develop cerebral demyelination, for whom the mortality risk of allogeneic HCT is ~40%. Finally, the recruitment of bone marrow–derived cells to CNS macrophages/microglia may provide a new avenue for cell-based gene therapy in other genetic and multifactorial CNS diseases. Supporting Online Material www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/818/DC1 SOM Text Figs. S1 to S5 Tables S1 and S2 ↵ These authors contributed equally to this work. H. W. Moser, A. Mahmood, G. V. Raymond , Nat. Clin. Pract. Neurol. 3, 140 (2007). doi:10.1038/ncpneuro0421 pmid:17342190 P. Aubourg ., N. Engl. J. Med. 322, 1860 (1990). pmid:2348839 E. Shapiro ., Lancet 356, 713 (2000). doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(00)02629-5 pmid:11085690 M. A. Eglitis, E. Mezey , Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 94, 4080 (1997). doi:10.1073/pnas.94.8.4080 pmid:9108108 J. Priller ., Nat. Med. 7, 1356 (2001). doi:10.1038/nm1201-1356 pmid:11726978 L. 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Schröder ., Cell 110, 521 (2002). doi:10.1016/S0092-8674(02)00864-4 pmid:12202041 D. J. Loes ., Am. J. Neuroradiol. 15, 1761 (1994). pmid:7847225 M. Cavazzana-Calvo ., Science 288, 669 (2000). doi:10.1126/science.288.5466.669 pmid:10784449 S. Hacein-Bey-Abina ., N. Engl. J. Med. 346, 1185 (2002). doi:10.1056/NEJMoa012616 pmid:11961146 H. B. Gaspar ., Lancet 364, 2181 (2004). doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(04)17590-9 A. Aiuti ., N. Engl. J. Med. 360, 447 (2009). doi:10.1056/NEJMoa0805817 pmid:19179314 N. Uchida ., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 95, 11939 (1998). doi:10.1073/pnas.95.20.11939 pmid:9751769 W. Piacibello ., Blood 100, 4391 (2002). pmid:12453876 ., Science 302, 415 (2003). doi:10.1126/science.1088547 pmid:14564000 E. Montini ., J. Clin. Invest. 119, 964 (2009). doi:10.1172/JCI37630 pmid:19307726 M. De Palma ., Blood 105, 2307 (2005). doi:10.1182/blood-2004-03-0798 pmid:15542582 ., Nat. Biotechnol. 24, 687 (2006). doi:10.1038/nbt1216 N. Davoust, C. Vuallat, C. Androdias, S. Nataf , Trends Immunol. 29, 227 (2008). doi:10.1016/j.it.2008.01.010 pmid:18396103 A. Biffi ., J. Clin. Invest. 116, 3070 (2006). doi:10.1172/JCI28873 pmid:17080200 We thank A. Salzman and R. Salzman for their continuous help and support in this project; the pediatricians and nurses of the Unité d’Endocrinologie et Neurologie Pédiatriques, Hôpital Saint-Vincent de Paul and the Unité d’Immunologie et d’Hématologie Pédiatriques, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades for patient care; A. Pujol and C. Sever Bermejo for patient referral; C. Adamsbaum for neuroimaging studies; F. Audat for cytapheresis; P. Lebon for HIV and VSV.G serologies; C. Lagresle-Peyrou for setting up the transduction protocol; P. Working and Cell Genesys staff for the lenti-MND-ALD vector; PeproTech for SCF, Flt-3, MGDF, and IL-3 cytokines; Takara Bio for the CH-296 fibronectin fragment; and E. Postaire and C. Sebastiani at INSERM. P.A. and N.C. were supported by grants from INSERM, European Leukodystrophy Association, Association Française contre les Myopathies, La Fondation de France, the STOP-ALD foundation, La Fondation Avenir, Etablissement Français des Greffes, Thermo Fisher Scientific, the 6th Framework European Economic Community (EEC) Programme (LSHM-CT2004-502987) and the Programme Hospitalier de Recherche Clinique (AOM 3043, French Health Ministry). S.H.-B.-A., L.D.-C., L.C., F.L., A.F., and M.C.-C. were supported by INSERM, Assistance Publique–Hôpitaux de Paris, Centre d’Investigation Clinique–Biotherapy, and Association Française contre les Myopathies. C.V.K. and M.S. were supported by grants from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (SPP 1230), the German Ministry of Education and Research (TREATID), the Helmholtz Association, and the 6th Framework EEC Programme (CONSERT, CLINIGENE). P. Leboulch owns stock in Genetix Pharmaceuticals, and G. Veres, V. Kiermer, and D. Mittelstaedt were formerly employed at Cell Genesys. This gene therapy trial was approved by AFSSAPS on 15 November 2005 and CCPPRB Paris-Cochin (local Institutional Review Board) on 7 September 2004. Informed consent was obtained from the parents of the patients after the nature and possible consequences of the studies were explained. Print Table of Contents Advertising (PDF) Classified (PDF) Masthead (PDF) You are going to email the following Hematopoietic Stem Cell Gene Therapy with a Lentiviral Vector in X-Linked Adrenoleukodystrophy By Nathalie Cartier, Salima Hacein-Bey-Abina, Cynthia C. Bartholomae, Gabor Veres, Manfred Schmidt, Ina Kutschera, Michel Vidaud, Ulrich Abel, Liliane Dal-Cortivo, Laure Caccavelli, Nizar Mahlaoui, Véronique Kiermer, Denice Mittelstaedt, Céline Bellesme, Najiba Lahlou, François Lefrère, Stéphane Blanche, Muriel Audit, Emmanuel Payen, Philippe Leboulch, Bruno l’Homme, Pierre Bougnères, Christof Von Kalle, Alain Fischer, Marina Cavazzana-Calvo, Patrick Aubourg Science 06 Nov 2009 : 818-823 Lentiviral-mediated gene therapy of hematopoietic stem cells delays disease progression in patients with a fatal brain disorder.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1036
__label__wiki	0.813437	0.813437	SCoVA Addresses Elements of Duress Defense On July 14, 2016 the Supreme Court of Virginia, in Edmonds v. Commonwealth of Virginia adopted the Court of Appeals’s formulation of the duress defense found in Buckley v. City of Falls Church, 371 S.E.2d 827, 827-28 (1988) and reiterated in Humphrey v. Commonwealth, 553 S.E.2d 546, 550 (2001). To use the defense of duress or necessity, the offender must show: (1) a reasonable belief that the action was necessary to avoid an imminent threatened harm; (2) a lack of other adequate mans to avoid the threatened harm; and (3) a direct causal relationship that may be reasonably anticipated between the action taken and the avoidance of the harm. Humphrey, 553 S.E.2d at 550. The case itself addressed the defense in the context of the trial court’s refusal to grant Mr. Edmonds’ withdrawal of his guilty plea. Initially, Mr. Edmonds pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm after conviction of a felony. But after pleading guilty and before sentencing, he got a new attorney. His new attorney filed a motion to withdraw his plea arguing that he took the gun under duress because of a threat of imminent harm to his girlfriend. According to the stipulated facts, Arlington police responded to a report of a man threatening a woman and saying that he had a gun. When they arrived, they learned that a Mr. Miller, had threatened Mr. Edmonds’s girlfriend with a gun. They then heard a disturbance and saw Mr. Edmonds come running out of an apartment. He was wearing clothing similar to the clothing described by the caller to 911. The Police detained him and they found a loaded handgun on him. Mr. Edmonds then told the police that he was not involved in the disturbance and that he was trying to do the right thing by getting the gun out of the apartment so that Mr. Miller couldn’t access it while he was drunk and angry. The trial court denied his motion to withdraw the guilty plea and held that the threat of danger was not sufficiently imminent to trigger the duress defense. The Court of Appeals agreed and, in addition, stated that “taking possession of the firearm was not the only way for [Mr. Edmonds] to avoid the threatened harm.” The Supreme Court of Virginia also agreed and noted that: The record is devoid of a sufficient proffer of evidence that there was a threat of imminent danger. Numerous questions are left unanswered by the record, including the location of the apartment, where the firearm was actually located, whether [Mr. Miller] even possessed the firearm or knew of the firearm’s location. Accordingly, it held that the trial judge did not abuse his discretion in denying the motion to withdraw Mr. Edmons’s guilty plea. Military Appellate Courts address “gross negligence” in the handling of classified materials in the 1995 case of United States v. Roller There is no “Pokemon Go” Defense to Trespassing in Virginia	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1037
__label__cc	0.508025	0.491975	History of Scotland and Tea Tea is very popular in Scotland. But, how did its popularity start? Scotland’s relationship with tea started in the early 1600s, when it was formally introduced to the country by by the Duchess of York, Mary of Modena. Later, many Scots went to India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) to start and run tea estates. Scotsman James Taylor is known as the father of Ceylon tea. Scots helped make tea a global drink. Lipton, one of the most recognizable brands, was started by a Scottish citizen. Thomas Lipton opened his first grocery shop in Glasgow, Scotland in 1871. After growing his grocery business to over 300 stores, he entered the tea business. Buying directly from growers and even starting an estate himself, Lipton became the first to sell tea to the public at low prices. He was one of the first to create a specific brand of tea that would be the same everywhere it was sold. In the 1890s, Lipton expanded his brand to America. Although the most popular type of tea is English Breakfast, it was actually created in Scotland. According to legend, it was invented in Edinburgh, Scotland by a Scottish tea master. Queen Victoria, fond of all things Scottish, popularized the blend in England. It eventually became known as breakfast tea. Over the years, companies across the world have copied this blend. Pingback: Scozia: mille motivi per innamorarsene \| AlterBlog Pingback: Scozia: mille motivi per innamorarsene - 50sfumaturediviaggio Picture of World’s Most Famous Tea Drinking Scotsman Do you know this man? He is the most famous Scottish person in the world ever associated with tea. He...	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1040
__label__wiki	0.9478	0.9478	What REALLY Happened With Origins Wolverine In Deadpool 2 by Thomas Bacon in SR Originals The mid-credits scene in Deadpool 2 delighted viewers, as Ryan Reynolds's titular hero stepped through time to right the wrongs of X-Men Origins: Wolverine. That included a very personal vendetta, as he stepped back into the events of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and executed that film's version of Deadpool. He then fired a few extra shots into the body for good measure, in what was clearly meant to be a cathartic experience for the Merc With A Mouth. The Deadpool of Origins was never loved by fans. It's true that the wisecracking, sword-slashing merc the movies started out with made a strong introduction, but Origins didn't take long to jump the shark. In one of the strangest film decisions in the history of superhero movies, Origin actually ended with Wade Wilson turned into a mute, single-minded monster with a mash-up of different super-powers. Incredibly, the film even ditched Reynolds at that point; the mute version was played by martial artist Scott Adkins. Related: Deadpool 2 Is Better Than The Original - Here's Why That makes this post-credits scene a wonderful experience for lovers of the X-Men comics and films. It's not just cathartic for Deadpool, or even for Ryan Reynolds, who desperately believed that a comic-book-accurate version of Deadpool could be a tremendous success. It's also cathartic for the viewers. The Final Bullet in the Body X-Men Origins: Wolverine was hardly a success. Criticized for its poor plotting and even worse CGI, the film barely recouped its costs in the domestic box office, grossing just under $180 million against a budget of $150 million. Fox had hoped to use the X-Men Origins banner to launch a whole series of X-Men spinoff films, but this box office flop forced the studio to reconsider. 2014's X-Men: Days of Future Past was ultimately used to erase the movie from continuity. For Deadpool, and indeed for Ryan Reynolds himself, Origins was a serious blow. Reynolds was one of several voices pushing for a Deadpool movie, and had actually tried to get one made before Origins. The actor initially believed Origins could serve as the launchpad for that idea. Fox had planned to use Origins as the beginning of a series of films that would create the comic-book-accurate version of Deadpool, explaining the US post-credits scene in which Deadpool's body crawls over to the head and hushes the camera. The film's poor reception, combined with its even worse portrayal of the Merc With A Mouth, essentially killed off that idea. In the wake of Origins, a solo Deadpool movie seemed to be phenomenally unlikely, with Deadpool's reputation tarnished and Fox unsure whether or not to sign off on further spinoffs. It took leaked test footage to persuade the studio to give a non-Wolverine spinoff a chance years later. That gives this scene added depth and humor. It's essentially the revenge of Wade Wilson as he was always meant to be - the Wade Wilson of the first half of Origins. It's also a final mea culpa on Fox's part, an admission that they got it totally wrong with that earlier version of Deadpool. After all, he's literally being executed by a far more comic-book-accurate iteration who's in no danger of ever getting his mouth sewn shut. For Reynolds, this is the culmination of his journey. It's a moment of celebration as he rejoices in the success of the character he believed in for years, and literally kills off the mistakes of the past. For the viewers, it's an emotionally satisfying scene filled with humor, a final parting shot at a film with few fans. It really is the perfect end to Deadpool 2. More: Deadpool 2's Incredible End-Credits Scene Explained Deadpool 2 (2018) release date: May 18, 2018 X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019) release date: Jun 07, 2019 Gambit (2020) release date: Mar 13, 2020 New Mutants (2020) release date: Apr 03, 2020 Tags: wolverine, deadpool 2 More in SR Originals Kayleigh Donaldson Outlander Historical Accuracy: What The Show Gets Right (& Changes) Rose Moore Lost Boys Comic Plot Gives Fans A Proper Sequel Padraig Cotter Thomas Bacon	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1041
__label__cc	0.517874	0.482126	Posts Tagged 'Netherlands' Niet weggooien! Published October 15, 2012 The Search Leave a Comment Tags: artefacts, Australian War Memorial, Museums, Netherlands, World War II There’s an interesting campaign underway in the Netherlands at the moment, spearheaded by a loose conglomeration of WWII museums. Called ‘Actie Niet Weggooien’ (translated to ‘Don’t Throw It Away’), the aim is to bring to light the ‘stuff’ from the war years that people might have hidden away in a box somewhere. What better place to save these historical artefacts and documents for the future, say the organisers, than in a museum? It’s an admirable sentiment, and the campaign has brought many amazing bits and pieces out of the woodwork – the website (link above) has photos of an SS flag from a public building in Groningen, for example, and a pair of ordinary-looking scissors with a story: they were recovered during the war from the wreck of a 150 Squadron Wellington that crashed in Friesland. Both artefacts would have sat, forgotten, in a box somewhere, perhaps until their owners died and the stories associated with them had been forgotten and a little piece of history lost. But thanks to the campaign by the Dutch museums, the stories of the flag and the scissors can be shared and the history lives on. You never really know what might still be out there undiscovered. Just recently Kerry Stokes purchased and donated to the Australian War Memorial the ‘Lost Diggers’ collection of some 3000 glass photographic plates taken in the French village of Vignacourt on the Somme. The collection had been lying in an attic of an old farmhouse once owned by the French couple who had made them – whose descendants had no idea of the historical significance of the collection. On a level a little closer to home, Leo McAuliffe’s letter recently sent to me by William Rusbridge had been hiding in a box of his late mother’s papers and was only discovered recently. Gil Thew knew of a box of letters and documents relating to his uncle Gil Pate, B for Baker’s rear gunner, but said no-one had touched it for thirty years – until I contacted him out of the blue a few years ago. What has been lost forever, forgotten or even thrown out by people who didn’t realise what they have? And on a brighter note, what else might still be in a dusty box in an attic somewhere, waiting to be found? Each new find adds a layer to the story of these men and each layer adds to our understanding of who they were and what they did – so helping to ensure that their stories will live on. © 2012 Adam Purcell Published February 24, 2012 Other Aircrew , The Search 4 Comments Tags: Commonwealth War Graves Commission, Hellendoorn, Leo McAuliffe, Netherlands, Nijverdal, No. 222 Squadron RAF, Research, WWII There are fifteen Commonwealth War Graves in the cemetery belonging to the small village of Hellendoorn, in the east of The Netherlands. My family and I lived in Nijverdal – the next town along – throughout the year 1995 and when we discovered that there was one Australian among the graves we decided to see what we could discover about him. Flight Lieutenant Leo McAuliffe was a fighter pilot attached to No. 222 Squadron, RAF. He was killed on 17 March 1945, a matter of weeks before that part of the Netherlands was liberated. He was 24 years old and came from Bexley, NSW. While still overseas, we wrote to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission to see what they could tell us about Leo. He had been killed in a ‘flying battle’, they said, and another letter to the Air Force after we returned to Australia in 1996 revealed he crashed while leading a section of two aircraft on a patrol and weather reconnaissance mission over enemy occupied territory. Late last year I decided to obtain copies of Leo’s service record and A705 files from the National Archives of Australia. This was not intended to be as in-depth a study as I am doing on my great uncle Jack and his Lancaster crew. It was just a side-line interest, more for general interest of our family than anything overly complicated. I had vague plans of reading through the files and writing a short ‘interpretation’ of them so I could then bind the whole lot up and give it to Dad for Christmas. Unfortunately the National Archives are experiencing ‘high demand’ for copies at the moment, and the month turnaround that I was expecting turned into two – too late for Christmas. Dad got a packet of liquorice instead. But I now have the files, and have spent the last couple of weeks reading through them and beginning to write my little story. And guess what? It’s turned out into something far bigger than I was intending it to. I’m not under the deadline of ‘Christmas’, so I have time to delve into the story a little deeper, following leads that I would have otherwise left alone. So questions raised in the NAA files have led to posts on the RAFCommands forum, which in turn led to the discovery that Leo served in Northern France following the invasion… meaning that my friend Joss le Clercq is also interested in Leo’s story and has been in touch. The account of Leo’s final flight, from his wingman, suggests to me that he simply became disoriented and lost control in thick cloud – more accident than ‘flying battle’. And the story of how a young Dutch woman witnessed the crash and recovered a dog tag but was later killed in an air attack on Nijverdal caused me to contact a friend who volunteers at the small World War II museum that is now in that town. This, in turn, resulted in numerous emails from her contacts at the museum, and much information about the crash and the attack on Nijverdal. All quite amazing. I’ve spent the last few hours translating those emails from Dutch and using Google Earth to try and pinpoint a crash location. But a line needs to be drawn somewhere. There is a lot of information out there – the tough part is deciding when you have enough, when you can stop researching and start writing. Leo’s story is well on its way to becoming known now. A couple more questions to my new Dutch contacts, and the writing can begin. So Far from Home Published January 14, 2011 Other Aircrew Leave a Comment Tags: Accidents, Memorial, Netherlands, RAF Bomber Command, Research, Royal Australian Air Force A recent article in Sydney’s Sun-Herald, 02JAN11: http://www.smh.com.au/national/where-the-streets-will-have-his-name-20110101-19cjd.html Flying Officer Lindsay Page Bacon, a couple of months before the end of the war in Europe, returning from a bombing operation in a 7 Sqn Lancaster which is damaged in combat and struggling to keep height. He manages to avoid crashing into a small town, but in the process destroys what little control he has over the aircraft. All on board perish in the crash. 65 years later, digging at a construction site in Nieuwdorp, the Netherlands, uncovers remnants of F/O Bacon’s aircraft. The town goes on a search for information about the crew, with an aim to build a memorial near the crash site. With the help of the newspaper they eventually find F/O Bacon’s sole surviving brother in Ulladulla, NSW. People have many motivations for becoming involved in this sort of research. For myself, like many others, it’s about that dusty photograph or logbook, and wanting to know more about someone who shared your name. For others, it’s the technical aspects of the aircraft, or the tactics, or the strategies. But for people like Hans van Dam, the Dutchman who contacted the newspaper in Sydney, it’s about remembering the men who came from the other side of the world to fight in the defence of his little village – and who never got the chance to go back home.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1045
__label__wiki	0.703723	0.703723	Punk and disorder: The influence and legacy of Maximum Rocknroll After 37 incredible years seminal punk zine Maximum Rocknroll is bringing its print edition to an end. This is my story of how MRR influenced me. After 37 incredible years seminal punk zine Maximum Rocknroll is bringing its print edition to an end. To say that it was a good run would be a seismic understatement. Like many punk publications before it, Maximum Rocknroll (MRR) will soon transition completely from the tangible to the digital. Every punk who ever got ink stains on their fingers from the pages of MRR will have their own stories. They will have their own reason for why Tim Yohannan’s eternal legacy will forever influence who they are and what they do. This is my story of how MRR influenced me. I’m guessing it’s a little different from those who grew up near the epicenter of the punk subculture. I grew up almost 9000 miles away from the Bay Area, in Indonesia, both a geographical and cultural world away. And yet, I ended up perched monthly on the pew of punk as Yohannan and the many noted writers over the decades- Mykel Board, George Tabb, even ol’ Ben Weasel- sermonised about bands, places, records, shows and everything in between. I became enthralled and romanced by the music, the attitude and the idea that pissing people off is a righteous way to live. I had to travel far to get my issues. Maximum Rocknroll was not easily obtainable in Indonesia in the 90s. We didn’t have decent book stores let alone alternative book stores, and if there was a punk subculture brewing within the military dictatorship, I didn’t find it. My dad did travel for work however, and Singapore was a regular destination: a city that did stock the zine. And it was during my regular pilgrimages that I would stock up on issues of punk zines – Maximum Rocknroll, Flipside, Punk Planet, anything I could get my hands on – and as many CDs as I could possibly afford and carry home. Maybe for some, picking up the latest issue of their favorite punk rag wasn’t a big deal, but for me, it was. Hell, he’s even more punk than me These days, the banality of having Ramones t-shirts sold at teen clothing stores aside, it is difficult to escape the aesthetic of punk. However, the age-old question of what is punk and what is not is still being asked. I’ve never pursued the punk ‘look’ very hard. I only ever spiked my hair in a mohawk once in my life, and once, I was the only person at a Rancid show who was wearing regular pants. For me it has always been the music that mattered most. I loved discovering obscure bands, incredibly small labels run out of people’s garages, shows in basements and records released because people loved doing it. I hated pop music and the saccharine culture of the mainstream and I loved rebelling against it. I loved the DIY ethic and I loved the resourcefulness and drive of those who wanted to create something against the grain. Maximum Rocknroll had all of that. Maximum Rocknroll issue #1. July 1982. The zine was of course, not without its own controversies. After the punk explosion of the mid 90s, Yohannan clamped down on the zine’s stringent rules on what they would and would not cover. Their policies were often deemed too narrow in the scope of punk, and elitist. Some of the genre’s most noted figures including Jello Biafra criticised the zine for its practices, and some of its own writers splintered off and formed alternative zines (Heartattack zine and Punk Planet) that were far more flexible in their coverage. Perhaps I was too young or too far away to fully understand the controversies back when I was 14/15 years old. Looking back, though, I understand where Yohannan was coming from, as I understand where those who disagreed with him came from too. At the time, though, I just wanted to read the zine, all of them, and yearned to find out about new music and an alternative to the mainstream lifestyle. As the globe became more connected, I saw growth in the ideals of punk in the form of many young punk bands. Indonesia and Singapore, just like in many parts of the world, became home to more and more bands that found a home in the pages of MRR. Scene reports from all over the world sounded more like Gilman Street, and while some of that started because Dookie and Smash sold millions of copies, it was also because the words within MRR had profound effects on people like myself and countless others. Sure, a lot of the bands sounded like Green Day, but there were also a bunch that sounded like Crimpshrine, or Blatz. MRR was instrumental in educating a generation about the possibilities and different sounds of punk. Love, live, maximum rock n roll Now more than 20 years since I read my first issue of MRR, I can say that the DIY attitude underpins almost everything I do. At least I’d like to think so. Sure, I like nice things, I pay my bills and have a regular job. But I like thinking differently, and I like challenging people’s expectations. If punk rock is not an attitude, then you can keep your safety pins and leather jackets. Thanks to MRR I started a band when I was 17. We were pretty shit, but we were loud and had a fucking blast. What’s more punk rock than that? MRR also inspired me to start this zine in 2001. It was a way for me to express my opinions, write about bands and connect with other likeminded people. That’s me, at 17, with the Screeching Weasel shirt and chain wallet. Circa 1996/1997 I think. In a statement released on January 13th, the magazine wrote a farewell note citing the reasons for their shift away from print, a promise to continue in digital form, and a reminder of why. “The landscape of the punk underground has shifted over the years, as has the world of print media. Many of the names and faces behind Maximum Rocknroll have changed too. Yet with every such shift, MRR has continued to remind readers that punk rock isn’t any one person, one band, or even one fanzine. It is an idea, an ethos, a fuck you to the status quo, a belief that a different kind of world and a different kind of sound is ours for the making.” – Maximum Rocknroll, January 13, 2019. It is an ethos that has been the backbone of the magazine for more than three decades. From the original radio show to the mag’s steadfast black and white simplicity, Maximum Rocknroll’s influence managed to circumnavigate the globe countless times over for a generation and more. The legacy of Maximum Rocknroll can mean different things to different people. My story is one of many I’m sure. Maximum Rocknroll influenced people all over the world to start bands, start zines, book shows and organize communities. Despite the shift from hard copy to online zine I know their influence will remain relevant in today’s digital world. It’s an outlook, a belief and a way of life that begins with an attitude. Start something. Related Topics:FlipsideMaximum Rocknrollpunkzine A New Tomorrow: An interview with Lee Resistant & The Lost The Beauty and Journey of Hellions’ 20s Series Australian alternative band Hellions have written a series of songs that journals the band’s history and growth. Josh Hockey explores. Josh Hockey Australian based Hellions are an alternative heavy band that have taken their audience on a journey of evolution. They have taken their sound from brutal hardcore to an atmospheric theatrical production unlike anything else. Over the years their music has matured and developed as they have as people into something special. Hellions have established countless themes through their music since their 2014 debut album, Die Young. The prominent example of this is the series of “20” based songs that appear on each of their albums. “22”, “23”, “24”, “25”, and “26”, are all songs the band write to keep track of themselves. Through the lyrics of these songs, they explore where their lives are at that point in time, and touch on their current values and beliefs in a powerfully emotional way. While each tie in with another, each one is unique and has its own meaning. They have become some of the most highly anticipated tracks of every Hellions release. (L-R): The Hellions discography- Die Young, Indian Summer, Opera Oblivia, Rue This all began back in 2014 when Die Young released featuring the closing track “22”. The song takes you on a passionate journey through the exploration of youth. The freedom of youth is often underutilized, and the innocence and joy of being young can all go to waste. Worrying too much about silly issues or stupid mistakes drag you down, and you lose the passion for life that was once the only thing keeping you going. This is what “22” is about. It is preaching to you to be everything you want to be. It is telling you to break out from the norms. It is telling you to make the most of the time you have. If you take the leap you’ll fly, and this song makes you feel like you can. An empowering chorus asks the bitter question of “why should we squander ever-waning youth”. The fast verses build perfectly and work to mesmerize you into a feeling of inspiration and freedom. This all leads up to, and hits its peak, with the final verse. “We are the wild ones, forever free, forever young!” A warcry of the aforementioned emotions, this section of music is as effective as anything I’ve heard. Every time I listen, it fills me with adrenaline and puts a smile on my face. Passion and joy fill the vocals and sends a shiver down your spine as the raw-strength of this closing verse hits you at your core. The message that “22” sends out is important, and the way it does is breathtaking. “22” shows the array of emotions they were experiencing at that time in their lives, and adds an optimistic edge to everything else they touched on during the album. Looking on the bright side, at this stage, the entire world felt like it was at their feet, and was theirs to explore. They’re determined to fight off mediocrity and are desperately trying to maintain their freedom. “23” was the closing track of Hellions’ 2015 album Indian Summer. Tying back in with “22”, it speaks of releasing oneself from the rut of mundanity. They dealt with the ditches of mediocrity and conformity and despised it more than anything. “23” explains the inner monologue behind dealing with these issues and takes you through their mental journey to regain their freedom. Opening up with an erratic rhythm of guitars and drums, and leading into frantic structured verses, “23” is an intense listening experience. Lyrically it walks us through the process of self-discovery. The world cannot hold you back, and you embrace the freedom that comes with realization. Liberated and elated, you reject the conformity of the wooden world. “Brother can’t you hear the inexorable sound? The march of time drawing close.” The walls of the world are closing in and “23” wants to inspire you to get away. Hellions want you to be the wild ones that they referred to in “22”. An enormous build and phenomenal riff-filled instrumental and vocal release references “22” and shows how they have changed since then. “These contemporary lies are no longer bothering me, I’ll never squander ever-waning youth, the bullshit doesn’t matter because you’ve always got you.” Much more certain of themselves now, they are grabbing their dreams with both hands and running with them. It isn’t the time for talking, it is the time for acting. There is a sensation of empowerment as the certainty and assuredness hammer home the power of “23”. It has its peaks and lows and appears to be fully designed this way. It wants to take you on this journey with them, and it does so in a beautifully powerful way that ends Indian Summer on an incredibly high note. Opening up as the first track on the 2016 album Opera Oblivia, “24” kicks in by referencing “22”. “Breathe, be still, be free” are the opening words of “22”, and is representative of the process of reminiscing. Moving on lyrically they speak of getting bogged down in the judgment of others, and how this brought them waves upon waves of embarrassment and discomfort. Instrumentally “24” takes a heavily theatrical approach, and involves a conscious effort to make everything sound dramatically bigger. This musical dramatization works fluently, with every note feeling like it is exactly where it needs to be in order to create an uplifting anthem. Finding out who you are is integral, and although it may cause some social discomfort, Hellions want you to discover yourself. “We are born and raised as cattle to be the same, but we are not the same we have to change and if we don’t we’ll suffocate.” This chorus features the strong clean vocals as well as the passionate yells and adds to the emotional effectiveness. “24” begs you to help change the world. Referencing “23”, they ask their mother and father for forgiveness and express their fear of time closing in. This slides nicely into the final anthemic singalong of the chorus and ends “24” with the bringing together of people. Feeling like an enormous group hug, multiple voices come together to serenade you through the chorus as the song comes to a close. An incredibly strong way to open an album and a fine addition to the series, “24” was the indicator that Opera Oblivia was going to be something special. “25” is the closing track on Opera Oblivia, and is a message about the importance of valuing the past as much as the present. It also touches on reclaiming oneself, the beauty of art, love, and having a passion. It is the most diverse of the “20” songs as it touches on so many things, but it does this in a way that isn’t messy. Every word feels like it belongs, as does every instrumental note, and it is clear the amount of love that went into crafting this song. Why spend so much time regarding the work of others and drawing from it when everyone could be making their own inspiration? “25” takes on a form of self-dialogue as well as everything else as they empower themselves with the idea of continuing their freedom. “And as long as we sing, we can stay young like this.” They acknowledge their inspirations and their creations and examine the fact that they are living out their childhood dreams every single day. The reason that they are living these dreams is because of those inspirations, and that is why we need to cherish every single piece of art that means something to us. You have no idea just how much it could end up meaning in the future. “Reinvent the world, like we used to: screaming.” Take the initiative to make whatever change you want to see in the world. Nothing is stopping you. Years can pass and things can change, but if you create something that means something to you, or to other people, it will be immortal. Like Lennon, Cash, Sinatra, Morrison, or Jackson, anything you create will maintain its beauty until the end of time. “25” is Hellions taking pride in their own art, as well as acknowledging the great musicians, poets, and artists before them that inspired them. As time slips away from them and they feel like they are losing grip on their youth, they know deep down that they will always have their art, and they will have the undying love and passion for it that will keep them forever young. All of this passion, inspiration, and integrity, comes from love. The love for art and the love for creating, as well as the love for the world. They want to help fix it, and “25” is asking for your help. “26” is the closing track of Hellions’ 2018 album, Rue. It is a good indicator of how far they have come. It is more polished and theatrical, and thus makes it a perfect album closer. Suggesting a series of battles against mental health and one’s inner demons, “26” deals with what holds people back when dealing with such troubles. They work themselves half to death to numb the pain, and when they finally take a second to rest the demons come for them. They run and run, and the next thing they know the world has passed them by. People they relied upon are getting on fine without them, the world continues to move without them in it, and that feeling of isolation only makes things worse. Happiness is an impossibility when the idea of suicide is constantly in the back of their minds, reminding them that they always have that escape plan if they need it. “Maybe we’re dredging up the discontent we’ve held subconsciously, accumulation of the pain we’re not acknowledging. But my dear friend we’ll survive.” Things may be hard at times but there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. This anchor dragging you forever down needs to be cut loose. Hellions are saying it is time to revolt against the inner demons. They don’t want to become another product of an unrelenting mental disease, and “26” takes you through their pain, their anguish, their suffering, and their rise out of that rut. “We may be plagued by a glitchy condition but your voice isn’t forbidden, speak up”. One of the more powerful messages sent through Hellions songs. They don’t want you to waste your freedom, and on that charge through to the end of the song with soft instrumentals that remind you that it will all be okay. “26” is one of the more heart-wrenching additions to the series, and closes out Rue in a painfully beautiful way. The lyrics and instrumentals work together in a poetic and vulnerable fashion that makes it all the more effective and admirable. The 20s Series takes you on a journey and is an indicator of the mental and emotional journey Hellions have gone on together over the years as a band. From the inspirational uplifting “22” to the daunting and vulnerable “26”, they have expanded themselves musically and personally in every way possible. These 5 songs are just the surface of Hellions near flawless discography, but picking them out and exploring them on their own merits has been an experience that I have loved. My admiration for this band is unmatched by almost any other act, and I think their music is something that needs to be experienced to be believed. Having listened to this band since their debut release in 2013, it has been an honor seeing them expand their sound. More recently I attended their Rue album tour at Max Watt’s in Melbourne. There was a special feeling throughout their entire set, and as the deafening singalongs were a constant throughout, it hammered home just how much this band means to people. The 20s Series documents the highs and lows of what they have gone through, and builds up the Hellions that we see today. You can purchase Hellions’ discography from Bandcamp or from UNFD. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Once more on vinyl The Buffy the Vampire Slayer musical episode, ‘Once More With Feeling’, comes to vinyl. We take the record for a spin. Trent Moore The acclaimed genre-bending series Buffy the Vampire Slayer pushed a whole lot of boundaries — but few were as wild as the 2001 musical episode “Once More With Feeling.” It was one of the first modern TV musicals (a trend that’s only gotten more popular in recent years) and an insanely ambitious proposition. Series creator Joss Whedon (who would go on to direct the first Avengers film to universal acclaim) wrote and directed the Season 6 episode, which featured all original tunes that were not only catchy and creative in their own right — but also integral in moving the plot of the episode, the season, and even the series forward with some momentous reveals hidden amongst those show tune lines. He also scored a surprisingly great musical performance from the show’s actual cast, as opposed to simply dubbing in professional musicians. The episode’s soundtrack received a CD release back in the day and drifted into geeky cult icon status for the past decade and a half. But, Buffy’s iconic musical is getting a new shot at primetime all these years later thanks to niche distributor Mondo. The company puts out everything from special edition posters to soundtracks, and its latest offering is a high-end take on “Once More With Feeling.” The pressing is on 180-gram vinyl and comes on blue splatter vinyl as well as a red variant. Like most Mondo releases, it features some gorgeous cover art, as well as in the gatefold, and even a geeky bonus for old school fans. Original creator Joss Whedon has written up some all-new liner notes to go along with the release (complete in its very own “Slaybill”), giving fans a bit more insight into the beloved episode. Though the appeal here is obviously meant for Buffy fans, it’s worth noting there are some great songs on this album. Whedon is a proven songwriter and would go on to pen the award-winning web series musical Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog. He showcased those skills in spades here, with a line-up that spans everything from rock ’n roll to ballads. “Under Your Spell” is a slow, foreboding track about love. “Rest In Peace” is a snarky punk rock number loaded with Buffy-centric gags. There’s “Standing,” a ballad about growing up and moving on in life; and the full cast closer “Where Do We Go From Here?” a sweeping tune that set the stage for the remaining run of the series. Then, there are the clever gag tunes, such as the medley “I’ve Got a Theory / Bunnies / If We’re Together,” and the short tunes such as “The Parking Ticket” and “The Mustard.” Buffy was a low-key hit when it debuted, and the show has only grown in popularity and acclaim in the years since. Along with being an excellent album all its own, “Once More With Feeling” now lives and breathes as a pop culture artifact of a creative force who would go on to make a couple of the biggest movies (Avengers, Age of Ultron) and most beloved TV shows (Firefly) of the modern era. It’s also one of the boldest episodes of network television ever put to the airwaves, and yes, that still holds true to this day. If you’re a Buffy fan from way back, a new fan who found the series on streaming, or just a curious collector who digs on colored vinyl sets — “Once More With Feeling” deserves a spot on any shelf, regardless of what leads you to pick it up. Pre-order a copy of Buffy the Vampire Slayer – Once More With Feeling on vinyl from Mondo.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1046
__label__wiki	0.735319	0.735319	Dr. Lucore steps down as president and CEO of HSHS St. John’s Hospital in Springfield Home/News/People on the Move/Dr. Lucore steps down as president and CEO of HSHS St. John’s Hospital in Springfield Dr. Charles L. Lucore, president and CEO of HSHS St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, is leaving HSHS for a new position as president of St. Francis Hospital in Roslyn, New York. “This opportunity came to light quickly and my decision was not an easy one,” said Lucore. “It required many hours of discernment and discussion with my family. As a result of this reflection, I am confident that returning home to the northeast is in the best interests of my family while also a positive step professionally. I’m sincerely grateful to HSHS for the years that I’ve been blessed to be part of the HSHS family as a physician and administrator. It was an honor to serve St. John’s to further the mission of our Hospital Sisters of St Francis and Catholic healthcare.” Lucore joined the HSHS family in 1992 as a cardiologist when he became part of Prairie Cardiovascular Consultants. During his time at Prairie, he assumed various leadership roles including secretary of Prairie’s board of directors and executive director of Prairie Heart Institute. Under his leadership, Prairie was recognized as a national leader by such organizations as Healthgrades, Thomson Reuters and Consumer Reports. In 2012, Lucore assumed leadership responsibilities in the HSHS Central Illinois Division, serving as vice president and chief clinical integration officer. He has served as president and CEO at St. John’s since April 2014. Lucore’s last day with HSHS will be Oct. 31. E.J. Kuiper, president and CEO of the HSHS Central Illinois Division, will serve as interim president at St. John’s while a nationwide search for a replacement is conducted. By StacieLewis\|October 4th, 2018\|Categories: People on the Move\|0 Comments Cindi Hamill joins Todd P. Smith Commercial Real Estate Chris Smith joins Land of Lincoln Credit Union Mark Nelson joins ReMax Professionals Jeffrey Baker appointed deputy CEO of Illinois Realtors John Maxfield retired from INB	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1049
__label__wiki	0.623405	0.623405	Home › Sears Holdings Corp › Sears Holdings Corp Chairman Eddie Lampert is in discussions with at least one potential partner to contribute to a $300 million bankruptcy loan. Sears Holdings Corp Chairman Eddie Lampert is in discussions with at least one potential partner to contribute to a $300 million bankruptcy loan. By StockMarketNews.Today on October 22, 2018 • ( 3 ) StockMarketNews.Today Sears’ survival will depend on the willingness of creditors and suppliers to keep the company afloat. Strong sales in the end-of-year holiday season will be key in determining that, putting pressure on the department store operator to secure enough financing to remain operational until then. Lampert’s hedge fund, ESL Investments Inc, has held discussions with Cyrus Capital Partners LP, an investment firm that holds some of Sears’ existing debt, about sharing the burden of funding portions of the $300 million loan, which would be separate from another $300 million bankruptcy loan that Sears’ banks have offered to provide, the sources said. The sources asked not to be identified because the deliberations are confidential. A Sears spokesman did not respond to a request for comment on Sunday. Through his hedge fund, Lampert has invested billions of dollars in Sears since he created it in its current form in 2005 through a merger with peer Kmart. As a result, he is the department store operator’s largest shareholder and creditor. The bankruptcy loan from the banks, including Bank of America Corp, Wells Fargo & Co and Citigroup Inc, falls first in line for repayment in the Sears bankruptcy case, while the $300 million loan that Sears is seeking from lenders including ESL would be repaid afterwards. Some people representing Sears while it navigates bankruptcy have also privately suggested to Lampert that he should seek to replace the $300 million loan from the banks with his own financing, some of the sources said. This would mean that Lampert would potentially be contributing to bankruptcy loans totaling $600 million, the sources said. Such a move would potentially consolidate Sears’ obligations during bankruptcy proceedings, and give Lampert more control over the company’s court case since he would essentially be the main so-called debtor-in-possession lender, the sources said. As it stands now, Sears is contemplating having two such loans. However, it isn’t clear whether Lampert can or is willing to provide financing to repay the banks lending Sears money in bankruptcy, the sources said. Lampert could demur on the idea and remain focused on contributing to the $300 million loan Sears wants that would be subordinated in repayment to the banks, the sources said. The sources cautioned that negotiations between Sears, Lampert and other potential sources of bankruptcy financing remained fluid and might not result in a deal. Sears filed for bankruptcy protection in White Plains, New York on Oct. 15 with a plan to close about 142 of its 700 stores by year-end and sell up to 400 of its best-performing stores in an auction in January to a buyer that will keep them operational. Lampert stepped down as Sears CEO following the bankruptcy filing, and is planning to bid for the stores that go up for sale. Sears, which has close to 70,000 employees, has not turned a profit since 2011. It struggled with competition from e-commerce firms such as Amazon.com Inc, as well as brick-and-mortar retailers such as Walmart Inc. The company listed $6.9 billion in assets and $11.3 billion in liabilities in documents filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York. A court hearing finalizing bankruptcy financing for Sears is expected during the week of Oct. 29. ‹ U.S. oil inventories climbed 6.5 million barrels last week, almost triple the amount analysts had forecast, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. Stocks fell Monday after a week of wobbly trading. Investors are looking to a full week of earnings releases, with a third of S&P 500 companies across all 11 sectors set to report this week. › Categories: Sears Holdings Corp, Stock Markets Tags: Sears Holdings Corp, Stock Market News, Stock Market News Today, Stock Market Today, US Economy Walmart raises its sales and profit goals as it rides e-commerce gains and a strong U.S. economy – Stock Market News Today J.C. Penney Next to File Bankruptcy? \| Sears Chairman Eddie Lampert submits $4.6 billion proposal to help save the bankrupt retailer with the purchase of 500 stores. – Stock Market News Today	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1050
__label__wiki	0.6232	0.6232	Mélanie De Biasio Melanie de Biasio is an Italo-Belgian vocalist who is considered one of the leading voices of a new generation of jazz singers. Her singing style is unique as she mixes jazz, blues and soul to a distinctive new amalgamate. Born in Charleroi, Belgium in 1978, de Biasio studied classical dance and flute before discovering her voice and her love of singing. Heralded by the British BBC DJ Gilles Peterson ever since the day she released her debut album „A Stomach Is Burning“ in 2007, de Biasio has since released three albums and an outstanding 24-minute EP with the title “Blackened City” that was inspired by her travels through post-industrial environments such as Charleroi, Manchester or Detroit. With the latter piece, de Biasio stunningly charted new territory in jazz by adding noir-ish, soul, avant pop and classical elements to the formula. In her STRRR episode she shares with us footage of Orson Welles having breakfast with French film journalists, a mind-blowing interview sequence with Mark Hollis of Talk Talk fame, and a surprising trailer for the new Alien movie with Melanie de Biasio’s music - and more.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1051
__label__wiki	0.719057	0.719057	Roopa Mahadevan - Classical Carnatic Vocal Anjna Swaminathan - Violin Abhinav Seetharaman - Mridangam Roopa Mahadevan Roopa Mahadevan is a versatile vocalist, grounded in the South Indian classical (Carnatic) tradition. Raised in California, she received her major formative Carnatic training under Asha Ramesh of the D.K. Jayaraman bani and later pursued a Fulbright scholarship in India for study under Suguna Varadachari, a respected guru of the Musiri Subramania Iyer tradition. Roopa is one of the leading American-born South Asian performers of Carnatic music in the diaspora – having performed in numerous venues in the US and India, including the prestigious Music Academy during the December season in Chennai and Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana which awarded her the title “Kala Ratna.” Roopa is a trained South Indian Classical (Bharatanatyam) dancer and a sought-after vocalist for leading Bharathanatyam and crossover/contemporary dancers around the world. Roopa also enjoys performing R&B/soul music and theater. She has lent her voice to two urban/R&B music albums and was lead vocalist for a track on the album Calling All Dawns which won the 2011 Grammy for Best Crossover Classical Album. Roopa also enjoyed a show-stealing role as actress/dancer/singer for Bakwas Bumbug, a South Asian musical theater production in New York City and has participated in many performance theater projects with local dancer/choreographers. Roopa has performed with ensembles in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Hollywood Bowl, and the UN. She was an inaugural fellow of IndianRaga and is a core performer in New York’s Brooklyn Raga Massive. Roopa is currently based in New York City, where she is the artistic director of the choir Navatman Music Collective. She recently completed a successful tour of India with her new ensemble Roopa In Flux. Roopa graduated with a Bachelor’s in Biology and Master’s in Psychology from Stanford University and enjoys working in public health policy when she is not artist-ing. Roopa is an advocate for using art as a tool for culture change, to celebrate difference, form communities, and advance the momentum toward social justice. Roopa's Website Anjna Swaminathan Anjana Swaminathan is a versatile artist in the field of South Indian Carnatic Violin. A disciple of the late violin maestro Parur Sri M.S. Gopalakrishnan and Mysore Sri H.K. Narasimhamurthy, she performs regularly in Carnatic, Hindustani and creative music settings. In the summer of 2014, Anjna was a participant at the celebrated Banff International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music in Alberta, Canada, where she worked closely with eminent jazz and creative musicians and led workshops on the fundamentals of Carnatic improvisation and listening. She has since performed with and been encouraged by established musicians in New York's thriving creative music scene including Jen Shyu, Vijay Iyer, Tyshawn Sorey, Amir ElSaffar, Imani Uzuri, Stephan Crump, Graham Haynes, Mat Maneri, Miles Okazaki and others. Anjna is a member of the ensemble RAJAS, led by her sister, percussionist-composer Rajna Swaminathan, which features a rotating collective of Indian classical musicians and jazz/creative musicians, and seeks to explore new improvisational and compositional possibilities stemming from the Indian classical idiom. In 2015, Anjna came under the tutelage of renowned vocalist and scholar, T.M. Krishna for her training in Carnatic music, and vocalist Samarth Nagarkar for her training in Hindustani music and accompaniment. She frequently engages with the burgeoning community of Indian classical musicians in New York and New Jersey, and is an active member of the Brooklyn Raga Massive, a growing artist-managed collective of musicians, performers and educators with a firm grounding in raga-based music and a mission to create a diverse, community-oriented artistic practice. As a theatre artist, writer and dramaturg with interests in the intersection of race, class/caste, gender and sexuality, Hindu vedantic philosophy, and the boundaries of postcolonial Indian nationhood, Anjna often engages in artistic work that ties together multiple aesthetic forms towards a critical consciousness. She frequently takes part in interdisciplinary collaborations, often developing scores and providing musical accompaniment for Bharatanatyam (South Indian classical) dancers and dance companies, most notably, Ragamala Dance Company (Minneapolis), Rama Vaidyanathan, Mythily Prakash and Malini Srinivasan. From 2010 to 2017, Anjna performed and toured extensively in the United States and abroad with the acclaimed Minneapolis-based company Ragamala Dance, led by Doris Duke Artists Ranee and Aparna Ramaswamy, in whose projects she had the pleasure of working and performing alongside such artists as Rudresh Mahanthappa, Amir ElSaffar and Rez Abbasi. More recently, Anjna has delved into the realm of composition, and was commissioned (with co-composers Rajna Swaminathan and Sam McCormally) to create an original score for playwright/performer Anu Yadav's one-woman-play Meena's Dream. In her dramaturgical and theatrical work, she has a keen interest in developing new projects that seek to problematize the hierarchies of caste and gender that are inherent in her musical idiom, something that deeply informs her musical practice. Anjna is co-artistic director of Rhythm Fantasies, Inc. - a non-profit organization that strives to promote South Indian classical music and dance in a space that encourages education and enrichment through innovation and cross-cultural collaboration. Anjna holds a Bachelors degree in Theatre from the University of Maryland, College Park. Anjna's Website Abhinav Seetharaman Abhinav Seetharaman is a promising young South-Indian percussionist – on the drum known as the mridangam. He had his initial training on the mridangam at the age of 7, under Sri N. Ganesh Kumar and Sri Vijay Ganesh, and later proceeded to learn from Sri Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan. Currently, he is undergoing advanced training from Sri Kumar Kanthan of New Jersey, as well as world-renowned mridangam maestro Guru Karaikudi R. Mani. Abhinav’s playing style is characterized by tonal clarity, powerful strokes, and manual dexterity. His sensitivity in playing is brought out by a perfect balance of melody and mathematical patterns. He regularly travels extensively around the United States and India to perform, and has accompanied distinguished musicians such as Dr. N. Ramani, Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Sri Ganesh Rajagopalan, Sri P. Unnikrishnan, Pandit Tejendra Narayan Mazumdar, Sirkazhi Dr. G. Sivachidambaram, Sri Ramakrishnan Murthy, and Smt. K. Gayatri, just to name a few. He has played in several prestigious venues, such as the United States Capitol Building (Washington D.C.), John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (Washington D.C.), Millenium Park (Chicago), Waukesha Civic Arts Theatre (Wisconsin), Narada Gana Sabha (Chennai), and JSS College (Bangalore). In November of 2013, Abhinav was invited to play at the United States Capitol Building, as part of the first international annual Indo-American meet, which featured several leading members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives. An avid French horn player himself, Abhinav’s extensive exposure to Western classical music provides an advantage in collaborating cross-culturally with musicians from a variety of global genres, and in the process brings awareness about South-Indian classical music to both initiated and uninitiated audiences. Abhinav is also the co-founder of MusiLinks, a non-profit organization whose primary purpose is to raise funds for the needy, locally as well as internationally, through music. He has given over 60 charity concerts to date and continues to do outreach programs. Abhinav is a third-year undergraduate student at Columbia University in the City of New York. Abhinav's Website This event is part of Chhandayan's 2018 All Night Concert. To go to that event, click the button below: 2018 All Night Concert This event is partially sponsored by the New York Council on the Arts:	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1056
__label__cc	0.57477	0.42523	Abbotsford’s new direction For the last few months I have been attending the Select Committee on Interregional Transportation set up by the City of Abbotsford. To some extent this was prompted by a meeting I spoke at there a while ago, when the University of the Fraser Valley students Environment Society held a forum on rail for the valley. There have been all kinds of proposals and studies done on this subject over the years – and more are under way now in various guises. The FVRD, for example, has been trying to damp down citizen enthusiasm for rail with its own study that dismisses it as uneconomic. The potential for rail as an alternative to freeway widening was, of course, always blithely dismissed by the Province, who never really wanted to look at any alternatives. And in a spectacularly inept bit of back pedalling when the Province did announce its “transit plan” (the $14bn one that was to paid for by everyone else – not one of whom had been consulted) the Fraser Valley was left out completely, and promises for Langley and Surrey were as far off into the future as possible. Some SkyTrain extension beyond its present King George terminal, but it would not get to Langley before 2030 at the earliest. The general mood of the South of the Fraser seems to be one of simmering discontent. The BC Liberals seem to have regarded this as home turf where they could not be displaced, and therefore seem to have stuck to the “not enough people” argument for far too long. These communities are where growth is going to occur, and the Mayors of Langley, Surrey, Abbotsford and Coquitlam have all signed a “Livability Accord”. 65% of the growth in the Lower Mainland in the next ten years will be accommodated in these four communities. Even right wing politicians like Jordan Bateman in Langley are promoting streetcars or light rail as a way of making transit more attractive and permitting denser, transit oriented development. Indeed, the developed parts of Surrey are denser in total the developed parts of Burnaby. But the level of transit service is abysmal. Sensing this mood, I have been advocating that a pilot or demonstration project is what is needed now – not more studies. This is because studies actually do not win many arguments, and tend to lead to more debate and more studies. Indeed, as a consultant in private practice, I was only too happy to be commissioned to do a study – because of the high probability of subsequent work created by the release of the “final report” – which was usually anything but. People are, of course, skeptical – and quite rightly. But the fond memory of the interurban between Chilliwack and Vancouver is strong, and local enthusiasts have been fanning those flames for a while. Modern transit is actually rather different to the electrified Pullman cars that shuttled up and down the Valley for fifty years – until more than fifty years ago. But in 1968, for Expo, train service was restored briefly. And a lot of people are still wondering why trains seem to have been left out of most Olympic plans. The Select Committee turned out to be an interesting and diverse crowd. There were two (sometimes more) councillors – and different staff at different times. Most members were local citizens who had expressed an interest or were members of one of the rail advocate groups. There were a smattering of others, like myself, with some professional interest but who came from away. The Committee, by the way, did not pay for travelling expenses, so I picked up the tab for my monthly treks out to the east, and most times for supper too (except for last night when pizza was brought in). I tried hard to find a way to do the trip by West Coast Express but was defeated by the lack of transit accessible accommodation near City Hall. At the first meeting, back in June, I thought we were going to be arguing about freeways and intersections. Much was made of the need to incorporate Abbotsford Airport as it draws passengers from a wide area. The Interurban is also problematic for Abbotsford. Interregional connections that are most important are east-west. Mostly to Langley. Chilliwack having been, for most of recent history, sucessfully isolationist (most people who live in Chilliwack work there too). Mission has West Coast Express of course – and there is a timed bus that meets every train to connect to and from Abbotsford. But even so it is only really useful for travel to Vancouver in the early morning, and most of the travel in general (not just commuting) around Abbotsford is to adjacent communities.(Abbotsford and Mission share local transit service provision). The Interurban was built before Sumas Lake was drained, so its route is not direct. In fact in Abbotford it runs due north – south from the river to the US border at Huntingdon. And travel in those directions really did not concern us very much at all. For years, Abbotsford has had very low transit service,as local politicians were reluctant to pay towards empty buses. Kelowna, which is of comparable size, has twice the amount of transit service. South Fraser Way - the "main drag" through the centre of Abbotsford But a quick glance around the city shows low density development, quite a lot of farmland and a major freeway, with a new lane being added in its generous median. So at the first meeting, I was not at all surprised that the Chamber of Commerce made a strong pitch for a “multi modal” approach. But over the summer the world changed. And so did Abbotsford. Abbotsford’s OCP calls for higher density development. But without better transit, that will not happen. In the fall sheet change, transit service increased significantly, with an emphasis on higher service frequencies on the busiest routes. This will not be an isolated change but is a signal of more to come. Oil prices peaked, and house prices tipped over the crest too. Development faltered, and then the credit crunch hit. People travel in the summer – and so do their families – and people on the committee started talking about what they and their children experienced elsewhere. Modern transit no longer seemed a distant prospect but both doable and necessary. I am not going to reveal what our recommendations are before Abbotsford Council has seen them, but I will say that I have been surprised – not least because last night we approved the report unanimously. Throughout the discussion has been positive and respectful. We are also getting a bit worried about what the outgoing Council might think. But we do know that the staff – and the new City Manager – are very progressive. We did promise to report before the Civic Elections, and we will do so. What is also relevant is that my shtick has also been going down well in Chillwack and Langley. Not just me of course, but a whole band of rail advocates – although there have been some fissures, I’m afraid. And in local politics they do seem to be inevitable. Turnout in local elections is notoriously low – below 30%. But those who do get involved are committed – and often driven. There is also change in the air. Simple demographics and aging boomers, with lots of new people arriving. Some of whom are now comfortably established and secure enough to raise their heads above concerns of simply getting established. It is probably significant too that Abbotsford has grown by incorporating neighbouring communities – and that at a time when bits of Langley and Surrey were splitting off those cities. So they know about building consensus. After the Council Meeting on November 3, I will either put the report on here, or post a link to it. Be prepared to be surprised and, I hope, pleased Posted in Environment, politics, transit, Urban Planning Tagged with Abbotsford, Rail for the Valley « Bridges and blacktop likely targets of Liberal accelerated spending A mini-break on the M1? » Though I live in the Big Bad City, I appreciate your strong advocacy and voluteer work for the Valley, Stephen. I worked in Langely for two years and am familiar with the physical and cultural geography. Perhaps the grassroots will drive hope & change at the provincial level regarding sustainability, of which decent public transit is a very important part. I don’t think valley residents will be bought off, by Falcon, with 10 km. more of SkyTrain. The groundswell of support for a reinstated interurban is growing and what give a moment of pause to politicians, it’s not the ‘trolley-jolly’ crowd that is supporting it. What makes sense with the present route is that it is there, in place; which is by far a lot cheaper than ‘greenfields’ construction. The cost to renew just the tracks is about $1 million/km. and Diesel LRT vehicles (small & light dmu’s) cost about $5 million to $6 million a copy. GPS/ATP signalling is relatively cheap, compared to old solid state signalling of just 10 years ago, which again was cheaper than earlier signalling methods. It’s all there and for the cost less than 1 km. of RAV/Canada Line we could have a reasonable ‘demonstration’ D-LRT service for the Fraser valley. For the cost of 3 km. of RAV/Canada Line we could go from downtown Vancouver to Chilliwack! The population is there, the track is there, the publics demand is there, and the technology is there; what is missing is the provincial political will to make it happen. Malcolm J. Perhaps it is time for a realignment of the regional districts. Perhaps we need two or three regional districts, the GVRD for Vancouver and its surrounding suburbs, one to serve the emerging cities on the South Side of the Fraser (Langley, Abbotsford, Surrey, and one to serve and protect the last of rural living and farmland in the rest of the Valley (Maple Ridge, Hope, Agassiz, Mission, Chilliwack). It would work well if there was one body to oversee regional transit, the transit that connects all the parts of the whole, and local transit planning at the regional or city level. You are very right to say that there is growing discontentment with the kind and type of development being foisted on the region. One only has to watch the discussion surrounding the Genstar development proposal to understand the resentment that is growing in the region. In my humble opinion the days of urban planning done in the absence of reference to such vital services as transportation systems, health services, and local employment have to end. The Fraser Valley was long seen as the region that solved Vancouver’s housing affordability problem and everyone was expected to rely on Vancouver to provide the cultural and social amenities for the entire region. With the employment that now exists in the Fraser Valley and the emerging cities, as well as the opportunities for post-secondary education, and the cultural and social institutions that are developing in the region my sense is that there is a growing demand from people living in the region to develop their own livable and sustainable communities that are far less reliant on Vancouver.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1060
__label__wiki	0.664882	0.664882	Current state of the theory of international relations, System and environment of international relations - Sociology of International Relations Current state of the theory of international relations The paradigms that developed in 1980 in the theory of international relations sought to use traditional ideas about the human world and did not set out to understand the causes of change, rejected the positivist methodology for solving problems, and developed retrospective interpreterivism as the main research method for obtaining explanatory knowledge. E. Carr, sharing the Hobbesian judgments of the XVIII century. about the nature of man and the state, sneered at the Wilsonian faith "in the mind of the past century". But to explain the reality of the 20th century, the behavior of the states of the 5th century was used. BC. However, in the conditions of rapid development of information technologies, the method of historical analogies turned out to be inapplicable, and many postulates of the theory of international relations, and above all a rigid separation of internal and external spaces, were rejected. In the unfolding unprecedented complexity of the architecture of human connections, it became increasingly noticeable that social forecasts can not be obtained by the method of intellectual immersion in the history of interstate wars. At the same time, world-wide research paved the way for understanding that the national interest, and therefore the rationality of strategies for achieving it, is set by social rather than intellectual parameters. System and environment of international relations The search for a new approach to the phenomenon of international relations marked the work of the British scientist Hedley Bull, published in 1969, "International Relations: The Case of Classical Approach"; ("The theory of international relations: an example of a classical approach"). The classification of the periods of development of the theory of international relations presented in his analysis calls for abandoning both classical theories and the postclassical "scientific approach" Morton Kaplan, in the bosom of which was formulated the thesis of the system of international relations . Criticizing the practice of teaching international politics at US universities, H. Bull draws a line between periods of domination of the Hobbesian-Machiavellian notions of international relations and the so-called scientific approach framed by the logic-mathematical theory of international systems (M. Kaplan), the theory of games and bargaining O. Morgenstern and T. Schelling), the "world studies", the theory of social communications (K. Deutsch), the theory of macro solutions (J. Modelick), and others. In seven bull's arguments against the American school "sistem second approach & quot; the idea of world politics as environment, in which the & quot; world diplomatic structure & quot ;, & quot; international society & quot; , "world society", consisting "ultimately of individual human beings". This remark has methodologically decisive importance, since it not only conceptually structures a new problem field, but also qualitatively differentiates the concepts of "world politics" and "international relations". The main drawback of the & quot; classic & quot; ideas about international interaction, H. Bull sees in the excessiveness of the natural approach to the behavior of states, allowing some of them to impose their will on "the basis of either military technology or the distribution of benefits." "Scientific approach", in the opinion of this researcher, falls into the extreme of modeling and system, which have found successful application in the economy. And thereby reveals the inability to "deal with the essence of the object" international relations and world politics, replacing it with the "technique of building models" and systems. H. Bull does not offer a methodological delimitation of the subject fields of international relations and world politics, all his arguments against the school of the "scientific approach" is aimed at justifying a decisive rejection of the systemic vision. He draws attention to the fact that the study of world politics is first and foremost a "long research tradition," which seeks to streamline the behavior of existing actors. In his concept, world politics appears as human activity, which "supports the elementary and primary goals of the society of states, or of the international society". To such purposes, H. Bull attributes security, predictability and protection of property. In his later book, The Anarchical Society: A Study of Order in World Politics & quot; (Anarchist Society: Study of Order in World Politics, 1977), he distinguishes between two types of order in international relations: the international system and international society. So, the international system is a set of interacting states. While international society is characterized by the interconnected availability of common values, interests and rules of conduct - unity of the political world. These two types of order are inherent in various types of balance of power. In the international system, where there are no common interests and global institutions, only a situational and, consequently, an unstable balance of power is possible. At the same time, the international society is characterized by a consciously constructed balance of forces. Evolution of the subject of the theory of international relations: The ideas of H. Bull were supported by American constructivism, "within the framework of which it is believed that the person in his perception and thought processes not so much reflects the surrounding world, how much he creates actively, constructs it." Considering knowledge as a culturally conditioned human activity, constructivists believe that international relations as a discipline that has arisen in the West keep in its focus exclusively Western civilization. In this case, the rest of the world ns falls into their subject field, and therefore what is commonly called the "system" is only a fragment of international relations immersed in the global international environment. But the greatest doubt about the self-sufficiency of the classical theories of international relations has caused their prognostic limitations. In ten new trends, with which the American futurist Joey Neisbit argued the assumption of radical changes in social relations in the next 30 years (Megatrends, 1982), in essence, formulated an innovative science-research goal - to explore the leading forces of transformation and change of ideas in international relations./p> Globalistics, futurology, the ecological idea, constructivism and synergism that accumulated the ideas of civilizationalism, began to develop an understanding of the world as a socially created reality & quot; and, contrasting it with power and financial "objectivism" realists and liberals, contributed to a substantial renewal of knowledge about international relations. One of the notable attempts to revise traditional representations is the collective work of French authors "New International Relations" (1998). The main conclusion to which the researchers came is that a system that has survived for almost a century competing in the struggle to realize its national interests of states has outlived itself. At the same time, the modern American model of international relations, interpreted in terms of dynamic systems theory (Steven Mann), continues to develop the main theses of the realistic paradigm. Thus, the term & quot; world politics & quot; plays the role of an academic watershed between canonical state-centered international relations and the international environment with its actor's diversity. Its practical result was the expansion of the number of participants in international interaction at the expense of international organizations , transnational corporations, non-governmental associations, various firms and associations, individual individuals involved in various international processes. At the same time, their most visible participants are the states. By the beginning of the XXI century. follow the & quot; merge & quot; internal and external processes culminated in the recognition that "the characteristics of the international environment have become and continue to become more important than the behavioral characteristics of individual, even the strongest, actors." Consolidated cycle schedule for the execution of orders and volume-calendar calculations of the production progress - Production logistics. Theory and practice MARKETING RESEARCH IN THE STRUCTURE OF MARKETING INFORMATION SYSTEM, Methods of data processing of marketing research - Information technologies in marketing Basel-2, Basel-3 - International Finance DIFFUSIVE ASEPTICAL PODDERMATIT, PURULENT SUBDERMATITIS, Superficial suppurative pododermatitis - Veterinary orthopedics Protection from ionizing radiation, Sources and characteristics of ionizing radiation - Labor protection Development of KRI business process., Creation of reporting on key performance indicators. - Modeling of business processes Method of constants, Measurement of the absolute threshold - General Psychological Workshop Analysis of the activities of branches and representative offices allocated to an independent balance sheet - Financial Analysis Methods of expert data processing, Methods of studying of firms-competitors - Information technologies in marketing Contracts of rent and life-long maintenance with a dependent, Rent contract: concept and types, the contract of lifelong maintenance with dependence - the Civil law Theories of activity motivation - Fundamentals of General Psychology Participants of the insurance obligation - Civil law. The special part Measuring tools and mode of operation on them - Theoretical foundations of commodity science and expertise Center for Client Relationships Altitude - Information Technologies in Marketing Basic separation operations, Shaping operations, Tool for forging works - Technological processes in mechanical engineering How to organize the material, Structure of the legal document: introductory remarks - The art of legal writing Basic functions of economic theory, Economic laws and categories - Economic theory Business woman appearance, Well-groomed workplace view, Women“s shoes, Women“s accessories - Business ethics Dynamics of social groups, Birth of a group, or Transition from a group to a group state - Organizational behavior Analysis, Lion Office Systems PLC Company profile, Personnel composition and distribution, Personnel and personnel climate, Company strategy - Personnel policy and personnel planning Communicative pedagogical technologies, Analysis of production situations - Psychology and pedagogy Types of lathes, Lathe-turret lathes, Vertical turning machines - Technological processes in mechanical engineering	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1067
__label__wiki	0.565126	0.565126	[Poet Spotlight] Janine Joseph Janine Joseph was born and raised in the Philippines and Southern California. Driving without a License (Alice James Books, 2016), is the winner of the 2014 Kundiman Poetry Prize. Her poems and essays about growing up undocumented in America have appeared in Kenyon Review Online, Best New Poets, Best American Experimental Writing, Zócalo Public Square, the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day series, and elsewhere. Her commissioned libretti for the Houston Grand Opera/HGOco include What Wings They Were: The Case of Emeline, “On This Muddy Water”: Voices from the Houston Ship Channel, and From My Mother’s Mother. Janine holds an MFA from New York University, and a Ph.D. from the University of Houston, where she was a poetry editor for Gulf Coast. She has taught creative writing with Writers in the Schools, Community~Word Project, and the Starworks Foundation. A recipient of a Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans, an Inprint/Barthelme Fellowship in Poetry, a Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center Fellowship for Collaboration Among the Arts, a PAWA Manuel G. Flores Prize, a Howard Nemerov Poetry Scholarship, and an Academy of American Poets prize, Janine is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Oklahoma State University. Labels: Poet Spotlight 2018 Asian Pacific American Women’s Leadership Institute accepting applications. If you have $9,200+, the Center for Asian Pacific American Women is currently accepting applications for the 2018 Asian Pacific American Women’s Leadership Institute (#APAWLI) It seeks to promote leadership of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women in the corporate, nonprofit, and government sectors by fostering the development of AAPI women as whole person leaders. This program has been going on for more than 20 years. Applications are due June 6th 2017 and the first session will take place October 2017. "Partial scholarships" available. A big thanks to SEARAC for letting us know this opportunity is available. Karst Mountains Will Bloom a success Thanks go to everyone who came to join us on Saturday, May 27th at the Merced Multicultural Arts Center for the historic Karst Mountains Will Bloom reading. Among the scheduled readers for that evening were Dr. Kou Yang, Soul Vang, Burlee Vang, Ying Thao, See Xiong, Kao Kalia Yang (video), Mai Neng Moua (video), Andre Yang, Jer Xiong, Mai Der Vang, Yia Lee, Khaty Xiong (video), May Lee-Yang (video), Anthony Cody, Nou Her, May Yang (video), Yu-Han Chao, Meg Withers, Luna Moua, myself, and Pos Moua. It was standing room only as community members gathered to pay tribute to the literary journey of Pos Moua. The readers all gave touching testimonies to his influence on their work and what he meant to them as their friend. This is a pretty monumental year. It's the 15th anniversary of Pos Moua's Where the Torches Are Burning and Bamboo Among the Oaks. This year saw the release of Mai Der Vang's award-winning debut book of poetry, Afterland, and Mai Neng Moua's memoir the Bride Price. It's the 10th anniversary for my first collection, On The Other Side Of The Eye. And oddly, for as much as I've encouraged so many members of the Hmong American Writers Circle over the last decade, this is the very first time we've all read together like this, along with so many members of the Paj Ntaub Voice. It was a great evening bringing together elders and emerging writers and speaks well of what's possible in the years ahead. What a wonderful way to close out the 2017 Asian Pacific American Heritage Month on Memorial Day Weekend, and I was honored to be a part of it. I look forward to hearing more from so many of the talented young voices I saw reading this weekend. Although I'd known Pos' work for over 17 years, this was the very first time we'd met in person. I always encourage my fellow Southeast Asian American writers not to take such moments for granted. Though it can seem like we see each other all of the time, in truth, often years pass between such occasions, if they ever happen. It's not something to take lightly. SEARAC Moving Mountains Equity Summit, Oct. 12-14 SEARAC recently announced: Scholarship applications are open for SEARAC's inaugural national equity summit, Moving Mountains! To ensure representation across regions, organizations, and generations, SEARAC will be providing a limited number of scholarships to community members who need financial support to attend and who exemplify the spirit and mission of the equity summit. "Moving Mountains will bring together 100 of the best and brightest strategic thinkers, trailblazers, and community leaders from diverse Cambodian, Hmong, Iu Mien, Lao, and Vietnamese American communities across the country." The summit will be held in Washington, DC, October 12-14. Apply today, and email alyssa@searac.org with any questions. While I haven't seen a concrete list of the speakers involved, they are offering to bring together "100 of the best and brightest strategic thinkers, trailblazers, and community leaders from diverse Cambodian, Hmong, Iu Mien, Lao, and Vietnamese American communities across the country." I'm not certain how they're doing outreach to bring in the Akha, Lue, Khmu, Tai Dam, Montagnard, Karen, and other SEA stakeholders in the US, but it could be something to keep an eye on, especially as the time draws near for Census 2020. ‘Groundbreaking’ Asian-American Poets to Read With Immigrant, Refugee Roots This month I helped NBC News Asian America with an article regarding Asian American poets who'd been breaking ground recently, particular among the Southeast Asian American community. 2016 had some amazing books of Asian-American poetry come out as well as additional accolades and recognition worth mention, particularly for many of the poets in Southeast Asian American communities often overlooked within the world of arts and letters. A big thanks to Frances Kai-Hwa Wang for reaching out to ask about what's happening in our community. And here's to Mai Do, Mai Der Vang, Khaty Xiong, Sokunthary Svay, Krysada Binly Panusith Phounsiri, Bao Phi, Monica Sok, Jenna Lê, Janice Sapigao, and Peuo Tatyana Tuy, among so many others who've worked so hard to ensure our diverse voices might yet be a part of the great tapestry of human stories for generations yet to come. Honoring Pos Moua: Karst Mountains Will Bloom This Saturday I'll be traveling to Merced to honor the journey and work of Pos Moua, a wonderful Hmong poet whose work I've known for nearly 20 years. It will also be the very first time we meet in person. That's how it goes as poets, sometimes: Nearly a lifetime getting to know one another across long distance through our art. Nearly 20 other Hmong and Asian American poets will be reading this evening in a historic gathering. If you're in the Central Valley on Saturday, I encourage you to join us at the Merced Multicultural Arts Center. The Hmong American Writers' Circle, in conjunction with Merced College and the Merced Cultural Arts Center, will present "Karst Mountains Will Bloom." The free public reading will feature nearly 20 of the leading Hmong-American voices in the U.S., as well as friends of Moua and the Hmong American Writers' Circle. Readers will include the 2016 Walt Whitman Award Winner, Mai Der Vang; the first Hmong-American to publish a full-length manuscript, Soul Vang; Nicholls Fellow and HAWC founder, Burlee Vang; among others. Pos Moua is a Hmong-American writer, educator, and poet based out of Merced, CA. His chapbook "Towards the World Where The Torches are Burning" (Swan Scythe Press, 2001) gives “an account of love and family and identity in the poet’s new land”, and is the first published work from a Hmong American poet. He has published work in in "Tilting the Continent: Southeast Asian American Writing", "UC Davis Poetry Review", Sacramento’s "Poetry Now", and "National Poetry". Readers include: Dr. Kou Yang, Soul Vang, Burlee Vang, Ying Thao, See Xiong, Kao Kalia Yang (video), Mai Neng Moua (video), Andre Yang, Jer Xiong, Mai Der Vang, Yia Lee, Khaty Xiong ,(video), May Lee-Yang (video), Anthony Cody, Nou Her, May Yang (video), Yu-Han Chao, Meg Withers, Luna Moua, and Pos Moua himself. [Poet Spotlight] Paisley Rekdal Paisley Rekdal is the author of four books of poetry, a book of personal essays, and a mixed media book of photography, poetry, fiction and non-fiction. She lives in Salt Lake City and teaches at the University of Utah. July 2017 Presentations and Performances July is fast approaching and with it, four of my upcoming appearances in which I'll be discussing everything from giant lizards, kung-fu zombies, poetry, to the importance of engaging the imagination in refugee resettlement. For now you can get a sense of my schedule at the following sites. I'll see you all there! CONvergence (July 7-9th) Confirmed panels include: Giant Lizard Theater: Infinity Edition; Asian Folklore 101; The Making of Kung Fu Zombies vs. Cannibals; Peele-ing Back 'Get Out;''and Laomagination: Building Southeast Asian Speculative Arts Movements. G-Fest XXIV (July 14-16th) Confirmed panel: Kaiju in Speculative Poetry Diversicon (July 21-23rd) Panels still TBD 2017 Southeast Asian American Studies Conference: Community Engagement, Research & Policy in Action (July 27-29th) Confirmed panels include Southeast Asian American Art and Politics; Rising SEAS: Challenges and Strategies for Growth as Southeast Asian Writers; and a showcase performance with Bao Phi and Peuo Tuy. Mai Der Vang's "Afterland" coming to UCLA, May 25th Delighted to announce I'll be helping to introduce Hmong American poet Mai Der Vang, author of the award-winning book of poetry Afterland from Graywolf Press in Minnesota. Afterland won the Walt Whitman Award from the American Academy of Poets in 2016 and it's finally been released to the public. It's an extraordinary collection and an important addition to the world of Hmong arts and letters.Be sure to join us at UCLA in the Public Affairs building room 2270 at 4PM for what is certain to be an exciting and marvelous reading. For a preview of what it might be like, here is my post regarding her launch in her hometown of Fresno. I've been reading her poems every day this month to start my morning. Afterland comes with my strongest recommendations and I'm very happy for her, even as I am now also obligated to say: I can't wait to see her second book, now. ;) Author Spotlight: Lisa Teasley This past weekend left me with a lot to report from the 6th annual LitFest Pasadena on May 20th-21st with well over 100 authors and 30 events, including formal and informal gatherings throughout the city. My time was split between covering LitFest as well as the inaugural East Los Angeles Comic Con but I'm glad I had the chance to cover both. I always think it's the sign of a good literary event when you can genuinely discover new authors, and LitFest Pasadena delivered well in that regard for many of my reading tastes. I'll be covering many of them in the coming weeks ahead, but first up, I want to highlight the work of artist, author and world traveler Lisa Teasley who came to my attention through an act of serendipity while documenting the Tomorrow Prize! for emerging teen science fiction writers at the Pasadena Playhouse. In no uncertain terms, Ms. Teasley cuts a very striking and dramatic figure upon entering a room, and as she prepared to give her talk as part of the panel on writers within the Black Lives Matters movement, I had a chance to take a few photos of her and her colleagues. A Los Angeles native, she graduated from UCLA and is the author of several books including Glow In The Dark, Heat Signature, and Dive, each of which has received substantial acclaim as they've come out. Her debut, Glow In The Dark, a collection of short stories, won both a Gold Pen Award and a Pacificus Literary Foundation award for fiction in 2002. Her awards also include the May Merrill Miller and National Society of Arts & Letters award in the Short Story category. Her current forte is writing tales which have elements of crime, mystery, and passion, and they have been consistently praised for their interesting characters and scenarios. Her work also includes writing and hosting the BBC Television documentary, High School Prom. She was a member of the former art collective HOWDOYOUSAYYAMINAFRICAN, which debuted the film “Good Stock on the Dimension Floor” at the Whitney Biennial 2014. On top of all that, Lisa Teasley is a fiction editor at the Los Angeles Review of Books. Her travels have taken her to Indonesia, China, Alaska, and points in between, with many more sure to come in the years ahead. This year, Lisa Teasley was presenting with her panelists on Writing in the Times of Black Lives Matter & Resistance to Trumpism in the Pasadena Playhouse – Friendship Room (off courtyard) The aim was to gather black writers to discuss what it means to write during the time of Black Lives Matter and Trump. Her scheduled co-panelists included Gar Anthony Haywood, Dana Johnson (Not Quite Dark), James Farr, and Jervey Tervalon (Monster’s Chef) You can find Lisa Teasley on social media such as Twitter: @TheLisaTeasley and on Instagram at @LisaTeas. And of course she maintains her website at http://LisaTeasley.Com. Be sure to check her out! The SEAD Project nears its fundraising goal. Can you help? It's a good time this week to do a shoutout to the Southeast Asian American non-profit The SEAD Project which is just a little over $400 away from reaching its fundraising goal of $1,500. If you can help them out, it would make a tremendous difference for Southeast Asians abroad and in the US. Their Facebook campaign ends soon but every bit helps! Now in its third year as a fully-recognized 501(c) 3 non-profit organization, The SEAD Project started with the vision of Chanida Phaengdara Potter and a group of Southeast Asian young professionals who wanted to not only connect with their roots and heritage, but to think bigger and beyond preservation. Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Vientiane, Laos, they’re starting a diaspora movement to rethink and reimagine and reshape what’s possible in development and growth for a thriving community with a pivoted focus on empowering young professionals, women and youth. With roots in 2010, The SEAD Project (Southeast Asian Diaspora Development) is a creative social venture on a mission to be an accessible community hub that provides streamlined cross cultural workshops, exchanges and knowledge-sharing for Southeast Asian locals and diaspora communities. Through safe and welcoming spaces, they hope to connect the disconnected and drive empowerment to plant the seeds of hope and possibility locally and globally. Happy birthday, Yuri Kochiyama (1921-2014) Happy birthday to the late Yuri Kochiyama. Thank you for the example you set and the work you inspired in so many around the world. Here's to all that was done together, and all that may yet be accomplished. NPR had one of the classic obituaries on her life back in 2014, but of course I think so much more can be written about her life, her journey as a writer, and her commitment to social justice. [Neologism] Moronivore Early birthday present for Gina Kundan, in our annual tradition of coining a new neologism each year for her. I'd save this for 2018 but it's too good to pass up. Welcome, then: Moronivore: (Noun) (ˈmôrˌäno vôr) Devourer of fools. Usage: "In reality it turns out that 99% of all monsters are actually moronovores, with only a few possessing a rarefied taste for the wise, being referred to properly as sagivorous." May also be regularly interchanged with Moroniphage. Additionally, in theory, Moromnivore means "a creature that eats EVERY single fool in sight (or primary sensory range)" But frankly, SFF writers, I'm REALLY rather disappointed NONE of you came up with this until now per a preliminary scan of the extant literature. [Poet Spotlight] Grace Shuyi Liew Grace Shuyi Liew is the author of Book of Interludes (Anomalous Press, 2016). Elsewhere, her work has appeared in cream city review, PANK, Bone Bouquet, West Branch, and others. She is an alum of Aspen Summer Words, Squaw Valley Writers Workshop, and the Watering Hole. She is from Malaysia and used to work as an interpreter. Now, she resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she attends Louisiana State University's MFA program and works as a teaching artist. 2015 was a particularly prolific year for her individual poems finding homes. I found "Publics" in Juked particularly engaging as an introduction to her work as well as "From "Mapping/ A Vanishing or How To," in The Nervous Breakdown. "PROP" won the 2015 Ahsahta Chapbook Contest, judged by Kerri Webster. You can visit Grace Shuyi Liew at https://graceungrateful.com/ and she IS available to write poems for you. I'd take her up on it. [Poet Spotlight] Angela Peñaredondo Born in Iloilo City, Philippines, Angela Peñaredondo is a poet and artist living in southern California. Her first full-length book, All Things Lose Thousands of Times, is the regional winner of the Hillary Gravendyk Poetry Prize. She is also the author of a chapbook, Maroon (Jamii Publications). Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in AAWW's The Margins, Four Way Review, Cream City Review, Southern Humanities Review and elsewhere. She is a VONA/Voices of our Nations Art fellow as well as a recipient of a University of California Institute for Research in the Arts Grant, Gluck Program of the Arts Fellowship, Naropa University's Zora Neal Hurston Award and Squaw Valley Writers Fellowship. She has also received scholarships from Tin House, Split This Rock, Dzanc Books International Literary Program among others. You can visit Angela Peñaredondo at: http://www.apenaredondo.com/ to learn more about her writing and artistry. Poem "Ecce Monstro" to appear in Poetry. I just received word my experimental science fiction poem, "Ecce Monstro" examining the AAPI transcultural adoptee journey has been selected for a special issue of POETRY magazine this Summer. That's a good feeling. After 26 years of writing poetry and over 20 awards for my literary and community leadership work, this is actually the very first time one of my pieces has been accepted by them. I'd have to go back through the archives to see if any other Lao American poets have been published with them so far, but I feel pretty confident in saying I'm among the first to appear in the journal. To put it into some additional context for my non-poet readers: Founded in Chicago by Harriet Monroe in 1912, Poetry magazine is the oldest monthly devoted to verse in the English-speaking world. Harriet Monroe's "Open Door" policy, set forth in Volume I of the magazine, remains the most succinct statement of Poetry's mission: to print the best poetry written today, in whatever style, genre, or approach. As you can imagine, it gets a bit competitive. It's also particularly gratifying to see this poem accepted because its experimental nature had made it somewhat difficult for it to find a home even among speculative literary and Asian American journals for several years. But you'll see what's going on with this poem later this Summer. Primer to Bryan Thao Worra's Science Fiction Poetry Over the years, I've been giving numerous presentations and lectures across the country regarding the importance of encouraging refugees to express not only their memories but their dreams and imagination in their creative works. Because of the nature of this work, I'm often given limited time to show people the full breadth of my work that stretches across nearly thirty years of writing (where does that time go?) Of course, the easiest place to see my principles applied in my writing is in my books, where preview versions are found in various archives online, but it is clear many of you would like a more curated introduction to some essential science fiction and fantasy poems of mine to see what I'm doing. With this post, then, here are links to nine poems online that can provide a good introduction to what I'm doing and where I may well be headed in the future: Full Metal Hanuman, Strange Horizons, 2013 The Robo Sutra, Expanded Horizons, 2013 5 Flavors, Expanded Horizons, 2013 Phaya Nak Goes To The West, Uncanny Magazine, 2016 Narrative of the Naga's Heirs, Uncanny Magazine, 2016 Slices of Failure in Super Science, Uncanny Magazine, 2015 The Deep Ones, Illumen, 2007 Arachne's Daughters and The New Humenu, 2112, Defenestration, 2016 Laostronauts, Demonstra, 2013 I'll soon be releasing a few chapbooks gathering my poems that haven't been readily available for many of my readers so that it will be easier to see these ideas in focus. The above poems will hopefully give you a sense of what's possible and to read my larger collections when time permits. Thanks to everyone for all of your support over the years! Machine Dreams Zine has gone online! The Machine Dreams Zine is up and running at: https://machinedreamszine.tumblr.com A Zine compilation of creative work and critical theory on the machine, arts, and difference. Contributions largely drawn from the conference, Machine Dreams: A Symposium on Arts, Robots, and Difference held at UCLA in 2015, and co-organized by Lucy Burns, Neil Aitken, and Margaret Rhee. With additional writing and art included, the Machine Dreams Zine offers provocative and playful remediations on the machine in our digital times. Design provided by The Mystery Parade. I'm delighted to appear in Issue 1 with my poem "The Robo Sutra" along with wonderful poets and writers such as Neil Aitken, Lawrence-Minh Bùi Davis, Jeannine Hall Gailey, Minsoo Kang, Toaster Betsy, and Sun Yung Shin, among many others. Be sure to check it out, and consider ordering a POD version of it. CONvergence 2017: To Infinity & Beyond! I hope all of my colleagues in the Midwest will be joining us at CONvergence this year. One of their Guests of Honor is none other than award-winning Lao American writer Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay, creator of the play Kung Fu Zombies vs. Cannibals! I'll also be returning as an alumni Guest of Honor, so this will hopefully be an exciting and historic moment for Lao American speculative art! My panels are still being confirmed, but I'll definitely be discussing the film Get Out as well as attending the poetry slam! More details will come soon! SEA American Studies Conference, Speculative Art and Social Justice As a reminder, I'll be one of the presenting featured readers of the 2017 Southeast Asian American Studies Conference in July! I hope you'll consider registering if you're in the area. It will be my very first time presenting work in Massachusetts and I look particularly forward to sharing the stage with the talented poets Bao Phi and Peuo Tatyana Tuy! This is particularly meaningful for me as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of my first book of poetry On The Other Side Of The Eye, which wrestled with many of the issues of community change and social policy through the lens of speculative poetry. My panel was also accepted on Southeast Asian American Speculative Art and Social Justice. Here's the abstract: Many Southeast Asian American communities came into the US as refugees during the rise of science fiction films and literature such as Blade Runner, Alien Nation, Aliens and Star Wars, while also presented with problematic works such as Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket, Platoon or The Joy Luck Club. Examining the journeys of award-winning Southeast Asian American artists such as Jenna Lê, Bao Phi, Kyle Tran Myhre, Saymoukda Vongsay, Krysada Panusith Phounsiri, Mattie Do, Burlee Vang, Khaty Xiong, Sayon Syprasoueth, the Cambodian Space Project, and others we will take a look at efforts to engage in community building and social justice using creative works informed by science fiction, fantasy, and horror to subvert dominant narratives and perceptions of Southeast Asian American identities, and to address sensitive internal community topics domestically and abroad. #Blessed Comes to The Institute of Contemporary Arts in Philadelphia As the #Blessed pop-up exhibit approaches Philadelphia on May 6th, I've been able to watch Laos in the House founder Catzie Vilayphonh and her team in action readying the site for this event, I'm so proud of her and her tenacity, her vision and commitment to building the community. I'm honored to be a part of this project with her, and I'll be reading several classic poems of mine at this event at her personal request, including "The Last War Poem," "Laos in the House," "Aftermaths" and "On A Stairway in Luang Prabang," perhaps a few others as time permits. She's a wonderful role model for Lao artists anywhere, and I can't wait to see how it all comes together. To put the significance of this gathering into context, this space was founded in 1963 by the visionary dean of the school of architecture, Holmes Perkins, who wanted to expose students to what was “new and happening” in art and culture. In the time since, the ICA has developed an international reputation for contemporary art and culture. 52 years ago, In 1965, they organized Andy Warhol’s first ever solo museum show, helping propel him to superstardom;. The ICA has presented early shows of artists like Laurie Anderson, Richard Artschwager, Karen Kilimnik, Glenn Ligon, Robert Mapplethorpe, Damian Ortega, Pepon Osorio, Tavares Strachan, Cy Twombly and many more. That we are now able to bring the work of Lao American artists to this space is a very exciting moment for everyone. Our Shared Futures a success! Thank you, Fresno Here are some pictures from my final poetry reading and community discussion for the 21st National Poetry Month in Fresno, CA. I didn't get in as many photos ahead of time as I wanted to, but I appreciate everyone who came out that night to consider the possibilities that emerge when immigrants and refugees express a future they see themselves in. My sincere thanks goes to Tamejavi-PVI and the Holistic Cultural and Education Wellness Center. It's a wonderful facility with some very intriguing and ambitious programs to engage the community. But they can't do it alone, so if you can donate, volunteer, or even just spread the word about their work, I know they'll appreciate it. I also wish to take a special note of Chelsey See Xiong for taking the wonderful initiative to make this possible. I now have very high expectations of her and applaud her courage and compassion, her intelligence and curiosity, and her strong leadership skills that will doubtless serve her community well in the decades ahead. Of particular note is that she has been working together with her community to put out MAI - a zine on Southeast Asian America. Volume 2 will be accepting submissions throughout the month of April and May, 2017.They are looking for work with a focus on the lives of Southeast Asian Americans with the stories of places, diaspora, heritage, assimilation, loss, redemption, success, and growing up in Southeast Asian America. Their deadline is May 20, 2017. This was only the second time in 26 years that I've ever performed and presented in public for the community, and I appreciate everyone's questions and enthusiasm. There was a lot that we covered, discussing the often difficult journeys we faced, but I think we were all able to come to an agreement that diverse voices were needed now, more than ever. That it is important not just to remember our past, but to express a vision of the futures we want to be a part of, and what we think it will take to build those futures. We can and must continue to dare to dream! Time and time again, I have tried to make the point that it is not enough merely to record our memories, especially as refugees but to incorporate them more fully into our sense of what we want for the future, how we might learn from them, and what we might share that pushes our voices to the very limits of our imagination. I think this resonated with many of you in attendance. I look forward to the next time we can all meet one another. In the meantime, keep asking the great questions, keep reading, and keep writing! Appearing in Voice & Verse in December with Cha magazine. Ten years ago, I had the honor of being the very first poet to have work accepted by Cha, a new literary journal starting in Hong Kong. It was the same year that my very first full-length book, On The Other Side Of The Eye was released by Sam's Dot Publishing. Cha had accepted my poem, "Zelkova Tree," and later did an insightful analysis of it, as well. Cha holds the distinction of being Hong Kong's very first literary journal. I'm pleased to see Cha weathered the decade so well, going on to print many acclaimed poets, writers and artists from around the world with an ambitious set of themes throughout the years for our contributors to consider. They recently announced that 65 selected poems from the ten-year history of Cha: An Asian Literary Journal will be included in a special section in the December 2017 issue of the Hong Kong-based print poetry magazine, Voice & Verse. Keep an eye out for it when it arrives! It's here where I want to take note of Tammy Ho Lai-Ming, who is a Hong Kong–born editor, translator, and poet. She is the founding co-editor of Cha, and also an editor of the academic journal Victorian Network. Her translations have appeared in World Literature Today, Chinese Literature Today, and Pathlight, among other places. She holds an MPhil from the University of Hong Kong and a PhD from King’s College London, and she is currently an assistant professor at Hong Kong Baptist University, where she teaches poetics, fiction, and modern drama. Her first poetry collection is Hula Hooping from Chameleon Press. In 2016 she received the Young Artist Award in Literary Arts presented by the Hong Kong Arts Development Council. Her co-founding editor is Jeff Zroback, originally from Canada. He has an MA in History, and is an editor by trade and has previously worked in Canada, Korea, Hong Kong and the UK. He was the co-editor of the short fiction collection Love & Lust (with Tammy Ho Lai-Ming) and has published fiction and poetry. He writes many of the Cha editorials. I look forward to the next decades ahead for them and wish them even more support and recognition for their literary contributions and the community they have built for the arts. [Poet Spotlight] Monica Youn Monica Youn is the author of Blackacre (Graywolf Press, 2016); Barter (Graywolf Press, 2003); and Ignatz (Four Way Books, 2010), which was a finalist for the National Book Award. Her poems have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies, including the New Yorker, the Paris Review, and the New York Times Magazine, and she has been awarded fellowships from the Library of Congress and Stanford University, among other awards. A former attorney, she now teaches poetry at Princeton University. Thanks from the "Science Fiction is for Everyone" Panel at LA Harbor College It was a packed room for our panel at LA Harbor College on Tuesday, April 25th discussing the importance of multicultural representation in speculative literature that afternoon. I had driven down four hours from Merced, California and my duties as a Visiting Artist in order to speak with the students and faculty on the subject of science fiction being for everyone. Held in Tech 110, I was presenting with Stephanie Brown, Michael Paul Gonzalez, Jaymee Goh, Gregg Castro and Steven Barnes. It was a great line-up with some touching comments that drew on diverse fields of knowledge and experience, from the work and influence of Nnedi Okorafor and Octavia Butler, to the way readers and writers have been brought into the world of science fiction not only in the US but around the world, with a strong highlight on the appeal of steampunk and afrofuturism. During my portion of the panel I focused on a discussion of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association, and had the honor of previous SFPA president Deborah Kolodji in attendance as well as fellow SFPA member and community builder Denise Dumars facilitating the conversation, particularly in regards to Star*Line, the journal of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association. To demonstrate the potential of what speculative poetry can do, I read two examples from our international membership for the audience: "How to Train your Velociraptors" by Rohinton Daruwala and "El superhéroe se ha ahorcado" by Campos Ricardo Burgos Lopez, translated by Fred W. Bergmann. We definitely got the point across, based on the conversations I had afterwards with everyone. My thanks to everyone who made this wonderful afternoon possible! [Poem] Zelkova Tree My poem "Zelkova Tree" appeared in the first issue of Cha, a Hong Kong-based literary journal and appeared in the final section of my first full-length book of Lao American speculative poetry, On The Other Side Of The Eye in 2007. National Lao American Writers Summit: Seattle 2017 Keynote Speakers Announced Recently, the National Lao American Writers Summit announced their 2017 speakers who will be setting the tone for this year's gathering of Laotian American artists from across the United States in Seattle, Washington on June 23-24th. The Keynote Speakers for this year will be Krysada Panusith Phounsiri and Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay, both highly acclaimed writers and community builders in the community with a strong background in hip-hop. Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay is a Lao American writer. She was born in a refugee camp in Nongkhai, Thailand and immigrated to Minnesota in 1984. Because of her unique background, her work is focused on creating tools and spaces for the amplification of refugee voices through poetry, theater, and experimental cultural production. She is a teaching artist with COMPAS, Success Beyond the Classroom, East Metro Integration District, and the East Side Arts Council. Her writings can be found in such publications as Saint Paul Almanac (Arcata Press), Lessons For Our Time (MN Center for Book Arts), Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement (Purdue University Press), and The Asian American Literary Review (Binghamton University). She is best known for her award-winning play KUNG FU ZOMBIES VS CANNIBALS (Theater Mu) and is developing two more plays for the KUNG FU ZOMBIEVERSE anthology of stage works. Krysada Panusith Phounsiri is a Lao-American artist and engineer. He was born in Laos in 1988 and came to America with his family in 1989. A graduate of UC Berkeley in 2010, he holds a degree in Physics and Astrophysics Double Major and also a minor in Poetry. His debut collection is Dance Among Elephants, was published by Sahtu Press in 2015. His work has been featured in the Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement and the Smithsonian’s “A Day In The Life Of Asian America” digital exhibit. He recently received first place for Poem of the Year in the Rhysling Awards of the Science Fiction Poetry Association. For more details, be sure to keep an eye on www.laowriters.org for updates! 2018 Asian Pacific American Women’s Leadership Ins... ‘Groundbreaking’ Asian-American Poets to Read With... Mai Der Vang's "Afterland" coming to UCLA, May 25t... The SEAD Project nears its fundraising goal. Can y... Primer to Bryan Thao Worra's Science Fiction Poetr... SEA American Studies Conference, Speculative Art a... #Blessed Comes to The Institute of Contemporary Ar... Appearing in Voice & Verse in December with Cha ma... Thanks from the "Science Fiction is for Everyone" ... National Lao American Writers Summit: Seattle 2017...	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1069
__label__cc	0.504218	0.495782	The Slaying of Jephthah’s Daughter We saw in Part I that Christian apologists insist that Jephthah did not ritually slaughter his own daughter and offer her up as a burnt-offering to the God of Israel. Instead, apologists maintain, Jephthah’s “sacrifice” was that his daughter was fated to consecrate the rest of her life as an unmarried virgin in full devotion to God. And, consequently, Jephthah to lose the opportunity to carry on the family’s lineage. Ancient Jewish writers, however, had no doubt the sacrifice was carried out as Jephthah vowed it would. Thus, everything rests on the precise wording of verses 11:30-31; 39 of the Hebrew text of Judges 11. In his Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, celebrated Christian apologist, Gleason L. Archer writes: “The Hebrew text [of Judges 11:31] excludes the possibility of any animal serving as a candidate for this burnt offering since the phrase rendered “whatsoever [actually “whoever”] cometh forth of the doors of my house is never used of an animal.”[4] Even Keil & Delitzsch state, “The words “he did to her his vow which he had vowed,” cannot be understood in any other way than that he offered her as עולה , i.e., as a burnt-offering, to the Lord.” Old Testament specialist, Arthur E. Cundall, writes in his Tyndale Old Testament Commentary on Judges: “Attempts have been made to show that Jephthah had an animal sacrifice in mind and that he was taken by surprise when his daughter came out to greet him; but these cannot be substantiated, since the designation, whoever comes forth from the doors of my house must refer to an intended human sacrifice.”[5] And so when reading Judges 11:39, “And after two months, she returned to her father, and he [Jephthah] did to her as he had vowed,” it indicates she was, indeed, sacrificed up as a burnt offering. And that’s, that. End of story. Right? Christian Apologists Fire Back After stating that the Hebrew “whatever” [“אֲשֶׁר“ (“ă-šer”)] of Judges 11:31 could not possibly mean an animal, Gleason L. Archer then tries to save the situation by writing: “It would have been altogether unthinkable for Jephthah or any other Israelite to imagine he could please God by committing such a heinous and abhorrent abomination in His presence or at His altar.”[6] Archer and a slew of Christian apologists then cite those verses where God condemns human sacrifice.[7] Then, there’s that odd request that Jephthah’s daughter be allowed two months for her and her friends roam the hills of her homeland to bewail that she would die an unmarried virgin. Christian apologists have pounced on this as evidence that Jephthah did not put his daughter to death. Dave Miller (PhD.) of the website Apologetics Press.org resorts to explaining away the problem using like arguments found on any number of apologist sites: “First, the two-month period of mourning that Jephthah granted to his daughter was not to grieve over her impending loss of life, but over the fact that she would never be able to marry. She bewailed her virginity (bethulim)—not her death (11:37). Second, the text goes out of its way to state that Jephthah had no other children: “[S]he was his only child. Besides her, he had neither son nor daughter” (11:34). For his daughter to be consigned to perpetual celibacy meant the extinction of Jephthah’s family line—an extremely serious and tragic matter to an Israelite (cf. Numbers 27:1-11; 36:1ff.). Third, the sacrifice is treated as unfortunate—again, not because of any concern over her death, but because she would not become a mother. After stating that Jephthah “did with her according to his vow which he had vowed,” the inspired writer immediately adds, “and knew no man” (11:39). This statement would be a completely superfluous and callous remark if she had been put to death. Fourth, the declaration of Jephthah’s own sorrow (11:35) follows immediately after we are informed that he had no other children (11:34). Jephthah was not upset because his daughter would die a virgin. He was upset because she would live and remain a virgin.”[8] Yet another explanation is that Jephthah’s “sacrifice” was a “spiritual” one only. We read in Keil & Delitzsch’s Commentary on the Old Testament: “All these circumstances (i.e., that human sacrifice was an abomination to God), when rightly considered, almost compel us to adopt the spiritual interpretation of the words “offer as a burnt-offering.” [Yet] it is true that no exactly corresponding parallelisms can be adduced from the Old Testament in support of the spiritual view.”[9] A Further Rebuttal to the Apologists Christian apologist websites dealing with the embarrassing episode of Jephthah’s daughter take great pains to emphasize how human sacrifice is an unparalleled abomination in the eyes of God. Verses taken from the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy are routinely listed to “prove” the ritual slaughter of Jephthah’s daughter would have been unacceptable to God. But Christians seem to forget that God Himself ordered Abraham to ritually murder his son Isaac and offer him up as a burnt-offering (Genesis 22:1-13). Yes, God had an angel stay Abraham’s knife-wielding hand at the last second. But Abraham was compelled to cruelly go through with the sacrifice not knowing his hand would be stayed. In the case of Jephthah’s daughter, God could have chosen to do the very same thing but, astonishingly, chose not to. If God saw no problem compelling Abraham to offer up Isaac to ritual slaughter, one can hardly be surprised by Jephthah’s sacrifice A further fact has to be taken into consideration: the episode of Jephthah’s daughter took place at a very early time in Israelite history; at a time when the Israelites worshiped a variety of gods and not just Yahweh exclusively. Gods like Baal and Molech/Moloch were apparently widely worshiped and “honored” through the use of ritual child sacrifice. That is, until Yahwism eventually supplanted all pagan religions. Molech/Moloch and Ritual Child Sacrifice One comes away naturally thinking Yahweh could have simply taught Jephthah a lesson by having him endure the thought of having to ritually slaughter, proceed to do so, but then stay Jephthah’s hand as was done in Abraham’s case. But that, Yahweh choose not to do. And nowhere in Judges 11 does it definitively state Jephthah’s daughter was not slain. The “bottom line” is rather obvious. Jephthah did sacrifice his daughter as he had vowed. The Hebrew text leaves practically no doubt about it. It’s just that Christians find the thought of Jephthah slaughtering his own daughter too objectionable a thought to believe true. But that was then and how sacred vows were carried out in those very early days. Jephthah and his sacrifice must be judged by ancient standards, not a modern one. Part I Here [1] Cf. I Kings 11:7; II Kings 23:10. [2] Cf., Deut. 12:31, 18:10; Leviticus 18:21, 20:2-5. [3] This notion wasn’t conjured-up until the Middle-Ages. See Keil & Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament: https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/kdo/judges-11.html (verses 39-40). [4] Archer, Gleason L., The Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1982), p. 164.; citing Keil and Delitzsch, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, p. 385. [5] Cundall, Arthur E, Tyndale Commentary Series. D. J. Wiseman and Leon Morris, series editors. 49 volumes. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015; Judges & Ruth, p. 146. [6] Archer, Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, p. 164. [7] See, for example Leviticus 18:21, 20:1-5; Deuteronomy 12:29-31, 18:10; Jeremiah 32:35 [8] Miller, Dave. “Jephthah’s Daughter.” AplogeticsPress.org. http://apologeticspress.org/apPubPage.aspx?pub=1&issue=1131&article=2179 (Accessed on August 08, 2018) [9] Keil & Dietzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament: https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/kdo/judges-11.html (verses 39-40). 4 thoughts on “Jephthah’s Daughter: A Bible Story of God and Human Sacrifice – The Conclusion” Happily, there is no reason to believe this happened in real life, outside of the pages of sadistic religious fantasy fiction land… Ie. The bible. Greywolf Yes. I don’t believe the story of Jephthah’s daughter to be a true historical fact. But there is evidence to suggest pre-Yahwist Israelites did practice human sacrifice. Not a few actually worshiped the pagan gods Baal and Molech/Moloch. Perhaps the Jephthah story is a take on one of those sacrifices. We must also bear in mind that even Yahweh ordered Abraham to ritually sacrifice Issac, which was a monstrously cruel thing to put Abraham through. What a “God,” eh? Pre yahwist human sacrifice? Probably so.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1070
__label__wiki	0.734027	0.734027	Tag Archives: RAW “Way to Massacre Place” – We know the Where. Please fill in the Who, What, Why The Narayanhiti Palace, now a museum and a former residence of Nepali kings. ©Donatella Lorch The sign is nondescript and small. For my nine-year-old son, it is the first tantalizing hint of what lies ahead. “Way to Massacre Place,” it declares, an arrow pointing right, followed a few meters beyond by “Location of Royal Palace Massacre,” in case somehow visitors manage to deviate from the one-way path guarded by an armed soldier. Personally, I was already having an Alice-down-the-rabbit-hole moment. This was my second visit – a palace massacre recidivist – scribbling notes on a wrinkled sheet of paper, as all visitors have to surrender their bags, their cameras and their phones before entering. In Nepal, an absolute monarchy not that long ago, the 2001 royal massacre is the stuff of legends. A large crowd of Nepalis queue regularly in front of the elegant metal gate of the Narayanhiti Palace, now a museum, but until 2001 the primary residence of Nepal’s kings. It does not seem to have the same magnetism for foreign tourists, even though it is walking distance from Thamel, the humming hub for all things touristy. On June 1, 2001 (according to the official version), King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, 55, considered to be an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, was gunned down during a family dinner party here by his 30-year-old son, Crown Prince Dipendra. In swift succession, Dipendra, dressed in camouflage and armed with an M-16 and a collection of various deadly automatic weapons, killed nine family members, including his mother, brother and sister. He then turned the gun on himself. He lived long enough after he shot himself to be declared king–but as he lay dying the 240-year-old monarchy was dying as well. In 2008, Birendra’s brother and Dipendra’s successor, abdicated, and Nepal became the newest democracy on the South Asian block. But in many ways, the massacre and its aftermath, coupled with an ever-growing plethora of conspiracy theories, remains an emblem of the ethnic and political complexities, traditions, superstitions, conflicts and distrust that pervades today’s Nepali society. King Birendra (left), Queen Aishwarya and Crown Prince Dipendra (middle) To get to the massacre signs, you first walk through a collection of meeting rooms and bedrooms frozen in a 1970s décor, part ski chalet, part genteelly-rundown villa. Stuffed dusty tigers, lions, stag heads, paintings of former kings, elephant feet used as footstools, antelope-hoof candleholders, a gigantic Gharial crocodile nailed to a wall. The portrait hallway has the Nepali King and Queen posing with various international visitors, such as Marshal Josip Broz Tito, Zia ul Haq, Nicolae Ceausescu, Francois Mitterand , and some of lesser fame such as the president of the Swiss Federation. The bookshelves in other rooms mix biographies of the Dalai Lama with classics such as Lord Jim and Kitty Kelley’s The Royals. White mothballs decorate the carpets and chairs and, whether it’s to ward off the densely humid monsoon weather or to mummify time, every room greets me with the pervasive smell of naphthalene. On the ill-fated evening of the massacre, Eton-educated Dipendra was hosting his extended family. Dipendra (known widely as ‘Dippy’) had issues, according to published reports. He drank hard, loved hashish, liked to torture animals and watch them die, and didn’t get along with his mother Queen Aishwarya, who disapproved of the woman he wanted to marry. His bedroom closet was stocked with a vast array of weaponry and ammunition. Survivors described him as single-mindedly going after his victims one by one and even leaving the room to switch weapons. He shot his mother and brother in the garden before killing himself. You can see re-enactments on YouTube. The Western world had the Empiricists, the Rationalists, the Scholastics, the Logical Positivists, the Imperialists. In the U.S. we added the Survivalists who believe that black United Nations helicopters will invade America. Post-massacre Nepal gave an orchestra seat to the Bollywoodists. The initial palace reaction was a public relations disaster, a critical weakness that only enhanced the belief that they were disconnected from life outside their gate. The official statement said a gun had accidentally misfired, killing the king. Dipendra, then in a coma, was named king, and held that position for three days. Subsequently, the building where the shooting took place was razed and the victims cremated, without any autopsies. Later, an official inquiry, headed by the chief justice and one other Nepali, produced a 200-page report that identified Dipendra as the gunman but left many unanswered questions. Nepal was isolated from the outside world until the 1950s. Citizens, like this woman, knew no government other than an absolute monarchy and a king who was considered a god. ©Donatella Lorch While the masses outside the gates may have believed in the divinity of their king, they didn’t believe the palace’s story. Thirteen years on, interest has not waned. This week, yet another book was published further promoting the mystery with the underlying theory that if you can’t prove it and no one will admit to it, it must be right. When things go wrong in Nepal, India is usually high on the list of culprits. Some of the paranoia is founded in fact. India is the huge neighbor next door and they have a history of bullying their tiny neighbors. Many Nepalis believe that it was not Dipendra who did the killing but rather India’s intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing or RAW (for good measure the CIA is also included in some conspiracies), whose agents have, I am often told, totally infiltrated the country. RAW allegedly paid off King Birendra’s brother, Gyanendra, who later became king (an unpopular one), to organize the killing. Many of my Nepali friends say the unquestionable proof is that Gyanendra was not present at the massacre and his son survived the shooting. Another conspiracy centers on the popular Bollywood make-up artist Oscar-winning act. A cook, who was present that night but has since disappeared, claims several men in camouflage wearing Dipendra masks entered the gathering and opened fire. These mask wearers are the ones who allegedly also killed Dipendra. This links with the story-line that Dipendra had not one but two bullets in the head. (and remember — there was no autopsy. Hmmm!) Today, Nepal is struggling with political disarray, corruption and a booming population that wants its government to supply the basics of water, fuel and electricity. Many opinion makers hark back to the halcyon days of the monarchy as the pillar of Nepali identity and sovereignty, especially when India-phobia resurfaces. Yet, many handily forget that in a democracy, sovereignty is vested in the people, not in the divine right of kings. Democracy in Nepal has an enormously difficult legacy to overcome. The monarchy was in its last throws, a spent force, with poor leadership, a dysfunctional family that was disconnected from its desperately poor subjects and the growing Maoist uprising across the country. Yet all these conspiracies could help also a royal comeback. Nepal has come a long way from denying Dipendra’s role to posting signs to guide tourists to the royal massacre site. They now highlight the bullet holes in the concrete wall where Dipendra shot his brother. Nepali crowds flock to the palace, a once Forbidden City, where they can witness the lives of people they believed were gods. A high point is the map that details the locations where everyone was killed. Even so, the official four-page brochure handed out at the gate provides only two short sentences on the royal massacre. The most difficult legacy of the palace massacre may be that most Nepalis are left just with a myth, anecdotes, various story lines and the looming blue Genie of the RAW. Mothballs preserve the only history they can still see. This entry was posted in corruption, development, family, hinduism, India, international community, Kathmandu, King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, living overseas, Maoists, mass kilings, Nepal, RAW, religion, royal massacre, tourism and tagged Crown Prince Dipendra, Donatella Lorch, electricity, gods, Hinduism, Kathmandu, King Birendra, living overseas, mass killings, Narayanhiti Palace, Nepal, Nepal news, Queen Aishwarya, RAW, religion, royal massacre, south asia, tourism, war reporting, World on June 10, 2014 by Donatella Lorch.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1072
__label__cc	0.611199	0.388801	Home>Topics>Us Cities>Kansas City Travel Industry News Arizona Spring Training With the Family Mon, 1 Feb 2016 league baseball teams, including the World Champion Kansas City Royals, who play approximately 45 minutes northwest of downtown Phoenix in Surprise Stadium ..... Stadium: San Francisco Giants SURPRISE Surprise Stadium: Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers TEMPE Tempe Diablo Stadium Spirit Airlines Expands Los Angeles Service Sat, 21 Nov 2015 Washington, D.C., Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Houston, Kansas City , Las Vegas and Minneapolis-St. Paul What They Are Saying: “Spirit Airlines is thrilled to announce these new Albuquerque Like a Local s one of the longest trams worldwide and takes visitors to a ski area and a restaurant bar at the top. Related Content secondary best-of-best Need to know where to find Kansas City ’s best barbeque? Ask a local . Kansas City Like a Local For Kansas City Steak Company president John McKinven, there’s no better place to explore than Kansas City , Mo. From a bustling food scene to ..... antiques and one-of-a-kind finds that Kansas City has to offer. For lunch, there is no better A Guide to Recruiting Young Travel Agents Thu, 12 Jun 2014 Travel Concepts, Inc., has embraced the younger workforce as well. She has cherry-picked a small staff in her Kansas City , Kan., office that is mostly made up of millennials. “Millennials are typically out-of-the-box thinkers Six Great Spring Break Destinations Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Milwaukee Brewers, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers. This year’s Sports Events Hit Phoenix Area LA Dodgers, the San Francisco Giants, the Chicago White Socks, the Cincinnati Reds, the Cleveland Indians, the Kansas City Royals, the LA Angels, the Milwaukee Brewers, the San Diego Padres, the Seattle Mariners and the Texas Rangers Los Cabos Welcomes Increased Airlift Mon, 5 Mar 2012 once per week on Saturdays. The new flights complement existing Frontier Airlines service from Denver, Colo., and Kansas City , Mo. Residents of Canada can take advantage of increased airlift from Sunwing Airlines, WestJet and Air Canada Alaska Airlines Links Seattle And Kansas City , Mo. Tue, 22 Nov 2011 nonstop service between Seattle and Kansas City , Mo., starting March 12, 2012 ..... efficient Boeing 737 aircraft. " Kansas City is the seventh-largest market in ..... Me' state." The new Seattle- Kansas City flight will depart at 8:45 a Barbados Update the Midwest, Southwest and West Coast markets including Dallas/Fourt Worth, Austin, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Kansas City , St. Louis, Los Angeles, Portland, San Diego, Seattle, Omaha and Reno. Hotel Updates The Crane is a venerable View More Kansas City Results	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1073
__label__wiki	0.773171	0.773171	Tag Archives: Oscar Peterson For Oscar Peterson’s 90th Birthday Anniversary, A Verbatim Interview from 2002 and a Liner Note To acknowledge the 90th birth anniversary of the virtuoso pianist Oscar Peterson (1925-2007), I’m appending a verbatim interview that I conducted with him for a piece on his excellent autobiography, A Jazz Odyssey, and a liner note that I wrote for the release of Oscar Peterson’s Big 4, Live In Japan, an after-the-fact issue of a 1982 concert for Pablo Records. Other references to the maestro on this blog-site can be found here. Oscar Peterson (on A Jazz Odyssey): TP: Why the autobiography? When did you start thinking about it, and what steps did you take in beginning to write and conceptualize it? PETERSON: Well, it started, believe it or not, about 15 years ago, when the late Norman Granz spoke to me and said, “You ought to think about writing a book about the way you came from Canada, from Montreal, and got into the jazz ranks, and got into Jazz at the Phil and all the work that you’ve done.” And I didn’t give it that much thought. I tried several ways. I tried it with the inevitable tape recorder, and I didn’t like that. Then finally it resolved to the point where Norman suggested that I bring in Richard Palmer and have him critique and then editorialize things I had written already. Richard had already written a book on me in London… Richard Palmer consented to act in the role of an editor of stuff that I had written, and he came over and spent time with me. Nothing much happened for a while after that, because I became very, very busy and decided to give a rest to it. Then we resumed… TP: What was the year? PETERSON: I can’t remember the year. TP: Was it ten years ago? Five years ago? PETERSON: It was in that time period. I can’t give it to you chronologically, because I don’t remember myself. But Richard came over, then we let it go for a while, and then we decided to complete the book within the last year-and-a-half, and we sort of went over it tooth-and-nail and decided that it was as good as it was going to be. TP: When did you actually start the writing? Right after Norman Granz made the suggestion? PETERSON: I started approximately a month after he suggested it, which was about 15 years ago. TP: So this book has been in the process of creation since 1986 or 1987. PETERSON: That’s correct. TP: Did you just start writing, or did you think about a form? For instance, did you write it in chronology, as the book, or did you write about different subjects? PETERSON: I wrote about my feelings and my thoughts about how deeply I wanted to get involved in the professional end of the jazz world. Because I had to make that decision after having met Norman Granz. So what I did was go back and write a chronological report on how I started studying, my family and so forth and so on. Then I got into the part where I left the United States, and then talked about the various people I worked with and how they influenced me and what I learned from them. TP: Had you written before, besides correspondence and so forth? PETERSON: No. I’m a piano player, remember? TP: I do. Is writing something that came naturally to you, or did you work on it with the sort of determination that marks your approach to the instrument? PETERSON: Well, literature was one of my better subjects in school, so I enjoyed it from that end in the beginning. But I did not realize what a monumental project I had taken on until I was well into it. TP: You say literature was one of your better subjects. Who are the writers you favor? Did you have any stylistic models? PETERSON: Not really. I just enjoyed the courses in school, in literature, and I enjoyed writing different things. TP: Any two or three favorite novelists? PETERSON: I read various things over the years. My memory is failing now, so I can’t remember them all. I remember reading everything from detective stories, like Mickey Spillane and things like that, and I read a lot of scientific things. I was interested in space and things like that. So I never paid the authors that much mind; I just enjoyed what I was reading. TP: Well, there’s a real authorial voice in the book, which is not something that always comes naturally. It looks to me like you did a great deal of writing-editing-rewriting-editing… PETERSON: No, I didn’t. Richard really did not rewrite hardly any of my thing, because he wanted it to be totally in my words, as he put it. I appreciated that about him, because I didn’t want it to be false fiction. TP: I meant rewriting by you. It had the rather smooth feeling that comes when you’ve really worked on something and honed it. PETERSON: I’m going to say this to you. Over the years, when things have happened, funny instances have taken place in my life, and I’ve recounted them to people, various people, including Norman. I think this is the factor on which he predicated his insistence that I start the book. They have always said that I told a great story, whatever that means, whether I was telling jokes or things that have happened to me, and so forth. That’s where it started. TP: You set the table very well in your various anecdotes. You have a very firm sense of scene and place and drama. PETERSON: I’m not really aware of that. It’s just the way I saw it. TP: What’s also interesting is your command of the voices of the other musicians. The way you capture Lester Young or Roy Eldridge or Coleman Hawkins or Ella Fitzgerald or Ben Webster and on down, even those to whom you devoted only a paragraph or two. Did you just conjure them up in the process of writing? Did they come from stories you had told before? Do some of these stories reflect the type of stories Norman Granz would have been thinking about when he suggested you write the autobiography. PETERSON: Well, it’s really based on the effect that these people had on me when I met them, and the way they reacted when certain things happened. You’re referring to Lester Young. We roomed together for a while, for instance, and I got to know a lot of his habits. The same with Flip Phillips, and Bill Harris. TP: People I knew 20 years ago, I can’t necessarily remember the nuances of their syntax and the way they spoke unless I had it on a tape. PETERSON: The reason for that is because I had a great admiration for the way people put things in context. I always insisted that Lester Young had a language of his own; the way he would talk to people. I admired this, because it was something very, very special to Lester, and it’s just the way it affected me. TP: Do you feel that’s the case for all the musicians you profiled in the book? PETERSON: I think so, yes. Because don’t forget, I was the new face among them, the new kid on the block, and everything that happened around me sort of saturated me, and I took it all in. It had a profound effect on me. TP: So there’s a sense in which the spoken voice of the musician reflects their musical voice. PETERSON: I think so. TP: Secondly, you wrote about training yourself to listen in that manner, and that being analogous to the process of playing as well. PETERSON: Well, I had to do that because I was accompanying a lot of these people on the jam sessions in the rhythm sections. I always preach that to my students whenever I hold a seminar. I tell them to be sure to listen to the soloists, and don’t think you’re a soloist against another soloist. TP: Artists aren’t always articulate about the creative process, and the process of accumulating vocabulary and technique and information. You’re an exception. Your passages on the way you trained yourself, what you were looking for, just your entire approach, are unique in the literature of jazz. Is this something that reflects your personality over the years, or was describing it something you had to think about and work on? PETERSON: I tried to write the same way we talk musically. I tried to write it as ad-lib as possible. Because I felt that if I stopped and conjured up, or tried to beautify or whatever you want to call it…various phrases and things… I just felt that if I spoke honestly about what had happened and what people said… I tried to be very careful to not add anything to what people had said to me or done to me. In other words, I didn’t want any of my personality to come through in what people were saying and doing to and with me. TP: Are you satisfied that you did that? PETERSON: I feel honestly that I did, yes. TP: Were you writing in longhand? Were you typing? PETERSON: I started out with the famous microphone and tape, which I didn’t like, in a certain way, because I found that I started to edit a lot of things when I played them back. I didn’t like that. I wanted it to be as improvisational as possible. TP: A lot of people in your position use the tape recorder because they feel that speaking the story to the tape recorder more will come out and the inhibitions won’t take hold. It sounds like it was the opposite for you. PETERSON: It was the opposite. Then I transferred it at the beginning of the computer age. I had a little Radio Shack computer, and I started writing on that. But I’m not the world’s greatest typist. I gave that style up years ago. TP: You wrote longhand after that. PETERSON: I wrote longhand. Then finally, I was very fortunate not having Richard, because he looked over a lot of those things and questioned a lot of the things, but fortunately, my wife Kelly is a wonderful typist, and sat there dedicatedly, hour after hour, while I rambled on. TP: So you would talk and she would type as you were talking. You dictated to her. PETERSON: Yes. TP: So much of this book is dictated to your wife. PETERSON: An awful lot of it. TP: Who I guess would be the person you could talk most comfortably to. PETERSON: Right, because she never questioned anything and she never stopped the flow at any point. As I recall it, she never had to say, “Wait a minute, I missed this.” She’s that good a typist, which is lucky for me. TP: When you first met Richard Elliott, how much of the material that is in the autobiography was written, do you think? PETERSON: I think perhaps almost half of it. TP: Was it chronological or different spots of the book? PETERSON: I would think it was a little jagged. He put it in the context, insofar as indexing it in the proper way. TP: But the first things you wrote were about your formative years. PETERSON: Yes, and then I jumped around. Because when that became a little mundane to listen to myself talk, I stopped to think about different things. As I mentioned different people, that meant I would jump to a different era, a different part of my life. So Richard put that all into the right context. TP: Have you read other jazz autobiographies and biographies? PETERSON: Definitely not. One good thing is… I’m glad I didn’t, because they didn’t influence me. Some of the people I admired and loved so much, such as Bill Basie and Duke, I didn’t want to be influenced by. I wanted it to come out pure, the way it should have been. TP: It’s closer in some ways to Dizzy Gillespie’s autobiography. PETERSON: Yes, I’d like to read it. I’m trying to get hold of it. TP: So the chronology is: Norman Granz makes the suggestion, you start writing… PETERSON: Then I tired, and I put it away for a while. TP: And at that point, you had maybe half of it. PETERSON: Less than that. I picked it up two or three times, and then finally Richard Palmer entered the picture. TP: He enters the picture, goes over the material, makes suggestions for directions you might go in, for how to organize things you’ve already done… PETERSON: And things and people that he thought I perhaps had forgotten to write about or that he thought people might be interested in hearing my views on. TP: Who were some of those people? What were some of those things? PETERSON: I can’t remember. TP: Then you resume writing and put the book together. TP: I love the poems you wrote. Did you write them in the process of writing the book, or were they things you’d done otherwise? PETERSON: I did them separately. I had a cottage up in the Halliburton Highlands here in Ontario, and I was sitting around with my computer, and I was thinking about people, and for some reason, I said to my wife, Kelly, “I think I should write something about them.” She said, “that’s a good idea.” Then I was kibitzing around, I started thinking about the rhythmic things about these people and the way they thought and played, and I decided that I would take a shot at writing a few verses about these various people. I don’t know how many I wrote…God knows how many I wrote in over a year. But I came back from the cottage, and I showed them to various people, and they were quite enthralled with what I had written. They said, “You should publish those.” The best thing that happened that I remember is a poem I wrote for Ella, which was read at her tribute in New York by Lena Horne — and what a reading she gave it. It was something. And I was really moved by that. But I don’t consider myself a poet by any means. I never pursued that. TP: Even formally they’re beautiful forms, and they’re quite cogent. It’s not just stylistic; they really say something about their subjects. Have you read the book since publication? PETERSON: No, I haven’t. TP: Were you actively involved in proofing the book and in the final galleys and so forth? PETERSON: No. I left that to Richard. TP: What I’m leading to is, we’re saying that the notion that the spoken voice of the musician runs in a tone parallel to their instrumental voice. Do you feel that your authorial voice in this book is an analog to your musical voice and the imperatives that inform it? PETERSON: I would think so. As I always say, “As you think, so you play.” TP: How much did you delete from the book? PETERSON: I don’t think there was a lot deleted. Richard didn’t take that kind of liberty. He would ask me if I thought that I had written enough about someone, or did I clarify the subject well enough. Or did I cover a certain period well enough. That’s the kind of thing he was doing. TP: So he functioned on several levels. As a fan of your music, obviously. As someone who was more than a fan, but an extremely informed observer and perhaps scholar of your life in music. And as a skilled professional writer and editor who could polish the book into a form that would meet your standards of professionalism. PETERSON: Well, I trusted Richard, because first of all, I had read various things he had written before — reviews and so forth. And as I said, he wrote a book on me, and I found it to be very direct and honest. So I didn’t hesitate to ask him when Norman suggested him. TP: Are you as critical of yourself musically as you sometimes portray yourself to be in the book, on various minor points of detail and so on? In the book, your confidence in your ability, and assuredness and acceptance of your ability shines through all the way, and so does your capacity for self-criticism. It’s an interesting dynamic, and honestly reflected in the book. PETERSON: Well, I hope so. I think that comes from working with other people rather than being a total solo artist. When you work with people, I have to criticize what my group does. But by the same token, I have to criticize what I am doing that’s causing them to do certain things. I think that’s what this arises from. I hope you enjoyed the book. I’m going to get around to reading it as soon as I get the time! TP: Do you listen to your own records back? PETERSON: No, I don’t. I listen to them in the studio, but I don’t sit at home and play my own records. I don’t have that kind of ego. [LAUGHS] TP: You were there and did it, so there it is. PETERSON: That’s excuse enough, I guess. TP: Do you listen back to the sideman things you did? PETERSON: Oh, I listen to those. Because I listen to the other people, like Dizzy and Ella and Roy Eldridge and Stan Getz and so forth. TP: You didn’t recount your sessions with Louis Armstrong. PETERSON: They were wonderful. He was a complete comedian during all those sessions. He kept us in stitches. Including Ella. Sometimes we had to do second and third takes because was doing his comedic act. After they sang, and I had to play something, sometimes he’d yell “Yeah!” or whatever, and it didn’t bother him that they were doing a take. The one thing I tried to do was to follow every nuance that he put into his singing. It wasn’t easy to accompany him because he took all kinds of risks vocally, which other singers would not. TP: You write humorously and lovingly of Coleman Hawkins, who legendarily stayed au courant with everything that was happening, including Thelonious Monk. You don’t mention Monk in the book. What was your attitude towards his playing? PETERSON: I didn’t have an attitude towards his playing. I didn’t admire his playing. I admired his compositions. Look at it realistically. If you talk about pianists, and you say Thelonious Monk, would you say Art Tatum in the same voice, or Hank Jones or Teddy Wilson? There’s a certain understanding or rapport that you gain with the piano…I think. This is my own selfish opinion. Horowitz had it, obviously. So did Teddy Wilson. So did Bill Evans and Hank Jones. But I don’t feel pianistically that Thelonious Monk had it. That’s one reason why he’s not in the book. My mother always said if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything! TP: Are you as self-critical as you portray your character to be? PETERSON: I hope so. I think that comes from working with other people rather than being a total solo artist. I have to criticize what my group does. But by the same token, I have to criticize what I do that causes them to do certain things. TP: Do you feel that your authorial voice is an analog to your musical voice and the imperatives that inform it? Oscar Peterson Big 4 (Live In Japan) – Liner Notes: “A jazz phrase to me can’t be a jazz phrase without a certain type of blues feeling to it. If someone tries to play the blues, that’s the quickest way of knowing where they’re at jazz-wise, in my book. I have seen so-called prolific players humbled by the simplest of players who could play the blues… I’m not ashamed of the blues. The blues is a definitive part of jazz history and of my playing, and I want it to stay that way. I don’t want it to ever change, because if it does, then it throws me in with the classical end, and that’s not what I’m doing.” – Oscar Peterson, “Contemporary Keyboard” (December 1980) Oscar Peterson offered these thoughts a year before the Tokyo concert that is “The Oscar Peterson Big 4 In Japan,” and the listener would do well to recall them while listening to the deftly paced program documented herein. It’s a particularly welcome addition to the meta-virtuoso’s vast discography; addressing repertoire that represents an aesthetic autobiography on a fine Bosendorfer before a tuned-in audience, Peterson — then 56 — is at the top of his game. You could say the same for Peterson’s cohorts. Guitarist Joe Pass and bassist Niels-Henning Orsted-Pedersen, each a world-class poll-winner of long standing in 1982, had worked with Peterson in a variety of contexts since 1973 (see “The Good Life” [OJCCD-627-2 and “The Trio” [OJCCD-992-2], among others). Collective improvisers par excellence, they operate at a stunning level of interaction with the maestro, who faces no barriers to the execution of any idea he thinks of. Pentium-speed thinkers, they match Peterson’s breathtaking velocities, pristine articulation, and intensely swinging beat; they anticipate the long, clear phrases (think Art Tatum’s chops crossed with Charlie Parker’s vocabulary), augment the fat, beautiful voicings, answer the intricate harmonic twists and turns with inventions of their own devising. Drummer Martin Drew — who with Pedersen remains a vital member of Peterson’s current units — keeps immaculate time and remains keenly focused on dynamics. Peterson, Pass and Pedersen comprise an immensely resilient, fluid equilateral triangle; their interplay reminds us that to whatever degree Peterson’s unlimited technique conjures Tatum, who was his idol in formative years, his overriding imperatives are orchestral, and have been since his years as a teen prodigy in Montreal, when he devoured recordings by Nat Cole’s popular piano-guitar-bass trio. “I was trying to build what I thought was the world’s biggest trio,” he told Contemporary Keyboard. “Within that context I was playing whatever kind of piano I played.” Peterson recently addressed the Cole effect in a missive on his website about the “The Nat Cole Trio” (Capitol), in the process unveiling the thought process that undergirds his efflorescent locutions. “I consider this album, by itself, to be a complete musical thesaurus for any aspiring jazz pianist,” he wrote. “Consider Nat’s rendition of his ‘Easy Listening Blues.’ The performance is simple and direct, yet in it Nat puts together all of the components that, to my way of thinking, are necessary to be able to play the blues. First and foremost, his distinctive yet soulful delivery of the melodic line sets the tone for the whole performance. His distinctly articulated touch and time, as he sets out and releases his phrases, serves to tell a story that he wants his audience to hear. I think it’s important to take notes of the restraint of the performance. No one instrument intrudes on the other, but rather serves to enhance Nat’s lines. The time quotient throughout is, to my way of thinking, exact, low-key, believable and moving. There is a great lesson to be learned here, and that is that shared effort is the most important component in trio playing.” That said, he IS Oscar Peterson, and Tatumesque virtuosity is the watchword on the pair of solo turns that begin the proceedings. Peterson states the iconic melody of Thelonious Monk’s “Round Midnight” at a graceful rubato tempo, then embarks on a succession of variations that deploy tension-and-release, building from legato melodies to arpeggiated crescendos in the archetypal Tatum manner. Then he medleys Michel Legrand’s “Watch What Happens” with Bill Evans’ “Waltz For Debby,” moving in and out of stride, walking the tenths in the graceful manner of Teddy Wilson, articulating the surging phrases with stunning clarity. The leader steps aside for Joe Pass, “the impresario of the guitar,” for an elegant a cappella turn on “Easy Living.” There follows a ferocious Pass-Pedersen duo on Denzil Best’s “Move”; Pass has the opening salvo over Pedersen’s fleet bass lines, NHOP takes a frighteningly facile solo over Pass comp, and they launch a series of exchanges on which each reads each other’s mind. Peterson returns, and brings the audience to church with a stately reading of his composition “Hymn To Freedom,” then transitions to his early ’80s opus “The Fallen Warrior,” dedicated to Nelson Mandela, still a prisoner in 1982. The quartet states a slow-medium bounce, stoking smoldering flames. After a guitar solo, Peterson ratchets up the intensity, climaxes, then winds down the sermon. Peterson constructs an abstract intro to “Sweet Lorraine,” paying homage to Cole and Wilson. Once Pass and Pedersen enter, the dialogue is co-equal, Pass and Peterson switching off interchangeably as the lead voice. The first set ends with a quartet performance of Walter Donaldson’s “You Look Good To Me,” a Peterson staple. Drew tips on the brushes over an NHOP two-beat, NHOP solos, Pass solos succinctly over NHOP’s brisk walk as Drew switches to sticks, then the pianist builds a characteristic force-of-nature statement, referencing the structure of Coleman Hawkins’ classic solo on “The Man I Love” from 1943. Peterson opens the second set with a rollicking “Now’s The Time,” the Charlie Parker blues, setting up an irresistible good-time house party feeling. All members say their piece. After a stirring Pedersen solo reading of “Future Child,” the rhythm section states a supersonic tempo on “Mississuga Rattler,” a fire-breathing bop-blues that features an extended Peterson-Pass call and response. The bassist and Peterson get a kalimba-like feeling on the gentle savannahs-of-Africa vamp that comprises the extended introduction to “Nigerian Marketplace,” an original with a 12/8 Ahmad Jamal feeling that Peterson had recorded seven months previous for Pablo. The “Emily”-“Tenderly” medley opens with a cappella turns by piano and guitar on the Johnny Mandel ballad staple; Peterson hews gently to the melody, Pass improvises coruscating inventions, then they create melodic variations to match the innocence of the song’s subject, concluding with a seamless segue into “Tenderly,” whose sweet theme the quartet takes out at a medium-slow bounce. Peterson recorded “Night Child” — an original with a rock-the-cradle gospel feeling — in 1979 on electric piano; Pass postulates delicately parsed high notes to Peterson’s light, lush treble in the Bosendorfer for a more layered, textured iteration of the effect. Then Peterson launches another rolling solo of inexorable momentum, quoting “Moose The Mooche” along the way, before solo turns by Pass, another “how-did-he-do-that?” statement by Pedersen, and a last word from the boss. The concert ends with Peterson’s “Cakewalk,” whose syncopations catapult the popular turn-of-the-century dance into the bebop era. All have their say, the audience roars, and another of Peterson’s thousands of concerts is history. Two decades later, we can revel in Peterson at the peak of his powers, as did a talented teenage aspirant from Mississippi named Mulgrew Miller when he heard Peterson perform around 1970 on “The Joey Bishop Show.” “I just flipped,” Miller related in 1994. “Here was Black music being played at a very high level of sophistication. That motivated me. I could study Classical Music and all of that, but I was never MOTIVATED to do that. But when I heard Oscar Peterson, I was motivated to master the piano.” The Oscar Peterson Big Four in Japan” will stand among the piano titan’s strongest recordings; it contains the kind of playing that inspired Miller and countless other young keyboard talents to devote their energies to jazz. Filed under Jazziz, Liner Notes, Oscar Peterson, Piano Tagged as Jazziz, Lester Young, Liner Note, Oscar Peterson, piano, Richard Palmer To Mark Larry Willis’ 71st Birthday, an Unedited DownBeat Blindfold Test From 2006 Pianist Larry Willis — a Harlem native and alumnus of Music & Art — turns 71 today. To denote the occasion, here’s the unedited version of the Blindfold Test he did with me in 2006. Larry Willis Blindfold Test: 1. Gonzalo Rubalcaba, “The Hard One” (from SUPERNOVA, Blue Note, 2002) (Rubalcaba, piano; Carlo Enriquez, bass; Ignacio Berroa, drums) I can’t quite pinpoint who this is. But whoever it is, the way he plays lines, the note ideas, he’s obviously listened a lot to Herbie. I hear a lot of that in this. Some of it might remind you a little bit of Randy Weston. But I say that rhythmically. He’s got great facility. I’m going to give this 4 stars. I like the approach. It goes everywhere. So everybody is obviously thinking about how to deal with this rhythmically. That’s the thing I like about it. I like both the rhythmic and harmonic approach. But I have no idea who it is. [AFTER] Boy, what a fantastic pianist he is. He’s a very welcome addition to today’s jazz piano. Besides, he’s a really nice kid. [He’s 43.] Well, he’s a kid to me. I got him by 20 years. The composition rubs me a little bit on the negative side. I honestly feel… The Cuban part I like, but it’s very difficult for me to focus in on anything. There’s just a little bit too much going on for me. 2. Michael Weiss, “Walter Davis Ascending” (from MILESTONES, Steeplechase, 1998) (Weiss, piano; Paul Gill, bass; Joe Farnsworth, drums; Jackie McLean, composer) I don’t know who it is, but the touch is so reminiscent of Hank Jones. Maybe not so much the ideas. Maybe Lewis Nash on drums. But it sounds awfully good. I’m having difficulty trying to hinge the tune. I love the composition. The left hand is not quite in that style, but I hear Bill Evans also. Compositionally, it sounds like something that Bill might play. Is this a contemporary of mine? [No.] Older? Younger. He’s a teenager. I’m going to step out on a limb. Is this Kirk Lightsey? This is this tune written by somebody that I know very well. It’s Jackie’s tune. 3 stars. It doesn’t quite grab me. It’s good, but it’s not exceptional, as far as I’m concerned. But the performance of it is good. 3. Chano Dominguez, “No Me Platiques, Mas” (from CON ALMA, Venus, 2003) (Dominguez, piano; George Mraz, bass; Jeff Ballard, drums) It’s a nice waltz. I don’t think it’s him, but the touch and harmonic approach remind me a lot of Ray Bryant. But I don’t think this is something Ray would play. Then here again, I don’t know who could be playing. I love the sound of the trio. It’s very well-integrated, everybody’s listening to everybody, and I like the approach, the concept of what they’re doing. It’s quasi early Bill Evans trio. The bass player is playing very loose, the drummer is not playing time so strictly, and I like the approach. Could the bassist be George Mraz? Yeah, it sounds like Bounce. We call him the Bouncing Czech. Is this Richie Beirach? A lot of Bill Evans here. Could this be somebody like Denny Zeitlin? You got me. 4 stars. [AFTER] I don’t know him, but I know who he is. 4. Denny Zeitlin, “Bemsha Swing” (from SOLO VOYAGE, MaxJazz, 2005) (Zeitlin, piano; Thelonious Monk, piano) “Bemsha Swing.” One of the problems that I’m having is that Jazz, as far as the growth and development of the art, has reached an impasse. I’ve heard no new voices, particularly at the piano, no new schools of thought since 1968, and I think a lot of that has had to do with the way the record industry has crept into this, and basically destroyed a lot of the bands where young players could serve apprenticeship. When I came along, there was the Jazz Messengers, there was Miles’ band, there was Trane’s band, there was Horace Silver’s quintet, a lot of working bands where you could develop. But that doesn’t exist. So what I’m hearing is a lot of retread. [In this performance?] In general. This sounds like Randy to me. But here again, I don’t know who it is. I love what he’s doing. I’m going to give it 5 stars. He plays enough of the piano to let you know that he knows what he’s doing at the instrument, but the whole thing just comes off. I like the harmonic approach. The ideas are nice. I know where it’s coming from, but I can’t tell what records he’s listening to. Let’s put it that way. I like that. He’s put some thought into what he’s doing. [Older guy? Younger guy?] Maybe my age. The concept. He plays good stride. I like how he’s interpreting Monk. Understanding that music is not necessarily something that falls out of a tree. And he doesn’t play too much. Let me put it this way. The element of taste is very prevalent here. What he’s doing, everything seems to be in the right place; he does it at the right time. When he starts to stride, it adds instead of making me feel he’s doing it just to show you that he can. All this is integrated into the music. [AFTER] Denny Zeitlin? Makes a lot of sense to me. 5. Martin Wacilewski, “Plaza Real” (from TRIO, ECM, 2005) (Wacilewski, piano; Slawomir Kurkiewicz, bass; Michal Miskiewicz, drums; Wayne Shorter, composer) This is a nice trio. I don’t know who it is. Harmonically I love it. Also, the piano is really well-recorded. He’s listened to Bill, that’s for sure. That last little run is a Bill Evans run! He was a very influential piano player! But there’s also a lot of Herbie’s harmonic approach. Right there! I like it. 4½ stars. [AFTER] They should keep doing what they’re doing! 6. Dave McKenna, “C-Jam Blues” (from LIVE AT MAYBECK RECITAL HALL, VOL. 2) (McKenna, piano; Duke Ellington, composer) This sounds like it might be two piano players. Sure is covering a lot of ground. There are two piano players. [Who are they?] Is it Hank and Tommy? No, that’s not Hank. Or Tommy. I haven’t a clue. [Are you sure it’s two piano players?] Yes, I’m sure. Or at least somebody overdubbed something. [It’s one piano player.] Wow. [Live.] Live?! The lines are good. They’re not great. But to play that much with just two hands is doing a lot. It’s not Oscar. I haven’t a clue. 3½ stars. It just doesn’t reach out and grab me. 7. Jason Moran, “Out Front” (from PRESENTS THE BANDWAGON, Blue Note, 2003) (Moran, piano; Tarus Mateen, bass; Nasheet Waits, drums; Jaki Byard, composer) There’s something almost Steve Kuhn-ish about this—approach, concept, touch, ideas. But I know it’s not Steve. I like it. He’s got a lot of chops, whoever he is. [Are you familiar with this tune?] No. But for some reason, the name of Jaki Byard is sticking in my head. It sounds like some music he’d play or some music coming from him. It just rubs me that way. I love the treatment. But I can’t figure out who it is! Sounds like they’ve been playing together for a minute. Sounds like a younger player—the sound of the instrument. It doesn’t sound like an older personality. I’m almost going to step out on a limb and say it’s somebody like Marcus Roberts. There’s a lot going on. There’s a lot of information here to decipher. [Do you like that?] Yes and no. I’ve always been one to think that less is more, and because the piano is such a complicated instrument, the 88-to-10 odds empower me to be more simplistic in my approach. I think sometimes piano players get so involved in the 88-to-10 odds that the music takes somewhat of a back seat. That’s happening here. It’s more of a show than music. 3 stars. It isn’t bad! If it gets below 3, that means I don’t like it. 8. Edward Simon, “Abiding Unicity” (from UNICITY, CAM, 2006) (Simon piano, composer; John Patitucci, bass; Brian Blade, drums) The bass player is great. It’s not George. It’s not Eddie Gomez. Is it Richard Davis? I’m trying to think of how many bass players have that kind of arco technique. Is the pianist from outside of the United States? [Yes. But he’s lived in the States for a long time.] I asked because of the approach to rhythm. [What part of the world is the piano player from?] He’s either from Europe or he’s from Japan. How can I put this? Because I’m an American and jazz comes from here, and I’ve been listening to it for a long time from an American perspective, the whole concept of playing inside the pulse framework is a little deeper here than I hear coming from other places, and I think… It’s not a putdown. It’s just that if you don’t grow up in a culture, it’s very difficult to assimilate the little subtleties of whatever that is into your playing if you haven’t experienced it. [That affects how you’re hearing this.] Yes. But let’s back up. It affects me in this context. What I am trying to say is not a bad thing. That’s just how it is. For example, as close as he came to being involved with an American approach to playing jazz, I still hear that difference in somebody’s playing like Joe Zawinul, for example. There’s always a tendency to… It sounds like it’s on the surface almost. The piece is okay. It started out great, and then it went someplace else that I didn’t particularly care for. If it started like what he’s doing now, then I might feel more compelled to… It just doesn’t get inside my body. 3 stars. [AFTER] Patitucci and Blade always seem to be together. I heard them with Wayne, I heard them with Herbie… 9. Oscar Peterson, “Sweet Lorraine” (from FREEDOM SONG, Pablo, 1980/2002) (Peterson, piano; Joe Pass, guitar; Niels Henning-Orsted Pederson, bass; Thelonious Monk, composer) I like the piano player. It’s a very nice, refreshing treatment of this song. Whoever it is, they’ve certainly paid attention to the Nat Cole Trio—or the King Cole Trio. I like this. I’m almost going to say Mulgrew. Is the guitar player Russell Malone perchance? Is the guitarist an older player? [Yes.] Older than me? [No.] Well, it’s not Cedar. It doesn’t sound like Barry Harris. Now, that sounds like Hank right there. Whoever it is, they’ve really listened to Hank’s approach to playing the instrument. Hank’s got one of the cleanest, clearest, prettiest sounds coming out of the piano in the history of this music, I feel. And whoever this is, I like very, very much. Harmonically, technically, just the general approach to playing the instrument. He’s got a great sound. 5 stars. [AFTER] [LOUD LAUGH] Okay. 10, Bebo Valdes, “Lamento Cubano” (from EL ARTE DEL SABOR, Blue Note, 2000) (Bebo Valdes, piano; Israel “Cachao” Lopez, bass; Carlos “Patato” Valdes; congas) An older pianist. From Cuba. Bebo Valdes. The sound, concept, touch. That’s Bebo! He’s a really unique player. First of all, as a pianist, he’s assimilated the world’s concept of playing the jazz piano and formulated it into a very unique concept of playing the piano—and playing that music, playing Cuban music. I love him, first of all, because he’s got a great sound from the piano. Then, his minimalist approach pleases me immensely. In a sense, he reminds me, if I can make an analogy, of Ahmad Jamal, for example. He shows you just enough technique to let you know that he’s got it, but the rest is focused on playing some music that will allow you to assimilate it. 5 stars. I asked Miles one time… There’s a great story about him going over and hearing Clifford Brown, and then just saying to him, “Brownie, why are you playing all of those notes? Nobody hears that.” I asked Miles about it, and he said, what it is, when you’re playing music for people other than musicians, they can’t assimilate and decipher all that information and have it come out music that touches their souls. So a lot of what you play gets wasted on just you showing off and how much technique you have. Oscar doesn’t do that, and he’s got a world of technique. Art Tatum didn’t do that, and he had a world of technique. But a lot of players play too much. Too much information. The ultimate objective of all of this is not to be the greatest… I’m not trying to be the greatest piano player in the world. I want to be the best musician I can be. Because the instrument is there for you to play music on. 11. Chick Corea, “Celia” (from REMEMBERING BUD POWELL, 1997) (Corea, piano; Bud Powell, composer) It sounds like Barry Harris playing “Celia.” Or somebody from that generation. [It’s someone from your generation.] They really understand the concept of bebop, the bebop school of thought as far as playing the piano is concerned. Kenny Barron? He’s listened to bebop quite a bit. He’s played it quite a bit. Hmm. From my generation? 4 stars. [AFTER] Okay. All right. Aside from the music that he’s been able to come out with and has been so successful with, there’s a bit of a chameleon in Chick as far as playing the piano. I’ve heard him play duets with Herbie, and he’s got one face there. I hear this, it’s another face. I hear what he does, for example, with Return to Forever; that’s another face. I heard him with Stan Getz; that’s another face. Yes, Armando! Filed under Blindfold Test, DownBeat, Larry Willis, Piano Tagged as Bebo Valdes, Blindfold Test, Chano Dominguez, Chick Corea, Dave McKenna, DownBeat, Jason Moran, Larry Willis, Martin Wacilewski, Oscar Peterson, piano A 1994 WKCR Interview with Ed Thigpen, (Dec. 28, 1930-Jan. 13, 2010 ) In observance of master drummer Ed Thigpen’s birthday, I’m posting the proceedings of an interview that we did on WKCR a few weeks before his 64th birthday, when he was in NYC to play a week at Bradley’s with the late Memphis piano master Charles Thomas and bassist Ray Drummond. (Some eight years later, he offered his memories of Ray Brown.) Ed Thigpen (WKCR, 12-14-94): [MUSIC: Thigpen Trio: “Gingerbread Boy,” “Denise”] Q: Ed Thigpen is in residence at Bradley’s this week with top-shelf trio that features pianist Charles Thomas from Memphis, Tennessee, and bassist Ray Drummond, gracing the small space with a mind-boggling variety of sounds and textures and rhythms from his drum kit. Let’s talk about your recent CD, Mister Taste, on Just In Time, which received five stars in Downbeat. You’re joined on it by a bassist you’ve worked with frequently since moving to Europe twenty-odd years ago… ET: Yes, 22 years ago, as a matter of fact. Mads Vinding, who is probably one of the finest bassists you’ll ever hear. Denmark has a penchant for putting out good bass players, Niels-Henning, and we have another young man named Jesper Lundgard, who is also fine — but Mads is special. And bringing Tony Purrone and Mads together, it was pure magic. Q: You comment in the liner notes on particularly the resonance and nuance of the sound Mads Vinding brings to the bass. ET: Well, for one, he’s so in tune, and quite inventive. I am particularly pleased with the interplay between he and Tony — well, the whole group, actually. Like I said, it was magic. It was one of those magical dates that came together. We had done a television show, and like many Jazz endeavors that come about, you don’t have too much time to rehearse. I brought some tunes in, and it was just… The only thing I can say is that it was like magic, the things that happened, their response, and it was so open… So when I heard it, I said, “I have to record it.” So we went into the studio. We had another one-nighter in Copenhagen, and then a day off. So we laid down about seven tracks, and I used it as a demo. Then Just-In-Time was interested in putting it out. So I brought them back over again, and went into the studio another evening or two, and had a couple of rehearsals — and that’s the result of it. Q: Ed Thigpen’s father was one of the prominent drummers of his period, really, in defining what’s called the Southwest Sound and that way of playing drums. ET: Well, a Swing drummer, yeah. He was great. Swing. Swing, that was Ben Thigpen. Q: Ben Thigpen, who played with Andy Kirk for many years. And your birthplace is Chicago. Did you live there for a number of years, or…? ET: No. Actually the band was on the road, and that’s where I was born. But the band was actually stationed out of Kansas City. So I guess when I was old enough to travel, we traveled to Kansas City, and then my mother took me to California, where I was raised from 1935. Q: Tell me about your musical tuition. Was your father your first teacher, or how did it happen? ET: No, he wasn’t my first teacher. Actually, I started in grade school. You know, all the kids… We had church choir, tap dance lessons, some piano lessons, and we had rhythm groups, and a little orchestra in grade school! Then in junior high school I did my first drum contest. We had people like Buddy Redd, who was Elvira Redd’s brother, a young man named Jimmy O’Brien. Then naturally, the concert band. Then getting into high school with the swing band, which I think sort of kicked things off, because that band came out of Jefferson High School. Art Farmer was in the band, and Addison, Chico Hamilton had come out of the band, Dexter had gone to that school as well — so it was quite rich. Q: And the band-master at Thomas Jefferson High School was Samuel Browne, a famous teacher. ET: Samuel Browne. Q: Describe him a little bit, his methods… ET: Well, complete openness as far as exposure. All styles of music. We had arrangements by Fletcher Henderson, by whoever was popular — Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Boyd Raeburn. Dizzy Gillespie, they had charts from that band. Q: At that time. ET: Oh, yes. Oh, yes. Q: So he was fully open-minded. ET: Oh, totally. And you were allowed to go as far as you could. It was totally open. We had great arrangers in the band, wonderful singers. Mister Browne was just very encouraging to all of us. He was a very dedicated man. Q: Were you basically a born drummer? I mean, is that your first instrument? Or were you studying other instruments… ET: No, I’ve worked hard at it. I still do. Q: I don’t mean that it was a natural talent. I mean, was that the first instrument that you… ET: Gravitated towards? Q: Yes. ET: In some senses. Actually, it was the piano at first, but the piano lessons, instead of… I think in the old days it was, like, I used to get stomach-aches because I didn’t know about this fourth finger being tied, and the concentration on being a concert pianist, and I didn’t have the facility for that. I sort of wish… Now when I teach, I teach young people to enjoy the music. It’s not about being Horowitz. It’s about enjoying the music. But now I’m studying again! But it was piano and dance. We took dance; we did tap dancing. And singing in the choir and stuff like that. Q: You went to school with and were roughly a contemporary of a number of musicians who became very well known in the Jazz world. Were you performing outside of school in teenage groups, ensembles? If so, what sort of things were you playing, and what was the ambiance like? ET: Well, no, I wasn’t playing outside of school until I became a senior. I just had graduated from high school. My first professional gig was with Buddy Collette, as a matter of fact. He hired me to do a gig. We’d have dances, you know, at the YMCA and the YWCA. Then the Swing band, of course, we did a lot of touring around the city. We played all the high schools and so forth. Q: The Jefferson High School band. ET: That was Jefferson High School, but we played other high schools in concert. We had… Well, who else had a Swing band? I think Dorsey(?) may have had a band. But our band was quite known, so we traveled all over the city, doing concerts and so forth. Q: As far as emulating a style, I guess your father would have been an obvious example to you. But who were the drummers you were trying to model yourself after? Was it by records? Were you able to go to the theaters, hear big bands coming through, and hear those drummers first-hand? ET: As I said before, we had drummers who came through who were there. Chico Hamilton was quite helpful to me. As a matter of fact, he taught me how to play paradiddles. I enjoyed his colors. Then, like all kids at that time, Gene Krupa was a… You know, you went to the movies and watched Gene Krupa for the show business and all that stuff. Then I started hearing records, and when I heard Dizzy, it was little subtle things that I liked very much. “Ow!” was a big influence, that particular piece. I found out later it wasn’t Kenny, but it was Joe Harris. But also Max Roach, Art Blakey — all of the masters playing. Just people who played well. Then, later, after I had moved to St. Louis, I had the opportunity to see Jo Jones, Papa Jo, as they call him now. Once I saw him, that was it. He was a symphony on drums for me. Q: What was the event? ET: Well, actually I was in St. Louis, and I was going to see Buddy Rich at the Jazz at the Philharmonic, but Buddy didn’t make the show, and there was Jo Jones. Well, I hadn’t seen him before, and I was just mesmerized. I couldn’t believe what I saw. Just everything that he did was so musical, and the touch and the swing — and from there on, that was it for me. That was the one who I more or less patterned a lot of my work from. Q: Did you speak with him then? ET: Oh yes. He and father were very close, and I obviously spoke to him, but it wasn’t about drums. We talked about tennis, as a matter of fact. When he came to L.A., when I first him, he didn’t even know I played drums. I introduced myself, and he knew my Dad, of course, and we were out on the tennis court together. But that was it. Q: What was his tennis game like? ET: Fine! He was a good tennis player. Yeah, he was fine. Q: Talk about the elements of his style that you were able to incorporate, coming from another generation and dealing with somewhat different demands that were placed on a drummer. ET: Well, what I liked first of all was the swing. You know, you popped your fingers. It was his cymbal beat, his hi-hat patterns. Then when I saw him pick up brushes, which I hadn’t used before really… And his touch. It was the musicality of his approach to playing. It was the instrument… It wasn’t just drums when he played. He used to tell me later, after I got to know him, that the hi-hat became his brass section. He was one of the first ones I saw utilizing a certain amount of independence, subtle independence, and colors and things of that nature. It just floored me. So I think it was the overall musicality of the swing, the epitome of swing. Q: Were you working professionally right after graduating high school? ET: Oh, yes. I started working with a group called the Jackson Brothers. It was sort of a show group. It was Pee Wee Crayton, you know, Rhythm-and-Blues. Most of us started with Rhythm-and-Blues. Then when I moved to St. Louis, it was Peanuts Whalum. Miles came home one time, I had a gig with him. And then I went on the road with (we had territorial bands) a gentleman by the name of Candy Johnson. In that band was Jack McDuff, believe it or not, and Freeman Lee and James Glover. So you traveled around the Midwest and the South. Then I wound up in New York, and my first job here was at the Savoy Ballroom. Q: Was the Candy Johnson band dealing mostly with jump band things, rhythm-and-blues, or was it a wide repertoire? ET: No, it was Swing. It was a wide repertoire. I think the closest… Candy played tenor, alto, clarinet, baritone; he played a lot of baritone at that time. Jack was playing piano. We weren’t playing organ; playing piano. There was some Bebop, there was some Swing, we had a lot of stuff Charlie Ventura type with that group that he had with Bennie Green. It was just good music, just swing. Basie charts. The standard things. He was a wonderful player. Q: So you really had a ton of experience by the time you came to New York, working in all sorts of situations, I guess. ET: I would say so. Then when I got here, you know, it started again, working with Cootie Williams. That band was my first exposure to doing the tobacco warehouses doing what they call the Chitlin’ Circuit. We traveled with people like the Ravens, the Dominos, the first Doo-Wop groups, the Orioles, then with Dinah Washington — it was wonderful. That’s when I met Keeter Betts and Jimmy Cobb and Wynton Kelly. That was the rhythm she had. Then, when I saw Jimmy Cobb, that floored me again. Q: Talk about that little bit. ET: Well, I have to go back before Jimmy. I mean, when I first came to New York in late 1950 or early 1951, the first person I looked up was Max Roach. He was playing at a place called the Palm Garden, I think, down the street from the Apollo Theater. I had heard Max on record. He, again, was so musical. You could just follow the melodies when he soloed. I couldn’t believe someone like that. And his descriptive playing, total… Again, he had a great influence in the sense… I didn’t have the technique that he did, but it was the musicality of the drums. That was the thing that really got to me. I met him, asked questions and so forth. Q: Max Roach, of course, was tremendously influenced as well by Papa Jo Jones. ET: I think everyone who came up had to be influenced by him. He was a great innovator, let’s face it. But anyway, when we were out on the road with Cootie, we were traveling with Dinah Washington, and as I said, they had Wynton Kelly and Keeter Betts and then Jimmy Cobb. Then I was really flabbergasted, because here was a guy who was sort of like out of Max, but his solos and time, and he swung so hard… He had such great technique, too. I just said, “Wow!” All these guys were nice. That’s the beauty, for me, of the business, is the camaraderie of the men who are involved in the music. They’re all such great men, such wonderful people. So from that, you just try to make your little niche and participate in this wonderful music. Q: You worked with Bud Powell and Billy Taylor, I guess, in the mid-1950’s. ET: Yes. Well, I went into the Army from Cootie Williams. When I came out of the Army, I was discharged in Chicago. Q: I’m sure you were in a band in the Army? ET: Yes. I was at Ford Ord, California, for almost the first year. I was the instructor in the Army band. I really got the gig as an instructor because I could play a good Samba, and my Master Sergeant had a band outside of the regular duties, and he wanted me to play with him, so they stationed me there. Then I went to Korea, and I was in the Sixth Army Band, Maxwell Taylor, you know, the Armed Guard Band. Then when I came out, I got out in Chicago. Cootie had another drummer, and the guy who was his road manager said, “I don’t think you’re going to get this gig back.” Anyway, Keeter Betts told me that Dinah (he called her the Queen)… he had heard that the drum chair was open. So I spoke with her. She was coming into St. Louis two weeks after I was discharged. I went down to the dance, played with them, and she said, “Why don’t you come and go to Kansas City?” So the next thing I know, two weeks after the Army, I’m with Dinah. And from Dinah, I’m back to New York, and then it’s Birdland — and you’re exposed to here. Then my whole thing began again. Q: Began to blossom. ET: Yes. Q: Talk about playing with Bud Powell. ET: Oh! Playing with Bud Powell. Again, that was a thrill. Q: Did he have on nights, off nights? Was he fairly consistently? ET: Well, some people say he wasn’t… You know, he had been ill for so long, so there would be evenings when I guess those who knew him when he was at his peak would say it was off. But for me it was always on, because again, he played so much music. I wasn’t real…with the sticks… Like, I said, I could swing and I was good with brushes, and he liked what I did with the brushes. So just playing with him, just being on the stand with him was wonderful. And all of that obviously came in. I tried to find ways to accompany him. Q: Would he have pretty much set arrangements? Did you have any input into the shape of his performances… ET: Oh, no-no-no. At that point there was no actual conversation going on. Everything conversationally was done musically. He’d look over and smile, and he would just play. So you know, the ears had to have it. Q: And then you worked for several years also with Billy Taylor’s trio, which was a popular trio. ET: Oh, that was a delight. That was my introduction to… oh, to so many things. Billy introduced me to so many things. Number one, he’s such a fine person. Again, he gave me total freedom. With Billy I think prepared me to work with Oscar, in a strange way. The appreciation of a ballad. No one plays a ballad like that for me. Then, I was able to experiment with him. We used to talk about the story-line of a piece, “Titoro,” or what we wanted to get out of it. That was also my introduction to general Jazz education. He’s so knowledgeable. We used to go out and do a lot of freebies, and do clinics and workshops. I gained a great deal from Billy. Still do, as a matter of fact! Q: We’re in a straight line here, and I guess that will lead us to your joining Oscar Peterson. ET: Oh, 1959. Yes, January, 1959. Q: That was six years? ET: Six-and-a-half years. ’59 to ’65. Q: Ed Thigpen will select a set of favorite performances over the years with Oscar Peterson, and we’ll be back with him for more conversation. [ETC.] [MUSIC: OP/Milt Jackson “Green Dolphin Street” (1962), “Tin Tin Deo” (1963) “Thag’s Dance” (1962)] Q: In the previous segment we were encapsulating Ed Thigpen’s life up to joining the Oscar Peterson Trio. I’d now like to ask you a little bit about your years with that group, and the demands of playing with a trio of such incredible musicians, both as improvisers and in terms of their general musicality. Talk about playing next to Ray Brown for six years. ET: Oh, a total delight. Ray was a big brother to me, in many ways. You know, we almost lived together on the road for about six years, and rehearsing every day, playing time, playing golf…just having a good time. It was a delightful experience in most ways; it really was. Q: He has one of the most distinctive sounds in Jazz. He’s one of these people, one note, you pretty much know it’s him. ET: Oh, yes. Well, I used to like to have him just lay down a groove. Nobody lays down a groove like him. Q: I’m going to ask you a bit about the strategies of the group. Were the performances intricately worked out beforehand? How much improvising went on on the bandstand in terms of shaping the arrangements, apart from within the arrangements? ET: Well, as you can see, they were highly arranged as far as the compositional things. Oscar was a genius in how he wanted things to be; after he had shaped the outside parts, how he wanted… Except when it came to things where we’d just play things spontaneous, like when we did eleven albums in two weeks of that whole song-book series, with no short takes. Well, those things are just spontaneous, you know, doing the melody, the groove, have little interludes, and you had to be quick and just make it happen. Of course, as you know, with Jazz music, so much of it is improvisation, so the skills have to be there. But with the group, we would have rehearsals, and we’d learn the pieces in sections. When it came to things like West Side Story, which was probably one of the most difficult ones for me at that time, because some of the things were quite intricate, you had to put blinders on, not sing somebody else’s part, and play yours. It was quite intricate. I just enjoyed listening to the trio. I felt every night I was at a concert. I wasn’t just participating. I was also part of the audience, listening to them play. But outside of that, I think one of the biggest things I got out of that whole thing was the idea about being consistent, keeping at a very high level. That was his credo. We were supposed to sound better than just about anybody on our worst night. That was the whole idea, was that you never cheated. I mean, every song was an opener and a closer, whether it’s a ballad or whatever. You just went out and go for broke, the whole thing. Q: Well, it’s certainly a group which gave new meaning to the phrase “split second timing.” ET: Oh, yes. It was something else. Q: Was the reason for leaving that six years on the road was too much, or… ET: No, it was time. Oscar was hearing other things. I began to hear other things. I think in any type of situation like that… You know, you watch Miles’ groups, he changed. There comes a time when that period of whatever you’re going through, has to end, and you move on to other things. Q: Well, he certainly put the drummer in a situation where I guess just about every possible sound you could out of a drum kit would be incorporated within at least several performances by the group. ET: Well, I wouldn’t say… To be honest, not every sound. Because that’s why you move on. You know, you’re working for and with a person who is a very strong personality, who is a stylist as well. He has ideas about how he wants things to go, and they are absolutely right. It would be the same if you were working with Erroll Garner as a stylist, or someone else. There would be certain things that… When you’re working with one particular group over a long period of time, and it’s almost exclusively with that group, there are many things you don’t get a chance to play, you know, a lot of repertoire — you can’t cover everything. There were things I would do with Billy that I didn’t do with him. There were things I did with Tommy that you didn’t do with Billy or you didn’t do with someone else. Over the years, you find yourself in other situations, and each individual, or each group that you work with will give you other areas of your personality… You know, you continue to grow, so you experiment. It’s constantly evolving. You’re not really one-dimensional. I guess that’s the best way I could put it. Q: I guess the next major gig for you was several years with Ella Fitzgerald, in the late 1960’s. ET: Yes. That was another thrill. Q: Which has a whole other set of demands for accompanying a singer, and as formidable a stylist as Ella Fitzgerald. ET: Well, she was a total orchestra. You know, you have some soloists… Her voice was the instrument, let’s face it. And she instinctively… When she sang it was orchestration. It almost commanded that you do certain things. You find certain soloists… Benny Carter is another person who plays that way. When they play, it’s like an orchestration. It leads you to something. So it’s not really as difficult to play with them, because they know so much about what they want, and what they’re going to do without even saying it. It comes right out. If you react to that, then it’s almost automatic. It’s just a big thrill to be in that situation. Q: Our next set of music will focus on an aspect of Ed Thigpen’s European experience, which has been ongoing for twenty-two years. You live in Copenhagen. Has that been your residence since moving to Europe? ET: Oh, yes. I was married and we had children, and I stayed there and raised my kids. And Copenhagen was a nice place to be at the time. For a period there, we had Dexter, Thad, Kenny Drew, Horace Parlan, Idrees Sulieman, Sahib Shihab, Richard Boone — it was a nice community. [MUSIC: Ernie Wilkins Big Band “Sebastian”; Thad Jones, “Three In One” (1984)] Q: Ed Thigpen is working this week at Bradley’s in a trio featuring the strong Memphis-based pianist Charles Thomas, who has influenced several generations of Memphis piano players, and bassist Ray Drummond. Is this your first time playing with Charles Thomas? ET: The first time. James Williams called me, the wonderful pianist, and said, “I have someone I would really like you to play with. He would like to play with you.” Because Charles had been a big fan of Oscar, myself, and so forth. He said, “You’re really going to like him. He taught a lot of us from Memphis.” Meanwhile, I spoke with Billy Higgins, and he raved about him too. Charles is a wonderful pianist, a wonderful musician. People really should come down. Q: You were mentioning the breadth of his repertoire. ET: Oh, the scope of his repertoire. He knows… We’re playing everything from Christmas carols to the height of Bebop, so tunes that you don’t hear, some compositions I’m beginning to learn right on the bandstand. It’s pure magic. Again, one of those situations when you have someone who plays so well and knows the music so thoroughly, and it’s just a treat to be there with him. Q: He’s a very elegant and incisive soloist. He never plays too long, and always with a little different twist to what you might expect. ET: Well, I like his harmonics. He swings his head off. We went into some Blues last night, and it was deep. It was really something! So I am looking forward to every night. You know, it’s a long gig when you do 10-to-3 in the morning, but doesn’t seem long to me, because you know, Ray is playing so beautifully… When you’re playing with great guys like this, and the music is so interesting, and the treatment of the music is nice, so it’s stimulating for both the audience and for us as players. So it’s a nice place to be. Q: We heard you backing Thad Jones. You mentioned that you played with him quite frequently over about a seven-eight year period… ET: Well, seven years anyway. The last seven years of his life, really, or until he went with Basie, I was doing a lot of work with Thad. I hooked onto him when he came over. Because this man, just coming out of a rehearsal under him made me a better father, the way he handled people and he was encouraging to everybody… Q: An anecdote? ET: Just love. Love, love and perfection, and just creativity, a lot of it — and caring. This was a man who cared about his musicians. I think the thing that I gained most was that working with Thad… Other musicians attest to the same. What he wanted was you to be the best you you could be. It wasn’t a matter about comparing. It was the idea about individuality and being the best you, and he would just encourage you to be the best you that you could be. Q: Talk a little bit about what’s distinctive about his compositions for a drummer. ET: Well, for me, again, we’re talking about total musicality. Orchestrating the rhythmic aspect of his music was perfect. Tommy used to tell me, “It’s simple.” He would start at odd places, but once you got into it, it was just so logical; it was so logical you wouldn’t even think about it. It’s just right. Unique. Q: Talk about some of the other musicians you’ve had close associations with. Mads Vinding, obviously, is your partner on bass. ET: Jesper Lundgaard. We have a couple of pianists now in Denmark who are wonderful. Now I have this new association with a sort of American-German-European, but sort of like more esoteric and descriptive, but wonderful. I’m having a ball with this new group, After Storm, with John Lindberg and Albert Mangelsdorff and Eric Watson. We all come from different backgrounds, one Classical, two of us Jazz, older and younger men, this mixture of young and old, and mixing some Classical aspects to the improvisational things that we’re doing, so some of it is like descriptive music, but you know, with a beat behind it. Just interesting to play. Free. What’s happening now, you may not be playing just the Blues, but it will have the feel of it, you know. You might not be playing just “Rhythm” changes, but it all has rhythm. All music has rhythm. Breathing, walking, everything has rhythm to it. As I said before, it’s not a matter of being in a box. I call it descriptive. It’s an opportunity to… Maybe you want to paint a picture. You might depict rustling leaves, for instance. So it can be very theatrical. It’s like theater music, in some ways. Descriptive music is the best way I can put it. Q: Do you paint pictures for yourself while you’re playing, regardless of the situation? ET: Yes. I try to relate to some type of story form, an idea you’re trying to communicate, a feeling, a picture, a story, whether it be the ocean, or whether it be something lyrical. You try to be… It is a matter of communication, you know, telling a story. [MUSIC: Thigpen Trio, “E.T.P.” (1991), Thigpen Group, “Heritage” (1966); Thigpen/ Mangelsdorff/Lindberg/Watson, “Punchin’ aPaich Patch”] Q: You said that the Mangelsdorff/Lindberg/Watson group has some tours set up for next year. ET: Yeah, we have a couple. We have a short one when we record again in February, and in March we have a tour. So I’m looking forward to it. Q: That’s the type of group that if you were feeling a little stale or in a rut, it seems like you would never have any problem finding fresh ideas. ET: No. It’s very stimulating. I enjoy it very much. As I said, it’s descriptive. I enjoy descriptive music. And they’re interesting to play with it. I really enjoy it. Q: When you came to Europe one thing that was either a cliche or not is that it was hard to find good rhythm section. So of course, if a strong drummer arrived, there would presumably be a lot of work. Was that the case with European rhythm sections? If so, how has that evolved over the years? ET: I think that’s changed now, obviously. Jazz is a world music now. It’s always been. It’s encompassed it, because this country represents the world. I think you have to be here, you have the… There’s something unique about this experience in the United States that figures in everything. It is a United States art form made up of all the peoples and cultures in the world. But we have some wonderful players over in Europe, really. As far as… I used to hear about… I understand it was that way at one time about rhythm sections, because you know, the essence of the music is here. It’s like, if you’re going to deal with Opera, you have to deal with Italy. Everybody has to have something, right?! Q: Conversely, how has your European experience shaped you, and made you a more, let’s say, expansive improviser or given you a more expansive palette? ET: Not necessarily. These are the things that I’ve always been interested in. As I said, a lot of people don’t realize how diverse the United States is. There is a very interesting article quoting Max. Every time I think of something, he’s already said it. He’s so observant! And the fact that this country represents…brings in cultures. You know, it’s a mixture of various cultures. So most of us are exposed to all types of things here. I mean, you turn on the radio… Well, it’s different now, in some ways. But I was introduced to Brazilian music when I was ten years old in Los Angeles. I play good Country-and-Western music. So it’s all here. Q: You said you got in the Army band because you played a good Samba for your Sergeant. ET: That’s right. If there is a difference in Europe, I don’t think the European fan is as fickle. Everything is marketing here, and it’s like what’s new rather than necessarily what is classic. We don’t really honor…it’s even about honor, but just even respect our own uniqueness sometimes. Sometimes I have a problem if people don’t realize that we do have a very rich heritage. I just wish they would support it more. Q: I think that the stretching boundaries and “experimentation” was represented on the middle track, which is from your first album as a leader, Ed Thigpen’s Out of the Storm from 1966, on Verve. That one featured Clark Terry, Kenny Burrell, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock and Ed Thigpen. That track featured your pedal tom-tom. ET: Well, it was a pedal miazi(?), pedal tom-tom, an Italian drum. It works somewhat similar to a tympany. I was actually able to do melodies on that drum. Q: And sing. ET: Oh yeah, that was another thing. Q: The call-and-response effect you were able to get there. ET: Yes, between that and toms and so forth. You know, years ago, we had one of the first what I guess you would call Avant groups with Gil Mellé, who was very advanced. We were doing things on…like, he was very much into Bartok, you know. But it’s just playing music, man, making you feel good and having a good time! Filed under Drummer, Ed Thigpen, WKCR Tagged as Billy Taylor, Drums, Ed Thigpen, Ella Fitzgerald, Jo Jones, Oscar Peterson, WKCR For Bud Powell’s 87th Birthday, A 2004 Bud Powell Homage in Jazziz In 2004, Jazziz gave me an opportunity to write an homage to Bud Powell, who is my “first among equals” favorite, my main man of all the jazzfolk on the timeline. For Bud’s 87th birth anniversary, here it is. [For further info on Bud, keep your eyes out for Wail, a soon-to-be-released ebook biography by Peter Pullman — a link to Pullman’s blog here and for the book here]. [And spend some time with Ethan Iverson’s exhaustive, four-part post on Bud on his essential blog, Do The Math.] Early in August of 1964, Earl “Bud” Powell, accompanied by his friend and caretaker, Francis Paudras, flew to New York City from Paris, Powell’s residence since 1959, for a 10-week billing at Birdland, Powell’s primary venue during the previous decade, when bebop was in vogue. Eager to soak up the master, New York’s musicians flocked to the club for opening night. In the liner notes of Return To Birdland, ‘64 [Mythic Sound], Paudras described the scene as he and the pianist arrived. “There were two rows of men, face to face, on each side of the door. I recognized immediately many familiar faces. To the right in the front line, his face shining with joy, there was Bobby Timmons; next to him, Wynton Kelly, then Barry Harris, Kenny Dorham, Walter Davis, Walter Bishop, McCoy Tyner, Charles McPherson, Erroll Garner, Sam Jones, John Hicks, Billy Higgins, Lonnie Hillyer…there were others, but my memory fails me. Bud stopped short, and at that moment, we could hear discreet applause. Then he started walking toward the stairway, and at that precise instant, Bobby Timmons took his hand and kissed it discreetly. He was at once imitated by his neighbor and all the others with a kind of frenzied devotion… We went down the stairs escorted by this wonderful guard.” A spontaneous 17-minute standing ovation ensued as Powell approached the bandstand, and the engagement began its roller-coaster path. Ensconced in a hotel around the corner, Powell touched base with such old friends and colleagues as Thelonious Monk, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, Art Blakey and Babs Gonzalez. He also met a more recent arrival who had changed the scene in his absence. “One morning we were about to go out for breakfast when the doorbell rang,” Paudras wrote in Dance Of The Infidels [DaCapo], which documents the ups and downs of his five-year relationship with Powell. “I opened it to find a young man standing there. His face looked familiar but I couldn’t place him at that moment. ‘Is Mr. Powell in, please?’ ‘Yes, of course. Your name?’ ‘Ornette Coleman.’ I called Bud and Ornette introduced himself. ‘Good morning, Mr. Powell. My name is Ornette Coleman. I’m a saxophonist and all my music is based on the intervals and changes of the sevenths in your left hand.’” Perhaps the anecdote is apocryphal or mistranslated; Coleman was not available to confirm its authenticity. But the encomium illuminates the breadth of Powell’s impact on the sound of modern jazz. As is well documented in the history books, Powell extrapolated the innovations of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie to the piano and interpreted them with his own singular stamp, incorporating the rhythmic self-sufficiency and harmonic ambition of stride maestros like Willie The Lion Smith and James P. Johnson; the fluent linearity of Earl Hines, Teddy Wilson, and Billy Kyle; and the aesthetic of virtuosity embodied by Art Tatum. Such next-generation stylistic signifiers as Wynton Kelly, Bill Evans, Cecil Taylor, McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, and Cedar Walton used Powell’s “blowing piano” style, a staccato attack that evoked the dynamism of a horn, as the primary building block for their own approaches. If a musician’s music bespeaks a personal narrative, Powell’s biography tells volumes about his art. In early 1945, either a Georgia cracker, a Philadelphia cop or—citing Miles Davis’ autobiography—a Savoy Ballroom bouncer smashed the high-spirited youngster in the head, triggering the massive headaches and a pattern of impulsively aggressive and self-abusive behavior that found him confined more often than not in mental hospitals. Heavy use of alcohol and narcotics destabilized Powell’s personality; repeated electroshock treatments dulled his reflexes and acuity. Yet, between 1946 and 1953, he played magnificently and made his greatest recordings, for Roost, Blue Note, and Norgran, including original compositions with titles like “Glass Enclosure,” “Un Poco Loco,” “Hallucinations,” “Oblivion,” “The Fruit” and “Dance of the Infidels.” As the titles suggest, a turbulent, sometimes demonic lucidity permeates Powell’s music. It grabs you by the throat, connecting you to the processes by which various polarities of the human condition—wretchedness and grace, madness and genius, the profane and the sacred—can play out in real time. Sometimes Powell projects the oceanic emotions of 19th century Romanticism through a prism molded by the hard-boiled, warp-speed ambiance of New York City after World War Two. Sometimes the template is not unlike the the piercing novels of Louis-Ferdinand Céline, Chester Himes and Hubert Selby, all fellow masters at conjuring vivid, unsparing chronicles of the lacerating consequences of mortal foible. Born in 1924, Powell honed his jazz sensibility as a teenager, jamming on bandstands around Brooklyn, Greenwich Village, and, most consequentially, in Harlem, his home turf. At Minton’s Playhouse, he met Thelonious Monk, the house pianist, who was working out the chords and intervals that became the foundation of the music known as bebop. Monk took the youngster under his wing, and, according to drummer Kenny Clarke, his Minton’s partner, he wrote many of his now iconic tunes with Powell in mind, on the notion that he was the only pianist who could play them. You can hear Monk’s influence on several of the 18 sides Powell recorded with Ellington veteran Cootie Williams in 1944, specifically in a tumbling solo on “Honeysuckle Rose” and his jagged comping on “My Old Flame.” Pianist Barry Harris, 15 at the time, remarks on Powell’s finesse, how deftly he “double-timed and ran the most beautiful minor arpeggios” underneath Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson’s vocal on “Is You Is Or Is You Ain’t My Baby.” But Powell’s two fleet, elegant choruses on “Blue Garden Blues” show he’d been listening to someone else as well. “When I met Bud, he was playing pretty much what you would call prebop,” says Billy Taylor, who moved to New York in 1944. “I used to see him uptown a lot, and we hung out. He was light-hearted then, didn’t take himself all that seriously, and was fun to be around. He liked Fats Waller and some other things I liked, and we’d jam together, just playing stride. I have enjoyable memories. We used to argue a lot, because I was very much into Art Tatum, while Bud said, ‘I want to make the piano sound as much like Charlie Parker as I can.’ I said, ‘That’s cool, but that doesn’t use all of the piano. Tatum has some pianistic things that any pianist should try to get into. Check it out.’ He said, ‘I have checked it out, and I know what Tatum plays. But that’s not where I’m going. You work your way and I’ll work my way.’ By 1950, he was making the piano sound just like Charlie Parker. Those lines that he played were long and complicated and very well played. He dominated that instrument. He had all the nuances pianistically under control as he played.” “All of Bud’s vocabulary—extensive use of arpeggios and arpeggios with chord tone alterations, and playing altered dominant chords in such a way that they resolve to the next chord—comes straight out of Bird,” says David Hazeltine. “But the way he adapted it to the piano was very interesting. Piano is a difficult instrument, and it presents problems for playing linearly that the saxophone or trumpet do not. On saxophone, all the fingers stay on the same keys all the time; it’s a matter of coordinating different combinations of keys, like octave leaps and different positions. On piano, the distance is represented on the keyboard and you need to execute physically exactly what you’re playing—cross over and cross under and so on. Bud’s arpeggios are effortless; he made his language very playable. It’s bebop and melodic playing without a bunch of acrobatic pianistic tricks.” A child prodigy, Powell developed his technique through intense study of the European tradition. “Bud was very heavily influenced by Johann Sebastian Bach, and also by the Romantics—Debussy and Chopin,” says Eric Reed, whose information on the subject comes from Bertha Hope, the widow of pianist Elmo Hope, Powell’s childhood friend and himself a musician of brilliance. “He and Elmo Hope practiced the inventions when they were kids. When Bud’s mother would leave for church, they’d start getting into some jazz stuff, and when she came back, they’d be practicing Bach, because they didn’t want to get in trouble. You can hear a connection to Baroque music in the contour and construction of Bud Powell’s improvised lines—the way it moves, the succession of notes, in the complexity of the lines. Bach’s music has a similar rhythmic propulsion, a continuity that’s very similar to bebop.” Perhaps the most astonishing component of Powell’s tonal personality is how he deployed his technique to conjure fresh, viscerally primal stories at volcanic emotional heat. “Bud never played the same thing twice,” Powell’s long-time drummer Arthur Taylor told me in 1992. “He’d play the same song every night, but it was like another song.” He always elaborated a point of view. As Bill Charlap notes, “Bud dealt with thought and idea and structure and architecture, using the piano to tell you what he thought about music.” “Bud wasn’t just throwing licks around,” agrees Vijay Iyer, a pianist born almost a decade after Powell’s death in 1966. “You hear him make decisions in real time and act on them. There’s a thought process made audible. That’s what that music was about. There’s so much at stake in that moment when you’re creating in real time, and to be able to come up with something in spite of all the obstacles and constraints he faced is an inspiring story.” There are naysayers. A number of musicians, most vociferously Oscar Peterson, consider Powell an incompletely pianistic pianist. “Granted, he could swing,” Peterson wrote in his autobiography, A Jazz Odyssey. “But I never regarded him as a member of the central dynasty of piano defined by such great players as Tatum, [Teddy] Wilson and Hank Jones. Bud was a linear group player, who could comp like mad for bebop horns and could certainly produce cooking lines that had tremendous articulation, but for my taste there was too much that he didn’t do with the instrument. He lacked Hank’s broad, spacious touch on ballads, and he failed to finish his ideas too often for comfort and satisfaction. Despite his strength of linear invention, in fact, he had a technique problem: although other musicians and I could intuit where those unfinished lines were going, an unschooled audience was left to play a guessing game, having to make do with grunts of tension in place of delivered ideas. It took a long time for players like Hank Jones, Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, and me to get pupils to realize that the linear approach is not enough on its own. Bud may have symbolized an era, but not true piano mastery.” Billy Taylor indirectly references this criticism with the following anecdote. “Mary Lou Williams came to Monk and Bud and said, ‘You guys are too good not to have the kind of piano sound you should.’ She brought them to her house, fed them and hung out with them for a while, and literally changed their sound at the piano. I don’t recall the exact date, but each was recording for Blue Note at the time. If you listen to some things from maybe two years later, you’ll hear the difference.” Today’s jazz people learn touch and everything else in a less homegrown manner, and perhaps the evolution of jazz vocabulary has led younger aspirants to consign Powell to the outer branches of the piano tree. “Bud Powell exemplifies the language of bebop, and he’s the starting point for contemporary jazz piano, so you have to check him out,” says Edward Simon. That being said, Simon sees Powell’s position on the timeline as specialized. “Bud’s harmonic concept was modern at the time,” he says. “But most people today draw on later pianists for harmony. I think his contribution was more in the way he breathed his lines, and connected the notes smoothly, in a legato style, which isn’t easy to do on a piano.” “They’re the more developed pianists,” says Hazeltine of Hancock, Tyner and Chick Corea. “It’s more impressive at a first listening. Bud’s music isn’t as polished and smooth and slick as, say, the classically schooled Herbie Hancock. I know Bud played Bach and referred to classical music, but that’s not where he’s coming from.” Hancock is on record that “every jazz pianist since Bud either came through him or is deliberately attempting to get away from him,” a point which Eric Reed elaborates. “Bebop is useful under certain circumstances, but if that’s where you stop, you’ll be limited,” he says. “I think many piano players, great as they think Bud Powell is, try to use that vocabulary in their own way. Listen to Herbie’s solo on ‘Seven Steps To Heaven’ with Miles Davis. It’s in the bebop style in his phrasing and the way he runs the lines, although the notes and harmonies are very different.” “Bud Powell is definitely in the top ten of the greatest jazz pianists that ever lived,” Reed continues, and numerous pianists, young and old, still regard Powell as the sine qua non. “Most of the younger pianists that I’ve heard, even Chick and Herbie, don’t attempt to get Bud’s rhythmic power,” Billy Taylor says. “Younger pianists play very well, and technically much cleaner in some respects. But I don’t hear that physical will to make the piano do certain things—Willie The Lion used to call it making the piano roar. I don’t think they have the point of reference. Most of them don’t want to spend that much time to get Bud when they don’t think the end result is what they’re looking for.” Still, Charlap notes, 21st century pianists have much to learn from Powell. “His solos have no loose or wasted notes, and every note clearly relates to the bassline and underlining harmonies,” he begins. “But he also was so free with the rhythm, and created such rhythmic nuance within the line, like playing drums on the piano. It’s not like playing a perfectly even Mozartian scale. But you have to be able to play those notes very evenly to be able to make the choice of how to make the rhythms pop the way that he did. A Bud Powell solo will deal with all manner of rhythmic devices; he had them at his disposal all the time and would rest on any place of the beat. His solos aren’t just the notes, but the attitude and the way the notes speak—like trying to get wind behind the notes. Bud made that all come through at the piano. I can see how someone who is approaching the piano from Chopin through Liszt may be more dismissive of using the piano to do vocal or drum-oriented things. But before they’re dismissive of it, I’d like to hear them sit down and do it. It’s a different way of approaching the instrument. I tell students, ‘It looks the same, but as a jazz musician this isn’t the same instrument that you play Chopin on.’” “I tend to think of him as a tragic genius, which is found in all the arts,” Moran says. Tormented and impoverished, Powell died in Brooklyn, not long after his 42nd birthday. But his search for truth and beauty at all costs will resonate as long as musicians seek apotheosis in the act of musical creation. Barry Harris recalls a revelatory conversation with New York pianist of his acquaintance. “He said him and some cats went by Bud’s house early one morning,” Harris relates. “He was playing ‘Embraceable You.’ They said, ‘Come on, let’s go and have a ball.’ Bud said, ‘No.’ So they left and did whatever they were going to do, messed around all day, and when they returned that night, and knocked on Bud’s door and went inside, he was still playing ‘Embraceable You.’” As Harris puts it, Powell practiced playing, and he wasn’t doing it for a school assignment. It was the most serious thing in life. “A lot of us take this for granted, but they were actually CREATING bebop on such a high level,” Moran says. “It was like a science, and they put a lot of time and experimentation into their process. That’s what makes this music so revered, and everybody HAS to refer to it. Some people can’t stop referring to it.” Filed under Article, Bud Powell, Jazziz, New York, Piano Tagged as Art Tatum, Barry Harris, Billy Taylor, Bud Powell, David Hazeltine, Eric Reed, Francis Paudras, Jason Moran, New York, Ornette Coleman, Oscar Peterson, piano, Vijay Iyer	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1074
__label__wiki	0.620186	0.620186	Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is a 2016 science-fiction action-adventure film directed by Gareth Edwards and written by Chris Weltz and Tony Gilroy. It is the eighth film in the Star Wars franchise and the first film in the standalone Star Wars Anthology films. Rogue One stars Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelson, Donnie Yen, Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Riz Ahmed, and Jiang Wen. Rogue One takes place in between Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and the original 1977 film. Galen Erso, played by Mads Mikkelsen, is a former Imperial scientist on the run from the Empire. Galen and his family are located by his former superior, Orson Krennic. Galen’s wife is killed and he is captured. Galen’s young daughter Jyn is able to escape and is raised by an extremist Rebel and friend of Galen’s Saw Gerrera. Fifteen years later, a Imperial defector is captured by Gerrera. The defector was sent by Galen, now being forced to work on the Death Star project, to deliver a message to the Rebel forces revealing the superweapon’s weakness. Gerrera’s tactics and paranoia caused him to break off from the main Resistance faction. Jyn, played by Felicity Jones, is propositioned by the Rebels to approach Gerrera and validate the defector’s information. Rogue One is based upon a throwaway line from A New Hope concerning Leia being given the Death Star plans by Rebel spies. That a film can be inspired by a single, seemingly unimportant line is impressive. Even more impressive, though, despite being only tangentially related to the overall saga of Star Wars, Rogue One manages to present the viewer with empathetic characters, a solid story, superb acting, and gorgeous action and stunning visual effects. Rogue One is a film worthy of the revitalized Star Wars brand, able to capture the spirit of the Original Trilogy with ease. Felicity Jones, known for her award-winning performance in The Theory of Everything, once again showcases phenomenal skill. Jyn Erso is a very tough, smart, street-savvy individual made so by the difficult circumstances of her life and upbringing. Jones conveys all of the emotions that come as a byproduct of that upbringing very well. Mexican actor Diego Luna plays Rebel intelligence officer Cassian Andor with the same proficiency as his co-star. Ben Mendelson’s Krennic is intimidating, though shown to be extremely vulnerable, as he is merely a puppet for much powerful men than himself. Swedish actor Mads Mikkelsen does a good job portraying Galen Erso with the limited amount of screen time he has. Alan Tudyk voices K-2SO, a reprogrammed Imperial droid with no filter, saying whatever comes to his mind, and is the funniest and most quotable character in the entire movie. The character that is sure to stick in everyone’s mind, though, is the blind warrior Chirrut Îmwe, played by Chinese actor Donnie Yen. Yen, one of Hong Kong’s top action stars and one of the highest-paid actors in Asia, is a master martial artist, well-versed in in Tai chi chuan, boxing, kickboxing, Jeet Kune Do, Hapkido, Taekwondo, karate, Muay Thai, wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, Wing Chun, and Wushu. He is known for portraying Ip Man, a grandmaster and trainer of Bruce Lee, in the 2008 biographical film of the same name. In addition to winning several real-life martial arts tournaments, Yen is also known for his top-notch fight choreography, which is most definitely on display here. Despite Rogue One being his first English-speaking role, Yen portrays his character effectively, his English, though understandably heavily-accented, very easy to understand. I personally hope that his fan-favorite role here lands the 54-year-old more high-profile Hollywood roles in the future. Rogue One is stacked to the brim with amazing performances, but the most impressive one by far has to be the one who wasn’t actually there. Peter Cushing portrayed Tarkin, Darth Vader’s right-hand-man and a secondary antagonist in A New Hope. Cushing, who died in 1994, reprises his role as Tarkin from beyond the grave. Guy Henry, known for his role as Pius Thicknesse in the Harry Potter series, portrayed Tarkin during principal photography, while archived footage of the actor was used to digitally recreate Cushing’s face for the film, with very impressive results. As it was with The Force Awakens, the general CGI, as well as the practical effects of the film were also excellent. Rogue One is not without a few shortcomings, however. Although I find the outline of the story itself to be interesting and very solid, the characters themselves appear to be inconsistent in their feelings and motivations. Jyn and Cassian, in particular, go from cynical and jaded to hopeful and content without a real reason for it. Rogue One is perhaps the most legitimately dire story in the entire franchise. Star Wars has always been about hope in times of darkness, and that is a major theme of Rogue One, but nothing in the character’s actions justify their frequent changes of heart other than the script needs them to, in my opinion. It is an admittedly major flaw, though certainly not a fatal one, in an otherwise great film. Rogue One is an extremely solid start to the Anthology series of standalone spinoffs. Featuring a solid storyline, excellent acting from everyone involved, incredible action, and a sizable role featuring one of the most effective movie martial artists in the business, Rouge One is a great film that is unfortunately prevented from achieving the same overwhelming success as its predecessors because of a rather serious issue with character development. Nevertheless, I cannot wait to see what future Anthology projects will bring. The Star Wars saga is set to continue with Episode VIII, written and directed by Looper craftsman Rian Johnson, and an untitled Han Solo Anthology film directed by the comedy masterminds Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the geniuses behind the 21 Jump Street parody/reboot films, The Lego Movie, and the hilarious Fox sitcom Brooklyn 9-9. The Han Solo film will star newcomer Alden Ehrenreich as Solo and Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian. Author thecripplecritiquePosted on December 22, 2016 December 22, 2016 Categories MovieTags A New Hope, Alan Tudyk, Alden Ehrenreich, Anthology, Ben Mendelson, Brooklyn 9-9, Chris Weltz, Diego Luna, Donald Glover, Donnie Yen, Episode VIII, Felicity Jones, Gareth Edwards, Han Solo, Ip Man, Jiang Wen, Jump Street, Lando Calrissian, Looper, Mads Mikkelsen, Peter Cushing, Phil Lord & Chris Miller, Rian Johnson, Riz Ahmed, Rogue One, Star Wars, Tarkin, The Force Awakens, The Lego Movie, The Theory of Everything, Tony Gilroy1 Comment on Rogue One: A Star Wars Story	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1081
__label__wiki	0.508303	0.508303	MusicNOW- 10 Years OUT MARCH 10TH, 2015 ON BRASSLAND CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF MusicNOW Sounds of the South’s track “Trials, Troubles, Tribulations” featuring Sharon Van Etten, Justin Vernon, Matthew E White, Megafaun, and Fight the Big Bull Released Today Founded in 2006 by Bryce Dessner of The National, MusicNOW Festival set out with a mission to present the best in contemporary music, offer artists an opportunity to take risks and commission new work. This year MusicNOW will celebrate its 10th year of innovative artistic collaborations from March 11-15. To celebrate the occasion, MusicNOW- 10 Years will allow listeners to share some of the magical moments that the festival is known for creating. The 16 track album highlights festival-only surprises like Robin Pecknold playing the traditional song “Silver Dagger” for the first time, the debut performance of Grizzly Bear’s “While You Wait for the Others”, the premiere of Sufjan Stevens’ “The Owl & The Tanager”, as well as collaborations featuring Owen Pallett, Justin Vernon, Sharon van Etten, Tinariwen and Dirty Projectors. The digital release date is March 10th via Brassland nd pre-orders for physical formats will begin on Tuesday, March 17th at bit.ly/musicnow10. Listen to Sounds of the South’s track “Trials, Troubles, Tribulations” featuring Sharon Van Etten, Justin Vernon, Matthew E White, Megafaun, and Fight the Big Bull here (embed code below): https://soundcloud.com/brassland/soundsofthesouth-trialstroublestribulations/s-KeJr7 Dessner is widely known as the guitarist for The National. Those a little more in the know are aware of Bryce’s work in classical composition, performance and artistic collaborations. MusicNOW was founded as a way for Bryce to explore all facets of his artistic interests and has served as a collaborative laboratory that provides a friendly and supportive audience for internationally renowned artists. Through the years, Dessner has guided MusicNOW to become the premiere event for blurring the imagined lines that divide musical genres. Posted on February 18, 2015 March 19, 2015 Author iamatinydancer Leave a comment Sit Kitty Sit Hit The Road; Tour Dates Announced Sit Kitty Sit are launching off their latest tour at a city near you! Kicking off the start of 2015 with gusto, the San Francisco rock duo is taking their sound to the masses. San Francisco’s SIT KITTY SIT is Kat Downs and Mike Thompson. The duo, who create an undeniable pop/proggy piano and drum sound, has been described as Dresden Dolls mixed with King Crimson, & Fiona Apple. Known for consistently thrilling audiences with their energetically intense live performances, the group produces addictive rock n’ roll – with only two people, and not one guitar in sight. The group’s latest album, Everlasting Fire, has been acclaimed by fans and critics alike. The record, based entirely on “Dante’s Inferno,” brings a storyline to the album, which also showcases the extensive versatility of Downs and Thompson as a team. Spanning 7 different genres, there is something for everyone. Watch: Sit Kitty Sit “Birmingham” Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7w6dyDsQZPE March 4, 2015 (Wednesday) Club 66 – Ashland, OR March 5, 2015 (Thursday) Black Forest – Eugene, OR March 7, 2015 (Saturday) Bossanova Ballroom – Portland, OR March 8, 2015 (Sunday) Admiral Way – Seattle, WA March 9, 2015 (Monday) Checkerboard Bar – Spokane, WA March 10, 2015 (Tuesday) One World Café – Moscow, ID March 12, 2015 (Thursday) The Sidewinder – Denver, CO March 14, 2015 (Saturday) Sister – Albuquerque, NM Hardhat Lounge – Las Vegas, NV March 27, 2015 (Friday) Milk Bar – San Francisco, CA Put Your Records On: Year of October At The Great Record Chase we strive to get inside the heads of prominent new artists, and what makes their musical nerves tick. Over the course of several months we have been putting together a project in which a selection of new artists on our radar have put together an editorial. This consists of musical influences that formed, shaped, and brought to life their sound. There has been an impressive amount of new talent that has come our way since starting this website back in the Fall, and we want to take everything to a whole new level. This feature will be regularly occurring on our website, so make sure to check back often. Today we sit down with Phlecia Sullivan, frontwoman from Year of October; a Southern-sounding back to basics band with the knack for writing catchy hooks and riffs. As of recent, the group have released their new single, “Gone,” which has been doing quite well in the blog realm, and to much deserved acclaim. Name three albums or artists that influenced your musical styling you play today and why they are important to you. What made them so influential to you? Led Zeppelin is big influence on us. They are the first band our guitar player Josh really got into. He grew up listening to them and several other classic rock bands with his dad. They are one of the reasons he wanted to start playing music. Norah Jones is a huge influence on my writing style. I’ve been listening to her since my early high school years and her music is a big part of who I am. Her melodies and the things that she writes about still impact how I write today. I like that she can take something really dark and make it sound beautiful. I try to do that in our music.Rocco DeLuca’s album Mercy is a big influence on both Josh and me. He showed me the record when we first started dating and it really stuck out to me both lyrically and musically. Rocco’s mix of bluesy rock, and soulful dark vocals really impacted me with my own music. Josh is really influenced by Rocco DeLuca’s guitar playing on the record and we always find ourselves listening to it on road trips with the band. When did you first discover them? Josh got into Led Zeppelin when he was 12, I got into Norah Jones when I was 15, and Josh and I got into Mercy when it first came out in 2009. How did they help form the music you play today? Each of these artists helped us to form the music that we play in very different ways. Josh grew up learning a lot of Zeppelin riffs, and I sang trying to sound like Norah Jones. With Rocco DeLuca I think it really taught us the importance of dynamics and how blend beauty with madness. Posted on February 16, 2015 February 16, 2015 Author iamatinydancerTags year of october Leave a comment Lindsay Mac’s “Animal Again” EP Delights Lindsay Mac’s true talent shines through with the new EP “Animal Again,” out in the coming weeks. Though only consisting of 4 songs, the record has a lot to hold on to, and is a listen-worthy release. Lindsay Mac has overcome physical ordeals in the past year, which led her to switching up the way she performs and writes music. Straying away from the folk roots in which she once made a name for herself, Lindsay lets out her inner pop diva to carry her new found skills into the spotlight. The lead single “Remember,” was the exclusive first look into the EP and it is filled with pop laden hooks and melodies. Title track “Animal Again,” and first song on the EP, lays down the tone for what is to come on the album. A pleasant surprise at every turn, the use of synths and her vocals prove to be the two most dominant elements.The EP takes a slight turn with the toned down track of ‘Back to Us,” but does not take away from the overall experience of the album; it is an added bonus, one which shows Lindsay Mac’s rage. Lindsay Mac’s ‘re-birth’ is certainly working in her favor. “Animal Again” helps her music career come to full circle. Posted on February 15, 2015 April 15, 2015 Author iamatinydancer Leave a comment	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1084
__label__wiki	0.997573	0.997573	Opposition to Army secretary nominee grows By Rebecca Kheel - 04/28/17 12:37 PM EDT © Courtesy of Mark Green Opposition to Army Secretary nominee Mark Green is ballooning, with current and former service academy faculty members and a former Pentagon official coming out against him Friday. “The tone that you set as a leader matters,” Daniel Feehan, former principal deputy assistant secretary of Defense for readiness from 2015 to 2017, said in an interview with The Hill. “The tone you set as the secretary of the Army has enormous ripple effects.” Green, currently a Tennessee state senator, has come under fierce opposition from LGBT groups over his legislative record and past statements. Green said that “transgender is a disease” at a speech last year to the Chattanooga Tea Party. And in an interview on an online radio show, Green cited a Bible verse that he says calls on the government to “crush evil” to explain his opposition to transgender bathroom rights and Syrian refugees. Green, whose 20-year Army career included being the first person to interrogate Saddam Hussein after his capture in 2003, has defended himself by saying the “radical left” is “blatantly falsifying” his past statements to “paint [him] as a hater.” “The liberal left has cut and spliced my words about terrorism and ISIS blatantly falsifying what I've said,” Green said in a Facebook post Tuesday. “I believe that every American has a right to defend their country regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and religion. It's the radical left that won't allow the latter.” On Friday, 21 current and former faculty members at service academies, war colleges and other military universities said they are “alarmed” Green could become Army secretary. “Mark Green would undermine good order and discipline by fostering dissension within the ranks and sowing confusion about what the military stands for,” they said in a statement provided to The Hill by the Palm Center, an independent think tank that researches issues of gender and sexuality and has been active on the military’s LGBT policies. Signatories include two former West Point professors, four current Naval Academy professors and five current and former Air Force Academy professors. Other signatories come from the Naval Postgraduate School, the Army, Air, Marine Corps and Naval War Colleges, and Air University. The statement cited not just Green’s LGBT record, but also past statements on Latinos, Muslims and birth control. In the speech at the Chattanooga Tea Party, Green speculated that a rise in Latinos registering to vote was due to them “being bussed here probably” and agreed with a questioner who said “we need to take a stand on the indoctrination of Islam in our public schools.” Green also told The Associated Press in 2016 that as a physician, he regularly declines to prescribe birth control to women, instead referring them to other doctors. “All who wear the uniform and risk their lives to defend our freedom deserve the respect and dignity they have earned, including LGBT members, Latinos, women and religious minorities, but Green has a history of creating exceptions for those who don't want to treat others equally and respectfully,” the faculty members said in their statement. “We cannot afford leaders whose priorities are inconsistent with military values. Mark Green is a serious threat to what makes our military great.” Feehan, who was also acting assistant secretary of Defense for readiness, said Green would hurt readiness by deterring some would-be recruits at a time when the military needs everyone it can get. “The military is an organization in which your reputation proceeds you no matter what position you’re in, whether you’re a sergeant, whether you’re secretary of the Army,” Feehan said. “And the reputation that will proceed Mark Green until it is addressed and corrected is that he has views that would make many different groups feel uncomfortable about joining the military in the first place.” Another issue, Feehan said, is the military’s transgender ban was lifted less than a year ago and so the implementation of the new policy is still “fragile.” “To imagine him coming in in this fragile state would very much — this is where the ripple effect works negatively here — would have a cascading effect to essentially turn people away from military service,” he said. “The secretary of the Army’s position on implementing transgender policy is huge, and he could completely disrupt that.” Updated at 2:25 p.m.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1086
__label__cc	0.694405	0.305595	Tag: #StraightBlueTicket The disaster caused by the illegitimate 2016 election has widened like the crack in a dam during the Donald Trump era, and people all over the world are feeling the pressure. A radical tide has swept over the whole planet, attacking like a hydra from all over the political spectrum, and the only thing holding it back is the strength of what has always been the bulwark of democracy on Earth, the United States of America. But they’ve got their guy in charge of it, right now. We’re in trouble. Bad trouble. Readers of this blog will not need to be told. Lack of cooperation between the various segments of the left not only lost us every branch of government in 2016, which was bad enough. It also left the door open for all kinds of infectious diseases and poisons to wander in. We have staved this off so far because we Democrats have had one big advantage. We have always had a good, solid moderate core in the center of the Party dedicated to its upkeep and maintenance, and so we have achieved strength through our unity even in the two years we had no power. That is being challenged by the beginning of factious, tangled wrangling between supporters of one or the other candidate. This cannot be allowed. In many ways, I consider this to be the most important article I’ve ever written. This is a call to every remote reach of the world, a shout out to any and all Democrats on Earth, and it is coming from the gut like nothing I’ve ever felt in my whole life. Every cell in my whole body agonizes for it. Please understand and come to realize. Democrats must come together. Now. Unity is our last best hope. Without it, we may very well lose everything. We could be flat on our backs for the rest of our lives, and subsequent generations of our children would be born into something like slavery. For the love of all creation, for the love of the whole human race, and for the love of love itself, help us to keep this 2020 presidential race a good one. We are not enemies, it’s just the opposite. We are a family. We must become one in spirit and resolve. The requirements of the position demand it. The consequence of failure is defeat. The 2020 presidential election has taken on an apocalyptic significance. American democracy is at risk of dying. In many ways, Trump himself has proven a bit of a softy, much more bluff than bluster, but his friends are completely vicious and he can’t stand up to them. He is the weakest president we have ever had in terms of foreign affairs. At this year’s G20 Summit, the third one we’ve had the miserable honor of covering in the Trump era, he joked around with Vladimir Putin of Russia regarding their hacking of our election on his behalf. Putin looked absolutely proud of him, loving almost, as if he were gazing on the form of a beloved pet. “Look at him! Isn’t he a good dog? Look at all the tricks he can perform, right on command!” Sigh. Trump may indeed be weak, but he has got some very rough customers for friends. We have the resources to fight back. But we are in danger of losing them. We will lose them for a certainty if we don’t stand together. The Democratic playing field for next year’s critical 2020 election is really up against it, in many ways, with so many different contenders. A little bit of chaos is unavoidable. So are we, the Democratic base, who will sooner or later be the members of one of their campaigns. We can’t waste any time, so now that the smoke has cleared a little and the debates have shown us who the players will be, we’ve chosen who we’re calling the Big Five. That means- and in no particular order, we are printing the names in the order shown by the most recent polls- Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, and Amy Klobuchar. Beto O’ Rourke gets an honorable mention. Here at Millennial Democrats, the choice appears extremely clear and obvious, as obvious as the big blue link above. We’re going to stand behind them ALL. With everything we’ve got. Democrats, we have to be ready to support the whole Big Five with equal fervor. We all have to be really careful here because if we mishandle the position in next year’s presidential election, in the four years to come after we will get wiped right off the board. We have nothing except each other, and that has always been enough, especially since we all have had the morbid pleasure of running into Trump and Bernie trolls and Russians and bots. Any of these people would be good at the job and a giant-worlds-away leap better than Trump or the Bern, Russian cutouts that we consider them to be. We’ve been saying this all along. All we have to do is keep walking in a straight line. Forward Together. We have to embrace and get to know every one of these people, who are good people and worthy ones to the woman and man. We’re going to have our picks, that’s only natural, and that is fine. Just don’t get ugly about it and descend into bitterness and acrimony. Democratic solidarity is the final weapon we have. Remember when we succeeded in pressuring Trump into reopening the government after the #TrumpShutdown? What a great day that was. Roger Stone got arrested, and as one organism we rejoiced. “Why are they (Democrats) always so loyal?” he bemoaned afterward, tail between legs and licking wounds. We pulled that off because we stuck together. We have got to preserve that solidarity if we want to continue on our path to victory- and salvation. The Democratic Party is our only hope. We are carrying the torch for the light of freedom everywhere. It will fall in a day if we give up. We have to remind ourselves of that as many times as it takes. We have got to follow this thing through to the end. In regards to the 2020 election, that means we’ve got to take the part of every one of our Big Five, these familiar dear good leaders who we all have known for years. They are all worthy and capable enough to run the country. We’ll take any of them because we’re tired of the horrible Trump era! We’ve got little kids in dog cages on our Southern Border, and there’s no one who can save them except us. This is a crisis of more than material resources. This is about the country’s soul. It’s time for some real talk, and I hope everyone hears me. This is only partially about us. Even us millennials- who, I’d like to remind everyone, is no longer the youngest generation of voters- are going to be gone in a few decades and all that will remain of any of us will be the work that we did for the cause. We are going to be judged by the quality of that work. Future generations will either revere or revile us. In the end, there is no fate but what we make. Speaking as a private citizen, love for the cause is why I do this. The sheer importance of it is too big to contain with words; I’ll just say it is why I will be here to the end. The cause, per se, is to advocate for the future wellness of the world and human race, including every one of us ourselves. Those are all that matters, and we’re the only ones fighting for them. Once again. We cannot drop the torch. The cause right now means getting rid of Donald Trump, and that goal alone is where our loyalties lie, not merely in the persons of Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, and Amy Klobuchar. They have shown up as our leaders, and we are grateful for all of them, but at the end of the day, it’s the good old code of American decency that governs us. We will support those who champion our values, and loyalty ranks high among them, so please do be forewarned. We will fight as hard as we can against those who refuse not to get aggressive. Democrats who attack other Democrats have already ceased to value anything. They are no longer worthy of the name. Look at the socialists, who voted in a bloc last week to deny these children of immigrants, so similar to themselves, the right to have toothpaste or wash their tiny bodies using soap. That’s what it looks like to be disloyal. Disgusting. If you’re not going to leave off with a grudge for the sake of getting children out of cages kept in camps, you don’t value anything. We cannot fight each other and still win. Bernie Sanders and his lunatic cult taught us that. If for your own reasons you really cannot stand one or all of these candidates, but you still are a good Democrat who perceives how unbelievably critical it is to bring the curtains crashing down on the Trump era next year, if you really want to support just your pick, I get it. No worries. Just please don’t go on the attack. It’s exactly like our mothers used to tell us, cliche or not. If you can’t say anything nice, then don’t say anything at all. The Big Five will remain so until well into the primaries next year, and during the interim, we need to have good things to say for every one of them, even if we’re currently competing. You don’t hate your opponent in chess. You shake hands both before and after the game because your opposition is momentary. You will be united all your life by your mutual love of the craft. We all share the same values, and we all serve the same cause. So in the name of that cause we hold sacred in our hearts, we must now commit to forging ourselves into one. Every Democrat must stand firm with every other Democrat, and more now than ever before, for the moment of greatest peril is upon us. The reason why is as simple as it is profound. In order to survive, we have to. We are living in a political landscape that is currently dissolving, and as it does every day presents new questions, fundamental and human in their nature, some completely new. As they do, we need to separate, observe, and classify them. Dissolution in chemistry means the breaking down of complex compounds into their basic particles. Scientists use this technique as a way to collect feedback and data based on the contents of the issue, and that’s exactly what we have got to do. All of us, not just this or that candidate’s supporters. We have to sort out what kind of a position we are dealing with before we can chart a good strategy, and that is going to take us all. This is why we need philosophy, as an aside, Republicans like Tomi Lahren who keep cursing it like animals on Twitter, but then again, you already know that. That’s why you’re attacking these programs now at colleges. A University System in Wisconsin recently in the town of Stevens Point became first in the country to eliminate history from the roster of viable degrees. That is a disastrous indicator for the future of our species. Wisconsin was settled by Germans, a people that produced the philosopher Georg Friedrich Wilhelm Hegel, who said history was of the highest importance to a people of high civilization. Like Ronald Reagan, that great man is rolling in his grave to see what his ancestors are up to. He’s at the Headbanger’s Ball down there, and all because you Republicans are inflexible morons. We can count on you for nothing, and we know it. Republicans of the John McCain mold have gone the way of the dinosaurs; most of those who had honor in 2016 are now Democrats. They have joined our ranks and we thank heaven for them, but for all those to be counted in their number, it seems like Trump has co-opted three more. Again with the hydra analogy. Hercules, at least, ought to be pleased. It’s on us alone, Democrats. If we forget the past again, we have lost. We cannot drop the torch. We’ll just keep saying that, over and over. We cannot give up, and we cannot drop that torch. Not if the Red Sea should close around us. We have to hold the line no matter what. We’ve got to learn to be that rock in the river. Society itself may have to use us for mooring by the end. We must be ready. Ethical, strategical, psychological problems are already arising every single day, and they will multiply like flies as this goes forward. Some of these may be completely new, and very difficult. Sometimes we run into a problem which is all three, like a recent one about candidates and what we will or won’t post about them. These questions involve the heart and soul of the Democratic Party itself, and we have to guide it because that’s who we are. Like chess, there are levels of difficulty engaged in the solving of these puzzles, but no matter what they are we have to manage it somehow. If we do not, we will never defeat Donald Trump. To us, and us alone falls the unenviable task of holding the center through the biggest moral crisis this country has faced since the Civil War ended. The Trump era has been a continuous disaster, an insult and an assault on. If we don’t find a way to get rid of him next year- if we, in the center, at least- don’t learn the terrible lesson of 2016 and stand together now, we may never stand up again. Trump will be lawless like never before, he will have nothing to lose, even now he is feuding with the New York attorney general, and why? Because he is facing charges there as soon as he leaves the White House. State charges, which no amount of federal power can deliver you from. That’s a good part of why they didn’t pardon Paul Manafort. We know for certain now that they discussed the possibility of giving him a pardon seriously. Trump will have every reason to kiss the impediment of our current liberal government system goodbye. Being a third term president would for him be the safest option. He must know this better than anyone. He talks about it all the time. The monopolist segment of the global elite has been setting us up for this. I truly believe that. They’ve been linking up behind the scenes in increasingly ominous ways; just ask Jamal Khashoggi. From the right and left alike, they are coming for us. Every evidence points to this conclusion, like a giant red arrow of warning. This country hasn’t been a full democracy since 2017 according to the World Freedom Index. In fact, almost the whole world is yellow now, not green or blue. Trump constantly flirts with dictators, and Fox News jokes about his being one. Viktor Orban of Hungary, who was the first to use the new plan of discarding democracy gradually by democratic means, bit by bit, was just invited to speak here and did so this last spring. What do you suppose he had to say? One doesn’t suppose it was a paraphrase from Braveheart. I doubt anyone said a word for freedom that day. This is not a game. We know the far-right libertarians have hated the government that can regulate them all along, guys like the Koch Brothers and Vladimir Putin, the latter of which caused a stir just this week about how “liberalism” (meaning democracy) has “outlived its purpose”. We can’t count on Europe saving us, either, they’re in a death-struggle with the New World Order section of the global elite themselves. Marine Le Pen has been leading Macron in the polls in France, in Germany Angela Merkel- the de facto leader and torchbearer of the free world since Hillary Clinton was robbed in 2016- cannot live forever. Britain is in crisis thanks to Brexit years later with compliments to their very own alt-right chefs. The alt-right has cooked up a hefty pile for the final third of the states on Earth to still remain (mostly) democratic. Our allies overseas will be lucky to save themselves. Democrats, we all but stand alone, even now, against a rising tide that threatens to engulf us all in earnest. We are the only ones left who have the power to resist and hold it back. Knowing this in our hearts, as we all do, will we stand as a nation undivided? Will we fight for liberty and justice for all? Or will we close our eyes and play make-believe like children, squabbling like rabble in the moments before our heads go under? Dictatorships using tenets of both fascism and socialism have supplanted democracy everywhere. It’s us and a few embattled others overseas who are still carrying the torch for the light of truth and freedom. We simply cannot drop that torch. We cannot give up now. We have got to stay the course to the end or succumb to a dark and bitter fate. We will be powerless spectators as they do whatever awful things they want. We are going to lose absolutely everything. We tried to warn the Sanders cult of this in 2016 and they did not listen. If we make that same mistake, we drop the torch. If the Democratic Party descends into squabbling now, there is no way to prevent this unthinkable horror. Our solidarity is our only hope because superior numbers are the only resource that we have. If we descend into fractiousness and squabbling, we might as well throw that torch in the toilet. We’ll be lost worse every day. We will not have anything to fight back with. A thug class like the ones the Nazis had will grow strong enough to suppress all of us, and they will do so under the aegis of legality. History has shown us before that the right will stop at nothing to maintain a position such as this once they have got it. There is no way to overstate the case as to how bad it could be. We really need to think about the Holocaust. Our numbers are stretched already, thin and sparse, like a Russian grocery store. Every time one of us throws their hands up in frustration and surrenders, the problem gets worse, as do our chances of coming out of this with a country we can all be proud to live in. Make no mistake, either. If democracy falls here, it will fall elsewhere, and within a span of time that is likely to shock us, all that we hold sacred will be gone. It will melt into the night, like the state of East Germany. Remember when we pressured Trump into reopening the government after the #TrumpShutdown? That was necessary big time and only made possible by those who remained true blue. All of us suffered great stress and anxiety, and many suffered worse. For the sake of an angry whim, and for the longest period in American history we lost five billion dollars. Coincidentally, five billion was the exact sum we wouldn’t give him to build his moronic wall with. His pettiness knows no bounds, he’s got the most dangerous friends there are, and he talks like he’s in early-onset dementia. Who knows what he might do given four more years unrestrained? We’ll be giving him a free hand if we all go to war with one another. Conversely, and objectively speaking, look at all we’ve accomplished in the last two and a half years when we’ve stuck together! Democratic dedication in the age of Trump has accomplished miracles. It’s no small list, especially considering the Republicans were left in control of all three branches of government for four-fifths of that time. We hit them hard last year with a massive Blue Wave, retaking the House and staving off a net loss in the Senate, even though we had twenty-five mostly red state Senators up for election and they had only eight. We managed to save the Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, with a little bit of help from John McCain. We shook the very earth with our efforts to keep Brett Kavanaugh, alleged molester of women, out of the Supreme Court when Kennedy resigned under corrupt-seeming and payoff-looking circumstances. Had Republican and woman Susan Collins stood with us, we could have kept him out. But she didn’t. As always, we stood with ourselves alone, arrayed in ragged armor for the battle of speaking truth to power. We raised awareness about former Alabaman judge Roy Moore‘s awful past as an alleged serial rapist, and kept him out of the Senate, and replaced him with worthy Democrat Doug Jones, the first time any Democrat had held a seat there in several decades- although that raises yet another example. Time passes fast, and Moore is running again and doing just as well as he did before- just like Marine Le Pen, rising in the polls against Macron in France. We’ll have to hold the line again on all this stuff very soon. We can’t do that if we don’t observe one critically fundamental rule- Democrats do not attack Democrats. If the partisan fighting over who’s going to be the one in 2020 is allowed to keep intensifying, far too many of us will lose sight of that. We can’t afford it. We have to put out these fires wherever we see them if we want to save the forest. As an aside, and for the sake of clarification, now seems a good time to remind ourselves that Bernie Sanders has not ever for a minute of his life been a Democrat, which utterly excludes him from this statement. We consider him an adjunct of Putin and Trump; see the link above if you need to know why. Tulsi Gabbard’s a deal-breaker too, for reasons of foreign corruption and cult membership, but we’ll have to cover that another time. Anyone else we will fight for as hard as we can. It is along these lines that our new strategy was conceived. From this day forward, our mission is simple. To stamp out the fires of bitter faction wherever it rears its ugly head, and not by yelling and blustering, but with reason and kindness and understanding. The sword of truth is forged in debate and whetted by discourse, and dissent is the highest form of patriotism, which means we need to be having these discussions. They will help us improve the final quality of our platform, a full half of how we’re going win the people back from the ogre Trump. But they’ve got to be debates and not Royal Rumbles. Unlike Fox News, our goal is not to compete with other cable stations, but to find new ways to do good for the people of the world. That always has been and always will be the sole purpose of this organization. It’s right out there on our Home page. Check it out. If any of you Democrats, our readers out there, should happen to disagree, I encourage and even implore you to write in so that we can begin to talk it out. If you feel like there is something so critical that it’s worth breaking our fellowship over, then hadn’t we better talk it through? In order to begin to find some kind of solution, I need to hear what you guys think the crux of the problem is, and what you think we ought to do about it. We have to find common ground before it is too late. We need each other desperately, and that means we need to inspire and uplift each other, regardless of what candidate you’d like to see win the chance to compete in the biggest election in the primary. These candidates and us, their supporters, have got to keep their eye on that 2020 ball to the point where we become an indivisible mass again. Again, remember the Blue Wave, less than a year ago, when all of us were united and resolved on standing behind whoever won? It was the only light there has been since this thing started, and together we preserved it. Alone we are nothing, but together, we are invincible, and we need to be. Who else but we Democrats are so determined to carry the torch for health and truth, in the face of these looming new Dark Ages? Who else will lift a hand in staving off the fall of our world order? The others are taking sledgehammers to it, and Russia’s laughing all the way to the Iron Throne. The Pentagon just came out with a report that Putin’s plan for world “dominance” involves taking down the United States; just as in the Roman Empire’s final days, the barbarian hordes come from the North. It’s just like then, and there can be no doubt. Night would fall on the world in a day without us. We would all of us be going into the dark. Together at last. I’ve been thinking a lot about St. Augustine, the bishop of North Africa’s final Christian community, the Roman town of Hippo. He gave his life in defense of his city, an impossible task that he attempted anyway. His sacrifice has echoed through all generations to come. Imagine how it must have been in those blasphemous horrid days. The year 400 A.D., Rome falling, disarray descending like an endless blanket of the chaotic, starless night everywhere that any eye can see. In the midst of it all, besieged and cut off on all sides, the small town of Hippo held the last torch that burned on the planet for truth in the hands of St. Augustine, the town bishop, no trained warrior at all. Determination and powerful faith gave his great heart an unshakeable resolution. In the name of the same cause we all are fighting for, knowing there is no future but what we make, he determined to resist the coming hordes to his last breath, which he did. Hippo stood before it fell, but fall it did, and in the final fracas Bishop Augustine was killed, murdered in the gutter by that era’s Bernie Bots and MAGA ravishers. But in the end, his victory reigned supreme. He was immortalized by his courage and was christened a saint. His example will stand as an inspiration to the final generations of mankind, and those who stood by him will be remembered and honored for their courage. When the stuff came down they held the line. For the people of Hippo, the fight was unwinnable from the start, and after the city fell the final torch went out. It was not to be relit in Europe until the eleventh century, and the Dark Ages in between endured for three times the current lifespan of America. But it burned so brightly before the end that God himself must have seen it, and been proud. The story endures as a different kind of fire. Augustine is a personal hero of mine and I refuse to shame his memory. I will carry that same torch through any storm I have to because that is what is needed. Our situation is far from as dire as unfortunate Hippo’s. At this time we can still win, and we must. Refusing to give in to vicious cults, made up of sick members of global elites, is engraved in Democratic DNA by this point. We have guarded our gate now for a hundred years, fighting daily for progress and the people. The most vigorous political action has been needed to sustain us on our journey. It will always be needed. An active, informed citizenry must be present if freedom is to survive. I remember how crushed I was the night of the election when it was read out to all of that HRC had officially been robbed. Distraught and furious, I felt like a wounded animal and lashing out in anger was all I wanted to do But my mentors rescued me from my own worst tendencies. They so fiercely demonstrated to me, in the beginning, their willingness to grimly fight on that my fury had been soon replaced by hope. They taught me what it means to be a Democrat. Decency, loyalty, and love. Not cruelty and viciousness. Those are the arts of the enemy. Where I had been floundering in despair, they had been keeping cool, waiting with the patience of hunters for their moment to strike back. Plan B was formed in an instant, and soon I realized there were about sixty-five billion more plans after that, to be rock-souped on a dime when the situation called for it, cooked up by all the Pattons I’d been given as my teachers. They took a lot of time with me. What heroes. You folks know who you are. I’m the young guy who’s always hung out with all the older guys (kind of weird, to see myself becoming the older guy myself! Time to grow up!) so baby boomers have always been among my best friends. They come kick it with people of all ages. We all get on well for the most part and we get a lot of work done, together. They’re all old tigers, like General Alfred Joffre of France, who spared his country a defeat in WWI with his cool head and his counterattack. The Miracle of the Marne was brought about by men who are in the same position as us people of every gender. I thank God for the dear good baby boomer generation, our parents who saved us from the draft, and who showed me the way to the only truth I know: No good Democrat could ever quit at a critical juncture such as this. When we’re needed to answer the call to such a dramatic extent, we show up, just like our parents did before us. They made the Greatest Generation proud. Now it’s our turn to do the same for them. So long as the United States are united, surrender is out for Democrats- and make no mistake, having no discipline and attacking each other like beasts are the same as surrender or worse. Our souls recoil from the very idea, abomination as it is. We are not going to give over to the same darkness that brought us sadly here. The 2020 Democratic candidates must become one. I am counting on you all out there to help me help our leadership to Make America Sane Again. Resisting internecine rivalry is no longer an option, but a survival-based imperative. We have got to start talking to each other, especially those who have already decided on a 2020 pick. Again, our Big Five at this time are Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, and Amy Klobuchar. We have good things to say about every last one. We have got to get together and form a plan, and that means starting a discourse. Please feel free to invite us as mediators. We love all of you. God, I could not mean that more. This is our country and we are all countrymen (forgive the gender reference; countrypersons doesn’t quite have the same ring.) A discourse works best when there are people involved who are deeply committed to the results. The requirements of the position mean we all have to be both passionate and flexible in regards to their own position. We need every single one of you, and losing you is a tragedy every time. So please, Democrats. Hold the course. We know what the risks in losing are but look at our reward for winning too. Democracy itself might survive because of our efforts. Our torch will keep on burning through this whole mess, because of you personally. Stand behind all Democrats. If you do exactly this, we’re sure to win. But if they manage to divide us, they will conquer. We’re not about to let that happen. For country, Party, God by all his great Names and St. Augustine, I am going to be there, and when I go I am going to kick the hell out of the wicked insane opposition and have some fun while doing it. You’ll be with me, and I’ll be with you, and we’ll be two fish of many in an ocean of deep blue. I believe in my heart that at the finish line, almost all of you will be there with me. We are going to help each other stay calm and to keep all of our heads clear, and together we will hammer out the best way to go with this. In the end, we will have the best available. Trust due process. During the interim, let’s stick close and tight with everyone. Get in touch with anyone you know who are participating directly in the campaigns of the Big Five. No Bern, who has always been Russian infested, no Gillibrand who stabbed Al Franken in the back, and no Tulsi Gabbard because she’s Tulsi Gabbard. The others are likely to remain obscure. It’s time to start thinning out the herd. Today’s political reality says to me that it’s time to get behind them all. We need to tell them that they have to become a team. In a perfect world, there would be weekly strategy meetings held with strategists every day until the last day, because all involved would realize that this is only partly about them. It’s about the cause. What were we saying again, about a torch and maybe not dropping it? That’s likely to be a good decision. The decision as to who to support in the home stretch would be the same as our own model, to be made by consensus based on pragmatism and data, and all candidates involved would be deeply committed to keeping this match above the belt. They would be doing everything they could to help their supporters realize that any and all of them would be really good. Every single one is worth fighting for, with a full heart and spirit, and helping everyone to keep that goal foremost in mind is what we’re on. For our part, we’re going to pledge right here and now to fight for all of them, with equal fervor in our hearts. If you will all pledge with us, next year’s victory will be assured, and we can begin the long labor of cleaning up the mess made by the radicals. Going forward, Democrats, please help us spread the word. We want to see a #BlueTeam2020, made up of these five Democrats and everyone else who realizes how needed they are. We are ALL going to take down Donald Trump. themillennialdemocrats Climate Leave a comment July 3, 2019 24 Minutes Blue Wave Looms Over Voting Day 2018! Get To The Polls And Vote! Today is Voting Day! That long-awaited day, the one we’ve all been waiting for. As voting kicks off on the final day of the 2018 midterm cycles, we’ve got a few last thoughts to offer. Down south, it looks like they’re trying to cheat people. Our prayers go out to all Democrats. A particular prayer seems due for Stacey Abrams of Georgia, the gubernatorial candidate of that fair state; we wish her the best of luck overcoming the dirty tricks of the Republicans and taking her state back to sane decency. The disgraceful conduct of the Republicans will color their names for all time. This Millennial Democrats contributor voted yesterday. A straight blue ticket! A drop of blue water to a strong Blue Wave. It was a beautiful moment for me. I have been waiting for this every single day since November 8 of 2016. I have lived for it. We are going to take back the House and save our country- and we are going to do it today! Even one branch of Congress will be enough for us to stymie every evil thing they try to do. Forget about Trump getting anything else past legislature. He’ll be stuck in his chair from that point on. The Blue Wave’s Crest is towering over him as we speak. He is in its shadow. For all of you who might see this at the last minute- If you are stuck at home today. If you’re too sick. If you’re too busy- Please take advantages of resources designed to help you get to those polls! Your country needs you, your people need you, your planet needs you! EVERYTHING we have been doing here for all this time is pointless if we don’t make it into those booths. Now, Millennial Democrats! Today is that day! Let’s get out there and vote! See you at the booths!! themillennialdemocrats Culture, Politics and Current Events Leave a comment November 6, 2018 1 Minute	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1088
__label__wiki	0.611319	0.611319	Movies starring Nancy Travis 3 Men and a Baby (1987) 102 mins Comedy, Drama Movie review "3 Men and a Baby" – Hollywood remake of "3 hommes et un couffin with Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg and Ted Danson taking on the roles of 3 bachelors who find themselves looking after a baby girl left on their do... 119 mins Drama, Sport "Eight Men Out" is the movie about the Black Sox scandal when then Chicago White Sox accepted bribes to intentionally throw the 1919 World Series, a series they were odds on favourites to win. Featuring excellent performances... I'll Be Home for Christmas (1988) 96 mins Drama, TV Movie Does a movie need to have a purpose or can it survive just as a vision of a slice of life? I am not sure whether a movie can survive just being a slice of life without a story to drive it and it is what is causing me issues ... Air America (1990) 113 mins Action , Comedy Released in 1990, there is now a certain amount of irony when you watch "Air America" as it sees Robert Downey Jr. playing a pilot who joins a secret air force team in Laos where he ends up going to war with those running the... 3 Men and a Little Lady (1990) 104 mins Comedy, Drama, Family 3 Men and a Little Lady (1990) Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg, Ted Danson return as Mary's 3 dads dealing with the fact she may be leaving forever to England... Internal Affairs (1990) 115 mins Crime, Drama, Thriller As a storyline I don't actually think much to "Internal Affairs" as the whole dirty cop / Internal Affairs story has been done before and since and frankly a lot of what goes on in "Internal Affairs" is routine. But then as a... The Vanishing (1993) 109 mins Drama, Horror, Mystery Did you know that "The Vanishing" was originally a Dutch movie made in 1988 by director George Sluizer who when Hollywood decided to remake it directed the remake as well. I would imagine that most people or at least your ave... Greedy (1994) 113 mins Comedy "Greedy" is a movie which you can split into a two segment pie chart with the initial 80% all about the deviousness and infighting of those wanting to get their hands on Uncle Joe's money. We get to see the comedy of nephew C... So I Married an Axe Murderer (1995) 93 mins Comedy, Crime, Romance Let's be honest "So I Married an Axe Murderer" is not a good movie, but neither is it a bad one, it just is what it is, very run of the mill, very obvious and very Mike Myers. In fact one of the most interesting things is wat... Bogus (1996) 110 mins Comedy, Family, Fantasy I feel like I should love "Bogus" it has a fantasy storyline which harks back to the Capra era, in fact with a storyline featuring an invisible friend their is also an element of Koster's "Harvey" about it. But unfortunately ... To Live For (1999) Movie Review - To Live For (1999) (aka: My Last Love) Nancy Travis stars as Susan who has terminal cancer and has moved back home, with her child, to live with her parents and for her daughter's former step-father to have her... The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (2005) As a movie reviewer I try to approach every movie with an open mind especially those which I know are targeting a completely different sort of person to me. So as I sat down to watch "The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants" I... Safe Harbor (2009) Movie Review - Safe Harbor (2009) Treat Williams & Nancy Travis star as Doug & Robbie who were planning on retiring, that is until they take in some troubled teenage boys who have no where else to go... Pregnancy Pact (2010) 87 mins Drama Before watching the "Pregnancy Pact" I had never heard of the teen pregnancy controversy of 2008 when Gloucester High School (Massachusetts) reported that 18 girls had become pregnant, 4 times as many as the previous year, it... A Walk in My Shoes (2010) In "Freaky Friday" Jodie Foster got to switch places with Barbara Harris and see in a comical way that being a mum is not easy. In "The Family Man" Nicolas Cage had an encounter with Don Cheadle who shows him an alternative v... * This is purely a list of reviews on The Movie Scene featuring the name Nancy Travis as one of the principle cast members. 1 pages / 15 reviews Simple list of Nancy Travis movies You Light Up My Life (1977)	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1089
__label__wiki	0.683793	0.683793	Protests continue against mosque demolition in China Beijing: Chinese state media has defended the planned demolition of a mosque in the country’s north west, saying that no religion is bigger than the law even as thousands of ethnic Hui Muslims continued sit-in protests against the plan. Thousands of protesters thwarted attempts by officials in Wuzhong city on Thursday to demolish parts of the Weizhou Grand Mosque in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region for alleged violations during its recent renovation. The sit-in reportedly continued towards the weekend as the protesters stayed put in the mosque. They refused to leave and the appearance of large cooking stoves and large supplies of food and water last evening suggested many of them were in for the long haul, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported. “The officials have not given us a clear answer. And we plan to carry on until the government makes it clear that it won’t make any changes to the mosque,” the Post quoted a protester as saying. Chinese officials say the mosque authorities which carried out a renovation in 2015 made it look like a typical mosque from the Middle East and they want its “Arab style” domes to be replaced with Chinese style “pagodas”. This was deemed unacceptable by most members of the community. “After taking down the domes, the mosque can no longer be an icon of Islam,” said a local man who declined to give his name. “Changing it to a traditional Chinese style is as incongruous as putting the mouth of a horse on the head of an ox,” he told the Post. While there was no official reaction yet to the act of defiance by the Hui Muslim community, which unlike the Uygur Muslims from Xinjiang province, has a peaceful reputation, state media said no religion can be above the law. “Chinese people enjoy religious freedom protected by the Constitution of China, the country under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC). No religion shall have the privilege over laws and regulations of the country,” an op-ed in state-run Global Times said today. “All religious activities should abide by the country’s laws and all religions shall be treated equally,” it said, adding that “to effectively solve the issue, local authorities need to stick to the law and take local people’s feelings and interests into consideration,” it said. Blaming local officials for allowing the construction, the report said “they need to admit their mistakes and inform the area’s Muslims why it is necessary to take corrective actions in regard to the illegality of the ungranted (unapproved) expansion”. “When an issue such as this does arise, it is important for Chinese citizens to uphold the authority of the government’s laws and to achieve unity in society. They should also be vigilant against the intervention of foreign forces,” it said. According to an official white paper released in April, China has about 20 million Muslims with Uygurs and Hui Muslims making up about 10 million each. China is currently carrying out a massive crackdown against the militant East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) in the volatile Xinjiang province where the majority Uyghurs are restive over increasing settlements of Han Chinese. Compared to Uygurs who are of Turkic origin with ethnic ties to Turkey, Hui Muslims are ethnically Chinese in origin. Most of them speak Mandarin, and apart from the white caps and headscarves worn by the more traditional members of the ethnic group, they are indistinguishable from the majority Han Chinese. (PTI) Protests continue against mosque demolition in China added by Muslim Kashmir on August 11, 2018	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1090
__label__cc	0.687636	0.312364	Category: Run DMC Last Shadow Puppets, Run DMC, S'Express 30, 20, 10 (Part 13) Two months ago, I mentioned that Bomb The Bass, the name adopted by producer Tim Simenon, had gotten to #1 in the indie charts with a track consisting solely of samples. This month sees the top spot occupied by probably the best-known and most enduring examples of the genre:- 1 May 1988 : S’Express – Theme from S’Express Still sounds amazing thirty years on. 1 May 1998 : Run D.M.C vs Jason Nevins – It’s Like That Still there….this was the last of its six week stay at the top. 1 May 2008 : mp3 : The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement As wiki states, The Last Shadow Puppets are an English supergroup consisting of Alex Turner (Arctic Monkeys), Miles Kane (The Rascals), James Ford (Simian Mobile Disco), and Zach Dawes (Mini Mansions). It was a fairly radical departure from what the four were best known for, with much of the debut album, from which this was the first single, being reminiscent of the 60s and in particular early Scott Walker. Indeed, the firest few seconds of this single reminds me of Marc Almond‘s cover versions of songs from that era. It will divide opinions. I like it. May 1, 2018 July 7, 2019 5 Comments	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1091
__label__wiki	0.976812	0.976812	http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Music/Blood Music / Blood Create New - Create New - Analysis Characters FanficRecs FanWorks Fridge Haiku Headscratchers ImageLinks PlayingWith Quotes Recap ReferencedBy Synopsis Timeline WMG All I want to do is spent some time with you, so I can hold you. Blood is a 1991 album by the British Goth Rock/ Dream Pop band This Mortal Coil, the third in their catalogue. It received quite a cult success in the UK and the Netherlands, where "You And Your Sister" was a Top 20 hit. "The Lacemaker" (4:06) "Mr. Somewhere" (2:52) "Andialu" (3:03) "With Tomorrow" (2:40) "Loose Joints" (2:26) "You And Your Sister" (3:14) "Nature's Way" (3:19) "I Come And Stand At Every Door" (3:54) "Bitter" (6:25) "Baby Ray Baby" (2:13) "Several Times" (3:12) "The Lacemaker II" (1:24) "Late Night" (3:03) "Ruddy and Wretched" (3:15) "Help Me Lift You Up" (5:06) "Carolyn's Song" (3:47) "D.D. and E." (0:47) "'Til I Gain Control Again" (4:43) "Dreams Are Like Water" (8:37) "I Am The Cosmos" (4:05) "(Nothing But) Blood" (4:04) Caroline Crawley, Louise and Deirdre Rutkowski, Alison Limerick, Kim Deal, Tanya Donelly, Gini Ball, Heidi Berry, Dominic Appleton: vocals John Fryer: programming Jim Williams: guitar Martin McGarrick: string arrangements You and Your Troper Alliterative Title: "Baby Ray Baby". Baby Talk: Baby gibberish can be heard during "Baby Ray Baby". Cover Version: "Mr. Somewhere" by The Apartments, "With Tomorrow" by Gene Clark, "You and Your Sister" and "I Am the Cosmos" by Chris Bell, "Nature's Way" by Spirit, "I Come and Stand at Every Door" by The Byrds, "Several Times" by Pieter Nooten, "Late Night" by Syd Barrett from his album The Madcap Laughs, "Help Me Lift You Up" by Mary Margaret O'Hara, "Carolyn's Song" by Rain Parade and "'Till I Gain Control Again" by Emmylou Harris. Creepy Monotone: The voice during "Andialu" is looped very slowly, which makes it sound as if it was sang by a ghost. Deliberately Monochrome: The black-and-white cover. Distinct Double Album: 21 tracks. Dream Pop: The music at times is very dream like. Epic Rocking: The 6:25 "Bitter", the 5:06 "Help Me Lift You Up" and the 8:37 "Dreams Are Like Water". Goth Rock: The music is at times very gloomy. "I Am" Song: "I Am The Cosmos". Let's Duet: "You And Your Sister" is a duet between Kim Deal and Tanya Donelly. Melismatic Vocals: It wouldn't be a This Mortal Coil album without it. Miniscule Rocking: The 1:24 "The Lacemaker II" and 0:47 "D.D. and E." One-Man Song: "Mr. Somewhere" One-Woman Song: "Carolyn's Song". One-Word Title: The album title, "Blood", and the tracks "Andialu" and "Bitter". Sampling: "Baby Ray Baby" samples "Halleluhwah" from Can's album "Tago Mago" (1971). Siamese Twin Songs: "The Lacemaker" and "The Lacemaker II". Subliminal Seduction: "Bitter" features backwards played vocals. Special Guest: Kim Deal (The Pixies), Tanya Donelly (Throwing Muses, The Breeders, Belly) and Dominic Appleton (Breathless) provide guest vocals. Stock Sound Effects: A baby can be heard talking, bird whistling, jungle sounds and cheering children during "Baby Ray Baby". Thousand-Yard Stare: The person on the album cover. Title Track: "(Nothing But) Blood". Homogenic UsefulNotes/NME: The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time Albums Index Calling All Dawns Music of the 1990s Three Six Mafia British Music	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1094
__label__cc	0.552486	0.447514	Weight of Happiness Rima Fujita Michela Martello September 5 – October 16, 2014 Opening Reception: Friday, Sep 5, 2014 6-8pm “The process that leads to an experience of harmony or happiness usually involves opposite aspects. The artistic path has many constructive-destructive elements, which create a certain ”weight.” Personally I feel this weight is a treasure that forges a body of creativity, inspiration and honest spiritual labor.” — Michela Martello “Happiness has a weight. If the amount of happiness is heavy, it is joyful; if the amount of struggle to achieve happiness is heavy, it is dreadful. For me happiness does not come easily, although it can be so available and light, and happiness relies upon my conscious choice each moment, which comes from my daily struggle with spiritual practice and creativity.” — Rima Fujita Weight of Happiness, is a two-artist exhibition featuring artworks variously inspired by Buddhism, folklore, dreams, the artists’ cultural heritage (Italy and Japan), symbolism and spirituality as interpreted by Ms. Rima Fujita and Ms. Michela Martello. This will be the second showing of Ms. Fujita’s works at Tibet House US and the first collaboration between the two artists. Italian-born Michela Martello has worked as a children’s book illustrator, publishing over 30 books while dividing her time between England and Italy. In 1998 she moved permanently to New York where she started her research as a painter at Arturo di Modica studio. She was selected by the American Association of University Women in the ”Emerging Women Artists juried exhibition” (2006) at New York Design Center. In 2007 – 2008 Jim Kempner Fine Arts and Ok Harris Gallery selected her for the ” NYU Small Work” group show. In 2014 she was selected for the group show “Understanding Media the Extension of Human Being” at Call for Bushwick, NY and that same year she was invited by Trace Foundation to be part of the group show “Transcending Tibet”. Her artwork has been collected and commissioned by both public and private clients. Michela has collaborated with Bonelli Arte Contemporanea (Italy), Tria Gallery (Chelsea NY), and Rarity Gallery Mikonos (Greece). Rima Fujita, a Tokyo-born and New York-raised artist graduated from Parsons School of Design and has exhibited internationally to much acclaim. She is committed to philanthropic work through her “Books for Children,” organization which has created four children’s books and donated more than 12,000 books to the Tibetan refugee children in exile. Rima is honored that H.H.The Dalai Lama wrote Forewords to her books.??Rima has presented her works at a number of galleries including Tagore Gallery (NYC and Beverly Hills), Rubin Museum of Art (NYC), Trace Foundation (NYC), San Diego Museum of Art, Mingei Museum of Art, Isetan Art Gallery (Tokyo), and Bunkamura Gallery (Tokyo).	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1098
__label__wiki	0.892585	0.892585	Canadian vets prepare to return to Juno Beach for 75th anniversary of D-Day Updated: June 4, 2019 8:21 PM PDT Canadian soldiers from the Queen's Own Rifles regiment take part in a ceremony in front of Canada house near Juno Beach, where Canadian soldiers landed on D-day, on June 4, 2019, in Bernieres-sur-Mer. (LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP/Getty Images) OTTAWA — Albert Roy was a fresh-faced 20-year-old from St. Jean Baptiste, Man., when Canadian, American and British troops stormed ashore on D-Day to begin the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control. An anti-aircraft gunner, Roy was not in the first wave on June 6, 1944. He spent much of the first month after the invasion waiting to set foot on the mainland. Shortly after he landed in July 1944, however, tragedy struck. Roy’s unit was passing the city of Caen when he looked up and saw a Lancaster bomber opening its bomb doors. “I yelled: ‘Hey, let’s get to the slit trenches. He’s not aiming properly,’ ” recalls Roy, who is now 95 years old. “I managed to get into my slit trench, but we got hit by shrapnel quite a bit.” That shrapnel tore into Roy’s paybook, which he is carrying back to France this week. The paybook isn’t the only thing he is carrying: there is also a piece of shrapnel still in his leg — and memories are in his head. “The worst thing I went through in the war was the friendly bombing because I lost so many of my friends,” Roy says, adding of his return to Normandy: “There will be a lot of sad memories.” On Thursday, Roy will be among several dozen Canadian veterans who will return to the stretch of French coastline forever after known as Juno Beach, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his counterparts from the United States, the United Kingdom and France will also be on hand and voice their nations’ eternal gratitude to the men and women who sacrificed so much for the causes of liberty and freedom. Trudeau left Canada for several days of ceremonies Tuesday evening. The commemorations will begin Wednesday in the British port city of Portsmouth, where thousands Allied troops embarked for the invasion, before culminating Thursday with a Canadian-only and an international ceremony at Juno Beach. It was at Juno that 14,000 Canadians stormed ashore, fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with British and American troops to break through Hitler’s Atlantic Wall and begin the liberation of Western Europe. More than 1,000 Canadians were killed, injured or captured on D-day and more than 5,000 over the next two months as the Allies struggled to break out of their beachhead during the Normandy campaign. Among those who went ashore on that fateful day was Joseph Edwardson, who had enlisted with several other young men from the northern Quebec community of Oskelaneo and ended up with the Royal Regina Rifles. Initially planned for June 5, D-Day was postponed by a day because of bad weather. The ocean was nonetheless extremely rough on June 6 as the landing craft carrying Edwardson and the other Canadians bore down on France. “The ocean was picking up these landing craft and dumping them up close or even on top of these (German underwater mines) and blowing up the doggone craft,” recalls Edwardson, who now lives in Sarnia, Ont. “So we stayed out a little further beyond the reach of the (mines). And there we lowered and the ramps and the guys jumped into the water and started heading towards the shore. “I didn’t go out the front,” adds Edwardson, whose company lost half its men on D-Day. “We went over the side because the machineguns were trained on the front of it and we decided that was not a good way to go.” Like many surviving veterans, Edwardson has been back to Normandy several times and one thing that strikes him each time is the quiet, which stands in stark contrast with the gunfire, explosions and screaming of D-Day. For Roy, however, this will be his first time aside from one visit with his wife during a previous tour of Europe. In fact, he didn’t really talk about his wartime experience with his family until recently — the wounds were too deep. “When I came home, I decided to forget the war and I did pretty well,” Roy says. “My kids never heard anything from the war … It’s not something you want to remember. When you see the people lying there, it really affects you.” Both Roy and Edwardson nonetheless say it is imperative that Canadians understand and remember what happened 75 years ago, when thousands of young men braved German bullets and bombs to fight tyranny. “Our future generations of Canadians have to realize what it takes to build a nation, who pays for it and how fortunate they are to live in a free country,” says Edwardson. “I think they should remember that generations before them went through a lot to help establish a country and they should be grateful about where they live. In other words, patriotism.” Vancouver Weather WARREN: The D-Day anniversary - a time to reflect on the meaning of sacrifice Pallister missing from D-Day ceremony, says he gave seat to veteran Canadians gather at Juno Beach on 75th anniversary of D-Day	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1102
__label__cc	0.685494	0.314506	Tag Archives: Film Noir Revisiting the The Third Man – The Best Film of the 1940’s “In Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love – they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. “ More so than any other decade in the brief history of film, the 1940’s showed that with great tribulation came great inspiration. Behold the following cinematic masterpieces created amidst a world at war: Casablanca, Citizen Kane, The Grapes of Wrath, Bicycle Thieves, Double Indemnity, Shadow of a Doubt. In any given year in any given decade any one of these films could easily top anyone’s list. Some of them are routinely bantered about as the greatest film of all time. And then there is…THE GREATEST FILM OF ALL TIME. THE THIRD MAN. If the 2000’s were emblematic of my generation, and the 1970’s belonged to the generation of my parents…then the 1940’s were where my grandparents’ generation left their indelible mark: the decade of the Greatest Generation that clawed their way out of the Great Depression to rise triumphant out of the calamity of World War II. Film mirrored this struggle with tales that showed the human condition is made up of trouble every day. We saw some of the greatest book to film adaptations ever with David Lean’s Oliver Twist and John Ford’s The Grapes of Wrath. Speaking of wrath, Carl Theodor Dreyer delivered his bewitching Day of Wrath, while Hitchcock produced the film closest to his heart and mine, Shadow of a Doubt. Clouzot was going tete-a-tete with Hitch across the pond in his native France with the allegorical Le Corbeau and the wildly entertaining police procedural Quai des Orfevres while the Italians were rising from the ashes with their neo-realism movement marked by De Sica’s Bicycle Thieves and Rossellini’s Rome Open City. And beyond briefly mentioning, I haven’t even touched on Casablanca and Citizen Kane, two films deserving of their own full write-ups and tributes. Yet even those films don’t hold a candle to Carol Reed’s descent into GreeneLand and ascent into film history. Continue reading → 12 Comments Posted in A Decade in Film Retrospectives, Art, Book to Film Adaptations, History, Inspiration, Movie Reviews, Movies, Photography, Politics, Pop Culture, Psychology, The Lists Tagged Alida Valli, Anton Karas, Carol Reed, Classic Dialogue, Classic Films, Famous Quotes, Film Noir, Film Quotes, Graham Greene, GreeneLand, Joseph Cotten, Noir, Orson Welles, Psychological Thrillers, Robert Krasker, The 1940's, The Best Films of the 1940's, The Third Man, Trevor Howard, Vienna The Neo-Noir Renaissance Thanks to the slow, cold burn of Winter’s Bone and the mass-appeal of Inception, 2010 has become the year of the Neo-Noir Renaissance. An Idea not spinning out of control... The seeds for this renaissance were planted in 2007 when films that could not be categorized outright as neo-noir but were still “dark as hell” in theme and style (i.e. the dueling banjos that were There Will Be Blood and No Country for Old Men) left the most indelible impressions, if not on mass audiences, then on fellow filmmakers lurking in the shadows. In my yearly wrap-up, I specifically looked at the grim melodramas not nominated for Best Picture when I said, “Flicks like Zodiac, Eastern Promises, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead, and Gone Baby Gone point towards a film movement not unlike the film noir of the 1940′s that mirrors America’s anxiety towards the chaotic outside world inward against the intimate settings of neighborhoods and families in stylish and unsettling ways.” But it wasn’t until 2010 that those seeds planted in 2007 bloomed. It started in February, the coldest and most obscure of months — a time of year that is usually an artistic black-hole for film. Yet it was on the same weekend when two of filmdom’s greatest living masters delivered what appeared to be larks Continue reading → 6 Comments Posted in Art-house Cinema, Book to Film Adaptations, Movies, Pop Culture, Psychology Tagged Alfred Hitchcock, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, Chinatown, Christopher Nolan, Classic Shots, Cultural Zeitgeist, Debra Granik, Film Noir, Film Noir Evolution, Film Noir History, Film Stills, Fritz Lang, Gestalt Theory, Inception, M, Martin Scorsese, Melodrama, Neo-Noir, Noir, Person-Centered Theory, Proto-Noir, Roman Polanski, Scarlet Street, Shutter Island, Sidney Lumet, The Ghost Writer, The Neo-Noir Renaissance, Winter's Bone GreeneLand on Film Fans of British novelist Graham Greene are said to live in GreeneLand, a place where I take up a happy residency. While film buffs will always remember Greene for penning the screenplay to one of the greatest movies ever made, The Third Man, it becomes easy to overlook the myriad of film adaptations that sprang so effortlessly from his novels at the time of their publication and later. In fact, it was a recent mini-Greene-to-film-Renaissance that first introduced me to the man who would become my favorite writer. I would’ve never turned to his short stories and novels had it not been for the most recent film adaptations of The End of the Affair and The Quiet American. Many of the earlier film adaptations are unfairly forgotten or simply hard to find and deserve to be brought to light for classic film buffs and faithful GreeneLand residents alike. The following is a ranking of the Graham Greene book to film adaptations I have seen. Continue reading → 10 Comments Posted in Book to Film Adaptations, Books, Inspiration, Literature, Movie Reviews, Movies, The Lists Tagged A Gun for Sale, Alan Ladd, Alec Guinness, Bobby Henrey, Brendan Fraser, Brighton Rock, Carol Reed, Christopher Hampton, Film Noir, Frank Tuttle, Fritz Lang, Graham Greene, GreeneLand, John Boulting, Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, Michael Nyman, Ministry of Fear, Neil Jordan, Our Man in Havana, Phillip Noyce, Ralph Fiennes, Ralph Richardson, Richard Attenborough, The Basement Room, The Comedians, The Confidential Agent, The End of the Affair, The Fallen Idol, The Honorary Consul, The Human Factor, The Quiet American, This Gun for Hire, Veronica Lake A Review of Fritz Lang’s “M” With nothing worthwhile at the cineplex this spring, I’ve been using my Netflix queue to catch up with many of the classics I studied in film class but never watched as a complete whole. Fritz Lang’s M is one of those classics that looks great on your shelf, but you might only pop in the DVD player for that single scene or shot. I’m not sure I could ever sit through it again fully because it’s so challenging and draining to watch. This is the polar opposite of the film I explored earlier in the month, The Third Man, which I could watch again and again for the entertainment value. That in itself is notable as M is often sited as one of the first films to flirt with noir, while The Third Man is considered by many to be the epitome of the movement. As the film that bridged two significant gaps in film history (the gap between German Expressionism and Film Noir, and the gap between silent films and talkies), M also exists above the scrutiny of a modern film critic. I decided to tackle it as I would have when I was a psychology major in college. The film is endlessly fascinating in its symbolic imagery and psychological, sociological, and political underpinnings. “L” Before “M”, 21 April 2008 Author: David H. Schleicher from New Jersey, USA In an eerie propagandist fashion, the phrase “in the name of the Law” is repeated over the last two scenes of Fritz Lang’s M as a child killer is brought to justice. If “L” represents the State and the Law, then “M” is meant to represent the Individual (who in this case is a Murderer). Lang boldly asked us way back in 1931, whose rights come first: the State or the Individual? A master of his craft, Lang leaves the question open-ended and let’s the audience decide. M is shockingly contemporary in its psychological complexities. It explores the psychology of individualism vs. group think while showcasing how a state of fear can be inflicted upon a populace when a government fails to protect society from a single individual terrorizing the people. The story is fairly straightforward: An elusive citizen begins killing innocent children in a large nameless German city. The media fuels a paranoid frenzy that incites the public. The clueless police begin to raid “the underworld” after the populace is turned into a raving mob because of the failure to capture the killer. “The underworld” comes to a screeching halt as their business is ruined by the police and starts their own manhunt for the killer. Unlike a modern period piece that attempts to evoke a certain place and time, M WAS a certain place and time. Lang, in an almost prophetic sense, captured the state of mind of the German people in 1931 as the Weimar Republic was on the brink of collapse and the Nazi Regime was preparing to take over. When individuals live in a state of fear, as they do in M, society collapses and the Individual is crushed. Only the State, it seems, can bring order. M is a also a masterpiece for its technical aspects. The way in which Lang uses his camera to move through windows, capture shadows, reflections, empty spaces, and shift points-of-view is staggering even by today’s standards. He also played with the new technology of recorded sound with extensive voice-over narration and dialogue used to overlap and transition between scenes. Didn’t critics recently praise Michael Clayton for utilizing just such a technique as if it was something revolutionary? One can also see a protean style the would eventually birth the Film Noir movement with the creation of tension and suspense in the use of shadows and camera angles. Yet M is not perfect. It has some major flaws. There are no real “characters” in the film to speak of in the modern sense. The film is virtually all built around mood and plot. The only time Lang invites us to emotionally connect is in the opening and closing scenes with a mother of one of the victims, and in the classic scene of Peter Lorre giving his writhing and primal “I can’t help it!” speech in front of the kangaroo court of criminals. The mother’s grief and Lorre’s madness are presented so sparsely and in such a raw form that it becomes too painful to want to connect with them. Another flaw that is often overstated about films from this time period is the slow pace of the early police procedural scenes. These inherent flaws combined with the inherent brilliance of Lang’s vision make M one of the most challenging films a modern viewer could ever sit through. What impressed me most about M was the subtlety of the symbolism Lang created with his haunting images. As harrowing as the story is, none of the gruesomeness is shown on screen. It’s all transmitted to the viewer through the power of suggestion. Is it any wonder Hitler wanted Fritz Lang for his propaganda machine, which thankfully led to Lang fleeing to America? I’ll never forget the wide shots of the kangaroo court (and the looks on those people’s faces as the killer is brought down the steps for trial) or the vast expanse of that empty warehouse. The scene of the ball rolling in the grass with no one to catch it, the balloon caught in the telephone wires, and the empty domestic spaces the mother has to inhabit after her child has been murdered are the types of scenes that tape into Jungian archetypes and shared fears. The look on Lorre’s face as he confesses, the hand of the Law coming down to save Lorre from being lynched, and the ghastly plea from the mother in the final scene will stick with me for the rest of my life. M is a communal nightmare; one that from which we have yet to awake. Originally published on the Internet Movie Database: http://imdb.com/title/tt0022100/usercomments-199 For further exploration, some of the major themes of M can be found in the following films: The horrors of group think: Tod Browning’s Freaks (1932) The stalking and murder of innocence: Charles Laughton’s Night of the Hunter (1955) Individuals crushed while under the surveilance of the State: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s The Lives of Others (2006) The unraveling of communities and individuals when children are threatened: Ben Affleck’s Gone Baby Gone (2007) 4 Comments Posted in Art, Art-house Cinema, History, Movie Reviews, Movies, Politics, Psychology Tagged Film Classics, Film Noir, Film School, Fritz Lang, German Expressionism, Group Think, Individualism, Jungian Archetypes, M, Nazi Germany, Peter Lorre, Propoganda, Symbolism, Weimar Republic For the Love of Pete! Part of the wonder of a living language is reviving dead words and phrases. When I recently began to toy with the idea of doing a series of novels set in the 1920’s, 1930’s, and 1940’s, I began to wonder if my knowledge of The Little Rascals would be enough to create that period dialog that would truly zing. While doing a scant bit of research on the internet, I came across some of my favorite sayings and words from those “Old Timey” days. It was quite funny to realize many of these antiquated phrases have been used by me for some time (for instance, my favorite, For the love of Pete!, or my referring to friends or contemporaries as kids). Anyone who knows me knows my fondness for creating catch phrases and playing with words, so here’s a list of some of the best that I think should be put back into everyday use: For the love of Pete! — a versatile exclamation that can be used in almost any situation but is often delivered as a complacent complaint. Source: Pete, the dog from The Little Rascals. Usage: Ethel said to Abner, “When’re you gonna cut that lawn?” To which Abner replied, “For the love of Pete, Ethel! I woulda done did it yesterday if it would get you to shut your trap!” The Wreck of the Hesperus — a mess; a fiasco; a potentially calamitous situation. Source: 19th century poet Henry Wordsworth Longfellow. Usage: The apartment looked like the wreck of the Hesperus after the party. Affrighted — to become frightened or scared. Source: Victorian Era novels. Usage: The sallow specter of the dead governess left me quite affrighted. Side Note: Adding a soft “a” to the front of any verb will make the cut of your jib jive in that Old Timey way. For instance: Last Sunday I went avisiting and met a baby and a dingo. Tonight, I plan to go out adrinking. Dinners — a woman’s bosom; visible cleavage. Source: Old Timey grandmaws. Usage: Oh dear, that little trollop has her dinners all ashowing in that dress! A Real Brick — a good friend or confidant. Source: The book and the film Atonement. Usage: Gee, Sally, you’re a real brick for listening to me tonight. Rather — an often sarcastic declaration of a defeatist attitude or disgruntled agreement in the wake of a long story or statement. Source: Graham Greene novels. Usage: Martha said to George, “Well I’d say he slipped off the wagon tonight with that old scallywag.” To which George might have replied, “Rather!” Get out but quick — self explanatory, see? Source: The classic noir film Double Indemnity. Usage: Laura said to Clyde, “Suppose you get out of here before I slap you.” To which Clyde replied, “Suppose I do get out, get out but quick.” I’d say we start using at least one of these phrases everyday! So hop to it, kids! (in a cloud of dust). What are some of your favorite Old Timey phrases and words? For further Old Timey fun, check out these hilarious explanations of Old Timey names: http://oldtimeytimes.blogspot.com/2006/02/old-timey-names-explored.html Written By David H. Schleicher 10 Comments Posted in Books, Language, Literature, Movies, Pop Culture Tagged Atonement, colloquialisms, Double Indemnity, Film Noir, Graham Greene, Henry Wordsworth Longfellow, humor, Old Timey, phrases, slang, The Little Rascals, vernacular, Victorian Era Novels A Review of Carol Reed’s “The Third Man” CAPTION: In 1949, this Valli was located in GreeneLand. CAPTION: In the best of film noir, a viewer can actually feel the dampness and breathe in the darkness. The Trouble with Harry Lime, 1 April 2008 I initially felt a fool for not having seen The Third Man earlier. However, in retrospect, having now read most of Graham Greene’s major works, and having received some keen insight into the back-story of producer Alexander Korda through Kati Marton’s book The Great Escape, I feel I was able to enjoy The Third Man even more for the staggering masterpiece that it is. As a European/American co-production bankrolled by two legendary hands-on producers, David O. Selznick and Alexander Korda, The Third Man was masterfully crafted by director Carol Reed from a screenplay by British novelist Graham Greene. The film served as a pinnacle of the film noir movement and is a prime example of master filmmakers working with an iconic writer and utilizing an amazing cast and crew to create a masterwork representing professionals across the field operating at the top of their game. Fans of Greene’s novels need not be disappointed as the screenplay crackles with all that signature cynicism and sharp witted dialogue. Carol Reed’s crooked camera angles, moody use of shadowing and external locations (Vienna, partially bombed out, wet and Gothic, never looked more looming and haunting) and crisp editing are the perfect visual realizations of Greene’s provocative wordplay and often saturnine view of the world. Reed’s brief opening montage and voice-over introducing us to the black market in Vienna is also shockingly modern, as it is that energetic quick-cut editing that has influenced directors like Scorsese to film entire motion pictures in just such a style. Also making the film decidedly timeless is the zither music score of Anton Karas, a bizarre accompaniment to the dark story that serves as a brilliant contradiction to what is being seen on screen. The story of The Third Man slides along like smooth gin down the back of one’s throat as characters, plot and mood meander and brood along cobblestone streets and slither down dark alleys in an intoxicated state. Heavy drinking hack writer Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten, doing an excellent Americanized riff on Graham Greene himself) arrives in post WWII occupied Vienna to meet up with his old pal Harry Lime (Orson Welles) only to find that Lime is reportedly dead, the police (headed by a perfectly cold Trevor Howard) don’t seem to care, and Lime’s charming broken-hearted mistress (Alida Valli, perfect as another Greene archetype) has been left behind. Of course, Martins can’t leave well enough alone as conspiracy, murder, unrequited romance, and political intrigue ensue. Welles benefits greatly from being talked about for most of the film and appearing mostly in shadows spare for two scenes: the famous ferris wheel speech, and a climatic chase beneath the streets of Vienna through Gothic sewers. His top hap, dark suit, and crooked smile are the stuff of film legend. The side characters, however, are what make The Third Man such a rich, rewarding experience. We’re treated to small glimpses into the mindsets of varying people ranging from a British officer obsessed with American Western dime-store novels (of which Martins claims his fame) to an Austrian landlady eternally wrapped in a quilt going on and on in her foreign tongue as international police constantly raid her building and harass her tenants. The brilliance is that one needs no subtitles to understand her frustration. These added layers of character and thoughtful detail, hallmarks of Greene, set The Third Man in a class above the rest of film noir from the late 1940’s era. Make no mistake, The Third Man is arguably one of the most finely crafted films ever made. One’s preference towards noir and Greene’s world-view will shape how much one actually enjoys the film. For the sheer fact it has held up so well over the decades and has clearly influenced so many great films that came after it, its repeated rankings as one of the greatest motion pictures ever made can not be denied. With a good stiff drink in hand, and Graham Greene’s collection dog-eared on my bookshelf, The Third Man is undoubtedly now one of my favorite films. Reed’s closing shot of a tree-lined street along a cemetery and Joseph Cotten leaning against a car smoking a cigarette while Alida Valli walks right past him with that zither music score playing is one that has left an indelible mark on my memory and enriched my love of film as art. CAPTION: On the outside Joseph Cotten is as cool as cucumber, but on the inside, the hopeless romantic screams at Alida Valli, “Don’t walk away!” 3 Comments Posted in Art-house Cinema, History, Inspiration, Movie Reviews, Movies, Pop Culture Tagged Alexander Korda, Alida Valli, Anton Karas, Carol Reed, David O. Selznick, Film Classics, Film Noir, Film School, Graham Greene, GreeneLand, Joseph Cotten, Kati Marton, Orson Welles, Post WWII Occupation, The Third Man, Trevor Howard, Vienna, Zither	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1106
__label__wiki	0.94429	0.94429	Johnson quick to find his mark For a so-called underrated player, Andrew Johnson is not exactly flying under the radar. Darren Zary, Saskatoon StarPhoenix As a rookie on the University of Saskatchewan men’s hockey team, Johnson scored both game-winning goals in the Huskies’ seasonopening series in Calgary last weekend. He was also a leading scorer in the pre-season. “I’ve got the opportunity to do so and I’m starting to get some confidence, also,” says Johnson, whose Huskies play their Canada West conference home-opening series Friday and Saturday against the Lethbridge Pronghorns at Rutherford Rink. “I’ve always had the ability. I’m just getting the opportunity and it’s working out.” Johnson, a former Saskatoon Midget AAA Contact who played his minor hockey in Saskatoon’s Bobcats zone, is among a handful of rookie additions up front for the Hockey Dogs, who were lacking scoring depth last season. He’s been playing on a line with another former Contact, Kohl Bauml, and Levi Cable, who both put up big numbers in the Western Hockey League last season. “He’s an underrated player,” U of S head coach Dave Adolph says of Johnson. “He wasn’t a big kid in the (WHL) and maybe didn’t fight or do all the things needed to do as a 19-or 20-year-old. We never did de-value his ability. “He has also really clicked with Kohl Bauml. They’ve got a nice chemistry going. They’ve been real good.” Bauml had 30 goals and 30 assists for 60 points in 71 games last season with the Everett Silvertips, adding seven more points in 11 playoff games. Cable notched 28 goals and 23 assists for 51 points for the Kootenay Ice in 69 games before adding five points in seven playoff games. “I played with Kohl back in my Contacts days and I always enjoyed playing with him,” points out Johnson, a 5-foot-10, 180-pound winger. “Cabes (Cable) is a good player too. He fits right in. We seem to be clicking. “The guys have been awesome. It’s been a pretty easy transition.” Johnson had WHL stints with the Moose Jaw Warriors, Seattle Thunderbirds and Swift Current Broncos before wrapping up his junior career with the BCHL’s West Kelowna Warriors. In Kelowna, he stayed with his grandpa, John Wandzura. “Me and my grandpa are best friends – it couldn’t have worked out better,” says Johnson, who is back at home living with his parents while attending university. “The hockey, too, worked. I needed to take a step back in a sense, to find those bigger roles playing in every situation and find my confidence and I’m just trying to carry it forward to this year.” Johnson had 20 goals and 29 assists for 49 points in 51 BCHL games “Ever since I saw him in bantam, Andrew’s been a good player,” says Adolph. “He got nicked up a little bit in the (WHL) and he’s a little undersized, I guess, in terms of what they’re looking for in a grinding forward. But he’s always had the desire and skill.” Johnson racked up 40 goals and 40 assists in 45 games with the Saskatoon Stallions in bantam AA before being selected by Moose Jaw in the second round, 23rd overall, in the 2009 WHL Bantam Draft. He joins a number of old hockey colleagues on the Huskies. “There are a lot of guys from my age group,” he points out. “Kohl, Logan (McVeigh), Jaimen (Yakubowski) and Carter (Coben), I’ve known them from growing up playing minor hockey, or spring hockey, or whatever it may be. Lots of familiar faces.” The CIS game, he says, is good. It’s a highly skilled game. “It’s quick and you have to be smart,” says Johnson. “You’re playing against men out here, which is different than junior. I’m starting to adjust to it.” In the off-season, Johnson was fielding offers from other CIS teams across Canada, including the Maritimes. “In the end, it was pretty easy for me,” notes Johnson. “You’ve got your family at home. Myself, I haven’t been home for the winter in five years. “At the end of the day, I made the decision that this was definitely a good fit.” dzary@thestarphoenix.com Twitter.com/@DZfromtheSP Canada West men ‘s hockey Saskatchewan Huskies vs. Lethbridge Pronghorns 7 p.m., Friday, Saturday Rutherford Rink, U of S campus  Bennett-Boire a key ingredient in Huskies' recipe for success on court Deaf Seahawks' RB suspended Photos: Sask. fans among those cheering as Raptors defeat Warriors Stu Cowan: Snowstorm doesn't stop Canadiens from showing off skills Photos: The Week in Photos (June 29 - July 5) Photos: The Week in Photos (June 1-7)	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1107
__label__cc	0.734596	0.265404	The Best Ambient Sound Apps for Creative Focus Utility｜Web • Apr.24, 2019 For centuries, we’ve believed that silence is the best way to focus. Poets, engineers and problem-solvers do spent hours in silence, waiting for the best ideas and solutions. But, is silence really the best way to creative focus? This is why people started talking about Ambient Noise. What is ambient noise? Let’s not get too much technical here. Ambient noise refers to background noise that has a particular amount of intensity. It’s not the ear-breaking noise pollution that you hate, but it’s not near ultimate silence either. The best example would be the chatter you listen to at a coffee shop. The sounds are not that intrusive but you know it’s not complete silence either. So, the question is this: Is ambient noise bad, after all? Well, scientific research has some answers for you. The science behind ambient noise Back in 2012, a group of researchers set out to study the relation between noise and creativity. Of course, the idea was to debunk several myths that linked creativity to ultimate silence. Their results, published in The Journal of Consumer Research, found something so interesting. Ambient noise of about 70 decibels improved the creative focus and performance of individuals when compared to a quieter situation of 50 decibels. The team also found that going beyond the 70-decibel limit may cause some negative impacts as well. Well, the key takeaway is this: The ambient noise from your neighborhood café or during a rainy evening can help you improve focus. Ravi Mehta, the lead author, said that such noise distracts a person just enough to think broadly. It means you’re likely to think outside the box and get some creative ideas when there is some limited background noise. So, you are likely to be more productive and creative when you’re in a coffee shop or somewhere else. But, you cannot always head towards the coffee shop or set up a campfire, right? Well, don’t worry, ambient noise apps are here to help you. What are ambient noise apps? As the name says, an ambient noise app helps you listen to ambient noise. It will simulate ambient noise of various sources like coffee shop, thunderstorm, rain, campfire etc. while you are doing some work. The best part here is that you can even mix and match things according to your needs. Well, it all depends upon the app you’re using. As it happens, there is a wide variety of ambient noise apps out there. You can find desktop-based software as well as web-based apps. The choice depends on where you work and how you work. By the way, just so you know, you can use these apps for other purposes as well. For instance, there are people who listen to ambient noise for quickly falling asleep. Talking about that, you should have one of the best ambient sound apps if you need creative focus. And, in this article, we have compiled a list of the best ambient noise apps you can check out. Our choice — Noizio As it happens, Noizio is our recommendation when you are looking for the best ambient sound app. It’s also one of the most popular ambient sound apps you can find for macOS, Android and iOS. Touted as a powerful ambient sound equalizer, there is a lot Noizio can do to help you. Personally speaking, I have been using Noizio for a long period of time and I’m happy to give you a detailed review here. What is noizio? Noizio is an easy-to-use ambient noise app that you can use for improving your creative focus. While it offers a variety of ambient noise options, the app is well-designed for the focus part only. That, however, is not an actual limitation. Instead, Noizio turns out to be a dedicated tool for ambient noise manager. As we said in the intro, we can also call it an ambient noise equalizer. Now that you know the basic things about Noizio, let’s check out how it is to use the app in real-life. Installation and getting started Noizio is one of the simplest macOS apps I’ve ever come across. It’s so low in size and has a minimal footprint to begin with. Downloading Noizio from the official website and installing it on your Mac will not take more than a few seconds. Or, if you are getting it via Setapp, things are even easier. Once Noizio is installed, you’d be able to start using it in no time. First things first, Noizio does not have a fully-fledged window interface. Instead, the app fits right into your macOS menu bar. Right next to your battery and other icons, you can find the Noizio icon as well. Clicking on this icon will open up the easy-to-use interface. Here is where all the magic happens. As you can see, the User Interface is quite intuitive. Using ambient noise from Noizio Unlike most of the ambient noise apps you come across, Noizio is an ambient noise equalizer. It means you can mix different ambient noises to create the best deal. This is pretty great, considering that some people love to listen to coffeehouse chatter while others prefer the sound of a night owl. In any case, Noizio is ready for that. So, when you open the Noizio interface, you can see a list of all the sounds along with level bars. To begin, however, click on the Play button. Now, adjust the volume levels for each of the sounds according to your own tastes. As you can see in my case, I have created a mixture of October Rain, Thunderstorm and Waves in the Sea. We can also adjust the intensity. In this case, Thunderstorm is given the topmost priority, meaning that I will be listening to more of that. Noizio also has a timer function. But, you can always decide to interrupt and hit the Pause button. Saving ambient noise mixtures One of the limitations with Noizio is that it doesn’t offer any pre-built mixtures. But, that’s actually a superb thing if you think about it. That is because Noizio allows you to save customized ambient sound mixtures to the app. The process too is super-easy. Suppose you are listening to a few sounds that you selected according to your mood, like I did above. Now, if you think the combination is helping you focus better, you can open the Noizio app and click on the Save button. This action would save the pre-set and you can give it a name as well. So, the next time you like to do the same thing, you can access the same sounds in a single click. This is a great feature that we haven’t seen in other tools. The ambient noise collection This, we think, deserves a special mention. We tested a number of ambient sound apps for this article and Noizio still has the highest number of noises. As you may have noticed from the screenshots, the collection is quite rich. There are conventional ambient noises like coffeeshop and ocean waves. But, if you scroll down, you can also find new sounds like night owls and other sleep-oriented ones. See, Noizio markets itself as an ambient sound app for focus-boosting. However, the way we see it, you can create the right sound mixture for all sorts of needs. Of course, you may have to put in some extra effort in choosing the right sound tracks. But if you do, you will surely love the rich ambient noise collection that the app is offering. So, there are a few additional features that make Noizio more impressive to use. Let’s have a look at them. First of all, the controls in Noizio are super-easy. On top of this, you can assign keyboard shortcuts to make things easier. The app comes with a few default shortcuts, but you can change them. For instance, pressing Cmd+Shift+P will pause the ambient noise. Secondly, Noizio also lets you schedule and automate the app. For instance, you can set up Noizio to start when you turn on your computer. In addition to this, you can also tell the app to start playing sounds as soon as you open the app. A word about Android and iOS apps The above review was based on the macOS app from Noizio. It was based on the idea that people normally use their Mac to get work done. However, if you are someone who wants to plug in the headphones to your Android or iOS devices, Noizio won’t disappoint you either. The apps are great, easy to use and offer a free version. There too, you can mix various ambient sounds for the best effect. We believe the apps will be great if you want to listen to ambient noise while trying to sleep or relax. At this point, the pre-sets would be super-cool too. What could be better There are a few things we thought could be better in Noizio. While the User Interface is easy, it could be better integrated with macOS system It offers customization, but a suggestion of sound pre-sets would make things simple for first-timers Features are way too limited in the free version Availability and pricing Noizio is available for macOS, Android and iOS. For these platforms, you can download dedicated apps to listen to ambient noise. The developers have kept the same User Interface everywhere. It’s disappointing that Noizio is not available for PCs running Windows. Noizio for macOS costs $4.99, a quite reasonable amount. This unlocks the full set of ambient sounds, which is great. On Android and iOS, however, Noizio is completely free to use. However, because the collection is so limited, you will have to do in-app purchases to unlock more sounds. So, the point is, you will need the Pro version if you need the real power of Noizio. Considering all these, Noizio is indeed the perfect ambient sound app for macOS, Android and iOS. It is just awesome that you can actually have the same experience and same sounds in all your devices. So, on any day, it’s in our recommendation list. Also great — Focus@will While Noizio is the perfect ambient noise app for almost all needs, Focus@will is a bit different. However, if you are looking for a scientifically-proven method to increase your productivity and focus, Focus@will is the best you can get. Let’s have a look at how it works and why you want to consider Focus@will for your team. What is Focus@will? Focus@will is a service that brings you scientifically optimized music to increase your productivity as well as focus. It’s not technically an ambient noise app, because you are listening to professional-made background scores. But, the unique point of Focus@will is that the service suggests you the best music that would bring you the best amount of focus and control over what you’re doing. Focus@will is based on human neuroscience and it takes input from various research studies conducted all across the world. Because of this, the service provides customized music content for all needs. Say, you are a logical thinker or a creative writer or a student. In all these cases, Focus@will can offer you a dedicated set of ambient music. How to use Focus@will? One of the most straightforward web apps we’ve seen, Focus@will is so easy to use. Focus@will is basically a subscription-based service. You will have to create an account and purchase one of the subscription plans to get started. Focus@will offers both individual and team plans, and the team plans are great when you want to boost the productivity of an organization as a whole. Once you have the account, you can sign into the dashboard of Focus@will. The dashboard is very easy to use and you can start streaming in a second. All you have to do is to click on the Play button. Focus@will will be playing the ambient noise track it has already selected. There is also an option to set up a timer that will track your productive time. You can click on the Next button to move to the next track. The controls are super-easy here. If you have been using Focus@will for a notable period of time, the recommendations will be based on what you’ve listened to and what you’ve skipped. Ambient sound collection The rich collection of ambient sounds offered by Focus@will deserves a special mention on any day. There is so much to choose from if you want. First of all, there are background sound channels. Each channel produces a different kind of ambient sound, aimed at different results. You can manually choose the channels or let Focus@will recommend you the best according to your tastes. In the Labs section, you will find a slightly different collection of sounds. These background scores have been designed with the help of scientific research, to offer assistance to various people. You can always check out these Lab sounds to see if something helps you better than the other one. You can also favorite certain sound sources to access them quickly. Apart from an ultra-simple UI and an amazing collection of ambient sounds, Focus@will offers a few extra features as well. Productivity Tracker As the name says, this feature will analyze how productive you have been on a given day. The interface can present the data using a chart or a list but you get an idea anyhow. Once again, Focus@will makes use of a few scientific algorithms to track your productivity and present the final insights. What’s more, you can also download the productivity-based data for further analysis. Channel Recommender This is one of the most impressive features we found in Focus@will. The Channel Recommender works in a truly scientific manner. It will ask you a few questions about your personality, working habits, the ongoing levels of productivity and focus. Based on these inputs, Focus@will will suggest the best channel of ambient sound. In my case, the recommendations were on-point and so effective. Focus@will is primarily available as a web app. You can open the website, sign in and start using the ambient sound streaming service. In addition to this, official apps are available for Android, iOS and Sonos. Once you have logged in, you can listen to the same great music from all the devices. Focus@will offers subscription plans that start from $8.99 per month. However, you can pay annually to get some discount. In addition to this, Focus@will is also offering a lifetime-access package that costs $299.95. At the end of the day, you can choose based on your needs. As we said earlier, Focus@will also has a dedicated version for Teams. This service is used by companies like Google and Forbes, adding more trust. In this case, however, you will have to pay the subscription amount based on the number of users your organization has. Focus@will is no less than wonderful when it comes to increasing productivity and boosting focus. As it has said earlier, the service can increase the productivity by 4x and we believe that’s true. The tracks and chosen carefully and offer the best results. And, for everyone who needs a better working scenario, we will suggest the service. Other options worth considering Obviously, we had considered other choices before choosing Noizio as the ultimate ambient sound app. The majority of them got filtered out, but here are a few worthy alternatives you can consider. Most of these are web-based interface. So, if you can keep a browser tab open for some productive ambient noise, you should consider these options. Coffitivity Coffitivity was one of the first ventures to make the dream of ambient noise come true. In the course of time, the website has improved a lot for sure. For instance, you can listen to a wide variety of coffeehouse chatter now. It is based on the same kind of research we talked about in the beginning and offers some level of choice for the customer. Unlike other services, Coffitivity allows you to choose between various coffeehouse environments. There is one for breakfast-style cafes and another one for the lunchtime chatter. In case you are interested, you can also bring in the chatter from a typical university café. Some of these options are premium while most of the sounds are free. Collaborating with an open-source developer named Siwalik Mukherjee, Coffitivity has an offline app as well. You can download this macOS app if you want to take the ambient sounds with you. In case you didn’t guess, only three ambient sounds will be available in the app. The app is pretty cool to use but takes up some space due to the high-quality chatter. Practically, Coffitivity is easy to use but you can always upgrade for better sounds. Noisli is a wonderful ambient sound app if you can keep yourself connected to the Internet. It’s a web-app, and you need to keep a browser tab open for listening to the sound. That factor apart, Noisli offers one of the best ambient noise collections we have seen. However, it should be noted that you can download Noisli apps for iOS, Android and there is an extension for Chrome as well. In all these methods, you have some added advantages. First of all, you can simply select the sound and alter the intensity to make your own mix. However, if you are indeed confused about the process, Noisli can also suggest some options. You can click on the Productive or Relax button to launch corresponding sound sets. In addition to this, Noisli has a random noise selector as well. In order to save your presets and preferences, Noisli wants you to create an account. Using the account, you can access the service on other devices as well. In the iOS and Android apps, however, you have some extra features such as the timer functionality and offline sound support. If you are on a Mac or PC, however, bad luck. Noisli is free to use, but the iOS app costs $1.99. MyNoise MyNoise goes a step forward when it comes to ambient noise apps. While the app itself may not win awards for anything, the collection of ambient noise would surely will. The way we see it, MyNoise is a platform that brings awesome ambient noise to your ears. It’s just that you can have the same experience on your iPhone, Android or some supported devices. Talking about the collection, MyNoise is something unparalleled. It not only brings you scenario-based sets of background sounds but also customize almost everything. For instance, if you open the section called the Irish Coast, you will be able to adjust the volume of individual sounds like wind rumble, waves crash, loch and rain. At the end of the day, MyNoise offers a unique ambient noise experience. You are your own boss and you’d get to decide which sounds you listen to. We also loved the detailed interface of the website. On Android, it is possible to download the myNoise app and enjoy all the sounds while trying to relax, sleep or work. It’s in the list for the amazing collection. MyNoise is free to use, but there are some premium sections as well. White Noise Lite White Noise Lite is an ambient sound app that is available for Android, iOS, macOS and several others. That having said, there are some drastic differences in terms of pricing. While the app is free for Android and iOS, you have to pay for most of the other platforms. However, if you are ready to pay, there are paid versions of everything available. If you are asking us whether White Noise Lite is worth it, the answer is yes. The whole app is enriched with a collection of ambient noise for sleeping, relaxing and focusing. In addition to this, there are a few alarms, recorders and mix pads. All these work really great when it comes to ensuring the best sleeping or focusing experience. Some might say White Noise Lite is a bit overkill, and we won’t blame them. It isn’t the simplest app when it comes to ambient sound. What’s best? You can even record voices from the surrounding and use them as a noise for background. If you dig these extra features, you should give White Noise Lite a try. We wish if it had a free version for desktop though. White Noise Lite is free on iOS and Android, but yo’ve to pay for the Desktop versions. So, these are the best solutions when you are looking for the best ambient sound app for creative focus or a good night’s sleep. We stick onto our opinion of recommending Noizio and Focus@will, because they bring an amazing app as well as one of the best collection of ambient sounds. And, we are also sure that you would love every single app or web service we’ve listed here. By TheSweetBitsTeam\| 2019-04-28T06:07:39+00:00 April 25th, 2019\|Utility, Web\| FacebookTwitterLinkedinTumblrGoogle+PinterestVkEmail Setapp: Another (Better) Take on Mac App Store Best Password Manager 2019 The Best (Free) Encryption Software for Cloud Storage The Unarchiver/Archiver App For All Your Stuff © Copyright TheSweetBits LLC. All Rights Reserved. \| PRIVACY POLICY	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1108
__label__wiki	0.699349	0.699349	Home Out & About Family Fun Historic Rubicon Point Lighthouse Historic Rubicon Point Lighthouse Mark McLaughlin Rubicon Lighthouse. \| Mark McLaughlin The hike from D.L. Bliss State Park to Emerald Bay and back ranks as one of the most exceptional walks in all of Tahoe. It is about 6 miles round trip to the vistas of Emerald Bay, perfect for a family outing or a casual afternoon sojourn. This well-maintained trail is rated beginner level ability but offers expert-only views. BUCKET LIST #31 Keep your eyes peeled for osprey and bald eagles diving for fish. Check out their large nests perched on dead tree snags towering above the forest canopy. Just off the rugged shoreline, the water is more than 1,000 feet deep. Depending on weather, the park is open from late May until September. Read more about Duane Leroy Bliss and Tahoe Tavern. Click on History under the Explore Tahoe menu. Explore the hike to Emerald Bay. Click on Hiking under the Out & About menu. In 1929, descendants of the Duane Leroy Bliss family donated 744 acres of this scenic landscape to California, thus creating D.L. Bliss State Park. A timber baron, Bliss profited from the mass harvest of Tahoe’s old-growth forest to supply mining operations on the Comstock in western Nevada. In the 1890s, the former logger developed a case of environmental awareness and joined an effort to protect the Tahoe Basin by establishing a Lake Tahoe Forest Reserve. The controversial plan was fiercely opposed by residents of El Dorado County where commercial development would be prohibited. However, on April 13, 1899, President William McKinley set aside 136,335 acres in the southwest part of the basin. Included in the preserve is what is now Desolation Wilderness, one of the most popular and heavily visited wilderness areas in the country. Ever the capitalist, at the turn of the century Bliss initiated modern tourism at Big Blue. He launched a luxury passenger steamship named the “S.S. Tahoe,” built the Tahoe Tavern for wealthy tourists near Tahoe City and constructed a charming narrow-gauge railroad along the Truckee River to connect Tahoe City with Truckee. It represented Lake Tahoe’s coming of age as a destination resort. Rubicon Point Lighthouse Trail begins near Calawee Cove Beach and heads south. Take the short diversionary walk to an abandoned lighthouse built in the early 20th Century. Cut-granite steps lead to the small wooden pedestal that housed the lamp — it was restored and stabilized in 2001. Don’t expect a traditional lighthouse: this one looks more like an outhouse but it has an interesting backstory. Starting in 1910, a navigation safety organization called Lake Tahoe Protective Association began submitting annual requests to the U. S. Congress for harbor buoys and lighthouses on Lake Tahoe. There were few electric lights illuminating the Tahoe shoreline in those days and boating traffic had increased dramatically in the early 1900s. Tahoe’s maritime interests supported the installation of navigation aids on the expansive lake busy with tourist passenger steamers and nautical vessels. Calawee Cove Beach. \| Mark McLaughlin In 1916, Congress approved the installation of navigational lamps at Lake Tahoe and the Rubicon Lighthouse was built that year by the U.S. Coast Guard. An acetylene gas light with a 5-second flasher was mounted on top of a 7-foot wooden support 200 feet above the lake at Rubicon Point. Skippers could get their bearings at night with the new navigation light. To keep the lantern lit, a 300-pound tank of acetylene gas was delivered daily to Emerald Bay by the “S.S. Tahoe” and then hauled up the trail by mule or wagon. This maintenance was especially challenging during winter months. The cost and labor led to decommissioning the Rubicon Lighthouse in 1921; it was relocated about 5 miles north at Sugar Pine Point. The 1921 Annual Report of the Commissioner of Lighthouses reported that the lantern at Sugar Pine was mounted on a similar pyramidal wooden tower where it remained operational for decades. By 1980, the wooden tower had been replaced with steel rigging. Later a modern navigation aid was installed along the shoreline. It can be seen along one of the nature trails at Ed’ Zberg Sugar Pine State Park. Despite claims to the contrary, the Rubicon Point navigation beacon does not hold the record for highest elevation lighthouse in the world, North America or even the United States. All three of those accolades belong to Colorado’s Frisco Bay lighthouse, perched at 9,017 feet above sea level at Dillon Reservoir in the Rocky Mountains, nearly 2,000 feet higher than Lake Tahoe. However, it’s possible that the original Rubicon Point Lighthouse was the loftiest navigation lantern when it was installed. The Sugar Pine Point State Park beacon is not the only one on Lake Tahoe. There is an operational lighthouse at the late George Whittell’s Thunderbird Lodge on Tahoe’s East Shore. D.L. Bliss State Park Rubicon Point Lighthouse Trail Tahoe trails Truckee trails Previous articleKahlil Johnson \| Creating Art with Leather Next articleOne Grass Two Grass \| Through the Looking Glass http://thestormking.com Mark is an award-winning, nationally published author, historian and professional speaker with seven books and more than 800 articles in print. A prolific writer, Mark has received the Nevada State Press award five times. He is a popular lecturer and experienced field trip leader who has lived at North Lake Tahoe since 1978. He teaches Sierra Nevada history using entertaining stories, slide shows and informative tours. He has been a frequent guest on National Public Radio and has appeared as an expert consultant on CNN, The History Channel and The Weather Channel, as well as many historical documentaries. Hike to Eagle Falls & Eagle Lake	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1109
__label__wiki	0.770749	0.770749	You are at:Home»Space»ISpace to launch Moon Valley by year 2030 By Zac Hanan on May 20, 2018 0 Comments Japan plans to send their first man to live on the moon by 2030 as a part of their international mission. The project is being financed by NASA and Ispace is currently working on it together with Mr. Acerino, a commercial space and lunar exploration expert from Canada. In 2008, White Label Space contested for a $20 million in Google Lunar X Prize. For the sake of quality photos and videos, a spacecraft was sent to the moon’s surface. In 2010, Yoshida Robotics Ltd. partnered with White Label Space where Takeshi Hakamada stepped in to be the leader. Meanwhile, “Sorato,” a rover, was built by Japanese contingent which means a white rabbit. The Lunar Lander was to be built by White Label Space. On March 2011, when Japan started shaking. The ocean floor gave space, the waves erupted, triggering an earthquake of magnitude 9 accompanied by the great tsunami waves. This disrupted the country’s infrastructure as well as all sorts of communication and transportation routes. It took away more than 16,000 lives. But inside Tohoku University, a team working on a rover also competing for Google Lunar X Prize was making their dreams come true. The rover was a 22 pond metallic thing that survived the earthquake. This team of students later became a company; today knows as Ispace. Difficulties faced As for White Label Space, working on their creation proved more difficult than they had thought, for running a space company is tough. In early years only 5 teams were left. 27 teams had given up. Not only were they facing space problems such as rocks blowing up, failed experiments and employees quitting their jobs but also a huge financial crisis. The company’s bank account was near to zero. The team was in need of finance when it won the Mobility Milestone worth half a million dollars. Japan comes right after the USA when it comes to space research. Japan then began investing in startups outside their country as at that point Japan had no major space set up of its own. Working with the help of the Government, Aoki emerged at that point granting a $940 million venture capital. Soon then Spacetide, Japan’s first conference for the space industry took place. The government alongside the companies took great risks and pressure from its citizens for the space industry. From being old schooled, it began to modernize and change their working methods for the sake of success. Further Attempts As for White label Space and Yoshida Robotics, their parent company Ispace organized a contract with India’s Team Indus which had built a lander. Ispace and Team Indus agreed to do the field testing together where Ispace would ride with Team Indus. If the plan became a success – Ispace was in for millions and millions of dollars from Google. They raised up to $90 million from investors worldwide. They became known not only in Japan but all over the world. But luck betrayed them and their future started to shatter when unfortunately Team Indus couldn’t raise the desired amount of money which was essential for their creation. As a result, the contract ended. Now, Ispace had to face their investors, the government and the people who believed so much in them. As for the X Prize; the team withdrew their prize money of $20 million for the remaining competing teams. After extending their deadline from year after year starting from 2014 to Jan 23rd, 2018. The foundation concluded that teams could still compete, not for prize money but for recognition. But for Ispace, it was never about those $20 million. It was all about the Moon Valley. The company worked in difficult and tough times for its ideology of the moon valley. It hired more expertise, well-known experts, invested more and worked towards their goal. Luckily, they found Acerino, from Canada who became a global business development manager. Together they set up an office at NASA. Today Ispace plans to permanently establish lunar settlement by sending its bots to the moon. It has built an 8.3-pound machine that looks like a bug with a carbon fiber body. The cameras that provide a 360-degree view of its surrounding. Ispace has its own version of the 21st century where it believes in creating a place on the moon. Japan plans to send their first man to live on the moon by 2030 as a part of their international mission.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1110
__label__cc	0.536521	0.463479	Category: The Bridge (IWAP) Swing Jumping I was scrolling through Slevomat, a Czech website that offers discounts for clothes, restaurants, trips and everything in between. I came across a picture of people in harnesses jumping off a bridge. Intrigued, I clicked on the link that advertised swing jumping. Swing jumping is similar to bungee jumping. The jumper’s harness is connected to a rope that is tied to a bridge. When you bungee jump the rope is tied to the same side of the bridge that you are jumping from and you fall straight down and the elastic rope causes the jumper to ‘bounce’ at the bottom. The rope is connected to the jumper’s feet and they jump headfirst and ‘land’ upside down. Swing jumping is different because the rope is connected to the opposite side of the bridge and the rope is connected to the jumper’s abdomen. So after the jump, one remains upright and swings from one side of the bridge to the next like a pendulum. One of the companies that organizes swing jumping is called Adrenaline Space. http://www.adrenalin-space.com/ They offer one jump for 500 CZK which is generally cheaper than bungee jumping, and discounted jumps can be purchased for 350 CZK. If you are experienced and want to jump more than once it only costs 1,250 CZK to jump three times. They also say that if you throw up while jumping they’ll give you a free turn! The location for the jump is near Brno, on Stropešínský Bridge which is 25 meters high. It is very difficult to get to without a car. Since I enjoyed a safe dose of adrenaline and had done some cliff jumping in the past, I bought two jumps and set a date two months away. One was for me and the other for my boyfriend, who had done zip-lining but no bridge jumping. He seemed way more nervous than me but that changed as time passed and it got closer to the actual jump. I began to dread the day and had to convince myself that this was a good idea. When we arrived at the bridge, all it took was one look down for me to decide that I wasn’t jumping. My boyfriend laughed at me and said he’d jump twice. The friendly staff began to strap him into the harness and he was asking whether he could jump down the bridge head first. They told him to jump normally the first time and head first the second. They had three people jumping at the same time on the count of three. Everyone’s smiles and excitement seemed to fade once they were told to climb onto the other side of the bridge and stand with their back towards the flowing river. They were told to push off as far as they could, jumping backwards and then grabbing onto the part of the rope closest to the harness. The group jump and countdown made it hard to hesitate and everyone jumped, screaming at first and then whooping once the rope caught and they swung above the water. Once the swinging stopped the jumpers were slowly lowered down onto a boat. On the second jump, my boyfriend tried to jump head first but got too scared. He said it was scarier the second time and explained in fascination that he had no recollection of either of the moments where he jumped before the rope caught. He was ecstatic and said he’d probably do it again. I was excited for him but was happy with my decision not to jump. There’s a difference between excited fear and dread and no one should force themselves to do something that they don’t want to. Full address: Stropešínský most na Dalešické přehradě 675 55 Stropešín GPS: 49,164410 16,076678 Author olenakaguiPosted on July 16, 2015 June 9, 2018 Categories The Bridge (IWAP)Tags Prague, Slevomat, Swing JumpingLeave a comment on Swing Jumping Ukraine 2014 – Life During Crisis It was volunteers who did the most at the protest, but politicians were necessary too, especially to help get people out of jail. The politicians also offered the protesters organization and helped them raise their demands. But although some politicians tried, “politicians couldn’t lead the revolution.” The crisis in Ukraine began on November 21st, when the former president, Yanukovych had refused to sign an agreement with the EU that he had been promising to sign for over a year. He wanted instead to form closer ties with Russia. Students went out to Independence Square known as Maidan, to protest. The police used violence to disperse them, which brought a lot more people out onto the streets. More and more gathered to protest, and stood there through freezing temperatures and violent conditions. They are still standing there today until there are a new government and order in Ukraine. I applied for a grant from the Prague Freedom Foundation to go make a difference in Ukraine. In Ukraine, I spoke to Olga, Irina and Eduard. Their stories were originally published on my blog, http://www.olenakaguiukraine2014.wordress.com. Olga: Olga Azzuz, a dentist at one of the field hospitals describes what happened in Kiev as “the scream of the soul of the nation.” In her opinion it is important for Ukrainians to deal with this issue by themselves, however, “if the West can help out, then they should.” She spoke coldly about Yanukovych and his people, calling them bandits. She said that they “traded their bandit clothing for suits when Yanukovych was elected and stole money from the nation.” They then put this stolen money into Western banks. “They confused their own pockets with the nation’s pocket,” she said. At the beginning people just wanted to go talk to those in power, “but when people went to the government, their way was blocked,” which angered them. According to her, there is no proof that it was the protesters who started the violence but violence did begin after almost 3 months of peaceful protesting. A lot of outrage came when the government enforced strict laws against protesting. Azzuz was particularly angry about this, saying “If we continued to live that way (following those laws) we would live as slaves in a dog house on a leash, seeing the sky only through bars.” Before the protests even began, inflation was getting really bad; people could no longer afford food. After rent and food were taken care of, they had no extra money to spend on clothes or anything else. The gap between the poor and the rich expanded. This revolution was a revolution of educated and intelligent people who had diplomas, who ran their own businesses, explains Azzuz, “it was the people who had something in their lives and wanted to defend it.” These protesters had no rights in the eyes of the government, and that was the problem. The amazing thing about Maidan was that the self-organized volunteers came where they were needed. They would do whatever they were capable of to show support – cook, fight, draw, speak or pray. All the necessary ‘positions’ were filled by people who had those particular skills. The volunteers would meet and they greeted each other like family. There was a real sense of unity. Azzuz then told me that everyone at Maidan worked together to keep it clean. When it snowed, they would clear snow from the paths and use the snow to build and enforce barricades. At one point the garbage collectors refused to come to Maidan. So the protesters gathered all the trash, filled up several cars and brought the trash bags straight to the dump. They demanded that next time the trash collectors came, and they began coming regularly again. There was a big problem with taking protesters to hospitals because the Berkut would stop ambulances and harass the injured – Azzuz’s word of choice to describe Berkut’s behavior was “sadistic”. So volunteers decided to organize their own field hospitals and used regular passenger cars to transport the injured to protect them. A lot of the patients who were stopped by Berkut were never seen again. There was one particular patient who Azzuz treated; he had very serious injuries, broken teeth, ripped lip and broken bones in his face around his nose and eyes. He told her that a Berkut officer was beating him in the face yelling “I will rip your head off.” He was one of the patients who a random stranger took to a hospital in his car. Azzuz called hospital after hospital asking about him. He had lost his passport and they hadn’t had time to give him fresh clothes before they had to run, and she was very worried about him. After very many phone calls, she reached a nurse who told her he was recovering from surgery to reconstruct his face. She reassured her that they are taking care of getting him a new passport and had been given clothes that were donated to the hospital. Azzuz thanked her and was relieved to hear that at least his story had ended well, considering the circumstances. During those times, any good news added a little hope and pointed towards a better future. Irina: “We are women but we can still help, at least morally,” said Irina, who’s been working in the Cossack kitchen for three months. She is a student in Kiev and when I asked her why she came, she looked at me like it was a crazy question, “all my people are here… I live here so I’m going to stand here until the end.” I asked her if she was scared. “Sometimes,” she said, “especially that night.” She referred to the night when Berkut stormed Maidan. But she didn’t let her fear stop her from doing what she believed was right. She found a way to help her people, like everyone else at Maidan. Politicians and their parties are often mentioned when people speak about Maidan, but they usually have a hidden (or a not so hidden) agenda, it is ordinary people like Irina who are the true heroes of Ukraine. Eduard: I really wanted to speak to the Afghan war veterans, who were very active at the protests. But the man who had the authority to speak for them wasn’t there yet. So Eduard Kryhov offered to tell me his story and show me one of the field hospitals. He was in and out of Maidan since it began, alternating between spending time with his wife outside of Kiev, and living in the veteran tent. He helped out a lot at one of the medical points, and one night, they were told that Berkut was about to storm them. He has had a knee problem at the time and knew he wasn’t able to help carry injured men out to safety. Instead, he grabbed a hand-grenade and walked up to where the Berkut could see him. The 64-year-old man showed them what he was holding and said, “Look at me; I have seen all there is to see, I don’t care anymore, if you come in here, we will all die together.” The Berkut did not attack the medical point; Kryhov had saved several lives with his bravery. Kryhov took me to one of the field hospitals at Maidan, where people were still coming to get treated. One man needed stitches removed from his lip and eyebrow, he looked badly beaten. Others came to get dental work done, or to treat a fever or a sprained arm. Kryhov took me into an empty room, made me some tea, offered me bread and showed me pictures of his friends and asked me to put them online. He told me about how he used to live in Prague 9 and Brno and about his wife. He made me see what everyone meant by Maidan uniting people when we parted ways we hugged each other like old friends. I was very lucky to meet such a wonderful and kind man. He had helped save the country not once but twice – first in Afghanistan and now at Maidan. He taught me that one person can make all the difference in the world. This post was updated on June 14th, 2018: the text, as well as title and headline, may have been edited, proofread and optimized for search engines. The featured image may have been changed due to copyright or quality issues. Author olenakaguiPosted on July 18, 2014 Categories The Bridge (IWAP), UkraineTags Eduard Kryhov, Euromaidan, Interview, Kiev, Maidan, Maidan Nezaleznosti, Olga Azzuz, Politics, Ukraine war, War in Ukraine, YanukovychLeave a comment on Ukraine 2014 – Life During Crisis Ukraine – Life During Crisis The crisis in Ukraine began on November 21st, when the former president, Yanukovych had refused to sign an agreement with the EU that he had been promising to sign for over a year. He wanted instead to form closer ties with Russia. Students went out to Independence Square known as Maidan, to protest. The police used violence to disperse them, which brought a lot more people out onto the streets. More and more gathered to protest, and stood there through freezing temperatures and violent conditions. They are still standing there today, until there is a new government and order in Ukraine. I applied for a grant from the Prague Freedom Foundation to go make a difference in Ukraine. In Ukraine I spoke to Olga, Irina and Eduard. Their stories were originally published on my blog, blog, http://www.olenakaguiukraine2014.wordress.com At the beginning people just wanted to go talk to those in power, “but when people went to the government, their way was blocked,” which angered them. According to her there isno proof that it was the protesters who started the violence but violence did begin after almost 3 months of peaceful protesting. A lot of outrage came when the government enforced strict laws against protesting. Azzuz was particularly angry about this, saying “If we continued to live that way (following those laws) we would live as slaves in a dog house on a leash, seeing the sky only through bars.” Before the protests even began, inflation was getting really bad; people could no longer afford food. After rent and food was taken care of, they had no extra money to spend on clothes or anything else. The gap between the poor and the rich expanded. It was volunteers who did the most at the protest, but politicians were necessary too, especially to help get people out of jail. The politicians also offered the protesters organization, and helped them raise their demands. But although some politicians tried, “politicians couldn’t lead the revolution.” He was in and out of Maidan since it began, alternating between spending time with his wife outside of Kiev, and living in the veteran tent. He helped out a lot at one of the medical points, and one night, they were told that Berkut was about to storm them. He was had a knee problem at the time and knew he wasn’t able to help carry injured men out to safety. Instead he grabbed a hand-grenade and walked up to where the Berkut could see him. The 64-year-old man showed them what he was holding and said, “Look at me; I have seen all there is to see, I don’t care anymore, if you come in here, we will all die together.” The Berkut did not attack the medical point; Kryhov had saved several lives with his bravery. Kryhov took me to one of the field hospitals at Maidan, where people were still coming to get treated. One man needed stitches removed from his lip and eyebrow, he looked badly beaten. Others came to get dental work done, or to treat a fever or a sprained arm. Kryhov took me into an empty room, made me some tea, offered me bread and showed me pictures of his friends and asked me to put them online. He told me about how he used to live in Prague 9 and Brno and about his wife. He made me see what everyone meant by Maidan uniting people, when we parted ways we hugged each other like old friends. I was very luck to meet such a wonderful and kind man. He had helped save the country not once but twice – first in Afghanistan and now at Maidan. He taught me that one person can make all the difference in the world. Author olenakaguiPosted on July 18, 2014 June 13, 2018 Categories The Bridge (IWAP), UkraineTags Politics, Ukraine, Ukraine warLeave a comment on Ukraine – Life During Crisis The Bumpy Road to International Love in Prague The ever-growing cosmopolitan city of Prague is home to lots of international cuisine, culture and most of all people who truly are from all over the world. It is no surprise to encounter mix-raced children, a group of friends speaking in several languages at once, and international couples and families. Being an international couple takes a lot of work, from deciding what meal to cook, what language to speak, what day to celebrate Christmas on, or whether to celebrate it at all. The Bumpy Road to International Love was originally posted in The Bridge, a magazine belonging to the International Women’s Association of Prague. Kimberli Jo Lewis, from Rhode Island, USA met her husband in Germany. Joachim, born in Wuppertal Germany, was first introduced to Kimberli at work. Because their official first meeting Germany very brief, Kimberli considers their first meeting to be in Mallorca Spain in May 1997. As if the beach and warm weather wasn’t enough to bring two people together, the two bonded as they participated in a jeep rally together. Joachim was in lucky because “he was the only person in the event that spoke Spanish,” Kimberli says, “I actually wanted to go in (his) jeep, not because I wanted to meet him. I thought it would give us an advantage!” After a busy few months of little contact, they ran into each other at a Christmas market. Santa must have teamed up with Cupid that December because as the two sat down together and drank German Mulled Wine or Glüwein they realized that “it was meant to be”. Their globally scattered family and friends complicated their wedding planning and resulted in a plan to have a secret wedding in the Chapel at the Monte Carlo in Las Vegas. Arriving at the Chapel ready for a private July wedding in 1999, Kimberli and Joachim were surprised by 35 friends and family members from the U.S. and Europe – turns out Kimberli’s best friend in California had figured it out and organized for everyone to come. “So much for keeping secrets” exclaims Kimberli. But the surprise was welcomed and the wedding was beautiful. Although she and Joachim kept a double household, Kimberli returned to Prague in 2007 and they spent most of their time here. Kimberli started and registered a business in Prague and likes it because it is “small enough to meet a lot of people, but is still a capital”. But being an international couple is hard work – but especially after meeting at a jeep rally – there are no bumps along the road that this couple can’t handle. They juggle four languages in their household (Kimberli’s sister-in-law is Ukrainian and her stepson is half Spanish) and disagree about Christmas traditions. The family is used to coming to agreements about “food, celebrations, cultural habits and even language” explains Kimberli. On his foreign student exchange in China, Dalibor met his wife Ann who was finishing her Masters. They met to practice English and Chinese together and didn’t imagine that a language partnership turning into something more, “it wasn’t my plan or intention” says Dalibor. Ann teases him and calls a ‘cheater’ because she doesn’t believe that her Czech husband just wanted to learn Chinese. Whatever the intention, language lessons led to love and love led to three weddings! Dalibor’s closest family witnessed his official wedding with Ann in the Czech Republic. Then followed by a traditional Chinese wedding in Ann’s homeland. Their third and for now final wedding was back in the Czech Republic and was more traditional – many guests, music and food. As if two weddings in one country didn’t suffice, they also decided to move to the Czech Republic, where Dalibor settled for Prague, which suited Ann’s needs better than his preferred choice: Brno. But Dalibor “really wanted (Ann and him) to be together” and he “took it as a new positive challenge and chance”. Prague proved to be a great home for the international couple. Ann managed to make friends among the big expat communities and now has Chinese friends who live and work here. But it did not go without complications – Ann had a lot of visa problems and “was approached in a very cold and unwelcoming way” says Dalibor, worrying about her first impression of Prague. It took the help of a lawyer and more than 8 months to get temporary residence, which normally takes up to 60 days. Other challenges included differences in culture – such as the Chinese standard of the man being the “sole breadwinner… and his parents should contribute a significant a significant amount of wealth to the new couple”, says Dalibor, in whose culture gender roles are more equal. He also feels for Ann who is so far away from her family and friends. Although Skype is great, it doesn’t replace personal contact and if there is need to urgently visit her family because of a problem, it is extremely difficult if not impossible. They also find differences in how they spend their free time and interactions between strangers. Czechs cannot imagine spending a whole night in a karaoke room singing, and the Chinese have trouble with the closed-off nature of Czechs who don’t just interact and act openly with their neighbors like the Chinese do. After living in China for a year together, even Dalibor find some aspects of Czech culture frustrating. But being n international couple “is immensely enriching”, says Dalibor who has experienced “different culture, different psyche, and different ways of life”. Anna Mazur and her husband Cyrus Skaria met in London. Anna was studying in Warsaw but decided to spend a month in London to learn English, and she met her Indian husband who was finishing his PhD at the University of London. It was love “at 2nd sight” she says smiling. She realized she was in love with him as they ate lunch together in Hyde Park on her second day in London, “I don’t know why but the whole place/situation and him seemed almost magical”. Like in every fairy tale, love led to marriage – the couple got married in India in the same location as Cyrus’s parents 35 years ago. Moving to Prague has “changed everything in our life” explains Anna. She gave up her developing career and moved to a place they didn’t know. What was meant to be temporary has stretched into what is now two years. They left their home, family and friends and started a new life. Although Anna describes Prague as “a wonderful place” she is not sure that it is the best place for an international couple. “It looks like there are two worlds in Prague”, she says, referring to the expat circle and the “outside world”. Her husband especially struggles with the Czech language, and for Anna, who understands it a bit better still finds it her greatest issue saying, “It gives us grief sometimes”. She doesn’t see Czechs as being very friendly, just “sad and tired”, and misses how at home, strangers would greet each other – which isn’t done in Prague. Due to his Indian origin Cyrus is often associated with the Roma and is treated with an attitude, “one lady looked at my husband then at me and then she shook her head with disapproval”. But she still thinks that Prague is a beautiful city and a good place to live, the only downside is interacting with the outside world. For her the struggles of being an international couple started with language, because she wasn’t fluent in English when they met, as well as deciding where to live and settle down, “we live in a country which is not a home country to me nor to my husband” – and they think they will have more such stops in their journey. Wise Words from the Couples: Kimberli believes that being part of an international couple and having an international family “is wonderful (because) it widens your perspectives and exposes you to things you might not experience otherwise”. Her secret to keeping such an international lifestyle is being “flexible and able to compromise”. Multilingual Dalibor and Ann see overcoming challenges as “contributing positively to (their) mutual relationship,” because it requires a “special deal of commitment”. He would like to thank Ann for the three-and-a-half years they spent together – their relationship is helping him become a better man. Anna Muzar didn’t plan on marrying a foreigner and she’s learned a lot about Indian culture, family values, life style and cuisine and sums it up as a “great experience”. She finds the diversity in their family a huge benefit and she hopes that their 3-month-old daughter will one days be multilingual, speaking Polish, English and Hindi. Author olenakaguiPosted on December 20, 2013 Categories Prague, The Bridge (IWAP)Tags International, international couples, International Relationships, interracial couples, Interview, LoveLeave a comment on The Bumpy Road to International Love in Prague The Bumpy Road to International Love After a busy few months of little contact, they ran into each other at a Christmas market. Santa must have teamed up with Cupid that December, because as the two sat down together and drank German Mulled Wine or Glüwein they realized that “it was meant to be”. Their globally scattered family and friends complicated their wedding planning and resulted in a plan to have a secret wedding in the Chapel at the Monte Carlo in Las Vegas. Dalibor’s closest family witnessed his official wedding with Ann in the Czech Republic. Then followed by a traditional Chinese wedding in Ann’s homeland. Their third and for now final wedding was back in the Czech Republic and was more traditional – many guests, music and food. As if two weddings in one country didn’t suffice, they also decided to move to Czech Republic, where Dalibor settled for Prague, which suited Ann’s needs better than his preferred choice: Brno. But Dalibor “really wanted (Ann and him) to be together” and he “took it as a new positive challenge and chance”. Prague proved to be a great home for the international couple. Ann managed to make friends among the big expat communities and now has Chinese friends who live and work here. But it did not go without complications – Ann had a lot of visa problems and “was approached in a very cold and unwelcoming way” says Dalibor, worrying about her first impression of Prague. It took the help of a lawyer and more than 8 months to get temporarily residence, which normally takes up to 60 days. They also find differences in how they spend their free time and interactions between strangers. Czechs cannot imagine spending a whole night in a karaoke room singing, and the Chinese have trouble with the closed-off nature of Czechs who don’t just interact and act open with their neighbors like the Chinese do. After living in China for a year together, even Dalibor find some aspects of Czech culture frustrating. But being n international couple “is immensely enriching”, says Dalibor who has experiences “different culture, different psyche, and different ways of life”. Author olenakaguiPosted on December 20, 2013 June 14, 2018 Categories Love, The Bridge (IWAP)Tags International, International Relationships, LoveLeave a comment on The Bumpy Road to International Love A Quick Trip to Vietnam… Without Leaving Prague Anyone living in Prague today knows that this city is practically littered with Potravinys, Vecerkas and a variety of Vietnamese owned stores and restaurants. The Vietnamese began building a community here during the communist regime in the former Czechoslovakia: they worked in machine-building and light industries while students studied in technical fields, Czech literature, some even puppetry. There were almost 30,000 Vietnamese workers and students living here by the eighties, many of which had left after the Velvet Revolution in 1989. But they began immigrating again to either work here or improve their life or to do business and increase opportunities: by 1994 their community was almost 10,000 strong. Today there are over 60,000 Vietnamese people living in the Czech Republic making them the 3rd biggest minority. Most of them can be found in Prague, where they started a market complex called Sapa, names after a region in northern Vietnam. Along with selling clothes, Asian fruit, vegetables, spices and traditional Vietnamese cuisine, they also hold celebrations and share aspects of their culture to the Czechs and foreign visitors. To a Vietnamese person Sapa is more than just a business, it is a place where they feel welcomed, accepted and at home. According to an article in the Prague Post published on July 11th 2012, the Vietnamese community had increased 292% in the past 10 years. In the last two years this increase in population was mirrored by an increased in Vietnamese cuisine. There was a rise in Chinese bistros that were run by the Vietnamese who began to gradually include national Vietnamese cuisine to the otherwise Chinese menu. A lot of them also changed their names from Chinese to Vietnamese. A big part of the increase in the popularity of Vietnamese food in Prague was Viet Food Friends, a blog launched in November 2011 by Nguyen Mai Huong and Trinh Thuy Duong. At the time of their interview their blog had almost 2,000 Facebook followers. These two Charles University students said that their motivation was to allow the Czechs an opportunity to discover the Vietnamese cuisine, and because it wasn’t easily accessible in the past. They believed that the language barrier between the Czechs and the Vietnamese was the main reason for the lack of Vietnamese cuisine in a country with such a great residing community. Both students came to Prague at a young age and were raised in a tradition Vietnamese way while attending Czech schools; although they speak Czech fluently they still feel very close to what they refer to as their “motherland”. The most popular dishes found in the Czech Republic are pho and bun. Phở is a noodle soup, although the name phở refers to the rice noodles and not the actual soup, other ingredients include beef or chicken, bean sprouts, lime wedges, basil, mint, cilantro, onions and covered with chili or fish sauce. Bún chả is pretty much a cold version of phở and contains grilled pork sausage patties, a variety of herbs, bean sprouts, pickled veggies and nước chấm sauce which is a combination of sweet, sour, salty and spicy. Phở and bún are the most common in the Czech Republic, but there are many other foods that are less known here but are typical in Vietnam. There are a number of other popular dishes, but the ones to keep an eye for in Prague are bahn cam or golden-fried gooey balls speckled with sesame seeds and filled with mung paste which is a sweet bean paste. Then there is banh chung, a special meal eaten during an important Vietnamese celebration Tet, this banana leaf-wrapped parcel is filled with glutinous rice packed with fatty pork and mung bean. Tet is celebrated at the previously mentioned Sapa. Finally there is cap he which is a Vietnamese coffee that is much more of a dessert than a drink. It consists of dark coffee that is sweetened by condensed milk and is mixed up with a raw egg. Vietnamese food is influenced strongly by Chinese cuisine which makes sense because of the proximity between the countries, but also by the French. The French inspired not only Vietnamese coffee but also their many baguette dishes that are filled with traditional Vietnamese ingredients such as vegetables, herbs, spices, fish, meat and of course nước chấm sauce. The best places in Prague to experience some of these above mentioned dishes are Pho on Slavikova 1 next to Jirocho s Podebrad park in Prague 3. Here you can sample pho, bun, fried spring-rolls and non-fried salad-rolls, but be aware that there is nowhere to sit, people come here to eat quickly and eat at standing tables or take good to go. If you are looking for a more traditional restaurant with a much higher variety of meals is Red Hot Chilli at Krizikova 123/69 in Karlin. After I finished my meal, the waitress offered me the special Vietnamese coffee that was previously mentioned. Another nice restaurant can be found in Vinohrady on Slezka 57 called Ha Noi. They also have a nice variety of dishes and incredibly cheap prices. “To be honest I do not feel Vietnamese at all” says Trang Dao, a second generation Vietnamese who was born and raised in the Czech Republic. “My whole life, I grew up with the habit and the culture of this country” she says when talking about going to a Czech school until the end of middle school. Her parents taught her Vietnamese culture at home but she still “feel(s) more Czech” she “could not imagine moving to Vietnam and live there”. For her Vietnam is a “completely different world”. Author olenakaguiPosted on October 24, 2013 June 14, 2018 Categories Asia Travels, Food, Interview, The Bridge (IWAP), travelTags Prague, Sapa, Sapa district, Sapa market, Vietnam, Vietnam in Prague, Vietnamese CuisineLeave a comment on A Quick Trip to Vietnam… Without Leaving Prague Flying with Germanwings – Europe Travel When I decided to spend a few days of my summer vacation visiting my friend in Germany, I knew there were several different options for getting there: by car, bus or train. Looking for the cheapest one I stumbled upon Germanwings, a German airline offering roundtrip tickets for 1,500 CZK. Flying with Germanwings was originally posted in The Bridge, a magazine belonging to the International Women’s Association of Prague. Travel in Europe has never been easier or cheaper! I didn’t believe it at first, but I took my chances filling in all the information, booking almost 3 months in advance and was surprised that with only hand luggage and no meal on board, the tickets did truly cost only 1,500, with an additional cost of 222 CZK for online paying; which was cheaper than any of the other options of getting all the way to Cologne/Bonn. The additional cost of bringing a suitcase or choosing the seats and a meal was also relatively cheap. Expecting the worst sort of plane imaginable for the low price of the flight I was positively surprised by a very nice plane, looking just like a regular CSA plane, and I was even more surprised by a timely boarding and an on the dot arrival at the Cologne/Bonn airport. At my destination airport, I saw that Germanwings was indeed very popular in Germany and they had a whole section of the 1st terminal just for the Germanwings airline and they had planes taking off almost every 30 minutes. Although the boarding was delayed by 30 minutes on my way back to Prague, the plane just flew faster and reached Prague in 55 minutes, a whole 20 minutes less than it took to fly to Germany. Most of the flights that Germanwings makes are around Europe, but you can also find flights to other continents, although only the ones around Europe are at such low prices. When I booked this flight, I also agreed to get emails about last minute offers that the airline had to offer. Although I have yet to book one of these flights, I am definitely very pleased with discovering them and will definitely use them in the future. Next time you have a trip in mind, I recommend that you check out Germanwings because they might offer just what you’re looking for at a much lower price than expected! Author olenakaguiPosted on October 30, 2012 June 14, 2018 Categories The Bridge (IWAP), Travel in EuropeTags Bonn, Cologne, Germanwings, Germany, Review, travelLeave a comment on Flying with Germanwings – Europe Travel	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1111
__label__cc	0.531714	0.468286	Aug 25, 2016 : Linda Vance Uncategorized Shackleton on Annapurna… It’s a stinking hot late summer day and I’m thrashing uphill through chin-high vegetation in a steep and seemingly endless avalanche chute on the Montana-Idaho border, telling myself “This is good practice for the Appalachian Trail” even though I know the conditions aren’t even close. But it keeps me going. It’s a pep talk thing. Having to hike as part of my work, I have lots of days of saying to myself “Wow, I can’t believe I get paid to do this,” but also plenty days where I grumble “They don’t pay me enough to be stumbling through swarms of biting flies in this grizzly-ridden, God-forsaken, crumbling talus.” That’s where the pep talk comes in, when I get tired of my own complaints, and just need to slap my own whining mouth. Enter Ernest Shackleton. In 1915, his ship, the Endurance, got frozen in the ice off Antarctica. That began a 16-month survival epic that culminated with Shackleton and a skeleton crew navigating an open boat through the icy waters of the South Atlantic to South Georgia Island, where he and two of his remaining crew attached screws to their boots, and with a 50-foot rope and a carpenter’s adze, made a winter crossing of the island’s mountains to reach a whaling station on the other side. It was a feat so difficult that it wasn’t duplicated until a fully-equipped mountaineering team made the trip in 1955. So sometimes, when I start fussing about a trail being too steep, or the day too cold, or my feet too sore, or not having had enough food, I mutter to myself “Remember Shackleton.” But as much as he provides me with company in my misery, Shackleton’s story gives me more of a push than a pull. The pull comes when I’m looking forward to something, and getting ready to tackle it. A few years ago, I followed a long-time dream to trek the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal, whose high point is the 17,700 foot Thorang La pass. For a good year before that trip, there was no slope steep enough to merit a whine; all I had to do was whisper to myself, “Annapurna.” This year, it’s the prospect of the AT, not as epic in height, but as difficult in its own way. It’s kind of a play on an exasperated parent who finally thunders “Stop your crying or I’ll give you something to really cry about!” except that it lightens my step and keeps me going, feeling like this will somehow make it easier to do that, even though it’s months out, and I a different part of the world. I’ll load my Kindle with a copy of Endurance, the story of Shackleton’s voyage, to bring with me on the AT next year. But maybe I should start planning a 2018 PCT or CDT hike while I’m at it, so I can have both the push and the pull things going. What do other people do to keep themselves going when the going gets tough? I’d like to hear your tips. Aug 25th : Linda Vance Linda Vance's Bio Hey everyone! I'm Linda, a 65-year old research ecologist who had a plan to retire and trade field work for hiking. But you know what they say about the best-laid plans.... So instead, I'll be starting a flip flop the first week in April, and then will take a little time off after Maine to collect baseline data on fire-affected wetlands in Montana. I know, it's a tough life. I'm looking forward to the Trail, but sometimes I wonder exactly why I need to spend so much of my life sleeping on the ground.	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1112
__label__cc	0.579783	0.420217	ESSAY: The Poetics of Space: The Ethics of Site-Specific Poetry by Cosmo Spinosa I have always been fascinated by ruins. Not just ruins, not just what has fallen out of use and has been abandoned, but what happens to those places called ruins after they have been abandoned that makes them ruins–the reclamation of nature, the manicured structures, lawns, and roadways disintegrating, the rust, the crumbling asphalt, and the trespass. That land is developed, planned out, built on, and then vacated, sometimes for no reason at all, and then is left to the elements. The chain link rusts away creating its own barbs, weeds and plants grow uninhibited over old buildings, people break into what used to be a barracks or a basement or a walk-in refrigerator and use those spaces however they want. The abandoned structures often become the raw material for my poetry, a study of decay. I am thinking specifically of a space that I would like to say that I have come to know well but that I no longer visit. Most of my writing comes from recalling a place and meditating on it after the edges have become dull and I only have brief and flashing memories of it. I let the unfocused details enter my poetry because they are probably misremembered for the better. That meditation on a space after it loses the details that position it within a historical, social, and political reality, that erases specificity and allows for generic and abstract meditation is what I will term non-specific site poetry. Under this umbrella, there exist other types of poetries–ecopoetics, “nature” poetry, the poetry of the everyday, and many others. What concerns me in this essay, however, is site-specific poetry–that poetry that is written with visible signifiers of a specific site, which takes into account its history, social factors, and other realities. One main differentiation between the writing of a specific site versus a non-specific one is the naming of it. As soon as I name the space that I write about, it is immediately put in dialogue with all other writings of that space. It has a different weight and significance than the writing of a non-specific site. The sort of writing that comes out of site-specific poetry has to take into consideration much more than its counterpart. Likewise, the writing around these spaces must be dealt with in an ethical way, as I will talk about later on. The place that I’m naming now is the Alameda Naval Air Station. If you look at a map of the island of Alameda (a human-made island), you’ll see that the Naval Air Station covers about half of the land in Alameda. This land is and has been largely unused for many years now. Today its uses are primarily industrial, but it also contains low income housing and some other civic structures. However, to a person visiting this place for the first time, the Naval Air Station appears to be a ruins. Let me briefly recount the history of this place as I have researched it. The Alameda Naval Air Station was originally a marshland. The land was bought and developed into an airport. Around WWII, the government seized the land and turned it into a base. In the 90s, the base was shut down and the government made promises to give the land back to the county. The land is currently undergoing remediation because of jet fuel and other contaminants found in the soil. This is a rough outline of the base’s history, focusing not on the political or social connotations, nor on the people who have lived there, but on the land itself. Though it now houses people and businesses, the base is, for the most part, still unkept and largely abandoned. The housing I mentioned above is usually placed right alongside decrepit, caved in apartment complexes with fences all around them. The businesses are hedged along with huge and unused airplane hangars. As you have probably already put together, there are many social, economic, and political implications to this place I have called a ruins, and I admit that I am ignorant of many of these implications, other than knowing that they do exist. Calling this place a ruins, as I did initially, is a generalization. To someone studied in other fields, there is a whole slew of issues attached to this place. On my first few visits there, I remained naive to those problems. My original intention in visiting the Naval Air Station was to write a collaborative project concerning place, coupled with photos of the base taken by an ex-girlfriend, who is also a poet, photographer, and friend. We walked around parts of the base together, and she took photos of whatever interested her while I tried to remember the details and the affect of the place we were wandering around. We walked, mostly silently, for about two hours, taking pictures, noting landmarks and their decay, and trying to understand what this place was and what it had been. Most of the details that I gathered then no longer register as memory, but what I do remember from that day is a deep sense of loss and sadness. I don’t know why, but for hours after visiting the base, it seemed that Sarah and I hardly spoke a word to each other. It hangs in the air, this sadness for a place, a long time after, as if it had entered into you. It is almost like visiting a cemetery or a church, that though you are abstracted from its significance, not believing in that religion anymore or having any dead there, you are still drawn into the trope of its meaning and can’t help but feel its lingering effects. What, specifically, is the trope of this place? And why do we feel its lingering presence during our visits there and after leaving it? When the photos were developed in black and white, streaks of light and what looked like fog crowded around the pictures’ subjects, as though the haunting presence that we felt had pressed down on the film itself. And it is hard not to make a connection that people have died here, that bodies may have been dumped here after it was abandoned, and that the land itself and its history is somehow damaged. I revisited the base alone many times afterwards, and with each trip it became more clear why it felt so haunting to me the first time around. Even without death, without violence, or any other thing that may be lurking psychically in the base, there is the fact of the land and people. The land has been damage to the point that it is ruined for use. It is ruined for its original function as a marshland, which with its indigenous flora and fauna, functions as a cleaning system for the waterways. It has been ruined for use by the city that houses it because of the pollution and waste that has been dumped into it by the federal government. Moreover, and more important than any of this, it is a depressed area, and the people who do live in it are constantly accosted by the fact of its ruin, having to live in the midst of decaying and abandoned apartment complexes that could so simply be rectified and turned into a community, if not for all the red tape. It is a depressed area that very few people even know of, overshadowed by the wealth, success, and privilege of the rest of the city of Alameda. All of these factors, and many more, haunt this place. Entering into this place, I had no idea of what it signified socially, economically, politically, or otherwise, and had to educate myself about it. I am writing this as a privileged outsider and can only grasp peripherally the complications of the space that I am attempting to address. This is, perhaps, the whole point of writing this essay at all. We often enter into a space not knowing what it signifies, like when driving into the Oakland hills, we find ourselves in a redwood forest where we can no longer hear the sound of cars and people and the busy life of the city at its foot. Sometimes it is unsettling and sometimes it is beautiful. Sometimes what we had been so quick to pass off as ruins are filled with people living and working and trying to make a better life for themselves. Space is full of these variables that make it both: both a ruins and a home and the site of a marshland as well as the site that housed a nuclear submarine at one time. There are always histories to be uncovered in space, and always something more to find there. It is nearly impossible to consider all of these variables and complexities at once. The base is simply one illustration of how these varied histories simultaneously exist. Writing into a specific place, one is taking part in the history of it. And at times, this means taking part in the violence of rewriting its history. Space becomes an open signifier and our writing of it is a way to engage with its multiplicities. And though when we make the poetic choice of privileging one aspect of this signifier over another, of writing into space as it relates with language, ecology, the everyday, or any other coinciding theme that can be read alongside space, those alternative themes and poetries linger within our writing as a trace. Not only are we writing into the history of space when we choose to write about a specific landmark or site, but we are also writing into the writing of that landmark or site. The naming of a space, and the subsequent writing around it, is an action that has to be weighed ethically. When I write about a tree by a lake, this tree and lake has the privilege of anonymity. There are no markers that signal to the reader that this tree or lake are infused with a social reality or are attached to a specific space. When I write about the overgrown hedges and weeds crawling up the side of a former barracks at the Naval Air Station, this image is additionally charged with the significance of the space that I address. I am not saying that one is better and one is worse, only that with the specificity and naming of a space comes all of the complexities that may be attached to it. Perhaps the reason that my project about the base was ultimately a failure was precisely because of the complexities that it embodies. I went looking for a ruins and found something that was partially that and partially a history and a site where people lived and worked and still do, and so much more. Perhaps it was my failure or lack of skill at being able to rectify all of the various functions that this space serves. Perhaps I realized after my ten or fifteen visits to this place that I did not fully understand the stakes of writing about a space that was so complex. It is easy to turn a blind eye to the intricacies of a place, to make it mean what you want it to mean, to commit the violence of rewriting space as something you see, and not the reality of what it is. It is easy to tell partial truths. But addressing a specific site asks us to be judicious towards it, to attempt to represent it as best we can for its complexities, and not to generalize or belittle it, to consider the lives, the meanings, and the struggles that come along with it, and to be truthful to them. Cosmo Spinosa lives in Oakland. His poetry is forthcoming in Barrelhouse and has appeared in Peacock, Aries, and Vertebrae, among others. His critical work has appeared on The Volta. He holds an MFA in Poetry from Mills College. Written by Housten Donham Posted in Cosmo Spinosa, Essay August 26, 2015 - 10:34 am direcleit Reblogged this on Pàdruig's Woven Words and commented: An interesting article with direct relevance to my ‘poems in place’ project: Leave a Reply to direcleit Cancel reply REVIEW: Demon Miso/Fashion in Child by Joseph Mosconi REVIEW: King Me by Roger Reeves	cc/2019-30/en_head_0002.json.gz/line1113

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